Finnish metal band Altaria has posted the following updates on their website:

Altaria has parted ways with record company Metal Heaven and is currently negotiating a new contract. Material for the fourth album, which earlier was scheduled to be released in 2007, is basically ready just waiting to be recorded and unleashed upon the world this year.

In the aftermath of this split bass player Marko Pukkila decided to quit. Altaria will not look for a replacement and the bass will as of now be handled by Marco Luponero who in his previous band Terrorwheel also held the position as bassist/vocalist. Rehearsals have shown that the band now is working better than ever as a solid and creative unit and the Altaria-camp is very exited about everything going on in the "History Of Times To Come."

Source:	altariamusic.com
Band profile:	Altaria

The Swedish Metal Awards were held Saturday Night 26 January at the Grand Hotel in Falkenberg, Sweden. Almost 59,000 fans voted in the 2007 awards, and following is a list of the winners:

Hard-rock Category: Hardcore Superstar - Dreamin' In A Casket
Death Metal Category: Arch Enemy - Rise Of The Tyrant
Heavy/Power Metal Category: Sabaton - Metalizer
Glam/Sleazy Category: Crashdiet - Unattractive Revolution
Punk/Hardcore Category: Dia Psalma - Djupa Skogen
Metal Category: Pain - Psalms Of Extinction
Alternative Metal Category: Dark Tranquillity - Fiction
Best Newcomers Category: Sonic Syndicate
Best Live Act Category: Europe
Best Foreign Hard-rock Category: Nightwish - Dark Passion Play
Best Foreign Metal Category: Machine Head - The Blackening
Best Foreign Live Act Category: W.A.S.P.

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Source:

agonyzone.com

Kamelot have posted the following update: "After cancellation of Visions Of Atlantis, we are happy to announce the new opening band Forever Slave from Spain on upcoming European Tour 2008. Welcome boys & girl!"

More info on Gothic Metal band Forever Slave at http://www.foreverslave.com and http://www.myspace.com/foreverslavemusic.

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Source:	kamelot.com
Band profile:	Forever Slave
Event:	Ghost Opera European Tour Part II

US Post-Thrash/Groove Metallers Byzantine have issued the following statement:

"In regards to the current state of Byzantine: As of today (Saturday, January 26) Byzantine is no longer a functioning band. Due to various circumstances the band will not be touring or performing together. We would like to first thank everyone that has supported this band throughout the years. You are the people that really made everything worthwhile and we are amazed at the wonderful response we have had from all of you. Because of you, we were part of something special and without you none of this would have been possible. Next, we would like to thank all the kickass bands that we have played shows with and hung out with. These were good times that we won't soon forget. It's with heavy hearts that we move on from this. Sincerely, from all of us in Byzantine, thank you so very much for the great experience that this was. Stay metal everyone. Montani Semper Liberi."

More info and downloads at this location.

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Source:

myspace.com

American metallers Iced Earth, is seeking a deeply passionate and motivated bass guitarist to complete the band's touring lineup for the 2008 tour season. The band posted the following requirements for the potential applicants:

If you have the chops to join Jon Schaffer and Brent Smedley in metal's most bulletproof rhythm section, read on.

Applicants must possess the following:

01. A demonstrated ability to play with impeccable timing and accuracy.
02. A commanding stage presence that bleeds intensity, aggression, and emotion.
03. Confidence in themselves but also a willingness to be a team player.
04. Proficiency in finger-style playing with some picking experience.
05. Residency in the United States (Midwest residence is a bonus, but not required).
06. A familiarity with the Iced Earth catalog.
07. A flexible work schedule, as this is not an offer for a full-time band position. However, should you land the gig and exceed our expectations in 2008, an opportunity for further collaboration on tour and in the studio will certainly be considered.

Applicants should submit the following:

01. A demo video on DVD is preferred, but an audio CD or cassette tape of your performance is also acceptable.
02. A photo of yourself if you do not submit a demo in video format.
03. A brief biography outlining your experience and gear setup.
04. Contact address, e-mail address, and phone number should we wish to interview you further.

Before we outline the format of your demo submission, know that, we are not interested in listening to a fully produced recording. Do not send us only a finished CD release from any band that you have played with. We cannot judge your level of timing and accuracy if you send us a recording that's been mixed and produced.

A simple live home video or audio recording on a CD/cassette tape that documents your playing is all we need to know if you possess the finely-tuned skills we require. This, in addition to any recording of a live performance will be a plus in telling us what we need to know.

The following is what is required for further consideration:

01. A recording of you sitting down by yourself and playing live along to a click-track.
02. Playing a minimum of 4 songs of varying tempos from Iced Earth or a combination of songs from Iced Earth and legendary bands such as Iron Maiden, Black Sabbath or Rush. Pick well-known songs with challenging bass lines.

Please send your bio and demo materials in video or audio format to:

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Source:	icedearth.com
Band profile:	Iced Earth

Mercenary's upcoming album "Architect Of Lies" will be released on:

- Monday, March 17th, 2008 (Denmark)
- Friday, March 21st, 2008 (Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Benelux, Italy)
- Monday, March 24th, 2008 (UK, France, Norway, Rest Of Europe)
- Tuesday, March 25th, 2008 (Spain, Portugal)
- March 26th, 2008 (Sweden, Finland, Hungary)

Total playing time is 52:03 and the Album cover art can be viewed at this location.

Album tracklist:

01. New Desire
02. Bloodsong
03. Embrace The Nothing
04. This Black And Endless Never
05. Isolation (The Loneliness In December)
06. The Endless Fall
07. Black And Hollow
08. Execution Style
09. I Am Lies
10. Public Failure Number One

The band has also been confirmed to support Megadeth on the following select dates:

08.02.2008 (DK) - Copenhagen @ KB Hallen
10.02.2008 (D) - Berlin @ Columbiahalle
11.02.2008 (D) - Dortmund @ Westfalenhalle
10.03.2008 (D) - Munich @ Zenith
11.03.2008 (D) - Neu-Isenburg @ Hugenottenhalle

Mercenary's guitarist Jakob Mølbjerg has issued the following statement in connection to the album and upcoming concerts:

"Hell yeah! What better way to kick off 2008 and preparing for our new album-release than getting out on the road with the almighty Megadeth? What a blast! We will be playing five shows with the Godfathers of Thrash during February and March, and four of the shows are even as direct support. This is an immense honour for us and a dream come true, as Megadeth has always been a great source of inspiration, as well as one of the main reasons I ever picked up a guitar in the first place. So check the new tourdates and prepare to 'Embrace the Nothing,' the new track on our MySpace profile . See you all out there on the Killing Roads!"

In other news, the band is looking for extras for their upcoming video. And the following has been posted on their website:

Do you have a special face? A face that stands out in the crowd.
Then you might be one of the persons we're looking for.

Mercenary is shooting video for the first single on their upcoming album "Architect of Lies" to be released in late March.

Some things we're looking for in you:
(both woman and men - old and young)

1: A beautiful face, nice eyes or nice body.

2: A special face. Someone you remember. Maybe a scar that makes you special or another feature that makes you stand out in a crowd

3: A special body feature; tall, short, tattooed, albino etc.

4: Able to do the job on selected days between February 11th and February 18th (2008) in Aalborg - DK.

Read more ››

Source:	mercenary.dk
Band profile:	Mercenary
Event:	Megadeth: European Tour

After the great "Maniacal Renderings" album, the guys around Jon Oliva will put another log on the fire. The new studioalbum "Global Warning" will be released on March 21. The first audio samples announce another brilliant album of the band, based around the voice of Savatage. If you would like to hear the new material live, you can check out the live show of Jon Oliva's Pain at the following dates (Savatage classics included!):

JON OLIVA'S PAIN TOURDATES

25.04.2008 Haugesund (NO), Karmøygeddon Metal Festival
26.04.2008 Copenhagen (DK), The Rock
28.04.2008 Aschaffenburg (DE), Colos-Saal
29.04.2008 Wien (AT), Planet Music
01.05.2008 Pratteln (CH), Z7
02.05.2008 Piacenza (IT), Fillmore
03.05.2008 Florence (IT), Viper Club
06.05.2008 Vitoria (ES), Azkena
07.05.2008 Madrid (ES), Caracol
08.05.2008 Barcelona (ES), Salamandra 1
10.05.2008 Athens (GR), Gagarin
11.05.2008 Thessaloniki (GR), venue tba
13.05.2008 Essen (DE), Turock
14.05.2008 Tilburg (NL), 013

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Source:	afm-records.de
Band profile:	Jon Oliva's Pain
Event:	Jon Oliva's Pain: European Tour

Iron Maiden are very pleased to announce that Avenged Sevenfold will join them as special guests at Twickenham Stadium on July 5, Paris Bercy July 2 and 3 and a number of dates in Finland and Scandanavia (as listed below) on their "Somewhere Back In Time World Tour."

Following the mighty success of their recent album, "Avenged Sevenfold" (which charted at No 3 in Billboard in the USA and is close to gold in the UK), the band are currently on an extensive sold out UK tour and vocalist M. Shadows comments - "I've seen Maiden play countless times and am continually blown away, not just by their live show, but also by the great records they continue to make. We have learned much from Iron Maiden and are honored to be sharing the stage with some of the greatest icons in rock music."

Maiden Manager Rod Smallwood comments: "Its a tremendous time for Metal fans right now with some fantastic young bands making a real mark for themselves. Maiden are delighted to be bringing their fans one of the very best, Avenged Sevenfold, who will be joining them on a number of their European Summer shows. It all adds up to an even more memorable night out for the fans! We will now be considering who will play in the slot before Avenged at Twickenham."

For more information on Ax7 go to their website at http://www.avengedsevenfold.com.

The dates on which Ax7 special guest with Maiden are as follows:

JUNE
Fri 27 - ITA, Bologna Parco Nord Gods of Metal
Sun 29 - BEL, Dessel Graspop

JULY
Tue 1 - FRA, Paris Palais Omnisports de Bercy
Wed 2 - FRA, Paris Palais Omnisports de Bercy
Sat 5 - ENG, London Twickenham
Wed 16 - SWE, Stockholm Stadium
Fri 18 - FIN, Helsinki Olympic Stadium
Sat 19 - FIN, Tampere Ratina Stadium
Tue 22 - NOR, Trondheim Lerkendalstadium
Thu 24 - NOR, Oslo Valle Hovin
Sat 26 - SWE, Gothenburg Ullevi
Sun 27 - DEN, Horsens Gods Bane Pladsen

Read more ››

Source:	ironmaiden.com
Band profile:	Iron Maiden

As posted by the band's website:

Hardcore Superstar's guitar player Thomas Silver announced yesterday that he is tired of music and touring. He will leave the band immediately. All the band members accept his decision respectfully and they are separating as best friends.

Hardcore Superstar continues the successful world tour with the temporary guitar player Vic Zino from the band Crazy Lixx. Hardcore Superstar are now looking for a permanent guitar player.

Source:	hardcoresuperstar.com
Band profile:	Hardcore Superstar

Statement by Nienke

Dear all,

Leaving Autumn feels like severing one of my precious limbs; an extraordinarily painful event. As you've read, a mixture of feelings has led to this decision. At some point in the past year, my health seriously abandoned me for the first time in my life. As many of you may know, this forced me to pull out of a number shows. Though it felt horrible having to do this, it did force me to reflect on my life, activities and ambitions.

My life has gone through some serious changes in the last couple of years. Together with my partner, I've brought our studio (Graveland Studio) to a higher level, accelerated proceedings with my own band DejaFuse and started writing material for commercials, motion pictures and other artists. I had never dreamt of doing any of these things in such a way that the two of us could end up making a living off it. More and more, it became apparent to me that I was having difficulty combining all these activities in terms of time, energy and that bit of love you have to invest in them. It dawned on me that Autumn, its fans and all people involved in the band sometimes had to settle for less than the 100% dedicated Nienke that I've always been. This began to frustrate me and could in time end up having a negative effect on Autumn as a band.

"So, after nine years , I am closing my chapter of the beautiful book that is Autumn, hoping there'll be many more chapters to come. I am extremely proud of all we have achieved in the past nine years! We've had to overcome many adversities, but at the same time we've experienced more wonderful things than I'd ever thought possible. With the latest album, Autumn has increasingly developed a unique identity and is currently on a creative high. It gives me great joy that the lads wish to proceed along these lines. All the wonderful compositions these gentlemen have got in store for us, should definitely see the light of day.

"For me, a period in time has now arrived in which I can completely focus on Graveland Studio and Dejafuse. A thrilling, but surely positively exiting time, preceded by this sad decision. I would like to thank my boys (Autumn), Patrick (our tour manager), the crew, the fans, our management, booker, record company and everyone I've had the pleasure of meeting, for these nine amazing years. I will forever cherish all the days and hours we've spent together and all the wonderful memories that spring from these. I hope I will get to hang out with you at one of the two farewell shows next month, before I leave the stage...

Read more ››

Source:	autumn-band.com
Band profile:	Autumn

English death metallers Gorerotted have issued the following on the band's myspace blog:

"Gorerotted have parted ways with drummer Jon Rushforth.

It was a hard decision for us to make and it wasn't a personal issue at all. In the end it came down to time commitments and professionalism. You will still be able to hear Jon's drumming skills through his other bands Infected Disarray, Hades Lab and Detrimentum. We wish him the best of luck with all his bands and Grindethic Records.

The new drummer is to be Nate Gould of UK weirdoes Screamin' Daemon fame. Rehearsals and writing are already underway with Nate for Gorerotted's 4th album 'Get Dead Or Die Trying', to be released summer 2008. People will be blown away when they hear the new material we've been working on over the last few weeks! Nate is a great guy and an amazing drummer so it's really cool to have him on board."

Source:	blog.myspace.com
Band profile:	The Rotted

Kataklysm has just finished the recording process for their highly anticipated new album "Prevail". Comments producer/guitarist Jean-François Dagenais:

"Finally... I'm the one who never takes a break in the band and I can finally breathe!! After two months, the album is fucking done! Just layed down a few leads yesterday and double checked everything, the album came out great. The sources are fantastic and don't expect "In the Arms Of Devastation 2" - this album stands on a league of its own, everyone gave it 150%. It's the most brutal since "Temple Of Knowledge" and "Serenity In Fire" and the most catchy since "Shadows & Dust" and "In The Arms Of Devastation". Expect the best, because that's the effort we gave it. Next week we fly to Jason Suecof's studio in Orlando, FL. where we will be putting the final touches to this masterpiece!"

The album is scheduled for release via Nuclear Blast Records May 23rd Europe / May 27th North America and rest of the world. The band will unleash the new breathtaking artwork next month as a preview.

In other news, it's with sad regret that Kataklysm announces that the band won't be able to make the New Zealand dates on March 20th and 22nd due to "timing issues" related to the new album... BUT the band promises to reschedule ASAP!! All remaining dates in Australia will go as planned. Flights have been booked so Kataklysm will be there and is looking forward to meeting all their fans down under for the first time. Expect an explosive set!

Source:	kataklysmrocks.com
Band profile:	Kataklysm
Event:	Kataklysm: Australian Tour (New Zealand Portion CANCELLED)

Stereo Warning has posted this report:

"The release of Metallica's new album has been delayed again, sources from the band's record label told Stereo Warning. The album is now expected to hit the stores in September. Originally Lars Ulrich said it would be out in February, then the release was delayed till April. With the band still in the studio, it was clear that April was not gonna happen. Fans can take comfort in the fact that the last time the band spent this much time in the studio the year was 1991 and the result was the "Black Album". One can only hope for similar results this time! In the meantime, the boys have lined up a few dates for their upcoming European tour this summer."

Source:	stereowarning.com
Band profile:	Metallica

Evergrey and Expedition Delta have been confirmed for the Castle Festial, set to take place July 01-05 in Smederevo Fortress, Serbia. The festival billing is shaping up as follows:

Judas Priest
Avantasia
Helloween
Lordi
At The Gates
Sodom
Soilwork
Evergrey
Ensiferum
Dismember
Saturnus
Manticora
Sybreed
Secret Sphere
Innerwish
Bombarder
Draconic
ToxicDeath
Consecration

EXPEDITION DELTA is project started by Srdjan Brankovic (Alogia, Psychoparadox)
Together with Srdjan Brankovic, many famous and great musicians are involved into Expedition Delta. Some of them are Gary Wehrkamp (Shadow Gallery), Andrea De Paoli (Labyrinth), Rene Merkelbach, Richard Andersson, Erik Norlander, Joost van den Broek (After Forever), Sabine Edelsbacher (Edenbridge), Torsten Roehre, Santiago Dobles, Alex Argento, Mikkel Henderson, Vivien Lalu...

The opening self-titled album will be available on American label "Progrock records" (http://www.progrockrecords.com/artists/view.php?id=88 ) in early January 2008. Street date : 4th March 2008. Presales are discounted $2 on the ProgRock Records site until the album starts shipping.

The performance of Expedition Delta is going to be special. Besides some Serbian musicians, this band will feature Gary Wehrkamp(Shadow Gallery, Amaran's Plight) and D.C. Cooper (Amaran's Plight, Silent Force, ex-Royal Hunt), as special guests.

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Source:	castlefestival.org
Band profile:	Evergrey
Event:	Castle Festival - CANCELLED!

Death metallers Vader has posted the following on their official website:

It's going to be the loudest anniversary! 25 years on death metal scene, what a great result! Only few bands were able to survive for so unimaginable period of time. Among them there's a Polish death metal band Vader! Massive Music - band's management and booking agency is going to celebrate this great anniversary with a special concert. The show will take place in Warsaw, at Stodola Club on 30th of August.

"Hopefully the venue will be completely packed this day. There are at least a few good reasons to come to this special show. You will see a bunch of famous metal guests, also bands that in the 80's together with Vader created extreme metal scene. The guest-list we've created is quite impressive. Unfortunately, some of them can't appear on the show due to their other obligations. Some of them are maybe too big to be a part of this, I would say- pretty uncommercial event. That's also why we decided to organize this anniversary at Stodola Club, it will be a show for most dedicated Vader's maniacs. Anyhow, you can expect a great package! " (Mariusz Kmiołek - Massive Music)

First bands confirmed for this show are Grave (Sweden), Nile (US), Rotting Christ (Greece) and Krisiun (Brazil). More special guests of Vader's anniversary gig will be announced soon. Another good reason to come to the show is of course Vader! The band will play over two-hour liveset, presenting songs from old demo tapes as well as Vader's famous hits from recent studio albums. The show will be filmed for an anniversary DVD release tentatively called "XXV" (to be released in 2009).

"This time we can promise you a very special release. We don't want to screw up things as it happened with our latest DVD. To refresh the entire concept of a metal DVD we decided to work with people who have never filmed a metal show. They have a great experience in making videoclips, TV programs, advertisements and other things. Those fresh ideas blended with our visions will guarantee something really special. The DVD will feature not only a show, but also a lot of backstage footage including many surprises." (Mariusz Kmiołek - Massive Music)

Exclusively for this day Vader will prepare not only a special live set, but also a special stage design and some other surprises. On the anniversary party you will see also some other famous guests from a music industry. The band is going to launch a special anniversary website. Be prepared for XXV anniversary of Vader!

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Source:	vader.pl
Band profile:	Vader
Event:	Vader: 25th Anniversary Concert