Reunited New Jersey metallers ATTACKER have uploaded live footage from their appearance at the Keep It True II festival on April 10 at Tauberfrankenhalle in Lauda-Königshofen, Germany. Download a video of the band performing the track "Tortured Existence" at the festival at this location (10.6 MB): http://www.attacker.tv/tortured.mp4

ATTACKER released their latest studio album, "Soul Taker", in January through Iron Glory Records.

Sweden's OPETH are officially free agents as a result of having been dropped by BMG/Zomba after their previous label, Music For Nations, was folded into parent company Zomba Records Group (the world's largest independent music group). The band are looking through new offers at the moment.

As previously reported, OPETH frontman Mikael Åkerfeldt has started writing material for the group's next album, tentatively scheduled to be recorded sometime in the early spring of 2005. Åkerfeldt has also visited No Man Studios in Hemel Hampstead, U.K. to lay down some guitars and backing vocals for the next, as-yet-untitled PORCUPINE TREE record. Mikael plays guitar on one track and sings backing vocals on another five songs. The album is due for release late this year.

Band profile:

Opeth

Former PESTILENCE bassist Jeroen Paul Thesseling is currently available for progressive and technical bands or (studio) projects, according to a posting on his official website www.jeroenthesseling.com.

Here are some words from Mille at his returm from England taken from the kreator's site:
"Dear girls and boys, back in Essen after a 6 week stay in England. Sneap starts mixing the songs today, and I can not wait hearing the final results. SPV are planing a worldwide release of the album for January 2005, followed by an extensive world tour, including massive sound and lights + a killer stage design in the style of the new cover artwork, wich will be made by austrian artist Jochim Luetke, check some of his work here: www.luetke.com . In case you have not seen the clips of the drum + vocal recordings yet, go here: www.andysneap.com.
Before the actual album, we will release a special price 4 track EP, including previously unreleased Live material and non album tracks.
Here is the new song titles :

ENEMY OF GOD
IMPOSSIBLE BRUTALITY
SUICIDE TERRORIST
MURDER FANTASIES
DYING RACE APOCALYPSE
ONE EVIL COMES- A MILION FOLLOW
DYSTOPIA
WORLD ANARCHY
VOICES
UNDER A BLACKENED SKY
WHEN DEATH TAKES IT´S DOMINION
THE ANCIENT PLAGUE

The style of the songs is pure brutal Thrash ! Tons of fast shit, sick solos, aggro riffing....
I am really psyched about the new shit , can´t wait to hear what you think about it.... Looking foreward to get back on the road again, to play for you all !
Greetings from Essen, Germany,
Mille"

Band profile:

Kreator

The lead guitarrist from Arch Enemy/Spiritual Beggars have recorded a solo for the song "Murder Fantasies" to the new Kreator album

Band profile:

Arch Enemy

Swedish thrashers THE HAUNTED have revealed the complete track listing for their fourth album, "rEVOLVEr", tentatively due in Europe on October 18 through Century Media Records. The follow-up to 2003's "One Kill Wonder" was recorded at Gothenburg's famed Studio Fredman (IN FLAMES, DIMMU BORGIR, ARCH ENEMY) with co-producers Patrik J. Sten and Fredrik Nordström and mixed at Denmark's Antfarm Studio by Tue Madsen. The album will be released as jewel-case CD and limited edition digipak (each with a different cover), featuring two special bonus tracks.

"rEVOLVEr" (cover, left: Jewel case cover artwork / right: Digipak cover artwork) track listing:

01. No Compromise
02. 99 (mp3)
03. Abysmal
04. Sabotage
05. All Against All
06. Sweet Relief
07. Burnt To A Shell
08. Who Will Decide (feat. SICK OF IT ALL's Lou Koller)
09. Nothing Right
10. Liquid Burns
11. My Shadow

Band profile:

The Haunted

Adagio separates from David Readman

"It's with great regret that we have to announce that David Readman is no longer the singer of Adagio.

Before anything else, I would like to mention that this decision has nothing to do with our personal feelings with David. We've been great friends, we had a lot of fun together but it was clear that a longer collaboration with Bottom Row (David's management) would have killed the band in no time.

I will not go into details, but all I can say, is that each new show, studio album or new project have been subject to really unpleasant negotiations, under the threat of being blocked many times and it was not possible for us to work under such a permanent pressure anymore.

We've done all the possible to keep on working with David, but after few years, we've decided to stop making compromises, and to finally take the best decision for Adagio's future.

We have now to move forward, and so we're looking for a new singer.

As the band has a lot of upcoming things going on like the Prog power fest in Atlanta in September and the recordings of the next album before the end of the year, some auditions will take place very soon.

So, if you're living in Europe, you have a great voice and above all, if you think you have your chances to become the new singer of Adagio, then please send :

- 1 good quality MP3 representative of your voice

- A short bio

- 2 recent pictures

to: adagio.management@wanadoo.fr

All demos will be listened, and if you're selected for an audition, you will receive an e-mail confirmation within one week.

All the e-mails have to be sent before August 10th.

Thanks a lot for your understanding and support

Adagio

Band profile:

Adagio

ANGTORIA is the new band formed by female singer Sarah Jezebel Deva (CRADLE OF FILTH, THERION, MORTIIS), composer Chris Rehn (ABYSSOS) and Tommy Rehn (MOAHNI MOAHNA). The group recently completed a five-song demo at Virtual Symphony Studios in Sundsvall, Sweden and are currently seeking a record deal. The complete track listing for the CD is as follows:

01. Six Feet Under
02. Confide In Me
03. Little Girl
04. Deity Of Disgust
05. I Cried Alone

For more information, visit the band's official web site: http://www.angtoria.com/

SLAYER bassist/vocalist Tom Araya has told the Tacoma News Tribune that nine to 10 polished instrumental tracks have been finished for the band's next studio album, with another two that still need work. "The lyrical parts haven't been completed yet. Those might change the attitude or the mood of the songs."

With regards to the new material's musical direction, Araya said, "It sounds like SLAYER."

Recording for the new CD was put on hold while legendary producer Rick Rubin began negotiating a new deal with Universal Music Group. Rubin has worked with SLAYER since he produced the band's 1986 thrash classic "Reign in Blood", and his status could greatly affect the level of support the UMG subsidiary, American Recordings, gives any new album.

"The minute (Rubin) gets that situated we'll continue the process of finishing the music," Araya said. Meanwhile, the band's DVD, "Reign in Blood Live: Still Reigning", is slated for release Sept. 28.

Band profile:

Slayer

Long-defunct Swedish thrashers AT THE GATES have launched a new official web site at this location: www.atthegates.se . Included on the site are a bunch of rare photos, recordings and other memorabilia.

One of the more melodic death metal bands to expand beyond Sweden and spread their sound across the world alongside peers such as ENTOMBED, AT THE GATES played a significant role in the death metal genre before breaking up in 1996, leading to the formation of THE HAUNTED (courtesy of the group's Yahoo! biography).

Besides, MÖRK GRYNING, VILE, ILLDISPOSED and ETERNAL GRAY are among the bands featured on the upcoming AT THE GATES tribute album, "Slaughterous Souls - A Tribute to At The Gates", due in September through Drowned Scream Records and Goi Music. The complete track listing for the effort is as follows:

01. TAETRE (Sweden) - "At the Gates"
02. GODHATE (Sweden) - "Kingdom Gone"
03. MÖRK GRYNING (Sweden) - "Neverwhere"
04. MOONSKIN (Israel) - "Raped by the Light of Christ"
05. DARKNESS BY OATH (Basque Country) - "The Swarm"
06. SOUL DEMISE (Germany) - "Forever Blind"
07. ETERNAL OATH (Sweden)- "The Fevered Circle"
08. ETERNAL GRAY (Israel)- "Blinded by Fear"
09. ILLDISPOSED (Denmark) - "Slaughter of the Soul" (mp3)
10. ENTER CHAOS (Poland) - "Cold"
11. DETONATION (Holland) - "Under a Serpent Sun"
12. MISANTHROPE (France) - "Suicide Nation"
13. PAGANIZER (Sweden) - "Nausea"
14. VILE (USA)- "Cold" (live cover)
Bonus Track:
15. IN AETERNUM - "Blood Run from the Altar" (GROTESQUE cover)

The CD will contain a 20-page booklet, including comments of the AT THE GATES members, an AT THE GATES history map, etc.

Read more ››

Band profile:

At The Gates

Norwegian black metallers SATYRICON have posted the following message on their web site:

"We will be headlining Saturday the 7th of August doing a special set where we will perform DARKTHRONE songs with their singer the last 30 minutes of our show. Anyone who knows their black metal is aware of DARKTHRONE's policy of not playing live. They've decided to do this special event and asked us to be a part of it and that is of course a great honour. We're also glad that this historical event has the approval of Fenriz and Zephyrous. Bonds between SATYRICON and DARKTHRONE have always been extremely tight and this is a great way of showing it. The thought of kicking into our opening song 'Walk The Path Of Sorrow' in front of 30-40.000 people makes the wait almost unbearable. Some of you have have been sending concerned e-mails asking what the festival means by using the phrasing 'last show forever' about our performance. We don't know WHAT THEY FUCK they are talking about and rest assured... SATYRICON is alive and kicking as ever before!

" No movement on the Frost case. We've will be auditioning drummers in August. So far we've had no luck as some drummers we have contacted have schedules that doesn't allow them to tour with us or they turn out not to be good enough. We're hoping to return in Sep/Oct/Nov. So be patient, darkness always prevails"

Read more ››

Band profile:

Satyricon

A video clip of SUFFOCATION performing the track "Demise of the Clone" live in Aalen, Germany on June 15, 2004 has been posted online at the SilentStagnation.com web site (Windows Media, 10.1 MB).

SUFFOCATION's latest CD, "Souls to Deny", was released in April through Relapse Records. The band's first full album of new material since 1995's "Pierced From Within", "Souls to Deny" was recorded at New York's Full Force Studios with engineer Joe Cincotta and is "the cleanest, heaviest SUFFOCATION album to date," according to drummer Mike Smith. SUFFOCATION's current lineup consists of Smith, vocalist Frank Mullen, guitarists Terrance Hobbs and Guy Marchais and bassist Derek Boyer.

Band profile:

Suffocation

Swedish thrashers THE HAUNTED have set "rEVOLVEr" as the title of their fourth album, tentatively due in Europe on October 18 through Century Media Records. The follow-up to 2003's "One Kill Wonder" was recorded at Gothenburg's famed Studio Fredman (IN FLAMES, DIMMU BORGIR, ARCH ENEMY) with co-producers Patrik J. Sten and Fredrik Nordström and mixed at Denmark's Antfarm Studio by Tue Madsen. Songtitles set to appear on the CD include "99" (mp3), "All Against All", "Who Will Decide" (featuring a guest appearance by SICK OF IT ALL vocalist Lou Koller) and "Burnt To A Shell".

Band profile:

The Haunted

Dutch gothic/atmospheric doom metal group AFTER FOREVER have has been confirmed for the Lorca Rock Festival, set to take place August 14 at Antiguo Cuartel de Infanteria in Lorca (Murcia), Spain. Other groups scheduled to perform at the festival include EUROPE, MAGNUM, TNT, DREAM EVIL, AXEL RUDI PELL and the all-girl KISS cover band KISSEXY. More acts will be announced soon.

For more information on the Lorca Rock Festival: http://www.lorcarockfestival.com

AFTER FOREVER's latest album, "Invisible Circles", was released in March through Transmission Records. "Invisible Circles" is the follow-up to "Decipher", which was issued in 2001.

Band profile:

After Forever

METALLICA's "Some Kind of Monster" EP has sold 29,764 copies in its first week of release to debut at No. 37 on the Billboard 200 chart.

The "Some Kind Of Monster" EP was released in conjunction with the July 9 opening of the METALLICA documentary film "Metallica: Some Kind Of Monster". It features six live METALLICA classics as well as two versions of the title-track, one drawn from METALLICA's 2003 album "St. Anger" plus a fully remixed and edited version for this disc by famed producer Bob Rock. The six live tracks on the disc are: "The Four Horsemen", "Damage, Inc." , "Leper Messiah", "Motorbreath", "Ride The Lightning" and "Hit The Lights", and were recorded June 11, 2003 in Paris, France.

METALLICA returns to the road to continue the "Madly In Anger With The World" tour on August 16 in St. Paul, MN.

Band profile:

Metallica