On June 27, The End Records will be releasing ultimate reissues of Dissection's "The Somberlain" and "Storm Of The Light's Bane", both of which will include multiple bonus tracks, previously unreleased material, new layouts and remastering.

However, also, all three Dissection albums will be released on gatefold vinyl this summer as well. They will be available in Europe at the Midsummer Massacre '06 show on June 24 and in North America on June 27.

Source:	metaleater.com
Band profile:	Dissection

Swedish thrashers Carnal Forge have posted this brief message on their official website:

"We will play the Hejbabberiba festival in Sala, Sweden on the 3rd of June."

Here are the band's upcoming live dates:

May 27 - Köping, Sweden - Dead Generation Fest 2006
June 3 - Sala, Sweden - Hejbabberiba Festivalen
Aug. 17 - Dinkelsbuehl , Germany - Summer Breeze Open Air
Sept 23 - Erstfeld, Switzerland - Metalfest Uri

The band has also revealed the names of two more new songs: "Testify For My Victims" and "Biological Waste Matter". Other new song titles are "Questions Pertaining" "The Ownership Of My Mind", "Subhuman", "Forever Guilt", "Burning Eden" and "The Dead".

Source:	metaleater.com
Band profile:	Carnal Forge

This message has been posted on Vomitory's official website:

"Vomitory will headline the Stonehenge festival in the Netherlands on July 29. This will probably be the bands only live performance this summer.

The band is currently busy writing new material for the follow-up to 'Primal Massacre' (2004) and has about one third/half of the songs finished. Newcomer Peter Östlund (guitar) has so far contributed with two songs, one is in the typical Vomitory-vein and the other a bit heavier than the usual Vomitory song. Tobias Gustafsson (drums) has written three songs so far but has like four more in the works at the moment. Erik Rundqvist (bass and vocals) is solely focusing on writing the lyrics."

Source:	metaleater.com
Band profile:	Vomitory

Slayer have sparked controversy with a new track about 9/11 from the terrorists' viewpoint. The California foursome were fed up with other bands' American perspective of the attacks on New York and Washington DC in 2001, so they wrote their own unique version. Guitarist/songwriter Jeff Hanneman has angered September 11th victims' families with the extremist angled track 'Jihad', which will be featured on their new album.

Guitarist Kerry King says, "In America every band under the sun has written their 9/11 song. And that's why I didn't want to have any part of it, but this is really cool. It kind of has an 'Angel Of Death' feel because it doesn't condemn anyone or say that anyone's right or wrong."

Source:	metaleater.com
Band profile:	Slayer

Swedish melodic death metallers Dark Tranquillity have posted the following update:

No updates for a while, but rest assured that we haven't been resting on our laurels. We're insanely busy with the songwriting for the next album, and it's now decided that the recordings will start in October. More details about studios (yes, that's in plural), working partners and so forth will follow as soon as everything is 100% confirmed.

As for the music itself, the material we're working on covers the whole gamut from laid back acoustic sections to furious blastbeats, so you can all look forward to a diverse and challenging offering. Most songs are still in the embryonic stages, so it'll be interesting to see how things develop.

Some media goodness to make the wait for the next magnum opus easier: A 15-minute video clip of our gig at the Fury Fest in France (June 25, 2005) has been uploaded to our MySpace page. As usual with these homemade recordings, the quality itsn't stellar, but it gives a good enough representation of the show.

Also, we found an old version of "Away, Delight, Away" from an 8-track promo recording we did in our rehearsal studio back in the spring of 1994. This is an early incarnation of the song that differs slightly from the version that ended up on the "Of Chaos And Eternal Night" MCD. The promo itself also contained "Punish My Heaven" and "The Gallery", and was sent out to a select few record labels and tape trading contacts.

Check the stuff out: www.myspace.com/dtofficial.

Read more ››

Source:	darktranquillity.com
Band profile:	Dark Tranquillity

SHY vocalist Tony Mills has issued the following statement: "Having been in discussions with the members of TNT in Norway over the last few weeks, I have decided to take the band up on an offer to front them throughout their forthcoming work in Europe. This may well include co-writing a new album for the band and touring in both Norway and the UK later in the year. Obviously, it's all new to everyone and we have to see how we work together, but the initial meeting in Berlin was very amiable and I think you could safely say that we 'hit it off' real well. I have to master The Andersson Mills Project and finish up some writing with Eric Ragno / Michael Riesenbeck and the China Blue project before I depart for Norway mid June. Shy are supporting TNT at the Polar Festival on June 30 in Storsteinnes, Norway. This in itself is an unbelievable coincidence, but my priority was to sing this concert with Shy as I was already contracted to do so before any conversations took place with TNT.
This concert for TNT will be fronted by the ex-vocalist Tony Harnell as a farewell show for him."

Diesel Dahl: TNT are still alive and kickin' - and are proud to introduce the new man behind the mic; Singer Tony Mills from Birmingham, England. Tony is one of Europe's most respected hard rock singers, mostly known for his work with UK Melodic Rock act Shy and his solo artiste releases of recent years. Tony has worked along side such names as Cinderella, Dokken, Cozy Powell, Meatloaf, The Sweet and many more and will add a new and exciting dimension to TNT as the band enter a new era.

The band have confirmed their appearance at Z Rock 06 on September 24, JB's Dudley, England.

Source:

uncover-promotion.info

Dying Fetus have officially announced the addition of drummer Duane Timlin to their line-up. Here's a statement from the band:

"It's been a long year of searching, but we wanted to move forward in the certainty of having the right person for the group. Duane joins Mike Kimball, guitar, Sean Beasley, bass and vocals, and original member John Gallagher, guitar and vocals, to complete our 4-piece lineup. The band were already friends with Duane, and even toured with him when he played drums for Divine Empire, who supported Dying Fetus on our 2003 summer headlining tour. Duane submitted an impressive video audition as well as auditioning in person the weekend of May 13, and has demonstrated to us that he has the skills and dedication we were looking for! We want to thank everyone who auditioned or contacted us about the spot - we appreciate your consideration, talent, and hard work. We will announce further details about our recording and touring schedule soon. Keep checking back for recording dates in mid-summer and tour dates in late winter of this year."

Source:	dyingfetus.com
Band profile:	Dying Fetus

Denmark's Mercenary, having just wrapped up mixing their August 22 release, "The Hours That Remain", with producer Jacob Hansen (Maroon, Hatesphere), who worked with the band on "11 Dreams", have finalized its tracklisting. Vocalist Mikkel Sandager commented on the album, "We made what we feel is the most powerful album in the band's history. Both the writing and the recording processes have really made us a stronger band as we faced quite a few challenges along the way. We can't wait for people to check out the new stuff, and look forward to playing it all live." The Hours That Remain will be packaged with beautiful artwork by Travis Smith (Nevermore, Opeth).

Additionally Mercenary have welcomed bass player René Pedersen, an active performer from Denmark's Transparent, as their new bass player. Pedersen's live debut will be this weekend at The Sägfestival in Greding, Germany. Speaking for the band Sandager said, "We are confident that René fits the bill perfectly, both as a musician and as a person. We have been rehearsing with him through the last month, and he is really kicking ass!" This will also be fan's first opportunity to witness material from The Hours That Remain live. The band will then appear at Germany's Rock Hard Festival, June 2, before joining King Diamond's spring tour.

Mercenary have also been confirmed for September's ProgPower USA VII and ProgPower Europe.

The Hours That Remain Tracklist (in no particular order) :

01. Redefine Me
02. Year Of The Plague
03. My World Is Ending
04. This Eternal Instant
05. Lost Reality
06. Soul Decision
07. Simplicity Demand
08. Obscure Indiscretion
09. My Secret Window
10. The Hours That Remain

Source:	mercenary.dk
Band profile:	Mercenary

Dark Lunacy returns with "The Diarist", new album produced by Fredrik Nordstrom, already famous for the jobs with In Flames, Dark Tranquillity, Children Of Bodon. The band will be protagonist of the next Evolution festival with Dark Tranquillity, Moonspell, Death Angel, The Gathering, Cradle Of Filth and many more.

Tracklist:
1. Aurora
2. Play Dead
3. Pulkovo Meridian
4. The Diarist
5. Snowdrifts
6. Now Is Forever
7. On Memory's White Sleigh
8. Heart Of Leningrad
9. Prospekt
10. Motherland
11. The Farewell Song

Source:	darklunacy.com
Band profile:	Dark Lunacy

Escapi Music has set a July 28 European release date (August 1 in North America) for the new Dissection DVD, entitled "Rebirth of Dissection".

With Jon Nödtveidt's release from an eight-year prison sentence on September 6, 2004, he recruited a completely new lineup. First to join the ranks was ex-Dark Funeral drummer Tomas Asklund, followed shortly by bass player Brice Leclerq (ex-Nightrage). After auditioning guitarists in the summer of 2004, ex-Aborym member Set Teitan finally entered to complete the lineup. Embarking on a vast European march of triumph, supported by Swedish black metallers Watain, Dissection's "Rebirth of Dissection European Tour 2004" turned out to be a huge success. This DVD includes lots of extras and bonus material recorded from this tour.

Source:	roadrunnerrecords.com
Band profile:	Dissection

Steamhammer/SPV, along with Cargo, have announced plans to release HELLOWEEN's "Keeper of the Seven Keys - The Legacy" album in a sought-after, popular-with-collectors vinyl version (double LP in a gatefold sleeve) around mid-June.

The band have also announced the impending release of a double DVD, filmed during shows in Sofia, Tokyo and Sao Paulo. In Sao Paulo alone, Helloween played in front of over 6,000 enthusiastic fans. Alongside the live footage, the double DVD will include lots of exciting bonus material. The exact release date will be announced by SPV in the coming weeks.

Source:	blabbermouth.net
Band profile:	Helloween

Black Label Society's live DVD, entitled "The European Invasion - Doom Troopin' Live", has had its released date pushed back from the previously announced June 27. A new release date has not yet been announced.

"European Invasion" captures BLS live on their sold-out European tour last year. Witness the full Paris show as well as four tracks from the Astoria in London. Bonus footage includes a one-hour-long "on-the-road" documentary, three promo videos taken from the Billboard Top 20-charting album "Mafia" and the making of documentary for the promo video "Suicide Messiah".

Source:	blabbermouth.net
Band profile:	Black Label Society

On May 5th, drummer Robin Engström of Swedish metallers Morgana Lefay announced his departure from the band due to "due to personal differences." According to an update on the band's official website, "Our new drummer is Pelle Åkerlind (Lednote, Rock Tools and live session drummer with Blood Bound). We will continue as planed with playing festivals this summer, and a European tour in September. After that we'll start preparing for the recording of our next album."

Source:	morganalefay.se
Band profile:	Morgana Lefay

The new single Deliberation is out now. The b-sides are two new exclusives, with the first song being a complete re-make of the In The White, now stripped down with acoustic guitars in a contemporary approach for a true urban lullaby sound. The second b-side is yet another unreleased song from the album sessions entitled Code Against the Code. Furthermore, a video for Deliberation once again shot and directed by Charlie Granberg, will be accompanied by the single. The direction of the clip takes a more abstract turn this time, so be sure to expect a dark mixture of reality and animation.

Full track listing for the single:
1. Deliberation
2. In The White (urban dub)
3. Code Against the Code
4. Deliberation (video)

The Great Cold Distance has now been made available on a 16 track (incl all the 4 b-sides from the My Twin & Deliberation singles) red coloured double vinyl edition (ltd to 2000 numbered copies). You can pre-order your copy in the official web site. The vinyl will ship on June 5th.

Source:	katatonia.com
Band profile:	Katatonia

Slayer has been forced to postpone it's Unholy Alliance tour by 11 days because of surgery on their bass player Tom Araya. Araya recently had surgery on his gall-bladder and continues to have soreness, so he has been advised to take it easy and rest himself for about six weeks. His condition is a genetic one and he did damage to his gall-bladder through drugs, alcohol, etc. Slayer should be back on the road soon though.

Here is a statement by Araya:

"My doctor wants me to take it easy. He told me not to do anything stupid. No serious lifting. ... I couldn't lift anything heavier than five pounds the first week (following the operation), and you increase it by five pounds each week. So, by the time we hit the road, I should be able to carry my bass."

Source:	blabbermouth.net
Band profile:	Slayer