STRATOVARIUS' webmaster has posted the following on the band's official site, www.stratovarius.com:

"Unfortunately I have received news that Timo Tolkki was hospitalized on April 10th due to suicidal feelings and chronic depression.

He is currently being treated in Mehiläinen, a private hospital in Helsinki, Finland.

If anyone wants to send recovery wishes to Timo, you can send them directly to timorecovery@stratovarius.com or you can use the ready made form we have made: http://www.stratovarius.com/index2.php'section=timorecovery

All the recovery wishes will be delivered to Timo at the hospital."

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Band profile:

Stratovarius

Finnish black metallers GLORIA MORTI have finished recording their debut album, "Lifestream Corrosion", for an August release through Japan's World Chaos Productions. Mixing sessions for the CD will take place between April 12 and 21 at Sonic Pump studios in Helsinki.

"Lifestream Corrosion" track listing:

01. Xanadu
02. Ephemeral Lifespan
03. The EnNightenment
04. The Suffering of the Lambs
05. Pulchritude of Rotting
06. In Their Dreaded Howling
07. The Orphanage
08. Abattoir
09. Cliffs of Geburah

Band profile:

Gloria Morti

MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine has revealed the track listing for the group's new CD, tentatively due later in the year through Sanctuary Records. It is as follows:

01. Blackmail The Universe
02. Shadow Of Death
03. My Kingdom
04. Of Mice And Men
05. Truth Be Told
06. The Scorpion
07. Kick The Chair
08. Something That I'm Not
09. Tears In A Vial
10. Die Dead Enough
11. Back In The Day

Mustaine has also posted the following message in the band's official forum:

"Droogies!

"Well, the day has come and I am packing it in.

"Yesterday was the last day in the studio, I finished the last solo and the last sentence of the last song, and the week before all of the remixes were done, so . . . it is time now to prepare all of the goofy administrative stuff that goes into an album.

"I was listening down to all of the songs until after 11:30 PM last night when I finally told Jeff Balding that I had to go. I had a meeting to be at, at 7:00 AM this morning, but as you can see I didn't make it because I got really ill again.

"The songs to me are fantastic. There is a lot going on, there are amazing solos by both 'Polie' and myself, loads of double bass, fast parts, slow parts, beautiful singing, Mustaine snarls, yelling, gang vocals, voice-overs, special effects, and layers of intricate sounds in the background that Jeff and I are deciding on what will help the song and what will not.

"For example, last night we were working for almost half an hour on whether or not to put the sound of a jail cell door clanging shut (kinda like in 'Captive Honour') in a song called 'Kick the Chair'. We ended up muting it for now, but it was a tough decision because there is a lot going on right there already (you'll see soon).

"This incredible amount of layering, I believe, will be 100% acceptable and expected when I start on my solo work, but for the MEGADETH music that we have all grown to love and enjoy, I have to be cautious.

"Don't want to get slagged here at my own boards now, do I?

"I am excited as hell to know that I am going to see the old guard today. Jeff Young got in last night, and Chuck Behler and Nick Menza come in today. I have told them all that I am not going to be there, because I wanted to surprise them, and pop in to see the looks on their faces after they hear what we all did to make them shine!

"I also just want to see them and tell them thanks and that I love them and I wouldn't be where I am today without what they did with me.

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Megadeth

Columbus, Ohio-based black/death metal cult band ACHERON have announced the addition of guitarist Stacey Connolly (LIFE IS LOST) to the group's ranks. Band founder and frontman Vincent Crowley commented: "Stacey Connolly has been working with us since the departure of Michael Estes, and he has shown us 100% dedication. He is a true metal brother and we are very pleased to welcome him into our realm of darkness."

ACHERON, whose most recent album, "Rebirth: Metamorphosing into Godhood" (Black Lotus Records), came out last December, are presently rehearsing for upcoming live appearances, including a headlining performance at Berlin, Germany's Under The Black Sun festival on Friday July 9, 2004

Band profile:

Acheron (USA-OH)

Reunited New York death metallers SUFFOCATION have completed work on the first music video from their forthcoming new album, "Souls to Deny".

The video, for the song "Surgery of Impalement", was filmed at Philadelphia's Eastern State Penitentiary and features the band (vocalist Frank Mullen, drummer Mike Smith, guitarists Terrance Hobbs and Guy Marchais and bassist Derek Boyer) performing live in various locations in and around the prison's locale. Still images from the video, which is expected to make its world premier in the immediate future, can be viewed at this location: http://www.relapse.com/preview/suffocationvideo.jpg

Eastern State Penitentiary, which no longer houses inmates and is now a historical site, was built in 1829. Eastern State is known previously for having held notorious gangster Al Capone, and was featured in the 1995 motion picture "Twelve Monkeys".

SUFFOCATION's "Souls to Deny" will be released on April 27 in North America and on May 17 in Europe via Relapse. The band will kick off its first tour in support of "Souls to Deny" on April 13 at the House of Blues in Lake Buena Vista, FL.

MY DYING BRIDE's video for the song "The Prize Of Beauty" has been posted online here (courtesy of Launch.com).

An eagerly awaited return to film for the band, the clip was shot over two days using the famous Rio's nightclub in Bradford as a studio. Using one of the band's massive backdrops, the main dancing space of the club was reportedly transformed into an area lit and set for video filming.

"The Prize Of Beauty" comes off MY DYING BRIDE's eighth album, "Songs Of Darkness, Words Of Light", available now through Peaceville Records.

Recorded at Academy Studios under the watchful eye of Mags, "Songs of Darkness, Words of Light" features what is being described as the six-piece band's most commercial song to date ? the graceful "My Wine In Silence". Album artwork was conceived by Andy Green, who has previously worked with the band on 1996's "Like Gods of the Sun"

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My Dying Bride

Finland's NIGHTWISH have posted the cover artwork for their upcoming album, "Once", here.

The much-anticipated follow-up to 2002's "Century Child", "Once" is scheduled for release on June 7 through Spinefarm Records. A U.S. release date for the album has yet to be announced. The band recently shot a video for the first single, "Nemo", with renowned director Antti Jokinen, who has previously directed music videos for such international artists as CELINE DION, EMINEM and SHANIA TWAIN. "Nemo" is due in the Finnish shops on April 26 (postponed from its originally announced April 19 release date).

NIGHTWISH will launch their world tour in support of "Once", dubbed "Once Upon A Tour 2004-2005", this summer. The trek is expected to last until the autumn of 2005.

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Nightwish

We know the name of the new drummer of the band,

The old EXMORTEM drummer Reno Kiilerich is the new drummer of DIMMU BORGIR

Band profile:

Dimmu Borgir

Swedish black metallers LORD BELIAL have set a June 20 European release date through Regain Records for their fifth album, "The Seal Of Belial".

The self-produced effort was engineered by Nicklas Rudolfsson and Andy La Rocque (KING DIAMOND) at Los Angered Recording studios in Gothenburg, Sweden and was mixed by Andy.

LORD BELIAL were recently rejoined by original drummer Micke Backelin following the departure of Daniel Moilanen (half-brother of former SHOTGUN MESSIAH guitarist Harry K. Cody) last October.

Upcoming LORD BELIAL shows:

Apr. 10 - Club Nocturnal - Gothenburg, SWE
May 01 - Club Adrian/Hvitfelt - Uddevalla, SWE
May 07 - Belsepub - Gothenburg, SWE
May 29 - Körpehölsfestivalen - Uddevalla, SWE

Band profile:

Lord Belial

DEICIDE have reportedly dropped off the SUPERJOINT RITUAL U.S. trek for reasons that are not entirely clear. Although no official statement has yet been released on the matter, one attendee at SUPERJOINT's show in Huntington, West Virginia Tuesday night (April 6) has told BLABBERMOUTH.NET that SUPERJOINT frontman Phil Anselmo was heard announcing from the stage that "stupid fuckin' DEICIDE have been kicked off the tour." Adding fuel to the reports is a posting on the web site of Annies Entertainment Complex in Cincinnati confirming that SUPERJOINT's show there Wednesday night (April 7) will not include an appearance by DEICIDE. Furthermore, DEICIDE's official web site, www.deicide.com, has removed all references to the SUPERJOINT tour, with no U.S. dates currently listed for the group prior to the start of their European jaunt in early June. More information is expected soon.

Band profile:

Deicide

French black metal band SETH have pushed back the release date of their fourth album, "Era-Decay", to September 6.

" 'Era-Decay' was supposed to come out , but after talks with Avantgarde Music, it seemed necessary and unavoidable to push back the release," the band write on their web site. "We lost quite some time finishing mixing this fourth album, and the mastering is still not over yet. decision was not an easy one to make, but we have to be patient to release this album in the best possible conditions. We'll do our best to offer you an exclusive track on our website around June/July."

SETH's lineup during the recording sessions for "Era-Decay" consisted of the following: Heimoth on guitars, Alsvid on drums, Black Messiah on vocals, Helldryk on bass, and the newest addition, Cyriex on guitars.

"Era-Decay" track listing:

01. Marchemergence
02. March Of The Consistory
03. Umbilical Cutting
04. A Pallbearer's Gloom
05. Ascention
06. H-Eradicate
07. Xtasian Ostix
08. Co-Existent Species
09. The Blade Upon Mankind

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Dutch "atmospheric doomsters" OFFICIUM TRISTE will be re-issuing their classic debut, "Ne Vivam", on vinyl through the Badger label. Originally released in April 1997 through Tuetonic Existence Records, the LP will be issued on 180-gram vinyl in a limited edition of 500 copies and will be available in five different colors (100 copies per color) featuring black neon print on black background. For more information, visit www.badgerrecords.nl.

Band profile:

Officium Triste

Swedish thrashers CARNAL FORGE have finalized the track listing for their upcoming live DVD, "Destroy Live", due in May. The disc contains 20 songs recorded the last weekend of January 2004 in Krakow, Poland and clips from "The 2003 Metal Gods Tour" in New York and "Extreme Bleeding Japan Tour 2003" in Tokyo.

"Destroy Live" DVD track listing:

01. Destroy Life
02. I Smell Like Death (Son Of A Bastard)
03. Hand Of Doom
04. Ripped & Torn
05. Who's Gonna Burn
06. Baptized In Fire
07. Divine Killing Breed Machine
08. Deep Rivers Of Blood
09. Firedemon
10. Welcome To Your Funeral
11. Twisted
12. Butchered, Slaughtered, Strangled, Hanged
13. Totalitarian Torture
14. Everything Dies
15. Born To Hate
16. Chained
17. The Other Side
18. H.B.F. Suicide
19. No Resurrection
20. Too Much Hell Ain't Enough For Me

CARNAL FORGE's new studio album, "Aren't You Dead Yet", is scheduled for release in June through Century Media (Europe and USA) and Soundholic (Japan). 12 songs were recorded and mixed at Studio Underground for the follow-up to last year's "The More You Suffer", with the new material being described by guitarist Jari Kuusisto as " up from where the last album stopped. The new songs are a little bit more aggressive, but all of you that liked our previous albums won't get disappointed."

Band profile:

Carnal Forge

After much controversy the Seattle-based band NEVERMORE have officially re-signed with Century Media Records worldwide and are now preparing for a slew of activity in support of Enemies of Reality, their latest effort. The dynamic quartet will embark on a headlining U.S. tour this summer with support acts to be announced soon. NEVERMORE wrapped up a highly successfully tour alongside Dimmu Borgir, Children of Bodom and Hypocrisy last fall and look forward to getting back on the road and being able to play a longer set. The group will also be featured on the upcoming New England Metal and Hardcore Festival DVD compilation. Enemies of Reality, their fifth full-length release, showcases the band's aggressive songwriting style with a dizzying array of solos, easily satisfying any metal fan's expectations. A video clip for the track "I, Voyager" will also be shot early next month.

Warrel Dane (vocals) checks in with the following update, "The members of NEVERMORE would like to announce that after long negations, we have re-signed to Century Media Records. Both sides worked very hard to repair past problems and in the end, after fielding numerous offers, we felt this was the best to carry us into our future. We are currently writing new songs in our downtime and preparing for our first release under our new contract. We have four solid songs down at the moment and hope to hit the studio in early fall. In the meantime, we will be doing some major festivals in Europe, a headlining U.S. tour and a new video. All is well in NEVERMORE, and expect another major announcement to be made soon."

Band profile:

Nevermore

Bloodbath, Sweden's death metal super-group, has announced the addition of vocalist Peter Tägtgren (Hypocrisy, Lockup, Pain) who replaces the departed Mike Åkerfeldt (Opeth). Tägtgren joins the ranks of Bloodbath with fellow Swedes Anders "Blakkheim" Nyström (Katatonia, Diabolical Masquerade, Bewitched), Jonas Renkse (Katatonia, October Tide) and Dan Swanö (Nightingale, Dan Swanö Unicorn, Edge Of Sanity, Infestdead, Odyssey, Pan-Thy-Monium), and new drummer Martin "Axe" Axenrot (Witchery, Satanic Slaughter).

"We're currently in the heat of fire composing the last material for the follow-up to 2002's Resurrection Through Carnage and will soon deliver some titles." said Blakkneim in an online posting. "Until then, let the blood run red."

Band profile:

Bloodbath