Metal news

Megadeth have announced on their official website the following 2008 European tour dates:

UPDATED: (on 19 November) thanks to White Winter Sun

Feb. 06 - Stockholm, Sweden @ Arena
Feb. 07 - Oslo, Norway @ Sentrum Scene
Feb. 08 - Copenhagen, Denmark @ KB Halle
Feb. 10 - Berlin, Germany @ Columbiahalle
Feb. 11 - Dortmund, Germany @ Westfallenhalle
Feb. 13 - Luxembourg City, Luxembourg @ Den Atelier
Feb. 14 - Amsterdam, Netherlands @ Paradiso
Feb. 15 - Antwerp, Belgium @ Hof Ter Lo All
Feb. 17 - Norwich, UK @ UEA
Feb. 18 - Nottingham, UK @ Rock City
Feb. 19 - Glasgow, Scotland @ Academy
Feb. 20 - Newcastle, UK @ Academy
Feb. 22 - Birmingham, UK @ Academy
Feb. 23 - Manchester, UK @ Academy
Feb. 24 - London, UK @ Brixton Academy
Feb. 26 - Paris, France @ Elysee Montmartre
Feb. 28 - Barcelona, Spain @ Razzmatazz
Feb. 29 - Madrid, Spain @ Macumba
Mar. 01 - Bilbao, Spain @ Santana 27
Mar. 03 - Zurich, Switzerland @ Rohstofflager
Mar. 04 - Milan, Italy @ Alcatraz
Mar. 05 - Pordenone, Italy @ Palasport
Mar. 07 - Uherske Hradiste, @ Czech Republic Metalmania 2008 - Zimny Stadion
Mar. 08 - Katowice, Poland @ Metalmania 2008 - Spodek
Mar. 10 - Munich, Germany @ Zenith
Mar. 11 - Frankfurt, Germany @ Hugenottenhalle

Read more ››

Source:	megadeth.com
Band profile:	Megadeth
Event:	Megadeth: European Tour

Michael Stützer, from Danish thrash legends Artillery had this to say on the Artillery website:

"Artillery is B.A.C.K!!!

I am happy to announce, that Artillery has begun rehearsing (instrumental), with a present line-up consisting of:

Lead guitar: Morten Stützer
Bass: Peter Thorslund
Drums: Carsten Nielsen
Lead guitar: Michael Stützer

We have already cleared Terror Squad, Cybermind, The Eternal War and Khomaniac, and we have two confirmed offers at hand: Keep It True festival in Germany, and at Voxhall, Aarhus, Denmark.

We also have some new material which may just lead to a new studio album; however; nothing is confirmed...."

Source:	stutzer-music.com
Band profile:	Artillery

Finnish viking metallers Ensiferum will team up with Faroese band Týr and Swiss shooting stars Eluveitie to tour through Europe and North America under the Paganfest banner. Co-headliners will be Korpiklaani and Moonsorrow in Europe and Turisas in North America.

The dates for Europe read as follows:

Paganfest Tour feat. Ensiferum, Korpiklaani, Moonsorrow, Týr and Eluveitie
02.04.2008 - DEN, Copenhagen
03.04.2008 - NED, Tilburg
04.04.2008 - BEL, Antwerp
05.04.2008 - GER, Osnabrück
06.04.2008 - ENG, London
07.04.2008 - ENG, Leeds
08.04.2008 - ENG, Dudley
09.04.2008 - FRA, Paris
10.04.2008 - SUI, Pratteln
11.04.2008 - AUT, Linz
12.04.2008 - AUT, Wien
13.04.2008 - CZE, Zlin
14.04.2008 - HUN, Budapest
15.04.2008 - SLO, Ljubljana
16.04.2008 - GER, Ludwigsburg
17.04.2008 - GER, Berlin
18.04.2008 - GER, Leipzig
19.04.2008 - GER, München
20.04.2008 - AUT, Graz
21.04.2008 - GER, Saarbrücken
22.04.2008 - GER, Frankfurt

For the North American leg the following dates have been confirmed. More dates are to be announced soon.

Paganfest Tour feat. Ensiferum, Turisas, Týr and Eluveitie
25.04.2008 - CAN, Toronto, ON
26.04.2008 - CAN, Montreal, QC
27.04.2008 - USA, Worcester, MA
28.04.2008 - USA, Springfield, VA
29.04.2008 - USA, Cleveland, OH
05.05.2008 - USA, Seattle, WA
10.05.2008 - USA, Orange County, CA
15.05.2008 - USA, Ft. Worth, TX
16.05.2008 - USA, San Antonio, TX

Source:	paganfest.net
Band profile:	Ensiferum
Event:	Paganfest Europe Tour

Official Regain Records press release:

"Stockholm-based death detal masters Dismember announced the tracklist of their upcoming new album. The album will be released in march 2008 without any special name."

Album tracklisting:
01. Death Conquers All
02. Europa Burns
03. Under A Bloodred Sky
04. The Hills Have Eyes
05. Legion
06. Tide Of Blood
07. Combat Fatigue
08. No Honor In Death
09. To End It All
10. Dark Depths
11. Black Sun

Source:	regainrecords.com
Band profile:	Dismember

Children Of Bodom bassist Henkka Blacksmith has posted the following update straight from the Petrax Studio in Hollola, Finland:

"Last week in studio, Alexi has been doing vocals with Peter Tägtgren this week. Janne will finish his stuff now also, and by the end of the week everything should be fine. We will start mixing and mastering right away.

We did 9 tracks, including a new version of "Tie My Rope", plus 4 coversongs. We will post the different formats as soon as these are confirmed with the different release dates. The actual album itself will contain 9 COB tracks.

The album will be called Blooddrunk."

Source:	cobhc.com
Band profile:	Children Of Bodom

The following was posted on Suidakra's official site:

"It's been quite a while since you guys last got an update on the actions of SuidAkrA, but don't be fooled into thinking they've taken a well earned holiday!! The forthcoming DVD & Best Of CD package has been keeping them busy and it's paid off -- apart from the final layout, everything's finished. The content of the DVD has changed since it was first announced -- it will now feature SuidAkrA's Wacken 2007 show, instead of Wacken 2006. Expect an early 2008 release for this fine package; more info about the exact date and tracklisting will follow soon and, of course, will appear here first.

The first tourdates for 2008 have been confirmed, hopefully there's something near you! 2008 will probably not see as much live action from SuidAkrA as 2007 did, because attention is beginning to turn to the next album! They have just started working on some new songs which will eventually form their next (multi-platinum selling) record

Autumn is the season for change and moving on, so the band would like to wish all the best to Marcel who has decided to take a step back from all band activities in order to concentrate fully on his job. A new live guitar player has already been recruited and will play the forthcoming shows."

Finally, a few words from SuidAkrA themselves: "We have the chance to play in the United States in 2008! Unfortunately, it costs a shitload of money for flights and whatnot to make this happen... So if anyone can help "sponsor" us at all, we would absolutely appreciate it! We know we have a lot of fans in the US and it's long overdue for us to make our first appearance over there. Please do not seek direct contact from us about this, as we cannot give out any information yet, nor are we involved in the sponsorship. Instead, please contact Alina Michelle by either sending her an email to [email protected] or a message via her mySpace page with the subject line of SUIDAKRA SPONSORSHIP, as she will manage all offers of help. Please understand that she cannot give out any information about dates or events unless it is to people who really can consider helping out... We hope to meet you next year! Thanks for any help!"

Source:	suidakra.com
Band profile:	Suidakra

The following update was posted on Siebenbürgen MySpace page by Marcus Ehlin:

"Greetings fellow metal heads and all other dark creatures that follow our path!

I'm glad to inform you all that Siebenbürgen has risen from the grave and are back with full force, with a new upcoming album in 2008.

Mr Bryngelsson and me have resurrected the band, though in a different shape and a different form, but still under the same black flag that Siebenbürgen proudly hails under.

New members follows our course: Dennis Ekdahl on drums and Johnnie Gunther on keyboard. We are still trying out for lead guitar. Richard Bryngelsson is of course still handling the guitar and I the vocals, but this time I have mantled the bass as well.

The music is in the same vein as before: dark and atmospheric metal.

A new start, a new beginning and a new chapter in the glorious history of Siebenbürgen.

We hope to see you all on tour soon! STAY METAL!!!"

Source:	blog.myspace.com
Band profile:	Siebenbürgen

The End Records have set a release date of February 19th, 2008 for Virgin Black's "Requiem - Fortissimo", the much-anticipated follow-up to 2007's "Requiem - Mezzo Forte".
On its latest album - the second instalment of a trilogy - Virgin Black exhumes the death/doom vibe of early Paradise Lost and My Dying Bride albums. This is by far the band's rawest and heaviest work to date.
The album's cover art was created by esteemed fashion photographer Andrew Dunbar who's work will be seen throughout the series.

"Requiem - Fortissimo" tracklisting [cover]:

01. The Fragile Breath
02. In Winters Ash
03. Silent [listen]
04. God In Dust
05. Lacrimosa (Gather Me)
06. Darkness
07. Forever

Source:	theendrecords.com
Band profile:	Virgin Black

The Swiss folk metal innovators Eluveitie have posted the following on the official website:

"Great news we have for you these days! While being busy finishing up the production of "Slania" and working on our "Evocation" concept we still found the time to travel to Donzdorf in Germany for a few beers & a talk with the people of Nuclear Blast Records ([url]www.nuclearblast.de[/url] / [url]www.nuclearblastusa.com[/url])...
Not only did they make us drunk as hell, but they also impressed us with a great artist roster, 20 years of incredible work (happy birthday Nuclear Blast!) and their professional but still very "metal" staff. So we did what had to be done - we came, we saw and we signed. We are looking forward to many years of great work together with one of the world's biggest record companies in metal and are glad to announce that our new full-length record "Slania" will join the legions of legendary albums released by Nuclear Blast at February 15th, 2008!"

The band elaborates on the mentioned "Evocation" concept:
"As we notified good two months ago, we were also working on purely acoustic folk material. This project - originally intended as an MCD only - has grown into something much larger during the writing process, so we are happy and proud to announce that [we] will release one complete full-length album brimmed with mystical Celtic folk music as well as an additional [CD] with some new waves of folk metal!
Both releases - belonging together conceptually - deal with ancient Gaulish mythology. Lyrically the songs dip from the source: diverse ancient Gaulish texts that have been discovered as stone carvings, metal engravings, etc. These two conceptual releases are an in-depth voyage through the Celtic soul [?] and include performances of several renowned guest musicians!"

The acoustic album "Evocation I - The Arcane Dominion" is slated for a release through Nuclear Blast in Winter 2008. The release date of the folk metal album "Evocation II - Visions" is yet to be announced. Some artwork made for the "Evocation" series by the artist Manuel Vargas Lepiz, who has already worked with Mortiis, Fanoe and others, can be viewed here.

Source:	eluveitie.ch
Band profile:	Eluveitie

The following news was posted on Hatesphere's official website:

"After having received close to one hundred submissions from around the globe, it's with great pleasure that we are finally able to unveil the new front man. 19 year-old Jonathan "Joller" Albrechtsen. This guy, a Copenhagen native, showed up and performed a stunning display of brutal power and basically screamed the shit out of all the other applicants. Needless to say, we are more than excited and can't wait to get back out there."

Source:	hatesphere.com
Band profile:	Hatesphere

Amon Amarth have posted the following message regarding their "Wrath Of The Norseman North American Tour 2007" with Himsa and Sonic Syndicate:

"There will be a series of meet and greets on our North American tour. The meet and greet will be half an hour long beginning from when doors open. We are looking forward to meeting our fans in person and we'll try to make them happen at every show. Unfortunately due to time restraints, we will be unable to have a meet and greet on the dates where there will be in store signing sessions.

Because of the recent tragic events, Decapitated will not be able to be part of the North American tour. We are deeply sadden by the events and are disappointed that our metal brethren will not be able to share the stage with us.

We've tried to find a replacement for Decapitated but it has been impossible. We've deicided to play a longer set and throw in some songs that we either never played live before or haven't played live in a very long time. And we think we have a set list that will please both old and new fans!

We are really looking forward to hitting the roads in North America and finally do a full 90 min set. We hope that as many of you as possible will be able to catch the show!"

Scheduled in-store signing so far:
12/14 @ Scrape Records, Vancouver, BC 5 PM to 6 PM

Source:	amonamarth.com
Band profile:	Amon Amarth
Event:	Amon Amarth

US progressive metal band, Dream Theater have announced their Australian tour for early 2008. All scheduled dates will be "An Evening With Dream Theater" (which means no opening act and 2 sets with an intermission). The dates are as follows:

Jan. 25 - Perth, Australia - Showgrounds
Jan. 27 - Adelaide, Australia - Showgrounds
Jan. 29 - Melbourne, Australia - Festival Hall
Jan. 30 - Sydney, Australia - The Hordern
Feb. 01 - Brisbane, Australia - Riverstage

Source:	dreamtheater.net
Band profile:	Dream Theater
Event:	Dream Theater: Australian Tour

According to the band's official website, In Flames are once again signed under the Nuclear Blast label.

"We are very happy and proud to announce that we have signed a new record deal with Nuclear Blast Records! The new, still untitled album is going to be a worldwide release (except North America) via Nuclear Blast Records. The release for the new album is right now planned for early April. Stay tuned for a more exact release date."

"We are very happy that we have signed with Nuclear Blast again. They have been with us for a long time and helped us to get to where we are as a band right now. We have all the faith and belief in them to help us get even bigger as a band so we can continue to do this for years to come. We are really excited about our new album and can't wait for it to be released so you, our fans, out there can enjoy it with us. See you in 2008" - In Flames

Source:	inflames.com
Band profile:	In Flames

Finland's Waltari have announced they will play 4 shows together with Wohnout and Lenka Dusilova in December in Czech Republik.

Mon 10.12. Ostrava [Cz] Cas Arena
Tue 11.12. Brno [Cz] Semilasso
Wed 12.12. Jihlava [Cz] TRANE Club (Only Waltari, no Wohnout+Lenka D.)
Thu 13.12. Zlin [Cz] Masters of Rock Cafe
Fri 14.12. Praha [Cz] Sports Hall Folimanka

Source:	waltarimusic.com
Band profile:	Waltari
Event:	United International Friendship Tour

Crematory will release their new album, "Pray", on February 1 via Massacre Records. The CD was produced by the band itself at the Kohlekeller Studios with additional assistance from longtime collaborator Christian "Kohle" Kohlmannslehner. For more album details, head to here.

The album's title track, 'Pray', is available on streaming at this location.

Source:	crematory.de
Band profile:	Crematory