You can check out "Heaven's Descent", the new song from German metallers Neaera at the Metal Blade band page available here. "Heaven's Descent" comes off Neaera's upcoming album "Forging The Eclipse", which is due to be released in Europe on October 22 via Metal Blade. Album details available here.

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Source:	metalblade.com
Band profile:	Neaera

Saxon has announced that they will be playing at the Soundwave Festivals in February/March 2011 in Australia.

Here are the dates:

26.02.2011 Brisbane - RNA Showgrounds
27.02.2011 Sydney - Eastern Creek Raceway
27.02.2011 Melbourne - Showgrounds
05.03.2011 Adelaide - Bonython Park
07.03.2011 Perth - Steel Blue Oval

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Source:	blogs.myspace.com
Band profile:	Saxon

Amorphis recently entered the studio to record the follow-up to 2009's Skyforger. The release of the band's as of yet untitled tenth album is planned for an early to midyear 2011 release. Check out a clip of the band goofing around in the studio at this location.

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Source:	myspace.com
Band profile:	Amorphis

Hello everybody!

After a great edition in 2010, all the Hellfest team is back to business and working hard on our next festival. We would like to remind you that Hellfest 2011, which will be held on the 17th, 18th and 19th of June, will be the last on these grounds. In 2012, Hellfest will move to a new place... We will not say anything else today but you can expect some great surprises.

Now let's speak about 2011! The start of the festival isn't for tomorrow, but time flies and as always we want to be the first to announce some of the bands which will be playing next summer! Don't expect any headliner today... negotiations are long and complicated, you'll have to be patient but we know that you are real connoisseurs and passionate people and we're sure that you'll like this first list, with bands playing different kind of music!

Once again, Hellfest will respect its ways and will not make any compromises despite the attacks! Punk, sludge, heavy, hardcore and grindcore, etc. in two words, a real festival of extreme music, by passionate people for passionate people!

Here is the list of the first confirmed bands for Hellfest 2011! Don't forget this is just the beginning:

Angel Witch
Bad Brains
Belphegor
Church Of Misery
Converge
Coroner
Dodheimsgard
Doro
The Exploited
Grave
The Haunted
Karma To Burn
Malevolent Creation
Mayhem "Liberation by evil" Exclusive special show !
The Melvins
Morne
My Sleeping Karma
Nasty
Orphaned Land
Raw Power
Septicflesh
Shai Hulud
Sodom
Therion
Triptykon
The Young Gods
Valient Thorr
Your Demise

MAYHEM will be the headliner of the Rock Hard Tent, and will offer a real unique and theatrical show, something dark and grim named "Liberation by Evil". The band promises us something macabre which will please and even chock the true black metal fans! A MAYHEM concert, like you've never seen before!

Limited edition "3 day pass" at a special price of ?99 (without booking fees) instead of ?129 are now available! Be quick, not all of you will have the chance to get one! This offer will be available from September 30th to November 30th.

We'll see you at the end of November for the next announcement! Those of you who haven't bought a 3 day pass by then at the special price will regret it...

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Source:	hellfest.fr
Event:	Hellfest Open Air 2011

We saw this coming and the band has confirmed it. Leaves' Eyes has decided to cancel the remainder of their North American Tour after their Co-Headliners Kamelot pulled out earlier this month due to Roy Khan's Illness. The band writes:-

"Dear Fans & Friends, We regret to announce that the remaining dates of our North-American Tour will not take place. This also includes the show in Mexico City. As a result of Kamelot's last-minute cancellation of their headlining tour, Leaves' Eyes still tried their best to play as many dates in the USA and Canada as possible. The big gap between the cancelled Kamelot tourdates and our own headlining dates is just to big to overcome. This made it impossible to continue any further.

We are feeling terribly sorry for having to release this statement as we put an immense amount of energy and effort to make a full North-American tour happen. Everybody was very excited to play in North America and Mexico again. However, the power to decide was not at all in our hands. We deeply regret that we now had to stop touring and return to Europe.

We are very greatful to our fans, friends, Blackguard, the radio stations, all the promoters who made it possible for us to play the shows we did so far. We will never forget these fantastic moments. We really hope that we have better luck when touring North America next time."

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Source:	blogs.myspace.com
Band profile:	Leaves' Eyes

Guitarist Stefan Weinerhall of the Swedish metal band Falconer has issued the following update:

"Recording time is coming up. Most songs Falconer album] are written and rehearsed. Studio time is drawing nearer, starting to feel a bit stressed!! The album will be mixed at the end of January, so I'd guess we're up for a late spring release. The title of the new album will be Armod and will be completely sung in Swedish except for the bonus tracks that will simply be an English versions of the best (according to us) new songs.

This time we have concentrated on the traditional folk side of our music including more traditional folk songs (the majority of the material is still our own), more fiddles and flutes. Be calm, the horrid sound of accordions will firmly be left behind!! This is a way to finally devote an entire album to the influence and getting that out of our system, so to speak, and to do the thing some have asked for ten years. This is not a new direction but just the sound of THIS album.

We are prepared for nagging about lack of speed and the full use of the Swedish language and, of course, the cynical opinions that we lack inspiration and thus use more traditional folk songs. The next time we take another step; I wonder what that can be."

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Source:	blogs.myspace.com
Band profile:	Falconer

After the successful release of their latest studio effort Solitaire Edenbridge is now set to play in Vietnam come December for the first time ever. The show will take place on the International Sailing Festival 2010; Therefore Sabine and Lanvall were invited to Hanoi in the beginning of October to make promotion for the festival and do an acoustic performance on the Chao Ha Noi International Festival.

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Source:	blogs.myspace.com
Band profile:	Edenbridge

A cappella metal band Van Canto have a new video out. The track is called "Magic Taborea" and comes off the bands most recent effort Tribe Of Force; released early this year.

Magic Taborea takes place in the fantastic world of Taborea of the MMORPG "Runes of Magic". Enjoy!


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Source:	blogs.myspace.com
Band profile:	Van Canto

German heavy metal legends Accept will embark on a headlining European tour in January next year, in support of their new album Blood Of The Nations. The tour contains 28 dates, plus some planned shows for Russia and UK as well. More details will be announced soon.

14.01.11 - Osnabrück, Halle Gartlage, GER
15.01.11 - Kassel, Outback, GER
16.01.11 - Antwerp, Hof ter Lo, B
18.01.11 - Paris, Elysee Montmartre, F
19.01.11 - Biarritz, L'attabal, F
21.01.11 - Madrid, La Rivera, E
22.01.11 - Pamplona, Totem, E
23.01.11 - Barcelona, Apollo, E
25.01.11 - Pratteln, Z7, CH
27.01.11 - Milan, Magazzini, I
28.01.11 - Tuttlingen, Stadthalle, GER
29.01.11 - Geiselwind, Eventcentrum Strohofer, GER
31.01.11 - Stuttgart, LKA, GER
01.02.11 - Wien, Arena, A
02.02.11 - Budapest, Diesel, HUN
04.02.11 - Katowice, tba, PL
05.02.11 - Warsaw, tba, PL
06.02.11 - Gdansk, tba, PL
08.02.11 - Hamburg, Große Freiheit, GER
09.02.11 - Köln, Live Music Hall, GER
10.02.11 - München, Tonhalle, GER
12.02.11 - Zlin, Masters of Rock Cafe, CZ
13.02.11 - Athens, Fuzz Club, GR

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Source:	nuclearblast.de
Band profile:	Accept
Event:	Accept: European Tour

Last week already, British death metallers Ignominious Incarceration have announced they will be changing names to The Soulless. Here's the official statement:

"The band started in the pits of hell that was Sam's basement. We were just playing heavy music and having fun. When we decided on the name Ignominious Incarceration, we never anticipated the level we would get to. Had we known, I'm sure we would have chosen a simpler name. The band started to get gigs and we started to take the band way more seriously as we discovered how much fun we could have. We did our first tour with Trigger The Bloodshed and this was when we were first approached by Earache Records. This was a real turning point for the band and we realised we could make something of it. We debated changing the name whilst recording Of Winter Born, but chose to stick with it. We don't regret doing this as it is what represented the band at the time.

Over the last couple of years since Of Winter Born, we have matured as people as well as a band. When we came to write the second album, we decided we wanted to do something different from the last one. Not a huge alteration in style, but more a progression of what we enjoy most and feel we can write the best. This then led to the discussion of our name. Obviously the name is very long and hard to pronounce. As a band, you're trying to promote yourselves and get your music to the people. We wanted a new name which was easy to remember and say, and to get ourselves out there. With the change in music, we thought it was a perfect opportunity to change our name as well. This almost 're-launching' of the band has given us new life and we are so motivated towards the new project.

As for the name-choosing itself, this was no easy task! As we were changing the name, we had to be 100% happy with it this time. We found it really hard to find a name bang-on-the-money. In the end, we wrote down thousands of names and set ourselves a deadline to pick the best one. We all liked The Soulless, which was in fact a working title for a new song. We feel the name has a dark, edgy feel to it, but is not instantly recognisable as metal and it's easy to say! We feel this represents us a lot better, as well as our new music.

We have a lot of plans for The Soulless; the new album is written and we will be going into the studio very soon. Everything we do in the next few months will be filmed so we can keep you updated. We did a pre-production demo track, which we are going to put online soon to show you a glimpse of the new material we have been talking about. When we finish in the studio, we will be recording our first official video. We are really excited to get back on the road again as the newly evolved band, The Soulless."

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Source:	earachenews.blogspot.com
Band profile:	The Soulless

Polish extreme metallers Hate have completed work on a new album, entitled Erebos. The album is slated for a November 2010 European release via Listenable Records. The album will be available in North America in January 2011 as an "extended version" featuring bonus live material.

Erebos was recorded at Hertz Studio in Bialystok, Poland with producers Slawek and Wojtek Wieslawski (Decapitated, Vader). The new album contains ten new songs, which are said to be a fusion of blackened death metal, industrial and ambient sounds, deathcore and heavy metal. "Erebos" comes from ancient Greek and means literally "deep darkness" or shadow. Studio reports and vlogs are available on the band's MySpace page.

Erebos cover art] tracklist:

01. Genesis
02. Lux Aeterna
03. Erebos
04. Quintessence Of Higher Suffering
05. Trinity Moons
06. Hero Cults
07. Transsubstance
08. Hexagony
09. Wrists
10. Luminous Horizon

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Source:	blogs.myspace.com
Band profile:	Hate

US progressive metallers Redemption are composing new material for their fifth studio album. Guitarist Nicolas van Dyk checked in with the following statement:

"Hello folks, and sorry for the long silence from us. It's been a very busy summer for us away from Redemption, particularly for Ray who as most of you surely know did a reunion tour with the Parallels lineup of Fates Warning to commemorate the 20th anniversary of that fantastic release.

I remain in complete remission with no trace of the disease that I announced publicly about a year ago. I remain on three powerful medications to ensure that the cancer does not return. Of the five original active lesions in my bones, none are active for cancer and one of them has resolved (i.e. been completely repaired with new bone). The other four are in the process of being repaired and that is the next big milestone. Patience is required but I believe they will get there. If that happens, it is a good sign that I am well down the road to being cured (according to the very aggressive doctor to whom I entrust my care). However I must remain on these medicines for two more years. They have many unpleasant side effects but I am resolved to stick with the program and beat "incurable" blood cancer. Thank you all very much for your prayers, positive vibes and words of support - they mean a lot.

And so life continues, and with it, a new Redemption CD in the works! We are in the early pre-production stages at this point, still composing and arranging. It's too early to say too much, but I can share that the arrangements vary from short (for us!) hard-hitting songs to at least one and possibly two more sprawling ideas, and that a few of the working titles at this point are Noonday Devil, Dreams from the Pit and Rain in my Soul.

We'll have more to post in the coming weeks and months, and hopefully some great new music for you in 2011!"

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Source:	blogs.myspace.com
Band profile:	Redemption

As confirmed last Friday, Virginia-based melodic tech death metal masters, Arsis, are pleased to announce their headlining tour across North America this upcoming December.

A Tour for the Sick is presented by MetalInjection.net and will include 8 bit metal heroes Powerglove and the Sumerian Records touring juggernaut Conducting From The Grave.

Arsis vocalist/guitarist Jim Malone commented: "What does a band that is notorious for canceling tours, video game induced tendinitis, and a Noah Martin look-a-like all have in common? If you have spent the better part of your existence trying to play 16th triplet arpeggios at 250 bpm you will probably be overcome with joy (or something) to hear that we (meaning Arsis dudes), Powerglove, and Conducting From The Grave are teaming up for a US tour this December. We are beyond stoked for our first headlining tour in support of Starve for the Devil and hope to see you at one (or more) of the tour dates. We promise to 'turn up the hell' on this one and make your weekend (or week night) one that is 'rock hard' and metalificated."

Tour dates are as follows:

12/01/10 Championship Bar & Grill - Trenton, NJ
12/02/10 Evening Star Music Hall - Niagara Falls, NY
12/03/10 Pirates Cove - Cleveland, OH
12/04/10 Harpo's - Detroit, MI
12/05/10 Reggie's Rock Club - Chicago, IL
12/07/10 Black Sheep - Colorado Springs, CO
12/08/10 In The Venue - Salt Lake City, UT
12/09/10 The Venue - Boise, ID
12/10/10 Studio 7 - Seattle, WA
12/11/10 Branx (Loveland) - Portland, OR
12/12/10 Thee Parkside - San Francisco, CA
12/13/10 The Whisky - Hollywood, CA
12/14/10 The Clubhouse - Tempe, AZ
12/15/10 Club Khaos - Amarillo, TX
12/16/10 The Marquee Theatre - Tulsa, OK
12/18/10 Jaxx - W. Springfield, VA

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Source:	blogs.myspace.com
Band profile:	Arsis
Event:	Arsis: US Tour

Last week Spawn Of Possession announced they have re-joined with the band's original vocalist Dennis Röndum (ex-Visceral Bleeding). Dennis parted ways, not so amicably, with the band back in 2006. This is what he had to say about his return to Spawn Of Possession:

"I've been quite disconnected from the band for a long time now so when Bryssling got in touch with me it felt kind of surreal. But none the less amazing when he started to describe his visions for the next Spawn Of Possession record and that he wanted me to handle the vocals for it. Now, mind you, it's been over four years of silence between us and we parted on a somewhat bad note but that's in the past. The focus is now on the new material, which Bryssling has invited me to get involved with and after listening to the temp tracks, all I can say is that I'm in for a serious ride. Although my presence have been lacking in the scene I've been busy writing and recording with my new band. It's still all under wraps but hopefully I'll be able to share it with you in a not too distant future. With that said, I'm really excited to be back in the Spawn Of Possession camp and I can't wait to join the others to complete what I believe will be a masterpiece of unparalleled proportions."

Guitarist and song writer Jonas Bryssling adds: "Yes, Dennis is back in the band, where he belongs. We would like to thank Chalky for the time he was a part of the band, He helped us bringing SoP back to life for a moment and without him we could not have done the Australian tour. So we are thankfull for everything he did for us and whish him the best of luck.

We have too many songs, and some of them are a tad bit long, 7-10 min each. So we have decided to cut down the amount of tracks from twelve songs to ten. We are now finishing up the last songs, polishing the arrangements and practicing the material. We are in the process of signing to a new label and booking a studio.
More info about that when we have worked out the details."

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Source:	blogs.myspace.com
Band profile:	Spawn Of Possession

Friendly reminder; Apoptosis, the second effort of Finnish metallers Sole Remedy is still streaming in its entirety on the band official MySpace page. The album was released earlier this week, September 27th to be precise, through the Aftermath Music label.

Further album details, including a review by Troy Gallant, can be found here.

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Source:	blogs.myspace.com
Band profile:	Sole Remedy