Laiho And Kotipelto Guest On Upcoming Warman Album

In other Children of Bodom news, keyboardist Janne Warman has announced that CoB guitarist Alexi Laiho and Stratovarius singer Timo Kotipelto will be among the group of vocalists who perform on the upcoming Warmen album, scheduled for release in May.

In other Children of Bodom news, guitarists Roope Latvala and Alexi Laiho will appear at the Finnish Metal Expo in Kaapelitehdas, Helsinki on Saturday, January 29.

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Katatonia Announce Release Date For Comp. Box Set

Katatonia have posted the following update:

'The Black Sessions' - 3 disc compilation box set will be released on February 21:st. Our longtime collaborator Travis Smith once again created some outstanding bleak art portraying the final destiny of the "mysterious bum in hat" character that's been seen in prior album layouts. Since we didn't wanna leave out any of the images, the booklet was expanded to 24 pages instead of 12 and also features all lyrics to the songs. There's also a poster which has the cover artwork on the frontside + interior artwork one the backside. Here's a glimpse of the cover and the full tracklist:

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NorthWest Deathfest Announced

NorthWest Deathfest 2005 has been announced and the event will take place in Seattle, WA at The Fenix (109 S Washington St.) on Sunday, April 3rd. Tickets for the all-day event which starts at 11AM are $15.

Confirmed to grace two stages are as follows: CANNIBAL CORPSE, SADUS, INCANTATION, SEVENPERCENT, NON-EXISTANCE, NECRYPTIC and FUNERAL AGE. More acts will be announced soon.

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After Forever Working On New Album

Dutch Gothic metallers AFTER FOREVER are currently working on material for a new album and are making preparations to go into the studio. The new material will be typical for the band in that it will feature several sides to singer Floor Jansen's vocal style, along with the expected male grunts, orchestral arrangements and guitar riffs. The album is slated for a September 2005 release, with a single planned to be issued in July or August.

Festival dates in Germany are being organized, with plans to hit the road with a bigger band or headline being ironed out as well.

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Killswitch Engage Post Re-Mastered Soilborn Online

An mp3 of Killswitch Engage's "Soilborn", which is taken from the forthcoming reworked version of their self-titled debut, is now available online for download here. The remixed and remastered edition will arrive in stores through Ferret on January 11th.

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Chimaira Post Montage Of 2003 & 2004 Video Online

Chimaira have posted a video montage of their experiences in 2003-2004 online, complete with an empowering soundtrack, you can find that at www.chimaira.com. The band are currently set to hit the studio on January 17th to begin recording their new album with producer Ben Schigel (Chimaira, Switched). A summer release via Roadrunner is expected.

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Into Eternity Get New Singer

Into Eternity have announced the addition of Omega Crom vocalist Stuie B. to their lineup. Stu will apparently replace Chris Krall, who left the group last year. Here's a statement (posted on the band's website) from guitarist Tim Roth:

"We have spent a week jamming as a band again. The rehearsals went very well for us. Stu flew in from Vancouver on Monday the 3rd. The very first day, Stu had learned about 11 songs! He actually sang them all and we were surprised by that. By weeks end, he had most of the kinks out and we are sounding pretty tight. Stu has a really great high falsetto voice, which has some Rob Halford influence in it. The high parts on Buried In Oblivion are no problem for him and he is nailing all the parts like a pro! Another bonus is his death vocals. Stu has no problem hitting all the clean vocals and then switching into some death voices as well. This diverse style is going to work well within the band. To top it all off, Stu has a great attitude and it an all around cool guy. Stu will be performing with Into Eternity on all future shows, including our upcoming tour with Amorphis in March. Hopefully everyone will come out to support the new line-up. I promise it won't disappoint!"

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More Danzig, Kataklysm, Trivium Dates Announced

More tour dates have been announced for the forthcoming tour including DANZIG, KATAKLYSM and TRIVIUM. Confirmed dates are now as follows:

February 18 - Sauget, IL @ Pop's
February 19 - Detroit, MI @ Harpo's
February 21 - Chicago, IL @ House of Blues
February 22 - Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue
February 24 - Toronto, ON @ The Guvernment
February 25 - Cleveland, OH @ Agora Theater
March 1 - New York, NY @ The Spirit Performance Center
March 4 - Norfolk, VA @ The Norva

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Illdisposed Bassist On Surviving The Tsunami

Bass player Jonas Kloge of Danish melodic death metallers ILLDISPOSED has checked in with the following message:

"I was in a restaurant when lots of hysterical people suddenly came running into the place. Everything was chaos and at first I didn't know what was going on. I went to the door and looked outside, at bit confused, the sight was shocking. Huge waves were filling the streets with water and the palms were breaking like matches. Water filled the restaurant and partly broke the staircase which led to the roof of the building. I climbed up the broken stairs and when I reached the top of the stairs I saw a woman and her 2 children struggling in the water under the stairs. I climbed down the stairs again, reaching out for one of the kids, carrying him up to the roof of the building where we were safe so far. Fortunately the woman and her other child were saved as well.

On top of the building I could see how the wave destroyed everything, houses crumbled and trees broke. When the wave disappeared we ran like hell to a nearby mountain where we spent the night."

In related news, no update has been given about NASUM vocalist/guitarist Mieszko Talarczyk since he went missing on Decemeber 27th.

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Some Openers Announced For Slipknot Arena Tour

Some of the openers - including Gizmachi, Sworn Enemy, All That Remains, The Bled, and Devildriver - for the forthcoming SLIPKNOT, LAMB OF GOD, SHADOWS FALL arena tour have been announced. They are as follows:

March 4 - Wallingford, CT @ Meadows Music Theatre w/ GIZMACHI
March 5 - Philadelphia, PA @ Wachovia Spectrum w/ GIZMACHI
March 6 - Rutherford, NJ @Continental Airlines Arena w/ GIZMACHI
March 8 - Columbus, OH @ Nationwide Arena w/ GIZMACHI
March 9 - Cleveland, OH @ CSU Convocation Center w/ GIZMACHI
March 11 - Rosemont, IL @ Allstate Arena w/ GIZMACHI
March 12 - Detroit, MI @ Cobo Arena w/ SWORN ENEMY
March 13 - Indianapolis, IN @ Conseco Fieldhouse w/ SWORN ENEMY
March 15 - Lowell, MA @ Paul E. Tsongas Arena w/ SWORN ENEMY
March 16 - Fairfax, VA @ Patriot Center w/ ALL THAT REMAINS
March 18 - Hampton, VA @ Hampton Coliseum w/ ALL THAT REMAINS
March 19 - Atlanta, GA @ HiFi Buys Amphitheatre w/ ALL THAT REMAINS
March 20 - Pensacola, FL @ Pensacola Civic Center w/ THE BLED
March 22 - W. Palm Beach, FL @ Sound Advice Amp. w/ THE BLED
March 23 - Tampa, FL @ USF Sun Dome w/ THE BLED

More dates and openers to be announced soon. DEVILDRIVER will be opening all Texas dates.

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Original Meliah Rage Drummer Rejoins

Original Meliah Rage drummer Stuart Dowie has rejoined the underrated Boston metallers. Dowie was part of the classic Meliah Rage lineup that released 1988's "Kill To Survive" and 1990's "Solitary Solitude."

As previously, the band rounded off by leader/main writer/guitarist Anthony Nichols, guitarist Jim Koury, bassist Jesse Johnson and new singer Paul Souza, are continuing work on their new studio record at Danger Multitrack Studios in Providence, RI and Sherwood Forest Studios in Bedford Massachusetts. A mid-2005 release via Screaming Ferret Wreckords is expected and Meliah Rage will hit the road this year.

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