The Classic Struggle Return From The Road

The Classic Struggle have finally returned from touring and are getting ready to head back out on the road with Through the Eyes of the Dead and The Knife Trade. Here's what they had to say:

"Finally made it home! Back from a long ass tour with lots of debt and lots of van problems, but we made it. Sorry about having to cancel all of our southwest dates, but we were stranded with a broken van for a long time. We promise to get back out there soon and make those shows up. Thanks for everyone that supported us out on the road and check out the dates for our winter tour with Through the Eyes of the Dead and The Knife Trade."

The Classic Struggle's remaining tour dates are as follows: More...

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The Red Chord Confirms Europe’s Persistence Tour

The Red Chord has just been confirmed to play the Persistence Tour with Hatebreed, Agnostic Front, Born From Pain, Bleed the Sky and Full Blown Chaos. The tour begins December 1st in Germany and will cross through 6 countries in 2 weeks. Following to Persistence Tour, The Red Chord will play a couple shows in England before returning home.

THE RED CHORD on Persistence Tour 2005 w/ Hatebreed, Agnostic Front, Napalm Death, BORN FROM PAIN, Bleed The Sky, and Full Blown Chaos: More...

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The Black Dahlia Murder Japan, Korean Dates

The Black Dahlia Murder has just announced upcoming tour dates in Korea and Japan in support of their highly praised release Miasma! Trevor Strnad (vox), Brian Eschbach (guitar), and John Kempainen (guitar), have announced that Tony Laureano (ex-Nile) will sit in as the drummer and Bart Williams (Today I Wait) will be filling in on bass for these dates. The band will also embark on a European tour starting on January 20th in Essen, Germany with the band Liar.

Dec. 12 (Mon) Osaka @ Shinsaibashi Club Quattro
Dec. 13 (Tue) Tokyo @ Daikanyama Club Unit
Dec. 16 (Fri) Korea @ TBA

European dates w/ Liar: More...

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Belphegor To Enter Studio

Austrian death/black metal act BELPHEGOR are preparing to enter producer Andy Classen's Stage One studios in Germany to begin recording their sixth album, tentatively due next spring via an as-yet-undetermined label. "We're all set. Most of the 10 compositions/arrangements are finished in a rudimentary form," the band write. "Equipment is packed, new cymbals arrived and cables/strings/plecs have been fixed. Andy Classen will be at the helm as producer. The four recording sessions and mixing/mastering process should be complete by middle of February 2006, and the yet untitled album's release date will hopefully be sometime in April/May of 2006.

"As for the new album, we are doing everything we can to make sure it's the heaviest, most intense, monumental one BELPHEGOR ever made. We never rehearsed as often as for these 10 sound-collages. Hell yeah... We feel that this will be the mightiest BELPHEGOR jewel yet."

BELPHEGOR's fifth full-length album, "The Goatreich - Fleshcult", was released in Europe in February via Napalm Records. The CD was recorded at Mastersound Studio in Fellbach, Germany and is the follow-up to 2003's "Lucifer Incestus".

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5 Billion Dead Announce Search for 2nd Guitarist

Central Florida Metal Monsters 5 BILLION DEAD are now accepting audition applications for a 2nd guitarist to join the group full time. Alex V. remains a full time member of the band, and this is in no way an attempt to replace him, 5BD are simply seeking to add another dimension to thier already crushing sound. Potential candidates must meet a strict criteria, be 100% focused, dedicated, and ready to take their game to the highest level.

Requirements include:
- Pro Gear
- Amazing Chops
- Stage Experience
- 100% Professional Attitude
- Unstoppable Desire and Dedication

Furthermore, 5BD have additional requirements that will be disclosed only to potential candidates who can provide 5BD with evidence of their past history, and/or ability. Rehearsals are in the Longwood, FL area Monday, Wednesday and Friday evenings.

For samples of 5 BILLION DEAD's music, please visit our myspace page at:
http://www.myspace.com/5BillionDead More...

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Buckethead's 'We Are One' Video w/ Serj Online

Buckethead is out with the video to his latest single 'We Are One', featuring System Of A Down frontman Serj Tankian. You can watch it online at Yahoo! Music.

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Zao Tap Steve Albini For New Album

Zao has written over ten songs, and continues to accumulate material, for their new full-length album, the followup to last year's landmark "The Funeral Of God." The band is demoing material in their hometown of Greensburg, Pennsylvania right now and will enter Chicago's Electrical Audio studio in January to begin tracking with Steve Albini. The famed engineer's resume, of course, includes Nirvana, The Pixies, Neurosis and Slint.

"This is our strongest material and I'm confident in saying this will be the best album that ZAO has ever written," says longtime guitarist Scott Mellinger. "We want to capture the dark and sinister vibe that was all over the 'Liberate' record, while going even further forward and experimenting - as Zao always has done - with new depths within our sound."

While drummer Jeff Gretz has claimed the new album will be called "The George Lucas Neckfat," the truth is, the album is still as yet untitled. Singer Dan Weyandt, whose voice redefined "metalcore" for the masses on 1998's "Where Blood & Fire Bring Rest" and each subsequent Zao recording through last year's "Funeral Of God," has notebooks full of lyrics.

This news comes just as Zao's exhaustive career retrospective two-disc DVD hits shelves. "Zao: The Lesser Lights Of Heaven" contains a 3.5 hour documentary detailing Zao's storied history in the words of the band's members, several ex-members, friends and fans. It also contains a guided a tour of Greensburg, an hour of deleted scenes, easter eggs, two full live sets from multiple camera angles with board sound, and 14 extra songs from over the years.

"Zao: The Lesser Lights Of Heaven" was directed by the band's longtime friend and manager Ryan J. Downey, a former writer/producer for MTV News and longtime contributer to Alternative Press magazine and other publications.

Look for the as-yet untitled new ZAO album to surface this spring through Ferret Music.

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Today Is The Day Drummer Returns To Harlots

Today Is The Day and drummer Jeff Lohrber, who joined the band in March, have parted ways. The split comes as a result of "personal and musical difference with Steve Austin." Lohrber will now get back to working with Harlots full-time, in addition to a few other projects he'll be involved with.

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ex-Malevolent Creation Vocalist NOT On New Album

MALEVOLENT CREATION mainman Phil Fasciana has rejected as "wrong" an announcement on the official DOWN THE DRAIN MySpace.com page that former MALEVOLENT CREATION and current DOWN THE DRAIN frontman Brett Hoffman will be singing two tracks on MALEVOLENT's upcoming studio album. "Brett Hoffman is not singing any songs on our new album and either is Jason Blachowicz," Phil told BLABBERMOUTH.NET. "Jason has rejoined the band — yes, that is true — but he is playing bass, not singing (unless some backing vocals are needed). Brett is no longer a part of MALEVOLENT CREATION and hasn't been for the last five years and is definitely not recording with MALEVOLENT CREATION. All vocals will be performed by vocalist Kyle Symons who replaced Hoffman in late 2000 and has recorded the last two studio albums, 'The Will To Kill' and 'Warkult' and a live album that was released earlier this year titled 'Conquering South America' and was recorded in Brazil on the Brazilian Tour in 2003 and has no plans of leaving or being released from the band. Whoever posted that information about Brett and Jason singing on our new album is an idiot and it is 100% not true!!!" The current recording and live lineup is:

Kyle Symons – vocals
Dave Culross – drums
Jon Rubin – guitars
Jason Blachowicz – bass
Phil Fasciana – guitars

MALEVOLENT CREATION will play the following live dates in Mexico this coming December:

Dec. 02 - Aguascalientes, MEX @ La Caverna
Dec. 03 - Mexico City, MEX @ Circo Volador
Dec. 04 - Puebla, MEX @ La Ciricua Bar

These will be the last shows in support of the band's ninth album, "Warkult". MALEVOLENT CREATION are currently writing the material for their tenth studio CD, entitled "Doomsday X", which will be released spring-summer 2006. Several European festival appearances will follow next summer.

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Darkane Check in From the Road

DARKANE guitarist Christofer Malmstrom has posted the following message on the band's official web site:

"It's been a few days since I was on the computer! We've played Grand Rapids where I had lots of trouble with my gear, but I think the rest of the guys had a good show. Then we had a day off in Cleveland and Gene Hoglan of STRAPPING YOUNG LAD, our tour manager Bryan and us DARKANE dudes went to the Rock'n' Roll Hall of Fame museum! We enjoyed it a lot. The show also went very well. Detroit was next up and the Harpo's! Huge place! Kind of rough neigborhood, but we were prepared for that. We were told not to go anywhere but the bus and the venue. The stage was REALLY tall and the audience seemed like 'midgets' from up there."

"Next stop was Toronto and our first-ever Canadian show! Beautiful town (which we didnt get to see much of...) but most special... the crowd!!! You people rocked the Opera House!"

"Yesterday we had another day off in NYC where we did the usual touristing stuff such as checking out the Empire State Building, Times Square, Rockefeller Center and the Grand Central Station. Not the juiciest news you would have hoped for but we are tourists in this country right now! In the evening we went to B.B. King's at Times Square and checked VADER and CRYPTOPSY, because our ears really longed for some death metal!"

"Today SOILWORK joined the package and from now on there will be the four of us on the bill. SOILWORK seemed jet lagged, but put on a hell of a show here at the Irving Plaza. Our set tonight wasn't the best so far but it felt ok and we've got a lot of good response from the audience."

"Well, Jorgen just entered and told me that people are waiting at the merch booth to get their CDs signed, so... gotta go!"

"See you out there, and remember to come early as DARKANE is the opening act!"

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Scott Kelly Plans Acoustic Shows

Scott Kelly (Neurosis) will perform at Spacegallerysf in San Francisco on 11/17 w/ Mike Moraskey and Oxbow acoustic duo as well as two shows at the Knitting Factory in Hollywood on 11/18. Both the Knitting Factory shows are with also Oxbow (acoustic duo).

All shows are acoustic. Scott will play material from Blood and Time and his solo record, as well some new acoustic songs. Noah Landis (Neurosis, Blood & Time) will join Scott in SF. Josh Graham (Red Sparowes, Neurosis visuals) will join Scott at the Knitting Factory.

Scott plans to do some Northwest gis in Dec. or early Jan. More to be announced.

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The Human Abstract Signs To Hopeless Records

Hopeless Records has officially signed Los Angeles metal/progressive outfit The Human Abstract. The group will enter the studio in February to begin recording a new album, which will hit streets in early-summer 2006. In the meantime, you can check out demo material from their upcoming release here.

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Kittie Signs Digital Deal With Rock Ridge Music

Kittie has signed with Rock Ridge Music to release a digital EP and ringtones in early 2006. It was announced by Jason Spiewak of Rock Ridge Music. “Kittie rocks!” says Spiewak. “They are an amazingly talented and focused group, and we’re thrilled to be working with them.” The deal was done based on Spiewak’s past working relationship with the band.

Kittie , which features sisters Morgan and Mercedes Lander (guitar/vocals and drums, respectively), Trish Doan (bass), and Tara Macleod (guitar), has sold over 1 million records in the United States since making its recording debut with Spit (Artemis) in 2000. Morgan Lander says: "We are excited to finally have the ability to get new music out to our fans and delighted to be doing so with the help of Rock Ridge Music and Jason Spiewak. This is a unique opportunity to take advantage of the technology that is out there to introduce new material while we complete our forthcoming album."

Kittie is currently working on material for their next full-length record. In the meantime, the band has signed with Rock Ridge Music to release a digital-only EP of new songs in the first quarter of 2006. Rock Ridge will also release Kittie’s first-ever official ringtones around the same time.

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Interview

Interview With Aborted Guitarist Tace

Monday, November 7th, I had the opportunity to interview Aborted guitarist, Tace. He was very nice friendly to me. The interview was done at BB Kings in New York CIty. Here's how it went down: More...

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Unleashed 'Ordered Off' X-Mass Festival

Swedish death metallers UNLEASHED have posted the following message on their official web site:

"Since the beginning of this year we have announced and promoted our confirmed participation on the X-Mass tour 2005 [with HYPOCRISY, EXODUS, NAGLFAR, WINTERSUN and FEAR MY THOUGHTS].

"According to the promoter Metallysee, Nuclear Blast Records have now sponsored the tour and also have the right to choose which bands they want next to theirs on the bill. Accordingly, they ordered UNLEASHED off the bill, scared shitless of the competition UNLEASHED would cause, or just don't like us?

"Smart move either way, and quite understandable.

"We have tried to book a replacement tour for December as announced on our website. Unfortunately, time was not on our side to do so and we will have to reschedule for next year. We will now concentrate on the final details of the upcoming DVD release and also our eighth full length album. We plan to enter the studio in January 2006."

UNLEASHED filmed their entire performance at the Up From The Ground festival (August 26-27, 2005) for their upcoming full-length DVD, tentatively due next year. UNLEASHED had also shot their July 1 concert at the With Full Force festival in Leipzig, Germany for the as-yet-untitled disc.

UNLEASHED recently completed the Harvest Festival 2005 European tour with NILE, PUNGENT STENCH, BEHEMOTH, INCANTATION and BELHEGOR. The band are continuing to tour in support of their seventh studio album, "Sworn Allegiance", which was released last fall through Century Media Records. The follow-up to 2002's "Hell's Unleashed" was recorded and mixed by Fredrik Folkare at Chrome Studios and mastered by Peter In de Betou of Tailor Maid Productions (DIMMU BORGIR, AMON AMARTH, KATATONIA).

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Slave to the System To Re-Release Debut In Feb

SLAVE TO THE SYSTEM, the band featuring Scott Rockenfield (drums, QUEENSRŸCHE), Kelly Gray (guitar, ex-QUEENSRŸCHE), Damon Johnson (guitar/vocals, BROTHER CANE), will re-release their debut album through Spitfire Records on February 21, 2006.

Rockenfield, along with Johnson, Gray and bassist Roman Glick, set out to do something they had never done before: they wanted to create music without rules, without corporate influence, and without being part of "the system". "We weren't thinking about demographics or sales," adds Johnson. "Everybody just wanted to rock out and start something new and unique and the result is a project that we’re very excited about, like kids starting their first band. The spirit of fearlessness is something we wanted to embody in our music."

The members of SLAVE TO THE SYSTEM combine their various influences and approaches to create something that will appeal to a broad spectrum of listeners. By pooling their talents, the members of SLAVE TO THE SYSTEM evoke music that is both reminiscent of hard rock veterans like THE WHO, LED ZEPPELIN, DEEP PURPLE and THIN LIZZY, as well as a younger breed of music akin to AUDIOSLAVE and VELVET REVOLVER.

"This band rocks a little harder," says Johnson. "We've made 30 or 40 records between the four of us...For once, we didn't feel the pressure to write on a deadline."

The musicianship and vocal delivery of SLAVE TO THE SYSTEM rival any Top 40 radio rock band. "The drums and the riff and the vocal melody can all be the strength of a song," explains Rockenfield. "We find that strength and bring it to the forefront on each song. When you have talented and experienced musicians working together, I think it can be more difficult to write a good song than to overplay and drown out the strengths. I think we succeeded in avoiding that potential problem and the result is an album full of good, melodic rock songs." As for production, the band handled the responsibilities themselves. "We all have studio experience, so we can avoid doing things the 'normal' way."

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Moonspell Sign With SPV/Steamhammer Records

Portuguese metallers MOONSPELL have inked a three-album deal with SPV/Steamhammer Records following their split with Century Media. The band are currently recording their new album, entitled "Memorial", at the Woodhouse Studios in Hagen, Germany with producer Waldemar Sorychta (TIAMAT, SAMAEL, SENTENCED), who had worked with the group on their first three records ("Wolfheart", "Irreligious", "Sin/Pecado"). The recording sessions will last from November 1 to November 27.

"Memorial" will contain around 8 to 10 new songs, including "Once It Was Ours!", "Blood Tells", "Sanguine", "Finisterra", "Upon the Blood of Men" and "At the Image of Pain". The material is being described by the group as "the best music we ever wrote together" and "an homage to the Nineties scene and bands," of which they became a strong symbol of. A tentative spring 2006 release is expected.

With regards to MOONSPELL's long-awaited first DVD, "Lunar Still/13 Years of Doom", most of the contents are ready to go into production but the release was delayed due to legal issues which are taking a long time to be ironed out. Century Media will release the DVD sometime next year. In addition, new live dates are being booked for the next festival season, as are one-off shows in Russia and Morocco.

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Aftonbladet Chats With Hammerfall (In Swedish)

Aftonbladet caught up with Hammerfall singer Joacim Cans and guitarist Oscar Droniak. You can watch the segment, in Swedish, here.

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