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Manos Spanos

New AMBERIAN DAWN Studio Album Is Ready To Be Recorded

Manos Spanos
Finnish female-fronted symphonic metallers AMBERIAN DAWN have issued the following update: "We have some great news from AMBERIAN DAWN's headquarters here in Finland. "Many of you are waiting for a new AMBERIAN DAWN studio album. Tuomas [Seppälä; keyboards, guitar] has already penned 10 new awesome songs and those are ready to be recorded in fall 2013. We're doing this without financial support of record labels and now you can help us make it happen. This album is planned to come out in early 2014. "We want to do this together with you and we will offer you some very special extras. We have the 'traditional' merch things like MP3's and signed CDs but also our own personal stuff: band gear, instruments, stage clothes etc. You could also have your name written on the booklet of this CD. All pledges are included with MP3 download package. Shipping fee is always included on prices. "We have so far toured three times in Europe and have enjoyed every minute. We want to do it again. If we'll get 200% of our initial goal raised, we can manage to arrange a tour too. This tour could be arranged in 2014. "Now you can be part of AMBERIAN DAWN family and help us making this new album and tour again." AMBERIAN DAWN released a compilation album of songs that originally appeared on their first four albums — "Circus Black" (2012), "End Of Eden" (2010), "The Clouds Of Northland Thunder" (2009) and "River Of Tuoni" (2008) — to showcase new singer Päivi "Capri" Virkkunen after the departure of Heidi Parviainen. "Re-Evolution" was made available on June 14 in Finland, distributed by Suomen Musiikki. "Re-Evolution" was mixed by Mikko Mustonen and mastered by Henkka Niemisto at Chartmakers. A music video for the song "Kokko - Eagle Of Fire" can be seen below. The clip was produced by Routafilmi, which is the same company that made the AMBERIAN DAWN's "Arctica" video. AMBERIAN DAWN parted ways with vocalist Heidi Parviainen in November 2012. Her final appearance with the band was at the Metal Female Voices Fest at the end of October 2012 in Belgium.
02 min read

MEGADETH: ‘Countdown To Extinction’ Performance Clip From New DVD, Blu-Ray

Manos Spanos
In November and December of 2012, MEGADETH blazed hot on the band's "Countdown To Extinction 20th Anniversary Tour", ripping through their entire double platinum 1992 album from start to finish before performing other classics from their recorded catalog. Recorded and filmed at Los Angeles' Fox Theatre last December, "Countdown to Extinction: Live" is a definitive document of the acclaimed, sold-out tour. In addition to MEGADETH's blistering performance of the entire "Countdown To Extinction" album, including the essential "Symphony Of Destruction", "Foreclosure Of A Dream", "Sweating Bullets" and "Skin O' My Teeth", "Countdown to Extinction: Live" features all of the other MEGADETH classics the band performed at the epic concert, including "Holy Wars" and "Hangar 18" from 1990's "Rust In Peace", "Peace Sells" from the band's influential, platinum-certified 1986 album "Peace Sells... But Who's Buying?", and "Trust" from 1997's platinum certified "Cryptic Writings". On September 24, "Countdown To Extinction: Live" was released on CD, DVD and Blu-ray via Capitol. "Countdown To Extinction: Live" track listing: 01. Intro 02. Architecture Of Aggression 03. Ashes In Your Mouth 04. Captive Honour 05. Countdown To Extinction
01 min read

SAXON: ‘Unplugged And Strung Up’ Cover Artwork Unveiled

Manos Spanos
British heavy metal legends SAXON produce a series of alternative takes on classic favorites to herald a worthy new entry to the Saxonian Institute of Metal. There is always feral beauty in a raging beast…and with "Unplugged And Strung Up", SAXON's selection of unique, fresh and adventurous interpretations of material previously heard only with raw heavy metal thunder, the point is triumphantly underscored. Due on November 18, "Unplugged And Strung Up" reveals layers and pieces previously dormant in many of the 14 classic SAXON songs chosen for this makeover, thanks to some ear-catching new arrangements and mixes. Recorded, mixed and mastered with Andy Sneap in Derbyshire, U.K. earlier this year, "Unplugged And Strung Up" contains re-evaluated, re-worked and re-energized versions of "The Eagle Has Landed" and "Crusader" by introducing orchestral dynamics to offer added dimension. "Frozen Rainbow", from the band's 1979 debut, gets a stunning acoustic reprisal which transports it into a power ballad to be proud of, while "Red Star Falling" soars and sweeps the emotions with its orchestrally arranged dovetail.
02 min read

SOULFLY: Entire ‘Savages’ Album Available For Streaming

Manos Spanos
SOULFLY's ninth album, "Savages", is available for streaming in its entirety using the SoundCloud widget below. "Savages" is scheduled for release on October 1 via SOULFLY's new label home, Nuclear Blast Entertainment. The CD was produced by Terry Date, who is known for his work with such acts as PANTERA, DEFTONES and SOUNDGARDEN, among many others. Guest vocal appearances on "Savages" include SOULFLY bass player Tony Campos, CLUTCH's Neil Fallon, NAPALM DEATH's Mitch Harris, Jamie Hanks of I DECLARE WAR and SOULFLY mainman Max Cavalera's son Igor Cavalera (of LODY KONG). "Savages" will be released as a limited-edition digpack CD, 2LP vinyl and digital download. "Savages" track listing: 01. Bloodshed (feat. Igor Cavalera) 02. Cannibal Holocaust 03. Fallen (feat. Jamie Hanks) 04. Ayatollah Of Rock ‘N’ Rolla (feat. Neil Fallon) 05. Master Of Savagery 06. Spiral 07. This Is Violence 08. K.C.S. (feat. Mitch Harris) 09. El Comegente (feat. Tony Campos) 10. Soulfliktion Limited-edition CD and 2LP vinyl bonus tracks: 11. Fuck Reality 12. Soulfly IX
02 min read

JUDAS PRIEST Settles Breach-Of-Contract Suit With ROB HALFORD’s Longtime Manager

Manos Spanos
According to Law360.com, JUDAS PRIEST lead singer Rob Halford, other PRIEST members, and the band's management team have reached a settlement with Rob's longtime manager John Baxter in a breach-of-contract suit. U.S. District Judge Gonzalo P. Curiel granted the parties' joint motion for dismissal on Thursday after they said they’d reached a settlement. The terms of the settlement were not disclosed. Halford, his PRIEST bandmates and the group management team were sued by Baxter to the tune of around $50 million. Rolling Stone reported that Baxter's suit, which can be found as a PDF document at this location, alleged "fraud, breach of contract, and intentional interference with contractual relations." Shortly after Halford fired Baxter in August 2012, Baxter claimed that he realized that the PRIEST frontman owed him millions due to "contract breaches, including failure to pay commissions, salary and expenses dating back to 1992." He said that Halford misled him by saying that he was unable to pay Baxter the monies owed him, but promised to do so when he had the money at hand.
02 min read

SLIPKNOT’s JOEY JORDISON Has No Interest In Seeing BLACK SABBATH Without BILL WARD

Manos Spanos
U.K.'s Metal Hammer magazine recently got the chance to chat to SLIPKNOT and SCAR THE MARTYR drummer Joey Jordison and asked him for his thoughts on some of metal's big-hitters that have been grabbing headlines this year. Here’s what he had to say. On AVENGED SEVENFOLD: Jordison: "Honestly, I don't own any AVENGED SEVENFOLD records and I've not heard the new record. I've read about comparisons to METALLICA on the new record, and I guess there's a certain controversy around that, but I've not paid that much attention to it. Nothing against them, I'm not knocking them, but I was just never a fan: not that they're bad, they're just one of those bands that kinda bypassed me." On METALLICA: Jordison: "That's the fucking band. Without METALLICA, I wouldn't be doing what I am doing. I have every METALLICA record, of course, and I would spend hours on drums in my parents' basement, with the stereo behind me, cranking those records and learning Lars' [Ulrich] drum beats, beat by beat. And nowadays, for me, METALLICA can do whatever the fuck they want. I'm not sure that 'Lulu' is something I'd be getting into, but METALLICA have a free pass from me to do anything, I can't really knock anything they do. I mean [LED] ZEPPELIN and THE WHO passed the torch to METALLICA; they're that band for our generation. Everything they do now is going to be met with a little bit of a backlash just because they're so big, but without METALLICA, there would be no heavy bands, hardly. People have a hard time saying that, and obviously there's a ton of other great bands, but there's a reason that they're huge and have been able to expand their audience to millions and millions and millions of people. I have nothing but praise for them."
02 min read

DESTRUCTION Joined By KRISIUN For Cover Of VENOM Classic (Video)

Manos Spanos
Brazilian death metallers KRISIUN joined German thrashers DESTRUCTION on stage on Sunday, September 22 at the Rock In Rio festival in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil to perform a cover version of the VENOM classic "Black Metal". Video footage of the performance can be seen below. Said DESTRUCTION vocalist/bassist Marcel "Schmier" Schirmer: "I would like to dedicate this performance to my old-time buddy Michael Trengert [Nuclear Blast, Metal Blade] that passed away in that night when we were on stage in Rio. "Michael was one of the founders of the German metal scene, a great friend and maybe the most honest guy in this monkey business. He will be missed like no one else! "RIP, brother — your legacy will never die!" DESTRUCTION's 30th-anniversary album, "Spiritual Genocide", was released on November 23, 2012 via Nuclear Blast Records. The follow-up to 2011's "Day Of Reckoning" was recorded at Gernhart Studios in Troisdorf, Germany with engineer Martin Buchwalter and was mixed by Andy Classen. The album features guest appearances by Thomas "Angelripper" Such (SODOM), Andreas "Gerre" Geremia (TANKARD) and Ol Drake (EVILE). In addition, the "Mad Butcher"/"Release From Agony" lineup of DESTRUCTION — featuring guitarist Harry Wilkens and drummer Oliver Kaiser — reunited for one song.
01 min read

ROYAL HUNT: ‘A Life To Die For’ Cover Artwork, Track Listing Revealed

Manos Spanos
Danish/American hard rockers ROYAL HUNT will release their twelfth studio album, "A Life To Die For", in November through Marquee/Avalon (Japan and Southeast Asia) and Frontiers (Europe and North America). The material has been described as a continuation of the band's last CD, "Show Me How To Live", but with new elements in in both the songwriting and production departments. The cover artwork was created by Kai Brockschmidt (PINK CREAM 69, PRETTY MAIDS) and can be seen below. "A Life To Die For" will be mde available in three different versions: * Digipack CD + DVD (containing live footage from the band's last year tour, tour documentary and interviews) * Regular CD * 180-gram vinyl, gatefold "A Life To Die For" track listing: 01. Hell Comes Down From Heaven 02. A Bullet's Tale 03. Running Out Of Tears 04. One Minute Left To Live 05. Sign Of Yesterday 06. Won't Trust, Won't Fear, Won't Beg 07. A Life To Die For In order to upgrade its trademark sound, ROYAL HUNT employed a large number of classical/orchestra players in the studio as well as a large choir.
02 min read

SLASH Reveals His Top 5 Horror Films (Video)

Manos Spanos
Legendary guitarist Slash (GUNS N' ROSES, VELVET REVOLVER) revealed his "Top 5 Horror Pix That Scared The Slash Outta Me" during an appearance on "George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight", the Canadian television talk show broadcast on CBC television and hosted by George Stroumboulopoulos. You can watch the segment below. As previously reported, Slash and Myles Kennedy are set to perform a new song, "Nothing Left To Fear", tonight, Thursday, September 26 on "Conan", airing at 11:00 p.m./10:00 p.m. CT on TBS. On October 4, Slash will release the soundtrack album for the first-ever motion picture he has co-produced, "Nothing Left To Fear", via his company Slasher Films. "Nothing Left To Fear The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack" will be released on October 4, exclusively at PledgeMusic.com, the same day the film opens in select theaters. Written and produced by Slash and Nick O'Toole, the "Nothing Left To Fear" soundtrack includes the film score plus two original songs: "Nothing Left To Fear", which features vocalist Myles Kennedy, and the instrumental "Welcome To Stull". Available on Blu-ray Combo-pack, DVD and On Demand starting Tuesday, October 8, "Nothing Left To Fear" is a harrowing tale in the spirit of the terrifying horror films of the 1970s. The movie is inspired by the legend of Stull, Kansas, which is surrounded by Internet folklore proclaiming the town to be one of the Seven Gateways to Hell. Wendy (Anne Heche), her husband Dan (James Tupper of "Revenge") and their kids have just moved to the small town of Stull, Kansas, where Dan is the new pastor. But in this sleepy community of friendly neighbors, a horrific series of occurrences awaits them: Their teenage daughter (Rebekah Brandes of "Bellflower") is being tormented by grisly visions. Her younger sister (Jennifer Stone of "Wizards Of Waverly Place") has been marked for a depraved ritual. And deep within the heartland darkness, one of The Seven Gates Of Hell demands the blood of the innocent to unleash the creatures of the damned. Ethan Peck ("10 Things I Hate About You") and Clancy Brown ("The Shawshank Redemption") co-star in this demonic shocker featuring original music by producer Slash and inspired by the real-life paranormal legacy of Stull. "Nothing Left To Fear" is the first film from Rock And Roll Hall Of Famer Slash's production company Slasher Films, and was written by Jonathon W.C. Mills and directed by Anthony Leonardi III. "As a longtime fan of the horror genre, I want to produce films that are in an older tradition of the genre," said Slash. "That is to say, films that leave more to one's imagination, that are psychologically scary and character-driven, and what scares you is more cerebral than superficial. Slasher Films is my vehicle to realize that aim, and 'Nothing Left To Fear' is the first film with more to come."
03 min read

SYLOSIS Frontman: ‘In Car-Accident Terms, We’re Alright’

Manos Spanos
British metallers SYLOSIS have been forced to drop off their North American tour with TRIVIUM, DEVILDRIVER and AFTER THE BURIAL after being involved in a serious RV accident Tuesday night on their way to a show in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. In a posting on the band's Facebook page, SYLOSIS guitarist/vocalist Josh Middleton writes: "Myself, Rob [Callard, drums] and [Alex] Bailey [rhythm guitar] have just been released after over ten hours in hospital. Carl [Parnell, bass] is being kept in overnight as he's in too much pain to walk but should hopefully be released tomorrow morning (Montreal time) once some of his muscle pain/swelling has subsided. "All four of us and our driver were hospitalized, but seeing as Bailey was the only one who didn't get taken in on a stretcher and a neck brace, he wasn't treated as urgently. He's just had his back sewn up and is off to the scrap yard where the RV was taken to get people's clothes and some personal items — hero. "We're all very lucky. We've mostly just been stitched up (my eyebrow, a few on Carl's legs and Bailey's back), badly bruised and what feels like full-body whiplash. "In car-accident terms, we're alright, but in general terms we're not physically capable of continuing on with the tour and aim to get back to our families and friends [as soon as possible] to recover. "We want to thank the paramedics, the passersby who came to our help, the staff at the hospital and all of the fans and bands that have wished us well. It means the world to us." SYLOSIS' latest album, "Monolith", was recorded with Romesh Dodangoda in Wales at Monnow Valley Studio and was mastered by Jens Bogren (SOILWORK, AMON AMARTH, BLOODBATH) at Fascination Street Studios. The concept for the lyrics were loosely inspired by the Greek tale of Orpheus and Eurydice. The artwork was created this time around by Dan Goldsworthy (ACCEPT, HELL).
02 min read

Manos Spanos

Manos Spanos (Metalpaths' co-editor-in-chief), eight years in this site but still can't be characterised as a metalhead.