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SLAYER Albums To Be Reissued On Vinyl

Manos Spanos
On December 10 (November 11 in the U.K.), American Recordings will reissue ten ofSLAYER's seminal albums on vinyl. All ten albums will be available individually and were remastered from the original analog flat master tapes and pressed on the highest quality, 180-gram audiophile vinyl. Albums include nine of SLAYER's studio recordings — "Reign In Blood"(1986), "South Of Heaven" (1988), "Seasons In The Abyss" (1990), "Divine Intervention"(1994), "Undisputed Attitude" (1996), "Diabolus In Musica" (1998), "God Hates Us All"(2001), "Christ Illusion" (2006), and "World Painted Blood" (2009), plus their live double-record "Decade Of Aggression: Live" (1991). Each title will feature the original album artwork, including reproductions of the original 12x12 inner sleeves. For the first U.S. run, 500 unmarked copies will be pressed on 180-gram, blood red, colored vinyl and randomly inserted and sold in stores as part of a "lucky dip." There will also be a very limited quantity of rare test pressings for each title that will be given away. Fans are encouraged to check SLAYER's official web site and social media outlets for further announcements and details. As American Recordings' owner and longtime SLAYER producer Rick Rubin put it, "SLAYER defines speed metal and these albums define SLAYER. Listen at your own risk."
01 min read

ICED EARTH Taps Former SLAYER/TESTAMENT Drummer JON DETTE

Manos Spanos
For the remainder of ICED EARTH's European tour with VOLBEAT, Jon Dette (SLAYER,TESTAMENT, ANTHRAX) will sit behind the drums, taking over for Raphael Saini, who filled in during the summer festivals, the recording of ICED EARTH's new album, and the club leg of theVOLBEAT tour. "Raphael came in and helped us out of a tight spot this summer with a full schedule of festivals, a new album to finish, and no room for diversion on the schedule," said ICED EARTHin a statement. "He came in and delivered and we are very grateful for that. We wish him all the best for his future endeavours." Added Raphael: "When I had the chance to join ICED EARTH for their summer festivals and the new album, I couldn't say no: I was really excited even though I knew that it was going to be something temporary. "I am honored to be part of the band's history, an amazing album, and to have worked with some supremely talented musicians. My journey will continue, there's more to come." ICED EARTH earlier in the year parted ways with drummer Brent Smedley for "personal family reasons." The second leg of ICED EARTH's tour with VOLBEAT kicks off at O2 World in Berlin, Germany, tomorrow, November 6, and wraps at Forum, Copenhagen, Denmark on December 1. ICED EARTH will release its new album, "Plagues Of Babylon", in January 2014 via Century Media Records. The cover artwork was created and illustrated by Eliran Kantor(TESTAMENT, ATHEIST, SIGH, ANACRUSIS, GWAR).
01 min read

TESTAMENT’s ALEX SKOLNICK: JEFF HANNEMAN’s Riffs Are ‘All Over’ SLAYER’s Iconic Tunes

Manos Spanos
Peter Atkinson of Metal-Rules.com recently conducted an interview with guitarist Alex Skolnick of San Francisco Bay Area metallers TESTAMENT. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below. Metal-Rules.com: The last time you toured with SLAYER, was Jeff Hanneman still with the band? Skolnick: The last time we toured with them, I think it must have been one of the last tours that Jeff did. Of course, no one knew that at the time. He hadn't developed his health issues so Gary [Holt, SLAYER's current touring guitarist] wasn't there yet, he was still going full-time with EXODUS, who we also toured with. You couldn't have known what was going to happen. That was 2010, and it was only 2011 when the "Big Four" shows happened and he [Hanneman] couldn't do those, which was such a shame. Metal-Rules.com: You wrote a very eloquent and well-circulated tribute to Hanneman after his death. TESTAMENT toured with SLAYER many times, but did you really know him that well or was that more to show respect for his talents? Skolnick: I never really knew him well at all. He was very difficult to get to know, actually. And I don't say that disrespectfully. Even close friends of his said it would take a long time to get to know him. Robb Flynn, a friend of ours from MACHINE HEAD, wrote that he'd toured with them, like, eight times and he still felt like he barely knew him. He kept to himself more. I don't think he related to many people — that was just the way he was — but he was a towering presence, no question. I wrote about him more from his reputation, which is tremendous. When you think about the music, the music is great and he is such a part of it. With all due respect to Kerry [King], when you take a look at the iconic SLAYER tunes, it'sHanneman's riffs all over it. Metal-Rules.com: I haven't seen anything about Chuck's [Billy, TESTAMENT singer] health in a long time, so I'm assuming no news is good news there and his health is good. How's the rest of the band holding up, since none of you are kids anymore? Skolnick: Yeah, thankfully, that's worked out really well. Chuck's been much better [after a battle with rare form of cancer in 2001]; he's been in great shape. Everybody in this band, knock on wood, is in relatively good health. I think as time goes on and you realize that you don't have as much free time as you once had, your perspective changes. Fortunately, most of us realize that and take better care of ourselves. I was always a lightweight when it came to alcohol and never really developed a taste for other substances, so I think that worked to my benefit. I was taking care of myself early on, and I would get a lot of funny looks, but it seems like now many people are catching up to me. Metal-Rules.com: TESTAMENT's been pretty busy, especially over the last few years, and just about everyone has at least one other band going on the side — notably Gene [Hoglan, drummer] with DETHKLOK and now, apparently, with DARK ANGEL again. Are you all finding you are able to balance TESTAMENT with the other things you want to do? Skolnick: That's been the toughest, I think, with Gene. I used to be the thorn in the side, with my trio shows and I was doing TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA for a long time. I narrowed it down to TESTAMENT, my trio [ALEX SKOLNICK TRIO] and a world music project I'm working on. But I have control over those, so I am able to let the chips fall where they may withTESTAMENT, because usually their shows are booked well in advance. Occasionally, there are some curveballs where we get last-minute things like festivals or something. I'm mostly able to work my activities around the TESTAMENT schedule. Eric [Peterson, TESTAMENT guitarist] and Chuck do their side projects [DRAGONLORD and DUBLIN DEATH PATROL, respectively] so sporadically that it never poses scheduling problems. With Gene, it got a little bit easier when he wasn't playing in FEAR FACTORY anymore, which happened last year. And theDETHKLOK shows are usually booked far in advance, so we can work around those. Occasionally, he'll have to miss a few dates, a friend of ours, Mark Hernandez fromFORBIDDEN, was able to fill in and it worked out. But with all of us, we really feel like the core lineup and we do everything that we can so the fans get to see this lineup. Read the entire interview at Metal-Rules.com.
05 min read

KREATOR’s MILLE: ‘We Sing About War, Death And Destruction, But We Always Try To Make It Complicated’

Manos Spanos
Tom Murphy of Denver Westword recently conducted an interview with guitarist/vocalist Mille Petrozza of German thrash metal veterans KREATOR. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below. Denver Westword: Obviously, KREATOR has explored many different styles and sounds during the course of its existence. You did something a little different in the '90s and went a different direction in the last decade. What do you think you did for "Phantom Antichrist" that you feel has been different from what you've done before? Mille: I think for "Phantom Antichrist", we combined all the styles you just mentioned. We started as a young band with teenage angst, I guess, then we did that early death-metal stuff, and then we did that "Coma Souls"-era [stuff] through the '90s. Then for our album in 2001, "Violent Revolution", we came up with a style that fit the new millennium. Even on"Phantom Antichrist", we took all of that to another level. I wouldn't want to say it's a "mature" album, but it has the energy without being too all over the place. It's 100 percentKREATOR — that's all I have to say. Denver Westword: War, destruction and the end of the world seem to be recurring themes across all of your albums. Why have those been such a rich source of inspiration for you? Mille: It's basically what we do. We've always done it, and we've stuck with it. It's not that there's nothing else to write about. Some of the lyrics are personal, but you can't really figure it out unless you take the time to check the lyrics. On the last album there is a song called"Flood Into Fire" which is not about death or destruction. It's a more personal song. But if you were to ask me the story behind the song, I couldn't even tell you. It's just a certain emotion about loyalty, friendship and whatever. We sing about war, death and destruction, but we always try to make it complicated. We try to put a positive message in there. When things are really, really bad, there can always be a way out of them. For me, the music of KREATORrepresents that. Denver Westword: In the '90s, you experimented more overtly with loops and atmospheres. What did you get out of that period, and have you incorporated it since then? Mille: We don't do that anymore. You know, the thing is, on one record we tried it, and we went so far into it that in order to make the songs sound right on stage, we had to play to a click in a live situation. That, to me, is not what KREATOR is all about. So the loops and the industrial elements were out. I love that style and that way of writing stuff, but KREATOR is pure metal, and we don't like to use a click track in a live situation. It didn't work. Denver Westword: How did you meet Sami Yli-Sirniö, and how would you say he complements what you do in the band? Mille: Sami was living in Germany for a while, and he helped us out at one point, when our old guitar player was sick and couldn't play a couple of shows. So Sami filled in, and when we got rid of the other guy, we felt that Sami would be the perfect fit. We were friends, and he helps me a lot when it comes to writing. I come up with the riffs, and I come up with all of the melodies, but he's the best musician in the band. I would definitely say that. He gives the whole KREATOR-raw-thrash thing a very unique taste, if you know what I mean. He sounds like no one else, and he puts his stamp on the guitar, and he comes up with little things that turn a good song into a great song. That's Sami's contribution to the band. Read the entire interview at Denver Westword.
04 min read

SUICIDAL TENDENCIES: ‘Smash It!’ Video Teaser

Manos Spanos
A teaser for "Smash It!", the new video from the long-running Venice Beach, California thrash/punk band SUICIDAL TENDENCIES, can be seen below. The band was joined during the shoot by the the Metal Mulisha freestyle motocross team. "Smash It!" comes off SUICIDAL TENDENCIES' new album, "13", which sold around 3,200 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 187 on The Billboard 200 chart. The first studio album in 13 years from SUICIDAL TENDENCIES was produced by vocalist Mike Muir and Grammy-nominated engineer/mixer Paul Northfield (DREAM THEATER, HOLE, RUSH). In a recent interview with Jersey Beat, Muir stated about "13": "We just wanted to have a record which felt like going back through a time machine, that if I was playing straight through at 15, I would go, Whoa!' We didn't want to make a record which sounded old, but one that people not even 20 years old hearing even 20 years from now at would say, 'Wow, that’s a great record.' A lot of people, the first thing that they ask is: 'Well, what style is it? Is it punk, is it metal?' and we’re just, like, 'Why do you want to categorize something so quickly, not care only if it’s good?' That takes time, but I do think that there are a lot of people who are going to love it for the right reasons." Asked why now was the right time for SUICIDAL TENDENCIES to release a new studio album, Muir told Grammy.com: "We've been touring at least a couple of months [per year] for the last six years, and among other things I had a couple of back surgeries. We didn't want to put out a record afterwards and make it look like we were throwing out our last baseball, the athlete going for the last hurrah before he falls apart. We wanted to get out there and gain a little new ground. "Our [fan] base is pretty strong. Obviously, a record helps out a lot, and on this tour we're seeing a lot of people excited to come, not to be nostalgic but as more of a resurgence. We've got a lot of families coming. A lot of people saying that their first show they saw was 20 years ago, and they're bringing their kids there for their first show. We never used to hear that before. At our first show in San Francisco, this girl came up and asked us to sign something for her mom. Then she said, 'I love you too, but my mom's loved you longer!' We were all laughing."
03 min read

NIGHTWISH: Third ‘Showtime, Storytime’ Trailer Available

Manos Spanos
Finnish symphonic metallers NIGHTWISH will release their new DVD, "Showtime, Storytime", on November 29 as a limited 2Blu-ray + 2CD digipack, limited 2DVD + 2CD digipack, limited 2CD digipack, 2LP (colored) in gatefold and an exclusive Nuclear Blast mailorder edition. "Showtime, Storytime" contains NIGHTWISH's entire August 3 performance at the Wacken Open Air festival in Wacken, Germany. The show, which was played in the front of 85,000 screaming metalheads, was directed by Ville Lipiäinen, filmed with seventeen cameras and has a total running time of 85 minutes. The second disc consists of a 120-minute tour documentary, "Please Learn The Setlist In 48 Hours", also directed by Ville Lipiäinen, with no shortage of drama or overall madness. Also, there is a 16-minute NIGHTWISH Table Hockey Tournament, filmed on tour. In addition, there are two music clips: "I Want My Tears Back"(live at Hartwall Arena in Helsinki, Finland) and "Ghost Love Score" (live in Buenos Aires). The Wacken Open Air appearance was the first of the three final shows of NIGHTWISH's"Imaginaerum World Tour", which saw the band and their Dutch singer Floor Jansen(REVAMP, ex-AFTER FOREVER) playing 104 concerts in 34 different countries, with a total audience of over 1.5 million fans around the globe. Commented NIGHTWISH mastermind and keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen: "Our darling flying Dutchwoman, Floor Jansen, has been nothing but incredible during her time in NIGHTWISH on this tour, so this is a perfect opportunity to immortalize the current vibe of the band on film!" NIGHTWISH's setlist for the Wacken Open Air performance was as follows: 01. Dark Chest Of Wonders 02. Wish I Had An Angel 03. She Is My Sin 04. Ghost River 05. Ever Dream 06. Storytime 07. I Want My Tears Back 08. Nemo 09. Last Of The Wilds 10. Bless The Child 11. Romanticide 12. Amaranth 13. Ghost Love Score 14. Song Of Myself 15. Last Ride Of The Day 16. Outro (Imaginaerum) A third trailer for"Showtime, Storytime", featuring footage from the "Please Learn The Setlist In 48 Hours" documentary, can be seen below.
02 min read

JORN Parts Ways With Longtime Drummer WILLY BENDIKSEN

Manos Spanos
JORN, the hard rock band fronted by powerhouse Norwegian singer Jorn Lande(MASTERPLAN, ARK), has parted ways with longtime drummer Willy Bendiksen. A replacement drummer has not yet been announced. JORN in July announced the addition of bassist Thomas Bekkevold to the group's ranks. JORN's latest album, "Traveller", landed at position No. 12 on the official chart in Norway. The CD was released on June 11 in North America and June 14 in Europe via Frontiers Records. Considered one of the greatest legends in rock, and by many as the best male rock singer of the millennium, Lande never seems to stop producing music, and is back with yet another slab of classic first-division heavy rock. "Traveller" is definitely a suitable title to fit this gifted and creative viking's extreme productivity. During his almost-30-year-long career, his albums have sold millions. He managed to release close to 40 albums with various bands/projects in the past decades, and "Traveller" is his eighth studio album under the Jorn banner. Some say he has passed his successors by his gift of being versatile, and ability to not get stuck in the political frames of the music business. A true independent "freebird" hammering his legacy in stone as he goes, with a band of grounded and solid craftsmen to back up his hurricane force voice. This album represents the first product of the pairing of Jorn Lande and the new JORN guitaristTrond Holter (WIG WAM, DREAM POLICE). The result is eleven new songs encompassing a variety of moods and styles, with Lande's voice shining through memorable anthems, backed by wonderful grooves and tightly-executed classic and melodic heavy metal. "This album has all the elements of the Jorn legacy," says Lande. "It is heavy, but still very melodic and experimental, and it really rocks! As usual we haven't spent much time analyzing the material before recording it, this is an album about life, doom and death reflecting on what I know and thoughts about what I don't."
02 min read

SLAYER’s KING On Recording HANNEMAN-Penned Material: ‘If It Ain’t Awesome, You’re Not Gonna Hear It’

Manos Spanos
Revolver magazine recently conducted an interview with SLAYER guitarist Kerry King and drummer Paul Bostaph. You can now watch the chat at RevolverMag.com. A couple of excerpts follow (transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET). On the progress of the songwriting sessions for SLAYER's long-awaited follow-up to 2009's"World Painted Blood": King: "I've been working on stuff for the better part of three years, probably. I did a demo with [now-former SLAYER drummer] Dave [Lombardo] a year ago, [in] March [2012]. We finished two songs that we thought were gonna be out for [the Rockstar Energy Drink]Mayhem [Festival] in 2012, and to this day, they're not mixed. Now [drummer] Paul's [Bostaph] with us, so we're gonna re-record those with Paul. But [Paul] and I have done, like, 11 demos since Paul's been with us. I think there's two or three more that are finished that we've just gotta work on, and there's, like, halves of three others. So we have an abundance of material. We've just gotta sign a deal with whoever is gonna put it out and record it, which I'm really hoping to do in January. And we should be so prepared that it should be a pretty short recording time frame. So my idea [for a possible release date] is May of 2014]. But I'm always wrong." On the possiliby of using material that was originally written by guitarist Jeff Hanneman prior to this death: King: "Jeff had… We both had a song that was left off the last album ['World Painted Blood']. And mine, 'Atrocity Vendor', came out on some obscure single. But I'd like to re-record that with Paul, change the lyrics up a bit, change the leads and have that as a bonus track on the new record. Jeff's song he finished right at the end, so it was kind of like an afterthought. There's some good stuff on it, but good as a whole, it's gotta be reworked, and I plan on reworking it. I know Jeff wanted to rework it, so it's not like he's not here, so I'm gonna change his song. [laughs] I know he talked about rewriting lyrics for it. "It's hard, because once a song is finished, it's hard to hear it any other way. You basically have to deconstruct it and start fresh. The verse will be the verse and the chorus will be the chorus, but all the glue in the middle, you've gotta deconstruct it and see what you can do to make it better. And I planned on working on that one; it's just that I've got a couple I'm working on I wanna finish first. And he's got, I think, two other strong ideas that I don't even think were done, so they're gonna need to be helped as well. "My big thing is, if we're gonna put out something that Jeff wrote, I've seen other musicians and bands [release] music [that was originally written] in the past, and it's generally not good. I don't want it to be perceived like that. If we're gonna put out Jeff's last contribution inSLAYER, if it ain't awesome, you're not gonna hear it. So I wanna make it awesome, so youcan hear it." On SLAYER's current North American tour featuring an "old-school" setlist: King: "Well, we had a really good set made up, and since we were playing two shows in L.A., they wanted something for the night that was added, so I came up with a setlist that's'Seasons In The Abyss' and prior, and once we did it, everybody wanted it. And it's a good time to do it, because we don't have any [new] product, so… I'm, like, well, shit. It's fun to play, it goes by in a minute, it seems like. We just did it last night and played an hour and 25 [minutes], and it seemed like it was, like, 10 minutes. It was just [snaps fingers], bam, done."
04 min read

DAVE MUSTAINE Says ‘The Best Is Yet To Come’ For MEGADETH

Manos Spanos
On October 22, Mau Alvarado of Costa Rica's "80s Y Mas" conducted an interview with MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine when the band played at Estadio Nacional de Costa Rica in San José as the support act for BLACK SABBATH. Check out the chat below. A couple of excerpts follow. On where he sees MEGADETH five or ten years from now: Mustaine: "There was a period about ten years ago when I was really unhappy with the way things were going in the music business and with MEGADETH in general. And there was a lot of internal turmoil with the band — a lot of fighting and stuff like that — and a lot of times, I would ask myself: 'Is this really what I wanna do with the rest of my life?' And once we had the breakup after I my arm got injured and I re-evaluated my career, it changed things, and meeting up with Shawn [Drover, drums] and Chris [Broderick, guitar] really made me, I believe, a much more grateful player. So I think right now the best is yet to come for us. We really have gotten a lot better in the last, probably, two years even. We're playing better now than, I think, we've ever played." On whether he will still be rocking like THE ROLLING STONES when he reaches the age of 65 or 70: Mustaine: "Like THE ROLLING STONES? [laughs] Let's see. I hope so. I hope better, actually, because I think I am in better shape than they are at… When they were 52, I think I'm in better shape than they were. And I have tremendous respect for THE ROLLING STONES, but I think it's all relative. I mean, look at Bruce Springsteen; he's just as old as they are, but nobody says anything about it, 'cause he takes of himself. I take care of myself. A lot of people say stuff about my age because of the whole 'Big Four' thing and what it stands for, or they [mention] the injury to my neck. But if I didn't have those two things, nobody would say, 'Oh, God, he's 52.' They wouldn't even care."
02 min read

DEVILDRIVER ‘Ugly Christmas Sweater’ Coming Next Month

Manos Spanos
DEVILDRIVER is offering its own contribution to "ugly Christmas sweater," a ubiquitous feature of the holiday season which began to sprout up in the last several decades. "Ugly Christmas sweater" or "tacky Christmas sweater" parties have been a holiday staple for several years, but there have been very few places to actually buy these sweaters. That has since changed, according to Time magazine, which reports that vintage stores, the Salvation Army, and Goodwill are reaping the benefits of this craze, as are fast-fashion shops like H&M and high-end retailers such as Nordstrom. The DEVILDRIVER "ugly Christmas sweater" is part of a holiday bundle that also includes an embroidered scarf, a five-inch vinyl sticker, and a custom DEVILDRIVER ornament. It will be available from IndieMerch.com starting around December 2.
01 min read