Month: March 2021

Over a hundred musicians from all over the world have united to perform the classic IRON MAIDEN song “Fear Of The Dark”.

The idea came from Ulf Wadenbrandt, conductor of the Sweden Symphony Orchestra and principal guest conductor for the Russian Philharmonic Orchestra.

Wadenbrandt normally travels to towns and cities in many different countries to conduct musicians in a wide range of concerts. However, the global pandemic situation has put a halt to touring the world for uncertain period of time — something that affects others too.

“Many of my musical colleagues around the world are currently unable to play together and cannot perform for the public. So I reached out to many wonderful orchestral musicians, to see if we could play something together,” says Ulf.

Ulf has virtually been working around the clock recently (not least due to the many different time zones involved) to instruct and inspire musicians for the recording. More than 160 musicians from all over the world took part in recording a video together.

“I want to highlight how important music and culture are in these difficult times,” Ulf explains. “Music makes you feel good and helps to develop people. We need to show the world that we are needed and must get to play. I have gathered everyone from absolutely world class musicians and excellent music teachers to talented amateurs and students from music and cultural schools from all over the world. I want to show the value of diversity and emphasise how everyone is important in the ecosystem of music.”

Musicians from as far afield as the Dortmund Philharmonic to Brazil, Norway, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Argentina, China and the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra in New Zealand played together, as well as from many other orchestras across the globe.

For the video, an instrumental version of “Fear Of The Dark” was arranged for the symphony orchestra.

“This song has everything from nice melodic lines with lots of energy and a thumping tempo,” Ulf says. “It’s a magical arrangement that releases the orchestra’s energy and fantastic sound. IRON MAIDEN have quite simply written a great song that works perfectly for symphony orchestras and their wonderful timbre.”

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Joe Berlinger, who co-produced the METALLICA documentary “Some Kind Of Monster”, has opened up about how the film ended up becoming such an honest examination of one of the world’s most successful heavy metal bands.

Originally intended to be a promotional video paid for by Elektra Records to document the members of METALLICA going back into the studio for the first time in five years, “Some Kind Of Monster” ended up following METALLICA through the three most turbulent years of their long career, during which they battled through addiction, lineup changes, fan backlash, personal turmoil and the near-disintegration of the group during the making of their “St. Anger” album.

Berlinger, who directed the documentary with Bruce Sinofsky, discussed the making of “Some Kind Of Monster” during a recent appearance on Tom Cridland’s “Greatest Music Of All Time” podcast

Joe said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): “I think we had started this project early 2001. So, it’s two and a half years later — September of 2003 — it’s really the first time, other than the one time we showed James [Hetfield, METALLICA frontman] a scene that you see in the film where we showed him the footage and had that conversation and let them know, like, ‘We have to do it our way or we need to go too. But if you wanna do it our way and just let us make the film, we’d love to do it.’ And he said yes. So now it’s a year and a half later. We have a rough cut of the film. It’s September of 2003. A couple of weeks away is the Sundance Film Festival deadline, to submit a rough cut, ’cause the festival is in January of 2004. It’s now September of 2003, and we are at George Lucas’s Skywalker Ranch in northern California because Lars [Ulrich, METALLICA drummer] is good friends with George Lucas and we needed a screening room. And the whole band has assembled, and the managers. And Bruce and I are really nervous, because they haven’t seen anything, and there’s some raw honesty in the film.

“We have a screening, and each bandmember is in a different corner of this big screening room, and the management is kind of up in the back, huddled in the back,” he continued. “It’s a longer cut. The movie was ultimately, I think, two hours and 20 minutes. This was probably a three-hour-and-15-minute rough cut, because we wanted everything in there. We knew we had more editing to do, but we wanted to know if any scenes were gonna trouble them. We were basically looking for their blessing, which is a very precarious position for a filmmaker to be in.

“So, the movie plays. It’s a three-hours-plus screening. [There was] literally not a peep through the whole screening — not a laugh, not a moment of recognition — just total silence. And it wasn’t feeling good.

“We had agreed that at the end of the screening, we would all travel back to where [METALLICA’s] headquarters is in San Rafael, which is about a half-hour drive from where we were. And Lars just kind of looks at me, pats me on the back and just kind of shakes his head. James just kind of looks at me — like, this stare — and walks out. The management looked a little nervous.

“So, on the ride to their headquarters to talk about the film, Bruce and I are regaling ourselves with the worst notes we’ve ever gotten from network executives, because we feel like, ‘Oh my God. This is not gonna be good.’ And sure enough, we sat around the table for hours. ‘You can’t tell our fans that we paid [then-new METALLICA bassist] Rob Trujillo a million bucks.’ ‘We can’t show Lars auctioning off his art. They’re not gonna understand.’ ‘We can’t show this. We can’t do this.’ And the whole film was just crumbling before our eyes with lots of people airing concerns. Other than Lars — I mean, Lars was the one guy who was kind of pretty chill about the whole thing, I have to say. And I don’t remember exactly what I said, or Bruce said, but we defended ourselves really well; we had an answer for everything, why that scene is important in the film. And at a certain moment, I happened to look over at James Hetfield at the right moment, because I saw this moment of clarity come over him. And he pushed himself out from the chair, stood up — and this is after hours of conversation — and he said, ‘Look, it’s painful to watch. But you guys did exactly what you said you would do. It’s an honest, raw, truthful portrait of what we went through. I’m not sure I ever wanna look at it again, but we either treat this movie like ‘Cocksucker Blues’ [the unreleased documentary film chronicling THE ROLLING STONES’ 1972 American tour] and lock it away in the drawer and nobody gets to see it, or we let these guys make the film they wanna [make]. We can’t sit here and tell them what scenes to cut and put in and take out or whatever. Let them make the film they wanna make. And I’m good with that.’ And he walked out of the room. And Lars looked at me and gave me a ‘good job’ [look]; he gave me great affirmation in that look, like, ‘You got your film.’ And Kirk [Hammett, guitar], who was a little nervous about it, also was in agreement. And I think the management was a little nervous about it but saw the power of the film.”

Berlinger added: “It went from a conversation where literally every scene was either gonna be changed or put on the chopping block to, ‘You know what? We’re not gonna ask for any changes. Make the film you wanna make, and we’re happy with it.’ And they asked for zero changes.

“So there is nothing in ‘Metallica: Some Kind Of Monster’ that is in the film because we don’t want it, and there’s nothing on the cutting-room floor that was taken out because they requested it. It is truly our film. And that was a magic moment of just going full circle and James realizing that, ‘Let’s put it out there.'”

While initially helping METALLICA towards restoring band harmony, “Some Kind Of Monster” shows “performance coach” Phil Towle, a former psychotherapist who was brought into the picture in January 2001 to help Hetfield, Hammett and Ulrich repair their relationship with then-METALLICA bassist Jason Newsted, attempting to increasingly insert himself into the band’s creative process, submitting lyrics for the album and even attempting to join them on the road.

“The presence of the cameras helped keep the process on track,” Ulrich told The Wrap in a 2014 interview. “There was another set of eyes and ears there. Sometimes when somebody else is in the room, you watch your p’s and q’s a little more. I think it kept the whole thing from derailing in some peculiar way.

“We were at a crossroads,” Ulrich added. “We had been really good at being able to compartmentalize a lot of this stuff. Suppress it with drinking or other extravagances. This was the first time we had to talk to each other, get to know each other and work stuff out … The cameras were there catching all of it.”

“Some Kind Of Monster” also documented Hetfield’s spiral into alcoholism and decision to check himself into a rehab facility. Hetfield’s re-emergence from rehab is when the film really gets into gear, with the chief worry in his mind whether or not he could do METALLICA sober.

“Hetfield went away, but we said, ‘Why don’t we keep filming? Because we think it’s interesting,'” Ulrich said. “We said, ‘We trust you guys.’ And they ended up being another set of eyes and ears in those rooms for the next 18 months as we dealt with the aftermath of Hetfield going away and all of the subsequent domino issues that came in the wake of that.”

According to Ulrich, METALLICA had no idea how fans would respond to seeing footage of the band’s touchy-feeling therapy sessions that ultimately healed the group and kept METALLICA from splitting up.

“As much as you want to control how people react, there are always things that throw you for a loop,” Ulrich explained. “The fact that the music world was a little bewildered by it and the fact that the movie world sort of embraced the film was not something we would’ve predicted.”

METALLICA released a tenth-anniversary two-disc Blu-ray edition of “Some Kind Of Monster” in November 2014. The new edition of the film was made available digitally and via VOD for the first time. It also contained a new bonus feature, “Metallica: This Monster Lives”, a 25-minute follow-up segment filmed at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival during the premiere of the band’s second film, “Metallica Through The Never”. The segment featured interview footage with the band and Berlinger and Sinofsky in which they all looked back at the decade since the release of the film.

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SCORPIONS drummer Mikkey Dee spoke to the “RRBG Podcast”about the progress of the recording sessions of the band’s upcoming studio album. Recorded at Peppermint Park Studios in Hannover, Germany, the disc will mark the German-Polish-Swedish hard rock legends’ first release since 2017’s “Born To Touch Your Feelings – Best Of Rock Ballads”, which was an anthology of SCORPIONS’ new and classic material.

“We’re working very hard here, wrapping up the recordings of the record,” Mikkey said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET). “And we are in the beginning of mixing; we started mixing the songs. We’ve been working since early fall on this album. It’s gonna be a great record. It’s all recorded live in the studio. And it’s a good vibe. It’s a harder record, and great songs. So it’s gonna be great to get this one released.”

Asked if the songs were already written before he got involved in the recording process, Dee said: “Most of the stuff Rudolf [Schenker, guitar], Klaus [Meine, vocals] and Matthias [Jabs, guitar] have been writing, but then we’ve been putting it together in the studio together, kind of. But most of it’s been written, yes. But we worked really hard, all five [of us], on these tracks.”

Regarding when fans can expect to see the new SCORPIONS album released, Mikkey said: “I guess the release of the record is gonna have to be matched somehow to when we can actually start touring. I had the hopes up that we would release this this spring. That was the plan from the beginning, and I’ve been telling magazines about us releasing it in the spring, but it’s not gonna happen, I don’t think. Because it has to be matched to the touring — unless something completely crazy happens. But I would think in the fall or something like that, hopefully.

“It’s impossible [to predict when we will be able to tour again]; you can only hope,” he continued. “I’m done speculating in this shit, because once you get a little bit of a stream of hope, it’s been shut down immediately. One day you hear this; next day, you hear a completely opposite thing. All this fucking second wave [of COVID-19] and third wave. Now they’re talking about a fourth wave. And there’s mutations from every fucking country in the world. If we’re gonna continue adapting after that, we’re talking 15 years. So, I don’t know.

“But I’m hopeful,” Mikkey added. “And, yeah, I’m positive that we’re gonna have to get back out there soon. Because no matter what happens, I don’t think you can keep the world shut down anymore. It’s just the end.”

Dee went on to say that he knows the “seriousness of this virus,” having battled it himself in March of 2020. “I was influenza sick, thank gosh,” he explained. “But some people are not that lucky, of course, but most of the people are really the elderly people and people with underlying diseases that turn out to get really, really sick. And then, of course, you have some exceptions with young, healthy people, of course. And I realize the seriousness of it.

“The world has been shut down for one full year now,” he concluded. “And that can just not continue like that. It’s a disaster in so many other ways than the virus. That’s how I see it. It’s very, very unfortunate.”

Earlier in the month, Dee told the “No Fuckin’ Regrets With Robb Flynn” podcast that SCORPIONS were forced to abandon their plans to work with producer Greg Fidelman on their new album.

SCORPIONS originally intended to record the new album in Los Angeles with Fidelman, whose previous credits include SLIPKNOT and METALLICA. However, because of the pandemic, some of the initial work was done with Greg remotely, after which SCORPIONS opted to helm the recordings themselves with the help of their engineer Hans-Martin Buff.

According to Mikkey, the new SCORPIONS album is being mixed by Michael Ilbert at the legendary Hansa Studios in Berlin, Germany.

Meine previously told Talking Metal that the goal with using Fidelman to produce the new LP was to bring “the old vibe from albums like ‘Blackout’, ‘Love At First Sting’ or even ‘Lovedrive’. We try to focus on those albums and this attitude,” he said. “If we get there, who knows — it’s so many years later. But it’s the spirit and it’s the whole vibe around this album. This time, the focus is on the harder songs.”

According to Meine, SCORPIONS’ new LP will feature “no outside writers at all,” unlike 2015’s “Return To Forever”, which was largely co-written by the album’s producers, Mikael Nord Andersson and Martin Hansen.

Fidelman began his career as the guitarist and songwriter for RHINO BUCKET before launching his career as a producer, engineer and mixer, finding an early mentor in Rick Rubin.

SCORPIONS’ last full-length collection of new recordings was the aforementioned “Return To Forever”, partially comprising songs the band had in the vault from the ’80s. It was the final recorded appearance of SCORPIONS’ longtime drummer James Kottak, who was dismissed from the band in September 2016. He has since been replaced by Dee, formerly of MOTÖRHEAD.

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A hearing on a motion to review a pre-trial detention order for ICED EARTH guitarist Jon Schaffer in connection with the siege on the U.S. Capitol will be held on Tuesday, April 6 at 12:30 p.m. via videoconference before Chief Judge Beryl A. Howell.

Earlier today (Wednesday, March 31), Howell signed an order “directing the government to provide, by Monday, April 5, 2021 at 12:00 PM, its response, if any, to defendant’s 11 Motion for Review of Detention Order, incorrectly labeled as a Motion to Amend Detention Order.”

On March 19, U.S. Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui ordered the 53-year-old musician, who resides in in Edinburgh, Indiana, held without bail on six federal criminal charges related to his alleged involvement with the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. He ruled that while Schaffer wasn’t a flight risk, he does pose a danger to the community.

A short time after the hearing, Schaffer’s attorney Marc Victor filed a “motion to amend detention order,” claiming that “the government failed to establish Mr. Schaffer’s dangerous to the community by clear and convincing evidence.”

Victor wrote: “Mr. Schaffer is 53 years old. He has no criminal convictions. He does not have a substance abuse or mental health issue. He has no history of violence and was not violent on January 6, 2021. He entered the capitol with pepper spray. He did not threaten anyone with or discharge the spray. He left the capitol after approximately sixty seconds and returned home to Indiana.”

On March 24, a U.S. magistrate judge filed an “order of detention pending trial” concluding that Schaffer “must be detained pending trial because the Government has proven by clear and convincing evidence that no condition or combination of conditions of release will reasonably assure the safety of any other person and the community.”

During the March 19 hearing, government lawyers presented exhibits consisting of a video interview Schaffer gave in November 2020 at a pro-Donald Trump rally expressing his political views and a video and still photos taken on January 6, showing him inside the U.S. Capitol holding “bear spray.” Schaffer’s attorney argued his client’s comments in the video interview — that “if somebody wants to bring violence, I think there’s a lot of us here that are ready for it” — were taken out of context, and that he knows he used bad judgment on January 6 and wishes he had a “do-over.” He pointed out that the guitarist has no prior record and insisted that he isn’t a danger to the community. He also argued the musician was not responsible for the insurrection and was encouraged by former president Donald Trump.

In the March 24 “order of detention pending trial” — obtained by BLABBERMOUTH.NET — the judge wrote: “In response to the Government’s exhibit of Mr. Schaffer speaking at a rally in November 2020, Mr. Schaffer argues that he was simply explaining his political views. When asked about violence in the video interview, Mr. Schaffer responded that he didn’t want violence, but that he was prepared to meet any violence with self defense. In response to the video that shows him entering the Capitol, Mr. Schaffer argues he was only in the building for 60 seconds and only unholstered the bear spray in question because he thought someone was trying to take it. Mr. Schaffer said he is not a flight risk because he voluntarily contacted his lawyer and surrendered himself. He is a high profile musician so would have difficulty fleeing. He has a stable girlfriend, stable residence, and a daughter. He is 52 years old with no criminal history or substance abuse problems. Mr. Schaffer argues the weight of the evidence is weak, as the Government did not provide evidence that he knowingly entered the Capitol building unlawfully. There was no evidence of violence presented and Mr. Schaffer says he is not affiliated with the ‘Oath Keepers.’

“Mr. Schaffer is charged with carrying a dangerous weapon (bear spray) onto restricted, Capitol grounds. His actions on January 6, 2021, during the certification of the electoral college vote, were shocking to the rule of law and the democratic process. As Chief Judge Howell noted in United States v. Barnett, the title of the offense does not ‘properly capture the scope of what [the defendant] is accused of doing here.’ In this case, there appears to be premeditation and a weapon present. Mr. Schaffer appeared in the video to be one of the first people to breach the Capitol. There is some evidence, and evidence still being developed, that defendant is affiliated with groups that present ongoing threats of danger to the community, e.g., the ‘Oath Keepers.’

“The government presented a number of exhibits at the detention hearing that show Mr. Schaffer was in possession of bear spray. There is video of him clearly entering the Capitol and three police officers that appear to fall back in self defense. Thus, it doesn’t seem likely or reasonable Mr. Schaffer was under the impression he was ‘invited in’ by Capitol law enforcement.

“Mr. Schaffer has no criminal history and no documented history of substance abuse. He is employed and has a stable residence. It is true he is within his rights to demonstrate and share his political views through lawful means. This case concerns unlawful means of demonstration. Mr. Schaffer’s status as a firearms owner does not have any bearing, negative or positive, on this decision.

“While Mr. Schaffer is most likely not a serious flight risk due to his status as a well-known musician, there remains the concern of danger to the community. Mr. Schaffer’s views on the government and current administration are long held. His statements, including the November 2020 interview, show that this was not an isolated event. He has stated there would be ‘bloodshed’ if the current administration came to power. This transfer of power has taken place, so it cannot be assured Mr. Schaffer will not engage in further violence to support his political ideology if released. The Government alleges Mr. Schaffer is a lifetime member of the ‘Oath Keepers,’ which is an organization that has questioned the legitimacy of the government and threatened political violence. Last, although Mr. Schaffer claimed he would only respond to violence in self defense, there was no violence directed against him on January 6, 2021, yet he engaged in violent and destructive behavior when he entered the Capitol armed with a weapon.”

Schaffer waived his preliminary hearing as well as his rights to an identity hearing and production of a warrant in late January in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, court documents state. He was then transported by a United States marshal to Washington, D.C. where government lawyers and Schaffer’s legal team have mutually agreed to handle all proceedings.

Last month, a man resembling Schaffer was seen in security footage from the U.S. Capitol riot that the House impeachment managers obtained and submitted as evidence for former President Donald Trump’s second impeachment trial. The clip in question, which was released by CNN on February 15, shows rioters charging through a breached entrance and engaging and pushing officers. Schaffer can be seen near the front of the mob, wearing a blue hooded sweatshirt, a tactical vest and black leather fingerless tactical gloves, and pointing his finger while yelling at the officers.

Schaffer was photographed wearing an “Oath Keepers Lifetime Member” cap during the insurrection. The Oath Keepers describe themselves as an association of former law enforcement and military personnel dedicated to “support and defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic.” But the Anti-Defamation League describes it as “a large but loosely organized collection of right-wing anti-government extremists who are part of the militia movement, which believes that the federal government has been coopted by a shadowy conspiracy that is trying to strip American citizens of their rights.”

Schaffer was held in the Marion County Jail for nearly two months after surrendering to police on January 17. He made his first court appearance the following day.

Just hours after the insurrection, ICED EARTH fans recognized Schaffer in a photo released by federal investigators.

Schaffer is believed to be one of at least 400 people who are being investigated by FBI officials over their roles in the insurrection.

More than 250 criminal cases have been filed so far. Charges include unauthorized access, theft, damage to government property and assault on law enforcement officers.

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In a new interview with Scott Penfold of Loaded Radio, CANNIBAL CORPSE bassist Alex Webster was asked what he thinks of the fact that his former CANNIBAL CORPSE bandmates Chris Barnes (vocals) and Jack Owen (guitar) are now playing together again in SIX FEET UNDER. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): “That is cool, man. I’m sure they’re having a great time jamming together again. So, yeah, it’s killer.”

Webster went on to say that he has only heard “some” of SIX FEET UNDER’s latest album, “Nightmares Of The Decomposed”, which was released last October via Metal Blade Records.

“Jack’s got a really distinct writing style, and he’s got a great groove,” Alex said. “But, yeah, there’s some cool grooves on there. And the rest of the band too. I really like Jeff Hughell’s bass playing. Marco’s [Pitruzzella] a killer drummer. So, yeah, it’s a cool band. And it sounds really good, the music.”

Asked if he is still in contact with Barnes, Webster said: “I haven’t talked to him in a while, no. But Jack I saw in 2019.”

Barnes exited CANNIBAL CORPSE in 1995, one year after the release of the band’s “The Bleeding” album. Four years ago, he told “The Chainsaw Symphony” radio program about his departure: “I just didn’t like being around them, because I was being ridiculed, and I just didn’t feel comfortable being in the same room with people that weren’t very nice to me personally. And I was part of that too, so we had all of our own type of differences, personally, and I don’t think it was gonna be able to be worked out. You know, mutual respect goes a far way when it comes to being in close quarters with people.”

Owen left CANNIBAL CORPSE in 2004, explaining in a statement that his “heart just wasn’t in it anymore, and it was reflected in my appearance on stage. Times change, and I just don’t enjoy the music as much as I used to, and the only thing keeping me in the band was steady work, and the pay,” he said. “These things makes it unfair to myself, my band members, and especially the fans.

CANNIBAL CORPSE’s new album, “Violence Unimagined”, will be released on April 16 via Metal Blade Records. Erik Rutan, one of the death metal’s most acclaimed guitarists who is known for his time as part of MORBID ANGEL throughout the ’90s and early 2000s, as well as handling vocals/guitars for HATE ETERNAL, lent his guitar as well as production skills to the effort, which was recorded at his Mana Recording in St. Petersburg, Florida. Rutan previously produced four CANNIBAL CORPSE albums (in addition to “Violence Unimagined”), alongside the likes of GOATWHORE, SOILENT GREEN and BELPHEGOR. Filling in live on guitar since 2019, in 2020 he became a full member, contributing to the writing process.

Rutan joined CANNIBAL CORPSE as the replacement for longtime guitarist Pat O’Brien, who was arrested in Florida more than two years ago on charges of aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer and burglary of an occupied dwelling with assault. Deputies said he burglarized a house and charged at a deputy with a knife.

Photo credit: Alex Morgan

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PAPA ROACH singer Jacoby Shaddix spoke to Pablo of the Minneapolis, Minnesota radio station 93X about the band’s upcoming follow-up to 2019’s “Who Do You Trust?” album. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): “We locked ourselves up for a month down in Temecula, California. It’s past L.A., kind of in the high desert. We got this place, and everybody got COVID tested. We showed up. We had a chef there. We had a couple of engineers there, our producers, the band and a videographer. And from the moment the equipment was set up to the moment the equipment was torn down, it was just non-stop creativity. We dug really deep on this record and we got really adventurous. And it was a great kickstarter for the creative process. We came out of there with, like, 10 songs, I think. And we just felt like we were on to something really special. And I think being able to live together and be in each other’s presence 24-7 really caused some emotional breakthroughs within the band, some creative breakthroughs within the band and just ultimately some rowdy fucking experimentation, creatively and musically.

“There’s some stuff that we did down there that isn’t gonna be on the record that maybe it’ll be on some future releases or something like that,” he continued. “And then there’s a bunch of stuff from those sessions that will be on the record, and stuff that we recorded there made it on to the album. And then we took the rest of it and intermittently, over the last four, five, six months, just made trips to the studio and just locked in and created and finished up this album. And we actually just got off a creative call with our new record company, discussing the album and the order of the singles. And we just did a creative call as well for album artwork and album title. We’re getting into that next phase of the creative process, ’cause we just got done mixing the record.

“We’re sitting on something special, man. This album is going to blow rock fans’ minds. We are doing our best to project rock into the future but still maintain the guts and the purity of the genre and who we are as PAPA ROACH. So fans can expect to be taken on a wild ride on this one.

“And it’s all things PAPA ROACH, dude,” Shaddix added. “It’s not like some self-undulgent, like, we got experimental and now we’re making RADIOHEAD ‘OK Computer’, which is a great record, by the way. For us, we really wanted to hone in on what we felt were the strongest elements of our band and then evolving those.”

Last July, Shaddix told Rock Sound TV that PAPA ROACH’s next album will be released through band’s own record company. “We are in partnership with Warner/ADA, and so it’s like an artist services group,” he explained. “And we’re gonna do that for an album and see how it works out. We’ve been super focused in the creative marketing behind what we do and the imaging and the videos and the messaging and everything, we were, like, let’s take it in our hands and see where we can go with it and try it for an album.”

In January, a snippet of a brand new PAPA ROACH song called “Stand Up” was included in commercial for Ultimate Fighting Championship’s (UFC) partnership with ESPN.

PAPA ROACH’s second greatest-hits collection, “Greatest Hits Vol. 2: The Better Noise Years”, was released on March 19 on Better Noise Music.

“Greatest Hits Vol. 2 – The Better Noise Years” includes 12 of the band’s top 10 hits released between 2010 to 2019 as well as three previously unreleased remixes and two unreleased acoustic recordings recorded live at the YouTube Studios in New York City.

PAPA ROACH’s latest album, “Who Do You Trust?”, was released in January 2019. The disc was produced by Nick “RAS” Furlong and Colin Cunningham except for the song “Top Of The World”, which is helmed by Jason Evigan.

In December, PAPA ROACH released a five-song EP, “20/20”, featuring “new takes on old jams,” including “Last

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In a new interview with 519 Magazine, Paul Stanley reflected on KISS’s New Year’s Eve performance in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): “It literally happened because of the pandemic. We were asked if we were interested in doing a show in Dubai. And as it evolved, [we said], ‘Okay, tell me more.’ ‘We wanna break some Guinness world records.’ ‘Okay, that’s pretty interesting. Tell me more.’ ‘And it’ll be a worldwide telecast, and all the shows that people usually watch on New Year’s Eve are not gonna be live, and they’re gonna be repeats.’ ‘Okay. That sounds really great.’ ‘And it’s gonna be this massive outdoor stage.’ It just kept going. And we went, ‘Yeah. Okay. It sounds like fun. But in the midst of the pandemic, how are we gonna keep everybody safe?’ So we made all kinds of arrangements. And the crew, which was about 500 people, they were tested daily. We were tested if not daily, every other day. When we rehearsed in Los Angeles, we were in a closed studio. So, all things being said, it was a really unique situation. And having not played in almost a year, it was daunting — it was a challenge. But we rehearsed. We were determined to make it as good as we could.”

As previously reported, KISS’s Dubai concert broke Guinness world records for highest flame projection in a music concert and for most flame projections launched simultaneously in a music concert.

Stanley told The Rock N Roll Channel: “These flame throwers — it was like being next to a furnace. It was frightening, but it was glorious. And then at the end of the show, the pyrotechnics display that started was like a finale of any other pyrotechnics display. I mean, it was — I don’t know — 10 minutes of finale. It was insane. It was mind-boggling.”

Landmarks Live Presents produced the $10 million spectacular, which was filmed with more than 50 4K cameras and 360-degree views and was held on a massive 250-foot stage at The Royal Beach at Atlantis.

KISS partnered with event company Tixr to beam the “Kiss 2020 Goodbye” show around the world.

KISS reportedly cleaned up its act for to the Dubai concert, apparently out of respect for local customs and beliefs. Gene Simmons’s blood-spitting stunt was missing during his bass solo, and the words “bitch” and “virgin soul” were removed from the lyrics of “100,000 Years” and “God of Thunder”, respectively, the latter replaced by “sacred soul.” Other songs reportedly had minor lyrical changes as well.

KISS launched its farewell trek in January 2019 but was forced to put it on hold last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“End Of The Road” was originally scheduled to conclude on July 17, 2021 in New York City but is now expected to last well into 2022.

KISS’s current lineup consists of original members Stanley and Simmons, alongside later band additions, guitarist Tommy Thayer (since 2002) and drummer Eric Singer (on and off since 1991).

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In the overpopulated world of top-notch extreme metal drummers, Nick Barker is an undisputed legend. With CRADLE OF FILTH, DIMMU BORGIR and TESTAMENT on his resumé, not to mention grindcore supergroup LOCK UP, he has already earned his place in metal history. But now it’s time for an entirely different vibe, as Nick Barker makes a very welcome return to the stage, after a lengthy period spent behind the scenes. Six tracks of absolutely ripping metallic hardcore, with a neat and subversive twist, “At Her Majesty’s Pleasure” fulfils the drummer’s long-held desire to pay tribute to the crossover scene that inspired so many of his generation.

With a lineup boasting members of UK hardcore legends KNUCKLEDUST and London’s ultra-gnarly DRIPBACK, BORSTAL could easily come across as a fun, temporary side project, but what really hits home during this exhilarating burst of thuggish precision is that Barker has assembled himself a real band here, with all the vein-popping chemistry and exuberant camaraderie that goes with it.

Musical reference points are exactly as they should be. BORSTAL deal in a straightforward, groove-driven and relentlessly ferocious strain of metallic hardcore, steeped in the seminal clangor of NYHC greats like CRO-MAGS, AGNOSTIC FRONT and SICK OF IT ALL, and from the adrenalized rush of opener “Refuse To Lose” onwards, the quintet’s debut EP nails that sound with more energy and conviction than any band in recent memory. More importantly, however, BORSTAL have a broad and proud British streak that precludes them from simply echoing Big Apple beatdowns. Gang vocals and the occasional burst of knuckleheaded melody point to a love for old-school UK street punk and the early ’80s Oi! scene as well as bands like THE BUSINESS, THE EXPLOITED and GBH. BORSTAL are more than capable of throwing in a jaw-shattering D-beat from time to time, too. The end result is vastly more exciting than other high-quality NYHC tributea as a result. It’s genuinely hard to imagine that songs like preview single “Vicious Circles” and anthemic closer “King Of The Jungle” won’t turn mosh-pits into warzones when BORSTAL finally get to play these songs live. And one thing is absolutely guaranteed: Nick Barker is having the absolute time of his fucking life, back where he belongs and doing something genuinely fresh and exciting. Her Majesty will doubtless be delighted.

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ALL THAT REMAINS singer Phil Labonte says that he is in favor of U.S. states phasing out mask mandates as a result of the coronavirus pandemic in favor of voluntary actions.

Even though some states have lifted mask mandates, you can still face charges if you refuse to wear a mask at a store, restaurant or business that requires one.

Businesses have the right and authority to demand that customers wear masks on their property. Failing to abide by a business’s mask requirement could result in criminal trespass charges.

Labonte shared his views on mask mandates during an appearance on a recent episode of “Fite 4 Liberty” YouTube show. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): “There’s never been a time in any of our lifetimes where it was, like, ‘Hey, you should stay home for the next blah blah blah.’ And considering the fact that at least New Hamspshire where I was… I only moved to Texas in the beginning of February [of this year]. I lived in New Hampshire for a decade before that, and I’ve still got my house up there, so I technically still live in New Hampshire; I just have an apartment in Texas that I’ve been staying in… But anyways, I didn’t have a problem with it because the feds didn’t start saying, ‘Hey… We’re gonna do this.’ Any time people were talking about mandatory lockdowns, I’m, like, ‘Look, you can’t lock down.’ I’m, like, I’m pro-mask. If you wanna wear a mask, wear a mask. Cool. I’ll wear my mask, because I know that people are freaked out, and it’s not a big deal to me. And I was like that from day one. I was, like, no big deal. In fact, I bought a mask in January of last year, because I watch Styxhexenhammer666 [a YouTuber, occultist, author, editor and political commentator]. But he was the first guy that was talking about it. And he was talking about it at the very end of December [2019], beginning of January [2020]. And I was, like, ‘This might be a thing. And I see a lot of people in Japan wearing masks when they’re sick. Maybe I should get some kind of mask.’ So I had one delivered to my house before February.”

He continued: “So I had no problem with the masks and stuff like that. But the entire time, I was, like, ‘Look, don’t mandate. Don’t make mandates.’ Because as soon as you make mandates, then you have to involve the cops. And that’s what I don’t want — I don’t want the cops to come because someone’s not wearing a mask. That’s too far for me. If a store says, ‘We want masks,’ cool. I’ll wear the mask. That’s totally fine. It’s your property. I’ll wear the mask.

“To me, a mask is just like ‘No Shirts, No Shoes, No Service,'” he explained. “If you wanna say, ‘Put your shoes on to come into our store’? Totally fine. You wanna say, ‘Wear a mask to come into our store’? Totally fine. You wanna say, ‘You can’t come in here with your nipples out there, mister’? Then that’s totally fine too; put a shirt on. I’m okay with that stuff. Don’t call the cops. Don’t have the cops come and beat people up or take people into custody or threaten people because they’re not wearing a mask. And that’s invariably [what’s] gonna happen at least some [of the time] as soon as you add mandates, and you have to enforce ’em.”

In the past, Labonte has described himself as “a libertarian” who believes that “the government is massively expansive and has taken powers that it does not have.” He told Noisecreep in a 2012 interview: “[The government] should not be in the business of deciding who you should or should not be able to marry. It should not be in the business of deciding what drugs you can and cannot take and what you can put in your body. It should not It should not be in the business of taking your money in the form of taxation. It should not be in the business of deciding if you should carry a gun. We don’t need all these federal agencies that we have. They’re a waste of money. They end up being bureaucracies. The government never ends up getting smaller. It only gets bigger. Once a federal agency is created, it never goes away. They don’t need to spend as much as they do. We don’t need to be in 130 different countries across the world. We don’t need a military as big as we have.”

Last August, Labonte confirmed to the FM99 WNOR radio station that ALL THAT REMAINS had commenced the songwriting process for the follow-up to 2018’s “Victim Of The New Disease” album.

“Victim Of The New Disease” was released in via Fearless in North America and Eleven Seven in Europe.

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