Kick off the New Year with an official 2012 DEF LEPPARD calendar. This brand new calendar includes live shots from the “Mirror Ball” tour and new exclusive studio photos, plus all band member birthdays and other key calendar events.
DEF LEPPARD‘s first coffee table book, “Def Leppard – The Definitive Visual History”, featuring exclusive photos by legendary rock photographer Ross Halfin, was released in June.
DEF LEPPARD‘s unstoppable, anthemic hard rock has earned it sales of more than 65 million albums worldwide and a legion of dedicated fans. This fully authorized visual history of the band follows them from the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal to their massive “Pyromania” and “Hysteria” albums to the sustained power of their records and tours today.
Halfin has been shooting DEF LEPPARD since 1978, and his candid and definitive pictures have helped capture and shape the image of the band. “The Definitive Visual History” includes more than 450 classic and unseen photographs, along with text from Halfin and stories and commentary by the bandmembers and others.
In January 2010, FOZZY – the side-project turned full scale war machine featuring STUCK MOJO guitarist/vocalist Rich Ward and vocalist/wrestling star Chris Jericho – released their fourth studio album, Chasing The Grail. Amongst the guest musicians that appeared on the record was ANNIHILATOR guitarist Jeff Waters, who laid down solos for the tracks ‘Martyr No More’ and ‘God Pounds His Nails’. Waters is no stranger to lending out his talents to projects he feels are worthy of time spent, and although it’s a no-brainer finding Ward and Jericho on that list, it’s still a big deal when Waters agrees to enter the picture and add his brand of shred to the canvas.
“That was the coup of ages, man,” laughs Ward. “I asked Chris if he was okay with having a guest guitar player or two on the album. We did it on the previous one (All That Remains from 2005), and it was cool having Marty Friedman (ex-Megadeth) and Zakk Wylde (Black Label Society) come in and lay down their stuff. For me as a fan of those guys it was just cool. Chris asked me who I had in mind for Chasing The Grail, and I gave him three or four names. He balked on all of them except for Waters (laughs), and he suggested that instead of having a bunch of guest guitarists, that we have just one killer guitar player come in and tear it up. I’m not lacking confidence in my lead playing, but I know who I am as a lead player, and I ain’t Jeff Waters (laughs).”
As previously reported, Fozzy have re-released their debut live album Remains Alive digitally via Riot Entertainment. Fozzy recorded Remains Alive in Brisbane on their Fozzy In Aussie tour of Australia in 2005 on the back of the All That Remains album.
The line up on that tour was Chris Jericho (vocals), Rich Ward (guitar, vocals), Sean Delson (bass), Mike Martin (guitar), and Frank Fontsere (drums). The album can be purchased now via iTunes.
The tracklisting for Remains Alive is as follows:
‘Nameless Faceless’
‘Don’t You Wish You Were Me’
‘Daze Of The Weak’
‘Wanderlust’
‘Crucify Yourself’
‘End Of Days’
‘Freewheel Burning’
‘Eat The Rich’
‘Ignition’
‘Feel The Burn’
‘With The Fire’
‘To Kill A Stranger’
‘Enemy’
Also, Fozzy have commenced writing for the follow up to Chasing The Grail.
METALFEST OPEN AIRS FESTIVAL announce that the Finnish death/doom metal band SWALLOW THE SUN and Canadian Metallers, SKULL FIST confirmed for METALFEST 2012.
SWALLOW THE SUN have just recorded their fifth studio album, “Emerald Forest And The Blackbird” which will be out in February 2012, featuring Nightwish´s singer Anette Olzon on one song.
SKULL FIST have released their debut on August 26nd via NoiseArt Records, then they hit the road with on the Power of Metal tour with Sabaton, Grave Digger and Powerwolf and they are also confirmed for a tour with Grand Magus in January 2012 plus further support dates with Steelwing.
The bands have been confirmed to play METALFEST 2012:
IN EXTREMO***
BLIND GUARDIAN*
KREATOR – exclusive festival shows 2012!
W.A.S.P. – 30th Anniversary Show!****
BEHEMOTH
HYPOCRISY – exclusive festival shows 2012!
LEGION OF THE DAMNED
DARK TRANQUILLITY
SALTATIO MORTIS**
ENSIFERUM
POWERWOLF
ALESTORM
DEATH ANGEL – “The Ultra Violence” Set!
TRIPTYKON
LAKE OF TEARS
VADER
SWALLOW THE SUN*****
SKULL FIST
HATE
FLESHGOD APOCALYPSE
FEUERSCHWANZ**
MYSTIC PROPHECY**
NACHTBLUT**
*Blind Guardian will not play at Metalfest Dessau/Germany!
**Saltatio Mortis, Feuerschwanz, Mystic Prohphecy, Nachtblut will only play Metalfest Germany and Austria!
***In Extremo will not play at Metalfest Switzerland!
**** W.A.S.P. will not play at Metalfest Loreley/Germany!
***** Swallow The Sun will only play Metalfest Germany, Austria and Switzerland!
Legendary rock bands CRYER and QUARTZ reunited for a one-off appearance at The Asylum, in Hockley, Birmingham, England on Friday, December 16 to raise funds for research into encephalitis and teenage cancer. They replicated the night they played together at Digbeth Civic Hall on December 1, 1979, when QUARTZ recorded their live album.
Fan-filmed video footage of the concert can be seen below.
QUARTZ came out of the British hard rock hotbed of Birmingham to join the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal movement in the late ’70s. With a lineup that included John Bonham associate Mike Hopkins and future BLACK SABBATH keyboardist Geoff Nichols, they were actually founded under the name BANDYLEGS but changed when Jet Records showed interest in the band. They signed a contract with the label and toured with both AC/DC and BLACK SABBATH before beginning work on their first album. The tour with BLACK SABBATH turned out to be quite fruitful, as they gained a tour manager (Albert Chapman) and a big fan in SABBATH guitarist Tony Iommi. Iommi took over the production duties on their eponymous debut, drafting QUEEN‘s Brian May into the sessions to play some guitar. The album was important to the emerging scene, and they joined DIAMOND HEAD and DEF LEPPARD in being one of the first bands to make heavy metal faster and less plodding. QUARTZ stayed relevant to the genre for their short time together, but by 1983 their irreconcilable differences split the band apart. Time has eroded how important the band was to the genre at the time, but fans of that period in heavy metal history know QUARTZ‘s place in the scheme of things. QUARTZ were among one of Birmingham’s greatest rock bands and all NWOBHM fans still holds tracks like “Satan’s Serenade”, “Wildfire” and “Street Fighting Lady” close to their hearts.
CRYER‘s two reunion gigs last year went down a storm, remembered for stunning vocals from Graham Careless, sparkling guitar solos from Huwey Lucas and a polystyrene head that would not blow up.
The masters of Swedish death metal darkness – DEMONICAL – are again ready to hit European roads in support of their highly acclaimed third album, “Death Infernal”.
The “Death to All tour 2012”, a crusade through Germany, Italy, France and Belgium, will once again show why DEMONICAL are the leaders of the Swedish old-school death metal scene and the beloved “Stockholm sound”. This is what the band had to say:
“We are thrilled to kickstart the new year by ripping up Europe and salute both new and old territories and followers”
DEMONICAL – “DEATH TO ALL TOUR 2012”
with supports: Requiem (ch) + Tormention (swe) + Erupdead (ch)
06.01 2012 GER – Lugau – Iron Eagle
07.01 2012 GER – Straubing – Sommerkeller
08.01 2012 GER – Memmingen / Tannheim – Schwarzer Adler
09.01 2012 ITA – Comacchio – Voodoo Club
10.01 2012 ITA – Milano – Blue Rose Saloon
11.01 2012 GER – Mannheim – 7er Club
12.01 2012 BEL – Antwerpen – De Rots
13.01 2012 FRA – Valenciennes – IgelRock
14.01 2012 BEL – Oostende – JH OHK Oostende
Cleveland, Ohio-based metallers CHIMAIRA have issued the following update:
“We are proud to announce the addition of Matt Szlachta [DIRGE WITHIN] and Jeremy Creamer [DAATH] to CHIMAIRA.
“The plan was to build an undeniable string section and we have done just that.
“Jeremy will be pounding on the bass, and Matt shredding alongside Emil [Werstler, DAATH] on guitar.
“As a way to say hello to the CHIMAIRA fans, Jeremy recently remixed a couple of tracks from [CHIMAIRA‘s latest album] ‘The Age Of Hell’.
“We look forward to 2012.
“Thank you all for your overwhelming, and continuous support.”
CHIMAIRA 2012 is:
Mark Hunter – Vocals Matt Szlachta (DIRGE WITHIN) – Guitar Jeremy Creamer (DAATH) – Bass Emil Werstler (DAATH) – Guitar Sean Zatorsky (DAATH) – Keyboards Austin D’Amond (BLEED THE SKY, THE ELITE) – Drums
Source: Blabbermouth.net
THE ROCK ALCHEMIST – Italian Rock Band from Turin with a strong sonic identity that blends modern rock with progressive, hard, alternative, and pop elements!
Kimmo Kuusniemi’s SARCOFAGUS return with a Historic 2010 Concert Video Premiere on YouTube! Click image to watch the video