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Rock Hard Fest 2014 final lineup and headliners announced

The final lineup for the Rock Hard Fest 2014 at Gelsenkirchen, Germany has been announced, featuring seminal American thrash metal band Megadeth headlining with Carcass, Annihilator, Obituary, Sacred Reich, Decapitated and others supporting. Full Lineup: MEGADETH CARCASS SACRED REICH MONSTER MAGNET TESLA ANNIHILATOR TRIPTYKON DIE APOKALYPTISCHEN REITER OBITUARY PRETTY MAIDS SÓLSTAFIR MIDNIGHT ORPHANED LAND BLUES PILLS ISOMNIUM DECAPITATED ZODIAC IRON SAVIOR SCREAMER DEAD LORD NOCTURNAL ROXXCALIBUR Tickets are available at http://rockhard.adticket.de/ (€98.50 with camping and €77 without camping) and the event dates are from the 6th to 8th of June 2014 in the town of Gelsenkirchen, Germany!

GWAR frontman Dave Brockie dead at 50

Dave Brockie, better known to us as Oderus Urungus- the founder and lead singer of metal band GWAR, has died. His roommates found his body at his house on the evening of the 23rd of March (Sunday). Though the news was initially dismissed as a rumour, GWAR bassist Chris Bopst said- “I wish it was a joke.” “Everyone is in shock.” Brockie was 50 years old. Vocalist Randy Blythe from Lamb of God, posted via his Instagram account: “I got a very sad call tonight from my buddy Chris Bopst, who was one of the original members of GWAR. My friend Dave Brockie, a.k.a. Oderus Urungus, the singer of GWAR, has left the building and taken off back to his home planet…” Randy also reshared one of his old pictures of Dave kissing his birthday cake. You can check it out here. GWAR’s latest album ‘Battle Maximus’ sold around 3,500 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 109 on The Billboard 200 chart.

Angela Gossow parts ways with Arch Enemy

One of the most respected and fierce female vocalists in metal- Angela Gossow, has just announced that she will be stepping down from her role as the vocalist of Arch Enemy. She will be replaced by Alissa White-Gluz, former vocalist of Canada based extreme metal band The Agonist.   The announcement came as a shock to fans across the world, because Angela has been the face and the driving force behind the success of Arch Enemy. She joined the band for their 2001 album ‘Wages of Sin’ and since then, has become one of the most popular and revered female frontwomen in metal. Angela will continue to work with Arch Enemy, but will focus on management entirely. This was her statement: “Dear Arch Enemy fans, this is not easy to tell you… I have decided to step down from being Arch Enemy’s voice of anger. After 13 years of pure fucking metal, 6 studio albums and countless tours through five continents, I feel the need to enter a different phase in my life, be with my family and pursue other interests. I will, however, remain business manager for Arch Enemy, and I will continue to develop my artist management roster. “I am staying true to my heavy metal roots, just leaving the spotlight, so to speak. I am passing the torch to the super talented Alissa White-Gluz, whom I’ve known as a dear friend and a superb vocalist for many years. I always thought she deserved a chance to shine — and now she’s getting it. Just like I got that chance back in 2001. “I want to thank all Arch Enemy fans, our labels Century Media (worldwide) and Trooper Entertainment (Japan), our dedicated road crew, and in particular Michael, Daniel and Sharlee for their love and support throughout all these years. It’s been one hell of a ride! We conquered every situation, made it through thick and thin together in the most exciting and rewarding time of my life. Thank you all for being there with me on stage, in front of the stage, and backstage. You have touched my heart, and I hope I was able to give something back to you. I am grateful for the wonderful memories – I will cherish them forever! “I am looking forward to the next decade of Arch Enemy madness! Right now I am listening through rough mixes of the new studio album and I am blown away! 2014 will see a renewed Arch Enemy at the top of their game. “I am proud to be part of this Arch Enemy chapter, albeit in a different way — revving up the engines behind the scenes. “I hope to see you in front of the stage; I will join you there this time. Let the killing begin, once again!” Alissa White-Gluz had this to say: “I am very honoured and happy to announce a new chapter in my life and musical career beginning now; I have joined forces with one of my all-time favourite and globally respected bands, Arch Enemy. ‘Wages Of Sin’ was the first metal album I ever bought, and it was love at first listen. “It is not often that you get a phone call from your favorite band asking you to join! I am thrilled to have the opportunity to work with such amazingly talented musicians whom I also consider great friends. I look forward to being able to write and perform at a whole new level now with Arch Enemy! Music is forever, metal is limitless and this is only the beginning!”   Arch Enemy is set to release their ninth studio album ‘War Eternal’ later this June.  

Metallica unveils new song- The Lords of Summer

Keeping up to their promise, Metallica unveiled a brand new song titled “The Lords of Summer” at a show at Bogota, Columbia, on the 16th of March. The song is close to 8 minutes in length, and came as a surprise to the fans in between a setlist of older hits like “The Unforgiven” and “… And Justice for All”. The band had previously announced the premiere on their Social Media pages, and had also posted images from the studio. “Working out the kinks in the new song that we’ll be debuting in South America in a couple days.” “Jammin’ on a new tune at HQ and getting it ready to go to South America in a couple days.” Check out the new song here, and tell us what you think in the comment section below!

Zygnema releases new single

Zygnema- The Mumbai based thrash / groove metal band who have also represented India at the Wacken Metal Battle in 2012, have just released a brand new single. Titled “Shell Broken Hell Loose”, the single is available for streaming and also free download. You can check it out here:
Free embed music player from ReverbNation.com
The powerful single has been receiving positive feedback and a lot of reshares on Facebook. The band is currently working on their second album, and the new song along with the response is an indication that good things are to come from the Zygnema camp! For updates, visit them on Facebook.

Neolithic Silence releases debut EP

Bangalore based Neolithic Silence has just released their self titled debut EP. The EP is available currently for streaming and digital purchases. International Pre-orders and T-Shirt orders can be made via the band’s official Facebook page. The tracklisting is as follows: 1. Prelude 2. War Cry 3. Passions of Demise 4. Swept Away 5. Don’t Panic The band formed back in 2004, and went on a hiatus for a while before they made their comeback in 2012 with a new line-up. The band currently consists of Jayant Sridhar on vocals and guitars, Suraj Dutt also on guitars, Narayan on bass and Yadhunandan on drums. You can listen to and buy the album here: http://neolithicsilence.bandcamp.com/

Skyharbor added to the Download Festival 2014 line-up

As announced officially on their label Basick Records’s website, New Delhi– originated band Skyharbor will be delivering their progressive metal/djent tunes to the audience’s at Britain’s Download Festival this year. The band have been announced as part of the line-up on the Red Bull Live stage, headlined by Sikth, for the 14th of June. The festival also features artistes such as The Offspring, Opeth, Sabaton, Aerosmith, Dying Fetus and a host of other rock and metal bands and musicians. From Headbangers India, a huge round of congratulations to Keshav Dhar and co! Execute ‘Order 66’!  

download 2014 poster

   

Lacuna Coil releases new single from ‘Broken Crown Halo’

Italian Goth metal band Lacuna Coil has just released a brand new single called “Nothing stands in our way” which has also been accompanied by a lyric video. The single will be a part of their seventh studio album called ‘Broken Crown Halo’ and has a release date of April 1st, 2014. The band has worked with a new producer Jay Baumgardner (Sevendust, Papa Roach) on this album, which has been recorded in their hometown of Milan. Vocalist Andrea Ferro had said in an interview about ‘Broken Crown Halo’ that it had been influenced by the idea of the world of real life and fairy tales coming together. “We’ve fused dark and horror elements with real life situations and have created a metaphor – we are fighting for a kingdom and a crown that is not what it seems, it represents the moment of confusion we’re living in and the very fragile situations we face every day.” Watch the video here: