ICED EARTH Announce Lineup Changes!

This just in: ICED EARTH have announced that they have parted ways with drummer Brent Smedley for "personal family reasons." His replacement, Raphael Saini (CHAOSWAVE), will join the group on the road starting this summer.

"I have family members that are elderly and frail and need my help here in Jacksonville. It's been one of the hardest decisions of my life but I simply cannot commit to the kind of schedule the band deserves and requires so I decided to ask permission to step down from my post." - Brent Smedley

"Brent has been a valued member of the group for a long time. We thank him for his contributions, friendship and energy and wish him all the best for the future. We want to welcome Raphael with open arms and are expecting for our fans to give him the welcome he deserves." - Iced Earth

Don't forget that the band will be releasing a NEW album soon! This is what the bands leader Jon Schaffer had to say about what fans can expect:

"The new ICED EARTH studio album is expected to have an October 2013 release date. It will be titled 'PLAGUES OF BABYLON' and we are very excited about how killer things are sounding this early in the writing/demo process. Below are some of the song titles that will appear on the album.

"I expect this album will be something very special!"

Iced Earth European tour 2014:

- 09 Jan: GER at Saarbrücken Garage
- 10 Jan: NED at Hengelo Metropol
- 11 Jan: BEL at Antwerp Trix 
- 12 Jan: GBR at Birmingham O2 Academy
- 13 Jan: IRE at Dublin Button Factory
- 14 Jan: GBR at London O2 Academy Islington
- 15 Jan: FRA at Paris Le Trabendo
- 17 Jan: ESP at Madrid Sala Caracol
- 19 Jan: ESP at Valencia Rock City
- 20 Jan: ESP at Barcelona Razzmatazz 2
- 22 Jan: SWI at Pratteln Z7
- 23 Jan: ITA at Romagnano Rock ‘n’ Roll Arena
- 24 Jan: SLO at Ljubljana Kino Siska
- 25 Jan: CRO at Zagreb Pogon Jedinstvo
- 26 Jan: BIH at Sarajevo Club Sloga
- 28 Jan: ROM at Bucarest Juke Box
- 29 Jan: TUR at Istanbul Kucukciftlik Park
- 31 Jan: GRE at Athens Gagarin 205
- 01 Feb: GRE at Thessaloniki Principal Club
- 02 Feb: BUL at Sofia Mixtape 5
- 04 Feb: SER at Belgrade Dom Omladine
- 05 Feb: HUN at Budapest Club 202
- 07 Feb: GER at Nürnberg Rockfabrik
- 08 Feb: TCH at Zlin Masters Of Rock
- 09 Feb: GER at München Backstage Werk
- 11 Feb: GER at Berlin Astra
- 12 Feb: GER at Köln Essigfabrik
- 13 Feb: GER at Bochum Zeche
- 14 Feb: GER at Osnabrück Rosenhof
- 15 Feb: GER at Hamburg Markthalle
- 16 Feb: DEN at Copenhagen Vega
- 18 Feb: SWE at Gothenburg Sticky Fingers
- 19 Feb: SWE at Stockholm Debaser Medis
- 22 Feb: ISR at Tel Aviv Reading 3

Related links:
Iced Earth

Tarja Turunen: NEW Album Title Release Date Announced!

The very talented Tarja Turunen has announced that her 3rd solo album is called 'Colours In The Dark' and will be out on August 23 via earMUSIC, the Hamburg, Germany-based international rock label which is part of Edel Group.

Despite her light and shiny personality, Tarja's music has always been dressed "in black" — the color of heavy rock, of mystery and elegance.

With Tarja's new album, fans will find out what happens when a splice of color is added to the mix. Or — better said — when the full-color spectrum enters the picture it does not cover the black but makes it shine through with many emotions and landscapes.

We recently spoke with Tarja about her latest musical project 'Colours In The Dark':




Via Blabbermouth

Related links: 
Tarja's official site  
Tarja's Facebook page  
Eagle Rock Entertainment

Gigantour 2013: Massive Announcement From Dave Mustaine

Dave Mustaine has confirmed that MEGADETH will be joined by BLACK LABEL SOCIETY, HELLYEAH, DEVICE (David Draiman's NEW band), NEWSTED and DEATH DIVISION for the 2013 version of "Gigantour"!

Additionally, MEGADETH will be supporting their 14th studio album 'Super Collider' (available June 4th via Universal Music Group with Mustaine's NEW label, Tradecraft). BLACK LABEL SOCIETY features Zakk Wylde, while HELLYEAH features Vinnie Paul from PANTERA and DAMAGEPLAN, PLUS Chad Gray from MUDVAYNE! As mentioned above DEVICE features David Draiman from DISTURBED. Also featured on the bill are DEATH DIVISION, the band that features Tim Yeung from MORBID ANGEL and Jerry Montano from DANZIG and NOTHINGFACE. And as mentioned above, NEWSTED features Jason Newsted, former bassist for METALLICA.

Here is the complete list of tour dates:

- JUL 03: Gilford, NH at Meadowbrook
- JUL 05: Uncasville, CT at Mohegan Sun Arena
- JUL 06: Canadaigua, NY at Marvin Sands PAC
- JUL 08: Clarkston, MI at DTE Energy Music Theatre
- JUL 09: Chicago, IL at Allstate Arena
- JUL 10: Youngstown, OH at Covelli Center
- JUL 13: Lubbock, TX at Lonestar Amphitheatre
- JUL 14: Corpus Christi, TX at Concrete Street Amphitheatre
- JUL 16: Oklahoma City, OK at Zoo Amphitheatre
- JUL 18: Bloomington, IL at US Cellular Coliseum
- JUL 19: Milwaukee, WI at Eagles Ballroom
- JUL 22: Winnipeg, MB at MTS Center
- JUL 23: Regina, SK at Brandt Centre
- JUL 25: Calgary, AB at Stampede Corral
- JUL 26: Edmonton, AB at Rexall Place
- JUL 27: Dawson Creek, BC at EnCana Events Centre
- JUL 29: Abbotsford, BC at Abbotsford Entertainment Center
- JUL 30: Everett, WA at Comcast Arena
- AUG 01: West Valley City, UT at Maverik Center
- AUG 02: Broomfield, CO at 1st Bank Center
- AUG 04: Fargo, ND at Scheels Arena
- AUG 09: Camden, NJ at Susquehanna Bank Center
- AUG 11: Toronto, ON at Molson Canadian Amphitheatre

Related links:
Gigantour's official site Gigantour on Twitter

SLAYER: Jeff Hanneman's Last Concert Ever!

As we all know by now, on Thursday, May 2, Slayer guitarist and founding member Jeff Hanneman passed away of liver failure at the age of 49.

The band's longtime publicist issued the following statement:

"Slayer is devastated to inform that their bandmate and brother, Jeff Hanneman, passed away at about 11AM this morning near his Southern California home. He was 49. Hanneman was in an area hospital when he suffered liver failure. He is survived by his wife Kathy, his sister Kathy and his brothers Michael and Larry, and will be sorely missed."

Here is fan filmed footage of Hanneman's last concert ever with SLAYER! This took place at the Big Four in Indio, California on April 23, 2011. This is when Hanneman performed the encore with the rest of the band!





Our condolences go out to Jeff's family, friends and the Slayer camp! Rock in Peace, Jeff!

HIM Cancel North American Tour Due To Illness - Details Available!

Finnish Rockers HIM have been forced to cancel their North American tour due to illness, as frontman Ville Valo has been ordered to rest.

The band just released their eigth studio album 'Tears on Tape', and were scheduled to start the North American trek Friday night (May 3) in Los Angeles, but the first clue that there was something going on surfaced when on Thursday (May 2) at the Revolver Golden Gods Awards ceremony, Valo was noticeably not on hand to accept the band’s Most Dedicated Fans honor.

A statement on their tour cancellation follows:

"HIM's North American tour (which was due to kick off in Los Angeles on May 3rd at the House Of Blues) has been cancelled due to unforeseen medical circumstances. HIM's lead vocalist Ville Valo has been diagnosed with severe asthma with presumptive pneumonia. Tickets for all dates will be refunded at the point of purchase. HIM will be back later this summer as part of the Rock Allegiance tour."

Related links:
HIM's official site 
HIM on Facebook 
HIM on Twitter