Testament to be Joined by Gene Hoglan on Upcoming Co-Headlining Tour with Anthrax!

Testament is arming themselves with plenty of musical fire in anticipation of their new studio album entitled "Dark Roots of Earth" (due in February of 2011). The Bay Area Thrash Metal Kings will be hitting the road with Anthrax and Death Angel this October and November. This furious tour will kickoff on October 11 at The Orbit Room in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and will conclude on November 19 at the Rave Ballroom in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. A complete list of tour-dates can be found below.

Testament is pleased to announce that current "Dark Roots Of Earth" studio drummer and world-famous percussionist Gene Hoglan will be joining them on the road for select dates on their upcoming co-headlining run with Anthrax. Gene will join the band from October 28th through November 13th. This is what he had to say about this.

“As many of you know, I just played on the new Testament record, 'Dark Roots Of Earth', which went amazingly well. The dudes were kind enough ask me to join them for a couple weeks on this tour with Anthrax and Death Angel. I’m super stoked to do the shows. It’s going to be a great time. Just so everybody knows, I will be selling my Drum Instructional DVD, 'The Atomic Clock', at the shows (shameless plug). If you can’t make it out to one of the shows, buy it online (link below)!”

Additionally, Testament are offering special VIP/Meet & Greet Packs. This is your chance to spend intimate, quality time with Testament-- up close and personal! Testament offered these packs on last year’s monumental American Carnage Tour also featuring Megadeth and Slayer, which presented fans with a unique and exclusive chance to spend time with the band before doors opened, take photos and get autographs, throw up the horns, and chat. This year with the VIP/Meet & Greet Packs, fans will have another chance to hang out, sign autographs and take photos with the band, as well as have access to a ticket to their performance, special merchandise hand-picked by the band, and a collectible Testament laminate to commemorate this ultimate fan experience!

Testament Meet & Greet Package Includes:

\m/ One General Admission ticket
\m/ Meet & Greet with select members of Testament
\m/ Photo with select members of Testament
\m/ Autograph opportunity with select members of Testament
\m/ Testament merchandise items:
- T-shirt of your choice from the merch booth (before doors open)
- Opportunity to purchase a second item at half off from the merch booth (before doors open)
- Assorted guitar picks
- Wristband
- Rare, out of print “Live At The Filmore” cassette
- Original printing of “Demonic” CD
- Collectible Testament laminate

“We love connecting with our fans and showing them same the respect and admiration they show us year after year. Hanging out and talking to the fans was a phenomenal experience for everyone last year. It was a first for us as well as the fans. It’s a great way to join us at the shows in celebration of all that is Heavy Metal and to make a personal connection with us, so come hang out and commemorate this great tour!” - Chuck Billy

Testament have recently been spending time in the studio recording "Dark Roots Of Earth", the follow up to their 2008 Golden God 'Album of the Year' award winning album, "The Formation of Damnation", released on Nuclear Blast Records to critical acclaim. The album was named SiriusXM Liquid Metal's 'Album of the Year' in 2008, and debuted at #59 on the Billboard Top 200. "The Formation of Damnation" is Testament's highest charting release in their 24-year history.

"We're more than halfway done recording the new album, Dark Roots of Earth. It's coming along as well or better than any album this band has done. It just seems to have a focus, clarity and definition on a level that I don't remember at this point in the process. Of course, you can never truly sum up an album until all the tracks are recorded, the mixes are done and the entire collection is mastered. But from where things stand right now, it's looking like we may have a winner." - Alex Skolnick

The band has spent the last three years touring the world in support of "The Formation of Damnation", and now brings its original, classic lineup back home to the United States with Anthrax and Death Angel.

Testament with Anthrax & Death Angel:

- 10/11 Grand Rapids, MI @ The Orbit Room
- 10/15 Chicago, IL @ Congress Theater
- 10/16 Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue
- 10/18 Wichita, KS @ The Cotillion
- 10/19 Denver, CO @ The Summit Music Hall
- 10/21 Las Vegas @ LVCS – No Anthrax
- 10/22 Los Angeles, CA @ Nokia Theater
- 10/23 San Francisco, CA @ The Warfield
- 10/24 San Diego, CA @ House of Blues
- 10/26 Albuquerque, NM @ Sunshine Theater
- 10/28 Dallas, TX @ South Side Music Hall
- 10/29 Austin, TX @ Emo’s East
- 10/30 Houston, TX @ Warehouse Live
- 11/1 Lake Buena Vista, FL @ House of Blues
- 11/2 Ft. Lauderdale, FL @ Revolution
- 11/4 Myrtle Beach, SC @ House of Blues
- 11/5 Charlotte, NC @ The Fillmore
- 11/6 Silver Spring, MD @ The Fillmore
- 11/8 Clifton Park, NY @ Northern Lights
- 11/10 Philadelphia, PA @ Electric Factory
- 11/11 Worcester, MA @ The Palladium
- 11/12 Sayreville, NJ @ Starland Ballroom * NEW
- 11/13 Huntington, NY @ The Paramount * NEW
- 11/15 Buffalo, NY @ Town Ballroom
- 11/17 Pittsburgh, PA @ Stage AE
- 11/18 Cleveland, OH @ House of Blues * NEW
- 11/19 Milwaukee, WI @ Rave Ballroom



Photo credit: Mitchell Damien Maurer

Related links:
Hoglan Industries
For more information on how to obtain your special VIP/Meet & Greet Pack, click here now!
Testament
Antrax
Death Angel

Dying Fetus to Perform Select Shows in New York & Delaware!

Ever since they decided to make the music world more dangerous in 1991, Maryland's Metallers Dying Fetus became synonymous to uncompromised Death Metal. For 20 years, the band has managed to build a worldwide audience thanks to their furious neck breaking music. With six sick studio albums under their Metallic belt, added to their three EP's, and five music videos, the band is still having tons of fun playing technical Death Metal full of brutal cavemen riffs.

The Death Metallers' have just announced that the band will be playing a few select shows in New York and Delaware. Here is a message from the band regarding this series of shows.

"We have some killer shows coming up in October in NY and Delaware! If you live in, or near these towns, WE WANT TO SEE YOU!"

- Oct. 21: Poughkeepsie, NY @ The Loft
- Oct. 22: Rochester, NY @ Montage Music Hall
- Oct. 23: Wilmington, DE @ Mojo 13

We recently had the chance to interview bassist Sean Beasley during the Summer Slaughter Tour takeover at New York City's legendary venue Irving Plaza, about the legacy of Dying Fetus and about the bands upcoming plans. If you think that the band is ready to lay back and watch the Death Metal scene from the sidelines, you are underestimating the power behind the Dying Fetus Machine! Crank the volume, fasten your seat-belt, and listen carefully.



Video and Photo credit: Steve Lars from Creative Ventures International

Related links:
Dying Fetus
Dying Fetus on Facebook
Dying Fetus on MySpace
Dying Fetus on Twitter

Megadeth's Dave Mustaine - Update on Medical Condition!

A few days before the Big Four concert in New York City, featuring Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth, and Anthrax. Megadeth's front-man Dave Mustaine faced the arduous decision of having to cancel his bands appearance at Yankee Stadium, after his doctor told him that he needed surgery on his neck. The reason for the surgery is that he suffers from stenosis, a neck and spine condition that Mustaine attributes to "years of headbanging". Fortunately, Dave Mustaine is a true Metal warrior and decided to perform the show.

Mustaine recently went under the knife, and his recovery is going very well. This is what he had to say about this via his Twitter account.

On a recent interview with Metal Obsession, Megadeth's skin man Shawn Drover commented: "He's recovered really well. Everything went really well and the surgery was a complete success. You know, he just needs time to heal. It takes time to heal. He needs to rest up before our South American tour in November. He really needed to have it done. He was in a lot of pain for the last several shows that we did during the Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival tour and at the Big Four show at Yankee Stadium in New York City as well. It sucks seeing him in pain, but he's a real trooper. As soon as we were done with Yankee Stadium, we flew right back home and ran him to the doctor and got the results. Now we're really happy that he did that."

In other Megadeth news, on November 1st, 2011, Megadeth will be releasing their 13th studio album appropriately titled "TH1RT3EN" via Roadrunner Records. Here is the track-listing of one of the most anticipated records of 2011.

CD track listing:

01. Sudden Death
02. Public Enemy No. 1
03. Whose Life (Is It Anyways?)
04. We The People
05. Guns, Drugs & Money
06. Never Dead
07. New World Order
08. Fast Lane
09. Black Swan
10. Wrecker
11. Millennium Of The Blind
12. Deadly Nightshade
13. 13

Here is an interview we conducted with drummer Shawn Drover, in which we discuss the bands new album, the Big 4 and more!



Here is our Big Four 4 special, featuring Megadeth!



Tour-dates:

Latin American tour:

11/9 - Buenos Aires, Argentina - Estadio Cubierto Malvinas
11/10 - Estadio Cubierto Malvinas - Buenos Aires, Argentina
11/12 - Maquinaria Festival, Club Hipico - Santiago, Chile
11/14 - SWU Music & Arts Festival - Sao Paulo, Brazil
11/16 - Jose Cuervo Salon - Mexico City, Mexico
11/17 - Jose Cuervo Salon - Mexico City, Mexico
11/19 - H&H Metal Fest, Calle 2 - Guadalajara, Mexico
11/20 - Banamex Auditorium - Monterrey, Mexico

Video credit: Steve Lars from Creative Ventures International & Steve Lars on Facebook

Related links:
Megadeth
Follow Dave Mustaine on Twitter

Judas Priest Performance on 'Late Night With Jimmy Fallon'!

Legendary Heavy Metal band Judas Priest is currently gearing up for their North American leg of the "Epitaph Tour". the first show of the tour will take place this Wednesday, October 12th at the AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas.

In anticipation of their upcoming North American tour, Judas Priest performed this Friday on "Late Night With Jimmy Fallon". The band performed their legendary song "You've Got Another Thing Comin'".



Judas Priest "Epitaph Tour" with Black Label Society and Thin Lizzy:

- Oct. 12 – San Antonio, TX – AT&T Center
- Oct. 14 – Corpus Christi, TX – Concrete Street Ampitheater
- Oct. 15 – Houston, TX – Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
- Oct. 16 – Dallas, TX – Allen Event Center
- Oct. 18 – Tucson, AZ – Ava Ampitheater
- Oct. 19 – San Diego, CA – Cricket Wireless Ampitheater
- Oct. 21 – Phoenix, AZ – AZ State Fair
- Oct. 22 – San Bernardino, CA – San Manuel Ampitheater
- Oct. 23 – Las Vegas, NV – Hard Rock
- Oct. 25 – Los Angeles, CA – Gibson Ampitheater
- Oct. 26 – Oakland, CA – Oracle Arena
- Oct. 27 - Concord, CA - Sleep Train Pavilion
- Oct. 29 – Seattle, WA – WaMu Theater
- Oct. 30 – Vancouver, BC – Rogers Arena
- Nov. 01 – Edmonton, AB – Shaw Conference Center
- Nov. 02 – Calgary, AB – Scotiabank Saddledome
- Nov. 04 – Salt Lake City, UT – Maverik Center
- Nov. 05 – Denver, CO – 1st Bank Center
- Nov. 08 - Cincinnati, OH - U.S. Bank Arena
- Nov. 09 - Springfield, IL - Prairie Capital Convention Center
- Nov. 10 - Saint Charels, MO - Family Arena
- Nov. 12 – Chicago, IL – The Venue At Horeshoe Casino
- Nov. 13 – Detroit, MI – Joe Louis Arena
- Nov. 15 - Cleveland, OH - Quicken Loans Arena
- Nov. 16 - Rochester, NY - Main Streen Armory
- Nov. 18 – East Rutherford, NJ – Izod Center
- Nov. 19 - Johnstown, PA - War Memorial Arena
- Nov. 20 - Lowell, MA - Tsongas Center
- Nov. 22 - Toronto, ON - Air Canada Centre
- Nov. 23 - Quebec City, QC - Colisée Pepsi
- Nov. 24 - Montreal, QC - Centre Bell
- Nov. 26 - Reading, PA - Sovereign Center
- Nov. 27 - Winston Salem, NC - Lawrence Joel Memorial Coliseum
- Nov. 30 - Tampa, FL - 1-800-ASK-GARY Ampitheatre
- Dec. 1 - Miami, FL - Bayfront Park Ampitheater
- Dec. 3 - Biloxi, MS - Hard Rock Hotel and Casino

"We're pulling out all the stops. We've built a brand new stage set, we've got all the effects that people love us for — the lasers, the fire, the bombs, the smoke, new costumes, and the bike. It's just a full-on metal extravaganza." - Rob Halford

As for whether this is really the end of Judas Priest's touring days, guitarist Glenn Tipton said, "We don't plan on retiring. We've said that this is our last world tour. It takes a chunk out of your life — 18 months. We won't be doing any more world tours as such and in many parts of the world, it will be the last time people will get a chance to see us. But we're not gonna stop. We've got an album in the can now, we will start to write with [new guitarist] Richie [Faulkner], there will be more albums, and who knows?! There might be a string of dates that we can manage to do. We're just not gonna do another major world tour. We've been doing it for 40 years and it's time to let the younger bands have the chance."

Related links:
Judas Priest
Late Night With Jimmy Fallon

Rex Brown Discusses his Decision to Quit Down!

Rex Brown is one of the most charismatic, talented and versatile musicians within the Heavy Music scene. You may know him from his stellar career with Heavy Metal Kings Pantera, or from his successful run with super-group Down. Well, Rex made the decision to leave Down earlier this year (Crowbar's bassist Patrick Bruders took Rex's place in Down) and decided to join a new musical venture alongside Vinnie Appice (Heaven & Hell, Black Sabbath & DIO), Mark Zavon (RATT, W.A.S.P. & 40 Cycle Hum), and Jason "Dewey" Bragg (Pissing Razors), called King Devil Hill.

This is what Rex had to say about his decision to leave Down.

"I was playing with Down a whole bit and I just kind of got tired of the… You know, Philip Anselmo (Pantera/Down & Superjoint Ritual) and I had been together 23 years. And when I first met these guys (Kill Devil Hill) in January of this year, when I walked in and we played in the rehearsal room, it just clicked. The chemistry and everything that went along with it… I mean, it's so easy to say that, but really… I just said, 'To hell with it. This is what I wanna do.' I didn't make an announcement at all [that I was leaving DOWN]; I just quit."

Kill Devil Hill recently signed a record deal with SPV/Steamhammer. The band has been busty working on their debut album, scheduled for a March 2012 release. The as-yet-untitled effort is being produced by Warren Riker (Down, Corrosion Of Conformity, Sublime and Cathedreal.





Related links:
Pantera
Down