JAG PANZER frontman Harry "The Tyrant" Conklin will be joining BALLISTIC for upcoming live shows and studio activities. Harry will continue as the lead singer for JAG PANZER, but from now on he will also be a full member of BALLISTIC.

The following is an official statement on the matter from BALLISTIC's main songwriter/guitarist Tom Gattis:

"Harry Conklin, the singer for JAG PANZER, has officially joined BALLISTIC and will be at Bang Your Head 2004.

"People familiar with Harry know him as one of (if not the) best voice in metal, and I personally cannot think of a better singer I' ...

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A brand-new NOCTURNAL RITES track, titled "Awakening", has been posted online in Real Media format at this location.

"Awakening" comes off NOCTURNAL RITES' sixth studio album, "New World Messiah", due on March 22 through Century Media Records.

The follow-up to 2002's "Shadowland" was recorded in the band's hometown of Umea, Sweden and was mixed and mastered at Finnvox Studio in Helsinki, Finland with T.T. Oksala (TIAMAT, APOCALYPTICA) and Minerva Pappi, who is said to be one of t ...

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KING DIAMOND guitarist Andy LaRocque will begin mixing the group's upcoming live album at the end of March at his Los Angered studio outside Gothenburg, Sweden. According to a posting on the band's web site, "no details are known at the moment such as album title, if it's going to be 2 CD etc. Andy [said] however that most of the song the band played on the USA tour will be on the album."

In a recent interview with Denmark's Metal Reference, frontman King Diamond discussed the recording process for the live CD.

"We wanted to have [the album] released earlier tha ...

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Ronnie James Dio has shot down the possibility of a RAINBOW reunion with him at the microphone. Back in April 2000 the singer confirmed to Classic Rock magazine that the idea had been discussed, with a British record company rep flying to guitarist Ritchie Blackmore's Connecticut base to discuss making what would have been the group's first studio album since 1995's "Stranger In Us All". At the time, Dio would have been keen to contribute. But not now.

"The opportunities have been there and Ritchie has blown those opportunities," Dio told Classic Rock. "I don't want to do it anymore. I have no idea where Ritchie's h ...

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HYPOCRISY mainman Peter Tägtgren recently spoke to Denmark's Metal Reference about the band's new CD, "The Arrival", and the addition of drummer Horgh (ex-IMMORTAL) to the group's ranks. The following are some of the highlights of the interview:

Metal Reference: [I understand that] "The Arrival" was remastered and remixed because you were unsatisfied with the first result. True?

Peter Tägtgren: "Yes. It was because of my busy tour schedule with DIMMU BORGIR. I had to hurry with the album, and though I did some of the mixing, I had to go back on tour. When I go ...

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Legendary Swedish guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen recently spoke to Rock Confidential about the long-overdue U.S. release of his latest album, "Attack!!", and his enduring popularity around the world. Asked if his perception of the music business changed for the better or worse after years of playing and recording as a solo artist, Yngwie said, "That's a large question so I'm going to have to give you a large answer. It's unfortunate but it's true. People living in the United States seem to think the United States is the world. The world is not the United States. I love this country. I've lived here for a long time. Not only is there a world outside of the United State ...

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Trail of Tears will enter Dub Studio with producer Endre Kirkesola (Green Carnation, Blood Red Throne) on March 1st to start the recording of the 4th still untitled album. The band expects to spend 8-10 weeks for the recording.

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ICED EARTH mainman Jon Schaffer has posted the following message on the band's official web site:

"Hello All,

"As some of you may have heard I recently had lower back surgery. It seemed early on that things were going well with my recovery, however in recent weeks a new problem has developed. I will be undergoing some intense testing in the next week to 10 days to see what the next steps will be. Which leads to the bad news, due to the serious complications with my back, we're going to have to postpone the European leg of the tour and possibly even the first 2 weeks or so of the US Tour. It really depends on what the doctor says after all testing is done and the ...

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CRADLE OF FILTH will enter the studio on Friday, February 13 to begin recording their Roadrunner Records debut, tentatively titled "Nymphetamine".

The follow-up to last year's "Damnation and a Day" will be produced by ANTHRAX guitarist Rob Caggiano, who has previously worked with the group during the mixing stage for "Damnation…".

"Nymphetamine" (roughly translated as the druggish beast-like addiction to beautiful, classical women) will tentatively feature the following tracks:

01. Medusa And Hemlock
02. Nemesis
03. Prey
04. Gilded Cunt
05. Absinthe With Faust
...

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A prosecutor in Poland has launched an investigation into whether a concert by the black metal band GORGOROTH has breached the country's law protecting religion. The Norwegian band are suspected of having sent a hateful and offensive message with their performance Sunday (Feb. 1) at the Krakow studios of Polish Television.

The show, which was to be filmed for an upcoming DVD, featured two naked women (with hoods over their heads) and one naked man, all of them "crucified" and covered in sheep blood, a number of sheep heads on spikes and sheep entrails thrown all over the stage, as well as approximately 80 liters of fresh sheep blood. During the performance, which was at ...

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