Wendy Dio, wife/manager of legendary heavy metal singer Ronnie James Dio (DIO, HEAVEN & HELL, BLACK SABBATH, RAINBOW), has released the following statement to BLABBERMOUTH.NET:

"Today my heart is broken, Ronnie passed away at 7:45 a.m. [on Sunday] 16th May. Many, many friends and family were able to say their private goodbyes before he peacefully passed away.

"Ronnie knew how much he was loved by all.

"We so appreciate the love and support that you have all given us.

"Please give us a few days of privacy to deal with this terrible loss.

"Please know he loved you all and his music will liv ...

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NEVERMORE frontman Warrel Dane has announced that his late '80s cult metal outfit SANCTUARY will reunite to record a new studio album. "[I've] been talking with Lenny [Rutledge, former SANCTUARY guitarist]," Dane explains. "We are really good friends again and it feels good." He adds, "I missed my relationship with him for many years."

Regarding how the SANCTUARY reunion will affect NEVERMORE, which has a new studio album ("The Obsidian Conspiracy") coming out next month, Dane says, "NEVEMORE is never going away, so don't start any more rumors!"

On March 8, Ironbird via Cherry Red Reco ...

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The official trailer for "Rush: Beyond The Lighted Stage", the long-awaited RUSH documentary produced by Scot McFadyen and Sam Dunn of Toronto, Ontario, Canada's Banger Films Inc., can be viewed below.

"Rush: Beyond The Lighted Stage" will make its television debut on June 26 on VH1 and VH1 Classic.

A poster for "Rush: Beyond The Lighted Stage" can be viewed below. The film will receive its Canadian premiere at the Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival, which runs from April 29 to May 9 in Toronto, Ontario.

The film will be shown on the following dates/times:

* Thursday, April ...

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U.K. punk-infused death metallers THE ROTTED will enter the studio in May with producer James Dunkley to record "Anarchogram", a self-released EP consisting of two new tracks and four bonus cuts.

Says guitarist Tim Carley: "These songs are the first we have written with the new lineup and we are really buzzing about letting people hear them!

"We've wanted to do something like this for ages, put out a self-financed DIY release on our own label, like the way we used to more than 10 years ago, before MySpace and blog sites and all that crap. We've got the opportunity to do it this summer and it's a way for us to give something back to the fans at a low cost."

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France's Season of Mist has inked a deal with Chile's MAR DE GRISES — the first South American signing in the label's history! The band's third full-length album will be released later this year.

"We are very happy about this deal with Season of Mist," the band comments. "For a young band like MAR DE GRISES, it is really exciting to be part of an impressive roster with big names such as MORBID ANGEL, THE DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN, MAYHEM and CYNIC, among many others. We are also proud to be the first Ibero-American band working with this company. It is an important motivation to continue composing this kind of music on the other side of the world, in Chile.

"This partner ...

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Century Media Records has set a May 31 European release date (June 8 in North America) for "The Obsidian Conspiracy", the long-awaited new album from Seattle metallers NEVERMORE.

The drum tracks for "The Obsidian Conspiracy" were completed in the group's hometown of Seattle with SOILWORK guitarist Peter Wichers, who previously worked with Dane on the singer's solo debut, "Praises to the War Machine". Longtime friend and collaborator Andy Sneap (MEGADETH, ARCH ENEMY, EXODUS, MACHINE HEAD) once again handled mixing duties.

The captivating and dynamic cover art was once again created by the great Travis Smith (OPETH, KATATONIA) and can be viewed now in the video clip bel ...

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Norwegian extreme metal veterans KEEP OF KALESSIN will release their new album, "Reptilian", in North America on June 8 via Nuclear Blast Records. The CD will be made available in Europe (except Germany, Austria and Switzerland) on May 10 through Indie Recordings.

The track listing for the CD is as follows:

01. Dragon Iconography
02. The Awakening
03. Judgement
04. The Dragontower
05. Leaving The Mortal Flesh
06. Dark As Moonless Night
07. The Divine Land
08. Reptilian Majesty

Regarding the album artwork, which can be viewed below, KEEP OF KALESSIN's Obsidian C. stated, "The music on 'Reptilian' is more in your face and dire ...

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GRAND MAGUS, the three-piece Swedish heavy rock band featuring "JB" Christofferson (guitar, lead vocals), Fox Skinner (bass, backing vocals) and Sebastian "Seb" Sippola (drums), will release its fifth album, "Hammer Of The North", this summer via Roadrunner Records. The CD was recorded at 301 studios outside of Stockholm and will feature artwork by Necrolord.

Commented JB: "Necrolord is a legend and has created some of the most striking and powerful images ever. He's also closely connected with Swedish metal. We just knew that he would deliver the perfect feel, mood and imagery for the new record. No one else would come close. It's an honor to have his artwork for 'Hammer Of The N ...

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KINGDOM OF SORROW, the metal project created by Jamey Jasta (HATEBREED) and Kirk Windstein (DOWN, CROWBAR), has completed work on its second album for a tentative June release via Relapse Records. The CD was mixed by Chris "Zeuss" Harris at Planet Z Recordings in Hadley, Massachusetts.

Commented Jasta: "I'm really excited about the KINGDOM OF SORROW album because I feel like I really went all out this time. I love the first album but I brought way better riffs to the table this time and really brought a different vocal style on a lot of tracks. I think this new album is much more memorable and that the songs are really catchy but still heavy and raw.

"CROWBAR has some ...

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Norway's THEATRE OF TRAGEDY has released the following statement:

"After nearly 17 years in existence, THEATRE OF TRAGEDY has decided to call it a day and close down.

"This has not been an easy decision to make and we have thought about this for a long long time. We finally agreed to this during the production of our latest album, 'Forever Is The World'.

"THEATRE OF TRAGEDY will come to an end on October 2, 2010, exactly 17 years after we started making music together.

"Over the years all of us have strived to combine the THEATRE with everyday life but in the end it has proven more and more difficult.

We have come to appreciate our famil ...

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