Kitarist/vokalist Shelby Lermo (Ulthar, Human Corpse Abuse, ex-Vastum) in bobnar Jason Bursese (Black Fucking Cancer) predstavljata nov projekt Thanatotherion, ki je nadaljevanje Shelbyjevega projekta Naughtskeid. Led sta prebila s komadom Nuclear Womb z albuma Alienation Manifesto, ki bo izšel 7. junija pri založbi I, Voidhanger Records in obsega komade:

Red Cathedral
The Raven and the Box of Stars
Orb
Wilczyca
Nuclear Womb
Lament
Codex Crepusculum

Iz tabora hrvaških doom metalcev Old Night sporočajo, da jih je zapustil vokalist in kitarist Matej Hanžek. Vrzel v zasedbi bo na vokalu tako zapolnil njegov brat Ivan, na kitari pa se je zasedbi pridružil Rafael Cvitković (Nekroza). Spodaj lahko preberete celotno izjavo banda:

»This is a post I write with a heavy heart, yet full of hope and with a bright look on the future. After eight years with us as our lead singer and frontman, earlier this year Matej decided to step down from his duties within Old Night. I know you are hoping for some gossip or a sassy story, but there was no drama involved. He just wants to focus on other things in life and at this point, music is not a priority for him. Having said that, I wish to thank him on our behalf for everything he has done for us, all the great times we shared on stage and backstage, but also for all the long hours he has put in working on our first three records. It was a privilege and you'll always be a part of our family. Obviously, this news has taken us aback and we had to figure out how best to proceed. We took some time to see what our options were, as this is an important role we needed to fill. After much deliberation we figured out we need not look outside our band for a perfect candidate as we have one in our midst. Ivan has been singing all the backing vocals from day one and from now on he will be handling all the lead vocals. No need to worry, he’ll remain our lead guitarist as well.

The only piece of the puzzle left to figure out was who’ll play the rhythm guitars? Without further ado, we welcome Rafael Cvitković, from the Croatian death metal machine Nekroza, as our new guitarist. If you attended our concerts, you might have already seen him filling in on sound checks or working on our merch booth. Nekroza just released their debut album on InsArt Records – you can check them out and show them your support.

With our line-up complete, we will continue working on our new record and we hope we’ll have some news in that regard soon. In a couple of weeks, we’ll have our first concert with the new line-up and we can’t wait to present you the New Old Night.«

V Mariboru je nastal nov projekt z imenom Zyklon B. Združili so se vokalist Marko Krajnc (Decatholicize), bobnar Tin Matuš (ex-Uporabniki, Liburoa, Pirhalter), basist Leon Pondelak (Decatholicize) ter kitarist Mladen Buletinac (Decatholicize). Tukaj že lahko prisluhnete njihovemu prvemu singlu Sonder.

Britanski kitarist, pevec in tekstopisec Billy Morrison, v zadnjih 15 letih znan predvsem kot ritem kitarist Billyja Idola, in njegov glavni kitarist Steve Stevens (ex-The Cult) ter princ teme Ozzy Osbourne so posneli videospot za pesem Crack Cocaine. Pri tem gre za drugi single (prvi je bil Drowning) prihajajočega heavy rock albuma The Morrison Project, ki bo izšel 19. aprila. Pri snemanju albuma so med drugim sodelovali še Billy Idol, DMC, Corey Taylor, Al Jourgensen, Steve Vai, Steve Stevens, Linda Perry, Tommy Clufetos in John5.

Kot smo januarja poročali, je v 78. letu starosti umrl Tony Clarkin, kitarist, ustanovitelj britanskih veteranov Magnum. Že takrat se je šušljalo, da to pomeni tudi konec za zasedbo, ki je to zdaj tudi uradno potrdila. Izjava vokalista Boba Catleyja:

»Hello, everybody. Bob here. All right. I wish I didn't have to tell you this, but I really can't carry on with Tony not here anymore. Please forgive me, and I hope you can understand how I feel. I've been thinking about it a lot lately.
Since we lost Tone, we lost our guiding light, the magnum force behind the band, our songwriter, our producer, our guitar player. He was everything to the band. He was everything to me. For the last 50 years, we never went anywhere without each other. On tour, in the studio, I was at his side constantly, working on stuff with him. I had a wonderful life with Tony. But now it's all too much for me, people. I can't carry on without Tony.
I may pop up in some other shape or form in the near future – you never know – but I can't keep going on like this. It's far too sad; it's all too sad.
So, I hope you understand. You've been fantastic – the best audience ever. You kept this band going year after year, album after album, and we thank you for that.
So, be good. Keep Tony's music in your heart always. I know I will. I will always carry MAGNUM inside me. And I will always have Tony Clarkin beside me wherever I go.
I love you. You've been brilliant. But it's time for me to bow out now. It's my last curtain call, okay? I'll see you sometime. Be good. Cheers. Bye-bye.«

Cemetery Skyline je gothic rock/metal zasedba, ki jo sestavljajo Mikael Stanne (Dark Tranquillity) na vokalih, kitarist Markus Vanhala (Insomnium), basist Victor Brandt (Witchery), Vesa Ranta (ex-Sentenced) na bobnih in klaviaturist Santeri Kallio (Amorphis). Band je izdal prvi single Violent Storm in ga podkrepil z videospotom, ki ga najdete spodaj. Več informacij o prihajajočem dolgometražcu sledi kmalu.

Sporočamo, da je umrl Dennis Cornelius, vokalist in kitarist doom metalcev Memory Driven. Naj počiva v miru. Izjava banda:

»It is with indescribable melancholy that words cannot express in which I make this announcement. Dennis Cornelius, our long time musical brother, in this band, and in life, has passed away. We cannot begin to process this immense loss, as we just send love and prayers to his family and loved ones. Thank you for so many years of such passionate and inspirational music. It has been such an honor to be a part of this journey with you. Thank you sooooo much for sharing that with us all, Dennis. You and Jyme are together again. We love you, Dennis, our brother.«

Domači heavy metalci SkyEye so preteklo soboto na naši obletnici prvič nastopili v prenovljeni zasedbi. Na odru se je namreč predstavil njihov novi kitarist Urban. Prav tako smo bili deležni napovedi njihovega tretjega studijskega albuma. Naslovnica in morda še kakšna informacija več bosta znani že jutri.

Finska melodična death metal zasedba Wolfheart sporoča, da je združila moči z založbo Reigning Phoenix Music. Izjava kitarista in vokalista Tuomasa Saukkonena:

»I am confident that signing to Reigning Phoenix Music is an exciting game changer for us and RPM is nothing but the right place to continue conquering the world with our art. The future looks brighter than ever and excitement is an understatement for what we feel about the forthcoming co-operation and adventures.«

Založba 20 Buck Spin tukaj predčasno ponuja v posluh prvenec angleških death/doom metalcev Slimelord z naslovom Chytridiomycosis Relinquished, ki bo jutri izšel na vinilu, CD-ju, kaseti in digitalno. V zasedbi delujejo štirje člani Cryptic Shift in kitarist projekta Abominable Filth. Člani Slimelord so:

John Riley – baskitara
Ryan Sheperson – bobni
Xander Bradley – kitara
Andy Ashworth – vokal
Travis Jordan – kitara

V okviru promocije praznovanja 25 let delovanja Paranoida smo se v uredništvu odzvali vabilu na kratek intervju, ki ga je za Val 202 oziroma oddajo Rockoteka izvedel Tomaž Purkart. Celotno oddajo, ki je gostila tudi Primoža Benka, kitarista Siddharte, ter našega bivšega sodelavca in vrhunskega basista Tilna Hudrapa, lahko preverite tukaj (prispevek o Paranoidu se začne pri 25:30).

Nemški thrasherji Darkness so nedavno prek socialnih omrežij naznanili, da so se razšli z dolgoletnim kitaristom Meikom Heitkampom. Njegovo mesto pa je band že zapolnil, saj ga bo zamenjal Dominik Rothe. Poleg novega kitarista pa Darkness napovedujejo tudi izid nove plošče Blood On Canvas, ki izide 26. aprila.

Italijanske simfonične death metalce Fleshgod Apocalypse, ki so nedolgo nazaj nastopili v Ljubljani, je zapustil ustanovni član/basist Paolo Rossi. Paolo je bil kot mnogi drugi glasbeniki v času koronavirusne pandemije namreč primoran poiskati službo zunaj glasbenega sektorja. Ko pa je življenje počasi stopalo v normalne tirnice, je Paolo skušal usklajevati novo službo z bandom, kar pa se je žal izkazalo za nemogoče. Prevladala je nova kariera, in Rossi se je odločil zapustiti zasedbo. Fleshgod Apocalypse bodo nadaljevali kot kvintet, Francesco Paoli, trenutni kitarist zasedbe, bo prevzel dolžnosti basista, Veronica Bordacchini (klaviaturistka in back vokalistka), pa bo prevzela še clean vokale. Pripeta fotografija je zadnje darilo oboževalcem zasedbe, gre pa za delo vizionarskega fotografa Francesca Esposita.

Po petih letih se iz pokoja vračajo legendarni Slayer. Čeprav je nedavno kitarist Kerry King najavil izid prvega solo albuma, je zdaj kot strela z jasnega udarila vest, da se na koncertne odre vračajo Slayer. Zaenkrat sta v ZDA napovedana le nastopa na festivalih Riot Fest in Louder Than Life. Ali se bo band podal tudi na obsežnejšo turnejo, zaenkrat še ni znano.

Avtor fotografije je Tadej Pišek.

Kitarist zasedbe Decapitated Wacław »Vogg« Kiełtyka je prekinil sodelovanje z Machine Head, s katerimi je koncertiral od leta 2019. Razlog za njegovo odločitev je precej pričakovana, namreč tako Decapitated kot MH sta na odrih zelo aktivni zasedbi, zato bi prevečkrat prišlo do prekrivanja turnej, Voggova prva izbira pa so seveda Decapitated. Machine Head njegove uradne izjave še niso komentirali.