• STOLEN BABIES have signed a recording deal with The End Records. The Carnival Rock ensemble are a unique band in their own right, a talented act that has amassed a following with their energetic and freakish live shows. The band's musical style is a cauldron of ideas that serves up a wonderful variety of vibrant styles meshed together into a pure chaotic frenzy. And it works. With elements of Gothic, Industrial, Punk and Metal brewing within, it's not hard to see why the band has been able to impress fans and critics who have stumbled upon their mischievously power-packed numbers. The band's well-received debut release, "There Be Squabbles Ahead," will be released in digipak format via The End Records on October 3rd. On signing with the label, Stolen Babies said in a statement: "Signing with The End became the obvious choice for us. As a band with a very strong artistic vision, we knew what we were looking for, and The End was the missing ingredient in our cupcake of madness!"

• TENHI's "Airut:Aamujen," the sequel to 2001's "Airut:Ciwi," will be released on October 20th via Prophecy Productions. Band member Tyko says: The piano-driven "Airut:Aamujen" was originally released in a small limited edition thru our Utustudio in December of 2004 under the name "Harmaa." After signing to Prophecy, we wanted to re-release it with the Tenhi title and bring the saga together. The Airut:Saga is based on my and Ilmari Issakainen's visions, and continues and explores further paths found in some of our songs." A third chapter, "Airut:Savoie," will be recorded this Summer. The song 'Kielo' was the source of inspiration for the first two chapters of "Airut." Tyko continues: "Currently, we are working on Tenhi's 10-year celebration double album, which will include rare and unreleased stuff from over the years and alternative versions of the album songs. It will also include the demo from 1997 'Kertomuksia' and "Airut:Ciwi" MCD, and also unreleased 'Airut:Saga' songs from 2001-2004."

• WHITESNAKE frontman David Coverdale has added a new date to the band's current UK tour. Just announced is the Nottingham Rock City concert on Tuesday August 8th, followed by the recently re-scheduled Birmingham Indoor Arena concert on Wednesday August 9th. "I'm on a mission," says Coverdale laughing. "It's an appropriate time to be playing good, uplifting, positive rock 'n' roll." With their blend of Hard Rock, Soul, Blues and balladry, a healthy dose of priapic posturing and good-time fun, Whitesnake is pretty much on it's own in today's grim, unsmiling climate. The band are touring Europe extensively in support of a new in-concert DVD/CD, "Live...In The Still Of The Night." Already an extraordinary success story marked with top 5 appearances on the European charts and Top 20 in the U.S., "It's as if everyone has been waiting for something new from the band...I'm thrilled with the response to the DVD...It's been overwhelmingly positive & sets us up for the next move," said Coverdale.

• METALLICA, who long refused to make available individual songs from its albums for sale online, has begun doing so on the iTunes Music Store. Beginning on Tuesday, the band put up four of their classic albums -- 'Kill 'Em All,' 'Ride The Lightning,' 'Master Of Puppets' and '...And Justice For All' -- for sale on U.S. and Canadian versions of the popular online music retailer. Fans can buy tracks a la carte for 99 cents or purchase the albums, starting at $9.90. In a posting on the group's website, the band acknowledged that fans have been increasingly buying music online and said it added some previously unreleased live tracks recorded in Seattle in 1989 to each of the albums to entice those who already own copies. Metallica, who in the early part of the decade led the charge against the original Napster online file-sharing service -- at one point releasing the so-called "Napster-proof" "Download This" CD -- had previously made their albums available for purchase online through retailers and their own official website.

• THE ROLLING STONES will return to North America this Fall as part of their ongoing "A Bigger Bang" tour. The Stones, now packing venues in Europe, will open the tour Sept. 20 in Boston's Gillette Stadium. Other stops include Chicago, Seattle, Phoenix, Las Vegas and Vancouver, British Columbia, with the final stop in Los Angeles at Dodger Stadium on Nov. 18. "Most of the shows are going to be on the big stadium stage with fans in the balconies behind us," Mick Jagger said in a statement. "We're going to play many cities we didn't get to before and also return to some of our favorite places." The Stones kicked off "A Bigger Bang" last August at Boston's Fenway Park. They were forced to postpone the start of the European leg of the tour after Keith Richards suffered a head injury in a fall from a tree while vacationing in Fiji in April. The 62-year-old guitarist said he's feeling great and can't wait to play "more gigs in America and Canada." "I thought we left too soon you know, so that's the reason we're coming back," Richards said.

• ARCH ENEMY will be making a return to the U.S. this September as part of the mighty Gigantour, which features the legendary Megadeth among others. The month-long trek will be the group's fourth and final U.S. run in support of their current album, "Doomsday Machine." Additionally, on August 8th, Arch Enemy will release their first DVD, "Live Apocalypse," a double-disc set full of live footage, in-depth interviews and promotional video clips. Mike Amott (guitars) further describes his thoughts on the upcoming trek: "We are ecstatic about returning to the U.S. for yet another cool tour after two months of European festivals this summer. It's an honor for us to be a part of Gigantour this year and to share the stage with metal legends Megadeth! We are also looking forward to hanging out with our Swedish friends in Opeth and making lots of new friends along the way. This will most likely be the last time the U.S. fans will see us on tour for the 'Doomsday Machine' album, and we are more than ready to deliver a full-on metal assault."

• KEITH MOON's "Pictures Of Lily" drum kit is being reproduced by Premier Percussion Ltd., who have announced a special run of limited edition kits in tribute to the now-legendary drum kit that the company made for the Who drummer in the 1967, with the kit set to celebrate its 40th anniversary next year in 2007. Named after The Who's 1967 hit single, 'Pictures Of Lily,' the "Spirit Of Lily" replica drum kit features faithful recreations of the unique artwork that adorned the original kit and the original drum sizes utilized by Moon. The Pete Townshend-penned 'Pictures Of Lily' tells the story of a father who gives his son pictures of Lily Langtry, a theater star from the 1800's. Considered one of Britain's most beautiful actresses, she was also notorious as the mistress of the Prince of Wales, the future Edward VII. On the surface, the story is a simple one -- a boy who can't sleep at night recounts how pictures of Lily helped him do so -- but was in fact originally banned by many radio stations for it's sexual connotations.

• MUNICIPAL WASTE have been unleashing the bastard in audiences throughout the U.S. over the last few weeks. Playing a variety of venues, from intimate VFW shows to a guest slot on the Maryland leg of the Sounds Of The Underground tour, the band have reached out to fans and delivered their passion for a good 'ol time to the masses. Lead singer Tony Guardrail checked in while on tour and proclaimed that Municipal Waste's slot on the Sounds Of The Underground tour "was awesome" and notes that each show they have played has been an amazing experience. Shows have included boogie boards thrown out for crowd "surfing," trampolines, and all sorts of random novelties that have established Municipal Waste as a live force to be reckoned with. The band are currently gearing up for a six-day stint in California to round out their Summer U.S. tour, and will embark on a six-day tour of Australia beginning August 4th. Municipal Waste will also play both the Reading and Leeds Festivals in the UK on 8/25 and 8/26.

• JUCIFER are currently preparing for the release of their new album, "If Thine Enemy Hunger," and subsequent touring in support of the offfering from Relapse Records. The duo will see the release of "If Thine Enemy Hunger," the band's first for Relapse, on September 5th in North America (September 11th internationally). Additionally, Jucifer have announced tour plans that include an immediate stint in the Southern U.S. and their involvement with the 2006 Relapse Record Contamination Tour with new label mates Unearthly Trance, Facedowninshit, Fuck The Facts and Hex Machine. "If Thine Enemy Hunger"'s track listing is as follows: 'She Tides,' 'Deep,' 'Centaalia,' 'Lucky Ones Burn,' 'Hennin Hardine,' 'Antietam,' 'My Benefactor,' 'Four Suns,' 'Pontius Of Palia,' 'Backslider,' 'Luchamos,' 'Ludlow,' 'The Plastic Museum,' 'In A Family Way,' 'Medicated' and 'Led.' An e-card previewing the tracks 'Hennin Hardine' and 'The Plastic Museum' can be viewed here.

• TERROR's new album, "Always The Hard Way," has now been released. You can stream the entire album by clicking here. The band are currently enjoying a run on the well-attended Sounds Of The Underground tour alongside In Flames, Trivium, and As I Lay Dying. Of the new album pandemonium, Terror vocalist Scott Vogel says: "The album turned out exactly how we wanted in terms of songwriting, recording, layout, and lyrics. We are completely satisfied, because although we are still Terror, and we are always going to be Terror, we've taken it everything to the next level. While we aren't looking to reinvent, we just decided to play how we wanted to, and the final product is the most aggressive, fastest, hardest, heaviest thing we have ever done." The new album, recorded during an ice storm, has a slew of guest vocalists who braved it to appear. Eddie Sutton from Leeway, Aaron from Death Threat and even Hip-Hop greats emcee Murs and Mr Dibbs (Atmosphere's DJ) add their talents to "Always The Hard Way."

• JET's long-awaited second album, "Shine On," will hit stores on October 3rd. Produced by Dave Sardy (Oasis, Dirty Pretty Things), the album sees Jet again putting their own contemporary stamp on classic guitar-fuelled Rock 'N' Roll. The album's first single, 'Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is,' is set to hit airwaves on August 7th. The Melbourne, Australia-based band spent much of 2005 and 2006 writing and demoing "Shine On" at a variety of studios around the world including in Barbados, Massachusetts, and their home country of Australia. The sessions wound up this Spring with a burst of creativity at Sardy's Hillside Manor Studios in Los Angeles. Along with the release of "Shine On," Jet will embark on a whirlwind tour of the U.S., slated to run from September 18th through October 6th. The band will return to the States in late November for a full-blown tour of North America, with upcoming dates to be annouced soon. "Shine On" (Atlantic) marks the follow-up to Jet's 2003 breakthrough, "Get Born," which sold 1.6 million copies in the U.S.

• SOULFLY frontman Max Cavalera recently spoke to Holland's Toazted.com about the possibility of a reunion with his former Sepultura bandmates at some point in the not-too-distant future. Asked about the rumor that a reunited Sepultura was in talks several months ago to play this year's Ozzfest, Cavalera said: "There's been a lot of rumors. Sepultura is one of the most rumored things out there. [Laughs] I talked to my brother [ex-Sepultura drummer Igor Cavalera] recently. He has a new son named Antonio, which is my middle name. He says he looks a lot like me. I've only seen a picture. I plan to visit him sometime next year. We're in a very good relationship, which is great, after all this bullshit. Ten years... Life is too short to hold [grudges]. So I think in a weird way, God has a way to manage these things and he's putting it all together now. With or without the reunion -- I don't really care -- it's important that we're brothers... blood, family... it's a great thing. But to tell you the truth, it would be cool to have a reunion. Even my kids wanna see it."

• SOCIETY 1 diehard fans Andrew Goodyear and Amanda Tyler will exchange wedding vows at a ceremony with band's frontman Matt "The Lord" Zane, presiding over the ritual, which will take place in Oklahoma City on August 5th. It will be in full Society 1 fashion, with Zane as the minister, Sin as a groomsman and Dirt as an usher. Tyler stated: "When Andy proposed to me, the first name that popped into my head in terms of a minister was Matt. He's been a huge fixture in my life for quite a few years now." She added: "In my mind, there wasn't another choice for any of these positions, and I think without them our wedding wouldn't be nearly as special." Society 1's first release for Crash Music, Inc. will be "The Years Of Spiritual Dissent," a 2-disc CD/DVD set to be released next week on July 25th. A collection of Society 1's first two albums, "Slacker Jesus" and "Words As Carriers," "The Years Of Spiritual Dissent" also includes two cover songs, a brand new track entitled 'This Is the End,' and a documentary bonus DVD.

• INTO ETERNITY have posted the cover art for their upcoming album, entitled "The Scattering Of Ashes," here. Designed by Mattias Noren (Stratovarius, Evergrey), the album is scheduled for an October 3rd North American release. Vocalist Stu Block commented: "Mattias designed our first three album covers ('Into Eternity,' 'Dead Or Dreaming' and 'Buried in Oblivion'), which have all been amazing but yet different in their own way. There was no doubt in our minds that 'The Scattering Of Ashes'' cover would live up to those expectations. Mattias is a really talented guy, and all we had to do was tell him the album title and that we wanted it to have a dark feeling to it, so he ran with it and nailed it pretty much right away. We are all really happy with the end result of the artwork, layout and sound of the album. We have been listening to the mixed and mastered version of the album from Andy Sneap (Arch Enemy, Killswitch Engage) and it sounds absolutely killer!!"

• HAMMERS OF MISFORTUNE's "The Locust Years" will be released in Europe come September via Cruz Del Sur Music. The album, which was recorded under the supervision of Justin Weis at Trackworx Studios, is currently available in the U.S. San Francisco guitarist John Cobbett (Gwar, Ludicra, Slough Feg, Amber Asylum, Jarboe) formed Hammers Of Misfortune in the late 90s, previously known as Unholy Cadaver. Later in 2001 the band released their first album, "The Bastard" - an epic tale told in three acts with three distinct characters/voices. In 2003 they released a second opus through Cruz Del Sur, entitled "The August Engine." "The Locust Years" brings the creative songwriting of the band to an upper level, through the creation of a complex Rock Opera in which several different elements complete each other. Echoes of Yes, Pink Floyd and in general the legacy of 70's Progressive Rock are mixed with Hammers Of Misfortune's trademark of originality and love for uncommon solutions.

• BEHEMOTH made their return to the U.S. last week as a part of the massive Sounds Of The Underground tour in support of the band's latest album, "Demigod." Vocalist/guitarist Nergal checks in with the following report: "We've been on the road for more than a week now and let me tell you something, it's the most fun tour we've ever been on. Every day is a massive party and it's rather hard to avoid it ha ha...I'm happy to see that all the bands and the crew people can become such a happy metal family. Thank you all for that! Bah, I forgot about the very generous Jagermeister people at the Jagermeister tent, roasted salmon and shots rule, ha ha... I love watching GWAR almost every day. These guys are just pure fun to watch and hang out with. Cannibal nails it every show too. What a merciless killing machine. I'm suprised by the Trivium set and they are definitely a talented band. A few minutes ago I was checking out In Flames and believe me, 'Take This Life' sounds huuuge live. The shows are tough due to the merciless heat, but the feedback we get is great."

• KEITH RICHARDS is being pardoned for being a reckless driver, 31 years later. The Arkansas state Parole Board has approved an application for clemency submitted on behalf of Richards, the 62-year-old guitarist for the Rolling Stones, by Gov. Mike Huckabee. The board posted the official notice Tuesday, and the pardon will be forwarded to Huckabee within 30 days. When the governor signs it, it will clear Richards' record in Arkansas. Richards was arrested July 5, 1975, as he, bandmate Ron Wood, a security guard and a fan traveled from Memphis, Tenn., to Dallas. The group had stopped in Fordyce for lunch, then got back on the road with Richards driving. A Fordyce officer saw the car swerve -- Richards said later he bent to adjust the radio -- and stopped the vehicle. Police said they smelled marijuana and Richards was charged with reckless driving and possession of a concealed knife, and the fan was charged with possession of a controlled substance. Richards pled guilty to reckless driving and paid a $162.50 fine.

• UNEARTHLY TRANCE will feature along with Relapse Records labelmates Facedowninshit, Fuck The Facts, Jucifer, Buried Inside, Minsk and more on the upcoming Contamination 2006 tour, which will kick off on September 2nd in Philadelphia and run through the rest of that month. All of the bands will be touring in support of their Relapse debuts. Both Unearthly Trances's "The Trident" and Facedowninshit's "N.P.O.N." (Nothing Positive, Only Negative) were released this past April, while Fuck The Facts' "Stigmata High Five" will see its release just prior to the tour on August 22nd. For years, the "Contamination" title has been used to by the Relapse Records label to expose some of its newest acts. Contamination 2006 is the fifth installment in the tour's history. with Previous "Contamination Tour" alumni including the likes of Mastodon, High On Fire, Cephalic Carnage, Neurosis, Coalesce, Dysrhythmia, and many more.

• RADIOHEAD frontman Thom Yorke's solo debut album, "The Eraser" (XL), was installed today as the bookmakers' joint favorite for the 2006 Nationwide Mercury Prize alongside Alternative Rock quartet The Arctic Monkeys' "Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not" (Domino) jusr eight days after the former's release. The two albums were named as 5/1 favorites by bookmaker chain William Hill when the shortlist for the annual British/Irish album of the year award was announced this morning at London's Commonwealth Club. The 12 shortlisted albums were chosen by 12 judges from an entry of more than 200 albums submitted by labels. To qualify, an album had to be recorded by a British or Irish artist and released between July 25, 2005 and July 17, 2006. This year's shortlist contains fewer long-shots than in previous years; odds vary from 5/1 to 10/1, according to William Hill. As always, the list includes artists covering a variety of genres, with the winner to be announced in London on Sept. 5.

• MEGADETH frontman Dave Mustaine and drummer Shawn Drover recently spoke about the progress of the recording sessions for the band's new album, "United Abominations": "We rented [LED ZEPPELIN drummer] John Bonham's drum kit and recorded at a studio in [PINK FLOYD guitarist] David Gilmour's house [in England], which was great," Mustaine said. "The kit is the only one that's available in the world to rent," Drover added. "Dave surprised me with that, which was pretty incredible because I didn't even know it was possible to get Bonham's kit to rent for anybody. So I incorporated the bass drum and his floor tom and a snare on the kit that I use in the studio, and that was really inspiring. We played in the middle of nowhere and it was just a really cool vibe." Regarding the musical direction of "United Abominations", Mustaine said: "If I was to say what time this record would have came out, I would have said some time before [1990's] 'Rust In Peace' or sometime after [1992's] 'Countdown To Extinction.'"

• LACUNA COIL have made their much-anticipated return to the U.S. as part of this year's Ozzfest main stage lineup. The trek coincides with the release of the new single 'Enjoy The Silence,' which impacted commercial radio this week. The video for the track also made its U.S. television debut this past weekend. Since its release, Lacuna Coil's new album, "Karmacode," has SoundScanned over 100,000 units and spent a total of eight weeks on the Billboard Top 200 chart. The album's success can be partly contributed to the strength of its lead-off single, 'Our Truth,' and a potent live performance on Jimmy Kimmel Live in May. Andrea Ferro (vocals) checks in with the following Ozzfest report: "Ozzfest is well underway and we couldn't be more excited! To play on the main stage is a big challenge for us. The mood is really different from the second stage, and you really have to win over the audience that very often is sitting in a chair waiting to be impressed."

• ABORTED's "The Auricular Chronicles" DVD is in the process of being completed for an October release via Listenable Records. Comments the band: "Work is proceeding well on the DVD. Artwork is in the hands of SPINA studios, who also did the last Leng Tch'e record. As stated, the DVD will contain a live show of an hour shot in Paris with 13 cams, sound remixed by Tue Madsen, both videoclips, backstage shenanigans, other liveshows, interviews with all band members and more." Regarding their upcoming album, entitled "Slaughter & Apparatus: A Methodical Overture," they stated: "We're right in the middle of the writing process, and middle is the right word since we have half of the record written so far and things are going pretty smoothly." The follow-up to "The Archaic Abattoir" will be recorded at Antfarm Studios with Tue Madsen once again, and should see a worldwide release in February 2007 through Century Media.

• WEEZER is "done," Rivers Cuomo says, at least for now. The band's bespectacled songwriter and frontman says that while he remains in touch with his bandmates, "we've never mentioned getting together." "Really, for the moment, we are done," he said. "And I'm not certain we'll ever make a record again, unless it becomes really obvious to me that we need to do one." Weezer has released five albums since forming in 1993. The group took a lengthy break between 1996's "Pinkerton" and 2001's self-titled disc (typically called "The Green Album"). The band's last release was "Make Believe," in 2005. The liner notes of that album led to conjecture that it was Weezer's last. They included a quote from a parting soliloquy in Shakespeare's "Tempest," the playwright's last play. Cuomo, 36, said he has been writing songs, but said, "I don't know what'll happen with these songs - if anything. ... I certainly don't see them becoming Weezer songs, so we'll just have to see."

• LIGHT THIS CITY have unveiled the artwork, track listing, and a new song from the Bay Area band's forthcoming album, "Facing The Thousand." The band returned to Castle Ultimate Studios in March to record with producer Zach Ohren, and has enlisted Mario Garza of Robot Plague for the album's artwork. Both worked with the band on their previous release, "Remains Of The Gods." Tapping The Black Dahlia Murder frontman Trevor Strnad for a guest appearance on the track 'Fear Of Heights,' "Facing The Thousand" will hit stores Sept. 19 through Prosthetic Records. In the meantime, Loght This City will head out on a massive string of tour dates across the United States with Suicide Silence, All Shall Perish, Too Pure To Die, and Nights Like These. As a pre-cursor to the record's release, a new track dubbed 'Cradle For A King' has been posted along with track listing information and artwork for the record, and can be viewed online here.

• BOB SEGER's newest single is now available from the iTunes Music Store, ending his long holdout from the world of digital music downloads. 'Wait For Me,' Seger's first single off his upcoming album 'Face The Promise,' debuted Tuesday on the popular online service. Seger's manager, Ed "Punch" Andrews, said Wednesday that he is working with Capitol Records on a licensing agreement to release more of Seger's catalog online. Andrews said they've long avoided iTunes and the singles market because they believe Seger's songs are meant to be listened to as part of complete albums. Other holdouts include The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Metallica and Radiohead. The Red Hot Chili Peppers finally said they would release their catalog to iTunes in March. Seger's first studio album in 11 years is due in stores Sept. 12. The Detroit native has sold nearly 50 million albums in a five-decade career - best known for his hits 'Night Moves,' 'Old Time Rock And Roll,' 'Like A Rock,' and more.

• MACHINEMADE GOD vocalist Flo Veltin has checked in with the following update: "What's up everyone? We're back from our summer tour, and all we can say is that we had a blast!!! I am working on a tour diary right now with a lot of pictures from the past 3 weeks. As soon as it's done we're gonna let you know for sure where you can find it. If you have pictures or even videos, contact us!!! More about the tour then in our diary. So we just wanna thank following people for making this tour possible and for having a good time: All the guys in Evergreen Terrace, Parkway Drive and The Black Dhalia Murder, all the other great bands we got the chance to play with, Hoeppe and Eddie for learning our set and helping us out on tour, our roadies Makke and Benny for endless support, and of course everyone who came out to our shows and supported us in any way. Thanks for everything and hope to see you at our upcoming shows." - 3 Flo and MMG.

• THE WHO have announced that "The Who Encore Series" will once again be brought to fans in 2006 by the combined efforts of the band and the encore series team at TheMusic.com. After successful Who Encore Series CD's for both the 2002 and 2004 tours, there will also be available DVD's of each show in addition to the standard 2-CD gatefold, collector's and deluxe-edition sets. The DVD's of each show will be shot with a four-camera crew, and are expected to have both a surround and stereo mix on each disc. As in the past, the audio for the CD's and DVD's will be a "Live Mix" by The Who's engineering team, mastered by Jon Astley at Close To The Edge, and pressed onto high-quality manufactured discs. Like previously, the profits from "The Who Encore Series" will go to charities designated by the band. DVD's of all European shows (with the exception of the June 17th Leeds University Show) will be made available as non-region encoded (plays on most players) PAL format discs.

• KATAKLYSM have successfully completed their Metal Crusaders tour in North America, and are preparing to head overseas soon to Slovenia's Metal Camp open air and Earthshaker open air in Germany. On August 12th, the band are on track to film their appearance at the upcoming Party.San open air in Germany for their first-ever DVD, "Live In Germany," wich will feature the entire show filled with an explosive set list, a 30-minute documentary on the 15-year history of the group, and a bonus live CD, for which a release date of January 2007 has been set by Nuclear Blast. The Party.San open air show will be the last for Kataklysm for the rest of the year, after which the band will then start a second run of touring in support of their latest onslaught, "In The Arm of Devastation" Kataklysm has confirmed "The Road To Devastation" headlining tour for January 2007, with support acts currently being worked on.

• KEITH RICHARDS said he's recovered completely from a head injury suffered in a fall on the eve of the relaunching of The Rolling Stones' European tour, and shrugged off a question about whether he had worried about dying. "I feel great. I can't wait to get back on the stage again. Basically everything is cool," Richards said Monday. The 62-year-old guitarist fell from a tree April 27 while vacationing in Fiji, forcing the Stones to postpone their European tour. He later had surgery in New Zealand to relieve pressure on his brain. "Of course they put me out like a light. I was surprised myself. ... I had total comfort. When you got to do it, you got to do it," Richards said. The Stones were to resume their "A Bigger Bang" tour Tuesday at Milan's San Siro stadium. Asked what he's been doing since the fall, Richards responded: "I recovered. ... Six weeks - I mean, not bad for a brain job." Did he ever worry about dying? "Good one," he said.

• ELIS frontwoman Sabine Duenser has passed away unexpectedly from a cerebral brain hemorrhage, according to the band's recording label, Napalm Records, who recently posted: It is with great sadness that we bring to you the following statement from the remaining members of Elis: "Deeply confused and sad, we have to inform you, that Sabine is no longer with us. During the band's rehearsal on Friday the 7.7.2006, Sabine suffered a cerebral hemorrhage, from which she died a day later at the hospital. Out of respect to family and friends, we have decided to take the homepage off the Net. We need time now to decide if and how we approach the future and we will not answer any mails at the moment. Sing with the angels Sabine! We will never forget you!" - Chris, Max, Pete, Tom. Elis began their musical career under the name Erben Der Schopfung. In 2001 they released their first single, 'Elis' as well as their debut album, "Twilight."

• DON CABALLERO founder and drummer Damon Che is featured in the August 2006 issue of Modern Drummer magazine with the legendary Stewart Copeland of The Police on the cover. The issue marks Che's first appearance in the magazine, which is available now on newsstands nationwide. Damon Che's most recent recorded work can be heard on the band's new album for Relapse Records, "World Class Listening Problem." The release also marks the first recorded work by the band's new incarnation of bassist Jason Jouver, guitarist Gene Doyle, guitarist Jeff Ellsworth and Che behind the drum kit. Don Caballero are currently on tour in North America in support of "World Class Listening Problem," and have announced the addition of a second leg to the trek that will include Relapse labelmates Zombi. The extended run is slated to commence on August 10th, and will be sponsored by Decibel Magazine and Jakprints.

• MOTORHEAD's "All The Aces" is set to be released in a CD/DVD format on July 31st by Castle Music in association with Sanctuary Records. In a new initiative for the company, the album comes packaged with an informative booklet and a "sister" DVD, providing additional audiovisual material for fans. "I want Motorhead to be the dirtiest rock 'n' roll band in the world. If we moved next door, your lawn would die," Motorhead frontman Lemmy says of the band, who set out from the very start to deliver the loudest, dirtiest and most outrageous music possible. With 6 UK top 40 hits under their belt, nobody needs reminding how well they have succeeded. Keen to capitalize on 1979's emergent home video market, the original 30-minute "Best Of Motorhead" video is included here, which originally purported to capture the band "live in concert," while it actually featured a collection of early promotional clips of the band miming to tracks from the "Overkill" and "Bomber" albums.

• THROWDOWN will start their first U.S. headlining tour in support of their latest album, "Vendetta," this fall. "The Pure Hostility Tour" will bring with it support from Zao and Evergreen Terrace. Maylene & The Sons Of Disaster join the tour after its first three dates, while Sinai Beach are also slated to appear on select dates. Throwdown guitarist Matt Mentley says of the tour: "We consciously tried to put together a diverse lineup that will appeal to a lot of different people. All of the bands on this tour sound completely different. Tours that have 4 or 5 bands that all sound similar is just boring." Speaking about any upcoming surprises for their fans on the tour, Mentley commented: "We have been working on a Misfits cover, and we pull out a Pantera or Sepultura cover from time to time. I mean, you may get to see Mark in a tanktop some nights, and Ben and Dave's shirts usually come off about 2 songs into the set, so you know you are gonna get your money's worth." "The Pure Hostility Tour" begins August 18th in San Diego, California and will wrap up by late September.

• CELTIC FROST have announced the addition of renowned Norwegian Black Metal bands 1349 and Sahg for the group's Fall 2006 North American tour. The bands will support Celtic Frost from September 12th (Springfield, Virginia) to October 2nd (Portland, Oregon). The first North American shows for both bands, 1349 features Satyricon drummer Frost, while Doom supergroup Sahg features notable Norwegian black metal stars Manngard, 2005 Norwegian Grammy award winner Audrey Horne, and former Gorgoroth members King and Kvitrafn. These will be Goatwhore will support Celtic Frost from October 3rd (San Francisco, California) to the end of the tour on November 11th (Johnson City, New York). American Doom stars Sunn O))) will also join the tour for the Pacific Coast dates from October 3rd (San Francisco, California) to October 9th (Las Vegas, Nevada) as well. "Monotheist," Celtic Frost's 2006 release and their first studio effort in 15 years, has garnered widespread acclaim since it was issued by Century Media.

• ALIEN ANT FARM continue their story of perseverance with their much-anticipated third major label album, "Up In The Attic (New Door/UMe)," set for release on July 18th. "BUSted," the band's first-ever DVD (showcasing numerous concert performances and all 10 of the band's music videos, including five never released until now) will also be issued on the same day. "BUSted" also takes an amusing and outrageously revealing behind-the-scenes look at Alien Ant Farm on the road with their friends. "We've been through so much, both triumph and defeat," says singer Dryden Mitchell. "But it's been cool that we've kept our fans. I'd do this forever. We're having fun." The hard rocking yet melodic, thunderous yet introspective "Up In The Attic" was produced by Jim Wirt (Live, L.A. Guns, Incubus, AAF's 1999 Indie-released "Greatest Hits") and mixed by Jay Baumgardner (Papa Roach, Coal Chamber, Seether, AAF's 2001 major label debut, "ANThology"). Alien Ant Farm plan to tour later this year and beyond in support of the album.

• SECRETS OF THE MOON have finished recording their new "Antithesis" album at Klangschmiede Studios, which is slated to be released in the Fall via Lupus Lounge and already promises to become one of the more important German Metal offerings of the year. Producer Markus Stock comments: "It was a great honor to work with a band as talented as Secrets Of The Moon on an album that will soon be recognized as one of Germany's most important in the realm of all things dark." Comparing the new work to their previous effort, "Carved In Stigmata Wounds" -- - an album that has been celebrated by critics and fans alike -- band member sGolden explains: "The forthcoming album will indeed offer something totally different. Music-wise, these are the most intense and tight tracks we've ever created. Spiritual darkness paired with a very progressive approach. The content of the songs is very direct, sometimes even perversely assaulting and desperate. A profession of loyalty to Death in perfection."

• STONE SOUR vocalist Corey Taylor steps out from behind the Slipknot mask for the second time, as the band releases "Come What(ever) May," on Aug. 1. "We don't look at it as a side project," he says. "It's an actual band, so we put the same amount of energy, work and attitude into it and I think that's why people embrace it. We look at it as something we're probably going to do for a very long time." Taylor and fellow band members Jim Root, Josh Rand and Shawn Economaki wrote the follow-up to their 2002 debut last year before hitting Southern California's Studio 606 in January. Though Stone Sour recruited new drummer Roy Mayorga during the sessions, Taylor says they managed to resist the temptation of asking the studio chief, one Dave Grohl. "We thought about it, but we didn't have anything that would have fit. In hindsight it's really good 'cause we really wanted to put something out there that was really us." Grohl did assist Taylor in one activity, though: "Me and him had chain smoking contests, which is cool because we both smoke our asses off," he laughed.

• FIREWIND entered the official single charts in their home country of Greece at position #35 in the first week. 'Falling To Pieces' even climbed as high as position #11 in its second week. Apart from the great results, the band are gracing the cover of the current issues of Rock Hard (GR) and Metal Hammer (GR). Firewind guitarist Gus G. is thrilled and reports the following: "Wow, this is amazing news for us! We really didn't expect such high chart entry with our first attempt to release a single in our home country! The cover stories in Metal Hammer and Rock Hard magazines are also something amazing and a dream coming true... We wanna thank everyone at Century Media, the people of EMI Greece, but most of all, our Greek fans for pledging their allegiance and for giving us such an honor by placing heavy metal in the charts! Thank you all for making us feel special!" FIREWIND is also confirmed for a signing session in the Rock Hard tent at Rockwave Festival in Greece on July 10th (the official release date for "Allegiance" in Greece) at 7:00 pm.

• THE MARS VOLTA are set to return on their third studio album, "Amputechture." The eight-track set is due Aug. 22 via Universal and opens with the seven-minute 'Vicarious Atonement,' the closest the group has ever come to a ballad. The album then moves back to familiar expansive musical territory on the nearly 17-minute 'Tetragrammaton,' and also features two other tracks that clock in past the 11-minute mark, 'Meccamputechture' and 'Day Of The Baphomets.' The disc itself runs more than 76 minutes in length. In addition to contributions from Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist John Frusciante, "Amputechture" also features Paul Hinojos' first studio work with The Mars Volta since joining as a touring musician in 2005. Hinojos previously played with Mars Volta principals Cedric Bixler-Zavala and Omar Rodriguez-Lopez in At The Drive-In. "Amputechture" is the follow-up to 2005's "Frances The Mute," which has sold nearly 465,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

• THEE PLAGUE OF GENTLEMEN started tracking "Serpentcult," their debut album for Listenable Records, last week. Guitarist/vocalist Steve checked in with the following report: "On Friday evening, Steven, me & Olly drove down to CCR studios to drop off our gear so we could get cracking on Saturday morning. We hung out with Kris (Krowley) at the famous Zonnepitje snackbar afterwards, to disguss the plan of action etc. Kris and us were optimistic and already feeling relaxed... a good sign. Saturday morning I rode my bike down to Stevens to hook up with him and Cozy to drive to the studio. We got the drums set up real quick and managed to get the required sound within the hour and ran through 7 songs. Cozy being the pro he is, nailed most of the songs in just 2 takes. Now we're a fussy bunch when it comes to being tight in the studio (or live for that matter), so we were all really fucking stoked when we had all the drums down by 7pm. Another snack at the Zonnepitje and homeward bound."