Kiske/Somerville, the rock project formed by vocalists Michael Kiske (ex-Helloween) and Amanda Somerville (Aina, Avantasia, HDK) and featuring bassist Mat Sinner (Primal Fear, Sinner), guitarists Magnus Karlsson (Primal Fear, Allen/Lande) and Sander Gommans (ex-After Forever, HDK), drummer Martin Schmidt (ex-Atrocity/Leaves' Eyes) and keyboarder Jimmy Kresic (Voodoocircle), will release their debut album on September 24th via Frontiers Records (in the U.S. on October 12). Before the release of the album, the single "Silence" will be out on August 20th. 90 second samples of each song of the album have been uploaded to Frontiers Records website and can be streamed here.

The tracklist of the album reads as follows:

01. Nothing Left To Say (composers: Mat Sinner & Magnus Karlsson)
02. Silence (composers: Mat Sinner & Magnus Karlsson)
03. If I Had A Wish (composers: Mat Sinner & Magnus Karlsson)
04. One Night Burning (composers: Mat Sinner & Magnus Karlsson)
05. Arise (composers: Sander Gommans & Amanda Somerville)
06. End Of The Road (composers: Mat Sinner & Jimmy Kresic)
07. Don't Walk Away (composers: Mat Sinner & Magnus Karlsson)
08. Devil In Her Heart (composers: Mat Sinner & Jimmy Kresic)
09. Rain (composers: Mat Sinner & Magnus Karlsson)
10. A Thousand Suns (composers: Sander Gommans & Amanda Somerville)
11. Second Chance (composers: Mat Sinner & Magnus Karlsson)
12. Set A Fire - Bonus (composers: Sander Gommans & Amanda Somerville)

The bonus DVD will also contain video clips of the songs "Silence" and "If I Had A Wish" as well as a "Making Of" documentary. Reports of the shooting, which has taken place in March 2010 in Nuremberg, Germany, have been uploaded by Carl Begai of BW&BK and as video blog by Amanda Somerville.


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Source:

michaelkiske.net

Finnish folk metal heroes Finntroll have announced their second headliner tour in support of their album "Nifelvind", to take place in Fall/Winter 2010. Support will come from Samael from Switzerland, Rotting Christ from Greece, Metsatöll from Estonia and Nothnegal from the Maledives. "That's what we call Pan-European!"

The tour dates:
26.11.2010 BE - Vosselaar, Biebob
27.11.2010 DE - Essen, Turock
28.11.2010 NL - Leuwaarden, Romein Popodium
29.11.2010 DE - Hamburg, Markthalle
30.11.2010 DE - Braunschweig, Meier Music Hall
01.12.2010 DE - Ludwigsburg, Rockfabrik
02.12.2010 DE - Berlin, K17
03.12.2010 DE - Leipzig, Hellraiser
04.12.2010 DE - Lichtenfels, Metal Meeting
05.12.2010 CZ - Zlin, Masters of Rock Cafe
06.12.2010 HU - Budapest, Wigwam
07.12.2010 SI - Ljubljana, Kino Siska
08.12.2010 IT - Milan, Generali Magazzini
09.12.2010 AT - Wien, Szene
10.12.2010 DE - Munich, Backstage
11.12.2010 AT - Kufstein, Kulturfabrik
12.12.2010 CH - Pratteln, Z7
13.12.2010 FR - Lyon, Ninkasi Kao
14.12.2010 ES - Barcelona, Salamandra
15.12.2010 ES - Madrid, Heineken
16.12.2010 FR - Toulouse, Phare
17.12.2010 FR - Limoges, CC John Lennon
18.12.2010 NL - Eindhoven, Eindhoven Metal Meeting
19.12.2010 DE - Frankfurt, Batschkapp

Read more ››

Source:	finntroll.net
Band profile:	Finntroll
Event:	Finntroll + Samael + Rotting Christ

The show of Israeli metal band Orphaned Land at Sonisphere Istanbul had to be cancelled due to the ongoing crisis between Turkey and Israel after the Gaza flotilla raid. The band has posted the following statement on the official website:

"Merhaba, shalom & salam to all our beloved fans & friends.

2 weeks ago, we were the happiest band on earth when we were announced to Sonisphere Istanbul, we all waited for this moment for so long.

Then, a political fucked up crisis started between our countries and a whole chaos started to go on and unfortunately still goes on till that moments.

After a few days of rumors we were sadly announced today that the security company who is responsible of the festival cannot guarantee our safety during the fest and therefore our show had to be delayed from this year?

You have to know that, we, Orphaned Land, we felt safe and we 100% wanted to come despite all, to have that show for the purpose of peace, friendship and brotherhood of our nations. The facts are that this is a big festival, with many people and many bands, and the security company didn't want to risk all of that just because of us. We couldn't agree with it, but we fully understand it and respect it. Yet, we and Purple productions, are very sad, it is such a strange feeling not to be able to play in Turkey, this is our second home!

Due to the situation that was created our show moved to Sonisphere Romania. We promise you all that we will make the maximum efforts to schedule new dates in Turkey very soon. We personally feel safe; we don't need any kind of security, surrounded by all of you makes us safe, but this is just us.

We wish to thank our amazing fans who wrote "Serefe" in our facebook fan page (there were hundreds of you!!) To all the people that opened support groups and even the ones that just expressed their opinion; you all are the greatest gift that a band could get. Please don't be sad about this cancellation, all delays are for the good, one day, politicians will learn and take an example from you and us, Inshallah.

Before we leave please remember this, our orphaned brothers - our countries flags may have different signs and colors but deep in our hearts shines the same flag - the flag of hope, friendship, brotherhood, don't ever forget it - it is our duty as disciples of the sacred oath.

Sherefe & mujuck to all of you,
ORPHANED LAND"

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Source:	orphaned-land.com
Band profile:	Orphaned Land
Event:	Sonisphere Festival

Swedish progressive metallers Evergrey, who are currently on tour through Europe, have cancelled their dates in in Spain (Llodio, A Coruña, Albacete, Madrid and Barcelona) and Portugal (Benavente) after their tour bus has been burglarized. The band's statement reads as follows:

"Due to a break-in in Evergrey's tourbus all gigs in Spain and Portugal are cancelled. Evergrey lost equipment and merchandise for a value BEYOND 35000 EUROS so it is impossible to continue? we pass Lyon on the way home and will use the equipment of the local support. MAYBE we can go home and get new equipment for the Holland shows and come back but this is still uncertain?

A list of ALL things stolen will be presented here together with the Police report.

More details on this soon?

To our Spanish and Portuguese fans we are extremely sorry but we have NO chance of making it with everything being stolen."

Read more ››

Source:	evergrey.net
Band profile:	Evergrey
Event:	Evergrey [CANCELLED]

German pagan metallers Equilibrium have officially announced the addition of drummer Tuval "Hati" Refaeli from Israel to their ranks:

Stated Hati: "I feel extremely lucky and honoured to play with Equilibrium. It's a dream come true for me and a great opportunity. And I would like to thank Arafel's violinist] Nasha Nocturna for connecting us!"

Commented mainman René Berthiaume: "When we made officially announced being on the hunt for a drummer, we received lots of applications of really good drummers every day. We feel honoured also renowned artists were among them. Eventually we chose this guy from Israel. Hati has the ambition and the talent to kick major ass with us!"

For a showcase of Hati's skills, who has also been part of the Israeli bands Viscera Trail and Tamerlane, click here.

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Source:	nuclearblast.de
Band profile:	Equilibrium

German black metallers Geïst have been threatened by copyright claims over their name by a German rock band also called Geist. In order to avoid lawsuits and fines the band decided to drop the first and last letter and renamed into Eïs. The band's statement reads as follows:

"We, The Artists Formerly Known As GEÏST, have decided to re-name our band into EÏS. This decision is official from now on. EÏS will withdraw into its cavern for an uncertain time. What is certain is that we will be back one day this year, and even more certain: more resolute than ever.

If you wish to express your lack of comprehension for this decision, please directly send your lovely messages to an alternative rock band called GEIST from Cologne, founded in 2000 (www.myspace.com/geistrock), which have forced us to re-name our band by threatening us with law suits and fines. Certainly you will have heard of these guys. *cough cough!*

Well, seems you, our loyal listeners and fans, have made us really big and successful. At least too successful for the Cologne rock star boys to stand our overwhelming existence as GEÏST. Thank you very much - and expect our return later."

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Source:	blogs.myspace.com
Band profile:	Eïs

Only two weeks after the departure of their previous singer Helge Stang and drummer Manuel di Camillo German pagan metallers Equilibrium have presented their new vocalist. His name is Robse, so far frontman of the pagan metal band Vrankenvorde:

On Myspace the band states:
"The new Equilibrium member goes by the name Robse! We have known him for several years and so it was a very logical decision for us that he will be the new singer of Equilibrium. The recordings are already in progress and with his awesome voice we have completely new possibilities for the new album! The mood in the band is fantastic and we can not wait to get him on the stage!"

Robse himself adds:
"I am proud and grateful to become a part of the Equilibrium family! René had asked me two years ago if I'd like to sing in another project of his. So we already had quite a good connection. But getting the opportunity to sing with his main band is just fantastic! The boys and the girl gave me such a warm welcome, I'm absolutely thrilled by whatever the future may bring!"

In the meanwhile the band had to cancel their appearances at the Mittelalter Rock Festival in Illingen and the Paganfest dates in Stuttgart and Tilburg. The explanation reads as follows:
"We regret that we cannot play at these concerts yet. As you surely have noticed, we also had to take care of a new drummer. Fortunately we have quickly found one. But as he comes from abroad, there are still some problems which do not allow him to enter the country as originally planned. The Paganfest dates in Bochum, Antwerp and Amsterdam however are not affected, we will play those! Thank you for your understanding!"

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Source:	myspace.com
Band profile:	Equilibrium

Anaal Nathrakh's multi-instrumentalist Mick Kenney has teamed up with Brandan Schieppati of Bleeding Through to form Sorrows, a band playing "a mixture of hardcore crustpunk, black metal, electronic beats and super heavy riffage", as Kenney puts it himself. Drum support will come from Trevor Friedrich of Combichrist. The band is currently seeking for a label to release their already recorded debut album. Sound samples can be listened to on the official Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/sorrows

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Source:	myspace.com
Band profile:	Anaal Nathrakh

Norwegian black metal legends Mayhem have cancelled their previously announced North American "Deconsecration Pt. II" tour, which was scheduled to kick off on April 7 in Washington D.C. and which was supposed to feature Tombs, Ludicra and Krallice as support bands. The band has issued the following statement:

"Despite all attempt to save the USA/CANADA tour we are now forced to cancel it due to the financial situation. We are very sorry for all those who expected to see Mayhem live, we hope the situation will be better next time. We will work hard on getting back over there as soon as possible."

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Source:	blogs.myspace.com
Band profile:	Mayhem
Event:	Mayhem: Deconsecration Pt. II Tour [CANCELLED]

German pagan metallers Equilibrium have parted ways with vocalist Helge Stang and drummer Manuel Di Camillo. This has been reported by the organizers of Winterfire Festival at which Equilibrium were supposed to perfom next weekend (13th February 2010). So far the band itself has only published the following statement on its official Myspace site:

"We regret to inform you that we have to cancel our appearance at Winterfire Festival due to serious restructuring within the band. We regret this deeply and hope for your understanding. Of course we will inform you as soon as possible about the future of Equilibrium."

UPDATED on 13.02.2010:

By now the band has confirmed the split officially. The statement on the band's Myspace reads as follows:

"Unfortunately we have to tell you that Helge, Manu and Equilibrium go their separate ways for personal reasons. We parted on amicable terms and we wish them all the best for their future. We really had an amazing time with them on stage!
Certainly, this split is not going to impact the music of Equilibrium which means the songs will still be composed by René Berthiaume. At the moment, we are recording our third album at Helion Studios in Munich which will be released in June. And we can already give away that this album will contain plenty of bombast, harshness, epic poetry, emotions, curious musical surprises and much more!
Every announced concert is going to take place! (Except for the Winterfire-Festival) Of course you will be informed instantly, as soon as we've got any news about new Equilibrium band members."

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Source:	burningstage.net
Band profile:	Equilibrium
Event:	Winterfire Festival

Norwegian black'n'rollers Vreid have announced the departure of guitarist Ese and his replacement by Stian "Strom" Bakketeig, who also performs in Cor Scorpii and Mistur and was - alongside with the three remaining members of Vreid - a part of Windir until the death of frontman Terje "Valfar" Bakken in 2004. The statement of the band reads as follows:

"In late December we got the news from Ese that he could not continue to play with Vreid. This was of course very sad news, as Ese has been a member of Vreid since the beginning in 2004. We respect his decision, and want to thank him for all his great work during the 5 years, 4 album and almost 200 shows for the Vreid brigade.

After the news from Ese, we immediately had a band meeting to look into the situation. 2009 was a demanding and hard working year for Vreid, and it doesn't seem as 2010 will be in any different. We will do a lot of shows, and we will spend a lot of time recording our 5th album. This meant that we had to start looking for a new guitarist.
Our first choice was a choice without discussions. We asked Stian Bakketeig aka Strom to join us. To our delight he was ready for the task, and is now officially the new Vreid guitarist. We have known Strom since the early 1990's, and he joined our previous band Ulcus back in 1996, later on we played with him for several years in Windir. Strom was our number 1 choice as he is the best guitar player we know, the social connection is perfect, and we have a strong history together.

We will use the first 2 months of 2010 working on new material and rehearsing our live set with Strom. We have made a list of songs that we will rehearse to play live. This list consist of songs we haven't played in a long while an also songs we have never played live before. We will do our first live shows with Strom in March, and give you more info about this soon."

The entire press release with statements by Ese and Strom can be found here.

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Source:	blogs.myspace.com
Band profile:	Vreid

German forest dwellers Finsterforst have parted ways with their vocalist Marco Schomas. They have also announced the search for a replacement for the vacant position. The band's announcement reads as follows:

"Wanted: new Singer
After five successful and definitely funny years we unfortunately have to announce that Finsterforst and Marco will go seperate ways from now on. The band would like to express their gratitude for all his dedication. Thank you Marco!!

The vacant lead singer's job of course has to be filled, so Finsterforst search for a new screaming hobgoblin. If you are interested, please send your detailed application to our contact. You should include:

current photo
short description which answers the following questions: Who, Where from, How old, musical experience: singing and, if any, instrumental!
recordings, if you have"

If you are interested in the position, send your application to kontakt@finsterforst.de.

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Source:	finsterforst.de
Band profile:	Finsterforst

German black metal flagship Endstille have parted ways with vocalist and founding member Iblis. After having performed at this year Wacken Open Air with Mannevond of Koldbrann on vocals already the band has now officially confirmed the split:

"Iblis is no longer a member of Endstille.
No comments on any of the reasons why.
All upcoming shows will continue as sheduled and will be played with Mannevond on vocals.
Fuck Hell!!!"

Whether Mannevond will be Iblis' permanent replacement or whether the band will follow its often stated announcement to split up if one of the members leaves the band remains to be seen.

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Source:	blogs.myspace.com
Band profile:	Endstille

After Wacken Rocks Brazil, the Brazilian spin-off of the famed Wacken Open Air in Germany had to be defered indefinitely, now also the two German spin-offs Wacken Rocks Seaside in Aurich, East Frisia and Wacken Rocks South in Rieden, Bavaria, which were supposed to take place in two weeks from now, had to be postponed to the end of August. According to the organizers this is due to the high ticket sales and the bureaucratic and infrastructural problems that go along with this. The entire statement reads as follows:

"Due to the strong demand for tickets, the local authorities of Aurich have changed the legal requirements on short notice. As a result, both the festival ground and the camping area cannot be used as planned. For the reorganisation that has now become necessary, additional areas are needed - but are not available, since they are in agricultural use during May.

For this reason, the organisers are forced to postpone the Wacken Rocks Seaside in Aurich from May 21st to 23rd to August 28th to 30th.

As a result, Wacken Rocks South in Kreuth/Rieden has also to be postponed to August 27th to 29th, since all artists were booked to appear at both events.

We kindly ask for your understanding and will make up for it by getting additional high class acts and surprises on the bill. For starters, Doro has confirmed her participation!

Of course, all tickets remain valid!"

Alternatively tickets can also be returned at the agencies where they have been purchased.

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Source:	wacken.com
Event:	Wacken Rocks Seaside

Finnish metal outfit Norther has announced Aleksi Sihvonen (Medicated, ex-Imperanon) as replacement for ex-vocalist Petri Lindroos, who had left the band recently due to his commitments to Ensiferum. Norther states:

"After a hard search for a new vocalist we are honoured to announce Aleksi Sihvonen as our new lead singer. He's a creative and diverse vocalist with loads of experience. He will surely add new input to the band with his talent and variable singing styles, and most importantly: his personality fits to the band perfectly.

Besides this we have recruited, our old friend, Daniel Freyberg Naildown] as live guitarist to complete our team. We also want to thank all of you worldwide who applied for the new vocalist spot!

We hereby welcome our great new guys, Aleksi and Daniel, to the band and we will present you the fresh Norther line-up live soon!"

Aleksi Sihvonen adds:
"Sometimes life can take you to places you wouldn't even imagine going to. So, here I am and I'm very grateful and humbly honoured to be part of the Norther family.

I feel I've met the band I've always wanted to be in. Like every musician I want to make the very effort to improve my skills as much as possible and push myself to the limits and in Norther I feel that I'm able to use my voice as full and diverse as I've always wanted to.
I'm very excited on working on new material, practicing and playing shows everywhere possible!! See you all soon!!"

A version of the song "Frozen Angel" (taken from Norther's current album "N") featuring Aleksi's vocals can be downloaded at this location.

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Source:	www2.centurymedia.com
Band profile:	Norther