System Of A Down will be headlining next year’s Sick New World festival in Las Vegas, NV. Frontman Serj Tankian confirmed the news to fan during a recent signing. This news comes after the band previously teased the event.
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Trivium’s Paolo Gregoletto On Parting Ways With Alex Bent: “I Feel Like We Ended On Great Terms”
During a recent interview with 107.7 The Bone, Trivium bassist Paolo Gregoletto commented on the recent departure of drummer Alex Bent. According to him, everything “ended on great terms.”
Gregoletto said the following:
“We’ve had a great nine years together. I feel like it’s kind of a weird thing because, obviously, being in a band together, but I feel like because we’ve all had families and stuff, there’s a tighter connection there that even just what people see. So I think it’s one of those things, we all were kind of sad, but at the same time, we said, ‘Alex, we want you to kind of make the statement. You kind of lead how you’d like to handle all this stuff.’ And I didn’t wanna put words in his mouth or say whatever. He made the statement. I feel like we ended on great terms. And that’s really kind of it. I mean, there’s no juicier CRADLE OF FILTH [-style] drama [with former hired musicians sharing their grievances online]. And, again, it’s one of those things where we wanted him to make a statement.
In the past we’ve always been very, like — we don’t really like to get into any behind-the-scenes stuff with that. And, of course, we’ve had changes before, but we felt like in this instance, rather than just saying ‘we’re parting’ or whatever, we [told Alex], like, ‘Well, you’ve been around for so long, our fans would wanna hear from you.’ And so that made it more important to us to be, like, ‘Okay, you are gonna say whatever you’d like to say.’ We didn’t [tell Alex], ‘You can’t say this or that.’ And then just give it 24 hours. And then as we hit the stage [at the Aftershock festival] today, be, like, ‘Okay, this is the guy playing with us for today, for the tour,’ and then that’s kind of it.”
He also said the following about recruiting fill-in drummer Greyson Nekrutman (Sepultura):
“It’s been a crazy whirlwind. He was on a tour in Canada, a drum-clinic tour. And he said, ‘Yeah, I’ll do it.’ And he got home. He spent two 12-hour days, just in there, working on it, and then we flew him down. We jammed for two days, flew out here, and we’re gonna go jam in our little room here in a bit. But everything’s good. I feel like there’s good vibes. Of course, it’s one chapter ending, but I feel like the music that we made [with Alex] for the last nine years was great. And especially for the EP [‘Struck Dead’] coming [in late October], if that’s kind of the end cap on this era of TRIVIUM [with Alex], I’m very happy with everything we did.”
He also added the following about the band’s current plans:
“We’re gonna be out, I think, in Europe next summer. The first couple months [of 2026] is gonna be kind of, like, of course, [working on the next full-length] record and stuff. And then we’re gonna probably take a little bit of time and maybe jam with some people, just kind of see what we’re feeling for the next step.
This is still kind of new, so we’re not totally sure [what we’re gonna do about a new drummer], but we’ve never really taken a moment to kind of just step back. Because Greyson is incredible, but he is with SEPULTURA. And they have commitments, and we’re very lucky that there’s no clashes at the moment. He can get us through the end of the year, and [we] feel like the songs are in good hands. But … once we get off the road, once we get to holidays, everyone’s got clear heads — we know a lot of great people, and we don’t know if there’s someone that might be interested in that. So we’re, like, well, let’s just take a moment. And next year we’ll get into that. And then, of course, the record is gonna be the big thing for us. And, of course, you know what follows that — more touring, coming back around.”
[via Blabbermouth]
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Original Venom Members Mantas & Abaddon Explain Their Decision To Reunite In Celebration Of The 45th Anniversary Of “Welcome To Hell”
As previously reported, original Venom members Jeff “Mantas” Dunn and Anthony “Abaddon” Bray will be reuniting to celebrate the 45th anniversary of “Welcome To Hell” during the Keep It True festival in Lauda-Königshofen, Germany on April 24. Now, during a recent interview with The Metal Voice, the duo further explained their decision.
Mantas said the following:
“I’m just gonna speak the truth, the absolute truth. I’m the founder member [of VENOM]. If there’s a co-founder, it’s Abaddon. Cronos was the last one to join. Everyone knows that. I wrote all the early material, blah, blah, blah. And at this very moment in time, the way I look at it is there isn’t a VENOM out there. There’s bands out there who are playing VENOM material. And that’s the honest way that I look at it.”
“Myself and Abaddon, we said, ‘Look, why don’t we just do something to celebrate this fucking band?’ And that’s all we’re doing. It’s a celebration of ‘Welcome To Hell’, 45 years of that album. And this stupid fucking band has missed every major anniversary in its history. We’ve never celebrated an anniversary of this band. So I spoke to the guys at Keep It True, Oliver Weinsheimer in particular, the owner of the festival. And I said, ‘Right, here’s an idea. Why don’t we get some special guests, people who have been influenced by the band? All that kind of thing.’ And he said, ‘Great. Let’s do it.’ So that’s how it all came about. And now we’re getting offers from other places to do the same thing. So, yeah, if nobody else will do it, we’re gonna go out and celebrate this band.”
He continued when asked about a band name:
“As far as I’m concerned, there’s no fucking name to it. There’s Abaddon’s VENOM logo, which is his. And underneath it, it says, ‘Mantas and Abaddon.’ And then special guests. And that’s what we’re doing.”
He also added:
“I know it’s not gonna be the PANTERA thing, and I know it’s not a fucking KISS reunion or anything like that, but this band has had, for whatever reason, and it still amazes me to this day, but this band has had so much influence on the metal scene from day one, especially when that album [‘Welcome To Hell’] came out. And then [VENOM’s second album] ‘Black Metal’ — black metal, as a genre, is still alive and kicking today. Extreme metal is around, people say, because of us.”
He also commented on the fan response:
“Every comment I’ve seen so far, 90 percent has been really, really positive. Like, ‘Great. Go for it, guys,’ all this kind of stuff. Then you get the one, ‘Oh, no Cronos, no VENOM.’ It’s, like, okay, listen to me right now. You can you imagine the most toxic relationship and the most stressful relationship you’ve ever had in your fucking life, and now go back and invite it back in. And that’s what we tried to do.
If everybody knew the real reason I left in 1986, you wouldn’t even fucking look at that guy again. All these people who say that about Cronos and stuff like that, yes, he was a part of the band. I appreciate that. He didn’t write all the fucking early material. He didn’t found the band. He was the last person to join.
If you were having problems with your wife and you put it on the fucking Internet, I would never go, ‘Oh, yeah, well, I know what’s going on,’ because you don’t — you don’t know the personalities of the people involved in it. All you see from the outside is a band. I mean, I love KISS. I love JUDAS PRIEST. Now there’s fucking problems with K.K. [Downing] and all the rest of fucking PRIEST. There’s problems with Ace [Frehley] and fucking Gene [Simmons] and Paul [Stanley] and Peter [Criss], but we don’t know what’s really gone on. And it’s, like, yeah, I tell you what, get back in your mom’s basement. Eat your fucking microwave meal and play your video games. This is ridiculous to comment on people’s careers. And that’s the way I feel about it. And all I’m saying is that myself and Abaddon, as the two original members of VENOM, we’re gonna go out and we’re gonna celebrate this band and its music. And that’s it. Nothing more, nothing less.”
Abaddon chimed in as well:
“My take on that is very straightforward. If you’ve got three bands using the word VENOM to sell the music… Originally, VENOM were a three-piece. Unless you’ve got two members of that three-piece, you can’t call it VENOM because it’s Cronos and some other blokes, or it’s Dolan and some other blokes. If you’ve got me and Jeff, you’ve got two-thirds of the original fucking band. That’s as straightforward as you can get.”
[via Blabbermouth]
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Rush’s Geddy Lee And Alex Lifeson On Upcoming Reunion Tour: “It Feels Right”
During an event at the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame’s Foster Theater in Cleveland, OH, Rush’s Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson discussed their decision to reunite for a 2026 tour. According to them, “it feels right” to return to the road.
Lifeson said the following:
“When we finished the [‘R40’] tour [in 2015], it was difficult for Neil, and he’d had enough by that point. I think Ged and I still had gas in the tank and we still wanted to continue working. But it was what it was, and the further I got away from it, the more I thought, ‘It’s okay. We had 40 years. I’m tired of hanging around a hotel, being away from family and all of that stuff.’ And I felt that way for most of the last 10 years, really. I thought we had a great legacy, and it’s okay. Then this guy [Lee] came along and had some big ideas. And we talked and we started playing. And then I realized that I love it so much — I love playing so much. And I’ve continued, over these last years, doing other projects and still playing a lot. But when we sat down and started playing some of the RUSH stuff and I realized how hard it was to play these songs… When you do it every day for 40 years, it’s not a big deal, really — you’re used to it — but when you’re away from it and you are a little more objective about the intense complexity of the music and the feel and the nuances and all the things that go into making a RUSH song and performance, to be challenged with that again was really, really exciting. And the more we started rehearsing and playing, the more I just fell in love with the idea of playing again.”
Lee continued:
“It was a very difficult decision on many levels, first of all, because what it entails in terms of work, but also what had transpired. Losing a member like Neil, it was devastating and it was a very sad time, and it took time for us to even contemplate it. I mean, this is a relatively recent decision. And I would say it was kind of out of the question for the longest time because of those circumstances. And how do you replace someone who’s irreplaceable? So, we would joke about it sometimes, and Al was doing other things, I was writing books and something happened in the last couple of years that brought us back to jamming in the studio. He would come over, drink my coffee, hang around, we would jam and we would laugh. And then one day — I don’t know why — we started playing some RUSH songs for fun. And God, we were laughing so hard and we were enjoying it so much. And it was almost like playing those songs dispelled the dark clouds. It was not an easy decision to come to, and this is really the first time we’re talking about it out loud in front of other people. So, yeah, it feels right, and we’re gonna do it.”
He also commented on recruiting drummer Anika Nilles:
“Well, our idea was not to try to be RUSH 2.0, just to pay homage to our music, pay homage to our lost brother and represent the songs and celebrate the songs.
I haven’t talked about this before, but… So, my bass tech Skully [John McIntosh] was working with Jeff Beck. He was on tour with him for a few years. And on the last tour he was playing with this drummer named Anika Nilles — an incredible drummer. And he would come home, he would rave about her, what a brilliant player she was and great person, and blah, blah, blah. So I kind of looked her up. And she’s all over YouTube. She’s fairly well known in her own world of music. And then we started talking about playing again. I said to Al, I said, ‘Check her out. Maybe that’s an interesting way to go.’ And so one thing led to another, and when we made the decision we wanted to see if it would work, what’s it like to play with another drummer — we’d had that experience, of course, at the Taylor Hawkins tributes [in September 2022]. So we know how difficult it is — no matter who the drummer is, they all have their own perception of what it’s like to play a RUSH song, and they may not line up with the way we play RUSH songs. So whoever we were going to choose was going to be difficult and there’s going to be like a translation. And so we very secretly brought Anika to Canada. And it wasn’t an audition, ’cause at that point we weren’t really sure that we were going to tour. It was all an experiment. Anyway, I’m very happy to say that she is fantastic to play with. And we’ve had now a number of sessions with her and we are going to go on the road with her. I think she’s a remarkable story. And she’s much younger than us… And I like that, that she came to RUSH music without any preconceptions. It also made it very difficult, ’cause we had to explain nuances and work on subtleties, and she had to really try to get into Neil’s headspace and his feel. A lot of drummers can play Neil’s drum fills, but to combine that with the feel of those songs, so that it feels the way you guys wanna hear those songs, that’s work — that requires work. And so she’s winning.”
He also revealed what fans can expect from the shows:
“I don’t think we can do a three-hour show the way we did when we were in our younger years, but we’re certainly gonna play over two hours. And we’ll get a lot of songs in, for sure.”
Lee went on to say that “it’s not an accident” that the tour is kicking off at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles, CA where Rush ended their “R40” tour:
“It’ll be, I think, quite an emotional moment. And I have to say also a thank you to [Neil’s widow] Carrie Nuttall and [daughter] Olivia Peart who have been very supportive and are supporting us for this tour, and we really appreciate that, and that makes things better. And we also plan to pay tribute to Neil at least a couple of times during the show in our own way. And that’ll happen every night, we’ll pay tribute to him.
After Neil passed, COVID hit and we never really were able to do any kind of tribute to him — not a tribute concert. And so this is one way that we pay homage to the music and the lyrics and the incredible drumming of our pal and partner, and at the same time celebrate the music that [the fans] have thankfully shown up for, for all these years. And we’ll just endeavor to do our best to make [the fans] happy.”
[via Blabbermouth]
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Ripped To Shreds Blast Master For Performing At A Festival With “Neo-Nazi” Bands
Ripped To Shreds have taken to social media to blast Master for performing alongside “neo-Nazi” acts at the recent Metal Threat festival in Chicago, IL. That event featured multiple controversial acts including Arghoslent, Inquisition, etc. Ripped To Shreds said the following about Master after cancelling their October 10 show in Berkeley, CA:
“refusing to play with a neonazi band like arghoslent that glorifies the black slave trade is the lowest possible bar and master still failed it, so we’re withdrawing from friday’s show at @924gilmanstreet support to @bitterendbooking for doing the right thing and canceling the show. we’re still leaving heavy talent, but i would like to clarify that heavy talent only reps sinister, the sinister and master tour was booked as a package, and master booked their show with metal threat directly through paul dunski and not through heavy talent”
Vocalist/guitarist Andrew Lee also shared a video focusing on the problem of white supremacy in the metal scene:
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Look What I Did Celebrate 20th Anniversary Of “Minuteman For The Moment” With New Video For “Cupid Full Of Eros”
Look What I Did are celebrating the 20th anniversary of “Minuteman For The Moment” with a new video for “Cupid Full Of Eros.” You can check that out below:
The band commented:
“We wanted to celebrate 20 years of ‘Minuteman for the Moment‘ with a video that captures the chaos, the energy, and the history of our fans and performances. This video pulls from decades of live footage — a tribute not just to the album, but to everyone who’s been along for the ride.”
In other news, the group are also working on a new album titled “Post Everything” That effort will feature bassist Evan Brewer (Fallujah, etc.) and guitarist Loren Turner (ex-Foxy Shazam). The band commented on the new record as well:
”’Post Everything‘ rejects conventional genre boundaries entirely, instead creating new, original music drawn from the complete palette of all works of art and music that have come before it. This ambitious vision seeks to focus purely on artistic innovation, blending influences into a modern formula that has no limits, producing a sound that is entirely forward-looking and uncompromised.”
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Slaughter To Prevail Vocalist Alex Terrible’s Mask Business Suffered “Very Heavy Losses” Following Building Collapse
Slaughter To Prevail’s Alex Terrible has further commented on the collapse of the building he used to manufacture his “Kid Of Darkness” masks in Russia. The frontman, who recently secured a new space for the business, suffered “very heavy losses” due to the incident.
Terrible said the following:
“Dear fans,
Right now we need your support more than ever. As you may know, our old building collapsed (we still haven’t been told the official reason), but fortunately, none of us were hurt. We didn’t have insurance, which is very rarely practiced in Russia. Because of this, we suffered very heavy losses.
At the moment, we’ve thrown all our energy and resources into repening our business from scratch in a new building. We’ve purchased everything we need and prepared it for work. We’re really looking forward to your orders and are working on fulfilling past ones, which we will send out very soon. We count on your support and, as always, your patience.
We put our hearts into making every mask of the highest quality. This is all handmade — casting, painting, assembly, and more. Handmade work like this is usually very expensive on the market. But we sell our masks at super low prices, almost at cost. And we are very happy that you continue to buy them. We want to see lots of masks at the Slaughter to Prevail concert!
However, we are forced to raise our prices because the U.S. has introduced a tax on importing goods from Russia. Still, we will do everything possible to keep this tax as low as we can (we’re already in talks with accountants and the logistics company).
We are really looking forward to your orders, guys! This is not just a mask. This is already a cult!”
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We Came As Romans Announce February 2026 Australian Tour With Caskets And Headwreck
We Came As Romans have announced an Australian tour with Caskets and Headwreck. Here’s the dates:
02/06 Brisbane, AUS – The Tivoli
02/07 Sydney, AUS – Metro Theatre
02/08 Newcastle, AUS – King St. Bandroom
02/11 Perth, AUS – Magnet House
02/12 Adelaide, AUS – The Gov
02/14 Melbourne, AUS – Riviera Beach Club
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Guns N’ Roses, Tool, System Of A Down, Etc. Members Cover Spinal Tap Songs For Charity Compilation
A new 32-track Spinal Tap tribute album has been released to raise money for Teen Cancer America. The limited edition compilation is titled “The Majesty of Rock – An All-Star Spinal Tap Tribute Album to Benefit Young People with Cancer” and it can be purchased HERE. Among those who participated were Troy Sanders (Mastodon), Kelli Scott (Failure), Scott Reeder (ex-Kyuss), Rami Jaffee (Foo Fighters), Justin Chancellor (Tool), Abby Travis (The Go-Go’s), John Dolmayan (System Of A Down), Dizzy Reed (Guns N’ Roses), and more.
Abby Travis, Dizzy Reed, Failure, Foo Fighters, Guns N’ Roses, John Dolmayan, Justin Chancellor, Kelli Scott, Kyuss, Mastodon, Metal, Rami Jaffee, Rock, Scott Reeder, Spinal Tap, System Of A Down, The Go-Go’s, The Majesty of Rock – An All-Star Spinal Tap Tribute Album to Benefit Young People with Cancer, Tool, tribute album, Troy Sanders
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