Mary Ouellette, SheWillShootYou.com After revealing recently that Avenged Sevenfold were about six songs into a writing their upcoming album. M. Shadows has now given a big hint as to what direction the band will be taking on the disc. He also has laid out a timetable for the album’s release. He explains to Metal Hammer that the new disc will not sound very much like ‘Carry On,’ the band’s recent release for the video game ‘Call of Duty: Black Ops II.’ ”The new album has a lot more of a [Black] Sabbath / [Led] Zeppelin feel to it than ‘Carry On’,” says Shadows. “There’s definitely more Sabbath in what we’re writing, and we’re proud of ‘Carry On,’ but this album is going to be on a whole new level.” As to when the new album will be released, Shadows revealed, “We’re halfway through [writing the new album]. We’re shooting for late January-early February [to head into the studio] and to have the album out in the Summer. I’m pretty sure, with what I’ve been told already, we’re looking to go overseas first, so you guys will be seeing it before everyone else!” As for the band appearing as characters in the closing credits of the ‘Call of Duty: Black Ops II’ video game, Shadows remarks, “It’s a trip! It’s crazy! We had to do all this motion-capture and play a gig to nobody, but we didn’t get to see anything until the game came out. You saw it when I saw it!” [button href=”http://loudwire.com/avenged-sevenfold-perform-carry-on-as-characters-in-call-of-duty-black-ops-ii/” title=”Next: Watch Avenged Sevenfold in ‘Call of Duty: Black Ops II” align=”center”]
Warner Bros. / EA Linkin Park recently teamed with the EA video game ‘Medal of Honor Warfighter’ to showcase their latest single, ‘Castle of Glass,’ and the band is now teaming with Loudwire to offer fans the chance to win a great prize package based around the game and the band’s latest album. The prize package includes a copy of ‘Medal of Honor Warfighter’ (in either PlayStation or Xbox format), Linkin Park’s current CD, ‘Living Things,’ a Linkin Park t-shirt and a ‘Medal of Honor’ / Linkin Park digital badge. Linkin Park are off to a solid start with their ‘Living Things’ album. ‘Burn It Down’ was a major hit over the summer, and the band have followed with ‘Lost in the Echo,’ while both ‘Powerless’ and ‘Castle of Glass’ have received lots of buzz, as well. You can watch the ‘Castle of Glass’ video below. The Linkin Park ‘Living Things’ album is currently available in stores and online . So is ‘Medal of Honor Warfighter,’ which can be purchased here . And be sure to hit “like” here on Facebook in order to unlock exciting exclusive ‘Medal of Honor Warfighter’ game content, including tips and tricks from Linkin Park. To enter to win the Linkin Park ‘Medal of Honor Warfighter’ prize package, follow @loudwire and @linkinpark on Twitter and ReTweet this announcement of the giveway. Be sure to get in on the contest now, as it ends Nov. 19. Watch Linkin Park’s ‘Castle of Glass’ Video [button href=”http://loudwire.com/linkin-park-in-the-end-top-21st-century-hard-rock-songs/” title=”Next: Linkin Park – Top 21st Century Hard Rock Songs” align=”center”]
Facebook: Pantera – Pantera / Hellyeah drummer Vinnie Paul has seemingly put an end to the questions of whether or not a Pantera reunion with Zakk Wylde on guitar may happen. Read what he said here. [ Loudwire ] – Avenged Sevenfold will be a part of ‘Call of Duty: Black Ops II.’ At a certain point in the game, you can see an animated version of the band perform ‘Carry On.’ Watch here: [ Loudwire ] – Three Days Grace and Shinedown have announced a co-headlining U.S. arena tour featuring support from P.O.D. [ Loudwire ] – Bullet For My Valentine have released a new music video for ‘Temper Temper.’ Check it out here. [ Loudwire ] – In Dave Navarro doing awesome things news, the Jane’s Addiction musician recently sent a Canadian musician a new guitar after his was stolen. [ Loudwire ] – Royal Thunder join Monster Magnet for U.S. East Coast tour dates. [ Rock Music Report ] – Rockers salute military heroes via Twitter on Veteran’s Day. [ Ultimate Classic Rock ] – Paul McCartney and wife involved in near-disastrous helicopter incident. [ Ultimate Classic Rock ] – Sigur Ros announce 2013 North American tour, prep for Madison Square Garden. [ Diffuser.fm ] – What’s your favorite Metallica song from ‘Kill ‘Em All’? Vote for your top track here. [ Ultimate Metallica ]
Mary Ouellette, SheWillShootYou.com Video game fans have been anxiously awaiting the release of ‘Call of Duty: Black Ops II,’ which hits shelves tomorrow (Nov. 13). It was previously announced that Avenged Sevenfold ‘s song ‘ Carry On ‘ would be part of the game’s soundtrack, but now we’ve learned the band makes an appearance in the game, as well. If you stick around until the end of the credits, a virtual A7X performs ‘Carry On.’ In addition to the band, characters from the game join in as well. A nervous Raul Menendez plays guitar, and Sergeant Frank Woods is behind the drum kit. This is not Avenged Sevenfold’s first association with the ‘Call of Duty’ games. 2011′s ‘Call of the Dead’ expansion pack included their song ‘Not Ready to Die.’ The musical score for ‘Call of Duty: Black Ops II’ was created by Nine Inch Nails mastermind Trent Reznor . In addition to coming with the physical edition of the game, the 40 plus song soundtrack will also get a separate release tomorrow (Nov. 13). The ‘Call of Duty’ games are massively popular. The first ‘Call of Duty: Black Ops’ game was the largest ever entertainment launch, bringing in a staggering $650 million within five days of its release. That record was broken by ‘Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III.’ Could ‘Black Ops II’ be the biggest seller yet? We’ll find out beginning tomorrow. Watch Avenged Sevenfold – ‘Carry On’ Video (NSFW Language)
Mary Ouellette, SheWillShootYou.com There’s no doubt that Shinedown ‘s Brent Smith is a prolific writer, but it appears as though he and his hard-working band have gotten ahead of the game for their next album. Despite releasing ‘Amaryllis’ earlier this year, Smith reveals to NME that the band has already recorded a new album. The singer told the Brit-mag in a video interview , “I’ve thought about new material. It’s funny because … and you’re actually the very first person I’ll tell this too … We’ve actually, we have another record of material. It’s actually recorded.” Speaking about the new music, Smith explained, “It’s still very massive. It has a very epic feel to it, but the tempos are a little slower and the subject matter is a little different. I would say it’s actually a bit darker — a little bit more mischievous.” While the next album is ready, there’s still plenty of life in ‘ Amaryllis ,’ as the group is taking the opportunity to promote it in other parts of the world. The singer revealed, “This was the first true international record we received, and I say received because it really is an honor and it’s a gift and a privilege to get an opportunity from your record label to be released internationally, because not every band or every artist gets that opportunity.” The ‘Amaryllis’ album has already spawned the hit singles ‘ Bully ,’ ‘ Unity ‘ and ‘ Enemies .’ [button href=”http://loudwire.com/shinedown-groove-on-new-unity-remixes/” title=”Next: Shinedown Groove on ‘Unity’ Remixes” align=”center”]
Prosthetic Sad news for Landmine Marathon fans: The band’s phenomenally brutal and unnerving vocalist Grace Perry has chosen to depart from the band. After eight years with Phoenix, Ariz., death metal act, Grace Perry has called it quits so she can focus on ‘non-musical endeavors.’ The news is surprising to say the least, as Perry was only one of two original members left in the band, the other being bassist Matt Martinez. Landmine Marathon have also been at the top of their game since the 2011 release of ‘Gallows,’ which featured some of the band’s nastiest songwriting yet, along with unforgettable aggression in the voice of Grace Perry, which we spotlit in our Brutal Female Metal Vocalists feature. An official press release broke the news earlier today (Oct. 25), adding an official statement from the band: This summer, Grace decided to leave the band to pursue non-musical endeavors. We are grateful for all of her contributions to LANDMINE MARATHON and wish her nothing but future successes. Krysta Martinez (pictured above) of the band Transient has been scouted to take Perry’s spot on vocals. The new Landmine singer definitely has a set of brutal pipes, which has already been demonstrated in an alternate edition of the Landmine Marathon song ‘Dead Horses,’ which Krysta has lent her voice to. Krysta Martinez has issued her own statement, in which she expresses her excitement while still praising the talents of Grace Perry. I’m stoked to be creating music with Landmine Marathon and look forward to hitting the road with them in coming months. Grace is an amazing vocalist, and filling her shoes is a great challenge. Things have been incredibly enjoyable so far and the best is surely yet to come. Check out both versions of ‘Dead Horses’ below and decide for yourself if Krysta Martinez can meet Landmine Marathon’s quota of sonic violence. Landmine Marathon, ‘Dead Horses’ (Original Recording) Landmine Marathon, ‘Dead Horses’ (Krysta Martinez Version)