Bostonian punk-rock duo The Dresden Dolls are coming to the UK this May. The tour is in support of their forthcoming album, ‘Yes, Virginiaí¢ä‰åŒ_’ out April 17th. FULL DATES 01/05 – Limelight (Belfast) 02/05 – Temple Bar Music Centre (Dublin) 04/05 – Exchange (Edinburgh) 05/05 – Cathouse (Glasgow) 06/05 – Academy 2 (Manchester) 07/05 – Leadmill (Sheffield) 09/05 – Academy (Birmingham) 10/05 – Junction (Cambridge) 11/05 – Concorde 2 (Brighton) 12/05 – Astoria (London) CLICK HERE TO BUY ONLINE

Triviums sick-ass single, ‘Dying In Your Arms’ is available now as a digital single featuring the b sides ‘Blinding Tears Will Break The Skies’ and ‘Washing Away Me In The Tides’. The bundle is available from I-Tunes, Napster, HMV & Virgin.

Trivium*cough* I mean Ember & The Infernos are playing tonight at the Islington Academy. Despite the tickets selling like carrot cakes, Trivium, I mean Ember, have held back a selection of tickets for the door. So if you missed them this tour here is your last chance. So get your skates on and head up to Islington Academy.

EIGHT OF rock’s hottest bands have contributed to a special re-recording of Metallica’s ‘Master Of Puppets’ in celebration of the twentieth anniversary of the classic album’s release. ‘Remastered’, which features exclusive recordings by Bullet For My Valentine, Trivium, Fightstar, Machine Head, Funeral For A Friend, Chimaira, Mastodon and Mendeed – will be given away free with Kerrang! issue 1102, which goes on sale April 5! “The ‘Remastered’ album is our way of saluting Metallica’s finest hour,” says K! editor Paul Brannigan. “‘Master Of Puppets’ is a flawless, inspirational and hugely influential album, and putting together this world exclusive tribute has been a labour of love for the K! team and all the bands involved. We promised Kerrang! readers a number of special treats over the course of our 25th birthday year, and we’re incredibly proud of ‘Re-Mastered’, which is the most exciting free CD in the magazine’s history. Put simply, EVERY Kerrang! reader needs to hear this album.” “It’s a real honour to be part of this,” says Trivium frontman Matt Heafy. “At first we thought everyone was going to go for ‘Master Of Puppets’, but we asked and got in there first! That album is one of the most inspirational ever made, and James Hetfield is one of the most inspirational players ever. He’s the main reason I perform and I play the way I do.” Heafy also reveals that the Floridian metallers had no reservations about tackling the album’s classic title track. “I don’t want to sound like a cocky asshole, but I wasn’t worried about choosing this song at all,” he says. “Hetfield used to hit the high notes pretty fucking high back in the day, so for me, the most fun was recording the vocals. I hope that when Metallica hear it they realise that they’re the main reason why we’re here today. If they do like it, it’ll be such a triumph for us!” Machine Head open the album with a scorching version of ‘Battery’. For frontman Robert Flynn, his love of Metallica goes back to 1984, when he was a 15-year-old fan hanging out with his favourite band at the Kabuki club in San Francisco’s Bay Area. “James Hetfield was my idol back when ‘Ride The Lightning’ was released and I got his autograph,” explains Flynn. “I wanted to buy him a beer but I was too young! When I first heard that album, I loved ‘Battery’ right off the bat,” he adds. “It was so ahead of its time. Even by today’s standards the technicality and the complexity of the musicianship is astounding. Playing ‘Battery’ ain’t easy man – it’s fucking hard!” You can check out Machine Head’s ‘Making of ‘Battery” video clip at www.machinehead1.com. If all that wasn’t enough, a very special guest has written the sleeve notes for the album – none other than Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich. “It’s awesome to think that some of you guys weren’t even born when we recorded ‘Master Of Puppets’!” laughs Ulrich. “When we started thinking about Kerrang! honouring ‘Master Of Puppets’ with this tribute album, and saw the artwork and the line-up of bands we realised it was a big deal. We’re honoured that it’s a record that’s perceived as a milestone and a record that’s been so inspiring to so many people, both fans and young bands like Trivium and Bullet For My Valentine. We’re as excited to hear this as you guys are!” Kerrang!’s ‘Remastered’ features the following tracklisting: Machine Head – ‘Battery’ Trivium ‘Master Of Puppets’ Mendeed ‘The Thing That Should Not Be’ Bullet For My Valentine ‘Welcome Home (Sanitarium)’ Chimaira ‘Disposable Heroes’ Fightstar ‘Leper Messiah’ Mastodon ‘Orion’ Funeral For A Friend ‘Damage, Inc.’. ‘Remastered’ is only available with Kerrang! issue 1102, on sale on April 8. Reserve your copy now to avoid disappointment! You’ll be able to buy copies individually from Kerrang.com from tomorrow (March 23).

Roadrunner Records is proud to announce the signing of legendary guitarist Zakk Wylde and his band, Black Label Society. Having sold over 1.4 million albums worldwide BLS is currently working with producer Michael Beinhorn (Soundgarden, Ozzy Osbourne, Red Hot Chili Peppers) on ‘Shot To Hell’ due out in June. “After spending a lifetime as Wylde Z. Coyote, I guess it was just a matter of time before I’d catch the Roadrunner,í¢ä‰åŒ jokes Wylde. BLS, who were just announced as the US Ozzfest second stage headliner, are planning a UK tour for early Autumn. Zakk is also writing and recording with Ozzy Osbourne for Ozzy’s new solo album. “Signing Zakk and Black Label Society is an honour,í¢ä‰åŒ stated Roadrunner Records Director of A&R Mike Gitter (Killswitch Engage, Cradle of Filth). í¢ä‰åñThe guy is genuine rock royalty whose talent is only matched by his vision. He is the real deal and his legacy as one of the greatest guitarists of all time has already been cemented.í¢ä‰åŒ Winner of Metal Hammer Magazine’s 2005 í¢ä‰åñRiff Lordí¢ä‰åŒ Golden God Award, Zakk is one of the worlds most respected guitarists. On January 17th Rob Zombie and Ozzy Osbourne inducted Zakk into Hollywood’s Guitar Center Rock Walk and he is featured in the PS2 game ‘Guitar Heroes’. Recently Zakk re-upped with Gibson Guitars who fully endorses him with a line of custom made Les Paul’s and this year Marshall Amplification will make a special limited edition í¢ä‰åñZakk Stackí¢ä‰åŒ. Zakk is the only artist aside from Jimi Hendrix to have a Marshall amplifier named after him. In 1986, at the age of 19, Zakk was plucked from a gas station in NJ to be the new guitarist for Ozzy Osbourne. He quickly asserted not only his guitar skills but also his songwriting prowess, having co-written some of Ozzy’s best-selling albums including ‘No Rest For The Wicked’, ‘No More Tears’, and ‘Ozzmosis’. Additionally, he has released seven albums with Black Label Society and the BLS DVD ‘Boozed, Broozed & Broken-Boned – Live with the Detroit Chapter’, which was certified Platinum in the USA. Zakk is also a budding actor who appeared in the 2001 movie ‘Rock Star’ with Mark Wahlberg and later this year, will star in the film, ‘Red Line’ directed by Billy Zane.

Roadrunner bands CHIMAIRA, MADBALL and TERROR are all set to return to the UK in May for the inaugural European ‘Sounds of the Underground’ tour. Closing the show each night, Cleveland metal behemoths CHIMAIRA are currently on the road in the US promoting their critically acclaimed eponymous album, which hit stores in early 2005. The album has been hailed as their best release to date and was tagged one of the Top 2 albums of the year in the 2005 Annual Poll by the readers of Metal Hammer magazine. Making up the numbers on the bill are Unearth, All That Remains and Manttis, with the organisers illustrating their commitment to supporting the best in metal and hardcore. Chimaira frontman Mark Hunter is excited to be returning to the UK again and commented, í¢ä‰åñHey! We are coming back to invade your countries once again! That’s right, we are proud to announce that we are going to be a part of the very first European ‘Sounds Of The Underground’ tour. Last summer we did this tour in the States and it was a fucking blast! Killer diverse bands, bringing intense metal and hardcore to the masses. The biggest complaint I heard was that it didn’t come to Europe and the UK. Well, complain no more and get in line now, ’cause you know these shows are going to sell the fuck out!í¢ä‰åŒ Meanwhile, Paul Conroy, ‘Sounds of the Underground’s co-founder is equally enthused, stating í¢ä‰åñWe’re very pleased to bring ‘Sounds of the Underground’ across the Atlantic, with some of the artists that played a such a huge part in launching this tour in North America last summer. Bands like Madball, Chimaira and Unearth represent the diversity within the underground heavy music scene, which reflects the spirit of our tour. We’re proud to have these bands representing our first international tour venture.í¢ä‰åŒ The UK dates line up as follows: Wed 10th May í¢ä‰åäóì Manchester Academy Thu 11th May í¢ä‰åäóì Glasgow QMU Fri 12th May í¢ä‰åäóì London Forum

To celebrate the release of their forthcoming album (The Second Wave), on Thursday March 23rd KHOMA are playing an intimate showcase for a very select audience at the London Barfly. Although this show isn’t available to the general public we have got our hands on 5 pairs of tickets for the show. To win a set of tickets for you and a friend all you have to do is tell 5 friends about KHOMA. It really couldn’t get any easier. CLICK HERE to enter.

Still Remains multi-textured rock madness is coming to the UK! To celebrate their tour, the band have put together a cheeky little ecard, so check it out! CLICK HERE to view the ecard. For a full list of dates CLICK HERE.

Check out Indigo Flows awesome review of the Dresden Dolls digital single “Sing” (OUT NOW) taken from their forthcoming album “Yes, Virginia”. It reads.. “The first single (download-only) from The Dresden Doll’s new album, Yes, Virginiaí¢ä‰åŒ_ (due 17th April) is Sing, an invitation to do just that and one that grows increasingly hard to refuse.” CLICK HERE to read the whole review Remember: The band aare on tour from the 1st May. CLICK HERE for full details

Although Cradle Of Filth are currently beavering away in the studio. Frontman Dani has taken some time out of their scheadule to post this studio report. Dear outsiders (by that i mean those who are not held within the confines of this accursed session!), Once again i bring you news from the entity commonly referred to as ‘mud’ but whom we know, cherish and love as Cradle Of Filth. Mud is not a bad analogy seeing as much of the time it has been raining, sleeting or snowing in this part of the country, aside from the few days i had off to visit home on Luna’s birthday (February the eighth), when miraculously the sun appeared as thought the home visit brought with it some form of clemency from the weather. Well, where to begin on this rampage through the recent annals of time? Firstly the British tour was a roaring success, most of the shows were sold out and those that weren’t were close to dammit anyway. All the gigs were great from the band’s perspective, i personally loved every minute of it and so, i believe, did Rosie, our new touring female keyboardist. We also managed to squeeze a home visit in there as well as a brief sojourn in the Scottish highlands just before our Glaswegian show. All in all a fantastic time was had by everyone involved, especially Edwina Filth our machinated stage puppet who proclaimed that she’d had an absolute ball. So many thanks go out to the ‘Crewdle Of Filth’ for all their exceptional work in making the tour run seemingly like clockwork and to the thousands of British fans that came to see us on our home soil. It was a fantastic end to the year and we hope to see you again at this year’s Download festival. Then it was a month in India for me at my Mum’s Portuguese villa in Goa, which was also pretty eventful, though obviously too much went on to really scrape the surface of it here… lets just say that between the bouts of eating (a different restaurant twice a day), drinking (two dollars a bottle of Vodka!) and beaching it (i practically became a professional frisbee thrower whilst i was out there), there were plenty of incidents to incur the wrath of Vishnu. Our hired car broke down in the jungle, we had a giant shrew pay nocturnal visits to our bedroom (amid other creatures), I narrowly avoided being arrested for punching through someone’s windscreen when they almost ran Luna over, I had to drug the neighbour’s dog with valium sandwiches to keep the bloody thing from howling all night, being the only western passengers on an twelve hour Arabian flight (Toni walked in on the male prayer lounge whilst they were praying… oops!), Luna going all grown up and having mocktails, pedicures and practising Tai Chi on the beach and a News Years Eve restaurant party that the family forced our way into and practically took over, culminating in me demanding they put Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller’ on because i wanted to boogie. Shish! Apart from that we had a very relaxing time indeed, though the travelling was that gruelling (especially when our duty-free was confiscated-no alcohol on Arabian Airlines), we practically needed another holiday just to get over it! Anyway, the matter at hand, the studio… Six weeks into the second bout finds us near completion aside from four or five songs worth of vocals, which is due to an illness that has been developing in me for the past month or two. Such was the seriousness of the ailment ( I couldn’t sing, so no difference there then!), that a referral was made to Rob’s homeopathic doctor back in the States which immediately proved the worst. I was, and still am, suffering from serious digestive allergies. Now I’m on the same insane amount of pills that Rob was and is still on, plus a yeast-free diet that eliminates all booze (noooo!!!!), sugar, vinegar and bread amongst other life-giving foodstuffs. What a fucking nightmare! Aside from untreated meat, the only thing I can actually eat for two months it seems is the packaging that other food comes in! Still, we soldier on as there are many other loose ends to tie together, not least of all the keyboards, which are being handled by three different players on this album as opposed to two on our recent outings. Dan Presley is once again scoring the orchestral parts whilst other more conventional, but no less interesting parts are being played in by a previous stand-in keyboardist for us, a certain Mark Newby-Robson (AKA ‘Captain Keyboards’) with samples and weird effects/loops manipulated by a certain Christopher Jon of American dark-wavers ‘I, Parasite’. Ville Valor of HIM has contributed vocals to ‘The Byronic Man’ whilst (Dirty) Harry has completed ‘Temptation’. Both contributions are exemplary and really bring something really new to the table. Sarah Jezebel Deva, in a brief spell away from completing her own ‘Angtoria” project has also sung and narrated on several tracks and we have had visits from select members of the Lincoln Cathedral choir to add some ethereal gloss. Then there is still the main guest narration slot, which, at time of going to press, is still being addressed with the actor in question. Of course i will endeavour to keep you informed on this, when and where it happens. A few tracks are in the mixing stages to further our studio output whilst i regain my health (with this amount of homeopathic remedies rattling around my system, hopefully it won’t be too far away..) and these are sounding already far bigger than ‘Nymphetamine’… this time choosing to stay with the production team rather than bringing in an independent mixer for the sake of continuity. Aside from the music, we have already undertaken a photo shoot for future album press shots at a secret location actually not too far from the studio itself, where we spent most of the day freezing our nuts off subject to the bleak late February elements (not too great when you’re tied to a crucifix with the wind howling off the Lincolnshire Wolds i can testify!). As for encounters of the ghostly kind, i can honestly admit with all sincerity that I have never experienced anything like it, before, ever. Well, not on this scale. On returning to the studio Rob and myself had the good fortune to be allocated rooms in The Dower House, an exceptional old building with commanding views of sculptured gardens, the local graveyard and accompanying scrub woodland where rooks caw and owls hoot like the choir of the damned themselves, breaking the silence in what is a completely quiet rural hamlet, aside from the odd report of shotgun fire in the distant fields and the few cars that pass. From the offset we knew something weird was afoot when things appeared as from nowhere (vintage mirrors, glasses, even old gramophone records…) and disappeared, seemingly without trace. There have also been strange noises… Rob heard a trombone being played right outside his room at four in the morning only to find no-one there when he ventured the window… Dan and Sarah were plagued with the sounds of a child’s wind-up toy on separate occasions and in different buildings…. i was spotted peering in form the vocal booth late one evening, only for Rob to find me tucked up in bed not five minutes later in the house down the lane (well, that was his excuse!)… the list goes on. Lights flicker, sounds bump… i even felt a hand on my shoulder as i was drifting off to sleep late one evening as if Toni were sleeping beside me. Still, it’s better company than none at all i guess! I think a seance is in order before we leave to get to the bottom of these creepy going-ons once and for all, if only to set our minds at rest that it isn’t our over-stretched imaginations at play. Over the last six weeks bands have come and gone from the other studio (we are only utilising the one at the present) as has the local pub landlord, (though that place is a sullen house of ill-repute to me now that I cannot drink), leaving myself and Paul as the only band members here. The effect is literally quite lonesome and one that can leave you feeling as if you have been extricated from the entire human race! Thank god then for reruns of ‘Top Gear’ on the entertainment channel over a hearty breakfast of garlic spinach and yeast-free toast. Another amusing thing to befall me was the box crammed full of goodies sent from Hustler magazine in conjunction with some reviews i have written for their May issue (along with Rob Zombie and John Carpenter), on the subject of ‘horror porn’. One of these, the incredible ‘Murder-Set-Pieces’, i have since got in contact with the director of, seeing as the film is absolutely amazing stuff, if not a tad disturbing. It is only available by mail order as it was refused classification in the States, despite it’s 2.2 million dollar budget. Anyway, i won’t ruin the surprise but instead will run the contact address…. but be warned! This is exceptional strong stuff indeed, ‘Film Threat’ describes it as the ‘most graphic film ever seen’, whilst ‘LA Weekly’ rates it as a ‘glitzy, simulated snuff movie with a supporting cast of real-life Las Vegas showgirls and prostitutes…’. It is definitely not one for the faint of heart or those who are easily offended. For those of you sick little puppies out there who fall under neither category, the web site address is ‘frightflix.com’. Anyway, my amusing tale is thus. Said delivery from Hustler came containing all manner of fruity goodies.. for example, aside from the films i had to review, there was a full Japanese Anime blow-up doll (which since has been put to good use, what with me falling asleep in the same room as it and our comical production duo- Fuckwit and Dobbin) as well as various Hustler memorabilia and wife restraining devices. Obviously something from the box just had to fall into my laundry basket, for when i went to retrieve my clothes from the washing machine, i was pleasantly surprised to find that the cleaner had not only done it for me, but she had hung everything out on racks to air. It was only at this point that i noticed that she’d put a tub of Eros masturbation jelly (unopened i hasten to add) on the tumble dryer for me to collect in full view of all and sundry. What a literal wanker i must have appeared… Gliding swiftly on then… last but not least, the album artwork. Well, considering we still haven’t fully decided on an album title (there are three or four strong contenders, ‘Shriek Of The Pterodactyl’ unfortunately not being one of them…), the cover isn’t finished as yet, but the majority of the inside booklet is. Sam Araya has done such a great job thus far that he will be also doing the colour plates illustrations for the ‘Gospel Of Filth’ which is, in itself, reaching the final stages of it’s completion, (yes i know, i will be putting some of it up for your appraisal shortly… ). The artwork can only be described as an eclectic mix of photomontage and painting, giving the pictures (and portraits) an ethereal colour quality quite different to that of our previous albums. I think that is all i can muster for now, there is so much more to be immersed in, including sneaking into Rob’s suite and ‘borrowing’ his collection of ‘art’ magazines. Thank you for all your support during these strangest of days, I give you my word that this album will emerge the best yet, despite the influx of illness and ghostly goings on. You know we fucking love it (the spectral visitations, not the pox). All the best, Your fiend, Count Backwerdz, aka Dani Filth. P.S. Since writing this i have been subject to more eerie manifestations. Last night, i’d just had my delicious cup of rain forest herbal tea (for the ailment) and taken my pills and then as normal settled down to sleep with half a valium, the Frankenstein soundtrack floating somewhere in the background and teddy to keep me warm, when all of a sudden there it was… the same child’s wind up toy that both Sarah and Dan had experienced earlier in the week, but this time tinkling away in my room. I leapt out of bed and ran to Rob’s room to try and catch him out (after all, i suspected all along that it was him planting the bloody thing somewhere in the numerable cupboards, as he alone hasn’t heard it), but low and behold, he’s on the phone and looks even more startled than me, especially as i’m in the nude. I have to admit, i was a little freaked out and having explored every conceivable cubby hole available, conceded the inevitable… we were being haunted. Rob is now eagerly awaiting his ‘turn’ on the phantom, as am I, just to have someone else experience the oddity and the sensation of having all the hairs on your arm standing to frigid, rigid attention. Ghost-watch here we come!