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As previously announced, DARK NEW DAY–Clint Lowery (guitarist from Sevendust), Will Hunt (drummer from Evanescence), Troy McLawhorn (guitarist from Evanescence), Brett Hestla (lead singer/guitarist from Virgos Merlot) and Corey Lowery (bassist from Stereomud and Eye Empire)—will release their highly anticipated sophomore album, NEW TRADITION, February 28 on Goomba Music (distributed by eOne Music). To make the release extra special, the band is offering a bonus track to fans who buy the full album and send in a photo of themselves holding the CD or a digital photo of their purchase online. A MP3 of “Rising Sun” will be available for a limited time only (February 28 through March 6). Photos can be e-mailed... 

Having produced track after track of heavy-hitting, in-your-face, feel good rock and roll on their previous two albums (2010′s STAMPEDE and 2007′s self-titled debut), Band of Brothers sees HELLYEAH taking a slightly different musical direction. Drawing on their former bands’ collective metal roots for inspiration, the influences and style of Mudvayne, Pantera, Damageplan and Nothingface are immediately recognizable in tracks such as “Band of Brothers,” “War In Me” and “Rage Burn,” while the party anthem “Drink, Drank, Drunk” retains the essence of earlier HELLYEAH.  

Modern rock favorites Taproot are celebrating their 15th anniversary as a band this year. In honor of the occasion, the band has released a video that spans their career and includes live footage from their first tour with Papa Roach to Ozzfest and more.  

Massacre Records is proud to bring the latest album from long running Canadian thrashers EXCITER an official North American release. Since helping to forge the North American thrash movement in the ’80s EXCITER‘s layered 34-year career has elevated them to legendary status, and their most recent album, 2010′s Death Machine delivers nine-songs of the expected headbashing mayhem fans worldwide have come to expect from the outfit.  

Image Expo  is excited to announce the addition of Norman Reedus, who plays Daryl Dixon on AMC’s record-breaking television series The Walking Dead to the comic convention’s The Walking Dead panel. The panel takes place during Image Expo on Saturday, February 25 at 4 p.m. in the Oakland Convention Center in Oakland, California. Reedus will join The Walking Dead creator and executive producer Robert Kirkman and  Reedus’ “Walking Dead” castmate Steven Yeun (Glenn) in conversation with Chris Hardwick.  

Armageddon is upon us. Israeli epic black metallers ETERNAL DECAY kick off their 15-date tour of North America tonight in Toronto. One of the best kept secrets in the underground, ETERNAL DECAY are poised to shock, awe, and devastate with their dynamically arranged and undeniably ferocious brand of symphonic black metal.  

FEAR FACTORY today confirm Matt DeVries as the band’s new bass player. DeVries, previously of Chimaira and most recently Six Feet Under, joins the band replacing Byron Stroud. The announcement comes as the band continues work on their upcoming new album, planned for release early Summer. The album is currently being mixed in Canada by Greg Reely while artwork for the album’s packaging is nearly complete.  

In celebrating 20 years of independent comic book publishing, Todd McFarlane joins fellow Image Founders and Partners at the Image Expo in Oakland, CA February 24th-26th, and he’s bringing his toy and publishing companies with him!  

Renowned metal hub GunShyAssassin.com has posted an exclusive stream of the title track from Nocturnal Torment’s, They Come At Night. To quote Gun Shy Assassin’s own Chris Harris, “Fuck, man – if you don’t like this, there is nothing I can do to help you. Clearly, you just don’t know a fucking thing.”  

Wayne Static, formerly of Static X, came to New York City last night in support of “Pighammer”, his debut solo record. On stage first were two local bands screaming through what sounded like one very long song. Up next was Baltimore’s Polka Dot Cadaver. Prior to the show I had never heard of these guys. Their unusual name had me assuming they would be similar to the other openers. They proved me wrong by powering through a solid set, including a cover of Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean”, dance moves included. The bassist kept the crowd going throughout the set by jumping into the crowd and head banging with them. Loyal fans filed into Gramercy Theater on a Monday night while the stage was set up... 

Ill Niño has entered the studio to begin work on their sixth full-length release and follow-up to their Victory debut, Dead New World. The effort is slated for a summer 2012 release.  

God Forbid are preparing to release their sixth full-length album and Victory debut, Equilibrium, on March 26th. The forthcoming effort was produced by Mark Lewis (The Black Dahlia Murder, Whitechapel), Jason Suecof (Bury Your Dead, Chimaira) and mixed and mastered by Jens Bogren (Opeth, Amon Amarth).  

Birth A.D. is pleased to announce their appearance at WTF Fest, a traveling experimental art and music event that will come to major cities like Portland and Seattle. The band will appear at the Austin engagement on Wednesday, March 14, which coincides with the week-long music showcases of SXSW. WTF Fest is not a metal festival, but rather a collection of subversive and outspoken artists, including performances from Mike IX Williams (EYEHATEGOD), Martin Atkins (PIGFACE), and much more.  

Kevin Conroy, the legendary voice of Batman, spoke to metalmachine.net from NYC, where the voice actor was part of the Red Carpet ceremony of the up coming release “Justice League:Doom. Kevin spoke about once again playing Batman, his other voice work and what’s in store for te caped crusader…