THE UNCROWNED, whose singer is suffering from terminal cancer, has announced a new album for late September. It is called Witness and out through Walküre Records. Bassist Naoki has joined the act for the recording.

Vocalist Dave Gray who appeared on a demo with 1980s’ hard rock band MISTRUST is working with PIG Records on the release of a remastered version of the material.

Germany-based PREMORTAL BREATH has a demo called Of Angels And Wolves.

WHITESNAKE cancelled the July leg of its European farewell tour after several shows were cancelled earlier due to a reported sinus infection gripping singer David Coverdale. The band cited "due to continuing health challenges" as the reason.

ALDIOUS singer MAKI OYAMA will release an EP called Unstoppable through VAA/Village Again Association on August 24.

Guitarist Jesper Strömblad was not performing with THE HALO EFFECT, which is comprised of former IN FLAMES members, at the Metaldays festival in Tolmin, Slovenia on July 27th. THE HAUNTED's Patrik Jensen stood in for him.

A very rock venue: JOE SATRIANI’s G4 Experience V6.0 will take place at the Hilton Lake Las Vegas Resort & Spa in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA between January 3 and 7th, 2023. Other guitarists appearing are Alex Skolnick, Peter Frampton, Steve Lukather, Cory Wong and Steve Morse.

MANILLA ROAD’s 2001 comeback album Atlantis Rising is being re-issued by Golden Core. It comes with a twenty-page booklet. The label is also releasing CLAYMOREAN’s 2021 album Eulogy For The Gods on LP.

Inspired by KEEL? Sweden-based SISTER SIN played a second show in seven years at the Sauna Open Air festival in Tampere, Finland on July 8th. The band had played its first reformation show in Sweden in June after first announcing a reformation in 2019.

GUNS ‘N ROSES cancelled its Glasgow, Scotland concert after playing a shortened show in London, England on July 2nd. Singer Axl Rose was experiencing problems with his voice. GUNS N' ROSES was joined on-stage by pop star Carrie Underwood during the act’s London concert for the songs Sweet Child O' Mine and Paradise City.

Bret Michaels of POISON cancelled his Nashville, USA concert of The Stadium tour due to a medical issue. His subsequent show was truncated to conserve energy.

Y&T has cancelled its 2022 European tour in order for singer Dave Meniketti to recover from the radiation treatment he received for his prostate cancer.

RAVEN will release a new album, called Leave 'Em Bleeding, through SPV/Steamhammer on 30.09.2022. The album is to contain several bonus tracks including cover versions. RAVEN will commemorate the 40th anniversary of its All For One album with a U.K. tour in 2023. HELLGRIMM Opens the tour. All For One was the band’s third record.

Tokyo, Japan-based heavy metal group SIEGFRIED will re-release its 2002 album Remains with bonus tracks in September. The band has been inactive for many years.

BRIDEAR has replaced guitarist Misaki with the newcomer Moe. The band had announced Misaki is taking a break a month earlier. The band is touring Europe in September using the Decide To Survive monicker.

DARK AGES and WATERSHAPE, two Italy-based progressive metal acts, will conduct a mini-tour of Europe using The Prog Over Nations Tour monicker this October.

IRON MAIDEN singer Bruce Dickinson interrupted the band’s performance of the song The Number Of The Beast at a concert in Athens, Greece on July 16th to call a fan “You Greek cunt" and "You fucking cocksucker." A fan had lit a red flare, which is a sign of appreciation and happiness typically. Dickinson may have been concerned about the impact on his larynx. The man had also suffered from tongue cancer in 2014.

Former MANOWAR guitarist Karl Logan was sentenced to five and a half years in prison for possessing child pornography. He was also ordered to pay $10,000.

VIXEN is touring the USA intermittently all summer.

Bassist Michael Bloodgood of white metal act BLOODGOOD died on July 29th. He had suffered a stroke in February and had been ill since.

Jazz/prog band LUFEH will open four shows for SONS OF APOLLO in Brazil in August.

Goth rockers MOONSPELL have a video/CD release called From Down Below - Live 80 Meters Deep through Napalm Records on September 23. It is a live performance of the band’s last studio album, namely Hermitage. It was recorded at Grutas De Mira D'Aire, a natural wonder in Portugal.

EWIGKEIT’s Out Of The Woods EP is out through Death To Music Productions. It features three tracks originally intended for James Fogarty’s former band IN THE WOODS.

FEAR FACTORY will release Recoded, which is another album of remixes. This one contains remixes from the band's recent Aggression Continuum album. Expect it through Nuclear Blast in October. The songs are being remixed by a number of guests.

Inspired by KEEL? Singer Philip Anselmo and bassist Rex Brown, both formerly of PANTERA, have signed with Artist Group International and are looking to tour as PANTERA. The band needed a guitarist and drummer following the death of the founding brothers Dimebag and Vinnie Paul. Zakk Wylde of BLACK LABEL SOCIETY and ANTHRAX drummer Charlie Benante have jumped in.

OZZY OSBOURNE has a new single, entitled Degradation Rules, which features a guest appearance by the singer’s former BLACK SABBATH bandmate, Tony Iommi.

FALLON’s self-titled album is being re-pressed by FnA Records. The band’s singer Matt Fallon was in SKID ROW and ANTHRAX.

Former SKID ROW singer SEBASTIAN BACH played a free concert in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA in July. The show coincided with SKID ROW, WARRANT, WINGER and QUIET RIOT’s show nearby on the same night.

Golden Robot Records has signed FASTER PUSSYCAT. The band is on the road in the USA.

Former W.A.S.P. drummer Mike Dupke has joined WEDNESDAY 13. The band is on tour the USA using the 20 Years Of Fear tour monicker this autumn.

Former LILLIAN AXE, TSO and METAL CHURCH singer Ronny Munroe has joined VICIOUS RUMORS. He replaces singer Nick Courtney who had been with the band for four years. The band has had a dozen singers so far. Munroe has been in two dozen acts.

DEEP PURPLE guitarist Steve Morse has definitively left the band to care for his wife Janine who is undergoing cancer treatment. The man had taken a leave-of-absence earlier this year. A Simon McBride is touring with the band.

THE DEAD DAISIES singer and bassist Glenn Hughes has tested positive for COVID-19 and will not continue on the summer 2022 European tour. Dino Jelusick (WHITESNAKE) and bassist Yogi Lonich have stepped in.

Canada-based TYRANTS OF CHAOS has a demo called Relentless Thirst For Power, which is supported through a music video for the single T.O.C. The band was founded in 2013.

1637: “I think, therefore I am” | 2022: “I did my own research on vaccines (on Facebook/YouTube/Tiktok/toilet wall) and it has 5G in it.”

UDI LEVY – ALEKSANDRIA
New York, USA-based solo guitarist Udi Levy is back with a new demo, which is entitled Aleksandria, and in accordance with his advance promise is his most metallic release yet. The CD’s twelve tracks are metal and mostly consistently so, which is a step forward compared to the man’s semi or mostly metal previous work.
The foundation is set therefore, but what about the quality of the material? Good news, the material is quite impressive. Metallian readers should know of the man’s proficiency by now, but he deploys his talents towards a metallic cause this time and the result is impressive.
Before The End is a melancholic and soothing intro that cannot be called an intro given how the entire material is instrumental. The start showcases a record that is electric and here over an acoustic bed. It is a very clean sound and a further credit to the man who has self-produced this thing. Siege is heavier. The music fits the title. It is basically guitar heaven. This guy can solo and if you have not bought into the anti-guitar modern mantra (i.e. the era of guitarists who actually cannot handle their instruments) then Udi Levy is for you. Levy’s guitar technique sounds deceptively straightforward, but listen carefully and this is advanced and technical guitar at work. It gives Levy's work depth or longevity. It is not Rush, but it is elaborate. The heaviest riff may be at the start of and on the title track; however, and then a mix of fluid soloing and mid-paced riffing follows. Quality stuff again, which ends up somewhat tranquil sounding for the rest of the track. Fata Morgana and ∞, in contrast, are more laid back and standard rock efforts. Never Midbar is more about the emotion behind the composition and is also a video clip for the demo CD. Foreign Territories sees a tone change and conveys more of a rock and roll feeling. Uninterrupted sounds like something off the Lost In Translation soundtrack and is a minute-long medley. One could imagine Charlotte traipsing over the rocks on the pond in Kyoto. Rise Against is as heavy as the title portends before going quasi-Latin. Levy has some mad skills here. If not the heaviest cut then it is the fastest. The disc ends with After The Beginning, which is a continuation of the aforementioned Before The End. Play the CD in a loop.
This reviewer has probably said it probably before; Levy is good. He needs to join a band or let himself be recruited by a band. He can play and compose. He would be an asset. He may be content making money by playing sessions, who knows, but there is more that he can do if he wants it. There is sweep picking, soloing and riffs galore here. It is not the heaviest, but heavy enough for a hard rock or heavy metal fan and leaves room for some rockier musicianship too. The downside is the lack of vocals – well, depending on the vocalist it may be an upside – and the drum machine.
The CD is heavier than the man’s Animal Within release whose title and cover would have suggested it would be the heaviest release. I assume that is Alexandria on the cover and back of this CD. Visit https://rockguitar-music.com/. – Ali “The Metallian”