Music News & Notes

Dagor Dagorath Announces New Album "Yetzer Ha'Ra" Release Date

Israeli metallers Dagor Dagorath have issued the following update about the release of their debut full-length album:

"Hey!!!

"We are pleased to announce that we have now signed our debut album 'Yetzer Ha'Ra' on the german label/distributor Twilight Vertrieb (Endstille, Eluveitie, Master, TrollfesT). The album will be released worldwide in the 2nd of October 2009.

"We know about their long experience and professional way of working, and we believe that this alliance will be mutually winning for both sides. 'Yetzer Ha'Ra' will also be released in Russia on the 28th of August 2009, through More Hate Production."

The cover art for the album can also be viewed below:

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Elton John Guests On New Alice In Chains Album

Rock legend Elton John has been revealed as the guest pianist on the title track of the new Alice In Chains album, "Black Gives Way To Blue."

"We were thinking about adding piano to the track and a friend suggested we call Elton," recalls guitarist/vocalist Jerry Cantrell. "I remember laughing and saying, ‘Yeah, I’ll get right on that.’ But I decided it was worth trying and wrote Elton an email explaining what that song means to us - that it’s a real, raw openhearted song for Layne. We sent him the track and got a call shortly after saying he thought it was beautiful and that he wanted to play on it. We were blown away. Elton John is a huge influence on me as a songwriter and having him on that song is an amazing honour for us."

"I’ve long been an admirer of Jerry Cantrell and when he asked me to play on ‘Black Gives Way To Blue’, I was very flattered and couldn’t resist,” says John. “It was a great recording session with Alice In Chains for a beautiful song."

About the collaboration, Cantrell says, "Elton was finishing his Red Piano run in Vegas, so we flew there and hung out for a few hours. Walking into a studio and seeing the sheet music for that song on Elton’s piano made it meaningful on so many different levels. The whole experience was pretty magical."

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OZZY OSBOURNE's BLIZZCON Performance Officially Confirmed


Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. today announced that the Prince of Darkness, Ozzy Osbourne, will headline the closing concert at this year's BlizzCon, which will take place August 21-22 at the Anaheim Convention Center. While tickets to the convention sold out in minutes, a live pay-per-view event will be available on DirecTV and via Internet stream.

The largest event of its kind, BlizzCon is a celebration of Blizzard Entertainment's Warcraft, Diablo, and StarCraft game universes and the global player communities surrounding them. At the closing ceremony on August 22, Ozzy will unleash a thunderous spectacle of rock to put the Lich King in his place and cement his own title as the one true Prince of Darkness.

One of the most influential rock musicians of all time, Ozzy Osbourne rose to prominence as the lead vocalist for BLACK SABBATH before embarking on a multi-platinum solo career. He is also known for putting on the Ozzfest music festival and for starring in his own reality TV show. Ozzy Osbourne's career has spanned four decades and his music is as relevant today as ever. The Grammy Award-winning Rock and Roll Hall of Famer has sold over 100 million albums worldwide — 50 with BLACK SABBATH and as many as a solo artist — and in 2003 was honored with a star on Hollywood Boulevard's "Walk of Fame." This is his second collaboration with Blizzard Entertainment, following a recent TV spot for World of Warcraft.

"Our goal with BlizzCon is to deliver an unforgettable weekend of entertainment, and we can't think of a better way to close out this year's show than having Ozzy rock the house," said Mike Morhaime, CEO and cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment. "Many of us at Blizzard are lifelong fans of Ozzy's music, and we're thrilled that he'll be performing for all of our BlizzCon attendees as well as those joining us via DirecTV and the live Internet stream."

In addition to serving as a gathering place for the different Blizzard Entertainment gaming communities, BlizzCon will offer an array of activities, including discussion panels, hands-on playtime with upcoming games, contests, tournaments showcasing the skills of top eSports gamers from around the world, and more. While tickets to the convention are currently sold out, the live pay-per-view event can still be ordered for $39.95 USD, and is available via DirecTV and Internet stream (pricing and availability may vary by region). Visit www.blizzcon.com for more details and ordering information.

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New Phish Album


Phish revealed on their official site that their new album "Joy" will be released September 8th in a multitude of formats, including one that features a bonus album. In addition to the compact disc and double-vinyl varieties, Phish will also offer up a limited edition deluxe set called the “Joy Box,” which will feature the CD plus 10 posters dedicated to each one of Joy’s 10 tracks, as well as a “complete second album” called Party Time. If that wasn’t enough, the Joy Box will also include a DVD featuring some of Phish’s live performances from the first half of 2009, including the jam band’s concerts from Boston’s Fenway Park and this year’s double-headlining Bonnaroo sets.

www.phish.com




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Kraftwerk Reissuues

Kraftwerk will re-release eight albums from their catalog as individual discs or as a box set knowns as 12345678 The Catalogue. Included in the campaign are the albums Autobahn (1974), Radio-Activity (1975), Trans Europe Express (1977), The Man Machine (1978), Computer World (1981), Techno Pop (1986), The Mix (1991) and Tour De France (2003). The albums will also be available as downloads or on heavyweight vinyl LPs. Release is set for October 5.

The set includes the groups entire studio output from 1974 to today. Not included are Kraftwerk 1 (1971), Kraftwerk 2 (1972) and Ralf and Florian (1973).

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Sea Wolf Release

With the release of Sea Wolf's sophomore record, "White Water, White Bloom," a little over a month away, anticipation for new material is palpable. To hold curious and eager fans over, Dangerbird Records is offering a taste of the cinematic journey that Sea Wolf's music undeniably possesses with the free download, "Stanislaus."

www.dangerbirdrecords.com

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Blackberry Smoke LP

On September 29th, the Atlanta-based Southern rock outlaws, Blackberry Smoke, will be releasing their album titled "Little Piece of Dixie" through BamaJam Records, a new imprint of Stroudavarious Records. This is the second full length release of the group's career, but the first for BamaJam Records.

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The Verve Split Up For A Third Time

Reports are circulating that Britpop survivors The Verve have split up for a third time.

The Sunday Mirror reports that a “source” said that rest of the band had become increasingly distanced from singer Richard Ashcroft. "As far as Nick and Simon are concerned the Verve no longer exists... they think Richard was just using the reunion as a vehicle to get his solo career on track”, the source reported.

Guitarist Nick McCabe had previously announced that the band were on 'holiday' in a blog entry on his Myspace page in April. "The Verve seem to be on holiday and show no sign of not being on holiday”, he wrote.

The band has split up twice before, initially in 1996 and then in 1999. However, the Wigan band reformed in 2007, releasing an album 'Forth' and headlined the Glastonbury Festival the following year.

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Javelina Reveals New Album "Beasts Among Sheep" Details


Philadelphia’s JAVELINA will unleash their sophomore album September 29th via Translation Loss Records. The album, titled “Beasts Among Sheep,” contains eight tracks.

The album was recorded in March of this year at Volume Studios in Chicago by Sanford Parker, and mastered at the Boiler Room in Chicago by Collin Jordan. The cover art, as with the previous album, was handled by Jason Goldberg (Olde City Tattoo, The Bad Luck 13 Riot Extravaganza, etc.).