Former GORGOROTH/GOD SEED frontman Gaahl (real name: Kristian Eivind Espedal) will star in a new Norwegian film called "Flukt" (English: "Escape"). An action picture set in the remote Norwegian countryside during the 1300s, it is being helmed by "Cold Prey" director Roar Uthaug and will feature Norwegian actress Ingrid Bolsø Berdal in the role of the leader of a group of outlaws living in the mountains.

Synopsis: "The film takes place in the year 1363. Black Death has killed half the population. Many travel from death and misery in search of a better life elsewhere. But the country is sparsely populated, and in the mountains, raging outlaw gangs and a life is worth little."
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Earlier this week, Andy Greene of RollingStone.com conducted an interview with bassist/vocalist Geddy Lee of Canadian rock legends RUSH. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

RollingStone.com: What's the status of the next album?

Geddy: We're almost finished writing. We wound the machine back up about three weeks ago. After a sluggish start, we've had a very fruitful couple of weeks in terms of writing. I'm very pleased with the direction that the material has taken. And I think we have one or two more songs that we'd like to write, and then we'll start recording in earnest. Hopefully we'll have all of the recording done before Christmas. Then we'll mix it so ...

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Dubbed the "Transilvanian Legacy Tour 2012," the tour will begin on April 21st in Montreal and culminate in an appearance at Maryland Deathfest on May 25. Between there, NEGURA BUNGET will play from coast to coast, and will also perform a handful of dates in Canada. Accompanying NEGURA BUNGET on the tour will be Eclipse Eternal, Wolven Ancestry, and The Way of Purity, with sponsorship provided by Terrorizer, Metal Maniacs, BWBK, Archaic North, and Beyond the Dark Horizon. Here are the confirmed dates/venues thus far:

4/21/2012 - Montreal, Quebec @ The Katacombs - www.coopkatacombes.com

4/22/2012 - Quebec City, Quebec @ L'Agitee - www.a ...

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A teaser for "Storytime", the new video/single from Finnish/Swedish symphonic metallers NIGHTWISH, can be seen below.

"Storytime" will be released on Friday, November 11 via Nuclear Blast Records. The song comes off NIGHTWISH's new album, "Imaginaerum", which is due in North America on January 10, 2012 via Roadrunner Records. The CD is the band's first since 2007's "Dark Passion Play", which was then-new singer Anette Olzon's debut.

The band examined its catalog when sitting down to write what would become "Imaginaerum". The songs for the album were written between 2008 and 2010, after the "Dark Passion Play" tour cycle ended.

At that point, NIGHTWISH knew th ...

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Legendary Swedish grinders NASUM will reconvene for a limited number of farewell performances in 2012. NASUM was hit hard by the passing of guitarist and co-founder Mieszko Talarczyk in the 2004 Asian tsunami, but will announce the farewell performances shortly to mark the group's 20th anniversary and close the book on the wildly influential band.

In a joint statement, the members of NASUM (Anders Jakobson: drums, Jesper Liveröd: bass/vocals, Urban Skytt: guitars, Jon Lindquist: guitars/vocals) had the following to say:

"You thought NASUM was dead? We are. This is not resurrection. It's farewell, for good.

"If things were different, if Mieszko hadn't died, N ...

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Belgian death metallers Aborted have revealed a(n absolutely sickening) gory trailer for new album 'Global Flatline'.

Recorded with Jacob Hansen and featuring guest vocals from Trevor Strnad of The Black Dahlia Murder, Keijo Niinimaa of Rotten Sound, Julien Truchan of Benighted and Jason Netherton of Misery Index, the album will be released on January 23 via Century Media. And if this video is anything to go by, it'll be frightening, repulsive, violent, blood-splattered and horrifying. Exactly what you want from an Aborted album, basically.

The title track will be available as a digital single from Monday.

Bassist Tobias Cristiansson of Swedish death metal veterans DISMEMBER has released the following statement to BLABBERMOUTH.NET:

"After 23 years, DISMEMBER have now decided to quit. We wish to thank all our fans for your support."

DISMEMBER played its first concert since 2008 as the headliners of Death Feast Open Air festival on June 23, 2011 in Hünxe, Germany. They were added to the event as the replacement for GORGUTS, which was forced to cancel all of its previously announced summer festival appearances.

Check out photos of the concert at Metalchroniques.fr.

Prior to the show, DISMEMBER stated, "This will be our only show in 2011, and our first ...

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On the night of the 9th September, Jonas Bergqvist a.k.a. 'B', founding member, main composer, and guitarist of Lifelover, died unexpectedly. The cause of his death is still unclear and has yet to be established.

The message of Jonas's passing came as a surprise to the Prophecy team. Hence, we lack the appropriate words for this tragic event. To us, Jonas wasn't just a very creative artist, but also a pleasant and enthusiastic person. It is for certain that we won't be the only ones missing his character, his passion, and his unique musical language. In the face of this tragic loss, we would very much like to extend our heartfelt condolence towards Jonas's family, his friends, and the remaining musicians of Lifelover.

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**UPDATE**: According to Classic Rock magazine, Tony Iommi's management has strongly denied the authenticity of this story, claiming that the guitarist hasn't spoken to Birmingham Mail for two months. ***

BLACK SABBATH guitarist Tony Iommi has confirmed to The Birmingham Mail that the band's original lineup has reunited and is rehearsing for a tour and new studio album.

Iommi and singer Ozzy Osbourne wrote n ...

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The free download includes tracks from ALL PIGS MUST DIE, BAPTISTS, EYEHATEGOD, PENTAGRAM, BLACK COBRA, PELICAN, NOOTHGRUSH, WINTER, TRAP THEM and more, as well as a collection of flyers from all of the upcoming TPOTR shows.

GET IT HERE! http://www.mediafire.com/?lo12l6b50yob0ub

THE POWER OF THE RIFF 2011 Mix Tape:

01 ALL PIGS MUST DIE "Pulverization"

02 BAPTISTS "Good Parenting"

03 EYEHATEGOD "Jack Ass in the Will of God"

04 MASAKARI "Trapped In The Mold"

05 ALPINIST "Hak Nam"

06 SKIN LIKE IRON "Consequences"

0 ...

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