Metal News.

On Sat 2 Feb, Raven Black Night will be doing a show at the Enigma Bar with Devonera, Decaying Deceased and Century. Raven Black Night will be focussing on playing newer material, which they hope to record later on in the year.

In overseas news, Keith Baxter, onetime drummer of British folk metal band Skyclad, has died of liver failure, passing away at only 36. One of the founding members of the aforementioned band, he left it in 1995, going on to enjoy considerable fame in a punk/rock group called 3 Colours Red (which split in 1999 before reforming for a short period in 2004); he also had a brief stint with Northern Ireland's Therapy? in 2002.

New York's Brand New Sin have parted ways with singer Joe Altier, who's left the group to "pursue other interests". A philosophical Altier claimed that "all things come to an end at some point," and cited the death of his father last year as one of the main contributing factors in his decision to leave the group. For the time being, Altier plans to continue with two side projects - one a solo act called Brand New Joe - while his bandmates intend continuing the group in his absence; they just don't know if it will continue to go under its current name. Brand New Sin have also recently parted ways with their old label, Century Media.

And on the subject of lineup changes, Germany's Atrocity and Leaves' Eyes (who are essentially the same group) have welcomed drummer Nick Barker into their respective folds. Barker - whose impressive CV includes stints with Cradle Of Filth, Dimmu Borgir, Testament and many other bands - was approached to join the groups by Atrocity frontman Alex Krull at a metal awards ceremony last year, and says he's been friends with that band for many years. In further news relating to the two groups, both have new albums planned for release this year. Due out on the final day of February, the Atrocity one will be called 'Werk 80 II', and will comprise covers of famous '80s songs such as Relax, Don't You (Forget About Me), Hey Little Girl and Fade To Grey. It'll be the sequel to the similar 'Werk 80', which was released in 1997, and featured covers of such songs as Shout, Send Me An Angel, Don't Go and Let's Dance.

In the latest metal-related gimmick from the US, Motley Crue's Vince Neil has opened a new restaurant, 'Dr. Feelgood's Bar and Grill', in West Palm Beach, Florida. The classy-sounding establishment - the decor combines the artist's guitars, Harleys and platinum albums with snakeskin seats, an eight-foot snake and a stage - is situated in a part of town that's apparently become rundown over the years, but is now undergoing something of a renaissance. According to Neil, "this is gonna be the hip place to hang out - not only here in this bar, but in all the other ones around here; it's a cool area."

Dutch symphonic metal band Epica have been forced to cancel a lot of upcoming shows after singer Simone Simons contracted MRSA - a bacteria-borne infection that appears to be disturbingly easy to catch, and whose causative agent has been dubbed "the hospital bacteria" given that that's where many cases of the disease originate. Treatment for the disease (whose full name is Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus Aureus ie the so-called "golden staph") includes a strict daily schedule of hygiene that precludes travelling long distances and therefore touring, hence the forced show cancellations.

Over the last few months, I've been concluding my columns by giving plugs for old metal bands who've had Myspace tribute pages set up in their memory. While that was fun for a while, I feel it's time to get back to looking at some of the current talent out there. This time, a band that caught my eye was a death/thrash outfit from Santa Cruz, California, called A Band Of Orcs, who've named themselves after those lovable green doers of evil from things like Lord Of The Rings, Dungeons And Dragons, and Warhammer 40K. The group - whose members bear the names Gogog Bloodthroat, Cretos Filthgrinder, Oog Skullbasher and Gronk! respectively - have put out an EP, 'WarChiefs Of The Apocalypse', as well as a whole heap of T-shirts, some adorned with slogans like 'Ugly Is Sexy" and 'We're Not Misunderstood, We're Evil'. To find out more, go to www.myspace.com/abandoforcs.


James Brazel (jbr09171@bigpond.net.au)