[Disarmonia Mundi – Trickeration Is the Game] “I don’t really think that Disarmonia Mundi sounds like a ‘regular melodic death metal’ band, honestly I don’t even know what that kind of label means and as far as I know Soilwork is still heavy and melodic as well, so I guess he simply likes what we do and enjoys having a good time with us. Bands develop and change, but as long as they put out quality music they deserve respect and credit for what they do.” - Claudio Ravinale

[Edguy – Always the Joker(s)] “It’s great feeling to go back to Edguy and just do 11 tracks of rock ‘n’ roll, but I don’t want to say ‘rock ‘n’ roll’ because heavy metal fans get upset when I say that even though they’re the same thing [laughs]. Okay, I’ll say it: I’m so much heavy metal, I don’t even care what the heavy metal people think. I am the ultimate outlaw [laughs]. I really enjoy going back and writing 11 songs that were in no way connected to each other, just really great rock ‘n’ roll songs, heavy metal songs that work on their own, along with the band-thing, the fantastic five-piece band thing. This is my day-to-day… I don’t want to call it ‘business,’ because again, heavy metal fans don’t like that word.” – Tobias Sammet

[Francesco Artusato – Shred Me This, Shred Me That ] “I always respected and admired bands and musicians in general that can perform well live. I have never been a fan of bands that play with great energy but that are very sloppy. I can only enjoy music that is played well and sounds tight. If people in general had better trained ears the standards in live music would be overall higher. Some people can’t even tell when something is out of tune.” – Francesco Artusato

[Gigan - Sonic Beatdowns ] “Sometimes we break even after a lot of personal sacrifice, frustration and perseverance, but we tour even when we lose money. That's what you do if you want to be in a touring band. Period. Anyone can make records at home and play their local venues for their friends. Sometime you have to keep going no matter what! When was the last time you heard a success story and the person said, ‘Well I tried pretty hard for awhile then gave up.’ They always say, ‘No matter what, I believed in myself and my vision and never stopped trying.’” – Eric Hersemann

[Nader Sadek – Flesh And the Power It Holds ] “The piece isn’t supposed to be Eco-friendly or something that creates its use. I'm simply in awe of the achievement of man, how is it that we could find a mass of death , essentially what petroleum is, a collection of dead things, and turn that into energy, plastic, to accommodate our life. Nearly everything we touch and see and use as transport, either is made of petroleum runs on it, or at the very least was transported on something that does. We live and breathe it, and it’s strange to think that we are basically talking about dead trees and dinosaurs.” – Nader Sadek

[Municipal Waste Studio Report] “We’re about halfway done; it’s going good. This one is taking a lot longer [than normal] because we’re recording at different places. But it seems like our earlier shit, but a lot of like, a more ‘punker’ sound. It’s hard to say. We have so many songs right now that it’s hard to see what direction it is. I don’t even know which ones are going to go on the album, but the songs are definitely not as serious as the last record. It’s more humorous and catchy.” – Tony Foresta

[Ghost Brigade - Exclusive New Song Stream] "’Clawmaster’ to me, presents one of those rare songs that showcases the different sides of Ghost Brigade pretty well. There isn't many of them. So if you've never heard us before, this is a good song to start with. If you still like it after six plus minutes, there's a good chance you might dig many of our other songs, too. Enjoy friends.” – Wille Naukkarinen

[Inside the Work of Brent Elliott White] “You can’t do anything metal without knowing how to render a skull [laughs]. I don’t feel I’m a traditional metal artist though, sometimes I find myself struggling with the visual language. I can render the skull but I’m always asking myself what it means. I guess as far as classic elements I’d say I have a preference towards old metal objects. Rusted and aged. That shows up a lot in my work.” – Brent Elliott White

[2011 Summer Breeze Open Air Preview] Held a week after Wacken (because holding it on the same weekend wouldn’t be the smartest idea), the Summer Breeze festival is the extreme alternative to Wacken. Set to run in Dinkelsbuehl, Germany this coming Wednesday, August 17th and running through the 20th, Summer Breeze has a who’s-who in the extreme metal underground, with notables such as Arch Enemy, Vader, The Haunted, Witchery, Aborted, and Destruction just to name a few. And unlike Wacken, there’s no show-stopping headliner – it’s a balanced lineup sure enough to whet the whistle of any extreme metal blowhard…

[Battlecross – Blue-Collar Thrash Attack] “Our mindset has always been to be hard working and to never give up. We want this so bad and we love what we do, and we’ve been through a lot with losing members, and some people might just give up but we know what we want and we know what we want to do. Our mentality alone has influenced us to be hard working - we relate to the other people in this city who are like that.” Hiran Deraniyagala

[E-mail Us] Do you have anything relevant to say about music, business, politics, or life? Our readers want the story - hit us with your angle.