A series of postings reportedly made by System Of A Down bassist Shavo Odadjian on his official Facebook place the blame for the bands lack of studio activity in recent years on frontman Serj Tankian. Some of those posts can be read below:

“ok….. Ill come clean.. Its not us(meaning Daron,John Or Shavo!! Its Sej, who doesn’ want to do a new album!!!! so please stop harassing us about it!!! We are just waiting for SERJ! Now He might hate me for exposing the truth but i Had too.. Sorry folks!!! we’re trying to get a new album out, its just not passing Serj’s RULES! .

Kinda funny, since we started the band and now he’s holding us back!! I think we should should release another album again??? As for me.. I’m ready to release one with someone who wants to be the singer of SYSTEM. not soeome we have to beg to be a part of SYSTEM!! So with that in mind, what do you guys w should do? Just remember, Hes been holding us back for 7 years so far.. wanna wait another $-5 years? or shall we release a record without Serj? u tell us?????”

“I dont want to make a record without him… but if he’s not down? should the 3 of us just sit and wait?? Not cool!!!!!!!! i want the fans from all over the world including Brazil to tell us what they think.
No System? or System with with a new singer whos just as good if not better? PLUS new System songs and tours???? please give me ur opinion people!!! is SYSTEM better with no singer or someone who is excited to be our new singer?? you decide.. cause im confused!!!”

“no diss to Serj.. If he wants to be in the band then he’s welcome but if he’s not? what do you expect us 3 to do.?? we really want anorther System Record! wish Serj was down but if hes not, then im going ahead and making a System record without him!!! im furious that he let us down like this, but we gotta do something to keep this great band alive!!! agreed????????”

Hatebreed‘s music video for their track “Honor Never Dies” has debuted online and is available for viewing below. The clip was shot with the direction team of Blake & Nic.

click here for the video…

Asking Alexandria have an August 06th release date set for their new album “From Death To Destiny“. Sumerian Records will handling the release of the new Joey Sturgis (The Devil Wears Prada, Emmure) produced outing.

Suicide Silence guitarist Mark Heylum was recently asked by Loudwire about the bands current mindset having now had some time passed since the death of their singer Mitch Lucker this past November. Regarding that, Heylum offered:

“Well the mindset right now is that none of us really have the energy after all of this. From going 150,000 miles per hour in the band, going to a different country every week and going at it so hard, then all of a sudden stopping. We don’t want to do anything. We don’t want to think about what we’re going to do. We want to chill out for a little bit and then if something happens, it happens, if it doesn’t, it doesn’t. It’s as simple as that.”

He also confirmed that the bands forthcoming star-studded live DVD of their memorial show they played for Mitch Lucker is still on track for a release, offering:

“We will definitely be releasing a memorial DVD from the memorial show we did for Mitch. We played in California last year and that will definitely be coming out, so we definitely have at least a couple of more releases in the coming year — DVD stuff and you know, like we said, we don’t have plans on anything else.”

Live footage of Korn‘s second full-show in eight years with returning guitarist Brian “Head” Welch has been uploaded below. The performance took place at this years ‘Rock On The Range Festival‘ in Columbus, OH this past Friday, May 17th. A new studio album with Welch was recently completed and is due out later this year.
click here for the footage…

A brief clip of Throwdown guitarist Dave Nassie tracking the bands new album in the studio can be seen online here. According to the group, all of the instrumental music for the album has been tracked with vocals set to be recorded this coming week.

The Acacia Strain have parted ways with their longtime songwriter/non-touring guitarist Daniel “DL” Laskiewicz. A recent posting made by Laskiewicz on his Facebook reads:

“Well, if you haven’t noticed, I haven’t played a show with The Acacia Strain in years and I’ve just been writing the music for them. I’ve been informed today that they will continue on without me, meaning shows and writing albums. This is totally understandable and I wish the band the best. I’ll be around, as I’m still recording and producing and also have another project in the works. So once again, I WILL NOT be writing for The Acacia Strain anymore. It’s been fun tas, later!”

Rumors have been swirling in recent weeks that ex-Oceano guitarist Devin Shidaker would be taking his place in the band; though there’s no official word as of yet.

A video report of this past Friday’s (May 17th) bail review hearing for As I Lay Dying, etc. frontman Tim Lambesis has been made available for viewing online below via CBS8.com. The hearing saw Lambesis appear with a new attorney and a revised defense strategy.

While his previous representation Anthony Salerno had alleged that his client was setup in what he described as a ”scum bag snitch set up”; his new lawyer Thomas Warwick seems to be pursuing the angle that Lambesis‘ steroid usage was the reason as to why he was allegedly involved in a murder-for-hire plot targeting his ex-wife Meggan Lambesis.

Tim‘s bail was lowered to $2 million USD during the hearing—though it was stated that it is a sum he still cannot afford. He remains in custody on the charge of Solicitation To Commit Murder.
click here for the video…

Stone Temple Pilots look to have found a replacement—at least for the time being—for their fired/estranged singer Scott Weiland. The band took to the stage today, May 18th, with Linkin Park vocalist Chester Bennington in place of Weiland. The surprise performance went down at the 21st annual ‘KROQ Weenie Roast‘ at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater in Irvine, CA.

Bennington and the group performed material from the bands discography during the set (see the live footage below,) and also rolled out a new track titled “Out Of Time“. A free download of that song is currently available at this location. A stream of it can be found below along with studio footage of the outfit tracking the song with Bennington.

Chester Bennington has since tweeted on the experience:

“Just played the first show with STP! It was fucking AMAZING!”

“FYI, I will never leave LP. We are currently working on a new record and its awesome!”

Stone Temple Pilots guitarist Dean DeLeo meanwhile told KROQ:

“Chester has a one-of-a-kind voice that we’ve admired for a long time. We know Linkin Park will always be his priority, but we thought it would be cool to try something together. We managed to find the time to record a song and we’re all really happy with the result.”

click here for the stream & video…

The Dillinger Escape Plan have made plans to tour Europe and the UK this fall, here’s where they will hit:

09/25 Bordeaux, FRA – Krakatoa
09/26 Toulouse, FRA – La Dynamo
09/27 Clermont-Ferrand, FRA – La Cooperative De Mai
09/28 Paris, FRA – Le Divon Du Monde
09/29 Lyon, FRA – Le Transbordeur
09/30 Zurich, CHE – Komplex
10/02 Karlsruhe, GER – Substage
10/03 Munich, GER – Strom
10/05 Zagreb, CRO – Tvornica Kulture
10/06 Budapest, HUN – A38
10/08 Bratislava, SLO – Randall
10/10 Prague, CZE – Rock Cafe
10/11 Ostrava, CZE – Barrak Club
10/15 Templin, GER – Conne Island
10/16 Berlin, GER – Lido
10/17 Copenhagan, DEN – Pumpehuset
10/20 Oslo, NOR – Parkteatren
10/22 Arhus, DEN – Vox Hall
10/23 Hamburg, GER – Knust
10/26 Amsterdam, NET – Melkweg
10/27 Nijmegen, NET – Doornroosje
10/29 Den Haag, NET – Paard Kz
10/30 Antwerp, BEL – Trix
10/31 Brighton, UK – Concorde 2
11/01 Cardiff, UK – Solus
11/02 Leeds, UK – The Cockpit
11/04 Aberdeen, UK – Aberdeen Garage
11/05 Glasgow, UK – Glasgow Garage
11/06 Manchester, UK – Academy 2
11/07 Wolverhampton, UK – Slade Rooms
11/08 London, UK – Koko
11/09 Nottingham, UK – Rock City

The groups brand new album “One Of Us Is The Killer” arrived in stores earlier this week.

A trailer for Hatebreed‘s impending new music video for their track “Honor Never Dies” is available for viewing below. The band intend to premiere the video online in full this coming Monday, May 20th.
click here for the trailer…

Whitechapel‘s immediate focus looks to be finishing up writing a new album. No further details were provided on the effort as of yet or when you can expect to hear it.

August Burns Red are filming a second new music video today, May 18th. The band have once again recruited former Underoath drummer Daniel Davison to direct the clip with a picture from the shoot posted here. The group also filmed another music video with Daniel Davison at the helm yesterday, May 17th. Neither track was specified. Their new studio album “Rescue & Restore” is headed towards a June 25th release on Solid State.

Megadeth have launched the below stream of their new track “Kingmaker” (am I the only one who hears a sped up “Children Of The Grave” in the verses?) The song will appear on their forthcoming album “Super Collider“, out in stores on June 04th.
click here for the stream…

As I Lay Dying vocalist Tim Lambesis appeared in San Diego, CA’s North County Superior Courthouse today, May 17th, to attend his newly-granted bail review hearing. The hearing was held in a bid to get Lambesis‘ bail of $3 million USD lowered. His defense was successful in some regards, getting the bail amount dropped to $2 million USD—an amount his attorney has stated his client still can’t afford.

According to CBS8 correspondent Shannon Handy, the defense have alleged that the murder for hire plot was a result of Lambesis‘ steroid usage. It was also stated in initial reports that Lambesis is having steroid withdrawals while in custody.

Lambesis has remained in custody since his arrest last Tuesday (May 07th) as part of a police sting in regards to a murder-for-hire plot he allegedly hatched against his estranged wife, Meggan Lambesis—who filed for divorce from him this past September.

Last week Tim pled not guilty to the charge of Solicitation To Commit Murder. During his arraignment the prosecution stated that they have audio of Lambesis soliciting an undercover agent to kill his ex-wife, along with various other evidence.

Update – May 17th 5:58pm:

According to utsandiego.com, Lambesis‘ lawyer, Thomas Warwick, stated that Lambesis‘ “thought processes were devastatingly affected by his steroid use.” It was also said that Lambesis began taking steroids after getting heavily into body building in recent years. Furthermore, it was revealed that the defense had originally hoped to get the bail down to $250,000 USD today.

Prosecutor Claudia Grasso also put forth some new information, chiefly that the undercover informant—who was described as actually being an undercover detective—told Lambesis that the hit on his wife Meggan would cost $20,000. Grasso said that Lambesis “was very willing to pay” that amount. He later handed the undercover detective an envelope containing $1000 cash—apparently as a down payment—along with Meggan‘s address and security codes.

Update #2 – May 17th 9:44pm:

A report on today’s bail review hearing filed at nbcsandiego.com offered up even more details on today’s events. An excerpt from it reads:

“[Tom] Warwick said Lambesis’ troubles began when he got into bodybuilding and “gym culture.”

The frontman started taking supplements, then steroids, that led to what Warwick referred to as “changes in his physiological and mental status.”

He went from 170 to 220-pounds and in his attorney’s words, “Was not the same person. He was irritable and lost God.” A forensic psychiatrist who consulted with the defense said Lambesis got “roid rage” after using steroids.

His attorney said Lambesis is now off steroids, going through withdrawal, and in total isolation in jail for protection from other inmates. He’s also getting personal counseling from a jail chaplain.

“It has been a terrible tragedy,” Warwick said in court while arguing for lower bail. “He was a very caring, gentle man [before taking steroids] and we need to get him back.”