go to their site and sign up, you bastards...

--------- METAL UPDATE ---------
-- http://www.metalupdate.com --

The Metal Update will deliver a weekly report to your email inbox. To
sign up, go to MetalUpdate.com and click the SUBSCRIBE! link. The Metal
Update is free.

This week's Metal Update went out to over 15,435 subscribers.



-- NEWS --


VICTORY RECORDS
Victory Records reports that three of their bands have charted this week
on Billboard's Top 200: Taking Back Sunday (#113), Hawthorne Heights
(#120), and Straylight Run (#196). Furthermore, four of their bands are
on the Heatseekers chart: Hawthorne Heights (#1), Silverstein (#47), Bury
Your Dead (#96), and Action Action (#111).

DARK TRANQUILLITY
An MP3 of the new single, "Lost to Apathy," has been posted at the Century
Media website. The video for the track is expected to air on Headbangers
Ball and Uranium early next month. Dark Tranquillity's new album,
'Character,' will be released in the U.S. on January 25th.

MERCENARY
Mercenary has received Album of the Year, Vocalist of the Year, and
Guitarist of the Year honors from the Danish Metal Awards. Their winning
album '11 Dreams' will be released in the U.S. on February 8th.

DEVILINSIDE
Drummer Dan Johnson (ex-With Dead Hands Rising), vocalist Joe Talbot
(Richard Pryor on Fire), and bassist Patrick Morris (Demonicon) have been
added to the lineup. Devilinside will begin touring with Suffocation in
February, continue touring in March in support for Cryptopsy.

SYSTEM OF A DOWN
The band is currently mixing their two-disc set entitled,
"Mesmerize/Hypnotize," with Andy Wallace. The first disc is expected to
be released in the Spring, with the second disc being released six months
later.


NEW SIGNINGS
Deepsend Records: Whispering Gallery, VLE
Displeased Records: Cobalt
Dressed to Kill Records: The Divining
Ibex Moon Records: Thornafire
InsideOut Music America: Shadow Gallery
Iron Pegazus: Mortem
Magick Records: Icarus Witch, Astarte, Throes Of Dawn, Shade Empire, Opera
IX
Martyr Records: A Suburban Blood Drive
Pluto Records: Divide the Day
Steamhammer/SPV: Hatesphere
Trustkill Records: BEDlight for Blue EYES


FOR MORE NEWS GO TO:
http://www.metalupdate.com



-- HELP WANTED --


VOCALIST wanted - Vehemence is now in search for a new vocalist. Longtime
vocalist/lyricist Nathan Gearhart has stepped down due to family
obligations, and we now need a powerful frontman to fill his shoes. He
will be missed, but at the same time we are excited to have some new blood
in the band. We are currently looking for someone who will be fully
committed to shows, practices, and tours and must have great stage
presence. We DO NOT want a Nathan clone, and would prefer someone who can
bring something new to our sound. No matter what 'scene' you are from, if
you are an extreme metal vocalist, get in touch! The goal is to expand,
and reach a wider audience with our new vocalist so if you are interested,
please email vehemence@vehemence.com

DRUMMER wanted - Chicago death metal band Gorgasm, is looking for a new
drummer. We are looking for someone who is serious about music and is
ready, willing and able to tour all over the world. Contact
gorgasmusic@yahoo.com

DRUMMER wanted - New York based black metal band ASH are seeking a
full-time member for studio and live work. The band's music can be
described as raw, hateful black metal in the vein of Darkthrone, Ulver,
Dawn, and Khold. Interested parties should contact Narg at
slaughtersun2003@yahoo.com
ARTIST wanted - San Diego True Metal band Skelator has begun recording
their self-produced
EP, "SWORDS." Any good metal album cover artists should contact
SkelatorsRedOmen@yahoo.com

BASSIST, DRUMMER & GUITARIST wanted - New York based MAHAVATAR, featuring
Jamaican guitarist Karla Williams and Israeli vocalist Lizza Hayson, will
release their debut album Go With The NO! on February 15th through Cruz
del Sur Music. The ladies are currently looking for a new bass player,
drummer and rhythm guitarist to fill Mahavatar's ranks. Contact can be
made at info@mahavatar.net.

DRUMMER & KEYBOARDIST wanted - Magick Records recording artist, ICARUS
WITCH is auditioning for full time drummer & keyboardist willing to write,
rehearse, record & tour. Based in Pittsburgh, PA this true metal band's
influences are classic Dio, Maiden, Priest, Queensryche, Rainbow, etc.
Serious inquires email jmyers@cleorecs.com



-- READERS' POLL 2004 --


The results are in, and here's how you voted:


BEST ALBUM OF 2004
(tie)
Lamb of God 'Ashes of the Wake'
Megadeth 'The System Has Failed'


BEST BAND WEBSITE
Dimmu Borgir
http://www.dimmu-borgir.com


BEST LABEL WEBSITE
Century Media Records
http://www.centurymedia.com


BEST PRINT MAGAZINE WEBSITE
Brave Words and Bloody Knuckles
http://www.bwbk.com


BEST METAL WEBSITE
SMN News
http://www.smnnews.com


Thank you to everyone who participated in the voting.



-- FEATURES --


Recent Features:


SUFFOCATION
http://www.metalupdate.com/interviewsuffocation.html

HYPOCRISY
http://www.metalupdate.com/interviewhypocrisy2.html

CARCASS
http://www.metalupdate.com/interviewcarcass.html



-- REVIEWS --


- METAL JUDGMENT -
http://www.metaljudgment.com


Tristania 'Ashes'
(Abyss, Death, Hel)
http://www.metaljudgment.com/albums/tristania_frames.html

Slayer, Killswitch Engage, Mastodon Concert
(Abyss, Death, Hel, Requiem)
http://www.metaljudgment.com/concerts/slayerkem_frames.html

Trans-Siberian Orchestra Concert
(Redwolff)
http://www.metaljudgment.com/summary/tso04_frames.html

Gluecifer 'Automatic Thrill'
(Martyr)
http://www.metaljudgment.com/summary/gluecifer_frames.html

Rwake 'If You Walk Before You Crawl You Crawl Before You Die'
(Piss Angel)
http://www.metaljudgment.com/summary/rwake_frames.html

Various Artists 'Death Metal: A Documentary' DVD
(Requiem)
http://www.metaljudgment.com/summary/deathdoc_frames.html

Gwar 'Tour de Scum' DVD
(Metal Militia)
http://www.metaljudgment.com/summary/gwartdvd_frames.html

Carrion 'The Crime of Idle Hands'
(Redwolff)
http://www.metaljudgment.com/summary/carrion_frames.html

Ulysses Siren 'Above the Ashes' - Classic
(Slither)
http://www.metaljudgment.com/classics/usiren_frames.html

Daath - Demo
(Slither)
http://www.metaljudgment.com/demos/daath_frames.html

Insurrection - Demo
(Sabbath)
http://www.metaljudgment.com/demos/insurrection_frames.html



-- NEW RELEASES --


12/03 - Desecration - Murder in Mind
12/11 - Thargos - Black Metal Punkz
12/13 - Daylight Dies - Live from the Contamination Festival
12/13 - Death Reality - Bloodprints
12/13 - Destruktor - Nuclear Storm
12/13 - Nunslaughter - The Bog People
12/13 - Spawn - Human Toxin
12/17 - Atomizer - Songs of Sacrifice . . . Songs of Slaughter
12/25 - Nunslaughter / Soulless - Scorn on the 4th of July
12/25 - Nunslaughter - Christmassacre
12/30 - Digested Flesh - The Answer to Infection
1/04 - The Mass - City of Dis
1/04 - Razor Crusade - Infinite Water
1/04 - With Honor / The Distance - Split CD
1/08 - Cowboy Prostitutes - Cowboy Prostitutes
1/10 - A Perfect Murder - Rehearsal
1/11 - Alabama Thunderpussy - Constellation
1/11 - Alabama Thunderpussy - Rise Again
1/11 - Ayreon - Actual Fantasy Revisited
1/11 - Bodies in the Gears of the Apparatus / Despised Icon - Split CD
1/11 - Mad Margritt - Straight Through the Heart
1/11 - Razor Crusade - Infinite Water
1/13 - Ordained - 50 Ways to Kill Your Lover
1/14 - Abgott - Fizala
1/15 - Last Crack - Burning Funkhouse Live
1/18 - Chris Caffery - Faces
1/18 - Darkthrone - Sardonic Wrath
1/18 - Yyrkoon - Occult Medicine
1/24 - Blessing the Hogs - The Twelve Gauge Solution
1/24 - Cursed - Two
1/24 - Dark Tranquillity - Character
1/24 - Firewind - Forged by Fire
1/24 - Morgoth - 1987-1997: The Best of Morgoth
1/24 - Nevea Tears - Do I Have to Tell You Why I Love You
1/24 - Puritys Failure - Extensions EP
1/24 - The Secret - Luce
1/24 - The Smackdown - Calling the Spots
1/24 - Until the End - The Blind Leading the Lost
1/24 - The Warriors - War is Hell
1/25 - Akercocke - Rape of the Bastard Nazarene
1/25 - Agnostic Front - Another Voice
1/25 - Behemoth - Demigod
1/25 - Dark Tranquillity - Character
1/25 - God Dethroned - Lair of the White Word
1/25 - Imperial - This Grave is My Poem
1/25 - Nightwish - From Wishes to Eternity (Live) - DVD
1/25 - Seemless - Seemless
1/25 - Society 1 - Fearing the Exit - DVD
1/25 - V/A - Alone in the Dark - Soundtrack
1/28 - Veiled Allusions - When Darkness Descends



-- IN PRINT --


METAL MANIACS
http://www.metalmaniacs.com

The February 2005 issue is out now featuring: Ancient, Anthrax, Arch
Enemy, Arkhon Infaustus, Axis Of Advance, Ewigkeit, The Haunted, Herod,
Jethro Tull, Jungle Rot, Lickgoldensky, Lyzanxia, Psyopus, Malevolent
Creation, Meshuggah, Murder Squad, Napalm Death, Nortt, Rotting Christ,
Rwake, Scarlet, Thralldom, Witchmaster



-- ON THE NET --


BEOWOLF PRODUCTIONS & TREATS FROM THE UNDERGROUND!
http://www.beowolfproductions.com

New features: Amish Armada, Circle of Dead Squirrels, St. Madness


HEAVY METAL UNIVERSE
http://www.heavymetaluniverse.com

New features: Angra, Saxon


LIVE 4 METAL
http://www.live4metal.com

New features: Lair of the Minotaur, Zombie Ritual, Mercury Rain


METAL VOX
http://www.metalvox.com.br

New features: Shadow of Sadness, Dark Season


PIVOTAL RAGE
http://www.pivotalrage.com

Pivotal Rage is featured in the 'Zine and Not Heard section of the
February 2005 issue of Metal Maniacs


VAMPIRE MAGAZINE
http://www.vampire-magazine.com

New features: Ad Vitam Aeternam, Ayreon, Crest Of Darkness, Daysend, De
Lirium's Order, Dead Soul Tribe, Deadborn, Divercia, Hades Almighty,
Illdisposed, Infernö, Karl Sanders/Nile, Machine Head, Mortiis, Sauron,
Severe Torture, Slumber, Valafar, Vreid



-- TOUR DATES --

(Dates are subject to change - check local listings)


DEEP FREEZE FESTIVAL
1/15 -- Westminster, CO
Flotsam And Jetsam, JagPanzer, Silencer, Corruption, Esovae, Depth Charge,
Empyrean Eclipse, Of Winds And Faint Echoes


DOOMFEST III
http://www.doomfest3.homestead.com
1/07 - 1/08 -- Lansing, IL
Animated Dead, Forsaken, Necrodemon, Arnolfini Marriage, Leper Colony,
Dark Disciple, Flesh Gallery, The Wretched, Epicedium, Bone Crushing
Annihiation, Solidification, Legion, Mouth Of The Architect, Enforsaken,
Kenshiro, Cursed Eternity Cryptic, Drogheda, Riphead, Black Trinity
Decrypt, Withering Soul, Estuary, Veneficum, Circle Of Dead Children,
Mummification


SICK SHITFEST 3
http://www.sickshitfest2005.cjb.net
01/22 -- Albany, NY
Pyrexia, Dehumanized, Disciples of Berkowitz, Circle of Dead Children
Mucopus, Organ Harvest, Scucca, Re-creation, Splatt Guts Mortal Decay,
Screaming Afterbirth, Total Fucking Destruction Clitorture, Last Call,
Brick by Brick ,Hell On Sunday Street Sweeper, El Chupacabre


TRAUMAFEST
1/07 - 1/08 -- Madrid, SPA
Dismember, Repulsion, Macabre, Extreme Noise Terror, Pungent Stench, Dead
Infection, Pig Destroyer, Fromtheashes, Strong Intention, Wormed


SOILWORK w/ DARK TRANQUILLITY, HYPOCRISY & MNEMIC
4/05 Buffalo, NY
4/06 Chicago, IL
4/07 Milwaukee, WI
4/08 Lawrence, KS
4/09 Englewood, CO
4/10 Salt Lake City, UT
4/12 Seattle, WA
4/14 San Francisco, CA
4/15 Anaheim, CA
4/16 Los Angeles, CA
4/17 Scottsdale, AZ
4/19 Austin, TX
4/20 Houston, TX
4/22 Columbus, OH
4/23 Philadelphia, PA
4/26 Atlanta, GA
4/27 Orlando, FL
4/29 W. Springfield, VA
4/30 Hartford, CT
5/01 New York, NY
5/03 Quebec City, QC
5/05 Toronto, ON
5/07 Detroit, MI


SUFFOCATION w/ BEHEMOTH, CATTLE DECAPITATION & DEVILINSIDE
1/17 Nashville, TN
1/18 Fayetteville, NC
1/20 Ft. Lauderdale, FL
1/21 Seminole, FL
1/22 Jacksonville, FL
1/23 Atlanta, GA
1/24 New Orleans, LA
1/25 Houston, TX
1/26 San Antonio, TX
1/27 Dallas, TX
1/29 Albuquerque, NM
1/30 Tucson, AZ
1/31 Phoenix, AZ
2/01 Santa Ana, CA
2/02 Los Angeles, CA
2/03 San Francisco, CA
2/04 Portland, OR
2/05 Seattle, WA
2/07 Salt Lake City, UT
2/08 Denver, CO
2/09 Omaha, NE
2/10 Minneapolis, MN
2/11 Sauget, IL
2/12 Detroit, MI
2/13 Chicago, IL
2/14 Cleveland, OH
2/15 Philadelphia, PA
2/16 New York, NY
2/17 Hartford, CT
2/18 Worcester, MA
2/19 Cohoes, NY
2/20 Montreal, QC
2/21 Quebec, QC
2/22 Ottawa, ON
2/23 Toronto, ON
2/25 Rochester, NY
2/26 Baltimore, MD
2/27 Jacksonville, NC


FOR A COMPLETE LIST OF TOUR DATES GO TO:

http://www.metalupdate.com/tour.html



-- LINKS --


VICTORY RECORDS
http://www.victoryrecords.com

DARK TRANQUILLITY
http://www.darktranquillity.com

MERCENARY
http://www.mercenary.dk

DEVILINSIDE
http://www.devilinsidemafia.com

SYSTEM OF A DOWN
http://www.systemofadown.com


=====

If you, your band, your label, your wwwsite or your 'zine have information
that you believe would be of interest to Metal Update readers, please
contact the Metal Update at editor@metalupdate.com

(c) Copyright 2005 by http://www.metalupdate.com - All Rights Reserved

Metal Update
PO Box 979
Santa Monica, CA 90406
USA