Metal Contraband News For October 13th, 2026:
This week in Metal Contraband:
Skateboard Marketing recently celebrated the 35th Anniversary with a red carpet event, taking place at The Meadows in Brooklyn on October 9th. Hosted by Don Jamieson, the celebration featured Alex Skolnick, Bobby Blitz, Chris Caffery, Tommy Victor, Danny Schuler, Veronica Belino, Mike Orlando, Jeff Cummings, Will Winton, Puch, Sal Locco, and Ron Lipnicki as part of the All Star Jam Band. Skateboard Marketing and Metal Contraband’s very own Munsey Ricci said of the event, “I am so happy this all came together for our 35th anniversary. It’s been five years since the last company showcase and we’re all looking forward to a great night with some classic songs and laughs with Don. Having everybody in the room together will be nothing short of brilliant”. An Anniversary Party special edition of the editorial will make an appearance right here on Metal Contraband next week.
Ozzy & Black Sabbath: Back To The Beginning will have a purple carpet world premiere on Wednesday, October 14th at The Orpheum Theatre in Los Angeles. Hosted by the Osbourne Family, 50% of each ticket sold will be donated to Los Angeles homeless charities. The film will also have a worldwide theatrical release on October 28th. Watch the official trailer here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYgfWls_DNo&feature=youtu.be and find all the info at: https://www.backtothebeginning.com/.
Judas Priest has announced the retirement of Ian Hill with the following statement: “It is with heavy hearts that we are sending out this personal message from our Ian….he has been the backbone of Judas Priest for so long and will be greatly missed by us all….we wish him well in his retirement and welcome Davey into the Priest Family…”. The personal message from Ian is as follows: “Hello everyone, for a long time now, when asked “how long can you continue” – I’ve always answered “until my performances suffer”…..I hate to say it, but that time has come. For some years now, I’ve been struggling with the onset of the evil arthritis, which is now in an advanced state in my left shoulder and right hand, established in my right shoulder, and present in both knees. I’ve been fighting this with painkilling pills, gels, and recently with cortisone injections in my shoulder and hand. Although, I was able to put bass lines to the songs for the new album, there were questions whether I’d be able to complete the recent European tour without incident, so we asked our good friend Davey Rimmer from Uriah Heep, and of course Elegant Weapons, to learn the set list to stand in for me if I had to pull out, which I did for the London show. This was due to me snapping a tendon in my left shoulder (as if I didn’t have enough problems with it!) just before the encores during the Brussels show two days before. This led to me not being able to lift my arm enough to reach the neck of my bass. So we had to call Davey to stand in for me, who put in an incredible performance at such short notice! I’ve seen specialists, who suggest I might get away without surgery, but even if I don’t there’s no guarantee either way that I’ll have enough strength in my shoulder/arm to complete a whole stage show. In view of all this, and the fact that I’ve neglected my family life for fifty seven years, I’ve decided to retire and spend the remaining years making up for it, and doing things with them before it involves one of ‘em pushing me around in a wheelchair. The obvious choice for my replacement is Davey. He’s a great bassist, and a genuinely nice bloke who’ll fit the job perfectly, and I wish him the very best of luck! There’s not a day goes by where I don’t give thanks for the incredible journey I’ve lived through, and it just remains for me to say that I love you all, and thank you for the life you’ve let me live. IAN HILL”.
Mental Cruelty is just about to release Echoes of a Forlorn Land, set for October 23rd via Century Media Records. This week, you can check out “Ride of the Valkyries”, a cinematic music video created with Grupa13: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RyTI4-f7KFc. Vocalist Lukas Nicolai says of the track, “‘Ride of the Valkyries’ is the grand finale ahead of the release of our new LP ‘Echoes of a Forlorn Land.’ It closes the album (alongside intro ‘Dämmerbruch’) with heroic atmosphere, bombastic orchestration and uplifting melodies to tell the tale of Norse mythology’s angelic deliverers of the dead. Symphonic death metal’s epic riffing serves as the perfect soundtrack to fallen warriors’ journey to Valhalla, as well as the battlefield below, where the likes of Children of Bodom, Wintersun and Ensiferum clash with each other and influences like black metal and deathcore. We matched that with the biggest, most expensive and over-the-top production we’ve ever done, both musically and visually. We teamed up with production company Grupa13 (Behemoth, Amon Amarth) to create our own blockbuster, complete with a captivating intro and epic emotional ending. Throughout are stunning shots centered around a historically-accurate Norse village and re-enactors who focus on the time period to keep it true. This is basically our own little Viking movie!” Keep up with the band via: https://mentalcrueltyofficial.com/.
Fit For A King has just announced the deluxe edition of 2025’s Lonely God, set for an October 30th release via Solid State Records. Check out the new visualizer video for “Dirt” here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoV_FeYdYk0. Frontman Ryan Kirby says, “‘Dirt’ is about struggling to take accept fault for any of your failures. And creating stories of how others lead to your downfall are speeding up the inevitable destruction of your hopes and dreams”. Find more at: https://fitforakingband.com/.
Chart Editor: Munsey Ricci from Skateboard Marketing Ltd.
Editorial By Chelsea Nelson-Fernandez & Munsey Ricci
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