Heavy metal legends Iced Earth are currently touring North America, joined by Volbeat, Hellyeah and The Sixxis through July 24th. In regards to the, Jon Schaffer (rhythm, lead and acoustic guitars/backing vocals) commented, “I’m completely stoked, Volbeat is one of my all-time favorite bands, and Michael and the boys are great people. There is a lot of mutual respect and admiration, and I think we are in for a hell of a good time! This will be a package that won’t soon be forgotten, I’m sure of that.”

‘Iced Earth’ are touring in support of their tenth studio album ‘Dystopia’, which was released last year via Century Media Records. To commemorate the tour, Iced Earth are released a limited tour edition of ‘Dystopia’. Currently available only at the merchandise stands on the tour, the 2-disc ‘Dystopia Tour Edition’ contains the original full-length album, as well as b-side covers of the Iron Maiden track ‘The Trooper’ and Black Sabbath’s ‘Mob Rules’, as well as the classic 17-minute Iced Earth track ‘Dante’s Inferno’, re-recorded with vocalist Stu Block. The bonus disc also contains both music videos from ‘Dystopia’ – the title track and ‘Anthem’ – as well as a ‘Making of Dystopia’ studio interview with the band, and exclusive cell phone skins and desktop backgrounds.

Iced Earth Tour Dates:
July 2 – Shrine Auditorium in Billings, MT
July 3 – Knitting Factory in Spokane, WA
July 5 – Knitting Factory in Spokane, WA
July 6 – Knitting Factory in Boise, ID
July 7 – Knitting Factory in Reno, NV
July 8 – Warfield Theatre in San Francisco, CA
July 10 – The Grove of Anaheim in Anaheim, CA
July 11 – Marquee Theatre in Tempe, AZ
July 12 – House Of Blues in Las Vegas, NV
July 13 – The Great Salt Air in Magna, UT
July 14 – Mesa Theatre & Club in Grand Junction, CO **headlining off date**
July 15 – Colorado Springs City Auditorium in Colorado Springs, CO
July 16 – Sokol Auditorium in Omaha, NE **off date with VOLBEAT**
July 18 – Sherman Theater in Stroudsburg, PA
July 19 – Rams Head Live! in Baltimore, MD
July 22 – Sherman Theater in Stroudsburg, PA
July 23 – Norva Theater in Norfolk, VA
July 24 – Rams Head Live! in Baltimore, MD

Death metal band Wretched have officially announced their sixth headlining tour to date. The tour kicks off in Fort Collins, Colorado on July 17th, ending at Hooligan’s on August 10th in Jacksonville, North Carolina.

Formed in 2005 in Charlotte, North Carolina, Wretched started dominating their local music scene and quickly gained a very supportive following. They signed to Victory Records in 2009, releasing t heir third album on the label, ‘Son Of Perdition’, on March 26th. Their latest LP features new vocalist Adam Cody from Glass Casket.

Wretched are Steven Funderburk and John Vail on guitar, Andrew Grevey on bass, Marshall Wieczorek on drums and Adam Cody on vocals.

Wretched Tour Dates:
July 17 – Fort Collins, CO at Hodis Halfnote
July 18 – Englewood, CO at Mo’s
July 19 – Ogden, UT at The Basement
July 21 – Tacoma, WA at Hell’s Kitchen
July 22 – Seattle, WA at El Corazone
July 24 – Stockton, CA at Please For Peace Center
July 26 – Walnut Creek, CA at Red House
July 27 – Las Vegas, NV at Cheyenne Saloon
July 29 – Phoenix, AZ at Rocky Point Cantina
July 30 – El Paso, TX at Lips Lounge
July 31 – Austin, TX at Dirty Dog Bar
August 02 – Waco, TX at Beatnix Burger Barn
August 03 – San Antonio, TX at The White Rabbit
August 04 – Shreveport, LA at The Riverside Warehouse
August 06 – Fayetteville, AR at Rogue
August 08 – Knoxville, TN at Long Branch Saloon
August 09 – Spartanburg, SC at Ground Zero
August 10 – Jacksonville, NC at Hooligan’s

Connecticut emo/indie rockers The World Is A Beautiful Place (And I am No Longer Afraid To Die) has entered Format Audio Studio in Haverhill, MA with engineer Ryan Stack (My Heart To Joy) to begin recording ‘Whenever, If Ever’, their debut LP for Topshelf Records, due out this fall.

The band will be documenting the recording process with a series of video journals along the way at theworldisa.tumblr.com.

TWIABP will take a break from recording to play a series of dates in July and August. See dates below.

July 5 – New Brunswick NJ at Bath Haus w/ Souvenirs, Ex Wife, Dads
July 6 – Wallingford CT at Secret Location (Meet at Redscroll Records) w/ Souvenirs, Self Defense Family
July 7 – Providence Ri at Blood Drive Co Op w/ Souvenirs
July 8 – Garden City NY at Today’s Mixtape Fest w/ Iron Chic, Such Gold, Front Bottoms, Souvenirs
July 13 Springfield MA at Bramble Jam
Aug 10 and 11 – Blacksburg VA at I Got Brains Fest
Aug 14 – Hamden CT at The Space w/ Joyce Manor, Algernon Cadwallader

TWIABP is:
Thomas Diaz – Keyboards, Vocals
Josh Cyr – Bass
Derrick Shanholtzer – Guitar, Vocals
On Horse – Guitar, Vocals
Steven Buttery – Drums
Chris Teti – Guitar, Trumpet