Reggae-metal crossover band Skindred have announced they are to play a short run of UK dates next April, taking in the biggest venues they’ve headlined at so far.

Still promoting their fourth studio album ‘Union Black’, you can catch the band at the following venues:

O2 Academy Leeds (April 10)
O2 ABC Glasgow (11)
O2 Academy Newcastle (12)
O2 Academy Brixton (13)
O2 Academy Bristol (14)

Irish alt-rock band Therapy? will provide support at all shows.

In a recent interview with Billboard magazine, Slipknot frontman Cory Taylor claims the band’s fifth album will be entirely inspired by bassist Paul Gray.

He told the US magazine “We know that everything we do on that album is going to be about Paul. It’s going to be very melancholy. It’s going to be a more saddened form of rage when it does happen, and it’ll be a whole path that we’ve never gone down before.”

It is not known when the band’s fifth record will materialise – and it may not be any time soon – but the band have said they’re all writing material.

Watch Slipknot’s complete live set from Rock In Rio 2011 here.

Black Label Society have released three festive acoustic instrumentals via iTunes.

‘Glorious Christmas Songs That Will Make Your Black Label Heart Feel Good’ features the following cuts:
01. I’ll Be Home For Christmas
02. Oh Little Town Of Bethlehem
03. It’s A Wonderful World

The one-time Ozzy sideman’s band have also been confirmed as the aupport act at the following Guns N’ Roses shows:

Dec. 03 – Atlanta, GA – Masquerade (no GN’R, BLS headlining show)
Dec. 04 – Nashville, TN – Bridgestone Arena
Dec. 05 – Southaven, MS – DeSoto County Civic Center
Dec. 07 – Youngstown, OH – The Covelli Centre
Dec. 08 – Indianapolis, IN – Conseco Fieldhouse
Dec. 10 – Kansas City, MO – Beaumont (no GN’R, BLS headlining show)
Dec. 11 – Broomfield, CO – 1st Bank Center

On October 24th 2011, the debut album by Diamond Head was reissued as a deluxe double CD.

‘Lightning to the Nations’ – also known as ‘The White Album – was originally released in October 1980 and featured some of the band’s most famous songs: ‘Am I Evil?’, ‘The Prince’ and ‘Helpless’, all three of which were covered by Metallica at various points in their career.

The full track listing for the reissue is as follows:

Disc One:

01. Lightning To The Nations
02. The Prince
03. Sucking My Love
04. Am I Evil?
05. Sweet And Innocent
06. It’s Electric
07. Helpless

Disc Two:

01. Shoot Out The Lights
02. Streets Of Gold
03. Waited Too Long
04. Play It Loud
05. Diamond Lights
06. We Won’t Be Back
07. I Don’t Got

(Diamond Head connoisseurs may note that the track listing is exactly the same as the single disc expanded remaster from 2008. In keeping with Universal’s “Deluxe Edition” series, this 2011 release has been housed in a fold out digipak and needlessly spread across two discs.)

Red Hot Chili Peppers have announced their plans to play three enormous gigs in Summer 2012.

The three shows will take place in the UK and Ireland on the following dates:

Knebworth Park, Stevenage – June 23
Stadium Of Light, Sunderland – June 24
Croke Park, Dublin – June 26

Tickets are on sale from Friday November 4th at 9AM.

The band embark on the nine date UK/Ireland leg of the ‘I’m With You’ tour later this month.

Read a review of ‘I’m With You’ here.