For fans of metal everywhere. The supergroup Metal Allegiance announced they’ll be returning to their second residence of Anaheim, California at the House of Blues on Thursday, Jan. 25 for their yearly get together.
For Angelenos, it’ll be a short drive down the five freeway to attend. This year marks the establishment of Bobby Blitz from the band Overkill and John Bush (Armored Saint / ex-Anthrax) to the group. There will also be some surprise guests thrown into the mix, in addition to the introductions.
“This time around, we have an abundance of fresh original material to add to the mix, as well as familiar classics, and it’s always a fun time,” said Alex Skolnick of Testament. Skolnick has been listed as one of the fastest guitarists in the world, according to Guitar World.
The night will also feature the original four members – David Ellefson of Megadeth, Skolnick, Mark Menghi, and Mike Portnoy of the Winery Dogs – who are currently engaging in a small hiatus from recording their second full-length LP.
The four core members reached out through to a diverse lineup of performers over the years, with their debut album from coming out in fall 2015. Each member has made a name for themselves in the metal genre, with Ellefson being the second longest serving member of Megadeth, Portnoy and his award-winning drumming skills, and Menghi, the glue and bassist behind the group. Metal Allegiance was born as a way to unite a collection of hard rock and heavy metal’s most notable musicians in a setting born under one ideal, a love of music and performing, according to Nuclear Blast.
The guests set to join them are Mark Osegueda (Death Angel), Gary Holt (Slayer/Exodus), Chuck Billy (Testament) and Andreas Kisser (Sepultura).
“It’s time for our annual metal summit in Anaheim. With new songs and album in the works, we’re looking forward to bringing the tribe back together to celebrate all things metal in January,” said Ellefson.
Sponsored by Musicians Institute and “Murder in the Front Row” novel, a forthcoming documentary, the night will include direct support from Nuclear Blast Entertainment label affiliation Wednesday 13. The openers the night are Superfix and a special Musician’s Institute formed band, who will be announced the day of the show.
“We’ve been doing Metal Allegiance shows in Anaheim at the end of January almost every year and it is always the metal event of the year,” said Portnoy. “Each year the show gets bigger and better.”
General admission tickets for the night just went on sale this past Friday and can be purchased here.
VIP packages that include the following will also be available:
-Early access into the venue
-Exclusive pre-show meet and greet with members of METAL ALLEGIANCE
-Includes photo opportunities and autograph signing
-Collectible tour poster
-T-Shirt
-METAL ALLEGIANCE 16oz pint glass
-Official meet & greet laminate
-Crowd free access to the merch booth
-Purchase your VIP packages on Friday, October 27th at 1pm EDT / 10am PDT