Metal Allegiance, the collective featuring a myriad of metal's best players including guitarist Alex Skolnick and drummer Mike Portnoy, will be paying tribute to some of rock and metal's recently departed icons with the Fallen Heroes EP. The three-song release will arrive on Aug. 12 through Nuclear Blast.

Fallen Heroes will feature three covers honoring Motorhead's Lemmy Kilmister, David Bowie and the Eagles' Glenn Frey. Guest vocalists were brought in to contribute to each cover with Troy Sanders (Mastodon) singing Motorhead's "Iron Fist," Mark Osegueda (Death Angel) performing Bowie's "Suffragette City" and Alissa White-Gluz (Arch Enemy) doing her rendition of the Eagles' "Life in the Fast Lane."

“The end of 2015 and most of 2016 has been a brutal year with many of our heroes passing," said bassist Mark Menghi. "When Portnoy called me in January to alert me that Glenn Frey had passed, I literally broke down. That night after having a few Tequila Sunrises in Glenn’s honor, a lightbulb went off… We’re going to record a few tunes to honor our fallen heroes. I called back Mike that evening and asked him what he thought and the next day we were in the studio recording. By weeks end, all guitars, drums and bass were complete. I can’t begin to explain the influence that Glenn Frey, Lemmy, and David Bowie had on me. Each of their music has helped me immensely during some real dark periods of my life and not to mention their influence on me as a musician and songwriter. Lemmy is God, Glenn is King and David is the Architect.”

Skolnick explained the selections, detailing, "These brilliant artists have an extensive catalogue that is sometimes on the softer side (with the exception of Motorhead, of course). So when it came to the Eagles and Bowie, we specifically chose tunes of theirs that are riff-based and translatable to high energy arrangements. For Lemmy, we immediately crossed out 'Ace of Spades' (great tune but the last thing the world needs is yet another cover version) and chose 'Iron Fist,' which we already had a good handle on from playing live and to us is every bit as much a signature Motorhead tune."

The passing of Lemmy was especially difficult for the members of Metal Allegiance. The idea to pursue the band as a regular activity was sparked on the 2014 Motorboat cruise held by Motorhead. When the group was asked to perform a tribute for Lemmy for his memorial service, Metal Allegiance learned of Bowie's passing mid-set.

On Aug. 11, Loudwire presents Metal Allegiance's warmup show before heading overseas to perform at the Bloodstock festival. The band will hit the stage at Saint Vitus in Brooklyn, N.Y. for a special performance of Deep Purple's famous live record, Made in Japan. Performing will be Skolnick, Osegueda, Menghi and guitarist Ron 'Bumblefoot' Thal. More members will be announced in the future.

Tickets for the show can be purchased here with VIP options available here. The VIP package includes a meet and greet with Metal Allegiance, limited edition t-shirt, exclusive tour poster, VIP laminate and a general admission ticket.

Loudwire Presents Metal Allegiance at Saint Vitus

Metal Allegiance - Saint Vitus
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