White Noise: News on Mastodon, Guns N’ Roses, Converge, Bury Your Dead, Hypocrisy and More

Every morning, this writer wakes up at 6 AM to start working on this column. The tough thing about working from home, though, that early in the morning: Dealing with my cats. You see, by now, my two cats, Dante and Jezebel, are used to my routine. Alarm goes off at 6, I wake up and feed them, all before plopping down on my couch and cruising the Interwebs. But it's hard to type and write this column every morning when I have two cats, one weighing in at 20 pounds, vying for my affections. As I type these words, a giant cat is splayed across my chest, snoring like a drunk. These cats just won't leave me be. They don't care about metal. They just want love and attention. So, if you ever see any typos in my copy, just assume it's because Dante's huge bum scraped one of the keys on my laptop. Anyways, I'll try and write around Dante's formidable torso ... let's get to the White Noise, kids.

+ On Nov. 10, Baby Rock Records will release 'Rockabye Baby! Lullaby Renditions of Guns N' Roses,' a collection of tracks from Axl Rose et al, crafted for your little devil. The 12 tracks on the set include 'Welcome to the Jungle,' 'Live & Let Die' and of course, something every parent and pet owner needs, 'Patience.'

+ Crown the Lost have parted ways with bassist Dom Scarano, and have replaced him with Tim Boyle of Grave Desire. No explanation for Scarano's departure was offered.

+ Mastodon will be filming its Oct. 17 gig at the Aragon Ballroom in Chicago for a future release, according to a statement from the band.

+ It leaked online last week, and this week, Converge's 'Axe to Fall' is streaming in its glorious entirety.

+ According to Brendon Small, co-creator of animated series 'Metalocalypse,' Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, Slash and members of In Flames and Mastodon will all have voiceover roles in the series' next season. "We just recorded Mastodon in the upcoming episode," Small says. "And they were ... we were blown away."

+ A Plea for Purging, Venia and Hundredth will head out on the road next month, starting in Montgomery, Ala. on Nov. 1. The tour runs through Nov. 21 in Buffalo, Minn.

+ Swedish death metallers Hypocrisy are giving fans a taste of their new album, well ahead of its Nov. 3 release. Hear some of 'A Taste of Extreme Divinity' over at the band's MySpace page. The track is called 'Hang Him High' and it rules.

+ Arsis are now plotting a Feb. 9, 2010, release date for their forthcoming LP, 'Starve For The Devil.'

+ The PRP claims there's a rumor floating around, which suggests Bury Your Dead have parted ways with bassist Aaron 'Bubble' Patrick. Nothing has been officially announced, but, its just a matter of time one way or the other.