ATLANTA, March 15, 2003 -- When Atlanta techno death metal band Dirt Nap (www.dirt-nap.com) goes into the studio next month to begin recording, they'll be joined by a familiar face to extreme music fans: drummer Kevin Talley. Talley will pound the skins for "Concentrate Living," the band's first album under the name Dirt Nap.

Guitarist Eyal Levi and vocalist Michael Kameron have been working together for ten years, the last two as Dirt Nap." The first time I heard Kevin play, I was blown away by how seamlessly he adapted to Dirt Nap's style," said Kameron. "And after our first session, he destroyed our drum kit. I knew then that he was the one."

Formerly of Dying Fetus and Misery Index, Talley was a finalist in Slayer's drummer auditions last year and has toured with '90s brutal death metal band Suffocation. He has been working on various independent projects since leaving Misery Index last summer.

"This is one of the most unique and refreshing bands I've heard in the extreme music world," Talley commented. "Nobody else mixes styles the way they do.

Levi and Kameron describe Dirt Nap as techno death metal. The band blends music from a variety of influences, though most listeners categorize their sound as a cross between techno, metal and soundtrack music.

Levi, the son of world renowned symphony conductor Yoel Levi, summed up in one sentence Dirt Nap's feelings about their collaboration with Talley. "It's about time we found a drummer who can keep up."

Drummer Dave Lombardo has confirmed that he will appear on the next SLAYER studio album, and if he has it his way, the record will see the light of day sooner rather than later.

"There is going to be a [SLAYER] record," Lombardo told Canada's Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles. "There will be a record ... if [the rest of the band] come up with music. I'm hoping they can come up with some music as soon as possible."

"I'm hoping that [it doesn't take them too long to come up with new material] this time," Lombardo added. "You never know, if they take a year or two years, will I still be interested? You never know. I don't know what is going to happen in that time frame. I'm hoping that they grasp the moment and run with it. You know, let's do it. Get on the ball. What are they doing now? I know I've a couple of records to put out within the next six months [the new FANTOMAS CD plus an all-out drum solo record on Mike Patton's label]. If there's like three guys sitting, writing, I hope they can come up with something."

As far as Lombardo is concerned, there are "no deadlines," he said. "I just told [guitarist] Jeff [Hannemann], 'Get home, wait a week and clean up your garage. Get your studio set up.' I kinda got him motivated a little. He was definitely motivated when I left him at the airport. I really didn't talk to [guitarist] Kerry [King] much about it. I had to question a couple of times that he wanted me to do the record. [Bassist/vocalist] Tom [Araya] was in on it. So, two-thirds is a plus and with Kerry, I feel he is a plus too."

In addition to the aforementioned projects, Lombardo has just finished recording the drums on five tracks for the forthcoming APOCALYPTICA record, tentatively due for release in late January.

SLAYER, SOULFLY, MOTORHEAD, DOWN, HATEBREED, and ARCH ENEMY are among the artists confirmed to appear at Beast Feast 2002, a two-day festival set to take place on December 14-15 at Makuhari Messe Event Hall in Tokyo, Japan.

The full lineup of acts currently scheduled to perform at the event is as follows:

SLAYER
SOULFLY
MOTORHEAD
DOWN
HATEBREED
ARCH ENEMY
CONVERGE
BURNT BY THE SUN
BATCAVE
COCOBAT
PULLING TEETH
SUNS OWL
UNDOWN
UNITED
YELLOW MACHINEGUN