Away Team's Slim Jim Keller has issued a new interview with MACHINE HEAD drummer Dave McClain. An excerpt follows:

Q: You are getting ready to release Unto The Locust next month, what can we expect from the new stuff? Is it a progression from The Blackening? Is it a foray into a new Machine Head sound? Have you finally gone Dub Step to get on the radio?

A: (laughs) "Yeah! That’s it! Really, we just definitely challenged ourselves going into it. We were in no way going to make The Blackening II. From Through The Ashes Of Empires to The Blackening to now, there are the same feelings going on and we’re just pushing them further. The main difference is that we now have total musical freedom; no one is looking over our shoulder. Roadrunner is just like, ‘Just give us the record and we’ll run with it.’ We’ve tried to challenge ourselves as musicians. The first song we wrote called 'This Is The End', Robb and I got together one day after everyone had taken a couple months off and he’s like, ‘It’s not complete yet, but I’ve got this song here…’ and he goes into this classical guitar thing that he couldn’t really play that well yet because he’d just gotten into the classical guitar thing. Then the song just goes into this super blast beat thrashy thing and we were just, ‘FUCK! It’s the first song and it is already a super hard one to play!’ And that just set the tone for the whole album writing process. On this new album we have the hardest, fastest, most brutal stuff we’ve done. And then we have the song 'Locust' which is middle of the road, like almost a rock song for us with groovin’ beats, it’s just really weird. We’ve got some super dark stuff on there and then some mellow stuff that gets heavier, but over all just super dark theme wise. Robb Flynn went up to New York and started taking classical guitar lessons from this guy at the same time he was taking vocal lessons from LADY GAGA’s vocal coach. It’s all just us trying to push ourselves into a new place."

Read the complete interview at this location.

In a series of videos, Machine Head mainman Robb Flynn shows you how to play 'Locust', which comes from the band's forthcoming new album, Unto The Locust, due out September 27th on Roadrunner Records. Check out a sample below:

For the rest of this exclusive Guitar World lesson, head to this location.

Flynn took guitar lessons and vocal lessons to help the band get to the next level with their new album, Unto The Locust, and he said Rockstar Mayhem and IRON MAIDEN are to thank for that.

"It was great unlearn," says Flynn. "I've never had singing lessons. I had to unlearn 17 years of bad habits I had developed. It was just so hard! I've been playing guitar for half my life, I'm a king at this. It was a cool vulnerable place to write from."

Check out the Artisan News report below:

Flynn recently posted the following update regarding the band’s new album via his Twitter: “And the record... is... done...”

Machine Head will release Unto The Locust on September 27th via Roadrunner Records. The album artwork can be seen below:

Unto The Locust was recorded at JingleTown Studios in Oakland, California, with Machine Head frontman Robb Flynn producing. The album was mixed by Flynn and Juan Urteaga (EXODUS, SADUS, TESTAMENT).

Unto The Locust tracklistings:

Standard CD:

'I Am Hell (Sonata In C#)'

I) 'Sangre Sani'

II) 'I Am Hell'

III) 'Ashes To The Sky'

'Be Still And Know'

'Locust'

'This Is The End'

'Darkness Within'

'Pearls Before The Swine'

'Who We Are'

Special Edition CD+DVD:

'I Am Hell (Sonata in C#)'

I) 'Sangre Sani'

II) 'I Am Hell'

III) 'Ashes To The Sky'

'Be Still And Know'

'Locust'

'This Is The End'

'Darkness Within'

'Pearls Before The Swine'

'Who We Are'

'The Sentinel' *

'Witch Hunt' *

'Darkness Within' (Acoustic) *

* Bonus tracks

DVD:

- The Making Of Unto The Locust Documentary