ICED EARTH will support VOLBEAT on their upcoming North American tour, with additional support from HELLYEAH.

Iced Earth leader Jon Schaffer has posted the following:

"Hello brothers and sisters! It is my honor to share some great news with you: Iced Earth will be supporting VOLBEAT on a North American tour starting on June 18th, 2012. The bill is rounded off by HELLYEAH!

I’m completely stoked, Volbeat is one of my all-time favorite bands, and Michael and the boys are great people. There is a lot of mutual respect and admiration, and I think we are in for a hell of a good time! This will be a package that won’t soon be forgotten, I’m sure of that.

I want to thank Volbeat for the invitation, and I look forward to many years of laying down the metal as both bands continue to grow and reach new audiences around the world.

We will see you on the road soon!"

Tour dates include:

June

18 - Toronto, ON - Kool Haus
19 - Detroit, MI - The Fillmore
21 - Boston, MA - House of Blues
23 - Clifton Park, NY - Northern Lights
26 - Saint Paul, MN - Myth
27 - Winnipeg, MB - Burton Cummings Theatre
29 - Weyburn SK - Crescent Point Place
30 - Gibbons, AB - Boonstock 2012

July

8 - San Francisco, CA - The Warfield
10 - Anaheim, CA - The Grove
11 - Tempe, AZ - Marquee Theatre
12 - Las Vegas, NV - House of Blues
15 - Colorado Springs, CO - City Auditorium

As previously reported, Iced Earth are adding on more shows to their massive World Dystopia Tour.

The show in Bangalore, India on June 16th is a first visit to India for the band and the show on August 19th in Limassol marks a much-clamored return to Cyprus, only eight months after their last show there. The show is being filmed and recorded for an upcoming DVD/CD release.

"The decision of where to do the next IE live album and DVD was not an easy one. We have experienced so many amazing audiences around the world that we really wish we could film them all. However, the electricity and atmosphere of the first show in Cyprus was so killer that we are convinced this is the best place to do our next DVD. Who knows what the future holds? There will be many more albums and touring cycles... your city may be next," says Jon Schaffer.

In other news, bass player Freddie Vidales has announced he will leave Iced Earth after the Chinese shows this April.

Due to the band's massive touring commitments, there was immediate need for a replacement and Luke Appleton (of FURY UK, with whom Iced Earth toured in Europe last winter) has stepped up to the plate and will be joining the tour in time for the show in India.

Iced Earth's complete tour schedule can be viewed at this location.