Former METALLICA bassist and NEWSTED frontman Jason Newsted checked in with the following update on Sunday, February 3rd:

"We're having a good, productive weekend here at the Chophouse. I talked the boys into signing the second pressing Metal EP CDs in between set-up and rehearsal yesterday. So, the new batch of 2000 is band-autographed and set to go out to anyone that wants to be a part of this. In addition, it looks like the Newsted tour will begin second week of April in Northern California. Stay tuned for latest info."

Newsted recenty caught up with Classic Rock Revisisted's Jeb Wright to discuss his new band, NEWSTED. An excerpt from the interview is available below:

Jeb: Are there any feelings, even with a half grin to Metallica that you can do this on your own without them? Is there any middle finger to them?

Jason: "There is nothing vindictive or anything like that. There really isn’t any negativity at all between us anymore. It's all water under the bridge and it has been 12 years now. That kind of sour and silly stuff was quite a while ago. It was mostly reactionary, I think. Now, it’s really strong and pretty awesome. They’ve got their band kicking butt like always and I’ve got my new band and I feel like I’m 19 again—I really do feel that way.

We got this fricking EP, only four songs, to number one on iTunes for two weeks out of my garage with me and three other dudes. We are competing with big companies and bands that have full albums out; that’s pretty cool. That’s saying something. My answer to your question is to let the music do the talking. There are no digs to anyone and there is nothing negative. Let’s just fucking rock."

Jeb: I know you sang a couple of songs live with Metallica, but you were never a lead singer. This album shows you can be a lead singer.

Jason: "That took a long time. I’ve always done the Cookie Monster type vocals; that’s what I’m known for. I spent six to eight years trying to find that real voice in me—not just the Cookie Monster voice. I work on it quite a bit. We have captured a lot of great performances on these songs and I want to make sure I do them proud. I take a lot better care of my voice than I ever have before. It is a new voice in this old school body. I found my voice, but it really took a while to get there. My experiences with James (Hetfield, Metallica guitarist/vocalist) and my experiences with Snake from Voivod really taught me a lot."

Click here for the complete interview.

The debut EP from Newsted, called Metal, sold approximately 6,200 copies in the US in its first week to enter the Billboard 200 chart at #62. Metal was released on January 8th exclusively via iTunes. The physical CD is available for pre-order at the official Newsted store here.

Newsted released their first video, for the track 'Soldierhead' this week. The song is featured on the band's new Metal EP, and the video - directed by Leon Melas, can be seen below:

Newsted spoke to BraveWords recently about their new four-song EP, Metal, which was released on CD yesterday (January 15th). The four tracks on Metal make up the first of three batches of EPs to be released intermittently over the next year or so and were written and composed all by Newsted himself.

“These songs are old-school metal. I went back to what I know the best and what I spent the most hours of my life doing," Newsted explains to BraveWords. "That’s what we recorded on this. It’s an in your face, raw, present kind of music. I’ve been working on the lyrics for many years, they have a lot of meaning and each one tells a story. I’m really proud of that part and I’m looking forward to people seeing the lyrics again. I haven’t really been able to expose that kind of stuff out into the world since the FLOTSAM days. These are far different than the Flotsam lyrics, I’ve come a long way. Each song has its own thing as I see what’s around me. They very much are addressing issues of the world today.”

Read the entire interview here.