THE AGONIST vocalist Alissa White-Gluz is featured in a new interview with Vegbelly.com discussing her vegan lifestyle. An excerpt is available below:

Q: Since you’re in the spotlight, do you feel a responsibility to share animal compassion messages?

Alissa: "I don’t feel a responsibility to do so, but really veganism is what drives me to do everything in life. It is the catalyst for my passion for music and lyric-writing and I feel that having achieved a certain level of notoriety is a great gift – a platform to share information that isn’t shared in mainstream media. Animal rights is of great interest to me and so I share what I am interested in. That’s why I warn people that they don’t have to agree with me, but they can’t expect me to censor myself for them."

Q: In the song ‘Business Suits and Combat Boots’, you can find the line “Fuck your skinned-alive designer wear”. Why not just come out and say how you really feel? How do your fans react? Are they receptive to animal rights messages?

Alissa: "I think many of the fans just like the music, which is very flattering and I’m happy to accept that. There is a special kind of fan that I do come across quite often though, where I can see that they read and understood the lyrics. It’s really amazing to me, to witness that connection with a total stranger, knowing that the music and lyrics clicked for them and they 'get it.' I don’t expect everyone to go vegan overnight, and I don’t expect anyone to be perfect. But if a little consciousness could be awakened… even something as simple as someone avoiding meat products once a week or not buying animal-tested cosmetics anymore or opting for fake fur instead of real fur… that is a huge victory to me. Multiplied by every Agonist fan in the world, that is a tremendous reduction in suffering on the large scale. That’s why we call our fans The Prisoners. We are all prisoners in our conditioned state of mind... but once you open your eyes to a level of knowledge of reality that you can’t turn away from, you are commencing your escape. You don’t have to be part of the system and part of the cruelty. You can work against it. I like seeing young people ascending to that higher intelligence where they understand their place in the world and the impact they have a little bit better."

Go to this location for the complete interview.

The Agonist recently announced a string of US tour dates for July, due to take place after their one-off show supporting CANNIBAL CORPSE in Mexico City on July 3rd at Jose Cuervo Salon. The schedule can be viewed below:

July

3 - Mexico City, Mexico - Jose Cuervo Salon (with Cannibal Corpse)
15 - Des Moines, IA - Vaudeville Mews
16 - Madison, WI - RSR Stage
17 - Louisville, KY - Diamond Pub & Billiards
18 - Toledo, OH - Headliners Middle Room
20 - New York, NY - Tammany Hall

The band recently announced they have been added to DANZIG's 25th Anniversary Tour alongside CORROSION OF CONFORMITY. The band also confirmed a string of headline shows built around the tour and have now added three more shows to the schedule. They will play San Francisco, Santa Ana and Toronto on April 16th, April 29th and May 7th respectively:

April

11 - Saskatoon, SK - Lepps
13 - Kelowna, BC - The Level
14 - Seattle, WA - Studio Seven
16 - San Francisco, CA - DNA Lounge

April (with Danzig, Corrosion Of Conformity)

17 - Las Vegas, NV- House of Blues
19 - Denver, CO- Ogden Theater
20 - Albuquerque, NM- Sunshine Theater
22 - Austin, TX- Stubb’s
23 - Corpus Christi, TX- Concrete Street
24 - Dallas, TX- Palladium
26 - Phoenix, AZ- Marquee Theater
27 - Pomona, CA- Fox Theater
28 - Ventura, CA- Ventura Theater

April

29 - Santa Ana, CA - Alex Bar

May

1 - Oklahoma City, OK - Chameleon Room
2 - Kansas City, MO - Riot Room
3 - Mishawaka, IN - Smith's Downtown
4 - Muskegon, MI - Club Envy
5 - Joliet, IL - Mojoe's
6 - Buffalo, NY - Broadway Joe's
7 - Toronto, ON - WreckRoom
8 - Ottawa, ON - Maverick's

As previously reported, The Agonist recently posted the following statement regarding the cancellation of CRADLE OF FILTH's North American tour, which they were due to be a part of:

"We are truly sorry to those of you who were coming out to see us live. This cancellation was beyond our control and we are devastated by this news, both emotionally and financially. We devoted so much to this tour that to say we are disappointed would be an immense understatement. Please accept our sincere apologies and we hope to see you all again soon."

Since the announcement was made, The Agonist have added "The Tour That Never Was" shirts to their online merch store in order to offset some of the financial costs the cancellation left them with. These are the shirts that were printed up for the tour to be sold on the road. Go to this location to check them out and to purchase.