BW&BK; has received the following press release:

HELLYEAH has announced an April, 2007 release date for their self-titled debut on Epic Records. The highly anticipated release features MUDVAYNE lead singer Chad Gray and guitarist Greg Tribbett, former PANTERA drummer Vinnie Paul and NOTHINGFACE guitarist Tom Maxwell and bassist Jerry Montano.

The quintet includes three of hard rock’s most revered and valuable players, with careers highlighted by an astonishing run of chart-topping gold and platinum albums, major industry awards, critical acclaim, Grammy nominations and music of monolithic power.

“Tom, Jerry and I have been talking about working together ever since we staggered through the streets of New Orleans five years ago,” says Mudvayne/HellYeah vocalist Chad "Helvis" Gray. "I mentioned it to Greg and he immediately wanted in, and when Vinnie came on board the whole thing just took on a life of its own. This was a must-do project for all of us.”
“The guys from HellYeah and the incredible music we’ve created have brought me back to what I love,” states Vinnie. “HellYeah is the best record I’ve collaborated on since Vulgar Display of Power. The vibe is ‘positive with a kick-your-ass-attitude.’ I can’t wait to take this band on tour.”

One of the most important and influential bands in the history of hard music, Pantera is credited with being a dominant influence in the sound and style of today’s metal. Co-founded with his brother, the late guitarist Darrell "Dimebag" Abbott, Vinnie Paul and their band mates sold over 14 million records worldwide. Pantera’s rise to metal fame was catapulted by the release of 1990’s Cowboys From Hell. Vulgar Display Of Power followed and with it, brought the band star status and domination in the hard rock/metal music community for a decade. The band received four Grammy nominations and a platinum sales award for The Great Southern Trendkill and Cowboys From Hell and double platinum kudos for Far Beyond Driven, which debuted at Number One on the Billboard album chart. The band’s final studio effort was 2000’s Reinventing The Steel. Darrell and Vinnie went on to form DAMAGEPLAN, releasing New Found Power in 2003. During a Damageplan performance in Columbus, Ohio, on December 8, 2004, Dimebag was fatally shot at the age of 38. In May of 2006, Vinnie’s record label, Big Vin Records, officially opened for business with the release of both a CD, REBEL MEETS REBEL and DVD, Dimevision Volume 1. That's The Fun I Have. The DVD debuted at #1 on the Billboard Top DVD Sales Chart has been certified gold in both the United States and Canada.

Nothingface guitarist Tom Maxwell has been a member of the band since its inception, while bassist Jerry Montano joined the group in late 2005. Nothingface has performed on both the Ozzfest and Tattoo The Earth tours, as well as sharing the bill with bands such as Disturbed, Pantera, Mudvayne and Ministry. After two records for DCide, 1997's Pacifier and 1998's An Audio Guide to Everyday Atrocity, Nothingface made its major label debut on TVT Records with 2000's Violence, and 2002's Skeletons to critical acclaim.

Gray and Tribbett will tour in support of the HellYeah debut in between recording the new Mudvayne album. The follow-up to 2004’s blockbuster release, Lost And Found, which debuted at #2 on Billboard’s Top 200, is due this fall and finds the Grammy-nominated quartet working once again with producer Dave Fortman (Evanescence, Superjoint Ritual).

Lost And Found was Mudvayne’s third consecutive gold-selling album and featured the blockbuster hit, 'Happy?' – a track that held the No. 1 spot at Active Rock Radio for ten consecutive weeks and was the overall #1 rock song for 2005 with over 50,000 plays. In addition,

fans voted the song’s companion clip the No. 1 Headbanger's Ball video of 2005. Of course, that was just part of the Mudvayne success story. The group also earned its first-ever Grammy nomination in the "Best Metal Performance" category for 'Determined', the first song issued from Lost And Found.

“It's cool to have both Mudvayne and HellYeah as creative outlets now, even though the approach, subject matter, and attitudes between the two projects are completely different,” says Gray. “I'm looking forward to balancing both bands in my life—my new extremely busy life.”