Lucem Fero has issued an interview with ICED EARTH guitarist Jon Schaffer, conducted by Welsh interviewer Anthony Morgan. The following is an excerpt:

Q: Can you give me an overview of the Something Wicked story, and what it's about and so on?

A: "Well, an overview is really pretty difficult because it's so complex. Basically the story that I wrote back in late 1997, an original album called Something Wicked This Way Comes, ended with the trilogy.That trilogy was a point in time in the story that I wrote, so it's always been planned to actually do this big giant concept album. We had to put it on hold for a while due to changing record companies and what not, but it felt like it was time about a year and half ago to carry it on which is what I did. It's a big science fiction, fantasy thriller oriented story. It basically comes with the idea that mankind is alien to the planet Earth, and that there was a culture in ancient Earth, a culture here before us. The ones who had survived mankind are actually manipulating, and manipulating everything that we do now by the creation of religion - mankind divided, and blah blah blah. It's a big story which covers the period of about twelve thousand years, and that's what I mean when I say we could talk about it for hours. There's not any way to give you a short overview of the tale."

Read the full interview at this location.

SPV has confirmed the release dates for Iced Earth's forthcoming studio release, Framing Armageddon - Something Wicked Part I:

Germany: September 7

Rest of Europe: September 10

North America: September 11

Framing Armageddon - Something Wicked Part I is the first installment of a two disc release that builds upon the Set Abominae storyline first set forth on the band's 1998 Something Wicked This Way Comes release.

The Framing Armageddon - Something Wicked Part I tracklisting is as follows: 'Overture', 'Something Wicked (Part 1)', 'Invasion', 'Man's Motivation', 'The Setian Massacre', 'A Charge To Keep', 'Reflections', 'Ten Thousand Strong', 'Execution', 'Order Of The Rose', 'The Clouding', 'Infiltrate And Assimilate', 'Retribution Through The Ages', 'Something Wicked (Part 2)', 'The Domino Decree', 'Framing Armageddon', 'When Stars Collide (Born is He)', 'The Awakening'.

Go to this location to read BW&BK; scribe Mark Gromen's exclusive inside look at the forthcoming album.