On December 22nd, a limited, special edition of Metallic Spheres, the collaboration between The Orb and David Gilmour, was released in Japan.

With a definite eye on the Japanese market (as music fans there do like inclusive packages), Sony have brought together the various elements that have been seen in other countries, and coupled these with a pair of special music videos which haven't been commercially released elsewhere.

As a reminder, this cross-over album release from The Orb sprung from the Chicago sessions, and the standard album consists of the "Metallic Side" and "Spheres Side". The Japanese edition also includes a bonus disc featuring the alternative mix of the album created with the new "3D60" process, which creates a 360-degree sound experience when heard on headphones, using stereo tracks without the need for any special audio equipment. It also includes a special edit, alongside the aforementioned music videos.

Somewhat uniquely, the Japanese edition is on the new, high-fidelity Blu-spec CD format (which is compatible with standard CD players) which you can find out more about below...

A new announcement has appeared on the tour page of RogerWaters.com which confirms his filming and recording plans for the Wall tour, ending many months of speculation over whether or not this would be done on this tour. Here's what the announcement says:

"Roger Waters will be filming and recording all 6 shows at The O2 Arena in London in May. For these shows, photographs are permitted but we must insist on NO Flash photography. Flash wipes out the images projected on the Wall, which are the most important part of the show. Any person who uses Flash will have their camera confiscated and could be removed from the Arena."

Expectations are high of course that one of the London shows will see the promised guest appearance from David Gilmour, itself subject to much debate and rumour during the North American leg of the tour! Tickets are still available for the London shows through this direct link to Ticketmaster.co.uk and other normal agents. Our thanks to our friend Werner over at Pulse & Spirit for the head's up on this.

Guitarist Dave Kilminster, currently touring with Roger Waters "The Wall Live" which has just finished a 56-date run in North America, is to play some special US dates in early 2011 with vocalist extraordinaire Murray Hockridge, whose emotive, soulful voice spans an incredible three and a half octaves.

Clearly not relishing the break that the Wall tour is taking (it restarts on March 21st in Portugal) Dave and Murray will be performing music from their forthcoming album 'Closer To Earth', a collection of vocal and acoustic guitar interpretations of 11 rock and soul classics. The live sets will also include original material from both artistes' repertoires.

The preliminary dates (there are more to be added) are as follows:

Well, after some 56 concerts, the 2010 Roger Waters "The Wall Live" tour has now finished. The show has thrilled people from coast to coast of the US, Canada, and also took in three nights in Mexico to conclude things nicely. Reviews, pictures and videos for each of the concerts are available on the respected showpages within the 2010 Roger Waters Wall Tour Zone, and our thanks to everyone who has contributed over the last few months. If you still want to submit your thoughts, memories, or pictures, please feel free to, at the normal email address of This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

There was a special treat for those at the penultimate Mexico City concert on December 19th, with an additional song performed at the very end of the show especially for the Mexican audience! Further details of that - including video footage of what occurred - can be found on the showpage.

In an update to this, we now know that the additional song was performed to conclude the final show as well! More details of this concert in the December 21st showpage...