Finnish metallers CHILDREN OF BODOM have commenced the songwriting process for their new album, tentatively due in early 2013 via the band's new label home (excluding Japan), Nuclear Blast Records. The group's drummer, Jaska Raatikainen, writes on his Facebook page, "We have some songs ready and I must say that they really sound great — very inspiring, dark and also little 'black' [metal]-ish. We have been joking about [CHILDREN OF BODOM guitarist/vocalist] Alexi [Laiho], that one day he will come to rehearsals with corpsepaint :-) ! So dark the songs have been."

CHILDREN OF BODOM released a photo book, "Roadkill", on August 8 via Hatecrew.com. The first 666 copies are numbered and personally signed by the band.

Photography for "Roadkill" started in 2007. It includes exclusive material of life on the road, shows, promo shoots, recording sessions, album cover production and the worldwide "hate crew," as the band's fans are affectionately known. The book also contains comments and diary entries by the band and the photographer, Jussi Hyttinen of FLC415.

CHILDREN OF BODOM was forced to cancel several shows in July — including those in Oslo, Norway and Malmö, Sweden — after Laiho was rushed to the hospital with extreme stomach pain.

After spending a week and a half receiving treatment in Oslo, Alexi was released from the hospital and the band performed at this year's Ilosaarirock festival, which was held July 13-15 in Joensuu, Finland.

CHILDREN OF BODOM's most recent release was "Holiday At Lake Bodom (15 Years Of Wasted Youth)" , a very special CD+DVD career retrospective in celebration of the band's 15th anniversary. The set spotlights specially selected tracks from every one of CHILDREN OF BODOM's critically acclaimed albums (1997's "Something Wild", 1999's "Hatebreeder", 2000's "Follow The Reaper", 2003's "Hate Crew Deathroll", 2005's "Are You Dead Yet?", 2008's "Blooddrunk" and 2011's "Relentless Reckless Forever"), plus two newly recorded (and undeniably fun) cover songs and detailed liner notes penned by the members of CHILDREN OF BODOM themselves. The DVD portion of the package includes "candid touring and backstage footage from around the world”, plus the "Shovel Knockout" video.