Today's Day in Rock
Foo Fighters Begin New Album
(Radio.com) Dave Grohl just can't stop rocking. After announcing last October that the Foo Fighters were set to "go away for a while," Grohl has revealed that the band is ready to reconvene and begin work on a new album.
Grohl made the revelation during a red carpet interview at this year's BRIT Awards in London on February 20.
"I return to Los Angeles tomorrow to start work on a Foo Fighters record," he said to the show's host, James Cordon (via Kerrang!), adding that the new material would be released "eventually."
It would be the Foo Fighters' eighth studio full-length, and the first since 2011 album Wasting Light, which included such singles as "Rope" and "These Days." more on this story
Trent Reznor Resurrects Nine Inch Nails
(Classic Rock) Trent Reznor has confirmed Nine Inch Nails will tour in 2013, four years after he brought the curtain down on the band's live career.
In 2009 he said "I've been thinking for some time now it's time to make NIN disappear for a while," and did just that after their Wave Goodbye tour.
Now he's decided the time is right to bring the industrial rock project back – and he's revealed the new lineup includes former Jane's Addiction bassist Eric Avery and King Crimson frontman Adrian Belew. more on this story
Metallica Announce Orion Festival Lineup
Metallica have revealed lineup and headliner details for their 2nd Orion Music + More Festival that will be taking place this spring.
Aside from Metallica, the festival will also feature headline performances from Red Hot Chili Peppers, Rise Against, Deftones and Bassnectar.
The 2013 Orion Music + More Festival is set to take place on June 8th and 9th at Belle Isle in Detroit, MI.
The festival lineup will also feature over 30 bands performing on 5 stages including The Dillinger Escape Plan, All Shall Perish, The Bronx, Gogol Bordello, Dropkick Murphys, Tomahawk, The Joy Formidable and more.
"Last year's Orion Music + More Festival was hands down the highlight of the Metallica calendar. A great time was had by all, especially the band members," said Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich. "The fact that it also resonated with enough of our fans and friends that it warrants another go-around in '13 is beyond exciting. I can think of no better place than the Motor City, with its rich and diverse history of music, for the second ride on our Orion festival train. Bring it the f**k on!" See lineup here.
KISS Founder Ace Frehley Facing Home Foreclosure
A bank filed a foreclosure filing earlier this month against a home owned by original KISS guitarist Ace Frehley and he is also reportedly owes back property tax on the home.
U.S. Bank National Association alleges that Frehley stopped making mortgage payments on his Yorktown, New York home on March 1, 2011, according to lohud.com
The bank made a foreclosure filing on February 15th where they asked a court to order the sale of the property for the outstanding principal of $703,581.48 plus interest, late charges and other expenses, according to the report.
Frehley is also reportedly behind on his taxes. The report states that tax office shows that they havene't received a tax payment since December of 2011 and there is a tax lien for $5,131.61 for town and county taxes for 2011 and he owes $13,425.94 for unpaid 2012 county, school and town taxes. more on this story
The Dillinger Escape Plan Launching Spring Tour
The Dillinger Escape Plan have announced a Spring North American tour which will be part of their new World Tour plans.
The North American trek will also feature The Faceless and Royal Thunder and is set to kick off on April 22nd in Lancaster, PA.
Prior to the tour launch, Dillinger Escape Plan will be making an appearance at the New England Metal Fest on April 20th in Worcester, MA.
The band is hitting the road in support of their new studio album, One Of Us Is The Killer, which is set for release in North America on May 14th.
"It's been a while since we've been out doing what we do best," said guitarist Ben Weinman. "We're excited to present this album to the world." more on this story
Former Black Sabbath Member Puzzled By Bill Ward Situation
(Classic Rock) Former Black Sabbath singer Tony Martin believes Black Sabbath should have done everything in their power to bring Bill Ward back into the fold.
The drummer was left out of the band's reunion with original vocalist Ozzy Osbourne after saying he hadn't been offered a contract he regarded as "signable." His place on upcoming album 13 was taken by Rage Against The Machine sticksman Brad Wilk after producer Rick Rubin failed in an attempt to bring Ginger Baker into the studio.
Martin previously wondered if it was nothing more than a publicity stunt. But now he cites the example of Def Leppard to illustrate how far he thinks Sabbath should have gone to make Ward part of the reunion.
He tells Legendary Rock Interviews: "The thing is weird – because they always loved Bill. They never had a bad thing to say about him, so I don't quite get why they wouldn't take time out to nurture him back into the fold." more on this story
NWOBHM Bands Launching Music Festival
(Classic Rock) NWOBHM heroes including Holocaust, Avenger, Scarab and Spartan Warrior will gather at the first Brofest event at Northumbria University Students Union, Newcastle, on March 1 and 2. Organiser and former Tygers Of Pan Tang vocalist Jess Cox explains why the event is so important.
In 1980 a new musical phenomena burst into the world, called the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal. It spawned Iron Maiden, Def Leppard, Saxon – and the North East's very own Tygers Of Pan Tang.
The movement only lasted a few short years; but for a while it was the height of cool – and it influenced generations of major worldwide acts, including the biggest heavy metal band on the planet: Metallica.
Many of the movement's foot soldiers were from Newcastle and outlining towns. Most of them were signed by Neat Records from Wallsend, who released 200 singles and albums through the 1980s by Geordie metal acts Venom, Raven, the Tygers, Tysondog, Fist, Blitzkreig and White Spirit (featuring guitarist Janick Gers, who found fame later in Maiden). more on this story
3 Doors Down Plan Special Unplugged Concert
3 Doors Down will be unplugging for a special one-off acoustic concert in the band's adopted hometown of Nashville next month.
The event is set to take place at the War Memorial in Nashville on March 1st. Frontman Brad Arnold explains, "We all call Nashville home, and we cannot wait to perform for our fans in a more intimate setting at War Memorial.
"It will also be the first time we have performed a full set acoustically. It's going to be a great evening."
Guitarist Chris Henderson adds, "These songs translate so well from the electric versions. We go through and strip each one down to figure out what will work best for this type of show. It's a reimagining of the songs."
Fear Factory and Hate Eternal Announce American Tour Dates
Fear Factory and Hate Eternal have announced the initial dates for their upcoming North American tour.
The announced dates kick off on April 10th in Seattle, Wa and run until May 16th in Houston, with more dates expected to be announced soon.
Fear Factory will be hitting the road in support of their latest album, The Industrialist. more on this story
More on Fear Factory - Fear Factory Music - Fear Factory Tour Dates/Tickets - Fear Factory CDs, vinyl and rarities
Paramore's Hayley Williams Explains New Album Title
(Radio.com) During an exclusive interview with Radio.com, lead singer Hayley Williams discussed Paramore's fourth album, and why they chose it to name it after the band.
"The self-titled aspect of the whole thing is definitely a statement. I feel like it's not only reintroducing the band to the world, but even to ourselves," Williams explained alongside bandmates Taylor York and Jeremy Davis.
"We wrote this album kind of blindly, just letting it lead us wherever it was gonna take us. Each song felt very different and felt very new and exciting for us. By the end of it, it felt like we're a new band."
"I definitely think we're reintroducing ourselves to the world and to our fans," the singer continued about the band's first album without founding members Zac and Josh Farro. "At the same time, it's so definitely us, you know? It's so Paramore. I just don't think there would've been any other title that would've worked. Anything else would've felt like we were trying too hard." more on this story
Aerosmith and Foreigner Members Headed To Songwriter Hall of Fame
Aerosmith's Steven Tyler and Joe Perry and Foreigner's Mick Jones and Lou Gramm lead the 2013 class for the Songwriters Hall Of Fame.
The hard rock duos will be inducted along with Eagles songwriting collaborator JD Souther, 60s hit maker Tony Hatch, and multi-genre songwriter Holly Knight who's credits include Tina Turner and Aerosmith's "Ragdoll. "
The induction will take place at a gala on June 13th in New York City at the Marriott Marquis Hotel.
Organizers sent over details about each of this year's inductees that you can read here
Green Day Announce South By Southwest Plans
Green Day will be warming up for their upcoming world tour with their very first appearance at the South By Southwest music festival.
The band is set to appear at the festival on March 15th for a screening of their two films and a live performance.
The film screening will include the world premiere of Broadway Idiot and the Green Day documentary ¡Cuatro! at the Paramount Theatre.
The band will then perform ACL-Live at the Moody Theatre. Their camp sent over the admission information here.
Motley Crue Heading North This Spring
(hennemusic) Motley Crue have announced a 2013 Canadian tour, which marks the most expansive run of the country in the band's history.
The 18-show trek kicks off April 20 in Penticton, BC, and runs through to May 14 when the band completes the tour in the nation's capital, Ottawa, ON.
The Crue will be joined by special guests Big Wreck. Motley Crue kick off an Australian tour with KISS and Thin Lizzy on Thursday in Perth. more on this story
New Pearl Jam Album Out This Year?
There is some hope for Pearl Jam fans that the band will be releasing their new album this year according to comments from guitarist Mike McCready.
McCready was interviewed by Rolling Stone and while the publication did not include the full quote from the guitarist, they do quote him as saying the band hopes to have the album out "this year, for sure." Though his quote sounds far more definite than their "hope" qualification.
The article features several partial quotes from McCready. One states that the band is "working on demos right now and we're going to be recording soon."
"What everybody's been saying is halfway done," he says of the new album. "I think that's true – we have seven songs that are relatively completed. But then we have an additional 15 ready to go aside from any that Eddie brings in, so we'll weed through those."
He also discussed the musical direction of the album and his excitement to once again be working with Brendan O'Brien. Read the report here.
Former Allman Brothers Band Member Dan Toler Dies
Onetime Allman Brothers Band guitarist Dan Toler died at his home in Sarasota Florida on Monday morning, (February 25th), after fighting a long battle against (ALS) Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis.
Toler was best known as a member of the Dickey Betts & Great Southern band and was featured on the two albums with Dickey Betts & Great Southern before becoming a member of The Allman Brothers Band from 1979 until 1982.
Toler was featured on the Allman's 1979 album, "Enlightened Rogues," 1980 album "Reach for the Sky" and "Brothers of the Road" in 1981.
Dan Toler and his late brother David (Frankie) Toler were members of the Gregg Allman Band in the 1980s, and were featured on his album, I'm No Angel, in 1987; and again on Just Before the Bullets Fly in 1988. more on this story
Trapped Under Ice Going on Lengthy Hiatus
Trapped Under Ice are planning the put the band on ice at the end of the summer, announcing plans for a "lengthy hiatus."
The band assure fans they are not breaking up and released a length explanation for the move as well as confirmation they will be honoring their live commitments which conclude with their appearance at the This Is Hardcore festival in August.
Here is what the band had to say: Hello World. TUI here. We're writing to give everyone an update on the future of the band. Let's get straight to the point: Beginning in August 2013, Trapped Under Ice is going on a pretty lengthy hiatus. We are NOT breaking up. This is by no means the end of TUI. We just decided that it was important to keep the band fresh and something the five of us enjoy. We don't wanna spin the wheels for nothing and just write music because we feel like we have to. We don't really feel right about just putting out another record for the sake of touring right now. So, while its still fun, we're gonna go on a little break, do all our own things, then take it from there.
At this time, we just want to emphasize that TUI, as a band, and as people, all still love hardcore and punk music. We all play in other bands and still tour. More importantly, we're five people who still love each other and love playing music together. None of that has changed. We've been around the world and back a couple times together and all grown a lot as individuals in this band. Made amazing friends and played with some of our favorite bands. We just wanted to keep it honest for people that have stuck with us through thick and thin over the years. There's no beef, no drama. So anything you hear or read thats not in these paragraphs is 100% NOT true. After a lot of deliberation, we just all felt it was a good time to step back, take a breather, and get a fresh perspective on things.
So, with that being said, we aren't going on hiatus just yet. We still have a bunch of shows in the next six months, including a California weekend, a show in Hawaii, United Blood (Richmond VA), New England Metal Fest (Mass), Groezrock in Belgium (our one and only mainland European show), a UK tour with our friends Backtrack, Canada, and shows in Baltimore and DC. Wrapping it up this summer at This Is Hardcore Fest in Philly, for what will be our last show for roughly a couple years (2015). We'd love for everyone to come out and have fun. more on this story
Suicidal Tendencies Tour To Feature D.R.I. and Sick Of It All
Suicidal Tendencies have announced the first leg of their Slam City tour of North America which will feature some big name support.
The band will kicking off the leg on April 11th in San Francisco. The entire tour will feature support from Wake the Dead and the tour will feature additional support from punk legends D.R.I. from April 16th until April 28th.
Sick Of It All will replace D.R.I. beginning on April 30th in St. Petersburg, FL and remain on the tour leg until it concludes on May 12th in San Diego.
Sick Of It All will also be appearing early in the tour at shows in New York, Philadelphia, Worchester and Baltimore. more on this story
Anthrax Streaming AC/DC Cover
Anthrax continues to preview their forthcoming covers EP with the latest song stream featuring their take on an AC/DC classic.
The Thrash Metal veterans will be releasing the new 8-track covers EP, "Anthems,' on March 19th in North America.
This past week Megaforce Records released a stream the band's cover of AC/DC classic "TNT" and Charlie Benante spoke with Music Radar about why they selected it.
"This was Joey's [Belladonna, vocals] track," Benante told the site. "We already had Whole Lotta Rosie recorded, but he wanted T.N.T. I can see why: his voice totally lends itself to this track.
"AC/DC is probably one of the greatest bands ever. The came in with a certain sound, and they'll end with that same exact sound. They never altered it; they just stayed true to what they were. To me, that's an honest-to-goodness rock 'n' roll band.
"It would have been obvious to pick something off of Highway To Hell or Back In Black, and so we didn't. [Laughs] I studied every Phil Rudd lick, and I did not go overboard with anything. I played exactly what he played on T.N.T. You can't do a fast drum fill on the song – it'll stand out as being out of place. I laid it down, pulled it back, and that was that." Check out the stream here.
Megadeth Excited To Release New Album With Universal
(hennemusic) Megadeth are sharing more footage of the band in the studio working on their forthcoming new album, "Super Collider."
The project will be released in June via guitarist Dave Mustaine's new label, Tradecraft, which is distributed by Universal.
"It was a real thrill for us to learn there was an opportunity to join Universal," said Mustaine. "It seems like every time you see a great band or music video, it comes from a Universal label. Being with Universal is by far the most exciting and prestigious home for Megadeth ever!
"We are electrified with what the future holds and the possibilities such a powerhouse like Universal will bring for us all. We have worked with some great people over the years, and it is amazing to see so many of them on the Universal team for our new record, 'Super Collider'. If Megadeth being here isn't satiating enough, having Tradecraft as my own label is going to be really amazing for metal bands around the world." Watch it here.
Saxon Document Sacrifice
(Classic Rock) Saxon have released a video documenting the making of the promo for upcoming single Sacrifice.
In the eight-minute clip the band discuss the inspiration for their 20th album's title track while the director and crew explain the process of putting the video together.
Frontman Biff Byford recently said of the album: "My brief to the band was to be raw, be real and not be afraid to look back at the old classic material for inspiration." Watch the video here.
KISS Coffeehouse Named Grand Strand Winner
(hennemusic) The KISS Coffeehouse in Myrtle Beach has been voted a winner in the "Best Of The Grand Strand" competition for the 4th consecutive year.
With more than 56,000+ total votes cast, by both locals and tourists alike, and over 1,000+ businesses competing for "Best Of" honors, in 68 unique, and special categories, The KISS Coffeehouse was 1 of just 68 overall winners, winning in the category of "Specialty Food & Drink - Best Coffee Shop."
The "Best Of The Grand Strand" competition is an annual competition, sponsored by Myrtle Beach's local NBC affiliate, WMBF News. more on this story
FM Release Tough Love Video
(Classic Rock) With their new album Rockville due out on March 11, UK melodic rock veterans FM have released a promo clip for their new song Tough Love.
FM are also pleased to announce that due to the amount of interest generated in Rockville II, this album will now get a standalone release via Riff City Records on March 25.
Originally only available as part of a two-CD Rockville package via the FM PledgeMusic campaign, Rockville II includes a new version of the song High which was originally recorded by Steve Overland and Pete Jupp for the So! album Brass Monkey.
"We love this song and we wanted to give it the FM treatment," says bassist Merv Goldsworthy. Check out the preview trailer here.
Singled Out: The Gallery
Today The Gallery frontman Brendan Cooney tells us about the song "Young & Restless" from their brand new album "Restless," which was released today. Here is the story:
The song is about humanity, and how everyone goes through hard times – whether it's loss of loved ones through war, or heartbreak in general… but it's the human spirit to keep on keepin' on. As for the chorus, it is about how we need to be there for each other – we are stronger together than we are individually.
We started this song over two years ago, so I honestly couldn't tell you when or where the original idea spawned from. The original title was 'The Thing About Love,' because the opening verse of the song was the only part we had finished ("The thing about love and the thing about peace; the thing about hope and the thing about me…"). It took me a long time to figure out what part of the song - pre-chorus, chorus, verse, etc. - that should be.
We wanted to finish the song for a long time – even for the 'Come Alive' EP – but we just couldn't get it done in time. Nothing we tried for the rest of the song felt as strong as that first verse. When it came time to write this record, we were just trying and trying to finish it, but it wasn't coming easily. Usually that's a sign not to force it.
We had the original 10 songs for the album, and thought the record was done. Our manager, Sara, however, loved the song and wanted us to give it one last try. We'd showed it to our producer, Warren, who loved it as well. We ended up going back into the studio to record it, almost as a bonus after the rest of the album was completed.
We didn't feel the original chorus melody we came up with was strong enough to be the chorus, but we still liked that melody and the idea behind the lyric ("It's been a long year for the broken hearted…"). We ended up writing a new chorus, and making the old chorus the bridge – we kept the lyrics but changed a few of the chords to make it feel more like a bridge.
Once the new melody was written for the chorus, it was up to us to sit there and play the chorus melody over and over, and sing over and over, to see what words sounded good and fit the meaning of the song. I finally came up with "We are the young and restless, together no one can stand against us, we are the young and restless, we are one" after trial and error, and just listening to it hundreds of times. We'd already had the idea to do gang vocals for the chorus, even before the lyrics were written, so that helped write the "we are" part of the lyric. We had also already decided to name the album Restless, so we thought that lyric would be a good fit.
We knew the song would be going in a poppy direction for us – even going into it – but we thought we would stretch ourselves a little, while staying true to the sound of the rest of the album. We wanted to keep a balance of that. Overall lyrically it's personally one of my favorites, and I like how it came out. I am glad we got the push to finish it, and I'm happy we waited this long and didn't force it.
Hearing is believing. Now that you know the story behind the song, listen for yourself and learn more about the album right here!
When David Bowie Became Ziggy Stardust
(Classic Rock) Former Spider From Mars drummer Woody Woodmansey has reflected on the amount of pressure David Bowie was under during his Ziggy Stardust era and how the experience changed his ex-colleague.
"We went on holiday to Cyprus and the plane got hit by lightning," Woodmansey says. "He went white and fainted. He was so emaciated from the hard work, you could see the veins on his face. He didn't fly after that.
"In the early days, we'd have a laugh, go clubbing – but later on it became apparent that he'd gone into character. You'd come off stage and he'd do interviews as Ziggy; you'd be sat in a taxi with this alien. You'd ask a question and he'd look right through you. He had turned into Ziggy Stardust." more on this story
Heaven's Basement Go Behind The Scenes of I Am Electric
(Classic Rock) Heaven's Basement have released a video documenting the making of the promo for their single I Am Electric.
The rising-star outfit released debut album Filthy Empire earlier this month. Guitarist Sid Glover recently said of the record:
"I want people to say, 'F**k, I haven't heard an album that's made me feel this pumped up in ages. I haven't seen a band with this much energy and go-f**k-yourself attitude.'"
You can view both the making of and the final video
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