Today's Day in Rock News !

Today's Day in Rock


Pre-Guns N' Roses Axl Rose Demo Posted Online
(hennemusic) An audio sample of Axl Rose's pre-Guns N' Roses band Rapidfire has surfaced online. Portions of the track "Ready To Rumble" are being shared by Rapidfire guitarist Kevin Lawrence, who along with Roses, bassist Mike Hammernick and drummer Chuck Gordon made up the group.
Axl joined Rapidfire shortly after his arrival in Los Angeles; the band recorded a 5-song demo on May 25, 1983, which included "Ready To Rumble."

When Rapidfire disbanded, Rose joined the first lineup of L.A. Guns before forming Hollywood Rose with Izzy Stradlin. Axl would later form Guns N' Roses with Tracii Guns and two other members of L.A. Guns. Check it out here.




Nine Inch Nails Secretly Worked On New Album That's Due This Year
(Radio.com) Nine Inch Nails has inked a new deal with Columbia Records, and are finishing up work on a new album that will be released before the end of this year.

"I've been less than honest about what I've really been up to lately," the band's frontman and mastermind Trent Reznor said on the official NIN Tumblr page. "For the last year I've been secretly working non-stop with Atticus Ross and Alan Moulder on a new, full-length Nine Inch Nails record, which I am happy to say is finished and frankly f****** great.

"This is the real impetus and motivation behind the decision to assemble a new band and tour again. My forays into film, HTDA (How to Destroy Angels) and other projects really stimulated me creatively and I decided to focus that energy on taking Nine Inch Nails to a new place. Here we go!"

The latest incarnation of Nine Inch Nails features musicians Adrian Belew, Alessandro Cortini, Josh Eustis and Robin Finck, who recently replaced a departed Eric Avery (formerly of Jane's Addiction), who left to work on other projects.

The new line-up is set to make an impression on this year's festival seasons, with appearances lined up at Lollapalooza, Outside Lands, Made in America and more. more on this story





Van Halen Engineer Threatened To Burn 5150 Tapes
(Classic Rock) Foreigner guitarist Mick Jones has recalled his "crazy sh*t" experience of producing Van Halen's first album with Sammy Hagar. He had to contend with an engineer who didn't want him there – and even threatened to burn the master tapes at one point.

He was hired to work on 5150 after Van Halen split with David Lee Roth – but before they started in late 1985, old friend Hagar gave him a word of warning.

Jones tells Ultimate Classic Rock: "Sammy picked me up at the hotel. We were driving to Eddie's studio and we were talking about the old days. Finally he said, 'I've got to tell you, Mick, all of that was wild and crazy – but we're just about to walk into another dimension of that. I wasn't going to tell you, but you'd better get ready for some crazy sh*t now.'"

He ran into issues with engineer Donn Landee, who'd worked on all six of Van Halen's previous albums with producer Ted Templeman. "Here was I, walking in from a completely different place," Jones says. "I got a feeling at the beginning from Donn – he wasn't particularly thrilled to see me, I don't think.

"We went through some crazy times. The engineer locked himself in the studio for a day and threatened to burn the tapes. It was a real standoff, you know? It was touch and go whether the tapes were going to survive." more.




Alice in Chains Star Addresses Fan Criticism
(Banana 101.5) Alice in Chains drummer Sean Kinney sat down with Banana 101.5 for an exclusive interview at Rock on the Range and discussed at length his thoughts on the fans that want nothing to do with the current lineup of the band.

Our Rock on the Range 2013 interview with Sean Kinney of Alice in Chains got off to a rocky start, with the first few questions not really heading in the direction we expected. After that, we asked Sean how he would address the fans of Alice in Chains that bash them online for continuing after the tragic passing of Layne Staley. What followed was an emotional and thoughtful conversation about the band's past and present that Sean admitted he had never spoken about at such lengths.

"I always have the chance to address those people, I mean, it's personal choice. They don't have to like it. We're not designed for everybody. We never [begged] anybody to follow this or dig it. We do it because we like it. I get the passion that they have about our friends that are no longer here and that they've made a connection through music to that and I respect that, you know? I think it's great that they care so much. But it can be off putting, you know? We don't really look at that stuff. There's always this [white noise] about things for the most part it seems like a minority mind set.

"The fact is, like everybody here, they're going to run up to the fact that people you love and care about and yourself won't be here and what do you do then? This was never a solo project this is always a band. This is real to us. Those are really our friends, those are all my best friends. Nobody knows better of what do and how to handle this than us and were not doing it for the 'money' … [the music industry] is dead. There's not a lot of money, especially in rock and roll. So, I mean, we don't need the money. We do this for the same reason we always did and more than half the reason I ever did this at all was bringing that that we did together — that was so important to us and that had a life of its own — to be able to bring them with us and the music and that's important.

"If people wanna close their minds to those things, these things will happen to them. It's just not on a public forum where people have to deal with it. When your mom dies not everybody starts telling you, 'you gotta change your name' and 'how dare you go on living' and 'you can't be you and do things, you need to change your job and everything you spent your life doing… your career.' It's just not well thought out, but it's based behind passion and caring.

"I have those same hopes too, you know? Trust me, nobody wished… nobody wanted it to be like this. It truly only affects — every single day — our friends, families and us in a real way. So we live with that and try to move on and how do we honor the past and honor who we are now — and it's our past — and do that as men and that's what we do.

"I'm talking more than I know I have about this, I guess. When those guys were alive right? Mike [Starr] is on a TV show and everybody is talking sh*t about him for the most part, right? And when Layne was alive and we were doing this, we were very open about the lifestyles we lived and those lifestyles will end your life… and they have. Jerry [Cantrell] and I are just fortunate that it didn't end ours either. It's not like it was one guy doing things. We all lived a pretty toxic lives and that's not rare to music. We're not an exception to the rule, but the horrible facts are [that] these are the outcomes of those things.

"Some of these people, back then, spent all their time chastising these people and trying to vilify us for what we were doing then and then when they're no longer here, which I find is really nice, they come to accept that and hold them in a different regard. So I think that's great, but it can be a little misguided sometimes.

"In my fantasy, world maybe if those guys would've known that people cared like they apparently do now while they were alive would they have heard that. Would they have known. But these are the facts. This is reality. This is the reality we live with… it's real to me, you know? Every day… there's not a day we don't think about that stuff and it'll go on for the rest of our lives. This is why I do it. I'm not out here to play rock star and everything. We do this because were great friends and we spent our lives doing this and we still enjoy the music." Stream the full interview and read more here.





Queens of the Stone Age Streaming New Album Online
(Radio.com) While Queens of the Stone Age's new album, ...Like Clockwork, is set for release on June 4, the album is currently being streamed on iTunes for the next week leading up to the big day.

Boasting dark and wildly diverse tracks like "I Appear Missing" and "Kalopsia," the new album is shaping up to be one of the most essential rock releases of the year. Listen here and decide for yourself.

Queens of the Stone Age recently played most of the new album mixed in with a wide cross-section of older material during a special L.A. theater show, with such celebrities as Morrissey, Jack White and Kat Von D spotted among the crowd.

The album recently received a boost from celeb chef Anthony Bourdain, who penned the band's official bio that accompanies the release, stating in part:

"Whatever happened — out there, in whatever desert arroyo, former meth lab, decommissioned missile silo, nuclear test site, underground laboratory, convergence of brain waves and gamma rays, QOTSA emerges with not only their best work to date, but one of the most ambitious, fully realized rock albums in recent memory." more on this story




Don't Expect Goo Goo Dolls and Matchbox Twenty Jam
(Radio.com) Thanks to the Goo Goo Dolls and Matchbox Twenty, fans are getting more bang for their buck this summer tour season. Or should we say, thanks to their agents.

Goo Goo Dolls bassist Robby Takac told Radio.com that the joint tour between the two bands was set up by the higher-ups. "I think the agents looked at it and said, 'Why haven't we done this yet? This makes sense, we should do this!'" he said with a laugh.

Even though both bands have been around since the '90s, Johnny Reznick said the two have rarely crossed paths, but he was more than happy to team up with Rob Thomas and the guys for a summer tour.

"By the end of the '90s was probably when the both of our bands were at their most popular," he explained. "You know, we're both putting albums out and we're still on the radio… It's so rare to see any band that's put out ten studio albums [and] has been blessed for 16 years to truly have a real career and make a living with this."

As for whether the Goo Goo Dolls, whose new album Magnetic comes out June 11, will be jamming with Matchbox Twenty, fans shouldn't hold their collective breath. Find out why.





Scott Weiland 'Surprised' And 'Hurt' By Stone Temple Pilots' Lawsuit
(Radio.com) On Saturday, May 18, Stone Temple Pilots Robert DeLeo, Dean DeLeo and Eric Kretz took surprised concertgoers at KROQ's Weenie Roast in Irvine, Calif. with an unannounced performance and a new lead singer. Linkin Park's Chester Bennington had been tapped to replace Scott Weiland, with the performance winning the new foursome favorable reviews.

In an interview with the group backstage, guitarist Dean DeLeo revealed that communication with their recently-fired frontman had become impossibly difficult. DeLeo explained Weiland had "changed his numbers years ago and didn't forward the new ones" to the band.

Less than a week later, the band stunned the rock community by suing Weiland. In a complaint filed at the Los Angeles Superior Court, the band accused their ex-frontman of misappropriating the band's name and assets to further his solo career. A quick search of setlist.com shows Weiland had regularly played Stone Temple Pilots songs during his solo concerts.

In the court filing, the band also claimed Weiland caused STP to lose lucrative business opportunities for live performances and other appearances, which cost the band millions.

As STP's filing continues, upon learning of a radio promotion revolving around a new STP song with Bennington, Weiland is said to have attempted to interfere with airplay of "Out of Time" by calling Los Angeles radio station KROQ, claiming the band was infringing on Weiland's rights.

Scott Weiland posted an open letter to his fans on Friday (May 24) explaining that the band has no legal right to call themselves STP without him. Read it here.




Prince Surprises Home Town With Pearl Jam Encore
(Radio.com) "Am I from here?' Prince asked as the Minnesota crowd roared to life as the curtain opened on the second of two shows at the Myth in Minnesota on Saturday (May 25). The audience, lovingly referred to as "hometown" throughout the night, may have paid close to $300 for their tickets, but they experienced an unforgettable show by Prince in full-on rock and roll mode.

Starting the night off with a heavy blues-rock remake of "Let's Go Crazy," Prince flaunted his new backing band, the all-female 3rdEyeGirl. On drums, beautiful blonde Hannah Ford belted out lyrics as she laid down solid rock drums and thunderous tom fills.

On bass, Ida Nielson, with her pointed pigtails and heavily distorted blues basslines, brought the funk with bass pops and slaps that compelled the audience to dance. And on guitar, Donna Grantis, with her wild hair flowing over her half shaved head, ripped through fiery guitar solos and lead riffs that would bring a smile to any rock god's face. And smile Prince did.

For the first encore, Prince swooped into an emotional "Purple Rain" with Bobby Z from his former band The Revolution on drums. After playing another song Prince thanked the crowd and wished them goodnight. But everyone seemed to know better and was rewarded when Prince and 3rdEyeGirl walked out on stage in front of the curtain, spotlights illuminating them in the pitch black club.

Through a silly game of telephone, Prince whispered to the girl on his right, who whispered to the girl on her right, who said into the microphone that Prince no longer had a voice. A few boos went out and Prince whispered down the line again and the girl said with a big smile that he still had his fingers! And with a sarcastic look over his shoulder as the curtain opened and he strapped on his guitar, Prince and 3rdEyeGirl finished out the night with a funky all instrumental version of Pearl Jam's "Even Flow." Worlds collided, minds were blown, and with a raspy "Thank you," Prince ended the show. more on this story




Black Star Riders' Debut Show Sells Out
(hennemusic) Black Star Riders - the new band formed from the final Thin Lizzy lineup – have just released their debut album, "All Hell Breaks Loose," and have sold-out their debut live show.

This Thursday, the group will launch the new project with an exclusive concert at The Marshall Theatre at Milton Keynes, UK. The set is expected to be a mix of music from the new album along with some classic Thin Lizzy tracks.

The band posted a photo of the stage setup at The Marshall Theater, writing "Getting ready for Thursday in Milton Keynes!!" You can see the photo here.




Eddie Spaghetti Giving Away Single From New Album And Plans Tour
Supersuckers frontman Eddie Spaghetti is giving fans an advance taste of his new solo album with a free download of the album's first single and has released the initial tour dates for his upcoming tour.

Bloodshot Records will release Spaghetti's new solo album, "The Value of Nothing," on June 18th and have released the title track as first single. You can download the song here.

The album was recorded in Austin, TX with the aid of Jesse Dayton (collaborator to country legends Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings), and mixes the Eddie you know with other elements of rock and country.

Spaghetti has announced the initial dates for his upcoming summer tour. At this point the tour will kick off on July 13th in Seattle and will hit Portland, San Fransisco, San Diego, Phoenix and Tucson with more dates still to be announced. more on this story




Iron Maiden Kick Off Maiden England Tour Leg
(hennemusic) Iron Maiden kicked off their European leg of the "Maiden England" tour Monday night at the Bilbao Exhibition Centre in Barakaldo, Bilbao, Spain.

The stage show closely mirrors, in terms of production and content, the original 1988 concert video of the same name – reissued on DVD this year - shot on the "Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son Tour."

This new European tour leg is a continuation of the tour which played across North America last year. You can check out the setlist and see video from the tour kick off here.




Motorhead and Saxon Teaming Up For Tour
(Classic Rock) Motorhead and Saxon will tour the UK together in November, it's been confirmed. Lemmy's band have listed seven dates, with Biff Byford's outfit joining them on six, and Skew Siskin providing support.

US metal band Huntress recently revealed Lemmy had written lyrics for a track on their upcoming album. It's called I Want To Fuck You To Death, of which the iconic frontman says: "The first time I heard Jill Janus' voice it was phenomenal. I wrote the lyrics from her point of view – the huntress."

Saxon released 20th album Sacrifice earlier this year and completed a UK tour at the beginning of May. Motorhead play the Download festival at Donington on June 15. more on this story

More on Motorhead - Motorhead Music - Motorhead Tour Dates/Tickets - Motorhead CDs, vinyl and rarities
Motley Crue Retire Tommy Lee's Roller Coaster Drum Kit
(Gibson) Motley Crue played the last show of their current tour on May 25, at Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City. That was also the last show where the band would use Tommy Lee's roller coaster drum set.

The setup has been one of the most talked about parts of Motley's live show over the past few years. During Tommy's drum solo, the rig spins him around upside down while he's playing the drums. At times local radio stations would hold contests where fans were able to win a ride-along with Lee.

Tommy Tweeted after the show: "A bottle of Champagne smashed on the coaster last night as it sets sail for the scrap yard! Ha! Man we've given so many people the thrill of a lifetime together!"

But fans need not worry that the Crüe will simply go back to a regular drum set up, as Lee also Tweeted: "Dont you all worry! Just wait til ya see what crazy I got for ya next!" more on this story






Marshall Tucker Band Release Classic All-Star Performance
Veteran southern rockers The Marshall Tucker Band have released a brand new live album from one of their biggest performances, which is entitled "Live! From Spartanburg, South Carolina."

The never before released live recording was captured during the band's 1995 performance for their South Carolina Music Hall of Fame induction.

The album features eleven tracks including their tops hits "Can't You See," "Heard It In A Love Song," "Fire On The Mountain" and "24 Hours At A Time," and was recorded at the Spartanburg, South Carolina's Memorial Auditorium.

The concert featured guest appearances from Charlie Daniels, Jamioe and Butch Trucks of The Allman Brothers Band, The Outlaws, Firefall and Wet Willie.

"The day this concert was recorded was a very big day for Marshall Tucker," says MTB lead singer and founding member Doug Gray. "Fans have waited a long time for this live recording with so many of our musical friends." more on this story




Avenged Sevenfold and Korn Lead Aftershock Festival Lineup
Avenged Sevenfold and Korn have been announced as the headliners of this year's Aftershock Festival and organizers will be revealing an additional headliner soon.

The festival is set to take place at Discovery Park near downtown Sacramento, CA on September 14th and 15th and most of the lineup has been announced.

The festival will feature performances from Shinedown, Megadeth, Volbeat, A Day To Remember, HIM, Skillet, Halestorm, Asking Alexandria, In This Moment, All That Remains, Falling In Reverse, Device, Steel Panther, P.O.D., Pop Evil, Otherwise, Airbourne, SOiL, Heaven's Basement, Nothing More, and more.





Weezer Cruise Lineup Revealed
Weezer have revealed the lineup of stars that will be hitting the high seas with them and their fans early next year for their second Weezer Cruise.

The cruise will be launching from Jacksonville, FL on February 13th and will visit Caribbean ports, including Freeport and Nassau in the Bahamas, and will be returning to port on February 17th.

Weezer will be headlining the cruise and plan to perform three sets during the cruise, including a "Beach Concert with Weezer" on their own private island (off of Nassau's coast) where they will be joined by Cat Power.

The cruise will also feature Toro y Moi, comedian Adam Devine (from "Workaholics"), Ash, Bleached, Caveman, DIIV, Holy F*ck, Ozma, Palma Violets, The Cribs, The Orwells and The Relationship.

Weezer's Rivers Cuomo said, "Once we locked in all these great artists I started to feel Weezer is real lucky to be able to go on this cruise. Sharing the boat with them and all of our fans is going to be so much fun."

Weezer's Pat Wilson said, "Why not join us on a Weezer Cruise to the Carribean? Magic feelings will turn into magic memories, magically. I am a big fan of Ash and Cat Power and looking forward to seeing the other bands too." Get more details here.





Singled Out: Airbourne's Live It Up
Today Airbourne frontman Joel O'Keeffe tells us about the song "Live It Up" from their brand new album "Black Dog Barking," which was released last week. Here is the story:

"Live It Up" this song came out of nowhere one hot summer night in Melbourne. Just messing around on the guitar drinking some Jack Daniels Single Barrel... came up with the verse riff and chorus riff then went outside for a cigarette and looked up at the full moon and then "Im a Hellraiser..." came... which lead onto you gotta "Live It Up" and so fourth.

Went back inside and started forming the guts of it, then the next day we went into the jam room put it together and recorded a demo of it, then Ryan and I worked on lyrics some more, we showed Brian Howes (Producer) then we put it through pre production and recorded it for the album.

Then we worked on the intro with Brian and Jay adding in the Air raid sirens, Bombers, Spitfires and Dive bombers and the big Bomb. The inspiration came from a month long booze binge of wild crazy nights in Melbourne that month... good times!

Hearing is believing. Now that you know the story behind the song, listen for yourself and check out the video and learn more about the album and grab their upcoming tour dates right here!




Megadeth Perform New Song Kingmaker Live
(hennemusic) Megadeth are slowly adding some new music from their forthcoming album, "Super Collider," into their live shows in advance of the record's release on June 4.

A week into their European tour and the band has already debuted the album's title track, and now fans are sharing footage of the project's second single, "Kingmaker," filmed May 27 at Ancienne Belgique in Brussels, Belgium.

"Super Collider" will be available as a limited-edition CD with a 3-D cover and bonus tracks, regular CD, regular LP, limited LP plus seven-inch vinyl, and as a digital download. Check out the video here.




Vampire Weekend's Secret Lives As Preppy Social Outsiders
(Radio.com) Vampire Weekend might currently be riding high with the No. 1 album in America, thanks to their third full-length, Modern Vampires of the City, but there's more to the band's notoriously preppy image than meets the eye.

During an exclusive interview with CBS News, Vampire Weekend's primary songwriters, frontman Ezra Koenig and multi-instrumentalist Rostam Batmanglij, discussed the irony and humor involved in their preppy persona, and how it was inspired by the pair's shared outsider status in their respective communities growing up.

"Ezra was one of the only Jews in his town, and I was one of the only Iranians in Georgetown, where I grew up," Batmanglij explained. "So we had like a little bit of a fire that you get, I think, from being an outsider. That does kind of inspire us. People would call us WASPs (White Anglo-Saxon Protestants), which is really interesting," he continued, laughing.

"There always seems to be something worth exploring about preppiness, and the fact that some people reacted so strongly to it, I think proves that there's something inherently interesting," added Koenig about the backlash that came with after the band's early success.

"It's a little bit unnerving to have somebody call you total trash or garbage," Koenig joked. "But truly, this happens to all bands." more on this story




Thirty Seconds To Mars' Music Video History Turned Inside Out
(Radio.com) With their combined years of experience in film, Thirty Seconds To Mars can personally craft and execute a video narrative like no other band. From the unexpected Shining tribute in "The Kill (Bury Me)" to the first-ever complete music video shot in China for "From Yesterday" to the Los Angeles love letter of "Kings And Queens" to the star-studded short film for "Up In The Air," the trio has continually matched its cinematic songs with highly conceptual clips.

They're a band that doesn't dumb down artistic endeavors for the fans, known as the Echelon. If anything, they plant cultural Easter Eggs in their epic videos to keep their throngs of highly engaged fans poking away and the mystery and myths they're constantly building.

In the episode of Radio.com Inside Out, they explored Thirty Seconds To Mars' music video history. The band themselves shed some light on their work, including the revelation that singer Jared Leto thought his original cut for "The Kill (Bury Me)" was "a piece of s***."

Also weighing in was panel of experts and Thirty Seconds To Mars collaborators including: Howard Petruziello, VP of Promotion at Capitol Music Group; Amani Duncan, former SVP of Marketing/Video at Virgin Records (2000-2008) and current VP of Brand Marketing for Martin Guitars; Gina Esposito, VP of Music & Talent at MTV; and, Steven J. Gottlieb, Founder of Video Static