Jason Newsted Giving Away Download of New Song
Former Metallica bass player Jason Newsted's new band Newsted are now offering fans a free download of a new song which comes from their forthcoming album.
The band has posted the new song "Heroic Dose" on their official website as a free download. The track comes from their forthcoming album, "Heavy Metal Music," which will be released on August 6th in North America and the 5th in the UK. Download the free song here.
Jason Newsted produced "Heavy Metal Music" and his new namesake band also features drummer Jesus Mendez Jr, guitarist Jessie Farnsworth, and Staind guitarist Mike Mushok.
The group is currently on a tour of Europe and will be hitting the road this summer in North American as part of Megadeth's Gigantour along with Black Label Society, Device, Hellyeah & Death Division.
The Gigantour will be kicking off on July 3rd and it appears that Jason will be jamming a Metallica classic with Megadeth's Dave Mustaine during the trek.
"There is a chance that Mustaine and I will bust out some old Metallica that he was a part of. It has been talked about," says Jason. "I'm willing to throw down Phantom Lord – actually, whatever he calls out, I'm gonna throw down!"
Earlier this month Mustaine confirmed the plans when he tweeted fans asking them which classic Metallica song they would like to see the two former Metallica members jam together on the tour. more on this story
Rare Early Van Halen Promo Video Goes Online
(hennemusic) A high-quality copy of the rare Van Halen video for the "Women & Children First" track "Loss Of Control" has surfaced. "Loss Of Control" was a b-side on the UK release of the single for "And The Cradle Will Rock…"
The dimly-lit video, which features the band in surgical outfits, was the only video filmed for the band's third album. The footage has never been commercially released, although it was broadcast outside of the U.S.
Van Halen debuted "Loss Of Control" live in late 1977, and it was featured in the band's setlist for their 1980 Women & Children First World Invasion Tour. Watch the video here.
Pink Floyd Vs Pandora
(hennemusic) Pink Floyd have reunited for an editorial in USA Today regarding the actions of Pandora in attempting to reduce artist royalties from internet radio.
Floyd members Roger Waters, David Gilmour and Nick Mason write, "It's a matter of principle for us. We hope that many online and mobile music services can give fans and artists the music they want, when they want it, at price points that work. But those same services should fairly pay the artists and creators who make the music at the core of their businesses.
"For almost all working musicians, it's also a question of economic survival. Nearly 90% of the artists who get a check for digital play receive less than $5,000 a year. They cannot afford the 85% pay cut Pandora asked Congress to impose on the music community."
"We've heard Pandora complain it pays too much in royalties to make a profit," adds the members of Pink Floyd. "(Of course, we also watched Pandora raise $235 million in its IPO and double its listeners in the last two years.) But a business that exists to deliver music can't really complain that its biggest cost is music. You don't hear grocery stores complain they have to pay for the food they sell. Netflix pays more for movies than Pandora pays for music, but they aren't running to Congress for a bailout. Everyone deserves the right to be paid a fair market rate for their work, regardless of what their work entails." more on this story
Dave Grohl Is Planning New Foo Figthers Album
(Gibson) Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins spoke to Billboard on the state of the band's next album, the follow up to 2011's Wasting Light. According to Hawkins, the album is in the planning stages by Foo Fighters main man Dave Grohl.
"Dave has his brain working overtime, like usual, and he's got a lot of great ideas, both musically and conceptually -- none that I can speak of at this moment, but it's gonna be great. It's gonna be cool."
Hawkins also suggested that he believes that the band's best work is still ahead of them, saying: "You always want every one of them to be the best one you've ever done, and you always think you haven't done your best one.
"Although some people may feel we have, I still think we haven't written our 'Hotel California' or our 'Bohemian Rhapsody' or whatever. Every time you start a record, you have to be, like, ready to [expletive] kill yourself or it's not gonna be any good." more on this story
Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert Coming To DVD and Blu-ray
Eagle Rock have announced a September 3, 2013 release date for The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert which will be released in a triple DVD set, Blu-ray, and digital formats.
The audio has been remastered and this release will mark the very first time that the opening acts' performances (including Metallica, Extreme, Def Leppard and Guns N' Roses) will be released on DVD or Blu-ray.
The SD Blu-ray will feature upscaled standard definition original material with uncompressed stereo and DTS-HD surround sound. We were sent these details along with the full tracklisting:
On April 20th 1992, Roger Taylor, Brian May and John Deacon, the surviving members of Queen, took to the stage at Wembley Stadium for the start of one of the biggest events in rock history, which the band had organized to pay tribute to their former colleague – the incomparable Freddie Mercury. Queen were joined by some of the greatest musical talent in the world to celebrate Freddie's life and work and to increase public awareness of AIDS, the disease that had prematurely ended his life the previous year.
The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert features many Queen classics in unique performances including: "Bohemian Rhapsody", "Hammer To Fall", "Crazy Little Thing Called Love", "Radio Ga Ga", "I Want To Break Free", "Under Pressure", "Somebody To Love", "We Will Rock You", "We Are The Champions" and many more. Special guests include David Bowie, Gary Cherone, Roger Daltrey, Def Leppard, Joe Elliott, Extreme, Bob Geldof, Guns 'n' Roses, James Hetfield, Ian Hunter, Tony Iommi, Elton John, Annie Lennox, Metallica, George Michael, Liza Minnelli, Robert Plant, Mick Ronson, Axl Rose, Seal, Slash, Lisa Stansfield, Elizabeth Taylor, Paul Young & Zucchero. more on this story
Arctic Monkeys Announce New Album and Release New Video
(Radio.com) Just a few days before a headlining set at Glastonbury this weekend, Arctic Monkeys have announced September 10th as the release date for AM, the band's fifth studio album and first since 2010's Suck it and See.
"I actually stole it from the Velvet Underground, I'll just confess that now and get it out of the way," Arctic Monkeys frontman Alex Turner told BBC Radio 1 DJ Zane Lowe (via NME) about the new album's two-letter title. "The VU record, obviously."
AM will feature a handful of special guests, including longtime Elvis Costello drummer Pete Thomas and Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme, whom Turner said contributed one of the record's highlights.
"His contribution to our record is really exciting, it's probably my favorite," he explained. "The 30 seconds that he's in there is just, I dunno, it's like something that I've never heard before."
Among the tracks on AM is recently released single, "Do I Wanna Know?" which the band debuted in concert last month during a show in Ventura, Calif. Check out the video here.
Megadeth To Donate Concert Proceeds To Oklahoma Tornado Relief
(hennemusic) Megadeth have announced that the proceeds from the band's July 16 Gigantour stop in Oklahoma City will donated to the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma to help those affected by last month's tornadoes that hit the region.
"Many amazing bands have come forward to aid Oklahomans since the May tornadoes came and tore apart their homes and lives," says Dave Mustaine. "Now it's time for Heavy Metal to give to this community!"
In addition to the Gigantour donation from the OKC Zoo Amphitheatre date, Megadeth, members of other bands from the festival, and local celebrities will participate in an All-Star softball game July 15th at the ASA Hall of Fame Complex, with 100% of the proceeds going to the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma. more on this story
Dream Theater Announce First Leg Of Upcoming Tour
Dream Theater have announced the dates for the first leg of their upcoming European tour and also announced that they plan to tour North America next spring.
The European tour will be kicking off on January 15th in Porto, Portugal and will feature shows in 30 cities in 16 countries across Europe before concluding on February 24th in Helsinki, Finland.
The band will be launching the tour in support of their forthcoming self-titled album which will be released on September 24th and was recorded at Cove City Sound Studios in Glen Cove, New York and produced by John Petrucci and mixed and engineered by Richard Chycki (Aerosmith, Rush).
"I see every new album as an opportunity to start over," says Petrucci. "To either build or improve upon a direction that has been evolving over time or to completely break new ground.
"This is the first self-titled album of our career and there is nothing I can think of that makes a statement of musical and creative identity stronger than that. We've fully explored all of the elements that make us unique, from the epic and intense to the atmospheric and cinematic. We're incredibly excited about Dream Theater and can't wait for everyone to hear it."
The band will soon be announcing tour dates for their North American trek in support of the album. That tour is expected to kick off in March of next year. more on this story
Nightrage Singer Leaves The Band
Nightrage have reportedly parted ways with frontman Antony Hamalainen as the singer is leaving on good terms so that he can explore other music ventures.
Blabbermouth published the following comments from Hamalainen, "There is no drama or bad blood. Quite the opposite actually as we all remain great friends. I personally would just like to explore other musical ventures. It's as simple as that.
"I want to thank [Nightrage founder] Marios Iliopoulos for giving me a chance to play in his band, and write two amazing albums with him. He is one of the most underrated guitar players in the world, and I am sure he will create more amazing music in the years to come.
"In other news, [drummer] Johan Nunez and I, have finished recording a new album of total melodic death metal with several of our best friends on board. This is a project we have been working on for a few years now and we can't wait to share it with you. There will be more news on that in the weeks to come so stay tuned!" Read the report here.
Sanctity's Jared MacEachern Joins Machine Head
Machine Head have recruited Sanctity vocalist and guitarist Jared MacEachern as their new bass player, who they hired after an exhaustive bassist search earlier this year.
Drummer Dave McClain had this to say about the audition, "Jared came in to the audition and just killed it! Besides being able to nail the bass and vocal harmonies, he also had the vibe and personality to make it feel like we were a BAND again. It was a great feeling and we all knew he was the guy."
Frontman Robb Flynn had this to say, "We really wanted a guy that was hungry for this, someone who could live and breathe this with us. Dave would joke around that we didn't want to get someone too green that'd be like 'oh my god, is this a dressing room?!', but we also didn't want someone who was too jaded by the whole thing and 'been there done that'.
"We thought the perfect guy would be someone who'd paid some dues, who had done 9 or 10 crummy van tours, and wasn't broken by that, but inspired to keep going and play music, and in many ways that was Jared. I mean hell, the guy's only rode in a bus for two nights, one of which was with us! It brings a really cool level of appreciation to the table, and it shows where his heart's at."
MacEachern adds, "I'm ready to get to work! This tour is going to kick ass and the new tunes are heavy as sh*t! I'm SO looking forward to making good music with good dudes!"
MacEachern is currently rehearsing with the band for the upcoming Mayhem festival tour and the band also plan to begin pre-production for their next studio album soon.
Switchfoot Announce New Album And Release Film Trailer
Switchfoot have announced that Fading West will be the title of their forthcoming studio album as well as a feature film that they will presenting to fans on their upcoming fall tour.
The band will be releasing the album in October and the film, which runs for 80-minutes, will act as the opening act for the group's upcoming storyteller format tour.
The tour will be kicking off on September 20th in St. Louis, MO and will hit 43-cities including Chicago, New York, Atlanta, Denver, Los Angeles, Seattle and Minneapolis.
We were sent the following synopsis for the film as well as a link to the trailer: Inspired by such films as Rattle and Hum and Endless Summer, the Fading West feature film follows Switchfoot as they travel the globe in search of new musical inspiration and perfect waves. Directed by Matt Katsolis and filmed during Switchfoot's 2012 World Tour, the film charts the creation of the San Diego-based fivesome's upcoming ninth album in its earliest and most unpredictable stages. Part rock documentary, part surf film, and part travelogue, Fading West offers rare glimpses of the longtime surfers on their boards and in the waves, captures the frenetic energy of their live shows, and in the end portrays a journey both epic and intimate. Watch the trailer here.
Asking Alexandria Planning Summer Record Release Tour
Asking Alexandria have recruited Motionless In White, Upon A Burning Body and Crown The Empire to support them on their upcoming late summer record release tour.
The 10-date tour will be kicking off in Fargo, ND on August 6th, the same day that their third studio album, , From Death To Destiny, is hitting stores.
The trek will include stops in Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, Missouri, Arkansas, Indiana before concluding on August 17th in Madison, WI.
Ben Bruce had this to say about the trek, "AMERICA, we're f**king back and we're better than ever. We have a very short headlining run throughout the Midwest to celebrate the release of our brand new album 'From Death to Destiny'.
"Sex, Drugs and Rock n' Roll doesn't even cut it here, so join us starting Aug 6th for two weeks of utter sin and debauchery. We are stoked to be back, so lets f**king do this." more on this story
Iron Maiden Spitfire Pilot Amazed At Fan Response
(Classic Rock) The pilot of the Spitfire fighter plane that flew over Download to launch Iron Maiden's headline set says he's amazed at the response to his appearance.
Squadron Leader Andrew Millikin passed three times above 90,000 fans at Donington Park on June 14, with Maiden launching into classic track Moonchild – without the long intro – as the WWII fighter plane banked up over the main stage.
And although he's used to staging flypasts in the Spitfire Mk16, registration TE311, he says it was a unique experience. "This was something completely different. There's been a lot of interest from fans who attended," Millikin tells the Horncastle News. "I'd never have thought that a bunch of metal fans would be interested in RAF craft – but I've been proved wrong.
"It was fantastic to fly over. I get goosebumps every time I see the Spitfire in the air, so I can't imagine what it was like down there." More including video of the flyover.
Soundgarden's Ben Shepherd Releasing Solo Single From Upcoming Album
(hennemusic) Soundgarden bassist Ben Shepherd has released his debut solo single, "Baron Robber," the lead track from his forthcoming album, "In Deep Owl," due August 27.
All the vocals and instruments on "Baron Robber" were played by Shepherd, with drums by Joseph Brailey. Billed as HBS, the album project is a collection of songs recorded in the industrial neighborhoods of Georgetown and Interbay in Seattle, Washington.
Produced by Shepherd, Dave French, Chad MacMurray and Nathan Yaccino, "In Deep Owl" features guest appearances by Soundgarden drummer Matt Cameron and former Pearl Jam drummer Matt Chamberlain. Check out the new song here.
Reznor Addresses Nine Inch Nails' Revolving Lineup Door
(Classic Rock) Trent Reznor admits Nine Inch Nails' lineup problems disrupted his plans for the band, but he believes the end result is all the better as a result. He announced a "reinvented" version of the band at the beginning of the year, then unveiled a group of musicians including King Crimson guitarist Adrian Belew and former Jane's Addiction bassist Eric Avery.
Last month Avery bowed out, saying he was "overwhelmed" by NIN's touring commitments. Belew announced his departure at the beginning of June, insisting there had been no fall-out but that "we both agreed it just was not working."
"It's been disruptive," Reznor tells KROQ. "I started off with an idea of who would be in the band, and we started working that way. You can spend a lot of time, as I have done, projecting what it's going to be like with this chemistry and this recipe – and in reality, it rarely is that.
"It turned out to be something different in the case of a couple of people in the band. It's felt like a wrench in the works at times. But it's made me rethink a lot, and where we're ending up at is much truer to what Nine Inch Nails should be – and better, in the long run." more on this story
Bloc Party Release First Song From New EP
Bloc Party will be following up their latest album, Four, by releasing a new five song digital EP, entitled "The Nextwave Sessions EP," on August 13th via Frenchkiss Records.
The first single from the EP, "Ratchet," was premiered on Zane Lowe's Radio 1 show "Hottest Record" last night and the band have recruited animator Cyriak to direct the music video for the song. Watch it here.
Kele offered these details about the song, "Ratchet was the first song we recorded with Dan. It really came together whilst we were on tour in 2012. We started slipping it into the sets at the start of this year just to try it out and the reactions were insane. We knew we had something special."
Fans can catch Bloc Party live this summer on some of the biggest stages and festivals in the UK and Europe, including a headlining slot at this year's Latitude Festival in the band's native UK. more on this story
Hatebreed, Shadows Fall, The Acacia Strain and Battlecross Tour
Hatebreed have announced a new fall headlining North American tour in support of their latest album, The Divinity of Purpose, and have released the latest video from the album.
The band has released a new music video for the song "Honor Never Dies," which is the second video from The Divinity of Purpose. You can watch the video here.
The new North American tour will feature support from Shadows Fall, The Acacia Strain and Battlecross and will be launching on September 26th in Albany, NY.
The band is currently on a European tour which includes several major music festival appearances including the Roskilde Festival, Brutal Assault Festival and Summer Breeze in Germany. more on this story
Bettye LaVette Cover Brought Moody Blues Frontman To Tears
(Radio.com) It's not uncommon on a TV singing competition for a judge to tell a contestant that they "own" a song when they do a new take on a famous classic. It's less common for the author of a song to offer such a compliment.
But that's just what happened when Moody Blues frontman Justin Hayward described to Radio.com his reaction to hearing soul singer Bettye LaVette's take on the band's iconic 1967 single, "Nights In White Satin."
"I burst into tears," he said, "I just could not help myself. I wrote the song when I was 19, coming on 20 years old, but I heard it for the first time when I was 64 years old. She's one of the true, true greats."
As for his own music , Hayward has a new solo album, Spirits Of The Western Sky, which he worked on with bluegrass musicians. "This little group of bluegrass players just sounded right for my voice," he explained of the unlikely pairing. more on this story
August Burns Red Singled Out Week: Count It All As Lost
August Burns Red released their brand new studio album, "Rescue & Restore" this week and to celebrate we asked drummer Matt Greiner to tell us about some of his favorite songs. Today he tells us about "Count It All As Lost". Here is the story:
"Count It All As Lost" proved to be the most challenging song to write drums to on Rescue & Restore. The song is relentless! The song opens up with this big introduction that pulls you in and keeps you on your toes. Through a series of twists and turns, the linear writing leads you to a guitar riff that I compliment with the bells on my drum-set, which I use sparingly on our records. The very next part has the fastest blast beat I've ever played on any ABR record. It took me at least 2 hours to get the drums right for just that 10-second part. I am happy we chose to keep it as fast as we did though because it sets the song up well for the 'whiny' breakdown that follows.
All in all, Count It All As Lost is one of my favorite songs on the record. The song is very linear in fashion and takes you through a windy road of sounds and styles before arriving at the end where you are somehow still banging your head and smiling at the same time!
Writing lyrics for Count It All As Lost was an extensive process. I first put pen to paper for this song in early 2012 on a tour in Europe. I was having a hard time dealing with the high standard I set for myself. I found that whenever I lived up to my own moral standards, I became self-righteous and inflated. On the contrary, whenever I failed to meet my high standards of morality, I felt like throwing myself off of a bridge!
The Bible has a very helpful depiction of this 'up and down' relationship many of us have with being better or worse than our own expectations. Paul, the New Testament writer, addresses this issue in Philippians 3:8 where he says, "I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ." He writes this amazing truth after listing all of his exceptional moral accomplishments, showing us that even the very best we can do is still crumbs compared to the worth and value in knowing Jesus.
Both musically and lyrically, this song has a little something for everyone. I hope listeners enjoy this song as much as I do!
Hearing is believing. Now that you know the story behind the song, listen for yourself and learn more about the album right here!
Metallica Release Master of Puppets Performance From Abu Dhabi
(hennemusic) Metallica have released video footage of the band performing the title track to their 1986 album, "Master Of Puppets," in Abu Dhabi this past spring.
The April 19 concert marked just the second time that Metallica had played the city; the band's previous date in the city was in October of 2011.
Metallica recently held the 2013 edition of their Orion Music + More festival at Belle Isle in Detroit, MI. The band's next live show is set for July 6 when they play the Rosklide Festival in Denmark, following which they launch an Asian tour on August 10 in Tokyo. Check it out here.
Alice Cooper Guitarist Orianthi Releases Heaven In This Hell Video
Spinefarm Records announced that Alice Cooper guitarist Orianthi has released the official music video for the title track of her recently released solo album, 'Heaven In This Hell.'
The video was directed by Paul Boyd (Deadmau5, Neon Trees) and also features Glen Sobel (drummer for Alice Cooper), Tommy Henriksen (guitarist for Alice Cooper) and Cyril Niccolai (of The Fairchilds).
The song was produced by Dave Stewart and Orianthi had this to say about the video, "The video is about the spell that love puts you under. It's an addiction; it's heaven in this hell." Watch it here.
Tobias Sammet of Avantasia on Wikimetal
The latest episode of the Wikimetal podcast includes a featured interview with Tobias Sammet from Avantasia. The show sent over these details about the episode:
Sammet told us about the creation of the project, his biggest influences for Avantasia and about how it was to work with Andre Matos. A very nice chat with lots of amazing sounds and Sammet telling us who is the rockstar he has always wanted to work with, but never got the chance.
You can listen to the full episode of the podcast here or you can skip directly to the interview with Sammet
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