Black Sabbath Postpone Farewell Tour Dates Due To Ozzy Illness(hennemusic)
Black Sabbath have postponed a pair of Canadian dates on their recently-launched farewell tour as frontman Ozzy Osbourne has taken ill. The news came just hours before the group's January 30 show at Rexall Place in Edmonton, while Calgary's February 1 concert has also been delayed.
"Due to extreme sinusitis with Ozzy Osbourne, the shows in both Edmonton and Calgary have been postponed," announced the band and promoter Live Nation via social media. "Details regarding rescheduled dates will be announced as soon as they are available."
The next scheduled date on Black Sabbath's 6-week North American tour is scheduled for February 3 at the Rogers Arena in Vancouver, BC. The group launched its farewell tour - a.k.a. "The End" - in Omaha, Nebraska on January 20.
Osbourne's voice was shaky on opening night, according to Kevin Coffey of Omaha.com. "Singer Ozzy Osbourne's voice wasn't great," he writes. "It wasn't awful, really. It simply wasn't very good. On Wednesday, he was sometimes flat. He was sometimes pitchy, occasionally off-key. He almost never hit the notes he was looking for. It was the first show of the tour, so maybe his voice will warm up." Read more including the band's tweet here.
Guns N' Roses Filming New Video?(hennemusic)
The reunited Guns N' Roses will reportedly film a new video in London this week. A UK network called Casting Call Pro has posted an online ad for two "kidnapping bad ass chicks" (ages 18 to 26) to appear in a Guns 'n' Roses video shoot on February 6.
The post reads PAID JOB: GUNS N ROSES, LONDON. But then says, "This is a narrative film for hip hop group. The video follows the artist who has been kidnapped by a gang of female kick ass bad chicks. The film is 'Oceans 11/12/13' meets 'Reservoir Dogs' with slick cuts, split screen, etc.
"2 female kidnappers take the artist hostage and set up a ransom video where the artist performs into. The 2 female kidnappers will wear balaclavas and knee length bomber jackets, which will be provided. The hostages are are kick ass gun wielding bad girls."
As expected, Guns N' Roses have not publicly confirmed any plans for the possible video shoot ahead of the group's 2016 reunion tour launch in Las Vegas in April. Read more here.
Original Jefferson Airplane Singer Signe Anderson Dead At 74(hennemusic)
Original Jefferson Airplane vocalist Signe Anderson died last Thursday (Jan. 28) at the age of 74 - the same day bandmate and guitarist Paul Kanter passed away.
"One sweet Lady has passed on," wrote Jefferson Airplane co-founder Marty Balin on Facebook. "I imagine that she and Paul woke up in heaven and said 'Hey what are you doing here? Let's start a band.'"
"She was a real sweetheart with a terrific contralto voice coming from a solid folk background," posted Airplane bassist Jack Casady on Facebook. "Listen to how she made the three part harmonies of 'JA Takes Off' (first album) sound so thick … her wonderful tone between Paul's and Marty's."
"Signe was one of the strongest people I have ever met," wrote Airplane lead guitarist Jorma Kaukonen on his blog. "She was our den mother in the early days of the Airplane … a voice of reason on more occasions than one … an important member of our dysfunctional little family." Read more here.
Extended Van Halen Super Bowl Commercial Goes Online(hennemusic)
Acura have released an extended version of their upcoming Super Bowl commercial that features the 1978 Van Halen classic "Runnin' With The Devil."
The ad for the 2017 Acura NSX high-end sports car marks the first time that the California band has licensed the song for commercial use. Acura bills the new vehicle as the "only so-called supercar designed, developed and manufactured in the U.S."
"Ultimately we knew that we wanted this to be a rock song," says Leila Cesario, the national advertising manager for American Honda's Acura division. "The Super Bowl is a big American platform. It needed a big American band that screams excitement."
The commercial's soundtrack features the isolated vocal tracks of singer David Lee Roth along with instrumental segments of "Runnin' With The Devil", the second single issued from Van Halen's groundbreaking 1978 self-titled debut album. Watch the video here.
Skindred Frontman Injured In Knife Attack(TeamRock Radio)
Skindred frontman Benji Webbe has his face slashed in a knife attack in his hometown of Newport, Wales. The singer posted a picture of his injuries on his Facebook page, along with the caption: "Went to Iffy's party and ended getting slashed in the face and throat on the way home."
The photo shows a large number of stitches and Webbe's face is also marked with other injuries from the assault. Webbe underwent surgery last year for an unspecified illness.
Skindred released latest album Volume last October via Napalm Records and they are lined up to play at this year's Download festival. They're also scheduled to perform at Studio Coast in Koto, Japan, on Valentine's day. See the photo here.
KISS Star Gene Simmons Grants Dying Teen's Final Wish(Classic Rock)
KISS icon Gene Simmons granted a dying teenager's wish by visiting him in his hospital bed. The bassist and singer spent time with 17-year-old Dilan Kohn at the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) at the Children's Hospital of Nevada in Las Vegas last week. Dilan died a few days after Simmons' visit, but staff have thanked him for making the youngster's dream come true.
A statement from staff at University Medical Center, where the Children's Hospital is based, says: "Last week, one of our patients, Dilan Kohn, got his final wish. The critically ill 17-year-old desperately wanted to meet and hang out with the rock'n'roll musician, Gene Simmons, from the band Kiss.
"Mr Simmons had not only been Dilan's idol, but also his inspiration growing up. Mr Simmons was sent an email request last Thursday afternoon and flew into Vegas the next morning. He showed up with a big bag full of signed memorabilia just for Dilan.
"The two hung out, shared stories and laughed together for well over an hour while staff looked on with tears in their eyes. Thank you Mr. Simmons for making this wish come true just in time.
"Unfortunately Dilan passed away peacefully a couple days later." See the online post along with photos here.
Former Dio And Rainbow Star Jimmy Bain's Cause Of Death Revealed(Classic Rock)
Last In Line bassist Jimmy Bain's cause of death has been confirmed as lung cancer. The former Dio and Rainbow man died on January 23 onboard Def Leppard's Hysteria On The High Seas cruising festival where Last In Line were due to perform. He was 68.
His bandmate Vinny Appice says Bain didn't even know he had lung cancer and that he was receiving treatment for pneumonia when he died. Appice adds: "The medical examiner report states the official cause of death was lung cancer. Jimmy didn't know he had lung cancer, but he did know he had pneumonia and was receiving treatment for it.
"This didn't stop him or slow him down, we had four rehearsals four hours a day, then a flight to Miami for the Def Leppard rock cruise. A pre-sail gig and sound check was scheduled for the following day. At the gig Jimmy played great and even sang that night while holding a heavy bass guitar on his back, never complaining or asking for help.
"Next day we preceded to board the cruise ship for a five-day voyage of which we were scheduled to play Sunday, the fourth day. That gig never happened as Jimmy passed away in his cabin the night before. We were devastated." Read more here.
The Ghost Inside Frontman Back On His Feet Following Bus Crash(TeamRock Radio)
The Ghost Inside frontman Jonathan Vigil has given an update on his condition after the El Paso bus crash in November. The 32-year-old vocalist posted a photo on Twitter with a caption saying: "Standing on my ok foot for the first time in two and a half months. Hopefully I can walk on it in another month."
The LA metalcore band were involved in an accident in El Paso, Texas, on November 19 last year. Their driver Greg Hoke died, along with the driver of the other vehicle involved, Steven Cunningham. Vigil and two other members of the band were airlifted to the University Medical Center.
The frontman detailed his injuries and treatments on Instagram earlier this month - which include a fractured back and neck, two broken ankles, ligament damage to his knee, a broken tooth and a wound on his back. He also had to have a skin graft on his right elbow.
Drummer Andrew Tkaczyk confirmed earlier this month that he had lost his leg in the bus crash. He also suffered several rib, hip and spine fractures. Guitarist Zach Johnson announced in December that he had endured more than 26 hours of surgery to his feet, legs and hips. Read more and see the photo here.
Wayne Static's Widow Tera Wray Suicide Confirmed By Coroner(TeamRock Radio)
A coroner has confirmed that Wayne Static's widow Tera Wray committed suicide. Wray, who was 33, died last month. Her passing was confirmed by the former adult film star's attorney Michael Fattorosi, who said he believed she had taken her own life to be with her late husband.
Randy Emon, the supervising deputy coroner investigator for the San Bernardino County coroner's office, tells Blabbermouth: "Our coroner records indicate Tera died on January 13, 2016, in Joshua Tree, California. The manner of death was listed as suicide."
Static died on November 1, 2014, aged 48. He passed away in his sleep after mixing strong prescription drugs with alcohol, with the official manner of his death given as "natural." Read more here.
Ace Frehley Announces Spring Tour(hennemusic)
Original KISS guitarist Ace Frehley has announced that he will be launching a US tour this spring. Shows begin in Houston, TX on February 26 and run into mid-April.
Frehley has been working on all-star covers album as the follow-up to 2014's "Space Invader." "The album's going to be about my influences," says Frehley. "I'm probably going to do a Rolling Stones song, a Who song, possibly a Led Zeppelin song, maybe a Beatles song. Stuff from bands that I grew up on and greatly influenced me. Those are the songs I'd redo, besides vintage Kiss stuff and a Frehley's Comet track."
Slash joined the guitarist in the studio last summer to help record a Thin Lizzy classic, while other anticipated guests include Lita Ford, John 5, and Mike McCready from Pearl Jam.
Frehley's first new album in five years, "Space Invader" scored a US Top 10 debut when it entered the Billboard 200 at No. 9 with opening-week sales of 19,000. See the dates here.
David Bowie's Blackstar Remains At No. 1 In The UK(hennemusic)
David Bowie's "Blackstar" has topped the charts for a third straight week as the late singer continues to dominate UK music sales in 2016. Bowie also has another 6 albums on the charts - with 18 in the UK Top 100.
The Official Charts Company reports the project is one of five Bowie albums in the Top 10, including 2002's "Best Of Bowie" at No. 3, 2014's "Nothing Has Changed" at No. 5, 1971's "Hunky Dory" climbs three places to No. 9, and 1972's "The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars" jumps nine spots to No. 10.
The feat means Bowie is the first act to score five albums in the Top 10 since Michael Jackson managed six in 2009 after his passing. With seven more records in the Top 40 bringing his total to 12, the rocker ties Elvis Presley's UK chart record for simultaneous Top 40 entries, which the King achieved following his death in 1977. Read more here.
Enter Shikari Release Acoustic Performance Footage(TeamRock Radio)
Enter Shikari have released footage of their intimate acoustic performance at London's Alexandra Palace. The band played in front of a small audience of friends and competition winners in a secret theatre at the iconic venue. And as well as the video footage, which can be viewed below, Enter Shikari have confirmed the release of an EP called Live & Acoustic At Alexandra Palace, out on February 1.
Filmed ahead of their upcoming UK tour in support of latest album The Mindsweep, the footage shows the band performing in a seldom-seen Victorian Theatre at the Ally Pally, rather than the 10,000 capacity hall where they'll wrap up the tour on February 27.
The theatre, largely unused in this century, is hidden behind the main building. It's a 2500 capacity ornate room that has, over the past 100 years, served as not only a place of entertainment but also a haven for Belgian refugees, a BBC props store and a German internment camp. Check out the video footage here.
Falling In Reverse Release 'Chemical Prisoner' Video(TeamRock Radio)
Falling In Reverse have premiered their video for Chemical Prisoner. The metalcore band fronted by vocalist Ronnie Radke released their third record Just Like You last year.
The 32-year-old says: "Filming this video was super fun. We did it in my hometown Vegas with my dad's motorcycle club. One of my favourite videos to shoot."
Radke hinted earlier this month that their upcoming album will be a "huge left turn" for the band - marking a departure from their heavier roots. The band lost guitarist of five years Jacky Vincent in November, who left to work on his solo project. Watch the video here.
Crowbar To Begin Recording New Album This Month(TeamRock Radio)
Crowbar have confirmed they will be back in the studio on February 17 to begin recording their forthcoming release. The New Orleans sludge metal veterans have already begun writing tracks for the follow-up to 2014's Symmetry In Black.
Frontman Kirk Windstein previously told the Thunder Underground podcast: "We've got four songs written that are really killer. In January, we really need to buckle down and make sure we finish up the other half of the record."
In July of last year, he spoke about the band's creative process. He said: "We make our own music and for us, it's just about slow and steady wins the race - the hare and the tortoise mentality." Read more here.
Avantasia Announce Ghostlights World Tour(Classic Rock)
Avantasia have announced a world tour in support of latest album Ghostlights, which was launched last week (January 29). The rock opera group will play 35 dates across Europe and North America - and say they will perform three hour sets with no support acts.
Ghostlights features guest vocals from Dee Snider and Geoff Tate, ex-Kiss guitarist Bruce Kulick, Marco Hietala of Nightwish and Sharon Den Adel of Within Temptation. It follows their 2013 release, The Mystery Of Time.
Avantasia have made Ghostlights available to stream in its entirety via Bild.de. and have also unveiled a promo for the song Mystery Of A Blood Red Rose.
Mainman Tobias Sammet, who also fronts German metal band Edguy, says: "In my humble opinion, Mystery Of A Blood Red Rose is the perfect overture to the seventy-minute journey which the full album is going to be.
"Although it's is a rather short composition compared to most other Avantasia songs, I wanted to embellish and amplify it with flamboyance and all Avantasia trademarks. I wanted to make it a detailed piece of fantasy art, but at the same time it was a big challenge to make that painting look inherently consistent if you view it from the distance." Read more and see the tour dates here.
Dave Matthews Band Announce Summer Tour(Gibson)
Dave Matthews Band almost always tops Pollstar's list of the most attended tours of the summer, so why mess with what works? The band has unveiled 46 summer tour dates.
The trek will kick off May 11 in Wichita, Kansas, and run through a three-night residency Labor Day weekend, Sept. 2 through 4, in George, Washington. For ticket information, head to DaveMatthewsBand.com.
This isn't just any Dave Matthews Band tour. The trek will commemorate the band's 25th anniversary. The guys have also announced that they will take a hiatus from touring in 2017.
Dave Matthews Band's latest studio album is 2012's Away from the World. See the dates here.
Al Jourgensen Going Pop With New Band Surgical Meth Machine(TeamRock Radio)
Al Jourgensen has inked a record deal with Nuclear Blast for his new band Surgical Meth Machine. The speed metal outfit will be joining metal greats such as Slayer, Behemoth and Lamb Of God on the independent record label.
Surgical Meth Machine's self-titled debut album was recorded at Jourgensen's home studio in Burbank, California with longtime engineer Sam D'Ambruoso. The frontman had been eyeing last September for release, but the band has pushed the date back to later this year.
The 57-year-old says of the release: "There's a couple of real poppy things on there, which brings me full circle, because, literally, I don't give a f*** anymore. So I'm actually almost acknowledging that first horrible pop record I did in 1983. I'm crooning on some songs, I've got some pop songs on there, and then there's just brutal assault for the rest of it.
"It's a very dichotomous record, but it's me, and I'm acknowledging everything that's been me through, like, the last 35 years. Let's just throw my balls on the table and hope somebody doesn't have a meat cleaver running." Read more here.
Anneke Van Giersbergen Announces Acoustic Tour(Prog)
Anneke Van Giersbergen has announced a UK acoustic tour for April. She'll play six dates on the tour, with support from Tony Wright – aka VerseChorusVerse.
Former Gathering vocalist Van Giersbergen this week confirmed she will perform a show with The Gentle Storm at her December Fan Weekend in Amsterdam, saying:
"Since the weekend is already sold out, this will be a great opportunity to hang out with fans from all over the globe that are coming to Amsterdam for this special occasion." See the tour poster and dates here.
Steve Nardelli Announce Collab Album With Moon Safari(TeamRock Radio)
Steve Nardelli's The Syn will release a collaboration album with Moon Safari in March. Trustworks is the result of a partnership between Nardelli and the Swedish prog outfit that began in 2010. Between them, they co-wrote the nine tracks that make up The Syn's first studio album since 1009's Big Sky.
Moon Safari say: "For those who don't know about this project, we've been working on and off since late 2010 with Steve Nardelli of The Syn as co-authors, producers and musicians on this album.
"The music can best be described as a mix between the psych pop Syn sound from the 60s and Moon Safari's trademark symphonic and vocal-driven progressive rock.
"Steve's characteristic and bluesy voice mixed really well with our smoothness and we are all convinced that the resulting cuts clocking in between three and 15 minutes will make for a good listen." Read more here.
Creeper Release 'Black Mass' Video(TeamRock Radio)
Creeper have released a video for their track Black Mass. The Southampton punk rockers lifted the track from upcoming EP The Stranger, which is out on February 19 via Roadrunner Records.
Creeper underwent a lineup change in December. Guitarist Sina Nemati left the band and was replaced by Oliver Burdett, while touring keyboardist Hannah Greenwood also joined as a full-time member.
The band will set off on a headline tour next month, and will also be supporting pop-punk outfit Neck Deep on their UK trek. The Stranger, the follow-up to The Callous Heart EP, is available for pre-order. Watch the video here.
Beardfish Frontman Rikard Sjoblom Streams New Song(TeamRock Radio)
Beardfish frontman Rikard Sjoblom has released track Realm Of You And Me. The song is lifted from the singer's debut solo album The Unbendable Sleep, out on February 10.
The album will also feature Beardfish bassist Robert Hansen. The band released their latest album +4626-COMFORTZONE last year. Sjoblom says: "It was one of the last songs that was written for the album, but basically I was sitting in a hotel room, just strumming the guitar and started playing the opening riff over and over and singing a melody. I think I wrote the whole thing in 15 minutes. It quickly became a favourite for me and I recorded it the week after I wrote it.
"It's about growing apart and finding your way back to someone – your partner, yourself… your guitar? I can't be sure yet what it means to me personally but I know I feel very strongly about it." Stream the song here.
Susanna Announces New Album and Streams Lead Single Burning Sea(TeamRock Radio)
Susanna has confirmed her 11th album will be released in April and made one of its tracks available to stream. Triangle is due on April 22 via SusannaSonata and lead single Burning Sea is now streaming online.
Susanna says: "Burning Sea is about the experience of giving in to something, surrender, and feeling trapped at the same time, both wonderful and dangerous. I wrote this song in LA where a lot of the material for the album came to life.
"I am very fascinated by the sunny, beautiful and urban in combination with the pumping undercurrents of creativity in that city." The Norwegian artist is known for personal interpretations of songs by Joy Division, Leonard Cohen and AC/DC as well as her original material and collaboration with Jenny Hval on 2014's Meshes Of Voice. Read more and check out the song here.
Big Boy Bloater And The Limits Release Lego Video(The Blues)
Big Boy Bloater And The Limits have released a Lego video for their track It Came Outta The Swamp. The promo was created by Big Boy Bloater himself and the track is lifted from the group's upcoming album Luxury Hobo, released on February 26 via Provogue/Mascot Label Group.
Bloater says: "About three years ago I was looking for something therapeutic to do that would just be me in a quiet room away from the noise and hassle of everyday life. Around the same time my dad cleared out his loft and a load of Lego I had as a kid appeared.
"I was instantly fired up to do some stop motion animation, especially as a lifelong Ray Harryhausen fan. I wrote this song about a year ago and not long after Lego released their swamp series so I knew this would have to be the video for it when the time came.
"It took me about a month to do but I could have taken a year, it was so much fun." Watch the video here.
Singled Out: Conan's Revengeance
Conan just released their brand new studio album "Revengeance" and to celebrate we asked frontman Jon Davis tells us about the title track from the new effort. Here is the story:
I was sitting in a Jewish cafe in the North West and was putting together some lyrics for the album, while listening to some studio demos. I started to think about the world in which we write Conan songs in and thought more widely about the political and sock economic structure of the worlds where Conan songs exist.
I began to realize that this was probably not such a nice place to live and started using phrases such as 'Endless age so desolate, Kingless realm so desperate' as these painted a picture of a land without leadership or guidance.
In the studio we started to play around with vocal lines and realised that the lines 'All this is infinite, we rot inside of it' sounded like 'All By Myself' by Eric Carmen, we decided to take this all the way and ape that vocal harmony totally.
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