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Today's Day in Rock Stories

Journey Win Fan Vote For Rock Hall Induction(Classic Rock)


Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame bosses have confirmed that Journey won this year's public vote for induction in 2017. Neal Schon's band, who'd led the poll from the start, finished ahead of the Electric Light Orchestra, Yes, Pearl Jam and The Cars.
It doesn't guarantee entry into the Rock Hall - the vote only counts as one in over 600 ballots. But every band who's won the poll since it began four years ago have gone on to be inducted.

The Hall Of Fame say: "You voted. We tallied. We're proud to present your official fan's ballot group. Each artist who made it into the top five spots will receive an extra vote in the overall Class of 2017 Induction vote thanks to you."

The induction announcement is to be made later today (December 20). If Journey are included it will lead to increased speculation on the chances of a reunion with classic-era singer Steve Perry. Read more here.



Guns N' Roses Icon Izzy Stradlin Streams New Recording

Izzy Stradlin may have opted out of the Guns N' Roses reunion but that hasn't stopped him for recording new music. This weekend he revealed a new cover of J.J. Cale's "Call Me The Breeze".
The rock icon recruited Lauren Barth (vocals) and Jesse Aycock (guitar) to join him on the new version of the track. According to the YouTube description, Stadlin and his guests recorded the cover late last summer at the Brotheryn Studios in Ojai, California and Fellowship Hall Sound in Little Rock, Arkansas.

Stradlin announced the release with the following tweet on Saturday (Dec 17), "Call Me the Breeze" features special guest appearances by Lauren Barth and Jesse Aycock . Two very talented artists ....check them out !" Check it out here.



Metallica Star Responds To Dave Mustaine's Big 4 Comments(Classic Rock)

Metallica's Rob Trujillo says he'd like to tour with Megadeth, Slayer and Anthrax under the Big Four banner again in the future. The four thrash metal acts shared the bill for seven shows in the Sonisphere festival series in 2010. Megadeth mainman Dave Mustaine - a former member of Metallica - recently said he wants all of them to hit the road together again.
Responding to Mustaine, bassist Trujillo says he's also keen to team up for another Big Four tour in future - but Metallica must focus on promoting their new album, Hardwired... To Self Destruct first.

He tells Loudwire: "The Big Four tour was really great. We had a great time - it was special and fun and I love Dave. Dave is amazing. Right now, the main focus is we've got this new album and we're going to go out and we're going to tour this and get into these new songs and take this journey right now."

He adds: "Maybe after we get this sort of out of our system, we can dive into Big Four mode and try and do that. I can see us doing it again. It was definitely a lot of fun. It makes me feel good that Dave wants to take that journey again." Watch the full interview clip here.



Phil Anselmo Lashes Out At Scott Ian Over Racism Accusation(Metal Hammer)

Former Pantera man Phil Anselmo says it's "infuriating" that Machine Head's Robb Flynn and Anthrax's Scott Ian accused him of being racist. The vocalist hit headlines after he made a Nazi salute and shouted "white power" at the end of his performance at Dimebash in January.
He faced a backlash from the music world, led by Flynn - who challenged Anselmo's claims that it was an "inside joke" which he had with friends backstage prior to the event.

Ian also condemned Anselmo, saying he needed to truly realize the power of his words to be forgiven. But the Down and Superjoint vocalist has called out the pair's 'virtue-signaling' - and tells them to take a long, hard look at their own lives before judging him.

Anselmo takes Ian to task for his work on Stormtroopers Of Death's 1985 debut record titled Speak English Or Die, adding: "If that record would have come out this year, last year, f***ing forget it. You think he'd get pounced on? You're damn right he would, and he knows it.

"He wrote me some email, saying 'And if you're really sorry, donate to this Nazi hunter Jewish cause' or whatever,' I did it in an hour. Did you ever hear about that story? Of course you didn't. You know why? It doesn't make good headlines. I donated that hour, if not that goddamn second." Listen to the interview in full here.



Judas Priest Expand Turbo For 30th Anniversary Reissue(hennemusic)

Judas Priest will mark the 30th anniversary of their 1986 album, "Turbo", with the release of an expanded reissue on February 3. The "Turbo 30" reissue will be available as a 3CD set, LP and via digital download.
The package will include a remastered version of the original album alongside audio of the band in a May 1986 concert at the Kemper Arena in Kansas City, MO.

"The 80's is considered to have been the best decade for heavy metal," says the group. "Judas Priest roared through it and at the half way point went into unchartered territory with 'Turbo'. Always believing that metal should have no boundaries, Priest challenged themselves taking on board new technical inventions to create fresh ideas and push their sound forward. The combined songs show another side of Priest's range of creativity that captures a theme and energy infused with the over the top sensibilities of that era.

"The 'Fuel For Life' tour certainly encapsulated the decadence of the times! 'Turbo' remastered and accompanied by a pedal to the metal live recording from Kansas reveals Priest on high octane - Raising fists and devil horns to the next level." Read more here.





Iron Maiden's Eddie Animated For Christmas Video(Classic Rock)

A fan has used Iron Maiden's track The Book Of Souls to soundtrack an animated Maiden-themed Christmas video. Val Andrade's clip is called A Christmas Cheers 2 and featured a story centred on Iron Maiden's mascot Eddie. It's set to the title track from the band's recent album The Book Of Souls.
Andrade has also released an animated video for Maiden's track The Wicker Man. Iron Maiden recently wrapped up a world tour in support of the album and the band issued a Christmas jumper featuring a festive Eddie.

They are in good company when it comes to getting into the holiday spirit. Guns N' Roses have released a particularly striking Christmas jumper, while Spotify have sent Korn Christmas decorations to fans. Watch the videos here.




Nightwish Release 'My Walden' Video(Prog)

Nightwish have released a video for their track "My Walden." The clip has been taken from the band's recently released live package Vehicle Of Spirit, which features two live Nightwish performances filmed in Tampere and at their sold out show at London's Wembley Arena earlier this year.
Nightwish will go on hiatus throughout 2017, with singer Floor Jansen promising fans "something special" when they return in 2018.

She said: "Well, we'll be back in 2018. We haven't said anything about a record or what we're going to do. We have been keeping it a secret on purpose, because it's something special - something that I really think Nightwish fans will really like.

"But for now, we're taking a break from the whole thing - not because it wasn't good, but maybe because it was good. It's good to reflect on life and take a step back and sit and relax and do something else. And we'll be back with a vengeance in 2018." Watch the video here.




Marillion Announce New Live Double CD, DVD and Blu-ray(Prog)

Marillion are to release Marbles In The Park through earMUSIC on January 20, 2017. The live release will be available on double CD, DVD and Blu-ray.
It was was recorded at 2015's Marillion Weekend in Port Zelande and pays tribute to their 2004 album Marbles. The DVD and Blu-ray editions also include the trailer for Unconventional, the documentary about the weekend conventions.

Marillion's most recent studio album F E A R was released in September and reached number 4 in the UK Album Charts. They recently announced their first concert at the Royal Albert Hall, which sold out in less than an hour.

See the Marbles In The Park tracklisting here.



Anthrax Release 'Suzerain' Lyric Video(hennemusic)


Anthrax have released a lyric video for "Suzerain", a track from their latest album "For All Kings." The New York band's eleventh album, "For All Kings" debuted at No. 9 on the US Billboard 200 earlier this year with opening week sales of 34,000 units.
"Mankind keep making the same mistakes over and over," explains guitarist Scott Ian. "You'd think that after thousands of years of religious, economic and ideologic wars, we'd have figured out how to live with each other, but we haven't. That's what drew me to the idea for 'Suzerain'."

Anthrax will return in 2017 for a winter 2017 European tour to mark the 30th anniversary of their 1987 album, "Among The Living", that will see the group perform the record in its entirety alongside classic tracks.

The band will launch a newly-announced co-headlining North American tour with Killswitch Engage in Montclair, NJ on March 29. Watch the new video here.



Camel Announce Ichigo Ichie Live DVD(Prog)

Veteran prog rockers Camel are to release a new live DVD recorded in Japan. It will be entitled Ichigo Ichie (which translates as 'treasure every encounter for it will never recur').
Ichigo Ichie: Camel Live In Japan 2016 was filmed during the band's most recent Japanese tour, recorded at a show in May at Tokyo's EX Theatre in Rappongi.

The band on the evening featured Camel mainstays Andy Latimer (guitar, flute, vocals), Colin Bass (bass), Denis Clement (drums) and Tiger Moth Tales' Peter Jones on keyboards and vocals. Read more here.




Suicide Silence Going Mostly Clean For New Album(Metal Hammer)

Suicide Silence say their next album will feature "70%" clean vocals. The band have been working on the follow-up to their last full-length album, 2014's You Can't Stop Me - which is due out next February. Vocalist Eddie Hermida previously promised the record would make a "statement."
He tells AltPress: "We decided as a band to do something way outside the spectrum of what Suicide Silence has done in the past. We wanted to maintain a heavy sound while exploring our love of music, and what came out surprised us 100%. Really, the biggest difference is that we stopped giving a f***, and when you do that you feel free, and you learn who you really are."

Drummer Alex Lopez tells MetalShop TV: "There's clean vocals on 70% of the album. It's the first time he Eddie has been confident enough to do it. There's a lot of singing in it, there's a lot of screaming in it. Read more here.



Former Kyuss Frontman John Garcia Releases 'Kylie' Video(Metal Hammer)

Former Kyuss frontman John Garcia has released a video for his track "Kylie". The song comes from the desert rock hero's forthcoming studio album The Coyote Who Spoke In Tongues, which launches on January 27, 2017.
The follow-up to his 2014 self-titled debut was recorded and mixed by Steve Feldman and Robbie Waldman, mastered by Gene 'The Machine' Grimaldi at Oasis Mastering in California and features Garcia's longtime tourmates Ehren Groban, percussionist Greg Saenz and bassist Mike Pygmie.

Garcia had the following to say about the new solo effort: "This record is one of the most important of my career, difficult and challenging to do, but worth every minute of sweat."

As well as his work with Kyuss and his solo efforts, Garcia has performed with acts such as Vista Chino, Hermano, Unida and Slo Burn. The singer said last year he doesn't think there will be a Vista Chino comeback with Kyuss colleagues Brant Bjork and Nick Oliveri - and that he'll focus on his solo career for the foreseeable future.

He told Manc Union: "We're all too focused on doing our own things now and I'm more interested in taking the music that I've been working on over the years for myself and seeing what directions I can take it in." Watch the video here.



Sepultura Streaming New Song 'Phantom Self'(Metal Hammer)

Sepultura have released a stream of their new track "Phantom Self". It comes from the band's upcoming 14th album Machine Messiah, which will launch on January 13 via Nuclear Blast.
Guitarist Andreas Kisser recently revealed Sepultura's follow-up to 2013's The Mediator Between Head And Hands Must Be The Heart was "inspired by the robotisation of our society."

He added: "The concept of a 'God Machine' who created humanity and now it seems that this cycle is closing itself, returning to the starting point. We came from machines and we are going back to where we came from. The messiah, when he returns, will be a robot, or a humanoid, our bio-mechanical savior." Stream the song here.



Japan and Porcupine Tree's Richard Barbieri Announces Solo Album(Prog)

Richard Barbieri has announced that he'll release his third solo album early next year. It will be entitled "Planets + Persona," and is set to hit stores on March 3 via Kscope.
Barbieri is known for his work with Japan and Porcupine Tree, Barbieri's follow-up to 2008's Stranger Inside is said to be "his most sonically expansive work to date."

A statement on the album continues: "Vintage analogue synthesisers combine with acoustic performances and jazz elements. Twisted voices are always present, though not in a language we can recognise. Barbieri skilfully utilises the talents of a pan-European core of musicians to produce an album that marries synthesised sounds with organic instrumentation to conjure up vivid, colourful and allusive soundscapes.

"It's a skilful commingling of texture and tone, mood and musicality." To mark the announcement, Barbieri has also issued a teaser video for the record, featuring snippets of all seven tracks. Listen to them here.



Falling In Reverse Return With New Song 'Coming Home'(Metal Hammer)

Falling In Reverse have release a new single entitled "Coming Home." It's their first new material since their third studio album Just Like You in 2015. They announced the release without warning along with the caption "we are coming home." Listen to it below.
Earlier this year frontman Ronnie Radke said their next album would focus on "feeling" and would sound like "nothing they have ever done before." He said: "It's a huge left turn. Every song is very vibey, There's more feeling in it instead of a lot of metal.

"We're challenging ourselves now more than we ever have in the weirdest ways possible, because you would think writing the craziest solo or riffs would be the challenging part.

"But the challenging part is trying to stick to a theme and not go all over the place like we would normally do." Check out the new song here.




Ticket Reseller Law Signed In U.S. As UK Launches Their Own Probe(TeamRock)

The British Government has launched an investigation into suspected breaches of consumer protection law in the online secondary tickets market. The move comes as the Better Online Ticket Sales (BOTS) Act was signed into law in the U.S., making it an offence across the entire country to use computer software to buy event tickets online.
The government's Competition And Markets Authority (CMA) says the investigation "follows concerns that people are not getting the full range of information required by law when buying tickets put up for resale."

The CMA will specifically look at if information is provided on who the seller is and any connections the seller may have with the platform or event organisers as well as whether there are any restrictions on the use of resold tickets which could result in the person being denied access to the event. It also want it to be clearer to the buyer where a seat is located in the venue.

Andrea Coscelli, the CMA's Acting Chief Executive, says: "A night out at a concert or a trip to a big match is something that millions of people look forward to. So it's important they know who they are buying from and whether there are any restrictions that could stop them using the ticket." Read more here.




Rare 1983 Video Of Ian Gillan Fronting Black Sabbath Goes Online(Classic Rock)

Deep Purple's official YouTube channel have released a live clip of Ian Gillan fronting Black Sabbath in 1983. Gillan replaced Ronnie James Dio is the lineup that year and went on to record Born Again with Sabbath - the only album to feature the Deep Purple man.
In the archive video, Gillan is joined onstage by guitarist Tony Iommi, bassist Geezer Butler and drummer Bev Bevan and play the tracks Digital Bitch and Zero The Hero.

Black Sabbath are gearing up for the remaining dates on The End tour, which will wrap up with two shows in their hometown of Birmingham in early February. However, Iommi recently said he hasn't ruled out the chance of festival appearances at some point in the future.

He said: "I wouldn't write that off, if one day that came about. That's possible.

"Or even doing an album, because then you're in one place. But I don't know if that would happen." here.



Motorhead Producer Reveals Nearly Fatal Mistake With Lemmy(Classic Rock)

Producer Cameron Webb has recalled how he nearly talking himself out of his job with Motorhead - by calling them a heavy metal band. Mainman Lemmy, who died in December 2015, always insisted his outfit played rock'n'roll, and resisted any other genre label.
But Webb didn't know that when he first sat down with the band in 2004, with a view to becoming their producer. The meeting was arranged by Motorhead managed Todd Singerman.

Webb tells Produce Like A Pro: "I would always ask, 'When's Motorhead doing a record? I want to do one.' And he'd always say, 'You're too nice of a person. I would never put you in a room with them - they'd tear you apart.'

"All of a sudden, one day I get a phone call. It's Todd: 'Do you want to do a Motorhead record? Here's the deal. You're going to have dinner. If you like them and they like you, you're going to do a record. If they don't like you, you tried and it is what it is.'"

He recalls visiting Tower Records on his way to the meeting, but on discovering how many albums the band had released, he decided not to try to expand his education, but to rely on what he already knew of their 1970s and 1980s output.

Webb continues: "The one thing I wanted to do was make sure they were modern sounding. I didn't want them to sound too trashy - I wanted it to be full and big-sounding. Bands like System Of A Down had great-sounding records at the time. I wanted that for Motorhead.

"So I went up there, sat, ate steak, drank and talked shop. I approached them with, 'I want to make a heavy record, almost a metal record.' Lemmy says to me, 'Cameron, we're a rock'n'roll band. We're not a heavy metal band.'"

The producer knew instantly: "'Oh, man, I just blew it.' I walked out with the manager and he goes, 'Cameron, you almost did a good job. But you shouldn't have brought up that heavy metal thing.'

"Next day I got a call - 'You're on, show up at rehearsal.' And since then I've done every record. I built a trust with those guys." Watch the full interview here.



Killswitch Engage May Focus On New Albums Over Touring(Metal Hammer)

Bassist Mike D'Antonio says Killswitch Engage are considering a future that involves more recording and less touring than their current phase. And he reports they're aiming to start work on the follow-up to this year's Incarnate as soon as they complete their North American tour with Anthrax in May.
D'Antonio tells the Mike James Rock Show: "We're thinking that we've toured out butts off and it might be time for a rest. Maybe doing less touring and more albums might be the way to go for us. That's out mindset right now.

"Having fun and being able to smile on stage is the number-one priority. Granted, you can't make money with records these days - and we're planning to make more of them. But our sanity is definitely in question right at this moment. We need to get back to a reset button."

Despite that, he reports that feelings within the band are generally positive, especially after the fan response to Incarnate, which followed 2013's Disarm The Descent - their first release since the return of frontman Jesse Leach. Read more here.



Red Hot Chili Peppers 's Chad Smith Jams With Babymetal(Metal Hammer)

Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith performed with Babymetal during the Japanese outfit's show in London this past week and video of the jam has been posted online.
The Japanese trio supported Red Hot Chili Peppers on their UK tour and at lats night's (December 18) gig at the O2 Arena, Smith performed a drum solo as part of Babymetal's set.

After a performance of Gimme Chocolate, Babymetal exited the stage and the arena was plunged into darkness - which was when Smith slipped unnoticed onto the stage and behind the kit, replacing Hideki Aoyama and performing a solo disguised as a member of the Kami Band wearing corpse paint and white clothing.

Babymetal then closed their set with Smith playing on their Judas Priest medley of Painkiller and Breaking The Law. Then at the very end of Babymetal's set, Smith reappeared with a birthday cake for Su-Metal, who turns 19 on December 20 - with the audience singing Happy Birthday.