Today's Day in Rock
Survivor Singer Jimi Jamison Dead at 63
Survivor frontman Jimi Jamison passed away from a reported heart attack on Sunday, August 31, according to his former Survivor bandmate Jim Peterik. He was 63 years old.
Peterik, who was a cofounder of the group, had this to say in a statement on Monday, "I'm in shock. I've lost a dear friend and the world has lost a great talent - singer Jimi Jamison."
Survivor posted the following message on their Facebook page, "The entire Survivor family is very shocked and saddened by the passing of our brother Jimi Jamison. Our thoughts, love and prayers go out to his family and friends."
Peterik's camp sent over these details about Jimi's achievements with Survivor, "Jimi Jamison joined Survivor in 1984 and recorded a number of the band's best-known songs including, 'I Can't Hold Back' as well such Billboard Top 10 hits as, 'High On You,' 'The Search is Over,' and 'Is this Love' among others."
Foo Fighters Preview New Song
(hennemusic) The Foo Fighters are sharing a preview of a second song from their forthcoming album, "Sonic Highways." It's the second clip of new Foo music from the project, following an 8-second tease featuring a classic Dave Grohl scream as he sings, "All rise!"
A short video clip posted by Twitter's head of music, Bob Moczydlowsky, on Friday features a test pressing of the band's new album playing on a turntable.
"Holy guitars, Batman! New @foofighters record makes 'em sound 100 feet tall," he tweeted. The footage was also shared by the group via their social media outlets.
Check out the preview here.
Ted Nugent Warned Hendrix, Bon Scott They Were Going To Die
(Classic Rock) Ted Nugent says in a new interview that he warned a raft of musicians, including AC/DC's Bon Scott, Jimi Hendrix and The Who's Keith Moon, about the dangers of addiction - but says they didn't listen.
He tells Radio.com: "I told Jimi Hendrix he was gonna die. I told Bon Scott he was gonna die. I told Keith Moon he was gonna die. They all thought I was an idiot. They called me an a**hole and a loser because I wouldn't drink and puke and drool.
"I didn't take it personally - I kew drugs had destroyed their sense of logic and their sense of decency. 'No, I don't want any of that, Bon and why you're killing yourself, I'll never understand. If I had your voice, I'd rule the planet.'"
He also had some strong words for his old reality show castmate Sebastian Bach here.
Michael Schenker Robbed
(Classic Rock) Michael Schenker's next Temple Of Rock album is in disarray after thieves broke into his studio and stole guitars, equipment and the computers containing his recorded work to date.
But vocalist Doogie White has vowed the band will get over the disaster - while appealing for help to recover the missing property. The theft took place between Friday evening and Sunday morning at Kidroom Studios in Greven, Germany, where tracking was underway for Spirit On A Mission. Among the stolen items are four Schenker guitars including a custom Dean V in chrome - one of only three ever made.
White tells TeamRock: "We're a bit f***ed and a bit pissed off. I only got home on Friday after laying down the vocals, and Herman Rarebell just arrived to track the drums. The thieves broke in through skylights and stole a bunch of guitars, and also the computers containing the tracks. Then we found they'd also taken the backups."
A lot more details here.
Jethro Tull Founding Member Glenn Cornick Dead At 67
(Classic Rock) Glenn Cornick, who was Jethro Tull's original bass player, has died. The 67-year-old died of congestive heart failure at his home in Hawaii, it's been reported.
Cornick was born on April 23, 1947 in Barrow-In-Furness and played in various groups before briefly joining Ian Anderson in the John Evan Band in 1967. The band soon split, leading the pair, along with guitarist Mick Abrahams, to form what would become Jethro Tull.
The bassist played on the first three Tull albums This Was, Stand Up and Benefit before he was "invited to leave" by the band's manager Terry Ellis in 1970.
He formed Wild Turkey, recording the albums Battle Hymn, Turkey and four-track sampler Don't Dare To Forget, before joining German band Karthago. He went on to form Paris with ex-Fleetwood Mac member Bob Welch.
More including Anderson's tribute here.
Smashing Pumpkins Days Are Numbered?
(Classic Rock) Smashing Pumpkins' frontman Billy Corgan reveals in a new interview that he might pull the plug on the band after he finishes working on his current projects.
He is working on albums Monuments For An Elegy and Day For Night and reveals he's increasingly frustrated at the state of the music business, saying he finds it hard to grab the attention of music fans.
Corgan tells The Chicago Tribune: "I'm not willing to wait around 15 to 20 years to have somebody go, 'Hey, that album you made is really good' and then sell it to the 7000 people that are still paying attention.
"When this new album process is over, I'm either going to bail on this ship for good or I'm going to have a new ship to sail on." He continues here.
Gwar Preview New Documentary
(TeamRock Radio) Gwar have released a nine-minute trailer for the movie that will tell the story of the band's career. Let There Be Gwar documents the outfit from their earliest days until the death of mainman Dave Brockie, alias Oderus Urungus, in March.
No release date has been set - but the band have discussed how they intend to continue, with former bassist Michael Bishop taking the role of new frontman character Blothar for their upcoming shows.
Plans to stop touring next year have been shelved as a result of the change in circumstances. Backing vocalist Bob 'Bone Snapper' Gorman tells Style Weekly: "We just have to keep putting out quality stuff. If it started to suck we'd lose our credibility."
Check out the film preview here.
Kate Bush Makes Chart History
(Classic Rock) Kate Bush has made chart history by becoming the first female artist to have eight albums in the top 40 at the same time. Her achievement is only bettered by Elvis Presley, who took 12 places after his death in 1977, and the Beatles, who scored 11 on their remaster releases in 2009.
Bush's first chart record came when debut single Wuthering Heights made her the first female artist to reach No.1 with a self-written song. Now her 1986 record The Whole Story has made No.6 while Hounds Of Love, from the previous year, has reached No.9. Further titles are placed at 20, 24, 26, 37, 38 and 40, with three more at 43, 44, and 49. That means her entire back-catalogue is in the top 50.
The sales spike comes after Bush began her 22-date Before The Dawn residency at London's Hammersmith Eventim Apollo - her first run of shows since 1979.
More details here.
The Breeders Working On New Music
(Classic Rock) The Breeders are working on new material that they plan to record with long-time collaborator Steve Albini. Following a hectic touring schedule to celebrate the 20th anniversary of their seminal album Last Splash, the band intend to record new music with the classic line-up of sisters Kim and Kelley Deal, bassist Josephine Wiggs and drummer Jim MacPherson.
Their touring commitments led Kim Deal to step down as Pixies bass player last year. Kelley Deal tells Rolling Stone: "One of our new songs, Kim came up with a working title. I was very excited about it, Skinhead Number 2.
"Like at the end of the movie, end of the credits, they have 'Man of the street number 1, 'Skinhead number 1', 'Skinhead Number 2.' I really liked that title, the uniform of non-conformity, this posing and posturing, and then I just identified as Skinhead Number 2."
More details here.
Live Releasing First New Album In 8 Years
(Classic Rock) Live will release their first album for eight years in October. The Turn will be the band's first record with new singer Chris Shinn, who replaced Ed Kowalczyk in 2012.
The new album is due for release on October 28th in North America and a day earlier in the UK via Think Loud Recordings. The release of the album will coincide with the 20th anniversary of the group's eight-million selling Throwing Copper.
Original members Chad Taylor, Patrick Dahlheimer and Chad Gracey remain in the line-up. A Pledge Music campaign has been started to help with the album launch, with a portion of the proceeds going to Musicians On Call - a charity which brings music to the bedsides of hospital patients.
More details here.
Exodus Reveal New Album Details
(Classic Rock) San Francisco thrashers Exodus will release their new album in October. Blood In, Blood Out launches on October 14th in North America and October 10th in the UK and guitarist Gary Holt says he got ideas for the new songs from watching gritty TV shows.
He says: "When I was working on the record, I was sitting around watching TV series like Gangland and all these locked-up prison reality shows. I thought, 'Yeah, that's like Exodus.' It's a brotherhood - you bleed to get in, you bleed to get out.
"I've been doing this kind of music since I was a teenager and I'll be doing it until I can't physically do it any more." Blood In, Blood Out is the first Exodus album since the departure of frontman Rob Dukes. Steve "Zetro" Souza, who had two previous stints with the band, returns for the new record, which the group say was a seamless transition. More details here.
Joe Perry Helped Give Metallica The Blues
(TeamRock Radio) Joe Perry had to teach blues classic Train Kept A'Rollin' to Metallica because the thrash giants didn't know the blues staple - but he doesn't think it's a bad thing.
He ran through the classic track, first recorded in 1951, ahead of Metallica's induction into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2009. The band performed it during their induction ceremony with help from Perry, Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck and Ronnie Wood.
Asked about the story in his book Rocks: My Live In And Out Of Aerosmith, Perry tells Vanyaland.com: "The story wasn't meant to be a put-down - and I hope it doesn't come across that way. It's not how I meant it.
"It's more of an observation that every generation seems to get away from the original stuff; and it's also that each generation is going to have to find their inspirations. They're going to hear something and they're going to go, 'I like that,' or, 'I don't like that.'"
He believes there's no requirement to study the history of rock'n'roll in order to play it: "I don't think that part's important, unless you're just interested in it. It's that feeling you get that's important.
"99percent of people who listen to music don't know and don't care - and frankly it's not their job to care. Their job is to enjoy it and have fun with it or listen to it to give you a lift or to mellow you out or whatever you want that's what it's for. 'Any old way you use it,' like Chuck Berry said."
More with Perry here.
Morgoth Release First New Song In 17 Years
(TeamRock Radio) Morgoth's single God Is Evil - their first new material in 17 years - has been made available to stream. The German death metal outfit have just released God Is Evil, which features two new tracks, on 7-inch vinyl and digitally.
Morgoth will unveil new album Ungod in early 2015 via Century Media Records. The band say: "Finally, after 17 years, we have some new tunes to share with you. These two brand-new songs are meant to be a first teaser for our upcoming album, Ungod."
God Is Evil is available on black vinyl and limited golden vinyl and included b-side "Die As Deceiver." The artwork was created by Costin Chioreanu, who has previously worked with Arch Enemy, Grave and Darkthrone.
Listen to the new song here.
Courtney Love Changes Her Focus
(Classic Rock) Courtney Love says her time for holding grudges is in the past - and while she insists relations are good between her former Hole bandmates, she's taken another swipe at ex-boyfriend Billy Corgan.
She recently quashed rumours of a Hole reunion after some rehearsals with Melissa Auf der Maur, Patty Schemel and Eric Erlandson - and now she says her role in TV series Sons Of Anarchy means her focus is on acting, not making music.
Love tells Paper magazine: "It's more important for me to act right now than to play rock'n'roll. Me, Melissa, Patty and Eric have rehearsed a few times, but in order to pull that off, we'd have to make some music that's relevant to now. And we'd have to get a modern producer.
"My relationship with them is great. At this point in my life no one is my enemy. Any grudges or issues with that past? I'm done with it." But she adds: "The only person I'm concerned about is Corgan. I'm like, 'What is your problem?' I just wish he'd mellow out, that's all. We're older - get over it."
More with Love here.
Unearth Releasing New Album This Fall
(TeamRock Radio) American metalcore outfit Unearth have announced details of their new album. Watchers Of Rule is the band's sixth studio output since forming in 1998 and will be launched on October 28th in North America and November 3rd in Europe.
Watchers Of Rule is the follow-up to 2011's Darkness In The Light was produced by Mark Lewis, who has previously worked with Whitechapel and Devildriver.
Along with the album, the band have announced a European tour, which takes in three dates in the UK in September. On the road with the band will be Shadows Fall, The Acacia Strain, War Of Ages and Pay No Respect.
More here.
Butcher Babies Cover Osmonds, Suicidal Tendencies On New EP
(TeamRock Radio) Butcher Babies have revealed details of an EP of cover versions including tracks by The Osmonds and Suicidal Tendencies. The Los Angeles group release Uncovered on October 6, a collection of covers of the band members' favorite songs.
As well as Crazy Horses by The Osmonds and Don't Give a F*** by Suicidal Tendencies, they also take on songs by ZZ Top, Napoleon XIV and Stormtroopers of Death.
Butcher Babies singer Carla Harvey says: "It was a blast recording songs that we have been fans of our entire lives and putting our spin on them. We all chose a song that had some significance to us."
Fellow singer Heidi Shepherd adds: "As an eight or nine-year-old little girl, I used to rummage through my parents' albums and 8-tracks looking for some cool music. In hopes that my parents had at least a little bit of good taste, I would play every single song looking for something that I could latch on to." more here.
Evergrey Reunion Saved Band
(TeamRock Radio) Evergrey were close to splitting before the return of guitarist Henrik Danhage and drummer Jonas Ekdahl, frontman Tom S Englund has revealed.
The pair left amicably in 2010 alongside bassist Jari Kainulainen - and afterwards Englund began to suffer a loss of inspiration. That changed when he needed a couple of stand-in musicians for some tour dates, leading to the return of Danhage and Ekdahl and the creation of ninth album Hymns For The Broken.
Englund says: "The guys coming back saved Evergrey. I wasn't set on doing an album. I'm amazed - the band sounds hungry, the album sounds awesome, and I can say there's not a weak song on it." More here.
Planet Of The Apes Inspired Hammerfall's New Album
(TeamRock Radio) Oscar Dronjak reveals that Hammerfall's new album title (r)Evolution has something in common with the Swedish release of Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes.
The Swedish group release ninth album (r)Evolution on September 1 via Nuclear Blast - their first recording since returning from a year-and-a-half hiatus.
The guitarist previously stated the album had "more quality songs than any we've done before" and reveals it's his love of making music that drives the band forward.
He tells Spotlight Report: "In Sweden, they sometimes take liberties with the translation of movie titles. When Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes came out in Swedish theatres, it was called Planet Of The Apes: (r)Evolution.
"For a long time I thought that was the original title. I realised when we had decided to use (r)Evolution, it was just the Swedish title, so it made it even better because it wasn't available to many people.
"It also has meaning for us. For me, it means an on-going revolution that we've had since 1993. There's been a revolution in heavy metal because in those days, heavy metal was uncool and not popular, so it's always been a battle for us."
More here.
Night Ranger Reunites With Keri Kelli
(Classic Rock) Night Ranger's Brad Gillis has confirmed that Keri Kelli has joined the band, following the departure of Joel Hoekstra. Hoekstra left the band last month to hook up with David Coverdale in Whitesnake, leaving Night Ranger with a hole in their lineup.
But they turned to Kelli, who previously worked with the band in 2012, when Hoekstra was on tour with Trans Siberian Orchestra. Guitarist Gillis tells Metalholic.com: "Joel's moved on to Whitesnake - he spent a good seven years with us and it's been great but whenever there's a change, you always make the best of it and we will prevail.
"Keri Kelli is back in the band now. He's a great player and has played with us before." More details here.
Motley Crue Conclude First Leg Of Farewell Tour
(hennemusic) Motley Crue wrapped up the first leg of their farewell tour in at the Darien Lake Performing Arts Centre outside of Buffalo, New York on Sunday, and video from the show is available.
"Last night marked the end of the 1st leg of "The Final Tour"...thank you to everyone who came out to see us one last time," posted the band. "We'll be back on the road October 10th."
The first leg of "The Final Tour" launched July 2 in Grand Rapids, Michigan with special guest Alice Cooper. The group returns to action October 10 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; Crue's 6-week break will be interrupted by an appearance at the iHeartRadio Music Festival in Las Vegas on September 19
Check out video from the Buffalo tour leg closer here.
Glenn Hughes Unwittingly Sang California Breed Vocals
(Classic Rock) California Breed frontman Glenn Hughes has revealed he didn't know he'd recorded vocal tracks for the band's debut album, because producer Dave Cobb recorded without telling him.
And he's admitted to being amazed that he managed to keep quiet about the new project while it was coming together. He cut the record with Black Country Communion colleague Jason Bonham - although the drummer is now concentrating on other projects - and 22-year-old guitarist Andrew Watt.
Glenn tells Technology Tell: "Dave said to Andrew and Jason, 'Why don't you go out there and record? Glenn, do you have lyrics? Do you have melodies? Just go sing while the guys are tracking.'
"So I did that, and overdubbed the bass. The next morning I said, 'I'm going to sing.' Dave said, 'You've sung the album.' here.
KXM Wrote and Recorded Album In Just 10 Days
(Classic Rock) Guitarist George Lynch says that he and his KXM bandmates only had 10 days to write and record their debut album, which was released in May this year.
Lynch, together with Korn drummer Ray Luzier and King's X bassist/vocalist Doug Pinnick holed themselves up in the studio for 10 days, and Lynch says they had no idea how the project would turn out as they had never played together previously.
He tells radio show Do You Know Jack?: "KXM was a natural chemistry - it was really beautiful. The process of writing and recording the album was very brief. We threw ourselves together in a vacant house that we built a studio in - it was very remote. We got in there with our sleeping bags and boxes of food, water and beer and we just stayed there for 10 days and wrote and recorded the whole record.
"It was a really fun experience. I had never done anything quite like that. It was such a productive amount of work in such a short period of time, but it turned out great. We had no idea what was going to happen as we'd never played together before and we didn't write any songs until we got there."
He continues here.
Former Fear Factory Member Criticizes Band Using Drum Machine
(TeamRock Radio) Former Fear Factory drummer Raymond Herrera has slammed 2012 album The Industrialist as stale - because they used drum machines instead of a live musician.
The co-founder left the band in 2009, and Fear Factory went on to release Mechanize the following year with Gene Hoglan behind the kit. Then they opted to use computer percussion on their next title.
Herrera tells Metal Wani: "I thought Mechanize was really good - Gene did a great job. It was probably a little too thrashy for me, but for the most part it sounded like they were trying to recapture the Demanufacture feeling. They did a pretty good job doing that."
But he continues: "The Industrialist I didn't like at all. I was really surprised that they used a drum machine, because I'd thought about us doing that back when we did Archetype. I played around with the idea of doing the album on a drum machine rather than having to play it. But every time it came out really, really stale." more.
Torche Australian Date Canceled
Lifeisnoise.com announced over the weekend that Torche's upcoming show in Perth, Australia on Friday, October 17 at the Rosemount Hotel has been cancelled.
They sent over this statement: "Due to unfortunate circumstances, Torche is unable to move forward with the confirmed show in Perth. Based on numerous factors, ranging from market competition and oversaturation, the parties do not feel confident in the overall success of the show and feel it's in the best interest to cancel. To all of fans of Torche we apologise for any inconvenience.
"Ticket refunds for the Perth show can be obtained from the place of purchase. Torche shows to be held in Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney will all go ahead as previously announced.
"We look forward to providing Perth with more amazing shows in the near future - including the return of stoner-doom legends, Sleep, who'll be playing The Bakery on Monday, December 8."
Visit the promoters website for ticket information for the remaining dates here.
Magnum's New Album Inspired By The Great War
(Classic Rock) British rock veterans Magnum will release a new studio recording of On Christmas Day to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the start of the Great War.
Available on digital formats and 10-inch vinyl, On Christmas Day launches on October 24 via SPV Steamhammer. Guitarist Tony Clarkin wrote the lyrics, which were inspired by the Great War, and bassist Al Barrow says the song was the obvious choice when their record label asked for a festive single.
Barrow says: "SPV asked for a Christmas single. Tony explained that we don't really do Christmas songs, but that we had recorded one before. SPV listened to it and wanted to re-release it, but we wanted to re-record it from scratch. We thought as it's 100 years on, it's a great song to commemorate all the soldiers."
More details here.
Iron Maiden's Bruce Dickinson Born In The Wrong Era?
(Classic Rock) Bruce Dickinson has joked he's only Iron Maiden's frontman on a part-time basis - because he's so focused on his love of flying. And he wishes he'd been born in the 19th century, so he could have lived through the early era of flight.
He's confirmed he'll take part in the Duxford Air Show on the weekend of September 13-14, flying his replica World War I fighter plane in a dogfight re-enactment, just like he did above the Sonisphere festival in July.
Dickinson tells the Telegraph: "In my spare time I sing a bit, own a company that fixes airliners, and I'm trying to bring airships back to the skies. I should have been born in 1898, not 1958." here.
New Song From Johnny Winter and Aerosmith's Joe Perry Streaming
(hennemusic) Johnny Winter's camp has premiered "Mojo Hand", a new song featuring Aerosmith's Joe Perry that will appear on his forthcoming album, "Step Back."
"If it wasn't for Johnny," says Perry, "I'd never have picked up the guitar." Due September 2, the 13-song collection also includes contributions from Eric Clapton, Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top, Brian Setzer, Joe Bonamassa, Leslie West and others.
Produced by Paul Nelson, "Step Back" was completed shortly before Winter died on July 16 in his hotel room in Zurich, Switzerland while on tour in Europe at the age of 70.
Winter will be the focus of an all-star tribute concert at B.B. King's in New York City on October 10; details regarding the guest lineup will be announced soon.
Check out the new song and track details for the album here.
Robert Plant Streaming New Album Online
(hennemusic) Robert Plant is streaming his new album, "lullaby and...The Ceaseless Roar", in advance of its September 5th release in Europe (Sep 8 in the UK and Sep 9 in North America).
The rocker will perform at the iTunes Festival in London on September 8 before introducing the new music to North America on a 7-date theatre tour that begins in New York on September 25.
"lullaby and...The Ceaseless Roar" was recorded at Helium Studios in Wiltshire and Peter Gabriel's Real World Studios in Bath, UK. Plant has teamed up with Genero TV to hold a contest for a fan to create the official video for the album's lead single, "Rainbow."
Check out the album stream here.
Video From Final KISS and Def Leppard Show Goes Online
(hennemusic) KISS and Def Leppard wrapped up their summer tour at The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion in Houston, Texas on Sunday, and video from the show is available.
"The numbers for the US 40th Anniversary Tour say it all!," posted KISS. "42 shows. Over 600,000 fans. Amazing and thank YOU!" The trek, which began June 23 in West Valley City, Utah, saw both acts playing headline sets to fans across North America.
Up next, KISS will perform their first Las Vegas residency this fall. "KISS Rocks Vegas" will see the band play 9 shows at The Joint inside the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino between November 5th and 23rd.
Check out video from the tour closer here.
Metallica Star Jams With Rodrigo y Gabriela
(hennemusic) Metallica bassist Robert Trujillo joined Rodrigo y Gabriela for the encore of their August 17th show at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, CO, and the duo are sharing pro-shot video of the performance.
During the show the trio played a tribute to Metallica that featured a medley of "Orion", "For Whom The Bell Tolls", "The Frayed Ends Of Sanity" and "Battery."
The Mexican guitar duo of Rodrigo Sanchez and Gabriela Quintero perform a mix of several genres, mostly rooted in latin rhythms. The pair originally teamed up in a Mexico City heavy metal band called Tierra Acida ("Acid Land") in the early 1990s before moving on to develop their own music and style.
The duo have performed Metallica tunes through the years and have featured some of the performances on their live releases. Check out video here.
Rob Halford On The Conviction Behind Judas Priest's New Album
(hennemusic) Judas Priest frontman Rob Halford discussed the band's approach to making their latest studio album, "Redeemer Of Souls", in a new video segment that has been posted online.
"We're very proud of the records and the songs that we've made and we really treasure everything that we've put together," Halford explians, "so it's very important for us when we make a record like Redeemer Of Souls that it has the same caliber because this has to be a good record for us because there's a lot of self-conviction.
"When we hear it back before it's gone out to the public, we ourselves have to be convinced that we've given as much as we can at this moment and that it's as good as it can get…and then we let it out to the world."
"Redeemer Of Souls" delivered the UK metal legends the first US Top 10 of their career. The project debuted in July at No. 6 on the US Billboard 200 with 33,000 copies sold, surpassing the group's previous chart peak of No 11 with 2008's "Nostradamus."
Check out the video segment with Halford here.
Status Quo Discuss Unplugged Project
(Classic Rock) Status Quo are to release their first ever unplugged album, Aquostic (Stripped Bare), through Warner Bros on October 20, and Francis Rossi and Rock Parfitt have given Classic Rock an exclusive lowdown on its details.
The project was recorded in great secrecy at Rossi's own studio, with regular producer Mike Paxman behind the desk. It includes some 21 songs culled from various stages of the group's lengthy career. The album mixes single hits with album tracks and a handful of its selections have been enhanced by a string section and backing vocalists. The startling cover image (below), which features Parfitt and Rossi in a state of undress - modesty preserved by a pair of strategically placed acoustic guitars - was shot by Canadian rocker and photographer Bryan Adams.
"The new arrangements of most of these songs are vastly different to the ones that Quo fans will already know," claims Parfitt. The rhythm guitarist and vocalist is especially proud of the way that Don't Drive My Car, from 1980's Just Supposin', has been reworked. "It sounds like a cross between Stéphane Grappelli [jazz violinist] and Django Reinhardt [jazz guitarist]," he enthuses. "People will be taken aback, and pleasantly so."
Rossi admits that he approached the sessions with cynicism, but the lead guitarist/vocalist's interest snowballed once the band - completed by John 'Rhino' Edwards on bass, Andrew Bown on Keys and drummer Leon Cave, set to work. The first track they experimented upon was And It's Better Now (from the 1973 album, Hello!), and the results were far better than Rossi had expected.
"It made me think, wow! And I went from not wanting to be involved to really, really liking it," he comments. "I've always liked Paper Plane [from the previous year's Piledriver], for example, but what we've done with it is really f***ing nice. To me, the new version of All The Reasons [also Piledriver] is as good as the original, or better. The same with Rain [from Blue For You, 1976], which is a song that I really didn't think would work in such a format. It's a really f***ing great record."
More including a video stream here.
Asking Alexandria Deliver Mayhem In Moving On Video
(TeamRock Radio) Asking Alexandria have released a new music video for their single Moving On, which is taken from the Yorkshire band's third album From Death To Destiny.
The clip features footage from the band's appearances on the Mayhem Festival tour. Guitarist Ben Bruce says: "For the first time in our careers, we are showcasing ourselves in the most sincere light possible. No drugs, no partying, no script and no bullsh*t. It's just the five of us completely vulnerable.
"No matter what the circumstance, being away from those you love and care about is very difficult and drags you down. Luckily for us, we have incredible fans that love and support us and help us through our toughest times."
Check out the video here.
Godsmack Star Has Blues On The Side
(TeamRock Radio) Shannon Larkin says he has to restrain himself when playing with his new blues project the Blue Cross Band. The drummer took time out from his day job with Godsmack to form the group, along with Godsmack guitarist Tony Rombola. Ray Cerbone is on vocals and bass is handled by Brian Carpenter.
Larkin tells 94.3 Kilo in Colorado Springs he always keeps his hand in during Godsmack downtime. He says: "Every band I've been in I've always had multiple side projects. I think it's good to play with other musicians. And it's good to play different styles of music as a player. It gets your different chops built up. "Playing in a blues project, it's completely different to playing in a metal band. I have to use restraint that I don't have to use in Godsmack." Shannon also discussed what fans can expect with the Godsmack tour here.
Agent Release Collecting Scars Video
(Prog) Agent have premiered their new music video for the song Collecting Scars, which is taken from the London-based outfit second album Kingdom Of Fear.
The band, who originally hail from New Zealand, are nominated in the Limelight category of this year's Progressive Music Awards. The ceremony takes place at the Underglobe, beneath Shakespeare's Globe Theatre, in London on September 11.
Agent play Camden's Barfly on October 6 with Voyager and Aeon Zen. They return to New Zealand for a four-date tour at the end of November. Check out the video here.
Amplifier Premiere New Song Open Up
(Prog) Amplifier have premiered a lyric video for their track Open Up, which is taken from upcoming fifth album Mystoria - due to be released next week via Superball Music.
The band had the following to say about the new track: "Open Up is a song about surprises - and that's a handy word to use when we talk about Mystoria."
Guitarist Sel Balamir recently said: "We've gone back to just trying to write great songs and melodies, and that's where we've decided to stay." They launch a European tour in October, which includes two UK dates alongside Kerbdog and others - one at the Ritz in Manchester on November 15, and the other at the Forum in London on November 16.
Check out the new song here.
Lostprophets Offshoot No Devotion Release New Video
(TeamRock Radio) Welsh band No Devotion have released a video for the track Eyeshadow. The band consists of former Lostprophets members Mike Lewis, Lee Gaze, Jamie Oliver, Luke Johnson and Stuart Richardson, who are joined by Thursday vocalist Geoff Rickly.
Lostprophets were left in limbo following Ian Watkins' convictions over child sex charges, which saw the former frontman jailed for 35 years.
With the band's name tarnished, the remaining members decided to start a new project and recruited Rickly, who said his new band members deserved another chance.
Along with the new track, the band have announced a North American tour. They'll be supporting Neon Trees on some dates and headlining a number of shows. The tour starts on September 29 in Bakersfield, California.
Watch the video here.
Engineers Release Fight Or Flight Video
(Prog) Engineers have released a video for Fight Or Flight - a track taken from their new album Always Returning. The band - Mark Peters, Matthew Linley and Ulrich Schnauss - launched their fourth album earlier this month via Kscope, and frontman Peters reveals he's growing more confident in his songwriting ability.
He tells Prog: "Over the past 10 years, I feel I've got better at translating what's happening in my head to what comes out of my mouth - with a bit less bullsh*t.
"I always used to worry about everything having to make sense, whereas now I don't care. I approach songwriting in a stream-of-consciousness way, where I try to trust the first thing I do."
Watch the video here.
Classic Lou Reed Interview Gets Animated
(Radio.com) The latest installment of Radio.com's Minimation is taken from a 1989 interview with Lou Reed, discussing his then-new album New York and the song "Dime Store Mystery."
Lou Reed got his groove back on 1989's New York; the album saw him return to a raw guitar, bass and drums approach, and he was rewarded with his best reviews in years, not to mention a pretty big radio hit ("Dirty Blvd.")..
And then there was "Dime Story Mystery." In this 1989 interview Reed reveals that the beginning of the song was inspired by the hot-button film of the era, Martin Scorsese's The Last Temptation of Christ, but also by the death of Andy Warhol, the original manager-producer of Reed's former band, the Velvet Underground.
The beloved New York poet passed away last year, and surely fans wouldn't agree with his sentiment about "throwing away" his time. From 1967's The Velvet Underground and Nico to his final album, 2011's Lulu (a surprising collaboration with Metallica), Reed's uncompromising artistry paved a path for generations of left-field and outsider artists for decades to come.
