P.O.D. frontman Sonny Sandoval has launched a new solo project called SONNY DREAD. The project's self-titled debut LP, for which a release date has not yet been announced, is described in a press release as "a classic reggae album rooted in heavy bass, timeless riddim, and island-driven grooves. The project features powerful collaborations with Q-Unique, Ray Riley, Dondi, Arise Roots, Marcos Curiel, Louie Castle, and Gil, Migs And Rog."

Two SONNY DREAD songs are out now, "Sleeping Lion" and "Talk To GOD", and can be streamed below.

"After over a decade of wanting to release a solo project - SONNY DREAD is here," Sonny wrote on Instagram. "'Sleeping Lion' and 'Talk To GOD' w/ @mr_q_unique is now available. Full SONNY DREAD album is coming!! Hope you dig it. Please tag & share with everyone!"

Sandoval previously discussed the SONNY DREAD project in an April 2024 interview with Anne Erickson of Audio Ink Radio. He stated at the time: "I had started a whole reggae album by myself when I was home [during the pandemic], because you couldn't go anywhere. So I just did it at home and teamed up with a lot of different producers just online. I would just see their stuff, and I'd be, like, 'Hey, send me some tracks.' I was able to do everything. So I had planned to release that, actually, two years ago now, but then because our label and everybody was, like, 'We really, really need a P.O.D. record,' all that stuff got put on the back burner."

Sonny continued: "I've always been a reggae fan. I love reggae music. I think the scene is probably bigger now than ever. There's tours all around the world now for reggae music. And so I think once we're finished with [the touring cycle for] this [new P.O.D.] record and it starts to wind down, I'm definitely…. I mean, I am gonna release either an EP or a full record. And then I would just love to play shows just locally and maybe jump on tour with some reggae bands just because I just love doing it."

He added: "I'm pretty much just sitting on it. And so now it's, like, I just want people to hear that."

P.O.D.'s most recent album, "Veritas", came out last year. The band's cover of THE BEATLES classic "Don't Let Me Down" was made available in September.

"Veritas" was written over the course of several years, with the band typically writing a tune or two at a time with the Los Angeles-based production duo called the Heavy (Jason Bell and Jordan Miller).

Sandoval's memoir, "Son Of Southtown: My Life Between Two Worlds", was released in February.

Sandoval is the founder and president of the Youth Of The Nation Foundation, which reaches out to children from underprivileged neighborhoods and gives them the opportunity to find their self-worth and value.

Sonny is married to his high school sweetheart, Shannon, and they have three children.

In a new interview with Axe Lords, Lita Ford spoke about her "reinvention" after her departure from her former band, iconic 1970s rockers THE RUNAWAYS. She said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): " It was a total reinvention. I mean, coming out of THE RUNAWAYS, THE RUNAWAYS were all girls, teenage girls. We were just finding ourselves in THE RUNAWAYS days. We just were following our legends. Cherie [Currie] thought she was David Bowie, and Joan [Jett] thought she was Suzi Quatro, and I loved Ritchie Blackmore. Of course, I didn't look anything like him. But when THE RUNAWAYS broke up, I really had to become a solo artist. And then I thought, 'Well, I can't continue doing the same thing as what I did in RUNAWAYS days,' because THE RUNAWAYS, to me, were really like going through college to learn how to be the real deal. When you're in college, you look and dress and act, and you're learning stuff and you're learning a lot of things about yourself and who are you and what do you look like and what do you wanna be, what do you wanna be for the rest of your life? And so I thought, 'I need to figure out who is Lita Ford. Who is she? What does she look like? What does she wear? What kind of guitars does she play?' And we're searching for Lita kind of experience — the hair, the clothes, those guitars. And B.C. Rich [guitars] came into my life at that point. And that was it. I was sold."

This past June, Lita spoke to Ray "Boom Boom" Mancini of The Boom Boom Room about the infamous 2010 biopic on THE RUNAWAYS, which stars Kristen Stewart as Joan Jett, Dakota Fanning as Cherie Currie and Scout Taylor Compton as Lita. She said: "I felt that THE RUNAWAYS movie was all about Joan, and the stories that they told about Joan were just not accurate. They really made her to look larger than life. And I just didn't agree with any of it.

"I love Scout Taylor Compton," Lita clarified. "I thought she did a fantastic job playing Lita and that she's a really great person and great actress. And I love that they picked Scout for that role. And Scout had reached out to me multiple times, 'Lita, help me with this' and 'help me with that'. And then, of course, they had Kristen Stewart playing Joan Jett. And Kristen Stewart is not one of my favorite people, and neither is Joan Jett.

"The movie is just kind of, for me in my book, I glanced over it when it first came out and just thought, 'Okay, I've seen it. I'm done. I don't ever wanna see it again,'" Lita added.

"Yeah, I would've done it different. But maybe I will one day."

Before "The Runaways" was released 15 years ago, Scout praised Lita, saying: "Lita Ford is an icon of rock and has always been a personal hero of mine. I can't wait for her to see the film. I put my heart and soul into portraying her and to find out she is such an amazing person was truly a blessing for me. It's something I'll never forget."

The first true girl band of the 1970s, THE RUNAWAYS toured internationally and made a dent in the charts before calling it quits at the end of that decade.

In November 2018, Ford told the Daily Mail that a reunion of THE RUNAWAYS will probably never happen. She explained: "Joan Jett is very much in 'Joan Jett land,' I guess you could say. Will she ever come out of Joan Jett land? I don't think so. I think her manager controls that and it's really up to him and her. It seems to me like Joan Jett's manager just runs her life in every way, shape, or form. He's very controlling and he has a real problem with me. He has a real issue with me. He sees me as a threat, which is ridiculous, because she's like my sister and I love Joan. It's ridiculous, it's uncalled for, and it's caused a little bit of rivalry between her and I, which is totally uncalled for. It's his fault."

Ford claimed that Jett's manager has prevented her from even talking about a RUNAWAYS reunion with Jett.

"The hard part is just trying to communicate with Joan without her manager involved," she added.

"We had dinner a couple of years ago, what was supposed to be a girl's night out, and she brought her manager with her.

"So it's like, "Dude, answer the question. I'm trying to ask you a question. Are you interested in putting THE RUNAWAYS back together?' She never answered the question."

Ex-THE RUNAWAYS singer Cherie Currie told the "White Line Fever" podcast in 2016 that RUNAWAYS came close to reuniting three decades ago. "Lita had reached out to us to convince us, me and Joan, to do a RUNAWAYS reunion. And we did, with Kenny Laguna basically at the helm, he secured a tour and Lita, she just basically doesn't get along with Kenny and she just walked away from that."

In a 2015 interview with the WHMH (Rockin' 101) radio station, Lita explained that she decided against a possible RUNAWAYS reunion in the early 1990s because "NIRVANA was just kicking in, and it was really bad timing; it wouldn't have worked. People would have just turned their nose up at it."

In a new interview with Poland's Brudne Brzmienie (The Dirty Sound),URIAH HEEP lead singer Bernie Shaw weighed in on a debate about people using an A.I. (artificial intelligence) music generator as a tool to create melodies, harmonies and rhymes based on artificial intelligence (A.I.) algorithms and machine learning (M.L.) models. Bernie said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "It absolutely scares the pants off me. I don't do much, I've not messed around with A.I. or the app much, but a friend of mine, very good friend of mine, he has this on his phone and he did. He said, 'Write a song in the style of URIAH HEEP,' and in less than three seconds, his phone starts playing this song. It had all the little increments that URIAH HEEP had, it had in this manufactured song. It didn't have vocal, but the music, it had Hammond organ, it had wah-wah guitar, it had dynamics, and it sounded not 100 percent, but damn close to what something [URIAH HEEP guitarist] Mick [Box] and [keyboardist] Phil [Lanzon] would write. And that does scare me, because, first of all, the writers of the original idea of a song, they get their money from the publishing of this music. Well, who writes it if it's A.I.? So you get an album of music that it's all done by computer and A.I. — who gets paid? Because it's coming out of nowhere."

Bernie continued: "But you can't beat the emotion from a song written and recorded by real human beings. That's why I don't listen to any of this modern stuff that comes out of the computers. Even — oh boy — every pop band in the '90s had computers somewhere. I remember the band DEPECHE MODE. Now, they're a good band — they're very successful — but I remember they had to cancel a concert in London because someone stole the backing tapes. And the keyboard player, they'll play one note, because everything's on sample. And even some bands — I mean, I even heard that KISS, their drum sound, he's hitting the drum, but it's not that drum. It's all a sample of another drum. It could be a [John] Bonham snare drum sound that they're using or whoever. It's not his drum that you're hearing.

Shaw added: "That's what happened with all this computer stuff and everything that was going on with [Napster at the turn of the century]. And with the death of sales of recorded music, 'cause you don't get much in royalties anymore, everybody's gotta go out and play live. That's where the money is, is on live concerts and on merchandise, selling t-shirts. Now, if you're a studio band that are used to just using computers and samples and everything, you can't replicate that live, really. It'd just be just a bunch of machines on stage. So everybody was out on tour, but playing live, you see the difference between the real musicians and the studio guys, and never the twain shall meet."

The Canadian-born Bernie relocated to the U.K. in the late 1970s and went on to record with such bands as GRAND PRIX, PRAYING MANTIS and STRATUS before joining URIAH HEEP at the end of 1986. The 69-year-old musician has appeared on the band's nine studio albums since 1989, as well as numerous live albums.

In September 2024, URIAH HEEP announced that the band would embark on a lengthy farewell tour in 2025. The trek, which is expected to run for approximately two or three years, will include performances in all parts of the globe.

URIAH HEEP's 25th studio album, "Chaos & Colour", was released in January 2023 via Silver Lining Music. The LP was recorded during the summer of 2021 at Chapel Studios in London with Jay Ruston (ANTHRAX, COREY TAYLOR, BLACK STAR RIDERS) at the helm.

Metal pioneers Master, one of death metal’s founding bands, have announced the release of Spirit Of The West on vinyl, which will be out on January 23 via Hammerheart Records. Pre-orders are now available here.

The Spirit Of The West blends death metal, thrash metal, punky moments, and even a country song into one diverse offering. Rather than dissecting every track, here are a few highlights to give you a sense of the album’s range. The album kicks off with the thrashy “You’ll Be Blamed”, which recalls the earlier Collection Of Souls album with strong Abomination tendencies. Similarly, “Sign Up” delivers old-school thrash metal complete with those signature harsh Speckmann vocals. “The Serpents Tongue” is a straightforward, uptempo death metal tune, as is “Whatever, Wherever, Forever”. Meanwhile, “The Perfect Family” comes closest to the d-beat Master sound fans came to love on their first two albums. A pleasant surprise arrives with “Pistols, Whips and Coyotes”, which channels Macabre’s riffing style, albeit with slightly simpler drumming. Had Dennis the Menace played on this track, it could easily pass for a Macabre song. The album’s punky attitude shines brightest on “Rights Of Life” and “Envy” both of which evoke 1987–1991 era Sodom. The most notable track is the punk-driven “Another Day In Phoenix”, which features clean vocals and stands as one of the album’s undeniable highlights. Finally, the closing cover of Johnny Cash’s “Ring Of Fire” trumpets and all, caps off the record in unexpected fashion.

Spirit Of The West is one of Master’s most diverse and surprising albums to date.

In the genre of heavy music, heavy metal demands your attention with its raw power and pure adrenaline. Through the years, this now classic formula of loud sounds often played in minor keys for that eerie effect has morphed into several sub-genres. This form of extreme metal was super-charged and turned into what is now death metal. Make no mistake; Master were the leaders, right from the beginning and continue to be at the top of their game. Master is death metal personified.

There are just a handful of innovators that have proven to have the sheer determination and drive to create the monumental sound of a band armed with their weapons of Master’s destruction. Paul Speckmann has been there since the very beginning of death metal. A voice of the people and sending his messages loud and clear with constant touring and bringing his music to the world.

Among this group of audio assassins, Paul is gearing up for the next target of annihilation; A steady requirement of endless touring, recording, and writing his view of life as seen through his eyes. Paul creates songs that are topical for an audience he admires and respects. Paul and Master continue to terrorize, obliterate, and demonstrate the need to sanctify and satisfy the audience as this entity continues to grow.



Tracklisting:

“You’ll Be Blamed”
“The Serpents Tongue”
“Rights Of Life”
“Envy”
“Sign Up”
“Another Day In Phoenix”
“Whatever, Wherever, Forever”
“The Gold Mine”
“The Perfect Family”
“Pistols, Whiskey And Coyotes (The Spirit Of The West)”
“Long Knives”
“Ring Of Fire”

Primary Wave Music, the leading independent publisher of iconic and legendary music in the world, has announced a partnership with the estate of the legendary Phil Lynott, co-founder and songwriter for the critically acclaimed rock band THIN LIZZY. The partnership will see the dynamic music company work alongside the estate on Lynott's interest in his music publishing catalog, as well as his recordings. Primary Wave will provide marketing support across Lynott's iconic catalog which includes all songs written by him over the course of his two-decade long career, in addition to the acclaimed vocalist's recording interests which includes his work with THIN LIZZY, in addition to his solo work and collaborations with other artists. The estate will also now have access to Primary Wave's licensing/sync, content, and branding teams.

Referred to as "a mesmerizing frontman and uncommonly gifted singer and songwriter" by Variety, Lynott penned some of the most iconic and lauded songs in rock music including "The Boys Are Back In Town", "Dancing In The Moonlight", "Whiskey In The Jar" and others. Released in 1972, Lynott's cover of "Whiskey In The Jar" was the initial song that gained the band notoriety. While the group initially didn't want to record the song, they ultimately did under the advice of management. That decision proved successful because it became a breakthrough hit. "Dancing In The Moonlight" was released five years later, appearing on the band's "Bad Reputation" album. Upon release, the song climbed the charts reaching the top 20 on the U.K. singles chart. The single would go on to be covered by several bands, including SMASHING PUMPKINS, who covered the song over the years while touring.

"The Boys Are Back In Town" is probably the band's most well-known song. It was the first single off the band's "Jailbreak" album and was released in 1976. Pitchfork declared the track "a perfect rock n' roll song", while Rolling Stone considers it to be the band's best song, including it on their list of "500 Greatest Songs Of All Time". The song soared to the Top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, reached number one in Ireland, and went Top 10 in both Canada and the U.K. In 1976, "The Boys Are Back In Town" received the NME Award for "Best Single" from the U.K.'s New Musical Express.

Of the partnership, Lynott's estate said, "We are absolutely thrilled to be partnering Primary Wave and very much look forward to working together continuing the legacy of Philip Lynott."

Primary Wave's Robin Godfrey Cass added: "This partnership personally resonates with me as I am a huge fan, dating back to the early '70s. Phil was an unbelievable musician, songwriter, and poet. I am delighted and honored that the estate has entrusted Primary Wave Music to continue his legacy."

Philip Parris Lynott was born on August 20, 1949 in West Bromwich, near Birmingham. The son of Philomena Lynott, a white Irish Catholic, and Cecil Parris from Brazil, Phil was initially brought up in Moss Side, Manchester and moved to Ireland whilst still at school. He lived in Crumlin, Dublin with his grandparents. His teenage years saw him join his first band THE BLACK EAGLES as the lead vocalist. The drummer of the band was Phil's old school friend Brian Downey. Moving on, Phil then joined Brush Sheils's group SKID ROW during which time he also began learning to play the bass. In 1968, "Belfast kid" Gary Moore replaced the guitarist and a year later saw their first independently released single "New Faces, Old Places". When Brush Sheils decided to reform the band as a three-piece, Phil left to start his own group ORPHANAGE with Brian Downey on drums, Pat Quigley on bass and guitarist Joe Staunton. They were now also performing original material, and as Brian Downey said: "Quite a few of the melodies that ended up on the first LIZZY album were being thrown around in ORPHANAGE." By the end of 1969 they were approached by experienced musician Eric Bell who suggested forming a new band with Phil and Brian, and together with Eric Wrixon on keyboards, the first configuration of THIN LIZZY was created. What followed has been well documented with THIN LIZZY finding international success through a series of hit singles, albums, tours and varied lineups through the years. Phil remained the leading creative force behind the group and his mixture of poetry and rock proved to be as distinctive and original as the twin-guitar sound they pioneered to deliver their work. In 1979 he recorded a Christmas single, "A Merry Jingle", under the name THE GREEDIES (shortened from THE GREEDY BASTARDS). This featured other LIZZY members, along with Steve Jones and Paul Cook from the SEX PISTOLS. The early 1980s saw Phil produce two widely acclaimed solo albums, "Solo In Soho" and "The Philip Lynott Album", and when the band eventually broke up in 1983, Phil started up GRAND SLAM with Laurence Archer on guitars, Robbie Brennan on drums, Doish Nagle on rhythm guitar and Mark Stanway on keyboards. Debuting in London in June 1984, the band was well-received and continued to gig throughout that year ending with a show at the Marquee in London on December 4. Phil also worked with Gary Moore on Moore's tracks "Parisienne Walkways", which went to Number 8 in 1979, and "Out In The Fields", which reached Number 5 on release in May 1985. Although he had begun work on a new album, Phil finally succumbed to the excesses of his lifestyle and died on January 4, 1986. He left behind a legacy of work that continues to inspire and captivate audiences old and new, and carved out his well-deserved place among the greats of 20th century musicians.

THE DEAD DAISIES have announced the release of a powerful new live album and ambitious plans for the years ahead.

Following a highly successful run of U.K. dates earlier this year, the band's electrifying closing performance at the Stonedead festival on August 23, 2025 is now immortalized. Today, November 14, 2025, the raw, high-voltage energy of that night is unleashed with the digital release of "Live At Stonedead". The album captures THE DEAD DAISIES in full flight, with frontman John Corabi commanding the stage, Doug Aldrich tearing into his guitar solos, David Lowy's driving riffs, Michael Devin with his thunderous bass and Tommy Clufetos pounding those skins along with the kind of crowd energy only Stonedead can deliver.

"We were pumped to wrap up a great U.K. tour at the Stonedead festival in Newark," Aldrich said. "It turned out to be such a great show we decided to release it for you guys. The audience was fired up and it was an awesome night of rock! Hope you enjoy this and see ya again as soon as possible."

Fans can experience the performance now with the live video for "Long Way To Go - Live At Stonedead", available for viewing below.

THE DEAD DAISIES aren't slowing down. Their immediate focus for 2026 will be returning to the studio to begin writing and recording their next album, expected to deliver another round of the band's signature hard-hitting rock. Then, in 2027, the group will hit the road for an extensive tour across Europe and the United States, bringing new music and fan favorites to stages worldwide. Further details, including confirmed tour dates and venues, will be announced in the coming months.

THE DEAD DAISIES are an Australian-American supergroup, founded by rhythm guitarist and businessman David Lowy, which boasts a powerhouse rotating lineup of rock stars.

For over a decade, THE DEAD DAISIES have been captivating audiences with their no-holds-barred rock sound, channeling the grit and soul of classic '70s rock into modern anthems. With seven studio albums, a live album, a covers album, and a best-of collection under their belt, the band has shared stages with rock royalty including KISS, GUNS N' ROSES, SCORPIONS, AEROSMITH, DEF LEPPARD and many more.

THE DEAD DAISIES' latest collection of original material, "Light 'Em Up", came out in September 2024 via Germany's SPV and Japan's Ward Records. The LP was helmed by Marti Frederiksen, who has previously collaborated with AEROSMITH, DEF LEPPARD, Jonny Lang and Sheryl Crow, among many others.

THE DEAD DAISIES were touring earlier this year in support of their first full-fledged blues album, "Lookin' For Trouble", out now via Fame / Malaco Records. Tracked live at FAME Studios, the album's singles — "Boom Boom", a take on the John Lee Hooker classic, and "Crossroads", a tribute to Robert Johnson — have earned praise for their energy and authenticity.

Legendary guitarist Steve Vai is the featured guest on the latest episode of "Metal Sticks", the podcast hosted by Nicko McBrain, the iconic drummer of IRON MAIDEN for 42 years, recently retired from touring, and Modern Drummer CEO David Frangioni. In this episode, Vai shares rare insights into his groundbreaking career, collaborations, deep connection with drummers, and what continues to drive his artistic evolution.

Asked about his early connection to the heavy metal genre, Vai said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Yeah, it's an odd kind of a thing, 'cause when I was very young, I wanted to be a composer. I wanted to understand how to write. And I learned that; I learned that very young. But then when I was, like, 12 and I was being influenced by the music coming into the house, so my sister was getting [into] ALICE COOPER and KISS and LED ZEPPELIN and DEEP PURPLE and QUEEN. So that energy that's in metal, it was paramount; I was drawn to it. And on the other hand, I had all this quirky kind of musical sensibilities and oddballness, and my brain mixed it together. But it was definitely the energy and the intensity of heavy metal that had no real substitute. Other things that I really like are beautiful melody — I love playing long, beautiful melodies, songs on the guitar. But, yeah, I was a BLACK SABBATH head as a teenager, and I was always drawn tothe metal that was available at the time. And of course, [IRON MAIDEN] and all was for me more in the '80s. And once I got into the '80s, the whole scene changed. The '80s metal, there was two types — there was the English, British type [with] a lot of integrity to the metal, whereas a lot of the American pop '80s metal bands were more colorful, sort of more circus-like."

Referencing the fact that he joined David Lee Roth's post-VAN HALEN band four decades ago as lead guitarist, Steve continued: "Our shows were just complete over-the-top rock indulgence. So we'd have almost [a] glam-ish [vibe]; there was that kind of thing. And Roth kind of navigated more to almost a glammy kind of a circus kind of a show. And it was great, because you get to wear all these crazy clothes. You get a stage the size of a football field and you're running as fast as you can and you do crazy things. But we played our asses off. That was one of the things that [then-Roth bassist] Billy [Sheehan] and I and [then-Roth drummer] Gregg [Bissonette] — we were interested in shredding. At the time, shredding was becoming popular, and I was one of those guys that just practiced a lot. I loved playing slow, but I loved shredding. And Billy and I would just put together these wild kinds of duets with all this kinds of shredding, all in spandex pants."

Vai is a virtuoso guitarist, composer, and producer, considered by many as one of the greatest guitarists of all time. In over 40 years in the industry, Vai has sold over 15 million records, received three Grammy Awards, and recorded with music legends like Frank Zappa, David Lee Roth, WHITESNAKE and many more. Vai has also toured extensively and recorded live projects with "G3" (collaborating with different touring lineups, including Joe Satriani, John Petrucci, Eric Johnson, Yngwie Malmsteen and Steve Lukather) and "Generation Axe", a supergroup Vai formed with Zakk Wylde, Yngwie Malmsteen, Nuno Bettencourt and Tosin Abasi. Vai is the author of "Vaideology: Basic Music Theory For Guitar Players" (Hal Leonard),his inaugural music theory book designed to help both beginners and veteran guitar players. He toured North America in support of his most recent studio album "Inviolate" before embarking on the BEAT tour playing the music of 1980s KING CRIMSON.

Sharon Osbourne says that BLACK SABBATH's farewell concert raised $11 million — a far cry from the "ridiculous" initial reports that the event brought in nearly $200 million.

In the days after the July 5 event, dubbed "Back To The Beginning", the event's musical director, Tom Morello, shared an Instagram post stating that roughly $190 million (140 million British pounds) would be donated to charity from the concert. Billboard magazine later also reported that the event had raised $190 million, while The Guardian reported that the pay-per-view livestream of the event reached nearly six million fans, generating an estimated $150 million in revenue. At the time, it was expected that the funds would be distributed equally to Birmingham Children's Hospital, Acorn Children's Hospice and Cure Parkinson's — an organization dedicated to finding a cure for the disease Osbourne had lived with since 2019.

Sharon offered insight into the actual amount raised by "Back To The Beginning" while speaking to her children Jack and Kelly during the latest episode of "The Osbournes" podcast. Addressing the erroneous initial reports of the net amount of money generated by the concert, Sharon said: "If one show could have raised… I mean, [the articles were saying] it was up to, like 190 million. It's, like, any artist, just do one big show, film it and you can retire just on one show. No, it was nowhere near, and I wish that it was, but we are living in reality, in the real world."

Asked by Jack what "Back To The Beginning" actually raised, Sharon said: "It raised 11 [million]. But with the cost, 'cause we paid the cost of bringing everybody in, everybody out, accommodation, everything. [And] no one got paid. Nobody asked for a penny. They gave their time, their efforts, everything for free. People were just — oh God — so generous."

Sharon previously shot down the $190 million figure this past July while speaking to music industry trade publication Pollstar just five days before Ozzy's death.

"One of the things that's frightening me is all this false press about [how], we've made $140 million and all of this, and I'm like, God, I wish we could have, for one gig," Sharon said at the time. "It's just ridiculous, the different stories. I went on the internet the next morning and it was like, $140 million, $160 million. And I'm like, Where does this stuff come from?"

"It takes a really long time [to arrive at the final number that will be donated to charity], because we've had all of the bands that we had come in and their expenses, and it'll take a good six weeks to get the final number," she continued.

When Pollstar writer Ray Waddell noted that "these reports are not helpful for the Children's Hospital to see, waiting for their $190 million", Sharon responded: "Oh my God! It's the Children's Hospital, a children's hospice, and Parkinson's research. Everybody thinks that they're going to cure everything with this much money, but it's not the real world."

Sharon went on to say that the concert, which also featured a solo performance from Ozzy, as well as appearances by METALLICA, SLAYER, PANTERA, GUNS N' ROSES and TOOL, among many others, was "a huge success." She said: "It was a phenomenal event. It was the first time, I think, that anybody's gone into retirement and done it, where the show is streamed and it goes to charity. So it's the first time anybody has said goodnight like that, it's the perfect way, when you've had such a long career, to end it. I never wanted Ozzy to just disappear without some big event."

Billboard reported in July that the concert was watched by 40,000 ticketholders and 5.8 million individuals online, with each of the above-mentioned charities also raising tens of thousands of pounds in additional donations by raffling off tickets to the show, auctioning off iconic art and band photographs donated by BLACK SABBATH, and through individual contributions from fans as they streamed into the concert, which took place at Villa Park in Birmingham, England.

At "Back To The Beginning", Ozzy played a five-song set with his solo band — consisting of guitarist Zakk Wylde, bassist Mike Inez, keyboardist Adam Wakeman and drummer Tommy Clufetos — before being joined by fellow original BLACK SABBATH members Tony Iommi (guitar),Geezer Butler (bass) and Bill Ward (drums) for four classic SABBATH songs: "War Pigs", "Iron Man", "N.I.B." and "Paranoid".

Ozzy's solo set consisted of four songs from Osbourne's 1980 solo debut album "Blizzard Of Ozz" — "I Don't Know", "Mr. Crowley", "Suicide Solution" and "Crazy Train" — along with his 1991 "No More Tears" ballad "Mama, I'm Coming Home".

The 76-year-old heavy metal singer sang while seated on a black throne and appeared overcome with emotion at times. "You have no idea how I feel. Thank you from the bottom of my heart," he told the crowd.

At the end of SABBATH's set, Ozzy said: "It's the last song ever. Your support has enabled us to live an amazing lifestyle, thank you from the bottom of our hearts." Osbourne was then presented with a cake, while fireworks lit up the stadium from overhead.

A message on screen then read, "Thank you for everything, you guys are fucking amazing. Birmingham Forever," before the sky lit up with fireworks.

Ozzy died on July 22 of a heart attack, his death certificate revealed. The certificate also reportedly said the musician suffered from coronary artery disease and Parkinson's disease.

Photo credit: Ross Halfin (courtesy of Premier)

Joel Hoekstra (WHITESNAKE, TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA, REVOLUTION SAINTS) will release the fourth album of his solo project JOEL HOEKSTRA'S 13, "From The Fade", on February 27, 2026 via Frontiers Music Srl.

Once again, guitarist and composer Hoekstra is joined by an elite cast of rock veterans: powerhouse drummer Vinny Appice (BLACK SABBATH, DIO),legendary bassist Tony Franklin (THE FIRM, BLUE MURDER),virtuoso keyboardist Derek Sherinian (DREAM THEATER, SONS OF APOLLO) and rising vocal sensation Girish Pradhan (GIRISH AND THE CHRONICLES, THE NAIL).

"From The Fade" delivers a blend of classic hard rock and modern melodic metal, characterized by tight arrangements, technical precision, and emotionally charged performances. Each track reflects Hoekstra's signature songwriting — rooted in tradition but pushing the genre forward with a fresh and contemporary sound.

To give the audience a taste of what to expect from the record, Joel and company share the first single and official visualizer, "The Fall". Check it out below.

Hoekstra said: "'The Fall' is built on riffs and melodies that stem from two early influences that I often fail to mention in QUEENSRŸCHE and DOKKEN. It's a straight-ahead melodic, hard rock track with a powerful foundation laid out by Vinny Appice and Tony Franklin, a killer keyboard solo from Derek Sherinian, a stunning vocal performance from Girish Pradhan, and Jeff Scott Soto's tastefully executed backing vocals! Hope ya like it!"

Joel added: "The songs were built from the guitar riffs up. Most of the riffs were written during the time I was filling in with ACCEPT, so there is a heavier edge to this album overall. That being said, the album still would be more accurately described as melodic hard rock, not straight-up metal.

"As always with the JOEL HOEKSTRA'S 13 albums, I wrote the style of music that inspired me to pick up the guitar and tried to focus on SONGS for you to enjoy, not overly self-indulgent guitar solos", he continued. "HUGE thanks to Vinny Appice, Tony Franklin, Derek Sherinian, Girish Pradhan and Jeff Scott Soto for bringing the songs to life! I hope you all enjoy 'From The Fade' as much as I enjoyed making it!"

"From The Fade" track listing:

01. You Can Give
02. The Fall
03. Lifeline
04. Will You Remember Me
05. Misunderstood
06. Start to Fight
07. All I'd Do
08. Free To Be
09. The End Of Me
10. Quite The Ride

New York-based Hoekstra currently plays for WHITESNAKE and TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA. Joel is also well-known for his work with Cher, NIGHT RANGER, the Broadway show "Rock Of Ages", his fill-in work with FOREIGNER, ACCEPT, his annual sets on the Monsters Of Rock cruise, recording projects like REVOLUTION SAINTS, ICONIC, viral collaboration videos with the likes of Dino Jelusick, Arnel Pineda, Mike Portnoy, Billy Sheehan and his acoustic shows with Brandon Gibbs.

Exhibiting a knack for music education, he has also been a frequent columnist for Guitar World magazine, taught at Musician's Institute, Rockstars Of Tomorrow, Guitar Workshop Plus, and has often been a counselor at Rock 'N' Roll Fantasy Camp.

Over the years, Joel has released three instrumental solo albums and three critically acclaimed albums with JOEL HOEKSTRA's 13. Most recently, he was the guest guitarist on "Dancing With The Stars" ("hair metal" episode) and played with Cher at her Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction and the "SNL 50" homecoming concert.

"From The Fade" recording lineup:

Joel Hoekstra - guitars
Girish Pradhan - lead vocals
Vinny Appice - drums
Tony Franklin - bass
Derek Sherinian - keyboards
Jeff Scott Soto - backing vocals

Photo credit: Mike Polito

Christian rockers SKILLET have released their first-ever Christmas recording, "O Come, O Come Emmanuel", accompanied by a powerful and moving music video, which was also featured in social collab with "Fox & Friends". Watch it below.

The release caps off a massive year for SKILLET that included packed shows across Europe last summer and a sold-out Central and South American tour in Mexico City, Lima, Buenos Aires, and Santiago, which preceded the November 6 launch of "The Awakening Tour" with Jeremy Camp.

Fans can tune in on YouTube on December 2 to join SKILLET for "A Rock Feed Christmas Special" — an evening of music, conversation, and surprises. The event will feature a special live question-and-answer session with U.S. military veterans, presented in partnership with Vet Tix, a nonprofit organization the band has long supported. This season, SKILLET are spotlighting Vet Tix alongside St. Jude Children's Research Hospital to encourage continued giving and awareness.

"Our fans have been demanding a Christmas song for years, and we are so thrilled to have finally recorded one," say SKILLET's John and Korey Cooper. "We arranged and produced it ourselves, so we were able to put our heart and soul into it. Making a classic piece sound like SKILLET was the mission, and we can't wait for fans to hear it!"

Reinforcing their reputation as a band with a massive global impact, earlier this fall SKILLET announced their return to Europe the spring of 2026. The spring tour will hit 23 cities including London, Glasgow, Paris, Munich, Warsaw and Barcelona, with tickets on sale now.

In various interviews over the years, John Cooper has said that he "always had faith in God" and that his mother was a "Jesus fanatic." He also claimed that he was willing to put his career on the line to take a stand for Christ.

In April 2021, Cooper told the "Undaunted.Life: A Man's Podcast" that it was perfectly fine for Christians to play rock music. "I would say that music is created not by the Devil; [it is] created by the Lord," he said. "All things were created by God. So instead of thinking that the Devil owns a genre of music, I would say capture that music and bring it back into subjection under the Lordship of Christ."

John has written in depth about his views in the two books he has released so far, "Awake & Alive To Truth", which came out in December 2020, and "Wimpy, Weak, And Woke", which became available in late 2023.

Cooper told Baptist Press about how his faith directs him to speak out on cultural issues: "If Jesus is the truth, then that means He has something to say about culture, politics, abortion and sexuality. The Bible has something to say about these things."

SKILLET's latest album, "Revolution", arrived in November 2024 via the band's Hear It Loud imprint.

In celebration of one of America's greatest rock and roll bands, Genesis Publications has announced an official chronicle of VAN HALEN by the band's founding drummer Alex Van Halen. Featuring a dynamic blend of iconic photography alongside rare and never-before-seen images, and with exclusive access to his private archives, "Van Halen" (working title) offers a personally guided tour through the band's legendary career.

Signed, written and curated by Alex Van Halen, this authorized publication opens the Van Halen family archive for the first time. The years 1978–1984 are explored through correspondence, tour memorabilia, album artwork, press material, musical equipment, unpublished photographs and much more — charting the Van Halen brothers' journey from childhood and the band's formation to their debut and meteoric rise.

Register interest today at VanHalenAnthology.com to be among the first to hear more about the book, which will be published as a signed limited-edition book boxed set.

Genesis Publications was founded in 1974 in Britain as an independent publishing house true to the arts of printing and craftsmanship.

During a November 2024 appearance on "Talk Is Jericho", the podcast hosted by FOZZY frontman and wrestling superstar Chris Jericho, Alex Van Halen spoke about his decision to write his memoir, "Brothers", which has been described as a love letter to his younger brother, while still mourning Eddie Van Halen's untimely death. Alex said: "Ed and I were tight. We worked together, we played together, we did whatever. But when he was near the end of his life, because of COVID it was very difficult to visit him in person and to see him. There was always either a glass barrier or a plastic something surrounding [him]. The times that we could actually touch him were few and far between. And that really put everything in a strange kind of — I can't explain it, but it didn't feel right. So we really had no closure, in that sense, and everything was hurried near the end, again, because of the COVID issue. We didn't really have a ceremony afterwards. He was cremated and his ashes were spread. This is my way of saying goodbye to him. And whatever you believe in terms of spiritual pursuits and all that, I think he's still here, he's still here with us in one way, shape or form — not to the point where he's not allowed to go where he really wants to go. [Laughs] They call it a tether; you don't wanna tether him to this dimension. So, Ed, whatever you wanna do is cool. We love you. And I just wanted to say that to the point of infinitum, whatever the expression is."

Alex continued: "It's hard to describe what it's like to not have someone in your life that has been there for 65 years. That's a long, long time, and it wasn't just a regular — and I'm not giving other people a hard time in terms of 'my relationship was stronger than yours'. That's not the point. It's just that when you have something that's taken out of your life after 65 years, it's difficult. And I'm certainly not alone. I'm not saying I'm special or I should get a medal — no, it happens to a lot of different people. And I think one of the side effects of this book has been a lot of people have contacted me and said, 'Reading this book has really given me a different way of looking at the parting with people who I loved.' And I know that grief can be a common denominator, if you will, and that's not my preference — my preference is the happier times — but with the good comes the bad. And everybody's gonna go through it."

Regarding the possibility of previously unreleased Eddie Van Halen music eventually seeing the light of day, Alex said: "I've talked about it loosely, and I am rather superstitious, but I can say a couple of things that I've mentioned before. We're gonna go through the, quote-unquote, vault and go through some of the musical ideas that were there. On the one end of the spectrum is the fact that little licks don't make a song. On the other end of the spectrum, some of those licks are so unbelievably powerful, it's too bad that they ended up in the back of the vault, rather than being records.

"There are so many different variables in a band like ours," Alex explained. "We don't just walk in the studio and plan, 'Let's make a record,' although we have done that to some degree. But it's not a mechanical process for us. We go in and we play and see what happens, listen to it, invite a couple of people and then see what happens with that. And then you listen and you evaluate. If the next day, when you come in and listen to it, if it doesn't kick you in the face like it did the first time, then maybe you should move on and do something else. Don't hold on to an old idea just because it's there. No. That's not how we did it. Having said that, there were also a lot of bad ideas. [Laughs] That's always the risk you run, but if you don't do that, you will become — it'll become inert. It's called inertia, or whatever — entropy. Things will fall off and then you become less and less creative. And the other aspect of all of that is that you are in an open marketplace where you are being judged, and if you don't do well in the marketplace, people are gonna go, 'Maybe it's time to do something else.' And that is a real issue. But now that Ed's gone, none of those things are really valid because all I have, and Wolf [Eddie's son and VAN HALEN bassist] has, is all the recordings in the vault. And they will stay there until we figure out how and why and what to do with them. And again, you have to remember, it has to be on the level of where Ed and I, where we used to play. We're not just gonna shovel it in. We have access to some of the greatest musicians on the planet, and a lot of 'em are more than willing to take a chance on some of the stuff."

When Jericho noted that it sounds like Alex has more than just one or two demos that he could elaborate on and release to the public, the drummer said: "Oh, yeah. Probably three or four records, if not more. I'm serious. There was some good stuff, some good stuff in there. And you have to remember, when in the thick of it, sometimes the really great stuff kind of passes you by. And it's not until you revisit it going, 'Whoa, I forgot about that. This kicks ass.' But that takes time. And you wanna do it right. I wanna do it right."

Alex also talked about the fact that the audiobook version of "Brothers" contains a previously unreleased song composed by Alex and his brother. Titled "Unfinished", it is the last piece of music they wrote together and can be heard as Alex narrates his story.

"I don't wanna use the word 'spiritual', but there is a connection with… Ed and I were very much a product of how our dad saw the world, and one of his favorite pieces of music was a song called 'Unfinished' by Franz Schubert," Alex said. "Actually, it wasn't until I'd done this that I went back and looked at it. It turns out he had a lot of pieces that were unfinished. [Laughs] That seemed to be one of his major traits. So we had this song that was not completely finished yet. It was one of my most memorable songs that was constantly playing in the house. So I thought it was kind of a sign from some different dimension: 'do this'. And as you can tell, I go off on a tangent that may or may not even be real, but I believe that stuff, man. There are a lot of things in this world that we do not know. There's no explanation for them. All you have to do is just sit down, slow down and listen, which is easier said than done. [Laughs]"

Alex is the co-founder of VAN HALEN and its original drummer. Born in Amsterdam and trained as a classical pianist, he graduated from Pasadena High School.

In "Brothers", Alex recounts his and Ed's childhood in an 800-square foot house in Pasadena, with an itinerant musician father and proper Indonesian-born mother — how they arrived in the U.S. from the Netherlands and struggled to fit in. He also shares stories of musical politics, infighting and bad-boy behavior. The book includes never-before-seen photos from the author's private archives, as he sets the record straight on his brother's life and death in the first-ever accurate account of his family and the band.

Alex and Eddie formed a band called MAMMOTH in Pasadena, California in 1972, then renamed it VAN HALEN when singer David Lee Roth joined the group and, later, bassist Michael Anthony.

VAN HALEN was one of the biggest rock bands in the country in the 1980s, with hits like "Runnin' With The Devil", "Dance The Night Away", "Hot For Teacher", "Panama" and "Jump". The group, which later featured Sammy Hagar on vocals, was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2007.

The Van Halen family moved to Pasadena after emigrating to the U.S. from the Netherlands in 1962.

VAN HALEN was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2007.

According to Modern Drummer, Alex was instrumental to VAN HALEN's electrifying, dramatic sound, leading the rhythm section on standout hits like "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love", "Unchained" and "Panama". His double-bass pedal work throughout "Hot For Teacher" was deeply influential, combining technical prowess with a restless, thoroughly original drum composition.

Back in 2021, Hagar said that he had tried to reach out to Alex after Eddie's death but that he was rebuffed.

"Alex just seems to he just doesn't want to communicate with anybody," Sammy told Ultimate Classic Rock. "You know, Mike [Anthony, former VAN HALEN bassist] has reached out, and I reached out many times. I don't know. I'm sure he's still in pain from the whole thing, but I'm not dogging him. I'm just saying he just really doesn't want to be friends or doesn't want to communicate. I don't know why, but we've still got the rest of our lives to work this out."

When Alex turned 68 in May 2021, he commemorated the occasion by sharing the following statement: "First birthday without you, Ed. The view from my drum set will never be the same. VH forever!"

Eddie passed away in October 2020 at St. John's Hospital in Santa Monica, California. Alex was by his side, as was Eddie's son, Wolfgang. The axeman died from complications due to cancer, his son confirmed.

Eddie's final Instagram post was a tribute to Alex. On May 8, 2020, the guitarist shared a black-and-white photo of him and his brother to his followers to wish the drummer a happy birthday.

He captioned the picture: "Happy Birthday Al!! Love Ya!! #vanhalen #alexvanhalen #birthday #may #drummer #musician #musicians #family #rock #classicrock #rockband #love".

In early 2022, it was confirmed that Alex had been in talks with Roth and guitarist Joe Satriani to put on a special show in honor of Eddie. However, Wolfgang later said that it was "in such an early stage that it never even got off the ground."

Finnish industrial metallers Ruoska, formed in 2002, will release their sixth studio album in February 2026 via Inverse Records following a three year hiatus. They have shared a new single, “Ihtiriekko”, taken from the upcoming album, Kade.

“Ihtiriekko” is perfectly in line with the band’s intense output, and the song’s story is not exactly cheerful either.

“Taken from Finnish folk tales, ‘Ihtiriekko’ is a powerful and sad story about real-life tragedies that took place in the past, but which today’s listeners can also relate to. In times past, people have sought to explain difficult things through mythology and fantasy in order to find comfort in the midst of often miserable everyday life,” the band explains.

“The final version came together quite painlessly. ‘Ihtiriekko’ combines heavy sounds, electronic music, and classical elements. This is one of the latest and most significant songs that was worked on for the upcoming album.”

Listen to the single on digital music services here.

The band, which hails from Juva, Eastern Finland, and has already racked up nearly 25 million plays on Spotify alone, will also be heading out on an album release tour, which will be announced soon.

In a new interview with Andertons Music Co, legendary bassist Billy Sheehan, who turned 72 this past March, spoke about his continued love for touring and performing live. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I live to play live, and I play live to live. That's gotta be my next tattoo. Yeah, that's what I do. I love to play. I mean, I love to play anyway in any capacity, but some guys I like are more studio cats. That's cool. But when you're out on deck and there's a hot, sweaty crowd, and we played going all through Europe and through the U.K., just amazing nights we've had. And then afterwards hanging out with people, seeing old friends, and it's just great. And the buses are comfortable. Usually in Europe, we use a German bus, and they're double deckers, and they run a tight ship. It's clean and safe and wonderful. USA, in a similar way too. It's easy. Going to Japan is a luxury. We get there and they take such wonderful care of us. And so it's pretty cool. But the main thing is that hour and a half, two hours up on stage where you're playing and you're on. And that, for me, is just the most important thing in my world. And everything you've been practicing and everything you've been working, now, well, here it is. This is to demonstrate — all the hours and days and weeks and years you put into it are now on display. And good luck, that it works out."

He continued: "So, yeah, that's a big thing for me. I'm about performing live. And I'm mostly a band guy — I like a band thing, where you've got guys that you know and you're working with and interact with. And you get to know where they're gonna go. Various guitar players I've played with, we get an instinct, similar to how I spoke with the drums. We kind of know where the other guy's going. I know when to pull back and when to push forward. It's an amazing dynamic thing… It's so great."

Sheehan has played with David Lee Roth, MR. BIG, THE WINERY DOGS, TALAS and SONS OF APOLLO. He's also won Guitar Player magazine's "Best Bass Player" poll several times and is in-demand at clinics and as a session player.

Sheehan has played bass on dozens of records and toured all over the world for many decades, with a unique and original style of playing that has been widely celebrated and documented. Starting in his former hometown of Buffalo, New York with the now legendary hard rock trio TALAS, he went on to join former VAN HALEN singer David Lee Roth in 1985, along with guitarist Steve Vai and drummer Gregg Bissonette. In 1987, Billy left to start his own band, MR. BIG, and in 2002, he founded NIACIN, a fusion/blues trio that featured drummer Dennis Chambers. More recently, Billy joined DREAM THEATER drummer Mike Portnoy and guitarist Richie Kotzen to form THE WINERY DOGS.

Sheehan has changed the way bass guitar is played. He recorded two platinum-selling albums with Roth before setting out on his own. Forming MR. BIG in 1989, the band achieved a Billboard No. 1 single in the U.S. and 14 other countries with "To Be With You" from MR. BIG's second Atlantic Records album release "Lean Into It". While developing his trademark style of playing, he performed over 4,000 live gigs on every continent except Africa and Antarctica.

On January 27, 1999, Billy's handprints and signature were preserved in cement on the Hollywood RockWalk at Guitar Center, an honor reserved for those artists who have made a significant contribution to rock and roll.

Kentucky rockers BLACK STONE CHERRY will release a brand-new EP, "Celebrate", digitally on March 6, 2026 via Mascot Records. The official music video for the EP's second single, the "Celebrate" title track, can be seen below.

BLACK STONE CHERRY are a band in the truest sense of the term. Hard rockers of enormous heart. Four accomplished songwriters with rock, metal, roots, blues, soul and hip hop in their blood. Old friends with an instinctive, compassionate sense for what each other is feeling.

BLACK STONE CHERRY comments on the new single and its accompanying music video: "We had so much fun coming up with the concept for the 'Celebrate' video. We got on a phone call with director Kyle Loftus and we all hashed out ideas until we landed on something that got us all excited. We wanted the video to show what it's like to be stuck in something, whether that be a boring job or maybe stuck in your own head, and how any little opportunity can lead to a small victory. The song itself is about celebrating every little thing in life, even if it's just making it through the day. The video came out amazing with an amazing actor/musician, Aaron Paulsen, as the lead and we get chills every time we watch it. The confetti at the end was one of our main requests as we wanted to visually show what it mentally feels like to celebrate inside your mind."

"Celebrate" was produced by the BLACK STONE CHERRY bandmembers themselves and recorded at High Street Studios in Bowling Green, Kentucky. There's happiness and heartache. Muscular hooks and raw soul. The life experiences of four men approaching forty (two of them parents),in one emotive, unpolished diamond of a record. Six commanding, stage-ready original tracks and an inspired cover of SIMPLE MINDS' "Don't You (Forget About Me)" featuring Tyler Connolly (THEORY OF A DEADMAN).

"Neon Eyes" was a soundcheck riff that exploded into a thumping, hard rock party-starter, and the video follows them on a typical day in the life of a band on the road, as they arrive at their stunning headline performance at the 2025 Maid Of Stone festival in the U.K. You get a glimpse of the band behind the scenes, how they prepare for a show, them mingling with the crowd, fans rejoicing throughout the day, and all the way up to a typically high voltage performance showing what an undeniable force they are — plus some magical and unforgettable memories made during the day.

BLACK STONE CHERRY commented: "For 'Neon Eyes' we had the riff recorded on an iPhone and immediately wrote a song around it when we first started writing for this EP. We knew we wanted the main riff to also be the chorus so once we landed on the title, everything fell into place. A classic BSC banger."

BLACK STONE CHERRY are masters of taking a somber subject and flipping it on its head, creating a punchy, empowering rock song.

"Any piece of art is a snapshot of that artist's life," singer/guitarist Chris Robertson reasoned. "So I look at these songs as a culmination of everything we've lived since 'Screamin' At The Sky'."

"None of us are precious, because we're all fighting on the same team," guitarist Ben Wells said. "So John Fred [Young, drums] might have a guitar riff, or me or Chris might have a drum beat. And Steve [Jewell Jr.] is our bass player, but he played slide on the last album, and there's parts on the new stuff where he plays guitar. It was cool to think you could start the day without a song, and five hours later walk out with a demo."

"Celebrate" is an EP of contrasts. "I'm Fine" is a dreamily woozy, NIRVANA-laced grunge singalong. But it was the searing, mid-tempo heartache of "Deep" that struck a really pertinent chord — with Ben in particular. Following long struggles with fertility issues, he and his wife suffered a miscarriage midway through the writing process. Two days later, he was channeling the experience into "Deep".

For a curveball, "Celebrate" is capped off with a strapping-yet-sensuous cover of SIMPLE MINDS classic "Don't You (Forget About Me)", featuring guest vocals from old BLACK STONE friend Tyler Connolly. Immortalized in John Hughes's seminal 1985 coming-of-age film "The Breakfast Club", it turned out to be a surprisingly natural fit for BLACK STONE CHERRY. A happy pairing with the soulful gravel and sincerity of Chris's vocals. "I love that song!" the frontman laughed.

No one in BLACK STONE CHERRY takes what they have for granted, least of all their fans. They'll play to thousands in an arena or festival field, followed by a 100-capacity pub, and put on the exact same show. You can feel it in "Celebrate": the sense that their hearts are totally invested, their priorities clear. Time spent with loved ones. Supporting one another. Connecting with audiences. Music that makes you feel something. No polish, no faking it, just moments that matter.

"Celebrate" track listing:

01. Celebrate
02. Neon Eyes
03. Caught Up In The Up Down
04. I'm Fine
05. Deep
06. What You're Made Of
07. Don't You Forget About Me (featuring THEORY OF A DEADMAN's Tyler Connolly)

BLACK STONE CHERRY is:

Chris Robertson - vocals, guitars
Ben Wells - guitars
John Fred Young - drums
Steve Jewell Jr. - bass

THE WHO guitarist Pete Townshend has expressed an interest in utilizing artificial intelligence technology to complete some of the previously unreleased songs that he has written over the years.

Townshend made the comment during an appearance on the November 12 episode of "The Late Show With Stephen Colbert". Asked if it is true that he has "unheard music in the vault ready to go", Pete responded: "Yeah, I've got about three hundred and fifty, four hundred and fifty pieces of music. Now, a lot of it is probably terrible. I've managed to wade through about half of it."

As for whether the fans may eventual hear any of the material, Pete said: "I don't know what to do with it. I'm also quite interested in A.I. I'm quite interested in getting some of my old songs that didn't quite work because I didn't get them right first time round and put them up on to Suno [a generative A.I. platform that creates songs from user-submitted text prompts] or something, some A.I. music machine and seeing what it can make of it. It might be some hits."

Townshend previously brought up his interest in A.I. during a March 2025 interview with The Times. He said at the time: "If I told A.I., 'Write a load of Pete Townshend songs like he used to in 1973,' a lot of WHO fans would be really pleased."

In November 2023, Pete told the "Broken Record" podcast that he was optimistic about the role of artificial intelligence in music. "Oh, yeah, absolutely," he said. "I think it will help in all kinds of ways that that will surprise us when they happen, just like the Internet has. And of course, the Internet has a very, very dark side… But with respect to A.I., I'm hopeful, but I'm not going to say is inevitably going to be a good thing, because I think it's when it becomes what drives the machine, then we have to be careful."

Townshend is the co-founder, guitarist, second lead vocalist and principal songwriter of THE WHO.

Townshend wrote over one hundred songs for 12 of THE WHO's studio albums, including the rock operas "Tommy" (1969) and "Quadrophenia" (1973). He has also written more than a hundred songs for his solo albums, and his creative output also includes television theme songs and radio jingles. He is renowned for his combination of aggressive playing style and poetic lyrics.

In addition to being a famous guitarist, Pete plays bass guitar, ukulele, mandolin, banjo, violine, accordion, harmonica, drums, and keyboards.

The all-star hard rock collective BLACK SWAN — featuring Robin McAuley (MCAULEY SCHENKER GROUP),Reb Beach (WINGER, WHITESNAKE),Jeff Pilson (FOREIGNER, THE END MACHINE, ex-DOKKEN) and Matt Starr (Ace Frehley, MR. BIG) — will release a new studio album, "Paralyzed", on February 13, 2026, via Frontiers Music Srl.

BLACK SWAN unleashes today another extract of the record, "If I Was King", that follows the previously released single "The Fire And The Flame".

Beach described the new single: "'If I Was King' is one of my favorites because it has all the elements of a good BLACK SWAN song. It's powerful with great guitar riffs and soaring vocals, but that chorus has some different chords than usual. It really sticks in my head".

Pilson added: "This song really shows where BLACK SWAN shines at its best. Great melodies and lyrics, burning guitars and pounding rhythms. And wait till you see the video!!!"

McAuley said: "This track sets the tone for what's to come with its dark and heavy opening chords, building intensity into a big melodic chorus that is quintessentially BLACK SWAN. Watch the video and let it pull you in."

Starr stated: "'If I Was King' throws down the gauntlet and is what BLACK SWAN is all about: kick-ass, high-energy rock music with killer melodies, lyrics and musicianship. Robin is so talented at creating imagery with his lyrics based on the music that Jeff and Reb create. This is a great example of that."

McAuley expressed his enthusiasm for "Paralyzed" by saying: "Can't wait for you guys to hear our new record. We feel we've taken our songwriting to another level on this one, with amazing guitar riffs that once again show the brilliance that is Reb Beach, pounding bass, as you'd expect, from Jeff, and Matt Starr leaving no doubt about where the thunder comes from. Soaring melodies with strong lyrics are what we do best, combine that with sheer heaviness and we have a record we think you the fans are going to love".

Beach said: "BLACK SWAN is old-school '80s rock that is all about good guitar riffs with badass vocals. No one is better than Robin at singing this kind of music. I think the combination of my riffs and his vocals are what makes the band stand out."

Starr stated: "I think the fans are going to love our new record. It builds on the first two records taking the songwriting, playing and energy to another level. I'm so proud to be part of this great group of musicians and guys."

Pilson commented: "We're all very excited for the release of BLACK SWAN's 'Paralyzed' and can't wait for all the fans to hear it. We wanted to come up with a real step forward in melodic heaviness, and I strongly believe we delivered. Enjoy!"

With all songs written and composed by McAuley, Pilson and Beach, and expertly produced by Pilson, "Paralyzed" showcases BLACK SWAN at their peak performance — offering a dynamic mix of towering vocals, razor-sharp riffs, and hook-laden melodies. The band's chemistry continues to shine, elevating their songwriting and musical delivery to new heights.

Tracked at Pilson's Los Angeles studio, the album reflects the tight-knit synergy among its members. McAuley's commanding vocals remain as ageless, while the instrumentalists deliver with precision and fire. Much like its predecessors, the new record is a testament to the individual and collective talents of these seasoned musicians.

"Paralyzed" is fresh, heavy, and melodically rich — a cohesive and compelling album that feels both classic and contemporary. Building upon the blueprint laid by their debut, "Shake The World", the band expands their sonic universe.

The result is a record that not only meets but surpasses expectations, cementing BLACK SWAN as a formidable force in the modern hard rock scene. Whether you've followed these legendary musicians since the heyday of '80s rock or you're just now discovering their magic, "Paralyzed" is essential listening — a masterclass in melodic hard rock delivered by artists who continue to defy time and expectations.

The genesis of BLACK SWAN was sparked by a conversation between Jeff Pilson and Frontiers' president and head of A&R, Serafino Perugino, who wanted a project that would not only showcase McAuley's vocal prowess, but have a mighty musical backbone to stand skyscraper tall behind him. Thus, the initial seeds were planted and Pilson ran with it from there.

BLACK SWAN released its debut album, "Shake The World", on February 14, 2020. Their sophomore album, "Generation Mind", followed in 2022, a powerful hard rock statement that consolidated the unique sound of the quartet and highlighted the talent of each of the members.

"Paralyzed" track listing:

01. When The Cold Wind Blows
02. Death Of Me
03. Different Kind Of Woman
04. If I Was King
05. Shakedown
06. The Fire And The Flame
07. I'm Ready
08. Paralyzed
09. Carry On
10. Battered And Bruised
11. What The Future Holds

Regarding how BLACK SWAN has managed to stay together to record a second studio album despite the fact that most so-called "supergroups" don't last very long, McAuley told VWMusic in a 2022 interview: "'Shake The World' was a great first record from BLACK SWAN, and I don't think any of us likes the supergroup reference attached to the lineup. We set out to write some great music together. Music that we enjoy playing and listening to. On 'Generation Mind', I think we achieved that cohesive band sound that is very BLACK SWAN, and the production reflects that very much. It's fresh sounding, high energy, and fun. We're not caught up in having to sound a particular way because the label [Frontiers] put us together. This is who we are as a band."