Brazilian/American metallers SEPULTURA kicked off the Latin American leg of their farewell tour last Friday night (April 12) at Centro De Convenciones Vasco Nuñez De Balboa in Panama City, Panama. The show marked the band's first appearance in the country with new touring drummer Greyson Nekrutman (SUICIDAL TENDENCIES),who officially replaced SEPULTURA's longtime drummer Eloy Casagrande in February.

SEPULTURA's setlist for the Panama City concert was as follows:

01. Refuse/Resist
02. Territory
03. Kairos
04. Dusted
05. Attitude
06. Means To An End
07. Guardians Of Earth
08. Mind War
09. False
10. Choke
11. Escape To The Void
12. Kaiowas
13. Biotech Is Godzilla
14. Agony Of Defeat
15. Troops Of Doom
16. Inner Self
17. Arise

Encore:

18. Ratamahatta
19. Roots Bloody Roots

The 21-year-old Nekrutman is one of the most explosive young players in the drumming world, having garnered a legion of fans since bursting on to the international music scene just a few short years ago.

Greyson is featured on ALICE IN CHAINS vocalist William Duvall's "11.12.21 Live-In-Studio Nashville" CD, which came out in June 2022. Nekrutman has also performed or recorded with SUICIDAL TENDENCIES, Bakithi Kumalo, Darren Criss, Drumeo, Pearl Drums, Meinl Cymbals and has been featured in articles by Rolling Stone, Rhythm, Rhythm And Drum (Japan) and Sweetwater Music.

SEPULTURA announced Eloy's departure on February 27, explaining in a statement that he was leaving to join "another project", with some fans speculating that he will be the new drummer of SLIPKNOT.

The news of Eloy's exit from SEPULTURA came just two months after the band announced it would celebrate its 40th anniversary in 2024 by embarking on a "farewell tour" which will cover the entire globe.

In SEPULTURA's statement, the remaining bandmembers expressed their shock over Casagrande's departure, saying they were "taken by surprise" that their now-former drummer would "abandon everything related to SEPULTURA" less than a month prior to the start of the tour.

"February 6th, a few days prior to the first rehearsal, drummer Eloy Casagrande informed the band that he was leaving SEPULTURA to pursue a career in another project," they said.

"The band were taken by surprise, without prior warning, he immediately left the band, abandoning everything related to SEPULTURA.

"Luckily American virtuoso Greyson Nekrutman will take the position of Eloy Casagrande and is welcomed as the band's new drummer for the 'Celebrating Life Through Death' farewell tour."

Casagrande, who joined SEPULTURA 13 years ago as the replacement for Jean Dolabella, later took to his social media to write: "I would like to announce my departure from SEPULTURA.

"Being part of the biggest Brazilian metal band was one of the best experiences of my life. I just want to thank the band and crew members.

"It was a story of almost 13 years, in which I had the opportunity to learn and contribute with every song, show and recording. These were years of great dedication, intensity and commitment. We did 3 studio albums very well received by the critics, countless shows on 5 continents and a lot of stories to tell. So, first of all, I reiterate my thanks to SEPULTURA and the fans for everything we've been through.

"Maybe for the band's fans it doesn't make sense at this point, but decisions needed to be made thinking about new cycles that will come. We are made of choices and they are not always easy. My departure will never erase my respect and gratitude to the band.

"There is a lot to come and I hope to continue making a lot of music and art. See you on the road."

Nekrutman also commented on his addition to SEPULTURA's lineup, writing in a statement: "Today I express my heartfelt gratitude for the incredible opportunity to join the legendary ranks of SEPULTURA for their farewell tour.

"To contribute to this legacy is a privilege that fills me with both honor and excitement. SEPULTURA's fearless approach to exploring new territories in the metal sphere is something that I have always admired and strived to emulate in my own musical endeavors."

He continued: "I am eagerly looking forward to adding my own spirit and passion to the mix, to connecting with the fans who have supported the band through its evolution, and to the electrifying experiences we'll create together on stage. Here's to the new chapters we'll write together, to the stages we'll conquer, and to the powerful music we'll unleash upon the world."

Confirmed "Celebrating Life Through Death" tour dates so far include shows in South America and Europe. More concerts will be announced soon.

Thank you for the raging sell out, Panama City🇵🇦! What a way to start our Latin American “Celebrating Life Through...

Posted by Sepultura on Saturday, April 13, 2024

SCORPIONS guitarist Rudolf Schenker has once again responded to criticism from his brother Michael after the former UFO axeman accused him of being a "dangerous bully" who "takes advantage" his younger sibling.

Michael Schenker gave a number of interviews in recent years in which he questioned his brother's integrity, going so far as to call Rudolf "a con artist" who "completely adopted" Michael's image as his own. He also denounced the SCORPIONS for "distorting" the story of his brief tenure with the band and lamented the fact that he gave Rudolf his "portion" of the songwriting credit for the classic SCORPIONS song "Coast To Coast". It all came to light, Michael said, when he was approached to help with the recent 50th-anniversary SCORPIONS reissues.

During an appearance on the April 12 episode of SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk", Rudolf — who is seven years older than Michael — said about his brother: "I love him. He's a great person. I watched him since he was a baby, and I love him, and I brought him in into all the bands he had in the earlier times and to care that he's not going downhill. It's up to him. He's a very extreme person. He can't be in a band. He's not a band person. He is an extreme, great guitar player. And that's a different situation."

Asked if he and Michael are in contact at the moment, Rudolf said: "[At] the moment, no. From my side, I would talk [to him] immediately. [Laughs] I even can't be bad with him because I know what the situation is, where he talks from."

Underlining the different philosophies he and his brother have when it comes to creating music, Rudolf said: "My brother wants to be one of the best guitar players in the world. And I said, 'I want to play in one of the 30 biggest rock and roll bands in the world.'"

Host Eddie Trunk also asked Rudolf if Michael copied him when he first picked up a Gibson Flying V guitar or if it was the other way around. Rudolf responded: "This guitar has something to play it this way. I was playing before Michael, this guitar. The point was that Michael, when we had to play a big festival… he came to me and said, 'We can't play. I have no guitar.' I said, 'Oh, you have no guitar?' I was going around, hurrying up and got the [Gibson] Melody Maker and said, 'Okay, here's the guitar.' Then he said, 'I can't play with this guitar.' I said, 'Give me the guitar. You take the Flying V that we can do the concert.' And then he came back from the concert in this festival and said, 'Rudolf, I can't give you back the guitar because it's so good. It sounds so good.' I said, 'All right, you're looking much better with the guitar as a lead guitar player than me playing rhythm and play this guitar.' So in this case, he was playing this Flying V. The first [SCORPIONS album] 'Lonesome Crow', I think, was made with a Les Paul."

This is not the first time Rudolf has publicly addressed Michael's scathing comments about him. In an April 2022 interview with Guitar Player magazine, Rudolf said: "I tell you one thing: I love my brother. He can say whatever he wants to say. He's an amazing guitar player, an amazing person — whatever he wants to say, why not say it? [Laughs] If that is what makes him happy, then okay. I wish him all the best.

"I think, sooner or later, we will all be friends again and we will play together again. My life is too happy to put myself into a dustbin over it. I want to live in the sky. I am so happy for my life."

Five years ago, Rudolf dismissed his brother's criticism, telling Classic Rock magazine: "Look, I love my brother. He's a fantastic guitar player but he knows nothing about business. When we made 'Lovedrive', the band was under contract to Dieter Dierks [producer and manager]. When I asked Michael to play a solo to my composition 'Coast To Coast', we agreed a half-and-half credit, but Dieter wouldn't allow it — this related to publishing and studio costs. Michael had a signed contract with Dieter that gave him one point on the song. And we agreed to pay Michael… he had the money."

He continued: "But in 1985, when [Michael] was completely smashed and had a new MSG with Robin McAuley, Michael lived with me in my house. We flew in musicians, I did all of that for nothing on the understanding that Michael would pay me when a record label came in. But he didn't pay me anything. So I took his half to cover the bills he hadn't paid. Everything is clear. All Michael has to do is ask: 'What's happening here?' But he doesn't; instead, he gives these stupid interviews."

Rudolf added: "I still love my brother but he has always hated business matters and the only person that's to blame here is himself."

Michael has repeatedly said that he has no intention of reconnecting with his older brother, telling Spain's Metal Journal in a 2021 interview: "I love Rudolf as a brother, but social distance is needed, so I don't get tricked into any further inconvenient situation. Rudolf is a bully, and I don't connect with bullies. It creates turbulence, and it's inconvenient… I don't wanna be controlled by them. I have established myself in a way that I don't wanna be tricked into more inconvenient situations. The moment I connect with Rudolf — you have to understand — it will carry on just the way it did when I was 15, and it will never stop. He's a trickster.

"Rudolf and I, we have been separated for 50 years," Michael continued. "We have never actually spent any time together except for the tour dates in the [SCORPIONS] 'Lonesome Crow' period, but that's it. So we're used to that anyway.

"I hope for Rudolf to find his way back to understanding what true life is about. [He's] chasing something that gives you something that in the end is not gonna make you happy, which is fame and money, et cetera, et cetera. It rarely makes anybody happy. I mean, sometimes it kills people — too much fame, it kills people; they just die. And so I don't wanna be involved in that world."

Michael Schenker first appeared on SCORPIONS' 1972 album "Lonesome Crow", earned acclaim in the 1970s on classic UFO albums such as "Phenomenon" and "Lights Out" before rejoining SCORPIONS for 1979's "Lovedrive". He departed soon thereafter to launch MICHAEL SCHENKER GROUP. And while his sometimes-erratic behavior have derailed parts of his career, Schenker remains one of hard rock and metal's most influential axemen.

The RichG LIVE YouTube channel has uploaded video of this year's Coopstock, the annual charity music festival at Las Sendas Golf Club in Mesa, Arizona that featured appearances by Cooper and legendary musicians. The 2024 installment of Coopstock was held on Saturday, April 13 and included performances by REO SPEEDWAGON frontman Kevin Cronin, KISS guitarist Tommy Thayer, Micky Dolenz of THE MONKEES and Australian-born guitarist and singer-songwriter Orianthi.

Coopstock 2024, which benefits Alice's Solid Rock Teen Centers, also featured an appearance by actor Patrick Warburton, food trucks and auctions.

Before the 2023 edition of Coopstock, Cooper told The Mesa Tribune: "We are fulfilling a vision we've had for several years…to provide teens with a central place to learn, have fun, and explore their creativity in a supportive and safe environment. The Rock is the first of many teen centers in Arizona and, ultimately, around the country."

For more than a quarter-century, Coopstock has drawn thousands and every year organizers expect more than 2,500 people to attend the event.

Thayer praised Cooper for the invaluable service his teen centers provide for the community.

"I'm very familiar and I love what they do," Thayer told The Mesa Tribune. "They know exactly what they're doing, and they're very good at it. It's kind of groundbreaking, and I hope that more people do these kinds of things using this as an example."

Regarding the prospect of performing with other legendary musicians, Tommy said: "A lot of them I grew up admiring myself, and so get to get the get on stage and play their music with them is something that is interesting to me. I get to play other people's music and enjoy that, and again, it's all for a great cause and to raise money for this foundation."

The countdown begins! The Coopstock Fundraising Bash is just two weeks away! Tickets are selling fast so don't wait! ...

Posted by Alice Cooper's Solid Rock on Monday, April 1, 2024

In a brand new interview with Nikki Blakk of the San Francisco radio station 107.7 The Bone, ARMORED SAINT singer John Bush spoke about the band's cover version of "One Chain Don't Make No Prison". "One Chain Don't Make No Prison" was written by Dennis Lambert and Brian Potter and was first released by PEOPLE in 1970. It was also covered by FOUR TOPS, as well as SANTANA and THE DOOBIE BROTHERS. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "[It came out] really cool. It's kind of a throwback. I love that sound from — especially [FOUR TOPS] in the '70s was really cool. That's when they got a little bit more edgy. The '60s stuff was, of course, great, but Levi Stubbs, the main singer, was awesome. He had a cool, just soulful, powerful voice. So Joey [Vera, ARMORED SAINT bassist] had this idea of doing it. We did the song. I don't know when for sure it's coming out. We did a video for it that we're all wearing suits. So it's pretty funny. It's a little different for us. It was really aesthetically looking pretty cool. We filmed it at somebody's house somewhere here in Hollywood. The guy had all these crazy decorations inside of his house that he lived in. So, the director found it. And so we shot it kind of in a circle, which is really cool. It was fun."

Regarding the progress of the songwriting sessions for ARMORED SAINT's next LP, Bush said: "We've already written a few songs — we've got probably about five or six, and we need to write a handful more. ARMORED SAINT notoriously doesn't move too fast. It would be cool if we had a little urgency. Not that we're lazy about it. We kind of work at our own pace. And when ideas come, they do. And then the ball starts kind of getting momentum and then we're going. But in the end, I always say it's better to make an awesome record. We're never gonna be a band that had, like, 30 records — that just wasn't our kind of path — but we can still have every record be great, and that should be the objective. Not that all bands with 30 records are just saying, 'Let's put out some crap,' but sometimes I think a lot of people do things so they could just tour and that just isn't really our M.O. So, if we could try to get it less than every five years, especially [considering] our age, would be something that would be good. But in the end, it will come when it does. But 2025, I think, is fairly realistic."

Asked if ARMORED SAINT would consider making an EP instead of a full-length album, as a lot of other artist have done in recent years, John said: "I wanna make a [full] record because metal people still love records, metal fans still want to buy vinyl and CDs. It's probably the one genre that people still wanna… I mean, of course people get it through different means — downloading or MP3s or whatever; if that's your method to listen to music, do whatever it is that makes you happy — but I think that people still love the aesthetics of vinyl and record and CDs. Some people still have cassettes; I don't know if they're listening to them or if it sounded good in the first place. But people like having the product, and that's really great. And we've always released vinyl from the beginning, even in our latter years on Metal Blade when vinyl was taking a big dip. It's had a little resurgence now, but, yeah, I think it's great that fans still want that. And I wanna make a full-length record."

Bush previously told The Chill Dude On A Couch about the ARMORED SAINT songwriting process: "We write something and then we'll try to make this really good-sounding demo. I'll go and sing. I actually try to sing it like I'm singing a record, and we've kept a lot of the original vocals. This goes back to the way we wrote songs back to [2000's] 'Revelation' even. 'Cause sometimes I think you sing something that maybe you'll never sing exactly the same, and so that nuance in your voice or who knows what, your inflection, you can try to mimic it, but maybe you never will mimic it exactly that way. Same with a guitar lead — a certain bend, it may not be exactly how you play it again. So I think those are key things that you try to keep when you're making demos, and that's what we do. So I've gotta get back to doing some work. And we've got more work to do, that's for sure. We certainly don't work at a fast pace; everyone knows that about SAINT. We could try to put a little urgency into this and try to kind of move on it a little quicker without sacrificing quality. I think that's a good idea."

ARMORED SAINT was inducted into the Metal Hall Of Fame last July at the legendary Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood, California.

Ten months ago, ARMORED SAINT's long-awaited documentary, Armored Saint: Band Of Brothers", had its world premiere in the band's hometown at the Harmony Gold Theatre in Hollywood, California.

ARMORED SAINT's eighth full-length album, "Punching The Sky", came out in October 2020 via Metal Blade Records.

ARMORED SAINT released the "Symbol Of Salvation Live" CD/DVD in 2021 via Metal Blade Records. The release came in celebration of the seminal album's 30th anniversary. "Symbol Of Salvation Live" was a combination live album and video of the band playing the album in its entirety at New York City's famed Gramercy Theatre during its 2018 tour.

In a new interview with Ultimate Guitar, Zakk Wylde spoke about the decision to tour with a reformed version of PANTERA, also featuring surviving members Philip Anselmo (vocals) and Rex Brown (bass),alongside Charlie Benante (ANTHRAX) on drums. The lineup has reportedly been given a green light by the estates of PANTERA's founders, drummer Vincent "Vinnie Paul" Abbott and guitarist "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott.

Zakk said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I feel [Dimebag] all the time. Even when we were getting ready to do the [PANTERA tour in 2022], [the early] rehearsals, and they were just figuring out how we were gonna do this, there'd be signs all over the place, whether [it was] a license plate that would be, like, '333' [three being Dimebag's favorite number], or I'd run into like a Dimebag license plate in the middle of nowhere. It was just, like, him just pushing this thing along, willing it to happen. So he's just always around. When we were in New York, just like signs, when we just did [a headlining show at] the [Madison Square] Garden [in February 2024], my wife Barbaranne was, like, Check this out.' Something came up and it just reminded us of Dime, and I was like, 'Wow, that's crazy.' Or we would look on our phone and it would be '333'. It's just these signs everywhere. And I could see Dime just doing it, going, 'I hope these idiots realize it's me sending these signs.' [Laughs]"

The reformed PANTERA is headlining a number of major festivals across North America, South America and Europe and staging some of its own headline concerts. They are also supporting METALLICA on a massive stadium tour in 2024.

It was first reported in July 2022 that Anselmo and Brown would unite with Wylde and Benante for a world tour under the PANTERA banner.

During a recent appearance on "Drinks With Johnny", the Internet TV show hosted by AVENGED SEVENFOLD bassist Johnny Christ, Zakk was asked how he, Philip, Rex and Charlie all "came together to decide that this was the right time, the right group to pay homage to the mighty PANTERA". The guitarist said: "Well, BLACK LABEL [SOCIETY] and DOWN, we did some shows together in 2014, we did a tour, and it was great. 'Cause I've known Phil [who also sings for DOWN] and Pepper [Keenan, DOWN guitarist] and all the guys, and Jimmy Bower [DOWN drummer], Father Bower Power, over there for a while. It was just a bunch of friends going out doing shows together. And we did some PANTERA stuff then, and then Father Rex came out and we jammed 'I'm Broken' and stuff like that, and it was a lot of fun. And it's always been rumored for years. I just said that's always on the fellas. Me and Charlie are buds, and we'll be here to support our friends, whatever they wanna do. So when Phil called me up one day, he was, like, 'Zakk, you wanna get together and do this? We're thinking about me, Rex and Charlie and yourself, and we'll go out and pay tribute to Dime and Vinnie.' I was, like, 'Of course. I always said I would be there for you guys when you felt the time was right to do it.'"

He continued: "But, yeah, we just got together and did the rehearsals down in New Orleans and then we've been rolling ever since. We just did the [Madison Square] Garden and everything like that, with LAMB OF GOD and the guys and everything like that. So it was great. So just looking out every night and seeing people taking a trip down memory lane, the people that have seen the original PANTERA… When Phil says every night, he's just, like, 'How many people, this is their first time ever seeing PANTERA?' And all the younger people that never got a chance to see 'em [raise their hands]. It just really is a beautiful thing.

"I always say it every night, when we were playing the Garden, it's just like if Dime and Vinnie were right there on the side of the stage, I'd go, 'Look at what you guys created.' So it's really special. I think it's just a beautiful thing every night paying honor and tribute to Dime and Vinnie every night, Phil and Rex and Dime and Vinnie, this thing that they created that brings so many people joy. So, I just think it's a beautiful thing every night."

Zakk previously discussed his involvement with PANTERA in a February 2024 interview with Chuck Armstrong of Loudwire Nights. At the time, he said: "Everybody in the whole camp, it's all great people. And it's crazy, because we've known each other for years, but you end up knowing, even with the crew and everything like that, all these people you've known for years — I mean, people that I've been with when I started with Ozzy [Osbourne] and everything like that. So, it's just a great time out there, man, for sure. And then, obviously, celebrating Vinnie and Dime every night, it's just awesome.

"The beautiful thing about music is, all the bands that we love, whether it's ZEPPELIN or [BLACK] SABBATH, THE ALLMAN BROTHERS or Elton John or PANTERA or whatever, everybody has their connection to that music," he continued. "That's the most powerful thing about music. I mean, you hear stuff, it just transports you back to when you were 13 years old, 14 years old, where you were and what you were doing when that music was going on. So, for so many people — it's amazing 'cause Phil always does it at like almost every night, he's just, like, 'How many people saw PANTERA back in the day?' And everybody, obviously, you have all the PANTERA faithful. And then he goes, 'How many people, this is their first time seeing PANTERA?' It's mind-blowing. I mean, I'd say it's almost like 60-40, 70-30 sometimes, where it's, like, 'Wow. That is amazing.'

"I never got a chance to see ZEPPELIN back in the day, so to see… When I went and saw the [Jimmy] Page and [Robert] Plant thing with the orchestra and everything, that was just amazing, because I never got a chance to see them back in the day. So, just the power of the music, to see it live was just… I saw 'em at Brendan Byrne Arena [in East Rutherford, New Jersey in April 1995] when we were working on [Ozzy Osbourne's 1995 album] 'Ozzmosis'. I got tickets and we went down to the gig that night, and it was amazing — 'cause I never I never got a chance to see it back in the day. So, it's pretty much the same, 'cause I know I was getting chills when I was watching it. So, yeah, it's a beautiful thing, man."

Zakk was also asked if he would be open to working on new material with PANTERA. He said: "Nah, I don't think so. Whenever Phil says that and all the younger kids are screaming and yelling, when they put the house lights on and everyone's got their fists up in the air 'cause that's the first time [they're seeing PANTERA live], I just look at like Vinnie and Dime, if they were on the side of the stage, and go, 'See what you guys created.' So it's just, like, yeah, it's awesome. It truly is, man. But, no, I don't think [the plan is] to record [as PANTERA]. I mean, it'd be like if [Eric] Clapton was playing with [drummer] Mitch [Mitchell] and [bassist] Noel [Redding], honoring Jimi [Hendrix], they're not gonna go in and record [and call it] THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE with Eric Clapton. [Laughs] I don't think anything like that. Obviously, if we were ever to do anything, it would be under a different name. Like Jimmy Page, if he was playing with Paul Rodgers and everything, it's THE FIRM; they're not going out as LED ZEPPELIN."

Up until his passing in June 2018, Vinnie remained on non-speaking terms with Anselmo, whom the drummer indirectly blamed for Dimebag's death.

Vinnie Paul and Dimebag co-founded PANTERA. On December 8, 2004, while performing with DAMAGEPLAN at the Alrosa Villa in Columbus, Ohio, Dimebag was shot and killed onstage by a troubled schizophrenic who believed that the members of PANTERA were stealing his thoughts.

Vinnie, who was Dimebag's brother, and Anselmo had not spoken since PANTERA split in 2003. But the relationship got even more acrimonious when Vinnie suggested that some remarks the vocalist had made about Dimebag in print just weeks earlier might have incited Dimebag's killer.

Three-time Grammy Award-nominated band NOTHING MORE will release its fifth album, "Carnal", on June 28 via Beter Noise Music. The LP features 15 songs with the San Antonio, Texas-born quartet's most focused, adventurous, and intense music to date, including their current radio single "If It Doesn't Hurt" which is currently in the Top 10 at No. 9 on the Active Rock radio charts and rising. Recorded with Grammy-nominated producer Drew "WZRD BLD" Fulk (DISTURBED, MOTIONLESS IN WHITE, A DAY TO REMEMBER) with mixing and mastering by Zakk Cervini (LIMP BIZKIT, MGK, BRING ME THE HORIZON),"Carnal" unites NOTHING MORE's trademark introspective philosophical lyrics and unapologetically massive anthems with in-your-face rockers designed for an all-encompassing audience.

"'Carnal' feels like a perfect encapsulation of what NOTHING MORE has always been," says guitarist Mark Vollelunga. "From progressive introspection to steady-state rock 'n roll, we felt like we've achieved the exact balance wanted for this next installment."

"It's a beautiful blend of memorable guitar riffs, illustrious chord progressions and heart wrenching lyrical performances all to the beat of a drum that palpitates with syncopated obsession," states bassist Daniel Oliver. "There's truly something for everyone on this record."

NOTHING MORE have today unveiled their new compelling and defiant track "House On Sand" featuring I PREVAIL vocalist Eric Vanlerberghe. Check it out below.

"Sometimes you lose sight of your purpose in life and wander off of the path you were on," says frontman Jonny Hawkins on "House On Sand". "Years later you find yourself in a life that does not match the vision you once had for yourself. Trapped, you are left with a choice…betray your inner voice, or trust it; continue on and play it safe, or turn back and start again… I'm starting again."

In regard to working with Vanlerberghe, Hawkins states: "I'm so honored and excited to have Eric screaming his heart out with me on this song!"

"Almost a year ago, the boys in NOTHING MORE sent me this demo and asked if I'd consider hopping on it," shares Vanlerberghe. "I checked it out and for the next few weeks, I had the chorus engrained in my brain. The song really resonated with me. I think this track, as well as the rest of their record, is NOTHING MORE's best work and I'm honored to be a part of it."

Since their emergence in 2003, NOTHING MORE have continuously topped the active rock radio charts, including nine No. 1 singles and over a half dozen Top 10 singles, among them "Tired Of Winning" from their 2022 album "Spirits". To date, the band — Jonny Hawkins (vocals),Mark Vollelunga (guitar),Daniel Oliver (bass) and Ben Anderson (drums) — have amassed a total of 788 million streams and 150 million video views.

NOTHING MORE have won over audiences across the globe with their commanding performances, of which Loudwire proclaimed: "it's their famously vivacious live shows that truly enthrall, especially when they pull out some of bassist Daniel Oliver's self-made gadgets. For instance, there's the 'Scorpion Tale', an extremely heavy beast made of metal scraps whose Ableton software permits singer Jonny Hawkins to alter multiple timbres (such as guitar, bass and vocals) while riding it. Then, you have the 'Drumtron/Bassinator,' a rotating bass stand connected to drums that allows for three-man bass solos."

NOTHING MORE will head out on a co-headlining tour across North America this spring with WAGE WAR and special guests VEIL OF MAYA and SLEEP THEORY followed by a set of direct support shows with rock icons GODSMACK. They'll also appear this fall at festivals, including Louder Than Life, Aftershock and MMR*B*Q.

"Carnal" track listing:

01. Carnal
02. House On Sand (feat. Eric V Of I Prevail)
03. If It Doesn't Hurt
04. Angel Song (feat. David Draiman)
05. Freefall
06. Blame It On The Drugs
07. Head
08. Existential Dread
09. Heart
10. Down The River
11. Give It Time
12. Sight
13. Stuck (feat. Sinizter)
14. Run For Your Life
15. Sound

Photo credit: Dante Dellamore

In a new interview with "Whiplash", the KLOS radio show hosted by Full Metal Jackie, former SKID ROW singer Sebastian Bach spoke about the inspiration for the title of his upcoming solo album, "Child Within The Man", set for release on May 10 via Reigning Phoenix Music. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Well, my wife calls me man-child. That's kind of been a theme for me my whole career. I bring a youthful energy to the stage when I get up there. People are smiling and excited and hooting and hollering. But the line 'child within the man' is a line of one of the songs on the record. And I scream it like bloody murder. And it kept haunting me. "

Sebastian also talked about the "Child Within The Man" artwork, which holds special meaning since it was designed by Bach's father, noted visual artist David Bierk.

"I have a lot of my dad's artwork," Bach said. "He's no longer alive. And we all, all of his kids, we got a lot of his art when he passed away. And I unrolled a roll of paintings that I knew had the SKID ROW 'Subhuman Race' painting in it, and I wanna take care of it and make sure it's preserved. But in that roll was this painting that I remember my dad doing of me when I was 10 in a field next to this beat-up old Cadillac car in the field and then behind the car, it's Jesus ascending into heaven, and I'm running next to the car. It looks like an album cover. And then he also did a painting of me from Circus magazine, the first centerfold of me on stage at Giants Stadium. He did a gigantic painting of that, like 12 feet high. And so the cover is gonna be me running as a child into me on stage as a man, and it's child within the man. And it just reminds me of the '70s, like child in time, and it just reminds me of a good '70s album cover. And the fact that I can bring back a painting from the year 1978 and make it into artwork in 2023, 2024, that's really mind-blowing to me."

"Child Within The Man" was recorded in Orlando, Florida; produced and mixed by Michael "Elvis" Baskette; engineered by Jef Moll, assistant engineered by Josh Saldate and mastered by Robert Ludwig of Gateway Mastering. Bach wrote or co-wrote all the album's 11 tracks and sang all lead and backing vocals.

"Child Within The Man" features guest appearances from John 5 (MÖTLEY CRÜE, ROB ZOMBIE, MARILYN MANSON),Steve Stevens (BILLY IDOL) and Orianthi (ALICE COOPER, MICHAEL JACKSON) — who all co-wrote their respective tracks with Bach — and two tracks co-written with ALTER BRIDGE's Myles Kennedy ("What Do I Got to Lose?" and "To Live Again"). Devin Bronson (guitars),Todd Kerns (bass) and Jeremy Colson (drums) round out the players on the album. The album will be available on jewelcase CD, cassette, and double LP in a variety of colour options.

"Child Within The Man" track listing is as follows:

01. Everybody Bleeds
02. Freedom (featuring John 5)
03. (Hold On) To The Dream
04. What Do I Got To Lose?
05. Hard Darkness
06. Future Of Youth (featuring Orianthi)
07. Vendetta
08. F.U. (featuring Steve Stevens)
09. Crucify Me
10. About To Break
11. To Live Again

The album's first single, "What Do I Got To Lose?", was co-written by Sebastian, Kennedy and Baskette, the latter of whom also served as the track's producer.

In advance of the album's release, Bach will hit the road in 2024 for an international tour with dates in Latin and North America. The "What Do I Got To Lose?" tour is a mix of solo gigs and festival appearances that kicks off with an international run of performances in Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina, and Chile before North American shows in the U.S. and Mexico. The stateside tour gets underway May 10 in Jefferson, Louisiana before wrapping June 29 in San Diego, California.

Bach performed "What Do I Got To Lose?" live for the first time during his February 24 concert at Palace Theatre in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Bach released the official music video for "What Do I Got To Lose?" in December. The clip was directed by Jim Louvau and Tony Aguilera. For the video, which shows Bach cruising through the desert in a convertible and performing with a full band, Sebastian was joined by his former SKID ROW bandmate, drummer Rob Affuso. The clip also features an appearance by actor and comedian Craig Gass and Sebastian's wife Suzanne, who plays a scantily clad car wash attendant.

Bach hasn't released a full-length disc since "Give 'Em Hell", which came out in March 2014. Like its predecessor, 2011's "Kicking & Screaming", the disc was released through Frontiers Music Srl, the Italian label which specializes in what's commonly called AOR, a term that once signified a popular radio format ("album-oriented rock") but nowadays applies to acts whose airplay is marginal.

Photo credit: Jim Louvau

In a new interview with The Metal Podcast, David Ellefson spoke about the recent announcement that New Jersey thrash metal veterans OVERKILL have recruited him to play bass for the band on their "Scorching Latin America 2024" tour. The former MEGADETH member is filling in for original OVERKILL bassist D.D. Verni, who is unable to make the shows as he is recovering from shoulder surgery.

Expressing the excitement about being asked to fill in for Verni, Ellefson said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "They're dear friends of mine. I haven't played with Derek [Tailer], the other guitar player, but it's funny, me and Dave Linsk [OVERKILL guitarist] actually wrote some songs together after a NAMM show 15 years ago maybe; it was a while ago. And he and Joe Comeau, who was the singer in ANNIHILATOR for a while, me, Dave Linsk, Joe Comeau and Jimmy DeGrasso [ex-MEGADETH drummer], they all came out here to Phoenix and we wrote a bunch of songs under a band name called ATOMIC 66. And they're great songs. Dave's been reluctant to put 'em out. I've gotta beat on him a little bit here this next month when we're together to put these songs out, if we just put them up digitally. They're fricking cool, man — super good. And then, of course, me and Blitz [OVERKILL singer Bobby Ellsworth], we've jammed METAL ALLEGIANCE all the time and me and [Jason] Bittner [OVERKILL drummer] have done clinics and stuff and jammed together. So, I'm excited about it."

Elaborating on his long personal friendship with the members of OVERKILL, Ellefson said: "It's funny, [MEGADETH] had OVERKILL on the 'Peace Sells' tour — OVERKILL was out with us in 1987 — so, yeah, we're all brothers from the same neighborhood. And I always said, look, if there's the 'Big Four', if you added EXODUS on the West Coast and OVERKILL on the East Coast, there's your 'Big Six' right there."

As for the challenge of learning the OVERKILL material over the course of several weeks, Ellefson said: "Look, I've gotta say, digging into these songs — they've got, what, 20 records out — consistently they have probably made the best, most consistently great albums out of all of us. And I mean, all of us. There's not a dud in the bunch, you know what I mean? They don't have a 'Risk' or a 'St. Anger' anywhere in their catalog. And EXODUS has got good stuff too, but I think OVERKILL, now that I'm really digging into it and really understanding it, it's just that. And D.D.'s amazing, man. Look, I may be David Ellefson, but I ain't no D.D. Verni, man. I mean, that guy, he's a masterful songwriter. His arrangements are killer and his parts are very clever and cool. And so, yeah, it's got my thrash chops up and it's an honor to just step in and help them out… Again, we're all buddies, we're brothers, and, look, I'm in a position and schedule allows for me to go do it. So, that's what it is."

Ellefson made his live debut with New Jersey thrashers OVERKILL on Thursday, April 11 at C3 Stage in Guadalajara, Mexico.

OVERKILL's setlist was as follows:

01. Scorched
02. Bring Me The Night
03. Electric Rattlesnake
04. Hello From The Gutter
05. Wicked Place
06. Coma
07. Horrorscope
08. Long Time Dyin'
09. The Surgeon
10. Mean, Green, Killing Machine
11. Ironbound
12. Elimination

Encore:

13. Hammerhead
14. Rotten To The Core
15. Fuck You (THE SUBHUMANS cover)

Fan-filmed video of the concert can be seen below.

In a separate interview with Metal & Rock Zone, Ellefson stated about how he ended up being asked to fill in for Verni: "I got approached before the end of the year. It was just brought to my attention that D.D. was going to go through this surgery. They didn't know if he was gonna be better or not. So I was kind of put on alert that, 'Hey, we may need some help.' And we grew up together, OVERKILL and MEGADETH. I remember the 'Peace Sells' tour, OVERKILL was our direct support. So we've been good friends, all of us. And I always said, look, if there were gonna be two more added to the 'Big Four' [of 1980s thrash metal], it would be EXODUS in California and OVERKILL on the East Coast. So, to me, these are brothers in arms. So, when they hit me a few weeks ago about it, I said, 'Sure. Count me in if you need me to do it.'"

OVERKILL's 10-date "Scorching Latin America 2024" tour will include additional stops in Costa Rica, Chile and Peru before closing on April 28 in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

When Ellefson's addition to OVERKILL's touring lineup was first announced, OVERKILL singer Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth said in a statement: "South, Central America and Mexico, with D.D. on the mend from surgery and the opportunity in front of us, where to go but back to the roots of THRASH! Please welcome Mr. David Ellefson to the OVERKILL, touring ranks this April 2024! 'David, can you help?' The answer: 'Yes, let's go!' We can't wait to see you guys! Horns up!"

Verni commented: "Bummed to not be able to thrash it up with our Latin America fans, but gotta get this wing workin!!....but who better than one of the great original thrash bass players, and old friend, David Ellefson to fill in."

Ellefson said: "It's an honor to fill in for my friend, the mighty D.D. Verni, as he takes time to heal up right now. OVERKILL always brings the fury and I'm looking forward to scorching Latin America with them!"

Ellefson was fired from MEGADETH nearly three years ago. MEGADETH leader Dave Mustaine ended up hiring TESTAMENT's Steve DiGiorgio to re-record Ellefson's bass parts on MEGADETH's latest album, "The Sick, The Dying… And The Dead!"

In May 2022, MEGADETH announced bass player James LoMenzo as a permanent member of the band. LoMenzo was MEGADETH's bass player in the mid-2000s and initially stepped back in as a touring member for "The Metal Tour Of The Year".

Ellefson was in MEGADETH from the band's inception in 1983 to 2002, and again from 2010 until his latest exit.

Thank you, Guadalajara Mexico, it was so great to make my debut performance with Overkill with all of your beautiful...

Posted by David Ellefson on Friday, April 12, 2024

Overkill
C3 stage
Cacique Entertainment
11/04/2020
Canon eos RP

Posted by Rojo WR on Friday, April 12, 2024

Rehearsals begin today for Overkill 's Scorching Latin America Tour!! It's an honor to fill in for my friend, the mighty...

Posted by David Ellefson on Monday, April 8, 2024

VAN HALEN singer David Lee Roth has released a new song called "Scotch And Sofa". You can now listen to the track below.

Roth originally left VAN HALEN to pursue a solo career following the success of the band's album "1984", but he returned for a stint in 1996 and then took over as VAN HALEN's frontman again from 2007 until 2020, although the band had not toured since 2015.

In recent months, Roth has been releasing songs from his 2007 sessions with guitarist John 5.

In 2020, Roth included five previously unreleased songs in The Roth Project, an online comic narrated by the legendary VAN HALEN singer, with music from John 5 on guitar and bass, Gregg Bissonette on drums, Brett Tuggle on keyboards, and Luis Conte on percussion.

In October 2021, Roth announced his retirement, saying he was "throwing in the shoes." His announcement came a year after the death of his VAN HALEN bandmate Eddie Van Halen. In his statement announcing the retirement, Roth added that he had been thinking about his late guitarist and had been "encouraged and compelled to really come to grips with how short time is, and my time is probably even shorter."

VAN HALEN's original lineup was Roth, Eddie and Alex Van Halen, along with bassist Michael Anthony. Sammy Hagar replaced Roth as vocalist, touring and recording with the band from 1985 to 1996. Gary Cherone was enlisted as VAN HALEN's singer from 1996 to 2000. Hagar rejoined the group in 2003 and lasted only a couple of years before Roth stepped back out front in 2007.

VAN HALEN was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2007. The band has sold more than 80 million albums internationally.

In a new interview with Meltdown of the Detroit radio station WRIF, STYX guitarist and co-founder James "JY" Young was asked how he feels about the band's hypothetical induction into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Well, it's very East Coast-centric in terms of the people that have a vote. And STYX probably deserves to be in there, but I'm not holding my breath. Our type of music and the audience that basically love our music and buy millions of our records don't have a vote. There's 30 or 40 people that decide who's going in — not 30,000 and 40,000 voting. And, I won't mention names — that might guarantee we never get in — but I don't, honestly… Will I have a smile on my face when I go to my grave if I haven't made it in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame? Sure. We've played in front of audiences and people have said so many wonderful things about, 'JY, your music has changed my life. Your music saved my life. It got me through the most difficult times when my girlfriend or my mother passed away and I was listening to your music that helped get me through my most difficult time.' And so what could be more significant than another human being saying that 'You've saved my life. You made my life better. You allowed me to see things in a light that I could still survive and go on.' So that's the kind of stuff that you don't hear about, but it's out there and it's absolutely factual in terms of how people… I mean, music affects everybody differently, and we've made some great records, no doubt about it."

STYX released its self-titled debut album in 1972 and first became eligible for induction into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 1997. The legendary group's legacy encompasses a string of multi-platinum and enduring albums that include "The Grand Illusion" (1977),"Pieces Of Eight" (1978),Grammy-nominated "Cornerstone" (1979),"Paradise Theatre" (1981) and "Kilroy Was Here" (1983). They wrote and produced a long list of evergreen hits and classic songs that include "Lady", "Lorelei", "Suite Madame Blue", "The Grand Illusion", "Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man)", "Come Sail Away", "Miss America", "Renegade", "Blue Collar Man", "Babe", "Borrowed Time", "The Best Of Times", "Too Much Time On My Hands", "Snowblind", "Mr. Roboto", "Don't Let It End", "Show Me The Way" and more. Despite that, STYX has yet to even appear on a ballot for consideration.

Back in 2021, Sterling Whitaker, author of "The Grand Delusion: The Unauthorized True Story Of Styx", stated about STYX's hypothetical Rock Hall induction: "In recent years we've seen some of the internal politics of the Hall change, and they've finally inducted some long-overdue artists including GENESIS, ALICE COOPER, KISS, JOURNEY, RUSH and YES. STYX has long been one of the most critically misunderstood, under-reported and incorrectly reported bands in rock music history. But the music has always been enough to carry the day with the fans, who have supported the band religiously for nearly fifty years now. Their legacy touches on progressive rock, hard rock, arena rock, ballads, folk, blues, European and American influences ... it really is a band with something for everyone , and the music still plays all day, every day across multiple radio formats all across the U.S. and the world," he added. "It's also a fixture of television and movies, a testament to how ubiquitous the music of STYX has truly become. STYX for the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame is the easiest argument in the world to make. Not only is it high time, it's way past time."

Even though artists are eligible for the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame 25 years after the release of their first album or single, iconic hard rock and metal groups like IRON MAIDEN and MOTÖRHEAD have yet to be recognized by the institution, which inducted GUNS N' ROSES in that band's first year of eligibility.

Four years ago, STYX guitarist/vocalist Tommy Shaw told WRIF about a possible Rock Hall induction: "I'm kind of numb to it now. And I've been to some of them before. It was nice to see a bunch of people that I know.

"You know what it's good for? When you go out later and they say, 'members of the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.' That's what's great about it," he continued. "But the idea of going there and going through that process, I'm not really looking forward to that. I'd love to be in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, and I'd go do it, but that part, it just doesn't appeal to me. It's one of those things where you sit in judgment there, and our fans have voted with their feet and with their wallets time after time. So it's the fans that I respect more than a bunch of guys [going], 'Thumbs up, thumbs down,' year after year.

"I just don't understand their standards," he added. "They'll have some songs that aren't a rock and roll song — one guy had one song, and they put them in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. And I'm not bitter about it. But it's just frustrating to be held up to those kinds of standards when all we really care about is our fans."

Still, if he does one day get the call that STYX is being inducted into the Rock Hall, "I'll be honored, I'll go [and] I'll do it," he said. "But I kind of stopped paying attention to whether we qualify for being in there."

Earlier in 2020, Young told the Arizona Republic that original frontman Dennis DeYoung "deserves" to be in the Rock Hall along with the rest of the band if they eventually get inducted. But he ruled out a possible reunion with the singer, saying: "Highly unlikely. The man sued us in federal court over the use of the name. We settled out of court. So we control the name and he can use it in limited ways, which are very strictly outlined.

"Dennis hates being away from home," Young explained. "I don't need to be next to unhappiness. We have a joyful thing now and I have no economic incentive to do it. It would be throwing the Joker back into the deck to bring him in. And I'm not interested in that.

"A lot of times great works of art come from tortured souls or tortured situations," he added. "And being in STYX was a tortured situation. It really was. A lot of us were very unhappy. In all the success we had, there was no joy. And now there's nothing but joy. From what I've read, a lot of these great works of literature were made by tortured souls. And Dennis is kind of a tortured genius."

Ace Frehley was joined by his collaborator, TRIXTER guitarist Steve Brown, on stage last night (Saturday, April 13) at Carteret Performing Arts And Events Center in Carteret, New Jersey to perform the title track of the original KISS guitarist's latest solo album, "10,000 Volts". Video of Steve's appearance can be seen below.

In a recent interview with Canada's The Metal Voice, Ace shot down rumors that almost all of the songwriting on "10,000 Volts" was done by Steve. The 72-year-old musician said: "I got aggravated the other day 'cause I heard that people were saying I didn't write any of the songs on the record. And [they were saying] it was all Steve Brown. And Steve, he was doing [the] 'Three Sides Of The Coin' [KISS-centric podcast], and he kind of confirmed that by saying, 'Yeah…' The [interviewer] said, 'Well, how much did Ace bring to the table?' And he goes, 'Well, I pretty much brought about 97 percent.' And I was really shocked when he said that, because that's not the case. And I called him up and he apologized to me."

Ace continued: "[Steve is] a wonderful guy. I love him. He was so excited about the record, and they were asking him questions that weren't rehearsed; he had no idea. Everybody sometimes toots their own horn a little more than they should sometimes without thinking. He was so excited about the record, he made that statement, but he admitted to me last night that that wasn't the case. And I brought up 'Up In The Sky' and several other things. What's that one song that everybody's jumpin' on bandwagon now? 'Fightin' For Life', saying it's one of the best songs on the record. I rewrote the whole chorus for that.

"I'm a very good lyricist," Frehley explained. "I always have been, but when it came to this album, if Steve brought a song to me with lyrics, ultimately I ended up rewriting at least 50 percent of the lyrics, just because I'm a better lyricist, and I think he'd be the first one to admit that. But he's definitely a much better engineer and producer than I am, and a great guitar player. And a good songwriter and very knowledgeable on Pro Tools — much more so than myself.

"I like to give credit where credit's due," Ace added.

Asked by interviewer Jimmy Kay if the songwriting split was more like 50-50 in terms of how much each person contributed to it, Ace said: "We just decided, no matter how much one of us brought to the table, we're gonna split everything in half — because it's a lot easier doing it that way than… Because I don't need the money that bad. And I know Steve worked really hard, because not only did he co-produce it, but he engineered the whole record himself. And I didn't have to pay for an engineer, so that saved me thousands of dollars. Whatever one guy brought to the table or the other guy, it really didn't matter. To me, the most important thing is the end result. I sang lead on all the songs. I played guitar solos on 80 percent of the songs, 75 percent. A couple of solos that he came up with, they were guide solos for me to copy. And I said, 'Steve, those solos are so good, let's just leave 'em.' He goes, 'Well, I don't want any credit.' [He's] humble. And I said, 'I'm gonna give you credit, because I like to give credit where credit is due. I don't wanna take credit for your solo if I didn't write it.' That's the kind of relationship we have. And it really doesn't matter who came up with what first. I always end up Ace-ifying it, putting my stamp on it. You can't get away from my voice; the minute you hear my voice, you know it's Ace Frehley."

Ace went on to bring up a few specific instances on the record where his contributions made a significant difference.

"We did a cover song, which was my idea, a song by [French actress] Nadia called 'Life Of A Stranger' [for the 2002 action film 'The Transporter'], which turned out great," he said. "And I wrote 'Back Into My Arms Again'. I wrote that 20, 35 years ago or something, with Arthur Stead.

"When [Steve] brought me 'Walkin' On The Moon', there was one line in the chorus called 'Walkin' on the moon,' but it wasn't the crux of the chorus. And I said, 'This song has to be called 'Walkin' On The Moon'.' He came over to my house and we worked it up and I rewrote most of the lyrics. And it turned out great.

"As far as I'm concerned, it really doesn't matter who does what, as long as the end result is what I want and what Steve wants," Frehley explained. "And we're always on the same page, for the most part. Of course, we'd have our differences from time to time. I mean, he wrote a song, and I can't remember which one it was, he brought a song to me, and it was kind of finished, but It was like a drum machine, and I wanted to bring in a different drummer and change a few things on it. And I said, 'This song needs a bridge.' And he said, 'Nah, it doesn't need a bridge.' I said, 'Trust me, it needs a bridge. I've been writing songs for 50 years.' I wrote a bridge in 10 minutes, and we inserted it after the second chorus, and he goes, 'Wow, that's really good.' So, that's the way we worked… We didn't use any Auto-Tuning, like some people are saying. I have perfect pitch, so I can tell if I'm singing flat. I just redo it."

Last month, Ace dismissed rumors that most of the guitar work on "10,000 Volts" was laid down by Steve, telling Ultimate Classic Rock: "Listen to previous albums by Steve Brown. Do they sound like this record? I don't think so. Number one, I'm doing all the vocals. Number two, I'm doing the majority of the solos. You know, Steve grew up idolizing me. And he's a wonderful human being and a great producer and a great engIneer and a great guitar player and singer and songwriter. And working with him was such a pleasure. Sometimes he'd come up with his solo idea and I'd recreate it, because he's been studying my guitar style since he was a little kid, you know?"

Frehley did admit that Brown played "a couple of" guitar solos on "10,000 Volts", explaining: "Yeah, he's only 50 or 51. I'm 72. So a couple of times he laid down a solo, but he played it like me, in my style, because he studied my style his whole life. As far as I'm concerned, it really doesn't matter who plays what, you know ... as long as the cut sounds great. A couple of them, I thought Steve laid down so well that I said, 'Let's just keep it.' But that's as far as that goes. I played the majority the guitar solos on the record, absolutely."

A couple of weeks earlier, Brown told Thomas S. Orwat, Jr. of Rock Interview Series about his collaboration with Frehley: "Yeah, it's been an incredible journey, the last year and a half with Ace. Ace and I have been friends for 30-plus years, but it's over the last year and a half of making this record, we've become best friends and brothers and an incredible songwriting and production team."

Steve went on to say that "the response to the record has been overwhelming. And what I love about it — and of course, I knew this was gonna happen — the love for it, and there's also a lot of hate for it," he explained. "I haven't seen this much sort of, let's say, controversy over a record in a long time, so I'm happy to be a part of it. 95 percent of it is all positive. But even the negative, you know what? All you haters out there, first thing, all the hate that you do, it just sells more records because people are curious now."

Regarding his mindset going into the project, Brown said: "I told Ace this the day we started working together, when we finished working on 'Walkin' On The Moon'. I said to him, I said, 'Listen, man. I'm one of your biggest fans. I'm a huge KISS fan. You and Ed Van Halen are the reasons that I started playing guitar, you two guys, and KISS and VAN HALEN were the two bands that got me going in 1978.' I said, 'If you trust me, I promise you, we will make the best record that we possibly can, and it will probably be the best thing that you've done since your '78 solo record.' So, I really, honestly, in my heart, I believe we accomplished that.

"Now, the KISS world and everything, all I've said all along is I made this record, I brought in most of the ideas for the songs and stuff like that, but it was — every idea that I brought in was as a KISS fan, and as an Ace fan, and my whole thing was, I've listened to everything Ace has done since he left KISS. And it's, again — I've said it before and I'll say it again, and I say it with love — there are moments of brilliance, one or two, maybe three great things on some of these records, surrounded by a ton of mediocrity. So my goal, and Ace said this to me the first day we were working, we got done. He said, 'I wanna make sure every song is great. And that was music to my ears, because, look. I told him, I said, 'Listen, brother, I can't do anything if the whole record is not awesome. We're doing 11 songs. They're all gonna be great. Even the cover song and even the instrumental.' And he was all about it."

Brown said that both he and Frehley are thrilled with the final result.

"From day one, we set out to make the record that we made, but in all honesty, in my heart, and I know Ace feels the same way, we exceeded all of our expectations, and the fan response all around the world has just been, it's been spectacular," he said. "So thank you to all the KISS fans out there, all the Ace fans. We love you. And again, like I said, I made this record — I helped, and Ace did too — when we made this record, we made this for all of us. And like I said, as a KISS fan and as an Ace fan, this is not just for me and Ace — this is for the world. This is for all of us fans who have kind of been, like, over the last 30 years, 'Man, yeah, there's some good things there, but kind of missed the mark,' you know what I mean? So, this is for you guys."

Ace reflected on the writing process for "10,000 Volts" in a recent interview with Guitar World magazine. He said: "It was mostly the combination of Steve and me who brought completely new elements. Most of the harmonies are Steve's, and his songwriting and lyrics, along with my guitar work and his combined, took '10,000 Volts' to another level."

Frehley added that "there was a trust factor" between him and Brown. "On the first day, [he] said, 'Dude, if you trust me, I fucking promise you we're gonna make the best record we can make,'" Ace told Guitar World. "And we did. It's possibly the best record of my career."

Ace's first album of original material since 2018's "Spaceman", "10,000 Volts" contains 11 tracks, including the aforementioned cover of "Life Of A Stranger". Frehley and Brown played most of the instruments on the LP, joined by a handful of drummers and other musicians.

"Steve and I clicked so magically that I really I put it into words," Frehley told Billboard. "He lives, like, 40 minutes from me [in New Jersey]. He has a studio in his basement; I have a studio in my basement. We bounce back and forth. He's a great engineer, a strong writer, singer, guitar player. Every song just came together really easily. If I couldn't come up with a great solo, he'd play something that was real similar to the way I would've played, and sometimes I'd double it or duplicate it. I think I left one or two of his solos on the record because they were so good."



TONIGHT !! Ace Frehley at the Carteret Performing Arts and Events Center ⚡️

Posted by Ryan Spencer Cook on Saturday, April 13, 2024

IRON MAIDEN singer Bruce Dickinson played the second intimate concert at legendary Los Angeles club Whisky A Go Go last night (Saturday, April 13) as a warm-up for his upcoming solo tour. Performing under the banner of THE HOUSE BAND FROM HELL, Dickinson played a 15-song set with his backing band, featuring Dave Moreno (drums),Mistheria (keyboards) and Tanya O'Callaghan (bass),alongside the group's latest additions, Swedish guitarist, songwriter and multi-platinum-credited producer Philip Näslund and Swiss session and touring guitarist Chris Declercq (who played on Dickinson's "Rain On The Graves" single). Bruce's longtime guitarist and collaborator Roy "Z" Ramirez is not part of the touring lineup.

Among the tracks Bruce played last night were "The Book Of Thel" and "The Tower", taken from Dickinson's 1998 album "The Chemical Wedding"; and " Starchildren", which originally appeared on 1997's "Accident Of Birth". He also performed four songs from his latest solo album, this year's "The Mandrake Project": "Afterglow Of Ragnarok", "Many Doors To Hell", "Resurrection Men" and "Rain On The Graves". There were also the classic Dickinson solo cuts "Tears Of The Dragon" and "Accident Of Birth", as well as a cover version of THE EDGAR ALLEN WINTER GROUP's "Frankenstein".

Setlist:

01. Accident Of Birth
02. Abduction
03. Starchildren (first live performance since 1997)
04. Afterglow Of Ragnarok
05. Chemical Wedding
06. Many Doors To Hell
07. Tears Of The Dragon
08. Resurrection Men
09. Rain On The Graves
10. Frankenstein (THE EDGAR WINTER GROUP cover)
11. Gods Of War
12. The Alchemist
13. Darkside Of Aquarius

Encore:

14. Book Of Thel (first live performance since 1999)
15. The Tower (tour debut)

Prior to Friday night's (April 12) Whisky A Go Go show, Bruce last performed with his solo band on in August 2002 at the legendary Wacken Open Air festival in Germany.

Bruce and his band will play another concert at the Whisky A Go Go tonight (Saturday, April 13). Tickets to both shows went on sale Friday morning, only available for purchase at the Whisky box office. The lucky fans who lined up early got a special treat and were greeted by Dickinson in the box office selling tickets and meeting fans.

Commented Dickinson: "As we were holed up in our North Hollywood rehearsal studio preparing for the tour, we thought that since rehearsals were going so well maybe we should have a little fun and do something last-minute here in L.A. Putting tickets for sale at an actual box office should remind people what it used to be like back when I started gigging!"

He added: "We're raring to go and I'm just so excited to unleash this band on the world at the iconic Whisky A Go Go."

In a video message announcing the first Whisky gig, Bruce said: "Hello, a quick update. Oh my God, here we are in rehearsals with the House Band Of Hell, which is actually what is gonna be at the Whisky A Go Go in Los Angeles on Friday. Secret show, not secret anymore. 10 o'clock Friday morning, tickets go on sale. And when you turn up at the box office, you never know who you might meet. But anyway, never mind. So we're gonna be there.

"We are just absolutely stoked for this show," he continued. "I mean, we were ready a week ago. I've been trying to calm them down. Honestly, it's like having a lot of strange horny animals. [I have to] throw buckets of cold water over them. 'Boys, stop' — and girls. All equally. We are just ready to get it on. So ready for this tour."

In a recent interview with Full Metal Jackie's nationally syndicated radio show, Bruce spoke about the stripped-down nature of the upcoming tour in support of "The Mandrake Project". He said: "Well, we're doing a mix of festivals and headline shows so far in Europe up till July 21, about 40 shows. Luckily, I think most of the headline shows are almost sold out or sold out now. So we're gonna be sold out in most places in Europe. About two-and-a-half-thousand seaters — the average is probably about two and a half thousand, so they're cool-sized venues.

"For me, the whole essence of this is letting the music do the talking, let the music do the storytelling," he explained. "And so I'm not planning on having monsters or pyro or any of that stuff. There will be a screen, and, of course, we'll have a lot of stuff to put on it because we've got a great director and he'll be able to give us some content. But even then, I'm not going to have a show that's choreographed to like a time code or a click track or something else like that. This is gonna be a show where the music and the musicians take the story to people. So, I'm not thinking 2002, I'm not thinking 1982. I'm thinking 1972."

Last month, Bruce told Paul Anthony of Planet Rock about Roy's absence from the touring band: "[It] is disappointing, but there you are. He had a lot of stuff going on at home. And, basically, there's stuff he could be doing in the studio. We are in the middle of doing Dolby Atmos mixes for all of my back catalog, and that requires quite a lot of stuff, 'cause we're not just remixing; we are also — what's the expression? — reimagining some of the albums. So some of the albums that should have been, frankly, a bit heavier, like 'Balls To Picasso', we can stick some new stuff on, and there's some stuff that didn't get mixed on to the album that was recorded that we can take a view on as well. So there's quite a lot of exciting stuff going on there, so there's gonna be lots for him to get on with whilst we're touring."

He continued: "But we've got two fantastic guitar players, Philip Näslund from Sweden and Chris Declercq, who actually is already on the record, because he played the solo on 'Rain On The Graves'. So he's based in L.A. He's a Swiss guy, but he lives in L.A., [is] based in L. A. And Philipwas based in L.A. but now lives back in Sweden. So it's gonna be an incredible band. I jammed with both guitar players. And I was, like, 'You know, I'm just gonna take both of them.' Obviously, there's a lot of twin guitar parts on the record. And there's also quite a bit of keyboards on the record and lots of stuff. So there'll be no idle hands on stage. But it'll sound magnificent. I've already jammed with Tanya and Chris and Philip and Dave Moreno when I was out in L.A., just to give it a quick once around the houses with some of the tunes, and it was so exciting. It really was."

Asked how many of the songs from "The Mandrake Project" will be performed live on the upcoming tour, Bruce said: "Well, I wanna make sure that people come to the show and just go away going, 'Well, that was great, cracking. You can't expect people… I mean, it's not like the Sermon On The Mount, where you turn up and it's, like, 'And you're gonna have this, whether you like it or not. So I'm gonna play certainly four tracks off the new record, and we'll just see how it goes. It's not a situation like a MAIDEN situation where, because we have a big show, because we have everything coordinated with the lights and monsters and pyro and everything, once we get out there, the show is pretty much set in stone, what we're gonna play. Well, this one, we can swap it around a little bit. I mean, if we start doing rehearsals and we go, 'Wow, this feels great. Why don't we chop in another song?' I wasn't gonna play anything off 'Skunkworks'. Now I'm not so sure, 'cause it turns out that both guitarists and the drummer are mad, keen fans of that album. So I'd just done an Atmos mix of 'Skunkworks' with the blessing of [the LP's original producer] Jack Endino, and it sounds brilliant. And I was in there with, with Chris and he's, like, 'Oh, can you play that track?' I went, 'How'd you know that track?' He goes, 'I love this album.' 'Wow.' So, there'll be a lot of stuff. There'll be stuff off 'The Chemical Wedding', obviously, gotta play 'Tears Of The Dragon' and so on and so forth, there'll be stuff off 'Accident Of Birth'. So it's gonna be a smorgasbord of the best-of, 'cause it's been 19, 20 years since I've toured live [as a solo artist]. So lots of people have either never seen me live or the ones that have seen me live have forgotten how bad it was, and have bought tickets. [Laughs]"

The third chance to see the six-piece live will be at The Observatory in Orange County, California on Monday, April 15.

Roy played guitar on Dickinson's 1994 album "Balls To Picasso" and went on to produce, co-write and perform multiple instruments on Bruce's subsequent three solo albums, "Accident At Birth" (1997),"The Chemical Wedding" (1998) and "Tyranny Of Souls" (2005).

O'Callaghan is an Irish musician who joined WHITESNAKE in 2021 and toured with the David Coverdale-fronted outfit the following year. She also hit the road with Dickinson last year as part of a performance of Jon Lord's "Concerto For Group And Orchestra" on nearly a dozen dates in Europe and South America.

Californian drummer Moreno previously played on "Tyranny Of Souls" and has worked with BODY COUNT, Jizzy Pearl, Dizzy Reed and Steve Stevens, among others.

Italian keyboard wizard Mistheria has collaborated with an array of artists live and in the studio, including Rob Rock, Mike Portnoy, Jeff Scott Soto and Joel Hoekstra.

"The Mandrake Project" arrived on March 1 via BMG.

Bruce and Roy recorded "The Mandrake Project" largely at Los Angeles's Doom Room, with Roy doubling up as both guitarist and bassist. The recording lineup for "The Mandrake Project" was rounded out by Mistheria and Moreno, both of whom also featured on Bruce's last solo studio album, "Tyranny Of Souls", in 2005.

Dickinson made his recording debut with IRON MAIDEN on the "Number Of The Beast" album in 1982. He quit the band in 1993 in order to pursue his solo career and was replaced by Blaze Bayley, who had previously been the lead singer of the metal band WOLFSBANE. After releasing two traditional metal albums with former MAIDEN guitarist Adrian Smith, Dickinson rejoined the band in 1999 along with Smith.

Night # 2...
HOUSE BAND OF HELL!!!
Bruce Dickinson, Dave Moreno, Chris Declercq, Tanya O Callaghan, Mistheria and Philip Naund...READY TO ROCK!!!
🤘🎶🥁🎸🤘

Posted by Chuck Walker on Saturday, April 13, 2024

MEGADETH played the first of three shows at the 15,000-capacity Movistar Arena in Buenos Aires, Argentina last night (Saturday, April 13). The group's 15-song setlist included two tracks from MEGADETH's latest album, "The Sick, The Dying… And The Dead!": the title track, which kicked off the concert, and "We'll Be Back"

After the first concert at Movistar Arena sold out in a matter of minutes, the band added another date at the same venue, scheduled for tonight (Sunday, April 14). That concert sold out in two hours, according to concert promoter Ake Music Productions. MEGADETH later announced that it would play a third show at Movistar Arena on April 16.

MEGADETH's concerts in Argentina are taking place 30 years after the band's first appearance in the country, which was held on December 2, 1994 at the Obras Sanitarias stadium. It was at that gig that the chant "Aguante Megadeth" was started during the song "Symphony Of Destruction", loosely translating to "MEGADETH rocks".

MEGADETH's setlist for the first Buenos Aires show was as follows:

01. The Sick, The Dying… And The Dead!
02. Dread And The Fugitive Mind
03. Skin O' My Teeth
04. Hangar 18
05. Wake Up Dead
06. In My Darkest Hour
07. Sweating Bullets
08. Trust
09. À Tout Le Monde
10. Tornado Of Souls
11. We'll Be Back
12. Symphony Of Destruction
13. Devil's Island
14. Peace Sells

Encore:

15. Holy Wars... The Punishment Due

Finnish guitarist Teemu Mäntysaari joined MEGADETH last September after the band's longtime axeman Kiko Loureiro, announced earlier that month that he would sit out the next leg of MEGADETH's "Crush The World" tour in order to stay home with his children back in Finland. It was later revealed that Mäntysaari would continue to play guitar for MEGADETH for the foreseeable future, with Loureiro seemingly having no plans to return.

The 37-year-old Mäntysaari was born in Tampere, Finland and began playing guitar at the age of 12. In 2004, he joined the band WINTERSUN. He has also been a member of SMACKBOUND since 2015.

MEGADETH played its first concert with Mäntysaari on September 6, 2023 at Revel in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Loureiro officially joined MEGADETH in April 2015, about five months after Chris Broderick's exit from the group.

Since its inception in 1983, MEGADETH has ascended from its raw thrash metal roots to become an unstoppable force in the heavy metal world. With founder Dave Mustaine at the helm, MEGADETH's journey has been marked by a penchant for pushing the boundaries of speed, technicality, and complexity in their music. Their groundbreaking album "Rust In Peace", released in 1990, is frequently cited as a seminal work in the thrash metal genre. Along with the critically acclaimed "Peace Sells... But Who's Buying?", it cemented MEGADETH's place in the annals of metal history.

Over four decades, the band's discography has earned numerous certifications, including platinum and multi-platinum awards, with albums like "Countdown To Extinction" and "Youthanasia" achieving widespread critical acclaim. 2016's "Dystopia" not only marked a high point with their first Grammy Award for "Best Metal Performance" after twelve nominations but also set the stage for their latest triumph, "The Sick, The Dying... And The Dead!" in 2022. MEGADETH's status as part of the "Big Four" of thrash metal underscores their trailblazing role in the genre, laying the groundwork for countless bands and musicians who have followed in their wake.

Late last month, ANTHRAX announced that, due to personal reasons, bassist Frank Bello would not be able to accompany the band on its South American tour, which kicked off last night (Saturday, April 13) at MXMF The Metal Fest in Mexico City. Filling in on those dates, as well as two U.S. festival shows in May, is ANTHRAX founding member and original bassist Dan Lilker, marking his first appearance with the band in 40 years. Lilker, who co-wrote and played on ANTHRAX's debut album "Fistful Of Metal", was also a member of STORMTROOPERS OF DEATH with ANTHRAX drummer Charlie Benante and guitarist Scott Ian.

ANTHRAX's setlist for the Mexico City show was as follows, according to Setlist.fm:

01. Among The Living
02. Caught In A Mosh
03. Antisocial (TRUST cover)
04. Madhouse
05. Metal Thrashing Mad
06. Efilnikufesin (N.F.L.)
07. Medusa
08. In The End
09. Deathrider
10. I Am The Law
11. Got The Time (Joe Jackson cover)
12. Indians

Fan-filmed video can be seen below.

Asked in a recent interview with Metal Mayhem ROC when he was first approached about reuniting with ANTHRAX for the aforementioned shows, Lilker said: "I was actually contacted, I guess, about a month ago… I had a lot more advance notice than when everybody just found out a couple of days ago. It was just that's when the press release went public. So, yeah, about a month, 'cause I needed some time to learn some of the material, obviously, to play it correctly and play it with authority, too. You don't wanna just learn it; you wanna play it with confidence and look like you're up there being metal and not tentative. So, yeah, you could say late February, early March, something like that."

Pressed about whether there was a reason given as to why Bello isn't able to commit to these shows, Dan said: "Well, we're just saying personal reasons. I am not at liberty to say. But Frank is fine and the picture of health, and it's nothing like that. But [it's] nothing I can go into; it's not my place."

Regarding what his initial reaction was to being asked to play these ANTHRAX shows, Lilker said: "I got a text from Scott when he was in Japan on tour with MR. BUNGLE. And I was actually at work. I work in precision optics [at the Rochester, New York-based company called Sydor Optics], because I've realized that playing the type of music I played for the most part wasn't lucrative enough to not have a job. But point being that, yeah, I was just [having] a little smoke break at work at, like, 8:13 a.m. on a Monday or something, and I got a message from Scott going, 'Do you think yo'd be able to do some shows with us next month?' So, yeah, it would have been the very beginning of March. And it's funny. I just looked at my boss who's also a metalhead — that's that's how I ended up working for the company — and said, 'Hey, I just got asked to be do some ANTHRAX shows next month.' And he goes, 'You'd be fucking crazy not to.' And so I knew it would be cool there. And I said, 'Sure. Sounds like fun.' I looked at the tour dates and said, 'I've never been to Uruguay before,' so I can cross that off the list.' Everybody at [the] company [I work for] has been really super supportive about that. So I'm very lucky in that aspect."

On the topic of how long it took him to accept the invitation, Lilker said: "Oh, I just pretty much said, 'Sure, that sounds cool.' I informed my wife, but I can't imagine that she would have said, 'No, don't do that. That's crazy.' So, I'm pretty sure the order of things was replied and said, 'Yeah, that sounds cool.' And then I went about clearing it with the people I have to talk to here [at home and at work]."

Asked what he is most excited about when it comes to playing with ANTHRAX again, Lilker said: "Well, one thing that's cool is since we haven't done S.O.D. for a while, it was always fun jamming with Scott and Charlie, because the other guys are cool, but remember in 'Fistful Of Metal', that was pre-Joey [Belladonna, current ANTHRAX singer] and everything like that. So we were like the nucleus of the early, early ANTHRAX and, of course, S.O.D., which had one guitar, so in that aspect, jamming with those guys. But also the other dudes — I've never been on stage with Joey or anything like that. And, of course, Jon [Donais], the new [ANTHRAX guitarist], who's been very helpful with showing me riffs. So it'll be that. And also, some of the stuff on [ANTHRAX's third album, 1987's] 'Among The Living', it's real heavy, fast thrash metal — I actually have a couple of riffs I wrote on some of that stuff — so it'll be fun to actually play that stuff too. And, of course, the latter-day stuff from the '90s is fun because it was actually really easy to learn because it was more kind of slow. So, obviously, for me, playing grindcore and death metal and black metal, some of this stuff is going to be nice and easy. I have to make sure I don't start daydreaming."

Regarding what fans can expect from the setlist for the ANTHRAX shows that he will be a part of, Dan said: "I would just say that if you look at recent ANTHRAX setlists, subtract a song or two and add another song or two, that would be pretty close. And as far as subtracting songs, nobody's going to be rapping on stage too much."

After one of the interviewers expressed hope that ANTHRAX will play a "Fistful Of Metal" deep cut like "Subjugator", Dan said: "That's a pretty deep fucking cut, dude. You might get something else that ends with an 'R.'"

Lilker later confirmed that ANTHRAX will perform some material from "Fistful Of Metal" at the upcoming shows. "I mean, that's not many beans to spill there," he said. "They've always played 'Metal Thrashing Mad', and since I already [said] we'll be doing another song that ends in 'R', that would be the song before it ['Deathrider'] on 'Fistful Of Metal'. And, yeah, that's kind of our one thing toward acknowledging me doing the stuff, because that was a pretty primitive album for what ANTHRAX ended up progressing into, some of that having to do with my writing style."

Asked about his current relationship with Scott, Charlie and Frank, having attended Ian's 60th-birthday party this past New Year's Eve in Van Nuys, California, Dan said: "Well, we've always had a relationship. It's just been more kind of like one of those off-on things because you're not traveling in the same circles or whatever; they're out doing something and I'm doing something else. So [at Scott's birthday party], it was more just kind of like getting to see old friends again, catching up with them. Frank, I hadn't seen Frank for a long time; I've seen Scott more recently than that, I believe. And, yeah, it was a really good time going out there with my wife and celebrating his birthday and playing a few tunes."

He added: "But, in general, yeah, I'm looking forward to sharing a stage with those guys, helping them out and having some fun, playing some metal. 'Cause I'm not really playing in bands anymore, which is by choice, and so just getting to do occasional little forays like that are cool with me."

Asked if there are any long-term future plans for him to play with ANTHRAX again, Lilker said: "Well, as far as I know, I'm just doing the 10 shows that I was asked to do — the eight that are in Central and South America and then the two U.S. fests. It's just filling in for Frank — I wanna make sure and stress that. I am not [rejoining] the band, even though I formed it before. This isn't gonna be, 'Finally after 40 years, my plan…' I'm doing my friends a favor. And if that situation changes in the future, it will not have anything to do with me taking any steps to do so, let's put it that way."

Lilker has not been idle over the past four decades, having played in a wide variety of bands. He was the bassist for the thrash/metal band NUCLEAR ASSAULT and the grindcore band BRUTAL TRUTH. He also plays bass for EXIT-13, MALFORMED EARTHBORN, THE RAVENOUS, OVERLORD EXTERMINATOR, VENOMOUS CONCEPT, and more.

Remaining ANTHRAX shows with Lilker:

April 15 - Cancha Diamante, San Salvador, El Salvador
April 17 - Pepper's, San Jose, Costa Rica
April 19 - The Metal Fest, Quito, Ecuador
April 21 - The Metal Fest, Santiago, Chile
April 23 - Sala de Museo, Montevideo, Uruguay
April 25 - El Teatro Flores, Buenos Aires, Argentina
April 28 - Summer Breeze Open Air, São Paulo, Brazil
May 09 - Welcome to Rockville, Daytona Beach, FL
May 17 - Sonic Temple Festival, Columbus, OH

To celebrate ANTHRAX's 40th anniversary in 2021, the band's social media accounts offered a series of video testimonials sent in by former bandmembers, fellow musicians, colleagues, and industry veterans sharing behind-the-scenes stories of working with the band and what ANTHRAX's legacy has meant all these years on. These videos honored each album in chronological order beginning with the original release, "Fistful Of Metal". The 11-week series included video contributions from former ANTHRAX bandmembers Lilker, Dan Spitz, John Bush, Neil Turbin and Rob Caggiano.

Lilker, who played bass on "Fistful Of Metal" and wrote most of the music for the record, told Knotfest about ANTHRAX's 40th anniversary: "I'm definitely proud of that whole thing. I think it's great that those guys are still going… That was real good memories back then. I know people go, 'Oh, they fucking threw you out after that,' and blah blah blah. But, obviously, I got over that and formed NUCLEAR ASSAULT. And next year we were doing S.O.D. So I'm not the kind of guy who stays bitter forever. But, yeah, the memories of those times, writing that record and recording it and everything was... 'Cause there was no blueprint or anything; we just had influences and just tried to put our own stamp on 'em back then. So, yeah, it kind of sucks being thrown out three days before [it got] released, but it gave me an excuse to do something else."

When interviewer Daniel Dekay noted that it was "really cool" of ANTHRAX to allow Lilker to tell his side of the story in the above-mentioned documentary series, Dan said: "There was times in the past where I might have been a little neglected on some of the stuff. So I think they wanted to make sure to just have a nice, inclusive vibe and not forget any particular details. Like the fact that I wrote 75 percent of 'Fistful Of Metal'. You know, a minor detail."

A number of years ago, Lilker told Voices From The Darkside that he was fired from ANTHRAX due to "a conflict" with the band's then-vocalist Neil Turbin. "He was an egotist (like most singers, haha) and it bothered him that I was taller than him," Lilker explained. "Also, he had no sense of humor, so if you busted his balls he took it seriously. So, he told the other members, 'I can't take Lilker anymore. It's him or me.' They decided he was more important as a familiar frontman to the fans, so they threw me out, even though I wrote 75 percent of the music on 'Fistful…'. Oh well. He was, of course, thrown out seven months later, and I played with Scott and Charlie in S.O.D. the next year."

In his 2014 autobiography "I'm The Man: The Story Of That Guy From Anthrax", Ian described Lilker's dismissal from ANTHRAX 30 years earlier as "the worst moment for me in the history" of the band. He went on to say that the decision to kick Dan out ANTHRAX was made by Turbin and not the other members of the group.

"The biggest dick move Neil ever pulled was when he fired Danny Lilker behind our backs after 'Fistful…' came out in January 1984," Ian wrote. "The main reason he did it, in my opinion, was because Danny is taller than him. He honestly didn't think someone should be taller than the frontman onstage. He thought it made him look bad, so he tried to stand as far away from Danny as possible, which was hard when we were playing stages the size of ping-pong tables."

In recent years, Ian has voiced his appreciation for the role "Fistful Of Metal" played in giving ANTHRAX its start, telling Metal Hammer: "Let's face it, 'Fistful Of Metal' gave us our career. It got the band some attention, made people all over the world aware of what we could do — and for that reason alone I have to be grateful to everyone involved. The record was vital in launching us, and everything we've done, and become, since stems from that debut record. I may be critical of it in some ways, but I could never do anything other than admit we owe it all to 'Fistful Of Metal'. If that had never happened… well, perhaps you would never have heard of ANTHRAX."



Anthrax MxMF

Posted by Kaia Vega on Saturday, April 13, 2024
¡Qué divertido es ver a @Anthrax! #MxMF#TheMetalFestpic.twitter.com/srBmwAwmZs

— El Negro Tito (@RS_Vargas) April 14, 2024


#Anthrax#MxMFpic.twitter.com/me2yMhlXoC

— E̷l̴i̵a̶s̷v̷!̵l̴3̶ // svil3.bsky.social (@svil3) April 14, 2024



Anthrax
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#MXDEMETALCOBERTURAS
#mexicometalfest #MxMFV #MxMf #mxmfvi #monterrey #MxMFVII #comunidadmetalera...

Posted by MX De METAL on Saturday, April 13, 2024

THE ROLLING STONES' Ronnie Wood joined THE BLACK CROWES on stage last night (Friday, April 12) at The Greek Theatre in Los Angeles to perform a rendition of "Stay With Me" from Wood's previous band FACES.

Wood's appearance with THE BLACK CROWES came just six songs into the band's set, with frontman Chris Robinson describing the guitarist as a man who "doesn't need an introduction but he's going to get one."

THE BLACK CROWES have previously covered several FACES tracks, including "Stay With Me", as well as "You're So Rude" and "Glad And Sorry", which they played with late FACES keyboardist Ian McLagan in 2010 at a concert in Austin.

Formed out of the ashes of SMALL FACES, FACES released four albums — "First Step", "Long Player", "A Nod Is As Good As A Wink ... To A Blind Horse" and "Ooh La La" — before splitting in 1975. The group was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2012.

In 2021, the surviving members of FACES — Wood, singer Rod Stewart and drummer Kenney Jones — said they had recorded 14 songs for a new studio album.

THE BLACK CROWES are touring in support of their first album in 15 years, "Happiness Bastards", which came out in March.

In a new interview with ABC News' Maggie Rulli, HEART's Nancy and Ann Wilson spoke about how they battled sexism during the 1970s and 1980s. Nancy said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "In the mid-'70s, when we released our first album, in '75, people were kind of jaw dropping. It was, like, 'What?' That doesn't really compute 'cause it's not supposed to really exist at the time. So we were a little bit of an anomaly out there in the culture when we started."

Added Ann: "I don't think people knew what to think of us, because rock and roll was really the province of men; it always was. And they just waited around to see what we do, kind of. So it took several years for us to really catch on."

Continued Nancy: "Our joke was always, like, 'Well, if you give the monkeys some typewriters, eventually they'll type the Gettysburg address.' But we had the typewriters. We typed the address."

Regarding how the music business has evolved in the last five decades, Ann said: "Well, the music industry has changed as to be unrecognizable to what it was then. Music is now pigeonholed into a million little places where you can just check out only the kind of music you wanna hear. Whereas back in those other days, there was a radio station that played it all."

Nancy concurred, saying: "Terrestrial radio was really a connector, a connecting point for everybody, unanimously to kind of hear the same stuff and go to the same shows and hear about stuff on the radio. And now it's all on your phone and stuff."

The current members of HEART feature Nancy Wilson (rhythm, lead and acoustic guitar, backing and lead vocals),Ann Wilson (lead vocals and flute),Ryan Wariner (lead and rhythm guitar),Ryan Waters (guitars),Paul Moak (guitars, keyboards and backing vocals),Tony Lucido (bass and backing vocals) and Sean Lane (drums and bike).

Last December, HEART played its first three concerts in more than four years — in Highland, California, at Greater Palm Springs in Palm Desert, California, and in Seattle, Washington.

Prior to HEART's December 27, 2023 show in Highland, the band's last performance took place in October 2019 in St. Paul, Minnesota.

HEART will return to the road for the first time in five years this spring on the "Royal Flush" tour. The trek, which will kick off April 20 in Greenville, South Carolina, will feature CHEAP TRICK as support on most of the North American leg, while SQUEEZE will open a handful of HEART's summer European dates. HEART will also join DEF LEPPARD and JOURNEY for summer stadium shows in Cleveland, Toronto and Boston and will make an appearance at the New Orleans Jazz And Heritage Festival on April 28.

Since HEART's formation in the early 1970s, the band has sold 35 million albums, including seven that made the Top 10, and notched 20 Top 40 singles. The band was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2013.

Internationally acclaimed heavy metallers, Sabaton, are celebrating their 25-year milestone in the music industry. They have checked in with the following update:


"Wow. We're absolutely blown away! 'Ghost Division' has reached over 100 million streams on Spotify! And what perfect timing. We’re celebrating the album it’s featured on (The Art Of War) throughout the entire month of April! Huge thanks to all our amazing fans for your incredible support!"










Founded in Falun, Sweden, in 1999, Sabaton's journey has been nothing short of legendary. Their music industry adventures have been fuelled by powerful anthems, 10 studio albums, passionate historical storytelling, and explosive international shows and tours, not to mention out-of-the-box initiatives and projects, all of which wouldn’t have been possible without the unwavering support of their dedicated fan base across the globe.


To mark this momentous milestone, Sabaton have embarked on a year-long celebration. Fans around the world can look forward to a series of celebratory events and an abundance of surprises.


The band recently shared a new video along with the following message:


"Welcome to The Art Of War listening party, metalheads! As we’re in the fourth month of 2024 we need to shine the spotlight on our fourth studio album! Did you know that The Art Of War was the genesis of a whole new era for us as a band? It marked the first time we explored the realm of concept albums and it would set the tone for the albums to follow. Grab a drink, grab a snack and come hang out with us!"

In a new interview with Lucía Sapena of Paraguay's Trece channel, Dave Mustaine was asked to name his favorite MEGADETH album. The MEGADETH leader responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Oh, that's hard to say. That's like asking somebody to pick their favorite child. There are certain records that we have that were really influential in my life. 'Peace Sells[... But Who's Buying?]' was. I think 'Killing Is My Business[... And Business Is Good!]' was so ahead of its time that people didn't really understand it. And that's when art is at its best, when you get something new that you've never heard before. When you hear a record and it's just the same old crap, nobody wants that. I mean, how long has it been since we heard a new band that was really fantastic, like a new IRON MAIDEN or a new AC/DC or a new MEGADETH or a new GUNS N' ROSES. We haven't heard a band like that in so long that was something that we stopped and went, 'Wow. That's great.'"

Regarding how he views the thrash metal genre today, Mustaine said:  "Well, it's hard to say how I view the genre, because there are so many different subsections of heavy metal. When it first started, it was hard rock and then heavy metal came, and then The New Wave Of British Heavy Metal came and then there was power metal and speed metal and thrash metal and black metal and white metal and death metal and core metal and true metal. God, how many metals can you possibly have? So for me, what I'm aware of is what MEGADETH is doing."

Asked what the secret to MEGADETH's and his longevity is, Mustaine said: "The secret, I think, is being honest with yourself. And I don't try and act like I'm better than other people, because I know I'm not. I know there's a better singer out there than me. I know there's a better guitar player out there than me. So I enjoy what I possess, the gifts I have. I enjoy the friends that I've made, and I love my job, so I can't wait to do it."

MEGADETH kicked off its spring 2024 South American tour on April 6 at Arena 1 in Lima, Peru.

Finnish guitarist Teemu Mäntysaari joined MEGADETH last September after the band's longtime axeman Kiko Loureiro, announced earlier that month that he would sit out the next leg of MEGADETH's "Crush The World" tour in order to stay home with his children back in Finland. It was later revealed that Mäntysaari would continue to play guitar for MEGADETH for the foreseeable future, with Loureiro seemingly having no plans to return.

The 37-year-old Mäntysaari was born in Tampere, Finland and began playing guitar at the age of 12. In 2004, he joined the band WINTERSUN. He has also been a member of SMACKBOUND since 2015.

MEGADETH played its first concert with Mäntysaari on September 6, 2023 at Revel in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Loureiro officially joined MEGADETH in April 2015, about five months after Chris Broderick's exit from the group.

MEGADETH's sold-out shows at Movistar Arena in Buenos Aires on Saturday, April 13 and Sunday, April 14, 2024 will be broadcast live on Veeps. Fans will also have the exclusive opportunity to snag MEGADETH merch, including a poster and a limited-edition tee, that will only be available for purchase on Veeps during the livestream. Veeps All Access subscribers can access the shows for free as part of their subscription. Otherwise tickets are on sale for $14.99 for each show or $24.99 for both shows on veeps.com/megadeth. The shows will air live on Veeps on April 13 and April 14 at approximately 9 p.m. Argentina Time (ART). The shows will be available on Veeps for two years after the original air dates, with a seven-day rewatch period for individual ticket purchasers.