7D7D, the project featuring RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE bassist Tim Commerford alongside Mathias Wakrat and Jonny Polonsky, has released its third single, "Written On A Napkin", via Mad Bunny Records.

The trio released their debut single "Capitalism" on Black Friday November 25 2022, closely followed by their second single, "Misinformed", on December 13, 2022. They have been working together on new material in Tim and Mathias's Los Angeles studio since and "Written On A Napkin" is the first single from those sessions.

When asked about "Written On a Napkin", Tim said: "It can be scary and painful to watch life as you knew it disintegrate, whether it's the world in general or just whatever's happening to you personally. Music is the best medicine there is."

Wakrat expanded: "'Written On A Napkin' started as a beat that Tim liked and started playing bass lines to. After trying different beats for different parts, Tim suggested I play an Elvin Jones-inspired beat for the chorus, and Tim responded to the beat that came with this beautiful melody in the chorus. Once we had an idea of what the song was like, we sent the files to Jonny who took the song to a different level that in turn inspired Tim to make a few more changes and get us to the song that it is today."

Polonsky said: "'Written On a Napkin' is about change, transformation and metamorphosis. And it's all a little easier with your trusted friends and loved ones by your side. Be bold and mighty forces will come to your aid."

"Written On A Napkin" picks up where "Capitalism" and "Misinformed" left off — the opening lines delivered with a lulling melody accentuated by Jonny's warm guitar work as Tim sings like a whisper into the ear: "keep on walking and just stay natural....keep on thinking it's okay, try to act like nobody wants to kill you...." Then the chorus drops in with an agitated syncopation propelled by Tim's bass and Mathias' drums as the lyrics question the meaning of life, inviting listeners to peer beyond the veil, explicitly denouncing the tyranny and injustices Tim observes, and has raged against, all his life.

Raised in Irvine, California, Tim learned the bass and began to channel a tough childhood into music. By the time he was in his early 20s, he was in RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE. Tim was also in AUDIOSLAVE (where he met Jonny) and PROPHETS OF RAGE.

French-born Mathias first fell in love with percussion through his uncle who played, and began studying it at age 11, before moving to Los Angeles, where he would later meet Tim. Tim and Mathias were fast friends, sharing a passion for mountain bikes and John Coltrane, though it took many years before they performed together in a band.

In 2015 the two were both in the trio WAKRAT, which Tim described as "unapologetic, unrelenting, unbridled and uncensored. Understood?" However, this could be said of every band Tim has been in.

Tim and Jonny first started writing music together after AUDIOSLAVE broke up. Jonny had been a guitar tech, but that humble position is deceptive — Jonny was discovered in the 1990s by Reeves Gabrels, and Frank Black from the PIXIES helped produce his first demo. Jonny was then signed by Rick Rubin to his label American Recordings. Jonny went on to join PUSCIFER, he has toured with many artists, including Tom Morello, and he has recorded with Kevin Haskins and David J of BAUHAUS, and played on the last two Johnny Cash albums produced by Rubin and more.

THUNDER, celebrated as one of Britain’s most popular and enduring hard rock sensations, are set to release two exclusive live albums on 26th January 2024 through earMUSIC.

The first of the pair, ‘Live At Islington Academy’, captures Thunder during the touring cycle of their eighth studio album, ‘Robert Johnson’s Tombstone’. The quintet had already completed a lengthy circuit of the UK in promotion of the record when they were contacted by Planet Rock Radio to perform at the station’s inaugural Christmas Bash on 19th December 2006. A mere 800 fans were fortunate enough to witness Thunder’s storming surprise performance that night, which was dominated by golden classics like ‘Backstreet Symphony’ and ‘I Love You More Than Rock’N’Roll’.

The second live album, ‘Live At Leeds’ was a more official affair, recorded nine years later on 3rd March 2015, at Live Direct Arena in Leeds. The show was part of Thunder’s arena tour in support of ‘Wonder Days’ – a very meaningful tour that marked the first steps of public rehabilitation for Ben Matthews, the rhythm guitarist and keyboardist, who was recovering from throat cancer. Unsurprisingly, these shows were emotionally charged for both the band and the audience.

Both concerts, ‘Live At Islington Academy’ and ‘Live At Leeds’, stand as evidence of Thunder’s prowess as live entertainers. And now at last you can re-live the experience.

The official pre-order phase commences today and on 26th January 2024 both concerts will be available on CD, Vinyl as well as digital download and streaming.

Pre-Listing of products can vary by country to country. Please keep checking back the shop of your choice. Products will be available for pre-order shortly.

Former MEGADETH guitarist Marty Friedman has completed recording his new solo album.

On Sunday (December 10),Marty took to his social media to share a photo of him laying down a solo at a studio in Italy, and he included the following message: "I just finished all the tracking for my new album. This time I did my normal guitar recording in Japan, and then came here to Italy for two weeks to record with all vintage guitars and amps. Can't wait to share this music with you."

During the question-and-answer portion of last month's Rock 'N' Roll Fantasy Camp's "Metalmania III" in Los Angeles, Friedman spoke about his upcoming solo album. He said: "I've got 15 solo albums now, and each time I try to do something new and something I've never done before. I don't want ever to be heard as one of those guys, 'Ah, his early albums were great.' You know what I mean? I used to say that about my favorite guitarists — sadly — and I never wanted that to be said about me. So I'm always challenging myself on new stuff. On this new album that I'm about 70 percent done with, the closest thing I can relate it to is an album I had called 'Scenes' [1992], which I released quite a while ago. It was very dramatic and orchestral, and there was a lot of other type of instruments — violins, cellos and all that type of stuff. So it's more of a dramatic, orchestral concept. But everything that I've learned since that 'Scenes' album has just exponentially grown, so it's a much bigger scale. So if you like that 'Scenes' album at all, I think this one will be right up your alley."

Marty previously talked about his next solo LP in October in an interview with Chris Akin Presents. At the time, he said: "I've been recording my upcoming album for almost a year now. And it's gonna be finished by the end of the year, and it's gonna come out in the spring of 2024. And boy, it's an ambitious one. But, of course, I say that every time. But every time I have to top the one that was before it, so the task keeps getting more and more insane. And right now I would say I'm about 75 percent done with that."

As for some of the other projects he is currently involved with, Marty said: "I'm editing my autobiography, which will come out also next year. And also, I just did the most exhaustive instructional video series for TrueFire — the most exhaustive one they've ever done and the most exhaustive one I've ever done by far. It's the deepest dive into just the way I see music, which apparently is not the same as how others see it. Not that it's better or worse, but it's just completely different. So for the first time ever, including any of my other instructional things, for the first time ever, I've really actually worked hard on it and created this thing. And I did it at the end of the tour, the U.S. tour that I did earlier this year, and now it's just about finished. [We're] just putting the last edits on and just about done with that. So, it's kind of a lot of post-production work at this point."

Asked what challenges and motivates him to keep pushing forward with his music, Marty said: "I'm not really so much into trying something that I haven't done for the sake of trying something I haven't done. I'm trying to impress me with something that I've never done before. It's not like I'm gonna suddenly wake up one day and say, 'Okay, I'm gonna be a rapper' or something. I do what I do and I have my musical vision and sound. I just try to do deeper things with it. I try to make more complex emotions, deeper emotions in the music, more interesting, melodic twists and turns, more adventurous things, things that I wasn't deep enough to do last year or two years ago, or five years ago, things that I couldn't hear back then, things that I can only hear because life has given me more experiences since then, and, of course, more musical experiences, and just to consciously be aware of stuff that I've already done and not repeat it. It's a natural challenge that I've been doing forever, and the hardest part is that blank sheet when I just start from zero. It's, like, 'How am I going to top that last thing that I just did? I worked my ass off. I'm completely done. I have nothing left. I've got zero.' And so that's the challenge. But now that I'm about 70, 80 percent done with this new record, I'm pretty confident with it. And I really am looking forward to letting everybody hear it."

This past April, Friedman told Justin Hunt of The Entertainment Outlet he "recorded about half" of his upcoming album in the summer of 2022. "I went over to Italy and I recorded about half of an album."

Regarding what fans can expect from his upcoming LP, Marty said: "I think it's gonna please a lot of people who liked my album 'Scenes', one of my earlier albums. It's kind of in that vein, but much more modern. And it's got all the things that I've added to my musical — I don't know how to say it — palette, or what I'm trying to do musically. It's basically a grown-up version of 'Scenes', really, so far. But I haven't finished it. It's taking a long time, but, you know, tender love and care. And it's coming along great."

Friedman went on to say that his recent U.S. tour as the support act for QUEENSRŸCHE was a "perfect" way to inspire him to complete his new album. He explained: "This tour I'm playing really my most aggressive music with my most aggressive band. And that is perfect for my mentality for writing stuff like 'Scenes'. That's how 'Scenes' happened in the first place, because I was touring with MEGADETH like a maniac, and I was playing all this really, really heavy stuff every single night, and now I'm doing the exact same thing with my band. And so what I write is the complete opposite. So it's kind of like a really good creative time. And things are moving along really nice."

Marty's latest album, "Tokyo Jukebox 3", came out in April 2021 via The Players Club/Mascot Label Group. The record, which was made available in Japan in October 2020, is the third in a series that began with "Tokyo Jukebox" in 2009, and then "Tokyo Jukebox 2" following in 2011. The trilogy presents Friedman's inspired performances to Japanese repertoire he's chosen to cover.

Marty's presence in the world of music, the world of guitar and Japanese pop culture is mystifying, bizarre, and nothing short of inspiring. His first major impact in music was in the game-changing guitar duo CACOPHONY, which he founded with equally enigmatic and now-legendary guitarist Jason Becker. He then spent 10 years as lead guitarist in the genre-defining thrash metal act MEGADETH before moving to Tokyo due to his love for Japanese music, language, and culture.

Following his move, he landed a starring role for a new TV comedy "Hebimeta-san" ("Mr. Heavy Metal") and its spinoff, "Rock Fujiyama", which ran for six seasons and propelled him into the living rooms of Japan's mainstream. He has since appeared in over 800 TV shows, movies and commercials, including a two-year campaign with Coca-Cola for Fanta, authored two best-selling novels and was the first-ever foreigner to be appointed as an ambassador of Japan heritage and perform at the opening ceremony for the Tokyo Marathon in 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2022.

At the same time, Marty has continued his career in music with several solo albums in addition to writing and performing with the top artists in Japanese music, racking up countless chart hits, including a No. 1 with SMAP, two No. 2 songs with MOMOIRO CLOVER, a No. 2 with SOUND HORIZON — just to name a few.
I just finished all the tracking for my new album. This time I did my normal guitar recording in Japan, and then came here to Italy for two weeks to record with all vintage guitars and amps. Can’t wait to share this music with you. pic.twitter.com/LUYppSOaoz

— Marty Friedman (@marty_friedman) December 10, 2023

In a new interview with Sweden's Bandit Rock radio station, IRON MAIDEN singer Bruce Dickinson spoke about the lack of rock and metal bands who are able to ascend to an arena-level status to take the place of METALLICA, IRON MAIDEN and JUDAS PRIEST upon their retirement. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I was with a big promoter in when I was in Brazil last week. I was at Comic Con [CCXP23] in São Paulo launching [my upcoming solo album] 'The Mandrake Project'…. So when I was there, one of the big Brazilian promoters was there and I was chatting away to him. And he goes, 'It's a real problem for us now, big festivals, promoters.' He said, 'There aren't any headliners.' You can count the headliners on the fingers of one hand, people who are capable of — you put them at the top of the bill and people say, 'Oh yeah, I'll go and see that.' And, unfortunately, the reason for that, I believe, is the big corporations took everything over, and they're interested in making money, so they propagate the big headliners, but they don't bring on the bands that create the drama to create the fanbase, to create the dedication to bring it up. Because you don't become a headliner overnight. You become a headliner by doing loads of gigs at loads of places and fans and people follow you and all of a sudden you're at Wembley Arena and you're thinking, 'Oh my god, these guys are playing arenas. And the next step up from arenas is, 'Oh, they're gonna go and headline a festival. Oh, yeah, great. They're a festival headliner.' And at that moment you go take a step up into that world."

Bruce continued: "In the USA, for example, when I was first touring with MAIDEN, all the arena shows we'd do, and we were like special guests or something else like that. But that's the point — we were special guests on a three-act bill, building a band in Chicago. And it would be one promoter who did Chicago, and there'd be another one that did New York, and there'd be another one that… And the promoters in all those places would go, 'Yeah, we're gonna bring you back in. We're gonna do this show with you. And then we're gonna do this. And we're gonna build you in Chicago. And we'll build you up to the point where you're gonna headline that place. And then when the reaction is, like, really cool, we'll bring you back and we'll headline something double the size.' And every promoter would do that for bands. And then, unfortunately, fortunately — I mean, we get paid a huge amount of money by Live Nation — but what they don't do is really bring on bands in the same way. You have to figure out that promoters, those individual promoters, were all taking individual risks. So they'd promote one show and they'd lose their shirt. And then they'd promote another show and go, 'Oh, we made some money this week. That's fantastic.' So you can see the temptation when along comes — I don't know where the money comes from, a hedge fund or something or whatever, venture capital, I don't care. But you can see the temptation when somebody comes along and goes, 'We'd like to buy your thing that you do in New York or Chicago or wherever, and we're gonna give you a shitload of money. But the deal is, you can't do anything after that. You're kind of gonna work for us a little bit or just take a holiday, 'cause we're gonna run the show from now on.' And they just kind of hoovered everything up. I mean, they were smart businessmen. But artistically, for the health of the live scene, I think it was troubling. I mean, I may be unfair, but I get the impression that the scene was much more vibrant in terms of upstart bands that could come up and surprise people. And the other thing as well, which I think has, sadly diminished is the number of small venues where bands can just get up and do a gig. And that diminishes the grass roots of people who go out and go, 'Oh, my God. I went to a live gig the other day. Whoa, it was cool. It was so much better than sitting in front of a screen.' … And you've just got to have the places to do that."

Elaborating on the need for the music industry to do more to support small venues for local and touring acts, Dickinson said: "I mean, there's an argument in London at the moment, that somebody's, they're gonna try and build the Sphere [venue], like in Las Vegas. I mean, what a waste of time. A waste of time, waste of money. You'd be much better off converting half a dozen old pubs into venues and saying to kids, 'Hey, there's a free venue. Go play.'"

"The Mandrake Project" will be released on March 1 via BMG. Across ten inventive, expansive and absorbing tracks, Bruce Dickinson and his long-term co-writer and producer Roy "Z" Ramirez, have created one of 2024's defining rock albums. Sonically heavy and rich in musical textures, it sees Bruce bring to life a musical vision long-in-the-making, and features some of the finest vocal performances of his career.

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

"The Mandrake Project" is not just an album, but a dark, adult story of power, abuse and a struggle for identity, set against the backdrop of scientific and occult genius. Created by Bruce Dickinson, the comic series is scripted by Tony Lee and stunningly illustrated by Staz Johnson for Z2 Comics, released as 12 quarterly issues that will be collected into three annual graphic novels. The first episode will be released in comic shops on January 17, 2024.

Bruce Dickinson and his phenomenal band will bring the music of "The Mandrake Project" to life with a major headline tour next spring and summer.

Bruce Dickinson's touring band features guitarist Roy Z, drummer Dave Moreno, bass player Tanya O'Callaghan and keyboard maestro Mistheria.

"The Mandrake Project" will be Dickinson's seventh solo album and his first since "Tyranny Of Souls" in 2005. It will be released via BMG worldwide on multiple formats.

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. Since then, Dickinson has only released one more solo album (the aforementioned "Tyranny Of Souls") but has previously said that his solo career is not over.

ZZ TOP's Billy F Gibbons, Slash and Myles Kennedy, Jason Bonham's LED ZEPPELIN EVENING and CLUTCH are among the artists who performed at "Warren Haynes Presents: Christmas Jam". The 32nd annual event took place Saturday, December 9 at ExploreAsheville.com Arena in Haynes's hometown of Asheville, North Carolina with additional guest appearances by AMERICAN BABIES (featuring Tom Hamilton, Jim Hamilton, Joe Russo),Karina Rykman, George Porter Jr., John Medeski, Bill Evans, Mike Barnes, Greg Morrow and more.

Among the highlights was a rendition of LYNYRD SKYNYRD's "Simple Man", Gibbons performing his ZZ TOP hits "Jesus Just Left Chicago" and "Sharp Dressed Man", and Slash and Kennedy running through rock classics "Feel Like Makin' Love" (BAD COMPANY),"You Shook Me All Night Long" (AC/DC),"Knockin' On Heaven's Door" (Bob Dylan) and "Hunger Strike" (TEMPLE OF THE DOG).

Curated by Grammy Award-winning vocalist, songwriter, producer and guitar legend Warren Haynes, the "Christmas Jam" is one of the most celebrated and longest-running live concerts in the U.S. Held each year in Asheville, performing artists, volunteers, and friends from all over the country come together to raise funds for longtime partner Asheville Area Habitat for Humanity as well as last year's new partner, BeLoved Asheville. Over the last 30 years, "Christmas Jam" has raised more than $2.8 million for Asheville Area Habitat for Humanity, constructing over 50 homes and helping to pay infrastructure and development costs of entire Habitat neighborhoods. On the other end of the spectrum working to help with the region's housing needs is BeLoved Asheville, which assists those struggling with housing insecurity to create innovative solutions. Together, these local housing organizations are ensuring more neighbors have a decent place to live.

Since its inception in 1988, the "Christmas Jam" has provided an opportunity for the performing artists, audience, and the local community to give back during the holiday season as Asheville Area Habitat for Humanity's largest annual contributor. For more than 30 years, Haynes — an Asheville native — has worked closely with the Asheville Area Habitat for Humanity. To date, more than 50 houses have been built with proceeds from the "Jam" and more than 2.8 million dollars has been raised, including a record-breaking half-million dollars marking one of the largest-ever contributions to the organization. In addition to supporting the construction of new energy-efficient homes, proceeds also go towards purchasing and developing land to build entire Habitat neighborhoods — such as the 25-house Hudson Hills neighborhood in West Asheville (the subdivision was named in honor of Warren and his wife Stefani's son Hudson),a 21-house community in Arden (South Asheville) and a 12-family neighborhood of Curry Court in Candler.

Haynes is a cornerstone of the American music landscape and revered as one of the finest guitar players of the modern era. Haynes is a beacon of creativity that inspires his fans as well as fellow musicians. Throughout his prolific career as part of three of the greatest live groups in rock history — ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND, GOV'T MULE and THE DEAD — and a lauded solo artist, his virtuosic artistry has led to thousands of memorable performances and millions of album and track sales. In 2023, GOV'T MULE released their 12th studio album, "Peace…Like A River", marking the follow-up to the band's Grammy-nominated blues album "Heavy Load Blues". The critically acclaimed rock collection, recorded during the same sessions as "Heavy Load Blues" but in different rooms and with no shared gear or instruments, features guest appearances from Gibbons, Billy Bob Thornton, Ivan Neville, Ruthie Foster and Celisse.

Founded in 1983, Asheville Area Habitat for Humanity (AAHH) was the first Habitat affiliate in North Carolina. Now serving Buncombe and Madison Counties, AAHH provides affordable homeownership and home repair programs to qualified low-income residents seeking to build a better future on the foundation of stable housing. A decent place to call home and an affordable mortgage enables Habitat homeowners to save more, invest in education, pursue opportunities, and have greater financial stability. The home repair program preserves the character, affordability, and diversity of local neighborhoods and enables long-time residents to stay in their homes.

BeLoved Asheville brings people from diverse backgrounds to use their voices, skills and unique gifts to create innovative solutions for some of the toughest challenges we face: racism and systemic inequities, food and housing security, poverty and lack of healthcare.

Christmas Jam Family, words cannot convey the heartfelt appreciation we hold for each of you, transforming this...

Posted by Warren Haynes Presents: The Christmas Jam on Saturday, December 9, 2023

We are excited to announce that this year's Christmas Jam, presented by Warren Haynes, will be streaming live on...

Posted by Slash on Thursday, November 30, 2023

Guitarist Rowan Robertson (DIO) and singer Doogie White (RAINBOW, YNGWIE MALMSTEEN, MICHAEL SCHENKER) have teamed up for a European tour during which they are performing classic RAINBOW and DIO songs. The trek, which sees them backed by Francesco Caporaletti on bass and Alessio Palizzi on drums, kicked off on November 29 in Vilnius, Lithuania and will conclude on December 14 in Verviers, Belgium.

Fan-filmed video of Robertson and White's December 8 concert at Smer Klub 77 in Žilina, Slovakia can be seen below (courtesy of the Milos Pavlik YouTube channel).

Five years ago, Rowan said that he "would love" to release songs that were written during the sessions for "Lock Up The Wolves" that didn't make the final record.

Robertson, who was 17 years old when he joined Ronnie James Dio, was asked by The Metal Voice if he would be interested in making the unreleased recordings available to the legendary singer's fans.

"There's two songs which were just done on a boombox in rehearsal," he said. "And I just really would like to get permission from management, 'cause I don't wanna get in trouble. I'd love them to be out there, but I think after Ronnie's gone, he's not here to say, 'Don't play anyone that.' You know what I mean?"

In a 2015 interview, Robertson said that he played the two songs in question — which were apparently titled "Hell Wouldn't Take Her" and "The River Between Us" — for Ronnie's widow and manager Wendy Dio and that she thought the quality wasn't "good enough" to release them.

Rowan was also asked by The Metal Voice for his opinion on the "Dio Returns: The World Tour", which featured a hologram of Ronnie James Dio backed by some of his DIO bandmates.

"I think it's great," the guitarist said. "I think it keeps his memory alive, and I don't see any problem with it at all. I think it's great."

In the late 1980s, Robertson heard that Ronnie James Dio was looking for a new guitarist. He sent a tape to the record company Phonogram. After six months of waiting, he got a reply that stated that at that moment they were not interested in him. At the encouragement of his friend and fellow guitarist Sean Manning (HURRICANE),the tenacious Robertson then contacted the DIO fan club who then asked him to send his demo tape to them.

Robertson got a great response from DIO after receiving the demo through the fan-club channels. In late January or early February 1989, Robertson was flown to Los Angeles for an audition with DIO. He was auditioned twice. Immediately after the second audition, he was invited to join the band. The press release for the addition of Robertson to DIO was sent out on July 18, 1989 and the press was invited to meet the newest DIO guitarist on July 20, 1989 at Oliver's Pub in New York City.

The first DIO album Robertson started working on with DIO was "Lock Up The Wolves". These sessions included Jimmy Bain, Vinny Appice and Jens Johansson. The band had already begun writing and recording when Jimmy Bain and Vinny Appice were suddenly excused from the band. They were replaced with Teddy Cook and former AC/DC drummer Simon Wright.

"Lock up the Wolves" was released in 1990, and the band embarked on a tour in support of the album.

Robertson stayed with DIO until Ronnie James Dio rejoined BLACK SABBATH in 1991.

In an April 2023 interview with Vintage Rock Pod, Doogie spoke about his time working with legendary guitarist Ritchie Blackmore. He said: "Well, I always got on well with him. It's not my name on the board. It's not me selling the tickets. It's him selling the tickets. I was in a very lucky position. He could have chosen any singer in the world to come and join him. But he chose me. And I'll be eternally grateful for that because it gave me a springboard to do [other things] — not so much with [Michael] Schenker but with Yngwie [Malmsteen] and ALCATRAZZ and things. It gave me a worldwide audience, and I've had a lot of work come from that worldwide audience and because of my collaboration with Ritchie — and, to some extent, Yngwie as well. And so I'll always be grateful to him for that."

Doogie went on to say that he "never really had any run-ins" with Ritchie. "We used to go to Blockbusters together when there was no football on," he said, referencing the throwback movie rental chain Blockbuster. "I used to go down to his house when we weren't doing anything. Go round to his house and we'd sit and watch 'The Princess Bride' or, you know, 'The Appointment' — I mean, just rubbish movies, the two of us walking round going, 'What's this one?' at Blockbusters. But we got on really well. And then one day, he just went [snaps fingers] and it was gone. And it was gone as quick as that.

"We played football the day before the last show in Esbjerg in Denmark," he continued. "We played the show. Nothing was wrong. And then within an hour of us coming off stage, it was all sort of [shaky]... And I went home and just phoned him up and just handed in my resignation. I said, 'Unless I hear from you in 24 hours, I'm not doing it, I'm not doing this anymore.' And that was it. And I've never spoken to him since. But he's always treated me fairly."

According to Doogie, he did have one brief correspondence with Ritchie after his exit from RAINBOW. "I did contact him because I was owed some... We had a publishing agreement for the songs that I'd written, and I provided his management with the evidence that I was due funds, and they wouldn't pay," he explained. "So I just wrote to him directly and said, 'Look, man.' And he went, 'Okay, there you go.' The check was in the post. So I've always had a great respect for him for that reason."

White said that he is grateful to Blackmore for giving him a break and making it possible for him to have a career in music.

"He's very good at bringing new people in and taking people — not necessarily off the streets, but out of clothing shops, or out of being a coach builder or whatever," White said. "And then he sets you free to do [whatever]. He sucks you in, bleeds you dry and then sets you free, and you can go off and if you can find your wings, you can fly. Some do, some don't. And that's one of his great gifts to the world of rock and roll, is the amount of people who he has given careers to that you would maybe never have had of. And we've all got to be very grateful for that. I mean, David Coverdale could still be selling suits in Redcar. You know, Ronnie Dio could still be trying to get ELF to do something. You know, Graham Bonnet could still be crooning away in Australia. I could still be sleeping on somebody's floor in London. But he gave us all this opportunity to go out there and make something of ourselves. And if you grasped it, you grasped it, and if you didn't, you didn't."

White first came to prominence when he was asked to audition for RAINBOW, subsequently joining the band in 1994 and releasing the album "Stranger In Us All". Since then, he has worked with CORNERSTONE (a band he put together with former ROYAL HUNT member Steen Mogesen),YNGWIE MALMESTEEN'S RISING FORCE, TANK, and, more recently, MICHAEL SCHENKER FEST and ALCATRAZZ. His vocal range is rich and distinctive, and he is certainly one of the great rock vocalists of his generation.

Posted by Smer Klub 77 on Monday, December 4, 2023

November & December in tour with DOOGIE WHITE (Rainbow) and ROWAN ROBERTSON (Ronnie James Dio)
On Bass Francesco...

Posted by Alessio Palizzi on Tuesday, November 21, 2023

On December 8th, Nightwish vocalist Floor Jansen performed a solo show at AFAS Live in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Fan-filmed video can be viewed below.


Setlist: 


"Fire"
"Storm In A Glass" (Northward)
"Invincible"
"Armoured Wings"
"Bridle Passion" (Northward)
"While Love Died" (Northward)
"Energize Me" (After Forever)
"Storm" 
"Dangerous Game" (from Jekyll & Hyde cover, with Irene Jansen)
"Hope"
"Our Decades in the Sun" (Nightwish)
"Unikat" (SDP)
"Strong" (After Forever)
"Me Without You"
"The Calm"
"Face Your Demons" (After Forever)
"Come Full Circle"




Encore:
"My Paragon"
"Daydream" (with Irene Jansen)














Floor and her husband, Sabaton drummer Hannes Van Dahl, announced the birth of their second daughter back in October. The couple also have a six-year-old daughter, Freja, born in 2017.


Floor shared the news via social media, writing: "There she is! With great happiness we can announce the birth of our second daughter, Lucy! Big sister Freja is delighted with our dark haired little girl too!


Health is not a given fact, and so it’s humbling to report that both our baby girl as mom are in a great one! We are enjoying these special moments to the fullest and ask for understanding of our privacy in this intimate time! Big thanks for all the love and support we received during the pregnancy! We have now welcomed our dear Lucy into this beautiful world."

Maesün, a fresh face in the power metal scene with members from Germany, Romania and the UK, enthusiastically announces the release of their first single, "Book Of The Dead". This track not only signifies their debut on the music scene but also aims to leave a distinct and memorable impression in the world of power metal.





Characterized by a fusion of rapid and potent riffs, "Book Of The Dead" is enhanced by the captivating vocals of Andrada Hofmeister, creating a unique and novel atmosphere. The song showcases the vast talent and experience of its members, some of whom are former or current members of bands like Syn Ze Șase Tri, Ruadh, Badge, Symphress, and others.




This single is just the beginning of an extraordinary musical journey, leading up to the release of their album Remember To Die, scheduled for March 2024.





Lineup:
Andrada Hofmeister - Vocals
Brici Mihai Dan - Guitars
Florin Huluba - Guitars
Tarcea Dan - Bass
Mihai H - Drums

FOREIGNER frontman Kelly Hansen recently spoke to Guy "Favazz" Favazza of the St. Louis, Missouri radio station KSHE 95 about the band's upcoming 2024 concert tour with STYX. The "Renegades & Juke Box Heroes" trek, which will visit venues across North America starting June 11, 2024 in Michigan, is the next leg of FOREIGNER's two-year farewell tour.

After Favazza suggested to Hansen that FOREIGNER extended its farewell tour in order to take in the STYX dates, Kelly insisted that this is not the case. "I've been saying constantly, in every interview, on stage during the show, at the meet-and-greets, everywhere I can, that this has always been a two-year farewell, because we couldn't get everywhere in one year," he explained (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET). "I've been saying it all over the place. Listen, of course, I can't exactly repeat everything, every day, everywhere, all the time, but I've been saying it constantly. So if someone has not looked more than one inch in front of their face, then I can't help them. I've been saying it, so it's always been the plan to do this for 2023 and 2024. The days of touring nine months a year is over after 2024… And that is over, and I'm sure there's gonna be certain appearances or shows or something maybe along the way after that, but the days of doing this nine-months-a-year thing is over."

Kelly continued: "I am not one to go out there and say, 'It's just gonna be for two weeks,' and then 10 years later I'm saying the same thing. That's not who I am, that's never who I've been, and I've never portrayed myself like that. And so if you didn't hear it any other time during the year last year, I'm sorry, but I have been saying it constantly that it's gonna be a two-year thing."

Joining Hansen and founding FOREIGNER guitarist Mick Jones in the band's current lineup are bassist Jeff Pilson, Michael Bluestein on keyboards, guitarist Bruce Watson, Chris Frazier on drums and guitarist Luis Maldonado.

In July, Hansen was asked by Mike Hsu of 100 FM The Pike if he and his FOREIGNER bandmates already know where and when the final show of the farewell tour will take place. Hansen said: "We're just starting to kind of wrap our brains around what that might be. And listen, there's a lot of pressure from a lot of different areas to get me to continue to do this. And I can't see that I'm gonna continue to do this. So we're now looking… 'Cause when you're a band like FOREIGNER, you're already booking a year in advance. So we're already deeply into 2024. But we haven't decided yet where the last show's gonna be."

The only remaining original member of FOREIGNER, Jones suffered from some health issues beginning in 2011, eventually resulting in heart surgery in 2012. Ever since, it is never announced whether he will be appearing with the band for specific shows — it just depends how he is feeling.

Hansen told 100 FM The Pike about Jones: "He's with us whenever he's able to be with us. And he is still the architect of this band. And he and I have worked closely for many years. And the great thing about it is that we've always been very simpatico about our ideas and about how we think things should be done. So, yeah, whenever he can be with us, he is."

After singer Lou Gramm left FOREIGNER in 2003, Jones took some time off before regrouping a couple years later with an entirely new lineup, featuring Hansen and Pilson, among others.

Gramm was the voice on FOREIGNER's biggest hits, including "Feels Like The First Time" and "Cold As Ice" from the band's eponymous debut in 1977, and later songs like "Hot Blooded" and "I Want To Know What Love Is".

GUNS N' ROSES bassist Duff McKagan celebrated his recently released solo album "Lighthouse" by performing on Friday, December 8 at Easy Street Records in Seattle, Washington. Fan-filmed video of his appearance can be seen below.

"Lighthouse" was released in October in a wide range of formats including streaming, download, CD, cassette, and LP. A number of deluxe versions and bundles featuring official Certificates Of Authenticity signed by McKagan are also available. In addition, two webstore exclusive vinyl variants – "Transparent Green & "Black Marble" and "Black Velvet" – of the deluxe packaging are on offer, including three lithographs, a 12-page booklet, a sticker, and a guitar pick, all enclosed in a transparent PVC sleeve allowing interchangeability of the graphics displayed on the album's cover. "Lighthouse" — as well as an exclusive line of brand-new "Lighthouse" merch — is available now at www.duffonline.com.

"Lighthouse" sees Duff McKagan baring more of his artistic spirit than ever before, fusing acoustic elements with hard-edged rock 'n' roll to land at the sweet spot between soul-searching reflection and pure energy. The album was first announced this past summer alongside its title track, "Lighthouse", joined by an official visualizer streaming now at the official Duff McKagan YouTube channel.

"Lighthouse" was soon followed by "I Saw God On 10th Street", also joined by an official visualizer streaming now. "I Saw God On 10th Street" received immediate praise from such outlets as Kerrang!, Revolver and American Songwriter.

"Longfeather", the latest single from "Lighthouse", arrived next, hailed by Revolver as "folky, elegiac" and joined by an official music video — directed by longtime visual collaborators Connor Ellmann, Kuj Durollari and Arben Durollari — streaming now on YouTube. A video for the song "I Just Don't Know (Feat. Jerry Cantrell)" is now streaming on YouTube as well.

Starting at just 15, McKagan has been a part of such diverse and influential bands as THE VAINS (1979),THE FASTBACKS (1980),THE LIVING (1982),THE FARTZ (1982),10 MINUTE WARNING (1983) and LOADED (1998),along, of course, with his historic role as founding member of both GUNS N' ROSES and VELVET REVOLVER. Produced by three-time Grammy Award winner Shooter Jennings, McKagan's 2019 second solo album, "Tenderness", marked a powerful new chapter for the ever-evolving artist, taking on societal ills and his own personal transgressions against a rich sonic backdrop of Americana-fueled arrangements. Named by Loudwire as one of that year's "50 Best Rock Albums" and hailed by Rolling Stone in a three-and-a-half (out of four)-starred rave as "an album full of beauty and heart…It's music of conscience, heavy songs with a light touch," the album includes the volatile rocker "Chip Away", which earned extraordinary praise from the maestro himself, Bob Dylan, who recently declared the song a personal favorite.

"There's a Duff McKagan song called 'Chip Away' that has profound meaning for me," Dylan told The Wall Street Journal. "It's a graphic song. Chip away, chip away, like Michelangelo, breaking up solid marble stone to discover the form of King David inside. He didn't build him from the ground up, he chipped away the stone until he discovered the king. It's like my own songwriting, I overwrite something, then I chip away lines and phrases until I get to the real thing."

Along with his prolific musical efforts, McKagan is The New York Times best-selling author of 2011's "It's So Easy: And Other Lies" and 2015's "How To Be A Man: (And Other Illusions)", and the co-host (with Susan Holmes McKagan) of SiriusXM's popular "Three Chords & The Truth" radio show on Ozzy's Boneyard (Ch. 38). McKagan currently serves as a core member of a modern-day "Wrecking Crew" alongside Grammy Award-winning musician/producer Andrew Watt and RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS' Chad Smith, recording and co-writing on such recent albums as Ozzy Osbourne's "Ordinary Man" (2020) and two-time Grammy Award-winning "Patient No. 9" (2022) and Iggy Pop's acclaimed "Every Loser" (2023). What's more, McKagan — with Watt, Smith, and RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS' Josh Klinghoffer — is part of the recently unveiled IGGY POP & THE LOSERS lineup, who made a high-profile televised debut earlier this year with an electrifying performance of the feverish "Frenzy" on ABC's "Jimmy Kimmel Live!"

Seattle!!! Get ready for a mind-blowing night with the legendary Duff McKagan
to celebrate his recently released solo...

Posted by Easy Street Records on Monday, November 27, 2023

Pop superstar Ed Sheeran played a surprise set as the opening act for THE DARKNESS, and later joined the British rockers to perform their song "Love Is Only A Feeling".

THE DARKNESS, which is currently celebrating 20 years of its debut album "Permission To Land", has had a long relationship with Sheeran, having previously opened for him on the U.K. leg of the 2019 "Divide" tour", along with James Bay and Zara Larsson.

"The crowd started off with their fingers in their ears," THE DARKNESS guitarist Dan Hawkins told Guitar World about his band's opening slot. "But by the end they had their hands in the air. It was a massive success, actually."

Sheeran opened last night's (Saturday, December 9) concert at London's Roundhouse by playing a six-song set, telling the crowd he bought a copy of "Permission To Land" when he was 13 years old, "and it was always my ambition to be onstage with them one day." He jokingly asked THE DARKNESS's audience to "check me out on MySpace" before adding: "I hope you like it… If you don't, it's only 30 minutes."

After playing his set, Sheeran returned to the stage later in the night to join THE DARKNESS on "Love Is Only A Feeling", taken from "Permission To Land".

Sheeran is a noted rock and heavy metal fan, having recently collaborated with British extreme metallers CRADLE OF FILTH on a song that will reportedly be released for charity.

In July 2021, Sheeran floated the possibility of exploring a more extreme musical path while speaking to The Sun. He said: "I was really into death metal as a kid. I listened to CRADLE OF FILTH and SLIPKNOT and all that stuff. I'm not saying I could ever step into that world. I learnt all those riffs on guitar as a kid. That's something I've never thought about doing — but something I would not be opposed to creating."

Sheeran had previously dabbled in a variety of genres, including rock, dance, rap and reggae.

Sheeran admitted to his love of SLIPKNOT in a 2017 interview with Gist. Speaking about the inspiration for his then-brand new album "Divide", Ed said: "I've had the concept for 'Divide' since 2010. I wanted the whole album to feel a bit schizophrenic. My first sort of music that I got into that wasn't from my parents was rap, metal, punk… I went one day listening to 'lowa' [from] SLIPKNOT and the next day listening to Damien Rice's 'O'. It was quite a switch."

As it turns out, SLIPKNOT singer Corey Taylor is also a Sheeran admirer, as he made clear in a 2017 interview with NME. Speaking about Ed's massive commercial success, Corey said at the time: "I'm stoked for people like Ed Sheeran — that kid worked his ass off, so why shouldn't he get the recognition?"

SLIPKNOT has revealed tour dates for a massive 2024 European headline run. The band's thrilling, multi-sensory live shows are legendary, and with SLIPKNOT celebrating 25 years on this upcoming run, these shows will be especially explosive and not to be missed.

SLIPKNOT co-founder and percussionist M. Shawn Crahan (a.k.a. Clown) states about the upcoming shows: "It has been 25 years since we first played on the continent, and we've been back ever since. The memories I have from all those times are life-changing, and we're ready to make more.

"I'm so excited to bring our 25-year anniversary tour to Europe and the U.K. Be prepared for an energy you've never experienced before. It's happening."

The run kicks off at Ziggo Dome in Amsterdam, Netherlands on December 5, canvases continental Europe with arena dates in Germany, France and Switzerland, and concludes at the world-famous O2 Arena in London on December 20. This notably marks their first O2 Arena performance since 2020. Presale tickets will go live on December 13 at 9:00 a.m. U.K. time, with official Live Nation and venue presales launching on Thursday, December 14 at 9:00 a.m. U.K. time, and general on-sale following on December 15 at 9:00 a.m. U.K. time.

SLIPKNOT released their debut self-titled studio album on 29th June 1999, and with it, heralded a seismic shift in music, attitude and energy, and have since defined a culture that has only grown around the world. In the quarter century since, SLIPKNOT's unwavering dedication to their art, expression, and their fans remains at the core of their mission. The band has remained as creative and unapologetic as ever, both in their music and their live shows.

As always, SLIPKNOT's storied live show promises to be a spectacle of sound and sight without comparison.

Having recently wrapped a tour of some of the biggest festival stages in the world, SLIPKNOT are set to headline Sick New World festival at Las Vegas Festival Grounds on April 27. Furthermore, SLIPKNOT recently immortalized their legendary sold-out 2009 concert at New York City's Madison Square Garden on vinyl for the first time ever with the double LP, "Live At MSG".

Continually and fearlessly evolving, SLIPKNOT's latest full-length album, "The End, So Far", landed at No. 1 on Billboard's Top Album Sales chart and at No. 2 on the Billboard 200, marking their sixth Top 10-charting album on the Billboard 200. A new album from SLIPKNOT is a global event, and "The End, So Far" continued the band’s global chart rise, with No. 1 debuts in the United Kingdom, Australia, Germany, Switzerland, and Mexico, as well as Top 3 debuts in Canada, New Zealand, Finland, Sweden, Japan, and Belgium. SLIPKNOT's previous album, 2019's "We Are Not Your Kind", marked SLIPKNOT's third consecutive No. 1 on the Billboard 200, along with No. 1 debuts in the official album charts of twelve countries around the world, including the U.K., Australia, Canada and Mexico, with Top 5 debuts in an additional twelve countries including Germany, France and Sweden.

SLIPKNOT 2024 tour dates:

North America

Apr. 27 - Las Vegas, NV - Sick New World
May 12 - Daytona Beach, FL - Welcome To Rockville
May 19 - Columbus, OH - Sonic Temple

Europe (with support from BLEED FROM WITHIN)

Dec. 05 - Amsterdam, Netherlands - Ziggo Dome
Dec. 06 - Dortmund, Germany - Westfalenhalle
Dec. 08 - Stuttgart, Germany - Schleyerhalle
Dec. 09 - Leipzig, Germany - Quarterback Immobilien Arena
Dec. 11 - Zurich, Switzerland - Hallenstadion
Dec. 12 - Paris, France - Accorhotel Arena
Dec. 14 - Leeds, UK - First Direct Arena
Dec. 15 - Glasgow, UK - OVO Hydro
Dec. 17 - Manchester, UK - Co-op Live Arena
Dec. 18 - Birmingham, UK - Utilita Arena
Dec. 20 - London, UK - O2 Arena

Check out a tour trailer below.

ZAKK SABBATH, the BLACK SABBATH cover band featuring guitarist/vocalist Zakk Wylde (BLACK LABEL SOCIETY, OZZY OSBOURNE, PANTERA),bassist John "JD" DeServio (BLACK LABEL SOCIETY) and drummer Joey Castillo (DANZIG, QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE),performed at The Glass House in Pomona, California on Wednesday, December 6. Fan-filmed video of the entire concert can be seen below (courtesy of the Live Rock Music Concerts YouTube channel).

The setlist was as follows:

01. Supernaut
02. Snowblind
03. Lord Of This World
04. Under The Sun
05. Tomorrow's Dream
06. Wicked World
07. Fairies Wear Boots
08. Into The Void
09. Children Of The Grave
10. A National Acrobat
11. Hand Of Doom
12. Behind The Wall Of Sleep
13. N.I.B.
14. War Pigs

ZAKK SABBATH will release a new double album, "Doomed Forever Forever Doomed", on March 1, 2024. The set will contain ZAKK SABBATH's brilliant takes on the Birmingham Four's classic heavy metal masterpieces "Paranoid" (1970) and "Master Of Reality" (1971).

"Doomed Forever Forever Doomed" was recorded at the Black Vatican and Clear Lake Audio studios and was produced by Wylde, with engineering by Jay Ruston and Adam Fuller. Responsible for the artwork layout was Łukasz Jaszak.

"Doomed Forever Forever Doomed" track listing:

Doomed Forever

01. War Pigs
02. Paranoid
03. Planet Caravan
04. Iron Man
05. Electric Funeral
06. Hand Of Doom
07. Rat Salad
08. Fairies Wear Boots

Forever Doomed

01. Sweet Leaf
02. After Forever
03. Embryo
04. Children Of The Grave
05. Orchid
06. Lord Of This World
07. Solitude
08. Into The Void

"Doomed Forever Forever Doomed" is available as a 2CD digisleeve and as a gatefold 2LP on transparent red vinyl, on transparent purple vinyl, on black vinyl, and on tape cassette.

ZAKK SABBATH's "Tour Forever / Forever Tour" launched on December 5 in Sacramento, California and will end on January 20, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. Support on the trek is coming from THE NATIVE HOWL.

ZAKK SABBATH has been playing sporadic shows since 2014 with its take on the Birmingham four's early songs.

Zakk told Rolling Stone about performing SABBATH's classic material: "Going back to high-school keg parties, we'd be playing songs by RUSH, SABBATH, [Jimi] Hendrix, whatever [in a cover band], and one person would sing the RUSH stuff, someone could do THE DOORS, and I'd end up doing the SABBATH or Ozzy stuff. It's hilarious to me, because we were 17 years old playing keg parties at a friend's house and now I'm [56] years old and I'm still playing 'N.I.B.' and SABBATH songs at keg parties, except there's a couple more people."

In September 2020, ZAKK SABBATH released its spectacular tribute to the Birmingham four, a faithful yet supercharged rendition of BLACK SABBATH's first album, via Magnetic Eye Records.

Exactly 50 years later after the release of the original album, ZAKK SABBATH celebrated the first chapter in the SABBATH catalog with a reverently rendered tribute, simply titled "Vertigo". Faithfully recorded in the spirit of the original, live in the studio and with a film crew documenting the process, the session culminated in a new version of a landmark album that celebrates the greatest heavy metal band of all time and the record that started it all.

"We recorded a live EP and were wondering what we could do next as a cover band, so the 50th album anniversary came just at the right time", explained Blasko regarding ZAKK SABBATH's decision to go studio. "Compared to 'Paranoid', which is almost like a best-of record, the bulk of the material on 'Black Sabbath' is deep-cut, really experimental stuff that was never thoroughly explored, so that was a challenge, not to forget that we wanted to meet our own high standards."

Describing the DIY process as "very productive," the three respectfully added their own flair to make for a slightly different flavor, also revisiting various live renditions and "extending a solo here or slowing things down because that's what they tended to do on stage."

Posted by The Glass House Pomona on Wednesday, October 4, 2023

In celebration of its 20th anniversary as the leading rock 'n' roll memorabilia auction house, Julien's Auctions kicked off "The Collection Of Dusty Hill Of ZZ Top" Thursday, December 7, with a spectacular first evening sale presentation of the rock icon's one-of-a-kind instruments, custom made western style wardrobe worn on stage and in appearances, gear, signature style items such as his favorite cowboy hats, boots and buckles, memorabilia and more from his groundbreaking five-decade career coming directly from Dusty Hill's personal collection. The opening night featured more than 1,100 bids on 49 lots from bidders hailing from all over the globe, including Australia, Germany, Canada, Ireland, Norway, Portugal, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and more.

The first evening session's top auction headliner was the sale of Hill's signature 1953 Fender Precision bass guitar, the most played instrument by Hill out of all the guitars in this collection which sold for $393,700, nearly three times the pre-sale high estimate after a nearly seven-minute bidding battle (estimate: $80,000-$120,000). The bass was heavily used by Hill and served as his go-to stage guitar for numerous ZZ TOP live performances and in the studio until Dusty retired the bass in 2012.

The sale of this signature Fender is now the second highest sold bass guitar at auction behind Paul McCartney's Yamaha BB-1200 bass sold in 2021 and in front of Bill Wyman's Fender Mustang sold in 2020. Hill's wife Charleen "Chuck" McCrory Hill commented regarding the sale: "Dusty would be so pleased to know his bass is between a Beatle and a Rolling Stone!"

Another highlight of the evening was one of the most instantly recognizable instruments in all of pop culture history: Hill's fur bass guitar played on ZZ TOP's iconic "Legs" music video, which sold to a bidder in the room for $317,500 (estimate: $80,000-$120,000). The 1983 Dean Explorer style bass, in sheepskin finish with ZZ TOP logo painted on the fretboard, was attached to a rig worn around Hill's waist to make it spin.

Other highlights included:

Hill's 2000s Bolin Precision style bass guitar used during ZZ TOP's 2007 live performance in Grand Prairie, Texas that was released on their 2008 "Live From Texas" DVD and on tour in 2016 ($22,750) (estimate: $7,000- $9,000)

Hill's "I Gotsa Get Paid" music video 2000s Bolin Telecaster style guitar painted with a concrete style finish by Elwood Francis featuring a Texas Longhorn badge ($22,750) (estimate: $6,000- $8,000)

MTV Moonman award statuette for "Best Group Video" "Legs" presented to Dusty Hill and ZZ TOP at the inaugural MTV Video Music Awards ceremony held in 1984 where ZZ TOP was the first group to ever win "Best Group Video" whose fellow nominees included THE POLICE "Every Breath You Take", VAN HALEN "Jump" and HUEY LEWIS AND THE NEWS "The Heart Of Rock & Roll" ($25,400) (estimate: $10,000- $15,000)

Dusty Hill's commissioned oil derrick gold nugget ring accented with four circular-cut diamonds ($9,100) (estimate: $2,000- $3,000)

Hill's custom sky-blue wool suit jacket with yellow and red embroidered flowers accented with stones by Nudie's Rodeo Tailors worn on the cover of ZZ TOP's 1975 album "Fandango!" ($11,430) (estimate: $6,000- $8,000)

Hill's black leather motorcycle jacket with custom painted skeleton motif, eagle head pins on lapel, and silver spike embellishments with "Streek Landslide" written on the back ($13,000) (estimate: $1,500-$2,500)

The three-day music auction event, featuring over 1000 lots from the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame bass legend of ZZ TOP, continues Friday, December 8 and Saturday, December 9 starting 10 a.m. CT at the legendary musician and vocalist's birthplace of Dallas, Texas at the auction venue 915 Slocum Street and online at Julien's Live.

Leading up to the auction weekend, fans and collectors had the chance to celebrate the life and legacy of the ZZ TOP legend in his birthplace by experiencing Julien's free-to-the-public Texas-sized "Dusty Land" two-week exhibition and "Duzzty's Stash" pop-up store featuring Hill's merchandise and other collectibles at the auction venue 915 Slocum Street.

A portion of the auction proceeds will benefit MusiCares and their mission to help the humans behind music because music gives so much to the world. Offering preventive, emergency, and recovery programs, MusiCares is a safety net supporting the health and welfare of the music community.

GHOST leader Tobias Forge has confirmed to Metal Hammer magazine that he has written "a few songs" so far for the follow-up to last year's "Impera" album. Regarding how he approaches the songwriting process, he said: "I like to compare what I'm doing to being a chef. A chef with a few different interests and specialities. So you might start a few different restaurants — an Italian one, a Greek one, an Asian Fusion one. But what they all have in common is the seasoning and the decor and the interior design... the secret sauce. With me, each record, each new cycle, is a new restaurant, but I don't have to sit with an empty paper and come up with something new every time because the secret sauce is the same. If it comes from my notebook, it will sound like GHOST."

Forge worked on "Impera" with producer Klas Åhlund and Swedish co-writers Salem Al Fakir and Vincent Pontare, whose credits include Madonna and Lady Gaga.

Forge discussed the "Impera" songwriting process in a 2022 interview with the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. He said: "When you're writing, you just wanna make a really good record, drenched in as many hooks as you can possibly muster. The only problem with trying to create records for me, besides ability, is trying not to repeat myself. I always try to write songs that I have never written before. I always try to add songs to our repertoire that we don't have already and, lyrically, I also try to not use the rhymes that were done in the past. That's probably the hardest because you sort of run out of rhymes and words and phrases and, thus, you need to really sharpen up. Sometimes it comes out really good and sometimes I can look back on lyrics and I'm like 'yecch.'"

Asked how the collaboration with Salem and Vincent played into that, Forge said: "They are good friends of mine and we've written quite a lot together. If we set a date to work and spend a couple days in the studio, we always come out of there with something that sounds rockin'. Usually, I come in with a few ideas to work with and then we take it from there. Since they are very professional and they work together and also together with a lot of different artists, they will always give me a little bit of outside perspective. But they have another objective to what I'm doing. Where sometimes I would dismiss an idea of my own, just because I found it predictable, they can turn around and say, 'We should do that, that's how the song should be, because it sounds so much like GHOST.' 'Oh, okay.' If I were alone in the room, I may not have thought that."

GHOST's two September 2023 shows at the Forum in Inglewood, California were professionally filmed and recorded and will be used as part of a future film project.

At the Forum shows, GHOST performed the song "Twenties" live for the very first time live. They also played their cover of Roky Erikson's "If You Have Ghosts", which was originally reimagined by GHOST for their 2013 EP "If You Have Ghost". The band's version of the track at the Forum featured two cellists with a piano playing, and it was performed on a separate stage from the rest of the set.

The markit aneight YouTube channel has uploaded multi-camera video of PANTERA's entire August 2 concert at the Freedom Mortgage Pavilion in Camden, New Jersey. Check it out below.

The band's setlist was as follows, according to Setlist.fm:

01. A New Level
02. Mouth For War
03. Strength Beyond Strength
04. Becoming
05. I'm Broken
06. Suicide Note Pt. II
07. 5 Minutes Alone
08. This Love
09. Fucking Hostile
10. Planet Caravan (BLACK SABBATH cover)
11. Walk
12. Domination / Hollow
13. Cowboys From Hell

Encore:

14. Slaughtered
15. Revolution Is My Name

The reformed PANTERA kicked off its U.S. headlining tour with LAMB OF GOD on July 28 at The Pavilion at Star Lake in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania.

PANTERA's setlist for the summer 2023 tour included two songs which weren't performed when the band launched its comeback last year: "Slaughtered", from PANTERA's 1994 album "Far Beyond Driven", widely considered the heaviest metal record to ever reach No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart; and "Revolution Is My Name" from PANTERA's final studio album, 2000's "Reinventing The Steel".

PANTERA's 2023 lineup includes two surviving members from the band's classic formation, Philip Anselmo (vocals) and Rex Brown (bass),along with guitarist Zakk Wylde (OZZY OSBOURNE, BLACK LABEL SOCIETY) and drummer Charlie Benante (ANTHRAX).

Anselmo and Brown, along with Wylde and Benante, are headlining a number of major festivals across South America, Asia, North America and Europe and staging some of their own headline concerts. They are also supporting METALLICA on a massive North American stadium tour in 2023 and 2024.

According to Billboard, the lineup has been given a green light by the estates of the band's founders, drummer Vincent "Vinnie Paul" Abbott and guitarist "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott, as well as Brown, who in 2021 said Wylde wouldn't tour with PANTERA if a reunion were to happen. It's unclear what changed his mind.

Anselmo and Brown spoke about PANTERA's return to the stage during a recent appearance on the seventeenth episode of "The Metallica Report", the recently launched podcast offering weekly insider updates on all things METALLICA. Philip said: "It's empowering. It is incredibly beautiful, and you feel so much love when you're up there. And if you take it in, it's a great feeling, man. These days, man, that's where me and Rex, you know, we get to dig the shows more."

He continued: "When we were younger, we were at war and when we were on stage; we were just angry and at war, man. Now it's — the songs are there. I can concentrate on singing the fricking songs, number one. Geez, that's a relief for me, man. I don't have to break my fricking body in part anymore."

Anselmo and Brown also talked about Charlie and Zakk being part of the PANTERA team. Philip said: "Them two dudes, so enthusiastic. And they got their damn thing and they got their own damn legacy, both of them, without us. It's an honor to play with them. They're the nicest frickin guys in the world, man. I'm just so... [Laughs] Zakk, he's a crack-up, man. He's a sweetheart. And fricking Charlie, we've known Charlie since '87, man. It's a long time."

Rex chimed in: "The way [Charlie] plays Vinnie's parts is uncanny. I don't think there's any drummer out there that could play the way that Vinnie did. I would close my eyes, because I was trying to get tight, and sometimes if I close my eyes, I can hear a little better; I think I can. And there'd be a tear of joy just coming down, because that was so close to what Vinnie and I used to play. So you have the foundation."

Philip concurred, saying: "The low end sounds so PANTERA, man. It's freaking me out."

When the interviewer suggested that PANTERA in 2023 has Vinnie Paul and Dimebag's "spirit inside it", Philip said: "Only thing I can say is, man, I know for a damn fact Vince and Dime would want us to do this, hands down. They would want the PANTERA brand or the legacy to go on. And I don't know what you believe in, but sometimes, you know, you would like to think that them old fellas are looking down on us, giving us the thumbs-up."

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. When PANTERA broke up in 2003, they formed DAMAGEPLAN. 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.

David Lee Roth has shared a new holiday song, "Talking Christmas Blues". The track, which features the VAN HALEN singer speaking over an acoustic guitar and harmonica, can be seen below.

In January 2022, Roth canceled the remaining farewell shows he was set to play in Las Vegas after he vowed to retire from performing live.

In a statement, event organizers said the cancelations were made "due to unforeseen circumstances related to COVID and out of an abundance of caution for those working and attending the shows."

When Roth's Vegas residency was first announced, organizers promised "a changing set of 26 instantly recognizable songs, including 'Jump', 'Panama', and 'California Girls...'"

In March 2020, Roth postponed the final six shows of his Las Vegas residency due to the coronavirus pandemic that is spreading across the globe.

Roth's last Vegas residency kicked off on January 8, 2020 with a 15-song set that included 10 VAN HALEN classics and five songs from his solo career. Backing the singer were lead guitarist Al Estrada from the VAN HALEN tribute band ERUPTION, rhythm guitarist Frankie Lindri, bassist Ryan Wheeler, keyboardist Danny Wagner and drummer Mike Mussleman.

Roth explained that he chose Vegas as the place to debut his new band because "this is where you come to celebrate and do the victory dance, whatever that means to you."

In a February 2020 interview with StarTribune, Roth openly wondered whether his first tour since VAN HALEN completed its 2015 run of shows would be the last time he would perform.

"I'm calling it 'The Last Tour'," he said at the time, "and then underneath it in parentheses: 'Unless It Isn't'. ... At my age, everything is a possible farewell tour."

"It's been a long great trip, a long great run," he continued. "But this kind of music requires the kind of energy that people in their 20s bring. You know what NFL stands for: Not For Long. It's similar in rock. I remember the days when we would stand around and say, 'Let's go have a cigarette.' And that's what we did: Four guys having one cigarette. I remember those days. They go by fast, so enjoy them while you're in them."

In February/March 2020, Roth performed as the opening act for the North American leg of KISS's "End Of The Road" farewell tour.

Roth's 2020 Vegas residency wasn't the first time he had set up shop in Sin City. Back in 1995, Roth completed a Las Vegas engagement at Bally's Hotel and Casino and another short run at MGM Grand.

Nearly a year after TWISTED SISTER's one-off onstage reunion at the Metal Hall Of Fame in Agoura Hills, California, Dee Snider has confirmed to Canada's The Metal Voice that the band will likely come back together in 2024 for special performances at different political rallies that need TWISTED SISTER's support. The singer said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Well, I won't be surprised if we're reuniting this election year to champion some important causes. We're all on the same page — pretty much all of us are on the same page — and I could see us helping fight the good fight. 'Cause this is a big-picture election, and with things like women's right to choose, that's a big-picture thing. That's gonna hurt the other side. I said 'the other side', because I'm not on that side, [on the side of] Mr. Trump.

"You can't roll back the clock," Dee explained. "We're not going back in time. We're going forward. The fact that my granddaughter does not have the right to choose just blows my mind. So these are important, important issues. It'll be less about the politicians and more about the parties they represent and what they represent. [Issues like] gun control. By the way, I'm the weird… I'm gunned up, man. But I am for intelligent gun control. I'm gunned up. I'm the moderate. I'm that person. I drive a Teslaand an H2 Hummer. I'm an environmentalist and I ride motorcycles.

"When Al Gore said to me, 'Oh, is Sick Mother-Fuckers [TWISTED SISTER's fanbase], is that a Christian organization?' And I said, 'Christianity and profanity have nothing to do with each other.' There's no 'thou shalt not curse', the 11th commandment that apparently was dropped or lost. No — those motherfuckers are cursing too. So everybody's cursing — like I just did. Sorry. I'm losing it now."

Snider added: "People say, 'What's a moderate? What is a moderate?' I tell people the middle, the vast middle, need to speak up, because right now the extreme left [and] extreme right are both. They're steering the ship, they're the loudest voices in the room, they're making the most noise, and the vast middle is sitting too silently. And they'll say, 'Well, what's a moderate these days?' I said, 'What's a moderate? If you're willing to discuss something and consider a compromise, you're a moderate.' Because the people on the extreme left and extreme right, they will not give one inch. They won't talk about it. They will not compromise under any circumstance. So there's a lot of us in the middle who may be more right leaning or left leaning. That's fine. But you need to speak up if you're willing to have a discussion on a subject and you're willing to consider compromising on something, 'cause those are the voices that need to be steering the ship, not the unrelenting, unyielding extremes on both sides."

Dee previously brought up the possibility of TWISTED SISTED becoming active at political events in 2024 during an interview this past April with Yahoo! Entertainment. At the time, he said: "We were all in favor of gonna go down to support Beto [O'Rourke], but we couldn't schedule it. You know, the band has a concern that the [classic TWISTED SISTER] song ['We're Not Gonna Take It'] is being co-opted by the extreme right… and we want to make sure that people still know it's a song for everybody and it does not represent that selfish micro group. It is really for the mass people, the moderate people, the people that just want to live their lives, be themselves, and not have people tell 'em they can't be themselves. So, I think you'll see us at political rallies and stuff like that. We'll be out there next year."

On hand to be inducted into the Metal Hall Of Fame were Snider, guitarist Jay Jay French, bassist Mark "The Animal" Mendoza and Mike Portnoy, who has played drums for TWISTED SISTER since the passing of former member A.J. Pero. Guitarist Eddie Ojeda was absent from the event after contracting COVID-19; filling in for him was Keith Robert War.

The highlight of the ceremony — which also saw FOREIGNER singer Lou Gramm, NWOBHM heroes RAVEN, and guitarists Chris Impellitteri and Doug Aldrich honored — was TWISTED SISTER's highly charged three-song set consisting of the staples "You Can't Stop Rock 'N' Roll" and "Under The Blade", as well as the anthem "We're Not Gonna To Take It".

In late January, Snider told Eonmusic that there were no additional TWISTED SISTER reunion performances in the works. "A hard 'no plans'," he said at the time. "No plans at all to do that."

Going on to reference both OZZY OSBOURNE and MÖTLEY CRÜE's retirement and returns, he added: "You know, I've said when people retire, they should leave the stage, and all those bands, I'm tired of buying 'No More Tours' shirts and seeing people signing contracts in blood and then they show up three years later. I don't believe in that bullshit, so I don't think it's going to happen."

In March 2023, French told The Metal Voice that the Metal Hall Of Fame performance shouldn't give fans the impression that there will be more TWISTED SISTER performances to follow.

"There's no reunion to speak of," he said. "I'm not gonna be so cynical and say that it couldn't lead to conversations, but we never had a single conversation about a reunion prior to this. Not one.

"People always go, 'When are you guys getting back together?' I say, 'Well, we talk all the time, but we never talk about playing. But we talk about business,'" Jay Jay added. "Why do we talk about business? Because 'We're Not Gonna Take It' and 'I Wanna Rock' are the most licensed songs in the history of the music business; they're in more TV commercials, movie soundtracks… So we do licensing deals all day long. It's really what we do. I'm in the business of music licensing, which is a business I didn't know existed."

In 2016, TWISTED SISTER embarked on one final trek, titled "Forty And Fuck It", in celebration of its 40th anniversary. These shows featured the band's "core lineup" of Snider, French, Ojeda and Mendoza, along with Portnoy. The band's last-ever concert took place in November of that year — 20 months after the passing of Pero.

TWISTED SISTER's original run ended in the late '80s. After more than a decade, the band publicly reunited in November 2001 to top the bill of New York Steel, a hard-rock benefit concert to raise money for the New York Police And Fire Widows' And Children's Benefit Fund.

The surviving members of the classic lineup of TWISTED SISTER previously reunited virtually in March 2021 for a special episode of Mendoza's Internet TV show "22 Now". The hour-and-a-half-long program was a tribute to Pero, who died exactly six years earlier at the age of 55 while on tour with the band ADRENALINE MOB.

Prior to the March 2021 virtual reunion, the four surviving members of TWISTED SISTER reunited for two days and nights in November 2019 to celebrate the 35th anniversary of the band's classic album "Stay Hungry".

In a 2021 interview with the "Metal From The Inside" podcast, Snider was asked if he is still steadfast about not wanting TWISTED SISTER to reunite. He responded: "[I am] one hundred percent committed to not reuniting. Now, let me just be clear: we're friends. I did a [solo] show a couple of weeks ago [on June 11, 2021 at Stereo Garden in Patchogue, New York] and Mendoza showed up, and we did [TWISTED SISTER's] 'Under The Blade', and it was awesome. I talk to the guys all the time. I can show you my text messages. We have a little text group, and we were sending messages back and forth.

"To me, that was the reason to reunite, was to fix the relationships [between the members of the band], and we did fix' em, and we're friends," he explained. "I feel we did what we could do without just doing the same thing over. And I wanted to do some new, challenging things that I couldn't do within TWISTED. And the solo records I've done I could not have done with TWISTED SISTER. I could not have done 'Dee Does Broadway' with TWISTED SISTER — 'Twisted Does Broadway'. And I could not have done 'For The Love Of Metal' with TWISTED SISTER; people would never have accepted it. But as a solo artist, I'm allowed to change and evolve. And some things [fans have] liked; some things they've not liked. But at the same time, I'm allowed; no one's ever questioned [it]. And, again, if TWISTED SISTER did it, it would be, like, 'Hey, it doesn't sound like TWISTED SISTER anymore'; it would have been that kind of thing."

Circling back to the prospect of TWISTED SISTER reuniting, Dee said: "I could see us doing a charity — a couple of songs for charity, for the right reasons. We got [back] together originally for charity, which was a good reason to get together. I could see [talk show host Jimmy] Fallon — he's a big fan — if he said, 'Hey, guys, can you guys come on '[The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'] and do 'White Christmas' for us?' Fuck yeah. But to do a tour, to do 90 minutes, two hours on a stage, I don't see that happening. And credit to everybody in the band, and I know some people — without naming names — some guys, they would have kept going; others did not wanna keep going. But I'm sure we get offers. Jay Jay French is the manager of TWISTED, 'cause it's still an entity — there's still royalties and licenses and things like that, and merchandise — he's not presented one offer, and I'm sure we've gotten 'em. 'Cause we're not even considering it. It doesn't matter what they're offering; we're not doing it."

Guitar legend Michael Schenker brought MSG to O2 Shepherd's Bush in London, England on November 30th. Fan-filmed video of the entire show courtesy of Room With Mirrors can be viewed below.


Setlist:


"Into the Arena"
"Cry for the Nations"
"Doctor Doctor" (UFO)
"Looking for Love"
"Lights Out" (UFO)
"Red Sky"
"Shoot Shoot" (UFO)
"Emergency"
"On and On"
"Let It Roll" (UFO)
"Attack of the Mad Axeman"
"Natural Thing" (UFO)
"Armed and Ready"
"Let Sleeping Dogs Lie"
"Desert Song"
"Rock Bottom" (UFO)
"Too Hot to Handle" (UFO)
"Only You Can Rock Me" (UFO)







More MSG live dates:


June
3 - Ballyshannon, Ireland - Rory Gallagher International Tribute Festival
8 - Zamora, Spain - Z! Live Rock Fest


July
8 - Knislinge, Sweden - Time To Rock Festival
29 - Pyras, Germany - Pyraser Classic Rock Night *SOLD OUT*


August
11 - Kortrijk, Belgium - Alcatraz Metal Fest
12 - Villena, Spain - Leyendas del Rock


Current MSG touring lineup:


- Michael Schenker (lead guitars)
- Robin McAuley (vocals; until the end of 2023)
- Steve Mann (keyboards, guitars)
- Barend Courbois (bass)
- Bodo Schopf (drums)


(Photo - Paul Bossenmaier & Tine Gennaio)

At the December 3 stop of his "My Effin' Life In Conversation" tour at the Auditorium Theatre in Chicago, Illinois, RUSH bassist/vocalist Geddy Lee spoke about his deep friendship with his bandmates Neil Peart and Alex Lifeson. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Neil found his own sense of relationship with me and with Alex, and it was incredibly gratifying. I can count on one hand the number of serious disagreements we ever had.

"I think the toughest conversation we ever had was when [Neil] had made, in his mind, a decision to retire. Because Alex had just had a very serious surgery. Through the last couple of tours, Alex was suffering in ways that he didn't talk about publicly, of course, but he had a number of intestinal issues and his arthritis was very bad. It was really affecting his hands and his ability to play. So he was seeking treatment and he just had a very serious operation. This was in 2014. And Neil suddenly, out of the blue, said, 'We have to have a meeting.' And we said, 'Okay. When?' He said, 'Well, next week. I'm coming through town.' And we said, 'Well, yeah, but Lerxst [Alex's nickname] just had surgery.' And he was insistent that it be then. And so, that was out of character for him. So I knew something was on his mind. And so we met at the restaurant we always used to dine at, and our manager was with us. And he came in, and he basically said that he doesn't really want to tour anymore. And he said, 'I know you guys are planning a tour, but I think I need to take care of my new family at home.' Because he had been through hell in 1997 when he lost his daughter. Of course, 10 months later he lost his wife. And then he wandered, as you all know, if you read his 'Ghost Rider' book. And he went through hell. No one should ever have to go through that. But he rediscovered his love of playing, and he came back to us in 2002. And he was a fantastic partner through those years and playing just greatly. He reinvented his whole drum style. So much drive had been welcomed back into his life. But here he was now saying, 'I think I'm reaching the end.' And that was a hard conversation. And he looked at Alex, and he said, 'Alex, what do you think?' And Al was sitting there, having just had surgery the week before, and he's not very comfortable. He's sitting upright, and he said, 'Well, look, Neil, I don't know how many tours I have left in me because of my issues. But I really would like to do one more.' And Neil looked at me and went, 'Fuck.' He had no answer for that. He said, 'One thing I said to myself before this meeting was if Alex wanted to do this tour badly enough' that he would say yes. And he did. And he wasn't happy. But he went back to his hotel and he told me in an e-mail that he had sent me a little while later, he wrote this e-mail, he said, 'I think I must have said 'fuck' six hundred times that day in my room.' But he said, 'Now I have a different outlook. Rather than retirement,' he said, 'I'm resigned. I'm resigned to doing a tour, and I'm resigned to making it the best tour we could possibly make.' And that was it. That's the last we had to discuss of it."

Reflecting on RUSH's final tour, which concluded in August 2015 at the Forum in Los Angeles, Geddy said: "By the time that tour got towards the end, our relationship was strained. Because with every successive gig, he was closer to the end, [Neil] was getting happier, and Alex and I were getting, uh, less happy. And so the last gig was odd. We played our guts out, we played our hearts out in L.A. at that show. I asked him, I said, 'Well, would you come out and take a bow? Maybe it'll be our last gig.' He said, 'No, I don't do that. No, I don't cross that invisible line.' We said, 'Okay.' But, he did anyway, because he couldn't resist it. He snuck out. He gave us a hug, and we took a bow together. But after that show, it was really weird, because we didn't talk about it. He went to sort of his dressing room, which was ebullient and celebratory, and we went to see all our chums, and we pretended we were ebullient and celebratory. But we went home in a very sad frame of mind, and I had resentment, I'll be honest. I was resentful because I loved that tour and I wanted to bring it around the world, and he only had agreed to so many gigs and he wouldn't bend. And then it was, I think, about three months later that we started talking again by e-mail because we had to finish this live album we were doing, the 'R40' tour video. And I remember writing and saying, 'Man, I just listened to your drum solo. It was so fucking awesome. Which night did you choose for it?' And then the floodgates opened up, and we just started talking. He said, 'Wow, I can't believe you're saying that. I wondered through the whole tour if anybody was digging my drum solo.' I mean, really? I watched the drum solo every fricking night. How could he even imagine that I wasn't in awe of him every fricking night? But he just started pouring his heart out, saying, 'I'm so happy right now. I have a new life.' And I thought to myself, what kind of a friend am I that would begrudge him this after all he'd been through? And so it was healing to have that conversation. And I moved forward, and I was sort of accepting now. And I understood him better. And then, of course, fate played a horrible trick on him and then I got an e-mail from him that September that he sent to me and Alex and [our manager] that he had a brain tumor, and that was, 'Wow. What now?' And it didn't matter — nothing mattered anymore. And we went to him to try to be of some service to him. And he was strong as a bull, so he was given 18 months and he lasted three and a half years."

Geddy kicked off his "My Effin' Life In Conversation" tour on November 13 at The Beacon Theatre in New York. The trek sees the RUSH singer/bassist bring to life his "My Effin' Life" memoir, which came out on November 14 via HarperCollins. Produced by Live Nation, the 14-city tour made additional stops across North America before wrapping up in Toronto at Massey Hall on December 7.

RUSH waited three days to announce Peart's passing, setting off shockwaves and an outpouring of grief from fans and musicians all over the world.

Last year, Geddy revealed that Neil wanted to keep his cancer diagnosis a secret prior to his death.

"[Peart] didn't want anyone to know [about his illness]," Lee said on Canadian talk show "House Of Strombo". "He just didn't. He wanted to keep it in the house. And we did. And that was hard. I can't tell you it was easy, 'cause it was not easy. And it was ongoing. His diagnosis was… he was given 18 months at the most, and it went on three and a half years. And so that was a constant flow of us going to see him, giving him support."

Lee went on to say that he and Lifeson had to be "dishonest" to fans in order to protect Peart's privacy.

"What his family had to live through was really difficult, so it was a lot of back-and-forth," he said. "And when you're in that state, it's very hard to function normally, because you can't talk to anybody about it, 'cause no one's supposed to know. And so people hear rumblings and they bring things up to you, and you deflect it. And so that feels, on one hand, it feels dishonest, but on the other hand you're being loyal to your friend. So fuck the dishonesty part. That wins."

He continued: "I would say that was the most difficult time for us to move forward, during that whole thing, because we were in this bubble of grief sort of walking towards an inevitable and terrible conclusion."

As one of the most successful Canadian music group in history, RUSH has performed before millions of fans around the world. Ranked by Rolling Stone in the top ten bassists of all time, Lee has long been acclaimed for his wizard-like musical talent and mesmerizing performances.

Photo credit: Andrew MacNaughtan (2011 press photo courtesy of Atlantic Records)