Keanu Reeves's reactivated 1990s and early 2000s grunge band DOGSTAR will release its fourth studio album, "All In Now", on May 29 via the group's own label Dillon Street Records. The LP was produced by Nick Launay (IDLES, AMYL AND THE SNIFFERS, YEAH YEAH YEAHS, NICK CAVE AND THE BAD SEEDS) and is the follow-up to DOGSTAR's first album in two decades, "Somewhere Between The Power Lines And Palm Trees", which came out in October 2023.

DOGSTAR is composed of guitarist/vocalist Bret Domrose, drummer Rob Mailhouse and bassist Keanu Reeves.

The official music video for the LP's latest single, "Joy" — directed by Carlos Garcia Medina — can be seen below.

Domrose comments: "Where does 'Joy' begin? It begins with ethereal, dreamy reverb guitar that sets a tone. I bought a new guitar — a vintage Gibson ES335 Hollow Body that I brought in. It gave us some new tones to explore and opened a new avenue for us to explore.

The new song follows the album's first single and music video for "All In Now".

"The album really sets up the energy at the heart of this album and the fun that we've always had playing together," Mailhouse states about "All In Now". "We couldn't fucking wait," Keanu Reeves says about DOGSTAR's collective desire to get right back to the studio. "Personally, I loved it all. For me, the attitude was like, 'let's work hard and let's GO.'" "It felt like our last album was our ticket into a party," says Domrose. "And now we've shown up to the party — the three of us."

DOGSTAR, which Rolling Stone hailed for its "sleek, post-grunge alt-rock", has released the first cut off the album, the "All In Now" title track. "'All In Now' just whacks you in the head," Mailhouse shares, "talk about a live song. Keanu came up with the title for that song too, and it sort of summed up where and who we are as a band today. It just feels true to us. We're leaning in, and we are going to keep going." "And this is a good song to lean into," Reeves adds, "so, we really are all in now."

DOGSTAR's 25-date "All In Now" North American tour is set to kick off on May 28 in cities including Austin, Nashville, Washington D.C., Philadelphia, New York City and more.

DOGSTAR is a brotherhood –— a group of three men with multiple talents who combined, have created a sound and energy that is greater than the sum of its parts. After being dormant for 20 years, the California-based trio reunited in 2023 to release their celebrated album "Somewhere Between The Power Lines And Palm Trees", which SPIN called "honest and inspired" and "fully reflects these three guys, the stories of their lives over the last three decades, and exactly who they are." Their new album pushes them further, with a unified and self-assured album forged by their time on the road, touring both in America and around the world, playing everywhere from sweaty rock clubs to giant festivals.

Mailhouse remembers: "Just seeing the smiles on people's faces and feeling their joy on a musical level. Playing some outdoor festivals, and when it starts to rain, seeing nobody leaving." "Those festivals in Europe really made a big, positive impact on us," adds Reeves. "We loved playing to people in the afternoon who didn't come to see DOGSTAR but connected with what we were doing. And that connected with us." Bret continued, "You never know if people are going to show up, are they going to stay, are they going to listen? It meant a lot that people not only stayed but got into songs that they mostly had never heard before."

DOGSTAR credits legendary producer Nick Launay — whose has worked with artists from MIDNIGHT OIL to NICK CAVE AND THE BAD SEEDS to YEAH YEAH YEAHS and AMYL AND THE SNIFFERS — with the fully realized sound and the energy of "All In Now". As Domrose recalls, "Our management put Nick's name on a list of possible producers." "And we all thought it was a typo. Like this guy will never work with us," Mailhouse adds with a laugh. For Nick Launay, "Working with Bret, Robert and Keanu was extremely fun because it brought things back to why people form bands and make music. These three friends wrote some killer songs and wanted to push some boundaries in the studio. It's all passion and no B.S. For me, it's always a treat working with such capable musicians because the sky's the limit when experimenting, and that's exactly what we did, while smiling all the way."

"All In Now" reflects DOGSTAR's commitment to put their all into the project, both onstage and in the studio. As Nick Launay puts it, "I love how Bret's voice and melodies soar above the solid grooves on this album. There's something very honest about it, which I guess is why it's called 'All in Now'. I think this friendly trio is sounding HUGE and will turn some heads this time around."

"All In Now" track listing:

01. Math
02. This Sphere
03. All In Now
04. Exalted
05. Siren
06. Punch The Sky
07. Joy
08. What Is
09. The Whisper
10. Shards Of Rain
11. Shallow Easy
12. Wing

Legendary American heavy metal band SANCTUARY has signed with BLKIIBLK, the heavy metal imprint of Frontiers Label Group.

To celebrate, SANCTUARY returns with a powerful new chapter in its storied career: the brand-new single "Not Of The Living". A new lyric video comes along with the track and is available to view below.

On the signing to BLKIIBLK, SANCTUARY founder/guitarist Lenny Rutledge comments: "SANCTUARY is really excited to sign with BLKIIBLK. We are looking forward to working with our new team to bring future SANCTUARY music to metal fans all over the world!"

"Not Of The Living" marks SANCTUARY's first new material since the passing of original vocalist Warrel Dane and stands as a bold statement of rebirth as the band celebrate 40 years of uncompromising heavy metal.

Mike Gitter, global head of A&R for Frontiers Label Group and BLKIIBLK label head, comments: "We're excited to be working with SANCTUARY. Already a legendary band, in 2026, they're building upon that legend and taking it one step further. When [European head of A&R] Aldo Lonobile and I heard the songs, they had begun recording for their first full-length since their last full-length 'The Year The Sun Died' [2014], it was clear, SANCTUARY were back making some of the most vital music of their career. Vocalist Joseph Michael (WITHERFALL) has stepped in for the late Warrell Dane (NEVERMORE) and carried the ball magnificently. Lenny Rutledge (SANCTUARY founding guitarist) is not only taking SANCTUARY's legacy forward, but it already feels like he's intent on exceeding it."

Produced and mixed by acclaimed producer Chris "Zeuss" Harris (QUEENSRŸCHE, METAL CHURCH, ROB ZOMBIE),"Not Of The Living" captures SANCTUARY's classic blend of dramatic songwriting, soaring melodies, and crushing riffs while delivering a modern sonic impact. The track also features a blistering guest guitar solo by Jake Dreyer (WITHERFALL, DEMONS & WIZARDS, ICED EARTH).

Joseph Michael, vocalist for SANCTUARY, shares: "The band and I are very happy to announce our partnership with heavy metal's preeminent record label BLKIIBLK! We hope you enjoy this new chapter in the history of SANCTUARY. We look forward to bringing you new music while also honoring the past."

SANCTUARY drummer Dave Budbill exclaims: "Very stoked to be signing with such a kick-ass metal label. SANCTUARY is back!"

Now, with more new music on the horizon, SANCTUARY is preparing to embark on a wide-ranging 40th-anniversary world tour, celebrating four decades of metal history. For the tour, SANCTUARY has recruited guitarist Will Wallner (NEON DRAGON, ex-WHITE WIZZARD) on second lead guitar. The tour will span North America, South America and Europe, featuring special sets highlighting the band's classic albums "Refuge Denied" and "Into The Mirror Black", alongside fan favorites and new material, including "Not Of The Living".

Festival appearances confirmed for the tour include some of the most respected gatherings in the global metal community, including Keep It True, Hyperspace Metal Fest and Hell's Heroes.

SANCTUARY upcoming shows:

April 18 - Vancouver, Canada @ The Rickshaw/Hyperspace Metal Festival
April 22 - Athens, GR @ Piraeus Club Academy
April 24 - Geiselwind, DE @ Tauberfrankenhalle/Keep It True
April 25 - Drachten, NL @ Iduna
April 26 - Hamburg, DE @ Logo
April 28 - London, UK @ The Underworld
April 29 - Kortrijk, BE @ Dvg Club
May 01 - Zoetermeer, NLS @ Boerderij
May 02 - Andernach Rheinland-Pfalz, DE @ Juz Live Club/Andernach Metal Days
August 16 - Washington, USA @ Substation/Soldiers Of Steel
August 22 - Mexico City @ [to be announced]
August 23 - Mexico City @ [to be announced]
August 25 - Lima, Peru @ [to be announced]
August 27 - Chile @ Concepcion
August 28 - Santiago, Chile
August 29 - Buenos Aires, Argentina
August 30 - São Paulo, Brazil
September 18 - Wisconsin, USA @ Crucible-Blades Of Steel

On December 13, 2017, Dane passed away while recording his posthumously released studio album "Shadow Work". At that time, SANCTUARY had already confirmed and announced a U.S. tour supporting ICED EARTH in February and March 2018 and, while shocked by Dane's passing, decided to turn it into a tribute to his legacy, with Michael (also of WITHERFALL) at the mic.

Performing tracks from 1988's "Refuge Denied", 1990's "Into The Mirror Black" and 2014's "The Year The Sun Died", Michael delivered a stunning performance and received very positive feedback from the fans attending the shows. Remaining founding members Lenny Rutledge (guitar) and Dave Budbill (drums) ultimately made the decision to continue with SANCTUARY and Michael not only as a live act, but also compose and record a new album.

Photo credit: Dirk Behlau

This past February, members of legendary Finnish metal band CHILDREN OF BODOM played two shows celebrating the group's music at the Tavastia club in Helsinki. The concerts, dubbed "Children Of Bodom – A Celebration Of Music", featured original CHILDREN OF BODOM members, bassist Henkka Seppälä, keyboardist Janne Wirman, drummer Jaska Raatikainen and early guitarist Alexander Kuoppala, along with longtime friend Samy Elbanna, known from the band LOST SOCIETY, paying tribute to CHILDREN OF BODOM guitarist/vocalist and main songwriter Alexi Laiho, who passed away on December 29, 2020 in his home in Helsinki, Finland. He died of alcohol-induced degeneration of the liver and pancreas connective tissue. Furthermore, Laiho had a cocktail of painkillers, opioids and insomnia medication in his system. He had suffered from long-term health issues leading up to his death.

In a new interview with Ed Hack of This Day In Metal, Wirman was asked why now was the right time for the CHILDREN OF BODOM to regroup and honor Laiho in this way. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "We've gotten some requests and we've said 'no' to everything. But then this one guy, who is now our booking agent, from Austria, Dominik, he contacted us and he was convincing enough. Like, 'Guys, I have so many requests for BODOM shows.' And we replied to him politely that we don't have a band. We just have three guys and a legacy. And he goes, like, 'Can I come to Helsinki and meet you?' We were, like, 'Okay, fine.' And this guy flies to Helsinki and we meet him for dinner. He turns out to be a super-nice guy, someone we could work with."

He continued: "Back in the day, BODOM, it was such a tight family. Everyone needed to kind of fit in — like a manager, booking agent, we always kind of needed to know these guys, that they really fit to the picture. So this guy kind of was very convincing. And this was a couple of years ago. And then we started thinking, like, 'Okay, well, if we ever gonna play any shows, how are we gonna approach it? And then we hired our old manager Steve [Davis] back, 'cause Steve is a mastermind and a genius in his own really fucked up way. And he said that, 'Guys, how we are gonna do this is that we're gonna celebrate the music, 'cause that's what we have — we have the music.' And then that's how we started unraveling. And, yeah, that's where we are right now."

Regarding Elbanna's performance at the two shows CHILDREN OF BODOM played at the Tavastia, Wirman said: "Dude, he was on fire. And he was so well practiced already when we had our first like band practice. Three months prior, four months prior to the shows, when we started practicing, he already knew everything, and I was just starting to remember, like, 'How the fuck was this again?' So he was so well prepared, so well practiced. He's a young and enthusiastic little kid, and I love him. And he's been practicing a lot. I think it takes a lot of practice for someone to be able to pull off everything that Alexi put on those albums. I think his performance was flawless. All the guitar solos, all the guitar leads were just perfect.

"Of course, we all know how fucking talented Alexi was, but that was something we were always in awe of, how he could play the most complex riff and then sing at the same time or shout or whatever," Janne continued. "And I know there were some parts that were really difficult for Samy, but he pulled it off. I don't even know, and I cannot even understand how much he had to have been practicing."

Asked what is was like for him personally to perform the CHILDREN OF BODOM music again after so long, Janne said: "I had no idea [what to expect]. No one could have predicted… We had been rehearsing for months, and, like I said, I think Samy was the most confident player at the rehearsals. He was doing fine all the time, and I was still finding my way around the BODOM songs. And then I knew that we're gonna do this video installation [to present to the audience at the beginning of the show], and then Alexi is gonna speak and there's gonna be all these photos and whatever. So going on stage the first night, I really had no idea if I'm gonna start crying. Is the whole audience gonna be crying when we go out? Literally from the moment we went on stage, we were all panicking back there, like, 'What the fuck is gonna happen?' And the crowd was kind of quiet during the video installation, which I understand, 'cause you wanna hear the dialogue. So the first 15 seconds I walked on stage, I had no idea what's gonna fucking happen, but then I see the immediate crowd reaction to the music, and then I knew, like, 'Fuck, this is gonna be a good time.' And it was a good time."

Elaborating on the musical chemistry between all the musicians who were on stage those two nights, Janne said:  "I tried to kind of describe it as that something magical happened. 'Cause no one knew what was gonna happen the first night. It could have been falling apart, and we could all just been crying and, like, 'Why the fuck are we here?' So something truly magical happened in terms also [of] how tight the band was. 'Cause, if I'm honest, some of the rehearsals were not tight at all. So it was the crowd reaction. And sometimes you need that. And when the crowd makes you do your best, that's when it's beautiful."

Wirman also addressed the possibility of further live performances in celebration of CHILDREN OF BODOM's music and Laiho. He said: "It was a very special event, and we knew that two nights was not gonna be enough kind of to feed the [fan interest]. We knew that a lot of people are gonna be asking for tickets. And I also panicked the last minute — I told the management, like, 'Why don't we extend this?' But that's how we had originally planned it — just two nights, and that's it."

Asked point blank if there is chance that we haven't seen the last of CHILDREN OF BODOM's live shows, Janne said: "Yes, there is. I mean, we said that next year the celebration is gonna continue, so it's gonna continue."

The official CHILDREN OF BODOM book was published in August 2025 via the London, U.K.-based publisher Rocket 88. The book tells the story of the Finnish melodic death metal pioneers as an oral history in which Seppälä, Wirman, Raatikainen and Kuoppala plus other former members, their friends and colleagues recall the 30-plus-year history of their career. For the first time, members of the band tell the story of CHILDREN OF BODOM in their own words. Henkka, Janne and Jaska recall the founding of the band with Laiho and the struggles, adventures and triumphs they experienced in the more than 30 years that followed. Drawing on personal memories and new interviews with the band conducted by Finnish best-selling author and longtime friend of the band Timo Isoaho, the official CHILDREN OF BODOM book tells the whole story, warts and all, of the groundbreaking melodic death metal band.

In December 2023, Seppälä and Wirman hosted a listening party for CHILDREN OF BODOM's latest live album, "A Chapter Called... Children Of Bodom (Final Show In Helsinki Ice Hall 2019)", at the Bodom Bar & Sauna in Espoo, Finland. The LP, which was recorded at CHILDREN OF BODOM's final concert on December 15, 2019 at the Black Box in Helsinki Ice Hall in Helsinki, Finland, was made available via Spinefarm. During the question-and-answer portion of the event, Wirman and Seppälä discussed their mindset going into CHILDREN OF BODOM's final concert, which took place a year before Laiho passed away. Janne said: "I felt a sense of relief onstage [at the final concert] 'cause I was very tired of Alexi's problems and constant problems with one guy. And then this guy who was our best friend and who wrote all the music, all of a sudden from 2016 on, just became someone I didn't recognize anymore. He was a different person, and he was so overcome with his disease and problems and it got to the point in 2019 we decided that this can't go on anymore. And then this was the last show. It was short notice, and we [originally] had so much better plans for how to say goodbye to all the international fans, how to do a proper farewell around-the-world tour [during 2020-2022] and whatever. But now, something we did not know, was [that] the pandemic [would happen], obviously, and that would have canceled all of those plans anyway."

Added Henkka: "So it was kind of, like, in a way we are lucky that we had this confrontation within the band that made us decide to drop [the group] earlier than we were supposed to and have this final show that was recorded. Because if you would have kept on the original plan with Alexi that let's do a farewell tour until 2022, I think it was, so then the pandemic would have ruined everything. And we probably would have never had this kind of last proper souvenir."

Asked if it ever entered their minds that they could take a long break away from each other and then maybe regroup at a later date, Henkka quipped: "That would have been like a mature way of dealing with it." Janne said: "Our manager at the time, Steve, did ask me that, at the eve of the last show, Steve asked me that, 'Are you ever gonna play with Alexi again?' And I said, 'I would only [play with him] if he would seek help and become fully sober.' And I knew that wasn't an option, that he had decided at that point, unfortunately, that he's just gonna die by his addictions, which is horrible. And it's very sad, but I knew him well enough that there was no way that he's gonna get better. And then that's why somehow it was also a relief for me at the last show. I realized that I need to let go."

Added Henkka: "The problems were pretty bad — I mean, within the band, all the relations. And I don't think anybody could see a future anymore. So [putting the band to rest] was the only option at the time. I'm sure that Steve, our manager, had some hopes of a reunion show within some years, of course, because he's a businessman [laughs], but it didn't even cross my mind at that time."

Continued Janne: "That's why I said that at the time I said that I will never play again with Alexi, 'cause I knew that he will not get sober, he will not get help for his problems. And then it would've been a totally different opinion. If somehow any of us would've felt that, 'Okay, Alexi is gonna get help. He's gonna get better,' all of us would've been, like, 'Okay, fine. Let's give him a couple of years and then let's get back together.' But that was not foreseeable at the time."

Added Henkka: "At the time it was, it was an impossible point."

In a July 2023 interview with BLABBERMOUTH.NET, Wirman opened up about the string of events that led to the band's 2019 demise and the deterioration of Laiho's health.

"Alexi's downfall started in 2016," Janne said. "I don't know what caused him to do that. He told me but didn't tell anyone else in the band — he made sure no one else was in the room — and told me, 'Dude, from now on, I'm going to drink until I die.' I said, 'Fuck, man. You can't say that to me.' He said it another time in 2018. I knew that was what he was doing — he said he wouldn't take any help for his medical issues. He was going to keep drinking. That's what he did, which is fucking crazy."

Janne continued: "A lot of people who haven't had a family friend or work buddy or someone who is sick with alcoholism, a lot of people don't understand you cannot help the person who doesn't want help. He had decided he didn't want help and would keep drinking until he died. That's what he did."

Wirmen then detailed BODOM's final years, beset by infighting largely stemming from Laiho's substance abuse issues. "The last years were pretty bad," he said. "There was a lot of bullshit. It's so crazy because he was in such a good place a couple of years before. He was happy about being sober and on tour, and the shows were good. I don't know what happened to him. Something pushed him over the edge where he decided, 'Fuck it. I'm going to keep drinking.'"

Alexi's ashes were buried in December 2021 — nearly a year after his tragic passing. He was laid to rest at the Malmi Cemetery, a large cemetery located in the Malmi district in Helsinki, Finland.

Alexi and Jaska founded CHILDREN OF BODOM in 1993, and the band was one of the most internationally acclaimed metal acts in Finland up until their very last farewell concert. In 2020, Alexi put together BODOM AFTER MIDNIGHT, which recorded three songs and shot one music video, all of which were released posthumously.

Besides CHILDREN OF BODOM, Laiho had played in such acts as WARMEN, SINERGY, KYLÄHULLUT and THE LOCAL BAND. Awarded with a Metal Hammer Golden God and several other international prizes, the guitarist was also the main star, leading a group of one hundred guitar players at the Helsinki Festival in 2015 in "100 Guitars From Hel" — a massive concert piece he composed.

In 2022, Wirman, Raatikainen and Seppälä discussed publicly for the first time the circumstances that led to the band's split and ultimately Laiho's death. In an interview with Finland's Helsingin Sanomat, the three surviving members of CHILDREN OF BODOM said the real reason for the band's breakup was not that they wanted to stop touring in order to spend more time with their families, which is how Laiho explained it to Helsingin Sanomat in November 2019. Instead, what caused the group to split was Laiho's substance abuse, and that is also what eventually killed him a year after they went their separate ways.

Laiho's addiction began to take a serious toll on CHILDREN OF BODOM in 2008, when the band was the support act on a SLIPKNOT tour. In the ensuing years, Laiho promised his bandmates that he would not drink on the road anymore. Although he kept his word for a few years, Alexi "went into a tailspin again in 2016," according to Wirman. Laiho, who had a substantial income as COB's main songwriter (all other income, from gigs to merchandise, was split equally),repeatedly complained that his income was declining and threatened to pull himself out of the limited liability company, AA & Sewira Consulting Oy, he and the other members formed in 2003.

After CHILDREN OF BODOM's manager brought up Laiho's substance abuse at a business meeting in New York in early 2019, Alexi refused to go into rehabilitation but did agree to see a doctor. He was diagnosed with diabetes, and he began taking medication to treat the condition.

In the summer of 2019, Laiho filed an application with the Finnish Patent And Registration Office to register the CHILDREN OF BODOM name to Laiho. This infuriated his bandmates who saw this as an attempt to hijack the name and brand that was controlled by the group's LLC.

During CHILDREN OF BODOM's tour of Russia in October 2019, Laiho "was hitting the bottle like back in 2008," his bandmates told Helsingin Sanomat.

"I told Alexi that you don't usually drink starting at breakfast before a gig, and now you don't even warm up with the guitar before going on stage like you always do," Raatikainen recalled.

Laiho later apologized and stopped drinking for the last concerts of the tour. "His hands were shaking for two days, but the gigs in Moscow and St Petersburg went pretty well," Raatikainen said.

Raatikainen, Seppälä and Wirman decided to go with Alexi's wish from a few years back and buy him out of the LLC. Laiho retained the rights to his music and was paid royalties on performances and record sales as before, but sold his part of the LLC that owns the name of the band and the merchandising rights.

According to the trio, Alexi was sober for CHILDREN OF BODOM's entire final tour of Finland in December 2019 and he "exchanged cordial messages" with them even after the start of the pandemic.

Alexi's sister Anna Laiho told Helsingin Sanomat that the three surviving members of CHILDREN OF BODOM "have the full support of our family."

Anna, Alexi's Australian wife Kelli Wright-Laiho and a few close friends attempted to get him professional help in the fall of 2020, but he refused.

"At heart, he was a warm and caring person, always ready to help others. But he had his demons, and he wanted to fight those alone", Alexi's sister said. "He wanted to make his own choices. For better or worse."

Legendary Canadian rockers TRIUMPH kicked off their first tour in more than 30 years Friday night (April 10) in Orlando, Florida. For the 2026 tour, TRIUMPH's original members Gil Moore (drums, vocals) and Rik Emmett (guitar, vocals) are being joined by guitarist Phil X, drummer and keyboardist Brent Fitz and bassist Todd Kerns. Phil X, whose real name is Theofilos Xenidis, is a member of BON JOVI and a former member of TRIUMPH, while Fitz and Kerns are both members of SLASH FEATURING MYLES KENNEDY & THE CONSPIRATORS. Original TRIUMPH bassist Mike Levine will not take part in most of the shows after revealing in December that he has "a problem" with his hand that "precludes" him "from being able to really play well."

100% of the net proceeds of TRIUMPH's Orlando concert are being donated to Make-A-Wish, to create life-changing wishes for children with critical illnesses. The concert was held at Hard Rock Live Universal Orlando, and was part of the 23rd annual Celebration Exotic Car Festival, the world's largest exotic car charity event.

According to Setlist.fm, the setlist for the Orlando show was as follows:

01. When The Lights Go Down
02. Somebody's Out There
03. Spellbound
04. Allied Forces
05. Never Surrender
06. Rock & Roll Machine
07. Hold On
08. Blinding Light Show
09. Rocky Mountain Way (Joe Walsh Cover)
10. Lay It On The Line
11. 24 Hours A Day (intro only)
12. Follow Your Heart
13. Magic Power

Encore:

14. I Live For The Weekend
15. Fight The Good Fight

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

Regarding how TRIUMPH put together the setlist for the tour, Moore told Orlando Weekly: "I think we relied on the fans … You really don't know what your music is until decades go by, because that's when it resonates on the fans. And then they tell you, so as far as like setting up, you know what we want to do on the road, we've been listening for what the fans have to say, and they've spoken loud and clear to us. Honestly, after all these years, I feel like they're their songs. They're not ours anymore. We gave them to the fans. They told us what those songs meant, and we're answering to the call."

As for why TRIUMPH chose to kick off the tour in Orlando, Moore said: "It wasn't something that was initially planned. How it came together was STYX have played at a Make-A-Wish event previously, and [STYX singer] Lawrence Gowan is one of my dearest friends. When we decided we were going to tour, he was actually one of the very first people I phoned and he said, 'Gil, great to hear from you. What do you want to know?' And I said, 'Hey, man, you've been touring, and I haven't I want to know how to tour.' He says, 'Okay, I'm going to give you three pointers. Are you ready? You got to play drums and sing every day. That's number one. Number two: You've got to play drums and sing every day. Number three, don't forget number one and number two.' And I just cracked up. And then you know, little stuff for vocal warm-ups, how he does the scales, how he manages bus travel versus airline travel. What he does diet-wise to be really at game time, really, feel like he has all his energy when it's time to go on stage and STYX. I mean, he is like a powerhouse to be reckoned with, and I really thank him for that and it helped get Rik and I tour-ready. And Lawrence said to Jeff Ippoliti, who is at the Celebration Car Show [also a key fundraiser for central Florida's Make-A-Wish Foundation], 'I have a great idea for you. You should get TRIUMPH this year.' And Jeff goes, 'I'm a huge TRIUMPH fan, but they're not touring.' And Lawrence says, 'Oh, yes, they are.' So I talked to Jeff, and he told me about the Make-A-Wish event, which is near and dear to me. I have a charity of my own in Canada called Sounds Unite, which is a tiny bit similar in the sense that it's about free music, education and music wellness. But it's aimed at kids, and especially kids that are disadvantaged and marginalized. So the Make-A-Wish philosophy of helping a young person who's really caught a tough break in life, and grant them a wish is, to me, a fabulous idea. So I just told Jeff, I said, 'Yeah, we'd love to support Make-A-Wish, if you'd like us.' We were looking to rehearse more dates up here in Canada in that time period when he wanted to bring us to Florida. And everybody was, like, 'Oh, no, we're gonna rehearse in Florida.' So that was a sweetener. So that's how it came together."

TRIUMPH's 2026 North American run of shows are celebrating the band's 50th anniversary, and feature support from APRIL WINE. The 2026 trek will continue with another show in Florida, followed by series of dates in Canada, beginning April 22 in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, and running through a May 8 show in Calgary, Alberta. From there, the band will hit the U.S. starting May 13 in Rosemont, Illinois, and wrapping up June 6 in Boston. In all, 10 Canadian and 17 American cities are included on the tour.

Last month, Rik spoke to Dr. Music about what made him change his mind after previously saying that he would never tour with TRIUMPH again. Rik said: "There's a thing about fear. Like, what are you afraid of? And it's more a question of a challenge that you go, okay, well, let's just see what happens. Let's not be so afraid of tomorrow or the day after tomorrow or next week or the next month. Let's just kind of do it and see what happens. So let's ride the bus. Let's see what it's like. Let's try to play shows back to back and let's see what it's like. And I think that adventurism, that sense of trying to take something on… And, of course, I'm human. I'm afraid of things. And we're gonna find out that I have limitations; that's for sure. But part of it is to be 72 years of age and have an opportunity like this kind of drop in my lap and go, 'Okay, am I gonna be afraid of opportunity or am I gonna embrace it?' Am I gonna say, 'Climb the hill, see what's over on the other side. Let's go for it.' … There's moments where I go, 'Have I bitten off more than I can chew?' But then I go, 'Well, just chew and find out.' So it's more a question of sort of being in the moment and trying to just keep going in the moment. So that's what's happening."

This past February, Emmett told Mike Hsu of the 100 FM The Pike radio station about the fact that he previously said he would never tour with TRIUMPH again:  "What's happening here is that everybody that I do interviews with goes, 'Hey, Rik, you're such a lying hypocrite.' I'm human. But things sort of accumulated to the point where it's almost like hands got behind me and pushed me out onto the stage, into the spotlight again. And it's more the songs than anything else. They got used for hockey playoffs and baseball world series. And then Round Hill [Records] made the [TRIUMPH] tribute album and that made a bunch of noise. And [on that LP] there were all these guys like Slash [of GUNS N' ROSES] and [HEART's] Nancy Wilson, and they're all singing my songs and playing guitar. And it was, like, 'Woah.' And it's the songs. People are saying, 'Yeah, 'Fight The Good Fight', 'Never Surrender', 'Hold On', 'Magic Power'. Come on, let's go. We wanna see this happen live. We wanna have a communion with you guys.' And we went, 'Oh, man. Okay. Well, let's see if we can organize it in a way that'll make it good.'"

Addressing TRIUMPH's expanded touring lineup, Rik said: "Now I got Todd Kerns and Brent Fitz, and they both toured with Alice Cooper and Slash, and Phil X, who routinely goes out on the road with BON JOVI. He replaced me in TRIUMPH in the first place. So it's not like we don't have a large safety net. But we are gonna be able to make this thing happen in a way that I'm gonna feel, like, 'No, we're doing justice to that catalog. These songs are still happening in a good way.' And I do have a personal trainer now in order to try and get me into shape for all of this."

Last December, Emmett was asked by SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk" how Phil, Brent and Todd would be involved in "filling out the sound" and "filling in" where Rik and Gil are no longer able to reproduce the original material. Emmett said: "The big thing is, first of all, they're incredibly skilled and talented and experienced musicians in their own right. And they deserve to end up feeling like they're as much a part of this as Gil and Mike and I are. I want them to feel that sense of sort of ownership and pride in what's going on, because — and this goes back to the songs again and the way that we present them, those songs have a life of their own. But I think this hunger that everybody is understanding is out there now for TRIUMPH to come back and play these songs, I think that hunger will be sustained by those guys, even if we get old and infirm and we can't necessarily do it. I think the songs are still gonna be there, and if those younger guys wanna start carrying a bigger workload, I think they could in."

Referencing the fact that Phil X, Fitz and Kerns previously played with Gil and Rik on June 6, 2025 at the Rogers Festival At The Final, a free outdoor concert in the ICE District ahead of Game 2 of the 2025 Stanley Cup final between the Edmonton Oilers and Florida Panthers in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, Emmett continued: "In the short term, I'm gonna tell you this: I know that they can all sing fantastic. And there was a moment in Edmonton, and it actually made it on social media, where Gil and I and those three guys, in the trailer, we were just singing 'Lay It On The Line' background vocals to warm up. And I thought, 'Okay.' This was a great moment — it was one of my favorite moments in that experience out there — and I thought that should be part of the show. We should have moments where the band should cut out in 'Lay It On The Line' and we should just sing the harmonies. And we can do that in 'Fight The Good Fight'. We can do that in songs that we never did it originally. It's like another arrow in my quiver, it's another tool. I go, 'Okay.' There's things I wanna try and take advantage of. And they're all incredibly skilled. Fitzy can play keyboard parts, and Todd is as good a guitar player as he is a bass player. There's so many playing cards that are on the table now, I go, 'Oh…' Those people that are only listening on radio, I'm rubbing my hands in glee. That's what's happening. This is gonna be a really fun thing to get to play with over the next little while. And then those weeks that Gil was talking about, those dress rehearsals and stuff, man, I think there's gonna be an opportunity to build some things. And never mind the [stage] production that Gil's talking about and where this whole thing started, just musically, artistically, there's gonna be something here that's gonna be quite something."

Regarding how Fitz and Kerns were chosen to take part in the TRIUMPH 2026 tour, Gil said: "When I convinced Phil that this was something [that was gonna happen] — and at first I think he thought, 'Oh, this is fanciful. It's not gonna happen.' And then he realized, 'No, no, it's serious. It's gonna happen.' So when it came to filling the other spots in and stuff, and he said, like, 'Who do you want me to get?' And he was kind of going through this, this, this and this. And I said, 'It's really simple. We've gotta find some people that have great hearts.' All these guys we're talking about, they're really good players, but we want people that are gonna be good in the dressing room. So we wanna get good people. And immediately he goes right to Todd and Brent. And he says, 'That settles it. I got the guys.' And it's because of how they are as people, in addition to all their talent. They're very, very talented, as Rik said, tremendously talented people, but it's who they are. That's why they were picked. And Phil picked them."

Noting that Phil X already replaced Rik in TRIUMPH once before, host Eddie Trunk asked Emmett if he was "worried" that he would have to take a step back and give the spotlight to the younger musician on the upcoming tour. "No, no, no. The total opposite," Rik said. "If somebody had said, 'Well, it's just gonna be the original three guys,' I would've been far more reluctant than when they came to me and said, 'And guess who else we've got?' And in my mind I'm thinking, 'Phil X.' I definitely wanna give this guy so much rope that he hangs himself, because he's such an incredible player and he's a different kind of a player than I am. Tahat whole world of sort of the Eddie Van Halen, Randy Rhoads — he's got a virtuosity that it's not a part of my playing at all. But he has all this experience. He's been out on the road with BON JOVI and that. And I think, well, I think maybe he's gonna get an opportunity to stretch himself a little bit more and maybe have a little bit more leeway.

"TRIUMPH is a band that doesn't really have a musical leader," Emmett explained. "Gil's kind of the leader in certain ways. When we first started in the early days, Mike was kind of the guy that was the producer in the studio and was a leader in that respect. But I think all of these guys that we've got, and Phil in particular, they have leadership capability in certain ways, and I want Phil's star to shine. I'm happy to kind of take a backseat, move back upstage a little bit and let him have some room."

Formed in Mississauga in 1975, TRIUMPH rose from playing high school auditoriums and rock 'n' roll bars to selling out iconic arenas, from Toronto's famed Maple Leaf Gardens to Reunion Arena in Dallas, Texas. Their virtuosic musicianship, soaring vocals, and dazzling, high-production live shows helped define an era of arena rock. Blending hard rock power with progressive ambition, TRIUMPH has sold over 15 million albums worldwide and earned multiple gold and platinum certifications, building a global following through headline tours and landmark festival performances, including the 1983 US Festival before 500,000 fans. With hits like "Lay It on The Line", "Magic Power" and "Fight The Good Fight" — combined with pioneering stage productions featuring pyrotechnics, laser lighting, and theatrical flair — TRIUMPH became arena rock legends, securing a permanent place in Canadian and international rock history.

The band's return to the road follows a defining year honoring TRIUMPH's impact across generations. In June 2025, the band was celebrated with "Magic Power: All-Star Tribute To Triumph" (Round Hill Records, June 6, 2025),a 15-track tribute album featuring rock luminaries such as Phil X, Sebastian Bach, Slash, Nancy Wilson, Joey Belladonna, Dee Snider, Lawrence Gowan, Deen Castronovo, Alex Lifeson, Jeff Keith, Mickey Thomas and produced by the world-renowned Mike Clink (GUNS N' ROSES, MÖTLEY CRÜE, WHITESNAKE).

Further solidifying their celebrated status, TRIUMPH was inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall Of Fame in October, a prestigious honor recognizing their enduring influence, masterful songwriting, and contributions to Canada's cultural legacy. This induction adds to their long list of accolades, which includes membership in the Canadian Music Industry Hall Of Fame (2007),the Canadian Music Hall Of Fame (2008),and Canada's Walk Of Fame (2019).

Emmett, who quit TRIUMPH — acrimoniously, in 1988 — over music and business disputes, went on to pursue a solo career, while TRIUMPH carried on with future BON JOVI guitarist Phil X for one more album, 1992's "Edge Of Excess", before calling it a day the following year.

Emmett was estranged, both personally and professionally, from the two other members of the legendary Canadian classic rock power trio for 18 years before they repaired their relationship.

After 20 years apart, Emmett, Levine and Moore played at the 2008 editions of the Sweden Rock Festival and Rocklahoma. A DVD of the historic Sweden performance was made available four years later.

Trafalgar Releasing has released another official trailer for the upcoming IRON MAIDEN feature documentary, now titled "Iron Maiden: Burning Ambition". Check it out below.

Documenting one of the most iconic journeys in music history, the film is set to hit theaters for a limited time only beginning May 7, 2026, with tickets going on sale today (Wednesday, March 18).

Directed by Malcolm Venville ("Churchill At War") and produced by Dominic Freeman ("Spirits In The Forest - A Depeche Mode Film"), the feature‑length documentary charts IRON MAIDEN's remarkable five‑decade journey.

Alongside the band, the documentary features on‑camera reflections from prominent admirers, including Javier Bardem, Lars Ulrich and Chuck D, each speaking to IRON MAIDEN's influence on music, culture and generations of fans worldwide.

When it was first made available in February, the key art by Albert "Akirant" Quirantes offered the first visual look at the documentary.

Formed in East London in 1975, IRON MAIDEN have grown into one of the world's most influential and enduring rock bands. Across 50 years they have released 17 studio albums, sold over 100 million records, and performed almost 2,500 concerts across 64 countries.

The documentary arrives as the band continues its two-year "Run For Your Lives" world tour, which included a triumphant homecoming performance at London Stadium a short distance from where it all began five decades ago.

A recently announced, one-of-a-kind, celebration named EddFest in historic Knebworth Park, England, on July 11 forms part of over 50 shows worldwide in 2026.

IRON MAIDEN were founded in 1975 by bassist Steve Harris and have grown to become one of the world's most celebrated bands. With a steady recording output beginning with their self-titled 1980 debut, they have released 17 studio albums, 13 live albums and 47 singles which have sold in excess of 100 million copies worldwide. They have played almost 2,500 live shows across 64 countries and were carried to some of these aboard Ed Force One, a Boeing 757 and then later a 747 piloted by singer Bruce Dickinson. They have been the recipients of a Grammy Award and a Brit Award, among many other accolades, most recently joining THE ROLLING STONES and PINK FLOYD with their very own Royal Mail stamp set. Their beer, Trooper Beer, is now in its twelfth year and has sold in excess of 40 million pints and is distributed in 68 countries, including six local variants in USA, Germany, Brazil, Spain, Sweden and Australia. 2025 marked the band's official 50th year and is being celebrated by a two-year world tour titled "Run For Your Lives" and a range of events and products including their first-ever official hardcover visual history book, "Infinite Dreams".

Four of the musicians who played with Ace Frehley in his solo band — Ryan Spencer Cook on bass/vocals, Jeremy Asbrock on guitar/vocals, Matt Starr on drums and Derrek Hawkins on guitar — honored the legendary original KISS guitarist by performing Frehley's 1978 solo album in full, along with KISS classics, at their April 3 concert at Capitol Theatre in Rome, New York. Video of the concert — filmed and uploaded by JPL Productions— can be seen below.

In 2018, Asbrock, Cook, Philip Shouse and Christopher Williams performed with KISS bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons as the GENE SIMMONS BAND. The foursome were then invited to join Ace's band as Simmons was scheduled to return to KISS to prepare for the "End Of The Road" tour. Asbrock, Cook and Shouse accepted the invitation, but Willams could not do so due to a prior commitment with the German metal band ACCEPT.

"Gene [told Ace], 'If it's okay with them, it's okay with me,'" Asbrock, who played with Frehley for seven years, recalled in an October 2025 interview with Rolling Stone. "Later on, Gene pulled me into his dressing room, and the KISS Kruise was coming up, and he told us that Ace was going to ask us to do the cruise. Then we went to Japan from there with Ace and he asked us to be the band. I joined in September of 2018, so I've held the guitar-player position longer than any musician he's had, consecutively."

Frehley passed away last October at the age of 74. The founding KISS guitarist died of blunt-trauma injuries to his head due to a fall, the Morris County Medical Examiner confirmed in a report. The manner of death was ruled an accident.

According to the report, a CT scan of Frehley's head revealed multiple contusions, bone fractures to the back of his skull, hemorrhages, and a subdural hematoma (the type of bleeding that occurs in a person's brain after a head injury). Additional bruises were found on the musician's hip, thigh, and abdomen. The report also noted that Frehley had suffered a stroke.

A separate toxicology report on Frehley's blood at the time of his death has not yet been released.

Frehley's longtime manager John Ostrosky confirmed to the New York Post that the late KISS icon was laid to rest at Woodlawn Cemetery in Bronx, New York.

The legendary musician was buried on October 22 following a private memorial on October 21 at Sinatra Memorial Home in Yonkers, New York.

Frehley, whose real name was Paul Daniel Frehley, passed away peacefully surrounded by family in Morristown, New Jersey. He reportedly died nearly two weeks after a second fall at his home, which led to him being placed on life support after a brain bleed. The musician's family made the heartbreaking decision to take him off the ventilator.

Frehley's family confirmed his death, writing in a statement: "We are completely devastated and heartbroken. In his last moments, we were fortunate enough to have been able to surround him with loving, caring, peaceful words, thoughts, prayers and intentions as he left this earth.

"We cherish all of his finest memories, his laughter, and celebrate his strengths and kindness that he bestowed upon others. The magnitude of his passing is of epic proportions, and beyond comprehension. Reflecting on all of his incredible life achievements, Ace's memory will continue to live on forever!"

Ace co-founded KISS with guitarist/vocalist Paul Stanley, Gene and drummer Peter Criss in New York City in 1973. Frehley appeared on KISS's first nine albums, and returned for the band's 1998 reunion album, "Psycho Circus", only to leave again. He was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame with the rest of KISS's original lineup in 2014.

Frehley first left KISS in 1982. He rejoined in 1996 and parted ways with the band once again in 2002 after the conclusion of KISS's first "farewell tour." Since his departure, guitarist Tommy Thayer had assumed the role of the Spaceman.

Earlier in October, Frehley scrapped the remainder of his previously announced 2025 tour dates due to unspecified "medical issues".

The legendary rocker announced the cancelation two weeks after he pulled out of the Antelope Valley Fair in Lancaster, California after sustaining minor injuries in a fall at his home.

Frehley had a rocky relationship with Simmons and Stanley whom he blamed for exacerbating his abuse of drugs and alcohol because they allegedly minimized his contributions to KISS.

In 2019, Simmons told Guitar World that Frehley and Criss had exited KISS three times, in part because they "weren't carrying their load" and weren't dependable onstage. In response, Frehley called Simmons and Stanley "control freaks, untrustworthy and… too difficult to work with."

Ace said in a 2024 interview that he got sober in 2006 after "10 car accidents" and credited his daughter Monique with inspiring him to give up drinking in 2006.

"My daughter calls me up and goes, 'Dad, I'm not hearing good things about you.' I looked in the mirror and just said, 'Shit — she's right,'" he said. "That evening, I called my sponsor and he took me to an AA meeting, and I've been sober ever since."

Frehley married Jeanette Trerotola in 1978 before they legally separated seven years later but remained married. She survives him, along with their daughter Monique, brother Charles, sister Nancy Salvner, and a number of nieces, nephews and extended family members.

We Are Back In The New York Grove
April 3 Rome Capitol Theatre. Rome, NY
April 4 Buntsy’s Band Stand Webster, NY

Posted by A Tribute To Ace Frehley Featuring The Ace Frehley Band on Monday, March 23, 2026

VAN HALEN frontman David Lee Roth made a surprise appearance at the Coachella Valley Music And Arts Festival in Indio, California on Friday, April 10, joining singer Teddy Swims for a rendition of the band's classic song "Jump".

Swims's Coachella stage was transformed into a stylized apartment set, complete with a bedroom, living room and even a front door, for which he used a doorbell sound effect to welcome each of his three surprise onstage collaborators — Roth, Joe Jonas and Vanessa Carlton. First emerged Jonas who joined Swims for a rendition of the JONAS BROTHERS' "When You Look Me In The Eyes". Next came Carlton who delivered her 2001 hit "A Thousand Miles".

When the doorbell rang for the last time, Roth stepped through, dressed in a leather vest and skintight trousers and flashing his trademark grin.

"Oh my God! It's David Lee Roth from the best fucking band of all time, VAN HALEN!" Swims told the audience before he and Roth delivered a playful and slightly imperfect version of "Jump", at one point missing their cue and laughing it off.

Coachella 2026 runs April 10-12 and 17-19 at the Empire Polo Club in Indio. This year's main-stage headliners are Sabrina Carpenter, Justin Bieber and Karol G.

Both weekends of Coachella, which is in its 25th edition this year, are sold out.

In recent years, notable surprise acts have appeared at the event, including WEEZER and Ed Sheeran in 2025, BLINK-182 in 2023 and ARCADE FIRE in 2022.

Earlier this year, Roth announced a 30-date solo tour of North America. The 71-year-old former VAN HALEN singer will launch the trek on April 16 in Airway Heights, Washington and will visit California, Arizona and Texas later in the month before playing in Tennessee, Florida, North Carolina and Ontario, among others, in May. June will see Roth hit New York, New Jersey, Ohio, Minnesota and Wisconsin, among other states. In August, David will play at the Sturgis Buffalo Chip in Sturgis, South Dakota.

Roth's solo shows in 2025 saw him backed by Al Estrada on guitar, Ryan Wheeler on bass, Francisco Valentino on drums and Danny Wagner on keyboards.

Roth's summer 2025 U.S. tour concluded on September 14 in Napa, California.

Roth played his first full solo concert in more than five years on May 3 at the 2025 edition of the M3 Rock Festival at the Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland.

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.

Legendary rock band CACTUS, whose current lineup includes original drummer Carmine Appice (also of VANILLA FUDGE and BECK, BOGERT & APPICE fame),singer Ed Terry, guitarist Artie Dillon and bassist James Caputo, was joined by a number of guest musicians, including Billy Sheehan (MR. BIG, THE WINERY DOGS),Eric Gales, Doug Aldrich (WHITESNAKE, DIO),Tony Franklin (THE FIRM, BLUE MURDER, Lou Gramm),Pat Travers, Doug "Dug" Pinnick (KING'S X) and Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal (GUNS N' ROSES, ASIA, SONS OF APOLLO) for the "Temple Of The Blues II" album-release concert on April 3 at the Arcada Theatre in St. Charles, Illinois. Fan-filmed video of the show can be seen in the YouTube playlist below, courtesy of the Scott Sigman channel on YouTube. (Note: After each song, the YouTube player automatically jumps to the next song in the playlist.)

Released on April 3 via Cleopatra Records, "Temple Of The Blues II" is the follow-up to CACTUS's 2024 release "Temple Of The Blues" and features a host of guest musicians on the eleven cuts, including a bonus track on the CD.

Oft described as America's LED ZEPPELIN, the original CACTUS grew out of Appice's past experiences with VANILLA FUDGE and BECK, BOGERT & APPICE, debuting in 1970 with a self-titled album and an immediate impact on the live circuit. And "Temple Of Blues II" takes us back to their birth — that summer, CACTUS were among the main attractions at the Isle Of Wight festival in England, and the new album's "Purple Haze" reunites them with both another of that bill's audience favorites, Melanie, and its overall headliner, Jimi Hendrix.

Elsewhere on this thunderous sequel, Pat Travers returns for the mighty "Moanin' At Midnight"; Joe Lynn Turner (RAINBOW, DEEP PURPLE),joins Steve Morse (DEEP PURPLE),Carmine's "Guitar Zeus" bandmate Tony Franklin and Derek Sherinian (DREAM THEATER) for "Bad Stuff"; Dee Snider (TWISTED SISTER) and Tracii Guns (L.A. GUNS) lead the way for "The Little Red Rooster"; and Ted Nugent and Bob Daisley (OZZY OSBOURNE, RAINBOW) join forces for an astonishing "Spoonful".

Formed in 1970 from the ashes of VANILLA FUDGE by Carmine Appice and Tim Bogert, the initial CACTUS lineup also featured guitarist Jim McCarty (from Mitch Ryder and THE BUDDY MILES EXPRESS) and AMBOY DUKES vocalist Rusty Day. While CACTUS saw success from the start and soon built a loyal fanbase, by early 1973 the band had collapsed mainly due to lack of real support from its label and the fact that Jeff Beck was now ready play with Carmine and Tim in BECK, BOGERT & APPICE. CACTUS reformed in 2006, three decades after the tragic death of Rusty Day with Randy Pratt on harp and Jimmy Kunes on vocals. When Bogert was forced into retirement due to complications after a serious motorcycle accident, Pete Bremy joined on bass before Jim Caputo replaced him in 2020.

The current touring lineup of CACTUS, consisting of Appice, singer Ed Terry, guitarist Artie Dillon and bassist James Caputo, came together for 2024's "Temple Of The Blues".

Drummer Nick Shabatura made his live debut with CORROSION OF CONFORMITY on April 7 at Hell at The Masquerade in Atlanta, Georgia. Fan-filmed video of the concert can be seen below (courtesy of the YouTube channel AmyMeacham).

Shabatura, who has previously played with DESECRATE THE HOUR and the Chicago-based NIRVANA tribute band SMELLS LIKE NIRVANA, landed the C.O.C. gig at the recommendation of ANTHRAX/PANTERA drummer Charlie Benante.

The Masquerade marked the first show of CORROSION OF CONFORMITY's North American headlining tour with support provided by WHORES and CROBOT. The journey commenced with a pair of headlining shows on April 7 and April 8 in Atlanta and Greensboro, respectively, with WHORES. From there, the band headed to Sayreville on April 9 to join CLUTCH for a run of dates through May 3 in Asheville (with additional support by JD Pinkus). CORROSION OF CONFORMITY reconvenes with WHORES on May 5 in Toronto and May 6 in Montreal with CROBOT joining the caravan for all remaining dates through May 16 in New Orleans.

In a recent interview with Shawn Ratches of Laughingmonkeymusic, CORROSION OF CONFORMITY guitarist Woody Weatherman spoke about the band's latest two additions, Shabatura and bassist Bobby "Rock" Landgraf. Regarding how Bobby ended up joining the group, Woody said: "[We were] buddies. [He's] just a great friend. We know he's a fantastic musician. His main instrument's a guitar, but he's pretty prolific on that four-string too. And, of course, he had worked with [CORROSION OF CONFORMITY guitarist/vocalist Pepper] Keenan in DOWN before. Kirk [Windstein] couldn't make some [DOWN] tours, and Bobby stepped in as the second guitarist in DOWN. And we had played shows with Bobby's other band, HONKY, [his] long-running band. So we knew him. And we know we get along. And that plays a big part in it too. You don't wanna get somebody in there that you don't get along with. That wouldn't work… [We also want] somebody that's familiar with road travel, 'cause that's a big part of what we do. We're kind road dogs. We're getting ready to do that again coming up. We're gonna be out for quite a while. So it's important."

Woody went on to say that Shabatura "is gonna be the touring drummer" for CORROSION OF CONFORMITY. "[He's] a fellow out of Chicago who was recommended by Charlie Benante [ANTHRAX and PANTERA drummer]." Referencing drummer Stanton Moore, who played on CORROSION OF CONFORMITY's 2005 album "In The Arms Of God" and laid down the drum tracks for C.O.C.'s recently released double album, "Good God / Baad Man", Woody continued: "We played Stanton some of [Nick's] stuff he was doing, and Stanton was, like, 'That's your guy for the road. He's awesome.' And Nick came down a week or two ago and we did some rehearsing and it was awesome. So we're set. We never would've heard of Nick if not for Charlie bringing it up. So hats off to Charlie for sending him our way."

Earlier in March, Moore gave Shabatura's addition to CORROSION OF CONFORMITY his blessing, writing on social media: "I approve this message! I went by rehearsals in Riffississippi the other day to meet and hang with Nick. He is an amazing drummer and a super cool guy. He showed up having completely done his homework and already sounds great playing with the band.

"The plan was always for me to make this record with the guys and then to find somebody to do the touring. Well, we found the guy and he is Nick Shabatura! Thanks Charlie Benante for the recommendation".

"Good God / Baad Man" came out on April 3 via Nuclear Blast. Produced by Grammy Award winner Warren Riker (FUGEES, DOWN, CATHEDRAL) and featuring cover art by famed New Orleans artist Scott Guion, the LP was recorded at Blak Shak Studios in Riffissippi, USA, Dockside Studios in Maurice, Louisiana, and BEE GEES legend Barry Gibb's home studio in Miami, Florida.

CORROSION OF CONFORMITY's first four albums left a permanent mark on headbangers, longhairs, and street punks everywhere: Underground classics "Eye For An Eye" (1984) and "Animosity" (1985) followed by slightly more overground bangers "Blind" (1991) and "Deliverance" (1994). By the time CORROSION OF CONFORMITY carved off "No Cross No Crown" nearly a quarter century later, they were legends in their own time, revered by two generations of punk, metal, and rock fans.

Atlanta GA is the first date on the upcoming Tour ! #masquerade Nuclear Blast Whores. Crobot Seymour Duncan Gibson Jim...

Posted by Corrosion Of Conformity on Tuesday, February 24, 2026

Former ANTHRAX and current ARMORED SAINT frontman John Bush has released a live video of the ANTHRAX classic "Random Acts Of Senseless Violence", which originally appeared on the band's 1995 album "Stomp 442".

Filmed on December 13, 2025 at the legendary Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood, California during the debut performance of Bush's "Celebrating The Songs Of Anthrax" show, the video showcases John with his CATEGORY 7 bandmates Phil Demmel (guitar),Mike Orlando (guitar) and Jason Bittner (drums),along with his longtime ARMORED SAINT partner and best friend Joey Vera on bass (CATEGORY 7 bassist Jack Gibson had a schedule conflict and was unable to make the gig). CATEGORY 7 also opened the show before returning as John's backing band for the ANTHRAX material. Bush performed songs spanning all four albums he recorded with the band: "Sound Of White Noise", "Stomp 442", "Volume 8: The Threat Is Real" and "We've Come For You All".

Comments John: "Stoked to release this song from the first show I did in my hometown of Los Angeles celebrating the songs from my era in ANTHRAX. Can't wait to play this song as well as many others from the four records I made with them at the Milwaukee Metal Fest."

John and the band will be appearing June 7 at Milwaukee Metal Fest and are planning select shows in the U.S. and Europe in 2027.

In an interview with Paltrocast With Darren Paltrowitz conducted before the Whisky A Go Go gig, Bush stated about the fact that he had to prepare for his ANTHRAX-era shows: "Well, I've been singing to the ANTHRAX songs right now because I'm trying to remember them. Strangely enough, they actually are coming back to me, which is funny 'cause I haven't sung those songs in years. Some of 'em I have — I did a couple things at the METAL ALLEGIANCE shows that we did — but mostly just like 'Only' and maybe 'Room For One More'. Yeah, it's funny how my memory is still there. I still have a lot of work to do, but, yeah, it's good… But, yeah, this is a memory challenge, for sure."

Asked if he looks back fondly on 2003's "We've Come For You All", which marked his final album of new material with ANTHRAX, Bush said: "Yeah. I look fondly on all of 'em, really, to be honest. I think all four records are really cool — all a little different from one another. Certainly different times and different growth of the band. But 'We've Come For You All' was pretty solid. We signed to Nuclear Blast in Europe at that time, so they kind of gave us a resurgence, 'cause they're a great label in Europe and they just know what they're doing. And we really kind of re-established ourselves on that record, particularly in Europe. In America, I think it was on Sanctuary, and I think they kind of folded not too long after that. So, not as well of a job done here in America, but it was still received well and we toured and some great, great tunes on that record. Some really powerful anthems, if you will."

During an appearance on the July 31, 2025 episode of SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk", Bush was asked what led to his decision to play several concerts showcasing songs from his era of ANTHRAX. He responded: "Obviously I've talked about this for quite a while, and it's come and gone because of various reasons — scheduling, or maybe I was just reluctant at the time. And Dan DeVita, who I owe a lot to, because he's the agent who books ARMORED SAINT, and he's booking this, and I've known Dan for years and years. He works for TKO, and he's doing great for himself, and he's always been there for us and for me. And the thing is, he kept saying, like, 'When do you wanna do this? Let's do this.' And we had a plan to do it in the summer of this year. We had dates for Europe that were ready to go. And then for whatever reason, I don't know if I got cold feet or some of the negotiations kind of fell apart with some of the people I was talking to. And so we pulled out. And we actually had some legitimate gigs — we had a couple of festivals that were big and it was gonna be cool. For whatever reason, it didn't happen. So it's a moot point now. But the reality is, look, I am gonna be 62 [in August]. And I've been talking about this forever, and so let's just do it. Let's stop talking about it and let's do it. So we found the right dates to do it, which is in December, and it's three shows. It's L.A., it's St. Charles, which is outside of Chicago, and then New York City. And I'm gonna go out and we're gonna play songs from these records, and I think it's gonna be really exciting and fun. I think fans are gonna be stoked, and I'm excited. I'm looking forward to it. There's really, really killer tunes on those records that I'm really proud of, and it's gonna be fun to sing them live."

On the topic of how he chose the musicians to play these shows with, Bush said: "It was gonna be the four guys from CATEGORY 7, and Jack Gibson just has a scheduling conflict. So that was the original plan. But it was funny, 'cause we talked about doing this and it was, like, well, here's the band. We've only played one show with CATEGORY 7 — we played the Whisky [A Go Go] just a couple weeks back — but every time we were gonna do some shows, a couple of things fell apart, a couple of balls were dropped. Whatever — that's a moot point. But I think the [CATEGORY 7] record actually is pretty off the charts; it's a killer record, [and I'm] really proud of it. And so we wanted to play some shows, and then, like I said, a couple of things fell apart. But then the idea came of, like, okay, well, wait a minute here. Here's a bunch of incredible musicians. And these guys can play these songs. Bittner played in ANTHRAX, or did some touring with them when Charlie [Benante] was having some injury issues. So he knows a lot of tunes. And it just made sense. It was, like, 'Well, wait a minute. We could piggyback this thing. It'll be really kind of interesting to have one band play and then kind of come back and play again.' So, it's gonna be a little much for not only me as a singer, it's gonna be a lot of songs. It's gonna be a lot of songs for the band to know and learn. But I think in the end it's gonna be a cool story, and it's gonna be fun. Like I was saying, if I was trying to put a band together from scratch of people that I would like to do these ANTHRAX songs, I would choose those guys 'cause they're amazing. So it just made sense. So it's gonna be a lot of fun. And like I said, a lot of these songs — I mean, 'Potter's Field' and 'Fueled' and 'Safe Home', we haven't played these songs — I haven't played these songs, and nor have they, in years and years. So, it's gonna be really cool and exciting to kind of resurrect some of these tunes that a lot of people dug and are great songs that just haven't been heard in a long time."

Asked about the possibility of playing more shows celebrating his era of ANTHRAX in 2026, John said: "Well, we're gonna take this step [by playing these three shows in December]. And for me, this was a big step. So I was, like, let's do this. And Dan, like I said, my agent, he was, like, 'Why don't we do this? We'll kind of play like three shows, strategic, and start with this.' The [new] ARMORED SAINT record is coming out in March or April, so I'm gonna be definitely wanting to do a lot of touring and association with that, because we're really stoked about this upcoming [ARMORED SAINT] album — it sounds killer — so we're gonna do a lot of stuff with that. So it's finding a way to merge some of these things together, but let me kind of get this out there, see what the vibe is. It seems like it's actually pretty awesome so far… But let's see what we get and let's see what happens. And sure, there's a lot of places that I would like to take it — certainly Europe and even South America and maybe even Japan. And the sky's kind of the limit. Obviously, there's a shelf life 'cause this is not new material. These are records that are 20 to 30 years old at this point. So it's not new music. And, of course, ANTHRAX has new music, and they're making a record and they have a new record coming out next year. But the fact is they just really haven't been playing any of these tunes. So they've been kind of almost put in a time capsule. And I get it — I really do. To just call it as it is, I understand, especially from the standpoint of [longtime ANTHRAX singer] Joey Belladonna. They're gonna have a third new record after he came back in the band. They obviously have their catalog of stuff that he did, and they probably have a plethora of material to play, not including any of the Bush songs. But the reality is I don't want these songs to just go into oblivion here. There's some really great material here, and in the '90s these songs had a lot of impact on people. So, I'm figuring, well, if you guys aren't gonna do it, then I should do it. And that's why I'm finally doing it."

Asked if he would still be doing these shows if the Belladonna-fronted lineup of ANTHRAX was performing a lot of the material Bush recorded with the band live, John said: "Well, I'd say most likely not. I used to say, 'Do songs [from my era]. I want you to do tunes.' I understand why you don't, but I wish they would. Because, again, it's something that I invested emotionally and a lot of time, as well as those guys did. So, I would prefer them to play the tunes. I understand if they don't, but if they were, then maybe not. But they don't, with the exception of 'Only'. And there's a lot of great tunes. I've been putting a setlist together, and it's probably more songs than I really wanna sing, to be honest, 'cause it could be a very long set. Plus I wanna play some deep tracks — I don't wanna just play the obvious songs, like 'Only', 'Room For One More', 'Fueled'. I wanna play 'Safe Home', whatever. I wanna play some deep tracks, because it will be more fun that way. So, would I do this [if ANTHRAX was still performing songs from the Bush era live]? Probably not. I would say probably not. But they're not, so I am."

ANTHRAX has had a number of vocalists — including Bush, Belladonna, Neil Turbin and Dan Nelson — over the last 42 years, with guitarist Scott Ian and drummer Charlie Benante remaining the sole bandmembers who have appeared on every one of the group's studio albums.

Turbin sang on ANTHRAX's debut LP, 1984's "Fistful Of Metal", before getting booted and being replaced by Belladonna. Belladonna performed on four ANTHRAX albums, including the fan favorite "Among The Living" (1987) before he himself was fired over creative and stylistic differences. Bush fronted ANTHRAX between 1992 and 2005 but was sidelined when the band reunited with Belladonna for a 20th-anniversary tour. When that collapsed, and relationships disintegrated with next frontman Nelson, Bush returned for a time before Belladonna took the job back in 2010.

Former W.A.S.P. guitarist Chris Holmes has canceled his previously announced tour of the United Kingdom and Scandinavia, scheduled for May 2026. All Chris Holmes shows taking place after July remain unaffected.

On Friday (April 10),the social media of The Abyss club in Gothenburg, Sweden, where Holmes was scheduled to perform on May 27, shared the following official statement from the the 67-year-old musician and his wife/manager Catherine Holmes: "Due to health issues that require immediate attention, we must unfortunately cancel the May tour. We will keep you updated as soon as we have more information. We would like to thank each and every one of you for your understanding, and we ask that you please accept our apologies."

In February 2022, Holmes was diagnosed with throat and neck cancer, and he immediately postponed his touring commitments while he received treatment. He completed seven weeks of radiation therapy and five months later, he shared the good news with fans that his cancer was "gone".

Holmes joined W.A.S.P. in 1982 and remained with the group until 1990. In 1996, the guitarist returned to W.A.S.P. and stayed with the band until 2001. Chris has not played with W.A.S.P. since.

In 2021, Holmes told SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk" that W.A.S.P. was "a group, a band" on the first LP. "And after that, the second album, it wasn't a group — it was a one-man show," he said. "And it's been a one-man show after that ever since. It's the way it is. Look at the records. It's the way it is in that band."

According to Chris, he, guitarist Randy Piper, drummer Tony Richards and Blackie Lawless were all part of W.A.S.P. initial management contract, but Blackie was the only one signed to the record label. "Everybody thinks we [all] signed to the label, but it wasn't [like that]," Holmes told "Trunk Nation".

Despite the fact that he only got songwriting credit on a couple of the songs on each of the first four W.A.S.P. records, Holmes was adamant that his input was essential to the band's overall sound.

"If I would have quit after the first album, the way I play guitar, the way I play is really important to writing those songs," he told "Trunk Nation".

"If I hadn't joined in the beginning, it would have never worked. Blackie told me that the first day, when he came and talked to me to play in W.A.S.P. He says, 'I've got this band. It's not gonna work unless you're in it.' He told me that to my face."

Image credit: Perry Denton

It is with a Heavy heart that we have recived news that Chris Holmes has cancelled his appearence at The Abyss.
All...

Posted by The Abyss on Friday, April 10, 2026

In a new interview with Australia's The Rockpit, EVERGREY frontman Tom S. Englund spoke about the lyrical inspiration for the Swedish metal band's upcoming fifteenth album, "Architects Of A New Weave", which will be released on June 5, 2026 via Napalm Records. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I think what you always get with EVERGREY is a conceptual feel, in a sense. It's not a concept album per se at all. But it's dealing with the human psyche and the human relations and the stuff that goes around in the world right now. Like our second signal is 'The World Is On Fire', which is very, very — the timing is impeccable, unfortunately. So, yeah, we're just writing about the stuff that we see happening around us or to people we care about around us and to people in other countries that we love and cherish."

He continued: "The world is in turmoil, I would say. It's hard to grasp and it's hard to predict what's gonna happen next. Some people are making this a very uncertain place to be in. And, yeah, it's quite devastating, to be honest. It's hitting me hard, and it's making me think in ways that I wish that I [didn't] have to think about, like, 'Should I leave Sweden?' or 'Should I do something different?', stuff like that. Like I think most parents think about today that are in areas that are more challenged than Sweden is, definitely, of course. But, yeah."

Apparently referencing the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran and Russia's oil war with Ukraine, Tom said: "I'm so tired of the agenda of certain people. And I'm very certain that it's for [their] own personal gain that this is happening all around the world as well. People are earning big bucks on this. I just don't understand how much money you need. War is a money machine, and it's also keeping all of us, the small people, in place. We're better off being scared and not questioning stuff.

"I hate to get into politics because we're not a political band per se, but I think we're just bricks in a very big puzzle, and we're left being unaware of what the real agenda is, because it serves them better [that way]," he added.

Circling back to the overall message of "Architects Of A New Weave", Tom said: "I wanna really point this out, that this is probably one of the most positive albums we have done. It's about self-worth, it's about resurrection, it's about knowing where you're going, it's about feeling confident and wanting to make this place a better place. It's about me finding who I am after four to five decades, and finally I found my place in life, and then the rest of the world goes to shit. So, thanks for that… But, yeah, it's an album that sort of tackles all sides of the human issues, I guess. But, again, as I said, for me it carries a very positive message, a message of 'be you', because that's the only person you're gonna know how to be. And I guess that's what I found, weaving my own future, that now at least I know who I am and I know where I'm going, which I guess is very hard for people, and especially the young people today that are getting influenced by each and every one around them — social media, news, newspapers and parents and other friends telling them who to be. It's very tough growing up today, I believe. And I think it's so important to know who you are before somebody else tells you who to be, because that's happening 24 hours per day."

"Architects Of A New Weave" will arrive just days before EVERGREY takes the stage as special guest to the undisputed kings of heavy metal IRON MAIDEN for two shows on their "Run For Your Lives" world tour. The LP was produced by Tom S. Englund and Vikram Shankar, with a stellar mix by Adam "Nolly" Getgood.

Among other exclusive formats, "Architects Of A New Weave" comes with a bonus album, containing bonus tracks "Heights" and "One Heart", as well as an album mix of the previously released standalone single "Oxygen!" (2025). Additionally, it features a demo version of "Longing", instrumental tracks of "Leaving The Emptiness", both new songs, as well as a live version of "Falling From The Sun", the hit single off the previous record, "Theories of Emptiness" (2024) and continuation of "Ominous" off "A Heartless Portrait (The Orphean Testament)" (2022).

"Architects Of A New Weave" is the wake-up call you didn't know you needed: a plunge into thinning air, burning worlds, and lingering guilt — only to break free with fierce momentum.

Dive into "Architects Of A New Weave"'s standout tracks like "The World Is On Fire", "Leaving The Emptiness", "Heaven" and "The Prophecy", and the title anthem "Architects Of The New Weave". In the second half of the album, fellow Gothenburg icon Mikael Stanne (DARK TRANQUILLITY, THE HALO EFFECT, GRAND CADAVER, CEMETERY SKYLINE) joins Tom S. Englund in vocal duties for "A Burning Flame", the voices of the two scene legends intertwined compellingly.

"Architects Of A New Weave" track listing:

01. Welcome To The Pattern
02. The Shadow Self
03. Architects Of The New Weave
04. The World Is On Fire
05. Heaven
06. The Script
07. Leaving The Emptiness
08. Longing
09. A Burning Flame
10. Call Off Your Lions
11. Chains Of Shame
12. The Prophecy

Longtime EVERGREY drummer Jonas Ekdahl announced his departure from the band in May 2024, explaining in a statement that his "passion within music [had] gradually shifted from touring and playing live shows to the creative aspect of being in the studio: writing songs, recording, producing, and mixing. It has reached a point where I no longer find joy and excitement in touring, making it difficult to continue," he said. "It has felt like I was traveling away from something rather than toward something whenever we would go out to play. Instead, I want to dedicate my time, focus, and energy to writing, producing, and mixing."

EVERGREY's fourteenth studio album, "Theories Of Emptiness", came out in June 2024 via Napalm Records. The LP was produced by Englund and Jonas Ekdahl, and was mixed by Getgood, who worked closely with the band from the start — bringing out the vividness of the album's overall sonic profile. Rounding out the album's production, mastering was helmed by Thomas "Plec" Johansson (SOILWORK, THE NIGHT FLIGHT ORCHESTRA, ONSLAUGHT, THE GEMS, ELEINE and many more).

In a new interview with Anthony Bryant of The Hair Metal Guru, FIREHOUSE guitarist Bill Leverty spoke about the band's latest single, "Midnight Gasoline", which was made available in early March. "Midnight Gasoline" marks FIREHOUSE's second release with the band's new lead vocalist Nate Peck, 2023 "American Idol" golden ticket recipient from Season 21, who officially joined the group in 2024. He replaced late FIREHOUSE frontman C.J. Snare, who died on April 5, 2024 at the age of 64 following a lengthy battle with cancer.

Regarding how "Midnight Gasoline" came together, Bill said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Well, I had this guitar riff that I'd been playing for years to check the guitar when it's my turn at soundcheck. And at soundcheck, we get the drums first, and then we get the bass, then we get everybody's vocal mic, and then the last thing our soundman wants to hear is the guitar. And he wants to hear rhythm guitar. He wants to hear some rhythm guitar so he can balance it in with the other stuff. And so I've been playing that riff for a long time. And Nate came up, he goes, 'You know, we should do something with that riff.' And I was, like, 'Well, man, send me a title. What does this sound like?' He goes, 'Well, I'll think about that. Just record it for me and send it to me.' So I recorded it for him, e-mailed it to him, and he came back with 'Midnight Gasoline'. And I was, like, 'That is so cool. How did you come up with that, dude? You're 25.' But anyway, that was a great title. And then it just kind of took off from there. And we e-mailed back and forth."

Bill continued: "I put a lot of time into trying to get the details right to go from one section to the other. But the guy who really knocked that song out of the park was Michael Foster, our drummer, who — I think it's his best drumming performance ever, and he just keeps getting better and better as a recording artist and is a live performer. But this song, he really, really played so well on it. And [he's] just so creative and [he came up with] so many cool fills. And he lives pretty close to me here, so he could come back over and say, 'Man, I wanna change this little fill here,' and we could change that fill and get it. And he got it exactly the way he wanted it, and that's the way I wanted it. If your drummer's happy, the song's gonna be grooving. He's got a great ear for it too. So, yeah, so it was a team effort. Al [bassist Allen McKenzie] came over here and recorded the bass and his vocals, and so we've got a lot of background harmonies in there and a solo section that kind of takes the listener from the storyline, which is a couple going across the country and the solo section, it gets a little bit spooky. Like maybe they had a flat tire or maybe they're getting pulled or maybe something happened where they were getting their midnight gasoline, where it got scary. And then it gets back into being fun and cool again and a fun ending. So that's kind of how we got that one going."

Leverty went on to say that there are tentative plans for FIREHOUSE to eventually release a new album.  "We wanna write and record some more [songs]," he explained. "So we're working on ideas to try to decide which one to work on next. And that'll be song number three. After we get that done, we've got seven to go and we'll have a CD. So that's our plan.

"It took a while to get this one ['Midnight Gasoline']," he explained. "I mean, this one took a few months to figure out all the little pieces and get all the lyrics right and get everything recorded and then mixed. But some of 'em go a little faster. With this one, we really took our time to make it so that it was just right. I feel like everybody's happy in our band about it."

As for why FIREHOUSE hasn't made "Midnight Gasoline" available on any of the streaming music services so far, Bill said: "We like selling it from our web site for a dollar. That way people can support the band by purchasing it. One day it'll be on the streaming services, but we're not in a huge hurry to do that. We want the people who wanna support us to be able to do that. When it gets on the streaming services, it doesn't really trickle down to us very much, but that's just the way the music industry is now. We're not in it to try to get rich. We just wanna try to be able to make enough money to cover our recording costs and the flights that happen and put the gas in the car to get from one place to the other to do it. And that's about it. But if it's a dollar and somebody has an extra buck and they wanna support the band and get a cool song, that's the way to do it."

Asked if he has heard any longtime FIREHOUSE fans say "no C.J., no FIREHOUSE" in the two years since the singer's passing, Bill said: "A little bit, but I think anybody who's given Nate a fair listen will go, 'You know what? He really serves the song well' — all the songs, he does 'em great justice. And he has that natural tone that a lot of people expect. And he's just got it. So I don't let any of those [naysayers bother me] — and it's very few that say that, once they've gotten a chance to really listen to Nate and give him a chance."

According to Leverty, FIREHOUSE pays tribute to C.J. at every show by dedicating "Home Is Where The Heart Is" to the late vocalist. "That was one of the first songs that he and I wrote," Bill explained. "And he was really fond of that song. And we feel that heaven brought him back home. And so that's what we say every night, is that that song goes out to him."

Bill continued: "[C.J.] was such a huge part of our band. And he was such a great musician and a great singer and a great piano player and just an unbelievably awesome songwriter and just a great guy. Everybody that knew him loved him. And so we miss him, but he wanted us to go on — he wanted us to continue and to keep the music going. And he told me that several times before we lost him. And we didn't think we were gonna lose him. When we did, it was a shock, actually. 'cause he was due to come back in July [2024], and we lost him in April [2024]. He just had lost a lot of weight, and his heart couldn't keep up and he had a sudden cardiac arrest."

Reflecting on Snare's strengths as a vocalist, Leverty said: "Out of the whole career that we had together — we started playing together in 1988, and we got our first record out in 1990 — but that whole time, I can count on one hand how many shows that he lost his voice. And it was only because he got some kind of virus, like a strep throat or something, where he got laryngitis so bad that he couldn't [sing]. But it wasn't from overusage of the voice. He had such a strong voice that even when he was like, 'Yeah, I might not be able to hit all the notes tonight,' it would still blow everybody else away. And that's just the kind of guy he was. He really took care of his voice and really took care of his health. And that's why it was such a shock to us when he got sick, because he was the most healthy out of all of us, the strongest of all of us, and the most energetic. I mean, we'd get somewhere and he'd just want to go out and see it, where the rest of us are, like, 'Yeah, man, I gotta take a nap. I'm tired. I've traveled 46 hours.' And he's, like, 'Man, I wanna go.' So he was just one of those guys."

Peck has been singing with FIREHOUSE since October of 2023.

FIREHOUSE's first single with Peck, "Mighty Fine Lady", was made available on Spotify in July 2025.

Snare died was diagnosed with stage IV colon cancer in 2020 and took a hiatus from the band in 2023 to undergo abdominal surgery. However, his daughter is reported to have stated the official cause of death was cardiac arrest, according to TMZ.

In a statement on FIREHOUSE's social media, Snare's bandmates said he died "unexpectedly" despite his long illness.

They shared their "great sorrow" at losing their "brother… the rock and roll warrior.

"We are all in complete shock with CJ's untimely passing," they wrote.

"CJ was was arguably one of the best vocal talents of a generation, touring the world with FIREHOUSE non stop the past 34 years.

"Our heartfelt condolences go out to the entire Snare family, Katherine Little, friends, and all our beloved fans all over the world."

FIREHOUSE hasn't released a studio album since 2011's "Full Circle", which featured re-recorded versions of some of the band's older songs. The group's last collection of new material, "Prime Time", came out in 2003.

FIREHOUSE reached stardom during the early '90s with hits like "Reach For The Sky", "Don't Treat Me Bad" and "All She Wrote", as well as its signature power ballads "I Live My Life For You", "Love Of A Lifetime" and "When I Look Into Your Eyes".

At the 1992 American Music Awards, FIREHOUSE won the award for "Favorite Heavy Metal/Hard Rock New Artist". They were chosen over NIRVANA and ALICE IN CHAINS.

Formed nearly four decades ago, FIREHOUSE's classic lineup consisted of Snare, Leverty, Foster and bassist Perry Richardson. Richardson left in 2000 and was replaced by Allen McKenzie in 2003.

In a new interview with Paul Cashmere of Noise11, BUSH frontman Gavin Rossdale spoke about the personal nature of the lyrics on the band's latest album, "I Beat Loneliness", and having to perform some of those songs live night after night. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "The most important thing for me is to really have that authenticity and to be very connected with what you say and what you think and what you feel. And part of being in a band or being in a band that matters to people is accepting that you have clown-like qualities and you are there to entertain and to elevate people. And so I feel that those words are the best way to connect to people, whether they accept me or not. I've never written about flashy cars or a house or a meal or those kinds of things. For me it's the human journey, the human experience, how we deal with the inevitable challenges that we all come across, how we play hurt, how we play injured, how we recover, how we recover when we're right, how we recover when we're wrong, those human frailties.

"People are obsessed with mental health, much more so than they ever used to be," he continued. "And that's a good thing because I just see so much pressure on everyone, and so I kind of assumed this role, in a job where I write music, that gives an empathetic ear, gives inspiration, gives strength, hope to people, to some people. That's it. This is sort of quite zen. That's what gives my life meaning, to do music with meaning and provide comfort. 'Cause I meet people all the time who've been affected by the songs and by the records. I'm English — you're not allowed to take yourself too seriously — but I do take that effect seriously. So for me, it just gives me confidence to just dive into what I think is the most confessional stuff, 'cause it's just much more interesting to say 'I need help' in a song than it is to say 'I got a great car.'"

Rossdale added: "Now, of course, different strokes for different folks… For instance, I tried the song form, the Dylan-esque thing where you tell stories. I tried that when I first began writing, and I was just horrible at that. I just was terrible. And that never would've transferred to anyone caring. So it was only when I kind of went inside myself and thought about things introspectively that I sort of found some kryptonite. I found kryptonite, and then just worked off it ever since."

BUSH will embark on a U.S. tour this spring. Support on the trek, which will launch on April 7 in Pittsburgh, will come from MAMMOTH and JAMES AND THE COLD GUN.

BUSH's tenth studio album, "I Beat Loneliness" came out in July 2025 via earMUSIC. The LP was produced by Rossdale and Erik Ron (PANIC! AT THE DISCO, SET IT OFF, BAD OMEN).

In an August 2025 interview with the JJO Discover New Music Podcast, Gavin stated about the "I Beat Loneliness" album title: "Yeah, it's just a really powerful phrase that was probably one of the first things I thought of when I began writing for the record, and it just seemed to sum up what was important.

"Everyone has been talking so much about mental health, which is a much more healthy, open dialogue," he continued. "I've been trying to talk about it for years and in some ways that's been synonymous with the band. And what is meant to people is the kind of lyrics they can connect to, whatever the songs are. So I always find this thread between people that I meet with, with what we do with the band. And so it really gave me confidence to go write a record where I could try and just be as incisive and honest as I could be when I would write. And everything was as base as possible, like 'I beat loneliness' or 'we're all the same on the inside' or 'everyone is broken', 'I'm here to save your life', '60 ways to forget people' — all these things were different daily mantras and things that I was going through and different confessions. It's very confessional. And let's see how that pans out. But people are connecting to it."

Rossdale previously spoke about the lyrical inspiration for "I Beat Loneliness" in a separate interview with Baltimore's 98 Rock radio station.  He said at the time: "Well, I think it's like a snapshot of my life. I'm at a point in my life where I can look far enough back and remember when I first made records. I had no horizon, you know what I mean? And I didn't know what was happening, and the road was just infinite and open. And then, obviously, as you mature, you get older and you see what the lay of the land is and your time around, you gotta go, 'Okay, I can see the horizon.' So it kind of presents a different thing about making sure there's a reason to write. I call it making sure you improve the silence. And so I just went inside and found some things, just sort of experimented with myself musically and lyrically and just went inside and tried to be as clear as possible. Anytime I thought about an idea, I questioned myself if I was being clear enough about it. And I try to get right down to the kind of the really basic cell structure of people."

2024 marked the 30th anniversary of the release of BUSH's six-times-platinum debut album, "Sixteen Stone".

BUSH released "Loaded: The Greatest Hits 1994-2023" in November 2023 via Round Hill Records. The set included a new song called "Nowhere To Go But Everywhere", which was written by Gavin and produced by Rossdale and Corey Britz.

BUSH's current lineup consists of Rossdale, Chris Traynor (guitar),Corey Britz (bass) and Nik Hughes (drums).

BUSH broke up in 2002 but reformed in 2010, and has since released six albums: "The Sea of Memories" (2011),"Man On The Run" (2014),"Black And White Rainbows" (2017),"The Kingdom" (2020),"The Art Of Survival" (2022) and "I Beat Loneliness" (2025).

"Black And White Rainbows" was crafted after Rossdale went through a divorce with pop star/reality TV judge Gwen Stefani in 2015.

Photo credit: Chapman Baehler (courtesy of Cosa Nostra PR and earMUSIC)

The metal4head20 channel on YouTube has uploaded video of FOZZY singer Chris Jericho's 1980s KISS cover band KUARANTINE performing on April 3 at the Capitol Theatre in Rome, New York. You can watch the clips below.

Last November, KUARANTINE released the official music video for its version of "Unholy", the song originally written by Gene Simmons and Vinnie Vincent and featured on KISS's 1992 album "Revenge". The clip was produced by HM Studios and shot at HM Studios in Las Vegas, Nevada.

In 2024, KUARANTINE released its version of "Good Girl Gone Bad", a classic, hidden gem from the KISS songbook. The song was made available on Madison Records via The Orchard. It was the No. 1 Most Added track on the SMR Rock chart as well as the Most Added song on the Mediabase Active Rock Activator Panel.

When "Good Girl Gone Bad" was first released, Jericho said in a statement: "The mission of KUARANTINE has always been to pull the forgotten gems from the non-makeup, '80s KISS catalog, give them a modern polish, and unleash them on current mainstream rock radio, so they can get the respect they deserve. With that mindset, we feel we've hit another home run with the 1987-released underrated Gene Simmons classic 'Good Girl Gone Bad'. It's got more hooks than a tackle box, with a great chorus and brain-melting solos. This song is the perfect springtime tune to crank in your car and rock out with your unmentionables out! And with two Top 20 singles in our repertoire, we're stoked to get to the Top 10 and beyond. It's time to get KRAZY with KUARANTINE!"

In 2020, Jericho joined forces with TRIXTER/FOZZY bassist P.J. Farley, guitarist Joe McGinness and drummer Kent Slucher to form KUARANTINE. KUARANTINE's lineup is completed by YouTube sensation Charlie Parra Del Riego (guitar).

Six years ago, Jericho was asked by Loud Hailer if KISS was a big influence for how he wanted to perform with FOZZY in terms of putting on a show. He responded: "That's what rock 'n' roll is. My favorite frontmen were always about that — Paul Stanley [KISS], David Lee Roth [VAN HALEN], Mick Jagger [THE ROLLING STONES] and Bruce Dickinson [IRON MAIDEN]. It was always about the performance, and that's what rock 'n' roll is to me. I'd rather have a great performance rather than worry about hitting every note properly, which is important too, but you have to have some showmanship. You have to be a frontman, you have to be the party host. And that's I take great pride in doing that."

Regarding how he was first introduced to KISS's music, Jericho said: "I was a big BEATLES fan in the '70s and I was into THE STONES and that sort of thing, so when all of my friends were into KISS, I never really rated them. And then when I started to get into heavy metal, I'll never forget when I saw this video that started with his hands on fire and he looked like he was having the best time ever with his band, making out with chicks and hanging out backstage and then he jumps through a ring of fire, and I'm, like, 'Who is that guy?! Who is this?' 'This is KISS.' 'I thought that KISS wore makeup.' 'No, KISS took their makeup off a few years ago.' 'Well, who is that guy?' 'That's Paul Stanley.' 'Fuck, well, I wanna be like that guy.' So I got into KISS at that timeframe, on the 'Animalize' record, just as they started playing without makeup, and that's my favorite era of KISS. There's a whole sub-genre of KISS fans who love '80s KISS better than '70s KISS, and I'm one of them. And so are the other guys in KUARANTINE. So why not do this and bring a little bit of focus back on to those songs that are great songs that a lot of people just don't know?"

At 12 million strong on social media, there is nothing Jericho can't do. He is easily one of the biggest entertainers of the modern era, cross-pollinating the rock, wrestling, and broadcast realms. Jericho has rocked the world for decades with his band FOZZY, which has garndered 150 million streams (and counting). The band recently performed for over 80,000 rabid fans at an AEW event held at Wembley Stadium, along with a successful, sold-out U.K. tour. He's a main attraction for AEW wrestling, watched by millions of viewers on TBS each week. His over-the-top, rock star persona is one of the most beloved in the history of the sport. He is also a best-selling author a film producer, and actor. He also launched the Chris Jericho Rock N Wrestling Rager At Sea cruise experience. The sixth voyage, "Six On The Beach!," set sail to Puerta Plata, Dominican Republic, on January 31 through February 4 of 2025 and once again sold out. Jericho also hosts the incredibly popular and influential "Talk Is Jericho" podcast. It's a top-rated SiriusXM show that has collected over 220 million downloads while clocking 1,000 episodes.

Prior to "Good Girl Gone Bad"'s arrival, KUARANTINE's most recent single was a version of "Silver Spoon", which originally appeared on KISS's 1989 album "Hot In The Shade".

KUARANTINE first debuted in May 2020 with the release of "No No No", which reached No. 25 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart. The band has since issued its versions of "Heart Of Chrome", featuring former KISS guitarist Bruce Kulick, and "Love's A Deadly Weapon".

Jericho has surrounded himself with a group of top-notch touring musicians for KUARANTINE. Slucher has been the powerhouse behind the kit for country music sensation Luke Bryan for the past 17 years, from small clubs to headlining stadiums and amphitheaters. McGinness is a rising country singer/guitarist, who has shared the stage with artists such as OLD DOMINION, FLORIDA GEORGIA LINE and Granger Smith, and is also a member of KLASSIK '78, a digital tribute to '70s KISS. Farley rose to fame in the New Jersey-based gold-selling rock band TRIXTER, which toured with KISS, POISON and SCORPIONS, before writing and recording two solo albums and eventually joining FOZZY in 2020. Newest bandmember Parra, who hails from Lima, Peru, is a global rock guitar YouTube sensation, amassing more than 850,000 followers.

Get ready for the first leg of the 2026 Unholy Night Tour!!
The Northeast is about to get LOUD. 🔥 We’re hitting the road...

Posted by Kuarantine on Wednesday, February 4, 2026

In a new interview with the JJO Discover New Music Podcast, THE BLACK CROWES guitarist Rich Robinson discussed the band's latest studio album, "A Pound Of Feathers", which came out on March 13 via Silver Arrow Records. The 11-song set was recorded over a 10-day period in Nashville with Grammy-winning producer Jay Joyce, and with only Cully Symington, the band's drummer since 2023, joining Rich and his brother, THE BLACK CROWES singer Chris Robinson, in the studio. Asked how it feels to have released THE BLACK CROWES' tenth studio album, Rich said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "It's like an old worn, beat-up pickup truck. [Laughs] But maybe it got a new engine. I don't know. There's a lot of dings and rust or whatever, but it's still functioning. No, it feels great."

Rich continued: "Chris and I have always only made the records that we wanna make… We probably shot ourselves in the foot. We probably could have been a much bigger band if we had listened to people and tried to do the things that people do. But we are in it because we love music and we love the process and we love being in a band, playing and we love being in the studio and making records and writing new songs. And so it's pretty amazing to sit back and look at ten records."

Rich added: "I was talking to Chris the other day. If I had had my druthers, I would've made a record a year. We could have easily done it, but the industry back then wouldn't let you. 'Cause they're, like, 'It'll thwart the sales of this one record,' and everything was kind of wrapped up into sales. And now it seems like you're much more capable or able to go in and make a record or two records a year. Some of the bands in the '70s would make two records a year, which was really cool. And you look back after a 36-year career for them, and they're, like, 20, 25 albums released and stuff like that. So it's all put into perspective."

Regarding the decision to work with Joyce again after previously working with the producer on 2024's "Happiness Bastards" album, Rich said: "Chris has produced a bunch of bands. I've produced a bunch of bands, written songs for other people, produced all my solo records. Chris has worked with tons of other people, and we both know one thing about ourselves is that we have our strong opinions about how things should be, how things should sound or what a thing should look like. So we both agreed early on that we need someone to come in, someone that we trust that we can just kind of turn over the reins. Like, 'Hey, this is what I'm doing, this is this and this is that.' And then someone that can take that and look at it from 10,000 feet and be a little bit cooler… I just think Jay's such a cool dude. He's a talented musician in his own right. He comes from a similar background to us and speaks our language. And that's what we really like about him."

THE BLACK CROWES are playing shows in Australia and Japan in April before kicking off a North American tour with WHISKEY MYERS and SOUTHALL on May 17 in Austin, Texas.

THE BLACK CROWES' 2026 touring lineup consists of the Robinson brothers alongside Symington, keyboardist Erik Deutsch and guitarist Nico Bereciartua. Longtime bassist Sven Pipien is sitting out the tour and is being replaced by Mark "Muddy" Dutton of BURNING TREE.

Founded by brothers Chris and Rich Robinson, THE BLACK CROWES make music for the mavericks, playing rock 'n' roll that's hip-swinging and heavy, dirty and debonaire, bluesy and ballsy, ecstatic and electrifying, and soulful and soaring. They don't fall in line, and they never cared to either. Instead, they're right at home with the outsiders, the drifters, the lost souls, the hustlers, and the hellraisers who inhabit timeless tunes like "She Talks To Angels", "Hard To Handle", "Wiser Time", "Twice As Hard" and "Black Moon Creeping". No matter where culture went, the multiplatinum Grammy Award-nominated group fearlessly charted their own course, taking flight with the five-times-platinum "Shake Your Money Maker" and never coming back down. Their path twisted and turned from seminal records a la the two-times-platinum Billboard 200 No. 1 LP "The Southern Harmony And Musical Companion" and gold-certified follow-up "Amorica" to a once-in-a-lifetime jaunt with Jimmy Page and accompanying gold-certified live record "Live At The Greek". The band's lore expanded with the chart-shaking "Warpaint" and "Before The Frost…Until The Freeze". Another generation fell under their spell as they launched their biggest headline tour yet to celebrate "Shake Your Money Maker"'s 30th birthday. They lit up the next chapter with 2024's "Happiness Bastards" — which garnered a 2025 Grammy Award nod for "Best Rock Album". Between widespread critical praise, they even picked up 2025 and 2026 Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame nominations.

Press photo credit: Errol Colandro (courtesy of Live Nation-Hewitt Silva)

In a new interview with Joe "Punk" Scibilia of The Rock N Roll & Coffee Show, former GUNS N' ROSES guitarist Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal spoke about how he occupies his time now, more than a decade since he exited the Axl Rose-fronted outfit. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I don't need anything at this point. All I could do at this point that makes life worth anything is paying it forward and passing it along to the future and keeping it going for them. So that's what I do. So a lot of teaching, a lot of producing. Playing live — I did that for years. I missed enough weddings and funerals and bar mitzvahs and whatever else. I don't need to tour anymore."

After Scibilia noted that "it's not easy these days to tour", Thal concurred. "No, it isn't," he said. "It was never easy, but it's definitely a lot tougher [now]. But there are things that are easier. It's easier to have print-on-demand merch, and you have the Internet to keep contact and promote, where that was a lot tougher before."

Asked if he sees himself doing "more producing" in the future, perhaps even with "some bigger bands too", Thal said: "I don't care if the band is big or small. If they have good music that they wanna get out there — yeah. And that's what I do. So I'm gonna keep producing. I'll play live, doing one-offs here and there. I'm gonna shy away from touring, but I gotta keep playing live. Otherwise you lose your thing, you lose your chops. You're not on top of your game if you don't play live. That's the only way to really keep it… You can play as much as you want in the studio, sitting in a chair, but playing live is a different thing. And that's what really connects your brain and your soul and your hands and everything. So I've gotta still do it.

"I'm at the point in life where I think of myself as a retiree, and I just do what I want, when I want, how I want, and say no to almost everything," Ron added.

Thal previously discussed his lack of interest in touring last August on SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk". Asked if he had any plans to play shows in support of his latest instrumental album, "Bumblefoot ...Returns!", he said: "I've thought about it. I've shied away from touring so much. You never know. At this point I'm saying no, I don't plan to, but if someone called up and said, 'Hey, I've got this tour coming, and we would love to have you open,' it might happen, but it's not something that I'm pursuing at this point, 'cause I just love producing bands and doing more teaching stuff."

Thal continued: "[I'm] not as much into the whole touring thing, especially for myself and my level. It's not gonna be a private jet. Do I wanna be driving around at two in the morning in a car every night with my guitar in the trunk? I don't know. And that's the thing. I see how much of my life I missed touring, how many things, how many weddings and funerals I missed, and I don't want to do that anymore. I wanna be there. I wanna be present in my life for the people that are in my life. So I'm just prioritizing that a lot more."

"Bumblefoot ...Returns!" came out in January 2025. The LP arrived 30 years after Thal's debut solo instrumental album.

"Bumblefoot ...Returns!" featured collaborations with iconic musicians, including Brian May, Steve Vai, Guthrie Govan, Derek Sherinian, Jerry Gaskill and others.

Thal joined GUNS N' ROSES in 2006 and appeared on 2008's "Chinese Democracy", an effort which contained music that had been written before he came into the group. The disc took 13 years to make and was only a modest seller, moving just around half a million copies.

Thal never officially announced his departure from the GN'R, but a source confirmed to Detroit music writer Gary Graff back in 2015 that the guitarist had been out since the end of the band's second Las Vegas residency in 2014.

Thal later revealed that he was focusing on his solo career and other projects after spending eight years playing in GUNS.

Thal spent a few years recording and touring with SONS OF APOLLO, which also featured drummer Mike Portnoy, keyboardist Derek Sherinian and bassist Billy Sheehan. SONS OF APOLLO released its second studio album, "MMXX" (pronounced: 20/20),in January 2020 via InsideOut Music/Sony.

In a new interview with Hardlore, MADBALL frontman Freddy Cricien spoke about the band's upcoming long-awaited follow-up to 2018's "For The Cause" album. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "It's called 'Not Your Kingdom'. And I predict that you're gonna love the cover. It's a very throwback vibe. [It has] a nostalgic feel to it, but it's also current. It's very in line with like the lyrical content and the message. And it's by far the most diverse MADBALL album, even more so than 'For The Cause', which I thought 'For The Cause', we did a lot of different stuff, which we were happy to do, because you can't just keep doing the same album over and over."

He continued: "Obviously, you wanna hear our sound, but I like that we were venturing out and doing different stuff on that one. And this one is — yeah, there's some songs that are reminiscent of 'Can't Stop, Won't Stop'… It's very eclectic in the best way, I think. It's gonna be for the people to judge. But I'm super proud of it. And writing with these guys was very natural. It wasn't forced. It wasn't, like, 'Oh.' We all were hungry. It's been 2018 since we put out an album."

As for when fans can expect to see "Not Your Kingdom" released, Freddy said: "May. It kept getting pushed back because of just nonsense. The album was done, but then we had to get it remixed, 'cause we didn't like the first mix. And then artwork got held up. And then you gotta wait for it to go into the Nuclear Blast system, which is always, like, 'Why can't you just drop this tomorrow?' That's not how it works. So now it's finally in the system, and it's gonna come out in May. I think people are gonna dig it. I hope so."

Last October, MADBALL announced that a new single called "Tethered" would precede the "Not Your Kingdom" LP. A fan-filmed video of a recent performance of the track can be seen below.

In August 2023, longtime MADBALL bassist Jorge "Hoya Roc" Guerra announced his departure from the band. Cricien later said that there was "no bad blood or animosity" between him and Guerra, explaining that they were "simply moving in different directions".

MADBALL originated in the late 1980s, as a side project of AGNOSTIC FRONT. The band developed after AGNOSTIC FRONT frontman Roger Miret would let his younger half-brother, Freddy Cricien, take the microphone and perform lead vocals during AGNOSTIC FRONT shows.

"For The Cause" was released in June 2018 via Nuclear Blast. The record was mixed and mastered by renowned producer Tue Madsen at Antfarm Studios in Denmark. It was co-produced by Tim Armstrong (RANCID),who is also featured on the album.

Press photo courtesy of Nuclear Blast Records

In a new interview with Tom Wilson of Australia's Sense Music Media, HELMET frontman Page Hamilton spoke about the band's upcoming nine-date tour of Australia, which is scheduled to kick off on April 16 in Newcastle. He said in part (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "It's gonna be my first sober tour… I'm done [drinking]. I'm 'done done'. I'm not giving it a rest. I'm done. I overdid it. The pandemic really threw me for a loop, and I got in some really bad habits. And my girlfriend told me two and a half years ago now, she's, like, 'I don't know if I can be with someone who drinks seven days a week.' And I was, like, 'Ah, I got under control.' Ha. So I just had to go. I had called one of my best friends [Matt Flynn], the drummer from MAROON 5, he's the GANDHI drummer, and he's an amazing drummer, amazing human being. And he immediately said, 'Okay, let's go. We're gonna go to a meeting.' And we went."

Page continued: "It's been a real godsend. I have an amazing sponsor. He's 35, 36 years sober. A Vietnam vet. And Marilyn Manson is afraid of him, apparently. He [Manson] goes to one of our meetings. I haven't seen him. I'm friendly with Manson; Brian is his name. But my sponsor, he looks like his face was chiseled out of Rushmore, like stone. And he smokes cigars and he rides a Harley… But he's fucking amazing. I call him every day. And I see him three days a week — two days online and one day in person."

He added: "But, yeah, it's been amazing [being sober]. I'm really, really happy. It's only been — I'll hit my 90 days in Australia.

"I go to meetings every day. When I'm with my girlfriend — I was in Hermosa Beach — I found a meeting down there."

Elaborating on how bad his drinking habit got, Hamilton said: "I'm an obsessive-compulsive, and so when it comes to drinking and bad substances, I go all in. My business manager's, like, 'You don't do anything half-assed,' including my alcohol abuse. So I do this — I have to; it's my nature. And it's why I'm decent at music, because I'm really good at tuning everything out and going and just zeroing in and focusing on stuff. But it's bad for addiction.

"After meeting my buddy [Matt], a great drummer, he was just saying, 'Yeah, my wife was, like, 'Eight to 10 beers a day, isn't that kind of excessive?'' And I was, like, Jesus, man. A slow day for me was 15 beers," Page explained. "And I was doing 15 to 20 beers a day. And I'd go to my girlfriend's house for movie night, and I'd get there at six, and I'd have to take eight beers with me so I could show her that I wasn't drinking too much. I'd take eight with me, and I'd already had five or whatever, because you get to the point where you don't even really get drunk until you're, like, on beer 12, 'cause your tolerance just gets so high. It was a mess. It was really, really ugly. And I thought I was being so productive, 'cause I'd sit in here — this is my work room — and play guitar. But I was getting up for beer every 15 minutes. And you just don't get work done. And now I'm getting this clarity that's really cool. Waking up without a hangover is the greatest thing. I woke up at, like, 6:00 a.m. today. I got out of bed at 6:15. And I was going to bed at four or five, blotto. It was just terrible. It's really good. It's been really good. I had a really productive, good day."

Born at the dawn of the rage-filled 1990s, HELMET fiercely hold space for multiple generations of alternative fans seeking the vital energy of hostile riffs and inventive metronomic groove.

Formed in New York by Hamilton, HELMET rewired heavy music, guiding peers like DEFTONES, KORN through to PANTERA and later MASTODON to heel to the power of the brutal riff.

HELMET's 1992 landmark "Meantime" album went gold and cemented them as trailblazers of the heavy music scene. From the genre-bending "Betty" (1994) which included the alt version "Milktoast" on cult 1990s film "The Crow", and "Aftertaste" (1997) to their return with "Size Matters" (2004) and a string of uncompromising releases, including "Dead To The World" (2016) and "Left" (2023),they remain a critical force.

Image credit: Wacken TV

Punk rock legends SOCIAL DISTORTION have unleashed "Partners In Crime", the second advance taste of their long-awaited eighth album, "Born To Kill". An unabashed and anthemic celebration of a lifetime dedicated to rock 'n' roll, "Partners In Crime" can be heard alongside the album's previously unveiled title track.

"'Partners In Crime' is about finding your voice, especially if you weren't allowed or if it didn't matter," says SOCIAL DISTORTION founder Mike Ness. "And finding comfort in others who share the same sentiment, angst and rage. Strength in unity."

Set for release May 8 via Epitaph, "Born To Kill" is more than the conclusion to a 15-year wait between SOCIAL DISTORTION albums, it's a revelation: 11 songs of pure, unadulterated rock 'n' roll fury, joy and catharsis, all imbued with the signature blend of defiance and world-weariness that has made founder Mike Ness a poet and sage to the dispossessed for more than 40 years.

The first SOCIAL DISTORTION album since Ness's recovery from a bout with cancer, "Born To Kill" brims with aggressive optimism. The album wastes no time letting the listener know where its heart is, with its title track and mission statement dropping nods to Lou Reed ("rock 'n' roll animal gonna come your way!") and Iggy Pop and THE STOOGES ("The agenda is, yeah, to search and destroy") and an homage to David Bowie ("it's a rock 'n' roll suicide") following a few songs later on "Partners In Crime". This is a man, a band, and a record that wear their influences proudly while creating timeless anthems and ballads that both chart SOCIAL DISTORTION's path forward and celebrate its storied past: "Tonight" and "The Way Things Were" are emotionally charged reminiscences in the vein of classics like "Story Of My Life" from the band's eponymous 1990 breakthrough and "I Was Wrong" from 1996's "White Light, White Heat, White Trash", the latter containing a potent distillation of the SOCIAL D ethos: "I wrote a song with a stolen riff / If you ain't got a song you ain't got shit."

The track listing for "Born To Kill" is:

01. Born To Kill
02. No Way Out
03. The Way Things Were
04. Tonight
05. Partners In Crime
06. Crazy Dreamer
07. Wicked Game
08. Walk Away (Don't Look Back)
09. Never Goin' Back Again
10. Don't Keep Me Hanging On
11. Over You

Co-produced by Ness and Dave Sardy, and featuring guest appearances from Benmont Tench of TOM PETTY AND THE HEARTBREAKERS and Lucinda Williams and collaborative cover art by Ness and Shepard Fairey, "Born To Kill" is the latest installment in a remarkable catalog that spans nearly three generations, including "Mommy's Little Monster" (1983),"Prison Bound" (1988),the RIAA-gold-certified "Social Distortion" (1990) and "Somewhere Between Heaven And Hell" (1992),"White Light, White Heat, White Trash" (1996),"Sex, Love And Rock 'N' Roll" (2004),and "Hard Times And Nursery Rhymes" (2011).

SOCIAL DISTORTION will support "Born To Kill" with an extensive North American tour. The trek will kick off August 25 in Phoenix and play a total of 25 shows in 22 cities before concluding October 3 in San Diego.

Last December, Ness, who revealed a diagnosis of tonsil cancer in June 2023, offered an update on his recovery, telling Kevin Ryder at the annual KROQ Almost Acoustic Christmas 2025: "I was afraid I was gonna not gonna live. I've been through some hard things in my life in some dangerous situations, as you can imagine, but nothing like that."

Asked if he had to learn to talk and sing again, Mike said: "I had to learn to eat, swallow — everything. I mean, they went in there — they sent a robot. I call him Ike, the robot. He went down and cut out my tonsil and the tumor. And then the second part of the surgery was, they slit my neck and cut the lymph nodes out. So I could not eat food. I mean, I came out of surgery with a drain and a feeding tube."

After Ryder noted that he is "glad" that Ness could sing again after his cancer battle, Mike said: "My voice is stronger than it's ever been. I think I'm singing like there's no tomorrow. So every show is great because I'm singing like there's no tomorrow."

Ness started SOCIAL DISTORTION as a teenager in 1979. Over the course of the next decade, Ness battled drug and alcohol addiction, spending stints in jail and rehab.

Formed as rebellious teenage punks in the working-class suburb of Fullerton, California, SOCIAL DISTORTION survived their tumultuous youth to pioneer an undeniably honest and fiery brand of rock 'n' roll that would incorporate outlaw country, classic seventies punk and primal blues. Seven studio albums and countless electrifying live shows have earned the band a dedicated worldwide fanbase and catalog of timeless anthems, including "Story Of My Life", "Ball And Chain", "Prison Bound" and more. The band's last release, 2011's "Hard Times And Nursery Rhymes", entered the Billboard 200 at No. 4, and in 2019 SOCIAL DISTORTION celebrated 40 years as a band.

Photo credit: Jonathan Weiner

Legendary and notoriously volatile DWARVES return with a new full-length, "Jenkem", arriving June 5 via Greedy Records (distributed by MVD).

Decades into a career that has cut across punk, hardcore, and heavy music, the band remains a fixture of underground culture — as influential as they are unpredictable, and long past the point of needing introduction.

A high-velocity blast rooted in hardcore's most feral instincts, "Jenkem" taps into the same raw aggression and breakneck intensity that fed the early crossover between punk and thrash. Stripped down and dialed in, the album revisits the band's most confrontational era, channeling the savage spirit of "Blood, Guts & Pussy" while pushing their nihilistic edge even further.

Across thirteen short, violent bursts — fast, filthy, and unfiltered — plus one mid-tempo crusher, "Jenkem" wastes no time getting to the point. It's lean, abrasive, and built for impact — a record that lands somewhere between classic hardcore urgency and the blunt force of thrash's punk roots, reinforcing DWARVES' place in that lineage.

Never content to simply release music, the band is rolling out "Jenkem" with an avalanche of live and animated videos, alongside a series of collectible seven-inch releases. Fans can also snag signed copies and exclusive merch directly via the band's official site, continuing the DIY ethos that has defined DWARVES since day one.

To mark the release, DWARVES will take their notoriously chaotic live show on the road for an extensive North American and European run. The tour kicks off in May with SCREECHING WEASEL in Portland, Seattle, and Denver, followed by additional U.S. dates including Austin and a run of fall shows alongside THE EXPLOITED and TOTAL CHAOS. The band then heads overseas for a massive European stretch with EYEHATEGOD, including appearances at Hellfest, Obscene Extreme Festival, Sjock Fest, Krach Am Bach, Azkena Rock Festival and more — further cementing their place on bills that pull from hardcore, punk, and metal alike.

"Jenkem" was produced by Blag Dahlia and was recorded and mixed by Andy Carpenter (SUPERSUCKERS, STRUNG OUT, SCREECHING WEASEL)

Track listing:

Side One

01. Confused
02. We Are the Scene
03. Drug Lust
04. Damned If I Do
05. Must Confess
06. Too Messed Up
07. I'm Dead

Side Two

01. Bad Drugs
02. I Wish You Were Dead
03. Psychosis Tripping
04. Hey Melania
05. Here We Come Again
06. Be Ruthless Destroy
07. Last Chance

Formed in Chicago in the 1980s before relocating to San Francisco at the dawn of the grunge era, DWARVES have carved a path through multiple generations of underground music — from '80s punk to '90s grunge to the 2000's punk resurgence — all while maintaining a reputation for speed, volatility, and a total disregard for convention.

Their notoriously chaotic shows saw them banned, censored, and canceled throughout the 1990s, building a rabid following while alienating much of the music industry. Just as the band seemed commercially written off, their music began surfacing in mainstream films, television, and other media, underscoring a level of musicianship and production often overlooked beneath the chaos. Blending elements of punk, hardcore, thrash, garage rock, and heavy metal, DWARVES' 16 LP catalog — including "Blood, Guts & Pussy" (1990) and "The Dwarves Are Young & Good Looking" (1997) — helped define a strain of underground music where humor, aggression, and shock value collide.

Decades on, DWARVES remain a singular presence — an infamous, influential band whose legacy continues to cut across scenes, generations, and genres; an enduring force at the intersection of punk, hardcore, and heavy music, known for their high-velocity sound and no-holds-barred approach to both recording and live performance. DWARVES continue to push boundaries, evolving their sound while maintaining their reputation as one of the underground's most unpredictable and explosive live acts.

German heavy metal veterans MOB RULES will release their new album, "Stories From The Verdant Vale", on August 21 via ROAR, a division of Reigning Phoenix Music. To mark the announcement, the band has unveiled the first single, "Master Of The Black Crow", a high-energy track that pulls no punches.

Driven by a striking, Celtic-inspired guitar hook, the song stands out for its uncompromising compactness. In its direct approach and razor-sharp structure, the track recalls the raw energy of BLACK SABBATH's classic "Paranoid": not a single ounce of excess, no detours: the song gets straight to the point and unleashes its full impact in the shortest possible time.

With "Stories From The Verdant Vale", MOB RULES returns to the narrative world introduced with the band's previous album "Rise Of The Ruler" (2025),which was widely praised and marked a major milestone in the band's career. The material originates from songs written during the final stages of those sessions, now presented as a special standalone release.

MOB RULES vocalist Klaus Dirks explains: "During the final stages of completing the album, we discussed possible bonus material for the earbook edition with the label. We were reluctant to use demo versions or similar material. This motivated us to write a few new songs. We were well aware of what we were getting ourselves into, but we also wanted to challenge ourselves a little."

The songs reveal a slightly more direct and compact approach compared to "Rise Of The Ruler", while staying true to the band's signature blend of melodic power metal, atmosphere and storytelling. Expanding the original concept from a different perspective, the material forms a natural extension of "Rise Of The Ruler", while each track also stands strong on its own.

Originally conceived in part as exclusive material, "Stories From The Verdant Vale" now receives a proper release on vinyl and digital platforms. The record was mixed by Markus Teske, with artwork created by Stan W. Decker.

Track listing:

Side A:

01. Savage Land Reprise
02. Master Of The Black Crow
03. Masquerade Ball
04. Above The Maelstrom
05. Balance Of Power

Side B (Bonus Tracks)

06. Celebration Day (2014 Version, feat. Bernhard Weiß)
07. Insurgeria (2014 Version, feat. Udo Dirkschneider)
08. Coast To Coast (2014 Version, feat. Chity Somapala)
09. End Of All Days (2014 Version, feat. Amanda Somerville)
10. Broken

Formed in Northern Germany in the early 1990s, MOB RULES has established itself as a constant force in melodic power metal. Known for its concept-driven albums, strong melodies and atmospheric depth, the band has built a loyal international following over the decades.

With ten studio albums to date, including the critically acclaimed "Rise Of The Ruler", MOB RULES has continuously refined its sound while staying true to its roots. Their blend of classic heavy metal influences and modern production has secured them a lasting place within the genre.

MOB RULES is:

Klaus Dirks - Vocals
Sven Lüdke - Guitar
Florian Dyszbalis - Guitar
Markus Brinkmann - Bass
Jan Christian Halfbrodt - Keys
Sebastian Schmidt – Drums

Photo credit: Karsten Koch

Former TYPE O NEGATIVE guitarist Kenny Hickey has shared a first taste of the upcoming full-length concert recording from the long-defunct band. You can check it out below.

Earlier this week, Hickey told Cassius Morris about the upcoming TYPE O NEGATIVE live LP: "It's in the works right now, so it might take a month or whatever to get it together. And then it will probably be at least a couple of months after that before it's released. Hopefully [it will be out] by the end of the year."

Last November, TYPE O NEGATIVE drummer Johnny Kelly told Sh!t Talk Reviews about the group's new live album: "We were able to get our hands on a show… And we were gonna put it out with one label, and now I believe we're doing it with Nuclear Blast."

He added: "At this point it's really hard to find stuff that's of any sonic quality that we could release. At this point I'm willing to just repackage bootlegs and put 'em out. Why not? PEARL JAM sells 'em at every show."

TYPE O NEGATIVE effectively broke up after the passing of frontman Peter Steele in April 2010 from heart failure at the age of 48. Born Petrus T. Ratajczyk on January 4, 1962 in Brooklyn, New York, he stood 6' 7" (201 cm) tall, and had a low, bass-heavy voice, which was one of the most recognizable features in TYPE O NEGATIVE's music.

Before forming TYPE O NEGATIVE, Steele played for the metal group FALLOUT and the thrash band CARNIVORE.

TYPE O NEGATIVE, known for its brooding soundscapes and cult status in the 1990s and early 2000s, has recently seen a cultural resurgence as new generations discover the band's genre-defining music.

TYPE O NEGATIVE was a New York–based goth metal band formed in 1990 by Steele, alongside Hickey, keyboardist Josh Silver and drummer Sal Abruscato — later replaced by Kelly. Their 1991 debut, "Slow, Deep And Hard", introduced their brooding style, followed by the provocative "The Origin Of The Feces" (1992). TYPE O NEGATIVE achieved breakthrough success with "Bloody Kisses" (1993),which earned a cult following and featured the single "Black No. 1". The band continued to evolve with albums such as "October Rust" (1996),"World Coming Down" (1999),"Life Is Killing Me" (2003) and "Dead Again" (2007).

Revered for their distinctive blend of goth and metal, as well as Steele's deep, iconic vocals, TYPE O NEGATIVE left a lasting legacy in heavy music. The band concluded in 2010 following Steele's death, but their influence endures across the alternative and metal landscape.

Back in June 2023, Hickey was asked by Loaded Radio if he was surprised by the enduring popularity of his former band, now 15 years after the passing of the TYPE O NEGATIVE frontman. He responded: "Yeah. It's surprising, and I'm very grateful for it. I mean, the band has transcended, which is amazing. It's reached a whole new generation. We're doing better than we were doing before Peter passed. [Laughs] [There's] a whole resurgence on it. Which is good. It's a testament to the work we put into it and the honesty we put into it and the years of sweat. There was realism to the music."

Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame inductee and Grammy Award-winning guitarist Peter Frampton has shared a new single, "Lions At The Gate", featuring a guest appearance by RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE guitarist Tom Morello. The song is the latest release from Frampton's upcoming album, "Carry The Light", his first album of all-new material in 16 years, on May 15 via UMe. Co-written and produced with his son Julian Frampton, the collection also includes guest appearances by Sheryl Crow, Bill Evans, H.E.R., Graham Nash and Benmont Tench.

"'Lions At The Gate' is a powerful track with a powerful message, and Tom's playing took it to another level," said Frampton.

"Lions At The Gate", a dynamic protest song featuring guitar by Morello, draws inspiration from lion statues outside Hollywood elite mansions in the 1920s. Frampton incorporates Morello's signature heat to urge listeners to "tear down the lions at the gate," symbolizing a bold challenge to the ultra-powerful. Julian Frampton also contributes vocals to the ferocious track.

The new track follows the previously released single "Buried Treasure", featuring keyboardist Benmont Tench of TOM PETTY & THE HEARTBREAKERS. A tribute to the late Tom Petty, the track honors the SiriusXM radio show of the same name that Petty curated and hosted for 15 years, with lyrics crafted entirely from Petty's song titles. Frampton personally sought out Tench to add his signature style to the Petty homage.

Frampton said: "The 'Carry The Light' album is the first new music from me in 16 years. It was one of my most enjoyable projects ever. I got to work with my son Julian — writing and producing together. A first of many for us, I'm sure."

Frampton is surrounded on "Carry The Light" by an all-star supporting cast: Sheryl Crow is Frampton's vocal foil on "Breaking the Mold", Bill Evans adds saxophone to both "Can You Take Me There" and "Tinderbox", H.E.R. trades guitar lines on the instrumental "Islamorada", Tom Morello brings his signature intensity to the protest song "Lions At The Gate", Graham Nash lends harmonies to "I'm Sorry Elle", Benmont Tench contributes keyboards to "Buried Treasure". Everyone asked to participate in "Carry The Light" gladly heeded the call to lend their support and create new material with an artist who's been dispersing endless goodwill and great music across the globe for more than six decades and counting.

"This may be the best album Peter's ever made," said engineer and co-producer Chuck Ainlay (Mark Knopfler, Miranda Lambert, George Strait). "The songs are just so poignant, and his voice has matured in a way that really delivers what he's trying to get across."

"Carry The Light" will be released in a variety of formats, including CD, 180-gram yellow vinyl and digitally in stereo, hi-res audio and immersive Dolby Atmos options. A special limited-edition vinyl, which will feature a premium cover treatment and be numbered, will be available exclusively via Peter Frampton's official store, uDiscover Music and Sound Of Vinyl.

Earlier this year, Peter celebrated the 50th anniversary of his iconic album "Frampton Comes Alive!" Upon its original release in 1976, "Frampton Comes Alive!" became a cultural phenomenon and remains one of the top-selling live albums of all time, with nearly 20 million copies sold worldwide. In honor of the milestone, Peter released a Vinylphyle edition of the landmark album via A&M/UMe. The limited Vinylphyle double LP pressing is sourced from the original 1975 Doug Sax 1/4" production master, with lacquers cut by Joe Nino-Hernes, and pressed on 180-gram black vinyl at RTI. The package features a four-panel insert including a new interview with Frampton and Anthony Fantano of The Needle Drop.

Over the course of a career spanning more than six decades, Peter Frampton has established himself as one of the most celebrated guitarists in rock history. In 2007, he won a Grammy for "Best Pop Instrumental Album" for "Fingerprints"; in 2014, he was inducted into the Musicians Hall Of Fame; and in 2019, he received the Les Paul Innovation Award at NAMM's TEC Awards.

In 2020, Frampton was inducted into the Grammy Hall Of Fame, his autobiography, "Do You Feel Like I Do?: A Memoir", debuted on The New York Times bestsellers list and he appeared on Dolly Parton's latest album, "Rockstar", as the only artist featured on two tracks.

In 2023, Frampton unveiled "Frampton@50" on Intervention Records, a numbered limited-edition vinyl box set featuring Frampton's essential 1972-1975 studio releases "Wind Of Change", "Frampton's Camel" and "Frampton". He also received The Myositis Association's Heroes in the Fight 2023 Patient Ambassador Award and unveiled his historic performance at London's Royal Albert Hall as a live album via UMe.

In 2024, he received the Les Paul Spirit Award at Gibson Garage Nashville, was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame and wrapped an extensive headline tour before returning to the studio to record "Carry The Light".

"Carry The Light" track listing:

01. Carry The Light
02. Buried Treasure (feat. Benmont Tench)
03. I'm Sorry Elle (feat. Graham Nash)
04. Breaking The Mold (feat. Sheryl Crow)
05. I Can't Let It Be
06. Lions At The Gate (feat. Tom Morello)
07. Islamorada (feat. H.E.R.)
08. Can You Take Me There (feat. Bill Evans)
09. Tinderbox (feat. Bill Evans)
10. At The End Of The Day

Photo credit: Lynn Goldsmith

British guitarist, singer, and songwriter Billy Morrison has released the official Ivo Raza-directed music video for "Becoming", the first single from his upcoming album, "Hollow", due out sometime in August via TLG | ZOID/Virgin Music Group. The powerhouse track was written by Morrison, Sully Erna (GODSMACK) and Brett Scallions; it features Erna on lead vocals and Grammy Award winner Nuno Bettencourt (EXTREME) on lead guitar.

"The 'Becoming' video is a pure performance video that utilizes the skill and aesthetic that our director Ivo Raza brings to the table," says Morrison. "Sully and Nuno both travelled to Los Angeles and we filmed in two locations: a rain room — where we shot for hours through a sheet of water!! — and a disused warehouse in South L.A. with a backdrop of a wall of lights. I added Erik Eldenius on drums, who played on the song, and Brett Scallions on bass, a co-writer on the song, and we used ghost lenses and other distortion techniques to represent the transition through the song that Sully's lyrics talk about.

"The shoot was hot, sweaty and very long, and every person, band and crew alike could not have been more accommodating," he continues. "The goal was to make a kick-ass rock video and we achieved that and much more!!"

According to Morrison, "Becoming" is about "transforming out of the darkness and negativity of certain lifestyle choices and becoming a strong, positive and powerful force. For an in-depth description, you would have to ask Sully about the lyrics that he wrote."

Morrison goes on to say that "when the music to 'Becoming' was finally finished, in my mind there was only one person I could imagine singing it, and that was Sully Erna. His work with GODSMACK over the decades has just proven his voice to be one of the most powerful in rock music." "Plus he's a great guy to hang with," adds Morrison, "so fortunately for me, not only was his response 'Absolutely, I'll sing it.' We got to record it in Los Angeles together while he was here. It was a killer vibe, and when we were all at the 'Above Ground' show late last year here in L.A., it seemed only fitting for me to ask Nuno to play lead (keeping it Boston on this track!). And again, he graciously agreed, and absolutely killed it. It's been a pleasure to work with both Sully and Nuno on this song — it's the perfect collaboration to launch this new album of mine!"

"I really enjoyed working with Billy and Nuno on this track," says Erna. "It's always a bit challenging when you have three creative people that work at such high levels of production to get to the finish line, but in the end the product always speaks for itself. And this song is strong! It's a perfect example of not settling for anything less."

"When you're asked to collaborate on a song with incredible artists like Sully Erna and Billy Morrison, you'd have to say 'yes' before even hearing the song," says Bettencourt. "But man, when you DO hear the song and it's as badass as this...you forget who's on it and just do it for the love of it."

Two years ago, Morrison released "The Morrison Project" via TLG | ZOID/Virgin Music Group. It marked his third solo album (and first since 2015) and produced the No. 1 Active Rock song (Mediabase) in America: "Crack Cocaine", featuring Ozzy Osbourne and Steve Stevens and co-written by all three artists. A deluxe edition of the album followed in 2025 and bonus track, "Gods Of Rock And Roll (Orchestral)" — another seismic collaboration with Osbourne and Stevens — landed in the Active Rock Top Ten (Mediabase).

The upcoming "Hollow" will follow the success of 2024's "The Morrison Project" format with 12 songs, half sung by Morrison and half sung by a handful of Morrison's friends. Guests include Dexter Holland, Marilyn Manson, Chuck D, B Real, Duff McKagan, Steve Stevens, DMC and the above-mentioned Sully Erna and Nuno Bettencourt, among others. "Forgive Me", "The Tailor", "No Suspects", "Another Day", "Leave No Trace" and "Becoming" are among the songtitles.

"The last album was so much fun and such a creative experience for me that I got the band back together for a follow up record," says Billy. It's on the same label (TLG | ZOID/Virgin Music Group),with the same crew (Barry Pointer mixing the record, Dave Donnelly mastering and all art / photography by Jane Stuart) and I'm excited to share this body of work with the world." He adds: "The guests on this record are at the core of the collaborative spirit that I try to put in the center of these records. Every single person I worked with stepped up, brought their A game and helped me produce an album that crosses genres, features some really diverse songwriting, and yet has a truly cohesive, and powerful sound. Ultimately, I am just grateful to everyone involved for allowing me to do this again."

Morrison is a British guitarist, singer, and songwriter, widely known as Billy Idol's rhythm guitar player for the past 17 years alongside lead guitarist Steve Stevens. He is also a solo recording artist in his right having released three albums including the successful and acclaimed "The Morrison Project" in 2024 via TLG | ZOID/Virgin Music Group. His fourth solo album, "Hollow", will arrive in August 2026, also on TLG | ZOID/Virgin Music Group. Morrison is also a former member of THE CULT and CIRCUS DIABLO and currently also performs with the superstar cover band known as the ROYAL MACHINES. In addition, Morrison is a contemporary fine artist whose Warhol-inspired work has been shown at top galleries. He also has a regular show, "Influenced", on SiriusXM's Ozzy's Boneyard (channel 38),where he delves deep into the dynamic relationship between art and music.

Photo credit: Jane Stuart @JaneStuartPhotos

If you agree with VICE when they say "unhinged Dave Grohl is my favorite version of Dave Grohl," FOO FIGHTERS have delivered your new favorite song: "Of All People". Fresh from its first time being played in the presence of other humans February 22 in Dingle, Ireland, the newly released early HÜSKER DÜ-esque rager is the latest advance offering from FOO FIGHTERS' upcoming twelfth album, "Your Favorite Toy", due out April 24 via Roswell Records/RCA Records.

"Of All People" is available in all its glorious ferocity to stream, download or visualize.

"Your Favorite Toy" was co-produced by FOO FIGHTERS and Oliver Roman, engineered by Oliver Roman and mixed by Mark "Spike" Stent, and consists of the following songs:

01. Caught In The Echo
02. Of All People
03. Window
04. Your Favorite Toy
05. If You Only Knew
06. Spit Shine
07. Unconditional
08. Child Actor
09. Amen, Caveman
10. Asking For A Friend

"Your Favorite Toy"'s release coincides with the launch of FOO FIGHTERS' massive "Take Cover" world tour.

FOO FIGHTERS played their first concert with new drummer Ilan Rubin on September 13, 2025 at the Fremont Theater in San Luis Obispo, California.

The Grohl-fronted outfit announced the surprise show the day before, revealing that it would play an all-ages gig at the 900-capacity venue, marking the band's first official performance with Rubin, the former NINE INCH NAILS drummer who joined the FOO FIGHTERS earlier in 2025.

At one point, Grohl introduced Rubin from the stage. "Everybody else has said it," Dave said. "I finally get the opportunity to say, 'Ladies and gentlemen, will you please welcome…' The most badass motherfucker, Ilan Rubin, is playing drums in the FOO FIGHTERS right now. It's official. You can stamp the passport."

Prior to the San Luis Obispo concert, FOO FIGHTERS had been off the road since September 2024.

FOO FIGHTERS announced Rubin as their new drummer in July 2025.

Rubin was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame with NINE INCH NAILS in 2020.

Rubin stepped into the FOO FIGHTERS as the replacement for Josh Freese, who was fired from the group in May 2025. Freese, meanwhile, who was the NAILS' touring drummer from 2005 to 2008, returned to the band earlier last summer.

Two years after he was recruited to fill the vacancy left by the late Taylor Hawkins, Freese shared a statement on Instagram on May 16, 2025 in which he said the FOO FIGHTERS called him earlier that week to let him know that they had decided "to go in a different direction with their drummer." Freese added, "No reason was given."

Rubin played with NINE INCH NAILS from 2008 to 2009, and again from 2013 until his latest exit. Rubin is also a member of Tom DeLonge's band ANGELS & AIRWAVES, and has played with Danny Elfman. He also recorded solo albums under the name THE NEW REGIME.

FOO FIGHTERS are Dave Grohl, Nate Mendel, Chris Shiflett, Pat Smear, Rami Jaffee and Ilan Rubin.

Photo credit: Elizabeth Miranda

ATREYU has released a new single, "Children Of Light", featuring a guest appearance by former SEPULTURA and current SOULFLY frontman Max Cavalera. The track is taken from ATREYU's upcoming album, "The End Is Not The End", which will arrive on April 24 via Spinefarm.

ATREYU comments: "'Children Of Light' was created with a primal spirit in mind. A 'festival' song. Heavily inspired by classic SEPULTURA, though it seemed like an untouchable ask, we wanted Max involved. We're honored to share this song with a legend."

"The End Is Not The End" is undeniably ATREYU's heaviest album ever and the band's most adventurous.

"We realized what made ATREYU great in the beginning was that we didn't sound like anyone else," ATREYU frontman Brandon Saller explains. "We didn't really make sense anywhere. We weren't an emo band, a metal band, a punk band — but somehow it all worked. We kind of just carved our own path."

Guitarists Dan Jacobs and Travis Miguel, bassist Porter McKnight, drummer Kyle Rosa and Saller created several of "The End Is Not The End"'s songs on creative trips.

"Tokyo made us feel like kids again," Saller says. "We'd write for a few hours in the morning, then go out and get lost in all this inspiration. The first song we finished was 'Dead', and we knew we were on to something."

After the Japanese sessions, the band and their producer decamped to San Juan Island off the coast of Washington, where isolation became a creative accelerant.

"It was the polar opposite of Tokyo," Saller explains. "We didn't leave the house for four days and wrote some of the heaviest songs on the record."

The result is an album that feels simultaneously classic and unfamiliar, aggressive and unselfconscious, deeply emotional and unconcerned with trends. Produced by Matt Pauling, ATREYU's tenth album is vibrant, inventive, and beautifully aggressive.

"It's our heaviest, most metal record we've made," Saller points out. "But it's also the biggest musical journey we've taken in years."

"The End Is Not The End" moves seamlessly from soaring melodic heft to muscular metallic weight, with cinematic shades and atmosphere, all tied together by a driving, raw intensity. Tracks like "Dead", "Ghost In Me", "Children Of Light" and "Afterglow" sound both timely and timeless.

"The End Is Not The End" track listing:

01. The End Is Not The End
02. Dead
03. Break Me
04. All For You
05. Ghost In Me
06. Glass Eater
07. Wait My Love, I'll Be Home Soon
08. Ego Death
09. Death Rattle
10. Children Of Light
11. In The Dark
12. Afterglow
13. Break The Glass

ATREYU recently announced a spring tour supporting SEVENDUST, kicking off April 20 in Indianapolis, Indiana and concluding on May 20 in Knoxville, Tennessee .

ATREYU's riffs, hooks, melodies, and relentless energy remain a driving force in heavy music, with over a billion streams worldwide and a fanbase that keeps growing. The Southern California band recently wrapped a triumphant co-headlining U.S. run and tore through massive festivals like Download, Hellfest, Welcome To Rockville and Inkcarceration.

Since forming around the turn of the millennium, ATREYU has pushed well beyond its DIY roots — earning multiple RIAA gold records, Top 20 Billboard 200 debuts, and spots on major film and video-game soundtracks. Their latest album, "The Beautiful Dark Of Life" (2023, Spinefarm),debuted in the Top 10 on Billboard's Top Hard Rock Albums and has already racked up over 75 million streams, with singles like "Gone" and "Watch Me Burn" lighting up rock radio and flagship playlists like Spotify's "Volume" and Apple Music's "The Riff".

ATREYU is:

Brandon Saller - Lead Vocals
Dan Jacobs - Guitar
Travis Miguel - Guitar
Porter McKnight - Bass/Vocals
Kyle Rosa - Drums

Photo credit: Sean Stiegeimeier

Progressive rock legends YES will release their 24th studio album, "Aurora", on June 12 via InsideOut Music/Sony Music.

The current lineup of YES features guitarist Steve Howe, whose association with YES began in 1970, along with keyboardist Geoff Downes, a member of the 1980 "Drama"-era lineup. Jon Davison has been lead vocalist in YES since 2012 while bassist Billy Sherwood, who was hand-picked by original bassist Chris Squire, has been involved with YES since 1990s. Drummer Jay Schellen, who worked closely with Alan White on drums, completes the lineup.

When YES first began sketching out ideas for what would become "Aurora", the process was loose and exploratory. There was no preconceived concept at the start, just a collection of musical fragments that gradually began to find one another and take form. Among these early sketches was a piece titled "Aurora", and it quickly became clear that the name carried certain gravity. It suggested light, emergence, and a sense of vastness, qualities that resonated deeply with the band. Jon Davison remembers how "the title immediately resonated with Steve Howe and sparked visual inspiration for artist Roger Dean, setting a conceptual tone that would guide the project."

Work on "Aurora" began almost as soon as the "Classic Tales Of Yes" tour ended in 2024. The idea of a new album surfaced quickly and with the label's encouragement, the band had the time to develop material organically. Rather than gathering in a single studio for months, they embraced a modern workflow; ideas were born in home studios, shaped independently, and then woven together through constant collaboration. Downes and Howe often acted as the central creative axis, with Howe, as producer, serving as the point through which all ideas eventually flowed.

Across "Aurora", each track carries its own character. Some echo the classic YES approach, others push into new territory, but together they form a cohesive whole that honors the band's heritage while embracing forward motion. With their 24th studio album, YES demonstrate not just longevity, but a sustained curiosity, a desire to keep exploring, keep refining and keep discovering their capacity to create.

Howe comments: "Making this record was joyful, a chance to play, explore and give everything to the music. It's always been about collaboration, somebody can write a song, but until everybody puts their contribution in it isn't really a YES song. We're not trying to echo the past; we're carrying the spirit of YES forward and turning it into something new".

YES has launched the first single from the album, and you can watch the beautiful animated video for the title track, created by Matt Hutchings (Greg Lake, OASIS, IRON MAIDEN),below.

"Aurora" will be available as a limited deluxe 180g light green 2LP+2CD+Blu-ray artbook and poster, as well as a limited deluxe 2CD+Blu-ray artbook, both featuring the stunning artwork of Roger Dean and Freya Dean, as well as a bonus disc of instrumentals, and a Blu-ray featuring Dolby Atmos, 5.1 Surround Sound and 24-bit stereo mixes (by Curtis Schwartz). The album is also available as a gatefold 180g 2LP + LP-booklet, special edition CD digipak and as a digital album.

The track listing is as follows:

01. Aurora (07:27)
02. Turnaround Situation (05:50)
03. Love Lies Dreaming (06:24)
04. Countermovement (13:48)
05. Ariadne (06:18)
06. All Hands On Deck (03:04)
07. Outside The Box (04:20)
08. Emotional Intelligence (03:30)
09. Jambustin' (bonus track) (04:24)
10. Watching The River Roll (bonus track) (04:42)