POISON drummer Rikki Rockett has come out in support of Mike Tyson after the former heavyweight boxer was reportedly filmed punching a man in the face on a plane.

In the video, which went viral on Thursday (April 21), a fellow first-class passenger is seen "provoking" Tyson from the seat behind him aboard a Florida-bound flight, with Tyson eventually losing his cool and repeatedly pummeling the passenger, resulting in the passenger sustaining cuts to his head.

Although some people on the Internet drew comparisons between Tyson and Will Smith slapping Chris Rock onstage at the 2022 Oscars, most of the reactions seem to be in support of the boxer, who was on the Wednesday night JetBlue flight from San Francisco to Miami to appear at a weed conference after-party.

One musician who said that he was taking Tyson's side is Rockett, tweeting on Thursday: "While I don't condone violence, I think our society has enabled people to mouth off, harrass and get away with it thinking they can just make money off of a lawsuit if it turns physical. I stand with #miketyson".

BODY COUNT frontman Ice-T was in apparent agreement with Rockett, writing: "Mike Tyson punched somebody who was Fn with him……. The problem is nowadays, MFs think they WON'T get punched in the Face…"

Also weighing in was KISS bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons, who shared a TMZ article about YouTube star-turned-boxer Jake Paul's assessment that "if you’re being heckled in public like Mike Tyson was you should legally get a hall pass to beat someone’s ass." Simmons added a simple one-word comment: "Agreed!"

On Thursday, representatives for Tyson confirmed the incident, writing in a statement: "Unfortunately, Mr. Tyson had an incident on a flight with an aggressive passenger who began harassing him and threw a water bottle at him while he was in his seat."

Prior to the confrontation, the apparent harasser is seen on the standing over Tyson's seat, waving his arms and talking animatedly while the former boxer sits quietly.

San Francisco police responded about 10 p.m. to a "physical altercation" on a plane at the airport's domestic terminal, officials said.

"Officers arrived and detained two subjects that were believed to be involved in the incident. One subject was treated at the scene for non-life-threatening injuries. That subject provided minimal details of the incident and refused to cooperate further with the police investigation," police said in a statement.




While I don’t condone violence, I think our society has enabled people to mouth off, harrass and get away with it thinking they can just make money off of a lawsuit if it turns physical. I stand with #miketyson

— Rikki Rockett (@RikkiRockett) April 21, 2022








Mike Tyson punched somebody who was Fn with him……. The problem is nowadays, MFs think they WON’T get punched in the Face…

— ICE T (@FINALLEVEL) April 21, 2022








Agreed! https://t.co/SpFhcUNMlz

— Gene Simmons (@genesimmons) April 22, 2022








Sports “fan” heckled Black athlete. Black athlete put hands on him. That Black athlete was Mike Tyson.

This is an extension of the “culture” of fans thinking they have the right to heckle and verbally attack athletes without consequences.

pic.twitter.com/gcR0NJdO3z

— L E F T, PhD ⚫️ (@LeftSentThis) April 21, 2022

Heavy rockers Cellar Stone have announced the release of their new album Rise & Fall.


Rise & Fall was recorded at Soundflakes Studio in January/February 2021 by Nick Papadopoulos and mixed in the woods of Kentucky, USA at Monocle Studios, by Jordan Westfall. On top of that the frontman of Black Stone Cherry, Chris Robertson guests on the album, with a fiery guitar solo on track “War We Can Win”. 


Mastered at Euphonic Masters, Memphis, Tennessee by Brad Blackwood. The new album shows 11 heavy rock brand new tracks. Once again Cellar Stone delivers an album with over the top production, strong melodies and massive guitar riffing. The band willtour with UFO on their special farewell dates on July and October.




Rise & Fall will be released on July 1, 2022 as digipak CD, Rose Red/Black Marbled vinyl (limited to 300 copies worldwide) and digital streaming and download format. Preorders available here.





Tracklisting:


“Borrowed Time”
“Going Under”
“Time To Fall”
“War We Can Win” (feat. Chris Robertson)
“To The Core”
“Through My Veins”
“Demons”
“Save Me”
“Rise & Fall”
“Storm Is Coming”
“Run Away”





Cellar Stone dates supporting UFO:


July
7 - Bremen, Germany - Modernes
8 - Berlin, Germany - Hole 44
9 - Torgau, Germany - Kulturbastion Open Air
11 - Tübingen, Germany – Sudhaus
12 - Bochum, Germany - Zeche
13 - Cologne, Germany – Kantine


October
15 - Sint Niklaas, Belgium - De Casino
16 - Tilburg, Netherlands - 013
17 - Braunschweig, Germany - Westand
18 - Hamburg, Germany - Fabrik
20 - Prague, Czech Republic - Palac Akropolis
21 - Dresden, Germany - Tante Ju
22 - Erfurt, Germany - HsD
24 - Augsburg, Germany - Spectrum
25 - Speyer, Germany - Halle 101
26 - Nürnberg, Germany - Hirsch
28 - Thessaloniki, Greece - Principal Club
29 - Athens, Greece - Fuzz Club

Italian power/progressive metallers, Secret Sphere, have released a new video, featuring a live studio session performance of "The Scars That You Can't See".


The original studio version of "The Scars That You Can't See" appears on the album, Archetype. Watch the video below:







Lineup:


Roberto Messina - Voice
Aldo Lonobile - Guitars
Andrea Buratto - Bass
Gabriele Ciaccia - Keyboards
Marco Lazzarini – Drums

THE CHOPHOUSE BAND, the band led by former METALLICA bassist Jason Newsted, performed last night (Saturday, April 23) at the Maltz Jupiter Theatre in Jupiter, Florida. It was a benefit event for the Goldner Conservatory, a professional conservatory that offers the highest caliber of artistic education to students of all ages.

Professional violinist Carl Schmid, who is part of Jason's backing band, shared photos and video of yesterday's concert and included the following message: "METALLICA was the second band I ever saw when I was a kid-I went to Giants Stadium in New Jersey, where I saw them with GUNS N ROSES and FAITH NO MORE opening the show. My ears are still ringing from that show-it had to be the loudest event I've ever been at. And it was my first taste of Rock N Roll. Until then I was an awkward 13 year old kid playing Mozart and Bach. I came home from that show and told my parents I wanted to be like those guys. They were mortified. A couple years ago, just by a random (or not) coincidence, I got to meet Jason Newsted and he invited me up to his place to play. We played a couple shows together, and then Covid hit. He took a two year hiatus, and then about 4 months ago we got back together.

"Last night was incredible - we played for an oversold out Maltz Theater in Jupiter, and got to raise a whole bunch of money for some deserving kids to attend music school. It was just a few years ago that I came crawling back into recovery with literally a bag of clothes, and very little desire to live, much less play. The gifts I've received, the amazing Grace I've been shown and felt, is just incredible. It's been a pretty challenging month for me, but last night was just another reminder that anything is possible in recovery. Anything."

Earlier this week, Newsted spoke to the 98.7 The Gater radio station about the Maltz Jupiter Theatre concert, saying: "During my COVID downtime, I was in upstate New York. I wrote about 35 new songs during that. I brought it back to my boys. I was sending them the tapes, the demos, sending it up to them to learn them… And that's what we're going to do at the Maltz. We're playing a couple of songs that people are familiar with, inspired by Johnny Cash and stuff, but most of it is all new original music from THE CHOPHOUSE BAND. I'm not playing any acoustic guitar anymore — it's just Les Pauls and SGs and stuff now. Some of it's a little quieter but most of it's not."

Elaborating on the musical direction of the new THE CHOPHOUSE BAND material, Jason said: "THE CHOPHOUSE BAND started out as almost a bluegrass-tinged thing, and now it gets to some places that are as heavy as anything else that I'd been involved with — VOIVOD, Ozzy [Osbourne], METALLICA, NEWSTED band; any of that stuff — it gets to those places now."

Adding that he "loves" singing, Newsted said: "Now since the last time anybody saw THE CHOPHOUSE BAND, we have a vocal group within the band. Now there are four singers in the band. I have two singers from New York — a female and male singer — that are coming down to join us. And so I'm singing eight or 10 songs, and they're singing the rest, but I do background vocals and stuff now. So I can actually really concentrate on playing the guitar and then singing that background stuff. And there's screaming and some [growling] also. So I still haven't lost that. And it lets people know that there's still one foot in that place. You can take the boy out of the metal [but] you can't take the metal out of the boy; it's just the way it's always gonna be. So I'm excited for people to be able to witness what we have been working so hard at. I put a lot — a lot — of energy into these new songs."

Newsted also revealed that THE CHOPHOUSE BAND will enter the studio on May 5 to begin recording its debut album. Asked if he will release the LP himself, Jason replied "yes" before clarifying, "Actually, it's possible — very possible — that I'll be back into the Q Prime fold [METALLICA's longtime management company] with that kind of backing, like a real-deal thing."

Named after Jason's four recording studio facilities around the U.S. and featuring a fluid roster of players, THE CHOPHOUSE BAND began in 1992 when Newsted founded The Chophouse Records Studio in San Francisco.

THE CHOPHOUSE BAND is led by Newsted, playing guitar and performing lead vocal, accompanied by 
close friends/musicians of all walks and styles.

Jason previously told the Palm Beach Florida Weekly about THE CHOPHOUSE BAND: "We all get along great because there's not money involved. They've got their own bands, their own families, their own gigs. We do benefit gigs, six a year, and that's it. I record and write and play songs the whole rest of the time. They could all run circles around me musical theory-wise. They could tell you everything they're playing, and all the relating chords. I surround myself with the badasses, and they make me look really good. I'm playing cowboy chords the whole time, and they're doing their fancy shit to make me look good. I just concentrate on singing, and getting across the things I want people to hear."

Jason left METALLICA back in 2001, but was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, along with Lars Ulrich, James Hetfield, Kirk Hammett and the man who replaced him, bassist Robert Trujillo, in 2009.

Eight years ago, Jason shelved NEWSTED, the heavy metal project he operated between 2012 and 2014, saying that it cost him "an awful lot of money — hundreds of thousands of dollars." He added: "I couldn't continue because the business is such a harsh thing now and so different than what I had known."


Metallica was the second band I ever saw when I was a kid-I went to Giants Stadium in New Jersey, where I saw them with...

Posted by Carl Schmid on Sunday, April 24, 2022



Posted by Jason Newsted & The Chophouse Band Fans CR 01 on Saturday, April 23, 2022





Posted by Jason Newsted & The Chophouse Band Fans CR 01 on Saturday, April 23, 2022



Posted by Jason Newsted & The Chophouse Band Fans CR 01 on Saturday, April 23, 2022

Two years ago, Swiss hard rock legends KROKUS postponed their last-ever concerts in USA and Canada due to the coronavirus pandemic that is sweeping the globe. The 13-date trek was originally scheduled to kick off at Canton Hall in Dallas, Texas on September 18, 2020 and conclude at Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood, California on October 10, 2020. Asked in a new interview with "Interviewing The Legends With Ray Shasho" if KROKUS will ever perform again, singer Marc Storace said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "We consciously said we're gonna stop while the going was good, while the band level is kickass and we're all standing and delivering and end on a good note. In 2019, in December, we played the Hallenstadion in Zurich, and after that we played the Monsters Of Rock cruise. And then came the pandemic. So we had all these dates in England together with SAXON and we had dates in Canada, we had dates in the USA and also Mexico. And the whole pandemic went on for two years, so what do you do? You can't hold on to [the shows]. We let everything go, and I was, like, 'Okay.' That was it. Bye. [Laughs] In the meantime, I worked on my [solo album], 'cause I get too restless at home doing nothing. Which was great, and I'm so happy. I've had great reviews and the band is great and I'm doing my thing and enjoying rehearsals and enjoying the gigs.

"So we still have gigs that we owe — KROKUS still owes gigs; fans bought tickets and so on and so forth," he continued. "So recently — this was a couple of weeks ago — I got together with Fernando [Von Arb, guitar] and Chris [Von Rohr, bass], and we were saying it's shit, how we can't let COVID kick our ass, kind of. We didn't like how it had to end, how we were forced to say, 'We can't come.' … So now we're full of this hatred against COVID, and we've gotta hit back by maybe doing something again. So we left it at that. 'Okay, let's see. We're talking too much. We're dreaming again.' I said, 'We're not dreaming. If we decide [to do it], I'm all in. I'm in there.' So let's see. We'll be coming back together, 'cause I'll be playing in Solothurn with my band, KROKUS's hometown, and they're all gonna be there, VIPs, and [we'll] meet backstage. So the emotions, I guess, will lead us in that direction, I'm hoping. So we'll see what happens. Think positive."

Last month, Storace explained to Rock Show Critique why KROKUS has toured America so infrequently over the course of the last 20 years. He said: "Well, it starts with the work permits. And they cost money. Then the tax. Then the booking fees, the percentages, the renting out of equipment, buses, hotels and everything. So if you've gotta do a club tour, you can't even pay for all that. We haven't been there for a long while, so we don't expect to come over and do a headliner tour in stadiums; we're far from that again. Because in the meantime, there's a lot of water under the bridge. And that's how it is. The status sinks because there's no longer promoters who believe that you're gonna bring in the money back for that. I guess that's the way it is. It's like a vicious circle. You have to come over one day and get the ball rolling again and then come back the next year and the next year to reach the status that you are used to. And you have to also release a new album to accompany that. And the new album isn't enough. Albums don't sell anymore. There's Spotify — all these parasites around — streaming, which don't give you your money's worth."

When KROKUS first announced its decision to embark on a farewell tour in September 2019, the band explained in a statement: "KROKUS shows have always been special and should stay that way. That's why we decided to stop when it's still really good. That's how the fans should remember us."

Formed in 1975, KROKUS has sold over 15 million records, toured the world, and received gold and platinum discs in the USA and Canada. KROKUS was also the first Swiss band to sell out the legendary Hallenstadion in Zurich and has received a diamond disc for selling one million albums in Switzerland alone.

In the course of its legendary career, KROKUS has rocked over 2,000 shows on five continents, countless cities, unique locations, crazy gigs, and loyal fans.

English rock journalist Malcolm Dome quite rightly said: "If you look at the long-term output of this band, KROKUS is clearly one of the best hard rock bands of the last 40 years."

During an appearance on the latest episode of "The Ex-Man" podcast hosted by Doc Coyle (BAD WOLVES), Burton C. Bell reflected on what life has been like for him in the year and a half since he exited FEAR FACTORY. The singer said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I feel really good. I've been creative. I've been working on various new projects, just extending my creative abilities outward and onward, not just musically but writing, photography, even extending towards painting and stuff like that — just being fully creative in every possible way. I'm not saying I did nothing for two years but I've been busy for two years as well just moving forward in my life path and my career. And I haven't looked back."

He added: "Of course, I'm very proud of all the work I've done in the past, and always will be — except maybe a couple of songs. [Laughs] It was time for me to forward, and it was that time."

Bell also touched upon FEAR FACTORY's latest album, "Aggression Continuum", which was released in June 2021 via Nuclear Blast Records. The LP, which was recorded primarily in 2017, features Bell and fellow original FF member Dino Cazares (guitar) alongside drummer Mike Heller.

"I was just happy that record finally came out," Burton said. "We finished that record in 2017. By the time it came out, I'd forgotten all about it. 'Oh, yeah, I remember that song. Oh yeah.'

"There's some good songs on that record. The song 'Collapse' is a good song. The title track 'Monolith' is a good song," he added, referencing the LP's original working title, before it was changed by Cazares.

When Coyle noted that the mix on "Aggression Continuum" is "great," Bell hesitated for a couple of seconds before reluctantly agreeing. "I guess," he said. "When I finished the record [in 2017], the record was done and agreed upon and then further work was done without my say."

Elsewhere in the chat, Burton said admitted that "it was difficult" for him to leave FEAR FACTORY. "Stepping away from FEAR FACTORY was not an easy decision by [any] means," he said. "But what I experienced for the 10 years before that, the lawsuits, the acrimony, that was the one that killed me. And I just had to step away to realize, you know, they can take all this stuff from me — they can take the money, they can take the royalties, they can take the trademark away from me — and I realized that didn't define me. They can take that, but I'm still Burton C. Bell, motherfucker, and whatever I have they can't take. So I'm just kind of moving forward and doing new things."

According to Bell, hardship is par for the course for most musicians, who often find themselves victims of bad contracts, unscrupulous management and, all too often, what appears to be a penchant for self-destruction.

"I knew a long time ago I wanted to be an artist — way before I was in FEAR FACTORY," he said. "When I was in high school, I was, like, 'I wanna be an artist.' To be an artist, you've gotta suffer. You've gotta understand that people wanna take from you the entire time — what you create they wanna make money off of and take it away from you and just give you a pittance. But being bitter is not my style — never has been.

"Whatever negativity has happened in the past with FEAR FACTORY doesn't even hold up to the amount of positivity that has happened," he continued. "If you think about the negative, it can weigh you down so much, but it's not really that much in comparison to what the band achieved, what we created, what we provided to the music world, and for that I'm proud and very happy.

"No one likes to talk to a bitter person at all," Burton added. "Me for one. It's, like, 'Man, just get over it and just move on.' 'Cause holding on to the past doesn't serve me anything, it doesn't serve anybody else anything. Move on and show 'em what you can do from that point forward."

In September 2020, Bell issued a statement officially announcing his departure from FEAR FACTORY, saying that he "cannot align" himself with someone whom he does not trust or respect.

Bell's exit from FEAR FACTORY came more than two weeks after Cazares launched a GoFundMe campaign to assist him with the production costs associated with the release of FEAR FACTORY's latest LP.

Bell later told Kerrang! magazine that his split with FEAR FACTORY was a long time coming. "It's been on my mind for a while," he said. "These lawsuits [over the rights to the FEAR FACTORY name] just drained me. The egos. The greed. Not just from bandmembers, but from the attorneys involved. I just lost my love for it.

"With FEAR FACTORY, it's just constantly been, like, 'What?!' You can only take so much. I felt like 30 years was a good run. Those albums I've done with FEAR FACTORY will always be out there. I'll always be part of that. I just felt like it was time to move forward."

In October 2020, Dino issued a statement in which he said that the door for Burton to come back to FEAR FACTORY wouldn't "stay open forever." The guitarist also revealed that Burton "lost his legal rights" to the FEAR FACTORY name "after a long court battle" with drummer Raymond Herrera and bassist Christian Olde Wolbers. "I had the opportunity to do something right, and I felt that obtaining the name in full was the right thing to do for the both of us, so after nearly four years we can continue as FEAR FACTORY, to make more records and to tour," he said. "That is why it is sad to hear that he decided to quit and, in my opinion, for whatever issues he has it seems like it could've been worked out."

Earlier this week, Cazares discussed Bell's departure from FEAR FACTORY during an appearance on "The Garza Podcast", hosted by SUICIDE SILENCE guitarist Chris Garza. Pressed about what happened to cause Burton to leave, Dino said: "Good question. I don't know. I think he just lost interest in… I can only assume, because we went through some really heavy lawsuits for four years, and it financially crippled us — personally as well — and I just believe that he lost interest. I think that possibly all the stuff that we went through in FEAR FACTORY was just, like… He's one of those guys, 'Fuck it. I'm out. I quit. Fuck it.' He doesn't come across as a fighter — as somebody who's gonna be, like, 'Fuck it. We went through it. Let's go through it and let's just continue.' I mean, I left the door open for him for a while to come back into the band, but he pretty much said fuck me, Raymond [Herrera, former FEAR FACTORY drummer] and Christian [Olde Wolbers, former FEAR FACTORY bassist] — everybody. Fuck everybody.

"I'm not gonna push it," Dino added. "I'm not gonna push him or nothing like that. Fans ask me all the time: 'Hey, call him up. Just call him up.' Well, if you saw the stuff he said when he left, he's not exactly a phone call away… He left pretty bitter, and that's pretty much where… It looks like he's having a good time being free. So I'm not gonna force anybody to come back or [any] stuff like that.

"Some people want change in their life, but sometimes fans just can't accept that. Fans are, like, 'He was the singer for 30 years. Come back.' That was his decision. No one pushed him out; no one forced him to leave — none of that stuff. That was his decision."

Dino has spent the last few months working with a new FEAR FACTORY singer whose identity has not yet been revealed.

Two months ago, former NIGHTRAGE singer Antony Hämäläinen, who recently unsuccessfully auditioned for the vocalist slot in FEAR FACTORY, claimed in an interview that the new FF frontman is "a person from Italy." He also added that a female vocalist who is "in a band with somebody who's a well-known producer/musician" auditioned for the position as well but didn't get the gig.

Bell's ASCENSION OF THE WATCHERS project released its second full-length album, "Apocrypha", in October 2020 via Dissonance Productions.