Today, Wardruna release an official music video for their song "Skugge" ("Shadow"). The song is an eerie sonic journey, voicing a dialogue between man and shadow or as Einar Selvik puts it; “it is a song about shadows, echoes and the balance between seeking answers and wisdom internally and externally”. The video was filmed and produced in Norway by Ragnarok Film in January 2022. 


To shorten the wait for their upcoming release, First Flight of the White Raven, (out on April 22nd 2022), the live version of the song is also released on all digital platforms via Music For Nations/Sony Music/Columbia Germany/ByNorse.







An immersive audio arrangement that underscores the experiential paradigm shift and masterful musicianship of their superlative and boundary-pushing virtual live experience First Flight of the White Raven of March 26, 2021. This new release captures their special set list consisting of songs from Kvitravn and a selection of favourites from the discography, and will be released on a 2LP, as well as 2CD that also features the original studio album track listing. To mark the event’s exceptional impact, it will also be available as a limited Boxset Edition including 2LP (black), 2CD, DVD with livestream performance and bonus documentary material and three videos (only available in the boxed set), flag of the CD album cover, certificate of authenticity for the box and an exclusive autographed card signed by Einar Selvik. Preorder at WardrunaShop.com.


"Kvitravn – First Flight of the White Raven is an audio-visual ‘live-in-studio’ recording that was broadcasted online, as the release show of the Kvitravn album. It was recorded in a time when it was not allowed to perform in front of an audience, which made it very important for me that the recording itself truly captured the energy of a live performance. What you hear is what we performed in that moment in that room. No re-recordings or autotune was done in the afterwork. Just like for a regular concert, the set list was carefully put together with a selection of songs from all our albums, including a handful of songs from the new album, which we performed for the very first time. On the day of recording, we all stood together in the same room for the first time in over a year. Everyone came focused and well prepared and the energy felt like no time had passed. I hope you will agree!” - Einar Selvik


To celebrate the announcement, Wardruna are also sharing the track and virtual live performance video for "Solringen" about which Einar Selvik says;"Solringen is a song originally released on the album Runaljod - Yggdrasil (2013). Even though it quickly became a popular track amongst our listeners, it wasn’t until late 2019 we first got around to performing it live. When taking the song from the studio to the stage, I really felt it needed a slightly different approach, more specifically adapted for the concert format"


Selvik continues; "In earlier tradition the women of the household on a farm had the task of going out into the fields around midsummer and wake up the elves dwelling there with rhymes and songs to encourage them to ensure growth and good crops. These songs and traditions have now mostly passed into oblivion. The initial idea behind "Solringen" is that new songs might wake them once again.”





Tracklisting:


Audio (with translations):
"Synkverv" (Turn-sight)
"Kvitravn" (White Raven)
"Skugge" (Shadow)
"Grá" (Grey)
"Fylgjutal" (Speech of the Fetch)
"Munin" (Memory)
"Kvit hjort" (White Stag)
"Viseveiding" (Song-hunting)
"Ni" (Nine)
"Vindavlarljod" (Song of the wind-bred)
"Andvevarljod" (Song of the Spirit-weavers)


Audio from virtual live performance:
“Kvitravn”
“Skugge”
“Solringen”
“Bjarkan”
“Raido”
“Voluspá”
“Isa”
“UruR”
“Grá”
“Vindavlarljod”
“Rotlaust Tre Fell”
“Fehu”
“Helvegen”


DVD:
“Kvitravn”
“Skugge”
“Solringen”
“Bjarkan”
“Raido”
“Voluspá”
“Isa”
“UruR”
“Grá”
“Vindavlarljod”
“Rotlaust Tre Fell” 
“Fehu”
“Helvegen”


Interview 
Behind the Scenes Videos: 
“Grá”
“Kvitravn”
“Lyfjaberg”


Documentary


"Solringen":





Photo by Ragnarock Film

Raised during the 80’s debauchery on the Sunset Strip and still going strong in 2021 - Jizzy Pearl's Love/Hate have released their brand-new and long-awaited album, HELL, CA, out now on CD and digital through Golden Robot Records.


The album's release was preceded by three singles, "Gonna Take You Higher", "Wanna Be Somebody" and "Soul Mama", which show Jizzy in fine form and gives a strong indication as to what to expect from Hell, CA.


Pick up the album digitally here.




HELL, CA. is a collection of 10 hard-hitting rock anthems, all with that distinctive Love/Hate style, with Jizzy Pearl’s trademark vocals taking the songs up and beyond and the heavy guitars doing the rest.





HELL, CA tracklisting:


"One Hot Minute"
"Acid Babe"
"Gonna Take You Higher"
"Soul Mama"
"Hard to Say Goodbye"
"When You Gonna Come Home"
"Last Chance"
"Bruised and Battered"
"Wanna Be Somebody"
"Lonely Days Are Gone"


"Gonna Take You Higher":





"Wanna Be Somebody":





"Soul Mama":

IRON ALLIES, the new band featuring former ACCEPT members Herman Frank and David Reece, has entered Horus Sound Studio in Hannover, Germany to begin recording its debut album. The LP, which is being co-produced by Arne Neurand, will be released later in the year via AFM Records.

Joining Frank and Reece in IRON ALLIES are bassist Donnie Van Stavern (RIOT) and drummer Francesco Jovino (U.D.O., PRIMAL FEAR, VOODOO CIRCLE, JORN).

Last October, Reece discussed his collaboration with Frank in an interview with the "Heavy Metal Mayhem" radio show. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "The ironic thing about Herman and I, we played festivals many times and not even met each other. And here we are, part of the same band and their history. And we would miss each other by, like, two minutes. We always wanted to see each other, but something came up [and] we never really got to meet. So Herman and I started talking, and we said, 'Yeah, let's put a band together. Who do you wanna get?' Well, my manager suggested Donnie from RIOT on bass, Donnie Van Stavern. And we talked to [drummer] Mike Heller from FEAR FACTORY a few times, and that didn't really work out. And then I said, 'I've got Francesco Jovino, dude, on my [solo] album. This guy is a beast.' So then we got the band together. So right now we're sitting on about 22 songs that are recorded."

Regarding the musical direction of IRON ALLIES, Reece said: "It's got some of those elements of old [ACCEPT circa] 'Restless And Wild'. It's got Dave's voice — [as heard on my solo albums] 'Cacophony [Of Souls]' and 'Blacklist [Utopia]'. It's ripping shit, man. I'm really excited about it."

According to Reece, part of the motivation for putting IRON ALLIES together is the negative publicity surrounding their respective departures from ACCEPT. "They badmouth him, they badmouth me, there was this back-and-forth all the time, and then [Herman] said, 'You know what? Screw it. I'm gonna call David Reece,'" David explained. "And I'd never really talked to him. He just came down to Italy about two weeks ago, and we got to actually meet face to face. We went out to a great dinner, hung out for about six hours. He was just driving around Europe, relaxing, 'cause he had just finished another VICTORY album and his solo album, so he needed a break."

David said that he is excited about the prospect of hitting the road with a seasoned veteran like Herman.

"This is a band of guys who have been around and done it all," he said. "So we're not gonna have that, 'Oh, I don't wanna go there. Do we have to get up so early?' We know what we've gotta do. We've gotta travel and we've gotta rock."

He added: "I'm hoping we can release that in the early part of '22, 'cause that's really good."

Frank broke the news of the collaboration in a June 2021 interview with Justin Smulison of Jace Media. He said: "I'm working right now — already working since a couple of months [ago] — on another project I wanna do with a singer, a well-known singer. He played in the same band as I did, but we never played [in the band] at the same time." When Smulison guessed that Frank was referring to Reece, the guitarist said: "How do you know? Good guess."

Herman joined ACCEPT in 1982 shortly before the release of the band's "Restless And Wild" album and exited the group for the first time after the arrival of 1983's "Balls To The Wall" LP.

When ACCEPT reunited for festival appearances in 2005, Herman handled second-guitar duties alongside founding axeman Wolf Hoffmann, with Stefan Schwarzmann sitting behind the kit.

Frank and Schwarzmann were involved in ACCEPT's comeback with singer Mark Tornillo and appeared on the reunited group's first three studio albums: 2010's "Blood Of The Nations", 2012's "Stalingrad" and 2014's "Blind Rage".

Two years ago, Herman told All That Shreds about his decision to exit ACCEPT in December 2014: "It was just time to leave the band. Let's put it this way: I wanted to do music the way I started to. I wanted to have my own band. I wanted my own music and just wanted to just play my own leads. Not to follow somebody's guitar. I was getting too old for it. It's fine to be a backup, but after a couple of years, it's time for a different thing."

Reece was recruited for ACCEPT's "Eat The Heat" LP in 1989 following the departure of Udo Dirkschneider. Reece's higher-pitched delivery was in sharp contrast to Dirkschneider's distinctive style, and overall, the album was a critical and commercial disappointment. Midway through the "Eat The Heat" tour, differences between the band and Reece had come to a head, leading to the altercation between the singer and bassist Peter Baltes in Chicago. By the end of 1989, ACCEPT had hung it up.

David spoke about the circumstances that led to his dispute with the bassist during an interview with Metalliluola. He explained: "Peter had told my girlfriend I was having an affair. And I asked him, 'Did you tell her?' And he said, 'Yes.' So I slapped him. That ended it. It was bad before that, the communication. Ticket sales weren't good. We were opening for W.A.S.P."

He continued: "I think they really thought that getting the American [singer] in, they were gonna break the United States. But ACCEPT aren't really huge in America, like [in Europe]. That's why they hired me — they wanted a change. And the tour was going kind of slow. We did a headline tour first in the States, [playing in the] clubs. That was good. And then we went out with W.A.S.P. and METAL CHURCH, and it was half[-filled] rooms. So they were feeling the stress of that, and the communication was bad. So it was building."

David went on to say that he is sorry for assaulting his former bandmate. "Peter and I are friends now," he said, adding that "it was a bad decision" that was made while he and the rest of the group were under "a lot of stress. Being in a band, it can be a lot of drama. He had no right to tell her, and I had no right to slap him. So, I regret it."


Francesco Jovino just finished all Iron Allies drum tracks onward people and greetings from Hannover at Horus studios new album on AFM announcement coming soon

Posted by David Reece Official on Saturday, March 12, 2022



With the great Arne Neurand Co producer of the new Iron Allies album coming out on AFM records

Posted by David Reece Official on Saturday, March 12, 2022

JOAN JETT AND THE BLACKHEARTS will release an acoustic album, "Changeup", on March 25. The 25-track effort features unplugged versions of songs spanning Jett's entire career, including her work with the pioneering 1970s all-female band THE RUNAWAYS. Among the songs that are set to appear on the LP are "(I'm Gonna) Run Away", which can be streamed below, her cover of TOMMY JAMES AND THE SHONDELLS' "Crimson And Clover", THE RUNAWAYS' "Cherry Bomb" and an acoustic rendition of "Bad Reputation", which was initially made available last year.

"Changeup" track listing:

01. (I'm Gonna) Run Away

02. You're Too Possessive

03. Long Time

04. Victim Of Circumstance

05. Coney Island Whitefish

06. Love Is Pain

07. Oh Woe Is Me

08. You Drive Me Wild

09. Frustrated

10. Bad Reputation

11. Fake Friends

12. Fresh Start

13. Soulmates To Strangers

14. Make It Back

15. Fragile

16. I Love Playin' With Fire

17. Cherry Bomb

18. I Want You

19. Crimson And Clover

20. A Hundred Feet Away

21. Androgynous

22. You Don't Know What You’ve Got

23. School Days

24. Good Music

25. Light Of Day

Jett grew up during a time when rock 'n' roll was off limits to girls and women, but as a teenager, she promptly blew the door to the boys' club right off its hinges. After forming her band THE BLACKHEARTS in 1979, with whom Jett has become a Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame inductee, she has had eight platinum and gold albums and nine Top 40 singles, including the classics "Bad Reputation", "I Love Rock 'N' Roll", "I Hate Myself For Loving You" and "Crimson And Clover". With a career that has spanned music, film, television, Broadway, and humanitarianism, Jett remains a potent force and inspiration to generations of fans worldwide.

As a producer, she has overseen seminal albums by BIKINI KILL, and the GERMS' L.A. punk masterpiece "GI". Jett and co-founder Kenny Laguna (her longtime producer and music partner) founded Blackheart from the trunk of Kenny's Cadillac after countless rejections from no less than 23 labels. 40 years later, Blackheart is a thriving entertainment company producing music, film, and television, and continues to champion emerging bands.

Jett and THE BLACKHEARTS continue touring the globe with headlining shows alongside fellow rock legends like THE WHO, GREEN DAY, HEART and FOO FIGHTERS.

After two COVID-19 postponements, the group will return to the road in summer 2022 for "The Stadium Tour" with DEF LEPPARD, MÖTLEY CRÜE and POISON.

"Bad Reputation", a documentary about Jett's life, premiered to critical acclaim at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival and is now available for streaming.

Fan-filmed video of JUDAS PRIEST's March 10 concert at Moda Center in Portland, Oregon can be seen below.

The band's setlist was as follows:

01. One Shot At Glory

02. Lightning Strike

03. You've Got Another Thing Comin'

04. Freewheel Burning

05. Turbo Lover

06. Hell Patrol

07. The Sentinel

08. A Touch Of Evil

09. Rocka Rolla

10. Victim Of Changes

11. Desert Plains

12. Blood Red Skies

13. Invader

14. Painkiller

Encore:

15. The Hellion / Electric Eye

16. Hell Bent For Leather

17. Breaking The Law

18. Living After Midnight

The tour will conclude on April 13 at FirstOntario Centre in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Support on the trek is coming from QUEENSRŸCHE.

JUDAS PRIEST was forced to postpone around two dozen North American shows on its rescheduled 50th-anniversary tour in late September after the band's guitarist Richie Faulkner suffered an acute cardiac aortic dissection during a performance at the Louder Than Life festival. He ended up undergoing a 10-hour life-saving surgery a short distance away at Rudd Heart and Lung Center at UofL Health - Jewish Hospital in Louisville, Kentucky.

QUEENSRŸCHE was originally set to support SCORPIONS on their rescheduled "Sin City Nights" Las Vegas residency in March-April 2022 but pulled out of the dates in order to take part in the JUDAS PRIEST tour. SCORPIONS have since tapped SKID ROW as the new opening act for the Vegas residency.

Faulkner's medical episode happened while he was performing the closing song of PRIEST's set on the final day of Louder Than Life. Faulkner later said in a statement: "As I watch footage from the Louder Than Life Festival in Kentucky, I can see in my face the confusion and anguish I was feeling whilst playing 'Painkiller' as my aorta ruptured and started to spill blood into my chest cavity."

Two weeks after his surgery, Faulkner told reporters that he experienced a sharp pain as he was stepping off the stage. "That's when it exploded," he said.

"The more I read about it, the more astonishing it is to me to think that I even made it to the hospital," he added. "The amount of time when I actually go the pain and when I turned up in the hospital and when we were actually operating, it was quite a lot of time. The more I read about it, the more unbelievable — that amount of time — I don't know how I'm still around today."

Faulkner said he had no history of heart complications and that the aliment came completely "out of the blue."

"My point is I don't even have high cholesterol and this could've been the end for me," he said. "If you can get yourselves checked — do it for me, please."

Aortic aneurysms are "balloon-like bulges in the aorta, the large artery that carries blood from the heart through the chest and torso," according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. Dissections happen when the "force of blood pumping can split the layers of the artery wall, allowing blood to leak in between them."

Doctors said Faulkner will continue to be monitored and will receive a CT scan every six months for the first year.

Faulkner joined PRIEST in 2011 as the replacement for original guitarist K.K. Downing.

The Peoria concert took place less than two months after JUDAS PRIEST revealed that it would perform as a four-piece when it returns to the road in early March. A few hours later, the band's touring guitarist Andy Sneap, who co-produced the group's 2018 album "Firepower", released a statement to BLABBERMOUTH.NET in which he said that he was "incredibly disappointed" by PRIEST's decision to carry on as a quartet and thanked the Rob Halford-fronted outfit for the "mind-blowing" opportunity to share the stage with one of his favorite bands. Meanwhile, PRIEST fans were understandably upset about the band's decision to forgo its classic twin-guitar attack sound and made their feelings known on social media. Some even called for the return of Downing, who joined PRIEST in 1970 and remained in the group until 2011.

Only five days later, JUDAS PRIEST released a statement announcing that it was reversing its decision to tour as a four-piece, explaining that the bandmembers "decided unanimously" to continue their live shows "unchanged" with Halford, Faulkner, Ian Hill (bass), Scott Travis (drums) and Andy.

Less than two months ago, Downing said in an interview that it was "very, very strange" for PRIEST "to even think about" the possibility of going out as a quartet. "I'm like everybody else. I'm totally bemused," he told the "Rock Of Nations With Dave Kinchen" classic rock show. It was just so extreme and insulting in a way, I guess, and insulting to Glenn as well. It was kind of a slap in the face, saying, 'Okay, you two guys did it, but we think just one guy could do what…' It kind of made us and everything that we've done and created, saying it was all superfluous, really, and didn't really have the value that… I'm sure Glenn will agree with me that it does have a value."

Kid Rock has released the official music video for his new single "We The People". The track is taken from his upcoming album, "Bad Reputation", which will be made available digitally on March 21. Physical CDs will arrive on April 6.

"Bad Reputation" included the three songs Kid Rock released in January — "We The People", "The Last Dance" and "Rockin'" — as well as his November 2021 single "Don't Tell Me How To Live", which was recorded with Canadian hard rockers MONSTER TRUCK.

"We The People" features the chorus of "Let's go, Brandon," conservative code for "Fuck Joe Biden" (born when a NASCAR reporter misheard a crowd, reporting that they chanted in support of racer Brandon Brown when they were actually chanting expletives toward the U.S. president), and also takes aim at the mainstream media, CNN, TMZ, Twitter and Facebook, as well as mask mandates and COVID-19 restrictions.

"We the people in all we do reserve the right to scream, 'Fuck you!" Kid shouts in the song. "Wear your mask. Take your pills. Now a whole generation is mentally ill," he adds.

Elsewhere in the song, he raps: "COVID's near. It's coming to town. We gotta act quick, shut our borders down. Joe Biden does, the media embraces. Big Don does it, and they call him racist.

"Inflation's up like the minimum wage. So it's all the same. Not a damn thing changed," he exclaims.

He then calls for politically polarized Americans to come together, saying: "We gotta keep fighting for right to be free. And every human being doesn't have to agree. We all bleed red, brother, listen to me. It's time for love and unity."

The track concludes with sampled crowd chanting, "Let's go, Brandon."

In a Facebook video announcing the three tracks in January, Kid Rock described "We The People" as a "hard rock-rap tune."

"[It's] about, well, all the craziness going on in our world in the last few years and the politics and the polarization and social justice," he said. "You know, constantly for just being a Trump fan attacked in the media day in day out."

He added: "I don't mind taking a punch, but I hit back, motherfucker, and I hit hard."

As previously reported, Kid Rock will join forces with FOREIGNER and GRAND FUNK RAILROAD for a U.S. tour this spring summer. JASON BONHAM'S LED ZEPPELIN EVENING will appear on select dates, with a special appearance by Trey Lewis at all shows. The 24-city "Bad Reputation Tour" will kick off on April 6 at the Ford Center in Evansville, Indiana, making stops across the U.S. in Nashville, Boston, Chicago, and more before wrapping up with two shows in Detroit.

"Bad Reputation" track listing:

01. Don't Tell Me How To Live (feat. MONSTER TRUCK)

02. We The People

03. My Kind Of Country

04. Bad Reputation

05. Never Quit

06. Shakedown (feat. Robert James)

07. Rockin'

08. The Last Dance

09. See You Again

10. Still Somethin'

11. She's Your Baby (Now Rock Her)

12. Never Enough

13. Everything To Me

14. Cold Beer

15. Ala-Fu**In'-Bama

16. Am What I Am

17. The Nashville I Know

18. Fifty

In a new interview with Vinny Cecolini of The Aquarian Weekly, SEPULTURA guitarist Andreas Kisser discussed the divisive political climate in his home country of Brazil. He said: "Historically, Brazilian politics is a mess. We've been through two presidential impeachments during the last few decades, which is crazy. It doesn't matter if the politician is right, left, or dead in the center, it is chaotic. We have the worst president ever. I dare say our president was worse than [former U.S. president Donald] Trump was. The politicians have no respect for anyone other than their small group.

"[Admittedly,] Brazil is a difficult place," he continued. "It's a big country. Geographically from north to south, there are so many different cultures. We also have a large immigrant population, which introduced Asian and European cultures. But our current president, Jair Bolsonaro, talks with stupidity about things from the past we thought we were finished with. There is no respect for the different races, the homosexuals, and the environment. Agriculture is one of the most important [parts] of our economy and the [variety] of toxic chemicals used is insane. Many of these chemicals have been banned in other countries, but not here. It's sad that we continue to step backward because of the political climate."

Current polls in Brazil suggest Bolsonaro will lose October's election to his leftwing rival, the former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, after alienating many voters with his anti-scientific handling of a COVID-19 pandemic, which has killed more than 650,000 Brazilians.

Like former Trump, Bolsonaro has tried to sow election doubts to pave the way for him not to accept defeat in 2022.

Bolsonaro, who has been accused of corruption, said in a meeting with evangelical leaders that he had "three alternatives for my future: being arrested, killed or victory" in the next election — and he said prison was not an option.

SEPULTURA comprises Kisser, vocalist Derrick Green, bassist Paulo Xisto Pinto Jr., and drummer Eloy Casagrande.

SEPULTURA's "North American Quadra" 2022 tour with SACRED REICH and CROWBAR kicked off on March 4 in Sacramento and will make stops in Toronto, Cleveland, and New York before concluding on April 8 in Berkeley, Califor

SLAYER guitarist Kerry King says that JUDAS PRIEST deserves to be inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.

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

King, who has been a massive PRIEST fan since high school, discussed the band's absence from the Rock Hall in a new interview with Rolling Stone. He said: "Some years, you hear who got in the Rock Hall and you're like, 'Well, how did they get in above these other bands?' So it seems basically like a popularity contest rather than, 'Do they deserve to get in there?' Because JUDAS PRIEST deserve to be in there. They've had a 50-year career — longer than SLAYER did, and we had a long-ass career — and they're still playing when they're all healthy. So they've got longevity on their side. They were a darling of MTV, when MTV came out. And I probably couldn't count all the hits — or what the common person would call hits."

"If I were going to vote for the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, I would totally vote for them," he continued. "Without question. First and foremost, there would be no metal without BLACK SABBATH. But once you get beyond that, there wouldn't be a lot of metal bands without JUDAS PRIEST. Us being one of them.

"The people who do vote are probably going to vote for the bigger bands," Kerry predicted. "That says nothing for PRIEST's longevity and the things they've done. I don't know what else to say. If you're not a metal fan, you're never going to get it. If you are a metal fan, you're never going to forget it."

On February 2, it was announced that JUDAS PRIEST is among the nominees for the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame's class of 2022. Inductees will be announced in May. The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame 2022 induction ceremony will take place this fall. The date, venue, and on-sale information will be announced later.

JUDAS PRIEST was previously on the ballot for Rock Hall induction in 2020, but failed to receive enough votes to make that year's class.

Having been eligible for induction since 1999, PRIEST was also on the ballot for the 2018 class of the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, but was ultimately left out of the inductee list.

Once again, the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame has named the individual bandmembers that will enter should their group get inducted.

For JUDAS PRIEST, they picked current members Rob Halford (vocals), Ian Hill (bass), Glenn Tipton (guitar) and Scott Travis (drums), along with former members K.K. Downing (guitar), Les Binks (drums) and late drummer Dave Holland.

Last year, Halford selected SLAYER's "Angel Of Death" for inclusion on Rolling Stone's "500 Greatest Songs Of All Time" list, telling the magazine about his choice: "I've always been a SLAYER fan. I love this kind of extreme metal music with a band like SLAYER and 'Angel Of Death'. They were a bunch of guys out of the Bay Area that spread this new kind of gospel of metal in this extreme form. The sheer terror of SLAYER which hit us all like a ton of heavy metal bricks really did the same to me. And out of all of the great SLAYER songs that I personally love to smash my head in to and with, 'Angel Of Death' — oh, yeah, ba

Ted Nugent has once again railed against large social-media companies that block users from their platforms.

The outspoken conservative rocker is an ardent supporter of former U.S. president Donald Trump who was famously suspended from his social accounts in January 2021 over public safety concerns in the wake of the Capitol riot.

Nugent repeated his unsubstantiated accusations that tech companies are censoring his speech during Wednesday's (March 9) edition of "The Nightly Nuge", a news-style clip in which Ted offers his take on the news of our world every night. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "We believe that even though high tech is something relatively new and advancing constantly, it's the new town square. It's where the First Amendment should exist. It's where free speech and open communication and dialogue and debate should run free. That's the new town square in this electronic high-tech media. But not according to those leftists and the Marxists that run Big Tech. Because the thought that my precious sweetheart, almost like Mother Teresa, wife Shemane has been banned from Twitter is certainly a manifestation of a cultural abandonment, a cultural deprivation that Big Tech now represents.

"I had between 25 million and 36 million Facebook reach in 2016, before we got the outsider, the non-politician, the non-status quo guy elected president," he continued. "But once Donald Trump, who was on the fast track to make things much better for America on every level; every policy that Donald Trump implemented made a better quality of life in the United States Of America, and quite honestly all around the world. We could name all those examples, but people who pay attention know what those examples are. And I went from between 25 million and 36 million Facebook reach within a few weeks of the [2016 presidential] election down to three and a half million Facebook [reach]. And right now on my Facebook, I get on every day and talk about every imaginable subject, because nothing is sacred and the First Amendment covers everything, and if I say something, like promoting hunting or promoting marksmanship or our Ted Nugent Kamp For Kids charity, teaching children safe firearms handling and archery and hunting, fishing, trapping, all of a sudden it goes from hundreds of thousands of reach to a few dozen. They probably have a gang of 'fact checkers.' 'Fact checkers' are anything but fact checkers. They're opinionated little dirtbags that crush anything that is uncomfortable to the uncomfortably dumb in Big Tech.

"So, again, we the people, we've let this happen," Ted added. "I hear a lot of squawking around the campfires, a lot of squawking around the water cooler, a lot of squawking at the bowling alley, a lot of squawking at the barbecue, a lot of squawking at church and at school and in the workplace. Don't squawk. Call your elected employees and tell them that the First Amendment reigns supreme everywhere, including the 'Zuck world' of Big Tech and their dishonest, anti-American, anti-fact so-called fact checkers. But if we don't speak up, this indecency, this dishonesty, this censorship will continue. Let's raise more hell."

Social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook have suspended or removed the accounts of prominent conservatives who have violated their terms of service.

Trump was banned from Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat following the January 6, 2021 Capitol riot that he was accused of inciting, adding to claims that conservatives are being unfairly treated. Twitter, along with Facebook and Instagram, pointed to their terms of service, which prohibit inciting violence on their platforms.

Defenders of the technology industry have repeatedly said that private companies cannot be forced to host speech they don't agree with. They also argue that private owners should be able to do as they please with their own property. In addition, they note that social media companies can only decide what speech they host and present. Those unsatisfied with their choices can choose to read or contribute elsewhere.

In a new interview with "The Mistress Carrie Podcast", HEART frontwoman Ann Wilson was asked if it's harder to keep a marriage or a band together. The 71-year-old singer, who has been married to Dean Wetter since April 2015, laughed and responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I think it's harder to keep a band together — in my experience. And I've only been married once and I'm still loving it and feel great about it. It's harder to keep a band together because you have other people coming, like wives and significant others, talking in your bandmates' ears and maybe saying things that pit them against you or against the group unity. It's really hard. It's kind of a revolving door with a band."

Ann's comments come less than a month after her sister, HEART guitarist Nancy Wilson, said that HEART "had a big offer on the table last year for a bigger tour, but Ann wasn't interested in going out with my lineup of guys that we were out with before. She has a new lineup of guys that she wanted me to join up with," Nancy said. "And I sort of [thought] I don't really know them and don't have loyalty yet for anybody like that. So I just kind of shined it on and decided when I do go out with my new singer Kimberly [Nichole under the band name NANCY WILSON'S HEART]."

HEART toured North America in the summer of 2019 after a nasty split that kept the Wilson sisters estranged for three years.

Ann and Nancy had a falling out during HEART's 2016 tour, when Wetter was arrested for assaulting Nancy's then-16-year-old twin sons in a backstage altercation at a gig near their hometown of Seattle. He pleaded guilty to two lesser assault charges to avoid jail time.

Ann will release a new album, "Fierce Bliss", on April 29 via Silver Lining Music.

During a recent interview with LifeMinute, SOUNDGARDEN guitarist Kim Thayil commented on the possibility of sharing the stage again with his fellow surviving SOUNDGARDEN members Ben Shepherd (bass) and Matt Cameron (drums). He said: "I think it's very likely that Matt and Ben and I will play together. I think we know that the songs that we love, that we did for decades with SOUNDGARDEN, if we're gonna play those songs again or hear those songs when we wanna hear them, at best it'll be with at least the three of us; that's the closest we're gonna get at this point. So I think we'd wanna re-explore that and do that at some time in the future. And I think the three of us have an interest in doing new things. We certainly like working together."

Last August, Thayil, Cameron and Shepherd joined Brandi Carlile onstage during her concert on at the Gorge Amphitheatre in in George, Washington to play SOUNDGARDEN's "Searching With My Good Eye Closed" and "Black Hole Sun".

In June 2021, SOUNDGARDEN and Vicky Cornell, the widow and personal representative of the estate of the band's lead singer Chris Cornell, announced that they had come to a temporary agreement that would transfer the SOUNDGARDEN social media accounts and web site to Thayil, Cameron and Shepherd and their managers, Red Light Management. This included SOUNDGARDEN's web site, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

A year ago, Thayil, Cameron, Shepherd and their business manager Rit Venerus filed papers in Washington state U.S. District Court claiming that Vicky Cornell had locked them out of their Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Vimeo, YouTube, Snapchat, Tumblr, Top Spin and Pinterest accounts, as well as SOUNDGARDEN's official web site, and changing all the passwords.

Thayil, Cameron and Shepherd claimed their socials were previously managed by their then-management company Patriot Management. They said they later learned that Patriot had handed over all the login information to Vicky after Patriot was terminated in October 2019.

Chris Cornell was found hanged in his room at the MGM Grand Detroit hotel in May 2017, following a SOUNDGARDEN show at the city's Fox Theatre. His body was found soon after he had spoken with a "slurred" voice to his wife by phone. The death was ruled a suicide.

In December 2019, Vicky filed a lawsuit against the surviving SOUNDGARDEN members, alleging the group owed Cornell's estate hundreds of thousands of dollars in unpaid royalties and the rights to seven unreleased recordings made before the singer's death in May of 2017.

Responding to Vicky's lawsuit, Thayil, Shepherd and Cameron claimed that they "don't have possession" of their "own creative work," and alleged that "Vicky Cornell has possession of the only existing multi-track recordings of the last SOUNDGARDEN tracks that include Chris Cornell's instrumental parts and vocals. All of the band members jointly worked on these final tracks, Vicky now claims ownership of the final SOUNDGARDEN album."

According to the Tampa Bay Times, Ripley's Believe It Or Not! museum in Denmark has acquired the toilet a heavy metal musician and visual artist from Tampa, Florida sculpted to look like METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich.

The artist known as Prince Midnight donated the toilet to Ripley Entertainment, which will soon be shipped to the Ripley's "odditorium" in Copenhagen, where it will go on permanent display.

Although some people have interpreted the Ulrich toilet as an insult, Prince Midnight insists that is "absolutely not the case."

"This toilet was built by a METALLICA super fan," he told the Tampa Bay Times. "They wrote the first songs that meant something to me."

Prince Midnight said he chose to depict Ulrich in toilet form because Lars "as the drummer, is usually depicted sitting.

"I could have done a urinal with [frontman] James [Hetfield]," he added, "but that's not where the creative spirit was leading me."

In a separate interview with Creative Loafing, Prince Midnight said that the toilet was his way to honor not just Ulrich but others who have inspired him, like painter Marcel Duchamp, sculptor Claes Oldenburg and performance artist Terence Koh.

"I could have painted a picture or made a traditional sculpture, but no one would have even noticed, and really, that's not the kind of art and performance I do," he said. "The first band I ever loved was METALLICA. I even went to see them a couple years ago with LAMB OF GOD, so the passion hasn't waned."

METALLICA bassist Robert Trujillo has apparently approved of the toilet, saying in an interview after he was surprised with a picture of Prince Midnight's creation: "Oh my god! You're kidding. This is incredible, how come I didn't see this? This is a work of art. I want one. Where can I buy em?... I'm sure [Lars will] hear about this when I see him."

Born in Gentofte, Denmark, on December 26, 1963, Lars is the son of the Danish musician, filmmaker and former tennis pro Torben Ulrich, who turned 93 in October.
























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In a new interview with Loudwire, MEGADETH's Dave Mustaine said that the plan is still for the band's sixteenth studio album, "The Sick, The Dying And The Dead", to be released this summer. "I sure hope so," he said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET). "I think it's July 8th. I think that was the latest we heard for a release date. I think it could possibly be scooted forward a little bit, but I think that would actually be worse than if it stayed where it was at. You need every little bit of time to let people get everything all set up with all this COVID shit. It's been really difficult to ship anything, let alone records."

Regarding the musical direction of the new MEGADETH material and how the recent return of bassist James LoMenzo has affected the band's sound, Mustaine said: "I like to push things as far as I can right because of the — not only the ability but the excitement level that Dirk [Verbeuren, drums] and Kiko [Loureiro, guitar] have with their playing ability right now. Our guest bassist that we had [on the new album]" — rumored to be Steve DiGiorgio (TESTAMENT, DEATH, SADUS) — "he was a fantastic player. And having James be part of the band again… I remember there were so many, many wonderful nights playing with him. So when the situation kind of revealed itself that we needed to make a change, James was pretty much the obvious choice."

Two months ago, Mustaine confirmed that LoMenzo will play bass for MEGADETH when the band returns to the road in April for the second U.S. leg of "The Metal Tour Of The Year". Joining them will be co-headliners LAMB OF GOD along with special guests TRIVIUM and IN FLAMES.

LoMenzo joined MEGADETH in 2006 and appeared on two of the group's studio albums, 2007's "United Abominations" and 2009's "Endgame". He was fired from the band in 2010 and replaced with returning original MEGADETH bassist David Ellefson.

In addition to MEGADETH, LoMenzo has played with Ozzy Osbourne, Zakk Wylde and WHITE LION. For the past nine years, LoMenzo has been performing with iconic rocker John Fogerty.

LoMenzo played his first show with MEGADETH in nearly 12 years last August in Austin, Texas. The concert took place three months following Ellefson's dismissal from MEGADETH after sexually tinged messages and explicit video footage involving him were posted on Twitter.

Asked in an interview with Melodic.net what it has been like for him to play with MEGADETH on "The Metal Tour Of The Year" last summer after such a long absence from the band, James said: "Well, I'm really having the best time. Dave's [Mustaine] been really welcoming and supportive, and the band as a whole is just fantastic. It's a real powerhouse. Dirk is a dream drummer for this type of music, and Kiko's just so musically deep. Dave's playing as good or better than ever and now that he's on those Gibson guitars, his sound is so much more gut punching then I remember it."

Regarding how he ended up returning to MEGADETH, James said: "Dave's management reached out at first to see if I'd even be available, which I really wasn't, but after a call with Dave, I realized how important for MEGADETH and even for myself this would be. Time was ticking, so I knew it would be a crunch, but having been here once before the re-learning curve was a tad less steep. I made some arrangements with the Fogerty camp, and they were gracious enough to allow me a leave to do this."

Mustaine has yet to reveal who played bass on MEGADETH's new album after Ellefson's tracks were removed from the LP following his exit from the group.

Ellefson laid down his bass tracks on MEGADETH's sixteenth LP in May 2020 at a studio in Nashville, Tennessee.

In July 2021, Mustaine announced during an episode of his Gimme Radio program "The Dave Mustaine Show" that Ellefson's bass tracks would not be used on the new MEGADETH album.

In early May 2021, Ellefson released a statement on Instagram denying all social media chatter that he "groomed" an underage fan.

On May 24, 2021, Mustaine — who formed MEGADETH with Ellefson in 1983 — announced the bassist's departure from the band.

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