Michael Lang, a musical concert promoter, producer and artistic manager who is best known as the official producer of Woodstock Music Art Festival in 1969, died Saturday night (January 8) at the age of 77.

Lang died of complications from non-Hodgkin's lymphoma at Sloan Kettering hospital in New York City, a representative said.

In 1968, after promoting a series of concert events in the Miami area, Lang (together with Marshall Brevetz) produced the 1968 Miami Pop Festival, which drew around 25,000 people on its first day with acts such as Jimi Hendrix, Frank Zappa, John Lee Hooker, Arthur Brown and BLUE CHEER. After he moved to Woodstock, New York, and met Artie Kornfeld, a respected recording artist and composer, the two developed the concept for a major festival event to celebrate the 1960s social movements and planned to open a recording studio in Woodstock. With Kornfeld and partners John P. Roberts and Joel Rosenman, Lang set Woodstock into motion and it was held on Max Yasgur's farm in Bethel, New York, from August 15 to August 18, 1969. Lang later served as a consultant to THE ROLLING STONES before establishing Just Sunshine Records and the Michael Lang Organization. He has produced albums for and managed dozens of acts, including Billy Joel, Joe Cocker and Rickie Lee Jones. Additionally, Lang produced the Woodstock '94 and Woodstock '99 festivals.

"Woodstock offered an environment for people to express their better selves, if you will," Lang told Pollstar in 2019. "It was probably the most peaceful event of its kind in history. That was because of expectations and what people wanted to create there."

Lang is survived by wife Tamara and his five children, Shala, Lariann, Molly, Harry and Laszlo.

CHEAP TRICK performed at today's (Sunday, January 9) Baltimore Ravens vs. Pittsburgh Steelers game at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, Maryland.

The legendary rockers played from the Bud Light Touchdown Club during halftime.

Video footage and photos of their appearance can be found below.

Founded in 1974, CHEAP TRICK is an indisputable American institution, beloved around the globe for its instantly identifiable, hugely influential, brand of pop-rock 'n' roll. The bandmembers are true pioneers with an unparalleled streak of certifiably classic tunes, from "He's A Whore", "California Man" and "Dream Police" to "Surrender", "I Want You To Want Me" and the worldwide No. 1 hit single "The Flame".

2016 saw CHEAP TRICK inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, a long-overdue acknowledgment of a nearly five-decade career that has earned them more than 40 international gold and platinum certifications, myriad awards and industry honors, featured appearances on over 20 movie soundtracks, and total record sales well in excess of 20 million.

CHEAP TRICK's current lineup includes three of its original members: singer Robin Zander, guitarist Rick Nielsen and bassist Tom Petersson. Drummer Bun E. Carlos stopped touring with the band in 2010 and was replaced by Nielsen's son Daxx.

SHADOWS FALL's Jason Bittner has uploaded a drum-cam video of the "Fire From The Sky" performance at the band's one-off show, which took place on December 18 at The Palladium in Worcester in their native Massachusetts.

Bittner said in a message accompanying the YouTube release of the video: "This is one of my all-time favorites by us.......here's the first drum cam video from the SHADOWS FALL sold out Reunion show in Worcester, MA December 18, 2021 - Enjoy!!"

In a new interview with the Podioslave Podcast, conducted just days after the reunion gig, SHADOWS FALL singer Brian Fair stated about the comeback performance (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "It was insane, man. It couldn't have gone any better than we could have hoped for. It was a long time coming. We sort of fizzled out as far as we never had a last big show to kind of head off into the sunset. We still all loved making music together, we all still loved playing shows, but life was just getting in the way. I was about to have my second kid; Paul [Romanko, bass] had already had a kid. It was just getting tough, so we sort of fizzled out. So, over the last few years, we would kind of, every now and then, just float the idea of, like, 'Yeah, we should probably play a show.' But then at five years, we were, like, 'All right. It's been long enough. We really wanna do this.' And we had a date, and we were all systems go, and then COVID happened. Literally, we were gonna announce probably three weeks before the world shut down. Thankfully, we didn't, so we could kind of just, like, 'All right…' It's not like we had to announce it and then retract. And it gave us some more time to really think about what we wanted to do.

"The key was for us we weren't trying to do like a quick throw-and-go, make-some-money-and-just-disappear thing," he explained. "We were, like, 'We want a sick bill that makes sense.' So once we got SWORN ENEMY, DARKEST HOUR and UNEARTH to sign on, we were, like, 'All right. That's where we wanna start. We want bands that make sense that are our crew.' And then we also wanted to get some local, kind of younger bands. Matt [Bachand, rhythm guitar] had been working with CARNIVORA forever. And we knew the WITHIN THE RUINS guys. And we were, like, 'All right, we've got our bill.' We knew it was gonna be at The Palladium before. That was like our backyard; that was like our hometown spot. We played so many metal fests and opened so many great shows [at that venue]."

Fair added: "And then we were, like, 'We also want to be razor-sharp prepared.' We were not known for rehearsing very diligently back in the day. We were kind of a lazy band when it came to practicing. We'd always get halfway through the set and be, like, 'We know 'Destroyer Of Senses'. We don't need to play it again.' And then you realize, 'We probably should have dusted it off.' So we really all focused and practiced like crazy, on our own and then together. And, man, that was probably as good as we've ever sounded. We were super ready. The crowd was incredible. We brought in an awesome crew and great production. We brought in the lights; we did the whole deal. We were, like, 'We're not nickel-and-diming this shit. It's gonna be a fucking party.' And it was, man. It was awesome. My family was out. I had the kids up on stage with me at one point. And Paul's kid came out. They got to see their dads being cool at least once, and not just on YouTube. The vibe was very celebratory. [There] was a crazy pit and people were going nuts, but it wasn't an angry vibe in there at all. It was very welcoming and very humbling as well."

SHADOWS FALL released a statement in August 2014 in which the bandmembers explained that financial difficulties made it virtually impossible for the group to continue as a full-time concern.

In August 2015, SHADOWS FALL played a few reunion shows on the U.S. East Coast, one year after completing what was being billed at the time as the band's "final" European tour.

SHADOWS FALL's latest album, "Fire From The Sky", released in May 2012 via Razor & Tie. The CD sold around 10,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 38 on The Billboard 200 chart.

SHADOWS FALL members Jon Donais and Matt Bachand recently launched a new project called LIVING WRECKAGE, in which they are joined by guitarist Matt LeBreton (DOWNPOUR), drummer Jon Morency (LET US PREY) and vocalist Jeff Gard DEATH RAY VISION.

Vocalist/bassist Burke Shelley of legendary Welsh rockers BUDGIE has died at the age of 71. The news of his passing was shared earlier today by his daughter Ela. She wrote on Facebook: "It is with great sadness that I announce the death of my father, John Burke Shelley. He passed away this evening in his sleep at Heath Hospital in Cardiff, his birth town. He was 71 years old. Please respect the family during this time.

"With love, His four children: Ela, Osian, Dimitri and Nathaniel."

Two years ago, Shelley said that he was suffering from aortic aneurysm — a dangerous and abnormal swelling of the main artery that supplies blood to the body. He was also batting Stickler syndrome, a genetic disorder that can cause serious vision, hearing and joint problems. At the time, he told Wales Online that he turned down surgery because of the risk that it would cause irreparable spinal damage.

"I want to live what life I have left and not be crippled," he said. "I've got faith in God and have no worries about where I'm going. So I'll just go when He decides to take me and, in the meantime, I'll carry on doing what I want to do. Simple as that."

Shelley said the surgery he had in 2010 for aortic aneurysm resulted in damage to his diaphragm, leaving him unable to sing properly.

Often thought of as a cross between BLACK SABBATH and RUSH, the underappreciated outfit has influenced countless acts, despite enduring countless line-up shifts throughout their history.

The group originally formed in 1967 in Cardiff, Wales, comprised of Shelley (vocals, bass), Tony Bourge (guitar) and Ray Phillips (drums), and by the early 1970s they'd inked a deal with MCA Records.

This early lineup remains BUDGIE's most definitive, due to the fact that it spawned three of the group's finest albums — 1971's self-titled debut, 1972's "Squawk" and 1973's "Never Turn Your Back On A Friend" — while the group's quirky song titles became somewhat of a trademark for the trio (such ditties as "Nude Disintegrating Parachutist Woman", "Hot As A Docker's Armpit", "In The Grip Of A Tyrefitter's Hand" and "You're The Biggest Thing Since Powdered Milk").

Despite building a sizeable following in their homeland (while never breaking out of cult status stateside), Phillips left the group prior to their fourth album, 1974's "In For the Kill!", replaced by newcomer Pete Boot, which would in turn set off a flurry of steady lineup changes over the years for the group (the only constant BUDGIE member from the beginning was Shelley). Further releases were issued throughout the '70s, including 1975's "Bandolier".

Shelley and company would remain together for a few more years before splitting up quietly by the mid-'80s. But almost as soon as they disbanded, several high-profile groups began covering BUDGIE classics, including METALLICA ("Crash Course In Brain Surgery" and "Breadfan"), IRON MAIDEN ("I Can't See My Feelings"), while back in their early club days VAN HALEN was known to cover the title track from "In For The Kill!"

Former JUDAS PRIEST touring guitarist Andy Sneap says that he is "incredibly" disappointed by the band's decision to perform as a quartet on its upcoming tour.

Sneap, who co-produced PRIEST's latest album, "Firepower", began touring with the band four years ago after longtime guitarist Glenn Tipton — who was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease eight years ago after being stricken by the condition at least half a decade earlier — announced in early 2018 he was going to sit out touring activities in support of the LP.

Earlier today, the British heavy metal legends released a statement in which they said that they were planning to return to the road as "an even more powerful, relentless four-piece heavy metal band." They also thanked Andy for all he has "done and continuing to be in the production team" for the group's next studio album.

Now, Andy has released a statement to BLABBERMOUTH.NET in which he said that he wasn't involved in 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.

Sneap said: "Rob called me last Monday and said they wanted to move on as a four-piece, which I find incredibly disappointing after this amount of time but I respect his decision as they obviously have a vision how they want this to play out.

"This always was a temporary situation, and like I've said before, I'll always help the band any way I can, and that applies going forward also," he continued.

"I've been a huge fan of the band since the early '80s and it was mind-blowing to play onstage with the guys and quite frankly terrifying in the beginning at such short notice.

"We are moving forward with the new album next month and look forward to making a killer follow-up to 'Firepower'," he added.

Bassist Ian Hill is the sole remaining original member of PRIEST, which formed in 1969. Halford joined the group in 1973 and Tipton signed on in 1974. Rob left PRIEST in the early 1990s to form his own band, then came back to PRIEST in 2003. Founding guitarist K.K. Downing parted ways with the band in 2011, and was replaced by Richie Faulkner.

Two and a half years ago, Sneap said that he would continue to play guitar for JUDAS PRIEST "as long as they want me to." During an appearance on the "Talking Bollocks" podcast, Sneap stated: "It'd be great if Glenn was up there doing it. That's the thing that really… it's always in the back of my mind; it really is. But it's just nice that he asked me to do it. As long as they want me to help out, I'll help 'em out. That's kind of the way I'm looking at it, really."

Last June, Halford told Metal Pilgrim that Sneap would likely continue being the second guitarist for PRIEST in a live situation. "Andy is still standing in that spot for Glenn with Glenn's blessing," he said. "It's pretty much a given [that Andy will be going out on tour with us again]. And my gratitude to Andy. It couldn't have happened in a better way, if you wanna try and make something good out of it. It was a really important day when Glenn said, 'I think it's probably best if I step to the side and maybe we should let Andy come in.' That was just a really beautiful act of selflessness. That's Glenn treasuring PRIEST and PRIEST's reputation, particularly in live concert more than anything else. So bless Glenn for that. And as a result, Andy stepped in and did amazing work on the 'Firepower' tour, and we're looking forward to doing the same thing with him on this 50th-anniversary [tour]. And don't discount the fact that Glenn can show up. He plays the guitar differently, but there's no reason why Glenn can't show up and do some work. I mean, I've said to Glenn, 'Just walk out on stage and do that to everybody [flashes devil horns], and the people will just go fucking crazy, 'cause you are loved so much.' But I've got a feeling that Glenn's gonna be making the occasional appearance on this 50th-anniversary [tour]."

In 2019, Hill said that it was up to Sneap to decide if he wanted to carry on playing guitar for JUDAS PRIEST after the completion of the "Firepower" tour. "It is something to be discussed, really," he told "Talking Metal". "I mean, Andy is now, these days, first and foremost a producer. Whether he wants to go back and do that full time or not, it'll be a mutual decision when the time comes. Andy will be more than welcome to stay. He's done a tremendous job over the last year or so, really. He's done a great job stepping in for Glenn. It would have been very difficult if he hadn't been there, on such short notice, because we didn't realize that Glenn couldn't handle the intensity of touring anymore until… We were only about three weeks away from starting the tour [laughs], and Andy stepped in and did a great job. He pulled a real rabbit out of the hat in learning a complete setlist of songs in such a short period of time. He pulled it off anyway. And as time's gone on, obviously, his stage presence, he got more comfortable with that, and he's performing great now. So when the time comes… We'll give it to the end of this run and then see what everybody wants to do. As I say, he'll be more than welcome to carry on with us if that's his plan."

Last November, JUDAS PRIEST announced the rescheduled "50 Heavy Metal Years" North American tour dates for March-April 2022. Support on the trek will come from QUEENSRŸCHE

According to Rolling Stone, METALLICA and TOOL are among the artists who have have recruited dogs specially trained to sniff for traces of COVID-19 in members of their crew, entourage or anyone else who gets backstage.

METALLICA hired an Ohio-based firm, Bio Detection K9, for its fall shows in Fort Lauderdale and Atlanta and also at the band's 40th anniversary gigs in San Francisco last month.

"So far, knock on wood, the dogs have been knocking it out of the park," says John Peets of Q Prime, the management company that represents METALLICA. "We haven't had a dog miss anybody."

Bio Detection K9 has been in the business of using dogs to detect viruses, bacteria, and fungus for over a decade in partnership with the US Department of Agriculture and other government agencies. The company plans to channel efforts toward deploying COVID-detecting canine assets around the world, aiding the general population in resuming social and sporting events safely. Looking ahead, they plan to address upcoming biologic and medical challenges in a sustainable fashion, revolutionizing the way the world views a canine's ability to detect and prevent health concerns on a global scale.

Bio Detection K9 dogs are trained specifically for COVID-19 and its various strains, and do not respond to seasonal flus and colds.

The dogs are not used to search large crowds, just manageable groups.

"We don't search whole stadiums; that is not what we are there for," Shawn Reed, the director of training and operations for Bio Detection K9, told SWVA Today. "I don't take a dog and search a crowd of 60,000 people."

Wade Morrell, CEO of Priority One Canine, which recently bought Bio Detection K9, told WBNS that "there are about 100 employees" at a typical stadium or arena concert "and to search those 100 employees, it would take about five minutes. It takes longer to line everybody up and take their masks off than it does having the dogs go down the line and search them."

According to Morrell, testing is done by having participants line up four to six feet apart and removing a mask they’ve worn for about 10 minutes. The dogs then go down the line sniffing the masks and will stop and sit to indicate a COVID-19 positive participant.

"Because you have such a concentrated area of odor, there[s a higher probability the dogs will find it [in the mask]," Morrell s

Ted Nugent has once again repeated the baseless conspiracy theory that the riot at the U.S. Capitol was orchestrated by undercover FBI agents, Antifa and Black Lives Matter.

On January 6, 2021, supporters of former president Donald Trump stormed the U.S. Capitol, vandalized the building and assaulted police officers. Five people died, including a Capitol police officer, Brian Sicknick, and a 35-year-old Air Force veteran, Ashli Babbit, shot by police.

Many top political figures have accused Trump of personally inciting the attack by repeatedly intimating that his followers should take action in order to demand legislators address his baseless claims of voter fraud. At a rally preceding the riot, Trump gave an inflammatory speech, urging the crowd to go to the Capitol, "show strength" and "fight much harder."

In the wake of the attack, Twitter permanently suspended Trump's account, citing "the risk of further incitement of violence."

Nugent discussed the Capitol riot fallout during a January 6, 2022 YouTube livestream marking the first anniversary of the tragic event. The outspoken conservative rocker said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I think January 6th, 2021 was a gift from God to further emphasize and prove just how rotten to the core, terminally dishonest, treasonously criminal the Democrat party is, especially this devilpunk who thinks he's the commander in chief. Are you listening and watching this monster of an America-hating, freedom-hating prick? Are you watching and listening to this guy? 'Well, that's awfully harsh, Ted.' Yes, it is extremely harsh because there are no gentle or civil terms to use to describe Joe Biden or Kamala Harris or, quite honestly, anybody in government right now.

"I articulated what today, January 6th, is and why it's a gift from God for people who possess the most important attribute and responsibility of an experimenter in self-government, which only happens in the United States Of America. And that attribute, that power, that definitive independent spirit is called critical thinking. You've got to critically think about everything now more than ever, I'm sure. But here's what critically thinking and the amassing of evidence and the identification of statistics, video footage, the statements by the enemies in the government."

Ted continued: "Here's what happened on January 6th, 2021. Trump held a rally in Washington, D.C., and the conservative families who… Unprecedented rallies throughout the campaign for President Trump. For the first time in the history of humankind, tens of thousands — I was there; I was there at the Trump rallies — ten, twenty, thirty, forty thousand people chanting for the first time in the history of politics globally, 'We love you. We love you.' Because he did so many great things for America. Securing our borders — not completely, but better than anybody. Negotiating energy independence, which, by the way — just an observation from the guitar player who didn't go to college; [I was] too busy learning important stuff — energy independence is actually better than energy dependency. Which is why we heard 'I love you' at the Donald Trump rallies. Unprecedented attendance.

"So what happened on January 6th is that the families that supported Donald Trump — 'We love you. We love you'; unprecedented numbers, unprecedented chanting — they decided to do a peaceful protest at the U.S. Capitol, but they were prodded on by this Epps prick, a government-fed instigator and agent provocateur," Nugent said, referencing the baseless claim that riots were stoked by a Trump supporter from Arizona who was falsely portrayed by some right-wing media outlets as an undercover FBI agent. "On January 6th of 2021, the conservative families who wouldn't break a window, wouldn't hurt a soul, had no guns, had no violence, had not done any rioting or arson, unlike Seattle and Portland and Black Lives Matter and Antifa… But you know, when they went to the Capitol, they were provoked and prodded by agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation — allegedly. And that's where the violence erupted, that's where the vandalism occurred, that's where the criminality took place — at the hands of Democrat undercover punks wearing Trump regalia. Those weren't Trump supporters that did the violence and the vandalism — that was Black Lives Matter and Antifa and Federal Bureau of Investigation agent provocateurs. It's on film.

"I've had these debates with dirtbags, and some of the dirtbags are really close to me," Ted added. "'Well, you're a maniac because you can't see that those were Trump supporters breaking…' No, it wasn't. Those were Democrat and Federal Bureau of Investigation plants and agent provocateurs. In fact, the Trump supporters were saying, 'Don't breach the wall.' 'Don't break the windows,' 'Don't break in,' 'Don't go in' on film — the film that we've been allowed to see.

"So thank God for January 6th of 2021, because it was the Democrat gangsters that did all the violence and vandalism."

FBI director Christopher A. Wray testified repeatedly to the Senate Judiciary Committee that there was no evidence that Antifa, anarchists or provocateurs who didn't support Trump were involved in the Capitol siege.

More than 725 individuals have been charged with various crimes in connection with the deadly insurrection. Of those, 225 people were charged with assault or resisting arrest while more than 75 were charged with using a deadly or dangerous weapon against police officers. 640 people were charged with entering a restricted federal building or its grounds and another 75 were charged with entering a restricted area with a deadly weapon.

As result of the insurrection, Congress was forced to temporarily halt its counting of the 2020 Electoral College votes, a process that ultimately certified the election of President Joe Biden.

Sicknick, who was sprayed with a chemical substance during the riot, later collapsed and died.

Babbitt, who was a vocal supporter of Trump, was shot once by an officer as she tried to climb through the broken glass window of a door to the lobby of the Capitol, which had been barricaded from the inside with furniture. Her family told news outlets after her death that Babbitt had gone to Washington on January 6 to protest Congress's certification of President Joe Biden's Electoral College victory.

During a recent interview with Waste Some Time With Jason Green, former HANOI ROCKS bassist Sami Yaffa discussed spending time with HANOI drummer Nicholas "Razzle" Dingley and MÖTLEY CRÜE singer Vince Neil on the day of the tragic car accident caused by Neil in December 1984 that killed Razzle, who was Vince's passenger.

"Vince came to pick up me and Razzle," Sami said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET). "We stayed at the Franklin Plaza Suites, or something like that, at LaBrea and Franklin. 'Cause Razzle and Vince were buddies, so he was going to pick up Razzle and show him around L.A. and all this stuff. And Razzle was, like, 'Sami, come along.' And he came with a tiny little sports car — it wasn't that car that ended up in an accident; it was another one; but [it was] a two-seater — and there was no room. And Razzle was just, like, 'Oh, fuck it, mate. Just hop on my fucking lap.' So it was three of us just cruising around L.A. And he showed us Santa Monica and Hollywood Boulevard and we drove all around L.A. And he was showing us places: 'There's The Troubadour' and 'There's the Rainbow' and 'There's Roxy' and 'There's the Whisky.' So we had a really nice afternoon with Vince. And then he said, 'Let's just go back to my house and my wife will cook some lunch, or whatever, and some dinner, and we'll hang out.' And that's what we ended up doing — we ended up hanging out, having some beers and smoke a little spliff and have a good time and talk about things. And little by little, it just turned into more of a party. But it wasn't really like a crazy party; it was just a bunch of people showed up. Andy [McCoy, HANOI guitarist] and Tommy [Lee, CRÜE drummer] came a little bit later and some of their friends. And we'd been kind of drinking beer all day. And I just said that I'm gonna take a nap. They actually asked me to go with them to go and pick up some more beer. And I said, 'I'm gonna take a nap.' And when I woke up, Mick Mars [CRÜE guitarist] was just kind of shaking me awake. And I wondered where everybody else was. And he said that there's been an accident. And we went to the hospital and I found out that my bro was gone. It was very heavy."

Neil's drunk-driving death car crash happened when he smashed his car into another vehicle in Redondo Beach, California, killing Razzle and seriously injuring two other occupants.

Vince was charged with vehicular manslaughter and driving under the influence of alcohol. His blood alcohol level was 0.17, which was over the legal limit.

Neil served half of a 30-day jail sentence, received five years probation and had to pay $2.6 million in restitution, as well as perform 200 hours of community service.

Two years ago, former HANOI ROCKS singer Michael Monroe told "The Classic Metal Show" that he was "not interested at all" in seeing MÖTLEY CRÜE's "The Dirt" biopic. Monroe went on to say that the car accident "certainly destroyed a lot of people's lives. I've never blamed anybody — you can't blame anybody for an accident — but a lot of people's lives were shattered, "he said. "As well as the two teenagers who got paralyzed in the accident; I've heard that there was no mention of them either [in the film].

"It's a depressing subject and it's always like opening a can of worms," Michael continued. "And I just don't wanna get into all that. It's just useless."

Back in 2004, Monroe slammed MÖTLEY CRÜE for the band's decision to title a box set "Music To Crash Your Car To", calling the move beyond disrespectful and referring to the group's bassist Nikki Sixx as "shallow," "ignorant" and "stupid". "The 'Mostly Crude' gotta be as dumb as they are to have done that," he told Metal Sludge. "I'm not only talking about Razzle, but also for the other families involved in the accident... As we've previously stated: The most tasteless and murderous gimmick to cash in on the past we've ever heard of. There's nothing 'cool' or 'funny' about death or winding up a paraplegic for life. How low can you go? I'd say this gave bad taste a bad name."

Three years later, Monroe publicly apologized to Sixx, saying that his "unflattering comments" about the bassist were "really childish and stupid." He explained: "I just took it a bit personally when they called their album at the time 'Music to Crash Your Car To'. I thought it was inappropriate since it came across as if they were making fun of the accident, which I'm sure was not their intention."

In 2011, Monroe gave Sleaze Roxx his take on what happened that night: "There was an accident, and unfortunately our drummer was killed. As far as Vince Neil, I have nothing to say. It was an accident. What happened happened, and it can't be changed. Everybody suffered from the whole thing."

In 2005, McCoy slammed MÖTLEY CRÜE over their account of Razzle's death and CRÜE bassist Nikki Sixx's heroin overdose, as published in CRÜE's best-selling band autobiography, "The Dirt: Confessions of the World's Most Notorious Rock Band". Asked by Norway's Metal Express to comment on the book's description of the events surrounding the accident that killed Razzle, McCoy said, "Bullshit. Pure lies. I was there. What happened was Razzle disappeared, and so did Vince. The rest of us were chilling out, man. And he had a wife who was seven months pregnant. After an hour or so, she started getting worried. So me and T-Bone, Tommy Lee [MÖTLEY CRÜE drummer], took his car and we went looking for him. We drove past this accident. So I was like, 'What color was the car he was driving around?' 'Hey, man, we just passed the fucking scene of an accident with a bright red sports car all smashed up.' I saw Razzle's hat on the street, I went up, 'What the fuck's happened?' They said, 'You have to go to this and this hospital.' In the hospital, I walk in with Tommy, and I was asking about Razzle, and this doctor walks up, 'Anybody here know this guy called Razzle?' I said, 'Yeah, I do, his family.' 'Sorry, your friend has passed away.' I thought he might have a broken leg or something. I had to call the band, and you don't tell this kind of news over the telephone. I asked them to come to the hospital. And it was a pretty sad scene altogether."

Even though HANOI ROCKS was formed in Finland, their trashy, hedonistic, decadent hard rock/pop-metal boogie influenced many Los Angeles acts, including MÖTLEY CRÜE and GUNS N' ROSES.

HANOI ROCKS originally broke on to the hard rock scene in the first half of the 1980s, becoming one of the first Finnish bands to make an international impact. HANOI ROCKS's career was subsequently derailed after the death of Razzle. Internal tensions and the commercial disappointment that was 1985's "Rock & Roll Divorce" led to Monroe leaving the band that year, thus putting an early end to HANOI ROCKS.

Bill Steer of British extreme metal pioneers CARCASS spoke to the "Everblack" podcast about the various non-music related jobs he has held over the years in order to support himself when he wasn't on tour. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I left school at 16. I was already playing in bands around that time, and I guess by the time I was 17, I was doing NAPALM [DEATH] and CARCASS. I didn't experience the world of real work until my mid-20s once CARCASS had broken up. That was quite an education. Looking back, it was long overdue 'cause I just didn't have enough experience of the real world and people. 'Cause if you'd just been in your little music bubble, only kind of hanging out with and dealing with people who like similar music, it's a very narrow view of the world."

He continued: "[I ended up doing] everything you could possibly do that's low paid with low commitments. I didn't stick with any job for that long. I think initially I was working for a wine merchant. That went on for — I don't know — how many years? And then there was the odd thing like taking Saturday jobs in second-hand record shops. Probably the best stuff I did in terms of something that was kind of rewarding would have been working with younger people with learning disabilities down in south London. That just gave me a reality check, as it were. It's very hard to feel sorry for yourself about your situation when you're around people who can't do many things themselves. So it was a really good education. And then right before [CARCASS] reformed, I think the last two or three years, I was working for my friend's company in his warehouse. So I had a good situation there. If FIREBIRD had a couple of gigs or a little tour somewhere, I just had to tell him and I could go. But for the most part, I had a full-time job there. And that was actually loads of fun."

CARCASS's latest album "Torn Arteries", was released in September via Nuclear Blast Records. Drummer Daniel Wilding did session work in Sweden at Studio Gröndahl with David Castillo while guitars were recorded at The Stationhouse with James Atkinson in Leeds, England. Eventually needing some form of residential location to finalize vocals, bass, and other guitarwork, the band headed back to Studio Gröndahl in Sweden to continue work in a very relaxed atmosphere with Castillo.

The "Torn Arteries" title references an old demo created by CARCASS's original drummer Ken Owen back in the 1980s.

In February of 1999, Owen suffered a near-fatal brain hemorrhage, leaving him in a coma for over 10 months. As a result, he is unable to play the way he used to. When CARCASS reunited in 2007, the drum stool was filled by Daniel Erlandsson and later Wilding.

Ken reportedly gave his approval to Steer and bassist/vocalist Jeff Walker to continue with CARCASS and was supportive during the recording process of the band's 2013 comeback album "Surgical Steel".

CARCASS played its first pandemic-era concert on November 6, 2021 at the Damnation Festival in Leeds, U.K.

Slovenian thrashers Thraw, feat. Tilen Hudrap (U.D.O, Dirkschneider, ex- Pestilence, ex-Paradox, Testament (live), ex-Vicious Rumors) have released a brand new single, entitled "Century Of Enslavement" Check out the audio visualizer below.





Formed by Domen Hudrap (younger brother of the iconic Slovenian bassist Tilen Hudrap in 2006, Thraw immediately rose to the forefront of the 00's resurrected thrash movement at the very beginning of their existence. Throughout the following three years the band played numerous shows across the country as well as abroad and landed spots at some of the most famous open air festivals, including the legendary MetalCamp, where the band shared the stage with Helloween, Blind Guardian, Opeth, Morbid Angel, Tankard and many more, as well as many other festivals i.e Metal Mania Open Air (with Exodus, Pro-Pain…). The band directly supported one of their biggest early influences, the bay area thrash gods Heathen shortly after that and released highly acclaimed EP's Injecting Hate and Encephalic Opressions, which cemented their place among the best newer thrash acts of the new millennium.




Thraw always had a unique sound and take on thrash, adding a plethora of musical elements with absolutely no limits, which was clearly shown on their debut full length album, Decoding The Past, mastered and co-produced by the world renowned American producer Juan Urteaga (Exodus, Machine Head, Testament, Sadus), released in 2013 to international acclaim and distributed globally via Metal Tank Records.


Thraw continued putting out selected released through the years (Doomsday Code, Transforming Reality and Gunshot Treatment, to name a few) and remained artistically active, yet 2021 (which marked the 15th anniversary of the band) brought a lineup change: Thraw was joined by Lenart Mlinar, lifelong friend of the band, who joined the Hudrap brothers and O. Paternus on drums. With the new found energy, resulting from many ideas comprised during the corona virus pandemic the band hit the studio and recorded an offering that easily competes with the high standard of their past releases and quite possibly surpasses them: "Century Of Enslavement". An official music video for the song will be released in the coming weeks.

Twinkle Twinkle Little Rock Star, the company which creates "beautiful lullaby versions of your favorite artists," has just released "Lullaby Versions Of Yes" via Roma Music Group.

"Lullaby Versions Of Yes" track listing:

01. Owner Of A Lonely Heart

02. Roundabout

03. I've Seen All Good People

04. Love Will Find A Way

05. Changes

06. Long Distance Runaround

07. Starship Trooper

08. Sweetness

09. Then

10. Closer To The Edge

11. Mood For A Day

12. Wonderous Stories

The song "Owner Of A Lonely Heart" can be streamed in the YouTube clip below.

Twinkle Twinkle Little Rock Star was born for the parent that wants to pass along their biggest passion to their child, music. Twinkle Twinkle Little Rock Star transforms popular music into instrumental lullabies perfect for babies, yoga or just relaxation. Now, parents can enjoy the music from LADY GAGA to METALLICA in soothing lullaby style. With over 135 titles to choose from, Twinkle Twinkle Little Rock Star is the largest line of pop, rock, metal and jamband music lullabies in the world.

These aren't novelty recordings. They are cute, they are soft but these are serious recordings. Roma Music Group, which releases Twinkle Twinkle Little Rock Star, is run by two music industry veterans who put the fidelity of these recording at the top of the priority list. Let's face it, much like the brand name clothes you buy for your infant, this music is really for you. Whether you are raising a metal baby, rocker or hippie baby, Twinkle Twinkle Little Rock Star has your music transformed from arena anthems into nursery classics.

TRIXTER drummer Mark "Gus" Scott says that no progress has been made in his desire to get the band back together.

Both TRIXTER guitarist Steve Brown and bassist P.J. Farley have been critical of Scott in recent interviews, with Steve saying that the drummer is on "the shit list beyond belief" with the rest of the group, while P.J. compared being in a band with Mark to owning a disobedient dog. "Sometimes you let the dog off a leash and he just goes running to the middle of the street — no good," he said.

Asked in a new interview with "The Bay Ragni Show" to give an update on his apparent feud with his bandmates, Scott said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I hate to say it, there really has been no change since the last time we spoke. I haven't spoken to P.J. or Steve at all. There has been no activity as far as putting the band successfully back together at all. And to be honest with you, although my skirmish with those guys may be more well known, there's more layers to the problem between us, unfortunately. It involves the whole band, as far as seriousness to play and things like that or where they prioritize that thing. But that's neither here nor there. I think overall there's no deep-hearted desire on some people's part to really put it back together. And that's the biggest shame of all. And I think that's also the biggest obstacle to me to as far as even having a desire to reach out. Which sounds terrible. Honestly, as a friend, that's something that I wrestled with myself. Whether he pissed me off or I pissed him off is somewhat immaterial. Those sorts of things ought to take a secondary seat to anything else that we've accomplished together, and that should always be a priority. So at one point I've gotta believe I'm gonna break down and give a shout at least and say hey. It's stupid that it's gone this far, and I'm myself to blame equally as well. But no, as far as making any progress, unfortunately, no — there's been none. I think the biggest problem is there are some people that really just do not care or just do not want to do it to the level that it takes to wanna put it back together. And that's the biggest shame for everybody, I think. That's ultimately what bothers me the most, I think."

Scott also touched upon the various projects some of the other TRIXTER members are involved with, including Farley's current stint with FOZZY and both Brown's and Farley's collaboration with Eric Martin from MR. BIG.

"I think the biggest reason why I don't reach out [and] why a bigger effort hasn't been made on anybody's part is these guys are out with all these other projects, doing all this other stuff, and they didn't care to do TRIXTER first?" he said. "They fail to believe that there was potential to be at least… Like the idea of us going back to Japan. Oh, what a horrible idea that would be. Oh, it couldn't possibly be successful if we did something like that. The idea of really approaching this situation with a certain mindframe, that's the part that kills me the most. You actually don't see the potential or have the desire for that. Even if we did not have the potential, I love the music so much, I would do it for nothing; I'd pay somebody to get on that stage. Whereas they — apparently — do not possess that desire at all. And that I find exponentially more inexcusable — maybe that's the best way of putting it — at least to me. I think that hurts even more so. It's, like, why would you not wanna do that? That's what we lived for; that was what we would have killed for. So I guess that's maybe the biggest question that's unanswered. And that's the kind of thing those guys never wanted to sit down and talk about, even during the good times, even when we were out there doing it. There's an elusive quotient to the whole thing, man, because some people have not been on the level with the whole thing either. But at the end of the day, it's desire. I think that's the one quotient that has yet to really… That's the biggest festering sore. And even above brotherhood and all that, that's the part that prohibits progress."

A year ago, Scott told Waste Some Time with Jason Green that "there were always two camps within [TRIXTER]. It hasn't always been as bad as it is now. Peter [Loran, vocals] and I were always very close, and P.J. and Steve were always very close. I mean, we were all collectively very, very close. We were a family, and that's not bullcrap; that's for real. We literally grew up together. P.J., at 15 and 16 years old, used to drive my car 'cause I wanted him to pass his driving exam. To that level, man. I've known these guys 35-plus years. So we've been through a lot, and we've experienced things around the world, the likes of which people will never experience. So we've been through very, very highs and very, very lows all together. We each know deep, dark secrets about each other. And it's something beautiful — it really is. And, unfortunately, more recently, it has turned more ugly."

Regarding what Brown is "mad" at him for, Scott said: "What it stems from is something, I think, that started a long time ago. And it was unresolved crap that got worse and worse, and then got out of control. It started small in a sense that there were two ideologies within the band on how to run the band. When we had opportunities like we did the second time around… When we first came out [after our comeback], we did three shows in one year; I think the next year we did five. When you have 52 weekends and [you're plotting] a big comeback and the press is favorable and people are throwing record deals at you and you're hitting No. 56 on iTunes, the idea of playing 20 shows in one year, to me, it just seemed like an opportunity to strike that no one else really wanted to share the idea. That's where I think things started, and nobody wanted to talk about it. That's a problem — in any business.

"It got to a point where I took some action, and I was somewhat of a dick about it," he admitted. "But my actions were certainly prompted — to take action. And it kind of caught him in the backside a bit, and he got really angry at me.'

Scott told Waste Some Time with Jason Green that he was "hesitant to give the full details" of his disagreement with Brown, but claimed that "there was a dictatorial attitude that [Steve] had, and he wasn't exactly sitting on the throne. And I think he took offense to the idea that I took a strike at his position, and it caught him a little short-sighted."

Asked if he acknowledges that he may have done something to rub Brown the wrong way, Scott said: "I'll go so far as to say a hundred percent. I pissed him off big-time, but it certainly wasn't without prompting. I didn't just one day wake up and say, 'You know what? Fuck him. And this is what I'm gonna do. I'm gonna take an ax and chop up his car.' No. It [had built up] over a long period of time. Everybody avoided the idea of having a conversation about it. I mean, if you're gonna run a bubblegum stand, you've gotta all agree upon how much bubblegum you're gonna sell, what you're gonna sell it for, and how often you're gonna sell it. And to have four guys that own one bubblegum stand and can't agree on the price of bubblegum and how often they're gonna sell it, they're pretty substantial problems."

Since reuniting, TRIXTER has released two studio albums via Frontiers Music Srl — 2012's "New Audio Machine" and 2015's "Human Era".

Scott celebrated the 30th anniversary of TRIXTER's biggest MTV hit, "Give It To Me Good", by releasing a solo version of the song in May 2020.

TRIXTER toured extensively in the United States, Canada and Japan in support of its five major label releases. They have performed live in arenas and amphitheaters with crowds up to 35,000 people, appearing with such rock superstars as KISS, SCORPIONS, POISON, TED NUGENT, NIGHT RANGER, CINDERELLA, TWISTED SISTER, DOKKEN, WARRANT, GREAT WHITE and FIREHOUSE.

Slash has confirmed to Classic Rock magazine in a new interview that a new album from GUNS N' ROSES is definitely coming. "There's new GUNS material coming out as we speak, and we'll probably keep putting it out until the entire record's worth of stuff is done and then put it out solid," the guitarist said. "It's cool. I'm enjoying working on the stuff and having a good time doing it."

Last October, Slash told Audacy Check In host Remy Maxwell that GUNS N' ROSES had yet to begin writing new material after recently releasing two reworked songs from the "Chinese Democracy"-era sessions.

In September, the guitarist and his bandmates dropped "Hard Skool", which came more than a month after their performance and subsequent official release of "Absurd", a reworking of GUNS N' ROSES previously unreleased "Silkworms".

"As far as new GUNS is concerned, we haven't even gotten to that point of really in earnest sitting down and writing," Slash told Audacy Check In. "We've been doing a lot of material that's been sort of sitting around for a while. So that will be a whole focused endeavor unto itself."

As for how "Hard Skool" and "Absurd" came about, Slash said: "They both have a lot of history. What happened was Axl [Rose, GUNS singer] has all these songs that he recorded at some point along the way. And so Duff [McKagan, GUNS bassist] and I went in and re-did them, basically… Like, I wrote my own kind of parts to what else is going on, and [we] just sort of took the drums and re-did everything else."

Written by Rose and co-produced by Rose and Caram Costanzo, "Hard Skool", which had the working title "Jackie Chan", was originally recorded during GN'R's "Chinese Democracy" era but was eventually omitted from that album. Short clips of the song were later posted online and a full version was leaked in August 2019.

On "Hard Skool", Axl sings: "But you had to play it cool, had to do it your way/Had to be a fool, had to throw it all away/Too hard school and you thought you were here to stay/ If that were true, it wouldn't matter anyway."

"Hard Skool" is the title track of a new GUNS N' ROSES four-song EP which will be released on February 25. The effort, which is exclusive to the GUNS N' ROSES official store, contains the aforementioned two new songs — "Hard Skool" and "Absurd" (stylized as "ABSUЯD") — as well as live versions of "Don't Cry" and "You're Crazy".

"Hard Skool" EP track listing:

01. Hard Skool

02. ABSUЯD

03. Don't Cry (Live)

04. You're Crazy (Live)

"Absurd" came out on August 6, 2021, three days after GUNS N' ROSES performed the tune live for the first time during its concert at Boston's Fenway Park.

GUNS N' ROSES last performed "Silkworms", which was also reportedly written during the "Chinese Democracy" sessions, in 2001.

If and when it happens, the new GUNS N' ROSES studio album will be the first under the GUNS banner since "Chinese Democracy" and the first to feature Rose, Slash and McKagan since 1993.

Quarto Valley Records has set an April 15 release date for "Brother Johnny", a tribute to the legendary blues guitarist Johnny Winter created by his brother Edgar Winter. The album is a powerful sonic journey, traveling the course of Johnny's musical life, impeccably directed, as only his brother Edgar could.

Joining Edgar on the inclusive project is an impressive array of renowned musicians who knew, or were inspired by Johnny, including Joe Bonamassa, Doyle Bramhall II, John McFee, Robben Ford, Billy Gibbons, David Grissom, Taylor Hawkins, Warren Haynes, Steve Lukather, Michael McDonald, Keb Mo, Doug Rappoport, Bobby Rush, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Ringo Starr, Derek Trucks, Waddy Wachtel, Joe Walsh, Phil X and Gregg Bissonette.

The guitar-driven album celebrates the expansive styles Johnny was known for. The 17 tracks were carefully curated by Edgar and producer Ross Hogarth to represent Johnny's evolution as an artist, honoring his great legacy while also incorporating a personal tribute from brother to brother, and for which Edgar penned two new songs.

The project has been years in the making; Edgar was first approached about it just after his brother passed away on July 16, 2014. Johnny had just played the Cahors Blues Festival in France, which was destined to become his last show. He had travelled to Switzerland where his next show was scheduled, but he passed away in his sleep at the hotel in Zurich before he ever got the chance.

Edgar reflects: "Many people immediately started trying to convince me to do a Johnny Winter tribute album. But I was totally devastated, and the timing just didn't feel right to me. It wasn't until after I completed the Rock 'N' Blues Fest, a tour we were meant to do together with our respective bands, that the idea of a tribute record started to take form."

He continues: "I had naturally expected the whole thing to be canceled. But much to my surprise, the promoters begged me to go on with the tour as planned, asking me to headline. The first night, after playing 'Frankenstein', I closed the show with 'Johnny B. Goode', 'Rock And Roll, Hoochie Koo' and 'Jumpin' Jack Flash', dedicating the end of the set to Johnny.

"I had anticipated the tour to be very emotional, perhaps sad, and possibly difficult, but playing those songs turned out to be a great source of strength and comfort to me. Everyone on the tour was so kind and supportive, getting up to jam, and it became a kind of tradition. There was such an overwhelming outpouring of love and respect for Johnny, I began to realize it was not just business people sensing an opportunity here; it was Johnny's true, loyal, and devoted fans and our fellow musicians, many of whom are on this record, who wanted to see this happen as well.

"After the tour, and over the following years as talk of a tribute album continued, my wife Monique, whose intuition I trust more than my own, said, 'I think you have to make this album, both for Johnny, for yourself, and for the world. You owe that acknowledgement to your older brother. If it weren't for him, you wouldn't be where you are today. There's no need to worry about it. If it's meant to happen, it will.'"

Soon after Edgar met Bruce Quarto, founder, and owner of Quarto Valley Records. It was his boundless enthusiasm and devotion to classic rock, the blues, (and Johnny in particular) that convinced Edgar the time for this tribute album had finally come.

"Quarto Valley Records is honored to be releasing Edgar's tribute to his brother Johnny," said Bruce Quarto. "An album as remarkable in its musicianship as it is in the depth of feeling that comes through in each and every note of each and every song. The superhuman artistry and inspiration you hear in the new interpretations of some of Johnny's signature songs, like 'Hootchie Koo' and 'Alive And Well', are matched only by Edgar's original and very personal 'End Of The Line', which strikes a very human chord. The album is nothing short of a masterpiece. Enjoy!"

This announcement comes with the release of "Johnny B. Goode", a perfect fit not only in name but in sentiment, and a song that remained a standard in Johnny's sets right up to the very end. The opening rips right out of the speakers — that infamous guitar line along with Edgar's smokin' piano — followed by roaring vocals from Edgar and Joe Walsh. Joe does the vocal honors on this one, leaving his legendary guitar work for a personal favorite called "Stranger" (featuring Michael McDonald, with Ringo Starr on drums).

The signature guitar is masterfully delivered by fellow Texan David Grissom, who strikes the perfect balance between Chuck Berry's classic riffs and Johnny's wild Winter whirlwind of intensity. Edgar blows the house down with a Texas tornado of saxophone accompanied by thunder and lightning from Bob Glaub on bass, Gregg Bissonette on drums, and additional vocals by Phil X.

Edgar writes in his liner notes: "To this day, when I think of rock 'n' roll, i think of Chuck Berry and 'Johnny B. Goode'. It's not only Johnny's story, but also every kid's story who ever picked up a guitar, coming from humble beginnings with the idea of making it big someday. So of course, it has to be on this album."

"Brother Johnny" was produced by Edgar Winter and Ross Hogarth. All the basic tracking was done at Capitol Studios. Most of the guest artist performances were recorded at Infinitespin Records, and as the pandemic progressed, were done at various guest artist's studios. the record was mixed by Ross at his studio The Boogie Motel.

Edgar sums up reminiscing in his notes: "When I was very young, I can still remember thinking no matter how much time goes by, how old I get, what happens in my life, or how far I end up from home — there is one person in this world I know will always understand what I've been through, how I feel. And that person is my brother Johnny. As kids, we were inseparable, much closer than average brothers. Not only did we learn to play music together, but because we were both albino, we shared a unique personal perspective on life different than anyone else's. So much has happened to both of us since then, but one thing will always remain the same... that bond, of brotherhood, of family, of music, and of Love. So, in his name, I dedicate this album. 'Brother Johnny'."

Edgar adds: "My deepest and most profound thanks to all the great, fantastic, amazing artists for their incredible heartfelt performances. You touched our hearts on behalf of Johnny and the Winter family."

"Brother Johnny" will be available on CD, vinyl and digitally across all platforms.

Ykä Järvinen at scratchnbake has shared rare footage of Children Of Bodom in action back in 1997, performing at Tavastia in Helsinki, Finland.





Järvinen previously shared unreleased single cam footage of Children Of Bodom performing The Ramones classic "Somebody Put Something In My Drink" at Tavastia on December 30th, 2014. Check it out below.




The remaining COB members commented on the footage:


"In the end of 2014 we did a small tour in Finland called Bodom Xmas Bash. One of the shows was part of the legendary New Years celebration aka Helldone Festival that took place in Tavastia, Helsinki. Here’s a small memory of that show."

Nita Strauss, the Los Angeles-based guitar shredder for the ALICE COOPER band, has confirmed to Meltdown of Detroit's WRIF radio station that the legendary rocker is continuing work on the follow-up to last year's "Detroit Stories" album. "I actually have a call with [the Cooper camp] this weekend to discuss the progress of it," she said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET). "The last that I heard, we were in Nashville working on it. The band and I sat down and recorded quite a bit of music for this upcoming record. The band did also have a huge part in the writing this time, which is the first time that's happened in the eight years that I've been in the band. So it was really, really fun — really exciting for us to get to work with a legend like [produer] Bob Ezrin. [It was] a huge, huge honor to be in the studio with him and Alice creating what we hope will be some more Alice Cooper music to just add to his legacy."

She added: "I'm on the [Alice Cooper] live DVD. I'm on the live album releases, the live tracks that are bonus tracks and stuff, but [this is my] first studio album with Alice. I'm actually the only person in the [current lineup of Alice's] band that hasn't recorded anything with Alice before, so this is huge for me. [I'm] very, very honored."

Asked about a possible release date for Alice's new album, Nita said: "I don't have that information. I can tell you a lot about my [upcoming solo] record, but when it comes to Alice, I'm a hired musician, just like the rest of 'em. Right now we are still touring on 'Detroit Stories', which just came out last year. So I don't know that it'll necessarily be immediately that we'll see the next one. But please don't take my word for it. It's not my band. I don't wanna speak out of turn. But I know we are gonna be touring on 'Detroit Stories' a lot this year."

Less than a year ago, Alice told Australia's Heavy that he wanted to record his next album on the road with the current lineup of his solo band. "I like it — I like the idea," he said. "I brought up the idea because my stage band is so tight. They're not even on ['Detroit Stories']. But they're so tight that they can play anything. And I said, 'Well, then why don't we write the songs on the road about the road? Let's write the songs about what happens on the road.' Or just it could be funny, it could be tragic, it could be whatever. I said, 'But let's make this album rock, like you guys do. And I'd love to play it live during soundchecks.' Instead of playing 'Eighteen' or 'School's Out' or doing a soundcheck every day, I said, 'Let's rehearse these songs.' And then, at one point, somewhere on the road when we have two days off, we'll set up the next gig and record them all — record them live in a venue.' And I said, 'That would be unique. Nobody's ever done that. So let's do something nobody's ever done.'"

Alice went on to say that he had every confidence that the members of his current solo band — Strauss, Tommy Henriksen (guitar), Ryan Roxie (guitar), Chuck Garric (bass) and Glen Sobel (drums) — would be able to rise to the occasion and make an album while on tour. "If you get the right players, you can do anything," he said. "I've got Nita Strauss in there. Nita is just a monster guitar player. She was voted 'Guitarist Of The Decade' magazine in Guitar magazine, and my drummer was voted 'Best Drummer In Rock' last year. And the great thing about this band is they never have a bad night; they're good every night. And they're all best friends. I never hear an argument; I never hear an ego pop up; I never hear anybody yelling at anybody unless it's funny. All I hear backstage is laughing."

Released in February 2021, "Detroit Stories" was recorded with Ezrin, mostly in Royal Oak with Detroit musicians and featuring a mix of original material alongside covers of songs by Bob Seger, the MC5, Mitch Ryder's DETROIT and OUTRAGEOUS CHERRY.

In 2018, Cooper issued "A Paranormal Evening At The Olympia Paris", a recording of his December 7, 2017 concert at the world-renowned Olympia venue in France. The effort captured Cooper and his current bandmates performing a choice selection of classic Cooper hits, in addition to some highlights from 2017's "Paranormal" album. Alice later said that he wanted to release a document of his band's onstage prowess because they "deserved a live album."

Boston’s Great American Ghost will kick off their US tour supporting Fit For An Autopsy tonight, January 5. The month-long journey will commence in Columbus, Ohio and run through February 12 in New York City. Additional support will be provided by Ingested, Signs Of The Swarm, and labelmates, Enterprise Earth.


 


Great American Ghost will be touring in support of their anticipated Torture World EP, set to drop on January 20 via MNRK Heavy. Produced by Will Putney (A Day To Remember, Knocked Loose, The Amity Affliction), who handled the band’s critically-adored 2019 full-length, Power Through Terror, with Torture World, the band directs old-school hardcore wrath at hypocrisy, apathy, and self-loathing, delivered in a dark cloud of relentlessly bludgeoning riffs.




Torture World will be released on CD, LP, cassette, and digitally. Preorder at tortureworld.com.


Tour dates:





January
5 — Columbus, OH — Skully's Music Diner
6 — Hamtramck, MI — The Sanctuary
7 — Chicago, IL — Reggies Rock Club
8 — St. Paul, MN — Turf Club
9 — Iowa City, IA — Wildwood
10 — Lincoln, NE — The Royal Grove
11 — Denver, CO — Bluebird Theater
12 — Salt Lake City, UT — The Complex
14 — Portland, OR — Dante's
15 — Seattle, WA — El Corazon
17 — Sacramento, CA — Goldfield Trading Post
18 — Petaluma, CA — The Phoenix Theater
19 — Los Angeles, CA  —1720
20 — San Diego, CA — Brick By Brick
22 — Mesa, AZ — Nile Theater
24 — Austin, TX — Come And Take It Live
25 — Houston, TX — Warehouse Live
26 — Dallas, TX — Gas Monkey Bar & Grill
27 — Oklahoma City, OK — Oklahoma City Limits
28 — Memphis, TN — Growlers
29 — St. Louis, MO — Red Flag
30 — Nashville, TN — The Basement East


February
1 — Tampa, FL — Crowbar
2 — West Palm Beach, FL — Respectables
3 — Orlando, FL — Soundbar
4 — Atlanta, GA — The Masquerade
5 — Greensboro, NC — Blind Tiger
7 — Pittsburgh, PA — Crafthouse
8 — Baltimore, MD — Sound Stage
9 — Philadelphia, PA — The Foundry
10 — Worcester, MA — The Palladium
11 — Hartford, CT — Webster Underground
12 — New York, NY — The Gramercy Theatre





(Photo by Chris Klump)