Guitarist Paul Gilbert (Mr. Big, Racer X) has shared a new video in support of his new Christmas album, 'TWAS. Check it out below.


Gilbert: "This brand-new Christmas song begins with the fastest arpeggio lick I've ever played in my life. The lyrics tell the story of boy with a guitar... but only three strings. Santa Claus tells the boy that if he is good, he might receive the remaining three strings for Christmas. This all hinges on the boy practicing every day, and being 'good.' So he does those things!


The lyrics are 'sung' on my guitar. You can read along with the lyric video, and groove along with the band and me, as we perform the song live in the studio! We recorded during an August heatwave in Portland, but I still wore my George Harrison 'Let It Be' inspired clothes, which happen to have some good Christmas colors."







Gilbert’s 17th solo album features a dozen recordings, two of which are new, original compositions. The global release date for digital and CD is November 26. The LP will follow on December 10. Pre-order here.


Gilbert and the label have shared the third instant gratification track, “I Saw Three Ships”. A video can be viewed below.


Gilbert states: “It was 104°F in Portland, Oregon, on August 12th, when the band and I recorded 'I Saw Three Ships'. I was trying to get extra sounds from my A/DA Flanger by attaching a foot-operated, mechanical knob-turning device. But the device kept coming loose, and I kept getting angrier and angrier at it. I finally decided to give up on the knob-turning, and convert my frustration into pure guitar playing energy. The result was a slightly worried band, subtle flanging, and a good take! Thanks to Nat King Cole and George Thorogood for the arrangement inspiration. And thanks to England for the song.”





Gilbert adds: "Many will agree that in recent times, challenging events have been pouring down upon our heads like an Exploding Waterfall of Molasses. At least it sometimes feels like that to me.  But while I was jamming Christmas songs with my friends, playing an assortment of red, green, and white Ibanez electric guitars, I felt like life was THE BEST.  I hope that this music can put a smile on your face as well.


"Ten of the songs are classics. I was inspired by the Christmas recordings of Nat King Cole, Loretta Lynn, Stevie Wonder, Barbra Streisand, Johnny Mathis, Ella Fitzgerald, and The Ventures. And of course, inspiration came from my guitar heroes, Eddie Van Halen, Alex Lifeson, Johnny Winter, Robin Trower, Frank Marino, Pat Travers, Jimi Hendrix, and Jimmy Page, to name a few. I also wrote some of my own new Christmas songs. As I have been doing recently, I begin with lyrics and a melody. Then I let my guitar take over, as it sings better than I do."


He continues. "'Three Strings For Christmas' refers to the 3-string guitar that I used on my double-neck. I tune the strings in octaves, which allows me to play ridiculously fast arpeggios, and very little else (which is why I have a normally strung guitar for the other neck.) 'Every Christmas Has Love' was written quickly, inspired by my panic-driven mental state of album making. When I know that the recording sessions are coming, my brain shifts into survival mode, and melodies start popping out. Then I take all the chords I learned by listening to 70s AM radio, and build a song. The lyrics are nice too. I'll be printing those in the liner notes of the album. Merry Christmas to all. And to all, a good night."


Gilbert formed a band of Portland, Oregon's finest jazz and blues musicians for these sessions. The players are Dan Balmer (guitar), Clay Giberson (keyboards), Timmer Blakely (bass), and Jimi Bott (drums). He reflects, “All brought supreme musical goodness to these arrangements and performances. They certainly steered me to make wiser musical choices than I would have made on my own. And as you will hear, my metal guitar instincts still breathe fire when they get the chance.” The album was recorded in Jimi Bott's studio, who also engineered and mixed the recordings. The approach was to record two songs every day, for six days, delivering the collected body of work.


Gilbert: "All songs were recorded live, although I think Jimi snuck some cowbell overdubs in. If anything should be added to a live track, I believe cowbell is the right choice."





Tracklist:


"Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!"
"Frosty the Snowman"
"Hark! The Herald Angels Sing"
"The Christmas Song"
"Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer"
"I Saw Three Ships"
"Every Christmas Has Love"
"Three Strings for Christmas"
"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas"
"We Wish You a Merry Christmas"
"Silver Bells"
"Winter Wonderland"


"Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" video:

New Horizon vocalist Erik Grönwall and songwriter / producer / multi-multi-instrumentalist Jona Tee, former bandmates in H.E.A.T., have teamed up with Crazy Lixx bassist Jens Anderson and Corroded guitarist Sam Söderlindh for a cover of Iron Maiden's "Hallowed Be Thy Name". Check it out below.





Grönwall and Tee recently announced that they are continuing their musical partnership by unleashing New Horizon, their new power metal brainchild.




Their debut single, "We Unite" is out now, debut album coming in 2022. Listen to the song below, or via your preferred streaming service here.





Guest musicians/contributors who will appear on the debut album include Robban Bäck (Mustasch), Sam Totman (DragonForce), Love Magnusson (Dynazty), Dave Dalone (H.E.A.T), Niko Vuorela (Temple Balls), and Laucha Figueroa.


The seeds of New Horizon were planted in Jona’s youth given that he grew up listening to (and still loves) Iron Maiden, Helloween, Hammerfall, Manowar, Edguy, and the like. Heavy metal is in his blood and New Horizon is something that is flowing through his veins and extremely close to his heart. He always dreamed of releasing his own power metal anthems one day. When asked about the sound of New Horizon, Jona Tee describes it as "a mix between classic power and heavy metal, with a touch of the 21st century.”


“It felt so natural to continue working together. We have toured together pretty much all over the world and released music together for a decade. Jona is truly like my brother, by blood, and New Horizon will be the catalyst for us to release great metal together and just have fun,” says Grönwall.


Watch an introduction video:





(Photo - Gustaf Sandholm Andersson)

GUNS N' ROSES is putting together a deluxe reissue of the "Use Your Illusion" albums for a tentative summer 2022 release.

Slash shared the news of the set's arrival during an interview with Biff Bam Pop! editor-in-chief Andy Burns.

Speaking about the fact that the "Use Your Illusion" reissue won't be out to coincide with 30th anniversary of the LPs' original release, the GUNS guitarist said said: "It got delayed by the pandemic but it is coming out, I think this summer. There's a bunch of cool live stuff on it — a couple shows. The Ritz [in New York City] from the '90s, like early '90s, and a show that we did in Las Vegas back in 1989, I think it was. And it's actually the show that I met my ex-wife at, so I was really hard-pressed to even do the fucking record."

Slash was apparently referencing the last of the three warm-up shows GUNS N' ROSES booked at the Ritz in New York prior to embarking on its "Use Your Illusion" tour in 1991. The May 16, 1991 concert was notable for being the night singer Axl Rose broke a foot after taking a flying leap during the band's performance of "You Could Be Mine".

As for the Las Vegas show that is included in the set, Slash was apparently talking about the January 25, 1992 performance at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, which is where he and his now-ex-wife Perla Ferrar first met.

Back in 2011, when the "Use Your Illusion" albums were celebrating their 20th anniversary, Slash told U.K.'s Total Guitar magazine: "I don't know which [of the two albums] I prefer. I haven't listened to the 'Use Your Illusion' albums for so long, I don't even know what's on each. I know people like the blue one over the red one. Or maybe it's the other way around.

"I was just totally obsessed with the creation of the 'Illusion' records and when I got into that studio, I was completely absorbed with everything to do with them, all the time," he said. "Because it had been so long.

"We'd made 'Appetite [For Destruction]' and then toured for years and for me, and I know for a couple of the other guys we'd crashed and burned. So we were pulling ourselves out of the fucking quagmire and going back to work."

"It was definitely exploratory compared to 'Appetite'," he said. "I mean, honestly, I'd have preferred to do a record with just 10 fucking songs that were a bit more straightforward, but it was an opportunity to finally get the band to work again."

Slash revealed that there was a disagreement within the band over how much extra instrumentation should be put on the tracks.

"The problem was with Izzy [Stradlin, GUNS guitarist]," Slash said. "Because the album reached such gargantuan proportions as far as the production and complexity and the massive expectations [that] Izzy started to bow out. He was harder to find, because that was against his rock and roll philosophy, which I totally agree with.

"We got through the basic tracks and I think that's what gave the albums such a natural feel. But when we started getting into the time it took to do overdubs and vocals, he sorta disappeared."

Before the recording of "Use Your Illusion", drummer Steven Adler was fired from GUNS N' ROSES due to his rampant drug abuse and was replaced by Matt Sorum. Only one song for "Use Your Illusion" was completed before Adler's dismissal, the disc II opener "Civil War"

It was December 24, in the tragic year of 1914, in the middle of a cold night. After six months in the muddy trenches, World War 1 still hadn't come to an end on Christmas Eve; the soldiers were missing home even more than on any other day and started quietly singing carols. Although an official truce was declined from the governments, an eerie silence haunted the empty battlefields on the morning of December 25. That was when the British and German soldiers slowly crawled out of their trenches to wish each other a Merry Christmas, take photographs, play games, and even exchange a few gifts.


In this animated story video, Sabaton depicts this remarkable event that would come to be known as the "Christmas Truce". This brand new video was unveiled during the band's ongoing Christmas Advent Calendar on their social media channels and website.


"This is the story of the 'Christmas Truce', and this is why we wrote our latest single," said Sabaton bassist Pär Sundström. "We now give you a different way of experiencing our music and the history behind it."




The "Christmas Truce" video was produced by Yarnhub, who also created the animated story videos for Sabaton's "No Bullets Fly" and "Night Witches".


A new edit of the "Christmas Truce" single is now available on all streaming platforms. You can listen to it here.





Sabaton's upcoming new album, The War To End All Wars, is out on March 4 via Nuclear Blast Records. Pre-order the album here.


Number One positions in 11 countries with their last record, Swedish Grammis nominations, sold-out arena shows: Sabaton indisputably wrote their very own fairytale during the last years, making it to the top of modern metal and beyond.


Written and recorded during the COVID global pandemic, Sabaton has crafted a concept album of 11 brand-new songs that once again dive deep into the atrocities, miracles, and events tied to the early 20th century’s World War I. The tenth album of the Falun-based five-piece will be available in an impressive variety of exclusive formats, including CD, vinyl, and cassette, with most available in limited editions. See below for all formats.





The War To End All Wars will be available in the following formats:


- Jewelcase CD
- Limited Gold CD [Supporter Edition - various versions with translated booklets]
- History Edition
- NB Mailorder Exclusive Edition [ltd. to 1500 copies]
- Earbook [limited to 6000 copies]
- Black Vinyl
- Azure Blue Vinyl [bandshop exclusive, ltd. to 300 copies]
- Inca Gold Vinyl [bandshop exclusive, ltd. to 500 copies]
- Copper Vinyl [ltd. to 500 copies]
- Fluorescent Orange Vinyl [ltd. to 500 copies]
- Leaf Green Vinyl [Sweden exclusive]
- Fluorescent Yellow Vinyl [Ginza exclusive]
- Dusk Vinyl [Levik exclusive]
- Soft Grey Vinyl [Nordics exclusive]
- Lavender Vinyl [FNAC exclusive]
- Rosewood Vinyl [Mystic exclusive]
- Fluorescent Green Vinyl [UK exclusive]
- Pacific Blue Vinyl
- Polar White Vinyl [limited to 300 copies]
- Dewdrop Vinyl [limited to 500 copies, EMP exclusive]
- Blue cassette [limited to 100 copies, bandshop exclusive]
- Green cassette [limited to 100 copies]
- Grey cassette [limited to 300 copies]
- Red cassette [limited to 500 copies]
- Black cassette [limited to 250 copies]
- Smokey cassette [limited to 200 copies]
- White cassette [limited 100 copies]





The War To End All Wars tracklisting:


"Sarajevo"
"Stormtroopers"
"Dreadnought"
"The Unkillable Soldier"
"Soldier Of Heaven"
"Hellfighters"
"Race To The Sea"
"Lady Of The Dark"
"The Valley Of Death"
"Christmas Truce"
"Versailles"


"Christmas Truce" lyric video:





"Christmas Truce" music video:





Following a 29-date headline tour of Sweden, Sabaton will launch the March 4, 2022 release of the new album with The Tour To End All Tours, a massive five-week European trek supported by The Hu and Lordi. Complete dates and ticket information are available here.


(Photo - Christian Ripkens)

Ted Nugent has blasted Dee Snider for seemingly celebrating the fact that the controversial rocker was diagnosed with coronavirus.

After Nugent went public with the fact that he was battling COVID-19 in April, TESTAMENT guitarist Alex Skolnick shared a couple of headlines highlighting the fact that Nugent was previously spreading false information about the pandemic, only to contract the virus himself and become severely sick. Snider, who tested positive for COVID-19 this past summer despite the fact that he was fully vaccinated, shared Skolnick's tweet and included the following message: "It's just...so...beautiful!"

Nugent, an outspoken conspiracy theorist who has refused to take the vaccine, was asked about Snider's comment in a new interview with Sofa King Cool. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "What is that thought process? [Dee] and I have been friends. What horrible human impulse — horrible, rotten, hateful, soulless impulse — must exist in horrible people to take pleasure and celebrate a fellow man's illness. It went viral across the globe where the left said I got what I deserved. How did I deserve that? 'Well, you called it a hoax.' I never, ever used the 'H' word. I never used word 'hoax'; I never called it a hoax. I called [top infectious diseases doctor Anthony] Fauci a scam artist. I called [House Speaker Nancy] Pelosi, Fauci and [former U.S. president Barack] Obama at the Wuhan lab with our tax dollars to cultivate a communist Chinese weaponized virus? That's not a Ted Nugent supposition. We have the footage. And they took glee.

"A guy like Dee Snider — how can you abandon your humanity and take pleasure in another person's sickness?" he continued. "What a horrible, horrible manifestation of societal human abandonment. So, I pray for the Dee Sniders to allow themselves to be that rotten. I expect Marxists and leftists, but not a Dee Snider and not otherwise reasonably decent people, 'cause he's a good guy. But, boy, he really showed a rotten, horrible side when he did that. And it didn't impact me at all because I know that there's always been bad, nasty people.

"So, if Dee Snider's watchin, Dee — I think it was a hiccup; I don't think that's what you are," Ted added. "But when you're ready to be a man and apologize, I will expect and accept your apology, because that was a rotten moment in an otherwise nice life.

"How do you just decide to be a prick one day? It's sad."

Nugent went on to say that wishing people ill based on party politics or any other factors is never acceptable. "So, the little boys and girls that are getting leukemia, do they deserve that?" he said. "Are you kidding me? I suppose when someone gets cancer and they keep smoking and drinking and eating food that isn't food, I suppose at some point you do deserve that, because you know that that's bad for you and you keep doing it; that's when you deserve something. But what kind of mindless idiot would take pleasure in anybody, even if they hate my politics… And if you hate my politics, you've gotta be a real dirtbag, 'cause my politics are freedom; my politics are self-evident truth based in God-given individual rights, God, family, country, the Constitution, Bill Of Rights, Declaration Of Independence, work ethic, law and order, the Ten Commandments, the Golden Rule. You have a problem with that? That's the foundation of America. So if you have a problem with Ted Nugent's politics, you are a bad, bad person."

Ted continued: "Even a guy like Tom Morello, who I love, and [Carlos] Santana, who I love, wearing a Che Guevara shirt? So you're a supporter of genocide? You're a supporter of a guy that would have killed you. Che would have killed Santana and Tom Morello if he had a chance. What the fuck? How many mind-altering chemicals do you have to consume to be that fucking stupid? What the fuck? Wearing a Che Guevara shirt is like wearing an Adolf Hitler shirt. What is wrong with these people? You can't explain it. You have to literally take your soul and put it in the garbage to be that stupid."

Two months ago, Nugent appeared on "Off The Record" where he once again said that he won't take the COVID-19 vaccine because the shots that are available in the United States were developed in less than a year are probably fake.

"It's not a vaccine," he said. "It's an experimental shot. Now the FDA was forced to authorize it recently, but they were jabbing people with an experimental shot right up until that fake authorization.

"I don't believe it's a vaccine," he reiterated. "Most of America doesn't believe it's a vaccine. The only ones that are taking it are either gullible or being forced because they're gonna lose their job, lose their life and lose their livelihood."

Asked what he would say to the people who believe it's a worthwhile vaccine and it's saving lives, Ted said: "I appreciate the opportunity to speak to the people that went ahead and got the jab. I speak their language. I will speak to them thusly: Baaaaaah," he said, imitating a sheep. "Baaaaaah. Baaaaaah. Baaaaaah. They understand that."

When senior Capitol correspondent Tim Skubick asked Nugent point blank if he believes that the millions of people who got the shot are "just stupid," Ted replied: "Yup."

In April, Nugent talked about the darkest days of his battle with COVID-19, saying that he had "never been so scared" in his entire life. The 72-year-old pro-gun activist, who had previously claimed the virus was "not a real pandemic," said: "It was really scary. I didn't think I was gonna make it. I literally couldn't function for about 20 hours, and then they came and they rescued me… The six-foot-two, 225-pound headache [this time] was like nothing I have ever experienced. I mean, from my tip of my toes to the top of my hair, I literally was dizzy and weak and struggled to get up to go to the bathroom. And I would lay in the bathtub a couple of times a day with the water as hot as I could take it just to divert."

Ted also said that he was being treated for COVID-19 by a group of doctors who made a video last year calling for the use of hydroxychloroquine to battle the novel coronavirus, despite warnings from public health experts. Nugent went on to detail his clinical management of COVID-19, saying he was taking hydroxychloroquine, "a proven drug for 65 years," as well as ivermectin, "another proven drug."

In the past, Nugent, a staunch Donald Trump supporter, had referred to the virus as a "leftist scam to destroy" America's 45th president. He had also repeated a narrative pushed by conservative media and disputed by health experts that suggests the official death count from the coronavirus is inflated.






THIS SHIT AIN'T OVER YET! GET VACCINATED...OR (possibly) BE LIKE TED NUGENT!

Why Americans should be concerned by India's COVID tsunami https://t.co/wPzatg897a

— Dee Snider?? (@deesnider) April 22, 2021








It's just...so...beautiful! https://t.co/TzYu3NiRzE

— Dee Snider?? (@deesnider) April 20, 2021

On Saturday (December 11), former DEATH members played the first of two shows commemorating the 20th anniversary of the passing of the band's mastermind Chuck Schuldiner at Brass Mug in Tampa, Florida. James Murphy (guitar) and Terry Butler (bass) performed DEATH's classic third album, "Spiritual Healing" (1990), in its entirety under the LIVING MONSTROSITY banner, while Steve DiGiorgio (bass), Bobby Koelble (guitar) and Kelly Conlon (bass) joined forces as SYMBOLIC to play songs from "Human" (1991), "Individual Thought Patterns" (1993), "Symbolic" (1995) and "The Sound Of Perseverance" (1998). Fan-filmed video footage of the concert can be seen below.

Tonight's show (December 12) at the Brass Mug will be livestreamed worldwide. Livestream tickets are on sale now at this location.

The Brass Mug, which has been in continuous operation since 1974, has hosted many of the Florida death metal bands in their early years.

"We wanted this historic event to be at a place that also has some historical significance to the metal community," said Leo Lozano, co-producer of the show and guitarist and vocalist of SYMBOLIC.

SYMBOLIC lineup:

* Steve DiGiorgio (DEATH; bass on "Human", "Individual Thought Patterns"; CONTROL DENIED - bass on "The Fragile Art Of Existence")

* Bobby Koelble (DEATH; guitars on "Symbolic")

* Kelly Conlon (DEATH; bass on "Symbolic")

* Dirk Verbeuren (MEGADETH, SOILWORK - drums)

* Max Phelps (EXIST; guitars and vocals)

* Leo Lozano (SYMBOLIC; guitars and vocals)

LIVING MONSTROSITY lineup:

* James Murphy (DEATH; guitars on "Spiritual Healing")

* Terry Butler (DEATH; bass on "Spiritual Healing")

* Gus Rios (GRUESOME; drums)

* Matt Harvey (GRUESOME, EXHUMED; guitar, vocals)

Originally released in 1990, "Spiritual Healing" marked a new turn in the DEATH discography, one which ushered in cleaner production, a new level of boundary pushing musicianship and songwriting skills that were previously unimaginable from a metal band. "Spiritual Healing" sets the standard for riffs, insane time changes and, of course, Schuldiner's masterful guitar solos. Reissued in 2012 as a double CD housed in super deluxe packaging featuring brand new liner notes from Murphy and Butler, Chuck's sister Beth Schuldiner and VOLBEAT frontman Michael Poulsen, Disc 1 featured a completely new remaster of the original album and Disc 2 contained 16 previously unreleased rehearsal, outtakes and studio instrumentals.

In addition to the two-disc edition, a limited-edition (2000 machine-numbered copies) triple-CD digipak was made available exclusively from Relapse.com. The third CD featured a never-before-released live set recorded in 1990 featuring the "Spiritual Healing" DEATH lineup. An iTunes deluxe edition was also released containing five additional previously unreleased pre-"Human" rehearsal tracks not available on either of the CD versions.

Schuldiner died on December 13, 2001 after a battle with pontine glioma, a rare type of brain tumor.

In recent years, DEATH's storied catalog has undergone a meticulous reissue campaign via Relapse Records.

Relapse released the first-ever fully authorized DEATH tab book, featuring 21 classic songs tabbed out for guitar from the band's entire discography. The book, which includes traditional notation as well as tablature, also comes with a digital download of all tracks.

In a 2011 interview with Bass Musician magazine, DiGiorgio stated about working with Schuldiner: "Sometimes people make good music together, and sometimes they vibe like yin and fucking yang. Chuck is credited with a lot of things in the music world (metal world, of course), but one thing a lot of people don't know much about is how aware he was. What I mean is that he was a good listener. If I thought of a wacky bassline to something he was writing, before I could even try to explain why it came to me, he was already ahead of it and looking for something on the next part. He had a good sense of when to hold me back and when to push me. It was great to have someone, especially the 'main man' of the band not only appreciate what I contributed but also help me find my inner demon to conjure even sicker and more abstract things to play. There really was some math going on in that roiling storm sometimes."




Spiritual Healing…

A Tribute to Chuck Schuldiner's Life and DEATH

Posted by Zolrak Montes on Saturday, December 11, 2021





A Tribute to Chuck Schuldiner's Life and DEATH ?

Posted by Zolrak Montes on Saturday, December 11, 2021





Posted by Chriss Hellion on Saturday, December 11, 2021



What a great night for metal in Tampa! I'm not sure we will ever get that many old school metal alumni in one room...

Posted by Kelly R Shaefer on Sunday, December 12, 2021





Posted by Zolrak Montes on Saturday, December 11, 2021





A line at the Brass Mug haha!.

Posted by Chriss Hellion on Saturday, December 11, 2021

Dan Fila, drummer for Canadian bashers Sven Gali, has checked in with the following update:


"We are very pleased to announce that Andy Curran (Coney Hatch / bass) will be producing two tracks on the upcoming SG record.  Working with Andy throughout the pre-production process has been a great experience. We are tracking drums and bass tomorrow and I cannot wait to learn from Andy and our Juno award winning engineer Vic Florencia."


A year after releasing their 3 EP during June 2020 via RFL Records, Canada's Sven Gali is kicking off summer 2021 with their new music video "Hurt", which premiered Friday, June 11 on BraveWords' Streaming For Vengeance. You can now watch the video below.




Says the band: "'Hurt' features the unmistakable melodic and attitude laced vocals of David Wanless; complimentary and crushing guitar performances from Andy Frank and Sean Williamson; and the solid foundation and groove laid down by Shawn Minden and Dan Fila. As you listen to it, you will hear the combination of classic Sven Gali along with the evolving sound of the band. We are looking forward to getting back out on tour and blowing people away with our high-energy, intense, and crushing performances. Best, SG."





Experiencing extensive touring worldwide where they have shared the stage with legends such as April Wine, Foreigner, Pearl Jam, and Def Leppard, Sven Gali's 3 EP marks their return since releasing 1995’s In Wire and 1992’s gold-selling and Juno Award-nominated self-titled debut album released on BMG Music Canada that featured hits “Under The Influence” and “Love Don’t Live Here Anymore”.


Known for their fusion of 80s screaming hard rock and 90s blazing metal, Sven Gali's 3 EP is available on digital platforms from RFL Records, and on CD here.





3 tracklist:


"Kill The Lies"
"You Won't Break Me"
"Now"
"Hurt"











Sven Gali is:


Dave Wanless - vocals
Andy Frank - guitars
Shawn Minden - bass
Dan Fila - drums
Sean Williamson - guitars

METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich has received the HN Award from the Hede Nielsen Family Foundation. The award includes a cash prize of DKK 600,000, which he will donate to three different charities in Denmark: Dyrenes Beskyttelse, an organization that engages in animal welfare at national, European and international levels; Kofoeds Skole, an organization carrying out social work for adults according to the "social pedagogical" principle of personal and vocational empowerment; and Børns Vilkår, which is dedicated to stopping child neglect in all its forms.

Said Lars: "So psyched to announce that I'll be donating 200,000 Danish kroner to three different charities in Denmark, thanks to the good folks at the Hede Nielsen Family Foundation.

"I'm beyond thankful to Henrik and his team at the Foundation for bestowing me with the honor of being the recipient of this year's HN-prize award, marking their 50th anniversary.

"200,000 kroner will go to BørneTelefonen/@bornsvilkar, 200,000 will go to @kofoedsskole, and 200,000 will go to @dyrenesbeskyttelse.

"Please look into supporting these incredible organizations."

According to SDU, Hede Nielsen Family Foundation is a non-profit foundation that receives 1200-1500 applications annually, primarily for further education, research, art and culture.

Certain applicants are prioritized locally, while the overall objective of the Fund is to support candidates who are considered by the presidency and the board for the benefit and promotion of Denmark in general.

The purpose of the Fund is to provide support for cultural, scientific, social and educational purposes as well as other charitable purposes which, according to the discretion of the Board, may be considered as equivalent.

In 2017, METALLICA launched All Within My Hands, a 501(c)3 non-profit foundation as a way for the METALLICA family to give back to communities that have supported the band. Just in 2020, AWMH donated $645,000 to COVID-19-related relief funds including Feeding America, Direct Relief, as well as to charities assisting those in the entertainment and hospitality industries suddenly without work. The foundation's Metallica Scholars Initiative is now in its third year and has fundamentally improved the earning potential for students who become Metallica Scholars.
























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A post shared by Lars Ulrich (@larsulrich)

According to TMZ, TOOL drummer Danny Carey was arrested at the airport in Kansas City after allegedly getting into a fight he got in with someone inside the terminal.

Law enforcement sources tell the site airport police responded Sunday night (December 12) to a report of a disturbance between two men. When they got to the scene, they arrested Carey and transported him to a nearby police station. The 60-year-old musician was booked for misdemeanor assault and was released on bond. The police report is being forwarded to prosecutors for review, and potential charges will follow.

A spokesperson for the Kansas City Aviation Department told Rolling Stone: "Regarding the request for body and dash cam video, our police force does not have this technology. The police report has been forwarded to the prosecutor's office for review."

Carey's arrest comes one day after he performed the Jimi Hendrix song "Fire" at the University of Kansas vs. the University of Missouri men's basketball game in Lawrence, Kansas.

Starting as a jazz drummer, Carey joined TOOL after connecting with singer Maynard James Keenan and guitarist Adam Jones and practicing with them in place of drummers the two had requested but who had never shown up.

When not performing with TOOL, Danny plays in intimate club settings, participates in drum clinics and takes part in jamming parties with his drum heroes. He is currently a member of THE DOUG WEBB ALL STARS, LEGENDS OF THE SEAGULLMEN and VOLTO.

TOOL formed in 1990 and has released five studio albums thus far: "Undertow" (1993), "Ænima" (1996), "Lateralus" (2001), "10,000 Days" (2006) and "Fear Inoculum" (2019); two EPs: "72826" (1991) and "Opiate" (1992); and the limited-edition boxset, "Salival" (2000). The band has won four Grammy Awards: Best Metal Performance (1998, "Ænima"), "Best Metal Performance" (2002, "Schism"), "Best Recording Package" (2007, "10,000 Days") and "Best Metal Performance" (2020, "7empest").

"Fear Inoculum" arrived in August of 2019, following years of anticipation. The album debuted at No. 1 on Billboard's Top 200, shattering sales and radio records while also earning widespread critical praise.




Tool drummer Danny Carey was arrested for misdemeanor assault at the airport in Kansas City. https://t.co/C7aKNg61p3

— TMZ (@TMZ) December 13, 2021

MASTODON's Bill Kelliher was the featured guest on BBC's "The Rock Show With Johnnie Walker" during the "Rock God" segment. Bill picked RAMONES guitarist Johnny Ramone and stated about his choice (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "When I was a young kid, all my friends and I used to listen to lots of VAN HALEN and the SCORPIONS and ZZ TOP, and we looked up to all those guitarists, but I could never play that stuff. But when I heard Johnny Ramone, I realized that, 'Wow, this guy is only playing one chord, a power chord.' And I soon realized that everybody was doing it wrong; everybody was trying to be Eddie Van Halen whereas I said, 'I wanna be a songwriter. If Johnny Ramone can write two hundred songs with the same three power chords, then I can at least write a couple.' And that's exactly what I did. When I was 15, I started my first band. I just started playing with some friends and doing RAMONES covers and easy punk rock stuff and just kind of learned along the way. So Johnny Ramone really taught me that you don't have to be super proficient at guitar to be an awesome guitar player. The RAMONES were an amazing band. I saw them many times live growing up in upstate New York — they came through a lot. They put on an amazing show. Johnny Ramone's guitar playing was just like turning on a buzzsaw and not turning it off. So that's why I think Johnny Ramone is a rock god."

Ramone was a founding member of the seminal punk band that broke on to the New York music scene in 1974. Johnny was known for his fast, high-energy guitar playing. His style almost exclusively consisted of rapid down strokes and bar chord shapes. This unique playing style and buzzsaw-like sound of Johnny's guitar parts was highly influential on many early punk rock guitarists and keeps him listed on numerous top lists of the greatest guitar players.

On September 15, 2004, Johnny Ramone died in his Los Angeles home at the age of 55 after a five-year battle with prostate cancer.

Last month, MASTODON was announced as one of the "Best Metal Performance" nominees at the 64th annual Grammy Awards, which will be held on January 31, 2022, at the Crypto.com Arena (formerly the Staples Center) in Los Angeles, California. The progressive metallers were nominated for their song "Pushing The Tides", the first single from their latest album, "Hushed And Grim", which came out in October.

The follow-up to 2017's "Emperor Of Sand", "Hushed And Grim"was recorded at West End Sound, which is located inside of Ember City, the rehearsal facility that members of MASTODON manage in Atlanta. Helming the effort was Grammy-winning producer/mixer/engineer David Bottrill, who has previously worked with MUSE, DREAM THEATER and TOOL, among many others.

The "Hushed And Grim" artwork was created by longtime MASTODON collaborator Paul Romano, who also designed the sleeves for "Crack The Skye", "Blood Mountain", "Leviathan" and more.

"Emperor Of Sand" debuted at No. 7 on the Billboard 200. That LP was nominated for the 2018 Grammy Award for "Best Rock Album," and its opening track, "Sultan's Curse", won the Grammy Award for "Best Metal Performan

British heavy metal legends IRON MAIDEN have once again teamed up with toy/collectible company Funko to create a new line of figures based around the band's legendry mascot Eddie. Due in February 2022 are "Stranger In A Strange Land" Eddie, "Somewhere In Time" Eddie, "Live After Death" Eddie, "Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son" Eddie and "Nights Of The Dead" Eddie. The new figures will be available from Entertainment Earth.

MAIDEN's previous Funko line of figures was based on the albums "Iron Maiden", "Killers", "The Number Of The Beast" and "Piece Of Mind".

Eddie, whose full name is Eddie The Head or Edward The Head (also known as Edward The Great), is a perennial fixture in the often-violent MAIDEN album cover art, as well as ever present in the group's live shows.

Eddie made his first appearance on MAIDEN's debut single, "Running Free", in February 1980. The skeletal character was created by illustrator Derek Riggs, who was the band's sole artist — designing album covers, single covers and t-shirts — until 1992's "Fear Of The Dark" LP, which saw MAIDEN collaborate with Melvyn Grant. Grant was also responsible for 1998's "Virtual XI" and 2010's "The Final Frontier", while Hugh Syme designed 1995's "The X Factor", Steve Stone created 2000's "Brave New World", David Patchett handled 2003's "Dance Of Death", Tim Bradsheet took the reins for 2006's "A Matter Of Life And Death", and Mark Wilkinson designed 2016's "The Book Of Souls" and 2021's "Senjutsu".

Headquartered in Everett, Washington, Funko is a leading pop culture consumer products company. Funko designs, sources and distributes licensed pop culture products across multiple categories, including vinyl figures, toys, plush, apparel, board games, housewares and accessories for consumers who seek tangible ways to connect with their favorite pop culture brands and characters.

Funko reportedly holds more than 150 licenses, including Lucas Films, Marvel, Hasbro, Disney and more. The company reported having 777 full-time employees at the end of 2020, 617 of which were based in the U.S.

After Funko's Q3 results were announced on November 4 — beating expectations on revenue and earnings per share (EPS) — CEO Brian Mariotti said: "As a credit to our brand, we are continuing to expand our product categories and fan base, increasing fan engagement and bringing innovative new products to market."

According to InvestorPlace, Funko also got into the non-fungible token market, releasing limited-edition digital card packs that include rare cards. Buyers can trade these rare cards to profit from the collectibles market.




Coming Soon: Pop! Rocks: Iron Maiden. Pre-order your favorites today! https://t.co/CSqbnFPHr6 #Funko #funkoPop #ironmaiden @IronMaiden pic.twitter.com/6Wigk5L9QT

— Funko (@OriginalFunko) December 13, 2021

Nikki Sixx has once again said that the chance for MÖTLEY CRÜE to headline a U.S. stadium tour was the primary reason the band decided to cancel its retirement.

CRÜE fans who shelled out for the band's 2014/2015 "farewell" tour were led to believe that the group would never return after playing its final concert on December 2015 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The band touted the signing of a pre-tour "cessation of touring" agreement as cementing the fact it truly was the end of CRÜE's life on the road.

Speaking to the 98.3 CIFM radio station about the CRÜE's decision to reunite for next summer's stadium tour with DEF LEPPARD and POISON, Sixx said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "It was pretty interesting. We knocked it on the head because we felt like we had said everything we wanted to say. We felt that we were young enough where we had time left on the clock to do other stuff. And I think it ended in a really good way.

"We never intended on getting back together," he continued. "It was the movie [MÖTLEY CRÜE biopic 'The Dirt']… We always knew we were gonna do the movie. And then getting in a studio and making music was, like, 'That was fun.' I was, like, 'Yeah, we'll do some songs for the movie.' And we got the movie. 'It's been great.' High five. 'Tommy [Lee, MÖTLEY CRÜE drummer], call me for sushi.' And it started — it just started rolling and rolling. Now there's, like, 83 or 84 million people who've seen the movie, and the phone calls started coming in from around the world.

"We owed it to ourselves to have that conversation, 'cause if three of us were, like, 'Let's go do it' and the fourth was not, that's what the contract was about," he explained. "We couldn't leave two guys behind and go out and have two versions of MÖTLEY CRÜE. So it was an exciting time, something to celebrate. And if there was any hem and hawing, it was around the idea of going and doing arenas. We've done arenas, we've done festivals. We just felt like it isn't gonna get any bigger than how we ended it. And then came the, 'No, no. They wanna do stadiums.' And we were, like, 'Ah, well, that's a little different conversation.' 'And DEF LEPPARD wants to do it with you. The whole thing.' So then it was us and DEF LEPPARD talking, and what do they see. We've played many shows together before, so it was fantastic. And then I think eight [shows] went on sale and sold out, eight more sold out, eight more sold out, and everyone was, like, 'This is gonna be a great run.' And I figured that was gonna be it. And then COVID came and knocked it on its heels, like everybody else, or a lot of people. And then we decided not to tour this year because we weren't comfortable enough yet personally, and maybe it wasn't the right thing for the fans, in our opinion, or for our crew. So during that time, we got to start talking more [about], 'What's Europe look like?' 'You know what? We love Japan. Wow. What a show in Japan.' MÖTLEY CRÜE and DEF LEPPARD. If it's POISON and Joan Jett, they stick with us. And those are huge shows in Australia.

"So that's where it is," Sixx added. "And then this fucking mutation of COVID keeps happening. So we're, like, 'Okay, we're doing America. We've got our protocols. We know exactly how we're gonna do it. What's gonna happen in '23?' And we don't know. I've heard omicron is a lot more contagious but it's also a weaker strain so that if people do get it, it's more like a headache or a stomache for a day, especially for vaccinated people. So there's some talk about that's a positive; it's weakening. So we're keeping our eye on all the information out there. And how do we get a stadium tour to Europe, how do we get it to Japan. There needs to be the right safety protocols."

"The Stadium Tour" was originally scheduled to take place in the summer of 2020 but ended up being pushed back to 2021, and then to 2022, due to the coronavirus crisis. Nikki is confident that the trek will finally happen next year. "100 percent — June 19th [of 2022], this tour kicks off in Atlanta, Georgia," he said. "Man, I can't wait. I miss it. My favorite thing is band rehearsal. So all of May, we rehearse and we break down the songs and we get to hang out. Just like we did in 1981, man. There's nobody there; there's nobody coming in and interrupting — it's just the four of us set in a circle. And then we turn and face you and go for it live."

Asked what fans can expect to see from MÖTLEY CRÜE's stage show this time around, Sixx said: "We have some very, very cool things that are in development, let's say. Different than anything we've done before.

"Here's my thought on pyro, by the way. I love pyro," he continued. "If you know anything about me, you're, like, 'Yeah, Nikki used to light himself on fire.' You're not talking to a guy who doesn't like fire. But you're talking to a guy who every time I turn on a baseball game or a football game or some D-level band, they've all got this, like, fire goes up, fire goes down, fire goes up, fire goes down. And I just feel like it's kind of become… For us, we were covered in fire retardant. We had fire shooting at us. I had a flame thrower. So unless you're gonna go the RAMMSTEIN route, who I love, you may need to rethink what can we do to blow your mind. And that's where we're at right now."

When it happens, "The Stadium Tour" will mark the CRÜE's first live dates since wrapping its 2014/2015 farewell tour. CRÜE toured with POISON back in 2011 and DEF LEPPARD teamed up with POISON for a string of road dates in 2017, but the upcoming jaunt marks the first time all four acts — including JOAN JETT & THE BLACKHEARTS — have hit the road together for an extended tour.

MÖTLEY CRÜE's last studio album was 2008's "Saints Of Los Angeles", which was followed by a 2009 "Greatest Hits" compilation.

In 2018, MÖTLEY CRÜE recorded four new songs for "The Dirt" movie, including the single "The Dirt (Est. 1981) (Feat. Machine Gun Kelly)", "Ride With The Devil", "Crash And Burn" and the band's own spin on Madonna's "Like A Virgin".

Fan-filmed video footage of Bruce Dickinson belting out an a cappella version of the IRON MAIDEN song "Revelations" during his December 10 spoken-word show at Usher Hall in Edinburgh, United Kingdom can be seen below.

Earlier this month, Bruce spoke to BBC Radio Scotland's "The Afternoon Show" about his gig at Usher Hall. Asked if it takes a different type of courage to stand in a front of an audience without a backing band and a huge production, Dickinson said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "It's terrifying. It's absolutely terrifying. I've got a little carpet that I stand on, which appears… I requested a carpet to stand on. And there's a little table and a glass of water and, more often than not, a bottle of beer. And that's it. I've got some slides and I just riff around the whole thing. There's a bit of physical comedy involved as well, which I won't go into, but if you are of a nervous disposition and don't like talking about drummers in anatomical detail, then you should stay away. And I hasten to add, there are some naughty bits and I'm not shy of using the odd naughty word from time to time that I couldn't possibly say on the radio."

As previously reported, Dickinson will embark on a two-month North American spoken-word tour in January.

Dickinson is considered one of the world's most storied musicians. Aside from decades spent delivering high-octane performances with his larger-than-life persona in IRON MAIDEN, Bruce has lived an extraordinary off-stage existence too. A true polymath, his accomplishments include: pilot and airline captain, aviation entrepreneur, beer brewer, motivational speaker, film scriptwriter, twice-published novelist and Sunday Times best-selling author, radio presenter, TV actor, sports commentator and international fencer… to name but a few.

Split into two parts, the first section of the show sees Bruce taking a humorous and often satirical look at the world from his own very personal perspective, treating the audience to private insights into his drive and ambition, peppered with plenty of MAIDEN anecdotes, and a myriad of other experiences encompassing not just the giddy heights but also the extreme lows, as told first-hand in his inimitable anarchic style, punctuated with photographs, videos and sometimes even erupting into song a-capella, to illustrate a point.

The final section of the evening is devoted entirely to the aforementioned question-and-answer session, with the opportunity to pose questions on any subject whatsoever. As Bruce's answers will all be completely improvised — the more left-field and quirky the question, the more interesting and compelling the response is likely to be.

Dickinson recently told Pablo of the Minneapolis, Minnesota radio station 93X about his current spoken-word tour, which kicked off in his native United Kingdom in August: "It's hopefully reasonably amusing. It's a look at how a spotty kid from the middle of nowhere ended up being the singer in IRON MAIDEN wearing crazy trousers, and all points in between. And it covers the cancer thing. It covers a lot of the early-days stuff, like how I learned to sing, all the weird stuff that happened to me at school and what formed your personality [and] character — all done with a very dark sense of humor, I hope. And then we take a break, and then the last 45 minutes, one hour-ish is basically improv. And so what I do is I take cue cards from the audience they write on the night, and I arrange them into kind of an improv script. Then I do that. That's the show."

Six years ago, Dickinson had surgery to remove a cancerous lump on his throat. The rocker, who had a golf gall-size tumor on his tongue and another in the lymph node on the right side of his neck, got the all-clear in May 2015 after radiation and nine weeks of chemotherapy.

IRON MAIDEN's 17th studio album, "Senjutsu", was released in September via BMG. The band's first LP in six years was recorded in 2019 in Paris with longstanding producer Kevin Shirley and co-produced by bassist Steve Harris.










With the legend , the one and only Bruce Dickinson in Edinburgh!!!!???

Posted by Angela Nagy on Saturday, December 11, 2021



Scream for me Edinburgh

Posted by Bruce Dickinson Corporate Speaking on Friday, December 10, 2021

Multi-camera drum-cam video footage of Jay Weinberg performing the new SLIPKNOT single "The Chapeltown Rag" live with his bandmates for the first time on November 5 at Knotfest Los Angeles can be seen below. The event was livestreamed as it happened, giving fans access to both the studio version and SLIPKNOT's live performance of "The Chapeltown Rag" within only hours of its premiere.

The studio version of "The Chapeltown Rag", which was released on November 5, was produced by Joe Baressi, who has previously worked with AVENGED SEVENFOLD, QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE and CHEVELLE, among many others.

SLIPKNOT frontman Corey Taylor described the song to Knotfest.com as "a punisher," saying it documents what happens when the distortions of mass media circulate within the echo chambers of social media.

"It's classic SLIPKNOT," said Corey about the track, which is inspired by a Netflix documentary he watched about the Yorkshire Ripper serial killer who murdered multiple women in the West Yorkshire, United Kingdom suburb Chapeltown in the late 1970s. "And it's frenetic. But lyrically, it's coming from a point of talking about the various manipulations that can happen when social media meets media itself. And the different ways that these manipulations can try to pull us in different directions, in the fact that we're all becoming addicts to it, which is very, very dangerous."

Recorded during recent sessions for a yet-to-be-announced new album, "The Chapeltown Rag" barrels forward with the speed of a freight train derailing and incisively eviscerates Internet culture from the inside out with the scream, "When everything is god online…nothing is."

M. Shawn Crahan, better known as Clown from SLIPKNOT, added: "'The Chapeltown Rag' facilitates a sort of mindset that you're going to like: it's along the barnburner side of things."

According to Knotfest.com writer Dan Franklin, "The Chapeltown Rag" chorus sees Corey experimenting with vocal approaches he had never taken before.

"I wasn't even sure if that part was going to be the chorus, to be honest," Corey said. "But I just love the way that the chord progression lent itself this weird, chromatic, minor vibe to it, which I had never really done before. I played with it on 'Vermilion' years ago, but I had never really given it a little more aggression. The harmony that I created for it was just so fucking weird as well that it just gives it that slight dissonant vibe, but it's also very, very melodic and hummable. Writing and pulling yourself out of trying to keep it in some sort of structure allows you to just fucking rip the scab off and let the wound be what it is. Then obviously, the big breakdown at the end where it just fucking goes off the rails is is so heavy, dude."

SLIPKNOT's last album, "We Are Not Your Kind", was released in August 2019. The LP sold 118,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. in its first week of release to land at position No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart. Furthermore, the album made an impact worldwide with No. 1 debuts in the United Kingdom, Mexico, Australia, Canada, Japan, Ireland, Belgium, Portugal and Finland, as well as Top 5 debuts in Germany, France, Norway, Italy, Austria, Sweden, Switzerland, The Netherlands, Poland, Spain and New Zealand.

SLIPKNOT recently completed the "Knotfest Roadshow" tour, featuring support from KILLSWITCH ENGAGE, FEVER 333 and CODE ORANGE. The 29-date run, produced by Live Nation, kicked off following the band's Knotfest Iowa hometown show in Des Moines on September 25.

Photo courtesy of Jay Weinberg's Instagram / Steve Thrasher

EVANESCENCE and HALESTORM have postponed their show tonight (Sunday, December 12) at the Heritage Bank Center in Cincinnati, Ohio after the two bands' joint tour was "hit by COVID."

EVANESCENCE announced the concert postponement in a social media post earlier today. The band wrote: "Our tour has been hit by COVID and we are forced to postpone our show tonight in Cincinnati. We were able to reschedule the show for Monday, Dec. 20th, so hold onto your tickets! Be on the lookout for an email with additional information. Please be safe out there! See you soon."

EVANESCENCE added: "Even when you have every precaution in place, you can still get and transmit this virus. Grateful we are all vaccinated and nobody's symptoms are severe. Please be smart and stay safe this season, get the vax, wear a mask, care for one another. We will get through this together".

EVANESCENCE and HALESTORM's tour kicked off on November 5 at in Portland, Oregon and will run through December 18 in Worcester, Massachusetts.

EVANESCENCE and HALESTORM first toured together in 2012. EVANESCENCE singer Amy Lee later guested on the track "Break In" on HALESTORM's 2020 "Reimagined" EP and HALESTORM frontwoman Lzzy Hale lent backing vocals to the EVANESCENCE song "Use My Voice" and appeared in the accompanying music video.

EVANESCENCE is on tour supporting this year's "The Bitter Truth" album. HALESTORM is promoting its latest single, "Back From The Dead", which recently became the band's sixth No. 1 at rock radio.




Our tour has been hit by COVID and we are forced to postpone our show tonight in Cincinnati. We were able to reschedule the show for Monday, Dec. 20th, so hold onto your tickets! Be on the lookout for an email with additional information. Please be safe out there! ❤️ See you soon

— Evanescence (@evanescence) December 12, 2021








Even when you have every precaution in place, you can still get and transmit this virus. Grateful we are all vaccinated and nobody’s symptoms are severe. Please be smart and stay safe this season, get the vax, wear a mask, care for one another. We will get through this together❤️

— Evanescence (@evanescence) December 12, 2021

Canadian hard rockers Shot Down Twice will release their upcoming, self-titled EP on January 21st. It follows their debut, Got Up Once.


“After many months of work, and after numerous highs and lows, we are beyond thrilled to release our second EP, aptly named Shot Down Twice We’ve dug real deep this time to create a hard rock EP that will are really proud of. We had a blast working on it, and we think that’ll come through and you’ll be able to feel that when you listen to the music. It’s a full ride and we hope you enjoy it as much as we do. Cheers to all,” says the band.


Watch the video for the first single "Talk To Me":










 

On August 18, 2021, Heart vocalist Ann Wilson played a solo show at the Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom in New Hampshire. She's since uploaded video of her performing Led Zeppelin's "Going To California", during the encore of that concert.  





Catch Ann Wilson live at Rockfest in Los Cabos, Mexico on May 13, 2022.