RichG TV has uploaded video of John Corabi telling stories about his first encounters with the members of AEROSMITH after joining MÖTLEY CRÜE. The clips, which were filmed this past Friday (December 3) at The Backyard in Waco, Texas, also include Corabi's acoustic performance of AEROSMITH's "Seasons Of Wither".

In a recent interview with Legendary Rock Interviews, Corabi stated about his love of AEROSMITH: "My first cover band, we used to do 'Same Old Song And Dance'. We did 'Draw The Line', 'Nobody's Fault'. We did… Fuck, what was the other one? 'Adam's Apple', 'Toys In The Attic'. We did like eight or 10 AEROSMITH songs. Then I was in a cover band and we did an AEROSMITH tribute. So we did 'No Surprise', 'Milk Cow Blues', like all the shit. So anytime I get an opportunity to do that, I'll throw an AEROSMITH song out there. Unfortunately, my voice isn't what it used to be, so singing songs like 'Nobody's Fault' is a little difficult so I'll just try and find the ones that I can sing."

Earlier this year, Corabi named AEROSMITH's classic 1976 album "Rocks" as one of five records that changed his life. In an interview with Roppongi Rocks, he called "Rocks" "a perfectly written, performed and recorded record. AEROSMITH firing on all cylinders. Nine songs, 37 minutes of ass-kicking," he said.

Corabi joined CRÜE in 1992 as the replacement for the group's original singer, Vince Neil, who was dismissed due to personal differences. With Corabi on vocals, MÖTLEY CRÜE released one critically acclaimed full-length CD, which ended up being a commercial failure in the wake of grunge despite a Top 10 placing on the album chart. When Neil returned to the fold in 1997, Corabi was left on his own and formed the band UNION with ex-KISS guitarist Bruce Kulick.

Corabi recently completed work on his autobiography. Titled "Horseshoes And Hand Grenades", it was written with the help of MÖTLEY CRÜE historian/author Paul Miles, and is due on April 12, 2022 via Rare Bird Books.

STAIND frontman Aaron Lewis has released the official lyric video for his new solo single "Get What You Get". The track is taken from his upcoming album, "Frayed At Both Ends", due on January 28, 2022.

With a strong sense of vintage country, Lewis has spent the last ten years committed to making the kind of country he was raised on. Merle Haggard, Waylon Jennings, David Allen Coe and early Hank Williams Jr. inform the Springfield, Vermont star's take on the genre that started with the No. 1 Billboard Country Albums debut with 2011's "Town Line".

That same passion for the unseen and the unrecognized drives the guitar-playing songwriter. Having spent the last year focused on writing, often with friends he's made over the decade he's spent making country music, he's putting the finishing touches on "Frayed At Both Ends".

"There's so much great music in Nashville, which I think everybody knows. But until you really live here, get to know people, you don't realize how deep it runs," Lewis says of the dozen songs on his upcoming record. "It's inspiring to be around people who are drawn to that same hard kind of country, the stuff that digs down and looks at life with some of the paint knocked off it."

"Frayed At Both Ends" also strips back Lewis's sound, taking it to the bare minimum. With guitarists Tom Bukovac, Biff Watson and Seth Taylor, dobroist Ben Kitterman, acoustic slide and baritone from Sturgill Simpson veteran Laur Joamets, keyboards from Jim Moose Brown, acoustic guitar and mandolin from Dan Tyminski, some of Nashville's best players make less do more.

"Goodbye Town", an acoustic guitar shuffle that looks at a love that's gone, and the echoes that linger after it's over, is the first advance track. With Mickey Raphael's harmonica and a dobro rising from the mix, Lewis's weathered delivery more than carries the enduring ache.

"Big heartache is part of it," says the man cited for "his mournful baritone" by the Los Angeles Times. "Country music takes on the tough stuff, the doubts and the working harder to just stay where you are. Writing with guys like Dan Tyminski, who's sung on some of my earlier records, Jeffrey Steele, Ira Dean, David Lee Murphy and Chris Wallin all have the same sense of what this is, so I can't wait for people to get to hear this record."

Fans can pre-order the album now and receive "Goodbye Town", the project's first teaser track. They will also receive "Am I The Only One", Lewis's anthem of frustration that spent the 4th of July at No. 1 on iTunes all-genre chart, as well as being only the ninth song since 1958 to debut at No. 1 on Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart.

"This is an album of saying things that need to be said about how people actually live," Lewis explains. "Life isn't easy. Most people drink to forget, or drive for hours trying to get away from what they can't let go of or leave behind. Work takes it out of you. Love falls short or destroys you. Disappointments stack up. But still you have to keep going — and how you do that says everything about the man that you are."

The 12 songs are joined by a bonus: the previously released CreatiVets-penned "They Call Me Doc". The bare witness of a triage soldier who holds people together at their darkest moments honors the fighting men and women who've been injured and those who care for them. With just an acoustic guitar, Lewis is joined by Tyminiski and Vince Gill for the homage.

"I've never wanted to be the face of a song, or a time," Lewis offers. "I'm a lucky man. I survived my first record deal, and I can make music on my terms. One of those terms is singing for other people, the things they need to say or the heroism they've lived and no one ever really noticed. If I can put the light in those places, then the music is doing its best work."

Mixed by Chris Lord-Alge, the five-time Grammy-winning engineer burnished the warmth of the playing and found the depth in the room. For a largely unplugged project, its presence is undeniable.

"I played an acoustic show at the Ryman Auditorium," STAIND's founder/frontman remembers, "and Scott Borchetta, the head of my label, had never seen me like that. When we were done, he came backstage and said, 'You need to do a record like that.' I'd never really thought about it, but once he planted the seed..."

"I didn't have a master plan, just these songs that I'd been writing with friends. I'd never really co-written in all my years of being an artist. Sometimes writing with somebody else dials you even more into yourself, or more the reality that's all of us. And with the world being such a mess, I figured 'frayed at both ends' sounds about right. No matter who you are or what you believe, I think we all feel like the knot's coming undone."

"Frayed At Both Ends" track listing:

01. Again (Aaron Lewis, Ira Dean, David Lee Murphy)

02. Goodbye Town (Aaron Lewis, Randy Montana)

03. Everybody Talks To God (Craig Monday, Chris Wallin)

04. Am I The Only One (Aaron Lewis, Ira Dean, Jeffrey Steele)

05. Kill Me Like You Love Me (Aaron Lewis, Ira Dean, Dan Tyminiski, Chris Wallin)

06. Pull Me Under (Aaron Lewis)

07. Life Behind Bars (Aaron Lewis, Josh Hogue, Matt McGinn)

08. Waiting There For Me (Aaron Lewis, Ira Dean, Dan Tyminiski, Chris Wallin)

09. They Call Me Doc (featuring CreatiVets, Vince Gill, Dan Tyminiski) (Shaun Bott, Richard Casper, Brian Carper, Jourdan Walker, Johnny McGuire)

10. Get What You Get (Aaron Lewis, Ira Dean, Dan Tyminiski)

11. Sticks And Stones (Aaron Lewis, Paul Barber, Matt McGinn)

12. One In The Same (Aaron Lewis, Trent Tomlinson)

13. Someone (Aaron Lewis, Paul Barber, Matt McGinn)

David Lee Roth has added four more shows to his upcoming Las Vegas residency.

In addition to playing at Mandalay Bay's House Of Blues on December 31,

January 1, 5, 7 and 8, the VAN HALEN singer will now also also perform on January 14-15 and January 21-22.

Roth Las Vegas residency dates:

December 31, 2021

January 1, 5, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22, 2022

Roth explained his decision to extend the residency in an audio message earlier today. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "David Lee here. I had no idea how many people wanted to see me go. Okay, that sounded wrong. [Laughs] All right. Don't turn it off. David Lee here, for the second time. I had no idea how many of you wanted to pay to see me go. [Laughs] So I'm putting more tickets on sale, instead of doing the wrong thing and pissing more people off. I have industry professionals now ringing in, telling me, 'Dave, at your age, you should be in the middle of your third retirement. Did you watch 'Rocky' movies? He's on his seventh. Same guy, 'Rambo' — fifth. He's about 14 retirements ahead of you.' Just when I get out, they drag me back in.

"Look, I'm vulnerable. I feel sensitive. If I sound that way to you, I'm in the middle of my first retirement. And I'm gonna extend my world goodbye tour of Las Vegas at the House Of Blues for two more weekends — like any good fucking barbecue. Just like you would, if you could."

In October, the legendary VAN HALEN singer announced that he was ending his career with his Vegas shows during the first weeks of January. "I am throwing in the shoes. I'm retiring," Roth told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. "These are my last shows."

He added: "I'm not going to explain the statement. The explanation is in a safe."

Roth also reflected on the passing of his longtime bandmate, legendary VAN HALEN guitarist Eddie Van Halen, who died of cancer a year ago.

"I thought I might have been the first, frankly," Roth said. "I might have thought the Marlboro Man would've got me. Hey, Ed, objects in the rear-view mirror are probably me. And my doctors, my handlers, compelled me to really address that every time I go on stage, I endanger that future.

"I am encouraged and compelled to really come to grips with how short time is, and my time is probably even shorter," he added.

"I know that when I am in the audience, whether you come out with a ukulele or a marching band, all I ask you give me everything you've got to give," he said. "That's what I did for the last 50 years. I've given you all I've got to give.

"It's been an amazing, great run, no regrets, nothing to say about anybody. I'll miss you all. Stay frosty."

In March 2020, Roth postponed the final six shows of his Las Vegas residency due to the coronavirus pandemic that is spreading across the globe.

Roth's latest Vegas residency kicked off on January 8, 2020 with a 15-song set that included 10 VAN HALEN classics and five songs from his solo career. Backing the now-66-year-old singer were lead guitarist Al Estrada from the VAN HALEN tribute band ERUPTION, rhythm guitarist Frankie Lindri, bassist Ryan Wheeler, keyboardist Danny Wagner and drummer Mike Mussleman.

Roth explained that he chose Vegas as the place to debut his new band because "this is where you come to celebrate and do the victory dance, whatever that means to you."

In a February 2020 interview with StarTribune, Roth openly wondered whether his first tour since VAN HALEN completed its 2015 run of shows would be the last time he would perform.

"I'm calling it 'The Last Tour'," he said at the time, "and then underneath it in parentheses: 'Unless It Isn't'. ... At my age, everything is a possible farewell tour."

"It's been a long great trip, a long great run," he continued. "But this kind of music requires the kind of energy that people in their 20s bring. You know what NFL stands for: Not For Long. It's similar in rock. I remember the days when we would stand around and say, 'Let's go have a cigarette.' And that's what we did: Four guys having one cigarette. I remember those days. They go by fast, so enjoy them while you're in them."

In February/March 2020, Roth performed as the opening act for the North American leg of KISS's "End Of The Road" farewell tour.

Roth's 2020 Vegas residency wasn't the first time he had set up shop in Sin City. Back in 1995, Roth completed a Las Vegas engagement at Bally's Hotel and Casino and another short run at MGM Grand.




pic.twitter.com/2sLwn81nH0

— David Lee Roth (@DavidLeeRoth) December 6, 2021

NAPALM DEATH frontman Mark "Barney" Greenway spoke to Ghost Cult Magazine about how he has dealt with the coronavirus pandemic and its continuing economic effects. The singer, who lives in Lancing, west of the city of Brighton and Hove, on the south coast of England, said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "To be honest with you, I kind of made my peace with it quite early on. I could see it was gonna develop into a pretty serious situation so I kind of stepped back and I assessed my own life in front of me and for the immediate future. And I just had to make some major adjustments. Once I'd done that and it was firmly implanted in my mind, I got through it pretty okay. I kept myself physically active and I just kind of put my head down and went through it. It helped not having any dependents. I live alone, for the time being, so for me it was not so bad. But I do understand, obviously, the people with dependents, they have families around them and stuff like that, I do understand it was not an easy time."

Back in January, Greenway talked to Australia's Riff Crew about how the pandemic has affected him personally. "This virus thing [isn't] messing around. Luckily, I haven't had any direct family members that have died or been seriously ill from it thus far, but I know people that have, and it's very real," he said. "All these people that say it's a hoax, they need to open their eyes a little bit, because this is just simply not the case."

In September 2020, the NAPALM DEATH singer told the "Lambgoat Vanflip" podcast that wearing a mask during a pandemic showed "respect for your fellow human beings. "The whole idea of wearing the mask is to, of course, protect anybody if you're carrying the virus," he said. "But you still have to socially distance; otherwise, you're defeating the object of the exercise.

"I'm very pro mask, I must be honest. I just think it's a human thing. If you can't be bothered to even partially protect people around you, then I don't know what that says for people.

"Just because you're asked to wear a mask, is that really like a pair of handcuffs on a person?" Barney asked rhetorically. "I don't get that mindset. I just don't get the logic of it… And I think it shows respect for your fellow human beings to wear a mask, actually. 'Cause it says, 'You know what? It might not be the endgame, but at least I value your safety, as a fellow human being."

NAPALM DEATH is currently on the road in North America with GWAR and EYEHATEGOD for the "Scumdogs 30th Anniversary Tour". The band also recently announced the next edition of its "Campaign For Musical Destruction" tour in Europe this February and March 2022. This run will feature support from DOOM, SIBERIAN MEATGRINDER and SHOW ME THE BODY.

NAPALM DEATH is continuing to promote its latest album, "Throes Of Joy In The Jaws Of Defeatism", which came out in September 2020 via Century Media Records. The band's 16th studio LP was recorded with longtime producer Russ Russell and features artwork by Frode Sylthe.

During a recent appearance on "The High Way With Kyle Shutt", the podcast hosted by THE SWORD guitarist Kyle Shutt, former JUDAS PRIEST guitarist K.K. Downing spoke about the process of writing his autobiography, "Heavy Duty: Days And Nights In Judas Priest", which was released in September 2018 via Hachette Audio as a digital download, and in print and ebook from Da Capo Press. The book was co-written by the Scottish author and journalist Mark Eglinton, whose previous collaborations include "Official Truth, 101 Proof" with Rex Brown of PANTERA and "Confessions Of A Heretic" with BEHEMOTH's Adam "Nergal" Darski.

Downing said: "It was something different, really. It was definitely interesting. It was quite time consuming. But I'm glad I did it because I just wanted fans to get to know me a little bit better, really. Because fans knew of me, but [they didn't] necessarily have an insight to me and my life and my personality."

Three years ago, Downing told VintageRock.com that writing his autobiography provided him with a sense of closure concerning his time in JUDAS PRIEST. "I guess it's the same with any long-term relationship — whether it's a husband or wife, or father or son or whatever — you spend enough time together, and idiosyncrasies show up. I guess there was no particular right or wrong — some people have more tolerance than others, and it takes a bloody miracle really to stay together for 40 years," he said. "Someone has to give. And it has to be give-and-take. But inevitably, it becomes a bit of an imbalance, and I like to think that democracy is always the best policy. And there wasn't enough of it there, I don't think. But it kind of happened — Rob [Halford, vocals] and Glenn [Tipton, guitar] went off and did their lengthy solo careers, and that became a bit disruptive. I didn't even mention that in the book. But Rob actually released two albums and did his own tour in the exact year before I left. And then when they said, 'K.K., we want you to start writing for a five-track EP,' I went, 'Fucking no way in hell! Rob has just released two albums in the last year, and we are only releasing an EP? Something is not right.' Enough was enough, really, and I bailed out there. And, like I said in the book, I tried to put it as diplomatically as I could. But, in a nutshell, enough was enough, really. And that was it."

Downing left PRIEST in 2011 amid claims of band conflict, shoddy management and declining quality of performance. He was replaced by Richie Faulkner, nearly three decades his junior.

In 2019, Downing said that he reached out to JUDAS PRIEST about taking part in the band's 50th-anniversary tour but that their response was that they were not interested in including him in the celebrations.

In 2018, Downing revealed that he sent two resignation letters to his bandmates when he decided to quit JUDAS PRIEST. The first was described as "a graceful exit note, implying a smooth retirement from music," while the second was "angrier, laying out all of his frustrations with specific parties."

Downing later said that he believed the second letter was "a key reason" he wasn't invited to rejoin PRIEST after Tipton's decision to retire from touring.

In "Heavy Duty: Days And Nights In Judas Priest", Downing wrote that he told Tipton and PRIEST manager Jayne Andrews that he had "hated" them both "since 1985." Earlier this year, he explained his outburst to Classic Rock magazine: "I was angry. Glenn had formed a relationship with Jayne from day one, and it felt a bit like a John-and-Yoko situation. I didn't like that."

Devin Townsend has checked in with the following update on his new album, The Puzzle / Snuggles:


"So, despite moving the release date back twice already we're still facing supply issues with some of the box set elements and with about half the Red Splatter exclusive vinyl on devintownsendshop.com that still haven't arrived. Any orders containing these items won't get shipped until they arrive, hopefully, next week latest.


Adding to the delays is the partial lockdown in The Netherlands where the main warehouse is based. It means that all the staff hired to help with packing up the thousands of orders were sent home and it's now operating with one (very stressed) man to do all the work on his own. The pallets with products going to the UK, USA, Finnish and Australian webshops are currently en-route, likely to arrive next week if customs decide to play it nice.




We decided to stick to the December 3rd release date though, so both The Puzzle and Snuggles are available tomorrow on all digital platforms worldwide for your listening pleasure.


We apologize for the ongoing hassle and appreciate your patience tremendously."





 The Puzzle / Snuggles, is available as a very limited (1000 copies worldwide) high-end box set made of thick cardboard containing several exclusive items:


- a 7” full colour HD screen that automatically starts playing The Puzzle / Snuggles Movie upon opening.


- the screen has a USB port for charging its internal battery or to swap its content manually.


- a custom The Puzzle USB Stick that contains: An interactive menu for navigating content, The Puzzle / Snuggles movie in 5.1 DTS, The Puzzle Documentary, The Puzzle in stereo WAV files, Digital Booklet, E-Book (PDF) Interactive Subtype Paperback Novel, the writing debut of Devin’s sister Merridith Townsend.


- a custom Snuggles USB Stick that contains: An interactive menu for navigating content, Snuggles in stereo WAV files, Digital Booklet, PDF of Making of the Artwork by Travis Smith and Devin Townsend.


- The Puzzle 96 page glossy graphic novel by Mark Leary & Devin Townsend.


- The Stick Men: 4 plastic figurines that play a leading part in the movie.


- a beanbag puppet of the Puddles caracter. Its soft tushy can act as a screen wipe. (he’s a total asswipe, basically).


- a Certificate of Authenticity signed and hand numbered by Devin





The tracklist is as follows:


The Puzzle
"Chromatic Ridge"
"Life Is But A Dream"
"Yucky Lung"
"Kittenhead"
"Shark In The Ice"
"Devil In The Details"
"Hammerhead Sugarplum"
"Me And The Moon"
"Anxiety in Pyjamas"
"The Yugas"
"Albert Hall"
"Star Chasm"
"Perfect Owl"
"Maybe Over The Void"
"Light Year Whale"
"Frog Flowers"
"Mother"
"Southern Sky Geometry"
"The Puzzle"
"Monuments Of Glitch"


Snuggles
"Beyond Measure"
"Blue Dot"
"Drifting And Dreaming"
"Sundance"
"Minds Are Changing"
"The Ocean"
"Distant, Elegant"
"Replikiss"
"I Agree"
"Tryst"
"Sunset Rump"
"The Option"


The Puzzle / Snuggles Movie (soundtrack differs from the audio)
"Chromatic Ridge"
"Yucky Lung"
"Shark In The Ice"
"Devil In The Details"
"Hammerhead Sugarplum"
"Albert Hall"
"Light Year Whale"
"The Puzzle"
"Mother"
"Anxiety In Pyjamas"
"Me And The Moon"
"Distant, Elegant"
"Life Is But A Dream"
"Monuments Of Glitch"
"Beyond Measure"
"Blue Dot"
"Drifting And Dreaming"
"Sundance"
"Minds Are Changing"
"The Ocean"
"Distant, Elegant"
"Replikiss"
"I Agree"
"Tryst"
"Sunset Rump"
"The Option"


The box set is available via Finland's Recordshop X here.

MEGADETH's new album, "The Sick, The Dying And The Dead" has been mastered and is "super close" to being released.

MEGADETH leader Dave Mustaine offered an update on the band's follow-up to 2016's "Dystopia" while filming a new video message on Cameo, which lets users hire celebrities to record brief, personalized video messages about virtually any topic.

Addressing a fan named Louie who is a budding bassist and saxophone player, Dave said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "We're super close to having 'The Sick, The Dying And The Dead' out. We've been mixing and mastering it, and the mastering was done yesterday. So now it's off to the label, and pretty soon it's gonna be in your very talented hands."

In a recent interview with American Songwriter magazine, Mustaine said that "The Sick, The Dying And The Dead" would be released in the spring of 2022. The 60-year-old musician also said the LP's title track is about the plague, but not solely centered around the current pandemic. A broader, more historical scope of the diseases that have plagued humankind throughout time, "The Sick The Dying And The Dead" covers the current virus, swine flu, and other epidemics from centuries past.

"The song itself was a historical journey of how the plague started and where it went, starting with rats on ships carrying the disease, coming ashore in Sicily," Mustaine said.

According to Mustaine, the music for "The Sick, The Dying And The Dead" was assembled from riffs and music he has had archived for years, some as far back as his teens. "A lot of the riffs have been saved over time," he said. "A brand new song can be made up of something I wrote when I was 15 or 55. If It's a good riff, I'll save it."

Mustaine added that guitarist Kiko Loureiro and drummer Dirk Verbeuren were both involved in piecing together the songs on the album, which was recorded mostly in Nashville, with Loureiro working on his parts from his home in Finland.

Mustaine has yet to reveal who played bass on the new MEGADETH album after David Ellefson's tracks were removed from the LP following his dismissal from the band in late May.

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

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

Ellefson was fired from MEGADETH after sexually tinged messages and explicit video footage involving the bassist were posted on Twitter. At the time, Ellefson was accused of grooming an underage girl through videos and online messages. David has denied the allegation and has repeatedly said the woman in question had been a willing, consenting adult at the time of their virtual sexual encounter. Ellefson accompanied his denial with an alleged screenshot of a statement from the woman with whom he was supposedly involved at the time. In it, the woman admitted to recording the alleged intimate communications she had with Ellefson and called herself "naïve" for sharing them with a friend without the musician's permission.

MEGADETH recently completed "The Metal Tour Of The Year" with LAMB OF GOD, TRIVIUM and HATEBREED.

For "The Metal Tour Of The Year", MEGADETH was rejoined by bassist James LoMenzo for the first time in nearly 12 years.

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

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

Dark Star Records announce that The Spacing Effect have just released their new single, "Cosmic U" on all music streaming platforms. This is the first single off the new album, Silent Weapons For Quiet Wars, out now.


Watch the video for "Cosmic U" below, and purchase / stream here.


"Silent Weapons For Quiet Wars by The Spacing Effect is a great example of what a great album should sound like. Great vocals, great musicianship, great songwriting and great production." - Jeffrey A. Swanson / President of Dark Star Records




“After our first EP was released, we had a real fire in our bellies that carried right into this year-and-a-half journey. We focused on writing cool guitar riffs, melodic choruses, and express honest questioning/observations of the world and personal experience. This album was self produced in every way. Each song was written, recorded, and mixed by the band in their home studios with additional contributions from Max Wasa and Max Norman.”


The Spacing Effect is a Northern California alternative rock band whose members include Aaron Cabral and Scotty Bussey.


In March of 2018, they both were looking for a recording project/band and found that with one another on a musician website. They connected creatively and immediately began recording ideas. Their songs have powerful drive, like Spectacle and rock anthem melodies like Killing Time. Their debut 6 song EP was produced by long-time industry pro, LA Music Award winner for Life time achievement record producer Max Wasa. And British record producer and recording engineer Max Norman - Ozzy Osbourne, Randy Rhoads, Megadeth, Strung Out, and more, mastered their album.





Tracklisting:


"Cosmic U" (Radio Edit)
"Floating Orbs"
"Playing With Scissors"
"Carbon To Crystalline"
"Saturn Street"
"Fight Or Flight"
"The Only Light Left In The Sky"
"Pass The Lighthouse"
"Hindsight is 2020"
"Can’t Break Me"
"Tremors"
"Cosmic U" (Full Version)


"Cosmic U" video:

Professionally filmed video of METALLICA performing the song "Don't Tread On Me" live during the band's second headlining set at the Welcome To Rockville festival on November 14 at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida can be seen below.

Welcome To Rockville, a four-day rock festival, kicked off its 10th edition on November 11 at a new home in Daytona Beach.

METALLICA played another show at Welcome To Rockville with a different setlist on November 12.

Along with two nights of METALLICA, this year's Welcome To Rockville featured DISTURBED, SLIPKNOT, A DAY TO REMEMBER, LYNYRD SKYNYRD, LAMB OF GOD, SOCIAL DISTORTION, MASTODON and many others. The event was also livestreamed on Danny Wimmer Presents's Twitch channel, featuring select performances, interviews and behind-the-scenes content at twitch.tv/DWPresents.

This past July, METALLICA announced details of its massive 40th-birthday celebration: The band will mark this milestone by inviting the worldwide METALLICA family to join them in their hometown of San Francisco for two unique live shows featuring two different setlists December 17 and 19 at Chase Center. Tickets for these shows were made available only to registered members of METALLICA's Fifth Member fan club.

The 40th-anniversary shows see METALLICA return to Chase Center for the first time since the September 2019 "S&M²" concerts that also served as the venue's grand opening. It was impossible not to notice that fans from more than 60 countries traveled to the City by the Bay and completely took over San Francisco for "S&M²" weekend. That outpouring of positive vibes from around the world inspired METALLICA to invite those Fifth Members back — and this time, in addition to the two shows at Chase Center, METALLICA will be curating other live music and comedy events, Blackened Whiskey tastings, and so much more all around the city during the long four-day weekend of celebrations starting on Thursday, December 16.

Formed in 1981 by drummer Lars Ulrich and guitarist/vocalist James Hetfield, METALLICA has become one of the most influential and successful rock bands in history, having sold nearly 120 million albums worldwide and generating more than 2.5 billion streams while playing to millions of fans on literally all seven continents. The band's several multi-platinum albums include "Kill 'Em All", "Ride The Lightning", "Master Of Puppets", "… And Justice For All", "Metallica" (commonly referred to as The Black Album), "Load", "Reload", "St. Anger", "Death Magnetic" and "Hardwired... To Self-Destruct", released in November 2016 and charting at No. 1 in 32 countries.

METALLICA's awards and accolades include nine Grammy Awards, two American Music Awards, multiple MTV Video Music Awards, and its 2009 induction into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. In June of 2018, the band was awarded one of the most prestigious musical honors in the world: Sweden's Polar Music Prize. METALLICA's newest release, the "S&M²" album and film, arrived in August 2020 on the band's own Blackened Recordings label. "S&M²" chronicles METALLICA and San Francisco Symphony's September 6 and September 8, 2019 "S&M²" concerts that served as the grand opening of San Francisco's Chase Center and reunited the band and Symphony for the first time in 20 years. "S&M²" brings those historic shows back to life, capturing more than two and a half hours of James, Lars, Kirk Hammett and Robert Trujillo joining forces with the nearly 80-strong San Francisco Symphony, legendary music director of the orchestra Michael Tilson Thomas and conductor Edwin Outwater.

JUDAS PRIEST guitarist Richie Faulkner returned to Instagram Live on Sunday (December 5) to livestream himself playing guitar for nearly a couple of hours. You can watch video of the session below.

Faulkner'a latest Instagram Live jam took place ten weeks after he suffered an acute cardiac aortic dissection during a performance at the Louder Than Life festival, just a short distance from Rudd Heart and Lung Center at UofL Health - Jewish Hospital in Louisville, Kentucky. It took the hospital's cardiothoracic surgery team, led by Dr. Siddharth Pahwa and also including Drs. Brian Ganzel and Mark Slaughter, approximately 10 hours to complete a life-saving surgery, an aortic valve and ascending aorta replacement with hemiarch replacement.

Faulkner, who is now recovering at home in Nashville, offered an update on his condition in a social media post in mid-November. He wrote: "I was able to return home from hospital 10 days after my surgery to continue recovery at home. It has now been 7 weeks since the night it all happened and I'm feeling very strong and positive. My incisions have healed very well and I can definitely see the light at the end of the tunnel. I'm walking well and moving freely, I'm pretty active and I'm starting cardiac therapy very soon. I'm playing guitar everyday and with the love and support of my family, the continued support from you guys and the inspiration that I get from the guitar, I'll be back on stage in no time! My surgeons are very pleased with my progress and have all reserved front row tickets for the next PRIEST show haha."

Faulkner's medical episode happened while he was performing the closing song of PRIEST's set on the final day of Louder Than Life on September 26. Faulkner later said in a statement: "As I watch footage from the Louder Than Life Festival in Kentucky, I can see in my face the confusion and anguish I was feeling whilst playing 'Painkiller' as my aorta ruptured and started to spill blood into my chest cavity."

Two weeks after his surgery, Faulkner told reporters about how he felt while performing "Painkiller" with his bandmates at Louder Than Life: "I became a bit light-headed. It didn't go away. I've never fainted before. I've never passed out, but I knew that this felt like I was going to pass out in a minute.

"Luckily, it was about half way into the song," he continued. "So obviously, I had to finish the song. If I had known how important it was, maybe I would have got off there a bit quicker. But I think that's the whole point for me. I had no idea whatsoever what it was."

Faulkner said that he experienced a sharp pain as he was stepping off the stage. "That's when it exploded," he said.

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

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

After Louder Than Life, JUDAS PRIEST postponed the remainder of the U.S. dates on its 50th-anniversary tour, dubbed "50 Heavy Metal Years". The shows have since been rescheduled for March and April 2022.

Nick D’Virgilio (Big Big Train, ex-Spock’s Beard), Neal Morse (Transatlantic, NMB, ex-Spock’s Beard), and Ross Jennings (Haken, Novena)  announce their debut album, Troika, to be released on February 25th.  


Today, the band is also sharing the album’s first single, “Julia”. You can watch the video by Christian Rios below.


Ross had this to say about the track: "With my original demo clocking in at around the 8-minute mark and possibly leaning too close to 'prog epic' than the singer/songwriter vibe we were attempting to present on this record, Neal arranged my lengthy ballad into something more concise, in-keeping with the album’s essence and writing in a powerful new chorus in the process! This one was all about the 3-part vocal harmony interplay and ‘pull-at-the-heartstring’ lyrics which deals with themes of regret and forgiveness in the context of a broken father-daughter relationship.”







Recorded during lockdown, the process began with Neal Morse writing some acoustic songs that he thought would be enhanced by strong vocal harmonies. He already knew how well his voice blended with former Spock's Beard band-mate and Big Big Train drummer/ vocalist, Nick D'Virgilio who came on board and, considering a third man, the Americans sought out Haken's Ross Jennings from the UK to complete the trio. All three found they had songs that would benefit from the three part harmonic blend, and so they pooled their resources, inputting creatively into each others compositions.


Neal comments: “What a great pleasure it’s been to work on this album with these amazing artists! It was kind of funny… We had been working on the songs remotely for several months before I finally heard all of us singing together at the same time. The first time I brought the faders up, I knew we had the magic!“


Nick adds: “I've known and worked with Neal for over 30 years and I've been a big fan of Ross and the music he makes for a long time. I felt confident right away that this would be a fun project to be a part of. I was so right.”


Ross comments: "Receiving ‘The Call’ from Neal to participate in this project was somewhat of a prayer answered… As a long time fan of their work, I’ve been singing along to Neal’s & Nick’s records for years, so it felt really natural for my voice to slot right in."


The tracks took shape with the musicians recording all of the music and vocals separately, yet the eclectic performances burst with the energy and excitement of the collaboration. Acoustic anthems, charged rockers and sensitive ballads are all part of the mix, and the unique blend of Ross, Neal and Nick's voices and styles have created an album in which you will encounter these musicians in a way you've never heard before.


Troika will be available as Ltd. CD Edition / Gatefold 2LP+CD / Digital Album. Each format includes a bonus alternative version of the track "Julia" and is available for pre-order here.





Tracklisting:


"Everything I Am"
"Julia"
"You Set My Soul On Fire"
"One Time Less"
"Another Trip Around The Sun"
"A Change Is Gonna Come"
"If I Could"
"King For A Day"
"Second Hand Sons"
"My Guardian"
"What You Leave Behind"


"Julia" video:

Former Overkill drummer, Sid Falck, has released new music under his own name, Falck. This is not a new project, this is simply music Sid creates in-between ongoing hospitalizations and treatments.


According to Falck, the criteria for the music is quite simple: “It has to be something I, myself, enjoy listening to. Since I don’t expect others to like it, as long as I can stand listening to it more than once, it’s all good.”







The music is touching various styles, hard rock/metal’ish, to techno dance/rock/pop.  A number of tracks have been released to his studio YouTube channel (No Gain, No Pain Studio) under Bob Falck, The Klamphuggers (featuring Pete West of Paul Di’Annos Battlezone on
bass), and under the synonym SnappSack.


After being embarrassed by the failure to complete the Infectus 13 project, which is still on hold, there had been no intention of letting more than a few trusted friends hear his creations.  However, having been encouraged to make his newest composition, "Afraid" by Falck, available  for others to possibly enjoy, it’s been made available via Distrokid on Amazon Music, Apple Music, and will soon be made available on all streaming music platforms.  


A video can be seen below. For more information head here, or simply look for it on your favourite platform.

UK hard rock stalwarts, Ten, used the downtime during the worldwide pandemic to work on not one, but two new albums. The first album to be released, Here Be Monsters, will land on February 18. A new single, 'Fearless" is out today. Listen to "Fearless" below, and pre-order/save Here Be Monsters on CD/LP/Digital here.


Following the success of the recent string of albums, from Albion to Illuminati, Hughes is joined once again by guitarists Dann Rosingana, Steve Grocott and John Halliwell along with bass player Steve McKenna, and keyboard maestro Darrel Treece-Birch. Drums on the album have been handled by Markus Kullman (Sinner, Glenn Hughes, Voodoo Circle). Ten continue to raise the musical bar higher for themselves, a goal they push on every release. Stunning guitar work, rich keyboards, excellent bass and drum interplay along with Hughes’ rich vocals are the order of the day here.


Here Be Monsters was produced by Gary Hughes and mixed and mastered by Dennis Ward. Ten’s longstanding professional association with Dennis has been ongoing since he mixed their 2011 album, Stormwarning and has always guaranteed albums with stunning sound and production




Fans should note that there are no ties between this and the next album, ie. Here Be Monsters is not a "Part One" or anything of this nature. The band has simply crafted two high quality releases and decided to put them out separately, in a fashion not too dissimilar to what happened to the amazing first two records which were recorded one after the other in a very short period of time.


Ten have an outstanding history of releases in their storied and revered catalog. Starting out as a sort of solo project built around singer and songwriter Gary Hughes, Ten found their audience playing a hard rock sound influenced by such giants as UFO, Thin Lizzy, Magnum, Giant, and Whitesnake in a time when playing this particular sound was considered ommericial suicide. The band's early records such as The Name Of The Rose, The Robe, Spellbound, and Babylon established the band as mainstays in the melodic hard rock genre, which has continued throughout their now 26 year career over the course of 14 studio albums.





Tracklisting:


"Fearless"
"Chapter And Psalm"
"Hurricane"
"Strangers On A Distant Shore"
"The Dream That Fell To Earth"
"The Miracle Of Life"
"Immaculate Friends"
"Anything You Want"
"Follow Me Into The Fire"
"The Longest Time"


"Fearless":





Lineup:


Gary Hughes - Vocals
Dann Rosingana - Guitars
Steve Grocott - Guitars
Darrel Treece-Birch - Keyboards
Steve McKenna - Bass


Special Guest: Markus Kullman - Drums

Malta-based metal band, DiggerThings, have released their new single, "Ruby Eyes", featuring former Iron Maiden singer, Blaze Bayley. A video for the song can be found below.





DiggerThings is a music collaboration between David Cassar Torreggiani (also guitarist and songwriter with Scar, ElderWater, and TodaMusica) and David Depasquale (also producer and guitarist with ClubMurder, and Abysmal Torment). This studio project has David CT as songwriter and guitars, and David D on drums and production, where guest singers collaborate to create varied mix of edgy rock and metal.




Guest singers so far have been... Mark Parlato Trigona, singer in a band with David CT in the 90's called NightWing; Nigel "In Noogie" Buttigieg, Kersten Graham, and Gianni Zammit. There have also been guest bass players, such as Antoine Tonna, Robert Galea,and Philip Bagigu.


DiggerThings gained ground with their initial song releases, and hooked up with Blaze Bayley (Wolfsbane 1984 / 1994, and then replacing Bruce Dickinson with the mighty Iron Maiden 1994 till 1999) who recorded his awesome vocals on "Three Days Of Judgement". This track was well received and promoted on many world wide metal and heavy mock music platforms.


Since then, Blaze Bayley was inducted in the "Metal Hall Of Fame", and is touring with his band. During which time, David CT wrote another track with Blaze in mind, also inspired by the loss of the studio mascot "Ruby". She was a kind natured dog, and belonged to David D. She was always in the studio to pay us a visit during recordings. Her loss inspired the song "Ruby Eyes", to which Blaze laid down his "blazing" vocals once again, with lyrics and lines penned by Nigel "In Noogie" Buttigieg, and bass duties taken good care of by Bazaz, with blistering drums... as always... by David D.


More collaborations are ahead, but this time it's ....."Ruby Eyes".

The Georgia Thunderbolts have uploaded their version of the Christmas classic “Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree”. Stream it here and listen now:





The Georgia Thunderbolts version of "Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree" is from the Mascot Records Christmas Rock Vol. 2 Digital EP.




Check out The Georgia Thunderbolts debut album, Can We Get A Witness, at this location.





Catch The Georgia Thunderbolts live, opening for Black Stone Cherry, at the following shows:


December
8 - Jergel's Rhythm Grille - Warrendale, PA
10 - The Machine Shop - Flint, MI
11 - The Electric Ballroom - Angola, IN
12 - The Forge - Joliet, IL
14 - Lafayette's Music Room - Memphis, TN
15 - The Loft - Atlanta, GA














(Photo courtesy of T. Dean Images & Music Entertainment)


 

Crown Compass guitarist Joe Tal has filmed a playthrough video for the song "Gilbert".





“Gilbert” is the debut single by Crown Compass.







The band, featuring vocalist Daniël de Jongh (ex-Textures and Cilice), guitarist Joe Tal (ex-Textures), bassist Robin Zielhorst (ex-Cynic, Exivious and currently with Our Oceans) and drummer Yuma van Eekelen (ex-Pestilence, Exivious and currently with Our Oceans) offers a unique blend of progressive thrash metal and alternative rock.


Their debut album is expected in 2022.