REO SPEEDWAGON frontman Kevin Cronin has blasted COVID-19 deniers, saying that the "thoughtless, misinformed and nasty comments" about the coronavirus pandemic have "pushed [his] patience over the edge."

Earlier this week, Cronin and his bandmates canceled two shows after members of the REO SPEEDWAGON team tested positive for the virus. The group's announcement on social media was met with a lot of support from REO SPEEDWAGON fans as well as some skepticism from those who doubt the seriousness of the virus or assume it's a hoax.

In a message posted to Facebook, Cronin updated fans on his health, writing: "Hi friends, as I sit alone in quarantine, dealing with the reduced, yet uncomfortable symptoms of Covid-19, and reading the comments regarding the shows we made the painful decision to cancel this weekend, I am struck by two things. First, on behalf of myself, our entire band, crew, and management, I would like to thank the majority of people whose comments were understanding, supportive, and empathetic. I am so touched by the outpouring of positive energy. You are awesome. Second, I have never personally responded to Facebook comments in the past. But as our band goes through this difficult period, the thoughtless, misinformed, and nasty comments I read this morning pushed my patience over the edge.

"I encourage lively discussion of differences of opinion. That is part of what makes the United States the Golden Country. But our organization is living through Covid, and to hear people spouting ridiculous conspiracy theories, is more than I can bear right now. To those people: Call me back when you catch it.

"If you are not vaccinated you are in for a world of hurt. And if you take the vaccine, while you can still test positive, your experience will likely be mild by comparison.

"This is a difficult medical, public health and safety issue. Within the REO organization there is a wide spectrum of political views. To connect our decision to cancel shows to some political agenda is absurd, insulting, and quite simply wrong."

Late last month, just a few days prior to the REO SPEEDWAGON concert cancelation, Cronin told Ultimate Classic Rock that people were "just so excited to have live music back. It's been great for us so far," he said. "Hopefully, the rest of the country starts to wake up and get vaccinated so this virus doesn't take over and shut everything down again."

Formed in 1967, signed in 1971, and fronted by Cronin since 1972, REO SPEEDWAGON's "Hi Infidelity" contained the massive hit singles "Keep On Loving You" and "Take It On the Run". That landmark 1980 album spent 15 weeks in the No. 1 slot and has since earned the RIAA's coveted Diamond Award for surpassing sales of 10 million units in the United States.


Hi friends, as I sit alone in quarantine, dealing with the reduced, yet uncomfortable symptoms of Covid-19, and reading...

Posted by REO Speedwagon on Friday, August 6, 2021

In a brand new interview with "Talking Metal", legendary guitarist George Lynch spoke about what it has been like playing select shows around the U.S. over the course of the last few weeks while the pandemic is still in full swing. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I'm very conflicted and I'm a supreme hypocrite, because I'm a 'safety safety' guy. I'm double vaxxed and I wear my mask everywhere and I'm real careful about travel and anything like that. But I care about other people, and yet again I play shows where I afford the opportunity for people to stand shoulder to shoulder without masks on and get sick. So, I'm not sure how to deal with that. Because, as you know, things were tamped down quite nicely and it looked like things were going sort of back to semi-normal there for a second, and after we booked all these shows. And now I'm contractually obligated to play these shows and pay for flights and pay for everything. Literally, if I pulled out of this two-week run, and whatever else I got contracted for, I'd get my ass sued, I'd get blackballed and I'd just be out of business. It still doesn't make it right. So I try to make it as safe as possible. I cannot control what people do. Hopefully everybody is masked up, and that's what I encourage people to do — is mask up, and try to stay distant. Obviously, we play mostly outside venues. I mean, on this run, we're playing one indoor venue, in Houston, but it's a large amphitheater."

He continued: "I do understand music is important — it's a vital thing, just like food, air, water and love. We need it for our sanity and our humanness; [we're] social creatures. But we've gotta be smart at the same time and follow the science and do the right thing. So it is exasperating and frustrating to see people pushing back against that. It's very disappointing to see people do that, because if we had all done, collectively, the right thing and done our duty… We're not getting shots of little… [They're] not putting cameras in our bodies. That's why we don't have polio anymore. Let's just do that. And we can get through this and get back to some semi-normalcy."

Lynch also addressed the fact that the delta variant of the coronavirus, now the most common strain circulating in the United States, has a supercharged transmissibility, driven in part by how the mutated virus behaves in the body after infection.

"With this new virus, this new strain, they say it's just like cigarette smoke," he said. "It's more transmissible than chicken pox. I know what's gonna get to people is when businesses… Since we're not like some countries where people are sort of a high society and they work together collectively for the common good, we're this country of rugged supposed individualists that don't need anybody else's help; we're all these independent people and operate that way to some extent. So the way the things will change is through business. Because businesses' job is to make money, and you don't make money by killing your customers. So they'll force vaccine card mandates and all these kinds of things — that'll happen — to go to work and go to a venue and [for] transportation and I don't know what, [to] work at a hospital. And I think that'll be the new normal, and it should be. There's nothing wrong with that.

"I don't see anybody crying about seatbelts, but I remember they used to, George added. "When they had a seatbelt mandate, [some people were saying], 'The seatbelt's taking away my freedom.' And the seatbelt was just you; it wasn't affecting anybody else. This is even way more of an issue where not only are you gonna potentially hurt yourself but you're gonna hurt a whole bunch of other people too, including people you love — potentially."

A vaccine passport is a physical or digital document that displays whether someone is fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Critics say that such passports are a violation of privacy and an example of government overreach. Meanwhile, supporters point out that federal immigration law already requires that immigrants provide proof of vaccination status for several diseases.

There's plenty of precedent for having to show proof of vaccination whether for work or travel. For a century, nearly every school in the U.S. has been requiring proof of vaccinations for students to enroll. Dozens of countries across the globe require a "Yellow Fever Card" to enter their borders.

Proponents of vaccine passports, including several high-profile heavy metal musicians, have touted them as one of the most effective ways to reopen the nation's economy in a safe manner.

Yngwie Malmsteen has revealed that Ian Gillan isn't a fan of his, and that there were "murmurs" of an approach from DEEP PURPLE, as well as a number of artists over the years. The Swedish guitarist made his comments in a brand new interview with Eonmusic while promoting new album "Parabellum", which was released last month via Mascot.

When asked by the site if he had been approached by any big names during his career, he repied: "Yeah, of course. Quite a lot, actually". Going on to list a number of acts, all of whom he claims sought out his services, Yngwie said: "I was offered a gig in UFO, I was offered a gig with David Lee Roth. There was some murmur about the Ozzy [Osbourne] thing. Ronnie James Dio, he talked about it all the time."

More surprisingly, the guitar virtuoso also revealed that Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons were interested in retaining him, presumably for the role that was eventually filled by Vinnie Vincent in 1982. "When I actually lived in Sweden", he said, "I was offered a gig in KISS. The wanted to talk to me. They called me up, and the guy said, 'Are you hot?' And then he asked me, 'Are you six feet tall?' And I'm metric, right? I'm six-foot-three; I'm actually quite tall — I'm 192 centimeters. So I said, 'No, I'm 192.' And he goes, 'What the fuck's that?' So they never called back, so I didn't end up with an ankh on my face!"

It was when asked if he was ever approached by DEEP PURPLE that Malmsteen made the revelation that Gillan doesn't appear to be a fan. "There was murmurs," he said: "Me and Roger Glover always got along. I got along with Ritchie Blackmore too, but Ian Gillan, for some reason he… I did a show with him once, and we had the greatest time, it was a lot of fun, but then I did a tour with him a few years ago, and he didn't seem to like me a lot, so I don't know."

Read the entire interview at Eonmusic

Mike Portnoy (DREAM THEATER, THE WINERY DOGS, SONS OF APOLLO) and Alex Skolnick (TESTAMENT) have both expressed their concern over the increasing number of concerts and tours that are being canceled as the coronavirus is still spreading, especially among the unvaccinated.

In the past week, a number of high-profile hard rock and heavy metal artists — including TESLA, LYNYRD SKYNYRD, SHINEDOWN and LIMP BIZKIT — have called off shows or played concerts without members who have tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. The cancelations and the increased number of COVID-19 infections are driven in large part by the fact that the delta variant of the coronavirus, now the most common strain circulating in the United States, has a supercharged transmissibility, driven in part by how the mutated virus behaves in the body after infection.

Earlier today, Portnoy took to his Twitter to share several BLABBERMOUTH.NET headlines related to COVID-19 infections and concert cancelations, and he included the following message: "And this is just THIS WEEK!! I'm not scheduled to begin touring again til Oct, but I have a bad feeling about all of this…"

Portnoy's METAL ALLEGIANCE bandmate Skolnick concurred, sharing a press release about the cancelation of the 2021 edition of the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival and adding: "Same here and exactly right - Not looking good. Not everyone wants to admit it yet."

Portnoy's SONS OF APOLLO bandmate Jeff Scott Soto shared Mike's post, writing: "Taken from MP's feed, this really stinks...and please don't turn this into a political post, I'm bummed to hear even one of these acts had to pull out because ALL artists (& fans) are affected!

"Hoping this isn't a sign of things to come, I too have a LOT booked throughout the rest of the year!!"

New variants of the virus that causes COVID-19 illness are spreading in the United States and other countries. Current data suggest that COVID-19 vaccines authorized for use in the United States offer protection against most variants. However, some variants might cause illness in some people after they are fully vaccinated.

According to Healthline, data so far suggests efficacy rates against the delta variant of more than 67 percent for the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, 72 to 95 percent for the Moderna vaccine, and 64 to 96 percent for the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.

Even though vaccines offer different ranges of protection, experts say getting fully vaccinated is crucial.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said earlier today that while vaccinated people can carry and spread the virus in what is known as "breakthrough infections," people largely driving the current surge were unvaccinated.

As the virus spreads, it can mutate and create more dangerous variants. Consequently, "there could be a variant that's lingering out there that can push aside delta," Fauci said.




And this is just THIS WEEK!! ? I’m not scheduled to begin touring again til Oct, but I have a bad feeling about all of this…? pic.twitter.com/rOrtfsV2Xl

— Mike Portnoy ? (@MikePortnoy) August 8, 2021








Same here and exactly right - Not looking good. Not everyone wants to admit it yet. pic.twitter.com/cXy4aqJrYq

— Alex Skolnick (@AlexSkolnick) August 8, 2021




























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A post shared by jeғғ ѕcoтт ѕoтo (@jeffscottsotoofficial)

JOURNEY guitarist Neal Schon recently gave a college radio simulcast interview to WMSC and WNUW where he discussed the progress of the songwriting and recording sessions for the band's upcoming studio album. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I learned how to play keyboards better than ever during the pandemic, which I'd never really done before. And that's where our first single ['The Way We Used To Be', which was released in June] came from. [I sent it to] Jonathan [Cain, keyboards], and he did the lyrics on it and put a rough vocal on it. And then we had Arnel [Pineda] sing it, and we cut it and re-cut it in the studio, and it was just released. And a lot of people went, 'Wow, man. I love it.' 90 percent of people love it; the other 10 percent went, 'I don't think it sounds like JOURNEY.' I go, 'I never wrote it to be a JOURNEY song.'"

According to Schon, he and his bandmates have written over 30 new songs for the upcoming JOURNEY record. "Some of 'em are unmistakeably JOURNEY without sounding like another song that we have; it just sounds like a new version of the band, because we do have a new rhythm section," he said. "It's ballistic, man. And there's no lack of guitar on this record. So I'm excited about it getting out there. I think any guitar player out there is gonna love this record, because I'm just kind of unleashing on this record — like I do a lot live, but sometimes hold back in the studio. I don't think it's O.D.ing on the guitar at all and going overboard, but I like to check out the times and where I see music going. I usually have a pretty good gut instinct about it, and I feel like the late '60s, the time and era of early Jeff Beck with Rod Stewart and [LED] ZEPPELIN when they first came out, Jimi Hendrix, the CREAM with [Eric] Clapton and Jack Bruce and Ginger Baker, that whole era, there's a lot of younger kids out there, younger generation, that never got to experience that era. So I'm feeling like that is the era that I grew up in and that's what I truly love doing and the type of music I love playing, so I'm going more there and I'm writing for that, to be able to do that on stage. And I think it's really gonna trip some people out, when we finally do get this album out there and can combine it with all the hits that we do have."

He continued: "There's certain songs that are being mixed by Bob Clearmountain, that mixed our 'Raised On Radio' record, and he's made it sound really amazing, really pulled it together. You have mixers out there sometimes that have this incredible ability to take work that you've done throughout a year, even though they were recorded at separate times, and different sounds here and there, and they pull it all together and they make it sound like it's a tight album that has a focus sound-wise."

As for when fans can expect to see the new JOURNEY album released, Schon said: "If it doesn't drop later this year or before the first [of 2022], I think some time after the first. But I believe that if we do not release this year, then we'll probably follow with another couple of singles to keep people going and get them excited about the whole album. But the whole album, there's not a filler on the record; that's what I can tell you. I look at it, and I'm listening to it now, and many others that have known our music for a long time that have very good ears have said, 'Look, this is the modern-day-and-age 'Escape'. I think this could be the next 'Escape' for you guys.' And I think that's a bold statement, but honest to God, I feel like it's that good."

JOURNEY made its return to the live stage on July 29 during a special "aftershow" at Chicago's Aragon Ballroom. The concert took place just two days before JOURNEY's appearance at Lollapalooza on the Bud Light Seltzer stage at Grant Park.

JOURNEY's lineup for both shows included the return of drummer Deen Castronovo, who shared the drum duties in the band with Narada Michael Walden. Walden, bassist Randy Jackson and keyboardist/backing singer Jason Derlatka all joined JOURNEY last year following the band's acrimonious split with drummer Steve Smith and bassist Ross Valory. Jackson — who previously played with JOURNEY during the mid-1980s — was forced to miss the Aragon and Lollapalooza gigs because he was scheduled to undergo back surgery. Filling in for him was Marco Mendoza, who previously played several shows in 2019 with Castronovo and JOURNEY guitarist Neal Schon under the "Neal Schon's Journey Through Time" banner.

Castronovo's 17-year tenure with JOURNEY ended in 2015 when the group fired him after his arrest for a variety of charges involving his now-wife (including physical abuse, coercion, and unlawful use of a weapon).

"The Way We Used To Be" was the multi-platinum band's first new music since 2011's album "Eclipse", and the first song released by the band's revamped lineup. "The Way We Used To Be" marks Walden and Derlatka's first studio recordings with the band, and Jackson's first since 1986's "Raised On Radio". The song was produced by Narada Michael Walden at his Tarpan Studios, with co-production by Schon and Cain.

Former SOULFLY guitarist Marc Rizzo has opened up about his departure from the band, saying that his last decade with the Max Cavalera-fronted outfit has "not been very good."

Although Rizzo's exit from SOULFLY wasn't officially announced until Saturday (August 7), it was widely speculated that he was out of the group two days earlier when it was revealed that FEAR FACTORY's Dino Cazares will play guitar for SOULFLY on the band's upcoming U.S. tour, which kicks off on August 20 in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Rizzo addressed his departure from SOULFLY in a new interview with Pierre Gutiérrez of Rock Talks. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "This has been a very difficult year. I got no support from SOULFLY. There was no sort of loans that were taken out for the bandmembers or the crew. This is just the honest thing of what happened. I had to go back and get a day job. I was doing home renovations, working very hard, 10 hours a day. A [SOULFLY] live record came out [last year]. I never saw a dime off that. So, basically, within the [first] six months, seven months of COVID, I just said, 'You know, man, I don't want this anymore. I gave you guys 18 years of my life.' And it was a great time. Back in the good years, it was great. But the last I'd say eight to 10 years have not been very good. [I was] away from my family. Scheduling is crazy. It was impossible to have a personal life, see my family, make plans with my family. So, basically, six months into COVID, it was just, like, I don't even wanna do this anymore. I'd rather just concentrate on my solo project and spend time with my family where I'm happy, where I get my credit for everything I do.

"I put 18 years in," he continued. "It's a long, long time to be in the band. When COVID hit, I felt like, what have I been doing these last 18 years? Normally, you work a day job, you get support during a pandemic like COVID. And I was working very hard. I was doing plumbing, electric. Finally, my very good friend Nic Bell at Godsize Booking, he was, like, 'Listen, dude, I can get you back on the road to the states in America that are open.' So he got me to Montana, Texas, Florida, doing my solo project. And I was able to quit my job and get back on track playing music for a living and making money. Big props to Nic Bell, 'cause he was one of the few people that supported me during the pandemic and helped me to get back on the road. Again, I got no support whatsoever from anyone else. So, it's a good thing. Again, I'm very excited about the future."

Asked if it's fair to say that his decision to exit SOULFLY was based on a financial issue, Marc said: "I would say that was one of [the issues] — for this year, yes. There were years that were good financially, but this year — again, there was no loans, there was no, 'Hey, let's do a live video to make money for the bandmembers or maybe let's do a special merch deal.' A lot of my friends, they were doing special merchandise deals. I mean, if you look online, SOULFLY didn't do anything for the bandmembers or the crew. It's just not right to do that to people during a time like this.

"So, whatever, man," he added. "They have the right to run their business however they want to, and I have the right to do I want to do. So, again, I'm very excited to do my solo project. That's what got me through COVID, back to being on the road and doing what I love to do as a living. And then this spawned Tony [Campos, STATIC-X, FEAR FACTORY] and me finally getting together to do a project that we've always talked about. So we're excited with HAIL THE HORNS — we're very, very excited to get that going. I've got my death metal project REVENGE BEAST. And these were guys that called me. They were, like, 'Hey, what's up, man? How are you? How are you doing?' I never got a phone call from anybody in the SOULFLY camp during COVID. It just opened up my eyes this year about what I should be doing in 2021."

Rizzo also confirmed that he hasn't had a conversation with Max since they last saw each at the final pre-pandemic SOULFLY show nearly a year and a half ago. "I haven't talked to Max since [March] 2020 when we played the Hell & Heaven festival in Mexico," he said. "I had no contact with him. I don't think he has a phone, so it's not like I can call him."

Max addressed Rizzo's departure during the latest episode of "Max Trax", a twice-weekly Internet video series in which he discusses the inspiration for many of the songs spanning his nearly 40-year music career. He said: "[Marc] did not leave the band. We decided to part ways with him due to personal reasons. I wish Marc the best on his career. I wanna thank Marc for the 18 years with SOULFLY."

Rizzo joined SOULFLY in 2004, and has since appeared on all of the band's subsequent records, including "Prophecy" (2004), "Dark Ages" (2005), "Conquer" (2008), "Omen" (2010), "Enslaved" (2012), "Savages" (2013), "Archangel" (2015) and "Ritual" (2018). In 2007, Rizzo became a member of CAVALERA CONSPIRACY, the side project of SEPULTURA co-founders, brothers Max and Igor Cavalera, and has performed on all CAVALERA CONSPIRACY releases including "Inflikted", "Blunt Force Trauma", "Pandemonium" and the critically acclaimed 2017 LP "Psychosis".

Back in 2018, Max praised Rizzo, telling "The Classic Metal Show": "He loves what he does; he loves playing in SOULFLY; he loves working with me. We are totally connected. He gives 150 percent every show, no matter if there's ten people or ten thousand, which is rare. Sometimes when there's not a lot of people, it's hard to go out there and still be excited and he does it. I do believe he's underrated big-time, but I'm kind of happy about that because if he gets too big, then he will go away. He will join a big band. I'll be out looking for another guitar player and it would suck. It would really suck to lose Marc. I'm kind of happy. It's almost like a secret thing that we have, this treasure that we have. He's fantastic. He's an amazing guitar player. I sit sometimes around the dressing room just to hear him play. Just go in the dressing room to hang out while he's practicing just to hear him playing some of the flamenco sections in the dressing room or when he's just shredding. He's killer. He is a true, true guitar hero."

Rizzo was originally a member of New Jersey Latin metal favorites ILL NIÑO, appearing on their classic 2001 Roadrunner release "Revolution Revolucion" and the 2003 follow-up "Confession".

SOULFLY mainman Max Cavalera says that the band's longtime guitarist Marc Rizzo was fired "due to personal reasons."

Max addressed Rizzo's departure during the latest episode of "Max Trax", a twice-weekly Internet video series in which he discusses the inspiration for many of the songs spanning his nearly 40-year music career.

He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Right now, for the tribe, I wanna address something that is going on with SOULFLY. Of course, it's about Marc Rizzo. He did not leave the band. We decided to part ways with him due to personal reasons. I wish Marc the best on his career. I wanna thank Marc for the 18 years with SOULFLY."

Max also discussed last Thursday's (August 5) announcement that Dino Cazares (FEAR FACTORY) will play guitar for SOULFLY on the band's upcoming U.S. tour, which kicks off on August 20 in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

"I'm very excited that we're bringing our friend Dino to play guitar with us for the next U.S. tour," he said. "The show must go on. Dino is an O.G riffmaster. One of my favorite riff [writers]... He's on 'Eye For An Eye' [a song from the first SOULFLY album]; that's how long me and Dino go back. I got them signed; FEAR FACTORY, I got them signed [to Roadrunner Records], because I loved their demo so much and I showed it to Monte [Conner, former Roadrunner A&R executive].

"Dino's gonna come here [to Phoenix, Arizona to rehearse with the band]," he continued. "We're gonna start practicing. We might even throw a couple of Dino classics in there for the set for you guys. And we're playing a brand new SOULFLY song for the future for the next record; we're gonna play it on this next tour. So be there to watch two legends, Max Cavalera and Dino Cazares, on a stage together. It's gonna be a sick tour starting August 20th."

On Friday (August 6), Rizzo has confirmed that he is focusing on his solo projects following his departure from SOULFLY. He said: "I'm just going full forward with my solo project. It's just better for me. It's more of a healthier environment for me and my family. And being home more, and do my solo project, which I'm super stoked about. I've also got [my new band] HAIL THE HORNS. We're releasing the video that we did for a KISS cover today. I've got REVENGE BEAST. I've got ACOUSTIC VENDETTA. Things are good. And I'm doing a lot of good shit. I'm going full forward with my solo project. That's really where my heart is at, where I get my writing credit, where I get credit for my work and all my hard work gets proper credit. It's a healthier environment."

Rizzo joined SOULFLY in 2004, and has since appeared on all of the band's subsequent records, including "Prophecy" (2004), "Dark Ages" (2005), "Conquer" (2008), "Omen" (2010), "Enslaved" (2012), "Savages" (2013), "Archangel" (2015) and "Ritual" (2018). In 2007, Rizzo became a member of CAVALERA CONSPIRACY, the side project of SEPULTURA co-founders, brothers Max and Igor Cavalera, and has performed on all CAVALERA CONSPIRACY releases including "Inflikted", "Blunt Force Trauma", "Pandemonium" and the critically acclaimed 2017 LP "Psychosis".

Back in 2018, Max praised Rizzo, telling "The Classic Metal Show": "He loves what he does; he loves playing in SOULFLY; he loves working with me. We are totally connected. He gives 150 percent every show, no matter if there's ten people or ten thousand, which is rare. Sometimes when there's not a lot of people, it's hard to go out there and still be excited and he does it. I do believe he's underrated big-time, but I'm kind of happy about that because if he gets too big, then he will go away. He will join a big band. I'll be out looking for another guitar player and it would suck. It would really suck to lose Marc. I'm kind of happy. It's almost like a secret thing that we have, this treasure that we have. He's fantastic. He's an amazing guitar player. I sit sometimes around the dressing room just to hear him play. Just go in the dressing room to hang out while he's practicing just to hear him playing some of the flamenco sections in the dressing room or when he's just shredding. He's killer. He is a true, true guitar hero."

Rizzo was originally a member of New Jersey Latin metal favorites ILL NIÑO, appearing on their classic 2001 Roadrunner release "Revolution Revolucion" and the 2003 follow-up "Confession".




Max Trax! Last of the Mochicans!!

Posted by Soulfly on Saturday, August 7, 2021

Fan-filmed video footage of Bruce Dickinson belting out an a cappella version of the IRON MAIDEN song "Revelations" during one of the shows on his current U.K. spoken-word tour can be seen below.

Dickinson is considered one of the world's most storied musicians after decades spent delivering high-octane performances with his larger-than-life persona in IRON MAIDEN. 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.

So there's plenty to be entertained by throughout the evening's cornucopia of fascinating tales and derring-do exploits, all delivered by Bruce with characteristically infectious enthusiasm and wry wit.

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, 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 a question-and-answer session, with the opportunity to pose questions on any subject whatsoever. The more left-field and quirky the question, the more interesting and compelling the response is likely to be.

Speaking about what fans can expect from his spoken-word tour, Dickinson said: "Mainly it's a sideways look at my life, which in some ways is pleasantly ridiculous. The show that is now the show has moved on quite a long way from what is just in [my autobiography]. Yes, it's a bit autobiographical but there's an awful lot more stuff. Part two gets interesting because it's, dare I say, a bit improv. I give you cue cards upon which you can write whatever you want — insults, advice, questions perhaps. And I then rearrange those like some sort of bizarre crossword puzzle into what becomes the third third of the show. So, basically, that's it — the last third of the show is created by you, with a little bit of help from me."

Dickinson's autobiography, "What Does This Button Do?", landed at No. 10 on the New York Times "Hardcover Nonfiction" best sellers list. It was released in the U.S. in October 2017 via Dey Street Books (formerly It Books), an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.

"What Does This Button Do?" is Dickinson's third book. He has previously published two satirical novels, "The Adventures Of Lord Iffy Boatrace" about the English upper classes and "The Missionary Position" about televangelism.

Dickinson, who will turn 63 later this week, joined IRON MAIDEN in 1981, replacing Paul Di'Anno, and made his recording debut with the band on the 1982 album "The Number Of The Beast". He quit the band in 1993, pursuing several solo projects, and rejoined in 1999.

RESIST & BITE, the new band featuring former TESLA guitarist Tommy Skeoch, played TESLA's classic song "Heaven's Trail (No Way Out)" during its August 6 concert at the Mercy Lounge in Nashville, Tennessee. Fan-filmed video footage of the show can be seen below. Joining Skeoch in the group are ex-LYNCH MOB lead vocalist Nathan Utz, guitarist Steve Stokes, drummer David Parks and bassist Brian Powell.

RESIST & BITE is currently mixing its debut album, which was recorded over a 21-period at Sound Stage Studios in Nashville, Tennessee with producer and engineer Michael Rosen.

RESIST & BITE's debut single, "The Myth I'm Livin'", came out in March 2020. A follow-up single, "Fate", arrived this past June.

Skeoch left TESLA in 2006 and went on to receive treatment for substance-abuse issues. He has since been replaced by Dave Rude. Asked in an interview with SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk" if he exited the group of his own accord or if he was asked to leave, Tommy said: "I was fired. I was getting fucked up and I was definitely in the wrong about a lot of stuff, and they put up with it for a long time. But at the same time, none of us were angels, and we put up with a lot of stuff from the other guys for a long time too, and they're still there. So I felt like a little scapegoated by the thing. And the other thing is they didn't want people — I guess for the benefit of my family, so it wouldn't look bad — they said, 'Tommy's just gonna spend time [with his family].' That's why nobody knows, and that's why you're asking this question. Everyone's confused on even what happened. Basically, I was fired. I was getting fucked up, and I kept fucking up, and I kept telling 'em I wouldn't, and I just couldn't stop."

Skeoch added that he accepts responsibility for the circumstances that led to his departure from TESLA. "I do, of course," he said. "But I also believe we put up with a lot of shit for a long time from almost every other guy in the band, and they're still there. So I don't know what's up with that; that's a little weird to me."

Last September, TESLA guitarist Frank Hannon was asked by Detroit's WRIF radio station if the band will ever work with Skeoch again. Hannon said: "When we were kids, Tommy Skeoch and myself, I was 16 and he was about 19 or 20. I used to really look up to him — I was a huge fan of his style, and still am, a great fan of his guitar playing. We were like best buds. And then we would collaborate and write songs like 'Modern Day Cowboy' or any of those TESLA songs, we'd write 'em together. But as time went on, man, the egos and the problems — myself included — throughout the years, the competition, it really drove a wedge between us. And the drugs and alcohol just really destroyed our relationship, I've just gotta be honest. We weren't supposed to talk about this stuff, but now I figure it's been long enough.

"I don't see that TESLA will ever go back, because we love Dave Rude, and Dave has really been a great addition to the band. And it would be disrespectful to him to go backwards to a toxic thing, a relationship that really got very toxic.

"Unfortunately, I don't think that TESLA will work with Tommy again — ever," Frank reiterated. "But I will say that myself, personally, I have always loved Tommy and I just wish him the best. I'm so glad that he's still alive, and I know he's got a new band out [RESIST & BITE] that put a song out called 'The Myth I'm Livin''. It was kick-ass; it had Tommy's guitar. Look, I'm getting goosebumps right now. Every time I hear Tommy Skeoch play, it brings a smile to my face, 'cause he's freakin' awesome. As a musician, I have nothing but love and respect for the guy. But I don't think TESLA will ever work with him again. But I do wish him the best."

In a 2011 interview with Noisecreep, TESLA singer Jeff Keith stated about Skeoch: "Look, everyone in TESLA has been through their own substance-abuse issues. But Tommy got in too deep again. So the band told him that the only way we would be able to make this work is if he was clean and sober. I felt like we couldn't ask him to do that if we weren't going to commit to it too. So I was the first one to say that I wouldn't drink, or do anything else, on the tour. The next thing you know, the other guys did the same thing. Troy [Luccketta, drums] has been clean and sober for over 20 years, so it wasn't even an issue for him... Tommy couldn't stay off the stuff he was doing. It broke my heart to see it, but we knew we had to replace him."

American grindcore icons TERRORIZER have signed a worldwide deal with Earache Records.

Before drummer Pete Sandoval recorded MORBID ANGEL's first album, 1989's "Altars Of Madness", he performed on two demos and a split album with his original band TERRORIZER. Today, the group's 1989 full-length debut "World Downfall" is still considered a pinnacle for death metal and grindcore, featuring impossibly fast blast-beats and double-bass drumming along with a blitzkrieg attack by late guitarist Jesse Pintado (NAPALM DEATH), and ex-vocalist Oscar Garcia (NAUSEA). The 1989 lineup was rounded out by Sandoval and then-fellow MORBID ANGEL bandmate David Vincent on bass.

Over the next twenty-three years, Sandoval took time between MORBID ANGEL albums to continue working with TERRORIZER, recording two more cataclysmic full-lengths, 2006's "Darker Days Ahead" and 2012's "Hordes Of Zombies". Six years down the burning highway, TERRORIZER released 2018's "Caustic Attack", described at the time as "their heaviest and most eclectic album to date."

Earache founder and managing director Digby Pearson commented: "TERRORIZER was one of the first wave of bands I worked with and were true pioneers of grind, back when only a handful of musicians even played extreme metal. The band lasted for too short a time because two members quickly joined other bands (NAPALM DEATH and MORBID ANGEL) who both began to tour the world and never looked back. Working with TERRORIZER once again, in 2021… Finally… It's their time to take center stage on the grindcore world they helped create."

Sandoval said: "For me, this isn't just an exciting and enthusiastic moment in my life to once again work with Dig Pearson, Al and the rest of the Earache staff, but it somehow also brings back strong and unforgettable memories from the early '90s and so on. We can never forget classic albums like TERRORIZER's 'World Downfall' and MORBID ANGEL's 'Altars Of Madness' and 'Blessed Are The Sick', which helped us grow musically and mentally, and helped shape and prepare the road for tons of other new young bands to follow and succeed. We did it together with Earache! So I'm looking forward to a new powerful and majestic TERRORIZER release and for a positive, great and successful relationship with Earache. Thank you guys!"

TERRORIZER vocalist and bassist Sam Molina added: "We are very appreciative for the opportunity to sign with Earache Records and eagerly look forward to a successful working relationship with a label holding the outstanding history that Earache has in the music industry."

TERRORIZER guitarist Lee Harrison stated: "Lots of stuff going on with the TERRORIZER camp and we are happy to report the new signing with Earache Records. We know Digby and Al are very supportive of what we're doing and are looking forward to big things coming in the future. It's great to have a powerful team behind us for this next record. Look forward to seeing all the fans on the road when we get out and support the release."

TERRORIZER is:

Pete Sandoval - drums

Lee Harrison - guitar

Sam Molina - bass/vo

TESLA has announced that it is "postponing" its next few shows due to members of the touring party contracting COVID-19. No further details have been made available, but the band "look forward to returning to the road soon," according to a statement released earlier today.

As BLABBERMOUTH.NET reported yesterday, TESLA played the first two shows of its summer 2021 tour — August 5 in Grants Pass, Oregon and August 6 in Grand Ronde, Oregon — without guitarist Frank Hannon. Filling in for him was Howie Simon (JEFF SCOTT SOTO, GRAHAM BONNET, STRYPER), who previously stood in for Hannon in September 2018. No reason was given for Frank's absence from the tour.

TESLA will release a brand new single, "Cold Blue Steel", on August 27. In an interview with Rob Rush Radio, Hannon described the track, which he co-wrote with singer Jeff Keith, as "a very real-sounding rock and roll new song. It's influenced by [late LYNYRD SKYNYRD singer] Ronnie Van Zant."

In June 2020, the members of TESLA got together — virtually — to jam out a quarantined version of "Breakin' Free" as part of their online series "Home To Home".

The original recording of "Breakin' Free" appeared on TESLA's 2008 album "Forever More".

TESLA spent most of 2019 touring in support of its latest album, "Shock", which was released in March 2019 via UMe. The follow-up to 2014's "Simplicity" was produced by DEF LEPPARD guitarist Phil Collen.
























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Canadian metal legends ANVIL are about to enter the studio to begin recording their new LP. Earlier today (Monday, August 9), the band's guitarist/vocalist Steve "Lips" Kudlow tweeted: "Starting our recording of our 19th studio album in Germany tomorrow!! Nice to be back in Europe!!"

ANVIL released its latest album, "Legal At Last", in February 2020 via AFM Records as a digipak, on digital, black vinyl and some limited colored vinyl. In an interview with the "Music Mania" podcast, Lips stated about the effort: "Some people feel that it's the best record we've ever done. To tell you the truth, that's what's actually going on out there. I'm not surprised in a certain way, because it's the momentum like I was talking about has never been this intense. I think there's a certain truth to it. Probably the best album we've ever done."

ANVIL recorded "Legal At Last" at Soundlodge studios in Rhauderfehn in the northwest of Germany. Speaking about the LP's musical direction, drummer Robb Reiner told The Metal Voice: "It's just a continuation of what we've been doing for the last four or five years, really. Some very powerful riffs. It's gonna be more smashing, crushing ANVIL."

Added Kudlow: "Of course, it's all fresh and new, but the roots are still very much ourselves. Everybody who liked us before is gonna like us still, and people who didn't like us are still not gonna like us. Ultimately, that's where it's gonna sit, 'cause I am not gonna tailor my music and my songs to the people that don't like us and hope that they will. I'm gonna do the exact opposite. The people that love us, they wanna hear specific kind of tempos and riffs, and I look for those things, 'cause it's really my vocabulary, and I'm gonna continue with that — with new subjects and new things to sing about."

He continued: "I think that this album has some of the best slow pounders and some of the best fast stuff that we've ever done. You're trying to be different 'cause you don't want it to be exactly the same, 'cause then you're just repeating yourself — you're not being creative."

Regarding the "Legal At Last" title, Reiner said: "'Legal At Last' is mainly about two things. We celebrate the legalization of the ANVIL bong because Canada changed its marijuana laws last year, which means we no longer sail close to the wind all the time. That's why the album title announces that ANVIL are legal at last. Our fans have always known that, but the public at large treated us like criminals for a long time." Kudlow added: "'Legal At Last' is our way of telling the public: 'It's okay, ANVIL are okay, you're allowed to like us at last!'"

ANVIL, a Toronto-based group, was formed in 1978 by childhood friends, Kudlow and Reiner. Both came from Jewish families and had been playing music together since their teens. ANVIL is considered to have been an influence on many metal bands, including METALLICA, MEGADETH, SLAYER and ANTHRAX.

Though initially a four-piece band, ANVIL's current lineup includes Kudlow, Reiner and bassist Chris Robertson.

ANVIL gained popularity and new fans since the 2008 theatrical documentary, "Anvil: The Story Of Anvil", which is currently available on Netflix.




Starting our recording of our 19th studio album in Germany tomorrow!! Nice to be back in Europe!!

— LIPS ANVIL (@LIPSANVIL) August 9, 2021

COHEED AND CAMBRIA has shared the official music video for "Shoulders", the band's first proper studio recording in almost three years. Streaming now on COHEED AND CAMBRIA's YouTube channel, the Max Moore-directed video captures the band delivering a powerful performance of the track set within a cavernous industrial space.

COHEED AND CAMBRIA said: "As a band, we've always been a little outside of the mainstream and that's helped keep us true to ourselves. As people, it's important to focus on your strengths and who you are, and not try too hard for acceptance. Everyone is special and has their own unique contributions and that's what the video represents."

The song "Shoulders" was officially released on July 21 and has since amassed over a million streams and become the first song inside the top 40 at Active Rock radio in the band's history, currently sitting at No. 31 with a bullet.

For the last 20 years, COHEED AND CAMBRIA have continuously broken the mold of what a rock band can be, forging their own path and building a universe around their music unlike any other. Whether it is in the way their genre-spanning approach to songwriting has allowed them to bridge worlds without being contained to one, or the multifaceted story arc of their albums and comic book series which mark the longest running concept story in music, COHEED AND CAMBRIA have consistently shaped new standards, never conformed.

"Shoulders" touches on the highs and lows of this journey, and how at times it can be frustrating to be an outsider to trendy circles, but in the end, doing it your own way has the biggest rewards.

Last monthCOHEED AND CAMBRIA vocalist/guitarist Claudio Sanchez confirmed to Consequence Of Sound that he and his bandmates have been working on new music during the coronavirus downtime. Regarding what fans can expect, he said: "I'll be honest. A lot of times, with bands who've been around and built a strong fanbase like we have, I think there might be a tendency, intentionally or unintentionally, to try to give the fans what they want and not take too many risks. But after making music for so long and entering a pandemic, we didn't want limitations to the creative process. The [next] record is going to be what I hope people perceive this band to be in 2021/2022."

He added: "It's a modern record. It's a COHEED AND CAMBRIA record, but it's looking forward, not backwards."

As for what is influencing COHEED AND CAMBRIA's new music, Claudio said: "I think the biggest influence of the record is my son and navigating parenthood within this strange new world we all found ourselves in."

It's been over two years since COHEED AND CAMBRIA's 2018 album, "Vaxis I: The Unheavenly Creatures", was released as the band's "return to concept" album. After stepping away with a more introspective album in 2015, Sanchez and the band returned to the sci-fi universe of "The Amory Wars" in what was said to be the first of a five-part series of albums. With 2021 upon us, and a major summer tour now announced, the volume of fans' chatter for "Vaxis 2" and what and when that will entail are loading up the band's social media pages.

COHEED AND CAMBRIA is a rare band whose music can transcend "scenes" and effortlessly cross genres of rock — from indie to progressive, to metal and pop-punk to classic rock. The band is frequently compared to progressive, operatic rock bands of the '70s, ala QUEEN, SUPERTRAMP or RUSH, due to their thrilling concept albums that take you on a grand journey of sounds and often clock-in around 110 mins, but still somehow include sugary pop-laden hooks.

COHEED AND CAMBRIA will embark on a co-headlining tour with THE USED in late August. Support one the trek will come from MEET ME @ THE ALTAR.

LIMP BIZKIT has canceled the remaining dates of its August 2021 tour amid health and safety concerns. The trek was called off a day after the band scrapped its concert Friday (August 6) at the Stone Pony Summer Stage in Asbury Park, New Jersey about an hour before the show was scheduled to begin. No reason for the Stone Pony cancelation was given, but one fan who spoke to frontman Fred Durst outside the venue stated that guitarist Wes Borland — who is said to be fully vaccinated — apparently felt "really sick" after the band had already completed its soundcheck. Borland has since taken to his Instagram to shoot down rumors that he has COVID-19.

Earlier today, LIMP BIZKIT released the following statement: "Out of an abundance of caution and concern for the safety of the band, crew and most of all the fans, the LIMP BIZKIT show this Monday and the remaining August tour is being cancelled. Refunds are available at their points of purchase. All tickets purchased online will be automatically refunded."

Affected shows:

Aug. 09 - Buffalo, NY @ Rapids Theatre
Aug. 12 - Gilford, NH @ Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion
Aug. 13 - New York, NY @ Irving Plaza
Aug. 15 - Huntington, NY @ The Paramount
Aug. 16 - Norfolk, VA @ The NorVa
Aug. 19 - Lincoln, NE @ Centennial Mall & Street
Aug. 21 - Austin, TX @ Stubb’s Waller Creek and Amphitheater
Aug. 24 - Los Angeles, CA @ Palladium

THE OFFSPRING played its first show since the departure of drummer Pete Parada on Sunday, August 8 as part of iHeartMedia Los Angeles's ALT 98.7 FM and the Los Angeles Chargers FanFest in the American Airlines Plaza, just outside SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. The concert also marked THE OFFSPRING's first live appearance since March 15, 2020.

Sitting behind the drum kit for THE OFFSPRING in Inglewood was Josh Freese, a top L.A. session musician who has played with DEVO, THE VANDALS, NINE INCH NAILS, A PERFECT CIRCLE and GUNS N' ROSES. Freese previously played with THE OFFSPRING on a number of occasions, including during the recording sessions for the "Splinter" (2003), "Rise And Fall, Rage And Grace" (2008) and "Days Go By" (2012) albums.

Freese played a show with THE VANDALS Saturday night and managed to make it back to L.A. in time for THE OFFSPRING gig by being flown there by the latter band's singer, Bryan "Dexter" Holland, who has a pilot's licence and owns a private jet.

On Saturday, Freese shared an Instagram photo of him with Holland in front of the plane, and he included the following message: "'Hey Josh, can you play on Sunday w/THE OFFSPRING in LA?' 'Yeah sure Dexter but I'm playing Saturday in Denver w/THE VANDALS. Might be cutting it close.' 'We'll how about I fly you to your gig on Saturday and back the same night?' 'You're on!'"

On August 2, Parada announced that was being dropped from THE OFFSPRING's upcoming tour after refusing the COVID-19 vaccine for medical reasons.

Pete said a doctor had advised him not to get the shot because he has a rare autoimmune disorder. The musician said he first experienced Guillain-Barré syndrome, where a person's immune system damages their nerves, in childhood and the effects had got "progressively worse over my lifetime". He also revealed that he contracted COVID-19 over a year ago and only had mild symptoms, "so I am confident I'd be able to handle it again", he wrote.

Parada wrote on social media that he's "unable to comply with what is increasingly becoming an industry mandate". As a result, "it has recently been decided that I am unsafe to be around, in the studio and on tour", he said.

Parada added that he had "no negative feelings towards my band". He wrote: "They're doing what they believe is best for them, while I am doing the same."

It is not clear if Parada, who joined the group in 2007, has now left THE OFFSPRING permanently.

THE OFFSPRING's tenth studio album, "Let The Bad Times Roll", arrived in April via Concord Records.


























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One of The Big Four turns the Big 4-0 this year and is celebrating with a number of special activities and events to honor the landmark anniversary. Formed by guitarist Scott Ian and bassist Dan Lilker in Queens, NY on July 18, 1981, Anthrax was one of the first thrash metal bands to emerge from the East Coast and quickly became regarded as a leader in the genre alongside Metallica, Slayer, and Megadeth.

Anthrax have been delivering a series of video testimonials sent in by former band members, fellow musicians, colleagues, and industry veterans sharing behind-the-scenes stories of working with the band and what Anthrax's legacy has meant all these years on. These videos honor each album in chronological order beginning with the original release, Fistful of Metal. Watch Episode #24: For All Kings below.

BraveWords is bringing the noise (and the tunes) with a new ultra-exclusive contest!!! And this one is very rare and highly collectible! Fans can win an ultra-limited edition Anthrax 3” mini-turntable and four special 3” vinyl singles. This record player was available for purchase on Record Store Day (July 17th), but thrashers can get caught in a mosh by entering our contest - just fill out the form here! Trust us, these are long, long gone! Head here to find the Anthrax record player nearest you. Not only that, but BraveWords holds the golden ticket as well – the winner of the contest will also receive a phone call from the members of Anthrax!

The four vinyl singles are also special Record Store Day releases and they include supercharged live tracks from the For All Kings tour – “Madhouse”, “I Am The Law”, “Got The Time”, and “Discharge”.

Turntable specs: Built-in Speaker Belt-driven Turntable Mechanism Fully Supported Turntable Platter USB or Battery Powered (4AA Batteries Required) AT-3600 Moving Magnet Cartridge Clear Dust Cover Pitch Control Two 3" Vinyl Large-hole Post Adapters Included Aux Out Cables Included: Aux Cable, Aux to RCA Adaptor, USB to Mini USB Charging Cord Unit: 6.125” (w) x 2.875” (h) x 4.75” (d) Unit Weight: 1 lb.

Visit our contest page here to enter now!

(Photo - Jimmy Hubbard)




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A short video of SCORPIONS rehearsing a brand new song, apparently titled "Seventh Sun", at their studio in Hannover, Germany can be seen below.

Drummer Mikkey Dee uploaded the clip to his Instagram, writing in a caption: "SCORPIONS - rehearsing new songs for upcomming Tour. Pretty damn heavy."

SCORPIONS recently completed work on a new album for a tentative early 2022 release. The LP was recorded primarily at Peppermint Park Studios in Hannover, Germany and was mixed at the legendary Hansa Studios in Berlin, Germany with engineer Michael Ilbert, who has earned multiple Grammy nominations for his mix work with producer Max Martin on albums by Taylor Swift and Katy Perry.

SCORPIONS' new album will mark their first release since 2017's "Born To Touch Your Feelings - Best Of Rock Ballads", which was an anthology of new and classic material.

SCORPIONS originally intended to record the new album in Los Angeles with producer Greg Fidelman, whose previous credits include SLIPKNOT and METALLICA. However, because of the pandemic, some of the initial work was done with Greg remotely, after which SCORPIONS opted to helm the recordings themselves with the help of their engineer Hans-Martin Buff.

Singer Klaus Meine previously told Talking Metal that the goal with using Fidelman to produce the new LP was to bring "the old vibe from albums like 'Blackout', 'Love At First Sting' or even 'Lovedrive'. We try to focus on those albums and this attitude," he said. "If we get there, who knows — it's so many years later. But it's the spirit and it's the whole vibe around this album. This time, the focus is on the harder songs."

According to Meine, SCORPIONS' new LP features "no outside writers at all," unlike 2015's "Return To Forever", which was largely co-written by the album's producers, Mikael Nord Andersson and Martin Hansen.

SCORPIONS' last full-length collection of new recordings was the aforementioned "Return To Forever", partially comprising songs the band had in the vault from the '80s. It was the final recorded appearance of SCORPIONS' longtime drummer James Kottak, who was dismissed from the band in September 2016. He has since been replaced by Mikkey Dee, formerly of MOTÖRHEAD.
























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MEGADETH has officially completed the recording process for its long-awaited sixteenth studio album.

Earlier today, MEGADETH leader Dave Mustaine shared a photo of him in the studio with his engineer, and he included the following caption: "Sending the album in for mixing. Final step. I can't wait to play the new songs for you! #Megadeth @megadeth".

Last month, Mustaine confirmed that the new MEGADETH album will be titled "The Sick, The Dying And The Dead".

Dave previously floated "The Sick, The Dying And The Dead" as a "tentative" title for the new MEGADETH disc during a January 2021 Zoom chat with fans.

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.

In early May, on the same day that sexually tinged messages and explicit video footage involving Ellefson were posted on Twitter, he released a statement on Instagram denying all social media chatter that he "groomed" an underage fan. He also filed a report with the police department in Scottsdale, Arizona alleging unlawful distribution of sexually explicit images of Ellefson by unknown offenders. In the report, Ellefson admitted that he had been exchanging sexual text messages with a Dutch teenager, who captured a video of several of their virtual "masturbating encounters" without his consent and shared them with friends. (According to Ellefson, the woman was 19 at the time of their first virtual sexual encounter.) The 56-year-old Ellefson, who lives in Scottsdale, first became aware of the video on May 9, when the claim "David Ellefson of MEGADETH is a pedophile" appeared on Instagram. Ellefson told police he was notified on May 14 by MEGADETH that the band would be parting ways with him. Three days later, he was fired.

On May 24, Mustaine — who formed MEGADETH with Ellefson in 1983 — announced the bassist's departure from the band. Two days later, Ellefson released a follow-up statement in which he vowed to file a "defamation lawsuit" against the person who "illegally posted a very private video" of the bassist and made "false allegations" against him. He also said he was working with the police in Scottsdale "in their investigation into charges regarding revenge pornography to be filed against the person who posted the video. This person will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law," Ellefson wrote. He went on to say that he was "taking this time to be with my family" and wished his "bandmates" the best with their upcoming tour.

MEGADETH is currently scheduled to take part in "The Metal Tour Of The Year" with LAMB OF GOD, beginning on August 20 in Austin.

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
























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Reunited San Francisco Bay Area thrashers VIO-LENCE debuted a new song, apparently titled "Upon Their Cross", during their concert this past Friday (August 6) at Strummer's in Fresno, California. The track will appear on the band's upcoming EP, "Let The World Burn", which is due in early 2022 via Metal Blade Records. The effort was recorded at Trident Studios in Pacheco, California with producer Juan Urteaga, who has previously worked with TESTAMENT, MACHINE HEAD and EXODUS, among many others. Mixing duties were handled by Tue Madsen.

The Fresno show marked the first live appearance by VIO-LENCE's current lineup, consisting of guitarist Phil Demmel, singer Sean Killian and drummer Perry Strickland, along with the band's latest additions, guitarist Bobby Gustafson (ex-OVERKILL) and bassist Christian Olde Wolbers (ex-FEAR FACTORY).

Last month, Killian told Ireland's Overdrive about VIO-LENCE's decision to make an EP after initially being reluctant to work on new music: "It was after [a] show [we played with SACRED REICH] in Arizona when Phil [Demmel, guitar] and I really started to talk about it because we're the guys that wrote 'Eternal Nightmare'. We talked about who would be involved and made the decision that if we do this, we've gotta be sharp, you know? We have to be tight, on it, spending time in the studio and really putting in 100%. It took some time — about eight months or so — to get things up and running with regards to schedules, but when it began to take shape, and we were vibing off each other in the studio, writing new songs, and lyrics, etc., everything felt really natural from start to finish. The album is currently in the mixing stages, and we're really happy with the way it all came out."

Regarding the recording process, Killian said: "[Urteaga] was really digging deep with all of us in order to get the best out of us. Like I'd be doing my vocal lines and he's in the booth saying, 'Come on, man. I know you can do better than that. You've gotta get more aggro. I want to you sound like you're about to kill somebody!' [Laughs] Also when we were doing the drums, we were all saying to Perry [Strickland, drums], 'That sounds great.' He [Juan] was, like, 'No, it doesn't. You can do better. C'mon. Dig deep.' He really pushed Perry a lot. [Laughs]"

In August 2020, VIO-LENCE released a new digital single, "California Über Alles", a cover version of the DEAD KENNEDYS classic. The band also filmed a music video for the song with director Scott Kirkeeng.

VIO-LENCE released three studio albums between 1988 and 1993. The group reunited soon after Demmel left MACHINE HEAD in late 2018.

The band performed its first comeback concert in April 2019 at the Oakland Metro in Oakland, California and spent most of the ensuing months playing select shows in the U.S. and Europe.

Although MACHINE HEAD frontman Robb Flynn was part of VIO-LENCE's classic incarnation and played on the band's debut album, "Eternal Nightmare", he wasn't approached about taking part in any of the comeback shows.

Killian underwent a successful liver transplant surgery in March 2018. The year before, Killian was diagnosed with stage four liver cirrhosis, which was caused in part by a genetic condition called hemochromatosis.

VIO-LENCE's last album, "Nothing To Gain", was recorded in August 1990, but wasn't released until 1993.

Photo credit: James Willard
































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TESLA played the first two shows of its summer 2021 tour — August 5 in Grants Pass, Oregon and August 6 in Grand Ronde, Oregon — without guitarist Frank Hannon. Filling in for him was Howie Simon (JEFF SCOTT SOTO, GRAHAM BONNET, STRYPER), who previously stood in for Hannon in September 2018. No reason was given for Frank's absence from the current tour.

Fan-filmed video footage of the Grants Pass show, as well as video of the TESLA soundcheck from Grand Ronde, is available below.

As previously reported, TESLA will release a brand new single, "Cold Blue Steel", on August 27. In a new interview with Rob Rush Radio, Hannon told described the track, which he co-wrote with singer Jeff Keith, as "a very real-sounding rock and roll new song. It's influenced by [late LYNYRD SKYNYRD singer] Ronnie Van Zant. It just turned out that when I was in the garage playing my guitar, writing the riff for the music, JK [Jeff Keith] had called up and he was listening to 'Saturday Night Special' by LYNYRD SKYNYRD. And so we decided to kind of touch on that subject. And we wrote that song. And we're really happy with the way it sounds. It's really raw and edgy. And we kept all the recordings of the demo is what we made for the single. We didn't overproduce it. And that's where we got the idea, 'Let's get real. Just keep it real.' The lyrics even say 'Let's get real' in there. And that's what our whole motto is."

Asked if "Cold Blue Steel" will appear on the next TESLA studio LP, Hannon said: "We're gonna put all our new songs together on an album and approach it that way after the songs are done. So rather than putting the pressure up, 'Okay, we've gotta write an album,' and commit to 10 or 12 songs before they even got written, we're gonna do it the other way — we're gonna do it the other way. We're gonna write the songs and release 'em as singles, and then at the end of it, we'll put 'em all together on a collection. And that, creatively, just makes much more of a free-flowing creative thing. You're not fabricating anything for the sake of making an album."

He added: "The world is different now. People listen to their iPhones and they listen to a song or an album, and it's over as quick as you came out of it, because of [people's] attention span. I like [the idea of the releasing singles first] because each song comes out in its own time, and you're not putting that idea in your mind that you have to create this bulk of material. You can just make each song as good as it can be."

In June 2020, the members of TESLA got together — virtually — to jam out a quarantined version of "Breakin' Free" as part of their online series "Home To Home".

The original recording of "Breakin' Free" appeared on TESLA's 2008 album "Forever More".

TESLA spent most of 2019 touring in support of its latest album, "Shock", which was released in March 2019 via UMe. The follow-up to 2014's "Simplicity" was produced by DEF LEPPARD guitarist Phil Collen.


Tesla - Modern Day Cowboy - Grants Pass, OR

Tesla - Modern Day Cowboy - Grants Pass, OR

August 5th, 2021 without Frank Hannon

Posted by Echoes Hub on Friday, August 6, 2021





Tesla! First stop Grants Pass!

Posted by Chris Barnett on Thursday, August 5, 2021

STAIND kicked off its 28-date tour with KORN this past Thursday (August 5) at iTHINK Financial Amphitheater in West Palm Beach, Florida. Fan-filmed video footage of the concert can be seen below. The trek will make stops in Long Island, Detroit, Irvine, Phoenix, Austin and more, before wrapping up with a performance at Dallas' Dos Equis Pavilion on September 21. Furthermore, both bands will perform at Louisville, Kentucky's Louder Than Life festival on September 23.

Two months ago, STAIND's Mike Mushok told Anne Erickson of Audio Ink Radio that he and his bandmates were working on their first studio album since 2011's self-titled effort. "Aaron [Lewis, STAIND frontman] is finishing up a country record; he's just about done with it," he said. "I think the idea is once that's completed, we're gonna… There's a bunch of [new] songs kicking around. It's just kind of [a matter of] sorting through that stuff and seeing what, if anything, we like, and figuring out… I imagine, having not put out a real record of new music in 10 years, we're gonna be pretty critical of what it is and wanna make sure that it's great. But, yes, there is talk of that. We actually signed a record deal and have a deal to do a new record."

This past March, Lewis told SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk" that he "would certainly love to" have the new STAIND album "recorded and done by the end of this year, to be released next year. All of our plans that were kind of semi on the books and on the table, everything just had a year taken off of it [due to the pandemic]," he said. "We were gonna have a record come out sometime in 2020 or certainly in 2021, and there was a schedule that was on the table that, just like everything else, got burned to the ground as soon as [the lockdown] started."

STAIND has released seven albums since 1995, the latest being 2011's self-titled effort. The band has had a number of hit songs during its first two decades, including the Top 10 smash "It's Been Awhile" from the No. 1 album "Break The Cycle". Follow-up LPs "14 Shades Of Grey" and "Chapter V" also topped the Billboard chart.

STAIND released its first album in nine years, "Live: It's Been Awhile", on May 7 via Yap'em/Alchemy Recordings. The "Live: It's Been Awhile" album was accompanied by "The Return Of Staind", a two-part global streaming series in partnership with Danny Wimmer Presents. The series launched with STAIND's "Live: It's Been Awhile (From Foxwoods)" concert, which streamed globally on May 1. The "Live: It's Been Awhile" album and concert were recorded at the band's comeback show at Foxwoods Resort Casino in Mashantucket, Connecticut in October 2019. The never-before-seen concert celebrated the band's reunion after a five-year hiatus. STAIND also performed its iconic multi-platinum 2001 album "Break The Cycle" in its entirety for a May 8 streaming event, exactly 20 years after the album's release. The "20th Anniversary Of Break The Cycle, Performed In Its Entirety" took place at Mill 1 in Open Square in Holyoke, Massachusetts, bringing the band back to their Western Mass roots.

STAIND played its first full live show in five years in September 2019 at the Louder Than Life music festival in Louisville, Kentucky.

The band was scheduled to support DISTURBED on "The Sickness 20th Anniversary Tour" throughout North America last summer. The amphitheater trek has since been canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic which is sweeping the globe.

Fan-filmed video footage of IRON MAIDEN singer Bruce Dickinson belting out an a cappella version of the 1968 Tom Jones hit "Delilah" during his August 1 spoken-word show in at Theatre Royal in Brighton, United Kingdom can be seen below.

Dickinson famously covered "Delilah" during a 1997 appearance on the short-lived television show "Last Chance Lottery..." which featured Irish comedian Patrick Kielty calling upon some big names in music business to perform a cover of whatever song was landed on after the host spun the wheel. For his rendition, Dickinson sported a leopard print suit and a spiffy haircut while his backup band wore dark sunglasses and Afro wigs (see video below).

Dickinson is considered one of the world's most storied musicians after decades spent delivering high-octane performances with his larger-than-life persona in IRON MAIDEN. 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.

Dickinson's autobiography, "What Does This Button Do?", landed at No. 10 on the New York Times "Hardcover Nonfiction" best sellers list. It was released in the U.S. in October 2017 via Dey Street Books (formerly It Books), an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.

"What Does This Button Do?" is Dickinson's third book. He has previously published two satirical novels, "The Adventures Of Lord Iffy Boatrace" about the English upper classes and "The Missionary Position" about televangelism.

Dickinson, who turns 64 today (August 7), joined IRON MAIDEN in 1981, replacing Paul Di'Anno, and made his recording debut with the band on the 1982 album "The Number Of The Beast". He quit the band in 1993, pursuing several solo projects, and rejoined in 1999.

Following their latest, 2016- album The Blaze, October 22, 2021 will see Finland’s melodic heavy and power metal force BURNING POINT return with a brand new album! Arsonist Of The Soul will be released on October 22, 2021 through AFM Records.
BURNING POINT may had its share of line-up changes throughout their more than two decades of existence. The main constant though, mastermind/guitarist/songwriter Pete Ahonen, always kept the ship on route and his clear vision and artistic integrity made BURNING POINT one of the most reliable purveyors of excellent classic power and heavy metal.
After handling the vocals on his own from the band’s foundation up until the arrival of Nitte Valo (ex-Battle Beast) in 2015, now Ahonen and BURNING POINT present a new voice on the band’s upcoming album: Luca Sturniolo! Replacing Valo, Sturniolo turns out to be quite a discovery; his powerful, varied vocals perfectly match with Ahonen’s fiery fretwork and strong, experienced songwriting. Besides Ahonen, Sturniolo and Pekka Kolivuori, now bassist Jarkko Poussu (ex-member of Finnish thrash pioneers A.R.G.), Tuomas Jaatinen on drums and Matti Halonen (Keyboards) have joined BURNING POINT.
"I am extremely happy about the new line-up and the new record. All the guys are very, very talented and excited!“, Ahonen comments.
A little heavier than on their last album and featuring twelve blistering, razor- sharp tracks, BURNING POINT’s characteristic melodies are the distinctive core of the band’s sound, shrouded in a captivating depth of powerful melodic heavy metal and epic hard rock anthems. Songs such as the first, previously- released single Blast In The Past ( Listen HERE!), have already showcased Arsonist Of The Soul will mark one of BURNING POINT’s strongest records to date. Now, the band unleashed a brand new single and video, showing off their hard rock (and 80's) influences in glorious style!

"As anyone can hear it's very epic and very much Black Sabbath influenced," Ahonen mentions. "I think this song sums up the album pretty nicely, hard and heavy with a lot of melody!"

BURNING POINT’s new record was mastered by Juanne Huotari, and shines with its pleasant throwback to early 2000’s heavy metal sound, but with up-to-date production the band is known and loved for. With Arsonist Of The Soul, they definitely raise the bar once more!

Tracklist:
01. Blast In The Past
02. Rules The Universe
03. Out Of Control (Savage Animals)
04. Persona Non Grata
05. Arsonist Of The Soul
06. Hit The Night
07. Running In The Darkness
08. Calling
09. Off The Radar
10. Fire With Fire ´
11. Will I Rise With The Sun
12. Eternal Life

BURNING POINT is:
Luca Sturniolo (vocals)
Pete Ahonen (guitars)
Pekka Kolivuori (guitars)
Jarkko Poussu (bass)
Tuomas Jaatinen (drums)
Matti Halonen (keyboards)

QUEEN's Brian May has commented on Eric Clapton's recent announcement that he will no longer perform at any venues that require attendees to show proof of vaccination. The announcement came after U.K. prime minister Boris Johnson's mandate that "vaccine passports" be required for entrance into nightclubs and venues by the end of September.

"I love Eric Clapton, he's my hero, but he has very different views from me in many ways," Brian told Independent. "He's a person who thinks it's okay to shoot animals for fun, so we have our disagreements, but I would never stop respecting the man.

"Anti-vax people, I'm sorry, I think they're fruitcakes," May continued. "There's plenty of evidence to show that vaccination helps. On the whole they've been very safe. There's always going to be some side effect in any drug you take, but to go around saying vaccines are a plot to kill you, I'm sorry, that goes in the fruitcake jar for me."

In Clapton's statement, he said that he would refuse to play at "any stage where there is a discriminated audience present."

"Following the PM's announcement on Monday the 19th of July 2021 I feel honor-bound to make an announcement of my own," Clapton said. "I wish to say that I will not perform on any stage where there is a discriminated audience present. Unless there is provision made for all people to attend, I reserve the right to cancel the show."

Clapton previously criticized the lockdowns instituted around the world in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic and stoked fear and conspiracy theories after receiving a COVID-19 vaccine. Clapton recounted his negative experience with the AstraZeneca shot, suggesting the side effects had been so "severe" that he was afraid that he would "never play again." He also said he was inspired by another musician-turned-anti-vaccine activist, Van Morrison

Former SKID ROW singer Sebastian Bach has tested positive for the novel coronavirus after being vaccinated.

The 53-year-old musician, who lives in Los Angeles, California, revealed his positive diagnosis in a video message Friday night (August 6).

He stated in the clip (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "If you're wondering why I'm by myself wearing a mask, I guess it's time to let you guys know I have been diagnosed and have tested positive for COVID. Yes, it's true. But I have to tell you that I feel totally great. [Laughs] I'm fully vaccinated. I was given the vaccine — the J&J [Johnson & Johnson], one shot and done — back in March. But I guess COVID wasn't done." Bach then went on to list the places he has been since he "was totally fine" before he left his house, including various airports and cities in Nevada, Tennessee, Arkansas and Oklahoma.

In a short message accompanying the video, Bach wrote: "After doing 2 shows & going to my wife's High School reunion, I came home & tested positive for covid. Here are the locations I could have got it in any one of these places. Thank God for the vaccine I can't wait to get another one Syringe all symptoms are gone now not canceling shows".

Bach, like many others, is showing that while vaccines are exceptionally effective in preventing death and severe illness from the coronavirus and its known variants, some are far from foolproof in preventing infection altogether.

Most of the people with so-called "breakthrough" infections are asymptomatic.

According to Centers For Disease Control And Prevention (CDC), large-scale clinical studies found that COVID-19 vaccination prevented most people from getting COVID-19. Research also provides growing evidence that mRNA COVID-19 vaccines (Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna) offer similar protection in real-world conditions. While these vaccines are effective, no vaccine prevents illness 100% of the time. For any vaccine, there are breakthrough cases.

New variants of the virus that causes COVID-19 illness are spreading in the United States and other countries. Current data suggest that COVID-19 vaccines authorized for use in the United States offer protection against most variants. However, some variants might cause illness in some people after they are fully vaccinated.




After doing 2 shows & going to my wife's High School reunion, I came home & tested positive for covid. Here are the locations I could have got it in any one of these places. Thank God for the vaccine I can't wait to get another one ? all symptoms are gone now not canceling shows pic.twitter.com/RHTK9iglC3

— Sebastian Bach (@sebastianbach) August 7, 2021

During an appearance on Zetro's Toxic Vault, the YouTube channel of EXODUS frontman Steve "Zetro" Souza, former MACHINE HEAD drummer Chris Kontos and Zetro recalled Chris's brief stint as the drummer for EXODUS when the San Francisco Bay area thrash act opened for MOTÖRHEAD for two shows in Argentina in 1993. Speaking about the backstage shenanigans that took place during the short tour, Zetro said: "Me and Rick [Hunolt, then-EXODUS guitarist] bought crank [Editor's note: slang term for methamphetamine] off of [MOTÖRHEAD mainman] Lemmy… We were at the venue 'cause we had the soundcheck. And you guys went back. But me and Rick stayed there, and Lemmy was in his dressing room. We knew he had crank. And Rick goes, 'Let's ask Lemmy for some. Zetro, go ask him.' 'You ask him.' 'You ask him.'… So I walk up to him [and say], 'Lemmy, hey, bro, you think you can sell me and Rick some of your whizz?' 'Cause they called it whizz. And he's all, [imitates Lemmy's voice] 'I didn't know you guys did this stuff. I thought you did that cocaine shit.' And I was, like, 'No. We like crank. We like to get wired.' He fucking pulls out this… He's got it in his jacket — in a patch. He had this patch that was there, and then [he would pull it back], and it was right there. And I'm, like, 'You brought that in?' 'Cause back then you didn't carry. It was the '80s. You didn't fucking transport shit. If you got caught with anything, you were in trouble, especially in South America. And so he gives it to us. And Lemmy tells me, he goes, 'You know, when you're on speed, you're 80 percent smarter going up, but you're 80 percent dumber when you're coming down.'"

He continued: "We just sat there drinking Jack. And so me and Rick, we snorted it. [Lemmy] took a spoonful and he put it in his mouth. And I went, like [makes puking sound]. I wanted to puke… And we sat there for five hours in MOTÖRHEAD's dressing room — me, Rick and Lemmy, drinking Jack and doing crank. [It was] not the first day [of the tour]; it was the second day. And I was telling everybody, 'Till the day I die, I'm gonna be telling this fucking story to my grandkids.' And I'm telling this fucking story now. Lemmy's gone. And I even said that, 'I'll be telling this story way after Lemmy's gone.' And I tell the story. And it's just, like, oh, man, it was the time… It was early '90s. It was still on. The game was still on, bro."

In a 2009 interview with Kerrang! Radio, Lemmy said that drugs never became a problem for him. "I was always in control of it," he said. "You can't let it get control of you. You can let it do things for you, and then when it gets to the point where you think, 'I can't move a muscle if I don't have something,' then that's bad; then it's taking you. The only thing I ever saw anybody die on was heroin and downers, which is a longing for heroin. I never did heroin. I always had enough sense, touch wood, to stay away from it, because it killed my old lady and it killed a lot of my friends, and it didn't kill them well. First it turns you into a thief and then it kills you. It's a miserable drug, I wish people would realize that. It's fashionable again now, isn't it? Escapism. But you can only escape so far. When you wake up after escaping, the problem's still there, so it's worse."

Asked what he thought of people going to rehab, Lemmy said: "I just think that the people pretend that they never took drugs. 'I'm clean now,' as if it's a good thing. It's all a personal joy. A lot of people died and a lot of people didn't; a lot of people went into rehab and a lot of people didn't. It's a personal thing, and it's up to you."

Lemmy died on December 28, 2015 at the age of 70 shortly after learning he had been diagnosed with cancer.

MOTÖRHEAD had to cancel a number of shows in 2015 because of Lemmy's poor health, although the band did manage to complete a European tour a couple of weeks before his death.

Wendy Dio says that she doesn't think there ever would have been a reconciliation between Ronnie James Dio and Vivian Campbell if the legendary heavy metal singer was still alive.

Ronnie, Vivian, drummer Vinny Appice and bassist Jimmy Bain collaborated on the first three DIO albums — 1983's "Holy Diver", 1984's "The Last In Line" and 1985's "Sacred Heart" — before Irishman Campbell left to join WHITESNAKE in 1987. Vivian later publicly took issue with Ronnie's need for total control of the band, claiming that finances played a major part in the bad blood that preceded his exit. Specifically, Campbell said that "it had become increasingly clear" to him that "Wendy (as Ronnie's manager) was determined to separate Ronnie from the band. She didn't see DIO as one creative unit. Ronnie knew better, but I suspect that in an effort to win back Wendy's love" after the couple split, "he was willing to bend to her whims. Thus began the beginning of the end for the original DIO band."

Asked in a new interview with Ultimate Classic Rock if it was important for her to detail Ronnie's falling out with Vivian in the singer's just-released memoir, "Rainbow In The Dark: The Autobiography", which she, along with writer Mick Wall, completed after Ronnie's death, Wendy said: "I wanted to, because I am so sick to death of hearing Vivian saying things like, 'Ronnie paid me a hundred dollars a week.' Well, how did he buy a Ferrari with a hundred dollars a week? Ronnie was always fair to his people. It costs a lot of money to put that show on. All of the time, we paid for everything — buses, trucks, hotels, per diems, lighting, sound and everything else. I think he treated the band very fairly. The problem is Vivian, for some reason, decided he wanted to be Ronnie. Well, you know, the band was called DIO. But the fact was that Ronnie had already been in RAINBOW and paid his dues and then in BLACK SABBATH and paid his dues. He wasn't just off the street and a nobody. I got really upset. I get really upset when I hear him saying all of the things about Ronnie. Ronnie isn't here to defend himself. I will. I have all of the paperwork to prove that. How much he did get paid. That just kind of upsets me that people will say, 'Oh, Ronnie was cheap.' Well, Ronnie was never ever cheap at all."

Asked if she thinks there would have been a chance to build any sort of bridge between Ronnie and Vivian, Wendy said: "No. I don't think so, because there was too many nasty things by both of them said in the press, and I think you can't undo those things."

Campbell, Appice and Bain reunited in 2012 alongside singer Andrew Freeman to form LAST IN LINE. The band's initial intent was to celebrate Ronnie James Dio's early work by reuniting the members of the original DIO lineup. After playing shows that featured a setlist composed exclusively of material from the first three DIO albums, the band decided to move forward and create new music in a similar vein.

In a 2019 interview with Ultimate Guitar, Vivian spoke about the financial dispute that led to his exit from DIO. He said: "When the band was first formed, Ronnie told Vinny and Jimmy and myself that for the first three records, if we were willing to not be participants in the album sales or the tour receipts or the merchandise money or anything like that, if we were willing to work a very modest wage, that by the third album he would make it an equity situation and we would get part of the record and part of the tour, etc. So we worked for less than the road crew. We did the [1983] 'Holy Diver' album, we got paid $100 a week. When we started the 'Holy Diver' tour, our pay was bumped up to $400 a week. And so on over the years, over the 'Holy Diver' tour and [1984's] 'The Last In Line' tour and the [1985's] 'Sacred Heart' tour, our wages were gradually increased from tour to tour. But we were getting paid less than our lighting designer, for example. But we were also writing the songs with Ronnie; we were part of the creative process. But we got none of the record sales, we got none of the merchandise money and none of the concert money. We were okay with that because Ronnie had promised us that by the third album, that would all change. We were all working towards this goal and the band was becoming more and more successful. When the third album came along, I was the first one to say to Ronnie, to remind him of the promise that he made us back in 1982 when the band was formed, before we did the 'Holy Diver' record. I brought it up to Ronnie when we were recording the third album, 'Sacred Heart', and Ronnie said, 'Let's get through the record first and then we'll discuss it.' So I waited until the record was done and then I brought it up again. And Ronnie said, 'Let's get on the road and get rehearsed and as soon as the tour starts we can discuss it with Wendy.' Wendy was his ex-wife and manager of the band.

"You know, with benefit of hindsight, I see it very clearly now. It really came down to this — there were only four people in the room when Ronnie made that promise, and that was Ronnie and Jimmy and Vinny and myself. Wendy Dio wasn't in the room, and Ronnie really never stood up to his ex-wife and he never had the courage to tell her that he had made this promise to us. And she never saw the value in the original band. She was creatively shortsighted that she could only see that with Ronnie. She didn't see value in who played on stage with Ronnie or who wrote songs with Ronnie. She just thought that everyone could be replaced, whereas I think Ronnie really realized the chemistry that the original band had and he really valued that. But when it came down to it, he didn't have the courage to stand up to Wendy and he figured that it was easier to just get rid of me. And that's what he did.

"People can say it's about money," he continued. "And yes, in black-and-white terms, it is about money. But more importantly to me is that it was about principle. I believe strongly in principle, I always have. I believe in integrity in people and when I look someone in the eye and I shake their hand and I make a deal with them, I will uphold my end of the deal and I expect the same of other people. And Ronnie didn't do that for me. That's why I was fired from the band and it left such a bad taste in my mouth for so, so many years. I was so hurt by the whole process that after that, I did make a mistake of saying very hurtful things about Ronnie in the press, as indeed he said the same about me. I think that was a mistake for both of us to do that. But it was a very painful thing for me because I never wanted to leave that band. I was fully invested in it, I enjoyed it immensely, I believed in it, and I gave blood, sweat, and tears on everything over the course of three albums to build that band. And then to be unceremoniously dumped like that was very, very painful for me. So it took me a long time to come full circle. To be honest, I think it also took Ronnie's passing [in 2010] to be able to look at that in a different light and realize that it was as much Jimmy Bain's heritage and Vinny Appice's heritage and my heritage as it was Ronnie's — we all owned those records and that history. So now I've come to fully embrace it, whereas for many, many years it was too painful for me to listen to it. If it came on the radio, I would turn the radio off. I didn't own any of the records, I wanted nothing to do with it. And now I see it in an entirely different light. I realize that we owned it as much as Ronnie and that it's a joyous thing to embrace. It makes me incredibly happy to be on the stage with Vinny, and with Jimmy while he was alive, and to play that music again. It's something I'm very proud of. But it took me a long time to get here, and that's the reason why."

In a May 2011 interview with Brazil's Roadie Crew magazine, Wendy stated about the controversy surrounding Ronnie's relationship with Campbell (in 2003, Vivian called Ronnie "an awful businessman and, way more importantly, one of the vilest people in the industry."): "[Vivian] always said that he hated all the albums that he played on with Ronnie, and that was very hurtful to Ronnie. Very hurtful. Would you like someone who said something like that about your albums? He said a lot of things in the press that I don't wanna get into, because it really wasn't Ronnie's feud at all. Ronnie didn't fire him. I fired [Vivian]. He wanted as much money as Ronnie wanted. He thought he was as important as Ronnie was, and that was just wrong. But I don't wanna get into that. It's water under the bridge. It doesn't matter."

A video clip of Ronnie James Dio calling Campbell "a fucking asshole" and saying that "I hope he fucking dies" in reference to his former bandmate was posted on YouTube in October 2007. The two-minute clip was shot on March 30, 2007 while Ronnie was signing autographs for fans after HEAVEN & HELL's show at the Radio City Music Hall in New York City. "He's a piece of shit," Dio said. "You ever heard the things he ever said about me? He called me the most despicable human being that ever lived. I went, 'I thought I gave you a chance and made you somebody. And now you're playing with who? DEF fucking who?' There's a fucking rock band for you to fucking have diarrhea wi

TWISTED SISTER singer Dee Snider has dismissed the notion that rock is dead.

While rock and roll has been king of the music world for decades, in the past few years, it's been unseated by the growing popularity of hip-hop. This has caused many pundits to proclaim the genre "dead" from an industry perspective, noting that it has been eclipsed in all measures by pop, hip-hop, and EDM.

A few years ago, KISS bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons told Esquire magazine that "rock did not die of old age. It was murdered. Some brilliance, somewhere, was going to be expressed and now it won't because it's that much harder to earn a living playing and writing songs. No one will pay you to do it."

A number of hard rock and heavy metal musicians have weighed in on the topic in a variety of interviews over the last several years, with some digging a little deeper into Simmons's full remarks and others just glossing over the headline.

Snider, who is currently promoting his new solo album, "Leave A Scar", spoke about rock's supposed diminishing status during a recent interview with Consequence Of Sound. Addressing Gene's "rock is dead" comment, Dee said: "He makes me crazy. I mean, I love him, I love KISS., but I wish he would just shut the hell up with this. And he doubles down on it. This statement of 'rock's dead, there are no rock stars, don't bother,' all that shit, it's just so self-serving and self absorbed. It's selfish. It's, like, ''Cause it's not doing it my way, it doesn't have value. It's not the way it was when I was coming up, so it's not rock and roll anymore.' Anyway, that's bullshit."

"Leave A Scar" was released on July 30 via Napalm Records. The album was once again produced by HATEBREED frontman Jamey Jasta, with co-production, mixing and mastering by drummer Nick Bellmore.

In a new interview with Tulsa Music Stream, legendary bassist Billy Sheehan (MR. BIG, TALAS, DAVID LEE ROTH) spoke about the upcoming third album from THE WINERY DOGS, his power trio with guitarist/vocalist Richie Kotzen and drummer Mike Portnoy (DREAM THEATER, AVENGED SEVENFOLD). Asked if the band is still writing material for the follow-up to 2015's "Hot Streak" or if it has begun recording, Sheehan said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "A little of both, but it's mostly writing. We write like people used to write in the old days: the band gets together in a room and we start figuring things out. And I love it that way as opposed to getting outside writers or having one guy be the writer and everybody plays his songs. So we work together as a band quite well."

Sheehan went on to say that the latest THE WINERY DOGS writing session in Los Angeles in early July "went really swimmingly. We weren't killing ourselves, but we were working hard," he said. "We've got about eight or 10 things ready to go. We're gonna go back and do it again at the end of this month for another session. And if, at that point, we feel we've got a great record, in our humble opinion, we wil go ahead and [record] it. If not, we'll write some more."

Billy also addressed the long gap between "Hot Streak" and THE WINERY DOGS' upcoming album, which is not expected before 2022, saying: "THE WINERY DOGS, we did really great. That first record [2013's 'The Winery Dogs'], we got lucky. Eddie Trunk was a huge help to us. And it sold great. Our attendance at shows was amazing. And we're very, very grateful for it. Then, not long after, we did our second record, 'Hot Streak', and that did really well too. Usually the second record, it's a little bit more iffy, but it was fantastic. So we thought instead of just doing record, tour, record, tour, record, tour, record, tour and burning out, let's all go off and do our thing and meet back up here in a couple of years when we have some stories to tell again. I think that was the beauty of the first record, and even the second record — the stories that we had saved up for years were the basis of songs. [The songs were] not necessarily about those things, but [they] were the inspiration for songs. And so it enabled us to open up a broad spectrum of subjects to write about. So now that we've all gone off and lived our lives for a few years and done a lot more things, back together we've got a lot more stories to talk about. We're very happily inspired."

THE WINERY DOGS were founded in 2012 after Portnoy and Sheehan — who initially aimed to collaborate with former WHITESNAKE and BLUE MURDER guitarist John Sykes — reached out to Kotzen, who played with Sheehan in MR. BIG from 1997 to 2002. The group's self-titled debut reached No. 27 on the Billboard 200 after selling more than 10,000 copies in the U.S. during its first week of availability. The initial sales of follow-up effort "Hot Streak" were even better, as the album debuted at No. 30 in late 2015 after shifting 13,000 equivalent album units in America during its first week of availability.

In January 2020, Portnoy told Sonic Perspectives that THE WINERY DOGS' 2019 tour was done "just for the fun of it — just for no other reason than to play together again, because it had been a few years. I think it reignited our love for each other, and I think it showed us that there's still so many fans out there that love this band," he explained. "It reignited our desire to make another record, so I think as soon as we can, we will."


Posted by Tulsa Music Stream on Friday, August 6, 2021

Florida death metal veterans DEICIDE kicked off their U.S. tour with KATAKLYSM, INTERNAL BLEEDING and BEGAT THE NEPHILIM last night (Thursday, August 5) at The Orpheum in in Tampa, Florida. Fan-filmed video footage of DEICIDE's performance can be seen below. The trek will make stops in Austin, Chicago, and New York before concluding on August 29 in Spartanburg, South Carolina.

Two months ago, DEICIDE guitarist Chris Cannella spoke to Jason Saulnier about the progress of the songwriting sessions for the follow-up to the band's 2018 album "Overtures Of Blasphemy". He said: "Since I moved out [to Florida from Arizona] a year ago, we were writing a lot of music, and then we kind of started over when I got out here and I was able to rehearse all the time rather than just meeting up when I was commuting for work. [Editor's note: Cannella works as a product manager for Dean Guitars.] So we've been really focusing and writing just really — in my opinion — some amazing stuff. And when we do record it, you will definitely hear a different vibe with the band, because the camaraderie is so strong. I mean, the four of us in a room, we just have a great time. We love being around each other, [and] we like writing music together. You're gonna hear a lot of that. It's just a really strong, aggressive… A lot of guitar work, a lot of cool drumming. Glen's [Benton, bass/vocals] stuff that he is working on — it's great. It's exciting. I couldn't be happier."

In 2019, DEICIDE parted ways with guitarist Mark English and replaced him with Cannella.

English joined DEICIDE in 2016 following the departure of longtime guitarist Jack Owen.

In a 2018 interview with Revolver, Benton stated about "Overtures Of Blasphemy"'s slightly more diverse musical direction: "You know what works best for me? Whenever I develop this soured-ass I-don't-give-a-fuck attitude — whenever that's intensified for whatever reason — I just have a tendency to come up with my best stuff. Say you're at a casino and you've spent your whole night losing. You're like, What the fuck? So you put in your last quarter in the machine and you win all your money back and then some. That kind of fluke is, in a way, why this worked out. I kind of look at it like, "Hey, what the hell do we have to lose anymore? We know it's not going to go anywhere. So let's just do it for us and focus on what we like. Let's take the music we grew up on and just have fun with it."