LAMB OF GOD guitarist Mark Morton has made a brand-new track titled “Maybe” available for free download at this location.
Morton announced the release of the song via Facebook. He wrote, “[I] tracked another tune [with] Matt Conner the other night. I played slide, a couple guitar tracks and sang some harmony vocals. We’re havin’ a lot of fun [with] this stuff. Hope you enjoy!”
Morton and Conner previously released the track “To Make Sure” as a free download (audio available below). The guitarist later posted a clarification, stating, “I’m not sure how it got misconstrued, but ‘To Be Sure’ is not MY song… It’s written and performed by Matt Conner, a good friend and super talented cat. I only played rhythm and lead guitar on that record.”
Actor Johnny Depp joined AEROSMITH on stage this past Monday night (August 6) at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles to perform the song “Train Kept a-Rollin'”.
“We’re going to need a little help out here,” singer Steven Tyler announced to the 18,000 people in the crowd. “Johnny Depp, are you in the house?”
Fan-filmed video footage of Depp‘s appearance can be seen below.
Depp had previously played with AEROSMITH at the after-party for the premiere of his movie “Dark Shadows”. On that occasion, the actor, AEROSMITH and Alice Cooper performed a rendition of THE BEATLES‘ “Come Together”. Depp also joined Marilyn Manson on stage at the Revolver Golden Gods Awards in April.
Depp appears on AEROSMITH‘s upcoming album, “Music From Another Dimension!”, which is due in November. The actor laid down backing vocals on a Joe Perry-penned track called “Freedom Fighter”, which the guitarist said will either appear the regular album or be released as a bonus track on a later deluxe edition of the CD.
A one-hour Japanese TV special on VAN HALEN, which was broadcast on Tuesday (August 7), can now be seen in four parts below.
BS-TBS‘s “Song To Soul” is a series of unique music documentary programs dedicated to songs and the artists who perform them. In each episode, the producers look at an iconic track from the past through the retrospective view of the composers, artists and performers.
The VAN HALEN “Song To Soul” special, focusing entirely on the single “Jump” from the band’s smash hit album “1984”, features brand-new interviews with David Lee Roth and Eddie and Alex Van Halen, filmed just two weeks ago at Dave‘s house. Also interviewed for the program were VAN HALEN producer Ted Templeman, Guitar World editor-in-chief Brad Tolinski and Margo Nahas, the creator of the “1984” album cover.
“Jump” introduced VAN HALEN to the 1980s pop audience and its success helped the band cross over from hard-rock icons to pop-rock superstars.
“I actually wrote it on a Prophet 10 and everytime I got the sound I wanted, the thing would start smoking,” explained Eddie. “So I got rid of that one, bought an Oberheim OB-Xa. That sound actually did not exist. We made that sound popular. All synthesizers after ‘Jump’ came out, came with that sound in it.”
“‘Jump’ was actually recorded on the first or second take, was the record version,” said Alex. “And then you spend another hundred takes to justify why it was so easy to record in one time. And that goes to demonstrate how people really get in the way of the creative process; your own ego wants to be in there and justify why it’s so good.”
Although Templeman initially thought that Roth‘s lyrics for “Jump” were written about someone who’s “going to commit suicide,” the producer began to understand the song’s true meaning after an explanation by the singer.
“It’s a commitment to a forward space,” said Roth. “There’s no wasted days. There’s no timing moves, like in chess. You’re always moving ahead, and maybe the only rationale that you can use is, Hey, might as well..’ That may be all you need to compel you into the next big move in your life, or your next big mistake. Either way, at least you have a life worth living, a live well-lived in.”
“Jump” is the only VAN HALEN single to reach No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100.
Due to reasons beyond the band’s control, New Brunswick, New Jersey’s melodic, thrash-metal warriors GOD FORBID have been forced to cancel their appearance at this year’s edition of the Heavy MTL festival, set to take place this weekend (August 11-12) at Parc Jean-Drapeau in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
GOD FORBID guitarist/vocalist Doc Coyle had a bag containing his passport stolen from the band’s dressing room when they performed in San Antonio, Texas on July 27 as part of the Trespass America tour. According to Coyle, the “beat-up Swiss Gear backpack” also contained his “MacBook pro laptop, iPod, hard drive, headphones, toiletries, etc.” He added, “I do everything with my computer. Communicate, create music. This sucks big time, but it’s just stuff. I am lucky I have my health. So many are less fortunate.”
JUDAS PRIEST frontman Rob Halford recently spoke to Loudwire about the progress of the songwriting sessions for the band’s follow-up to their 2008 concept album “Nostradamus”.
Asked what fans can fans expect from the next PRIEST CD, Halford said, “We’ve already got a strong cross-section of ideas, some of them complete, some of them in bits and pieces. It’s shaping up to be quite intense, in terms of the riffage and the strength of certain tracks. Much like every time you try and talk about music, it’s practically impossible to capture it. You can only point it in the direction of where things are shaping up, and it’s just glorious. If I try to pinpoint it, there are elements of ‘British Steel’ and there elements of ‘Painkiller’ in terms of the vibe. We’ve got a really solid record coming together slowly in a strong metal way that will make all of our PRIEST fans around the world very happy and content. At least I hope it does.”
Regarding a possible release date for the new PRIEST album, Halford said, “I’m not really sure. It’ll be ready when it’s ready. We’re not under the same clock as we used to be. I remember in the ’80s we were banging out a record almost every year, and that was on top of putting in a world tour. We have the luxury now, if you want to call it that, of taking our time. And that’s just because that’s the way it is. We’re just as eager to get this done as ever, but we do it at a slower pace. It’s that British thing, you know? [laughs] It’s that monarchy thing. But, I hope it’ll be out next year. My gut tells me it’ll be out next year. You know what, 2013, let’s go for it. Let’s look forward to that moment for another PRIEST record for everyone to bang their heads to.”
JUDAS PRIEST played the final show of its “Epitaph” world tour on May 26 at the Hammersmith Apollo in London, England. The sold-out concert was professionally filmed for a 2013 DVD release.
On the topic of PRIEST‘s future touring activities, Halford said, “We’re simplifying things from a road point of view. We’re not going to go out on any two year treks. It’s a little more difficult to do that at 61 than it was at 60. [laughs] Having said that, I was looking at the early editing of the PRIEST show a couple months ago in London at the famous Hammersmith Odeon. I got the DVD about a week ago and I can’t stop watching it. It’s just unbelievable to look at. What I’m trying to say is that the components, the important pieces of what being in a band is all about, are as strong as when we started out. I can see that, I can hear that, by looking at that DVD. That’s encouraging. We are going to go out, we’re just simplifying where we go out and for how long. It’s definitely not the end. The heavy metal fat lady hasn’t sang yet. She’s tied up in a float case. She’s handcuffed somewhere in a float case. There’s no end in sight. Why say it’s the end when it’s not the end? Why say the end is coming when it ain’t, you know? PRIEST is just going to keep going as long as it can. As long as we want to be in the band, as long as we want to keep making metal, we’re going to keep doing it. At the forefront of all that, though, are the fans that look after us. We wouldn’t deprive the fans of another great record or another great show. Our life has existed because of the fan base that looks after us. Our fans are excited and eager to get more PRIEST, so we’ll hopefully deliver the goods next year.”
American/German/Swedish symphonic metallers KAMELOT have posted a five-minute video clip featuring behind-the-scenes footage from the band’s appearance at this year’s Wacken Open Air festival, which took place August 2-4 in Wacken, Germany. Check it out below.
THE ROCK ALCHEMIST – Italian Rock Band from Turin with a strong sonic identity that blends modern rock with progressive, hard, alternative, and pop elements!
Kimmo Kuusniemi’s SARCOFAGUS return with a Historic 2010 Concert Video Premiere on YouTube! Click image to watch the video
Metal Shock Finland (World Assault ) 