Jimmy Kay from Canada’s The Metal Voicespoke in depth with Annihilator mainman Jeff Waters about Neil Peart’s passing, Touring the USA, working with former Annihilator singer Coburn Pharr and their new album Sadistic Ballistic which will be released January 24 2020 on Silver Lining Music.
Watch the interview below.
When asked about the passing of Rush Drummer Neil Peart
“My top three Rush songs are Spirit of Radio, Limelight and Tom Sawyer. Rush to me is just part of Canada, they are almost not even people, it’s a religion, it’s a statue, it’s a feeling, it’s something you are proud of. Peart was and Rush is part of Canada, when Neil Peart died a little piece of Canada died.”
When asked about the lyrical themes off the new album Ballistic Sadistic
“Seven or Eight of the songs are kind about the same subject and they are just worded sometimes and little specific or more general. The album is not internationally out there trying to create awareness for this subject of the album. In 2001 I wrote a song about domestic violence and it was not about what people think about the stereotypical domestic violence, which is the guy hits or hurts the girl, it was in the reverse and that happens a lot more than people think. Since then I wrote 5 more songs about that subject, not condoning it just saying how wrong it is. So this album in general all spawns from a personal incident that happened to me recently and it wasn’t actually me involved in the domestic abuse it was someone else but it was very close to me and I became a third party in that mess . I had to get this record out personally because I had to get through it like a therapy by getting it all out in the music.The music is much angrier than anything the songs and the music were therapy as i am not an angry person.”
When asked about working with former Annihilator singer Coburn Pharr who sang on Never, Neverland
“Oh yeah, I talked to him last night, he was at my house in the summer, I talk to him all the time. I don’t do this reunion and anniversary crap but that is the one thing I would stop and go backwards for my favorite record, Never, Neverland. The record most people like over all the others and that was the reason I spoke to Coburn last year. I would never do a complete Never Neverland band reunion but I would like to work with Coburn again.”
Joe Satriani, Pat Gesualdo, Geoff Tate, Steve Vai, Chris Poland
The Metal Hall of Fame recently honored Hard Rock and Heavy Metal Royalty at the Annual 2020 Metal Hall of Fame Celebrity Gala in Anaheim, CA. Geoff Tate, Steve Vai, Don Dokken, Stephen Pearcy, Joe Satriani, Graham Bonnet, Chris Poland Legendary Promoter Jack Orbin, Prong, and Metal Church were the 2020 Metal Hall of Fame Inductees.
The Gala was filmed live for Amazon Prime Movies, and will be aired in early 2020 to over 100 Million subscribers.
In above video – Metal Hall of Fame Jam Geoff Tate, Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, Chris Poland, Bjorn Englen, Pat Gesualdo
The Celebrity Gala included an epic monster jam for the ages, which featured Geoff Tate, Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, Chris Poland, Bjorn Englen, and Pat Gesualdo, who performed an unbelievable version of Black Sabbath’s “Paranoid.” Cell phone videos of the epic jam went viral instantly.
Another highlight of the event was the Official Modern Drummer tribute to Neil Peart, which included Cathy Rich, (Daughter of Buddy Rich, and close personal friend of Neil Peart). Modern Drummer’s Editor at Large Billy Amendola, Hudson Music owner Rob Wallis, and drumming legend Carmine Appice.
Several luminary bands such as Don Dokken, Riot Act, Chris Poland, Prong, and Iceland (Featuring Jack Frost, Charlie Calv, John palumbo (Marketing/Design Director of Dean Guitars), and Pat Gesualdo) also performed. The 2020 Metal Hall of Fame Celebrity Gala was Hosted by Television/Radio personality Eddie Trunk, and Co-Hosted/Produced by Whiskey A Go-Go Ultimate Jam Night / Almost Fama Show Host Jes Fama. Sponsors were Morgan Stanley Global Sports & Entertainment, Michael Brandvold Marketing, Spider Energy Drink, Dark Star Records, SGL Entertainment, Skateboard Marketing, and The Metal Voice.
Pat Gesualdo, Metal Hall of Fame President/CEO, says, “The 2020 Metal Hall of Fame Gala was amazing!! As always, there were Hard Rock and Heavy Metal Idols, and many exciting performances!!”
THY CATAFALQUE are unveiling their entire forthcoming masterpiece, ‘Naiv’. The album is scheduled for release tomorrow, January 24th, 2020.
The Hungarian multi-instrumentalist is streaming the album in full via the official Season of Mist YouTube channel at the link below, which may be freely spread.
Stream the album below.
Mastermind Tamás Kátai comments on the stream: “Our ninth album is being released today. I am supposed to give a statement but all is in the music. I believe I express myself better with sounds than with words so here we are, have a listen.”
Track-list
1. A bolyongás ideje (4:55)
2. Tsitsushka (5:39)
3. Embersólyom (4:17)
4. Számtalan színek (2:34)
5. A valóság kazamatái (5:30)
6. Kék madár (Négy kép) (6:27)
7. Napút (3:48)
8. Vető (8:17)
9. Szélvész (5:36) Total playing time: 47:03
Guest musicians
Martina Veronika Horváth (ex-Niburta, SallyAnne, Nulah): Vocals on track 1,3,7,8
Gyula Vasvári (Perihelion): Vocals on track 9
Zoltán Kónya (Gire): Vocals om track 1
Badó Réti (Gire): Fretless bass on track 2
Vajk Kobza: Oud on track 3,5
Gábor Drótos (Gutted): Cello, viola, violin, classical guitar on track 4
Marilú Theologiti: Cello on track 5
Zoltán Pál (Sear Bliss): Trombone on track 2
Péter Jelasity: Saxophone on track 2
Sándor Szabó: Quena flute on track 6
P. W. Hermann: Voice on track 2
The artwork of ‘Naiv’ was created by Irene Saíz Guerrero.
THY CATAFALQUE are delivering another spectacular musical mosaic with their ninth full-length entitled ‘Naiv’, inspired by the “Naïve Art” movement. The project’s sole mastermind, Tamás Kátai has once again assembled pieces out of such diverse genres as ambient, folklore, jazz, metal, electronica, rock, pop, wave, and other styles that each taken for itself seems not to fit easily to the other parts.
Yet, THY CATAFALQUE come out as a sonic entity far more than just its combined parts. What could quickly end up as an academic exercise and meaningless jumble comes in fact across with emotional depth and beautiful soundscapes that render the seams of their components invisible by ingeniously fitting every tessera into a greater musical picture.
Symphonic metal quartet TEMPERANCE have unleashed yet another mind-blowing single “I Am The Fire”, fresh off their upcoming album, Viridian, to be released tomorrow, January 24, 2020! “I Am The Fire” is about finding strength through life’s hardships and that anyone can overcome obstacles put in their way by believing in themselves and find the power within.
The protagonist of the song has been left by someone important to them and strives to get over said person, to rise from the broken shards of their heart and soul, and to become someone new, someone better. While the almost forlorn lyrics may make the listener a little thoughtful, the upbeat nature of the song, with its magnificent riffs and smashing drums, definitely delivers the message and will be stuck in their head all day long!
Marco Pastorino, singer and guitarist, comments: “Our paths have crossed at a lot of places and stories. “I Am the Fire” is about motivation and a trigger that can help us to reach our goals. Through different colors, moods and situations, we can find a light on our journey. As always we blend our three different vocal styles in one of the most melodic tracks from Viridian.
As a side note, we were not particularly thinking of seasonal wildfire or the horrible tragedy that is happening in Australia right now. The word ‘fire’ is recurrently used as an analogy to inner strength, and we believe that we can take it as a call to action for uniting and together, overcoming any obstacles we face individually as well as a society.”
Watch The New Lyric Video For “I Am The Fire”HERE!
TEMPERANCE is calling you to action to help affected families in Australia HERE& millions of animals HERE!
Tracklist:
1. Mission Impossible
2. I Am The Fire
3. Start Another Round
4. My Demons Can’t Sleep
5. Viridian
6. Let It Beat
7. Scent Of Dye
8. The Cult Of Mystery
9. Nanook
10. Gaia
11. Catch The Dream
[ cover artwork: Yann Souetre ]
TEMPERANCE will embark on a journey throughout Europe with Viridian! Firstly, they will play four exclusive release shows in Italy, Austria and the Czech Republic. After that, they will join the symphonic metal legend Tarja on tour as a special guest on her European Tour in Spring 2020!
TEMPERANCE live: Exclusive Release Shows
23.01.20 IT – Milano / Legend Club
24.01.20 IT – Fontanafredda / Astro Club
25.01.20 AT – Innsbruck / p.m.k.
26.01.20 CZ – Brno / Melodka
w/ Tarja
07.03.20 PT – Lisbon / Sala Tejo
08.03.20 ES – Murcia / Gamma
09.03.20 ES – Madrid / BUT
11.03.20 ES – Bilbao / Santana 27
12.03.20 ES – Barcelona / Apolo
13.03.20 FR – Marseille / Le Silo
15.03.20 FR – Strasbourg / La Laiterie Artefact
16.03.20 FR – Paris / La Cigale
17.03.20 UK – London / Electric Ballroom
19.03.20 UK – Manchester / Academy 2
20.03.20 UK – Glasgow / Garage
09.04.20 NL – Haarlem / Patronaat
10.04.20 NL – Nijmegen / Doornroosje
11.04.20 DE – Herford / X
13.04.20 DE – Mannheim / MS Connexion Complex
14.04.20 DE – Bochum / Matrix
15.04.20 DE – Hamburg / Markthalle
17.04.20 DE – Berlin / Columbia Theater
18.04.20 DE – Leipzig / Hellraiser
19.04.20 DE – Nuremberg / Hirsch
21.04.20 DE – Munich / Backstage
22.04.20 AT – Vienna / Szene
23.04.20 CH – Lyss / Kufa
As a new decade gets underway and New Year’s resolutions are made and broken, ALTER BRIDGE are back with a new single and video for the song “Godspeed”. The song has become a fast favorite amongst fans and critics alike and is currently impacting at Active Rock radio. Written in memory of a friend of the band who passed away, “Godspeed” is an uplifting musical memorial for anyone who has lost someone. The lyric video for the song can be seen here:
On the heels of their first career #1 on the Top Current Albums Chart in the US and guitarist Mark Tremonti being voted Guitarist of the Decade by Guitar World magazine, Alter Bridge are getting ready to kick off the first leg of their Walk The Sky Tour 2020 this month. The band will play a kickoff date in Lake Charles, LA at the Golden Nugget Casino on January 31st before jumping on board Shiprocked as co-headliner alongside Halestorm. Back on land, the band will be making stops in Nashville, TN; Indianapolis, IN; Milwaukee, Wi; and Los Angeles, CA among others before wrapping up on February 27th in Spokane, WA. This leg will be just the beginning of what is shaping up to be a robust year of tour around the globe for Alter Bridge with more shows to be announced in the future. Ticket information for all shows can be found at: https://alterbridge.com.
Alter Bridge recently released their latest album Walk The Sky (Napalm Records) to critical acclaim and career milestone chart success. The latest album brought the band comprised of Myles Kennedy on vocals/guitars, Mark Tremonti on guitars/vocals, Brian Marshall on bass and Scott Phillips their first ever #1 on Top Current Albums chart. The band’s newest release found a home at #1 on over a dozen charts around the globe including: Top Current Albums (US), Billboard Top Albums (US), Current Hard Music Albums (US), Current Rock Albums (US), Current Alternative Albums (US), Record Label Independent Current Albums (US), Record Label Independent Current Album Consumption (US), Internet Albums (US), Top Albums – Market Share – ADA (US), Top Albums with TEA (US), Hard Music (Canada), Top Hard Music Albums (Canada), 100 Independent Albums (UK), Rock & Metal Chart (UK), Top 100 Swiss Albums (Switzerland). Walk The Sky entered the official album Charts at #3 in Austria, Scotland and the Swedish Hard Rock Charts, at #4 in the UK and Canada at #5 in Germany, at #7 in Australia and #16 on the US Billboard 200. Walk The Sky is produced by longtime collaborator Michael “Elvis” Baskette and is available in various configurations at https://smarturl.it/WalkTheSky.
Alter Bridge burst onto the music scene in 2004 with the release of their gold-selling debut, One Day Remains. In 2007, the band released Blackbird, the album that elevated the band’s profile worldwide. The epic solo in the title track “Blackbird” was voted “Greatest Guitar Solo Of All Time” by Guitarist Magazine. ABIII was released in 2010 and the single “Isolation” gave the band their first #1 single. In 2013, the band reached an elevated creative and critical plateau with Fortress. It bowed at #12 on the Billboard Top 200, moving over 30,000 copies first-week and earning unanimous tastemaker praise. The record garnered perfect scores from Total Guitar and KERRANG! as well as acclaim from Billboard, The Guardian, Loudwire, Ultimate Guitar, and many more. In between sold out tours in Europe and North America, the guys appeared on VH1 and graced the cover of Classic Rock Magazine who labeled Fortress, “The best thing they’ve ever done,” while Eddie Trunk called it, “A top 10 album of the last 10 years.” 2016’s The Last Hero gave the band their first Top 10 album since their debut. Alter Bridge has appeared on The Tonight Show and Jimmy Kimmel Live and their music has been used by the WWE, Major League Baseball and NASCAR to name a few. The band recently released the video and audio of their career highlight, Live At The Royal Albert Hall, featuring Alter Bridge backed by the 52-piece Parallax Orchestra led by conductor Simon Dobson. In December 2019, Guitar World magazine voted Mark Tremonti the Guitarist of the Decade and the latest album Walk The Sky ended up on numerous year end lists signifying Alter Bridge are showing no signs of slowing down.
Walk The Sky Tour 2020
1-31 – Lake Charles, LA – Golden Nugget Casino
2-1 – 2-6 – Shiprocked
2-8 – Nashville, TN – War Memorial Auditorium
2-9 – Indianapolis, IN – Egyptian Room at Old National Center
2-11 – Huntsville, AL – Mars Music Hall
2-12 – Fort Wayne, IN – Clyde Theatre
2-14 – Belvidere, IL – The Apollo Theatre AC
2-15 – Milwaukee, WI – The Rave
2-17 – Denver, CO – Ogden Theatre
2-18 – Salt Lake City, UT – The Depot
2-20 – Las Vegas, NV – House of Blues
2-21 – Lake Tahoe, NV – Montbleu Resort
2-23 – San Francisco, CA – The Regency Ballroom
2-24 – Los Angeles, CA – The Wiltern
2-26 – Seattle, WA – Moore Theatre
2-27 – Spokane, WA – Knitting Factory
“Dance of the Clairvoyants”, the first single from PEARL JAM‘s forthcoming album, Gigaton, is now officially available. Listen to “Dance of the Clairvoyants” HERE.
“I can’t tell you how proud I am about this group of songs,” explains Jeff Ament.“As you know, we took our time and that benefited us taking more chances. ‘Dance’ was a perfect storm of experimentation and real collaboration, mixing up the instrumentation and building a great song, and Ed writing some of my favorite words yet, around Matt’s killer drum pattern. Did I mention Mike’s insane guitar part and that Stone is playing bass on this one? We’ve opened some new doors creatively and that’s exciting.”
To accompany the single, Pearl Jam have released mysteriously titled video “Dance of the Clairvoyants” Mach I. Watch the video HERE.
As previously announced, Pearl Jam will release their much-anticipated eleventh studio album, Gigaton, on Monkeywrench Records/Republic Records on March 27, 2020 in the US. Internationally, the album will be released and distributed by Universal Music Group. Produced by Josh Evans and Pearl Jam, Gigaton marks the band’s first studio album since GRAMMY award-winning, Lightning Bolt, which was released on October 15, 2013.
