Horror rock legend ALICE COOPER, the German hard rock legends SCORPIONS, and the British Rock legends STATUS QUO will get the Rocksaws jigsaw puzzle treatment in April.
Zee Productions will release two classic SCORPIONS album covers, “Blackout” and “Lovedrive”, two classic ALICE COOPER album covers, “Welcome To My Nightmare” and “Trash”, and three classic STATUS QUO album covers – “If You Can’t Stand The Heat”, “Rockin’ All Over The World’ and “Quo” – as a 500 piece jigsaws, in April 2020, on Zee Productions imprint Rock Saws. The iconic arts of some of Rock’s most influential and highly regarded albums is presented in puzzle form for the first time ever. All puzzles come in a vinyl box set sized box, perfect to fit alongside a vinyl record collection.
Planet Rock All Stars single ‘You’re The Voice’ to raise money for mental health charity Mind.
The “rocked up” version of John Farnham’s 1986 global smash hit is the brainchild of DJ Wyatt Wendels with Toby Jepson, of Wayward Sons and Little Angels fame, producing the track.
Recorded by the Planet Rock All-stars band at Vale Studios in Worcestershire, rock royalty feature on the new charity single, including:
Alice Cooper, Joe Elliot (Def Leppard), Lzzy Hale (Halestorm), Chris Robertson (Black Stone Cherry), Charlie Starr (Blackberry Smoke), Justin Hawkins (The Darkness), Nathan James (Inglorious), Jared Johnston (Blackberry Smoke), Doug Aldrich, (The Dead Daisies), Phil Campbell, Jaren Johnston (The Cadillac Three), Tyler Bryant (Tyler Bryant and the Shakedown), Tony Wright (Terrorvision), Dan Reed (Dan Reed Network), Andrew Freeman (Last In Line), Mollie Marriott, Gill Montgomery (The Amorettes), Whitfield Crane (Ugly Kid Joe), Todd Kerns (Slash featuring Myles Kennedy and the Conspirators/The Age of Electric), Paul Quinn (Saxon), Tim Ripper Owens, Bruce John Dickinson (Colour of Noise/Little Angels), Nick Fyffe (The Temperance Movement), Rob Chapman, Soren Anderson, The WaterBear Choir and many more.
‘You’re The Voice’ will be released digitally on Friday 6th December, while a limited-edition CD version costing £5 will be available to buy throughout Wyatt’s epic 2000 mile Road 2 Rockstock 2 cycle trek.
Set to be premiered in due course, all proceeds from the single will go directly to mental health charity Mind.
Road 2 Rockstock 2 follows Wyatt’s gruelling Road 2 Rockstock ride in 2016 when he cycled 1000 miles to Planet Rockstock in just under a week and raised over £70,000.
A glutton for punishment, this time around Wyatt will be covering 2000 miles in 2 weeks, visiting landmarks and famous music venues on the way, whilst averaging 135 miles a day for 15 consecutive days. He hopes to raise more than £75,000 for Mind.
“It is amazing how a simple thought can just snowball into something so big! I knew I was going to do another Road To Rockstock, and again for a mental health charity and so I had the idea about the possibility of recording a song that had the words and meaning that would fit with the charity. Then I thought of John Farnham’s ‘You’re The Voice’ and remembered how much I’ve always loved that song (handclap intro aside!)!”, says Wyatt.
“I ran the idea by my old friend Toby Jepson. Not only is he fantastic musician and producer but a great sounding board for ideas. He loved the idea! Within 48 hours Toby had secured a studio to record the track and then we got together and worked through all our friends and contacts to figure who we could arrange to appear on the track and who would actually be available. I figured I’d give myself one less instrument to worry about by myself playing drums… dealers choice 😉
I can’t believe how quickly it’s happened!
‘You’re The Voice’ will be released digitally on Friday 6th December. It will be UK chart single linked so we can at least try and get a Top 40 single! There will be a VERY limited edition CD single available with a couple of alternative versions of the song. They will be £5 each and if you can find me you can get them from Friday November 22nd and throughout the Road To Rockstock. Anything left will be available at Rockstock and if anything remains after that they will go on the website, but when they are gone they are gone! All proceeds will go to Mind and I personally think the lyrics of the track are perfect for the cause.” – Wyatt Wendels
The Planet Rock All-stars band are:
Sam Wood (Wayward Sons) – Guitars
Dave Kemp (Wayward Sons) – Keyboards
Wyatt Wendels – Drums
Nick Fyffe (The Temperance Movement) – Bass
Toby Jepson – Vocals and percussion
‘Live from the Astroturf, Alice Cooper’ is part concert film, part documentary short highlighting the near incredulous story of how Alice Cooper super-fan Chris Penn, who runs a record store in Dallas, Texas, was able to coax the original lineup into reuniting at his store 41 years after they had disbanded.
Alice Cooper, the singer, went on as a solo artist in 1974, continuing to use the same name. This reunion marked the longest set the original members had played since that time, and their first appearance together since being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2011.
Live from the Astroturf, Alice Cooper features a soundtrack mixed by Justin Cortelyou and the legendary Bob Ezrin, who is responsible for producing most of Alice Cooper’s output, including a string of eternal rock hits. The performance was released on 7” and 12” colored vinyl as Record Store Day official releases. The 7”, which features the songs “I’m Eighteen” and “Is It My Body?” was reported to have been the fastest selling Record Store Day release of all time.
Alice Cooper rose to fame with original band members Michael Bruce, Glen Buxton, Dennis Dunaway, and Neal Smith in 1971 when their song “I’m Eighteen” ushered in an era of anthemic, rebellious rock music. The band became known as well for their stage theatrics, which included mock executions by hanging or beheading, signature makeup, and snakes. After Alice Cooper went solo, taking the name with him in 1974, the remaining band members continued making music. However, Cooper’s trajectory continued to outshine his former bandmates for decades.
Photo by Patrick Brzezinski
The UK premiere will take place at the iconic and intimate Castle Cinema in Hackney, London, on Wednesday 09th October between 21:00 and 22:30. This date has been specially selected as it coincides with Alice Cooper being in the capital (he performs at the O2 Arena, Greenwich, the following night). The event will be attended by super-fans, film crew and both past and present members of the Alice Cooper family. This will include Dennis Dunaway, former Alice Cooper bass player, who will also premiere his Rock Cinema Short, Cold, Cold Coffin. Cindy Smith Dunaway who created the band’s early glam look will also be in attendance. Ryan Roxie current lead guitarist for Alice Cooper who sat in for the late Glen Buxton at the event in 2015 as well as Chris Penn the man responsible for the reunion will be on hand to answer questions too. Brian Cichocki director of Cold Cold Coffin will be making the trek to London also.
The Los Angeles premiere will occur October 14, 2019 8pm at the W Hotel Hollywood. There will be a Q+A with Michael Bruce, Dennis Dunaway, Cindy Dunaway, and Chris Penn moderated by Howie Pyro (Intoxica Radio/Danzig/D Generation) & Keith Morris (Author & Singer of OFF!/FLAG/Circle Jerks/Black Flag) post screening as well as an afterparty at The Viper Room where Michael and Dennis will sit in with the house band that evening.
The next day Live From The Astroturf, Alice Cooperthe album is up for best Record Store Day packaging as a part of the Making Vinyl Hollywood Packaging Awards on October 15, 2019. The album is also up for Grammy consideration voting from 9/25/19 until 10/10/19.
Watch “LIVE FROM THE ASTROTURF, ALICE COOPER” Trailer here:
The film has won the Phoenix Film Festival Best Short Documentary, Dallas International Film Festival Audience Award Best Documentary, REMI Worldfest Houston International Film Festival Editing award, REMI Worldfest Houston International Film Festival Short Documentary award, and the Northeast Mountain Film Festival Best Film of 2019. The film will continue on its film festival tour until April 2020. Below are upcoming dates:
Cacophony! Presents
Wednesday, 9h October 2019 21:15 & 22:45
The Castle Cinema First Floor, 64 – 66 Brooksby’s Walk, Lower Clapton, London E9 6DA, UK https://thecastlecinema.com
Louisville’s International Festival of Film
Friday, October 11, 2019 2pm
Muhammad Ali Center Auditorium 144 N. Sixth Street Louisville, KY 40202 https://www.ticketderby.com/event/251140
»Old Lions Still Roar« will be released in various formats (Slipcase CD, Vinyl, digital) and is now available for pre-order from this location: http://nblast.de/PhilCampbellOLSR
The album will feature 2 different covers – a black and white one (CD Slipcase + digital) and a colored one (vinyl).
As Nita Strauss wrapped up her first ever solo tour in Dallas, she had touring mate Kore Rozzik join her onstage for an electrifying version of the Alice Cooper Classic “I’m Eighteen”. A fitting way to end the run together and even more fitting for the “Bastard Child of NYC”!
Says Kore, “This tour has been amazing on so many levels. Nita and her crew have been so supportive of us and I’m glad to call them all friends now. Alice Cooper being one of my biggest influences… tonight is definitely something to check off the bucket list!” The Rozzik band has been getting rave reviews by fans and journalist alike.
Watch the live video from the Dallas performance:
Nita continues on the road this summer with Alice Cooper with Halestorm and Motionless In White supporting respectively. Kore returns to NYC to start production on new music videos in support of the bands 2018 release “Vengeance Overdrive” (Cleopatra Records).
Kore’s next road appearances include the Blueridge Rock Festival and a supporting slot with Lizzy Borden on Halloween at the famous Whisky A GoGo in Hollywood, CA. More fall dates to be announced shortly.
The Debut Record “Vengeance Overdrive” is a concept record dressed in a fantasy/horror setting that showcases Kore as “The Bastard Child of NYC”. A notorious underdog artist who becomes blacklisted from the NYC music scene only to return mysteriously to silence the doubters and take his place at the top of the music food chain. Inspired by John Carpenter, Alice Cooper and Disturbed, this eclectic record comes at the perfect time with the recent resurgence of theatrical rock/metal hitting the states (Ghost, Avatar, In This Moment). For fans of hard rock/metal and horror movies!
“Vengeance” was produced by the talented production team Westfall studios in NYC. Rozzik has previously worked with the likes of Virus (Dope), Paul Bento (Carnivore) and has made on stage appearances with Bobaflex and Steel Panther.
Fresh off a triumphant seven-city North America tour this week, which included a stop at the famous Greek Theatre in Los Angeles, the HOLLYWOOD VAMPIRES have unveiled the brand new song “The Boogieman Surprise”. At the aforementioned L.A. performance, Steven Tyler, the Aerosmith frontman and long-time musical partner of Joe Perry, turned up for a guest appearance, as did Marilyn Manson. Johnny Depp took lead vocals on Bowie’s “Heroes” and the “world’s most expensive bar band,” as proclaimed by Alice Cooper, delivered a live master class of rock ‘n’ roll, which included their newest track “The Boogieman Surprise.”
The song has been part of the band’s live set since the 2018 world tour and is a highlight of every Hollywood Vampires live show. Written by the band, it features the undeniable chemistry between rock and roll royalty Perry, Hollywood superstar Depp and shock rock icon Cooper. A laid back groove, grinding guitars, and smooth strings create an epic, ominous, outsider anthem with Cooper’s vocal sounding as fierce as ever. Their stage telepathy is showcased in the accompanying live video, filmed at the Montreux Jazz Festival 2018.
WATCH THE LIVE VIDEO TO “THE BOOGIEMAN SURPRISE” HERE:
“Rise”, the band’s 2nd album, is some of the purest, unapologetic and most enjoyable rock and roll of the year, made by masters of the craft and true fans of the form.
Unlike their 2015 debut record, the new album “Rise” consists mainly of original material, written by the band. There are however, in the spirit of the Vampires’ original mission, three covers of songs originally written and recorded by some fellow rockers who died far too young: an intimate and intense version of David Bowie’s “Heroes”, again beautifully performed on record by Johnny Depp; the late Jim Carroll Band’s “People Who Died,” and Johnny Thunder’s “You Can’t Put Your Arms Around A Memory,” sung by Joe Perry.
Produced by Tommy Henriksen and the Hollywood Vampires, “Rise” is set to the most anticipated rock albums of 2019 will be released on June 21st, 2019 on earMUSIC as CD Digipak, 2LP+Download and Digital.
