Streaming on The Metal VoiceFacebook Live, host Jimmy Kay, was joined by Megadeth’s David Ellefson, Combat records Manager and singer of Ellefson Thom Hazaert, CTV legal affairs television journalist Stephane Giroux and Doctor Chris Karatzios, Pediatric Infectious Diseases Specialist at the Montreal Children’s Hospital. The Five discussed and debated the new reality of bands touring’.
Topics in the panel discussion included; the safety and reliability of fast tracking vaccines; the legality of enforcing mandatory vaccines at concerts; risk and benefits of vaccines at a global level; distribution of vaccines, the safety of wearing masks at shows; touring in a non vaccine environment and helpful hints to reduce community transmission plus so much more.
David Ellefson also spoke about his recent Ellefon tour supporting his new album ‘No Cover’ and all the precautions and challenges the band faced on the road.
ELLEFSON, the eponymous solo band of Grammy-Winning Megadeth bassist and co-founder David Ellefson, has announced signing to EARMusic (Europe) and Ward Records (Japan) for the release of their upcoming full-length covers release NO COVER, which will be released Worldwide 11/20 in conjunction with Ellefson’s revived COMBAT RECORDS, who will release the album in North America via AMPED. The band has also announced a 10/9 digital release for their cover of the Cheap Trick classic “Auf Wiedersehen”, featuring guest appearances from Ministry’s Al Jourgensen, Anthrax’s Charlie Benante, and Crobot’s Brandon Yeagley, alongside bassist Ellefson, vocalist Thom Hazaert, and guitarist Andy Martongelli, which premiered in August on the nationally syndicated radio show “Nights With Alice Cooper”.
ELLEFSON has also released a video teaser for “Auf Wiedersehen”, edited by Melody Myers, which can be viewed at the link below, with the full video being released next Tuesday, 10/6.
The band cites the signings, and some unexpected medical situations for the changing release date.
Says vocalist/co-producer Thom Hazaert, “There’s no easy way to say it, but in July, right in the middle of recording the album, I had massive heart failure and went into full cardiac arrest. My heart literally stopped for several minutes, and I was revived at the hospital. There was a long recovery, but we managed to finish the record, and secure amazing deals with our friends at EARMusic, and Ward, but obviously we had to revisit our timeline a bit. And literally, maybe a month and a half later we were in Los Angeles, at Al’s house, shooting the video for “Auf Wiedersehen”. I’m just extremely humbled and thankful to be here to be able to, not only, finish this incredible record, but be able to see it released Worldwide with incredible label partners, which really almost wasn’t the case.”
He adds, “Originally we had envisioned NO COVER as a smaller, limited release “quarantine project” we were doing for fun with a bunch of our friends, really just to not have to release our studio album during the pandemic. But as it neared completion, and we really got to see what it was turning into, we realized it was worthy of so much more. I have a long history and friendship with Max at EARMusic, and they are an incredible label, and home to some of our favorite artists, and friends – Alice Cooper, Def Leppard, and more, and we are ecstatic to be able to partner with them for not only this release, but future ELLEFSON releases as well. WARD had already released Sleeping Giants for us last year in Japan, and we had secured a deal with them for our upcoming 2021 studio album, so it was a natural fit when we went to them with the idea of partnering with us on No Cover.”
Adds Ellefson, “It really was a crazy, whirlwind process, not only making such an involved album so fast, but also remotely, during a pandemic, with not only dozens of guests, but the entire band, spread around the Globe. And then, almost losing our singer in the middle of it. But at the end of the day, it turned out better than any of us had hoped, and really was one of the most fun records I’ve ever made. It’s been great to pull so many great and positive things out of 2020, despite all the challenges.”
Produced by Ellefson and Hazaert, with additional production by guitarist Andy Martongelli and Matt LaPlant (Nonpoint, Skindred, Lil’ Jon), mixed by Alessio Garavello, and mastered by Maor Appelbaum (Faith No More), NO COVER includes Ellefson-ized versions of 19 classic tracks from Motorhead, WASP, Def Leppard, Cheap Trick, Queen, Judas Priest, Twisted Sister, Fastway, Fight, Dead Kennedys, and more. Featuring cover art by Melody Myers (Ellefson, Altitudes and Attitude, Escape The Fate), an homage to the legendary Def Leppard debut ON THROUGH THE NIGHT,NO COVER is the second release under the ELLEFSON banner, the follow-up to 2019’s SLEEPING GIANTS, a double-disc compilation combining new tracks, with unreleased Ellefson solo, and F5 material.
ELLEFSON, featuring Ellefson on bass, Vocalist Thom Hazaert, Guitarists Andy Martongelli and Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal (Sons of Apollo, Yes, Ex-Guns N’ Roses), and drummer Paolo Caridi, are joined on the album by a who’s who of legendary guests including Charlie Benante (Anthrax), Eddie Ojeda (Twisted Sister), Brandon Yeagley (Crobot), Dirk Verbeuren (Megadeth), Frank Hannon and Troy Lucketta (Tesla), Mark Slaughter, Jason McMaster (Dangerous Toys, ex-Watchtower, Evil United), Greg Handevidt (Kublai Khan, Ex-Megadeth), Chuck Behler (Ex-Megadeth), Gus G, John Aquilino (Icon), Doro Pesch, Dave McClain (Sacred Reich, Ex-Machine Head), Dave Alvin (White Trash), Todd Kerns (Slash & The Conspirators), Andrew Freeman (Last In Line), Jacob Bunton (Mick Mars), Al Jourgensen (Ministry), Russ Parrish (Fight), Dead By Wednesday, and more.
Tracklist:
Disc One:
Freewheel Burning (Judas Priest) ft. Jason McMaster, Gus G, Andy James, Dave McCLain
Tear It Loose (Twisted Sister) ft. Eddie Ojeda, Dave McClain
Love Me Like A Reptile (Motorhead) ft. Doro Pesch, Greg Handevidt, Chuck Behler
Holiday in Cambodia (Dead Kennedys) ft. Charlie Benante, Bumblefoot
Rebel Yell (Billy Idol) ft. Paolo Caridi
Wasted (Def Leppard) ft. Frank Hannon, Jacob Bunton, Dave McClain
Riff Raff (AC/DC) ft. Jason McMaster (Lead Vocals), Dave Lombardo, Bumblefoot
Nailed To The Gun (Fight) ft. Andrew Freeman, Russ Parrish, Jimmy DeGrasso
Not Fragile (Bachman-Turner Overdrive) ft. John Aquilino, Paolo Caridi, Bumblefoot
Auf Wiedersehen (Cheap Trick) ft. Al Jourgensen, Brandon Yeagley, Charlie Benante
Disc Two:
LOVE Machine (W.A.S.P.) ft. Dirk Verbeuren, Dave Alvin, Bumblefoot
Love Hurts (Nazareth) ft. Brandon Yeagley, Chuck Behler, Tyson Leslie
Eat The Rich (Krokus) ft. Jason McMaster, Dave Sharpe and Opus of Dead By Wednesday
Sheer Heart Attack (Queen) ft. Bumblefoot, Doro Pesch, Charlie Benante
Over The Mountain (Ozzy Osbourne) ft. Andrew Freeman (Lead Vocals), Bumblefoot, Jimmy DeGrasso
Sweet FA (Sweet) ft. Todd Kerns (Lead Vocals), Bumblefoot, Shani Kimelman
Beth (KISS) ft. Tyson Leslie, Bumblefoot
Say What You Will (Fastway) ft. Mark Slaughter, Troy Lucketta
ELLEFSON is set to tentatively release their debut full length studio LP in Spring 2021.
ELLEFSON, the solo band of Grammy-Winning MEGADETH bassist David Ellefson will release their cover of the POST MALONE track “Over Now”, currently available exclusively on BANDCAMP, and on all other digital outlets today. The track will appear on their as yet-untitled debut album, tentatively due in October.
Track is available here:
Produced by Ellefson, Vocalist Thom Hazaert, and guitarist Andy Martongelli, engineered and mixed by Alessio Garavello, with vocals engineered by Richard Easterling and Matt LaPlant (Nonpoint, Skindred), and featuring cover art by Melody Myers (Altitudes and Attitudes, Escape The Fate) the track is a heavy re-imagining of the R&B flavored Posty favorite (co-written with Tommy Lee), also featuring drummer Paolo Caridi, and guest background vocals by legendary former Guns N’ Roses guitarist, Asia vocalist, and frequent Ellefson/Hazaert collaborator Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal.
Ellefson (the band), debuted on the compilation release SLEEPING GIANTS in 2019, a 2 LP/CD collection of David Ellefson B-sides and rarities, which first showcased the collaboration of Ellefson and Hazaert (with contributions by Thal) on the tracks “Vultures”, “Hammer (Comes Down)”, and the title track, “Sleeping Giants”, which featured guest vocals by legendary Hip-Hop MC Darryl “DMC” McDaniels.
They recently released their single “Simple Truth”, with proceeds donated to the Italian Red Cross. “Simple Truth” was also released as part of a Bandcamp exclusive EP featuring a Max Norman (Megadeth, Ozzy Osbourne) remix of “Vultures”, and live versions of “Vultures” and “If You Were God”, recorded in Milan, Italy during their 2019 MORE LIVE WITH DETH Tour.
Says Hazaert, “Posty has become a good friend to our camp, David and I have both gone to shows, and hung out and spent some time with him, and we have definitely spent some nights texting and nerding out over classic Metal, and our fanboy devotion to Metallica, Megadeth, etc. Meanwhile I am honestly a huge fan of his stuff, his lyrics. I can honestly say, and I talk about it all the time, there is not an artist who has come out in a long time that has impressed or influenced what I do more than Post Malone.”
“As I actually told him, some of my stuff on Sleeping Giants was heavily influenced by Beerbongs and Bentleys, which I spent 2 months on tour last year driving around the country listening to on repeat, which was really where the impetus for the cover came from. So, it was a huge honor to put our stamp on this song, and pay my respects to what he does, and how much I appreciate it. And I think the emotions and dynamic of the song really lend themselves to the heavier arrangement. Posty is a Rock and Metal guy at heart, and I think “Over Now” is definitely a Metal song at heart.”
Says Ellefson, “We’re all fans of Posty, and he’s also been a huge fan of Megadeth and all things Metal. Aside from being a great song for any genre, our cover of “Over Now” is our way of showing our mutual admiration and paying homage to our friend.
He adds, “The old adage used to be that if you could strip a song down to just an acoustic guitar and a vocal, you probably had a great song. But times have changed now, that if you can take a song from another genre, and seamlessly transform it to a completely different genre, it just proves what a great song it really is. And it’s a cool dynamic, as he’s a Pop, R&B and Hip-Hop guy, who dips into Rock and Metal, and we’re Rock and Metal guys who have dipped into pop, R&B and Hip-Hop, collaborating with DMC on Sleeping Giants, etc. So, I think this really just pushes that whole idea of exploration forward.”
“And with everything we’ve been doing with our David Ellefson Youth Music Foundation and the Grammy Music Education Coalition, we’ve been fortunate to stay productive, and continue to inspire people to grow and create in the face of an unprecedented situation. Just because we’re locked down, doesn’t mean we’re locked in.”
Jimmy Kay and Alan Dixon from The Metal Voicerecently spoke to Megadeth‘s Bassist David Ellefson live on Youtube. Ellefson spoke about his SCHOOL’s OUT Initiative, playing with K.K. Downing, an Update on Megadeth’s new album and a timeline on his new solo album.
Watch the whole interview here:
Some excerpts from the chat
Tell us about your School’s out initiative?
“Students and musicians are locked down because of Covid19 and from this, the idea came to me and my partner, foundation co-chair Thom Hazaert ( DAVID ELLEFSON YOUTH MUSIC FOUNDATION). So Thom rang me and said why don’t you do some bass lessons over Skype and I said I’m just one guy and there is no way I can give that many lessons. So I got on the phone and called my friends, Jimmy Degrasso (Ex-Megadeth, Alice Cooper), Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal (Sons of Apollo, Ex-Guns N’ Roses), Nita Strauss (Alice Cooper), Dirk Verbeuren (Megadeth), Kiko Loureiro (Megadeth) and asked would you be able to donate one or two lessons to students 18 and under.They said yes. So since the lessons are free we are doing a charity marathon fundraiser this weekend, Saturday April 11 2020 4pm Eastern, to raise funds for DAVID ELLEFSON YOUTH MUSIC FOUNDATION for the operating expenses. ”
Can you give us an update on the new Megadeth Album
“We have been working on it, it’s written and ready to be recorded. We were going to start recording it toward the end of March but of course Covid19 happened. We were going to go to Nashville and start cutting tracks for the album but with everything shutting down we obviously had to postpone. Once the lock down lifts and it is safe we will be ready to rock ASAP.”
What would be the musical direction of the new Megadeth album
“I think it’s a great record, it’s very heavy with a lot of fast thrashing stuff. There is a vibe that feels very cohesive between the 4 members as we all worked on the album together. We spent a lot of time as a band. Last summer before Dave’s throat cancer treatments we were all working on the album and that added a whole different angle to the flavour of the record, that’s how we used to make all our early albums, writing, pre production and rehearsing together. There is a feeling on this record that we want this to be a band effort. ”
Which Megadeth New album would the new album sound like
“I think its a combination of all the Megadeth records cause you can’t help by not being influenced a little bit by your own past. We have everything from that thrashy stuff from Killing is my business and Peace Sells, to the more refined moments of Youthanasia and Cryptic Writings. So I think the albums going to have a little bit of everything, so that is good news for Megadeth fan.”
Seemingly out of nowhere comes one of the year’s most impressive and largest collaborations in the rock/metal scene. LOST SYMPHONY, a band founded by brothers Benny (multi-instrumentalist, producer) and Brian Goodman (compositions, arrangement), along with co-conspirators Cory Paza (bass, guitar), Kelly Kereliuk (guitar), Paul Lourenco (drums) and Starset’s Siobhán Cronin (violin, viola), have found a mind-blowing intersection of the crossroads of classical and heavy metal and created a massive new instrumental record that features collaborations with talented and legendary names in heavy rock and metal including past and present members/contributors from Guns N’ Roses, All That Remains, Starset, Cradle of Filth, Nevermore, Steel Panther, Trans-Siberian Orchestra among many others.
The first album, Chapter I, in a series of upcoming releases will debut on March 27th via XOff Records and is available for pre-order now!
Today, LOST SYMPHONY has released Chapter I’s first new track, “This Life Moves Too Fast” (Feat: David Ellefson, Jeff Loomis and Jimi Bell), which can be streamed now at this location.
The journey to LOST SYMPHONY began in 2015. After crafting an initial classical demo, Benny chose to find guitar players to bring it to life. Discovering Kelly and Conrad Simon online, he began sending music back and forth collecting incredible solos. The project began taking shape when All That Remains drummer Jason Costa provided drum tracks, which led to bringing the late ATR guitarist Oli Herbert into the fold.
“We basically spent weeks in my basement putting songs together,” recalls Benny. “Oli thoughtfully constructed lead guitar parts for several of our songs and was a key collaborator. We sat and worked on everything note for note from start-to-finish. Oli brought legitimacy to this. He was like our ambassador. When he’d call other guitarists, they’d pick up the phone.”
After years of piecing together the project under the radar, Benny introduces it to the world in 2020, sharing one-song per week for two months accompanied by exclusive recording footage. The first single “This Life Moves Too Fast” [feat. David Ellefson, Jeff Loomis, & Jimi Bell] gallops forward on a hummable riff punctuated by sweeping violin, propulsive bass, and lyrical fretwork. Uniting Loomis, Ellefson, and Bell, it ebbs and flows between moments of scorching soloing and orchestral reprieve.
Chapter I Tracklisting:
Singularity (feat. Oli Herbert, Bumblefoot & Ethan Brosh)
Premeditated Destruction (feat. Brock Richards, Richard Shaw, Jimi Bell & Matt LaPierre)
This Life Moves Too Fast (feat. David Ellefson, Jeff Loomis & Jimi Bell)
I Felt A Funeral In My Brain (feat. David Ellefson & Joey Concepcion)
Cotard Delusion (feat. Oli Herbert & Satchel)
Catnip High (feat. Conrad Simon & Matt LaPierre)
In A World (feat. Oli Herbert, Matt LaPierre & Conrad Simon)
Requiem (feat. Marty Friedman, Oli Herbert, Matt LaPierre & Conrad Simon)
We had the honor to talk with Megadeth’s legendary bassist David Ellefson before the next leg of his “Basstory Tour”. We discussed his latest book “More Life with Deth” and the structure of the tour that will take him to Europe and Latin America, including a special date in Wolverhampton, where he will be joined by K.K. Downing, Ripper Owens and Les Binks to play a set of Judas Priest classics.
David also told us about the story behind his eclectic compilation album “Sleeping Giants” featuring previously unreleased tracks, including collaborations with John Bush, Chris Poland and David Glen Eisley. Of course, we also talked about the present and future of Megadeth, including the upcoming Megacruise, the recording of the new album and the recovery process of Dave Mustaine.
We leave you the full transcript (slightly modified to improve readability) of the interview below as well as the original audio version on YouTube:
David (MSF): You’re currently promoting your latest book “More Life with Deth” through a series of bass clinics, signing sessions and shows. The next dates are in the UK, mainland Europe and Latin America. Can you describe a little bit the concept behind these different variations of the “Basstory Tour”?
David Ellefson:
Yeah, everyone is gonna be a little different, you know. The first show, that I’m kicking off with, started originally just as a kind of book signing at KK’s Steel Mill (K.K. Downing’s club) up in Wolverhampton. And K.K. (Downing) being a dear friend, obviously we like to play music, and we’ve never played music together. So, we’re gonna get on stage and fire up a big thing with Tim “Ripper” Owens, Lis Binks, my partner Thom (Hazaert) and A.J. Mill. We’re gonna fire off one show, so that’s kind of a standalone show on November 3rd. And then, November 4th we’ll be down to London in the Underworld. That’s going to be a bit more similar to what I’ve been doing here in America with the Sleeping Giants band, being a full band set, playing some of the classic songs people know me for, as well as material off my own Sleeping Giants album, and book signing afterwards. And I’ll do that same type of thing across Europe, across Italy and one date in Switzerland. And then, when I wrap up in Rome, a couple days later I will be starting the Latin America Basstory. That’s going to be slightly different, I’m going to actually use some local musicians in every city, and part of that is just because I want to involve local musicians as well as fans. There’s a lot of cover bands, tribute bands of various musicians who … I just thought it would be fun for them to get up and to basically play some songs together. So, that’ll be a little bit more like my Basstories were in 2018 and even earlier this year in 2019, when I was doing Basstory across Europe. So, everyone is going to be a little bit different, which I think sets the stage for a unique experience for the fans and everybody who comes to these shows.
David (MSF): Yeah, definitely. This is your second book after 2013’s “My Life with Deth”. Have you found something therapeutic about writing that you couldn’t express through music or what was your motivation to write this second part?
David Ellefson:
You know, I like to write. I found over the years, you know, that probably if there was a word for me, it would be “communicator”. And sometimes, I do that with a bass, sometimes I do it with a guitar, sometimes I do it just like you and me are doing right now talking over the phone, other times it’s writing a book, maybe it’s doing a Basstory masterclass clinic performance, etc. So, it’s all about just communicating, you know. Communicating thoughts, ideas, creative things. Creating it out to your audience. The books are just one of those ways to do that. You can do things in a book you can’t do in a song, and vice versa. I think with “More Life with Deth”, the thing is … I kind of hit a sweet spot on it, because a lot of this stuff with social media, it’s like everything is so immediate. And people kind of know I’ve got a record label, I’ve got a coffee company. So, I talked about those things in the book, some of the backstory to them, got a little deeper into some of the underpinnings and workings of those processes. But I think the one thing that was kind of an unexpected sweet spot in the story for me was, as I started talking about acquiring the rights to Combat Records, and relaunching that record label, it took me way back to the origin of Megadeth, to 1983. When, and how the band started. And I had some of my childhood friends from Minnesota who moved out to California, when we met Dave and got the band started. And I had them weigh in and give some personal testimonies about that. I think those, to me … I had as much fun reading their personal testimonies in my book as I did reading what I wrote about it. So, the Combat events really took me back to the earliest days of Megadeth, and that’s largely been an untold part of the Megadeth history. Kind of “Rust in Peace” onwards it has largely been told and pretty well known. A lot of those artifacts live online, on YouTube and whatnot. But the early days in the 80s, it was really fun to go back and open that chapter up, and really dig deep in and again, get these personal testimonies from other band members and friends who were with me on the journey back then.
David (MSF): Yeah, that’s very interesting. You mentioned the compilation album “Sleeping Giants” and there’s a lot of metal stuff in it, with different musicians. But I was very surprised by your collaboration with David Glen Eisley. What’s the story behind his partnership?
David Ellefson:
With the Sleeping Giants songs you mean?
David (MSF): The one’s with David Glen Eisley, this kind of soft rock tracks …
David Ellefson:
You know, in the “Countdown to Extinction Tour” in 1993 we had a tour break, and I met up with a friend of Nick Menza’s. His name was Pat Schunk, and we used to mountain bike, riding in the hills there in Los Angeles and hang out. Pat and I became fast friends, and we started doing some writing, because he’s also a songwriter, so we began doing some writing together. I put some of those songs on “Sleeping Giants” because there were some demos that we’d written, and I really just loved the songs. One of them “If You Were God”, which features John Bush on vocals, was something I actually did bring in as a consideration to the “Youthanasia” record, and it didn’t really fit the scope of where we were in that record, so it didn’t make the cut. But it’s a great song, and I have always loved it. I wrote the music, Pat wrote the lyrics and John Bush sang it. So, you know, to include that it’s been really fun because John Bush and I, we do stuff with Metal Allegiance and we’ve been friends for many years. So, it’s been fun to really collaborate with him again, even on stage, singing that song when I do Basstory shows. And then some other stuff, some stuff that I did with F5 during the 2000s, you know. That David Glen Eisley stuff, you know he was a friend of Pat Schunk’s, they were in a group together called Dirty White Boy, which featured David Glen Isley, some members of the group called Autograph, who were a pretty popular radio rock band here in America during the 80s. And, you know (we wanted) to write, and have different singers come in. These were really just demos and I thought, these things have been sitting in the vault, literally sleeping in the vault, yet I felt they were pretty cool songs. I mean, I think the title “Sleeping Giants” is not only a good title for the lead off track on the record, but it’s also a good description of the songs that are embodied on the album.
David (MSF): Yeah, exactly. Since we’re slowly running out of time, I don’t know if you’re okay with a couple of Megadeth related questions (David agrees). How’s the process of the new album going on, do we have any potential release date for it?
David Ellefson:
You know, we don’t. I mean, with Dave’s throat cancer treatments, that he has now completed, he’s just going through the recovery now and we’re hopeful and optimistic about a full recovery for him with that. But yeah, once he’s through with that process, and we’re gonna just let that take as much time as it needs, then we will resume with the album. I’d like to hope maybe in 2020 we’ll be able to get a new album out.
David (MSF): Hopefully it works out. Considering Dave’s health situation, the upcoming Megacruise and the dates you have confirmed for the beginning of next year in Europe. How do you see Dave’s recovery in order to perform live?
David Ellefson:
I think with the cruise, we’re really just taking that a day at a time. Me, Dirk and Kiko are gonna be on the boat, holding down the fort and doing some musical stuff ourselves on there, to just kind of keep a celebration of all things Megadeth. But, you know, we’re definitely giving Dave the time and space to heal and recover, that’s first and foremost for this week. And then, moving into the new year with the Five Finger Death Punch + Bad Wolves tour, you know, hopefully Dave will be ready to go. Sometimes, life throws you a card you didn’t expect and you just try to, you know … Megadeth we’ve always been a resilient band, we’ve always just worked around obstacles. Dave is a fighter, as we know, I was just talking to him and he sounds very optimistic about the future for Megadeth.
David (MSF): Yeah, that sounds great, hopefully he recovers soon. Well, thank you David for your time, it was a pleasure to talk with you. Take care, have a great Megacruise and send my best wishes to Dave!
