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Review: WHITESNAKE “Flesh & Blood” (2019)

Posted by tarjavirmakari on April 21, 2019
Posted in: Int. News, News, Reviews. Tagged: , . Leave a comment

Whitesnake 2014

Review by David Araneda

Artist: WHITESNAKE
Album: “Flesh & Blood”
Label: Frontiers Records
Release date: 10th May 2019

Tracklist

1. Good To See You Again
2. Gonna Be Alright
3. Shut Up & Kiss Me
4. Hey You (You Make Me Rock)
5. Always & Forever
6. When I Think Of You (Color Me Blue)
7. Trouble Is Your Middle Name
8. Flesh & Blood
9. Well I Never
10. Heart Of Stone
11. Get Up
12. After All
13. Sands Of Time

Whitesnake-cover

It’s been eight years since “Forevermore”, the previous studio release with new material by the legendary WHITESNAKE. In the meantime the band has remained very active, touring extensively, releasing a series of reissues of their most celebrated albums from the 80’s (“Slide It In”, “1987” and “Slip Of The Tongue”), a couple of live albums (“Live In Japan”, “The Purple Tour”), in addition to a collection of acoustic takes (“Unzipped”) and a compilation of revisited classics from Coverdale’s days in Deep Purple (“The Purple Album”).

Although the music industry has changed enormously since WHITESNAKE began its journey more than forty years ago and considering that nowadays bands publish records less often, for them it was inevitable to think of a studio release with fresh material to justify a new tour. In this context is that the USA-based band, steered by iconic British vocalist David Coverdale, announced a few months ago the release of “Flesh & Blood”, their thirteenth studio effort that will be published next May via Frontiers Records.

The album opens with ‘Good To See You Again’, immediately delivering a powerful guitar riff and the unmistakable voice of Mr. Coverdale. For his 67 years, I must say that his voice remains at a high level. The rhythm and the melody are infectious, but without indulging into excesses, with a vibe that reminds the sound of “Slide It In”. One the other hand, ‘Gonna Be Alright’ has a more flirtatious tone, with prominent keyboards courtesy of Michele Luppi. This song brings us back to the “hair metal” era of WHITESNAKE, but without losing their integrity and relevance.

‘Shut Up & Kiss Me’ was the first single, including a wild videoclip. It is easy to understand this decision, as the song immediately stands out as one of the catchiest on the album. It is a track that meets all the requirements to become a classic: danceable beat, playful guitars plus an irresistible vocal line. ‘Hey You (You Make Me Rock)’ has a slower tempo, but its supper heavy riff and anthemic chorus compensate for this. The instrumental interlude in the middle section, which includes a superb guitar solo, adds some layers to an album that so far remains within the safe limits of hard rock.

‘Always & Forever’ brings up a more melodic and lighter approach that feels slightly out place, with a feel-good pop sound that makes it a bit forgettable. ‘When I Think Of You (Color Me Blue)’ is the compulsory power ballad, a correct track in general terms, but that does not reach the heights of classics such as ‘Is This Love’ and ‘The Deeper The Love’. With ‘Trouble Is Your Middle Name’ they retake some of their energy and rock attitude, setting a party mood with an effective chorus that becomes a bit repetitive with time. These are perhaps the weakest moments of the album.

The title track ‘Flesh & Blood’ injects some freshness into the album, featuring great work by guitarists Reb Beach and Joel Hoekstra. It’s a song full of reminiscences to seventies rock music, with a sound inspired by bands like Led Zeppelin. ‘Well I Never’ continues within the field of hard rock, with chunky riffs and a superb work of the legend behind the drumkit Tommy Aldridge, another veteran of a thousand battles that, luckily for us, refuses to call it a day. ‘Heart Of Stone’ is a song with a darker and melancholic tone, showing the more bluesy side of Coverdale’s vocal range.

‘Get Up’ is one of the most energetic tracks on the album, with a frenetic pace compared to the usual standards of the band. Once again, the guitarists take the spotlight, showing off in both riffing and soloing. With ‘After All’ they make an interesting experiment, stepping into acoustic territories just like Coverdale did in the early 90’s with Jimmy Page. The result is more than satisfactory, and adds diversity to the record, preparing us for a glorious finale. I’m talking about ‘Sands Of Time’, an epic track full of sonic influences from Middle East, closing the album with an amazing guitar solo, as it should be.

“Flesh & Blood” is a successful comeback album for WHITESNAKE, after so many years without publishing new studio material. It’s a fairly entertaining record, full of rock and roll attitude, containing more than one stadium anthem that will spin in your head from the first listen. Perhaps as a whole it does not reach the magnificence of their most celebrated works, but it has enough merits to fulfill the expectations set for one of the most iconic hard rock bands. Without taking too many risks, Coverdale manages to incorporate some innovative elements in the songwriting process, allowing him to extend the legacy of this bona fide musical institution.

Long live the WHITESNAKE!

Rating: 7.5/10

WHITESNAKE – “Flesh & Blood” videos:

 

 

 

 

 

 

SISKA To Main Support WHITESNAKE In Romania

Posted by tarjavirmakari on April 10, 2019
Posted in: Int. News, News. Tagged: , , . Leave a comment

SISKA-new-promo-2018

ALPHA OMEGA Management has a huge pleasure to announce that the Italian hard rockers SISKA are confirmed, as main support, for the heavy rock giants WHITESNAKE in Romania, taking place on July 1st at Arenele Romane!

Siska-Whitesnake

SISKA released their debut album “Romantic Dark & Violent”, on July 13th via Big Tuna Records / Sony. This is an album of one of the most promising and active band of the Hard Rock / Heavy Metal scene. The leader Mattia Sisca, is a talented shred guitarist who played with Blaze Bayley (Iron Maiden) in Brazil and Europe, Dennis Stratton (Iron Maiden), Michael Angelo Batio (US shredder), Jennifer Batten (Michael Jackson). “Romantic Dark & Violent”, is certainly a valuable artistic creature, uncompromising in perfect heavy and hard rock style that will be appreciated by the purest fans of the genre, where guitar solos, voice, intersect power, dark and neoclassical melodies accompanied by keyboard , bass and drums.

Next SISKA shows:
April 13th – Galleria 46 – Ponte San Nicolò (PD) – Italy
April 26th – Agorà – San Martino di Venezze (RO) – Italy
May 4th – Dakota – Vigonza (PD) – Italy
May 11th – L’Angelo Azzurro – Genova – Italy
May 18th – Mama l’Oca – Vicenza – Italy
June 22nd – Oldo Birrificio Corte della Birra – Cadelbosco Di Sopra (RE) – Italy
July 1st – Arelene Romane – Romania w/WHITESNAKE
July 22nd – Metal Days 2019 – Slovenia

SISKA is a musical project that after the tour in South America together with Tim “Ripper” Owens (Judas Priest, Yngwie Malmsteen), was chosen as the special guest from the legend of rock SKID ROW for their “United World Rebellion” tour. In July 2018 at Metalhead Meeting, SISKA shared the stage of the Roman Arena in Bucharest, Romania, with Children Of Bodom, Sonata Arctica, Epica, Soulfly.

Watch
“Waiting Now” (Official Video): https://youtu.be/8qW6THzdPd4
“Nothing Left To Say” (Official Video): https://youtu.be/eLNrG3NWKG8

More information at:
BAND: http://www.siskaofficial.com
MANAGEMENT: https://alphaomega-management.com | https://www.facebook.com/OfficialAlphaOmegaManagement
LABEL: https://www.bigtunarecords.com

WHITESNAKE Frontman David Coverdale: “I was three million in debt before the 1987 album”

Posted by tarjavirmakari on December 2, 2018
Posted in: Int. News. Tagged: , , . Leave a comment

WHITESNAKE and DEEP PURPLE frontman David Coverdale says that he went from the brink of financial ruin to being “richer than I ever was in Deep Purple” in the space of three months when Whitesnake’s 1987 release ‘Whitesnake’ took the US charts by storm.

DavidCoverdale-ROCK-CANDY

Coverdale recently spoke at length with Rock Candy Magazine editor Howard Johnson, telling the personal stories behind some of the most revealing photos of his almost-50-year career. Commenting on a shot of Whitesnake at the 1987 MTV Music Awards, Coverdale said…

“It was a ridiculous time for around about three years when MTV became this global monster. I’d go into a hotel room and 8 times out of 10 the TV would be showing MTV. And 9 times out of 10 it was playing the video for ‘Still Of The Night’, ‘Is This Love’ or ‘Here I Go Again’.

“Was I prepared for the level of success the ‘1987’ album had? Professionally, yes. It was such a validation of the really hard work that went into that album. It wasn’t entirely the guys’ fault in earlier versions of Whitesnake that we often took six steps forward and four back. Management decisions were made that didn’t serve us well and it became incredibly frustrating. But once I took over the running of the operation myself everything changed… and to go from almost three million in debt and within three months be richer than I ever was with Purple was very reassuring.”

Coverdale, of course, was one of the most famous faces in ’80s music after starring alongside his soon-to-be-wife Tawny Kitaen in those memorable Whitesnake videos. But he admits that the level of fame he experienced at that time was hard to handle.

“I wasn’t prepared for that at all,” he says. “I was with Tawny in LA and we couldn’t go anywhere. If we stopped at a red light on Sunset we’d be chased by the paparazzi like something out of The Beatles’ A Hard Day’s Night. It was whack. That was the primary reason why I moved out of LA to Lake Tahoe to live in a village of 5,000 people.”

Coverdale is still performing today as the leader of Whitesnake, of course. He’s no longer with Kitaen, following a 1991 divorce, but has since remarried. And the 67-year-old is perfectly happy to say that the days when he was one half of Hollywood’s most in-demand showbiz couple are long behind him now.

“I’m still Mr Saturday Night on tour even now,” he laughs. “But at home I’m just a husband and a dad.”

Read the whole of this revealing article, and many more fascinating features, in Issue 11 of Rock Candy Mag, available in shops worldwide or direct from us online at the following link:

Official Rock Candy Magazine website

 

Rudy Sarzo: ‘I am a big supporter of what Frankie Benelli is doing with Quiet Riot’

Posted by tarjavirmakari on February 2, 2018
Posted in: Int. News. Tagged: , , , , , . Leave a comment

TheMetalVoice-RudySarzo

Jimmy Kay from Canada’s The Metal Voice spoke to Former Quiet Riot, Ozzy, Whitesnake Bassist Rudy Sarzo at the Sims Guitar Works Booth at NAMM 2018 in Anaheim California on January 26 2018.

Sarzo talks Quiet Riot, his new project Dream Child, Sims guitar Pick ups and The Guess Who his current band.

Watch the interview here:

When asked to pitch Sims Guitar Pickups the brand is representing
“I don’t have to pitch it you have to hear it for your self to believe it, it is the most versatile well rounded pick-up I have ever played and is actually featured in my signature Spector model Rudy Sarzo bass”

When asked if he would ever consider reuniting with Quiet Riot or a one off
“I have performed with Quiet Riot , just jumping in on one song. Frankie Benelli (Quiet Riot Drummer) is one of my oldest dearest friends, he has the best man at my wedding we are incredibly close. I am a big supporter of what Frankie is doing with Quiet Riot.”

When asked about his current project Dream Child
“Yeah it’s a project it’s great to be playing with my dear Dio band members Craig Goldy and Simon Wright and it was a great opportunity but my band that I am a member of is The Guess Who all the way from Canada.”

Frontiers Music Srl has announced the formation of DREAM CHILD, a brand new band featuring former members of DIO, AC/DC and QUIET RIOT.

DREAM CHILD is:

* Craig Goldy (DIO, GIUFFRIA): Guitar
* Wayne Findlay (MSG): Guitar, Keyboards
* Simon Wright (AC/DC, DIO, OPERATION: MINDCRIME): Drums
* Rudy Sarzo (QUIET RIOT, OZZY OSBOURNE, WHITESNAKE, DIO): Bass
* Diego Valdez (HELKER): Vocals

Live Report: BLACK STAR RIDERS, WHITESNAKE, DEF LEPPARD; Sheffield Arena 2015

Posted by aliblackdiamond on December 24, 2015
Posted in: Live Report. Tagged: , , , , . 1 Comment

Report By Alison Booth

It was an exciting time mixed with nostalgia, when back in March of this year heavy rock giants WHITESNAKE and DEF LEPPARD announced a joint headlining tour, along with special guests BLACK STAR RIDERS. I hadn’t seen either headliner for years and as both bands featured predominantly in my musical formative years, you could say that I was looking forward to the show in Sheffield!

This date on Saturday 19th December was the last of a run of ten shows in Ireland and the UK, fittingly of course ending in DEF LEPPARD‘s home town, where they formed way back in 1977. The Arena was packed, being a sold out show and the atmosphere buzzed! I must mention, as I was there with my friend Di, also my Metal Shock Finland team mate, that we used the facilities for disabled people – from the car parking to the help received from staff, especially a member of the Showsec security team, was brilliant, nothing was too much trouble.

BLACK STAR RIDERS released “The Killer Instinct” album back in February and have had a busy year, as have all the bands on the bill. The last time I saw them was a few years ago in Manchester, just before they changed from THIN LIZZY and this performance was just as great, going down well very with the crowd. It was fantastic of course to hear some Lizzy tunes in the set and guitar legend Scott Gorham looked in very relaxed mode, whilst frontman Ricky Warwick jumped around the stage full of energy! Naturally, the last song just had to be the ultimate classic ‘Whiskey In The Jar’, which sent shivers down my spine and got the whole crowd moving and singing!

Following an interval, one of my all time favourite bands were up next, WHITESNAKE! Kicking off  their hour and twenty five minute set with the DEEP PURPLE classic ‘Burn’, the band exploded onto the stage in fine form, looking extremely at home as you would expect with a band of this calibre, plus their longevity thrown in for good measure. Guitarist Joel Hoekstra who joined the band in time to record their latest release, “The Purple Album”, fits into his role like a glove. Joel is an extremely accomplished guitarist who looked as if he was having a whale of a time through the whole performance, judging by the wide grin on his face! Keyboardist Michele Luppi was introduced by David Coverdale singing the opening lines from the Dean Martin classic ‘That’s Amore’ to rapturous applause! We were treated to many hits spanning the career of ‘Lord Coverdale’ (as described by Joe Elliott) – classics such as ‘Fool For Your Loving’, ‘Give Me All Your Love Tonight’, ‘Love Ain’t No Stranger’, ‘Is This Love’ and many more rang around the arena, rolling back the years!

DEF LEPPARD‘s and of course ex-WHITESNAKE guitarist Vivian Campbell appeared on stage to join in with ‘Still Of The Night’, which was a real crowd pleaser! David Coverdale is showing no signs of letting up, which is great news for the fans! Of course as any reasonable person would expect, after extensive touring and with advancing years there’s the odd bit of strain in some vocals, but that said, there is still that deep rich voice belting out the songs, and the genuine big friendly personality shines through on stage as it always has done. On the whole Mr Coverdale still has what it takes and the band delivered one hell of a show, complete with a stunning drum solo from Tommy Aldridge. WHITESNAKE closed their show with David telling fans “don’t let anyone scare you”. My favourite band of the night!

Whitesnake, Sheffield Arena, December 2015

Whitesnake, Sheffield Arena, December 2015

Another interval, then last but not least, the final band of the night, Sheffield’s own DEF LEPPARD. The band received a tremendous welcome from their home crowd, running onto the stage with their trademark various adornments of the Union Jack flag. Vocalist Joe Elliott showed plenty of enthusiasm about being back on home turf, telling the crowd  stories from back when the band started out in the 1970’s. Again, it was brilliant to see their big hits such as ‘Rock Of Ages’, ‘Animal’, ‘Pour Some Sugar On Me’, ‘Armageddon It’ and ‘Love Bites’ performed in the same venue I last saw them in quite a few years ago! DEF LEPPARD also released a new self-titled album in October and have been touring the world since April, though the performance was as fresh as ever.

Plenty of stunning lights complimented the sets of nostalgic old band pictures shown on the screens throughout some of the songs, with tributes to the departed Steve Clark. Drummer Rick Allen was close to tears with the fans’ reaction at Joe‘s request to give him a cheer, the request was met with an overwhelming response. About an hour and a quarter after hit following massive hit, DEF LEPPARD concluded their set with one of their best known hits from the early days, the archetypal ‘Photograph’.

So came to a close what felt like a huge Christmas party for rockers – even in a place as large as Sheffield Arena, if you have the right mix of a friendly atmosphere and excellent bands, the camaraderie can prevail! A fantastic night! Check out a gallery of photos from the night below.

 

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DAVID COVERDALE: “I have no desire to hang up my rock and roll sneakers just yet”

Posted by aliblackdiamond on December 23, 2015
Posted in: Int. News. Tagged: , . Leave a comment

WHITESNAKE frontman David Coverdale says that he has changed his mind about retiring, explaining that the last few months of being on the road with his current band have “re-energized” him and inspired him to work on new music, according to blabbermouth.net.

WHITESNAKE is touring in support of its twelfth studio album, “The Purple Album”, which was released in May via Frontiers Music Srl. The effort is billed as “a re-imagination of classic songs from Coverdale‘s time as the lead singer for DEEP PURPLE‘s Mark III and Mark IV studio albums.” Coverdale was DEEP PURPLE‘s frontman from late 1973 to early 1976 and sang on the albums “Burn”, “Stormbringer” and “Come Taste The Band”.

Speaking to Macedonia’s Metropolis Radio, Coverdale stated about what it has been like to perform classic PURPLE material after so many years (hear audio below): “The songs don’t feel old when we perform them. Yesterday, I was listening to some of the live recordings from the U.S. tour, and they’re fucking amazing. This band is great. They play WHITESNAKE music, of course, fantastic, but they play DEEP PURPLE music fantastic. It’s definitely even more so than on the record. It’s very powerful and you can tell the musicians are enjoying themselves and you can see it and you can hear it. And hopefully you can feel it too.”

David went on to explain that “The Purple Album” was originally going to mark the end of his recording career but has since turned out to be the catalyst for the new WHITESNAKE band to work on new material. He said: “Well, it’s interesting, because when I was mixing ‘The Purple Album’ with my co-producer Michael McIntyre and Reb [Beach, WHITESNAKE guitarist], it felt to me…You know, I was 63 years old, and I’m going, ‘Man, how long do I have to do this? This would be a perfect closure for me — to finish as I started.’ But it’s just kind of… In essence, it’s re-energized me. I still write new music. We’ll be recording some new music next year. But it’s just revitalized me… re-renergized. That’s all I can say. So any ideas that I had six months ago of retiring… I was totally honest, when I was making interviews, that I thought, you know, ‘This is probably it.’ But I had an incredibly good time on this U.S. tour with my musicians. It was incredible.”

He continued: “It was very important to us not just to… An amazing discovery for me, when I rediscovered this music, was how fucking incredible DEEP PURPLE was. ‘Cause I’m not a nostalgic guy. I don’t listen to this music all the time; not at all. I had to reintroduce myself to these songs. And it wasn’t a situation of just recreating them; it was a situation of reinventing some of them. There was not one moment that I said to any of my musicians, ‘I want you to play this like Ian Paice.’ ‘I want you to play this like Tommy Bolin or Glenn Hughes.’ The musicians, starting with Tommy Aldridge on drums, came in and made their individual statement on these songs. Everybody contributed to this project in the most positive way, and even now that we’ve been performing these songs, it’s even better than when we were recording them. And it just makes it more inspiring to look at the future for new stuff, with these guys. They are fabulous musicians, great people. I have no desire to hang up my rock and roll sneakers just yet.”

WHITESNAKE‘s new touring lineup — David Coverdale (vocals), Joel Hoekstra (guitar), Reb Beach (guitar), Michael Devin (bass), Tommy Aldridge (drums) and Michele Luppi (keyboards) — made its live debut on May 28 at Northern Quest Casino in Airway Heights, Washington.

PURPLE classics revamped for “The Purple Album” include “Stormbringer”, “Lady Double Dealer”, “Soldier Of Fortune” and “Sail Away”.

The deluxe edition of “The Purple Album” features two bonus tracks, four music videos and a “Behind The Scenes” featurette on the recording of the album.

 

David Coverdale