News
GEOFF TATE Vs. MICHAEL WILTON: Battle Over QUEENSRŸCHE Name
Tate and his wife, Susan, QUEENSRŸCHE's former manager, filed a lawsuit in June 2012 asking the judge to award them the rights to the band's name in exchange for Tate paying Eddie Jackson (bass), Michael Wilton and Scott Rockenfield (drums) the fair market value for their interests in the QUEENSRŸCHE companies. Wilton, Rockenfield and Jackson filed a countersuit against the Tates in which they accused Geoff of creative obstruction and violent behavior, and Susan Tate of questionable business practices.
On Tate's belief that the lawsuit comes down to one thing — money:
Tate: "This is all about getting rid of somebody so that there would be more money to split between a fewer amount of people. QUEENSRŸCHE is and was an incredibly successful business entity worldwide. And to completely dismantle it is an act of foolishness."
On how the court case will play out in January:
Tate: "It's a corporate dispute. And the judge will decide on the value of the brand and the corporation. There's a formula to figure that out. It's not about a moral thing or anything like that. It's just a simple case of dollar exchange."
On other members of QUEENSRŸCHE's claim that Tate refused to play much of the band's classic material in concert and was responsible for the ill-fated 2010 Queensrÿche Cabarettour and using outside co-writers, producers and musicians to make the "Operation: Mindcrime II", "American Soldier" and "Dedicated To Chaos" albums:
Wilton: "As an artist, as a guitar player, it's not too much fun when your parts are being replaced or you don't even know if they're going to make the CD of the band you've been with for 30 years. It's a little disheartening, to say the least."
On Tate's claim that bandmates made little to no effort to participate creatively inQUEENSRŸCHE's projects:
Tate: "There was me writing and coming up with directions and ideas and concepts, and then the other guys were contributing performances in the studio. So we had to find other people to work with us in order to make a record and make things happen."
THE HAUNTED’s New Lineup To Perform Live For First Time At 70000 TONS OF METAL
The new lineup of Swedish metallers THE HAUNTED will make its live debut during the 2014 edition of "The World's Biggest Heavy Metal Cruise" — 70000 Tons Of Metal — which will sail January 27 to January 31 from Miami, Florida to Costa Maya, Mexico and back.
THE HAUNTED is finally back in the spotlight after almost a year without public activity and restructuring behind closed doors, following a major switch of lineups around fall of 2012.
THE HAUNTED's 2013 lineup:
* Patrik Jensen - Guitar
* Ola Englund (SIX FEET UNDER, FEARED) - Guitar
* Marco Aro (THE RESISTANCE, FACE DOWN) - Vocals
* Jonas Björler - Bass
* Adrian Erlandsson (AT THE GATES, PARADISE LOST) - Drums
THE HAUNTED's founding member and guitarist Patrik Jensen stated about the band's new lineup: "THE HAUNTED went through some difficult times last year. Losing three band members is a pretty huge blow to any band. Jonas and I agreed immediately that we wanted to continue with the band, but we wanted to take our time and not rush into anything.
"Some of you might recognize a few faces, some of you might not. Adrian Erlandsson is back on drums and Marco Aro is back on vocals. Adrian you might know from playing on our first album and Marco sang on 'The Haunted Made Me Do It', 'Live Rounds In Tokyo' and 'One Kill Wonder'. On guitar we also have Ola Englund bringing some pretty heavy chops to the band.
"We're all VERY excited about having THE HAUNTED back in working shape again and we can't wait to get back out on the road to play for our very patient and faithful fans again. A new album is also already in the works and if you are familiar with the individual band members of this new lineup, you can be assured that the new material will grab you by the throat from the get-go!"
GODSMACK Begins Writing New Material
The members of GODSMACK have regrouped in Florida to begin writing material for their next album, tentatively due in early 2014.
GODSMACK took most of 2013 off. The band spent much of 2012 on the road, both with the Uproar festival tour and Mass Chaos trek, and frontman Sully Erna said that a break was in order. He explained to ARTISTdirect.com, "We're going to take some time away now because we just ran for the last two years. It's time for us to take a break and get away from the markets for a little bit so we don't overplay them."
GODSMACK's last studio effort, "The Oracle", came out in 2010. The group issued a concert album in 2012 called "Live And Inspired", which also featured newly recorded studio covers of some of the band's favorite classic rock songs, including JOE WALSH's "Rocky Mountain Way", METALLICA's "Nothing Else Matters", THE BEATLES' "Come Together" and PINK FLOYD's "Time".
New MOTÖRHEAD Song Featured In VANS’ Rowley Pro Lite Commercial
A new MOTÖRHEAD song titled "Knife" is featured in the commercial for Vans' Rowley Pro Lite shoes. Check it out below.
"Knife" comes off MOTÖRHEAD's 21st studio album, "Aftershock", which sold 11,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 22 on The Billboard 200 chart.
MOTÖRHEAD's previous CD, 2011's "The Wörld Is Yours", opened with 7,000 units to enter the chart at No. 94. The band's 2008 effort, "Motörizer", premiered with 6,400 copies to debut at No. 82, while 2006's "Kiss Of Death" registered a first-week tally of 3,500.
"Aftershock" was recorded at NRG Studios in North Hollywood, California and is described in a press release as "a true leveler, a crushing confirmation of everything MOTÖRHEAD stands for, marching from the dust storm to deliver 14 belting statements which see MOTÖRHEAD in perhaps their best writing form for years. There's swagger, there's punch, there's speed and there’s dirty filthy grooves, Lemmy Kilmister, Phil Campbell and Mikkey Dee showing clearly that MOTÖRHEAD is not simply a band, it's a genre!"
MOTÖRHEAD canceled a handful of shows on its European festival tour in August afterLemmy suffered a haematoma (where blood collects outside of a blood vessel). The news ofLemmy's latest medical issue followed reports that he was also recently fitted with a defibrillator because of heart problems. The band has since also postponed a European headlining tour which was scheduled to kick off in November.
PROTEST THE HERO: ‘Underbite’ Video Released
"Underbite", the new video from Canada's PROTEST THE HERO, can be seen below. The song comes off the band's fourth studio album, "Volition", which sold around 11,400 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 20 on The Billboard 200 chart.
The long-awaited follow-up to 2011's "Scurrilous" (Vagrant), "Volition" was licensed to series of worldwide partners who are helping distribute and market it to both traditional stores alongside digital service providers, thus making the new record available on a worldwide scale.
PROTEST THE HERO and Razor & Tie joined forces for the United States, while the album was released in Canada through Sony Music and in the rest of the word via Spinefarm.
"Volition" track listing:
01. Clarity
02. Drum-Head Trial
03. Tilting Against Windmills
04. Without Prejudice
05. Yellow Teeth
06. Plato's Tripartite
07. A Life Embossed
08. Mist
09. Underbite
10. Animal Bones
11. Skies
The cover artwork can be seen below.
After the departure of longtime drummer Moe Carlson, PROTEST THE HERO enlisted LAMB OF GOD's Chris Adler to sit behind the kit for the recording sessions of "Volition". Now with extensive touring on the horizon, PROTEST THE HERO has decided to fill the slot permanently with Mike Ieradi.
CRYSTAL TEARS: ‘Out Of The Shadows’ Video Released
"Out Of The Shadows" comes off CRYSTAL TEARS' third album, "Hellmade", which will be released this winter via Massacre Records. The CD was recorded with producer Roberto Dimitri Liapakis (MYSTIC PROPHECY, SUICIDAL ANGELS, DEVIL'S TRAIN) and was mixed and mastered at Prophecy & Music Factory Studios in Germany. The cover artwork was designed by Siege Ind, who has previously worked with SCAR SYMMETRY, SUICIDE SILENCEand BLEED FROM WITHIN.
CRYSTAL TEARS was formed in the late '90s in Greece and issued several demos before the arrival of the band's debut album, "Choirs Of Immortal", in 2006 via Pure Steel Records. It didn't take long until they shared stages with bands such as W.A.S.P., RIOT and JAG PANZER.
CRYSTAL TEARS has left its mark as one of Greece's best heavy metal acts and has proven to be a persistent, innovative and unstoppable force. Their musical roots can be traced back to the good ol' heavy metal of the '80s up to modern metal.
CRYSTAL TEARS recently announced the addition of Danish singer Søren Adamsen (ex-ARTILLERY) and Hungarian guitarist Matt Nagy to the group's ranks.
New CRYSTAL TEARS lineup:
Søren Adamsen - Vocals
Kostas Sotos - Guitar
Mate Nagy - Guitar
Alex Hamalidis - Bass
Chrisafis Tantanozis - Drums
CRYSTAL TEARS is working on the first of two videos in support of the new album.
The band's last CD, "Generation X", was released in June 2010 via 7Hard.
‘South Park’ Uses VAN HALEN To Unite Christians, Jews, And Muslims
VAN HALEN helped usher in peace on Earth during the "Ginger Cow" episode of "South Park", which aired last night. In the episode, Jews, Muslims, and Christians finally come together in total harmony, and the only song worthy of such a profound commemoration is is a rocking version of "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love". Check out the clip below.
Earlier in the year, VAN HALEN singer David Lee Roth gave an interview to Rolling Stone in which he expressed his desire to work on fresh material with Eddie Van Halen and tour outside the U.S., saying, "We have an audience and we have a potential future in many, many places . . . I don't know where the VAN HALEN future lies aside from the States."
The band has been touring in support of its February 2012 release, "A Different Kind Of Truth", which was its first album with Roth in 28 years.
Second RONNIE JAMES DIO Limited-Edition Statue Coming From KnuckleBonz
The Ronnie James Dio II Rock Iconz statue is the second limited edition collectible created by KnuckleBonz. This statue of Dio is slated to ship for holiday 2013 and stands approximately nine inches tall and is hand-painted and numbered. This is an extremely limited edition of only 1000 created worldwide.
The Dio II Rock Iconz statue comes with a certificate of authenticity. The figure is officially licensed through Niji Entertainment.
For more information, visit KnuckleBonz.com.
The first Ronnie James Dio limited-edition statue was made available in December 2010.
"We learned that Ronnie wanted to work on a statue project before he fell ill. We are honored that Wendy Dio and his management called on us for this project," Tony Simerman, president and creative director of KnuckleBonz, Inc., stated at the time.
"It's been a real pleasure to work with Ronnie's family and the people at Niji on this project.
"I was a fan of Ronnie's very early and owned all the original RAINBOW records. I was fortunate enough to see him out in front of SABBATH. Ronnie James Dio was one of the greatest live performers I have ever seen."
KnuckleBonz creates hi-end sculpture that features rock's most highly influential artists. Dedicated to honoring rocks greatest through master artistry, KnuckleBonz established the music-based sculpture series Rock Iconz.
JON DETTE Performs With ICED EARTH For First Time (Video)
For the remainder of ICED EARTH's European tour with VOLBEAT, Jon Dette (SLAYER,TESTAMENT, ANTHRAX) is sitting behind the drums, taking over for Raphael Saini, who filled in during the summer festivals, the recording of ICED EARTH's new album, and the club leg of the VOLBEAT tour.
Dette made his live debut with ICED EARTH last night (Wednesday, November 6) at O2 World in Berlin, Germany. Fan-filmed video footage of the concert can be seen below.
Commented ICED EARTH: "Raphael came in and helped us out of a tight spot this summer with a full schedule of festivals, a new album to finish, and no room for diversion on the schedule. He came in and delivered and we are very grateful for that. We wish him all the best for his future endeavours."
Added Raphael: "When I had the chance to join ICED EARTH for their summer festivals and the new album, I couldn't say no: I was really excited even though I knew that it was going to be something temporary.
"I am honored to be part of the band's history, an amazing album, and to have worked with some supremely talented musicians. My journey will continue, there's more to come."
ICED EARTH earlier in the year parted ways with drummer Brent Smedley for "personal family reasons."
ICED EARTH will release its new album, "Plagues Of Babylon", in January 2014 via Century Media Records. The cover artwork was created and illustrated by Eliran