The Greatest Rock Metal News Report 12.05.07
Posted by Dan Haggerty on 12.05.2007
Dan Haggerty invades the Rock Report this week to bring you the latest! Led Zeppelin The Roller Coaster Ride, Iron Maiden customizes a Boeing 757, Lemmy gets busted for smoking a cigarette, reports on the Helloween/Gamma Ray setlist, and viking metal Peganfest tour updates. All this and more in the latest edition of The Greatest Rock News Report!
Intro!
Greetings and salutations, this is the Greatest Rock News Report Vol. 666. I'm your host this week, Dan Haggerty, and ah…
WAIT!
Don't back page yet. You're esteemed normal writer, Daniel Wilcox is out still, taking care of important business elsewhere - So you get an abby-normal writer this week. Bonus points to you if you got that reference. Anyway, Dan is out, but he cared enough about you, his faithful readers, to get someone to fill in for the next two weeks. So no need to fear, I'll be making this as painless as possible. Besides, from reading his columns, I've noticed the Mr. Wilcox and I share similar taste in wrestling, and we also share an honest no-nonsense love of music. He comes here, tells it like he sees it, and keeps it real. And that's what I'm going to do.
As for our taste in music, well, let's say I kind of like things a little tougher…
Louder…
And a whole lot heavier…
So let's tare this place up!
Music, News, & Corpsepaint
Your 411Music News as seen through the eyes of a metalhead
This is your 411 music news, and you should be checking it out daily. Some great people bust their asses 24/7 to get you the cutting edge of what's up in the industry!
Evidently, the king of pop (that's Michael Jackson for those who missed his quasi-normal years) will release a 25th anniversary edition of Thriller. Further, he thinks a re-issue of the second best selling album in history can't stand on its own merits, so he has Kanye West, Akon, and will.i.am on board for some remixes. Mind you, we're not talking about new music, but remixes of songs from Thriller. How sad is that. Seriously, the dude needs to reach down and find a pair – Assuming those haven't been surgically changed as well. But if he found the guts to do something musically relevant, then he would get these guys together to produce an album of new material. That would be huge. But leave your landmark album alone; it's your album, you should believe in it.
Now Madonna did reach down and find a pair, because that is exactly what she is doing. Kanye West, Justin Timberlake, and Timbaland will make appearances on her next album, as she does what Madonna does best: Reinvents herself, makes waves, and tries to stay relevant. Make no doubt about it, this women knows what she is doing. Not that I plan on buying the CD, just that I found it interesting to see Jackson and Madonna's career paths superimposed next to each other. One is a music genius (idiot savant?) who has no one being honest with him on how to handle the technical/business end of making albums, thus he flounders around. The second has moderate talent, but is a shrewd tactician that understands the technical/business end of making albums, and enjoys a healthy, money making career in the pop world. Just the crazy things I think about when I read the news. Think about it though and you'll get a good idea of some of the things that are wrong in the mainstream music industry.
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers have been confirmed for the Super Bowl halftime show. That's cool, and about as good as I can expect to get for something like this. If they would have asked me, I would have put Slayer in there. That would have livened things up. I would LOVE to see the size of the mosh pit that would have generated.
And then have Terry Bradshaw call play by play on it.
The Osbourne's will announce the Brit Awards. Man, what did you guys do wrong over there to keep getting them put on your TV. Good lord, Ozzy is a shadow of his former self and Sharon is just a shadow. Speaking of Sharon, I should cut her some slack for once, as she auctioned off a bunch of Osbourne stuff for charity. In total, fans bought enough stuff for them to raise $800,000 for the Sharon Osbourne Colon Cancer Foundation. So that's pretty cool. Now she needs to get off of the TV.
Speaking of people who are in it for the money, GeneTM SimmonsTM will be appearing on "Ugly Betty". No word yet on his role, but my guess is that it will be as a trial lawyer.
Meanwhile, on the other end of the music spectrum, Santana has announced the release of a new album next year. I'm actually excited about this. It is marked to be a 3CD album with no collaborations; just back to basics. The dude can play, so if there is no one else on board causing pointless filler (read: no useless pop singles), and he's going to go a bit more old school, this could be fun. I'm a jaded metalhead, so I'll wait and see how this develops; but I think this is one to keep an eye on.
Metallica and Led Zeppelin are rumored to both headline the next Bonnarroo Music Festival in Tennessee. If Led Zeppelin has their shit together, combined with Metallica having their shit together (i.e. play their old material) then this could be pretty awesome. I'm skeptical of this however. If the Zeps are getting $125 a ticket now, I can't imagine what this show would cost; probably a vital organ.
Spear's did nothing to help her career this week, but she did do something that will make no one any money except Entertainment Tonight. I bet I can copy/paste that last sentence into next weeks column unchanged. Under the same headlines, Amy Winehouse may beat Britney in the talent department, but now she is working overtime to pass the pop-tart on all other levels. You can see the picture of her here sporting the hot new "I want to guess stared on Cops" look. Yikes.
Finally, Slash loves South American hookers. I like American hookers that love to go south.
Metal, News, and You
Where I search the net for the metal news fit to print
Eddie Takes To The Air!
Work has begun on customizing Iron Maiden's Astraeus Boeing 757 for the first leg of their upcoming Somewhere Back In Time Tour. The band plan to hold a "Name The Plane" competition with Iron Maiden Fan Club members soon.
This is just to cool. Here is a picture of the plane being worked on:
And here is what the finished product could look like:
More Iron Maiden Fun
Evidently, there is a graphic artist with to much time on his hand, because he has done a bunch of Iron Maiden album (and singles) covers with none other than Sponge Bob inserted for Eddie…
If you're interested in more fun, you can check out the rest here
Even death metal bands have families…
Kataklysm welcomes a new addition to the family - on November 22nd bassist Stéphane Barbe and girlfriend Vicky welcomed a healthy baby girl by the name of Lilia Barbe. A healthy 7 and a 1/2 pounds. Says the band: "all the best wishes from all your brothers in Kataklysm and crew!! Stephane will rejoin the band for the last four dates of the Chimaira tour starting in Montréal." Until then, Francois Mongrain from tech masters Martyr is currently filling in on bass.
I don't know what's cooler about this. The girls first bring your parents to school day, or dads first bring your daughter to work day. Either way, there is no way she getting picked on by the other kids at school. Kataklysm is brutal. Seriously, they smoke. Not for the faint of heart.
Something Wicked is Streaming Through Cyberspace
Iced Earth have posted the track 'Something Wicked - Part I', from their new CD Framing Armageddon (Something Wicked Part I) on the band's official MySpace page.
Just in case you want to check it out for FREE. After the bands last album, I don't blame people for being skeptical, but Framing Armageddon (Something Wicked Part I) is the best thing they have put out in a while. You can check out the songs here
Why Does Europe Get All The Cool Music Festivals
The 2008 edition of Italy's Gods Of Metal Festival (www.godsofmetal.it) will be taking place at the Arena Parco Nord in Bologna from June 27th - 29th.
Joining the previously announced June 27th headliner Iron Maiden on the festival bill are Judas Priest, Meshuggah, At The Gates, Enslaved, and Yngwie Malmsteen. Priest will be headlining the 29th.More bands will be announced soon.
Maybe Mitch will send me to this show so I can do a concert review.
I can dream.
The Classics Are Still Hot!
Forty years after performing at the Monterey Pop Festival, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, and Otis Redding are all long gone.
But a T-shirt that one rock journalist wore to the extraordinary show survives - and goes up for auction Friday. Writer Greg Shaw's yellow YARDBIRDS shirt is one of the most-prized items in a collection of 30 vintage T-shirts on the block at Christie's in Rockefeller Center. Auction house officials believe it's the largest collection of rock T-shirts ever offered for sale.
What's truly amazing is that the shirts, once destined for little more than closet floors or roadies' backs, reached the new millennium. Their survival is attributed to little more than random chance.
The lightweight shirts also represent several other heavyweight bands: Led Zeppelin, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Who, The Doors, and Pink Floyd.
I can't wait to see what crazy price these go for. But more importantly, this story hits close to home, as I LOVE concert shirts. If I go to a show, I buy a shirt. Sure, I justify it by thinking about the bands I'm supporting (they get more money from merchandising versus CD sales), but honestly, I just love to collect shirts. Every one of them is a great memory.
How many concert shirts do you have? And what are your favorites?
Metal and Political Correctness Do Not Play Well Together
Lemmy Kilminster, frontman of legendary Motorhead, is facing a fine after smoking a cigarette on stage. The band were supporting Alice Cooper at the Hallam Arena in Sheffield, England where Lemmy lit up mid performance. In England, smoking was banned in public places in July 2007, thus making his rock 'n' rollness a blatant flaunting of the law. A police spokesperson said, "Other venues on the tour will be notified and appropriate action may be taken should any further incidents take place."
He faces a 100 pound fine.
First of all, I love how the article basically sneers at him with "his rock 'n' rollness a blatant flaunting of the law". I live for the day when the world sneers at laws that take freedoms away, instead of the reverse.
Oh to hell with it, Lemmy probably just said "fuck you" and lit up anyway. After all, how many kids were in the audience getting high during the performance? I don't blame him.
Second, not only do you folks across the pond have the Osbournes to deal with, but now you're sucking hard on American political correctness. You gave us two British invasions, and we gave you this? You got shafted on that deal my friends.
Speaking of Motorhead…
Not News, But It's To Cool To Not Talk About
Originally expected to ship in mid-December, the Lemmy Kilmister Motörhead action figure has been delayed until February due to manufacturing issues. It's expected to retail for $21.95.
As previously reported, this 6-inch Lemmy action figure will include one of three randomly inserted bass guitars and accessories, as well as a base for the action figure featuring one of four randomly themed backdrops.
I didn't even know they were doing a Lemmy figure. That's just to cool. It should come with a pack of cigarettes.
I Demand A Recount
For the 34th Annual People's Choice Awards, Van Halen has been grouped alongside The Police and Genesis in the Best Reunion Tour category. The public can log on to the People's Choice Awards Website (www.pcavote.com) and cast their votes. Fans have until December 5 to vote…
What? No Heaven and Hell. Bastards.
Actually, to be fair, I saw Genesis this year and that was a lot of fun. What can I say; I have a soft spot for 70's progressive rock. Saw Heaven and Hell however and they absolutely ruled.
"Led Zeppelin The Ride" Roller Coster
Discovery Myrtle Beach, the website that has brought official updates on the construction of the new Hard Rock Park in South Carolina has posted what looks to be the first test run of the new Led Zeppelin The Ride roller coaster!
The 150 ft tall Bolliger & Mabillard-built looping coaster traversed its course without any issues, but did seem a bit sluggish in spots. Though many coasters are slower on their first runs until they get broken in.
A hard rock theme park? That sounds like that could either rock or be lame. Here's to hoping it will not be a pointless tourist trap. In the interim, here is some video footage of the Led Zeppelin coaster making its test run…
If you ask me, it looks like the ride is too short. Meh.
And if it is a hard rock theme park, I demand an Alice Cooper haunted house! How cool would that be. Zombies in bloody wedding gowns could chase you and everything.
I Thought Humanity Grew Up
A crusade is looming as church groups prepare to take on heavy metal heavyweights poised to play in Wellington [New Zealand] over Easter. Wellington pentecostal church Lifepoint says the lineup of bands - including former bat-biter Ozzy Osbourne and KissTM - are "not appropriate" and will have "negative influences" on the city during the two-day Rock2Wgtn festival on March 22 and 23.
They plan to lobby other church groups and will look at taking their concerns to Wellington City Council. "It's not appropriate from our angle of things," said pastor Karen Crawshaw. "I don't think we can force our views on others but at the same time we think it's a very negative influence on our city. And further, "It'll put a damper on the things the church traditionally focuses on at the Easter season." The condemnation follows confirmation that another hellish rock act, Finnish heavy metal band Lordi, has been booked to appear at the Wellington event. The band, whose five members dress in elaborate costumes as monsters and demons, won the Eurovision song contest last year.
I just love how she says she doesn't think she can force her views on others, but then tries to do exactly that; assclowns, the whole lot of them. Got news for you lady, the fact you haven't graduated from the dark ages by thinking you can force your religious view point on others is "not appropriate" and "a very negative influence". Welcome to the enlightenment, population the rest of us.
The Hottest Speed/Power Concert On Tour
Italian news blog Musica Metal has released the setlist for the current Gamma Ray and Helloween show:
Gamma Ray's setlist was as follows:
01. Intro: Welcome
02. Heaven Can Wait
03. New World Order
04. Land Of The Free
05. Fight
06. Into The Storm
07. Real World
08. Rebellion In Dreamland
09. Heavy Metal Universe
10. The Silence
11. Ride The Sky
12. Valley Of The Kings
Encore:
13. Send Me A Sign
Helloween's setlist was as follows:
01. Halloween
02. Sole Survivor
03. March Of Time
04. As Long As I Fall
05. Eagle Fly Free
06. Paint A New World
07. A Tale That Wasn't Right
08. Drum Solo
09. The Bells Of The Seven Hells
10. We Burn
11. King For A 1000 Years
12. Dr. Stein
13. Medley: Perfect Gentleman Pt. 1 / I Can / Where The Rain Grows / If I Could Fly / Perfect Gentleman Pt. 2 / Power / Keeper Of The Seven Keys
14. Future World (with GAMMA RAY)
15. I Want Out (with GAMMA RAY)
This looks like one hell of a concert, and I can't wait for it to come to North America. You not only get the original speed/power metal band in Helloween, but you get it's original guitarist and songwriter Kai Hansen in his later band Gamma Ray to boot! And if that was not enough, he performs with Helloween on the last two songs. It's the perfect reunion. This has awesome written all over it.
Metal Concerts Not To Miss
The Black Dahlia Murder, with 3 Inches of Blood, Hate Eternal, and Decrepit:
Jan. 15 - Rochester, NY - Club @ Water Street
Jan. 16 - New York, NY - B.B. King's Blues Club
Jan. 17 - Baltimore, MD - Ottobar
Jan. 18 - Philadelphia, PA - Fillmore
Jan. 19 - Worcester, MA - Palladium Upstairs
Jan. 20 - Richmond, VA - Alley Katz
Jan. 21 - Atlanta, GA - Masquerade
Jan. 22 - Tampa, FL - State Theatre
Jan. 23 - Ft. Lauderdale, FL - Culture Room
Jan. 25 - Houston, TX - Meridian
Jan. 26 - Ft. Worth - The Rockyard
Jan. 27 - San Antonio, TX - White Rabbit
Jan. 29 - Phoenix, AZ - Marquee Theater
Jan. 30 - San Diego, CA - Soma Side Stage
Jan. 31 - W. Hollywood, CA - Key Club
Feb. 01 - Pomona, CA - Glasshouse
Feb. 02 - San Francisco, CA - Slims
Feb. 03 - Portland, OR - Hawthorne Theatre
Feb. 04 - Seattle, WA - El Corazon
Feb. 05 - Boise, ID - The Venue
Feb. 06 - Salt Lake City, UT - Avalon Theatre
Feb. 07 - Denver, CO - Marquis Theater
Feb. 08 - Lawrence, KS - Granada Theater
Feb. 09 - Minneapolis, MN - Station 4
Feb. 10 - Iowa City, IA - Picador
Feb. 12 - Sauget, IL - Pops
Feb. 13 - Chicago, IL - House of Blues
Feb. 14 - Cleveland, OH - Peabody's
Feb. 15 - Detroit, MI - The Majestic
Normally, I would pass on this one, but BDM's new album sounds like they have abandoned the metalcore sound and delved into straight up death metal.
Ensiferum, Turisas, Tyr, and Eluveitie will team up for the Paganfest USA tour beginning in April. Confirmed dates so far are as follows:
Apr. 25 - Toronto, ON - Opera House
Apr. 26 - Montreal, QC - Medley
Apr. 27 - Worcester, MA - Palladium
Apr. 28 - Springfield, VA - Jaxx
Apr. 29 - Cleveland, OH - Peabody's
Apr. 30 - Detroit, MI - Harpo's
May 01 - Chicago, IL - The Pearl Room (Chicago Powerfest)
May 05 - Seattle, WA - Studio Seven
May 06 - Portland, OR - Hawthorne Theater
May 07 - Sacramento, CA - The Boardwalk
May 10 - Orange County, CA - California Metalfest
May 15 - Dallas/Ft. Worth, TX - Ridglea Theater
May 16 - San Antonio, TX - The White Rabbit
May 17 - Houston, TX - Java Jazz
May 22 - New York, NY - BB King Blues Club & Grill
*More dates will be announced soon*
This is one hell of a Viking metal tour, and if I can find a way I'll be hitting the show in Detroit. If you haven't checked out real hardcore Viking metal, do yourself a favor and pick some Ensiferum up.
Iron Maiden's Somewhere Back In Time World Tour dates have expanded to include:
February
1 - Mumbai, India - Bandra Kurla Complex
4 - Perth, Australia - Burswood Dome
6 - Melbourne, Australia - Rod Laver Arena
7 - Melbourne, Australia - Rod Laver Arena
9 - Sydney, Australia - Acer Arena
10 - Sydney, Australia - Acer Arena
12 - Brisbane, Australia - Entertainment Centre
15 - Yokohama, Japan - Pacifico Yokohama
16 - Tokyo, Japan - Messe
19 - Los Angeles, CA - The Forum
21 - Guadalajara, Mexico - Auditoria Telmex
22 - Monterrey, Mexico - Monterrey Arena
24 - Mexico City, Mexico - Sports Palace
26 - San Jose, Costa Rica - Saprisa Stadium
28 - Bogota, Columbia - Simon Bolivar Park
March
2 - Sao Paulo, Brazil - Skol Arena Anhembi
5 - Porto Allegre, Brazil - Gigantinho
7 - Buenos Aires, Argentina - Ferrofcarril Oeste Stadium
9 - Santiago, Chile - Pista Atletica
12 - Puerto Rico - San Juan Coliseo
14 - New Jersey, USA - Izod Center (formerly Continental Airlines Arena)
16 - Toronto, ON - Air Canada Centre
July
1 - Paris, France - Ominisport De Bercy Arena
5 - London, UK - Twickenham Rugby Stadium
16 - Stockholm, Sweden - Stockholm Stadium
18 - Helsinki, Finland - Helsinki Olympic Stadium
19 - Tampere, Finland - Ratinan Stadion
22 - Trondheim, Norway - Lerkendalstadium
24 - Oslo, Norway - Valle Hovin
26 - Gothenburg, Sweden - Ullevi Stadium
27 - Horsens, Denmark - Horsens Gods Bane Pladsen
August
1st – 3rd - Wachen Open Air Festival - Wacken, Germany
Man, this tour is nothing but old school. This is something not to miss.
Kataklysm dates with Chimaira and Terror include:
November
30 - Key Club - Los Angeles, CA
December
1 - Glasshouse - Pomona, CA
2 - House of Blues - San Diego, CA
4 - The Rock - Tucson, AZ
5 - Sunshine Theater - Albuquerque, NM
6 - Tulsa, OK - The Otherside *
7 - White Rabbit - San Antonio, TX
8 - Meridian - Houston, TX
9 - New Orleans, LA - House Of Blues
10 - Atlanta, GA - The Masquerade
11 - St. Petersburg, FL - State Theatre
12 - Ft. Lauderdale, FL - Culture Room
13 - Jacksonville, FL - The Pit *
14 - Jacksonville, NC - Hooligans
15 - Springfield, VA - Jaxx
16 - New Haven, CT - Toad's Place
17 - Pompton Lakes, NJ - The Mainstage *
18 - Burlington, VT - Higher Ground
19 - Montreal, QC - Club Soda
20 - Toronto, ON - Opera House
21 - Millvale, PA - Mr. Small's Theatre
22 - Cleveland, OH - House of Blues
(* Kataklysm only)
Candlemass has expanded its American Tour (with Daylight Dies!) to the following dates:
May
19 - Springfield, VA - Jaxx
20 - New York, NY - B.B. King Blues Club
22 - Sayreville, NJ - Starland Ballroom
23 - Cleveland, OH - Peabody's
24 - Mokena, IL - The Pearl Room
25 - St Paul, MN - Station 4
28 - Seattle, WA - Studio Seven
29 - Portland, OR - Hawthorne Theatre
30 - San Francisco, CA - Slim's
Oh hell yea! I am so there on May 24th, it's not even a choice - This band is great. If you go, look for the middle-aged dude having a doomgasm up front. That will be me, and if you mention this column I'll buy you a drink!
Outro!
Well, it's been real! I'll be seeing you this Friday in The Mosh Pit, and unless Wilcox catches wind of what I have done to his column, I'll see you here next week for another spin of music, metal, and news.
