Tommy Lee Vs Tommy Lee

The ad continues, "WHAT UP BEAUTIFUL BUNNIES. I'M TOMASS, LOOKING FOR HUNNIES TO PARTY WITH, MOSTLY WEST COAST BUT I TRAVEL THE WORLD SO IF YOU ELSEWHERE, WE COULD STILL CHILL." - more on this story

Is Axl Rose Really A Monster?

antiMusic reports: We've all read press accounts of Axl Rose's craziness and alleged exploits. But just how true are these tales? Is Axl really the monster he has been made out to be? Or is it exaggeration? Former Guns N' Roses drummer Josh Freese recently spoke about the real Axl vs the perceived version of Axl.

Josh Freese hasn't been a member of GNR for nearly a decade (he left to become a founding member of A Perfect Circle) but the press is still fascinated with "Crazy" Axl stories, so it's no surprise that Spinner.com broached the subject with him. "Everyone always baits me to give them a crazy Axl story. I don't really have any," he told the online pub. "I spent two years in a studio with him [and] I never saw any mood swings. He was never not cool to me. So, I am always quick to defend the guy, even though I know his reality is different than mine. Then again, everyone has a different reality."

Freese auditioned for Axl's new version of GNR in 1997, albeit a little reluctantly. "I was pretty busy at the time, so I didn't really need the job necessarily," he says. "Then I decided that I should go down there because I wanted to meet him. At the time, no one had seen him for a couple of years and there were all these rumors. He had become the Howard Hughes of rock 'n' roll and I wanted to see it. I went down and I liked him. He wasn't the monster that was painted of him."
- Read the Spinner.com article for more

Peter Gabriel Era Genesis Getting Vinyl Boxset Treatment

Rhino reports: After upgrading the Genesis catalog of studio albums with a trio of comprehensive boxed sets, Rhino brings the band's early years back to their LP origins with GENESIS 1970-1975, a vinyl boxed set that contains five albums (on six discs) with lead singer Peter Gabriel. It streets April 14.

Each Genesis vinyl album contains new stereo mixes done by Nick Davis. They are presented in heavyweight gatefold sleeves that feature the original covers, faithfully reproduced from their original sources. All of the albums are collected in a protective slipcase.

One of the top-selling recording artists of all time, Genesis has sold more than 150 million albums so far. This five-album set collects some of the band's most adventurous and ground-breaking records, covering Gabriel's tenure with the group. - more on this story

Metallica Plan New DVD?- Solo Temple Pilot Tour- Lucky Dube Killers Get Life- Blur Reunion Support- Montreux Fest- Jayhawks Return- Top 100 Indie Albums? and more

antiMusic reports: Metalunderground reports: News is coming in that Metallica will be filming a brand new live DVD on July 7th at the Antic Arena in Nimes, France. This will be the first live home video the band has released in ten years, following the classical flavored 'S&M' release. more

Stone Temple Pilots/ex-Velvet Revolver singer Scott Weiland and his solo band have announced a string of solo dates in North America. Grab them here

A judge sentenced three men convicted of murdering an internationally known South African reggae star in a botched carjacking to life in prison Thursday. Lucky Dube's 2007 killing drew worldwide attention to crime in South Africa, which has one of the world's highest murder rates. The 43-year-old singer was gunned down in his car in front of his children in suburban Johannesburg.more

Malawi's child welfare minister is backing Madonna's bid to adopt a second child from the impoverished southern African country. more A Malawian judge could rule Friday on Madonna's request to adopt a second child from the impoverished southern African country amid criticism from some activists who say the little girl would be best off with relatives in Malawi.more

Blur have recruited Klaxons and Florence And The Machine for their comeback gig in Manchester. The band will play the city's MEN Arena on June 26, where they'll be joined by the two acts. more

B.B. King, Herbie Hancock, Black Eyed Peas and Lauryn Hill are booked to perform at the Montreux Jazz festival, one of Europe's most prestigious summer music events, organizers said on Thursday.more

The Jayhawks, the lauded Americana band originally from Minneapolis, are reuniting their mid-90s line-up for a pair of summer shows, with plans to play together more next year. The band is set to headline the Basilica Block Party in Minneapolis on July 10, marking the first time the Jayhawks will play with both principals Gary Louris and Mark Olson in the United States in over a decade.more

Death Angel will release their first ever live DVD this year entitled, 'Sonic German Beatdown.' The DVD contains two concerts filmed live in Germany, as well as two video clips and a bonus live CD.more

Rise Against have announced plans to release a limited edition seven inch via Fat Wreck Chords, due out this summer.more

Soon-to-be Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Jeff Beck will make his first ever festival appearance at the Festival International de Jazz de Montreal, as part of the massive lineup for the 30th anniversary of the summer concert eventmore

Defunct hardcore/metal band Until The End has resurfaced with, if nothing else, plans for a June reunion show.more

AC Entertainment, co-creator of the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Manchester, Tenn., has acquired Nashville-based concert promotion company Great Big Shows.more

U.S. album sales in March 2009 were 17.9% lower than the same period in 2008 and 29.8% lower than the same week in 2007, according to SoundScan information available at Billboard.bizmore

Nightwish will play a special homecoming show at the Hartwall Arena in Helsinki on September 19 to mark the end of the band's colossal "Dark Passion Play" world tour. Support at the gig will come from Apocalyptica.more

Daath is about to unleash their brand-new album 'The Concealers', which will be released on April 20th (Europe) and April 21st (US). more

Anvil are strongly rumored to have landed the opening slot on at least some of the shows on the upcoming Judas Priest / Whitesnake North American tour. more

Wanna Laugh? Amazon's "editors" have tossed together their list of "100 Greatest Indie Rock Albums of All Time." That comedy is here It's pretty funny but not nearly as hilarious as their "100 Greatest Debut Albums" list. Hint: Boyz II Men made that list but the Beatles didn't. Oops. And we won't even try and figure out how Kanye West placed higher than The Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen, The Doors, Radiohead or John Coltrane. And they sort of left the biggest selling debut album of all time off the list as well. Surely that one is more important than anything by Sade or Ludacris? Maybe it was guest edited by the folks at Rolling Stone? Get a load of that joke - here

Broken Elbow Won't Stop Metal Band From Bringing It

PR reports: Warbringer has kicked off touring in support of their upcoming sophomore release, titled "Waking Into Nightmares," which will hit shelves on May 19th. Unfortunately, the band has run into a problem as drummer Nic Ritter faced a major injury recently, breaking his elbow after slipping on ice after a recent show.

Warbringer has vowed to continue on, however, with guitarist Adam Carroll on drums until they meet up with Epicurean, whose drummer John Gensmer has agreed to play both sets.

Warbringer comments: "Unfortunately this is not an April's Fools joke. Nic fell down the other night loading out of the club and hurt his elbow. We hoped with some ice and rest it would be okay. This morning we found out it was broken. Regardless, the shows must go on and we rehearsed as a 4-piece with Adam playing drums. - more on this story

Hard Rock Park To No Longer Rock?

Herald Online reports: The two roller coasters named after Led Zeppelin and The Eagles at Hard Rock Park will be renamed for the 2009 season, an official with the park's new owners said Thursday, though he declined to say whether new names have been picked out for the rides, among the park's largest attractions.

The park's new owners also appeared to be backing away from a solely rock-'n'-roll theme for the park. John Stine, the director of sales and marketing for FPI MB Entertainment, the company that purchased the park out of bankruptcy in February for $25 million, said the park will be music-themed, with only an emphasis on rock 'n' roll.

"We want to get the park right," Stine said. "We want to enhance a number of areas and create more fun, more value for guests coming into the park." - more on this story

It's True Spandau Ballet Add Reunion Dates Due To High Demand

PR reports: Spandau Ballet's comeback Reformation Tour continues to add dates due to public demand. Having sold out their first O2 arena date in London within 20 minutes last week, the band added a second date - now a third show will be put on sale for October 22nd.

In addition, Birmingham's LG Arena will host a second Spandau show to accommodate fans on October 25th. The band are also adding Liverpool to the tour for the first time, playing the Liverpool Echo Arena on October 29th.

"It just keeps getting better and better," says Spandau's Tony Hadley, of the reaction to the tour, "We hoped that we would be welcome back but this is beyond our expectations. We are particularly pleased to add Liverpool to the schedule. I seem to remember that we played the Liverpool Empire back in 1982 and it was the first time we noticed girls screaming at us. It was a our first taste of true pop stardom!" - more on this story

Get Stoned Again: Classic Rolling Stones Albums To Be Remastered and Reissued

Nightwatcher reports: The Rolling Stones are remastering and reissuing 14 albums this year. The records - which include 'Sticky Fingers', 'Goats Head Soup', 'Some Girls' and 'A Bigger Bang' - will be released in three batches, with the first going on sale on May 4.

A special collectors box that houses all 14 albums is also planned for release, and each of the albums will be available digitally.

A special version of The Rolling Stones' iconic 1972 album 'Exile On Main Street' is also being planned, although no date has yet been announced for its release. - more on this story

Unearth Team Up With Testament for North American Tour

PR reports: New England metal giants Unearth are currently gearing up for their upcoming tour with Testament, which kicks off on May 2 in Seattle.

The band is touring to support their critically acclaimed album, The March, which hit streets on October 14, 2008 and debuted at #45 on the Billboard Top 200. The upcoming North American tour also features newcomers and label mates Lazarus A.D., rounding out the bill to one of pummeling metal and high speed thrash!

Vocalist Trevor Phipps commented on the tour: "I've been a fan of Testament since I was a kid, so it'll be a great time each night for me. It's always fun to play our set, and it'll be awesome to catch Testament after we play. We're gonna have six weeks of good times. It will also be cool to tour with our label mates, Lazarus A.D. They're on their first record with Metal Blade. I heard their album last night, and it had some great shred parts. This whole tour is going to be a shred fest for sure!" - more on this story

Jimmy Eat World Plan Live Album

Punknews.org reports: Jimmy Eat World will release a digital-only live album recorded from the Tempe, Arizona date of the recent "Clarity Tour."

As with other dates on the run, the band celebrated the 10 year anniversary of Clarity by performing the entire album.

The digital album will be available directly from the band on jimmyeatworld.com and will include the entire live performance of Clarity as well as two encore songs. - more on this story

Metallica's First Label and Fellow Bands Comment on Rock Hall Induction

Megaforce Records reports: Megaforce Records congratulates Metallica on their induction into the Rock N' Roll Hall Of Fame. It's astoundingly poignant that this band that crossed our path in 1983, and in many ways was the impetus for Megaforce even starting as a label, would reach such importance. It's probably safe to say Metallica are the most important American rock band in the history of music.

The genesis of Metallica's growth and independence is important in these tempestuous days in the music industry. When pretty much nobody would sign Metallica, we kicked and scratched to raise money. We had no idea what we were doing and we had little funds, but it was something we believed in. Megaforce had the wherewithal of releasing both Kill Em All and Ride The Lightning. Looking back, Metallica gave us more than the leverage and stature to release more artists -- they raised the bar for everyone.

"We always believed in Metallica from their very first krunch. It's no surprise to us that we are all gathered in Cleveland for this well-deserved amazing Metallibash! Keep bangin' that head," says Jonny and Marsha Zazula/Megaforce Records co-founders. - more on this story

Singled Out Classics: Jimi Hendrix's Are You Experienced?

antiMusic reports: It was 42 years ago today that Jimi Hendrix entered the studio to record one of his most famous songs: "Are You Experienced?" Obviously we couldn't ask Jimi to tell us the story of this song but we are lucky enough to hear from Hendrix expert John McDermott, bassist Billy Cox, and legendary producer Eddie Kramer who was the sound engineer for Hendrix. They recently teamed up for pen "Ultimate Hendrix: An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Live Concerts and Sessions," a new book that is a wet dream for any Hendrix fan looking for the inside story to their favorite songs and Hendrix performances. Backbeat Books was kind enough to send us an excerpt of the book which deals with this historic date and the recording of "Are You Experienced?". Here it is!

The breathtaking "Are You Experienced?" was built start to finish during this session. Eddie Kramer recalls the song's construction. "The structure of the song was recorded first, with Jimi's rhythm guitar, Mitch's drums, and Noel's bass recorded forward." Hendrix's initial take, a loose but often spectacular effort, began with the guitarist strumming the song's distinctive introduction. This part, Kramer says, came from Hendrix's penchant for discovering new sounds. "Jimi had practiced that riff at home, so he knew what it would sound like backward," explains Kramer. "At Olympic, we experimented with the sounds and placements to see what would work best."
A second take barely began before a mistake occurred and Kramer called for a new take. This effort also fell short before a complete fourth take began to showcase the refinements Hendrix had begun to make, trimming parts and tightening the rhythm playing throughout the song. The fifth take was superb, but Hendrix felt he could do better. He called for a playback and cautioned that there were some parts of the take where the group had speeded up. The group returned to the studio and recorded a brief end part for the previous take. Kramer then called for a playback, after which Hendrix kicked off a new take—this classic performance supplied the album's unforgettable title track.

With the basic track having filled all four of the available tracks, Kramer created a four-to-four reduction mix. One of the newly open tracks was dedicated to a backward rhythm track, featuring backward guitar, bass, and percussion. This was first recorded forward, and then Kramer turned the tape around and played it backward on a second machine, while another machine recorded the output to the open track on the four-track master.
Hours of private studying had helped Hendrix master this difficult technique on his personal reel-to-reel tape machine. Fascinated with sounds, Hendrix listened to tapes backward just to study the possibilities of the technique.

Hendrix's fascination with backward tapes caused some mild friction with Mitch Mitchell, who struggled to replicate these unique sounds on demand. "Mitch had started to get uptight because Jimi would want him to play all of the different rhythms we had discovered by playing tapes backward at the flat," says Chandler. "We'd play around with backward tapes to hear the rhythm, which was actually the drums backward. Jimi would want Mitch to play that rhythm."

In addition to the hypnotic effect created by the backward guitar parts, Hendrix further embellished the final master with a piano overdub. "That's Jimi playing the octaves on the wonderful, old, out-of-tune, upright piano at Olympic," says Kramer. "That piano sound, reminiscent of a bell tolling, was an essential part of the basic rhythm track."

Despite all of the experimentation, the group's approach to "Are You Experienced?" was concise, with Chandler encouraging Hendrix's creativity within the boundaries he had established. "This was when Chas's firm hand was on top of the creative process," says Kramer. "The session was very organized."

Want more? You gotta read the book. Read all about it right - here

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