Simon and Paula May Be Leaving American Idol

And acid-tongued Simon Cowell, whom critics call the show's real star, gave several interviews in which he contemplated an exit when his deal ends next year. - more on this story

More AC/DC Fans Scammed

Sunday Mercury reports: Police are hunting counterfeiters who left hundreds of fans out of pocket after selling them fake tickets for a sell-out AC/DC rock concert in Birmingham.

Thunderstruck fans, some of them young children, were refused entry to the LG Arena at the NEC after box office officials realized the tickets were not real.

And the resulting crowd chaos led to many missing the beginning of the show, with frustrated queues outside the venue up to an hour after the 7.30 PM start. - more on this story

Bob Dylan, John Mellencamp and Willie Nelson Team Up For Tour

Columbia Records reports: Bob Dylan has just announced an ambitious line-up for this year's summer concert tour. Along with fellow troubadour Willie Nelson, this summer The Bob Dylan Show will also feature John Mellencamp, marking just the second time in the past 24 years that these three performers have shared the concert stage.

Since first embarking on a tour of minor league baseball parks in 2004, over a half-million fans have come together to spend a night under the stars. With free admittance for children*, these tours draw a multi-generational fan base rarely seen on the concert circuit, causing one reporter to describe it as, "more like a backyard party than a rock concert." The Boston Globe ranked the tour amongst "the most relaxed, enjoyable shows of the year. "You Can't Beat Fun At The Old Ballpark," came a headline from the Chicago Sun Times.

All concert tickets are priced at $67.50 and most shows are general admission, allowing fans to grab a seat in the stands or find a place to watch from the field. - more on this story

Sebastian Bach and DMX Going To Celeb Rehab- Alice In Chains Ink Deal, Eye CD Release- Aerosmith Settle With Free Tickets- Cops Took Rihanna's Jewelry and more

antiMusic reports: Sebastian Bach of Skid Row fame, DMX and Hollywood madam Heidi Fleiss will be part of the new season of Celebrity Rehab according to this report. Bach has since denied that he has anything to do with the "piece of crap" show. more

Alice In Chains have inked a deal with Virgin/EMI and their new studio album is due in the middle of September. more

Rihanna is seeking the return of $1.4 million in jewelry she was wearing the night she was allegedly beaten by Chris Brownmore

Aerosmith will be performing on Maui and providing free tickets to more than 8,000 ticket buyers to settle a class-action lawsuit over its canceled 2007 concert scheduled for War Memorial Stadium. more

Exodus will travel to Japan in September for a few shows, each of which will feature the group performing their "Bonded By Blood" in its entirety.more

As much as the Coachella festival in California last weekend received great reviews, promoters may have to pay fines for the late night performances. Headliner Paul McCartney, The Killers and The Cure all exceeded their set time. more

This year's Dude Fest will take place July 17th, 18th, and 19th at the Emerson Theater in Indianapolis, IN.more

Swedish death metal band Miseration will enter Panic Room studios in late-June with producer Tomas Johansson to begin recording a new album.more

Alice Cooper is taking his shock rock show Down Under more

Kamelot will enter the studio this June 2009 to record the follow-up to the blockbust CD 'Ghost Opera.' Once again enlisting producers Sascha Paeth and Miro, the band plans to use studios in Germany, Norway and the USAmore

Charlie "Chalo" Quintana has announced his departure from Social Distortion. Filling the spot will be Atom Willard, a veteran of bands including Rocket From The Crypt, The Offspring and Angels and Airwaves.more

In they wonder why their sales are down category: Leighton Meester, star of the CW Network's teen drama "Gossip Girl," has signed a deal with Universal Republic through Time-Act Music to release her debut album in the fall.more

John Legend will embark on major U.S. tour this summer in support of his latest album, "Evolver." The trek, which will hit over 50 cities, begins June 27thmore

Viacom's VH1 Soul and BET J Networks are combining channel resources to create a new program outlet called Centric.more. Meanwhile metal outsells R&B and Hip Hop and doesn't have one dedicated station. Rock far outsells all three and it doesn't have its own network. And they wonder why their ratings are down!

Evergrey's rescheduled Atlanta, GA gig, May 29th, at The Masquerade has been cancelled and will not be made up more

Opening statements have begun in a civil trial against Snoop Dogg by a man who says the rapper and his entourage severely beat him in 2005.more

The New York Dolls have announced a tour of the US in support of their upcoming release 'Cause I Sez So'more

Crosby, Stills & Nash have added a string of dates to their upcoming tour of North America, scheduled to kick off June 3 in St. Louis, MO.more

Even though he dismissed the idea of a new album last year, the Circle Jerks' Greg Hetson has announced that they are aiming to record in Junemore

News Quicks are now updated throughout the day everyday! You get the very latest right - here

Def Leppard Have Officially Gone Country

Nightwatcher reports: If you still harbored any illusions that Def Leppard were still a rock band, Geoff Barton of Classic Rock Magazine is reporting:

It's enough to shatter your achy breaky heart. New Wave Of British Heavy Metal pioneers Def Leppard have received three first-round Country Music Television (CMT) award nominations.

The Leps' duet with Taylor Swift on their song Photograph has been nominated for both CMT Performance Of The Year and Wide Open Country Video Of The Year – whatever that is. - more on this story

Fear Factory and Threat Signal Supergroup Set Debut

PR reports: Arkaea, featuring members Raymond Herrera and Christian Olde Wolbers of Fear Factory and Threat Signal, have just finished their debut album "Years In The Darkness." The album is set to be released on July 14th on E1 Music, formerly Koch Records.

"Years In The Darkness" was produced by Christian Olde Wolbers and Arkaea and mixed by legendary producer Terry Date, best known for his work with the Deftones, Slipknot, White Zombie, Soundgarden and Pantera. The CD was mastered Ted Jensen of Sterling Sound, who also mastered Fear Factory's gold album, "Obsolete."

"We are truly proud of this record," states Olde Wolbers. "Ironically half of the Arkaea album consists of songs that were intended to be the next Fear Factory record." - more on this story

Allman Brothers Plan Massive Box Set

Nightwatcher reports: To commemorate their 40th anniversary, The Allman Brothers Band is releasing a Beacon Box live CD package, capturing all 15 sold-out shows (45 CD's) from the group's recent March stand at the venerable Beacon Theatre in New York City. This is the first time the band has made CDs available from their annual visits to New York, which date back to 1989 and includes 188 consecutive sold-out shows at the Beacon.

This run was dedicated to the memory of Duane Allman, seminal guitarist and founder of the band, and to help celebrate Duane's legacy, 60 special guests shared the stage with the Allman Brothers Band. The list includes a "Who's Who" of rock, jazz and jams greats, including Levon Helm, Taj Mahal, Buddy Guy, Boz Scaggs, Johnny Winter, Sheryl Crow, Jimmy Herring, John Bell, Stanley Clarke, Kid Rock, Bonnie Bramlett, Robert Randolph, John Hammond, Billy Gibbons, David Hidalgo, Cesar Rosas, Trey Anastasio, Page McConnell, Jerry Jammott, Bernard Purdie, Jimmy Smith, Chuck Leavell, Jimmy Hall, Susan Tedeschi, Bob Weir, Phil Lesh and many others.

Also appearing for two nights with the band was the inimitable Eric Clapton, who teamed with Duane Allman to record Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs in 1970; considered by many critics to be the finest guitar album of all time. This marked the first time Clapton had played with the Allman Brothers Band in a public setting. - more on this story

Depeche Mode's Dark Progression To DVD

MVD reports: MVD Visual and Sexy Intellectual are pleased to announce the home viewing release of Depeche Mode The Dark Progression for North American distribution on DVD. [Since their PR didn't bother to include it we will: It's set for release on June 16, 2009]

Thirty years into a quite extraordinary career, Depeche Mode remain the most successful electronic band ever, having to date sold over 100 million records worldwide. And as they continue to release new and challenging material on a regular basis and perform in front of crowds that can exceed 80,000 in a single night, the enormous popularity of these former Essex Boys illustrates how their resolute determination to stick with their original vision has repaid them handsomely in the long term.

This brand new documentary film traces the almost surreal development of Depeche Mode from their flirtations with New Romanticism at the dawn of their career, through the urban industrial landscapes envisaged on Construction Time Again and Some Great Reward into the dark hollow of albums such as Black Celebration, Music For The Masses and Violator to conclude with the departure of Alan Wilder in 1995 - a point in their career at which they had achieved enormous commercial success but were now facing huge personal challenges. - more on this story

Van Morrison To Perform Astral Weeks Live

EMI reports: By popular demand, multi-award winning musical legend Van Morrison returns to California for "Astral Weeks Live" at the Berkeley's University of California, Greek Theatre on May 2nd and 3rd and at the intimate Orpheum Theatre in downtown Los Angeles on May 7, 8 & 9. www.vanmorrison.com following a May 6th Tonight Show appearance.

Morrison recently released "Astral Weeks Live at the Hollywood Bowl" on Listen to the Lion/EMI, a historic CD and double vinyl recording, performed almost 40 years to the date of the original studio masterpiece. The DVD release of "Astral Weeks Live at the Hollywood Bowl" is slated for May 19th release, exclusively through Amazon.com

Morrison will perform the "Astral Weeks" material "from cover to cover" as well as a number of his classic hits from his extensive repertoire. Joining him on stage will be an orchestral string section and a band composed of world-class musicians, including renowned guitarist Jay Berliner who played with Van on the original "Astral Weeks" sessions 40 years ago. Tracks will include: "Astral Weeks/I Believe I've Transcended," "Beside You," "Slim Slow Slider/ I Start Breaking Down," "Sweet Thing," "The Way Young Lovers Do," "Cyprus Avenue / You Came Walking Down," "Ballerina," "Madame George." - more on this story

Black Sabbath's Bill Ward Explains Why He's Not Part of Heaven and Hell

Rock Radio reports: Black Sabbath drummer Bill Ward has broken his silence on why he left Heaven and Hell before the band recorded forthcoming album The Devil You Know. Speaking to Rock DJ Tom Russell, he explains he was "uncomfortable" with some of the issues surrounding the performance and the organization of the variant Black Sabbath lineup.

"I've never spoken publicly about this. At the time some things were said about me having other schedules to meet. That wasn't the case at all", Ward says. "There was a misunderstanding with the music, I was uncomfortable with some of the things surrounding the project, and that was it. I moved out.

"I thought Vinny Appice would be a much better choice - he's able to accommodate the kind of things that were being asked, and I'm not. I react. Vinny plays drums. There's a big difference." - More from Bill and Tony Iommi's take on what went down

Wilco Hitting The Road

Billboard reports: With a still-untitled album slated for June 30 on Nonesuch, Wilco will be hitting the U.S. highways this summer beginning June 12 in Cincinnati.

Many dates went on sale Friday including the Los Angeles, Red Rocks, and Brooklyn shows. Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band will join as the opening act at several East Coast gigs while Grizzly Bear will open in Tucson.

While Wilco is a veteran act in larger markets, this summer sees the Chicago natives tapping into newer, off the beaten path places such as Jacksonville, Oregon; Stateline, Nevada; and Wilmington, Delaware including gigs at several minor league baseball parks. - more on this story

Chimaira Music As A Weapon Tour Blog: Doing Shots With Disturbed

antiMusic reports: Chimaira are currently out on the road on the Music As A Weapon Tour. Guitarist Matt DeVries wants to keep antiMusic readers up to date on all the happenings on the tour and will be checking in with a tour diary. Here is his latest entry:

Well, I have to say, this has been some of the most fun I have ever had on a tour. All the bands are mad cool, the shows have been some of the biggest and best we have ever played, and the fans have been amazing! This week was also very special because our new CD "The Infection" is finally in stores! Please do your best to pick one up.We are more than proud of this record and are very exited that it's out!

Now let's rewind a bit to Tuesday (The day the record came out).....We were in Bridgeport, Connecticut and the day started out with the band going to Best Buy and Target to purchase our CD. The bitter sweet news was only two of us could buy copy's, the reason was the rest were sold out. Thanks to anyone that has picked up our CD! Our fans are and have always been the best! Later on after another great show Disturbed was nice enough to let us share/have their dressing room for a CD release rager! Trust me, it was a rager! Dan from Disturbed was on shot duty and was passing out shots called "Oatmeal Cookies" to everyone on the tour. For those that don't know, an Oatmeal cookie is the kind of shot that tastes great and goes down smooth but Dan said it best when he said "After 4 or 5, you won't remember shit tonight guys!". Rob Arnold can agree with that for sure. The last thing he remembers from that evening was shot number 5. Good times indeed. We then brought the party to our tour bus. That's probably the last thing I remember (I had 4 or 5 of those shots myself, along with a shit ton of beer) but the photo's show good times had by all! Thanks again goes out to Disturbed, they have been more than cool to us this entire tour.

Luckily there is another month left in this tour, This is one of those tours a band never wants to end! See you on the road!

- Chimaira Myspace

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