Led Zeppelin Reunion Rumored

Led Zep stars Jimmy Page, 65, Robert Plant, 60, and bassist John Paul Jones, 63, have been approached. They played their only concert in 19 years at the O2 in 2007 and are seen as one of the few acts who could rival Jacko. His This Is It tour was due to start at the London venue on July 13.
- more on this story

Freddie Mercury / Michael Jackson Unreleased Songs Leaked

Contact Music reports: Brian May is furious after "music thieves" exploited Michael Jackson's death by releasing previously unheard tracks by the King Of Pop and Queen's late frontman Freddie Mercury on the Internet.

May revealed the existence of the songs earlier this week (begs29Jun09), saying, "He (Jackson) used to come and see us when we were on tour in the States. He and Freddie became close friends, close enough to record a couple of tracks together at Michael's house, tracks which have never seen the light of day."

But the rocker has been left incensed after two tunes by the pair, State Of Shock and There Must Be More To Life Than This, ended up on video sharing website YouTube.com. He fumes, "The music thieves at work as usual." - more on this story

Metal Star in a Convenience Store Shoot Out

Blabbermouth reports: Guitarist Phil Fasciana of long-running Florida death metallers Malevolent Creation was reportedly involved in a bizarre shootout at a convenient store in his hometown of Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.

According Fasciana, he pulled into a small store at around 3:00 p.m. Friday afternoon (July 3) to get something to drink and walked right into a robbery in progress. "I went in this little store on my way home to get a chocolate milk, of all things, and little did I know, I was walking into a life-or-death situation," he says. "When I walked into the store, I did not notice anyone else in the store until someone started screaming at me and pointed a gun at me. I nearly shit myself, because the dude looked wacked out of his mind and fired four shots directly at me and I went down to the ground because I thought I was surely shot. After about 30 seconds, I realized I was not hit at all and the shooter thought I was dead or injured and started attacking the store worker when I snuck up behind the burglar and talked [to] him and took the gun out of his hands and told him to get out of the store. He then reached in his sock and pulled another gun out and pointed it at me and that's when I fired two shots into his head, killing him instantly!

"Never in my life has anything so twisted happened to me before and I would like to forget it ever happened, but I had no other choice. Lucky for me, the stupid crackhead burglar had the worst aim in the world and missed me with all four shots from about 10 feet away! Needless to say, all charges have been dropped and the store owner has offered me a lifetime of chocolate milk! Ha Ha!"
- This account hasn't been confirmed but you can read more here

Ace Frehley Sets Solo Release

The Syn reports: Original KISS guitarist Ace Frehley's new solo album, Anomaly is due out on September 15th.

The album was produced and recorded in Westchester County, NY during Ace's downtime between 2007 and 2007 and 2009. Ace brough in Marti Frederiksen (Aerosmith, Def Leppard) to help mix the album and put it all together.

Anomaly official tracklisting 1. Foxy & Free 2. Outer Space 3. Pain In The Neck 4. Fox On The Run 5. Genghis Khan 6. Too Many Faces 7. Change The World 8. Space Bear 9. A Little Below The Angels 10. Sister 11. It's A Great Life 12. Fractured Quantum 13. The Return of Space Bear (Dedicated to Tom Snyder) (iTunes exclusive)

Check out this funny video clip Ace put together to announce the album's arrival
- here

Former Beatles, Stones Manager Dies- Aerosmith Illness Mystery Solved- Metallica Tribute Michael Jackson- US In Flames- Tragedy for Hips and more

antiMusic reports: Infamous record label owner Allen Klein, who played a key role in the demise of the Beatles and also nabbed control of some of the Rolling Stones' best-known songs, died in New York on Saturday after a battle with Alzheimer's disease, a spokesman said. He was 77.more

Part of the mystery of the illness that caused Aerosmith to cancel a string of dates this week has been solved. We know who is sick. According to Reuters it is singer Steven Tyler who "has been hobbled by an unspecified injury" more

A brief fan filmed video can be viewed here of Metallica performing a tribute to Michael Jackson. The video was taken at the July 4th date of the Sonisphere Fesetival in Hockenheim, Germany. The clip shows Metallica playing a portion of the Michael Jackson song 'Beat It' and then moving into the track 'Stone Cold Crazy.'

MySpace is premiering the new video for the EELS' "In My Dreams," from the new HOMBRE LOBO album, which was performed on The Late Show with David Letterman June 17th. Watch it here

Prince will return to the Montreux stage, closing out the famed jazz festival on July 18, with high-priced tickets expected to be snapped up quickly, organizers said on Friday.more

In Flames have announced US headlining dates with openers Between The Buried And Me, 3 Inches Of Blood and The Faceless.more

The Tragically Hip, citing "a serious family medical issue," have pulled out of a headlining spot at the first Virgin Festival in Halifax on Saturday. more

Vanna singer Chris Preece is amicably leaving the band and will be replaced by Davey Muise (Seeker Destroyer).more

The Phil Lewis-fronted version of L.A. Guns has parted ways with bassist Scotty Griffin and has replaced him with Kenny Kweens (Beautiful Creatures).more

The original lineup of the Boston-based experimental hard rock band Milligram will reunite for a September 26, 2009 performance at the Middle East Downstairs in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Amore

For those that missed the Quicks update on Friday, here it is again: According to the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Aerosmith has postponed its Sunday (July 5) show at Verizon Wireless Virginia Beach Amphitheater in Virginia Beach, Virginia due to an unspecified "artist injury." The band, performing this summer with ZZ Top, also postponed last night's (July 1) concert in Cincinnati and tomorrow's gig at Hersheypark Stadium in Pennsylvania.more

Evergreen Terrace drummer Kyle Mims was injured in a bike accident on Wednesday and will consequently miss the group's upcoming tour. more

Stone Temple Pilots kicked off their U.S. tour at the Los Angeles' House of Blues during the inaugural St. Jude Rock'n'Roll Hope Show. Spin has a review of the show here

Down and Melvins have announced dates for their upcoming U.S. tour. Support will be provided by Weedeater, with Danava and Evil Army also appearing on select dates. dates

Former Metallica bassist Jason Newsted, who made a guest appearance on Sepultura's 1998 album "Against", believes that it's not "proper" for the Brazilian metal band to carry on without either of the founding Cavalera brothers (Max and Igor; on guitar/vocals and drums, respectively).more

The Distraction has released the first of their ongoing summer FREE EP series; Sprockets, Gears, and Two Way Mirrors. They will be releasing EP's all summer long followed up by new music in time for 2010. Visit myspace.com/thedistraction to download.

Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry has told Billboard.com that he's just finishing mixing the follow-up to his 2005 Grammy Award-nominated solo album, "Joe Perry", and expects it to be mastered next week.more

Barcelona city authorities say they might fine band U2 for rocking too long and loudly during rehearsals for their latest world tour.more

Former members of Black Sabbath, Tony Martin and Geoff Nicholls, will be playing Black Sabbath songs from "The Headless Cross" and "Eternal Idol" albums Saturday, July 18, 2009 at The
Venue Of Scottsdale (Arizona). Performing as supporting acts are Siva Addiction (CA, USA) and St. Madness (AZ, USA).

The first song of the upcoming Masters Of Reality album Pine/Cross Dover (out August 24) has been added to the band's new myspace page

Grade have announced plans to hit the studio to record a few new songs from a new seven-inch, and possible digital EP.more

Jackyl has replaced Thin Lizzy on the billing of the third annual Rocklahoma festival, set to take place July 9-12, 2009 on the Catch The Fever Festival Grounds in Pryor, Oklahoma.

A Michael Jackson public memorial service has been set and will take place on Tuesday, July 7, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, according to multiple media outlets.more -

Paul Van Dyk Slams Radiohead

exclaim.ca reports: Grammy-winning DJ Paul Van Dyk has taken the sentiments of artists like Sonic Youth's Kim Gordon and the Cure's Robert Smith one step further, slamming Radiohead in a recent video interview with Time Out Chicago [via The Daily Swarm] about their pay-what-you-want model for their latest release, In Rainbows.

Van Dyk went on a lengthy rant against Radiohead during the interview, saying it was easy for Radiohead to ask their enormous fan base to pay what they want for album downloads, but the story wasn't nearly the same for upstart bands and small-time artists who didn't have such privileges.

Van Dyk then made the suggestion that Radiohead should act as a kind of music industry Robin Hood, taking money from eager consumers and doling it out to needy bands. [what a dreamer] - more on this story

Deep Purple Fined for "Illegally" Playing Their Own Songs

exclaim.ca reports: A Russian court has fined Deep Purple for -- get this -- "illegally" performing their own songs.

Yes, that's right: when the band played a concert in the Russian city of Rostov-on-Don on October 19, 2008, they did so without gaining proper permission to play the tracks they'd selected. We know what you're asking: "Who the fuck did they have to ask about playing their own songs?

Well, there's an organization called the NGO, "Russian Authors' Society," which issues licenses to publicly perform songs. This organization represents the rights of foreign performers in Russia, whether or not the performers give the NGO permission to represent them.
- more on this story

Job For A Cowboy Go Soph

Metal Blade reports: Glendale, AZ heavy music powerhouse Job For A Cowboy (JFAC) has completed work on its [overused cliche removed] sophomore album, entitled Ruination. The record will see a July 7, 2009 North American release date via Metal Blade Records.

Advance praise for Ruination is such that Alternative Press states that the album "marks Job For A Cowboy as a band fully deserving of their success", while Decibel proclaims that "they do death metal quite well."

Additionally, Ruination's cover art and full color booklet's striking, quasi-conceptual motif was designed by Brent Elliott White and takes its inspiration from Job For A Cowboy front man Jonny Davy's album lyrics and concepts. - more on this story

Behemoth Tour Plans Slaughtered

antiMusic reports: Behemoth were forced to cancel their Canadian Summer Slaughter tour dates. Here is the explanation: Behemoth have been denied entry into Canada today to meet up with the Edmonton and Calgary stops of the Summer Slaughter tour.

PLEASE NOTE BOTH EDMONTON AND CALGARY SUMMER SLAUGHTER SHOWS ARE STILL HAPPENING WITH HEADLINERS NECROPHAGIST AND SUFFOCATION!

Immigration officers informed Behemoth of a new regulation regarding Polish citizens entering Canada that had changed while the band was en route to the shows. With Canada Day and the 4th of July there was no way for them to obtain the last minute forms they required to enter the country. - more on this story

AC/DC Ticket Probe

BW&BK reports: At least 40 online ticket sales are being investigated as the Queensland Police Service's Property Crime Investigation Unit closes in on illegal scalping.

The Sunday Mail revealed last month that hundreds of tickets to megaband AC/DC's concerts were being sold illegally at inflated prices on online auction site eBay.

Tickets to concerts at Queensland sporting stadiums are not allowed to be re-sold for more than 10 per cent above the purchase price. - more on this story

Mercyful Fate Revisit Two Classics for Metallica

PR reports: As many of you already know, Mercyful Fate's Evil is featured as a playable track on Guitar Hero: Metallica. Mercyful Fate re-recorded these two tracks specifically for the game because the original masters no longer exist. Now, the band is making both available to fans to purchase on iTunes! These versions were recorded at Earplug Studio in Copenhagen and Nomad Recording Studio in Dallas, Texas. They were both mastered by Andy LaRocque at his Sonic Train Studio in Sweden.

King Diamond comments: "It was a lot of fun to get a chance to re-record "Evil" and "Curse of the Pharaohs" from our 1983 "Melissa" album. It was cool to go into the studio and try to figure out all the various harmony vocals and see if I could still do them. The other guys had a lot of fun with this project too, and the whole thing turned out much better than we could have hoped for. Everyone nailed their performances and Hank's solos were even slightly improved. Everything is right where it should be and with a much better sound! The "feel" was there and all of the guys - Hank, Denner, Timi and Bjarne are all naturals. The versions that will be up on iTunes were mastered by Andy LaRocque and even with a 2009 sound, there's no doubt that these songs were recorded by Mercyful Fate!"

If you have yet to check out Guitar Hero: Metallica - make sure you do! King Diamond himself is a playable character in the game once you unlock the Evil track! Plus, a video of King Diamond's on-stage performance with Metallica at Ozzfest 2008 in Dallas is included as a bonus feature in the game. - more on this story

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