Aerosmith Looking for Big Name Singer To Replace Steven Tyler

The interviewer then asked, "Will you go the unknown, sound-alike-singer route, or look for a name guy?" Perry responded, "I think it would make more sense, with a band like Aerosmith, to get somebody who the fans might recognize. There's no sense going out there and being an Aerosmith clone band. In order for both parties to get something out of this, to move things along musically, it's important to get somebody who's a legitimate headliner on their own." - You can read the full interview feature here

Van Halen Jump Suicide Controversy

It is doubtful that Van Halen were thinking of suicide when they came up with their 1984 hit "Jump," but it has now been tied to a suicide controversy in the UK. BW&BK reports: According to Dailymail.co.uk, a radio DJ has been condemned by mental health charities after he played the song Jump as police were trying to talk down a suicidal woman from a motorway bridge.

Steve Penk received a request from a listener for the hit Van Halen track after four lanes of the M60 were closed while police attempted to deal resolve the situation.

The controversial presenter told listeners on his breakfast show he was playing the song to 'emphathise' with frustrated drivers, but moments later the woman jumped from the 30ft bridge. - more on this story

Stone Temple Pilots Finish Recording New Album- Singer Wants Metal Declared A Religion- Hatebreed Illness Sidelines Tour- Tony Iommi Book Deal and more

Robert DeLeo of Stone Temple Pilots tells Spin.com "we just finished the last two songs at my home studio, and we're going through the editing process and getting everything sounding tasty. A gentleman by the name of Chris Lord-Alge, who actually mixed a song of ours back in early 2000 called 'All in the Suit That You Wear', will mix the new album." Read the full interview here

Saxon vocalist Biff Byford is reportedly figure-heading a campaign to get heavy metal recognized as a religion in the UK. Byford has teamed up with Metal Hammer Magazine for a campaign urging British rock fans to adopt heavy metal as their religion ahead of the 2011 census. more

Hatebreed has announced the first three shows of the Black Procession tour with Machine Head (scheduled to take place in Stuttgart, Offenbach and Hamburg) have been postponed due to frontman Jamey Jasta falling ill more

Looks like Ozzy isn't the only Black Sabbath legend to pen his memoir Foundry Literary + Media cofounder Peter McGuigan has reportedly completed a six-figure North American rights deal, at auction, with Ben Schafer of Da Capo for Black Sabbath/Heaven & Hell guitarist Tony Iommi's book "Iron Man", a memoir due out later this year. more

Freshkills entered the studio just before the holiday break to record their third album with drummer Jim Sclavunos of Bad Seeds/Grinderman fame producing. Jim is also responsible for producing the first Horrors and has earned an incredible reputation over the past 20 years drumming along Nick Cave in both the Bad Seeds and Grinderman. more

Crazed Hits is reporting the MySpace Records has logged off for good. more

Smashing Pumpkins have posted the second song from the ' Teardrop By Kaleidyscope ' project on their Myspace page. You can check out the track called "Widow Wake My Mind" here.

Metallica had this quick note about a change of venue: We recently became aware that the Fire Department has expressed some concerns about the safety of Estadio Zequinha in Porto Alegre, so as a precautionary measure our show scheduled there for January 28, 2010 has been moved to Parque Condor. more

Muse will be playing a show at Switzerland's Stade de Suisse on Wednesday 2nd June. more

Blink-182 posted on twitter that their fans have now raised $20k from the sale of the Blink Haiti shirt. You can get one here

Aborted, Rotten Sound, and The Red Chord will co-headline (the bands will rotate every night) a spring European tour. Those who Lie Beneath will serve as the opening act. more -

Zeppelin Star Beat Paul McCartney Out Of Them Crooked Vultures Gig

Paul McCartney reveals in a new interview that when he learned about the Them Crooked Vultures supergroup he asked to play bass in the band, only to find out that Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones had already landed the gig.

McCartney told the Daily Mail that Dave Grohl told him the plans for the group when they were out to dinner after last year's Grammy Awards.

"We went out for a bite to eat afterwards and Dave told me he was starting this band with Josh [Homme of Queens of the Stone Age]," McCartney said. "I asked him who was playing bass and he rather sheepishly told me he'd approached John [Paul Jones]. So you read it here first; Paul McCartney was nearly the bass player in Them Crooked Vultures." - He also went on to talk about the decision to take part in The X Factor

Avenged Sevenfold Frontman Says Goodbye to Late Bandmate

Avenged Sevenfold frontman M. Shadows paid tribute to his friend and bandmate, James "The Rev" Sullivan, in a new online post. The A7X drummer died on December 28. Here is part of that tribute:

"Jimmy was my best friend, as he was best friends with many other people including the members of Avenged Sevenfold. He was hands down the greatest person I have ever known. I told him I loved him everyday. He demanded your love and was never afraid to give it back. I have walked side by side with Jimmy, everyday, for the last 18 years of my life. I have no memories before Jimmy, and it's going to be damn hard to move forward without him here. It still doesn't seem real. He was my best friend, songwriting partner, band mate, confidant, and most importantly, he was my brother. The crazy thing about Jimmy was that everyday was a crazy story. We have told our favorite Jimmy stories for the last 2 weeks and never have we repeated ourselves. This guy was magical.

"The out pour of art from his soul was unlike the world has ever seen. Unless you spent a day with Jimmy, or 18 years, it's impossible to explain, so I'm not going to try. He inspired people in different ways. He wasn't just a drummer, he honestly didn't care so much for the technical side of drums, cause he could play anything he wanted. He was all about creating beautiful songs, original fills and hopefully touching people with his art and mind. He told all of us for years, including his parents, that he knew two things in life. He wanted to be a rockstar, and that he wasn't going to live past 30 years old. He was right on both accounts, but I know Jimmy, and if he knew how much pain this would cause for the ones he left behind, he would have done anything he could to stick around a little longer"

- You can read his full posting here

Band Promises Song Each Week, Full Album Each Month For Free Download

Seattle, Washington-based Gary Reynolds and the Brides of Obscurity, fronted by Electrokitty Studios owner, engineer, and producer Gary Reynolds (vocals, guitar, piano), will release a song a week, every Monday, for the duration of 2010, starting with January 4th's release of "Off of My Mind", January 11th's release of "Be Your Man", and January 18th's release of "Yeah!"

In addition to a song a week, they will also be releasing a full-length album a month, on the first Monday of each month, starting with "The Cretin Chronicles Vol.I: Almost Normal" released in January. All downloads will be available via his website, here

With the prolific goal of releasing fifty-one songs and twelve full-length albums in a year, the songs will range in style from psychedelic indie-rock with, at times, a heavy pop leaning and at other times folksier textures, along with some straight ahead power-pop and guitar rock ditties. All with the occassional quirky, experimental nuggets thrown into the mix. - more on this story

Vampire Weekend Release Guitar Hero Track Pack

A new Vampire Weekend three-song track pack is available for Guitar Hero 5 and Band Hero. The popular band returns to the Guitar Hero franchise with the Vampire Weekend Track Pack featuring two songs — "Cousins" and "Holiday" — from their brand-new album Contra as well as "The Kids Don't Stand a Chance" from their 2008 self-titled debut album Vampire Weekend.

The Vampire Weekend Track Pack is now available via Xbox LIVE Marketplace for 440 Microsoft Points, from the PlayStation Store for $5.49 and the Wii Shop Channel for 550 Wii Points.

The three songs are also available as single downloads for Xbox 360 for 160 Microsoft Points, PlayStation 3 for $1.99 and Wii for 200 Wii Points each. For more information about Guitar Hero 5, Band Hero and their entire line-up of downloadable content, please visit - www.guitarhero.com

A Day To Remember, Silverstein and August Burns Red and Enter Shikari Are Tour Sick

A Day To Remember will be on the road this Spring touring North America on the "Tour Sick" tour.

Label mates Silverstein and special guests August Burns Red and Enter Shikari will also be performing. Veara and Go Radio will play on select dates.

A Day To Remember have sold over a quarter of a million albums. The band was one of the largest drawing acts at last year's Warped Tour. Tickets go on sale January 23rd - more on this story

All 65 Live Performances at Maximum Exposure Showcase To Be Webcast

Bandome.com announces their participation in this weekend's Maximum Exposure Showcase (MES), an all day music festival in Long Beach, CA on January 23rd.

The MES features a whopping 65 live bands from 10:30am to 10:30pm and Bandome.com will be streaming the event live from one of the festival stages all day and night. If a music fan doesn't live near Long Beach or can't make it to the event in person, Bandome has them covered!

The show will be streaming live from Revolutionary Entertainment's profile page on the site Bandome.com on January 23rd. - more on this story

Todd Rundgren On A Stick

Todd Rundgren, the legendary rock musician and record producer, who has worked with everyone from Patti Smith, Meatloaf and the New York Dolls, today announced that his February 2010 London and Amsterdam "A Wizard A True Star" concerts will be released on USB stick.

The European AWATS concerts will take place at the HMV London Hammersmith Apollo on Friday 6th February, followed by the Paradiso, Amsterdam on Sunday 8th February.

Fans who attend the concerts will be able to buy the entire two hour concert on USB stick at the merchandise stand directly after the shows. The USB stick will include two hours of live performance audio, including "Todd Rundgren's Johnson"; a 45-minute set of Rundgren performing Robert Johnson songs, followed by a 75-minute set of the highly anticipated "A Wizard A True Star" album performed in it's entirety. - more on this story

Iggy Pop Joins Tibet Benefit

Tibet House US is proud to announce that rock icon Iggy Pop will be joining the fantastic line-up of musicians performing at the 20th Annual Tibet House US Benefit Concert.

Already confirmed in the line-up, which is brought together by the concert's artistic director Philip Glass, is Regina Spektor, Patti Smith, Jesse Smith, Michael Campbell, Gogol Bordello, Baaba Maal and Pierce Turner.

Tibet House US is a non-profit organization founded in 1987 at the request of the Dalai Lama to serve as a center for the preservation and presentation of endangered Tibetan culture. This annual fundraiser supports the work of Tibet House US. - more on this story

The Good Listeners Declare Their New Album A Hit As It Hits iTunes

The Good Listeners are debuting their new hit album this week, Don't Quit Your Daydream, in an exclusive iTunes digital-only release by Three Fingers Records that is already attracting rave reviews from listeners and music industry insiders. The album's lead single, "Eighty Steps Away," is available starting today as a free iTunes "Discovery Download."

Produced by John Loar in association with Adrian Grenier's Reckless Productions, the group will be releasing a musical rock-u-mentary in conjunction with the album's release, both available on iTunes starting today, January 19, 2010.

The Good Listeners, named for the band's ability to listen to music and hear all of its unique hidden and subtle sounds, recorded and filmed both the album and rock-u-mentary Don't Quit Your Daydream while taking a 31-day cross-country road trip in an RV. Not wanting to give up the dream of being rock stars, the 40-year-old friends pack up their lives, leave their day jobs behind, and risk it all to make the album of their dreams come to life. The group stops in eight different locations and collaborates with small town musicians who like band members, Clark Stiles and Nathan Khyber, love creating music. - more on this story

Sharif's New CD Features Impressive Lineup of Musicians including Lead Single Feature Old 97's Rhett Miller

Independent singer-songwriter Sharif announces the official release of his third CD, Kisses and Lies, on February 23, 2010. His first single "Dark Side of the Dawn," featuring Old 97's singer Rhett Miller, will go to radio later this month with the M:M radio promotion team at the helm.

Produced by Chris Keup and Stewart Myers (Jason Mraz, OAR, and Rachael Yamagata) the CD was recorded in a barn in Louisa, Virginia, a hotel in Baltimore and Sharif's own bedroom in Los Angeles.

Sharif assembled a preeminent cast of musicians to record his album including Tim Bradshaw (John Mayer, David Gray, Josh Ritter) on keyboards, Jon Graboff (Ryan Adams) on pedal steel, Mark Goldenberg (Jackson Browne, Ringo Starr, Brett Dennen) playing guitar, ukulele and banjo, Stewart Myers (Lifehouse, Shawn Colvin) on bass guitar and Brian Jones (Mandy Moore, Liz Phair) manning the drums. - more on this story

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