This Week's Top stories

Here are the top stories from this week's Day in Rock and the top Day in Rock digest stories

The Slits' Ari Up Dies- Heaven & Hell Party- Daft Punk Surprise- Axl's Mugshot- Trans-Siberian Halloween- Motley Murder Deliberations- Star Spangled Steven Tyler Video- more

The top rock news stories for the week ending 10/22/10: We start with this sad news from Billboard - Ari Up, frontwoman for pioneering British punk band the Slits, died Wednesday (Oct. 20), according to Sex Pistols' John Lydon (aka Johnny Rotten). Lydon, who is married to Forster's mother, delivered the news about the 48-year-old singer's death on his website. more

The official release and viewing party for Heaven & Hell: Neon Nights new CD/DVD will take place on Friday November 12th at Duff's Brooklyn (168 Marcy Ave., Williamsburg, Brooklyn). Free CD's and DVD's to be distributed courtesy of Eagle Rock Entertainment. more

Daft Punk made their first live appearance in three years when they joined Phoenix on stage at Madison Square Garden. Consequence of Sound has more details and video here

The first-ever police mugshot of a young Axl Rose has surfaced. The photo of an 18-year old Rose was found five years ago by John Jeremiah Sullivan, a writer on assignment for GQ at the time. Check it out here

Speaking of Axl, Guns N' Roses will play on Abu Dhabi's Yas Island later this year. The events are being organised by Flash Entertainment and are part of a slew of events around the Etihad Airways Formula 1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. more
Dave Delacruz, former Silent Civilian guitarist, says of his departure: "As much as it was a difficult decision, it was the right decision. We made some great music and I was very happy to contribute to writing 50% percent of 'Ghost Stories'. I will now be putting all of my attention to my Orange County, California-based band Unveil The Strength" more

Ex-Trans-Siberian Orchestra violinist Anna Phoebe has announced a show with her full band at The Barfly in London on Halloween (October 31st), as part of a goth/industrial/electro night. more

Taproot have announced plans for an upcoming fall tour in support of their latest album Plead The Fifth. The tour kicks off Oct 30th in West Virginia more

Atomic Tom's music video "Take Me Out" is free on iTunes this week. "Take Me Out" has over 1.6 million views on YouTube. Find out why here

Black Label Society will embark on a U.K. tour in February 2011. more

Jurors spent about three hours Tuesday deciding whether there's enough evidence to convict Dennis Tetso for killing his wife, Tracey, who disappeared in March 2005 (after she didn't meet friends for a Motley Crue show). Her body was never found. more

Casey Jones (featuring Josh James of Evergreen Terrace) are set to self-release their final album, "I Hope We're Not the Last," on January 11, 2011. The album will be available through iTunes, all major online music sites, select mom-and-pop stores and at all live shows. 2011 also marks the band's final year of touring. more

Holy Rage, featuring former Judas Priest singer Al Atkins, recently announced that they will release their self-titled debut album through Z Records on October 25th. more

Narnia, who announced this past spring that they were calling it quits, will play their last two shows in November and December. more

The Damned Things, the new supergroup featuring Fall Out Boy guitarist Joe Trohman and drummer Andy Hurley, Every Time I Die vocalist Keith Buckley and Anthrax guitarists Scott Ian and Rob Caggiano, will release their debut album, Ironiclast, on December 14th. The band has posted another new song from the effort called "Friday Night (Going Down in Flames)" here

A Perfect Circle, led by Tool frontman Maynard James Keenan, has posted a new rehearsal clip online. The band are currently preparing for its forthcoming five city U.S. tour. You can view the rehearsal clip here

The Flaming Lips to play 'The Soft Bulletin' in full at New Year's Eve gig Wayne Coyne and co will perform their 1999 album in Oklahoma City more

God Dethroned is set to release the new album 'Under The Sign Of The Iron Cross' on November 23rd, 2010 through Metal Blade Records. The band has also moving back the previously scheduled CD presentation party to Christmas Eve more

Sonic Youth's Thurston Moore, The Flaming Lips and Of Montreal's James Husband are among the names who are set to feature on an upcoming Guided By Voices tribute album. more

Modest Mouse will be reissuing two of their earliest releases next month. Frontman Isaac Brock's Glacial Pace will issue new vinyl and CD versions of The Fruit That Ate Itself and Sad Sappy Sucker on November 9, 2010. more

Aerosmith vocalist and American Idol judge Steven Tyler sang 'The Star Spangled Banner' before the puck dropped in Boston, MA at The TD Garden as The Boston Bruins played host to The Washington Capitals. Witness Tyler's performance here

The Ergs! will not have a reunion set at this year's Fest in Gainesville, Florida. However, the near-sighted trio have announced a reunion show with fellow disbanded New Jersey philanthropists Hunchback. more

Steve Vai has updated his Experience Hendrix tour schedule. The November 2nd show in Buffalo, NY at The Center For The Arts is officially sold out, therefore a second show has been added for November 15th at the same venue. But another show has been canceled more -

Early Van Halen Recording Unearthed

The Metal Den has obtained what is reportedly an extremely rare live 1975 recording of Van Halen covering Led Zeppelin's classic song entitled "Trampled Under Foot", which came off Zeppelin's 1975 album Physical Graffiti.

Before they were selling out arenas, David, Eddie, Alex and Michael were killing it in the Hollywood club scene, most notably at Gazzarri's… which was ultimately demolished and became Billboard Live in 1996. In 1998, the legendary location became The Key Club.

The listener will be treated to a time when rock was fun and not some strenuous popularity game, like it is today. - more on this story

The Cars Reunite

(hennemusic) Back in July, The Cars posted a photo of themselves in the studio on their Facebook page, with the caption "Anyone in the mood for a reunion by The Cars?"

The photo showed bandmates Ric Ocasek, guitarist Elliot Easton, keyboardist Greg Hawkes and drummer David Robinson (bassist Benjamin Orr died of pancreatic cancer in 2000).

Billboard is reporting that the band has reunited to record their first album in 23 years and may support it with a tour. - more on this story

Slash Unplugged

(hennemusic) Slash played a rare acoustic show while down under in Australia that was filmed for Foxtels' "Max Sessions."

The mid-August performance happened before an intimate audience of 300 fans at the Seymour Centre at the University Of Sydney; the Foxtel broadcast debuted this past weekend.

Slash and singer Myles Kennedy played a seven-song set, mixing Slash's solo stuff with Guns N' Roses and Velvet Revolver tracks. - more on this story

Ronnie Wood's Fear Death Experience On Stage

(Gibson) Music-News.com reports that Ronnie Wood came close to fainting on stage on Tuesday night.

The Rolling Stones guitarist was playing the Ambassador Theatre in London. After the show, he told BANG Showbiz: "My legs! I nearly fainted, honestly, during the fourth song, because you don't breathe, and you're thinking of the chords and the words, and singing... I felt, Phew! I did it before, once, on radio, I was singing and all of a sudden I was thinking, 'I'm gonna [expletive] die!' and so I had to breathe and felt like I was going to keel over."

The rocker had appeared out of breath on a couple of songs during the show but managed to continue. The concert was to promote Wood's new album, I Feel Like Playing, and featured his son Jesse James Wood and several guest stars including Kelly Jones of Stereophonics, Beverley Knight and Mica Paris. - more on this story

Dave Grohl and Members of Slayer, Shinedown, Dio, Testament For Dimebash

Dave Grohl of Foo Fighters, Simon Wright from Dio, Brent Smith, Zach Myers and Eric Bass of Shinedown, Kerry King and Dave Lombardo of Slayer, Robb Flynn and Phil Demmel of Machine Head, Chuck Billy from Testament, Chris Howorth and Maria Brink of In This Moment are just some of the rockers who will appear at Dimebash 2010, in honor of "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott, which takes place on October 29th at the Key Club in West Hollywood, CA.

"The thing I remember the most about Darrell was the way he loved to jump up on stage with anyone at the drop of a hat", states Rita Haney, longtime girlfriend of Dime and the person who knew him best. "When this tragedy originally happened, I saw the music community unite like I've never seen before. To have the name 'Dimebag', still to this day, bring together musicians and fans to pay homage in such a respectful way to such an amazing person and cause is very overwhelming! In Dime's vision... it's always been about a damn good time!"

At the same time, proceeds will benefit in the name of another metal legend that left us too early, the Ronnie James Dio Stand up and Shout Cancer Fund. - more on this story

The Kinks Closer To A Reunion

(Gibson) Things are looking up when it comes to a Kinks reunion, according to Ray Davies. The frontman for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame band has said that he's game for a Kinks comeback and that his brother, Dave Davies is coming around on the idea. Dave, The Kinks' lead guitarist, suffered a stroke in 2004 and hasn't done much in the way of music since.

"The interesting thing is I've had e-mails both from Mick [Avory] and Dave about various other subject matters, but I think it will be down to Dave at the end of the day," Ray told Gigwise. "But he's gradually coming 'round to it."

The original Kinks lineup included both Davies brothers, as well as Avory on drums and Pete Quaife on bass. Avory remained with the band until 1984 and Quaife, who died earlier this year, left The Kinks in 1969. - more on this story

90s Rockers Nirvana, Pearl Jam, STP Get Mashed With Lil Wayne

Producer and DJ Alexei has announced a November 4, 2010 release date for his latest project, Weezy's 90s Ball, Vol. 1.

The album is a remix and mashup album that pairs Lil Wayne with 90s rock hits from Nirvana, Radiohead, Stone Temple Pilots, and other influential acts. The release will coincide with Lil Wayne's expected release from jail at Rikers Island.

"Because Lil Wayne's flow is so melodic, it sits incredibly well on top of rock tracks," says Alexei. "And while I loved Rebirth, many fans will probably enjoy this 'rock album' a bit more because Wayne is rapping, rather than singing with the help of auto-tune." - more on this story

Kings of Leon Fastest Sellers of 2010?

(Gibson) Many sources are reporting that the new Kings of Leon album, Come Around Sundown, might be the fastest-selling album of 2010 in the U.K.

Although the album has only been available since Monday in Britain (it was released Tuesday in the U.S.), analysts are already predicting a #1 debut on the charts.

So far this year, another import – American rapper Eminem – has claimed the fastest-selling album of the year in the U.K. His blockbuster, Recovery, has remained on the charts since its summer debut. - more on this story

The Edge Auctioning Behind the Scenes Tour of U2's 360 World Tour

U2's guitarist The Edge is auctioning a rare, intimate look inside U2's 2011 360 World Tour for two lucky fans.

This backstage experience will benefit Gabrielle's Angel Foundation for cancer research. Bidding closes today, October 21st, at charity auction site charitybuzz

The auction winner and a friend will fly first-class on Continental Airlines to the North American show of their choice to catch U2's performance from VIP seats. After the show, the fans will meet The Edge and get a behind (or should we say below?) the scenes look at the engine room of the "Space Station." - more on this story

Tool's Keenan Teams With A Flaming Lip For Elton John Classic

The Flaming Lips' Steven Drozd and Tool's Maynard James Keenan have released their cover of Elton John's classic, "Rocket Man".

Rocket Man, the first single from The Heart Is A Drum Machine (The Score), is available now via iTunes and other digital providers.

The Elton John song is featured in the critically-acclaimed documentary that explores the integral relationship been mankind and music. The full-length score is available on Jan. 18 and was composed by The Flaming Lips' Steven Drozd with Tool's Maynard James Keenan lending vocals to Rocket Man. Both artist appeared in the film alongside fellow musicians John Frusciante (Red Hot Chili Peppers), George Clinton, John Doe (X), The Silversun Pickups, journalist Kurt Loder, scientist Ann Druyan and broadcasting heavyweight Nic Harcourt. - more on this story

Rock Band: Billy Joel

Billy Joel will bring his music exclusively to the Rock Band platform as one the first to be released as Rock Band3 downloadable content.

"The addition of the keyboard made me interested in bringing my music to Rock Band," said Billy Joel. "The game introduces music to an enthusiastic audience in a powerful way, and now also helps players get a grasp on the fundamentals of the keyboard."

Beginning Dec. 14, some of Billy Joel's most-loved songs including "Big Shot," "Captain Jack," "It's Still Rock N Roll to Me," "Movin' Out," "Only The Good Die Young," "Piano Man," "Pressure," "Say Goodbye to Hollywood," "The Entertainer," and "The Stranger" will be available as Rock Band 3 downloadable content and will include Keys and Pro Keys parts. -

Weezer's Rivers Cuomo To Release The Pinkerton Diaries

(Gibson) Weezer frontman Rivers Cuomo says he is working on something called The Pinkerton Diaries. The book will come on the heels of the deluxe, two-disc re-issue of Weezer's 1996 album, Pinkerton, and a tour on which the band will perform all of their self-titled debut and Pinkerton on successive nights.

Cuomo's Diaries, due out next year, will include journal entries, lyrics and other things from the Pinkerton era. "It's a collection of all my journals and emails and letters and photos and school papers, everything from those years," he told Spin.com. "It's an inside look into exactly what I was thinking."

The Weezer frontman also talked about the Memories tour, which will feature the band's first two albums played in their entirety. "There won't be any replication night to night," he said. "We can augment that with different production on stage and different ways of performing and different ways of carrying myself, or dressing, or grooming. There's going to be a lot of variety." -

Accidental Guns N' Roses Reunion

(hennemusic) Duff McKagan joining Guns N' Roses onstage at London's 02 Arena last week happened quite by accident.

"Things happen, in life, pretty crazy at times you least expect things to happen," Duff told KISW Seattle's "The BJ Shea Morning Experience" yesterday. "I got to London last Thursday (October 14). I was there on separate business — a separate business even from music. I checked into the hotel in London I stay at all the time. And the hotel manager came, 'Hey, Duff, we'll show you up to your room.' He goes, 'So you're playing tonight?' And I said, 'No, no, I'm here on just business this time — I'm not playing this time around.' And he looks at me strangely. 'What? You're not playing tonight?'"

"....So, I'm in these meetings and my phone starts ringing later on in the day in my hotel room; it was kind of managers and tour managers," said Duff. "The word (was) out I (was) in the hotel. And it came down to the simple fact... Axl and I just sort of met up, we saw each other and we hugged. I went down to the gig with him." - more on this story

U2 Recording Dangerous Album

(Gibson) According to Bono, U2 currently have three albums in the works. The first is a collaboration with producer Danger Mouse (also half of Gnarls Barkley with Cee-Lo).

"We have about 12 songs with him," the U2 frontman told The Age. "At the moment that looks like the album we will put out next because it's just happening so easily."

Earlier this month, U2's manager Paul McGuinness said the Irish rockers would release a new album in spring 2011, before the start of their next U.S. tour. U2 are also working on what Bono calls a "club" album, which features contributions from the Black Eyed Peas' Will.i.am, French DJ David Guetta and Lady Gaga's creative partner RedOne. - more on this story

Singled Out: Default

Today Jeremy Hora from Default tells us about "Turn It On" from their brand new album "Comes & Goes," which comes out next Tuesday! Here is the story:

"Turn It On" was one of the last songs we worked on. We were gettin a little nervous because we didn't think we had enough rock tracks for our cd. Sometimes the best songs come out of despair in the last hour. We just started jamming the main riff and then it all started writing itself. We had nicknamed it "Stroke It Song" before we had words for it because of the feel of the verse. We cowrote the lyrics with Marty Frederickson, who we worked with last record as well.

There's no crazy story behind the lyrics. They kinda wrote themselves. Its just taken from the experiences we've had as well as watched go down in the 11 years we've been a band. Its one of my personal favorites on the record and to play live as well. The bridge has this Zeppelin feel right before it leads into the guitar solo that I really dig. It was nice to be able to just let loose and just rip a guitar solo too and then again at the end of the song. When we first recorded Turn It On we knew right away it was perfect to lead off the cd in that 1st spot. Live we do the same. Didn't expect it to be a single when we first finished it either. It was a nice surprise to be able to release it. I believe it showcases the band perfectly. Expect more songs like it in the future for Default for sure.

Hearing is believing. Now that you know the story behind the song, listen for yourself and learn more about the album - more on this story

Pearl Jam Get Radio Station For Their 20th Birthday

(hennemusic) It's a helluva way to turn 20. Start your own satellite channel. 24/7. That's what Pearl Jam are doing: launching "Pearl Jam Radio" - a commercial-free music channel on SIRIUS XM, devoted to their extensive catalog of live, studio and unreleased material - on Friday, October 22, the 20th anniversary of the band's first public performance.

Pearl Jam Radio will launch with a special airing of the band's 10th anniversary concert recorded in Las Vegas on October 22, 2000. The concert will be heard in its entirety on Friday, October 22 at 6:00 pm ET.

The first day of Pearl Jam Radio on SIRIUS XM will also feature rarely heard highlights from the band's very first concert performance on October 22, 1990 at Off Ramp Cafe in Seattle, Washington. - more on this story

Escape From Disturbed's Asylum

Disturbed have announced the October 28th premiere of The Asylum Interactive Experience.

Based on the music from the band's new album, the dark, intense game commits players to the Asylum and dares them to try to unlock its secrets.

Fans must try to escape in order to prevent a horrifying future from overtaking the world and to win exclusive songs, never-before-seen photos, and more.

The Asylum Interactive Experience can be entered at www.disturbedasylum.com. View an exclusive trailer - here

Axl Rose Faces Legal Trouble Over Trashed Late Bentley

(hennemusic) Seems like Axl Rose is late for just about everything. The Guns N' Roses singer is being sued over damage to a leased 2006 Bentley Flying Spur that he returned several months late.

According to a lawsuit filed in L.A. County Superior Court, Axl leased the car through Bentley Financial Services back in 2005.

Bentley claims the car had some serious damage and is reportedly suing Rose for $73,976.42 in payments and fees. - Details of the damage

Bad Religion In A Box

Epitaph sent over word on Thursday that Bad Religion will release a limited edition 30 Years LP Box Set on November 9.

The collection will be available exclusively at www.kingsroadmerch.com where beginning today fans are invited to pre-order the Box Set for the sale price of $199.99 until October 25; price thereafter will increase to $224.99.

The must-have collection will include all fifteen of Bad Religion's studio albums, How Could Hell Be Any Worse?, Into The Unknown, Suffer, No Control, Against The Grain, Generator, Recipe For Hate, Stranger Than Fiction, The Gray Race, No Substance, New America, The Process Of Belief, The Empire Strikes First, New Maps Of Hell and their latest release The Dissent Of Man, on red vinyl and packaged in a beautiful black anniversary box. - more on this story