Van Halen Finish Recording Comeback Album

"The new Van Halen record has been recorded and we're all excited. We've just started mixing the record," Hogarth tells Ultimate Guitar. "it's the killing side of Van Halen at the top of their game again with Diamond Dave, and the band on fire. more on this story

McCartney and Ringo Forming New Beatles?

(Gibson) There are some interesting rumors circulating about Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and the involvement of The Beatles in the opening ceremony for next year's Summer Olympics in London, according to NME.com. McCartney has admitted to his involvement in the ceremony… sort of.

When asked on American television if he'd be appearing, he nodded, before saying, "I hear there's a rumour that I might be involved." Referring to The Beatles, he said, "I hear they're planning this sort of music."

British newspaper The Sun has gone a step further, with an unnamed source reporting: "The organizers want the music legend to appear alongside other big British acts. And they also want Ringo on stage as well to make it extra special."

And that's not all. The paper suggests that McCartney and Starr might join the children of the late George Harrison and John Lennon to perform in a Beatles reunion. more on this story

Motorhead Star Died With A Laugh and a Drink

(Rock News Desk) Motorhead have confirmed former guitarist Wurzel's cause of death was a heart attack but that he died with a smile on his face.

The ex-axeman, 61, passed away on Saturday after having lived with cardiomyopahty, a disease of the heart muscle, for a number of years.

The band say: "We are greatly saddened to confirm our long-time friend and comrade died at his home. Wurz was pouring a Guinness and cracking a joke when he succumbed to a heart attack. At least we know he went with a smile." more on this story

Motley Crue 'Too Stupid To Do Anything Else'

(Gibson) While Vince Neil, Tommy Lee and Nikki Sixx have lived in the tabloid headlines for three decades, Motley Crue guitarist Mick Mars has always managed to keep a relatively low profile. Still, the 60-year old axeman is an essential part of the Crüe's beefy sound, which is melting faces all over North America this summer. The tour, with supporting acts Poison and the New York Dolls, has pulled in a new generation of fans.

"It's a cool thing for me," Mars told Birmingham Weekly "People are there holding up their kids. Our fans are growing up and have kids and it's cool to see that."

When asked how the band have managed to keep it together all these years, Mars waxed philosophical. "Because we are all too stupid to do anything else," he laughed. "I don't know—it's 30 years' worth of stuff and it's like a family. We have our spats, just like any other family kind of thing. It's like Thanksgiving—everybody can argue about how the turkey is cooked. That gives you an idea of how things can get petty. You go off for a month and then you start talking, it's that kind of a deal. It's not a big deal at all." more on this story

Iron Maiden Singer Rejects TV Show Offer

(Gibson) Iron Maiden frontman and metal vocalist extraordinaire Bruce Dickinson has turned down the opportunity to be a judge on a television singing competition. The Sun reports that Dickinson was offered a spot on the judging panel of the U.K. version of The Voice, set to air on the BBC.

"That show sounds so crap and demeaning to everyone involved, I took great delight in turning the BBC down," he said. "The X Factor is appalling enough, it's no better than Opportunity Knocks."

The BBC is attempting to rival The X Factor with The Voice, which was a hit show this spring for NBC. On the U.S. edition, the judging panel was made up of Christina Aguilera, Cee Lo Green, Adam Levine and Blake Shelton. more on this story

Slash Goes Disney

(Gibson) When your pet platypus is really a secret agent, pretty much anything is possible. That is certainly the case on the Disney children's program, Phineas and Ferb. Now, with the cartoon duo of Phineas Flynn and his stepbrother Ferb Fletcher about to embark on their own full-length movie, another unlikely character has entered their world: legendary former Guns N' Roses guitarist Slash.

The Chapeaued Shredder revealed to Blabbermouth that he recently wrote and performed a song for the Disney Channel original movie, Phineas and Ferb: The Movie—Across the 2nd Dimension. He admitted that the show is a "guilty pleasure." The Velvet Revolver guitarist also revealed that he will appear in an animated video in conjunction with the movie, which he called "very rock and roll, even for a cartoon."

Phineas and Ferb: The Movie—Across the 2nd Dimension will be released as a two-disc DVD set on August 23. more on this story

Arctic Monkeys Announce New North American Tour Leg

Arctic Monkeys have announced a second leg to their North American Tour which gets under way next month.

The new leg is set to kick off on September 28th in Vancouver, BC and will run through mid October and will feature support from Smith Westerns.

Before co-headlining Hollywood Bowl with TV On The Radio on September 25th, they will be joining the Brooklyn band for two newly announced shows in Las Vegas and San Diego. more on this story

Weezer and The Flaming Lip To Play Side By Side At Upcoming Shows

Weezer and The Flaming Lips are going to bring a whole new meaning to the term co-headlining when they will be literally sharing the stage for some upcoming shows.

Scoop sent over the following details about the gigs: With their respective gear set up side-by-side, Weezer and The Flaming Lips will literally share the stage together on Thursday, July 28th in New Jersey and Friday, July 29th in New York.

Weezer and the Flaming Lips will trade off songs back and forth for the entire length of each concert, allowing them to take turns playing a few songs each in one big exciting set. Yeasayer will open each show. more on this story

LaBrie Says Dream Theater Are Better Without Mike Portnoy

(Rock News Desk) James LaBrie insists Dream Theater are better and happier without Mike Portnoy – and that both band and fans have noticed the difference on stage. And he reveals he hasn't spoken to his ex-colleague since the phone call during which he announced his decision to leave the prog-metal outfit he co-founded.

The drummer made his surprise decision last year while he was touring with Avenged Sevenfold. Dream Theater replaced him with Mike Mangini, with whom they recorded upcoming album A Dramatic Turn of Events. They're now touring with Mangini – and LaBrie tells Prog Sphere the difference is clear.

"We were talking about how everything is much more balanced and everyone is in their role or their position," says LaBrie. "It's where things should be on stage where it's not somebody in the background trying to grab the limelight, when maybe they should just be grooving or whatever. more on this story

Judas Priest Planning New Classic Metal Album

(Gibson) Even though Judas Priest have begun their final, big-scale tour, it's by no means the end of the band. In fact, the metal legends are already pretty deep into making a new album, bassist Ian Hill told Greece's Rockpages.

"Of course, we will continue to record as well… we have already written an album's worth of material," he said. "Three songs are properly recorded and roughly mixed."

So what does the new stuff sound like? "It's gonna be a great album and it's gonna carry on from where Angel of Retribution left off," Hill said. "We got Nostradamus out of our system and now we are heading towards classic Priest metal… the screams, the fast, the slow and the heavy! A little bit of everything."

The Strokes and Elvis Costello Duet To Be Released

(Gibson) The Strokes' fourth album, Angles, was released earlier this year to mixed reviews—from the band themselves. Various band members bemoaned the fractured nature of the sessions, with Julian Casablancas literally emailing in his performance while the rest of the band cut tracks in a converted farmhouse in Port Jervis, New York.

Nevertheless, the album has had legs, bolstered by high-profile festival gigs in the U.S. and U.K. And it should get a similar push with news this week that the single, "Taken for a Fool," will feature a B-side duet version of the song with the legendary Elvis Costello.

Costello performed the song onstage with the band earlier this year at Madison Square Garden after appearing as their unlikely support act. The performance was recorded and is set for release with the single on July 26, according to ClashMusic. more on this story

Chickenfoot's Michael Anthony Can Still Get High

(Gibson) Former Van Halen bassist Michael Anthony said his background vocals are featured more extensively on the forthcoming Chickenfoot album than on the supergroup's debut. Anthony was famous for contributing high-pitched singing parts during his tenure in Van Halen.

"For some reason, my voice doesn't age," he told Joe Bosso of Music Radar. "I can still hit those high harmonies just like I did back in the day… My wife likes to say I act like a kid, so maybe that's why I sing like one!"

Anthony said that cutting out smoking has greatly improved his singing with Chickenfoot, who also include Sammy Hagar, Joe Satriani and Chad Smith. "For one thing, I want to live a long life and try to grow old gracefully, so that's a good reason to quit," he said. "But I found that my singing improved dramatically. I've always been a natural singer on stage and in the studio – never had a vocal lesson in my life. But by trying to take better care of my voice, I can really feel and hear the difference. I'm pretty proud of my singing on this new album." more on this story

Classic-Era Dokken Members Rockin Without Don Dokken

(Gibson) The planned classic-era Dokken reunion now may be off the table, but that hasn't stopped three quarters of the band from getting together to lay down some tracks, both old and new, and taking a little dig at the missing member in the process.

George Lynch has told Classic Rock Revisited that he has formed a new band with Dokken alumni Jeff Pilson (bass) and "Wild" Mick Brown (drums) called Tooth and Nail, named after a Dokken album. "That's Dokken without Don," Lynch explained. "The record is called Dump the Chump."

Pilson, who now plays in Foreigner, is a very capable vocalist, taking the mic for the brilliant Lynch/Pilson album Wicked Underground in 2005. "When the Dokken reunion was not going to happen we just said, 'Why don't we just do this? This is way cooler,'" Lynch told Classic Rock Revisited. "Many years later, we are doing it and it is just for fun. It is half new material and it is half old Dokken material." more on this story

Alkaline Trio Release New Album and Hit The Road

Alkaline Trio have hit the road in support of their brand new album, Damnesia, which hit stores today.

These shows feature both intimate acoustic renditions as well as a full volume electric portion.

Alkaline Trio will be joined on the tour by Smoking Popes who will open the west coast dates and mewithoutyou who will play the east coast shows. Smoking Popes will also be perform in their home city of Chicago. more on this story

R.E.M. Working on New Album

(Gibson) R.E.M. only released Collapse into Now in March, but the band are already in the studio working on the album's follow-up, and vocalist Michael Stipe is posting updates on the sessions via iPhone.

Images from the sessions can be seen on the website of Stipe's friend Jane Pratt, a radio host and founder of Sassy magazine. The pics can be found in the "Jane's Phone" section of her website. Look for the "Michael's Phone" pics. Images posted so far include some words of inspiration on the music biz courtesy of Hunter S. Thompson, and a sign.

R.E.M. decided not to tour on the back of Collapse into Now, with guitarist Peter Buck telling NME the band felt it had already toured a lot over the past eight or 10 years. "You just don't really want to repeat yourself in that way," he said. more on this story

3 Doors Down Guitarist Talks Time of My Life

(Gibson) 3 Doors Down lead guitarist Matt Roberts checked in with Gibson.com to talk about the writing process behind Time of My Life, switching up producers and why Gibson guitars "have such different personalities."

The new album, Time of My Life. This was the first time 3 Doors Down have worked with Howard Benson. What was that like? Yes, we kind of use a different producer on almost every different record, so we basically find whoever is in touch with the project. We interview at least a dozen producers, and Howard has talked with us before on past records, and he was in touch with what we wanted to do with this. So, it was a great experience.

What was the writing process like for, Time of My Life? Most of the time what happens is the music comes first. I'll sit down and write a guitar riff and bounce it off the other guys and develop music, or Chris [Henderson, guitarist] will come in with guitar riff and give it to me. The melody and music get built, and then Brad [Arnold, vocals] comes in and writes the lyrics. Sometimes he writes the lyrics and melody first, but most of the time, the lyrics come at the end. Read the full interview here

Sebastian Bach New Album Details

(FR) Sebastian Bach's new album, Kicking & Screaming, is set to be released on September 27th via Frontiers Records in North America and September 23rd in Europe.

The recording features guitarist Nick Sterling and drum pro Bobby Jarzombek (Halford, Riot, Iced Earth), as well a guest appearance by noted guitarist John 5 (Marilyn Manson, Rob Zombie) on "TunnelVision".

The album will be available in three separate configurations: jewel box CD, deluxe digipak with bonus track and bonus DVD and double LP gatefold vinyl. more on this story

Fair To Midland Streaming New Album Online

(EOL) Fair To Midland are streaming their new record "Arrows and Anchors" in its entirety online.

The new album hits stores today and is the follow up to their 2007 release "Fables from a Mayfly: What I Tell You Three Times Is True," you can stream the new effort here

Fair To Midland will be supporting The Damned Things and Maylene & The Sons Of Disaster on a tour this summer. "We're very excited about being a part of this tour, says bassist Jon Dicken. "We're fans of all the bands involved and are looking forward to hitting the road with them for what looks like should be a fun summer. It's a great way to kick off the release of our new record." more on this story

Epicenter Lineup Explands

The Epicenter festival have announced that Everlast (in his first show of 2011 and only Southern California appearance this year) and Crossfade have been added to this year's lineup.

Set for Saturday, September 24 at Verizon Wireless Amphitheater in Irvine, CA, the day-long rock festival will feature headliners Limp Bizkit in their first Southern California show in over a decade and their first American live performance of 2011.

Epicenter will feature 12 hours of music with performances from over a dozen bands on two stages, including: Limp Bizkit, Staind, Five Finger Death Punch, Papa Roach, Buckcherry, Skillet, Puddle Of Mudd, P.O.D., Everlast, Asking Alexandria, Redlight King, Middle Class Rut, Crossfade and Drive A. more on this story

Europe Tap Kevin Shirley To Produce New Album

(Noble) Kevin Shirley is set to produce Europe's new studio album. Shirley's produced albums for Iron Maiden, Joe Bonamassa, Black Country Communion, Black Stone Cherry and Journey.

"We still feel we have one hell of a rock record to make" says Europe's singer Joey Tempest. "Kevin's the man for the job. We love his work with Bonamassa, Black Country Communion, and Black Stone Cherry. He's the real deal. We're ready to do some serious damage."

Last week Europe met up with Shirley in Stockholm to discuss the direction of the next album. Based on reactions from the fans and media, Europe's 2009 album 'Last Look at Eden' proved to be the band's most important record since 'The Final Countdown'. "I've been a big fan of Europe's work for many years," says Shirley. "The band is influential and highly underrated. I can't wait to make the upcoming album their most explosive to date." more on this story

Alberta Hunter Downhearted Blues Classic Revisited

(conqueroo) Alberta Hunter's Downhearted Blues: Live At The Cookery, one of the classic blues singer's final recordings is set to be released on both CD and 180-gram vinyl on August 30, 2011 on RockBeat Records.

Musicologist Bill Dahl contributed liner notes. (The title was previously available on CD, but has been re-mastered and will now be available on CD and 180-gram vinyl for the first time.) Here is the backstory:

It's difficult to decide which was the most remarkable facet of pioneering blues chanteuse Alberta Hunter's incredible career. Was it her role in the vanguard of the "classic blues" movement of the early 1920s, when she recorded prolifically for Paramount and other labels during the industry's first foray into the idiom? Her entertainment of grateful U.S. troops during not one war, but two? Or her heartwarming late 1970s/early 1980s comeback on the New York cabaret circuit after more than two decades away from singing professionally, when she was well into her 80s? One fact is inescapable: when she died on October 17, 1984 in New York at age 89, Hunter was a genuine star once more. more on this story

Most Unusual One Hit Wonder of Them All

(Gibson) One of the most unusual, memorable and certainly intriguing one hit wonders of all time, "In the Year 2525," made it to no 1 on the U.S. singles charts on this very day in 1969.

The space-age theme of technology threatening man's very survival obviously hit a chord in 1969, the era of Star Trek, prototype computers and the U.S. versus the Soviet Union space race. Sung by Zager and Evans, the song, ostensibly a folk protest number, somewhat akin to Barry McGuire's "Eve of Destruction," warns of what will become to the universe as technology takes over: "In the year 2525 / Your arms are hanging limp at your side, You legs got nothing to do, Some machine's doing that for you"

Timing is everything, and the song was still #1 on July 20, 1969 in the U.S., the date of Neil Armstrong's historic Apollo moon landing. By staying at #1 for six weeks, which was longer than any other song that year, the track won itself the honor of Billboard's #1 record of the year. more on this story

The World According To Richie Sambora

(Gibson) In 28 years of Bon Jovi rockin', Richie Sambora has experienced many ups and a few downs. A member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame since 2009, Sambora is always a generous and witty interviewee, as happy to talk about songcraft, heroes and inspirations, the Bon Jovi "family", technique and his love affair with the guitar as much as his own considerable talents. Here are some choice quotes from a guitar-man who has seen a million faces and rocked them all…

On whether he ever gets bored playing Bon Jovi's numerous hits… "No, no, no. Rock 'n' roll is a contact sport," he told Musicradar.com. "The rush is to take it in front of 70,000 people and have that happen. That's what makes it great. It's like having sex with your clothes on - it's the best thing you can possibly do.... It's the adjoining of the band and the audience that makes it still really good. And you know what? They're really good songs. Both Jon and I are pretty proud of them. We've discussed it, and we say, 'Hey, people wanna hear those songs? We're gonna give it to 'em.' That's it."

On the Bon Jovi songwriting method… "With Jon and I, the songwriting always starts with a conversation, how we're feeling and what's going on with our families or in the world," he told Star Bulletin. "It's been that way from day one - we sit in the same room with two guitars and a tape player. It's very old-school. Inspiration? There's a story on every street corner, my friends. All you have to do is open your eyes." more on this story

Curtains For Glastonbury?

(Gibson) In an interview that is sure to shock British festival fans, Michael Eavis revealed that Glastonbury might only last a short while longer. The festival organizer said that Europe's largest music fest is winding down.

"It's on the way out. We've probably got another three or four years," he told The Times. "It is a very scary business. Womad and Latitude are not selling out. Partly it's economics, but there is a feeling that people have seen it all before."

Eavis said that Glastonbury has managed to sell out reliably "because we get huge headliners." U2, Coldplay and Beyonce topped the bill this year. Still, big names and sold-out fests don't always mean profits. "In the year Jay-Z played we nearly went bankrupt," he said. "I don't see the market will be there in the future." more on this story

Guns N' Roses Muse for James Durbin on American Idol Tour

(hennemusic) After making a name for himself rocking American Idol viewers, James Durbin is taking it to the people. On the road for the current Idol tour - which kicked off last week in West Valley City, Utah - Durbin is delivering the goods once again, if the youtube videos popping up from the first few shows are any indication.

The top 11 contestants make up the stage show, which hits more than 40 cities across North America between now and September.

Looks like James is performing songs by Muse and Guns N' Roses in his short set, in addition to his duties joining other Idol singers for medleys and various tracks. Watch videos of James doing GNR and Muse here

Video of Metallica Playing On The Back of a Truck

(hennemusic) Some interesting video from Metallica's appearance at Sonisphere UK over the weekend has surfaced.

The band did a partial warm up for their headlining slot at the festival by running through a few tunes in the back of a truck outside the press area.

The UK gig was the fourth installment of the current European tour by the Big 4 – Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer and Anthrax. Check out the video here

Talking Metal Live Special Tonight

Talking Metal will be doing a LIVE 3 hour broadcast tonight starting at 7pm EST / 4pm PST.

Join both John and Mark for some great fun, interviews (Black n Blue, Killinger and Black Veil Brides) and music.

You can listen to the broadcast on using the LIVE 365 (stream A) player on the left hand side of the official site located here

. Queen Week: Queen II [2011 Remaster]

Its fun to look back on a bands formative years. However, Queen II is a lot like remembering a boys awkward middle school years... years best forgotten by all. - Read the full Queen Week: Queen II [2011 Remaster] review

Bush Return With New Album

Bush have set a September 13th release date for The Sea Of Memories, their first new studio album in 10 years.

Recorded with producer Bob Rock (Aerosmith, Metallica), The Sea Of Memories is first album to be released via their own imprint, Zuma Rock Records, through an exclusive partnership with eOne Music.

On July 21st, the band will perform lead single "The Sound of Winter" on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" Last week, Bush announced that they'll be playing the Bowery Ballroom in New York City on July 28th and the show literally sold out in under a minute. On Saturday, August 20th, Bush will also be among the headliners performing with the Sunset Strip Music Festival in LA. more on this story