Black Sabbath Will Tour In 2013

Black Sabbath recently revealed that they are six tracks into recording their new album, which is due for release in April of 2013. Iommi has hinted that the final album will consist of 15 tracks. more on this story

My Bloody Valentine Complete New Album

(Gibson) It's taken 22 years, but My Bloody Valentine have completed their third album. The Anglo/Irish quartet announced on their Facebook page, "On 21-12-12 we finished mastering the new album!" There is still no release-date or title information about the full-length follow to MBV's 1991 acclaimed "shoegaze" 1991 album, Loveless.

Guitarist and leader Kevin Shields recently told NME the record will be released via the MBV website, followed by an EP of new recordings also in 2013. Shields said the new record "really frees us up, and in the bigger picture it's 100% necessary.

"People who like us will immediately connect with something. Based on the very, very few people who've heard stuff-- some engineers, the band, and that's about it-- some people think it's stranger than Loveless. I don't."

My Bloody Valentine have announced tour dates for February-March 2013, in Japan, Australia and the U.K. more on this story

Foo Fighters, Kid Rock, Jason Bonham Tribute Led Zeppelin

(hennemusic) Led Zeppelin were among the guests featured on the 2012 Kennedy Center Honors special broadcast on Boxing Day.

Robert Plant, Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones received the honors earlier this month in Washington. The annual award is given to those in the performing arts for their lifetime of contributions to American culture.

The Foo Fighters opened with "Rock And Roll," which featured drummer Taylor Hawkins out front on lead vocals while Dave Grohl handled the backbeat.

Kid Rock was up next, performing "Ramble On," from "Led Zeppelin II," while Lenny Kravitz followed with that album's opening cut, "Whole Lotta Love."

Jason Bonham, son of original drummer John and the drummer for the band's 2007 reunion show, joined Ann and Nancy Wilson of Heart for a show-ending version of "Stairway to Heaven" that gradually grew to include a string section, a horde of backup singers and the Joyce Garrett Youth Choir. Watch video of the performances here.

Pearl Jam Release Christmas Single Featuring Josh Homme

(hennemusic) Pearl Jam have issued their annual fan club Christmas single. This year, the band is giving its Ten Club members a pair of recordings from the 2011's PJ20 music festival.

The first track is a performance of the "Binaural" b-side "In the Moonlight" featuring Queens Of The Stone Age's Josh Homme.

The other cut is the "No Code" outtake "All Night", featuring Joseph Arthur, Liam Finn, and Glen Hansard.

Both tracks appeared on the 2003 collection of b-sides and other released and unreleased material, "Lost Dogs." Listen to the songs here.

Metallica's 2013 Orion Music + More Festival Location Confirmed

(hennemusic) Metallica recently announced plans for the second annual Orion Music + More Festival.

The event will be held on June 8th and 9th in Detroit, MI; more news, including artist lineup and ticket details, will be revealed in February.

Now, the Detroit Free Press reports Belle Isle will be the site of the metal weekend coming to Detroit this summer - and perhaps in 2014 and 2015, as well. more on this story

Sammy Hagar Upset Over Ronnie Montrose Tribute Concert DVD Delay

(Classic Rock) Sammy Hagar says the estate of Ronnie Montrose is behind the delay in releasing the guitarist's tribute show DVD.

And the frustrated singer vows that if the concert film doesn't hit shelves soon, he'll take action himself.

Guitar icon Montrose shot himself in March this year. He had suffered from clinical depression for much of his life, and the deaths of his uncle and dog within weeks of each other are understood to have been factors in his decision to commit suicide.

The following month, surviving Montrose members Hagar, Bill Church and Denny Carmassi fronted a memorial event that also starred Joe Satriani, Neal Schon, Tommy Thayer, Jimmy DeGrasso and many others.

It was filmed, and an early release was predicted – but it's yet to take place. more on this story

Guns N' Roses Heading Down Under With ZZ Top

Guns N' Roses are said to be planning a tour in Australia this coming March with ZZ Top and The Angels.

Leading Australian news site News.com.au reports that the tour will kick off on March 9th in Perth and will include five concerts.

The site points out that Axl Rose may face a challenge when he plays the show in Melborne if he takes the stage late.

The Sidney Myer Music Bowl has a strict curfew of 11pm and during past tours in the country Rose and the band regularly didn't appear on stage until that time or later. more on this story

Black Crowes Reunion Includes Free App and New Live Album

The Black Crowes have followed up their Christmas reunion announcement with more details including news of a new live album and a free mobile web app.

The band announced on Christmas day that they were ending their hiatus and launching a UK and North American tour in 2013.

On Wednesday, the band announced that they will also be releasing a vinyl version of the live album, Wiser For The Time, on March 19th.

The eight sides on four vinyl albums will contain 26 songs--15 acoustic and 11 electric--from the band's five-night, sold-out NYC performances in the fall of 2010. These never-released-before versions will also be available as a double album digital download, according to the announcement. more on this story

Antrhax To Play Among The Living Album On Metal Alliance Tour

Organizers of The Metal Alliance Tour have released the dates for the North American trek as well as some additional details.

The tour will be headlined by Anthrax who will be performing their classic 1987 album, Among The Living, in its entirety on the trek.

Anthrax will be supported by Exodus, Municipal Waste and Holy Grail and the tour will kick off on March 23rd in Las Vegas.

Municipal Waste guitarist Ryan Waste had this to say about the tour, "I grew up listening to Anthrax and Exodus and they inspired me to start playing speed metal from the beginning. I'm thrilled to hit the road and rip it up along-side some the most influential 'bangers of our time!" more on this story

The Original Blasters Reuniting for Phil Alvin Benefit

The Original Blasters will be reuniting at the "Brotherly Love: A Night for Our Brother Phil Alvin" benefit concert which will be taking place on Saturday, January 26 at The Observatory Theatre in Santa Ana, California.

MSO sent over these details: The line-up features a virtual who's-who of the Los Angeles music community including a reunion of The Original Blasters: Dave Alvin, Phil Alvin, John Bazz and Bill Bateman; X; The Knitters; James Harman; Frank Fairfield; and the Mike Ellred Trio. Overseeing the evening's festivities is M.C. Big Sandy. Other special guest performers will be announced in the coming weeks.

Tickets for the benefit are $30 and all proceeds will be used to cover Phil Alvin's medical bills from a recent illness. In addition, a reproduction of the Fender Mustang guitar Dave Alvin played when he was in Blasters will be signed by performers and auctioned the evening of the benefit and a special poster created by acclaimed Portland graphic artist Gary Houston with these monies also allocated towards Phil's medical expenses.

About The Blasters: All American roots band The Blasters were formed in 1979 in Downey, California, by brothers Phil Alvin (vocals and guitar) and Dave Alvin (guitar) with bass guitarist John Bazz and drummer Bill Bateman. Their self-described "American Music" was a blend of blues, rockabilly, early rock and their energetic live performances gained a loyal, local following. They became fixtures of the early '80s Los Angeles punk scene, performing alongside X, Black Flag, The Gun Club, The Screamers and many others. Former Black Flag singer and current Rollins Band leader Henry Rollins wrote of the Blasters, "In my mind, they were a great band that not enough people found out about. Bill Bateman is one of the best drummers there is, and then of course, there are the Alvin brothers. A lot of talent for one band," notes for the album The Blasters Collection report that in one particular month, they toured with psychobilly pioneers The Cramps, with western swing revivalists Asleep at the Wheel and on a leg of Queen's west coast tour. The Blasters gave boosts to both Los Lobos and Dwight Yoakam by inviting them on tour; Yoakam would later score hit with his version of Dave Alvin's "Long White Cadillac." The Blasters continue to release music (their latest CD Fun On Saturday Night was released earlier this year) and tour the world. Founding member Dave Alvin left the band in 1986 to launch a successful and critically acclaimed solo career. more on this story

The Black Keys and Sonic Youth On Austin City Limits This Weekend

The Black Keys and Sonic Youth will be featured in an encore episode of Austin City Limits (ACL) airing Saturday, December 29th on PBS. We were sent these details:

The Black Keys are. The Ohio blues-rock duo are enjoying a victory lap in their road-tested career, recently scoring five 2013 Grammy nominations, including Album of the Year and Best Rock Album for their platinum-selling El Camino, capping off a stellar year that included headlining music's biggest festivals and playing to sold-out arenas worldwide.

The episode, which originally aired in October 2010, is a prescient indicator of things to come as the band bring raw energy and steel-belt grit to tracks from their 2010 breakout album Brothers in their ACL debut. more on this story

Late Suicide Silence Frontman Mitch Lucker's Final Video Interview Online

What is believed to be the final video interview with late Suicide Silence frontman Mitch Lucker has been posted online.

The full band was interviewed on Lucker's 28th birthday (October 20th), shortly before he died in a motorcycle accident on Halloween.

The interview was focused on the charity work the band had performed during the holiday season in 2001. Watch it here.

Former Thieves Break Up

Iowa hardcore band Former Thieves have announced that they are splitting up. The band posted the following "Closing Statement" on their Facebook page.

"I still think it's bullsh*t when people try to tell you that being a full-time band from Iowa is harder than being a full-time band from... Well, anywhere else. There are certainly setbacks, yes. For instance, not a lot of touring bands reside here, nor is this a music industry hub by any stretch of the imagination. Our parents or parent's friends [probably] weren't wannabe-pro-musicians at any point, so it's difficult to find a social context for what building a life as such could look like. Seclusion breeds a firm respect for tradition, so ideas like a transient lifestyle can seem socially taboo.

"What this means simply, is we don't grow up with any basis for comparison on how to navigate getting involved with a national, or for that matter international, music scene. There is the inevitable necessity for a bit more trial and error among young bands. You really have to want to look for it, because there is no chance of it just falling in your lap. Exploration is half the fun in my (our) opinion, and from experience we happen to know that every band from the middle of nowhere anywhere is just one 80 day DIY tour away from having all the contacts they need to build real momentum.

"The actual difficulty of being a band transcends location, privilege, ultimate goals, or musical ability. It's staying a band. That's the hard part. As a band progresses and time moves on, there is a lot of life happening in the periphery. It gets to be a lot to balance. The task becomes how well you can keep one foot planted in two polarized worlds, without getting completely lost in the tap-dancing act of making a home life and a band life work. There's no easy way to say this, but that's where we as Former Thieves have become exhausted. the rest of the statement here.

Love/Hate Planning Blackout '13 Tour

Jizzy Pearl has put together a new version of Love/Hate and announced tour dates for their 'Blackout '13' tour.

The group announced a string of UK tour dates for the trek, two California dates and also stated that more US Dates will be announced next month.

The current lineup features guitarist Keri Kelli (Alice Cooper, Slash's Snakepit), bassist Robbie Crane (Ratt, Lynch Mob) and drummer Matt Starr (Ace Frehley).

Kelli sent out a Christmas email to fans which said, "Through March and April I will be joining my brothers in ROQ Jizzy Pearl, Robbie Crane and Matt Star as we do battle with the diehard Love/Hate fans in the UK. Would really like to see you ALL out on these special shows, as you know we don't do them often." more on this story

The Sword Release Limited Edition Album and Kicking Off Tour

The Sword are finishing 2012 with a special limited edition release and will begin 2013 with a new tour.

The band have released a special, limited-edition 180 gram audiophile black LP of their current album, Apocryphon, and are offering fans the opportunity to purchase the vinyl (and additional band merchandise) at a 25% discount by using the special code RT25 at checkout beginning now through January 1st on their online store here.

The Sword will be kicking off their European tour on January 6th. The trek starts with a UK leg followed by a series of shows in continental Europe that wraps up in Copenhagen on January 27th. more on this story

Guns N' Roses' Bumblefoot Offering Free Song Download

Guns N' Roses guitarist Bumblefoot is offering fans a free song download for joining his new mailing list.

His camp says: Bumblefoot dug into his vault to find an unreleased, heavier version of the song "Misery" from his Abnormal album. The song is free to everyone, all you have to do is visit www.Bumblefoot.com and join the brand new Bumblefoot email list.

Bumblefoot wants to keep you updated on his 2013 plans with Guns N' Roses, his work with vocalist Tony Harnell, new products such as the Bumblefoot hot sauces, and much more. This track can't be found anywhere else, only at Bumblefoot.com.

Top 12 of 2012: April

Music news is slow during the holidays, so for the rest of the year in addition to the latest news, we will be looking back at the top 12 stories for each month of 2012. Today we look back at the top stories from April.

Guns N' Roses The Movie? (Top 12 of April 2012)

(Gibson) Guns N' Roses The Movie? was a top 12 rock story of April 2012: In an interview with VH1, former Guns N' Roses drummer Matt Sorum says he has talked with "a couple of really big people" about writing a screenplay about his former band (and 2012 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees).

"The only problem with that is figuring out how to work out the music situation," Sorum said. "If there was a film about Guns N' Roses, the thing about Guns N' Roses that was different than all the butt rock bands in Hollywood was that it was down and dirty and punk rock and real. As much as anyone wants to say they want to try to lump it in with hair metal, it never was because it was a different kind of energy.

"If you look at rock and roll movies, they've never been done right," he said, citing The Doors and the Johnny Cash biopic Walk the Line as two of the only exceptions. more on this story

Jimi Hendrix, Elvis and Kurt Cobain For Hologram Resurrection? (Top 12 of April 2012)

(Classic Rock) Jimi Hendrix, Elvis and Kurt Cobain For Hologram Resurrection? was a top 12 rock story of April 2012: One of the chiefs behind the controversial Tupac hologram says he'd love to bring back big rock icons in the digital interactive format in the future.

Crowds at the Coachella Festival were shocked earlier this month when a computer-generated version of the rapper, murdered in 1996, performed on stage with Dr Dre and Snoop Dogg.

But Sanj Surati of Musion Technology tells the NME: "Putting Elvis on stage with Justin Bieber would be a cool thing." Asked who else he'd like to bring back he says: "Jimi Hendrix, Kurt Cobain – and Michael Jackson would be the ultimate one. This is obviously a historic and exciting initiative." more on this story

Ronnie Montrose Death Ruled Suicide (Top 12 of April 2012)

(Gibson) Ronnie Montrose Death Ruled Suicide was a top 12 rock story of April 2012: New information has surfaced on the passing of guitar great Ronnie Montrose, who died earlier this year. The coroners report states that the rock legend died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. His family have posted the following message on his website.

"By now, the devastating truth of Ronnie's death is public knowledge. We hope you can understand why we wanted to keep this news a private family matter for as long as possible. We can only hope that you will choose to celebrate Ronnie's life, and what his music meant to you, rather than mourn his passing. Ronnie would have wanted it that way. He loved being a guitarist, a composer, a producer, and a creator of magic. He fully understood his gifts, and yet he constantly pushed himself to evolve, improve, and make better music. He did this for himself, and he did this for you, because he adored and appreciated his fans. Please keep his energy, his joy, and his love in your hearts.

"Please note that there will be no more statements from the Montrose family at this time. We ask that you respect the family's privacy." more on this story

Eddie Van Halen Wanted To Join KISS (Top 12 of April 2012)

(Classic Rock) Eddie Van Halen Wanted To Join KISS was a top 12 rock story of April 2012: Gene Simmons is proud of what he told Eddie Van Halen when the guitarist begged to replace Ace Frehley in Kiss.

Simmons says events unfolded in 1982 when Kiss parted ways with guitarist Frehley. Van Halen appeared in the band's studio, where they were working on new material, and played the main theme from future hit single Jump on a synth.

Simmons spoke about it on Nikki Sixx's radio show, "So I take him to lunch across the street and he actually tells me: 'I want to join Kiss. I can't take Roth – he's driving me nuts. We're not getting along. I've got this sound in my head that I want Van Halen to do, and Roth doesn't want to do it, and we're just getting to a point where he's believing his own hype.'," Gene said. "I remember feeling proud of what I said. I said: 'Don't do it. Stay with the band you started. There's no role for you – you're too big. You cast too much of a shadow to be the guitar player in Kiss.' more on this story

Robert Plant Announces New Band (Top 12 of April 2012)

(hennemusic) Robert Plant Announces New Band was a top 12 rock story of April 2012: Robert Plant returns to live action next month with a low-key warm-up show and a new band.

This Is Gloucestershire reports Plant will debut his new band, The Sensational Space Shifters, at a May 8 concert at the Gloucester Guildhall in Gloucester, England.

"It gives me great pleasure to announce Led Zeppelin frontman and award-winning solo artist Robert Plant will be performing an exclusive low-key warm-up show at Gloucester Guildhall next month," said Programming and Marketing Manager Joe Schiavon. "This is obviously a massive show for us, and we can't wait to host it." more on this story

Great White Accuse Jack Russell of Lip-synching (Top 12 of April 2012)

(Classic Rock) Great White Accuse Jack Russell of Lip-synching was a top 12 rock story of April 2012: Great White's Mark Kendall, Michael Lardie and Adie Desbrow have filed a counterclaim against frontman Jack Russell, alleging he forced them to mime shows on a European tour because he couldn't carry out singing duties well enough.

Russell last month served papers against his former colleagues for continuing to use the band name while he was working on a project called Jack Russell's Great White. Later he said: "That's not Great White – who are they kidding? I fired them all on December 10."

The three long-standing musicians hired XYZ singer Terry Illous to carry out a 30th anniversary tour and later decided to start creating new material, following a number of incidents which left Russell too ill to work.

Responding to their ex-singer's lawsuit, they've now filed their own 30-page document.... read their claims here.

Aerosmith Star Questions 60 Minutes Editing (Top 12 of April 2012)

(Classic Rock) Aerosmith Star Questions 60 Minutes Editing was a top 12 rock story of April 2012: Aerosmith bassist Tom Hamilton has accused TV producers of carefully editing band interviews in order to trap frontman Steven Tyler.

He's branded the people behind CBS flagship news magazine 60 Minutes as "brutal" for their work – and says he and his colleagues were forced into a state of nerves because of presenter Lara Logan's low-cut top.

The feature saw Hamilton, Joe Perry, Joey Kramer and Brad Whitford listing the things they didn't like about Tyler, who was then shown edited footage, leading him to say: "I think my busting everyone's chops is what got this band to where it is. I get the hits. Yeah, I'm that good." The bassist insists their quotes were taken out of context.

Axl Rose Rejects Rock Hall Induction (Top 12 of April 2012)

Axl Rose Rejects Rock Hall Induction was a top 12 rock story of April 2012: Guns N' Roses frontman Axl Rose has taken a stand against the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Not only will Axl not be attending the induction ceremony, he has rejected his personal induction, preferring to look to the future not the past.

Rose issued an open letter on Wednesday, explaining his decision. Here is what he had to say: When the nominations for the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame were first announced I had mixed emotions but, in an effort to be positive, wanting to make the most of things for the fans and with their enthusiasm, I was honored, excited and hoped that somehow this would be a good thing. Of course I realized as things stood, if Guns N' Roses were to be inducted it'd be somewhat of a complicated or awkward situation.

Since then we've listened to fans, talked with members of the board of the Hall Of Fame, communicated with and read various public comments and jabs from former members of Guns N' Roses, had discussions with the president of the Hall Of Fame, read various press (some legit, some contrived) and read other artists' comments weighing in publicly on Guns and the Hall with their thoughts.

Under the circumstances I feel we've been polite, courteous, and open to an amicable solution in our efforts to work something out. Taking into consideration the history of Guns N' Roses, those who plan to attend along with those the Hall for reasons of their own, have chosen to include in "our" induction (that for the record are decisions I don't agree with, support or feel the Hall has any right to make), and how (albeit no easy task) those involved with the Hall have handled things... no offense meant to anyone but the Hall Of Fame Induction Ceremony doesn't appear to be somewhere I'm actually wanted or respected.

For the record, I would not begrudge anyone from Guns their accomplishments or recognition for such. Neither I or anyone in my camp has made any requests or demands of the Hall Of Fame. It's their show not mine. more on this story

The Band's Levon Helm Dead at 71 (Top 12 of April 2012)

(Gibson) The Band's Levon Helm Dead at 71 was a top 12 rock story of April 2012: The Band's Levon Helm died yesterday (April 19) in New York of throat cancer. He was 71 years old.

Levon Helm was the much-respected drummer (and the only American-born member) of the legendary Canadian rock group The Band. He was also the lead vocalist on many of the classic Band tracks, including "The Weight," "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down" and "Up on Cripple Creek."

Helm also acted in several movies including The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada, Shooter, Smooth Talk, The Right Stuff, The Dollmaker, but it was his staggering performance as Loretta Lynn's father in Coal Miner's Daughter that he'll probably be best remembered for. more on this story

Metallica To Tribute Ronnie James Dio (Top 12 of April 2012)

(hennemusic) Metallica To Tribute Ronnie James Dio was a top 12 rock story of April 2012: Metallica will be appearing on two upcoming tribute albums. One for Deep Purple and one for Ronnie James Dio that will also feature Anthrax, Rob Halford, Lemmy and more.

"We reached out to Wendy Dio [wife of Ronnie] about wanting to be a part of the Dio tribute that's getting put together," says singer James Hetfield in the latest issue of Metal Hammer. "We're very honoured to be a part of that, and to be a part of a celebration of Ronnie's life and his great contribution, man."

"We're definitely looking to do the record Wendy's putting together for Ronnie," adds drummer Lars Ulrich. "We were asked if we'd contribute to the anniversary of [classic Deep Purple album] 'Machine Head', too – we can't turn that down." more on this story

Deftones' Chino And Isis Members Form Palms (Top 12 of April 2012)

Deftones' Chino And Isis Members Form Palms was a top 12 rock story of April 2012: Deftones' vocalist Chino Moreno has teamed up with three former members of Isis (Aaron Harris, Clifford Meyer and Jeff Caxide) to form a new group called Palms who will be releasing their debut album this year.

"Clifford, Jeff and I started Palms a little over a year ago out of a desire to continue making music together after ISIS ended," explained Harris. "Chino joined shortly after and our sound took shape from there. We've worked really hard on this first release and are excited for people to hear it. It's nice to be back behind the drum kit, and with this line up."

"Being a huge ISIS fan I've always dug the moods these dudes convey with their sound," added Moreno. "I am excited to combine my sense of creativity with theirs, and to have fun doing so."

Palms' debut album will be issued by ISIS' former label, Ipecac Recordings, and is slated for a 2012 release with a release date to be announced soon. The album was recorded and mixed by Harris, and produced by Palms. more on this story

Butch Vig Denies Existence of Kurt Cobain Solo Material (Top 12 of April 2012)

(Classic Rock) Butch Vig Denies Existence of Kurt Cobain Solo Material was a top 12 rock story of April 2012: Nirvana producer Butch Vig says rumours that Kurt Cobain was working on a solo album before his suicide are not true, and no unheard recordings of the Nirvana mainman exist.

Speculation increased recently when former Hole guitarist Eric Erlandson stated he'd heard "raw, rough acoustic" tracks had been laid down and added: "There is stuff that has not been put out."

But Vig insists Cobain didn't make any such recordings and was far more interested in working with wife Courtney Love's outfit Hole in the months before he shot himself in 1994. more on this story