Foreigner Guitarist Undergoes Urgent Heart Surgery

Last year Jones missed several Foreigner shows, forcing the band to play with no original members. Jones sparked fears for his health in 2011, after he fell sick and missed several gigs, including a massive concert with Journey in Los Angeles in October. A representative for the star refused to confirm the nature of his illness at the time more on this story

King's X Star Suffers Heart Attack

King's X have been forced to put their tour plans on hold after drummer Jerry Gaskill suffered a heart attack on February 25th.

A message was posted on frontman Dug Pinnick's Facebook on Sunday that read "Jerry had a heart attack last night. He was operated on and is in stable condition at the hospital. Were all waiting for more info. I will keep you posted."

A few hours later Pinnick updated fans with this, "Julie said Jerry woke up pulling chords out, she says hes fiesty! That's a good sign! Thanks everyone for prayers and good vibes, it can only get better now." more on this story

Aerosmith Are Back According To Steven Tyler

(Gibson) Aerosmith frontman and American Idol judge Steven Tyler said that his band's new album is coming along. The Rock and Roll Hall of Famer told Rolling Stone, "We've been in the studio for the last month."

Tyler spoke with enthusiasm of Aerosmith's reteaming with producer Jack Douglas, who was behind the boards for many of the band's '70s classics, including Toys in the Attic.

"We're gonna have a vintage sound, 'cause we're going to tape and a lot of good things like that," Tyler said. "We're keeping tracks lean, not a lot of overdubs, and like I said, we're using Jack to his fullest. So you're gonna hear some stuff where you might think Aerosmith's back."

The singer also said that fans should be preparing to catch Aerosmith out on the road: "June 18th it starts. So spread the word." more on this story

Slash Delivers New Song

(hennemusic) The new Slash single, "You're A Lie," debuted at radio on Monday. It's the first track from the guitar icon's sophomore solo effort, "Apocalyptic Love," due May 22.

"Totally positive buzz about the song, cheers for the support," posted Slash on Monday. "Looking forward to getting the whole record out & hitting the road!"

Slash is currently in Australia, where he joined singer Myles Kennedy and his band Alter Bridge on Sunday at the Soundwave Festival in Sydney. Listen to the new song here.

Kid Rock Orchestra

Kid Rock is not someone you would normally associated with a symphony orchestra but Rock is known to take the stage for a good cause that is exactly what he will be doing on May 12th. Atlantic sent over these details:

Kid Rock is teaming up with Leonard Slatkin - "America's Music Director" - and the men and women of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra who will take the stage of Detroit's Fox Theatre for a one-night only fundraising concert to raise critical funds for the orchestra.

The idea was originally conceived by Kid Rock and Rock Ventures Founder Dan Gilbert to help save the DSO. "As a musician, and of course a Detroiter, I am proud to be supporting this longstanding cultural institution," said Kid Rock. "And while I know these ticket prices are more than what my fans are used to paying, I am confident that whatever happens when we put the Twisted Brown Trucker Band, a 80 piece orchestra, and 'Bawitdaba' together will be well worth the price of admission." more on this story

Muse Going Big With New Album Sound

(Gibson) Muse are currently in the studio recording their sixth album, and like all Muse albums, this one appears to be even more bombastic and supercharged than its predecessors.

Over the weekend the band announced via Twitter that it was working with both a horn section and a string section on the new material. On Saturday they posted a photo from the studio with the message: "The amazing brass from last night. More horns today," following it up with, "Just done some more horns with some legendary players." The next day they added, "Now some strings. This album is coming along nicely. Bring on autumn."

Muse is collaborating with arranger, composer and conductor (and father of Beck) David Campbell, who was responsible for the orchestrations on "Unforgiven III" from Metallica's Death Magnetic album, as well as work on These Days by Bon Jovi, Fallen by Evanescence and Minutes to Midnight with Linkin Park. Campbell also conducted the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and wrote the arrangements for KISS Symphony: Alive IV. more on this story

A Night of Heavy Drinking Helped Cause Gary Moore's Death

(hennemusic) Test results have been released that confirm former Thin Lizzy guitarist Gary Moore died last February from a heart attack following a night of heavy drinking.

The Telegraph reports Moore drank enough alcohol to put himself nearly five times over the drink-drive limit. The musician suffered a heart attack brought on by the massive amount of booze he knocked back at the start of a sunshine holiday, the studies showed.

Moore had 380mg of alcohol per decilitre of blood in his system, more than 30mg the amount associated with fatalities, and just short of the 416mg Amy Winehouse had in her body when she died surrounded by three empty vodka bottles. more on this story

Guns N' Roses Expand Tour Plans

(hennemusic) Guns N' Roses plan to following their current North American "Up Close And Personal" tour of intimate venues with a spring UK tour.

NME reports the band will play seven shows across the UK as part of a full European tour.

The dates begin at Nottingham's Capital FM Arena on May 19 and run until May 31 when the rockers will headline London's O2 Arena. more on this story

Bruce Springsteen Rocks Late Night TV

(hennemusic) Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band kicked off night 1 of Springsteen week on Jimmy Fallon Monday night.

Fallon is dedicating a week of programs to the New Jersey rocker to mark the March 6 release of his new album, "Wrecking Ball."

Bruce & the band rocked two tracks: the first single, "We Take Care Of Our Own," and the album's title song. Springsteen and company will perform again on Friday's show. Check out video of the appearance here.

Chicago and The Doobie Brothers Tour

Chicago and The Doobie Brothers are teaming up for a North American coheadlining tour this summer.

The 21 date tour will kick off on July 11th in Tuscon, AZ at the Anselmo Valencia Amphitheatre with confirmed dates through August 24th at the Toyota Pavilion in Scranton, Pennsylvania.

Each band will perform individual sets and then both Chicago and The Doobie Brothers will join together for a grand finale encore, playing each other's songs at the end of each of the shows, according to the announcement from Chicago. more on this story

Melvins and Mr. Bungle Stars Team Up for Melvins Lite

Melvins Lite, a new incarnation of The Melvins that finds founders Buzz Osborne and Dale Crover partnering with Trevor Dunn (Mr. Bungle, Tomahawk) for a 10-song released titled Freak Puke that will be release on June 5th by Ipecac Recordings.

"The Melvins have a long history of mixing up our line-ups and I think that's what has kept us relevant for so long," explains Osborne. "Consider the Freak Puke record the fifth side of the four-sided Melvins' triangle."

Dunn is known as one of rock and jazz's top bass players, performing on both a traditional and upright bass in a wide range of bands and as a freelance musician. He is currently recording the new Tomahawk album, is a member of Fantômas and was the bassist for Mr. Bungle. more on this story

Joe Satriani Hitting The Big Screen This Week

Joe Satriani's new live-concert film, Satchurated: Live in Montreal is set to hit movie theatres for a one night event on March 1st.

Satriani will be talking more about the film when he makes an appearance this Wednesday February 29th on Rockline, the nationally syndicated radio broadcast, and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno on Thursday March 1st when Chickenfoot plays live on the show, according to Mad Ink.

Satchurated was filmed live during Satriani's "The Wormhole Tour", supporting his studio album Black Swans and Wormhole Wizards at the Metropolis in Montreal, Canada. The December 12, 2010 concert was filmed by Grammy and Emmy award-winning concert filmmakers Pierre and Francois Lamoureux. more on this story

Change of Plans for Lamb Of God

Lamb Of God have canceled their upcoming appearance in Curitiba, Brazil with Hatebreed and Lacuna Coil on April 1st due to irreversible logistics problems.

Their camp sent this out about further changes: Lamb Of God's appearance in Buenos Aires, Argentina, which was originally going to happen on April 3rd, had to be moved to April 2nd, which ended up affecting the band's travel schedule in a very unfavorable manner and forced us to cancel their second show in Brazil.

We would like to offer our apologies to the fans in the Southern part of Brazil and look forward to seeing them at the Lamb Of God / Hatebreed / Lacuna Coil show in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on March 31st. Tickets will be refunded at point of purchase. more on this story

Lynyrd Skynyrd and Paul Rodgers For Motorcycle Festival

Lynyrd Skynyrd and Paul Rodgers are set to rock the final night of the Thrills in the Irish Hills Bike Festival.

The event is set to be held July 12-14, in Southern Michigan's Irish Hills and both bands will perform at Jackson County Fairgrounds on Saturday, July 14th.

This is the first year that the event is being held and organizers says it "pairs a motorcyclist's passion with our bold commitment to provide exceptional value on products, services, and entertainment." More info here.

Van Halen Frontman David Lee Roth Explains The Dog

(hennemusic) Some of the first Van Halen videos and images posted in advance of the release of "A Different Kind Of Truth" featured David Lee Roth and his sheepdog.

According to Roth, these have caught the interest of fans, so he's recorded a new clip to fill in the back story. "A lot of folks have emailed us and accosted me on the street about the dog world videos," explains Roth. "These are my sheepdogs - this is Mike. We're going to the Nationals – we got invited to the Nationals last time but we didn't quite make it; we were making the Van Halen record."

The video features all kinds of herding dog moves as Mike and another dog, Ben, follow Roth's instructions while herding sheep and cattle, respectively. Watch the clip here.

Puddle of Mudd Lead Rockapalooza Lineup

The full lineup for the 5th annual Rockapalooza festival has been announced, for the event that takes place in June 23rdat the Jackson County Fairgrounds in Jackson, MI .

The main stage features headliners Puddle of Mudd, and opening acts Saliva, Rehab, Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, and Emphatic.

The second stage includes Wayne Static, Woe Is Me, Riven (formerly Motograter), Rotation, Sore Eyes, and Ghosts of August. more on this story

The B-52's Anniversary Show Coming to DVD and Blu-Ray

(Kayos) The B-52's returned to celebrate in the town where it all began, Athens, Georgia, in February of last year.

Now this concert will be available as the band's first-ever live DVD and Blu-ray, when With The Wild Crowd - Live In Athens, GA is released via Eagle Rock Entertainment on March 20, 2012.

With The Wild Crowd! was recorded in the B-52s' hometown at a show that commemorated the band's 34th anniversary of their first-ever live show on Valentine's Day 1977. Wig-wearing, boa-draped, glitter-covered fans came from near and far to celebrate this historic event as the band delivered a sizzling set that turned Athens' Classic Center into a cosmic dance hall. more on this story

Blues Legend Louisiana Red Dead at 79

(MPM) Tom Ruf, president of Ruf Records, issued the following statement upon hearing of the death over the weekend of legendary bluesman Louisiana Red, who passed away February 25 at a hospital in Germany after a few days in a coma brought on by a thyroid imbalance. He was 79 years old.

"I am very sad about my friend Red leaving us. He was the very first blues artist I got to meet in person and the first blues concert I ever promoted when I was 19. Louisiana Red was one of the last giants in blues that constantly and spontaneously spoke his mind with a new line, a new melody every day. On stage, as well as off stage, he was a permanent spring of pure blues and a very generous man. My thoughts are with his lovely wife Dora, who kept him together the last 30 years, as well as his children and family. If you are a lucky person who owns a record of this blues giant, this is a good time to play it and appreciate the man we just lost."

Louisiana Red's last two CD releases on Ruf Records were Back to the Black Bayou, in 2009, and Memphis Mojo, released September, 2011. Both CDs showcased Louisiana Red in a classic blues atmosphere, backed by producer Little Victor's hand picked band, along with such special guests as Kim Wilson and Bob Corritore on harmonica and Dave Maxwell on piano. Memphis Mojo was recorded in Memphis right after Red was awarded for his achievements as "Acoustic Artist of the Year" at the Blues Music Awards in May, 2010. more on this story

La Dispute Spring Tour

(BH) La Dispute have announced 40+ tour dates for their upcoming Spring tour of North America.

The tour begins on March 24 in Minneapolis, MI, heading to the West Coast for shows in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Seattle and Portland, before heading back east to the East Coast including shows in Philadelphia and Bowery Ballroom in New York.

The tour will feature support by Balance & Compusure, All Get Out, and Sainthood Reps. La Dispute is touring to support their sophomore album, Wildlife, released on No Sleep Records last October, which debuted at 135 on the Billboard Top 200. more on this story

The Day Led Zeppelin Became The Nobs

(Gibson) On this day in 1970, Led Zeppelin played a gig in Copenhagen as The Nobs after Eva Von Zeppelin, a relative of the airship designer, threatened to sue if the family name was used in Denmark. Gibson takes a look back: By February of 1970, Led Zeppelin had released their first two albums and had become one of the big names in rock and roll. But the legendary band didn't use their name when they played a show in Denmark on this day in 1970. For the first, and only time, Led Zeppelin were billed as The Nobs.

The name change stemmed from an incident from when the group played Copenhagen the year before. Eva von Zeppelin, a descendant of Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin (creator of the famous aircraft), was unhappy that a rock band was becoming famous off of her family's name. She even tried to prevent Led Zeppelin from recording a performance for Danish television, saying that the band sounded like a bunch of "shrieking monkeys." The attempt didn't work and the boys performed for the TV Byen cameras, as planned.

But Jimmy Page and company weren't upset with Frau von Zeppelin, and invited her to have tea with the band after the taping, just to prove to her that they were a bunch of decent guys. By all accounts, the meeting went very well and everyone got along very well. Unfortunately, things went south quickly as von Zeppelin was leaving.

"We invited her backstage to meet us, to see how we were nice young lads," Page told Melody Maker. "We calmed her down but on leaving the studio, she saw our LP cover of an airship in flames and she exploded! I had to run and hide. She just blew her top."

After seeing the cover of the band's debut album, with the famous image of the Hindenburg, von Zeppelin's hostility to the group instantly returned and even grew worse than before. When Led Zeppelin announced plans to perform in Copenhagen in 1970, she threatened to sue the band if they continued to use their name. Although manager Peter Grant was rarely one to back down, in the face of the lawsuit, he encouraged the band to play under a pseudonym for their Denmark appearance. more on this story

Holy Moses 30th Anniversary Release To Feature New Songs

(Freeman) Holy Moses' "30th Anniversary-- In The Power Of Now" will be released through SPV/Steamhammer in Germany on April 20th, in Europe on April 23rd and in the USA/Canada in early May as a digipak with an extensive booklet featuring liner notes, rare photos and much more.

In 2011 Sabina Classen and her Holy Moses men secretly locked themselves into the Absurd Studio in Hamburg, Germany to start the recordings for the "30th Anniversary - In The Power Of Now" double album.

The new drummer Gerd Lücking (GiftDwarf / ex-Rebellion) took care of the drum tracks on the new record. The album will have new versions of 20 of the most important songs of the 30 years of Holy Moses history plus 2 brand new songs. more on this story

Singled Out: Venrez's Karma

Today Venrez tells us about the song "Karma" from the band's brand new album "Sell The Lie," which is hitting stories today. Here is the story:

Well there was some serious stimulation behind my writing the lyrics to "Karma". The song was originally titled "Stench", because of the powerful feelings I had when I wrote the song.

I had developed a new friendship over the past 3 years with someone whom I truly liked very much and trusted implicitly. He had some issues with his business partner and they severed their relationship. I had an extra business office in my and happily offered this till they could find a new location. This was a few months before the end of 2009.

This person was observing everything I and my staff did (I also work as a Hollywood movie producer, my latest film bringing Elmore Leonard's Freaky Deaky to the big screen) and came to the conclusion that he wanted in and in bad. They seduced most of my staff behind my back and ultimately I was really thrown for a loop. When I returned to my offices after the New Year holiday the first week of 2010, I came in and many of my staff had come in like thieves in the night and cleared out their desks as well as taking client files.

I was facing having to rebuild my business and fast. I remember sitting at my desk in my office with my head in my hands simply shocked and in pretty bad dismay. But I knew that he would fail. You can steal the goose that lays golden eggs from the owner, but that does not mean the goose will lay golden eggs for you.

I survived and rebuilt my film production company and this person failed and went under 9 months later. So, when I was writing lyrics for the album "Sell The Lie", getting words on paper about this experience was something I needed to do. It would be a combination of cathartic, self-purging of the negative feelings I had towards this person along with the lesson and/or message I wanted to send in the lyrics to the song.

So, even though "Karma" was written with the inspiration of a personal experience and aimed towards that one person who had harmed me, I believe the song sends a message that so many can relate to. What goes around truly does come around.

Hearing is believing. Now that you know the story behind the song, listen for yourself and learn more about the album right here!