Queen with Adam Lambert Gig Canceled

"It is with very heavy hearts and much regret that we announce the cancellation of Sonisphere Knebworth 2012," read the statement. An official statement from the festival organizers has yet to come. [Another interpretation is that the band is canceling their appearance and the event will still go on. We will know either way when organizers issue a statement.] more on this story

Duff N' Adler for Golden Gods

Original Guns N' Roses bandmates Steven Adler and Duff Mckagan will soon hit the stage together when they present the "Riff Lord" award at the Revolver Golden Gods Awards Show.

The fourth annual Revolver Golden Gods Award will take place Wednesday, April 11, at Club Nokia in Downtown Los Angeles.

For the first time ever, the event will be broadcast live in its entirety on Xbox LIVE, as well as on the Xbox and Revolver Facebook pages. more on this story

KISS To Hire Vet For Motley Crue Tour

(Banana 101.5) KISS will be doing their part to support veterans by hiring one as a roadie for their summer tour with Motley Crue.

This is part of the 'Hiring our Heroes' movement. So many veterans risk their lives for us, and come back to unemployment.

The veteran who is hired will travel with the band from July, 14 through September 25, 2012. More details

Rob Zombie Plans New Album and Adds Dates With Megadeth

Two new dates have been added to the upcoming Megadeth and Rob Zombie tour as Zombie announces plans to begin recording a new album. The Zombie camp sent over this update:

Rob Zombie has announced that he and his band of maniacs - John 5, Piggy D and Ginger Fish - will enter the studio on June 1 to begin recording the next chapter in the Zombie musical legacy. This new, as yet untitled CD is set for a late 2012 release.

"It has been way, and I mean way too long without any new music. I am dying to get back to it," said Zombie. "I have not felt this much excitement within the band since recording the first Hellbilly Deluxe record almost 15 years ago. We have been working on tons of songs for quite some time and I can safely say this will definitely be our best record yet." more on this story

Korn Star Was Arrested For Driving While Sleepy

(TMZ) Former Korn drummer David Silveria tells TMZ ... he blew a 0.0 on the breathalyzer during his DUI arrest this week ... but says cops nailed him anyway over a sleeping pill he took the night before.

TMZ broke the story ... Silveria was popped in Huntington Beach, CA on Sunday at 10:45 AM.

Silveria is adamant he hadn't been boozing ... telling us he suffers from insomnia and took a sleeping pill Saturday night to help him rest. When he woke up Sunday morning, David says he didn't realize he was still too tired to drive ... and accidentally rear-ended another car on the way to breakfast.

Cops arrived to the scene and put David through a standard DUI test ... but Silveria tells us they didn't detect a drop of alcohol in his system.

Silveria says he told the cops about the sleeping pill ... and that's when they made the decision to arrest him for DUI.

Silveria -- who is now a member of the band INFINIKA -- says he plans to take responsibility for his actions ... telling us, "It was an honest mistake." more on this story

Go To Camp With Steven Tyler

If you ever fantasized about jamming with Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler, here is your chance as he has signed on to take part in Rock 'N' Roll Fantasy Camp's next installment which is taking place at the Playboy Mansion in Hollywood in May.

Kicking off May 2nd and culminating May 6 with a concert event featuring Steven himself, the camp will host such rock star counselors including Rudy Sarzo (Quiet Riot), Alan White (Yes), Phil Soussan (Ozzy Osbourne), Vinny Appice (Black Sabbath), Howard Leese (Heart), Mark Hudson (record producer/songwriter), John Moyer (Disturbed), Kip Winger (Winger), and Billy Sheehan (Big) with more to be announced.

The 5 day rock camp allows music fans a chance to jam nightly with legendary rock stars, write and record an original song and perform live on stage at the Playboy Mansion in front of family and friends. Campers will jam with Steven Tyler at the culmination concert on May 5th at the Playboy Mansion. more on this story

Pink Floyd TV Special Coming

Music Choice will air the US TV debut of a retrospective of Pink Floyd entitled: A Pink Floyd Miscellany: 1967-2005. This marks the first time the show has appeared on television in the United States.

The special program, featuring a selection of digitally remastered promotional videos and rare performance footage, will air nationally on MC On Demand April 2-29, 2012.

The show will appear in a special Pink Floyd category On Demand under "Featured Artists." It will be housed in two (2) thirty minute segments along with additional features in the category, including a rare short film on the band and a special interview with drummer Nick Mason.

Neal Schon, Eric Singer and More for Ronnie Montrose Event

We have more details about A Concert for Ronnie Montrose, which will be held at the Regency Ballroom in San Francisco on Friday, April 27.

All an all-star jam has been announced which will feature Neal Schon from Journey, Steve Smith formerly from Journey, members of Tesla, Eric Martin from Mr. Big, Rickie Philips from Styx, Eric Singer from KISS, Tommy Thayer of KISS and Jimmy DeGrasso from Y & T and Alice Cooper.

The event will also feature the original Montrose lineup performing the first Montrose album, with special guest Joe Satriani on lead guitar joining Sammy Hagar- vocals; Bill Church- bass; and Denny Carmassi- drums. more on this story

Opeth Reissues Coming

The End Records are reissuing four albums from Opeth on April 10th, as part of their acquisition of rights to the Music For Nations catalog. They sent over these details:

With collective Soundscans of over 300,000 sold, these three albums + one live DVD/CD recording present the very best of Opeth from their black metal era to their progressive rock transformation.

The albums, produced by Steven Wilson of Porcupine Tree, along with the magnificent live DVD and documentary Lamentations, are necessary reissues for any Opeth enthusiast. more on this story

Rush Releasing New Song in April

(hennemusic) Rush fans only have a few weeks until the band issues the first single from the forthcoming "Clockwork Angels" album.

Rushisaband.com reports "Headlong Flight" will hit rock radio on April 19. The single will featured an edited track, running five-and-a-half minutes; the full album version clocks in at seven-and-a-half minutes.

"Clockwork Angels" will be released on May 23 in Japan and May 29 in North America. more on this story

The Darkness Plot American Invasion

The Darkness will bring their over the top show to America this May between dates Down Under and their European tour.

The reunited UK band return stateside this May for select dates as well as three festival appearances:

Saturday, May 19 at InfieldFest (Baltimore, MD), Sunday, May 20 at Rock On The Range (Columbus, OH) and Saturday, May 26 at Rocklahoma. more on this story

Silversun Pickups Set Album Release and Kimmel Performance

Dangerbird Records have set a May 8th release date for Silversun Pickups new album, Neck of the Woods. They had these details:

The record was produced by the Grammy Award-winning Jacknife Lee (U2, Weezer, REM, Snow Patrol), and the song "Bloody Mary (Nerve Endings)" will be the first single.

The band is confirmed to perform from the Jimmy Kimmel Live! outdoor stage on release day, May 8. more on this story

Refused, The Promise Ring, August Burns Red, Boy Sets Fire for Riot Fest

Riot Fest will return to Philadelphia as a three-day event on Thursday, July 19, Friday, July 20 and Saturday, July 21.

The line-up for Thursday, July 19 includes the newly reunited Refused as well as The Promise Ring, August Burns Red, Off!, Gameface, Boy Sets Fire, Hirs and more.

Additional performers for the 8th annual Riot Fest (8th annual in Chicago, 2nd annual in Philadelphia) will be unveiled in the coming weeks. more on this story

Metallica Expand Mexico City Run Again

(hennemusic) Metallica have added a sixth show in Mexico City this summer. Three new dates have now been added following the fast sell out of the initial three night.

An August 9th concert joins the previously announced series, scheduled for August 1, 2, 4, 6 and 7.

"WOW! A big THANK YOU to our friends in Mexico City for selling out three nights and 60,000 tickets at the Sports Palace in less than 90 minutes last week. There's no way we can stop now," posted Metallica earlier this week. more on this story

Flaming Lips To Include Collaborator's Blood In New Album

(Gibson) Some copies of the new Flaming Lips album will contain blood from "fwends" who collaborated on the album, Wayne Coyne has told MTVHive.

"I don't have everybody's blood just yet, but I collected quite a few vials … and it's actually sitting in my refrigerator as we speak," Coyne said. "I'm going to try to … put little bits of everybody's blood in the middle of this record. Like a glass specimen thing."

Coyne told New Musical Express that he's thus far collected blood specimens from Ke$ha, Neon Indian and Prefuse 73. Other collaborators – and presumably hoped-for donors – include Yoko Ono, Erykah Badu, Coldplay's Chris Martin, Bon Iver, Nick Cave and Lightning Bolt. more on this story

Red Sparowes Offspring Marriages Premiere New Song

Red Sparowes offspring' Marriages are giving fans a taste of their forthcoming debut album.

The band have premiere the new song "Ride In My Place," at Spin.com and it comes from their new album Kitsune, which will be released on LP, CD and download on May 1st, 2012. Listen to the song here

Marriages is a new band comprised of Red Sparowes members Emma Ruth Rundle (vocals, guitar), Greg Burns (bass, synthesizer) and David Clifford (drums). more on this story

Paul McCartney Rearranged Tour To Headline Teenage Cancer Trust

(Gibson) No one can say Paul McCartney doesn't keep his word. This week, the former Beatle booked extra shows in Europe in order to fulfill a promise made to Roger Daltrey to perform at this year's Teenage Cancer Trust event in London on March 29.

"We almost got him last year, but he couldn't make the date work," Daltrey told London's The Sun. "He said, 'I'll be there for you next year, Rog' – and here he is. He did a few extra shows in Europe to make it work, so that no one had to foot the bill of getting his show here – and that means a lot."

McCartney will headline the first night of the six-night event, which will take place at London's Royal Albert Hall. Daltrey, who organizes the annual charitable event, went on to praise McCartney as "brilliant." "To see his full arena show in the Albert Hall will be a once-in-a-lifetime thing," Daltrey said. "He's the most iconic figure in the world." more on this story

ZZ Top New Album Completion Coming Closer To Reality

(Gibson) Billy Gibbons has hinted that the finish line is in sight for ZZ Top's long-awaited new album. In an interview with Billboard.com, the veteran guitarist said the band has been "picking through the good stuff" and that the project is "down to seeds and stems."

The new album, which will be ZZ Top's first studio disc since 2003's Mescalero, is being produced by Rick Rubin. Gibbons said Rubin's vision did not involve an overhaul of the Texas trio's trademark sound. "Rubin [told us], 'It's just pretty much straight-ahead. I don't see any major changes. If we stumble into something drastic, fine. If it works, we'll know it.'"

Gibbons declined to predict whether the album would be released before ZZ Top's summer tour kicks off, on May 25. more on this story

B Sides

American Idol Contestant Rocks Led Zeppelin Classic

(hennemusic) American Idol doesn't stray into rock territory very often, but the reality series did manage to get the Led out Wednesday evening.

The show is down to the final 9 contestants, and this week's episode was built on the theme of each singer performing a song by their own idols. Elise Testone closed out Wednesday's program with a rocking version of Led Zeppelin's classic, "Whole Lotta Love."

Testone received a standing ovation from the judging panel of Aerosmith's Steven Tyler, Jennifer Lopez and Randy Jackson. "I wasn't sure if you were going to pull that off," said Tyler, "because nobody can pull that song off. You made Robert Plant proud tonight, girl." Check it out here.

Linkin Park Tease New Song

Linkin Park's Mike Shinoda has posted a new video on the band's website, teasing fans about their forthcoming single.

In the clip Shinoda, teases, "Burn It Down," the first single from their new album, will be released on April 16.

He also tells fans that they will soon be able to unlock the track on the band's site but doesn't provide details on that how that is going to happen. Check out the clip.

Dream Theater, Santana, and NIN Drum-Off Videos

Videos from Guitar Center's Drum-Off finale at Club Nokia in Los Angeles, CA have been posted online.

The videos include live performance footage of legendary drummers Mike Portnoy (Dream Theater), Dennis Chambers (Carlos Santana) and Ilan Rubin (Nine Inch Nails).

Guitar Center's Drum-Off, entering its 24th year, is the nationwide search for the next great undiscovered drummer. Drummers from across the nation compete in the world's largest drum competition, vying for thousands of dollars in prizes and the coveted title of Guitar Center's Drum-Off Champion. The grand prize package is valued at nearly $50,000. more on this story

Gwar Oderus Urungus Launches Video Series

Metal Injection have launched a new tour blog video series with Gwar front-thing Oderus Urungus called "Eye of Oderus."

Using the latest in scientific technology, Metal Injection implanted a webcam chip in the eye of GWAR overlord Oderus Urungus, and will broadcast ongoing transmissions as part of a new web series "Eye of Oderus."

The series will take a look at what happens backstage on GWAR's current tour with Municipal Waste and Ghoul. The first edition of the series can be viewed here.

Downspirit Begin Recording New Album

Downspirit have entered the studio to begin recording their new studio album.

The album os expected to be released in late summer, followed by a tour in fall/winter.

Downspirit is the band formed by ex-Symphorce/ex-Freedom Call guitarist Cedric "Cede" Dupont.

Rammstein Guitarist Launches Signature Gibson Guitar

(Gibson) Paul Landers, guitarist with Germany's loudest metal band, Rammstein, gets his own Gibson signature guitar this week.

The Paul Landers Signature Les Paul is an EMG -equipped guitar that's as fierce a riff machine as money can buy.

"The Signature Series celebrates artists and the guitars they are most associated with," said Henry Juszkiewicz, Chairman and CEO of Gibson Guitar. "Paul Landers is one such artist whose stage performance is synonymous with energy, precision and unparalleled showmanship." more on this story