Black Sabbath Announce North American Tour Dates and Song Premiere

The song is set to be released as a digital single the following day, this Friday, April 19th. more on this story

Andrew Lloyd Webber Turning School Of Rock Into Musical

(Gibson) U.K. theater impresario Andrew Lloyd Webber has secured the rights to turn the School of Rock movie into a stage production.

The composer and producer behind musical hits Jesus Christ Superstar, Evita and Phantom of the Opera, Chess and others has secured the rights to turn the 2003 comedy movie, which starred Jack Black, into a stage musical.

Lloyd Webber told CBC radio that he is "very excited" about the project. "There may be songs for me in it," he said, but added that "it's also got songs in it as it stands."

The film was originally scored by Shudder to Think frontman Craig Wedren, and contains hits by the likes of Led Zeppelin, David Bowie, Cream, AC/DC and The Who.

In the movie, Dewey Finn (played by Black) poses as his roommate in order to secure a teaching job. While there, he befriends his students and begins to instruct them in the ways of rock music. more on this story

Def Leppard and Slash Teaming Up For A Second Show

(hennemusic) On the heels of last week's news that Def Leppard will team up to play a US show this summer with Slash, the UK rockers have announced a second concert date for the pairing.

The bands will play the Meadowbrook Amphitheatre in Gilford, NH on July 15th. Def Leppard had previously revealed a July 17 show with Slash at the Performing Arts Center: CMAC in Canandaigua, NY.

Over the weekend, Def Leppard wrapped up their Las Vegas residency, "VIVA! Hysteria", at The Joint inside The Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. more on this story

Deftones Pay Tribute To Chi Cheng

Deftones guitarist Stephen Carpenter paid tribute to Chi Cheng who died this weekend after he had been in a coma or semi-conscious state following a 2008 car accident.

Carpenter took to the band's Facebook page with the following message on behalf of the band: "There are so many things I can say, and yet at this moment, none of it matters or compares to the loss everyone feels.

"There will be a hole in our lives where Chi once was. But that will be filled everyday with all of our love and memories we all have in our heart. He will always be here because of love. It's time we all give our love and best, and do our best to love. Especially ourselves, Chi would want that for everyone.

"All our healing will begin with love. I love you, Chi.

Stephen, for Deftones"

Ozzy Osbourne Makes Confession and Denies Divorce Reports

Tabloids have been reporting that Ozzy Osbourne and his wife Sharon have split up but the metal legend took to Facebook to set the record straight and to make a confession.

A spokesperson for Sharon had previously dismissed the reports that her and Ozzy were ending their marriage after 30 years.

Despite the denial from an official source, on Monday sites like TMZ were giving the relationship the last rites, based on their unnamed sources.

However, Ozzy posted the following message on Facebook to address the rumors and made a confession: "For the last year and a half I have been drinking and taking drugs.

"I was in a very dark place and was an a**hole to the people I love most, my family. However, I am happy to say that I am now 44 days sober.

"Just to set the record straight, Sharon and I are not divorcing. I'm just trying to be a better person. I would like to apologize to Sharon, my family, my friends and my band mates for my insane behavior during this period... and my fans.

"God Bless,

Ozzy"

Pearl Jam and Nine Inch Nails Lead Voodoo Lineup

(Radio.com) Pearl Jam, Nine Inch Nails and Calvin Harris are among the first wave of announced guests set to descend upon New Orleans's Voodoo Music and Arts Experience.

The festival, which takes place over three days from Nov. 1-3, is celebrating its 15th anniversary with a blowout show, the first at its new location, City Park's Festival Grounds.

Absent from New Orleans since 2010, the perennial '90s rock favorites Pearl Jam will play its first Voodoo Festival, securing headliner billing along with Trent Reznor and Nine Inch Nails, a band that has previously played the fest three times.

Joining the two bands as part of the initial 15 announced acts are dance icons Harris, Bassnectar and Afrojack. On the rock side, Reznor's other project, How to Destroy Angels, will make an appearance, as will Paramore, The Gaslight Anthem and Cults. more on this story

Dio's Magica Getting Deluxe Reissue

(hennemusic) Dio's 2000 concept album, "Magica," is getting the deluxe reissue treatment. Due June 25, the band's eight studio album will be presented as a 2CD set:

The first disc will feature the full original album, while disc 2 will contain "The Magica Story" (narrated by Ronnie James Dio) and several bonus tracks.

Produced by Ronnie, "Magica" marked the return of guitarist Craig Goldy to the Dio lineup, which also featured Jimmy Bain on bass, Simon Wright on drums, and Scott Warren on keyboards.

The original 2000 CD version has been out of print for years, and has become increasingly hard to find. more on this story

Johnny Marr Planning Memoir

(Gibson) Johnny Marr is planning to write his autobiography. Marr co-founded The Smiths and Electronic, and has played with The The, Modest Mouse, The Cribs, The Pretenders, Talking Heads, Bryan Ferry, Billy Bragg and has numerous other "guest" credits to his name. His solo album, The Messenger, is out now.

Marr has told Guns N' Roses' Duff McKagan "I guess [publishers] want me to give a load of dirt… obviously I'm not gonna do that. I've got a load of stories like yourself.

"I've played with so many different musicians, just casually. Whether it's David Crosby on the end of his bed or hanging out with Keith Richards, all of that stuff. People are kind of fascinated by it.

"I'll tackle it one day in the not-too-distant future. I wanna do a couple more records, praise God. I'll get that done, and then I'll take some time out and do that." more on this story

Jeff Loomis Asks Fans For Help After His Band Is Robbed

Jeff Loomis is asking for fans help after his band's van was broken into on Sunday night in St. Louis while the band tours with Soilwork.

Loomis issued the following statement on Monday: "Last night after our show in St. Louis, our tour van was broken into as we were grabbing a bite to eat before our drive to Dallas.

"We were parked in a well lit area in front of the restaurant. In the ten to fifteen minutes that it took for us to order our food and eat, all of our personal items such as laptops, cameras, musical equipment, cell phones, passports and money were stolen.

"We came outside to find the lock on the driver side door popped out of the van, and promptly called the police. A report has been filed and the van was fingerprinted, but the leads don't seem promising. The police stated that this is apparently a common occurrence for the area. We are all in disbelief, but are very fortunate for everyone to be ok.

"After discussing the situation as a group, we would like to try to continue on with this tour. But to be able to do this, we will need your help. We have all taken a huge hit financially, and we cannot continue on without some sort of support. We have set up a paypal account for any amount of donations to assist us for the duration of the tour."

The band have set up JLoomisbanddonation@outlook.com as the email address that fans can send donations to. more on this story

Your Demise Cancel Tour and Announce Break Up

Your Demise have canceled their North American tour with Rotting Out and Expire and announced they plan to split up. The group announced that they will formally break up in March of next year following a series of farewell shows that are yet to be announced.

The group issued this statement to fans about the canceled tour, "We are truly very sorry to be letting our fans over the Atlantic down. It is with heavy hearts that we have found ourselves having to make the decision to pull out of the shows in Mexico, USA and Canada.

"Trust us, we are not a band that has ever made a habit of canceling shows, let alone tours, so we have not made this decision lightly. We feel terrible for the disappointment this news will cause our fans in those countries, and we would like to take this opportunity to apologise to all of our transatlantic supporters, the show promoters, our stateside team and, of course, Rotting Out and Expire who both were set to join us on the dates.

"On a more positive note, Rotting Out will still be doing the West Coast portion of the dates around Rainfest, taking over from us as headliner. Stay tuned for another announcement with the specifics of this very soon."
more on this story

Deep Purple Frontman Breaks Up The UK In Novel He's Writing

(Classic Rock) Deep Purple frontman Ian Gillan has revealed he's writing a novel that explores what happens when a part of England declares independence from the UK.

Gillan tells US radio station 94HJY: "It's about the declaration of independence of the four counties of the south-west of England, calling themselves the country Wessex.

"It's about a new way of thinking, a rethinking of democracy, which is struggling with its greatest strength – tolerance. That strength becomes a weakness; so you have to fight to keep the aims of democracy going.

"It's a good chance to reshuffle everything from schooling to policing to transport and health – it's a refreshing look at what you can do when you get a fresh start." He's also working on another title that explores theology.

Vampire Weekend Talks 'Extremes' Of New Album

(Radio.com) The KROQ Party House at Coachella saw one the biggest crowds of the weekend during Vampire Weekend's brief set in advance of their performance at the desert festival on Sunday.

The three-song KROQ set included "Holiday" and "White Sky" (from 2010′s Contra) before closing with "Diane Young," one of the first songs released from their forthcoming full-length, Modern Vampires of the City, out May 14.

Speaking about their forthcoming LP in KROQ's post-show interview, Vampire Weekend members explained their strategy in releasing two songs from the album simultaneously, as they did last month with "Step" and "Diane Young."

"So far we've released 'Step' and 'Diane Young,'" guitarist/keyboardist Rostam Batmanglij said. "If you want crazier songs than 'Diane Young,' there are a couple that get a little crazier. If you want more mellow, there's a couple that are a little more mellow than 'Step.' We feel like we're giving people a taste of what's to come, but we're not really even revealing the extremes."

They also answered some intensely random questions about themselves, which makes for an entertaining watch. Check it out here.

Beatallica Holding Online Chat Today

Beatallica will be celebrating today's release of their new album, "Abbey Load," with an online chat with fans on their Facebook page.

Kliff McBurtney will be chatting between 12:00pm-1:00pm CST, while Jaymz Lennfield will be chatting between 6:00-7:00pm CST.

The band has made a name for themselves but mashing up Beatles classics with a Metallica sound and they continue the tradition with the new album, which is their third full-length release. The chat will take place here.

Discoverdale Trailer Released: David Coverdale Has Long-Lost Son?

(Classic Rock) The trailer for an upcoming new movie featuring the long-lost "son" of Whitesnake frontman David Coverdale has premiered online.

Discoverdale depicts a fly-on-the-wall film crew following cult comedy rock band Dead Cat Bounce on a desperate quest across Europe to reunite lead singer Jim with his long-lost father, who he believes is Whitesnake frontman David Coverdale.

Crossing Ireland, England, Norway and Denmark, the band follow the Whitesnake Forevermore tour across Europe. They've got no money and no idea what they're doing – just blind faith that one day soon Jim will be sharing a jacuzzi in a five-star hotel with the dad of his dreams… Check out the trailer here.

Paul McCartney's Door Fetches Hefty Price At Auction

(Gibson) The strange world of rock memorabilia has just got stranger. The front door from Paul McCartney's childhood home has sold for $7680.

The door from 20 Forthlin Road, Allerton, Liverpool went for the top estimate at auction in Gloucestershire, England. The young Beatle lived in the property from 1955-1964 and learned to play guitar, piano, drums and the trumpet whilst living there.

McCartney's house was bought by the U.K's National Trust in 1995 but the windows, tiles and fittings were refurbished in the late 1970s, after which the original door was bought by singer Glen South, who then kept the item behind his sofa.

Auctioneer Chris Albury said of the sale: "It came down to three people bidding against each other and the winner was a phone bidder from Lancashire. We're very happy with the result."

He added, unsurprisingly: "It is an odd thing to offer and a curious thing to put a value on – £5,000 is a serious price." more on this story

Iced Earth Release Live Anthem From New DVD

Iced Earth are giving fans a taste of their brand new DVD and Blu-Ray release, Live In Ancient Kourion, by streaming a video for one of the tracks online.

The concert on the release was filmed during the 'Dystopia' tour in Cyprus at the 2000+ year-old Kourion Collessium and features the band's new lead singer Stu Block performing tracks from the band's entire catalog.

The group has posted an online video stream of their performance of the track "Anthem," taken from the new package. You can watch it here.

"Live In Ancient Kourion" marks the band's very first official DVD/Blu-Ray and was released today in various formats including DVD, Double CD, Triple Vinyl, Blu-Ray. You can find the different options here.

Joe Satriani Announces Live Date With Steve Morse

(hennemusic) Joe Satriani has announced his first US concert date of the year. Satriani, along with special guest Steve Morse (Deep Purple), will play The Beacon Theatre in New York, NY on September 26th.

The fall date marks Joe's North American tour in support of his forthcoming album, "Unstoppable Momentum."

Due May 7, Satriani's 14th studio album was produced by the guitarist and Mike Fraser (AC/DC). The album features Vinnie Colauita (Sting, Jeff Beck) on drums, Chris Chaney (Jane's Addiction) on bass and Mike Keneally (Dethklok) on keyboards. more on this story

TessaracT Guitarist Joins Heavy Metal Truants Charity Bike Ride

(Classic Rock) The line-up for the Heavy Metal Truants Download Festival Charity Bike Ride has been bolstered by the addition of TesseracT guitarist James Monteith.

He joins the likes of Iron Maiden manager Rod Smallwood, Classic Rock Editor-In-Chief Scott Rowley, Metal Hammer Editor Alexander Milas, Trivium's Paolo Gregoletto, Ben from Young Guns, Paradise Lost frontman Nick Holmes, Wyatt Wendells from Planet Rock Radio and Prog Editor Jerry Ewing for an event that is set to help some excellent causes.

"I used to cycle regularly but haven't had the opportunity for a while, so with this in mind – and, of course, the chance to do some good – I jumped at the chance to be involved," says Monteith. "Of course, the main reason for this is to raise money for the Teenage Cancer Trust and Childline, who are actively changing the lives of young people who need help the most, and Nordoff Robbins, who are using the power of music in an amazing way. Definitely worth the effort!"

"We're delighted that James will be joining us for three days hard labour, toil and pain," adds Prog mag's Ewing. "However I can't help but express my amusement that, given James' height, he will be undertaking the entire journey on a Penny Farthing!" more on this story

Singled Out: Ugly Kid Joe's I'm Alright

Ugly Kid Joe release their reunion album "Stairway to Hell" today and to celebrate we asked guitarist Klaus Eichstadt to tell us about the album's first single, "I'm Alright". Here is the story:

The song was written about sort of an imaginary character who's lifestyle vaguely resembles that of a semi-retired (washed up) rock star who lives alone with all his demons. While some might think his lonely hermit like existence may be sad, he is at one with his lifestyle, enjoying the simple pleasures. He is OK, but the irony is that he is not great- not totally sad, but not totally happy-sort of an in limbo state of "Alrightness".

The songs original idea and riff came about a few years after the bands initial break up. It was put on the shelf but immediately came to mind when the band began writing for the reunion record. An old demo was found of the basic idea and the band jumped on it and hashed it out, rearranging, writing a new bridge, and altering a lyric here and there within a few days of and during the recording.

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

Alice In Chains Release Lyric Video For Stone

(Classic Rock) Alice In Chains have released a lyric video for their new single "Stone." It's taken from their forthcoming album The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here, due out on May 28.

Guitarist Jerry Cantrell recently said of the work: "I look at every record like it's your last. We know pretty well how final things can be.

"It's amazing we're making music after all the things we've been through. I can rest happily with this being the last record, if that's what it was." Check out the video here.

Red Hot Chili Peppers' Complete Coachella Set Streaming Online

(hennemusic) The Red Hot Chili Peppers closed out the Coachella Festival over the weekend and fans can watch streaming video of their complete set online.

The band's Sunday night set wrapped up a weekend of music in Indio, CA that also saw appearances by The Stone Roses, Blur, Gaslight Anthem, Violent Femmes and dozens of others.

On the road in support of their latest album, "I'm With You," the Peppers' 95-minute performance featured tracks from their extensive career.

Coachella was streaming the full weekend event online; fans can watch the complete set by the Red Hot Chili Peppers here.

Volbeat Release Animated The Hangman's Body Count Video

(Classic Rock) Volbeat have released an animated video for their track The Hangman's Body Count. It's taken from their latest album, Outlaw Gentleman & Shady Ladies, on sale now.

It's their first record after the band recruited former Anthrax guitarist Rob Caggiano, who originally came on board to produce the work, then contributed guitar parts, and finally joined the Danish outfit full-time.

Outlaw Gentlemen & Shady Ladies also includes guest appearances by King Diamond and Sarah Blackwood.

Frontman Michael Poulsen says: "It's a new vibe for Volbeat. You've got everything — the rockabilly stuff, the melodies, the ultra-heavy stuff, the Western motifs and the big rock songs. It's everything that Volbeat are all about, but taken even further." Check out the video here.