Armed Robbers Raid Iron Maiden Member's Home

Construction firm owner Beall adds that his staff were "furious" after hearing about Pierre's ordeal. "They're hard-working, honest, loyal men who know this old man and love him," he explains. "When I told them Philip was severely beaten and abused they canvassed the island. When we found out who the guys were we met with police, who did an outstanding job." more on this story

Blink-182, Nine Inch Nails, Limp Bizkit Supergroup Announced

(TeamRock Radio) Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker has revealed he's part of a new supergroup alongside Limp Bizkit guitarist Wes Borland and former Nine Inch Nails multi-instrumentalist Danny Lohner.

No name has been given for the outfit, which also features hip-hop performer Scroobius Pip, but the four have already been at work on making music.

Barker posted a picture of the band via his Instagram account, saying: "In the lab creating with these talented gentlemen #goodtimes #goodpeople #goodmusic." more on this story

Led Zeppelin Finally Land On Spotify

(hennemusic) Led Zeppelin's catalog is coming to online streaming service Spotify. The band has signed an exclusive deal with Spotify that will see their full album catalog available to stream on-demand for the first time.

Fans can stream songs from the band's first two records ("Led Zeppelin", "Led Zeppelin II") now, with additional albums being released at midnight local time each day for the next four days, making the full catalog of studio and live albums available on Spotify by Sunday, December 15.

Led Zeppelin were one of the last major artist hold-outs to Spotify, and to streaming services in general. Pink Floyd made their catalog available via Spotify in July after "Wish You Were Here" generated 1 million plays, while Metallica made headlines this time last year when the released their catalog via Spotify.

See the Led Zeppelin / Spotify release schedule here.

AC/DC Frontman Brian Johnson To Host TV Series

(hennemusic) AC/DC frontman Brian Johnson has signed on to host "Cars That Rock", a new television series that is set to air in the UK next spring on Quest, Freeview Channel 38.

"Cars That Rock" follows Johnson as he pursues his passion of cars, looking into the history, meeting the fanatics and of racing in general.

Over six 60-minute episodes, Johnson looks at six of his favorite makes of car – three from the U.K. and three from other parts of Europe). In 2009, Johnson released his autobiography, "Rockers And Rollers: A Full Throttle Memoir." more on this story

How Sepultura's Kisser Lost Out On Metallica Gig

(TeamRock Radio) Sepultura guitarist Andreas Kisser has recalled how close he came to joining Metallica for a tour – and he thinks his nerves might have cost him the gig.

He auditioned to stand in for James Hetfield in 1992, after an onstage pyro accident left the frontman with third-degree burns and unable to play guitar, although he could still sing.

The stand-in job eventually went to Metal Church axeman James Marshall, a former Metallica roadie. But Kisser believes he came close to landing the role – especially after getting a seal of approval from then-bassist Jason Newsted.

"I knew all the Metallica stuff by heart except the Black Album, which was very new at the time," He tells Guitar World (via Blabbermouth). "I went and practiced with them. James wasn't there, only Lars, Kirk and Jason. I played the songs and they liked it a lot. Jason was really excited about my playing and they asked me to stay a second day."

Things didn't go so well the next morning with Hetfield in the room. Read about that here.

Boston Put A Spin On Christmas With 'God Rest Ye Metal Gentlemen'

Boston are getting in the holiday spirit with the iTunes release of their interpretation of the classic Christmas song, now dubbed "God Rest Ye Metal Gentlemen," which they are also streaming online.

The track was produced by Boston's Tom Scholz and he is backed on the song by Kimberley Dahme on bass and lead vocal, Gary Pihl and Scholz on vocals and guitars, along with Tom Hambridge on drums.

Scholz had this to say about the song, "This was my chance to BOSTON-ize one of my favorite Christmas carols. I had so much fun with this one, I think I'll have to try a few more." Listen to it here.

Rush Clockwork Angels Comic Book Series Coming In Spring

(hennemusic) Rush are bringing the story of their 2012 album, "Clockwork Angels", to the world of comic books next spring. USA Today reports the 6-issue Boom! Studios miniseries Clockwork Angels will launch in March.

Rush lyricist/drummer Neil Peart hatched the coming-of-age story of a naïve youngster in a turn-of-the-century world of airborne steam liners, pirates, carnivals, working alchemy and wind-up contraptions with novelist Kevin J. Anderson, who wrote the Clockwork Angels novel and is also penning the comic-book adaptation.

"Kevin and I had talked for years about combining a novel and an album in some fashion," explains Peart, "but I guess the idea had to grow up as Kevin and I did — gaining maturity and confidence in our own separate crafts, while gaining the life experience necessary to give the story its scale and depth. So, rather than a longtime dream realized, this project is more like a fantastic new dream unfolding before us." more on this story

Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow Releasing Limited Edition Box Set

(Classic Rock) The first decade of Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow is to be marked with a limited-edition 19-disc box set early next year. It contains reproductions of the original vinyl singles' artwork and comes complete with a 32-page book detailing the band's release history from 1975 until 1986. Sleeve notes are written by Andy Francis.

Label Commercial Marketing say: "As one of the cornerstones of British Rock, Rainbow, led by the never-predictable but ever-astonishing guitarist Ritchie Blackmore, became synonymous with some of the most well regarded and popular charting Rock songs of the seventies and eighties.

Passing through the band were some of the best the genre had to offer – vocalists Ronnie James Dio and Graham Bonnet, bass player and producer Roger Glover and drummer Cozy Powell. Each brought their individual talents to record some of rock's best-loved timeless singles." More details.

Europe Planning 10th Studio Album

(Classic Rock) Europe are aiming to record their tenth studio album next year – although frontman Joey Tempest isn't sure it'll be released during 2014. And there's at least the slight possibility that former members Kee Marcello and Tony Reno could play some role in proceedings.

Europe have been gradually turning their attention onto pre-production as they celebrated their 30th anniversary this year. Tempest tells Uber Rock: "We're talking about it all the time now and we want to record next year. Whether we manage to get it out next year, we'll have to wait and see.

"But we're definitely writing and recording it next year, and it's a big moment for us. It's a milestone: it will mean we'll have done as many studio albums second time around as the first time around." more on this story

Marillion Releasing Christmas Charity Single

(Prog) Marillion will release a Christmas charity single on Sunday, complete with what they promise is a hilarious video. The launch of their version of Carol Of The Bells is a development of the band's annual seasonal recording, which is normally made available to their fan club.

Marillion tell Prog: "Every Christmas we give the members a free DVD or CD. This year's offering included our cover of Carol Of The Bells – with a very amusing video to accompany it.

"The fans demanded an MP3 download so we decided to release it as a single. All the profits from the single will go to charity. We just thought it would be a bit of fun." Find out about the premiere here.

Heart and Friends Concert Coming To TV On Christmas Day

(hennemusic) Heart's special hometown holiday show will air on AXS TV on Christmas Day. The live "Heart and Friends: Home For The Holidays" concert takes place this Thursday, December 12 at Seattle's Benaroya Hall.

The sold-out show will also feature performances by Sammy Hagar, Shawn Colvin, Richard Marx and Train's Pat Monahan. The Wilson sisters will sing an array of holiday songs written by Joni Mitchell, Harry Nilsson, Bob Dylan and Hagar in their Christmas set as well as some of Heart's favorite songs. Colvin, Hagar, Marx and Monahan will provide additional vocals on the tunes and/or sing duets with Heart.

"We are thrilled and delighted to be joined by our band and our friends on stage to ring in the holiday season for our fans everywhere," said Ann Wilson. more on this story

Johnny Winter To Celebrate 70th Birthday With Box Set

(The Blues Johnny Winter will mark his 70th birthday with the release of a four-disc box set next year. True To The Blues: The Johnny Winter Story goes on sale on February 24, the days after the veteran performer celebrates his milestone anniversary at the B.B. King Blues Club & Grill in New York.

The 57-track collection features material from throughout his major-label career from 1969 until his most recent release in 2011. Also included are personal testimonials from big-name artists Carlos Santana, Billy Gibbons, Derek Trucks, Gregg Allman, Leslie West, Mark Knopfler, Joe Perry and others.

Southern rocker Charlie Daniels pays tribute by saying: "Johnny Winter can take you on a ride. Juke joints and cotton fields, rotgut whiskey and back alley crap games, lowdown, lonesome, trifling women and hard times – that's the blues, y'all." More including the tracklisting.

Enter Shikari Release New Bootleg Series Video

(TeamRock Radio) Enter Shikari have released the fifth installment of their Bootleg Series, shot in Glasgow last year. The new video features their performance of Ghandi Mate, Ghandi.

It was recorded during their A Flash Flood Of Xmas tour and comes in a three-disc set including two CDs and a DVD. Each limited-edition copy is signed by the entire band.

Enter Shikari are currently at work on their fourth studio album, although no completion date has been announced. Check out the video and grab the link to the limited edition here.

Gary Clark Jr Leads Blues Grammy Nominations

(The Blues Gary Clark Jr has been nominated for two Grammy awards, with fellow nominees including James Cotton, Beth Hart and Joe Bonamassa.

The 2014 shortlists have been announced ahead of the 56th annual ceremony, which takes place is Los Angeles next month. Clark's first-ever nominations are in the categories of Best Rock Song for Ain't Messin' 'Round and Best Traditional R&B Performance for Please Come Home.

Meanwhile, the Best Blues Album category features Cotton, Hart and Bonamassa, Bobby Rush, Ben Harper and Charlie Musselwhite and a collaborative release marking the career of Little Walter. more on this story

Elmore James Leads 50-Track Flair Records Compilation

(The Blues Elmore James is one of the leading lights to grace a new 50-track compilation album celebrating the legacy of Flair Records. The label was formed as a subsidiary of Modern Records by founders the Bihari Brothers, and released material by James, Ike Turner, Richard Berry, Shirley Gunter, Mercy Dee, Big Duke, The Flairs and others.

Dust My Rhythm & Blues: The Flair Records R&B Story 1953-55 is presented in two discs, with all tracks remastered from the original recordings.

It's released via Ace Records, who explain: "Ace has been mining the Modern catalogue for many years, but they felt each of the Modern group of labels deserve to be given their own comprehensive overview. Dust My Rhythm & Blues is the first of this series. More including tracklisting.

The Prodigy Join Metallica and Iron Maiden as Sonisphere Headliners

(Classic Rock) The Prodigy have been named final headliners for next year's Sonisphere festival. The dance rock outfit join Iron Maiden and Metallica at the top of the bill for the event which marks 40 years since the first live music weekender at Knebworth Park.

Prodigy mastermind Liam Howlett says: "We can't wait to play Sonisphere 2014. We'll be hitting you with some brand new beats and noise. Respecto."

The events promoters add: "We're ecstatic to announce The Prodigy will be making a triumphant return to Knebworth, having previously played a legendary show with Oasis in 1996. Adding them to the headliner sets of Maiden and Metallica is pretty much guaranteed to get the foundations of Knebworth House shaking." more on this story

KISS Limousines Launched

(hennemusic) A Las Vegas company has launched KISS Limousines. Created by veteran Vegas tourism leaders and huge KISS fans Donna and Will Tryon, KISS Limousines are outfitted – inside and out – in full over-the-top KISS style.

"The exteriors are KISS themed with real KISS memorabilia inside the vehicles," says Donna, "along with KISS music playing, it's like riding in a KISS museum!"

The company will officially launch KISS Limousines at a December 20th event the Las Vegas Hard Rock Café featuring a live performance by KISS tribute band, Sin City KISS. more on this story

Jim Hall Dead at 83

(Gibson) Guitarist Jim Hall died December 10th at the age of 83 at his Manhattan home after a short illness. Hall was a major influence on the likes of Pat Metheny and Bill Frisell, and was one of the most acclaimed jazz guitarists of all time.

Hall started playing guitar at age 10. In the 1950s, he played around the West Coast with Chico Hamilton and Jimmy Giuffre: on the East Coast, he later worked with Sonny Rollins and Art Farmer. He also played with Bill Evans, Ornette Coleman, Gerry Mulligan, and Ella Fitzgerald. He released his own first album as a bandleader in 1957, simply called Jazz Guitar, and he was active right up until his death. Earlier this year, he released several CDs of live recordings from his combo's sessions at New York City's Birdland club. He had been planning a duo tour in Japan in January 2014 with legendary bassist Ron Carter, a longtime musical partner.

"Jim was one of the most important improvising guitarists in jazz history. His musical generosity was an exact reflection of his deep humanity," said Pat Metheny, who performed and recorded in a duo with Hall. Library of Congress video interview with Jim Hall here.

Hall was renowned for his improvisational skills and his subtle, lyrical melodicism. In a 2003 interview for the National Endowment for the Arts, Hall said: "What seems kind of frivolous and doesn't really impress me is guys, people, women... who have amazing technique but everything sounds worked out. They go through these chord changes with all these chops.

"Usually I wish I had the kind of technique to do that and then not do it, sort of. I like to make some kind of composition happen while I'm playing. That involves motive development. I also love melodies. So I try to play melodies over tunes — have it go someplace and then come back."

Hall's work with saxophonist Sonny Rollins, particularly on 1962 album The Bridge, is regarded as a highpoint of 20th century jazz. "Jim was an essentially beautiful human being," Rollins said in a statement. "I don't know anybody who didn't love him, including myself. He was the consummate musician and it was a privilege to work with him." His acclaimed albums with pianist Bill Evans included Intermodulation and Undercurrent.

Hall played many makes of guitar over the years, but was noted for his early work on his Gibson ES-175. In Hall's own words: "I love that guitar, even though sometimes I don't touch it for months. It's easy to tune and after having been schlepped around and played for so many years, it's as if it knows just what to do." more on this story

Lee Abraham Releasing New Solo Album

(Prog) Lee Abraham is gearing up to release his fourth solo album in February. Entitled Distant Days, it contains seven tracks and follows his 2009 record Black And White.

Former Galahad bassist Abraham tells Prog: "I recorded it with the same core band who did the handful of gigs after Black And White was released: Gerald Mulligan on drums, Chris Harrison on guitar, Rob Arnold on keys and Alistair Begg on bass.

"I had a bit of help from some brilliant guests too – Marc Atkinson of Riversea; Dec Burke of Frost*, Darwin's Radio and Brave New Sky; John Young of Lifesigns; and Steve Thorne. Jon Barry and Simon Nixon helped out on guitar." more on this story

Steven Wilson Release Behind The Scenes At 'The Gig of the Year' Video

(Prog) Kscope have offered a behind-the-scenes video shot ahead of Steven Wilson's award-winning concert at London's Royal Albert Hall earlier this year.

He was touring to promote his latest solo album, The Raven That Refused To Sing (And Other Stories), which won Album Of The Year at the 2013 Prog Awards.

The video is part of Kscope's 12 Days of Khristmas campaign which marks the launch of their new website. Other offerings include a clip from Blackfield track Firefly and an instrumental piece entitled Your God by Wisdom Of Crowds.

The label's campaign continues through the weekdays of December. They say: "The giveaway will vary – it could be a free MP3, rare or signed products, album artwork, previously unseen videos or even test pressings of vinyl releases. Each day will feature a different artist so check back regularly to get the chance to grab some goodies."

Check out the video here.

Wolf People Streaming Limited Edition Release

(Prog) Wolf People have made their full limited-edition vinyl release 'When The Fire is Dead In The Grate' available for streaming online.

The 12-inch vinyl disc features two new tracks, Become The Ground and All Returns Part II, alongside the previously-launched title number and All Returns.

Wolf People released their second album Fain in April – Prog described it as "a stirring, quietly formidable achievement." Listen to the new online stream here.

Anna Phoebe Releases 'The Duel' Video

(Classic Rock) Anna Phoebe has released a video for her track The Duel. It's the opening number from her EP Embrace, which was released last month and represents her first new recordings in five years.

Former Classic Rock columnist Phoebe – who's toured the world as a soloist and with Roxy Music, Trans Siberian Orchestra, Jethro Tull and others – will release a full-length album in the middle of 2014.

She describes the new work as a return to the feel of 2006 album Gypsy, rather than a continuation of her pursuit of heavier material as displayed on her 2008 follow-up Rise Of The Warrior. Watch the video here.

James Durbin Releases 'Parachute' Lyric Video

(hennemusic) James Durbin has released a lyric video for his new single, "Parachute", the lead track from his forthcoming sophomore album, "Celebrate", due next April.

"Parachute was the 10th song I wrote for the new album," said James, "and as soon as we finished in the studio, I knew it had to be the first single. I can't wait for everyone to hear it."

The track marks the first new music from the American Idol rocker since his last two singles, "Love Me Bad" and "Stand Up", were released in 2011. "Love Me Bad" cracked the Top 30 at Hot AC/Top 40 radio while the anthemic NFL rock single "Stand Up" landed in the Top 20. Watch the video here.

Singled Out: Sultanov's Break Free

Today Russian star Sultanov tells us about his latest single 'Break Free' from his self-titled debut album. Here is the story:

"Break Free" is a song probably about everyone in this world. Some people live their lives the way they want it to be and some people don't.

Of those who don't, some people keep dreaming and others make their dreams come true. And they change their way and start chasing their dream! "Break Free" is a song that is very close to my heart. It's about being stuck in a day to day existence that perhaps isn't what you want or aspired to have; everyone's desire to break out of the life they got stuck in and follow their dreams.

When I wrote the song, there were a few key scenes from the amazing movie 'Brazil' that I kept coming back to during recording and that I couldn't shake, they really resonated with what I was trying to say in the song.

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