News Archive Page 1
4/22/18 Guitar Center Facing Bankruptcy
Standard and Poor’s has downgraded Guitar Center, the nation’s largest music equipment chain, indicating they are facing imminent bankruptcy. The store, which has been around since 1959, is following the plight of so many retail chains that are struggling to survive. This comes after the news that Gibson was struggling under similar debt and would require layoffs and restructuring to avoid collapse.
4/23/18 Lizzy Borden to Release New Album
After an 11 year hiatus from recording, during which he has stayed busy touring, theatrical rocker Lizzy Borden will release a new album. My Midnight Things, put out by Metal Blade Records, will be available on June 15. Borden commented that he has “pushed the restart on my career” with the new album, and describes it as a “new beginning.” He has produced the album himself because he felt that no other producer would understand his approach or what he was going for. Borden will be hitting the road soon and states that he has already started working on the stage show. In his words, “it will be the best show I’ve ever done. I really do feel a new excitement that I have not felt in years.” The album is available for pre-order in various formats here, where you can check out the first song as well. Be sure to check the Lizzy Borden website for more info.
4/23/18 Deep Purple and Judas Priest Announce Summer Tour
Judas Priest will keep the momentum from their spring tour going when they hit the road this summer for a co-headlining tour of North America with Deep Purple. The tour will consist of 25 dates in the U.S. and Canada, starting in Cincinnati, OH and ending in Wheatland, CA. Pre-sales start 4/24 thru Citi, with a general on-sale date of 4/27 at LiveNation.com. Judas Priest released their latest album, Firepower, earlier this year. Deep Purple released an album in April of last year, and member Don Airey will release a solo album in May. Further info can be found at the band’s websites: Judas Priest Deep Purple
4/24/18 First Posthumous Prince Album Announced
After releasing a previously unheard version of “Nothing Compares 2 U”, there has been an announcement that there will be an album of unheard Prince music released at the end of Sept. There were concerns that items in The Vault, Prince's basement storage facility, had been damaged over time, and executors decided to remove the contents for cataloging and restoration. Executors, partners and heirs have spent the last year going thru the items in the archive, including Prince’s own notes, to determine what to include in the album. You can keep up with info and listen to "Nothing Compares 2 U" here.
4/25/18. Def Leppard and Scorpions Announce Australian Tour
Following their tour with Journey this summer in North America, Def Leppard with team up with the Scorpions for 6 dates in Australia in November. Pre-sales thru the Def Leppard fan club start 4/27, with general on-sale dates starting 5/4. VIP packages will be available. For more information check the bands’ websites: Def Leppard Scorpions
5/10/18 Dead Daisies US Tour 2018 Announced
The Dead Daisies announced their 2018 US Tour dates that will include special guest Dizzy Reed’s Hookers and Blow. The tour will begin in mid-August and will extend the mid September and includes stops in Canada as well. Their latest release, Burn It Down, is doing well on various charts around the world, including a #6 entry on the US Billboard Heatseekers Chart. Their single Rise Up has been used by NASCAR extensively, is huge on the air in Europe and is seeing more airplay here in the US.
Get all tour dates here
5/16/18 BMG to Reissue Three Saxon Albums
On May 25th, BMG is set to reissue three classic Saxon albums. The albums will be done in colored splatter vinyl and will include lyrics, photos and memorabilia. CD copies will include demos, remixes, live recordings and a 24 page booklet. The albums to be reissued are Denim And Leather, Power & The Glory, and Crusader. The albums can be ordered on Amazon.
5/19/18 Carl Palmer to Release ELP Legacy Live
This two CD / DVD pack will be released by BMG on June 29th. It will include two live shows by Palmer's ELP Legacy Project: Live in New York 2014 and Pictures at an Exhibition - Live Miami 2016, dedicated to Keith Emerson. Special guests include Steve Hackett of Genesis and Mark Stein of Vanilla Fudge. Pre-order at Amazon.
6/1/18 INKCARCERATION Festival July 13-15, Mansfield, OH
This is a fascinating combination of tattoo artists, bands and a historic prison. The festival will be held at he Ohio State Reformatory, which Stephen King fans will know, is where The Shawshank Redemption was filmed. The old prison is still open for tours. Over 70 tattoo artists are set to attend the festival, along with food and drink vendors. And let's not forget the entertainment! With the likes of Rise Against, Black Label Society and Sevendust, this festival with 2 stages and 30+ bands in all will rock. More information can be found here.
6/3/18 LouderThanLife Festival Sept. 28-30, Louisville, KY
The festivals just keep coming, and this one pairs music with Bourbon (that's what Kentucky is famous for after all). Many heavy hitting artists will be playing this festival, including Avenged Sevenfold, Five Finger Death Punch, Godsmack, Nine Inch Nails, and even Billy Idol. Moe info can be found here.
6/5/18 RockFest 80's Nov. 10 & 11, Miramar, FL
For fans of 80's rock, be sure to check out this festival in FL in November. The festival features a muscle car alley in addition to artists such as Night Ranger, Winger, Firehouse and Kix. This is the third year for the festival and it sounds like a great trip back in time! More info can be found here.
7/30/18 Judas Priest Releases New Video for “No Surrender”
Their latest album, Firepower, is still going strong and Judas Priest has just released a video for yet another single, “No Surrender”. The band will be back on the road again later this month, this time with Deep Purple, for dates in the U.S and Canada. See the new video here.
7/30/18-Guess Who to Release New Album
The veteran rockers plan to release their new album, The Future IS What It Used To Be, on Sept. 14 via Cleopatra Records on CD, vinyl and in digital formats. The first single, “Playin’ On The Radio”, is available now via streaming services with a video on YouTube. The band consists of Garry Peterson (drums, vocals), D# (lead vocals, guitar, piano), Will E. (guitar, harp, vocals), Leonard Shaw (keyboards, flute, sax, vocals) and Rudy Sarzo (bass, vocals). Special appearances on the album include Tommy Shaw (Styx), Brent Fitz (Slash, Gene Simmons), Jim Kale (Guess Who founding member) and Michael Devin (Whitesnake). D# says of the new single:
“The song is a celebration of the radio and what it meant to us all. Whenever a new great song hit the airwaves, the DJ would say a few words then off to the races! You’d tune in just to hear it over and over again. The character in the song could be any one of us as we move ahead in life. Great music has the innate power to transport you back to so many great memories in an instant. Music is healing. I see it AND feel it every single night in our audience.” See the new video here. More info at the band’s website.
8/4/18- Elderly Men Wander Away From Nursing Home, Found at Heavy Metal Festival
Or were they? Initial reports indicated the pair, who had gone missing from their assisted living facility, were found at the Wacken Open Air Festival. Later reports now say the pair were found in the nearby town of Wacken by concert goers who found them “helpless, disoriented and intoxicated” at a bus station. Either way, it’s a good story, and one can believe that they really intended to get to the festival!
8/5/18 Foreigner Announce More Reunion Shows
After a recent show featuring all surviving members of the band, Foreigner has announced four additional reunion shows. Mick Jones indicated he would like to pair up with a newer band for the dates, someone like Queens of the Stone Age or the Killers. More info can be found on their website.
Nov. 9 – Los Angeles, CA @ Microsoft Theater
Nov. 10 – Rancho Mirage, CA @ Agua Caliente Casino
Nov. 30 – Atlantic City, NJ @ Hard Rock
Dec. 1 – Uncasville, CT @ Mohegan Sun Arena
8/13/18 Oz Fox Collapses After Show In Vegas
He was playing with Sin City Sinners Saturday night where he fell just after the show and was taken to hospital. The official statement from band states that he suffered a seizure causing the fall and that an MRI at the hospital showed “an area of concern near his brain which they are now running a biopsy on”. Oz has been instructed not to drive or fly for 90 days. The band indicates their “upcoming Australian tour will be performed as a trio (with the blessing of Oz)” and that they plan to play U.S. tour dates as scheduled, anticipating a full recovery by Oz. They ask that Japanese fans wait for an announcement regarding that part of the tour.
9/7/18 Kingdom Come 30th Anniversary Tour Announced
In 1988, Kingdom Come’s debut single “Get It On” dominated rock radio and helped propel the band’s debut album to gold status before it even shipped. They joined the Monsters of Rock tour with the likes Van Halen, Metallica and the Scorpions. Drummer James Kottak decided to revive the band and plan a tour to commemorate the 30th anniversary of this debut. Original members Danny Stag & Rick Steier (guitars), and Johnny B. Frank (bass) were on board, but singer Lenny Wolf declined (though he wished the guys much success). Keith St. John (Montrose, Lynch Mob) will be stepping in at vocals. Twenty dates have been confirmed, spanning most of the country. The tour runs from late September to late October. Catch them here in the Pittsburgh area at Jergels Rhythm Grille on Oct. 17. See the band’s website for more: www.KingdomComeBand.com
9/20/18 Ticketmaster Accused of Operating its Own Ticket Scalping Program
CBC and the Toronto Star ran an investigative report indicating that they had found evidence that Ticketmaster has been secretly running its own ticket scalping scheme. The outlets had journalists posing as scalpers at an industry event in Las Vegas earlier this year. Both allege they were approached by Ticketmaster and told of the company’s scheme to have individuals purchase mass quantities of tickets (bypassing Ticketmaster’s ticket limits and using multiple accounts, reportedly with Ticketmaster’s blessing), and reselling them immediately on Ticketmaster’s secondary market platform called TradeDesk. Ticketmaster would reap the benefit of receiving fees twice - once on the original ticket sale, and again on the inflated resale price. Ticketmaster has completely denied the claims and states it has started an internal investigation.
9/29/18 Marty Balin, Co-FOunder of Jefferson Airplane, Dies at 76
The singer had filed a lawsuit against Mount Sinai Beth Israel after open heart surgery in 2016, claiming they had botched his recovery and left him disabled. The cause of his death is unknown at this time. Ballin founded Jefferson Airplane in 1965 with Paul Kanter in San Francisco. He left for a time in 1971 and returned in 1974, when the band changed it’s name to Jefferson Starship. Responsible for such hits as “Miracles”, “Count on Me”, and “With Your Love”, bad feelings remained and he left again in 1978, not returning until 1989 for a tour, and then again in 1993. In 1996, he was inducted to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, along with Jefferson Airplane.
10/1/18 - Class Action Lawsuit Filed Against Ticketmaster, Live Nation
Following the reports from CBC and the Toronto Star that they had uncovered evidence of Ticketmaster running its own ticket scalping venture, a class action lawsuit has now been filed on behalf of unhappy customers. The report had indicated ticket seller turned a blind eye to those using various methods to bypass limits on ticket sales, so that it could profit twice from fees on the ticket sales - once from the original sale and once when listed for re-sale on their TradeDesk platform. Ticketmaster has denied the allegations and states that it is conducting an internal review of its reseller program.
10/6/18 Hospitalization Forces Ozzy to Postpone Show
The Oct. 6 Mountain View, CA show was postponed until Oct. 16 after Ozzy required surgery on his hand for an unspecified infection. The singer will require a couple of days in the hospital, but is expected to return for his next scheduled tour stop on Oct. 9 in Chula Vista.
10/6/18 Jon Bon Jovi Announces Runaway To Paradise Cruises
There will be two chances to sail with Jon Bon Jovi on Norwegian Cruise lines next year. The first, from April 12-16, will sail from Miami to Nassau, Bahamas. The second, from Aug. 26-30 will be a Mediterranean cruise from Barcelona, Spain and Palma on the island of Majorca. Similar to the Runaway Tours, the cruises will contain a storyteller session, as well as performances by Jon and other artists (not yet announced). More info can be found at the cruise website.
10/7/18 Stephen Pearcy Struggles Thru Another Show
Ratt fans at the Arcada Theater in St. Charles, IL booed Ratt frontman Stephen Pearcy as he struggled thru the band’s set. Back on Sept. 27, he apologized to fans for his performance, telling them he has been dealing with pain from a bad knee (due to be replaced early next year) and made the mistake of mixing alcohol and pain meds. Reports from IL indicate a similar situation, as the singer slurred words, missed lyrics, had to sit on the drum riser and left the stage multiple times. Other reports had great praise for the band, as they covered for the singer's shortcomings.
10/9/18 RNR Hall of Fame Announces 2019 Inductees
Included in this year’s class are Def Leppard, Devo, Janet Jackson, John Prine, Krafrwerk, LL Cool J, MC5, Radiohead, Rage Against the Machine, Roxy Music, Stevie Nicks, The Cure, Todd Rundgren, Rufus & Chaka Khan, and The Zombies. Check out the RNR Hall of Fame web site for band bios and fan balloting. https://www.rockhall.com
10/15/18 Ozzy Cancels Tour Following Infection, Surgery
The singer was hospitalized for an infection in his hand, for which he required surgery and subsequently cancelled a couple of dates on his tour. The infection, from a cut on his thumb, will apparently require further surgery, and Ozzy has been advised to cancel the rest of the tour. The dates that had been set for Oct. 6 thru Oct. 13 will be rescheduled for some time in 2019 and fans are encouraged to keep their tickets. Refunds will be issued, however, should fans request it.
