Alternative Metal
R.I.P. Joey Jordison, Former Slipknot Drummer Dead at 46
Former Slipknot drummer Joey Jordison has died at the age of 46. According to a statement issued by his family, Jordison “passed away peacefully in his sleep on July 26th, 2021.” A cause of death was not immediately disclosed. “Joey’s death has left us with empty hearts and feelings of indescribable sorrow,” his family’s statement reads. “To those that knew Joey, understood his quick wit, his gentle personality, giant heart and his love for all things family and music.” Advertisement Jordison was a founding member of Slipknot and played in the band until his departure in December 2013. He later revealed that he suffered from transverse myelitis, a neurological disease that limited his the ability to play the drums. The drummer suggested that his condition led Slipknot to fire him from the ...
Deftones Postpone North American Tour with Gojira Until Spring 2022
One of 2021’s most highly anticipated tours will have to wait until 2022. Deftones have just announced that they’re postponing their summer North American outing with Gojira until next spring. The news comes roughly one month before the tour was supposed to kick off. As it was, the tour had already been postponed from 2020 due to the pandemic. Despite the fact that many bands will start touring again this summer and fall, Deftones felt that “uncertainty still remains in different markets throughout the country,” and decided that it would be best to wait until next year. The rescheduled trek will now take place in the spring, kicking off April 14th in Portland, Oregon, and running through May 28th in Minneapolis. The new itinerary includes three added dates in Las Vegas, Cincinnati, and Nas...
Toyah and Robert Fripp Cover System of a Down’s “Chop Suey”: Watch
Toyah Willcox and Robert Fripp take on one of the great 21st century metal tunes in their latest “Sunday Lunch” performance. The married couple, along with the mysterious Sidney Jake, rock the System of a Down classic “Chop Suey” from their kitchen. Looking like characters in a Mad Max movie, Toyah and Robert go full throttle in covering “Chop Suey,” the lead single from System of a Down’s Toxicity (which celebrates its 20th anniversary in September). King Crimson founder Fripp has completed a full transformation from the conservative suit vest and tie he would wear at the beginning of the “Sunday Lunch” series, now donning a mohawk and theatrical eye makeup, as well as body art similar to what SOAD guitarist Daron Malakian sported in the official “Chop Suey” music video. Related Video Toy...
Black Sabbath’s Geezer Butler Announces Solo Box Set and Greatest Hits Album
Legendary Black Sabbath bassist Geezer Butler has announced the Manipulations of the Mind solo box set and a separate greatest hits album. Both arrive on July 30th. The box set spans four CDs and collects Butler’s three solo albums, Plastic Planet (1995), Black Science (1997), and Ohmwork (2005) — each having been previously reissued individually on vinyl. A fourth CD houses rare and mostly unreleased material. The box set is perfect for completionists, but if you’re looking for a quick sampler of the legendary bassist’s solo work, the standalone The Very Best of Geezer Butler compilation houses 17 highlights form the three LPs chosen by Butler himself. Free from the creative limits of Black Sabbath, Butler explored the full breadth of modern heavy metal on his solo albums. This ...
Rage Against the Machine’s Tom Morello and The Bloody Beetroots Release The Catastrophists EP: Stream
Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello and The Bloody Beetroots have released their collaborative EP, The Catastrophists. The seven-track effort features potent sociopolitical lyrics and a lengthy list of guest vocalists to deliver them. The previously released single “Radium Girls” is influenced by the real-life story of the female factory workers who died after being exposed to toxic amounts radium in the early 20th century. The track boasts vocal contributions of Jehnny Beth from Savages, Carl Restivo, Nadya Tolokonnikova of Pussy Riot, Aimee Interrupter (The Interrupters), Mish Way (White Lung), and The Last Internationale. Related Video Elsewhere, Chilean-French singer Ana Tijoux appears on the track “Lightning Over Mexico”, which eulogizes 43 missing Mexican students. “I...
Bullet for My Valentine Announce Self-Titled New Album, Unleash Single “Knives”: Stream
Bullet for My Valentine have announced a new self-titled studio album, arriving October 22nd. The UK metal act also unveiled the video for lead single “Knives”. The band’s seventh LP follows 2018’s Gravity and represents the peak of Bullet for My Valentine’s definitive sound, hence the self-titled nomenclature. For “Knives”, they crank their modern metal edge and arena-ready bombast to the extreme, with vocalist and guitarist Matt Tuck calling it an evolution for the band. “This is the beginning of Bullet 2.0,” Tuck said in a press announcement. “It signifies where we are right now. The music is fresh, it’s aggressive, it’s more visceral and passionate than it’s ever been.” Related Video The pandemic added an extra sense of urgency and uncertainty to the creation process. For a workma...
Jinjer Announce New Album Wallflowers, Share New Song “Vortex”: Stream
Jinjer have announced their fourth studio album, Wallflowers, arriving August 27th via Napalm Records. The Ukrainian prog-metal band also unveiled the video for the lead single, “Vortex”. The song entwines complex grooves with the powerful vocals of singer Tatiana Shmailyuk. The emotional weight of her performance lies at the heart of the intense track, which again sees Jinjer dealing with introspective lyrical themes. “This is a perfectly balanced song in our opinion,” the band stated in a press release. “A story told through the music and it deserved a video to perfectly match it… The video is a journey, giving the single another layer, another message, as Tatiana sings about the burden of heavy thoughts and how devastating it can be, the video mirrors what the world has sadly become for...
Faith No More Announce Brief Run of 2021 US Headlining Shows
Faith No More have booked a brief run of US headlining shows around two previously announced high-profile 2021 festival appearances. Fucked Up will provide support at the newly announced gigs. As reported recently, Faith No More will perform at Riot Fest in Chicago on September 18th and Slipknot’s Knotfest Iowa on September 25th. Since the band will already be geared up and ready to go, they’ve added headlining shows in Maryland Heights, Missouri, on September 16th; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on September 21st; and Newport, Kentucky on September 22nd. In addition, Faith No More will share a bill in October with System of a Down, Korn, Helmet, and Russian Circles at a pair of Los Angeles shows that have twice been rescheduled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Related Video “We’re excited to be a...
Code Orange Are Working on “Blistering New Songs” with Smashing Pumpkins’ Billy Corgan
Code Orange are working on new songs with Smashing Pumpkins frontman Billy Corgan. The alt-rock vet posted a picture with members of Code Orange in the studio, though little else is known about the collaboration so far. “Excited to share I’ve been working with Code Orange some on their blistering new songs,” Corgan shared on his Instagram story. It’s possible that Corgan is helping produce or co-write a few Code Orange tracks, or maybe he’s just contributing instrumentals or vocals to some new songs. A notable caveat is that Code Orange and Corgan share the same management, Velvet Hammer. Related Video While Code Orange are rooted in metal, the band certainly take some cues from the alternative rock aesthetics that Corgan helped pioneer in the 1990s. On Twitter, Code Orange shared the...
11-Year-Old Nandi Bushell Wows Linkin Park with “Awesome” Drum Cover of “Numb”: Watch
Nandi Bushell continues to impress the artists she covers, this time earning a “wow” from Linkin Park. The 11-year-old musical wunderkind posted a powerful drum cover of “Numb”, which the band itself dubbed “awesome.” Consequence has sung Nandi’s praises multiple times, but it never gets old. She defeated the great Dave Grohl in a headline-making drum battle; crushed Rage Against the Machine’s “Guerrilla Radio” on drums, bass, and guitar, leading Tom Morello to send her his signature Soul Power Stratocaster; and most recently impressed current Slipknot stickman Jay Weinberg with her drum cover of “Duality”. Heck, we even put together a list of 10 Times Amazing Kid Musician Nandi Bushell Blew Our Minds. Related Video Now, she has posted a drum cover of Linkin Park’s “Numb” in which she atta...
10 Must-See Acts to Catch at Welcome to Rockville 2021
<span class="localtime" data-ltformat="F j, Y | g:ia" data-lttime="2021-06-04T17:05:20+00:00“>June 4, 2021 | 1:05pm ET When it comes to hard rock and heavy metal, few festivals are as stacked as Welcome to Rockville 2021. The four-day extravaganza takes place November 11th-14th in Daytona Beach, Florida, and promises a who’s-who of major acts and rising newcomers. Last year’s festival was postponed due to the pandemic, and promoter Danny Wimmer Presents has more than made up for missing out on the 2020 edition by delivering a mouthwatering lineup. Many of the bands who were scheduled to play in 2020, including Metallica, Deftones, and more, are back for 2021, while such notable acts as Nine Inch Nails, Rob Zombie, and more, have been added to this year’...
11-Year-Old Nandi Bushell Covers Slipknot’s “Duality”, Gains Jay Weinberg’s Approval: Watch
<span class="localtime" data-ltformat="F j, Y | g:ia" data-lttime="2021-06-01T17:37:44+00:00“>June 1, 2021 | 1:37pm ET Young phenom Nandi Bushell is back at it, this time ripping through a drum cover of Slipknot’s “Duality”. The 11-year-old’s latest video is so impressive, she got the attention of Slipknot drummer Jay Weinberg. “You’re the best, Nandi!!” Weinberg wrote on Twitter, adding devil-horns, heart, and snare drum emojis. “Always crushing it!” Indeed, if Weinberg ever needs a fill-in, just hit up Nandi. She masters the intense double-kick pedal and controlled chaos of the song’s drum part, composed by former Slipknot percussionist Joey Jordison. Nandi even sports a mask of Slipknot guitarist Mick Thomson to look appropriately spooky as she plays...
