Hard Rock
Frontman Burton C. Bell Quits Fear Factory
Veteran industrial metal act Fear Factory are without a singer after founding frontman Burton C. Bell quit the band on Monday (September 28th). In an open letter posted on his official website, Bell listed a number of grievances that led to his decision. Bell’s departure comes a couple weeks after Fear Factory launched a GoFundMe campaign to support work on their new album. The fund-raising effort seemed to be spearheaded by guitarist Dino Cazares, with Bell insisting, “Let me be clear: I am not part of, nor am I benefitting from, any GoFundMe campaign.” That dispute came after a long legal battle between Bell and former members Christian Olde Wolbers and Raymond Herrera over the Fear Factory name. As Bell points out in his letter, the legal wrangling and recent developments within the ban...
Rock and Metal Tours Rescheduled for Early 2021 Are Already Being Canceled
Early on during the COVID-19 outbreak, bands who announced rescheduled dates for early 2021 probably thought they were playing it safe. Now, with no end to the pandemic in site, those rescheduled tours are starting to get canceled themselves. Predictions of the concert industry not returning in earnest until late 2021 or even 2022 seemed shocking when they first made headlines in the spring. But as we head into October, those prognostications are now turning into a reality. Veteran stoner rockers Monster Magnet were set to kick off a North American tour in celebration of their 1998 album Powertrip on March 20th of this year. When the pandemic hit, the band postponed the tour but eventually rescheduled the dates for January and February of 2021. Recently, Monster Magnet canceled those resch...
R.I.P. Mark Stone, Original Van Halen Bassist Dies
Mark Stone (far left) with Alex and Eddie Van Halen, via Van Halen: The Early Years documentary Mark Stone, the original bassist for Van Halen, has died after a battle with cancer. His death was confirmed by his brother Brad, who posted the sad news via Instagram, and by Van Halen News Desk, which reported that Stone had recently been in hospice care. While Stone was a founding member of Van Halen, his tenure in the band was short-lived. He was a member of the band from their formation in 1972, alongside brothers Eddie and Alex Van Halen, and eventually David Lee Roth. Initially, the group called itself Genesis, but changed that to Mammoth upon learning that there was another band named Genesis. In 1974, the band changed its name to Van Halen, but also parted ways with Stone that same year...
Deftones Embrace Their Heavy Roots on the Commanding Ohms: Review
The Lowdown: Sacramento alt-metallers Deftones tend to transform at the turns of decades. In 2000, they released their conceptual high-water mark White Pony, while 2010’s Diamond Eyes is a stellar collection of catchy-but-clever skate rock tracks. On the other hand, 2020’s Ohms isn’t a radical reinvention, but it’s a solid addition to their legacy — a surprisingly heavy one, at that. The Good: Deftones’ albums exist along a delicate axis: At the one end, singer Chino Moreno’s romantic and crooning atmospheres, and on the other, guitarist Stephen Carpenter’s sludgy, metallic slug-fests. The band is at its best when these elements are in balance, and the tension between these poles is the core of their identity. 2016’s Gore seemed like a Moreno-heavy album, focused on dreamy landscapes. In c...
Deftones Unleash New Album Ohms: Stream
Deftones have unleashed their new album Ohms. Stream it below using Apple Music or Spotify. This is the hard rock band’s ninth full-length effort, and their first since 2016’s Gore. The executive producer is Terry Date, who worked with Deftones on their first four albums and the aborted Eros sessions of 2008. Ohms is ten tracks long by design. As vocalist Chino Moreno told Vulture, “We don’t… write 30 songs, then whittle it down into ten songs. We literally write ten songs.” Moreno explained that the recording process for Ohms was significantly different than Gore, in part intentionally, and in part because the pandemic allowed everyone extra time. He said, “We recorded [Gore] in Los Angeles… at the end of the day, it was like, I’m away from home. I’m not...
Marilyn Manson Recruits Norman Reedus for “DON’T CHASE THE DEAD” Video: Watch
Marilyn Manson has unveiled a new music video for “DON’T CHASE THE DEAD” starring The Walking Dead actor Norman Reedus. “DON’T CHASE THE DEAD” was recently released as the second single from Manson’s latest album, WE ARE CHAOS, which arrived earlier this month. The LP debuted at No. 8 on the Billboard 200 chart, marking Manson’s eighth consecutive album to land in the Top 10. Reedus, who has played Daryl Dixon in The Walking Dead since the beginning of the popular AMC series, co-stars alongside Manson in the cinematic video for “DON’T CHASE THE DEAD”. The clip depicts a heist gone violently wrong, along with scenes of Manson singing the song. Manson discussed “DON’T CHASE THE DEAD” in our recent interview with the singer. He told us that the track is “a very driving song, but whe...
Filter’s Richard Patrick on Quitting Nine Inch Nails: Trent Reznor Told Me to Deliver Pizza
In a new interview, Richard Patrick pointed to a couple of conversations with Nine Inch Nails’ Trent Reznor that both motivated and angered him into forming his own band, Filter. One of those exchanges included Reznor suggesting that Patrick deliver pizza to earn some extra cash. Patrick was a member of Nine Inch Nails from 1989 to 1993, mostly as part of the band’s touring lineup, as his only recorded contribution to NIN was a drone guitar on Pretty Hate Machine’s “Sanctified”. He reminisced about his decision to part ways with NIN during a recent appearance on the Stop! Drop & Talk podcast, co-hosted by Halestorm’s Arejay Hale. “I started in Nine Inch Nails, but then I quit when I was, like, 26,” recalled Patrick. “Nine Inch Nails was the only time I actually had a boss. … [Trent and...
Beyond the Boys’ Club: Orianthi
Beyond the Boys’ Club is a monthly column from journalist and radio host Anne Erickson, focusing on women in the heavy music genres, as they offer their perspectives on the music industry and discuss their personal experiences. This month’s piece features an interview with acclaimed guitarist Orianthi. Australian guitarist, singer, and songwriter Orianthi has performed with some of the biggest acts in the world, from Michael Jackson to Alice Cooper. Back in 2009, Orianthi was knee-deep into rehearsals for Michael Jackson’s “This Is It” tour, but sadly, Jackson passed away before the tour could come to fruition. That same year, she scored a solo hit with “According to You”, and she went on to join Alice Cooper’s band for two world tours. Now, Orianthi keeps busy with her own solo music and ...
Nine Inch Nails’ Pandemic Merch Is Both Clever and Grim
Tackling bleak subject matters is nothing new for Nine Inch Nails, but even Trent Reznor hasn’t seen the likes of the COVID-19 pandemic before. Now, some of NIN’s past works have inspired a new line of “Pandemic 2020” merch. For a limited time, Nine Inch Nails are selling five new T-shirts for “modern times” via their official online store. The tees display song titles and lyrics from throughout the band’s career to address the strange world in which we’re currently living. One such design uses the lyrics “New world/ New times/ Mutation feels alright” from the song “Shit Mirror” off the 2018 album Bad Witch. Another repeats the song title “Everyday Is Exactly the Same” from 2005’s With Teeth. Two of the shirts display U.S. maps, with one featuring the line “Used to stand for something” fro...
Lars Ulrich Helps Settle Best All-Time Drummer Debate on Howard Stern Show
Neil Peart (via YouTube), Lars Ulrich (via Howard Stern), John Bonham (publicity) Howard Stern stirred up a debate on his SiriusXM show this week when he sought to determine the greatest drummer of all time. To settle the argument, he and his co-hosts called upon Metallica stickman Lars Ulrich to cast the deciding vote. Prior to Ulrich’s involvement, the Howard Stern Show personalities seemed to narrow it down to Led Zeppelin’s John Bonham and Rush’s Neil Peart. Stern himself appeared to settle on Bonham, but the most qualified person on the staff, Richard Christy, made a strong case for Peart. In addition to being a longtime writer and personality on The Howard Stern Show, Christy is a gifted drummer himself, having played in the bands Death, Iced Earth, and his current supergroup Charred...
R.I.P. Lee Kerslake, Drummer for Ozzy Osbourne and Uriah Heep Dies at 73
Lee Kerslake, drummer on Ozzy Osbourne’s classic solo albums and longtime member of Uriah Heep, passed away Saturday (September 19th) at the age of 73. The veteran musician died after a lengthy battle with prostate cancer. The drummer’s death was reported by Ken Hensley, a fellow former member of Uriah Heep. “It’s with the heaviest of hearts that I share with you that Lee Kerslake, my friend of 55 years and the best drummer I ever played with, lost his battle with cancer at 03:30 this morning,” wrote Hensley. “He died peacefully, praise The Lord, but he will be terribly missed.” He continued, “I know many of you were praying for him not to suffer and I thank you for that and, now that Lee is at peace, our thoughts and prayers should turn to his wife Sue who will need all the support she ca...
Puscifer Announce New Album Existential Reckoning, Unveil “The Underwhelming”: Stream
Puscifer have announced the release of their fourth studio album, Existential Reckoning. In advance of its October 30th arrival, the band has unleashed the album’s second single, “The Underwhelming”. The experimental rock band’s core lineup consists of vocalist Maynard James Keenan (Tool), singer-keyboardist Carina Round, and multi-instrumentalist Mat Mitchell. For this album, they’ve also recruited Greg Edwards (Failure), and drummers Gunnar Olsen and Sarah Jones. Existential Reckoning will arrive five years to the day that Puscifer released their last album, Money Shot. The new song “The Underwhelming” follows first single, “Apocalyptical”, which was unveiled way back in May. Like everything Puscifer have done in the past, there is a certain mystique around Existential Reckoning. Th...
