Month: March 2021

KISS frontman Paul Stanely has called for “kindness” and “justice” in the wake of an alleged attack on a Korean American man last month in the heart of Los Angeles’ Koreatown in an incident that police are investigating as a hate crime.

27-year-old Denny Kim told CNN he was waiting for a friend on February 16 when he was approached by two men who started yelling racial slurs and then struck him in the face.

“All of a sudden they just started saying very terrible things,” Kim said. He said he also heard the men say, “You have the Chinese Virus, go back to China,” before he was attacked.

On Saturday, Stanley took to his Twitter to share a CNN article about the incident, and he included the following message: “SO DEMORALIZING. We share so much in common and there is so little below the surface that differentiates us. NO ONE should fear violence or persecution for what they look like, where they were born or how they choose to live. KINDNESS…. AND JUSTICE.”

A spokesman with the LAPD confirmed to Fox News on Thursday that detectives are investigating the assault on Kim as a possible hate crime,

The two suspects, described by police as Hispanic males in their 30s, have not been found.

Two months ago, Stanley defended his right to speak out on political issues, saying that he voices his opinions as a “proud citizen” of a country he loves deeply. A few days earlier, he expounded on his reasons for being so vocal on social media, writing: “My profession should’t disallow that as we all have that right so many have fought & died protecting. I also understand that the people who would like me to stay quiet are those who don’t share my views. Sorry.”

SO DEMORALIZING. We share so much in common and there is so little below the surface that differentiates us. NO ONE should fear violence or persecution for what they look like, where they were born or how they choose to live. KINDNESS…. AND JUSTICE. https://t.co/ie4Aumup9T
— Paul Stanley (@PaulStanleyLive) February 27, 2021

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LAMB OF GOD will issue a three-disc deluxe edition of last year’s critically acclaimed self-titled album featuring the full record with two bonus tracks and a live version of the album, along with a DVD performance of “Lamb Of God” on March 26 via Epic Records.

“This album, and in particular this deluxe edition, is something I’m incredibly proud of,” says guitarist Willie Adler. “Throughout the process of writing, recording and the subsequent filming of the live stream, I knew we were creating much more than a collection of songs. Much more than a simple streamed performance. This was focused energy. Energy that, to me, is very tangible. And now, more than ever, in an era where human interaction is so limited, art…. be it music, visual or otherwise, is a human connection point. And we need as much of that as possible! I hope everyone enjoys this deluxe edition as much as we enjoyed creating it. Thank you.”

Pre-orders for the set are available now, along with the bonus track “Ghost Shaped People”. The live CD and DVD portion of the deluxe edition features the first of LAMB OF GOD’s two ultra-successful live stream events from September 2020, in which the band performed their critically acclaimed, self-titled album “Lamb Of God” in full, plus an encore of four songs, including “Ruin”, “Contractor”, “512” and the debut live performance of “The Death Of Us”, a new song the band wrote and recorded in quarantine for the “Bill & Ted Face The Music” movie and soundtrack. The DVD includes a new director’s cut with bonus material. Watch the trailer for the deluxe package now below.

A trailer for “Lamb Of God – Live In Richmond, VA” is available below.

Originally, released June 19 of last year, LAMB OF GOD’s first new album in five years was met with universal acclaim — not only among major rock journalists, but with all strata of metal fans around the world.

But critics, media and the industry aside, perhaps the most telling statistic is the year-end U.S. metal radio chart, where the new album dominated at #1 by a massive margin (over 2,000 more spins than the album at #2). “Lamb Of God” spent nine weeks in the #1 spot and never left the top 10 since debuting on the chart in February. Metal radio is the lifeblood of the U.S. metal world, largely staffed by college students and regional tastemakers, playing the music that they know their local metal fans want to hear. At iTunes, “Lamb Of God” landed at No. 1 on the overall Rock and Metal album chart upon release.

“Lamb Of God” deluxe edition track listing:

Disc 1: “Lamb Of God” Original Album + 2 Bonus Tracks

01. Memento Mori
02. Checkmate
03. Gears
04. Reality Bath
05. New Colossal Hate
06. Resurrection Man
07. Poison Dream (feat. Jamey Jasta)
08. Routes (feat. Chuck Billy)
09. Bloodshot Eyes
10. On The Hook
11. Ghost Shaped People
12. Hyperthermic/Accelerate

Disc 2: “Lamb Of God – Live In Richmond, VA”

01. Memento Mori (Live)
02. Checkmate (Live)
03. Gears (Live)
04. Reality Bath (Live)
05. New Colossal Hate (Live)
06. Resurrection Man (Live)
07. Poison Dream (Live)
08. Routes (Live)
09. Bloodshot Eyes (Live)
10. On The Hook (Live)
11. Contractor (Live)
12. Ruin (Live)
13. The Death Of Us (Live)
14. 512

Disc 3: “Lamb Of God – Live In Richmond, VA” DVD

01. Memento Mori
02. Checkmate
03. Gears
04. Reality Bath
05. New Colossal Hate
06. Resurrection Man
07. Poison Dream
08. Routes
09. Bloodshot Eyes
10. On The Hook
11. Contractor
12. Ruin
13. The Death of Us
14. 512

Digital copies will contain only Disc 1 and Disc 2. A separate vinyl edition of “Lamb Of God – Live In Richmond, VA” will also be available.

“Lamb Of God – Live In Richmond, VA” vinyl track listing:

Side 1

01. Memento Mori
02. Checkmate
03. Gears
04. Reality Bath
05. New Colossal Hate

Side 2

01. Resurrection Man
02. Poison Dream
03. Routes
04. Bloodshot Eyes
05. On The Hook

LAMB OF GOD eagerly awaits its return to the road to support “Lamb Of God”. Their North American co-headline tour with MEGADETH and support from TRIVIUM and IN FLAMES has been rescheduled to begin in July 2021, and their headline tour in the U.K. and co-headline tour with KREATOR in the rest of Europe will take place in November and December 2021.

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Soul-crushing drone-doom unit Body Void return with demoralizing new single, “Wound.”
The post Listen: Body Void – ‘Wound’ appeared first on Decibel Magazine.

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VISIONS OF ATLANTIS singer Clémentine Delauney was a guest on the “Side Jams With Bryan Reesman” podcast, where she spoke about her life-changing transition to veganism, being nonjudgmental of meat eaters, as well as the misunderstanding over the band’s statement last year about Black Lives Matter.

Delauney said she started her journey to veganism five years ago when she stumbled across online videos that documented what goes on inside slaughterhouses, and the warehouses were chickens, pigs, and cows were being raised for food.

“When I realized all the cruelty and the pain that I was taking part of by buying meat and dairy from the food industry, I decided that’s not something I wanted to support anymore,” Delauney said. “I didn’t want to switch to consuming things only from small farms and so on. I thought this was just a smaller part of the problem. I thought, ‘Let’s make a real choice. Let’s not support any of this so I can compensate for people who would just go halfway and just be vegetarian, which is great enough. But let’s put all I can on my side so I don’t support any of this whatsoever.’ I quit meat quite fast, and then a year afterwards, I was completely vegan.”

But while some vegans can come off very strong on their views about meat eating, the singer told “Side Jams” that she does not talk about it.

“That’s the best thing that works on my side,” she explained. “People know about it — my friends, my bandmates, and so on. My drummer is a very meat-oriented person, and he tried to become vegan just because he saw that I could be and everything was fine. He had heard that it’s better for your health and so on, so he tried. I know that if I would have preached for that, or if I tried to turn people, they would have been completely on a defense mode because they would feel attacked, like if I would judge them. I think this is the worst way — when you try to convince someone of something, you don’t want to judge them because if they feel judged, they will never listen to you. So I just was myself. I want to show an example. I want people to understand and believe that this is possible and this is nice, and it’s as healthy and colorful and still tasty. So I share my own food sometimes that I cook on Instagram, and I talk about just vegan food being good. I’m just saying I am having a good time. I try not to preach at all. I have people following me through VISIONS OF ATLANTIS, fans who already said, ‘I’m turning vegetarian because of you!’ I didn’t do anything. I just communicated in the most and enthusiastic and natural way about it.”

Delauney also addressed a misunderstood statement that VISIONS OF ATLANTIS made last year regarding the Black Lives Matter movement. The day after many people and organizations posted a black square on their social media pages in solidarity with the movement, the band shared their vision of what it means to live together. They invoked All Lives Matter without knowing what the real connotation was.

“The problem was that we didn’t know that the words we used were used in the U.S. by certain other parties that are extreme right parties and so on,” Delauney said. “We got insulted. We got bashed completely by American people because we made a diplomatic mistake. But it was just a mistake. And I was amazed by the rapidity with which these people judged us instead of trying to understand what we actually meant in our message which was a positive message of inclusiveness. Like having everyone on board, like we all live in here together. No one should feel excluded. And that’s what we meant, and our message was totally misinterpreted.”

Being European, the group did not have the same context of the BLM story broadcast across the media there. “We also have to deal with minorities and communities in our countries that create different kinds of tensions,” Delauney said. “Of course, we’re not racist, and we think it’s so unfair that someone would get treated differently because of their skin color. Yes, this is awful. But we can’t get the sense of that the way an American citizen does. It’s impossible. We don’t have the culture. We don’t live in the United States.”

The group is currently working on a follow up to their 2019 album “Wanderers”.

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During a recent appearance on “Another FN Podcast With Izzy Presley”, Charlie Benante (ANTHRAX), Mike Portnoy (DREAM THEATER, SONS OF APOLLO), Roy Mayorga (STONE SOUR), Paul Gargano (Metal Edge) and radio personality Eddie Trunk debated the first three KISS albums. You can now watch the discussion below.

Asked for an opinion on who the more underrated drummer is, Peter Criss (KISS) or Ringo Starr (THE BEATLES), Portnoy said: “Underrated, you’d have to say Peter, because Ringo, as much as people give him shit for not being a great technical drummer, which I don’t believe in, by the way — I totally don’t agree with that — but Ringo is still at least acknowledged as Ringo, one of the most influential drummers of all time, whereas I don’t think Peter gets that credit. I know I always cite him [as an influence], Charlie will cite him, Roy, Brian Tichy — there’s a lot of us that love Peter and grew up on him and give him that credit, but I think generally, he’s very, very underrated.”

Benante concurred, saying: “If you listen to the solo on ‘Alive’, ‘100,000 Years’, it’s amazing. I think the problem with Peter is that after ‘Alive’ and ‘Rock And Roll Over’, I felt like he didn’t push himself anymore; he just played whatever was good for the song, and that was it. But he definitely had the best snare drum tones on certain songs.”

Portnoy continued: “I think they were still hungry for [the early albums]. Then once ‘Destroyer’, ‘Rock And Roll Over’ and ‘Love Gun’ [were released], they became one of the biggest bands in the world, and it probably was less inspiring and less hungry. But another thing about Peter you can’t forget about is his vocals. The first album especially, he’s singing a lot of lead vocals…

“[There’s] this amazing bootleg of [KISS] from Long Island, playing a club in Amityville in, like, 1973, and Peter is singing on a lot of that stuff — even stuff that Paul [Stanley] or Gene [Simmons] ended up singing on the album, but Peter was one of the lead singers back in those early days.”

Criss first left KISS in 1980. Since then he’s worked with other bands and released solo albums. He teamed up with KISS again for a reunion tour in the 1990s and most recently in 2004. He was replaced by Eric Singer.

In addition to playing drums in KISS, Peter also provided lead vocals for a number the band’s most popular and memorable songs, including “Beth”, “Black Diamond” and “Hard Luck Woman”.

Criss, who was known as “Catman,” released his last solo CD, titled “One For All”, in 2007. Peter produced the album himself for the first time, and was joined by guest musicians that included keyboardist Paul Shaffer and bassist Will Lee of “Late Night With David Letterman”. The album featured a range of styles, from rock and jazz to blues and Broadway, and included covers of “What A Difference A Day Makes” and “Send In The Clowns”.

Criss, who turned 75 last December, played what was being billed as his final U.S. concert in June 2017 at the Cutting Room in New York City.

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A modern take on the infamous circuit from a classic “Rodent-based” 1980’s high-gain distortion.

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Five years after announcing that he would embark on a special tour during which he would perform ACCEPT songs one last time under the DIRKSCHNEIDER banner before closing that chapter for good, former ACCEPT frontman Udo Dirkschneider is continuing to play ACCEPT material at select shows, including at the September 18, 2020 U.D.O. concert in Plovdiv, Bulgaria, which will be released on DVD and Blu-ray later this month. Asked in a new interview with Canada’s The Metal Voice why the ACCEPT tracks are still finding their way into the U.D.O. setlist, Udo said (see video below): “In the beginning, I said, ‘With U.D.O., I don’t play any ACCEPT songs.’ But for this concert [in Plovdiv], the promoter was really begging: ‘Is it possible to play some ACCEPT songs?’ And we said, ‘Okay.’ And in the end, we did five songs — the classic stuff, of course. It’s the same with the [upcoming U.D.O.] tour in America. The tour in American and Canada was confirmed already. Now we have to wait for new dates, and I think it will happen in 2022. The promoter in America, he said, ‘You don’t play any ACCEPT songs with U.D.O.?’ And I said, ‘Yeah, normally we don’t do it.’ [And he said] ‘But you cannot do a tour in America and Canada without [playing] ‘Balls To The Wall’.’ I said, ‘Yes, I can do that. No problem.’ He said, ‘Why not? It’s not a big deal. People wanna hear that.’ I mean, I don’t have a problem to play ‘Balls’ and maybe two more other ACCEPT songs.

“After three years of DIRKSCHNEIDER, playing every night only ACCEPT stuff, and on the other side, I have 16 U.D.O. albums, and the seventeenth is coming up,” he explained. “So that was the point to say the people heard enough now of ACCEPT, it’s done, and now I concentrate on U.D.O. and I don’t need to play any ACCEPT songs; there’s another band that can play ACCEPT songs.

“I was just talking also in another interview today, and they said, ‘Who gives a fuck about this? The people wanna [some ACCEPT songs].’ Not 50 percent of the setlist, but they wanna hear the classic stuff, like ‘Metal Heart’, ‘Balls’, ‘Fast As A Shark’ — stuff like that. And I said, ‘Yeah. We will see. I don’t know yet.’ But at the moment, I don’t have to think about it, so at the moment, there’s nothing going on.”

Udo went on to confirm that U.D.O. will “definitely” play some ACCEPT songs if the band’s North American tour materializes in 2021 or 2022.

When he first announced the DIRKSCHNEIDER tour, Udo said that had “to make a clear break for myself — close the book and this is it. And I have the problem that people come to me and ask me to play more ACCEPT songs,” he explained. “Other people ask me why I play ACCEPT songs at all, because there are [more than] fifteen U.D.O. records. I want to avoid such things and avoid the repeating questions concerning ACCEPT. I just can’t stand that anymore. There is nothing more to be said. U.D.O. exists longer than ACCEPT. We have more records than ACCEPT.”

While acknowledging that some ACCEPT fans want to hear the band’s classic songs performed by the group’s original singer, Dirkschneider explained that “you always have these comparisons [between how these songs are played by ACCEPT and U.D.O.]. I don’t want this anymore either. [The current lineup of ACCEPT] also play ‘Metal Heart’, they play ‘Balls To The Wall’ and ‘Princess Of The Dawn’. And then some people tell me, ‘Oh, [current ACCEPT singer Mark Tornillo] is doing it better than you.’ And I go, ‘That’s fine. Enjoy yourself.’ But I don’t want this anymore. And to avoid all of this in the future, I said, ‘We are doing this one more time.'”

Dirkschneider said that his vow to never play ACCEPT material again came with one caveat. “If the band ACCEPT dissolves one day in the near future and I am still around with U.D.O., then there is a chance that I put ACCEPT songs back in the setlist,” he said. “But currently there is ACCEPT, so go see them [if you want to see those songs performed live]. They are playing these songs.”

Udo previously said the original plan was for DIRKSCHNEIDER to only “a few shows,” and “then [the tour] got bigger and bigger [due to demand].” But, he added, “I don’t want to complain about that.”

Back in 2018, ACCEPT guitarist Wolf Hoffmann declined to comment on Dirkschneider’s decision to embark on one final tour during which the singer would perform nothing but ACCEPT songs. “I have lots of thoughts about that, but I’m not gonna share ’em with you,” he told SiriusXM’s “Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk”. “I’d rather not comment on that, because that seems so much ‘back and forth,’ and I think I should stay away from it… You can draw your own conclusions all day long, but I’m not gonna get into it; it’s just not worth it.

“I get asked [about Udo] so many times, and, man, it’s been so many years — it’s such an old story by now,” Wolf continued. “We’ve moved on way past that, and we’ve had 10 brilliant years [with Mark Tornillo], we’re making cool albums; I think we’re doing fine. So I don’t spend any time thinking about it.

“I’m very proud of the history we have together and all that, but I’m just not gonna get into the current ‘he said, she said’ whatever — it’s not worth it,” Hoffmann concluded.

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Indonesian thrashers Spellforger murder the front row on new song “Lord of Possession”. Streaming faster and louder only at Decibel!
The post Track Premiere: Spellforger – “Lord of Possession” appeared first on Decibel Magazine.

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Joe Bonamassa is known for “always being on the road.” This time he’s bringing the concert into the homes of fans around the world in an epic pay-per-view performance from the live music capital of the world — Austin, Texas. On April 1 at 9 p.m. ET, he’ll perform a specially curated set from Austin City Limits Live, alongside “Late Night With David Letterman”‘s Anton Fig on drums and legendary bass player Steve Mackey, as a rare three-piece blues rock power trio.

Austin is one of the first spots Joe originally performed as a three-piece, years ago at legendary Antone’s, and is the city that saw the rise of guitar visionary Stevie Ray Vaughan. Austin City Limits Live, known as “music’s best address,” is a national landmark and was awarded “Best New Major Concert Venue” by Pollstar when it opened. It has been home to some incredible artists over the years such as B.B. King, Willie Nelson, Santana, Paul McCartney, Peter Frampton and Bonamassa himself as well as many others. ACL Live is a world-class stage to perform at and no doubt, Bonamassa will bring his incredible power to the stage, making his own mark on its history.

This event especially goes out to the fans, who via social media, have made their stamp on the evening, selecting their favorite Bonamassa tunes from his unparalleled, extensive catalogue of 24 No. 1 studio albums and countless productions, to create a very special setlist. It will be a new and exciting celebration of some searing hits from his earliest influences as well as amazing original compositions embodying the guitar mastery that he’s best known for. This highly curated set will more than delight longtime super fans as well as captivate new ones.

Livestream tickets and packages are available to purchase at this location.

There are a variety of pricing levels available for fans worldwide to be a part of this special “audience.” Tickets to the livestream event starts at $30. Fans may also purchase a $44.99 package that includes a limited-edition commemorative t-shirt, or upgrade to the Deluxe package for $64.99 which also features the Ultimate Video Collection, a one-year all pass for Bonamassa’s on-demand service which includes 17-plus concert releases from Joe Bonamassa, BLACK COUNTRY COMMUNION and ROCK CANDY FUNK PARTY — available at any time on most devices.

As part of this unique concert event, fans also have the option to purchase a Commemorative VIP ticket giving them an experience they will never forget. VIP ticket holders will have their photo and name featured in the livestream credits and DVD credits as a virtual audience member.

Joe Bonamassa is one of the most celebrated performing musicians of today. Hailed internationally as one of the greatest guitar players of his generation, Guitar World has honored him as “the world’s biggest blues guitarist.” The two-time Grammy-nominated artist has almost single-handedly redefined the blues-rock genre and brought it into the mainstream. Joe recently received his 24th No. 1 album on the Billboard Blues chart with the studio album “Royal Tea”, a nod to his British heroes, recorded at the legendary Abbey Road Studios.

Amidst the pandemic, Joe performed the “Royal Tea” album in entirety before its release last September at the iconic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville with over 17,000 virtual tickets sold, reaching 44 different countries. The event also raised over $32,000 for Bonamassa’s Fueling Musicians program, presented by his non-profit Keeping The Blues Alive Foundation (KTBA). Now Joe is ready to hit the stage again for an even more exciting, fan-curated experience at Austin City Limits Live. Each ticket purchase for the livestream will include a $1 donation to Fueling Musicians.

Bonamassa has been working hard to raise money for musicians affected by the COVID-19 crisis. The Fueling Musicians program is an emergency relief fund designed to support musicians by providing immediate cash payments for essential living expenses of $1,500 to help them stay afloat and get back on the road again when it is safe. To date, they’ve raised over $380,000 and distributed the money to over 230 artists. In fact, they’re getting checks delivered to some folks who have yet to even receive their support from the government stimulus. As someone who has spent the majority of his life on the road, Joe knows the clear and evident impact of the crisis on his entertainment community.

While much of the applause Bonamassa receives should be credited to his sheer talent, some part of his success needs to be attributed to Joe and his business partner for having the foresight and ability to become some of music’s savviest entrepreneurs. Bonamassa, now 43, and his partner Roy Weisman have together devised a 360-degree independent business model that has survived and thrived during one of the music industry’s most uncertain eras, particularly considering the challenges created by the current pandemic.

In addition to the livestream, Bonamassa has announced a select run of live, limited capacity, safe and socially distanced in-person shows for March and April through Macon, Georgia; Clearwater, Florida; Austin, Texas; and Huntsville, Alabama.

Mar. 27 – Macon, GA – Macon City Auditorium (sold out)
Mar. 29 – Clearwater, FL – Ruth Eckerd Hall
Mar. 31 – Austin, TX – ACL Live
Apr. 01 – Austin, TX – ACL Live
Apr. 03 – Huntsville, AL – Mark C Smith Concert Hall (sold out)

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