THE ROLLING STONES frontman Mick Jagger has co-written, recorded and performed the theme song for the highly anticipated Apple Original series “Slow Horses” with Academy Award-nominated film composer Daniel Pemberton. The brand-new track, titled “Strange Game”, will be released on Friday, April 1 via Polydor Records / Universal Music to coincide with the series premiere of “Slow Horses”, which will launch globally on Apple TV+ with the first two episodes on Friday.

Based on a series of acclaimed books by Mick Herron and starring Academy Award winner Gary Oldman, “Slow Horses” follows a team of British intelligence agents who serve in a dumping ground department of MI5 — Slough House on the outskirts of London. Oldman stars as Jackson Lamb, the brilliant but irascible leader of the spies who end up in Slough House due to their career ending mistakes. The six-part series also stars Kristen Scott Thomas, Jonathan Pryce, Olivia Cook and Jack Lowden.

The atmospheric and infectious title track “Strange Game” captures the series’ dark and mischievous premise, and the surreal world of espionage and exclusion the main characters find themselves in. Underpinned by Jagger’s powerful and eerie vocals, the poignant, moodily strutting theme tune, which references elements of the show’s original score, encompasses both contemporary off-kilter sound design and delicate piano arrangements, highlighting the narrative of yearning for the days to “dance with the big boys again”. Jagger and Pemberton have created a title theme that not only feels instantly iconic but one that also cleverly references many aspects of the show’s multiple storylines.

Pemberton states: “Working with Mick Jagger has been one of the most exciting collaborations of my professional career. I think we have managed to create an incredibly unique and original title’s theme and I cannot wait for the rest of the world to hear it.”

Series director James Hawes adds: “We always wanted a song to set the tone for the show and there was only ever one name in my mind — Mick Jagger. Hearing the track for the first time was utterly thrilling. Mick’s lyrics and performance have totally nailed the mood of ‘Slow Horses’ with all the humor and swagger I dreamed of.”

Track producer and co-writer Pemberton, who was nominated for an Oscar in 2021 for his work with the singer Celeste on the song “Hear My Voice” and recently nominated for a BAFTA for his score to “Being The Ricardos”, is best known for his work as a film composer, where his credits include “Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse”, “The Trial Of The Chicago 7”, “Oceans 8” and “Yesterday”. He is also responsible for creating the original score and soundtrack of “Slow Horses”, to be released soon via Universal Music. The sync of the series’ title track “Strange Game” was secured by BMG.

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JUDAS PRIEST bassist Ian Hill says that “it would be great” if his band finally got inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame this year.

PRIEST was previously on the ballot for Rock Hall induction in 2020, but failed to receive enough votes to make that year’s class.

Having been eligible for induction since 1999, PRIEST was also on the ballot for the 2018 class of the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, but was ultimately left out of the inductee list.

On February 2, it was announced that JUDAS PRIEST is among the nominees for the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame’s class of 2022. Inductees will be announced in May. The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame 2022 induction ceremony will take place this fall. The date, venue, and on-sale information will be announced later.

Asked by WTOP entertainment reporter Jason Fraley if he thinks 2022 will finally be the year PRIEST gets inducted, Hill said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): “It could be, yeah. It’s one of those things — it’s something that we haven’t really thought about. It’ll be nice. When you’re recognized by your peers, it’s always an honor. But it’s not something that you lose sleep over necessarily if it doesn’t happen. It would be great if it happened, but the people you really need to keep happy are your fans, without whom none of us would be here anyway.”

Once again, the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame has named the individual bandmembers that will enter should their group get inducted.

For JUDAS PRIEST, they picked current members Hill, Rob Halford (vocals), Glenn Tipton (guitar) and Scott Travis (drums), along with former members K.K. Downing (guitar), Les Binks (drums) and late drummer Dave Holland.

Back in October 2020, Halford said that the heavy metal genre “hasn’t been respected enough” by the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. Asked in an interview with Word In Your Ear if he was “bothered” by the fact that PRIEST hasn’t been inducted into the Rock Hall yet, Halford said: “Well, let’s put it this way. You have all of these institutions here in America — you’ve got the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame for music; you’ve got the Basketball Hall Of Fame; you’ve got the Baseball Hall Of Fame; Football — you’ve got all of these places where, I think essentially, it’s just a really nice, cool recognition of what you’ve done, the work that you’ve done and the things that you’ve achieved, the place that you’ve been put at, and so on and so forth.

“So, am I bothered if we ever get in? Not really. But I think we do deserve to be in there. Because I look at the list of people that are in there, and I feel that we have a place. And it would not only be for JUDAS PRIEST — it would be for British music, particularly British heavy metal music, and that’s a beautiful achievement. [BLACK] SABBATH are in there, which is great. But I’ve always said that as far as what the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame represents, the genre of heavy metal music hasn’t really been looked after enough and respected enough.

“So, I’d like to feel that eventually we will get in.”

Even though artists are eligible for the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame 25 years after the release of their first album or single, iconic hard rock and metal bands like PRIEST, IRON MAIDEN and MOTÖRHEAD have yet to be recognized by the institution, which inducted GUNS N’ ROSES in that group’s first year of eligibility.

The Rock Hall didn’t induct BLACK SABBATH until 2006, and METALLICA followed three years later.

Rock Hall rules state that artists become eligible a quarter century after their first records were released, but the Hall also claims that other “criteria include the influence and significance of the artists’ contributions to the development and perpetuation of rock ‘n’ roll,” which is, of course, open to interpretation.

Eligible for induction since 1999, KISS didn’t get its first nomination until 2009, and was finally inducted in 2014.

DEEP PURPLE was eligible for the Rock Hall since 1993 but didn’t get inducted until 2016.

After the 2020 Rock Hall inductees were announced in January of that year, JUDAS PRIEST guitarist Richie Faulkner said that it made no sense that DEPECHE MODE, Whitney Houston, NINE INCH NAILS and Biggie Smalls were going into the Rock Hall before PRIEST. “Hence why the Rock Hall holds no credibility for me and never has,” he tweeted.

Last month, Hill and Halford told Billboard that they would be happy to stand alongside Downing at a hypothetical Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction later this year. “It’s not a problem to us, no,” Hill said. “Ken was an integral part of this band for a very, very long time. He deserves to be there along with the rest of us.” Halford predicted that, “It won’t be as awkward as Ace [Frehley] and Peter [Criss with KISS’s Rock Hall induction]. I don’t think it’ll be awkward at all. I think you have to let all of that go because it’s the night that matters. It’s the moment that matters — but, again, the proverbial saying, we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.”

Downing previously told Rockin’ Metal Revival that there is a very good chance that he would perform with his former bandmates again if PRIEST gets the nod. “Oh, I think absolutely,” he said. “I mean, why wouldn’t you, really? It’s a special thing. We’re all of an age now. These opportunities only come once in a lifetime. And it seemingly takes a lifetime to get into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. I’ve always said, there’s no such thing as a young legend, right? [Laughs] So, while we’re still here, it would be great to receive that accolade and put on a great performance and put that one to bed.”

A month before the start of PRIEST’s tour in support of its latest album, “Firepower”, Tipton bowed out due to the worsening of his Parkinson’s disease, first diagnosed eight years ago (after being stricken by the degenerative condition at least half a decade earlier). His spot in the band is being filled by “Firepower” album producer Andy Sneap.

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STONE TEMPLE PILOTS singer Jeff Gutt joined CHEAP TRICK on stage in Brisbane, Australia on March 27 during the two bands’ joint “Under The Southern Stars” tour to perform the CHEAP TRICK classic “I Want You To Want Me”. Fan-filmed video can be seen below.

Prior to the launch of the tour, which also featured BUSH, ROSE TATTOO, ELECTRIC MARY and BLACK REBEL MOTORCYCLE CLUB, Gutt told The Rockpit about the prospect of sharing the stage with CHEAP TRICK: “We did a couple of tours with BUSH [before]; they’re great guys and it’s great to see them again; it’s something that never gets old and Gavin’s [Rossdale] a great dude, But I’ve never met or spoken to or even been introduced to anyone in CHEAP TRICK, so I’m psyched and can’t wait to get out there and fanboy over that every night. I’ll be checking them out from the side stage. It’s gonna feel like a successful moment standing there while CHEAP TRICK is playing. It’s pretty cool.”

In November, STONE TEMPLE PILOTS scrapped the remaining shows on their U.S. tour — including an appearance at the Welcome To Rockville festival in Daytona Beach, Florida — after a “member” of the band’s “organization” tested positive for COVID-19.

STONE TEMPLE PILOTS features three original members — Robert DeLeo, guitarist Dean DeLeo and drummer Eric Kretz.

Gutt, a 45-year-old Michigan native who spent time in the early-2000s nu-metal act DRY CELL, among other bands, and was a contestant on “The X Factor”, joined STONE TEMPLE PILOTS in 2017 after beating out roughly 15,000 hopefuls during an extended search that began more than a year earlier.

Original STONE TEMPLE PILOTS singer Scott Weiland, who reunited with the group in 2010 after an eight-year hiatus but was dismissed in 2013, died in December 2015 of a drug overdose.

Chester Bennington, who joined STP in early 2013, departed nearly three years later to spend more time with his main band LINKIN PARK. Bennington committed suicide in July 2017.

STONE TEMPLE PILOTS released their first all-acoustic album, titled “Perdida”, in February 2020. The disc was Gutt’s second with STP. His recording debut with the group was on its self-titled seventh album, which arrived in March 2018.

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Last November, Chicago, Illinois-based metal outfit REPENTANCE released its latest EP, “Volume I – Reborn”, via Noble Demon. The effort contained five tracks of aggressive, fast-paced and technical compositions, amplified by a tight and sharp production, which were praised by fans and critics alike. From said EP, the band has just released a brand new music video for the song “Down In The Water”, which was directed, shot, and edited by Alex Zarek, with lighting design and programming by Brian Olivo.

REPENTANCE vocalist Adam Gilley stated about “Down In The Water”: “The song is about trying to overcome the struggles from within and ultimately succumbing to the demons of disease in the end.”

REPENTANCE guitarist and band founder Shaun Glass added: “When writing the new material, I really wanted to make sure each song had their own identity yet fit into the sound of the band. With this track, the main verse riff set the pace for a dark heavy groove that doesn’t let up and brings the listener in a twisted journey… Adam’s King-Kong-sized vocals put the stamp on this song and also this is my first song that I actually also handled the guitar solo, which is a nice tribute to Dimebag Darrell (PANTERA) and Jeff Hanneman (SLAYER) – RIP.”

“Volume I – Reborn” will finally be available on vinyl on March 30, after a long wait caused by the current situation in pressing plants worldwide.

REPENTANCE will play its next concert on Saturday, April 2 at Cobra Lounge in Chicago.

Founded in 2018 by former SOIL and DIRGE WITHIN guitarist Shaun Glass and with a critically acclaimed debut album under their belts (“God For A Day”, 2020), REPENTANCE soon became known for their distinctive heavy yet dynamic sound, packed with details, groove and intensity. Playing numerous shows with high-profile acts such as TRIVIUM, DEVILDRIVER, JINJER, SKULL FIST, TOXIC HOLOCAUST, SACRED REICH and others, REPENTANCE have taken the heavy scene by storm and represent a sound, which is sure to obliterate fans of extreme music everywhere.

“Volume I – Reborn” was produced by Alex Lackner at Accelerated Sound and mixed by Chris Collier at CMC 21 Productions.

REPENTANCE is:

Adam Gilley – Vocals
Shaun Glass – Guitar
Eric Burns – Guitar
Eric Karol – Bass
Brandon White – Drums

Photo by Alex Zarek

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