In a recent interview with RadioactiveMike Z, host of the 96.7 KCAL-FM radio program “Wired In The Empire”, BEARTOOTH singer Caleb Shomo was asked to name the first METALLICA song he learned to play on guitar. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): “Probably ‘Enter Sandman’. I’m just guessing. I know a lot of METALLICA, but if I had to bet, I would probably say ‘Sandman’. I mean, that song has just changed by life, it changed the world. That is still one of the heaviest riffs of all time. Pretty amazing.”

Regarding how he first got introduced to METALLICA’s music, Caleb said: “It was a little bit later in life, actually, surprisingly enough. I’d always had an affinity for classic rock and been a big fan of that, but then when I started getting more into heavy metal, obviously, METALLICA was, like, if you’re gonna get into metal, this is what it’s about. Yeah, the ‘Black Album’ is just a riff-heavy record of nothing but bangers and, yeah, ‘Sandman’ is one crazy way to kick it off.”

Shomo went on to pick “Blackened” as the METALLICA song to be played on the show, stating about his choice: “That riff is just so rad, and that song just absolutely rips. I love every part of it. So, for me, that’s the one I’ve gotta pick.”

Asked if the “lack of bass” on METALLICA’s 1988 album “…And Justice For All” bothers him when he is listening to it, Caleb said: “Not really. To me, that’s not what I’m focusing on. I’m just focusing on the guitars — the guitars and the vocals. And obviously, no offense to the bass — that is a very integral part — but I really never even thought about that. It’s just for that record, my brain is revolving around the guitar riffs. I still think that record sounds incredibly heavy and unique, and that just kind of puts a little time stamp on it.”

BEARTOOTH has just released the deluxe edition of its critically acclaimed 2021 album “Below”. “Below Deluxe” is expanded to include 32 tracks. For this edition, BEARTOOTH added two new bonus tracks, “Fighting Back” and “Permanently Sealed”, as well as a refreshed version of current radio single “Skin (Alternate Universe Version)”, which mixes acoustics and electrics. It also includes the full, 17-track live recordings from the “Live From The Journey Below” livestream, recorded at the historic Clyde Theatre in Fort Wayne, Indiana in July 2021. An exclusive 52-track “Special Video Edition” Apple eMix bundle includes all the official videos plus the videos from “Live From The Journey Below”.

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Supercharge your alternate picking chops with these even numbered phrases. Getting Even With Alternate Picking With Ben Eller

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“Dio: Dreamers Never Die”, the career-spanning documentary on the life and times of the legendary rock icon Ronnie James Dio, received its world premiere this past Thursday (March 17) at this year’s SXSW Film Festival in Austin, Texas.

On Friday, several music personalities who were involved in the making of the film — Dio’s wife and longtime manager Wendy Dio, BLACK SABBATH bassist Geezer Butler and former SKID ROW singer Sebastian Bach — took part in a panel, “Dreamers Never Die: The Enduring Power Of Metal” panel, hosted by SiriusXM’s Eddie Trunk at Austin Convention Center.

Photos from both days can be found below. More pictures of the “Dreamers Never Die: The Enduring Power Of Metal” panel are available at Shutterstock.

“Dio: Dreamers Never Die” is the first documentary about Dio to be fully authorized by the artist’s estate. According to the film’s official description, it “delves deep into his incredible rise from ’50s doo-wop crooner to his early classic rock days in Ritchie Blackmore’s RAINBOW, to replacing the iconic lead singer Ozzy Osbourne in BLACK SABBATH, to finally cement his legend with DIO. Ronnie’s biography is completely unique to the tired sex, drugs and rock and roll clichés. The film is about perseverance, dreams and the power to believe in yourself.”

“Dio: Dreamers Never Die” was financed solely by BMG and was helmed by Don Argott and Demian Fenton (“Framing John DeLorean”, “Believer”, “Last Days Here”), produced by Don Argott and Sheena Joyce for 9.14 Pictures, and executive produced by Wendy Dio for Niji Productions and Kathy Rivkin Daum for BMG.

Ronnie James Dio’s story transcends the standard rock documentary. Set against the backdrop of Dio’s autobiography — half finished by Ronnie before his untimely death from stomach cancer in 2010 — the film chronicles the inspiring journey of his life, love, and storied career. Whether playing sold-out stadiums or battling illness, his powerful voice and gentle heart have had a profound influence on his family, friends, and fans around the world.

Wendy Dio recently told Argentinian journalist Lucas Gordon about “Dio: Dreamers Never Die”: “I saw the first cut of it. It was very emotional. It’s very different from [Dio’s autobiography]. ‘Cause the book finishes in 1986, with Ronnie playing Madison Square Garden. But the documentary goes all the way through his life till the end. And it was very emotional. I was watching it with my publicist and a person from BMG, who are funding the documentary. And we all cried. It was very emotional. But it’s really interesting and really good. Rob Halford is great in it, talking about stories. Lita Ford [and] Jack Black [are also in it]. Eddie Trunk and Mick Wall [author of Dio’s autobiography] both kind of narrated it and everything. I’m very pleased with it.”

Last August, Wendy told SiriusXM’s “Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk” about what fans can expect to see in the documentary: “There’s a bunch of stuff from [old] Super 8 [tapes] and some other stuff. There’s fantastic interviews with all kinds of different people about when they were working with Ronnie or what they were doing at the time, maybe supporting Ronnie. It’s totally different to the [recently released Dio] book. And I’m very interested to see this cut. I’m excited, actually, to see it. And I think it’s gonna be great.”

In October 2019, Wendy told the WSOU radio station that the documentary “will go from Ronnie’s childhood all the way through [to the end of his life]. I think they interviewed Jack Black, and I think they interviewed all of Ronnie’s bandmembers and Doug Aldrich and, I think, Jeff Pilson. They were getting ready to go to Arizona to interview Rob Halford and Lita Ford. And then they were going into England to interview Tony Iommi. They already did Geezer. So there will be very interesting stories from different people. I think it’ll be a great thing, and it’ll show people a lot of things that people have never seen before.”

Ronnie James Dio passed away of stomach cancer on May 16, 2010 at the age of 67.

Dio was renowned throughout the world as one of the greatest and most influential vocalists in heavy metal history. The singer, who was recording and touring with BLACK SABBATH offshoot HEAVEN & HELL prior to his illness, was diagnosed with stomach cancer in late 2009. He underwent chemotherapy and made what is now his final public appearance in April 2010 at the Revolver Golden Gods Awards in Los Angeles.

Dio’s autobiography, titled “Rainbow In The Dark: The Autobiography”, was released last July via Permuted Press.

Tonight’s the night! Ronnie’s documentary, DIO: Dreamers Never Die has it’s world premiere at the SXSW Film Festival in Austin, TX at the The Paramount Theater!

Fo the full SXSW schedule, visit SXSW.com.

Posted by Ronnie James Dio on Thursday, March 17, 2022

Next week, Ronnie’s documentary, DIO: Dreamers Never Die has it’s world premiere at the SXSW Film Festival in Austin,…

Posted by Ronnie James Dio on Tuesday, March 8, 2022

Ronnie James Dio Dreamers Never Die!

So pleased to meet the fabulous, gracious, kindhearted boss lady Wendy Dio after a…

Posted by Noa Durban on Friday, March 18, 2022

At SxSW Honoring the late great
Ronnie James Dio ??
with Sebastian Bach & Eddie Trunk & Mrs. Ronnie James Dio and daughter.. Such a good time! Thanks? Eddie Trunk Sebastian Bach

Posted by Keefe Norman on Thursday, March 17, 2022

Sebastian Bach from Skid Row in Austin for the Premiere of DIO: Dreamers Never Die
He has a great spirit and was easy…

Posted by Keefe Norman on Friday, March 18, 2022

Posted by Eddie Trunk on Friday, March 18, 2022

Posted by Gilberto Manzano Ibarra on Thursday, March 17, 2022

The Dio clan here..
Breaking bread last night at SXSW..
Jeffrey,Sebastian,Eddie,
Good times???
#eddietrunk #sebastianbach

Posted by Oni Logan on Friday, March 18, 2022

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Former QUIET RIOT singer and “American Idol” finalist James Durbin has joined forces with STRYPER members Robert Sweet and Perry Richardson (bass; also ex-FIREHOUSE) and RIOT guitarist Mike Flyntz in a new project called CLEANBREAK. The band’s debut single and video will be released next month via Frontiers Music Srl.

FAITHSEDGE singer/songwriter Giancarlo Floridia, who was involved in the songwriting process for CLEANBREAK, took to his Facebook on Wednesday (March 16) to write: “After months of not being able to say anything I’m proud to announce my songwriting debut for Frontiers records. These new songs will be on the CLEANBREAK debut album featuring ‘American Idol’ finalists James Durbin, STRYPER drummer Robert Sweet, FIREHOUSE/STRYPER bass player Perry Richardson and the guitar monster Mike Flyntz of RIOT!

“It’s an amazing thing to be writing songs for your multi platinum MTV heroes and I know you guys are going to love the result.

“Thank you Alessandro for taking me on board and thank you Seann Nicols for helping me with all the demos for the album.

“I am hoping to bring to the songwriting table my history of working with band members of STRYPER, RATT and yes DOKKEN. And there is more to come as I am working on more songs with Alessandro !!

“Please join the CLEANBREAK Facebook page or Instagram page below ! Never ever ever ever give up on yourself to my friends! Now let’s rockkkkkk !!!”

CLEANBREAK is:

James Durbin (QUIET RIOT) – Vocals
Mike Flyntz (RIOT) – Guitar
Perry Richardson (STRYPER, FIREHOUSE) – Bass
Robert Sweet (STRYPER) – Drums

Durbin recorded two studio albums with QUIET RIOT — 2017’s “Road Rage” and 2019’s “Hollywood Cowboys” — during his three-year stint with the group. In September 2019, QUIET RIOT parted ways with Durbin and replaced him with Jizzy Pearl. Pearl previously fronted QUIET RIOT from 2013 until October 2016, when he was briefly replaced by Seann Nichols, who played only five shows with the group before the March 2017 arrival of Durbin.

Richardson joined STRYPER in the fall of 2017 as the replacement for longtime bassist Tim Gaines.

Photo credit: Giancarlo Floridia

Music Video Shenanigans with @perryrichardson777 #CLEANBREAK @frontiersmusicsrl

? @giancarlosongs

Posted by James Durbin on Sunday, March 13, 2022

After months of not being able to say anything I’m proud to announce my songwriting debut for Frontiers records. These…

Posted by Giancarlo Floridia on Wednesday, March 16, 2022

Cleanbreak is:
James Durbin – Vocals
Mike Flyntz – Guitar
Perry Richardson – Bass
Robert Sweet – Drums

Instagram: instagram.com/cleanbreakofficial

Posted by Cleanbreak on Wednesday, March 16, 2022

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Former W.A.S.P. guitarist Chris Holmes is in his second week of radiation therapy in his battle with cancer in throat and neck.

On Friday (March 18), the 63-year-old musician’s wife and manager, Cathy-Sarah Holmes, who first shared the news of his diagnosis in a social media post last month, issued the following update on his condition: “Chris have nausea and lost the taste then it is complicated for him to eat but we found the best way for him to not lost too much weight mixing complement food and little portion of food he want to eat . We try everything who can work .

“For those who have the same treatment in case it can help he take 3 times by day desmodium for protect his liver , drink almost 2 liters of water for clean his kidneys and take for now besides his treatment , accunpunture, homeopathy for nausea, radiations and prevent canker sores ( in the same times that rince his mouth 3 x day with bicarbonate of sodium )

“He is more and more tired but he find his routine , the best for him and he is really positive ( this morning he play guitar what not happen for fews weeks ). He dream the moment he will be able to eat his jalapeño burger even if it is in fews months lol and will take again the road to play and see all of you .

“Every day I read messages you sent to him and his smile listening it is priceless. So much love you give to him is a treasure and he is blessed to have all of you.

“Thank you from the button of my heart for all the support and love you give to him.

“Have a wonderful week end

“With all our love «

“We love you all….

“Sarah & Chris x”.

Holmes joined W.A.S.P. in 1982 and remained with the group until 1990. In 1996, the guitarist returned to W.A.S.P. and stayed with the band until 2001. Chris has not played with W.A.S.P. since.

Last year, Holmes told SiriusXM’s “Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk” that W.A.S.P. was “a group, a band” on the first LP. “And after that, the second album, it wasn’t a group — it was a one-man show,” he said. “And it’s been a one-man show after that ever since. It’s the way it is. Look at the records. It’s the way it is in that band.

“W.A.S.P. never played any shows until I was in the band, so where does a band start — when they record or when they do their first show?” he continued. “I came in before the first show, and it was ‘one for all, all for one.’ But then when money came into it and fame, people changed — they change real bad. And I never changed. I don’t change. I haven’t changed the way I think, the way I am. I’m not gonna change. I am what I am.

“During the [making of the] second [album], I was told the manager wants to use Blackie’s [Lawless, W.A.S.P. frontman] image [on the cover], which the manager didn’t tell me that — Blackie told me that.”

According to Chris, he, guitarist Randy Piper, drummer Tony Richards and Blackie were all part of W.A.S.P. initial management contract, but Blackie was the only one signed to the record label. “Everybody thinks we [all] signed to the label, but it wasn’t [like that],” Holmes told “Trunk Nation”.

“I never learned about the business till about 10 years ago,” he explained. “How do you learn about the business? You’ve gotta be in there with the manager and all that stuff, so I was always kept from that… I put my trust into somebody, and [I found out later that he was] sticking a knife in my back. I didn’t find that out until 2010 or ’11.

“Once [W.A.S.P.] became [all about] one person, [my attitude was] ‘Hey, I’ll just do my thing, and leave me alone. I’ll play my guitar.'”

Despite the fact that he only got songwriting credit on a a couple of the songs on each of the first four W.A.S.P. records, Holmes was adamant that his input was essential to the band’s overall sound.

“If I would have quit after the first album, the way I play guitar, the way I play is really important to writing those songs,” he told “Trunk Nation”.

“If I hadn’t joined in the beginning, it would have never worked. Blackie told me that the first day, when he came and talked to me to play in W.A.S.P. He says, ‘I’ve got this band. It’s not gonna work unless you’re in it.’ He told me that to my face.”

In October 2020, Chris said that he would never consider returning to W.A.S.P. unless Lawless agreed to pay him the publishing royalties that he allegedly owes him. He told Canada’s The Metal Voice: “A lot of people think I made money from W.A.S.P. I’ve never gotten my royalties, or even my songwriting. All the stuff that I wrote, I’ve never gotten paid one penny. And you know whose fault it is? It’s my my fault for not knowing the business, how it is. I trusted somebody.

“After every album, when the album is done, how they split up the publishing with the publishing contracts, the publishing companies — that’s where the money comes from,” he continued. “I was never told about when that meeting was. Because the other guys in the band never wrote — I was the only one [other than Blackie]. So I’m the only one that they have to screw over to get all the publishing. So I was never told. Then when I dug into it in about 2006 or [2007], I went into Sanctuary Music, had a lawyer go in to find out where all my publishing is, and I was written in as a session player into all the records. And if you don’t know about it, and you’re not told, and you don’t see, you don’t know. So I trusted Blackie Lawless about that. And when I found out, it really kind of yanked me wrong. It yanks me wrong — it makes me see he was sticking a knife in my back from the first day, from the first album, and not telling me, and being my best friend.”

Last month, Lawless shot down Holmes’s claim that the guitarist was “screwed” out of receiving royalties on the W.A.S.P. albums that he performed on. Lawless discussed Holmes’s tenure with W.A.S.P. in an interview with “Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk”. Asked to respond to Holmes’s assertion in Chris’s recently released documentary “Mean Man: The Story Of Chris Holmes” that he was financially taken advantage of during his time in the band, Lawless said: “I don’t really know much about… I spoke to [former W.A.S.P. guitarist] Randy Piper a couple of years ago. I don’t really know what’s going on with the rest of the guys. And I’m not sure exactly what you’re talking about with Chris about not being paid.

“Chris, at two different points in his musical career, received settlements from this band; he signed documents as such,” Blackie explained. “And he was paid quite well.

“I haven’t seen what you’re talking about. The answer I’m giving you right now is based on what you just said to me.”

The W.A.S.P. frontman went on to confirm that he hasn’t seen Chris’s documentary and was once again asked about Holmes’s claim that there is money and songwriting credits that he didn’t get that he’s due. Lawless said simply: “That is not true.”

During a November 2017 press conference in Moscow, Russia, Lawless was asked what he would say to those W.A.S.P. fans who continue to call for the band to reunite with Holmes. He responded: “People get divorced for certain reasons, and there’s times when the kids want the parents to get back together, but sometimes it never happens. And this is one of those [times]. Sorry.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Chris Holmes Official (@chris_holmes_official)

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Fan-filmed video of QUEENSRŸCHE’s March 15 concert at Shrine Auditorium & Expo Hall in Los Angeles, California can be seen below (courtesy of YouTube channel Live Rock Music By Scott Perry).

The setlist was as follows:

01. Queen Of The Reich
02. Warning
03. En Force
04. NM 156
05. Empire
06. Walk In The Shadows
07. The Whisper
08. Operation: Mindcrime
09. The Needle Lies
10. Take Hold Of The Flame
11. Screaming In Digital
12. Eyes Of A Stranger

QUEENSRŸCHE’s North American tour as the support act for JUDAS PRIEST kicked off on March 4 at Peoria Civic Center in Peoria, Illinois and will conclude on April 13 at FirstOntario Centre in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.

QUEENSRŸCHE was originally set to support SCORPIONS on their rescheduled “Sin City Nights” Las Vegas residency in March-April 2022 but pulled out of the dates in order to take part in the JUDAS PRIEST tour. SCORPIONS have since tapped SKID ROW as the new opening act for the Vegas residency.

Last November, QUEENSRŸCHE singer Todd La Torre discussed the band’s tour with PRIEST in an interview with Canada’s The Metal Voice. Regarding QUEENSRŸCHE’s decision to withdraw from SCORPIONS’ Vegas residency and do the PRIEST tour, Todd said: “The SCORPIONS, we really like them as people. We’re friends with them and we’ve gotten to tour with them several times. It’s one of those things where it’s, like, ‘Gosh, what do you do?’ People that aren’t in the business don’t understand how things work sometimes.

“I think it’s great for [QUEENSRŸCHE] to go out with [JUDAS PRIEST]; the optics are great. And we’re very honored to have gotten that.”

Last October, QUEENSRŸCHE’s Michael Wilton confirmed that returning guitarist Mike Stone will contribute guitar solos to the band’s next studio album.

Since last May, Stone has been handling second-guitar duties in QUEENSRŸCHE, which announced in July that longtime guitarist Parker Lundgren was exiting the group to focus on “other business ventures.”

Stone originally joined QUEENSRŸCHE for the 2003 album “Tribe” and stayed with the band for six years before leaving the group.

For the past five years, Casey Grillo has been filling in for QUEENSRŸCHE’s original drummer Scott Rockenfield, who stepped away from the band’s touring activities in early 2017 to spend time with his young son.

In early October, Rockenfield filed a lawsuit against the band’s fellow original members Wilton and Eddie Jackson (bass), alleging, among other things, breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty and wrongful discharge.

QUEENSRŸCHE spent the last two months recording its new album for a tentative late 2022 release.

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In a new interview with Eric Bolling, the host of Newsmax’s “Eric Bolling The Balance”, outspoken conservative rocker Ted Nugent was asked to weigh in on what Americans think of the war in Ukraine. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): “Well, number one, Eric, I’m honored and humbled that you know I actually connect with the pulse of real patriots, working-hard, playing-hard Americans every day.

“I’m glad you had Peter Navarro [the longest-serving senior advisor in President Donald Trump’s White House] on, because his book title [‘In Trump Time: A Journal Of America’s Plague Year’] pretty much says what’s on the minds of great Americans right now, that this is Trump time. And we know that none of this happened under Donald Trump because he always negotiated to make America stronger, make America safer, make peace through superior firepower, not just in hardware but in ‘heartware,’ in mindset, in spirit, in attitude and actions.

“So, America is so pissed off right now, their frustration level and pain and suffering is palpable,” he continued. “But number one, everybody’s praying for the innocent citizens in Ukraine. We know that the Ukraine government is corrupt and we know that Putin is a monster, but mostly I’ve gotta tell you, Eric, as concerned as we are about those innocent victims over there, we are just aghast that we don’t secure our borders, that we don’t stop the flow of fentanyl into our country, killing more Americans than [there] are Ukrainians dying. That the anti-gun people in this country are going berserk trying to disarm Americans while they celebrate the distribution of Kalashnikov machine guns to the people of Ukraine. They literally can’t have it both ways, but they’re so dishonest, so corrupt, so out of their minds and soulless that it’s really exposing them to what used to be the middle ground. The moderates in America, they’re starting to see the level of indecency and hypocrisy and dishonesty and abuse of power by our own government.

“My buddies in military and law enforcement, they’re more angry than anybody because they see that their commander in chief is at least dangerously inept but more often than not treasonous in his actions, turning his back on American people.

“So that’s the pulse of America out there, and believe me, it’s an accurate one.”

Nugent, an outspoken conspiracy theorist who has refused to take the COVID-19 vaccine, has falsely claimed that public health measures taken during the pandemic violate the Nuremberg code, a set of medical experimentation guidelines set after World War Two, as the vaccine is “experimental.”

In the past, Nugent, who battled COVID-19 last April, had referred to the virus as a “leftist scam to destroy” former U.S. president Donald Trump. He had also repeated a narrative pushed by conservative media and disputed by health experts that suggests the official death count from the coronavirus is inflated.

Nugent’s new studio album, “Detroit Muscle”, is due on April 29 via Pavement Music. The follow-up to 2018’s “The Music Made Me Do It” was recorded with Ted’s current band, which includes bassist Greg Smith and drummer Jason Hartless.

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These are heady days for thrash metal, not least because we seem to be entering a new Cold War. EXTINCTION A.D. released an absolute face-ripper of an EP last year, and since global events have taken yet another turn for the worse, a full-length from these militant destroyers would seem to be exactly what everyone needs. Laudably livid from start to finish, “Culture of Violence” lives up to its title.

Maybe it’s a sign of the times, but EXTINCTION A.D. have the same sledgehammer intensity that has propelled the likes of POWER TRIP and ENFORCED to metallic prominence. Everything from the opening title track, replete with brilliantly odd breakdown, to “National Disaster”‘s visceral climax, is delivered with maximum brute force, and a stellar raw-meets-cutting-edge production only serves to reinforce this band’s collective power.

The best songs here offer audacious hybrids of old- and new-school brutality, with inspired touches, like the skewed SLAYER motif that erupts during “Thirteen”‘s raging beatdown, adding to an all-encompassing vibe. The genuinely startling “Mastic” is EXTINCTION A.D. at their most feral and uncompromising, while “1992” is a dizzying blur of mutant crossover tropes and lobotomized gang vocals. Nearly all of it is hellishly catchy, not least the swaggering, spiky singalong of “Star Strangled Banner”, but also audibly rooted in the pomp and precision of traditional metal. That genre-straddling aptitude is showcased most impressively on “Behind the Times”, a scintillating amalgam of TESTAMENT-style thrash, metallic hardcore punch and wild, virtuoso soloing, it’s a superbly crafted metal song with hooks galore and choking levels of low-end crunch. The rest aren’t too far behind either, with the breakneck “Praise the Fraud” and nailed-on crowd-pleaser “Dominion” standing out as particularly suitable soundtracks for doing backflips off the furniture. Even the hulking, mid-paced “Heads Will Roll” contributes to the carnage.

Above all, “Culture of Violence” gets to the point and hammers it home with heroic force.

Wrapped up in a nobly economical 38 minutes, it amounts to one lethally effective wake-up call, in true thrash metal tradition.

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