According to U.K.'s Kerrang! magazine, industry insiders suggest that hugely infuential '90s alt-metal band Faith No More is planning to return next year. Kerrang! understands that a number of U.K. venues have been placed on hold for shows from the band next spring, while U.K. festival appearances are rumored to follow in the summer. Founding bassist Bill Gould played down the speculation, telling Kerrang! "If anything like this were to happen, it would have to come from the band, and I haven't spoken with any of them in over a year. So as far as I know, there isn't anything to talk about, and I'm pretty sure that if you were to contact [Mike] Patton [vocals], he would tell you the same thing."
WeROCK City has informed Blabbermouth.net that drummer Munetaka Higuchi of veteran Japanese metallers Loudness passed away yesterday (Sunday, November 30) around 10:00 a.m. (Japan Standard Time) at a hospital in Osaka, Japan. He was 49 years old.
In an October 18, 2008 statement released via the band's official web site, Munetaka stated about his condition, "It has been half a year since I was diagnosed with liver cancer. I am really sorry that the fans are worried. The cancer has become worse despite the fact that I have been taking care of my health, and I will need more time for my treatment. [Even after undergoing the] big operation to remove half of my liver, I still need more treatment. There are various risks and dangers involved with my condition, but I'll do my best to keep my spirits up and maintain my physical strength to fight this illness. I know it is still the middle of my treatment, but I just wanted inform you about my progress since the operation. Thank you very much for all the support."
Loudness utilized a session drummer — Kozo Suganuma, a member of one of the most popular fusion bands in Japan, Fragile, and a former member of Ded Chaplin (featuring Loudness singer Minoru Niihara) — for its "special guest" appearance at Mötley Crüe's October 26, 2008 concert at Saitama Super Arena.
According to the Robert Plant Newswire, former Led Zeppelin singer Robert Plant confirmed to the Birmingham Evening Mail on November 6 that he would not be joining guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist John Paul Jones and drummer Jason Bonham on the road for the proposed Zeppelinreuniontour. He said it was partly because he'd be busy working on the follow-up to his awardwinning "Raising Sand" LP.
"In January, I'm starting to record a new album with Alison Krauss and T Bone Burnett," he revealed, before adding, "but I understand that everyone's got to eat," implying that the Plant-less Led Zep has his blessing.
He also imparted one piece of significant information: "They won't be calling it Led Zeppelin!"
Page, John Paul Jones and Jason Bonham recently confirmed that they are contemplating going on the road without Robert Plant, and have jammed witih several potential replacements. Sources have indicated that the leading candidate for the job is Myles Kennedy of the band Alter Bridge.
When asked about the collaboration, an unnamed spokesperson for Page's management company, QPrime, told RollingStone.com, "Whatever this is, it is not Led Zeppelin. Not without the involvement of Robert Plant."
Rumors have been circulating for weeks that Led Zeppelin, minus Plant, have been rehearsing with other singers for a potential tour. Zeppelin reunited last December for a charity concert in London, and speculation about a full tour has been high ever since. But Plant has indicated that he has no desire to do any live work with anyone for at least the next two years.
John Paul Jones confirmed to the BBC that the band has been rehearsing with other vocalists, but he did not mention any names. Aerosmith guitarist Brad Whitford told a radio show that Steven Tyler had jammed with the group "for fun," while other names in the rumor mill have included Jack White, Sammy Hagar, Dave Grohl and Chris Cornell. White denied that he was approached, while Cornell said he has not been contacted either.
Rocker Travis Barker has penned a moving Thanksgiving note online expressing his gratitude to family, friends and fans for supporting him following his near-fatal plane crash in September.
The former Blink-182 drummer took time out of his family celebrations on Thursday to thank his lucky stars for good health and life after battling second and third-degree burns and other injuries from his Learjet escape.
In a message on his blog, he says, "I wanted to say thanks... and share my gratitude for everything I've been blessed with. Family, friends, and continued support from everyone. Thank you for life, and all the little ups and downs that make it worth living. My best to everyone."
Barker and his pal Adam 'DJ AM' Goldstein were the only survivors of the Learjet that failed to clear the runway at a South Carolina airport and burst into flames. Four others, including Barker's assistant Chris Baker and pal Charles Still, perished in the tragedy.
The drummer and the mother of one of the victims have filed a wrongful death and personal injury lawsuit against the aviation company which owned the plane that crashed.
The third video from Twisted Sister's 'A Twisted Christmas' album is "I'll Be Home For Christmas". The video stars Twisted Sister and features Lita Ford in her first video in 20 years! You can view the video below.
The Killers' Day & Age has won the first big chart battle of late 2008.
The Killers' album third album Day & Age has gone straight to Number 1 in the UK this Sunday (28 November) ahead of Guns N' Roses' long-awaited Chinese Democracy.
Initial reports from the UK industry suggest Day & Age sold over 200,000 copies in one week, to Guns N' Roses 150,000.
In any other week this year, Guns N' Roses' impressive sales would have taken them straight to Number 1. To compare, The Verve's fourth album, Forth, debuted at Number 1 in the UK on first-week sales of just over 70,000 in September 2008.
But the final quarter before Christmas accounts for approximately 40% of UK album sales of the calendar year, hence the tight battle.
Despite strong sales for both The Killers and Guns N' Roses this week, the CD sales market is still in sharp decline. Analysts predict that 2008 will boast both the worst-ever sales fall in the history of the CD.
CD unit sales this quarter will fall an estimated 27% from 2007, according to Pali Research analyst Richard Greenfield. "Q408 is shaping up to be the worst decline in the history of the CD," he says. The previous biggest decline was in the first quarter of 2007, when sales fell 21%.
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Geffen Records has set a December 15 UK release date for a limited deluxe box set edition of Guns N' Roses' new album, "Chinese Democracy". In addition to the full-length CD, the package includes a T-shirt, bandana, patch, belt buckle and key ring.
Early U.S. sales reports suggest that "Chinese Democracy", which was released through an exclusive deal with the Best Buy chain, might not be the blockbuster the industry had hoped for, according to The New York Times. Sales figures will not be available until next week, but early estimates put the first-week total at 300,000 copies (including a reported 25,000 downloads at iTunes on November 23 not counted towards the opening week for the Sunday release) — roughly 50,000 more than the opening number registered by "Contraband", the 2004 debut from Velvet Revolver, which features in its ranks Rose's former Guns N' Roses bandmates Slash, Duff McKagan and Matt Sorum. Kanye West's new album, "808s And Heartbreak", will be No. 1 on next week's Billboard chart with a total that looks to be between 450,000 and 500,000.
Rob Zombie has posted a short message explaining that he's not behind the removal of many YouTube videos featuring his songs:
"I gotten many complaints lately that your Youtube videos featuring my songs have been taken down. I am not behind this and I am trying to figure out who is. I am all for the fan videos on Youtube. Sorry for the trouble. This will get worked out soon."
Official Metallica.com footage from Metallica's November 8, 2008 concert in Moline, Illinois can be viewed here. The video includes footage of the "Blackened" backstage jam session and the "Wherever I May Roam" performance.
The lawyer for Guns N' Roses and Axl Rose has castigated Dr Pepper, accusing the soda maker of failing to deliver on its promotion to offer free soda in celebration of the band's new album, "Chinese Democracy." Guns N' Roses was never involved in the campaign.
Beverly Hills-based Alan Gutman has written to Dr Pepper Snapple Group Inc. president and CEO Larry Young, accusing the company of operating an online redemption scheme that was an "unmitigated disaster which defrauded customers." Gutman is demanding that Dr Pepper makes good on its offer by extending the period for the offer; he also wants full-page apologies in the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, USA Today and the Wall Street Journal.
Gutman's letter makes clear his view that the original campaign was an "exploitation of my clients' legendary reputation and their eagerly awaited album" and "brazenly violated our clients' rights." He is also seeking an "appropriate payment ... for the unauthorized use and abuse of their publicity and intellectual property rights," with the threat of further action if an acceptable offer is not made.
"Now is the time to clean up the mess," says Gutman.
Rose did not take any action when, in March, Dr Pepper put out a press release offering free soda to any American if the long-awaited Guns N' Roses album came out before the end of 2008. However, Rose has reacted to the news that fans have been unable to get their soda following the Nov. 23 release of "Chinese Democracy."
Dr Pepper's Web servers crashed under the demand for coupons that could be exchanged for free drinks. Dr Pepper extended the Nov. 23 promotion for an extra day, but the company's Web site was inaccessible for a substantial part of it. "Dr Pepper was completely unprepared for the traffic to its site," says Gutman in the letter, describing the promotion as a "complete fiasco."
Gutman adds: "The entire point of your campaign has been to use public interest in Axl Rose and Guns N' Roses as a lure to increase consumer awareness of Dr Pepper." He further states that "mocking undertones" in the online promotional content represent a "raw and damaging commercial exploitation of our clients' rights," adding that the association is "even more damaging in light of your shoddy execution of your disingenuous giveaway offer."
The soda maker declined to comment. Dr Pepper was considering extending the promotion, according to a source close to the situation.
It took Axl Rose 14 years to complete the latest GUNS N' ROSES album. But it took his lawyers only two days to take Dr Pepper to task for not making good on a promise of free soda to "everyone in America" in celebration.
In March the manufacturer made headlines by saying it would give out cans of its 123-year-old soft drink if the album, Chinese Democracy, came out by the end of the year. That was by no means a sure proposition, since Mr. Rose had failed to meet so many deadlines over the years that the album had become the music industry's most notorious (and expensive) shaggy-dog story.
On Sunday the album was finally released, and Dr Pepper gave fans 24 hours to go to its Web site for a coupon redeemable for a can of soda; so many did that the site crashed, and the deadline was extended to Monday.
"We never thought this day would come," said Tony Jacobs, a Dr Pepper marketing executive, in a statement last week.
The arrangement irked fans, who took to the Internet with stories of being blocked for hours from the site and a related customer-service phone line. And that irked Mr. Rose.
On Tuesday his lawyers sent a harshly worded letter to the soft drink maker complaining of its "appalling failure to make good on a promise it made to the American public," and demanding a public apology, more time for thirsty fans, and payment for piggybacking on the Chinese Democracy publicity.
When asked about the letter, Dr Pepper said in a statement that the company took "great steps" to accommodate the online requests from consumers.
"This was one of the largest responses we have ever received for a giveaway," the statement said, "and we're happy we were able to satisfy the thirst of so many Dr Pepper fans."
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TMZ.com has uploaded video footage of former GUNS N' ROSES and current VELVET REVOLVER drummer Matt Sorum at the Los Angeles airport on his way to Toronto to perform at tonight's (Friday, November 28) Canadian Aboriginal Music Awards with guitarist Stevie Salas. When asked by the cameraman if he's heard the new GUNS N' ROSES album "Chinese Democracy" and what he thought of it, Sorum hesitated for a few seconds before replying, "It's a toe-tapper."
Sorum and Salas will be joined by Jara Slapbak on bass for tonight's performance. According to Salas, "I have recorded with Matt plenty of times, but Matt gettin' funky on songs like 'Born To Mack' and 'Blind' is something to see and hear! He is awesome, and as always, Jara in on point."
Salas has previously played with George Clinton and Mick Jagger, among others.
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Audio engineer Mark Gray was midway through his teenage years when Axl Rose began work on Chinese Democracy. Back in December 2006, Gray, now 31, returned early from vacation for a 13 day session with Axl Rose at the Palms Studio, Las Vegas.
Gray remembers Rose arriving with "a firm handshake" and 14 songs. He is sure that Madagascar, Prostitute and the album's title track were among those that Rose worked on during his 13 days in Vegas.
Given the album's outrageous gestation period, it is perhaps surprising that Gray remembers Rose to be absolutely focused:
"He was jumping about, but he knew exactly what he wanted. From what I saw, it was first takes or at most two or three takes. Rose would say, 'I can get the part better' or 'I can tighten it up.'
"I had the butterflies in the stomach the night before each night. It was absolutely special. When you hear his voice, it was a highlight of my career. He just went in and sang. He was living with the record a long time by then, and he really knew what he wanted to do.
"He proved a good guy to be around. We would start about five or six in the evening, hitting tape by seven. We worked five or six hours. These were great sessions. It was a great moment in the studio for me, and it was technically flawless."
Hits Daily Double are reporting that Guns N' Roses' ' Chinese Democracy' will land at 2 on the Billboard 200 chart, selling approximately 300,000 copies in it's first week out. The album will be topped by Kanye West's 808s And Heartbreak.
Chinese Democracy scored a record 8.4 million streams when the album debuted on MySpace beginning midnight on Thursday, November 20th through midnight Sunday, November 23rd. The premiere of Chinese Democracy was the biggest promotion in MySpace's five year history, with every MySpace territory signing on to participate.
Chinese Democracy (Black Frog/Geffen Records) is available on CD and vinyl (accompanied by a free digital download of the tracks) at Best Buy and Best Buy.com in the US, and digitally through iTunes.
According to the Robert Plant Newswire, former Led Zeppelin singer Robert Plant confirmed to the Birmingham Evening Mail on November 6 that he would not be joining guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist John Paul Jones and drummer Jason Bonham on the road for the proposed Zeppelinreuniontour. He said it was partly because he'd be busy working on the follow-up to his awardwinning "Raising Sand" LP.
"In January, I'm starting to record a new album with Alison Krauss and T Bone Burnett," he revealed, before adding, "but I understand that everyone's got to eat," implying that the Plant-less Led Zep has his blessing.
He also imparted one piece of significant information: "They won't be calling it Led Zeppelin!"
Page, John Paul Jones and Jason Bonham recently confirmed that they are contemplating going on the road without Robert Plant, and have jammed witih several potential replacements. Sources have indicated that the leading candidate for the job is Myles Kennedy of the band Alter Bridge.
When asked about the collaboration, an unnamed spokesperson for Page's management company, QPrime, told RollingStone.com, "Whatever this is, it is not Led Zeppelin. Not without the involvement of Robert Plant."
Rumors have been circulating for weeks that Led Zeppelin, minus Plant, have been rehearsing with other singers for a potential tour. Zeppelin reunited last December for a charity concert in London, and speculation about a full tour has been high ever since. But Plant has indicated that he has no desire to do any live work with anyone for at least the next two years.
John Paul Jones confirmed to the BBC that the band has been rehearsing with other vocalists, but he did not mention any names. Aerosmith guitarist Brad Whitford told a radio show that Steven Tyler had jammed with the group "for fun," while other names in the rumor mill have included Jack White, Sammy Hagar, Dave Grohl and Chris Cornell. White denied that he was approached, while Cornell said he has not been contacted either.
