Muzach

Edward Nyahay, creator of Little Lost Productions, has posted a video clip of Kelle Rhoads telling the tale of how Kelle's brother, Randy Rhoads, met Ozzy Osbourne and became the guitarist in the former BLACK SABBATH singer's solo band. Watch it below.

As previously reported, Kelle Rhoads, Kelly Garni (former QUIET RIOT bassist) and Ronny North will join forces again to play three Randy Rhoads tribute concerts in Japan (in Osaka, Tokyo and Nogaya) on March 15-17, 2010. Kelle will be handling vocals for the band, which is being billed as "A Tribute To Randy Rhoads Project" featuring Kelle Rhoads, Kelly Garni and Ronny North. The trio will be in Japan for a week and will be taking part in a bunch of signing events as well as doing press the entire time.

Garni played alongside Randy in QUIET RIOT and was a close friend of both Randy and Kelle.

Ronny North was invited by Kelle Rhoads to play guitar with the guys at a recent Randy Rhoads event and they hit if off so well at the show that they decided to do it again in Japan.

At this year's NAMM (National Association Of Music Merchants) show, the limited-edition Jackson Randy Rhoads Relic tribute model guitar was unveiled.

According to The Music Zoo, Randy's tribute model is a direct replica of his original 1980 Jackson asymmetrical V-shaped guitar that he personally designed. He intended to call this body style the Concorde and it is widely regarded as the "first pointy guitar." The original guitar had been kept at the Rhoads family music school since his death, and they say it had not been out of the case in over 20 years.

Randy's original guitar was built in 1980 by Tim Wilson and Mike Shannon. Shannon is still with Jackson today and he'll personally build the extremely limited run of 60 guitars.

Suggested Retail Price for the guitar: $12,619.56 (in honor of Randy's birthday: December 6, 1956)

In 1982, Rhoads, the then-lead guitarist for OZZY OSBOURNE, and two others were killed at Flying Baron Estates, just outside Leesburg, Florida, when their small plane struck Osbourne's tour bus, then crashed into a mansion.

BLACK SABBATH drummer Bill Ward spoke to Tom Russell of U.K.'s Rock Radio about why he terminated his involvement with HEAVEN & HELL — the band featuring fellow SABBATH members Tony Iommi (guitar), Geezer Butler (bass) and Ronnie James Dio (vocals) — in November 2006 while the group was recording three new tracks to be included on the BLACK SABBATH collection "Black Sabbath: The Dio Years".

"There was a track that I was uncomfortable with," he said. "And I was trying to accomodate the wishes of a couple of the bandmembers, and I'm not very good when I have to do that. I guess I'm just not that kind of a drummer; I have to play the way that I feel it. The way that a couple of the guys wanted the drumming to be, I was unable to accomodate it; I didn't see it that way at all. So it was a problem musically.

"All the way through that particular project, everybody had an open mind — I had an open mind; I didn't know if it was gonna work or not work. I went in there and tried to lay some track in the best way I could, and it was one of those musical things that didn't work out, as far as I was concerned.

"I can't remember initially... I think there were a couple of other... I have never actually spoken publicly about this — I had made a couple of remarks before in the press — but at the time, I think, there were some things that were said about me having other schedules to meet and so on and so forth, and that wasn't the case at all. It was definitely a misunderstanding.

"I was uncomfortable with some of the things surrounding that particular project. So, that was it. And I moved out. I thought Vinny [Appice, former SABBATH and current HEAVEN & HELL drummer] would be a much better choice [for HEAVEN & HELL], because Vinny is able to do those kinds of things... he's able to accomodate the kinds of things the kind of things that were being asked, and I'm not. I react. I'm a reactionary drummer, and Vinny plays drums; there's a big difference between us."

Audio of Bill Ward talking about his split with HEAVEN & HELL (excerpt in question begins around the two-minute mark):

In a separate interview with Rock Radio, Tony Iommi was asked about Ward's exit from the HEAVEN & HELL project.

"Bill Ward is not a part of this mainly because of his choice," Tony said.

"Originally, when we put the three [new] tracks together for 'The Dio Years' [compilation], I asked Bill if he wanted to be involved with it and he said, 'Yeah.' And I said, 'Well, you're gonna have to come to England from California and I'll run through the songs with you, what we're gonna do.' So he did. And he couldn't quite grasp it that quick, and we needed to... The record company was asking for the songs fairly quick — they wanted to get them out. And Bill wanted to take more time doing it, and it was getting longer and longer, and we thought, 'Well, it's probably best we don't do them with Bill,' because Bill was feeling uncomfortable. And it felt even more uncomfortable when we [spoke] to him about touring for a year. He sort had a fit, because Bill hasn't done that extensive touring for a long time. And we were planning on doing a lot of touring. So Bill said, 'I don't think I'm gonna be up for touring to that extent.' And we thought it's probably best that we bring Vinny into this situation, because Vinny has done more [BLACK SABBATH] albums with Ronnie [on vocals] than Bill has — Bill has only played on the one album, which is 'Heaven And Hell', and Vinny has played on 'Mob Rules' and 'Dehumanizer', and, of course, all the live sets, so it seemed the obvious thing to have Vinny back."

Audio of Tony Iommi talking about Bill Ward's departure from HEAVEN & HELL:

In a recent online posting, Ronnie James Dio's wife/manager Wendy Dio revealed that there are plans to release a 30th-anniversary BLACK SABBATH "Heaven And Hell" DVD sometime this year. The package is expected to include brand new interviews that Ronnie, Geezer and Appice gave to Eddie Trunk — co-host of the VH1 Classic television program "That Metal Show" — on January 22, 2010 in Los Angeles, as well other extras.

Last week, it was announced that KILLSWITCH ENGAGE vocalist Howard Jones had to unexpectedly leave the band's current headlining tour, leading to a flurry of rumors and questions about the status of the tour and the band. The band has further issued the following statement addressing the matter, saying, "It became overwhelmingly obvious to all of us around Howard that he is in no condition to be on tour right now and that he needed to get off the road and get himself better. It's a personal matter and while we understand everyone's curiosity and concern for Howard and the band, we appreciate everyone respecting Howard's privacy at this time."

Longtime friend Phil Labonte of ALL THAT REMAINS was able to fill in and help out the band for a few shows and it appears as though he will be filling in for the remainder of the tour, which runs through March.

KILLSWITCH ENGAGE endured and survived a similar situation in the past, where guitarist Adam Dutkiewicz was forced to sit out a tour due to a back injury. The band said, "We seriously considered cancelling the tour since we don't want to give fans that paid good money anything less than KILLSWITCH ENGAGE at full strength. But after trying a few shows with Phil, and after feeling the love and support that we were getting from the crowd, it became increasingly apparent to us that the shows came across as fun and unique, and the fans seemed to be enjoying it. We quickly realized that we had to keep going and that we couldn't possibly stop."

Refunds are available for any fans that have already purchased tickets, but as the band said, this tour will offer a chance to experience KILLSWITCH ENGAGE in a unique way that you won't be able to witness again.

KILLSWITCH ENGAGE would like to thank all fans who came out to support them during this difficult stretch, exclaiming, "We really do feel that our fans are the best fans in the world." The band also thanked Labonte for pitching in, saying, "We can't thank Phil enough for helping us out when we needed it the most."

For a taste of KILLSWITCH ENGAGE with Labonte on vocals, check out footage from the Baltimore show this past weekend below.

You could call it the "Coheed And Circa" Tour...

Coheed And Cambria, Circa Survive and Torche have officially unveiled dates for month-long North American tour that kicks off April 22 and runs through the end of May. Coheed will be in support of their upcoming fifth full-length, Year Of The Black Rainbow, which drops April 13. Circa are also set to release a new album around this time--the follow-up to 2007's On Letting Go. Torche most recently released a split EP with Japanese band, Boris, called Chapter Ahead Being Fake.

Tour dates are as follows:
04/22/10 Charlotte , NC. @ The Fillmore Charlotte
04/23/10 Atlanta , GA. @ Tabernacle
04/24/10 Lake Buena Vista , FL. @ House of Blues (Orlando)
04/25/10 Lauderdale , FL. @ Revolution
04/27/10 Houston , TX. @ Warehouse Live
04/28/10 Austin , TX. @ Stubb's BBQ
04/29/10 Dallas , TX. @ Palladium Ballroom
04/30/10 Tulsa , OK. @ Cain's Ballroom
05/01/10 Oklahoma City, OK @ Diamond Ballroom
05/03/10 Tempe , AZ. @ Marquee Theatre
05/04/10 Pomona , CA. @ The Fox Theatre
05/05/10 San Francisco , CA. @ The Warfield
05/07/10 Portland , OR. @ Roseland Theater
05/08/10 Seattle , WA. @ Showbox SoDo
05/10/10 Murray , UT. @ Murray Theater
05/11/10 Denver , CO. @ Ogden Theatre
05/13/10 Minneapolis , MN. @ First Avenue
05/14/10 Chicago , IL. @ Congress Theatre
05/15/10 Royal Oak , MI. @ Royal Oak Music Theatre
05/17/10 Boston , MA. @ House of Blues
05/18/10 @ Montreal , QC. Metropolis
05/19/10 Toronto , ON. @ The Sound Academy
05/22/10 Philadelphia , PA. @ The Electric Factory
05/26/10 New York , NY. @ Rumsey Playfield
05/27/10 Washington , DC. @ 9:30 Club
05/28/10 Washington , DC. @ 9:30 Club
05/31/10 Chicago , IL. @ Subterranean

Godsmack's brand new single, "Crying Like A Bitch", can be heard on AOL Radio's Hard Rock station. It is also available for streaming below (radio-broadcast-quality recording).

With heavy guitar riffs, the quartet shows no sympathy as frontman Sully Erna sings: "And you wonder why no one can stand you / There's no denying you were crying like a bitch."

According to The Pulse of Radio, GODSMACK has officially named its new album "The Oracle", after initially calling the project "Saints & Sinners". Footage of the band working in the studio, along with frontman Sully Erna discussing the title change and some of the new material, has been posted online and can be viewed below. The group's fifth studio effort follows up 2006's "IV" and a nearly two-year hiatus that ended last summer when GODSMACK joined the Crüe Fest 2 tour.

Sully Erna told The Pulse of Radio that following their hiatus, GODSMACK intends to keep working straight through the next decade. "We grinded pretty hard for 10 years and we took a strict year off," he said. "I mean literally, when we pulled the plug on the tour, we said, don't call me, I'll call you. And then, you know, the following year, we started writing the new record. So we decided that since we pretty much have had two years off, we are now gonna get back into it for the next 10 years again and really grind hard."

Other new songs include "War & Peace", "Devil's Swing" and "Whiskey Hangover", which the band issued as a single last summer.

A release date has yet to be announced for "The Oracle".

During their break, the band released a greatest hits set, while the rest of the group minus Erna issued an album under the name ANOTHER ANIMAL. Erna has also been working on his first solo effort.

 

Although they had planned to reveal their new vocalist at the Bamboozle California in March and no official statement has been released by Equal Vision or the band, news of the new Chiodos frontman has leaked online: it's Yesterdays Rising singer Brandon Bolmer.

For those who caught the tail-end of this past summer's Warped Tour, this won't be the first time you've seen Bolmer step into another frontman's shoes--he filled in for Tyson Stevens when the singer parted ways mid-tour with Scary Kids Scaring Kids. Yesterdays Rising are a post-hardcore outfit from California, and Bolmer is still currently listed as a member, so it's unclear if he will remain with the band as he begins playing with Chiodos.

Bolmer will replace Chiodos' former vocalist, Craig Owens, who parted ways with the band in September.

Check out a video of Yesterdays Rising below and let us know if you think Bolmer will be a good fit!

Photo: Steven Jay

The U.S. release date of "No Guts, No Glory", the sophomore album from Australian hard rockers AIRBOURNE, has been pushed back to April 20. No reason was given for the delay. The special-edition digipack version of the CD will include five bonus tracks and a bottle opener (see image below).

"No Guts, No Glory" special-edition digipack track listing:

01. Born To Kill
02. No Way But The Hard Way
03. Blonde, Bad and Beautiful
04. Raise The Flag
05. Bottom Of The Well
06. White Line Fever
07. It Ain't Over Till It's Over
08. Steel Town
09. Chewin' The Fat
10. Get Busy Livin'
11. Armed And Dangerous
12. Overdrive
13. Back On The Bottle
14. Loaded Gun (bonus track)
15. My Dynamite Will Blow You Sky High (And Get Ya Moanin' After Midnight) (bonus track)
16. Rattle Your Bones (bonus track)
17. Kickin' It Old School (bonus track)
18. Devil's Child (bonus track)

AIRBOURNE recently filmed a video for "No Way But The Hard Way" with director (and SUM 41 drummer) Stephen Martin "Steve" Jocz (BOWLING FOR SOUP).

Access magazine conducted an interview with AIRBOURNE's Joel and Ryan O'Keeffe when the band played Toronto, Ontario, Canada's Air Canada Centre on February 4, 2010 with MÖTLEY CRÜE. Watch the chat below.

AIRBOURNE traveled to the Windy City to record "No Guts, No Glory" with producer Johnny K, live and straight to analog tape. Like debut album "Runnin' Wild", "No Guts, No Glory" continues that good time vibe, but ultimately, according to Ryan, the record is about "standing up and going for it, and being a man. There's a tougher element to the album, so to speak." Instead of sleeping every night in a comfortable hotel room bed on the label's dime, the band actually slept in the studio, taking inspiration from Bruce Springsteen and his E STREET BAND, who were known to live in the studio until an album was completed.

"We found out that they used to do that for the first bunch of records they did," Joel explains, "so, the drums were set up in a big room with the guitars and [rhythm guitarist David Roads], he slept behind the amps; I slept behind a bunch of amps; Ryan slept behind his drum kit and [bassist Justin Street] slept behind this pool table, and we were all in the studio. It was really fun, because you'd just get up and go, 'Fuck,' and start recording. That's how your day was. You just sort of woke up, had some food, and started recording. Maybe you'd have a shower; maybe not. Just sort of walk around in your shorts all day, just rocking away."

The album's a virtual rock and roll buffet, boasting tracks like "No Way But The Hard Way" and "Blonde, Bad, and Beautiful". When the band lived together for three years on welfare in a Melbourne suburb, surviving on a steady diet of booze and barbecue, things were tough, and the band nearly burned their home to the ground — literally. "Nothing came easy, and we'd say to each other, 'Ain't no way but the hard way,'" recalls Ryan.

"No Guts. No Glory." also features a song called "Steel Town", which was inspired by the band's time on the road — including the U.K.'s Sheffield — and some of the people they had encountered. "Every time we went through a town that was a steel town, there was something about the crowd themselves," recalls Joel O'Keeffe. "They seemed to be a little bit wilder, and they'd always drink the pub dry, and we'd have to get more beer from other pubs. There was always a massive fight, always a crazy crowd. So we wanted to give them a song that gives them a chance to raise their flag and pump their fists in the air, and drink a beer to it. I guess it's like throwing gasoline on the fire."