ANNOUNCING RAMOS/HUGO’S DREAM: Frontiers Records is excited to announce the release of the debut album from the highly anticipated new Melodic Rock union between guitarist Josh Ramos and vocalist Hugo entitled The Dream on October 10. On the heels of his successful Ramos debut solo album Living In The Light, Josh Ramos, former guitar player of The Storm and Two Fires and now shredder for Hardline, started looking for a new suitable vocal partner who could offer his songs the right, heavenly and soaring element that could sparkle them to the next level. The opportunity came through when the amazingHugo, well known solo artist and former singer of Open Skyz and Valentine, accepted the invitation to come and work on the vocal melodies and sing on the new songs. Hugo and Josh therefore teamed up with famed bassist and producer Fabrizio Grossi (Glenn Hughes) in Los Angeles who hooked them up with keyboardist Eric Ragno (ex Takara) andJohn Macaluso (Riot, Starbreaker, Malmsteen etc) on drums and they helped laying down all the tracks for the album. The album mix was taken care by Dennis Ward (PC 69) at his studios in Kalrsdorf, Germany. “It was great to have Hugo singing and writing on this album” says Josh Ramos, “He did a great job, a lot of Journey fans are going to love it and also hear a side to Hugo’s singing that they haven’t heard before. Maybe we will be able to perform together at some point!”. The Dream is a cracking Melodic Rock album, resembling Journey as primary influence, but also with elements of Two Fires and Valentine’s debut albums. One of the Melodic Rock highlights of the season and definitely and album to look out for. Final tracklisting includes: You’re Not Alone; All That I Wanted; The Dream; Fool’s Game; Bring Back This Love; I Don’t Wanna Say Goodbye; When You Get Lonely; In The City; Tomorrow; If I Can Take You. Weblinks: www.myspace.com/ramoshugo / www.myspace.com/joshramoshardline / www.hugotunes.com / www.frontiers.it / www.myspace.com/frontiersrecords. xxxx Jesse Damon of Silent Rage sent his insights about the songs included on the band’s current album Four Letter Word released on July 7 on Frontiers Records: 1. You Could Be The One - Melodic hard rock track with an up tempo beat through out entire song. Big chorus harmonies and screaming solo reminiscent of Y&T and Night Ranger, the lyrics talk about not giving up and believing in oneself.  2. Four Letter Word - Melodic hard rocking track with an alluring verse and a very addictive chorus. The song blends a feel of Def Leppard, AC/DC & Bon Jovi. This song sends the message of not wanting to get burned again in another love relationship! 3. Man Or Machine - Heavy hard rocking track with a darker melodic style. Powerful guitars and feel of KISS & Power Man 5000. The songs lyrics talk about the struggles between humanity vs technology! 4. Feel My Love - Another melodic rock song with it’s catchy arrangement and melody line ala Foreigner, Whitesnake it features a melodic 3-part harmony chorus that delivers big time. This song is about finally meeting the woman of your dreams and sharing all your pleasures! 5. Close Your Eye’s - Melodic power rock ballad with acoustic guitar verse, and an explosive chorus, along with emotional Bon Jovi – esque lead vocal and a blazing guitar solo, makes this standout song a key fit for a soundtrack placement. This song is about two strangers who find each other on a cold and lonely night! 6. Sinister Man - Melodic hard rock track with a heavier feel of raw guitars and gritty vocals, sounds somewhere between the Scorpions, Metallica, & Alice Cooper, with an eerie verse and a strong powerful chorus delivery. This song tells the story about a man who lives his life the way he chooses, good and bad! 7. Hard Habit To Break - Melodic rock track that blast you from the beginning with a sax laden melodic riff reminiscent of Foreigner’s “Urgent,” that sets up moody sung verses with big harmony choruses. This tracks lyric has a tantalizing allure effect. 8. Nobody Knows (Ballad Of Andy & Glory) - Melodic hard rocker with a straight ahead powerful feel ala Dokken & Judas Priest has this track rocking up a storm. The lyrics tell a true story about a menacing killer that takes the life of two friends, and ends in a tragedy! 9. Bona Fide - Melodic hard rocker in the vein of the Scorpions, this track has a powerful punch and is perfect for live performance. Here’s a song with a lyrical message of man’s oldest primal crave, lust! 11. I’m Not Lonely - A powerful melodic rock track with a slower tempo verse and choruses, the songs climactic finish kicks into double time tempo with an arena style blazing ending. The songs lyric’s cover the message of a relationship gone wrong and how one moves on! 12. Trouble - A fast tempo hard rock track complete with duelling lead vocals, big chant chorus back-ups, and guitars for days. The drums are like a finely tuned machine with the strength of a hurricane. This songs lyric is about the ultimate rebel, and how he lives his life! NEW POISON DVD DEBUTS AT #8 ON BILLBOARD CHART: Multi-Platinum rockers, Poison, have just released Poison: Live, Raw & Uncut, available exclusively at Best Buy, and it debuted at #8 on Billboard’s Top Music Video Chart. The DVD/CD collection – the band’s first in over a decade – includes all of their greatest hits performed live. Captured in glorious high definition, Live, Raw & Uncut was recorded in 2007 in front of more than 10,000 rowdy fans at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre in St. Louis, Missouri. Rounding out the set is an accompanying bonus CD of Poison’s greatest hits captured live. In a time when most music is manipulated, copied, pasted and auto tuned in digital recording studios, the question that always begs to be answered now more than ever is, “But can they play it live?” Well, Poison can and always have. Playing live is what Poison is all about. The music acts as a soundtrack to their live show. If you are an avid Poison fan, this gem is a must have for your collection. If you have never seen Poison live, you’ll be convinced that this is a band to be reckoned with. While professional performing musicians are never satisfied with their entire performance, many of their recorded concerts are performed and recorded several times to find the best of the batch. Not so in the case of Live, Raw & Uncut. Poison decided that what you get live is what you get on the DVD. Hi Def cameras, state of the art lighting, mind-blowing camera stabilizers and top notch recording technology now can capture the action like never before. Live, Raw & Uncut is like a journey into the radical world of Poison’s live show, and serves as time travel through Poison’s 21 plus year career. All the great songs are here: from their first hits, “Talk Dirty To Me,” “Ride The Wind” and “Fallen Angel,” to remakes like “Your Momma Don’t Dance” and “What I Like About You” to their power ballad hits like “Every Rose Has Its Thorn” and “Somethin’ To Believe In,” along with heavy rockers like “Look What The Cat Dragged In.” Poison is currently on the road, hitting 50 U.S. cities this summer on their LIVE, RAW & UNCUT SUMMER TOUR 2008. All tour dates can be found on the band’s website: www.poisonweb.com. In other good news for the band, Poison drummer Rikki Rockett was exonerated of a felony rape charge filed in Mississippi stemming from a September 23, 2007 incident in which a Neshoba County, Mississippi woman claimed that Rockett had forcibly raped her. Rockett was not in Mississippi during September 2007. The Neshoba County District Attorney refused to prosecute the case after determining that Rockett was not the person who committed the alleged rape. And VH1 has just announced that lead singer Bret Michaels will be back for a third season of his hit reality series Rock Of Love, but this time, it’s taking place on his tour bus. “Rock of Love Bus with Bret Michaels” is set to premiere in early 2009. Yes, Poison is alive, well and most certainly Live, Raw & Uncut. NIGHTWISH TO TOUR THE U.S. THIS FALL FOR THIRD AND FINAL TREK: New York, NY: Finland’s Nightwish will once again tour U.S. soil, hitting all major markets and cities along the way. The band will bring its massively popular yet refreshingly unique blend of progressive Euro metal, fueled by the siren-like vocals of Anette Olzon, to North American shores for the third and final trek in support of last year’s Dark Passion Play, which has sold nearly 75,000 copies since its September 2007 release. Coinciding with the tour, the band will also release a digital-only collection of demos and B-sides titled The Sound of Nightwish Reborn, available through all digital service providers, on September 2. This release, which clocks in at nearly 70 minutes of music, retains “must have” status for all Nightwish diehards, since it includes a bevy of exclusive material, such as demo versions of songs from the Dark Passion Play sessions that were recorded prior to Olzon joining the band and that feature Marco Tapani Hietala handling the vocals, as well as B-sides. The track listing for The Sound of Nightwish Reborn is as follows. Songs marked with a (*) indicate pre-Olzon demo versions.  “Eva” (Demo version) – Demo session, pre-album* “Reach” (“Amaranth” Demo) – Demo session, pre-album* “While Your Lips Are Still Red” – B-side, pre-album “Escapist” – B-side, Album session “The Poet and The Pendulum” – Demo version, pre-album* “Bye Bye Beautiful (DJ Orkidea remix)” – Album session “Meadows of Heaven” – Orchestral version, album session “Amaranth” – Orchestral version, album session “The Escapist” – Instrumental Version, album session. Nightwish are an international metal sensation, holding four times Platinum certification in their native Finland and a Gold certification in Germany. The band’s female-fronted, epic yet goth metal forces people to stand up and take notice. The band has impressively moved 75,000 units of Dark Passion Play on the back of 11 sold-out U.S. shows, proving that Nightwish are the type of band that inspire fierce and dedicated loyalty. Prior to that, the band released Once in 2004 and enjoyed their first American tour, which was completely sold out. Tour Dates: 08/29/08 The Trocadero, Philadelphia  08/30/08 The Palladium, Worcester  09/1/08 Metropolis, Montreal 09/2/08 Docks Nightclub, Toronto 09/4/08 Agora Ballroom, Cleveland 09/5/08 Harpo’s, Detroit 09/6/08 House of Blues, Chicago 09/9/08 Showbox SoDo, Seattle 09/10/08 Roseland Grill, Portland 09/12/08 The Fillmore, San Francisco 09/13/08 The Wiltern, Los Angeles 09/14/08 Marquee Theatre, Tempe 09/16/08 Palladium Ballroom, Dallas 09/17/08 La Zona Rosa, Austin 09/19/08 Meridian, Houston 09/20/08 House of Blues, New Orleans 09/21/08 Jannus Landing, St. Petersburg 09/23/08 Valarium, Knoxville 09/24/08 Tremont Music Hall, Charlotte 09/26/08 Rams Head Live, Baltimore 09/27/08 Nokia Theatre, New York NIGHTMARE WELCOMES “ANDROMEDA” TO THE FOLD!: Nightmare Records is very pleased to welcome to our fold the amazing Progressive Metal band, Andromeda from Sweden. This Sept 16th, the week before Prog Power, Andromeda’s new release The Immunity Zone will hit stores. This Swedish Band brings amazingly well done Progressive Rock / Metal to the ears of fans of bands such as Symphony X, Dream Theater, & A.C.T. With FIVE preceding albums released in Europe and Japan with labels Massacre, Replica and Avalon/Marquee, this band has been invited to play a coveted spot at the prestigious 2008 Prog Power USA Fest, www.progpowerusa.com (Atlanta, GA) known for bringing bands well known bands in this genre that have not yet toured the U.S market. Nightmare Records has set the street date on this album the week before this festival. WebLink: www.andromedaonline.com / www.myspace.com/andromedaonline. SKY ACADEMY NEW ZEALAND REPORT: Sky Academy New Zealand was an amazing success. With 3 days of seminars in local High Schools in the Taranaki region and a headlining appearance at the G-Taranaki Guitar Festival. During the seminars Gilby Clarke (Guns ‘N’ Roses) and Vernon Reid (Living Color) participated in discussions and impromptu jams. The concert in TSB Stadium saw fans from all over New Zealand attending and witnessed the first concert of Uli’s new band and songs from his upcoming album “Under A Dark Sky”. See Sky Academy website for more information. After Uli’s headlining appearance at Friday’s G-TARanaki Festival in New Zealand, Uli joined Vernon Reid (Living Colour) at his Friday night (July 18) Midnight Session. This also was part of the G-TARanaki Guitar Festival. Vernon’s set was held at Puke Ariki knowledge centre in New Plymouth. Uli joined Vernon along with Alex Skolnick (Testament and Trans Siberian Orchestra) and Gilby Clarke (ex Guns ‘N’ Roses) to close his set with a memorable version of the Hendrix classic “Hey Joe”. A portion of the set can be viewed at: www.youtube.com/watch?v=ij7OI00CQ1s&feature=related. Chris Cafferty, Alex Skolnick and Joe Stump are all confirmed for Uli Jon Roth Sky Academy concert at BB Kings in New York City on Oct 11! More information can be found at the newly designed Sky Academy website: www.sky-academy.net. MELODIC BRIEFS: The official Eric Martin Store is now open. Go to EricMartin.com and click on “Store.” We have toddler, youth, ladies and men’s t-shirt in this year’s brown EM design. There are only a few of these left so get yours now!! The store currently has a few albums available for download as well as the option to purchase the entire disc to be shipped. Purchase your items before August 15th and if you choose, Eric will personally autograph them. More items are being added so stay tuned…. “Motorhead frontman Lemmy Kilmister has contributed an interview to Jasmin St. Claire’s forthcoming autobiography, entitled ‘What the Hell Was I Thinking?!! Confessions of the World’s Most Controversial Sex Symbol – An Authorized Autobiography’, which also features interviews from Ron Jeremy, Kendra Jade Rosse, and a host of others to be announced, and is co-authored by Jake Brown (Heart, RCHP, Motley Crue.) St. Claire can also be seen as host of the Metal’s Dark Side DVD series. Her book is due next year, and updates can be found at www.metalsdarkside.com or www.myspace.com/metalsdarkside.” MetalSymphony.com (www.metalsymphony.com) has uploaded photos of Whitesnake’s July 25, 2008 concert at Razzmatazz in Barcelona. Check it out at this location:www.metalsymphony.com/galeria/thumbnails.php?album=185. The group’s setlist was as follows: 1.- Best Years 2.- Fool For Your Lovin’ 3.- Can You Heard The Wind 4.- Love Ain’t No Stranger 5.- Lay Down Your Love 6.- Is This Love 7.- Guitar Duel 8.- A Fool In Love 9.- Drum Solo 10.- Ain`T Gonna Cry 11.- All For Love 12.- Guilty Of Love 13.- Give Me All Your Love 14.- Here I Go Again Encore: 15.- Still Of The Night 16.- Burn – Stormbringer – Burn. Classic prog/AOR rock, hitmaking band Asia Featuring John Payne has contributed the track “Long Way Home” to the CD release “A Musical Tribute to the Olympics 2008 Summer Games – A Commemorative Compact Disc”. The CD has been released by Morada Music and is available at audiofidelity.net/pc-cd.html. It is also available at Wal-Mart and Amazon.com. Street Symphonies Records is a new Italian label entirely dedicated to glam/sleaze/rock’n'roll! Their first production will be Johnny Burning’s debut album Get Up, Get Loose, Get Off!; the official release date will be communicated soon. You can find out all the concerning information visiting www.streetsymphoniesrecords.com orwww.myspace.com/streetsymphoniesrecords.

Monday, July 28, 2008

THE SECOND COMING OF EDEN’S CURSE: AFM Records (Germany), Metal Mayhem Music (North America) and Spiritual Beast (Japan) are pleased to announce the return of Multi-national Melodic Metallers Eden’s Curse and their sophomore studio release The Second Coming. Once again production duties were handled by Pink Cream 69 bassist, and producer extraordinaire, Dennis Ward (Angra, Krokus, Silent Force, Allen/Lande) as the band have truly “Upped the Ante” in terms of song writing, performance and production. This is simply going to be a monster of a release that will build upon the success of the self titled debut album. Many in the industry feel this album alone by itself will now cement the arrival of Eden’s Curse as truly a name to be reckoned with!  Assisting Michael Eden (Vocals), Thorsten Koehne (Guitar), Paul Logue (Bass), Pete Newdeck (Drums) and Ferdy Doernberg (Keys) in creating this huge wall of sound is none other than the voice of TNT, Starbreaker, Westworld and now a solo artist - Tony Harnell who sings backing vocals on the whole album. Former Rainbow and Yngwie Malmsteen frontman, and current Cornerstone and Empire vocalist Doogie White once again returns to the aid the Curse Choir along with the ever present Carsten Schulz of Evidence One, Midnite Club and Roger Staffelbach’s Angel of Eden fame. Also featured is vocalist Pamela Moore best known for her performance as Sister Mary on Queensrÿche’s 1988 epic release “Operation: Mindcrime” and 2006’s sequel “Operation: Mindcrime II”, who duets with Michael Eden on the incredible Power Metal Anthem “Angels & Demons”. Frontman Michael Eden comments “With the assistance of our personal graphic artist Thomas Ewerhard (Asia, Edguy, Avantasia, Jorn, Masterplan) and the amazing talent of his photographer of choice Steffi Veenstra (Doro, Tankard, Vanden Plas) I believe Eden’s Curse are ready to ignite even the biggest melodic naysayer. My boys and I will deliver an ass kicking few have seen in a decade or more for our type of music, and that I’ll lay our reputation on. Trust me when I say…Eden’s Curse will deliver the goods like very few can in 2008. There is good, there is great and then there is freaking amazing! You be the judge. The music will do the talkin’ in October!!” The Second Coming will be released in Japan via Spiritual Beast on 15th October, North America via Metal Mayhem Music on 22nd October and finally in Europe via AFM Records on 24th October.  Tracklisting: Reign Of Terror (Intro), Masquerade Ball, Angels & Demons, Just Like Judas, Sail On, Lost In Wonderland, West Wind Blows, Signs Of Your Life, Man Against The World, Raven’s Revenge, Lost Soul, Games People Play, Ride The Storm. Exclusive Bonus Tracks: Europe: Man Against The World (Alt.Mix) / North America: Prisoner Of The Past / Japan: Angels & Demons (Alt. Mix) & What Are You Waiting For (Karaoke Version). WebLinks: www.EdensCurse.com / www.myspace.com/edenscurse. ORIGINAL DRUMMER PAT DIXON JOINS REFORMED ICON: The newly reformed Icon featuring original guitarists Dan Wexler and John Aquilino have parted ways with new drummer Bruce Stoddard. Dan and John wish Bruce the best in his future endeavors and thank him for his contributions and efforts for the last three years in preparation for their return to action. In light of this development, Icon is proud to announce the return of original drummer Pat Dixon. Icon is currently fronted by new vocalist Scott Hammons and are in full scale preproduction for a new release. Look for new Icon material in 2009. This announcement comes on the heels of the release-Icon’s 1984: Live Bootleg, on DVD for the first time on August 5th 2008 through Epicenter Multimedia. The full length concert also features a brand new interview recorded in May 2008 with Dan Wexler and John Aquilino. As previously announced, this single camera shot concert from December 30, 1984 is the only known document to feature the original band recorded live in concert. The original beta master was recently put through a series of filters and Izotope Audio mastering plugins to produce a clearer picture than the original VHS release in 1999 through Epilogue Entertainment. A limited number of copies of the DVD are hand signed by Dan Wexler, John Aquilino and Pat Dixon are available directly from www.rockzonerecords.com. View video clips of Dan, John and Scott making an appearance on the radio show “HeadBangers Heaven” on 93.3 KDKB - youtube.com/watch?v=P0NlZXONNsU / youtube.com/watch?v=LQczxmX6iYI. TROUBLE OR NOTHING 20TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION: November 2008 will mark a very special date in the career of Robin Beck. Twenty years previously, the song ‘First Time’ became a worldwide hit single and the album that followed it,Trouble or Nothing is still regarded as a classic example of Female Hard Rock/AOR. To celebrate the 20th Anniversary of Trouble Or Nothing, Robin is releasing a brand new re-recording of the whole album including ‘First Time’. Trouble Or Nothing will finally be available to buy again but now totally repackaged with a new take on the original artwork and re-recorded using the latest techniques for pristine audio quality with brand new vocals by Robin and produced by James Christian. There will also be four never before recorded songs included on the CD written by Robin. The album will be released in November but we are taking pre-orders now through the website at the special price of $15.99 USD (plus $10.00 shipping) for orders received before October 15th 2008. As a bonus for her biggest fans, the first 100 pre-orders will get their CD autographed by Robin along with a brand new signed photograph not available elsewhere. WebLink: www.robinbeckrocks.com. BUCKCHERRY’S BLACK BUTTERFLY IN OCTOBER: Eleven Seven Music/Atlantic recording group Buckcherry has announced early details of its hugely anticipated fourth album, Black Butterfly. The album – which follows 2006’s RIAA platinum-certified blockbuster, 15 – arrives in stores at all digital retailers on September 16th. “Too Drunk…,” a featured track from Black Butterfly, recently appeared online at a number of BitTorrent sites. Buckcherry has released an official statement regarding the song’s unscheduled arrival, declaring, “Honestly, we hate it when this shit happens, because we want our FANS to have any new songs first.” In response to the leak, the band quickly cut “a down and dirty video” for “Too Drunk…” which can be viewed on www.Buckcherry.com. With its sexy, slinky groove, “Too Drunk…” offers a new facet to Buckcherry’s trademark hard-rocking sonic approach. “I just wanted something that was funky,” notes lead singer Josh Todd, “so we all collaborated on it and turned it into something with a lot of space to breeze along and tell a story.” Black Butterfly is now available for preorder via www.Buckcherry.com. Fans who preorder the Limited Edition Fan Pack will receive the track “Too Drunk…” at the time of their preorder. The ringtone for the track is also available on the band’s website. The album – co-produced by longtime Aerosmith collaborator Marti Frederiksen (the co-writer of Buckcherry’s top 10 smash, “Sorry”) and Buckcherry’s own Keith Nelson – will be offered in a standard CD package; a “Limited Fan Club Edition” version, which comes with bonus tracks and a one-year membership to the Buckcherry Fan Club; and a “Limited Fan Club Edition” bundle which adds a Black Butterfly T-shirt to the previous package. For more information, visit www.Buckcherry.com. The newly updated www.Buckcherry.com also features the Black Butterfly album art, as well as links and information regarding the band’s current role in this summer’s “Crüe Fest.” The just-underway North American tour sees Buckcherry lighting up stages all summer long as part of a multi-artist bill which also includes Mötley Crüe, Papa Roach, SIXX: A.M., and Trapt. True road warriors, Buckcherry will follow “Crüe Fest” with a full-scale co-headline tour alongside Avenged Sevenfold, slated to kick off in mid-September, running through the beginning of October. Buckcherry was featured in a recent Billboard cover story which declared the Los Angeles-based band to be “a platinum-plated redemption story, years in the making.” Powered by four enormously successful multi-format hit singles, 15 firmly established Buckcherry’s status as America’s preeminent hard rock outfit. “Crazy Bitch” – the album’s Grammy Award-nominated first single – caused a radio riot upon its 2006 release, reaching #2 at Mainstream Rock and #3 at Active Rock. A string of further rock and alternative radio hits followed, including “Next 2 You,”"Everything,” and the CHR/Top 40 crossover smash, “Sorry.” The singles have all blown up online, with cumulative digital sales now approaching 1 million. In addition, “Crazy Bitch” spent over a year in the Nielsen Ringscan Top 30 – the only track to do so in the chart’s history. The track has since been certified as a Platinum Master Ringtone by the RIAA. What’s more, Buckcherry spent nearly two full years on the road, performing more than 300 live shows in support of 15. A full-scale headline tour behind Black Butterfly will be announced shortly. BLAZE BAYLEY ISSUE UPDATE ON WIFE’S CONDITION: This from vocalist Blaze Bayley: “On Sunday 6th of July at 5.15 pm, my wife and manager Debbie collapsed at our home in Tamworth. She was rushed to hospital and scanned, it was discovered she had suffered a brain haemorrhage. She has had three neuro surgeries, each one has been a success. “Debbie is now in a coma that could last days, weeks or even months. She is breathing on her own and she is stable, but she is still in critical condition. I visit her every day that I am not out with the band, and talk to her about what is going on with the band and how well the new album is doing. Her family and close friends are also at her bedside every day. “Thank you to every one who has sent messages of support to Debbie and to me. A lot of them I have read out to Debbie in hospital. As each day passes she has more chance of making some kind of recovery, but it will be a very long process.  It is not like on TV where people just suddenly wake up. They may wake up for 60 seconds then fall unconscious again for hours or days and eventually they can stay awake for a little longer each time. The whole process can take days, weeks, months, or even years. Brain injuries and recovery are very unpredictable so there are no guarantees or certainties in any of this. “She has worked so hard to get the band going and to make the new album possible that I feel it is important to continue with what she has started for us. So I am not cancelling any shows that she has arranged for the band, because I know that is not what Debbie would want. We will continue to book shows and run things the way she started. There have been a few hiccups with the online store but please email us if you have any problems and we will try to sort them out.  “Thank you all again for all the love and support you have given my wife and me over these very difficult days. I hope you enjoy the new album and we’ll see you at one of our shows soon.” THANK YOU!: A massive thank you to everyone that took the time to e-mail me and Cathy this past week. I’ll get back to everyone in time, but right now things are still fairly full-on! To hear from so many people via e-mail or the message boards was very heartwarming and appreciated. So today is back to business…sort of…news updates will flow this week, but I’ll still only be working part time until next week when things will properly return to normal. And speaking of my wife Cathy - today is her 40th Birthday, so it’s been a pretty special day here…out numbered by all the boys

Wednesday, July 23, 2008

A SLIGHT INTERRUPTION TO REGULAR SERVICE: Please forgive the lack of updates this week and for the next few days. In the early hours of Tuesday (3am local Oz time) my wife Cathy and I were very proud to become parents once again to another little boy - Toby Thomas McNeice. Both mother and baby are doing great and we couldn’t be happier. I now have my own ultimate power trio! Toby joins his brothers Nicholas (left) and Zackary (right)… Business as (sort of) normal from Monday. Meanwhile…a picture and a small news update. FRONTIERS ARTIST UPDATE: Praying Mantis have started working on their long awaited new studio album with the working title of Touch the Rainbow. They will shortly begin recording and the likelihood is that the album will be recorded during the month of September in Atlanta, Georgia USA with an anticipated release in early 2009. The current line up of the band includes of course founding members Tino and Chris Troy on guitars and bass respectively, Benjamin Reid on drums, Andy Burgess on guitar and Mike Freeland on vocals, the line up of which they have already played a number of successful festivals in UK and Europe during 2008. The new songs once again present the familiar blend of the Hard Rock edge with very melodic “hookline” choruses that have always been an essential trade mark of Mantis since the 1980’s. Though this will be yet another album on the ever growing discography of the band, Chris Troy believes that: “This may well prove to be the best album Mantis have ever written!” Look out the Mantis are definitely back and kicking! Extreme will make their much-anticipated return to the UK stage this November in support of Saudades de Rock (pronounced “sow-dodge”), their first studio album in thirteen years. The groundbreaking new album Saudades de Rock– which was produced by Bettencourt, is planned for a UK release on August 4th. Fans can expect the same unwavering songcraft and diverse musical approach that made Extreme legendary. Simply put, Extreme’s fifth studio offering– which boasts the infectious roar of “Star,” the groove-laden, swagger of “King”, a raw funk rock anthem called “Learn To Love”, and the expressive ballad “Ghost”–just may be its finest hour yet. As excited as the members of Extreme are by their latest musical accomplishment, they can’t wait to take it to the stage. “As much as we enjoy recording, for me, I’ve always loved playing live for the fans,” Cherone says. “We can’t wait to get out there and play this music.” “We wanted to record as much of the new album as possible live in the studio,” Bettencourt adds. “And because of it, these songs will translate easily to the stage. We’re really looking forward to getting out on tour, putting on a show. That’s really where the band shines. We always knew Extreme was special,” the guitarist says of the completion of Extreme’s long-awaited fifth album. “We always knew it was a matter of time.” Here are Extreme’s Confirmed 2008 UK Tour Dates: 11/11/08 Cambridge, UK Corn Exchange  11/12/08 Norwich, UK Norwich UEA  11/14/08 Leeds, UK Leeds Academy  11/15/08 Glasgow, UK Glasgow Carling Academy  11/17/08 Newcastle, UK Newcastle City Hall  11/18/08 Manchester, UK Manchester Academy  11/20/08 Newport, UK Newport Centre  11/21/08 Southampton, UK Guildhall  11/23/08 Birmingham, UK Birmingham Carling Academy  11/24/08 London, UK Astoria  11/25/08 London, UK Astoria  Weblink: www.extreme-band.com The band’s long awaited return to Europe will happen in Milano at the forthcoming Rock Of Ages Festival on September 12. More dates in Europe are going to be announced in the coming weeks. ERIK JAYCE LANDBERG: BREAK THE SPELL: Escape Music are pleased to announce their next release - Erik Jayce Landberg: Break The Spell - due out in Europe September 19. Track Listing: 1. Break The Spell, 2. Flirting With Your Wesson, 3. Left On A Dream, 4. Land Of The Dark, 5. Burning Bridges, 6. Dawn, 7. Black Magic, 8. New Generation, 9. Tell Me Why?, 10. Kusamura, 11. Dance Of The Borderline *bonus track. Line Up: Erik Jayce Landberg: Electric and acoustic guitars, piano & bass guitar; Göran Edman: Vocals & background vocals; Charlie Arvstrand: Keyboards; James Humphrey: Drums & percussion. Special appearance & guest artists: Mio Jäger: Vocals on “Dawn”, Carl Manstrand: Bass guitar on “Tell Me Why”, Jens “The Hulk” Bock: Drums on “Dance Of The Borderline”. Swedish guitarist and composer Erik Jayce Landberg was born in the winter of 1977. Due to his father’s professional commitments, he saw himself growing up between the Swedish countryside, Stockholm and Switzerland. Being exposed to a constant change of cultures Jayce developed a strong interest in art and poetry, but had originally no interest in playing music. However, after his mother’s repeated pressure to play an instrument like the piano or the violin, he saw himself confronted with a difficult choice. At age 14, he finally gave in and decided to pick up the guitar and soon after immersed himself in composition and writing from the very beginning. The piano was Jayce’s next choice, on which he later composed pieces like “Winter” and “Marilyn”. Being exposed to rock and classical music simultaneously, he soon absorbed the essence of the two genres and originally endavoured to combine them like his predecessors Malmsteen and Uli Jon Roth. At 18, Jayce left his Swiss household to permanently relocate to Stockholm were he joined several bands until he finally met with singer Goran Edman (ex-Yngwie Malmsteen, John Norum). The two of them set up to record two songs, “Lost Without You” co-written with Goran and the epic ballad “Marilyn” which Jayce originally wrote as a classical music piece. The recording was released as a single in Europe and attracted soon the attention of record companies abroad. As a result, Jayce signed a solo deal with Japanese record company Marquee Records followed by the English company Escape Music to record his debut album “Break The Spell” also featuring Goran on vocals. The same year, Jayce also recorded two radio jingles for CBS in California and pursues his occupation as a science-fiction novelist (“Shades Of Night” published in 2005). WebLink: www.Escape-Music.com. xx FIREFEST MEET AND GREET FRIDAY OCT 24: Press Release from Firefest V: “Thanks to everybody who mailed asking for tickets. Over 500 applications were received but as you are aware only the first 100 were guaranteed tickets due to the smallish nature of the venue. Successful applications have now been replied to and if you have not received a confirmation e mail with your reference number then we are sorry to say that you were not one of the first 100 applications received. Thanks once again for all your support. Hope to see everybody on Saturday and Sunday Oct 25th and 26th.” - Kieran, Bruce and the Firefest team. MR-X UPDATED: MR-X has been updated today with a few new ‘Special Features’ - Billy Squier - Hear Then & Now (10 Track EMI Promo Best Of); a 70 minute compilation of the best of vocalist Paul Laine and one of those cult out of print albums from yesteryear - Vinnie Kay - Where Do We Go From Here. MR-X Membership Details.

Friday, July 18, 2008

VOICES OF ROCK RADIO TO MAKE DEBUT AT LOKERSE FEESTEN ON MONDAY, AUGUST 4: On Monday, August 4, Voices of Rock Radio will make their long-awaited debut performance in front of an enthusiastic Belgium crowd as part of Lokerse Feesten (www.lokersefeesten.be). The super vocal group, which has been in rehearsals since the beginning of Summer, features Kevin Chalfant (The Storm/707), Jimi Jamison (ex-Survivor), Derek St. Holmes (ex-Ted Nugent Band), John Cafferty (Beaver Brown Band) and Wally Palmar (The Romantics). Joining the five for the on-stage festivities will be guitarist Josh Ramos (The Storm/Two Fires) and Kevin’s Fly2Fr33dom Band. In what promises to be “an entire festival of hit songs in one band,” Voices of Rock Radio will be performing approximately twenty songs in all, including such hits as “Eye of the Tiger,” “I’ve Got A Lot To Learn About Love,” “Stranglehold,” “On The Dark Side,” “What I Like About You,” “The Search is Over,” “Megaforce,” “Cat Scratch Fever,” “Tender Years” and “Talking In Your Sleep” amongst a barrage of other well-known chart topping songs sung by the original singers of the hits. In addition, the audience can expect to hear a Journey hit or two such as “Don’t Stop Believing” and “Separate Ways” in the set as Chalfant briefly took over lead vocals for the band in the mid-90’s. “When you hear and see these singers performing all of these hits in one show, it’s like tuning into your favorite rock radio station and cranking it up full blast through a 50,000 watt stereo,”states Kevin Chalfant. “You will simply love every minute of it!” Derek St. Holmes says, “Experience the resurrection of real rock… this show is a powerful rock experience to be had by all.” Wally Palmar comments, “‘Voices’ is like opening a can of instant hits… guaranteed to rock you hard.” Jimi Jamison adds, “The band is as solid as the rock it plays!” John Cafferty expresses that the collaboration of the singers “Ain’t nothin’ but a Rock’n'Roll party and everybody’s bringing their hits… get your dancing shoes on!” As of now, it appears that the first slated date for Voices of Rock Radio (with the possible exception of Wally Palmar and John Cafferty) in the United States will be at Waterfest in Oshkosh, Wisconsin on Thursday, August 21. For more information about the band (including booking), please view their official website at www.voicesofrockradio.com or www.myspace.com/voicesofrockradio. MORE ROCKLAHOMA COVERAGE: A couple of Rocklahoma mentions - From RockEyez: Rocklahoma festival event coverage at RockEyez.com – the site will be covering each day with a review and photo gallery of the five day event: www.rockeyez.com. Day one included All-Star fantasy camp with Mark Slaughter, Earl Slick, Kip Winger, Dave Ellefson, Elliot Easton, & yes drummer Alan White, Bang Tango, Down Tread, Faster Pussycat, and Firehouse. Every few days will be the following days of the event, ending with a huge gallery of candid photos. And stay tuned next week for a very special exclusive insider eyewitness account of all the goings on at Rocklahoma! BLAZE BAYLEY TALKS NEW SOLO ALBUM: TC, one of the hosts of the hard rock/heavy metal radio show “HRR” on 98.5FM in Sydney, Australia recently conducted an interview with Blaze Bayley and talked about the current condition of his manager/wife Debbie and the release of his new album The Man That Would Not Die. Part 1 of a 2 part interview can be heard on Sunday night on 98.5FM in Sydney and streamed live on www.2000fm.com after 10pm Sydney time. A repeat of the interview can also be heard on Monday on the HRR website - www.myspace.com/HRR985. The album “The Man Who Would Not Die” was released on July 7 through Blaze’s own independent label Blaze Bayley Recording (with additional licensing to various countries) and is also available at www.planetblaze.com. A limited edition of 500 copies of the new single “Robot” is also available featuring 4 live tracks and another 5 studio tracks from the Blaze Bayley collection. HRR98.5FM is a new radio show which started in April 2008 which provide the Hard Rock/Heavy Metal community with music, news, reviews and up and coming gigs. Listeners can tune in every Sunday night from 10pm on 98.5.FM around Sydney, Australia or via the net on www.2000fm.com after 10pm. AFM LABEL NEWS: News from the AFM Records Newsletter: 2008: a mighty thunderbolt is shaking the ground…. the army of immortals is marching once again. Ross The Boss is back! Finally, twenty years after the classic “Kings Of Metal” that he has released with Manowar, Ross continues his legacy today with a true metal album that doesn’t deny his past and displays his charismatic style of creating great music. Imagine a basket of first class, stomping, ground shaking epic heavy metal in the style of “Battle Hymns”, “Into Glory Ride”, “Hail To England” and “Sign Of The Hammer” – this is exactly what you get here. The title says it all: the “New Metal Leader” has arrived! But it’s not just big words: Ross let’s the music do the talking. Tracks like “Blood Of Knives”, “God Of Dying” and “I Got The Right” would have been highlights even on Manowar´s glorious releases from 1982 – 1988. The battle shouts of “We Will Kill” haunt you to the day you die, the thrilling up tempo smasher “Death & Glory” and a goodtime-rocker like “May The Gods Be With You” then round off the whole spectrum of Ross The Boss. Add to this the majestic epic tracks “God Of Dying” and “Immortal Son” (both in the tradition of eternal hymns like “Bridge Of Death” and “Guyana (Cult Of The Damned”), every fan of the early Manowar must be crying out in joy! It’s a pleasure to see that “the Boss” has resurfaced with an album that sees him and his band proudly wave the flag of true metal again. Your New Metal Leader is here. Welcome back, Ross! New Metal Leader will be released on August, 22. The album will be available in the following formats: AFM 213-2 (Standard CD) AFM 213-9 (lim. Digi Pak CD) * AFM 213-1 (lim. 2-LP, gatefold) * The limited Digi Pak and the Gatefold Vinyl will contain 2 additional bonus tracks! All workings on the new Squealer album “The Circle Shuts” are completed! We just received the Master of the new Squealer Tracks as well as the remastered Bonus Songs from the first Squealer record “Human Traces”, which will appear as bonus tracks on the limited edition of “The Circle Shuts” The Band comments: “Mika Jusilla and Minerva Pappi did the mastering of the new material as well as the re-mastering of the old “Human Traces” tracks which were released originally on the first Squealer EP “Human Traces” (recorded in May, 1989). We would like to thank Mika and Minerva for their effort. They did a killer job with the mastering. The new material sounds really heavy and even the sound of the old re-mastered tracks is more heavy and modern as on the original record – of course without loosing the character of the original recordings from 1989. Also the artwork of “The Circle Shuts” was finished this week, so the CD can be released in September this year.” Tracklist of “The Circle Shuts”: The Sources Of Ignition, Mask Of The Betrayer, New Saviour, Grey, Godlike, These Urges, Thrasher, Martyrs Of The Half Moon, I Came For You, Once Fallen, The Circle Shuts. Limited Edition Bonus Tracks: The Loss Of Independence, Bereft Of Senses, I Will Fight, Insanity. Bonus tracks taken from the first Squealer album “Human Traces” (recorded and mixed in May, 1989, by Kalle Trapp; remastered in July, 2008, by Mika Jussila and Minerva Pappi) The guys from Helstar have their new CD completed! The title of the new record will be “The King Of Hell” and the album is scheduled for September 2008. The US release should be about 3 months later. Here is the track listing for the new CD: 1. The King of Hell 2. The Plague Called Man 3. Tormentor 4. When Empires Fall 5. Wicked Disposition 6. Caress of the Dead 7. Pain Will Be Thy Name 8. In My Darkness 9. The Garden of Temptation. Keep checking back for a sneak peak of some of the new songs and for upcoming European Tour dates! NO MR-X UPDATE: No MR-X update today. I’ll get that sorted for Monday I hope. Basically the good lady wife was due to give birth last week and we’re still here waiting, so not all work has been getting done. Bear with me over the next few weeks as far as site updates please.

Thursday, July 17, 2008

VENUS IN OVERDRIVE – EUROPEAN BONUS TRACK: Time for an update on the Angelmilk Records release of Rick Springfield’s new studio album Venus In Overdrive. We are very pleased to announce that the European version of VIO will contain a bonus track – the new studio version of the concert favourite from 2007 - Who Killed Rock N Roll. So the final track listing for the Angelmilk Records release will be: 1. What’s Victoria’s Secret? 2. I’ll Miss That Someday 3. Venus In Overdrive 4. One Passenger 5. Oblivious 6. 3 Warning Shots 7. Time Stand Still 8. God Blinked (Swing It Sister) 9. Mr. PC 10. She 11. Nothing Is Ever Lost 12. Saint Sahara 13. Who Killed Rock N Roll. Management has given the okay to offer fans a 1 minute MP3 preview of the bonus track - Who Killed Rock N Roll. And two more previews! One Passenger Time Stand Still There is also one more difference between the European release and the general and specialist retailer releases in the USA. All North American releases will be in the DigiPack packaging format, whereas the Angelmilk Records release will be in a standard jewel case format. Manufacturing is currently underway and we are on target to make the official Friday, August 1 release date in the UK. Due to various circumstances, including summer holiday periods, a few of our European distributors have decided on alternate release dates. Those dates are: Scandianvia (Zink Music) – August 13 France (Mauvaise Herbe, subdivision of Bad Reputation) – August 20 Switzerland (NonStopMusic) – August 8 Press and promotion - I conducted an interview for this site with Rick last week regarding the Venus In Overdrive release and will hope to have that online soon. And Fireworks Magazine (UK) and Rocks Magazine (Germany) have both conducted interviews with Rick for upcoming issues. There is one more interview that was conducted and details of that I will announce soon. And samples of all tracks from the album can be heard via the Universal Music online press portal: www.umeportal.com/product.aspx?ob=disc&src=art&pid=13974. A performance video of the single Whats’ Victoria’s Secret can be seen vis this link or clicking below: www.rickspringfield.com/vio/wvs_video.html METAL HEAVEN – THE SEPTEMBER RELEASES!: US Metal legends Driver are finally ready with their debut (!) album Sons Of Thunder which will hit the stores on September 26. Driver is one of the top US acts at the height of melodic heavy rock in the late 1980’s and issued a widely circulated 5-song cassette EP demo in 1990 that garnered the band a dedicated worldwide following as well as attained cult status as one of the most underrated hard rock acts of their time, and it has held steadfast throughout the years. Since then, the two main writers and members of Driver -powerhouse vocalist Rob Rock and acclaimed guitarist/producer Roy Z - have forged ahead to garner long successful careers in the music business. Recording with various bands and recording projects like Impellitteri, Joshua, Warrior, Avantasia and Axel Rudi Pell over the years, Rock is currently well known as one of the very few hard rock/metal singers with a successful solo career – Roy is currently one of the most sought after metal producers, producing such artists as Bruce Dickinson, Rob Halford, Judas Priest, Sebastian Bach, Rob Rock, Tribe of Gypsies and Helloween. 2008 saw the reunion of the band which resulted in the recordings of the aforementioned record. Sons Of Thunder offers exactly the sound the fans of the band have been waiting for and will excite any fan of the genre. Soundfiles in advance: Im A Warrior / Change Of Heart / Never Give Up. Driver are: Rob Rock – vocals, Roy Z – guitars, Reynold “Butch” Carlson – drums, Ed Roth – keyboards, Aaron Samson - bass guitar. Track list: 01) Titans of Speed, 02) I’m a Warrior, 03) Fly Away, 04) Heart’s on Fire, 05) Sons of Thunder, 06) Never Give Up, 07) Change of Heart, 08) Dark World, 09) Winds of March, 10) Only Love Can Save Me Now, 11) Tears That I Cry, 12) I Believe in Love. WebLink: www.robrock.com. xx Throw away your heavy metal rulebook: a new musical genre is about to hit the masses. Introducing “Street Metal”, and its new, irrepressible ambassadors Sister Sin! Having grown apathetic towards the popular trends in heavy Swedish music, Sister Sin arose from the gutters of Gothenburg in 2002. Settling on their moniker because it represented their “bound to absolutely nothing” lifestyles, the furious foursome entered the local scene as a hard-hitting, undeniable metal force. Female lead vocalist Liv, guitarist Jimmy, bassist Chris and drummer Dave created a rough-around-the-edges yet relatable image of dysfunction and attitude. Backed up with fresh lyrics and gritty riffs, Sister Sin set out to inject some of what had been absent from the heavy metal scene since the glory days of Motley Crue, Motorhead, ,W.A.S.P. and Accept. Produced byTobias Lindell at Bohus Sound Studios in Sweden, this album will rock your next party down! Sister Sin - Beat The Street / Breaking New Ground / Hostile Violent. Sister Sin are: vocals: Liv, guitars: Jimmy, bass. Chris, drums: Dave. Track list: 1. Beat The Street, 2. Death Will Greet Us, 3. One Out Of Ten, 4. Breaking New Ground, 5. On Parole, 6. Make My Day, 7. Hostile-Violent, 8. Switchblade Serenade, 9. Love/Hate, 10. All Systems Go!, 11. Eye To Eye. WebLinks: www.sistersin.com / www.myspace.com/sisterssin. For more info, check www.metalheaven.net or www.myspace.com/metalheavenrecords. xx JIMI JAMISON IN THE UK – TOUR UPDATE: There has been some confusion surrounding planned Jimi Jamison solo dates in the UK. They are currently postponed, with persisting rumors about possible rescheduling. Unfortunately that is all news to Jimi himself, who is as much in the dark regarding the dates as everyone else. Jimi sent this message after I asked him about the solo dates: “Let the fans know my sincere apologies to everyone……this has made me more determined than ever to perform in the UK.” A little digging and several e-mails later and I was talking to Jimi, the UK promoter Factory5 and also a few disgruntled fans. It seems the person to blame for this mess is a third party agent that was representing Jimi at one stage, but for obvious reasons, no longer is. I have put Jimi in direct contact with Factory5 and it is hoped that something can be salvaged from this mess… Stay tuned. CLASSIC ROCK NIGHTS 2008 WITH JIMI JAMISON, JOE LYNN TURNER AND ORLEANS: Here is the official release for Classic Rock Nights 2008 with Jimi Jamison, Joe Lynn Turner and Orleans. For the very first time in September 2008 the Classic Rock Nights will come to Germany. One Concert with three top Artists and countless Top-Ten-Hits which never happened in Germany before. Doesn’t matter if as Orleans+Friends or as Rock & Pop Masters (RPM), in the USA this combination had tremendous success and is well known for top performances in the most of the american states Jimi Jamison – Burning Heart, Eye of the Tiger, Baywatch Theme (I’m Always Here) The lengendary former Lead-Singer of the Band Survivor returns to Germany! Eye of the Tiger and Burning Heart from the Rocky Movies and the Titeltrack „I’m always here“ from the world-wide no. 1 TV-Show Baywatch are well known. After the split with Survivor in 2006 Jimi Jamison will release his new solo Album (TBA) in fall of this year. Joe Lynn Turner – Street of Dreams, I Surrender The former Leadsinger of Deep Purple and Rainbow had much success within the last years with his releases of the solo albums Sunstorm (2006) and Second Hand Life (2007). Joe Lynn Turner was asked several times from the legandary guitarist Ritchie Blackmore to perform with him in his Bands Rainbow and Deep Purple. Next to those Bands JLT also worked with the swedish guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen. Orleans – Dancing in the Moonligh, Still the One. The american Rock-Legend Orleans will perform the first time in Germany. The US Top Ten Hits Dancing in the Moonlight (last covered by the UK-Band Toploader in 2000), Still the One, Dance with me, Let there be Music and Love takes time doesn’t have to be explained more. Tourdates: 25. September 2008, Bremen – Aladin 26. September 2008, Hannover – Capitol 28. September 2008, Hamburg – Markthalle More Infos under www.classicrocknights2008.de and www.myspace.com/classicrocknights2008. EXTREME UK TOUR DATES: Extreme UK Tour Dates are as follows in November: 14 Leeds Acad.  15 Glasgow Acad.  17 Newcastle City Hall  18 Manchester Acad.  20 Newport Centre  21 Southampton Guildhall  23 Birmingham Acad.  24 London Astoria LEFSETZ ON JOURNEY/WALMART: Interesting comments from industry commentator Bob Lefsetz on the Journey/WalMart package earlier today. On the topic of disecting this week’s Billboard chart positions, Lefsetz stated: 18. Journey “Revelation” Sales this week: 23,778 / Percentage change: -4% / Cume: 308,777 “And that’s what it is! Not the incredible pipes of their Filipino lead singer, but the PRICE! Irving’s the leader on this… He told me if Dave signed off on it, he was going to put out a Van Halen DVD for $7.99! Maybe I’m talking out of school here, not that Irving said this was off the record, but this is a very important point. PRICE MATTERS! Stop weeping over the death of the CD, the declining margins, and just lower the damn price so music becomes an impulse item. Lower the price enough and it doesn’t PAY to steal! And you wonder why the established acts would rather go with Irving and Wal-Mart than Doug and Universal. Wal-Mart pays, the act gets the lion’s share of the money and the customer is HAPPY!” FROM THE PAGES OF DISBELIEF: Good Lord! Part One: Gene Simmons to judge CBS’s ‘Jingles’ / Contestants will write, perform advertising jingles on new show. Los Angeles – Gene Simmons, the tongue-wagging co-founder and frontman for the heavy metal rock band Kiss, is trying his hand at a gentler form of music — jingles. CBS has tapped Simmons to judge the reality show “Jingles,” the latest TV series from Mark Burnett, the executive producer behind hits like “Survivor” and “The Apprentice,” the network announced on Wednesday. The show, slated to premiere later this year, will feature contestants writing and performing jingles for a variety of subjects, ranging from food products to sports teams. The winner takes home $100,000 and an advertising contract. The show will be hosted by Kimberly Caldwell, a former contestant on the blockbuster Fox hit “American Idol,” while advertising executives Linda Kaplan Thaler and Julie Roehm will join Simmons as judges. “Jingles” is the latest move into reality television by Simmons, who helped form Kiss in the mid-1970s and became known for his wild makeup and wagging tongue. Simmons previously starred on A&E’s “Family Jewels” and competed on a celebrity version of Donald Trump’s “Apprentice” on NBC. Simmons also has launched his own marketing company, using his name to promote energy drinks, books and clothing. ArticleLink: www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25710205. Good Lord! Part Two: Brantford, Ont. — The Cambridge man who was posing as David Lee Roth in Brantford and area last month has a history of mesmerizing people to do his will. David Kuntz was portrayed during a 1989 murder trial as a Svengali who successfully urged one girlfriend to kill another. Brant OPP stopped Kuntz, who was having an allergic reaction to nuts, for speeding on May 23. He identified himself to police as David Lee Roth and was whisked off by ambulance to Brantford General Hospital. Later that evening, after recovering, the man partied at the Liquid Lounge in Brantford, posing for pictures and identifying himself as Roth. But the real Roth was playing that night at Madison Square Garden in New York City on the Van Halen tour. Now old friends have identified the Roth impostor as Kuntz. He has also gone by the name David P. Angel. Kuntz could not be found on Tuesday. The only Kuntz in Cambridge is located on Rosewood Court but has a phone number that’s no longer in service.  “I went to high school with the guy,” said one man who asked that his name not be used. “We were sort of close friends and I know he gets people into trouble. He’s a manipulator.” That seems borne out in coverage of the murder trial of Kim Blinkhorn, Kuntz’s partner. When Kuntz announced he was going to marry another woman, Blinkhorn purchased an eight-inch carving knife and attacked Rowena Parsons, stabbing her 70 times. The attack took place right in front of Parsons’s and Kuntz’s three-year-old daughter. t’s an event that Kuntz — even when passing himself off as Roth — talks about. The owners of a Cambridge hair salon said last week that the Roth poseur, who cadged free manicures, eye treatments and a hair cut and colour, told them about the brutal murder of his girlfriend. Kuntz played the Roth card when he met Bobbi-Jo King of Brantford about six weeks ago. He asked directions to an area Alcoholics Anonymous meeting and prevailed upon King to ride with him to show him where the meeting was being held. Taking off his hat and sunglasses, Kuntz said: “I’m David Lee Roth.” King was so excited she pressed Kuntz to accompany her to her D’Aubigny Road home to meet her husband, Bill, who’s a big Van Halen fan. “I’ve been humiliated by this,” Bill King said Tuesday. “I told all my friends he was here and now my (answering) machine is full of messages from them making fun of me.” In 1988, when Kuntz was 23, he was living with Kimberly Blinkhorn but told his brother he was planning to marry Rowena Parsons. Blinkhorn, who was 27 at the time, killed Parsons and pleaded a defence of insanity during her Toronto trial in September 1988. She said Kuntz controlled her and told her to kill Parsons. Kuntz was never charged in the murder. More at: jam.canoe.ca/Music/Artists/V/Van_Halen/2008/07/16/6174436-sun.html. Credibility be damned! Rock Of Love will return for a 3rd series…. “Rock star Bret Michaels tried twice to find love by filling a mansion with gorgeous women and having them compete for his heart. But after the final pass was handed out and the cameras stopped rolling, Bret’s picks didn’t work out. He and season two winner, Ambre Lake, really tried to make it work and although they still remain close friends, between his tour line-up and her work schedule there’s no time for a relationship. “Bret has been very upfront and honest about how difficult maintaining a normal relationship may be for a touring rock star. He’s right, it’s absolutely an insane lifestyle and neither of us had the time to make it work,” stated Lake. Now Bret is taking another stab at finding his perfect match in the ultimate rock and roller’s test…life on the road! Rock of Love Bus with Bret Michaels is set to premiere in early 2009. Bah…blog.vh1.com/2008-07-16/rock-of-love-3-its-onwith-bret.

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

STORM CAN’T STOP MASS FROM ROCKING!: This from the guys in Mass: “Hey All! Just an FYI that I am sending out to everyone who has written me over the past few days who were very concerned with our well being and to all the others I think that would like to know as well! As you all may have heard both huge side stages totally collapsed around 5:00 PM Saturday July 12 due to a mini tornado that hit Pryor, Oklahoma! Mass had just arrived at the festival at 5:30 PM to get ready for our scheduled 9:15 PM performance that evening! To our astonishment we viewed the huge collapsed stages and the eerie twisted metal! It’s simply a miracle that no one was killed or severely injured! All side stage bands were canceled that night! It was truly a surreal scene my friends! We did perform the next night Sunday at 10:25 PM after Tesla and before Queensryche on a center make shift stage that the event organizers had quickly put up for Mass, Bullet boys, Ron Keel, etc… We could have packed it in and left like some of the other acts did when the stages, lighting, recording equipment, etc all came tumbling down. But we felt we owed it to the many unbelievable Mass fans who turned up from all around the world and who have been waiting to see us for a very long time. They were not disappointed but truly grateful that we had remained and Rocked there faces off as well! Before and after our show we never stopped signing autographs and taking photos with our fans! I will try and post some pics soon but I believe you may see some on other sites as well sooner. Rocklahoma and Retrospect Records did make it very clear to us that they will be flying us out back again next year for 2009! Talk to you all soon, Louis.” WebLinks: www.massmusic.biz / www.myspace.com/masstheband. JLT TURNS TO RUSSIA AND GERMANY: Joe Lynn Turner returns to Russia and takes part in Classic Rock Nights in Germany – “Check out the Tour Dates at www.joelynnturner.com for Joe’s Russian dates in late July and early August. Additionally, For the first time some Classic Rock Nights shows will take place in Germany this Fall. Onstage will be JLT along with Orleans and Jimi Jamison. There is a My Space set up for the Classic Rock Nights event but it is written in German. To access it, go to: myspace.com/classicrocknights2008. JLT in Russia – Summer 2008: July 26 – Avto July 31 – St. Petersburg (special acoustic set) August 4 – Krasnodar INTRODUCING SAVAGE PARADISE: Press Release / We’re pleased to announce that the lineup for Savage Paradise is now complete with the addition of keyboardist Eric Ragno (www.ericragno.com), a seasoned pro and well respected Los Angeles based session player. Mario Parga said of Eric “I’ve been in talks with Eric and it was obvious that he’s in the same place musically right now as Savage Paradise. Eric will no doubt play a big part in the sound of the band and we’re all looking forward to working with him.” The band will commence work on their debut album during the Fall, all updates will be available through MidnightCafe Music and the band’s official website www.Savage-Paradise.com. The completed lineup is now: Tony Martin: vocals, Mario Parga: guitar Eric Ragno: keyboards, Tim Luce: bass, Kevin Valentine: drums. Mario Parga & Graham Bonnet - Mario is teaming up with his old friend, singer Graham Bonnet (Rainbow/Alcatrazz/Impelliteri/MSG) to record a special CD/download single. The song is called American Angel and is based on Mario’s previously unreleased instrumental song of the same name. Mario said recently “I’ve not worked with Graham since his album The Day I Went Mad in 1998, we’ve always had a lot in common with music and we’ve been good friends for over twenty years. ‘American Angel’ is an instrumental song I wrote a couple of years ago for my wife Shawna, and I know that Graham’s voice is perfect for the vocal version. Graham likes the song too, and I can’t wait to hear him sing it.” The single will be released by MidnightCafe Music late in the year. A video for the song is in the pipeline, more news of this to follow. ROK HOLLYWOOD TO PLAY CRUEFEST: Indianapolis based Rok Hollywood will be making their second appearance at CrueFest Hollywood on July 26 at The Whisky in Hollywood, Ca. Not to be confused with the current Motley Crue tour with the same name. CrueFest Hollywood is the original CrueFest that was started in 2000 as a benefit for the Skylar Neil Foundation to support cancer research. Rok Hollywood, along with 9 other bands from around the world will be donating their efforts to this worthy cause. For more information on this event, and to purchase tickets, please visit www.cruefest.com. Rok Hollywood will also be appearing with Poison, and Dokken on August 15 at Verizon Wireless Music Center in Noblesville, Indiana. This will mark the third year in a row that the band has performed with Poison at this venue. Keep up with the latest Rok Hollywood news, and hear their music at www.myspace.com/rokhollywood. PAVIC UNCONDITIONED OUT ON SEPTEMBER 15: Pavic are back with Unconditioned, the band’s second release. The album was mixed by producer Tobias Lindell at Bohus Sound Studio (Abba, Status Quo) Sweden and mastered byDragan Tanaskovic (Evergrey, Meshuggah, In Flames, Goran Edman). Guest appearance by Kee Marcello (Europe) on a track “Just Go On”. “Uncondition” is exploring new musical directions for Pavic, a mix between classic and modern Rock/Metal.  Lineup: Marko Pavic - guitars, Chris Catena - vocals, Aleks Ferrara - bass, Lorenzo Antonelli - keyboards, Marco Madonia - drums. Tracklist: 1. Miracle Man 2. Trapped 3. Just Go On 4. Ghost In A Trash Machine 5. Creep 6. Fallin’ For Love 7. This World 8. Unconditioned Love 9. Ride’n Run 10. True Sincerity 11. Hidden Sorrow 12. Your Love Is Shining + Bonus video Just go on.

The clarinet has undergone many changes and innovations through the years. From its’ first inception during the late 1600’s to today’s clarinet models, this musical instrument has certainly been through a lot. Due to the many improvements it underwent, there are many different types of clarinets made throughout the years. Here are some of the well known types of clarinets from the highest to the lowest voice:
Sopranino Clarinet in A-flat – More commonly used in Europe and Australia as a part of their military band. This type of clarinet is very rare and considered a collector’s item by some.

Johann Christoph Denner

Johann Christoph Denner (Nuremburg) and his son, Jacob are attributed to innovating the speaker key which gave the clarinet a larger register. The clarinet overblows at the 12th, the other woodwind instruments overblow at the octave. So, when you play with the thumb and first three fingers of the left hand without the speaker key, you sound the note C. When you add the speaker key, you do not get a C an octave higher, you sound a G, which is the interval of a twelfth. Because of his improvements of the chalumeau J C Denner is said to be the inventor of the clarinet.

The clarinet is individual in the shape of its bore, as well. While almost every other woodwind instrument has a conical bore the clarinet has a cylindrical bore–it doesn’t flare, even though the bell of the clarinet gives that impression. This is why the clarinet overblows at the twelfth and is so laden with overtones, which contributes to its unique sound.

In the late 1700’s, many improvements were made to the clarinet–more keys were added and the tone holes were experimented with–different cuts and such. Iwan Muller (German) developed a thirteen keyed model. This clarinet remained in favor until the late 1800’s.

Klose and Buffet adapted the Boehm (flute) fingering system to the clarinet ca. 1839-1843. This system is the one most common today, although there are other fingering systems in use such as the Albert and Auler (mostly in Germany.)

The basset horn is a type of clarinet usually pitched in F. This was the instrument which Mozart composed his Clarinet Concerto and Quintet. His friend, Anton Stadler was a virtuosic basset hornist and Mozart fell in love with the mellow, dark tone of the clarinet.

Some of the more notable works for the clarinet are Mozart’s Concerto and the Quintet, Brahms’ Two Sonatas Op. 120 and his Quintet. The clarinet’s tone is really very complimentary to strings and vice-versa.

Some noted performers are Anton Stadler (late 1700’s), Richard Muhlfield (mid-to-late 1800’s) and more recently Stanley Drucker (principle of the NY Phil) Richard Stoltzman (freelance soloist) Larry Combs (principle of Chicago Sym.) James Pyne (noted pedagogue at Ohio State Univ.) Anthony Gigliotti (principle of Philadelphia and pedagogue at Temple Univ.) and Jon Manasse, young soloist, faculty at Eastman and recording artist.

Eddie Daniels, Pete Fountain, Benny Goodman and Woody Herman are probably the most famous of the jazz players.