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AC/DC’S ANGUS YOUNG JOINS GUNS N’ROSES ONSTAGE AT COACHELLA

Joe Lynch of Billboard reports:

Saturday night (April 16th) at Coachella was supposed to be all about Guns N’ Roses’ classic lineup reunion, but thanks to a special appearance from another metal icon, the evening turned into a shockingly great preview of the next chapter of a much older hard rock band.

Just hours after AC/DC confirmed rumors that Axl Rose would serve as singer for the band’s remaining tour dates after hearing issues forced vocalist Brian Johnson to take a step back from the band after 36 years, Rose hit the stage with his formerly estranged GnR compatriots Duff McKagan and Slash at Coachella.

Seated on his rock n’ roll recovery throne (lent to him by Dave Grohl), Rose apologized to the crowd for not “running around” on stage as per usual. “I do feel bad about sitting here on my ass,” Rose said. As a consolation prize, he offered to bring out a special guest to liven things up…the crowd was pleasantly shocked to see AC/DC’s Angus Young — in full schoolboy uniform despite his 61 years — take the stage with Guns N’ Roses (surprise aside, the drummer’s AC/DC t-shirt was a subtle harbinger things to come).

While Rose was forced to remain seated throughout, Young did more than his fair share to make up for Axl’s immobility by doing the Chuck Berry duck walk all around the stage while the GnR singer wailed and nailed the band’s Whole Lotta Rosie and Riff Raff(both originally Bon Scott vocals). Anyone concerned that Rose isn’t up for the towering task of speeding down the Aussie band’s never-ending highway to hell need only listen to what happened at Coachella to have their fears assuaged.

Read more at Billboard.

IT’S OFFICIAL, AXL ROSE TO FRONT AC/DC ON THEIR REMAINING TOUR DATES

Shirley Halperin of Billboard:

Guns N’ Roses frontman Axl Rose has a new gig lined up: he’ll be singing with AC/DC.

The Australian rockers announced on April 16th that Rose will step in for Brian Johnson, who had to bow out from touring due to hearing issues, issuing the following statement:

“AC/DC band members would like to thank Brian Johnson for his contributions and dedication to the band throughout the years. We wish him all the best with his hearing issues and future ventures. As much as we want this tour to end as it started, we understand, respect and support Brian’s decision to stop touring and save his hearing. We are dedicated to fulfilling the remainder of our touring commitments to everyone that has supported us over the years, and are fortunate that Axl Rose has kindly offered his support to help us fulfill this commitment.”

According to a source, Rose, a huge AC/DC fan who’s covered the band’s classic Whole Lotta Rosie going back to his band’s early days, had met with AC/DC members, including original guitarist Angus Young, in Miami and Atlanta more than a month ago. It was then that the plan to have Rose join AC/DC, despite his own band’s live commitments, was hatched. There was also talk of having other singers alternate with Rose, including Sebastian Bach, formerly of Skid Row (who had joined GNR onstage previously), and Nic Cester of the Aussie band Jet.

AC/DC’s Rock Or Bust stadium tour resumes May 7th in Lisbon, Portugal and runs through June 12th. Following the European run, Rose will head out on his Guns N’ Roses Not In This Lifetime summer stadium tour, the dates of which were announced on April 6th.

See the list of AC/DC European tour dates below:

May 7 – Lisbon, Portugal – Passeio Maritimo De Alges
May 10 – Seville, Spain – Estadio De La Cartuja
May 13 – Marseille, France – Stade Velodrome
May 16 – Werchter, Belgium – Werchter Site
May 19 – Vienna, Austria – Erns-Happel Stadium
May 22 – Prague, Czech Republic – Letnany Airport
May 26 – Hamburg, Germany – Volksparkstadion
May 29 – Berne, Switzerland – Stade De Suisse
June 1 – Leipzig, Germany – Red Bull Arena
June 4 – London, England – The Stadium, Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park
June 9 – Manchester, England – Etihad Stadium
June 12 – Aarhus, Denmark – Ceres Park

source: billboard.com

ACE FREHLEY LISTS HIS FIVE “ESSENTIAL GUITAR RECORDS”

Ace Frehley shares his five essential guitar records with Classic Rock.

The Jimi Hendrix Experience – Are You Experienced (1967):

“It changed my life, no question about it. I used to walk around my high school with this album under my arm. It’s groundbreaking in so many ways – nobody played guitar like Hendrix.

I was already playing the guitar for a few years, but when I heard Hendrix, it seemed so beyond everything else I was hearing at the time. He was doing something that was light years away from all of my other heroes. I used to slow down the record and try to figure out the solos. His use of effects, his composing, his phrasing – the guy was a once-in-a-lifetime talent.”

Led Zeppelin – Led Zeppelin (1968)

“I’ll never forget seeing Led Zeppelin’s first New York appearance. They were opening up for Iron Butterfly at the Fillmore East. It was one of those nights you always hear about: Zeppelin played their set and just killed the place. Iron Butterfly had to follow them. Half the audience walked out.

I went out and got the debut record. I wasn’t really familiar with Page before then. I liked the Yardbirds, but I always thought of Jeff Beck with that band. So putting on Zeppelin was a huge experience. His riffs, his sounds and his solos – he was like the complete guitarist. I became a massive fan right away.”

The Who – My Generation (1965)

“What a great record. Fabulous songs. Pete Townshend wasn’t a big lead guy, but he knew how to work chords. I learned a lot about my chord technique from studying Who songs. Pete Townshend can play the same chord on 20 positions on the next. He’s a wizard.

I love their harmonies and the way they arranged their songs. The Who were a really smart band. Nobody played like Keith Moon – he didn’t use a hi-hat. But it was all focused around Townshend’s guitar. He had something pretty strong in his hands.”

Cream – Fresh Cream (1966)

“This is the record I discovered Clapton on. Actually, I saw Cream. I was at their first New York appearance when they were opening up for Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels. I had no idea what I was going to see, but I was blown away. Come to think of it, the Who were on the same bill. Those were great days.

I love the Fresh Cream record. Clapton is such a beautifully unique rock-blues guitarist. I’ve studied everything he’s done, from Cream to Blind Faith to Derek and the Dominos and then the solo stuff. He’s one of those guys who has something so singular – you know it’s him, the second he plays a note. I definitely tried to take as much as I could from Clapton.

The Rolling Stones – Satisfaction (1965)

“It’s a toss-up between the Beatles and the Stones – I love ‘em both – but I’ll have to go with the Stones because they were the bad boys. Picking a single album is hard, so I’ll just go with the first song of theirs that really jumped out at me – Satisfaction.

I remember walking around the Bronx and hearing it on the radio. It was an incredible time. It seemed as if the song was everywhere. You’d hear it coming from windows, from car radios as people drove by. You just couldn’t escape Satisfaction during the summer of ’65.

Guitar-wise, there’s that incredible riff, one of the greatest three-note patterns ever. It’s so simple that you can’t believe no one thought of it before. It wouldn’t be the song it is without that riff. It sounded amazing coming through those little transistor radios. I went out and bought a fuzz box – I had to try to get that sound myself.”

Read more at Classic Rock.

source: teamrock.com

ACE FREHLEY DEBUTS “FIRE AND WATER” FEATURING PAUL STANLEY EXCLUSIVELY THROUGH ROLLINGSTONE.COM

Ace Frehley has debuted a final song today from his forthcoming covers LP due out later this month. Rollingstone.com is exclusively debuting “Fire and Water,” the first recording of Frehley and KISS frontman Paul Stanley in nearly two decades. Click here to listen to the song.

Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Ace Frehley will release Origins Vol. 1, a collection of 12 newly recorded classics from Ace’s formative years featuring some of the biggest names in rock and roll, on April 15th, 2016. This collaboration marks the first time that Ace and Paul appear on the same studio recording since KISS’ 1998 reunion album Psycho Circus.

Ace spoke with Rolling Stone about the new record, his guest players and recording with Paul after all these years. Regarding his reunion with Stanley, Frehley shrugs off any residual tension between the two of them. “We’ve always been friends,” he says. “The press seems to amplify negativity. I guess it makes good copy.”

Rolling Stone debuted White Room, a few weeks ago, the classic hit originally performed by Cream. Other guests are none other than Slash trading leads on Thin Lizzy’s classic Emerald, Lita Ford singing and playing lead on The Troggs staple Wild Thing, Rob Zombie guitarist John 5 playing guitar alongside Ace as he sings his classic KISS composition Parasite for the very first time, as well as Jimi Hendrix’s Spanish Castle Magic, and Pearl Jam’s Mike McCready also plays guitar with Ace as he finally sings his KISS Alive!” mainstay Cold Gin. White Room is also an iTunes instant gratification track, meaning fans who pre order the LP on iTunes will receive the Cream cover song instantly.

Origins Vol. 1 is the the follow up to Space Invader, released in 2014. Space Invader was Frehley’s first studio album in five years, and the LP debuted at #9 on the Billboard Top 200 Chart, scoring the highest charting position of any KISS solo album ever, and marked Frehley’s first return to the Top 10 since KISS’ aforementioned 1998’s Psycho Circus in 1998. Space Invader, received high praise from critics.

Origins Vol. 1 track listing:

1. White Room (Cream)
2. Street Fighting Man (Rolling Stones)
3. Spanish Castle Magic (Jimi Hendrix) *John 5
4. Fire and Water (Free) *Paul Stanley
5. Emerald (Thin Lizzy) *Slash
6. Bring It On Home (Led Zeppelin)
7. Wild Thing (The Troggs) *Lita Ford
8. Parasite *John 5 (KISS)
9. Magic Carpet Ride (Steppenwolf)
10. Cold Gin *Mike McCready (KISS)
11. Till The End Of The Day (Kinks)
12. Rock and Roll Hell (KISS)

Pre order physical copy here and the digital copy here.

MOTORHEAD “CLEAN YOUR CLOCK” DVD/CD/VINYL TO BE RELEASED ON MAY 27TH

They were the Kings of the Road. They lived on it. They loved it and the fans loved them!

Never was the spirit of Motörhead more alive than when they were on tour, shake, rattle and rolling audiences to within an inch of their lives thanks to that indomitable cocktail of power, purpose and head-crunching volume. In fact, after four decades of bone-pulverizing duty, Motörhead were still enjoying sold-out gigs worldwide.

On November 20th and 21st 2015, at the Zenith in Munich, Germany, UDR Records made the decision to record – what happened to be the very last live shows ever recorded – and Motörhead proceeded to deliver two storming sold out shows. Where there had once been almost too-fast breakneck pace, there was measured yet still thunderous rock’n’roll served up only as they could, Phil Campbell playing better and better, and Mikkey Dee elevating the art of drumming to the superlative heights which made him one of metal’s most coveted skinsmen.

Lemmy. He sounds so dialed in, a little mean even (in the best possible way) snarling here and there, cackling when appropriate, and singing in a way which will defy every single pre-conceived expectation you might have had. Yes, he was fighting ailments. But no, he was not flimsy or faded, in fact on Clean Your Clock he lays down the marker for all near-70 year olds in terms of wicked bad-assery.

Those first strains of the mighty Bomber are like a salve to all heavy metal souls, the reverberant classic forcing you to turn it up, Lemmy snarling and roaring. Metropolis grooving like the day it was written, and Overkill as mighty as ever…. And here is the unavoidable truth. There will be no more Motörhead tours because Lemmy is no longer here, and many, many people did not get a chance to hear them one more time on what proved to be their last-ever piece of road work.

Which makes Clean Your Clock a vitally important release. It is both a celebration and an epitaph, glorious yet not without melancholy, maintaining the warmth and curve of Motörhead’s unique live sound.

Clean Your Clock is the natural sound of one of rock’n’roll’s mightiest, rarest and most astoundingly excellent beasts – Motörhead. There isn’t a plaudit they haven’t received and there isn’t a plaudit they don’t deserve. And if there had to be a “final” Motörhead album, perhaps it is fitting that Clean Your Clock, a superb live encapsulation of the band at home, is the one.

So TURN-THIS-UP because as Lemmy himself said, the only way to feel the noise is when it’s good and loud… and remember Lemmy and Motörhead in the best possible way !!!

Clean Your Clock track listing:

1. Start
2. Live Intro
3. Bomber
4. Stay Clean
5. Metropolis
6. When the Sky Comes Looking for You
7. Over the Top
8. Guitar Solo
9. The Chase Is Better Than the Catch
10. Lost Woman Blues
11. Rock It
12. Orgasmatron
13. Doctor Rock Pt 1
14. Drum Solo
15. Doctor Rock Pt 2 –
16. Just ‘Cos You Got the Power
17. No Class
18. Ace of Spades
19. Whorehouse Blues
20. Overkill

Formats:

Jewel Case (audio only)
12” Colored Double Vinyl (audio only),
DVD/CD Mini Gatefold (audio/video)
BluRay/CD Mini Gatefold (audio/video)
Boxset (12” Colored Double Vinyl, DVD, BluRay, Medal (audio video)
Digital Audio (audio only)
Longform Video (video only)

For more information, please visit imotorhead.com or udr-music.com.