The rock band, Mr. Big, announced today that its drummer, Pat Torpey, has been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease and unfortunately will be unable to perform all of his normal drumming duties on the band’s upcoming World Tour in support of the band’s new album, …The Stories We Could Tell.

“I’ve been dealing with Parkinson’s symptoms for the past couple of years and only recently received a confirmed diagnosis as symptoms worsened. I intend to fight the disease with same intensity and tenacity that I drum and live my life by and will continue recording and performing, as always, to the best of my ability,” stated Torpey.

Mr. Big intends to announce a drummer in the near future whom will handle most of the drumming duties on the Fall 2014 tour and expects Torpey to jump on the drums on suitable live songs as well as participating in the groups acoustic set.

Stryper is back with their latest release, a live CD/DVD combination called Live At The Whisky. The live recording will be available on September 23rd through Frontiers Records and is a must have for any fan. The concert was recorded at a sold-out show last November at the famous Whisky a Go Go on Sunset Blvd. The 16-track collection documents the band’s first show in support of their latest critically acclaimed release, No More Hell To Pay.

From the show opener Legacy to the final notes of show finale Soldiers Under Command, Live At The Whisky documents Stryper’s rich musical legacy that spans over 30 years. The original lineup comprised of Michael Sweet (vocals/guitars), Robert Sweet (drums), Oz Fox (guitars) and Tim Gaines (bass) showcase the musicianship and songs that garnered the band a huge fan base in the mainstream world and the Christian market. Live At The Whisky was produced by Michael Sweet and is available for pre-order at a href=” http://geni.us/StryperWhiskyAMZ” target=”_blank”>Amazon.

“We’ve always wanted to record a live album that captures the rawness of the band and this is it! We couldn’t be more thrilled then to have captured this at the infamous Whisky, where it all began for us. After 30 years, we’re still proud to do what we do and hopefully it shows. This is an intimate performance, the way it should be.”

The DVD of Live At The Whisky also contains the music videos for No More Hell To Pay and Sympathy from their latest album No More Hell To Pay. It also features an interview segment the band recorded for Nashville All Access. A trailer for the DVD can be seen below. The concert will also be broadcast on AXS.TV on September 28th. Check local listings and providers for more information on the television debut of Live At The Whisky this Fall.

The track listing for Live At The Whisky is:

1) Legacy
2) Marching Into Battle
3) You Know What To Do
4) Loud And Clear
5) Reach Out
6) Calling On You
7) Free
8) More Than A Man
9) The Rock That Makes Me Roll
10) No More Hell To Pay
11) Jesus Is Just Alright
12) Always There For You
13) All For One
14) The Way
15) To Hell With The Devil
16) Soldiers Under Command

For more information about Stryper, please visit stryper.com.

Mick Stingley of Esquire spoke with the Metal God himself, Rob Halford. Excerpts from the interview appear below.

Esquire.com: It’s been 40 years for Judas Priest this year.

Rob Halford: Yeah! In 1974 we released our first record, Rocka Rolla, and that just seems like yesterday. I think many people in showbiz will tell you that some of their strongest recollections are from the beginning, because if you’re lucky enough to be successful, that brings all this extra peripheral stuff and it gets kind of lost in time. But you always remember the early moments: the first record we ever made, the first time we came to America, things like that.

ESQ: And now, is Judas Priest still relevant, and if so, why?

RH: I think you have to really find yourself, as a musician, from record to record. You’ve probably heard a lot of people say, “You’re only as good as the last thing you did.” I think there’s some truth in that. This is our 17th record, 50 million records later, but we still feel as — I was going to say incomplete, but that’s not the right word. You’re searching, you’re constantly searching for the next thing you’re trying to achieve, and I think that your relevance comes from being able to prove your ability. Then your relevance connects to the people who support you, your fans, but it also goes through the cobweb of the music industry, so you’re touching other bands who consider your relevance or managers who consider your relevance, or the labels that consider your relevance. So it’s a very intertwined situation. So I think after all of that you decide you’re relevant for lots of different things. My relevance as a singer in a heavy metal band is based around purely what I’m doing with this new release, Redeemer of Souls.

ESQ: You love basketball?

RH: Yes…

ESQ: Do you have a favorite team?

RH: Well, I’ve still got my house in Phoenix, so I’m a Phoenix Suns fan. It’s been difficult for the team for the last few seasons, but I think we’ve got something very strong growing there and I think that next season is going to be spectacular. However, I also have my lucky San Antonio Spurs shirt and I was wearing that the day that they beat Miami. So I’m a Suns fan first, then I veer a little bit to the Lakers occasionally, but then the San Antonio Spurs. But yeah, I love it. And it’s only because I’ve spent so much time in America now that I learned to love the game. It’s such an exciting game. I love the way that one second can seem like an eternity. There’s one second on the clock and somehow somebody can pass the ball to two or three guys and they can get it in the hoop as long as it leaves their hands. The buzzer might have gone off, but as long as it left your hands it’s still going to count. It’s extraordinarily exciting!

ESQ: You played with Priest on American Idol. Was that a good thing for the group?

RH: Yeah. You know, a lot of our fans went, “Boo!” [Laughs] But a lot of our fans went, “Yeah! Priest on American Idol!” You’re in the homes of 30 million Americans, the vast majority probably haven’t got a clue about Judas Priest, but to be able to go on and do those two songs was just amazing. I think we’re the only metal band ever, to the best of my knowledge, to play American Idol. And it’s a great show. All the “boo-hoo” people can leave.

ESQ: Judas Priest, the band… Everyone’s been kind of private, in a way.

RH: Yes, we’re extremely private. Except for me! It’s always the gay ones that are screaming and blaming everybody else! [Laughs]

ESQ: How do you guys maintain that in the age of the Internet and social media, when everything is out there now?

RH: It’s a very good question, and it’s basically trust and respect for each. I would never say anything about Glenn, even about the music to a certain respect. But as far as the dirty laundry that some bands are very, very open about displaying, the most important thing for Priest is the music. We really treasure it. And I’m only speaking for myself, but once you get beyond that and you get deeper, digging in the dirt, it can really dilute what you’re about and what you’re trying to be with your music. So we’re very, very protective of that. We’ve also been fortunate in that we’re surrounded by people outside of the band who are very protective of us as well. You get these tell-all book from agents and managers that don’t really know the truth: We’ve been lucky. We’re constantly asked if we’re going to do a book. Well, it seems the only way you can get a book to be successful is to dig up the dirt, and I don’t want to do that, personally. I think it’s also part of the magic and mystery of the band, isn’t it? In today’s world, everybody knows what everybody’s doing. It’s all in one ear and out the other and doesn’t have any value. So for us, it’s about keeping the privacy and the mystique. The band is called Judas Priest and this is our music.

Read more at Esquire.

source: esquire.com

This October, the career of rock icon Ozzy Osbourne will be celebrated with the Epic Records/Legacy Recordings Memoirs Of A Madman collections.

Due out October 7th, Memoirs Of A Madman (CD) serves as a career spanning audio release, featuring 17 of Osbourne’s greatest hit singles compiled in one place for the first time in his career and will be available in a single CD, two-LP set and two-LP picture disc set configurations. Pre-order now available at Amazon.

In addition, an exclusive autographed limited edition fan bundle will be available. This includes an autographed poster, 2 DVD set, CD, 2 LP picture disc vinyl, along with a “Creative Allies” fan designed poster, which will feature an image personally chosen by Ozzy. Watch a teaser below.

From the first notes of Ozzy’s 1980’s solo debut Blizzard Of Ozz and follow-up Diary Of A Madman to classic albums No More Tears and Scream, no hard rock solo artist has had quite the same reach as Ozzy; his distinctive vocal delivery and larger than life onstage persona quickly endeared him to millions of rockers. Ozzy immediately had the attention of fans of heavy music with rock staples Crazy Train, Mr. Crowley and Flying High Again. With the 1991 release No More Tears, Ozzy continued his radio success with acclaimed and hugely successful singles No More Tears and the smash hit Mama, I’m Coming Home.

Memoirs Of A Madman track list is as follows:

1. Crazy Train
2. Mr. Crowley
3. Flying High Again
4. Over The Mountain
5. Bark At The Moon
6. The Ultimate Sin
7. Miracle Man
8. No More Tears (edit)
9. Mama, I’m Coming Home
10. Road To Nowhere
11. Perry Mason
12. I Just Want You
13. Gets Me Through
14. Dreamer
15. I Don’t Wanna Stop
16. Life Won’t Wait
17. Let Me Hear You Scream

Details on the Memoirs of a Madman 2 DVD are as follows:

DVD One features more than two dozen of Ozzy’s classic and unforgettable music videos from across his discography, including a bonus alternate version of Mama, I’m Coming Home and making-of footage from the videos Let Me Hear You Scream and Life Won’t Wait.

DVD Two features live performances and interview clips spanning Ozzy’s solo journey, much of which makes its debut on DVD. Some selections have appeared on long out-of-print VHS releases; others will be seen here for the first time, making this an essential package for fans old and new. Ozzy’s union of music and visuals could not be more perfect, and the Memoirs Of A Madman DVD showcases that to brilliant effect.

The Memoirs Of A Madman DVD track listing is as follows:

DVD 1:

The Music Videos:

Bark At The Moon
So Tired
The Ultimate Sin
Lightning Strikes
Crazy Train
Miracle Man
Crazy Babies
Breaking All The Rules
No More Tears
Mama, I’m Coming Home
Mr. Tinkertrain
Time After Time
Road To Nowhere
I Don’t Want To Change The World (Live)
Changes
Perry Mason
I Just Want You
See You On The Other Side
Back On Earth
Gets Me Through
Dreamer
In My Life
I Don’t Wanna Stop
Let Me Hear You Scream
Life Won’t Wait
Let It Die

Bonus:

Mama, I’m Coming Home (alternate version)
The Making of Let Me Hear You Scream
The Making of Life Won’t Wait

DVD 2:

Rochester, NY 1981:

I Don’t Know
Suicide Solution
Mr. Crowley
Crazy Train

Ozzy’s Bunker

Albuquerque, NM 1982
Over The Mountain

MTV 1982

New York, NY 1982
Fairies Wear Boots (clip)

Ozzy’s Bunker:

Entertainment USA 1984

Kansas City, MO 1986
(Jake E Lee, Phil Soussan, Randy Castillo)
Bark At The Moon
Never Know Why

Ozzy’s Bunker

Killer Of Giants
Thank God For The Bomb
Secret Loser

Ozzy’s Bunker

Philadelphia, PA 1989
(Zakk Wylde, Geezer Butler, Randy Castillo)
Bloodbath In Paradise
Tattooed Dancer
Miracle Man

MTV 1989

Marquee, UK 1991
(Zakk Wylde, Mike Inez, Randy Castillo)
Bark At The Moon (clip)

Studio 1992

San Diego, CA 1992
(Zakk Wylde, Mike Inez, Randy Castillo)
I Don’t Want To Change The World
Road To Nowhere

Japan 1992

Ozzy’s Bunker

No More Tears

Studio 1992

Desire

MTV 1992

Mama, I’m Coming Home

Studio 1992

Ozzmosis Recording Session 1995

Ozzfest 1996
(Joe Holmes, Robert Trujillo, Mike Bordin)
Perry Mason

Fame & Fortune

Tokyo, Japan 2001
(Zakk Wylde, Robert Trujillo, Mike Bordin)
Gets Me Through

Fame & Fortune

Ozzfest 2007
(Zakk Wylde, Blasko, Mike Bordin)
Not Going Away

Black Rain Photo Shoot

Las Vegas, NV 2007
(Zakk Wylde, Blasko, Mike Bordin, Adam Wakeman)
I Don’t Wanna Stop

Scream Recording Session 2010

London, England 2010
(Gus G, Blasko, Tommy Clufetos, Adam Wakeman)
Let Me Hear You Scream

BONUS
Philadelphia, PA 1989
(Zakk Wylde, Geezer Butler, Randy Castillo)
Flying High Again

Tokyo, Japan 2001
(Zakk Wylde, Robert Trujillo, Mike Bordin)
Believer

Mark Slaughter, lead singer of the multi-platinum band Slaughter, is currently in the studio recording a collection of songs that he wrote for his first-ever upcoming solo release.

With the chance to work with legendary producer Michael Wagener at the helm mixing and masterging the record, Mark is playing all instruments on the album with the exception of drummer Mark Goodin. His guitar playing rivals the greats out there and his vocals are spot on with a musical range that is par-excellence. Still in the band Slaughter and continuously touring with his band, Mark had years of music creativity stored up and has now decided it is time to share it with the world.

This Spring Mark released a new single, Never Givin’ Up, his first ever solo track, to rave reviews on radio stations across the country.

The song salutes the military and all who have served, with a portion of the proceeds going to the Red Circle Foundation that assists families of the US Special Operations Forces.

In addition to the Red Circle Foundation, Slaughter actively participates in charity work including with St. Jude’s hospital.

Behold the new LP from 2014 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Ace Frehley. Space Invader will be released in the US on August 19th through eOne Music.

Like a shooting star headed toward earth from another solar system, Ace Frehley operates in his own musical galaxy. He’s a musical maverick and iconoclast adored by millions of fans around the world. Through his seminal work with KISS and as a solo artist, Ace Frehley is championed as one of the most influential guitar players of the last four decades and his impact on popular music is immeasurable. With his smash 1978 solo album and post-KISS work including 2009 Anomaly, Frehley continues to be the best selling member of the original band.

Discussing the new album, Frehley says, “Fans can expect something closer to my ’78 solo record,” Frehley reveals. “Over the past couple of months I’ve been listening to my old records and trying to find that formula that I’ve captured so many times in the past. I recently played some of my new music for a few people at my label and they were blown away. It reaffirmed in my mind that I’m on the right path and I think my fans are going to love the results. It’s gonna be a great record.”

Pre-order Space Invader at iTunes.

Greg Prato of Songfacts spoke with Winger frontman Kip Winger about songwriting, the music business, and the stories behind some of his band’s biggest hits. Excerpts appear below.

Songfacts: Let’s start by discussing Winger’s new album, Better Days Comin’.

Kip Winger: I’m terrible with coming out with some kind of thing that I’m going to say for the album. I just write – we write the exact same way we’ve always written since the ’80s: Set up a drum machine, write some riffs, and once we get the stuff the kind of quality we want riff-wise, then we start to shape the arrangements.

This album has a mixture of a little bit of everything that people know us for on it, so for me it’s one of the quintessential records that we’ve done – there’s something for everybody that is into us on this album. But it’s not diverse to a fault. It’s got a lot of the different types of things that we do on it. And I think it’s sonically one of our best albums. We’re all pretty happy with it. Not just because it’s our new record – when I came out with my second record, there’s tons of stuff I would have changed, so it doesn’t always go well.

Songfacts: Is it primarily still you and Reb doing the majority of the songwriting and collaboration?

Kip Winger: Yeah. That’s the sound of the band for Winger records. I have three different things I do: solo records, classical music, and the band. And the sound of Winger is when Reb plays guitar and I play bass and we write from that perspective. We wrote 80 percent of the material, and then John Roth had a couple of tracks on there. If I’m doing a Winger album, that’s pretty much the way I have to do it or else it really won’t even sound like us.

Songfacts: How was it collaborating with Alice Cooper on songs like Roses on White Lace and also Prince of Darkness?

Kip Winger: We never collaborated in a room together. I did those with Kane. We just wrote some ideas and Alice probably wrote over them, which is the way a lot of stuff goes on nowadays. So I really wouldn’t know, honestly speaking. But he’s a great lyricist. He’s got a lot of great ideas, and he’s incredible. I can’t say that I’ve sat in a room with him and written a tune, but I have seen it back in the day. You know, he’s the same as everyone else: You sit around and wrack your brain until you come up with something that you dig.

I think you could ask any songwriter in the world, “What’s your songwriting process like?” and they would all say the same thing: You sit around and wrack your brain until you come up with an idea that you like. Whether you’re playing a piano, guitar, just singing in your head, writing lyrics, it’s all just the creative process. We’re all the same, right? So the creative process tends to be the same in general for a lot of people. I think the variable is that people have different voodoo and superstitions about how they’re going to conjure up the spirit, so to speak. But in the end, man, you’re just kind of pounding out to find a good idea.

Songfacts: What do you remember about the writing and recording of the song Madalaine?

Kip Winger: Have you ever heard the Winger Demo Anthology?

Songfacts: No, I haven’t.

Kip Winger: The Demo Anthology is the demos of all those songs, which shows you the original songs, which, when you hear the album there’s really not much different about it. But Madalaine was one where it was much slower. It was a lot slower, actually.

So, we wrote that song and it was kind of slow, and then when we went in the studio, one of the suggestions that Beau Hill made was to speed up that song. So when we sped it up, it came to life.

That was the first song that Reb and I wrote where people around us were, like, “Wow, this is a single.” And I was thinking, “This is a single? What’s a single?” I totally didn’t get it. So I have to say I’ve been very naïve in my career. I’m kind of a late bloomer when it comes to understanding the function of marketing and all that kind of stuff. I just did the music and then all the other shit kind of came alongside of it, which wasn’t always to my benefit.

But that song was real slow, we sped it up, it came to life. I think it’s one of our cooler songs. It’s still a chick song, but it’s got a cool riff that Reb wrote and still rocks. But it’s very cocky.

Read more at Songfacts.

source: songfacts.com

As previously reported, Metallica has filmed a spot for ESPN’s This Is Sports Center . Now a blooper reel has been released and can be viewed below.

Metallica recently a new song called Lords of Summer through iTunes.

KISS star Gene Simmons says he’s proud to be among the One Percent of the world’s richest people – and insists everyone else owes him a debt of gratitude.

The bassist believes the world would descend into “chaos” if it wasn’t for him and fellow millionaires.

Simmons tells UTSanDiego.com, “The one percent pays 80 percent of all taxes. 50 percent of the population of the US pays no taxes. The one percent provides all the jobs for everybody else. If the one percent didn’t exist there would be chaos and the economy would drop dead.”

He adds, “Try being nice to rich people. I don’t remember the last poor person who gave me a job.”

Describing his 30 years of extreme financial security as “fantastic” he continues: “You know how I spell ‘shameless?’ P-r-o-u-d.”

He explains, “People often confuse my pride and self-confidence with arrogance. I’m like an animal in the jungle that pisses on the ground and doesn’t ask permission. That’s full disclosure before the facts – others hold their opinions to themselves and never say who they are. You will always know who I am. You don’t have to like it.”

KISS recently announced, KISS Rocks Vegas residency, starting November 5th at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Las Vegas. The band is currently on tour with Def Leppard.

additional source: classicrockmagazine.com

Overkill have debuted another all new music video for their newest single Bitter Pill exclusively via Decibel Magazine today. Directed by long time collaborator Kevin J. Custer, the video is the fourth time the veteran director has directed an Overkill video including Armorist, which can be viewed here.

Watch Bitter Pill below.

Ooverkill will release their seventeenth LP White Devil Armory on July 22nd trhough eOne Music in North America, and July 18th overseas via Nuclear Blast. The effort is the follow up to the critically acclaimed The Electric Age released in 2012.

The band has quite a bit of touring lined up with a highlighted performance scheduled at Heavy Montreal Festival on August 9th. After that the band will embark on a U.S. tour, view all dates here. Tickets are on sale now.

This year’s White Devil Armory is as vital, powerful, aggressive and melodic as any of the albums in Overkill’s ridiculously impressive back catalog, which stretches over 16 slabs of genre defining and redefining molten metal. The crunch is unmistakable. The voice is irreplaceable. Get less than a minute into White Devil Armory and it’s clear it’s Overkill. No pretense, no musical red herrings. This is tried and true, always trusted thrash metal. Pre-order on iTunes here.

White Devil Armory track listing:

1. XDM
2. Armorist
3. Down To The Bone
4. PIG
5. Bitter Pill
6. Where There’s Smoke
7. Freedom Rings
8. Another Day To Die
9. King Of The Rat Bastards
10. It’s All Yours
11. In The Name