Category : LATEST NEWS

DAVID ELLEFSON’S ELLEFSON COFFEE COMPANY OPENS BRICK AND MORTAR COFFEE/MERCHANDISE SHOP IN DAVID’S HOMETOWN OF JACKSON, MINNESOTA

Ellefson Coffee Co., the boutique Coffee brand of Megadeth bassist David Ellefson will open its first brick and mortar Ellefson Coffee Co shop next week in David’s hometown of Jackson, MN. In addition to serving a variety of custom blends of Ellefson Coffee Co brands, including Roast In Peace, She Wolf, Kenya Thrash, and Urban Legend, ECC will also be a retail outlet for Ellefson Coffee products and memorabilia, as well as a satellite retail outlet for titles and merchandise from Ellefson’s EMP Label Group.

The store will also serve as a “Museum of Deth” featuring permanently displayed artifacts and memorabilia from Ellefson’s personal collection , as well as memorabilia from other artists. After teaming up with local Jackson Coffee shop Coffee Choices (one of Ellefson’s personal Jackson haunts) and owner Susan Reiter for their Urban Legend blend, David’s ECC (and EMP) partner Thom Hazaert suggested taking the partnership farther.

“One day Susan and I had a conversation about the idea of sort of re-branding Coffee Choices into something more aligned with the ECC brand, and us coming in as partners.” Says Hazaert. “I pitched the idea to David, we had already discussed the idea of opening a brick and mortar outlet maybe in Phoenix, and we all loved the idea, being David’s hometown, and Susan’s amazing history in Jackson, and her experience running Coffee Choices.”

Adds Ellefson, “I’ve been blessed to travel the world year after year as a musician but my roots have always stayed in Jackson, MN. So, it’s a true honor for our coffee brand to have a retail shop on the main street USA I grew up on, and to serve the very community I was born and raised in. Aside from some great coffee and a fun Rock N’ Roll atmosphere, our store is a go-to destination for coffee that also tells my story of heavy metal and global music history. I look forward to seeing you there!”

Also, any Megadeth fan already knows Jackson well, even if they don’t know it, as the connections to this small Midwest town run deep in Megadeth lore. Loon Lake Cemetery, that spawned the legend of Mary Jane, immortalized on So Far, So Good, So What is a few miles down the street, while the Ellefson family farm that inspired Megadeth hit Foreclosure of a Dream is also a stone’s throw from where ECC is setting up shop.

Hazaert adds, “Not only will Ellefson Coffee Co. now have a permanent face in David’s hometown, but being able to tie in EMP, and everything else we do, and with the huge sense of Megadeth history in Jackson, we are excited to be able to create a really unique and amazing fan (and Coffee) experience, that we are sure will not only be a highlight for the people of Jackson, but a destination for Megadeth fans from around the World.”

The first day of business officially as Ellefson Coffee Co. will be Monday, January 10th, with a grand opening coming later in the Spring. You can pay ECC a visit at 404 Second St, Jackson, MN, 56143.

FORMER KEEL GUITARIST MARC FERRARI WRITES A CHILDREN’S BOOK

Robyn Flans of the Ventura County Star reports:

Whether it’s songs for a big hair, heavy metal rock band in the 1980s or a children’s book, Marc Ferrari of Agoura Hills knows that “writing is writing.”

After spending years composing songs in the rock world, Ferrari has authored the book Don’t Dilly Dally, Silly Sally, which came to him after he found himself repeatedly reciting the phrase to his 3-year-old daughter Sierra, who had a propensity for taking her time getting ready for just about everything.

“It was apparent very early on that my daughter, who is an amazing daughter, was marching to the beat of her own drummer,” Ferrari said. “She was time-challenged…”

…The phrase stuck with him, and one day when the two of them were late for a party, the story about a little girl who was always running behind poured out of him.

“One day she misses an event she had counted the days for, and she learns the secret to being on time: by allowing more time to get ready,” Ferrari said of the story’s message.

He began the book, then let it sit for five years while he was working on other projects, including writing music for TV and film and authoring his 2002 published book Rock Star 101: A Rock Star’s Guide to Survival and Success in the Music Business.

“I kept coming back to it,” Ferrari said. “I wanted this to be kind of a love story to my daughter…”

…It took time to find a publisher, but Ferrari likened the process to being in a band and shopping demo music to a record company.

“A lot of rejection, but it only takes one yes,” he said.

The publishers liked the idea that he was a former rock star. As a member of Keel from 1984 to 1988…the band toured with the likes of Dio, Aerosmith and Bon Jovi, including three nights at Madison Square Garden…

…Ferrari admits his time-challenged daughter has taught a valuable lesson to her time-centric father.

“She’s taught me that we don’t have to be the first ones there all the time,” he said. “She’s taught me to mellow out.”

Read more at the Ventura County Star.

If you would to purchase Don’t Dilly Dally, Silly Sally now, you can buy a copy directly from Marc at Marc@marcferrari.com. The guitarist will personally inscribe a message and provide you with ordering details. Additionally, the book will be available on January 5th through Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

source: vcstar.com

BOBBY BLOTZER’S RATT SHOW CANCELLED DUE TO LEGAL DISPUTE OVER BAND’S NAME

Bobby Blotzer’s Ratt December 29th concert at the Soaring Eagle Casino and Resort was cancelled just hours before showtime after the Michigan entertainment venue received a cease-and-desist letter from his former bandmates. Blotzer is in the midst of a dispute over control of the group’s name with Stephen Pearcy, Warren DeMartini and Juan Croucier.

The casino writes on its Facebook page that they were “recently notified of a trademark dispute” and after reviewing the letter “from the parties claiming rights to the Ratt trademark …. concluded that it cannot proceed with the performance of Mr. Blotzer, due to the current legal dispute.” Co-headliner Night Ranger were set to play the sold-out show as scheduled, according to the casino and resort’s official statement.

The Blotzer camp’s response, also posted on Facebook writing, the venue “would not allow Ratt to perform unless Soaring Eagle Casino was allowed to take control over the performance and presentation of Ratt’s show for its fans. This was a violation of the contract.” They say that “Ratt’s artistic integrity and demand to bring the fans the best show possible” dictated that they could not go forward with the performance.

Blotzer started off touring as the Ratt Experience last year, and then began booking 2016 shows simply as Ratt. DeMartini immediately pushed back, arguing Blotzer had no right to go forward alone – then took part in a surprise October reunion with fellow surviving classic-era alumni Croucier and Pearcy. By November, lawyers had gotten involved.

Soaring Eagle says Ratt will be booked again “on a later date if and when the dispute regarding the trademark is resolved.”

additional source: ultimateclassicrock.com

AMERICAN IDOL FINALIST JAMES DURBIN AND QUIET RIOT GUITARIST ALEX GROSSI TO RELEASE “MAPS TO THE HOLLYWOOD SCARS” VOLUME 1 IN FEBRUARY

American Idol finalist James Durbin and Quiet Riot guitarist Alex Grossi have announced a collaboration entitled “Maps To The Hollywood Scars” – The first five song EP will be released worldwide through New Ocean Media (HIM, Adelita’s Way, Motorhead) in February 2017.

Recorded at Desert Moon Productions in Las Vegas , (a state of the art studio owned by Danny “The Count” Koker, star and creator of the History Channel’s hit show Counting Cars), Maps To The Hollywood Scars showcases the darker side of Hollywood and the music industry – as experienced by two people that have taken two different paths, yet ultimately found many common themes throughout their respective journeys. The first of the two EPs feature a guest appearances by longtime Guns N’ Roses keyboardist Dizzy Reed, as well as programming and engineering by A.J. St. James (The Big 4, MTV),

In 2011, James Durbin released the album, titled Memories Of A Beautiful Disaster. The album debuted at number 36 on the Billboard 200, at number eight on the Billboard Rock Chart, number 25 on the Digital Album Chart, and sold 28,000 the first week, The album went on to sell over 123,000 copies in the U.S. alone. Most recently, Durbin released Riot On Sunset in the summer of 2016.

Alex Grossi has been a member of Quiet Riot for over a decade, having been chosen by the late Kevin DuBrow and Frankie Banali to fill the guitar slot in 2004. Most recently the band completed it’s first full length studio album since 2006’s Rehab which is currently set for a spring release through Frontiers/SRL records. The award winning Quiet Riot documentary Well Now You’re Here, There’s No Way Back has been airing on Showtime since January 2015, and appeared at multiple high profile film festivals including the 2015 Cannes Film Festival. The movie is currently available via iTunes and on DVD at www.quietriotmovie.com.

“I have been a fan of James’s for a while, and after we got an impromptu chance to jam together in Las Vegas last fall, we kept in touch and the ideas just started flowing back and forth” says Alex Grossi “I feel that Maps To The Hollywood Scars is a true labor of love and reflects a lot of where we have both been, as well as where we are both going musically” outside of what we are both known for.”

James Durbin adds “It’s not very often that a project like this goes from nothing to something in such a short amount of time, without a slough of industry BS. Alex started sending me instrumental demos & gave me free range to just write. We started churning out songs one after the other & they weren’t losing their quality, they were getting better. I think that we stumbled upon a winning team and its only fair that we let our collective fans hear what we’ve been having so much fun making!”

For more information, please visit facebook.com/hollywoodscars.

Watch clips of James Durbin performing with Zakk Wylde (on American Idol) and trailer for the Quiet Riot documentary below.

STAUS QUO GUITARIST RICK PARFITT PASSES AT AGE 68

Britain’s Rick Parfitt, of the band Status Quo, died of an infection just two months after quitting the band that launched him into stardom.

“The Quo,” as the group is affectionately called, has sold more than 125 million records, and can claim more than 50 No. 1 singles in its native Britain.

The 68-year-old Parfitt was hospitalized in Marbella, Spain on Thursday, after suffering “complications to a shoulder injury incurred by a previous fall,” his family and manager said in a statement. He died of an infection Saturday.

Parfitt and the band found global success with a string of hits including “Rockin’ All Over The World” and “Whatever You Want.”

Their first album was released in 1968 and brought them their first hit, “Pictures of Matchstick Men.” It reached No. 7 in the UK charts and No. 12 in the United States, the highest the band would ever chart in the States, according to Billboard.

The band went on to release more than 40 other albums and play more than 6,000 shows, according to its own estimate.

But after a musical career spanning nearly 50 years, Parfitt collapsed after a show in Turkey in June, suffering his third heart attack.

He later told Sky News he “had died for several minutes.”

Fearful of “dropping dead on stage in front of the fans,” Parfitt pulled the plug on touring, announcing he was leaving Status Quo.
“It’s my fault,” he said in the September interview. “You live the rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle and at some stage you’ve got to pay for it. I am now paying for it.”

Nevertheless, Parfitt was going to launch a solo career, with an album and autobiography planned for the new year, his family and manager, Simon Porter, said.

Tributes to Parfitt poured in after news of his death. “He joyfully rocked our world,” tweeted Parfitt’s 1970s contemporary, Queen guitarist Brian May…

…Parfitt is survived by his third wife, Lyndsay, their twins Tommy and Lily, and his adult children, Rick and Harry, according to the statement.

After Parfitt’s death, the band’s official website was updated to show a picture of him doing what he loved — performing on stage with his guitar

source: cnn.com

ACCEPT GUITARIST WOLF HOFFMANN DISCUSSES “RESTLESS & WILD” DVD

Ruben Mosqueda of Metal Titans spoke with Accept guitarist Wolf Hoffmann. Excerpts from the interview appear below.

Metal Titans: To clarify you have a live DVD titled Restless & Live coming in January [2017], right? I ask this because you also added a live DVD as the bonus to the last album Blind Rage. The bonus DVD on that album was filmed in Chile.

Wolf Hoffmann: I can tell you this; Restless & Live is a package with three round discs! [laughs] One is a complete live performance on DVD; filmed in Germany, multi-camera and it was filmed at a European festival called Bang Your Head. It’s full production, great quality and the full show. The CDs are live material from shows from various shows all across Europe. I think it’s like an addition 27 songs of material.

Metal Titans: Will there be any select U.S. dates to promote Restless & Live or are you aiming to use this as a means to tide fans over between albums?

Wolf Hoffmann: That’s exactly what it is. We did this just for the fans until the next album is released. We toured a lot more behind the Blind Rage album, we have a couple new members and it’s going to be a few months before we have new material released. We felt that Restless & Live was a great release between [studio] records. As I said we are working on new material and the new studio album will be released next year. At the moment we’re looking at July or August [2017].

It should be released then but as you know sometimes things change. After we release the next album we begin our touring cycle which we’re hoping brings us to the U.S. this time around. I’m desperately hoping [to tour the U.S.] because it has been so long.

Metal Titans: That’s right because you were out in the Northwest when you promoted ‘Blood of the Nations’ then again behind ‘Stalingrad’ that was a co-headline with Kreator but nothing for ‘Blind Rage.’ That was a disappointment but that has nothing to do with the band but rather more to do with the promoters who book bands.

Wolf Hoffmann: It is or then there’s a timing issue. If you’re committed to touring somewhere else then it makes it impossible. Touring the U.S. has completely changed; touring the U.S. 6-8 weeks like we have done in the past has become harder and harder to do. There are some markets that just don’t…the ticket sales aren’t there and the promoters don’t want to take the risk.

We are happy to play wherever anyone books us; the last few years we have been concentrating on shows in California and on the East coast. There’s all these other markets that we’d love to play in between too…So we’ll put the feelers out and spread the word and see what happens. Fans ask us why don’t you ever come to Portland? Well it’s not like we can jump on a plane and ‘just play’ in Portland? It doesn’t work that way! [laughs] Fans don’t understand that it needs to be planned out months in advance and it has to coincide with other stuff.

Metal Titans:…has there ever been discussion of recutting some of the classics in studio with Mark? Not as a standalone release but more as bonus cuts?

Wolf Hoffmann: [long pause] It has been discussed but I’m not really sure that it would be a good idea? [long pause] I have heard where other people have done that; it’s been in circumstances where the label owns their masters. The idea is if you re-record it then it’s yours and you can license it for commercial use. I don’t know…I don’t really see the point? I’ll be honest I’d much rather spend my time writing and creating new stuff. I imagine if you really want to hear what the old songs sound performed by this Accept you can pick up Restless & Live and you can do that.

Watch a live clip of Stampede from Restless & Live, here.

Read more at Metal Titans.

source: metaltitans.com