Original Black Sabbath drummer Bill Ward admits that he could not bring himself to listen to the band’s latest album, 13, and switched off the opening track after less than a minute.

He bowed out of the band’s reunion with Ozzy Osbourne ahead of recording sessions last year, stating that he had not been offered a “signable” contract. After considering a series of replacements, Sabbath recorded 13 with Rage Against The Machine drummer Brad Wilk. The resulting album went all the way to No.1 in the charts.

But Ward tells Rock Cellar, “The only thing I’ve heard from 13 is maybe forty seconds of the first song. Then I turned it off. I just said, ‘I can’t listen to this any more.’ I haven’t heard anything off that album, and to be quite honest I don’t care to either. It’s too painful. I wish them all the luck – well, they don’t need luck, but I wish them all the best in the world. But I can’t listen to it; it’s too close to home. If I want to rip my guts out I’ll put it on.”

He accepts there have been some positives from the drama, reflecting, “The fans have been brilliant. I feel like I’ve got a real close contact with them – I’ve never reached such a point of having such closeness with everybody. I’m getting letters from all over the world and they completely support me. I’m forever grateful that they’ve reacted in a really positive way. It’s been a huge endearing experience.”

Ward continues, “It tears me up. Even as I’m talking now I’m not far away from a tear.” But he insists: “I had to follow my heart under the most difficult circumstances.”

Ward revealed that he has a new album called Accountable Beasts in the works, as well as, his fine art project called Absence of Corners which was released on August 1st.

additional source: classicrockmagazine.com

VH1 Classic’s centerpiece in original programming That Metal Show is returning for its 13th season this January.

The acclaimed hard rock/heavy metal talk show, hosted by Eddie Trunk, Don Jamieson and Jim Florentine, kicks off the latest season on January 18th, 2014. This season will mark some monumental changes for the show as it returns to New York City for Season 13. Previously, the show was taped over several days of one week out at Sony Studios in Los Angeles. The new season will be shot at Metropolis Studios on Tuesday nights for broadcast that Saturday. Season 13 will also consist of 12 new episodes making it the longest season in the show’s history. Fans can also catch the complete season 12 and brand new exclusive bonus clips at ThatMetalShow.VH1.com and in the new VH1 app.

Eddie Trunk declares, “I’m thrilled that the show is coming back. But I’m really excited that we’re now shooting on a weekly basis, as fans will now have the opportunity to see the new episodes as soon as they are completed.”

That Metal Show succeeds because of the interplay of the hosts with their esteemed guests who are some of the biggest names in music. The segments that fans have come to know and love from the show will return for Season 13 including TMS TOP 5, The Throw Down, Put It On The Table, and the fans favorite, Stump The Trunk. The set will also be graced by rock and metal legends that will perform as one-man house bands throughout each new episode. A list of upcoming guests for the interview and performance segments will be released in the near future.

That Metal Show premiered on VH1 Classic in November 2008 and since then has become the only place for all things hard rock/heavy metal on cable television. The show has been visited by some of the biggest names in music including members of Black Sabbath, Aerosmith, Pantera, Anthrax, Kiss, Iron Maiden, Metallica, Pearl Jam, Queensrÿche and Heart to name just a few.

On September 3rd 2013, Eagle Rock Entertainment will release The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert on a triple DVD set, as an SD Blu-ray – with upscaled standard definition original material with uncompressed stereo and DTS-HD surround sound for the best possible quality – and digital formats [Pre-book order date August 9th, MSRP $29.99 DVD, $24,98 Blu-ray]. This release boasts newly remastered sound across both sections of the concert and represents the first time the opening acts’ performances have been made available on DVD or Blu-Ray.

On April 20th 1992, Roger Taylor, Brian May and John Deacon, the surviving members of Queen, took to the stage at Wembley Stadium for the start of one of the biggest events in rock history, which the band had organized to pay tribute to their former colleague – the incomparable Freddie Mercury. Queen were joined by some of the greatest musical talent in the world to celebrate Freddie’s life and work and to increase public awareness of AIDS, the disease that had prematurely ended his life the previous year.

The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert features many Queen classics in unique performances including: Bohemian Rhapsody, Hammer To Fall, Crazy Little Thing Called Love, Radio Ga Ga, I Want To Break Free, Under Pressure, Somebody To Love, We Will Rock You, We Are The Champions and many more. Special guests include David Bowie, Gary Cherone, Roger Daltrey, Def Leppard, Joe Elliott, Extreme, Bob Geldof, Guns N’ Roses, James Hetfield, Ian Hunter, Tony Iommi, Elton John, Annie Lennox, Metallica, George Michael, Liza Minnelli, Robert Plant, Mick Ronson, Axl Rose, Seal, Slash, Lisa Stansfield, Elizabeth Taylor, Paul Young & Zucchero.

As well as being great entertainment, the concert raised a huge and still growing sum of money for the Mercury Phoenix Trust, a charity formed at the time by Roger Taylor, Brian May and Queen’s longtime manager Jim Beach whose charter is the relief of suffering from AIDS throughout the world. Profits from this release will be donated by the Mercury Phoenix Trust to AIDS charities around the globe.

As well as being great entertainment, the concert raised a huge and still growing sum of money for the Mercury Phoenix Trust, a charity formed at the time by Roger Taylor, Brian May and Queen’s longtime manager Jim Beach whose charter is the relief of suffering from AIDS throughout the world. Profits from this release will be donated by the Mercury Phoenix Trust to AIDS charities around the globe.

The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert track listing:

Opening Acts*

1) Intro
2) Brian May/Roger Taylor/John Deacon Introduction
3) Metallica – Enter Sandman
4) Metallica – Sad But True
5) Metallica – Nothing Else Matters
6) Freddie Montage (Insert)
7) Extreme – Queen Medley including: Mustapha/Bohemian Rhapsody/Keep Yourself Alive/I Want To Break Free/Fat Bottomed Girls/Bicycle Race/Another One Bites The Dust/Stone Cold Crazy/Radio Ga Ga
8) Freddie Montage (Insert)
9) Def Leppard & Brian May – Now I’m Here
10) Queen – I’m Going Slightly Mad video (Insert)
11) Bob Geldof – Too Late God
12) Guns N’ Roses – Paradise City
13) Guns N’ Roses – Knocking On Heaven’s Door
14) Elizabeth Taylor Speech

Main Queen + Set:

1) Joe Elliott, Slash & Queen – Tie Your Mother Down
2) Roger Daltrey, Tony Iommi & Queen – I Want It All
3) Zucchero & Queen – Las Palabras De Amor
4) Gary Cherone, Tony Iommi & Queen – Hammer To Fall
5) James Hetfield, Tony Iommi & Queen – Stone Cold Crazy
6) Robert Plant & Queen – Crazy Little Thing Called Love
7) Brian May – Too Much Love Will Kill You
8) Paul Young & Queen – Radio Ga Ga
9) Seal & Queen – Who Wants To Live Forever
10) Lisa Stansfield & Queen – I Want To Break Free
11) David Bowie, Annie Lennox & Queen – Under Pressure
12) Ian Hunter, David Bowie, Mick Ronson & Queen – All The Young Dudes
13) David Bowie, Mick Ronson & Queen – Heroes
14) George Michael & Queen –’39
15) George Michael, Lisa Stansfield & Queen – These Are The Days Of Our Lives
16) George Michael, London Gospel Choir & Queen – Somebody To Love
17) Elton John, Axl Rose & Queen – Bohemian Rhapsody
18) Elton John, Tony Iommi & Queen – The Show Must Go On
19) Axl Rose & Queen – We Will Rock You
20) Liza Minnelli & Ensemble – We Are The Champions

Bonus Material:

1) Rehearsal performances of Queen + David Bowie and Annie Lennox Under Pressure.
George Michael and Lisa Stansfield These Are The Days Of Our Lives
George Michael ‘Somebody To Love’
2) 10th Anniversary Documentary
3) Photo Galleries
4) Mercury Phoenix Trust Facts
* Each section features on one DVD disc, all sections feature on the single Blu-ray discs

Watch a trailer below:

Mark McGrath of Sugar Ray will headline Wall Street Rocks’ 2013 Battle of the Bands Finale benefit concert, emceed by radio & VH1 Classic TV host Eddie Trunk on Monday, December 2nd at Irving Plaza in NYC.

Competing Wall Street bands include Riffhanger and Big Dog Party, which won previous rounds of competition. Tickets can be purchased by visiting www.wallstreetrocks.org/a>. This year’s end of year show will benefit Wounded Warrior Project, ReserveAid and Operation Finally Home, which provides wounded and disabled veterans and the widows of the fallen with mortgage-free housing across the country.

For more information about Wall Street Rocks, please visit www.wallstreetrocks.org/a>.

Def Leppard guitarist Vivian Campbell has announced he’s in remission from cancer.

He reported in June that he was two months into chemotherapy after having been diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a form of the disease which has a high survival rate.

His condition curtailed touring plans for Last In Line, the band he formed with fellow ex-members of Dio, although Campbell has kept working throughout his treatment, including Def Leppard’s residency in Las Vegas.

Now he says: “For anyone who gives a toss: after doing another PET scan and all the other follow-up tests, then getting a second opinion etc, I’m officially in remission from Hodgies. That’s the good news. The bad news is I no longer have an excuse to not go to the gym.”

He recently admitted he was avoiding watching Def Lep’s live movie Viva! Hysteria because he didn’t want to see how ill he looked.

source: Classic Rock Magazine.

Motley Crue have hired Jackass director Jeff Tremaine to work on the movie version of their infamous autobiography The Dirt.

A big-screen version of the 2001 book is one of the three projects the band have vowed to complete before retiring. Bassist Nikki Sixx said earlier this year they’d “blow their brains out” following the movie, a final album and a farewell world tour.

Tremaine directed the cult Jackass series on MTV since its 2000 debut.

He tells Deadline, “I’ve been offered a lot of scripts but The Dirt is something I pursued with everything I had. I’ve wanted to make this going back to 2001. I put everything I had into chasing it and convincing everyone that I am the right guy for it. I really feel I am.”

No further details are currently available.

Meanwhile, Crue vocalist Vince Neil says he’d like to appear in a future series of reality show Celebrity Apprentice, but insists rumors that he’s already signed up are untrue. “I met with the producers and the network and stuff,” he explains. “That’s all I ever said, that I’m up for it.

additional source: classicrockmagazine.com

Motorhead’s Lemmy releases the following statement on the band’s cancellation of the European tour:

“I have to sadly let you know that Motörhead has had to postpone the forthcoming European tour until early next year, 2014.

We have made the decision because I am not quite ready to hit the road yet, and am working my way back to full fitness and rude health. Don’t worry – I’m not about to start promoting veganism and alcohol free beverages, but it is fair to say that I personally have been reconfiguring areas of my life to make sure I can come back fitter and stronger than ever.

It disappointed me tremendously to have to say I wasn’t quite ready to hit the road yet, but not nearly as much as it would’ve disappointed me to go out, play some average shows and watch my health give way long before the tour was over. When people come to see a Motörhead tour, they expect a Motörhead show, and that is exactly what you will get as soon as I am fit and ready to rumble.

Your patience and understanding is appreciated…and know that I’m getting stronger and stronger every day, so watch out next spring Europe and we will see you then.

Thank you all,
Lemmy”

Motorhead’s latest album, Aftershock, was released on October 22nd and landed at number three on the Hard Music chart, number eight on the on the Rock chart and at number twenty-two on on the Billboard Top 200 chart.

Together with Rounder Records, NCM Fathom Events brings a rare VIP concert experience to fans with the one-night cinema event Rush: Clockwork Angels Tour on Monday, November 18th at 7:00 p.m. local time.

The Rush: Clockwork Angels Tour event is a celebration for passionate and loyal Rush fans to experience a big screen taste of the band’s upcoming, long-anticipated DVD release and relive the tour. Pre-recorded in Dallas and Phoenix on the band’s extensive Clockwork Angels Tour, the 2013 Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame inductees perform such classics such as Tom Sawyer, The Spirit of Radio and 2112 alongside newly arranged material featuring the Clockwork Angels String Ensemble, which marks the first time the trio has taken additional musicians on stage. This epic fan experience also features 25 minutes of exclusive, behind-the-scenes RUSH footage that includes interviews with all three members and offers a rare glimpse into the band’s touring life.

Tickets for Rush: Clockwork Angels Tour will be available Thursday, October 31st at 21:12 (9:12 p.m. ET) online at FathomEvents.com and at participating theater box offices. The event will be presented in more than 350 select movie theaters around the country through NCM’s exclusive Digital Broadcast Network.

For a complete list of theater locations and prices, visit the NCM Fathom Events web site (theaters and participants are subject to change).

Rush: Clockwork Angels Tour will be released via Anthem/Roadrunner Records on November 19th. Anthem/Zoe Vision/Rounder will simultaneously release the companion DVD.

Clockwork Angels Tour track listing:

Set One:

1. Subdivisions
2. The Big Money
3. Force Ten
4. Grand Designs
5. The Body Electric
6. Territories
7. The Analog Kid
8. Bravado
9. Where’s My Thing?/ Here It Is! (drum solo)
10. Far Cry

Set Two:

11. Caravan *
12. Clockwork Angels *
13. The Anarchist *
14. Carnies *
15. The Wreckers *
16. Headlong Flight */ Drumbastica (drum solo)
17. Peke’s Repose (guitar solo)/ Halo Effect *
18. Seven Cities of Gold *
19. Wish Them Well *
20. The Garden *
21. Dreamline *
22. The Percussor (I) Binary Love Theme (II) Steambanger’s Ball (drum solo)
23. Red Sector A *
24. YYZ *
25. The Spirit Of Radio

Encore:

26. Tom Sawyer
27. 2112

Bonus:

28. Limelight (soundcheck recording)
29. Middletown Dreams
30. The Pass
31. Manhattan Project *

* With the Clockwork Angels String Ensemble

Special Features (Blu-ray/DVD only)

* Can’t Stop Thinking Big (25-minute tour documentary)
* Behind The Scenes (featuring Jay Baruchel)
* Outtakes
* Interview With Dwush
* Family Goy
* Family Sawyer
* The Watchmaker (intermission tour film)
* Office Of The Watchmaker (closing tour film)

Guitarist and Black Label Society frontman, Zakk Wylde performed an acoustic track on EMGtv this week. Watch him perform Lovin’ Woman below.

Black Label society released Unblackened on DVD, Blu-Ray and digital video on September 24th.

Slayer frontman Tom Araya has revealed why he thinks drummer Dave Lombardo left the band earlier this year.

Araya told Steppin’ Out Magazine, “Th[e] whole issue came down to this: Dave had been jamming with us for a while, as a working member of the band, but he wasn’t a partner. Like all things like that, you have to have agreements, so nobody feels cheated. We had ongoing issues and finally he put us in a position where we had to find someone to replace him. He wasn’t happy, so he decided to have his Facebook rant and told the world about a lot of issues going on within the band that are legally binding and private. I thought that was wrong and it was upsetting. A lot of the claims he made were untrue.”

“Part of the agreement is you don’t do that,” he continues. “Kerry, Jeff and I got on the phone and made a collective decision and we let Dave go and gave Paul a call. Paul said he’d be happy to come back. He has brought some life back into our live performances. He’s in hyper drive and kicking ass, which makes us play faster. People have commented on how energetic we’ve been lately. We’re playing faster than we would have. It’s good injection of adrenaline.”

Lombardo was replaced by Paul Bostaph, who has previously played with the band.

“Even though Dave is not here, I’m honoring him,” says Paul. “I was the drummer in this band for ten years, and Dave came back. And now Dave’s not here and I am. It’s one of those things. I respect him and I respect his playing. He’s part of this legacy; he helped build it. So did Jeff. And in turn, I understand what the fans are saying about that — well, some of them anyway — but the other side of things… If that was me, from a fan’s perspective — and I’ve been a fan of this band — I wouldn’t wanna not hear Raining Blood [one more] time, you know what I mean?! You can get your cover bands play it for the rest of your life. I don’t feel good about that.”

A new Slayer album is due for next year.

additional source: metalhammer.co.uk