As previously reported, current Whitesnake guitarist Joel Hoekstra will be releasing a new studio album Dying To Live from his electrifying new side project, Joel Hoekstra’s 13, on October 16th. Hoekstra had released a lyric video for the song, Anymore, which you can be viewed below.
Hoekstra told Ultimate Classic Rock, “I was born on the 13th and I got married on the 13th — it’s always been a number that’s appealed to me,” he says. “It has the lucky and unlucky connotations, and a lot of this album is about that type of stuff, just life and struggles within life. It just seemed appropriate for the title of the side project. I’ve had three solo albums out already that were all instrumental and focused more on my guitar playing. So this was an interesting thing for me.”
“I wanted to write a record that just sounded like a band,” he continues. “But the reality of it, it was like, Well, okay, I’m [still] doing all of the writing and producing this, so it seemed appropriate to give it a new side project name, so Joel Hoekstra’s 13 is essentially the name of my rock side project.”
To read more about this release, see a track listing and to view an electronic press kit, please click here.
Iron Maiden have released a video for the song Speed Of Light from their forthcoming double-length album, The Book Of Souls, out September 4th.
The video is a “homage” to four decades of video gaming juxta-posed alongside Iron Maiden’s 40 years of incredible visual canon centering on their talisman, Eddie as he travels through space & time to complete his Herculean task. Watch it below.
Dickinson says, “We recorded it at Guillame Tell Studios in Paris, where we’d done the Brave New World album in 2000, so the studio holds special memories for all of us. We were delighted to discover the same magical vibe is still alive and very much kicking there. By the time we’d finished we all agreed that each track was such an integral part of the whole body of work that if it needed to be a double album, then double it was going to be.”
Bassist Steve Harris adds, “We approached this album in a different way to how we’ve recorded previously. A lot of the songs were actually written while we were there in the studio. We rehearsed and recorded them straight away while they were still fresh – and I think that immediacy really shows. They have almost a live feel to them, I think. I’m very proud of The Book Of Souls. We all are, and we can’t wait for our fans to hear it when we take it out on the road next year.”
The album will be available in standard 2CD, deluxe hardbound 2CD, heavyweight triple-vinyl, standard and hi-res audio. Tour details will be confirmed in due course. Harris hits the road with solo band British Lion in July.
The Book Of Souls tracklist:
Disc 1:
If Eternity Should Fail (Dickinson) 8:28
Speed Of Light (Smith/ Dickinson) 5:01
The Great Unknown (Smith/ Harris) 6:37
The Red And The Black (Harris) 13:33
When The River Runs Deep (Smith/ Harris) 5:52
The Book Of Souls (Gers/ Harris) 10:27
Disc 2:
Death Or Glory (Smith/ Dickinson) 5:13
Shadows Of The Valley (Gers/ Harris) 7:32
Tears Of A Clown (Smith/ Harris) 4:59
The Man Of Sorrows (Murray/ Harris) 6:28
Empire Of The Clouds (Dickinson) 18:01
As previously reported, Deep Purple will release two live albums on September 18th, ..From The Setting Sun in Waken and …To The Rising Sun in Tokyo. The band has released a clip from the Tokyo CD. Watch their performance of Perfect Strangers below.
From the Setting Sun… (In Wacken) has been filmed by 9 HD cameras at Wacken Open Air Festival 2013. For the first time in Deep Purple’s history, the band will release a 3D version of their performance on Blu-ray, filmed at Wacken.
…To the Rising Sun (In Tokyo) has been filmed by 12 HD cameras at Nippon Budokan, Tokyo in April 2014.
To read more about these releases, please click here. Also, to view Deep Purple performing Smoke on the Water on NBC’s Today Show, click here.
In related news, original Deep Purple guitarist Ritchie Blackmore, recently stated that he might make a brief return to playing rock music.
The hot streak will continue this fall for The Winery Dogs (Richie Kotzen-lead vocals/guitar, Mike Portnoy-drums, Billy Sheehan-bass). Their second appropriately titled, self-produced studio album, Hot Streak, is set for release October 2nd on Loud & Proud Records via RED (a division of Sony Music Entertainment) and in the rest of the world via earMUSIC. It will be preceded by the first single, Oblivion, set for release August 25th at radio. A double vinyl edition of the new album is also in the works and is due out in early November.
After playing over 100 shows in support of their self-titled debut album, The Winery Dogs are eager to head back out on the road to get behind Hot Streak. Their first round of U.S. headlining tour dates will kick off October 3rd in Ridgefield, CT at the Ridgefield Playhouse. Shows around the globe are already being planned for 2016.
Hot Streak shows the powerfully pedigreed trio’s initial burst of collective chemistry was no accident, from the strum and headbang of Captain Love to the propulsive uplifting vibe of The Bridge to the introspective acoustic harmonic convergence of Fire. If these three Dogs thought they captured lightning in a supper dish the first time around, Hot Streak barks ups the aural ante into exciting new territory.
“I feel we’ve taken the band to another level,” explains Richie Kotzen. “The compositions are stronger on this album. I feel more connected lyrically and musically to what I did on this record than on the last one. We’ve widened the musical scope of the band on this record and moved it forward.”
Mike Portnoy continues, “Everything on this album was more of a collaboration than on the first album. There’s just a natural chemistry. The three of us really mesh very, very well, both musically and personally. The mission of this band is to write catchy songs, and not have the musicianship overpower that.”
“I’m glad we’re not playing it safe and just doing songs that automatically fit in the category of what we did on the first record,” Billy Sheehan concludes. “Some of them are a little different, and we definitely took chances. And you have to do that — otherwise, you don’t grow.”
Hot Streak track listing:
1. Oblivion
2. Captain Love
3. Hot Streak
4. How Long
5. Empire
6. Fire
7. Ghost Town
8. The Bridge
9. War Machine
10. Spiral
11. Devil You Know
12. Think It Over
13. The Lamb
The Winery Dogs tour dates:
10/3 Ridgefield, CT Ridgefield Playhouse
10/4 Jim Thorpe, PA Penn’s Peak
10/5 Boston, MA Wilbur Theater
10/8 Glenside, PA Keswick Theater
10/9 Sayreville, NJ Starland Ballroom
10/10 New York, NY Best Buy Theater
10/12 Atlanta, GA Variety Playhouse
10/14 Jacksonville, FL Ponte Verde Concert Hall
10/15 Tampa, FL State Theater
10/16 Ft. Lauderdale, FL Culture Room
10/17 Orlando, FL The Plaza Live
10/22 Nashville, TN Wildhorse Saloon
10/22 Houston, TX Pub Fountains
10/23 Ardmore, OK Heritage Hall
10/24 Dallas, TX The Gas Monkey
10/27 Milwaukee, WI Potowatami Casino
10/28 Milwaukee, WI Potowatami Casino
10/29 St. Charles, IL Arcada Theater
10/31 Denver, CO Marquis Theater
11/2 San Jose, CA Rock Bar
11/3 Anaheim, CA House of Blues
11/5 Agoura Hills, CA Canyon Club
11/6 Beverly Hills, CA Saban Theater
11/7 Las Vegas, NV Vamp’d
11/8 San Diego, CA House of Blues
The trio first exploded onto the Rock scene with their self-titled, self-produced and critically acclaimed debut album that was released July 23rd, 2013 on Loud & Proud Records and a sold-out worldwide tour. The Winery Dogs debuted on Billboard’s “Top Alternative Albums” chart at #3, “Top Independent Albums” chart at #4, “Top Rock Albums” chart at #5, “Top Internet Albums” at #8 and “Top 200 Albums” chart at #27.
Steven Rosen of Ultimateguitar.com interviewed former Megadeth guitarist Marty Friedman, who had some interesting comments about legendary guitar player, Jimi Hendrix. Read Friedman’s thoughts on Hendrix, and other topics, below.
UG: In the last 10 years since you previously played in the US, the metal scene has definitely changed. Are you aware of any of those changes?
MF: Everything I’ve become aware of has been kind of force fed through Prosthetic Records. Not through their artists but through the people at the record company there and only for practical reasons. For example, choosing opening bands [Exmortus] and people that I should know and people I should hear. Some things I found on my own.
UG: What did you find?
MF: This band called Deafheaven. I totally recommend them. It’s fresh and it’s mindblowing. I love these guys. And of course I’m good friends with Sky Harbor and I’m a big fan of theirs. Just the sheer amount of guitar music that has come out in the last couple of years is very encouraging. I have to be thankful that a lot of these people are so kind to cite me as an influence.
UG: It seems like everywhere you turn, there’s some new guitarist playing incredibly well.
MF: It’s not enough. You have to do something that makes people happy and that takes a lot more time than just developing abilities on the instrument. For all the guitar players and guys like Jeff Loomis and all these guys who are really, really good, they’ve been for around for a while and it’s taken a while to get their stuff to the people. I applaud all these guys who have taken their abilities and shaped them in such a way that many more people can enjoy them rather than just beginning guitar players.
UG: What are your feelings now looking back on Megadeth?
MF: I wouldn’t have wanted to bypass any of the Megadeth stuff. It was wonderful. The music was important but it was also much more important to be able to, like they say in kindergarten, play well with others. A lot of people qualities: a lot of learning about how to deal with people; deal with situations; deal with people from different cultures; and every possible situation completely unrelated to music happened in Megadeth. So it was such a great life rewarding experience that it can only help to grow as a musician from that. I strongly believe that people who practice their instrument a lot and study music may become good at it but they’ll have a narrow palette of phrases and things to emote to other people. They’ll be able to play a symphony or whatever but when it comes to taking music from their soul and bringing it from themselves to people listening, it really is quite narrow.
UG: Dave Mustaine is a very talented guitar player but he’s probably not the easiest person to play alongside.
MF: Yeah, well, you know, in some ways, I’m the same way when it comes to my music. That’s what I kind of liked about him; there was no bs when it comes to making music; there was no compromises and I’m the same way. So we got along just great. As far as music is concerned, nobody is more of a perfectionist than I am so I like being around people like that.
UG: When you talk about the actual theater element of a live show, nobody did that better than KISS. You’ve been a huge KISS fan forever, right?
MF: There are so many guitar players that started from KISS. The great thing about music is everybody has the right to their own opinion and that’s what makes it interesting. I used to play with Jason Becker and he was the biggest Bob Dylan fan in the world. And to me, I’d rather chew glass than listen to Bob Dylan. But that was fine. You’ve got to have those differences in opinions. There are certainly no good and no bad in music. It’s all what it means to you. It has nothing to do with tonality or pitch or talent or tone or any of those things. It everything to do with the experiences in your life around this music.
UG: What kind of music don’t you like?
MF: I’m not a huge fan of hardcore rap and stuff, but then at the same time, you have to respect any artist or anybody who can make hundreds and thousands and millions of people happy with what they do. Here’s one that will get ya. There are so many guitar players that started from Hendrix? I’d rather chew glass than listen to Hendrix.
UG: That is so weird to hear you say that. I don’t know if I’ve ever talked to a guitarist who didn’t love Jimi.
MF: I never got Hendrix. When I think of Hendrix, an image comes in my mind about a lot of hippies rolling around in mud tripping on acid and it just doesn’t turn me on at all. And all that noise and feedback and I’m like, “Play in tune.” I’m a big tuning guy and that’s probably why I don’t like Dylan because things go out of tune and it kills me. But then again, all of my favorite guitarists hail Hendrix. I’m a big Uli Jon Roth fan and he’s the most beautiful guitarist. He probably loves Hendrix as much as Hendrix’s own mother does. All the guys I respect love Hendrix so I know there’s something there. It’s just that I never got it because it never fit into my experiences.
Hollywood Vampires, the supergroup featuring Johnny Depp, Alice Cooper and Joe Perry, have announced their first live dates, set for next month. Rounding out the lineup will be former Guns N’ Roses bassist Duff McKagan and drummer Matt Sorum, both of whom also play in the supergroup Velvet Revolver.
The name “Hollywood vampires” references a loose collective of rockers, including Cooper, John Lennon, Harry Nilsson and Keith Moon, who got together in the early Seventies and drink on the Sunset Strip at the Rainbow. Cooper’s crew – which is issuing its debut album, Hollywood Vampires, on September 11th – plans on keeping true to its moniker’s origins.
The first Hollywood Vampires concerts will take place at the fabled Sunset Strip outpost the Roxy on September 16th and 17th. It will be the group’s only U.S. show.
As for the band’s music, they play a mix of cover songs by members of the original Hollywood vampires, including the Who’s My Generation, the Doors’ Five to One and Break on Through, Nilsson’s Jump Into the Fire, Lennon’s Cold Turkey and Jimi Hendrix’s Manic Depression, among others, along with some original tunes. Their debut album will feature a number of notable special guests, including Paul McCartney, Dave Grohl, Slash, Joe Walsh and AC/DC’s Brian Johnson
. Their second appropriately titled, self-produced studio album, ... )
