DUE TO OVERWHELMING DEMAND, ADDITIONAL VAN HALEN CONCERTS ADDED AT THE HOLLYWOOD BOWL AND NIKON AT JONES BEACH THEATER

vanhalen640 Due to overwhelming demand, a third New York-area Van Halen concert has been added at the Nikon At Jones Beach Theater on Saturday, August 15th and an additional Hollywood Bowl show has been added on Sunday, October 4th. Tickets go on sale Monday, May 18th at 10 AM through Ticketmaster tickets for the previously announced shows at PNC Bank Arts Center on August 9th, Nikon at Jones Beach Theater on August 13th and Hollywood Bowl on October 2nd are on sale now. Advanced tickets for the October 4th Hollywood Bowl concert go on sale to American Express® Cardmembers beginning Wednesday, May 13th.

Van Halen is touring North America beginning July 5th in Seattle, Washington at the White River Amphitheatre, with concerts scheduled through October 4th. Special guest Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band will support all dates along the tour. A complete itinerary is listed below.

Fans can see Van Hale perform on the 2015 Billboard Music Awards on Sunday, May 17th, on ABC from 8:00 PM–11:00 PM ET. The performance marks the band’s first-ever performance on an awards show with Eddie, Alex, Wolfgang and David Lee Roth.

VAN HALEN 2015 NORTH AMERICAN TOUR:
All dates, cities and venues subject to change.

July 5 Seattle, WA White River Amphitheatre
July 7 Portland, OR Amphitheater Northwest
July 9 Concord, CA Concord Pavilion
July 11 San Bernardino, CA San Manuel Amphitheater
July 14 Irvine, CA Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre
July 16 Mountain View, CA Shoreline Amphitheatre
July 18 Salt Lake City, UT USANA Amphitheatre
July 20 Morrison, CO Red Rocks Amphitheatre
July 22 Kansas City, MO Cricket Wireless Amphitheater
July 24 Chicago, IL First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre
July 26 St. Louis, MO Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre
July 28 Pittsburgh, PA First Niagara Pavilion
July 30 Bangor, ME Darling’s Waterfront Pavilion

August 1 Boston, MA Xfinity Center
August 3 Cleveland, OH Blossom Music Center
August 5 London, ON Western Fair District
August 7 Toronto, ON Molson Canadian Amphitheatre
August 9 Holmdel, NJ PNC Bank Arts Center
August 11 Hartford, CT Xfinity Center
August 13 Wantagh, NY Nikon At Jones Beach Theater
August 15 Wantagh, NY Nikon At Jones Beach Theater
August 23 Hershey, PA Hershey Park
August 25 Darien Center, NY Darien Lake Performing Arts Center
August 27 Camden, NJ Susquehanna Bank Center
August 29 Washington DC Jiffy Lube Live
August 31 Cincinnati, OH Riverbend Music Center

September 2 Indianapolis, IN Klipsch Music Center
September 4 Detroit, MI DTE Energy Music Theatre
September 6 Bethel, NY Bethel Woods Center for the Arts
September 9 Raleigh, NC Walnut Creek Amphitheater
September 11 Charlotte, NC PNC Music Pavilion
September 13 Tampa, FL MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre
September 15 West Palm Beach, FL Coral Sky Amphitheatre
September 17 Birmingham, AL Oak Mountain Amphitheatre
September 21 Austin, TX Austin360 Amphitheater
September 23 Dallas, TX Gexa Energy Pavilion
September 25 Houston, TX Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
September 28 Phoenix, AZ Ak-Chin Pavilion
September 30 San Diego, CA Sleep Train Amphitheatre

October 2 Los Angeles, CA Hollywood Bowl
October 4 Los Angeles, CA Hollywood Bowl

Go to to name for updates and more information.

Share : facebooktwittergoogle plus
pinterest

GUITARIST JOE SATRIANI SETS RELEASE OF HIS 15TH STUDIO ALBUM, “SHOCKWAVE SUPERNOVA” ON JULY 24TH

joesatriani640 Legendary guitarist, Joe Satriani, announces plans to release his 15th solo studio album, Shockwave Supernova, on July 24th, making him one of the first to utilize the new “Friday, Global Release Day” for music.

It would be easy to call Shockwave Supernova a “masterpiece” or “the last word on guitar” from the world’s most commercially successful solo guitar performer. Satch, however, sees it much more personally. He has consistently advanced the artistry of the instrument; an effort he dedicated himself to on September 18th, 1970, the day his idol Jimi Hendrix died.

Recorded late last year at Skywalker Sound in Lucas Valley, CA, Satriani assembled the dynamic trio of world-class musicians who had recently been part of his global tour; renowned keyboardist and guitarist Mike Keneally, a veteran of several Satch outings and recordings; along with drumming whiz Marco Minnemann and bass extraordinaire Bryan Beller. “I couldn’t have asked for a better band to help bring these songs to life,” says Satriani.

The album also sees Satriani once again joining forces co-producer and engineer John Cuniberti. Satch and Cuniberti share production on Shockwave Supernova, as they have on numerous albums – their shared history dates back to the guitar star’s 1986 debut album, Not Of This Earth and its follow- up, the platinum-selling, critically acclaimed, Surfing with the Alien.

Minnemann and Beller handle the bulk of Shockwave Supernova’s rhythmic duties, with the exception of four cuts – the driving Keep On Movin’, full of wondrous Satch guitar wizardry and Keneally’s playful piano, In My Pocket, a deliciously greasy, souped-up take on Swing, along with Crazy Joey (a deliriously effervescent romp) and Scarborough Stomp (a relentless upbeat rocker) – find Satriani joined by another powerhouse rhythm section: the esteemed drummer Vinnie Colaiuta (whose work includes the likes of Frank Zappa, Sting, Paul Simon, among others) and Jane’s Addiction bassist Chris Chaney (whose resume includes Alanis Morrisette, Celine Dion and Rob Zombie, to name a few).

Recently, during the final performance of his two-year Unstoppable Momentum tour, Satriani had an epiphany; he found himself, “playing the guitar with my teeth an awful lot. I thought, ‘Why are you doing this?’ It’s as if something else, or somebody else, was driving me to do it.” Satriani seized upon this moment of self-realization as the springboard and creative center for his alter ego “Shockwave Supernova,” the outlandish and extroverted ‘performance side’ of the normally shy and reserved guitar virtuoso. With this new persona as partner, Satriani launched his wildly ambitious 15th solo album, Shockwave Supernova.

In a creative and engaging alternative venture, Satriani, a lifelong science fiction fan, has reached out to the future, through the medium of animation. Finally recognizing the on-stage symmetry with his alter ego allowed Satriani to also take a risk on this particular style of storytelling. He says, “Guitarist Ned Evett and I have created an animated series called Crystal Planet. The actual Crystal Planet is our very own Earth, set billions of years in the future. The hero of the show uses music generated by a unique electric guitar to travel through time while the show’s characters struggle to preserve the future and past of humankind.” More information on Crystal Planet and how and where fans will view the series will be coming shortly.

Fans are now able to pre-order the new album with an exclusive signed poster only at satriani.com. Joe will be selecting art for the poster from fan submitted art – check Joe’s FB page for more details. The album is available for pre-order on Amazon and iTunes and will also be available to order as 2 LP 120 gram vinyl.

Additionally, Satriani and guitarist Steve Vai, will perform at a third benefit concert in support of music industry veteran and their good friend, Cliff Cultreri. “A Benefit for Cliff III” is set for Friday, June 12th at 8pm at Wiltern Theatre in Los Angeles. This event will feature performances by Satriani and Vai, as well as special guests, Animals As Leaders. Also, Satriani and Vai, along with other artists, have graciously donated various items to be auctioned at the event. Among these items are autographed guitars as well as a chance to join Satriani’s “G4 Camp” taking place June 28th – July 2nd in Cambria, CA.

joesatriani640

Share : facebooktwittergoogle plus
pinterest

METAL ALLEGIANCE, FEATURING DAVE ELLEFSON, ALEX SKOLNICK, MIKE PORTNOY AND MIKE MENGHI, SIGN WITH NUCLEAR BLAST ENTERTAINMENT

MetalAllegiance logo640 After successful appearances at sea on Motörhead’s Motörboat and Shiprocked as well as an unforgettable show before NAMM in Anaheim this past January, Metal Allegiance has signed their first-ever record deal with Nuclear Blast Entertainment. The world-wide deal stems from the popular musical collective uniting to write and record original material this past Winter. Brought together by Metal Allegiance principal partner Mark Menghi, the original material came together from the creative minds of David Ellefson of Megadeth, Mike Portnoy of The Winery Dogs, and Alex Skolnick from Testament alongside Menghi. The four writers then reached out through their metal rolodexes to a diverse lineup of performers, each adding their own personal musical stamp to the collection of nine original songs. More information on the performers and individual track lineups will be released in the near future. The debut album from Metal Allegiance is slated for release this Fall.

Nuclear Blast Entertainment President Monte Conner offered up his label as the home for Metal Allegiance after several meetings. Upon hearing the demos and seeing the list of performers, he felt it was something he wanted to be a part of.

“I am incredibly fortunate to be able to work with legendary musicians and personal heroes like David Ellefson, Alex Skolnick and Mike Portnoy, as well as Metal Allegiance founder Mark Menghi. These guys wrote an amazing and diverse record that is 100% pure metal, and lined up some killer guest vocalists and lead guitarists to bring it home in an epic, shredding fashion – just the leads on this record alone will blow people away!” exclaims Monte Conner, President, Nuclear Blast Entertainment. “Perhaps the coolest part of all is that unlike similar projects in the past that existed as studio-only creations, Metal Allegiance were a touring entity first and have now organically evolved into a studio band that makes albums. I am very grateful to these guys for choosing me and the Nuclear Blast team as the vehicle to bring their music to the metal masses.”

Stemming from an initial idea in 2011, Metal Allegiance was born as a way to unite a collection of hard rock and heavy metal’s most notable musicians in a setting born under one ideal, a love of music and performing. In 2015, that ideal still holds true and has become the foundation for everything Metal Allegiance; furthered with the release of the upcoming debut album. While the lineup may change, the passion, the energy and the emotion all remain the same. Metal Allegiance is more than just a record or a concert, it’s an experience and a lifestyle.

Previous participants in Metal Allegiance live events have included: Philip Anselmo/Rex Brown (Pantera), Joey Belladonna/Frank Bello/Charlie Benante/Scott Ian (Anthrax), David Ellefson (Megadeth), Gary Holt/Kerry King/Dave Lombardo (Slayer), Chuck Billy/Alex Skolnick (Testament), Troy Sanders (Mastodon), Mike Portnoy (The Winery Dogs) and Andreas Kisser (Sepultura) to name a few. These unforgettable events have also spawned surprise appearances by the likes of Geezer Butler (Black Sabbath), Phil Campbell/Mikkey Dee (Motöhead), Steve Vai and Billy Sheehan (The Winery Dogs).

Metal Allegiance on the web:

Website
Facebook
Instagram
Twitter

Share : facebooktwittergoogle plus
pinterest

TWISTED SISTER GUITARIST JAY JAY FRENCH TELLS EDDIE WHY THEY CHOSE DRUMMER MIKE PORTNOY TO HONOR A.J PERO

JJFrench400 Twisted Sister guitarist Jay Jay French was guest on the May 11th broadcast of Eddie’s Sirius/XM show, Eddie Trunk Live. Jay Jay was discussing Twisted Sister’s final tour and why they selected drummer Mike Portnoy to honor A.J. Pero, who passed away unexpectedly, on March 20th.

“That is a really great question,” French responded. “Here is how that really went down. I was at the Starland [Ballroom] waiting to go on stage with Adrenaline Mob, and Mike was there as well. And the two of us were just kind of sitting in the dressing room and shaking our heads, because, don’t forget, it was only a day [after A.J. died] — it was the next day. So we were both kind of shaking our heads in disbelief. And he turned to me and he said, ‘By the way, I just want you to know, my schedule happens to be clear after mid-May, and if you want me to do it, I’m there.’ And I kind of looked at him and I went, ‘Wow, that’s quite an amazing offer.’ He’s such a great drummer; he’s so legendary.

A.J. and Mike, I guess, kind of were interchangeable within the Adrenaline Mob situation. And most people don’t understand how great, technically, A.J. was; he was a spectacular drummer. They had enormous respect for each other; they were brothers, in a way. They really were. And he just said, ‘If you want me, I’ll be happy to do it.’ And I kind of told the guys in the band, and everyone was, like, ‘Wow! Really? Wow! That’s amazing.’ So that’s kind of how it transpired.”

French continued, “I’ll tell you how much of a fan [Mike] is [of Twisted Sister]. I mean, he is such a fanboy. He came to rehearsal and handed me cassettes he made off the air of our famous shows that were broadcast back in the day, from Hammerheads, on WBAB, WLIR, live in Detroit… He had stuff that I didn’t even remembed that we did. And he had ’em, and he had ’em labeled. And he said, ‘I just found them.’ He goes, ‘I want you to know. This is from my personal collection.’ And what I said to him was, ‘How does it feel to play with a band that you snuck in to see back in the day?’ And he said, ‘It’s really… It’s quite amazing.’ So, I think, if I look at it through his eyes, if he was 15 or 16 and someone said to him, ‘One day you’ll be playing with them,’ I don’t think he would ever think that would happen. So I think that that’s something great for him, and, of course, for us, it’s an honor. So it goes both ways.”

Before the band ventures out on their 2016 Forty and F**k It farewell tour, the band will be honoring A.J. with two tribute shows: May 30th at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas and Saturday, June 13th at The Starland Ballroom in Sayreville, New Jersey. Tickets on sale now.

JJFrench400

Share : facebooktwittergoogle plus
pinterest

CATHOUSE LIVE AT IRVINE MEADOWS ON AUGUST 15TH: ALL-STAR JAM, EXTREME, TOM KEIFER OF CINDERELLA, SEBASTIAN BACH, DOKKEN, FASTER PUSSYCAT & MORE

cathouse400 Riki Rachtman’s World Famous Cathouse will return to Southern California for one night of debauchery with Cathouse Live At Irvine Meadows, Saturday, August 15th at Irvine Meadows Amphitheater (recently known as Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre) in Irvine, CA. Riki Rachtman created the original rock dance club that dominated the Hollywood scene from 1986-1993. Now, along with Live Nation and Synergy Global Entertainment (SGE), he’s bringing Cathouse Live to a much larger audience with this decadent music and lifestyle festival.

The initial music lineup for Cathouse Live features some of the defining rock artists of the ‘80s and ‘90s, including an All-Star Jam, Extreme, Cinderella’s Tom Keifer, Sebastian Bach, Dokken, Faster Pussycat, Stephen Pearcy (the voice of Ratt), Saigon Kick, Gilby Clarke, Dangerous Toys, L.A. Guns, Junkyard, Trixter, Autograph, Black ‘N Blue, Tracii Guns, Enuff Z’ Nuff, BulletBoys, Bang Tango, Jetboy, Pretty Boy Floyd, Tuff and Little Caesar.

Cathouse Live will feature band performances on two stages, VIP Meet and Greets, a vendor village, a chopper motorcycle show, tattoo shops, go-go dancers, and more.

“I recently started a Cathouse Hollywood Facebook page and everyone was asking ‘Why don’t you do another Cathouse?’ I loved the idea and mentioned it on Twitter. So many bands told me that they wanted to be a part of it, that I knew that I had to bring it back on a much larger scale. It was too big for a club, so we decided to do a festival,” Rachtman explains. “The music scene isn’t what it was like back then–that type of decadence. We’re going to bring the debauchery of the Cathouse back to Southern California! SoCal needs this kind of rock festival so people will have the chance to go out, have fun and enjoy a great rock show in all its excess. Cathouse was a very successful weekly nightclub for six years, so we’re trying to pack all those years of Cathouse into one night for Cathouse Live. All I want is for those who go to have a good time and say, ‘That was the BEST ROCK FESTIVAL EVER.’”

Tickets for Cathouse Live At Irvine Meadows go on sale Friday, May 15th at 10:00 AM PT at www.CathouseLive.com and start at just $15 plus fees.

Aptly named Nothin’ But A Good Time, Youth Gone Wild, Nobody Rides For Free, and Riki’s Big Package, the Cathouse is coming out of the gate with a handful of exclusive experiences and VIP opportunities to get a front row ticket, have a meet and greet and photo with the bands, be backstage in the dressing rooms, watch the show while standing on the main stage, and drink the night away in the Cathouse VIP lounge. All packages and experiences are available at www.CathouseLive.com while they last!

Stephen Pearcy of Ratt recalls, “I remember the Cathouse very well…used to go there when off the road with the RATT tours in the ‘80s. Anything and everything went down there. Great jams, good stories in my book about that place. Everybody was somebody or thought they were, and trashed. You knew you had a good time there when you couldn’t remember what you did there the next day! Myself, Riki, Fred Coury, Tracii Guns, Taime and a couple others created a jam band called P.I.G. (Partners In Grime). We only did a few shows, got a bus, went out and had a great time. Places like the Cathouse will never happen again. Those were the dayz.”

The original Hollywood Cathouse was known for its edgy, underground, dirty rock ‘n’ roll vibe that was rooted in punk. It reeked of raunch and pure decadence. Patrons would freely indulge. The DJ played rock ‘n’ roll between unannounced performances from bands like Guns N’ Roses (Cathouse regulars who performed live at the club in 1986 just before their debut record was released), Sebastian Bach, Stephen Pearcy of Ratt, L.A. Guns, Faster Pussycat, Junkyard, Jetboy, Bang Tango, Saigon Kick, Black ‘N Blue, Little Caesar, and many more. Guns N’ Roses’ video for It’s So Easy was shot at the Cathouse, Alice Cooper played one Halloween, and when Ice-T was banned from every Los Angeles club, Riki invited his band Body Count to play Cathouse. “It wouldn’t be uncommon to see Guns N’ Roses one week and Alice In Chains the next–so many bands played before they were huge. It was also the kind of place where you’d find Robert Downey Jr. rubbing elbows with Aerosmith’s Stephen Tyler,” says Rachtman.

Cathouse was the place to discover the best rock ‘n’ roll. Ask anyone who ever went to Cathouse…they’ll try to piece together what they remember about how legendary it was. With Cathouse Live At Irvine Meadows, the Cathouse is returning for those who lived the legend as it happened and those who are ready to experience this piece of rock ‘n’ roll history for the first time.

“Riki Rachtman is a great ambassador for a whole generation of hard rock,” says Live Nation Executive Vice President Rich Best. “We’re excited to partner with his iconic Cathouse brand to bring some of the biggest rock bands of the ‘80s and ‘90s together for this event. With over 20 bands that helped define an era with millions of records sold and dozens of hit songs, Cathouse Live at Irvine Meadows is a great value for fans.”

Two lucky unsigned bands will have the chance to play at Cathouse Live at Irvine Meadows via the Cathouse Live Battle of the Bands, held Tuesday, July 14 at the infamous Whisky A Go-Go on the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood, CA. The grand prize winner will open the main stage and the runner up–as chosen by celebrity rock judges–will open the second stage at Cathouse Live. Bands can apply for a chance to play the Cathouse Live Battle of the Bands by emailing mproductionsrocks@gmail.com between May 12th and July 1st.

Los Angeles Times writer Kastle Waserman described Cathouse in her August 23rd, 2001 feature, noting: “On any given night, high-heeled, platinum blonds vied for attention on the dance floor. Aspiring rock musicians with impossibly teased hair crowded the bar and offered their standard pickup line: ‘Come see my band play.’ In VIP corners, rock notables mixed easily with Hollywood scenesters…Within weeks of its opening in the late 1980s, the Cathouse became ‘world-famous,’ L.A.’s place to be for rock ‘n’ roll kicks. A six-year run saw it evolve from a lightning-strike success into a legendary landmark…”

Don’t miss this rare opportunity to re-live the Cathouse experience August 15th 2015 at Cathouse Live At Irvine Meadows.

Cathouse on the web:

Website
Facebook/a>
Twitter
Instagram
You Tube

cathouseposter640

Share : facebooktwittergoogle plus
pinterest

METALLICA CLOSE OUT THE FIRST WEEKEND OF THE USA’S ROCK IN RIO FESTIVAL IN LAS VEGAS

Metallica2010pic2400pix Steve Appleford of Rolling Stone reports:

The inaugural weekend of the Rock in Rio festival on the Las Vegas Strip ended with a two-hour blast of Metallica last night, in a concert that was streamed around the world through Yahoo! Live.

The band’s appearance was especially anticipated because Metallica has toured almost exclusively overseas in recent years, with only occasional one-off dates, benefits and awards shows in the U.S. As fans waited impatiently for the set to begin, Hetfield finally stepped up to the mic. “I’m sorry to make this announcement but…” He began slowly, then roared the opening lines to 1997’s Fuel: “Give me fuel, give me fire, give me that which I desire!”

The band revealed nothing new from the album now being recorded in their Bay Area studio, the first since 2008’s Death Magnetic (and the 2011 Lou Reed collaboration Lulu). But they did perform Lords of Summer, a demo track released last year on iTunes. “It’s the newest song until the new album is done,” Hetfield said cheerfully. “What’s taking so long? Like, hurry up!”

During the encore, Metallica ripped through the straight ahead rock of Thin Lizzy’s Whiskey in the Jar, which Hetfield introduced as “a song we love playing. It gets people bouncing.”

The crowd was still bouncing when the band closed with the early Metallica standards Creeping Death and Seek and Destroy then spent several minutes lingering onstage to wave their goodbyes, tossing guitar picks and drumsticks into the crowd. It was a fittingly loud and aggressive end to Rock in Rio’s first weekend in the U.S., and it set a high standard for next week’s pop lineup to match.

Read more at Rolling Stone.

source: rollingstone.com

Share : facebooktwittergoogle plus
pinterest

1 641 642 643 644 645 902