Video footage of guitarist Jake E. Lee’s band Red Dragon Cartel, performing Ozzy Osbourne’s classic The Ultimate Sin on November 22nd at the Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood, California can be seen below.
The band is currently on tour. See current dates below:
December:
2 – Marlin Room At Webster Hall – New York, NY
3 – Dobbs – Philadelphia, PA
5 – Mexicali Live – Teaneck, NJ
6 – The Chance – Poughkeepsie, NY
7 – 1150 Oak Bar & Grill – Cranston, RI
9 – Rockstarz – Cheektowaga, NY
10 – The Garrison – Toronto, ONT, Canada
12 – Token Lounge – Westland, MI
13 – Reggies – Chicago, IL
16 – Oddbodys – Dayton, OH
18 – Agora Theatre – Cleveland, OH
19 – Altar Bar – Pittsburgh, PA
20 – Fish Head Cantina – Baltimore, MD
Red Dragon Cartel’s self titled debut album was released on January 24th in Europe and January 28th in North America.
LA Guns have announced they will release a live album recorded in Boston in 1989.
The show was captured during what was arguably the group’s heyday. According to eOne Records, “the sound quality is excellent and the boys are absolutely at the top of their game, ripping through supercharged versions of One More Reason, Electric Gypsy, Never Enough and more.”
It includes liner notes written by the band’s frontman Phil Lewis. The record is available from December 8th in CD and digital formats.
In September, LA Guns split with bassist Scott Griffin, replacing him with former member Kenny Kweens. Griffin hit out at Lewis in the wake of what he insists was a sacking.
Boston 1989 track list:
1. Kiss My Love Goodbye
2. Wild Obsession
3. Dirty Love
4. Slap In The Face
5. Electric Gypsy
6. Rip And Tear
7. Never Enough
8. Malaria
9. Sex Action
10. Bitch Is Back
11. 17 Crash
12. I Wanna Be Your Man
13. One More Reason
14. Rock Candy
15. Some Lie For Love
Following the release of the video for Let’s Play Ball from their forthcoming album, Rock Or Bust, AC/DC has released an official video for the title track. Watch it below.
Rock Or Bust is due out on December 2nd, but is available for pre-order by clicking on the highlighted links below:
The Ronnie James Dio Stand Up and Shout Cancer Fund, the charity founded in memory of the late rock singer, recently presented the T.J. Martell Foundation for Leukemia, Cancer and AIDS Research with a check for $100,000, bringing the organization’s total gift to $400,000. These monies are earmarked for gastric cancer research at the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center in Nashville, TN. Ronnie James Dio, one of rock’s all-time great vocalists, died four years ago of gastric cancer, and the charity founded in his memory is committed to raising money and awareness in hope of one day finding a cure for this dreaded disease.
The presentation of the donation was made at the T. J. Martell Foundation’s 39th Annual Honors Gala held at Cipriani in New York by Dr. Sandeep Kapoor, Dio Cancer Fund Medical Director (and co-founder with Ronnie James Dio’s widow Wendy Dio). Speaking at the event, he said, “Cancer is a disgusting disease that needlessly robs us of loved ones and family members. We must find better ways to screen patients for cancer, and it is vital that we motivate people to get themselves checked and know the risks and preventative measures for all forms of cancer. Our fund’s mission is to stop cancer before it starts.”
Since its inception in 2010, The Dio Cancer Fund has raised funds via direct donations, merchandise sales and varied fund-raising events, among them a Celebrity Guitar Auction and an annual Awards Gala, this year held to coincide with the release of This Is Your Life an album that pays tribute to Ronnie James Dio. This Is Your Life includes contributions by such metal heavyweights as Metallica, Motörhead, Anthrax, Halestorm, Rob Halford, Glenn Hughes, Scorpions, Corey Taylor and Tenacious D. among many others, all performing Dio songs. The album, released in April by Rhino, has already sold over 100,000 units worldwide, with proceeds from sales benefiting the Dio Cancer Fund.
Plans are underway for a series of events in Los Angeles next May to commemorate the 5th anniversary of Dio’s passing. Says Wendy Dio, “Ronnie would be so very proud of all of these efforts made in his name. Early detection saves lives, and one day, we will find a cure for this terrible disease.”
As the singer of some of the most iconic bands of the hard rock/heavy metal genre – Rainbow, Black Sabbath/Heaven and Hell, and Dio – Ronnie James Dio’s voice can be heard on such all-time classics as Man on the Silver Mountain, Long Live Rock n’ Roll, Neon Knights, Heaven and Hell, Rainbow in the Dark, Holy Diver, and The Last in Line, among countless others. The Ronnie James Dio Stand Up and Shout Cancer Fund is a privately funded 501(c)(3) charity organization dedicated to cancer prevention, research and education. It has already raised in excess $750,000.
Steve Mascord of Hot Metal posted a review of AC/DC’s latest album, Rock Or Bust. Read the review in its entirety below:
When it comes to expectations regarding this, the Australian hard rock behemoths’ 16th studio album, pessimism has out-weighed optimism.
Founder Malcolm Young has retired due to ill health, drummer Phil Rudd appears to be out of the band again following a brush with the law and producer Brendan O’Brien has had to deny speculation Rock Or Bust was spat out in just two weeks.
Lead-off singles Play Ball and Rock Or Bust have divided aficionados: are they tired and clichéd, or refreshingly uncomplicated examples of what rock used to be? Those who are optimistic about next week’s release believe the line-up changes may give AC/DC a new perspective, a different slant on their timeless blues rock that changed the face of popular music.
This review is based on the album launch on November 23rd in the New South Wales, Australia, town of The Rock, population 850. The new video for Rock Or Bust was played on a big screen to a crowd of around 1000 in fly-infested 40 degree heat, and then the 11-track album was aired in full at high volume.
Aside from the two aforementioned songs which are already known to fans, Sweet Candy and Hard Times garnered the best response from a group of curious locals and hardcore AC/DC fanatics. But the uncomfortable truth is that the loss of key personnel has not seen them fall back from 2008′s Black Ice, nor has it given them a new lease of life.
AC/DC has just released another patchy album, with some thunderous moments and some that will have you hitting the skip button. There is no epiphany, no capitulation, neither victory nor defeat. The following track-by-track assessment is provided via notes I made at the launch.
Rock Or Bust: While not a classic, it’s one that has the reviewer humming the chorus. It’s one big riff, really – slightly reminiscent of Come And Get It from Stiff Upper Lip. A success, then.
Play Ball: The charm of this song was not immediately apparent when we first heard it, as part of a baseball commercial. Angus’ lick at the end of the chorus is simple and stellar, elevating it above the dross with which some have grouped it.
Rock The Blues Away is a boogie singalong romp, similar to Rocking All The Way on Black Ice. It lacks a distinctive riff but is saved by a catchy chorus, although Malcolm’s backing vocals are missed;
Miss Adventure is just terrible – possibly the worst song Ackadacka have ever recorded. It fits into that category from their canon that I call military/metallic – the songs which stray furthest from their bluesy roots. What’s fast but goes nowhere? Miss Adventure. A dog’s breakfast.
Dogs Of War: A rumbling anthem with an incisive riff, this one isn’t so bad. There’s a chanted chorus and crunching guitars in one of the more engaging tracks on offer here.
Got Some Rock’n’Roll Thunder: Just a song – not good, not bad. It chugs along at an agreeable pace but reaches no great heights and it’s unlikely to be hummed in the showers of the world any time soon.
Hard Times: We’re certainly not broadening the English language with our titles here, are we? But Hard Times has real value, with a groove-based intro and the sort of slightly funky refrain that makes you want to bang your entire torso rather than just your head. A good track.
Baptism By Fire breaks away from the AC/DC template somewhat with a different song structure. It’s not a big envelope they have, but they’re pushing it here. The results, however, are mixed.
Rock The House: This one has a Zeppelin-esque call-and-response dynamic with Angus Young wailing between, rather than underneath, Brian Johnson’s vocals. But the song itself is about as memorable as its title is innovative.
Sweet Candy: Hear that intro? That’s the band that released Highway To Hell in 1979. For some of Johnson’s tenure, unfortunately, it’s sounded more like a dirt track to hell – boggy, slippery, even flooded. Sweet Candy finds us a stretch of bitumen.
Emission Control The worst attempt by old rockers to do a hip pun since Alice Cooper released Woman Of Mass Distraction. But Alice’s song was better than Emission Control. Instantly forgettable.
Hot Metal Rating: 6.5/10
Rock Or Bust is due out on December 2nd, but is available for pre-order by clicking on the highlighted links below:
When asked if he thinks Chickenfoot will ever release another album, he responded: “I’m not sure. I’m always that guy that’s bugging them. I think I drive them crazy, because I’m always writing songs, I’m sending them demos and saying, ‘C’mon, let’s do it. Let’s do it. Let’s do it.'”
First of all, Sam, Mike and Chad, they’ve got other things to do. And Chad, of course, is right in the middle of an album project with the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and so that’s a difficult thing; that’s his main band. And Sam and Mike are now part of Sammy’s band [The Circle, also featuring drummer Jason Bonham], and they have a schedule. And then Sammy, along with all of his businesses, both for profit and for charity, is also extremely busy. So I come back from being around the world and touring and doing this stuff, and I’m, like, ‘C’mon, let’s go. Let’s go.’ And they’re, like, ‘Well, hold on a minute.’ And then I’m off again. So I guess I’m partly to blame because of my busy schedule.
[Chickenfoot] is the only band I’ve ever been in, really, since I left New York that made records. I became a solo artist sort of by accident, and then I’ve been doing that since ’86. And all of a sudden I get a chance [to launch a band] from the ground up…
It’s different from playing with Deep Purple or Mick Jagger; this is a band of equals writing original material. And so I really want it to fly, you know what I mean?! I really wanna put in as much time as I can get into the band. But it’s a little different for the other guys, because they have history and they have current commitments — especially Chad; he’s in a world-famous band already. [Laughs] So, I think that’s where it’s always a bit funny. We’re trying to get our priorities straight, and we probably never will. But I do think there’s a couple of more records in there somehow.
It becomes a little bit stranger as the music industry changes; it’s rolling away from focusing on albums and I think that puts Chickenfoot in an even more awkward position because I think a rock band needs to put out a record and tour; I think that’s what you’ve gotta do. And the putting out a full album and touring is something that, I think, that the four members of Chickenfoot are having a hard time fitting into their future schedule. Recording songs, that’d be a piece of cake and we’d love to do it, but I think it’s how we proceed after we record songs. Because we’re not a singles band, really, we’re not a video band, we’re not a band that shows up at a TV show with a huge production with clowns and animals and dancers and explosions and stuff; we’re a rock and roll band.”
To download Eddie’s entire podcast with Joe Satriani, please click here.
Video footage of guitarist Jake E. Lee’s band Red Dragon Cartel, performing Ozzy Osbourne’s classic The Ultimate Sin on November 22nd at the Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood, California can be seen below.
