A week after announcing seventeen U.S. dates for the fall, Slayer announced today (September 9th) the addition of seven Canadian concerts as well as a date in Seattle. These added shows are in bold below, and are part of Slayer’s first North American tour in two years.
Slayer – Tom Araya/bass vocals, guitarist Kerry King, drummer Paul Bostaph, and guitarist Gary Holt, who continues to fill in for the late founding member Jeff Hanneman – will have Gojira and 4ARM support on all dates.
Tickets for these newly-added dates go on sale beginning this Friday, September 13th. Log onto www.slayer.net for a complete on-sale dates and ticketing information.
Slayer’s Fall 2013 North American tour is as follows:
October:
22 Sullivan Sports Arena, Anchorage, AK
25 The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, NV
28 Hollywood Palladium, Hollywood, CA
30 Events Center @ San Jose State, San Jose, CA
November
1 WAMU Center, Seattle, WA 3 Stampede Corrall, Calgary, AB 4 Shaw Center, Edmonton, AB 5 Praireland Park Center, Saskatoon, SK 7 MTS Center, Winnipeg, MB
8 Myth, Minneapolis, MN
10 FunFunFun Fest, Austin, TX
12 Bayou Music Center, Houston, TX
13 South Side Ballroom, Dallas, TX
15 Aragon Ballroom, Chicago, IL
16 The Fillmore, Detroit, MI
17 LC Pavilion, Columbus, OH
19 The Fillmore, Washington, D.C.
20 Stage AE, Pittsburgh, PA 21 Ricoh Colibsum, Toronto, ON 23 CEPSUM/University of Montreal, Montreal, QC 24 Pavilion de la Jeunesse, Quebec, QC
26 Oakdale Theatre, Wallingford, CT
27 Theatre @ MSG, New York, NY
29 Susquehanna Bank Center, Camden, NJ
30 Tsongas Arena, Boston, MA
Glenn BurnSilver of the Phoenix New Times spoke with Black Sabbath and Heaven And Hell guitarist Tony Iommi about Sabbath’s classic sludgy sound, their new album, the future of the band and Bill Ward. Portions of the interview appear below.
PNT: I have to wonder about that development of that original sound. A few early songs have a bluesy and progressive sound–but how did the heavy, sludgy sound materialize? Did you stumble on it by accident?
Iommi: The sound I was after in the first place was to have something powerful. Something to create some tension. We used to work on trying to get the sound as big as we could. I think because of my accident it made me play a different way anyway. I had to work on playing chords a different way and playing as big as I could. That’s really what it was, working on enhancing the sound. And when we all played together, the way Geezer would bend his notes the same as I do, and it makes the sound fuller.
PNT: That made it darker, heavier?
Iommi: I wanted it to be that way. When we first started, we were playing jazzy blues stuff. Once we started getting down to really writing our own stuff, that’s when the sound came about really. I wanted to create the same vibe as a horror film. It’s got tension and these evilly things going on. I wanted to do that with music and I came up with these notes that were evil [laughs].
PNT:Why do you think people took to it? Did it make their hair stand up on their arms, or maybe give them that evil thrill? Or was it just so different?
Iommi: It was unlike anything else around at that time. It was just different and people latched on to it. That’s what we wanted. Not all people–some people hated it–but it was a matter of building up the people who liked it and making more of them. There were a lot of people when we first came out who really did slag us and hated what we did.
PNT: OK, back to the future. How is playing together–recording together–after so many years of tension and not being in the studio? The last album with the original lineup was in 1978… Ozzy was booted out in 1979…
Iommi: Tensions? The tensions over the years have mainly been about business. It’s not been personal at all. We always got on well on a personal level. It’s been going really good.
It’s just a different attitude now. When we got back together to record this album everybody had a different attitude toward what we were doing this time. We wanted to make an album together. We all really appreciated each other and respected each other. That’s really the only way to go into it–a full band commitment–and everybody was ready to put everything into it.
We did try back 12 years ago, and nobody could settle on it then. It wasn’t the right time, there were to many things going on. Ozzy was doing MTV, so it just didn’t work then. We weren’t going to do it until everybody was fully committed, and that was this time. Rubin was interested in doing the album [in 2001]. We played him some tracks but that’s as far as we got with it. We pulled the plug on it. We never got into the studio. We’d just played him some tracks.
PNT: Any of these songs on 13 holdovers from the 2001 sessions?
Iommi: We totally just abandoned those. It was not a good memory, so we just scrapped them.
PNT: Where’s [drummer] Bill [Ward}? I know all of you have worked together on and off since that 1997 reunion, but is Bill even able to perform right now?
Of course–we were hoping Bill was going to do it. When we first got together, Bill was involved.
Iommi: It was Bill who pulled the plug, it wasn’t us. Bill decided on his own he didn’t want to do this, because he didn’t like things the way it was. But we still don’t know exactly what that was, because Bill won’t exactly talk to us about it. He got his lawyers to talk with our lawyers, and it went that way instead of talking to the band personally.
It got to be a silly situation. It would have been nice to have had Bill on the album, but it was getting too complicated. It had been after a year of this stuff, and we just had to get on with it.
PNT: Given how well this is going, and the success of the record, will we see more of this Black Sabbath in the future?
Ioomi: We’re not looking at like that. We’re looking at in the moment. Unfortunately, we have to work around my treatments. I’m still having treatments for the cancer. I have to go back to England every seven or eight weeks, and I have to come off the road while my system adjusts. Then we go back on the road.
It’s all been very new to me. I didn’t know how it was going to work. I haven’t done a tour since I was ill. Maybe a couple of shows, but I haven’t done a day on, day off, day on, day off tour. I have to treat my life quite differently than I did five years ago. So we don’t plan things too far down the road since I don’t know how I’m going to be after this tour.
Sebastian Bach has told fans he was offered Vince Neil’s job in Motley Crue in 1992, but he turned it down because he believed he’d be better off staying in Skid Row.
The band made the decision to replace Neil after their relationships broke down. In the end they hired John Corabi, who recorded the acclaimed 1994 self-titled album with them before record label pressure brought Neil back three years later-leaving Corabi suicidal.
But now Bach, who split with Skid Row in 1996, has said he was in line for the role.
A fan recently asked on Twitter if he’d been “considered to replace Vince in Motley,” to which the vocalist responded: “Not considered. Asked.”
After a request to clarify who approached him, he confirmed it was Motley Crue themselves. Then he was asked: “Why didn’t you take it?”
He wrote, “The short answer is that I actually thought at the time this band, Skid Row, was better. Gee, I sure know how to pick ‘em.”
Kill Devil Hill are proud to announce the October 29th release of “Revolution Rise” in North America. Featuring Pantera bassist Rex Brown, former Dio, Black Sabbath and Heaven And Hell drummer Vinny Appice, ex-Pissing Razors singer Dewey Bragg and acclaimed session/touring guitarist Mark Zavon, Kill Devil Hill will make their Century Media Records debut with the release.
Says Rex Brown of “Revolution Rise,” “This new Kill Devil Hill record is definitely one of my favorite moments of my career – it’s got balls, great melodies, awesome guitar riffing and a low end that’ll set your ass on fire! The album far exceeds our wildest expectations and we can’t wait to take this music out on the road and share it with all of our friends and fans. Buckle your seat belts, we’re all in for one hell of a ride!”
Kill Devil Hill will celebrate their sophomore release with an October 29th CD release party and performance at The Roxy on the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood, CA. The band will tour this fall to promote the release, with more details to follow in the coming weeks.
“Revolution Rise”‘ was produced by Kill Devil Hill and Jeff Pilson, and mixed by Jay Ruston [Stone Sour, Anthrax].
Revolution Rise” track listing:
1. No Way Out
2. Crown Of Thorns
3. Leave It All Behind
4. Why
5. Wake Up The Dead
6. Long Way From Home
7. Where Angels Dare To Roam
8. Stained Glass Sadness
9. Endless Static
10. Stealing Days
11. Life Goes On
In anticipation of the release of the band’s 3D movie, Metallica Through the Never, the band have released a live of version of Master of Puppets which will appears on the movie’s soundtrack. Listen to it below.
The movie soundtrack will be released on September 24th on two CD’s through Blackened Recordings. It will also be available as a digital download and on 33 1/3 rpm vinyl, with limited-edition 45 rpm vinyl slated for release this fall. The soundtrack is currently available for pre-order at itunes.
Metallica Through the Never will open in IMAX 3D theaters on September 27th, with a wide release on October 4th.
Greg Prato of Songfacts spoke with singer Jon Oliva. Portions of the interview appear below.
Songfacts: From what I understand, Raise the Curtain is your first ever solo album.
Jon: Officially, yeah.
Songfacts: How did it come about that you’re doing a solo album now?
Jon: When we lost Matt LaPorte after the Festival album for Jon Oliva’s Pain [Jon’s side project], that was really the thing that started it all off. Because at that time it was very traumatic, I didn’t know what I wanted to do for once. I was kind of like, “Well, what do I do? Do I try to replace Matt? I don’t want to think about this shit right now.”
My friend Dan [Fasciano] had a studio in his house and I just started coming down to his house early in the mornings, like 9, 10 o’clock in the morning before I had to go to work with TSO in the afternoon. And we just started writing together. It was weird. He played me some stuff he had that was unfinished and I had stuff that was unfinished. I had the last of Criss’ riffs that were unfinished. I just figured with everything that’s gone on and if I’m going to ever do this, this is the time to do it. That’s how it started.
Songfacts: The album has a vintage prog vibe to it, especially the album-opening title track. Is that something that you were consciously going for?
Jon: I think that’s because Dan wrote that in like 1940. [Laughing] The album has that feel, and I’ll tell you why for several reasons. One is that we used all vintage equipment. I didn’t want to use a bunch of processing guitar – V-Amps and ProMaxes and all that shit. I decided to use straight Vox 31 watt amplifiers, an old 50 watt Marshall amplifier, and a Mesa Boogie style that Pete Townsend from The Who used in the ’70s. And we didn’t use a lot of effects on the guitars. The bass, believe it or not, is a duplicate 1963 Paul McCartney violin Hofner bass. That’s what I played, but I played it through an old SVP amplifier that was from the ’60s.
So the album has that vibe because the instrumentation that’s used on it was all vintage: all tube mikes, all tube amps, not a lot of gizmo toys on guitars or anything like that. Everything was old school. And I’ll tell you, I’m going to be happy with the way the album sounds. It has a very big, warm sound to it that I think a lot of records nowadays are missing.
Songfacts: As far as the songwriting in the Trans-Siberian Orchestra, how does it work? Is it a collaboration or do you come in with ideas?
Jon: Writing with Trans-Siberian Orchestra is a whoooooole different world. It’s very difficult. TSO is a very intricate setup. We have a lot of people, so you have to be aware that you’re writing within the capabilities of the people that you have. And Paul [O’Neill] is a perfectionist. And he’s also insane. So you have this mixture of insanity and perfection and we have some long sessions. I mean, we’re talking 17 hours sometimes, and then we’ll come back the next day and he’ll change everything around. “Well, nope, sorry. We’re going to try this now!” And we’re like, “We’re going to kill you! We’ve been here 17 fuckin’ hours.”
But, you know what, the man’s always right. I can’t argue with my walls; my walls have platinum albums all over them and they all say Trans-Siberian Orchestra. So if I proved him wrong one time, it would be great. But I can’t. Every time, he ends up being right. But he’s difficult to work with. He demands a lot from you. But he also takes care of the people that work with him very, very well. It’s very difficult working with a band that’s got 60 people involved in it. It’s bad enough being a band with three other guys, try 58 other guys.
Songfacts: Who would you say are some of your favorite singers and also songwriters?
Jon: Beatles, obviously. Freddie Mercury – the earlier Queen stuff I liked a lot. Man, there’s so many. Pete Townsend is a brilliant songwriter. A lot of the Deep Purple. I mean, Black Sabbath, Tony Iommi, God, he’s the hard rock riff master, he’s the messiah. I don’t think there would be heavy metal if it wasn’t for Tony Iommi and Black Sabbath. They were very inspirational to me.
Sabbath was the band that turned me on to heavy music. Before I heard Sabbath, all I did was play the Beatle records and learn. The Beatles taught me how to sing and how to play instruments, but it was Sabbath that turned in to where we started cranking out songs like Sirens and City Beneath the Surface and things like that, which were waaaay heavier than anything we had ever done. They were like the teachers of the hard rock. And Deep Purple, as well. It was a very tough competition there going on with who I liked more. Some albums of Sabbath I liked better, then Deep Purple’s album came out and I didn’t like it as much. And then they would switch, the next Sabbath album would come out, and then they’d put another album out and I’d like that one better. Not sure who were the guys that I really respect as writers. Obviously the Beatles started all of that stuff.
Songfacts: Would you agree that Savatage was one of the first ever true prog metal bands?
Jon: Absolutely. No doubt about it. I think that really started with Hall of the Mountain King, but then definitely from Gutter Ballet on, we definitely expanded. We had done three or four records that were basically the same, except for Fight for the Rock, which we don’t count. That’s like the red-headed stepchild. But yeah, we started going that route, definitely with Gutter and Streets. I had never heard of the term prog rock until a few years ago. I didn’t know what it was. Back in 1987 I don’t remember that term being around. Was it?
Songfacts: Why do you think that TSO has reached such a huge audience, but Savatage in the ’80s didn’t? Do you think it was just a matter of timing or just listeners’ tastes at the time?
Jon: Well, I think what happened with that mainly is that the name Savatage, we ran the course with it. And because of some bad mistakes that we made business-wise in our younger days before Paul O’Neill, we never could quite recover from that and get into the bigger level. I mean, we did well. We did really good in Europe. But we never got Savatage to that level, and after 20 some odd years and then losing Criss in the middle of that, we just weren’t ready to continue.
The fatal thing that happened was with the song 12/24 off of the Dead Winter Dead album [1995]. We sent the song out around Christmastime, and a station down in Florida started playing it, and it became a hit down here.
Atlantic Records sent that CD to every radio station in America and nobody would play it. They said, “Why didn’t you play the song?” It’s like, “Well, Savatage, that’s a heavy metal band from the ’80s. We don’t play that shit.” They never even listened to it. You know how we know? Because the next year we sent the exact same song and put a Christmas tree on the cover and an angel and called it “Trans-Siberian Orchestra,” and it was #1 on 500 radio stations.
So that just goes to show you that what was holding Savatage back was Savatage. It wasn’t the songwriting. It was the same, Paul and I, and before that, Criss, Paul, and I. You know, the proof was in the pudding. “12/24,” which is technically a Savatage song from the album Dead Winter Dead, has sold millions of records. I’ve got them hanging on my wall. But when it was released as Savatage, it sold 30,000.
So what does that tell you? It tells you that the name’s turning people off for some reason, and that’s what it was. Now look at what’s happened. TSO is one of the biggest bands in the world, it’s unbelievable. It’s funny to me, because it’s Savatage. [Laughing] I get a kick out of this. I’m like, “It’s Savatage with tuxedos and a bunch of other people from all around the world.” We bring in people from all around the world, which makes us kind of international, which I think is cool. But the thing that sells it is the music, Paul’s stories, and Paul’s poetry and the lyrics, and the way that Paul and I work together when we write. There’s a chemistry there.
Songfacts: What do you think Criss would have gone on to do musically if he had lived?
Jon: Musically? He would have been known as one of the best guitar players in the world, which he still is. And I think he would have shot me and Paul by now. Criss was a special talent. He’s a guy who had no idea what he was doing. Didn’t care. Was very fast mentally. We’d be playing in A and he’d be playing a solo in A flat, and before the audience could hear that he was playing in the wrong key, he would bend the notes into tune, but do it fast enough to where it never sounded like he was playing out of tune. It used to piss me off watching him do that, because I’m playing an A chord and I’m like, “There’s no way he can play there. It’s going to be a train wreck.” It was amazing. He would have been one of the best, ever. For sure.
 the addition of seven Canadian concerts as well as a date in Seattle. These added shows are in bold ... )
