Category : LATEST NEWS

EDDIE TRUNK, JIM FLORENTINE AND DON JAMIESON DISCUSS “THAT METAL SHOW”

Tim Louie of the Aquarian Weekly spoke with Eddie Trunk, Jim Florentine and Don Jamieson about That Metal Show. Portions of the interview appear below.

Aquarian: Did you ever imagine that this show would last 12 seasons?

Eddie Trunk: I’ve been asked that question a lot and I was just happy to get it on the air five years ago. It was quite the fight to get it just on the air and then once I did, I was just happy to see it get on the air and get rolling. And then to have seen how it’s sunk in and connected with people, artists and fans alike, and also outside of America now and a lot of International territories, is really pretty remarkable. So I’m just happy we’re still doing it. We’re going to hit 100 episodes this new season and it’s been a phenomenal ride that I hope continues.

Don Jamieson: You know, after every season, I usually think to myself, “All right, well, that’s probably it.” So here we are, 12 seasons later. Of course, I’m thrilled! I want to do this until I’m 80, dude! We’ll call it That Metal Hip! If we’re lucky enough, we’ll keep doing it, but if it ended tomorrow, what a great accomplishment. I got to hang out with my two best friends on tv, talk about metal and get paid. God bless America!

Jim Florentine: I think since it’s on VH1 Classic, a network that doesn’t have much original programming and is kind of a hidden channel, it gave the show some time to breathe. If we were on NBC and didn’t get ratings within the first two or three weeks, we would’ve got canceled. So I think it’s on the perfect network for it to last this long and plus, metalheads are loyal. They’ll stick with us. They might not like a certain guest or two here and there, but other than that, they’re like, “What else am I gonna watch?” A 40-year-old guy in a rock shirt doesn’t have many options on a Saturday night at 11 o’clock.

Aquarian: Has there been any thought in bringing at least one season back to New York since this is where you guys are all from?

ET: We actually had planned this special from Times Square, but the day that we were scheduled to shoot it was the day Hurricane Sandy hit. So we were scheduled to do a special that day and obviously, needless to say, it got canceled, but that was going to be kind of a New York homecoming sort of special that fell apart.

Once that got canceled, we ended up shooting a variation of that show in Vegas with Vince Neil. That special we did with Vince Neil was not supposed to happen. That was supposed to be the New York Times Square special.

So the idea of doing a special or doing something back in New York—which, of course, we’re all from New Jersey, we’re all based here, the network is still headquartered here—it’s come up, but doing a season from here is just really difficult. You said it yourself, the whole reason we do the show in L.A. is that 90 percent of the artist community that we’re trying to reach lives there, which makes booking the show so much easier. And at the end of the day, the only people that care whether we do the show in New York or L.A. is people who live in New York or L.A.

Read more at the Aquarian Weekly.

JON OLIVA TO “RAISE THE CURTAIN” ON JULY 2ND

It took a while: more than 30 years after founding the legendary Savatage, Jon Oliva presents his first ever solo album. Having released albums with Savatage first and Jon Oliva’s Pain later, this first Oliva solo album was about to become different: Raise The Curtain combines Jon’s early music influences of Prog Rock/70’s with the sound he cultivated with Savatage and Jon Oliva’s Pain. The result is a high-class, thrilling musical journey, something all lovers from (Prog) Rock to Metal shouldn’t miss.

“After the passing of my dear friend Matt LaPorte I felt very confused about the future of Jon Oliva’s Pain”, Oliva speaks out.“A week or so after Matt’s service, I was speaking to my friend Dan Fasciano about what I wanted to do. He suggested that I come by his home where he has a full studio and we just hang out and record whatever I had that I wanted to demo. Unknown to me at the time, Dan also had tons of unfinished music that he wanted to do something with. It was very strange because he had tons of stuff and so did I. I don’t remember how we actually started writing together but it just happened.

Then it became almost like a competition. I would show up at his house at 9am and we just started combining what we both had and somehow it was magic. He would say on the phone I hope you got something because I do. We recorded over 60 songs in a very short period of time. I was amazed at the fact that his music and mine were very similar and easy to join together. I knew that this CD was going to be different and I wanted to play as much of it myself as I could. This was something I had to do for me and for Criss.

Dan and Chris Kinder’s (Jon Oliva’s Pain drummer) help was crucial to this CD coming out the way it did. The work of Tom and Jim Morris and Wayne Le’fleur, was also crucial.

The fact that this is the last of Criss’s music (who died 20 years ago in a car accident), makes me sad but I’m also happy that I got all his music out to the fans because that’s what he would have wanted. Everyone who pushed me to do this album: I thank you, your support is crucial to me. I so much loved recording this CD and I got to fulfill my deepest musical fantasy. At the same time I got the rest of the Criss’s music out. It was a labor of love, I’m very proud of thank you all for listening.”

Raise The Curtain will be released as a CD (first edition comes as Digipak) and strictly limited double-vinyl edition in gatefold sleeve (800 copies worldwide only).

TRAILER FOR AEROSMITH’S “ROCK FOR THE RISING SUN” POSTED ONLINE. DVD, BLU-RAY AND DIGITAL VIDEO TO BE RELEASED ON JULY 23RD

On July 23rd, 2013, Eagle Rock Entertainment will release Rock For The Rising Sun by Aerosmith. This is a simultaneous release on DVD, Blu-ray and digital formats [Pre-book Order Date June 28th, MSRP $19.98 Blu-ray, $14.98 DVD].

This is the band’s first live video release in 9 years, since the release of You Gotta Move in 2004 and it offers a unique portrayal of life on the road with Aerosmith combined with superb live performances, as the band toured Japan. Rock For The Rising Sun features the classic tracks: Love In An Elevator, Livin’ On The EdgeLast Child, Walk This Way, Draw The Line, Sweet Emotion, Hangman Jury, and many more, with material drawn from shows throughout this tour. As bonuses, the DVD includes extra live tracks, Lick And A Promise recorded at the Hiroshima Green Garden Arena and One Way Street taken from the Tokyo Dome.

In March 2011, Japan was beset by a huge earthquake, a monstrous tsunami and the subsequent meltdown of the Fukushima nuclear plant. In the autumn of 2011, despite advice to the contrary, Aerosmith brought their Back On The Road tour to Japan, a country with which they’d always had a special relationship. The Japanese fans came out in droves and Aerosmith responded with some of the finest shows of their distinguished career. This film follows the band on that tour combining full-length live tracks with behind the scenes footage, which is at times touching and emotional and at others humorous and insightful. More than anything else it demonstrates the Japanese fans’ love affair with Aerosmith and their music.

Aerosmith are truly one of the great rock acts of all time and this incredible concert film brings together tracks from across their storied career. A live band par excellence, Rock For The Rising Sun shows them rolling up their sleeves and doing what they do better than anyone else.

Rock For The Rising Sun track listing:

1) Draw The Line
2) Love In An Elevator
3) Livin’ On The Edge
4) Hangman Jury
5) No More No More
6) Mama Kin
7) Monkey On My Back
8) Toys In The Attic
9) Listen To The Thunder
10) Sweet Emotion
11) Boogie Man
12) Rats In The Cellar
13) Movin’ Out
14) Last Child
15) S.O.S. (Too Bad)
16) Walk This Way
17) Train Kept A Rollin’ (credits)

Watch a trailer for Rock For The Rising Sun below.

HARMONY VINEYARD’S PRESENTS “ROCKING LONG ISLAND-THE RN’R PHOTOGRAPHY OF MARK WEISS” BENEFITING THE LONG ISLAND MUSIC HALL OF FAME ON JUNE 22ND

Harmony Vineyards, Long Island’s first waterfront winery, brings together music, art, literature and film to celebrate the best in rock culture to benefit The Long Island Music Hall of Fame.

Beginning June 22nd at 3 p.m., famed rock photographer Mark Weiss will be sharing the stories behind his photographs, amassed during his 35-year career. As a complement to the show, Weiss will introduce his collaboration with artist David Banegas who has been painting mirror images of Weiss’s iconic portraits, including David Lee Roth, Axl Rose and Debbie Harry. For more information please visit www.WEISSGUYgallery.com and www.davidbanegas.com.

“So much of rock music history stems from Long Island,” said David Acker, owner of Harmony Vineyards. “What better way to spend a summer day than to celebrate the artists and sounds on Stony Brook Harbor.”

“I love that Harmony Vineyards is celebrating not only rock music, but shining a light on Long Island’s own,” says Weiss.

For more information, go to harmonyvineyards.com.

TOM KEIFER’S PERFORMANCE ON THE “LATE SHOW WITH DAVID LETTERMAN” POSTED ONLINE

Cinderella frontman Tom Keifer performed Solid Ground, from his new solo album, The Way Life Goes, on the June 18th episode of CBS’ Late Show With David Letterman. Watch the performance below.

The Way Life Goes was released on April 30th through Merovee Records (through Warner Music Group’s Independent Label Group).