It’s been three years since Canadian musical contortionist Devin Townsend confused the hell out of everyone with Empath, an album of such relentless eclecticism and stupefying eccentricity that even now it remains almost beyond comprehension. A kitchen sink album in every respect, our heroic Canuck threw literally everything into the mix. From death metal and jazz to Chad Kroeger and cats, Empath was the mindfuck to end all mindfucks.
Van Halen frontman David Lee Roth has released a new version of their classic hit “Panama!” Billed as Roth Lives! David Lee Roth Studio Live, the track information was released by Van Halen News Desk, and the song was only posted to YouTube and shared on the DLR socials. The track does sound like a more recent performance by Dave, with some double tracking at times. Last month David shared a brand new song, a Van Halen tribute song, “Nothing Could Have Stopped Us Back Then Anyway, featuring John 5 on guitar. Roth has retired from performing but has suggested he will record and release new music from time to time.
Continue reading
David Lee Roth has shared a brand new single and video for the song “Nothing Could Have Stopped Us Back Then Anyway!” The track is a loving tribute to Roth’s early days in Van Halen. The track features beautiful guitar work from John 5 and was produced by John 5 and Mike Savage. Check out the clip now and stream the song on all DSPs!
There’s a fine line between “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” and “there’s always room for improvement”, and more often than not the re-recording of old albums usually falls snugly into the former category. No matter how much more accomplished the revised version might sound from a technical standpoint, the overall results rarely change. Lightning in a bottle cannot be captured twice.
Arguably the most divisive album in the history of metal, no other record seems to split opinion quite likeMetallica’s The Black Album (Elektra). Otherwise known simply as Metallica, whenever the San Franciscan act’s fifth studio album is mentioned even in passing, the results are usually the same. Like a red rag to a bull, loud and vociferous “true fans” are still guaranteed to leap straight in with comments like “only the first four albums are real”, “sell-outs” and “commercial bullshit” etc.
Tributes continue to pour out for Eddie Van Halen in the wake of his passing two months ago. A new and touching one has come from guitar genius Jason Becker (Cacophony/David Lee Roth) as he has shared a previously unreleased video of Eddie and Jason together in 1996. An amazing meeting took place on August 31, 1996. That’s when Eddie Van Halen spent the day with a guy who had followed in his footsteps playing alongside David Lee Roth—Jason Becker. Jason had been diagnosed with ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s Disease, and was not in good shape. Van Halen came to Jason’s house to give love and support—as well as a guitar—to his friend and to film an ALS awareness promotional video. During that time, Eddie told stories, talked about his creative process, and played amazing music, instantly sounding exactly like Eddie Van Halen even when playing Jason’s guitar through a small practice amp.
KISS has announced the rescheduled dates for the latest U.S. leg of its “End Of The Road” tour. The shows, which will have support from David Lee Roth (Van Halen), will kick off on August 18, 2021 in Mansfield, Massachusetts and will conclude on October 6, 2021 in Lafayette, Louisiana.Continue reading
Stars from across Rock and Metal will join together on a livestream to raise money tonight on the David Z Foundation Livestream. David Z (David Zablidowsky) was the brilliant metal and progressive rock musician best known for his work in bands such as Adrenaline Mob, Trans-Siberian Orchestra, and ZO2, died three years ago on July 17th, 2017 when a tractor-trailer collided with Adrenaline Mob’s tour bus. Check out the updated poster from Mike Portnoy’s tweet below. You can donate at the GoFundM link below and watch the live stream including artists ranging from Mike Portnoy, Dee Snider, Chris Jericho, Ray Luzier (Korn), John Moyer (Disturbed) Rikki Rockett, Don Dokken, Richie Kotzen, Billy Sheehan, Jeff Scott Soto, Carmine Appice, Eddie Trunk, Marco Mendoza, Joel Hoekstra, Tiffany, John Pooper, Alex Skolnik, Charlie Benante, Dug Pinnick, Ra Diaz and more! Continue reading
Billy Sheehan (Sons of Apollo, The Winery Dogs, Mr. Big), who emerged from the upstate New York music scene in the late 1970s with the band Talas, has signed a deal with Metal Blade Records for the release of a new studio album, their first formal album ever. Talas earned its reputation performing gigs in the Buffalo and Rochester scenes. Although Talas started out by playing covers, it eventually introduced originals to its setlist. Sheehan later was well known as a studio musician before joining David Lee Roth’s late 1980s solo band, and later chart-topping stardom with Mr. Big (‘To Be With You’). The news of TALAS’s new record deal was broken by Sheehan’s longtime manager Michael Faley, a former roadie with Talas who also works for Metal Blade. On Friday (January 17), Faley posted a photo of Sheehan signing the contract with Metal Blade and included the following caption: “Billy Sheehan signing contract for a new TALAS studio album with Metal Blade Records. The 4 piece TALAS never recorded a studio album and there is soooo much material to pick from.”Continue reading
The popular fan site Van Halen News Desk has uncovered a doozy of a lost take. The site shared a clip from YouTuber Groovefunkel Second Helping has uploaded an alternate take of the classic first song heard on Van Halen’s 1978 debut, featuring a different vocal track by David Lee Roth and an extended Eddie Van Halen guitar solo. Check it out right now! Continue reading