Category: Rock News

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In a brand new interview with "The Mistress Carrie Podcast", DEVILDRIVER frontman Dez Fafara spoke about how he is dealing with the coronavirus crisis and what the touring circuit might look like post-pandemic. Asked if he thinks bands will hit the road in a major way next year, he said (hear audio below): "I don't know if I feel that to be true in 2021, just because I've been talking to some people. I'd like to keep it positive and be, like, 'Fuck yeah! Let's get some shows going,' but I'm not sure. And I'm seeing a lot of people hold their records back and not deliver records, because it's not a good business move. To deliver a record in the middle of a pandemic when you can't tour on it, et cetera, et cetera, it's gonna sell less. And I made the opposite move. I didn't do the business move, I made the people move — I said, 'People need music now.' … And then we shift to what we think 2021 is gonna be, and I don't know if a second lockdown is coming, if, no, you're not gonna be allowed more than a hundred people in a room. Right now, in Europe, they're building COVID venues, where you actually sit with partitions between you. "I really don't know what's going on," he continued. "I try to listen to it all — mainstream media and the real underground dark stuff. … I don't know what this is. Like all of us, I don't know. Is it man-made? Is it not man-made? Did it get let loose from China? Was it let loose from our country to China? Is this for a bigger purpose, or is this just, 'Uh-oh, it's an accident.' We all better help fucking each other as a world and let's get through this. "It's a crazy situation," he added. "That being said, I'm booking tours. I've got a huge tour that's getting ready to announce for DEVILDRIVER — four major, major, big, big, big bands. And hopefully it's gonna go out in April/May next year. But I just don't know." DEVILDRIVER recently announced a new double album, "Dealing With Demons". The first volume — titled "Dealing With Demons I" — drops on October 9 via Napalm Records and marks the band's first release of new, original material since 2016’s acclaimed "Trust No One". Representing the onset of a final purging of the themes that have long possessed Fafara and DEVILDRIVER's music, each track on "Dealing With Demons I" illustrates a different demon to be dealt with or released. Photo credit: Stephanie Cabral

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Ted Nugent has once again praised President Donald Trump, saying that the billionaire real estate mogul is not a typical "power-abusing criminal, punk-ass politician." The outspoken conservative rocker, who is a staunch proponent of gun ownership, discussed America's 45th president an interview with "America This Week With Eric Bolling", Sinclair Broadcast Group's weekly news program hosted by conservative Fox News alum Eric Bolling. Ted said (see video below): "I see that Donald J. Trump, hallelujah, is not an entrenched, status quo, power-abusing, criminal, punk-ass politician. He's a hellraiser, working-hard, playing-hard guy that got us back to God, family, country, work ethic, independence — you know, the man in the arena. You bust your ass to be in the asset column, earn your own way, live within your means, save for a rainy day — all that radical, extreme stuff. And he's my guy — I really love this guy. He came just in a nick of time. And I'm speaking for all my huntin' buddies, all my musicians, my band, my crew, my family, my neighbors, the cops that I train with, the military heroes that I hunt with — I'm speaking for the heart and soul of this country when I talk like this." Asked about a recent report that Grammy-winning singer James Taylor slammed Trump in a fundraising e-mail for presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, calling Trump "a puffed-up, self-absorbed, all-hat-and-no-cattle cowboy," Nugent said: "I've gotta tell you, I know a lot of these people in the entertainment world. I mean, I told Jimi Hendrix he was gonna die, I told Keith Moon he was gonna die, I told John Belushi he was gonna die — I literally looked him in the eye. And these people live in such a — whether it's literally a drugged-out, drunken fantasy world or figuratively speaking a drugged, stoned fantasy world. "Remember, I just mentioned by ranching buddies, my huntin' buddies, all the working-hard, playing-hard neighbors here in Texas and in Michigan," he continued. "Plus, I have family and friends in all 50 states — I hunt and rock and roll in all 50 states; I know these people — and the entertainment industry has intentionally removed them from the heartland; you know, flyover America. Not all of them. But when you see somebody step out and wear a Che Guevara shirt," referring to the prominent communist figure in the Cuban Revolution, "when Che Guevara would have killed the dumb son of a bitch, you've gotta just wince and furrow your brow and plow forward with truth, logic, common sense, God, family, country. And that's what we're doing." Last year, Nugent defended Trump after the U.S. president was accused of making racist remarks about Democratic congresswomen from black and minority ethnic backgrounds. Nugent and fellow Detroit-bred rocker Kid Rock got to spend some time in the Oval Office with Trump in April 2017. They were joined by Sarah Palin, the former Alaskan governor and GOP vice presidential nominee, who posted photos of the visit on social media the following morning. Nugent later told the Detroit Free Press that he and Kid Rock represent a salt-of-the-earth American demographic that helped Trump land the presidency.

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The debut single from ASHBA, the solo project of former GUNS N' ROSES and current SIXX:A.M. guitarist DJ Ashba, will feature a guest appearance by Cali Tucker, the daughter of country music singer LaCosta Tucker and niece of country music legend Tanya Tucker. ASHBA's first full-length effort, which will include "different singers from different genres on every song," will arrive later in the year via Edgeout Records/Universal Music Group/UMe. On Friday, Ashba took to his Instagram to post a short behind-the-scenes clip and photos from the video shoot for his new single, and he included the following message: "ASHBA Update: Great news for The Abducted!! My debut single is coming soon featuring Cali Tucker on vocals! She crushes this track! Here's a few clips/shots from 'Behind The Scenes' of my new video!! Directed by KasterTroy @level8studios So f'n excited, this has been an incredible 4 years in the making, and to finally see the light at the end of the tunnel is a feeling I can't even begin to explain! #theabducted #fwpt #edm #rock #dancemusic Who's ready for some new music????" Although Ashba initially started work on the project as a collaboration with with his SIXX:A.M. bandmate James Michael — under the band name PYROMANTIC — it has since evolved into an Ashba solo venture, with Michael announcing in 2018 that he was stepping away from the group. Ashba commented: "Over the past couple of years, I have found myself going through a musical transformation — almost an evolution, you could say. I allowed my creativity to flow freely without trying to restrain it to conform to a particular genre. I found the whole journey very liberating and also very exciting. It allowed me to experiment with new sounds and compositions that cross the boundaries of multiple music genres, to create something so unique and exciting that I cannot wait to share it with the world." Regarding his upcoming solo disc, DJ told Fox5's "More": "I spent three years in the studio creating this new sound and I took Latin, pop, rock and EDM and I just threw it in a blender as a producer. I've done the rock thing, I've done that my whole life, but I wanted to create a new sound — something fresh, something anybody could latch on to. If you like Latin, there's enough of that; if you like rock, there's enough of it in there. So it's a really cool, unique sound. I'm pretty proud of it." According to DJ, he will promote the LP by embarking on a tour on which he will be joined only by a VJ. Last year, Ashba spoke to "Vegas Junkeez" about how his new project came together. He said: "It started off in the beginning, me and the singer from SIXX:A.M., James Michael, we had some time off and we started writing like we did. And it eventually evolved, and obviously, it went in a direction, and I pushed it really hard in a direction, and then James kind of got busy and went off [to do] his thing. But it's evolved into this incredible thing that's just awesome. And to have congas and horns… And it's very worldly. It's designed to make the body move. It's full-on dance stuff, but it's great." Calling his solo effort his "number one priority," Ashba said that he is "so, so inspired" by the music that he recorded thus far. "This is everything I've ever wanted to do," he said. "It's kind of like your whole career, you learn all these things, you work with all these people… [This] is kind of just my labor of love — it's something I truly wanna do for me — and it's so gratifying to be able to be in a position… "I've had an incredible career — thank god — but this new thing is just the next chapter," he explained. "It's really special, and it's really a lot of fun. And it's given me the freedom as a songwriter and a producer just to create any style… Basically, I don't have to write for one vocalist or one voice… I can write not only for that, but multiple genres, as long as we keep it within kind of these wide walls that we call [ASHBA]. It's finally my vision unfiltered. So it's really cool. And I'm excited. I think people are really gonna like it. It's something completely different than I've ever done — something new. It's very creative. And me being a creative person, it's the perfect, perfect thing for me, I guess — the perfect project." Photo credit: Michael Pool

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With their 20th anniversary looming over the horizon in 2021, THE ACACIA STRAIN deserve a robust slap on the back for sticking to their guns for such a long time, without ever exhibiting the slightest interest in compromise. Perhaps the most intriguing thing about the band is how they have nimbly and consistently sidestepped the overtly generic, focusing instead on the incremental evolution of their own, subtly distinctive blend of deathly metalcore. Even as far back as early classics like 2008's "Continent", Vincent Bennett's crew were making the opposition sound a little halfhearted, but even by their own furious standards, last year's "It Comes In Waves" album was a startling statement of renewed intent; one widely hailed as the band's finest work to date. As a result, there's been a slight hint of sadism in THE ACACIA STRAIN's steady drip-feeding of this, their tenth studio record. Ten of its tracks have been released already, spread across five seven-inch singles, the single-letter titles of which spelt out the word 'decay'. Experienced in isolation, these songs hammered home their creators' shared potency at this point, but it's only when listened to in its punishing, pessimistic entirety — with two new, previously unreleased tracks thrown in to complete the picture — that "Slow Decay" really clicks as a unified project. Put simply, these songs are all among the finest ACACIA STRAIN material to date. Displaying a newfound passion for diversity and tangential leaps, the sustained fist-flurry of opener "Feed A Pigeon Breed A Rat" and the bludgeoning beatdown-fest "The Lucid Dream" are easily heavy and brutal enough to please the more myopic faithful, but it's also obvious that the band have sharpened up their songwriting, employed a more colorful sonic palette and found several new ways to ram the futility of human existence down our grateful throats. "I breathed in the smoke…" is a case in point: there was a time when THE ACACIA STRAIN represented a peculiarly streamlined and monotone approach to modern heaviness, but with howling feedback, clangorous tribal drums and a mounting sense of dread, this is closer to psychedelic doom or avant-garde sludge than anything you might expect from the men behind the monstrous 2006 album "The Dead Walk". Similarly, "One Thousand Painful Stings" weaves the angelic voice of Courtney LaPlante (SPIRITBOX/IWRESTLEDABEARONCE) through seething streams of slow-motion death, as Bennett abandons all hope with veins bulging and fists bloody. Meanwhile, the two new cuts are among the finest things here: "Crippling Poison" offers a refined upgrade of THE ACACIA STRAIN's signature cacophony, while "Birds of Paradise, Birds of Prey" is equal parts hammer-blow doom and crestfallen atmospherics. Of course, if there's one band that's unlikely to greet their 20th anniversary with a smile and a cheer, it's THE ACACIA STRAIN. But if nothing else, "Slow Decay" proves that they are enjoying the creative process more than ever and making the best music of their careers as a result. We're all still fucked, but the soundtrack is killer. It's been that kind of year.

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England will begin allowing indoor performances with socially distanced audiences next month. United Kingdom prime minster Boris Johnson said at a press conference on Friday: "From 1 August, we will restart live indoor performances to a live audience subject to the success of pilots, and we will pilot larger gatherings, with a view to a wider reopening in the autumn... From October, we intend to bring back audiences in stadia and to allow conferences and other business events to recommence. These changes have to be made in a covid-secure way subject to pilots." U.K. culture secretary Oliver Dowden said in a statement: "The UK's performing arts sector is renowned across the world and I am pleased that we are making real progress in getting its doors reopened to the public with social distancing. From August indoor theatres, music venues and performance spaces will safely welcome audiences back across the country." The government stressed that "audiences, performers and venues will be expected to maintain social distancing at all times." Jon Morgan, director of Theatres Trust, called the news "a step in the right direction," but said that "for most theatres it will not be economically viable to reopen with 30-40% audience required under social distancing. We now need to progress as quickly as possible to an announcement on the all-important Stage 5, allowing theatres to reopen fully with the appropriate safety measures. Without this, most theatres cannot reopen viably and we need the go-ahead for Christmas shows, on which the survival of many theatres depends, in the next few weeks at the very latest." Venues have been shut since March as part of the lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic. The United Kingdom has confirmed more than 290,000 coronavirus cases and more than 45,000 deaths. That makes it one of the hardest-hit countries in Europe.

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LACUNA COIL singer Cristina Scabbia has blasted people who promote the conspiracy theory that the COVID-19 pandemic is part of a strategy conceived by global elites — such as Bill Gates — to roll out vaccinations with tracking chips that would later be activated by 5G, the technology used by cellular networks. "Don't get sucked into this stupid, stupid news," Cristina said during a July 14 Twitch chat with her followers. "When we talk about a conspiracy — a conspiracy for what? You tell me, because everyone I talk to online about this so-called conspiracy, they can't give me an explanation. And as per science, if you can't prove it's the way you're saying it, it's not true. So if you're telling me that the 5G is connected to the virus, whatever, you need to prove it in order to say it is like this. And I've heard — trust me — so many stupid things, it's not even funny. I've heard about microchips in masks, and that's why they they want us — 'they'; they who? — want us to wear the masks so they can control us. I mean, I really wonder who is the one… I'm thinking about presidents and whoever is at the highest place, taking care of a state, for example, I wonder what is the good coming out of putting a state on its knees, ruining [it] completely economically, what is the good coming out of it if the state itself then has to try to help every human being living in that territory. It makes no fucking sense." She continued: "If you're having any doubt about, 'I don't know how the virus started. Maybe they created it in a laboratory,' then I can give you the option of a doubt, because I don't know it either, and we don't know it either. And that's okay — we don't know where it was originated for sure; there are some theories, there are some options. But that is a different thing. But speaking about a conspiracy because they want to control us? That is the stupidest thing that I've heard my whole life — my whole life." Scabbia also criticized people who refuse to wear a mask in public spaces to protect others from possible infection. The Italian singer addressed the hot-button issue as lawmakers push harder for their constituents to wear face masks to limit the spread of coronavirus. Months after his own advisers recommended it, President Donald Trump finally wore a mask in public last weekend during a visit to wounded service members at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. "I'm reading the news and I'm deeply, deeply saddened because I see that some places in North America [are] put on a lockdown again," Cristina said. "And that is because a lot of people are just refusing to wear masks, because they think it's a joke. I see a lot of fear and so many conspiracies going on. And it makes me really, really sad, because you guys know that I've always been respectful towards the law. In this case, I know that it's not just putting on a mask because the law says it — it is because I want to protect myself and the loved ones. So when I read about people going and, even worse, organizing COVID parties — I mean, this is the saddest, most pathetic, most miserable thing I can hear. I mean, someone creating on purpose occasions for infections. And this is so stupid, because it's not only dangerous, but no one thinks about the big picture." She added: "Everybody feels very unafraid and strong. But if you get infected, it's not just about you, it's about everyone surrounding you. So that means that you're not only very selfish, but you have no heart, because you might be infecting your parents, you might be infecting your grandparents, you might be infecting a friend of yours who has some health problems. So it is very, very, very stupid, and I honestly — I mean, I shouldn't say that — but I despise these stupid people. And I will say it again and again, because they are a disgrace to humanity. In a moment where everybody is trying to cooperate, to work with each other to make it a better world, there is someone who tries everything possible to feel better than the others. There is always that 'I'm better than you, I know more than you do' thing that really, really bothers me and stays under my skin. It makes me mad. It makes me really, really mad." More than 244,000 people have been infected with the coronavirus in Italy, where LACUNA COIL is based, and more than 35,000 have died. Lombardy, where LACUNA COIL's hometown of Milan is located, is the worst-affected region in the country and accounts for about half of Italy's deaths from the virus.

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ADEMA bassist David DeRoo has urged people to wear face masks after he was diagnosed with COVID-19. Earlier today (Saturday, July 18), DeRoo took to his personal Facebook page to say that he originally believed COVID-19 was blown out of proportion and was questioning "how 'real' it is/was." But once he started experiencing the usual COVID-19 symptoms, including loss of taste, fatigue, body aches and fever, he took himself to the emergency room at a local hospital where he was tested for the novel coronavirus. The musician, who says he has pre-existing conditions which put him at more of a risk than someone with no underlying health issues, now admits that he was "careless and callous" in the days leading up to his diagnosis and says that COVID-19 should not be treated as a political issue. DeRoo's entire message reads as follows: "Hey everyone! "How's everybody doin'? Been laying low for a bit. A few of my close friends know, but I just wanted to take a sec to get everyone up to speed, and fill you all in on my situation.... "On Wednesday, July 1st I started feeling some chest congestion, and had a slight cough. I didn't think much of it, as I had been doing some work outdoors in the heat for a few days, and assumed maybe it was just my allergies, coupled w/ some dehydration? I went out that night anyway for 'one last hurrah' since it was the last night before everything was shutting down again. Woke up feeling worse. Friday night had aches, shooting pains in my back and kidneys, and a fever. Sufferered thru it all 4th of July weekend. "I drove myself to the ER that Monday. Felt dizzy, and weak. Got there around 2pm. They tested me for Covid-19. My blood pressure, and Oxygen levels were good, so they threw me out around 7pm, and told me to monitor my breathing, and to drink plenty of fluids. They called me that Thursday, July 9th and told me I had tested positive for Covid-19. And that a 14-day quarantine would begin starting from that point. I said, 'Hey! I've already been in bed a week?' "She didn't laugh. And the days that followed weren't fun. Or 'funny'. I had zero appetite. There were a couple of days where I didn't have a bite of food the whole day? And if I did: I couldn't taste it. That shit is real! Zero energy. I slept 10 to 15 hours some days. But since last Sunday, I‘ve started feeling better. I'm still shaking off this fatigue, and force myself to eat to keep my energy levels up.... "Moral of the story: Wear a fucking mask, people! I've had my reservations about this thing. About how 'real' it is/was. I've been careless, and callous. 'Oh: it won't happen to me?' I've been watching friends arguing about this, politicizing it: throwing away friendships over it! I have pre-existing conditions. My lungs are a cause for concern. I've had bronchitis 3 times in less than 2 years. I have high blood pressure. It fucked w/ me a bit. But here's the thing: what people DON'T know about this is what concerns me. The 'experts' are still tryin' to figure this shit out... We know NOTHING. which brings us to the next item of business... "My band ADEMA is scheduled to play a live broadcast concert later this month, Sunday July 26th. Unfortunately, I will not be participating in this event. Believe me: nobody is more bummed than I am! As disappointing as this is: I would would be absolutely DEVASTATED if I got one of my brothers sick. 'Could/would I be well enough to play? It's still a couple of weeks away?' Possibly. But as I stated earlier: even the 'experts' don't know enough about this, yet. And it's simply not worth the risk. There are people in our camp that are dealing w/ the elderly daily. And I refuse to be a Catalyst or contributing factor to something bad happening to people I care about... "Anyways... I'm alive, guys! Thank you to my friends for the concern; the texts, the ones that have dropped off meals for me, and checked in on me... you know who you are! And I appreciate it. I'm sorry I'm bad at responding to everybody; been trying to rest as much as I can. "I'll keep you all in the loop; more details on the show coming up soon! Even though I'm sittin' this one out: I'd appreciate all of your support now more than ever! Please, and thank you" In the summer of 2019, ADEMA officially recruited longtime friend Ryan Shuck (JULIEN-K, ORGY) to take on vocals for the band. He joined the group as the replacement for original vocalist Mark Chavez, who returned to ADEMA in 2017 after previously exiting the group twice. ADEMA's last release was 2013's "Topple The Giants". The group's first CD since 2007's "Kill The Headlights" contained brand new tracks plus re-worked versions of ADEMA's chart-topping hits "Giving In" and "Unstable".

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EXODUS guitarist Gary Holt and drummer Tom Hunting are working on material for the long-awaited follow-up to 2014's "Blood In Blood Out" album. On Friday (July 17), Gary posted a photo of him and Tom at the jam room at Hunting's Northern California home, and he included the following message: "We are creating some INSANE shit! I'm telling ya, this record is gonna be pure fire. The aggression and energy level is too high to measure" EXODUS's next album will be released in 2021 via Nuclear Blast. "Blood In Blood Out" was EXODUS's first release since the departure of the group's lead singer of nine years, Rob Dukes, and the return of Steve "Zetro" Souza, who previously fronted EXODUS from 1986 to 1993 and from 2002 to 2004. This past April, Souza confirmed that Holt's COVID-19 diagnosis "put a damper" on EXODUS's ability to move forward with the songwriting process for its new LP. "By now, we would have been working together for probably a good month on it," Zetro explained. "Gary's got many riffs and many things that he needs to put together. It starts with him and Tom, basically. Everybody knows, drummer and guitar, and that's how EXODUS has always done it. But because of this distancing, that's been kind of impossible to do, so that's put a damper on it. But I can guarantee you, I did hear some of the stuff that they were playing around with in soundcheck on [the recently completed] 'The Bay Strikes Back' [European] tour, and EXODUS fans are gonna be very pleased. Again, I'm not hearing full songs — I'm just hearing riffs and pieces and stuff like that — and I'm [like], 'Wow!' I'm not saying — it's just pretty damn heavy." Holt joined EXODUS in 1981 shortly after the band's formation, and has been its main songwriter ever since. Holt has performed on every EXODUS album, and is considered highly influential in the world of thrash metal. In 2011, he began filling in for Jeff Hanneman at SLAYER live shows, and became the band's full-time co-guitarist as of 2013, while remaining a member of EXODUS.