Alternative Music

RATING: 8/10 The loss of a founding member is always going to sting. In terms of cataclysmic breakups, the departure of co-founding guitarist Scott Middleton from the CANCER BATS ranks last year was a big one. Along with vocalist Liam Cormier, Middleton had helped to steer the band through nearly 20 years of trials and triumphs. The prospect of recording a follow-up to 2018’s widely acclaimed “The Spark That Moves” without him may have been daunting for the remaining trio of Cormier, drummer Mike Peters and bassist Jaye R. Schwarzer, but “Psychic Jailbreak” is all the evidence anyone needs that CANCER BATS have negotiated a change in personnel with eerie skill. Schwarzer is the principal hero, having stepped up to take on bass and guitar duties, but really thi...

In a new interview with Hannah Trigwell of Thomann Music, PAPA ROACH bassist and songwriter Tobin Esperance was asked if he and his bandmates ever get nervous about how each of their new albums is going to be received by their fans. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): “Maybe when it’s time for it to be released, ’cause you know you have to prepare yourselves for all the stupid reviews and comments. We’ve been through this so many times, we don’t really give a fuck. Honestly, at this point, it boils down to how we feel about it. Like, how much fun did we have fun making it? How real and honest and true was it? Not everyone’s gonna get it — we know that — but while we were making it, we were feeling it, we were loving it, we were on an adven...

In a recent interview with Meltdown of Detroit’s WRIF radio station, TWISTED SISTER frontman Dee Snider was asked to name the biggest misconception about him. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): “That I am either extremely left or extremely right. I’m both hailed and reviled by both sides [of the political spectrum] because I take positions on both sides, ’cause I’m a centrist. And so, as a result, you will find web sites where people are just hating on me on the left because I’m a concealed carrier, and then also people hating me on the right because I’m socially conscious. It goes back and forth. “I’m not left, I’m not right — I’m just Dee,” he explained. “And I think that’s where most of us lie...

Albuquerque, New Mexico’s mayor Tim Keller attended TESTAMENT‘s concert last night (Saturday, April 16) at Sunshine Theater in Albuquerque as part of the band’s “The Bay Strikes Back Tour” with EXODUS and DEATH ANGEL. Earlier today, TESTAMENT shared a photo of the entire band with Keller, apparently taken backstage at the venue, and included the following caption: “Thank you to the mayor of Albuquerque Tim Keller @mayorkeller for coming to our show last night! We love meeting members of our thrash metal family! #metalheads #testament #testamentlegions #thebaystrikesback”. Born and raised in Albuquerque, Keller is well-known as a fan of heavy metal music and has often attended shows in the city. He has also introduced metal bands, including ANTHRAX ...

Ex-DREAM THEATER drummer Mike Portnoy attended the group’s concert on March 4 at Beacon Theatre in New York City. It was the first time Portnoy witnessed his former bandmates perform live since his exit from the iconic progressive metal outfit more than 11 years ago. According to DREAM THEATER fans who attended the show, singer James LaBrie gave Portnoy a shoutout from the stage and Mike waved. Several fans also took pictures of Portnoy at the venue, with Mike and his wife reportedly watching the performance from near the Beacon Theatre soundboard. The next day, Portnoy shared a few backstage photos from the concert and he included the following message: “After 36 years, I finally got to see my 1st DREAM THEATER show last night! It was a wonderful evening and it was such a plea...

Swedish metallers SABATON were rejoined by their former guitarist Thobbe Englund on stage this past Thursday (April 14) at their hometown concert at Kulturföreningen Magasinet in Falun. Fan-filmed video of his appearance can be see below. The day after the show, SABATON shared a photo of the reunion on its social media and included the following message: “Last night we played a sold-out show in our hometown, Falun, as part of our Swedish tour. Gracing us on stage was Thobbe Englund, our old guitarist, who joined us for a few songs. Together we forged a powerful triple guitar assault that was both epic and emotional. It has been 6 years since Thobbe left SABATON.” Back in 2016, SABATON singer Joakim Brodén told The Metal Voice about Englund‘s decision to leave the band: &#...

FOZZY guitarist Rich Ward spoke to The Entertainment Outlet about the band’s upcoming LP, “Boombox”, which is due on May 6. It is the follow-up to 2017’s “Judas”, the title track of which was recently certified gold by the RIAA (Recording Industry Association Of America) for accumulating 500,000 certified units. Ward said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): “I feel like this is our best FOZZY album. I think ‘Judas’ is a fantastic record, but we didn’t allow ourselves this process of at the end coming up with the real banger riffs. I would have been happier with ‘Judas’ if we had two or three more really crushing songs to really make it a more balanced meal. ‘Cause I’m a big pop guy. Most of the music I li...

During an appearance on “Vox&Hops”, the podcast hosted by Matt McGachy, frontman of extreme metal band CRYPTOPSY, CANNIBAL CORPSE singer George “Corpsegrinder” Fisher opened up about his recent weight loss and how it has affected his live performance. “Four days after my birthday [in July 2021], my wife had started doing Weight Watchers [now called WW after a rebranding in 2018], and so I decided, ‘I’m gonna do it too,'” he said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET). “And so far… I probably gained back another five or 10 pounds from the holidays, ’cause while you’re sitting there drinking those beers, you’re also eating a couple of holiday cakies and stuff. So a couple of more pounds went back on. But at one point, ...