Alternative Music
R.I.P. John Clayton, ESPN NFL Reporter Who Starred as Metalhead in Greatest SportsCenter Commercial Dies at 67
John Clayton, the longtime NFL reporter for ESPN, has died at age 67 after an undisclosed brief illness. While he was considered one of the best in the business among football fans, for many he will be remembered for his unforgettable starring in role in perhaps the greatest “This Is SportsCenter” commercial ever. After starting as a sportswriter in the covering the Pittsburgh Steelers and Seattle Seahawks in the ’70s and ’80s, Clayton was hired by ESPN in 1995, where he remained with the network as one of its top NFL reporters until he was let go in 2017. According to ESPN, Clayton died Friday (March 18th) while surrounded by family in Washington state. Clayton, who was nicknamed “The Professor,” had a charmingly nerdy appearance, which made his turn in the aforementioned “This Is SportsC...
Watch QUEENSRŸCHE Perform In Los Angeles During North American Tour With JUDAS PRIEST
Fan-filmed video of QUEENSRŸCHE‘s March 15 concert at Shrine Auditorium & Expo Hall in Los Angeles, California can be seen below (courtesy of YouTube channel Live Rock Music By Scott Perry). The setlist was as follows: 01. Queen Of The Reich 02. Warning 03. En Force 04. NM 156 05. Empire 06. Walk In The Shadows 07. The Whisper 08. Operation: Mindcrime 09. The Needle Lies 10. Take Hold Of The Flame 11. Screaming In Digital 12. Eyes Of A Stranger QUEENSRŸCHE‘s North American tour as the support act for JUDAS PRIEST kicked off on March 4 at Peoria Civic Center in Peoria, Illinois and will conclude on April 13 at FirstOntario Centre in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. QUEENSRŸCHE was originally set to support SCORPIONS on their rescheduled “Sin City Nights” Las Vegas resi...
Former W.A.S.P. Guitarist CHRIS HOLMES Is In Second Week Of Radiation Treatment For Throat And Neck Cancer
Former W.A.S.P. guitarist Chris Holmes is in his second week of radiation therapy in his battle with cancer in throat and neck. On Friday (March 18), the 63-year-old musician’s wife and manager, Cathy-Sarah Holmes, who first shared the news of his diagnosis in a social media post last month, issued the following update on his condition: “Chris have nausea and lost the taste then it is complicated for him to eat but we found the best way for him to not lost too much weight mixing complement food and little portion of food he want to eat . We try everything who can work . “For those who have the same treatment in case it can help he take 3 times by day desmodium for protect his liver , drink almost 2 liters of water for clean his kidneys and take for now besides his treatme...
STRYPER, Ex-QUIET RIOT And RIOT Members Join Forces In CLEANBREAK
Former QUIET RIOT singer and “American Idol” finalist James Durbin has joined forces with STRYPER members Robert Sweet and Perry Richardson (bass; also ex-FIREHOUSE) and RIOT guitarist Mike Flyntz in a new project called CLEANBREAK. The band’s debut single and video will be released next month via Frontiers Music Srl. FAITHSEDGE singer/songwriter Giancarlo Floridia, who was involved in the songwriting process for CLEANBREAK, took to his Facebook on Wednesday (March 16) to write: “After months of not being able to say anything I’m proud to announce my songwriting debut for Frontiers records. These new songs will be on the CLEANBREAK debut album featuring ‘American Idol’ finalists James Durbin, STRYPER drummer Robert Sweet, FIREHOUSE/STRYPER bass player Pe...
Photos: Official RONNIE JAMES DIO Documentary ‘Dio: Dreamers Never Die’ Receives World Premiere At This Year’s SXSW Film Festival
“Dio: Dreamers Never Die”, the career-spanning documentary on the life and times of the legendary rock icon Ronnie James Dio, received its world premiere this past Thursday (March 17) at this year’s SXSW Film Festival in Austin, Texas. On Friday, several music personalities who were involved in the making of the film — Dio‘s wife and longtime manager Wendy Dio, BLACK SABBATH bassist Geezer Butler and former SKID ROW singer Sebastian Bach — took part in a panel, “Dreamers Never Die: The Enduring Power Of Metal” panel, hosted by SiriusXM‘s Eddie Trunk at Austin Convention Center. Photos from both days can be found below. More pictures of the “Dreamers Never Die: The Enduring Power Of Metal” panel are available at Shutterstock. “Dio:...
Song of the Week: Arcade Fire Return with the Genuine and Cathartic “The Lightning I, II”
Song of the Week breaks down and talks about the song we just can’t get out of our head each week. Find these songs and more on our Spotify Top Songs playlist. For our favorite new songs from emerging artists, check out our Spotify New Sounds playlist. This week, Arcade Fire return to form with a blistering and emotional two-part track. After 2017’s Everything Now, Arcade Fire are back with a new pair of (linked) singles: “The Lightning I, II,” which is set to appear on their upcoming sixth studio album, WE, out May 6th. Arcade Fire are no stranger to sprawling (sorry) odysseys, and on “The Lightning,” they bring a sense of urgency that hasn’t been as present in the band’s catalog since Neon Bible. The first half of “The Lightning” has an air of theatrical dra...
Alex G Drops “End Song” from We’re All Going to the World’s Fair Soundtrack: Stream
Alex G has released his new track “End Song” via Milan Records/Sony Music Entertainment. The vocal track scores the end credits for the upcoming indie thriller We’re All Going to the World’s Fair, which the singer-songwriter also soundtracked. “I choose to stay/ There is no other way/ I read the sign/ I do not ask it why/ You know what they do to little dogs like you,” he repeatedly warns over spare guitar. After making its world premiere more than a year ago at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival, We’re All Going to the World’s Fair is set to premiere April 22nd in theaters and on HBO Max. Starring Anna Cobb, the haunting film follows the story of a teenage girl who gets initiated into a horror role-playing game and begins losing her grip on reality as she documents her entire experience...
Travis Barker to Perform at the 2022 Oscars
Travis Barker has been drumming for seemingly everyone and their mother lately, so it shouldn’t come as too much of a shock that the Blink-182 member will next take the stage at the 2022 Academy Awards. Barker will be featured in this year’s All-Star Band alongside piano legend Robert Glasper, percussionist and singer Sheila E., and the show’s music director Adam Blackstone. Additionally, DJ D-Nice will perform, as will The Samples, a vocal group led by Green Day affiliate Jason White. At least one of this year’s musical nominees will perform at the Oscars, but it won’t be for the nominated song. As Variety reports, the Encanto favorite “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” will see its first-ever live rendition during the broadcast, even though the sentimental ballad “Dos Oruguitas” ...
How Big Mouth Spin-Off Human Resources Got Janelle Monáe to Do Double-Duty
You can learn a lot about a TV show based on what it chooses for its theme song, and Netflix’s Human Resources delivers on that score with an assist from Janelle Monáe — the pumping synth tones of “Make Me Feel” introduce every episode of the new Big Mouth spin-off, which ages up the central humans of the series but still remains tonally in line with its parent series. Created by Big Mouth creators Nick Kroll, Andrew Goldberg, Mark Levin, and Jennifer Flackett as well as Big Mouth writer/producer Kelly Galuska, Human Resources explores the world of the Lovebugs, Hormone Monsters, Logic Rocks, Anxiety Mosquitos, Shame Wizards, and more which represent the best and worst impulses of Big Mouth characters, actively courting The Office comparisons with its workplace setting (and more importantl...
TALAS Releases First New Music In 37 Years, ‘Inner Mounting Flame’
TALAS has released a new song, “Inner Mounting Flame”, featuring vocals by the late frontman Phil Naro, who passed away in May 2021. The track is a tour de force of hard rock teetering on metal. “Inner Mounting Flame” marks TALAS‘s first taste of new music since 1984’s “Live Speed On Ice”. Helmed by world renowned bassist Billy Sheehan, TALAS is a unique blend of 1980s hard rock infused with the headbanging of modern metal. Cutting through this cacophony of sound is the unmistakable voice of Naro who delivered a performance for the ages. Sheehan states: “‘Inner Mounting Flame’ is a bombastic, high-speed chaos of adrenaline that we would often use as our opening song at the live TALAS shows in 1985. We stayed close to the ori...
DEF LEPPARD’s PHIL COLLEN Says Making ‘Diamond Star Halos’ Album Remotely Was ‘Constantly Exciting’
DEF LEPPARD will release its new album, “Diamond Star Halos”, on May 27 via UMe. The 15-song follow-up to 2015’s self-titled LP was produced by the band and longtime engineer Ronan McHugh. Over the past two years, DEF LEPPARD recorded “Diamond Star Halos” simultaneously in three different countries with singer Joe Elliott in Ireland, bassist Rick Savage in England, and guitarists Phil Collen and Vivian Campbell and drummer Rick Allen in the United States. The band also enlisted Alison Krauss and David Bowie pianist Mike Garson to guest on the LP. “It was joyful to do,” Elliott told Billboard about the process. “As Sav says, at any one time there were possibly four songs getting worked on at once. And everybody was at home, so you didn’t...
DECAPITATED Announces ‘Cancer Culture’ Album
Polish tech death metal virtuosos DECAPITATED will release their eighth studio album, “Cancer Culture”, on May 27 via Nuclear Blast Records. The LP’s first single, the title track, can be streamed below. DECAPITATED guitarist Wacław “Vogg” Kiełtyka commented: “It wasn’t easy to pick the first single from ‘Cancer Culture’. Each song has this different vibe that we would like to show as soon as possible and be proud of. Since the ‘Cancer Culture’ is the first song from the album, we decided that this would be the perfect way to introduce you to new music. It is the album’s opening chapter, and you know, what you can expect.” He continued: “Finally, after so many months of waiting, we got it. The announcement ...
