Hard Rock
Beyond the Boys’ Club: Ann Wilson of Heart
Beyond the Boys’ Club is a monthly column from journalist and radio host Anne Erickson, focusing on women in the heavy music genres, as they offer their perspectives on the music industry and discuss their personal experiences. Erickson is also a music artist herself and has a new EP and single, “Last Love,” with Upon Wings. The latest edition of Beyond the Boys’ Club features an interview with the legendary Ann Wilson of Heart. As one of the founding members of female-led rock mainstays Heart, Ann Wilson knows just how difficult it was for women to break into rock music decades ago. She also knows what it takes to have staying power as a musical artist, as Wilson is still releasing imaginative new music and playing jam-packed shows. Wilson released her latest solo album, Fierce Bliss, ear...
Nine Inch Nails Reunite With Early Members At Hometown Cleveland Concert
Trent Reznor reunited with several members of Nine Inch Nails’ ’90s lineup, including Richard Patrick, Chris Vrenna, Danny Lohner, and Charlie Clouser, during a special hometown show in Cleveland on Saturday night (September 24th). The reunion took place the night after Reznor and a group of his former bandmates appeared for a live Q&A at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, where only some of the rotating lineup was inducted in 2020. There seemed to be no bad blood on the stage though, as the frontman shared the spotlight for six songs to close out the one-night-only tour stop. The former members collectively took the stage during the tour debut of “Eraser” from 1994’s The Downward Spiral, and they remained there until the conclusion of the show. Their mini-set featured early c...
Ghost’s Papa Emeritus IV Throws Out First Pitch at White Sox Game
Ghost may not seem like a band of particularly sporty people, but hey, you never know. The Swedish metal band’s singer Papa Emeritus IV stopped by Guaranteed Rate Field in Chicago on Thursday to throw out the first pitch at the White Sox’s game against the Cleveland Guardians. Decked out in a black-and-white White Sox uniform and matching face paint, Papa Emeritus IV took a break from Ghost’s ongoing arena tour to commence the game, even posing for a photograph with White Sox pitcher Liam Hendriks. Ghost’s latest outing is in support of their March album Impera, one of the best hard rock albums of the year. Joined by Mastodon and Spiritbox, the trek wraps up September 23rd at Green Bay, Wisconsin’s Resch Center (with Carcass replacing Mastodon). Check out our review and photos of the ...
Mötley Crüe and Def Leppard Stadium Tour Grosses $173.5 Million
Def Leppard and Mötley Crüe’s co-headlining stadium tour brought in a whopping $173.5 million, making it the highest grossing tour of either band’s career. The highly anticipated outing finally took place in 2022 after being postponed twice due to the pandemic. The bill was utterly stacked, with the aforementioned headliners receiving support from fellow rock icons Poison and Joan Jett & The Blackhearts. Average ticket sales for each night were 37,520 — more than three times the draw that Def Leppard and Mötley Crüe had previously reached on their own — with an average nightly earning of $4.96 million. Advertisement Related Video Boston was the largest market, with the bands playing a two-night stand at Fenway Park on August 5th and 6th. A total of 64,000 tickets sold for $9.3 million ...
Steel Panther Announce New Bassist Ahead of Fall 2022 North American Tour
Steel Panther have announced their new bassist and a short fall 2022 North American tour. The musician known as Spyder will take over permanent bass duties for the pseudo-parody glam metal act, replacing longtime bassist Lexxi Foxxx, aka Travis Haley, who left the group in 2021. The band’s press announcement declares Spyder “the chocolate to Steel Panther’s peanut butter,” and it’s been a smooth transition for Lexxi’s replacement so far. Sypder first played live with Steel Panther in 2018 and then filled in during a five-week European tour this summer. It apparently went well, as Spyder is now (in the band’s own words) the new “R.O.L.E … Ruler of Low End.” Related Video “We wanted it to be you,” the band remarked via a press release. “We wanted it to be you so badly. So, it’s not gonna be ...
10 Must-See Acts to Catch at Louder Than Life 2022
The 2022 Louder Than Life festival boasts one of the strongest lineups of any rock gathering in the United States this year. Led by legendary acts such as Nine Inch Nails, Slipknot, KISS, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and more, the four-day extravaganza is sure to bring a memorable experience to Louisville, Kentucky. Taking place September 22nd through 25th, Louder Than Life is absolutely jam-packed. Thursday’s lineup will see NIN joined by Bring Me the Horizon, Evanescence, Tenacious D, Ministry, and more. On Friday, Slipknot tops a bill that features Lamb of God, Shinedown, Mastodon, Meshuggah, Clutch, GWAR, and several others. Advertisement Related Video Saturday will see the iconic one-two-three punch of KISS, Alice Cooper and Rob Zombie, not to mention Body Count, Chevelle, Ghostemane, Seven...
Wolfgang Van Halen Announces Deluxe Edition of Debut Mammoth WVH Album, Shares “Talk & Walk”: Stream
Mammoth WVH’s 2021 self-titled debut album is receiving a digital deluxe edition on November 11th with three additional songs, including the Japanese-only bonus track “Talk & Walk” that is now streaming. Considering Wolfgang Van Halen spent many years self-recording the album, it makes sense that there’s a few worthy additional tracks. “Talk & Walk” is a particularly fun tune, shifting from twinkly arpeggios to grungy ’90s power-pop that harkens back to early Foo Fighters. According to the press release, the song was occasionally played during Mammoth WVH’s 2021 tour and became an immediate fan favorite. While “Talk & Walk” was previously released on the Japanese version of the album, the other two additional songs on the deluxe edition (“As Long As You’re Not You” and “Goodbye...
Tommy Lee Responds to Criticism Over Exposed Genitalia at Mötley Crüe Show
Mötley Crüe drummer and exhibitionist Tommy Lee is catching flak after asking concertgoers to expose their breasts and genitals at a show on Wednesday (September 7th) at Oracle Park in San Francisco. Lee’s recent affinity for whipping it out has overflowed into Mötley Crüe’s live show. After unabashedly posting a full-frontal nude selfie on his social media accounts in July, Lee made light of his unsolicited dick pic by pulling an actual dachshund out of his shorts at a Los Angeles concert late last month. The drummer also encouraged male and female fans to expose themselves at several shows, getting a number of audience members to oblige. As reported by the Bay Area’s ABC7, concertgoer Juan Alvarez attended the San Francisco concert with his sister and said it was “traumatizing” witnessin...
Tommy Lee Launches OnlyFans: “Cum Join Me Over There for Fun”
Tommy Lee really wants to keep showing his junk to the world, and doesn’t want anything getting in his way. At the final show of Mötley Crüe’s “Stadium Tour” at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on Friday night (September 9th), the drummer revealed that he has joined OnlyFans — and he did so by mooning the audience. Last month, Lee posted a full frontal nude selfie on all his social sites. The “dick pic” was removed from Instagram and Facebook, but still remains on Twitter. The drummer later explained he was on a “bender” when he shared the photo online, but apparently he has no regrets about it. In fact he kept mentioning it at just about every Motley Crue show since, even telling a crowd at a Los Angeles show, “Let me show you my fuckin’ wiener” before jokingly pulling a real-life dachshund...
Aerosmith Rock 50th Anniversary Show at Boston’s Fenway Park: Photos + Video
Aerosmith were finally able to celebrate their 50th anniversary in grand style on Thursday night (September 8th) with a hometown show at Boston’s Fenway Park. The concert was originally set to take place in 2020, but was twice postponed due to the pandemic. The landmark gig marked Aerosmith’s second show back after the pandemic and Steven Tyler’s recent rehab stint kept the band off the road for two-and-a-half years. They warmed up with a concert in Bangor, Maine, this past Sunday (September 4th). After an opening set by fellow Boston rockers Extreme, the Aerosmith boys kicked off their set with “Back in the Saddle.” Joining original members Tyler, Joe Perry, Brad Whitford and Tom Hamilton for the career-spanning 19-song set was drummer John Douglas, who is filling in for Joey Kramer as he...
Wolfgang Van Halen Shares Clip of Himself Shredding “Eruption” to Mark Anniversary of Van Halen Classic: Watch
Eddie Van Halen recorded his legendary shred guitar instrumental “Eruption” 45 years ago today this week. To mark the anniversary, the late rock icon’s son Wolfgang Van Halen posted a clip of himself ripping through part of the track in the studio in 2015. Wrote Wolfgang on Twitter: “In honor of Eruption being recorded 45 years ago today, here’s me playing part of it on the guitar it was recorded on in 2015 while tracking some guitars for the first @MammothWVH … Love you, Pop” Wolfgang lets loose and comes very close to replicating his dad’s virtuosic talents. “Eruption” stands as one of the greatest guitar instrumentals of all-time and could be considered the earliest example of the guitar shredder style, as it was released on Van Halen’s self-titled debut in 1978. Advertisement Related V...
NBC Airs Just 10 Seconds of Ozzy Osbourne’s Season Opening NFL Halftime Show
Ozzy Osbourne performed a two-song set at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, on Thursday night (September 8th) during halftime of the NFL’s season opening game between the Los Angeles Rams and Buffalo Bills. Unfortunately, those watching the game on NBC only saw a few seconds of the performance. During the broadcast, NBC sportscaster Maria Taylor introduced the performance in the middle of Ozzy singing the title track to his new album, Patient Number 9, at midfield. After about 10 seconds or so, cameras cut back to Taylor and the halftime crew analyzing the first half of the game. From what we briefly saw on TV, the metal icon’s backing band for “Patient Number 9” included Tommy Clufetos on drums, Chris Chaney on bass, and producer Andrew Watt on guitar. Thanks to fan-filmed footage on...
