Heavy Consequence
Howard Stern: “Meat Loaf Got Sucked into Some Weird F**king Cult … And Now He’s Dead”
Legendary rocker Meat Loaf passed away at age 74 last week, and while his official cause of death has not been confirmed, TMZ reported that the singer succumbed to COVID-19. Now, radio titan Howard Stern is blaming the music icon’s death on his apparent stance against masking and vaccines, asserting that “Meat Loaf got sucked into some weird f**king cult.” Upon reporting on Meat Loaf’s death, TMZ cited sources as revealing that he fell seriously ill with COVID, and that his condition became critical, eventually leading to his passing. During the pandemic, the singer had spoken out against social distancing and safety measures. In an interview with the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in August of 2021, Meat Loaf said, “[Face masks] don’t do anything. They don’t stop you from getting COVID. They’re ...
35 Most Anticipated Metal + Hard Rock Albums of 2022
The pop culture forecast for 2022 is looking mighty fine, and we’re previewing everything we’re excited about this year with a series of lists. Just so you have it all in one place, we’ve also published our Most Anticipated (Non-Heavy) Albums, Most Anticipated Films, Most Anticipated TV Shows and Rising Artists to Watch roundups. Every corner of the music industry has been affected by the pandemic, and the realms of heavy metal and hard rock were put in a precarious limbo following the lockdowns of 2020. For visceral genres so reliant on the energy of live performance, the lack of shows cast a malaise over the scene, resulting in an album drought. For many acts, it simply didn’t make sense to release an album they couldn’t support with a tour. Many, like Avenged Sevenfo...
Jack Black Pays Homage to Meat Loaf: “Thank You for Rocking So Hard”
Jack Black has paid his respects to the late Meat Loaf, thanking the legendary singer for “rocking so hard.” It’s not hard to see how Black was inspired by Meat Loaf, considering the comedic actor’s theatrical and bombastic approach to rock music as part of the duo Tenacious D. In his tribute, Black cited the impact Meat Loaf made on him at a young age, and expressed gratitude to the rock icon for appearing in the movie Tenacious D in the Pick of Destiny. “I think I was 9 years old when my big sister took me to see The Rocky Horror Picture Show,” wrote Black on Instagram. “Meat Loaf rocked the hell out of that movie. 25 years later I begged him to play my father in my band’s movie The Pick of Destiny and by god he rocked the hell out of that one too. Thank you Meat for rocking so hard!!! M...
Melvins Cover “Spoonman” with Soundgarden Drummer Matt Cameron: Stream
Melvins have shared a cover of Soundgarden’s “Spoonman” featuring Soundgarden drummer Matt Cameron himself. The cover hails from the Melvins’ mysterious Lord of the Flies EP. It arrived on January 10th on CD format by the Amphetamine Reptile imprint, but wasn’t released digitally. This thunderous version of “Spoonman” couldn’t be contained on a limited CD release, however, and the band has now made it available via YouTube. The track touts double-drum duty from Cameron (who’s also a member of Pearl Jam) and full-time Melvins pounder Dale Crover, resulting in an even heavier take on an already-heavy song. Advertisement Related Video Frontman Buzz Osborne and bassist Steven McDonald round out the Melvins lineup for the track, which was recorded by producer Toshi Kasai. King Buzzo admirably h...
Anthrax’s Scott Ian Pays Tribute to Father-in-Law Meat Loaf: “There Are So Many Stories I Want to Tell”
Anthrax guitarist Scott Ian has posted a tribute to his father-in-law, Meat Loaf, who passed away at age 74 on Thursday (January 20th). The veteran metal musician is married to the late singer’s adopted stepdaughter, Pearl Aday. Ian posted two photos on Instagram, including one of Pearl and her sister Amanda making silly faces with Meat Loaf, and another of Meat Loaf having fun with his grandson Revel (Scott and Pearl’s child). “There are so many stories to tell, and I know they will all be told over time,” wrote Ian. “For now, what I know is that Meat’s legacy will live on through his family — Pearl, Amanda and Revel. Their forever love for their father/grandfather (Papa Meat) outweighs the heaviness of their hearts. Thank you to everyone for the outpouring of love, we feel it. I love you...
Evan Rachel Wood Says Marilyn Manson “Essentially Raped” Her on Camera During Music Video Shoot
Editor’s Note: The following article contains a description of an alleged sexual assault that may be triggering or sensitive to some readers. Roughly a year ago, Evan Rachel Wood named Marilyn Manson as her abuser, opening the door for many other women to allege abuse at the hands of the rock singer. In a new documentary, Phoenix Rising, the actress reveals more details about her relationship with Manson, at one point alleging that he “essentially raped” her on the set of the “Heart-Shaped Glasses (When the Heart Guides the Hand)” music video. In the film, which premiered at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival, Wood discusses her experience on the set of the music video as follows (via Pitchfork): “We had discussed a simulated sex scene, but once the cameras were rolling, he started penetratin...
Ozzy Osbourne’s CryptoBatz NFTs Hit by Scam That Bilked Users Out of Thousands of Dollars
A few weeks ago, Ozzy Osbourne announced his new CryptoBatz NFT collection, making 9,666 unique digital bat designs available to those willing to part with their cryptocurrency. Now it turns out that a large number of people were scammed out of thousands of dollars worth of crypto thanks to a bad link shared by the project’s official Twitter account and website. As tech site The Verge reports, Cryptobatz uses the site Discord for its transactions and initially used the shot URL “discord.gg/cryptobatznft” (do NOT click) in its Twitter posts. Somewhere along the line, the official short link was changed to discord.gg/cryptobatz, but hackers took advantage of the old URL to set up a fake Discord site. Unfortunately, Ozzy and his partner companies still left up the old Tweets with the old link...
Testament Part Ways with Drummer Gene Hoglan in Advance of “Bay Strikes Back” Tour
Testament have announced that they’ve parted ways with drummer Gene Hoglan as they prepare to headline the “Bay Strikes Back” tour this spring. The veteran thrash band cited scheduling conflicts involving Hoglan’s other projects as the primary reason for the split. Hoglan, one of heavy metal’s most skilled and respected drummers, has earned the nickname “The Atomic Clock” for his precision playing. He briefly played in Testament from 1996 to 1997, appearing on 1997’s Demonic. He then rejoined the band in 2011 and had been Testament’s drummer for the past 10-plus years, performing on their last three albums, including 2020’s Titans of Creation. A statement from Testament reads as follows: “First off, we are beyond grateful to have had Gene Hoglan behind our drum throne for ten years, severa...
Trivium’s Matt Heafy Debuts Black Metal Project Ibaraki with First Single “Tamashii No Houkai” Feat. Ihsahn: Stream
Trivium frontman Matthew Kiichi Heafy has unveiled his new black-metal solo project Ibaraki, sharing the video for debut single “Tamashii No Houkai” featuring Ihsahn. Ibaraki — the name for a Japanese demon taken from feudal legend — celebrates Heafy’s Japanese heritage and appreciation for the music of Ihsahn. It was the Emperor founder that inspired Heafy to embark on the path of black metal, acting as a friend and mentor. The mutual appreciation between the two artists led to collaboration, with Ihsahn producing the Ibaraki material. “Tamashii No Houkai” is only the first of numerous songs “assembled over months and years,” and Ihsahn himself appears on the song. Advertisement Related Video The track opens with a gust of Nordic black metal. Incorporating harsh and clean vocals, Heafy so...
Halestorm Unharmed After Tour Bus Is Destroyed by Fire
Halestorm’s tour bus was completely burnt out by a fire early Thursday morning, but thankfully the band members were sleeping in a hotel at the time. The rock group was in Worcester, Massachusetts to play a show last night (January 20th) at the DCU Center with co-headliners Evanescence. Guitarist Joe Hottinger posted photos of the aftermath on Instagram, showing the interior of the bus completely charred. He wrote, “Halestorm had a night for the books. We were all in our hotel rooms last night and we woke up to our bus burning down at 3AM. Fun fun. No one was hurt. The Worcester fire department got there and put the fire out. They were amazing. Our fearless security Steve pulled guitars and luggage out of the bay. We all lost some stuff, but it was just stuff. The investigator doesn’t know...
A Day To Remember Release New Version of “Re-Entry” Featuring Blink-182’s Mark Hoppus
A Day To Remember have unveiled a new version of their single “Re-Entry,” this time featuring Mark Hoppus of Blink-182. Hoppus — who revealed a few months ago that he was cancer-free following a battle with lymphoma — appears on the second verse of “Re-Entry,” lending his easily recognizable vocals to the rock anthem. Having Hoppus on the track is a perfect fit, since Blink-182 was a significant inspiration for the song. “When this song originally took shape it was without a doubt massively influenced by Blink-182, so when the idea came up to do a remix of sorts for it, Mark was immediately who we pictured,” A Day to Remember vocalist Jeremy McKinnon said in a statement. “We sent him the track with no second verse and said to do whatever he was inspired to do and what he sent back genuinel...
Midnight Announce New Album Let There Be Witchery, Share “Szex Witchery”: Stream
Midnight, the one-man metal project of multi-instrumentalist Athenar, has announced a new album, Let There Be Witchery. Lead single “Szex Witchery” is available now ahead of the LP’s March 4th release date. Under the Midnight moniker, Athenar has proliferated a brand of blackened heavy metal where sodomy and blasphemy reign. For the uninitiated, the new song “Szex Witchery” is a perfect introduction to the Midnight’s Motörhead-playing-black-metal assault. This is “music to start fights to,” as record label Metal Blade so gently puts it. “I always want it to be loud and nasty,” Athenar said via the label’s press release. “That kinda thing never gets old with me. How funny will that look to see me at age 77 — if I reach that point — sitting on the porch blasting Hellhammer?” Advertisement Re...
