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...
The second of two tribute concerts in honor of late Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins took place Tuesday night (September 27th) in Los Angeles. Among the gargantuan 53-song setlist were three RUSH songs performed by original members Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson and a cast of all-star drummers. Lee and Lifeson were first joined by Dave Grohl for “2112 Part I: Overture,” the first movement of the 1976 prog-rock epic. The trio nailed the difficult stop-and-start rhythms, with Grohl pounding away at the floor tom and eying Geddy for cues. Grohl then handed over the sticks to Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith, who has become somewhat of a journeyman, playing on Ozzy Osbourne’s recent albums in addition to his full-time work with a very active RHCP. Here, he settled into the pocket for “W...
Devin Townsend has shared “Call of the Void,” the second single from this forthcoming new album, Lightwork, arriving October 28th. Considering Townsend’s prog metal background and the new song’s eerie title, “Call of the Void” is a surprisingly mellow six-minute journey. The lush guitars and calming instrumentation follow the laid back tone of lead single “Moonpeople,” as the singer-guitarist dials back the more adventurous prog elements found on his previous albums. “The concept of the song is based around the ‘call of the void’ as an analogy for intrusive thoughts,” Devin explained in a press release. “I first heard the term describing ‘the temptation to hurl yourself over the cliff when you’re driving a car’… or to ‘put your hand in the fire when you know you’ll get burned’ etc… thought...