Heavy Music News
Alex Van Halen to His Late Brother Eddie: “See You on the Other Side”
Alex and Eddie Van Halen, via Warner Bros. Records Alex Van Halen has acknowledged the passing of his bandmate and brother, Eddie Van Halen, with a brief statement to media outlets. The drummer also shared a charming photo of the two of them as children. In keeping with the short tributes that have already been posted by Eddie’s other Van Halen bandmates, Alex simply wrote, “Hey Ed. Love you. See you on the other side. Your brother, Al.” The heartwarming photo depicts Alex standing up in overalls while a toddler-aged Eddie sits on a rocking horse and plays a toy drum. Thus far, there has not been an official band statement regarding Eddie’s death, but Alex’s message follows social media tributes from recent and former Van Halen members David Lee Roth, Michael Anthony, Sammy Hagar, Gary Che...
Tobias Forge: New Ghost Album Coming “This Winter”
Ghost will release their new album this winter, according to frontman Tobias Forge. The singer previously said he wanted to wait until after the U.S. presidential election before releasing the follow-up to 2018’s Prequelle. Forge told Swedish publication VK that Ghost will release the new album “this winter,” with the band’s touring plans pushed to fall 2021. The release plans fall in line with statements that Forge made last year, when he predicted an early 2021 release for the group’s fifth LP. If you wanted Forge’s take on the pandemic — and how it fits into his lyrics — the enigmatic singer said there won’t be any “doomsday” or “quarantine-confirming” records from Ghost anytime soon. However, he might reluctantly consider playing reduced capacity shows in smaller venues if the pandemic...
Tool’s Maynard James Keenan Had COVID-19 and Still Has Lung Damage Months Later
Tool singer Maynard James Keenan has revealed that he contracted COVID-19 back in February. Moreover, he is still feeling the effects months later, as he deals with lung damage and coughing fits. While speaking to the Arizona Republic about his band Puscifer’s upcoming album, Existential Reckoning, Keenan was asked about Tool having to shut down their tour plans due to the pandemic. He responded, “I was still recovering from having gotten COVID at the end of February. I’m still dealing with the residual effects. But it was ugly. I survived it, but it wasn’t pretty. So I definitely had to deal with that.” When the interviewer expressed surprise at the singer’s revelation, Keenan explained, “I kind of didn’t want to run around screaming it. But it’s real. And there’s after-effects. I had to ...
Killer Be Killed Unveil New Song “Dream Gone Bad”: Stream
Supergroup Killer Be Killed are readying the release of their new album, Reluctant Hero, due out on November 20th. The band has now shared the music video for the latest single, “Dream Gone Bad”. Killer Be Killed touts one of the strongest lineups of any heavy metal supergroup in recent memory: vocalist Greg Puciato of The Dillinger Escape Plan; Soulfly and ex-Sepultura leader Max Cavalera; Mastodon singer-bassist Troy Sanders; and Converge drummer Ben Koller. Not surprisingly, its makes for a crushing collaboration on “Dream Gone Bad” as propulsive guitars give way to epic vocals. Sanders handles most of the singing on this track. Mastodon fans take note. “Dissecting the idea of uncertainty and how you pull from that to find your way,” Sanders said in a press release. “‘Dream Gone Bad’ wa...
BABYMETAL Announce Mysterious 10th Anniversary Best-Of Collection, Unveil “BxMxC” Video: Watch
BABYMETAL have been around for 10 years, and they’re celebrating with a mysterious new best-of collection. In addition, the Japanese pop-metal sensations just unveiled a music video for their song “BxMxC”. As young as founding members Su-metal and Moametal still are, it’s hard to fathom that BABYMETAL are celebrating their 10-year anniversary. At the time of their formation in 2010, the two singer-dancers were roughly aged 12 and 11. Now, to mark a decade of BABYMETAL, the band has announced a greatest-hits collection dubbed 10 BABYMETAL Years. The compilation is due December 23rd, and will be available in 10 different editions. Where it gets interesting is that the tracklist for at least one edition will be determined by fan vote, thanks to a bracket-style tournament. There will also be a...
Duff McKagan and Jerry Cantrell Pay Tribute to Jimmy Carter with Acoustic Performance: Watch
Guns N’ Roses bassist Duff McKagan and Alice in Chains guitarist-singer Jerry Cantrell have teamed up for an acoustic performance in tribute to former U.S. president Jimmy Carter, who turned 96 on October 1st. The two rock legends played a cover of “A Satisfied Mind”, penned by Joe “Red” Hayes and Jack Rhodes, while sitting on the couch. It’s a peaceful and serene rendition of the song, and a worthy cover choice for the longest-living president. “We want to say happy birthday to Jimmy Carter,” McKagan said in the video’s introduction, going on to address Carter directly. “We’re here for a couple reasons … how strongly you fought for arts in school. We were exactly the right age.” “Beneficiaries for sure,” Cantrell added. “Almost half my classes were arts. When I graduated, they kind o...
Linkin Park Unveil Long-Lost Song “Pictureboard” as Part of Hybrid Theory 20th Anniversary Edition: Stream
Linkin Park have just released a 20th anniversary edition of their multiplatinum debut album, Hybrid Theory. Among the highlights on the extensive tracklist is the previously unreleased song “Pictureboard”. “Pictureboard” has some lore among Linkin Park fans, who’ve known it existed thanks to early live performances of the song — back when the band called itself Xero. As part of the Hybrid Theory: 20th Anniversary Edition super deluxe box set, the track appears on disc dubbed “Forgotten Demos”. While the song features the signature trade-off vocals between late singer Chester Bennington and rapper Mike Shinoda, it lacks the powerful punch of Hybrid Theory‘s multiple chart-toppers like “One Step Closer”, “Crawling”, and “In the End”. The recording is listed as a demo, and it’s evident that ...
Greta Van Fleet Return with Surprise New Song “My Way, Soon”: Stream
After a whirlwind start to their career, it’s been a quiet 2020 for Greta Van Fleet. Of course, the pandemic has a lot to do with that, but the rock sensations are back with a surprise new song, “My Way, Soon”. It’s been two years since Greta Van Fleet released their debut album, 2018’s Anthem of the Peaceful Army. Before that, the band exploded onto the rock scene with a pair of 2017 EPs. Starting with “Highway Tune”, the young rockers scored four straight No. 1 hits on the Mainstream Rock chart, and would go on to play sold-out shows across the world. Roughly a year ago, Greta Van Fleet released the new song “Always There” from the soundtrack to the movie A Million Little Pieces. “My Way, Soon” marks the band’s first new music since then. “My Way, Soon” continues Greta Van Fleet’s throwb...
Sammy Hagar and Michael Anthony Honor Eddie Van Halen with Video and Onstage Tributes: Watch
Former Van Halen members Sammy Hagar and Michael Anthony have paid tribute to the late Eddie Van Halen with a new video message. The pair happened to be getting ready to perform at Hagar’s “Birthday Bash” concert this week at Catalina Island when news of the guitarist’s death broke on Tuesday. The two musicians had both been estranged from Eddie for several years, with Hagar revealing Wednesday that he had recently made peace with the guitarist. Previously, Hagar and Anthony shared very short statements on social media, both expressing that they were heartbroken over Eddie’s death. In a new video message filmed during rehearsals for Hagar’s annual birthday bash, Hagar and Anthony expressed how shocked they were to hear the news of Eddie’s passing. “For Mike and I, it was just like getting ...
Rammstein Confirm They Are in the Studio Working on New Music
Rammstein are currently working on new music for their next album. The band shared a pic from the studio on Instagram, confirming a previous report from a fan site. The members of Rammstein appear to be social distancing in the spacious recording room, which is ostensibly at La Fabrique in the Saint-Rémy-de-Provence of France, per the prior report. The band and crew were spotted in the area prior to the sessions, leading to rumors that they’d assembled to work on new music. Rammstein were previously in the studio to record their untitled 2019 album. The German industrial-metal act captioned the photo: “Sadly no tour this year — but it’s great to be back in the studio!” Rammstein were supposed to embark on a massive stadium tour this year, dates that were rescheduled to 2021 due to the...
Fever 333 Announce Wrong Generation EP and Virtual Global Livestream Tour
Politically charged rockers Fever 333 have announced a new EP, titled Wrong Generation. What’s more, they’ll support the new release with a virtual tour of major regions across the world. Wrong Generation, due October 23rd, was inspired by frontman Jason Aalon Butler’s experience in several protest marches following the death of George Floyd in the custody of Minneapolis police. The singer spent 13 days in the streets of Los Angeles protesting against racism and police brutality. “This project is art as activism first,” explained Butler in a press release. “I’m talking about what’s happening and what needs to happen. I hope you understand there’s going to be pain in progress. After dismantling and deconstructing all of these things, we can find a beautiful place to be together. For me, thi...
Sammy Hagar Rekindled His Friendship with Eddie Van Halen Before the Guitarist’s Death
Sammy Hagar and Eddie Van Halen weren’t always on the best of terms, but Hagar rekindled his friendship with the guitarist in the months prior to the latter’s death on Tuesday. Before reconnecting, the pair hadn’t directly spoken since the end of the 2004 Van Halen reunion tour. However, in a note passed on to The Howard Stern Show this morning (October 7th), Hagar revealed that he’d secretly reconnected with his former bandmate via text in recent months. Their text communication was kept secret to prevent possible Van Halen reunion rumors. Hagar joined Van Halen in 1985, replacing original frontman David Lee Roth, who went on to pursue a solo career after having his own disputes with Eddie. Often labeled “Van Hagar” when the Red Rocker was out front, the band continued its massive success...
