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News
Police Officer Hit and Injured After Aerosmith Concert
According to KYPost.com, a corrections officer was hit and injured Thursday night (September 2) by a driver leaving the AEROSMITH concert at the Riverbend Music Center in Cincinnati, Ohio.
"Officer Darin Bernard, who was working with the department's traffic unit, flagged down the Chevy Cavalier driven by Randy Damron on suspicion of drunk driving," the report states. "That's when police say Damron didn't stop, and hit Bernard. In order to avoid being pulled underneath the car, Bernard held on, and was dragged 35 feet beside the car, eventually falling to the road."
According to TMZ.com, MÖTLEY CRÜE frontman Vince Neil failed three field sobriety tests and had a blood-alcohol level almost three times the legal limit during his June 27, 2010 Las Vegas arrest on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol.
TMZ.com obtained the Las Vegas Police Department report (view report as PDF file), which indicates that Neil was pulled over for driving 60 mph in a 45 mph zone and for "weaving between the lanes."
According to the report, the arresting officer detected the odor of alcohol on Neil's breath and asked the singer to perform a variety of field sobriety tests, three of which Vince failed. Neil — who admitted to having consumed three glasses of champagne at the Hilton hotel earlier in the night — eventually gave up by saying, "I can't do this," the report states. Vince was then asked by the officer to take two breathalyzer tests and, according to the report, he registered .215 and .216 — nearly three times the .08 limit.
Neil has been charged with DUI and speeding and is set to be arraigned on September 27.
Vince was previously arrested in 2007 for suspected DUI but worked out a deal in which he pleaded no contest to reckless driving in exchange for having the DUI charge dropped, according to TMZ.com.
Nevada state law says that people convicted of DUI twice within seven years face anywhere from 10 days to six months in jail.
The singer lives in Las Vegas, where he owns a chain of tattoo shops and a restaurant at the Las Vegas Hilton.
Neil was sentenced to 30 days in jail and five years probation in 1984 after an accident in which he crashed his car, killing passenger Nicholas "Razzle" Dingley of the band HANOI ROCKS. Neil was driving under the influence at that time.
Neil also pleaded no contest to a charge of assaulting a music producer in 2002, and again pleaded no contest in 2003 to charges he attacked a prostitute at the Moonlight Bunny Ranch in Nevada. In 2004, an arrest warrant was issued after he allegedly hit a sound engineer at a show in Texas.
Vince's new solo album, "Tattoos & Tequila", sold 7,500 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 57 on The Billboard 200 chart.
"Tattoos & Tequila" was issued in Europe on June 4 via Frontiers Records and was made available in the U.S. on June 22 through Eleven Seven Music.
Below is Vince Neil's mug shot — taken right after he was arrested in Las Vegas, Nevada on June 27, 2010 on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol.
New Spiritual Beggars Song Available For Streaming
"The Chaos Of Rebirth", a brand new song from SPIRITUAL BEGGARS — the Swedish band featuring ARCH ENEMY guitarist Michael Amott and bassist Sharlee D'Angelo, along with new vocalist Apollo Papathanasio (FIREWIND) — is available for streaming on the group's MySpace page. The track comes off SPIRITUAL BEGGARS's seventh studio album, "Return To Zero", which was released in Japan on August 25 via Trooper Entertainment Inc. — a label founded by legendary Japanese heavy metal music industry guru Tetsu Miyamoto. The Japanese special edition comes in a glossy paper box with a poster and a sticker of the CD front cover. The Japanese edition also features a bonus track, a thunderous cover of URIAH HEEP's "Time To Live" off the legendary U.K. band's 1971 "Salisbury" record.
"Return To Zero" will be released in North America on October 12 via InsideOut Music. The follow-up to 2005's "Demons" was recorded at Sweetspot Studio with producer Rickard Bengtsson.
"Return To Zero" track listing:
01. Return To Zero (intro) 02. Lost In Yesterday 03. Star Born 04. The Chaos Of Rebirth 05. We Are Free 06. Spirit Of The Wind 07. Coming Home 08. Concrete Horizon 09. A New Dawn Rising 10. Believe In Me 11. Dead Weight 12. The Road Less Travelled
A specially priced pre-order bundle package is now available exclusively at CMDistro.com.
The CD artwork was created by the well-known Brazilian artist Gustavo Sazes.
In a recent interview with Japan's Burrn! magazine, Amott stated about the CD, "The new album has a lot of the typical SPIRITUAL BEGGARS trademarks — it's heavy rock with a '70s atmosphere — but I also hear a definite progression and a deeper sense of melody in the songwriting and performances. It's exactly the kind of record I wanted to make with SPIRITUAL BEGGARS in 2010!"
Regarding the band's latest addition, vocalist Apollo Papathanasio (FIREWIND), Amott said, "Apollo's influences are very much rooted in the classic rock and metal of the '70s and '80s. He is the same age as the rest of us in SPIRITUAL BEGGARS, so we instantly shared a lot of common ground musically, and he really connected with the songs and delivered emotional vocals that really impressed us all."
He added, "Apollo does share some similarities with our previous singers — a rough and raw style based in blues and hard rock. He also has influences from the classic metal of the Eighties.
"I was always aware of the fact that he is great singer. However, even I was surprised how well his voice fit SPIRITUAL BEGGARS, in the new and the old songs. Apollo is showing a range and depth on this album that I believe will both surprise and please the SPIRITUAL BEGGARS fans!"
SPIRITUAL BEGGARS 2010 is:
Michael Amott (ARCH ENEMY, CARCASS) - Guitar Ludwig Witt (FIREBIRD) - Drums Per Wiberg (OPETH) - Keyboards Sharlee D'Angelo (ARCH ENEMY, MERCYFUL FATE) - Bass Apollo Papathanasio (FIREWIND) - Vocals
SPIRITUAL BEGGARS has been confirmed for the Loud Park 10 festival, set to take place October 16-17 at Saitama Super Arena, a multi-purpose indoor arena located in Saitama City, Japan.
SPIRITUAL BEGGARS' last album, "Demons", was released in Europe in June 2005 via InsideOut Music.
"Return To Zero" will be released in North America on October 12 via InsideOut Music. The follow-up to 2005's "Demons" was recorded at Sweetspot Studio with producer Rickard Bengtsson.
"Return To Zero" track listing:
01. Return To Zero (intro) 02. Lost In Yesterday 03. Star Born 04. The Chaos Of Rebirth 05. We Are Free 06. Spirit Of The Wind 07. Coming Home 08. Concrete Horizon 09. A New Dawn Rising 10. Believe In Me 11. Dead Weight 12. The Road Less Travelled
A specially priced pre-order bundle package is now available exclusively at CMDistro.com.
The CD artwork was created by the well-known Brazilian artist Gustavo Sazes.
In a recent interview with Japan's Burrn! magazine, Amott stated about the CD, "The new album has a lot of the typical SPIRITUAL BEGGARS trademarks — it's heavy rock with a '70s atmosphere — but I also hear a definite progression and a deeper sense of melody in the songwriting and performances. It's exactly the kind of record I wanted to make with SPIRITUAL BEGGARS in 2010!"
Regarding the band's latest addition, vocalist Apollo Papathanasio (FIREWIND), Amott said, "Apollo's influences are very much rooted in the classic rock and metal of the '70s and '80s. He is the same age as the rest of us in SPIRITUAL BEGGARS, so we instantly shared a lot of common ground musically, and he really connected with the songs and delivered emotional vocals that really impressed us all."
He added, "Apollo does share some similarities with our previous singers — a rough and raw style based in blues and hard rock. He also has influences from the classic metal of the Eighties.
"I was always aware of the fact that he is great singer. However, even I was surprised how well his voice fit SPIRITUAL BEGGARS, in the new and the old songs. Apollo is showing a range and depth on this album that I believe will both surprise and please the SPIRITUAL BEGGARS fans!"
SPIRITUAL BEGGARS 2010 is:
Michael Amott (ARCH ENEMY, CARCASS) - Guitar Ludwig Witt (FIREBIRD) - Drums Per Wiberg (OPETH) - Keyboards Sharlee D'Angelo (ARCH ENEMY, MERCYFUL FATE) - Bass Apollo Papathanasio (FIREWIND) - Vocals
SPIRITUAL BEGGARS has been confirmed for the Loud Park 10 festival, set to take place October 16-17 at Saitama Super Arena, a multi-purpose indoor arena located in Saitama City, Japan.
SPIRITUAL BEGGARS' last album, "Demons", was released in Europe in June 2005 via InsideOut Music.
Heathen Forced To Cancel Mexican Dates
San Francisco Bay Area thrashers HEATHEN have been forced to cancel their previously announced Mexican shows (October 15 in Monterrey and October 16 in Mexico City) because "agreed financial obligations" were not met by "the local promoter," according to a statement released by the band. The group adds, "We hate to disappoint all the HEATHEN fans in Mexico that may have already purchased tickets and we hope to make it up to you all soon."
As previously reported, HEATHEN will team up with OVERKILL and DESTRUCTION for the 2011 European "Killfest Tour" in March.
HEATHEN's "Dying Season" video can be viewed below. The clip was filmed in early April in Sacramento, California with Darin Wood, Christy Savage and Amy Slockbower of Trash Film Orgy Productions, a company that specializes in B-horror films. This is Trash Film Orgy's first foray into the metal video world. Also on the set was airbrush artist Alvin Petty, creator of HEATHEN's "Victims Of Deception" (1991) and "Recovered" (2004) album covers, as well as METALLICA's "Creeping Death" EP cover.
"Dying Season" comes off HEATHEN's latest album, "The Evolution Of Chaos", which was released in the U.S. on February 16. The CD was issued in Japan on December 23, 2009 via King Records and was made available on January 25 in Europe via Holland's Mascot Records.
The band's current lineup includes Lee Altus (guitar), Kragen Lum (guitar; PROTOTYPE), Dave White (vocals), Jon Torres (bass; ANGELWITCH) and returning drummer Darren Minter.
"The Evolution Of Chaos" track listing:
01. Dying Season 02. Control By Chaos 03. No Stone Unturned 04. Arrows Of Agony 05. Fade Away 06. A Heroe's Welcome 07. Undone 08. Bloodkult 09. Red Tears Of Disgrace 10. Silent Nothingness
Loaded Complete Work On New CD
DUFF MCKAGAN'S LOADED, the band led by VELVET REVOLVER/ex-GUNS N' ROSES bassist Duff McKagan, has finished recording its new album at a Seattle-area studio with veteran rock producer Terry Date (SOUNDGARDEN, PANTERA, DEFTONES).
In the latest installment of his column, which appears on Reverb at SeattleWeekly.com, McKagan writes about working with Date, "For those of you who follow the band, you will also know that having Terry produce this new record is a departure from Martin Feveyear, the producer of the first two LOADED records. Martin is not only our producer, but one of my dearest friends, and I can probably speak for the other fellas in the band when I state that this was a very tough decision for us. Martin totally understood and told us to make a great record."
DUFF MCKAGAN'S LOADED recently parted ways with Century Media Records after releasing one EP (2008's "Wasted Heart") and one full-length album (2009's "Sick") through the label.
Commented McKagan: "We hope to find LOADED a label home that will do our record a bit more justice this time around. There is not a group of guys anywhere who deserve more reciprocation from a like-minded, hard-working record company. But THAT is another story!"
Drummer Isaac Carpenter (LOUDERMILK, GOSLING, OURS, THE EXIES) joined DUFF MCKAGAN'S LOADED as the replacement for Geoff Reading, who left the band last year.
"Sick" sold around 1,400 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD landed at position No. 43 on the Top New Artist Albums (Heatseekers) chart, which lists the best-selling albums by new and developing artists, defined as those who have never appeared in the Top 100 of The Billboard 200.
"Sick" was released in North America on April 7, 2009 via Century Media Records. An e-card for the CD, which was produced by Martin Feveyear (PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, KINGS OF LEON), is available at this location.
In addition to McKagan and Carpenter, LOADED features bassist Jeff Rouse (VENDETTA RED, ALIEN CRIME SYNDICATE) and guitarist Mike Squires (ALIEN CRIME SYNDICATE).
LOADED released "Live Episode" (1999) and "Dark Days" (2001), before other commitments meant LOADED were put on the back burner to some extent, although they never split up.
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