Rush On Track For #2 US Debut
Yeah I know, I know, I’ve been talking about it a lot lately, but the new Rush album Clockwork Angels looks set to debut at #2 in the USA this week with sales of between 85,000 and 95,000 copies. Nice work! I have no idea how it’s going to go in Australia but hopefully enough people will buy it that promoters will take notice.
Joe Matera Signs UK/Europe Deal
Melbourne guitarist Joe Matera (ex-Geisha) has signed with FMSG to assist in the development of his career in the UK and Europe. Rick Palin, Director of FMSG said, “having been a fan of Joe’s work for a long time and as a dear friend, I am very pleased that Joe has decided to sign with us, he is a welcome addition to the FMSG team.” Joe will hit Europe and the UK for some shows in September. Check out his EP Slave To The Fingers.
Cool Band Alert: Tokyo Blade
Check out Tokyo Blade, a new band from the US featuring members of Savatage. Their debut album Reverence was released last week and it’s pure old school metal. Check out their site at reverencemetal.com.
Van Halen Oz Dates?
Over the weekend, CNN ran an interview with Eddie and Wolfgang Van Halen. It was a really sweet interview, timed to coincide with Father’s Day in the USA, and Eddie let slip an interesting piece of info: “I know there’s been talk of Australia and Japan in October and November,” he said. “Don’t quote me on that because that’s management that takes care of that…but I heard talk about that.” If the tour does indeed happen, it’ll be only Van Halen’s second ever Australian tour. The first was in 1998 with Extreme’s Gary Cherone on vocals. Check out Van Halen’s new album, A Different Kind Of Truth, by the way. Wolf copped a lot of flak for stepping into Michael Anthony’s shoes on bass, but if you check out the YouTube videos of the band’s tour you’ll see that he can definitely cut it. Doesn’t hurt to have that Van Halen blood, of course.
LORD Name New Album
LORD has set Digital Lies as the title of their forthcoming album. Once again the cover art was handled by Felipe Machado. The band is still recording but the track listing is already set as Incipio Betrayal Blind, Digital Lies, Point Of View, Walk Away, 2D Person In A 3D World, Final Seconds, The Last Encore, Because We Can, The Chalkboard Prophet and Battle Of Venarium. “Every artist says their new album is ‘their best work’ or their ‘heaviest’ or ‘most brutal’,” Lord Tim says. “We’ll skip those clichés and say that we believe we have a solid album of good music that we’re proud of and we believe stands up to anything we’ve released so far. If you’re familiar with LORD you’ll know what to expect for the most part; a very diverse album ranging from traditional metal to commercial rock to extreme metal and everything in between. If you’re wanting an album full of thrash songs, AOR songs, or progressive epic movie orchestral jazz djent punk songs that all sound the same then I’m afraid you’ll be a little bewildered when the style shifts from song to song. It’s the LORD you know with a few new elements that have fallen into the melting pot since the last album.”
Long Holiday – “Hate Potion No. 8”
Get thee to YouTube to check out the video for Hate Potion No. 8 by Melbourne band Long Holiday. They’re a grunge-influenced band featuring Marc Russo (Uncle Chunk), and Andie Fitzpatrick (Tim McMillan Band/The Kissingers) and fronted by the ridiculously talented Gina Wessel on lead vocals/guitar. They’re at The Espy on Wednesday June 20 and The Cornish Arms on Friday July 6.
Star-Studded Hendrix Tribute
Experience Jimi Hendrix is at The Forum on Saturday June 23, featuring Bob Spencer (Skyhooks), Brett Garsed (Nelson), Brett Kingman (James Reyne band), Charlie Owen (The Beasts of Bourbon), Joel Silbersher (Tendrils), Daniel Spencer (Richard Clapton band), Dave Leslie (Baby Animals), Jimi Hocking (The Screaming Jets), Phil Manning (Chain), Steve Edmonds (Jimmy Barnes Band) and Stuart Fraser (Noiseworks).
Guitar Pick App
Guitarists should check out the new Grover Allman app for iOS, which lets you design and order custom-printed guitar picks directly from your phone. The picks are printed and sent out within one to two weeks. A few years ago Grover Allman made me some killer custom picks that said “My Other Pick Is My Fingers.” Hehe.
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