Stone Sour and Slipknot frontman Corey Taylor has been all over music news lately. Headlines have ranged from “Corey Taylor: There’s Nothing Worse Than Forced Music” to “Slipknot’s Corey Taylor Robbed of Music Gear, Late Bassists’ Guitars Stolen.” There are things that have come to light this past year that…
On Thursday night at Crescent Ballroom, the vibe was even more feel-good and positive than usual. Sure, it was a roster chock-full of locally loved acts — Flamenco por la Vida, Sara Robinson & The Midnight Special, The Senators, and Dry River Yacht Club — that attracted an impressively large…
It takes a lot for a heavy metal band to beat out Lady Gaga on the music charts — especially in a place like Japan, where people love the pop artist’s catchy dance music and outrageous outfits. (You know, since the Japanese need a reason to sport cartoonish, questionable, and/or…
An anomaly is defined as a “deviation from the normal or common order.” That’s a fitting definition of local rockers Anomaly. The band’s sound walks everywhere but the beaten path — it’s a blend of heavy and harmonized vocals, unrelenting chords and structures, and electronic samples and digital beats that…
Few things pique my interest more than authentic, hardcore Satanic metal musicians. But at the same time, there’s a part of me that is convinced that most satanic metallers are a bunch of prima donnas. I do know that it’s important to tread lightly when discussing the terms atheistic Satanism…
A few years ago, Kid Rock was at a concert, watching T-shirts sell for $40. He had more reason than most stars to wonder why they were charging so much. He has a T-shirt company of his own, Made in Detroit, and he knows exactly how much it costs to…
At age 13, Phil Anselmo dove headfirst into what he knew to be his true calling: heavy metal. “I was playing my first gigs before I was barely a teenager,” says Anselmo. “I’ll put it like this: I used to come home from school and practice Judas Priest’s Unleashed in…
Michigan native and old-school rocker Ted Nugent may always be looking to ruffle a few feathers, but he is a bit of a softie at heart. Sure, he’s incredibly outspoken politically and musically and to about every hunted animal on the planet. He’s the same guy who named his 2013…
Since 1983, the Melvins have influenced countless bands and carved out a path that is all their own. They constantly explore unexpected paths, even relative to their own work — with every album they wind up even further away from what people have finally pegged as a their “sound.” Over…
Spend some time with the guys in Slightly Stoopid, and you’re bound to walk away with a fascination for the band’s business model and a new cologne — of the skunk variety. For almost 15 years, the members of Slightly Stoopid have made music together, and somehow they’ve perfected one…
Spend some time with the guys from Slightly Stoopid, and you’re bound to walk away with a fascination for the band’s business model and a new cologne — of the skunk variety. For almost 15 years the members of Slightly Stoopid have made music together, and somehow they’ve perfected one…
Thousands of people showed up for the Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival on Friday, from all walks of life–five-year-olds with their parents all the way to couples pushing 60, meatheads and meth-heads, respected industry figures and pierced and tattooed punks–but there was one definite commonality. All of them came out…
Everything eventually turns into porn. Guitar porn–Rob Zombie guitarist John 5 is all about it–whiskey porn… well, regular porn. But recently, food porn has blown up. Which is great for me. You see, there are only a few things that I take voracious pleasure in consuming, and two of those…
Five Finger Death Punch appeals to a particular demographic in heavy metal: Their testosterone-driven, in-your-face music is heavy and angry at all that is evil — destruction, internal struggles, politics, war, bullying. Every friend I have in the armed services loves them. I’ve heard of soldiers who’ve approached the band…
The annual heavy metal throwdown known as the Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival is making its way through Phoenix this week, and things are about to get heated. This year’s lineup is one of the festival’s best, with heavyweights Rob Zombie, Five Finger Death Punch, Machine Head, and Mastodon. But…
Sunset Strip darlings the Butcher Babies have been one of my favorite acts for a while now. They first gained notoriety from a YouTube video performing Pantera’s “Fucking Hostile” and the two frontwomen, Carla Harvey and Heidi Shepherd, started out performing in leather pants with electrical tape over their nipples,…
When we interviewed Black Veil Brides lead singer Andy Biersack last week, ahead of their performance at Warped Tour on Thursday, lots of fans — from in and out of town — wrote in to talk about how much they loved the band. A smaller, very vocal contingent, though, wrote…
It’s been said that in order to truly sing the blues, it’s necessary to have experienced a lifetime of blues material — a broken heart, tragedy, hopelessness. So when you hear about an incredible blues musician, what usually comes to mind is an image of elderly Junior Kimbrough or Etta…
It’s been said that in order to truly sing the blues, it’s necessary to have experienced a lifetime of blues material — a broken heart, tragedy, hopelessness. So when you hear about an incredible blues musician, what usually comes to mind is an image of elderly Junior Kimbrough or Etta…
Many things define the popular hard rock/metal band Black Veil Brides, depending on whom you ask. For some, it’s their distinct appearance of black makeup and paint (decreasing more each year), tight black studded clothing and long hair. For others, it’s their inspiration (some might call it a blatant rip-off)…
Shortly after writing Are Out of Town Music Festivals Worth The Hassle? I decided to embark on a cross-cultural adventure. The mission? To explore the Nashville music scene and attempt survival at the 80,000-person music festival Bonnaroo. Four days of camping in the heat (actually, we slept in the trunk…
Last week at the O Music Awards, rock musician Andrew W.K. set the world record for Longest Drum Session in a Retail Store after he spent 24 consecutive hours (from June 19-20) at his drum set. While the songwriter/instrumentalist/party connoisseur was hitting the skins, lots of other rock musicians sat…
