To all my morning readers, sorry to be a little late today. I had to pay my tax bills, because we ALL KNOW what happens when you Don’t Pay Your Tax Bills, right?
Well, today is the day the new Stone Sour album is out! YES! Stone Sour releases its sixth studio album, Hydrograd, today (Jun 30th). The LP is the band’s first since 2013 and was recorded with the intention of sounding as live as possible. Singer Corey Taylor explained the goals he had for the disc: “We just wanted to make a feel-good album, man, you know. We just wanted to make one of those kind of throwback albums that you just put on and there doesn’t have to be an overall message. There doesn’t have to be an overall statement. We just wanted to make a good, kick-ass hard rock album that just takes you anywhere you want to go. That’s what we did with this album and it just feels awesome.“
Taylor told Alternative Press about the new disc, “I can immediately tell if something was thrown up on a bulletin board to be put together, whereas when a band has done something where it feels like you can hear the room around them — you can hear the molecules in the air traveling from the mic to the speaker — that’s what I’m talking about. And I feel like that’s where our album’s at.”
Asked about writing a Stone Sour album for the first time without guitarist Jim Root, who exited the band at the end of 2013, Taylor replied, “We’ve always written as a collective. So, it was just kind of adapting to the way that (bassist Johnny Chow) and (guitarist Christian Martucci) write. They brought in so much cool s**t, we didn’t even have a chance to think about the difference, really.”
Last night, Stone Sour performed at the Troubadour in Los Angeles. Watch some fan filmed stuff below!
Stone Sour plays in Las Vegas on Saturday night (Jul 1st) with Korn and special guest, Rammstein. Taylor’s new book, America 51: A Probe into the Realities That Are Hiding Inside “The Greatest Country in the World,” arrives Aug 8th. I’ve started reading my advance copy. Right on, Mr Taylor, right on! (Thanks The Pulse Of Radio)
This just in via a press release! LANDMARKS LIVE IN CONCERT have announced a Jul 10th concert at the iconic Acropolis of Athens, Greece featuring multiple Grammy Award-winning rock band Foo Fighters. This historic performance will be filmed to air this fall as part of “Landmarks Live In Concert” – the critically acclaimed PBS docu-series featuring a lineup of global superstars performing at monumental locations around the world. Net proceeds from each ticket purchase will be donated to a local Greek charity.
“I’ve always wanted to work with the Foo Fighters and do a show in Greece,” says series creator/director/exec producer Daniel E Catullo. “Having both wishes come true in the same episode is a huge moment for me. When I first came up with the idea for the series, this is exactly what I had in mind – a legendary band playing a legendary venue. We’ve had some incredible shows so far, but this one officially sets our standard at a new level.” Didi Music serves as production consultant for the Foo Fighter show. View Master is the head production for the documentary and concert in Greece.
“Landmarks Live In Concert” was created by veteran documentary and live producer/director Daniel E Catullo III and hosted by Chad Smith, drummer for multiple Grammy Award-winning rock band the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Each episode sees Smith conducting one-on-one interviews with the performers as they explore their favorite locations around each Landmark. The show’s travelogue component is co-produced with Bungalow Media + Entertainment.
Thirty Seconds To Mars (or if you prefer, 30 Seconds To Mars) and frontman Jared Leto have announced a new project called A Day In The Life Of America, a filmed portrait of the country that will capture 24 hours in the life of the USA on Independence Day (Jul 4th). The band will have crews filming in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico on Jul 4th, and are also inviting fans, filmmakers and everyone else in the country to submit crowdsourced footage they shoot that day.
Leto said about the project, “It’s an incredibly important time in our country and we are excited for people to film what they feel is important, impactful, challenging or inspiring. Whether it’s a single shot, a person, an event, or a story — we want to see your America . . . Thirty Seconds to Mars is looking forward to you helping us capture America in all its imperfect glory and epic beauty and to celebrate the spirit of this great nation in an unforgettable way.”
Leto is directing the project, just as he has directed all of Thirty Seconds To Mars’ videos as well as the band’s documentary Artifact. The singer, who is also an Oscar-winning actor, told me a while back that this was one area in which his film and music career intersected: “It is one of the few circumstances where my experience making films actually adds to the process and the experience that surrounds the music.”
Thirty Seconds To Mars has been working on its fifth studio album, which will follow up 2013’s Love, Lust, Faith + Dreams. The disc is due out later this year. The band has been doing North American dates with Muse this summer and next appears with that trio in Toronto on Jul 18th.
Wow, wish my school graduation was this cool! Alternative Nation reporting Queens Of The Stone Age frontman Josh Homme recently performed at a 6th grade graduation with his wife Brody Dalle and Garbage drummer/Nirvana producer Butch Vig. Video of them covering Cheap Trick’s “Surrender” is online. The new Queens album, Villains, is due out August 25th and the band has released a single called “The Way You Used To Do.” (Alternative Nation)
Meanwhile, Prophets Of Rage will be announcing some cool events to surround their self-titled album release Sep 15th around the U.S. Stay tuned!
Celebrating life: Today: Phil Anselmo is 49, Dan Jacobs of Atreyu is 35.
Saturday: Debbie Harry of Blondie is 72! Pamela Anderson is 50!
Have a wonderful long Fourth of July holiday weekend. Be safe and because of the fact we have a weirdo in the White House, God Bless America! We can use it right about now.