It’s No See Ums season down here in Florida. Getting time to pack up and head north. I hate these awful, tiny sons of bitches! ARGH! Can’t imagine how bad it could be at Fort Rock in about 10 days. Bring the OFF! Help me!
The Pulse Of Radio reporting today Metallica has added a new show to its summer North American schedule. The band will perform at the Iowa Speedway in Newton, IA on Jun 9th, with the concert acting as a benefit for the Native Fund, a non-profit organization that helps Iowans during disaster relief. The fund was founded in 2008 by actor Ashton Kutcher and NFL star Dallas Clark, both Iowa natives, as a way to give back to local residents.
Metallica stated, “(Kutcher and Clark) are committed to raising funds and organizing resources that can be used to assist the people of Iowa in their times of need including relief through its financial and programmatic resources to Iowans suffering from a natural disaster, to post-9/11 veterans who are in need medical or other assistance, and to children afflicted with life-threatening illness or disease.”
The band added, “We’re honored that Ashton and Dallas invited us to be a part of this special event and look forward to giving back to a state that has been so supportive of Metallica throughout our career.”
Tickets will be available for Metallica fan club members starting tomorrow (Wed, Apr 19th) at 9:00 a.m. local time, with general sales beginning on Fri (Apr 21st) at 10:00 a.m. local time.
The North American leg of Metallica’s “WorldWired” 2017 tour kicks off in Baltimore on May 10th and will hit stadiums in 25 cities before winding down in mid-Aug.
Meanwhile, an email was sent to a number of leading print and online media outlets in the U.K. on Sunday (Apr 16th) stating drummer Lars Ulrich was retiring from Metallica. The email emanated from a site called The Metal Den and said, “Sad news for Ulrich fans. Speculation had been rife that Metallica’s drummer will announce his retirement from music, at age 53. Now it seems as this is really going to happen, with immediate effect.” The email quoted Ulrich as saying, “Being a musician isn’t fun anymore,” adding that he was looking to branch into other creative fields. The news was proven to be “fake” within 24 hours, however, with the Metallica camp confirming that the drummer, who co-founded the band 36 years ago with James Hetfield, was staying firmly behind the kit.
Ulrich told us a while back that even nearly four decades into the band’s career, it isn’t hard to stay inspired: “I don’t use the word ‘career,’ ‘hunger,’ I use more words like ‘fun.’ As long as we keep it fun for ourselves and keep it kind of manageable, the days of the word ‘career’ and the business and, I don’t know, it just seems kind of part of the past. Now it’s just about, like, having fun and wanting to do it. You know, as long as it doesn’t turn into too much work, it’s not hard to be inspired.“
In other Metallica news, a new trailer has arrived for Addicted To Porn: Chasing The Cardboard Butterfly, a documentary about the impact of pornography addiction narrated by James Hetfield.
Addicted To Porn is the fifth feature-length film and fourth documentary, from writer-director Justin Hunt, who previously interviewed Hetfield for Absent, his award-winning documentary on absent and disengaged fathers.
And former Metallica bassist Jason Newsted will debut his first major international exhibition of his contemporary art, titled “Rawk,” at the third edition of Art New York at Pier 94, opening Wed, May 3rd, and continuing through Sun, May 7th, to kick off New York Art Week. Read the full stories at Blabbermouth (Iowa show), Metal Talk (Lars retiring), Blabbermouth (James narration, Jason art show.)
Photo credit: Danny Clinch
Billboard reporting one-time enemies Pearl Jam and Ticketmaster have formed an alliance, along with Ticketmaster parent company Live Nation, Azoff MSG Entertainment and the Oak View Group, to win a contract to redevelop and restore Seattle’s legendary Key Arena. According to the report, the partnership is bidding to wrest control of the venue from its current owner, AEG. One incentive to let the Live Nation group have the contract would be a possible residency by Pearl Jam at the venue once it is renovated and re-opened.
The new Key Arena would be modeled after the Forum in Los Angeles, once an aging and disused arena that was transformed into a state-of-the-art concert hall. According to Oak View Group CEO Tim Leiweke, Pearl Jam doesn’t “love the acoustics” at the Key Arena, adding, “But they love Seattle.” He said that the intent is to persuade the band to “play the building a lot.”
The Live Nation group’s plans to renovate the facility include a major acoustical upgrade and turning it into a 19,000-seat concert venue that could also host a basketball or hockey team if one can be lured to the city. AEG has its own competing plan to change the arena into the “Seattle Coliseum,” with more luxury suites.
Pearl Jam and Ticketmaster famously went to war in 1994, with the band accusing the ticketing giant of acting like a monopoly and demanding the company charge no more than a $1.80 service fee for tickets. Bassist Jeff Ament and guitarist Stone Gossard testified before Congress against Ticketmaster and the band even tried to tour non-Ticketmaster venues, before eventually being forced to use the service for the bulk of its tours.
A Perfect Circle guitarist Billy Howerdel has told the Salt Lake Tribune the band’s first new album in 14 years will arrive possibly by this Nov, but otherwise will come out next spring at the latest. Howerdel admitted a new album from the band might have arrived sooner if not for singer Maynard James Keenan‘s timetable. Howerdel explained “I’ve always been there, ready for Maynard to get a window in his schedule . . . many things take his attention. He’s owns a winery, he’s also a father and a husband, he’s got three bands. Finding that window to put a tour together is not something you can do in a whim or just do on a month’s notice. You need planning, you need notice a year in advance to start chipping away at the schedule.”
Howerdel said he started sending music to Keenan as far back as 2010, and told hardDriveRadio the process of collaborating with the vocalist can be difficult but rewarding: “It’s an interesting process. You know, you get kind of married to things — ’cause I’ve sat with him alone for a long time and I’d go, ‘Okay, this is in a place where I’m feeling good about it,’ and, you know, Maynard’s got some other ideas. And it’s hard to take a deep breath and go, okay, well, gotta in your best Buddhist way let go of that, rearrange it and approach it from a different angle. And good things come from that.”
Howerdel added, “In a perfect world for me, I would make an album, tour, take a break, make an album, tour. But there’s costs to that, too. There’s a benefit to having an appetite out there when we haven’t been out in a while.”
Last month A Perfect Circle announced it had signed a new worldwide recording deal with BMG Music. A new full-length album will be released later in the year. The band’s last effort, a covers collection called eMOTIVe, was released in 2004. The group, which last toured in 2010 and 2011, is currently on a North American run that stops in Kansas City, MO on Wed (Apr 19th). Can’t wait to see them at Fort Rock later this month!
He’s baaaacccckkkkk! Marilyn Manson has started posting a set of cryptic Instagram teasers that are likely to be related to his upcoming new album, SAY10. According to Alternative Press, the latest clip is called “Hisatrocitionics” and unspools from the point of view of a driver traveling a dark road before stopping and encountering a mysterious, shrouded figure. SAY10 was originally due out in the early part of this year but is now tentatively set to come out on Jun 19th.
Manson’s last few albums have not sold a lot of copies but told us a while back that he defines success a different way: “It’s how you feel when you go to bed at night. Money is motivating to everybody. It’s not the answer. And, you know, impact is very important to me artistically, but success-wise, the fact that I’m able to be creative as my life, and I can go to bed knowing that, that’s successful to me.“
SAY10 will follow up 2015’s The Pale Emperor. The album was once again co-written with composer Tyler Bates, with whom Manson worked on The Pale Emperor as well as the theme for the TV series Salem. Manson said that going down to Louisiana to collaborate with Bates while making a guest appearance on Salem also inspired the new disc, adding that it brought back memories of making his classic 1996 effort Antichrist Superstar in New Orleans.
This looks pretty freakin’ awesome! Blabbermouth reporting the 2017 High Elevation Rock Festival, fueled by Monster Energy, returns to Fiddler’s Green Amphi presented by Subaru (I just bought a new Outback!) just outside Denver, CO, with an extra night of music — Fri night, Sep 22 and Sat, Sep 23. After its one-day debut in 2016, High Elevation comes back bigger and better in 2017 with a lineup of more than two dozen bands, led by KORN, FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH, A DAY TO REMEMBER, STONE SOUR, HALESTORM and more.
Presale tickets for High Elevation Rock Festival, as well as hotel and VIP packages, will be available starting tomorrow, Apr 19 at 10:00 a.m. MDT at HighElevationFestival.com. Visit the High Elevation social media pages for a password to purchase presale tickets. The public onsale begins Fri, Apr 21 at 10:00 a.m. MDT at HighElevationFestival.com.
Happy 43rd today to Mark Tremonti of Alter Bridge, Tremonti and Creed!