Man, usually I am traveling the day before Thanksgiving, but this year, I am staying in the city! I mean, who wants to miss the chance to see Kiss in the Macy;s Thanksgiving Day Parade be wheeled down Sixth Avenue on a freezing cold morning in those spandex outfits? Wonder if Paul Stanley will wear a coat? It’s supposed to be super windy, so let’s hope Gene Simmons’ balloon head doesn’t blow away! (I keed, I keed!)…iTunesRadio is streaming AC/DC‘s Rock or Bust album now! It drops officially on Monday…..System Of A Down have announced a tour to commemorate the 100th anniversary (April 24th) of the Armenian Genocide that happened during the Ottoman Empire rule in Turkey. They have been staunch supporters of trying to raise awareness and justice for the 1.5 million Armenians (many relatives) who were killed during that awful time and make Turkey accountable. They will do a string of 7 shows, starting in England and running through Germany, France, The Netherlands, Belgium, Russia and end with a free show in Armenia, with the band performing there for the very first time. I am sure that will be a very emotional show for the guys. The band issued a statement that reads in part:
We will not allow the crime of despots coupled with the greed of world powers and their interests in resource acquisition to pen our history.
Despite the UN Genocide Convention and numerous ad-hoc international bodies, including the U.S. Atrocities Prevention Board, this worst of man-made diseases continues to spread because the world’s response to genocide is viewed as a political choice, not a moral necessity.
By demanding a truthful and just resolution of the Armenian Genocide we are saying Never Again to all genocides. Never again will we stand by while people are murdered for belonging to a select race, ethnic, or religious group as they were in Turkey, Nazi Europe, Cambodia, East Timor, Rwanda, or Darfur.
There are already brave souls within Turkey, who – at risk of prosecution, persecution, and even violence – are openly calling for recognition and reparations for the Armenian Genocide. Many other Turkish citizens share these humanitarian values, but have not yet spoken out – intimidated by a government that has, for too long, obstructed the peace that only truth and justice can bring. It’s time to break this silence.
As we mark this solemn centennial, please join us and the good people of conscience in Turkey to take a stand for truth and justice, and ask their President and Parliament to accept the Republic of Turkey’s moral and material responsibility for the Armenian Genocide.
With your help, such a historic step taken by the people of Turkey in the spirit of human solidarity, heartfelt compassion and justice will not only heal the wounds of one genocide, but will more broadly represent a truly transformative step toward a new age – an era without genocide.”
….Wow! Check this out! Touring bands run into all kinds of danger and drama on the road, but it doesn’t usually manifest itself in the form of small appliances. When Powerman 5000’s frontman Spider One turned on the air conditioning unit in the Radisson Hotel in Marietta, Ga., Friday, November 21, an electrical fire started, according to Loudwire. Guitarist Nick Quijano says the band escaped unharmed and then went the extra mile, helping others escape. Quijano issued a statement about the experience on Blabbermouth.net: “I just wanted to let you know that we were all involved in a 10th-floor fire at the Radisson [hotel] in [Marietta], Georgia this evening around 6 p.m. We checked into our rooms to relax before our show at 120 Tavern and Spider One went to turn off his air conditioner unit in his room when an electrical fire broke out within the unit, shooting large flames across the room and filling the entire 10th floor with smoke. To make matters worse, the alarm and sprinkler system in the hotel was defective and didn’t go off to warn anyone in the hotel of the fire. We had to run down the hall and yell to all the other inhabitants to get them to clear the floor and get to safety. Other than some smoke inhalation, we are all okay and will still be playing the show tonight at 120 Tavern and continuing our tour through the USA with American Head Charge. We are left wondering what will happen next on this run, but we want to let everyone know that the tour is STILL RUNNING as planned and expect to see everyone out at the remaining shows through North Carolina, Tennessee and Texas.” Powerman 5000 is touring in support of Builders of the Future, the band’s first release of all-new material in five years. Static-X was supposed to be on these dates, but were forced to cancel after the tragic death of Wayne Static from an undisclosed episode…..Glad to read this on Pulse Of Radio! Deftones spent most of 2014 touring and waiting for the muse to send them back to the studio. According to Loudwire.com, fans will soon be able to get their hands on some new material. They are officially back in the studio writing again, and they may even be getting a hand from Black Sabbath’s drummer, Bill Ward. The band posted a photo with Ward, but it’s unclear if he was just stopping by, or if a more formal collaboration is in the works. The new disc, as yet unnamed, is poised to hit the market in 2015. It is a follow-up to 2012’s Koi No Yokan album. In April, Deftones posted a previously unreleased song called “Smile” online to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the death of the band’s original bassist, Chi Cheng. The track is taken from Eros, the album that the group was recording when Cheng was gravely injured in a November 2008 auto accident. Cheng was left in a semi-comatose state — from which he never fully woke up — and the recordings were shelved. He passed on April 13, 2013…..And finally, thank you Rolling Stone’s David Fricke for posting this article on Dave Grohl. “Ten Things We Learned Hanging with Dave Grohl” over at RollingStone.com. Dave is the cover boy of their current issue. Sigh.