Rolling Stone magazine’s decision to put surviving Boston bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev on its most recent cover drew a storm of criticism. Among the rockers speaking out were Ozzy Osbourne, who said in a recent radio interview, “I’m sorry, I wouldn’t put [Tsarnaev] on a roll of toilet paper, let alone the front cover of Rolling Stone.”
Motley Crue bassist Nikki Sixx wrote on his Facebook page, “I understand journalism but Rolling Stone has disrespected the families of the Boston bombing victims 100%. Why not put photos of the victims and families on the cover and let that tell the story of courage and heartbreak? You could keep the photo of this terrorist inside, if need be, and report your story. I am sure you are aware of the pain you were about to cause all the families when you went to print…I know journalism isn’t pretty when you have the face of evil staring back at you, but why put him on the cover of a supposed music-oriented magazine? You treat him with the same honor as those of us who have made the cover based on our craft? I agree with many of my peers and I hope Rolling Stone can take responsibility and issue an apology to everybody whose lives have been affected.”
Said Poison frontman Bret Michaels in a radio interview, “I don’t know why we would ever, ever, EVER wanna give these guys any credit or make them even remotely infamous.”
Anthrax’s Scott Ian:
Motley Crue’s Tommy Lee:
Great White and co-founder/ex-frontman Jack Russell have come to a legal agreement regarding the use of the Great White name. Going forward, the current Great White band will continue using the name, while Jack will be able to bill his own band as Jack Russell’s Great White. Think Queensryche might get the same decision?
Lita Ford’s upcoming live album has a name: The Bitch Is Back… Live will be out on October 28th.
We Are Twisted F*cking Sister! is the official name of the upcoming film from Andrew Horn, following the first 10 years of Twisted Sister and its long, hard road to a record deal. It’s expected out within the next year.
Check out the trailer for Metallica’s upcoming 3D movie, Metallica Through The Never. The film is a fictional plot plus killer live performances from the band; the story part follows a young man who’s sent out on an errand for the band, and ends up having a surreal adventure. Metallica Through The Never opens Sepember 27th in IMAX only, then wide release on October 4th.
KISS recently teamed up with the Military Warriors Support Foundation to donate a brand new home to a wounded veteran and his family. Roman Rivera and his wife plus a rep. from the Foundation were on stage during Kiss’s recent Rock Fest gig in Cadott, WI; Roman was severely injured by a roadside bomb during his tour in Iraq.
Said Kiss’s Paul Stanley, “We have the privilege of presenting Roman and his family with a mortgage-free, two-story, four-bedroom, three-car attached garage home in Janesville, Wisconsin. Again, completely mortgage-free. Please join me in congratulating Roman, and thank you to everyone for their service to our country!” The audience erupted into applause and shouts of “U.S.A! U.S.A! U.S.A!”
Don’t be too surprised if you get hit with an obscene Beanie Baby-like plush toy at an Aerosmith concert. Some time ago, bassist Tom Hamilton had come up with an idea of a dirty take on plush toys and actually had them made. While they sat in boxes, his young son decided to raid the stash and take a few to school…where he drew unwanted attention and got his dad in hot water with the school, too.
“They’re like the equivalent to Beanie Babies, except they’re dirty,” says Hamilton of the toys, which he has dubbed Obscenies. “I would tell people about it, and they’d be like, ‘Well, when are you going to do it?’ So I found somebody who had the connections to have plush toys made. There was some factory in China that was able to produce about 8,000 of these things. My son got into the box of them and took some to school and got in trouble … and then I got in trouble!”
He’s never come up with a marketing plan for them and added, “I love a good punch line, but that doesn’t mean it’s going to be a commercial success. They’re pretty hilarious but I’ve never been able to find anybody who could figure out how to sell em so I think I am just gonna take them out on the road and throw them out to people when I’m onstage (laughs).”
Sounds like Motorhead frontman Lemmy is on the road to recovery following his recent health scare. Lemmy suffered a hematoma in June and also was on a defibrillator due to trouble with his heart rhythm; the medical issues caused the band to cancel some European dates.
Guitarist Phil Campbell recently posted online, “Hey, everyone out there. Better prepare yourselves big time, ‘cos our mind-blowing new record, Aftershock, will be coming out [in September]! Lemmy is on the mend and we are gonna be touring our asses off!!! Business as usual real soon!”
I totally hate how they put the bomber’s picture on the front of Rolling Stone. You know, Americans watched his face over and over again on the news for days, and the images have been burned into the minds of the victims and their families. I agree with Sixx entirely on this one. What on earth were they thinking?