Eddie Van Halen Slams Michael Anthony AND David Lee Roth
In a recent Billboard cover story, Eddie Van Halen had some choice words for his present and former Van Halen bandmates, including David Lee Roth, Michael Anthony, and Gary Cherone.
Van Halen summed up quite simply his relationship with Roth: “He does not want to be my friend.” Not that he feels he’s necessarily missing out. He added that “Roth’s perception of himself is different than who he is in reality. We’re not in our 20s anymore. We’re in our 60s. Act like you’re 60. I stopped coloring my hair, because I know I’m not going to be young again.” In the same vein, Van Halen said Roth does not like “rock music,” he “likes dance music.”
Of Gary Cherone, the band’s temporary third singer, Van Halen realized they were on different planes. “It was a strange thing with Cherone,” he said. “We were getting ready to go on tour, and all of a sudden, I see this John Travolta outfit — these big lapels and a crazy jacket. He’s like, ‘This is my stage outfit.’ That’s when I realized it wasn’t going to work. But I don’t dislike Gary at all.”
But his harshest criticisms were reserved for former bassist Michael Anthony. “I had to show him how to play,” Van Halen said. Of Anthony’s voice, he says, “He’s not a singer. He just has a range from hell.”
“I have more soul as a singer than he does,” he adds. “And you know, people always talk about Mike’s voice on Van Halen songs, but that’s a blend of Mike’s voice and my voice. It’s not just him.”
Sammy Hagar Responds to Eddie Van Halen: ‘F— You, You’re a Liar’
Former Van Halen singer Sammy Hagar has taken issue with some of Eddie Van Halen’s statements to Billboard in the magazine’s current cover story and has labeled his ex-bandmate “a liar.”
Specifically, it was what Eddie Van Halen said about former bassist Michael Anthony that got Hagar “so pissed” (his words), claiming that he had to show Anthony how to play all his parts and that this is a big part of why he’s no longer in the band. He also downplayed the role of Anthony’s backing vocals in creating the group’s signature sound. (Eddie Van Halen’s son Wolfgang now plays bass in Van Halen.)
Hagar responded to the guitar legend’s comments with a two-minute video posted to Facebook. Check out the video on DailyHeadbanger.com.
“It’s really irritating to see them go after Mikey. Mikey didn’t do anything — ever — to Van Halen,” Hagar said. “Mikey was the most loyal guy in the band. He was the first guy there at rehearsal, the last guy to leave…. [He was] a hundred percent dedicated; never did anything to hurt those guys. And they try to hurt him again, and again, and again.”
He continued, “For Eddie to say he had to show [Michael] what to play and had to teach him all those songs, that is the biggest line of bullshit I’ve ever heard in my life. I was in that band for eleven years, there was never a video camera involved of Eddie showing him what to play…. I don’t know why they go after him like that.”
Hagar currently plays with Anthony in The Circle, which also features drummer Jason Bonham and guitarist Vic Johnson. He continued his message, saying, “Michael Anthony is a bad mother—-er. F— you, Eddie Van Halen, for saying that about Mikey. You’re a liar.”
In more Van Halen news, look for them to headline Atlanta’s Music Midtown Festival September 18-19. Co-headliners include Elton John, Drake and Sam Smith. Tickets available at www.musicmidtown.com and www.livenation.com.
Vivian Campbell Dodges ‘The Bullet of Radiation’ in Cancer Treatment, Rejoins Def Leppard Tour
Late last week, Def Leppard guitarist Vivian Campbell revealed the difficult news that his cancer has returned.
Campbell posted on Facebook: “I’m saddened by the fact that my cancer has returned. However, I’m beyond consolation that it’s return will prevent me from being able to do my job for a while. I’m still working on a schedule of treatment with my doctors, but I will see you all very soon. My apologies.”
But there has been a bit of positive news for Campbell as a new week begins. The rocker reveals he won’t miss the band’s touring after all.
In a newly posted message, the guitarist reveals that he’s “dodged the bullet of radiation,” as his doctors have steered him toward an alternative course of treatment. As a result, he is free to resume his duties in the band and will be with them when they hit the stage this weekend.
You can read what Campbell had to say here.
Def Leppard are on an extensive North American tour with Styx and Tesla.
Iron Maiden ‘Book of Souls’ Update
With a few months to go before the release of Iron Maiden‘s The Book of Souls, details are slowly starting to come out. The first single, “Speed of Light,” will be available August 14, three weeks before the album’s September 4 release date. The song is one of two collaborations between Adrian Smith and Bruce Dickinson.
Iron Maiden released a picture of the hardback book that will accompany the Deluxe Edition (see photo above). One fan has already made up his mind about the record, or at least about the album cover artwork. (see photo below)
Motörhead Announce 2015 North American Tour
Iconic rock band Motörhead, are embarking on a 40th anniversary world tour in support of their upcoming release Bad Magic. The shows start in mid-August, with Saxon and Anthrax as special guests on select dates, and ends on the now-legendary Motörboat Cruise September 28 – October 2 from Miami, Florida to Nassau, Bahamas. The cruise also features Slayer, Anthrax and many more bands.
Bad Magic is the band’s 22nd studio album, slated to be released August 28, and is the follow up to the band’s highly successful album Aftershock which saw Motörhead enjoy their most successful year yet, including a fourth Grammy nomination.
Check out the tour dates on the HOH website.
KISS’ Gene Simmons Blames the Fans for Lack of Rock Stars
Gene Simmons stirred up plenty of debate over his “Rock is finally dead” comment, but perhaps the bassist was really discussing the downfall of the music industry structure and how it’s hurting future generations of musicians. The rocker circled back to the topic during a recent interview with Planet Rock.
When asked if today’s acts give up too easily on the idea of being “rock stars,” Simmons explained, “I blame … This is gonna break your hearts … It certainly breaks mine. I blame the fans. Because the fans have decided en masse– in other words, the masses have decided — that they should get free music, download, file share … And you’re not hurting KISS; we’ve been around a long time and we make a good living. You’re killing the next Elvis and the Beatles and the next KISS and the next whoever, because you have to give your music away for free. And who did that? Big corporate entities? No, they didn’t do that. Actually, big corporate entities — record companies — gave bands money that they never had to pay back — ever! If the band failed and the records were a complete disaster, the advance money was all [the band’s]. What other business would give you that? If you go to a bank and they give you a million dollars, and your business goes under, they don’t care it failed; they want their money back.”
Mötley Crüe’s Vince Neil Appears On Episode of ABC’s ‘Celebrity Wife Swap’
Mötley Crüe singer Vince Neil and his longtime girlfriend Rain Hannah were featured on this week’s episode of “Celebrity Wife Swap.” The other couple participating in the show were musician Gunnar Nelson (half of the 90’s rock duo Nelson) and his wife Lila.
There were some hilarious moments in the show – Lila took Vince to the grocery store, for what he says was his first ever grocery shopping trip (really??) and taught him how to make a meatloaf. Rain brought out Gunnar’s inner rock star when she set him up to sing the national anthem at a local baseball game and he was mobbed by fans.
Also, both of the guys turned out to be … really nice. It’s a guilty pleasure watching experience – check it out at ABC go.com.
Listening to Heavy Metal makes you calmer, says new research study. “Extreme music — such as heavy metal — can positively influence those experiencing anger,” according to a study by The University Of Queensland, an Australian public research university. In contrast to previous studies linking loud and chaotic music to aggression and delinquency, the research showed listeners mostly became inspired and calmed.
Graham Bonnet seemed bound for hard rock greatness when he stepped into the Michael Schenker Group lineup for the band’s 1982 Assault Attack LP — he’d come over from Rainbow after fronting the band for its hit 1979 album, Down to Earth — but his time with Schenker was destined to be short-lived. As he recounts in an interview with The Metal Voice, he was out of a job after a single gig with the group.
“I was completely out of it,” admits Bonnet. “I’d been drinking all day and I’d had a bit of an argument with Michael. I had all the lyrics stuck on the stage, then the audience pushed forward, and all the lyrics screwed up because the monitors shifted — I was screwed in the first song.”
Lyrics soon proved the least of Bonnet’s worries. “My fly broke,” he continues, “and out comes my penis, because I don’t wear underwear. Out it popped, and I made it part of the act. Everybody was telling me to f— off. I started swearing at the audience, and they were swearing back at me.” Talk about a Spinal Tap moment…
Schenker quickly decided to pull the plug on his new frontman, but apparently time heals all wounds. This year, Bonnet ended up back onstage with Schenker when the ex-bandmates teamed up for a Japanese tour that found Bonnet promoting his new My Kingdom Come release and occasionally coming out during Schenker’s sets with his new band, Temple of Rock, to perform songs from Assault Attack. According to Bonnet, the experience has been “amazing.” BuzzChic loves happy endings!
Ozzy Osbourne, featuring Geezer Butler, Tom Morello and Slash are headed to New Orleans for the 2015 Voodoo Music Festival October 30 – November 1 at City Park in NOLA. Other performances include Girl Talk, Modest Mouse, Zhu, Jane’s Addiction, Third Eye Blind, Santigold and Chance the Rapper. Get tickets here.
Slayer guitarist Kerry King spoke to Artisan News about the band’s appearance at the 2015 Bonnaroo Music And Arts Festival, which was held June 11-14 in Manchester, Tennessee. He said: “I thought it was gonna be a bunch of… a bunch of… not that I have anything against hippies, but I thought it was gonna be a bunch of hippies watching Slayer in horror. [Laughs] And, dude, that place was electric when we played. We played… I don’t know what stage it was, but it was like a giant shed kind of thing. It was going off.”
According to Kerry, there were definitely some people at Bonnaroo who weren’t familiar with Slayer, but “I think those people were too far back. Because there was a bunch of Slayer fans there, which I didn’t expect, because it’s such a diverse festival. But, man, it was awesome.”
Payin’ The Bills…
Slash and his band, Myles Kennedy and the Conspirators have been turned into toy action figures. The whole crew are arrayed on a black base plate in front of the artwork for their most recent studio album World on Fire. The band members are also available for sale individually.
This isn’t the first time Slash has been honored with action figure immortality. McFarlane Toys unveiled a Slash figure in 2005, releasing it in a standard configuration depicting him playing guitar in his leather jacket and signature top hat as well as a deluxe model, which added an extra amp and speaker cabinets.
Queen are launching their own beer to celebrate the 40th anniversary of their iconic hit “Bohemian Rhapsody.” The Bohemian Lager is described as “golden and hoppy.” The brew follows the release of the band’s “Killer Queen” Vodka – which launched in honor of late frontman Freddie Mercury.
A trailer for the Mad Max movie video game has a soundtrack including AC/DC’s song “Hells Bells.” View the trailer here, and get more info on the game at its official website.
Odds N’ Sods
Guns N’ Roses and SIXX: A.M. guitarist DJ Ashba was interviewed at GearFest. Ashba, who owns a company centered around media and advertising, was asked what takes him in those directions. He responded: “You know, I don’t know. I’ve always had that creative bone. My aunt and uncle invented the technology for aerosol cans, so ever since I was young… They came out with a product, when I was really young, called Pam that’s like a butter spray. And I’ve always kind of grew up in that environment; I thought outside the box and I was really taught that it’s better to create your own job than to work nine to five. So that’s always been my mindset, and I just love creating.”
According to U.K.’s Mirror, pop superstar Justin Bieber has been slammed by heavy metal fans for wearing a Metallica t-shirt. The 21-year-old singer instagrammed a photo of himself donning a wide-brimmed black hat along with an oversized Metallica shirt. This led to a torrent of abuse being hurled in his direction, with one Instagram user writing: “Take that shirt off you don’t deserve it,” while another added: “U r a disgrace to metallica.” Someone else stated: “I love Metallica and I hate Justin Bieber.”
