Final Results of the "Favorite Hair Metal Band" poll Round Two.....after 329 votes Skid Row wins with 124 votes (38 percent).....2nd was Cinderella with 74 votes (22 percent)......3rd was RATT with 58 votes (18 percent).....4th was Warrant with 48 votes (15 percent) and 5th was Enuff Z Nuff with 8 votes (2 percent)...... Final Results of the "Favorite Hair Metal Band" poll Round One............after 329 votes.......Motley Crue wins with 130 votes (40 percent).....2nd was Poison with 112 votes (34 percent)....3rd was Def Leppard with 45 votes (14 percent).....4th was Bon Jovi with 37 votes (11 percent) and 5th was Winger with 5 votes (2 percent)...........................


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8/27/08

Axl Rose recalls groupie romps



Rock wildman Axl Rose held debauched sex parties at his home - with all female visitors ordered to "get naked or leave".

The Guns N' Roses singer recalls how teenage groupies would show up unannounced at all hours of the day or night - and he and his bandmates would immediately seduce them.

In a new biography, Watch You Bleed, Rose tells author Stephen Davis, "There was a lot of indoor and outdoor sex. People would show up at all hours and we'd talk the girls into climbing into our loft, and somebody would hit the light and go, 'All right!... Get naked or leave!'

According to New York gossip column PageSix, one teenage temptress slept with most of the band and their road crew - and returned two days later claiming to be pregnant.


8/27/08

"America Loves Poison With Sebastian Bach" says Bach



Jason Bracelin of the Las Vegas Review-Journal conducted the following interview with former Skid Row frontman Sebastian Bach.

Hang on one second," Sebastian Bach says. "I'm gonna take my shirt off."

"Ahhh, all right," he exhales deeply and with great satisfaction moments later, sounding like a dude who's gone from a jail cell to an open bar in a matter of seconds. "I'm outside. It's beautiful out here."

"I couldn't be happier," he continues, sounding the part while basking in the glow of a sold-out show in Pittsburgh the night before. "This is one of the best summers of my life."

And with that, Bach lets loose with the first of many mischievous cackles that roll out of chest with the loud report of a drunken marching band.

The guy is skilled at cracking himself up -- it's as if the world is his whoopee cushion -- and he speaks with such volume and enthusiasm, he's like a heavy metal cheerleader with a megaphone for a larynx.

Basically, he sounds exactly like Sebastian Bach should.

The dude's a banshee-voiced hell-raiser who doesn't cut his hair, doesn't shut up and doesn't take himself too seriously -- as evidenced by his latest hit single, "(Love Is) A Bitchslap."

This summer, Bach's opening up for Poison, playing packed gigs and loving it, though once upon a time, making the rounds with Brett Michaels and Co. would have seemed abhorrent to a guy who hates being associated with the '80s hair metal scene after having initially came to fame fronting Jersey rockers Skid Row.

Since splitting with that group over a decade ago, Bach has hit the road with brutes like Pantera and borrowed half his band from Judas Priest frontman Rob Halford's solo outfit.

Bach's latest disc, "Angel Down," is the hardest and heaviest thing he's ever done, a brash and snotty hard rock call-to-arms that's miles removed from the glam rock set.

"Ten years ago I wouldn't have done it," Bach says of touring with Poison, "because every interview I ever did it was, 'Nirvana's here, it's over for Poison and Skid Row.' I was having a tough enough time defending my band and myself, I didn't need to defend 100 other bands that I had nothing to do with.

"But that's a long time ago," he continues. "I'll tell you one thing, America loves Poison with Sebastian Bach. We are selling more tickets than the Monster Mayhem Tour with Slipknot and Disturbed. We're bigger."

Part of this is undoubtedly attributable to the fact that between Bach and Michaels, the two have done more reality TV shows than just about all of their well-coiffed peers.

Last year, Bach tried his hand at becoming a rapper on MTV's "Celebrity Rap Superstar," and more recently, he's taken part in "Gone Country II," which debuted on CMT Aug. 15.

"I moved into Barbara Mandrell's mansion in Nashville. My roommate is Jermaine Jackson of the Jackson Five -- I mean, how do they think this (expletive) up?" Bach snickers at the thought of the show's lineup, which also includes Lorenzo Lamas, Sean Young and others. "It's nuts. Lorenzo is really nice -- they're all nice. Sean Young is wild. She's just off her rocker. She's great TV, as they say. Dude, just wait til you see this."

According to Bach, the honky tonk set suits him a little better than the hip-hop ranks did.

"Country was easier," he booms. "The one thing about my voice is that I want to go up and down with it, and rap is like one note. That was just so frustrating for me. Why would I just one to sing one note in a row?"

Of course, in these parts, Bach is best known for his role on the VH1 series "SuperGroup," which paired him up with fellow rockers Ted Nugent, Scott Ian, Jason Bonham and Evan Seinfeld to form the new band Damnocracy. The show was filmed here in Vegas in early 2006, though Bach still isn't too fond of the way it turned out -- probably because he was largely portrayed as a drunken, self-centered prima donna.

"I loved living there. I loved being in Vegas. I wasn't totally happy with the show," he admits. "I didn't think it was very good. I didn't think it was about music. I don't know what they were trying to do. It was more fun to shoot the show than to watch the show."

Still, Bach never seems to tire of the limelight. He's a rock star who plays the part with all the relish of a teen boy raiding his father's stack of "Playboys."

So what if he occasionally gets a little sunburnt in the spotlight?

"When you ask why I do these shows, it's to promote my name for rock 'n' roll," Bach says. "I'm using those television shows to make the name Sebastian Bach as big as the name Skid Row. That's one of my biggest challenges in my career. Great rock 'n' roll names are so rare, like Black Sabbath, Judas Priest. And Skid Row is right up there with the best names ever.

"So, I own the name Sebastian Bach. I've got a trademark with the U.S. government," he chuckles. "My apologies to the classical pianist."


8/25/08

Motley Crue's Vince Neil has vintage year




"I have a very nice, full-bodied Petite Sirah that has a wonderful flavor. I'm also pretty proud of a white Cabernet and a white Merlot we bottled in 2003. Our Cabernet Sauvignon has been rated at 91 by the Wine Spectator. Our white, 90. That's pretty amazing."

what's amazing is that this is not some snooty vintner talking, but the man who sings "I'm the Motherf- of the Year" on the new CD "Saints of Los Angeles."

Meet the sober Vince Neil. The onetime wino and lead singer of all-time bad-boy band Motley Crue - who downed more drugs, injected more smack, dropped more acid, visited more jails and engaged in more wild sex than any other rockers in history - is now the proprietor of Vince Vineyards in Sonoma, Calif.

"What's wrong with that?" he snaps when a questioner wonders if he is joking. Still, tending vines and caring about oak casks is not the image of Neil that Crue cultists are cool with.

"I've got a lot of outside businesses," he adds, while taking a break from the band's first-ever CrueFest, an Ozzy Osbourne-like traveling summer show that comes to the Mohegan Sun tonight at 7.

"I own Tequila Tres Rios, a bar in Palm Beach, a tattoo shop in Las Vegas and the vineyard. Dude, just because I'm still wild on stage doesn't mean I'm still f- up. I'm really proud of what we're doing. We just bottled a great white Cab at about $19."

But who would've expected this from the dude who dished out "The Dirt" in a down-and-nasty 2001 demonography that chronicled the band's drug-addled sexcapades? Labeled "the world's most notorious band," Neil, Nikki Sixx, Vince Mars and Tommy Lee are lucky to still be on the good side of the grass. "Yes we are," Neil admits with a laugh.

As for the CD, "Saints of Los Angeles" is their first studio album in more than 10 years. "It follows the chronology of 'The Dirt' closely, from when we played at the Whisky [the famous go-go club in West Hollywood that's been home to rockers since 1964]. When people hear the album they'll say, 'I know that part. I read it in the book.' "

Who thought this up? "There was no giant master plan," he says. "We just went in and made a record, and I'm having the time of my life. I was an a-- when I first started at 23. Now I'm older [47]. I don't need to do that s- anymore."

To illustrate his point, Neil says, "There's a video from the new album that shows some girls in a glass shower in the back of our bus, and there I am - watching 'Judge Judy.' "

He busts out in a raucous laugh. "But I'm STILL the motherf- of the year."

As for looking back, Neil wants no part of it. "This is our heyday!" he says. "Right now! We are right at the place we want to be."

In other words: Vintage. Full-bodied. And impertinent.


8/25/08

Young fans sweet on '80s metal band Def Leppard



After more than 30 years in the music business, English rockers Def Leppard are seeing their audiences getting younger and younger. But it's not because parents who loved Def Leppard as teens are turning their kids on to the "Hysteria" rockers, according to guitarist Vivian Campbell.

"That's a byproduct of music piracy more than anything else," Campbell said with his Irish accent. "I'm not saying that as a negative. I think it's very positive.

"A lot of younger kids get turned on to classic bands because they're trading files. They have 4,000 or 5,000 songs on their iPod, that's $4,000 or $5,000 on their iPod, at iTunes' prices, at least. A 12-year-old can't afford that. When kids trade files, it's actually a good thing for classic bands such as us. It's not such a good thing for up and coming artists who need to sell records."

These days, kids are presumably trading files of Def Leppard's latest album, "Songs from the Sparkle Lounge," a collection of songs written, where else, but The Sparkle Lounge.

"The Sparkle Lounge is our backstage tuning room," Campbell said. "When we're on tour, adjacent to the dressing room, we have a little room that became known as The Sparkle Lounge where we set up little practice amps. It became known as the Sparkle Lounge because our road crew would go in and decorate the room with fairy lights. We'd go in there, I have a mobile ProTools rig and that runs on a laptop. We'd bring that on tour with us and we recorded demos as we went around. It's a very honest title for the album because that's actually where the songs were born, The Sparkle Lounge."

The album includes the song "Nine Lives," a tune co-written by country artist Tim McGraw. The collaboration, a first for Def Leppard, was an incestuous one.

"Rick Allen, Def Leppard's drummer, his older brother is Tim McGraw's tour manager," Campbell said. "So he brought Tim to see us a couple times. Tim got on stage with us at the Hollywood Bowl and did 'Pour Some Sugar on Me.' He kept going on about wanting to work with us. He said he had this song idea, this title, 'Nine Lives.' He and (Def Leppard guitarist) Phil Collen hooked up and bashed out the tune. We cut the track in Dublin. Phil went to Nashville and Tim cut his vocals there. It was great to work with him when he was around us. He has a very high level of energy. He's a lovely guy."

"High energy" is also a phrase that Campbell uses to describe Def Leppard's live show, which comes to Joe Louis Arena on Saturday. Arenas, he said, are the best places to hear his band's music.

"Def Leppard's music was always best sampled in the arena," he said. "People always say, 'Do you like playing clubs?' My answer is, 'Quite frankly, no for a couple reasons. No. 1 it's always a lot more intimidating to play when you're that close to your audience. More especially is the fact we're an arena rock band and our songs are more natural in that environment."

On this jaunt, Def Leppard -- which also includes singer Joe Elliott and bassist Rick Savage -- is playing 19 or 20 songs, including three from "Songs from the Sparkle Lounge."

"You can't force your new music on your audience," Campbell said. "As much as we'd like to go out and play the whole new album, that would bore the majority of our audience, all but the most die-hard. We're very fortunate to have an absolute truckload of hits. It's actually very difficult for us because we have to decide which songs to play."

This fall, Def Leppard will veer off its normal path and collaborate once again, this time with teenage country singer Taylor Swift for an episode of CMT's "Crossroads." Once again, teenagers are proving to be big fans of the band.

"We haven't met her yet. Apparently she's a huge Def Leppard fan. It's a strange kind of a pairing but we shall see," Campbell said.


8/23/08

Rock Band 2 Hands-On




Rock Band 2 is coming September 14 on Xbox 360, with PS3, PS2 and Wii versions to follow. All four versions feature the same 84-song set list. While Harmonix won't say how the Wii and PS2 versions may differ from the 360/PS3, there's no reason they couldn't include an identical feature set. And though Rock Band 2 looks like only a minor update on the surface, there's actually a lot of new things added.

Of course, the biggest addition is the 84 new songs. All it takes is a cursory glance of the full set list to see the upgrade in quality over RB1. No offense to the previous iteration's set list, but Rock Band 2 slaps it in the face and kicks it down a flight of stairs. The list looks incredible and I can assure you, it plays great. I know you want the scoop on the new Guns 'n Roses song, but unfortunately, we're under Axl lockdown over here. What I can say is that the rest of the set list is very solid.

There are a number of songs that are obvious crowd pleasers. Only Satanists could hate Bon Jovi's "Livin' on a Prayer" or Billy Idol's "White Wedding." But even the songs I wasn't so sure of (Panic at the Disco? Norm Greenbaum?) were fun to play. A testament to the Rock Band formula is that even though almost nothing has changed in terms of gameplay, we still had editors playing late into the night. Oh, and most fun song on the entire set list? Ratt's "Round & Round." I $#^@ you not.

Those expecting an epic change to World Tour may be a little disappointed when they first pop in Rock Band 2. There are a few welcome additions: The Tour is now playable online, mystery set lists now have ratings so beginners don't get thrown near-impossible songs, and you're not going to be forced to move everyone to hard difficulty three hours into the experience. But overall, it's very similar to the original. The visuals of the world map haven't changed a bit and all the old venues are there (with some new ones added). You need to build up your fan base until you earn a bus, which lets you travel to other cities. Then you need a plane to tour internationally. Most venues also have several individual songs to play, a mystery set list to attempt and the ability to create your own set list. Nothing that would surprise an old Rock Band pro.

One of the new wrinkles is the addition of random challenges. You may choose to play a Seattle Legend's set list, but before the concert begins, you'll be offered the chance to appear on MTV. The catch is that the last song in the set list is being replaced by a random song. Take the risk and you're rewarded with more fans and a new vid-doc style presentation. Another time you may be told that your drummer has been taking it too easy and that, if you agree, your song will be replaced with one that's tougher on drums. Of course, there's a reward of money and/or fans if you succeed. But can your drummer handle the pressure?

All of your DLC and some (possibly all) of the original RB1 tracks work in World Tour. This is a great boon. It's still a fairly slow process to unlock songs in World Tour, but mystery set lists and created set lists now include your past library of tracks. You won't be playing the same RB2 song five times out of ten gigs anymore. Sure, you will repeat songs from time to time, but the more DLC you own, the greater the diversity you'll experience. This is where Rock Band 2 has a major advantage over the competition. If you're a DLC addict, RB2 will be very good to you.

Perhaps the best update to World Tour (aside from online play) is how easy it is to get a band together and play. No longer is there a leader of the band. In fact, no one has to be tied to a band. And on Xbox 360, you can have multiple members tied to the same Gamertag. Sign one person in and everyone can play. Characters aren't tied to instruments either. This may explain why your band can't be moved from RB1 to RB2. Oh, and I should mention that World Tour works with one player as well, so solo bass players of the world, rejoice!

Outside of World Tour, you'll find the new Battle of the Bands mode, which was detailed in full yesterday. There's also a Challenge mode. This is for people who don't want to invest in World Tour, but would like something a little more involved that the old "play through a list of tracks" formula from the past. Challenges exist for each instrument and for a band and basically take you through a progression from easy to impossible. The challenges are similar to what you may see in Battle of the Bands, but these don't change daily. This is a static set of challenges that are a good way of learning the songs in RB2 and improving your own skill.

Speaking of improving your skill, Rock Band 2 also includes a Drum Trainer. This series of grooves is meant to teach newbs the fundamentals of the drums. If medium difficulty is too easy for you, but hard is too great a challenge, the Drum Trainer can help elevate your game. There is also a fill trainer to teach you a variety of cool fills. That might be taking things a bit too far. I mean, who doesn't love the sound of people banging randomly on drum pads in five-second spurts?

Not enough for you? How about a Jukebox mode that allows you to listen to songs without having to play any instruments? Yes, you can now pick a song and kick back with a refreshing drink. Listen to your favorite song and watch your band play without your input. Jukebox mode shows off the refinements in presentation often lost when you're focused on playing an instrument. The camera cuts are smarter, the angles better, and the animations more varied.

Rock Band 2 has plenty of new features, but the overall look and gameplay is so similar to last year's model, many may discount it as being version 1.5. Having played more than a dozen hours of RB2, I'd say you can call it whatever the hell you want. It's still fun. And that's ultimately what matters. That and a kick-ass set list.


8/23/08

Still potent after 20 years, Poison comes to Southern California




Quiz: Brush up on your knowledge of the band Poison

Tensions running high between members is the cause behind many a band throwing in the guitar.

But for glam metal band Poison, which stops Saturday at the Gibson Amphitheatre in Los Angeles and Thursday at Pala Casino, it's that friction and feel-good party songs that keep the group in the public eye.

"I think that's part of what the public enjoys about us, too, we wear it on our collar," bassist Bobby Dall explained in a recent telephone interview.

"It's sort of like NASCAR. You watch us run around the stage until one of us kills the other. I think secretly they sit out there and root for one of us to go off," he said, laughing.

Some of the more public tussles between the band members include the 1991 MTV Video Music Awards, when guitarist C.C. DeVille and singer Bret Michaels got into a confrontation after the band's performance, essentially marking DeVille's seven-year-long departure from the band.

Then, in 2006, Dall and Michaels started fighting onstage, with a microphone and a bass being hurled through the air during an Atlanta concert.
"Every year, year over, we manage to put our differences aside and come back together and tour," Dall said.

Dall, Michaels and drummer Rikki Rockett originally came to Los Angeles from Pennsylvania 24 years ago, joining up with DeVille in California and playing the Sunset Strip. In 1985, the band released "Look What the Cat Dragged In," but didn't strike big until the single "Talk Dirty To Me" caught on. The band's next two albums, "Open Up and Say Ahhh" and "Flesh and Blood," also did well, reaching the second spot on the Billboard charts and producing singles such as "Every Rose Has Its Thorn" and "Unskinny Bop," as well as the band's signature party anthem, "Nothin' But A Good Time."

Today, like Bon Jovi and Motley Crue and Def Leppard, Poison is regarded as one of the most successful of its era, with millions of records sold and a solid following on its annual tours.

"We've withstood the testament of time because our bands were more than one-hit wonders," Dall said. "We wrote song after song after song. I think that's why we've been able to maintain the length of our career."

The band released a live DVD/CD combo, "Live Raw & Uncut," this summer and released a CD of covers called "Poison'd," last year, but Dall said there are no plans for a new Poison album anytime soon.

DeVille and Rockett are both working on solo projects and Michaels has become a reality television star with the VH1 dating competition show "Rock of Love." The show, on which a number of eligible women compete for Michaels' attention and presumably, heart, is slated for a third season.

"We're not so uptight that we can't laugh at ourselves," Dall said, pointing to Michaels' show as an example.

And the shenanigans on the road aren't all that far off from the heyday of the 1980s.

"The only difference is now, we have to take Advil too," Dall said, laughing.

But the band is serious about touring.

"I think a band's shining moment is on the stage," he said.

To Dall, the records, the videos and the posters are fun props, part of the band but not representative of what it really is.

"The band really is the four guys on the stage and when the four of us come together on a stage, that truly is who Poison is. That's what a band is and what a band does ... say what you want about Poison, but it's pretty hard to leave without a smile on your face," Dall said.


8/21/08

BRET MICHAELS' 'Fallen" Video To Premiere Next Week




The second single from POISON singer Bret Michaels' latest solo release, "Rock My World", is "Fallen".

"Fallen" is a poignant ballad professing true love with a simple, yet beautiful melody. It is a timeless song that will find a home in pop, rock and country.

In advance of being worked at radio, VH1 will begin airing the video on Monday, August 25.

The first single from "Rock My World", "Go That Far" (see video below), ended its run on the VH1 Top 20 Countdown at No. 7, spending 12 weeks on the Top 20.

See Bret perform with his solo band at the Rock the Bayou festival on Monday, September 1.

"Rock My World", sold a little over 13,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at No. 39 on The Billboard 200 chart.

"Rock My World", was released on June 3 via VH1 Classic Records. Primarily recorded in his home studio in Los Angeles, the album proves that Michaels' is truly a rock and roll star that believes music comes first.

"I've always been a rock 'n' roll guy at heart and this album is true to that. I've taken the sound of a classic '70s rock riff and embodied that in a more modern production," said Michaels. "The entire feel of the album, musically and lyrically, is about that rock and roll core."




8/21/08

Airbourne buzz grows




In the words of the immortal AC/DC, it's a long way to the top if you want to rock 'n' roll.

No one knows that better than fellow Aussie pub-rockers Airbourne.

To hear frontman Joel O'Keeffe tell it, the band came by their trademark sound -- clearly influenced by AC/DC, but also The Angels, Cold Chisel, and The Aztecs -- when some classic rock landed in their young laps.

Joel and his brother Ryan O'Keeffe, the band's drummer, inherited their uncle's record collection as pre-teens.

"I remember listening to my first Rose Tattoo album and saying, '(Bloody) hell! That's it!' " O'Keeffe recalls in an accent so thick it's almost indecipherable. "That sound, when you hear it, it just takes you over. It makes you want to punch the nearest guy in the face, but it also makes you want to (have sex with) the nearest chick."

Airbourne headlines at Cowboy's Ranch on Sunday night. The band is touring to support Runnin' Wild.

In 2007 Airbourne attracted interest from renowned A&R man Ron Burman of Roadrunner Records in New York, and Airbourne soon secured a worldwide record deal.

The band paid a price. "One of my ears actually blew out 'cos I had my headphones so loud," says Ryan O'Keeffe. "So I recorded the album with one ear."

Much has been made of the musical similarities between the muscular, riff-heavy party anthems of Airbourne's debut disc Runnin' Wild -- and what of those AC/DC comparisons? Well, O'Keeffe says he and his bandmates are flattered to be mentioned in the same sentence as such esteemed company.

"In this day and age, you're always going to be compared to someone. So what better band to be compared to?"

Now, given the legions of legendary rock acts that have hailed from Down Under, you wouldn't think the O'Keeffe brothers would have had much trouble finding friends to share their discovery with.

But as Joel explains, his classmates in Warrnambool (pop: 32,000) were too interested in dance-pop and post-grunge to care.

"You feel like a bit of an outcast," says O'Keeffe. "The . . . teachers at school knew who we were talking about, but the kids didn't."
That all changed once O'Keeffe was introduced to guitarist David Roads -- a workmate from a hotel in town -- and bassist Justin Street. By good luck, Ryan O'Keeffe met Street while stumbling home from a party in the Australian dunes.

The four started jamming and soon began driving to Melbourne to play pub gigs. It wasn't long before they'd taken up residence there, landing opening slots for the likes of Motorhead, Motley Crue and the Rolling Stones.

"I don't think they've ever given up on their youth -- they're like 18-year-olds," says Joel O'Keeffe of the latter act. "Keith Richards really is Keith Richards. You read about him, and then as soon as he walks into a room, you're like, 'Ahhhh' . . . And it's the same with Lemmy from Motorhead. It's like God has just walked into the room, if God was the most masterful rock 'n' roll outlaw who ever lived."

O'Keeffe frequently refers to "bleeding" for his audience, and says he can't imagine giving anything but his all while on stage.
"If you're not coming off the stage hurt in some way or another -- if you're not out of breath, or you can walk easy, you know you didn't put in as much effort as you could have."


8/19/08

Don Dokken on Bret Michaels: "It's like I'm on tour with David Cassidy."




KNAC.COM: Was the sinus problem from doing blow?

DOKKEN: I never did blow. Everybody in the band—that was their drug of choice. It wasn’t my thing.

KNAC.COM: Over time you got hooked on pills, right?

DOKKEN: Yeah, I was on opiates. I got hooked on pills from a back injury and it just escalated over the years till it was up to morphine levels. Enough was enough, so I went to rehab.

KNAC.COM: What does the typical audience look like on your current tour with POISON?

Dokken: I'm laughing, because there are a lot of people I've noticed at the shows who don't seem to know the POISON songs. They're not really hardcore fans of the genre. A lot of them come because they want to see [POISON singer] Bret Michaels from the reality show "Rock of Love". All these MILFS. These forty-year old women, screaming "Bret Michaels, Bret Michaels!" And they're wearing the cowboy hat. You can see they're having a good time, enjoying watching the show, and liking DOKKEN. It's been a very strange, interesting demographic of women. I'm used to going onstage and hearing the roar, and now I go onstage and hear this high-pitch screaming. It's mind-boggling. It's like I'm on tour with David Cassidy. God bless Bret. I'm glad Bret found all this success. I'm really happy for him, but you gotta chuckle at this point in our career and go, "You girls don't get it, do you?" They just wanna see the David Cassidy up there. Bret's reinvented himself as a reality star, and it's paying off for him and POISON. It's like curiosity...I don't know what it is. That TV show turned a whole generation of people on to POISON, who had never heard of POISON.

KNAC.COM: Dokken toured with the real heavyweights and not so many so-called hair bands, right?

DOKKEN: People ask me, “How many times have you toured with Poison?” In the ‘80’s we never toured with the Poisons, or the Warrants, or the Wingers, or the Faster Pussycats, or the LA Guns, or even the Motleys...or the Bon Jovis. We toured with AC/DC, Priest, Van Halen, Scorpions, Sammy Hagar, Dio. The list goes on and on. Always the heavy bands. Krokus. We toured with all the Euro bands, the more heavy bands. We never toured with the MTV bands, and they still put Dokken in the hair band pile. I’m like, “Where have you guys been? We toured with Judas Priest Turbo, and Dio Last in Line, and we did stadiums with AC/DC on the Back in Black tour. We weren’t out there doing the Poison tours. But I get their success. I didn’t get them for many, many years—didn’t really understand it. But I get it. It’s about good times and fun. It’s a party…certain songs are light, not serious. I mean, you got a song like “Unskinny Bop” and songs like that…

KNAC.COM: I hate that song. When I hear it I want to do a drive-by shooting.

DOKKEN: Then I write a song like, You weave your spell. Your eyes they beckon me. Your eyes they speak lies and misery. “Into the Fire.” It’s a dark, brooding song. We’re just from two different worlds, as writers.

br> 8/19/08

MÖTLEY CRÜE Drummer Dating 'Rock Of Love' Cast-Off?




The Pulse of Radio reports that MÖTLEY CRÜE drummer Tommy Lee is allegedly dating "Rock of Love 2" loser Daisy De La Hoya, according to E! Online. Although a rep for De La Hoya claimed that the two were "just friends," sources said that there was more going on than holding hands. De La Hoya recently competed on the second season of "Rock of Love" for the affections of POISON frontman Bret Michaels, but was eliminated before the end of the contest. She also makes an appearance on Lee's "Titty-Cam" video, which plays at the beginning of every MÖTLEY CRÜE concert.

Although some reports indicated that Lee and ex-wife Pamela Anderson were spending time together again, Anderson is said to be dating a man from the United Arab Emirates who is a member of the Abu Dhabi royal family. Anderson recently announced that she is partnering with the royal family to build a vegan-and-eco-friendly hotel in the region.

Meanwhile, MÖTLEY CRÜE has issued a video for the song "Mutherfucker of the Year". The track is taken from the band's recently released album, "Saints of Los Angeles". The CRÜE is out supporting the disc on its Crüe Fest tour, which stops on Tuesday (August 19) in Cincinnati.


8/17/08

When it comes to hair-metal trivia, these headbangers are on the ball





We quizzed the members of 3D In Your Face on their knowledge of hair bands. Here are their answers - then, we'll tell you how they did.

Motley Crue Q. Which two members went to high school together? A. Tommy Lee and Vince Neil

Q. Which famous rock star influenced Tommy Lee to play the drums? A. John Bonham

Poison Q. Name the band's debut album, released independently in 1986? A. "Look What the Cat Dragged In"

Q. In which song, from the group's debut album, does this line appear: "I ain't seen home in the last three days . . . ?" A. "Look What the Cat Dragged In"

Q. Which member has the tattoo that's on the cover of "Flesh and Blood?" A. Bret Michaels

Q. Which town in the eastern U.S. was Poison originally from? A. Pittsburgh

Def Leppard Q. Who is often called the sixth member of Def Leppard? A. Mutt Lange

Q. Name the song in which this lyric appears: "I'm in luck, I'm in deep, yeah/Hypnotized, I'm shakin' to my knees." A. "Love Bites"

Warrant Q. Who was the lead singer of Warrant? A. Jani Lane

Q. On which album did the No. 1 hit song "Cherry Pie" appear? A. "Cherry Pie"

Q. Name the song with these lyrics: "Whoa, can we rewind to where we've been?/Ooh I wish you'd take a look and see the shape I'm in." A. "Down Boys"

Whitesnake Q. David Coverdale is known for his work with what other band? A. Deep Purple

Q. Name the model Coverdale was married to and who was featured in the video for "Here I Go Again." A. Tawny Kitaen

How did they do? These guys know their stuff. They answered all but four questions correctly.

While they came close in thinking that Poison hails from Pittsburgh, the band originated from Mechanicsburg, Pa. Peter Criss of Kiss is the rocker who influenced Tommy Lee to play drums. Rikki Rockett is the Poison member whose tattoo is on the cover of "Flesh and Blood." "Hysteria" is the Def Leppard song with the lyric: "I'm in luck, I'm in deep, yeah/Hypnotized, I'm shakin to my knees." (You can't really fault them too much, because "Hysteria" sounds a lot like "Love Bites.")

Grade: B+ (with bonus points for spelling Jani Lane's name right)


8/17/08

"Hair-metal mania seems to be as hot as it was during its heyday some two decades ago"





Dave Backhaus is in hair-band heaven.

The Omahan plans to enjoy all the metal debauchery he can stand with concerts this week from the likes of Def Leppard, Poison and part of Skid Row.

He has tickets to tonight's Def Leppard concert at the Qwest Center Omaha. The show also includes Billy Idol, not exactly a hair-band guy, but an '80s rocker, nonetheless. And, well, Idol is sort of known for his hair.

Backhaus may also catch Wednesday's Poison concert at Lincoln's Pershing Center, which features opening act Sebastian Bach of Skid Row.

"They were my favorite band for a while," he said of Poison, known for hits such as "Nothin' But a Good Time" and "Talk Dirty to Me."

A big fan in high school, the 34-year-old still has a soft spot for these hard rockers. And he isn't alone.

Thanks to legions of nostalgic '80s rock fans, as well as package tours that showcase these groups and tribute bands that imitate them, hair-metal mania seems to be as hot as it was during its heyday some two decades ago.

One tribute band is Omaha's 3D In Your Face, a group of guys with day jobs who are celebrating their 10th year of performing hair metal on area stages.

Lead singer and keyboardist Alan King said the side gig becomes more lucrative as the years go by. He makes more money playing this type of music now than he did when hair bands ruled the charts.

The audience, too, has increased.

"For some strange reason we're playing to a lot more people now than we were 20 years ago," said King, who was performing hair-metal music prior to 3D In Your Face.

Over the years, the group has opened for several national bands, including Night Ranger, Poison and Skid Row. About a dozen years ago, King ran the lighting for some of Def Leppard's concerts.

In a recent phone interview from a tour stop in Ontario, Canada, Def Leppard guitarist Vivian Campbell said his band and other '80s acts

still fill arenas because of the sheer "spectacle" of their live show, and they continue to get radio play.

A new generation has latched on to his band's music, but younger listeners aren't necessarily the ones buying Def Leppard albums. Instead, they'll download a song or two, then spend the rest of their money on a concert ticket.

"What we lose in record sales we make up for in ticket sales," he said.

Another '80s band, Motley Crue, is on the road with its "Cruefest" music festival, which has been selling out venues around the country.

Last month, more than 30,000 fans flocked to a 400-acre field in Pryor, Okla., for Rocklahoma. The '80s hair metal-themed festival featured more than 80 bands, including Warrant, LA Guns, Enuff Z'Nuff, Night Ranger, Tesla and Dokken.

The continued popularity of these acts doesn't surprise Brian Wragge, owner of Omaha's Arena Bar & Grill, 3809 N. 90th St.

His venue has seen decent crowds at concerts by local groups that play the music of hair bands. For patrons closer to 40, the appeal is part nostalgia, he said. For the college-age crowd, it's the outrageous, over-the-top aspect of the music.

"It's crazy how that old stuff draws," Wragge, 31, said. "It's fun to listen to live."

For Backhaus, the songs are fun to play live.

As the bass player in cover band Secret Weapon, he plays the music of Def Leppard, Poison and other '80s bands.

For a Secret Weapon concert last Halloween, Backhaus tailored his stage attire after Def Leppard frontman Joe Elliott.

"I bought a British flag cut-off T-shirt and went and bought some horrible leather pants at a thrift store," said Backhaus, who topped off the look with high-top sneakers, wig and makeup.

All five band members in Secret Weapon are longtime local musicians who play or have played in original bands.

"I never thought of myself being in a cover band. We approach it as more about having fun. I think crowds feed off of that. The '80s are about fun and good times."

As Poison singer Bret Michaels puts it: "Ain't lookin for nothin' but a good time. And it don't get better than this."



8/15/08

Crue's trash treasured by 'Dome fans





Those loud, violent chords ala guitarist Mick Mars -- the ones that sound like a motorcycle revving on Kickstart My Heart -- they kicked off the show.

Mad blasts of fireworks and pyro went off everywhere, lighting up a set that looked like some digital wasteland.

Drummer Tommy Lee bashed away with scrappy abandon while Vince Neil played cheerleader, laying his choppy rock candy vocals down on crowd faves like Shout At The Devil, Live Wire and Wildside.

Yep, Motley Crue was back in Calgary on Thursday night, this time headlining their inaugural Crue Fest and, wildly sloppy though they were, the 10,500 fans who flocked to the 'Dome loved them.

Understandably. The Crue are a ball, sleaze personified, and they put on a helluva show.

But what's this "Fest" part of the package?

Motley Crue's leader Nikki Sixx has always been a driven individual with a ferocious vision for his band's success. So, now that Crue has again achieved a level of prominence after their popularity waned in the past decade, it's a natural that Sixx wants to take things to the next level.

In this era of the rock festival, he's decided to create one of his own. If Ozzy Osbourne spearheads an Ozzfest, Crue is going to headline its own fest full of raunchy hard rock bands after their own hearts.

Unfortunately, while it sounds like the trash jackpot in theory, it was a bit shaky in practice.

Post-grunge band Trapt was generic and forgettable.

Sixx A.M., a side project for Nikki, was much better and the group made a stronger impression live than on disc, with the tunes finding their stride. Still, Sixx A.M. lacks the personality of Crue.

Papa Roach was a worthy addition for the wild-eyed, hyper-kid energy of frontman Jacoby Shaddix, but then Buckcherry, the final opener, was disappointing.

They've always been a wannabe Guns N' Roses and that could make for a nice greasy slice of rock if pulled off right. Unfortunately, Buckcherry's set was often marred by a bad mix that buried Josh Todd's whisky-chapped bark.

All in all, it was a fairly respectable bill but not one that made you want to spend more than four hours in the 'Dome waiting for the headliners. And, ultimately, Crue was the draw here, with no one else touching them as an attraction.

By leading their own festival, the Crue's making a bid for hard rock dominance, and you've got to respect them for still being that hungry after all these years. But it was the wrong move.

The band is currently touring in support of a killer rock record with Saints of Los Angeles-- the first time they've been able to say that for about a decade-and-a-half.

But with their abridged set in the festival setting, they didn't give themselves a chance to give Saints of Los Angeles its due.

At press time, only two songs from that disc had been covered, including the title track, which was an early highlight. Then it was back to the staples. Primal Scream. Same Old Situation. You know 'em.

Obviously, their fans are rabid for those tunes. But with an extra half hour in the set, which they'd have if they weren't allowing time for four other bands, they could have at least touched on a couple more tunes from an album that deserves such attention.

Crue Fest? The Crue part of the equation was definitely a kick, but the festival factor needs work.


8/15/08

Sebastian Bach "SKID ROW has been wrecked by what they're doing"





Former Skid Row front man Sebastian Bach is taking a break from jamming with Axl Rose, appearing on reality television and recording to bang his head on tour with Poison and Dokken.

Bach, who performs with that tour in Phoenix on Aug. 24, checked in from his tour bus to talk about his latest solo album, Angel Down, and rocking two decades after he debuted with Skid Row.

Question: Judging from recent concert reviews, it seems you are as enthusiastic as ever about performing.

Answer: When you're 19, you think you're invincible; you assume you can destroy the world. When you're 40 and you're playing sold-out arenas and have a brand new CD in the stores, it means even more. I couldn't be happier.

Q: Are you happy with how Angel Down turned out?

A: Angel Down is more what I expect of myself and what the fans expect of me. In a lot of the songs, I sound real young, and it's really astonishing, the way I've lived my life and how I've beat the (expletive) out of myself for 20 years. (laughs) On a couple of songs, like You Don't Understand and By Your Side, I sound like a little boy, and I have to laugh. I plan on singing for the rest of my life, so get used to it.

Q: You and Axl sound like you are having fun on Aerosmith's Back in the Saddle Again on the new CD.

A: I hadn't planned on doing any covers, but (producer) Roy (Z.) suggested Back in the Saddle. I've always loved the song and Aerosmith. But I wasn't convinced until I heard my band play it (in rehearsal). . . . I put my feet up, cracked open a Modelo Especial, and my band started playing. I was freaking out, and I ran into the vocal booth with the beer in my hand and just went for it, old-school. A lot of that first take is in there.

Q: Axl also appears on two other tracks - Stuck Inside and Love Is a (Expletive). Are you guys close?

A: I'm a fan. Everybody is waiting for Chinese Democracy (the long-delayed Guns N' Roses project), and out of the blue Axl sings three songs on my solo record. It's unbelievable. At the end of the day, I'm a Skid Row and Guns N' Roses fan, and to have me and Axl together, screaming and singing . . . blows my mind.

Q: You sang on one track for Chinese Democracy. How did that come about?

A: Axl had a Christmas party at his place in Malibu (in 2006). He was cranking Chinese Democracy and I was playing pinball and I was singing a harmony to the chorus of this song, Sorry. Axl ran up to me and said, "Dude that sounds (expletive) awesome!" The very next week . . . we scheduled a session at Electric Lady Studios (in New York). It's slow, "doomy," heavy song.

Q: What did the Chinese Democracy tracks you heard sound like?

A: It's epic, it's very big. It's like those songs Estranged and November Rain, the giant theatrical sound, but behind the beat is the swagger of Appetite (For Destruction).
>br> Q: Does it bug you to see Skid Row touring with someone basically imitating you?

A: Yeah, it bugs me, because entertainment in 2008, as my manager tells me, is about branding. And the brand Skid Row has been wrecked by what they're doing.

Q: You've done lots of work in reality television. Do you still enjoy it?

A: I look at television as a way of promoting my name so people can get turned on to my music. Gone Country 2 on CMT is my latest show. . . . I'm living in Barbara Mandrell's mansion with Jermaine Jackson of the Jackson 5 as my roommate. Across the hall is Lorenzo Lamas with Chris (Kirkpatrick) of 'N Sync, and next to them is Sean Young from Blade Runner and Stripes. Who thinks this stuff up? (Laughs)


8/13/08

Brand new video from RocKarma-Badjune!





8/13/08

Kiss's Paul Stanley to be dad again





LOS ANGELES, Aug. 12 (UPI) -- Kiss front man Paul Stanley says his attorney wife, Erin, is pregnant with their second child.

"Erin and I are thrilled and can't wait to meet our newest addition," Stanley said in an exclusive statement to People magazine. "We've been extremely blessed and we're excited to see what the future holds. I often joke that I've traded the Viper Room for the diaper room, and it looks like my tour's been extended!"

The baby is due this winter, People.com said.

The couple have been married for about three years and are the parents of Colin, who will be 2 next month.

Stanley also is the father of 14-year-old Evan, his son from a previous marriage.




8/11/08

Eddie Trunk Interviews Bret Michaels at Rocklahoma





8/11/08

NEW Bret Michaels video "Fallen"




8/9/08

Def Leppard having time of Nine Lives



Say his name quickly and you understand how Def Leppard's Phil Collen is constantly being mistaken for that other Phil Collins who sings for Genesis.

The bigger mystery is how the individual members of one of Britain's biggest selling rock bands have managed to remain virtually invisible despite selling more than 65 million records over their 30-year career.

"It's strange," the 50-year-old guitarist admits, "We're stars when we play. But then we can be completely anonymous when we're on the street.

"But I think this is one of the reasons why the band has stayed together as long as we have. No one really feels like a star, so no one plays the rock star. We all want to work hard and have a good time. We have a real working class ethic. That's what keeps us together, and keeps our heads on our shoulders."

So it seems, beneath those monster shags, vocalist Joe Elliott, guitarist Vivian Campbell, bass player Rick Savage and one-armed drummer Rick Allen are just regular folk. It's probably a reason why the band is still working hard after three decades.

"It's unbelievably fun, to be honest," he says. "We've been together longer than most people are married. We've been through death, divorce and dismemberment together. We're not boys any more. We're grown into men. I trust these guys. We're better than ever."

Def Leppard was originally scheduled to play Ottawa last April until vocalist Elliott got sick and their tour with 1980s superbands Styx and REO Speedwagon was postponed. Def Leppard is back on the road, this time with Billy Idol. They play Scotiabank Place Sunday.

Someone should tell Collen that he and his mates are entitled to a little celebrity treatment.

Formerly a member of the glam-rock band Girl, Collen joined the band in 1982 before releasing the band's third, and biggest-selling album Pyromania.

In 1987, the band released their fourth album Hysteria. It's only the third rock record to have charted seven singles on the American Top-100. One critic described it as "Hard rock's equivalent of Thriller."

Though they've never duplicated that success, the band continues to record.

In 1996, they released the darkly industrial sounding Slang only to return to their classic sound in 1999 with Euphoria. On their 10th album X the band went bubblegum. Collen describes the new album Songs From the Sparkle Lounge as "aggressive fun."

The album, released in April, features the single Nine Lives, written and recorded with country superstar Tim McGraw.

"We don't care about flash or our image," he insists. "We'll try anything to keep it interesting for us. It's all about the music."

Including a sideline project called Man-Raze, Collen's alternative trio with Sex Pistols drummer Paul Cook and Simon Laffy.

"We're like The Police on steroids," he laughs.




8/9/08

Poison:still about hair and having a good time



In the heyday of hair metal, Poison distinguished itself by being among the most heavily made-up and seemingly angst-free bands, its mischievous singalongs evoking the pursuit of good times and fast women along the Sunset Strip. In its sold-out show at the Bank of America Pavilion Thursday night, the band showed this vision of the good life still resonates with fans, some clad in cowboy hats, leopard print get-ups, and assorted metal-band tank tops.

Poison's 70-minute set, which followed, almost exactly, the track list of its just-released "Live, Raw, & Uncut" greatest-hits compilation, began with a literal bang, as pyrotechnics and dizzying light tricks accompanied frontman Bret Michaels's ascent to the stage. Starting with the title track of the band's first album, "Look What the Cat Dragged In," Poison dug into a singles catalog skewed heavily toward the late '80s but nonetheless spanning 22 years - which an exuberant Michaels felt compelled to remind the crowd every second song or so.

Though the band tampered little with their songs' delivery, Michaels played up the meaning of the ballads. "This is a song about family, friends, the people we care about," Michaels said before a healthy-looking C.C. DeVille hit the opening notes of the Class of '87 prom theme, "I Won't Forget You."

With black-and-white topless hula and belly dance scenes paraded on a screen throughout "Your Mama Don't Dance," Poison's cover of the Loggins and Messina hit, one wonders if the band intended an homage to feminine sex appeal throughout the ages. The night's silliest and perhaps most fun moments came with a cover of the Romantics' "What I Like About You," backed by footage of Michaels, DeVille, bassist Bobby Dall, and drummer Rikki Rockett performing in black suits as pages of a high school yearbook turned.

A buff Michaels, riding high from the success of his VH1 series "Rock of Love," lavished praise on Boston, making heartfelt references to the Celtics and the Red Sox (what visiting performer doesn't these days?) and thanking fans who'd trekked in from Rhode Island, Connecticut, and New Hampshire.

"I wish that every city could borrow the energy of Boston," Michaels said, and though one might suspect he says something similar in every city, statements like these endeared him to the already fervent pavilion crowd.

Dokken, led by the gracious and gifted Don Dokken, played a tight and frills-free set that mixed old favorites with songs from the band's latest release, "Lightning Strikes Again." Ex-Skid Row front man Sebastian Bach kicked off the evening with a generous dose of hits from his former band and singles from his latest solo effort, "Angel Down."


8/7/08

The Class of '88 - 20 years later



By: Mary Catherine Mullins
It was a hot and humid June evening in 1988. The excitement in the air was fantastic. No more high school. The LBHS Class of 1988. We were outta there! Our whole life was ahead of us. At least right after that amazing senior week at Myrtle Beach.

Well, here we are 20 years later. I have gone from being a fresh LB graduate in the summer of 1988 to being the parent of an upcoming junior and freshman at LB and two preschoolers in the summer of 2008.

I am anticipating the simple, long awaited reunion our graduating class will be having in September. In all these years, we have never had one. It has been, and still is, quite the task to locate our alumni. We established a website, www.lordbotetourtclassof88.com, to help in the process and give us opportunities to reconnect. We are finding out just how far away many of our classmates moved. It is interesting to see where everyone is and what they are doing with their lives.

We are discovering how many childhood friends are fighting illness, how many we have lost and how many friends have lost children of their own. We are renewing friendships and providing support for one another. It is intriguing to learn how all these kids of the 80’s have come full circle in life and look forward to “coming home” to Botetourt for our reunion.

I will be the first to admit that I loved the ‘80s. The music, the hair, the clothes. Okay, looking back now the hair and the clothes were a bit ridiculous.

Our generation alone could take full responsibility for killing the ozone with all the hairspray it took to hold up those bangs. And what were we thinking when we pulled on parachute pants?! But the music? Now that was something. It rocked! Bon Jovi, Motley Crue, U2, Guns and Roses, Chicago; and even Michael Jackson was still pretty cool back then.

Who could have imagined how quickly it would all fly by? So many things are different now, and so many the same. For starters, just looking around Botetourt County, it amazes me how much growth has taken place. I can remember when a group of us would get together and play “hide and seek” in the apple orchards that now are the home to the subdivision Wetherwood.

And back before the mouth-watering cuisine of Rancho Viejo, we had ice cream sundaes at HoJo’s (Howard Johnson’s). There was no BAC or Ashley Plantation, no Read Mountain Swim Club. Our choice for swimming was Tinkerview Swim Club, which now is a leveled gravel lot; or Traveltown public pool, which had the big slide, several diving boards and the rings across the middle. It had even survived the Flood of ‘85. There are still the Botetourt Country Club, Limestone Park, Rainbow Forest Lake and the many swimming “holes” along our creeks and the James River.

Winn-Dixie parking lot was the “busy” spot on Friday and Saturday nights. I am reminded of that when I see teens meeting up in the Kroger parking lot nowadays. We would meet up at Winn Dixie to decide where we would go hang out the rest of the evening. Since our options were limited to pretty much just field parties in our county, we usually ended up in Roanoke, maybe at a movie.

For about $3.50 a ticket we could catch "Die Hard" or "Cocktail" that summer. Or maybe we would be out cruising Williamson Road. Gas averaged 91cents a gallon. That is something I definitely miss.

We stayed on the phone for hours, irritating our parents while we stretched out that long cord to find the most private spot. Some luckier teens had cordless phones. We had no cell phones, no texting and no internet. How did we ever make it?

We were being introduced to a whole new world of video games, but nothing like X-Box Live or Wii. Mike Tyson was in the news for one incident after another, n ot much different than Brittney Spears today.

Aside from changes in American culture, growth in the county, technology and the price of gas, we were pretty much like every other generation’s graduates…we knew it all, and we were going to change the world by doing things completely different than our parents did.

We were strong and healthy; smart and innovative; our options were unlimited! I will be curious to see if now, 20 years later, we are still so confident. Or was it cocky? Or maybe just young?

I wonder how many of my fellow classmates have to get their kids to show them how use their cell phones? Do they play Wii games? Or just Wii Fit? Do they think the music our kids listen to is horrible? And what about their clothes? And hair? We would have NEVER listened to that, talked like that, wore that outfit. What is this world coming to? What on earth happened in the last 20 years? Oh yeah, we did.

I hope that most of my alumni have figured out, like many of us have, that life is precious and very often, too short. I hope they have discovered that our parents knew a lot more than we ever gave them credit for, and in spite of trying not to, we probably bring a great deal of their parenting into our own.



I hope they have discovered that high school was certainly not the end all of everything and life has so much more to offer in each new day. I hope that each and every one of them, in some small way, has made a difference. Maybe not saving the world or curing cancer, but making a difference somehow to someone. Because truly, that is what really matters. I have great faith that come September, I won’t be disappointed.

After all, we survived being teens in the ‘80s. We can do anything!


8/7/08

review of Enuff Z´nuff - Dissonance (Limited Edition)



Enuff Z´nuff - Dissonance (Limited Edition)
Dissonance is the exact opposite of what this album brings. Enuff Z'nuff is back with an album that is real aural bliss. This is the limited edition of the album which was only available at the US festival Rocklahoma back in July. It is not the official release, it doesn't come with any lyrics and it will be interesting to see if these songs are the ones on the final release as it has gone through some transformations in the past. I hope a few more songs are added to the final release since 9 songs and a play time of 36 minutes is a bit short. However, quality is always more important than quantity and each song has something to offer, with favorites standing out right away.

After the messy affair that the last album ? (Question Mark) was, Dissonance is a much more focused deal and, as far as I know, contains only newly written songs.
Hopefully the dissonance within the band is now over. After 7 years in the dark, the lost weekend as he calls it, Donnie Vie has rejoined the band and the essential Enuff Z'nuff songwriting team, Chip and Donnie are back together.

Longtime faithful guitarist/live singer Johnny Monaco is out of the band and Jake E Lee, known from Ozzy Osbourne and Badlands is now credited as guitarist while Vinnie Castaldo has joined as the new drummer after Ricky passed away to cancer in October 2007 - R.I.P.

The music is still undeniably Enuff Z'nuff's special brand of Rock with Donnie's voice, the unforgettable melodies and the Beatles influence in place. The album also moves forward as the songs have a fresh mature feel to them. It feels like a new leaf has been turned over.
One thing in particular made me think that the cooperation between Chip and Donnie has not been as close as in the past. I'm missing Chip's harmonies in a few songs and that is a shame.
This would have lifted an already fantastic song like Roll Away to new heights. Donnie is doing a few harmonies himself here, but it just doesn't fulfill the potential the song has. Still, as I said it is fantastic in this incarnation and was my first favorite. The opening is pure Enuff Z'nuff with Donnie singing in a soft voice filled with soul and feeling. The melody is memorable and many small touches enhance the song. I can't help but smile every single time I hear a particular rhyme this song offers.

Several songs deal with what has happened in the last 7 years, in particular the moving Joni Lynn where the wound from Donnie's failed marriage is torn open and bared to all. The song develops with many listens and has a haunting staying power that makes it unforgettable. Chip's bass work stands out as brilliant and Donnie's singing is filled with emotion in what may be one of his finest moments ever. The song is expressed with heart and soul in a way that feels real and it reaches a pinnacle near the end with added harmonies bringing an extra punch.
This said, the song unfortunately lacks a guitar solo that can live up to the rest of the song. The solo gets the job done, but is not on the same level as the rest of the song.

A natural follow-up to Joni Lynn is Altered States which adds a positive vibe and deals with moving on, through MySpace no less. This is Enuff Z'nuff and it feels good. I feel that Altered States is the closely related brother to All Right from the "10" album. Both rhythm and vibe has similarities. Great song!

Throughout the album Chip absolutely smokes on the bass. Fortunately, the bass is high in the mix and easily enjoyed. Already in the opening title track it is evident how important the bass is in the music as it adds a certain drive to the whole thing as well as über cool details. The title track has a harder edge that works well. The drive in the main verse is a definite highlight. At first I hated the ending part where Donnie Vie's voice, screaming and distorted, puts an unfortunate end to the song but with repeated listens it makes more sense. It does fit nicely with the meaning of the song but could have been executed better.

Look no further than the fantastic middle section of Lazy Dazy for an example of the Beatles influence that has always been an important element in the band. I tired of the chorus after the first 5 listens but this passage saves the entire song and gives it a special vibe.

Fine Line is another highlight with a lot to discover. Details are hidden in both guitar and bass while Donnie's singing is engaging in a open, right-in-your-face kind of way.

High is probably my least favorite song as it doesn't seem to have the same infectious charm of the rest. Still, a good song with a standout guitar solo. Playground begins with a fun kind of Batman meets Blues Brothers vibe. Fun is the keyword here and the song gets better and better with each listen, the layered chorus being a superb highlight.

As the city, album closer Chicago oozes with atmosphere. The song has a slightly different production than the rest and Chip also sings lead vocals on it. It works very well as he gives the song the perfect vibe.

Like the very best Enuff Z'nuff albums Dissonance has moments and songs which cross that magical borderline where they touch something deep within and wrap you up in a sea of chills. This is music that makes you feel something and it stays interesting due to strong songwriting.

Dissonance is a wonderful effort and hopefully only the first glimpse of a rejuvenated band, back and hungry for more.


Rating: 8.5/10

Written by Steen
Wednesday, August 06, 2008


8/5/08

POISON's 'Seven Days Live' To Receive CD Release



On August 26, Armoury Records (through Eagle Rock Entertainment) will release "Seven Days Live" by POISON — Bret Michaels, Bobby Dall, Rikki Rockett and Richie Kotzen — as captured at the height of their international success with a full show recorded at London's Hammersmith Opollo in 1993.

Featuring classic tracks like "Unskinny Bop", "Talk Dirty To Me", "Every Rose Has Its Thorn", "Ain't Nothin' But A Good Time" and more, "Seven Days Live" is a rare live recording of the Richie Kotzen era of the band, shortly after he replaced original guitarist C.C. DeVille.

POISON became icons of glam in the late '80s/early '90s with a striking visual image and incredible success selling records upwards of 14 million in the U.S. alone. With six Top 10 singles to their credit, they continue to tour to this day. The Pennsylvania band moved to Los Angeles in 1984 and developed a hardcore following along the Sunset Strip (VELVET REVOLVER guitarist Slash once auditioned as lead guitarist). With plenty of make-up and hairspray, they played their androgyny into major stardom, becoming the house band at popular West Hollywood hang-out The Troubadour. "Open Up And Say…Ahh!" (1988) made them into international celebrities. Michaels has also become a solo star, successful in movies and television.

The band's "Swallow This Live" live album was certified gold in 1991.

"Seven Days Live" track listing:

01. Ride The Wind 02. Something To Believe In 03. Stand 04. Fallen Angel 05. Look What The Cat Dragged In 06. Until You Suffer Some (Fire & Ice) 07. Unskinny Bop 08. Talk Dirty To Me 09. Every Rose Has Its Thorn 10. Nothin' But A Good Time


8/5/08

George Lynch Talks Dokken Reunion



Co-host Red and intern Jim Bob of the "Rockin Metal Revival" show recently conducted an interview with former Dokken lead guitarist George Lynch.

When asked about the possibility of a Dokken reunion with him on guitar, Lynch said, "I did an interview yesterday with Metal Hammer [magazine] in Europe and the guy had just spoken to Don [Dokken]. And Don's response to that same question was the interviewer told me was that this is all coming from George, nobody else has any interest. Now that is absolutely not true. The actual truth is that, yes, my management company has been instrumental in encouraging this to happen, and I'm all for it. But everybody else has agreed in principle at three different occasions over the past few years at looking into doing this to try to put it together and have it make sense. And for various reasons it has not happened. But to characterize this as I'm the one that is pounding the table, and everyone else is reluctant astronauts is completely false. My management company would get a hold of Don and he'd say, 'Yeah, I'm down. Let's see what we can put together.' We've tried to put various tours together and recording sessions together and different reformations and all that, we've had VH1 on board, our own show, record deals, reasonably good tours and other things. For one reason or another, it doesn't happen in the 11th hour. And that's OK, but he mischaracterized it and was being untruthful about that. Just to set the record straight, I'm always down. Of course, this is a business, and I'd love to see some closure of the Dokken thing for myself, the fans, and the band before I hang my guitar up."


8/3/08

Mick Mars: "We’ve set out to be together since day one"



Mick Mars, Nikki Sixx, Vince Neil and Tommy Lee are all together (and according to the band, getting along swimmingly).

Mötley Crüe’s newest album debuted in the Billboard Chart’s top five, and the band is out on a wildly successful national tour. One might think it was 1986, if only for the fact that a big chunk of the Crüe’s newest fan-base wasn’t even born then.

“If you stick around long enough, people tend to re-discover you,” Crüe bassist Nikki Sixx says. “I remember about six or seven years ago, I was at a mall and I must have seen about 20 kids with Mötley Crüe’s t-shirts on. And it just kind of reinvents itself.”

The newest reinvention of the band is really a reformation: the new record Saints of Los Angeles is the first to feature the original lineup in over a decade.
“We want to be together,” says lead guitarist Mick Mars. “We’ve set out to be together since day one. There’s a lot of bands that have been together for three, four, five years and they’ve done their run. We’re one of the kind of bands that keep going, and changing, and keeping up with the times. Like the Stones, Aerosmith or U2, bands like that.”

But Mötley Crüe won’t change so much to the point of losing its edge, Sixx says, and the thought-process in producing the incessantly dirty Saints of Los Angeles is proof.

“Mick just said, ‘I want to hear a lot of guitars, and I want to hear snotty lyrics,’” Sixx says. “And I was like, ‘exactly where I’m coming from, dude.’ I don’t want loops and samples and beats. You know, I don’t want to be Nine Inch Nails, I don’t want to be Jay Z or Rage Against the Machine, I don’t want to be Gwen Stefani. I don’t want to be over thought and over processed. Me and Mick just said, ‘We just fuckin’ want to sound like Mötley Crüe.’ And that’s what we did. And that’s easy.”

Upon listening to Sixx gush about the record, he gives the impression that Saints is as much a defense of the genre as it is another chapter in the band’s long history.

“There’s always these people that go, ‘Rock is dead, rock is over,’” Sixx says. “It’s like, constantly, people always out to kill rock ‘n roll. I don’t get it. It’s like we’re the ugly stepchild of the music business. And yet, we’re the one brand of music that continues to be viable and valuable, if you think about it. One of the things for us is that we want to go out and stand up for rock ‘n roll. We have been our whole career. But to really be able to say, you know what, it’s not like rock is back, it never left.”

The band’s crusade to defend rock ‘n roll’s good name has swept up a whole new generation of Crüeheads, too. Touring with younger rock groups – Buckcherry, Papa Roach, Trapt, and Nikki Sixx’s side-project Sixx:A.M., all included on this summer’s Crüe Fest – certainly helps. But it’s the decision to release the title track from Saints of Los Angeles on radio and the “Guitar Hero” video game simultaneously that made the most noise. The band’s “endorsements” of the game are perhaps the best reminder that they are, in fact, nearly all in their 50s.

“My kids kick my ass on [“Guitar Hero”],” Sixx says. “Like, I can’t do it. Yeah, it’s weird.”

“It’s so much different than playing guitar,” Mars says. “It reminds me – this isn’t like being mean, or anything – but it reminds me a lot of that old game “Simon.” Remember that game? There’s like buttons that you push, and different colors and stuff, and how fast you can do it, and trying to remember what it is. It kind of reminds me of that.”




8/3/08

'It's insane': More than 100 bands to play Rock the Bayou festival

What was initially billed as forty bands over four days has more than doubled, as more than 100 bands are booked to play three stages Labor Day Weekend for the Rock the Bayou music festival in Houston.

"It's insane," said Judy Sultan, public relations director for the event, in a press release.

Headliners Queensryche, Sammy Hagar, Alice Cooper and Bret Michaels of Poison are set to close one night a piece during the event, which will also include performances from Twisted Sister, Lita Ford, Yngwie Malmsteen, Warrant, Ratt, Skid Row, LA Guns, Dokken, The Lynch Mob, Great White, Lillian Axe, Black 'N Blue, Jackyl, Britny Fox, Dangerous Toys, Slaughter, Enuff Z'nuff, Little Caesar, Jet Boy, Bullet Boys with Steven Adler, Bang Tango, Y&T, Faster Pussycat, Gilby Clarke and many more.

Rare performances include the only United States appearance of the year by Swedish guitar prodigy Yngwie Malmsteen, ex-Runaway guitarist Lita Ford's second concert in 15 years, and a reunion of the original Warrant lineup.

And Don Dokken hinted of the possibility of an encore song reunion between himself and George Lynch during a recent radio interview, according to the release.

The Rock the Bayou grounds are located at Loop 610 at Kirby Drive, the site of the former Astroworld theme park. The location has been transformed into "a hundred-acre playground for music lovers and rock enthusiasts," according to RocktheBayou.com.

"With multiple stages, VIP hospitality tents for VIP guests, a vendor marketplace, and plenty of food and tasty treats, the music is only half the fun as guests enjoy a wide variety of entertainment and cuisine."

"The word is out on Rock The Bayou," said Ali Fazeli, president of the group producing the event, on the event's Web site.

"If Rock The Bayou fans are asking for (bands), we are making every effort to deliver. As a music fan myself, that kind of response is fantastic."

All tickets for Rock the Bayou are four-day passes that will allow entry to the event Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday, Aug. 29-Sept. 1.

Passes are $125 and are available by charge at (713) 629-4747, at RocktheBayou.com or at OnlineTickets.com.

Discounted rates are available at hotels in the area for those attending the event and camping information is also available for those who want to stay on the event grounds at RocktheBayou.com. The site also includes a MySpace link, forums, lineups and information on carpools close to your area.




8/1/08

Motley Crue announce rock comp



Motley Crue have announced a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for an unknown band to become the opening act on their 2009 tour.


The American metal act revealed details of the competition at a special press conference held outside Hollywood's famous Guitar Centre.


Wannabes are being invited to submit their music at www.makerockhistory.com for the chance to play alongside the legendary rock act.


Lead singer Vince Neil explained why they'd come up with the idea, saying: "Back in 1984 we were pretty much unknown and then Ozzy Osbourne took us out on the road. We opened for him and now it's time to give back. It's full circle now. He helped us out, we want to do the same thing for another young band."


Bass player Nikki Sixx added: "What we liked was that we could give bands all around the country an opportunity, not just here in Los Angeles. We don't know where the next band is coming from."


The band is teaming up with Guitar Centre to run the competition, which also offers the winner a recording contract and 25,000 dollars worth of equipment from Gibson Guitar.


Drummer Tommy Lee explained why the music shop was so important to rockers in LA, saying: "It's where musicians go, this is where they come to hang out, buy stuff, network."


Pamela Anderson's former husband added: "This is always the place where they go, well, other than nightclubs and t**ty bars!!"




8/1/08

Joe Elliott takes jab at Rikki Rockett again



It was a memorable night, one that many of us have waited for-for decades.

Click here to see pictures from the concert

The British rock band that kept us company throughout High ‘N Dry, Hysteria and Pyromania had finally decided to pay a visit to the good ‘ol Rio Grande Valley. Where rock runs deep within our tortilla fueled souls.

As the digital red curtain glittered in the background the familiar sound of AC/DC's "For Those About To Rock (We Salute You)" brought the nearly sold out crowd to their feet.

The anticipation was torture...

Suddenly a montage of photos, years of rock, flashed continuously. Watching them (and listening to some amazing arpeggios spilling from the PA system) sent chills up my spine.

"That was then, this is now" the screen stated in bright white letters.

And there they were Joe, Phil, Vivian Rick and Rick opening to a thunderous response with "Rocket".

Amazing way to start the show, sing along and carefully dissect each member as we've waited to do for so long. Aside from a few extra lb's, frontman Joe Elliot still had that spunk and ability to work a crowd. His voice was a bit strained but you can thank a 30-year career behind the mic for that. We'll let that one slide.

The others...well, I guess some men get better looking with age.

I know I'm not the only one who noticed guitarist Phil Collen's chiseled physique. Good lord!

I'm sure all of the soccer mom's and antsy cougars in the stands saw what I saw.

So back to the music.

"Good evening Rio Grande Valley," Elliot told the audience. "Do you wanna get rocked?"

Uh, heck yeah we do.

Appropriately enough, the band dove into "Let's Get Rocked" followed by a new track off of the Songs From the Sparkle Lounge album "C'mon, C'mon".

It was touching to see such a cohesive unit on stage but it was even more moving to see the guys hadn't forgotten the late Steve Clark as images of the guitarist in the form of angel flashed on the big screen.

With every song, old or new, the crowd maintained the same excitement from start to finish, something that really took Elliot by surprise it seemed.

He would often take a step back and compliment the fans for the support and even questioned why it took 28 years to get here.

Aside from the requisite radio hits I'm sure a lot of rock elitist's were happy to hear a couple songs from the High ‘N Dry days which some consider the more rockin' (less commercial) era.

Whatever Def Leppard era you're into they strolled right through it with finesse. I'm sure some bitter fortysomething's appreciated "Love Bites" while some of us shed a tear for an amazing acoustic rendition of "Two Steps Behind.

Elliot used his time on stage to fuel the ongoing beef between Poison drummer Rikki Rocket and Bret Michaels who were forced to defend their rock credentials after a jab from Elliot.

"Just like Rikki Rocket...f-ing idiot. He's just never seen a good band before," Elliot said after some technical difficulties.

Classic. (Even though I love Poison too).

Regardless of what 80s rock band scores higher than the other Def Leppard will always be considered one of the best. Even if you're not into the whole radio rock arena you can't help but appreciate some of the songs.

Especially one of the evening's highlight and a song we were all waiting for "Pour Some Sugar on Me".

This show scored some high marks for its simplicity and crowd-pleasing set list. There are very few bands that can accomplish what Def Leppard has and there are even fewer bands out there who can only dream of that kind of longevity.

Set List:

•1. "Rocket"

•2. "Animal"

•3. "Let's Get Rocked"

•4. "C'mon C'mon"

•5. "Foolin'"

•6. "Mirror, Mirror"

•7. "Nine Lives"

•8. "Love Bites"

INSTRUMENTAL BREAK

•9. "Rock On" (acoustic)

•10. "Two Steps Behind" (acoustic)

•11. "Bringin' on the Heartache"

•12. "Hysteria"

•13. "Armageddon It"

•14. "Photograph"

•15. "Pour Some Sugar on Me"

ENCORE

•16. "Bad Actress"

•17. "Rock of Ages"




7/31/08

NEW Def Leppard Video "C'mon C'mon



7/30/08

Poison's Dall knows what fans want



For a nostalgia act, Poison's press clippings come shredded straight from today's headlines.

Pop metal's premier party quartet rolls through Florida this week preceded by a run of mass-media exposure that would make an aspiring teenage diva fluorescent green with envy.

Frontman Bret Michaels flipped the script on the mating scene again last season with his hit cable TV show "Rock of Love II," alternately accepting and fending off the clumsy, sometimes gross, advances of star-struck young women.

Drummer Rikki Rockett was charged with and subsequently cleared of rape charges when it was determined he hadn't been in the same state as his accuser on the night of the crime.

And, most recently, the band sued its label, Capitol Records, for unpaid royalties dating back to the original contract.

Eat your heart out, Amy Winehouse.

"You know," Poison bassist Bobby Dall said, "I can't seem to keep these guys out of trouble. My children behave better."

Poison brings its "Live, Raw & Uncut" tour to Tampa's Ford Amphitheatre on Tuesday, six years removed from its most recent original studio recording and almost 22 years clear of its debut release, "Look What the Cat Dragged In." The band is promoting its "Live, Raw & Uncut" CD/DVD release, a live recording from a 2007 show in St. Louis.

The classic lineup of Michaels, Rockett, Dall and guitarist C.C. DeVille makes no apologies for the late 1980s-early 1990s good-time vibe it dresses up with bandanas and a high-energy stage show.

The set list is almost identical to those of Poison's summer shed tours for the past decade, featuring the band's hits "Every Rose Has Its Thorn," "Nothin' But a Good Time," "Talk Dirty to Me," "Unskinny Bop" and "Something to Believe In." The only notable addition this time out is "Cry Tough," the first single the band ever released.

Hardly breaking news.

But Dall knows what his fans really want. He likes to tell a story about attending an Elton John show in the late 1990s and leaving disappointed after John played songs from a new release and none of his traditional hits.

"People will ask you to play something new, something different," Dall said during a recent off-day telephone interview from Minneapolis. "I have to say to people, 'OK, you want me to play 'Flesh and Blood,' but does that mean I do not play 'Talk Dirty to Me'? They want something new, but they don't want to give up something old."

The 44-year-old Dall, a father of two who lives near Melbourne and is the band's lone Florida resident, speaks with the confidence of a rock veteran long recovered from the sting of critics knocking his band for its lack of musicianship and simplistic songs.

He considers Poison one of the five seminal pop-metal acts to emerge from the 1980s, along with Def Leppard, Motley Crue, Bon Jovi and Guns N' Roses. He points to his band's time-tested ability to fill large venues as evidence.

"Out of that genre, we were one of the leaders," Dall said. "We've had enough hits and songs and established ourselves as a headliner long enough that we are one of the success stories that have come out of that era.

"This is a cyclical business. How many disco bands were there? The Bee Gees really were the great one, and that's why they still exist. It doesn't matter what genre you come from. In grunge, which followed us, there were 100 bands, but only three or four were great. Those three or four are the ones you remember. . . . I think our songs have stood the test of time. That's why we're the band we are. I won't apologize for it."

One of Poison's critics has joined up for this tour. Sebastian Bach, the outspoken ex-Skid Row singer, is opening the show with his solo act, along with Dokken.

In a 1999 interview, Bach went out of his way to distance himself from so-called hair bands, of which Poison is considered the standard bearer. Bach sneered, "Skid Row fans are not Poison fans."

Nine years later, here he is on a Poison bill. Dall said his band bears no ill will. After all, a Poison party is for everybody.

"I'm not the one eating my words," Dall said. "I have no animosity myself; I never did. Sebastian obviously did at one point. He's had to eat a little bit of crow. That's his issue to deal with, not mine. I wish him well.

"When it was convenient for him to say the things he wanted to say, he said that. Now he's opening for my band. So be it."

While Dall and his bandmates are secure with their past, Poison's future is cloudy, owing to Michaels' budding television career.

Dall said the other band members are generally supportive of Michaels' work outside Poison. But he said Michaels' individual agenda likely will keep the band out of the studio - where it could ride a retro wave that recently pushed Motley Crue's new release to No. 4 on the Billboard chart - and even off the road in the near future.

"Bret does what Bret does," said Dall, who achieved YouTube infamy two years ago when he swung his bass into Michaels' knee during an onstage dispute. "I don't have to necessarily always agree with it personally.

"I think some of the things that he does benefit Poison; some of them don't. But no press is bad press. It's that type of business."




7/28/08

Another dose of Poison suits fans just fine



When a veteran rock band comes to town, it's usually the same old song and dance.

But if you're a Poison fan, is that such a bad thing? Courtesy of Everett CollectionYep, that's Bret Michaels. Bret Michaels and his crew know what their faithful listeners want -- decibels, fireworks, handshakes, hits -- and that's exactly what they delivered Saturday night at the Verizon Wireless Music Center in Pelham.

Poison's 9:35 p.m. show settled into a familiar groove right away, with flash pots blazing and a sturdy rendition of "Look What the Cat Dragged In."

No, that song isn't going to earn the band a place in music history, but it served the purpose efficiently, exciting the crowd and setting the tone for the rest of the performance.

Poison's a party band, in case you didn't know, and has been so for 22 years. On Saturday, as always, the basic formula relied on hard-driving melodies, repetitive lyrics, anthemic ballads and danceable covers.

Good-time tunes such as "Unskinny Bop," "I Want Action," "Ride the Wind" and "Your Mama Don't Dance" allowed many in the audience to drink a beer, shout a hook. Drink a beer, shake some booty. Drink a beer, sing along with a chorus.

No Poison concert would be complete without "Every Rose Has Its Thorn" and "Something to Believe In," both of which prompted bouts of hand- and arm-waving. The crowd (which filled the amphitheater's lower two tiers and about half of the third tier) participated with gusto.

Michaels, 45, is holding it together nicely as a heavy-metal frontman, and he remains extremely confident in his physicality. (Anyone who has watched his reality series, "Rock of Love," will tell you that.)

And here's the thing: He was just so darn cheerful on stage, so responsive to the fans and so grateful for the attention, that you ended up liking him, even when Poison's show resembled a big ol' retread

The three other members of Poison -- guitarist C.C. DeVille, drummer Rikki Rockett and bassist Bobby Dall -- didn't exude quite the same panache in Pelham, but they did their jobs in a workmanlike fashion, and seemed to enjoy their solos.


7/28/08

Sober Reality Show Leads to GNR Drug Bust



When Guns 'n' Roses drummer Steven Adler decided to try and kick his drug habit by joining the "Sober Living" house, he certainly couldn't have imagined it would land him in the klink.

Sources close to the production say after a "confrontation" in the house, a member of the "Sober" staff called the cops, who came and popped Adler on an outstanding warrant.

His own peeps tell us the staff called the fuz because Adler was allegedly doing drugs in the house.

David Weintraub, Steven's manager, told TMZ, "Steven Adler's arrest was an unfortunate situation that didn't have to occur in the context of him starring in a television show."

No response from VH1.


7/24/08

Poison Promises Nothin' but a Good Time



Jul. 23--Just as disco helped define the swinging '70s, hair metal provided the perfect soundtrack to '80s excess. Both musical genres have been widely reviled and ridiculed, and both seemingly will never die: Disco still fuels decadent theme nights at the hippest clubs across the country, and hair metal bands are still a major guilty pleasure for rock fans, as evidenced by the success of Motley Crue's new album Saints of Los Angeles and recent packed arena shows.

Take the latest tour by hair-metal poster boys Poison -- Live Raw & Uncut, supported by Dokken and ex-Skid Row frontman Sebastian Bach, which rocks West Palm Beach Wednesday at the Cruzan Amphitheatre. None of the acts has produced a bestselling album for many years, but the tour is nonetheless creating a buzz. Simply put, raw, sing-along anthems such as Poison's Every Rose Has Its Thorn and Nothin' But a Good Time, and Skid Row's 18 and Life and Youth Gone Wild will always satisfy our need for cheesy, high-fivin' rock 'n' roll: Ain't nothin' but a good time, indeed.
"With this band, there's always an excitement and an energy and a freshness," says Poison bass player Bobby Dall. "Records and videos and posters -- all those things are products, but what a band really is, is what happens when those four or five people are on a stage. And I think that whenever these four guys take the stage, it creates an excitement that's always transcendent." And even dangerous, Dall says.

OUTTA CONTROL "It's almost like NASCAR: The fans come and they want to see us and they thrive on the energy, and at the same time, they don't know if we're gonna throw guitars at each other the next second. To be honest with you, none of us are in control of it and none of us ever know what's gonna happen."

Dall is referring to an onstage incident two years ago in Atlanta in which he hurled his bass at Poison lead singer Bret Michaels, hitting him in the knee, after which Michaels said, "You may have just seen the last concert by Poison in its current formation."

Not so fast. Boys will be boys, and Dall and Michaels -- probably in part to preserve their livelihood -- made up and have since been on their best behavior.
"Everything's been fine," says Dall. "We've been getting along well this year, and he hasn't thrown anything at me or vice versa yet. But it's still early!

"It's like a family -- we're brothers. We fight and argue like family, but deep down, there's a special love for everybody in this band -- it's like being married four ways. It's OK for me to make fun of Bret, but then I'll be the first one to beat someone else's ass if they do it."
Bach -- who will perform hits from his Skid Row days, plus solo tunes from last year's album Angel Down on Wednesday -- has a hard time explaining his music's enduring success.

"Obviously I don't know why -- all I ever did in my life was go into the studio with nothing and try to make something that I really, really am proud of," he says. 'I loved 18 to Life when we first came up with it, and I was hoping that someone else would like it. I remember when we were done with the first Skid Row record, we were walking around Great Adventure, and me and the guitar player were saying, 'Imagine if somebody liked this, and imagine if we went gold or something,' and 20 years later those songs have taken on their own life, especially I Remember You, which is now performed by Carrie Underwood in her set. It's f---- crazy -- I mean who could have anticipated that, that it would be a country staple? And, I mean, she nails it -- she does it so good. And that's mind-blowing -- that's a testament of a great song."

WHAT'S A NAME?
Dall says he has nothing against the term "hair metal," explaining that every genre gets labeled and lumped together.

"Look at a cycle like grunge," he says. 'There were 300 bands that they called 'grunge' out of Seattle. Of that 300, there were three or four good ones -- Pearl Jam, Nirvana -- and then there were the rest of them that weren't that good. Well, the '80s was the same thing -- the genre was hair metal or glam or whatever name they wanted to put on it, and the bands that survived and are the winners from that era are Bon Jovi, Motley Crue, Poison, Def Leppard, Guns 'N Roses. "It's the same thing from the disco era -- when it hit, there were 100 disco bands put on the market that year. You remember the Bee Gees -- they were the great ones. But as far as hair metal -- would I have picked a different name? Yes -- it wasn't my choice. But if they want to call us hair metal, I don't mind."

Bach has a different reaction.
"I hate it," he says. 'I don't like being lumped in with a billion other bands, but having said that, I've got hair down to my ass. I got rock 'n' roll hair, so I suppose I bring some of that upon myself. But chicks dig it, it's fun, it's luxurious, and as a man who's not getting any younger, I would say to every man -- keep every hair on your head as long as you can, because someday it may not be an option."


7/22/08

CC Deville on The F Word,Guitar Hero and Amazing Grace


Guitar Hero from Pete Wilson on Vimeo.


7/21/08

Along came Alice Cooper



He’s a born-again Christian, a fanatical golfer and the founding father of shock rock. But who is the man beneath the make-up

Alice Cooper has two laughs. One of them is a mirthless husk, and punctuates his conversation when he is sounding every one of his 60 years, embarking on a protracted “It wasn’t like that in my day” moan. The other, though, is fascinating: an impish, delighted little squeak, it acts as a sort of descant to those moments in Cooper’s anecdotage where he recalls the outrageous antics he got up to back in the days of his 1970s chart-topping pomp and majesty.

Good Alice, God-fearing, good-enough-to-turn-pro golfing Alice, can bang on like the worst type of clubhouse bore. This version rises at dawn to tee off, all fore-play and no fun. He is less an entertainer than a brand, with his own radio show, restaurant and bestselling golf book, and a new studio album, his 25th, about to hit the shops. He talks moderately but monotonously about the present, the future, but above all, and at length, the past and politics.

He hates music and politics mixing, and has been badly burnt by this in the past, not least when he called musicians campaigning for John Kerry in 2004 “treasonous morons”. “You definitely get blackballed in this business,” he reflects now. “Basically, the press is liberal, and you’re supposed to adhere to that. I felt a real pressure. It was the same when I said, ‘I’m Christian now.’ Wow, what a reaction. But if you’re in this business and you’re honest, you’ll pay for it.

A lot of my opinions about the Bush administration are like, ‘What? Are you crazy?’ I’m moderate, and I’m not political. And the most rebellious thing I ever did was to become a Christian.” He laughs drily, but he sounds far from sanguine.

“I never understood rock’n’roll’s connection with politics,” he chides. “And I’ve got to be honest with you, rock’n’rollers can take themselves so damn seriously — all that ‘What I wrote will change the world’. We can’t keep giving them this credibility, as if they know more than anybody else. We don’t. That’s why we’re rock’n’rollers. The guy picking up the garbage” — at this point, Cooper gestures distractedly at a dustcart passing by the London hotel room where we meet — “knows as much about politics as I do. But there is this mystique that if you’re an entertainer, you know more. And I think there’s an abuse of it. If a famous star decides that he’s going to back a certain politician, all of a sudden the people that really don’t know anything about politics [hang on, is this including the garbage man, or excluding him?], but really like his movies, they go, ‘Well, I’ll vote for him because the star knows about these things.’ He doesn’t.”

Bad Alice, on the other hand, is a lot of fun. You could shoot the breeze with this guy all day. This version once painted Tinseltown red, dating Raquel Welch, drowning in alcohol, numbed by narcotics, beyond help in the way that anyone with several multi-platinum albums and a tongue-tied staff on their payroll is beyond help. He talks indiscreetly, self-deprecatingly and with a bracing disregard for modern niceties. One particular story, concerning a concert in Toronto in 1969, has set itself as a seal on his reputation. The happily scandalised press reported at the time that Cooper had thrown a chicken from the stage, having first — as you do — bitten off its head and drunk its blood. Later accounts scaled this back to the singer hurling the unfortunate bird into the air, assuming it would fly; landing instead amid a group of disabled people, the animal was promptly torn to pieces. Was the latter true? “Absolutely,” Cooper cackles with undisguised glee. “That was the punch line. Not that I had killed the chicken, which of course I hadn’t, but that the handicapped, the people who caught it, turned it into one of them. I mean, how scary is that?”

Somewhere in the middle of these two versions is, you feel, where Cooper now spends most of his time. He may long ago have learnt to ride the two horses in his life — Alice Cooper, the still-touring provocateur and vaudevillian; Vincent Furnier, the sober, Detroit-born son of a pastor — at the same time, but the duality cost him dear before he mastered it. In grumpy-old-man mode, he still gives off tiny sparks of mischief and malice, as if unwilling to wholly surrender to the life he has now built for himself. Conversely, when he careers off down the darker sections of memory lane, you sense in him a relief, a disbelief even, that he lived to tell the tale.

And, every now and then, you catch a glimpse of the person who was self-confident — and possibly barking — enough to have taken a stage show on tour that included boa constrictors, guillotines and hangman’s nooses, and who insisted it was still rock’n’roll. In seeing that, you comprehend that no amount of Bible classes (which he attends weekly), or rounds of golf, or opening restaurants, will ever quite vanquish the zany, experimental alchemist still battling for control of Cooper’s mind. Here, for instance, is the singer on his new album, Along Came a Spider, and the multiple murderer who is its central character: “I’m thinking, ‘Okay, here’s a guy, he’s a genius serial killer, and he patterns himself after his favourite predator, the spider.’ You trap, you kill, you eat. You know?” No, but do go on. “Now you’ve got that premise, then you go, ‘Why? Why is that?’ ” Cooper suddenly leans in closer. “What would he do? What would he take from the spider? Well, he would kidnap the girl, kill her and wrap her in silk. That’s what a spider would do. Only he would be a little more artistic than that. He would think, ‘What colour are her eyes? Blue. Okay, blue silk.’ You know, with a little bow on top? And then you realise: eight legs, eight victims.”

Musically, the album is a rehash of Cooper’s greatest moments — and frankly all the better for that. Who wants a wild artistic curveball, after all, when you can have the crunching chords, Slash guitar solos, glammed-up rock and hair metal of tracks such as Killed by Love, Vengeance Is Mine and I’m Hungry? As ever, Cooper will tour the album, a live performer who refuses to bow out. “When I was at journalism school,” he says at one point, “my term paper was on the London Times v the National Enquirer. So it was either ‘Tax cuts inevitable’ or ‘Boy born with dog’s head’. What am I going to read? I’m going right there to the sensationalism. And if rock’n roll isn’t sensationalism, what is?

If I’m ever considered this prophet of importance, I go, ‘Guys, that’s not what I do.’ You know, School’s Out, I’m Eighteen, No More Mr Nice Guy, they’re fun. And the important thing about my shows, always, is that they’re fun. The audience walk out of there, they’ve got stage blood all over them, they’ve got confetti stuck to the stage blood, you know? They go, ‘That was the best party I’ve ever been to.’ ”

Cooper has been married for the past 32 years to Sheryl Goddard, whom he met when she joined his touring troupe. “I was going out with a battleship,” he says. “Raquel Welch was a battleship. And she was a great girl. Sheryl weighed 90 pounds and had no idea who I was. She was a ballerina, classically trained; she was a Baptist. But there was a quality in her, maybe that she would watch Godzilla movies with me till three in the morning. I’ve never cheated on her; I’ve got three kids who have never been in trouble. They’ll go to see Marilyn Manson, but they’ll come to church with me the next day. If some guy comes up to me and goes ‘Thirty-two years, eh? I’m on my fourth marriage’, I go, ‘Yeah, but you married four strippers.’ ” He squeaks louder than ever at this, and his long and surely dyed black hair shakes in time. He may not like to be called a prophet — he calls his creation a “cabaret-vaudeville-comedy-horror thing” — but Cooper, the original shock rocker, was just that. After him came a deluge that carried David Bowie, the Sex Pistols, Guns N’ Roses et al into the charts. Deep down, you suspect he knows this. Good Alice is probably slightly appalled by the thought. And Bad Alice? Oh, he feels just fine.


7/21/08

Mick Mars 24-Year-Old Girlfriend: 'I Am Totally In Love'



MÖTLEY CRÜE guitarist Mick Mars' Swiss girlfriend, 24-year-old former Miss Zürich contestant Seraina Schönenberger, has spoken to Blick magazine about her relationship with the man she calls her "soulmate."

Schönenberger met Mars, 57, at a June 2007 MÖTLEY CRÜE concert in Switzerland and the couple has been virtually inseparable ever since.

"It was love at first sight," she told Blick before adding, "You never know, maybe someday we will actually get married."
Schönenberger appears in MÖTLEY CRÜE's new video for the song "Saints of Los Angeles" (see below) and has been traveling with the band on their current "Crüe Fest" summer tour.
"I am totally in love," she said about the guitarist who suffers from the degenerative bone disease ankylosing spondylitis. "[He is] the man of my life. . . We are the perfect couple."

Mars filed a lawsuit against former girlfriend Robbie Mantooth (Photo#1, Photo#2) in Los Angeles Superior Court in November 2006, alleging that she breached the terms of a settlement of a palimony suit between the former couple. The Calabasas resident is asking for unspecified punitive damages and attorneys' fees.

Mars was diagnosed with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) when he was 19 and he told Blender magazine in a recent interview that the disease has left him unable to move his head.

"If I could go places I would, but I'm stuck," he said. "This stuff I have won't allow me to move my head, so I can't drive. It's quite an inconvenience."

In the same interview, Mars revealed that his condition is shrinking him.
"This AS crap has shrunk me down really small," he said. "I used to be almost five-foot-nine, and I'm just a little over five-three now. It stinks... I'm just squashed."


7/19/08

Joe Elliott fires back at Poison



"Whoah boys, slow down!!!

"Well, Bret has a point, we DID lip-synch on Dancing With The Stars…..absolutely…..a show they'd love to be on no doubt! But it was two-fold. One, the nature of the show didn't lean towards a full live performance, too many restrictions, so we lip synched - the way ALL artists do when they shoot videos (and the same as we did on American Bandstand 25 years ago, and every time we did Top Of The Pops, dozens of times, so to us Englishmen, it's no big deal). Two, I had a severe respritory infection, as highlighted by my croaking through the (absolutely 100% live!) Ellen Show performance the day before! My throat doctor (Dr. Sugarman, possibly Brett's doctor too!) advised me NOT to sing for a week, but these shows were all on the week our new album was released, so canceling wasn't an option…..hence my rather again croaky performance on Live With Jimmy Kimmel the next night!

"I was simply making the following simple point when I said a lot of those Hollywood bands weren't "real" (or whatever I said)….. I was born Joseph Elliott, Sav was born Richard Savage, Rick was born Richard Allen, Phil was born Philip Collen, Viv was born Vivian Campbell, and oh, Steve was born Stephen Clark. I don't think anyone in Poison uses their real name, do they? And I could name hundreds of others who don't, but Poison came to mind because I was asked about them! It's nothing personal, it was just an answer to a question.

"As for being "crucified" for lip synching, one DJ on KLOS doesn't worry me, however, a top 5 entry in the Billboard album chart the week after and very healthy ticket sales seems to lean towards the fact that most of our fans knew that I was sick and that I "took one for the team" as it were. Calm down boys, you've heard worse, no?!

"Hey…..Rikki implies we're miming on tour?! HA!!! Well, he's welcome to come see us anytime he wants… Obviously not used to hearing a good band very often then is he?? :)

"Also, glitter rock may well have been re-christened in the 80's by er, someone in Hollywood, but trust me, I WAS THERE in 1972 in the UK, when Bowie, Bolan, Slade, Sweet etc….. Ruled with GLAM ROCK! Check out some old mags and you'll see for yourself. I'm no historian, just a big fan, but sorry Rikki (excuse me if I've spelled that wrong though!), you're wrong here mate….very wrong! As you might say yourself, chill dude, just shootin' the shit…..!

"PS: Rikki -- John Lennon is dead, in case no one told you….. And 'Elliott' is spelled with 2 'T's….."


7/18/08

Samples of upcoming Enuff Z Nuff album





7/17/08

Bret Michaels to contine Rock Of Love





VH1 has confirmed that POISON singer BRET MICHAELS will continue his Rock Of Love reality series in early 2009 with Rock Of Love Bus With Bret Michaels. A press release reads as follows:

Rock star Bret Michaels tried twice to find love by filling a mansion with gorgeous women and having them compete for his heart. But after the final pass was handed out and the cameras stopped rolling, Bret’s picks didn’t work out. He and season two winner, Ambre Lake, really tried to make it work and although they still remain close friends, between his tour line-up and her work schedule there’s no time for a relationship.

“Bret has been very upfront and honest about how difficult maintaining a normal relationship may be for a touring rock star. He’s right, it’s absolutely an insane lifestyle and neither of us had the time to make it work,” stated Lake.

Now Bret is taking another stab at finding his perfect match in the ultimate rock and roller’s test…life on the road! Rock of Love Bus with Bret Michaels is set to premiere in early 2009.

“Seasons one and two of Rock of Love shattered ratings records and VH1 is so happy to have Bret back for another outrageous season. This time we’ll reveal Bret in his most comfortable setting- the infamous rock star tour bus.” said Jeff Olde, VH1’s Executive Vice President, Original Programming and Production.

“We are excited to hit the road for another season of Rock Of Love,” commented Executive Producers Mark Cronin & Cris Abrego, “Nobody knows their way around a tour bus like Bret Michaels, and we are confident that the audience will enjoy the ride.”

How will Bret find a woman to ‘rock his world’ when his world is always moving? VH1 is loading up a tour bus filled with beautiful babes and taking them on tour across the country. Rock of Love Bus with Bret Michaels takes contestants out of the mansion and on the road in true rock star style. This season will feature all-new ladies vying for Bret’s affection while traveling across America following Bret on a month-long tour. The contestants will face new challenges to see if they can handle the rock star life on the road.

This time as the bus pulls into each new city, the girls will engage in challenges specifically revolving around Bret’s life on the road. Whether it’s greeting aggressive groupies with a smile, enduring grueling schedules, dodging the advances of the warm-up band or even stepping in last-minute to fill in for delinquent roadies – these girls will be put to the test. This season, as the Rock of Love Bus heads into America’s heartland, the show will be taking the viewer to a whole new level with crazy, fun, over-the-top challenges- imagine Truck Stop Olympics or a dance contest on top of the St. Louis Arch or even a BBQ cook-off beneath the World’s Largest Thermometer. And also, back by popular demand…Mud Bowl 3. Americana at it’s finest!


7/16/08


Poison's Rikki Rockett fires back at Joe Elliot



Poison drummer Rikki Rockett posted the following in regards to Def Leppard's Joe Elliot recently slamming the band.

Joe Elliot Slams Poison!

I know, it's kinda old news at this point, but I must say a few words about Joe Elliot (Def Leppard) talkin' some smack about Poison and Motley. Mainly because he is continuing to talk smack in other interviews as well.

Some of Joe's commets "They (Motley Crue and Poison) didn't have any substance musically, I don't think, in comparison to us, so we didn't feel we needed to do it. Bands that do that are doing it to cover up the fact that there is no substance in their music."

Now, I'm sure Motley can defend themselves, so I'll leave that alone and Bret did cover it rather well. However, I was talkin' with some friends last night and we were shaking our heads wondering when Joe became a rock historian. Well, Joe, when did ya? Do you think saying bad things about another b