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Since releasing the album Awake, it has been a whirlwind time for Tony Moore. With his connection to Iron Maiden as their only official keyboard player, as well as a long-time friendship with Steve Harris, Tony has taken his Awake show around the world with British Lion. His recent slot at Eddest at Knebworth House was a prestigious stop on a storied journey.

“Well, that was a dream come true, actually,” Tony Moore told MetalTalk editor Steve Ritchie, “and kind of a circle completed after almost 50 years. It was obviously amazing weather, and to get to open for the festival, even though the audience wasn’t as massive as it got later in the day, was special.

“It was a great crowd, and so many people in the audience were singing along with the songs. It didn’t surprise me. It pleased me. But I didn’t realise that so many people had probably seen and heard these songs before, and there was a very dedicated first to the barrier.”

There were logistical issues getting into Knebworth on both days. “To some degree that’s the nature of festivals,” Tony says. “I like to think Eddfest is gonna be a regular occurrence. I think Iron Maiden have created a really unique take on a festival, and just like Ozzfest ran for a while and there was the Kiss Cruise, I think Maiden could do a regular festival. I think they could do Edfest every year, even if they don’t play every year. But the whole experience was fantastic.”

Steve Harris was there for all the bands on Friday. “I see Steve all the time on the bus,” Tony said of touring with British Lion. He came down to the Maidenville stage and watched everyone’s performance. He had kind of curated it, but he didn’t just create it and then just stay in the bar. He came down for everybody’s set.

“Halfway through my show, I look over to the side, and there he is, thumbs up, big smile on his face, as he always does for my shows. But it was great. That must have been quite an interesting thing to see for Steve: Blaze Bayley doing Blaze-era Maiden stuff that I guess Maiden aren’t doing now. But it was a wonderful day.”

The reception to the Awake album has been special. “I feel very blessed that people really like what I do,” Tony says, “even though it’s Heavy Metal. It’s something a little bit more proggy and a little bit wider. It has its rocky moments.

“I’ve really been embraced by the Maiden community, so much so that it really touches me. When I wrote this and created it and began the journey, we were in a lockdown. I had no idea I’d ever be able to perform it. But here we are, three or four years later, and with Steve’s mentoring, blessing, support and help, I’ve been able to reach some audiences all around the world. I am so grateful. Steve’s been a great friend and a great inspiration for part of this journey and helped me reach more people.

“Now my mission is to take it to more people and see how I can break outside of the Maiden box a little bit and build a wider audience. That’s just gonna be hard work, right? Gig, gig, gig.”

Crazy In The Shed was recently released as a new single, with a wonderfully wacky video. In an earlier interview, we covered how, when writing Awake, Tony was often in conversation with Steve and told him how the writing process was making him go crazy in his shed. Harris told him that should be the title of his next song.

“I went back to the shed, and I wrote it,” Tony smiles. “I stayed up till 6 in the morning, coming up with something that actually, in the narrative of the album and show, brings a little something a little bit lighter to what has been quite a dark and intense period leading up to it.”

Tony Moore looks to have had great fun making the video. I love the little monkey with the symbols on the piano, and who is that guy who keeps popping in the doorway at the back?

“That will be me,” Tony smiles. “There was a lot of green screen going on making this. I made it all in the front room in my flat. I had a little bit of green screen, and a lot of time on my hands to work on that.”

Tony Moore is now on his way back to North America for four shows around the Iron Maiden tour. On Wednesday 26 August, he plays the Bank Art House in Welland, near Niagara Falls, on what he describes as a “beautiful stage.”

28 August, he will be at the Rivoli in Toronto the night before Iron Maiden play the city. 2 September finds Tony at La Sotterenea in Montreal, before he drops down to Brooklyn to play a show at The Wood Shop before Iron Maiden play New Jersey. “I’m hoping that lots of Maiden fans are gonna be in town early for the Maiden shows, who will come along, support and see Awake,” Tony says.

With the stage setup he uses, including guitar changes and a visual backdrop, he has what I can only describe as a genius solution to playing Awake live across the world.

“My gear’s already there,” Tony says. “I’ve planned ahead for lots of things. So in upstate New York, one of my dearest friends, Patty, has in her basement my entire show. I did that about two years ago, realising that trying to get gear to America would be a challenge.

“So I’ve duplicated everything. There are about seven guitars there, but five guitars for the show. There’s a projector, there’s a screen, there’s a keyboard. I even have a PA and some lights, so I can do a show anywhere at any time.

“We will be driving from upstate New York to the Niagara area, which is about a 5-hour drive, doing the show there, then driving up to Toronto, which is a couple of hours, and then up to Montreal, which is 4 or 5 hours, then back down to New York. It’s gonna be quite an adventure and a nice little road trip.”

This is not the only Awake setup that is stored around the world. “I did a European tour in June, and I took a whole set of gear to Italy where my friends have a winery, and I left it there,” Tony says. “So I have an entire show just outside Milan. If I need to do something quickly and easily, I can just fly into Milan on Ryanair with a backpack, and everything’s waiting for me.

“There’s a third set of gear in the Bahamas, in Nassau. I went over and opened for the British Lion in Nassau in April this year. Because Nassau’s a little tricky to get everything over there, Steve had organised a container to go over with all the British Lion gear and some others. I put another duplicate set of gear in the container.

“So again, I just went with a backpack, arrived there, and we did an amazing, fantastic gig there. People loved British Lion and what Steve did. I’ve left all my gear there cause I plan to try and go back at some point. I mean, it’s nice to have everything there.”

The social media photos of Tony and British Lion in Nassau looked wonderful, and it seems a fantastic place to visit. “It’s a wonderful island,” Tony says. “It has a great energy over there, and I was, again, very blessed to be part of the British Lion and Steve Harris world, and to be included on these things.

“We’ve done two UK tours now, we’ve done some European shows, we’ve been to Australia, Japan, North and South America. There’s not much left to do now. But I think in 2027, we know that Maiden are taking a year off, so I suspect there will be a lot more British Lion activity through 2027, any of which I will be very grateful and happy to be a part of.”

Tony Moore has one UK show booked, on 10 October at the Miners Institute in Blackwood. “A beautiful venue,” he says, “and I think that’s gonna be a lot of fun. I’m starting to try and put in dates around it, so just keep an eye on the website, awakemusic.info or TonyMooreMusic.com.”

The process for Awake has not been completed, and as a touring concept, Tony feels he has not even scratched the surface of the potential audience that is out there yet.

“So my mission is to try and raise the profile of Awake,” he says, “which I think is gonna be running at least for the next three, four, five years to really bed in the show. As you can imagine, trying to plan tours as an independent artist is hard.

“I try to update the show all the time. For Knebworth, I added new footage. I had a big thing at the back saying ‘Hello Knebworth’, which got a big cheer when it came up. I update the footage a little every couple of months, since many people have seen it and like to see something new. And sometimes because I just feel that there are moments in the show that I could illustrate a little bit better with a little bit more attention to detail. So, all of that takes a lot of time.”

Tony Moore released the single I Wish It Was the ’80s in 2025, which was a one-off, showing Tony’s creative spark is still there. “I don’t think I’m ever gonna do anything like Awake again because it was such a moment in time. We were locked down. I had nowhere to go. I had theoretically 24 hours a day if I chose not to sleep, just to work on music.

“So I managed to cram probably six months of work into two months because that’s all I was doing. I think that was both a creative period and a time-allowing period where I could do that.

“To do something similar on that kind of scale? Never say never, right? My instinct is to build Awake to the point where wherever I go in the world, people know about it. Hence, releasing Crazy In The Shed as a single.

“It’s a tough world out there. I’m under no illusions that everything’s just gonna come tumbling into my lap. I know this requires a ton of hard work, and just to keep smashing away at letting people know what I’m doing. But every day  I wake up doing the thing that I love, and for me, whatever level that is, that’s success.”

Always busy, Tony Moore is channelling his creative instincts through a new band, K2. “I came on board a few months ago,” he says. “I’ve already contributed a couple of tunes to the project. We didn’t have a bass player, and my really good friend Omer Khan is not only a sensational guitarist, having just released his own instrumental rock album that has flavours of Steve Vai/Satriani about it, but when I go on tour, he’s my live sound engineer. He’s got such great ears. So we have a lot of fun together on the road. He has come on board as the bass player.

“That’s a fun thing to do. Awake is a one-man show, and I love the continuity of a one-man show. I know that every single night, all the things that I need to hear in the right place will always be in the right place.

“Working with a band is a completely different dynamic, which I also love. We’re now working with tempos that move, moments of inspiration that come out of the blue. It’s a great band.”

Another recent project occurred when a photographer friend recommended Tony for a cruise from Liverpool to Norway to photograph the Northern Lights. “I realised that, of course, most of the people had no idea who I was or why I was there,” Tony says. “They hadn’t bought a cruise to come and see me particularly, so I decided to do a mix and match. I did about half an hour’s worth of Awake music, and then did some of my favourite covers, but in the Awake style with videos.

“I put together a one-hour show, which I did twice on the ship.” Two shows a day for 500 people at each show. “People loved it,” Tony says. “I still have lots of passengers following me and coming to shows. I had a great time, and I met some people who became friends.”

With a recommendation from someone in the industry on how to pitch for cruise shows, Tony has constructed two 45-minute sets. “I call it Tony Moore’s Stardust Memories. It is all of the artists that influenced me when I was a kid and thus influenced Awake. It’s like the origin story of Awake.

“I did the first performance of it all a couple of weeks ago at a very nice venue with a beautiful video wall so I could film it and create a little show reel. I got amazing feedback, considering I had never done this show as it is before. One guy said to me that he had been coming to the venue for years, and it’s the best thing he’s ever seen there. Wow. That is such a compliment. So I know I’ve created something that’s nice, and for me it’s fun because I’m playing my favourite songs.”

But Awake is the main focus, and North America awaits again. With the success of Awake, you know that Tony Moore will continue to clock up the air miles, and you know that this success is well deserved.

Website  Big Country Redux return with ‘Winter Sky’, the latest single taken from their forthcoming album ‘Eastworld’, due for release on September 18. The track was originally written by Watson and Stuart Adamson during sessions for the band’s 1984 album … Continue reading →

The post Single review: BIG COUNTRY REDUX – Winter Sky appeared first on Get Ready to ROCK!.

Today, 23 August 2026 would have been Keith Moon’s 80th birthday. Hard to believe, isn’t it? But here on such a momentous day we are proud to announce . . .

MMMF’s annual benefit concert to host Tribute to Keith Moon with special guest drummers Gregg Bissonette and Stephen Perkins on November 1st at Central Machine Works in Austin

The Music Moves Mountains Foundation is hosting its annual benefit concert on Sunday, November 1st at 4pm at Central Machine Works with a special Tribute to Keith Moon. This year will mark the 80th birthday of the world’s most influential rock drummer who the Foundation has a special tie to. The MMMF’s founder’s son Hudson, who is a drummer, became obsessed with Keith Moon and his band The Who at the age of five. Diagnosed with many disorders and challenges, discovering Moon was like finding his spirit animal. The Who supported the Foundation by donating the use of their song ‘Join Together’ for The MMMF’s campaign video. Fast-forward to today, at the age of twenty, Hudson is going to be joined by fellow Moonies including drumming luminaries Gregg Bissonette (Ringo Starr and his All-Starr Band), Stephen Perkins (Jane’s Addiction), and Michael Jerome (Slash/Third Mind/John Cale) backed by a dream team of Austin legends. Kevin McKinney, Darin Murphy, Johnny Vogelsang, Larry Seaman, Jack Montesinos, Nico Leophonte, Cid Sanchez, Adam Johnson, Henri Herbert, Chris Cebrian, and many more will take the stage celebrating the music of The Who and the spirit of Keith Moon. Moon’s daughter, Mandy Moon, will also be a special guest, and Moon’s grandson, Jack, created the artwork for the event poster. The event is sponsored by Zildjian and Drum Talk TV.

To keep in line with the MMMF’s mission of making music more accessible, this will be a free event with the option to donate what you can, or purchase limited VIP reserved seating. Sponsorship opportunities are available and a silent auction will help raise funds for MMMF programs. This is an all-ages, family friendly event taking place on the big, outdoor stage at East Austin’s premier venue, Central Machine Works located at 4824 E. Cesar Chavez Street. Food, beer and a full bar are onsite. Free parking is in the back lot off of 5th Street, as well as off-street parking along 5th and side streets. ADA parking (front lot) and designated seating is available. Doors open at noon; show starts at 4pm. For tickets and more info, visit HERE.

About The Music Moves Mountains Foundation: The Foundation is a perpetual series of projects, programs, and services utilizing the scientifically-proven powers of music to change and improve the quality of lives. The Foundation is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization that uses tax-deductible donations to facilitate its goal in making music therapy, music education, and community outreach more accessible to those in need. MMMF’s work is a vital resource that supports both the music community and our most vulnerable populations.

The post The MMMF Annual Benefit Concert: A Tribute to Keith Moon appeared first on The Who.

Hello again, friends and neighbors. It’s time for Staff Infections, your monthly glimpse into the Last Rites staff’s listening habits. However, before we get to the music, I’d just like to acknowledge the recent passings of Lou Koller of Sick of it All and Frank Beard of ZZ Top. Both men were legends in their respective fields, and they’ve both been and will continue to be part of the soundtrack of my life. Rest in peace, gentlemen.

On to what we’ve been listening to. We have a little more overlap on the staff playlists than usual this time around, resulting in four albums vying for album of the month. To start there is a three-way tie for second place including Anatomy of Habit’s Paired Sentinels (review from Fons here), Apochrypha’s The Eyes of Time and Zorn’s Return to Castle Death. That leaves us with our winner, by the slimmest of margins, Hydrophilous Brood, the recently released sophomore LP from Sallow Moth. Jozzsh has a review of this fine and filthy brutal death metal album right here.

For our group discussion this month we’re going to step outside the bounds of metal a bit. Share with us in the comments your favorite album from Sick of it All and/or ZZ Top. Scratch the Surface was both my introduction to Sick of it All and arguably the band’s most metallic effort. Consequently, the album remains my favorite, although the debut is a close second. As for ZZ Top the trio was one of the first bands I ever got into. I started with the 70’s compilation The Best of ZZ Top, and that’s what I’ve listened to most, but if I had to pick a studio album, it would be Tres Hombres.

That’s about all for now, folks. Be sure to share your own playlist in the comments and, while you do, have a listen to the staff-curated Spotify playlist below. Summer is fading fast, so, until next time, get outside and have some fun.

• Danhammer Obstkrieg
  Zorn – Return to Castle Death
  Static Abyss – The Dying Hunt
  Rolling Stones – all
  Besvärjelsen – Till Glömskan Ad Oblivionem
  Windswept – A Sign of the Cloven Hoof
  The Good Life – Album of the Year
• Captain
  Triosphere – Oceans Above, Stars Below
  Triosphere – The Heart of the Matter
  Anubis Gate – Anubis Gate
  Decapitated – Nihility
  Slayer – South of Heaven
  Forbidden – Forbidden Evil
• Zach Duvall
  Ufomammut – Eve
  Lividus – Scarabaeus
  Ningen Isu – Kaidan Soshite Shi to Eros
  Sonic Youth – Experimental Jet Set, Trash And No Star
  Moonspell – 1755
  Queensrÿche – Operation: Mindcrime
• Andrew Edmunds
  White Lion – Pride
  Apocrypha – The Eyes Of Time
  Bad Religion – Suffer
  Gummo – A Fresh Breath On The Neck
  Starfighters – In-Flight Movie
  Sick Of It All – Just Look Around
• Wolf Rambatz
  Pileup – Leave the Light On
  Vihameditaatio – Aistiharhojen puutarhassa
  Presser – Voluntary Grief
  Fed Ash + HIRS – I Am Body Horror
  Sallow Moth – Hydrophilous Brood
  Leo – Cicada Burnt
• Lone Watie
  Hesse Kassel – Morir Saltando
  OK Goodnight – stop/go
  Apocrypha – The Eyes Of Time
  delving – All Paths Diverge
  Karfagen – Omni II Act I: The Glass Of Time
  Raul Malo – Bella Ciao: Live In Nashville
• Spencer Hotz
  Nothingness – Godslaughter
  Anatomy of Habit – Paired Sentinels
  Escumergamënt – Apparebat Eidolon Senex
  Dim Mak – Knives of Ice
  Funebrarum- Beckoning The Void Of Eternal Silence
  Assück – Misery Index
• David Fonseca
  Ænigmatum – Infinitude’s Passage
  Astriferous – Atavistic Unraveling
  Anatomy of Habit – Paired Sentinels
  Pharmacist – Vertebrae After Vertebrae
  Warning – Rituals of Shame
  Cognizance – In Light, No Shape
• Isaac Hams
  Tenhi – Airut:Aamujen
  Charli xcx – Music, Fashion, Film
  Nero – Between II Worlds
  Zorn – Return to Castle Death
  Sallow Moth – Hydrophilous Brood
  Opeth – Deliverance
• Blizzard of Jozzsh
  Sallow Moth – Hydrophilous Brood
  Mortal Decay – Forensic
  Deeds of Flesh – Path of the Weakening
  Raw Addict – Compulsion
  Artificial Brain – Artificial Brain
  Scattered Remnants – Destined to Fail
• Jeremy Morse
  Judas Priest – Sin After Sin
  Sick of it All – Scratch the Surface
  The Chasm – The Scars of a Lost Reflective Shadow
  Nile – Black Seeds of Vengeance
  Black Sabbath – Master of Reality
  Dawnbringer – Into the Lair of the Sun God

The post Staff Infections – August 2026 appeared first on Last Rites.

Firespawn is a metal band from Sweden: we got the chance to chat with Victor and Alex about Wacken, women in metal and more.

Benedetta

I’m here with the amazing Firespawn. How are you guys?

Firespawn

We’re great, thanks for having us. Good, very good. Just had a great show here at Wacken.

Benedetta

So, you’re playing Wacken in the 35th anniversary edition. How does it feel?

Firespawn

Super cool. It’s a big deal. For us, Wacken is huge and we’re so grateful and humble to play at Wacken. We’re here to celebrate LG, our late singer, who died of cancer five years ago. Wacken was a big deal for him too. And Wacken was actually there for LG when he passed. They sent flowers to the funeral and they were very present in his passing. So, it’s very cool. It feels like a big deal for us to be here.

Benedetta

You are very experienced in the live shows, but you also do work in the studio. Do you think that the life of an artist is a lonely life?

Firespawn

No, quite the contrary. You have a lot of friends. Especially, well, it depends what kind of artist you are. I mean, if you’re a touring musician like Victor and I, you have a lot of friends. Because you meet zillions of people along the way and on the road. So, you meet friends everywhere. And, you know, some of them you keep in touch with. So, at least I have friends all over the globe, more or less. You meet so many cool people in this line of business. So, no, it’s not a lonely life at all if you’re a touring musician. Maybe if you’re the kind of artist who paints oil paintings in your cellar. Maybe that’s a lonely life. Actually, I’ve been thinking about that, because it would be cool… I’m a big fan of the arts in general. Not only music, but art painting, and writing and stuff. It would be interesting for me to know more people in different art areas, to hang out with more artists and stuff. Because it’s very social as a touring musician. And in general, as a musician, you tend to hang out with more people than normal jobs. I read that men in their forties or something don’t get more friends the older they get to hang out with older friends. But for us, it’s kind of the opposite. It’s a huge social network, and it’s up to us if we want to have social downtime, in a way. If you’re painting yourself, you’re not a team of painters, as far as I know. And Alex is a tattoo artist as well, and that’s a social, artistic thing. Because you’re painting on a person, and you’re touring as a tattoo artist as well. Actually, tomorrow morning I will go to Beyond the Gates in Bergen. They have a tattoo convention there, Beyond Ink. So I will go there tomorrow morning and tattoo there on Friday and Saturday. So that’s a fucking perfect weekend. First the show with Firespawn, and then go to Bergen and tattoo. Couldn’t be any better. Speaking of artists and Italy that you’re from. Our artist for the Firespawn album covers, Paolo Girardi, he’s from Italy. And a super cool guy. We never met him actually, but we have a lot of contact. Work stuff and also private stuff. If I’m at an art museum, I take a lot of photos and send them. Check out this, check out that. What’s your feedback? One super cool thing, there was this Danish Skagen painter who went to Italy to paint Italian landscapes. And I sent to him, wow, cool. He said that their choice of colors were colder than Italian artists. So it was kind of like a Nordic accent. Because the Nordics were used to colder weather and colors. So they chose colder colors to paint the Italian landscape. And he would say that Italian artists would choose warmer colors. It was very interesting for me to see. You can see sort of an accent. This is Nordic artists who are used to colder choices. Interesting. Awesome guy, shout out to Paolo. He painted all our album covers. They are based on my lyrics, and he is quite interesting to work with. Nowadays we trust him completely. On the first album I sent him maybe 5 or 6 lyrics. And I wanted the cover to be based” on that. And when he started I asked him if I could see some kind of sketch. He said “No, I don’t work like that. You have to trust me“. Because he is from Venice. It turned out amazing.

Benedetta

Do you think that we will ever reach some sort of equality between men and women?

Firespawn

We have already equality. I’m so sick and tired of this. Good musicians are good musicians. It doesn’t matter if you are a male or a female. We have already equality. But I agree. In another way I don’t agree in this way, that it’s percentage wise. It’s not as many women in the scene. But in my impression that as a man in the music business I can do much more than be a good person. So I have the impression that for more women to be active in the music scene it needs to be more women in the music scene. And I’ve actually talked about this with female colleagues. What more as a man in the music scene can I do than be a good colleague? And the usual reply is: “Not that much, be a good person“. And I think it’s important with female role models in the music scene. So it’s a lot of responsibility of them to show for other girls and women to see that this is possible and to get them dedicated. And to start some work in the music business.

Benedetta

Thank you so much for taking the time to do this interview with me. Is there anything else that you want to add to our readers and viewers?

Firespawn

I’m a big fan of Italy. Food and culture and people. Thank you so much for your time and for doing this. Very cool and I support your work. It’s important.

The post Interview with Firespawn first appeared on FemMetal – Goddesses of Metal.