Category: news

  • Scott Weiland’s Live Album Slated For Release

    Scott Weiland’s Live Album Slated For Release

    For all the high profile of his work with STONE TEMPLE PILOTS and VELVET REVOLVER, the late Scott Weiland‘s solo oeuvre – numbering a mere three studio albums; four, if we count a comp of covers the singer laid down … Continue reading

    The post Scott Weiland’s Live Album Slated For Release appeared first on DMME.net.

  • Michael Stipe Sings R.E.M.’s “These Days” & “The Great Beyond” For The First Time In 18 Years

    Michael Shannon and Jason Narducy’s R.E.M. covers show returned to New York City’s Brooklyn Steel tonight and Michael Stipe joined them on two songs he hadn’t performed in 18 years: “These Days” (from 1986’s Lifes Rich Pageant) and “The Great Beyond” (from 1999’s Man On The Moon soundtrack).

    The post Michael Stipe Sings R.E.M.’s “These Days” & “The Great Beyond” For The First Time In 18 Years appeared first on Stereogum.

  • Metal Up Your Ears….

     AXE DRAGGER


    Released yesterday, this album is bound to make a lot of “Best Of” lists at the end of the year.
    As quoted from their Bandcamp page…
    “Forged across state lines and fueled by sheer riff worship, AXE DRAGGER is the true supergroup heavy metal has been waiting for. Born from the long-distance communion of Fu Manchu guitarist Bob Balch and ex-Pentagram drummer Pete Campbell, the project achieved legendary status with the additions of original Pantera vocalist Terry Glaze and Dark Funeral bassist Fredrik Isaksson.

    Soaked in the soaring 80s metal spirit of titans like Riot, Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Dio and Armored Saint, and adorned with modern weight and production, their self-titled debut album is a timeless, earth-shaking beast, meticulously crafted crash by crash over a relentless year. AXE DRAGGER reloads the golden age of heavy metal in legendary fashion, staging a full-blown takeover of all headbangers’ stereos worldwide. Prepare for the next heavy metal classic!”

    Strong words, but this band delivers.  Hear for yourself.  I have had the pre-released tune “Axe Dragger” stuck in my head for over a week.
    Here’s another tune with a video:

    Bob Balch’s playing here, along with his work in the band Slower, shows he’s not just a guitar god for stoner rock, but for heavy metal also.

    Fredrik Isaksson: Bass
    Minnesota Pete Campbell: Drums
    Terry Glaze: Vocals
    Bob Balch: Guitar


  • Metal Up Your Ears….

     AXE DRAGGER


    Released yesterday, this album is bound to make a lot of “Best Of” lists at the end of the year.
    As quoted from their Bandcamp page…
    “Forged across state lines and fueled by sheer riff worship, AXE DRAGGER is the true supergroup heavy metal has been waiting for. Born from the long-distance communion of Fu Manchu guitarist Bob Balch and ex-Pentagram drummer Pete Campbell, the project achieved legendary status with the additions of original Pantera vocalist Terry Glaze and Dark Funeral bassist Fredrik Isaksson.

    Soaked in the soaring 80s metal spirit of titans like Riot, Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Dio and Armored Saint, and adorned with modern weight and production, their self-titled debut album is a timeless, earth-shaking beast, meticulously crafted crash by crash over a relentless year. AXE DRAGGER reloads the golden age of heavy metal in legendary fashion, staging a full-blown takeover of all headbangers’ stereos worldwide. Prepare for the next heavy metal classic!”

    Strong words, but this band delivers.  Hear for yourself.  I have had the pre-released tune “Axe Dragger” stuck in my head for over a week.
    Here’s another tune with a video:

    Bob Balch’s playing here, along with his work in the band Slower, shows he’s not just a guitar god for stoner rock, but for heavy metal also.

    Fredrik Isaksson: Bass
    Minnesota Pete Campbell: Drums
    Terry Glaze: Vocals
    Bob Balch: Guitar


  • ALBUM REVIEW: John Corabi – New Day

    Closing with Sly and The Family Stone’s ‘Everyday People’ tells you all you need to know about the ethos of John Corabi’s very much anticipated debut solo record. If you love the eclectic sounds of 70’s Rock in all it’s wonderful variety then this is an album that is steeped in those sounds. But that, as you might expect, is just one take, and merely a jumping off point. At it’s heart this is a journey through the very core of Rock seen through the eyes of one of our generations great artists. There’s everything in here that will connect you to John, whether you know him from The Scream, The Dead Daisies, or even if you caught him on one of his solo tours.

    There’s a bit of everything on here – from simple acoustic moments, through stirring Rock arrangements to dirty Blues-infused Rock and Roll. It’s a record that will leave you wondering why it has taken so long and when there will be more because after many decades in the industry, countless shows, time fronting many bands and millions of miles travelled, this may just be the best we have heard from John so far. Outside the context of a band Corabi seems freer, less confined by expectations and as a result there’s some real variety on this first solo records.
    As the press release states: “‘New Day’ marks JOHN CORABI’s first full-length solo album of original material. Recorded in Nashville during the summer of 2025 and produced by multi-platinum songwriter and producer Marti Frederiksen (Aerosmith, Ozzy Osbourne, Buckcherry), the album fuses classic ’70s rock, soul, and blues influences into a sound that feels both timeless and deeply personal.
    Throughout the album, CORABI is joined by Marti Frederiksen, who adds backing vocals, guitars, piano, and percussion; Evan Frederiksen on drums, bass, B3 organ, electric guitar, mandolin, and programming; Richard Fortus (Guns N’ Roses) on lead guitar; Paul Taylor (Winger, Steve Perry) contributing piano, organ, and clavinet, as well as Charlie Starr (Blackberry Smoke) offering guitar solos. Together, they create an organic, instrument-driven sound built on real performances, melodic interplay, and soulful energy.
    We open with a real 70’s styled rocker, as the press release says: “‘New Day’ is a positive, upbeat song with a message of enjoy life!!! Stop whining and complaining about how unfair life is, and enjoy the ‘little beautiful things, life offers’ and make the changes you need to make your life better!!! Change happens WITHIN…” It’s  a great uplifting southern-edged rocker full of life and blue skies and a rather nice introduction to what is a great set of songs.
    “That Memory” keeps that light southern rock vibe, it’s another upbeat driving song – a laid back rocker that makes you want to roll the top down and drive.  It’s a great start and with the slow blues of Faith, Hope And Love” dripping sweet soul satisfaction it’s one of my favourite opening salvos I’ve heard in years. This is Corabi vocally at his very best and the songs are just so good.
    “When I Was Young” could only have been crafted in the 70’s and would have been sure-fire hit in that decade. It’s a song we’ve all lived and one that looks back to better days with real love, whilst One More Shot” delivers a satisfying funky Blues. 
    Half way in the Creedence-infused “1969″ really hits the spot, its another highlight. Hot on the heels “Laurel” adds more of a West Coast vibe, smoother riding a cool lyric and painting another picture of another place and time. “Good To Be Back Here Again” adds soul and the emotion of a homecoming; and “Love That’ll Never Be” is just a beautiful song of lost love, drenched in memory and full of heartache. It’s a perfect combination of songs that is the real beating heart of the album. 
    The record features the previously released singles “Così Bella (So Beautiful)” (2021) and “Your Own Worst Enemy” (2022). And they come together at the end of the record. You will all of course heard both and both have aged nicely despite just being toddlers. “Cosi” is  singalong from start to finish with some wonderful harmonies; whilst “Your Own Worst Enemy” is funkier fare and rides a great groove.
    We close with a sizzling cover of Sly and The Family Stone’s “Everyday People” – it’s the perfect songs for this record (even if it was released in 1969) and john treats it with love and reverence. Of all teh covers I’ve heard of it – and there have been some classics from Joan Jett to The Temptations, this for me is the one that gets right under the skin of it. This is my favourite. It’s been a long time coming this album and I love it. Now don’t take so long next time…
    9/10

    Pre-Order ‘New Day’ HERE

    ‘New Day’ Track List:

    1. New Day
    2. That Memory
    3. Faith, Hope And Love
    4. When I Was Young
    5. One More Shot
    6. 1969
    7. Laurel
    8. Good To Be Back Here Again
    9. Love That’ll Never Be
    10. Cosi´ Bella
    11. Your Own Worst Enemy
    12. Everyday People

    FOLLOW JOHN CORABI:
    Facebook
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    The post ALBUM REVIEW: John Corabi – New Day appeared first on The Rockpit.

  • Milwaukee Metal Vets Form RELIC – Debut EP Crown of Flies Coming April 3rd

    Milwaukee (WI) – A new Blackened Death Metal entity has formed. Featuring veterans of the Milwaukee metal scene, RELIC is set to release their debut EP, Crown of Flies, April 3rd, on CD and digital formats.

    The EP’s first single, “Scavengers Daughter,” is streaming now at youtu.be/JHYByItCdFE, as well as on Bandcamp and Ampwall.

    Delivering Death Metal’s dissonant punishing riffage with Black Metal’s relentless chaotic speed, RELIC builds a new monument on the foundation of those that came before. Comprised of seasoned Milwaukee metal scene veterans with a history of making tight and focused music. 

    Their debut EP, Crown Of Flies, is a blistering slab of Midwest 90s Blackend Death Metal worship. Delivered with malintent for its listeners. No frills, no scene drama, or gimmicks used by so many bands today. Pure underground Death Metal that is in your face and out for blood.

    Band Photo Credit: K Pro Creative 

    RELIC:

    Kevin Forsythe (Jungle Rot, Emblazoned) – Guitar / Bass

    Jeff Plewa (Micawber, Emblazoned) – Vocals

    Alex “Pulverizer” Pulvermacher (Decrescent, Emblazoned) – Drums

    Vinny Alvarez (A Night At The Chalet, Slam Pig) – Guitar 

    Credits:

    Recorded at Belle City Sound in Racine WI, November 2025.
    Produced by Chris Wisco.
    Mixed and Mastered by Billy Diamond.

    Album Cover: Sant V. Schreiber 

    Logo Design by Christophe Szpajde

    FFO: Belphegor, Sanguisuabogg, 200 Stab Wounds, Diocletian, Behemoth, Angelcorpse, Devourment, Dead Congregation, Immolation

    facebook.com/RELICDM

    instagram.com/RELIC.DM

    youtube.com/@RELICDM

    ampwall.com/a/relicdm

    Source: ClawHammer PR

  • FIREHOUSE Releases New Song Exclusively On Their Website

    From Firehouse Facebook:

    NEW MUSIC FROM FIREHOUSE!

    We’re excited to announce that we have another new song exclusively available on our website! It’s called “Midnight Gasoline”. Check it out and let us know what you think. Thanks for supporting FireHouse!

    https://www.firehousemusic.com/

  • “Plug Me In, Let Me Dream” — Hungarian Artist Man + Machine Forges EBM, Darkwave, and Post-Punk into “Birthmarks” EP

    In a world of twisted dreams
    Nothing’s quite what it seems

    For nearly a decade, Man + Machine has been stalking the edges of Hungary’s underground with a stack of cold machines, club instincts, and a taste for the beautiful mess where industrial abrasion, post-punk ache, and EBM discipline all meet in a locked room. Their latest EP, Birthmarks, feels like the point where that long evolution stops being merely stylistic and turns personal in a way that can’t be faked. This is a record shaped by fatherhood, by the bruising education of time, by the realization that some marks are not meant to be scrubbed clean because they have become part of the body, part of the story, part of the pulse under the skin.

    Tangled Hearts opens the EP in a mood that pulls from the grave-lit grandeur of The Sisters of Mercy and the inward dusk of Clan of Xymox, with guitar and bass moving in tandem like twin weather systems rolling over the same ruined city. Man + Machine handles the vocals himself, and that matters because the song needs a voice that sounds implicated. There is yearning, but also fatigue: a sense of someone singing from inside the consequences of his own life. Lyrically, the track reaches for the faded thrill of youth and nocturnal romance, but it does so with the uneasy knowledge that those bright moments are already slipping into numbness. What lingers is the sense of a man still running after escape, still hoping another person or another night might help him outrun memory, even as he knows that certain losses and certain longings cannot be dissolved so easily. The track rises with real force, though it never shakes free of the weight dragging behind it, and that tension gives it shape.

    Dream Machine widens the lens. Here, the EP slips into a cyberpunk fever, a place where people anesthetize themselves with synthetic desire and call the arrangement survival. The guest turn from Zsuzsi Radnóti gives the track an uncanny poise. Her delivery carries a cool, almost pop-adjacent clarity that makes the song’s dread hit harder, because everything sounds just polished enough to pass as pleasure. Underneath that surface, the lyrics circle a damaged world where illusion has become a form of refuge, and where surrendering to fantasy begins to feel like the last available mercy. The repeated plea is not simply to dream, but to be removed from pain, from disillusionment, from the ugliness of the waking state. Even the song’s questions about whether anyone can break free from this condition land with a kind of exhausted desperation, as though the fantasy is already swallowing the people who depend on it. It is an unusual combination, and a smart one.

    Regrets comes stomping through the door in heavier boots, dragging in the steel-ribbed body language of Front Line Assembly, Nine Inch Nails, and Die Krupps. The percussion lands with blunt force, the bassline drives the track straight into your sternum, and the clanging industrial detail gives the whole thing the feeling of memory turned into machinery. Yet even here, amid the harder attack, Man + Machine keeps hold of the record’s emotional centre. This is not a tantrum set to sequencers. It is a reckoning, bitter and direct.

    Hope starts blaring after the wreckage, and by then the EP has earned its tenderness. Turning toward wife and child, the song closes the circle without cheap uplift or borrowed grandeur. What comes through instead is a sober kind of devotion, the sound of a man recognizing that love is larger when it is tied to duty, fear, and the will to keep going anyway.

    Listen to Birthmarks via Spotify, or below, and order here:

    Co-produced again with Barnabás Horváth and expanded further by remixes from Sugar Rody and Munsinger, Birthmarks feels like the first crack in a larger wall. Out now on Crave Tapes, it catches Man + Machine in transition, still welded to the club, but looking at life with different eyes.

    Follow MAN+MACHINE:

    The post “Plug Me In, Let Me Dream” — Hungarian Artist Man + Machine Forges EBM, Darkwave, and Post-Punk into “Birthmarks” EP appeared first on Post-Punk.com.