German Hard Rock band Viper Queen have released the title track of their upcoming album ‘Munich City Nights‘, out: October 23rd, 2026 via Pride & Joy Music. Stream – here Viper Queen was founded 2019 in Munich with the aim of playing traditional hard rock/heavy metal, inspired by the late eighties: solid, authentic, and classic, […]
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When Genesis wrapped up their hugely successful The Last Domino? reunion tour in March 2022, it wasn’t just the end of the road for one of the most successful British bands of the last 50 years, it also marked Phil Collins’ own swansong as a live performer.
The drummer-turned-singer had been suffering from health issues for years, including severe nerve damage, a foot condition that left him unable to walk properly, and periods of alcohol addiction that resulted in him coming close to death after being hospitalised in 2024.
But in a new interview with Prog, Collins reveals that his career may not be completely over. Asked if he will ever make any new music, he doesn’t rule out the prospect.
“Um, I’m never gonna say no now,” says Collins, whose last album was 2010’s covers set Going Back. “I’ve got my little studio still, and I’d like to get down there and just mess about and see what happens. There are some things I could finish. And other things which are finished. So, it’s not beyond the realms of possibility.”
Collins also tells Prog about his relapse into alcohol addiction after several years of sobriety, and the resultant hospitalisation in 2024 that left him on life support.
“I went through some pretty dark times,” he admits. “I was never ‘falling over’ drunk. That wasn’t it. It was just drinking ‘normally’, as one would drink water. I’d wake up, have a glass of wine. Watch TV, read a book, have a glass of wine. And suddenly… Some people’s insides can’t take it. Mine broke down.
“My manager, Tony, called all the kids to Switzerland to have a meeting about me and my future. Because at one point it was kind of life support. Kidneys and liver were waving the white flag. I was close to dying, and I hadn’t realised. I just thought I was sick. Well, really dark times. Spent a lot of time in hospital. Then, pulling through that, I’ve had five operations on this knee. And drop foot. That’s why I have the crutches, just to make sure – I don’t want to fall over.
Collins adds that he’s in better health today than he has been in a long time. “Physically, now, I reckon I’m A1, 100%. I’ve worked at it. Haven’t drunk for three years. I do physio three times a week, to bring me up to speed. All is good!
Collins’s debut solo album, Face Value, is reissued on September 8 as an expanded 4-LP 45th anniversary edition.
Read the full interview with Collins in the brand new issue of Prog, on sale now. Order it online here.
Battlecreek is a German thrash metal band from Germany. They performed at Wacken Open Air, and we had the chance to meet them and interview them!
Benedetta
I’m here with the amazing Battlecreek. How are you doing, guys?
Battlecreek
Hi, we are super excited. It’s crazy.
Benedetta
Awesome. So, you’re playing Wacken in the anniversary year. How does it feel?
Battlecreek
It’s not just because of the anniversary, it’s our first time ever we play here and it feels like, I don’t know, like a little bit of dream came true because we are like metalheads since the beginning and we visited Wacken 15 years ago or 2007 the first time, I guess, so now it’s pretty cool to be here as an artist. This was so great, we had so much fun, the people enjoyed it, I guess. The crowd was on fire.
Benedetta
So, I know that it’s your first time at Wacken but obviously you have experience with live shows and you have experience in studio recordings. Do you think that the life of an artist is a lonely life?
Battlecreek
I don’t think so, no. You met so many people on tour or on stages and have so many things to talk. I think that you never get bored. We met a lot of friends and friendships. We actually have friendships since 20 years or longer. We are just our four guys. It’s fun enough just with the music. Still the same band since day one.
Benedetta
Do you think that we will ever have some sort of equality between men and women in the metal world?
Battlecreek
It’s hard to say as a male. Because I don’t know how it feels for a woman, I just can’t imagine. But I think it’s getting better these days. Because there are so many great artists. I am a big fan of Crypta, for example. You can say there is no difference. They play the hardest stuff and they are really cool. But I think it should be more. You see here on the festival many bands with female singers or bandmates. They are represented as well.
Benedetta
Guys, 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 of the website?
Battlecreek
We never played in Italy. So, we want to say to your fans, to your audience, we want to come to Italy as soon as possible.
The post Interview with Battlecreek first appeared on FemMetal – Goddesses of Metal.
The second day at SonicBlast 2026 had even more up its sleeve. After the psych explorations of Portugal’s Jesus The Snake that included a super tasty snippet of Echoes (this band would be right at home on the El Paraiso label) and the hard rock stylings of Portland’s Hög (if you’re familiar with the excellent Brown Acid series on Riding Easy, you know what I am talking about), those pesky moving parts came into play.
Words And Photography: Tim Bugbee
Dead Meadow had to pull out as the band incurred a medical situation that unfortunately led to the cancellation of all their remaining European dates (Clamm was a last-minute substitution), and Voivod came on the stage with a singer who had an iPad for lyrics and was decidedly not Snake.
It was not a new singer breaking in before he learned all the words, just a one-off fill-in for the uncategorisable Quebecois band.
If you are gonna name your band Conan, you better be bringing monolithic, bone-crushing power. Do not worry, Jon Davis has that all figured out.
With all the subtlety of an overhead mace strike to your cranium, the band riled up the crowd like a gigantic cattle prod hit the centre of the pit. I still laugh at the memory of a person trying to take a mobile call during their set. Talk about futility.
Kylesa surprised the Metal world last year when Laura Pleasants and Phillip Cope announced their return to the stage, starting with Roadburn. They have obviously been having fun with this current stint, and it was great to hear bona fide classics like Unknown Awareness and Where The Horizon Unfolds after their decade-long hiatus.
The Casualties were not hard to spot around the festival grounds, brightly colored mohawks towering over their scalps. Though they hail from New York City, their brand of punk was more in line with the classic early ’80s UK style of bands such as Discharge, Charged GBH or Subhumans, and they were another act who got the circle pit spinning round and round.
Like Sizemore, singer Daniel Rodriguez decided to take flight from the scaffolding as their set drew to a close.
As band lore goes, Turbonegro is up near the pinnacle of having a very specific niche. Riffing on the machismo culture of hard rock and Metal, they take inspiration from gay icon Tom of Finland crossed with Hells Angels, with regional chapters of fans (aka Turbojugend) dotted all across the globe. Pure, unadulterated fun, the band comes off as a less po-faced Hives mixed with the grittiness of The Hellacopters.
Was there still crowd energy to be tapped as the clock hands passed 2 AM? Deathchant made sure of that. Celebrating their fourth appearance here, the LA quartet took the stage, took no prisoners, and plain and simple took over, period.
Gearing up for the release of their fourth record, they started with Enemy, and if that is indicative of what is on the rest of the record, it is clearly going to be their best yet. If you like twinned guitars that intertwine at breakneck speed like prime-era Thin Lizzy, you have come to the right spot.
At festivals like this, there’s definitely a ‘look’, and these guys have that dialled in and then some, shirtless and heavily tattooed, ’70s moustaches, oozing rock ‘n’ roll danger. But do not let that fool you. They are sweethearts when the amps stop howling.
Remember that PA scaffolding I keep talking about? Doug Stuckey obviously noted the previous uses and upped the ante, climbing up the scaffolding to new heights and with a Flying V that was meant to take flight, sailed into the crowd.
Rumours are swirling that he has not yet landed, so if you see him, give me a heads up. His mom is worried.
German/Aussie rockers Sweet Electric have released their third single, ‘Long Way Back‘, ahead of their UK/EU Tour and upcoming studio album ‘Something Something Disco‘, due out 10th September. Pre-order the album – here ‘Long Way Back‘ is written about the painful reality that is the rock n roll journey. Dedicating every breathing moment to rock n […]
The post Sweet Electric Release Video For New Single ‘Long Way Back’ appeared first on ROCKPOSER DOT COM.
Chris Johnson & The Hollywood Hillbillies return with ‘Live To Ride‘, the second single and video taken from their forthcoming album ‘Tales From The Cowboy Palace‘, due out December 11th, 2026 via Rustbelt Electric. Listen to ‘Live to Ride’ – here Pre-order the album ‘Tales From the Cowboy Palace‘ – here Following ‘Better Days Ahead‘, […]
The post Chris Johnson & The Hollywood Hillbillies Release New Single & Video ‘Live To Ride’ appeared first on ROCKPOSER DOT COM.
Peter Svensson has spent much of his career deep in the Swedish Metal underground, most notably as a songwriter, bassist and guitarist with doom Metallers Void Moon. A prolific multi-instrumentalist, he has also been involved with bands and projects including Assassin’s Blade, Gauntlet Rule, Amaurot, Cult Of The Fox, Furnace and Solus Rex, moving between traditional Heavy Metal, Doom and Death Metal along the way.
As well as performing and writing, Svensson has increasingly taken on production, mixing and mastering duties, making him one of those musicians whose fingerprints can be found across considerably more records than his name recognition might suggest.
What’s the most Metal thing you’ve ever done off stage?
Attending business meetings in Metal shirts. Quite unusual in the pharmaceutical industry, at least.
What’s the worst gig you’ve ever played, and why?
Probably the second gig with my first band, Demon’s Eye. Our first gig was at our school, and we were quite pleased with ourselves. The second gig was at a big music competition, and I realised on stage there just how godawful we actually were.
What’s the best gig you’ve ever played, and why?
Void Moon live at Doom over Vienna last year. The live rebirth of the band closest to my heart. Everything was perfect. Travel, performance, crowd response and merch sales.
Would you choose a platinum record or one perfect, legendary live show?
Platinum record. I love to write music.
What’s your greatest fear?
Dying before I see my daughter grow up.
What’s the trait you most deplore in yourself?
My ability to hold a grudge longer than most other people.
What’s the trait you most deplore in other musicians?
Not showing respect to band members and/or fans
Describe yourself in three words.
Worrying. Calm. Creative.
What’s your guiltiest pleasure?
Watching mindless comedy series.
What does a great riff feel like to write?
Like something otherworldly. If I stumble upon something I wrote that I think is great, I’m always surprised that I wrote it.
What’s the worst thing a fan has ever said to you?
That we sound better on record than live, and this was with Cult Of The Fox and the first abysmal record.
What’s the worst thing a critic has ever said to you?
That they started laughing when they heard the record.
If you weren’t in music, what would you be doing?
Writing books or poetry. Maybe programming games, which I did when I was young in the early ’90s.
What’s one album outside your genre you secretly love?
Old Ways by Neil Young
When did you last cry, and why?
Last year, when I had sort of a very serious health scare.
What keeps you awake at night?
Work.
Riffs, royalties or recognition, if you had to choose?
Recognition, the only thing I lack [laughs].
How do you want to be remembered?
As somebody doing his own thing, and who was not a complete idiot.
What’s the most important lesson the road has taught you?
Things work out, and if they don’t, do something different. Don’t beat a dead horse.
What happens when the music stops?
Hopefully some other creative output takes its place.
You can find more MetalTalk Lowdowns at metaltalk.net/Lowdown.
The post Void Moon’s Peter Svensson – Recognition Is The Only Thing I Lack first appeared on MetalTalk – Heavy Metal News, Reviews and Interviews.
Listen to them, the children of the night. What music they make. With a combined age of 451, you would be forgiven for thinking that the seven-piece Hollywood Vampires should be about ready for retirement. You would be wrong, of course, given that these guys are more sprightly than a spring lamb and rock harder than the devil himself.
Words: Steve Kenton
Photography: Manuela Langotsch
Led by everybody’s favourite rock-god Alice Cooper, the Hollywood Vampires are loud, boisterous and bags of fun. With Joe Perry, Tommy Henriksen and Johnny Depp on guitar, The O2 Arena became their own personal playground. Not only did they own The O2, but they also owned a sold-out crowd too.
Multiple jets releasing plumes of heavy smoke at the front of the stage, vampiric imagery displayed on a huge digital screen, howls and squeals emanate from multiple speakers. Then the most famous line from Bram Stoker’s novel. “Listen to them, the children of the night. What music they make.”
Was it recited by Lugosi, Palance, Louis Jordan, maybe? Perhaps it was Gary Oldman. Who knows, who cares! It heralded the entrance of one of rock’s greatest entertainers along with his legendary, guitar-wielding disciples. Hollywood Vampires were here, and they were here for a “bloody” good time.
Greeting the crowd and twirling his baton, the incomparable Alice Cooper and his bloodsuckers take their first bite out of the audience, opening with I Want My Now from the Vampires’ 2019 offering, Rise. With its raw and aggressive attack on the audience, it set us all up nicely for the lads to sink their fangs into us again with Raise The Dead.
With a thunderous bassline, courtesy of Chris Wyse and a zombie-laden video, this dark and dramatic number had the crowd on its feet. Oh, and a bespectacled, cap-imbued Johnny Depp took the solo, much to the delight of everybody in attendance.
My Dead Drunk Friends, a rather slinky, bluesy number, celebrating the lives of one or two rock legends who took the term “drink until you drop” a little too literally, flew in like a bat in the night. With the keyboard talents of Buck Johnson heavily featured and some rather solid tub-thumping from drummer Glen Sobel, again this number had the crowd mesmerised.
Aerosmith legend Joe Perry, unmistakable with his streaked hair, enters into some guitar interplay with Depp during the solo. Depp’s laconic style of playing compared to Perry’s more flamboyant approach makes him look almost uncomfortable. But nothing could be further from the truth. They were clearly having fun.
The Alice Cooper classic, I’m Eighteen, followed, with Alice waving a wooden crutch in the air, clearly mocking the fact that at 78, he is still performing that particular track. Tommy Henriksen was the main focus guitar-wise. Highly energetic, Henriksen is the baby of the Vampires at a mere 62. He was thrashing around like a 20-year-old, guitar slung low. Every note played was spot on.
Boogie Man Surprise and Venus In Furs, were all up next, before People Who Died fired up.
A stunning keyboard opening, then boom, a superfast start with Johnny on vox followed by Alice Cooper backing. Featuring Depp on lead vocals, this blues number has a Leonard Cohen feel about it, and then Joe Perry’s Telecaster, minus its neck pickup, goes into overdrive and blows that right out the window.
It was rather sobering to see images of all the music greats that we have lost over the years. Everybody, from John Lennon to Edward Van Halen and Joe Strummer to Elvis, was featured in the accompanying video. The tributes continued with the next song dedicated to Johnny Thunders.
Joe Perry took on vocal duties for You Can’t Put Your Arms Around A Memory, which was originally written by the former New York Dolls guitarist who passed away in 1991.
It also featured Alice on guitar, which surprised me somewhat as I had never seen him live before and did not realise he could play. Every day is a school day.
Who’s Laughing Now, Living On The Edge, a Hollywood Vampires live debut, and Baba O’ Riley then seduced the audience like the brides of Dracula, with Cooper announcing that the third of this trio was dedicated to the court jester of rock, the greatest drummer of all time, and the greatest bassist of all time, Keith Moon and John Entwistle.
With Depp taking up the acoustic guitar and then switching back to his usual axe of choice, he finally moved across to the opposite side of the stage. He took his time, but it was worth it. Oh, and let’s not ignore Greg Sobel’s awesome drum solo. Anybody trying to emulate Keith Moon deserves as much recognition as possible, and Sobel absolutely nailed it.
There was so much audience interaction it was actually quite difficult to hear the vocals, but everybody was having fun.
Bright Light Fright led up to a tribute to the late, great Jeff Beck. The three guitarists were flowing like the blood from one of Dracula’s victims. Tommy with his power stance, Joe working that slide, and Johnny doing a Lindsay Buckingham and engaging in some finger-picking. Was Johnny using Beck’s white Fender Strat? I think he might have been. Fantastic.
A quick change of his shirt and Alice is back on the vocals for Roadhouse Blues, before The Death And Resurrection Show flew out of the traps, with its Amazonian feel and rather mad guitar and vocal effects. Featuring Depp on vocals and Cooper shaking his skull-imbued maracas, this song continued the emphasis on lost rock legends with images of tombstones featuring Bowie, Ozzy, Beck, Lemmy and Bonham among others.
This band really are tighter than Alice Cooper’s trousers and more bombastic than Cap’n Jack Sparrow.
A blast of Bowie’s Heroes, followed by Highway to Hell and Walk This Way, led into a mash-up of Cooper’s School’s Out and Floyd’s Brick in the Wall.
Incidentally, you have to give credit to the chap who was two rows in front of me doing The Bangles Walk Like An Egyptian dance. Right idea, wrong gig, but bloody funny, and your dancing was awesome.
Then enters another legend, bringing up the combined age to 530, Hillingdon’s finest son, the one and only Ronnie Wood, took to the stage for a couple of tracks.
The Train Kept A-Rollin’ and Brown Sugar slammed into the audience like a stake in the heart from Abraham Van Helsing himself. Four guitars, a plethora of legends. The crowd stood no chance. If you were not up dancing, you were either drunk or dead. It was a party. A vampiric orgy.
Let’s face it, no party would be complete without a blast of Hi-Ho Silver Lining, and Hollywood Vampires did not disappoint. A capacity crowd was shaking what their mama gave ’em and punching the air as though their very souls depended on it. What a night.
This was the Hollywood Vampires’ world, and we were just living in it for a brief couple of hours.
Fangs for a great gig. Yep, another gratuitous vampire pun.
The Jesus And Mary Chain brought their hard-rocking, yet understated energy to The O2 Arena, supporting Hollywood Vampires.
The Scottish rockers, fronted by Jim and William Reid, blasted out a 7-song setlist, featuring tracks such as Blues From A Gun, Just Like Honey and Reverence.
There is a slightly melancholic aspect to how this group go about their business, but do not be fooled by this. They really are rock powerhouses, wolves dressed as lambs, and will blow you right off your feet.
Although their setlist is career-spanning, they could do with a few more tracks and a little more stage-time. After all, their career spans more than 40 years. With some excellent musicianship and some rather nice guitar riffs, they were a great opener for the evening’s events.
The Jesus And Mary Chain have still got it and are definitely worth seeing live. You will not be disappointed.
