My new hero, finally someone speaks out!!

On today’s rock and pop stars:

Lemmy: “What the fuck is it about John Mayer? Someone should explain him to me. And the same goes for Justin Bieber. They’re all such boring people. They’re so fucking serious. I’m not interested in people as boring as that. It’s a shame these people are popular entertainers.”

Don’t ask the inveterate rocker to indulge in the virtues of hip-hop.

“Why should I do that when it’s not music,” Kilmister asks. “There’s nothing creative about doing that [rapping] over music someone else created. They go out and take John Bonham’s drumming. I don’t call that music. You think they [rappers] could come up with sounds of their own, even some basic sounds and they can’t do it. Sad.”

http://www.atlanticcityweekly.com/arts-and-entertainment/features/Lemmy-Interview-Motorhead-Coming-to-House-of-Blues-March-4-116739699.html

Stryper – “The Covering” – The Only Album Review You Will Ever Need!

Originally published in “The Nashville Hype” by Paul King

If there’s one thing I know for certain, it’s this: Stryper will always ROCK in my book. 

I was one of those kids with parents who went off the deep end religiously and essentially banned all music that wasn’t “Christian” in the home – noble to be sure – ridiculous in a practical manner. 

True Story: I loved KISS from the moment I heard them, and up until the time some random missionary preacher came around saying KISS were “Kings In Satan’s Service” and Desmond Child (the famous songwriter) was really ‘Demon Child’, Satan’s own spawn on earth renamed “Gene Simmons”, my dad was cool enough to buy me all the KISS albums and cards and posters and stuff.   The preacher was just trying to ‘save the kids’ from the evils rock-n-roll.   Not long after that traveling preacher came though, all my KISS stuff was ripped off my walls and burned (along with Alice Cooper and Ted Nugent) because that’s what he told parents they needed to do with this evil – which virtually assured my soul for the devil because I wanted to murder someone after that! 

Needless to say musically, my home sucked raw eggs there after. 

Carmen, who was fine for what he was, was not what I wanted to hear.  Petra were okay, and Bob was a great guitar player, but they got wrapped up in the wussy keyboard sounds of Degarmo & Key (who for one brief moment I thought I liked), so they pretty much ended up sucking too.  It wasn’t until KANSAS somehow were branded “Christian” enough to be accepted at Christian roller-skate night that I was able to hear something I thought was even remotely worth a damn musically – “Carry On Wayward Son” was played in my room over, and over, and over (no, I’m not making any of this up – and I mustn’t forget the Rez Band which, to this day because of the recording techniques and guitar tones and rock attitude of laying it all on the line, rule. ‘Awaiting Your Reply’ is still very solid all around). 

Then out of no where came Stryper.  Thank GOD for Stryper. I was freakin’ going insane with the crap my parents were forcing me to listen to. 

Look, I’m not going ot start a sermon here, but I’m just going to tell you parents who are Christians, who are raising boys — society has sissy-fied boys to the point they might as well be raising all little girls.  Christianity is so full of ‘meekness’ and ‘sacrifice’ and ‘humble’ they forgot how to raise men — so I’m telling you – boys are meant to play with toy trucks, tear up everything they get their hands on, be aggresive, and ROCK — and if you’re having your kids growing up listening to watered down Kenny G (Christian music is full of that crap), you’re going to be in trouble.  Throw a dress on the kid and get it over with (BTW, I always found it funny that Jesus could get so ticked off he destroyed half a city block, but if a kid showed the smallest amount of aggression because of the great rock music he was listening to he needed a Paxil to calm him down – or Jesus).  Okay, that’s the end of my rant on that. But it makes my point: 

I am a Stryper kid. An aggressive, head banging, fist in the air rock-n-roll boy.  I didn’t like all the Michael W. Smith “Friends of friends are friends cause that’s how you become friends and can’t we all just get along and be friends” girly crap Christian music — and what some random traveling preacher stole, Stryper returned.  Rock and Metal once again filled my speakers and I’m sorry to say so bluntly, but here we go, I got my balls back!  I could Rock again.  Game on! 

The Original NH Logo Definitely Influenced By Stryper 

And man, were my parents pissed that the lyrics were ‘clean’.  Oh, they just couldn’t STAND that Stryper was preaching the same gospel they were.  Doing research for this review I came across this video which tells about those times back then – and this was really how it was, I lived this — my brother and I could be one of these poor idiot kids interviewed in this video (and I didn’t know Pastor Chuck even existed back then, but when I found this video it dawned on me why I felt SO at home in a Calvary Chapel church – they ‘got’ it even then and they still ‘get’ it).

So, how much more pissed would my parents be now to know that Stryper has gone where no other Christian band has gone – to the roots of heavy metal and the songs that every Christian kid grew up with, even if their parents didn’t know it – for an album full of great covers? 

I’ll tell you how, they wouldn’t care. Because just like everyone else that grew up during those highly ridiculous times in religious history, even my parents, after the divorce and affairs and the cheating and all that, lost their sanctimonious right to look down on everyone around them and had to accept the fact they they were human too, who like everyone, only made it by with the Grace of God. “Stryper covering KISS? Oh, that’s nice honey. Go play with your friends.” “Stryper is having Eddie over to play? Iron Maiden you say? That’s good, just don’t get hurt.” Such is life for anyone who survived those years of sheer stupidity and hypocrisy. 

So the rumors are true – Stryper has done what every single Christian kid who was raised in an over-bearing Christian household always wished they would do — Stick it to our parents by covering great songs by great artist we always loved but couldn’t listen to openly. What they should get for it is an album that’s 4 times platinum in America and 3 times platinum in the rest of the world and all the praise and record sales they can stand. Stryper has done it again – they have returned rock and metal to the masses and I’m just going to lay it on the line — they’ve never sounded so good. 

That doesn’t stop the idiot ‘Christian’ police from questioning their belief.   Even today we have so-called preachers who make a living scaring the beJesus out of duped parents who can’t see that really all the preacher wants is their money.  It’s a fight over money!  And it’s straight from the Saul Alinsky playbook – Find a target, focus on it, criticize it, and extort money to ‘fight’ it.  But pressure is still pressure and it’s for this reason the guys say they felt compelled to add at least one original Christian tune to the record – thankfully, it rocks just as hard as the rest of the record – so it’s not so bad.   And besides, Stryper IS a Christian band (even if they are still trying to prove their salvation to others nealy 30 years later). 

Bottom line – 2011 should be the year of Stryper.  Releasing an album like this is the smartest thing I’ve seen a band do in a long, long time.  It keeps them fresh, relevant, respected among peers, and rocking the world another year.  Brilliant. 

‘The Covering’ covers a lot of great music – and I’m telling you right now, it does not disappoint.   I mean, these guys are tighter than they’ve ever been – Tim Gaines is back in the band rocking the bass, Michael Sweet‘s voice strangely improves with age (how he could get any better defies logic, but there ya go), Oz Fox is still just flat out amazing on lead guitar (I wanted to be that dude!), and Robert Sweet‘s opening on “Over The Mountain” leaves little question to how good he remains as the drummer. 

You know these songs, so I’m not going to go through a track by track listing. You just need to know they’ve respected these songs, respected their original creators, and respected themselves by literally turning out one of the finest pieces of recorded heavy metal and rock music in years. You just need to buy this album, period. 

It’s a loud album – makes you feel like you’re being punched in the face repeatedly, but in a good way. If we had a star system that went to 10 I’d give it an 11, and tell you that’s the level you need to turn it up to as well. 

And a couple more things – Rob Halford commented on this album, and if anyone in Rock should be trusted to know what he’s talking about it should be that dude – and he has this to say: 

And last – Stryper will be coming to Nashville March 18th, 2011 to the Wildhorse Saloon.  The last time they played there they completely sold out the venue – so if you’re planning on going, get your tickets early.  They’re going to be doing these songs as well as several Stryper classics we’ve all come to know and love.   Rock on. 

The Covering – Album 

Judas Priest – Breaking The Law 

Iron Maiden – The Trooper 

Scorpions – Blackout 

Ozzy Osbourne – Over The Mountain 

Sweet – Set Me Free 

Van Halen – On Fire 

Deep Purple – Highway Star 

Black Sabbath – Heaven & Hell 

UFO – Lights Out 

Kansas – Carry On Wayward Son 

Kiss – Shout It Out Loud 

Led Zepplin – Immigrant Song 

Stryper – God 

Tags: Christian music, Judas Priest, Kansas, Led Zepplin, Michael Sweet, Oz Fox, Ozzy, Robert Sweet, Stryper, Tim Gaines, Van Halen 

http://nashvillehype.com/blog/stryper-the-covering-the-only-album-review-you-will-ever-need/

Welcome to my NightMare 2 Finished!

I can’t wait for this one! Hopefully Steven is back too!! chuck

Legendary rockers Alice Cooper has completed work on his new album, “Welcome 2 My Nightmare”. Cooper made the revelation during his “Nights With Alice Cooper” syndicated radio show, saying that “‘Welcome 2 My Nightmare’ is done. It’s just sitting there.” Like the 1975 original “Welcome To My Nightmare” LP, was produced by Bob Ezrin, who also worked on the singer’s “Billion Dollar Babies”, “School’s Out” and “Love It to Death” releases.

“We thought the story was good, but we started talking about ‘Welcome To My Nightmare’, which I think is our biggest triumph,” Cooper told Billboard.com last October. “He mentioned, ‘What if Alice had another nightmare?’ And we wrote three songs right there. He got really involved in it. Bob is even darker than I am.”

Cooper told Billboard.com that he and Ezrin were working on at least 13 songs, including the ballads “I Am Made of You” and “Something to Remember Me By”. In addition, Cooper recorded three new songs with original bandmates Dennis Dunaway (bass), Neal Smith (drums) and Michael Bruce (guitar).

http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=154234

Journey: ‘Don’t Stop Believin’ biography due in May

A new book on San Franciscan rockers Journey is due to hit stores May 3.

“Don’t Stop Believin’: The Untold Story Of Journey” is being billed as a definitive biography, tracing the band’s history since its formation in 1973.

Written by author Neil Daniels (“The Story Of Judas Priest: Defenders Of The Faith,” and “Robert Plant: Led Zeppelin, Jimmy Page & The Solo Years”), the book features original interviews and a wealth of research.

Journey are one of America’s most successful melodic rock bands, with record sales in excess of 75 million. And with the recent phenomenal success of “Don’t Stop Believin’,” now the most downloaded song of all time, they’ve been given a new lease on life.

These days, Journey are receiving more exposure than they have in years, thanks to the continued success of the smash hit. The band’s current singer is YouTube discovery Arnel Pineda.

Early Bon Scott Recordings Coming Soon

A collection of early Bon Scott recordings is to be released later this month.

To be titled Round And Round — The Forgotten Tales, it has tracks the iconic singer did before joining AC/DC.

Here’s the track listing:

1. Carey Gully
2. Round And Round
3. To Know You Is To Love You
4. She Said
5. Every Day You Have To Cry
6. I Can’t Dance With You
7. Peculiar Hole In The Sky
8. Love Makes Sweet Music
9. Can Hear The Raindrops
10. Why Me
11. Sooky Sooky

Carnival fire in Rio, I dedicate this song to it…

“the circus caught on fire the canvas cavin’ in the big top like an elephant whose bones could not support the skin”
                                                                                                                                                                                                       Steve Walsh

click on this song and check it out…. Best thing He ever did by far! Great Stuff and how fitting for this article!

   07 Smackin’ the Clowns

Fire in Rio destroys Carnival costumes and floats

RIO DE JANEIRO – A fire Monday gutted warehouses holding many of the elaborate, feather-and-sequin costumes and extravagant floats for Rio’s Carnival parade, destroying the dreams and hard work of thousands of mostly poor Brazilians who toil year-round to stage one of world’s most spectacular celebrations.

Seamstresses, set designers and musicians watched in tears as firefighters struggled to control the blaze that raged through four warehouses. The fire devoured about 8,400 outfits and the ornate sets built each year in the battle to be the city’s top samba group.

Three hours into the early-morning blaze, the flames were controlled and 10 warehouses were unscathed, but some of the top contenders and up-and-comers in next month’s Carnival parade were knocked out of the competition.

“Do you know what it feels like to work all day, into the night, to make this happen, and then this?” asked Graziela Goncalves Carvalho, a seamstress with Uniao da Ilha do Governador, one of the groups that appeared to have suffered heavy losses. “It’s over. There’s nothing. This Carnival is over for us.”

Carnival is a time when Rio’s residents and more than 700,000 visitors pour into the streets for a cathartic, nearly weeklong party where order is subverted and the poorest climb the highest floats dressed scantily in glitter and feathers, parading before the eyes of the world. The revelry culminates in the two-day competitive parade of the elite groups, and ends on Ash Wednesday, when order is restored.

After the fire, many of the participants spoke of pulling together to make sure everyone had something to wear, but with just a month left before the March 6 start of the competition, there is no way to replace the labor-intensive sets. To cariocas, as the people of Rio are known, the destruction was heartbreaking.

“We’d been here 24 hours a day. We were in it to win this year,” said Moacir da Silva Pinto, the head of Academicos do Grande Rio’s approximately 300-strong percussion section. The percussionists’ costumes, which were being kept in the group’s home base in the town of Duque de Caxias, were the only ones saved.

Portela, founded in 1923 and one of the city’s most traditional organizations, holds 21 championship titles. About 2,800 of its costumes and several sets went up in flames.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110207/ap_on_en_ot/lt_brazil_samba_fire

Update on cause of death for Gary Moore

GUITAR ace Gary Moore died on holiday – choking on his vomit after knocking back champagne and brandy.

The 58-year-old ex-Thin Lizzy star was discovered just before 4am by his girlfriend, unconscious in their Spanish hotel room.

Medics found him lying lifeless on his back wearing just his underpants.

An ambulance source said: “We believe the deceased had been drinking heavily.”

Read the entire article here.