Search Results for: hard rock

The annual Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony featured the spirit of 1970s British punk, some anti-war sentiments and probably the loudest noise ever heard at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel. In what’s often the case at the glittery ceremony, the honor also brought together a long-estranged group, in this case the Police. The British trio played publicly Monday for the first time in 18 years, singing the reggae-tinged “Roxanne,” the obsessive hit, “Every Breath You Take” and “Message in a Bottle.” “I’d like to make it very clear that there is absolutely no ego in our band whatsoever,”… Read more »

Fourth-quarter losses skyrocketed at AOL Time Warner Inc. after a staggering $45.5 billion charge to account for the struggling media conglomerate’s plunging value. The company also announced Wednesday that former cable TV mogul Ted Turner is stepping down as vice chairman. In the three months ending Dec. 31, AOL lost $44.9 billion, or $10.04 per share, compared with a loss of $1.8 billion, or 41 cents per share, in the fourth quarter of 2001. Revenue rose 8 percent to $11.4 billion, and AOL said its results without the one-time accounting markdown would actually have beaten Wall Street estimates – at… Read more »

The tail end of last year wasn’t among the highlights of Slipknot’s seven-year career. Although the band’s third album, Iowa, dropped in late August, prompting maggots everywhere to rejoice, tragedy struck the World Trade Center and the Pentagon a couple of weeks later, temporarily curbing fans’ elation and fostering an environment in which songs such as “Everything Ends” and “I Am Hated” weren’t among the most welcome. Factor in the bad news that percussionist Clown’s wife had taken ill, and that the band was touring in the midst of a slumping economy, and the bulb-nosed performer wasn’t the happiest of… Read more »

The Blasters’ singer and guitarist Phil Alvin speaks like the band plays: short, fast and furious. “My father was very upset when I quit school,” he said, trying at breakneck speed to make his words catch up with his thoughts. “He took the neck of my guitar and screwed it to the dustpan. Then he scooped the dog crap with it, and left it in the garage. Every time I turned on the light on, I’d have to walk past it.” But Phil ignored his father’s exhortations, and with the help of his younger brother Dave, formed one of the… Read more »

For those about to rock, the Rock Hall salutes you – by inducting several heroes of metal, punk and new wave into next year’s class. AC/DC, the Clash, the Police, and Elvis Costello and the Attractions will lead the class of 2003 when they are inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on March 10, organizers announced Thursday (November 7). Other artists recognized include blue-eyed soul singers the Righteous Brothers, whose “Unchained Melody” and Phil Spector-produced “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’ ” remain classics. Sideman and non-performer inductees remain to be announced. AC/DC, who formed in 1973 and… Read more »

“Some bands, when they go away for a while, people start talking bad about you.” said Benji, guitarist for Good Charlotte. “It’s good to come home and see all you kids still supporting us,” said lead singer, Joel, finishing his twin’s comment. Good Charlotte has always been a live band. Both their Self-Titled debut, as well as their sophomore effort, The Young and The Hopeless, tries to capture their spirit – and while some of the fun shines through the recording, nothing can match the energy of their live show. Playing to a packed crowd for their CD Release at… Read more »

The second annual “Plea for Peace: Take Action” tour, which benefits National Hopeline Network 1-800-SUICIDE, features different lineups on different legs of the trek. The D.C. show is headlined by Thursday, which is apt, since the New Jersey quintet derives its anguished post-hardcore sound – which one wag has dubbed “screamo” – from such D.C. trailblazers as Rites of Spring. If anything, Thursday’s “Full Collapse” is even more morbidly sensitive than the work of its inspirations. “I think it’s going to rain, rain down/ Here in this collapsed lung of a borough,” muses singer Geoff Rickly midway through “Paris in… Read more »

Kid Rock, who has bragged in song of how you’ve never met a motherf–er quite like him, has got something else to boast about. The boisterous Detroit MC has signed on to play the leader of a bad-ass motorcycle gang in the upcoming film “Biker Boyz,” according to production company DreamWorks SKG. Directed by Reggie Rock Bythewood, who penned the upcoming DMX flick “Cradle 2 the Grave,” the movie stars Laurence Fishburne and Lisa Bonet. The flick, which is being plugged as a western on motorcycles, tells the true story of motorcycle club president Manuel Galloway (Fishburne), who is known… Read more »

Pelle Almqvist never could understand the connection between loud guitars and being miserable. You’re up on a stage jumping around, making a loud noise with women adoringly gazing at you. What’s not to like? “It’s just such a naturally exciting and fun thing,” said Almqvist, lead singer of the Swedish rock band the Hives. Acts like the Hives, White Stripes, the Strokes and the Vines are leading a new vanguard with a raw, adrenalized sound best described as garage rock. And after a decade dominated by dense, morose grunge or the angry rants of Limp Bizkit and its sound-alikes, rock… Read more »

Love & Rockets are asking a thief to do the right thing and there will even be a reward. Apparently the May 9, 1999 Love and Rockets show at the Roxy in Los Angeles, CA was taped, but as the crew tore down the band’s equipment immediately following the show, the tapes (ADAT tapes about the size of a cassette) were stolen. At that time, the members of Love & Rockets reached out to their fans about the theft, but nothing materialized. The band still firmly believes that someone has these tapes and want them back so are offering an… Read more »