What started as a reason to simply play some music and have a good time has grown into a band that’s pushing 20 years in business. When longtime Guns N’ Roses keyboardist Dizzy Reed and Quiet Riot guitarist Alex Grossi started the cover band Hookers & Blow in 2003, it wasn’t with the intention of... Continue Reading →
It’s remarkable that New Jersey deathcore crew Lorna Shore exists today, never mind that it’s enjoying the biggest success of its career. The band was still reeling from the dismissal of its former vocalist in the wake of sexual abuse allegations against him when the COVID-19 pandemic hit—a week into its European tour with Decapitated.... Continue Reading →
After more than two decades in the game, Nonpoint has gone independent with the launch of 361° Records. With a series of EPs, the band is upending the traditional album cycle release pattern rock acts long have employed and, in the words of frontman Elias Soriano, is writing the most “irresponsible” music of its career.... Continue Reading →
More than two decades after announcing its arrival with the instantly iconic single “Lit Up,” Buckcherry refuses to slow down. Its ninth album, “Hellbound” (June 25, 2021, Round Hill Records; read Live Metal’s review), is one of its best, and the band has a packed touring schedule through the end of the 2021. Live Metal’s... Continue Reading →
For Light the Torch, 2020 was to be filled with a new album and plenty of touring to support it. Those plans, of course, changed completely due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Skip ahead to June 2021 and the band’s second album, “You Will Be the Death of Me” (Nuclear Blast Records; read Live Metal’s review)—following... Continue Reading →
The CEO, a hard rock band out of Georgia consisting of five successful entrepreneurs/musicians, was set to launch in early 2020 and even had released its first music video. But then the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and the band—Mack Mullins on vocals, Vince Hornsby (Sevendust) on bass, Chase Brown and Beau Anderson on guitar, and Joseph... Continue Reading →
While the COVID-19 pandemic likely will go down as the great tragedy of our lifetime, there have been some silver linings, if you choose to look at it that way. Unable to tour, musicians have found solace in creativity, writing and recording new albums sooner than expected or pursuing new side projects and collaborations. One... Continue Reading →
The COVID-19 pandemic brought life to a crashing halt all around the world starting in early 2020, but it’s been a busy time for Diamante. As if writing and recording her independently released second album, “American Dream” (May 7, 2021; read Live Metal’s review), with the production team of Howard Benson and Neil Sanderson (Judge... Continue Reading →
German band Venues has seen its share of adversity since releasing its debut album, “Aspire,” in 2018, losing its singer mid-tour and later a guitarist. Then, after enlisting new singer Lela Gruber (discovered at a Steel Panther show) and guitarist Valentin (the best friend of the former guitarist), the COVID-19 pandemic hit just as work... Continue Reading →
Best known as the frontman of Alter Bridge and for Slash and the Conspirators, Myles Kennedy began an intriguing—and equally compelling—solo career with 2018’s “Year of the Tiger.” That acoustic-based album, dealing in depth with the death of his father when Myles was a child, showcased Kennedy’s singer-songwriter side and his versatility as a musician.... Continue Reading →
