Pulse – Rock Music News

Linkin Park has revealed that they plan on communicating with their fans "a little more regularly." The band wrote via Instagram, "Two decades in and our LP community continues to inspire us/ Your passion and dedication is the lifeblood of what we've built together with you. And it doesn't go unnoticed.

The band continued, "We thought it was about time to begin sharing a little more regularly with you. Starting this month, we'll be putting (digital) pen to (digital) paper to share NOTES FROM THE BAND-tiny snapshots into our daily misadventures, from us each month."

They added: "There's no concrete plan, but that's what we like about it. Until then… All our best, Rob, Brad, Dave, Joe & Mike."

Although Ozzy Osbourne is slowly on the mend from his recent Covid diagnosis, his family has now contracted the virus. The Daily Mail reported wife Sharon Osbourne spoke via video link to her TV show The Talk From LA, and explained, "(Ozzy's) doing much better thank you. His temperature is now back to normal his coughing has stopped, he's doing much better. But I've got some news to share. My daughter Kelly has it, I have it and the entire household has it now."

When asked if now that she's ill, Ozzy would be taking care of her, Sharon laughed and said, "Maybe, we'll see. I feel OK actually."

An Osbourne insider told The Mirror that Ozzy, who's now 73, had been seriously worried about contracting Covid: "Ozzy was badly paranoid about getting Covid because of everything that he has been through. Now he's got it, he's panicked and feeling awful. He heard about Covid spreading on surfaces and got so paranoid that he got all takeaway deliveries coming into the house sprayed outside with anti-bacterial treatments."

Def Leppard enjoyed the process of recording virtually so much during the pandemic -- they're looking to keep doing it in the future. Frontman Joe Elliott shed light on howe the band recorded their new album, Diamond Star Halos, which drops on May 27th, telling Classic Rock magazine, "It was so exciting to wake up in Dublin and see a message from (guitarist) Phil (Collen) with a new idea. This was a whole new way of working for us -- and I don't think we'll ever do an album the traditional way again. This way, there was no pressure. And the record doesn't sound disjointed. It sounds like a band all on the same page, which is what we are."

This time around, guitarist Viv Campbell sat out of the composing duties for the album, admitting, "I just wasn't ready this time. That's the bottom line. I thought we were going on tour, and then it was: 'We're making a record!' I was in full panic mode. I do feel bad for not pulling my weight. But it wasn't like we were short of songs."

Joe Elliott added: "Vivian was happy to do the Ronnie Wood thing on this record. But his contribution to this record is immense from a performance point of view. His (Jimi) Hendrix-like solo in 'This Guitar' is superb."

In pulling the "diamond star halos' line from the 1971 T. Rex classic "Get It On (Gang-A-Gong) for their album title, Joe Elliott explained, "Whenever people take a dig at our lyrics, we've always said: 'We're more Marc Bolan than Bob Dylan, more 'hubcap diamond star halo' than 'the answer is blowin' in the wind'! So when Phil suggested the title, we all went: ‘F***, yes!' Glam is in our DNA. We're all big fans of (Led) Zeppelin and the (Rolling) Stones, but really, in a musical sense, we were born on Top Of The Pops -- (David) Bowie, Bolan, Slade, Sweet. With this album we've gone back beyond the '80s to the '70s and all the music that inspired us as kids. Yet it still sounds like 2022 -- even though we did it in 2020."

Leppard will be out on the road all summer with Motley Crue, Poison, Joan Jett & The Blackhearts with opening night set for June 16th at Atlanta's SunTrust Park. Guitarist Phil Collen can't contain his excitement for finally being back on tour: "We feel like we're moving into a different league. There's a lot of bands who have stopped tourin' stopped performin' -- lost interest. We're the complete opposite. We're rarin' to go, so it's gonna be bigger and we've got this album that's amazin' -- and tourin' -- we're a great live band. Y'know, we put pride in all the vocals and everything we do and we can't wait to get out there and prove that. 'Cause, since we were out last time, there's less out there."

Avril Lavigne has had to postpone a few shows "due to a positive Covid case within the tour," she tweeted on Sunday (May 1st), hours before she was scheduled to perform in Laval. Concerts in Moncton, NB and Halifax, NS were also affected. The show in Laval has already been rescheduled for Saturday (May 7th).

Lavigne tweeted, "I/we sincerely apologize and want you to know that this was not a decision we made lightly. We remain focused on everyone's safety and can't wait to see you all very soon."

Lavigne is currently on tour in support of her Love Sux album which was released in February.

Korn and the Backstreet Boys? As weird as it sounds, the two have come together -- kind of -- on TikTok in a new post by Korn featuring the rockers jamming out to "I Want It That Way" by the Backstreet Boys (BSB). The video is captioned with, "I never wanna hear you say… ‘Worst Is On Its Way.'" BSB's Nick Carter responded on his own TikTok page with a duet showing him wearing a blue wig and eyeliner with the caption, "Can someone please tell me how to do the hair and makeup?"

The TikTok clip is from the video shoot for Korn's Requiem track, "Worst Is On Its Way." The album was released in February.

In the clip, the Korn members are sporting monochromatic white outfits from head to toe similar to BSB in the "I Want It That Way" video as well as the cover of their Millenium album which was released in 1999.

Metallica's Kirk Hammett says he got his "brain back" when he stopped drinking alcohol in 2014. During an interview with Kerrang!, during an interview with Kerrang!, when asked about how his new solo EP, Portals came about, given that Metallica split with Jason Newsted in 2001 because the band didn't want the bassist to pursue solo projects, he said, "We've all grown up, basically. So the question is, Were we not grown up back then? Of course not. We'll be the first ones – or at least I will – to put my hands up and say I only feel like I've reached maturity in the last 10 f*cking years."

He continued, "Also, I have to say I've been sober for seven and a half years now, and my mind is in a different place. I'm better focused. I got my brain back, I've gotten my memory back. So nowadays I'm in a better place."

He added that "when I got sober, I had so much more time. I was spending almost every night in a nightclub or bar and then I'd spend almost every morning recovering from that. Day in, day out, regardless of whether I was on tour or not. And now that's been removed from my life, I have all this extra time, so of course, I'm going to play my guitar more. It's what I love to do and as a consequence of that there's just a higher output."

Axl Rose joined country superstar Carrie Underwood onstage on Saturday night (April 30th) during her performance at Indio, California's Stagecoach Festival. Together, Rose and Underwood tackled two of Guns' Appetite For Destruction classics -- "Sweet Child O' Mine" and "Paradise City."

Ultimate Classic Rock reported that back in 2020, Carrie Underwood revealed her love for Guns N' Roses string an appearance on NBC's The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. Underwood joked about "abandoning" her husband and kids to head out to a Guns show just after returning from her own road dates: "It's hard when you meet your heroes, y'know, because I do consider (Axl) to be somebody who taught me how to sing. . . and I was like, 'What if I meet him and he's not everything I want him to be?' But he was, he was super cool and nice."

Ozzy Osbourne, who contracted Covid last week is on the mend, according to Loudwire. Osbourne's son, Jack Osbourne, spoke with Tom Newton Dunn's The News Desk back in England, and gave fans an update on Ozzy's health.

Jack said, "He's doing well. I spoke to him shortly before coming in. He just says hello. I'll save the colorful language, but he says it sucks."

As we previously reported, in recent years, Ozzy Osbourne, who's now 73, has dealt with a seemingly non-stop string of health issues -- including a nasty fall, the onset of Parkinson's disease, multiple staph infections, pneumonia, the flu, and a burst blood vessel in his eye.

Slash featuring Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators (SMKC) will release Live At Studios 60 -- their first-ever double live LP -- which features the band's new album, 4, as well as four additional songs from the group for Record Store Day on June 18th. Recorded live in Los Angeles at Studios 60, the SMKC Live At Studios 60 double LP exclusive Record Store Day release is limited to only 2250 copies.

The full concert features SMKC's new album 4, along with performances of the group's Top Five Rock Radio Hits including "You're A Lie," "World On Fire," "Anastasia," and "Driving Rain."

SMKC recently wrapped their nationwide The River Is Rising U.S. tour with sold-out shows in support of 4. Their new single is called "April Fool."

Tool's Fear Inoculum European tour launches in the UK this week beginning tonight (Monday, May 2nd) in Manchester and guitarist Adam Jones tells Metal Hammer that he stands by the band's no photo policy during live shows. He said, "I just think, once you pull your phone out, you're not connecting, you're not at the show, you're more about capturing it from your phone, watching it from your phone. Okay, then just go on YouTube. Why bother? . . ."

Jones added, "We spend a lot of money on the show, we spend a lot of money on getting the best people on the video and the laser show. We have this three-dimensional curtain effect, which is incredible . . . You've paid the money to immerse yourself in this, we're taking you by the hand and trying to take you on a little journey and do our magic for you. Which is something that requires your attention and your eye contact. It's a different world, it's a request and it's respectful, and I think our fans seem absolutely fine with it."

Tool is playing arenas these days, and that's about as large a venue as they're interested in playing. Jones explained, "We've been offered stadiums and we've turned them down, because we think that at that size there are only a certain amount of people that can actually enjoy that show. It's not about you anymore. Seeing the Rolling Stones and you're all the way back in the stadium and you're basically watching a jumbotron, you know? I'm not into it, we'd rather do two nights in a smaller place than one night in a huge place . . ."

Bullet for My Valentine have delayed the release of their self titled album to August. The album was originally slated for July 8th but will now be released on August 5th. The deluxe vinyl pressing will follow on November 11th.

In addition to the album's original track listing, that effort will feature the following five bonus tracks:

• "Omen"
• "Stitches"
• "No More Tears"
• "Step Out From The Inside"
• "This Means War"

Korn and The Backstreet Boys have been showing each other some love on social media.

The mutual admiration-fest kicked off on Friday (April 29th), when the nu-metal band sang the BSB hit "I Want It That Way" on TikTok. Nick Carter quickly dueted the video, dressed up as a member of Korn, asking how to correctly "do the hair and makeup."

It didn't stop there. Korn's Brian ‘Head' Welch also shared a photo himself and Korn bassist Reginald ‘Fieldy' Arvizu backstage at Backstreet Boys' DNA World Tour alongside Carter.

Ozzy Osbourne has been diagnosed with Covid, according to TMZ. His wife, Sharon Osbourne, revealed the news on her TV show, The Talk UK, and said, "Ozzy was only diagnosed -- it was middle of the night our time. But I spoke to him and he's okay. I am very worried about Ozzy right now. We've gone two years without him catching Covid and it's just Ozzy's luck he would get it now."

Sharon, who was diagnosed with Covid back in December 2020, spoke of how she'll greet Ozzy, who's battling Parkinson's disease, upon getting home: "(I will) hold him and kiss him with about three masks on, I think. My family is my life."

In recent years, Ozzy Osbourne, who's now 73, has dealt with a seemingly non-stop string of health issues -- including a nasty fall, the onset of Parkinson's disease, multiple staph infections, pneumonia, the flu, and a burst blood vessel in his eye.

Ozzy has told us before that he's often wondered how he's still alive: "I went to my doctor a while ago and he says to me, 'Y'know what? You're a testament to what the human body can take.' Y'know, Keith Richards, he smokes, he drinks vodka like there's no tomorrow, he used to do heroin, y'know? I don't know how that guy's sucking in air."

Chevelle's drummer, Sam Loeffler, has tested positive for Covid, causing the band to have to postpone some upcoming shows, including tonight's concert (Friday, April 29th) in New Orleans. The band released a statement via social media on Wednesday (April 27th) which reads, "We are really bummed to announce that we have made the unavoidable decisions to reschedule the Visit New Orleans show on Fri, April 29th at the The Fillmore New Orleans to Thurs, Sept 22nd and cancel the Beale Street Music Festival on Sat, April 30th in Memphis Travel due to Sam testing positive for Covid . . ."

The statement concluded with information for ticket holders, who can get refunds from their original point of sale and "all rescheduled tickets are still valid."

Game of Thrones actress Esme Bianco has expanded her sexual assault lawsuit against Marilyn Manson by filing a motion on Wednesday (April 27th) in Los Angeles Federal Court claiming Manson blocked a video of her that was to be used during Deftones' current tour as a part of their stage set, Billboard reports.

In the new filing, Bianco alleges that Manson convinced Deftones to remove her images from the video in retaliation, which deprived her of the opportunity for exposure and income.

Fred Sablan, Deftones' current touring bassist, is a former member of Manson's band.

Bianco is just one of several women who have accused Manson of sexual assault over the last year.

Red Hot Chili Peppers' Chad Smith says they will celebrate the life of Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins at the upcoming New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival on Sunday (May 1st). Red Hot Chilli Peppers are filling in for Foo Fighters, who cancelled all concerts for the rest of the year after Hawkins' death.

Smith told Billboard, "We're taking Alison, his wife, with us and it's going to be a celebration. That's what she wants. She doesn't want it to be anything other than, ‘Let's celebrate music, let's celebrate our friends, let's celebrate Taylor. This is what he would want and he would be very happy that you guys are playing and he would want it be nothing but a positive experience."

He continued, "So we're going to do all that and she's going to be part of that and I'm very honored that we can do that with her. … We're going to play our hearts out."

Billie Eilish may have performed "Misery Business" with Hayley Williams at Coachella, but it's not her favorite Paramore song.

The "Bad Guy" singer revealed on her Instagram stories that the Brand New Eyes track, "All I Wanted," is actually her favorite from the band.

She also shared that the Blur song, "Beetlebum" is her most loved song from her other Coachella guest, Damon Albarn.

Arcade Fire released a new track called "Unconditional I (Lookout Kid)" from their upcoming album. The band's sixth album, simply titled We, is set for release on May 6th.

Win Butler said, "There's nothing saccharine about unconditional love in a world that is coming apart at the seams. WE need each other, in all of our imperfection. 'Lookout Kid' is a reminder, a lullaby for the end times, sung to my son, but for everyone… Trust your heart, trust your mind, trust your body, trust your soul. Sh** is going to get worse before it gets better, but it always gets better, and no one's perfect. Let me say it again. No one's perfect."

We also includes Arcade Fire's previous single, "The Lightning I, II."

Weezer might be heading to Sin City. Rivers Cuomo recently told Dave and Mahoney as part of the Audacy Check In they are very much considering playing a residency in support of their upcoming four-EP SZNS project saying, " . . . We could at least do four nights, if not longer, or maybe four nights a week for many weeks . . . each night would be a season plus a bunch of other cool catalog songs."

The release of the themed EPs kicked off with the "spring" SZNS set which was released last month.

Weezer is set to perform today (Thursday, April 28th) at the Draft Theater following the conclusion of Round 1 of the NFL Draft. During the interview, Cuomo shared that he had dreams of becoming a professional football player saying, "I was a big fan of the Steelers back when they had that amazing run at the end of the ‘70s, early ‘80s, and I had every intention of joining the Steelers. Then by the time I got to high school though, I realized I wasn't gonna cut it physically; I was gonna turn out to be very small. So it took me a year or two and then I finally figured out I can be a rock star and still hear the cheer of the crowd and get some of the same thrills."

Avenged Sevenfold recently launched a benefit shirt for Ukraine to raise money for bulletproof vests. According to M. Shadows, the proceeds bought "many bullet proof vests for the Ukrainian people to save lives." The band personally matched the donation made for each shirt bought.

M. Shadows wrote via Instagram, "This is real life. Thank you to the @TheOfficialA7X @DeathbatsClub community for supporting this cause. Our T – Shirt donation bought many bullet proof vests for the Ukrainian people to save lives. Sent directly to the people using @ethereum Thank you @crypto_vandals."

The shirt was illustrated by Ukrainian artist Crypto Vandals.

Weezer will be performing during this year's NFL Draft in Las Vegas with Ice Cube and Marshmello. And in an interview with Audacy to promote the event, Rivers Cuomo admitted he aspired to be a football player when he was younger, but eventually took the rock star route. He was a Steelers fan and his plan was to be a member of the team.

By the time he got to high school he realized that he couldn't get very far as a football player because he was too small.

He said, "It took me a year or two and then I finally figured out… I can be a rock star and still hear the cheer of the crowd and get some of the same thrills."

He also hinted that Weezer is working on booking a residency in Vegas.

The NFL Draft Concert Series takes place in Las Vegas, Nevada from April 28 through 30.

TL;DR:

• Weezer will be performing during this year's NFL Draft in Las Vegas with Ice Cube and Marshmello.
• Rivers Cuomo aspired to be a football player when he was younger,
• By the time he got to high school he realized he was too small.
• The NFL Draft Concert Series takes place in Las Vegas, Nevada from April 28 through 30.

Metallica's James Hetfield and Ernie Ball Strings have joined forces for Hetfield's signature line, called "Papa Het's Hardwired Master Core Signature Strings." PlanetSixStaring.com posted, Papa Het's new Hardwired Master Core set, "consists of a never before offered 11 to 50 gauge combo, designed for his aggressive style."

James Hatfield said in the press release, "With all the companies we're with, we're super proud to be with Ernie Ball! For them to take on the challenge of, 'Hey I got an idea, can you do this…' -- they have stepped up to the challenge! I'm super proud!"

The specs on the Ernie Ball's new Papa Het's Hardwired Master Core Signature Strings are:

Never before offered gauge combo (11, 14, 18p, 28, 38, 50)

"Master Core" heavier core to wrap ratio

Wound strings wrapped with Paradigm plasma-enhanced nickel plated steel around ultra-high strength tin plated steel hex core

Paradigm ultra-high strength tin plated steel plain strings

Thicker sound

Added pitch stability

James Hetfield told us a while back that he couldn't stop writing new material even if he wanted to: "I can't turn off the creative part of me, which is -- what a great gift. There's stuff coming out all the time, whether it's in the tuning room, in my hotel room, sitting at home with the acoustic, wherever. The stuff is coming out, and it gets recorded or written down or something, some way, and it'll come out at some point. Whether it's on this album, the next album, who knows?"

Kiss fans eager for a final reunion of the original members are feeling that much more hopeful after reading Gene Simmons' Twitter feed. Simmons, who along with Paul Stanley, has been alternately demeaning towards -- and nostalgic about -- co-founding guitarist Ace Frehley over the years, but now seems to want him on board for the band's final victory lap.

On Wednesday (April 27th), Gene Simmons tweeted well wishes to Frehley for his 71st birthday and posted an open-ended offer to the guitar legend: "Happy Birthday Ace. And many more… The invitations still stand. Jump up on stage with us for encores. The fans would love it. - Gene Simmons (@genesimmons) April 27, 2022

Not too long ago, we asked Gene Simmons what it feels like to turn around and see the spitting image of his former bandmates -- yet it's replacement musicians Tommy Thayer and Eric Singer: "Y'know, we still have a tug of the heart. It's like your drunken dysfunctional father who was a bum and you finally had to get rid of him -- but you still remember the beginning when he was a good dad. Ace and Peter are beloved, as they should be, for the beginning. For helping launch the band -- if you don't mind me saying so -- that changed the face of rock 'n roll, literally and figuratively speaking. But equally as important part of the beginning of Kiss, it's also important to know that with them in the band today, Kiss wouldn't be around."

Kiss kicks off its North American farewell dates on May 11th at Milwaukee's American Family Insurance Amphitheater.

Journey has just dropped "You Got The Best Of Me" -- the band's lead single from its upcoming album, Freedom, which is set for release on July 8th. Journey is currently out on the road and plays tonight (April 27th) -- with special guests Toto -- at Nashville's Bridgestone Arena.

Co-founding guitarist Neal Schon said of the new track: "I wanted kind of a punky rendition of 'Any Way You Want It.' I usually don't go in saying I'm going to look for something like that, but then it just came to me, like 'Wheel In The Sky' did years ago. It just kind of flew out of my mouth. During the pandemic, there wasn't much to do. I spent a lot of time in my little studio at home, learning how to play keyboards and looping. Some of those ideas ended up being songs. So it kind of came out of nowhere."

Freedom marks Journey's first new studio set since Eclipse was released in May 2011. The Walmart exclusive debuted on the Billboard 200 album chart at Number 13 and was the band's second to feature current frontman Arnel Pineda.

Neal Schon recently explained how he urged his bandmates to look past the classics to showcase everything that Journey is about musically during its shows: "I said, 'Guys, I want you to have an open mind and check out this list that I've put together here, 'cause I think that we're missing a lot of these elements in our show. And there's no reason to be missing 'em, 'cause we own it. (Laughs) It's ours! Just 'cause we don't play it all the time doesn't mean that we shouldn't be playing just 'cause they're not so so-called 'pop hits.'' I've never been from the school where every song has to be a hit. I think we're really fortunate that we have so many hit songs -- but you can't play 'em all in one show."