Pulse – Rock Music News

Pearl Jam has just rolled out a string of spring and fall arena shows, which serve as the reschedule dates for their scrapped 2020 tour. The spring leg kicks off on May 3rd at San Diego's Viejas Arena before winding down on May 20th at Las Vegas' MGM Grand Garden Arena. The band's fall run begins on September 1st in Quebec City at Videotron Centre and wraps on September 22nd at Denver's Ball Arena.

Guitarist Stone Gossard told us why he thinks Pearl Jam remains strong after 30 years together: "I mean, I think we all really respect each other. We've been together long enough that we know how lucky we are to be in this position. So I think there's a lot of gratitude in the band and a lot of like, when we show up together we're like, 'Wow, we have our own warehouse and we get to plug in our amps and we're gonna write some new songs and somebody cares about it and, y'know, we're gonna put a record out and we sold some tickets and . . . ' I mean, these things are not just things we take for granted, because we're totally aware of how fortunate we are."

Bassist Jeff Ament told us a while back that even with several decades under its belt, the band is still eager to explore new sounds: "We wanted to be a band that could really dip our toes into a lot of different styles. And I think we're there and we still know that there's more that we could do. There's still some areas that we can get into."

JUST ANNOUNCED: Pearl Jam tour dates (subject to change):

May 3 - San Diego, CA - Viejas Arena
May 6, 7 - Los Angeles, CA - The Forum
May 9 - Glendale, AZ - Gila River Arena
May 12, 13 - Oakland, CA - Oakland Arena
May 16 - Fresno, CA - Save Mart Arena
May 18 - Sacramento, CA - Golden 1 Center
May 20 - Las Vegas, NV - MGM Grand Garden Arena
September 1 - Quebec City, QC - Videotron Centre
September 3 - Ottawa, ON - Canadian Tire Centre
September 6 - Hamilton, ON - FirstOntario Centre
September 8 - Toronto, ON - Scotiabank Arena
September 11 - New York, NY - Madison Square Garden
September 14 - Camden, NJ - Waterfront Music Pavilion
September 16 - Nashville, TN - Bridgestone Arena
September 18 - St. Louis, MO - Enterprise Center
September 20 - Oklahoma City, OK - Paycom Center
September 22 - Denver, CO - Ball Arena

Jack White is calling on all major labels to build their own vinyl record pressing plants. He just released a video telling labels that there are supply chain issues and bottlenecks in manufacturing.

He says that at least once a week, someone reaches out asking for help to expedite pressing of their vinyl record.

He said, "With industry-wide turnaround times for vinyl currently leaning towards the length of a human pregnancy, it's obvious, in a world so contingent on being of-the-moment and timed just right (for a single, an album, a tour etc.), these timelines are the killers of momentum, soul, artistic expression, and far too often, livelihoods."

Jack White's label, Third Man Records began a concentrated focus on vinyl in 2009 and press all of their own albums.

TL;DR:

• Jack White is calling on all major labels to build their own vinyl record pressing plants.
• His label, Third Man Records began a concentrated focus on vinyl in 2009 and press all of their own albums.

Dolly Parton has withdrawn her name from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ballot.

While inductees aren't scheduled to be announced until spring, Dolly didn't feel that she was worthy and made the announcement online. She told fans that she was extremely flattered and grateful to be nominated but didn't feel that she had earned that right.

She wrote: "I do hope the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame will understand and be willing to consider me again — if I'm ever worthy. This has, however, inspired me to put out a hopefully great rock 'n' roll album at some point in the future, which I have always wanted to do."

The Country Music Hall of Fame member was one of 17 nominees for the Class of 2022, alongside artists like Beck, Pat Benatar, Eminem, and Judas Priest.

Machine Gun Kelly shared the artwork for his forthcoming album, Mainstream Sellout, on Monday (March 15th) and fans and journalists immediately likened the images to Japanese Breakfast's Jubilee.

Michelle Zauner jokingly tweeted that it's "2022's feud of the year" before defending the "Emo Girl" singer to Pitchfork. She told the publication, "I don't actually think it looks anything like my album cover at all," she said, "but I think it's very funny that Rolling Stone put up an article about it just because there's a circular fruit in the foreground. I mean his is people throwing tomatoes at him, and mine is persimmons peacefully hanging around me, so I think they're very different concepts."

MGK replied to her tweet, writing, "so should we beef over tomato's or…should i thank them for introducing me to your album, because i just listened and i really like it."

The rocker also shared the tracklist for his Mainstream Sellout on Monday (March 15th), revealing several collaborations. The 16-track album will feature Bring Me The Horizon, Lil Wayne, Pete Davidson, Blackbear, Willow, Iann Dior, Gunna and Young Thug.

Yungblud's new video for his single, "The Funeral," features Ozzy Osbourne. About the song, he says he's been grappling with who he wants to be and writing this song helped him be himself. "The lyrics are literally me listing off everything I'm insecure about because if you identify with what you don't like about yourself and own it, no one can say anything that you haven't already said to yourself."

The video starts off with Ozzy looming over Yungblud as he lays in a casket, and then the music starts.

Ozzy's wife, Sharon also has a vital and dark comical role in the video.

TL;DR:

• The video starts off with Ozzy looming over Yungblud as he lays in a casket
• Sharon Osbourne also has a vital and dark comical role in the video.

Motionless in White dropped their new song "Cyberhex" Friday (March 11th).

Along with the new track, the band shared the news that their next album, Scoring The End Of The World will be released on June 10th.

They wrote on Instagram, "The new era has begun, and there are many more surprises coming along the way till June 10th."

Reports say that Marilyn Manson has threatened "retaliatory legal action" against former assistant Ashley Walters if she took part in Evan Rachel Wood's documentary Phoenix Rising. Wood premiered the documentary at Sundance Film Festival back in January, which details her allegations against Manson. This month, TMZ revealed Manson is suing both Wood and her partner, Illma Gore, for fraud, conspiracy and defamation.

According to Loudwire via Rolling Stone, an amended lawsuit filed March 11th stated that Walters was allegedly threatened with similar legal proceedings if she was involved documentary.

Walters originally filed a lawsuit against Manson for sexual assault, battery and harassment in May 2021. A member of Manson's team told NME that he "vehemently denied any accusations of assault."

Manson's lawyers tried to have the case thrown out due to the statute of limitations, but the judge declined to rule on the motion until a later date.

According to the amended lawsuit, Walters stated she repressed the memories of the abuse she claimed to endure by Manson. She added she only confronted the alleged event after a g therapy sessions in Fall 2020.

Phoenix Rising premiers March 15th and 16th on HBO.

• Hall & Oates' Daryl Hall revealed he was asked to replace David Lee Roth in Van Halen. While chatting with New York's Q104.3, Hall recalled the invitation: "I knew those guys (in Van Halen) really well; we actually shared some people -- crew and things like that. And Eddie (Van Halen) came to a show with (his then-wife) Valerie (Bertinelli) -- this goes back, y'know -- and David had just left the band. And Eddie said, 'Do you wanna join Van Halen, man?' He was half joking, but I think he was serious -- I really do believe he was serious. And I took it seriously. I went, 'Meh, I think not. I think I've got my own s*** going on.'"
  • Hall went on to reveal that the opening keyboard lick to Van Halen's "Jump" was inspired by Hall & Oates' "Kiss Is On My List": "That's what (Eddie) always told me. He said that inspired 'Jump.'" (Blabbermouth)
    
    
• To show their solidarity with the people of Ukraine, Pink Floyd have pulled all their post-1987 music off Russia and Belarus streaming sites. The band released a statement, which reads, "To stand with the world in strongly condemning Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the works of Pink Floyd, from 1987 onwards, and all of David Gilmour's solo recordings are being removed from all digital music providers in Russia and Belarus from today." (Loudersound)
  
  

• Rush has just released a newly produced animated video for the band's legendary 1981 track, "YYZ." The new clip serves as a teaser to the band's Moving Pictures expanded reissue, which is set to drop on April 15th. In addition to the 2015 remaster, the package will also include a previously unreleased Toronto concert from March 25th, 1981.

Robert Plant has just announced a eleven-date UK mini-tour for next month with his latest solo band, Saving Grace. The Led Zeppelin frontman and the new group began gigging in the UK early in 2019 and opened a few shows for Fairport Convention. In addition to Plant, Saving Grace features vocalist Suzy Dian, drummer Oli Jefferson, along with guitarists Tony Kelsey and Matt Worley.

Plant credits his earliest teen influences for setting the tone as to what type of singer he would grow into: "I was born into a rock-blues-folk scene and I, as a kid, in bands when I was, like 15 or whatever it was -- I was just apin' everybody. And I thoughy Route One was just to kick ass, y'know? And then basically it did me a lot of good doing that."

Robert Plant will be out on the road with Alison Krauss throughout June and July when they hit North America and Europe in support of their 2021 Top Three second album, Raising The Roof.

JUST ANNOUNCED: Saving Grace With Robert Plant & Suzi Dian UK tour dates (subject to change):

April 8 - Bexhill, England - De La Warr Pavilion
April 10 - Folkestone, England - Leas Cliff Hall
April 11 - London, England - Hackney Empire
April 14 - Hull, England - City Hall
April 15 - Scunthorpe, England - Baths Hall
April 16 - York, England - Grand Opera House
April 20 - Rhyl, Wales - Pavilion
April 22 - Liverpool, England - Eventim Olympia
April 25 - Middlesbrough, England - Town Hall
April 26 - Halifax, England - Victoria Theatre
April 27 - Stockport, England - The Plaza

Billie Eilish and Finneas say the most fun writing they've ever had, was for the new animated feature, Turning Red. When they were approached to be a part of the movie, they "leapt" at the opportunity.

Disney and Pixar posted a short video this week of the siblings talking about the music. They described the 3 songs as… one is a love ballad, one is a confidence builder, and the other is a hit for the boyband in the movie. In fact, Finneas even voices a role as one of band members.

The movie is about a 13 year old girl who transforms into a giant red panda when she can't control her emotions.

Turning Red starts streaming on Disney+ today (March 11).

TL;DR:

• Billie Eilish and Finneas have 3 songs in Turning Red.
• It starts streaming on Disney+ today (March 11).

Florence + The Machine will release their fifth album, called Dance Fever, on May 13th. Their new single, called "My Love," was released yesterday (Thursday, March 10th) along with a video directed by Autumn de Wilde.

Dance Fever was recorded in London over the course of the pandemic.

According to a release, "just before the pandemic, Florence had become fascinated by choreomania, a Renaissance phenomenon in which groups of people—sometimes thousands—danced wildly to the point of exhaustion, collapse and death. The imagery resonated with Florence, who had been touring nonstop for more than a decade, and in lockdown felt oddly prescient."

Dance Fever was produced by Florence, Jack Antonoff and Dave Bayley of Glass Animals.

Machine Gun Kelly fired back after a TikTok user who posted a video and claimed Kelly didn't actually play his own guitar during performances. He pointed out what he called a "kill switch" feature on the rocker's pink Schecter guitar and said that's how he turned off the sound.

MGK posted his own video in response and explained how the person had reverse engineered the video to look like that. He also included the caption, "This guy flipped the kill switch to the opposite direction for his video. Go buy the guitar and see for yourself."

He asked the guy point blank, why he would even lie about something like that? At last check, MGK had not gotten a response back.

TL;DR:

• Machine Gun Kelly fired back after a TikTok user who claimed Kelly didn't play his own guitar.
• He asked the guy point blank, why he would even lie about something like that? At last check, MGK had not gotten a response back.

Ozzy, Sharon and Kelly Osbourne are all set to appear in Yungblud's new video for the funeral. Yungblud shared behnd the scenes footage from the video where he was posing with Ozzy and Sharon. He captioned the pic, "Bringin some mates to my funeral…"

Yungblud announced the new single last Saturday (March 5th) in a handwritten message, which read, "To whom this may concern. For those I let down I'm sorry, for those who let me down, f*ck you but I forgive you. You are cordially and graciously invited to my funeral."

Gene Simmons equated bands continuing to play Russia with artists who accepted gigs in apartheid-era South Africa. TMZ caught up with the Kiss co-founder who made it clear, in light of what's happening across the globe, Russia is not the place to be performing: "The problem is, if a Western band plays Russia it gives credence. . . a political win for Putin's outright lies. I would recommend nobody goes there. Just shut it down. Stop drinking Russian vodka. Just stop it."

Simmons went on to explain that honoring gigs in Russia -- or accepting new bookings there -- will only do damage in the long run: "They're gonna get a lot of pushback from their own fans. I mean, we were faced with the similar problem in Botswana in the days of apartheid. We were offered millions of dollars and we said, 'No, we can't go there because if a Western band goes there, you're saying it's okay for apartheid and, of course, all the racism and the lack of justice.' So, we said no. There were some bands that went and, y'know, they paid the price; their fans turned on them."

Kiss will kick off an eight-date South American run on April 20th in Santiago, Chile's Movistar Arena.

Deftones have officially parted ways with bassist Sergio Vega. Vega confirmed the news with a video statement, saying, "I didn't want to have to make a video about this, but after the recent band photo posted on Deftones‘, Spotify, I feel the need to clear the air. I'm not very good at this. So I wrote out a statement and I will read it to you now."

Vega went on to talk about his friendship with the Deftones, which goes back to 1995. After working with the band off and on for years he had asked repeatedly about becoming a permanant member.

He explained, "I had worked with the band for 12 years, and at the start of every album cycle, I asked about becoming an official member, but the contract would be improved instead. COVID was a breaking point for a lot of people. And I started to question my place In the band, and the future that I wanted for my career. I really started to need something stable, because at that point, my contract with them was canceled. One day I got a call from the guys about an internal band situation, and they asked me if I was solid, and that I would have to fly out to LA to help work it out. Right away."

He continued, "I said, Of course, I was all in, and we can handle my situation later. But I can't go back to my old contract. Our respective management had a conversation to discuss a new contract, and they offered me the same deal. At that point. It was clear there was no opportunity for growth for me. So I declined the offer. And then I call the guys immediately to see where the miscommunication was to resolve it. But there was no response."

He added, "A couple of days later, I received an email from their lawyer that their offer was withdrawn, and that they wished me the best. So I left the band in early last year, and since then, I've been focused on my band Quicksand, as well as working as a producer and writer for other artists and projects. And I'm mentioning this because there was some speculation about me selling my gear and quitting music altogether."

Tenacious D, the Jack Black and Kyle Gass duo has added a fall leg to their U.S. tour.

The new string of shows will kick off on September 9th in Wilmington, North Carolina, and includes stops in Philadelphia, Milwaukee, and Minneapolis. In all, 10 new dates have been added.

The tour serves as a belated 20th anniversary celebration of their 2001 self-titled debut album.

Tickets go on sale Friday, (March 11).

TL;DR:

• Tenacious D added a fall leg to their U.S. tour.
• It will kick off on September 9th in Wilmington, North Carolina.
• Tickets go on sale Friday, (March 11).

John Oates of Hall & Oates fame is heading out on a seven-date acoustic run next week. Oates and collaborator Guthrie Trapp will play a string of East Coast shows taking in stops in Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, Maryland, and Rhode Island.

Oates spoke about his acoustic American-styled solo gigs, telling McCall.com: "This show gives me an opportunity to show a side of myself that I don't think a lot of people really know. Everyone knows me from Hall & Oates, the MTV videos, and big hits, and that's great. But I had a whole musical life before I met Daryl Hall, and this is my sweet spot.

He went on to say, "This is the kind of music that I was making as a kid. it's very deeply ingrained in my musical DNA, and these types of shows give me a chance to showcase that side of my music career."

Oates explained that acoustic-based music was part of the ingredients he brought to the initial Hall & Oates mix: "I think that any time you have a collaboration between two or more people, it's always going to be more than the sum of its parts. I was making this kind of music, Daryl was classically trained and he was doing other things -- singing doo-wop on the street corner, you know, that kind of thing. I think we both brought our individual musical personalities together, and what evolved was what became Hall & Oates."

John Oates admitted that his current music, with its scaled back sound and folk influences, he's finally truly showing his musical stripes: "Now that I've had a chance to establish myself and people see how committed I am to it, it's totally being accepted and I think for the first time people are actually seeing my true musical personality."

JUST ANNOUNCED: John Oates tour dates (subject to change):

March 16 - Phoenixville, PA - The Colonial Theatre
March 18 - Laconia, NH - Colonial Theatre Laconia
March 19 - Norwood, MA - The Norwood Theatre
March 20 - Ridgefield, CT - The Ridgefield Playhouse
March 22 - New York, NY - Sony Hall
March 24 - Bethesda, MD - Bethesda Blues & Jazz Supper Club
March 26 - Newport, RI - Jane Pickens Theater & Event Center

My Chemical Romance has added 14 new stops to their upcoming reunion tour.

The band announced Wednesday (March 9th) that The North American tour dates will kick off on Aug. 20th in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma and include stops in Texas, Tennessee, Ohio, North Carolina, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Oregon.

Tickets for the new dates and additional tickets for their previously sold-out North American shows go on sale Friday (March 11th)

AC/DC has just announced "For Those About to Rock" Ale via Half Time Beverage. The new officially sanctioned beer is available to ship to 33 U.S. states. For a special limited time, the first 500 customers get a 12x15 print insert free with your purchase.

According to the press release:

AC/DC's For Those About to Rock Ale (5.9%) is cold fermented for the cool, crisp, refreshing flavor you'd expect from a seasonal Australian lager.

By combining traditional Australian brewing methods with native Aussie hops and cane sugar, the brewers have developed a highly drinkable beer that is true to its heritage, with a clean citrusy hop profile, a subtle malty sweetness, and a bright straw color.

Frontman Brian Johnson told us that despite the decades flying by, AC/DC stays the same: "There's one important thing I think is very important, is we've never changed. The band has never, ever changed. As one interviewer said to Angus (Young), 'Y'know, you've made 15 albums, Angus, and they're all the same.' And Angus said, 'That's not true. We've made 17 albums, and they're all the same.'"

Gavin Rossdale says that Bush's new album "should be done by May," and that he has written 18 songs for the project. He told May The Rock Be With You that he's been doing most of the work in the studio in his house, especially during the pandemic.

Rossdale said the band plans to get into the studio with a producer and at that time they'll "rearrange - hopefully not too much - the stuff I've done." He said, "We choose the songs we're gonna do. We either might use what I started, the tracks, or we might just try nixing them and doing it fresh. Each song will dictate that."

Bush have been in the studio for the last few days and are gearing up to head to Australia on tour with Cheap Trick and Stone Temple Pilots beginning on Friday (March 11th) in Maitland, AU. They plan to put the finishing touches on the album once they return at the end of the month.

As one of the founders of the grunge scene of the 90's with his band, Soundgarden, guitarist Kim Thayil told Lifeminute that Mudhoney is "the band that'd best embody grunge."

Thayil said, "Grunge was this generic label that referred to bands from Seattle in general, but also included bands like (The) Smashing Pumpkins, and Stone Temple Pilots get thrown in with grunge a lot – they were in LA and Pumpkins were in Chicago. There's certainly a cultural aesthetic that we shared with all those bands, but I think musically, the idea of a big power chord that's all fuzzy and distorted. I think Nirvana might embody the musical identity of grunge, maybe – the band that'd best embody grunge, I would think, is Mudhoney, Mudhoney‘s sound, and their style and attitude. That's, that's like the archetypal grunge band."

Tickets are already on sale for the Foo Fighters' six-city stadium tour of Australia and New Zealand. Between November 30th and December 17th, Dave Grohl and the gang will hit Perth, Melbourne, Brisbane, and Sydney, Australia -- along with stops in Wellington and Auckland, New Zealand.

NME reported the assorted Australian and New Zealand support acts opening the shows will include the Chats, Teenage Joans, Teen Jesus & The Jean Teasers, Amyl And The Sniffers, and Dick Move. Britain's Hot Milk will also join the tour for three dates, marking their first-ever Down Under shows.

Dave Grohl told us a while back that it's vital for the band to change up the live show from night to night: "You've got to change it up. To keep things interesting musically, like, that's our lifeline, y'know, and to experiment and do things we've never done before. So we go out every night and we play all the loud, old rock stuff, we play all the loud new rock stuff, we play acoustic stuff, newer acoustic stuff, we just kind of change it up a little bit."

JUST ANNOUNCED: Foo Fighters Down Under tour dates (subject to change):

November 30 - Perth, Australia - HBF Park
December 4 - Melbourne, Australia - AAMI Park
December 10 - Brisbane, Australia - Suncorp Stadium
December 12 - Sydney, Australia - Accor Stadium
December 15 - Wellington, New Zealand - Sky Stadium
December 17 - Auckland, New Zealand - Western Springs Stadium

Limp Bizkit's Fred Durst reportedly had $3,000 of stuff stolen from his backyard. According to TMZ, a 30-year-old man unlawfully entered Durst's Los Angeles home through a gate and stole with such as a Tesla vehicle charger, a violin, among other things. Durst was not home at the time of the incident.

Cops were able to apprehend the bandit, due to Durst's security camera footage. The bandit was booked on charges of felony grand theft.