RANDY BLYTHE: 'It'll Be Hard For Them To Convict Me On The Charge They Have Leveled Against Me'
LAMB OF GOD frontman Randy Blythe was released from a prison in Prague, the Czech Republic, on August 2, more than a month after he was arrested and incarcerated on charges of alleged manslaughter. Blythe was facing the possibility of conviction and a long-term jail sentence after a 2010 incident in which a fan attending a LAMB OF GOD show died almost a month later, allegedly from injuries sustained when he was thrown off the stage. Blythe's predicament galvanized the heavy rock community, with artists across the hard rock genre pledging their support.
A few days after his return to Richmond, Virginia, Blythe spoke to Linda Leseman of LA Weekly about his feelings, his plans to stand trial, and losing his own daughter to a heart defect. An excerpt from the chat follows below.
LA Weekly: You've said you'll stand trial in Prague if you have to because you can understand how the young man's family must feel, as you lost a child yourself.
Randy: My first wife and I... we had a daughter together who had a heart defect. We knew that when the baby was in utero. And the doctors told us it's going to be no big deal, when [she comes] out, we'll operate on her...At about seven and a half, eight months or so, the baby went into distress in utero. So there was a Caesarean section. She came out. She was alive. But, due to the fact that she was slightly premature, she was too small for them to go ahead and operate on. So, she was alive for a while, and then they were like, "This isn't working out." So, I said, "Well, let her go." It's something I really can't describe in words and nobody could understand unless they had to live through this. I know that this family [in Prague] is just going through the worst possible hell, and they have questions. So, despite the fact that I maintain my innocence, I feel ethically and morally obliged to do my best to provide them with some answers, if it goes to trial, to help them go down this road, where their pain can lessen a little bit.
LA Weekly: It almost sounds like you're trusting that you're not going to be convicted.
Randy: I think we have a good case. I think it'll be hard for them to convict me on the charge that they have leveled against me because it's ludicrous. From what I understand, it's a crime of intent, and I certainly never intended to hurt anyone at any point in time during that show. But, life shows up and happens. Right? It shows up and happens. And if it shows up, and they give me ten years, I will have to deal with it as such. It's frightening for me to think about. The fact of the matter that I don't want to go to prison for ten years in a foreign country or in America or in any country has nothing to do with the fact that I need to do the right thing. That's the whole thing, you know? I have to do the right thing. Otherwise, I wouldn't be able to face myself.
Maryland rockers CLUTCH have commenced work on their new studio album. The band is currently in pre-production and is shooting to have the album out in early 2013.
Due to overwhelming demand, CLUTCH has added two shows to its short run this November. With both the Flint, Michiganand Detroit, Michigan shows sold out, the band has added an additional show to each city. The new show in Flint at the Machine Shop is scheduled for October 31 and the new show in Detroit at St. Andrews Hall is scheduled for November 4. Tickets for both shows will go on sale this Friday, August 17. MONSTROwill be opening all of the dates with LIONIZE providing direct support.
CLUTCH recently released a limited-edition picture disc single of the track "Pigtown Blues" via Weathermaker Music. The single is also available digitally. The A-side is "Pigtown Blues" and the B-side is an acoustic version of the track "Motherless Child". The disc can be found at your favorite record store as well as online at ClutchMerch.com. This is the first new studio material from CLUTCH since 2009's "Strange Cousins From The West", and the first simultaneous worldwide release for Weathermaker Music.
SYSTEM OF A DOWN Singer Open To Issuing 'Greatest Hits' CD With Previously Unreleased Tracks
Musik Universe conducted an interview with singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, poet and political activist Serj Tankian (SYSTEM OF A DOWN) on August 11 at this year's edition of the Heavy MTL festival at Parc Jean-Drapeau in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. You can now watch the chat below.
Tankian and his SYSTEM bandmates have made it clear in recent interviews that no plans have yet been made for the group to begin work on a new studio album. However, the singer says that he would be receptive to the idea of issuing a "best-of"-style collection with several previously unreleased songs from the SYSTEM archives.
"I think we have about four or five unreleased tracks that we finished before," Serj said. "We need to talk about what to do with them, etc. But I would be very open to releasing, like, a greatest-hits record with a few [previously] unreleased tracks. However, we haven't really discussed it, so I don't wanna make a promise."
Tankian is spending much of his time this year promoting his third solo album, "Harakiri", which debuted at No. 29 on the Billboard album chart last month, selling 12,000 copies in its first week of release.
Asked if he misses writing music in a band-type situation while he is working on his solo material, Tankian said, "It's an interesting dynamic, I think, writing by yourself and writing with people. When you have a very focused idea, a very concrete kind of understanding of what you wanna present and have the skills and the ability to completely present it the exact way that you want to, it's much more conducive to do it yourself. If you have ideas that require other people's input to kind of make it something else than what you have, then a collaboration — whether it's with SYSTEM or anyone else for that matter — would be much smarter."
SYSTEM OF A DOWN last released new music in 2005 on the"Mezmerize" and "Hypnotize" albums, going on hiatus the following year.
The band reunited in 2011 for touring purposes and launched a new run with DEFTONES on August 2 in Philadelphia.
Tankian told Loudwire that SYSTEM's recent tours have been a "blast," adding, "I think we've played better because of it. There was new excitement in playing together and all of the shows have been really great. Everyone's told us that we sound better than we did in 2006 when we left off, so I think it's great."
Source: Blabbermouth.net
Stone Sour Streaming “Gone Sovereign/Absolute Zero”
Stone Sour is giving us a taste of their upcoming double album, House of Gold and Bones. The band is currently streaming their single “Gone Sovereign/Absolute Zero,” which will be featured on Part One of the release.
Frontman Corey Taylor says that the band will be doing some musical experimentation on the forthcoming concept album.
"Each song tells a different part of the story, but it's so unique unto itself," Taylor tellsRolling Stone. "That was one of the things we really wanted to go for; we didn't want to do a batch of tunes that all sound alike. We wanted to make sure each song had its own soul, basically."
Taylor also revealed new details about a comic book series that he is developing based on the album. “It's looking like we're gonna release the comics in…a four-issue miniseries," explains the singer. "The first two issues will be part one and then the last two issues will be part two. We want to really try and keep it on a timeline where they come out, right around the time that Part Two comes out.” House of Gold and BonesPart One is set to arrive in stores in October, while Part Two is expected to be released sometime next year.
Guitarist Wes Borland Says DJ Lethal’s Dismissal from Limp Bizkit Was a “Personal Thing”
Limp Bizkit guitarist Wes Borland has opened up about the departure of original band member DJ Lethal, who was asked to leave the band earlier this year. Borland says that Lethal’s unprofessional behavior was the main cause for his dismissal.
"It's a personal thing for us," Borland tells Billboard.com. "He was kind of a pain in the a** on tour and not really willing to change a lot of things...like just showing up on time and stuff like that, and we had just had enough of it.”
Borland added that the guys are open to having him back, provided that he loses his bad habits and stops lashing out at the band on his Twitter account. “Every time he wants to fix [our relationship with him] and we say 'not yet,' he blows up on Twitter and says all these crazy things, and we go, 'OK, so it hasn't changed,'” explains the guitarist. “I'm waiting for him to come around and sort of have his actions speak instead of him just trying to reach out to us through words."
In addition, Borland reveals that Limp Bizkit is in the process of working on the band’s first album with their new record label, Cash Money Records. “Right now we're recording songs, and it's been all over the place as far as what it is we're doing,” reveals Borland. “They don't make sense together yet."
Jack White, M83, Alabama Shakes to Perform at Virgin Mobile FreeFest in October
Stars including Jack White, M83 and Alabama Shakes will be performing at this year’s Virgin Mobile FreeFest, which will be held at Merriweather Post Pavilion on October 6 in Columbia, MD. Other artists appearing at the event include Ben Folds Five, ZZ Top andPortugal. The Man, plus more.
A ticket pre-sale for the event begins on August 23. Tickets will be available to the general public the next day at 12 p.m. ET. To see the full artist lineup, visit VirginMobileLive.com.
Kid Rock Among Artists Doing NFL Anthems for Home Teams
Kid Rock is just one of the artists teaming with Pepsi to get into the football spirit this season. The artists have recorded original anthems for their home teams, which will be available for free download at PepsiAnthems.com.
Kid Rock got in on the campaign with his song for the Detroit Lions. The track is coming soon, and will be available for download using the redemption codes on specially-marked packs of Pepsi, Diet Pepsi and Pepsi MAX.
The other artists participating include Kelly Clarkson, who kicked off the campaign with her song for the Dallas Cowboys. Ice Cube recorded an anthem for the Oakland Raiders and Travie McCoy has done a song for the New York Giants. A remixed version of Wiz Khalifa's #1 hit "Black and Yellow," for the Pittsburgh Steelers, completes the campaign.
All these songs will be debuted weekly on PepsiAnthems.com and will be available for free through the end of February.
Five Finger Death Punch Scores 10th Straight Top-10 Active Rock Single with “Coming Down”
Five Finger Death Punch has achieved a major milestone. The band’s single, “Coming Down,” from their latest album, American Capitalist, hit #1 on the Active Rock Chart this week. “Coming Down” marks the band’s tenth consecutive top-10 single on the Active Rock Chart, following recent previous #1 singles, "Under and Over It" and "Remember Everything."
"Radio stations across the U.S., and basically the whole world, have been very supportive of the band,” said frontman Ivan Moody in a statement. “With 'Coming Down,' there is obviously a deep message of hope this song lyrically offers. To have success on the radio with a track that is so meaningful to me personally, and many others, is an amazing feeling."
FFDP are currently trekking across the country on their Trespass America Festival, which includes performances by Killswitch Engage, Trivium, Pop Evil, Emmure, God Forbid and Battlecross.
Watch Metallica Perform “One,” Celebrate Frontman Hetfield’s Birthday with Silly String in Video Recap of Mexican Concert
Metallica is sharing more footage of their six-night residency in Mexico City. After posting videos of themselves performing “Ride the Lightning” and “Cyanide,” the guys have now unveiled a new clip from their August 3 concert at Sports Palace in Mexico City, Mexico.
The 18-minute video features footage from Metallica’s headlining set, including a full performance of “One” from their 1988 album, ...And Justice for All. In addition, the end of the video features a rather unique birthday celebration for frontman James Hetfield, who turned 49 on August 3. As the singer was leaving the stage at the end of the concert, his band members and road crew covered Hetfield with Silly String and pies as a birthday tribute.
Papa Roach Frontman Says The Connection Is “Dynamic, Diverse and Vulnerable”
In less than two months, Papa Roach will release their seventh studio album, The Connection. Frontman Jacoby Shaddix says that he feels the upcoming album is the band’s best work to date.
“We topped ourselves on this one -- it encompasses all things about this band and we went back in the vault and listened and listened to all of our styles and themes to figure out where we were headed and we nailed it,” Shaddix tells Noisecreep. “It's adventurous as hell, we laid all these grooves down that are sick, dirty, slinky -- there's some hip-hop, more keyboards than before, sound loops, textures -- it's dynamic, diverse and vulnerable. We have never sounded better.”
While The Connection won’t arrive in stores until October 2, you’ll get your chance to hear songs from the album performed live when Papa Roach hits the road with Shinedown,Godsmack, Staind and P.O.D. for the third annual Rockstar Uproar Festival. That outing kicks off on Friday at Capitol Federal Park at Sandstone in Kansas City, MO.
