METALLICA Still Supporting Parents Of Murdered Fan
According to The Pulse Of Radio, more than three years after 20-year-old METALLICA fan Morgan Harrington vanished after leaving one of the band's concerts, only for her remains to be found several months later, the young girl's parents say that the band is still supporting their efforts to solve her murder and bring her killer to justice. Morgan's mother, Gil Harrington, told Noisecreep, "It has been humbling from the very beginning. Two days after Morgan was abducted, they could have distanced themselves from an ugly occurrence. But [METALLICAfrontman] James Hetfield called this house to speak to Dan[Harrington, Morgan's dad], as a father, and asked, 'What can we do?' Three years out, they are still doing things. James participated with theFBI and did public service announcements."
METALLICA has also added $50,000 to the $100,000 reward already offered by the Harringtons for information on their daughter's murder, and invested another $50,000 in a scholarship named in her memory.
Yet another $40,000 from the sale of a special "Enter Sandman" T-shirt was donated in Harrington's name to a medical scholarship fund atVirginia Tech, where the victim was a student.
The case remains unsolved and Morgan's parents continue to press the investigation in the hope that the killer does not claim another victim.
Morgan vanished while hitchhiking home from the band's show on theVirginia Tech campus on October 17, 2009. Her remains were found on a farm about 10 miles from the venue in January 2010.
METALLICA bassist Robert Trujillo told The Pulse Of Radio at the time how he felt when he first heard about the tragic incident. "I mean, I was crushed," he said. "Stuff like this just really, really bums me out, especially when you are a parent and you have children. I mean, it's the worst thing that you could ever imagine."
Although her killer is still at large, the FBI has used DNA evidence to link him to a 2005 sexual assault in Fairfax County. Authorities have not been able to identify the suspect but have released sketches of what he may look like.
Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the Virginia State Police at 434-352-3467.
Men's Wearhouse Apologizes To DAVE MUSTAINE For Delay In Delivering Gift Certificate
Men's Wearhouse, the U.S.-based men's dress apparel retailer, has apologized to MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine for the delay in delivering the gift certificate he purchased for the band's tour manager.
In a December 28 note on MEGADETH's Facebook page, Mustainedetailed his recent trouble with the chain, writing: "I know that not all of you have the kind of job that requires a suit, or wear a suit when you (if you) go to any kind of faith-based service, court date, wedding or funeral, but if you do…you are going to want to read this. You know me, I don't complain much in writing, but I gotta get this off my chest.
"A few days before Christmas, I purchased a gift certificate from theMen's Warehouse [sic] in Salt Lake City, Utah as a gift for our awesome tour manager Jim Carroccio. You know the Men's Warehouse [sic]… the old geezer with the voice that sound like he has chain-smoked since he was a fetus; the one that espouses, 'I absolutely guarantee you're gonna like the way you look,' or some manure like that, right?
"Well, I was talking to Jim today and wondering why he didn't say anything (I think we all wonder sometimes when our loved ones or friends get gifts if they actually like them) and it turns out that they decided to hold my order, otherwise called by them as 'pending,' and told no one. For almost 9 days now, I have been waiting for delivery of this gift certificate, and I wouldn't say anything because it IS the holidays, but these salesmen promised that they would GUARANTEE a two-day delivery of the certificate to Jim (it seems they throw this word GUARANTEE around quite a lot).
"So, we called and asked what happened and they have no explanation whatsoever, they didn't care, and when we asked if they were going to do anything to remedy this, they made no effort whatsoever for this mix-up… although they did promise me the same GUARANTEE that they gave me when I bought it; that is that they will send it 'two-day delivery,' but I already was promised this. Maybe they mean 12-day delivery.
"I really think that it sucks when people make false claims, that they don't care to make good on a problem that is clearly their fault, and with all of the 'ABSOLUTELY GUARANTEE IT' crap I just had to say something. We are all living in very tight financial times right now, and like I said, you may not wear a suit for your job or for an event or occasion, but if you do, I would strongly recommend you wear someone else's suits. Go to JoS A. Bankinstead. I for one, will never set foot in a Men's Warehouse [sic], even for shelter from a blizzard. I absolutely GUARANTEE it."
On January 2, Men's Wearhouse responded to Mustaine viaMEGADETH's Facebook page, admitting that the delay in processing the order was "unacceptable" and standing by its promise to "deliver world-class customer service."
"Dave, thanks for reaching out to us on Facebook," Joe of the Men's Wearhouse "social media team" wrote. "We apologize for the delay in receiving your gift card and agree that the delay is unacceptable. Customer satisfaction is our highest priority and we stand by our guarantee to deliver world-class customer service. So, we'd like to speak with you about a solution but are having some trouble reaching you since we last connected on 12/28. Please send your contact info to MWListens@tmw.com and our team will help you right away."
ALL THAT REMAINS Drummer Says Singer LABONTE 'Likes To Be Around Things He's Familiar With'
Anthony Morgan of Metal Forces recently conducted an interview with drummer Jason Costa of Massachusetts metallers ALL THAT REMAINS. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.
On the band's latest album, "A War You Cannot Win":
Jason: "This is a very guitar, very melody-oriented album. It wasn't very rhythm-based at all. I would just say it's metal; it's a metal album. We've got some heavy songs on there, some heavy, groovy songs on there. We've got some fast, heavy songs on there, we've got some more radio-friendly, melodic songs on there. It's typical ALL THAT REMAINS, really, but we've definitely stepped up the musicianship there and the writing. It's becoming more polished, a bit more refined. I've been in the band for six years now, so the band's been a solid unit for six years. Whereas there've been a lot of membership changes in the past and everything, everyone's been gelling more. Not that they hadn't in the past or anything, but getting to know everyone better and the chemistry coming together more and everything just really helps a lot."
On whether ALL THAT REMAINS differ much between albums:
Jason: "When I joined, they already had most of the material written for'Overcome'. The last album, 'For We Are Many', and this album seem to be pretty much the same. There are melodic songs, there are fast songs, and there are heavy songs. It's kind of the same. It's not heavier or less heavier, or faster or slower. If you compare all of the songs, they're pretty much the same. The only album that was ever a little bit different from the rest I would say was 'The Fall Of Ideals' [July 2006], which was written in a very rhythmic kind of way. Previously the band had a drummer [Michael Bartlett] that couldn't play a lot of double-bass on 'This Darkened Heart' [March 2004]. When they got Shannon [Lucas] who then joined THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER afterwards, they loved the fact that he could play double-bass. They wanted to just have every song with tons and tons of double-bass in it, because they weren't used to it. It was like a new thing for them to play around with, so they wrote mostly every song around these double-bass patterns. If you go back and listen to that album, most of those songs are written to double-bass patterns. After that though, they didn't wanna write the same album again. Sometimes kids will come up, and say 'Why don't you write another album like 'The Fall Of Ideals'?' To answer that question, that's because we already wrote 'The Fall Of Ideals'. [laughs] I wasn't in the band, but when I joined the band, I thought it was gonna be like 'The Fall Of Ideals'. I was psyched, because I love playing double-bass. I'm actually one of the people in the band that fights to keep everything as heavy as possible, much to everyone's dismay sometimes. [laughs] That was a little bit different, but now they want to explore other things. Most of the members have been in the band for years and years, so sometimes you don't wanna play the same thing all the time. It's nice to branch out, Phil [Labonte, vocals] using another style of vocals and Oli [Herbert, guitars] and Mike[Martin, rhythm guitars] exploring other avenues as far as melodies go in songs, and stuff in different tempos. I know that was an amorphous, vague answer to your question, but that's how I feel about all that. It's a big question to ask."
On frontman Phil Labonte not liking touring Europe:
Jason: "Phil's kind of a hermit. He likes to stay at home, and likes to be around things that he's familiar with. That's just him. Just because you're in a band doesn't mean you're not subject to the same sort of mental issues that everyone else in the world is. [laughs] You're still a human being, and you're still gonna have your opinions and stuff like that. He's not saying that to be mean. He'd really rather be home around things that he's more familiar with, and be able to read street signs and understand people rather than have to filter something through an accent. He's not being a jerk by saying that; he's just being honest. We're definitely going to tour Europe still. If he didn't wanna go to Europe, he's our singer. We couldn't just go without him, so we'll be in Europe soon and that's proof positive that fans shouldn't take that at all in any personal way."
On whether Phil Labonte likes the band's European fans:
Jason: "Are you kidding me? What he thinks are our best shows ever are… I can't remember… Like Malmö (Sweden), and Finland. We've had some amazing, amazing shows over there, and he's gotten offstage glowing, saying 'Oh my God. That was the best show ever’. It's the fans that make it the best show ever."
Frontman Chris Cornell Promises “Really Old, Obscure Songs” on Upcoming Soundgarden Tour
In less than two weeks, Soundgarden will kick off a North American tour to promote their first album in more than 15 years, King Animal. Frontman Chris Cornell says fans who attend the upcoming gigs will experience a wide variety of tracks from the band’s catalog.
“We’re gonna probably gravitate towards new songs because we’re like that,” the singer tells ABC News Radio. “We’re also gonna probably gravitate toward some really old, obscure songs that we haven’t played in 20 years, or ever, because we’re like that too.”
While the band hasn’t revealed if they’ll be making more new music after the tour, Cornell notes that the guys usually have no rules when it comes to their future plans. “I think that we should be a band forever and assemble and make music, play shows, do whatever it is we want to do when we all feel like doing it,” he notes. “[We should] not ever feel like it’s necessary to define being together or not being together as a band.”
Soundgarden’s tour begins on January 16 at Terminal 5 in New York City. Visit SoundgardenWorld.com to view the full itinerary.
Former Guns N' Roses Drummer Matt Sorum Recording New Solo Album
Matt Sorum has already proven he’s a great drummer, but now he’s ready to show off some of his other musical abilities.
The former Guns N’ Roses member recently revealed on Twitter that he’s working on a new solo album, which will feature his vocal and guitar skills, rather than his drumming. Sorum tweeted, “My new solo record will not be a rock record and I am not playing drums on it Singing and acoustic mainly, using another drummer.”
Sorum gave fans an idea of what they expect from the upcoming release, tweeting, “My solo record is a cross between Doors, Pink Floyd, Wilco, David GreyPeter Murphy andPortishead.” In addition, Sorum also listed a number of song titles that are expected to be a part of the forthcoming album’s track list, including "The Sea,” "What Ziggy Says,” "Killers N' Lovers,” "Ode to Nick Drake,” "Blue Josephine,” "Gone,” "Lady of the Stone" and "Land of the Pure," which Sorum says is “about children of Pakistan.”
A release date for the album has yet to be announced.
Marilyn Manson, Steve Jones Contribute Songs toCalifornication Compilation
In addition to appearing as guest stars in the upcoming season of Californication, Marliyn Manson and former Sex Pistols guitarist Steve Jones have contributed songs to a new compilation album, Music from the Showtime Series Californication Season 6, which will be released on January 15.
Manson contributed his 2004 cover version of Depeche Mode’s "Personal Jesus" to the upcoming release, while Jones offered up his interpretation of David Bowie’s “Suffragette City,” from his 1989 album, Fire and Gasoline. The album also includes tracks from Ryan Adams, ex-Screaming Trees frontman Mark Lanegan and Johnny Thunders.
The sixth season of Californication will premiere on January 13 at 10:30 p.m. ET on Showtime. Here's the complete list of songs and artists on the Music from the Showtime Series Californication Season 6 album:
"Suffragette City" (David Bowie cover) -- Steve Jones
"Personal Jesus" (Depeche Mode cover) -- Marilyn Manson
"Fever" -- The Blind Pets
"You Can't Put Your Arms Round a Memory" -- Johnny Thunders
"Nothing Else Matters" (Metallica cover) -- Lissie
"Wasted Years" (Iron Maiden cover) -- Ryan Adams
"For My Next Trick, I'll Need a Volunteer" -- Warren Zevon
"So Long" (As We Are Together) -- Tim Minchin
"Time To Move On" (Tom Petty cover) -- Hi Ho Silver Oh ft. Leslie Stevens
"Funk 50" -- Joe Walsh
"Action Woman" -- The Litter
"Strange Religion" -- Mark Lanegan
"What's Your Story" -- The Soundtrack of Our Lives
"My California" -- Beth Hart
Jack White Offers Unreleased Live Recordings & Demos Featuring Brendan Benson to Third Man Records Vault Series Subscribers
The fifteenth installment of Jack White’s Third Man Records subscription series The Vaultwill include a number of previously-unreleased live recordings the ex-White Stripesfrontman recorded with his Raconteurs band mate, Brendan Benson.
The package includes a vinyl album that documents White’s debut concert with Jack White and the Bricks, a short-lived side project which featured Benson on guitar. TitledJack White and the Bricks: Live on the Garden Bowl Lanes, the album includes a cover of the Stripes’ “Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground,” along with covers of Bob Dylan’s “Isis” and “I Threw It All Away.” That show took place on White’s 24th birthday on July 9, 1999 at Garden Bowl in Detroit, MI.
Vault subscribers will also receive a 7” vinyl record featuring early demo recordings of White and Benson performing The Raconteurs single "Steady, As She Goes" and the Stripes’ "The Same Boy You've Always Known." In addition, a film titled White Heat will also be included in the package. The movie features performances and behind-the-scenes footage of The White Stripes European tour with Whirlwind Heat in 2002.
Vault package number fifteen will be available to all subscribing members until January 31.
Here is the track list for Jack White and the Bricks: Live on the Garden Bowl Lanes:
“Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground”
“Isis” (Bob Dylan cover)
“Do”
“Same Boy You've Always Known”
“The Union Forever"
“Now Mary”
“Black Jack Davy”
“I Threw It All Away (Bob Dylan cover)
“Ain't It a Shame” (? and the Mysterians cover)
Rise Against to Focus on “Recharging Batteries” Before Writing Next Album
Rise Against will be taking some time off. Frontman Tim McIlrath says that he’d like to give the band a break before they begin working on the follow-up to their 2011 album,Endgame.
"We're kind of focusing on recharging our batteries right now," he tells Rolling Stone. "We realize we need to invest time into our music and our songs, as well as invest time into ourselves, our lives, so I think for the next few months that's what we'll be doing.”
Buckcherry Previews "Gluttony" Video Online
While the video for Buckcherry’s single "Gluttony" won't premiere until January 16, the band recently posted a teaser clip to tide fans over. The 41-second clip features the band performing the track in a church surrounded by a large group of enthusiastic fans.
"Gluttony" is the first single from the band’s upcoming sixth studio album, Confessions,which arrives at all the usual outlets on February 19. The new album includes 13 tracks and will feature a central theme focused on the seven deadly sins: wrath, greed, sloth, pride, lust, envy, and gluttony.
Buckcherry has said that they’ll be previewing new songs from Confessions on their upcoming tour dates with Kid Rock and Hellbound Glory. That outing kicks off on February 2 at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, MO.
Here is the track list:
“Gluttony”
“Wrath”
“Nothing Left but Tears”
“The Truth”
“Greed”
“Water”
“Seven Ways to Die”
“Air”
“Sloth”
“Pride”
“Envy”
“Lust”
“Dreamin' of You”
