Lazer 103.3 - Everything That Rocks - Ryan's Blog

Today is the Day

ryan-kazr — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 12:45:59 +0000

All of the Pink Floyd remasters hit stores. All this week Jimmy Fallon is playing tribute to the band.

Get all of the info on the re-issues here.

Ozzy Doc to DVD

ryan-kazr — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 12:42:23 +0000

The documentary God Bless Ozzy Osbourne will arrive on DVD and Blu-ray on November 15th. The movie, executive produced by Ozzy’s son Jack, chronicles the singer’s early life, his troubled youth, his career with Black Sabbath and his rebirth as a solo artist, along with his longtime addictions to drugs and alcohol. The film features interviews with family members, friends and fellow musicians, plus rare concert, backstage and personal footage of Ozzy.

GNR on Hall of Fame Short list

ryan-kazr — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 12:41:28 +0000

The shortlist for the 2012 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has been announced and this year’s first-time hopefuls include Guns ‘N Roses, the Cure, Heart, Joan Jett & The Blackhearts, the Spinners, the Small Faces/the Faces, War, Rufus with Chaka Khan, Donna Summer, Freddie King, and rappers Eric B. & Rakim. Also making a return to the ballot after getting previously passed over are the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Laura Nyro, the Beastie Boys, Donovan and War.

If Guns N’ Roses makes the induction list, the questions becomes whether singer Axl Rose — who currently leads a version of the group in which he is the only original member — will share the stage with founding members Slash, Duff McKagan and Izzy Stradlin. While Rose has made his peace with McKagan and Stradlin in recent years, he refuses to mend fences with Slash.

On a side note, THE FOLLOWING ARTISTS ARE NOT IN THE ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAME

Rush, Kiss, Boston, The Monkees, Hall & Oates, Joe Cocker, Yes, Sonny & Cher, Ringo Starr, Bernie Taupin, Brian Wilson, Gram Parsons, Grand Funk Railroad, Chicago, ELO, Journey, the Zombies, Frankie Avalon, Squeeze, Pat Benatar, Todd Rundgren, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, The E Street Band, Badfinger, Big Star, The Flying Burrito Brothers, Sting, Humble Pie, Eddie Money, T.Rex, Beatles manager Brian Epstein, Beatles recording engineers Norman Smith and Geoff Emerick, Styx, Free, Who engineer and producer Glyn Johns, Billy Idol, Rockpile, The Runaways, rock photographers Jim Marshall, Ethan Russell, Gered Mankowitz, Dezo Hoffman, Astrid Kirchherr, Annie Leibovitz, Henry Diltz, and Bob Gruen; Chubby Checker, The Guess Who, rock journalist Lester Bangs, The Turtles, Def Leppard, Deep Purple, Cheap Trick, Rolling Stones pianist Ian Stewart, Mitch Ryder & the Detroit Wheels, Kansas, Thin Lizzy, Joe Walsh, Squeeze, Delaney & Bonnie, Roxy Music, The Dictators, Brian Eno, Meat Loaf, America, XTC, The Searchers, Leslie Gore, The Raspberries, Paul Revere & The Raiders, Linda Ronstadt, The MC5, Peter Gabriel, Herman’s Hermits, the Moody Blues, Mountain, Blue Oyster Cult, Chic, The New York Dolls, The Steve Miller Band, Peter Frampton, Jethro Tull, Foreigner, Bad Company, and many more.

Grohl Would have Quit Nirvana?

ryan-kazr — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 12:38:51 +0000

An upcoming biography of Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl claims that the former Nirvana drummer nearly quit that band in 1993 after hearing Kurt Cobain make disparaging remarks about his playing while on a plane from Seattle to Los Angeles. According to Ultimate Classic Rock, Grohl is quoted as saying, “Kurt was kinda f***ed up. And I heard him talking about how s***ty a drummer I was. I just want to f***ing play music. I don’t want to have to deal with any of this craziness.”

Cobain apparently added that he wished Grohl played more like Mudhoney drummer Dan Peters, who actually did a short stint in Nirvana before Grohl came along in 1990.

Grohl was calmed down by manager Alex McLeod and put aside any thoughts of leaving the group by the time the flight landed, but the author of the book, Paul Brannigan, thinks Grohl would have eventually left anyway if Nirvana’s career had not been cut short by Cobain’s death in 1994.

Brannigan explained, “Dave was very aware that Nirvana was Kurt and (bassist) Krist (Novoselic)’s band, and that as lifelong friends, they shared a bond which went beyond music. At some point I feel that Dave would have parted company with the pair.” The book, titled This Is A Call: The Life And Times Of Dave Grohl, hits stores this December.

The Foo fighters joined Roger waters last night on Jimmy fallon and played \'In the Flesh\'. The Video is here.

Kid Rock Teams Up With Sammy Hagar

ryan-kazr — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 12:40:51 +0000

Chickenfoot frontman Sammy Hagar went solo this past weekend (Friday, August 12th and Saturday, August 13th) to open two shows for Kid Rock in the latter’s hometown of Detroit. Hagar’s nine-song opening sets featured a mix of solo cuts, Van Halen material and even some oldies from his early act Montrose, while keeping a lid on any Chickenfoot tunes.

Hagar joined Rock on Friday for a cover of Grand Funk Railroad’s classic “We’re An American Band.”

Check out the video here.

Sabbath Returning?

ryan-kazr — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 12:34:06 +0000

An article published by the U.K.’s Birmingham Mail on Tuesday (August 16th) revealed that the original lineup of Black Sabbath had reunited and was planning a world tour and new studio album. But Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi threw the accuracy of that report into question — even if he didn’t actually deny that the heavy metal legends were getting back together.

The Mail reported that the original four members of Sabbath — Iommi, singer Ozzy Osbourne, bassist Geezer Butler and drummer Bill Ward — have already begun rehearsing and writing music, quoting Iommi as saying, “We’re really looking forward to it and I think the stuff we’ve been writing is really good. It’s more back to the old original stuff.”

The report added that the band has been trying to keep the reunion a secret, with Iommi quoted as saying, “It’s all been very hush-hush. Ozzy’s been the worst at trying to hold it back.”

Shinedown Hits the Studio

ryan-kazr — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 12:32:47 +0000

Shinedown has begun recording its fourth album, according to a press release issued by Atlantic Records on Tuesday (August 16th). The band is working at Ocean Way Recording in Los Angeles with producer Rob Cavallo, who previously collaborated with the group on 2008’s million-selling The Sound Of Madness. Frontman Brent Smith said, “To say we are emotionally charged to start recording the new album would be a huge understatement. Everyone hold on tight, this is going to be intense!”

Cavallo, who is best known for his work with Green Day, added, “After working with them on The Sound Of Madness, I knew that they would deliver, but they’ve even surpassed my high expectations with the songs they’ve brought to the table this time around.”

Shinedown Hits the Studio

ryan-kazr — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 12:32:42 +0000

Van Halen Pulls Out Of First Shows of 2011

ryan-kazr — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 12:40:28 +0000

Just what led to the cancellation of Van Halen’s first tour dates of 2011? The band was supposed to play five shows in Australia in late September and early October as part of the Soundwave Revolution festival, but the entire event was abruptly scrapped earlier this week by the promoters, who cited the exit of a second, unnamed headliner and low ticket sales as the reasons for the plug being pulled.

The festival’s lineup also included Alice Cooper, Hellyeah, Hole, Bad Religion, Alter Bridge and Panic! At The Disco, among others. Australia’s Triple M Radio reported that Aerosmith was the second headliner that promoters were trying to secure, but were unable to do so.

One theory suggested that the cancellation was the fault of another act rumored to be on the bill, Limp Bizkit. But singer Fred Durst was quick to shoot that down, saying online, “We were never on the bill to play any festival down under. So it looks like Van Halen cancels and we get thrown into the mix.”

There is in fact a lot of speculation that Van Halen itself pulled out of the festival, but the Van Halen News Desk reported adamantly that the band had nothing to do with the cancellation of the event. The Australian shows would have been Van Halen’s first since its reunion tour with singer David Lee Roth wrapped up in the summer of 2008. The band is reportedly putting the finishing touches on its first album with Roth in 27 years, although no official details about the disc have been announced yet.

Ex-RHCP Guitarist Being Stalked

ryan-kazr — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 13:55:43 +0000

Ex-Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist John Frusciante has kept a low profile since leaving the band last year, but has now come back into the public eye after filing a request for a restraining order against a woman whom he says is stalking him. According to TMZ.com, Frusciante filed the request last week in Los Angeles, claiming that a 32-year-old woman named August Elizabeth Thomas is harassing him and that he is “worried that she is unstable and that she could snap at any moment.”

Frusciante alleges that Thomas approached him in 2010 about writing a screenplay based on his life, and wouldn’t take no for an answer after the guitarist turned her down.

In his court documents, Frusciante claims that Thomas began sending him “long, rambling and overly emotional” emails and letters, in which she would sometimes admit she was drunk. She also allegedly showed up at concerts by Frusciante’s wife, Nicole Turley, to find Frusciante and talk about her script.

Frusciante says that the final straw was two weeks ago, when Thomas showed up at his house on July 28th and again on the 29th. He wrote, “I fear both for my safety and for my wife’s safety. Given that my wife and I are musicians and often play at venues around the world, it is hard for us to avoid Ms. Thomas if she is free to continually show up to harass us.”