Anyz kochenz … aazk za pankaz!
Posts tagged Metal
Artist of the day – Steve Vai
Feb 7th
Steven Siro Vai (born June 6, 1960 in Carle Place, New York) is a Grammy Award-winning guitarist, composer and record producer.
When growing up, the young Vai became interested in rock giants such as Jimi Hendrix, Alice Cooper, Queen, Cream and Led Zeppelin, which influenced his early guitar career. He first picked up a guitar when he was invited by a friend to join him for a lesson, thus splitting the $10 fee. Vai went out and bought a cheap acoustic guitar and took it to the lesson with his friend’s teacher (Joe Satriani). Prior to attending Berklee College of Music, Steve frequently jammed with his teacher Joe Satriani and played in numerous local bands. He has acknowledged the influence of many guitarists, including Jeff Beck and fusion guitarist Allan Holdsworth.
It was also at this time that he became fascinated by the music of Frank Zappa. A persistent rumor at Berklee tells how Steve would skip classes while spending time in the school’s library transcribing Zappa’s works by ear. Steve mailed transcriptions of Zappa’s guitar solos to him, and after meeting Vai for the first time Zappa was so impressed with the abilities of the young musician, he hired him to do work transcribing his seemingly endless array of experimental symphonic rock. In these formative stages of his career, Vai’s talent was showcased on such songs as “Moggio” and “Stevie’s Spanking.”
While employed by Zappa, he would at times tour with Zappa’s band and engage in a friendly competition with the audience, wherein audience members could bring in musical scores and see if Vai could sight-read them on the spot.
Zappa referred to Steve as his “little Italian virtuoso” and was listed in liner notes as “stunt guitar.” He would later be a featured artist on the recording, “Zappa’s Universe.” In 2006 he returned to Zappa music, as special guest on Dweezil Zappa’s Zappa Plays Zappa tour.
After leaving Zappa in 1982 he moved to California where he recorded his first album Flex-Able and performed in a couple of bands. In 1984 he replaced Yngwie Malmsteen as lead guitarist in Graham Bonnet’s Alcatrazz with whom he recorded the album Disturbing the Peace.
Later in 1985 Vai joined former Van Halen frontman David Lee Roth’s newly assembled group (which also featured acclaimed bassist Billy Sheehan and drummer Gregg Bissonette) to record the multi-platinum albums Eat’em And Smile and Skyscraper. These albums, along with their accompanying videos and arena tours significantly increased Vai’s public familiarity.
In 1986 Vai also surprised many by playing with ex-Sex Pistol John Lydon’s Public Image Ltd on their album “Album”. Following 1988′s popular Skyscraper Tour, Vai left David Lee Roth’s band. In 1989 Vai stepped into guitarist Adrian Vandenberg’s shoes to record with British rock-group Whitesnake after Vandenberg injured his wrist shortly before recording was due to begin for the album Slip of the Tongue.
Vai also played on the Alice Cooper album “Hey Stoopid” along with Joe Satriani on the song “Feed my Frankenstein”.
Steve Vai continues to tour regularly, both with his own group and with his one time teacher and fellow guitar instrumentalist friend Joe Satriani on the G3 series of tours. Former David Lee Roth bassist Billy Sheehan also joined him for a world tour.
In 1990 Steve Vai released his critically acclaimed solo album “Passion and Warfare”. In 1994 Steve Vai began writing and recording with Ozzy Osbourne. Only one track from these sessions “My Little Man” was released on the “Ozzmosis” album. Despite Steve penning the track he does not appear on the album. His guitar parts were replaced by Zakk Wylde.
Vai’s band members throughout the 1990s included drummer Mike Mangini, guitarist Mike Keneally and bassist Philip Bynoe.
In 1994 Vai received a Grammy Award for his performance on the Frank Zappa song “Sofa” from the album Zappa’s Universe.
In July 2002, Steve Vai performed with the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra at the Suntory Hall in Tokyo, Japan, in the world premiere of composer Ichiro Nodaira‘s Fire Strings, a concerto for electric guitar and 100-piece orchestra. In 2004, a number of his compositions for orchestra, as well as orchestra arrangements of previously recorded pieces, were performed in The Netherlands by the Metropole Orchestra in a concert series entitled The Aching Hunger.
In 2003, drummer Jeremy Colson joined Vai’s group replacing previous drummer Virgil Donati. Vai’s latest album, Real Illusions: Reflections, was released in 2005, and Steve Vai and the Breed, as the band is now called, has embarked on a world tour in support of that album.
Steve Vai released a DVD of his performance at The Astoria in London in December 2001, featuring the lineup of bassist Billy Sheehan, formerly of David Lee Roth and Mr. Big, guitar and piano virtuoso Tony MacAlpine, guitarist Dave Weiner and drummer Virgil Donati.
In 2004, Steve Vai was featured on Xbox’s Halo 2 Volume 1 soundtrack, performing a heavy rock-guitar rendition of the “Halo 2 Theme”, known as “Halo 2 Theme (Mjolnir Mix)”. He also performed on the track “Never Surrender”. In the second iteration of the soundtrack, he performed on the track “Reclaimer”.
In February 2005, Vai premiered a dual-guitar (electric and classical) piece that he wrote called The Blossom Suite with classical guitarist Sharon Isbin at the Châtelet Theatre in Paris.
In 2006, Vai played as a “special guest” guitarist alongside additional guest Zappa band members, drummer Terry Bozzio and singer Napoleon Murphy Brock in the Zappa Plays Zappa tour led by Frank’s son Dweezil Zappa in Europe and the U.S. in the Spring as well as a short U.S. tour in October.
On September 21, 2006, Vai made a special appearance at the “Video Games Live” concert at the Hollywood Bowl in Hollywood, California. He played two songs with the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. One song being the Halo Theme, the second was for the world premier trailer for Halo 3.
Steve Vai is currently editing and mixing a double record set entitled “Steve Vai’s Sound Current”. He recorded this with the Metrople Orchestra in Holland for the Dutch Government and NPS Radio. He recently released this information in a Ultimate-Guitar.com interview
Where Vai’s contributions to others’ material has been constrained by the largely rock or heavy-rock style of those bands, his own material is somewhat more eclectic.
Vai’s playing style has been characterized as quirky and angular, owing to his superb technical facility with the instrument and deep knowledge of music theory. Vai has also been credited with the recent revival of the 7-string guitar.
An interesting point to note is Vai’s commitment to practice. In several guitar magazines and texts, he is reported to practice upwards of eight hours per day, a habit he began as early as his high school days.
Vai is an accomplished studio producer (he owns two: “The Mothership” and “The Harmony Hut”) and his own recordings combine his signature guitar prowess with novel compositions and considerable use of studio and recording effects, such as the Eventide H3000 ultra harmonizer and Digidesign’s Pro Tools Hard Disc recording system and plug-in effects architecture.
Vai also helped design his signature Ibanez JEM series of guitars. They feature a hand grip (fondly referred to as a “monkey grip”) cut into the top of the body of the guitar, a humbucker-single coil-humbucker DiMarzio pickup configuration, and Ibanez’s Edge locking tremolo system (which is Floyd Rose licensed), as well as an elaborate and extensive “Vine of Life” inlay down the neck. Steve also has a 7 string model designed by him named Ibanez Universe. The Universe later influenced the 7-string guitars used by Korn and other heavy metal bands to create nu-metal sounds in the late 1990s. He also has a signature Ibanez acoustic, the Euphoria.
Steve Vai has also worked with Carvin Guitars and Pro Audio to develop the Carvin Legacy line of guitar amplifiers. Vai wanted to create an amp that was unique and equal in sound, versatility, and affordability to any guitar amp he had previously used.
Over his long musical career, Steve Vai has used and designed an array of guitars. He even had his DNA put into the swirl paintjob on one of his signature JEM guitars, the JEM2KDNA, in the form of his blood. Only 300 of these were ever made. Nowadays he mainly uses his white JEM7V, which is inscribed with the letters “Evo”, mainly in order to allow him to distinguish between the guitars he uses onstage which are practically identical, his “Flo” guitar however is equipped with a Fernandes sustainer pick-up in the neck.
He also has a guitar named “Mojo” in which the dot inlays are blue LED lights. Additionally, he has a custom-made triple-neck guitar that has the same basic features as his JEM7V guitars. The top neck is a 12-string guitar, the middle is a 6-string, and the bottom is a 6-string fretless guitar with a Fernandes Sustainer pickup. This guitar was featured on the G3 2003 tour on the piece “I Know You’re Here”.
Vai’s effects pedals include a modified Boss DS-1, Ibanez Tube Screamer, Morley Bad Horsie, Morley Little Alligator Volume pedal, Digitech Whammy, and an MXR Phase 90. His flightcases are labelled “Mr. Vai”. He used a number of rack effects units controlled via MIDI, but used a floor-based TC electronics G system instead for the Zappa Plays Zappa tour.
Artist of the day – Rammstein
Feb 2nd
Rammstein is a German band that was formed in 1994. Their musical style incorporates elements of metal/hard rock, industrial metal, and electronic music. The band is also widely accepted as part of the Neue Deutsche Härte-scene, alongside bands such as Oomph! and Die Krupps. Some critics have also dubbed their sound as Tanz-Metall (lit. “Dance metal”) . Their songs are performed almost exclusively in German. They have sold over 12 million records worldwide.
Rammstein takes its name indirectly from the western German town of Ramstein-Miesenbach, site of an airshow disaster in 1988. The band’s signature song, the eponymous “Rammstein”, is a commemoration of the tragedy that took place at the Ramstein Air Base. The extra “m” in the band’s name allows the word to mean “battering ram” (literally “ramming stone”), reinforcing the image of the band’s music as fierce and relentless. Also, the verb “rammen” in german, means to hit something. With that said, the name is really a wordgame, made of the town’s name and an extra “m” in relation to the air-show tragedy. Despite lyrics that are in German, the band has enjoyed success outside of Germany, in Europe, North America, Mexico and South America, as well as Japan, India, Australia and New Zealand. With the album Reise, Reise (2004), they became the most successful German-language band of all time internationally. Rammstein has had several top ten singles in Europe. The asteroid 110393 Rammstein is named in the band’s honour. The Rammstein website released a statement on the bands new tour in 2008 saying “rammstein will hopefully be touring most of europe in 2008,and are currently about to begin work on a new album for late 2007″ (Statement from Big John McAleer)
The band’s members all come from the former East Germany, specifically East Berlin and Schwerin. They are:
- Till Lindemann – lead vocals
- Richard Zven “Scholle” Kruspe – lead-guitar
- Paul H. Landers – rhythm-guitar
- Oliver “Ollie” Riedel – bass-guitar
- Christoph “Doom” Schneider – drums
- Christian “Flake” Lorenz – keyboards
Riedel, Schneider and Kruspe were the original founders of Rammstein, following an attempt by the latter to compose American-influenced music with a West Berlin band called Orgasm Death Gimmick. As Kruspe put it, “I realized it’s really important to make music and make it fit with your language, which I didn’t do in the past. I came back [to Germany] and said, ‘It’s time to make music that’s really authentic.’ I was starting a project called Rammstein to really try to make German music.” He invited Till Lindemann, a basket-weaver and drummer for the band First Arsch, to join the project as a vocalist. The four entered a contest for new bands and won, attracting the interest of Paul H. Landers, who knew them all and decided to join the band. Christian “Flake” Lorenz was the last member to join; he had played with Landers before in the band Feeling B and was initially reluctant to come on board, but was eventually persuaded to join. Their first album was released a year later. They have been nominated for two Best Metal Performance Grammy Awards: in 1999 with the song “Du hast” and in 2005 with the song “Mein Teil”.
Although Rammstein is often generalized as industrial metal, its music spans a variety of related styles, including hard rock and heavy metal. The band was strongly influenced by Laibach, a Slovenian neo-classical and industrial group. Other influences include DAF (Deutsch-Amerikanische Freundschaft), Oomph! and Ministry, but the contrast between individual songs such as “Bestrafe mich”, “Ohne dich” and “Te quiero puta!” makes the band difficult to classify.
Rammstein’s style has tended to divide critics, some of whom have responded with memorable comments. Jam Showbiz (April 2001) described Mutter as “music to invade Poland to.” New Zealand’s Southland Times (Dec. 17, 1999) suggested that Till Lindemann’s “booming, sub-sonic voice” would send “the peasants fleeing into their barns and bolting their doors.” The New York Times (Jan. 9, 2005) commented that on the stage, “Mr. Lindemann gave off an air of such brute masculinity and barely contained violence that it seemed that he could have reached into the crowd, snatched up a fan, and bitten off his head.” Other critics have been more positive. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of All Music Guide commented that “their blend of industrial noise, grinding metal guitars, and operatic vocals is staggeringly powerful”[5]. “We just push boundaries,” said Till Lindemann in an interview with rock magazine Kerrang!. “We can’t help it if people don’t like those boundaries being pushed.”
Despite Rammstein’s brutalist image, many of its songs lyrics demonstrate a certain sense of humour. “Zwitter”, for example, is a bizarre take on narcissism (and bisexuality) through the person of a hermaphrodite:
- Wenn die anderen Mädchen suchten (When the others searched for girls)
- Konnt ich mich schon selbst befruchten (I could already fertilize myself)
Similarly, the song “Amerika” features a tongue-in-cheek adaptation of the normal chorus:
- We’re all living in Amerika
- Coca-Cola, Wonderbra! Usually “Amerika ist wunderbar” (“America is wonderful”), in one chorus is sung as “Coca-Cola, sometimes war”
- We’re all living in Amerika
- Amerika, Amerika!
Some of their songs show unexpected influences. “Dalai Lama” is an adaptation of the famous poem “Der Erlkönig” by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. “Hilf mir” was inspired by the short story “Die gar traurige Geschichte mit dem Feuerzeug” (from “Der Struwwelpeter“) by Heinrich Hoffmann. “Rosenrot” is inspired by the poem “Heidenröslein” by Goethe and the story Schneeweißchen und Rosenrot by Brothers Grimm.
Nearly all of Rammstein’s lyrics are in German. However, the band did record English versions of “Engel” , “Du hast” and “Amerika”, as well as covers of the songs “Stripped” (Depeche Mode) and “Pet Sematary” (The Ramones). In addition, the songs “Amerika” (German version), “Stirb nicht vor mir//Don’t die before I do” and “Moskau” contain not only German verses, but also English and Russian choruses, respectively; “Te quiero puta!” is entirely in Spanish. “Ollie” Riedel commented that “German language suits heavy metal music. French might be the language of love, but German is the language of anger.” (Sunday Herald Sun, Melbourne, Australia, October 24, 2004).
Wordplay is a fundamental component of Rammstein’s lyrics. In many instances, the lyrics are phrased such that they can be interpreted in several ways. The song “Du hast”, for example, is a play on German marriage vows (“Willst du, bis der Tod euch scheidet, treu ihr sein für alle Tage?” – “Will you, until death separates you, be faithful to her for the rest of your days?”).This is the English Translation. But it is sung (In English),
You You hate You hate me You hate me to say You hate me to say And I did not obey
Will you until death does sever Be upright to her forever
NEVER!
Will you ’til death be her rider Her lover too, to stay inside her
NEVER!
In the song, the traditional affirmative response, “ja” (“yes”), is replaced by its negation “nein” (“no”). The final repetition of this line further perverts the meaning of the original vows through a minor change in the wording: “Willst du, bis zum Tod der Scheide,(…)” (“Will you, until the death of the vagina…”) (where ‘vagina’ can refer to the woman), but it could also be interpreted as: “Willst du bis zum Tod, der scheide, “, which would have the meaning of: “Will you, until death separates, …”. The song starts, in fact, with a play on words: “Du… Du hast… Du hast mich…” meaning, “You have me”. This line is often mistaken for “You hate me”, which is wrong, because in German, there is a clear distinction between “du hasst” (double “s”) which means “you hate” and “du hast” (single “s”) which means you have. The verbs are hassen (hate) and haben (have). The wordgame is later resolved as the line is completed: “Du hast mich gefragt” (“You [have] asked me”).
Rammstein often uses rhyming to create similar effects. For example, from the song “Los”:
- Es ist hoffnungslos (“It is hopeless”)
- Sinnlos (“Senseless”)
- Hilflos (“Helpless”)
- Sie sind Gott [break]
- Los
The last two lines above can be interpreted in three ways. “Sie sind Gott. / Los!” can mean “They are God. / Go!”; “Sie sind Gott los” can be translated as “They got rid of God;” while “Sie sind gottlos” means “they are godless”. However, in the context of the rest of the lyrics, the most likely meaning is the third one.
Artist of the day – Red Hot Chilli Peppers
Jan 30th
The Red Hot Chili Peppers are an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles, California in 1983.
Throughout their career, the band has successfully fused various elements of alternative rock, punk, rap, funk, heavy metal, psychedelic rock and adding just a touch of pop rock as the years progressed. They have, collectively, sold 60 million records worldwide, and also hold the record for most number one singles on the Billboard Modern Rock Chart with 11 (with a total of 78 weeks at number 1).
The Red Hot Chili Peppers (originally Tony Flow and the Miraculously Majestic Masters of Mayhem) were formed after what was supposed to be a one time performance in 1983 by Fairfax High School alumni Michael “Flea” Balzary (bass), Anthony Kiedis (vocals), Jack Irons (drums), and Hillel Slovak (guitar). Later in that same year, after becoming a popular draw in the Los Angeles rock scene, they secured a record deal with EMI.
At the time, Slovak and Irons both had obligations to another band, ‘What is This?’ Consequently, Red Hot Chili Peppers, the band’s 1984 debut album, was recorded with replacement members Jack Sherman on guitar and Cliff Martinez on drums. Produced by Gang of Four’s Andy Gill, the album did not achieve commercial success. The ensuing tour did not fare much better, with internal fighting between Sherman, Kiedis, and Flea resulting in Sherman’s departure, and Hillel Slovak returning.
Parliament-Funkadelic’s George Clinton was hired to produce their second album, 1985′s Freaky Styley. Cliff Martinez was fired from the band soon after the release of the album, allowing the return of original drummer Jack Irons in early 1986. During this time, drug problems started to become prevalent with the band. At one point Anthony Kiedis was fired from the band due to his heroin addiction, only to rejoin after getting clean. Hillel was also using heroin but managed to keep himself together and stay in the band.
Their next album, which entered the Billboard Top 200, was 1987′s The Uplift Mofo Party Plan lead singer . It was produced by Michael Beinhorn. This was the only album to feature the four original members.During the supporting tour, the public became aware of Slovak’s drug problems after his relapse, which resulted in erratic behavior and botched performances. The rest of the band was upset and annoyed by this, and were on the verge of firing Slovak, but backed out of doing such a thing on the advice of FishboneAngelo Moore, who felt and warned the Chilis that firing Hillel would actually bring more bad than good for the benefit of the band. Shortly after the band returned from some performances in Europe on June 25, 1988, Slovak was found dead of a heroin overdose. Jack Irons left the band saying that he didn’t want to be a part of something that involved his friends dying. He then went on to drum with Pearl Jam and Eleven.Members
Anthony Kiedis (vocals)
John Frusciante (guitar, back up vocals)
Flea (bass, back up vocals)
Chad Smith (drums)
Top 10 stuff to have on Ubuntu
Jan 17th
When I made the switch to Ubuntu Linux on my desktop computer (that is, if you can call triple-booting Windows XP, Vista, and Ubuntu a “switch”), I was a little worried about finding the applications and tools that would make me as productive working in Ubuntu as I am working on Windows.
After a little searching around the interweb, however, I’ve been more than impressed with the number of great, full-featured applications available for Linux, many of which outshine their Windows counterparts. And what’s best – they’re all totally free. Here are my top 10 favorite applications and tweaks that made replacing Windows with Ubuntu a breeze.
Taking a page from Mark Pilgrim’s essential software list, I’ve included the necessary command line code to install most of the applications below; if you don’t like Terminal, you can use Ubuntu’s very friendly Add/Remove software application interface (Applications -> Add/Remove…). Where I haven’t included the apt-get line, follow the instructions in the link.
1. Automatix
As I said last week, Automatix will get your system ready to play nice with proprietary codecs and the like, but it can also install a lot of really useful apps, from Picasa and Google Earth to several of the apps on this list. Automatix is a great way to get a lot of applications installed in a hurry.
2. Beagle
Beagle is the Spotlight/Google Desktop search app for Linux. However, think more Spotlight than Google Desktop (which is a good thing, because Google Desktop can suck at times). Beagle indexes your files and lets you construct quick, powerful file searches.
apt-get install beagle
3. Gnome Deskbar Applet
The Gnome Deskbar Applet is sort of a cross between Spotlight and Quicksilver. Basically it’s a great app launcher and then some, with plugins designed to integrate more search options than you can shake a stick at, from live Google searches to integration with Beagle.
To use the Deskbar Applet, right-click the top panel and select Add to Panel… and find Deskbar Applet (incidentally, there are a lot of other great tools in the Add to Panel… dialog worth checking out). It’s no Quicksilver, but it’s better than any app launcher/search tool available on Windows.
apt-get install deskbar-applet
4. VLC
It’s no secret that we love us some VLC, so there’s no reason not to keep loving it on your new Linux distribution. VLC can play virtually any file format you throw at it.
apt-get install vlc
As a bonus, you can also setup VLC as a plug-in for Firefox.
5. Firefox
It should go without saying at this point, but no operating system would be complete without Firefox. Ubuntu ships with Firefox out of the box, but it never hurts to emphasize something you love so much. Of course, you will want to add any number of Firefox extensions.
apt-get install firefox
6. amaroK
I didn’t know that love between a man and a music player was possible, but amaroK’s seamless integration with Wikipedia, lyrics and album cover look-ups, and MusicBrainz have me questioning the laws of nature and propriety. Oh, and don’t worry – it’ll sync to your iPod with its eyes closed.
apt-get install amarok
7. CheckGmail
Even though Google doesn’t, for some strange reason, provide a version of the Gmail Notifier for Linux, that doesn’t mean you’re out of luck – the resourcefulness of the open source community comes to the rescue!
apt-get install checkgmail
8. Add NTFS Read/Write support
If you’re switching from Windows, chances are you’ve got lots of data stored on an NTFS (New Technology File System) formatted drive that you’re not ready to get rid of. This used to be a major problem, since Linux isn’t able to write files to NTFS drives. Or at least that used to be the case. Luckily the Linux-NTFS project has built a driver to overcome those limitations.
9. Turn off the system beep
You know that annoying, shrill beep that comes not from your speakers, but rather inside the depths of your computer called a system beep? I hate it, but Ubuntu likes to use it when, for example, I’m searching for text in Firefox and I get to the point where the text doesn’t match anything. In Windows, this invokes a fairly annoying noise. In Ubuntu, it’s the system beep, which is even worse. Here’s how to disable it:
rmmod pcspkr
If you decide you miss it, this will re-load it:
modprobe pcspkr
10. XGL/Compiz = Purdiest graphics you’ve seen in a while
The XGL/Compiz one-two punch offers an incredible window management environment for your Ubuntu installation. My video card isn’t quite up to snuff for handling these kind of accelerated graphics (it’s really kind of a weenie), and the architecture hasn’t got all the kinks worked out, but this is definitely the most exciting GUI I’ve seen in a while. If you haven’t already seen it, check out the irritating yet wonderful video below:
Your mileage may vary with XGL/Compiz, but here are the instructions that worked for me (note: over-the-top thrash metal not included):
11. (BONUS!) Frozen Bubble
All right, I’ll admit – Frozen Bubble isn’t the most important app on the list, but I love this game, which is why it gets the coveted number 11 slot. Play it.
apt-get install frozen-bubble
Artist of the day – Megadeth
Jan 17th
Megadeth is an American heavy metal band led by founder, frontman, and songwriter Dave Mustaine. Formed in 1983 following Mustaine’s ejection from Metallica, the band has since released ten studio albums, three EP’s, and two live albums.
As a pioneer of the American thrash metal movement, Megadeth rose to international fame in the 1980s, but were plagued by constant lineup changes, due in part to Mustaine’s notorious substance abuse problems. After finding sobriety and securing a stable lineup, Megadeth went on to release a string of platinum and gold albums, including the Grammy nominated, multi-platinum Countdown to Extinction in 1992. Megadeth disbanded in 2002 after Mustaine suffered a severe nerve injury to his left arm, but following extensive physical therapy, Mustaine reformed the band in 2004 and released The System Has Failed, which debuted at #18 on the Billboard Top 200 chart.
Megadeth is known for their distinctive guitar style, often involving complex, intricate musical passages, and trade off guitar solos. Mustaine is also known for his original “snarling” vocal style, as well as his recurring lyrical themes, often involving politics, war, addiction, and more recently, relationships.
As one of the most commercially successful heavy metal bands of all time, Megadeth has sold more than 20 million albums worldwide, including five consecutive platinum albums, with seven consecutive Grammy nominations for Best Metal Performance. In their 21 active years, Megadeth has had 18 official members, with Mustaine remaining as the driving force, main songwriter, and sole original member. Megadeth is often mentioned as one of the “Big Four” thrash metal bands, along with Metallica, Anthrax, and Slayer.
The Band:-
Dave Mustaine
Glen Drover
Shawn Drover
James LoMenzo
Former Members:-
David Ellefson
Marty Friedman
Nick Menza
Gar Samuelson (deceased)
Chris Poland
Chuck Behler
Jeff Young
Jimmy DeGrasso
Al Pitrelli
James MacDonough
Artist of the day – AC/DC
Jan 15th
AC/DC are a hard rock band formed in Sydney, Australia in 1973 by brothers Angus and Malcolm Young. The band are considered pioneers of hard rock and heavy metal, alongside bands such as Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, and Black Sabbath. However, the members have always classified their music as “rock ‘n’ roll”.
AC/DC underwent several line-up changes before releasing their first album, High Voltage, in 1975. The membership remained stable until Cliff Williams replaced Mark Evans in 1977. In 1979, the band recorded their highly successful album, Highway to Hell. Lead singer and co-songwriter, Bon Scott, died on February 19, 1980 after a night of heavy alcohol consumption. Although the group briefly considered disbanding, they continued; ex-Geordie singer Brian Johnson was selected as Scott’s replacement. Later that year, the band released their biggest-selling album, Back in Black.
The band’s next album, For Those About to Rock We Salute You, was also highly successful and was the first hard rock album to reach #1 in the U.S. However, the band experienced a decline in popularity soon after the departure of drummer Phil Rudd in 1983. Poor record sales continued until the release of The Razor’s Edge in 1990. Phil Rudd returned in 1994 and contributed to the band’s 1995 album Ballbreaker. Stiff Upper Lip was released in 2000 and was well-received by critics. A new album is expected in 2007.
The band has sold more than 150 million albums worldwide, including more than 68 million albums in the United States alone. Back in Black has sold 42 million units worldwide, including 21 million in the U.S., making it the second highest-selling album of all time and the biggest-selling album by any band. The band are ranked fourth on VH1′s 100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock.
Angus Young — lead guitar
Malcolm Young — rhythm guitar
Brian Johnson — vocals
Cliff Williams — bass
Phil Rudd — drums
Former members
Bon Scott (deceased)
Dave Evans
Mark Evans
Chris Slade
Simon Wright
Official Site
Artist of the day – Apocalyptica
Jan 5th
Apocalyptica is a Finnish band consisting of three, formerly four, classically trained cellists and, since 2003, a drummer. Their speciality is metal music played on cellos, though they also play classical music. They are all former students of the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki.
Their first album, Plays Metallica by Four Cellos, consisted solely of Metallica covers. For their second album Inquisition Symphony, they added covers of Faith No More, Sepultura and Pantera, as well as three original songs. For their fourth album, Reflections, they developed their style of cello rock further; adding drums and developing a more electronic sound, instead of the previous acoustic style arrangement found on Inquisition Symphony and Cult.
In 1999, Antero Manninen left the band, being replaced by Perttu Kivilaakso. Max Lilja left in 2002, leaving Apocalyptica with only three members. Dave Lombardo did the drumming for five tracks on Reflections and for one track on Apocalyptica. Lombardo was unable to tour with the group from the beginning so Mikko Sirén filled the position and is now officially the fourth member of Apocalyptica. During concerts Antero Manninen also supports the group as fourth cellist.
So far they have sold two million albums worldwide, played in more than 30 countries, toured with Rammstein, and supported Metallica twice.
Members:-
Current
- Eicca Toppinen – cello
- Paavo Lötjönen – cello
- Perttu Kivilaakso – cello
- Mikko Sirén – drums
Artist of the day – James Hetfield
Dec 14th
Today I would like to write about the man whom I admire the most and consider one of the gods of metal.
Hetfield was born on August 3, 1963, in Downey, Los Angeles County, California. His childhood was difficult in many ways. His father, Virgil Hetfield (a truck driver) and mother, Cynthia (a light opera singer) were devout and strict adherents to Christian Science, and accordingly, much of his young life revolved around religion. In accordance with their beliefs, Hetfield’s parents strongly disapproved of medicine or any medical help and remained vigilant in their faith even as his mother began to die of cancer. Her death, and his subsequently turbulent relationship with religion, are both recurring subjects which have been the focal point of some of Metallica’s lyrics (the song “The God That Failed” is about Hetfield’s mother and father and “Until It Sleeps” is about cancer, of which both of his parents died).
Hetfield was 9 years old when he took his first piano lessons, before taking on his brother David’s drums and finally picking up a guitar in his pre-teens. Inspired by bands such as Black Sabbath, The Beatles, Led Zeppelin and Thin Lizzy, Hetfield formed his first band, Obsession, in his early teens. Composed of the Veloz brothers on bass and drums, Jim Arnold on guitar, and Hetfield providing lead vocals, the band spent plenty of time in the Veloz brothers’ garage jamming, with Ron McGovney and Dave Marrs acting as roadies. Marrs and McGovney subsequently joined the band itself when the Veloz brothers quit.
After moving to Brea, California, due to the death of his mother, James attended Brea Olinda High School and met up with drummer Jim Mulligan. The two jammed at lunch time, scaring fellow guitarists with their loud and heavy sounds, before another student named Hugh Tanner was seen carrying around part of a flying V guitar at school. Phantom Lord was born with Hugh on guitar, Mulligan on drums, and James singing while also playing guitar. The group went through a few bass players until graduation, when James moved back to Downey.
Once back in Downey, James moved into a house owned by McGovney’s parents that was slated for demolition due to an expressway expansion. It was the perfect place for James and Ron to crash, rehearse, and jam. James talked Ron into taking up bass, ‘Phantom Lord’ disbanded, and then the third band under Hetfield’s leadership, Leather Charm, was born. The only difference between ‘Charm’ and ‘Lord’ was James no longer played guitar and McGovney played bass guitar, while Tanner and Mulligan retained their former ‘Lord’ positions. ‘Leather Charm’ was largely a hard rock combo, playing a few originals and in addition to covers, such as Iron Maiden’s Remember Tomorrow. The band managed to perform at a few parties and recorded a demo, but then began to fall apart.
First, Tanner left the band, to be replaced by Troy James. Then Mulligan left for a more progressive, Rush-like band. Without a drummer, the rest of the band decided to call it quits. Although it was Mulligan’s departure that led to James searching for a new drummer, it was also Hugh Tanner who was responsible for perhaps the catalytic moment in Hetfield’s musical life, one which set him on the path to achieving the level of success he’s experienced: he introduced Hetfield to Lars Ulrich. The rest, as may be read elsewhere, (see Metallica), is a long, illustrious (albeit occasionally curious), and still-evolving story.
Ironically, the voice of Metallica nearly was not a voice at all, simply because in the early days, Hetfield did not fancy being a lead vocalist. Very early in its career, Metallica experimented with a few different vocal/guitar configurations. Some of the options considered included adding another guitar player; having then-lead guitar player, Dave Mustaine, play the sole guitar; as well as asking John Bush from Armored Saint (who later joined Anthrax) to sing for the band.
It is common knowledge among heavy metal/thrash fans that the relationship between Hetfield and Dave Mustaine trod a thin line between partnership and derision during 1981-83, during which time Mustaine’s famous rock and roll lifestyle sparked heated altercations between the two. One particular event that brought the conflict to the foreground involved Hetfield kicking Mustaine’s dog and Mustaine punching Hetfield in response and throwing an all-out rage against his fellow bandmates (flipping Ron McGovney on the ground, breaking things, etc.). Eventually, Hetfield and Ulrich fired Mustaine due to his alcoholic tendencies and recruited lead guitarist Kirk Hammett from the band Exodus the same day. Mustaine was sent home on a 4-day bus journey – a journey that would end in the creation of the band Megadeth, Mustaine’s speed metal challenge to Metallica’s more thrashing sound.
Hetfield is characterized as the heart and soul of Metallica, but he has also maintained a dictatorial control over the final product. Until the mid-1990s, he recorded all rhythm tracks, most harmony tracks, and the occasional solo (the first solos heard in “Master of Puppets” and “Orion,” “To Live is to Die,” and “Nothing Else Matters”), as well as writing the lyrics, vocal melodies, and co-arranging the songs with Ulrich. Hetfield has been involved in many accidents onstage, the most well-known being an incident with pyrotechnics while on the Guns N’ Roses / Metallica tour in 1992: he suffered severe second and third degree burns to his left arm during the opening of “Fade to Black” and was unable to play guitar for the last two-thirds of the tour (former Metallica roadie and Metal Church guitarist John Marshall filled in while Hetfield continued to sing). He has tattooed his left arm with a picture of flames encasing four cards, – 1, 9, 6, 3 – representing the year of his birth. He also broke his arm a few times while skateboarding in empty cement pools, which prevented him from playing guitar onstage.
During the recording of the St. Anger album, Hetfield went into rehab for alcoholism and other obsessive-compulsive behaviours arising from his depression. Alcohol had long been a problem for Hetfield; as it was the trap that kept him in depression that had affected him since childhood. The glamourisation of alcohol in the music scene didn’t help, as the band’s alcoholic antics earned them the nickname ‘Alcoholica’ by the music press. Just before this, Jason Newsted, Metallica’s bassist, announced he was exiting the band, after James forbade him to work on any side projects. Hetfield has explained that now he knows exactly why Jason wanted to leave Metallica, and understands that Jason just wasn’t getting his creative energy out enough in Metallica. Hetfield rejoined the band after 2 months in rehab and 7 months with his family. He then continued with the album. He is now sober and clean and is determined to remain so, despite the many temptations dogging rock stars. The movie Some Kind of Monster documents the making of the St. Anger album and shows the various conflicts and issues the band is faced with including alcoholism and family commitments and the future of the band.
Due to his alcoholism, Hetfield has had many family problems. Since rehab, he tries to spend a lot more time with his wife and kids. When he is not writing, singing or playing, Hetfield enjoys a variety of outdoor activities including hunting, skateboarding, snowboarding, water and jet-skiing, sketching, working in his garage customizing cars & motobikes, watching his favorite football team the Oakland Raiders, in addition to going to hot-rod shows. He also collects vintage guitars, (particularly those from 1963), and enjoys working on classic automobiles. Amongst his favorites are a ’55 Chevy Bel Air, which he helped restore, and The Beast, an all-terrain four wheel drive Blazer. Aside from these pursuits, Hetfield says he’s often happiest spending time with his wife Francesca and three children: Cali, Castor, and Marcella. He put his 1967 Chevrolet Camaro up for sale on eBay, with the proceeds to go to a Music for Schools program. The car was used in the video for I Disappear and was given to him as a gift upon the video’s completion. He even performed at the Outlaws Concert in 2004, alongside Hank Williams Jr., Cowboy Troy, Gretchen Wilson, and Kid Rock. James played one of close friend Waylon Jennings’s songs, “Don’t You Think This Outlaw Bit’s Done Got Out of Hand”, the very same he recorded on the tribute album to Jennings, I’ve Always Been Crazy.
