Ripper Stuff!

Denise Grollmus from the Cleveland Scene has written an extensive article on singer Tim "Ripper" Owens (YNGWIE MALMSTEEN, BEYOND FEAR, ex-JUDAS PRIEST, ICED EARTH), featuring quotes from a number of Tim's associates from the Ohio metal scene. A couple of excerpts follow.

On trying out for JUDAS PRIEST:

Owens was driven to a studio in Wales. "I was so starstruck. They were just sitting there, eating breakfast, hanging out, playing music. It was surreal."

The band told him to relax, that he wouldn't have to sing until the next day. But Owens demanded to perform then and there. "I was so freaked out," he says. "I hadn't sung JUDAS PRIEST in months, and I just wanted to get it over with."

He launched into "Victim of Changes", a complex song with incredibly high notes. "Whiskey woman, don't you know that you are driving me insane," Owens sang in his perfect falsetto.

The band offered him the job before he'd finished. But Owens insisted on singing one more tune, "The Ripper", a JUDAS PRIEST classic. "That's how I got my nickname," he says.

On his split with PRIEST:

"Everyone thought it was a sad day," Owens says. "But it wasn't. I never would have quit PRIEST, but it was the right thing for Halford to come back and for me to move on."

On ICED EARTH:

While Owens was comfortable being bossed around, he wanted to tour more. He also didn't like [ICED EARTH mainman Jon] Schaffer's constant derogatory comments about his time in JUDAS PRIEST. "He hated that I was called the Ripper," Owens says. "He said that my era of PRIEST just sucked and that the songs were bad. It was tense."

After one more album, Schaffer replaced Owens with [his predecessor], just last year. "It was two weeks before Christmas, and he sent this press release out," Owens says. "I didn't even know he was going to announce it. I was pretty upset by how it was handled."

Read the entire article at www.clevescene.com. 


Great White Tour Dates

California rockers GREAT WHITE have lined up the following dates:

Jun. 05 - Waukesha, WI @ A Taste of Summer Festival
Jun. 06 - Beaver Dam, WI @ Club 208
Jun. 07 - Celina, OH @ Romers at Westlake Buy Tickets Here
Jun. 08 - Madison, WI @ Dry Bean
Jun. 13 - Santa Fe, NM @ Camel Rock Casino
Jun. 14 - Anthony, TX @ Wet N Wild Water Park (with DOKKEN)
Jun. 19 - San Juan Capistrano, CA @ Coach House
Jun. 20 - Los Angeles, CA @ Crash Mansion
Jun. 21 - Agoura, CA @ Canyon Club
Jun. 27 - Balingen, Germany @ Bang Your Head Festival
Jul. 10 - Oswego, NY @ Scriba Town Inn
Jul. 11 - Walker, MN @ Moondance Jam
Jul. 12 - Glendale Heights, IL @ Summerfest
Jul. 23 - London, Ontario @ Harris Park
Jul. 24 - Heyward, WI @ LCO Casino
Jul. 25 - Eagle River, WI @ High Pines Amphitheater
Jul. 26 - Toledo, OH @ Toledo Harley Davidson
Aug. 15 - Tempe, AZ @ The Marquee
Aug. 16 - Santa Fe, NM @ Sky City Casino
Aug. 23 - Greenwood, IL @ Gait Airport
Sep. 12 - Boone, IA @ The Venue
Sep. 20 - Jim Thorpe, PA @ Penn Peak

GREAT WHITE will perform live on the nationally syndicated radio show "Rockline", hosted by Bob Coburn, on Wednesday, August 13 at 11:30 p.m. EST/8:30 p.m. PST. Fans can talk live with GREAT WHITE by calling 800-344-ROCK (7625). To find a station near you or to listen to the show live via the Internet, go to www.rocklineradio.com.

GREAT WHITE released a new album in July 2007 entitled "Back to the Rhythm" via Shrapnel Records. Frontiers Records issued the CD in Europe on August 31 via in a lavish digipack edition. The record — which also marks GREAT WHITE's 25th anniversary — features original members Jack Russell (vocals), Mark Kendall (lead guitar), Audie Desbrow (drums), Michael Lardie (guitar/keyboards) and Sean McNabb (bass).

"Back to the Rhythm" was mixed, produced, and engineered by guitarist Michael Lardie with all members contributing to to the final mix.

Fan-filmed video footage of GREAT WHITE performing in Barcelona, Spain earlier in 2008 can be viewed below (clip uploaded by YouTube user "cruehead699").

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43hDdctIp1g&eurl=http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/


Metallica's New Album Reviewed
UK's Rock Sound and Metal Hammer magazines have posted separate reports on the listening session for the new METALLICA album, which took place earlier today (Wednesday, June 4) in London.

Rock Sound writes: "On first impressions and just one listen, Rock Sound can confirm that the songs we've heard sound very much like classic METALLICA in vibe, harking back to the days of 'Master Of Puppets', '…And Justice For All' (but with bass) and the [self-titled 'black'] album — without sounding dated or tired.

"Of the six tracks Rock Sound heard this afternoon, only one had a working title — 'Flamingo'. With a slow intro, the song was reminiscent of 'Battery' in vibe, with two guitar solos and an undercurrent of melody and groove.

"The first single is an epic power rocker in the vein of 'The Unforgiven', 'Nothing Else Matters' and 'Sanitarium', with a mid-tempo, head-banging section and some THIN LIZZY-esque twin guitar riffage.

"Another song features the lyrics, 'Into abyss, you don't exist, you can't resist the Judas kiss'; another features an almost RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE-esque drum 'n' bass undercurrent and lyrics about 'suicide' and 'cyanide'; while the final song we heard, dubbed 'The Song', clocks in at under five minutes and is a galloping thrash attack with quirks, and a sniff of TESTAMENT about it!

"We suspect other song titles could include 'Die Hard', 'Show Your Scars', and 'My Apocalypse' — but we cannot be held responsible if none of these titles or lyrics are accurate!

"Thankfully — there are plenty of Kirk Hammett traditional guitar solos and a decent drum sound. Hetfield's voice sounds in fine form too. All of the songs have many different parts to them, giving the impression that the quartet is revisiting the epic vibe of the band's 'classic' period."

Metal Hammer reports: "What do the songs sound like? Track one, which is only known by the cryptic working title 'Flamingo', opens up on thunderous rolling drums as lead guitar meets them head on, a flaring up in stop-start motion before it pulls itself together in rushes forward in classic thrash style, all crunching 'Fight Fire With Fire' riffs and drilling beats. It takes at least two minutes for James Hetfield's vocals to come in, and while they sound furious, this isn't the grittiest he's ever sounded, more open in tone, but while there's still a memorable vocal line for the 'chorus,' and there is so much going on in the song, and so many ideas thrown in and discarded for the next one that it's hard on first listen to pick out one riff that you're going to remember it by. But with galloping riffs and the return of guitar breaks rising up from out of the grooves you can hear the true METALLICA spirit, even though its as if reflected in mirrored mosaic.

"Track two is at heart an anthemic ballad that recalls 'Fight Fire With Fire' and 'Nothing Else Matters', with a chiming guitar intro, airy vocals and some slightly convoluted, progressive-style bridges that mutate into urgent riffing, more galloping riffs and guitar solos. Again, the song has a number of different sections, but it still sounds massive.

"Track three kicks off on a stop-start riff flecked with Eastern touches, as other bustling guitar lines play off each other and Hetfield's vocals retain the power of old, like some monolithic prophet overlooking events as mid-paced, chugging riffs come in, sounding like an army on the march, methodically shooting anyone in their path.

"Track four is reminiscent of 'Master Of Puppets' with more than a touch of heads-down SLAYER pacing thrown in. After an artillery-lobbing drum-led intro, it quickly sets off on marching, thrash mode, Hetfield's spat vocals taking melodic digressions, as he roars 'Bow down, surrender unto me.' The song's groove carries you along as it opens up into guitar atomospherics that bring LED ZEP to mind. It isn't quite the kind of irresistible monster they've created before, but METALLICA still prove they can still sound lean and epic at the same time, and when the track drops out into the grove mid-way though, you can imagine the chants coming from the crowds live.

"Track five has another strong opening, with an uncharacteristic bouncing groove not a million miles away from RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE making appearances throughout setting off sharp riffs that come up against an irregular barrage of percussion that sets it off briefly on a more melodic path and builds up once again into a thrilling riff-fest mayhem.

"Track six is the 'song', considerably shorter than the others, but full of clinically sharp riffing, more SLAYER-esque parts and galloping grooves, all hustle and bustle with a tinge of Eastern melody thrown in once more.

"Initial impressions is that this is an album that's going to get our blood chugging, but whether it's all we hoped for is going to take more plays to answer. Ultimately we're hugely relieved and pretty damn thrilled, and we can't fucking wait to hear the rest."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pDxbSIwrn7U&eurl=http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tM9No2_FKl4&eurl=http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x521L1hKEBw&eurl=http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/


Lita Ford Touring Lineup Announced

'80s hard rock queen Lita Ford has announced her "current lineup for touring and recording." It is as follows:

Stet Howland (W.A.S.P.) - Drums
Teddy Cook (DIO) - Bass
Michael T. Ross (HARDLINE, ANGEL) - Keyboards
Tom Cavanagh (ALMOST QUEEN, BENT PUSSYCAT) - Guitar

As previously reported, Lita Ford will play at least a couple of warm-up shows for her upcoming Rocklahoma appearance. Ford is apparently being billed as the Lita Ford "tribute" act KISS ME DEADLY for these special performances, which will kick off in early July. So far the following dates have been announced:

July 06 - Famingdale, NY @ Club Loaded at The Crazy Donkey
July 07 - New York, NY @ B.B. King Blues Club & Grill

A date at The Chance in Poughkeepsie, New York is expected to be added to the above list.

Lita Ford recently signed a deal with Coallier Entertainment, the New York-based company whose list of clients includes such artists as TWISTED SISTER and SEBASTIAN BACH.

In a statement released in late March by Lita Ford stated regarding her comeback performance at Rocklahoma: "It's been way too long since I've rocked a crowd. Broke out my axe and turned it up loud. Always in my heart — forever in my soul. On July 11th I'm gonna rock 'n' roll. At Rocklahoma I'll hit the stage with thousands of you maniacs. Close My Eyes — Kiss Me Deadly — can't forget the leather pants!"

Rocklahoma festival will be held July 9-13, 2008 at the Catch The Fever Festival Grounds, four miles north of Pryor, Oklahoma. TRIUMPH and EXTREME are among the bands reuniting with all or most of their original lineups for this year's festival, which will also feature sets from NIGHT RANGER, CINDERELLA, Bret Michaels, TESLA, ARMORED SAINT, L.A. GUNS and many more. More than 85 bands in all will perform on three giant stages throughout the five days.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vD9viOfFxZM&eurl=http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/


Rock legend ALICE COOPER will release his new album, "Along Came A Spider", through SPV/Steamhammer on the following dates:

Germany, Austria, Switzerland: July 25
Rest of Europe: July 28
North America: July 29

Check out the CD artwork below.

"Along Came A Spider" was co-produced by Greg Hampton and Danny Saber in Los Angeles. It reportedly features guest appearances by Ozzy Osbourne, who plays harmonica on a track he co-wrote with Cooper, and Slash, who plays guitar on the record as well.

Alice recently told Billboard.biz that his forthcoming LP is "a real 'Alice' album. Conceptually, it's going to be pretty interesting."

Cooper wouldn't reveal too many details, but said the album is based on a fictional serial killer named Spider, who wraps his victims in a silk web. "Every song is sort of a letter to the police," he explains. "They think they're investigating it from the outside, but he's actually woven them into the whole thing."

"Along Came A Spider" track listing (in alphabetical order):

01. Catch Me
02. Hungry
03. I Am The Spider
04. I Know Where You Live
05. (In Touch With) Your Feminine Side
06. Killed By Love
07. Salvation
08. The One That Got Away
09. Vengeance Is Mine
10. Wake The Dead
11. Wrapped In Silk