SUMMERS END FESTIVAL Tickets Go On Sale On Friday June 04th

The following details with regards to the 6th Summers End Festival were posted on it's MySpace blog on Sunday May 30th.

Tickets for the event go on sale on Friday June 4th.

The full posting is as follows...

The Summers End Festival, which will take place at Lydney Town Hall on 8th, 9th, 10th October 2010 is delighted to announce that weekend tickets will go on sale on Friday 4th June at 9am direct from the Summers End website at www.summersend.co.uk . As with past years, this advanced sale will be for two and three day tickets only to reward those supporting the whole Festival, however prices have been held at last year’s level. Individual day tickets will go on sale later in June.

Ticket prices. Available June 4th: 3 day tickets £60. 2 day (Saturday and Sunday) tickets £45

Day tickets (available later in June): Friday - £17. Saturday and Sunday - £27.50.

A small booking fee will be applied to each order to cover the transaction fees for online purchases.

Postal purchases will not incur fees. Send a cheque / postal order payable to: S Lambe to Stephen Lambe, 10 Chance Street, Tewkesbury, Glos. GL20 5RQ

The Festival Ferry bus service will again run this year, running between some of the local accommodation and Lydney.

Festival Co-organiser Huw Lloyd Jones comments:
“We believe that we have gathered together the best international prog line-up ever to play in the UK, making Summers End 6 our best yet. We hope the fans agree!”

The draft line up (subject to change):
Friday 8th October
The Defence of the Realm with 3Js and a P - featuring Jem Godfrey (Frost), John Mitchell (It Bites, Frost) and Pete Trewavas (Marillion, Transatlantic) (UK)
Tinyfish (UK)
Unto Us (UK)

Saturday 9th October
An evening with Karmakanic and Agents of Mercy - featuring Roine Stolt (the Flower Kings, Transatlantic) and Jonas Reingold (The Flower Kings) (Sweden)
Unitopia (Australia)
Ark (UK)
Dead Heroes Club (Ireland)

Sunday 10th October
The Watch (Italy)
Sylvan (Germany)
Phideaux (USA)
TBC
Multifuse (UK, France, Italy)

http://www.summersend.co.uk/
www.myspace.com/summersendfestival
www.facebook.com/home.php#/group.php?gid=98170444873
www.twitter.com/summersendfest
http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/summersendfestival/
Enquiries to: summersend@btinternet.com

New Issue Of FIREWORKS MAGAZINE Out Now!

The latest issue of the excellent melodic rock magazine "FIREWORKS" is out now.

The June/July issue (Number 40) has Sammy Hagar (Chickenfoot) on the front cover and also features Masterplan, Fozzy, Asia, Nazareth, Jim Kerr, Y&T, FM, Francis Rossi, Coheed & Cambria, Ratt, Micheal Monroe, Jon Oliva's Pain and much more.

The magazine costs £5 and also includes a free 18-track CD...
01 Y&T - On with the show
02 FM - Unbreakable
03 Chris Laney - Rockstar
04 Wild Side - Play with me
05 Shining Line - Heat of the light
06 Reckless Love - Beautifulbomb
07 Crazy Licc - Rock and a hard place
08 Serpentine - A touch of heaven
09 Mass - The right side
10 Bangalore Choir - Angel in black
11 Houston - Hold on
12 Third Eye - Dark angel
13 Crop Circle - Recent stranger
14 Black Sand - Baby love is true
15 Art Of Infinity - Utopia
16 Big Mama Scandal - By you
17 Chinawhite - How many miles
18 The Crawdaddy - A real mother for ya

A 6 issue subscription to the UK costs £30, Europe £43 & the Rest of the World £60.

www.rathole.com/fireworks/
www.myspace.com/fireworks_magazine

Styx Re-Record Classics For New Mini-Album

STYX are putting the finishing touches to a soon to be released mini-album.

The band have re-recorded six of their classic tracks for this new release.

"Regeneration - Volume 1" also features one brand new track which is currently available as a free download.

The songs on the mini-album are as follows...
1 Grand Illusion
2 Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man)
3 Lorelei
4 Sing for the Day
5 Crystal Ball
6 Come Sail Away
7 Difference In The World

The free download of ‘Difference In The World’ can be obtained HERE.


http://www.styxworld.com/

ROGER WATERS Brings His Wall Tour To The United Kingdom

Roger Waters has announced five shows in London and Manchester as part of his "Wall Live" world tour.

This will be the first time in 20 years that the Wall has been performed in Europe.

The Wall tour will visit over 25 European cities in 2011 to mark the 30th anniversary of the album’s release and Roger has hinted that this could mark his final big tour.

The show starts with the wall broken down and throughout the first half bricks are built.
The second half is played with the wall completely built. Roger Waters is developing dynamic new video graphics and visual images to illustrate the story and the songs, using an 8,000 sq ft wall as a huge screen.

The show features all the Waters scale grandeur and special effects such as original Gerald Scarfe imagery, crashing aeroplane, quadraphonic sound, pyrotechnics, spot pods, gigantic inflatable puppets, projection, video mapping and many elaborate effects.

Roger Waters' band on this tour is...
Dave Kilminster (Guitar)
Snowy White (Guitar)
G. E. Smith (Guitar)
Jon Carin (Keyboards)
Harry Waters (Keyboards)
Graham Broad (Drums)
Robbie Wyckoff, Jon Joyce, Michael Lennon, Mark Lennon & Kipp Lennon (Backing Vocals).

The UK 2011 dates for The Wall Live are as follows...
Wed May 11th - The O2 Arena, London
Thu May 12th - The O2 Arena, London
Tue May 17th - The O2 Arena, London
Fri May 20th - MEN Arena, Manchester
Sat May 21st - MEN Arena, Manchester

Tickets for the shows go on sale on FRIDAY JUNE 04TH at 9am from the usual outlets.

http://www.rogerwaters.com/

LIZZY BORDEN Confirmed For STOCKHOLM ROCK OUT Festival

LIZZY BORDEN have been confirmed for the Stockholm Rock Out Festival, due to take place on September 10th & 11th in Stockholm, Sweden.

The festival billing so far is as follows...

GREAT WHITE (US)
LIZZY BORDEN (US)
KEEL (US)
PRETTY BOY FLOYD (US)
BULLETBOYS (US)
WIG WAM (N)
TUFF (US)
DIRTY PENNY (US)
KILLING TOUCH (IT)
M.ILL.ION (SE)
SHAMELESS (US/DE)
DYNAZTY (SE)
STAR*RATS (DK)



http://www.lizzyborden.com/
http://www.sthlmrockout.com/

RUSH Announce Title Of New Album

RUSH have announced the upcoming release of their anticipated new single, "Caravan".
This will be featured on the band's forthcoming album, "Clockwork Angels" and will be available on June 1st and serviced to radio simultaneously.

"Caravan" will be bundled with an additional new album track entitled "BU2B".
Both tracks were recorded earlier this year in Nashville, with producer Nick Raskulinecz, who previously collaborated with Rush on 2007's critically acclaimed "Snakes & Arrows".

The band will return to the studio to resume recording after the completion of their upcoming "Time Machine Tour".

"Clockwork Angels" will not be released until 2011.

Rush are also set to release their acclaimed documentary "Rush: Beyond The Lighted Stage" on Blu-Ray and DVD on June 28th.
Before the release, the film is being shown in cinemas across Europe for one night only on June 7th.
Screening locations in Austria, Finland, Germany, Netherlands & the UK can be viewed HERE.

"Rush: Beyond The Lighted Stage" explores Rush’s epic 40-year career and is directed by Scot McFadyen and Sam Dunn.

This Blu-Ray and DVD release will come with a bonus disc which includes the following material...
01 Being bullied and the search for the first gig
02 Reflections on the Hemispheres album
03 Presto and Roll The Bones rap
04 The Rush fashion
05 Hobbies on the road
06 Pre-gig warm-up
07 Best I Can – never seen footage 1974, with drummer John Rutsey
08 Working Man – never seen footage 1974, with drummer John Rutsey
09 La Villa Stangiato – Live at Pinkpop in Holland, 1979
10 Between The Sun And Moon – Live at Hartford, Connecticut, 2002
11 Dinner with Rush at a hunting lodge
12 Far Cry live – from the Snakes & Arrows DVD
13 Entre Nous live – from the Snakes & Arrows DVD
14 Bravado live – rare footage from the R30 Blu-Ray
15 YYZ live – rare footage from the R30 Blu-Ray



http://www.rush.com/

HEART To Release First Studio Album In Six Years

Heart are set to release their first album in six years later this year.

"Red Velvet Car" is due to be released worldwide on August 31st and is the follow up to 2004's "Jupiter's Darling".

"It feels good to have Sony Music holding our new baby. It's sort of like coming home, since we worked with them on Little Queen, Dog And Butterfly, Bebe Le Strange, Private Audition and Passionworks, among others," said Ann Wilson. "We're excited about taking it on the road. A fresh sound with all the original Heart magic."

"This album feels so right for the times," said Nancy Wilson. "We can't wait to share this one with the world!"

Tracks on the album will include 'Death Valley', 'Safronia's Mark', 'Red Velvet Car', 'Queen City', 'Sunflower', 'Wheels', 'There You Go', 'WTF', 'Hey You' and 'Sand'.

http://www.heart-music.com/

BRUCE DICKINSON To Pay Tribute To DIO On The Final Edition Of His "Rock Show"

IRON MAIDEN vocalist Bruce Dickinson will "pay a personal tribute to Ronnie James Dio" during the final edition of his Friday-night "Rock Show" on May 28th.

The show, which Bruce has presented since 2002, airs on digital radio station BBC 6 Music and will go off the air as part of BBC's overhaul of its digital services.

The show is broadcast on Fridays from 9pm to midnight and aims to take the listener on "a guitartastic journey."

A 6 Music spokeswoman said,

"6 Music is currently reviewing the way it reflects the rock/heavy metal genres across the network and has decided to decommission the 'Friday Night Rock Show'. The network, however, remains committed to reflecting both genres throughout the schedule as part of its core music offering. We would very much like to thank Bruce Dickinson for the hard work and commitment he has shown to 6 Music over the past eight years."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/6music/
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=278123313911

Big Four Tour On The Big Screen

A show from Metallica’s Big Four tour with thrash metal bands Slayer, Anthrax and Megadeth will be broadcast on cinema screens across the world next month.

The Sonisphere Festival in Sofia, Bulgaria on June 22nd will be broadcast to selected cinemas just a few hours after the bands performances.

The show won’t feature full sets by each band; but it will feature the bulk of them.

The UK will be getting screenings, but so far there’s no news about which cinemas will be showing the event.



http://www.thebigfourlive.com/

Listen To One Of Ronnie James Dio’s Final Recordings

One of the last known studio recordings by the late vocalist Ronnie James Dio has been found.
The song "Elektra" was reportedly to appear on a follow-up to Dio’s Magica album, released in 2000. The track was supposed to have been recorded before Dio’s stomach cancer had been diagnosed.

Magica was originally intended to be the first part of three concept albums.

Dio had announced that he planned to start working on new Magica material after the end of the Heaven & Hell tour.

There will be a Public Memorial Service for Ronnie James Dio on Sunday, May 30th at 2:00 PM at The Hall Of Liberty located at Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills, 6300 Forest Lawn Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90068.

This will be a celebration of the life and music of Ronnie James Dio and is open to all of his friends and fans from around the world.

For those of you that will be flying in from out of town or out of the country, we have made special rates at various local hotels available to you! Just go to our official Facebook Page for hotel information!

http://www.ronniejamesdio.com/

Ian Hunter Added To High Voltage Bill

Ian Hunter and Joe Elliot will team up for a special one-off live performance at this year’s High Voltage Festival.

They will play a slot on the Main Stage on Sunday July 25th which will feature guest appearances and performances of various classics from Ian Hunter and Mott The Hoople back catalogues.

Def Leppard Singer Joe Elliott also plays a set earlier on the Sunday with his new side-project, The Down N Outz, which is made up of the majority of The Quireboys.

Clich HERE for tickets.

The full line-up is as follows...

http://www.highvoltagefestival.com/

Classic Rock Presents Prog New Issue On Sale Now!

Issue Eight of  "Classic Rock Presents Prog" magazine is now on sale in the UK.

It features the artwork of H.R. Giger with a  replicate front cover of Emerson, Lake & Palmer’s legendary 1973 album "Brain Salad Surgery".

As well as brand new interviews with Keith Emerson, Greg Lake and Carl Palmer there are also exclusive interviews with Caravan, who discuss the making of their legendary In The Land Of Grey And Pink album, Arthur Brown, Asia, Anathema, Karnataka, The Enid, Unitopia, Tim Blake and Pain Of Salvation, plus the usual round up of prog news and reviews.

This issues free CD features over an hour of new prog from the likes of IO Earth, Panic Room, From Great Height, Syzygy, Awake By Design, Aeon Zen, To-Mera, Chimp Spanner and more.

http://www.classicrockmagazine.com/

RONNIE JAMES DIO - R I P

Ronnie James Dio passed away after a battle against cancer last Sunday (May 16th).
In a statement his wife and manager Wendy Dio said...

“Today my heart is broken, Ronnie passed away at 7:45 a.m. on May 16. Many, many friends and family were able to say their private goodbyes before he peacefully passed away.
Ronnie knew how much he was loved by all.
We so appreciate the love and support that you have all given us.
Please give us a few days of privacy to deal with this terrible loss.
Please know he loved you all and his music will live on forever.”

Dio was born in 1942 and released his first record in 1958 under the band name of Ronnie & The Red Caps.

He achieved legendary status with Rainbow, Black Sabbath, Dio and Heaven & Hell.

Last year he was diagnosed with stomach cancer, but it was felt this had been caught early enough to ensure successful treatment.

Heaven & Hell even booked a series of Summer festival dates in the UK and Europe including a slot at Classic Rock’s High Voltage festival.
However, these apperances were cancelled earlier this month, when it became obvious that Dio wasn’t well enough.

The music world has lost a brilliant singer who will be greatly missed.

Tributes have poured in from all over the world.

http://www.ronniejamesdio.com/

CHICKENFOOT To Work On New Album

CHICKENFOOT the supergroup featuring Chad Smith (Red Hot Chili Peppers), Michael Anthony (ex-Van Halen), Joe Satriani and Sammy Hagar (ex-Van Halen) will spend most of September working on their second album.

They will then reconvene in late January and early February for "wrap-up sessions".

The album is planned to be released in the Spring of 2011, via Best Buy, as was their first.



www.chickenfoot.us/

KORN New Album Details

The cover artwork for KORN's new album, "Korn III - Remember Who You Are",  has just been revealed (see above).

The album will be released on July 13th via Roadrunner Records.

This will be the band's ninth album and their first effort for Roadrunner Records.

"Korn III - Remember Who You Are" track listing...
01. Oildale (Leave Me Alone)
02. Pop A Pill
03. Fear Is A Place To Live
04. Move On
05. Lead The Parade
06. Let The Guilt Go
07. The Past
08. Never Around
09. Are You Ready To Live?
10. Holding All These Lies



http://modlife.com/korn

CRIMSON GLORY To Headline KEEP IT TRUE XIV Festival

US metal band CRIMSON GLORY will be one of the headliners of the Keep It True XIV festival, set to take place on April 29th & 30th, 2011 at Tauberfrankenhalle in Lauda-Königshofen, Germany.

The festival line-up so far is as follows...
CRIMSON GLORY (USA)
VICIOUS RUMORS (USA)
MALICE (USA)
BREAKER (USA)
SATAN (UK)
GRIFFIN (USA)
SACRIFICE (CAN)
OSTROGOTH (BEL)
BROCAS HELM (USA)
DEATH DEALER (CAN)
SLAUTER XSTROYES (USA)
DAMIEN THORNE (USA)
SARACEN (UK)
BITCH (USA)
METALUCIFER (JAP/GER)
HELLHOUND (USA)
ENFORCER (SWE)
VEKTOR (USA)
SIGN OF THE JACKAL (ITA)

www.myspace.com/keepittruefestival

Summers End Festival Announces Sylvan Plus Opening Bands

Sylvan, Multifuse and Dead Heroes Club (previously reported on this blog) have all been officially announced for the SUMMERS END FESTIVAL 2010.

The event takes place at Lydney Town Hall, Gloucestershire on October 8th, 9th & 10th.

The Summers End MySpace posting reads as follows...

The Summers End Festival to be held at Lydney Town Hall, Gloucestershire on October 8,9,10 is delighted to announce that the superb Sylvan will take their place at the festival one year late.  We are also thrilled to announce our Saturday and Sunday openers – Dead Heroes Club from Ireland and Multifuse – who are best described as European!

Our next announcement, in about 7 days, will feature: The launch of our 2010 website, the draft schedule for Saturday and Sunday, plus first news of ticket sales and prices.

Sylvan, from Germany, have released a succession of superb and hugely popular albums over the past 11 years, mixing strong playing with intense emotional melodies and lyrics.  Having had to postpone their appearance last year, we welcome them to the Festival at last!
http://www.sylvan.de/

Dead Heroes Club, from Ireland’s, are winning huge praise for their classic prog style which also draws inspiration from the great Irish song writing tradition.  Having already headlined at the Peel in London, we are thrilled to have a band of such stature kicking off the main part of the festival.
www.myspace.com/thedeadheroesclub

Multifuse thrilled us the first time we heard them, and we immediately knew we had to invite them to play the festival.  The band are the brainchild of Provence based English multi-instrumentalist Peter Fallowell and feature singer Cherie Emmitt alongside musicians from the UK, France and Italy! Think Renaissance combined with Magma and you might get some idea of what this amazing band sound like.
www.myspace.com/multifuse  http://www.crookedcatmusic.com/

Friday 8th
The Defence of the Realm with 3Js and a P – featuring Jem Godfrey and John Mitchell
Tinyfish http://www.tinyfish.org/
Unto Us – featuring Huw Lloyd Jones

Saturday 9th and Sunday 10th
Agents of Mercy (Sweden) www.myspace.com/agentsofmercy
Karmakanic (Sweden) www.myspace.com/reingoldmusic
Phideaux (USA) http://www.bloodfish.com/
The Watch (Italy) http://www.thewatchmusic.net/
Unitopia (Australia) http://www.unitopiamusic.com/
Ark (UK) http://ark.grango.org/

http://www.summersend.co.uk/ (new website coming soon)
www.myspace.com/summersendfestival
Join the new facebook group at: www.facebook.com/home.php#/group.php?gid=98170444873
Stalk us mercilessly at www.twitter.com/summersendfest

Join the yahoo group at: http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/summersendfestival/

http://www.summersend.co.uk/

TARJA Finishes Her New Solo Album

Former NIGHTWISH singer Tarja Turunen has finished recording her new solo album, "What Lies Beneath" and is at present overseeing the mixing process.

Production was handled by Tarja herself and the tracks mixed by UK  producer Colin Richardson of Machine Head and Slipknot fame.

All That Remains vocalist Phil Labonte has contributed guest vocals to "What Lies Beneath" and appears on the track "Dark Star".



http://www.tarjaturunen.com/

Thin Lizzy Confirm Their New Line-up

Thin Lizzy have now officially confirmed their new line-up which includes Def Leppard and The Almighty members...

Scott Gorham – Guitar
Vivian Campbell (Def Leppard) – Guitar
Ricky Warwick (The Almighty) – Vocals/guitar
Marco Mendoza – Bass
Darren Wharton – Keyboards
Brian Downey – Drums

The band have already confirmed a UK tour for the start of 2011, with the following dates booked so far...
January 06 - Aberdeen, Music Hall
January 07 - Glasgow O2, Academy
January 08 - Newcastle, City Hall
January 10 - Leeds, O2 Academy
January 11 - Llandudno, Theatre
January 12 - Leicester, De Montfort Hall
January 14 - Wolverhampton, Civic Hall
January 15 - Manchester, Apollo
January 16 - Bristol, Colston Hall
January 18 - Southampton, Guildhall
January 19 - Ipswich, Regent
January 21 - Cambridge, Corn Exchange
January 22 - London, Hammersmith Apollo

Support comes from Supersuckers and tickets go on general sale from 9am on Friday, May 28th HERE.
They cost £23.50 each, except in London, where they are £26.

Thin Lizzy play a special show in Dublin on January 4th, to mark the 25th anniversary of Phil Lynott’s death.
More details on this gig will be announced soon with special guests.

The Universal record label are also planning deluxe reissues of the Thin Lizzy back catalogue.

http://www.thinlizzy.org/

New Lynyrd Skynyrd Live Album!

Lynyrd Skynyrd have released the details of their forthcoming live album and DVD.

They will release the CD/DVD set "Live From Freedom Hall" on June 21st which was recorded on 15th June 2007 in Louisville, Kentucky.

The tracklisting is as follows (CD & DVD are the same)
01. Travelin' Man 
02. Workin' 
03. What's Your Name 
04. That Smell 
05. Simple Man 
06. Down South Jukin' 
07. The Needle And The Spoon 
08. The Ballad Of Curtis Loew 
09. Gimme Back My Bullets 
10. Tuesday's Gone 
11. Red White And Blue 
12. Gimme Three Steps 
13. Call Me The Breeze 
14. Sweet Home Alabama 
15. Free Bird

www.lynyrdskynyrd.com/

POWER QUEST Reveals New Singer & Guitarist

UK metal band POWER QUEST have announced their new singer Chitral "Chity" Somapala and guitarist Gavin Owen (Triaxis) .

The band says,

"Chity is well known and highly regarded worldwide in the rock and metal scene and has recorded, toured and made guest appearances with the likes of Avalon, Faro, Firewind and Red Circuit, as well as fronting his own band Civilization One. His unmistakable style has been compared favorably with Ronnie James Dio, Klaus Meine and Johnny Gioeli."

Power Quest's forthcoming new album will be entitled, "Blood Alliance" and this will be their fifth.
The band recently entered Aubitt Studios in Southampton with Rob Aubrey to begin recording pre-production versions of three new songs namely "Rising Anew", "Sacrifice" and "Time to Burn".

www.power-quest.co.uk/

IN THIS MOMENT To Film "The Gun Show" Video

IN THIS MOMENT will film a cowboy-themed video for the band's new single, "The Gun Show", in Los Angeles on May 16th.

The clip will directed by  David Brodsky of MyGoodEye, who has previously worked on In This Moment's "Forever" video.

Anyone interested in appearing on the video as an extra should follow the instructions on the flyer below.

Century Media Records has set July 13th for the release date of "A Star Crossed Wasteland", the band's new Album.
The CD was recorded at The Wolves Den studio in Las Vegas with producer Kevin Churko.



http://www.myspace.com/inthismoment

PROGENY 3 FESTIVAL - Day Three

Sunday 9th May 1.00-2.45pm (Robbins Well)
Chris Johnson & Anne Marie Helder

Sunday 9th May 3.00-11.00pm (The Assembly)
25 Yard Screamer
3.30-4.15
Solstice
4.35-5.35
Pallas
5.55-7.05
The Tangent
7.50-9.05
Mick Pointer’s Recital Of The Script
9.30-11.00

The day started off at lunchtime with last day of the Progeny Fringe.
This time it was Anne Marie Helder and Chris Johnson who played the songs from Chris's new album as well as some
Anne Marie ones.
I really did enjoy this set and the time raced by.
Somebody suggested to me afterwards that there must be two Anne Marie Helder's as she is involved in so many projects.
A very busy and talented lady indeed.
Chris Johnson wasn't bad either.

25 Yard Screamer then started the final day's proceedings at The Assembly.
Liked some of their stuff and certainly deserved their opening slot.
Played some new material of their forthcoming new album which went down well.

Next up was Solstice who played an hour long set.
Weren't as good as the last time I saw them at Summers End; but gave a competant performance.
Played several songs from their new album which was probably why I didn't enjoy their set as much as the last time I saw them.
Sometimes you have to hear songs a few times before you can appreciate them as you well know.
I have their new album; but have not played it yet, so will reserve judgement until I have.

Pallas then took the stage and although I found it difficult to come to terms with them having a new singer they were very good.
They played old, very old and new tracks from their forthcoming album which should be out in September.
Can't wait for the new album and this is definitely a new era for the band.
I am sure it will not be long until Paul Mackie stamps his identity on the band, especially when they release new material.

The all new The Tangent were the penultimate band of Progeny 3 and I must say I have never seen them play a bad gig.
Andy Tillison was in his usual fine humourous form and they played a varied set with a few songs from their latest album.
Really enjoyed this, the time raced by, would liked to have heard more.

Mick Pointer’s Recital Of The Script were the final band of Progeny 3 and this was pure nostalgia.
The band was Mick Pointer (ex-Marillion) on Drums, Nick Barrett (Pendragon) Guitar, Ian Salmon (Arena) Bass, Mike Varty (Credo) Keyboards and Brian Cummins (Carpet Crawlers) on vocals.
Brian was made up to look like Fish and his Scouse humour was promident throughout the set.
They played Marillion's early material and it was just like being back in the early eighties.
I had my reservations about this band; but what a fitting end it was to Progeny 3.
Nick Barrett was brilliant on guitar!

Just to sum up Progeny 3...
Was excellently run at a superb venue.
I thought that the final day had much stronger acts; but then again there seemed to be more people at the event on the Saturday, which suprises me.
All in all a good weekend; but nowhere near as good line-ups as Summers End.
On a positive note the Fringe Festival was great; but was a shame it was not better supported.
How about Progeny 4!

http://www.leamingtonassembly.com/EventInfo.aspx?id=176
http://www.classicrocksociety.co.uk/

PROGENY 3 FESTIVAL - Day Two REVIEW

Saturday 8th May 1.00-2.45pm (Robbins Well)
Tinyfish Trio

Saturday 8th May 3.00-11.00pm (The Assembly)
Future Kings Of England
3.30-4.15
Circulus
4.35-5.35
Here & Now
5.55-7.05
The Elves Of Silbury Hill
7.50-9.05
Twelfth Night
9.30-11.00

TinyFish made it an excellent start to day two of Progeny 3.
Have never seen the band acoustically before; but if you haven't then you definitely should!
They played some new songs off their forthcoming new album as well as old favourites.
Great music and humour started the day off superbly.

Future Kings Of England opened procedings at The Assembly and I enjoyed most of their set although I would have liked them more if they were not just an instrumental band.

Next up was Circulus and trying not being too critical; but what was this band doing at a Prog Festival.
Their sound was medieval (Minstrels) and did nothing for me.
Don't get me wrong, what they did they did well; but even with my wide range of musical tastes this is not one of them.

Here and Now were much better (still not Prog in my opinion) and were a lot rockier.
Enjoyed their set even though I found some of their songs went on longer than they should.

One of the highlights of the day for me was The Elves Of Silbury Hill and their set was far too short in my opinion.
Excellent band of which I will certainly shall be investigating further.

Headliners Twelfth Night took took to the stage on time at 9.30pm.
I have all the albums from this band although I have found myself liking only half the material on each.
Tonight they actually played most of the material I liked so they more than met my expectations.
Nice touch to invite Alan Reed (ex-Pallas) up on the stage to sing their last number.
What ever the facts are about Pallas it would be nice to see Alan back in a band again.
So all in all a great performance from Twelfth Night to round off the evening.
I know I keep saying this; but when are we going to get a new album and not just live of past glory?

I would just like to say what an excellent venue The Assembly is and my thanks to everyone who made this day run very smoothly indeed.

All in all this was nowhere near to the best day of all the festivals I have been to; but in my opinion tomorrow was always going to be a lot better and I think that the attendance will prove this.

http://www.leamingtonassembly.com/EventInfo.aspx?id=176
http://www.classicrocksociety.co.uk/

PROGENY 3 FESTIVAL - Day One REVIEW

Friday 7th May 7.00-11.00pm (Robbins Well)
The 2 J's (John Mitchell and John Beck)
Mini-Magenta (Christina Booth and Chris Fry)

Christina and Chris started the proceedings at 8pm.
They began with songs from Christina's new album which was very brave considering she was being accompanied by only acoustic guitar.
The songs went down very well and I am looking forward to the CD when it is released.
I am sure they will sound even better with a full band.
A mixture of the solo album and Magenta tracks were played throughout the set ending in an excellent version of Kate Bush's "Hounds of Love".

At 10pm John Beck and John Mitchell took the stage (well, not really a stage) and although I am not really a big fan of It Bites I really did enjoy their set.
They played It Bites, Phil Collins, David Bowie, Peter Gabriel etc.etc.
I have recently rediscovered the first Peter Gabriel album and what an excellent version of "Here Comes The Flood" they played.
Brilliant Song!!
Chris Fry joined the two John's on stage towards the end of the set.

All in all a great start to Progeny 3.
Tomorrow will be even better!

http://www.leamingtonassembly.com/EventInfo.aspx?id=176
http://www.classicrocksociety.co.uk/

WE ARE THE FALLEN - Audio Samples Of Debut Album Available

WE ARE THE FALLEN, the group formed by Evanescence co-founder Ben Moody (guitar) and other former members John LeCompt (guitar) and Rocky Gray (drums) along with vocalist Carly Smithson and bassist Marty O'Brien will release their debut album, "Tear The World Down", on May 11th via Universal Republic Records.

The track listing for the album is as follows:
01. Bury Me Alive
02. Burn
03. Paradigm
04. Don't Leave Me Behind
05. Sleep Well, My Angel
06. Through Hell
07. I Will Stay
08. Without You
09. St. John
10. I Am Only One
11. Tear The World Down

30-second audio samples of all the tracks that appear on the album can be streamed HERE.



http://www.wearethefallen.com/

OZZFEST Announces Full Line-up

Ozzy Osbourne and Motley Crue are to co-headline this year’s Ozzfest tour of America and they will be joined on the main stage by Halford, Devildriver and Nonpoint.

The second stage features Black Label Society, Drowning Pool, Kataklysm, Kingdom Of Sorrow, Goatwhore, Saviours & Skeletonwitch.

Ozzfest is due to take place from August 14th to 24th, visiting San Bernardino, Chicago, Pittsburgh, Hartford, Camden (New Jersey) and Boston.

http://www.ozzfest.com/

WOLFMOTHER Release 'Far Away' Video

Between dates on their recent tour with AC/DC, WOLFMOTHER filmed a video for their new single, "Far Away".

The video was filmed in Sydney with director Sam Stephens and can be viewed below.

"Far Away" is  off Wolfmother's second album, "Cosmic Egg", which sold nearly 30,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release.

The album was released in October 2009 and was the group's first album since the departure of drummer Myles Heskett and bassist/keyboardist Chris Ross. 

Wolfmother's 2006 debut album sold more than 500,000 copies in the U.S. and featured the Grammy-winning single "Woman".

http://www.wolfmother.com/

Full Friday Line-up Announced For SUMMERS END FESTIVAL

The SUMMERS END FESTIVAL has announced it's full Friday line-up (8th October) on their MySpace page.

The full announcement is as follows...

In the first of two announcements over the next few days, the Summers End Festival to be held at Lydney Town Hall, Gloucestershire on October 8,9,10 is delighted to announce its entire Friday line up!

Headliners will be the enigmatically titled “The Defence of the Realm with 3 Js and a P” – a one off musical extravaganza featuring Jem Godfrey (Frost) and John Mitchell (Frost, It Bites, Kino) and two very well known musicians to be named later. What teases we are! This promises to be one of those “you had to be there” nights, so should not be missed under any circumstances!
Obviously, they don’t have a website, but for now http://www.frost-music.co.uk/ will have to do!

We are also delighted to welcome back the marvellous Tinyfish to the festival after their show stopping opening slot in 2007. The band will release the long-awaited 2nd album “Big Red Spark” in August 2010.
http://www.tinyfish.org/
www.myspace.com/tinyfishmusic

The third band of the evening will be Unto Us, the new project from singer Huw Lloyd Jones (ex Also Eden). More news about this band will be revealed very soon.

In a few days we will be announcing our two opening acts for the main festival. One is an established band with a growing reputation, the other may be unknown to you, yet is one of the most exciting - and unusual – new projects we’ve heard in many years. Stay tuned!

http://www.summersend.co.uk/(new website coming soon)
www.myspace.com/summersendfestival

Saxon, Cathedral and Hammerfall Added To HIGH VOLTAGE FESTIVAL Line-up

Saxon, Cathedral and Hammerfall have been added to the line-up at Classic Rock’s High Voltage Festival which takes place in Victoria Park, London.

All three bands will appear on Saturday, July 24th on the Metal Hammer Stage.

The latest line-up is as follows...
Saturday, 24th July
Main Stage: ZZ Top, Heaven & Hell, Foreigner, Gary Moore, The Answer, The Union.

Metal Hammer Stage: Black Label Society, Saxon, Cathedral, Hammerfall, Orange Goblin, Black Spiders, New Device.

Prog Stage: Transatlantic, Opeth, Asia, Dweezil Zappa, Focus, Pendragon, Touchstone.

Sunday, 25th July
Main Stage: Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Joe Bonamassa, Bachman & Turner, UFO, Quireboys.

Metal Hammer Stage: Down, Venom, Clutch, High On Fire, Audrey Horne, Lethargy.

Prog Stage: Marillion, Argent, Uriah Heep, Magnum, Steve Hackett, Martin Turner’s Wishbone Ash, The Reasoning.

The High Voltage also has a wide range of added attractions and these include...
Air guitar championship – staged by Air Guitar UK, with the winner going on the UK final and possibly the World Championships in Finland!

The Victoria – a real ale pub serving award-winning ales including Fullers London Pride, Greene King Abbot Ale, Deuchars IPA, plus a full range of seasonal and guest ales.

Fine food – including Spectacular Sausages, Taco Truck, Harbour Seafoods, Roaming Rotisserie, Pure Pie and Goodness Gracious Healthy Foods (the UK’s leading mobile vegetarian caterers).

Classic car/motorbike exhibition – a must for petrolheads.

Fairground – including 1950s dodgems and a Victorian helter-skelter.

Wall of death – the legendary, death-defying test of nerve and skill!

Vinyl exchange – filled, of course, with classic rock and metal!

Standard tickets are prices £135 (for weekend tickets) and £75 (for day tickets).
There is no booking fee for High Voltage tickets.

Tickets are available from http://www.highvoltagefestival.com/

HAWKWIND To Release New Album Next Month

HAWKWIND will release their first new studio album for five years on June 21st.

The new album called "Blood Of The Earth" will be released in three formats, a standard single disc edition, double CD edition (featuring bonus live tracks) and a double vinyl edition.

The tracklisting is as follows...
01. Seahawks
02. Blood Of The Earth
03. Wraith
04. Green Machine
05. Inner Visions
06. Sweet Obsession
07. Comfey Chair
08. Prometheus
09. You’d Believe It
10. Sentinel
11. Starshine (bonus song)

You can hear previews of two songs from the album, "Seahawks" and "You’d Believe It" HERE.

Record company Eastworld Recordings are also planning to reissue Hawkwind's back catalogue on coloured vinyl.
Each release will be limited to 1,000 copies.

http://www.hawkwind.com/