Back from a nice, albeit brief, respite in Florida with friends and my extended family. Came home with some wonderful memories, great tan and bad heat rash! Visited the new Marlins Park! That place actually has a swimming pool for fans to use while they watch the game! Crazy, but it is probably the most unique ball park ever. They even have an aquarium along both sides of the benches with tropical fish (sans marlins)…..Man, this story is getting insane! Lamb Of God has released an official statement regarding the arrest and imprisonment of singer Randy Blythe, who was seized two weeks ago in the Czech Republic on suspicion of manslaughter. The charge stems from a 2010 incident in which a fan who was allegedly shoved off the stage by Blythe at a Lamb Of God show in Prague died two weeks later from a brain hemorrhage. Blythe, who remains in a Czech jail as a flight risk despite making bail, has drawn the support of hard rockers such as Disturbed‘s David Draiman, Slash, Five Finger Death Punch and others. The band’s statement thanks “everyone who has reached out in support,” before adding that they’ve refrained from saying anything sooner due to the “fluid nature” of the situation. But the statement continues, “In the two years since, we were never notified of anything related to this incident . . . The best we can do is to stay positive and continue to support our friend that we know is innocent. We know that justice will prevail and we will continue to do our part to support our friend.” Lamb Of God had been touring Europe in support of its latest album, Resolution, when Blythe was arrested on June 27th. He has been charged with causing “bodily harm of the fourth degree, resulting in the death” of the 19-year-old fan, who has only been identified as Daniel N. Blythe faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted. Many of Blythe’s fellow musicians have cited the 2004 shooting death onstage of Pantera guitarist “Dimebag” Darrell Abbott as the reason why musicians are so defensive nowadays about fans invading the stage. Some reports say the late fan tried to mount the stage as many as three times that evening…..Pulse of Radio reports Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl took out a full-page ad and sent a message to his hometown of Warren, Ohio to thank it for constructing two giant drumsticks in his honor. Tthe ad in the local paper featured Grohl wearing a “Made in Warren” T-shirt and a huge smile, while his message read, “To the wonderful city of Warren, from the bottom of my heart I’d like to thank you all so much . . . For the childhood memories. For my family. For my very own alley. For the world’s largest drumsticks! And for all of your support . . . But most of all for being such a great community. One that makes me proud to say . . . I am from Warren, Ohio!” ….Canadian friends are going to be happy Stone Temple Pilots have added new CA dates in Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia. See Road Ragefor the deets….Redlight King has left the Saving Abel tour. No reason was given, but the band wishes Saving Abel continued success on their current trek….Congrats to my friends Linkin Park on their number ONE debut last week on the Billboard Album Chart for Living Things. They inched out Maroon 5 by 1,000 copies, outselling them 223, 000 to 222,000! And congrats to Zakk Wylde and his “general” Barbaranne on the birth of their son, Sabbath Page Wielandt Wylde on Jul 4th! It’s the couple’s 4th child…And finally today, I will share this story from Loudwire: Puddle of Mudd frontman Wes Scantlin pleaded guilty to felony cocaine possession on Tuesday, Jul 2. The musician was arrested in January of this year after being pulled over in Los Angeles. After being pulled over on Jan 12, Scantlin showed signs of intoxication, which led to authorities finding a controlled substance, later revealed to be cocaine, in the musician’s possession. According to E! Online, Scantlin pleaded guilty to the cocaine charges, but managed to have his misdemeanor charges — being under the influence of a controlled substance and driving without a license — dropped entirely. He also avoided jail time for his cocaine charge, instead having judgement deferred for 18 months and being ordered to enroll in a drug counseling program by Aug. 8. If Scantlin completes the program, the felony cocaine possession may be dropped. This is just the latest episode in Scantlin’s legal proceedings. The Puddle of Mudd frontman recently finalized his divorce after his ex-wife attempted to have the couple’s prenuptial agreement thrown out, to no avail. Scantlin signed his official divorce paperwork with two smiley faces. I mean, is this guy lucky or WHAT?!!! Who gets out of stuff like this with only rehab? Wes does! LOL….Happy 48th today to Courtney Love…Happy 47 to Anthrax’s Frankie Bello, Happy 37th to Jack White and had he lived, the incredible Bon Scott of AC/DC would turn 66 today!
