Why is it so hard to get rolling after a long holiday weekend? I dunno. Probably cuz I didn’t win Powerball maybe?….Had a great Saturday, as I covered the second and third stage bands at the Rockstar Energy Drink Uproar. Hung out with just about everyone and had fun as well! Also got to hear some of forthcoming album, The Road, from Aaron Lewis on his bus. It sounds really good (yes, I like some country music and dare I say, bluegrass!) Also got to see his new crossbow (pretty interesting with an electronic site) and almost sat on his rifle that was on a chair! Whoops! Anyhow, hunting season is upon him, so he’s always prepared. Actually, he’s heading to Kentucky to do some hunting with friends. Aaron is an interesting guy for sure! Also got to talk to Mindset Evolution, a new band out of Peoria, who hardDrive helped find management. Rob Ulrich, Skyler and the guys are really nice and their set was really good, so be sure to check out the band if you are heading to an upcoming show! And Shinedown are totally superstars now! The Best Buy line was at least a half mile long for their signing! RIght on for them!…Green Day was forced to cancel their show on Sunday in Bologna, Italy! Frontman Billie Joe Armstrong was rushed to a hospital with an unknown illness forcing the show to cancel. No word on what his ailment was or when the show can be rescheduled. The band is set to perform in Vegas on Sep 21 for the I Heart Radio Festival, along with Linkin Park. Meanwhile their album, Uno, is set for Sep 25….Papa Roach‘s new video for “Still Swingin’” is really cool. Check it out on VEVO here. It’s the first single from the band’s new album The Connection. The clip features footage of the band performing against a bright NYC skyline on top of a building in Brooklyn interspersed with scenes of a curly-haired rock dude using blasts of power from his hands to battle rotting zombies in a Walking Dead-style post-apocalyptic ruin. We don’t know what it means either, but it looks cool and was reportedly suggested by frontman Jacoby Shaddix‘s seven-year-old son….Pulse of Radio also reports Pearl Jam was joined onstage by Jay-Z for an encore of Jay’s hit “99 Problems” at the end of the rapper’s two-day Made In America Festival on Sunday (Sep 2nd) in Philadelphia. Pearl Jam headlined the second night of the inaugural event with a 25-song set featuring hits from all eras of their 22-year career. Singer Eddie Vedder also made a political statement about voting, saying, “I won’t mention any names but . . . one of the parties wants to make it harder for you to vote. That means that they must think your vote counts if they are trying to keep you from voting. So go out and vote.” …Speaking of politics, Soundgarden frontman Chris Cornell was supposed to perform at the Made In America event but had to pull out at the last minute due to a scheduling conflict: Cornell was also slated to play at a campaign rally for President Obama in Des Moines, IA on Saturday (Sep 1st). Cornell’s acoustic set included material from Audioslave, Temple Of The Dog and his solo records, as well as a cover of John Lennon‘s “Imagine.”….Happy 52nd today to Kim Thayil of Soundgarden and Happy 31st to Lacey Mosely Sturm of Flyleaf!
