I think every Friday is a Good Friday….Pulse Content reports Skillet has set a June 25th release date for Rise, the band’s ninth studio album. The lead single from the disc, “Sick Of It,” will head to iTunes and rock radio around April 9th. The band has set up a micro-site for the song where fans can check out a sample of the track and also get involved in a “Sick Of It” promotion. The group is asking fans to submit photos of what they are “sick of,” using the hashtags #sickofit and #skillet. Some of the fan photos will then be selected for the song’s upcoming music video.Frontman John Cooper has revealed Rise is Skillet’s first concept album. The story follows an American teen coming into adulthood and trying to figure out who he is in a world riddled with problems both within and beyond his control. Cooper said, “The narrative idea happened after we had 10 or 11 of the songs chosen. As we recorded them, we started to realize that there was something going on — that the album was really telling a story. Realizing that, I knew we needed to make it as powerful as we could.”...Metallica has revealed the Metallica Museum will be back on site for the second annual Orion Music + More festival, scheduled for June 8th and 9th at Belle Isle in Detroit. A statement posted at the band’s official website said, “We’re bringing back the Metallica Museum in 2013, so stay tuned for more details and information about all of the awesome memorabilia we’ll have on hand in Detroit! Classic Metallica guitars (including the last bass that Cliff Burton ever played), amps, lyrics, merchandise, stage props and more . . . except this time it will be BIGGER and BADDER!” The post continued, “Last year, festival-goers basked in the glory of 30 years worth of band history and memorabilia in one single spot at the Metallica Museum. They strolled down Metallica memory lane and snapped shots of the band’s rare guitars, like the originals James and Kirk used to record Kill ‘Em All, Ride The Lightning, and Master Of Puppets, Justice stage props, vintage tour posters and T-shirts. For the Pushead fans in the crowd, the museum will display pieces of his original Metallica artwork.” ….Now this is something ‘Knot maggots should get behind! A Facebook page petitioning for two years to get Slipknot invited to perform on NBC’s Saturday Night Live has been endorsed by band members Corey Taylor and Shawn “Clown” Crahan, while also gaining 9,000 likes on the social networking site. Slipknot has never appeared on the long-running late-night skit comedy show, despite being the musical guests on other programs like The Tonight Show, Conan and Jimmy Kimmel Live!. The petition’s founder, Chad Cheifer, told Loudwire, “I’m a big SNL fan and love watching the show, but their choices of musical guests the past couple of years seem to be very redundant. It seems as if SNL has been playing it safe and having the ‘flavor of the week’ perform on the show. It would be nice to see more diversity in their choice of musical guests. I know that Slipknot would put on one of the most electrifying and exciting performances the show has ever seen.” Right on!…Even the best laid plans get screwed up. The Chicago Tribune reported yesterday (March 28th) that a Lollapalooza poster leaked online Wednesday night (March 27th) was legitimate, providing fans with an accurate snapshot of this year’s lineup a week ahead of its official unveiling. According to the poster, previously confirmed headliners Mumford and Sons, the Killers, and Phoenix have been joined by the Cure and Nine Inch Nails. Other acts include Vampire Weekend, The Postal Service, Queens Of The Stone Age, The National, New Order, The Lumineers and others. More acts on the bill include Imagine Dragons, Tegan & Sara, Atlas Genius, Matt & Kim, Cat Power, Alt-J, Grizzly Bear, Band Of Horses, Hot Chip, Baroness, Foals, Ghost B.C., The Vaccines, Lana Del Reyand more. The lineup will be officially revealed next week, one week ahead of the original date of April 9th…. Must be Baby Season! While Adelitas Way frontman Rick DeJesus waits for the birth of his first child, Sevendust guitarist Clint Lowery is sitting out the current leg of the band’s touring schedule so he be at home with his wife Tara as they await the birth of their second child, a daughter. The couple married in 2010 and have a son who was born the same year. Filling in for Lowery on the road is Evanescence axeman Troy McLawhorn, who contributed guitar tracks to Sevendust’s 1999 sophomore album, Home. McLawhorn and Lowery also played guitar together in the band Dark New Day. McLawhorn was able to fill in for Lowery since Evanescence is on a break from touring. (Thanks Loudwire) ….Shinedown recently stopped by the Warner Sound online program The Live Room to perform the track “I’ll Follow You.” The performance was filmed at Henson Studios in Los Angeles as the band continues to promote its year-old fourth album, Amaryllis. During a recent co-headlining tour with Three Days Grace, Shinedown guitarist Zach Myers regularly joined opening act P.O.D. onstage to play their cover of U2‘s ‘Bullet the Blue Sky.” Check that out here. But is that Wuv Bernardo on drums? Doesn’t look like him! I am confused!….Happy 54th today to Jane’s Addiction’s Perry Farrell and Very Happy 70th to Monty Python’s Eric Idle…On Saturday, Mar 30, Eric Clapton turns 68 and on Sunday, Mar 31, Angus Young of AC/DC is 58! Have a great weekend, y’all! Don’t eat too many marshmallow peeps!
