With two weeks away from their Rock on the Range appearance, I am so damn happy the news is OFFICIALLY out Korn is in the studio with HEAD recording their new album! It’s the first time in 8 years Brian has done this, 8 long years. I am so freaking excited and I hope JD plays me some stuff in Columbus. Sooooooo freaking excited! (New readers please note: Korn IS my favorite band!) Check out the video: click here (Thanks Sebastien!) Korn has begun work on its 11th studio album and first with founding guitarist Brian “Head” Welch back in the fold since 2003’s Take A Look In The Mirror. Welch told Rolling Stone, “We knew we would have a blast playing together, because we love each other so much, but we really wanted to make sure the music felt right before we committed to making a whole album together. But since we got in the studio, everything just started pouring out, now I can’t wait until our fans hear this stuff!” Yeah!…..As reported yesterday, we were so saddened by the news of the passing of Slayer co-founder Jeff Hanneman. Jeff was only 49 and two years ago, he was bitten by a spider that resulted in a flesh eating disease, which eventually caused liver failure. The infection ravaged the flesh and tissues of Hanneman’s arm, leading to numerous surgeries, skin grafts and intense periods of rehab that forced him into semi-retirement and left him near death at several points. So shocking to see and hear the news, many artists have turned to the web to voice their sorrow:
DAVE MUSTAINE: Tonight one less star will be shining and sadly, the stage got just a little bit darker. Jeff Hanneman 1964-2013.
MACHINE HEAD: RIP Jeff Hanneman. One of the greatest songwriters in all of metal let alone music. Our hearts go out to his family and band mates.
DEATH ANGEL: R.I.P. Jeff Hanneman. Love & respect to the Slayer family.
DAVID ELLEFSON: My condolences to Slayer and Jeff Hanneman’s family today.
RANCID: Our heart goes out Jeff Hanneman’s friends and family. You will be missed man.
SLASH: Tragic & shocking news about Jeff Hanneman. He is going to missed by so many. What a sad day for Metal. RIP man.
GIBSON GUITAR: RIP Jeff Hanneman. You will be greatly missed.
ALEX SKOLNICK: Sad news. RIP JH. He’ll be remembered at #GoldenGods
TESTAMENT: R.I.P. Jeff Hanneman, brother in thrash.
HATEBREED: Rest In Peace Jeff Hanneman! A True Heavy Metal LEGEND!
DINO CAZARES: I’m extremely shocked and sad to hear about Jeff Hanneman. He was a huge influence on my playing when I was growing up.
CHIMAIRA: RIP Jeff Hanneman. Icon
GUS G.: Gutted to read the news. RIP Jeff Hanneman 
the music world has lost yet another one of the greats
ROB CAGGIANO: Wow… I just heard some really sad news . R.I.P. Jeff Hanneman
MIKE PORTNOY: WOW….I’m in shock…RIP Jeff Hanneman….wow….
IN FLAMES: We are so devasted to hear about the passing of Jeff Hanneman. One of the greatest have passed on and please,…
DUFF McKAGAN: Jeff Hanneman of @Slayer RIP. Wow. I’m so very sorry for your loss Hanneman family.
HARDDRIVE: All of us here at the show were so shocked at the unbelievable news. We extend our sincere condolences to the Slayer band, management, friends and family.
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Today at 12 PM, AXS TV will reair last night’s Golden Gods Awards. I know everyone there was affected by the news of Jeff’s passing, and I am sure more than one speech or performance was dedicated to him. I do know one of the performance highlights was Five Finger Death Punch performing their new song “Lift Me Up” with Rob Halford of Judas Priest! I am sure that event delighted the packed house!….This is pretty cool. Pulse Content reports Pearl Jam, Foo Fighters, Soundgarden, Black Sabbath and Gotye are among the dozens of acts joining the Global Citizen Tickets Initiative, a new program launched on Thursday (May 2nd) which is designed to incentive social activism with concert tickets. According to Billboard.com, fans can now register at Globalcitizen.org/tickets, where by taking a variety of social actions, ranging from signing petitions to calling their representatives, they can earn points to win free concert tickets. The effort, part of the Global Poverty Project (GPP), will encourage thousands to take action on issues such as extreme poverty, women’s empowerment, education, disease and more. The Global Citizen Tickets Initiative is the brainchild of Pearl Jam manager Kelly Curtis and Global Poverty Project CEO Hugh Evans, who produced the Global Citizen Festival in New York’s Central Park last year. Fans who attended that show earned tickets through activism in a similar manner. Pearl Jam guitarist Stone Gossard praised Curtis for “spearheading this thoughtful strategy. It reflects the DNA of our band and business, and expands it to respond to some of the greatest inequities and challenges facing humanity.” Other artists signing onto the Initiative include Bruno Mars, Tim McGraw, Usher, Ke$ha, Neil Young, Dixie Chicks, One Direction, Tony Bennett, Beyonce, Bruce Springsteen, Depeche Mode, Dierks Bentley, Heart, Jay-Z, Kings Of Leon, Linkin Park, No Doubt and many others. Nice work!….Poor Steven Adler. His will power is like mine. Nil. The former Guns N’ Roses drummer has checked into an undisclosed rehab center, forcing his band Adler to postpone its summer tour. According to Blabbermouth, the band issued a statement saying, “We are truly sorry to all of the fans and promoters who were looking forward to seeing us on the road, but right now Steven’s health is the most important thing. We hope to make it up to everyone when Steven recovers.” The dates are being rescheduled to the fall….Deftones paid tribute on Wednesday night (May 1st) to Kris Kross member Chris Kelly, who died earlier that day at the age of 34 of a suspected drug overdose. The band was playing at the Pageant in St. Louis when singer Chino Moreno told the crowd, “We just got word that a member of Kris Kross has passed. I know it’s not good news.” The group then proceeded to perform the rap duo’s monster 1992 hit “Jump.” The Deftones themselves recently suffered a loss when bassist Chi Cheng passed away after more than four years in a semi-comatose state brought on by a car accident. (Billboard)…Lots of birthdays: Today: Josey Scott, ex-Saliva frontman is 41 and the amazing “Joan” of Madmen, Christina Hendricks is 38 (I heart her), Saturday, Green Day’s MIke Dirnt turns 41, Motley Crue’s Mick Mars is 62 and legendary surf guitarist (we use his music in Dirt on hardDrive) Dick Dale turns 76! Sunday, Black Sabbath drummer (hate saying “ex”) turns 65, Monty Python member Michael Palin is 70 and my ole friend from my Rolling Stone days, Kurt Loder (MTV) will be 68. Like wine, we get better with age! Have a great weekend. Go Rosie in the Derby!
