Hell yea, it’s Friday! One more day to get through before the weekend hits! Hope everyone’s ready for it! Here’s what’s up in music news this morning:
Slash has confirmed that a third album featuring his solo band, Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators, will arrive this fall. The yet-to-be-titled disc will follow up 2012’s Apocalyptic Love and 2014’s World On Fire. In addition to Slash, the group includes Myles Kennedy on vocals, Brent Fitz on drums, Todd Kerns on bass and newest member Frank Sidoris on guitar.
Slash said in a statement, “I’m excited about the new stuff we put together for this next record; it’s got some cool songs and it’s got a great live feel. I’ve been working with Myles, Brent and Todd for about eight years now. It’s been an amazing ride so far; as a band we continue to get better which is great . . . I feel we have hit a great, creative stride which I definitely think shows on this next record.”
As for GNR, Slash is still very much part of the current semi-classic lineup, saying, “Guns N’ Roses will be headlining European festivals this summer, it’s going to be a 110 percent performance and a huge blast.” He added about the ongoing reunion tour, which launched in April 2016, “It’s indescribable to explain these shows . . . It’s like being in a new band, except there’s a chemistry that is established from days of old, so it’s a natural thing that’s always been there.”
Rumors of a new Conspirators disc were started last December when Slash’s girlfriend Meegan Hodges told a fan on Instagram that the guitarist was in the studio.
Slash, Kennedy and the Conspirators will head out on a North American tour this fall.
Pearl Jam brought Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith and guitarist Josh Klinghoffer onstage for an impromptu cover of Neil Young‘s “Rockin’ In The Free World” during a show in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on Wednesday night, March 21st. As the improvised supergroup tore through Young’s 1989 anthem, singer Eddie Vedder tossed tambourines into the crowd and doused himself from a gigantic bottle of wine. Throughout much of the track, Pearl Jam drummer Matt Cameron played a floor tom and Smith manned the kit, while Klinghoffer traded leads with Mike McCready and Stone Gossard.
“Rockin’ In The Free World” has been a staple of Pearl Jam shows for years, and the band played it with Young himself in a now-classic appearance at the 1993 MTV Video Music Awards. Pearl Jam will wrap its South American tour this weekend with a set at Lollapalooza Brazil, where Red Hot Chili Peppers are also scheduled to perform.
Pearl Jam will play a handful of European dates before embarking on a short U.S. stadium tour this summer, with gigs in Seattle, Missoula, Montana, Chicago and Boston. Earlier this month, the band released a new protest song called “Can’t Deny Me.” The track marks the group’s first original song since the release of their 10th studio LP, Lightning Bolt, in 2013 and is confirmed to be from an upcoming new album.
Thirty Seconds To Mars has revealed that the band’s new album will be titled America and will arrive on April 6th. The band’s fifth studio effort is being preceded by a marketing campaign centered on a variety of themed lists appearing on billboards in Los Angeles, New York, London, Sydney, Toronto, Mexico City, Paris, Berlin and numerous other cities.
The lists coincide with six different album covers for the disc. Singer Jared Leto said on Twitter, “For me the lists are almost like a time capsule. Independently they may surprise, entertain or provoke, but as a group they give us a sense of the culture we are a part of and the times we are living in.”
America follows up 2013’s Love, Lust, Faith And Dreams and includes the single “Walk On Water,” which recently topped the Modern Rock radio airplay chart. The next single to arrive, “One Track Mind,” is a collaboration with A$AP Rocky, while the disc also features guest appearances from alterna-pop star Halsey and EDM artist Zedd.
Thirty Seconds To Mars recently announced a summer trek called “The Monolith Tour” that will kick off on June 6th in Toronto and wind down on July 22nd in Phoenix.
Support on the tour will come from Walk The Moon, K.Flay, MisterWives, Joywave and Welshly Arms.
Smashing Pumpkins founder and frontman William Corgan did not mince words about former bassist D’arcy Wretzky in a New York Times interview on Thursday, saying he has not seen her in 19 years and was horrified she shared their private correspondence about the upcoming Pumpkins reunion tour online. Corgan explained, “I think what she did demonstrates why she couldn’t be involved. I was vulnerable and shared things and trusted that there was a reason to give it a chance, despite plenty of empirical evidence that that was not a wise decision.”
Corgan added that the bridge between he and Wretzky — with whom he started rebuilding his friendship two years ago — is now burned “forever.” She is not taking part at all in the reunion, which also includes original guitarist James Iha and drummer Jimmy Chamberlin.
But the Times also spoke with Wretzky herself, who said that Corgan misled her about the reunion. She revealed, “He was stringing me along and using me to be able to say that it was, in fact, a reunion of all the members. Billy can be incredibly charming and funny and fun, but when it comes to money and giving credit where credit is due and any kind of work situation, it’s not pretty.”
Wretzky said there were disagreements about how the members would be paid, with Corgan making twice as much as the others. She added, “I really wanted to do this tour for the right reasons. If everybody was doing it for free, I would have done it for free.”
The current almost-all-original lineup of the Pumpkins have been recording on two EPs, with the first of the new music coming in May. The “Shiny And Oh So Bright” tour, which will reportedly focus on the band’s first five albums, kicks off on July 12th in Glendale, Arizona.
Kaaboo Del Mar, billed as an “adult escape” festival featuring music, comedy, art and food, has announced an eclectic lineup for 2018. The rock portion of the festival will include performances from Foo Fighters, Alice In Chains, Stone Temple Pilots, Slash Featuring Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators, Imagine Dragons, Better Than Ezra, Jimmy Eat World, Cake, Candlebox and Incubus.
A pop contingent will feature Katy Perry and Halsey, as well as ‘90s icons Jewel, Melissa Etheridge and TLC. New Wave staples Billy Idol, Blondie and The English Beat are also on the bill, along with Robert Plant, The Wailers and R&B legends Earth, Wind & Fire.
The event is scheduled for September 14th through the 16th at the Del Mar racetrack north of San Diego and will be the fourth annual gathering since Kaaboo launched in 2015. Billing itself as “everything a typical music festival is not,” Kaaboo’s amenities and attractions include artisanal cuisine, craft libations and beers, spa services, contemporary visual art, a Vegas-style pool, cabanas, dance clubs, plenty of seating, and even luxury bathrooms in addition to plenty of music and comedy.
Over the last three years, the fest has featured acts like Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers — one of Petty’s last performances before his untimely passing — P!nk, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Ice Cube, Aerosmith, the Killers, and Snoop Dogg among many others. It’s expected to draw more than 100,000 people.
Finally, we’d like to wish a happy birthday to Damon Albarn of Blur and Gorillaz! Happy Friday everyone!
