Good morning Radicals! Here’s some fresh music news for your eyeballs:
Ghost main man Tobias Forge has told the Los Angeles Daily News in a new interview that he still has a relatively anonymous life outside the band, thanks to the fact that he wears a mask and costume onstage and performs under the name Cardinal Copia.
Forge explained, “I am actually quite happy that I am personally not so well-known and that the band is far more known than I am. Even though I’m just as much of an exhibitionist as any other rock person and I love being seen and being positively criticized, I have learned that I’m not as fond of the idea of being famous as I thought I was.”
He continued, “I like that the band is famous and is doing well, but that I am not personally famous as opposed to someone like Bono. Everywhere he goes he will be Bono and he’s expected to be Bono. If he goes into a restaurant, he’s expected to preferably break into a speech about current world affairs and hopefully pick up the tab for everyone. I am very happy that I’m not expected to be anything like that dude on stage.”
Forge told us that not very much has changed since his identity was revealed and the band has become more successful: “It feels not very different from my point of view. It was a long time ago in the career where I felt anonymous, and I mean, over the years I’ve always tried to point out that there’s a great difference between being anonymous and being unmasked. And I’ve always and still will put a lot of effort into preserving the latter.”
Ghost is currently in the midst of a lengthy North American tour in support of its fourth studio LP, Prequelle. The band plays in Austin, Texas on Tuesday night, November 20th.
Soundgarden guitarist Kim Thayil told Forbes in a recent interview that an upcoming benefit concert honoring the band’s late singer Chris Cornell will be “somewhat anxious.” Thayil explained, “I suppose it will be somewhat anxious. Soundgarden didn’t initially corral this lineup for a project. It was driven by booking agents and Chris’s wife Vicky, who really wanted to organize this, and our management. I’m sure it will be just fine and we’ll be able to deal with it just fine.”
The lineup for the show, which will take place on January 16th, 2019 at the Forum in Los Angeles, will include Foo Fighters, Metallica, Ryan Adams and members of Soundgarden, Audioslave and Temple Of The Dog, along with other surprise guests.
Thayil continued, “The lineup was put together by Vicky, management and the booking agents all with our approval. The only people on the bill are people that Soundgarden members approved of. They were looking for people the band had a history with, Chris had a history with and people who were supportive of us over our careers and fans of ours who could do some of this material justice.”
Asked if there are particular songs that he would be excited to play that night, Thayil said, “I think Matt (Cameron, drums), Ben (Shepherd, bass) and I will collectively decide which songs we’ll throw our best fist forward.”
Proceeds from the show will benefit the the Chris And Vicky Cornell Foundation as well as the Epidermolysis Bullosa Medical Research Foundation (EBMRF). Chris Cornell was found dead in a Detroit hotel room on May 18th, 2017 after hanging himself.
Stone Sour and Slipknot frontman Corey Taylor will play an acoustic set on Friday, December 14th at Fremont Country Club in Las Vegas. He will be joined by his longtime sidekick Jason Christopher. Also appearing on the bill are Cherry Bombs, the all-girl dance group led by Taylor’s girlfriend Alicia Dove, along with other artists. The event is a fundraising benefit for the Star Treatments charity.
Founded by Pop Evil bassist Matt DiRito, Star Treatments covers the costs of transportation for children who are battling health issues to their medical appointments in a more comfortable way, such as in a limo or bus. The children and their families get the “rock star treatment” all the way to the hospital and back, so they can be as pleasant and calm as possible during such a stressful time.
Although Taylor has done solo shows before and spoken word tours in support of his books, he’s resisted doing a solo LP. But he told us a while back what he thought it might sound like: “For me, the stuff that I write is, it would be like a cross between the Foos, Social D. and the Replacements, you know. I mean, real Midwestern rock. Real, just open chords, good time rock, you know. And damn the critics, basically. That’s the stuff I write and that’s the stuff I’ve always tried to write.”
Taylor is winding down his most recent tour cycle with Stone Sour, while Slipknot is preparing to enter the studio in early 2019. The latter band released a new song earlier this month called “All Out Life,” accompanied by its official music video.
Finally, we want to wish a Happy Birthday to Bring Me The Horizon frontman Oli Sykes, AFI singer Davey Havok, and Mike D of the legendary Beastie Boys!
