"We are grateful for the jury's conscientious service and pleased that it has ruled in our favor, putting to rest questions about the origins of 'Stairway to Heaven' and confirming what we have known for 45 years," said Jimmy Page and Robert Plant. "We appreciate our fans' support, and look forward to putting this legal matter behind us."
The two-week trial saw Page, Plant and non-defendant John Paul Jones take the stand to deny exposure to "Taurus" while explaining the creation of "Stairway" at Headley Grange.
Music experts testified that both songs share a commonplace descending chromatic line that has existed for hundreds of years. "At Warner Music Group, supporting our artists and protecting their creative freedom is paramount," added the band's record label. "We are pleased that the jury found in favor of Led Zeppelin, re-affirming the true origins of 'Stairway to Heaven'. Led Zeppelin is one of the greatest bands in history, and Jimmy Page and Robert Plant are peerless songwriters who created many of rock's most influential and enduring songs." Listen to both songs
here.
The 2-month trek sees the reunited trio of Axl Rose, Slash and Duff McKagan perform with a lineup that includes guitarist Richard Fortus, keyboardists Dizzy Reed and Melissa Reese, and drummer Frank Ferrer.
The Detroit appearance marks the return of Rose to GNR after he stepped in to assist AC/DC with a 13-date spring tour of Europe in place of Brian Johnson that wrapped up in Dusseldorf, Germany on June 15.
The singer is now fully back on his feet after wearing a walking cast for most of the AC/DC dates after breaking his left foot during GNR's April 1 club gig at The Troubadour in Los Angeles, CA.
The 24-song set opened with the band's 1987 classic "It's So Easy" and, for the most part, remained similar to their spring shows in Las Vegas, Mexico City and at Coachella.
The group mixed classics with covers of tracks by The Stooges, Wings, Bob Dylan and The Who. Seattle rockers Alice In Chains opened the show with a 40-minute set; they'll be on hand to warm-up the first five dates of the tour. Check out the videos from the show
here.
"California" is set to be released on July 1st and is the first album from the veteran group to feature The Alkaline Trio's Matt Skiba, who took over frontman duties from Tom DeLonge.
The "No Future" song stream follows the band's release of the video for the track "Bored To Death" earlier this week. The two songs, along with "Rabbit Hole," are available as instant downloads for fans that preorder the album. Check out the lyric video for the new song
here.
Tom says: "This is the first time we've worked on filming and editing the whole project. Having creative control over every aspect from start to finish was great, it was a lot of work but extremely rewarding.
"We enjoyed working on it together so much that we've decided to start a collaborative company called Fun Blood so we can work on projects together in the future." Watch the video
here.
The tune features vocals by London singer Rosie Bones, who Beck met through a chance meeting last year with guitarist Carmen Vandenberg at a birthday party for Queen drummer Roger Taylor that led to the trio's collaboration.
"She [Vandenberg] invited me to one of their shows, and I was blown away," recalls Beck. "When we got together in January, I explained the subject matter I had in mind, we sat down by the fire with a crate of Prosecco and got right to it. The songs came together very quickly; five in three days."
Bones handles vocals on nine of the 11 songs on the set, which is rounded out by a pair of signature Beck instrumentals: "Pull It" and "Edna." The album sees Beck produce his first record in six years alongside Filippo Cimatti, with bassist Giovanni Pallotti and drummer Davide Sollazzi filling out the lineup. Check out the new song
here.
"The less I can do, the better off I am," said Pop. "Giving up, or giving ground� those are necessary, tactical situations that come up, that arise as you live longer and longer. Not to mention that you've got more of a history, too. In my case, I've kinda gotten a pass on that, because I feel better in general now than I did when I was 18, 19, 21."
Meanwhile, the singer's "Post Pop Depression Tour" has moved to Europe, where dates will run through October. Pop says he and his band have evolved into a well-oiled machine. "When we did our first show together, [we were trying] to be really proper," he says. Read more
here.
Together with late saxophonist Andrew Love and earlier collaborators, he appeared on dozens of classic recordings by Stax Records, and amassed more than 50 No.1 hits through his career.
The Horns won a lifetime achievement Grammy in 2012 for their work with Elvis Presley, Sam And Dave, Otis Reeding, Neil Diamond, Isaac Hayes, Stephen Stills and many others.
In later years they recorded with Sting, Peter Gabriel, Joe Cocker, Rod Stewart, Jack White, U2 and more, and appeared on five albums by the Robert Cray Band. Read more
here.
The project sees the California band perform the 1986 record in its entirety, a set that includes classic tunes like "Modern Day Cowboy", "Little Suzi" and "Gettin' Better."
The package will also include the single "Save That Goodness", written and produced by Phil Collen of Def Leppard, who the band are touring with across North America this summer on a bill with REO Speedwagon.
"30 years later and the songs on our first album still rock!," says guitarist Frank Hannon. "Making this new live album of 'Mechanical Resonance' was a reminder of the innocence and creative beginnings of Tesla."
1986's "Mechanical Resonance" introduced the Sacramento rockers to the world with their debut single "Modern Day Cowboy." The album peaked at No. 32 on the US Billboard 200 on its way to sales of 1 million copies. Read more
here.
Kennedy Center president Deborah Rutter said in a statement, "These Honorees have each played a unique role in shaping America's artistic landscape with their work, expressing their creativity in ways that pushed the boundaries of what art can do, and what it can mean. Their artistic triumphs have motivated us, moved us, and will continue to inspire us for generations to come."
Actor Al Pacino is the only non-musician on the list.Every year, Kennedy Center invites other acclaimed actors, singers and musicians to showcase the work of those being awarded. Read more
here.
It was run by Terrence Winter of Boardwalk Empire and The Sopranos fame - but he left in April, and was replaced by Scott Z Burns. And despite Mick Jagger nurturing the original idea for the show for years, it received less than favorable reviews - and HBO have confirmed it won't be back for a second season.
They say in a statement: "After careful consideration, we have decided not to proceed with a second season of Vinyl. Obviously, this was not an easy decision. We have enormous respect for the creative team and cast for their hard work and passion on this project." Read more
here.
Southern Native sees Lynyrd Skynyrd mainman Rickey Medlocke team up with guitarist and vocalist Tim Rossi, guitarist Rick Krasowski, bassist Brian Carpenter and drummer Matt Anastasi.
Medlocke released the first Blackfoot album, No Reservations, in 1975 and says he and his new-look lineup strike a perfect balance of styles.
He reports: "This record is head-to-head old school meets new school - classic to new rock for a brand new generation. Turn it up loud!"
Rossi agrees with Medlocke and adds: "Rickey bridged the generations by having his grandfather Shorty Medlocke play on those early Blackfoot records, so having Rickey play slide and other guitar with us on this record bridges the modern gap. It's a full-circle kind of thing." Stream the title track
here.
The new album will be their first release without recently departed drummer Ben Jolliffe - who left last month after seven years in the band. Young Guns say:
"Echoes is about letting go of the past and moving on towards a brighter future - we're ready and are a better, hungrier band than we've ever been before." See the cover art and tracklisting
here.
Delain say: "We have never had so many milestone events in one year. The release of Lunar Prelude, our fifth studio album Moonbathers, our upcoming 10-year anniversary celebrations - and there is still more to come.
"All of this while playing our most heavy touring year ever. We are on a roll, and our new album Moonbathers is here to embody that. We hope you will enjoy this new effort and join us on our endeavors making 2016 the biggest year for Delain ever." Check out the tracklisting and cover art
here.
Drummer Marcus Losbjer says of the track: "It started with a guitar riff that I had and we built everything from there. The main drum groove is heavily influenced by One More Red Nightmare by King Crimson."
Singer Stefan Zell adds: "I had a hard time getting into this song and at first we were gonna have bassist Thomas Jansson write lyrics for it. He wrote quite an impressive piece of lyric to it, but it was written in a way that didn't really fit me as a singer.
"I decided to have a try and I am really pleased with the way the vocal melodies turned out. It went from a song I didn't like that much to being one of my favorites." Stream the new song
here.
The sets have included a performance of a track currently known as Ramm4, which could be set to appear on their seventh album.Frontman Till Lindemann said last year that the band were considering starting work on the follow-up to 2009's Liebe Ist Fur Alle Da.
But he added: "We're six guys with six opinions and it can be a nightmare sometimes." They later posted an image that suggested work had begun. Check out the video
here.
"I wanted to write a song that mixes my classical background with rock," Tarja tells Hammer. "In this particular piece, I heard the piano having an important role from the first moment, so we searched and found a great Chopin piece that fits like a glove to make a great classical-meets-heavy-band feeling."
The former Nightwish singer's forthcoming album The Shadow Self is set to be released on August 5, via EarMUSIC. Watch the new music video for "Innocence"
here.
The lineup features original members John Goodsall, Percy Jones and Kenwood Dennard, along with keyboardist Chris Clark and percussionist Scott Weinberger. Guitarist Goodsall says: "It's a better version now. We're all a lot more experienced and a lot more skilled."
Drummer Dennard adds: "When we used to play this music it felt eternal. We used to get into a zone where it felt so deep - that's exactly how it felt again." Read more
here.
So far, their is no title or release date for the follow-up to 2014's Reincarnate, which will not appear on the band's long-time label Fearless Records.
Frontman Chris Motionless said in January: "There's a lot of pressure to try to top everything we've ever done before and write the best record of our career.
"But at the same time, I'm really excited about it. I've never been this excited to finish a record before. I'm always dreading it and stressed out to the max." Stream the song and grab the download link
here.
Pancaldi says: "During 10 years of musical adventures with Barock Project, a lot has happened - even more is happening now and who knows how much and what will happen in the future?
"Memories of us in the early years waiting for that 'turning point' that every musician is looking for - years in which we played a couple of concerts, when we rarely met for playing and practicing, years in which we were simply expecting something to rain down from the sky.
"With the release of Skyline, that something finally appeared. Interest in the band began to increase and, with it, a commitment that each of us must make this project in order to sustain a stable growth. After a careful analysis of what my chances and aspirations are, I came to realise that now is the best time to separate from Barock Project." Read more
here.
Thunder Song is without a doubt the song I have written with the most gradual and longwinded completion, I started it in 2009 and it's only just come out. It took five years to finish writing it, which is quite impressive for a song that only has three chords played in the same order for it's duration.
It began when I downloaded an app for my smartphone that was based around making loops of various lengths using samples. I became pretty hooked on it and became quite experimental and was able to use it as a highly versatile musical instrument that was possible to use in any key and in any scale. The handy (and a little bit sneaky) thing was you could selected specific notes and all of the notes you didn't want to use were switched off meaning that it was impossible to play a duff note. One of the loops I was particularly pleased with eventually became Thunder Song but for a very long time it existed as an instrumental loop consisting of two trumpets and three double basses. Strange choice really. I knew there was 'something' about it because everyone I showed was genuinely impressed (I can tell when people aren't), one was even moved to tears. It lived with me and one day I started singing over it and improvised a few lines. I just sang words that I felt would fit the mood of the loop and that was it. So then the song existed without changing for another two years.
In that time I developed chronic mental health problems and in the middle of a deep depression that was becoming life threatening I finished the lyrics whilst in the bath. It was an early winters night with a thick cover of clouds, drizzle and fog. At this point I was pretty much entirely detached from the world around me and was extremely ill. I guess occasionally I momentarily bypassed the depression and had brief moments of creativity and respite from the feeling of being crushed and ground down to nothing. I found that during these times the music that would result had a certain powerful, arresting quality. That being said, I never want to experience feeling like that again and thankfully creativity doesn't have to come at such a heavy cost.
Shortly after finishing the song I was hospitalised in a psychiatric ward for almost three months. Whilst in there I forgot about everything I had ever done, including Thunder Song and other compositions that later become this album. Part of my recovery was slowly remembering myself until eventually I was able to return to life and in many ways begin again, at doing what I did before but with a new appreciation of the process. When I perform it I go back to 2012 in my mind and think about the key moments that defined that part of my life and I find the knowledge I have survived fills me with heavy emotions dominated by joy. I have come in to the possession of a large kettle drum and in combination with a cymbal it brings a dramatic and slightly terrifying end to the live show by joining the brass section as they almost expire from creating volume levels that could raise Atlantis.
Hearing is believing. Now that you know the story behind the song, listen for yourself here and learn more about the new album and Barry's upcoming solo show
right here!
Read the second part of today's report here!
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