Andrews Rock Blog

Yesterday in a response to my Van Halen post, JACK listener Perry asked what ever happened to Gary Cherone? Good question!

Gary Cherone was once frontman for Extreme. Most people know them best as the band behind the chart topping single “More Than Words”, but Extreme were more than that. With a real guitar hero in the form of the amazing Nuno Bettencourt, Extreme combined metal, prog rock, funk, and much more to create a unique sound, one that still holds up to my ears.  Their medley of Queen hits at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert still remains a highlight of the day for many.

With the way grunge took hold, Extreme didn’t last past their fourth album, “Waiting For The Punch Line”. Gary Cherone went on to replace Sammy Hagar in Van Halen; that didn’t go over well, to say the least. Nuno did some solo albums, and most recently recorded alongside Perry Farrell on the debut album from Satellite Party (excellent release, in my opinion).

But in answer to the question “where’s Gary Cherone”, this past fall it was announced that he and the other members of Extreme are getting ready to release their fifth album and hit the road in 2008. According to Nuno Bettencourt the new album “will have all the ingredients of an EXTREME record. The music is always Funkier than most rock bands—and born a Bipolar Bastard child of Mr. Zeppelin and Mrs. Beatles.”

I know I can’t wait. I still regard Extreme II: Pornographitti as a solid album that holds up today.  Especially “Get The Funk Out”, which you can check out below. How about you? Any interest in an Extreme reunion tour? Or are they just one hit wonders in your book?

Here today’s bonus code: EXTREME

The latest issue of Guitar Hero featuring the magazines first father and son cover hits shops February 12th. I think this is very cool pic of Ed and Wolfgang Van Halen. I know fans were royally peeved when Van Halen went on the road without Michael Anthony last year. I mean, for 20 years people had been waiting for that classic VH reunion with the original members. Instead, we get a 16 year old kid on the bass! The thing is, Wolf did an excellent job onstage holding down the bottom end, not too mention contributing some decent backing vocals to the proceedings.

Take a look at some of the footage from one of the T.O. shows, and let me know your thoughts on the Van Halen reunion? Did you really miss Mike that much? How do you think Wolf did?

Here’s todays bonus code, good until midnight tonight: WOLFGANG

All throughout 2007 it seemed like we were that much closer to the release of Neil Young’s multi-disc “Archives” set. But with delay after delay after delay it looked as though the collection would never see the light of day.

Or will it?

 According to an interview with Billboard, Neil Young says “Archives” will “no doubt” be out this year. But get this - the set won’t be available on cd! Instead, Neil will release it solely on DVD and Blue-Ray. “Archives” will feature remastered music, interactive content and timelines to give a totally immersive Neil experience.

I’ve got mixed emotions about the whole notion. I still listen to cds in the car or at home. This new format means I won’t be able to take all this Neil music with me, or even put it onto my ipod. That being said, maybe this set is supposed to be more than just the music. It’s a historical document for the die-hards who love Neil Young and want to have a real experience with his music.

What are your thoughts on this potentially new Neil collection? Let me know.

Here’s your bonus word, good until midnight Tuesday: ARCHIVES

Quick update for you. Jimmy Page held a press conference in Japan today to promote Led Zeppelin’s “Mothership” album. Here is what Reuter’s Dan Sloan is reporting that Page stated regarding a Zep tour:

“I can assure you the amount of work that we put into the O2 (concert), for ourselves rehearsing and the staging of it, was probably what you put into a world tour,” Page said. But, “Robert Plant also had a parallel project running and he’s really busy with that project, certainly until September, so I can’t give you any news.”

 So there you go. It might be a red herring, but I kind of doubt it.

In the meantime, if you’re looking for today’s bonus code check out my ACDC post below.

For weeks we’ve been hearing a whole lotta talk about ACDC. A potential new album, supposedly titled “Strap It On”, produced by the guy who pushed the buttons on “Back In Black”, Mutt Lange. There’s been talk of a European club tour as well. As it stands, none of these things have been confirmed. In fact, the bands management have denied everything. Here’s one thing that is for sure - the group’s website ACDCrocks.com has been more active, with video footage from the DVD “Plug Me In” which you could win in the JACK Nation. It also denies the previously mentioned club gig.

So what does all this mean? Will we or won’t we hear anything from ACDC in 2008? Me, I’m guessing the band are playing coy and that we should see some band activity sometime in 2008. I’d love to see the guys in concert again. They really did steal the show at SARSstock back in 2003.

How about you? Are you eagerly anticipating the arrival of anything from ACDC? Let me know.

Here’s todays bonus code, good until midnight: ANGUS

At some point this weekend myself, the missus, and my pal JP are going to head over to the Scotiabank Theatre to catch U2 IN 3D, which hits the IMAX beginning Friday. I’m really psyched to see this. The Vertigo tour was the best I’d seen U2 perform live since Zoo TV back in 1992 (1 show at the Gardens, 2 at CNE Stadium, all of them spectacular). Not only will the film be 90 minutes of greatest hits, but the word on U2 IN 3D is that for the first time, you actually feel apart of a 3D film.

Are you interested in the movie? Or is Bono just too preachy for you? Let me know, and if you happen to catch the movie yourself drop me your opinion.

The bonus word, good until Sunday at midnight, is: BONO.

Have an awesome weekend!

So I had a few weeks off between leaving my old job and showing up at JACK. To keep myself busy I played drums in Bon Jovi, wailed on guitar with the dudes in Iron Maiden, and actually tried rapping as a member of Faith No More. Let me tell you, as a white boy from the mean streets of Thornhill I make a pretty crappy rapper.

Those are just a few of the bands featured in the new game Rock Band, which is taking the music and gaming biz by storm. Sure, the various Guitar Hero games are loads of fun, but Rock Band literally has you feeling like you’re in the band. In fact, I had a Rock Band birthday party a few weeks ago, and watched in pleasant awe as 30 people who didn’t all know one another took turns as bandmates. Video games, bringing people together. How about that.

Along with the 45 songs Rock Band comes with, you can also download content online. This is so fantastic. Over the last months I’ve grabbed songs from David Bowie, Rush (Limelight is awesome), and an Oasis 3-pack that brought me back to 1996. I’m not the only one downloading either. In the past 2 months there have been something like 1.5 million Rock Band downloads. Next week you’ll be able to download Rush’s Working Man for the game. I can’t wait to play the guitar solo!

Have you played Rock Band? Do you want to? Or do you think I’m uber-lame for loving the game? Let me know (but if you tell me I’m lame I don’t know if I’ll post your comment - it’s my blog. I have assumed control).

Here’s a bonus word for your troubles: ROCKBAND. It’s good until midnight tonight.

I read yesterday that Scott Weiland has stated that a Stone Temple Pilots reunion is “imminent”. Personally, I’d be really pleased to see that happen. They were one of the more solid and reliable bands to come out of the 90’s, with a ton of hits and a drum sound clearly influenced by John Bonham. They also happened to be one of those bands I never had a chance to see live.

Interestingly enough, the same day a STP reunion gets talked about Slash comes out and says he hopes that Velvet Revolver will head right back to the studio once their current tour for “Libertad” wraps. Does that mean Weiland will be doing double duty in the coming months?

I had a chance to meet the guys from VR a few years ago. It was one of the few times I’ve really been in awe of rock stars. Weiland just oozed cockiness, while Slash was very cool indeed. He even told me how much he liked my “I Need More Cowbell” t-shirt. I’m pretty sure I came off as a total goof, but hey hey, what could I do. I was in awe.

Which band would you rather check out in concert - Velvet Revolver or a reunited Stone Temple Pilots? Leave a message and let me know.

Here’s todays bonus word, good until midnight Wednesday: PILOTS

One of the best gigs I saw last year was the first of Rush’s two night stand at Air Canada Centre in support of “Snakes and Arrows”. It cost us a pretty penny, but my buddy and I sat about 16 rows back from Geddy, Alex, and Neil - the closest I’ve ever been at one of their concerts. It was an excellent show, highlighting some great old tunes along with highlights from “Snakes and Arrows”, in my mind the band’s best offering since 1991’s “Roll The Bones”.

If you missed either of the sold-out shows, don’t worry. Rush is coming back to Toronto on the next leg of the tour, with July 9th pencilled in for a gig at Molson Amphitheater. We’re waiting on onsale details; as soon as I get them I’ll post them right here for you. And while there aren’t any firm details, it’s being reported that a new live album from Rush will be in stores come April.

Do you have a favourite Rush moment? Album? Song? Let me know here.

In the meantime, here’s a special bonus word for you, good till midnight tonight: PEART.

It looks like you’re going to have a lot of reasons to rock til you drop coming up over the next few months. Not only are Def Leppard on the road (they’ll be in Hamilton with Styx and REO Speedwagon April 13th), but the guys have announced the title and release date for their next studio album.

“Songs From The Sparkle Lounge” is the title of the new disc, which will hit store shelves Tuesday March 18th. It will Def Leppard’s first album of new material since “X” was released back in 2002.

It’s been a while since Def Leppard’s done something I’ve been interested in. I wonder how the new album will do. What about you? Does new Def Leppard interest you at all?

Here’s a bonus code for you, good until midnight tonight (Monday): LEPPARD