Andrews Rock Blog

This morning Mike Tyler started spinning the brand new ACDC single “Rock and Roll Train” from the upcoming album “Black Ice”, in stores October 20th. It’s 8 years since the band had a new album out and fans have been eagerly anticipating ACDC’s return.

Jeff Brown and I had a chance to hear a few songs from “Black Ice” this week and I doubt any ACDC fan will be disappointed with the album. The guys haven’t reinvented the wheel at all; they’ve done exactly what a fan would want to hear. And we really can’t ask for anything more than that.

Check out “Rock and Roll Train” below, let us know what you think of it, and then use TRAIN as today’s bonus code.

The tragedy of Stevie Ray Vaughan’s death nearly 20 years ago is simply that the man was on the cusp of breaking through to huge success. He had clout, he had credibility, and he was only becoming more and more popular. Such as shame that 18 years ago today his life was cut short. He was one of the great ones.

Perhaps not coincidentally, the folks at GMP Diecast as releasing a 1:3 scale replica of SRV’s famous Fender guitar #1. According to the press release “This officially licensed, 1:3-scale Fender guitar replica features a real wood neck contoured to match the real guitar, an accurately contoured die-cast body, moveable pickup selector switch, volume and tone controls, real steel strings, and a moveable tremolo arm. Vivid colors and wood grain details make this replica a must-have for any guitar enthusiast. It comes with a display stand, wall mount, and full-color collector’s box.”

Looks pretty cool to me. For more details on how you can purchase one (there’s only going to be 1000 made) go here. Then check out some classic SRV below and use SRV as today’s bonus code.

I was surfing around the ‘Net today and wound up seeing and hearing something I never would have expected to encounter. Radiohead performing an acoustic Neil Young song. Seriously, when you think of Radiohead the last thing I think of these days is acoustic guitars and singalongs. As my pal the Japer said to me the other day after seeing the band perform at the Molson Amphitheatre, those guys ask a lot out of their audience.

That’s why I never thought Radiohead would cover one of Neil’s shortest and sweetest songs, not to mention one of his most accessible, “Tell Me Why”. Kudos to them. Check it out below, let me know what you think, and then use WHY as today’s bonus code.   

So I did something I’d never done before last week. I wound up ordering the Black Sabbath box set “The Rules of Hell” I was looking for. Not on ebay or Amazon. Instead, I decided to forget the packaging and order it off of iTunes. The price was right - $24.99 for 4 albums - ‘Heaven and Hell”, “Mob Rules”, “Dehumanizer”, and “Live Evil”. It also came complete with a digital booklet featuring all the liner notes the cd box contains. And while the set doesn’t come with the bonus disc Best Buy in the U.S. promised, it did have what I’d consider an even better bonus - the three studio songs the Dio line-up of Sabbath recorded for their greatest hits collection from last year.

The thing is, I’ve always been such a collector. Especially when it comes to the box sets. For me to disregard the packaging was a momentous moment. While the completest in me longs for the tangibility of the cd box, the new homeowner in me covets the economics and space the digital version affords me. I feel good about the decision.

Pretty much.

Today’s bonus code is TANGIBLE. Use it for some points and let me know if you’ve moved into the iPod/mp3 revolution, and how you feel about.

My now you’ve realized that I am a music collector. Believe me when I say that my habits have decreased over the years (I can thank the missus for her steady influence). But as I’ve written previously, there are some things that I find irresistible. Like the Grateful Dead - any time a new release pops up on Dead.net I am on it, especially when it offers the promise of a limited time bonus disc offer. I look forward to receiving my latest ones for the Egypt and Winterland 1978 packages at the end of the September.

But there are some bonus that tick me right off, and that seemed designed to aggravate the consumer rather then entice. For instance, the recent Black Sabbath box set “The Rules of Hell” was released with a bonus live disc exclusively available at Best Buy’s in the U.S. That meant I was totally shut out, as were fans all across Canada. My mistake was not grabbing it off ebay right away. Now there’s only one left and it’s supremely overpriced.

Now comes the news that the new Brian Wilson disc “That Lucky Old Sun” will be released with 3 exclusive tracks at Best Buy, and two MORE online at iTunes. That’s a total of 5 extra tunes. What’s a fan to do? I don’t even know if the Best Buy version will make it to Canada. While a lot of people might blame the record label or the artist, from what I understand both Best Buy and iTunes demanded distinct bonus tracks, so I suppose this lies in the hands of corporate America.

Let me tell you - being a collector is hard work.

On that note, use DISC as your bonus code, which will take you through the weekend while I attend Comic Book Camp. Have a good one! 

Do you find that as we get older and the world turns that people’s perspectives on music change as well? That’s my impression, anyway. Especially when it comes to certain bands that caught a lot of flack when they first appeared on the music scene.

Take Duran Duran, for instance. Though they were one of the most popular bands in the world for the first half of the 1980’s, they were pretty much reviled by critics. Maybe it was the New Romantic fashion of the time, maybe it was Simon Le Bon’s admittedly nonsensical lyrics, or maybe people just loved to hate. Either way, by the end of the decade the band weren’t well-regarded by anybody, including their suddenly diminished fan base. And even though they had a solid comeback in 1993 with The Wedding Album, it wasn’t until the original line-up regrouped in the new millennium that critics started giving the band their due. Gone were the bells and whistles on Duran Duran’s reunion tour of small clubs - just a 5 piece rock band that had the chops and the songs. 

While Duran Duran may have been considered pure pop, the truth is the band really rocked. Maybe not hard, but they without question rocked. Just check out the rhythm section on “Rio” for a great example. “Girls On Film” is another. Solid and exciting music, full of hooks. I don’t know how anyone can’t feel excited listening to “Rio” which might be one of the most perfect pop/rock songs every crafted.

Duran Duran - sure, they’re not Zeppelin. But they’ve got better songs than Warrant and Poison combined. Check out “Rio” recorded live in Japan in 2003 below and then use RIO as today’s bonus code.

About two and half months ago my Xbox went on the fritz, just as I was starting to get into playing Lego: Star War (parents, great game for the kiddies, trust me). I put off taking it in because I wasn’t able to find my warranty and we were getting ready for our move. Once we got into the house I did uncover the missing paper and wound up getting a brand new  since the previous one was unrepairable. So far so good, right? Only problem was, I couldn’t get the darn thing online wirelessly. My router wasn’t connecting properly and then something with IP addresses and DNS things and all this mumbojumbo that I didn’t have a frakin’ clue about. I got on the phone with the router manufacturer, Internet tech support, and Microsoft, but still nothing was working. Then I did what I should have done five days earlier and talked to my brilliant pal DB. Within 30 seconds he sent me a link giving me some advice, and low and behold I was online and running.

Why do I recount this story? Because the first thing I did once I got online was downloaded a new song for Rock Band courtesy of the greatest progressive metal band out there. You may remember Dream Theater from their early 90’s hit “Pull Me Under” but this band has been making solid albums and amassing an unbelievable fan base for nearly 20 years, without radio or video play. The song on Rock Band is called “Constant Motion” and was the first single from 2007’s “Systematic Chaos”, Dream Theater’s first album for Roadrunner Records. It’s a great piece of prog metal, with lots of little hooks and great instrumental sections. I was going to post the song’s video until I found multi-camera footage with drummer Mike Portnoy’s in-studio playing the song. It’s pretty spectacular stuff, especially if you’re a master air drummer like myself. And for the record, I think Portnoy is one of the most creative drummers in rock, thought I know The House That Rock Built will vehemently disagree with me. 

Check it Dream Theater’s Mike Portnoy in action on “Constant Motion” and then use MOTION for today’s bonus code.

Yesterday I had a chance to hear a few tracks from the upcoming Metallica album “Death Magnetic”, which hits stores this September. The first thing I’ll say is that I’m pretty sure I won’t be able to listen to this one in the house.

“Death Magnetic” is going to blow your mind. Talk about old school. This album is so hard, so earpounding, that fans of mainstream Metallica may not know what to make of it. The songs are all long and have the chugging guitars, stellar solos, and dark lyrics you want from a Metallica album. If you weren’t a fan of “St. Anger” I think you will be mighty impressed what the band are going to hit you with.

Of the handful of songs I heard, the two that I enjoyed most were “All Nightmare Long”, which is described as a H.P. Lovecraft inspired lyric with some great time changes, and “Cyanide”, which Metallica played live this last week at Ozzfest. You can check out the song below, tell me what you think, and then use CYANIDE as your weekend bonus code.

Last night The House That Rock Built and I were among the 16,000 strong at the Molson Amphitheatre to check out the Metal Masters Tour, featuring Motorhead, Heaven and Hell, and Judas Priest (we missed openers Testament). I was somewhat excited because I’d never seen Motorhead or Judas Priest, and while I own nothing from Lemmy and Co and two albums from Priest, I’m always psyched to see artists I’ve previously missed.

Motorhead was loud. I know that’s a given, but they were really loud. Arguably too loud. Seeing Lemmy onstage was cool, and I’m glad I heard “Ace of Spades” live, but the guys didn’t do much for me. I wish they would have played “The Game”; that would have been cool. But clearly the thousands of Motorhead fans weren’t disappointed; in fact, though the band hit the stage at 6:30 the Amphitheatre was already packed.

The evening closed with Judas Priest. Full disclosure because I don’t like to lie to you ever - I left after 5 songs. Man, I was so bored. I wasn’t a Priest fan growing up, I only know the hits, and I was just not into what they were doing. It felt like Spinal Tap up there, with all the leather. I’m sure one of the guys had a tinfoil wrapped cucumber in their pants. I take nothing away from the band sonically; they certainly have the chops. But of the songs I heard, none impressed me. It just seemed cheesy. I know the Priest fans out there will take me to task for this, but rather than slam me, suggest some albums I might want to take a listen to. Maybe I’ll become a Priest fan just like I did with Journey. But last night I was unimpressed, and I make no apologies.

That leaves Heaven and Hell, or Black Sabbath by any other name. This was my third time seeing the band over the past year, and I realized last night that I really am a fan. In fact, like my pal The House That Rock Built, I may prefer this line-up (Dio, Iommi, Butler, Appice) to the classic Ozzy-era. I know, sacrilege. But material like “Heaven and Hell”, “I”, “Mob Rules”, and “Sign of the Southern Cross” are just so strong and not overplayed. And Tony Iommi is one of rock’s greatest guitarist. He blew my mind with every solo and the ease with which he seemingly played them. Of the three shows I’ve seen from Heaven and Hell, last night was definitely my favourite. A tight 90 minute set of some of the greatest hard rock ever; you can’t ask for anything more.

So that’s my take. Let me know yours and then use METALMASTERS as today’s bonus code.

If you read the Rock Blog regularly, you know I’m not short of opinions when it comes to music. I think I’m pretty open-minded to new things. I think that musicians past 50 years old can still make valid and vibrant music. Some, like Bob Dylan and The Rolling Stones, are well into their 60’s and are creating classics (to my ears).

The latest older  musicians to hit the studio are Queen + Paul Rodgers, who have toured successfully together the last few years, playing material from Bad Company, Free, and of course the classic Queen catalogue. You wouldn’t have thought Rodgers would be a good replacement for Freddie Mercury (nobody could ever really be), but he managed to perform Queen’s material amazingly well, honouring Freddie while still making it fit his more blues based voice.

Due October 14th is the first studio album from Queen + Paul Rodgers, titled “The Cosmos Rocks”. The band played the expected first single “C-lebrity” a few months ago on British tv and I just got around to hearing it this afternoon.

I don’t know what to think.

“C-lebrity” sounds good to my ears…the musicianship top notch…catchy chorus…good solo…and a great Rodgers vocal. But still, I don’t know what to think. It definitely doesn’t sound Queen enough to my ears (though there is a quintessential harmonized guitar break that only Brian May can pull off), but does that mean it’s no good? It’s not what I expected, but I didn’t even know what to expect.

So I need your take on the tune. Check it out below and let me know what you think, good, bad, or indifferent. Maybe you can help me make up my mind. As a reward, use MAY as your bonus code.