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According to Amazon.co.jp and HMV.co.jp, RUSH's long-awaited new album, "Clockwork Angels", will be released in Japan on May 23 via Warner Music. The band started work on the follow-up to 2007's "Snakes & Arrows" in late 2009 with the production team of Nick Raskulinecz (FOO FIGHTERS, STONE SOUR) and engineer Richard Chycki (AEROSMITH, DREAM THEATER).
Two songs from "Clockwork Angels" that were previously digitally released, "BU2B" and "Caravan", were reportedly re-recorded for the forthcoming CD due to a record label change in the middle of the making of the album.
As previously reported, "Clockwork Angels" is being turned into a novel by Colorado-based sci-fi author Kevin J. Anderson, who wrote on Facebook, "Most of you are aware of my long-standing friendship with (RUSH drummer) Neil Peart . . . For more than twenty years, Neil and I have wanted to collaborate on something MAJOR, a way we could tie together our imaginations, and
at last that's happening. I'm writing the novelization of RUSH's forthcoming album, 'Clockwork Angels'."
Anderson added that he worked with Peart to "flesh out the epic story told over the course of the music," which
involves "lost cities, pirates, anarchists, exotic carnivals, and a
rigid Watchmaker who imposes precision on every aspect of daily life."
More details will be coming.
Journalist and musician Barbara Caserta of Italian web radio LineaRock.it conducted an interview with singer James LaBrie of progressive metal giants DREAM THEATER when the band performed at MediolanumForum in Assago-Milan on February 21. You can now watch the chat below.
When asked if he has heard any music from ADRENALINE MOB — the new band featuring former DREAM THEATER drummer Mike Portnoy — and what he thought of it, LaBrie said, "I've heard a couple of songs. I literally listened to it once — I listened to two songs once — so I'm not in a position to comment. I
really am not."
Portnoy, who co-founded DREAM THEATER more than 20 years ago, abruptly quit the band in September 2010 while on tour with AVENGED SEVENFOLD. He has since been replaced by Mike Mangini (ANNIHILATOR, EXTREME, JAMES LABRIE, STEVE VAI).
DREAM THEATER's new album, "A Dramatic Turn Of Events", sold 36,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to enter The Billboard 200 chart at position No. 8. The band's previous
CD, 2009's "Black Clouds & Silver Linings", opened with 40,000 units to land at No. 6. This was roughly in line with the first-week tally registered by its predecessor, "Systematic Chaos", which shifted 36,000 copies in 2007 to enter the chart at No. 19. 2005's "Octavarium" premiered with 27,000 copies to debut at No. 36.
DREAM THEATER was among the nominees in the "Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance" category at the 54th annual Grammy Awards, which was held on February 12 at Staples Center in Los Angeles.
A 13-minute collection of outtakes from "Drumertá", the forthcoming DVD from drummer Mike Portnoy (ADRENALINE MOB, DREAM THEATER, AVENGED SEVENFOLD) featuring drum-cam footage from the recording sessions for ADRENALINE MOB's debut album, "Omertá", can be seen below. The DVD will be made available later this month exclusively from www.mikeportnoy.com.
ADRENALINE MOB is the band featuring Portnoy, SYMPHONY X frontman Russell Allen and guitar virtuoso Mike Orlando (SONIC STOMP).
"Omertá" will be released in the U.S. on March 13 through the newly formed Elm City Music in conjunction with EMI Label Services and in Europe on March 19 in Europe via Century Media Records. The 11-song effort — which was produced by ADRENALINE MOB and mixed by Jay Ruston, who has previously worked on ANTHRAX's "Worship Music" and STEEL PANTHER's "Balls Out" — includes a blistering reinterpretation of DURAN DURAN's classic "Come Undone" featuring guest vocals by Lzzy Hale of HALESTORM.
"Omertá" track listing:
01. Undaunted
02. Psychosane
03. Indifferent
04. All On The Line
05. Hit The Wall
06. Feelin' Me
07. Come Undone (feat. Lzzy Hale)
08. Believe Me
09. Down To The Floor
10. Angel Sky
11. Freight Train
ADRENALINE MOB last month announced the addition of DISTURBED bassist John Moyer to the group's ranks.
Moyer will make his live debut with ADRENALINE MOB on March 12 at Hiro Ballroom in New York City.
Said Moyer in a statement: "Mike Portnoy called me about auditioning for his new band ADRENALINE MOB. He had heard through the grapevine that I was looking to stay busy while DISTURBED is on hiatus. After jamming with Russ, Mike Orlando, and Portnoy, the chemistry as musicians was undeniable. I am super stoked about
joining 'The Family' and I can't wait to hit the road with these guys
and see what kind of musical mayhem we can create!"
ADRENALINE MOB will perform at several European festivals this summer, including Graspop Metal Meeting (June 22-24 in Dessel, Belgium), Gods Of Metal (June 21-24 in Milan, Italy) and Sweden Rock (June 6-9 in Sölvesborg, Sweden).
ADRENALINE MOB's first-ever headline tour made stops in various markets, including Chicago, Denver and San Francisco. ADRENALINE MOB also opened for GODSMACK on select dates of the Massachusetts act's headlining tour.
ADRENALINE MOB formed in early 2011 when Orlando approached Allen with some material the guitarist had written. Allen and Orlando refined those ideas, at which time Allen reached out to longtime friend Portnoy to see if he had any interest in playing with them. Portnoy jumped on board and soon thereafter DiLeo and Ward were recruited to join the family. From the very first note, the chemistry was apparent and the beast that is known as ADRENALINE MOB was born.
Guitarist Rich Ward (STUCK MOJO, FOZZY) and bassist Paul DiLeo (FOZZY) announced their departures from ADRENALINE MOB in January due to scheduling conflicts with their other projects.
STORM CORROSION is the long-discussed and highly anticipated
collaboration between two of the modern progressive rock scene's most
innovative and multi-talented artists: Mikael Åkerfeldt of OPETH and PORCUPINE TREE's Steven Wilson. The pair will release "Storm Corrosion" on May 8, but you can pre-order it in two deluxe packages starting today.
The "Storm Corrosion" Special Edition Blu-ray/CD Set & Collector's Edition Double LP Bundle (pre-order link) is $50, and includes the album on 180-gram black virgin vinyl, in a
gatefold jacket with exclusive artwork; a digital download of the entire album in high-quality FLAC files; the Blu-ray/CD version of the record, which offers the album on CD; a Blu-ray disc containing a 5.1 audio mix of the entire album, two exclusive demo tracks, and five instrumental
tracks; a 24" x 36" fold-out poster; and a separate 12" x 12" poster
autographed by both Mikael Åkerfeldt and Steven Wilson.
The "Storm Corrosion" Collector's Edition Double-LP Set (pre-order link) is $35, and includes the vinyl version, the digital download, and the two posters.
"Storm Corrosion" track listing:
CD
01. Drag Ropes (9:52)
02. Storm Corrosion (10:12)
03. Hag (6:28)
04. Happy (4:53)
05. Lock Howl (6:09)
06. Ljudet Innan (10:20)
Blu-ray:
01. Drag Ropes
02. Storm Corrosion
03. Hag
04. Happy
05. Lock Howl
06. Ljudet Innan
07. Drag Ropes
08. Storm Corrosion
09. Hag
10. Happy
11. Lock Howl
12. Ljudet Innan
13. Drag Ropes (demo)
14. Hag (demo)
A little background information on the genesis of this project: Åkerfeldt and Wilson have been friends since the late '90s, when Wilson co-produced OPETH's revered "Blackwater Park" album. Over the years, they'd often spoken of working on a project
together, but it wasn't until recently that they managed to make
something happen, when Mikael flew over to visit Steven in the U.K. and they ended up in Wilson's home studio throwing ideas around. That visit was the nascence of a
whole self-titled album, written and produced by the pair, and mixed by Wilson.
The sound of STORM CORROSION can best be described as enchanting, orchestral, ambient, epic (half
the album's tracks clock in around the 10-minute mark) and nothing short of surprising to the new ear. However, the musicians' respective
fanbases will be primed to appreciate the new output, with Wilson's recent solo album, "Grace For Drowning", and OPETH's "Heritage" having brought them to a logical place to understand STORM CORROSION. This eponymous collection is almost viewed as one side of a musical triangle.
Says Wilson, "If you'd asked me three months ago about the music, I would have said, 'Expect the last thing you would expect.' But actually, now that 'Heritage' and 'Grace For Drowning' have come out, I don't think it's going to be that much of a shock to
people, because it's almost like a third part of the trilogy, in a way. If anything, it's even more orchestral, even more stripped down, even
more dark, twisted and melancholic… but it certainly feels like it comes from the same place as 'Heritage' and 'Grace For Drowning', which indeed it does because it was written during the same period.”
"Some of the music on this record I think is the most beautiful music I have participated on ever," adds Åkerfeldt. "There's some magical sections on there. Musically, I think we've
created something earthy, a bit frightening, exhausting, profound and
rather intense. All at the same time. I can safely say I don't know
any other band or artist that sounds anything like STORM CORROSION. I guess that was also one of our goals, so to speak."
Roadrunner Senior VP of A&R, Monte Conner, welcomed STORM CORROSION to the Roadrunner family, commenting, "I am honored to have the Roadrunner logo on the STORM CORROSION album. Steven Wilson and Mikael Åkerfeldt have demonstrated time and time again that they are two of the truest
and most important artists working today, and it is not often that I get to work with musicians of this caliber. This album is a beautiful
piece of work that will appeal to fans of Steven and Mikael's past records, while at the same time exploring new avenues for both artists."
Drummer Mike Mangini of progressive metal giants DREAM THEATER has issued the following update:
"Between DREAM THEATER tours, I will be performing drum clinics in various places. From
mid-May to early June, there will be two in Illinois, one in Milwaukee,
and the rest will be a full country tour of Italy. Info on those and on
other locations for July/Aug and the fall 2012 will be announced [as
soon as possible]."
In a November 2011 interview with Classic Rock Revisited, Mangini was asked how it feels to be the newest member of DREAM THEATER. "It is such a feeling of completeness for me," he replied. "The way
that I set up my drum kit is completely unique and I have never been in a band that understood how I did things. Each of the members of this band understands why I have everything set up the way I do. I feel like a
piece of me is complete. It is like when you decide to go to college,
you may study business but you end up playing soccer; you just don't
know how it is all going to fit together. I have found a home for all of the craziness of my playing. I'm really a fortunate person."
When asked if he was nervous, during his DREAM THEATER audition, Mangini said, "The nerves didn't get to me. I've had approximately 46 auditions in my past and I've won every one of them — that includes drum
contests. I won from elementary school to state in high school to drum
contests to trying out for bands. I think that is because I was the same person through all of them. I worry that someone is out there working
harder than me; that makes me put my head down and try harder. When this situation came up, I was used to dealing with this type of a thing.
What made this different was how I fit in. I had been practicing all of
these years wondering where I would be able to use all of my skills. I
had used most of them in one situation, or another, but I wanted a
situation where I could use all of them. I couldn't imagine not getting
in DREAM THEATER. What was different this time was that I knew I had to get into this band."
