Who says rock is
dead? Heavy metal
was the fastest-
growing genre of 2018,
according to figures
compiled by the
independent digital
music distribution,
publishing, and
licensing service
TuneCore, who cover
some 250,000 artists.
The total amount
generated from
streams and
downloads of music
by metal artists in
2018 was $199.
billion (£153 billion)- an increase of 83%
from the previous year.
Brian May has said he
hopes that climate
change could prompt
another charity concert
in the style of Live Aid.
Queen were among
the stars of the latter
in 1985 (see feature
on p74), and the
guitarist believes that
demand from fans
could lead to a similar
event. “It would take
the younger generation
to take the bull by the
horns,” he tells the
Mirror. “We [Queen]
would help in any way
we could, but that’s
what it would require.”Michael Monroe
(pictured) releases
a new album, One
Man Gang, in the
autumn. The former
Hanoi Rocks frontman
appears at Hard Rock
Hell in November and
plays headline shows
in the UK in October
and November.Former Runaways
frontwoman Cherie
Currie has teamed up
with Brie Darling, the
drummer and singer
with Fanny, for an
album called The
Motivator. Released on
August 2 via Blue Élan
Records, it includes
covers of songs by
T. Rex, the Rolling
Stones, John Lennon
and others, plus three
original tunes.Thank you
and good night.Phil McCormack
July 31, 1960 – 26 April, 2019
Southern rockers Molly Hatchet have
paid tribute to their singer of 24 years’
standing, saying: “He will be missed
but never forgotten.” Milwaukee-born
McCormack performed on seven of
the band’s studio records. McCormack
was 58 years old. The cause of death
has yet to be revealed.JR Cobb
February 5, 1944 – May 4, 2019
James Barney Cobb Jr co-founded the
American southern rock band Atlanta
Rhythm Section in 1970, and the
rhythm guitarist played with them
during their most successful years,
from 1972 to 1986, after which he left
to focus on songwriting and session
work. Cobb was 75 years old when he
succumbed to a heart attack.Earl Thomas Conley
October 17, 1941 – April 10, 2019
The country music community is
mourning the loss of the singer-
songwriter who has died of cerebral
atrophy at the age of 77. Ohio-born
Conley recorded 10 successful studio
albums between 1980 and 2003, and
his hit singles included Dreamin’s All I
Do and Right From The Start.Michiel Eikenaar
June 12, 1976 – April 12, 2019
The lead singer of the Dutch black
metal bands Nihil and Dodecahedron
has lost his bottle with cancer. He was- Nihil had been working on a fifth
album at the time of the vocalist’s
death, although they are to disband.
Steve Forster
June 18, 1964 – April 19, 2019
Former Wishbone Ash bassist/vocalist
Martin Turner has led the tributes to
popular British concert promoter Steve
Forster, saying he was “trustworthy,
ethical and always displaying a genuine
care for the artist”. Forester was 55
when he died in a car accident.Joe Flannery
Died March 27, 2019
Often referred to as the ‘secret
Beatle’, Flannery was a childhood
friend of the band’s manager Brian
Epstein, and went on to become a
part of the Fab Four’s backroom team,
working as their booking manager
during the early 1960s. The 87-year-
old died of undisclosed causes at his
home in Liverpool.OZ
ZY:(^) KE
VIN
(^) NIX
ON
Ozzy Osbourne has announced the
new dates for his postponed tour of the
UK and Ireland, which was to have taken
place in January and February but was
postponed after the singer, 70, was
hospitalised with bronchitis and
pneumonia, and then suffered a nasty fall.
All previously purchased tickets remain
valid for the rescheduled dates, which are:
Nottingham Motorpoint Arena January
31, Dublin 3Arena February 1,
Manchester Arena 5, Newcastle Utilita
Arena 7, London O2 Arena 10, Glasgow
The Hydro 12 and Birmingham Resorts
World Arena 14. Judas Priest will still
appear as Special Guests.
In related news, the gulf between Judas
Priest and their former guitarist KK
Downing grows ever wider. Co-founding
member Downing retired from the group
in 2011. In his autobiography, Heavy Duty:
Days And Nights In Judas Priest, he made
claims of intra-band conf lict and voiced
dissatisfaction with the way their career
had been managed. When he was not
invited to re-join Priest after guitarist
Glenn Tipton stepped back from touring
due to his battle with Parkinson’s disease,
Tipton dismissed Priest’s explanation as
a “complete load of bollocks”.
Bass player Ian Hill’s comments that
Downing’s replacement, Richie Faulkner,
brought the band a new energy have only
exacerbated the dispute. Downing now
claims that Hill and vocalist Rob Halford
are the only two official members of Judas
Priest, saying Faulkner, guitarist Andy
Sneap and drummer Scott Travis are
merely as hired hands “on a wage”.
An irate Faulkner took to the
internet and declared that he had
enjoyed “creative input in this band
since day one”, calling the current Judas
Priest line-up a “band of brothers” and
hitting backwith: “It’s a shame that
someone I held in such high regard feels
the need to take these low roads when
I’ve done nothing but give my absolute
all to a position he left of his own
accord. It’s uninformed, unfounded,
unnecessary and very unfortunate
and disappointing.” DL
But Special Guests Priest’s rift with KK deepens.
Ozzy Tour
Rescheduled
Tool have confirmed that their
highly anticipated fifth studio album
- the title of which the Grammy-winning
band are still keeping a closely guarded
secret – will be released on August 30,
ending a 13-year wait for the follow-up
to 2006’s 10,000 Days. The new record
was produced by Joe Barresi, who has
also worked with Kyuss, The Melvins
and Coheed And Cambria, among
many others.
The reclusive and deeply secretive
American/British band fronted by
Maynard James Keenan, who make a rare
British appearance when they co-headline
the Download Festival on June 16, are
currently undertaking a short mini-tour
of the States, teased fans at a show in
Birmingham, Alabama, by f lashing up
its release date during their set. Later on,
the band posted the date to Twitter in the
form of a GIF. They recently changed
their logo on Facebook to one that
includes ‘MMXIX’, the Roman numerals
for ‘2019’.
In recent weeks Tool also previewed
two brand new songs – Invincible and the
12-minute epic Descending – when they
played at the Welcome To Rockville
Festival in Jacksonville, Florida. DLDownload Fest headliners finally set a release date.
Tool Album Ready!
12 CLASSICROCKMAGAZINE.COM