In May 2012, The Cult released their long-awaited album ‘Choice of Weapon’, their first full length studio record since 2007’s ‘Born Into This’.
Featuring Cult mainstays Ian Astbury and Billy Duffy, alongside bassist Chris Wyse and ex-White Zombie drummer John Tempesta, the album was produced by Masters Of Reality/Queens of the Stone Age man Chris Goss. Extra production work came courtesy of Bob Rock, who previously worked with The Cult on their best-seller ‘Sonic Temple’.
As part of the ongoing promotion for ‘Choice of Weapon’, Ian Astbury gave an interview with Lithium Magazine. You can watch the half-hour conversation in the embedded video box below.
Whether long or short, Def Leppard’s live sets are often spot on. Their last London show in 2011 was no exception, as armed only with a video screen, great songs and no gimmicks, the Leps had the near impossible task of following Motley Crue’s larger than life show, which came complete with pyros, a revolving drum kit and a truck-load of attitude.
For those at that particular show, it seemed the attitude which fuelled the Motley Crue set was not just confined to the the stage. From REAL GONE’s position, we’d witnessed a drunk man making a nuisance of himself throughout the Crue set, which actually led to another audience member grabbing him around the throat and then punching him square in the face, leading to bloodloss! The Def Leppard fans were, in contrast, as genial as the band themselves.
On Wednesday June 6th, 2012, Def Leppard took a step back from the large venues and played a short set in front of an intimate crowd at Hollywood’s House of Blues. The seven song, 25 minute set was followed with a half-hour Q&A session, which can also be seen below.
As a bonus, the bottom embedded link contains 90 minutes from Def Leppard’s huge homecoming show at Don Valley Stadium, Sheffield, 1992.
Read a review of Def Leppard’s often overlooked debut ‘On Through The Night’ here.
Although overlooked by millions, Robert Lawrence Welch Jr had relatively a lengthy musical career. He came to relative prominence as a member of Fleetwood Mac in during the first half of the 1970s. In 2012, his life came to an end after he committed suicide. He was discovered with a gunshot wound to the chest.
Welch’s talent and invaluable contribution to a string of Fleetwood Mac discs released between the “wilderness years” of 1971-74 should not be ignored. While those albums are rarely seen as classics, in tunes like ‘Sentimental Lady’ and ‘Hypnotized’ he proved a great songwriter of adult pop, while other material like ‘Bermuda Triangle’ showcased a darker side to his work. Across five albums (none of which received at UK release in the 70s), Welch’s stamp on the Fleetwood Mac sound is pivotal, moving the band away from the blues and further towards the AM radio adult pop with which they would conquer the world. On his last work with the band, ‘Heroes Are Hard To Find’, Welch was the sole guitarist and chief songwriter, penning eight of the album’s eleven cuts.
After moving on from Fleetwood Mac in 1975, Welch headed a short-lived power trio named Paris, which saw him working alongside ex-Jethro Tull bassist Glen Cornick and ex-Nazz drummer Thom Mooney. Closer to hard rock than anything Welch committed to plastic previously, their quasi-angry arrangements were perhaps a knee-jerk to Welch’s time with the Mac; a pair of albums released in 1976 sold poorly.
Kicking off a solo career in 1977, Welch returned to familiar musical territory with ‘French Kiss’, a well-received collection of radio friendly tunes which owed a great deal to Welch’s time in Fleetwood Mac. The album yielded a couple of relatively successful singles in the title cut and a re-recorded ‘Sentimental Lady’ (the latter featuring Mick Fleetwood, Christine and John McVie). The album was a big hit in the US, reaching #12 on the Billboard Chart. While Welch never achieved such success again, his solo career continued, and between 1978 and 1983 he released another five studio albums. At this time Welch’s career was hampered by drug problems, but after getting clean he chose to work as a songwriter, only returning to recording in 1999. His first work after the hiatus was an experimental jazz release. Other releases included two volumes of re-recorded solo and Fleetwood Mac material.
Bob Welch was survived by his wife of twenty-seven years and leaves behind a legacy of work still awaiting discovery by many.
Alternative rockers Beast Make Bomb premiered a new video for their track ‘Dream Boat’ on June 6th.
The video premier was on the Consequence of Sound website, before being uploaded to YouTube. The new video – directed by Rylee Jean Esben – can be seen below.
Read a review and listen to Beast Make Bomb’s 2012 EP ‘Sourpuss’ here.
It has been reported that Megadeth’s appearance at MetalFest in Croatia on Tuesday 5th June was frought with problems.
After Dark Tranquility pulled out of the festival and W.A.S.P. refused to play (supposedly following a disagreement with Megadeth, though this has not been confirmed), Dave Mustaine and company met with a rather hostile audience. It is said that members of the crowd repeatedly threw stuff on stage during Megadeth’s performance, while others reacted in a more passive hostile manner by raising middle fingers.
Fan-filmed footage of the entire set can be viewed below. While the rough-around-the-edges footage doesn’t provide the best representation of the legendary thrash band’s 45 minute set, the clips provide a reasonable record of “fan” stupidity.
