Classic Rock News

Doors guitarist Robby Krieger has revealed plans to release a new album this summer with a new group called Krieger & The Soul Savages.

According to a post on Robby’s official Facebook page, the band features keyboardist Ed Roth, bassist Kevin Brandon and drummer Franklin Vanderbilt playing “a blend of melodic, psychedelic rock and soul.”

Krieger & The Soul Savages appears to be a rechristened version of Robby’s jazz-flavored side group The New Experience, which debuted in 2019 and also featured Roth, Brandon and Vanderbilt.

Krieger & The Soul Savages made their live debut last week at two concerts in the Los Angeles area. The band also has club gigs lined up on July 31 at Bogies in Westlake Village, California, and August 10 at Vibrato Grill in LA.

Meanwhile, Robby has five other upcoming concerts scheduled with his other group, the Robby Krieger Band. Those shows will take place on July 21 in St. Charles, Illinois; July 22 in Des Plaines, Illinois; September 23 in San Juan Capistrano, California; and September 25-26 at the famed Whisky a Go Go club in West Hollywood.

During the two-night stand at the Whisky, Robby and company will celebrate the 55th anniversary of The Doors’ second album, Strange Days.

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Black Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi is among the musicians who will perform during the opening ceremony for the 2022 edition of the Commonwealth Games sporting event, which will run from July 28 to August 8 in Iommi’s hometown of Birmingham, U.K.

The Commonwealth Games is an international multiple-sport competition held every four years that features athletes from countries that are part of the Commonwealth of Nations.

The Opening Ceremony will take place July 28 at Alexander Stadium. According to a press release, Iommi will perform with acclaimed sax player Soweto Kinch during a “dream sequence” segment called “Hear My Voice,” which is based on the title track of the 2020 movie Trial of the Chicago Seven. The performance will also feature Birmingham-born R&B vocalists Indigo Marshall and Gambimi.

“It’s true, that I will be performing at the opening of the Commonwealth Games,” Iommi tweeted. “I’m very honoured to have been asked to do it and I’m really looking forward to the day! It’s such a great boost for Birmingham to have the games held here.”

The opening ceremony will also feature a variety of other noteworthy local musicians, including headliners Duran Duran, who will perform during the finale. The band, which will be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame this November, will play four classic songs from their back catalog with accompaniment from the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra.

For more information about this year’s Commonwealth Games, visit Birmingham2022.com.

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Apparently, one documentary isn’t enough to explore Woodstock 1999.

Following last year’s Woodstock 99: Peace, Love, and Rage, which premiered on HBO, Netflix is now taking on the ill-fated music festival with a three-part docuseries titled Clusterf**k: Woodstock ’99. You can watch the trailer streaming now on YouTube.

A description for Clusterf**k reads, “Utilizing rare insider footage and eyewitness interviews with an impressive list of festival staffers, performers and attendees, this docuseries goes behind the scenes to reveal the egos, greed and music that fueled three days of utter chaos.”

All three episodes are set to premiere August 3 on Netflix.

Woodstock ’99 featured performances by bands, including Metallica, Rage Against the Machine, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Kid Rock and Limp Bizkit, but it became infamous not for its music, but for the riots and violence that erupted during the festival.

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Toni Cornell, the daughter of the late Chris Cornell, has shared home video footage to celebrate what would’ve been her father’s 58th birthday.

The clip, which was posted to Toni’s Instagram, shows the Soundgarden frontman singing Eminem‘s “Not Afraid” and “Love the Way You Lie” featuring Rihanna along with Toni and her younger brother, Christopher.

In a caption accompanying the video, Toni and Christopher write a message to their father, reading, “You were always playing music for us, singing with us, dancing with us.”

“Losing you was one of the hardest things we had to go through,” the Cornell children write. “They say it gets easier with time, but as the days and years go by, and since we last saw you, we are missing you even more.”

They add, “Happy Birthday to the greatest dad and most incredible human whose life continues to leave an incredible mark on everyone he touches.”

Chris Cornell died by suicide on May 18, 2017 at age 52. Eerily, Linkin Park‘s Chester Bennington, who had become friends with Cornell, also died by suicide on July 20, 2017, which would’ve been Chris’ 53rd birthday.

If you are in crisis or know someone in crisis, contact the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988, by calling 1-800-273-TALK (8255), or by visiting 988lifeline.org. You can also contact the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741.

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The Cliff Burton Estate has teamed up with music merchandising company KnuckleBonz and craft brewery Calicraft Brewing Co. to create a new beer inspired by the late Metallica bassist.

Dubbed Cliff ‘Em All, the 6.4% ABV IPA was brewed with simcoe and citra hops and is described as “hoppy, bold and crushable.” 

A portion of the proceeds from the beer will be donated to the Cliff Burton Music Scholarship Foundation for Rising Youth Musicians. 

“Continuing the mission of Cliff’s father, the late Ray Burton, the Cliff Burton Foundation is centered on fostering the next generation of musical talent,” the Burton family says in a statement. “We hand pick young individuals from around the world with the same enthusiasm for music and dedication to their craft as the late bassist Cliff Burton had. Cheers to Cliff and Ray Burton who loved a good beer!”

The Cliff ‘Em All IPA is available now to pre-order via CraftShack.com.

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Former Bon Jovi guitarist Richie Sambora is gearing up to release his first new music since before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sambora was interviewed earlier this month by Red Carpet News at the 2022 Nordoff Robbins O2 Silver Clef Awards in London, and he revealed, “I have a new record that’s ready to go, and I’ve been kind of holding it through the pandemic. And I’d say in the fall we’re gonna put it out.”

The Rock & Roll Hall of Famer was also asked if he found it difficult not to be able to perform live or play music with other artists because of the health crisis.

“It was interesting for me because it was probably one of the first times there I had a chance to, forcibly, slow it down,” he admitted, noting that the downtime gave him the opportunity to practice a lot and write songs every day.

Sambora added, “I played a lot of piano too. So it was actually a decent time for me because it slowed me down on purpose.”

As for what fans can expect from his new music, Richie said, “I’m very proud of it. I don’t write bad songs anymore…it just doesn’t happen….[I]t’s not hard for me. I’m just lucky that way. And plus, I just write all the time, so it’s like a daily exercise for me.”

He concluded by telling fans, “Get ready, there’s some good stuff coming. I’m sorry it’s been so long, but the pandemic kind of held things up.”

Sambora’s last project was 2018’s Radio Free America, a collaborative album with his then-girlfriend, Australian guitar whiz Orianthi. 

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Here’s wishing a supernaturally happy birthday to Carlos Santana, who turns 75 today.

The legendary guitarist helped create a groundbreaking fusion of rock, blues, pop, Latin music and jazz with his namesake band Santana.

Santana came to global prominence after an incendiary performance at the 1969 Woodstock festival, which showcased Carlos’ blistering and intense playing. The group’s self-titled debut album came out that same month, featuring classics like “Evil Ways” and the instrumental “Soul Sacrifice.” The band’s next two studio albums, Abraxas and Santana III, topped the Billboard 200 and included such hits as “Black Magic Woman,” “Oye Como Va” and “Everybody’s Everything.”

From the early 1970s through the ’90s, Santana’s lineup changed frequently as the band’s popularity fluctuated.

Santana was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1998, then experienced a huge career resurgence thanks to 1999’s Supernatural. The album, which featured Carlos and company collaborating with various guest artists, yielded two #1 hits — “Smooth” with Matchbox Twenty‘s Rob Thomas, and “Maria Maria” with Wyclef Jean and The Product G&B. Supernatural topped the Billboard 200 for 12 nonconsecutive weeks and went on to win nine Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year.

More recently, Santana was saluted at the prestigious Kennedy Center Honors in 2013.

Santana’s latest album, Blessings and Miracles, was released in October 2021. Following a similar template to Supernatural, Blessings and Miracles features collaborations with various guest artists, including Thomas, Steve Winwood, Metallica‘s Kirk Hammett and Diane Warren.

On July 5, Santana collapsed onstage during a show in the Detroit suburb of Clarkston, Michigan — reportedly because of heat exhaustion and dehydration — leading him to postpone a series of shows. The band currently is scheduled to return to the road this Saturday, July 23, in Paso Robles, California.

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Next year marks the 50th anniversary of the official formation of Heart, and frontwoman Ann Wilson has revealed that plans are in the works for some kind of celebration marking the milestone.

“I’m not at liberty to say exactly what they are yet because it’s such early days, but sure,” Wilson tells Grammy.com. “It will be next year. And we’re doing a thing. Definitely. We’re still formulating it now.”

The celebration would mark the first time Ann and her sister, Heart co-leader Nancy Wilson, will have worked together since the band ended its Love Alive tour in 2019. The siblings have recently been at odds over the direction of the group, and both have been focused on solo projects during the last few years.

Nancy released her debut solo studio album, You and Me, in 2021. She also recently launched a new group called Nancy Wilson’s Heart that features powerhouse lead singer Kimberly Nichole and members of Heart’s most recent touring lineup.

Ann released a new solo studio album called Fierce Bliss in April and has been touring with her own backing band, The Amazing Dawgs, that mainly features a group of Nashville session musicians who accompanied her on most of the record’s songs.

Ann tells Grammy.com that she’s expecting to make another album with The Amazing Dawgs.

“What I can do now with these ideas I have is just get ’em down and go in with this group of excellent musicians,” she notes. “What we have is really energized, fiery and sharp. I think it’s working for us right now. It’s real.”

You can check out Ann’s 2022 tour schedule with The Amazing Dawgs at AnnWilson.com.

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Headlining sets by Metallica and the reunited Porno for Pyros are among the performances that will air online as part of the Lollapalooza festival’s Hulu livestream.

Metallica’s performance will stream on Thursday, July 28, at 11:15 p.m. ET, while Porno for Pyros set will stream on Sunday, July 31, at 7:45 p.m. ET.

The streaming lineup also includes Dashboard Confessional, Machine Gun Kelly and many others.

Hulu subscribers can watch the broadcast July 28-31. For more info, visit Hulu.com/Lollapalooza.

If you’re attending Lolla in person at Chicago’s Grant Park this year, you can also catch sets by Green Day, and dozens more.

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