Speaking about the news, Mcarthy, said: “[The Yardbirds] petered out. We were so tired, on the road for three years, playing every night. We lost all the creativity in the band. It wasn’t quite the same with the four-piece lineup, (which includes Keith Relf, Chris Dreja, Jim McCarty, and Jimmy Page). Keith and I decided to leave to do something totally different, which we did with Renaissance. But there was already a tour booked with Vanilla Fudge.

Continuing Mcarthy, said: “So Jimmy [Page] went and did it with Robert Plant, John Bonham and John Paul Jones. They called it The New Yardbirds for the first tour. Chris Dreja got shunted out in favour of John Paul Jones. But Chris had rights to the name. He stopped them from using The New Yardbirds, sent them a lawyer’s letter or something. So legally they couldn’t carry on with it. They changed it to (Led) Zeppelin.”

Led Zeppelin, who formed in London in 1968, are one of the worlds biggest rock bands to emerge from Britain. The group consisted of Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones, frontman Robert Plant and drummer John Bonham. Along with Black Sabbath and Deep they are considered to be one of the big three bands to have pioneered Heavy Metal, with their main influences, like their peers, coming from Blues, Psychedelia and Folk Music.

After they changed their name to Led Zeppelin they signed with Atlantic Records who gave them, their much needed, artistic freedom. Initially disliked by critics, they nevertheless soon became one of the most commercially successful bands of the 1970’s. Their fourth album simply titled “Led Zeppelin IV” featured the song “Stairway to Heaven”, which is their biggest hit and one of the most popular rock songs of all time.

Page wrote most of the music, while Plant was responsible for most of the lyrics. In the later period, Jones’ keyboard compositions became a key factor in the bands experimentation and progression. They toured relentlessly and became notorious for their excess and debauchery. This ultimately came to a head in 1980 when Bonham tragically died from alcohol abuse, which lead them to split. Their legacy over the following decades carried on and the remaining members held several one off reunion shows with the most recent being in 2007 where Bonham was substituted by his son Jason.

It would seem that Claypool has leaked this information early. However, it is an addition to a bill that has included Lamb of God and Anthrax, who have been on the whole tour. Other bands who have been on other legs include Napalm Death, Behemoth and Testament.

The next leg will see Slayer trek across North America with support from Lamb of God, Amon Amarth and Cannibal Corpse. It starts May  2nd in Pheonix, Arizona and  ends on May 25th in Mansfield, Massachusetts. After that they will be heading to Europe playing both their own shows and festival dates. Find information on all shows here.

Slayer are one of what is considered the “big four” of thrash metal along with Metallica, Megadeth and Anthrax from Huntington Park, California. They were formed in 1981 by vocalist and bassist Tom Araya and guitarists Kerry King and Jeff Haneman.

They have always stood out from the rest of the big four due to their style of playing with has always been much more fast and aggressive than the others. Their current line-up is Araya, King, guitarist Gary Holt and drummer Paul Bostaph. Dave Lomabardo and John Dette have both previously been drummers.

When the original line-up was together Araya, King and Haneman were all responsible for the lyrics while King and Haneman wrote all of the music. The bands lyrics and imagery have always covered controversial subjects such as serial killers, necrophilia, torture, genocide, human experimentation, Satanism, hate crime, terrorism, blasphemy, Nazism and war which has resulted in them facing pressure from religious and censorship groups. Despite this they have been highly influential with their third album “Reign in Blood” being considered to be one of the greatest metal albums of all time.

They have released twelve studio albums, two live albums, a box set, six music videos, two extended plays and a covers album. Four of their albums have been certified gold in the US. They have also been nominated for a grammy four times, winning it twice for the songs “Eyes of the Insane” and “Final Six” both of 2006’s “Christ Illusion.” In total, they have sold over five million albums. They announced their decision to split in January 2018.

Tour Dates:

2 – Phoenix, Ariz. @ Ak-Chin Amphitheatre
3 – Albuquerque, N.M.@ Isleta Amphitheatre,
5 – El Paso, Texas @ UTEP/Don Haskins Center
7 – Edinburg, Texas @ Bert Ogden Arena
8 – Dallas, Texas @ The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory
10 – Tampa, Fla. @ MidFlorida Credit Union Amphitheatre
11 – West Palm Beach, Fla. @ Coral Sky Amphitheatre
13 – Huntington, W.V.@ Big Sandy Superstore Arena
14 – Columbia, Md. @ Merriweasther Post Pavilion
16 – Noblesville, Ind. @ Ruoff Home Mortgage Music Center
17 – Bonner Springs, Kansas @ Providence Medical Center Amphitheater
19 – Clarkston, Mich. @ DTE Energy Music Center
20 – Youngstown, Ohio @ Covel Centre
22 – Ottawa, Ontario @ Canadian Tire Centre
24 – Camden, N.J.@ BB&T Pavilion
25 – Mansfield, Mass. @ Xfinity Center

The Church formed in Sydney in 1980. Initially associated with new wave, neo-psychedelia and indie rock, their music later became reminiscent of dream pop and post rock. The founding members were Kilby on lead vocals and bass, Peter Koppes and Marty Wilson-Piper on guitars and Nick Ward on drums. Ward left after the first album and they went through a succession of drummer throughout their career as  well as other personnel.

Their debut album “Of Skins and Heart” released in 1981 produced their first radio hit “The Unguarded Moment” and they got signed to major labels in Australia, Europe and The United States. However, the got dropped by their American label after they were unsatisfied with the bands second album and subsequently did not release it. This proved to be a problem for the band’s international success but they did eventually achieve chart success again in  1988 with the album “Starfish” which featured “Under the Milky Way” which was a  top 40 hit in the states. Subsequently they have not had much mainstream success  but have remained a cult band with a dedicated following and in 2010 were inducted into Sydney’s ARIA Hall of Fame. They continue to tour and record.

London Dates

Saturday 8th June-Bush Hall, Shepard’s Bush

Sunday 9th June- Bush Hall, Shepard’s Bush

The event was the brainchild of former Metal Hammer editor Alexander Milas and was conceived in partnership with several academics and industry figures in the hope of recognising the genre as a culturally relevant art form. Says Milas: “This is a world-first. In these troubling times the fact that this music resonates with people of every colour and culture and creed is an incredibly special thing, and we want to shout that from the rooftops. With the w\m/c we’re creating a unique forum to help bring that truly global community together, and we’ve already had a phenomenal response.”

Tony Iommi, guitarist of genre creators Black Sabbath has given  his blessing to the event stating: “I’m really pleased to hear that the World Metal Congress will be taking place in the UK. The Metal community is huge but rarely gets the recognition it deserves. My best wishes for a successful event.”

The funding for the event came from an Arts Council Grant and the first day’s talks will be dealing with different aspects of metal as an industry featuring executives from such things as BBC Radio 1, the genres biggest festival, The Wacken Open Air in Germany as well as one of the genre’s most politically outspoken figures, Napalm Death frontman Barney Greenway who states:”Human rights and universal artistic licence are tightly intertwined. Breaking tired old stereotypes, celebrating free creative expression without borders and confronting and debating challenging ethical band decisions continues to be an absolute must.”

The second day will be a whole day of premiere’s of documentaries looking at how the genre has broken cultural barriers and a live set from Singapore grindcore band Wormrot. Perhaps what will truly make this event historical however  will be a talk from a musician from one of the  worlds most currently war-torn places: Syria. Jake Shuker from Syrian band Mayalsaloon will be coming all the way from Damascus to speak at the event, marking the first time a native Syrian has been allowed to do such a thing since the beginning of the war. Shuker will be joined by Monzer Darwish  who is also a Syrian musician who is the director of “Syrian Metal is War” which is one of the films being shown.

Chicago post-punk band Muet have announced the release of their debut album which is set to happen this week and have released a video to coincide with it. The video is for the track “Muscle” is taken from their self titled debut which is set to be released this Friday through the Metropolis label.

The line-up consists of vocalist Steven Siebold, Daniel Evans who plays both guitar and bass and drummer Vince McAley who have all previously played in post-industrial punk bands such as Pigface, Chemlab, Die Warzau and Hate Dept. Commenting on the making of the video  the band stated:”it was the first time we had all actually played in the same room together as a band. We made the album entirely by remote due to our singer living a few hours away from the rest of the band in Chicago. We traded files back and forth, the band recording demos and sending them to Steven and he would send vocal takes back. Somehow, it seemed to gel quickly. So, we’re actually playing together for the first time in this video, and we are really playing, not miming along to the song like most videos. We were so excited and perhaps a little nervous to put all the pieces together and play, that it seems to give the video an endearing quality. The editing was done by Vince McAley, while our friend Myles Arwine did a phenomenal job capturing and directing the footage. We can’t thank him enough.” Check it out below:

Muet has been  described as “the sound of American noir.  Sonically defiant art rock sung under the shadow of a long brim hat. Deliberate dissonance and heartbreaking melody are stitched together beneath sodium light with tales of the tragic, the romantic, and the bizarre.”

“VILEVILIVE” is to released on April 12, the day before Record Store Day on their own Crankledankles label.  It will be available on white vinyl in a gatefold sleeve with a free download card and only 500 copies will be available and it will  also be available on CD. On the actual Record Store Date, April 13, the band will play a special headline show at the iconic Guild Hall in Preston where they will be supported by Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs, The Membranes and Part Chimp. Find tickets here.

In 2014, Evil Blizzard  labelled by The Guardian as the “new wave of new rage” then in 2015 by Kerrang! in 2015 as “The perfect storm of…oddness” the latter of which is a very apt description. An unconventional band in every sense of the word, they have four bass players, a drummer who sings and they wear rubber masks that could certainly scare children and even a few adults who are of a more sensitive disposition. All of which naturally makes for an unforgettable live experience.

Upon the release of their single “Are You Evil?” in August 2015 from their album “Everybody Come To Church”, Motley Crue’s Nikki Sixx declared on his radio show “I haven’t heard anyone else play this. I’d love to be the first. The song is called “Are You Evil?”. The band has four bass players and they all wear masks. So when you see the video you’re like, wow, this is really cool. It’s like Gothic, its Punk rock. But just forget all that and just listen to the song, because without a good song none of that other stuff matters”.

“Everybody” was released in October 2015 following  the release of their debut “The Dangers of Evil Blizzard”. It was produced by Embrace guitarist Richard McNamara and recorded in just one day. It received a KKKK review from Kerrang! and Classic Rock described it as “A repellent to the bovine majority, but if the world’s going to burn, it comes as the perfect soundtrack.”

The most interesting thing about Evil Blizzard is the fact that they can be put into most rock music categories. A basic description could be something along the lines of Black Sabbath meets Public Image Ltd. At various different times their music could be described as metal, punk, goth, indie or even dance or dub. A testament to this fact is just some of the bands they have played with which include Space, Sleaford Mods, Ruts DC, Hawkwind, Killing Joke and the aforementioned Public Image Ltd and Embrace.

The Summer Sonic festival is a two or three day event held in two locations, Osaka and Chiba, similar to the UK’s Reading and Leeds festivals. The way it works is that  one line up of bands will play in one of the locations one day while another plays the other and vice versa on another day. As well as Japanese bands, it also features many international acts. It also operates the festival Sonicmania, which is more focused on dance music, since 2011. It is an independent  festival, owned by Creative Productions Ltd. They are famous for unleashing the “Purple Dog” that  is a mix of Chitzu  and Manamau.

The Summer Sonic festival was founded in 2000 with a focus on both national and international acts. Notable acts to have played the first ever edition included 311, Arrested Development, At the Drive-in, Ben Folds Five and notably Coldplay, who were a new and up coming band at the time.

The Electronic Dance section of the festival was split into Sonicmania in 2011 which is always held a day before  the event at Makuira Messe which according to “Timeout” “Held as a warm-up for Summer Sonic each year, the all-night Sonicmania party caters to dance kids who aren’t so well served by the main festival itself”

In 2012, Creative formed a joint venture with Live Nation Entertainment in 2012. In 2014, Live Nation bought full control of the venture. In 2017, the festival was expanded to Shanghai, China.

The four-piece band formed in 2012 with members previously being in the bands Tower Struck Down and Jugopunch and play their own brand of punk rock n roll. They have played with bands such as Spear of Destiny, Buzzcocks, The Wildhearts and Ferocious Dog. They combine anthemic chorus’s and catchy melodies which make for energetic performances all topped of with a witty sense of humour.

They released a three  track EP in 2013 which was well received and they gained a reputation for themselves playing with the aforementioned groups, going down well with audiences and gaining positive reviews in the alternative rock press. They released their first full length in early 2014 titled “Muster” which was met with widespread acclaim, being named album of the year in several independent publications and even being recommended by national newspaper “The Morning Star.” Things only continued to get better from here as they got airplay from punk and folk stations as well consistent gigging and festival appearances all of which were very successful.

They released their second album in the summer of 2016 titled “Feather and Flame” which further refined the bands sound as passionate punk rocker with a traditional folk twist. Ever since the band have continued to persevere with their promising and popular sound, and the future looks very bright indeed.

The tour will include dates with Steve Ignorant’s Slice of Life and Interobang  as well as an appearance at Bearded Theory and at The Bird’s Nest in Deptford. Full dates listed below:

23 Mar – MacStock, Black Market, Market Warsop.
6 Apr – White Hart, Ashby De La Zouch
7 Apr – Gigs For Digs, Eleven, Tunstall, Stoke On Trent
18 Apr – Brudenell Social Club, Leeds (w/ Steve Ignorant’s Slice Of Life & Interrobang)
19 Apr – The Rigger, Newcastle Under Lyme (w/ Steve Ignorant’s Slice Of Life & Interrobang)
20 Apr – The Maze, Nottingham (w/ Steve Ignorant’s Slice Of Life & Interrobang)
27 Apr – Rock Off Fibro, Saddle Rock Bar, Chester.
4 May – Eh Up Mi Duck Festival, Newstead Village, Nottingham
11 May – Bird’s Nest, Deptford, London
25 May – Bearded Theory, Catton Hall, Derbyshire
26 May – Strummercamp, Oldham Rugby Club, Oldham

Says frontman Johnny Foster “We have been looking forward to getting to grips with the South Coast for a good while to bring our Carlisle music down to the sea.”  Adds Robinson “This tour will be great for The Hardwicke’s.  “Playing a lot of dates in Kent and the South Coast will show them off big time.”

Hardwicke Circus have for some time now been building a reputation as one of the most vibrant young bands to emerge from the UK. Their bluesy-punk sound has been compared to the likes of the E Street Band and Southside Johnny as well as The Doors and Dexy’s Midnight Runners.

Live is where they built up their fanbase which is unsurprising as they are a band that needs to be seen as much as listened to. Foster in particular has the makings of a classic rock  n roll frontman being reminiscent of classic-era Mick Jagger. However, they are not a completely retro act, with their classic sound having a modern spin on it.

Comments Foster “It’s a very visual thing, and I think people like to see the seven of us on stage. “You don’t really find that in modern bands. I’ve always liked the big band and I always aspired to play in one, with cinematic songs. To have seven people channel that same vision, I think we’re really lucky.”

“The bands I’m into and the singers I like, it’s always ‘Do they have something to say.” That’s the attitude I take. If you’ve got that, it translates on stage. Yes, it’s a performance, but at the same time, there’s something quite sincere about it. You completely immerse yourself in that lifestyle, and all the bands we’re into have that ethos.”

Hailing from Carilse in Cumbria, the bands name comes from a famous roundabout in the town.  “Three years ago we were under a different name, then we got a group of songs together and realised that with this new direction, we needed to change the name. There’s an art and performance thing about the name Hardwicke Circus, which we like.”

In addition to their loyal fanbase they have also met the approval of several gurus of production. They have worked with Peter Collins who has produced Bon Jovi and Rush as well as Chris Tsangarides who has worked with everyone from Thin Lizzy to Depeche Mode.

Full list of tour dates:

Fri 29 Mar – Vinyl Tap, Preston
Sat 30 Mar – The Cavern, Raynes Park, London
Sun 31Mar – Balabam, Tottenham, London
Thur 4 Apr – Ramsgate Music Hall, Ramsgate
Fri 5 Apr – The Lighthouse, Deal
Sat 6 Apr – The Half Moon, Putney, London
Sun 7 Apr – Latest Music Bar, Brighton
Mon 8 Apr – The Holroyd Arms, Guildford
Tue 9 Apr – The Railway Hotel, Southend
Wed 10 Apr – Hotel Pelirocco, Brighton
Fri 12 Apr – Blackmarket VIP, Hastings
Sat 13 Apr – The Rose & Crown, Walthamstow, London
Sun 14 Apr – The Duke of Cumberland, Whitstable
Thur 18 Apr – The Bedford, Balham, London
Fri 19 Apr – The Magic Garden, Battersea, London

Unusually for a punk gig at the time, it was open to people of all ages and was filmed by director Julian Temple. In 2013, footage from it was featured in the documentary “Nevermind the Baubles: Christmas with the Sex Pistols.”

The petition has been launched by fan Ian Lockwood who has addressed it to the Kirklees Council asking that a blue plaque to commemorate the event be erected on what is left of the former club which was originally part of Huddersfield’s ornate Grand Picture Theatre and was later incorporated into a supermarket. The  petition can be singed here.

The Sex Pistols were the biggest band of the original punk movement who formed in 1975. They were responsible for pioneering the genre and have influenced many different kinds of bands who have formed over the past forty years. Although they were only initially together for two and a half years and only produced one actual album, 1977’s “Nevermind the Bollocks: Here’s the Sex Pistols!” they are regarded as one of most influential popular music artists of all time.

The original line-up comprised of vocalist Johnny Rotten (real name John Lydon), guitarist Steve Jones, drummer Paul Cook and bassist Glen Matlock who was replaced by Sid Vicious in 1977.  Under the management of Malcolm McLaren,   they caused much controversy which made national  headlines in several tabloids. This resulted in them being banned from playing around most of Britain and when they did their concerts where often known to end in chaos. Particular incidents included an interview on daytime Tv show “The Bill Grundy Show” where they used several words of profanity and the release of their single “God Save The Queen” which openly attacked the British Monarchy and happened to coincide with the Queens Silver Jubilee.

Rotten announced that he was leaving the band in 1978 after a disastrous tour of the United States and the original broke up shortly after. However the other three members recorded a series of songs using the Sex Pistols name for the  soundtrack of McLaren’s film about the band titled “The Great Rock n Roll Swindle”. In 1979 Vicious died from a heroin overdose after being accused of murdering his girlfriend Nancy Spungen.  They reunited in 1996 with Matlock for the Filthy Lucre tour and have staged several other reunion shows since. They were inducted into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame in 2006 but did not attend the ceremony due to negative opinions held by the band about the museum.