News

Sure, we all know John Waite’s # 1 hit song “Missing You”, but did you know it was written about former MTV VJ, Nina Blackwood. During a new interview where he discusses his brand new album, Wooden Heart Acoustic Anthology…

In the music world, you’ll find lots of entertainers. You’ll also find some great songwriters, musicians, and singers. These days it’s extremely rare for any one person to have all of these qualities. However, singer/songwriter John Waite is one of…

Dave Mustaine has posted the following regarding longtime bass player David Ellefson. Ellefson has been involved in a controversy which we reported on earlier. You can read the details here: https://xsrock.com/mega-problems-for-megadeths-david-ellefson/

https://youtu.be/1dVaOge4Eic Faster Pussycat will release their NEW SINGLE “NOLA” & B-Side “PIRATE LOVE” on MAY 21st, 2021! These songs represent the first new songs to be released in 15 years! Pirate Love is the band’s version of the Johnny Thunders…

Megadeth bassist David Ellefson has some Mega-Problems to deal with and has made the following statement via his Instagram account: As you may or not know, some private and personal conversations and interactions have surfaced online, released with ill intention…

XS ROCK: Hey, man. Thanks for taking the time out to talk to us today. You’re one of the busiest guys I think there is in rock. Jeff Pilson: Then how come I feel lazy? (Laughs) XS ROCK: Well, I…

I don’t know about everyone else, but I for one, am sick of seeing interview after interview with former Judas Priest guitarist, K.K. Downing complaining about his exit from the band. Now, before all of K.K.’s fans attempt to crucify…

Mudvayne–one of the most creative and distinctive bands in the aggressive music world–has announced that they’re reuniting after a 12-year hiatus, and will be performing at all four Danny Wimmer Presents U.S. festivals in 2021: Inkcarceration Music & Tattoo Festival (a headlining performance) in…

  Black ‘N Blue was formed in 1981 and released four successful and critically acclaimed albums through Geffen Records including their self-titled debut (1984), “Without Love” (1985), “Nasty Nasty” (1986), and “In Heat” (1987), with the latter two albums produced…

What if Stephen Pearcy had auditioned for Motley Crue when Vince Neil left and had become their new singer instead of John Corabi? I know, I know… of course that didn’t happen, but there were actually a lot of things…

Grunge music exploded commercially with the first riff of Nirvana’s “Smell Like Teen Spirit”. The scene became huge very quickly with bands like Alice In Chains, Soundgarden, Stone Temple Pilots, and Pearl Jam becoming successful and elevating the scene to…

With their unique mixture of Hardcore, Metal and Groove/Rap, BIOHAZARD crested the Mount Olympus of the international Hardcore and Metal scene at the beginning of the 90s. What started out with »Biohazard« (1990) found its worthy continuation in »Urban Discipline«…

The XS ROCK Featured Artist Holy Mother simply has to be heard to be believed. The band is a great mix of traditional metal with some modern touches. Fans of classic bands like Dio, Judas Priest, and Whitesnake…

Review: I absolutely love it when an album comes across my desk that surprises me with how good it is. As rock a journalist I receive a lot of stuff for review on a daily basis and honestly only about…

The 1980s saw heavy metal go mainstream and reach a large audience worldwide. The genre was split into sub-genres like Glam Metal, Thrash Metal, Speed Metal, NWOBHM, Traditional Metal, and more. Regardless of which sub-genre you preferred, there was no…

Multiple news outlets are now reporting that former Children Of Bodom Guitarist/Vocalist Alexi Laiho has died at the age of 41. He died at his home in Helsinki Finland after battling “long-term health issues.” Laiho was highly respected for guitar…

The 1980s saw heavy metal go mainstream and reach a large audience worldwide. The genre was split into sub-genres like Glam Metal, Thrash Metal, Speed Metal, NWOBHM, Traditional Metal and more. Regardless of which sub-genre you preferred, there was no…

White Lion was formed in New York City in 1983 by Danish vocalist/guitarist Mike Tramp and American guitarist Vito Bratta. The band had two top 10 hits with the songs “Wait” and When The Children Cry” both from the album…

Back before COVID-19 shut down almost everything, we spoke with MSG singer Robin McAuley about the new album he recently recorded with Reb Beach, Jeff Pilson and Matt Starr called “Black Swan”. The interview has been delayed being published until…

The 1980s saw heavy metal go mainstream and reach a large audience worldwide. The genre was split into sub-genres like Glam Metal, Thrash Metal, Speed Metal, NWOBHM, Traditional Metal, and more. Regardless of which sub-genre you preferred, there was no…

The idea for THE BANISHMENT has been years in the making for LYNCH to further push his creativity into darker, subliminal and chaotic territories. To accomplish this, he teamed up with HAZE over five years ago, who in addition to being the live guitarist for Lords of…

It’s always a pleasure to speak to the Queen Of Metal, Doro Pesch and in our latest interview with her, she opens up about her new box set that features almost 4 hours of music. Listen to our interview with…

Seduce is a heavy metal/power trio formed in Detroit in the 1980s. Seduce is best known for their appearance in Penelope Spheeris’ cult film “The Decline and Fall of Western Civilization Part II”, where they were the only band not…

2020 has been one hell of a year so far.  But if you’re looking for something positive to help get through the madness, Armored Saint’s latest album “Punching The Sky” is exactly what the doctor ordered. We talk with Armored…

Pretty Maids vocalist Ronnie Atkins has announced the following update about his current battle with cancer: As promised a week ago here’s a little update on my current health situation. I’m not gonna go into details, but just state that…

This is the highest quality Official promo video for Van Halen’s 1980 song, “Loss Of Control”. The video was aired only outside of the U.S., so it is somewhat rare. Mayday! I checked it out. I think you ought…

Multiple outlets are reporting the sad news of Edward Van Halen’s death.  It appears that Eddie’s battle with cancer had taken a turn for the worse approximately 72 hours ago with cancer spreading to other organs.  His death has been…

As the Earth of 2020 continues to revolve in a puzzling singularity, three of the world’s most powerful men have harnessed their collective capabilities for nuclear and musical power into a quest for world peace. On October 30th, this…

Former Judas Priest guitarist K.K. Downing has started his own band called KK’s Priest.  The band featuring Downing on guitars, AJ Mills on guitar, Tony Newton On bass, Les Binks on drums, and former Judas Priest vocalist Tim “Ripper” Owens…

While KISS still has some dates to resume on their “End Of The Road” Tour, it appears that the end of KISS is near. Or is it? Paul Stanley and KISS manager have both hinted at the possibility of “KISS”…

Former KISS guitarist, Vinnie Vincent Just Released The Following Announcement: OFFICIAL ANNOUNCEMENT VINNIE VINCENT FANS, On Oct 17, 18, 2020 VINNIE VINCENT – LET FREEDOM ROCK BASH (LFRB) will take place at SIR NASHVILLE. I am rescheduling the VINNIE VINCENT…

Frankie Banali was the longtime drummer with the multi-platinum heavy metal band Quiet Riot. Metal Health reached the #1 spot on the Billboard 200 charts.  Banali also played drums in the band W.A.S.P. as well as performed as a touring…

The 1980s saw heavy metal go mainstream and reach a large audience worldwide. The genre was split into sub-genres like Glam Metal, Thrash Metal, Speed Metal, NWOBHM, Traditional Metal, and more. Regardless of which sub-genre you preferred, there was no…

The 1980s saw heavy metal go mainstream and reach a large audience worldwide. The genre was split into sub-genres like Glam Metal, Thrash Metal, Speed Metal, NWOBHM, Traditional Metal, and more. Regardless of which sub-genre you preferred, there was no…

The 1980s saw heavy metal go mainstream and reach a large audience worldwide. The genre was split into sub-genres like Glam Metal, Thrash Metal, Speed Metal, NWOBHM, Traditional Metal, and more. Regardless of which sub-genre you preferred, there was no…

Dokken broke out with their debut album “Breaking The Chains” in 1981. The band consisted of what would be considered the classic lineup of Don Dokken on vocals, George Lynch on guitar, “Wild” Mick Brown on drums, and with the…

The Vinnie Vincent Invasion hit the scene with their debut album in 1986. After scoring a tour with Iron Maiden the band continued to build a fanbase before releasing the album “All Systems Go” in 1988.  But, alas this would…

Okay, let’s talk about this for a minute.  I seriously can’t be the only guy that thought at least one of the band members was a girl when this album first came out.  Back in August of 1986, Poison released…

Anytime you write an article like this, you’re going to get some salty comments about your opinion. And that’s okay. I’d expect nothing less.  However, my opinion remains the same. And my opinion is that Five Finger Death Punch are…

Recently, I sat down with Don Dokken to discuss his new album, appropriately named The Lost Songs: 1978-1981.  I’ve been a fan of Dokken for years and I was interested to talk with Don, not only about the new album,…

One of XS ROCK’s most popular articles has been our article on 25 Great Hard Rock Albums Of The ’80s That You Might Have Missed. So popular in fact, that we now present the second round of “Great Hard Rock…

Marcie Free, lead vocalist for Unruly Child, Signal and former lead singer for King Kobra as Mark Free, has posted the following on her Facebook page with the accompanying video: Marcie’s Universe I should preface this by saying please forgive…

Recently, we published the article “10 Bands That Helped Form The Gothic Rock Movement” which you can read here.  Now, we’re going to start to dig in a little deeper and take a look at some more bands that started,…

Vinnie has just added new items for sale in his online shop. So, for $9,500 you can own the new Vinnie Vincent Autographed Merchandise Pack. Here’s what’s included: EACH ITEM AUTOGRAPHED ITEMS CANNOT BE PURCHASED SEPARATELY. SUPPLIES LIMITED 1. Vinnie…

If you’re a fan of Gothic Rock and you haven’t heard all of these bands before, by all means, check them out.  These bands along with numerous others helped create a new sub-genre of rock music that still thrills fans…

Artist: Def Leppard Album: The Early Years Box Set 79-81′ Box Set Genre: Hard Rock / Melodic Metal Label: Ume/Virgin Release Date: March 20, 2020 Reviewed by: Bobby Caughron Review: If you were to add Pyromania to this box set,…

Artist: Dio Album: The Studio Collection 1996-2004 Genre: Metal Label: BMG/Niji Release Date: March 20, 2020 Reviewed by: Bobby Caughron Review: The late great Ronnie James Dio is now a legendary figure in the Heavy Metal genre.  His untimely death…

Inside the “Nikki Sixx Experience” “I had been asked 1000’s of times to sell the basses I play onstage, but it took a long time to do it in such a way that the collector would be getting more than…

Known primarily for their biggest hit single “Turn Up The Radio”, Autograph released three major albums for RCA Records including “Sign In Please”, “That’s The Stuff” and “Loud and Clear”. The original lineup of Autograph got together in 1983.…

Don is best known as a co-host of VH1 Classic’s hit heavy metal talk show series, That Metal Show, where legends of rock hang out to discuss their past and current projects in front of a live studio audience. He…

Comedian/actor/ writer Brian Posehn, who has appeared in several films including Rob Zombie’s “The Devil’s Rejects,” starred in Comedy Central’s “The Sarah Silverman Program,” had a recurring role on the Emmy-winning TV series “The Big Bang Theory,” has written 45-issues…

Doro discusses her new U.S. tour dates as well as a surprise song collaboration that she’s currently doing with another well-known metal singer. Doro is called the Metal Queen and she rightfully deserves the title and the crown. She is…

King Kobra was started by drummer Carmine Appice after he finished work touring with Ozzy Osbourne for the “Bark At The Moon” tour.  The band was rounded out by mostly unknown musicians at the time consisting of Mark Free (Lead…

Formed in 1982 by Tom Keifer and Eric Brittingham, Cinderella was one of the biggest bands of the ’80s rock and metal era.  Following several lineup changes, the band solidified their members with Jeff Labar and Fred Coury.    The band’s…

Artist: Dirty Shirley Album: Dirty Shirley Genre: Melodic Metal \ Hard Rock Label: Frontiers Music Srl. Release Date: January 24, 2020 Reviewed by: Bobby Caughron Review: Okay, so I hate the album cover and the name of the band….but believe…

Reb Beach is a true journeyman of rock n’ roll music.  You may know him as the guitarist from Winger, Whitesnake or from stints with Alice Cooper, Night Ranger, and Dokken. His skills and professionalism are highly sought after in…

Just a few hours before their show, I sat down with Frankie Nardiello, A.K.A. Groovie Mann, vocalist for My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult. It was almost 30 years since I had last seen the band perform. I caught…

Often, I’m asked what it’s like backstage when I get to interview the artists. Many times the artists arrive at the venue with a very limited amount of time to get the equipment set up, do soundchecks and take the…

I joined Wednesday 13 on his tour bus in Ybor City, Tampa Florida for a discussion that including the new album Necrophaze, his take on the music business, touring with Static-X, his musical influences and what the future holds for…

I recently caught up with Virus from the band Dope on their current tour with Static-X.  I’ve been a longtime fan of the band and Virus’ guitar work is some incredible stuff. If you’ve never seen the band live, definitely…

The XS ROCK Best Metal Album Of 2019 is “Humanicide” by Death Angel.  An outstanding metal album that has to be heard to be believed and appreciated properly. Recently, I had the opportunity to sit down with Death Angel guitarist…

  You know what’s wrong with rock music? it’s not reckless and it’s not dangerous anymore. Josh Todd – Buckcherry Lead Singer This is the best lineup of Buckcherry that we’ve ever had. On longevity in the rock music business:…

RAVEN are that rare thing in music,  true originals – cut these guys with a razor and they will BLEED true heavy metal – a more intense live band does not exist on this planet! Hailing from Newcastle Upon Tyne…

Def Leppard is arguably one of the most successful bands to emerge from the 80’s hard rock and heavy metal scene.  The band found success early on, hitting the scene with their debut full-length album “On Through The Night” in…

As one of the founding members of the iconic EBM band Nitzer Ebb, Bon Harris is practically a legend to fans of the genre.  Nitzer Ebb has a combined output of fourteen albums and EP’s since 1983.  If you ask…

Artist: Death Angel Album: Humanicide Genre: Metal Label: Nuclear Blast Records Release Date: May 31, 2019 Reviewed by: Bobby Caughron   Review: If the new Death Angel album Humanicide was your opponent in a boxing match, you’d be pummelled into…

You wanted the best….you got the best! Now here are some of their worst albums These 10 artists are some of hard rocks’ most famous bands.  Most have long careers with certified Gold and Platinum albums.  But even these artists…

Artist: Whitesnake Album: Flesh & Blood Genre: Hard Rock / Classic Metal Label: Frontiers Music Srl. Release Date: May 10, 2019 Review By: Bobby Caughron   Review: It seems like it’s been an incredibly long wait for an album of new material from…

Marc Ferrari. You probably know him from his work in the band Keel as well as his own bands Cold Sweat and Medicine Wheel.  But, what you probably didn’t know, is you’ve most likely heard his work in numerous movie…

David Ellefson, the legendary bassist for Megadeth, is gearing up for some special tour dates with his all-star group Metal Allegiance.  Metal Allegiance’s core members are David Ellefson (Megadeth), Alex Skolnick (Testament), Mike Portnoy (Ex-Dream Theater) and Mark Menghi.  Guest…

On March 22nd, Netflix premiered “The Dirt”, the biopic about the infamous and sordid details of lives of Motley Crue.  Having read the book, I was curious how they were going to fit everything into a two hour movie.  And…

XS ROCK: So I’ve had a chance to listen to the new album, The Devil You Know and it’s fantastic. It sounds just like what I remember from listening to the first two LA Guns albums years ago. It’s kind…

When your resume’ includes playing in both legendary rock bands, Dio and Whitesnake, you know you’re doing something right.  That’s definitely the case with Doug Aldrich. With a long history of playing and creating incredible songs with bands like Lion,…

When Dave King joined Fastway he was relatively unknown at the time. Fastway was put together by Motorhead guitarist “Fast” Eddie Clarke and UFO bass player Pete Way.  The name Fastway was a combination of the “Fast” from Eddie Clarke…

01. Stryper-Stryper has to be at the top of this list. Not because I think they’re the best, but because their contribution to Christian metal is the equivalent of Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, and Judas Priest in the non-christian metal…

I recently had the opportunity to sit down and talk with legendary drummer Ken Mary.  Over the years, Ken has played with some of the best bands around, including Alice Cooper, Accept, House Of Lords, Chastain, Fifth Angel and most…

Recently, I had the chance to sit down backstage and talk with Monte Pittman. Monte’s out on the road with Sebastian Bach and supporting not one, but two great new albums that were recently released on Metal Blade Records. If…

Review: Extra! Extra! Read all about it….The latest news headlines should read Stephen Pearcy releases great new Ratt album, on his own!  Why? Because the material on Pearcy’s latest release “View To A Thrill” sounds so much like Ratt, that…

From the late 80’s into the early 90’s Winger built momentum and became an overnight sensation, in part thanks to heavy rotation of their videos on MTV, which at that time, actually showed music videos. Winger’s debut album went platinum…

Ministry guitarist Sin Quirin has just released a new EP by his side project “3 Headed Snake”. If you haven’t had a chance to hear it yet, go check it out! It’s killer classic metal in the vein of Judas…

During the 80’s glam and melodic metal ruled the airwaves. For all of the bands that made it big, there were plenty of other talented bands that got lost in the shuffle. Many of them suffered from lack of promotion…

During the 80’s hard rock ruled the airwaves. Quiet Riot’s Metal Health became the first #1 metal album of all time. Soon after the scene exploded with bands like Motley Crue, Guns N’ Roses, Dokken, Ratt, Warrant, Poison, and many…

Recently, I had the chance to catch up with Patrick Stone, lead vocalist for Budderside. I spoke with him just before he was going on stage to perform as the opener for L.A. Guns on their latest tour. He invited me me…

Artist: Budderside Album: Budderside Genre: Metal Label: Motorhead Music Release Date: September 2017 Reviewed by: Bobby Caughron Review: Budderside’s self-titled release is an incredible album filled with diversity of both sounds and style that still manages to create a cohesive,…

Geoff Tate seems to be sort of an enigmatic person for a lot of people. Always a bit mysterious and probably often misunderstood. Prior to meeting Geoff for the first time, I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect. I have…

Michael Sweet (Stryper) and George Lynch (Dokken, Lynch Mob)  have reunited once again to create Unified, the second album by Sweet & Lynch. I had the chance to sit down and talk with Michael Sweet about the new album, working…

Carmine Appice is a legend in the world of rock drummers. Over the years he has played with a virtual who’s who list of artists including Ozzy Osbourne, Rod Stewart, King Kobra, Blue Murder, Vanilla Fudge, Cactus, Pink Floyd, Michael…

Artist: L.A. Guns Album: The Missing Peace Genre: Hard Rock Label: Frontiers Music srl. Release Date: October 13, 2017 Review by: Bobby Caughron Review: So now that hell has finally frozen over and Tracii Guns and Phil Lewis have officially…

Today I sat down with Chris Jericho. Pro wrestler, rock singer, writer, podcaster and the list goes on and on. Chris is a multi-talented guy and was great to interview. We talked about his latest album, Judas by his band…

Stryper have posted the following regarding Tim Gaines termination from the band: A MESSAGE FROM STRYPER Dear fans and friends,We wish Timothy Gaines nothing but the best, and we will always remember the history and the good times that we…

Here’s the latest news direct from Tim Gaines about his dismissal from the Christian metal band Stryper: Howdy folks, Here is a KNAC interview that I gave with Faithsedge vocalist Giancarlo Floridia, earlier this week. This is the “official” unofficial…

The Most Successful Bands To Change Singers While many bands have tried, only a few have been really successful with switching lead singers after they become famous. Let’s take a look of some of the best lead singer changes first….…

XS ROCK: So, Quiet Riot now has James Durbin as lead vocalist. I’ve had a chance to listen to Road Rage and I think it’s going to surprise a lot of people. I was surprised that he was able to…

Recently, I received an advanced release for Josh Todd & The Conflict’s debut album, “Year Of The Tiger”. Most of you probably know Josh and guitarist Stevie D from the band Buckcherry. Buckcherry is still alive and well, but I’ve…

XS ROCK: Hey Robert! It’s a pleasure to talk with you. I’ve been a fan for many years. I want to talk about the new Warrant album in a moment, but first, let’s go back to the beginning for a…

     Without a doubt, one of the best metal bands to hit the scene in the last ten years has to be Kobra and the Lotus. If you’ve never heard them, stop reading this now and go to iTunes,…

    In my opinion, one of the best metal bands to come out after the year 2000 had to be Sister Sin. Each album seem to be better than the one before it as the band continued to release…

Recently, I reviewed the latest album by Art of Anarchy called “The Madness”. Which you can read here.  Needless to say I was blown away by it. When I got the chance to interview guitarist Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal, I was thrilled.…

Today I had the privilege to sit down and talk with Alex Grossi. Most of you probably know Alex as the guitarist in Quiet Riot. But Alex is quite the journeyman of rock n’ roll and always seems to have a…