YouTube After a string of successful parody singles in the ’80s, the career of Weird Al Yankovic hit a lull. However, he rebounded with ‘Smells Like Nirvana’ from 1992′s ‘Off the Deep End,’ and Yankovic recently spoke with Spin about the parody of ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’ near the 20th anniversary of its release. The most difficult part of the process was tracking down Kurt Cobain to get permission to do the song. “A friend of mine was in the cast of ‘Saturday Night Live’ [Victoria Jackson],” Yankovic recalls. “I told her, if you ever get Kurt Cobain alone in a room, put him on the phone, because I’d love to talk to him — and she did! Directly! He was sweet and he got it in like five seconds and said, ‘Of course you can do a parody.’” Yankovic continues, “The famous quote from him was, ‘Is it going to be a song about food?’ because at that point that’s primarily what I was known for. And I said, ‘Well, no, it’s going to be a song about how nobody can understand your lyrics.’ And he said, “Oh, sure, of course, that’s funny.” The song was a massive success, and the video for ‘Smells Like Nirvana’ was shot on the same soundstage as ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’ and used many of the same props and even some of the same cheerleaders and audience members. It ended up being nominated for ‘Best Male Video’ at the 1992 MTV Video Music Awards. After ‘Smells Like Nirvana’ was released, Yankovic had a chance encounter with Cobain. “I only met Kurt in person once at a restaurant in Los Angeles. He just happened to be eating at an adjoining table with his friends. This was after the parody had come out, so I got to go over and thank him in person. I just profusely thanked him and said, “Anything I can do for you, let me know.” Kurt extended his hand to me and said, ‘Polish my nails.’” Watch Weird Al Yankovic – ‘Smells Like Nirvana’ Video
Adam Bettcher, Getty Images ? In a recent interview with Radio Metal , Slipknot / Stone Sour frontman Corey Taylor recalls the time he was asked to contribute vocals to Anthrax’s critically acclaimed 2011 album ‘Worship Music’ prior to the thrash metal veterans’ reunion with singer Joey Belladonna. A few years back, Anthrax vocalist Dan Nelson departed the band after ‘Worship Music’ was recorded. It was then assumed that John Bush would re-record the vocals on the album, but he ended up parting ways with the band, as well. ‘Worship Music’ ended up being re-recorded with Belladonna handling vocals and reworking some of the lyrics from the scrapped version. However, prior to the Belladonna reunion, Taylor was asked to help out, but his record label wouldn’t let him. “I didn’t record anything with Anthrax, actually,” Taylor explains. “It’s one of those things that I would have loved to do, but never had the chance to do it. When they sent me some riffs and some music they had done, I thought it would be fun, not only as a friend but as a fan too, to see where the demos could go after my involvement.” Taylor continues, “But my label forced me out of this project so I wasn’t able to do it. Then, I went to do [ Slipknot ‘s] ‘All Hope Is Gone’ and Anthrax called Joey Belladonna back. After hearing ‘Worship Music’, I really think it’s their best record. Although I didn’t record anything with them, I told them that I would love to help them in writing stuff in the future. …At first, I was really mad about it, but I let it go after a while. But it would have been interesting to see what Anthrax and I could have done, for sure.” In the same interview, Taylor talks Stone Sour ‘s upcoming album, ‘ House of Gold & Bones Part 1 ? (due Oct. 22) and its follow-up ‘Part 2′ (due in 2013). “We had a lot of fun doing this,’ remarks Taylor. “Part Two is a wonderful difference from Part One: it wasn’t just getting together and re-recording some stuff on Part One. I’m really excited about it: the songs we’ve written are above the best stuff we’ve ever made and can’t wait for people to hear it all put together.” Stone Sour recently released a snippet of the track ‘The Travelers, Pt. 1.’ Listen below. Listen to a Clip of Stone Sour’s ‘The Travelers Pt. 1′ [button href=”http://loudwire.com/anthrax-bassist-frank-bello-reflects-on-one-year-anniversary-of-worship-music/” title=”Next: Frank Bello Talks One-Year Anniversary of ‘Worship Music'” align=”center”]
Adam Bettcher / Ethan Miller (2) Getty Images Major League Baseball's regular season has ended, which means it's time for us to count down the 10 Best Songs for the MLB Playoffs. Though we're fairly confident the teams participating in the postseason know what they're doing, they could definitely find some baseball wisdom in the lyrics of some top rockers. The songs on our list address themes like pressure, dealing with the spotlight, and the threat that everything you've worked for could be gone in an instant — traits that rockers and baseball players both share. So step up to the plate, take your swings, and let us know what you think of our list of the 10 Best Songs for the MLB Playoffs: ? 10 'Wake Me Up When September Ends' Green Day ? ? From: 'American Idiot' (2005) A 162-game baseball is hard to keep up with, even for the most diehard of baseball fans. Unless your team is in it to win it, the latter half of the season may find your attention waning. That being said, Green Day has the perfect song for the baseball playoffs – 'Wake Me Up When September Ends' – because even if your team has long since been eliminated, playoff baseball has the drama you've been craving all season long. Listen to 'Wake Me Up When September Ends' ? ? 9 'The Clincher' Chevelle ? ? From: 'This Type of Thinking (Could Do Us In)' (2005) The baseball season is over for most, with some teams just missing out on the playoffs. For those on the outside looking in, we give you Chevelle's 'The Clincher.' This Chevelle line tells the fate of the poor teams who missed out by a game or two: “ Could we have known, never would I have helped to nail down / With nothing to gain, here's the clincher, this should be you. ” Mighty cold thought, Chevelle, for an awfully long winter! Listen to 'The Clincher' ? ? 8 'Alive' Pearl Jam ? ? From: 'Ten' (1991) If you weren't ready for the MLB Playoffs, then Pearl Jam's siren-like guitar opening to 'Alive' should get you going. It's tough enough to make it through 162 games and being one of 10 left at a chance at winning it all. But with each playoff game, you're either closer to elimination or being the one team left standing. So if your team is still left playing, sing it with Pearl Jam: “ Hey I, oh, I'm still alive .” Listen to 'Alive' ? ? 7 'Never Too Late' Three Days Grace ? ? From: 'One-X' (2007) While the subject matter of Three Days Grace's 'Never Too Late' is somewhat darker, lyrics like, “ Now and again, we try to just stay alive / Maybe we'll turn it all around / Cause it's not too late, it's never too late ” can just as easily fit a team battling to keep their season going one more game by staging a late game rally. So turn those caps inside out or whatever your ritual may be and crank up some Three Days Grace when you're in need of runs. Listen to 'Never Too Late' ? ? 6 'Bat Country' Avenged Sevenfold ? ? From: 'City of Evil' (2005) Come on. You knew there was no way we would pass on a song called 'Bat Country' for our 10 Best Songs for the MLB Playoffs. That being said, the song itself doesn't really address baseball bats. But a slumping batter can definitely identify with the lyrics, “ My confidence is leaving me on my own / No one can save me and you know I don't want the attention. “ Listen to 'Bat Country' ? ? 5 'Hit That' The Offspring ? ? From: 'Splinter' (2003) “ The winds of fortune, don't blow the same ,” state The Offspring in their 2003 song 'Hit That.' Sounds like some pretty sage October baseball wisdom to us. Of course it would help if the teams would take their advice from the chorus of the song, which states, “ I know you wanna hit that .” Swing away guys! Listen to 'Hit That' ? ? 4 'Home Sweet Home' Motley Crue ? ? From: 'Theatre of Pain' (1985) Motley Crue easily has one of the 10 Best Songs for the MLB Playoffs. The song we chose – 'Home Sweet Home' – is aimed at one particular audience – the third base coach. You can just see that runner chugging around second as a ball hits the gap and singer Vince Neil perfectly sets the scene: “ I'm on my way. Just set me free. Home Sweet Home ” But will the coach send the runner home or hold him at third? Listen to 'Home Sweet Home' ? ? 3 'Still Swingin'' Papa Roach ? ? From: 'The Connection' (2012) Is there a band that brings the adrenaline like Papa Roach? They fire it up once again with 'Still Swingin',' a track that starts off with the lyrics, “ I'm the one stepping up / Spit the fire I'll back it up / Count me in, I'll turn it out / I'm killin' it, you're burnin' out .” And what better time is there to step up that the baseball playoffs? Just like P-Roach says, “ We've been here from the start. We are the ones still swingin' ,” and that definitely fits the teams left in contention. Listen to 'Still Swingin'' ? ? 2 'Walk' Pantera ? ? From: 'Vulgar Display of Power' (1992) They say in baseball that a walk is as good as a hit, but for Pantera that's an understatement. While a walk is one of baseball's most boring plays, the song 'Walk' is one of the most iconic metal songs laid to tape. When it comes down to it, most pitchers want nothing to do with the game's best hitters, and Phil Anselmo 's delivery of “ Re-Spect! Walk! ” is the perfect line for the slugger who gets a free pass. However, if you like your bases on balls with a little less testosterone, there's always the Foo Fighters hit by the same name. Listen to 'Walk' ? ? 1 'Man in the Box' Alice in Chains ? ? From: 'Facelift' (1991) When it comes to the No. 1 song for the MLB playoffs, you need a World Series-contending tune. And Alice in Chains' 'Man in the Box' is just that. All the action happens when there's someone in the batter's box, with the pressure lying on the hitter to produce for his team. But hey Mr. Man in the Box, don't get too close! Cause all it takes is one high hard inside pitch, and you'll be quoting the song: “ Feed my eyes / can you sew them shut? ” On that note, enjoy the MLB postseason! Listen to 'Man in the Box' ? ? What Songs Are The Best For The Baseball Playoffs? Here's your chance to step up to the plate. Make your pitch and let us know which tracks deserved to be picked off and which choices were definitely a home run. Also tell us what songs you think should be on this list that we missed in the comments section below. ?
Mark Metcalfe, Getty Images The Dillinger Escape Plan have been busy writing for their new disc, the follow-up to 2010’s ‘Option Paralysis’ and now the band is targeting a November time frame to hit the studio with producer Steve Evetts. Guitarist Ben Weinman says the overall writing process for the new disc has been very inspired by the bands of his youth, drawing on his deep-rooted punk and hardcore influences. “Billy and I have just been listening to old hardcore records blasting through my house and then going down to the dungeon and just bashing,” Weinman reports (via ThePRP.com ). As far as the lyrics go, Weinman also offered some insight into that, saying, “Greg also seems to be in a very dark place lyrically. I think it’s going to be pretty creepy. If these songs don’t put some holes in the wall, I don’t know what will.” In addition to focusing on new music, Weinman is also using his voice to encourage people to go out and vote in the upcoming election. In a new video for the ‘Why I Vote 2012 / I’m Voting For’ campaign, Weinman and Wyclef Jean join forces to tell the public why they should vote. Check it out below. Ben Weinman and Wyclef Jean on ‘Why I Vote 2012′ ?
Eleven Seven/Tenth Street Entertainment The road to the release of Papa Roach ’s new disc ‘The Connection’ (out Oct. 2) has not always been a smooth one, but that’s part of what powers the strength that it delivers. Written during a tumultuous time during lead vocalist Jacoby Shaddix’s life, the disc portrays a dark time for the band played out song by song. Kicking it off is the face-punching lead-off single ‘Still Swingin’ which is merely the prelude to the darkness that lies within. Sonically, ‘The Connection’ draws from the elements that Papa Roach have mastered with past discs, and melds them into a new approach to their own brand of rock. We recently caught up with Shaddix, who filled us in on his health status after recent vocal surgery, all facets of the new disc from the writing process to the studio and how he came out ‘Still Swingin’ on the other side at the end of it all. Now that you can sit back and appreciate the fruits of your labor, how would you reflect on the whole writing and recording process on ‘The Connection’ as compared to past discs? I would say that this one was just the f—ing hardest, most insane, most fun, exciting, crazier records we’ve ever made. Just the process of it, what we were all going through personally, making the record in Sacramento, we really made the record that we set out to make and it kind of exceeded our expectations. We got to the end and we listened to the record we were like “Oh f—, this record’s dope.” This is the record that our fans have been waiting for. I think it encompasses all of our styles over the years of our career and we kind of just brought it all back around on this record. It’s really exciting. It’s an exciting time and rock music is at an interesting place right now and I just feel like this is the right record for rock music and P-Roach. Talk a bit about the impact of having producer James Michael in the studio with you; you’ve said that he really gets you and the vision for the band. James Michael – first and foremost I love that guy like a brother. We all really connected in the studio. I was fighting for him, I was like, and “Man I want James Michael to produce the record.” The guys were like, “Let’s take meetings with a bunch of people.” And I was like, “No! James Michael is the guy!” I really wanted him, and they took my lead. We had a meeting with him and everybody just clicked. It’s funny, towards the end of the process it got to the point where I was like I would start a sentence and he would finish it. We were just in tune. It was like having a fifth band member in the room because he’s a songwriter, he’s a singer, he’s a musician, he’s a producer, he understands where we’re coming from. It’s not like other producers don’t, it just felt like we were doing the right thing with the right people at the right time. It was great working with him in the studio, he really helped us. We had concepts and ideas in our head and had these visions of what we wanted to create sonically and he really helped us see those things through from beginning to end. And also, just in the process of making the record, when we’re a little unsure of ourselves at times, he would always be like, “Guys, you are on the f—ing right path, don’t second guess yourselves right now because you are in it.” Because when you’re in the process of making music and you’ve got ten songs boiling at once, it was really cool to have that outside perspective looking at it from a helicopter’s point of view going okay, cool; it’s all good, because we get wound up. The first single ‘Still Swingin’ is quintessential Papa Roach through and through. There’s no foreplay, it just starts out with a direct punch to the face – what kind of statement did you want to make with that song? With this song, it’s like we hit a barn door with a barn door. It’s just plain and simple, and I think that’s really what we needed at this point and time for a lead single is just something that just would grab people’s attention. Especially with the riff off the top, it just bounces, it’s like “Oh sh–, something’s coming at you.” Lyrically, it’s a little more lighthearted than the rest of the record and I think it’s a great way to start, it’s like the opening title when you go to see a movie, it grabs your attention. It just felt natural for us to use that as a lead single, and in the spirit of P-Roach it’s what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. This is just the tip of the iceberg on this record, it’s a very dark record, so once you get past this song we take you down this deep dark hole and the process of making this record where when you’re in that deep dark hole there’s always that light, shining somewhere in there in the corner, it’s a great way to introduce people to this record. It will be interesting to see what people think about the ride. Speaking of dark, talk to me about the song ‘Before I Die,’ because that song speaks quite loudly and I think that anyone who’s ever felt those things is going to immediately identify with it. Where did that come from from a personal perspective? I was going through a separation with my wife during the process of making the record, fast forward to the present and we’re working it out now, but in the process of making this record we were separated. I was at the end of my rope; I was in a lot of pain. This music is where I found my sanctuary, where I could express myself and just take myself out it for a second and not feel the pain and just be creative. During the process of making this song, ‘Before I Die’ I felt like everything was taken from me and I was just left out there raw and broken, it made everything clear to me, what really mattered to me. It wasn’t the material things that I have in my life, which I’m not a materialistic person when it comes down to it, but you know at the end of the day it’s the people that I love in my life that are the most important to me and sometimes when you treat the people that you love the most the worst, that’s the wrong path. I had to take a long hard look at myself and realize how I was living my life and make those changes. Just being out there on my own and having those realizations, that’s where the song came from. On this song, in addition to many others on the new disc, you really seemed to lay it all out there lyrically putting you in a very exposed and vulnerable place. Do you feel like you pushed a personal boundary this time around with respect to your lyrics? Oh yeah, this record, a lot of it was written when I was depressed and a pretty pathetic and sad individual. It came from that place but it was also a snapshot. A lot of this record is a snapshot of me at my most vulnerable, broken, weak, point in my life but there was so much strength in it, in a weird way. When you ain’t got nothing, you’ve really got a whole lot because you start thinking about those basic simple things that you’re so grateful for in your life. So it gave me a whole new perspective on myself, on my life, and how I live it. It’s a trip because I’m on a bit of a different path now than I was seven or eight months ago. I have to ask you about a recent situation – Wye Oak’s Jenn Wanser chose Papa Roach’s ‘Scars’ as her most hated song and in return, you allegedly sent her flowers. So the first question is did that actually happen and the second is, why did you opt for that response? Yes, it’s true. I thought it would be a funny thing to do. I use to take that stuff so personally, I’d be like, “I’m not worth anything” and it would belittle me but now, it’s just funny. In reality, that song has meant so much to so many people so to watch it get torn apart as if it was some nursery rhyme bullsh–, I just thought it was kind of funny. So for me, it was just taking the high road. Ready to play some Wikipedia-True or False? Wikipedia says that the first instrument you played was clarinet in the school orchestra – true or false? That is true. I played clarinet for like nine years. I am a certified band geek. Lamb of God’s Randy Blythe is a friend of yours and you said that we could all really learn a lot from the way he’s been handling his current situation, what have you personally taken away from it? It’s pretty incredible to see people go through these dark experiences in life and learn a lot, and that’s what I got from that. It’s like you get lemons, you make lemonade, and it’s pretty cool to see someone that’s going through something like that just have such a solid perspective on life and a positive outlook. For me, that’s pretty dope. Any parting messages to your fans? If you’re a fan of the band, go buy the record — we want to show up on the charts. I think it’s very important for this band right now to make a statement because we’re on an independent label. We’re another one of those rock ‘n’ roll bands trying to keep this genre alive and so if you dig it, go support it or you can go watch f—ing Justin Bieber take the No. 1 spot. [button href=”http://loudwire.com/papa-roach-jacoby-shaddix-vocal-surgery-healing-really-well/” title=”Next: Jacoby Shaddix Updates Us on His Vocal Recovery” align=”center”]
Roger Kisby, Getty Images Yesterday (Sept. 27), we gave you a stream of the new Soundgarden single, ‘Been Away Too Long’ — and celebrated the band’s return to rocking after their extended absence. But what does Chris Cornell think of the song? In a new interview with San Francisco’s Live 105 [via Grunge Report ], Cornell delved into the writing process behind the song, saying it came to him a couple of years ago during a bout of insomnia. “I was sitting around and one night having trouble sleeping. I was thinking of new Soundgarden songs and the music in my head was some sort of uptempo kind of Soundgarden version of a punk rock song, but not ‘Been Away Too Long,’” he explained. “And that line sort of flashed across as I was just kind of listening to what I call brain radio, and I thought wow, that would be a great new Soundgarden song. Then I forgot it, completely.” After explaining that the music was recorded separately as “something else I had written,” Cornell revealed that the lyrics finally came to him during yet another restless night. “Towards the end when we were almost to mixing and we were finished with the album, I was having trouble sleeping one night and I remembered that line and thought, this would be really great for a first Soundgarden single,” he recalled. “But as I started to write the lyrics, then it became more autobiographical, and it became real.” Calling the end result “a look back at history in sort of a strange atmospheric way,” Cornell called the song’s lyrical narrative a way of saying, “We’ve been gone for 15 years and now we’re back. It’s about time, and we still have something to say about rock music that no one else is saying — and I feel confident about saying that.” [button href=”http://loudwire.com/soundgarden-new-single-been-away-too-long/” title=”Listen to Soundgarden’s ‘Been Away Too Long'” align=”center”]
Evanescence will wrap up their headlining run on the 2012 Carnival of Madness tour tonight (Sept. 2) in Buffalo, N.Y. In an interview conducted at the Atlantic City, N.J. stop earlier in the run, Amy Lee and the band talk about the influence of relationships on their writing, working together as a cohesive unit, stage clothes and even pigtails. When asked about writing largely about relationships through her lyrics, Lee