Frazer Harrison/Brad Barket, Getty Images What’s better than watching Poison’s Bret Michaels and Twisted Sister’s Dee Snider going at it in their respective seasons of NBC’s ‘Celebrity Apprentice’? How about Bret Michaels taking on Dee Snider head-to-headbanging-head in the new ‘All-Star Celebrity Apprentice’ set to kick off in March of 2013. ‘All-Star Celebrity Apprentice’ is bringing back 13 of the shows most notorious and successful celebrities to duke it out for the all-star crown and tons of cash for their associated charities. Returning rocker Bret Michaels was the victor of his season back in 2010 even battling through several life-threatening illnesses to win the show. He’ll also serve as the only returning celebrity who has walked away as a champion from the past seasons. Michaels recently expressed his enthusiasm about the opportunity to compete again in a new interview. “Last time I was really sick, and this time I’m ready to come back, being a lifelong diabetic,” Michaels told the Today Show . “This year is going to be insane; the competition is going to be insane.” Twisted Sister frontman Dee Snider didn’t win his season but was a formidable competitor, even keeping it very rock ‘n’ roll and breaking a finger during the competition. Other celebs on the roster include Gary Busey, Lisa Rinna, Lil Jon, Dennis Rodman, Stephen Baldwin, Trace Atkins, Marilu Henner, Penn Gillette, Claudia Jordan and Brande Roderick. The winner will score $250,000 for the charity of their choice. [button href=”http://loudwire.com/bret-michaels-dedicates-music-room-at-arizona-hospital-that-saved-his-life/” title=”Bret Michaels Dedicates Music Room at Arizona Hospital” align=”center”]
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
Mark Metcalfe, Getty Images Illegal downloading has singlehandedly been the hottest topic within the music industry throughout the 2000s, but how much does it affect the bands? The question has been asked an endless amount of times, and the answer is different for every band both financially and personally. In response to a recent fan question on the subject, Dillinger Escape Plan vocalist Greg Puciato gave a passionate and somewhat irritable response. The anonymous fan wrote to Puciato, “Hey dude, just wondering about where the music as a physical product sits with you guys now. To exchange money, what’s best for you as an artist and me as a fan? Should I buy your album on iTunes? Download it for free and buy a t-shirt to make up for it? How does it all work these days?! Note: I bought your albums.” The Dillinger Escape Plan vocalist replied in detail: Hey I took this pair of shoes for free but it’s cool ‘cause I bought a coat right? Do whatever you want….but the root is the music. THAT’s the most important…not a shirt. They are separate. We’re not forcing anyone to buy our music or our shirts. If you want one, that’s separate from the other. Nobody’s doing us a favor by buying our shirt after they took our album. We’re not artists pandering on the side of the street hoping for someone’s “charity”. This is what we spend our LIVES doing, we spend MONTHS recording and up to a year writing. Ethically, taking it for free is always wrong….even if you’re massive…but when you’re not a household Walmart name as a band…it hurts particularly more because every album is a greater sized fraction of the total. If people want “alternative” art, or smaller scenes, genres, or bands to be able to exist at a professional level of quality, they should treat them professionally and intellectual property with the same respect as tangible property. As a listener it just doesn’t even make sense anymore to download music for free if digital is the way you wanna go. It’s way faster and more convenient to get it from Itunes or as a direct download from the artist, the prices are way lower than CD’s were in the past and you don’t have to pay shipping or drive to go and get it. If you don’t care about “owning” the MP3’s, then use Spotify or something. There’s just really no excuse for bankrupting a scene or band you’re into anymore. If people care about the art that they like existing, then this attitude is important to adopt across the board. [button href=”http://loudwire.com/the-dillinger-escape-plan-when-good-dogs-do-bad-things-top-21st-century-metal-songs” title=”The Dillinger Escape Plan: Top 21st Century Metal Songs” align=”center”]
Mary Ouellette, shewillshootyou.com Here’s a look at the top stories of the day on Loudwire and around the Web: Deftones are currently on tour as their ailing bassist Chi Cheng continues to recover from his 2008 car accident. As a show of respect for Chi, Deftones invited the bassist’s son Gabe to play ‘Root’ with them live. [ Loudwire ] Kid Rock teamed up with actor Sean Penn to make a hilarious parody of the duo’s diametrically opposed political views. Watch them swap insults before opening themselves up to each other’s ideals here. [ Loudwire ] Hardcore veterans Hatebreed have announced that they their next album will be released in January 2013 via both Razor & Tie and Nuclear Blast Records. [ Loudwire ] Tom Petty to auction Jaguar convertible for ‘Doctors Without Borders’ Organization. [ Ultimate Classic Rock ] Check out the new music video for ‘Wrong’ by punk band OFF! The band is fronted by former Black Flag and Circle Jerks vocalist Keith Morris. [ Diffuser.fm ] Metallica offer free download of ‘Orion Music + More’ Soundcheck. [ Ultimate Metallica ] 3 Doors Down to stage 9th annual ‘Better Life Foundation’ concert in November. [ Rock Music Report ]
Mary Ouellette, SheWillShootYou.com Oh, the guitar face – that magical place that rockers slip off to when they’ve been totally consumed by a song and the music is in total control. While some guitarists and bassists have truly signature mugs when they rip into a song, others allow the mood of the music to uniquely fashion their fantastical facial expressions — leading to the notorious guitar face. One this for sure though, when the music takes over the faces are truly unforgettable. When the guitar is removed from the equation it offers up a whole new world of possibilities from pure exhilaration to downright carnal. Check out the photos below where we zoomed in on some of our favorite metal and rock guitar faces of all time: Jason Hook of Five Finger Death Punch: Loudwire Zach Myers of Shinedown: Loudwire Dave Grohl of Foo Fighters: Dave M. Benett, Getty Images Nick Hipa of As I Lay Dying: Loudwire Mark Tremonti of Creed/Alter Bridge: Loudwire James Hetfield of Metallica: Ethan Miller, Getty Images Joey Jordison of Murderdolls: Loudwire Scott Ian of Anthrax: Kevin Winter, Getty Images Brad Walst of Three Days Grace: Loudwire Mark Hoppus of Blink-182 Loudwire [button href=”http://ultimateclassicrock.com/funniest-guitar-faces/” title=”Next: See More Funny Guitar Faces at Ultimate Classic Rock” align=”center”]
Reprise Records Ever since a November 2008 car accident, Deftones bassist Chi Cheng has mostly been in a coma. In the meantime, the band has continued to write and tour with replacement bassist Sergio Vega. Last night, though, Deftones came closer to having Chi back than they’ve been in nearly four years, as the band invited Chi’s son Gabe onstage to perform with them in San Francisco. Deftones are currently on the road with Scars on Broadway , touring to promote their upcoming album ‘Koi No Yokan,’ which is set to be released on Nov. 13. The California-based act visited the state’s capital Sacramento last night (Oct. 10) and performed ‘Root’ with Gabe Cheng manning the bass. Gabe handled himself like a pro while playing ‘Root,’ which has a distinct bass line throughout the song, continuing at times even when the guitar, drums and vocals drop out. Fans showed an incredible amount of love for Gabe as he headbanged his way through ‘Root,’ showcasing the inherent talent from his father. After many years in the hospital, Chi is currently recuperating at home in a minimally conscious state, although he has been repeatedly fighting off both pneumonia and urinary tract infections. If you’d like to donate to Chi Cheng’s recovery fund, or simply stay in touch with all of Chi’s developments, head over to oneloveforchi.com . [button href=”http://loudwire.com/deftones-change-in-the-house-of-flies-top-21st-century-hard-rock-songs/” title=”Deftones: Top 21st Century Hard Rock Songs” align=”center”] Deftones Perform ‘Root’ with Gabe Cheng
Kevin Winter, Getty Images We’re beginning to think that Smashing Pumpkins frontman Billy Corgan may have a grudge against some of his former bandmates. Additionally, and this might be a bit of a stretch, but Corgan seems to also enjoy the occasional trash-talking session. Finally, and by all means correct us if we’re wrong, it seems possible that Billy Corgan may possess some sort of internal turmoil. We developed this hypothesis after reading a recent statement from Corgan, where he threw some ill will at some former Smashing Pumpkins members, while analyzing his personal life as well. Injecting a bit of positivity into his recent interview with SFweekly.com , Corgan described his relationships with the new Pumpkins members and how it has affected him creatively. “When you actually like each other,” Corgan explains, “it translates to the music. The difference with Oceania is, I’ve found harmony again.” This seems to be a welcome change for the iconic frontman, who compared the current lineup to various ‘classic’ Pumpkins configurations. “There’s no way to properly convey what it was like to be in that band,” Corgan says about the original lineup. “And the f—ed up stuff is 10 times more f—ed up than what the world knows. I was in love with the Smashing Pumpkins,” he says, sounding wistful. “I really believed in what we were doing. But I idealized the band — which overlooked their incredibly flawed human personas, and which now bites me in the ass, as they rear their heads for lawsuits.” He then waxes philosophically on his personal life, stating, “If somebody would have told me 15 years ago that at 45 I’d be living in a big house with two dogs and two cats, with no wife and no girlfriend, I wouldn’t have believed them. My life did not turn out the way I’d planned it. Not even close … Maybe this was the way it was meant to be all along.” The Smashing Pumpkins are currently on a North American tour in support of their 2012 album, ‘Oceania.’ [button href=”http://loudwire.com/smashing-pumpkins-the-celestials-best-rock-songs-of-2012/” title=”The Smashing Pumpkins: Best Rock Songs of 2012″ align=”center”]