Robert Cianflone, Getty Images – Black Sabbath bassist Geezer Butler dishes on the band’s ’13′ album and their tour plans. [ Loudwire ] – Former Metallica bassist Jason Newsted goes in depth about his current self-titled band’s ‘Metal’ EP and James Hetfield ‘s influence in our new interview. [ Loudwire ] – Alice in Chains and Limp Bizkit have signed on to headline the 2013 Welcome to Rockville festival. [ Loudwire ] – Headliners Red Hot Chili Peppers lead the rock representation at the 2013 Coachella festival. [ Loudwire ] – It’s time to turn up the heat with the 15 Sexiest Rock Music Videos. [ Loudwire ] – Geoff Tate has revealed a few changes in his Queensryche lineup. [ Ultimate Classic Rock ] – Tom Petty has enjoyed an outstanding career. Check out some of his best work with Ultimate Classic Rock’s 10 Best Tom Petty Songs. [ Ultimate Classic Rock ] – Iggy and the Stooges are set tot return with a new album ‘Ready to Die.’ [ Diffuser.fm ] – You know them! You love them! And you can likely pick them out the moment they open their mouth. Check out Diffuser.fm’s list of the 10 Most Distinctive Voices in Rock. [ Diffuser.fm ]
Kevin Winter, Getty Images The world of metal seems to constantly house some strange stories. Although the real stories are often more inconceivable than the fake ones, wrestler Hulk Hogan has finally given a statement about the rumor that he was once asked by drummer Lars Ulrich to become Metallica ‘s bassist. Early last year, Hogan claimed that he was at one point a serious candidate to play bass for the iconic band. “I used to be a session musician before I was a wrestler,” Hogan states. “I played bass guitar. I was big pals with Lars Ulrich and he asked me if I wanted to play bass with Metallica in their early days but it didn’t work out.” Soon after, during an appearance on the Howard Stern Show, Ulrich claimed to have no recollection of asking Hulk to join the band. “That one, when that showed up two or three months ago, I was scratching my head over that one,” states the drummer. “I don’t know Hulk Hogan, I don’t know enough about him… I’m not a huge wrestling [fan]… I certainly have no recollection of doing anything with quote Hulk Hogan endquote.” Almost a year after Hogan’s initial statement, the wrestling legend cleared the air during an interview with Kerrang! : That has rumor has been turned and twisted and thrown in so many different directions — that I auditioned and that I lied and that I never auditioned and they weren’t interested. The truth is I played music for many years before I ever got into wrestling, and when I heard Metallica was looking for a bass player, I would have quit wrestling like that [snaps fingers] to get into Metallica. When I heard they were looking for a bass player, I got my tapes together from the old band, got a couple of tapes together that Simon Cowell produced with me — Green Jelly, and I did an old Gary Glitter song, ‘Leader Of The Gang’, with Simon, back in the day, before he got his break with all the wrestling music and became a huge monster. But I got all that stuff together to send it to Metallica and never heard a word. So they never responded to me. They either thought I was a joke or they thought it was a joke, and it wasn’t me, or I was no good, but I never heard back from them … I tried — but I never did audition for Metallica. I wish I would have. But the bass player they got was so good. My God! Case closed? Check out video of Hulk Hogan talking about Metallica in the new interview with Kerrang! in the clip below: Hulk Hogan Talks to Kerrang! [button href=”http://loudwire.com/top-wrestling-entrance-themes/” title=”Top 10 Wrestling Entrance Themes” align=”center”]
Adam Bettcher, Getty Images / Trapt Official You’ve got to be tough physically as well as mentally to play the game of football and our next Loudwire Rock Bowl first round matchup pits songs from two bands that embrace that mindset. Disturbed ‘s ‘Indestructible’ squares off against Trapt ‘s ‘Headstrong.’ Disturbed’s ‘Indestructible’ is definitely a motivational track, with David Draiman singing about having to “carry the colors again” in honor of an oath he’s sworn to defend. Meanwhile, the song discusses an inner strength that has emerged, thus making them “an indestructible master of war.” This song about going to battle embraces the team spirit and self-motivation as well as just about any track in our competition. Trapt, meanwhile, are also up to fighting the good fight with their anthem ‘Headstrong.’ As the track says, “ Back off, I’ll take you on / Headstrong, to take on anyone .” This song about mental toughness and not stepping down from a fight is perfect for the mindset of an NFL player. It’s also a solid choice to square off against Disturbed in round one of the 2013 Loudwire Rock Bowl. So which track will be advancing? That’s for you to decide. Listen to both Disturbed and Trapt below and then vote in the poll for which song should advance as a football anthem. To let your voice be heard in the next 2013 Loudwire Rock Bowl matchup, just click on the red button at the bottom of this post. You can vote up to once per hour in Round 1 until the deadline Sunday night (Jan. 27) at 11:59PM ET. Hear Disturbed’s ‘Indestructible’ Hear Trapt’s ‘Headstrong’ Sorry, you need to have javascript running to see this poll. [button href=”http://loudwire.com/avenged-sevenfold-vs-shinedown-2013-loudwire-rock-bowl-round-1/” title=”Next Rock Bowl Matchup: Avenged Sevenfold vs. Shinedown” align=”center”]
Jason Merritt (2) / Ethan Miller, Getty Images We know the talented lineup of musicians going into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as part of the 2013 induction class, and now we have details on a number of special guests that will honor the inductees at the Rock Hall ceremony. Prog-rock veterans Rush will be inducted by Foo Fighters ‘ Dave Grohl and Taylor Hawkins during the April 18 ceremony. Grohl, in particular, has spoken publicly in the past about his love for Rush and how crucial they were to his teenage years. He told Rolling Stone , “It was, like, woah — drums! You could be, like, the leader, then take over the world.” But as much as he loved Rush, he also says he had to cover his fandom due to their “questionable” cover art. He recalled, “On the back [of the album], they’re all in white silk, one dude is in a kimono, and the other has these gnarly Cameron Diaz disco pants where the seam is perfectly [lined] in the middle of both of his balls. I didn’t tell anybody that I liked this band because of that dude’s f—in’ nuts! I was afraid my friends would beat me up.” In addition to Grohl and Hawkins, there have been several more confirmed guests as John Mayer and Gary Clark Jr. will perform in honor of blues legend Albert King. Mayer will provide the induction speech. Don Henley has been chosen to induct singer-songwriter Randy Newman. Christina Aguilera and Jennifer Hudson will perform in honor of late disco queen Donna Summer, while Heart and Public Enemy’s special guests will be named at a later date. The ceremony takes place at Los Angeles’ Nokia Theatre L.A. Live on April 18. Tickets will be available for the general public via Ticketmaster beginning Feb. 1. A highlights package from the ceremony will air on HBO on May 18. [button href=”http://loudwire.com/anthrax-cover-rush-anthem/” title=”Next: Anthrax Cover Rush’s ‘Anthem'” align=”center”]
Ethan Miller, Getty Images The year 2013 is shaping up to be a mammoth one for rock and metal concerts. Already, there is an incredible list of talented bands set to deliver blistering sets of hard-rocking music this year. To prepare you for the pits, we’ve put together comprehensive lists of 2013 Must-See Rock + Metal Concerts. Rock concerts act as the brightest highlights of any year for any music fan. We’ll be attending our fair share of shows throughout 2013, and as every one of these must-see tours are announced, we will add them to our rock and metal lists to keep you up-to-date with the latest and greatest happenings in concert news. Check out all of these upcoming rock and metal concerts by clicking the buttons below. See you in the pit! [button href=”http://loudwire.com/alice-in-chains-2013-must-see-rock-concerts/” title=”View the Must-See Rock Concerts of 2013″ align=”center”] ? [button href=”http://loudwire.com/new-england-metal-hardcore-festival-2013-must-see-metal-concerts/” title=”View the Must-See Metal Concerts of 2013″ align=”center”]
Jeff Gross, Getty Images – Ozzy Osbourne suffered injuries in a freak fire at his home. Details here: [ Loudwire ] – Founding Lacuna Coil member and Cayne guitarist Claudio Leo has died. [ Loudwire ] – Guitarist Brian ‘Head’ Welch is streaming Love and Death ‘s new album ahead of its release + more Euro dates featuring Head reuniting with his former band Korn have been announced. [ Loudwire ] – David Draiman discusses Disturbed ‘s lengthy hiatus and his latest production project is revealed. [ Loudwire ] – Watch the hard-hitting new video ‘Soldierhead’ from Newsted right here. [ Loudwire ] – The Black Keys and the Dave Matthews Band will be among the top acts playing the 2013 New Orleans Jazz Festival. [ Diffuser.fm ] – Radiohead ‘s Thom Yorke has warned British Prime Minister David Cameron not to use any of his songs for future election campaigns. [ Diffuser.fm ] – Two Detroit icons — Kid Rock and Bob Seger — will team up for a pair of upcoming dates. [ Ultimate Classic Rock ] – Need more cowbell? Check out Ultimate Classic Rock’s Top 10 Cowbell Songs list. [ Ultimate Classic Rock ]
Donald Bowers, Getty Images Vinnie Paul of Pantera and Hellyeah has captured the Drummer of the Year award in the 2012 Loudwire Music Awards. In what has been a storied career, 2012 proved to be one of Vinnie Paul’s landmark years for various reasons. The legendary stickman’s drumming appears on the Pantera track ‘Piss,’ which was released as a never-before-heard track on the 20th anniversary edition of ‘Vulgar Display of Power.’ The long lost tune won Metal Song of the Year in the 2012 Loudwire Music Awards. But it doesn’t stop there: Vinnie Paul delivered some crushing beats on ‘Band of Brothers,’ the latest album from his band Hellyeah. In the end, he dominated the competition with 37 percent of the vote for 2012 Drummer of the Year. Raise your shots of jack and get ‘Drink Drank Drunk’ in honor of Vinnie Paul. Congrats Vinnie! Keep the good stuff comin’. See the full voting results below and click the red button to see the next winner: [button href=”http://loudwire.com/deuce-new-artist-of-the-year-2012-loudwire-music-awards/” title=”Next Winner: New Artist of the Year” align=”center”] Voting Results: Sorry, you need to have javascript running to see this poll.