Mary Oullette, SheWillShootYou.com / Kevin Winter, Getty Images Mark Tremonti raised a few eyebrows in the Van Halen camp when he recently commented that he’d like to make Wolfgang Van Halen ‘s addition to his self-titled band a permanent thing. But the guitarist says that VH fans shouldn’t worry about this signaling Wolfgang’s exit, as he plans to work around the Van Halen commitments. Tremonti tells Metal Express Radio (excerpted by Van Halen News Desk ), “We’re talking about doing this arrangement for good. Van Halen will always be his priority, whenever they are touring. When he’s not touring, he’ll be with us. He will write and play on the records and, if he is on tour with Van Halen, we will find somebody that he is comfortable with filling his shoes.” Tremonti recently revealed that the younger Van Halen was part of their initial thought process for their current release, but he was otherwise occupied at the time when they started recording their record. With Van Halen off the road and with Tremonti’s Creed and Alter Bridge bassist Brian Marshall bowing out just prior to their tour, Wolfgang became a last-minute addition to the band’s lineup. The group just finished their European tour , with no further dates on the itinerary at present. Meanwhile, Van Halen remain off the road as well while guitarist Eddie Van Halen recovers from the surgery he had to deal with diverticulitis earlier this year. [button href=”http://loudwire.com/mark-tremonti-video-new-single-so-youre-afraid/” title=”Next: Watch Tremonti’s ‘So You’re Afraid’ Video ” align=”center”]
Razor & Tie Shadows Fall drummer Jason Bittner will be unable to perform at the 2012 PASIC (Percussive Arts Society International Convention) due to a diagnosis of acute pancreatitis. The band is currently on a short break from their headlining tour with God Forbid, Thy Will Be Done and Trumpet the Harlot, but Bittner assures fans that he will return to the road. PASIC is the largest percussion event in the world, which consists of over 120 concerts, clinics, panels, presentations and much more. Bittner was scheduled to perform at the Austin, Texas event, but the drummer announced that he’s under doctors orders to rest instead of making the trip. Bittner writes : “Due to my recent health issues, I am under doctors orders to cancel my trip to Austin Texas this week to perform at PASIC 2012. For over a week, what I thought was a stomach bug (and i was still on tour when all of this started), I came home last week and went to the doctors, and it was written off as just that, a bug. This past Saturday the pain came back and lingered into Sunday which forced me into the emergency room yesterday. After a day in the hospital I was poked, prodded, tested and it turns out I have acute Pancreatitis, which I’m told can be very serious if left untreated. They’re not sure what brought it on (my Dr thinks it was viral), but I have been told by my doctors to not leave this week because I need to be sent for more tests/mri, etc to make 100% sure I’ll be road ready for the second leg of the SF tour which starts Nov. 8th — I should be fine, but needless to say I’m very disappointed I will not be able to come perform in Austin this week! Maybe Pasic 2013??” Shadows Fall will return to the road with Bittner once again in Norfolk, Va. on Nov. 8. Click here for the rest of the tour dates. [button href=”http://loudwire.com/shadows-fall-thoughts-without-words-top-21st-century-metal-songs/” title=”Next: Shadows Fall – Top 21st Century Metal Songs” align=”center”] ?
Liz Ramanand, Loudwire Behemoth frontman and leukemia survivor Adam ‘Nergal’ Darski ran into some legal troubles after tearing up a Bible onstage during a Sept. 2007 performance in Gdynia, Poland. He did so while calling the Catholic church “the most murderous cult on the planet.” Nergal was cleared of any criminal charges by Polish judge Krzysztof Wieckowski in 2011, but the Supreme Court of Poland has now ruled that the vocalist has in fact committed a crime in the Bible-tearing incident. This new development opens up the possibility of the Behemoth frontman serving up to two years in prison. Poland’s penal code states, “Whoever offends religious feeling of other people by publicly insulting an object of religious cult or a place for public holding of religious ceremonies, is subject to a fine, restriction of liberty or loss of liberty for up to two years.” This law is a direct opponent to the concept of Freedom of Speech, and may claim two years of Nergal’s life behind bars. “[The decision] is negative and restricts the freedom of speech,” said Nergal’s attorney Jacek Potulski to Reuters (via Blabbermouth ). “The court decided that this is allowed in a democratic system. We are still arguing that we were dealing with art, which allows more critical and radical statements.” The case will now be taken to a smaller court for another trial. Behemoth had been tearing up the Bible onstage for two years before the Poland incident, with no ramifications until Sept. 2007. “Behemoth fans know what Behemoth is about, know what the lyrics are about, and know at least a little of the philosophy behind the band,” bassist Tomasz ‘Orion’ Wróblewski told Decibel Magazine in 2009. “So, it’s kind of surprising that there are people coming to the shows and feeling offended with what we do onstage. If such a person comes to a show, he comes with the purpose of being offended, I guess, and it shouldn’t be like that. We’re not offending any particular person. We’re just offending the religion that we’ve been raised in.” Stay tuned for more news on Behemoth’s Adam ‘Nergal’ Darski as further legal proceedings occur. Watch Footage of Nergal’s 2007 Bible-Tearing Incident in Poland
Hannah Johnston, Getty Images Serj Tankian got a chance to see his symphonic vision come to fruition Sunday (Oct. 28) when he joined the Das Karussell Orchestra in Austria to perform his ‘Orca’ classical symphony. Tankian launched a Kickstarter campaign to fund the event and the recording of a filmed show for a 2013 release. The end result was a rousing success, as Tankian and the orchestra were loudly cheered following the performance. The singer stated before the show, “‘Orca’ is the first four-act symphony that I have composed, a mix of early-20th-century compositional styles combined with the powerful range of film scoring. I decided to name my symphony ‘Orca’ because orcas ‘appear to have no parallel outside humans’ in terms of their cultural faculties. An orca is really a dolphin with much darker tendencies. I see this dichotomy as a great metaphor for humanity.” Tankian initially sought a $25,000 goal to fund the entire project, and added that any additional funds would be used to cover the expenses of mixing, mastering, and promotion. Video footage from the show can be seen below. Watch Serj Tankian + the Das Karussell Orchestra Perform ‘Orca — Act 1′ Watch Serj Tankian + the Das Karussell Orchestra Perform ‘Sky Is Over’ [button href=”http://loudwire.com/system-of-a-down-serj-tankian-offers-his-take-on-the-2012-u-s-presidential-election/” title=”Next: Serj Tankian Offers His Take on the Election” align=”center”]
Facebook: Napalm Death Earache Records founder Digby Pearson has gained the respect of many metalheads by signing some of extreme metal’s most legendary bands, such as Carcass, Morbid Angel, At the Gates, Deicide and of course, Napalm Death . Although Napalm Death and Earache Records shared a successful business partnership at one point, Digby recently took some jabs at Napalm vocalist Mark ‘Barney’ Greenway . Reacting to some harsh words thrown at him, we recently got to experience Greenway’s retort during an exclusive interview. The initial verbal assault began on the ‘ Ask Earache ‘ blog when a fan asked Digby about the best and worst personalities he had worked with over the years. After singing the praises of Tomas Lindberg (At the Gates, Disfear) and Troy Azagthoth (Morbid Angel) among others, Digby addressed the ‘worst personalities’ side of the question: I’ve never had a pleasant time dealing with Napalm Death’s Mark “Barney” Greenway. We supported him and his band for over a decade, investing eye-wateringly huge sums of money into his career. It’s quite possible he was never even aware of this fact, as his bumbling manager Mark Walmesley dealt with everything for him — including all his financial affairs I suspect — on a daily basis. The basic problem stems from the fact Barney was not involved with the explosive first 2 albums by Napalm Death so he completely missed out on the feel-good factor which came from a brand new band and label both blasting-off from obscurity. He had no reason for any goodwill towards me or Earache because he walked into an already successful band. Likewise I never actively chose to sign the dude, he was the band’s roadie, he was the Benediction singer, suddenly drafted into the role of singer of a successful band, and was obligated to sign into an existing contract, not one of his choosing. Barney did willingly ink deals with Earache twice more in the 90s though. The band’s slow gradual loss of fanbase during their groove-grind phase could have proved fatal, but Earache worked tirelessly behind the scenes to prevent Napalm Death splitting, quiting or becoming a totally spent force — for very little gratitude I might add. Even Barney himself jumped ship from Napalm to join ENT at one point. It was not a happy camp during those latter Earache years. His enmity to Earache is legendary and grudges are held, for the most trivial of reasons, for an inordinate length of time. On Oct. 28, we had the opportunity to speak with Greenway before Napalm Death’s Connecticut co-headlining show with Municipal Waste. After bringing up the topic of Digby’s harsh words, Greenway offered an in-depth response about Digby, which was less than sterling. Greenway says that he in fact never had a personal manager, that Digby never pumped an unusually large amount of money into Napalm Death and that the Earache Records founder has not come through with contractual obligations in the past. See Mark ‘Barney’ Greenway’s full response in our exclusive video below and stay tuned for our full interview with the booming Napalm Death vocalist. Napalm Death’s Mark ‘Barney’ Greenway Responds to Digby Pearson
Bryan Bedder, Getty Images It was a less than amicable parting of the ways, but after three years away singer Jim Lindberg is rejoining Pennywise . Lindberg and guitarist Fletcher Dragge appeared on KROQ’s Kevin and Bean Show in Los Angeles to make the announcement and revealed that the reunion will finally follow through when they take the stage at a January performance. Dragge explained, “We’re happy to announce that Jim is rejoining Pennywise and we’re all looking forward to playing music together again. We’re going to celebrate our reunion with a show at the Hollywood Palladium, Jan. 18, to commemorate the 25th anniversary of Pennywise for our friends and fans in L.A.” Lindberg admitted that being back with the band was somewhat of a surprise, and he joked, “[I feel like] someone who took an Ambien [and] has found themselves down by the lake and they don’t know how they got there.” Dragge revealed that the first step in the reunion came about after “a little self introspection,” and that he called Lindberg while he was at a bachelor party. Lindberg said he had erased Dragge’s number, thinking he’d never hear from him again as he’d repeatedly called following his initial exit only to have Dragge not answer or return any of his messages. Meanwhile, it appears as though things have worked out all around for the singer switch. Zoli Teglas, who joined the group after Lindberg’s exit and sang on the band’s ‘All or Nothing’ album, had back surgery earlier this year, which has kept the band off the road. His recovery has taken longer than expected, and according to both Lindberg and Dragge, the vocalist let it be known he was ready to exit. “He’s actually happy. He’s happy to get the hell out of here,” says Dragge. “Jim told me he was calling and saying, ‘Hurry up and come back man.’” For now, Pennywise just has the 25th anniversary show at the Hollywood Palladium on their schedule. Tickets for the Jan. 18 performance go on sale via Live Nation this Friday (Nov. 2) at noon here . [button href=”http://loudwire.com/ex-pennywise-singer-jim-lindbergh-book-idea-adapted-film-jason-segel/” title=”Next: Jim Lindberg’s Book Idea Adapted for Big Screen by Jason Segel” align=”center”]
Christopher Polk / Ethan Miller / Frazer Harrison, Getty Images The People’s Choice Awards will return in January, and a number of top rock acts are in competition to take home honors for Favorite Band. Green Day , Shinedown , Van Halen , Linkin Park and the Black Keys are among those vying for the honor. Music fans can currently choose up to five of their favorites among a list of 12 acts. Other acts that can be voted for include the Dave Matthews Band, Maroon 5, Matchbox Twenty, Mumford & Sons, No Doubt, the Killers, and Train. There’s also an option for a write-in vote. Fans can currently vote here in the Favorite Band category. Other People’s Choice music categories include Favorite DJ, Favorite Face of Pop Music, Favorite Fan Following, Favorite Festival Headliner, and Favorite Singer/Actor. The ceremony will also feature fan favorites in film and television. To vote in all categories, click here . The People’s Choice Awards take place at Los Angeles’ Nokia Theatre at the L.A. Live complex. It will air on CBS Jan. 9 at 9PM ET. [button href=”http://loudwire.com/top-songs-2012-so-far/” title=”Next: Best Songs of 2012 So Far” align=”center”]