Facebook: Soundgarden Fans have been anxiously awaiting a new album from Soundgarden for more than 15 years, and the Nov. 13 arrival of ‘King Animal’ is just a couple weeks away. A deluxe edition of the release will also be available at Best Buy that includes extra tracks. In addition to the 13 songs on ‘King Animal,’ demo versions of the songs ‘Black Saturday,’ ‘Bones of Birds,’ ‘By Crooked Steps,’ ‘A Thousand Days Before’ and ‘Worse Dreams’ will also be included. Finished versions of all five songs also appear on the album. ‘Been Away Too Long’ is the first single from ‘King Animal.’ Frontman Chris Cornell describes the song as “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.” So why did the band split up back in 1997? Cornell says , “We broke up because we were bored of the periphery, all of the things that are outside of the band playing music and writing songs, playing shows – that part got really boring.” Bassist Ben Shepherd adds, “The part that is outside of writing songs and playing shows. So it wasn’t the Soundgarden thing, it was the outside of Soundgarden.” Soundgarden will play the British TV show ‘Later With Jools Holland’ on Nov. 6. According to Grunge Report , they’ve also just booked a ‘Live on Letterman’ mini concert following their Nov. 12 appearance on the ‘Late Show With David Letterman,’ and they have two European concerts scheduled on Nov. 7 (Dortmond, Germany) and Nov. 9 (London, England). [button href=”http://loudwire.com/best-soundgarden-songs/” title=”Next: 10 Best Soundgarden Songs” align=”center”]
Mary Ouellette, SheWillShootYou.com 3 Doors Down are ramping up to the Nov. 19 release of their upcoming ‘ Greatest Hits ‘ collection, and they’ve taken the time to reflect on the songs and videos that got them where they are today with a series of video vignettes. Loudwire is proud to bring you the vignette explaining the story behind the videos for the hit single, ‘When I’m Gone.’ In the vignette, seen below, singer Brad Arnold shares how there were actually two clips for ‘When I’m Gone.’ Most fans are familiar with the one shot during their touring, where they played for military audiences, but the vocalist goes more in depth about a gothic style promo they shot in the South with a darker tone to it. The video ended up being a rather demanding shoot for the band. ‘When I’m Gone’ is just one of the hit singles on the ‘Greatest Hits’ compilation. Other standouts like ‘Kryptonite,’ ‘Duck and Run,’ ‘Here Without You,’ and ‘It’s Not My Time,’ turn up, as do three new songs — ‘One Light,’ ‘There’s a Life,’ and ‘Goodbyes.’ Republic Records will release the disc Nov. 19, and pre-orders are currently being taken here . The band will celebrate two days earlier (Nov. 17) with the ninth annual ‘ The Better Life ‘ foundation concert at the Horseshoe Casino in Tunica, Mississippi. Watch 3 Doors Down’s ‘Story Behind the ‘When I’m Gone’ Video’ Vignette [button href=”http://loudwire.com/3-doors-down-free-download-new-single-one-light/” title=”Next: 3 Doors Down Offer Free Download of ‘One Light’ Single” 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”] ?
Zak Bagans Entertainment Most know Zak Bagans as the host of the Travel Channel paranormal series, ‘Ghost Adventures,’ but he’s taking his expeditions a step further by teaming with Lords of Acid’s Praga Khan to create a spirit-filled album called ‘NecroFusion.’ The newly released album features eleven new songs that tell the stories of departed souls who have yet to cross over into the afterlife. Armed with his SB7 Spirit Box, Bagans has been able to record “electronic voice phenomena,” known as EVP, over the years and he’s showcased some of those cases on ‘Ghost Adventures.’ However, the idea came about over time for Bagans to translate those voices in a different kind of way, and that’s where Khan came into the fold. Loudwire caught up with Bagans, who shared how the idea initially came about, if he thinks that by making the album he’s helping some of the spirits to cross over, and he shares one of his more terrifying experiences researching spirits at a music store. Can you discuss how the idea to record this album came about and how you ended up working with Praga Khan from Lords of Acid? The idea behind ‘NecroFusion’ came about when Praga Khan of Lords of Acid contacted me after I started making a bunch of Twitter posts about how big a fan I was. Lords of Acid was my favorite band in high school and Praga is a true pioneer of that style of electronic music. He’s done songs for films like ‘Austin Powers,’ ‘Basic Instinct,’ [and] ‘Virtuosity.’ He’s a legend. I started tweeting how I was a big fan of Lords of Acid, and his manager contacted me and asked if I wanted to do vocals for a song called ‘Paranormal Energy’ on the band’s ‘Deep Chills’ album. Apparently Praga was experiencing some paranormal events in his studio in Brussels, and things just fell into place. So I went down to L.A., I recorded with Chris Vrenna from Nine Inch Nails and Marilyn Manson and we did that song, it turned out really good, it hit the Top 5 in the Electronic music charts, it was a big hit. After that, it’s been revolutionary, and my paranormal research with these spirit voices that I’ve been getting — I use a couple of different devices, the SB7 Spirit Box, and also a digital recorder. About two years ago, we started getting absolutely insane, crystal-clear, intelligent voices from the dead. I tried debunking it. I’m very skeptical of our own evidence until we find those logical explanations to prove it as paranormal. Once we were able to put these voices up on a wavelength so you can see the waveform in an audio program, you can see that the spirit voices were laid on top of these sweeps through the Spirit Box, so we eliminated it as any contamination. The voices were intelligent, we had voices give us details about a murder-rape that happened in the 1970s in Denver that we shared with the Denver police department, and they were absolutely astounded by the findings. I’ve had another spirit tell me what color light that was making our electro-magnetic detector go off, and I established visual communications. So it’s 100 percent, and now that I know I’m documenting these spirit voices, I thought it would be a great way for the most powerful vocal messages of our time to be combined with music, the most powerful way to send a message. If you think about it, when you listen to music — music makes you cry, it makes you happy, it makes you dance, it makes you mad, those are the same emotions that I experience when I feel the energy of a spirit when I’m contacting the spirit and communicating with it. So it’s a full supernatural experience while you listen to these songs. Praga obviously has the musical background with Lords of Acid, but many of the samples he’s using came from you and what you’ve recorded. How much input did you have into deciding what would and would not be used for the record and can you talk about the process of putting the songs together? I had a lot of input on every song. Ideally, every single spirit chose the lyrics for every single track. At times, I would be sitting doing hundreds and hundreds of sessions because you don’t always get spirit voices. Over the course of a year, I did hundreds of sessions, maybe in one session at one haunted location I’d ask 150 questions, I’d get no response. Another time I’d ask another 150 questions and maybe I’d get a spirit response from two questions. So I had to take those two questions and use them for a song, and I never knew which questions would be answered by the spirit. That’s why I say that the spirits answered the questions and chose the lyrics for the songs. What’s really interesting is that once I got the spirit voices, I would then tell Praga the emotions that I was feeling during that time, because when I communicate with spirits, I feel that spirit’s energy. They don’t have a body. They don’t have a mouth. It’s just their energy. And so, if the spirit was angry, if it was sad, I would feel that energy. I would explain that to Praga and together we would choose the right tone and tempo of the music and the display and the presentation, so that the listener could be calibrated with that emotional level, that experience of when I was communicating with that spirit, and the emotion from the tone of the spirit, so it’s a full, emotional, personal experience. The spirit voices are complimented by the music that is establishing the emotional tone originally set by the spirit. So, you have the full-on experience. And you never know, you’re listening to these spirit voices, and the spirit may know that you’re listening to the music and their voices, so you’re really helping the spirit to be at rest and have closure and maybe be free from being trapped, just by your listening to the song. The music has so many different purposes. Obviously you’re used to hearing the electronic voice phenomena that you’ve recorded over the years, but what was it like the first time you heard it put to music? The first time I heard the EVPs put into music, it was awesome. On my show, ‘Ghost Adventures,’ you just hear the voice. You’re not there so you don’t get the full experience. You don’t feel the energy of that spirit that’s talking to you. I like to say it’s like being in a bubble – you lose track of time, you lose track of everything. It’s like being in the afterlife, but you’re still alive. You can feel that, and it’s actually a great feeling. Sometimes it’s scary as s—, too. But the first time I heard it in music, it put me back in that moment of feeling the energy when I captured the voice. The spirit voices are immortalized through the music, but the music brings you that emotional energy as well, what I feel when I talk to those spirits. So I’m bringing that full, first experience to you as you listen to it. Having completed the ‘NecroFusion’ album, do you think that it’s helped any of those whose voices are heard on the disc or was this just an interesting thing to put music to? Yes, I believe I’m helping these spirits to possibly be free from being trapped, being stuck here by allowing their voices to be heard. If you think about it, I believe a lot of spirits are trapped, because they’ve been trying for 100, 200, 300 years to tell somebody a clue to their unsolved murder, or just something they need to say or they want to contact someone. So now, with the evolution of technology, I believe that’s to my benefit. The technology that I’m using, we’re able now to tap into these spirit frequencies and listen to them. It’s no different from a cell phone, or being able to send a picture or a video through space. This technology is now allowing us to tap into these frequencies and hear these spirits, and I think it’s helping these spirits. On the track ‘Sing for Me,’ where you hear the female sing — when I was conversing with her — I tried for months to get a spirit to sing a song, and once this woman did — you can even hear her go, “I … sing …,” and then she gives us a note. I don’t know what she’s singing, but during that moment, I remember I was very emotional, extremely emotional. And the tone of the music in that song reflects my emotional experience when it was happening. I believe that putting these spirit voices in this music is helping to free them because their voices are finally being heard. Not only that, but I’ve already gotten tons of feedback from people saying ‘thank you so much, I had a friend who committed suicide, you’re now giving me that closure that I needed to know that there’s an afterlife.’ I’m helping the dead and I’m helping the living with this music. You talk about many of your demonic encounters happening at Bobby Mackey’s Music World, and in particular one case that inspired the song ‘Poor Pearl’ (as seen in the video below). Would you discuss your research into Pearl and your thoughts after hearing the demonic response to whether or not she was fine? For some reason, my investigations at Bobby Mackey’s, Pearl Bryan was very sad. We did an investigation there, and one of the EVPs we captured, you hear a girl crying, and they you hear a male voice going, ‘Precious … No.’ Pearl Bryan was murdered by her boyfriend –- Scott Jackson and Alonzo Walling were two devil worshippers who killed Pearl –- it was a documented case. When they were being hung in the gallows, they said that they would forever haunt Bobby Mackeys [the building that today is Bobby Mackey’s club was a slaughterhouse when the murder was committed). I believe that it is those two spirits who haunt that building today. I believe that the EVP we recorded there was Pearl, and it makes me sad to think that she may be being held hostage there, that she’s trapped there, being held there by these two evil spirits. I believe that these two spirits opened a portal to all of the demonic attacks that have taken place at Bobby Mackeys. Bobby Mackey is a strange guy. He doesn’t believe in the hauntings there, yet he’s had 19 sworn affidavits from police officers, clergy, officials who have signed their names to having had paranormal experiences there that were all demonic. But Bobby is the only one who hasn’t had a paranormal experience — the only one who doesn’t believe in it — yet every single person in his family has had severe experiences there. So I thought it would be a great idea for him to do a song with me and dedicate it to Pearl Bryan, so that’s what we did. I actually documented a voice, I believe that the spirits of Scott Jackson and Alonzo Walling have followed me, have attached themselves to me, having caused my demonic possession at Bobby Mackeys, to where I had to have a demonic exorcism performed on me. It’s been a horrific place. At one point during the investigation and on the song, I said ‘I think Pearl is safe now…’ and unexpectedly, we got a crystal-clear voice that said, ‘Is she?’ mocking me in a sarcastic manner, and I believe it was the voice of one of the two guys who killed her and chopped her head off and threw it down the basement’s well that was used by the slaughterhouse to drain all of the blood into the Licking River. So I believe that they opened up that place to hell. I believe that they came through and said, ‘Is she?’ What was the most interesting track on this album for you and can you explain why it stands out? ‘Demonator.’ I did that song to say ‘f-you’ to the demons who have wreaked havoc in my life. The track starts with two EVPs who were captured during a live event. These EVPs were witnessed by about 25 people as they were captured in real time by a Spirit Box. My friend Tara, her daughter’s voice came through saying ‘mommy’ and Tara immediately knew it was her daughter who was back home. That’s what they like to do, these demons, they like to f–k with you, mess with you, they like to mock your voices. The second voice you’ll hear on ‘Demonator’ goes ‘Guys, be careful.’ That’s MY voice that was captured at the event as well. The problem was, I was in the basement doing an investigation with 15 people, and that voice was captured upstairs with Dave Schrader [fellow paranormal investigator] and another group of people, and the demon was mocking me and used my voice. So I thought it would record a track and dedicate it to all those demons who tried scaring me with these voices. Now I use these voices in a badass song called ‘Demonator.’ You can pick up Zak Bagans Vs. Praga Khan’s ‘NecroFusion’ album via iTunes here . Watch Zak Bagans Talking About His Connection With Spirits
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”]
Rat Pak Records There’s just no denying musical chemistry, and the members of T&N found that out very quickly after several years of not playing together. Former Dokken guitarist George Lynch initially reached out to ex-Dokken bassist Jeff Pilson to contribute to his Lynch Mob record, but it didn’t take long before the pair realized that the music was meant for something else. At the insistence of drummer Brian Tichy, who is also part of the band, the group called up another former bandmate, Dokken’s drummer “Wild” Mick Brown,’ and the full T&N lineup was complete. With T&N set, the group started providing a mixture of new songs and re-recorded versions of older Dokken favorites with a variety of guest vocalists ( Sebastian Bach , King’s X’s Doug Pinnick, Tim “Ripper” Owens and Warrant ‘s Robert Mason) with the end result being their new ‘Slave to the Empire’ album, due Oct. 31. Pilson, who also sings on the album, spoke with Loudwire about what it was like reuniting with his onetime bandmates, how T&N took their music in a more humanistic direction, and about the band’s current relationship with Don Dokken. You have such a storied past working together, but in some ways this is essentially a new project. Can you talk about what it was like with the three of you back in the studio together for the first time and how it varied, if at all, from your process of working on past records? When George, Mick and I got in the studio together, it felt very much like what we’ve come to know and love about working together. I’d say the biggest difference now is that we play better, and really know how to get the sounds and performances we’re looking for. We’re quite confident in our abilities and that makes it a lot of fun. This was a little different in that the songs we did with Mick were written a long time ago, but we got to add little elements that made it feel fresh. It couldn’t have been more fun or productive. At what point was it decided to mix in some re-recorded Dokken material along with some original songs and how do they flow together on this disc? Once the music to the original songs was recorded and we had an idea that we’d finish them for, what became, T&N, Brian (Tichy) suggested we call Mick and redo some Dokken songs. We loved the idea cuz it really helps to tie the new music in with our legacy together. As for how it flows, so far the response has been amazing. The fans will be the ultimate judge of that. But it’s great because we were able to do the Dokken songs a little closer to how we had always pictured them, which was a little tougher, more raw. They still have many of the elements, harmonies, guitar production, etc., but not drowning in reverb like records were back then. It makes it all a little more in your face and the grooves really come alive that way. Plus the little additions we made to the Dokken songs help make them relate to the new music cuz they reflect where we are today. I’m so happy how it all came out and to see so many fans reacting positively is very rewarding. Did you have a list of who you wanted for guest vocalists and how close was that list to who actually appears on the songs? Which guest surprised you the most with what they brought to the table during recording? We just started calling friends who we knew were great and who we thought could really bring something special to Dokken material. We knew we didn’t want to get too far away from the original recordings, but wanted each guy to bring their unique gifts to the performances. So not every singer would work in that scenario. But they all impressed us so much. Doug [Pinnick]‘s take on ‘ Tooth and Nail ‘ is outstanding. His feel and delivery are unparalleled. We were always fans so it was a blast watching him record. Sebastian [Bach]‘s ‘Alone Again’ still brings a tear to my eye every time. In some ways his version stayed truer to the original melody than any of the other ones — but that was his call. He didn’t want to tamper with the melody too much, and that’s a sign of his maturity as an artist. But we did get some “Sebastianisms” out of him and the overall performance is soaking in emotion. He was a joy — and he’s a nut as well!!! That was fun. Robert [Mason] nailed ‘It’s Not Love’ with incredible power and vibe — what a voice! He’s a world-class singer and it really shows on his performance. Ripper [Owens] was truly crazy, which is great! His screams are so sick. I love it! All I can say is we have a lot to top on record 2!!!!!! ‘Slave to the Empire’ definitely gives you the platform to express yourself. Can you talk about the writing process and deciding what messages you wanted to address with the original songs? George and my writing process has changed very little over the years. Even in the early days we could always read each others’ minds, but it’s even more so now. As soon as we realized this record was not going to be a Lynch Mob record we decided we wanted the songs to have a social conscience. We don’t really want it to be perceived as political — but humanistic. We both see a very lopsided world out there, where those who “have” are getting a bigger and bigger slice of the pie, and it’s hard working folks who are paying the price. But we’re both optimistic that the power to change, grow and improve lies with the people, if they make their voices heard. So we’re just one voice out there, but we have big old amps so we can be a very loud voice!!!! With the album complete, what songs are most resonating with you after having a little bit of distance from recording and can you talk about why they stand out to you? That’s always a tough question, a little like which one of your children do you like most these days??!! But I will have to say that of the new material, the ones that resonate for me most are ‘ Slave to the Empire ,’ cuz the message is core to us and George’s solo is genius. ‘Sweet Unknown,’ just cuz I love the sound of it and when the chorus kicks in I get goose bumps. ‘When Eagles Die’ is very close to me. I love all the textures and changes in it and George’s solo is one of his finest ever. I felt very “purged” after we finished that one. We got to express a lot in that song. Then there’s ‘ Access Denied ,’ which turned out to be a very cool and interesting song. It probably changed the most, melodically and lyrically, during the writing. We got a bit stuck so we brought in Brian (Tichy), who had some great ideas for it. And I love how the song ends, but then again, I’m a bit eccentric! Coincidentally, Dokken released a new album this fall, as well. What’s your current relationship with Don Dokken? Have you spoken to him about the T & N project? My relationship with Don is great these days, although it’s mostly by email. We did put in a message to him, via Wild Mick, that we’d love to have him sing on T&N, but understandably he wasn’t into that. I mean the minute you add Don it becomes Dokken, so it gets complicated, and we all get that. T&N is really a chance for us to be creative together outside of Dokken. That doesn’t take anything away from Dokken’s legacy and this isn’t us versus them! It’s just the simple fact that even after nearly 30 years together, George Lynch and I love to make music with each other, we love to work with Brian and Mick and we’re in a position where we can and do. How cool is that? To pre-order the T&N album, ‘Slave to the Empire,’ check here .
We hope you’re getting into the Halloween spirit as Jack-O-Lanterns begin to occupy doorsteps and haunted houses start scaring the hell out of willing victims. To help usher in Halloween, we’re bringing you a bit of musical history in our list of Horror Movies That Inspired Songs. Having already paid tribute to Horror Movies That Inspired Band Names , we’re teaming up with Diffuser.fm to give you some of the best songs that couldn’t have existed without their horror film namesakes. Featuring acts such as Iron Maiden and Rob Zombie , enjoy our list of Horror Movies That Inspired Songs. [button href=”http://loudwire.com/the-wicker-man-horror-movies-that-inspired-songs” title=”Start Checking Out the Horror Movies That Inspired Songs” align=”center”]