Check out my interview with the GM/VP of the New Hampshire Motor Speedway Jerry Gappens! What a great guy! Very cool!

Click the link below!

nascar.mp3

Get info on the drivers, the parties, the ladies, and the ‘lobster’!

And, if you comment on this blog (BEFORE TUESDAY JULY 5 AT 7PM), you’ll be entered to WIN VIP treatment at the LENOX Industrial Tools 301 on July 17th!

Prize includes: Suite Tix, VIP parking pass, Pit passes, and passes to the drivers pre race meeting!

Click here for all of the info on the New Hampshire Motor Speedway!

www.nhms.com

Here’s the picture of Mike Hsu and I with NASCAR driver Matt Kenseth backstage at a Metallica concert, that we talk about during the interview!

The guys from Staind have been working hard on their new album which will be out on September 13… It’s called ‘Staind’.  We’ll have the first single ‘Not Again’ in a couple of weeks. Until then, check out another new song called ‘Eyes Wide Open’ below.

For more details on Staind click here. www.staind.com

And for details on the ‘It Takes A Community’ charity concert featuring Aaron Lewis and Corey Taylor, click HERE!

Here’s another new track from Staind’s upcoming self-titled album coming out in September.  Guitarist Mike Mushok said in a recent Metal Hammer interview that, “It’s more of a throwback to where we came from. You know, ‘Dysfunction’ [1999], ‘Tormented’ [1996] albums.”  That is for sure with this song.  Maybe with Aaron Lewis being free to explore his more folk and country tastes with his solo album the guys were able to concentrate on the heaviness?  Check out “Eyes Wide Open” below and let me know what you think.

Metal Hammer – Staind – ‘Eyes Wide Open’ Teaser on MUZU.TV

Maynard James Keenan’s(Tool, A Perfect Circle) Multi-Media project Puscifer is in the mixing stage of a new album that was apparently recorded at his Caduceus Vineyards in Northern Arizona.  The project itself is a constantly changing cast of Musicians, Song Writers, and other artists that share Keenan’s vision of sonic and visual exploration.  The title of the new album right now is “Conditions Of My Parole” and will supposedly be out October 18.  The ethereal atmosphere of the Arizona Desert as well as it’s creatures and inhabitants heavily influenced the recordings.  Keenan says in this interview with SPIN that it was much different than recording in an LA studio and the group was able to work at their own pace.

The part of this story that interests me the most is the recording of the music in close proximity to the wine from Keenan’s vineyards.  According to EHow Food’s Roland Hume, sound and vibration can have an effect on the constant evolution that is wine. 

“Today’s wine enthusiasts should be similarly aware of the effects of sound and vibration on their stored vintages. Those who enjoy white wine, for example, should make sure their refrigerators are running smoothly and silently even if their wines are only being stored there for a few days or hours. Vibration and “rattle” from fridges is a common problem and can dislodge sediment in older bottles of wine; compromising both their taste and clarity. Those storing wines in cellars or caves should be similarly aware of rattling air conditioners or proximity to highways which cause ambient vibration. Both run the risk of affecting your stored wine.”

Hume also sites an order from the Mayor of Logrono, Spain in 1635 that banned carts from moving down the towns cobblestone streets so as not to influence the aging of nearby barrels of  wine.  According to Hume even the slightest vibrations can influence movement in the sediment in bottles and alter the evolutionary path of the vino.  Some wine makers invest in the quietest refrigeration and air conditioning units to avoid any such disruption.

But it seems Keenan is not to concerned about this.  I’m sure he is aware of the preceding facts.  I’m willing to speculate he is now adding Wine aging to Puscifers multi media list of accomplishments.  I bet the barrels that were directly exposed to Puscifer’s vibrations will bear the bands name on the label when it comes time to bottle.  That’s if the experiment is a success and the spirit of the music mingles with the grapes lovingly.  This could open up a whole new music/wine making process.  Maybe vineyards will hire bands and musicians to send the right sonic massage to there product.  I wonder what would happen to wine if it were exposed to Keenan’s other band Tool.  I’m not a winemaker but I would guess it would be shocked into some kind of searingly strong liquid that would make you shoot flames out of your ears and ass.  I’d try it.

It’s been 5 years since “Light Grenades” and according to a recent interview with Incubus singer Brandon Boyd they needed it.  Boyd told MTV, “We had to plant some roots, lest we start to write songs about living on a tour bus. … So we had to fall in love, we had to fall out of love, we had to make homes … our drummer had a baby, Michael went off to school, I was exploring a lot of my own singular creative tendencies.  We weren’t sitting at home twiddling our thumbs or anything; all of us had a lot to do. And eventually, it got to the point where it was like, ‘It’s time.”

“If Not Now, When?” will be out on July 12th.  They’ll hit the Comcast Center in Mansfield on September 9th. You can get more details on that show and others here.  Until then you can check out their Livestream show from Berlin on 6/17 below.  They crank out some favorites and some songs from the new album.

In celebration of Paramount Pictures’ TRANSFORMERS: DARK OF THE MOON Linkin performed at a special outdoor concert at Vasilyevsky Spusk of the Red Square in Moscow – with the Kremlin and St. Basil’s Basilica as the backdrop, the performance will be featured on MTV, MTV2, mtvU, VH1 Classic and Palladia. Check out their new single, “Iridescent,” which is the end title song in the upcoming third Transformers film, is taking place the same night the 3D Michael Bay film will open at the Moscow International Film Festival. The movie opens worldwide beginning June 29^th.  

Matt Cameron may be the busiest man in music! He was the drummer in Soundgarden, and the band broke up. So, Matt got a job with another legandary band that you may know… Pearl Jam! Then in 2010, Soundgarden announced that they were getting back together. Rather than leave Pearl Jam, Matt is somehow balancing 2 bands, while being married with kids! 2 bands, 2 tours… and lots to talk about! What about a Pearl Jam, Soundgarden tour with Temple of the Dog? Is Pearl Jam playing Fenway Park in September? What clubs did Matt love to play in Boston? When is the new Soundgarden album coming out?

Click below to listen to the interview and find out the answers to those questions and more!

Interview

Rise Against have partnered with the It Gets Better Project to bring awareness to the Anti-Bullying movement here in the U.S.  They have dedicated their latest video for “Make It Stop” to the cause.  Rise Against lead singer Tim McIlrath says, “A number of events were the catalyst for the creation of ‘Make It Stop,’ everything from the suicides in September 2010, to our own fans voicing their fears and insecurities from time to time. I decided to create the song as a response, and when I discovered the It Gets Better campaign and [It Gets Better Project co-founder] Dan Savage‘s commitment to such an important and concise message, I was moved. I immediately felt that if our song is the road, then the It Gets Better project is the destination. I hope the synergy between the two can reach people and make a difference.”

This song is so delicious.  I need the biscuit.  Although I was alarmed and angry at the waste of a good sandwich at the beginning.

It’s called “Pugilist Style Ale” but it doesn’t punch you in the face.  This English style  session beer from the Yards Brewing Company in Philadelphia is actually quite friendly to the taste buds and very smooth and drinkable.  The 4.2% ABV will keep you fairly reasonable until maybe half way through your second sixer.  This dark ruby brew had a light thin head and malty aroma and that’s what you get on the first sip.  There’s also a hint of tea and a little tartness.  The finish brings a very slight caramel and a lemon tea.  This is great for the hot weather and would be great with spicy food.  The only brawling that may occur would be for the last one.