Away Team

This month’s JAMMIT featured tracks come from guitar virtuoso, Steve Vai and legendary progressive masterminds, RUSH with their epic 2112 masterpiece in its entirety.

Jammit is the first music software solution that eliminates the annoying “stop, play, rewind” method of learning your favorite songs. Jammit® is more than just a cool app that separates the instruments that you want to hear from within the mix of your favorite songs, it’s also the source of the most accurate transcriptions in the world. Jammit® unlocks the secrets that are hidden in the mix so you can learn to play exactly what was recorded with unique offerings for guitar, bass, drums, keyboard and vocals.

Jammit’s patented variable timing technology provides easy, snap-to-grid looping for repeating and perfecting difficult sections. Meticulous note-for-note transcriptions in standard notation and tablature are derived from the isolated tracks providing a level of accuracy previously unavailable anywhere. The amazing variable speed feature allows users to slow down any part of a song without affecting the pitch, making the most complex musical performances easier to master.

Jammit® offers a diverse selection of the greatest artists including Soundgarden, Foo Fighters, Three Days Grace, Slayer, Rob Zombie, Nickelback, AFI, Yes, Mötley Crüe, Pantera, and many more. Visit http://jammit.com/ for a complete listing of current and upcoming artists. JAMMIT® is a must-have for every level of musician and singer from beginner to the accomplished professional.

Jammit® releases new tracks daily on Twitter and Facebook , follow us and find out what’s coming out tomorrow!

Jammit® is currently available for the iphone, ipod touch and ipad with Android and desktop versions coming soon.

MACHINE HEAD

UNTO THE LOCUST

Roadrunner Records

10 out of 10

Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you the album of the year. Your search is over. Just give in to the monstrosity that is Unto The Locust, declare the search for 2011’s #1 album over, crank it to eleven, and behold the majesty that is Machine Head. You’ll thank me later.

Ok, now that the dick sucking is out of the way, let’s get to the real meat of this album. It. Fucking. Shreds.

Machine Head have outdone themselves and have achieved a feat I didn’t think they could do, and that is follow up their best album ever, The Blackening, with what is arguably without a doubt their best album ever.

Welcome to Unto The Locust. The opening 3 part song I Am Hell sets the tone and raises the bar for Machine Head once again. Less than halfway through the eight and a half minute opus your hair is blown back, your dick has been knocked into the dirt and the massive riffs and monster drum sound pummels you into submitting to the notion that there is nothing out there that can possibly compete with Machine Head today. Their finest showing so far in a storied career and we’re only three minutes into the damned album.

The harmonies in the chorus of Be Still And Know will raise the hairs on your arms and the back of your neck, as the solo kicks in and knocks your teeth down your throat. You are now deep in the embrace and holy shit, hello twin guitar solo. There are so many styles of guitar bursting all over this album it is hard to keep up. You’ve read the interviews, and you’ve heard that Robb even took guitar lesson recently to be able to play parts of this album he had already written but couldn’t play properly, or as well as he wanted. In one song alone, you have the modern thrash high toned, thin guitar sound prevalent through most of the verses, then the break down goes into dual guitar wielding solo of the classic NWOBHM style of Maiden and Priest, there’s even some good old chugga-chugga-chugga of Prog Metal thrown in to temper the whole thing. Again, we’re talking all of this in one song. And we’re not talking St. Anger kitchen sink riffs here, we’re talking a madly cohesive sound tinged with a schizophrenic touch of multiple guitar styles to flavor the song, not to saturate and lose focus within (ala St. Anger).

Machine Head may well be the one band that can take Modern Thrash, Blast Beats, NWOBHM twin guitar solos, acoustic, melodic, Prog, and weave them in and out of each of their songs without losing the plot or seeming to be truly skitzo and jumbled. Their first single Locust starts out a bit … eh… But when it gets to the acoustic breakdown and Robb Flynn and Phil Demmel trading off on the guitar solo it pushes itself into contention for the strongest track off the album.

I am trying not to go song by song here but as each new song starts, I can’t help but … The acoustic intro to This Is The End going into the hyper guitar riff sends chills down my spine. The hyper-frenetic tempo will snap necks live.

Darkness Within… Three Days Grace? Emo Metal? It works, but pushing that Emo Metal thing a little close. They close the album out with Darkness Within in acoustic form, so I wonder how that will come out. I will say this: Machine Head has never had better guitar solos. Ever. Halfway through the album and every solo is epic! And Darkness Within goes from Emo Metal to Death, to Thrash, and back to Emo. Incredible really. Again, this isn’t hodgepodged, this isn’t piecemeal, this is great song craftsmanship.

And welcome to the traditional Bay Area Thrash epicness that is the opening of Pearls Before The Swine. Harkening back to Testament and Exodus, Pearls runs right through the heart of the Traditional Bay Area Thrash sound.

The children’s choir at the beginning of Who We Are is disconcerting at best. The Beast of Machine Head behind them, it must strike fear into the hearts of soccer moms and t-ball dads all over. And this slightly anthemic ditty closes out the regular version of Unto The Locust. Again, I have to bring up the solos, from a classical Prog sounding chugga chugga to twin guitar thrash, Phil and Robb have outdone themselves. If Unto The Locust is recognized for anything, it must be for the outstanding guitar solos that run consistently through the album. Every song is given an unforgettable solo that is completely unique to itself.

The expanded version (which includes a DVD) has three extra songs on it. The Sentinel, Witch Hunt and the acoustic version of Darkness Within.

The Sentinel is a cover of the classic Judas Priest song. And the beginning is spot on. A great cover. The band keeps it close to the original, the vocals are awesome. Flynn has a great voice but no one can properly cover Halford (save Tim Owens). They do deviate from the original on the guitar solos, but they manage to come up with some great stuff that fits the song just fine. This is where Machine Head add their own touch to the song.

Witch Hunt sees Machine Head taking on the stylings of none other than Rush. Not being a Rush fan, I can’t tell you how it stacks up to the original, and I’m not about to go find out. (Hello cowbell!!!!!) It is an odd choice at first listen. I mean you can totally see in your mind’s eye Machine Head rocking out the Judas Priest, and maybe a certain Rush song here or there, but Witch Hunt musically doesn’t quite fit them, or vice versa maybe. Not that they are not musically capable of covering Rush, Machine Head is quite adept musicianship wise to do so, but the song itself doesn’t sound like a Machine Head song. And this may be why they chose it. It doesn’t fit the feel of the rest of the album however. Again, even The Sentinel stands up to the rest of the original Machine Head works on Unto The Locust, but Witch Hunt just seems a bit out of place here.

Which leaves us with Darkness Within the acoustic version. And I can happily say that the acoustic version removes the Emo Metal feel of the first part of the song. And it works well acoustically so far.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you Machine Head’s Unto The Locust. My current (and most likely final) pick for Best Album of 2011. You cannot go wrong by running out and grabbing this immediately. You must not miss out on this masterpiece of metal.

Go HERE and purchase it right now. Go on, you know you want to. You NEED this album. You do. Trust, you do.









For more Machine Head click here.

HOLLYWOOD, CA (February 23, 2011) MR. BIG is back with their highly anticipated new studio album entitled ” What If… ” out now on Frontiers Records.

“What If… ” is MR. BIG’s first all original album since the reunion of the four original members,  Eric Martin, Paul Gilbert, Billy Sheehan and Pat Torpey back in early 2009. Sixteen years after the release of ” Hey Man ”, the new recording is set to bring back MR. BIG on the height of the current Hard Rock scene.

 Guitarist Paul Gilbert said: “This is the first MR. BIG album I have been a part of, since fourteen years and it was done in a snap. It was fun and we had really a  good time in making this one”. Continues Billy Sheehan “It’s so great to be back with Paul, Eric and Pat too. We wrote this record like we did in the old days for the first 2 records. Jamming together in the same room to write songs”. Pat Torpey adds ““Some of the recording process is different now from what we were used to in the old times. But I think this record really managed to capture the performances of the band, not of the individual musicians”.

 Eric Martin concludes: “I like to compare this to the first album, when we just got to know each other in a reharsal studio and cut it in 8 or 9 days. This is like chapter 2. We had so many years, so many records and so many things behind us. Now this feels like a beautiful brand new chapter starting for all of us”.

 ”What If… ” was produced by Kevin Shirley (Aerosmith, Rush, Iron Maiden)  and the release will be followed by a World Tour which will kick off in South America in March and will hit Europe in early summer.

 Formed in 1988, Mr. Big forged its place in hard rock history by combining trademark “shredding” musicianship with awesome vocal harmonies. The original line-up – vocalist Eric Martin, guitarist Paul Gilbert, bassist Billy Sheehan, and drummer Pat Torpey. Mr. Big produced numerous hit songs that ranged across a wide array of rock genres – be it ballads, heavy metal, or blues rock.

 Their hits included “To Be With You” (Billboard Hot 100 number one single in 15 countries for weeks, in 1991, propelling the band the band to huge international success and record sales in the multi-millions), “Wild World”, “Green-Tinted sixties Mind”, “Just Take My Heart”, and a host of heavy metal songs that were played mostly during their live performances: “Daddy, Brother, Lover, Little Boy”, “Addicted to that Rush”, “Colorado Bulldog”, and “Take Cover”.

 “What If…” will be released in a special edition CD + DVD in digipak, regular CD, vinyl and digital download and in a limited edition luxury box including the CD, DVD, LP and exclusive memorabilia.

 “What If…” tracklisting includes: Undertow; American Beauty; Stranger In My Life; Nobody Takes the Blame; Still Ain’t Enough for Me; Once Upon a Time; As Far As I Can See; All The Way Up; I Won’t Get In My Way; Around The World; I Get The Feeling; Unforgiven (exclusive bonus track for Europe / North America – not on vinyl edition).

 The DVD will include the videoclips of “Undertow” and “All the Way Up” plus a documentary “Making of” the album including interviews and exclusive behind the scenes features of the four members.

 For more information go to www.mrbigsite.com

MR. BIG is back to announce their highly anticipated new studio album entitled What If… on February 8, 2011 on Frontiers Records.

What If… is MR. BIG’s first all original album since the reunion of the four original members, Eric Martin, Paul Gilbert, Billy Sheehan and Pat Torpey back in early 2009. Sixteen years after the release of Hey Man, the new recording is set to bring back MR. BIG on the height of the current Hard Rock scene.

Guitarist Paul Gilbert said: “This is the first MR. BIG album I have been a part of, since fourteen years and it was done in a snap. It was fun and we had really a good time in making this one”. Continues Billy Sheehan “It’s so great to be back with Paul, Eric and Pat too. We wrote this record like we did in the old days for the first 2 records. Jamming together in the same room to write songs”. Pat Torpey adds ““Some of the recording process is different now from what we were used to in the old times. But I think this record really managed to capture the performances of the band, not of the individual musicians”.

Eric Martin concludes: “I like to compare this to the first album, when we just got to know each other in a reharsal studio and cut it in 8 or 9 days. This is like chapter 2. We had so many years, so many records and so many things behind us. Now this feels like a beautiful brand new chapter starting for all of us”.

What If… was produced by Kevin Shirley (Aerosmith, Rush, Iron Maiden) and the release will be followed by a World Tour which will kick off in South America in March and will hit Europe in early summer.

Formed in 1988, Mr. Big forged its place in hard rock history by combining trademark “shredding” musicianship with awesome vocal harmonies. The original line-up – vocalist Eric Martin, guitarist Paul Gilbert, bassist Billy Sheehan, and drummer Pat Torpey. Mr. Big produced numerous hit songs that ranged across a wide array of rock genres – be it ballads, heavy metal, or blues rock.

Their hits included “To Be With You” (Billboard Hot 100 number one single in 15 countries for weeks, in 1991, propelling the band the band to huge international success and record sales in the multi-millions), “Wild World“, “Green-Tinted sixties Mind“, “Just Take My Heart“, and a host of heavy metal songs that were played mostly during their live performances: “Daddy, Brother, Lover, Little Boy“, “Addicted to that Rush“, “Colorado Bulldog“, and “Take Cover“.

“What If…” will be released in a special edition CD + DVD in digipak, regular CD, vinyl and digital download and in a limited edition luxury box including the CD, DVD, LP and exclusive memorabilia.

The DVD will include the videoclips of “Undertow” and “All the Way Up” plus a documentary “Making of” the album including interviews and exclusive behind the scenes features of the four members.









For more Mr. Big click here.

CLASSIC ALBUMS:
RUSH: 2112 & MOVING PICTURES
Eagle Vision DVD














Eagle Vision & Eagle Rock Entertainment have put together a series entitled CLASSIC ALBUMS that goes back and looks at the making of some of the greatest albums of all time. With titles such as Metallica: Black Album, Fleetwood Mac: Rumors, Judas Priest: British Steel, Elton John: Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, Iron Maiden: Number Of The Beast, Motorhead: Ace Of Spades, Deep Purple: Machine Head, and on and on… The series takes the band back to the studio, with the producer and engineer occasionally and goes over the recording of the album, how they wrote it, the stories that came from the recording session, and actually takes the album apart track by track and channel by channel. From the great licks, that killer vocal line, the special mixing that makes the song come alive.

You can’t turn on VH-1 without seeing an episode of Classic Albums, and with good reason. Even if you don’t particularly care for the artist or the album, the stories behind how the album came to be will enthrall you. My favorite episodes are DEEP PURPLE: Machine Head, JUDAS PRIEST: British Steel, and MEAT LOAF: Bat Out Of Hell. Not because they are amazing albums (they are), not because they are great legendary bands (they are), but because of the stories that come out about how the album and the songs came to be. From Deep Purple’s Smoke On The Water being written about the actual recording of Machine Head and the dismal situation they were in while recording one of rock’s greatest albums of all time. To Judas Priest’s Metal Gods marching sound being a drawer full of silverware being slammed open and shut. To Meat Loaf and Jim Steinman basically selling their souls and beating the odds to get a rock opera released by two unknown and unlikely artists.

RUSH: 2112 and Moving Pictures as albums need no real introduction to even casual music listeners.

With the opening track 2112 taking up half the album alone, the sheer epicness and ballsiness of an unknown band releasing this epic tome of music and having the fortitude and belief in themselves to pull off a magnum opus of this magnitude is to be respected and celebrated. The message of 2112 with nods to Ayn Rand’s The Fountainhead actually echoes the band’s ambition for releasing a 20 plus minute song as the opening and title track on an unsuspecting public.

Moving Pictures is simply a greatest hits album of brand new music. Red Barchetta, Limelight, Vital Signs, and YYZ are well known to Rush fans and non fans alike. And of course Tom Sawyer which is probably second only to Stairway To Heaven as the most played song on Classic Rock stations.

The episode and the series isn’t a ‘Behind The Music’ drug and sordid history, it is about how the album came about, how the artist came up with the riff, the lyric, the song, the sound, and finally the impact the album had when it was released.

RUSH: 2112 & Moving Pictures was released September 28th. And can be purchased here. Do yourself a favor, pick it up, throw it in the DVD player and relive the magic of 2112, the hits of Moving Pictures and find out how the band came up with some of the most well known rock and roll songs in the history of music.

The DVD comes with almost an hour of extra material recorded for this episode. From Geddy Lee explaining the Overture of 2112, to Neil‘s (Non) drum solo, there are too many great nuggets to list here. The extras are worth the price of the DVD alone, nevermind the who, how, why of the recording of 2112 and Moving Pictures!

No matter which episode you watch, STEELY DAN: Aja, TOM PETTY & THE HEARTBREAKERS: Damn The Torpedoes, SEX PISTOLS: Never Mind the Bollocks, or U2: Joshua Tree, you’ll always come away with a great story, an amazing tidbit about how your favorite song came to be, what studio magic was used to make that special sound that transports you to another place and time, and where the artists head was or wasn’t at when they recorded it. So check out the links below, pick up 2112 & Moving Pictures, treat yourself to a few other episodes of Classic Albums, and enjoy! You’ll thank me later.

For more CLASSIC ALBUMS click here.
For more RUSH click here.
To purchase RUSH: 2112 & Moving Pictures Classic Albums click here.

It’s been a banner year for the award-winning Classic Albums series. The most recent editions explore ground-breaking releases by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and Black Sabbath. The latest edition tackles not one, but TWO epic albums from progressive rock powerhouse Rush. Rush: 2112 & Moving Pictures Classic Albums will be simultaneously released on DVD and Blu-ray via Eagle Rock Entertainment’s Eagle Vision subsidiary on September 28.

Continuing the tradition of this celebrated series, 2112 & Moving Pictures Classic Albums carries us through the creation of these musical masterpieces via brand new interviews, demonstrations, archive videos, and use of the original multi-track tapes. The titan trio of bassist/vocalist Geddy Lee, guitarist Alex Lifeson, and drummer Neil Peart, joined by original producer Terry Brown, weigh in on the mammoth melodies, resounding riffs, and dynamic drum fills behind these immense aural soundscapes. Many others contribute to the commentary, such as Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins and acclaimed Rolling Stone journalist David Fricke. 112 minutes in total, this DVD digs even deeper with 50 minutes of bonus material not included in the upcoming VH1 Classic broadcast (airing September 8 at 9:30pm and September 9 at 8:30am and 12:30pm).

These legendary albums mark pivotal points in Rush’s career. 2112, released in 1976, broke the band into major music chart domination, going #1 in their native Canada and in the Top 75 in the USA, where it was certified triple platinum. Moving Pictures added fuel to their rising stardom, opening them up to a mass audience with heavy-hitting hits like “Tom Sawyer.” Going #1 and quadruple platinum in Canada, as well as hitting #3 in the USA and the UK, this 1981 release remains their biggest selling album to date. Rush is currently performing this album in its entirely on their “Time Machine” tour. Rush: 2112 & Moving Pictures Classic Albums is a perfect encapsulation of what made these albums successful, and why they are revered to this day.

To purchase RUSH: 2112 & Moving Pictures Classic Albums click here.
For more RUSH click here.

FOF/EMI

Rating:  8.5 out of 10

Ice Hockey, Molson, Rush, Evans Blue???  That’s right, the next great import from Canada is here.  EVANS BLUE first impacted our eardrums in 2006 with their smash hit “Cold (But I’m Still Here)” from their debut album The Melody and The Energetic Nature of Volume.  After a mediocre follow-up effort, the boys from Toronto parted ways with singer Kevin Matisyn and headed south of the border for his replacement Dan Chandler.  And in his first album with the band, Dan proves that he was worth the price of the passport.

 The album kicks off with the hard rocking “Buried Alive”, merely using it as a warm-up for the aural assault that is the radio hit “Sick of It”.  EVANS BLUE continue the onslaught with such tracks as “The Future in the End” and “A Step Back”, before hitting us with…a guest appearance from Three Days Grace???  Not quite, but “Say It” could easily have been a track that would be comfortably at home on their fellow Ontarians’ “Life Starts Now”. 

Soon after the influence heads south of the border again…way south.  I honestly almost checked the liner notes for a guest appearance from Carlos Santana when I heard the guitar in first minute of “Who We Are”.  And then… possibly the best track on the album, radio hit number two, “Bulletproof” shows us why Dan Chandler is destined to take this band to the next level.  Keeping with the head bobbing atmosphere, we delve into “I Blame You”, in which guitarist Parker Lauzon takes out his frustrations for the Toronto Maple Leafs’ futility on his strings.

Things are taken down a notch on the mid-tempo “Can’t Go On”, but keep in mind, I said “a notch”.  As we saw in the beginning EVANS BLUE like to hit us with a little teaser before kicking our asses with the finale that is “Erase My Scars”.  There is no doubt that this album will “erase my scars” from listening to the band’s prior effort, The Pursuit…, and make me listen until my ears turn a shade of blue…EVANS BLUE.  This album comes very highly recommended.

EVANS BLUE‘s self titled third album hits stores in the U.S. tomorrow, July 27th.  For more info on EVANS BLUE, including tour dates, and to purchase the album, visit http://www.evansblue.com/

The postponed Wednesday, July 7th RUSH performance at Charter One Pavilion in Chicago, IL has been rescheduled to Monday, August 23rd. Doors open at 6:30 pm and the show begins at 7:30 pm.

All tickets for the previously scheduled performance will be reactivated and honored at the rescheduled date. If fans feel that the barcodes may be illegible, they should ensure they bring picture ID and the credit card which was used to purchase the tickets. Venue parking available – fans will need to show their ticket for admittance to the parking garage.
Refunds – if required at point of purchase through August 22nd.
Questions can be directed to TicketMaster customer service at 800-653-8000

The July 7th date was postponed due to inclement weather when heavy rains caused damage to some of Rush‘s equipment.

Current RUSH tour dates:
15 – Quebec City, QC – Festival d’été de Québec
17 – Toronto, ON – Air Canada Centre
19 – Uncasville, CT – Mohegan Sun
21 – Philadelphia, PA – Susquehanna Bank Center
23 – Saratoga Springs, NY – SPAC
24 – Wantagh, NY – Nikon at Jones Beach
August
5 – Salt Lake City, UT – USANA Amphitheatre
7 – Seattle, WA – White River Amphitheatre
9 – San Francisco, CA – Shoreline Amphitheatre
11 – Universal City, CA – Gibson Amphitheater
13 – Irvine, CA – Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
14 – Las Vegas, NV – MGM Grand Garden Arena
16, 18 – Denver, CO – Red Rocks Amphitheatre
20 – Wichita, KS – INTRUST Bank Arena
22 – St. Louis, MO – Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
23 – Chicago, IL – Charter One Pavilion
25 – Omaha, NE – Qwest Center
27 – St. Paul, MN – Minnesota State Fair
29 – Columbus, OH – Nationwide Arena
31 – Allentown, PA – Allentown Fair
September
2 – Syracuse, NY – New York State Fair
3 – Holmdel, NJ – PNC Bank Arts Center
14 – Boston, MA – TD Garden
16 – Pittsburgh, PA – Consol Energy Center
18 – Washington, DC – Jiffy Lube Live Amphitheater
21 – Tulsa, OK – BOK Center
23 – San Antonio, TX – AT&T Center
25 – Houston, TX – Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
26 – Dallas, TX – Superpages.com Center
29 – Atlanta, GA – Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre @ Encore Park
October
1 – Tampa, FL – Ford Amphitheatre
2 – West Palm Beach, FL – Cruzan Amphitheatre

For more RUSH click here.

Amazon.com is streaming audio samples of two new RUSH tracks — ‘Caravan‘ and ‘BU2B‘ which were recorded earlier this year in Nashville with Grammy Award-winning producer Nick Raskulinecz, who previously collaborated with Rush on 2007′s critically acclaimed Snakes & Arrows. Rush will return to the studio to resume recording after the completion of the upcoming Time Machine Tour, with plans to release their 20th studio album, Clockwork Angels, in 2011.

The two streaming songs can be found here:
CARAVAN & BU2B

For full details, please visit Rush’s official website at this location.