ROB HALFORD, who makes his return to metal after the ill-received TWO experiment with Resurrection on August 8, will indeed tour this summer with IRON MAIDEN and QUEENSRYCHE. Halford's new band includes guitarist PAT LACHMAN, also a member of DIESEL MACHINE, whose debut disc Torture Test will be out later this summer.
SEBASTIAN BACH as of two days ago, has taken on the lead role in the Broadway production of Jekyll & Hyde.
SPINESHANK shouldn't worry at all about the sophomore jinx, if a sneak preview of four songs from their second record is any indication. The blisteringly heavy "Asthmatic" and "The Height of Callousness" (the title track) and the more radio- ready "Synthetic" and "New Disease" show some terrific growth from the band. The record, which they worked on with producer GARTH RICHARDSON in Vancouver, will be out in late August or early September, and Spineshank will likely start touring several weeks prior. Richardson is now producing a new record for PUYA, which will be out in September.
The long-awaited SAMHAIN boxed set will be released August 8. The package contains remastered versions of the CDs Initium, Unholy Passion, November Coming Fire and Final Descent , plus a double live CD, a 28 page color booklet of personal photos, a comic book, and a VHS cassette of previously unreleased performances. The first run of boxed sets will contain a metal Samhain Scarecrow pin. Visit emaginemusic.com for more info.
The DEFTONES, whose White Pony CD comes out June 20, will be heard on a forthcoming video game MTV Sports: Skateboarding Featuring Andy MacDonald, along with SYSTEM OF A DOWN, CYPRESS HILL, PENNYWISE, SNAPCASE, GOLDFINGER, NO USE FOR A NAME, OPM, FLASHPOINT, and the PILFERS. The Deftones, who are big video game and skateboarding enthusiasts, have given "Street Carp" to the game, which will be released in the fall. Deftones bassist CHI CHENG has recorded an album of spoken word poetry called Bamboo Parachute that will be released the same day as White Pony and will be available at the band's shows and via deftones.com. Cheng is donating part of the proceeds to charity.
On June 27, Portrait Records will release a compilation called Naughty Platinum Rock, including 19 '80s hits. Among them: AEROSMITH's "Dude (Looks Like a Lady)," KISS' "Lick it Up," MÖTLEY CRÜE's "Girls, GIrls, Girls," SKID ROW's "Youth Gone Wild," WARRANT's "Cherry Pie," WINGER's "Seventeen," SLAUGHTER's "Up All Night," WHITESNAKE's "Slide it In," CINDERELLA's "Shake Me," JUDAS PRIEST's "You've Got Another Thing Comin,'" MR. BIG's "Addicted to That Rush," RATT's "Body Talk," DANGER DANGER's "Naughty Naughty," TED NUGENT's "Cat Scratch Fever," GREAT WHITE's "Rock Me," QUIET RIOT's "Mama Weer All Crazee Now," and LITA FORD's "Kiss Me Deadly."
