93-5 'KHY Rock Report

"This is a good thing to do every now and then. It gets the band members in tune with each other in a way that you don't get on a big tour... I don't want to do a 'greatest hits' night. We should push ourselves, do things we don't even remember. It's about getting the best out of the band and to show people there are a lot of sides to us, the different kinds of music this band can play. We are a very good blues band. And we're a pretty good bluegrass band, believe it or not. We just don't get a chance to do that very much. You only get so much time in a concert -- you can't do everything in one night. But I'm just gonna go where the wind blows us." He also says he may consider doing complete albums during the shows.

Petty is taking time out from recording to do six weeks on the road, although he is not sure if he will debut any of the new songs. "I'd rather people heard the record before we perform the songs. But I also like the songs and want to play them. If they're sounding really good and I get the okay from the head office, I'll do it."

The tour starts May 16 in Evansville, Indiana. The New York engagement is May 20th, 21st, 23rd, 25th and 26th at the Beacon Theatre. The Fonda Theatre in L.A. will follow on June 3rd, 4th, 6th, 8th, 9th and 11th.

DEE SNIDER: Is the Feud About to End?

In 1982, his wife Suzette was hired to make their stage costumes, but they did not like what she created and their manager refused to pay her. In his autobiography, Shut Up and Give Me the Mic, Snider, referring to them as Crapus, writes, “These guys ripped off and threatened my wife. You have no idea how close you were to landing in the bottom of a lake.” So it will be interesting to see what happens when both Twisted Sister and Krokus share the bill at the Hellfest festival in Clisson, France in June.

Krokus bassist Chris von Rohr says, "The clothes did not correspond to what we had agreed -- too much harlequin style. So we made a bonfire of it. If we have not treated his wife with due respect, we are sorry.” Von Rohr adds that he hopes they could bury the hatchet and have a drink.

Snider is willing to listen, saying, "If they mean business I think it’s a nice gesture -- but I’ll have to ask my wife if she can forgive Krokus.”

Snider returns to Celebrity Apprentice this Sunday night on NBC.

VAN HALEN: Roth's Goal

If David Lee Roth had his way, Van Halen would tour more often, especially internationally. Speaking ahead of their show in Australia next month, he says, "The Van Halens, I think, are just now starting to value that which once was, which was the capacity to experience other worlds, other communities, particularly when you are a stranger in a stranger land. I find that so refreshing. And you gotta be prepared to be a beginner, you gotta be prepared to not have your cheeseburger and fries, you gotta be prepared for a lot. In the days back when, we would come off the road after a full year out, I would walk straight though to the international terminal and head for an adventure. I have earned the stars and scars..."

Following Australia, Van Halen then has a few dates in Japan in June. 

AC/DC: For Those About to Drink

AC/DC have added beer to their line of alcoholic products following their launch of wine in 2011. AC/DC Premium Lager Beer is a pint of true German Premium Lager with five-percent alcohol. AC/DC joins a list of beer-endorsing bands such as KISS, Motorhead and Whitesnake. 

SUGAR RAY: McGrath's '90s Cruise Canceled

The Mark McGrath and Friends Cruise, set for October 18th through the 21st, has been canceled. The Sugar Ray frontman was to be joined by a lineup of '90s acts that included Smash Mouth, Gin Blossoms, Cracker, Spin Doctors, Vertical Horizon, The Verve Pipe, Marcy Playground, Live's Ed Kowalcyzk and Collective Soul's Ed Roland. McGrath's management issued a statement citing "circumstances beyond the control of Mark" for the cancellation. The cruise promoters are offering a full refund or a spot on another cruise including Kenny Loggins, Three Dog Night and ex-Eagles guitarist Don Felder.

BLACK KEYS, PHOENIX, SMASHING PUMPKINS: Headed to Memphis

The Black Keys, Phoenix and The Smashing Pumpkins are among the headliners at this year's Beale Street Music Festival in Memphis. The fest runs May 3rd through the 5th in Tom Lee Park. Also on this year's bill are Alice in Chains, ZZ Top, The Black Crowes, Sheryl Crow, Gary Clark Junior, Three Days Grace, The Wallflowers, Deftones, Awolnation, Papa Roach and Gov’t Mule.

POP EVIL: New Album Due Out in May

Pop Evil will release their third album on May 14th. Onyx was produced by Johnny K (Disturbed) and the first single, "Trenches," is streaming on the band's Facebook page now. Pop Evil will start a spring tour March 15th in Huntsville, Alabama.

QUEEN: Gets the Classical Treatment

Queen has been given the classical treatment on We Will Rock You: Queen Classics by the 1966 Quartet -- four women from Japan. They do 13 Queen songs, including "Bohemian Rhapsody," "We Will Rock You," "We are the Champions," "Killer Queen" and "Crazy Little Thing Called Love." The album is now available on iTunes. The women have also covered the music of The Beatles and Michael Jackson.

See video HERE!

ELTON JOHN, LUMINEERS: The Bitch's Slap

During a visit to XFM radio in London earlier this week, The Lumineers frontman Wesley Schultz revealed that Elton John slapped the band's drummer, Jeremiah Fraites, backstage at The Grammys.

It seems the two crossed paths and exchanged compliments. Only Fraites couldn't believe Sir Elton's was on the level and told him "No [effing] way do you listen to our album." That's when Elton slaps him in the face and says, 'The hell I didn't! I definitely did!'"

Schultz called the incident "a special moment."

Although this seems more like a lover's quarrel than a feud, Elton has a long list of celebrity beefs. These include Madonna, Simon Cowell, Lily Allen, George Michael and Keith Richards. He even had a brief spat with the late Princess Diana back in 1997, before the two reconciled at Gianni Versace's funeral later that year.

MORRISSEY, JIMMY KIMMEL: There's the Beef

Jimmy Kimmel has issued an invitation to Morrissey to come on his show to discuss the statement the onetime Smiths frontman put out following his abrupt cancellation of his scheduled Tuesday appearance.

The vegetarian singer bailed after learning that the cast of TV's Duck Dynasty would also be guests that night, then issued a statement faulting the host for "ridiculing depression...healthy eating...[and] the notion that animals should be entitled to the possession of their own lives," as well as promoting "gun ownership" and the Duck Dynasty crew. He concluded, "Tune in and relive the intellectual fog of the 1950s."  

During Wednesday's monologue, Kimmel said Morrissey's statement had made him "very angry," and that while he has "a lot of respect for people who don't eat meat...the statement he made is ridiculous." In a follow-up tweet, he told Morrissey, "If you have more dumb statements to make, I invite you to make them where I do, on my show.”

In an interview published earlier Wednesday by The Hollywood Reporter, Morrissey also blasted Sir Paul McCartney -- who he called "McCartload" -- for jealousy over the concessions he was able to get from L.A.'s Staples Center regarding sales of meat products at his shows -- some of which Staples' management has denied. He also chided Macca for his "love of the British royals, whose treatment of animals is abysmal."

Morrissey plays Staples Center Friday and also added a Saturday performance at Hollywood High School that sold out in under a minute.

Jimi Hendrix is the official face of Record Store Day, April 20th, as his image will grace the official poster. It is a shot taken in a small record store in New England just before the release of his Are You Experienced album. And in support of the day, Experience Hendrix will issue a limited-edition, individually numbered seven-inch vinyl single featuring the original mono mixes of "Hey Joe" backed with "Stone Free," which have been unavailable since their original 1966 release.

John Mellencamp will headline the MJ&M Gala at the Moody Theatre in Austin, Texas on April 11th. It's a joint fundraising effort led by actor Matthew McConaughey, country musician Jack Ingram and the University of Texas head football coach Mack Brown that works to impact the lives of kids by investing in programs dedicated to empowering children.

Elton John's 21st annual Academy Awards Viewing Party Sunday in L.A. raised $6 million for his AIDS Foundation. Among those who ponied up the big bucks were Bono, Bernie Taupin, Steven Tyler, Chris Cornell and Dave Grohl.

David Crosby will perform at a benefit concert for the Lobero Theatre in Santa Barbara, California, which is near his home, on March 28th. Actor-singer Jeff Bridges is also on the bill.

DEF LEPPARD: Praise for Bowie 

Def Leppard singer Joe Elliott is so happy to see that David Bowie is back.

It's no secret that Elliott is a big Bowie fan, so it comes as no surprise that he's excited for next month's release of the album The Next Day. He also likes the way Bowie is releasing singles from the disc. The first one, "Where Are We Now," came out in January. The video for the slow, haunting track features only Bowie's head -- which Elliott thinks is brilliant. "I think he's very clever to put out a song that's probably not representative of the record. It's gonna make everything else around it sound like The New York Dolls when it comes out, no doubt." And Elliott is correct -- the second single, "The Stars (Are Out Tonight)," released this week, is an uptempo track.

The Next Day is due on March 12th.

STONE TEMPLE PILOTS: Weiland Responds to Firing

Weiland's press flack sent out a note from the singer expressing surprise about the whole thing. He says, "I learned of my supposed 'termination' from Stone Temple Pilots this morning by reading about it in the press. Not sure how I can be 'terminated' from a band that I founded, fronted and co-wrote many of its biggest hits, but that's something for the lawyers to figure out. In the meantime, I'm looking forward to seeing all of my fans on my solo tour, which starts this Friday.

THE WHO: Behind Daltrey's Blue Eyes

Roger Daltrey did something special for a Who fan in New Hampshire.

Last Sunday, as Daltrey was sitting in his limo en route to The Who's show in Manchester, he noticed a young girl with a cane and her family trudging through the snow to the show. The girl was wearing a Who T-shirt. Daltrey immediately arranged for them to be brought backstage before the show to meet with him where he discovered that the girl, 12-year old Josey, has been blind since birth. He then dedicated the show to her, but with one slight hiccup -- he called her Chelsea instead of Josey.

But on Monday, Daltrey reached out to Josey via Skype and apologized, saying, "I must have been thinking about the Arsenal – Chelsea soccer game." Josey's mom, Lucy, said, “We are ecstatic, Roger. You have made our dreams come true! Thank you. We are honored and so blessed!"

The Who wrapped up the North American leg of their Quadrophenia tour Tuesday night in Providence, Rhode Island. But before heading home to England, they'll play a benefit Thursday night in New York at the Theater at Madison Square Garden for Teen Cancer America and the Memorial Sloan-Kettering cancer hospital in New York. Elvis Costello will open.

DAUGHTRY: Lawsuit Drags On

Bassist Ryan Andrews, drummer Scott Crawford and guitarist Mark Perry, who played with Daughtry in his pre-fame band Absent Element, filed suit last year, claiming "fraud, breaches of fiduciary duty, unfair trade practices and other deceptive and wrongful conduct.” They claim that Daughtry’s songs “Breakdown,” “Gone” and “You Don’t Belong” feature music and lyrics from a 2005 Absent Element album, Uprooted, and that they also contributed to the hit "Home."

The judge kicked the case back to a North Carolina state court, where it will be heard.

Source: Greensboro, NC News and Record

AEROSMITH: Dreaming Big