Rubicon Cross: There's no turning back

Firehouse front man's new band is ready to shock and awe
By Peter Lindblad

Rubicon Cross, led by Firehouse
singer CJ Snare and guitarist/songwriter
Chris Green, has released its debut LP
Religion played no part in picking the name for CJ Snare’s newest musical endeavor, Rubicon Cross. The Firehouse singer is quick to dispel any notion that it did.

“I have people coming up to me and saying, ‘Is that a religious band? Are you guys Christian or something?’” related Snare. “And I say, ‘Hell no.’”

Emphatic in his denial, Snare offers another explanation, one that has to do more with a significant event in history and the incisive wit of guitarist Chris Green’s father, now deceased.

“Chris’s dad, before he passed away, always used to say [slipping into a British accent], ‘Well, you’ve crossed the Rubicon now, haven’t you mate?’” continued Snare. “’Crossing the Rubicon’ is synonymous with committing an inexorable act or passing the point of no return. You know, there’s no turning back.”

Just as there was no turning back for Julius Caesar, when, as Snare said, he “crossed a small river in Northern Italy called the Rubicon,” Rubicon Cross has come to a crossroads of sorts. “By doing so, he committed an act of war, and he went against Roman law to do that. Now, in doing so, he had to do that, because his intention was to go back and conquer Rome, which he did. He became its first emperor.”

Rubicon Cross logo
With teeth-rattling intensity, sledgehammer riffs and thick, serpentine grooves, Rubicon Cross is making preparations for a battle of sorts, as Snare and Green – acclaimed for his work with world-class metal outfits Pride and Furyon – join forces with Pride/Furyon bassist Simon Farmery, second guitarist Jeff Lerman and Seventh Omen drummer Robert Behnke to shake up the world of melodic metal and hard rock with a devastatingly heavy and startlingly fierce self-titled debut record.

While this album, available May 19 as a deluxe edition exclusively at Best Buy and released by INgrooves Records, represents a departure from the multi-platinum selling glam-metal sound of Snare’s other, more famous band, those who know Snare best wouldn’t be at all surprised that he’d choose to go in this direction.

“Well, those are my roots, because before Firehouse, I was in a cover band called Masked Warrior,” said Snare. “We did a lot of Priest, Scorpions, Maiden, and Bon Scott and AC/DC, and stuff, and that’s all really heavy, edgy stuff, but it’s permeated with melody. And some of that is more integrated in early Firehouse, and then as Firehouse started evolving and changing, I still had that side to me that I felt needed to be expressed. And when I met the guitarist, Chris Green, he was the perfect vehicle to utilize … it was a great team. We put that harder edged side of our artistic expression out there.”

Born in London, the supremely talented Green, who teams with the fast-rising Lerman to form a scintillating dual-guitar attack, is the ideal creative foil to Snare, and the two quickly became friends after their initial meeting. Snare remembered Green leaving a strong first impression.

“I think he was playing in Spain, and I think I was standing in the balcony of a show he was performing at, and I was performing at, too,” recalled Snare. “Actually, he was touring there at the time with a band called Pride, and so was Simon, our bassist. An Irishman I was with kind of nudged me in the ribs and he said, ‘Get a load of this guy.’ And I looked down, and he was doing a solo with Pride on a song called ‘Still Raining,’ and there was just this energy coming from him. And he was just wailing, and it looked so effortless, and I could see the virtuosity of his playing. And I’m like, ‘All right, I’m going to talk to this dude. He’s probably a dick or whatever, but I don’t care. (laughs) I’m going to go down and talk to him.’ And he was one of the easiest guys to know – such a gentleman. He became my bro, man – I mean, fast friends, really fast friends.”

As a matter of fact, Snare was best man at Green’s wedding, and Green would return the favor. The marriages weren't built to last. Their unbreakable friendship has, and Snare is certain it’s had an effect on the music of Rubicon Cross.

“We went through divorces and breakups, births and deaths, and 4,000 miles of the Atlantic Ocean in between us … we were always there for each other, in the good times and the bad,” said Snare. “That bond, I think, was part of why this record resonates at the core with a lot of listeners, because it’s about a lot of experiences that we went through, and it almost just had to be written. You’ve got this amazing guitar player, and this other dude who can sing a little bit and write some songs and stuff like that, and when we came together, there was such a chemistry, that we had to get those emotions out and we had to get those feelings out.”

Along with Snare and Green, Rubicon
Cross includes bassist Simon Farmery,
drummer Robert Behnke and
second guitarist Jeff Lerman
Emotionally, Rubicon Cross is a powder keg, broken relationships and grief driving the songwriting for the record, which comes out swinging with three sonic pile drivers in “Locked and Loaded,” “Next Worst Enemy” and “Bleed With Me.”

“I think that’s one of the most important things … it’s the song,” said Snare. “Even today, it’s not just this catchy little thing for dancing or something … that fourth song is a song called ‘Save Me Within,’ and that’s about the passing of Chris’s father, and how he said … in America, we just say, ‘Save me,’ and I fought Chris on this, but because it was his dad, I let up and he said, ‘No, no, no. In England, we would say, “Save me within,” not just ‘save me,’ like not just throw me a life preserver or something, but to keep me in your heart. I said, ‘Okay.’ ‘Save Me Within’ means ‘keep me within, or keep me alive within you.’ So, the chemistry was easy, the songwriting was really, really easy, and that’s how we went.”

Assembling the rest of the band was fairly easy, too, although there was one major stumbling block.

“With Simon it was easy – our bassist, Simon Farmery – because he was already part of the crew,” said Snare. “I met him at the same time … they were playing with Pride, and then they both played in this band called Furyon, and I was always in close contact with them. I’d fly to England, and Chris and I would write a couple songs, and Simon would be around, and he’d go around to the pub and whatever, in Brighton, where they were living at the time. We just kind of hung out. We’d go for curry, which is just the most popular thing to do in England. It’s Indian food in America, but you know, good, good stuff. He met, actually, his future wife, and now his former wife (laughs), his ‘next worst enemy,’ at my wedding to the Wisconsin girl, who is now my ‘next worst enemy.’ There’s a lot of meaning behind all these songs, and they just kind of tie in. So Simon was easy.”

Behnke, as it turns out, wasn’t the first choice as drummer, but, in the end, he was the right choice.

“My neighbor, when I was [living] in Waukesha, Wis., was Mike Wengren, and he’s the drummer for Disturbed,” said Snare. “I had slipped him a copy of [our] EP when he was having his home built six houses down from mine, and finally, one day we were actually going to make this a serious thing and take it out on the road and record songs as a group, with Universal Music Group doing distribution … it was everywhere.”

Wengren was impressed with what he heard, and about six weeks later, Snare worked up the courage to ask him to join the band. It seemed like a done deal … until Disturbed guitarist Don Donegan horned in on the action.

“We were sealing the deal, and apart from like slashing our wrists or cutting our thumbs and signing it in blood, we were like 5 minutes from having the drummer in Disturbed in Rubicon Cross,” said Snare. “I remember drinking some wine with him and talking to him and everything, and Dan was right there, the guitarist for Disturbed. Finally, I’m like, ‘Okay, dude. I’m going to stumble home and get some sleep.’ I walked back to my house, and my ex-wife, who was then my wife, came with me, and he later told me this: ‘Bro, I gotta tell you, I had no idea this was going on.’”

Apparently, Donegan was about to break the news to Wengren that he wanted him for a side project called Fight Or Flight. Wengren had trouble finding the right time to tell Snare.

“Donegan had approached him with it that night right after I left,” said Snare. “He said, ‘Okay. Look bro, we’ve been drinking together for 20 years,’ and it’s like, “Okay, okay. I get it, I get it, I get it. The press would have been great, you dick (laughs).’”

Snare was joking when he said that, but, at the time, it was tough to hear. Luckily, Wengren had someone in mind who could handle the job.

“It would have been awesome,” said Snare. “Then I said, ‘Look, it doesn’t matter. It’s okay. I understand.’ But I said, ‘Well, who do you recommend?’ He said, ‘I’ll tell you a guy out of all them I’ve gone to see in Chicago …’ he says, ‘Robert Behnke. He can knock it out of the park.’ So we held some auditions for a couple of different drummers, and it was true. Robert Behnke came in, and he was just the right fit for the band. He truly, truly, truly was. And then Jeff Lerman came in, and some other guitarists as well, and Jeff just really kind of fit the bill also."

As a player, Lerman is really coming into his own, according to Snare.

"There are not many people who can go toe-to-toe with Chris Green, and I would still say Chris has the upper edge, just because he made tabs, he fills the music out more than Jeff, and [Chris] helped him a lot," said Snare. "He’s a very kind soul like that, but he definitely gave him the upper hand. So Jeff was the final addition, and that’s how the band came to be.”

As for the new record, that was a long time in the making.

Disturbed drummer Mike Wengren
came very close to joining
Rubicon Cross
“I think we started writing our first song ten years ago,” said Snare. “But we have a huge catalog of songs to show for it, too – a huge catalog, but they don’t necessarily fit this moment. We wanted it to fit together. We wanted it to be like a good book, you know what I mean? I don’t even know if anybody reads anymore. Not everybody does, so maybe it’s something else, like a good movie. And you just don’t want to take a pause. Like if you’re reading a good book, you just don’t want to put it down. It’s a page-turner, we call it. You just have to keep going. You’ve got to get to the end, it’s so good."

Snare also likes that there's a little twist at the end of the record. Subverting all expectations, down the very last song, Rubicon Cross decided to close the album with the song “All the Little Things,” an infectious, bouncy pop-punk number. Not everyone was convinced it made sense for this effort.

“Okay, so we’ve got a diverse background, and this was one of the earliest tunes,” said Snare. “And gosh, it had its detractors let’s say. In the production camps and the listening camps, and everything like that. We had written it very, very early in the morning. We felt that it contained a very strong emotional edge, and also, that it was something that was really upbeat, different and quirky. And so, everybody asked me about that one. Our producer, Rick Beato, who by the way gave Shinedown their first platinum album, and he mixed Bullet For My Valentine and Dark New Day, and a lot of bands that are in this new active rock, modern, hard, heavy genre that Rubicon Cross is in, which is really cool for me because I come from a hair-metal band, too. So, this has allowed me to do is jump out of one genre and into another, and that’s really cool. But, yeah, ‘All the Little Things’ just … I don’t know. We wanted to kind of put in something a little bit different, something a little quirky, so that it leaves you at the end kind of like a dog cocking its head (laughs). That was cool. I think it’s a good song. It’s great fun. It’s got some angst in it, too. I can see it going over very, very, very well live, everybody’s bouncing up and down and blah, blah, blah. There were a lot of people who were saying, ‘Take it off. Take it off,’ but I’m like, ‘Wait, no. We have to leave it. It’s a great talking point.’”

Another one is “Bleed With Me,” a slogan which, as a coincidence, was adopted by the U.S. Marine Corps.

“’Bleed with Me’ started first about Rubicon Cross, the band, and that we are a band of brothers,” said Snare. “And it’s about people, and it can be a band, or it could be a couple, it could be just bros, it could be co-workers … whatever, but just standing in the face of adversity and coming out on the other side better for it. That was the basic premise, but I’ve again had to do research for the lyrics. I found out, oh, that’s part of the ‘Braveheart’ movie: You know, [adopts Mel Gibson voice] ‘You’ve bled for worse, now bleed with me!’ Going back even further, it’s part of a William Shakespeare play about King Edward the Fifth. He used the same words: ‘Bleed with me.’”

In a sense, the brothers of Rubicon Cross are going to war together, presenting a united front against everything that is tearing down the music industry. It’s not like it was when Firehouse was scratching and clawing to get exposure and, ultimately, a major label deal that would catapult them to the top of the charts.

“In the old days, you had to get let into the good club, and once you were in the good club, the respect came right now,” remembered Snare. “They would actually work hard developing the artist. In other words, they’d stick with them for three albums, four albums … then, if they didn’t have success by then, they’d move on. That’s not the case anymore. You pretty much have one, two shots with songs off the first record, and if they don’t stick on the wall, you’re gone. That’s one thing. Two, you’re inundated … just like we are with media. I don’t what it was like or how old you are or anything, but when I grew up, there weren’t as many challenges. There weren’t as many bands, there weren’t as many movies, there wasn’t as much on TV. So movie stars were really movie stars, and rock stars were really rock stars, and that was different.”

For all the songwriting ability and instrumental chops they had, Firehouse got lucky, and Snare knows it.

“We got let into the good boys’ club,” said Snare. “We got let into the club, and from that point, the record company pretty much pushes you to the media and puts everything behind it. They have to be the ones that push the button in order to make it happen. And if they can hit the green light, then they’re going to spend an exorbitant amount of money at independent promotion, at radio.”

Still alive and functioning, with Snare still entrenched as lead singer, Firehouse ushered in the ‘90s with ‘80s style pop-metal hits and power ballads that had staying power on the charts. What Rubicon Cross offers is honest, balls-to-the-wall heavy metal with a keen melodic sensibility.

“Back in the days of Firehouse, the music that we were writing was considered Top 40,” said Snare. “I mean, I was on the charts with Mariah Carey … you know, whoever. You just wouldn’t see Rubicon Cross on the charts with Jay-Z or Mariah Carey or Adele or Beyonce, or whatever. I would love that, but I don’t think that’ll happen, especially not as heavy as we are. It’s kind of a niche market … radio is much more of a conglomerate, a corporate type of entity, as well as MTV not playing as many videos as they did when they first came out and now that’s much more controlled. Also, anybody can make music now, so you have to wade through the muck, the mire of maybe less than great music. And there’s just so much more of everything out there. And that includes television. That includes all media. So it’s harder to find, but when you do find it, I think it still has that same ring of truth to it. It still attaches itself to your heart and to your soul, and when you find that, it’s real.”

CD Review: Rubicon Cross – Rubicon Cross

CD Review: Rubicon Cross – Rubicon Cross
INgrooves Records
All Access Rating: A-

Rubicon Cross - S/T 2014
Forget for a moment that CJ Snare was, and still is, the lead singer of early '90s pop-metal kingpins Firehouse. In the here and now, although Firehouse is still very much alive and well, it's the much heavier and more aggressive Rubicon Cross that demands your full and undivided attention.

A shock to a melodic hard-rock system that needed a jolt of electricity, with a surprise ending nobody will see coming and a raft of strong melodies, the metallic debut album from Rubicon Cross was designed by Snare and songwriting partner Chris Green, a shredding assassin of a guitarist who unloads a fusillade of smoking riffage and searing, armor-piercing solos from an instrument he treats as a lethal weapon. And to beef up their sound, they brought in some musical muscle in the form of Pride/Furyon bassist Simon Farmery, second guitarist Jeff Lerman and Seventh Omen drummer Robert Behnke.

Fueled by raw emotions, heated to a boil by marital discord, feelings of betrayal, sadness over the death of a beloved father and a more uplifting sense of tight brotherhood in the face of adversity, the INgrooves Records release opens its mouth and roars, its big, snaking grooves hissing and lashing out with venomous intent in the face of a powerful, three-pronged storm front of "Locked and Loaded," "Next Worst Enemy" and "Bleed With Me." 

Minus the sleaze, Rubicon Cross is like Velvet Revolver on steroids, its modern hard-rock sheen shined up by producer Rick Beato, who strengthened records by the likes of Shinedown and Fozzy. These are big, thick slabs of rock, as "You Will Remember Me" and "Kill or Be Killed" grow increasingly more tumescent and dynamic with every spin, where the affecting acoustic ballad "Shine" and the more tender, yet still fully loaded and surging with power, "Save Me Within" and "Moving On" leave Rubicon Cross beautifully exposed and vulnerable. 

Clear and distinctive, Snare's vocals are all heart, and they rise above this din. And when Rubicon Cross reveals its pop-punk surprise finale, the infectious Green Day/Blink 182-like "All the Little Things," it's evident that all involved aren't entirely bitter or angry about all they've been through, and that this band might just be their salvation. An exclusive deluxe edition of the record will be available May 19 at Best Buy, and it comes with a poster and bonus tracks. It'd be worth the investment just to see what else Rubicon Cross have up their sleeves.
– Peter Lindblad

CD/DVD Review: Dio – Live in London: Hammersmith Apollo 1993

CD/DVD Review: Dio – Live in London: Hammersmith Apollo 1993
Eagle Rock Entertainment
All Access Rating: A-

Dio - Live In London: Hammersmith
Apollo 1993
Four years after the death of Ronnie James Dio left the heavy metal community in a state of profound mourning comes "Live in London: Hammersmith Apollo 1993," the first-ever video release of a professionally shot classic concert from, what was at the time, a newly reconfigured Dio touring the Strange Highways album.

Looked at by some as the start of a downward spiral for Dio and applauded by others as a much-needed change of lyrical scenery, Strange Highways was made with new parts, as the legendary singer and longtime collaborator Vinny Appice, having left Black Sabbath after Dehumanizer, revived Dio with former Dokken bassist Jeff Pilson, new guitar slinger Tracy G and Warrant keyboardist Scott Warren in tow.

Gone were the trappings of medieval fantasy that had fired his imagination in the beginning, as Dio started exploring matters of a more contemporary nature. Not everyone was onboard with the shift in emphasis, but at the Hammersmith Apollo on this December 12, 1993 evening, Dio made amends to those who accused him of heresy. Raining down fire and brimstone as only he can with his extraordinary vocal firepower, Dio led the band on a blazing march through his gloriously sinister past and a defiant charge into the band's then-current material, breathing fresh life into the churning title track, the dark and impossibly heavy "Hollywood Black" and a ferocious version of "Jesus, Mary & the Holy Ghost."

Without the distractions of mechanical dragons and castle ruins cluttering up the stage, Dio brawls with favorites from his Sabbath days, attacking "The Mob Rules," "Children of the Sea" and "Heaven and Hell" with vim and vigor. The heightened drama of "The Last in Line" soars, while the powerhouse anthems "We Rock" and "Stand Up and Shout" throws their fists in the air and race recklessly ahead. Mystical and melodic, "Don't Talk to Strangers" is both pretty and poisonous, while the gnarled hooks and animalistic growls of "Holy Diver" and "Rainbow in the Dark" raise the dead.

More than capable as a guitar shredder, Tracy G rips through hot-wired solos and wrenches tough, smoldering riffs from his instrument, as Pilson and Appice pound away rhythmically, their teamwork during Appice's drum solo causing seismic tremors. Edited to capture the breathtaking pace and excitement of a band playing with urgency, passion and energy, the crystal-clear "Live in London: Hammersmith Apollo 1993" boasts stellar camera work, shooting from a wide range of angles and with an innate sense of when to go close on Dio and his talented henchmen and when to pull back and gauge the crowd's reactions. Add a vintage "Hanging with the Band" featurette that provides an enjoyable glimpse into life backstage before and after the performance, and the package becomes even more vital.

Available on DVD, Blu-ray and as a two-CD set from Eagle Rock Entertainment, "Live in London: Hammersmith Apollo 1993" is also impressive sonically, a fitting tribute to an artist whose work will live on well after his passing.
– Peter Lindblad

Rubicon Cross unveil new video for 'Bleed With Me'

Shoot for the new clip was 'jinxed'

Rubicon Cross 2014
Shooting their latest video proved difficult for Rubicon Cross. The results, however, proved it was all worth it.

The majority of hard rock bands that manage to break through to the masses do so with a killer video clip. 

And Rubicon Cross has a worthy one on their hands with "Bleed with Me," off their fast-rising self-titled album, of which a "deluxe edition" will be available for purchase on May 19th exclusively through BestBuy (which comes with a poster and bonus tracks):


Shot in Racine, WI, the band (which is comprised of Firehouse's CJ Snare/vocals, Chris Green/lead guitars, Jeff Lerman/second guitar, Simon Farmery/bass, and Robert Behnke/drums), had this to say about the video shoot:

"I can't believe we did it! The "'Bleed with Me' video seemed jinxed at every turn. We had about five venues cancel on us before a friend [Brett Ihde - director of sales at Magnificent Events] came through with the abandoned warehouse less than two days before we started shooting. What we accomplished in 48 hours made us wonder how bands even use to spend $300,000 on a video. Thanks to friends and colleagues, we came up with a video we're incredibly proud of, and the help we received only reinforced the message of the song, when you have a band of brothers, anything is possible!"

And according to the band, other highlights of the shoot included:

--The amount of red brick dust in the factory coated every bit of our equipment.

--Behnke's drums were shot in a service elevator.

--The lighting was created by volunteers waving lights above the drums.

--Simon the bass player refused to go in a room with spiders so was shot in a hallway.

--The band shot a "Hello Cleveland" tribute to Spinal Tap that day, soon to be released.

--CJ's flight was so held up in traffic that the band had shot the drum AND bass shots already by the time he got there.

--Expecting nothing, Brett Ihde had laid on full catering including, sandwiches, cold meat buffet, chips, candy, large bottle of Jager, vodka, Jack, crate of Guinness and crate of lager (these got consumed during the process of the video).

--Band started drinking at 11am.

To see for yourself what all the buzz is about surrounding the "Bleed for Me" video, visit:

And also be sure to check out the making of the "Bleed with Me" video:

Glenn Hughes: A different 'Breed' of singer

Legendary singer/bassist talks vocals for Calfornia Breed
By Peter Lindblad

Glenn Hughes 2014
Glenn Hughes doesn't labor over a multitude of vocal takes in the studio. It's not a sign of arrogance. He's just convinced the first one is almost always the best.

So, why mess with it? 

"If anybody knows anything about Glenn Hughes, it's never more than two takes of vocals for me," said Hughes. "There are singers – I won't name names – who have to sing 60 or 70 times on a song. I'm not that guy. Any more than three times, and it's like a job, and I don't want it to be a job."

Known for years as the "Voice of Rock," Hughes is one of the greatest singers in rock history, having lent his wildly soulful vocal stylings to classic recordings by Deep Purple, Trapeze and Black Sabbath's Tony Iommi, and, in more recent years, the highly acclaimed super group Black Country Communion.  

His latest project, formed in the aftermath of Black Country Communion's dissolution, is the power trio California Breed, featuring drummer Jason Bonham and guitar phenomenon/singer-songwriter Andrew Watt. 

California Breed - S/T 2014
Due out May 20, on Frontiers Records, California Breed's raucous, swaggering self-titled debut of riff-heavy, powerhouse '70s rock takes its cues from Led Zeppelin and Humble Pie, with a little bit of psychedelic soul thrown in for good measure. 

Produced by David Cobb (Rival Sons, Shooter Jennings) at his home studio in Nashville, California Breed's first shot across the bow is a devastating knockout punch, brimming with strong hooks and exuding attitude. 

One of the reasons for the record's immediacy is Cobb's treatment of Hughes's vocals, and the knob-twiddler was rather sneaky about it. Hughes might just be Cobb's biggest fan.

"We knew Cobb was going to produce us six months before we went to Nashville," Hughes related. "We got him in, because Dave is a fan of my band Trapeze. He’s also a Zeppelin fan, as you can imagine. And then I started talking to Dave every couple of weeks on the phone in Nashville, and he’s in L.A. I’d play him stuff over the phone. I wouldn’t send him any stuff on e-mail, I’d just play him stuff organically over the phone, kind of old school. He asked me, 'Well, what do you want to do? Do you want to record this on to tape, or do you want to go …' And I said, 'Let’s make that decision when we get to Nashville.' And we made that decision the morning of the session. We had a decision to go analog, and we all said sort of, 'Let’s go analog.' And Dave said to me, 'You got the lyrics?' I said, 'I do.' He said, 'You got the melodies?' I said, 'I do. Yeah, yeah, I think I’ve got all the melodies and lyrics.' He said, 'Good. How do you feel about Jason and Andrew cutting, and then you overdubbing later on the bass?' I said, 'Sure. Where’s the microphone?' And he said, 'You’re going to be in a booth, and let’s go record.' And basically, I sang to the tracks."

Hughes figured he'd have more work to do the next day. Cobb was rather coy about it.

"So long story short, we recorded the songs, and then I overdubbed the bass, and then I went to bed," said Hughes. "And the next morning, I went to the studio and I said to Dave Cobb, 'Now, I’m going to sing.' And he said, 'Oh no, you’re not. You’ve already sung the album.' Now, he wasn’t tricking me. I know I was recording, but I never actually questioned to myself whilst I was singing, 'I wonder if this is good enough?' I was just singing, just singing, like The Beatles used to do in 1964 on a four-track. To me, when I sing … I mean, I write this shit, and it envelopes inside of me, and it just lives inside of me until I record it. Normally, the way I’ve been recording for the last 20 years, when I sing it for the first time, it’s normally the way I want it to be, whether it’s something I’m overdubbing later or whether it’s like it’s this instance where it’s done live. Hats off to Dave Cobb, full marks from me, two thumbs up from me – he really captured me completely live, and I want to thank him for that. 

Of Cobb, Hughes added, "He f**king captured me for the first time since 1969 completely live."

Hughes is understandably excited about the new album, feeling its some of the best work of his legendary career.

"I’m going to be honest with you, man," said Hughes. "There was nothing technical about this album. When you listen to the songs, (sings a riff), it’s pushing full. We’re not Led Zeppelin, but Led Zeppelin was push and pull. This is life and shape and push and pull, and it’s breathy and it’s aggressive, it’s soulful, it’s harsh, it’s brash, it’s sensitive – it’s everything it started out for me in 1969. This album was written in the wind for me to record, with these two guys."

We'll have more of our interview with Glenn Hughes in due time.



CD Review: Prong – Ruining Lives

CD Review: Prong – Ruining Lives
Steamhammer/SPV
All Access Rating: A-

Prong - Ruining Lives 2014
Tommy Victor threw away the rulebook when Prong was formed, his experiences as a sound man at the famed punk club CBGBs undoubtedly opening up his mind to what was possible musically.

Always a little different and usually way ahead of the curve, the daring New York City alternative-metal outsiders introduced old-school hardcore hostility to trash-metal, while occasionally trespassing the fenced-in junkyards of harsh industrial noise and electronic squalor to steal taboo sounds and allowing undercurrents of rumbling, Killing Joke-style post-punk brooding to seep into their violent urban sonic wasteland.

All of this, of course, being subservient to Victor's rampaging, brutally efficient guitar riffs, Prong's pounding rhythmic machinery and the toughest, most tenacious hooks around. Now comes Ruining Lives, a Steamhammer/SPV release that's a dark, streamlined whirlwind of activity, with Prong's relentless energy cloaked in unexpectedly rich and full tonality. As one surgical riff strike after another is detonated, the sleek and powerful Ruining Lives races forward, with Victor's clear, forceful vocals issuing a series of enigmatic calls to arms, breaking through the record's glossy sheen.

Harnessing all of Prong's far-flung influences and aggression in a controlled burn, Ruining Lives consists of songs of sturdy construction and ferocious pace, never sitting in one place long enough to grow bored. Less angry, but still provocative lyrically, Victor sets out to free the soul from whatever binds and oppresses it, exploring themes of metropolitan alienation and self-determinant living as the threesome slams headlong into the bruising opener "Turnover" and its hard-hitting successor "The Barriers." Later experimenting with a new time signature, Prong turns the innovative "Come to Realize" inside-out, injecting it with an "out of left field" riff that, if nothing else, proves the band is still capable of surprising people.

High-speed, high-impact material like "The Book of Change" thrive on pure audio adrenaline, but the title track is a heavy, more ponderous beast that grows more powerful by the second, as do the moody "Absence of Light" and "Remove, Separate Self," two songs with quickening tempos and gripping, galvanizing choruses. Still as disciplined as Helmet, but with Killing Joke's subversive melodic sensibilities bubbling up from the cold, hard ground, Prong hasn't ruined anything, including their chances for record of the year.
– Peter Lindblad


CD Review: Ian Anderson – Homo Erraticus

CD Review: Ian Anderson – Homo Erraticus
Calliandra Records
All Access Rating: B+

Ian Anderson - Homo Erraticus 2014
There appears to be little hope of Jethro Tull ever being reconvened. Ian Anderson, it seems, doesn't see the point of it, especially when Homo Erraticus, his latest solo album, is just as delightfully eclectic and elaborately conceived as anything he's ever done.

Highly literate, as the tale of Tull fan favorite Gerald Bostock continues to unfold, Homo Erraticus weaves dramatic storytelling, evocative language and curmudgeonly social commentary through oddball folk-flavored progressive-rock compositions that rival the edgy, but often charming, eccentricities of Thick As a Brick or Aqualung. 

Wandering through Homo Erraticus takes hours, not a few minutes of simply cycling through 10-second bites, hoping something sparks a reaction, although "The Turnpike Inn" – bouncing with accordion breezes, although still vaguely unsettling – and "New Blood, Old Veins," so jaunty and spirited, are immediately appealing and compelling. More in keeping with the Tull of old and heavily influenced by Renaissance music, the sinister "Doggerland" and "The Pax Britannica" mix Old World classicism with slight electric rock dissonance and ever-evolving melodies, as Anderson's flute trills and flights of fancy grow ever more prominent.

When exploring Homo Erraticus, leave a trail of breadcrumbs. It's a maze of contradictions, with a great sense of musical and lyrical adventure that's not weighed down by its heavy intellect. Although songs flow easily, there are the occasional sharp turns, as Anderson and company – keyboardist John O'Hara, bassist David Goodier, guitarist Florian Opahle, drummer Scott Hammond and singer Ryan O'Donnell – stumble upon the solemn, church-like organ hymn "Meliora Sequamur" and slip into the soft, warm, colorful jazz instrumental "Tripudium Ad Bellum." And "Heavy Metals" and "In for a Pound" are beautifully rendered acoustic pieces, but there are lulls.

Though the verses of "Enter the Uninvited" are endearingly melodic, when Anderson simply reads off a list of banal pop culture references, fast-food joints and modern technological conveniences, it's a stale recitation that seems bereft of context. And then there's the dry creek bed known as "Puer Ferox Adventus," stagnant, lifeless and devoid of anything truly interesting, where with everywhere else there is natural movement and energy. Nevertheless, Homo Erraticus is theatrical, instrumentally diverse, dense with metaphor and description, full of historical treatises and it is surprisingly lighthearted – proof positive that Anderson is as playful and inventive as ever.
– Peter Lindblad

Firehouse gets bad advice from Jon Bon Jovi?

CJ Snare's new band, Rubicon Cross, readies heavy debut
By Peter Lindblad

Firehouse singer CJ Snare leads Rubicon Cross,
a new band that includes guitarist Chris Green,
bassist Simon Farmery, drummer Robert Behnke
 and guitarist Jeff Lerman.
To get as far as he has in the music industry, it stands to reason that Jon Bon Jovi is pretty shrewd when it comes to instincts about songs and the business in general.

And yet, as singer CJ Snare remembers it, had Firehouse heeded some advice he gave them long ago, the chart-topping '90s glam-metal stars might never have gotten off the ground.

The story has to do with the ubiquitous Firehouse smash hit "Love of a Lifetime," which Snare penned in a West Virginia bar. He then shared writing credit on the song with Firehouse guitarist Bill Leverty when the band was playing as a hotel lounge act to scratch out a living.

"Jon Bon Jovi heard it and said, 'Throw it away, it’ll ruin your career,'" said Snare.

Snare still fronts Firehouse, but he also has a new band called Rubicon Cross, which bears little resemblance to his other, more famous one. Rugged, crushingly heavy and emotionally intense, Rubicon Cross will release its self-titled debut album May 19, and it is driven by massive, roiling guitar riffs and pummeling rhythms while still possessing a keen melodic sensibility. Get a taste of it here:



In the distant past, however, when he was just starting out, Snare used to play solo gigs at a piano at a Holiday Inn. That's when he got the inspiration for "Love of a Lifetime."

"And the club owner there, he would come down and he would let me mess around, get a beer, and I’d be writing songs and go on back in the cooler, do whatever you want to do. And I would get free draft beer or whatever, and he’d say (whispers), 'Go ahead and do it.' And I’m like, 'Okay.' So I went down there, and I wrote 'Love of a Lifetime.'"

With some embarrassment, Snare recalled how the core group that would comprise Firehouse formed a lounge band. "Don’t tell anybody … sshhhh," laughed Snare.

Along with a keyboardist, the act included Bill Leverty on guitar, Michael Foster on drums, and Perry Richardson on bass guitar, " ... and we were doing all kinds of variety of jobs … anything to support ourselves while we were trying to get White Heat going, which became Firehouse. We had to change the name because the record company thought it would be confusing with White Lion, Whitesnake … there were too many 'White' bands out there."

A demo was recorded with Slaughter's Dana Strum and Mark Slaughter producing it.

"At the time, we shared a two-bedroom apartment in Los Angeles," said Snare. "We recorded it in Cherokee Studios out in Los Angeles, and they had boxes and boxes of cassette tapes, and 8x10s of people who were trying to be in what was going to be Slaughter."

Slaughter won the American Music Award for Best New Hard Rock/Heavy Metal Band the year before Firehouse followed suit in 1991. "Love of a Lifetime" had a lot to do with it, but that song almost didn't see the light of day.

"We had done a different ballad altogether because of Jon’s advice, and the record company came to us, and they said, 'You know, how about a power ballad? You know, they’re really hitting big on the top of the charts and everything, so we just don’t think you have one quite strong enough. Maybe we could bring in some outside writers and help you out,'" related Snare. "And I kind of really reluctantly raised my hand and said, 'Well, I’ve got another one.' And the guys said, 'No, no, no, no.' You know what that song was? It didn’t ruin our career. It actually helped make our career."

It was always a favorite among fans, even before Firehouse reached dizzying heights of fame and fortune in the '90s, before grunge came along.

"Yeah, back in the lounge band days, man, we used to pack the dance floor with that one," said Snare. "Yeah … oh yeah. It was big man."

The logo for Rubicon Cross
Now comes Rubicon Cross, a group Snare formed with London-born guitar virtuoso Chris Green. The release date for their new album, due out on INgrooves Records, a Universal imprint, is about a couple weeks away, but a few days beforehand, on May 15, Rubicon Cross will play a record release show in the Chicago area with Fozzy and Heaven's Basement. Visit www.rubiconcross.net for the particulars.

Of the upcoming Rubicon Cross record, Snare said, "It’s more aggressive. You listen to this record, it sounds almost live. It’s in your face. It’s got a 2014-2015 stamp on it, it is way heavier, but you can’t hide my voice, it is what it is. But it’s in a different vehicle, and I think that makes all the difference. We’ve already got a Firehouse. We don’t need another one."

And yet, after doing a double-take at hearing the new stuff, fans of Firehouse should find something to love about Rubicon Cross.

"Yeah, it’s going to surprise a lot of people when they hear it in this particular vehicle," said Snare. "But then again, I think they’ll get used to it very quickly, because it’s not unnatural. It’s very organic."

Snare also revealed that physical copies of the new record and a deluxe edition of it, with bonus tracks, a poster and lyrics included, will be available at 600 Best Buy stores around the country and prominently displayed in the "Nikki Sixx Sixth Sense" area. 

As for Firehouse, they're not sitting idly by this summer.

"Now I’m hoping to make a new and different contribution with Rubicon Cross, and I just will say [to Firehouse fans], don’t despair," said Snare. "Your Firehouse band is still here and we’re coming at you, just like we always have, like in 1990 when the first album came out. We’re coming at you. We’ve got a full touring schedule. I just spoke to our agent today and my tour manager, and we’re going to be out there."

Keep watching this space for a more complete version of our interview with CJ Snare.

CD Review: Black Label Society – Catacombs of the Black Vatican

CD Review: Black Label Society – Catacombs of the Black Vatican
eOne Music
All Access Rating: A-

Black Label Society - Catacombs of
the Black Vatican 2014
Whatever horrors there are hiding in the Catacombs of the Black Vatican they can't possibly be any more terrifying than what's yet to be discovered in Zakk Wylde's scraggly beard.

Nevertheless, the ninth album from the biker-metal doomsayers in Wylde's Black Label Society is certainly gloomy and eerie in places, this cavernous dungeon of monstrously heavy riffs, deep-dredging melodies, squealing solos and a few gritty ballads all haunted by painful memories and reeking of death.

Rummaging through the Catacombs of the Black Vatican, the old bones and skulls of Black Label Society's past are encountered, but do not linger in those sealed-off vaults. Wylde certainly doesn't. Although the brawny guitars, wicked grooves and rumbling rhythms found here have a familiar ring, there is a fresh vitality to this material that's palpable, throwing everything good about Alice in Chains, Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath and even Southern rock in a boiling cauldron and casting timeless spells with those magical ingredients.

An absolute pile driver, its great mass heaving to and fro, "Fields of Unforgiveness" delivers a great pounding, while the stoned, churning blues of "Believe" is especially thick and meaty, its repeated riff not only powerful, but also memorable, seemingly feeding off its own energy. And in "My Dying Time," another in a long line of grungy, riff-heavy tracks with elongated, almost graceful curves, Wylde, sounding more like Layne Staley than ever before, confronts his mortality without fear, whereas the growling "I've Gone Away" and a very dark, Black Sabbath-like "Empty Promises" – Wylde's solo here is a shower of sparks – crawl through a sonic gutter bloody and vengeful.

Strong, shifting melodic currents run through Catacombs of the Black Vatican, as it swerves and bends to the mighty will of its creators, little flowers of sonic beauty sprouting through cracks in the hard sonic cement. Nonetheless, thanks in large part of Wylde's affecting vocals, the ballads "Angel of Mercy" and "Scars" somehow manage to sound both earthy and lush, each as pretty as anything in the Black Label Society canon, the latter inheriting its Southern accent directly from the Allman Brothers. Blessed be the Black Label Society.
– Peter Lindblad




Track listing for Judas Priest album released

'Redeemer of Souls' due out July 15

Judas Priest to release 'Redeemer of Souls' July 15
The legendary Judas Priest is about to roll out Redeemer of Souls, their newest record, on July 15 via Epic Records. And now, the track listing is available.

What promises to be a return to the classic Priest sound, Redeemer of Souls will be released as a standard version and a deluxe edition with five bonus tracks, with "March of the Damned" serving as the lead-off single.

The band says, "We feel Redeemer of Souls reinforces or passion for what we believe in from the Judas Priest style of heavy metal."

This is Richie Faulkner's studio debut with Priest, and he is co-writer of the material with fellow guitarist Glenn Tipton and singer Rob Halford. Bassist Ian Hill and drummer Scott Travis round out the lineup for Redeemer of Souls.

Priest's last studio effort, Nostradamus, came out in 2008, and the band calls the new one a "classic combination of all the statements we love to create with raging guitar riffs and solos, thundering drums, thick grooves of bass and vocals tearing it all up!" 

Here's the track listing for Redeemer of Souls:

Dragonaut
Redeemer of Souls
Halls of Valhalla
Sword of Damocles
March of the Damned
Down in Flames
Hell & Back
Cold Blooded
Metalizer
Crossfire
Secrets of the Dead
Battle Cry
Beginning of the End

Bonus Tracks:
Snakebite
Tears of Blood
Creatures
Bring It On
Never Forget


CD Review: Helstar – This Wicked Nest

CD Review: Helstar – This Wicked Nest
AFM Records
All Access Rating: A-

Helstar- This Wicked Nest 2014
A line in the sand was drawn with 2010's Glory Out of Chaos. Helstar leader James Rivera, he of the King Diamond-like wail, has stated unequivocally that " … we will not go any further into the extreme." 

And yet, after putting out an equally brutal new record called This Wicked Nest, available now on AFM Records, Helstar doesn't seem interested in toning down its intensity or aggressiveness. Seeing red and pawing at the ground, this enraged power/thrash metal Texas bull that's been around for more than 30 years rams its horns into a rugged, full-throttle succession of punishing tracks, each one angrier and more visceral than the last. 

With the blackened, doom-laden epic "Cursed" the exception to this harsh rule, its slow Sabbath-like crawl lashed with a mixture of anguish and hopeless futility, This Wicked Nest brings forth a pounding blitzkrieg of punishing tracks like "Eternal Black," "Souls Cry" and the stampeding, bone-crushing "It Has Risen," not to mention the sinister, brawling title track.

Once again venturing beyond its comfort zone, Helstar forms itself into a relentless sonic juggernaut, its blazing guitars and trampling, bludgeoning drums gaining more speed and energy as they propel themselves through the blistering, frenzied "Defy the Swarm," where Rivera, the former Vicious Rumors singer's vocal histrionics as high-flying and expressive as ever, goes where only Rob Halford dares. And guitarists Larry Barragan and Rob Trevino are just as potent throughout This Wicked Nest, their electrifying, bruising riffs full of white-hot intensity as they never fail to display increasingly dynamic technical skill. 

Slightly more melodic than its predecessor, there is evil, and some good, in the heart of This Wicked Nest, as well as defiance – the anti-tyranny sentiments expressed with such hostility in "Fall of Dominion," the song where Helstar's power-metal glory comes shining through in a fantastically intertwined twin-guitar helix. More compositional diversity and a variety of tempos would be welcome on the next Helstar release, but it's impossible to deny what a powerfully produced and vigorous performance this truly is. Indeed, something Wicked this way comes.
– Peter Lindblad

A little taste of the new Judas Priest record

Legendary metal band's 17th album due out July 15


Artwork for the track 'Redeemer of Souls,'
the first single from Priest's upcoming LP
For U.S. fans of Judas Priest that simply cannot wait for the July 15th release date of their latest classic metal album, Redeemer of Souls, there is some relief on the way. 

And if you are wondering what to expect from the mighty Priest on their forthcoming album, guitarist Glenn Tipton has set the record straight. "Sometimes in the past we may have come under fire for being too adventurous musically – so we have listened!! From start to finish Redeemer of Souls is 13 songs of pure classic Priest metal!!"

On Tuesday, April 29, the title track from the album will be available for purchase via iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/redeemer-of-souls-single/id863086125) and other digital service providers. And a clip of the song (plus the single's artwork) is now available to sample at the band's website, judaspriest.com.

There are only a select number of bands that have accomplished what Judas Priest has throughout their career (as well as having served as a stylistic influence on such a wide variety of bands). Soon the group – singer Rob Halford, guitarists Glenn Tipton and Richie Faulkner, bassist Ian Hill and drummer Scott Travis  will be offering up more classic Judas Priest metal with the release of Redeemer of Souls.