My Roots

Let Dream Theater fans rejoice – the band has not only released a self titled album of new material this past September but on its heels comes a Technicolor bombast of the band in all its live glory via the recent chart topping double DVD Live At Luna Park [which also features a pretty cool […]

We first heard that megawatt voice on Elvin Bishop’s “Fooled Around & Fell In Love,” jolting us from our mid-seventies slumber of ballads and disco; where John Travolta had a Hot 100 single with “Let Her In” while Queen was going all “Bohemian Rhapsody.” It was a strange year in music, 1976, and with Mickey […]

Nobody likes being labeled, especially a band trying to make a name for themselves in the music world. And when your lyrics tend to sway towards the more positive with references to faith, hope and a higher power, being labeled a Christian band can sometimes make that journey a little harder. Although Jars Of Clay […]

Matt Shultz has lost his wallet. As I wait on the line near the end of our interview, he scurries about his hotel room, muttering to himself as he searches. He has to hop into a waiting van downstairs that will whisk him off to a radio interview in Chicago in a matter of minutes […]

Ok, so here’s the deal. You’re already in the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame, you’ve played in a band with one of the most innovative singer-songwriters in the modern world, you’ve toured every nook and cranny on Earth, you’ve recorded with everyone from David Bowie to Mick Jagger and you’re currently living in a […]

With the highly anticipated new record Fortress finally on store shelves, Alter Bridge has boom-boxed back with a triumph. Playing a sold out show earlier this month in Orlando, where three-fourths of the band live, they are now trekking across Europe and looking forward to a full-fledged tour on American soil in the new year. […]

Charisma is defined as a special charm that causes people to be excitedly attracted to someone. Beholding that ignitable quality can cause legions of worshipers to almost fall over themselves attempting to be closer to the light that beams forth from these people. Musicians tend to have this in abundance but it typically goes hand-in-hand […]

When it comes to bands that people love to hate, Jane’s Addiction certainly falls on the list. With two very strong personalities at the forefront of the group – Vocalist Perry Farrell and guitar player Dave Navarro – the haters are given plenty of fodder to jolly roger at the top of their Facebook pages. […]

If you think your life is busy, take a look at Dizzy Reed’s recent agenda: As the main keyboard player in Guns N Roses, he has been touring hard all over the world for the past few years. He just finished up playing with the Dead Daisies on the Uproar Festival tour, with a few […]

A few weeks ago, former RIP Magazine editor Lonn Friend stepped inside a Genesis time machine when guitar player Steve Hackett cracked open his oeuvre to release a spectral prism in Illinois. “Steve Hackett’s whimsical guitar has been swirling in my subconscious since I was eighteen years old,” Friend told me recently. “His riffs and […]

The first thing you notice when chatting with Berlin’s Terri Nunn is her laugh. It’s big and infectious. You get the feeling that she could tell the world’s worst joke but her punchline laughter would have you doubling over right alongside her. The next thing you notice is her honesty, her nonchalant comfortability talking about […]

Jeff Angell is on a mission. The frontman/guitar player for the Walking Papers is in Lubbock, Texas, and looking for a swimming pool. It’s a day off for the band, who are tearing up their headlining slot on the Ernie Ball Powered Zippo Encore Stage on the Rockstar Energy Uproar tour, and relaxing in the […]

Last week Ben Shepherd unleashed his solo album In Deep Owl. Full of haunting and hypnotically alluring tunes that furrow the brow at the deeper meanings underneath some pretty cryptic sounding lyrics, Shepherd has not three-sixtied away from his Soundgarden roots. He has just chosen an almost Lou Reed/Plastic Ono Band kaleidoscope in which to […]

Joe Satriani is at his home in San Francisco, enjoying “a sunny day, which is unusual in late July,” the guitar great explains when he calls in for our interview. “San Francisco is usually covered with fog. But it’s a sunny day. It’s nice.” When I asked him if this was actually a good time […]

There was a time in 1981 when you couldn’t turn on a radio or walk into a record store and NOT hear a track from REO Speedwagon’s Hi Infidelity. If it wasn’t “Keep On Loving You” then it was “Take It On The Run” or “In Your Letter.” The album was gargantuan. Fifteen weeks at […]

Oh to be young and talented. The past few years have seen a bumper crop of youthful up and coming musicians hitting the circuit and being recognized for their fresh new sounds. ZZ Ward comes to mind, Rival Sons and Jonathan Tyler. Add to that list Jared James Nichols, a tall and lanky blues guitar […]

“I’m not that interesting anymore cause you know me,” Todd Kerns says before breaking into a big laugh. Granted, I’ve talked with Slash’s bass player more than once but the former frontman for Canada’s uber-popular Age Of Electric and Static In Stereo has never failed to give us an interesting interview. Always entertaining, always jovial […]

Rudy Sarzo and his brother Robert are leaned over talking to a young man in a wheelchair named Clarke. It is a very exciting moment for the young fan, whose admiration for the bass player is brightly displayed on his face. The brothers spend time with him, taking some photos, signing autographs, before walking over […]

Earlier this year, photographer Ash Newell posted a link to one of Richie Kotzen’s videos on his Facebook. I don’t remember why, maybe it was for his birthday or maybe just because he wanted to remind people what a talented musician Kotzen was. For whatever reason, it worked, at least for me, as I went […]

When your first album comes out of the barrel and receives very good reviews, it can be very exciting … and then quite stressful when you start thinking about making another one. But for Harper Simon, he didn’t exactly fall under the sophomore spell as some other newbies might have. If anything, it would have […]