Devin Townsend: Honestly man, it was combination of events, but more than anything, as I got older I found that it was making me really paranoid. Out of the blue as well, I've heard from other folks my age that 'all of a sudden' weed stopped being enjoyable, was more like work to avoid the freak out. No biggie, I had 10 solid years of being a hippie!

You have toured all over the world Devin, tell us Louevil readers what your wildest tour story is, and don't hold back on us!

Devin Townsend: I have had two girlfriends in my life and I married the second one 20 years ago. I read books and listen to folk music in the back of the bus. Every now and then I'll masturbate myself to sleep while crying, but for real, I'm not much of a party guy so I don't really know what to tell you, except 'this one time...at band camp'....

What would you like to say to your fans here in the Ohio Valley Region regarding you returning to Louevil and headlining (thank god) on July 7 at Phoenix Hill Tavern?

Devin Townsend: Sh*t yeah, fellow nerds! Let's get totally sober together! Wooooooooooo!!! World of Warcraft bitches!!!!

Thanks for your time Devin. I'm stoked to be able to hear a full set of your new music! I got band practice that night, but I'm telling them they can suck it, I'm leaving early! I'll be there for sure bro and will pass along the word the best I can.

Devin Townsend: If they end up sucking it, let us know!

Cinderella in Lexington Review:

What in the world? Why was there no word in Louevil about Cinderella coming to Lexington, Kentucky with all of the original members? It was shocking that no one in Louisville knew about it till I posted it. I was tripping, because this is kinda a big deal. Cinderella was a huge band back in the Eighties, and everyone knew who they were. While not their biggest fan, I did like several of their songs, so I was determined to see these guys again, after 24 years or so. I saw Cinderella open for AC/DC back in the mid-Eighties, but I was much too messed up that night to give great detail. I was young and dumb and did some very powerful LSD and I was bug-eyed and tripping my sack off. I do remember that Cinderella sounded frikkin great, and that I liked them much better than AC/DC! Now I'm goodly and drug free!

Lizzy Borden in Indianapolis, July 2011

Photo By Eddy Metal

Lizzy Borden in Indianapolis, July 2011

Photo By Eddy Metal

Lizzy Borden in Indianapolis, July 2011

Photo By Eddy Metal

Lizzy Borden in Indianapolis, July 2011

Photo By Eddy Metal

Lizzy Borden in Indianapolis, July 2011

Photo By Eddy Metal

Lizzy Borden in Indianapolis, July 2011

Photo By Eddy Metal

Well, it was time for a trip back in time, and that's what I got alright. The venue was called Buster's Billiards. I was expecting a smaller venue with the capacity of 300 to 500 people, but what I got was a monster of a club that was converted from a warehouse or storage facility. The place was twice the size of Headliners Music Hall.

At least 3000 crazed Eighties rock fans crammed into that place, until the walls were buckling. There was no air conditioning, so all those people were friggin roasting, like myself. It was probably 120 degrees in there.

Unfortunately, I got lost getting there and missed Lexington's Superunknown, a super-good band of friendly rockers with a frikkin killer singer, probably one of the best in Kentucky . Then John Corabi played an acoustic set of decent tunes. You remember John Corabi, right? He is the cat who replaced Vince Neil in Motley Crue when Neil left the band way back when. John Corabi kicked Vince Neil's ass in every category in my opinion. Corabi still looked young and sounded great, I must say, although I didn't know the songs he was playing. He was just sort of fargin off a bit, I reckon. Corabi ended his set and people were getting excited, because it was soon to be Cinderella time! I saw all kinds of people I knew, from both here in Louisville, to people in central Kentucky who used to come see my old band Inhuman play in Richmond, Lexington and Frankfort. It was great seeing all my old friends again. Some I barely recognized, it had been so long!

And guys, the women in Lexington this night were amazing. Super hot Eighties tight-pants-wearin hotties. Smokin' hot chicks! Cinderella doesn't mess around, they draw the good stuff. I felt 15 years younger and if I hadn't had a date that night, I would have been one naughty mofo.

Cinderella was coming on soon, so I took my butt up front in front of the stage to get pics. I was in front of the barricade by myself, looking at the sea of miserably hot but happy concertgoers who were packed like sardines in a can. About that time, the crowd parted and started yelling at me to get somebody who works there, that some chick had fainted in the crowd. I looked around and no guards were around but one tiny security guy who weighed 150 wet, if that. I was like "hey dude, some chick needs yer help over here!" So he comes over and climbs the barricade and looks at the woman on the ground. The chick was about 300 lbs and the little security dude was figuring out how to get her out of that sea of people/heat. Her shirt had come up and it was a hideous sight seeing dude try to pack her by himself. It took four dudes to get her over that barricade! I was like "omg." She ended up being okay though, thank god. But yes, it was quite funny seeing those dudes struggle lifting her over that high barricade The owner of that club should have had some kind of cooling system installed, because this was dangerous.

Then the lights went out and out came Cinderella! It had been many years since the Eighties and I expected old men with some serious signs of aging, but I was happy to see that these guys were not bad off. In fact, they looked pretty darn good and moved about all night like teenagers. The sound system at Buster's was awesome. Every lead from Jeff Labar was in your face and right on the money! Tom Kiefer was a blur of movement as he constantly changed guitars and mixed stuff up. He had Gibsons, Fenders, an acoustic and a double-necked Gibson, I think it was! I always admired Tom's ability to play and sing at the same time. He makes it look easy. Bassist Eric Brittingham looked way different, I barely recognized him. He had short, dark hair and had gained a little weight (he wasn't that big though), which is a big difference from the long, blonde spiky-haired and skinny kid we had grown accustomed to. Drummer Fred Coury was tight as hell, too.

The band ripped through songs like "Shake Me," "Heartbreak Station," "Somebody Save Me," "Coming Home," "Don't Know What You Got Till Its Gone," and ended the night with a killer version of "Long Cold Winter" that had a real good bluesy sound that reminded me of some vintage Stevie Ray Vaughn. They encored with"Shelter Me." <y favorite parts of the show were when they played "Night Songs" and "Nobody's Fool." Jeff Labar's lead during "Night Songs" was dead on and sounded even better than back in the day! I liked that Jeff was playing Kramer guitars. Back in the day I used to love and have owned Kramer guitars! Tom's voice was a hair rough at first for a song or two, but then he warmed up and was rocking just fine. I thought he sounded pretty darn good, considering his rough raspy style that seems like it would be hard to do everyday and still keep your voice. This was a good show at a decent venue, even though it was extremely hot in that hotbox. It was a rare gem of a show and I'm glad I made the hour drive to see it. Thanks to Tim at Cinderella's Record Label for the tickets! Also thanks to the guys in Superunknown for going out of their way to help a friend. You guys rock!

Lizzy Borden in Indy Review:

In a way, Lizzy Borden taught me how to sing. I used to sing his albums word for word back in the Eighties and everyone knows that Lizzy is a vocal powerhouse, so I got better and better until I formed my own band. Thanks for the tips and practice. Lizzy! I love ya. bro.

When I first heard that Eighties shock-rock L.A metal master Lizzy Borden was coming to Indianapolis, I was beyond stoked. I had never gotten the chance to see Lizzy perform live, so I vowed to not miss this show even if I had to drive two hours.

Boy, was I glad I went to Indy.

Lizzy was always sort of an outcast in the L.A metal scene. His music was different and not so commercial as the other popular Eighties bands, like Motley Crue and Poison. Lizzy was more of an American Iron Maiden-type of music rather than the typical cheese that was so abundant back then. It was weird, it was hooky, it was fargin addicting! The musicians in his band were excellent, too. I loved his stuff from the get go. I got my whole darn neighborhood into Lizzy Borden as a kid. Before, those Kentucky redneck dinosaurs were listening to nothing but Sabbath and Zeppelin. So me introducing Lizzy to them was a welcome shocker, something heavy and different. Fresh. Those rednecks ate it up!

Lizzy's voice decimated other L.A vocalists back in the Eighties, too.

Vince Neil? Brett Michaels? Stephen Pearcy? None of those dudes voices could hold a candle to Lizzy's range and power live. Not even close. I once bought a bootleg of Lizzy 'Live' in 87, and his voice live in concert blew me the phuck away. Amazing!

So naturally, I was eager to see if Lizzy still had the goods.

The club was The Rock House, a 300 to 400 capacity venue kind of like Uncle Pleasants, but maybe a bit larger. We got there early and saw some good original bands from Indy called Pisstoff, Killzone, Raven's Keep and Smoke Ring. Good bands, nice people. I really like the Indy scene. They are much more friendly and less arrogant than bands down here.

After a few difficulties, Lizzy and company hit the stage in full force, instantly making me happy I was there.

Then came those awesome vocals. Ahhhhhhh, it was like finally getting to bang a chick you've had the hots for forever. Lizzy sounded great and went for every note on his recorded outings! The band Lizzy had was phenomenal. The double-lead guitar attack of Dario Lorina and AC Alexander was badass, as good as the tapes I saw of the original guitarists! I'm a guitarist, so I pay special attention to guitar detail! The guitar tones, and lead sounds were top notch, and they worked very well together with the duo leads and switching, as you would have to be with the patented melodic lead work in most of Lizzie's work. Yeah! These L.A long-haired, surfer-lookin dudes can shred. They had that Eighties L.A look about them, and the Indiana chicks there were all over them.

Drummer Joey Scott and bassist Marten Andersson were original members and I loved that! What a pair of showmen. They rock and looked young, especially Marten Andersson, who looked like he was still in his twenties. WTF? Dude has found the fountain of youth. Lizzy on the other hand was always in mask, or robe or some wild concoction of his making. Lizzy can put on a heck of a memorable theatrical show! He had a TV onstage that he busts through for the beginning of the song "Visual Lies" that was neat. I'm such a ham, I was eating it up and yelling my head off.

Lizzy played "American Metal," "Me Against The World," "Eyes Of A Stranger," "Givem The Axe," but my favorite parts were "Redrum," "Voyeur" and "Visual Lies." I was bummed that "Rod Of Iron" got cut because of the difficulties with Lizzy's wireless. They should have left out another song! That's like Alice In Chains not playing "Man In The Box!" Lizzy rubbed fake blood on people, and had a beautiful blonde with black electrical tape on her (very nice) boobies come onstage that he grabbed and started to bite into her neck so that a chitload of fake blood came pouring over her body whilst convulsing. Lizzy looked pretty demented, but it's all for fun.

Lizzie's voice was as unreal as ever. The only note he had trouble hitting was 'loud' in "American Metal." But any of you who have heard that note know that it is a total beeyatch to hit, and most mortal men cannot come close to hitting it. Every other note seemed to be easy as pie to Lizzy. It was a treat to see a real show once again, and not just some trendy douchebags getting up there and boring MF'er's to death.

Had I known a bit more beforehand, I would have tried to book Lizzy at the Phoenix Hill Tavern. I think he would have liked it and had a good crowd here in Louisville. Hear me, Lizzy? Next time, bro! Your blood-soaked skull-packin arse is coming to Kentucky . Thanks to Lizzy's PR people, Steffi Scott for being a cool chick, and thanks to The Rock House for being good to a fellow rocker from another city.

Judas Priest Farewell Tour Coming to Cincinnati November 8 w/ Thin Lizzy and Black Label Society:

Okay fans of metal, this might be your last chance to see one of the greats of metal history perform. Judas Priest has been rocking for decades and is about to call it quits, touring-wise. If you have never seen Judas Priest, please take my advice and see the band that pretty much invented true heavy metal and its patented double-guitar attack, before it is too late. Judas Priest has forgotten more than most bands know about metal. Guitarist K.K Downing will not be with the band on this tour, as he has already retired, but his replacement is supposed to be pretty awesome, so we'll see. Replacing the whammy-bar king K.K would be a hard job for anyone, no matter how good they are. Of course, I'm partial to K.K as I grew up with pictures of Glen and K.K on my wall. Yes, I can proudly say that Judas Priest is my all-time favorite band, and a band that will blow you away live. I saw them several times, even as early at 1979! I was ten and my dad took me!

I'll see if I can get you some free tickets for this for our popular giveaways. Stay tuned for more info on this killer show at U.S Bank Arena in Cincinnati on November 8.

Black Stone Cherry coming to Louevil August 26:

Looks like our native rockers BSC will be stopping by for one home state show before continuing on with their tour, so you might want to stop in at the Kentucky State Fair on August 26 and show some love for some Kentucky boys who made good! It's been a while since I've seen these talented youths kick some butt, so maybe it's time I got off my lazy rump and reviewed those guys once again. They were smokin' before, so I can only imagine how good they sound now that they have toured the world. I think it's a free concert too! Other bands on this bill are Theory Of A Deadman, Alterbridge, Adelita's Way and Emphatic. BSC rocks!

Dave Moody's Benefit For Animals:

Louisville native and Billy Ray Cyrus/Jefferson TARC Bus bassist Dave Moody has had a great idea for a cool benefit, so I took a few minutes and talked with the guy himself to see what was up with his idea. I like it and I'm thinking will you, too!

Dave, tell us Louevil rockers whats up with your plan for a benefit, and what is the cause?

Dave: "For some reason, it never ceases to amaze me about the giving spirit of the Louisville music community, and the community at large. We have done countless benefits for countless causes and every single time Louisville has stepped to the plate without question. We are a giving, kind people regardless of what side of the track we come from. People are people and we come as we are. Which brings me to my point. I, like many of you, am disgusted by the recent out break of animal cruelty. Dogs being thrown out of cars, off bridges, left in hot cars, beaten, malnourished and abandoned in foreclosed homes to fend for themselves while the "owner" skates off without a care. I can't even watch the evening news without one story that covers these awful acts of cruelty. Last week, I saw two local musicians put up posts on Facebook about their experience with with this issue. My friend Steve Osbourne had a cat that he rescued at his work place and took him in as a family member. He said "he was just such a friendly little guy that you just had to keep him" . One day he came home to find his cat missing. Sometime later he heard neighbors talking about what happened to his "little guy." They took the cat and threw him into a room with a pit bull to use it as bait. The dog killed his cat and these "people" we're joking about it. I could not hold my anger. I wanted him to show me where they live, but I realize that we cannot do that. I felt so badly for Steve. He went to the papers, news channels and put out countless posts hoping to get these heartless jerks arrested. Along the same time, Within a couple of days, I was at Moms Music and Ryan Murphy made me aware of Cracker Jack, a boxer that was left in an apartment to fend for himself. When workers came in, CJ had lost so much muscle mass he could not walk. His food, in his dementia, was a bath towel. He suffered more than I care to imagine. These stories were enough to send me over the edge. My wife and I are serious animal lovers. We don't hide it. We do all we can for them, as many of you do. After hearing about CJ, Steve's cat and watching all the newscasts about animal cruelty, I figured it was high time to do something about it. We have started a benefit program for No Kill Louisville that 100 percent of the proceeds will go to help abused animals. We will be having a concert on Sunday August 28 at Phoenix Hill Tavern to benefit The Hope Foundation. Since we have announced this concert via Facebook, we have had an overwhelming response. Bands have been coming out of the woodwork to offer their services, PHT gave us the keys to the building, Eddy Metal offered his time and services, radio stations WQMF an Fox have offered to help. It has been fantastic! We have over 300 confirmed guests in just the first week of announcing the benefit. It has mushroomed into a very beautiful thing! Now, what I am asking is simple. Tell a friend, tell a neighbor, tell a business, anybody you can think of to come to the show, or donate to The Hope fund at No Kill Louisville. We have got to get off the sidelines and do our part. It is not enough to be disgusted by what you see. We have to get in the game. If you see somebody abusing an animal, REPORT THEIR BUTTS! Enough is enough! Thank you so much for your time, and effort on this program. Like I said, Louisville, Kentucky is the greatest city in the world! We prove it all the time."

Well, said Dave! Lately I have been down on some musicians' actions in town, and then I see this and it gives one hope and a new-found desire to re-energize and help. I also experienced a cruelty to animals incident last year. My gangster, baggy-pants-wearing, thug neighbors got a pit bull and kept the poor thing locked in a parked car in their backyard with the windows rolled up, in full summer heat. The car was its home. Only a complete idiot would do that to an animal in full summer heat, so I called Animal Services and they rescued the poor dog. It was a mean looking brute and at first I was worried about the safety of my little mini- Yorkie Roo, but I soon found out it was a very sweet dog. I felt so bad for it sitting in that roasting car all day.

I hope to god he found a good home.

I'm going to help Dave run the show, and hopefully those of you with a love for animals will help out and support the cause. Stay tuned for the lineup! It's going to be good!

Metalfest/Boondocks Review:

I finally got to see what the Boondocks is all about. Our band Krosjoint played Metalfest on Friday night and had a fun time. The drive wasn't as far as I thought, and it was a nice piece of land. The lake was kind of funky/gunky but it's all good. People were there for the music and to raise money for Cancer Research. Heck, it was nice just to be able to get out of the smoggy city for a few.

It was boiling hot the day we played though, and everyone sweated unbelievably. We all fully expected that though, so there are no complaints here.

There was some complaining going on though. One nasty bit of unneeded drama was that one band members wife was giving promoter Allen Ashbaugh some lip because the band members women had to pay $5 to get in ( even though Allen had told everyone months ago about admission & guests!!! ), and she wouldn't shut up about it and made a mountain out of a molehill. Allen worked his butt off putting this show together for us people ( which I guarantee was quite a chore ), and to hear someone moan & whine about his and that, and all for a mere $5, was ridiculous. Finally, after being insulted and nagged & called a drunk by the dude's out-of-line wife, Allen yelled “If you don't like it, get the phuck out!”

If some band members wife told ME how to run my show, and said her husband should get special treatment, and said I was a drunk, and whined about this and that, in that blistering summer heat, it would have gotten ugly too. I would have said “dude, please control your wife!”

The band canceled rather than pay $5 for a Cancer Research Benefit. People drove far to see the band. I myself was stoked to see/review this band. I like them very much, as musicians and as people. Other people even offered to pay the $5 to avoid trouble, but the wife wasn't having it. It was apparently much too fun to inconvenience and disappoint everyone & argue. Everyone's woman/date had to pay $5, even my date. And I promoted this event for months for Allen in the newspaper! So no, nobody deserves special treatment. I don't care how much money you made with other gigs. All of us bands sweated the same, and put the same amount of energy into doing this show for the cause. The ones who wouldn't pay the $5 also accused Allen of being drunk & keeping the money ( which is pretty darn low ) and have even contacted Wave 3 Troubleshooter to report Allen. I talked to Allen a few times that night, and he wasn't drunk at all that I could tell. And this was later in the evening when he should have been trashed if the accusations were true. I seriously doubt that Allen would keep any of the money, other than the expenses that came out of his own pocket to get this event going! Allen seemed very committed to this show and the Cure For Cancer cause, and to accuse him of cheating/stealing with no basis or proof at all, is some serious bulls**t.

I wasn't even going to bring this up, but I got a phone call from someone close to that band who admitted that the wife was out of line, and had been for a while. We had a very nice little chat. I actually feel bad for the husband, whom I like and have known for years. Because he himself did not do anything wrong, except to support someone who was wrong.

And for them to bring Wave 3 Troubleshooter into the mix merely because wifey got told off , well, it's just not right. So here I am, once again voicing my honest opinion.

THE SHOW

I got to see some great young bands in Left In Despair and Slakker, and E-Flat rip it up pretty good as usual.

Todd, the guitarist for E-Flat, got some new effects pedals recently, and it made E-Flat's guitar sound better/fuller. Those guys always get the crowd going good. We had a great response for our set, too. It was fun! I wanted to stick around and see Graveflower but my band was ready to go and I'm not letting my super expensive guitar rig sit in some van overnight at his house. That's asking to get ripped off! Besides, I was beyond sticky and sweaty.

Saturday was obviously the night to attend because the more popular bands were playing, and I heard it was a fat crowd, but I was too tired, broke and old to deal with this scorching heat for two days in a row.

Heck, it's Sunday and I'm still recovering from playing Friday night! Ha. Getting old sucks!

Total props to Allen Ashbaugh though, for all the hard work, and for dealing with a few non-appreciative people the best he could. In my eyes, Allen has done nothing but good for our scene, and I'll not let his name be tarnished if I can help it!

Louevil Music Featured on The Glassworks Rooftop:

This was a very different show for me, that's for sure. I had never played on top of a rooftop on a building downtown before, so I was looking forward to it. The Glassworks is a glass-making facility on West Market Street, and they have a rooftop area that can be rented for occasions like weddings, meetings and whatnot. This time, it was a concert for new Louevil rockers Diverbird, The Zoo Kings, Lucid Grey and Year Of The Gun. I had never heard of anything like this before, so I was naturally excited. It was a bit of a pain to get your music gear up on top of the roof, but once you were up there it was worth it. What a view! It was a 360-degree view of Louisville's skyline and the river. The night was perfect, not too hot and not too cold, no clouds, and there was a nice breeze off the river, and there was a full moon! The rooftop area was not too wide, maybe 30 feet across by 150 feet long. They had a full bar up there too. The PA system was not too bad (some vocal effects would have been nice, though), but there were a few electrical problems during the night, even to the point that my guitar head blew a fuse (and that never happens.) Other than that, we all had a heck of a time playing at The Glassworks. My guitarist and I even saw a UFO over the river. My guitarist Matt was joking pointing saying "look, Eddy, there is a UFO" mocking me because I believe in UFOs and have seen some messed up stuff in the past. I looked up and we both saw a red light/orb cruising above the river and then suddenly disappear without a trace. Mat said "WTF!" There were no clouds that day over the river. It was strange. Matt became a believer that day I think.

I would like to say thank you to the people at The Glassworks for making this place available for events such as this. With a little work and promotion, this could be a popular concert series every summer. Visit The Glassworks today!

Diverbird Off to a Good Start:

Well, I finally got to see alterna-grunge indie rockers Diverbird live and it's some good stuff. Vocalist/guitarist Jon Harrod is a talented guy, indeed, and can hit some pretty difficult notes while playing rhythm guitar at the same time. Not an easy feat. Some guitarists (like me!) can play and sing at the same time only on certain parts because it's pretty hard to do, but to do so continuously through a whole song while hitting high notes is a great challenge. Jon does great at this. His bassist Harley Sheen is a trippy bass player and looks like a hippie but I dig his style and tone. He uses effects sometimes on his bass sound. Not too many bassists do that, so I thought it was cool. He can play. As far as people go, it doesn't get much better. I have dealt with many arrogant bands the last few years and these guys are nothing like the usual "holier than thou" attitudes that are so abundant in today's Louevil rock scene. A true pleasure to work with, and honest and hardworking. We need more bands like Diverbird in town. If you get a chance to see them, do so!

Def Leppard at The Fair:

Friday, August 19 at The Kentucky State Fair, Eighties legends Def Leppard will be performing all their hits once again. I covered their last show at Freedom Hall five years ago and it was a doozie of a show. It sounded great. I'm sure this one will be equally good. Heart will be opening the show, so that should be interesting as well. I have never seen them before and I am anxious to see how they sound after all these years. I am hoping to cover this event for you good folks like I did five years ago, but I've always had trouble getting access for Kentucky State Fair shows for some reason (any other time and it's all good), even though I've been a published music columnist for ten years, and get treated great at other venues, even big out-of-state venues! So hopefully the Kentucky State Fair people will come to their senses and support a publication and writer who has always supported them in the past. Sorry about not being able to get you people any free tickets for the Giveaways. I tried.

Zero King, From WV with Love:

While I usually do not cover out-of-town bands much, occasionally I do cover a band if they are really good or total busybodies and playing all over. Such is the Charleston, West Virginia hard rock band Zeroking. These Appalachian rockers play all around the region and come to Louisville every now and then and have been featured on Louisville Rocks on 93.1 the Fox. Formed in Huntington, West Virginia in early 2005, the band must be doing something right because they have shared the stage with artists such as Anthrax, Twisted Sister, Bobaflex, Jackyl, Dope, Black Stone Cherry, Airbourne and many more. These guys get around pretty darn good! Vocalist Andy Haught used to sing for my band Sideshow back in 1999. It was a fun, short-lived, regional project that only had three gigs (once even opening for Overkill!!!), but I loved the music we were making. Before that Andy and a few of the guys were in a metal band called Sick World. I met Andy playing shows with Sick World. Andy went by Andy Christ back then and was a bit wilder.

The guy has some great talent and ideas, and if you don't believe me, go check Zeroking out for yourself. This is some darn good stuff! Nice guitar work by Shane Day! It's downtuned, heavy, yet still a bit commercial. Interesting! Everyone in the band is a good musician. I'm checking out their music on Facebook right now. "Stone Cold Bitch" starts out energetic and rockin'. Andy's vocals are melodic and hooky, and on key. Andy's best is his clean singing voice, but his growls and screams aren't bad, either. The sound quality of the recording isn't bad either. Nice guitar solo in this song! This is good energetic rock 'n' roll with attitude! Not quite as heavy and weird as his former bands, of course, but good nonetheless. "Black Friday" has caught my attention and is my favorite from Zeroking. Cool opening solo with effects! Shane knows about achieving tone apparently. Andy sounds great on this one! Maybe his best ever. Very catchy chorus and melody in this tune. Vintage Andy. On one part Andy sounds like Sebastian Bach. Cool. I'm going to have to take Andy's offer to come jam with them in WV, because I like this music and want to see them live finally.

So if you see the name Zeroking anywhere, try to get out to see some different regional original music that won't let you down. Look them up on Facebook or Reverbnation!

Thomas Medicine Breaks Up:

Louevil rockers Thomas Medicine have broken up due to personal differences. I have to be honest with you folks, I have been trying to get those guys on my showcase, or on the Rock For Kosair Children's Hospital Benefit for awhile and they didn't seem to want to play any show that wasn't making them money, even though my show provides exposure that no other in town does. Turns out it was a few members that were making the restrictions on them playing. I can understand the need to make money, I really do (it takes $$$ to maintain your gear and pay for gas), but this is Louevil after all, and there isn't a lot of money to be made here with original music, period, unless you draw hundreds consistently. Everyone who knows anything about this scene knows that. Therefore, it is disappointing to see those types of attitudes in our beloved scene, but what can you do? It's like some of these more popular Louevil bands are saying "We aren't playing unless we get our $100 split five ways tonight!" I don't see why these Louevil bands today are so petty over such small amounts. It's laughable.

I feel bad for Pat Quinney because he is one very talented individual who loves to jam, and would probably not let money stop him. But now I know it wasn't Pat. Others would not commit to playing.

They even had to cancel playing Metalfest because of lack of commitments by members, and that is what I think sent Pat over the edge regarding this. He really wanted to play this cancer benefit and help the cause.

Pat is trying to reform the band with guys a little more open to play more shows/events as mentioned, so we will see what happens within the Thomas Medicine camp in the next few months. Stay tuned.

Year Of The Gun CD Done:

Finally. After a fire in the studio, and a lovesick, overworked studio engineer about to get married soon, and band members who were almost impossible to get into the studio at one time, our CD is finally done! I'm pretty happy with the result. Some more time working on it would have been great, but the money ran out, so it is what it is. It's a five-song demo that does a good job of capturing our weird sound. My favorites are "27 Years," "Die Alone" and "Self Made Man."

It's the best guitar work/songwriting I've ever done. Special thanks to Michael Sanders at Jetlag Studios for helping us poor mofos out with a quality product.

Look us up on reverbnation.com to hear them. Thanks for your time!

New Band Alert, Day Of Ruin "When chicks turn to the dark side":

Hailing from Scottsburg, Indiana, this new progressive death metal/thrash band has some potential! First off, the bassist and drummer are both females, and, boy, can these chicks wail! It's been a while since this scene had women who play brutal heavy metal, and if this is just the beginning, then we are in for a wild ride, indeed. While a little green at some parts, there is unmistakably something there. Vocalist Terry Sandlin jams and was pleasant to hear. I'm a stickler on vocals, too, but dude is off to a great start apparently. His timing, the growls, the screams and yes, actual singing are all present with his vocals. He mixes up things nicely. Terry doesn't overdo it like most do. He keeps it at a happy medium, and it works for him. Unfortunately, when I saw them live, the sound wasn't the best that night, and they got screwed by the total crap sound man. I am ready to see this band with a competent sound guy so I can actually hear the guitar this time. The guitar riffs were there though, fast and furious, although I'm not too sure about the amp dude was using. The band is young though, and money is tight now for everyone, it seems! The band's rhythm section was sweet. Drummer Sara Doolin and bassist Stephanie Camarillo were kicking some butt and turning some heads in more ways than one. If you love brutal metal, then give Day Of Ruin a listen. They will be opening for Motograter on August 19 at Phoenix Hill tavern. Not bad for a new metal band! Look them up online for a taste of female brutality!

Stone Temple Pilots at Iroquois Amphitheatre on Sept. 14

Yup, that’s right!!! The Stone Temple Pilots at Iroquois Amphitheater on Wednesday September 14! At first I thought someone was pulling my leg because it’s such a small venue for such a big act, but it is true! You have the chance to see a truly great band in an intimate location right here at your back yard! I am looking forward to seeing the new renovations that the amphitheater has underwent. I’ve seen STP a few times the last few years and they have made me a fan for sure. To be honest I really didn’t like them all that much before, until I saw them live. It’s a special thing.

But seeing/hearing them live in action is a different entity all in itself.

Tickets are around the $55 area, and they will go fast, so if you do not want to miss this wicked show, then you should act NOW!!!

Trust me on this. This will sell out fast!!!!

Upcoming Shows

Expo 5

Wednesday, August 3 – Tech N9NE w/ Krizz Caliko, Kutt Calhoun, Big Scoob, Jay Rock, Mayday, Stevie Stone and Bukshot. 7 p.m. $25

Thursday, August 4 – The Black Dahlia Murder w/ Whitechapel, Darkest Hour, Six Feet Under, Kingdom Of Sorrow, Dying Fetus, Powerglove, As Blood Runs Black, Oceano, Fleshgod Apocalypse and Within The Ruins. 2 p.m. $20

Saturday, August 6 – Kaylafest w/ Stem and Geez, Stripmind502, The Acoustical Experience and a lot more to be announced. 6 p.m..

Tuesday, August 23 – Amon Amarth w/ TBA. 7 p.m. $20

Wednesday, September 21 – Bassnectar. 8 p.m. $29

Tuesday, September 27 – Opeth w/ Katatonia. 7 p.m. $25

Freedom Hall

Friday, August 19 – Def Leppard and Heart. 7 p.m.

Hard Rock Cafe

Saturday, August 6 – Shatterstone, Sever This Illusion and Signal The Revolution.

Kentucky State Fair

Friday, August 26 – in the Young Adult Program Tent; Slakker, 11 p.m.

Phoenix Hill Tavern

Friday, August 5 – Rehab.

Saturday, August 6 – Hot Action Cop w/ E-Flat. 8 p.m.

Friday, August 5 – The original rock showcase series w/ Diverbird, Some Kind Of Saint, Lucid Grey and Tragic Refuge. 9 p.m. Free before 9 p.m.

Thursday, August 18 – Kittie w/ Dirge Within, Diamond Plate, Stallpoint and Poetry Of The Dead. 7 p.m. $12

Friday, August 19 – Motograter w/ day, Of Ruin, Gutting Conway and Project Heavy Death. 7 p.m. $10

Friday, August 26 – Shatterstone. 9 p.m.

Saturday, August 27 – Bolt Action Thrill w/ Season At Sea CD release. 8 p.m. $10

Friday, September 2 – The original rock showcase series w/ E-Flat, Krosjoint, Boozer, Shines Negatives and another TBA. Free before 9 p.m.

Union Station

Saturday, August 20 – Louevil Deathfest w/ Abominant, Cemetery Rapist, Heavy Lies The Crown, Of Abysmal Descent, Created to Kill, Vires, Behind the Bheaded, At Lights End, Chaordica, Littledidweknow, Blessed By Death, End It With A Shotgun, Voyage of Slaves, Aeons of Eclipse, Bat'leth, Mangled Atrocity. Starts at 2P.M

Vernon Club

Saturday, August 6 – Jalin Rose w/ Skyscraper Stereo, Cougar Express and Screams Of The Sirens. 7 p.m. $10

Saturday, August 20 – Scarlett Smile w/ Remember Me Always, Aesthetics Versus Architecture, When Planes Meets Towers and This Years Finest. 7 p.m. $10

Outtatownerz and Otherz

Friday, August 5 – at The Roxy (formerly the A1A Club) in Lexington Kentucky ....Pownd, Cains Rage and Year Of The Gun. 7 p.m. I hope to see all my Lexington/Central Kentucky friends there!