Written By: Moti Kupfer Release date - 19.04.1968 While “The Beatles” were recording “ Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band ” in Studio 2 at Abbey Road, no one knew that right next door in Studio 3, five young 22-year-olds had begun recording their own masterpiece, “Odessey and Oracle”, under the name “The Zombies”. “The Zombies” consisted of Colin Blunstone (vocals, percussion), Rod Argent (keyboards, backing vocals), Paul Atkinson (guitar, backing vocals), Chris White (bass guitar, backing vocals), and Hugh Grundy (drums, backing vocals). The band began working on the album shortly after “The Beatles” had finished their sessions. According to Colin Blunstone, John Lennon had left behind a Mellotron, along with various percussion instruments scattered around the studio floor. The band also worked with engineers Geoff Emerick and Peter Vince, along with their assistant Alan Parsons , who was just at the beginning of his career. This collaboration marked the beginning of a long musical connection between Parsons and Blunstone, which would later resurface in “The Alan Parsons Project”, where Blunstone’s soft voice would become forever associated with the melancholic hit "Old and Wise" . It is fair to say that without the instruments left behind by John Lennon and his bandmates, the sound of “Odessey and Oracle”, released on April 19, 1968, might have been completely different. The members of “The Zombies” arrived at these sessions with very limited financial resources, and without a budget for session musicians, they relied on what was available. Lennon’s Mellotron became a crucial tool that helped shape the album’s distinctive sonic identity. Colin Blunstone was born in June 1945 in Hatfield, Hertfordshire, England, to an aeronautical engineer father and a homemaker mother who had previously been a dancer. He attended St Albans County Grammar School, where he first saw Rod Argent, Paul Atkinson, and Hugh Grundy playing together during an Easter jam session. Rod Argent, the driving force behind the band’s formation, was also born in June 1945 in St Albans to a working-class family. His father, like Blunstone’s, was an aeronautical engineer. Although his father never formally studied music, he played piano at home, and young Rod listened closely. By the age of nine, he had already decided to become a musician. He joined the choir at St Albans Cathedral and later met Atkinson and Grundy at school, forming early musical collaborations. Following that Easter performance, Colin Blunstone joined the group, along with Paul Arnold, who was soon replaced by Chris White, all while the members were still in high school. After winning a local music competition, they recorded a demo as a prize. That demo included their first hit, "She's Not There" , which secured them a recording contract with “Decca Records”. From their early days in 1961, “The Zombies” carved out a unique musical identity, blending rich keyboard textures and vocal harmonies reminiscent of “The Beach Boys”, at a time when most bands relied heavily on guitar-driven arrangements with minimal harmonies. Their debut album “Begin Here”, released in 1965, combined original material with rhythm and blues covers. However, aside from "She's Not There" , it failed to generate significant recognition, leading to their departure from “Decca Records”. Their image as clean-cut, well-mannered young men fresh out of school worked against them. Without a recording contract, the members of “The Zombies” decided to give themselves one final opportunity before disbanding. They managed to convince “CBS Records” to sign them without imposing a strict deadline for the album, which significantly reduced the pressure. “Odessey and Oracle” was recorded between June and November 1967 and captures “The Zombies” at their artistic peak. The album is filled with melancholic baroque pop compositions, driven by Blunstone’s gentle and delicate voice, the band’s intricate vocal harmonies, and Rod Argent’s jazz and blues-influenced organ and piano work, creating a rich blend of psychedelic melodies. Most of the album’s songs explore romantic themes, though often from unconventional perspectives. The second single, "Care of Cell 44" , tells the story of a man waiting for his imprisoned girlfriend to be released so he can meet her again as a changed person after her experience. "A Rose for Emily"  draws inspiration from a short story by William Faulkner, portraying a woman from a respectable family who falls in love with a man deemed socially unsuitable. Their relationship defies expectations, but when he disappears, she withdraws from the world and remains isolated until her death. "Butcher's Tale (Western Front 1914)" , written by Chris White, stands out as the album’s most unusual track. Inspired by World War I, the lyrics are told from the perspective of a soldier, capturing the horrors and psychological toll of war. Even after releasing two singles, sales failed to take off, possibly due to the album’s complexity. By the time the third single, "Time of the Season" , was released, the band had already disbanded, only for events to take an unexpected turn. American musician Al Kooper heard the album and convinced “CBS” to release it in the United States. Gradually, it gained momentum, and "Time of the Season"  became a hit in early 1969. In the years that followed, many artists, including Tom Petty and Paul Weller, cited “Odessey and Oracle” as a major influence. 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Written By: Moti Kupfer Release date - 17.04.1970 On September 20, 1969, John Lennon  informed his bandmates in "The Beatles" that he intended to leave. At the request of their business partner Allen Klein, he agreed to delay the public announcement so as not to harm the release of their final album "Let It Be" . A rift quickly formed between Paul McCartney  and the other three members over the future management of the band. John Lennon , George Harrison, and Ringo Starr  believed that Klein, known for securing highly favorable recording contracts, deserved their trust. McCartney, however, did not trust Klein and preferred his father-in-law, lawyer Lee Eastman, or someone else entirely. The conflict escalated when Paul McCartney  refused to sign a new five-year recording contract for "The Beatles". He felt particularly betrayed upon learning that John Lennon  and Klein had chosen producer Phil Spector  to assemble a new "Beatles" album from the unfinished "Get Back" sessions. To McCartney, this reworking of the material violated the band’s core principles. He saw it as a petty act of revenge by John Lennon . As the breakup of "The Beatles" became inevitable, Paul McCartney  fell into depression and came close to a nervous breakdown. He withdrew from public life, isolating himself with his wife Linda and their daughters on his farm in Campbeltown, Scotland, and drank heavily. His disappearance fueled the already widespread conspiracy theories claiming he was dead. While those rumors were baseless, they only added pressure as journalists kept trying to verify them. Years later, Paul McCartney  reflected on that period, explaining that the pain, disappointment, and grief over losing the band were overwhelming and nearly drove him to madness. From this emotional low point, however, came a new beginning. Encouraged by Linda, Paul McCartney  began planning his future outside of "The Beatles". He started writing new material and finishing older songs, some dating back to the band’s 1968 trip to India. Shortly before Christmas 1969, Paul McCartney  returned with his family to their home in St John’s Wood, London. There, he began recording his debut album using a simple four-track tape recorder he had purchased. Paul McCartney  played every instrument on the album himself, from acoustic and electric guitars to bass, keyboards, drums, and percussion, while Linda contributed backing vocals on several tracks. The result was a raw, home-recorded album, far removed from the polished productions of "The Beatles". At times uneven, it nevertheless captured McCartney in his most authentic and intimate form. “This was an old dream that came true. From the moment the album was released, I told myself that one day, in one of the programs I would host, I would use this melody as the opening theme,” said the respected broadcaster and music editor Menachem Granit, referring to the instrumental "Momma Miss America" . Granit began his radio career sometime in 1972 as a technician after completing his military service. He had moved with his family to Australia at the age of five, where he developed a deep connection to Western music. When he returned to Israel, he made sure to blend that influence with local music. When he was a soldier, the debut album of Paul McCartney  was released and deeply shook the young Granit’s world. With the instinct of an editor who knows how to separate the wheat from the chaff, he recognized the uniqueness of that charming instrumental piece and promised himself that one day it would serve as the opening theme for a program of his own. The years passed, Kol Yisrael shut down, and the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation took its place. The internet evolved into a fast-moving stream of endless information. Out of this changing landscape, the idea of creating a program that tells the story of one album at a time began to take shape. “Album for a Desert Island” launched in October 2017, with Granit, in his distinctive storytelling style, guiding listeners through the paths of a single album on a Sunday evening. Naturally, he did not forget "Momma Miss America" , which became the program’s opening theme from day one. It was a piece that managed to tell the story of an entire album in just 4 minutes and 4 seconds. A composition that came together almost by accident, merging two separate recordings into one. At the beginning of the track, the voice of the sound engineer can be heard announcing “Rock n Roll Springtime Take 1”, a remnant of one of the original pieces that were fused together. Through the album’s journey, we encounter a vulnerable and confused McCartney, leaning on Linda and expressing his love for her in "That Would Be Something"  and "Maybe I’m Amazed" , two of the few tracks that George Harrison reportedly appreciated. The lyrics of "Every Night"  reflect McCartney’s emotional struggles during this period, while still carrying a sense of hope. He wrote the song during a holiday in Greece, channeling the depression he experienced after the band’s breakup. "Teddy Boy" , written during the Beatles’ stay in India in 1968, tells a story of family estrangement and a widowed mother finding new love. Paul McCartney  later described it as a song he began in India and gradually completed in Scotland and London. Originally recorded for the "Get Back" project, it was ultimately left unused. Another standout, "Junk" , combines a delicate melody with melancholic lyrics that echo themes similar to "Eleanor Rigby" . It reflects on objects that once held meaning but have been discarded, subtly mirroring the dissolution of "The Beatles". Paul McCartney  also wrote this song during the band’s time in Rishikesh, India. On March 25, Paul McCartney  discovered that Klein had decided to delay the release of his debut album. George Harrison  initially reassured him that it would still be released on April 17 as planned. However, when Phil Spector  reported that "Let It Be"  was nearly complete and could be released alongside its accompanying film at the end of April, priorities shifted. John Lennon  and George Harrison sent McCartney a letter on March 31 instructing EMI to postpone his album until June 4. Instead of delivering the message through staff, Ringo Starr  brought it personally, unaware of how tense McCartney had become. McCartney reacted angrily, ordering Starr out and threatening consequences. The confrontation ultimately led the others to back down, allowing McCartney to release his debut album about three weeks before "Let It Be" . The album’s cover, created by Linda McCartney, features a bowl of cherry-red liquid placed against a cream-colored wall, surrounded by red cherries. For Listening : Spotify , Apple Music "Face/Off" - Israel's Rock Blog Follow us on Facebook  / Instagram  or Subscribe to our website

A Sneak Peek... And this time, about the day singer Brian Johnson , was officially announced as the new singer of "AC/DC". (Photo: Classic Rock In Pics) On April 19, 1980, AC/DC released an official announcement on the replacement of the charismatic singer Bon Scott , who had died exactly two months earlier, on February 19, 1980. As you may recall, Bon Scott 's death left the band broken and shattered by the heavy disaster that befell them, right after the release of their most successful album to date - " Highway To Hell ". After Bon Scott's death, the band was already thinking of breaking up, but it was Bon Scott's family who persuaded them to move on, claiming that this was the will of their late son. Shortly after Bon Scott 's funeral, the band began looking for a lead singer to step into his big shoes. The searches were exhausting and lasted about a month, during which a large number of candidates were auditioned. At one point, Robert John "Mutt" Lange (who produced the album " Highway To Hell ") suggested that they consider inviting Brian Johnson - the singer of the glam band Geordie to audition. Johnson recalls that he received an invitation to come and meet the band. He was then 32. This was at a time when he already thought he would not succeed as a musician. He left the band Geordie, moved to live with his parents in Newcastle, and owned a vinyl roof repair shop for collectible cars. Johnson accepted the invitation. He knew "AC/DC" and they knew him. The one who recommended him to the Young Brothers was none other than Bon Scott himself. The Young Brothers recount that Bon Scott told them that on one of his outings to England he saw Johnson and the band Geordie perform and that Johnson is a tremendous performer who raves and contorts the stage and also an excellent singer. In a 2011 interview Johnson said that on that fateful night that Bon Scott was impressed with his performance, he was with tremendous stomach pains that made him twitch and squirm on stage. Later that evening it became clear to Johnson that he was suffering from appendicitis. By the way, rumor has it that Bon Scott got the idea to lift Angus Young on his shoulders from Brian Johnson , after seeing him pick up Vic Malcolm, Geordie's guitarist. On the fateful morning of the auditions, Brian Johnson entered the rehearsal room and saw the band members indifferent and bored to death, after a whole month of unsuccessful auditions. Malcolm Young was the one who first approached him, offered him a beer, and asked what he wanted to sing. Johnson replied "Whole Lotta Rosie", we cover this song with Geordie. Later Brian also sang Tina Turner's "Nutbush City Limits". Rumor has it that after the end of that day's audition round, Johnson was called to the rehearsal room for a second audition, then already singing the song " Highway To Hell ." On March 29, 1980 - About a month after Bon Scott 's death, Malcolm Young called Johnson to inform him that he had been accepted into the band. Johnson recalls that he had tears in his eyes, he was very sad about what happened to Bon Scott but very happy to be accepted into the band. What fascinated the members of "AC/DC" in Johnson was the fact that he did not try to mimic Bon Scott but gave a personal interpretation to Scott's songs. The press release on April 19, 1980, stated that the band had recruited a new singer to replace Bon Scott who had died exactly two months earlier. The band members later sent Johnson a plane ticket to the Bahamas, where the masterpiece album " Back In Black " was recorded. Although the band had first sketches of some songs they had begun working on with Scott, Johnson was given a free hand to rewrite his lyrics, as the band did not want it to be seen as an attempt to profit from Bon Scott 's death. The first song Johnson wrote for the band is "You Shook Me All Night Long". He tried to impress his friends as the lyrics were inspired by girls and cars. It was also the band's first single without Bon Scott . The album " Back In Black " marked the biggest comeback in the history of music. It became the band's best-selling album for over 40 years. It ranks third among the best-selling albums of all time, with an incredible sales figure of over 50 million copies worldwide. An album that is ranked 77th on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. "Face/Off" - Israel's Rock Blog Follow us on Facebook  / Instagram  or Subscribe to our website

On April 18, 1994, "Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds" released their eighth studio album "Let Love In", without a doubt one of the perfect albums in Nick Cave 's rich career. It's an album from which songs have been covered by various talented artists over the musical spectrum, from "Metallica" and Iggy Pop , through "Arctic Monkeys" and PJ Harvey to Martin Gore from "Depeche Mode" and even Snoop Dogg. An album whose music adorned a variety of films and TV series such as "The X-Files", "Scream", "Dumb and Dumber" and "Peaky Blinders". We must admit that when we purchased the disc we were puzzled by the choice Nick Cave made in naming the album. After albums with titles such as "The Firstborn Is Dead", "Kicking Against the Pricks" and "Your Funeral ... My Trial", we wondered if the choice of "Let Love In" is related to the romance and musical process that Cave went through during the creation of " The Good Son " and if we get from the punk and goth rooted Cave an album that will include a collection of optimistic love songs. A quick scan of the song titles only added to the confusion. The album opens and closes with the two parts of the song " Do You Love Me? " and songs with titles like " Loverman ", " I Let Love In " or " Nobody's Baby Now " scattered in the middle. But as those who have been well acquainted with Nick Cave 's music over the years, we have realized that there is probably something much more creepy and vicious hiding beneath the beautiful title. And indeed it was. We very well remember the moment when we pushed play and the disc started playing " Do You Love Me? ", With Martyn P. Casey's heavy bass line accompanied by Thomas Wydler's whispering cymbals. The dark and macabre atmosphere enveloped the song and the second Thomas struck his snare drum and Nick Cave 's gothic organ kicked in, we first tasted the amazing sound this album has to offer, which only got better in the face of Cave's clear piano playing and the sounds of Blixa Bargeld and Mick Harvey's dirty guitars sound. It was hard to ignore the amazing production of the album, which to this day sounds clean, clear, and up to date, just as it was three decades ago. The tension built up from the beginning of the song intensified as it was enveloped in the tormented and despairing voice of Cave singing to us, of course, about a lack of trust in a romantic relationship. " Nobody's Baby Now " comes right after and takes us to a completely different place. The piano on which Conway Savage plays in perfect melody, leads this complex ballad to other districts. Real sorrow and pain permeate Cave's voice, with the piano and drums hovering gently around the lyrics. The melancholy cries out from every note in this song and the Hammond sounds only reinforce the conclusion implied by Cave's clever words. The object of his love will be "nobody's baby" because he killed her ... Nick Cave originally wrote this song for Johnny Cash, but finally decided he wanted to record the song himself. After the melancholy ballad that eventually turned out to be Requiem, comes the powerful “Loverman”. A song that alternates between recited speech sentences and blown-up and violent screams. A song whose title does not reveal its content. It tells of a morbid relationship, in which the protagonist, among other things, details what he stands for for the object of his love, with each letter in the word L-O-V-E-R-M-A-N describing the protagonist's evil desires, including "Rape" and "Murder." The whispers during the verses only add to the creepy and scary atmosphere that culminates in the ringing of the bells that end the song. This song won interesting cover versions, including "Metallica" on the album " Garage Inc. " and Martin Gore's on the album "Counterfeit". " Jangling Jack " continues with the wild line of the chorus from the previous song and introduces us to the familiar Nick Cave from his post-punk era, with fast and loud music, and almost cacophony that intensifies with Cave's angry singing and screaming. " Red Right Hand " is without a doubt one of the most special and interesting songs in Nick Cave 's career. A mysterious and sweeping piece, whose first note is an ominous bell sound. This song can easily be used as part of a horror movie soundtrack. Strange and dark magic with jazz touches, which takes care of putting you "on the edge" throughout. The sounds of the oscillator, the shaker, and the dramatic organ serve as the perfect playback for Cave's ominous voice, with alternating bells or drums sounding like thunder vibrating our souls. It is no wonder that this song has been used for 9 years as the theme tune of the excellent series "Peaky Blinders" and has been part of the soundtrack of other series and movies like "The X-Files". The name of the song comes from a line from John Milton's poem "Paradise Lost" and started from a jam session in the studio, after Nick Cave asked Mick Harvey to play something on a slightly different scale. "I Let Love In" opens the second half of the album dramatically to the sounds of the melancholy but catchy guitar line and the monotonous piano touches that accompany us throughout the song, non-stop. This is another typical Cave song about lost love, immersed in a Country and Blues style. It's without a doubt one of the band's most powerful songs and it's really surprising that Nick Cave initially did not want it on the album. Guitarist Mick Harvey said that Nick wrote it in five minutes, but he did not feel anything for it, as if it did not matter to him because he did not have a hard time writing it. Cave's bandmates simply insisted that the song will be included on the album. " Thirsty Dog " takes us back to the fast post-punk rhythm reminiscent of the beginning of Cave's career, but it is soon replaced by the slow sadness of " Ain't Gonna Rain Anymore ". A song that marks Cave's first collaboration with Warren Ellis, who was a fan of the band for years and adorns The song in his violin playing. The melancholy line accompanies us until the end of the album with " Lay Me Low ", with the sound of Hammond and the weeping and whining voice of Cave, and " Do You Love Me? (Part 2) " which is the absolute negative of his twin brother who opens the album. A slow, atmospheric and abstract section that, together with the opening track, envelops the album and gives it a sense of a complete and perfect musical work. "Let Love In" was undoubtedly a turning point for "Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds". It was able to make their music more accessible, while maintaining the DNA and basic style of the band. With this album, Nick Cave completed what he had started two albums earlier with " The Good Son " and established his affair with the mainstream. Today, after 40 years of activity and about twenty studio albums, it can be said with certainty that "Let Love In" was and remains one of the pick points in Nick Cave's marvelous career. For Listening: Spotify , Apple M usic "Face/Off" - Israel's Rock Blog Follow us on Facebook  / Instagram  or Subscribe to our website

This is the first out of two EPs issued by "Stone Sour", which consists of five cover songs from bands the members love and were influenced by, and it was released on 18 April 2015. Back in February of 2014 while "Stone Sour" was touring, Corey Taylor approached Josh Rand about "Stone Sour" doing a cover of the "Metal Church" song "The Dark" for the movie "Fear Clinic". Josh thought it would be cool not only to record "The Dark" but the five cover songs that the band use to play on that tour. The idea was to pick songs that truly meant something to one of the band members at some point in their life. It is the first "Stone Sour" recording to feature guitarist Christian Martucci after the departure of Jim Root in 2013 due to "musical differences" and bassist Johny Chow after the departure of Shawn Economaki in 2012. Track List: 1. "We Die Young" (Alice in Chains cover) 2. "Heading Out to the Highway" (Judas Priest cover) 3. "Love Gun" (Kiss cover) 4. "Creeping Death" (Metallica cover) 5. "Children of the Grave" (Black Sabbath cover) Listen to the album on Spotify , Apple Music "Face/Off" - Israel's Rock Blog Follow us on Facebook  / Instagram  or Subscribe to our website

The mighty drummer Mike Mangini was born on April 18, 1963, in Massachusetts USA, named Michael Anthony Mangini. (Photo: Dream Theater Brasil Facebook Page) He may be known to you as the former "Dream Theater" drummer, but he is far beyond. He played and co-wrote albums for artists such as "Extreme", "Annihilator", Steve Vai , and of course James LaBrie who introduced him to "Dream Theater". His parents say he started playing the drums at the age of two and a half. We know he has been performing since the age of 4 and started learning professional drumming at the age of 5. He continued to study non-stop until the age of 18 specializing in almost every possible style, from jazz to speed metal. By the age of 9, he was already playing complex tracks by the legendary drummer Buddy Rich . He has a degree in computer science and worked as a programmer on a Patriot missile project. In 1987 he began giving private lessons to drummers, guitarists, and pianists. He was also a professor at Berkeley where he taught to play the drums. He has written two books - "Rhythm Knowledge Volumes I and II" - in which he details, among other things, the principles on which he based his extraordinary style. He broke the fastest drumming record five times. In 2013, he released an award-winning instructional DVD called "The Grid," which explains how to turn musical improvisation into a science. After Mike Portnoy 's departure from "Dream Theater", Mangini was invited along with other drummers to an audition to decide which of them would step into Mike Portnoy 's huge shoes. The auditions were documented in a series of videos and the Mangini was, of course the one, that was all the other drummers. ( Photo: Roadrunner) So for those who have not yet watched these auditions, it is simply a must. This is an opportunity to get inside the band and experience up close the considerations and preferences in choosing the drummer. Here are links to the three episodes of the audition series held by the band: Part One: Part Two: Part Three: As you can see from the auditions, one of the criteria that Dream Theater members were looking for in a drummer is the ability to write and create and Mangini undoubtedly has those abilities. It may have taken him a while to adapt to the band, but on his fourth album with the band - "Distance over Time" - he undoubtedly demonstrated these abilities as he wrote the lyrics to the song "Room 137" and co-wrote the melodies of all the album songs, as he did in " A View from the Top of the World ". "Face/Off" - Israel's Rock Blog Follow us on Facebook  / Instagram  or Subscribe to our website

A Sneak Peek... Who knows, who recognizes? On April 18, 1987, a huge musical bomb fell on the metal world - the mythological show " Headbangers Ball " first premiered on the MTV channel. For those who did not grow up at those times, it may be difficult to understand, but in those years there was almost no place for "alternative" music on radio stations and TV channels, certainly not on a popular station that broadcasts hits to the masses 24/7. So this show was like breathing air for all "hard rock" and "heavy metal" lovers. The "tribal bonfire" of all the weird, different, long-haired ones. The first show aired on Sunday, April 18, 1987 (at midnight in Israel), and the hosts of the first episode were Lemmy and "Motorhead" Drummer - Phil "Philthy Animal" Taylor. Among the presenters of the mythological show were Kevin Seal, Adam Curry, Riki Rachtman, and the one that was most identified with the show - Vanessa Warwick who hosted the show on MTV's Europe from 1990-to 1997. And it is impossible to write about this program without referring to its mythological, witty and special openings. So true, not everything was perfect, because at first we were pushed into the small hours of the night, far from the eyes of the masses, God forbid we would spoil them with "bad" music and corrupt video clips. But slowly this show seeped into the mainstream and became a cult show. Unfortunately (or perhaps happily depending on how you look at it), it was the infiltration of alternative music into the mainstream that led to the elimination of the show. In the early 1990s, with the rise of grunge, Metallica's black album, and the Alternative Revolution, alternative music flooded the mainstream in such a way that there was no longer any justification for the existence of a show that initially contrasted with other popular shows. The USA show was canceled in 1995 and the European One in 1997, but the good memories from it accompany us to this day. So for those who remember it, feel free to post in the comments on the post on our Facebook page, and tell us about the bands and artists you were first exposed to from this show, if only for the sake of nostalgia. "Face/Off" - Israel's Rock Blog Follow us on Facebook  / Instagram  or Subscribe to our website

On April 18, 1980, the ninth and masterful studio album of "Black Sabbath", "Heaven and Hell", was released. The album marks the beginning of Ronnie James Dio 's era in the band, an era that will include a fundamental change in Black Sabbath's sound and song structure. But more than that, the album marks the beginning of an era in which all metal and hard rock fans of all kinds have united under one symbol - "the horns" or "the devil's horns" or "the metal horns". So to understand how it all happened, one has to go back to the beginning. In 1979 and after 3 successful albums with Rainbow, Ronnie James Dio leaves the band at its peak. On the tour following the album ' Long Live Rock 'n' Roll ', Ritchie Blackmore and Dio began discussing the direction of the next album. Blackmore aspired to create shorter and more catchy songs, he very much wanted a "hit". Dio on the other hand did not like the direction Blackmore was attracted to, but since it was nevertheless Blackmore's band Dio simply decided to leave. That same year, Black Sabbath's popularity was declining. The band failed to recreate the success that had existed on their major albums from the early 70s. Tony Iommi described the process of writing and recording with Ozzy as extremely frustrating. Ozzy Osbourne became more and more problematic, his addiction problems got worse and worse and his behavior became unbearable, to the point that it was clear to everyone that he could no longer be a member of the band. Don Arden managed Black Sabbath at the time. His daughter, Sharon Arden (who would later become Sharon Osborne) is the one who suggested the band collaborate with Dio. The original plan was to employ the members in a side project until Osborne "reset" himself, but at some point, everyone realized that Ozzy would not be able to stay in the band in his current condition and they approached Dio with an offer to become a permanent member. Dio was invited to an introductory meeting at Tony Iommi 's house in Beverly Hills. During the meeting, Tony played a guitar Riff and Dio suddenly started singing leaving Iommi breathless. On the same day, the two wrote " Children of the Sea ", one of Black Sabbath's greatest songs of all time. The song goes back to Ozzy's era in the band, but it included completely different lyrics and a completely different melody, that one can say the song was rewritten. Tony Iommi described the writing process with Dio as different, innovative, and refreshing. While Ozzy used to sing along with the riff itself (listen for example to "Iron Man", the melody in the song is the same as the riff), Dio used to improvise melodies around the riff, which caused Tony Iommi to open his eyes to new musical possibilities. However, the idiom between Dio and Iommi was disrupted due to the personal issues of the other two band members. Drummer Bill Ward struggled with alcohol addiction and bassist Geezer Butler went through a divorce process at the time, which led to the recruitment of Geoff Nicholls who served as bassist during rehearsals. At one point, Geezer called Iommi and asked to return to the band. Dio thought it would be good if Iommi and Geezer will play together and therefore supported his return. Eventually, the talented Nicholls was shifted to fulfill the role of keyboardist. The use of this instrument also contributed to the change in the sound of the band. In fact from that time until Black Sabbath's last album "13" Nicholls served as the band's keyboardist. When Bill Ward listened to the demos of the new songs, it was immediately clear to him that he must be a part of the album. He decided to immediately return to the band which return to create with the same enthusiasm that had existed in the first half of the 70s. Another reason for the band's change in sound was related to Dio's insistence on bringing in super-producer Martin Birch to work on the album. Birch encouraged the band to explore new fields of music and experiment with new musical structures appropriate to Dio's multi-octave sound range. The results were nothing short of amazing. This album maintains a high standard throughout and includes some masterpieces that are written in the history of metal. Already in the amazing opening song " Neon Knights " you can feel the change in the sound and the erupting power of Geezer, Tony, and Bill led by the mighty voice of Ronnie James Dio . It is hard to believe, but this song was meant to be a "filler." It was written and recorded last of the album's songs, in a completely separate session and in a different location from where the rest of the album songs were recorded. Martin Birch asked for another song to fill the album and Iommi said the band wanted a fast song to balance the heavy and slow songs on the album. This song was eventually written and recorded within hours, and it amazingly illustrates the fundamental change that has taken place in the band, which has made the transition from Doom and slow riffs to rhythmic and exploding Heavy Metal. Similar to "Hells Bells" which came out that year and was Brian Johnson 's first public audition for the devout "AC/DC" fans, "Neon Knights" was Dio's initial test for "Black Sabbath" fans, and he undoubtedly passed it successfully. The rhythmic song " Lady Evil " with Butler's beating and deep bass, illustrates the change in lyrics compared to Ozzy's era. With Dio the lyrics was surrounded by dark themes, witches, wizards, medieval ceremonies, and other themes that did not suit Ozzy's days, or his voice. The theme song " Heaven and Hell " is one of the greatest metal anthems of all time. It is written about the ability of every one of us to choose between darkness and light, between evil and good. The simple, monotonous and so iconic bass line in this song was written by then-session player Geoff Nicholls , who will later become the band's regular keyboardist. There is even a 1979 recording of this song with Jeff Nichols on bass. This song simply rhymes with rooted and classic metal, and no wonder it managed to climb to 11th place on the list of the 500 greatest metal songs of all time. It is also so identified with the band that its intro served as Tony Iommi 's welcoming song to the stage during the Freddie Mercury Tribute Show . " Die Young " shows how Dio's voice can be so diverse, so rich and so versatile. Listen to the change between the verses with the mighty and powerful vocals as opposed to the bridge with the soft and sweet voice. A tremendous range and divine voice of one of the great singers in metal. The tracks " Wishing Well " and " Walk Away " are Tony Iommi 's least favorite of all the "Black Sabbath" songs of the Dio era. We actually really like them. Geezer Butler 's bass work on " Wishing Well " just "drops jaws" and Iommi's short guitar sentences are just perfect. So true, the lyrics are not typical of "Black Sabbath". Dio even tells the girl that he will fulfill her personal wish and make her dream come true, but it does not bother us. " Walk Away " is indeed the "weakest" song on this album, but mind that this album features so many amazing tracks. The only song that perhaps includes remnants of the old and no less good "Sabbath", is the excellent ending song " Lonely Is the Word ," based on a slow, heavy riff whose roots are planted somewhere in the "Black Sabbath" of the early 1970s. This album proves without a shadow of a doubt that Dio has managed to inspire a new spirit in the band and bring about its resurgence, but its big challenge was to get into Ozzy's big shoes and conquer the hearts of the band's devout fans, as well. Fans of the band considered Ozzy's replacement "sacrilege." Ozzy was the band's icon and fans could not have imagined the band without him. Dio was well aware of what he was getting into, it was clear to him that devout fans would not take it lightly. He had a very hard time standing on stage night after night in front of the fans who had seen Ozzy in the same place for ten consecutive years before him, and heard the same crowd roar: 'Ozzy, Ozzy!' But in the end, Dio managed to capture the hearts of the fans with his amazing voice, excellent singing ability, sheer charisma, and uncompromising performance! And now for the story of the famous "metal horns". As part of Dio's "conquest" process to win the heart of the fans, he needed his own hallmark sign. Anyone who has seen Sabbath's live shows with Ozzy from the 1970s, knows that Ozzy used the V sign with his fingers. Dio needed a mark of his own but he could not look like his predecessor, so he chose a mark that his Italian grandmother used to get rid of an "evil eye" - the horn mark known today as "metal horns". Anyone who has watched recorded "Rainbow" performances during the Dio era, knows that he has not yet used the horn symbol during this period. In contrast, in the video of the show "Black & Blue" released by "Black Sabbath" in 1981, one can see the first times Dio uses this sign. The show "Black & Blue" was recorded in 1980 during Sabbath's first tour with Dio, right after the release of the album "Heaven And Hell". The "metal horns" symbol soon became the hallmark of Dio, but not only! The symbol's popularity grew and it became associated with metal music. To be precise, Dio was certainly not the first to use the symbol and even Geezer Butler noted in 2021 that he did so in the early 1970s. At the same time, there is no shadow of a doubt that Dio is responsible for the publication of the sign until it becomes the international emblem of metal fans wherever they are. Read more about the history of "Metal Horns" here . For listening to the masterpiece album on S potify : "Face/Off" - Israel's Rock Blog Follow us on Facebook  / Instagram  or Subscribe to our website

He is as powerful and mighty as the redwood tree... He looks forever young like a vampire... He holds the guitar as a chain saw... He is a well-known amplifier burnout... He knows how to roar like a lion in the Serengeti... So let's honor the man... the "Sawmill from Texas" (A nickname we gave him)... (Photo: Guitar.com) 1. He was born on April 18th, 1974. His full name is Mark Thomas Tremonti and he grew up in Michigan, as a member of an Italian Catholic family. 2. He bought his first guitar at the age of 11 at a price of 10$. 3. major influences on him as a guitar player were "Metallica" and "Testament". He used to play their riffs for hours to get stronger. To this day, he claims that his power comes from the rhythm guitar roles. 4. During his childhood and adolescence, Tremonti moved to several states in the U.S., Michigan, Illinois, Florida, and South Carolina, and returned to Florida where he enrolled in college and formed his first band. 5. He met Scott Stapp in high school and later the two met again when they were studying together at Florida State University. During that time Tremonti worked as a cook at a chili restaurant. 6. In 1994 during their studies the two discovered the common love they have for music and started writing and playing together. In order to form a band, the two began recruiting more members the band and after several auditions joined Brian Marshall on bass, Scott Philips on drums, and guitarist Brian Brasher (but Brian left after less than a year). 7. The band name was brought by Brian from the name of his previous band called "Mattox Creed", Stapp liked the word "Creed" and everyone agreed on the name. By the way, the band's first name was "Naked Toddler". (Photo: Last. fm) 8. The band's debut album "My Own Prison" was released in 1997 and was a huge success with sales of over 6 million copies. Four singles were released from the album: "My Own Prison", "Torn", "What's This Life For", and "One" and four of them took first place on the Billboard Rock chart. Which made the band the first to achieve this with a debut album. 9. The band's second album "Human Clay" was released in 1999, the first single from the album "Higher" topped the charts and spent 17 weeks in first place. With the release of the album it immediately took first place on the Billboard 200 and became an insane success as it sold about 10 million copies in the first two years which gave the band its first and only Grammy win. 10. With the success of the album, the band established its status as a hard rock leader in the Post-Grunge era, with fans yearning for Tremonti's strong and aggressive riffs. 11. After the tour to promote the album, Brian's addiction to alcohol was too strong, so Tremonti and Stapp urge him to go into rehab or he will be fired from the band. Since he refused to go into rehab he was fired. On the band's next album, Tremonti was the one who took the bass role. 12. In 2000, Tremonti tried to form a Speed ​​Metal band with singer Jamey Jasta from the band "Hatebreed" and drummer Joey Jordison from the band "Slipknot", but the project failed. 13. The band's third album "Weathered" was released in 2001 and was also a huge success, reaching first place on the Billboard and staying there for 8 weeks in a row. The tour to promote the album, which was a huge success, was in fact the band's encore, this time it was Stapp's addiction to alcohol and painkillers that decided the fate of the band. 14. The turning point was when, in December 2002, Stapp went on stage drugged, drunk, and failed to fully complete a single song. The show was stopped and two years later the band officially disbanded. 15. Immediately after the official dissolution, Tremonti joins the other two members of "Creed" in order to form a new band. After admiring the performances of his band "The Mayfield Four" the trio invited Myles Kennedy to join the band and thus formed "Alter Bridge". (Photo: NME.com) 16. This time Tremonti is the one who gave the band its name, after a bridge that is close to his house and is called "Alter Road". 17. They released their debut album "One Day Remains" in August 2004, the album was a success and reached number five on Billboard while staying there for 14 weeks. The album was written mostly by Tremonti, both in terms of music and lyrics, with Myles contributing only a few parts. 18. The song "In Loving Memory" from the album was dedicated to Tremonti's mother who passed away in 2002. 19. In 2007 the band released their second album (and a masterpiece to be noted) "Blackbird" . Although the album only reached number 13 on Billboard, it received very positive reviews from critics and later became one of the band's biggest albums. After the release of the album, the band went on a tour to promote it and there is even a DVD named "Live from Amsterdam" that was recorded during the tour. Look for it... Highly recommended! 20. Here we must note the masterful and sublime solo of Tremonti (yes, yes sublime), which explodes in the song "Blackbird", one of the band's famous songs. The guitar solo consists of two parts with Myles taking the first part and Tremonti coming in the second part and it is simply a masterpiece of two amazing guitarists !! This guitar solo won in 2011 as the best guitar solo of all time by "Guitarist" magazine. 21. In 2008, Tremonti and his brother Dan founded the company "FRET12", the company is engaged in many areas in the music industry: an internet community for musicians, a production company, a record company, and a merch company. You can see Tremonti wearing company shirts and guitar straps at gigs. (Photo: Antje Naumann) 22. Dan is also the one who designed all of "Creed" & "Alter Bridge's" album covers. 23. Worth noting is another brother of Tremonti - Michael, which is the publicist and liaison with the fans of "Alter Bridge". 24. That same year Tremonti releases a DVD called "Mark Tremonti: The Sound & the Story", in which he explains the way he creates and continues his learning process in music. He explains how he builds the riffs, gets inspired, and also teaches how to perform the "Alter Bridge" solos. 25. Although Tremonti has repeatedly claimed in a fair number of interviews that "Creed" belongs to the past and has no future in sight, in 2009 the quartet returned and released their fourth album "Full Circle" . The album was not a great success, but one of the shows from the tour broke records. The band performed in September 2009 in Houston Texas in front of 239 cameras and millions of viewers, with the show broadcast live via the Internet. There were a number of other Guinness records broken in that show. 26. In 2011 "Alter Bridge" released their third album "AB III" (which is also needless to say a masterpiece album). The album's lead single "Isolation" topped the US rock charts. Here too you can find a live performance from the album tour, called "Live at Wembley". 27. In 2011 Tremonti embarked on a solo career and formed the ensemble named after him "Tremonti". He takes Eric Friedman on guitar and bass and drummer Garrett Whitlock. Bassist Wolfgang Van Halen (the son of...) later joins the band's tour and takes part in the recordings of the second and third albums. (Photo: Ashley Maile) 28. In 2012 "Tremonti" releases their first solo album "All I Was" under the Tremonti label "FRET12". This is a Hard Rock, Trash Metal album, that sounds as if Tremonti was just waiting to be released from his cage and explode in his own way. He wrote, recorded, and produced the album in three months during a break from both bands, just in the transition between the end of Alter's tour and the start of Creed's tour. 29. In that year the members of "Creed" started working on the next album, but the album did not materialize and this was actually the last year of the band members together as "Creed". 30. In 2013, "Alter" released its fourth album "Fortress" . It's one of the band's most powerful and gruesome albums. One of the most powerful songs on the album in which Tremonti takes a significant part in singing is "Waters Rising", an amazing collaboration of the two. Here we must note that seeing this song performed at a live show right in the face of Tremonti was an out-of-body experience (like the rest of the show). 31. In 2015 Tremonti releases his second solo album "Cauterize", also under his label "FRET12". This is the first album joined by Wolfgang who replaces Brian (Alter Bridge) who was part of Tremonti's tour. Here, too, Tremonti releases every rein and saws of his soul into the album. This album is the first of two albums recorded together. Tremonti recorded enough material for two albums but did not want to release a double album, but two different albums balanced in their dynamics and structure. 32. The second album released a year later in 2016 is called "Dust" , and like the first one it consists of ten songs and was released under the label "FRET12". (Photo: Jurgen "Jux" Hummer) 33. That same year "Alter Bridge" released their fifth album called "The Last Hero" , Tremonti claimed that the album was a combination of "Blackbird" and "Fortress" together. 34. In June 2018, Tremonti released his fourth solo album "A Dying Machine", this time the album is released under the "Naplam" label. This masterful album is accompanied by a full-length novel written by Tremonti and writer John Shirley which completes parts of the album. We are proud to say that we opened our first show on the radio with this song that bears the name of the album. 35. In October 2019 the band released their sixth album "Walk the Sky" (we did not say this about the previous two but this is a masterful album double time). Tremonti said that to get inspired for the album he decided to go back in time and dig into the riffs he recorded many years ago. He not only took inspiration from the riffs but part of the vibes of the songs were also heard from the past of the 80s. 36. Tremonti has collaborated with many artists such as the comedian "Larry the Cable Guy", the guitarist Michael Angelo Batio, and his friends from the band - "Submersed", the bands "Sevendust", "Fozzy" and more... 37. In 2014, Tremonti won the "Riff Lord" title in the Golden Gods Awards competition of "Metal Hammer" magazine. 38. A year later he was named by "Loudwire" magazine the "Best Guitarist". 39. Tremonti has also been named by "Guitar World" magazine the "Guitarist of the Year" for 3 consecutive years, which has also led to winning the prestigious "Guitarist of the Decade" title. 40. In 2011 he was ranked fourth on "Total Guitar's" list of the greatest heavy metal players. 41. In September 2021, Tremonti releases his fifth solo album "Marching In Time" , an album that in every song illustrates the tremendous development of Tremonti as a musician, the tremendous talent, and insane abilities that this man has. The singing, the melody, the production, and all the elements of the album undergo a significant leap from the previous albums. 42. In May 2022 Tremonti creates a unique project called "Tremonti Sings Sinatra" , you can rub your eyes as much as you want but you read that right, Frank Sinatra. This is a special project that Termonti created for his daughter Stella who was born with Down Syndrome. 43. In October 2022, "Alter Bridge" releases its seventh album "Pawns & Kings". Unfortunately, and we really say this with heavy mixed feelings, this feels like the beginning of the end. The album sounds flat, without depth or charisma, something that feels like autopilot. And with the rumors of a "Creed" reunion, the feelings are only getting stronger. 44. In July 2023, "Creed" announced a reunion!!!! The band announced not only a reunion but also a full North American tour called "The Summer of '99 Tour". The tour is scheduled to start in April 2024, this is the first time the band has taken the stage together since 2012 and there are already rumors of a new album... (Photo: Chuck Brueckmann) 45. In January 2025, Mark released his sixth solo album, "The End Will Show Us How". Once again, bandmate Eric Friedman took part in the album, and it was produced by Michael "Elvis" Baskette. We feel compelled to share our personal opinion here because we truly love this guy — but this album didn’t really leave a mark on us, and we found it quite hard to connect with. The riffs and vocals just aren’t as strong or moving as they were on the previous album, but that’s just our take. 46. On April 2025, PRS Guitars released the updated MT 15 and the new Archon Classic amplifiers, along with a larger Archon speaker cabinet. The 15-watt, two-channel Mark Tremonti signature amp MT 15 now features a lead channel overdrive control. 47. In January 2026, "Alter Bridge" released their eighth studio album, which is self-titled. The recordings took place at Eddie Van Halen’s 5150 studio in Los Angeles, an experience that Mark Tremonti described as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the band. The album features the band’s longest track to date, "Slave to Master", which runs 9 minutes and 3 seconds, surpassing "Fable of the Silent Son" from their previous album. Listen to Tremonti's "The End Will Show Us How" on Spotify , Apple Music "Face/Off" - Israel's Rock Blog Follow us on Facebook  / Instagram  or Subscribe to our website

Well, the man did so much in so many areas that it was really difficult to summarize it all. So here are 40 facts about the "octopus" (there is no other way to define him): (Photo: Tim Cadiente) 1. He was born on April 17, 1964, as James Herbert Keenan, in Ravenna, Ohio, United States. 2. He is the only son of a Baptist family with Irish and Italian roots. 3. In 1968 his parents divorced and his father moved to Michigan. For this reason, he used to see him only once a year for 12 years until 1980. 4. When he was 11 his mother suffered from a brain aneurysm, which greatly influenced him, leading him to write songs like "Jimmy", "Wings for Marie" for the band "Tool", and the song "Judith" for the band "A Perfect Circle". 5. This led his mother to offer him to move in with his father and this will have a tremendous effect on Maynard as a teenager. 6. He joined the wrestling team of the high school in "Scottsville" where he studied, and of which his father was a coach. 7. In 1982 he graduated from high school and joined the army and in 1983 he joined the West Point Pre-Military Preparatory School. During this time he adopted the name, Maynard. 8. In 1984 Maynard was supposed to continue from the West Point Military Academy Preparatory School to the army but choose to leave and start his musical career. 9. He began studying art design at a college in Michigan while switching between several jobs, including as a backstage worker. 10. In the 1980s he played bass guitar in the band "TexA.N.S" with whom he released in the years 84 and 85 two albums. He later sang in the band "Children of the Anachronistic Dynasty" with which he released two albums. During this time Maynard wrote an initial version of what would become the song "Sober" - "Tool"'s first and most successful single. 11. From 1990 to 1993 Maynard played guitar and sang with the band "Green Jellö", where he also met his friend in the band Tool - "Danny Carey". In fact one of the voices in the band's famous song "Three Little Pigs" from the debut album. He also appears on keyboards for the song "Slave Boy" from the band's second album - "333". 12. At that time he teamed up with Tom Morello who even gave him credit for teaching him to tune the guitar lower to get a slower and heavier sound. 13. He even jammed with Morello, Brad Wilk , and Zack de la Rocha who would later form with Morello the band "Rage Against the Machine". 14. He met guitarist Adam Jones when he moved to Los Angeles in the late 1980s. 15. In 1990 they formed the band "Tool" together with bassist Paul D'Amour who was later replaced by Justin Chancellor and drummer Danny Carey. (Photo: AltPress.com) 16. In 1992 they released their first mini-album "(Opiate)" and immediately afterward went on a tour with "Fishbone" and "Rage Against the Machine". 17. In 1993 they released their debut album "Undertow" which was a huge success. Already on this album, Keenan's very unique poetry and writing stood out, which combined melodies and wildness accompanied by anxiety. Henry Rollins, lead singer of "Black Flag" and "Rollins Band" participated in the album he was Keenan's partner in weightlifting at the time. 18. In 1996 the band released their second album "Ænima". The album reached sales of a gold album within 10 weeks and won best metal performance in 1998. 19. After the launch of "Ænima" the band found themselves in a lengthy legal battle with its record company. The legal proceedings led the band to take a hiatus. 20. During this time, Maynard took the nickname "Gaylord C" and worked with Tim Alexander the drummer of "Primus" and Mike Bordin the drummer of "Faith No More" on the song "Choked" - a track included on the compilation album for drummers "Flyin 'Traps". 21. At the same time Maynard found time to work with "Tool's" former guitar technician Billy Howerdel on a side project called "A Perfect Circle". The supergroup started performing in 1999 and released its first album "Mer de Noms" in 2000. (Photo: Kerrang.com) 22. Maynard also designed the logo that appears on the album cover. 23. After a 5-year hiatus, "Tool" released its third album "Lateralus". The album went straight to number one on the Billiard 200 and was a huge success receiving great reviews from critics. Maynard has been praised for his writing ability. 24. In parallel with working with "Tool", Maynard continued to maintain the supergroup "A Perfect Circle". Their second album "Thirteenth Step" was released in 2003. Maynard's son - Devo H. Keenan sings background vocals on the album. A year later, the band released the album Cover Versions "Emotive". 25. In 2003 Maynard appeared with the band "Puscifer" in the soundtrack of the movie "Underworld". They performed the song "REV 22:20". This is a side project of Maynard together with Danny Lohner from the band "Nine Inch Nails". In 2006, "Puscifer" contributed the song "The Undertaker (Renholder Mix)" to the soundtrack of the sequel "Underworld: Evolution". (Photo: Travis Shinn) 26. Maynard had a surprise appearance at a concert in Seattle in February 2005 for tsunami victims in South Asia, along with "Alice In Chains" in place of the late lead singer Layne Staley and performed the songs "Them Bones", "Rooster" and "Man In A Box". 27. On April 1, 2005, Maynard announced, as one April Fool's joke, that he had discovered Jesus and that he was temporarily abandoning recordings of "Tool's" new album, probably for good. 28. In 2006, "Tool" released its fourth album "10,000 Days" . Maynard went on to write about more personal topics, including the songs "Jambi", "Wings for Marie" and "10,000 Days (Wings for Marie, Pt 2)" written following the death of his mother in 2003. This album also went to number one on Billboard 200 already in its first week. Maynard also produced the album. 29. In the following years, Maynard focused on the "Puscifer" project with which he released in 2007 the debut album "V Is for Vagina". Maynard played guitar, drums, percussion, and clarinet on the album. 30. Maynard later released with "Puscifer" three more studio albums "Conditions of My Parole" from 2011 "Donkey Punch the Night" from 2013 and "Money Shot" from 2015. 31. In 2018, Maynard released the album "Eat the Elephant" with the band "A Perfect Circle". 32. Only in 2019 after 13 years of hiatus, "Tool" released their fifth and most amazing album “Fear Inoculum”. It was the band's third consecutive album to reach number one on the Billboard charts. 33. In parallel with his musical career, Maynard also developed a mini-stand-up career. In the early 1990s, he and satirist Bill Hicks became friends. He used to do stand-up at amateur nights in clubs across Los Angeles and Hicks opened several "Tool" shows, including the one at Lollapalooza in 1993. 34. Maynard also has a small TV career. He appeared in several episodes of the HBO comedy series - "Mr. Show". 35. And if all this is not enough to understand how much this man is a "polymath" man, then Maynard does hold a "vineyard," he is a winemaker who owns a winery in Arizona. He scattered his mother's ashes, who died in 2003, in this vineyard. (Photo: Chad Cochran) 36. Maynard has many collaborations, including the song "Know Your Enemy" from "Rage Against the Machine's" debut album. 37. He also appeared with "Tool" in the song "Divorced" by "The Melvins" from the album "The Crybaby". 38. Another interesting collaboration is in the song "Passenger" from the "White Pony" album of the Deftones. 39. Maynard was also a partner in the song "Fallen" from the debut album of "Thirty Seconds to Mars". 40. Maynard even sang a duet with Tori Amos on the song "Muhammad My Friend" in the show "Tori Amos: Live From New York". 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On April 17, 1990, "Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds" released their sixth studio album, "The Good Son". The new decade of the 1990s brought with it a fundamental change in musical style, lyrical content, musical instruments, and even the production of "Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds". The songs became less depressing, less protesting, less condensed, and more chaotic. Why did we use the word "less"? Because Nick Cave never completely abandoned sadness, protest, and depression. This is an amazing album that strives for perfection, which carries the theme of "father and son" as revealed by its title - "The Good Son", which is taken from the story "Cain and Abel" from the Bible. What led to this significant change? Stay with us and find out. The story of this album begins with the depression, grayness, and coldness of West Berlin, where the band's previous album "Tender Prey" from 1988 was recorded. Nick Cave was then at a low point, in the worst place he had been until then. The depression, sadness, and despair permeated well from Cave's wounded soul into an album and this was well evident from the atmosphere that hovered over it. Cave was a heavy addict, very deep in heroin, But he managed to understand that he was heading directly into a deep black abyss and that if he would not do something, he would evaporate from this world. In his last strength, he managed to put himself into rehab. He said he did not leave his room for a whole year. He used this period to watch videos, but also to improve his piano playing. That fateful year Nick Cave wrote two songs on the piano: the first, " The Train Song " which despite being unusually beautiful and its title reminiscent of many of the album's songs ("The Ship Song", "The Weeping Song", "The Hammer Song" and " The Witness Song "), was not included in the album and was released as a single and later as the B-side for the " The Ship Song ". By the way, the similarity in the titles of these five songs stemmed from the fact that these were the working titles of these songs which remain as it is. The second, was " Sorrow's Child ", which was also the first of the theme "father and son". After the successful rehab process of Cave, the band went on 1989 to a tour in South America. Nick Cave said that the moment of landing in Brazil was a defining moment for him. He went out into the Brazilian sun and just felt that a tremendous psychological weight had been lifted from him. The atmosphere there was almost the opposite of the gray and melancholy atmosphere of Berlin. But the change in atmosphere and location dwarfed the huge change that love would bring for Nick Cave . Through two Brazilian journalists who wanted to interview him, he met the journalist Viviane Carneiro, he fell in love with her immediately, and the love brought solace to his wounded soul, at least for a while. The two planned to move to London but the fact that Vivian became pregnant changed plans and the two remained living in Sao Paulo, where their son was born. It was a happy time for Cave, who continued to specialize in playing the piano on which he wrote most of the songs on the album. The band members would later testify that this greatly influenced the structure of the songs, as this was the first time Cave had composed his songs on piano. Drug-free, happy, and wrapped in an optimistic atmosphere, Nick Cave invited his friends in October 1989 to Sao Paulo to record the album. This different atmosphere also affected the other members of the band and greatly influenced the final product. Another influence on sound and style was related to the expansion of the range of instruments played by the band members, such as the piano and the Hammond organ played by Nick Cave , and the vibraphone played by multi-instrumentalist Mick Harvey who accompanied Nick Cave since "The Boys Next Door" days. Harvey is also responsible for the strings arrangements played by eight guest Brazilian musicians, who have no doubt added to the overall vibe of the album and contributed to the drama that has only intensified the difficult writing themes. As already mentioned above, Cave has never abandoned the melancholy and depression that still stands out from the lyrics and melodies on this album. At the same time, they were enveloped here in a slightly more optimistic atmosphere and romance, and this combination made Nick Cave accessible to the masses, with the news reaching as far as Israel, which welcomed him with open arms, thanks in large part to the clip that accompanied " The Ship Song ". The clip shows Cave playing a grand piano and surrounded by the girls dressed in white, in exactly the same configuration and location where the album cover was also shot. An exciting and penetrating love song with hidden meanings, whose intensities only increased in the live version that can be found, among others, on the album "Live Seeds" released in 1993. The album features some of the most beautiful songs in Cave's rich catalog. The opening song " Foi Na Cruz " literally means "It happened on the cross". The song is based on a Brazilian Protestant folk song of the same name. The folk performance of the song appeared in the soundtrack of the movie "Pixote: a Lei do Mais Fraco" ("Pisciotta") which brings a chilling documentary description of the harsh reality in the Favela of Sao Paulo and the relationship between delinquent teenagers, corrupt police and criminal organizations. The main role of the film is played by the boy Fernando Ramos de Silva who was only 10 years old during the filming. Ramos, a Favela resident in Sao Paulo, was killed nine years later when he was just 19 years old, by Brazilian police. Cave, which was greatly affected by the tragic incident, dedicated the entire "Tender Prey" album to Ramos as well as the song with which he chose to open the album. It is interesting to note that the song features two Brazilian singers Clóvis Trindade and Rubinho as background voices. The theme song " The Good Son " opens with a kind of a-capel gospel song sung by all the band members. It was influenced by an African-American folk song called "Another Man Done Gone" which was first recorded in 1957 by the African-American singer Odetta. An exciting and chilling song based on the story of "Cain and Abel" and apparently influenced by Cave's relationship with his father. In this specific case, the story of Cain and Abel comes from the point of view of the son who simply longs for the love of his father. We continue with the same concept of the "father and son" relationship with " Sorrow's Child ", a song that simply breaks us down into tears at every hearing. This is the first song written for the album and probably the one that brought the whole theme to the album. Cave's exciting piano playing, the lyrics, the deep voice, the melodic melody, and the accompaniment of strings, simply do not allow the listener to remain indifferent. The fourth track " The Weeping Song " is probably the best known from the album and perhaps the one that best highlights the concept behind the album and the theme of "father-son relationship". It's an amazing duet between guitarist Blixa Bargeld who sings the role of "father" and Nick Cave who sings the role of "son", with an unforgettable video clip that features the two getting drunk on a rocking boat. " The Hammer Song " is probably the closest in terms of style to the old Nick Cave . The "hammer" is probably the harsh reality that slapped Cave in the face, perhaps due to his difficult relations with his parents and perhaps because he disappointed them. Another possibility that could explain the "hammer" that fell on Cave could be related to the death of his father in a car accident when he was only 19 years old. Either way, this song draws the line of the "father and son" relationship that runs between the songs on the album, including the lyrics: "My father raged and raged And my mother wept." The song " Lament " is as its name implies. Lyrics and melody that express a lament for a loved one who has passed away. The track " The Witness Song " brings us closer again to the gospel that greatly influenced Nick Cave in those days. As is well known Nick Cave has dealt with quite a few spiritual and biblical issues during his career and the gospel influences in this song are not really surprising given Cave's attraction to those issues. The album ends with " Lucy ", the only song on the album written by Blixa Bargeld and keyboardist Roland Wolf who was part of "The Seeds" until the previous album and also plays the piano here. The song ends with Nick Cave 's beautiful harmonica playing and here we recall u2's "The Joshua Tree" album which also included gospel influences, harmonica playing, and the work of Flood who also produced this album. "The Good Son" is without a doubt a masterpiece and one of Cave's best albums. It is a work that strives for perfection. What may at first seem quiet, melodic, and soft hides the deadly and uncompromising power of one of the most special and interesting artists of our generation. To listen to the album: Spotify , Apple Music "Face/Off" - Israel's Rock Blog Follow us on Facebook  / Instagram  or Subscribe to our website

On April 17, 1989, "Annihilator" released their debut album "Alice in Hell" and entered the second wave of thrash metal bands scene, in a big storm. This album is the epitome of one man's dream come true. A hyperactive child with ADHD who discovers music and guitar at age 7 and founded "Annihilator" in 1984, a and that would later turn out to be the largest thrash metal band in Canada, which he still leads to this day. 1984 is the year that Thrash Metal began to establish itself as one of the leading sub-genres in metal. 3 of the 4 big bands in Thrash have already released their debut albums ("Metallica" even a second album) and to the hyperactive kid named Jeff Waters , it was already clear where he wanted to lead his band. He joins forces with singer John Bates, drummer Paul Malek, and bassist Dave Scott, and the quartet enters the studio and records their first demo "Welcome To Your Death". But just then, even before the band had time to dream of a recording contract, bassist Dave Scott and singer John Bates leave the band. Jeff Waters does not give up, he takes on the roles of bass and vocals, and together with drummer Paul Malek, he records another demo called "Phantasmagoria", which was released in 1986. This demo became highly sought after and aroused interest among record companies, who at this time already recognized the potential in the subgenre of Thrash Metal. In 1987, Paul Malek and Jeff Waters enter the studio and record a third demo called "Wicked Mystic"/"Word Salad". But the troubles keep falling on Jeff Waters , who at the worst time for him suddenly becomes a one-man band, following the departure of drummer Paul Malek. But nothing will stop Waters from fulfilling his dream of creating a Canadian Thrash Metal alternative, which like the "Annihilator" (the tank on which actor Eddie Murphy rode in the movie "Best Defense"), will "Annihilate" everything that stands in its way. He moves to Vancouver and begins to form the new line-up that will accompany him, which includes drummer Ray Hartmann and bassist Randy Rampage who move into the vocalist position. In the years 1988-1989, Jeff Waters begins to record on his own, what will become the band's amazing debut album. Waters recorded all the guitar and bass roles for the album and also sang background vocals and produced it. Only after the recording of Randy Rampage's vocal roles, did Waters recruit bassist Wayne Darley and rhythm guitarist Anthony Brian Greenham, who received credit on the album cover, even though they were not part of its recording. The songs on this album consist of the three demos recorded by the band, all of which were written by Jeff Waters, some in collaboration with the band's first singer John Bates, who will continue to receive credit for writing on the band's next albums as well. A short piece of acoustic guitar called " Crystal Ann " leads us to the excellent song " Alison Hell " whose title corresponds with the name of the album. This is a psychological murder thriller based on a true story of a young and disturbed girl who grew up in Montreal, Canada, and suffered from nightmares. She would wake up at night screaming and her parents did not pay attention to her instead of helping her they locked her in her room. This led her to a mental institution. Musically, there is no doubt that the acoustic opening and relative complexity of "Alison Hell" draws its influence from "Metallica" mainly the way the albums " Ride The Lightning " and " Master Of Puppets " open up. Much has been written and said about Randy Rampage's singing, but even his opponents will admit that while listening to this song you can actually hear what the main character Alison is going through, mainly thanks to his crazy singing that adds to the atmosphere. The rest of the first side of the vinyl is steeped in fast and edgy thrash metal songs. " W.T.Y.D. (Welcome to Your Death) ", with an opening riff that very much reminded us of the sound and style of "Megadeth" on the debut album " Killing Is My Business... and Business Is Good! ". In a song of fewer than 4 minutes where Jeff Waters manages to become complex, when in the 2:00 minute area we get a rhythm break and a relatively quiet instrumental section. " Wicked Mystic " continues with the fast Thrash with Waters' amazing guitar work, both on the excellent riff and in the solos. " Burns Like a Buzzsaw Blade " ends the first side in a storm with a powerful speed Metal drumming by Ray Hartmann and excellent bass work by Jeff Waters . The other side of the album presents a more complex and creative side with a purposeful display of technical playing, especially of Waters. " Word Salad " is very dynamic and includes quite a few rhythm changes that serve as a basis for refreshing humor flashes in the lyrics. " Schizos (Are Never Alone) Parts I & II " really feels like a "schizophrenic" piece that never ceases to amaze. " Ligeia " was influenced by Edgar Allan Poe which starts as a mid-tempo section but after the funky bass explodes at the speed of light, before returning to the basic rhythm. The album ends with a purposeful display of speed and power with " Human Insecticide ". "Alice In Hell" received rave reviews and brought "Annihilator" and Waters (albeit a little late) to the consciousness of the global Thrash Metal scene. It was undoubtedly an opening shot that set a high standard for the band's marvelous career. The album introduces the sound and initial style of "Annihilator", before more elements enter it and the sound will evolve and change. For Listening: Spotify , Apple Music "Face/Off" - Israel's Rock Blog Follow us on Facebook  / Instagram  or Subscribe to our website