Latest news with #VanHalen
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Rock band backs out of legendary metal group's farewell concert
Wolfgang Van Halen said his rock band Mammoth was forced to back out Black Sabbath's historic farewell concert. Van Halen, the son of the late Eddie Van Halen, was originally scheduled to perform at Back to the Beginning — Ozzy Osbourne's final concert scheduled for July 5 at Villa Park in Birmingham, England. However, Mammoth (also known as Mammoth WVH) had to pull out because of a scheduling issue. 'I, unfortunately, had to back out because the Creed tour starts the day after, and I [wouldn't] be able to pull it off — unfortunately," Van Halen told Detroit radio station 101 WRIF. 'I'm very excited to watch it, but I unfortunately had to back out.' Read More: Band removed from legendary metal group's farewell concert Mammoth is traveling with Creed on the band's 'Return of the Summer of '99″ tour, which kicks off July 9. The tour includes a July 22 show at Xfinity Theatre in Hartford, Connecticut. It's unclear what Van Halen meant by 'day after,' as Mammoth is not scheduled to perform July 6, but he may have been referring to tour rehearsals or time needed to get equipment in place for the U.S. tour with Creed. Back to the Beginning will mark Osbourne's final performance both on his own and with Black Sabbath. The 'Prince of Darkness' will be joined by his bandmates Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward for the first time in two decades. Black Sabbath's last show was during the band's 'The End Tour' in Birmingham, England in 2017. Tickets for Back to the Beginning sold out quickly, but fans can now purchase tickets to stream the concert online. Proceeds from the show will benefit the charities Cure Parkinson's, the Birmingham Children's Hospital and Acorn Children's Hospice. Read More: For rock legend who can't walk, farewell show may be true farewell Other performers include Metallica, Guns N' Roses, Slayer, Pantera, Gojira, Halestorm, Alice in Chains, Lamb of God, Anthrax, Mastodon and Rival Sons. The event will also feature performances from Billy Corgan (The Smashing Pumpkins), David Draiman (Disturbed), Fred Durst (Limp Bizkit), Mike Bordin (Faith No More), Sleep Token II (Sleep Token), Papa V Perpetua (Ghost) Tom Morello (Rage Against The Machine) and Zakk Wylde. Iconic '80s singer cancels show last minute as travel-weary band 'can barely see' Country music star 'doing much better' after having stroke on stage Country music star falls off stage with beer in hand, keeps on singing Legendary punk singer halts show, confronts fan, saying 'I'll beat your ass' 'Nothing sadder': Country singer asks fans to pray for his 4-year-old daughter Read the original article on MassLive.
Boston Globe
25-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Boston Globe
Kes the Band will be the first soca act to headline Leader Bank Pavilion
'There was this group called Van Halen, and they also had a German name, and they were also brothers, so that's where the dream started,' he recalled. Advertisement Twenty years ago, that dream became Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up The show also includes Nailah Blackman, a Trinidadian soca queen whose grandfather Lord Shorty is credited with releasing the first soca record, as well as helping develop the Indio-Caribbean sound now called 'chutney soca.' 'A show like this is a good look for soca,' says Advertisement Kes the Band has also distinguished itself by presenting full-band performances in a genre where even major stars often appear with just a backing track. These days, 'it's Kes the Band, not Kes the man,' says its lead singer over a Zoom call from his Trinidad home. 'Because the mission is to spread the music as far and wide as possible, people can relate to a band more than they can relate to a track,' the frontman added. ' Maybe there's a fan who isn't even looking at me, they're fixated on the DJ or the drummer. I love that there are so many more points of contact that come with a band.' Today the group still includes Kes's brother Jon and their childhood friend and bassist Riad Boochoon, as well as drummer Dean James. The live outfit also features a pair of keyboard players and a DJ. Kes the Band hit its stride with the song ' Kes admits that before the song broke, he was focused on working with Los Angeles-based producers to make crossover tracks that he loved, but that failed to connect with audiences. ''Wotless' showed me the power of soca in its real form,' he said. Caribbean and African music have been in conversation with each other for decades. Kes's open musical mind meant the group was well positioned when Afrobeats began to sweep the world over the past decade. Their fusion track ' Advertisement 'I love the Afro side of things, because I think that they lay back while the beat is kicking,' said Kes. 'Calypso had that element, and soca lost some of that as it got a little more hyper. As we started to tap into more of the R&B and the Afrobeat and mixed with that soca feel, it was the beginning of the development of our sound.' That same laid-back feel powered Kes's most recent hit, ' 'Cocoa tea is something that we grew up with at home. It's that comfort drink you have when it's raining outside,' explained Kes. 'It's a love story about coming home to what you're familiar with and what you cherish the most.' Considering the band's omnivorous musical approach, it's little surprise that one of their most recent songs, ' Kes points out that decades before Beyoncé released her 2024 album 'Cowboy Carter,' Black audiences on islands like St. Lucia and Jamaica were known for their love of country music. Today he feels a kinship with country acts like Advertisement 'They're trying to keep their core sound, but still touch other spaces, so there's a similarity,' he said. Even as Kes the Band have become year-round ambassadors of soca, they still draw their inspiration from Carnival culture. 'What we do every year is create these beautiful costumes, and then we destroy them, just to build it all back again in a few months,' Kes observed. 'So it's that love of life that we're trying to put into our music. We celebrate creativity.' KES THE BAND With Nailah Blackman. Leader Bank Pavilion, 290 Northern Ave., Boston, July 3, 7:30 p.m. Tickets $30-$100.45. Noah Schaffer can be reached at
Associated Press
17-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Associated Press
June 21: TWOFEW Reloads for a High-Voltage Set at Whisky A Go Go
06/16/2025, Phoenix, Arizona // KISS PR Brand Story PressWire // Rising, piano-fronted family rock group TWOFEW is making a fierce return to Los Angeles with their next high-powered live performance on Saturday, June 21, 2025, at Whisky A Go Go. The band last graced the stage in September 2024. This show promises a larger set, deeper cuts, and even more of the gritty piano-driven rock fans have grown to love. Full details and tickets can be found on their official post, 'TWOFEW Returns to Whisky A Go Go - June 21, 2025,' and on their event page. Back on the Iconic Sunset Stage Whisky A Go Go has a storied history of launching music's most legendary names, and TWOFEW is set to channel that same legacy on June 21. This marks their first time back at the venue since 2024, and they've spent the past year evolving their sound with new tracks and a growing fanbase. Their upcoming appearance is part of a stacked lineup that also includes The Atomic Punks, a Van Halen tribute favorite, Incidental, and Spaz-Zeppelin. Building Serious Momentum After climbing to the No. 6 spot on Indie Talk's Top 10 Emerging Artists list in May, TWOFEW has captured serious attention across the indie rock space. Known for rich, emotional lyrics layered with bold instrumentation, they're not a band that rests. They've kept the energy moving with standout singles like " Lovestruck,' " Let It Go,' and " Empty Bottles ", drawing comparisons to a modern take on piano rock's golden age. What Fans Can Expect June's show will blend familiar crowd favorites with live previews from their anticipated summer release. Expect sweeping piano runs, tight drum lines, signature guitar licks, and vocals that hit hard in all the right ways. Fans can snag official merch and maybe even hear some unreleased material that's been teased on social media. Show Info at a Glance What: TWOFEW Live at Whisky A Go Go When: Saturday, June 21, 2025 – Doors at 5:30 PM / Show at 6:00 PM Where: Whisky A Go Go – 8901 W. Sunset Blvd, West Hollywood, CA Tickets: Pricing starts at $25 – VIP options available. Reserve now at the Event Page About the Band Led by brothers Michael and David Lazar, Michael's wife, Danielle Lazar, and their charismatic drummer, John Sebring, TWOFEW stands out with a sound that pulls listeners into a story with every track. They've become a staple in the rock scene with a DIY work ethic and real heart behind their craft. Their growing catalog and loyal fan base continue to reflect the kind of staying power that's rare in today's music world. For Press & Media Are you interested in covering the show or interviewing the band? Press passes, high-res images, and media kits are available upon request. Contact: Joel Burton Manager, Let's Rock Out Records / TWOFEW (708) 580-2990 Visit: Follow the band for updates and behind-the-scenes content. Get tickets here: This content was first published by KISS PR Brand Story. Read here >> June 21: TWOFEW Reloads for a High-Voltage Set at Whisky A Go Go
The Guardian
16-06-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Violence is coming to define American political life
America reached its apex of self-parody shortly after 7pm on 14 June 2025. In that moment, the background band at Donald Trump's military parade segued from Jump by Van Halen to Fortunate Son by Creedence Clearwater Revival, just after the announcer explained that M777 howitzers are made out of titanium. Nobody, apparently, had considered the lyrics: 'Some folks are born, made to wave the flag, they're red, white and blue, and when the band plays Hail to the Chief, they point the cannon at you.' If this was some kind of surreptitious protest by the musicians, I salute them, but given the time and the place, sheer obliviousness is a better explanation. The crowd, pretty thin, did their best imitation of a cheer. The US clearly does not know how to do an authoritarian military parade. To be fair, they are just getting started. Authoritarian military parades are supposed to project invincible strength. They are supposed to make your own people impressed with the inhuman discipline of your troops, and to strike fear into your enemies at the capacity of your organization. In Trump's parade, the soldiers resembled children forced to participate in a half-assed school play, trying to figure out how to avoid embarrassment as far as possible, and the military itself looked better suited to running a Kid Rock tour than a country's defence. But do not confuse Trump's debased parade with a joke or an innocent piece of entertainment. The Trump parade took place in the immediate aftermath of the assassination of Melissa Hortman, a Minnesota state representative. While it was under way, security forces were firing teargas on protesters in Los Angeles. Violence is coming to define American political life – spectacular violence including the parade and real violence like the assassination of Hortman. Political destabilization is arriving far too quickly to be perceived in its entirety. So much is happening so fast that it's impossible to keep track of the decline. Increasingly, the question is becoming: when are we going to start calling this what it is? When I published my book The Next Civil War in 2022, the US was very far from the threshold of what the experts at the Peace Research Institute Oslo defined as civil war, which is 1,000 combatant deaths a year. They defined civil conflict as a 1,000 combatant deaths a year, so the US already fit comfortably in that category. But the definitions of war and conflict never applied perfectly to the American reality, because it is so much bigger and so much more geographically diverse than other countries. As we start to see violence overtaking American political life, the transition is more like a sunset than a light switch. Every day violence becomes more and more settled as the means of US politics. The parade, and the 'No Kings' counter-protests, were both distractions from the fact that American political life is moving away from discourse altogether. Don't like what the senators of the other party are saying? Handcuff them. Don't like protestors? Send in the marines. Don't like the makeup of the House of Representatives in Minnesota? Kill the top Democrat. The political purpose of the parade, from Trump's point of view, was to demonstrate his mastery of the means of violence. He needed to show, to the military and to the American people both, that he can make the army do what he tells it, and established traditions and the rule of law will not alter his will. But the primary effect of the parade was to demonstrate an immense weakness, in Trump and in the American people. It was a parade reminiscent of the most vacuous regimes in history. In 1977, Jean-Bédel Bokassa, the leader of the Central African Republic, declared himself emperor and indulged in a coronation that imitated the coronation of Napoleon I in immaculate detail. He even went so far as to use eight white Norman horses to pull the carriage, but the French horses were not used to the climate and several died. Trump's parade felt like a lazier version of that. The spectre of defeat hovered over the entire celebration of supposed strength. The last time the US military threw a parade was 1991, which was the last time they triumphed over an opponent, the last time their war machine produced the results they had been attempting. The US has not won a war since then. But hey, if you can't win a war, at least you can throw a parade. Except they couldn't even throw a parade! The end of the show was almost too perfect. A frail Lee Greenwood, a country singer long past his 'best before' date, sang God Bless America raggedly, lousily. 'Our flag still stands for freedom,' he sang. 'They can't take that away.' O can't they? Trump at the center fidgeted like a rich kid bored with his servants and toys. The whole business was like watching some sordid fairy tale: the unloved boy who everybody hated grew up to force the American people to throw him a birthday party and give him a flag. And then almost nobody came. What's true of men is also true of countries: the more they need to show off how strong they are, the weaker they are. The weakness, rather than the strength, is terrifying. Whoever is so scared and so needy as to need that parade is capable of anything. That goes for Trump, and that goes for his country. Stephen Marche is the author of The Next Civil War
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Legendary Band Drama Continues as One Ex-Frontman Kicks Off Residency and the Other Announces Tour Dates
Van Halen, the band, may have effectively ended for good when guitar legend Eddie Van Halen died from a stroke after battling cancer in October 2020, but the drama surrounding the band and its former members continues. Van Halen's second frontman, Sammy Hagar, is set to kick off his Best of Both Worlds Las Vegas residency on Friday, May 9 at the Dolby Live at Park MGM. The tour takes its name from the 2004 Van Halen greatest hits compilation that featured the band's hits recorded with both Hagar and original frontman David Lee Roth. 🎬 SIGN UP for Parade's Daily newsletter to get the latest pop culture news & celebrity interviews delivered right to your inbox 🎬 Hagar's residency follows his performance at Stagecoach, the country version of Coachella, on April 27, and former Van Halen frontman David Lee Roth's return to the concert stage on May 3, his first show in five years. Earlier this week, Roth announced a slate of tour dates that kick off July 22 in Paso Robles, Calif. and run through Sept. 14 in Napa, Calif. In between those dates, he makes stops in Tampa, Atlantic City, St. Louis, Cincinnati and other cities. Both singers perform Van Halen songs in their current sets, with Roth sticking to the songs he sang in the band, while Hagar generally follows the same plan, although he did perform 'Panama,' a song co-written and originally sung by Roth in his set at Stagecoach. Just prior to his Stagecoach performance, Hagar announced that he'd written a new song, 'Encore, Thank You, Goodnight,' with Eddie Van Halen in a dream. Related: Hagar's current band also features former Van Halen bassist Michael Anthony, who was replaced in Van Halen in 2006 by Eddie Van Halen's teenage son just prior to their 2007 reunion with Roth. Meanwhile, former Van Halen drummer Alex Van Halen, who turned 72 on May 8, isn't playing with any of his former bandmates, and has a serious beef with Hagar, so much so that he didn't even mention his name in his recently published memoir, Brothers. In a recent interview with Rolling Stone, Hagar claimed that the bad blood with Alex Van Halen stems from his Cabo Wabo cantina and tequila business that the Van Halen brothers were once partners in but turned it over to Hagar when it was losing money. Hagar ended up making millions on it. Wolfgang Van Halen is continuing his career fronting his band Mammoth VH and they recently released a new single and video 'The End,' as the Van Halen drama continues. Read More:
