By Steve Newton Well, those bozos down at the highly slaggable Rock and Roll Hall of Fame finally came to their senses. Twenty-two years after it first became eligible for induction, legendary British hard-rockers Deep Purple finally gained admittance into the Cleveland institution's hallowed halls. I guess the powers-that-be finally broke down and played Machine Head … Continue reading Rock Hall finally inducts Deep Purple; could Rory, Link, Johnny, and Maiden be far behind?
Backstage at AC/DC with Angus Young, Scotty Bad, and my autographed copy of Powerage, Malcolm’s fave
By Steve Newton Holy crap is Angus Young tiny! Hey, sorry about that outburst. It's just that whenever I spy this backstage snap from 2001 I can't help but think that I'm literally twice the size of him--width-wise, anyway. Me and my buddy Scotty Bad look like freakin' WWF wrestlers compared to that legendary pipsqueak. … Continue reading Backstage at AC/DC with Angus Young, Scotty Bad, and my autographed copy of Powerage, Malcolm’s fave
Billy Gibbons gets rude ‘n’ bluesy in Vancouver on ZZ Top’s Afterburner Tour
mila geran photo ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON DEC. 20, 1985 By Steve Newton Shortly before his death, somebody asked Jimi Hendrix if he knew of any up-and-coming guitarists to watch out for. One of the players Hendrix mentioned was Billy Gibbons. Sixteen years later, Gibbons is living up to Jimi's expectations. At the moment, his guitar … Continue reading Billy Gibbons gets rude ‘n’ bluesy in Vancouver on ZZ Top’s Afterburner Tour
Kick Axe avoids Quiet Riot syndrome, welcomes their friends to the club
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, JAN. 3, 1986 By Steve Newton Some years ago there was a club at the corner of Broadway and Kingsway known as Vancouver's Tonite--one of the Top Three local clubs along with Frams and Outlaws where nasty guitar licks and heavy sounds were the stock-in-trade. And one of the … Continue reading Kick Axe avoids Quiet Riot syndrome, welcomes their friends to the club
Graveyard has nothing to do with death (metal)
By Steve Newton When your band is called Graveyard, it’s no surprise that you sometimes get pegged as yet another grinding death-metal act. According to Graveyard frontman Joakim Nilsson, it happens quite a bit. “Yeah, we hear that a lot,” says the 37-year-old singer-guitarist, on the line from his home outside Gothenburg, Sweden. “But I … Continue reading Graveyard has nothing to do with death (metal)
Black Sabbath reissues bring back memories of “War Pigs”-inspired furniture abuse
By Steve Newton I have hazy memories of the very first albums I ever owned, but there's three that stick out in my mind: Alice Cooper's Billion Dollar Babies, Deep Purple's Fireball, and Black Sabbath's Paranoid. I used to play the hell out of them on an ancient stereo downstairs in my parents' "rumpus room". And my favourite … Continue reading Black Sabbath reissues bring back memories of “War Pigs”-inspired furniture abuse
Graveyard frontman gives shout out to fellow Swedes the Hellacopters
By Steve Newton I called up Graveyard frontman Yoakim Nilsson at his home in Sweden the other day to do an interview in advance of his band's first ever (and sold out) Vancouver show next Saturday (December 12). Whenever I think about Swedish rock bands I think about the Hellacopters, who I discovered in 2002 … Continue reading Graveyard frontman gives shout out to fellow Swedes the Hellacopters
Krampus makes the most of demonic gingerbread men
ORIGINALLY POSTED ON STRAIGHT.COM, DEC. 4, 2015 By Steve Newton Anyone who enjoyed mid-‘80s horror-comedies that relied on animatronic puppets for their chills and chuckles—movies like Gremlins and the lower-rent Ghoulies—may get a mild kick out of Krampus. Starting out with a Christmas Vacation vibe, Krampus sees your typical afluent American family--parents Tom and Sarah (Adam Scott and Toni Collette) and teenage kids … Continue reading Krampus makes the most of demonic gingerbread men
Matt Minglewood on baring his soul to MacLean and MacLean and going country on Me and the Boys
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, DEC. 6, 1985 By Steve Newton Charlie Daniels once wrote a tune called "Long Haired Country Boy" in which he sang: "If you don't like the way I'm livin', you just leave this long haired country boy alone." That line pretty well sums up the attitude of Maritime rocker … Continue reading Matt Minglewood on baring his soul to MacLean and MacLean and going country on Me and the Boys
Kate Bush on David Gilmour, Pink Floyd, and the new Hounds of Love
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON DEC. 6, 1985 By Steve Newton When Kate Bush was 15 years old, she thought it would be nice if she could get some of her songs published. There was a friend of her family who knew someone that was looking for talent to encourage and produce. That someone came and heard … Continue reading Kate Bush on David Gilmour, Pink Floyd, and the new Hounds of Love
Me and My Colonoscopy: the story of a man and his ass
By Steve Newton Normally I just use this site to write about guitar-rock and horror movies and good stuff like that, but I recently had a colonoscopy, so figured I should write about that too, because, you know--what's more hilarious than the thought of somebody pokin' around in your butt, tryna see stuff? And besides, it's like a … Continue reading Me and My Colonoscopy: the story of a man and his ass
King Crimson freak suggests watching the band like it’s an orchestra
By Steve Newton I was a huge fan of prog-rock in the seventies, but for some reason I did not follow King Crimson much. About all I remember about them was the heavy riffs of "21st Century Schizoid Man". Guess I was too busy getting my prog-rock jollies from Yes, Tull, Floyd, Wishbone, and Genesis. … Continue reading King Crimson freak suggests watching the band like it’s an orchestra
Victor Frankenstein breathes new life into Mary Shelley’s classic monster tale
ORIGINALLY POSTED ON STRAIGHT.COM, NOV. 25, 2015 By Steve Newton Horror fans who suffered through last year’s abysmal I, Frankenstein—not to mention Dracula Untold, Godzilla, and WolfCop—could be forgiven for giving up on old-school movie monsters. But Victor Frankenstein makes up for all of those, breathing new life into Mary Shelley’s classic tale of mortal man overreaching his bounds. Daniel … Continue reading Victor Frankenstein breathes new life into Mary Shelley’s classic monster tale