ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON SEPT. 30, 1993 By Steve Newton Not many Vancouver rock fans have heard of Big Head Todd & the Monsters, the Colorado-based trio that warms up the Orpheum on Thursday (October 7). Every Vancouver rock fan has heard of Robert Plant, the fellow who Big Head Todd & the Monsters will open … Continue reading Touring with the singer from Led Zeppelin hasn’t given Todd Park Mohr a big head
The Newt takes a wrong turn on Granville and winds up at a freakin’ jazz show
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, SEPT. 30, 1993 I like guitars a lot. I really do. As a matter of fact, up until last Thursday (Sept. 23), I don’t think I’d ever attended a concert that didn’t feature at least one of those six-stringed glories. So when I sat down at the Vogue and … Continue reading The Newt takes a wrong turn on Granville and winds up at a freakin’ jazz show
Meat Loaf’s bug-eyed antics make Stage Fright less painful to endure
ORIGINALLY POSTED ON STRAIGHT.COM, MAY 7, 2014 As far as movies go, the horror-musical is a strange bird. How many horror freaks want a film’s unstoppable killer to break out in song seconds before committing his evil deed? That ruins the suspense. And how many Broadway devotees want to follow a viewing of Cats with a midnight … Continue reading Meat Loaf’s bug-eyed antics make Stage Fright less painful to endure
Scott Ian says today’s version of Anthrax will be the only version of Anthrax until there is no Anthrax
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON SEPT. 19, 2012 By Steve Newton Last year American thrash-metal band Anthrax released Worship Music, its first album in eight years. It was also the first one to feature singer Joey Belladonna—the group’s singer in its mid-’80s heyday—in over two decades. So would that qualify it as a “comeback” album? According to founding … Continue reading Scott Ian says today’s version of Anthrax will be the only version of Anthrax until there is no Anthrax
Anthrax singer John Bush looks back on Armored Saint with no regrets
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON SEPT. 2, 1993 By Steve Newton The metal world got quite a shock when it was announced last year that original Anthrax vocalist Joey Belladonna was leaving the band after 11 successful years. It got even more of a jolt when former Armored Saint vocalist John Bush jumped in to take Belladonna’s … Continue reading Anthrax singer John Bush looks back on Armored Saint with no regrets
Guitar star Wild ‘T’ displays the spirit of a true blues-rock showman
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON SEPT. 2, 1993 By Steve Newton David Bowie has a pretty good eye for guitarists. Whether it’s Mick Ronson, Earl Slick, Robert Fripp, Peter Frampton, or Stevie Ray Vaughan, Bowie tends to pick players whose talent and style put them a healthy cut above the rest. When Bowie saw the video for … Continue reading Guitar star Wild ‘T’ displays the spirit of a true blues-rock showman
Galactic Cowboys create melodic prog-metal with a Beatlesque vibe
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON AUG. 26, 1993 By Steve Newton I heard someone say once that they do things differently down in Texas, and after chatting with Galactic Cowboys vocalist Ben Huggins, I believe it. Take, for example, the photos that accompany the Houston-based band’s latest release, Space in Your Face. While more hoity-toity (pronounced “L.A.”) … Continue reading Galactic Cowboys create melodic prog-metal with a Beatlesque vibe
3-D cover art enhances Voivod’s otherwordly themes on The Outer Limits
ronald mcgregor photo ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON AUG. 26, 1993 By Steve Newton I remember, back in the mid-’70s, picking up a secondhand copy of Grand Funk’s Shinin’ On. It wasn’t a very good album—I think it included the band’s hit remake of “Locomotion”, which I still can’t stand—but it had a 3-D cover, and when … Continue reading 3-D cover art enhances Voivod’s otherwordly themes on The Outer Limits
Carlos Santana cleans Bob Dylan’s clock in the clash of the Yankee rock titans
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON AUG. 26, 1993 By Steve Newton It was the clash of the American rock titans last Sunday (August 22) at the Coliseum, and after Big Bad Bobby D. took on Carlos “The Fret Strangler” Santana in a four-hour, 15-man battle royal, only one man remained standing as a certified rock champ of … Continue reading Carlos Santana cleans Bob Dylan’s clock in the clash of the Yankee rock titans
That time I pissed George Thorogood right off. “Is that funny?”
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON AUG. 19, 1993 By Steve Newton George Thorogood’s latest single, “Get a Haircut”, doesn’t sound like a song you would travel 10,000 miles to discover in an Australian pub. It’s a typical 12-bar blues, with unsophisticated, anti-establishment lyrics most songwriters could come up with in their sleep. Thorogood couldn’t think of them … Continue reading That time I pissed George Thorogood right off. “Is that funny?”
Urge Overkill are nuts about Neil Diamond and All My Children
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON AUG. 19, 1993 By Steve Newton Urge Overkill and my mom have quite a lot in common. My mom doesn’t travel around the country wearing cool outfits and wigging out to hook-laden rock tunes. But I’ll tell ya one thing—she sure loves watching All My Children on the tube. And when the … Continue reading Urge Overkill are nuts about Neil Diamond and All My Children
Aerosmith kicks major butt in Vancouver on the Get a Trip Tour
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON AUG. 19, 1993 By Steve Newton When I interviewed Aerosmith's Joe Perry last week, the former doper explained that music was his drug of choice now, that it was capable of giving him an instant attitude change whenever he needed it. Well, last Saturday (August 14) Perry and his mates showed yours … Continue reading Aerosmith kicks major butt in Vancouver on the Get a Trip Tour
Midnight Oil’s “tree-hugging a**hole” kicks ass for Clayoquot Sound at the Tragically Hip’s Another Roadside Attraction
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON JULY 22, 1993 By Steve Newton It didn’t take long for Midnight Oil singer/environmental activist Peter Garrett to bring up the contentious issue of logging in Clayoquot Sound during Saturday’s (July 17) Another Roadside Attraction rock festival at Seabird Island in Agassiz. Right after the band’s introductory tune, the Greenpeace director began … Continue reading Midnight Oil’s “tree-hugging a**hole” kicks ass for Clayoquot Sound at the Tragically Hip’s Another Roadside Attraction