All Request Rock Radio - Mega Rock Radio

STONE SOUR and SLIPKNOT frontman Corey Taylor played on December 1 at Corona Theater in Montreal, Quebec, Canada as part of his solo tour. Called "An Evening With Corey Taylor", the concerts feature Taylor doing both spoken-word and acoustic performances, along with question-and-answer sessions with the audience.

Fan-filmed video footage from the Montreal show can be seen below.

Taylor, having recently slammed producer Rick Rubin during one of his "An Evening With..." performances, has now turned his wrath on STONE TEMPLE PILOTS singer Scott Weiland, calling Weiland a "lazy piece of shit" for recording and releasing an album of holiday standards called "The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year".

During the spoken-word segment of his November 28 solo performance in Indianapolis, Taylor said, "Do you know that Scott Weiland has a Christmas album now? (laughs) Oh, it's bad. It's bad. Let me fucking explain to you how bad it is. There is a video online of him singing, and he's very serious. 'Cause Christmas is serious. His hair is all slicked back and he's in his shitty tuxedo . . . and I'm just like, 'Why?' It's not that he's a bad singer, 'cause he's not. I love STP, I love some of the shit that he did with VELVET REVOLVER. It's not that he's a bad fucking singer. He's a lazy piece of shit is what he is at this point . . . It's all these people who would rather cash in on the little fucking notoriety that they have and take your money and give you nothing back."

Taylor's comments came in the middle of a rant on the general lack of creativity in movies and music today. He added, "I work very fucking hard for my money — and when I actually spend money on something, I expect it not to suck. Is that too much to fucking ask for anymore, man?"

Taylor cut his own Christmas song a few years back and, like Weiland, told The Pulse Of Radio he's a big fan of the holiday. "I love Christmas," he said. "I love getting the family together, I love hanging out. I love buying gifts for everyone. I'm that guy — like I don't even care if I get anything for Christmas, I'm gonna get people gifts because I just love to see them light up. I love it. It's one of my favorite times of the year."

Taylor — who came close to replacing Weiland in VELVET REVOLVER late last year — performs on Sunday (December 4) in Boston.

Taylor slammed Grammy-winning producer Rick Rubin two weeks ago at one of his solo performances. Taylor said that Rubin, who worked on SLIPKNOT's 2004 album, "Vol. 3: (The Subliminal Verses)", "is overrated, he is overpaid, and I will never work with him again as long as I fucking live."

Professionally filmed video footage of ALICE IN CHAINS' entire November 12, 2011 concert at the Maquinaria Festival in Santiago, Chile can be seen below.

The band's setlist was as follows:

01. Them Bones
02. Dam That River
03. Rain When I Die
04. Again
05. Check My Brain
06. It Ain't Like That
07. Your Decision
08. Got Me Wrong
09. We Die Young
10. Last of My Kind
11. Down In A Hole
12. Nutshell
13. Acid Bubble
14. Angry Chair
15. Man In The Box

Encore:

16. Rooster (with Duff McKagan)
17. No Excuses
18. Would?

ALICE IN CHAINS is working on material for a new record since completing the touring cycle behind 2009's "Black Gives Way To Blue".

"Black Gives Way To Blue" was the first all-new ALICE IN CHAINS record in 14 years and Cantrell told The Pulse Of Radio at the time that it represented a rebirth for the group. "You know, the possibilities are limitless," he said. "The cool thing is, this band is alive, and we're alive. And we've had an amazing life. And we've lost some people along the way, and we've had to change, and we've had to dig within ourselves to answer some very serious questions about life. It's been a real meaningful journey, and we're really dedicated to going through the process, you know, and seeing what life has to offer."

ALICE IN CHAINS went into hibernation in 1996, mostly due to vocalist Layne Staley's long struggle with drug addiction.

Staley died in April 2002 and the band appeared to have died with him. But the group returned in 2006 with singer/guitarist William DuVall introduced into the lineup.

The group did several tours through 2008 before finally committing itself to writing and recording "Black Gives Way To Blue".

Los Angeles metal veterans ARMORED SAINT played at Crocodile Rock in Allentown, Pennsylvania on December 2, 2011 as part of a three-date East Coast tour. The band performed songs from its latest album, "La Raza", as well as select cuts from its deep and storied catalog.

Fan-filmed video footage of the Allentown concert can be seen below.

"La Raza" sold around 2,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD landed at position No. 18 on the Top New Artist Albums (Heatseekers) chart, which lists the best-selling albums by new and developing artists, defined as those who have never appeared in the Top 100 of The Billboard 200. "La Raza" also entered the German Media Control chart at No. 96 and the Canadian Independent chart at No. 85.

"La Raza" was recorded at Burbank, California's Tranzformer Studios, which is owned by Dave Jerdan (ALICE IN CHAINS, JANE'S ADDICTION), who produced ARMORED SAINT's 1991 classic "Symbol of Salvation" and Bryan Carlstrom, who engineered the same album. The band's first new release since 2001's "Nod to the Old School" was produced by Joey Vera and engineered by Carlstrom and his assistant John Nuss.

The band's current lineup is the same as the one on 2000's "Revelation" and 1992's "Symbol of Salvation" LPs:

John Bush (vocals)
Jeff Duncan (guitar)
Phil Sandoval (guitar)
Joey Vera (bass)
Gonzo Sandoval (drums)

Professionally filmed video footage of KORN performing the song "Narcissistic Cannibal" live at Roseland Ballroom in New York City on November 4, 2011 can be seen below. The track comes off the band's tenth studio album, "The Path Of Totality", which will be released on December 6 via Roadrunner Records.

"The Path Of Totality" is an experimental album which finds KORN shifting gears and exploring new territory. That should hardly come as a shock to the band's diehard fans, as KORN exploded onto the scene in the'90s and established themselves as hard rock game-changers from that point on.

For "The Path Of Totality", the band collaborated with some of the leading dubstep and electronic producers in the world, including Skrillex, Excision, Datsik, Noisia, Kill the Noise, and 12th Planet. The result is something completely new, yet utterly and definitively KORN.

Speaking to Kerrang! magazine about the reaction to "The Path Of Totality", KORN frontman Jonathan Davis said, "I always felt KORN was the black sheep of the metal community because we didn't fit in anywhere. When I did the first record I was inventing a new genre of music then. It's the same shit now. I haven't been this excited in years."

The band's recent (and much lauded) collaboration with dubstep's hottest producer, Skrillex, titled "Get Up!", was the surprise rock hit of the summer, the buzz of which started in Coachella's dance tent in April 2011, when Jonathan and Munky joined Skrillex on stage for a show-stealing unannounced performance of the song.

"The Path Of Totality" track listing:

01. Chaos Lives In Everything
02. Kill Mercy Within
03. My Wall
04. Narcisstic Cannibal
05. Illuminati
06. Burn The Obedient
07. Sanctuary
08. Let's Go
09. Get Up!
10. Way Too Far
11. Bleeding Out

The album will be released in two configurations: as a standard 11-song CD and a special edition CD that will include bonus tracks as well as a DVD of "The Encounter", a full-length video concert of KORN's mind-blowing, once-in-a-lifetime performance in the middle of a 900-foot-long crop circle in a wheat field in Bakersfield. The complete concert, previously seen last year on TV and online in an abbreviated form, will be offered in its entirety to those who purchase the deluxe version.

GUNS N' ROSES played the song "Civil War" for the first time since 1993 during the band's December 4, 2011 concert at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee.

Fan-filmed video footage of the performance can be seen below.

GUNS N' ROSES kicked off its first U.S. tour since 2006 on October 28 in Orlando, Florida.

In addition to sole original member Axl Rose (vocals), the current lineup of GUNS N' ROSES includes guitarists Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal, Richard Fortus and DJ Ashba, bassist Tommy Stinson, keyboardists Dizzy Reed and Chris Pitman and drummer Frank Ferrer.

"Chinese Democracy", the 2008 album released by the current edition of GUNS N' ROSES after a 15-year wait, was officially certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on February 3, 2009 for shipments in the United States in excess of one million copies. The long-in-the-making, 14-song CD finally arrived 17 years after the last full-length collections of original GUNS material, "Use Your Illusion I" and "II", were released, and nine years after the non-album track "Oh My God" surfaced on the soundtrack of the movie "End Of Days".

"Chinese Democracy" was made available exclusively through Best Buy.

HAIL! — the supergroup featuring a rotating list of musicians, including current and former members of SEPULTURA, JUDAS PRIEST, TESTAMENT and MEGADETH — kicked off a nine-date tour of Russia on December 2 in Irkutsk.

HAIL!'s lineup for the trek includes drummer Paul Bostaph (SLAYER, TESTAMENT, EXODUS, FORBIDDEN), vocalist Tim "Ripper" Owens (YNGWIE MALMSTEEN, JUDAS PRIEST, ICED EARTH, BEYOND FEAR) , bassist James Lomenzo (MEGADETH, BLACK LABEL SOCIETY, WHITE LION) and newest member, guitarist Glen Drover (MEGADETH, KING DIAMOND, TESTAMENT).

Fan-filmed video footage of HAIL!'s December 11, 2011 concert I nMsocow can be seen below.

"After seeing how crazy the Russian fans were when we played here in June 2010, we're certainly excited to come back," Lomenzo said in a statement last month.

"Consistent with the HAIL! philosophy of constantly expanding into new territories, we are playing in six new cities this year (plus returning to Moscow, Ekaterinburg and Novosibirsk).

"Touring with HAIL! is a lesson in world geography!"

Added Bostaph, "James and Glen had their MEGADETH reunion a few weeks ago in Turkey and it's been awhile since I played with Glen, so I'm looking forward to our TESTAMENT reunion. We're going to have a great time, so dress warm, grab a bottle of vodka and come join for a night of mayhem!"

Premier Guitar's Rebecca Dirks caught up with legendary Swedish guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen on October 21, 2011 in Chicago, Illinois at the House of Blues. Malmsteen walked Dirks through his touring rig that he used during the "Relentless" 2011 tour. Check out the seven-minute clip below.

Said Yngwie: "If you go out in space, if you take a spaceship, there's only two man-made objects you can actually see from outer space. One is the [Great] Wall Of China, [and the other] is the Yngwie Malmsteen wall of Marshalls."

Released on November 22, 2010 via Malmsteen's own Rising Force Records, Yngwie's latest album, "Relentless", contains more than 60 minutes of brand new material and showcases the guitar great at his best with the signature virtuosity and mind-blowing technical speed for which he has come to be known. "Relentless" also features striking vocals from Tim "Ripper" Owens (JUDAS PRIEST, ICED EARTH), who first collaborated with Malmsteen on "Perpetual Flame" (Malmsteen's first album for the Rising Force Records label).

Of the new album, Malmsteen commented, "The album title really says it all. The drive to surpass my own accomplishments can best be described with one word — relentless. After all these years of composing and playing music, I still am passionate about pushing myself to the limit — to the highest, most demanding level of playing possible."

Quality video footage of TWISTED SISTER performing the Yuletide anthem "Come All Ye Faithful" on December 2, 2011 at Paramount Theater in Huntington, New York can be seen below.

The next 2011 presentation of "A Twisted Christmas" — a theatrical holiday extravaganza like no other — will be held on Saturday, December 17 at the Best Buy Theater in New York City.

Dee Snider, Jay Jay French, Mark Mendoza, Eddie Ojeda and A.J. Pero have crafted this show into a hell-raisin' holiday tradition. In the past, they've had such wildly disparate personalities as Lita Ford, Mick Foley, and MINIKISS join the onstage festivities. You never know who will crash this NYC party!

After the release of 2006's "A Twisted Christmas" album (hailed by the Associated Press as "[one of] the best hard rock Christmas album[s] ever made, and one of the best rock 'n' roll Christmas albums — period — since Elvis made his"), TWISTED SISTER brought the metal merriment to the stage. They have continued to give these Yuletide anthems a TWISTED treatment ever since.

"If you told me 30 years ago that one day I would be playing Christmas songs, with TWISTED SISTER, for families in concert — and be happy about it — I would have punched you right in the nose," says TWISTED SISTER frontman Dee Snider. "Funny how life changes you. Now I'm actually looking forward to it!"

Added guitarist Jay Jay French: "There is no better way to blow your Christmas bonus than by seeing 'A Twisted Christmas' on Broadway. It's so good, even atheists love it!"

Make sure to get to the venue early to catch openers JAC&JILL. Fronted by ferocious femmes Jaclyn Quatela (vocals/keyboards) and Jill Winter (guitar), this sextet blends violin, bass, drums and synth into a riff-heavy brand of pop rock.

The celebration doesn't end there! For a taste of what's in store, fans should check out "Twisted Xmas: Live In Las Vegas", exclusively featured on the band's brand new eight-hour-plus boxed set, "From The Bars To The Stars" (Eagle Rock Entertainment). It's the perfect stocking stuffer for any metalhead, naughty or nice!

The Best Buy Theater is located at 1515 Broadway at West 44th Street, right in the heart of Times Square. The show starts at 8:00 p.m. (doors open at 5:00 p.m.) Tickets are $35.

QUEEN guitarist Brian May joined THE DARKNESS on stage during the encore of the reunited U.K. rockers' November 25, 2011 concert at the Hammersmith Apollo in London, England to perform three songs — "Bareback", "I Believe In A Thing Called Love" and a cover version of QUEEN's own "Tie Your Mother Down".

THE DARKNESS has posted professionally filmed video footage (watch it below) of "I Believe In A Thing Called Love", which opens with May's introduction of "I just want to say, how happy are we that THE DARKNESS are back together and conquering the world again? How happy are we? How fucking happy are we?"

After the show, THE DARKNESS frontman Justin Hawkins wrote on his Facebook page, "Brian May joined us onstage for three songs. A dream came true for us tonight."

THE DARKNESS will embark on a three-week North American headlining tour in February. The trek will feature all the guitar mastery and wild pyrotechnics that THE DARKNESS shows have become well-known for. The group will perform music from 2003 album "Permission To Land", including favorites "I Believe In A Thing Called Love" and "Get Your Hands Off My Woman"; 2005's "One-Way Ticket To Hell And Back" with "One Way Ticket" and "Is It Just Me?"; as well as several new songs off their forthcoming yet-to-be-titled third album. This marks the band's first return to the States since their 2004 tour supporting "Permission To Land". THE DARKNESS will hit North America starting February 1 in Toronto and wrapping February 21 in San Francisco.

THE DARKNESS made its U.K. live comeback on June 5 in front of just 200 people at the Norwich Waterfront.

THE DARKNESS' appearance at the Download festival at Donington Park in Leicestershire, United Kingdom in June marked the band's first festival appearance since splitting up in 2006.

THE DARKNESS' first album, "Permission To Land", was released in 2003, hitting the No. 1 spot in the U.K. chart and winning "MasterCard British Album" at the 2004 Brit Awards (along with "Best British Group" and "British Rock Act").

Between 2003 and 2006, THE DARKNESS was honored with many awards and accolades; along with three Brit Awards, the band won an Ivor Novello in 2004 for "Songwriters Of The Year", four Kerrang! Awards, two Metal Hammer Awards, an MTV Europe Music Award and even an Elle Style Award in 2004 for "Most Stylish Band".

Legendary rocker Alice Cooper and his band performed on New Year's Eve at Mala Wailea, the famous oceanfront restaurant that is lobby level at Wailea Beach Marriott Resort & Spa, in Hawaii, on a bill that included "Weird Al" Yankovic, Pat Simmons and Michael McDonald of DOOBIE BROTHERS and Bob Rock. Comedian Tom Arnold will act as emcee at the event, which benefits the Maui Food Bank and the Maui Arts & Cultural Center.

Joining Alice on stage for a performance of THE BEATLES classic "Come Together" was AEROSMITH frontman Steven Tyler. Tyler also sang AEROSMITH's "Sweet Emotion" and "Walk This Way".

Video footage of the "Come Together" performance can be seen below.