Rock News 2026-01-09

• "It is unlikely that extreme metal musicians are trying to increase mating success through their music." A study suggested that men who play guitar in extreme metal bands mainly do it to impress other men
  Louder
• Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones is auctioning off a load of studio equipment including a bass amp with speakers that were blown after being left at Dave Grohl's house
  Louder
• 10 '90s Rock Bands That Deserve More Respect
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• "A powerful tribute to the unbreakable connection between music, tradition and the human spirit." Depeche Mode’s acclaimed concert film M to premiere on Netflix this week
  Louder
• “I lost a lot of hair when Lemmy blasted his bass. You’d see big bikers at the front of the house throwing up”: Watch Motörhead drummer react to fans’ stories about the heavy metal trailblazers
  Louder
• Geezer Butler Using AI Voice for Solo Album, but Tony Iommi Isn't
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• “We started each day by doing yoga and breathing exercises. Then we took mushrooms and it got a little too psychedelic!” The prog duo who lost their label for being too weird, and decided to get even weirder
  Louder
• Two Prince Songs Surge in Streams After 'Stranger Things' Finale
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• "Sweat was dripping off the walls!" Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood looks back on the '60s, shares memories of The Yardbirds, Jeff Beck, Jimi Hendrix and Deep Purple's Jon Lord
  Louder
• "I was naked in the vocal booth. At first, I did it as an experiment to see if it would help, then it became a tradition": The story of the spandex-clad classic that launched its creators into the stratosphere
  Louder
• Nikki Sixx Says He's 'Locked and Loaded' to Deal With Stalkers
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• “I say, not entirely jokingly, we’re mapping out the architecture of eternity”: Every year the most unlikely prog supergroup spend three days shaping weirdo music. Their third album proves it’s working for them
  Louder
• "In the mid-80s, to get your record played, you had to take the guitar solo out." Radio stations tried to cut Eddie Van Halen's solo from one of his most iconic songs
  Louder
• "Frequently melancholy and austere, this is music that rewards active listening rather than offering up easily consumed hooks or sing-alongs":Steven Wilson seeks the sweet spot between pop precision and progressive wizardry on Hand. Cannot. Erase.
  Louder
• 6 Great John Paul Jones Collaborations Outside Led Zeppelin
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• “I hope they get sued. It’s a shameless ripoff. They should be slapped on the wrist for that”: How Tool attracted mainstream attention – and the ire of one of rock’s greatest frontmen
  Louder
• Los Lobos Returns to the Road With 2026 Tour Dates
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• "The beauty of it is that it's two minutes long. It's not like it's Free Bird where you have to suffer through 10 minutes of playing it every night": The story of the psychotic debut single that kick-started the grunge revolution
  Louder
• Five Famous '70s Acts That Have Been Snubbed by the Hall of Fame
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• Hear New Two New Black Crowes Songs
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• "I see them as the greatest ever rock'n'roll band. How can it be a bad thing to be compared to the best there is?" Airbourne on AC/DC, non-annoying Christmas songs, and why their new album had to be exactly right
  Louder
• How Pope John Paul II forced Queen to cancel a planned appearance at Manchester United's 'Theatre Of Dreams'
  Louder
• The Album That Helped Aerosmith Find Their Real Sound
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• “War is senseless, it’s stupid, and in the end you could end up dead… but in some ways it is glorious”: From the Crimean War to the Stranger Things finale, the story of Iron Maiden’s The Trooper
  Louder
• "Wildest night out? I'd have to say Lemmy. I don't think we got much sleep": Danko Jones on meeting AC/DC, playing with Marty Friedman and a wild night out in London
  Louder
• "Towering riffs come to them as easily as dreaming does to the rest of us": Alter Bridge are at their most Alter Bridge on the unwaveringly confident Alter Bridge
  Louder
• Aldo Nova Sets New Tour Dates After Serious Neck Injury
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• Watch Billy Joel Perform Surprise Set With Tribute Band
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• “I’d never played a professional gig. To suddenly be aboard a cruise ship surrounded by real prog legends was just surreal”: How Haken’s last line-up change powered seventh album Fauna
  Louder
• “Originally a career-staller, this version really is essential”: Ultravox’s The Collection – Deluxe Edition
  Louder
• Six Things You May Not Know About Syd Barrett
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• "Any money I will make I will happily give away to others. Print that, because I will stand by that!" He said it would be "counter-productive" if his band's debut album was a huge success. Then it sold 20 million copies
  Louder
• Queen Quiz: How much do you know about A Night At The Opera and A Day At The Races?
  Louder
• Peter Wolf Adds More New 2026 Concerts
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• 1976's 20 Biggest Rock Tours
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• Vinnie Vincent Defiantly Threatens to Shelve His New Album
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• "Nazis popped out of a U-Haul van, walking around the city." The craziest break-up ever, political black metal and Zakk Wylde's wingman: the best new metal bands you need to hear this month
  Louder
• "At school I did a presentation about Black Sabbath! I knew I wanted to move to the UK." Jack Black, angry nuns and Duolingo: the strange story of metal's weirdest new stars, Calva Louise
  Louder
• "Rich brought a spontaneity to the record that I can't describe, but it's the best s*** he's ever done": The Black Crowes announce new album - listen to the first two tracks now
  Louder
• How Triumph's Expanded Lineup Will Split Duties on Reunion Tour
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• Morrissey Has Reportedly Canceled 49 of His Last 100 Concerts
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• Inside John Mellencamp's Long Battle to Escape 'Johnny Cougar'
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• Ted Nugent Tells Tom Morello: 'You Are the Machine'
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• "I looked around and nobody was happy. And I was thinking: 'This is going to be rough'": What happened when Bruce Dickinson made the decision that changed his life
  Louder
• The Styx Album That Never Saw the Light of Day
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• “I feel despondent about the world of humans.” Queen legend Brian May reveals the fears that keep him awake at night
  Louder
• Mike Campbell Joins Chris Stapleton's 2026 All-American Road Show
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• David Lee Roth Announces Massive 2026 US Tour
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• “If you’re talking dazzling sleight of mind, radical ideas and a willingness to create shock-art for the masses, there was no one more brilliant”: Revisiting David Bowie’s career from a prog perspective
  Louder
• "I was Catholic when I put the album on. Midway through, I became a full-blown Satanist": Watch the first episode of the eagerly-awaited series Tony Iommi - The Godfather of Heavy Metal, starring Rob Halford, Zakk Wylde, Brian May, Tom Morello and more
  Louder
• Pat Smear to miss upcoming Foo Fighters shows after "bizarre gardening accident"
  Louder
• "It did surprise us. People started calling us sell-outs." How Metallica wrote the metal power ballad that saved Miley Cyrus - and that Elton John called 'one of the best songs ever written'
  Louder
• Halsey, Iron Maiden, Gorillaz, Limp Bizkit and Bring Me The Horizon to play Rock For People 2026 – day splits announced
  Louder
• "The band started that album cycle as ones to watch and emerged as one of rock’s new leaders." Every Halestorm album ranked from worst to best
  Louder
• How Kendrick Lamar Inspired David Bowie's 'Blackstar'
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• Haken part ways with Charlie Griffiths and Conner Green
  Louder
• Triumph Expands 2026's Long-Awaited Reunion Tour
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• "We weren't seen as enigmatic as some bands. I do feel that we were kind of under-appreciated": Ben Ward looks back on three decades in the Orange Goblin trenches
  Louder
• Arena singer Damian Wilson to leave the band at the end of this year. Paul Manzi to return...
  Louder
• Jethro Tull's Anderson Lashes Out Against 'Insidious' AI Fakery
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• "The record company barely even knew who we were. When we took the demos into them, they said: 'You're Super-Who?'": The story of the Supertramp classic the band eventually found too difficult to play
  Louder
• How Bruce Springsteen's Debut Album Overshadowed Aerosmith's
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• The Top 40 Albums of 1976
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• Gene Simmons Says Peter Criss 'Had Nothing to Do' With 'Beth'
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• The 40 Most-Played Songs on Classic Rock Radio in 2025
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• "The collective mood is influenced by the combination of loud, fast music, synchronized with bright flashing lights, and frequent intoxication." What the science behind mosh pits can tell us about human behaviour
  Louder
• Win a Trip to Los Angeles to Attend THEE Music Awards Show
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• "I remember us saying, ‘Well, if the band doesn’t make it, we’ll join the Marines.’" The story of the song that gave thrash metal its name
  Louder
• Bad Company Album-Opening Songs Ranked Worst to Best
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• "We'd like to discuss a chart position." How a secret $70,000 cash payment to Italian gangsters secured a British rock band their first US hit single
  Louder
• "After he died, his body was dug up and moved seven times because people thought his fingers were possessed by the Devil": Bruce Dickinson's unreleased rock opera may be the greatest untold story of them all
  Louder
• What Phish Fans Can Expect From Mike Gordon's Solo Tour
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• "I live in my childhood home, so the studio's right there. It's what I need to watch and protect, for the rest of my life": Wolfgang Van Halen on 5150, battling demons and the good ship Mammoth
  Louder
• Stephen Pearcy Says Ratt's Demise Was Like 'Mutiny on the Bounty'
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• The Best Rock Films From Every Year: 1955-2025
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• "We set out to make the ultimate Priest album. It could be the most successful failure we'll ever have!" A classic encounter with Judas Priest as they prepare to unleash the album that saves them
  Louder
• Gong kick off the New Year with video for blissed out new single The Wonderment
  Louder
• "Metallica seek raw, rowdy 'n' gutsy frontman." That time Metallica launched a worldwide search to find a new vocalist via an ad in a British music magazine
  Louder
• "Purple Rain is like Stairway To Heaven. It's non-religious, but people feel reverent about it": The story of Prince's Purple Rain, this year's viral Stranger Things needle drop
  Louder
• David Lee Roth announces extensive North American tour
  Louder
• “Playing in space would be a fitting climax!” Megadeth are on the cover of the new Metal Hammer
  Louder
• The day that one of BritPop's biggest and best-loved stars shocked Glastonbury festival by joining hard rock legends Spinal Tap for a controversial celebration of plus-sized female buttocks
  Louder
• "I probably should have retired years ago but I really love keeping the band alive": Ten Years After are down to one original member but there's still gas in the tank
  Louder
• Peter Gabriel Announces New Album 'o/i' and Releases First Single
  Ultimate Classic Rock
• Steve Harris reveals the song he wants to bring back to Iron Maiden’s setlist: “It’s difficult to do a set from any part of our career and not miss things out”
  Louder