Mirror, Mirror

Remember those little mirrors you could win at county fairs and carnivals? You know, the mirrors that featured a band logo (and the band was ALWAYS Glam). These mirrors were usually prizes in the $1 game tents...for popping a balloon with a dart or shooting a can with an air gun.

If you're from a rural area, then you already know all about the county fair. For a kid in school, the county fair was just about the biggest town event all year. When I was growing up, we actually got a week off from school just so all the farm kids could show their animals. This freedom from school gave me a lot of time to troll the midway for games that gave away Glam prizes.

One year I won a Def Leppard Hysteria mirror. That was huge. I had that mirror for a long time but I think it eventually sold at a garage sale for a dime. Now I still wish I had that thing.

The mirrors were "rough edge" so you could build a little frame for them - or place many along the wall for a sort of tapestry of rock. They were usually packaged in a little white folder. I always remembered loving the damn things...but then having to hold the mirror all day. That part sucked.

I searched on eBay last night for some of those little mirrors...I couldn't find what I wanted though. This seems odd to me as the little mirrors were so huge in the 80s.  In fact, Glam always blared through the midway: Poison, Guns n' Roses and Def Leppard were the three bands I recall hearing the most. There was also some odd circular ride that looked like a spaceship. I think it was called the Graviton. The Glam wafted from this ride too - on the inside, the volume was almost unbearable.

At any rate, I'm on the lookout for some of those little rock mirrors. I think they would look great on the wall beside my wet bar!

DJ Ashba Joins Guns n' Roses; The Glam Mistress Awaits Tour News

It's been a hot Internet rumor for the past two weeks that Dj Ashba would join Guns n' Roses. Yesterday, Axl Rose confirmed the news.

From www.gunsnroses.com:

Guns N' Roses is proud to announce that guitarist n' songwriter Dj Ashba has joined the band. Ashba, who officially replaces current NIN guitarist Robin Finck, is best known as co-founder of hard rock bands Sixx AM and Beautiful Creatures.

"Dj's a gifted, energetic guitarist that Guns N' Roses is proud to have on board!!" exclaims Axl Rose. "We're very excited to have the opportunity to work together. Guns' radar has silently been aware of Dj's presence for quite some time. He brings a fresh approach to our particular brand of mayhem expanding the tapestry of Guns N' Roses live. Once Dj's name was in the hat, the hat disappeared!!"

"It's an honor to have the opportunity to be a part of a band that I have always loved and respected," said Dj Ashba. "I'm looking forward to working with Axl, who is not only one of the few great front men of our generation, but a true artist."

Dj Ashba co-wrote and co-produced Motley Crue's latest album Saints of Los Angeles, which garnered a 2008 GRAMMY nomination for Best Hard Rock Performance, as well as co-wrote and co-produced the Sixx AM album Heroin Diaries.

I think the addition of Dj is great for Guns n' Roses. The only original member is Axl anyway, so he might as well surround himself with some great talent. Dj's playing style and ability seem to fit the GnR mold. I hope this addition/announcement means that Guns n' Roses are about to hit the road. The rumor on that front is that Guns n' Roses will tour this summer with Van Halen. Talk about a great bill! I'd be *very* excited for this - more so for GnR than VH since I saw the latter band two times last summer. 

A pending GnR tour announcement does leave the Glam Mistress in a bit of a bind: concert and festival season is quickly eating my vacation days. Heather and I decided we need to see GnR in Las Vegas...I've only got a few days unaccounted for, so GnR better get on the ball! 

So, what do you think of the addition of Dj Ashba to Guns n' Roses?

2008 Rocklahoma Coffee Table Book Available for Pre-Order

If you attended (or played!) Rocklahoma 2008, you might be interested in this book. Best yet, I wrote the narration!

PRYOR, OKLAHOMA (March 21, 2009) – What could be better than five days of rock, mud and booze immortalized forever in book form? The 2008 Rocklahoma^TM Coffee Table Book is now available for pre-order. Claim your copy by visiting www.rocklahomabook.com. The book is severely limited, with only 1200 copies available. The 2008 Rocklahoma^TM Coffee Table Book is only $45.00. Reserve your book before June 5, 2009 and receive FREE shipping!

The 2008 Rocklahoma^TM Coffee Table Book features more than 450 photos on 132 full color pages. Complete narration provides the perfect complement to the graphical story, helping Rocklahoma fans relive every moment of America’s signature glam festival.

Bands featured in the 2008 Rocklahoma^TM Coffee Table Book: Firehouse, Jackyl, RATT, Rock and Roll Fantasy Camp^TM, Jetboy, House of Lords, Enuff Z'nuff, L.A. Guns, Dokken, Sebastian Bach, Bret Michaels, XYZ, Armored Saint, Kingdom Come, Living Colour, Night Ranger, Extreme, Triumph, Pretty Boy Floyd, Every Mother's Nightmare, Tora Tora, Black 'n Blue, Trixter, Lynch Mob, Kix, Lita Ford, Warrant, AXE, Zebra, UFO, Steelheart, Ace Frehley, Tesla, Queensrÿche and more!

Payment options and more information available at www.rocklahomabook.com.

Rock on the Range Schedule Announced

The following is the official Rock on the Range 2009 schedule. The festival is May 16 and 17 in Columbus, Ohio. Tickets are still available.

(Bands listed in reverse order, beginning with headliner).

Saturday

Slipknot, Alice in Chains, Korn, Chevelle, Atreyu, Flyleaf, Saliva, Static X, All that Remains, Hurt, Loaded, Black Stone Cherry, Rev Theory, State of Shock, X Factor 1, Halestorm, Early Pearl, Leo Project

Sunday

Motley Crue, Avenged Sevenfold, Buckcherry, Shinedown, The Used, Saving Abel, Clutch, Blue October, Hoobastank, Billy Talent, Pop Evil, Sick Puppies, Framing Hanley, Royal Diss, Cavo, Adelitas Way, Burn Halo, Charm City Devils, Drive A

Crue Fest 1: The Movie - The Bring Back Glam! Review

Last night at select theaters across the United States, Motley Crue hosted a special one-time-only big screen showing of Crue Fest 1: The Movie. As the title states, the concert film takes viewers through one night at Crue Fest 208. The movie was shot at the Toronto, Canada stop of the tour.

Before the movie, a local Cincinnati radio station took a photo of the 40 or so of us that showed up. They also gave away some swag. I actually won a copy of the movie. I was thinking it was exactly what I was watching at the theater, but it turns out the DVD is actually a two disc set with many more performances than was shown during the "special presentation."

After the radio hoopla, it was time for Crue Fest. As expected, the movie featured a song from each band in this order: Trapt, SIXX: AM, Papa Roach and Buckcherry.

Trapt were featured doing "Contagious," SIXX: AM did "Life is Beautiful," Papa Roach performed "Last Resort" and Buckcherry owned about everyone with their live version of "Crazy Bitch."

About half of the Motley Crue portion of the show was cut from the theatrical release. Shown in theaters was "Kickstart My Heart," "Wildside," "Girls, Girls, Girls," "Shout at the Devil," "Dr. Feelgood" and "Home Sweet Home." I'm not sure what it is...but Vince seems to always sound a little rough on "Kickstart." I think the band needs a few good minutes to rev up and start working on all cylinders. After a few songs, Motley always seem to sound much tighter. The performance of "Girls, Girls, Girls" is pretty good on this release; "Home Sweet Home" has pitch problems.

Motley started using "Home Sweet Home" as their encore last year, specifically for Crue Fest. It's that whole nostalgia thing: a way for the band to thank their loyal fans for the years of dedication, while not pissing off the youngsters. When I saw Crue Fest in Cincinnati last summer, I was so impressed. The entire show was just non-stop fun and Vince sounded darn good. Most important, "Home Sweet Home" sounded great - and ended the night on a perfect note.

Should you buy the DVD of Crue Fest 1: The Movie? Yeah, if you're a die hard Motley fan. It's good fun to watch the backstage interviews, some of which were shown on the big screen. A downer was that the movie doesn't feature song titles at the beginning of each performance (at least this was the case in theaters). Sure, I know the names of all the songs - but it's still a nice touch. The double DVD set also includes six Motley videos: "White Trash Circus," "Saints of Los Angeles," "Primal Scream," "Looks that Kill," "Live Wire" and "Kickstart My Heart."  Motley's entire concert is also included as are more songs by the support bands. If anything, at least buy the DVD for Buckcherry. They are great here.

Crue Fest 1: The Movie will be released Tuesday, March 24, 2009.

What About ZZ Top?

ZZ Top have been around awhile.

Ok, so they've been around...forever. Since 1969 in fact. The band is good, classic American rock. Many of their songs are radio standards, especially "La Grange" and "Sharp Dressed Man..." but does this make them festival relevant in 2009?

Sweden Rock Festival thinks so. ZZ Top will play Sweden Rock 09, one of the biggest festivals in the world.

I guess I never really thought about ZZ Top as headlining a U.S. festival. I know the band is still quite active and performs regularly...they are just never on my radar. To be fair and completely honest, ZZ Top are not on my "ten favorite bands of all time" list. In fact, they are pretty far down that sacred list.

Since we're slowly learning of all the summer tours and festivals, I figured we might as well discuss ZZ Top. Should the band play Rocklahoma? Rock Gone Wild? South Texas Rock Fest? None of the above?

Here's my thing: Rock Gone Wild isn't pigeonholed into a single genre of rock - the acts can cross genres. South Texas is sort of like that but Rocklahoma is really heavy into the 80s thing. ZZ Top had some of the biggest hits in the 80s, so in that respect I guess it fits. Plus, UFO played last year and they formed at the end of the 1960s, too. I guess if push comes to shove, hearing "Tush" live at Rocklahoma wouldn't suck - after all, it's certainly better than Triumph.

Thoughts on the Texas boys? I've never seen ZZ Top live, so if they did headline a summer festival, that would be another band on my list!

Badlands Could Reform with Adam Lambert on Vocals

Bloody. Hell.

Last night on American Idol, resident rocker and my favorite contestant Adam Lambert performed (what I consider to be) the most unique version of Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire" in the history of recorded music.

In short, he owned everyone. Sure, there are plenty of teenyboppers on the Internet freaking out because they didn't understand the performance or appreciate the complexity of the arrangement. The judges didn't love it, either. No matter. I'm here to tell you right now, Lambert no longer needs American Idol. In fact, it might be better if he gets voted off tonight so he can front a Metal band and save rock music.

Did I not mention it was "country night?" I reiterate: Bloody. Hell. Lambert took his country assignment and basically flipped a middle finger to the producers of AI.

In short, Lambert's voice is freaking perfect for Badlands. That is, if he wants to work with established musicians. His range is so out of this world, Adam Lambert can mop the floor with just about any Glam singer on the scene today. If you don't agree with my Badlands choice, who do you think Adam could resurrect - or save?

I swear, the prospect of his voice over top some pounding drums and a raging guitar solo gives me goosebumps.

Just to compare...here's Badlands, "High Wire."

...and in the event you've never heard Johnny Cash sing "Ring of Fire," here it is: