Steve Martin seemed like an obvious choice to play Tim Walz on the upcoming season of Saturday Night Live – but it’s not going to happen.
Fans immediately rallied around Martin when the Minnesota governor was confirmed as Kamala Harris’ Democratic running mate in the upcoming presidential election. Martin now confirms that SNL producer Lorne Michaels asked the question, but he’s decided to pass on the offer.
“I wanted to say ‘no’ – and, by the way, he wanted me to say no,” Martin told the Los Angeles Times. “I said, ‘Lorne, I’m not an impressionist. You need someone who can really nail the guy.’”
He added: “I was picked because I have gray hair and glasses.”
That wasn’t Martin’s only reason for backing away: Playing Walz would be an ongoing commitment. “It’s not like you do it once and get applause and never do it again,” Martin argued. “Again, they need a real impressionist to do that. They’re gonna find somebody really, really good. I’d be struggling.”
‘SNL’ 50th Anniversary Marked by Movie Premiere
SNL’s 50th season is likely to heavily feature Harris and Walz, with the current Vice President to be played again by former cast member Maya Rudolph.
The show returns on Sept. 28. The feature movie Saturday Night, marking the first broadcast in 1972, will hit theaters two weeks later, on Oct. 11.
Described as an exploration of the 90 minutes leading up to the premiere, Saturday Night is based on interviews with those who were there. The film’s cast includes Gabriel LaBelle as Lorne Michaels, Dylan O’Brien as Dan Aykroyd, Cory Michael Smith as Chevy Chase, Rachel Sennott as Rosie Shuster and Lamorne Morris as Garrett Morris. Jon Batiste, who plays the show’s first musical guest, Billy Preston, created the soundtrack.
30 Best ‘Saturday Night Live’ Characters
Much of the show’s humor stems from impersonations, but ‘Saturday Night Live’ has also created a long list of memorable recurring characters.
AC/DC brought their Power Up tour to Messegelände in Hannover, Germany on August 4th. Fan-filmed video of “Stiff Upper Lip” and “Riff Raff” can be viewed below.
“If You Want Blood You’ve Got It” “Back In Black” “Demon Fire” “Shot Down In Flames” “Thunderstruck” “Have A Drink On Me” “Hells Bells” “Shot In The Dark” “Stiff Upper Lip” “Shoot To Thrill” “Sin City” “Rock n Roll Train” “Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap” “High Voltage” “Riff Raff” “You Shook Me All Night Long” “Highway To Hell” “Whole Lotta Rosie” “Let There Be Rock”
Encore “T.N.T.” “For Those About To Rock”
The Pretty Reckless is supporting AC/DC on their current European tour. Remaining dates are listed below.
August 9 – Dessel, Belgium – Festivalpark Stenehei 13 – Paris, France – Hippodrome Paris Longchamp 17 – Dublin, Ireland – Croke Park
Bloodstock Festivals has shared the video below, along with the following message:
“Relive the energy and excitement of Ugly Kid Joe’s phenomenal performance at the Bloodstock Open Air metal festival on August 13th, 2023. Performing on the prestigious Ronnie James Dio Stage, the band delivered a high-octane set that captivated fans from start to finish. Known for their irreverent and infectious style, Ugly Kid Joe treated the audience to a mix of their classic hits and fan favorites, showcasing their enduring talent and showmanship.
“The highlight of the night was a heartfelt tribute to the legendary Lemmy Kilmister of Motörhead. Ugly Kid Joe’s rendition of the iconic ‘Ace Of Spades’ was made even more special with the appearance of Sepultura’s guitarist Andreas Kisser, who joined the band on stage for this touching performance. The crowd erupted as the powerful chords and gritty vocals paid homage to one of heavy metal’s most revered figures, creating a moment of unity and respect among metalheads.”
Ugly Kid Joe are back in Europe this summer for several festivals as well as a handful of intimate headline shows. Tickets for all dates are on sale now at this location. Upcoming dates are listed below.
August 14 – Concentracao Internacional de Motos – Gois, Portugal 17 – Jailbreak Festival – Horsens, Denmark 18 – Knust – Hamburg, Germany 19 – Mezz Concerts & Dance – Breda, Netherlands 20 – The Black Lab – Wasquehal, France 21 – Zik Zak – Ittre, Belgium 23 – Riverside Open Air – Aaburg, Switzerland 24 – Stonedead Festival – Newark, UK – 25 – Arts Club – Liverpool, UK 26 – The Parish – Huddersfield, UK 27 – Zumhof – Birmingham, UK 29 – Concorde 2 – Brighton, UK 30 – M11 – Milton Keynes, UK 31 – The 1865 – Southampton, UK
Pat Travers was responsible for some of the most electrifying live shows of the 1980s, and Live ’N Loaded ’84 captures one of the greatest of them all.
Lit up by the success of “I La La La Love You” and its so-memorable appearance in the 1983 movie Valley Girl, the Canadian-born superstar was touring his latest album, so aptly titled Hot Shot, when the tapes rolled for this show. And he devastates with smokin’ hot versions of his best known songs, including “Snortin’ Whiskey,” “Boom, Boom (Out Go The Lights),” “I La La La Love You” and more!
Making its first ever appearance on vinyl, Live ‘N Loaded will also be released on CD with four bonus tracks – Hot Shot favorites “Killer” and “Just Try Talkin’ (To Those Dudes)”; “Gettin’ Better” from 1977’s breakthrough Puttin;’ It Straight album and “Ready Or Not.” “I La La La Love You” is released as a single. Stream the song here, and listen below.
The album will be available on both digipak CD and red marble vinyl. Pre-order CD/vinyl here; pre-save the digital edition here.
Tracklisting:
“Tonight” “Killer” (CD only) “Life In London” “Gettin’ Betta’” (CD only) “Just Try Talkin’ (To Those Dudes)” (CD only) “I La La La Love You” “Stevie” “Born Under A Bad Sign” “Ready Or Not” (CD only) “Hot Shot” “Born A Rocker” “Rockin'” “Boom Boom (Out Go The Lights)” “Snortin’ Whiskey”
Finnish masters of melancholic brutality, Wolfheart, are gearing up for the release of their forthcoming seventh studio album, Draconian Darkness, out September 6 via Reigning Phoenix Music (RPM).
Today they release the new single and video, “Trial By Fire”. Stream/download “Trial By Fire” here, and check out the video below:
Pre-order Draconian Darkness in the physical format of your choice (CD-digipak, coloured vinyl), pre-save it on your favourite DSP or pre-order it digitally now, here.
The opus was recorded at Deep Noise Studios and produced, mixed and mastered by the band’s long-time collaborator Saku Moilanen; its artwork was crafted by Nikos Stavridakis (VisionBlack).
Draconian Darkness tracklisting:
“Ancient Cold” “Evenfall” “Burning Sky” “Death Leads The Way” “Scion Of The Flame” “Grave” “Throne Of Bones” “Trail By Fire” “The Gale”
Professor Of Rock has released the new video below, along with the following introduction…
“Coming up… rock icon Pete Townsend of The Who delves into his feelings of angst in ‘Behind Blue Eyes’… grappling with the pressures of being a celebrity put on a pedestal and confronting the reality that he’s not who he appears to be. It all began when Pete was tempted by a beautiful fan backstage after a live performance. And being a famous rock star we know how this story goes, but in actuality Pete resisted her advances. Instead, he returned to his hotel room, where he channeled his emotions into writing a song about the struggles of being a public figure. In a moment of clarity, Pete Townsend realized he wasn’t the person everyone thought he was. ‘Behind Blue Eyes’ became one of the most beloved songs ever with one of the most poignant vocals of the 70s. And there’s a reason it was so heartfelt. Singer Roger Daltrey’s dog died hours before he put down the vocal. We go behind the artifice to uncover what it’s really like to be… the bad man… next on Professor Of Rock.”
Slipknot’s Here Comes The Pain Tour is here. The tour, which celebrates the heavy titans and cultural phenomenon’s 25th anniversary of seminal debut album, Slipknot, kicked off with a sold out performance in Indiana last night. The band jumped straight back to 1999 with set opener “(sic)”. Other highlights from the set list included the classic “Wait & Bleed”, “Liberate”, “Surfacing” and more. Fans have been rabidly awaiting what songs the band would play, with no info posted by the band in advance. Last night’s capacity crowd, and the internet’s reaction immediately after, signalled that fans were ecstatic and that these would be shows to remember, a modern Slipknot tour unlike any other.
Slipknot’s Here Comes The Pain Tour, produced by Live Nation, includes arena plays nationwide this summer, followed by global performances across arenas later this year and throughout 2025. Highlights include New York City’s Madison Square Garden, two back to back nights at Los Angeles’ Intuit Dome, Austin’s Moody Center, two nights at London’s O2 Arena, a special homecoming performance at Knotfest Iowa and more. Knocked Loose, Orbit Culture and Vended are confirmed as support on select dates.
Tickets are on sale now. See below for a full list of dates.
2024 dates:
August 7 – Burgettstown, PA – The Pavilion at Star Lake * 9 – Baltimore, MD – CFG Bank Arena * 10 – Camden, NJ – Freedom Mortgage Pavilion * 12 – New York, NY – Madison Square Garden * 14 – Gilford, NH – BankNH Pavilion * 15 – Mansfield, MA – Xfinity Center * 17 – Toronto, ON – Scotiabank Arena *
September 1 – Pryor, OK – Rocklahoma 7 – Auburn, WA – White River Amphitheatre # 8 – Ridgefield, WA – RV Inn Styles Resorts Amphitheater # 11 – Nampa, ID – Ford Idaho Center Amphitheater # 13 – Inglewood, CA – Intuit Dome # 14 – Inglewood, CA – Intuit Dome # 15 – Phoenix, AZ – Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre # 17 – Austin, TX – Moody Center # 18 – Dallas, TX – Dos Equis Pavilion # 21 – Des Moines, IA – Knotfest Iowa at Waterworks Park # 26 – Louisville, KY – Louder Than Life Festival
October 11 – Sacramento, CA – Aftershock Festival 19 – São Paulo, Brazil – Knotfest Brasil
November 8 – Guadalajara, Mexico – Calle 2 9 – Mexico City, Mexico – Parque Bicentenario
December 5 – Amsterdam, Netherlands – Ziggo Dome 6 – Dortmund, Germany – Westfalehallen 8 – Stuttgart, Germany – Schleyerhalle 9 – Leipzig, Germany – Quarterback Immobilien Arena 11 – Zürich, Switzerland – Hallenstadion 12 – Paris, France – Accor Arena 14 – Leeds, UK – First Direct Arena 15 – Glasgow, UK – Ovo Hydro 17 – Manchester, UK – Co-op Live 18 – Birmingham, UK – Utilita Arena 20 – London, UK – The O2 21 – London, UK – The O2
* w/ Special Guests Knocked Loose and Orbit Culture # w/ Special Guests Knocked Loose and Vended
2025 dates:
June 6-8 – Nurburg, Germany – Rock Am Ring 6-8 – Nuremberg, Germany – Rock Im Park 12-14 – Nickelsdorf, Austria – NovaRock
Up-and-coming Italian power metal unit, Frozen Crown, are gearing up to unleash their new studio album and Napalm Records debut, War Hearts, out October 18.
Founded in 2017, Frozen Crown has garnered significant media exposure with their previous four albums and their massive hit, “Neverending”, which has gathered over 11 million views on YouTube to date. The fresh ten track offering marks their first as a six-piece band, capturing the essence of Frozen Crown’s dynamic sound brimming with powerful riffs, unforgettable melodies, and raw energy.
Today, the band has revealed their driving single, “Steel And Gold”, featuring swift guitar riffs, relentless drums and a catchy refrain. Transporting the uplifting spirit to keep on fighting, the track is accompanied by an official music video that captures the band in a stunning castle ruin.
Giving a first impression of the youthful, raw and passionate approach to metal, get ready to experience their powerful live performances as the band heads out on tour with Kamelot in the fall of this year.
Frozen Crown comments the new single “Steel And Gold”: “We’re extremely excited to have the ‘Steel And Gold’ official video finally released via Napalm Records. This is the fulfillment of years of hard work, as well as a fresh start! This video doesn’t deviate from the usual Frozen Crown style, it just consolidates it. Very often, our videos have been labeled as ‘just a bunch of people having the time of their lives playing metal in some beautiful scenery… plus a lot of hair’. We must say, we totally agree!
This time, though, the beautiful scenery is the gorgeous “Castello dei Doria”, in Dolceacqua, Liguria, in northwestern Italy, and the ‘bunch of people’ is just one more person on guitar, adding firepower (and hair) to the ensemble. ‘Steel and Gold” is a song about loyalty, integrity and self improvement. It’s about remaining true to your ideals and about the search for unattainable perfection.”
Check out the official music video for “Steel And Gold” below.
During its short lifespan, the relentless band has performed at several festivals like Sabaton Open Air, Metal Fest Plzen and Rock Imperium Festival, headlined two Japanese tours and followed extensive European touring with significant bands such as DragonForce and Nanowar Of Steel – dubbed by a tour with U.D.O. in 2023. Joined by their newest member, 18-year-old guitar prodigy Alessia Lanzone, the band’s characteristic sound has been expanded by her skills, adding depth and complexity to their performances.
Featuring all members on the recording for the first time, War Hearts symbolizes a fresh start and pays homage to the legendary Children Of Bodom with its album title, a band that inspired Frozen Crown’s youthful, raw and passionate approach to metal. Addressing themes of self-improvement, awareness, personal growth and inner struggles, album opener and title track “War Hearts” is about fighting for your dreams in the darkest of nights and creates a powerful and uplifting message of always staying strong, making it through the storm as war angels. “I Am The Wind” features soaring choruses with dual vocals from frontwoman Jade and guitarist Federico, ingenious guitar riffs and perfectly blended drums, while the lyrics inspire listeners to let go like the wind and rise to shine again. To wrap up the album, tracks like “Edge of Reality”, inspired by the ’86 Highlander movie, and “Bloodlines”, referencing the Vampire: The Masquerade series of board and video games, showcase the band’s colorful storytelling.
Frozen Crown constantly define and refine their sound, pushing their trademark elements to new levels of complexity without forgetting the characteristic catchy hooks. War Hearts exceeds their previous successes and solidifies their place in the global metal scene.
Frozen Crown on their new album: “War Hearts is our fifth album, but it’s also the first one as a 6-piece band and the first one on Napalm Records. It’s also the first album where all members actually make their appearance on the recording. For these reasons, War Hearts represents a new beginning, a fresh start, and it may be considered the first episode of Frozen Crown “reboot”. We wrote and arranged this album acting like we had no history at all, never afraid to repeat some of our trademark stylistic features. On the contrary, we highlighted and gave more value to them, to make our new songs sound 100% like us. We worked hard on the material to cut away all the useless parts and make the songs as catchy and straightforward they could be, and to make them sound like quintessential Frozen Crown.”
War Hearts will be available in the following formats:
– Ltd. 1LP Gatefold Crystal Clear Black Marbled (Napalm Records Mailorder exclusive) – strictly ltd. to 200 copies – 1LP Gatefold Translucent Red (Napalm Records Mailorder exclusive) – Digisleeve – Digital
“War Hearts” “Steel And Gold” “To Live To Die” “Night Of The Wolf” “On Silver Wings” “Edge Of Reality” “Bloodlines” “I Am The Windv “King Of The Sky” “Ice Dragon”
PennLive.com is reporting that Pennsylvania native, Bret Michaels, made his way to western Pennsylvania on Tuesday to spend some time with the Pittsburgh Steelers. The lead singer of Poison was spotted hanging out at the team’s training practice in Latrobe.
Pittsburgh Steelers shared a few photos of Michaels’s visit via Facebook with the caption, “Shoutout, Bret Michaels, for joining us today at #SteelersCamp.”
Bret Michaels performs next on Friday, August 9 at Buffalo Chip Campground in Sturgis, SD. Find his complete live itinerary here.
In a new feature at Goldmine, former Megadeth guitarist, Marty Friedman, picks five albums that have showcased his favourite guitar playing and should open the minds of any young guitar slinger.
One of Friedman’s picks is Frank Marino and Mahogany Rush’s “Live” album, originally released by Columbia Records in March, 1978.
Says Marty: “For someone like me who is not particularly a Jimi Hendrix fan, I would agree that it is odd that three of my all-time favorite guitar players are Uli Jon Roth, Robin Trower and Frank Marino. These guys have undoubtedly been influenced by Hendrix, and to such an extent that all three of them have (quite unfairly) been labeled “Hendrix clones” by short-sighted journalists and fair weather fans. All three of them took their early influence from Hendrix, but then springboarded their playing into the stratosphere, creating unique and extremely beautiful and enjoyable offshoots of the Hendrix school of distortion-soaked blues soloing. Frank Marino’s playing on this live album bristled with so much intensity, urgency and excitement, it is impossible for me to compare it to the laid-back, sloppy and druggy guitar style that likely inspired him. His sense of melody, particularly on the stately ‘The World Anthem’, was something I never musically imagined before hearing Frank Marino, and something I have tried to emulate over my career.”
Find out which other albums Marty selected at Goldmine.
Friedman has announced 2025 US tour dates supporting his most recent studio album, Drama, out now on Frontiers Music. The tour will kick off on January 25 in Las Vegas and wraps up on February 22 in Los Angeles. Tickets are on sale now.
Marty comments on the tour: “My three band members from Japan, Chargeeeeee, Wakazaemon, and Naoki have created the ultimate setting to perform music from all stages of my career. If you’ve seen us live before, you know what to expect. If not, you are in for a unique treat. You will remember my band’s performances on this Drama tour for a long time. Our last two USA tours have left an unforgettable impact on them. We are all beyond excited to cross the pond and play for my home country again!”
The dynamic acoustic duo of Nikki Stringfield & Patrick Kennison will perform as special guests for these dates.
About the tour, Nikki shared this: “We are thrilled to be warming up the stage for the incomparable Marty Friedman on his upcoming tour with our acoustic duo! We’ll be rocking a variety of originals with a splash of some of your favorite metal songs in a way you’ve never heard before.. see you on the road!”
Marty Friedman Live Drama 2025 dates:
January 25 – Las Vegas, NV – Count’s Vamp’d 27 – Denver, CO – HQ Live 29 – St. Louis, MO – Off Broadway 30 – St. Charles, IL – Arcada Theater 31 – Westland, MI – Token Lounge
February 1 – Columbus, OH – The King of Clubs 2 – Cleveland, OH – The Winchester 4 – New York, NY – The Loft at City Winery 5 – Boston, MA – City Winery 6 – Derry, NH – Tupelo Music Hall 7 – Annapolis, MD – Ram’s Head on Stage 8 – Pawling, NY – Daryl’s House 10 – Philadelphia, PA – City Winery 11 – Leesburg, VA – Tally Ho Theater 13 – Greenville, SC – Radio Room 14 – Nashville, TN – The Basement 16 – Houston, TX – Bronze Peacock at House of Blues 17 – Austin, TX – Antone’s 18 – Dallas, TX – Granada Theater 20 – Albuquerque, NM – Launch Pad 21 – Phoenix, AZ – Rhythm Room 22 – Los Angeles, CA – The Whisky
Tickets, Exclusive Meet and Greet VIP Packages, Stage Played Guitars, and more are available at MartyFriedman.com.
Marty Friedman’s presence in the world of music, the world of guitar, and Japanese pop culture is mystifying, bizarre, and nothing short of inspiring. On his new solo album, Drama, he only slightly revisits the atmospheric elements of his legendary 1992 release, Scenes, elevating them to a modern and exotic collection of epic, extravagant, and unapologetically emotional mini-symphonies.
Recorded in Verona, Italy, where Marty had access to a treasure trove of extremely rare vintage guitars along with his modern signature models, he has achieved a sonic depth unlike anything else. Drama is a pure, uplifting musical experience.
Since moving to Japan in 2003, Marty Friedman has become a household name even beyond the world of music. Fluent in Japanese, he has appeared on over 900 Japanese TV shows of every variety, as well as motion pictures and commercials, including an ad campaign for Coca-Cola / Fanta that ran for over two years. He was recently appointed an Ambassador of Japan Heritage by the Japanese government, who also commissioned him to compose the “Japan Heritage Theme Song,” recorded by Marty and the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, and is played at official government-related events. He has played the Opening Ceremony at the Tokyo Marathon 5 times, most recently in March 2024. Marty has written three books in Japanese that were released in Japan, and a brand-new full autobiography in English, Dreaming Japanese, that will be released worldwide on December 3, 2025. Pre-orders and signed limited editions are available now at DreamingJapaneseBook.com.
In addition to his legendary work with Cacophony and Megadeth, Marty has released fifteen solo albums, starting with the guitar-game-changing ‘Dragon’s Kiss,’ and has had multi-platinum, platinum, and gold album sales awards in twenty-seven countries, achieving seven Grammy nominations to date. Before the Drama album, Friedman put out the distinguished, ongoing Tokyo Jukebox line, which, as the title suggests, is a series of albums featuring “Marty-fied” covers of Japanese songs starting with Tokyo Jukebox in 2009, Tokyo Jukebox 2 in 2011, and most recently, Tokyo Jukebox 3 in 2020. This series has become a go-to set for people all around the world who are fast becoming fascinated with Japan and its music.
Marty has played the Tokyo Dome, Budokan, and every major Japanese venue multiple times. He has toured Japan countless times with his solo music as well as alongside many legendary Japanese stars. Marty performed as a soloist with five major symphony orchestras in concert as well as on Japanese television.
