UK-based prog rockers Big Big Train have announced their first-ever live dates in Canada.
The band, who in December announced US tour dates for April 2025, including a headlining appearance at Cruise To The Edge, will play:
Apr14: Montreal Fairmount Theatre Apr 15: Ontario Algonquin Theatre April 16: Quebec City Salle Dina-Bélanger
“After performing in the US last year for the first time ever, we’re really looking forward to venturing north of the border into Canada and playing for the fans there,” says Big Big Tain singer Alberto Bravin. “Having performed in Canada on a number of occasions previously while I was a member of PFM, I know how enthusiastic the Canadian fans are about progressive music.”
Big Big Train will be promoting their recent studio and live albums The Likes Of Us and A Flare On The Lens on the US dates. They return to continue working on their next studio album, which will be released through InsideOut/Sony in the first half of 2026. They will also perform in Portugal for the very first time at the beginning of May at the Gouveia Art Rock Festival.
Tickets for the Canadian shows go on sale at 10am Eastern time on Friday January 10. You can see the full list of dates and ticket link below.
Big Big Train 2025 Tour Dates
Apr 2: IN Fort Wayne Sweetwater Apr4-9: FL Cruise To The Edge Apr 10: IL Des Maines Theater Apr 11: MI Westland The Token Lounge Apr 13: NY Buffalo Electric City Apr14: Montreal Fairmount Theatre Apr 15: Ontario Algonquin Theatre April 16: Quebec City Salle Dina-Bélanger Apr 17: MA Arlington Regent Theatre Apr 18: NJ Rutherford Rivoli Theater at The Williams Center Apr 19: NJ Rutherford Rivoli Theater at The Williams Center May 4: POR Gouveia Art Rock
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Jon Anderson has announced a new run of live US dates with The Band Geeks for April and May.
The dates, which kick off at the Rialto Theater in Tucson Arizona on April 1 and concludes at the Carteret New Jersey Performing Arts Center on May 18, are a continuation of the Yes Epics, Classics and More Anderson and the band have been undertaking over the last few years, which sees them playing music from the extensive Yes repertoire as well as material from last year’s acclaimed True album.
Anderson and The Band Geeks recently announced they will release a new live album and DVD, Perpetual Change, comprised entirely of tracks from Yes’s classic seventies era. Recorded and filmed at the Aracada Theater in St. Charles, Illinois in May 2023 on an earlier run of the Yes Epics and Classics tour, and features a tracklist of 10 songs, eight of which appeared on the 1973 live album Yessongs, plus The Gates Of Delerium (originally from 1974’s Relayer plus Awaken (from 1977’s Going For The One.
The new album will be released in March on double CD, triple vinyl and DVD. You can see all the tour dates and ticket information below.
Jon Anderson and The Bank Geeks Yes Epics, Classic and More tour dates
Apr 1: AZ Tucson The Rialto Theater Apr 3: CA Anaheim The Grove of Anaheim Apr 5: NV Las Vegas The Theater at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas Apr 8: CA Oakland Fox Theater Apr 11: CA Sacramento SAFE Credit Union Performing Arts Center Apr 17: WA Seattle Moore Theater Apr 19: IL Rockford Coronado Pac Apr 23: WI Milwaukee Pabst Theater Apr 25: IL Des Plaines Des Plaines Theater Apr 27: IL St.Charles The Arcada Theater Apr 30: NY North Tonawanda Riviera Theater May 2: OH Cleveland The Agora May 4: PA Lancaster American Music Theater May 7: DE Wilmington The Grand Opera House May 10: CT Ridgefield The Ridgefield Playhouse May 12: CT Ridgefield The Ridgefield Playhouse May 16: NY Westbury Flagstar at Westbury Music Fair May 18: NJ Carteret Carteret Performing Arts Center
In the summer of 1994, with the encouragement of MTV, Robert Plant and Jimmy Page reunited to revisit Led Zeppelin classics and deep cuts for a TV special titled Unledded.
When interviewed about the project, the two former Led Zeppelin were at pains to emphasise that their collaboration did not equate to a Led Zeppelin reunion – the band’s other surviving member John Paul Jones was not invited to participate – even though Page admitted that the idea was first presented to him with the suggestion that “it would be nice to have Led Zeppelin in an intimate situation.”
“Quite honestly I for one wasn’t thinking John Paul Jones,” Page insisted to MOJO magazine’s Mat Snow. “I was thinking about what we were getting together between the two of us.”
Page and Plant were equally forthright when, in the same interview, Snow asked, Did the invention of the term ‘heavy metal’ and its early application to Led Zeppelin restrict how people perceived you?
“Yeah, because it hones in on just one element of what we were doing,” said Page. “We were so multi-faceted it’s a shame we got lumped in with any of those…”
“It’s journalistic complacency and claptrap,” Plant interruped. “It’s a very easy thing to say: who were the most successful band around at that time? If it was us, and that period had a lot of people cavorting around using their manhood as the main weapon to sell records, then we have to be held responsible and used as a trademark for that period, when our better songs, apart from Black Dog and Rock And Roll, were more or less acoustic-based or Eastern-based anyway. But who cares? Leave it to Deep Purple. They’re a nice, imaginative, original band.”
Ouch.
Asked if there was a story they could share which would set straight this misconception, Plant said, “No. This is supposed to be entertainment, you know. It’s not that bloody serious.
“Let people think what they like,” he continued. “It doesn’t really matter so long as what we’ve got to be proud of we’re proud of; that’s all that matters. Otherwise we’re wasting our time. And we’ve only got about 40, 50 years to live, each of us. And you. Pissing about, trying to set the record straight and all that sort of thing is a waste of time. We just get on and do what we do.”
The collaboration between the two men was later released as No Quarter, a Top 10 album in both the US and UK.
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A music writer since 1993, formerly Editor of Kerrang! and Planet Rock magazine (RIP), Paul Brannigan is a Contributing Editor to Louder. Having previously written books on Lemmy, Dave Grohl (the Sunday Times best-seller This Is A Call) and Metallica (Birth School Metallica Death, co-authored with Ian Winwood), his Eddie Van Halen biography (Eruption in the UK, Unchained in the US) emerged in 2021. He has written for Rolling Stone, Mojo and Q, hung out with Fugazi at Dischord House, flown on Ozzy Osbourne’s private jet, played Angus Young’s Gibson SG, and interviewed everyone from Aerosmith and Beastie Boys to Young Gods and ZZ Top. Born in the North of Ireland, Brannigan lives in North London and supports The Arsenal.
Coming off his recently released, deeply emotional album Tales Of A Changing Life Part 2, Brazilian-Canadian guitarist, music teacher, and songwriter Rod Rodrigues is pleased to release the music video for the track “Mom’s Lullaby”. This poignant single fuses blues and progressive rock together in an accessible and heartfelt instrumental that the listener can sink into.
Rodrigues explains the background of the track:
“This is the most emotional song I’ve ever written. It’s a heartfelt ballad dedicated to my mom, who has always been my biggest musical influence and supporter. When I was little, she would sing lullabies to help me fall asleep, and this song is my lullaby for her.”
The album, independently released on October 18th, 2024, represents a significant milestone in Rodrigues’ musical career. Throughout his collaborations with guitarists Hugo Mariutti, Angel Vivaldi, and Roy Ziv; bassists Heitor Tenorio and Bruno Ladislau; drummers John Macaluso (ARK, TNT, Yngwie Malmsteen, Riot), Rodrigo Abelha, and Lucas Emidio; as well as Orlan Charles (keyboards, piano, and saxophone), Rodrigo Sperandio (Brazilian viola), and vocalists Wesley Poison, Ana Carla de Carli, Andressa Alves, Caroline Grossi, Matheus Grossi, and Francis Botene, Rodrigues has refined his sound.
With over three decades of musical experience, Rodrigues has transformed from a musician playing in cover and wedding bands to an innovative artist pushing the boundaries of progressive rock.
“Mom’s Lullaby” embodies this transformation, offering listeners an intimate glimpse into the emotional landscape that has shaped his musical vision. It is recommended for fans of Rush, Steve Vai, and Joe Satriani.
Gene Simmons Band, the touring act around KISS singer/bassist, Gene Simmons, recently announced a string of 2025 tour dates. The Demon has added three more dates to his tour with stops in Anaheim, Magna, and Rockford.
Simmons’ tour dates can be found below, and tickets are available via genesimmons.com.
Tour dates:
April 3 – House Of Blues – Anaheim, CA 5 – The Event at Graton Resort & Casino – Rohnert Park, CA 10 – The Great Saltair – Magna, UT 25 – Ruth Eckerd Hall – Clearwater, FL 26 – Miami Beach, FL – Fillmore 28 – The Moon – Tallahassee, FL 29 – Florida Theater – Jacksonville, FL 30 – Hard Rock Live – Orlando, FL
May 3 – Beaver Dam Amphitheater – Beaver Dam, KY 5 – Basie – Red Bank, NJ 6 – Wellmont – Montclair, NJ 8 – Wind Creek Casino – Bethlehem, PA 9 – The Paramount – Huntington, NY 15 – Fallsview Casino – Niagara Falls, ON 18 – Hard Rock – Rockford, IL 20 – Brown County Music Center – Nashville, IN 22 – House Of Blues – Dallas, TX 23 – Tobin Center – San Antonio, TX 24 – House Of Blues – Houston, TX
Simmons is featured on the soundtrack for the 2024 film, Regan, performing the jazz standard, “Stormy Weather”, written by Harold Arlen and Ted Koehler. The official video for the song can be found below.
About Reagan:
From dusty small-town roots, to the glitter of Hollywood, and then on to commanding the world stage, Reagan is a cinematic journey of overcoming the odds. Told through the voice of Viktor Petrovich, a former KGB agent whose life becomes inextricably linked with Ronald Reagan’s when Reagan first caught the Soviets’ attention as an actor in Hollywood, this film offers a perspective as unique as it is captivating.
Dennis Quaid brings to life a story that transcends the boundaries of a traditional biopic, offering a profound exploration of the enduring impact of the power of one man who overcame the odds, sustained by the love of a woman who supported him in his journey.
Fresno heavy metallers Haunt hits the road this spring with the mighty Hitten from Spain in March and April of 2025 and will feature Haunt’s return to both Hell’s Heroes in Houston, 2 Minutes To Tulsa in Oklahoma, as well as several other cities throughout the U.S.
Tickets available through venue websites.
Spring Break 25 dates:
March 14 – Los Angeles, CA – Knucklehead 15 – Oceanside, CA – Pour House 16 – Las Vegas, NV – Sinwave 17 – Albuquerque, NM – Launchpad 19 – Austin, TX – Mohawk 20 – San Antonio, TX – 502 Bar 21 – Houston, TX – Hell’s Heroes 23 – New Orleans, LA – Siberia 24 – Pensacola, FL – Handlebar 25 – Orlando, FL – Conduit 27 – Atlanta, GA – Altar at Masquerade 28 – Little Rock, AR – Stickyz 29 – Tulsa, OK – 2 Minutes To Tulsa
April 1 – Chicago, IL – Live Wire 2 – Lawrence, KS – Bottleneck 3 – Denver, CO – HQ 4 – Salt Lake City, UT – Aces High 5 – Reno, NV – Cellar Stage 6 – San Francisco, CA – Bottom Of The Hill
The 2025 NAMM Show is scheduled to take place January 21–25 at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California.
On Saturday, January 25 at 2 PM, HighWire Daze Magazine will be having a special acoustic show at Hall C booth 6745.
Put together by Faithsedge frontman Giancarlo Floridia, who is now one of the primary songwriters over at Frontiers Music srl, co-writing songs for artist like Sweet & Lynch, Lynch Mob, Robin Mcauley, Cleanbreak, Michael Sweet’s Soledriver and more, will also be performing with the HighWire Daze House Band featuring drummer Nolan Richards and bassist Jay Montoya.
The special guest performers for the event are none other than Tod Howarth from Frehleys Comet and Four By Fate, ex-Puddle Of Mudd guitar player Matt Fuller, and Robby Lochner from Jack Russell’s Great White, as well as the Neil Turbin band, featuring original Anthrax singer, Neil Turbin. There will also be an autograph signing session following the performance.
Nearly 35 years on, -(16)- remain as one of the most enduring, hardest sounding rock and metal entities from North America. The San Diego band redefines heavy on their new album, Guides For The Misguided, out February 7.
Watch -(16)-’s new video for “Proudly Damned” below, and listen on all digital streaming services here. Pre-order Guides For The Misguided on LP/CD/Digital via Relapse.com here.
-(16)- frontman Bobby Ferry comments on Guides For The Misguided:
“The album came together after we wrapped the final mix of our last one Into Dust. It’s all about harnessing creative momentum when it strikes and we’ve been in a kind of creative autopilot for about a decade. When inspiration is there, the rest seems to fall into place effortlessly. Thankfully, we’re still driven to write and perform even after all these years. There’s no grander meaning behind it than simply following that primal urge to create—put your head down and just make something.
“Age has of course given us a fresh perspective. In the 8 years since Lifespan Of A Moth our lineup has shifted. We lost a singer, gained Alex Shuster on lead guitar/producer, and founding member Bobby Ferry slid into the lead vocalist rhythm guitarist spot. Lyrically, we’ve moved beyond the personal and inward grievances of our earlier work and embraced broader themes of conflict, like the hypocrisy of religion and its negative effects on the psyche. On the new album, there’s a song called ‘Blood Atonement Blues’ that delves into the story of Ervil LeBaron, often referred to as the “Mormon Manson,” while ‘Proudly Damned’ explores addiction and how it turns into a Pagan Ritual with a witch-like character posing as the opiate — both in substance abuse and the spiritual realm— in parallel. In many ways, this album might be the closest we’ve come to creating a concept record. Including the two covers on the album is meant to lessen this heavy hand and lighten the focus.
“Musically, we are still grasping for the perfect riffs married to the most ideal arrangements. We’re not afraid to lean into the stuff we love: noise, classic rock, hardcore, doom metal, and thrash. We are well aware we are not reinventing the wheel but lovingly fashioning something from us and basically for us, first and foremost.”
Bobby Ferry returns at the helm as the band’s visceral vocalist and guitarist, and in true -(16)- fashion, belts out stories of pain and unhinged anguish – standout tracks like “Proudly Damned” see the band playing at the crowd while Ferry shares tales of personal strife and depression – “To defile and offend/These are the demons found within/The sullen face of communion’s alarm/It’s an incentive to do more harm” – Ferry is absolutely seething while the band plows through a virulent mix of rock, metal and sludge. Dion Thurman’s pounding drum set, Bobby Ferry and Alex Shuster’s heavier-than-anything-else guitars and the lowest low end from bassist Barney Firks herald tones so low they’re nearly apocalyptic.
Guides For The Misguided closes with the soberingly titled “Kick out the Chair” – while the track sounds like a culmination of a 35 year career, the band show no signs of stopping; although the road ahead looks bleak, -(16)-‘s unrelenting trajectory continues upward.
Guides For The Misguided tracklisting:
“After All” “Hat On A Bed” “Blood Atonement Blues” “Fortress Of Hate” “Proudly Damned” “Fire And Brimstone Inc” “Desperation Angel” “Resurrection Day” “Give Thanks And Praises” (Bad Brains cover) “Kick Out The Chair” “The Tower” (Bonus Track) (Superchunk cover)
“Proudly Damned” video:
-(16)- is:
Bobby Ferry: Guitar, Vocals Alex Shuster: Lead Guitar Barney Firks: Bass Dion Thurman: Drums
Brothers TJ and John Osborne were born in Maryland but relocated to Nashville in 2012. Now with four full-length albums to their name, Brothers Osborne have received a dozen Grammy nominations, one of which became a win in 2022 for Best Country Duo/Group Performance.
Below, younger sibling TJ previews their return to the UK, having appeared at last year’s Country 2 Country Festival.
You kind of remind us of that famous song by Donny and Marie Osmond, A Little Bit Country – A Little Bit Rock ‘N’ Roll.
[Laughs but sounding mildly aghast] That’s maybe not the coolest way of getting our message across, but yeah… exactly. We are the product of what we grew up listening to. Some country music is terrible but I still love it, and we like to come at things with a high energy. We get the electric guitars going and we hit it hard.
Is one sibling more rock’n’roll than the other?
You’d expect John, as a guitar player, to be far more into it, but that’s not really true. No matter how hard we try we just can’t polish ourselves up and make it too slick.
What makes the two styles so compatible?
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We could talk for an hour about that. I guess the origins of all music go back to the same things, and I don’t think that too many people worry a great deal about labelling genres. For the longest time, what was and wasn’t considered country music was very specific, but that’s no longer true. It’s why when you come to see us there will be folks from all walks of life.
With a London show at London’s Hammersmith Apollo, this the band’s biggest tour so far. Why do you think you connect with UK audiences?
One strange thing that we often hear is: “I don’t like country music but I do like you guys.” I think the reason it works is that there’s something there for everyone.
Our goal was to keep on playing bigger and bigger venues. We made that investment financially and in terms of time spent, and by the time we arrive this will be a sold-out tour. I love that the crowds in Britain know all of our material. They’re really willing to take a deep dive, whereas in the US we pretty much have to stick to the hits.
Within the traditional country scene, it must have been very difficult to come out as gay. Four years down the line, how has life changed?
It’s completely different. I’m still the same person but I can be open and free. I wasn’t that inclined to talk about it, but there were a lot of people out there like me from that community, and I also wanted to show the general public that they have no clue about who is gay or who is straight. We have a song called I Don’t Remember Me (Before You) which was written with Shane McAnally, who coincidentally is also gay. Now, that song takes on a whole new meaning for me. I’m much more comfortable in my own skin.
Did it impact upon the group’s fan base?
It most certainly did. We lost some fans and we gained some new ones. I certainly don’t waste a whole lot of time thinking about that. I feel like I’m connected to the audience in a way I never was before.
Around the time the band last spoke with Classic Rock, in mid-2023, John was dealing with some mental health issues.
He’s in a far better place now. He’s a father with twins. John would be the first to tell you that he now takes medication to deal with an imbalance. Both of us have realigned what being successful actually means. Once you ‘make it’, where do you go next? There’s no such thing as a finish line in music. But we are far happier now.
Who’s the support act on the tour?
It’s a guy named Tyler Braden [a singer and guitarist from Alabama]. He is awesome, and it will be an amazing pairing for us.
Last year you released a digital-only four-song EP, Break Mine, apparently to satisfy fan demand.
We write all the time, though I do like to take a break whenever I can to avoid losing my mind – or my love of what I’m doing.
Are the wheels in motion for releasing a new full-length album?
We’re in the creative wheelhouse right now. Some songs are recorded and finished. What we need now is a conversation about how to release them. It would be nice to have a song or two out before we come over. We may even play them live, but let’s see about that.
Someone puts a gun to your head and demands a decision – country or rock’n’roll?
I can’t plead The Fifth?
No. It must be one or the other.
In that case, for me it’s got to be country. I like them both, but if I want to get in a good mood then playing some old Merle Haggard or Hank Williams always works. Those are my roots.
Brothers Osborne’s tour of the UK and Ireland begins in Dublin on January 17. Tickets are on sale now.
The one-shot video finds Hawkins toying with gender roles, appearing as a chain-smoking, world-weary, emotionally troubled diva with a penchant for plastic surgery.
“What I was trying to get was somebody so filled with regret, remorse and self-loathing that they’ll slowly kill themselves, and also do a load of work to their face,” says Hawkins. “The character is desperate to change their appearance, desperate to just get it over.”
“I think we wanted to do something unique and we wanted to make a bit more of a statement,” adds video director Simon Emmett. “I think that what we’ve done is quite brave and honest in a way. I think it’s away from what you’d expect, and I think it says a lot more about current culture and social media.”
“It’s so ridiculously weird,” opines guitarist Dan Hawkins, “and so at odds with the music – not necessarily the lyrics – that the weirdness level is off the charts, completely off the charts, which is great.”
I Hate Myself comes from The Darkness’s upcoming eighth studio album Dreams On Toast, which will be released on March 28 and is the follow-up to 2021’s Motorheart.
The Darkness will celebrate the release of the album with a UK tour. The run of 18 dates starts with a pair of shows at Ipswich’s Regent’s Theatre on March 6 and 7 and climaxes at London’s Wembley Arena on March 29. Support comes from Northern Irish rock trio Ash.
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The Darkness – I Hate Myself (Official Music Video) – YouTube
