Default

When Dallas Smith auditioned for drummer Danny Craig and guitarist Jeremy Hora only two years ago, it was a new experience for him.  Before that, Smith’s vocal performances had been limited to singing along with the radio, but a decision that it was time to try it for real lead him to vie for the position of lead singer in Hora and Smith’s band.  It went well.

Today, the three of them, along with bassist Dave Benedict, are collectively known as Default, a Vancouver rock band whose buzz just keeps growing.  When asked if he had any idea back in 1999 that the band would have gained this level of success and notoriety so quickly, Smith replied, “Not even a .1% chance.  It’s like winning the lottery, really.  We can’t believe it.”

Jack Bruce

The 1960’s British music scene afforded one of the greatest bands the world would ever see, Cream. Jack Bruce provided the rhythm for which to do it.

Jack Bruce On His Current Project:
Jack Bruce has played with some of the most diverse musicians in the business, none more diverse than his current project that was turned into a band for the sheer enjoyment of the music. Jack said, “I’ve enjoyed playing with so many musicians through the years, but my favorite is my band right now.” [Jack’s current band is comprised of Vernon Reid on guitar; Bernie Worrel on Hammond organ; El Negro Horacio Hernandez from Cuba, Robbie Ameen and Richi Flores, all on drums.]  “When we were making the record, we decided to continue and make a band out of it.”

Jack Bruce on the Music Industry:
Jack Bruce is one that sees the melting pot of music as a blessing. “Music has always been, it just got bigger. There are so many more kinds of music today but their roots were always there. Me, I consider myself a non-celebrity and play music because I love music…all of it.”  When asked about what types of music he listens to, Jack said, “I listen to everything. I’m very open to what’s out there. From Limp Bizkit to whatever gangster rap is around.”

Ozzy Osbourne

Sitting across from Ozzy Osbourne in his Tucson, AZ hotel suite the night before he would kick off his year-ending Merry Mayhem tour with Rob Zombie and Soil, you can’t help but feel a sense of awe—It’s Ozzy Osbourne. Ozzy fucking Osbourne. And now, in the midst of the most widespread success of his career, he’s released Down To Earth—his most impressive album in practically a decade and is backed by what is arguable his most talented band to date—returning guitarist Zakk Wylde [Black Label Society], bassist Robert Trujillo [ex-Suicidal Tendencies] and drummer Mike Bordin [ex-Faith No More]. Less than 24-hours before embarking on the tour that would change the way we all look at the holidays, Ozzy was in rare form—Every part the heavy metal legend he’s cracked up to be, and more human than most of us ever imagined…

Drowning Pool

Don’t let their casual charm and effervescent personalities fool you, on the package tour dubbed Music As A Weapon, Drowning Pool ‘s performance is the equivalent of stumbling into the ammunition hold and dropping a lit stick of dynamite. Sure, Disturbed have earned their stripes and deserve their place atop the tour they assembled, but if the headliners are the United States Navy, Drowning Pool are the Navy Seals, sneaking up on the unsuspecting crowd with stealth, and attacking with a sonic spray that numbs the senses.

Granted, it’s getting harder for Drowning Pool to “sneak up” on anyone, especially given the breakthrough success of their debut single “Bodies,” one of the most potent metal hits this side of Pantera ‘s “Walk.” The song is a smash even becoming the theme music for the World Wrestling Federation’s recent plotlines, but the acclaim it’s brought with it isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.

American Headcharge

When the name of your band is American Headcharge , and your album cover for debut release The War Of Art depicts a black-eyed Uncle Sam pointing a gun at the listener, you’ve got to excuse people for assuming you might have a political slant. But according to bassist/guitarist/all-around-American Headcharge -musical force Chad Hanks, that’s just the problem.

“There’s absolutely no tie in at all,” Hanks says of his band and politics. A logical question though, especially in light of the recent terrorist attacks on America, and Headcharge’s ironically appropriate Uncle Sam imagery. “That imagery is the funniest part of the whole thing. It’s like Andy Kaufman shit! It has nothing to do with anything, it was just great imagery, especially considering that we’ve got American in our name.

Beautiful Creatures

There was a time when rock ‘n’ roll roamed the earth like a tattooed titan, a fire-breathing monster that made mothers cringe in horror, and their daughters creep closer to feel the heat. It was the music that separated the men from the boys, transforming guitars into an electrical storm, vocals into a maelstrom of piss and vinegar, and blasting a bottom end that made the walls shake. It meant more than just songs on the radio, it was a lifestyle.

Well, if the haze of the late-‘90s has left us convinced that excitement has left the building, Beautiful Creatures kick the door back down, stampeding onto the scene with their self-titled debut. Inspired by the same bands that spawned everyone from Alice in Chains to Pantera, they strike a paralyzing blow to the complacent chords and ridiculous excuses for rock stars that inundate the modern music scene. Paying homage to their roots and with their sites set on the future, its monster hooks and sleazed-out looks that make the Beautiful Creatures the most electrifying new band in years.