Having talked to Scott Ian on three separate occasions for three different publications, I'm still not sure if he's a jerk, hardened New Yorker who carries the city's attitude with him wherever he goes or is just always on constant alert (i.e. paranoia) that people (i.e. interviewers, media, etc.) are trying to "gotcha!" him for... Continue Reading →
Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Strikes a Balance with 2023 Nominees
More times than not since it was established in 1983, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame has come under fire from fans and critics for failing to get it right when it comes to putting the right people into the musical institution. This week the Hall announced its Class of 2023 nominees and, while... Continue Reading →
Checking in with Tim Burgess of The Charlatans
One of the tours I've been most amped about for 2023 so far is the co-headlining run of The Charlatans and RIDE. Both are two of my favorites from the early-90s UK music scene, and each are currently on the road performing one of their albums in its entirety. For RIDE it's the 1990 shoegaze... Continue Reading →
Rockers We Want to See Back in 2023
The way the music popularity pendulum has swung in recent times, rock and roll is on the backburner in favor of country pop, dance, hip-hop and K-pop are way ahead. In fact, if there were a backburner to the backburner, loud guitars and heavy-footed drums would be there. Upstarts like Greta Van Fleet, Thundermother and... Continue Reading →
Brian Johnson Tells How He Wrote the AC/DC Classic ‘Hells Bells’
There's been a lot of talk over the years about how maybe Brian Johnson didn't pen the songs on Back in Black, the biggest selling rock record in history. The theories go that the lyrics were actually lifted from the notebooks of the late Bon Scott, who died just before the recording sessions for the... Continue Reading →
New Year’s Resolutions 2023: Some Recommendations for Your Favorite Artists
Welcome to this year’s edition of Rock Music Menu’s “New Year’s Resolutions for Rockers Who Need Them,” where we assist musicians with setting goals for the coming 12 months. It’s not an easy job, but one that begrudgingly must be done. Rockers, rollers and performers of all sorts are just like us: they make resolutions... Continue Reading →
Talking with Brian Johnson About ‘Back in Black,’ His New Memoir and AC/DC’s 50th Anniversary
It's not every day I get to sit and have a chat with the singer on the biggest selling rock album in music history. But Brian Johnson couldn't have been more engaging as we covered a multitude of topics during a recent interview which is now available to read over at Metal Edge. The AC/DC... Continue Reading →
Drab Majesty Talk Isolation, Sonic Evolution and Italian Food
Darkwave outfit Drab Majesty have been on my radar since hearing their song "Dot in the Sky" back in 2017. This year, I was able to see them twice live, interviewing the mastermind behind the curtain, Deb Demure between the shows. It was a bit of a journey for me in a way. Caught them... Continue Reading →
Iceland Airwaves, coolest music fest in the world, returns
Like virtually every other music festival on the planet, Iceland Airwaves was deeply affected by COVID-19. The event went virtual in 2020 and last year under the banner “Live from Reykjavík” with the latter a socially distanced hybrid across just four venues on a single night that ended with the country going back into lockdown... Continue Reading →
Beth Orton Talks About Braving the ‘Weather’ for a 617 Q&A
The worst part about interviewing Beth Orton was not being able to then see her perform on the tour I was interviewing her about. Unfortunately, I was traveling internationally while she was in town promoting the excellent album Weather Alive. her first in over six years. We had a good chat over Zoom though while... Continue Reading →