DARK TRANQUILLITY has posted a full live concert that was filmed recently at Reggie’s Rock Club in Chicago, IL. The audio for the show was professionally tracked and mixed.

Here is the setlist for the 73 minute performance:

1.         At the Point of Ignition
2.         The Fatalist
3.         Focus Shift
4.         The Wonders At Your Feet
5.         Final Resistance
6.         Misery’s Crown
7.         Punish My Heaven
8.         Iridium
9.         Shadow in Our Blood
10.       The Lesser Faith
11.       Dream Oblivion
12.       Lethe
13.       Lost To Apathy
14.       ThereIn

Encore:
15.       The Grandest Accusation
16.       Terminus (Where Death Is Most Alive)

Go to SMNnews

Legendary bassist Bob Daisley (OZZY OSBOURNE, RAINBOW, BLACK SABBATH, URIAH HEEP) recently answered a number of questions for his official web site. A few excerpts from the question-and-answer session follow below.

Q: It’s been insinuated that you and [former Ozzy drummer] Lee Kerslake were only interested in making money. Is it true that when the band was asked to do two shows in one day, at the Palladium in New York, you demanded double pay and double travel expenses, and was this the reason you were both fired

Bob Daisley: That little insinuation is utter nonsense. I remember exactly what happened for that accusation to have come about. It all started when we were still recording the “Diary of a Madman” album at Ridge Farm Studios in England, in 1981. Ozzy got a phone call from [wife/manager] Sharon, who was setting up the American tour, telling him that shows on the forthcoming tour could involve “doubles,” that is, two shows in one day — maybe an afternoon show then an evening, or an early evening and a late one. Ozzy was freaking out because he said his voice would never hold up doing two shows in one day and came to us and said, “Fellas, ya gotta back me up on this one, Sharon wants me to do two shows on some days and my voice won’t hold out.” I remember his words distinctly. We knew that he was right so we said we’d go along with him and say that we couldn’t do any “doubles.” Lee and I have, of course, done many “double shows” in our time, but we stuck up for Ozzy at his request because it could have jeopardized future shows if his voice was blown out had he done two shows in any one day. As for the reason Lee and I were sacked, I’d say first of all that it was because we weren’t green, inexperienced or “yes men.” We knew the business and what we were entitled to and that sometimes rubbed both Ozzy and Sharon up the wrong way, especially with Lee as he and Sharon didn’t always see eye to eye. When we were auditioning drummers before Lee got the job, Ozzy had favored drummer Tommy Aldridge who wasn’t available. During the U.K. tour in 1980 after the release of the first album, and when Sharon had become part of the scene, Ozzy and Sharon began asking me to agree to getting rid of Lee and have Tommy Aldridge in the band but I would never agree; they were trying to fix something that wasn’t broken. Out of principal and knowing I was right, I refused every time they pulled me aside to bend my ear in the direction of getting rid of Lee. Anyway, as history shows, Lee and I were used, abused and fired after the recording of “Diary” without receiving our proper accreditation for performance and co-production. As history also shows, I was asked back time and time again. Need I say more?

Q: Why did you go back to work with Ozzy time and time again?

Bob Daisley: First and foremost, we were still good friends and Ozzy and I worked productively well together. I liked the musical style and direction and his vocal melodies, and he liked my lyrics and playing; we got on personally very well, too. The first time I went back was to write and record for the “Bark at the Moon” album, at a time when Lee and I were suing Don Arden and Jet Records for non-payment of performance royalties from the sales of the “Blizzard of Ozz” and “Diary of a Madman” albums and lack of due accreditation on “Diary”. Ozzy and Sharon were helping us in our lawsuit against her father, Don Arden, as she was by then estranged from him, so naturally it was in my interest to work with them again.

Q: Sharon Osbourne made the following press statement in 2002: “Bob Daisley and Lee Kerslake have harassed Ozzy and our family for several years. Because of their abusive and unjust behavior, Ozzy wanted to remove them from these recordings. We turned a negative into a positive by adding a fresh sound to the original albums.” Did you or Lee ever “harass” Ozzy, Sharon or any member of the Osbourne or Arden family?

Bob Daisley: Never. First of all, I’d had no contact of any kind at all with Ozzy since late 1997 and the last contact with Sharon I’d had was before then. The only member of either of the families Lee and I had contact with was Don Arden, Sharon‘s father, during the time he’d agreed to be an ally and help us win our case against the Osbournes. Don offered, though; he didn’t have his arm twisted, but it was more for him to stick a finger up at Sharon, who hadn’t spoken to him in almost twenty years, than to help us. He was genuinely willing to aid our cause, though, as the meeting Lee and I had at his house in London proved. Don also welcomed our lawyers into his house to go through documents he had which would serve a vital cause. No one was ever harassed. I always had to laugh at the part of Sharon‘s statement where she said, “We turned a negative into a positive by adding a fresh sound to the original albums.” So insulting the memory of Randy Rhoads, the record-buying public and ruining classic albums is a “positive?” What constitutes a ‘negative’ in their world then? The mind boggles…
Q: Did you or Lee ever try to get other musicians involved in your legal action against the Osbournes?

Bob Daisley: Most certainly not. Neither Lee nor I contacted or approached any former or current musicians or staff within the Osbourne camp prior to or during our lawsuit against them. As our case against them progressed, former bassist Phil Soussan began a lawsuit against them for unpaid royalties in regards to the song “Shot in the Dark”, which appeared on the “Ultimate Sin” album but I/we had no contact with him. There was a mention in the press that Soussan had “joined forces” with us but his lawsuit was launched independently of ours. I don’t even know what the outcome for him was. Carmine Appice sued them in 1984 after being fired from the “Bark at the Moon” tour when he’d been contracted for the whole world tour. I’m not sure when his case was settled but Carmine won the case and was paid by the Osbournes but I/we had nothing to do with that either.

Q: Did you or Lee ever sue the Osbournes for any reason other than for non-payment of performance royalties from the sales of the “Blizzard of Ozz” and “Diary of a Madman” albums and for the lack of accreditation for your performances on “Diary”?
Bob Daisley: No, the only time we took legal action against the Osbournes was when we finally found out where our royalties for “Blizzard” and “Diary” were going — into their pockets. There was an incident in 1985 when the album “The Ultimate Sin” was released without my credit for writing on it, with the first 500,000 pressings omitting my name. I threatened to sue but the credit was corrected so no further legal action was taken. I’d co-written much of the music for that album with Jake E. Lee and then had written all the lyrics for the whole thing and didn’t get credited on the first 500,000 released. There are no other incidents of legal proceedings having been launched against the Osbournes by Lee and/or me at any other time.

Q: On the subject of lyrics, when asked about “Suicide Solution” and the controversy connected to that song when a teenager killed himself after allegedly listening to it, Don Arden is on record as having said, “To be perfectly honest, I would be doubtful as to whether Mr. Osbourne knew the meaning of the lyrics, if there was any meaning, because his command of the English language is minimal.” Many would agree, and yet Ozzy has said on several occasions that he wrote the lyrics to “Suicide Solution”. Would you like to comment on this?
Bob Daisley: Ozzy has often said that he wrote “Suicide Solution” about Bon Scott, AC/DC‘s singer but first and foremost Ozzy didn’t write it, I did. Bon Scott was a good friend of mine, I would be the first to say if it had been written about him. I wrote the lyrics as a warning of drinking yourself to death, inspired by Ozzy‘s heavy drinking at the time and that the “solution” — as in “liquid” — is not the solution to the problem. I would like to add that in no way were the lyrics meant to encourage the act of suicide, on the contrary, they meant the opposite.

Q: Given Don Arden‘s statement that Ozzy‘s “command of the English language is minimal” and Ozzy‘s own admission that he can’t play an instrument, how is it that Ozzy is the only person credited for songwriting on “Bark At The Moon”?

Bob Daisley: There were complicated situations for Jake E. Lee and me at the time regarding publishing contracts and song registration so we agreed to do a “buy-out,” that is, we were paid a lump sum for our contributions both for playing and writing. I co-wrote the music with Jake and I wrote all the lyrics with the exception of a line or word or two from Ozzy. Jake and I couldn’t be credited for the writing for that reason, although we did get our performance credits. It was very frustrating to put so much work into a recording and then see someone else take all the credit for the writing but that’s what we agreed to so there’s not a lot we can do now. Besides, with that lot, even without doing a “buy-out” there was never ever any guarantee that you’d be credited properly and accurately anyway. The one thing that stands out in my mind from when the record was first released is an interview Ozzy did with the magazine International Musician. When asked how he’d written all those songs alone he told them that he’d done it on a piano using one hand. I wonder where the other hand was.

Q: It was recently announced that the original recordings of “Blizzard of Ozz” and “Diary of a Madman” are to be released as a 30th anniversary package with your and Lee‘s performances restored in all their glory. If this is true, it’s very good news for the fans. Have you and Lee been negotiating and come to an agreement with the Osbournes? If so, can you tell us about the “bonus material?” And finally, are you going to receive royalties for your performances from the sales of this special edition?
Bob Daisley: Neither Lee nor I have been contacted, considered or consulted in the decision to re-release the original recordings. I haven’t a clue as to what the “bonus material” might be. As for royalties, we have not been approached for a reconciliation and have been offered and promised nothing.

Read the entire interview at this location.

Recent comments by Megadeth front man, Dave Mustaine, called out “Blessed By A Broken Heart’s blonde band member,” bassist Tyler Hoare, for making “racist comments to guitar tech Willie Gee.”    The band unanimously and sincerely regret this misunderstanding, and all agree that Willie was nothing but “awesome” to the band when they got to talk with him during Friday night’s sound check.   They also all unanimously agree that Tyler’s sense of humor can sometimes, inadvertently, be a little bit “out of line,” (as Willie characterized Tyler’s comments in an e-mail to guitarist Casey Jones, who reached out to Willie after Mustaine’s comments hit the Internet) and offer their heartfelt apologies to the guitar tech and the Megadeth crew.

Here’s a letter from Tyler, who wanted a chance to tell his side:

Hey everyone, my name is Tyler Hoare – I’m the “blonde guy” from Blessed By A Broken Heart . This whole incident has really taken a toll on me, because I honestly do not have one racist bone in my body. I know people always say that, but those who know me know that’s the God’s honest truth.   I promise you that if you talk to anyone who knows me personally, the accusation of “racist” would be the last thing that anyone would think of.  Stupid, maybe, “weird sense of humor,” maybe, but definitely not racist… To share with you a bit of where I’m coming from: I have a mentally handicapped foster brother who is black, that I love with all my heart.  My ex-girlfriend of three years is black. I am a tattoo artist, and my clients are of all races.   To Willie: I am very sorry I made you feel uncomfortable, it was not my intention AT ALL.  If you knew me, you would know that I joke around alot and say stupid things, but a racist I am not. I guess I overstepped my boundaries because I didn’t know you that well, but it’s only because I felt really comfortable hanging with you.   For those of you who’ve read enough, please know that I apologize to Willie, who was nothing but super-cool to me, and anyone else in the crew that may have been offended.  I hope this will serve to clear things up. For those of you who want to know how one thing led to another, the details are below.   Sincerely, Tyler

Here’s Tyler’s explanation of the entire incident:

When we got to the venue and started setting up, Megadeth was doing a sound check on the same stage where we would play.  I noticed that their guitar tech was black and actually thought to myself that that was sweet, because we don’t see many black guys in the metal scene. I went over, shook Willie’s hand and chatted a bit. Later, we started talking and I brought up that South Park episode where Cartman is trying to form a band. Willie was familiar with it, and we laughed together about it, and I was like, “You should be a bass tech.”  I was making fun of the stereotype, which was also done in South Park.  In no way do I think black people cant play guitar – that’s just crazy, obviously!    We continued to chat and hang for another 5-10 minutes, and I was not getting a vibe that I had offended, or I would have straight out told him “sorry dude.”  I was just making a joke, making fun of people that have these stereotypes.   I’m sorry that this got misconstrued, or overheard by folks who did not understand the context of our conversation, or the fact that I am sometimes, indeed, a little ‘stupid.’

Brit mag NME.com is reporting that guitarist Joe Satriani’s lawsuit against COLDPLAY, based on his accusation that Chris Marin and co plagiarized his 2004 song “If I Could Fly” for their 2008 single “Viva La Vida”, has been dismissed from court.

Satriani sued the band last December, seeking a jury trial to award him monetary compensation. An out of court settlement has likely been agreed upon.