Dimebag Taught Phil Anselmo A Valuable Lesson

The 10th anniversary of Darrell Abbott's murder is marked by the latest edition of Metal Hammer, on sale today. It includes an in-depth feature on Dimebag and his legacy. TeamRock Radio last night broadcast a documentary marking the anniversary - it's available on demand now.

Anselmo says: "I learned a lot of lessons from Dimebag. There was a time when I was going through a very tough period when it felt like my body was betraying me, and some days I would just have a sh*tty attitude and that would be my f***ing mood for the day.

"Both Dimebag and our security guy, Big Val, came in one day and said, 'You know, Phil, when you roll off that bus, you set the tone for the day with your actions.'

"From that I took a positive from it, and no matter how I'm f***ing feeling these days, I make sure I poke my head in and say hello to the opening band, I say hello to the road crew, really just sort of to show a kinder side to myself. Dimebag taught me that making things easier for everyone around me is imperative.

"When it came to Pantera, he was very particular, and when it came to pushing anyone, whether it be me, Rex or anyone, he could push you, but he was also a great motivator. And he was always working towards the best for whatever particular song we were working on. He'd get the best out of everybody." Read more here.

Chris Slade Recalls Painful Exit From AC/DC

The Welshman's five-year run with the Aussie giants ended with a phone call in 1994, which he recently admitted he'd have dealt with differently if he had his time over again.

Now Slade tells Talk Is Jericho: "I was absolutely gutted - in fact, I didn't touch a drumstick for three years. It was a real kick in the balls. I've bent over backwards here; I've done a great job, in my opinion and in many others' opinions. Then you get stuffed. I'd had it. I went to art college for three years."

He first began questioning his position during the last live show he played with AC/DC. He was performing in New Zealand when ex-drummer Phil Rudd appeared at the side of the stage.

Slade recalls: "My brain went, 'Here we go - maybe, here we go.' Phil doesn't talk that much and he was freely talking that day."

But when the band started working on demos for what would be their 1995 Ballbreaker album, they accepted Slade's offer to work with them in the studio. Read more here.

Gov't Mule Release Cover Of Pink Floyd Classic

It's the first of a run of archive titles that leader Warren Haynes hopes will present the chance to re-evaluate his band's work. He says: "Each song on our 2013 album Shout! has its own personality - it sounds like Gov't Mule but doesn't sound like anything we'd ever done.

"These archive releases further that concept. They allow us to highlight some of our influences as well as how far we've come since the first album." Check out the song and read more here.

Halestorm Went Back To Basics For New Album

Hale tells Box Of Rock: "We haven't recorded like this since we were teenagers. We were, all four of us, in the same room and recorded all the basic tracks live to tape.

"And then all the vocal performances are live too - beginning to end; nothing was cut up. And it was really cool. It also was very hard to do. But to get everything to ride on that same wave, we made some magic happen, so I'm so stoked." Read more here.

Tom DeLonge Says Poet Is A Wishful Version Of Himself

The character of Poet Anderson, says DeLonge, is very personal to him. He tells KROQ: "There's quite a lot in that character. You know, he's got the long bangs that I used to run many years ago. He's got the tight pants and he's kinda got this sense of wonder about him. I think in many ways he's the character who I wish I really was in totality, in a different life. He's got a lot of me in him."

DeLonge says the album has more angst than their previous four efforts - something he puts down to drummer Ilan Rubin's obsessive work ethic, which is especially evident on recent single The Wolfpack. Read more here.

The Black Keys Preview Austin City Limits Special

Recorded on November 17, The Black Keys will be joined on the January 31 episode by J. Roddy Walston & The Business. The winter broadcasts begin January 3 with The Avett Brothers and Nickel Creek, while Foo Fighters, Sam Smith and Ryan Adams are just some of the acts confirmed as part of the winter lineup.

The Black Keys are currently playing dates across North America in support of their latest album, "Turn Blue." The group were recently nominated for three 2015 Grammy Awards, including nods in the "Best Rock Album", "Best Rock Song" ("Fever") and "Best Rock Performance" ("Fever") categories. Watch the Austin City Limits preview here.

Did Apple Kill the iPod Classic Prematurely?

But the company may have jumped the gun by pulling the plug, as it were, on the device that arguably both changed the music industry and saved Apple.

Since vanishing from Apple's online store earlier this year, fans have been scrambling to purchase the last few touch-screen-less iPods on the market. With most of them having sold out from retail outlets, many are taking to eBay and Amazon to buy secondhand (but unopened) iPod Classics for well over their list price.

But why are people so attached to a device that Apple itself has deemed no longer necessary? The 160 GB Classic can hold around 40,000 songs, far more than any iPod Touch can hold, and is probably more than most people actually need. With streaming services increasing in popularity, and the near ubiquity of the iPhone, the iPod may have lost its appeal to many. However, there are no subscription or data charges with an iPod classic, you can listen to it anywhere and many users prefer to have their music player separate from their phone (how old school!). Read more here.

Bigelf Stayed Relevant By Being Retro

Fox tells Metal Express Radio: "Miraculously, Bigelf after 15, 20 years of being a band is still pretty relevant. It's not something that people say is kind of dated. We came out in the 90s, so who knew that being retro was gonna actually save our ass.

"We took so much sh*t for being that way years ago and now it's all the f***ing rage. As far as aesthetic rock and roll, the 70s flair and the prog and the make-up and the whole thing - very few bands were doing that in the 90s." Read more here.

Why Metallica Star Turned To Fans To Fund Movie

Trujillo tells LA Weekly: "When you are trying to do it right, it's costly. I've been a part of this film for five years. I've spent a huge chunk of money. It's great because I feel it needs to be done, but I have responsibilities, too.

"People don't understand. I didn't write Enter Sandman. It's a little different for me." Jaco: The Movie is scheduled for a late 2015 release. It includes interviews with the bass icon's contemporaries, friends and family members. Read more here.

Share this article

...end