HEAVY METAL BIRTHDAYS ON THIS DAY!

Happy Tuesday Metalheads! Hope you’re having a great week. Today’s post is a little different since a few metallers are celebrating birthdays today. Check out the list below:

CHUCK BILLY

The Testament and Dublin Death Patrol vocalist celebrates his 58th birthday today, June 23rd. Chuck, who replaced Steve ‘Zetro’ Souza in Testament in 1986, has been an integral part of what makes them one of the greatest bands to come out of the Bay Area. Chuck, who was diagnosed with cancer in 2001 and underwent chemotherapy treatments has since been given a clean bill of health.  The band are currently working on their next album and are scheduled to tour in 2020.

TESTAMENT – NATIVE BLOOD

LIZZY BORDEN

The Me Against The World singer also celebrates his 60th birthday today. Lizzy, (born Gregory Harges) who named the band after the axe murderess Lizzie Borden has been the frontman since 1983. He was also the vocalist for a side project called Starwood and got his start singing for a band called Diamond Dogs, prior to forming Lizzy Borden. The band went on tour with their “30 years of American Metal” show across the country in 2013 and released their first album in 11 years called “My Midnight Things” last June.

LIZZIE BORDEN – UNDER YOUR SKIN

GLENN DANZIG

Glenn Danzig who founded the Misfits, Samhain and Danzig turns 65 today as well. Glenn born in New Jersey is also an avid fan of horror, gore and the occult and founded an adult oriented comic book company called Verotik. Glenn has often been compared to Jim Morrison and Elvis Presley as far as his vocal style goes but has also written songs for Johnny Cash and Roy Orbison. Danzig released their eleventh studio album “Black Laden Crown in 2017.

DANZIG – HER BLACK WINGS

CHRIS HOLMES

The former W.A.S.P. guitarist turns 62 today. Chris, who was the lead guitar player in W.A.S.P., left the band in 1990  but rejoined in 1996 staying until 2001. He released his solo album, Nothing To Lose, in 2012 in which he teamed up with Phil “Philthy Animal” Taylor from Motorhead. His second album, Shitting Bricks was released in 2015 and he has a new album “Under The Influence” coming out at the end of the year.

CHRIS HOLMES  – BORN WORK DIE

W.A.S.P. – WILD CHILD

Happy Birthday boys!!

METAL WIRE PODCAST #7 – WE’RE BACK!

Happy Saturday Metalheads! We’ve been gone for a little bit but WE’RE BACK! Check out the latest Metal Wire Podcast streaming NOW!!

Thanks for all your support and I look forward to your comments, suggestions and as always, Keep it Hard, Keep it Heavy and Keep it METAL!!

VERY SPECIAL THANKS: A huge THANK YOU to a very talented artist and special friend Jerry Gonzalez for all your help and hard work on this podcast. You can check out his work at: jerrygonzalezart.com

Very special thanks to Dan Lorenzo and Vessel of Light for the use of the track “Rush of Blood” from their new album “Thy Serpent Rise” for the podcast!

CHECK OUT PODCAST #7 BELOW:

METAL WIRE PODCAST #7 – WE’RE BACK!

Happy Saturday Metalheads! We’ve been gone for a little bit but WE’RE BACK! Check out the latest Metal Wire Podcast streaming NOW!!

Thanks for all your support and I look forward to your comments, suggestions and as always, Keep it Hard, Keep it Heavy and Keep it METAL!!

VERY SPECIAL THANKS: A huge THANK YOU to a very talented artist and special friend Jerry Gonzalez for all your help and hard work on this podcast. You can check out his work at: jerrygonzalezart.com

Very special thanks to Dan Lorenzo and Vessel of Light for the use of the track “Rush of Blood” from their new album “Thy Serpent Rise” for the podcast!

CHECK OUT PODCAST #7 BELOW:

WHO’S YOUR FAVORITE DRUMMER?

Hey Metalheads! Hope you’re having a great week so far. This month I want to hear from you guys on your favorite drummer. Each week I’ll choose two classic drummers and please let me know in the comments below which one is your favorite.

Thanks to everyone who voted on their favorite drummer last week. Last week it was Nicko McBrain vs. Mikkey Dee. A tough choice but my choice:

MIKKEY DEE

Here are this week’s choices:

TOMMY LEE

VS.

STEVEN ADLER

I look forward to reading your responses and let me know in the comments below who your favorite is and which lineup you like best. Also, don’t forget to visit us The Metal Wire on Facebook and on Instagram (the_metal_wire). Have a METAL week! Horns up!

WHO’S YOUR FAVORITE DRUMMER?

Hey Metalheads! Happy New Year! Hope you’re having a great New Year so far. This month I want to hear from you guys on your favorite drummer. Each week I’ll choose two classic drummers and please let me know in the comments below which one is your favorite.

Thanks to everyone who voted on their favorite vocalist last month. Last week it was Alice Cooper vs. Glenn Danzig. My choice:

ALICE COOPER

Here are this week’s choices:

NICKO McBRAIN

VS.

MIKKEY DEE

I look forward to reading your responses and let me know in the comments below who your favorite is and which lineup you like best. Also, don’t forget to visit us The Metal Wire on Facebook and on Instagram (the_metal_wire). Have a METAL week! Horns up!

HEAVY METAL BIRTHDAYS – METAL REWIND

Happy Friday Metalheads! Hope it’s been a great week. It’s finally Friday and time to kick back and relax. Today’s post is a little different than our normal Metal Rewind. There are a few metallers celebrating birthdays this weekend. Check out the list below:

CHUCK BILLY

The Testament and Dublin Death Patrol vocalist celebrates his 57th birthday this coming Sunday, June 23rd. Chuck, who replaced Steve ‘Zetro’ Souza in Testament in 1986, has been an integral part of what makes them one of the greatest bands to come out of the Bay Area. Chuck, who was diagnosed with cancer in 2001 and underwent chemotherapy treatments has since been given a clean bill of health.  The band are currently working on their next album and are scheduled to tour in 2020.

TESTAMENT – NATIVE BLOOD

LIZZY BORDEN

The Me Against The World singer also celebrates his 56th birthday on Sunday. Lizzy, (born Gregory Harges) who named the band after the axe murderess Lizzie Borden has been the frontman since 1983. He was also the vocalist for a side project called Starwood and got his start singing for a band called Diamond Dogs, prior to forming Lizzy Borden. The band went on tour with their “30 years of American Metal” show across the country in 2013 and released their first album in 11 years called “My Midnight Things” last June.

LIZZIE BORDEN – UNDER YOUR SKIN

GLENN DANZIG

Glenn Danzig who founded the Misfits, Samhain and Danzig turns 64 on Sunday as well. Glenn born in New Jersey is also an avid fan of horror, gore and the occult  and founded an adult oriented comic book company called Verotik. Glenn has often been compared to Jim Morrison and Elvis Presley as far as his vocal style goes but has also written songs for Johnny Cash and Roy Orbison. Danzig released their eleventh studio album “Black Laden Crown in 2017.

DANZIG – HER BLACK WINGS

CHRIS HOLMES

The former W.A.S.P. guitarist turns 61 on Sunday also. Chris, who was the lead guitar player in W.A.S.P., left the band in 1990  but rejoined in 1996 staying until 2001. He released his solo album, Nothing To Lose, in 2012 in which he teamed up with Phil “Philthy Animal” Taylor from Motorhead. His second album, Shitting Bricks was released in 2015 and he has a new album “Under The Influence” coming out at the end of the year.

CHRIS HOLMES  – BORN WORK DIE

W.A.S.P. – WILD CHILD

Happy Birthday boys!!

MY TOP 5 METAL BANDS COUNTDOWN

Often friends and I will have discussions about which bands we consider to be our all time favorite metal bands.  While many of the choices are similar, there are some differences in who are in the Top 5. This led me to think about who my Top 5 are. While there are so many bands I love,  these are the ones I never have to put down or get tired of listening to. I’ll start with my #5 all time favorite band and countdown each Wednesday to #1.

OVERKILL

Left to Right: Rat Skates, D.D. Verni, Bobby “Blitz” Ellsworth and Bobby Gustafson

Photo Courtesy of Wikipedia

Formed in 1980 in New Jersey, Overkill, who are often called “The Motorhead” of thrash metal, have released 18 studio albums to date and will be touring in 2019 to support their upcoming album which they are currently in the process of recording. Overkill has gone through many different lineup changes throughout their career and singer Bobby “Blitz” Ellsworth suffered some health challenges over the years including having a heart attack and surgery for an aggressive nose cancer which he successfully recovered from.

The band who got their name from the title of Motorhead’s second album, are known for their fast and heavy style and and often cited as one of the most important thrash metal bands from the East Coast. Currently “Blitz” and bassist D.D. Verni are the only two remaining original members of the band and Overkill is rounded out by guitarists Dave Linsk and Derek Tailer, as well as drummer Jason Bittner.

I was lucky enough to meet Bobby “Blitz” back in 2003 at the now defunct L’amour’s Brooklyn, NY.  I was a bit nervous at the time because I was meeting someone who I had admired for so long. A friend brought me over and introduced him to me and Bobby made me feel totally comfortable…just look at the cheesy smile on my face:

The video below for “Hello From The Gutter” is from their 1988 album “Under The Influence.” The song was inspired by the Son of Sam Killer, David Berkowitz, who killed several young couples, mostly women in New York City during the summer of 1977. Berkowitz was rumored to have written a letter to New York Daily News reporter, Jimmy Breslin, which said: “Hello from the gutters of N.Y.C., which are filled with dog manure, vomit, stale wine, urine, and blood.” Overkill who had spent lots of time in NYC, had remembered the story and all the media coverage at the time. The song  is one of many classic songs by the band.

Welcome to the gutter – we’ve been expecting you!

Don’t forget to stop by for Friday’s Metal Rewind and I’ll reveal my #4 favorite next Wednesday!! Keep it METAL!!!