Rock
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After four decades of debauchery, Mötley Crüe guitarist Mick Mars is retiring from the band.
“While change is never easy, we accept Mick’s decision to retire from the band due to the challenges with his health. We have watched Mick manage his Ankylosing Spondylitis for decades and he has always managed it with utmost courage and grace,” Vince Neil, Tommy Lee and Nikki Sixx said in a joint statement shared with Billboard on Thursday (Oct. 27).
“To say ‘enough is enough’ is the ultimate act of courage. Mick’s sound helped define Mötley Crüe from the minute he plugged in his guitar at our very first rehearsal together,” they continued. “The rest, as they say, is history. We’ll continue to honor his musical legacy.”
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The band noted that per Mars’ wish, Mötley Crüe will continue on with its planned 2023 world tour, and revealed who would be filling in as guitarist. “No doubt will it take an absolutely outstanding musician to fill Mick’s shoes so we are grateful that our good friend John 5 has agreed to come on board and join us moving forward. We’ll see all you Crüeheads out on the road!”
The 71-year-old rocker had said he will continue to be a member of the group, but cannot go on the road anymore due to a lifelong battle with a painful degenerative spinal condition.
The news of his retirement was first reported by Variety on Wednesday (Oct. 26), which quoted a statement from an unnamed Crüe representative. “Mick Mars, co-founder and lead guitarist of the heavy metal band Mötley Crüe for the past 41 years, has announced today that due to his ongoing painful struggle with Ankylosing Spondylitis (A.S.), he will no longer be able to tour with the band,” the rep explained. “Mick will continue as a member of the band, but can no longer handle the rigors of the road. A.S. is an extremely painful and crippling degenerative disease, which affects the spine.”
The news of his retirement comes just a few days after the metal legends announced the latest leg of their co-headlining tour with Def Leppard, which will run through Latin America and Europe from February to July of 2023.
After announcing a farewell tour in 2014 — which included the band signing a binding pledge that they would not hit the road again — the Crüe hit the road again for a massive stadium tour this summer. That outing with Leppard, Joan Jett and Poison sold 1.3 million tickets and earned $173.5 million after being delayed several times due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The next tour kicks off on Feb. 18 with a show in Mexico City, and is slated to run through a July 16 gig in Glasgow, Scotland.
Mars (born Robert Deal), described his painful struggles with A.S. in the band’s 2001 biography, The Dirt, writing, “My hips started hurting so bad every time I turned my body that it felt like someone was igniting fireworks in my bones. I didn’t have enough money to see a doctor, so I just kept hoping that I could do what I usually do: will it away, through the power of my mind. But it kept getting worse.”
The guitarist wrote of having trouble breathing and intense stomach pain that made it feel like “my whole body was about to fall apart.”
Beach Weather‘s “Sex, Drugs, Etc.” was originally released in 2016, and now it’s No. 1 on Billboard‘s Alternative Airplay chart dated Oct. 29, 2022.
The track scored TikTok virality beginning earlier this year, leading to its servicing to radio and eventual chart run.
“Sex” is Beach Weather’s first Alternative Airplay No. 1, in the Massachusetts band’s first trip to the chart. The act is the second to rule with an initial entry in 2022, following BoyWithUke, whose “Toxic” led for a week in July. Like “Sex,” “Toxic” also went viral on TikTok.
“We never thought ‘Sex, Drugs, Etc.’ would be the song people gravitate to,” Beach Weather frontman Nick Santino, from Braintree, Mass., said in a release. “I can relate to the meaning of it personally. It’s about having anxiety. I don’t really go out. I’m not a big party guy. I’m the opposite; I’m a homebody. It’s amazing to see a lot of listeners identify with it.”
Concurrently, “Sex” bullets at its No. 6 high on the all-rock-format, audience-based Rock & Alternative Airplay chart with 3 million audience impressions, up 6%, according to Luminate.
While it initially appeared on Alternative Airplay in August, “Sex” debuted on the multi-metric Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart in July at No. 43; it’s since risen to No. 17, where it spends a second frame on the latest list. In addition to its radio airplay, the song drew 3.8 million official U.S. streams in the Oct. 14-20 tracking week, up 2%. The song also ranks at its highs of No. 12 on Hot Alternative Songs and at No. 15 on Hot Rock Songs.
“Sex” was first released on Beach Weather’s 2016 six-song collection Chit Chat. The band had not since released new material until this August, when it premiered the song “Unlovable.”
Kelly Clarkson, she’s like most of us. Well, in that she can’t get enough of Jimmy Eat World‘s signature 2001 hit “The Middle.” Which is why it made sense that the daytime talk show host and pop idol took a power pop swing at the oft-covered song on Thursday’s Kelly Clarkson Show during her “Kellyoke” segment.
Clarkson and her house band nailed the song’s chugging urgency, with the singer yelping the “everything will be alright” refrain before a brief, fleet-fingered guitar solo in an arrangement that layered in some tasty Hammond organ and punchy drums.
The beloved song from the Mesa, Arizona emo pop band’s Bleed American album was originally released in Oct. 2001 and hit its chart peak a few months later when it climbed to No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100. Not for nothing, but when Clarkson released her 2015 single, “Heartbeat Song” critics couldn’t help point out that eerie similarity between the two song’s verses and choruses, so Kelly covering the track for “Kellyoke” makes good sense.
“The Middle” has long been a favorite go-to cover, including in an apocryphal story about Prince covering it at the 2009 Oscar after-party, footage of which resurfaced this summer to the band’s utter delight. It also got covered by Taylor Swift in a 2016 Apple ad. “Hearing that Prince had covered it at whatever Grammy afterparty he did or Taylor Swift hand-picking it to use for an Apple commercial? It’s like what?! What is that? I don’t know. I still freak out anytime I hear ‘The Middle’ or anything we’ve done, like, on the radio,” singer Jim Adkins told AZ Central earlier this year.
Check out Clarkson’s cover below.
Organizers for the Innings Festival announced the lineup for the fifth annual edition of the Tempe, Ariz.-based fest on Wednesday (Oct. 26), with Green Day and Eddie Vedder headlining.
The two-day festival will take place Feb. 25 and 26, 2023, at Tempe Beach and Tempe Arts Park. Other acts confirmed over the two dates include Weezer, The Black Crowes, The Offspring and The Pretty Reckless on Saturday and Marcus Mumford, The Revivalists, Mt. Joy and The Head and the Heart on Sunday.
Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness, The Glorious Sons, Paris Jackson, Annie DiRusso, Umphrey’s McGee, Magic City Hippies, Heartless Bastards and Hazel English will round out the 18 bands and artists participating in the baseball-themed festival. Additionally, Jake Peavy will host an “All-Star Baseball Jam” and Off the Mound featuring Ryan Dempster will will host an on-site talk show during the event. Numerous Major League Baseball stars will make appearances over the weekend like Randy Johnson, Dontrelle Willis, Grady Sizemore, Kevin Mitchell, Vince Coleman, Bret Boone, Vinny Castilla, Matt Williams, Edgar Martinez, Mike Cameron and more.
General admission, GA+, Platinum and VIP tickets for one or two days will go on sale Thursday (Oct. 27) at 10 a.m. PT on the festival’s official website. Hopeful attendees can also sign up for the official Innings Festival email list or SMS text alerts to get updates on the event.
Next year, Green Day is also confirmed to headline the second-ever When We Were Young Festival in Las Vegas alongside the newly reunited Blink-182. Vedder recently covered The Beatles’ cheeky cut “Her Majesty” with his Pearl Jam bandmates to honor the passing of Queen Elizabeth II.
Check out the lineup announcement for Innings Festival 2023 below.
After just its first week-and-a-half of availability, Blink-182‘s “Edging” is No. 1 on Billboard‘s Rock & Alternative Airplay chart.
The song tops the Oct. 29-dated ranking with 5.7 million audience impressions in the Oct. 17-23 tracking week, according to Luminate. It debuted at No. 2 the week before with 3.9 million in audience, tallied from its release Oct. 14 through Oct. 16.
It’s the trio’s first No. 1 on the chart, which began in 2009. Its previous best, “Bored to Death,” peaked at No. 2 in 2016.
With a two-week chart trip to No. 1, “Edging” is one of just 10 songs to crown the list in two frames or fewer. It’s the second song to complete such a sprint in 2022, following Red Hot Chili Peppers‘ “Black Summer,” which also took just two weeks in February.
“Edging” is currently a standalone single and Blink-182’s first release with Tom DeLonge on vocals and guitars since he departed the band in the mid-2010s. Alkaline Trio‘s Matt Skiba filled in on guitar and vocals for the group’s two most recent albums, 2016’s California and 2019’s Nine; the former spent a week at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart, while the latter debuted and peaked at No. 3.
Concurrently, “Edging” soars 12-2 on Alternative Airplay, Blink-182’s best rank since “She’s Out of Her Mind” peaked at No. 2 in 2017. The band boasts three No. 1s on the chart: “All the Small Things” in 1999, “I Miss You” in 2004 and “Bored” in 2016. The group first reached the chart in 1997 with “Dammit,” which hit No. 11 the next year.
“Edging” also jumps 33-22 on Mainstream Rock Airplay.
Following its first week of streams and sales, “Edging” opens at Nos. 4, 6 and 7 on the streaming-, airplay- and sales-based Hot Alternative Songs, Hot Rock Songs and Hot Rock & Alternative Songs charts, respectively. In addition to its radio airplay, which totaled 7.5 million impressions across all formats Oct. 14-20, the song drew 6.1 million official U.S. streams and sold 9,000 downloads in its first seven days.
The song also enters the all-genre Billboard Hot 100 at No. 61, becoming Blink-182’s highest ranking song since “I Miss You” peaked at No. 42 in 2004.
Consumption of the rest of Blink-182’s catalog, which includes eight studio albums beginning with 1995’s Cheshire Cat, also rose Oct. 14-20, sparked by the new single as well as the announcement of the band’s new tour, its first since DeLonge rejoined the band. In that span, Blink-182’s music received 30.2 million official on-demand U.S. streams, up 57% over Oct. 7-13. Excluding “Edging,” the numbers remain striking: 24.1 million streams, a 25% vault.
Even more substantial: the band’s three-week gains, from Sept. 30 through Oct. 20, encompassing the DeLonge reunion announcement Oct. 11 and the release of “Edging” Oct. 14:
Blink-182 Official On-Demand U.S. Streams
Sept. 30-Oct. 6: 11.9 millionOct. 7-13: 19.2 million, up 62%Oct. 14-20: 30.2 million, up 57% (24.1 million, up 25%, without “Edging,” released Oct. 14)
The band’s catalog surged 154% Oct. 14-20 as compared to Sept. 30-Oct. 6, or 103% when removing “Edging.”
Additionally, “All the Small Things” re-enters the Oct. 29 Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart (where older titles are eligible to appear if in the top half and with a meaningful reason for their returns). The song, which topped Alternative Airplay for eight weeks and hit No. 6 on the Hot 100 in 1999-2000, ranks at No. 22 on Hot Rock & Alternative Songs with 3.1 million streams, up 16%.
Other Blink-182 classics with sizable streaming gains Oct. 14-20 include “I Miss You” (2.5 million, up 14%), “What’s My Age Again?” (2.3 million, up 23%) and “First Date” (1.5 million, up 35%).
“Edging” additionally bounds in atop Rock Digital Song Sales and Alternative Digital Song Sales with its 9,000-download count, Blink-182’s first No. 1 on both charts. It’s also Nos. 7 and 8, respectively, on Rock Streaming Songs and Alternative Streaming Songs.
On the Top Rock & Alternative Albums chart, the band’s 2005’s Greatest Hits collection pushes 23-13 with 12,000 equivalent album units earned, up 26%. The set also returns to the all-genre Billboard 200‘s top half, jumping 117-64, its first time in that region since February 2006.
Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Return of the Dream Canteen debuts atop multiple Billboard album charts (dated Oct. 29). The set, which is the band’s second studio effort of 2022, bows at No. 1 on Top Album Sales, Top Rock & Alternative Albums, Top Rock Albums, Top Alternative Albums, Top Current Album Sales, Tastemaker Albums and Vinyl Albums. The set sold 56,000 copies in the U.S. in the week ending Oct. 20, according to Luminate.
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Notably, on the Top Album Sales chart, the Peppers have scored a pair of No. 1s in 2022 (Unlimited Love and Return of the Dream Canteen) – making it the first group with two No. 1 rock albums on the chart in less than 12 months since 2005. That year, System of a Down doubled-up at No. 1 with Mezmerize and Hypnotize. (The Peppers have logged their two 2022 No. 1s six months and two weeks apart; System of a Down notched theirs in 2005 six months and a week apart.)
In total, the Peppers have logged four No. 1s on Top Album Sales: Canteen, Unlimited Love, The Getaway (2016) and Stadium Arcadium (2006).
Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart ranks the top-selling albums of the week based only on traditional album sales. The chart’s history dates back to May 25, 1991, the first week Billboard began tabulating charts with electronically monitored piece count information from SoundScan, now Luminate. Pure album sales were the sole measurement utilized by the Billboard 200 albums chart through the list dated Dec. 6, 2014, after which that chart switched to a methodology that blends album sales with track equivalent album units and streaming equivalent album units. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both Twitter and Instagram.
Top Rock & Alternative Albums, Top Rock Albums and Top Alternative Albums rank the week’s most popular rock and alternative albums, rock albums and alternative albums, respectively, by equivalent album units. Top Current Album Sales lists the week’s best-selling current (not catalog, or older albums) albums by traditional album sales. Tastemaker Albums ranks the week’s best-selling albums at independent and small chain record stores. Vinyl Albums tallies the top-selling vinyl albums of the week.
Of Return of the Dream Canteen’s 56,000 copies sold, vinyl sales comprise 26,500 – 48% of its first-week. CD sales comprise 21,500 – 38% of its debut frame. The album’s robust vinyl sum was driven by over 10 available variants, including exclusive versions for Target, independent record stores and the Peppers’ webstore.
The album was led by the single “Tippa My Tongue,” which hit No. 1 on both the Rock & Alternative Airplay and Alternative Airplay charts. On the latter, it’s the 15th No. 1 for the group, extending its record for the most No. 1s in the chart’s history.
Stray Kids’ MAXIDENT falls to No. 2 in its second week on Top Album Sales, with 25,000 sold (down 78%). The 1975 collect its fourth top 10-charting effort on the list with Being Funny in a Foreign Language, as the band’s new studio set bows at No. 3 with 20,000 sold.
Backstreet Boys’ first holiday album, A Very Backstreet Christmas, launches at No. 4 on Top Album Sales with nearly 20,000 sold. It’s the 11th consecutive top 10 for the group – the entirety of their charting releases. It also opens at No. 1 the Top Holiday Albums chart, which ranks the week’s most popular holiday albums by equivalent album units.
Alter Bridge debuts at No. 5 with Pawns & Kings (14,000 sold) – giving the rock act its fourth top 10. NCT 127’s 2 Baddies falls 4-6 with 7,000 (down 40%), Beyoncé’s former leader Renaissance tumbles 2-7 with nearly 7,000 (down 86%) and Harry Styles’ chart-topping Harry’s House rises 13-8 with 6,500 (down 2%).
Rounding out the top 10 is the debut of Lil Baby’s It’s Only Me (No. 9; a little over 6,000) and TWICE’s former No. 1 Between 1&2: 11th Mini Album (11-10, 6,000; down 16%).
In the week ending Oct. 20, there were 1.680 million albums sold in the U.S. (down 11.4% compared to the previous week). Of that sum, physical albums (CDs, vinyl LPs, cassettes, etc.) comprised 1.32 million (down 13.7%) and digital albums comprised 360,000 (down 1.8%).
There were 644,000 CD albums sold in the week ending Oct. 13 (down 9.9% week-over-week) and 666,000 vinyl albums sold (down 17.1%). Year-to-date CD album sales stand at 27.402 million (down 7.8% compared to the same time frame a year ago) and year-to-date vinyl album sales total 30.698 million (up 2%).
Overall year-to-date album sales total 74.832 million (down 7.6% compared to the same year-to-date time frame a year ago). Year-to-date physical album sales stand at 58.523 million (down 2.8%) and digital album sales total 16.309 million (down 21.6%).
Avril Lavigne is out, Death Cab is in. Organizers of Las Vegas’ When We Were Young festival announced on Tuesday (Oct. 25) that the third day of the all-star event on Saturday (Oct. 29) has lost the “Sk8er Boi” singer due to “unforeseen circumstances” and gained Death Cab For Cutie in her stead.
“We are excited to share that Death Cab for Cutie and Underoath have been added to Sat’s lineup,” organizers tweeted. “We had the best time on Sun with @AvrilLavigne. Due to unforeseen circumstances, she is unable to join us on Oct. 29th at WWWY. We will miss you Avril!”
Saturday’s show is technically the second day of WWWY, since organizers were forced to cancel last weekend’s opening day (Oct. 22) due to concerns over high winds. The nostalgic pop-punk fest at the Las Vegas Festival Grounds was scheduled to feature a massive lineup that included Paramore, My Chemical Romance, Taking Back Sunday, Lavigne, AFI and Jimmy Eat World.
Following strong ticket sales for the Oct. 22 edition, promoter Live Nation added dates with the same lineup on Sunday (Oct. 23) and this Saturday. Lavigne’s Sunday set was one of the highlights of WWWY, with the singer joined by All Time Low singer/guitarist Alex Gaskarth and lead guitarist Jack Barakat on a cover of Blink-182’s “All the Small Things.”
Green Day and Blink have already been announced as headliners for the Oct. 21, 2023 edition of WWWY, alongside 30 Seconds to Mars, Good Charlotte, The Offspring, All Time Low, Something Corporate, Yellowcard, Sum 41, Simple Plan, Pierce the Veil, Thrice, Plain White Tees, The Veronicas, The Ataris and more.
See the revamped lineup for Saturday’s show below.
Set Times for this Saturday!We are excited to share that Death Cab For Cutie and Underoath have been added to Sat’s lineup.LFGWe had the best time on Sun with @AvrilLavigne. Due to unforeseen circumstances, she is unable to join us on Oct 29th of WWWY. We will miss you Avril! pic.twitter.com/UR6q9pfQEb— When We Were Young (@WWWYFest) October 25, 2022
Jane’s Addiction has canceled five shows of their tour opening for Smashing Pumpkins after vocalist Perry Farrell suffered an injury after their New York City performance.
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The band took to Instagram on Monday (Oct. 24) to share a statement from Farrell, which read, “Friends and lovers, the tour so far has been an absolute blast. Filled with so much joy, and rock vibes. I’ve loved seeing all your faces, hearing you sing with us and feeling the love and energy from each and every one of you.”
He went on to give an “update” after reading some comments, writing, “After Madison Square Garden on Wednesday, I suffered an injury that resulted in my inability to perform. I have since been in pain and discomfort and have been receiving rigorous physio therapy that has done wonders.”
Farrell shared that “due to doctors orders,” the band is canceling the shows in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Toronto, Montreal and Quebec City.
Instead, Our Lady Peace will be taking the band’s place, before they hopefully return to the stage in Cleveland on Saturday (Oct. 29). “I am filled with sadness and frustration to have to announce this, but I have to mend in order to continue the tour and get back on stage,” the statement concluded.
Smashing Pumpkins and Jane’s Addiction announced their 32-date “Spirits on Fire” tour back in May. The tour stretches throughout the month before winding down with a show at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles on Nov. 19.
See Farrell’s statement below.
Organizers of Las Vegas’ When We Were Young canceled the music festival’s opening day on Saturday (Oct. 22) due to concerns over high winds.
“When We Were Young Festival organizers have spend the last several days proactively preparing the festival grounds for a windy Saturday,” organizers wrote on the fest’s website and social media pages Saturday.
“The National Weather Service has not upgraded their Saturday forecast to a High Wind Warning, including dangerous 30-40 mph sustained winds with potential 60 mph gusts. Under advisement of the National Weather Service and the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, we have no other choice than to cancel today’s When We Were Young Festival. The safety of our fans, artists and staff will always be priority.”
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The nostalgic pop-punk fest at the Las Vegas Festival Grounds was scheduled to feature a massive lineup that included Paramore, My Chemical Romance, Taking Back Sunday, Avril Lavigne, AFI and Jimmy Eat World.
Following strong ticket sales for the Oct. 22 edition, promoter Live Nation added dates with the same lineup on Sunday, Oct. 23 and Saturday, Oct. 29. Organizers noted that “Sunday’s weather looks sunny without any wind advisories.”
Organizers went on to explain that Saturday’s cancellation “was not a decision that came lightly. We know many of you traveled to the area to have a spectacular day with your favorite bands and have been looking forward to this day for months. We were equally as excited and are devastated to have to share this news.”
Those who purchased tickets to Saturday’s festival will receive a refund within 30 days, according to organizers.
Earlier this month, When We Were Young announced the date and lineup of its sophomore edition on Oct. 21, 2023, which features headliners Blink-182 and Green Day. Other acts on next year’s bill include 30 Seconds to Mars, Good Charlotte, The Offspring, All Time Low, Something Corporate, Yellowcard, Sum 41, Simple Plan, Pierce the Veil, Thrice, Plain White Tees, The Veronicas, The Ataris, Bowling for Soup and Newfound Glory.
See When We Were Young’s statement on Twitter below.
Glass Animals set a new record on the Billboard Hot 100 this week thanks to their smash single “Heat Waves,” and lead singer Dave Bayley gave Billboard his exclusive reaction via social media.
“I just found out some amazing news, that ‘Heat Waves’ has broken the record for the longest-running Hot 100 single of all time, and I’m a little bit speechless,” the frontman said in a video posted to Billboard‘s Instagram. “But I wanted to make a little video just to say thank you so, so much for making that happen.
“I think a lot of you probably know that when I wrote this song, I was writing about someone who I loved very much and miss very much, and it’s particularly beautiful for that reason.” he continued. “To see the song spread so much love and connection around the world, and you all made that happen. So thank you. And thank you to everyone who’s helped the song reach so many people. It really has meant so much over the last couple of years, I can’t even begin to explain it.”
Before signing off with “lots of love, bye-bye for now,” Bayley also teased that he’s just about ready to start working on new music to finally follow the band’s 2020 album Dreamland.
With its historic chart accomplishment at 91 weeks and counting, “Heat Waves” surpassed The Weeknd’s “Blinding Lights,” which had previously spent 90 weeks on the Hot 100. Other long-running singles have included Imagine Dragons’ “Radioactive” (87 weeks), AWOLNATION’s “Sail” (79 weeks), Dua Lipa’s “Levitating” (77 weeks) and more.
Watch Bayley express his disbelief and gratitude at the continuing success of “Heat Waves” below.