Nine Inch Nails Hesitation Marks
Hosted by Walt Flakus
Presented by Columbia Records & MX2 Media


Recorded in secret over the last year, the first new Nine Inch Nails music in five years has been unleashed to the masses. Trent Reznor teamed with producers Atticus Ross and Alan Moulder to create the band’s eighth studio album, Hesitation Marks. 

With guests including Pino Palladino, Lindsey Buckingham, and Adrian Belew, among others, Hesitation Marks has been met with positive critical acclaim.  Now your listeners can get a look behind the release featuring Reznor in conversation with Walt Flakus.

In conjunction with the release of Hesitation Marks, plans were also unveiled for Nine Inch Nails: Tension 2013 – a fall 2013 North American arena tour.  Reznor says, “Tension picks up where Lights in the Sky left off.  This is the full-on NIN live experience realized as we never could before.” The tour will launch on September 28 in St. Paul, MN and conclude on November 25 in Calgary, AB.

Please note:  Full versions of songs have been cut due to copyright restrictions.  The full interviews used in this program can be heard elsewhere.

Nine Inch Nails Hesitations Marks hosted by Walt Flakus

Cage The Elephant Melophobia 
Hosted by Jim McGuinn 
Presented by RCA Records & MX2 Media 
 
MELOPHOBIA: A fear of music. 
 
On Cage The Elephant’s third album, Melophobia, the rock band was faced with the challenge of finding cohesiveness in the ideas of five different people. After touring for nearly five years straight on their prior releases, 2008’s Cage The Elephant and 2011’s Thank You, Happy Birthday, the musicians took some time off the road, to write as individuals before getting back together in August of 2012 to begin work on Melophobia as a collective.   
 
When singer Matt Shultz, guitarist Brad Shultz, bassist Daniel Tichenor, guitarist Lincoln Parish, and drummer Jared Champion emerged from the recording sessions, the result was a varied collection of unabashedly vivid and notably thoughtful rock songs.  Melophobia is not so much about a fear of music but a fear of not pushing music to its potential.  
 
Hosted by Jim McGuinn, Cage The Elephant Melophobia features Matt Shultz and Lincoln Parish giving listeners an intimate take on the making of their new album.  

Please note: Full versions of songs have been cut due to copyright restrictions.

Cage The Elephant Melophobia hosted by Jim McGuinn

On October 8th, Alter Bridge returns with their fourth album, Fortress.  It has been three years since their last studio album, ABIII, spawned the #1 hit “Isolation,” and now Myles Kennedy, Mark Tremonti, Brian Marshall, and Scott Phillips have returned to reclaim their place as one of hard rock’s marquee bands.

Fortress builds upon the sound that Alter Bridge has been known for with their uncompromised vocal melodies, untouchable dueling guitar work and pounding rhythm section.  The album was produced by long-time Alter Bridge producer, Michael “Elvis” Baskette (Falling In Reverse, Story Of The Year, Incubus), and is full of unapologetic, searing hard rock that tracks that Alter Bridge has come to be synonymous with around the globe.  

Hosted by Terrie Carr, Alter Bridge Fortress is a radio special in which Myles Kennedy and Mark Tremonti give fans a preview of their new release. 

Please note: Full versions of songs have been cut due to copyright restrictions.

Alter Bridge Fortress hosted by Terrie Carr

Grammy Award-nominated, multi-platinum hard rock titans GODSMACK unleash their sixth full-length album, 1000hp, for Republic Records on August 5th.

Since forming in 1995, the quartet – SULLY ERNA [vocals, guitar], TONY ROMBOLA [guitar], ROBBIE MERRILL [bass], and SHANNON LARKIN [drums] – continue to tap into the unbreakable spirit and diehard work ethic evocative of their hometown. The band once again teamed up with Dave Fortman [Slipknot, Evanescence] to co-produce 1000hp. Together, they capture a booming intensity and raw energy that's equally anthemic and arena-ready.

For the inside scoop on 1000hp, MX2 Media enlisted Mistress Carrie to travel to the newly built Godsmack Headquarters just thirty minutes north of Boston. It’s an old warehouse the band converted into a fully loaded recording studio, and was the birthplace of the latest from Godsmack.  

Carrie sat down with Shannon and Sully in the control room of Godsmack HQ to talk 1000hp.  This is the full conversation and contains extended interview segments that did not appear in the program broadcast on radio stations worldwide.   

Buy 1000hp Now!

Godsmack 1000hp Preview Hosted by Mistress Carrie

There are only a select number of bands that have accomplished what Judas Priest has throughout their career. Forty years after their debut, 1974's Rocka Rolla, the band have unleashed more classic Judas Priest metal with the release of Redeemer Of Souls.

For the inside scoop on Redeemer Of Souls, MX2 Media enlisted Jim Florentine to sit down for a discussion with singer Rob Halford, and guitarists Glenn Tipton and Richie Faulkner.  Recorded at the Log Cabin at Manhattan Center, the discussion features the making of Redeemer Of Souls and the legacy of Judas Priest.  They also talk about Faulkner's studio debut with Priest as a co-writer of the songs along with Tipton and Halford.

This is the full interview between Jim and the guys in the band.  Portions of this interview were previously released on video at this link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cEs5rKV2ZZ0

Enjoy!
MX2 Media

Buy Redeemer Of Souls!

Judas Priest Talk Redeemer Of Souls with Jim Florentine(full interview)

SLASH 
World On Fire 
Radio program hosted by Carl Craft 
Presented by Dik Hayd/Caroline & MX2 Media 
 
WORLD ON FIRE is the new album from SLASH featuring Myles Kennedy & the Conspirators.  
 
Set for release on September 16, World On Fire features Slash, vocalist Myles Kennedy, bassist Todd Kerns and drummer Brent Fitz as they blaze through 17 songs.  It’s the follow-up to their 2012 debut, Apocalyptic Love, which debuted at #4 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart and produced Slash’s first- ever #1 U.S. Rock radio solo hits.  
 
For the inside scoop about World On Fire, MX2 Media enlisted Carl Craft to sit down with Slash and Myles Kennedy in Newark, NJ prior to one of their dates opening for Aerosmith.    

Slash World On Fire Radio Special

IN THIS MOMENT’s debut on Atlantic Records picks up where the group's 2012 breakthrough, Blood, left off; striking a delicate and dangerously seductive metallic bite on their aptly titled fifth full-length album, BLACK WIDOW.

This content features In This Moment’s MARIA BRINK & CHRIS HOWORTH in a conversation with comedian/actor DEAN DELRAY while featuring new songs from Black Widow. The discussion highlights the making of Black Widow and the driving force behind the powerful songwriting of Brink and Howorth. 


Buy Black Widow Now!

In This Moment Black Widow preview hosted by Dean Delray

Halestorm INTO THE WILD LIFE
Album Preview Hosted by Jim Florentine
Presented by Atlantic Records & MX2 Media

Halestorm unleash their third studio album, Into The Wild Life, on April 14th.  The band hunkered down to record the album in a Nashville church that was converted into a recording studio. For a preview of Into The Wild Life, Lzzy Hale, Arejay Hale, Joe Hottinger, and Josh Smith sat down for a conversation with comedian Jim Florentine.


Buy Into The Wild Life

Halestorm Into The Wild Life preview hosted by Jim Florentine

Mumford & Sons Wilder Mind Album Special 
Hosted by Rita Houston
Presented by Glassnote Records & MX2 Media

Gone are the band's signature banjo and kick drum, replaced by a new emphasis on percussion and focused guitarwork that references rock traditions of the 1970s and 1980s. Experiments in texture and dynamics in early writing sessions in London led the band to a more widescreen, panoramic approach. And yet the songcraft, lyrical depth, and emotional urgency are unmistakably Mumford & Sons. 

For a preview of Wilder Mind, Marcus Mumford and Ted Dwane joined WFUV’s Rita Houston in a conversation about its creation while featuring new songs from the album. 

Buy Wilder Mind Now!

Mumford & Sons Wilder Mind Preview with Rita Houston

After a nearly six year hiatus, Breaking Benjamin are back with their new album, Dark Before Dawn.  The band recently came to New York City where Jim Florentine had a chance to sit down with them to talk about the new record, which just made a debut at #1 on the Billboard Album Sales chart.  

Buy Dark Before Dawn

Breaking Benjamin Dark Before Dawn preview, hosted by Jim Florentine

SHINEDOWN - THREAT TO SURVIVAL
Track-by-track with Brent Smith
Hosted by Kevin Martin
Presented by Atlantic Records & MX2 Media

Multi-platinum certified rockers, Shinedown, return with Threat To Survival on September 18.   It’s the first new album in three years and fifth overall from Brent Smith, Barry Kerch, Zach Myers, and Eric Bass.

“Threat To Survival refers to that primal instinct in all of us that determines how we respond to crisis and conflict – the idea of ‘fight or flight’ and the choices we make in any given situation,” explains Smith.   “This album represents those deciding moments for us as a band.  It’s a collection of scenarios that made us who we are, and is, by far, the most autobiographical album we’ve created to date.”  

This program features Brent Smith in an in-depth conversation with Kevin Martin (Candlebox) as they go track-by-track through Threat To Survival. 


Buy Threat To Survival

Shinedown Threat To Survival Track by Track with Brent Smith, hosted by Kevin Martin

Orlando-based Trivium release of their eagerly awaited new album, Silence In The Snow on October 2 from Roadrunner Records.  

Their seventh studio album, Silence In The Snow stands as a long gestating creative milestone for the acclaimed band, having its genesis moment back in 2007 when Trivium spent time touring alongside the legendary Heaven & Hell.  Ultimately, it would take eight years before they felt equipped to tackle the challenging work of weaving their classic influences into a modern record. Fueled by the inspiration of true classic metal – spanning Black Sabbath and Rainbow, Iron Maiden and Judas Priest, Pantera and Slayer, Megadeth and Metallica – Trivium challenged themselves to attain similar levels of greatness, taking on vocal coaches and guitar lessons to further their creative evolution. The result is extraordinary, bridging the history of hard rock and metal while simultaneously powering it forward into the future.

This program features Matt Heafy and Corey Beaulieu in an in-depth conversation about Silence In The Snow with comedian/actor Jim Florentine. 


Buy New Trivium Now!

Trivium Silence In The Snow Album Preview, Hosted by Jim Florentine

Multi-platinum rockers 3 Doors Down sixth full-length album, Us And The Night, was produced over the course of 2015. The new record nods to the spirit of their breakout debut, The Better Life, with seasoned songwriting and the biggest and boldest songs of their 16-year career to date.  MX2 Media enlisted WBUZ/Nashville's Zigz to sit down with Brad Arnold and Chris Henderson to discuss the making of the new record for a syndicated radio program that ran across America the weekend of release.  This link contains the full conversation from that interview.   


Buy It Now! 

3 Doors Down Talk Us And The Night with Zigz

Judas Priest's tour in support of Redeemer of Souls was one of the most extensive of the group's entire career - consisting of 130 shows in 33 countries, and offering a setlist that touched upon selections from nearly all of their classic albums. On March 25th, Priest fans can relive the live experience with the release of the new CD/DVD/Blu-ray, Battle Cry.

Recorded live on August 1st, 2015 at Germany's Wacken Festival in front of an audience of 85,000, Battle Cry is available on a 15-track CD, with the entire show on Blu-ray and DVD.  The show's track listing balances new classics ("Dragonaut," "Halls of Valhalla," "Redeemer of Souls") along with headbanging classics ("Metal Gods," "Electric Eye," "You've Got Another Thing Coming"), as well as key album tracks from yesteryear ("Devil's Child," "Beyond the Realms of Death," "Jawbreaker"). 

This program features Rob Halford, Glenn Tipton, and Richie Faulkner speaking with Terrie Carr as they discuss Battle Cry. 


Buy Battle Cry Now!

Judas Priest Preview Battle Cry with Terrie Carr

Sixx:A.M. Vol. 2 Prayers for the Blessed
Album special hosted by Shinedown’s Brent Smith
Presented by Eleven Seven Music & MX2 Media

Written and recorded by Sixx:A.M. at the same time as Vol. 1 Prayers For The Damned, Vol. 2 Prayers For The Blessed acts as a companion piece to the first volume while simultaneously elevating the band's sound in every area. Vol. 2 Prayers For The Blessed displays the many sides of Sixx:A.M.'s sound, something that they have been able to develop by ramping up the amount of time spent on the road playing for their fans.

Currently on tour with Five Finger Death Punch and Shinedown, we have enlisted Shinedown frontman Brent Smith to sit down with the brain trust behind Sixx:A.M. – Nikki Sixx, James Michael and DJ Ashba – to discuss the new album for this program.

Vol. 2 Prayers For The Blessed Radio

Sixx:A.M. Vol. 2 Prayers for the Blessed album special hosted by Shinedown’s Brent Smith

On March 1, Mark Morton released Anesthetic, a collection of songs featuring the Lamb of God guitarist working with a wide net of all-star collaborators.  

Recorded just prior to release, this podcast contains the full interview that was edited into a radio special featuring Morton in a conversation with Riki Rachtman about the mechanics behind making Anesthetic with producer Josh WIlbur, including a track-by-track discussion where you can learn things like who gets thrown under the bus, what's on Mark's turntable at home, what song was rewritten after Mark heard the vocals, and what fans can expect on the upcoming tour dates.

Anesthetic (radio)

Buy Anesthetic

Mark Morton Anesthetic album preview, hosted by Riki Rachtman

Papa Roach’s seventh album, The Connection, and first full-length studio record for Eleven Seven Music solidifies their signature sound – big choruses, loud guitars, raw introspection – while sonically taking a great leap ahead.  Recorded over several months at the band's Sacramento-based home studio – The Red House, their first full-length album recorded there – The Connection embraces a strong digital element, while never losing sight of the band’s ferocious energy.
 
“This record is about all the connections I have in my life,” says front man Jacoby Shaddix. “It’s what I feel with my band, with music, with myself, with friends and with our fans when we come together. When we connect, we all become something greater.”  

This is an extended version of the Into The Connection with Papa Roach radio special featuring Shaddix in a conversation with Matt Pinfield.  The program highlights 6 new songs from The Connection, along with the band’s #1 hits “Last Resort” and “Lifeline.”













Into The Connection with Papa Roach segment1

Stone Sour don't play it safe on their fourth offering, House of Gold & Bones — Parts 1 & 2.
 
House of Gold & Bones Parts 1 & 2 is a collection of 23 tracks the band — Corey Taylor [Vocals], James Root [Guitar], Josh Rand [Guitar], and Roy Mayorga [Drums] — that follow an immersive, linear storyline. House of Gold & Bones Part 1 – the first 11 songs – will be released on October 22, 2012.  Part 2 will be released next year, completing the story.  

The songs set the tone and follow the action, but House of Gold & Bones is a multimedia experience. Videos,  an online presence, album packaging, the live show and even a graphic novel will all follow and expand on the story. 
  
"To us, this was bigger than just a collection of songs," says Rand. "We wanted to do something really special, and it started when Corey told us about the concept. There was a big mission, and everything tied in from the story to the music. We all put a lot into this, and everybody contributed immensely."
 
"If you're not risking it all, you're not gaining anything," Taylor affirms. "There's a whole musical realm I haven't even tackled yet. I've never been into writing the same shit over and over again. The minute I get bored is the minute I bail. It was exciting to be neck-deep in the creation of House of Gold & Bones, knowing we were pushing the boundaries of what we'd done before."

Presented by MX2 Media & Roadrunner Records, "Stone Sour: Enter the House of Gold & Bones Part 1" features Corey Taylor & Josh Rand in a conversation with Andy Hall of hometown radio station Lazer103.3 Des Moines, and highlights 6 new songs from House of Gold & Bones Part 1.

Stone Sour: Enter the House of Gold & Bones, Part 1 hosted by Andy Hall

THE SMASHING PUMPKINS
“From Mellon Collie to Oceania”
With Billy Corgan
Hosted by Matt Pinfield
Presented by MX2 Media & EMI Music

Billy Corgan recently sat down with Matt Pinfield to discuss the reissue of The Smashing Pumpkins’ career-defining 1995 double album, Mellon Collie & The Infinite Sadness, and the band’s seventh studio release, 2012’s hauntingly brilliant Oceania.  

Originally released October 24, 1995, it doesn’t get much bigger than Mellon Collie & The Infinite Sadness when it comes to the Pumpkins’ catalogue as it has earned Diamond certification by the RIAA for sales of 10,000,000 copies. 

Released in June of 2012, Oceania has been called Mellon Collie’s distant cousin and finds Corgan and his new band on the road opening their shows by performing the release from beginning-to-end. 

“From Mellon Collie to Oceania” finds Corgan discussing both releases, focusing on life during the Mellon Collie-era and the juxtaposition of Oceania along The Smashing Pumpkins timeline. 

Mellon Collie & The Infinite Sadness is being released in multiple physical and digital configurations, including an expanded 5CD+DVD Deluxe Box Set (also available digitally) and the remastered original album in 4LP Vinyl, 2CD, and digital formats. The Deluxe Box Set’s 5 CDs include 64 bonus tracks of previously unreleased material or alternate versions of Mellon Collie era songs, and its DVD features a live show filmed at the Brixton Academy, London (1996) and bonus performances from the German music television show Rockpalast (1996). It all comes housed in a 12 x 12 lift-top box with magnetic closure, reimagined cover art and velvet-lined disc holder. The package includes 2 books containing personal notes, lyrics, new collage artwork, plus a Decoupage kit for creating your own scenes from the Mellon Collie universe. The bonus content and special features were curated from the band’s archives by Corgan, and have been painstakingly remastered for the first time from the original master tapes by Bob Ludwig.

Smashing Pumpkins From Mellon Collie To Oceania with Billy Corgan hosted by Matt Pinfield

Richmond's Red Reign drummer Sammy Lee calls into Talkin' Rock with Meltdown!

Red Reign EP

Buy Red Reign debut EP

Red Reign's Sammy Lee on Talkin' Rock with Meltdown

Hot on the heels of the chart topping first single, “Hollow,” and the second single, “Stone,” Alice in Chains are set to release their new and fifth studio album, The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here, on May 28.  

The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here  follows  2009’s  hugely  successful  release  Black Gives Way To Blue.  That  album  entered  Billboard's  Top  200  at  No.  5,  sold  over  one  million  copies, spawned  two  No.  1  hit  singles  ("Check  My  Brain"  and  "Your  Decision")  and  a  third  (“Lesson Learned”)  that  went  top  10,  earned  two  Grammy  nominations  and  saw  the  band headlining a sold‐out international tour.  

To get the official word about The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here, the band enlisted Duff McKagan to host an exclusive conversation.  This program features Jerry Cantrell, William DuVall, Sean Kinney and Mike Inez with McKagan discussing one of the most anticipated rock albums of 2013. 

Please Note: Due to copyright restrictions, full versions of songs do not appear in the online version of this program. 


Alice In Chains: The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here, Hosted by Duff McKagan (radio version)

Last week, we unleashed the radio version of the conversation between Duff  "The Seventh Alice" McKagan and all four band members – Jerry Cantrell, William DuVall, Sean Kinney, and Mike Inez – of Alice In Chains.  Now you can hear the full interview that we chopped up to make that program. There's roughly an extra 25 minutes that wasn't used in the radio program.

"The beauty of doing what we do is also the kind of being at a loss and frustration of it," said Cantrell at one point as he discussed the early stages of writing The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here. "You start from zero and you just make it up.  You gotta make it up and go through whatever the hell you have to go through to get that to happen.  It's all a struggle, and that's what makes it good... You can trust in the fact that you are going to come up with something, and most of the stuff that you have come up with in the past has been pretty good, so you're pretty confident you're gonna get there, but it's also scary and terrifying while you're doing it."

The humor of Sean Kinney shines through in the unedited interview as the five musicians discuss the differences this time around versus when they recorded Black Gives Way To Blue, in which DuVall makes an interesting comment about "defending their right to exist." 

They also tackle touring, performing on stage, playing in South America, the making the mockumentary, AIC Twenty-Three, and working with Nick Raskulinecz and Paul Fig.

"A second record with those guys was familiar territory," says Inez.  "I trusted those guys and the way they work. It was fantastic for me as a bass player because Nick's a bass player too, so we spent a lot of time digging into old amps, cabinents, and matching microphones."

McKagan points to "Rooster" being used in the movie This Is 40 to address Alice in Chains' place in popular culture, which leads to a story about the band attending the premiere for the flick. He also dips into his Twitter account to take some questions from his followers and poses them to the band.  And we suggest you pay close attention to the wrap-up for the funniest moment of this interview.  

Enjoy!

-MX2 Media

Alice In Chains Discuss "The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here" with Duff McKagan (expanded version)

As the progenitors of hard rock, Black Sabbath blazed a trail for generations of musicians and fans to follow. Now, after nearly 35 years between albums, Tony Iommi, Ozzy Osbourne, and Geezer Butler have returned as conquering rock overlords with the release of their brand new opus, 13. 

Joining them at the 13 sessions was drummer Brad Wilk  (Rage Against The Machine) and producer Rick Rubin.  The end result is a thundering nine-song testament to Black Sabbath’s enduring effect on rock music both today and since their last recorded album together, 1978’s Never Say Die! 

Black Sabbath: 13, hosted by Jim Norton, features the three original members of the band giving an in-depth look at the making of one of the most eagerly awaited rock albums in history. 

Please Note: Due to copyright restrictions, full versions of songs do not appear in the online version of this program.

Black Sabbath: 13, Hosted by Jim Norton (radio version)

Hot on the heels of their last album, Awake, one of just three rock albums to be certified platinum in 2012, forming an improbable triumvirate with the Black Keys’ El Camino and Mumford & Sons’ Babel, Skillet are set to unleash their eagerly awaited follow-up album, Rise. 

The band — lead vocalist/bassist John Cooper, guitarist/keyboardist Korey Cooper (John’s wife), drummer/duet partner Jen Ledger and newly minted lead guitarist Seth Morrison — continue to explore new terrain on Rise, working once again with produced by Howard Benson. The message is both spiritual and social, as Skillet reaches out anew to its growing and changing following.   
 
“Rise is the story of a typical American teen coming into adulthood and facing the massive world problems,” says Cooper, who is deeply concerned about the erosion of belief in young people today, as well as their deeply felt desire to belong.  
 
This interview features  John and Korey Cooper giving an in-depth look at their new release in a conversation with Meltdown.  Please note full versions of songs do not appear due to copyright restrictions. 

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