Bits and Pieces Chopped From t

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20 years ago, September 27th, 1986, Metallica bassist, Cliff Burton died when the band's tour bus rolled into a ditch. A memorial concert was held September 30 in Sweden featuring performances by Swedish bands Age of Fury and Morbid Insulter. According to Wickopedia, while on the European leg of the Damage Inc. Tour, Burton and Kirk Hammett (Metallica guitarist) drew from a stack of cards to see who would get the top bunk on the bus. Burton picked the Ace of Spades and so he got to sleep on Kirk Hammett's bed, as Hammett recalls on MTV's 1992 bio of the band as well as in the VH1 show Behind The Music. Burton died (on September 27th, 1986) when the band's tour bus hit black ice (though it is still disputed that they may have crashed because the driver had been drinking) and flipped over in rural Sweden (Kronobergs län). As the bus was skidding out of control and eventually rolled over on the grass, Burton fell through a window, landed underneath the bus and was crushed. Burton was crushed again when the winch cable lifting the bus off him snapped, dropping the bus on him a second time. Since his death European tour buses have plywood boards fitted to all windows next to the bunk beds. These boards are commonly referred to as 'Burton Boards' in his honour. The other people on the bus (frontman James Hetfield, drummer Lars Ulrich, Hammett, the drum technician, and two guitar technicians) recount seeing Burton's feet sticking out from under the bus. That sight has haunted them for a long time. Burton's body was cremated. At the ceremony, the instrumental 'Orion' from the album Master Of Puppets was played. Subsequently, Metallica never played 'Orion' in full live until June 4, 2006 when they performed the album Master Of Puppets in its entirety to mark the 20th anniversary of its release. Previously, bits of the song had been used to bridge between other songs.

Arch Enemy offers details on a contest where one lucky fan will win the chance to play on stage with the band during a stop on the Gigantour. "Do you have what it takes to play on stage at Gigantour with Arch Enemy? Learn the lead guitar solo for the song 'Ravenous' (the solo at 3:00 - 3:12 in the song), show up at the ESP/Line 6 booth immediately after venue doors open at the Tamp Bay, Florida concert on Oct 6th. Arch Enemy will pick three finalists then pick a grand prize winner who will be a guest on stage and play the lead solo during the song with Arch Enemy! Do not bring your own guitar, guitar and amplification will be provided by ESP and Line 6. Good luck!" 'Ravenous' can be downloaded here.

Great White's booking agent has posted the following message at the band's website: "IMPORTANT MESSAGE TO ALL BUYERS/PROMOTERS/VENUE OWNERS. It has come to our attention that there are some unscrupulous individuals selling Great White shows who have no connection to Great White. They book the show, collect the deposit money and skip town, shutting down communication lines with the club and basically disappearing. For the record Great White has no association with David Wilson, Bill Cantor, Michael Robynsen, Bobby Jenks Management or John Byrnes Management. Furthermore, Great White’s agent is NOT located in Chicago or New York. Anyone interested in inquiring about a booking for Great White should contact Great White’s exclusive Los Angeles based booking agent Sullivan Bigg with Bigg Time Entertainment, Inc. [email protected]."

In an interview with webzine Metal Pigeon, Soilwork singer Björn "Speed" Stridwhat commented on the departure of guitarist Peter's Wichers and the search for a replacement. "Well, basically we've been trying out different guitarists since April when we did the first tour after Peter's departure. We tried one during the festival season, we have Andreas [Holma, ex-Hypocrisy] playing with us now and we'll have another one for the U.S. tour and then we'll make a decision because the U.S. tour is going to be the last for this album."

Black Label Society guitarist, and "Evil Twin" Nick Catanese's guitar and vest were inducted into the Hard Rock Cafe in Catanese's home town of Pittsburgh on September 5th. Catanese told KNAC.COM Boston Contributor, Deb Rao, it was special being honored in his home town: "Just being there and seeing the turnout was amazing. Well, it was actually a green ET model guitar from Boogie Street and my denim vest. It was just surreal. It is cool to be in your hometown and to have people behind you."

Slipknot has a behind the scenes look coming for fans in their soon-to-be released two-disc DVD set "Voliminal," due in stores December 5 on Roadrunner. The first disc includes a 90-minute documentary directed by M. Shawn Crahan, featuring a different hidden vignette from each of the group's nine members. The second DVD blends live footage from a variety of venues with music videos for tracks like "Vermillion," "The Nameless" and "Duality," along with interviews with the band.

Sevendust have finished work on their new album and plan for a brief round of holiday-season concerts. The line-up of 5 shows kicks off December 27 in Norfolk, VA, and ends New Year's Eve in Tampa, FL. Two other Florida stops and a lone South Carolina show round out the itinerary. On Thursday, Sevendust finished recording its yet-untitled sixth album, for which no release date has been announced.

Officials at the Delicious Rox Festival outside Kansas City were not kidding when they said they'd shut down the concert if anyone got hurt. The concert featuring Fear Factory and Drowning Pool ended early Saturday (September 30) after a female concert-goer was hit with thrown beer bottle. The promoter told police the insurance provider said to end the show if anyone got hurt. Police say the concert-goer, who was not identified, apparently was hurt when a member of one of the bands threw the bottle. Fear Factory and Drowning Pool had not yet performed.

Ex-Kiss guitarist Vinnie Vincent lost a U.S. Supreme Court appeal Monday (October 2nd) in a dispute over royalties with his former bandmates. Justices declined to consider lower court rulings dismissing Vincent's claim that he is owed royalties for his contributions to the band's 1983 album Lick It Up. Vincent, whose real name is Vincent Cusano, played with Kiss from 1982 to 1984, co-writing such songs as 'I Love It Loud' and 'Lick It Up'.