Slipknot performed as part of this past weekend’s Athens edition of the Sonisphere festival. It was their their first show since the untimely passing of Paul Gray last year, and, therefore, their first show with former guitarist/current bassist Donnie Steele. And I think a lot of people were wondering how they would handle the transition; obviously, the band needed to pay tribute to Gray, but how would Steele appear on-stage? Would he Gray’s costume, the way Tommy Thayer basically pretends to be Ace Frehley when he plays with Kiss, or otherwise be given his own mask, the way Vinnie Vincent was given his own character when he was in Kiss?

Well, the answer is, “Neither.” The ‘Knot opted instead to have Steele stand off-stage, while Gray’s empty outfit stood by the drumer riser, scarecrow-like, for the duration of the show. And that might seem like kind of an odd decision, but, really, there’s no good or “right” way to handle a situation like this; there was going to be a certain amount of tension in the air no matter what, y’know?

You can check out more footage from the show, and the band’s complete set list, at Metal Insider. Meanwhile, there’s still no official word on whether or not there’s gonna be another Slipknot album, but I would bet a lot of money in favor of it happening.

-AR

Anyone who knows anything knows that Vinnie Vincent is the best guitar player Kiss ever had; more than that, he’s pretty much the best guitar player in the history of ever. Unfortunately, he hasn’t recorded anything since the 90s, so he’s ineligible for our current list of The Top 25 Modern Metal Guitarists, but if we ever do a list of the The Top 25 Metal Guitarists Ever, I have little doubt he would appear very, very close to the top, if not at the tippy top itself.

Which is why it’s so heartbreaking that he has apparently turned into a crazy old lady who looks slightly less masculine than Joan Jett (see mugshot below) and who, according to TMZ, was recently arrested not only for beating his wife, but for keeping “four sealed containers containing deceased dogs.”

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During Hair Metal Week here on MetalSucks, the prize for Completely Unreadable Band Logo of the Week was a mix of glam songs compiled by yours truly. I know some of the entrants wanted me to post the track listing for that mix, and now that it’s finally completed (I’m kind of a perfectionist when it comes to mixes) and the winner, Ash Patterson, tells me he’s received his prize, it’s time to publish that track list, so you can all compile your own mix at home should you so choose.

I tried to pick songs that either a) were by bands I think most people have long since forgotten about, or b) were less famous entries in the oeuvre of more well-known bands. Hopefully those of you who actually like this kind of music will dig this.

Here’s the track list:

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I found the following quote from a recent interview with Gene Simmons to be (inadvertently) hilarious:

“This is electric church, and no one on that stage — me or anyone else — wears the makeup and platform heels by some kind of birthright. This ain’t Europe; just ’cause your dad was king doesn’t make you the king. You’ve got to earn it. And when you defile KISS, you should be thrown out.”

Gene is referring to dudes like Ace Frehley, Peter Criss and Vinnie Vincent, of course. But I have to wonder what he thinks they did that was worse than this:

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Vinnie Vincent is something of our patron saint here at the MS Mansion. If ever there was a shredder this side of Kerry King whose solos went absolutely nowhere but GODDAMN did they do it fast, that man was Vinnie Vincent. Matter of fact, there’s a life-size bronze bust of the one-time Kiss axe-slinger that greets Mansion visitors as they step into our front yard foyer bathroom urinal closet. 

You shoulda seen the look on Axl’s face when MS Maniac Steve S. sent in this video of Vinnie, well, being Vinnie. Last time I saw Axl get this excited was when MS Mansion Monkey extraordinaire Higgins stumbled upon a website specializing in midget torture porn. True story. But let’s save that one for a different time.

I love how this video is titled “Speed, style & phrasing,” as if there’s one iota of phrasing involved anywhere in this entire clip. After the jump, check out another clip of Vincent doing some intense guitar canoodling live; like everything else the man ever did, it’s completely over the top.

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Revolver has their annual “Hottest Chicks in Metal” issue, which is great if you’re Revolver and want to sell an assload of copies to horny teens and unhappily married men you want to oggle at semi-hot babes that you’ll never have. But for those just looking for a little shot in the arm of self-esteem, Ruthless Reviews presents The 10 Ugliest Men In Heavy Metal History, a list that’s sure to get you feeling pretty good about your chances of gettin’ lucky tonight. Appropriately, the top 3 (none of whom are pictured at right) are all men whose beauty factor we’ve commented on before, and #1 is highly MetalSucks-approved in his own right.

-VN