British blues-rock powerhouse Joanne Shaw Taylor continues to build anticipation for her forthcoming album Black & Gold with the release of her latest single, “Hell Of A Good Time”—an energetic, hard-hitting track that blends her signature fiery guitar work with infectious rock & roll swagger. The song delivers a raucous, no-holds-barred performance while carrying a deeper reflection on the fleeting nature of excess and escape.
“Hell Of A Good Time” is a song about how sometimes a party isn’t really a party at all,” Joanne explains. “How drinking to excess and always being the life and soul of the party is usually one person’s way of running away from themselves. Unfortunately, that lifestyle can’t last forever and usually ends up not being a lot of fun.”
With lyrics like “Rolling through town, I’ll burn it down just like wildfire / Singing and sinning, I like living like a live wire,” Joanne captures the exhilarating highs and inevitable lows of living on the edge. Driven by pulsating rhythms, blistering guitar riffs, and anthemic choruses, “Hell Of A Good Time” showcases Joanne at her most uninhibited, bringing an electrifying energy to the Black & Gold track list.
Set for release on June 13th via Joe Bonamassa’s Journeyman Records, Black & Gold pushes the boundaries of blues-rock, weaving in elements of Americana, indie rock, and retro ‘80s pop to create a sound that is as expansive as it is deeply personal. The album explores themes of resilience, self-discovery, and the complexities of human connection, balancing raw vulnerability with bold, fearless innovation.
“Hell Of A Good Time” follows an impressive line-up of recent singles, each offering a unique glimpse into the album’s depth and range. Her latest, “Grayer Shade of Blue,” explores a once close friendship that ended abruptly. “Who’s Gonna Love Me Now” delved into themes of grief and healing, while “I Gotta Stop Letting You Let Me Down” delivered a powerful statement on self-worth and breaking toxic cycles. The deeply reflective “Grayer Shade Of Blue” explored the bittersweet emotions of moving on from a past relationship, adding another layer of emotional depth to the album. Earlier tracks like “All The Things I Said” and Joanne’s soul-stirring cover of Sam Sparro’s “Black & Gold” further demonstrate the album’s dynamic storytelling and genre-defying spirit.
Following a triumphant return to the spotlight in November 2024 with ‘Let The Flowers Grow’, his duet with Boy George, original post-punk icon Peter Murphy has today released ‘Swoon’, a brand new single that also serves as the perfect Valentine’s Day gift for his fans.
Percussive and expansive, ‘Swoon’ is a superlative slice of synth-punk/funk that captures Murphy's voice in all its sonorous glory. Produced by Youth (Pink Floyd, The Verve, Crowded House, member of Killing Joke, The Orb, The Firemen w/Paul McCartney), the song is the first to be released from Murphy’s new album, ‘Silver Shade’, due out on 9th May 2025. Recorded at Youth’s studio in Spain, it is the long-awaited follow-up to ‘Lion’, which the pair worked on together a decade ago. A symbiotic relationship born of artistic collaboration, Murphy states that “this new album is as powerful as any of my work to date.”
Peter Murphy’s solo career began in 1986 with the release of ‘Should The World Fail To Fall Apart’, with this and his eight other studio albums to date spawning fan favourites such as ‘Cuts You Up’, ‘A Strange Kind Of Love’, ‘All Night Long’, ‘Indigo Eyes’, ‘The Prince & Old Lady Shade’ and ‘I’ll Fall With Your Knife’.
Prior to this, Murphy had fronted Bauhaus, who emerged from the fertile UK post-punk scene in 1979 with the release of their debut single, ‘Bela Lugosi’s Dead’, often considered to be the very first gothic rock record. The band went on to record four seminal albums before initially splitting in 1983, as well as further classic singles such as ‘Dark Entries’, ‘The Passion Of Lovers’, ‘Lagartija Nick’ and ‘She's In Parties’. They also had a major hit single with a cover version of ‘Ziggy Stardust’.
Platinum selling superstars P.O.D. have revealed a fresh take on their hit single “I WON’T BOW DOWN” with a collaboration with singer/guitarist Andrés Giménez of Argentinian metal band A.N.I.M.A.L. Listen to the track HERE.
The original is taken from their most recent studio album, 2024's VERITAS. “ I'm very happy to have received this wonderful invitation about making a new English/Spanish version. It’s really fantastic,” says Andrés. “P.O.D and A.N.I.M.A.L together are pure brotherhood. I have a truthful respect, admiration and appreciation for P.O.D.”
Giménez co-founded A.N.I.M.A.L., who exploded out of the Buenos Aires scene with their blend of groove and thrash metal in the 1990s. They gained huge success selling out shows in Argentina and touring across Latin and North America as well as Europe, playing with the likes of Pantera, Bad Religion, Megadeth, Sepultera and Slipknot as well as taking part of the legendary 2000 Warped Tour alongside Green Day, No Doubt, NOFX and Papa Roach. They released 8 studio albums including 1998’s Poder Latino which was produced by Max Cavelera and featured Robert Trujillo, Christian Olde Wolbers (Fear Factory), Jimmy DeGrasso (Megadeth/Suicidal Tendencies/Ozzy Osbourne).
P.O.D. guitarist Marcos Curiel adds, "As we journey through life, certain songs emerge that resonate deeply with our generation and those to come. "I Won't Bow Down" is one of those gems. It's heartfelt in every sense of the word and anthemic to the core. Enjoy it, turn it up, sing along and always remember: never bow down.”
P.O.D. will join U.S. hard-rockers Godsmack as special guests on their March - April Godsmack World Tour 2025. Tickets are available HERE.
The tour will kick off on 22 March with a SOLD OUT show at the Sofia Arena in Bulgaria and will then call through Romania (Bucharest), Hungary (Budapest), Poland (Gliwice), Austria (Vienna), Croatia (Zagreb), Czech Republic (Prague), Germany (Munich, Berlin, Offenbach), U.K. (London), Belgium (Brussels) and will finish with two shows in Germany, Hamburg and finally on 12 April at the Turbinenhalle in Oberhausen.
The band have announced a new run of European headline dates on April 13 at 013 in Tilburg, Netherlands, April 16 at Roxy in Prague, Czech Republic and April 18 at Progresja in Warsaw, Poland.
Talking about the tour, Sonny Sandoval says, We are so excited to return back to Europe and celebrate our latest record VERITAS with our friends Godsmack and Drowning Pool. We know this will be the Rock and Roll show to remember.”
In May last year, P.O.D. released their 11th album VERITAS via Mascot Records. The album was a Top 10 hit across the U.S. Billboard Current Hard Rock, Current Rock, and Current Alternative album charts and has already surpassed 48 million streams.
The band has released several singles from the album including, DROP, AFRAID TO DIE, I GOT THAT, and I WON'T BOW DOWN. DROP, features a vicious vocal feature from Lamb of God singer Randy Blythe, the equally eruptive single AFRAID TO DIE, features Jinjer vocalist Tatiana Shmayluk.
The album picked up major playlisting across Spotify, Apple, Deezer and steamrolled support from SXM. Octane, Loudwire, BBC Radio 1, BBC Radio 2, Kerrang! Radio, Metal Hammer, Kerrang! Magazine, Knotfest, Revolver and more.
The band has yet to stand still in 2024! As well as releasing VERITAS, they have toured with Skindred, who between them brought the party in a major way to the U.K. They bulldozed through Europe with euphoric festival sets at Graspop, Summerside, and Rock For People. They supported Mudvayne, took on their blistering U.S. 'I Got That' headline tour with special guests Bad Wolves and Norma Jean, and festival stops at Louder Than Life, Aftershock, Sonic Temple, Welcome to Rockville and made waves on the Shiprocked cruise. They've spent October touring Latin America, playing Knotfest and headline shows in Brazil as well as shows in Chile, Colombia and Mexico.
Godsmack recently wrapped up their blistering U.S. tour. Both Godsmack and P.O.D. have decades of touring experience under their belts and know exactly what the crowds are looking for! This will be a tour that brings the noise and will be one to remember.
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