According to The Pulse Of Radio, Robert Plant says that BAND OF JOY‘s next studio set won’t rely on cover songs and will be the band’s first to feature newly-written original material. Plant and the band are currently out on the road and dipping into his solo catalogue and including his 1988 solo hit “Tall Cool One” in the show’s setlists, along with revamped versions of such LED ZEPPELIN classics as “Ramble On”, “Houses Of The Holy”, “Tangerine”, “Gallows Pole”, “Thank You” and “Rock And Roll”.

Plant told The Pulse Of Radio that for BAND OF JOY to continue to grow as a band, they need to hunker down and start creating new original music. “We’re talking, we have to write songs now,” he said. “It’s all very well celebrating other people’s songwriting, and I know there are other artists who have had an entire career; whether it be Elvis (Presley) or (Frank) Sinatra, or a lot of the country artists who never write. But we’ve got to be heading that way soon.”

“Band of Joy” sold 49,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 5 on The Billboard 200 chart.

Plant‘s first release since recording the six-time Grammy-winning bluegrass album “Raising Sand” with collaborator Alison Krauss in 2007, the “Band of Joy” CD enlists the help of an array of U.S. musicians, all of whom are performing with Plant on tour.

The new lineup of BAND OF JOY includes: Patty Griffin on vocals; Darrell Scott on multiple instruments and vocals; Byron House on bass and vocals; Marco Giovino on drums, percussion and vocals; and co-producer Buddy Miller on guitar and vocals.

TIMES OF GRACE is getting ready to take the show on the road for the very first time. The band will embark on its inaugural tour, beginning February 1 in Baltimore, Maryland and wrapping up in its native Boston, Massachusetts on February 27. STRAIGHT LINE STITCH and WAR OF AGES will round out the bill, making for an evening of eclectic hard rock and metal.

Dutkiewicz and Leach worked together on KILLSWITCH ENGAGE‘s benchmark album, 2002’s “Alive Or Just Breathing”. That record has become definitive for an entire generation of American metal, with Leach‘s voice and uplifting lyrics serving as one of the key elements that propelled the album to “modern classic” status. Leach, who went on to sing for the more classic-rock leaning SEEMLESS and who currently sings for the metal band THE EMPIRE SHALL FALL, was always remembered fondly by KILLSWITCH ENGAGE fans, even though he left the band shortly after “Alive Or Just Breathing”‘s release.

While fans will no doubt be thrilled at the concept of the duo reuniting, TIMES OF GRACE is not interested in fashioning “Alive Or Just Breathing Part II”. It’s an entirely new project and represents a different musical path for both Adam D. and Leach! It is an album of cleansing and catharsis for each of them, where internal demons were exorcised and set to music that’s as aggressive as it is melodic.

“In all my life. I have yet to write a record that bares my soul as much as this record does,” Leach said. “Adam and I had a real spiritual connection while making this and I know that it comes through in the performances and lyrics. This record has our blood, sweat and tears flowing through it. It is painfully honest at times. In short this record is our catharsis.”

Adam D. also commented on what TIMES OF GRACE means for him personally, saying, “Making this record was something completely new for me. It documents some of the most difficult-yet-spirited times of my life in the past three-and-a-half years. A lot of the music and lyrics just came out of me while going through several internal struggles, and writing these songs were the only comfort I could find. I reached out to Jesse to help sing and write these songs with me because of my respect for his musical abilities, and because of our great friendship…one that seems to not change no matter what happens in our lives. In the end, I am very proud of this record, and I feel it has helped me through some of my darkest days. I’m hoping that people will enjoy it, and also that it can maybe help others to keep the most positive mindset, even through the most trying of times.”

The track listing for the album is as follows; the song titles reflect the sentiment of catharsis that is the common thread running through “The Hymn of a Broken Man”.

01. Strength In Numbers
02. Fight For Life
03. Willing
04. Where The Spirit Leads Me
05. Until The End Of Days
06. Live In Love
07. In The Arms Of Mercy
08. Hymn Of A Broken Man
09. The Forgotten One
10. Hope Remains
11. The End Of Eternity
12. Worlds Apart
13. Fall From Grace

The legendary JETHRO TULL — led by charismatic singer and flute player Ian Anderson and guitarist Martin Barre — is set to headline the Prog Stage; this is a U.K. exclusive, TULL‘s only UK show of 2011.

Following a lengthy hiatus two cult prog bands have reformed to join the Prog Stage, SPOCK’S BEARD will perform another U.K. festival exclusive and British heroes CARAVAN add to the occasion alongside MOSTLY AUTUMN, PALLAS and THE ENID.

For more information, visit HighVoltageFestival.com.

Published by rbtaleman

Heavy metal (fiend/friend?) Writer, frustrat(or), frustrat(ee), decorated U.S. Navy veteran, Husband(twice), father(three times), grandfather(of seven), FM radio veteran, Concertgoer, music collector, muscle car aficianado. Grown up since five. Child since 45. View all posts by rbtaleman