“Sensory Overdrive”
was recorded in Los Angeles
with legendary producer Jack Douglas,
who has previously worked with AEROSMITH, JOHN
LENNON, CLUTCH, SLASH’S SNAKEPIT and NEW YORK
DOLLS, among many others.

“’78” (a homage to a year of great music
and significant cultural happenings), was made available on February 21 on both
digital download and colored vinyl complete with exclusive extra track.

“Sensory Overdrive” track listing:

01. Trick Of The Wrist
02. ’78
03. Got Blood?
04. Superpowered Superfly
05. Modern Day
Miracle
06. Bombs
Away
07. All You
Need
08. Later
Won’t Wait
09. Gone, Baby Gone
10. Center Of Your Heart
11. Debauchery As A Fine
Art

Monroe‘s brand new live album, “Another Night In The Sun/Live In Helsinki”, was released
on November 1, 2010 via Spinefarm.
Mixed in Los Angeles by Niko Bolas
(whose credits include NEIL YOUNG, FRANK SINATRA, KEITH RICHARDS, KISS, SPINAL TAP
and more) and mastered by Grammy
winner Richard Dodd (the man behind TOM PETTY and DIXIE CHICKS), the CD — recorded on July 6 at the Tavastia
Club in Helsinki, Finland — features key tracks from Monroe‘s solo career spiced up with selected HANOI classics, some well-chosen covers,
plus two brand new, previously unreleased songs — “You’re Next” and “Motorheaded For A Fall”.

Monroe‘s current solo
band includes THE WILDHEARTS mainman
Ginger on guitar, Yaffa on bass, Steve
Conte of NEW YORK DOLLS and COMPANY OF WOLVES fame on guitar, and Karl “Rockfist” Rosqvist, a
Swedish/Finnish drummer who has played with both CHELSEA SMILES and DANZIG.

PEARL JAM bassist Jeff Ament tells Billboard.com that the band has written 25 songs for a new
album, to be recorded later this year. “April will be the time where we get
together and learn to play all these demos and figure out which 12-15 of them
float to the top,” he said. According to Ament, the group has been
focused on putting together reissues of its second and third albums, 1993’s
“Vs.” and 1994’s “Vitalogy”, and working on a Cameron
Crowde-directed documentary and book celebrating its 20th anniversary as a
band.

PEARL JAM frontman Eddie Vedder is planning to
release a solo album later this year. A new Vedder song called
“Longing To Belong” popped up on a New York radio station on Monday
(March 14) and it is reportedly from a new solo effort by Vedder,
tentatively titled “Uke Songs”, that may arrive in June. Vedder‘s
previous solo album was not an official one, but the soundtrack to the 2007
movie “Into The Wild”, for which he composed and performed nine new
tracks.

Ament told The Pulse Of Radio that the way PEARL
JAM has worked from the start leaves room for its members to do their own
things as well. “I think the main thing is we wanted to be able to stretch out,
and when I look at Ed and kind of what he’s been able to do in terms of,
like, you know, he’s got his solo thing, and how he’s pushed himself as a
musician and creatively, you know, it makes me so proud of like, you know, how
we were from the very beginning — how we wanted to be a band that could really
dip our toes into a lot of different styles and dynamics,” he said.

The
first summer music festival ever put together by PEARL JAM itself will
take place somewhere in the middle of the country this summer and feature a
number of bands, along with PEARL JAM headlining both nights.

Following the cancellation of both IRON MAIDEN Tokyo shows due to recent
events in Japan, the British heavy metal legends will be donating the proceeds
from sales of the Japanese event shirt available from the official IRON
MAIDEN shop (i.e. the shirt without tour dates on) to a charity
assisting victims of the earthquake. The band plans to do the same with the
stock of event shirts currently in Tokyo, which were due to be sold onsite at
the Tokyo venue (i.e. the shirt with tour dates on). Details will follow as soon
as possible as to where these will be available from. The charity MAIDEN
will be coordinating sales of both events shirts through is the Japanese Red
Cross.

In other news, members of IN FLAMES as well as
legendary guitarists Joe Satriani and Michael Schenker have all
issued separate statements expressing their thoughts and condolences to the
Japanese people following the 8.9-magnitude earthquake and subsequent tsunami
that shook Japan early Friday morning and left more than four thousand killed
and many more missing.

Joe Satriani: “You can help Japan deal with
earthquake/tsunami by donating through the International Federation of Red
Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC).”

IN FLAMES:
“Our hearts and prayers go out to all of the people of Japan. The effects of the
earthquake and tsunami have been chilling to witness. There are several
organizations out there that are making an effort to help everyone like the
Red Cross, Salvation Army. Beware of the scam sites out there
preying on your heartfelt generosity. If you are able to, please donate what you
can to make a difference to all those affected. Every bit will help!”

Michael Schenker: “My heart goes out to everyone affected by the
tragedy in Japan. As someone with an incredible fondness for the people of
Japan, who have been some of my biggest supporters, I wish everyone the best in
getting through these trying times. God be with all of you.”