Those of you who pre-ordered the Chupacabra 2006 via Sip & Listen should check your emails, as this wine is now available for order. You only have a week to redeem your code before the wine goes on sale to the public, presuming there is any leftover.
Word is that more wine, this time from Arizona Stronghold will be available mid-2012!
Tool touring buddies Mastodon and Meshuggah have both been confirmed as part of the 2012 Soundwave Festival down here in Australia. The festival, which also includes headline acts System of a Down (which may well feature our buddy Junior on lights) and Slipknot, tours around Australia in February and March. Here’s the dates:
Tickets go on sale on the 20th of October. The full lineup for the event is:
SYSTEM OF A DOWN
SLIPKNOT
LIMP BIZKIT * MARILYN MANSON
HOLE * A DAY TO REMEMBER * MACHINE HEAD
LAMB OF GOD * TRIVIUM * ALTER BRIDGE
LOSTPROPHETS * ANGELS & AIRWAVES * COBRA STARSHIP
THE USED * YOU ME AT SIX * DEVIN TOWNSEND PROJECT
UNWRITTEN LAW * COAL CHAMBER * DASHBOARD CONFESSIONAL
THURSDAY * FOREVER THE SICKEST KIDS * RAISED FIST
DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN * ZAKK WYLDE’S BLACK LABEL SOCIETY
MASTODON * UNDEROATH * SAVES THE DAY * CIRCA SURVIVE
STEEL PANTHER * JACK’S MANNEQUIN * MESHUGGAH * ZEBRAHEAD
THE SISTERS OF MERCY * ENTER SHIKARI * FOUR YEAR STRONG
BLACK VEIL BRIDES * MADINA LAKE * HATEBREED * BIOHAZARD
TIMES OF GRACE * CKY * STREET DOGS * DRAGONFORCE
GOJIRA * KVELERTAK * LETLIVE * HELLYEAH * CRO-MAGS
THE CAB * RELIENT K * VERSA EMERGE * HEROES FOR HIRE
KILL HANNAH * CHIMAIRA * THE DANGEROUS SUMMER
FRAMING HANLEY * WATAIN * ROYAL REPUBLIC
I AM THE AVALANCHE * TURISAS
RIVER CITY EXTENSION
Personally while not many of the big names interest me, I’m keen on seeing Meshuggah (we may well be the first to hear tracks off their new album), Mastodon, System of a Down, Machine Head, Dillinger Escape Plan, Steel Panther, Hatebreed, Biohazard, Gojira, Kvelertak and Hellyeah.
Matt Irwin & Trent Allen, a couple of entrepreneurial Aussies have managed to secure the right to distribute Maynard’s wines into Australia. This makes us the first country outside of the USA to have official distribution for these products. It’s not a release of the entire range however, the first shipment will be the Chupacabra 2006, and I’d expect if this sells well then future wines will also become available.
From the press release:
sip & listen…
Sitting around the dinner table after a couple of days skiing in the Canadian Rockies, childhood mates Matt Irwin & Trent Allen cracked open a bottle of Chupacabra while listening to Tool’s Salival, and wondered why this amazing wine was not available back home. With backgrounds in the wine business & music industry, they have secured exclusive rights to import Maynard’s wines to Australia.The wine…
The first shipment is a limited amount of Merkin Vineyards Chupacabra 2006. This will be the first time any of Maynard’s wines will be available outside of North America. It is also the only time we will see Merkin Vineyards, as Maynard and Eric have decided to limit distribution of the Merkin/Caduceus lines and focus on Arizona Stronghold Vineyards. 2012 will see the first ASV wines hit Australia, but we will have to wait and see how much sip & listen can secure for the people down under.The Chupacabra is coming…
Merkin Vineyards Chupacabra is a shape-shifter, evolving vintage after vintage. The 2006 is a blend of traditionally French grapes that have found a home in the Californian landscape. From the Tasting Notes "Bold and mysterious, the wine shows both a light and a dark side. From black fruit, tobacco and forest aromas to flavours of kiwi, grapefruit and nettle on the lighter end, this smoky and complex red is enticing from the first sip."Reserve a bottle…
Word is spreading quickly and Matt & Trent are receiving daily requests to reserve bottles for people. Merkin Vineyards Chupacabra 2006 will retail in Australia for $34.99 per bottle or 3 for $100 (inc. GST, postage not included). If you are interested in buying a bottle (or 3!), email your name and order to sipandlisten@hotmail.com. If you are after a case, please email for a price. You do not have to pay until the wine is released in a few weeks time. You will receive a reservation number which puts you in a draw for an Arizona Stronghold merch pack (inc. Chupacabra Australian Release Bottle no. 353)!
You can also follow their progress on Facebook and Twitter.
Not sure how many bottles these guys are importing, so it’s probably worth getting your order in quickly!
According to Milhuisen, Danny will appear in Issue 64 of DRUMscene, apparently Australia’s #1 Drum Magazine. As well as a “huge” interview, it will feature a poster.
I might head over to the newsagent in the morning and see if I can grab a copy.
Also, for those that missed it, copies of Salival and Lateralus Signed Vinyl were made available on the Toolarmy shop yesterday. Took only 20 minutes for the 7 copies of Lateralus to sell, and a little longer for Salival. Apparently there’s more to come, so keep checking!
I’ve dropped a few hints in the forums in regards to Tool Big Day Out Posters possibly being available online following the tour, and tonight I received the news that this is indeed the case. Melbourne printers Beyond The Pale printed all of the posters for the 2011 tour (excluding Hawaii I think) and the leftovers, all unsigned are available from their website.
Limited quantities from the Melbourne side show, Melbourne Big Day Out and Auckland Big Day Out are all available, and each of them cost AU$35 plus postage. There’s also a range of other bands posters on the website, the artwork and printing that these guys to are top quality, and they do frame poster as well, so make sure you check it out!
I was lucky enough to visit their gallery when I was in Melbourne, and though not advertised on the website, I reckon there were several other Tool posters available in the store, including the Gold Coast Big Day Out poster, and a range of other US ones I reckon I’ve seen around the place before. If you’re down in St. Kilda one day, it’s definitely worth a visit!
Part 2 of the Wine Week interview with Maynard is now available on Youtube:
An interesting interview for wine fans, Maynard talks about obviously the wine, how it effects touring, and also that he has no plans to export the wine to Australia (or presumably elsewhere).
Buzz from the Melvins was recently interviewed by the AU Review, and the results are good:
AU: My first question is, are you looking forward to Soundwave and do you like coming down to Australia?
B: No, I hate everything about Soundwave and I hate everything about Australia.
AU: That’s good. Glad to hear someone who’s honest. Most bands just suck up.
B: No I’m kidding. I’m looking forward to it of course. I’m looking forward to coming down and playing down there and hopefully doing a headlining tour on our own maybe towards the end of the year.
It’s been too long since we’ve had a proper Melvins tour. Please make this happen Buzz! Also, he mentions that there’s nothing really happening in the land of Fantomas…
Andrew McMillen from Australian magazine called Junior recently interviewed Maynard. Maynard speaks a bout a range of issues including Tool, A Perfect Circle, Blood Into Wine and more. For those of us unable to pickup a copy of this magazine (it’s a free street press type thing) Andrew has published the full transcript here. Here’s an excerpt:
I saw the Smashing Pumpkins recently. It felt like Billy [Corgan] was rushing to get some of his more well-known songs out of the way so he could play the new stuff. Can you relate to that kind of feeling?
No, no. I mean, especially since James Iha’s not in the band, I can’t really relate to the fact that Smashing Pumpkins are out there.
Nothing really notable as far as Tool or APC news goes, but a good insightful interview none the less.
Details have been released for the Alex & Allyson Grey show in Melbourne next year. Tickets are $70 per person for the event:
For the first time in history, visionary artists Alex and Allyson Grey will step foot upon Australian soil to present their radiant portfolio of visionary paintings, drawings, and multimedia to art, science and music lovers across the nation. The main event in Melbourne will take place at the iconic Astor Theatre in St. Kilda on Saturday January 29, featuring an artistic showcase and interactive discussion with both Alex and Allyson followed by a live painting performance. Displaying their finely detailed images of subconscious symbolism, this full day with the Greys will allow each participant to truly delve into the artistic realm of Alex and Allyson Grey and their transformative works of art.
This spectacular event is bound to inspire, encourage, and transform.
$70 to Spiral Out doesn’t sound too bad and you never know who you might bump into…
Blair has confirmed that there will be a Toolarmy pre-sale for both Australian side shows. Details will be posted before tickets go on sale, which is at 12:00pm on the 4th of November. Technically 12:00pm is lunchtime by the way, so I presume it’s then and not midnight. I hope this gets clarified, as I’d rather no stay up until midnight the night before unless I have to…