Ashley Purdy was brought up by his grandparents after his parents died when he was still very young. Being an only child, he grew to be independent, and his unique style had his schoolmates looking up to him for fashion and art tips. Growing up in Missouri, the bassist knew that he wanted to move…
Billy Idol broke out in the 1980’s as one of the most popular musicians of the time. His music combined punk rock and glam rock influenced by mainstream 1960’s rock and roll. Idol was born William Michael Albert Board in Middlesex, England in 1955. His family moved to New York where Billy’s sister Jane was…
Slipknot has been entertaining fans for nearly 30 years, and despite the lineup changing with only one founding member remaining, the energy has never dwindled. The band is known for their crazy headbanging and strange masks that help fans identify each member. Of late, the main buzz around the band is the new guy that…
Although there are examples of many types of music from the 1980s, many people associate it with being the era of the power ballad. During this decade, many solo artists and groups released power ballads, regardless of the typical genre of music with which they were associated. Some have remained popular and well-known despite the…
Aerosmith’s “Toys in the Attic” was the album that lunged this band to the top. Aerosmith, a young band at the time, was staffed by an unabashed group of courageous young men, adventurous, unafraid and ready to show the world their gutsy, imprudent style, which “Toys in the Attic” did. This breakthrough album was initially…
What exactly is the meaning of Tool’s “Fear Inoculum” album? People have been speculating about this off and on, but there are a number of possible meanings. Even the band members themselves have been reluctant to provide too much information. In fact, they have gone on record to say that it is a very personal…
Genesis are the musical equivalent of Miracle Whip. Some people love them, citing their inarguable influence on prog-rock as reason enough to worship at their altar. Other people hate them. The reason there is simpler: Phil Collins. But anyone who claims that Genesis were awesome while Peter Gabriel was frontman and abysmal after Collins took…
Lynyrd Skynyrd may have been the most famous band to emerge from Florida in the 1970s, but Molly Hatchet came a close second. You wouldn’t expect a band named after an infamous 17th-century ax murder to play sweet little folk songs, and you’d be right. Molly Hatchet’s brand of Southern rock was hard, loud, and,…
It’s tempting to dismiss Grand Funk Railroad as a wannabe Cream. After all, it’s what people have been saying for years. But before they were trashed, trivialized, and summarily dismissed, they ruled the world. For a few years in the 70s, bands didn’t get much bigger. They sold out stadiums, stormed the charts, and even…