Newsbites: Huw Lloyd Langton fans invited to funeral

Huw Lloyd Langton 1951~2012

Hawkwind have announced that Huw Lloyd Langton‘s funeral will take place in Dorset on Thursday – and fans are welcome to attend as long as they let the band know in advance. The band say: “Huw’s funeral will take place at 12 noon on Thursday, December 20 at St Mary’s Church, Church Hill, Stalbridge, Sturminster Newton DT10 2LR. All are welcome – however, if you intend to be there, please email us at huw@hawkwind.com as soon as possible, so we can have an idea of the numbers and can arrange a suitable venue for the reception.” [Prog]

Jimmy Page is still aiming to play live – although his plans have been put on hold yet again. The Led Zeppelin guitarist says: “This time last year I intended to be playing by now in a live outfit. That will have to be postponed into next year, the tail end of next year. But I definitely want to be doing that.” [Guitar World]

Poison frontman Bret Michaels has paid tribute to makeup artist Jacob Yebale, who died in a plane crash along with Mexican music star Jenni Rivera at the weekend. Michaels says: “Not only did the crash claim the life of Ms Rivera, but that of four other people including Jacob, who was a great friend to all of us at Michaels Entertainment. He worked with me, VH1 and 51 Minds on numerous shoots. My thoughts and prayers go out to his family as well as Ms Rivera’s, and to the other families who lost loved ones in this awful and sudden tragedy.”

Dream Theater guitarist John Petrucci says his band were guided by Rush when it came to choosing a label for their next album. They’ve decided to stay with Roadrunner Records, despite the large-scale changes the firm has lived through over the past year. Petrucci says: “We operate by ‘WWRD’ – What Would Rush Do? The fact that they signed to Roadrunner meant a lot to us. We’re happy for Roadrunner. It was a great move. It puts us into great company with our contemporaries, and gives the label a lock on the progressive scene. That definitely played a factor.” [Prog]

Halestorm were forced to pause during a live show because they’d just received the news of their Grammy nomination. Frontwoman Lzzy Hale says: “It was just in time for the piano ballad. I’m kind of sitting by myself and Joe runs across the stage. He’s like, ‘We got nominated for a Grammy!’ I must have had at least 30 seconds of pure shock on my face. It was a very cool moment for all of us.” [Blabbermouth]

Def Leppard guitarist Vivian Campbell has launched his fifth annual charity dinner, to take place on January 26 in Hollywood. His eBay auction is offering 25 tickets to the highest bidders, with proceeds going to Create Now, a body which helps troubled young people through the medium of arts.

Ex Metallica bassist Jason Newsted says he’s close to completing his new solo band’s first record – and he feels great about his 15-year stint with the thrash giants. He reports: “I am ultra-proud of my time in Metallica. I’m thankful for the wonderful experiences and I will always be open to jammin’ with the boys. I’m feeling strong again, playing bass and singing lead vocals – and you’ll all be hearing it in one month’s time.”

Don Dokken says former bandmate Jeff Pilson, who’s singing with offshoot project T&N, doesn’t have the voice needed to front the outfit. “I think he’s trying too much to sound like everybody,” says the vocalist. “I used to always tell him, ‘Man, you’ve got a nice voice – if you can figure out your style, or be confident in your own skin, you could really be successful at it.’ But he’s all over the place. One song he’s in a raspy voice, another he’s trying to be bluesy or soulful. It’s like, ‘What do you want to be?’” [Legendary Rock Interviews]

Asia keyboardist Geoff Downes admits there’s a downside to having called their last album XXX – especially online. “It doesn’t really work too well if you put ‘Asia’ then ‘XXX’ after it,” he acknowledges. “It might take some people to the wrong areas. We couldn’t really think of anything better, and when the name cropped up, XXX for 30 years, we said, ‘Let’s do it.’” [BaconMusic]

Papa Roach frontman Jacoby Shaddix says his vocal cord operation has worked well, and the downtime gave him the chance to spend time with his children. He explains: “After my surgery I was helping coach my son’s tackle football team. I’d turn around and they’re behind me doing the Gangnam dance. I was like, ‘Alright, we save that for after practice.’” [Pulse of Radio]

The Residents have launched a Christmas present you almost certainly can’t have: a $5million box set. But there’s a cheaper option – in the video below frontman Randy explains the band are also offering 10 copies of a stripped-down version, delivered in a fridge, and it costs just $100,000. He says: “Have a bake-sale, break open those penny jars, sell a goddamn kidney if you have to…”