Newsbites: Ozzy airport is no go says boss

Grounded: Ozzy

There are no plans to name Birmingham Airport after Ozzy Osbourne, a spokesman has said. Speculation had been mounting after the label boss who discovered Black Sabbath said he wanted the transport centre to be renamed after the iconic singer. Jim Simpson said: “The message that would carry is instantly international, confident, powerful, unforgettable and says ‘Hey World, we are proud of our own’.” But an official reports: “We’ve no plans to rename the airport. We’re not quite sure where the story’s come from but we’re certainly not in discussions.”

ZZ Top‘s Billy Gibbons will reunite his first-ever band 44 years after they last played together. Moving Sidewalks will perform a one-off concert in Manhatten on March 30.

U2 manager Paul McGuinness says fans can look forward to a new album arriving this year. He explains: “2012 has been very busy. There’s always activity – so certainly expect a new record.”

Green Day will return to the road at the end of March following frontman Billie Joe Armstrong’s onstage meltdown in September, which sent him for a long stint in rehab. He says: “I just want to thank you all for the love and support you’ve shown for the past few months. Believe me, it hasn’t gone unnoticed and I’m eternally grateful to have such an amazing set of friends and family. I’m getting better every day. We can’t wait to get on the road – our passion has only grown stronger.”

Queen singer Freddie Mercury’s Rolls-Royce will be sold at auction on Saturday. The late frontman owned the vehicle from 1979 until his death in 1991, and his since been cared for by his sister. It’s expected to go for £10,000.

Former Whitesnake drummer Brian Tichy, who last week quit to concentrate on SUN with Sass Jordan, says the mountain bike accident that broke his collarbone has taught him to slow down. “I finally see the benefits,” he explains. “I will still mountain bike and I will still want to go faster, but I will look back and realise it’s not worth it. I am going to make a conscious effort to put the speed focus on guitar and drums, because I can definitely get faster on those.”

Tremonti will release a new single, Wish You Well, on January 28. The band will play four UK dates the following month: Feb 14, Wolverhampton Wulfrun Hall; Feb 16, Edinburgh Liquid Room; Feb 17, Manchester Ritz; Feb 18 London Electric Ballroom.

Anthrax guitarist Scott Ian won’t yet have recovered from the shock of losing lead axeman Rob Caggianio – and now he’s mildly concerned the band could lose Joey Belladonna too. Ian reports that the frontman’s performance on their upcoming cover of Journey’s Keep On Runnin’ “really blows my mind.” He continues: “Someone mentioned that  Neal Schon better not hear this or we might lose our singer.” [Billboard]

Large-scale event promoters looking to move out of London’s Hyde Park are being offered the Olympic Stadium as an alternative. The park has become unpopular after it was suggested that millionaire residents had applied their influence to limit the extent of shows – including having the power cut on Bruce Springsteen and Paul McCartney last year. Olympic Stadium boss Dennis Hone says: “We have the opportunity to put on some major events, some music events and festivals. We hope to announce the content in the coming weeks.” [BBC]

Bang Tango have replaced drummer Trent Anderson with Timmy Russell, formerly of Little Creatures. Anderson says of his departure: “I am seeking new bands and projects to tour with in 2013. I will have a couple of tour date announcements next week.” Guitarist Scott LaFlamme adds: “Trent is a huge part of the Bang Tango family and we wish him well. Trent will always be one of our bros.”

Geoff Tate insists the idea of Queensryche being a brotherhood in the 1980s was an image created by himself and former guitarist Chris DeGarmo. The sacked singer says: “Our main focus was always to create an image that the band was cohesive and a band that was as close as brothers. In our minds, that was the best way to project our band and our project. Whatever dirty laundry or disagreements wasn’t talked about in public.” [BigMusicGeek]

Biffy Clyro drummer Ben Johnston admits his alcohol dependency nearly split the band. He cleaned himself up after blacking out during a recording session and cutting his ear – but by that point his bandmates were considering their future. Johnston says: “I had no stop button. I would just keep going and black out. Me and Simon massively drifted apart. It was me that was going to fuck it all up.” [Scotsman]