• Slash on Custom Guitars, Solo Album
• In the Studio: Mastodon Go Melodic
• Weezer’s “Troublemaker” Breaks Records
• R. Kelly Wins Lawsuit Against Promoter
• News Ticker: “Weird Al,” Tenacious D

Top stories from the last three days:

• Springsteen in Philly: “America Needs Obama”
• Photo Gallery: Madonna Brings Tour to U.S.
• The Roots and Gym Class Heroes Fire Up Tour
• Stream The Entire New Pretenders Album
• Scars On Broadway Cancel Tour, Kimmel
• Rock Band Sells Real Merch For Game Bands
• Jay-Z, Wyclef Rally Voters in Miami
• Kanye Says 808s Out November 25th
• Janet Jackson Still Ill, Cancels More Shows
• Radiohead Lead Featured Artists Coalition
• Slick Rick, Cypress Hill at Hip Hop Honors
• Unknown Comic Attacks RS Comedy Issue

Scroll down for full news stories, commentary and much more in Rock Daily.

Photo: Hogan/Getty

As an iconic axeman, Slash needs guitars. So when his beloved 1991 Gibson Les Paul “Goldtop” was stolen in 1998 and never recovered, he turned to Gibson to recreate the classic guitar, which he used on some of Guns N’ Roses’ most epic tunes. The guitar company obliged, and now the same Slash signature model is being released for public consumption from Gibson, carefully customized to Slash’s specifications. (A more affordable Epiphone Les Paul model is also available.) He’ll need it in the coming months as he and Velvet Revolver work up some new material and continue searching for a replacement for departed singer Scott Weiland.

Slash is also working on demos for his first true solo album, which he hopes to release next year. He would not reveal any song titles or personnel, but he expects to be tracking in a Los Angeles studio by January. “It’s just a lot of stuff I want to do,” he says of his new songs. “It will definitely be a rock & roll record.”

What is special about this Les Paul guitar?
I asked Gibson to make me a reissue of the 1991 Les Paul Goldtop that I had been using on tour for “Sweet Child O’ Mine,” “November Rain” and “Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door.” This was probably the best guitar that I ever heard for playing those kinds of solos. In 1998, I had my studio ripped off and all my guitars were stolen. Slowly but surely I got them all back — but the one I didn’t get back was that particular Goldtop. Finally, I got to the point of asking Gibson to build me a reissue. It’s amazing: they built me this guitar and it sounds exactly like the 1991 stolen guitar, which somebody out there still has.

Was there a particular guitar player you looked at as a young kid?
In the ’70s, there was a lot of guitar players. Jimmy Page definitely had a big influence on me when I first picked up the guitar. A lot of the guitar players I listened to, I would really like this solo or that solo, and I’d find out later what kind of guitar it was, and chances are it was a Les Paul.

Which is also what you play in Guitar Hero.
I was very specific about that because they didn’t have a Les Paul in their entourage at that time, and I said the only way we can do this is with a Les Paul.

Has the huge success of Guitar Hero boosted your rep even further? (more…)

Photo: Jimmy Hubbard

Mastodon can trace the origins of their fourth album to the pavement in front of the Mandalay Bay casino in Las Vegas. That’s where the Atlanta metal band’s guitarist-vocalist, Brent Hinds, was attacked and cracked his head open during a drunken altercation following the MTV VMAs in September 2007. Hinds suffered brain hemorrhaging, and then, as he recovered, he was plagued by vertigo.

“I was dizzy for eight months,” he says, hanging out at a studio in the band’s hometown, along with guitarist Bill Kelliher, bassist-vocalist Troy Sanders and drummer Brann Dailor. “During those months, I just sat with my acoustic and a little marijuana, and wrote all the music. I wanted a more melodic, easy-listening situation, and that definitely came from having head trauma.”

Mastodon’s last set, 2006’s Blood Mountain, was their major-label debut, and it brought them up from the metal underground to a wider audience, earning them a Grammy nomination and MTV spins for “Colony of Birchmen.” The new album continues the trend. “We wanted to make something a little broader,” says Dailor. “A classic-rock-sounding record.”

Those impulses led Mastodon to producer Brendan O’Brien (Bruce Springsteen, Pearl Jam). (more…)

R. Kelly was awarded $3.4 million in back pay from his most recent tour after the tour’s promoter “swindled” Kelly and others involved. Kelly’s legal dispute with promoter Rowe Entertainment dates back to February, while Kelly was still on the road. Leonard Rowe was accused of selling shares of Kelly concerts in exchange for cash investments, but then falsely told the investors that the concerts lost money. (more…)

• Adapting to the Internet’s power of immediacy, “Weird Al” Yankovic has parodied T.I.’s current chart-topping single “Whatever You Like.”
• Tenacious D will release their Complete Masterworks 2 on November 4th. The DVD set will feature the duo’s 2007 Seattle concert, a documentary from their film The Pick of Destiny plus numerous TV performances.
• According to Dire Straits bassist John Illsley, frontman Mark Knopfler has declined to reunite with the band for a new tour and album. The group’s last album was 1991’s On Every Street.
• Ice Cube has said yes to a proposed rap supergroup featuring Nas and Scarface. “It’s just making that business happen, that’s the part that gets funky,” Cube said of the project.

Having already found viral success with their “Pork and Beans” video, Weezer is taking on the Guinness Book of World Records in the video for “Troublemaker.” In fact, a Guinness official was on hand during the day-long shoot in a Los Angeles parking lot to witness the band and a throng of fans break such storied records like Largest Game of Dodgeball (two teams of 50 people), Most People in a Custard Pie Fight (120 pie throwers) and Largest Air Guitar Ensemble (223 thrashers). (more…)

Photo: MTV Games

If you’ve already mastered every instrument for every song on Rock Band 2, game makers Harmonix and MTV Games have figured out a way to make your gaming experience all the more better: By allowing you to order merchandise bearing the fake logo of the fake band you create. You can even order an action figure of the 3D character you built to faux-shred your way through Guns N’ Roses’ “Shackler’s Revenge.” After uploading your in-game band’s logo using the new Photo Creator, you can order a T-shirt, keychain or bumper sticker bearing the emblem, all in an attempt to further enhance your gameplay. If you’re really committed to your character, you can make him the envy of all your GI Joes by ordering the $69 figurine, created specifically using your personalized in-game avatar and complete with customizable posing. (more…)

Photo: Winter/Getty

Kanye West took the stage at a T.I. concert this weekend in Los Angeles to perform a pair of new songs and announce that his new album 808s & Heartbreak will be out on November 25th. 808s was originally slated for a December release, but West pushed up the date to the tentative “November Something.” “I just pushed my album up to November 25th. Can I sing y’all my second single?” West asked the crowd before launching into “Heartless.” West also performed “Love Lockdown” at T.I.’s MySpace show. (more…)

Photo: Vasquez/Getty

Scars On Broadway have canceled their North American tour after singer/guitarist Daron Malakian decided “his heart wasn’t into touring” with the side project, the band said in a statement. The collaboration between Malakian and drummer John Dolmayan had planned to embark on their tour on October 19th, but the trek, and the duo’s Jimmy Kimmel Live performance on October 14th, have both been canceled with no plans for rescheduling. (more…)

Photo: Mazur/Wireimage

Madonna launched the North American leg of her “Sticky & Sweet” Tour at the sold-out Izod Center in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Rock Daily will provide a full report of tonight’s show at Madison Square Garden, but until then click below for a gallery of amazing images from the Material Girl’s concert, including her excellent Slash impersonation.

• Photo Gallery: Madonna Brings Her “Sticky & Sweet” Tour to North America

Related Stories: (more…)

“Get registered, get focused, make sure we vote,” Jay-Z told the crowd at his “Last Chance for Change” voter registration concert yesterday in Miami. “My job is not to tell you who to vote for — I’m voting for Barack Obama — but the important thing is to get registered and make sure our voices be heard.” Jigga balanced all the political talk with high-powered versions of “Roc Boys” and “Say Hello.” Before his a cappella version of “Minority Report,” a photo of George W. Bush was shown on the video screen, prompting boos and chants of Obama from the crowd. Before Jay-Z’s set, the audience was treated to a surprise set by Wyclef Jean, who echoed his support of Obama. (more…)

Photo: Retna

With the baseball playoffs in full swing, last week we asked the readers to tell us their sports anthems. After sorting through information like the Vancouver Canucks’ goal song and what Dio song the Phillies’ Pat Burrell comes to the plate to, we can reveal that Guns N’ Roses’ “Welcome to the Jungle” is your favorite stadium rocker, beating out a pair of tunes by AC/DC, Metallica and the White Stripes song that has become the unofficial theme song for soccer hooligans. Check out the list below:

1. Guns N’ Roses — “Welcome to the Jungle”
2. AC/DC — “Thunderstruck”
3. Metallica — “Enter Sandman”
4. AC/DC — “Hell’s Bells”
5. White Stripes — “Seven Nation Army” (more…)

The Pretenders’ Chrissie Hynde turned 57 last month, but that hasn’t stopped her from putting together the punchiest Pretenders album in years. Despite being a hardcore vegan, she also still indulges in a few vices. “To warm up, I smoke Bugler tobacco,” she explains. “It’s a shame, really. But it’s rock & roll — if you need to warm up, God help you.” Click below for the full interview with Hynde along with a behind-the-scenes look at the band’s new video, plus head over to the Breaking blog to stream the entire new Pretenders album Break Up the Concrete.

• Q&A: Chrissie Hynde

• Stream The Entire New Pretenders Album Break Up the Concrete

• Fall Preview: The Pretenders, Break Up the Concrete

Related Stories: (more…)

Photo: Dreyvitser/WireImage

On Friday, the Roots opened their co-headlining tour with Gym Class Heroes at Baltimore’s Ram’s Head Live, testing their rep as the best live act in hip-hop with a jam-laced set short on hits and heavy on mind-numbing instrumentals and off-the-wall covers. As the 24-date tour works its way around the country, the band will learn whether or not its loyal fans — some of who were spotted in Baltimore wearing “?uestlove for Prez” T-shirts — will follow as they shift from their trademark hip-hop-soul to something closer to a darker Phish with only slightly more rapping.

U.K. soul star Estelle opened with a short set bookended by her hits “Wait a Minute (Just a Touch)” and “American Boy.” Between songs, she quipped endearingly about the state of global affairs and offered some advice: “Life is short. The end is near. Have Sex.” Hip-hop’s emo-hippies Gym Class Heroes, up next, offered a high-energy set with some goofy stage patter — at one point lecturing on the power of love and asking everyone to hug their concert neighbors — and a couple of surprisingly deep musical interludes.

They opened with the radio hit “Clothes Off!” on which guitarist Disashi Lumumba-Kosongo (or, as frontman Travis McCoy called him, “Chocolate Genius”) lit into his first of a couple deft solos on the night. By way of charming the locals, McCoy then turned to his bandmates and asked, “Is Omar coming?” Met with quizzical looks, he shook his head. “Damn,” he said. “Am I the only one that watches The Wire?” (more…)

Photo: Getty

Radiohead, Pink Floyd’s David Gilmour, the Pretenders’ Chrissie Hynde and Iron Maiden are among the initial artists to sign up for and usher in the launch of the new Featured Artists Coalition. As the music industry continues to shift into the digital age, the Coalition seeks to protect the artist’s rights over their own music. “We want all artists to have more control of their music and a much fairer share of the profits it generates in the digital age,” a statement on the FAC’s website reads. “We speak with one voice to help artists strike a new bargain with record companies, digital distributors and others, and are campaigning for specific changes.” The FAC has also penned a six-step manifesto for “fair play,” including increased compensation for commercial use of their music and changes to copyright law. (more…)