Latest articles by Dave Ling
"Some people expect us to be a woman and instead they get three greasy boys playing rock music": Florence Black are fiery proof that Welsh rock is on the rise
With Skindred, Florence Black, Those Damn Crows and Scarlet Rebels all hitting the charts, music from Wales is once again on the map
"In screaming so loudly for so long I gave myself chronic laryngitis and screwed up my voice forever": Mountain man Corky Laing reveals how a seductive dancer inspired a hard rock classic
Mississippi Queen gave Mountain their signature song, rock'n'roll its second most famous cowbell, and Corky Laing headaches over the songwriting credits
“This is the next natural step in our evolution. This is a pinnacle moment for us. It’s something we had to do.” How Dream Theater made uber concept album The Astonishing
With 2021's The Astonishing Dream Theater unveiled the daddy of all prog metal concept albums
“By the time I swapped over the tapes I knew I was in the stinky brown stuff. Somebody said, ‘God help us’ … the budget for the cover was cut back”: How Rick Wakeman proved everyone wrong with The Six Wives of Henry VIII
His 1973 debut solo album was roundly hated by label bosses and reviewers – but it became a coffee-table classic and gave him freedom from Yes
"Music really saved my life. It was the one place I could go where there was sanity and beauty": Steve Perry on being inspired, and being an inspiration
Former Journey frontman Steve Perry was raised to manage the family farm, but Sam Cooke and his parents' divorce set him on a different path
"If everyone could go to a psych ward for a couple of weeks, the world would be a better place": Ginger Wildheart on recovery, rejuvenation, and why the next Wildhearts album will be your favourite
To learn that Ginger Wildheart was winning his mental health battle was a fantastic end to the year: A new Wildhearts album en route is the icing on the cake
The 50 best AOR albums of all time
From big hitters like Journey, Boston and Foreigner to the lesser known lights of AOR, these are the 50 albums that truly sparkle
"Those three and a half minutes tell you everything you need to know about Slade": The story of the anthemic classic Mama Weer All Crazee Now
Recorded by Hendrix producer Chas Chandler and covered by Quiet Riot and The Runaways, frontman Noddy Holder says Mama Weer All Crazee Now is one of Slade's defining moments
"We come on all kicking and screaming and for three songs we'll punch you in the face…": Ashley McBryde on making country music for rock fans
If you want to know why country-rocker Ashley McBryde is making waves, get to one of her live shows
Why you should definitely own Klaatu's debut album, and it's got nothing to do with The Beatles
When the mysterious Klaatu released their first album, rumours about the musicians' identity sent sales soaring... but it's an album that stands up on its own
Tony Moore played keyboards for Iron Maiden at one show in 1977: Now he's back on the road with Steve Harris
British Lion are currently on tour with support from prog rock one man band Tony Moore: "If Tony could play guitar back then the way he does now he'd probably still be in the band", says Steve Harris
24 things to get excited about in 2024
As with all years, 2023 had plenty of great, memorable rock moments. With a new year now upon us, here’s what we’re vibed up for that’s coming along in the next 12 months
"We'd sit surrounded by amps. The magic just flowed. It gave you goose-pimples": How Status Quo made Hello! and turned into Britain's hottest band of 1973
Sometimes, a band works on an album and everything clicks. For Status Quo, their 1973 No.1 Hello! was just such an album. But that doesn’t mean there weren’t problems
“The phone rang, it was Steve Harris: ‘Are you interested in joining Maiden?’”: this is what it’s like to audition to replace Bruce Dickinson in Iron Maiden, by three singers who went for the job
In 1994, Blaze Bayley became Maiden’s new singer – but he wasn’t the only contender for the job
“When Motörhead leaves, there will be a hole there that just can't be filled”: Remembering Lemmy
His name was Lemmy, and he played rock'n'roll
The riff is a belter, the lyrics arrived out of thin air at Ringo Starr's house, and the promo video for it is pure pantomime – the story behind Beavis and Butthead’s favourite Judas Priest song
"Everyone's had a confrontation with a copper and likes to scream about breaking the law, don't they?" - Rob Halford
"Some people said that seeing the band again made their lives complete": Remembering Status Quo's Rick Parfitt
A personal look back at the music, life and times of Status Quo guitarist/singer and cornerstone Rick Parfitt, who died on Christmas Eve 2016
"I used to shut the curtains, put on the headphones, drop the needle and not move a muscle till the final note": This is the soundtrack of K.K. Downing's life
Former Judas Priest man K.K. Downing picks his records, artists and gigs of lasting significance, and reveals why he prefers his new stuff to the old stuff
“Drugs and alcohol and ego clashes got in the way, but we managed to keep them quiet”: the unbelievable story of Chicago, the soft rock kings with steel in their hearts
Jazz-rock experimentalists, money-spinning soft rock kings, derided balladeers? The mighty Chicago have been all of these and more
The 50 best rock albums of 2023
The past 12 months may go down in history as a period of tumult and turmoil, but on the positive side, rock'n'roll is very much alive and well – as the best 50 albums of 2023 reflect
Sweet have been going for more than 50 years: now they're thinking about AI to take them into the future
Guitarist Andy Scott, the last remaining original member of iconic glam-metal band Sweet, on what could well turn out to be their final tour
"I love that we do this thing that other musicians relate to": Page Hamilton on Helmet's rock royalty fans and advisors
Helmet leader Page Hamilton on playing with Bowie, catching a fragrant whiff of Ozzy Osbourne, and not turning into Night Ranger
“Black Sabbath are afraid of us blowing them offstage. I’d feel the same in their position”: Lemmy, Ozzy and the story of legendary 80s rock festival the Heavy Metal Holocaust
In August 1981, 40,000 rabid fans descended on an English football ground to watch Motörhead headline the Heavy Metal Holocaust. And it got chaotic
“After the first couple of years the darkness descended. There were some volatile individuals. We’re almost talking asylum levels”: how cult ’70s rockers The Babys blew their chance to be the next big thing
Fronted by John Waite, The Babys could have become one of the biggest bands of the 70s – if only they hadn’t torn themselves apart
