Black Country Communion Artwork

Black Country Communion released the artwork for their third studio album, Afterglow, today.




As well as the artwork, they released a short video on the making of Afterglow. If the musical clip played on the video is any indication, this album will be a treat for fans.




Afterglow is available October 30th and can be pre-ordered beginning September 11th.

Brazilian Space Shift

On the back of Robert Plant's announcement of a South American tour earlier this week, Plant today announced that The Sensational Space Shifters will do a number of shows in Brazil in October before heading to Argentina, Chile and Peru in November.

The new dates announced are:

1. October 18 - HSBC arena
   Rio De Janero
   www.livepass.br
   


2. October 20 - Mirante Olhos D'Agua
   Belo Horizonte
   Ingresso Rapido
   


3. October 22 - Espaco das Americas
   Sau Paulo
   www.livepass.br
   


4. October 23 - Espaco das Americas
   Sau Paulo
   www.livepass.br
   


5. October 25 - Nilson Nelson Arena
   Brasilia
   www.ingressorapido.com.br
   


6. October 27 - Teatro Positivo
   Curitaba


7. October 29 - Gigantinho
   Porto Algere

Jimmy Page Donates Guitar

A video was posted on YouTube yesterday of Jimmy Page playing a Yamaha FG-403MS Acoustic guitar that he signs and donates to Care 4 Kids. Page, who is in Pattaya, Thailand, plays snippets of Kashmir, before signing the guitar and authenticating the instrument for viewers.  The guitar is being auctioned off at a Jesters Care for Kids auction. The current bid is ฿220000.00 (220000 Thai baht = 7,006.36 US dollars).

Also up for auction is a signed Death Wish II album, and a signed Ross Halfin photo of Jimmy.

South American Space Shifters

Robert Plant's official website today announced five South American concerts in November for his Sensational Space Shifters. From November 1st to November 9th, the Sensationals will play three shows in Argentina, plus one each in Chile and Peru. Here's the full listing:

1. November 1, 2012 – Luna Park
   Argentina, Buenos Aires.
   www.ticketportal.com.ar


2. November 2, 2012 – Luna Park
   Argentina, Buenos Aires.
   www.ticketportal.com.ar


3. November 4, 2012 – Orfeo Superdomo
   Argentina, Cordoba
   orfeosuperdomo.com


4. November 7, 2012 – Arena Movistar
   Chile, Santiago
   www.feriaticket.cl


5. November 9, 2012 – Jockey Club
   Peru, Lima
   www.teleticket.com.pe

Robert Plant on Amy Cook's It's Gonna Rain

Singer/Songwriter Amy Cook was working on her new album, laying down a vocal track with guest artist Patty Griffin when a voice from the control room chimed in:

Do you mind if I give it a go?

In Cook's words: "I did not mind."

When the person offering to lend a vocal to your new album is Robert Plant, who would mind.

He sang it a couple of times and it was perfect.

"It" is the Cook song, It's Gonna Rain, which will appear on Cook's new album, Summer Skin, due for release August 28th.

The track can be previewed on Rolling Stone's flash music player.

Light and Shade: Conversations With Jimmy Page

Last October I mentioned a new book by Guitar World's Brad Tolinski called Light and Shade. At the time there was some confusion over release date. No more. A release date of October 23rd has been set.

Light and Shade: Conversations with Jimmy Pageis pieced together from a number of interviews Page has done with Tolinski, creating, "the closest thing Led Zeppelin fans will ever get to a published autobiography" according to the early press release.

The book can be pre-ordered for $16.07 through Amazon ($18.03 Kindle Edition?).

Robert Plant and his Walk Into Birmingham

Robert Plant and his Sensational Space Shifters brought their show to the US last week for a 2 shows, including Birmingham Alabama Sunday night at the Alabama Theatre.

While I've kept in touch with what the singer is doing enough to have a reasonable expectation what fans could have expected, I'm not on top of how well they performed, or how the performances went over. Thus, I use reviews to figure out how the night was. According to Alabama.com, Sunday night went exceedingly well, getting 5 stars out of 5:

When you're the 63-year-old lead singer of one of the most legendary bands on the planet, you can pretty much do whatever you want to.

That's why, while his homeland of England was showcasing U.K. rock 'n roll groups during the closing ceremony of the 2012 Olympics, Robert Plant rode through Alabama in the midst of a brief U.S. tour with his newest group, Sensational Space Shifters...

Right from the start, it was clear that this performance would be one that avoided being pigeonholed into a specific genre...

Robert Plant may not be as young as he once was. He may not be able to hit the highest levels or hold out the longest notes. And he probably didn't trash whatever hotel room he stayed in.
But the fact that the singer can continue to conjure new projects and mesh well with just about any musician is proof: he's still got it.

Reaction from Clarksdale on Saturday was similar. While in Clarksdale, Plant was honoured with an induction into the Mississippi Delta Blues Hall of Fame.