Las Vegas lit up in September 2018 when Imagine Dragons hit the stage at the iHeartRadio Music Festival inside the massive T-Mobile Arena. The setlist barreled through their biggest hits, with stadium-shaking takes on “Radioactive,” “Believer,” and “Thunder,” plus the live debut of “Zero” from ‘Ralph Breaks the Internet.’ Frontman Dan Reynolds commanded the room with the kind of raw energy that turned an arena full of strangers into one massive crowd.
Video: Imagine Dragons Tear Through Las Vegas At The 2018 iHeartRadio Music Festival
Guitar Giant Fender Levels Up Its DAW With AI Studio Assistant And Moises Integration In Pro 8.1
The company that put a guitar in everyone’s hands is sharpening its software side. Fender Studio announced Fender Studio Pro 8.1 today, the latest update to its award-winning DAW, packing in a set of co-production tools built to keep creators in the flow. The headline addition is Studio Assistant, an in-DAW, natural-language guide that delivers real-time answers, creative direction, and technical support, now in public beta for Fender Studio Pro+ users.
The update also marks an industry first with a built-in Moises Studio integration. The partnership brings vocal transformation, the ability to generate stems from existing tracks, and best-in-class stem separation directly into the DAW, with 10 stem separations, 120 stem generations, and 5 voice conversions per month at no extra cost.
A new native Vocal Tune Plug-in rounds out the marquee features, giving creators precise pitch control that runs from subtle correction to stylized tonal transformation with formant shifting. Pitch Curves on Audio Events let producers draw real-time pitch changes straight onto audio for expressive bends and clean fixes.
Under the hood, 8.1 adds scoring and articulation improvements, faster local stem separation, better Audio-to-Note conversion, a customizable browser, Dolby Atmos headphone personalization, and shared virtual instrument sets that cut setup time across sessions.
Max Gutnik, Chief Product Officer of Fender Electronics, framed the company’s approach to AI around the player, saying its value lies in how it helps musicians create, learn, and express themselves rather than in the technology itself. Artist and producer Josh Cumbee echoed the point, praising anything that keeps him working inside the DAW instead of breaking focus for a browser.
The release lands as Fender celebrates 80 years of building instruments, and the Fender Studio brand continues to pair PreSonus hardware and software with Fender’s legacy in tone. It’s a serious, artist-first toolkit that keeps the focus where it belongs, on finishing the music.
Pricing:
Perpetual License: $199.99 USD
Pro+ Annual Subscription Plus Perpetual: $179.99 USD
Perpetual License Upgrade: $99.99 USD
Monthly Subscription: $19.99 USD
Veteran Hollywood Actor Anthony Guidera, Of ‘The Godfather Part III’ And ‘Species,’ Dead At 61
Anthony Guidera, the American actor who built a steady career across some of the biggest films of the 1990s, has died at the age of 61. He passed away on June 6, 2026.
Born October 18, 1964 in San Francisco, Guidera landed his first role as a bodyguard in ‘The Godfather Part III’ in 1990. From there he became a familiar presence in major studio productions, with appearances in ‘Species’, ‘The Rock’, ‘The Postman’ and ‘Armageddon’.
His television work ran just as wide. Guidera guest starred in series including Renegade, Baywatch, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Angel, moving easily between action, drama and genre fare across a career that spanned from 1990 to 2005.
One of his most memorable moments came in 1996, when he and co-star Natasha Henstridge won the MTV Movie Award for Best Kiss for ‘Species’. The honor placed him alongside a roster of pop-culture moments that defined the era’s biggest ceremonies.
Guidera leaves behind a body of work that put him in the orbit of some of the decade’s most enduring films. He was 61.
Alt-Country Renegade Very Old Morris Drags You To Last Call On “Ladies’ Darts Night”
A basement bar at last call sets the scene for the first taste of Very Old Morris’ new record. The project shared “Ladies’ Darts Night,” the lead single from the forthcoming album ‘Boogedy Boogedy Boogedy Shoop’, out October 2 on vinyl, cassette and digital platforms. Very Old Morris is the solo project of San Antonio-based singer-songwriter Jerid Reed Morris of The Texases, featuring members of Sub Pop act Rose Windows.
The album lands as an irreverent love letter to ’90s radio country, the likes of Garth, George, and Alan, filtered through a contemporary alt-country lens. Recorded at Jett Bass Studios in Windcrest, Texas, it pairs pedal steel and fiddle with raucous guitars and surprise mariachis. Morris’ lean vocals dovetail with Jordan Bryant’s dulcet timbre and the band’s dense harmonies, cutting through the twang with something closer to dream-pop transcendence.
The lyrics swing between deadpan absurdity and emotional devastation. Opener “Howdy Arabia” plays out as a surrealist Western, “That’s No Way To Act” dissects modern masculinity over Gin Blossoms jangle, and closer “Long Oval” stops everything cold for a father-son reckoning about inheritance and forgiveness that earns its tears honestly.
The record also folds in two covers, Iron & Wine and Calexico’s “Sixteen, Maybe Less” rebuilt as a haunted his-and-hers duet with Bryant, and The Smashing Pumpkins’ “Thirty-Three” reborn as a banjo-driven two-stepper with a mariachi payoff. The eight originals carry the heart of it, a literate, hilarious, formula-subversive country record that sends up the genre’s greatest decade with real affection. Morris is just old enough to desecrate it properly, and the result sounds like nothing else out right now.
Holly Humberstone Strips Down Four Cuts On ‘It’s A Real Cruel World’ EP
Four of the year’s most beloved songs get pulled back to their bones. Holly Humberstone released ‘It’s A Real Cruel World’, a strikingly intimate EP that reimagines four standout tracks from her critically acclaimed second album ‘Cruel World’. The collection offers a fresh perspective on the originals, with new versions of “White Noise,” “Red Chevy,” “Cruel World” and “To Love Somebody.” Listen here.
The EP arrives during a landmark stretch for the British singer-songwriter. She’s delivered striking performances on “Later… with Jools Holland,” “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” and “Jimmy Kimmel Live!,” plus an appearance on the season one finale of “SNL UK.” In April, she released ‘Cruel World’ via Interscope Records, a record that has amassed over 83 million streams to date.
The album captures the tension between pain and pleasure, where chaos and acceptance sit side by side. Humberstone built a dark fairytale world of her own making, where childhood relics, monsters and memory collide, and her lucid storytelling carries it all. The stripped-back EP lets that songwriting breathe in its quietest form.
She’s taking the live show back on the road for a run of North American dates, with support from Diva Smith and Leyla Ebrahimi. The Cruel World North American Tour kicks off in June, with festival stops at Bonnaroo, Governors Ball, Summerfest and All Things Go Toronto, plus headline shows at venues like Los Angeles’ The Fonda Theatre, Boston’s Paradise Rock Club, DC’s 9:30 Club, Chicago’s The Vic Theatre, Minneapolis’ Varsity Theater and San Francisco’s The Fillmore. After the headline run, she supports Gracie Abrams at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles this December.
It’s a gorgeous, vulnerable companion piece that proves these songs hold up under any light.
Video: Rush Reunite At The Kia Forum As Aimee Mann Joins For “Time Stand Still”
A long white dress, a 40-year wait, and a roar that shook the Kia Forum. Rush opened their Fifty Something Tour in Los Angeles on June 7, their first show in 11 years, and the night delivered a moment fans had never seen live: Aimee Mann walked out to sing her parts on “Time Stand Still,” the 1987 single she recorded with the band but had never performed with them onstage until now. Mann sang her ethereal part on the choruses, marking their first live performance of the song together, 40 years after she sang on the studio version. Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson anchored the reunion, with German drummer Anika Nilles filling the chair once held by the late Neil Peart and Loren Gold handling keys, the band weaving multiple Peart tributes through a three-hour, 22-song set.
Stephen Wilson Jr. Drops Vivid New Single “Preacher’s Kid”
A church classroom where kids learned to speak in tongues sits at the heart of Stephen Wilson Jr.’s newest song. The Indiana-born, Nashville-based rising star released “Preacher’s Kid” today, the follow-up to his single “Gary,” currently sitting in the Top 40 on Billboard’s Country Airplay Chart. The new track digs into small-town memory and faith, drawn from a true story about exorcisms before lunch and a crying youth pastor who once preached an impending Armageddon.
Wilson Jr. wrapped real autobiography around the song, describing a world where the worldly was forbidden and a small town could feel like a world within a world. His writing turns the underbelly of a complicated upbringing into compelling storytelling, broken and conflicted in the way he says we all are.
The momentum keeps building. Last month he took home his first ACM Award for Visual Media of the Year for the video for “Cuckoo,” co-directed with longtime collaborator Tim Cofield. Their ninth collaboration arrived this year with the video for “Gary,” starring award-winning actor Gary Sinise. Wilson Jr. premiered that single with a performance on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, then carried it to This Past Weekend with Theo Von and The Howard Stern Show.
The road ahead is packed. Wilson Jr. plays Railbird Music Festival this weekend before returning to Nashville for a CMA Fest performance at Nissan Stadium. His headline Gary The Torch Tour runs through the US and Europe, alongside stops on the Outlaw Music Festival, a Dave Matthews Band support slot at the Gorge on September 4, and three nights backing Brandi Carlile at Red Rocks. The run closes with two Nashville shows at The Truth on December 11 and 12.
It’s a vivid, fearless single from a writer who keeps mining his own history for songs that hit deep.
2026 Tour Dates:
6/6 – Lexington, KY – Railbird Music Festival
6/7 – Nashville, TN – CMA Fest (LP Field)
6/20 – San Diego, CA – KSON Countryfest
6/26 – Chelmsford, UK – State Fayre
6/30 – Dublin, IE – Summer Series
7/3 – Irving, TX – Outlaw Music Festival
7/4 – Austin, TX – Willie Nelson’s 4th of July Picnic
7/5 – Woodlands, TX – Outlaw Music Festival
7/10 – St. Paul, MN – Minnesota Yacht Club Festival
7/11 – Winnipeg, MB – Winnipeg Folk Festival
7/17 – Spokane, WA – BECU Live at Northern Quest
7/18 – Whitefish, MT – Under the Big Sky Festival
7/23 – Floyd, VA – FloydFest
7/24 – Virginia Beach, VA – The Dome by Rutter Mills
7/25 – Baltimore, MD – Pier Six Pavilion
8/7 – St. Augustine, FL – St. Augustine Amphitheatre
8/8 – Raleigh, NC – Red Hat Amphitheater
8/18 – Maryland Heights, MO – Outlaw Music Festival
8/21 – East Troy, WI – Outlaw Music Festival
8/22 – Clarkston, MI – Outlaw Music Festival
8/23 – Noblesville, IN – Outlaw Music Festival
8/25 – Tinley Park, IL – Outlaw Music Festival
8/28 – Wantagh, NY – Outlaw Music Festival
8/29 – Bethel, NY – Outlaw Music Festival
8/30 – Saratoga Springs, NY – Outlaw Music Festival
9/4 – George, WA – Gorge Amphitheatre (supporting Dave Matthews Band)
9/6 – Los Angeles, CA – Hollywood Palladium
9/11–9/13 – Morrison, CO – Red Rocks Amphitheatre (supporting Brandi Carlile)
9/17 – Seattle, WA – Paramount Theatre
9/18 – Seattle, WA – Paramount Theatre SOLD OUT
9/19 – Portland, OR – McMenamins Grand Lodge (Concerts in the Grove)
9/22 – Nampa, ID – Ford Idaho Center Amphitheater
9/24 – San Francisco, CA – The Masonic
9/29 – Phoenix, AZ – Arizona Financial Theatre
10/15 – Belfast, UK – SSE Arena
10/17 – Sligo, IE – Sligo Live Festival
10/19 – Glasgow, UK – O2 Academy Glasgow SOLD OUT
10/20 – Glasgow, UK – O2 Academy Glasgow
10/22 – London, UK – O2 Academy Brixton
10/23 – Bristol, UK – The Prospect Building
10/25 – Manchester, UK – O2 Victoria Warehouse
10/27 – Paris, FR – Le Trianon
10/29 – Zurich, CH – Volkshaus
10/30 – Cologne, DE – Theater am Tanzbrunnen
11/1 – Utrecht, NL – TivoliVredenburg (Ronda)
11/3 – Copenhagen, DK – VEGA
11/4 – Stockholm, SE – Fållan
11/5 – Oslo, NO – Sentrum Scene
11/20–11/22 – St. Petersburg, FL – St. Pete Country Fest
11/21 – Birmingham, AL – Avondale Brewing Company SOLD OUT
12/2 – Pittsburgh, PA – Citizens Live at The Wylie
12/9 – Atlanta, GA – Coca-Cola Roxy
12/11 – Nashville, TN – The Truth SOLD OUT
12/12 – Nashville, TN – The Truth
1/20–23 – Cancun, MX – Dave & Tim Riviera Maya 2027
Video: Metal Titans Sepultura Captured At Their Peak In 1996 Pinkpop Festival Performance
A cultural revolution caught on tape, raging across a Dutch festival field. A high-definition recording captures Brazilian metal titans Sepultura at the legendary Pinkpop Festival in Landgraaf, Netherlands in 1996, during one of the most explosive periods of their career. Their album ‘Roots’ had landed just months earlier, its fusion of thrash, groove metal, and indigenous Brazilian tribal rhythms sending shockwaves through the metal world. The most revered lineup, brothers Max and Igor Cavalera alongside Andreas Kisser and Paulo Jr., stood at the absolute peak of its creative and commercial power. The setlist tears through their most iconic material, from the earth-shaking groove of “Roots Bloody Roots” to the anthemic fury of “Refuse/Resist,” commanding the massive crowd with unrelenting force. The footage carries real historical weight, documenting the final tour of the original lineup before Max Cavalera’s departure later that year, the end of an era preserved for anyone who wants to see one of the 90s’ most important metal acts at full power.
Philly Composer Jason Calhoun Maps Doubt And Grace On New Album ‘Revelations Of Divine Love’
A field recording of a sleeping dog helped finish one of the most quietly moving tracks on Jason Calhoun’s new record. The Philadelphia-based artist and composer announced ‘Revelations of Divine Love’ today, out August 7 on Dear Life Records. It’s his fifth release for the label, and the 14 tracks whirr, hum, and glow in shorter form than his recent work, trading extended hypnotic compositions for concise pieces that catch a fleeting moment and hold it close. Listen here.
Two singles introduce the project. “Tolstoy Tatsoi” works with abstracted, gestural melody unmoored from traditional rhythm, a tapping pulse Calhoun describes as disjointed yet in place, like tapping your foot to a song in your head while the radio plays something else. He calls it a leaky faucet syncopation that mirrors real-time thought.
The second single, “At Home,” came together when Calhoun’s dog and partner wandered into his studio and fell asleep on the floor. He recorded them snoring. Having recently moved, he was sitting with the joy of a new space, and their presence in the room helped complete the piece.
The album title nods to the British anchoress Julian of Norwich, whose collected writing of the same name is the earliest known work in English written by a woman. Calhoun returns to her famous line that all shall be well, then sits honestly with his own doubt about it, looking for small revelations in a partner asleep on the floor, surviving a conversation with a stranger, being bad at chess.
Away from the studio, Calhoun works at an oncology center, doing routine but necessary work to help provide treatment for those who need it. That sense of care runs through his music too, and ‘Revelations of Divine Love’ offers company as much as sound. It’s a deeply human record built from texture, tentative melody, and an open heart.
Track Listing:
01 “Too Shy”
02 “Last One”
03 “Tolstoy Tatsoi”
04 “Rare Goodness”
05 “Sextet”
06 “Enjoy Losing”
07 “Intermission”
08 “What We Deserve”
09 “Eye Dilation”
10 “At Home”
11 “Suicide Hotline”
12 “Hard To Tell”
13 “Quartet”
14 “Wake Up Ava”
Queen Tribute King Marc Martel Brings One Vision Of Queen To The Avalon Theatre This October
The closest thing to hearing Freddie Mercury live heads to Niagara Falls this fall. One Vision of Queen featuring Marc Martel returns to the Avalon Theatre on Thursday, October 1, bringing one of the world’s most spectacular Queen tribute shows to the Fallsview stage. Born in Montreal, Martel has built a global reputation on a vocal resemblance to Mercury so striking it stops people cold.
His voice carried into the 2018 Academy Award-winning film ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’, lending Mercury’s iconic sound to one of the biggest music movies of its era. Even Queen drummer Roger Taylor has marveled at it, saying you close your eyes and think it’s Freddie, calling the resemblance uncanny.
The show runs through the catalog Queen fans know by heart, with powerful vocals and an electrifying stage presence carrying every song. It’s a night built for anyone who ever wanted to stand in a room and feel those anthems land again.
Setlist Highlights:
“Bohemian Rhapsody”
“We Will Rock You”
“We Are The Champions”
“Another One Bites The Dust”
“Under Pressure”
“Somebody To Love”
“Crazy Little Thing Called Love”
Show Details:
Date: Thursday, October 1, 2026
Showtime: 8:30pm
Venue: Avalon Theatre
Tickets are on sale Friday, June 12 at 10:00am through ticketmaster.ca