Megadeth bassist David Ellefson has announced a “Bass Chronicles” storyteller concert series. The trek will consist of four Midwest dates with Dead By Wednesday.
Tour Dates:
09/23 Pittsburgh, PA – Crafthouse
09/24 Akron, OH – The Empire Concert Club
09/25 Marietta, OH – The Adelphia Music Hall
09/26 Richmond, IN – The Firehouse
Ellefson’s “Bass Chronicles” band will feature vocalist Andre Vanchot (Eddie Ojeda Band), drummer Christian “Opus” Lawrence (Dead By Wednesday), and guitarists Dave Sharpe (Dead By Wednesday) and Drew Fortier (Bang Tango). The following was said about the shows:
“Each event will be presented as a chronological set filled with songs and stories spanning David’s legendary career, along with some deep cuts that have rarely (or never) been performed live from his catalog of work.”
Ellefson added:
“I’m excited to head out and hit the stage again as we’re preparing a special list of songs, including some rarities which have never been performed live.”
“People are excited about live shows again so we’re approaching these events like a traveling pop-up experience where you can catch a show, see a flick, buy some merch, and even break bread with the band at the VIP dinners. So, get ready for a full night out!”
Tickets and VIP dinner packages can be found HERE.
Ellefson Films, the film production company ran by Megadeth’s David Ellefson and music/film producer and industry exec Thom Hazaert, have announced that their award-winning horror film “Dwellers” will be released on Blu-ray/DVD/Digital on October 12. The movie, which was written and directed by musician, filmmaker, and actor Drew Fortier, will also be screened virtually on March 20 as part of the HorrorHound Film Festival’s “Midnight Madness” feature. That event will also include a Q&A with members of the cast. More info can be found HERE and the film’s plot can be found below:
“While shooting a documentary on the suspicious disappearances within the homeless community, a filmmaker and his crew go missing while uncovering a terrifying and vicious secret below the city’s surface.”
Megadeth bassist David Ellefson has announced that his fiction novel “The Sledge Chronicles: Rock Star Hitman” is now available as an audiobook. You can purchase the book on the platform of your choice HERE. Here’s a description of the novel:
“The Sledge Chronicles: Rock Star Hitman is the first chapter in the action-packed saga of Sledge; an up and coming musician who uncovers a startling quid pro quo: in exchange for achieving his dreams of Rock stardom, he must enlist as a ruthless killer for a clandestine agency. Filled with twists, turns, screams, and even laughs, Rock Star Hitman is the cult thriller you’ve been dying for.”
David Ellefson (Megadeth) has premiered a new video for his cover of AC/DC’s “Riff Raff.” The track, which features Dave Lombardo (ex-Slayer, etc.), Jason McMaster (Dangerous Toys), and Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal (Sons Of Apollo, etc.), is from Ellefson‘s new covers album “No Cover,“ which was released on November 20.
David Ellefson (Megadeth) has announced his first-ever fiction novel, “The Sledge Chronicles: Rock Star Hitman.” The bassist co-wrote the book with Drew Fortier and it will be released on December 18.
Here’s a description of the book:
“The Sledge Chronicles: Rock Star Hitman is the first chapter in the action-packed saga of Sledge; an up and coming musician who uncovers a startling quid pro quo: in exchange for achieving his dreams of Rock stardom, he must enlist as a ruthless killer for a clandestine agency. Filled with twists, turns, screams, and even laughs, Rock Star Hitman is the cult thriller you’ve been dying for.”
Ellefson commented:
“I’ve been on a quest to create an original thriller fiction book for some time now, and I’m beyond thrilled to announce it with ‘Rock Star Hitman’. I wanted there to be familiarity to my fans in an almost autobiographical way, but with characters and storyline which are clearly fictional. I think metal and horror/thriller fans are going to like it!”
Fortier added:
“David and I clicked really well when creating this story, because we’ve both lived the rock and roll tale ourselves. That’s why ‘Rock Star Hitman’ starts out like an autobiography from almost any musician but then takes a sudden and unexpected turn into a world of suspense, dark humor, and bloody brutal situations. As a horror/thriller fan myself we could almost write ourselves into our own story line. Plus, I think most everyone will relate to the daunting tales of selling one’s soul for a rock and roll aspiration… a story that in and of itself is close to me as well.”
David Ellefson (Megadeth) has released his cover of Queen’s “Sheer Heart Attack.” The track, which features Doro Pesch, Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal (ex-Guns N’ Roses, etc.), and Charlie Benante (Anthrax), is from Ellefson‘s new covers album “No Cover,“ which will be released on November 20.
David Ellefson (Megadeth) has released his cover of AC/DC’s “Riff Raff.” The track, which features Dave Lombardo (ex-Slayer, etc.), Jason McMaster (Dangerous Toys), and Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal (Sons Of Apollo, etc.), is from Ellefson‘s new covers album “No Cover,“ which will be released on November 20.
David Ellefson (Megadeth) has booked some socially distanced shows in support of his new covers album “No Cover” (out November 20). Saliva, The Crowned, and A Killer’s Confession will open on select dates.
Tour Dates:
With Saliva, The Crowned, & A Killer’s Confession:
10/30 San Antonio, TX – Historic Sunset Station
10/31 Slidell, LA – Browns Village Plaza
11/01 Houston, TX – Barge 295
With The Crowned:
11/18 Pekin, IL – Twisted Spoke Saloon
11/19 Indianapolis, IN – Emerson Theater
11/20 Chicago, IL – WC Social Club (‘No Cover‘ album release show)
11/21 Green Bay, WI – Phat Headz II (‘No Cover‘ album release show)
Ellefson commented:
“Like you, we’re all trying to make sense of everything right now. We got offered some shows in Texas with Saliva several months ago, and as things opened back up, we thought if they could be done as safely as possible, for us and our fans, it might be possible to do them. So we decided to try. And with ‘NO COVER‘ coming out in November, we wanted to try and play a few intimate, limited capacity shows around the release, just to get out briefly and say hello.
So we are excited to announce a handful of ‘NO COVER‘ CD Release events in the Midwest, with The Crowned, in addition to our upcoming TX/LA END OF DAYS shows with Saliva, The Crowned, and A Killer’s Confession!!!
We have safety plans and protocols in place for capacity, limited interaction meet and greets, etc, and we think we can still have fun, play great shows, and keep everyone safe. These are very intimate club events, some with extremely low capacity, which we are hoping will make it possible for us all to stay as safe as possible and have some fun and semi-normalcy for a night. Trust me, we are just as excited to come see you, as you are to see us.”
David Ellefson (Megadeth) has premiered a video for his cover of Cheap Trick‘s “Auf Wiedersehen.“ The track, which features Ministry’s Al Jourgensen, Anthrax’s Charlie Benante, and Crobot’s Brandon Yeagley, is from Ellefson‘s new covers album “No Cover,“ which will be released on November 20.
Megadeth bassist David Ellefson has announced that his new covers album “No Cover“ has been delayed until November 20. The effort was postponed after vocalist Thom Hazaert suffered “massive heart failure.”
Hazaert commented:
“There’s no easy way to say it, but in July, right in the middle of recording the album, I had massive heart failure and went into full cardiac arrest. My heart literally stopped for several minutes, and I was revived at the hospital.
There was a long recovery, but we managed to finish the record, and secure amazing deals with our friends at EARMusic, and Ward, but obviously we had to revisit our timeline a bit. And literally, maybe a month and a half later we were in Los Angeles, at Al’s house, shooting the video for ‘Auf Wiedersehen‘.
I’m just extremely humbled and thankful to be here to be able to, not only, finish this incredible record, but be able to see it released Worldwide with incredible label partners, which really almost wasn’t the case.”
“Originally we had envisioned ‘No Cover‘ as a smaller, limited release ‘quarantine project’ we were doing for fun with a bunch of our friends, really just to not have to release our studio album during the pandemic. But as it neared completion, and we really got to see what it was turning into, we realized it was worthy of so much more.
I have a long history and friendship with Max at EARMusic, and they are an incredible label, and home to some of our favorite artists, and friends – Alice Cooper, Def Leppard, and more, and we are ecstatic to be able to partner with them for not only this release, but future Ellefson releases as well.
Ward had already released ‘Sleeping Giants‘ for us last year in Japan, and we had secured a deal with them for our upcoming 2021 studio album, so it was a natural fit when we went to them with the idea of partnering with us on ‘No Cover‘.”
Ellefson added:
“It really was a crazy, whirlwind process, not only making such an involved album so fast, but also remotely, during a pandemic, with not only dozens of guests, but the entire band, spread around the Globe. And then, almost losing our singer in the middle of it.
But at the end of the day, it turned out better than any of us had hoped, and really was one of the most fun records I’ve ever made. It’s been great to pull so many great and positive things out of 2020, despite all the challenges.”
The following guests will be featured on “No Cover”:
Charlie Benante (Anthrax)
Eddie Ojeda (ex-Twisted Sister)
Al Jourgensen (Ministry)
Dave Lombardo (Suicidal Tendencies, ex-Slayer, etc.)
Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal (Sons Of Apollo, ex-Guns N’ Roses, etc.)
Brandon Yeagley (Crobot)
Dirk Verbeuren (Megadeth)
Frank Hannon and Troy Lucketta (Tesla)
Mark Slaughter
Jason McMaster (Dangerous Toys, ex-Watchtower, Evil United)
Greg Handevidt (Kublai Khan, ex-Megadeth)
Chuck Behler (ex-Megadeth)
Gus G (Firewind)
John Aquilino (Icon)
Doro Pesch
Jimmy DeGrasson (ex-Megadeth, etc.)
Dave McClain (Sacred Reich, ex-Machine Head)
Dave Alvin (White Trash)
Todd Kerns (Slash & The Conspirators)
Andy Freeman (Last In Line)
Jacob Bunton (Mick Mars)
Russ Parrish (Fight)
Christian “Opus” Lawrence (Dead By Wednesday)
“No Cover” Track Listing:
Disc One:
01. “Freewheel Burning” (Judas Priest cover) (feat. Jason McMaster, Gus G, Andy James, Dave McClain)
02. “Tear It Loose” (Twisted Sister cover) (feat. Eddie Ojeda, Dave McClain)
03. “Love Me Like A Reptile” (Motörhead cover) (feat. Doro Pesch, Greg Handevidt, Chuck Behler)
04. “Holiday in Cambodia” (Dead Kennedys cover) (feat. Charlie Benante, Bumblefoot)
05. “Rebel Yell” (Billy Idol cover) (feat. Paolo Caridi)
06. “Wasted” (Def Leppard cover) (feat. Frank Hannon, Jacob Bunton, Dave McClain)
07. “Riff Raff” (AC/DC cover) (feat. Jason McMaster, Dave Lombardo, Bumblefoot)
08. “Nailed To The Gun” (Fight cover) (feat. Andrew Freeman, Russ Parrish, Jimmy DeGrasso)
09. “Not Fragile” (Bachman-Turner Overdrive cover) (feat. John Aquilino, Paolo Caridi, Bumblefoot)
10. “Auf Wiedersehen” (Cheap Trick cover) (feat. Al Jourgensen, Brandon Yeagley, Charlie Benante)
Disc Two:
01. “Love Machine” (W.A.S.P. cover) (feat. Dirk Verbeuren, Dave Alvin, Bumblefoot)
02. “Love Hurts” (Nazareth cover) (feat. Brandon Yeagley, Chuck Behler, Tyson Leslie)
03. “Eat The Rich” (Krokus cover) (feat. Jason McMaster, Dave Sharpe, Opus)
04. “Sheer Heart Attack” (Queen cover) (feat. Bumblefoot, Doro Pesch, Charlie Benante)
05. “Over The Mountain” (Ozzy Osbourne cover) (feat. Andrew Freeman, Bumblefoot, Jimmy DeGrasso)
06. “Sweet FA” (Sweet cover) (feat. Todd Kerns, Bumblefoot, Shani Kimelman)
07. “Beth” (KISS cover) (feat. Tyson Leslie, Bumblefoot)
08. “Say What You Will” (Fastway cover) (feat. Mark Slaughter, Troy Lucketta)
The next single from “No Cover,” a cover of Cheap Trick‘s “Auf Wiedersehen,“ will be released on October 6. That track features Ministry’s Al Jourgensen, Anthrax’s Charlie Benante, and Crobot’s Brandon Yeagley and a teaser for the video can be found below:
