Stone Axe, Grifter, and Iron Claw Ready for the Official North American Release of New Albums in the Wake of their Triumphant Appearances at Desertfest

By all accounts, the crowds were blown away.  Rocking the Midlands hailed Stone Axe's recent route through the U.K., as "the best kept secret in rock!"  The Obelisk called Grifter's Desertfest show "no bullshit rock n roll" and "the destination I'd been running to all day."  And famed rock critic, Mark Taylor, from Touchline Live Music andMetaltalk.net, claimed that finally seeing Iron Claw live as they took the Desertfest stage was a "skullcrushing joy." 

So, after planting the flag of hard-driving retro rock firmly in the heart of the U.K., what do the trifecta of Ripple bands do for an encore?  They ready themselves for the official North American release of their latest albums!  Officially released on April 10, Ripple Music is proud to unleash Stone Axe II Deluxe Edition 2 CD set, Stone Axe Captured Live at Roadburn, Grifter's self-titled debut and Iron Claw A Different Game.  

With the blazing resurgence of true retro-rock taking hold all over the world, these four releases will be at the top of every heavy music lover's lists.  Fans are ready to bask in the guitar heroics of Tony Reed, the gritty biker rock of Grifter and the true retro-resurrection of legendary U.K. doom-sayers, Iron Claw. 

Released through Nail Distribution across the U.S. and Canada, with world-wide digital distribution through the Allegro Media Group, you can expect to find these releases at a record store near you, and as always through the Ripple Music Store.  Add to this onslaught the critically-hailed Trucker Diablo album The Devil Rhythm and Mos Generator's 10th Anniversary Deluxe reissue LP, and it's clear that the time has finally come for real rock and roll to reclaim it's rightful place upon the throne.

 
Here’s what the press is saying:

"This one helluva album, and with all the revived interest in 60's - 80's rock and metal going on at the moment this set will help mark out Stone Axe as one of the very best in their field. and long may they continue. Hell if you have already got this album its worth getting again for the bonus disc alone. 5/5" -- The BCFM Sunday Rock Show

"Grifter is the best classic rock band around" - Captain Zen Beyond 

"Scotland's Proto-Metal pioneers, Iron Claw, return with a long-awaited album of gritty, blues-based melodic heavy rock that is already garnering album-of-the-year accolades." - Puregrainaudio


 

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Iron Claw Unleash New Single "Final Hour" Debuting New Singer, Gary Hair--Available as Exclusive Limited-Time Download via The Soda Shop

Capping off a year that found Scotland's Iron Claw being hailed as the Rock n’ Roll comeback story of the Decade, Iron Claw has roared back to build upon the momentum and notoriety gained in 2011.   Rightly hailed as one of the silent legends, the pioneers of British Heavy Metal and Hard Rock, with their Ripple Music debut, A Different Game, Iron Claw proved that their role in Rock history shall never go unspoken again. A hard biting, bluesy album found the band re-energized and vibrant on their first ever official releases.   After separating with vocalist Gordon Brown, Iron Claw conducted an extensive, nationwide search to find their new lead singer, Dumphries native, Gary Hair, then immediately ducked into the studio to put their new vocal chords to work. Now, having emerged fully refreshed, revitalized and a bit meaner, Iron Claw are ready to unleash their new single, "Final Hour" onto a rock-loving world. As bassist Alex Wilson puts it, Gary brings a "heavier direction to the band, more hard rock energy and passion. This should mark a return to an even heavier, rockier Iron Claw sound." A sound befitting of a band that has rightly become legendary among underground metal fans. As a special bonus, Ripple Music and Iron Claw have teamed up with heavy rock leader, The Soda Shop, to present and exclusive premiere of "Final Hour" and the video, streaming on The Soda Shop website. And for 24 hours only, on March 15th, "Final Hour" can be downloaded from The Soda Shop for free. Don't miss out on your chance to catch this latest chapter in the ongoing rock and roll history that is Iron Claw. Check out "Final Hour" here, and download it for free on March 15th. And don't forget to check out A Different Game, still available on Ripple Music and world-wide through Nail Distribution, Code 7 Distribution, Clearspot International and at the label’s web store.     Here’s what the press are saying: "The songs crackle along, the voice conveys experience and resolve, the solos tasteful. An effortlessly playable collection of working man's hard rock, and a heartening reassertion of power from metal's forgotten founding fathers. 8 out of 10" -- Metal Hammer, Issue 225 "Scotland's Proto-Metal pioneers, Iron Claw, return with a long-awaited album of gritty, blues-based melodic heavy rock that is already garnering album-of-the-year accolades." - Puregrainaudio   "This is a solid, dynamic, vintage rock ‘n roll record, 13 tracks spanning 57 minutes yet hardly a dull moment to be found. A Different Game is more of the same—high quality heavy rock unearthed from the underground" - Hellbound.ca   "My first listen to A Different Game should not have been in my car: the rear speakers are nearly blown. Thanks to the heavy end of Iron Claw, they're likely obliterated!" - Dangerdog.com   RIPPLE MUSIC Also available at CDBaby, Amazon.com, and eBay.

Stone Axe Return to UK/Europe in Support of New Deluxe Release

The cream of the retro rockin’ resurgence crop has announced that they’re making their long anticipated return to the shores of the United Kingdom and northern Europe this April! Stone Axe are loading the road cases, fine tuning the live set, and packing fresh clothes for the 2012 edition of their European Tour with Stubb and Trippy Wicked, once again, performing in the support slots. Last year, Stone Axe went overseas to support the Expanded Edition of their first album and, in the process, turned heads and made a ton of new fans and friends. This year, Stone Axe is touring in support of the 2-disc Deluxe Edition of the band’s second album, featuring the highly regarded follow up to the debut, as well as a bonus disc packed with vinyl only releases and rare oddities from the Stone Axe vault. The ten day tour will take these classic rock preservationists throughout England, Scotland, The Netherlands, and parts of Germany as they revisit some of the choice spots from the year before, and tackle new venues in search of new fans looking for a show with some substance. Of key note, Stone Axe will be performing two sets at the inaugural Desertfest held in London; one set being under the name Stone Free as the band performs a free set from the band’s greatest influence, Free! Stone Axe II – Deluxe Edition will be available in the UK/Europe by or on April 2nd, 2012 and on April 10th, 2012 throughout the U.S. STONE AXE on the road with STUBB & TRIPPY WICKED April 5th Scrutty Murphy's - Birmingham UK April 6th Desertfest (2 sets) - London UK April 7th Stereo Cafe Bar – Glasgow, Scotland April 8th - TBA April 9th The Star and Garter - Manchester UK April 10th The Rambler - Eindhoven NL April 11th Immerhin - Wurzburg DL April 12th AJZ - Bielefeld DL April 13th Oetinger Villa - Darmstadt DL April 14th The Vortex - Siegen DL Here’s what the press is saying: “Stone Axe is an American analomy, maybe a treasure: resurrecting and revitalizing the best of classic Seventies rock in a modern context. They do it right and do it well. Fans should scoop this up, and newcomers, too. Recommended." –Dangerdog "This one helluva album, and with all the revived interest in 60's - 80's rock and metal going on at the moment this set will help mark out Stone Axe as one of the very best in their field. and long may they continue. Hell if you have already got this album its worth getting again for the bonus disc alone. 5/5" -- The BCFM Sunday Rock Show

Mos Generator 10th Anniversary Edition LP/CD Set for North American Release

Mark it on your calendars, the deluxe edition of the debut Mos Genrator album, featuring a full length LP, a CD with previously unreleased tracks and a full incendiary live concert, and a digital download of further live, demo, and jam tracks will be available throughout North America on April 10th, 2012! In conjunction with Nail Distribution, Ripple Music is proud to announce that this quintessential debut album and amazing musical package will now be available to a wider market of insatiable rock n’ roll fans. “This Mos Generator package is one of those sets that speaks to the lifelong Mos fan, as well as those who are discovering the band for the first time,” states Tony Reed, singer and guitarist for the band. “It was a goal for myself and the label to create a package that was affordable, something that looked cool, and was packed with some special moments from the bands ten year history.” Featuring over two and a half hours of music, the Mos Generator 10th Anniversary Edition was designed with the music fan in mind. The package includes three popular formats for listening to the bands 70’s-inspired hard rock in the way of 12” vinyl, CD, and digital download, and all packaged in an eye-popping 12” gatefold jacket. Here’s what the press is saying: “ . . . like the rampaging inhabitants of a sonic Jurassic Park; thunderously heavy, jaw droppingly magnificent and maybe just a little bit scary. This is music that went extinct many years ago, but against all expectation and logic, here it is alive and thriving in the modern age. 4/5”  --  The BCFM Sunday Rockshow "Of all the second-wave Sabbath types, these guys were and remain by far the most original, with tricky prog tempos, tunefully sludgy Tony Iommi-style lo-register riffage and a sense of humor to rival their sense of purpose. If metal is your thing and you slept on this stuff when it first came out – and a lot of people did, this was before myspace, let alone youtube – now’s a good time to rediscover them."  --  Lucid Culture “Really a fantastic package all around. Once again Ripple Music not only delivers the goods, but they go the extra and exceed all my expectations on this one."  --  Heavy Metal Time Machine   RIPPLE MUSIC STORE Also available at CDBaby, Amazon.com, and Ebay    www.ripple-music.com

Ripple Music Announces Sponsorship and Grand Prize Recording Contract for TBFM Factor 2012

Ripple Music, home of the "Best retro-rock and metal on the planet" is thrilled to announce it's sponsorship of TBFM Factor 2012 - the biggest "on-air" battle of the bands ever! TBFM Factor 2012 is presented by internet radio station Total Biker FM, home of hard-driving rock n' roll. This is the second time the station has presented this competition. With so much talent out there TBFM wanted to help promote the top bands and hopefully give them the boost up the ladder that they deserve by setting up a fan voted competition. In 2010, the station was not fully prepared for what turned out to be an amazing competition with over 4 million hits during the final week which crashed the servers TWICE! The competition was such a great success, they decided to bring it back in 2012, bigger, better and more prepared! The competition is set over 15 weekly knockout weeks. Music from 10 bands each week will get airplay on the Sunday Show on Total Biker FM and then fans get to vote for one week on which band deserves a place in the final. After 15 weeks, a final place is given to a wildcard, which will be the highest voted for runner up from all the knockout stages. On week 16 the epic final takes place. All 16 bands get featured on air on a special 4 hour show and then all week during all regular shows while fans vote again for the best band of the competition. The winning band will receive some great prizes including the top prize of an exclusive one album record deal with American label Ripple Music. This is one lucky band's opportunity to join with Ripple Music and become a label-mate of such roaring artists as Mos Generator, Trucker Diablo, Stone Axe, Iron Claw, Grifter, Poobah, JPT Scare Band and Fen. More prizes are on offer for the finalists ranging from musical equipment to website memberships to free record mastering. Registration closes on 31st March, 2012 and the competition gets under way on June 10th, 2012 with the grand final in September. More information on the bands taking part, how to register, prizes and sponsors can be found at www.tbfmfactor.com 150 bands take part over 16 weeks… only one winner! And a Ripple record contract is the Grand Prize! Important dates are as follows:Registration closes 31st March 2012 Qualifying Bands Line-Up announced 13th May 2012 Competition starts 10th June 2012 for 15 weeks The final will be on 23rd September 2012 Winner announced 30th September 2012 www.ripple-music.com For further information, please contact: John Rancik Ripple Music ripplemusic9@aol.com

POOBAH's Jim Gustafson Signs Endorsement Deals with Morley, EbTech, and Dr. Frets!

Some call him The Wizard of Psyche. Some call him Mr. Destroyer. Some just call him Jim Gustafson, the guy with endorsement deals from Morley Pedals, EbTech, and Dr. Fret’s Guitar Products! The Poobah lead man has been swearing by these products for a number of years and expresses a loyalty to a product that helps continue to make him sound killer! “When it’s time to rock, it’s nice to know that I have dependable people and products in my corner,” states Poobah guitarist/vocalist Jim Gustafson. “Having gear crap out on you while performing in front of a packed house is a drag, so it’s nice to have someone I can rely on.” When he’s not on stage tearing through numbers from the award-winning Poobah album, Let Me In, Jim Gustafson can be seen hob-nobbing with the likes of Billy Cox (Jimi Hendrix), Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini, and even Joyce DeWitt (Three’s Company). The recent engagement that had Billy Cox and Jim Gustafson meet up isn’t the first time that these two 70’s rock icons have crossed paths. In fact, Billy Cox produced the very first Gustafson album, which led to Gustafson opening for Cox's band, Nitro Function in Nashville! If you’d like to hob-nob with the Poobah great, well . . . you can! Check out Poobah live at the following locations in early Spring! Mar. 3rd – Outpost – Marrietta, OH - 8:00pm Mar. 9th – Pete’s – Sutton, WV - 8:00pm Mar. 10th – Pete’s – Sutton, WV - 8:00pm Mar. 16th – Spielers Club – Proctor, WV - 8:00pm Mar. 31st – Birdies Rec – Sebring, OH - 8:00pm Apr. 7th – Lemon Grove – Youngstown, OH - 9:00pm www.poobahband.com Here’s what the press has to say about Let Me In: "You could go broke and mad trying to locate – and endure – every "great lost album" cherished by fanboys from the homegrown-pressing underground of the late Sixties and Seventies. The 1972 debut by the Ohio trio Poobah is one of the few that was – and still is, as hard Seventies boogie goes – great.”  --  David Fricke, Rolling Stone Magazine, Fricke's Picks: Top 2010 Reissues from Under the Radar   "An unmissable slice of newly-refurbished rock history. Poobah were extraordinarily sharp and effective as a unit, peeling off semi-improvised jams that crackled with vitality and a healthy dose of mischief. This reclaimed curio gleams like a diamond." -- Classic Rock Magazine  "A psychedelic, proto-metal masterpiece!  Gustafson’s sun-baked, bluesy playing is shockingly terse, especially for this kind of music. As long and convoluted as some of these songs are, he doesn’t waste notes, tossing off one brief, incisive riff after another with a heavy lidded leer.  The whole thing ranks with Flower Marching Band, the original Iron Maiden and Sir Lord Baltimore as one of the classics of early metal." -- Lucid Culture   Jim Gustafson with Billy Cox                       Jim Gustafson with Joyce DeWitt

Trucker Diablo's "Drink Beer, Destroy" Debuts on ROCK BAND™ for XBox

 

Ripple Music is proud to announce that the rising hard-rock band from Northern Ireland, Trucker Diablo, in addition to being scheduled to appear at Hammerfest next month, have just made their debut on the hit game ROCK BAND™ for XBox.

 

The band's epic party song "Drink Beer, Destroy" has been available for download and game play through the ROCK BAND™ Network Store. Fans have already been posting videos and photos of their attempts to master the high-energy Trucker Diablo track. You can check out a shot at the high-score courtesy of Vargtime on YouTube at this location. One fan went as far as to re-create the band members as ROCK BAND™ avatars and posted it on Facebook. Images can be seen here . . . Trucker Diablo

Ripple Music, the home of authentic, retro rock and metal, signed Northern Ireland’s most explosive rock n’ roll importafter hearing how the band blew away the crowds at 2011’s Download Festival where they also made fast friends with Def Leppard's, Joe Elliot, Thin Lizzy's Ricky Warwick and none other than Dee Snider.

Since then, there's been no looking back for Trucker Diablo or Ripple Music as the band's debut The Devil Rhythm has been garnering widespread accolades and lead off single/video "Drink Beer, Destroy" has been getting steady play on BBC Radio 1, Kerrang Radio and Kerrang TV. The Devil Rhythm has been converting rock fans the world over with it's cohesive, unified, high energy rock tracks, slick and polished indelivery, but served up raw and forceful. "Drink Beer, Destroy" has proven to be an instant classic that has fans raisingtheir fists and singing along to the anthemic chorus. And it doesn't stop there. "Juggernaut" features a guest appearance by vocalist, Ricky Warwick, the acclaimed voice of The Almighty and now Thin Lizzy. "Stand Up And Fight" is another song from the album that sounds as though it should be played before an arena-sized stadium crowd. The song "Voodoo" is a blues-rock number with a good groove. "Big Truck" is yet another example that TRUCKER DIABLO can compete with the best when it comes to hard rock, combining a massive chorus with chugging guitars.

 

And in case you haven't had the opportunity to experience the Big Truck live, Trucker Diablo has announced a series of UK dates centered around Hammerfest that will see the band heading from Ireland over to England and beyond. Tour dates are below.

 

Lock up your daughters and hide your wives, cause when the big Truck rolls into town, high -octane rock mayhem will be sure to follow!

 

The Devil Rhythm is now available at the Ripple Music Store and world-widethrough Clearspot International in Europe and Code 7 Distribution in the UK on February 6th, 2012.

 

 

RIPPLE MUSIC

Also available at Amazon.com

TRUCKER DIABLO is:

 

Tom Harte - Guitar, Vocals
Simon Haddock - Guitar, Vocals
Glenn Harrison - Bass
Terry Crawford - Drums

 

 

 

www.ripple-music.com