The UCR Podcast

Attention: King Crimson fans, let us all unite: Adrian Belew, Steve Vai and Tony Levin are BACK out there on the road as BEAT. This time around, legendary drummer Terry Bozzio joins the BEAT ranks. Before the tour launched, I had a conversation with Adrian to talk about the evolution of BEAT since things launched in 2024 and where things are headed. The tour still runs for another month and having...

It feels awfully good to type that word, "Savatage," next to Chris Caffery's name these days, after so many years of the band members primarily putting their focus on Trans-Siberian Orchestra touring. As you might know, they've been back out there this year playing Savatage concerts and they also dug up something really cool from the archives. Madness Reigns From the Gutter (1990) is the nambe of...

What's in a name? A lot of killer riffs, to name one thing. Trev Lukather joins us to talk about the rebirth of his band, Levara, and their first new single in five years, Underneath it All. Along the way, we talk about nepo babies, what fans can expect from Levara's upcoming album, collaborations with Christopher Cross and also, Richard Patrick of Filter and lots more. Our thanks to Trev for the...

With 38 Special continuing to celebrate their 50th anniversary, today we're revisiting a pair of previously unreleased conversations with the band's Don Barnes as well as former guitarist Jeff Carlisi. They spoke separately with Matt in May of 2022 to discuss the group's debut album which was turning 45 at that time. Don and Jeff also share plenty of additional stories behind the 38 Special radio...

Tom Morello has been a key sonic element of the music we've heard over the years, including (of course) Rage Against the Machine and Audioslave, plus Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band and also, his own solo work. We've heard Tom craft music in a lot of different genres, and now he's bringing the whole of what he's done throughout his career into focus with his newest solo album, Everyone Get...

We're pleased to present a special episode of the podcast today, featuring Peter Frampton, who sat down backstage at Nashville's historic Ryman Auditorium with Jeff Pilson and Luis Maldonado of Foreigner to discuss his long career and also, his appearance on Foreigner's newest single, "Trouble." Peter plays a new guitar solo on the song, which was originally recorded during the Head Games era. He...

Legendary Black Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi is with us today and we get into a lot of different things with him, including, of course, his upcoming solo album, From the Dark, which arrives October 23rd. Tony also tells us about his longtime friendship with Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull and we dig through some fun Sabbath stories as well!

Gil Moore of Triumph joins Matt to talk about the second leg of the Rock and Roll Machine Reloaded tour, which begins Nov. 17 in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Gil shares some Michigan memories and also looks back at how the first round of the band's reunion tour went, he discusses the possibility of new Triumph music, some archival releases that are on the way and more!

Living Colour's Corey Glover joins us, along with guitarist Michael Sanders, to talk about their new collaboration with the band One Tribe Nation. They've done a killer version of "The Wizard" by Black Sabbath and have a full album on the way later this year. We talk Sabbath, some of their own musical influences and Corey shares his memories of the moment that Living Colour's "Cult of Personality"...

Sebastian Bach is BACK and he's just as crazy as you remember. That's why we love him. He sings a bit and talks about a bunch of different topics, including his latest gig as the frontman for Twisted Sister, plus his contribution to the reimagined Transformers soundtrack and his plans for new music that are starting to take shape. Our thanks to Baz for stopping in! You can read parts of our conver...

We're happy to welcome Roland Orzabal of Tears for Fears to talk about his new book, WELCOME TO YOUR LIFE: Love, Death & Tears for Fears. The memoir was released earlier this month and is already a New York Times bestseller. We discuss a number of topics with Roland and fans will appreciate this new book, which is very honest and covers all aspects of his life and career in depth. You can read exc...

Lzzy Hale is with us today to talk about what it feels like to be part of the new Women in Metal exhibit at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. She also digs into the cover of Soundgarden's "Loud Love" that was recently released by the all-star collective King Ultramega, featuring Hale and former Pearl Jam drummer Dave Krusen as special guests. We also discuss her experience getting to front Skid Row,...

Former Metallica bassist Jason Newsted is here with us to talk about his current tour with the Chophouse Band, a run of concerts including dates with his friends Blackberry Smoke as well as longer headlining shows. Fans can expect an evening of music that touches on Jason's entire career -- and as he tells us, our shared musical heroes, as well. We dig through a lot of topics with Jason, including...

Rob LoVerde and Jim Davis of Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab join Matt today for separate conversations to discuss their approach to audiophile reissues of classic albums. They talk about some of their recent releases, including the Van Halen reissues from the David Lee Roth era, Stone Temple Pilots' Vol. 4 and the upcoming project that will find them tackling albums by Rush. Jim addresses how they've d...

Director Wes Orshoski is with Matt today to talk about Di'Anno: Iron Maiden's Lost Singer, his new film about late Iron Maiden vocalist Paul Di'Anno. We discuss the movie and also, the previous films that Wes has done about the Damned and Lemmy of Motorhead, plus his upcoming documentary about the Bar-Kays. We go deep into a number of topics, including Paul's history, the interview that Wes did wi...

Adria Petty and longtime producer/archivist Ryan Ulyate join Matt to discuss the latest Petty Legacy release, Live at the Paradise Rock Club 1978, which bottles a great performance from Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers recorded live in Boston in July of 1978. They discuss how the album came about and what was required to get it ready for release. Adria also shares a bit of insight regarding what fa...

Kim joins Matt to talk about his new memoir, A Screaming Life: Into the Superunknown with Soundgarden and Beyond. We go deep into the history of Soundgarden, including talking about some of their very first recordings. Kim revisits the glory years and the sound of some of their key records. We also discuss hanging out with the Ramones, getting Brian May on one of their songs and how classic rock h...

We've got a TON of coverage including lots of photos and videos of the first Rush reunion concert which happened last night (June 7) in Los Angeles at the Kia Forum. For today's podcast episode, Matt welcomes the person who was not only at the L.A. concert, but he's also responsible for hooking Matt up with tickets to the very first Rush concert he ever saw back in the '90s. Matt Surrena, a longti...

Legendary Sex Pistols bassist Glen Matlock joins us today to talk about his new documentary, I Was a Teenage Sex Pistol. Glen tells Matt about the formative days for the group, how things fell apart and how he's lived out some of his greatest dreams, quite unexpectedly, with some of his own musical heroes. He also shares his thoughts on the latest Sex Pistols chapter with Frank Carter.

Today, we're heading back to the '80s with Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull, who reflects on the work that the band did during that decade, including 1984's Under Wraps. There's a new "Unwrapped Edition" box set for the album that brings together new mixes, plus additional rarities and live material. He also tells Matt what's ahead for Jethro Tull

Billy Corgan is with us today to talk about the upcoming Smashing Pumpkins "Rats in a Cage" tour happening this fall to celebrate the 30th anniversary of their landmark double LP, Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness. We go into the history of the album with Billy, plus his experience working with Flood, saying goodbye (recently) to Zero, the effect of success on his songwriting in that era and...

April Wine guitarist Brian Greenway joins Matt to discuss his nearly 50-year history with the group. He takes us through his memories of recording many of the Canadian band's most popular singles, including the rocky road to finishing their beloved power ballad, "Just Between You and Me." He also talks about the group's current tour with Triumph, a particular concert bill back in the day that didn...

Guitar legend Ritchie Blackmore gives a rare interview to the UCR Podcast to discuss his history with both Rainbow and Deep Purple. He looks back at how Rainbow came to be and how the group progressed as they made their first two albums. He also gives Matt an update on his current health, how he hopes to return to the stage -- and he revisits the famous night that Christopher Cross stepped in for...

Joe Satriani is with Matt for the second installment of our two-part look at the upcoming SatchVai album. You can hear an interview with Steve Vai that was posted as our previous episode as well. Joe shares his view on the challenges and fun he's had working with his longtime collaborator and friend on songs for their first album together. He also talks about the most recent Las Vegas residency wi...

We've got conversations on tap featuring both Joe Satriani and Steve Vai. In our first episode, Steve joins Matt to talk about the current SatchVai tour as well as the album that's been taking shape. They also discuss other topics, including getting to revisit Van Halen's Jump for FIFA World Cup, his past work with John Lydon and Public Image Limited (an album which also featured Cream's Ginger Ba...