Just a few short months ago, Machine Head performed an emotional and now-legendary hometown show at the Fox Theater in Oakland. In celebration of the BME 26th Anniversary, watch the 2nd half of the 3 and 1/2 hour show here! Enjoy Head Cases!

Hey guys, Robb here.

Hope you and yours are doing well and are staying healthy through all of the craziness.

It is with great disappointment and frustration that we must inform everyone of the (not so shocking news) that the due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, rescheduled tour dates for 2020 of both Europe and Australia have been cancelled.  

These dates will not be rescheduled a third time, and all Machine Head tour dates have been pushed back indefinitely.

Venues unable to open or currently operate at capacity, along with travel restrictions, and potential quarantines has forced this decision onto us. At the moment, zero venues on the tour have been allowed to reopen, and are not expected to for the foreseeable future. As the Coronavirus continues to ravage the world, 17 of the 19 countries for the EU tour have banned US citizens, and vice-versa.

As you will know the majority of these dates have been rescheduled once already from the original onset of the pandemic, but without any sign of a likely time when these shows can be playable or a miraculous vaccine appearing, we are making the responsible decision to cancel all our forthcoming shows.

Full refunds will be available from point of purchase.

Until now, almost daily efforts have been made to figure out a way to keep the tours intact, these last 4 months have been a head fuck of major proportions, we had no idea and no blueprint of how to address many of the issues we were facing.  

As I have implied to you all, we lost a staggering amount of money on the US tour, money we were hoping to make up on the 2nd EU run.  And while you absolutely made it worth it, as each and everyone of you crazy motherfuckers who came out to the U.S. shows gave your blood, sweat, and tears (beers) for this band, now that these dates are officially off the table, we're gonna have to tighten our belts, and dig in for the long haul.

On behalf of both the band and management, I want you all to know how grateful we are for your continued support of Machine Head, it was a genuinely amazing doing this last go round of "Burn My Eyes" 25th anniversary dates for you all.  People often say metal fans are the most loyal and passionate in the world, Head Cases are that TIMES TEN!!!  

We do not know what the future holds, but want nothing more than to get back on the road, put on some MONSTER 3 hour shows for you guys, and RAGE with you all whenever this mess ends.

Sincerely hope to see you sooner rather than later.

Robb and Machine Head

Please leave birthday wishes and insults on our socials for vocalist, guitarist, band leader, chief beer drinker / hell raiser and all around swell guy Robb Flynn (aka: The Genera), (aka: The Inflynnerator), (aka: Snoop Robby Robb), (aka: Lord Brown Eye), (aka: Flynn Shady), (aka: Robbio), (aka: Flava Flynn), (aka: Super-cali-fragilistic-libtard-snowflake-social-justice-warrior-extraordinaire)!  Thanks for everything you do!

Beers up! 🍻

This weeks Robb Flynn acoustic happy hour 🥃🍻🍺🍷🍹(posted on Facebook Live) includes covers of Slipknot - "Snuff", Pearl Jam - "Black", Deftones - "Change", and Staind - "Outside", plus MH tunes "Is There Anybody Out There?" and "Circle The Drain"

Leave a tip!🤘🏻
https://www.paypal.me/backmachinehead

Bay Area metal icons MACHINE HEAD have released ‘Civil Unrest’, a 2-song digital single, featuring A-side, ‘Stop The Bleeding’ and B-side, ‘Bulletproof’, with the former featuring additional guest vocals from KILLSWITCH ENGAGE frontman, Jesse Leach.  This pair of fierce protest anthems were both written days after the back-to-back murders of George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery and many Hard Cases are championing as the "national anthem of 2020". They are not for the faint of heart. 

Attention Audiophiles: now available direct from Machine Head in glorious 24-bit, 44kHz highest resolution WAV format here at MACHINEHEAD1.COM .

The gritty performance video was directed and edited by Mike Sloat, shot on location on the streets of Oakland, CA, with Jesse’s part filmed in Kingston, NY with David Brodsky.  Watch the video below

Vocalist / guitarist Robb Flynn shares the inspiration behind the release, "I wrote and sang the lyrics on Wednesday May 27th 2020, the day that the four officers who murdered George Floyd were (originally) not charged with anything. This day was engulfed in protests and riots across America. I drove into Oakland, past large demonstrations already happening and in a fury wrote down everything I was feeling after watching the horrific footage.  Within hours, what I wanted to say, what I needed to say had been recorded in the song.”

“I decided to sing it over a song called ‘Stop The Bleeding’, that we had recorded back in December. 2018 with Jared [MacEachearn, MACHINE HEAD bass guitar] and Carlos Cruz [Warbringer] on drums.  

‘Stop The Bleeding’ features a guest appearance from KILLSWITCH ENGAGE frontman, Jesse Leach, seeing Flynn and Leach trading lyrical lines that spit anger and frustration at current events. 

Flynn continues, “I had been speaking with Jesse for maybe 6 months about singing on the song, as it always had a little bit of a Killswitch vibe to me.  Unfortunately (or fortunately), our schedules hadn’t lined up, but with the subsequent lockdown from coronavirus, we had time to make it work. After what happened to George Floyd, I sent him the lyrics I’d written and he replied saying he was “100% on board”. Jesse is someone I consider to be a pioneer and in many ways, one of the men who changed the face of metal. His contribution to this song made it extremely powerful and it’s an honor to have him be a part of it.”

Jesse Leach mirrors the sentiment, stating, “Being asked to be part of this song is an honor. Yes, because it’s Machine Head, but more importantly, this is a message that needs to be heard and spread. These issues concerning abuses of power and racism are timeless. I have written about these previously and I’ll write about them again. I think Robb really nailed this one, both lyrically and sonically. My hope is this song helps awaken those who hear it. Robb has been a frequent voice of the voiceless in these times, so teaming up with him is a no brainer.

We need more of our Metal Community to speak out on social issues and help raise awareness, especially during these crucial times. Music is the soundtrack to our lives, it transcends language and culture. This is the reason we as musicians need to do our part to spark thought and discussion on these types of issues. We can make a difference through music and we can help stop the bleeding.” 
 
MACHINE HEAD are donating a significant portion of their streaming proceeds from ‘Stop The Bleeding’ to http://grassrootslaw.org, the organization representing George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery.

The B-side, ‘Bulletproof’ is a new song, also recorded with Carlos and Jared back in December 2018.  Flynn adds, “The lyrics for ‘Bulletproof’ were finished in the aftermath of not only the Ahmaud Arbery murder at the hands of white supremacist, but everything twisting out of control in our World. The isolation and craziness of the pandemic, the lockdown protesters storming government buildings with AR-15‘s, as well as the blatant lies and conspiracies pouring out of our political leaders mouths, hour by hour, day after day.”

The songs needed something visually provocative as ‘sleeve artwork’, so the band looked to longtime collaborator Strephon Taylor who hand illustrated various elements from this moment in time, to make a powerful statement about America and the World.

Both tracks were produced by Robb Flynn (Machine Head, Roadrunner United, Sworn Enemy, Dress The Dead) and engineered by Zack Ohren (All Shall Perish, Suicide Silence)at Sharkbite Studios in Oakland, CA, with the devastating mix being handled by long-time MACHINE HEAD collaborator and producer extraordinaire, Colin Richardson (Carcass, Trivium, Slipknot) , together with Chris Clancy at Audioworks Productions UK.  The tracks were mastered by Ted Jensen (Gojira, Deftones) at Sterling Sound. 

Short 10 second video, iPhone is fine, knee on the ground, fist up, sunset in background (about 6:30 or 7:30 PM your time) landscape mode, with your phone camera on the side 

Mail to: jason@roaringmouseproductions.com

Subject: Machine Head

Released 4 years ago today, ITABOT remains one of the single most popular and polarizing songs in the bands entire catalogue.  And not without good reason.  Released 5 months in the aftermath of the "Racism In Metal" video, the song tackled the same racism, disgust, and disconnect from the world as the video did, in a short 4 minute blast music, that some felt was equal parts sell-out and betrayal.  

Yet 4 years later, it stands unchallenged as the #1 song on Spotify for Machine Head.  In fact, at no time during that 4 years, has any song taken if from the number one spot.  No song off "Catharsis" topped it, "Do Or Die" didn't top it, and while "Circle The Drain" did manage to bump it for 2 weeks, it returned immediately.

It is a verifiable MONSTER in the live arena, with the crowd often singing the fierce protest anthem so loud, the band can barely be heard.

Today it's meaning is even more necessary.  It stands as a powerful reminder, as protests rage across our country, combined with the glaring inequality exposed by the COVID-19 pandemic, that these words need to be screamed at the top of our lungs.

Do you remember hearing it for the first time?  Have you see Machine Head play this song live?  How has the song stood the test of time for you?

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