Neal Morse returns once again to mainstream progressive rock with the September 11 release Momentum, to be followed by a North American tour.

Something of a firestorm broke out among some when David Lee Roth offhandedly confirmed that Van Halen had reworked some old songs for its then-still pending reunion project, A Different Kind of Truth.

Keyboardist Jon Lord, a key element of the Deep Purple sound and co-writer of their signature track “Smoke on the Water,” has died at 71. He had battled pancreatic cancer since a diagnosis last August.

From getting the plug pulled, to reportedly plugging in with celebrated producer Mark Ronson, it’s been a busy week for Paul McCartney.

I’m not sure if it’s the composing pen of someone who’s soaked in Ani DeFranco, Tool, Metallica and Shakti, or the insertion of an electric bass among all those acoutsic string instruments or

Get ready to tear into new releases from John Frusciante of Red Hot Chili Peppers fame, Jimbo Mathus of Squirrel Nut Zippers fame, Susanna Hoffs of Bangles fame, and Soul Asylum — of one-hit wonder fame.

It’s not the words you string together, but how you put them together that counts.

Soul Asylum is back following a six-year gap between projects, the last of which was completed by Dave Pirner and Co. as bassist Karl Mueller succumbed to cancer.

Mortality and the very, very thin line between life and death, those ideas quietly rumble just beneath the surface on most of The River‘s more serious tracks.