Rating:   10/10 (1 votes)

Billy Howerdel is the founding member, guitarist, songwriter, and producer for the band A Perfect Circle. Howerdel functioned as a guitar technician for Tool during the tour and recording of 'Ænima,' working with Maynard James Keenan, whom he met in 1992. During this time, Howerdel played Keenan some of his songs, and Keenan offered his vocals if Howerdel ever decided to form a band. Despite originally considering a female singer, Howerdel would eventually accept Keenan's offer. In 1999, Howerdel founded A Perfect Circle, and invited Keenan to join in as the singer.

Billy Howerdel's new band Ashes Divide have officially inked a deal with Island Records and released 'their' debut album on April 8, 2008. Howerdel handled nearly all the instruments in the studio for the release, sans the drums for which he recruited session-man Josh Freese.

Rating:   10/10 (1 votes)

Sevendust is an alternative metal band from Atlanta, Georgia. They formed in late 1994 under the name Crawlspace but later were forced to change their name to Sevendust when a group from the West Coast claimed rights to Crawlspace. They were originally signed to TVT Records, but then released their fifth album with Winedark Records (through Universal Music) in the US, and Roadrunner Records overseas. Currently, they are signed to their own label 7 Bros. Records in conjuction with Asylum Records.

Sevendust quickly returned to the studio at the end of November 2007 to finish up their 7th studio album, titled 'Chapter VII: Hope and Sorrow.' The record was originally slated for a release of March 4, 2008. However, the release date was changed to April 1. The album debuted at #19 on the Billboard 200. Chris Daughtry makes an appearance on Hope and Sorrow along with Alter Bridge members Myles Kennedy and [/b]Mark Tremonti.[/b] Sevendust toured Australia in March 2008, opening for Ozzy Osbourne.

On March 26, 2008, Sevendust announced that Clint Lowery, former guitarist and vocalist for the band, has quit his duties as guitarist for Dark New Day and will be returning to the Sevendust lineup in place of Sonny Mayo. On Lowery's return, Morgan Rose stated "This was extremely tough considering Sonny is our brother and has been amazing to work with. [Sonny] didn't do anything wrong at all; we just owe it to ourselves and all the folks that grew up with us to put our original band back together."

Rating:   10/10 (1 votes)

Alter Bridge was formed in 2004 by former Creed members Mark Tremonti, Scott Phillips, and Brian Marshall. Marshall didn't appear on Creed's final album Weathered. He left Creed in 2000 because of differences with singer Scott Stapp, but joined his former band mates in this project. Singer Myles Kennedy, formerly of The Mayfield Four, joined the Orlando-based band later. The band members originally met Kennedy when his former band The Mayfield Four toured with Creed in 1998.

The band juggled several names before settling for Alter Bridge. The name comes from a bridge on Alter Road, close to Tremonti's childhood home. The bridge is at the intersection of Alter and Korte, which forms the border between the city of Detroit, Michigan and the city of Grosse Pointe Park, Michigan. The bridge signified a boundary to Tremonti when he was a child. His parents didn't want him crossing the bridge because the neighborhood on the other side wasn't considered safe enough for him to play as a child. Other names considered for the band include Downright Solace, and One Day Remains (which would become the title of their debut album).

The band was signed to Wind-up Records and released said debut album on August 10, 2004. The album produced three hit singles and was certified gold in the US, and platinum internationally. In addition, the song "Metalingus" was modified by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and used as the theme song for Adam "Edge" Copeland, starting in October of that year. About a year later, the band appeared on an episode of WWE Raw in 2005 during Edge's worked shoot feud with Matt Hardy, as they were shown backstage with Adam Copeland, who cited them as his good friends.

In April 2006, Alter Bridge announced that they had terminated their contract with Wind-Up Records, securing the rights to much of their studio and live catalog. The split was due to the pressure put on Tremonti, Phillips, and Marshall to reunite with Scott Stapp and reform Creed. By May 25, 2007, they had finished recording the new album. On July 9, 2007, it was announced that the band was signed by Universal Republic Records.

Their next album, titled 'Blackbird,' was released on October 9, 2007. The first single off the new album is titled "Rise Today," and was released for digital download on July 30, 2007.