AC/DC
AC/DC Star Rudd's Drug Conviction Dismissed
AC/DC rocker Phil Rudd has seen his conviction for cannabis possession quashed by a judge in New Zealand so it won't prevent him from touring the world with the band.
The drummer was caught with 25 grams (0.35 ounces) of the drug in October (10) following a police raid on his boat.
In November (10), Rudd pleaded guilty to the charge, but a judge rejected his lawyer's request for a discharge without conviction, after he argued a criminal record could hinder the musician's international touring duties in countries including America and Japan.
Community Magistrate Robyn Paterson criticised the star for "blindly ignoring the law" and the rocker received a fine.
But on Thursday (31Mar11) the conviction was wiped from Rudd's record and because his offence was at the "lower end of the scale" he was discharged without conviction, on the condition he paid $1,100 (£688) to cover the prosecution costs, reports Reuters.
Speaking after the ruling, Rudd told reporters he was "relieved".
Gabe Saporta Shows Off New Love
Lonely Rocker Gabe Saporta has found love at last - he's reportedly dating fashion designer Erin Fetherston.
The Cobra Starship frontman accompanied the blonde beauty to a star-studded party for Paper magazine at the Good Units nightclub in New York on Wednesday night (30Mar11).
According to New York Post gossip column Page Six, the couple was seen smooching during the event and Saporta introduced Fetherston to pals as his girlfriend.
The rumoured romance is good news for the rocker - in February (11) he moaned about spending Valentine's Day alone for the second year in a row.
Guns N' Roses Star Ashba To Undergo Knee Surgery
Guns N' Roses star DJ Ashba has confirmed he is to undergo surgery to repair a torn knee ligament.
The guitarist has injured his leg and he went for a consultation with doctors this week (beg28Mar11).
He uploaded a picture on his Facebook.com page, showing him dressed in a hospital gown and undergoing an MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scan, and he added a message telling fans about his upcoming operation.
He writes, "MRI Update: I have a 9mm tear in my knee, so I'm off to the surgeons, not getting surgery on my knee today but, setting up the surgery date. Fun fun!"
Gabriel To Give His Hits A Classical Makeover For Next Album
Rocker Peter Gabriel has returned to the studio to rework his classic songs with an orchestra for the follow-up to his acclaimed 2010 symphonic covers album Scratch My Back.
The former Genesis star gave songs by David Bowie, Lou Reed and Magnetic Fields a classical makeover on his last release and now he's planning to do the same with his own material from 14 albums.
He'll reteam with his New Blood Orchestra for the project, which will start up following a 12-date North American tour this summer (11).
Fleet Foxes Star Pecknold Hates The Internet
Fleet Foxes frontman Robin Pecknold is urging fans not to limit their consumption of music to the internet because he's convinced the web is no substitute for buying real records and reading rock magazines.
The folk rocker fears many devotees who spend their time online are "inundated with garbage" and are more likely to dismiss new bands after reading short reviews on Twitter.com instead of poring over long print articles about new music.
He tells Britain's The Independent, "If you choose to pay attention to music on the internet, it can be overwhelming. You can get inundated with garbage. And it's still not the best way to hear music. I still prefer recommendations from friends...
"You'd think there would be all these 50-page articles (online) examining the records, but now all you get are 'Tweet'-sized reviews. There are many more opinions, but not necessarily more thought-out opinions."
Pecknold also believes fans now miss out on the experience of buying a record and holding it in their hands, adding, "If you think about the memories you have, they're about so much more than you get on a computer: things like... what it smelt like and tactile things. But if you are just looking at a computer screen, it's just this void of information. Will I look back and think about the way the computer screen looked...?"