Hola rockheads so we've survived the Saving Abel show (barely) and now it's Christmas week so I'll throw down a few tidbits for you to keep you satisfied through the holidays and get back with you on Monday as I take a loooooong overdue vacation from you crazy bastards! So let's start off with my boys in Slipknot...

Slipknot frontman Corey Taylor slammed -- and we mean slammed -- Coldplay in an interview for MTV2's year-end wrap-up, according to NME.com. When asked to comment on Coldplay's Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends, Taylor exclaimed, "That is one of the most self-celebratory pieces of s*** I've ever f****** heard in my entire f****** life. Go suck a f****** d***. Are you watching, (Coldplay singer Chris) Martin? Suck it. Go eat a bag of s***. I f****** hate that album. It's music to wipe your a** to."

Viva La Vida... is Coldplay's fourth studio album. It topped the charts in the U.S. and 35 other countries when it came out in June, and has sold two million copies alone in the States.

Meanwhile, Slipknot's latest release, All Hope Is Gone, has been certified gold for moving more than 500,000 copies since its August 26th arrival, with sales now closing in on 600K.

All Hope Is Gone became Slipknot's first Number One debut on the Billboard chart after an unprecedented recount showed that the disc had actually sold 1,134 copies more than The Game's LAX. Initial results had The Game beating Slipknot by a mere 13 copies.
 

Speaking of Saving Abel they issued a special holiday cover of the Christmas classic "Silent Night" to radio stations around the country on Friday (December 19th). The band is heading home to Mississippi after nearly a year's worth of touring, and singer Jared Weeks told us he's looking forward to being home for the holidays with his family: "Yeah, I'm excited about getting to go home, you know. Like, Christmas is always one of my favorite times of year. It always has been. It's usually when, you know, my family would come over and bring out the guitars and start playing Christmas music or whatnot. And we always have a ritual of sitting down and watching National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. That's strictly a classic in our house, man."

Saving Abel's latest music video, for the song "18 Days," is dedicated to U.S. troops serving overseas. The band's performance footage for the video was shot on the deck of the U.S.S. Hornet aircraft carrier in San Francisco Bay.

"18 Days" follows "Addicted" as the second single from Saving Abel's self-titled debut album.

Saving Abel has a tour lined up in late January and early February before beginning an opening stint for Nickelback on February 25th in Nashville.
 

Shinedown has parted ways with lead guitarist Nick Perri, who joined the group less than a year ago as a replacement for Jasin Todd. Perri himself will be replaced by the group's rhythm guitarist, Zach Myers, who is getting a promotion. Lead singer Brent Smith said in a statement, "I'd like to thank Nick for touring with us over the past year. I wish Nick the best in his future endeavors. That being said, I'm pleased Zach is taking over Nick's role in the group. Zach is one of the most phenomenal guitarists I know. We're looking forward to all the upcoming touring we'll be doing in the New Year."

Perri, who is leaving to explore other musical projects, said, "Brent offered me an incredible opportunity -- one that I am grateful for, one that I have never taken for granted, and one that I will always cherish. The truth is, however, after 10 months something inside of me just doesn't feel right. This is a personal matter and has NOTHING to do with the band, our amazing crew, or inspiring team...They have ALL made me feel welcome, and for that I thank them."

Shinedown will hit the road in early 2009 for a short series of dates with Saliva, with more gigs to be announced soon.
 

Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor outlined his plans for 2009 in a new video interview with Pink Is The New Blog. Speaking backstage in Las Vegas last Saturday (December 13th) at the final stop on the band's North American tour, Reznor said that Nine Inch Nails will go on one more U.S. trek next year, an amphitheatre run that will begin in mid-April and feature "another cool band" that's yet to be named. Following that and a summer European festival swing, Reznor plans a break from touring to work on a new album and some "non-music projects."

Among the "non-music projects" on Reznor's slate is the long-rumored television series based on the 2007 NIN concept album Year Zero, as well as some software development.

Talking about his desire to step away from strictly doing music, Reznor expressed ambivalence about the current music scene, saying, "I kind of feel like I'm rolling a boulder up a hill for the last couple of years." This is one of the few bands I have yet to see in person and I'm REALLY hoping they come through in the spring...I'll keep my fingers and toes crossed for sure
 

And that's it for today, I plan to post some cool Christmas stuff tomorrow... Happy Holidays

JD