Black Star Riders have announced their new album, Wrong Side Of Paradise, will be released on 20 January 2023. A set of tenth-anniversary UK dates are set for February 2023, which will feature returns by Scott Gorham and Jimmy DeGrasso.
Wrong Side Of Paradise was recorded in Autumn 2021 at Studio 606 in Northridge and features a lineup of Ricky Warwick on Lead Vocals / Guitar, Robert Crane on Bass, Christian Martucci on Guitar and drummer Zak St. John.
The excellent tease of the new single Better Than Saturday Night is out now. Def Leppard’s Joe Elliott joined on backing vocals for the newly released track. “Better Than Saturday Night is a feel-good, uplifting tune about staying strong in the face of adversity, being true to yourself, and the power of positivity,” Ricky Warwick said. “I wrote it for my kids, but subliminally I think I also wrote it for myself and everyone for those days when we need to find a little bit of extra strength.
“We wanted to reflect the positivity, power, attitude and strength to endure sentiment in the lyrics of the song. And no better way to do that than Black Star Riders rockin’ out with the Los Angeles Roller Derby Dolls.”
Wrong Side Of Paradise will be the band’s first album with Earache Records. “I am very proud of this record, Black Star Riders’ fifth release and the first with our new and exciting relationship with Earache Records,” Ricky says. “As with all BSR albums, Wrong Side Of Paradise is an anthemic statement of intent, driven by ferocious guitars and thundering drums. I can only write about my own personal experiences, my families, my friends and how I see a world that is unraveling and changing faster than we can comprehend. That being said, I’m a firm believer in the power of positivity, something that echoes throughout this album.”
The band have some special plans to celebrate the tenth anniversary next year, which include a UK Tour starting on 13 February 2023. “Can you believe 2023 is ten years of Black Star Riders,” Ricky says. “How time flies while you are having fun. We decided to do something special to commemorate this occasion. For the UK tour only, to coincide with the album’s release, we will be bringing back the legendary Scott Gorham (guitar) and Jimmy DeGrasso (drums) for the dates to make them extra special.
“As we all know, the Worldwide pandemic has changed so many things in all our lives, and when we brought Christian Martucci into the fold in 2018, we had planned to work the BSR cycle in rotation with Christian’s Corey Taylor / Stone Sour gig so he could do both. The two-year break in live music has, unfortunately, put paid to this plan, and Christian has had to leave Black Star Riders to concentrate on his work with Corey. We wish him all the best, and he will forever remain part of the BSR family.”
Tour tickets are available from 10 am on 9 June 2022 at myticket.co.uk/artists/Black-Star-Riders
Wrong Side Of Paradise is available for pre-order worldwide at earache.com/blackstarriders on limited coloured vinyl (including green, blue, red and black/white split), black vinyl, signed CD, cassette and digital download.
A special edition of the album containing two bonus tracks can be found on CD (which comes with a 24-page song booklet) and USB stick formats.
Various collector bundles are also available, including one with an exclusive 12″.
Will Scott Gorham definitely be at Shepherds Bush gig?
Yes!!! Ricky says… “For the UK tour only, to coincide with the album’s release, we will be bringing back the legendary Scott Gorham (guitar) and Jimmy DeGrasso (drums) for the dates to make them extra special.”
We will check back in with Ricky in January, I’m sure.
Steve
Will Scott Gorham be doing the Bristol Gig next week?
Yes. Him and Jimmy DeGrasso are both on the whole tour.