Long-running, sweet-leaf-loving rappers Cypress Hill are in the process of making their first new album in four years, according to founding member Sen Dog, who told Billboard.com that the group has finished 30 songs for the untitled project. Dog described the album as "definitely hard-core hip-hop" and said the trio hopes to have the album out by the spring, though they’re currently looking for a new record deal.
Sen Dog boasted that it would include writing and production collaboration with Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello on the song "Rise Up" and a cameo from Linkin Park's Mike Shinoda on another untitled track. Velvet Revolver guitarist Slash is slated to appear on a tune called "Front Line."
All of which begs the question, "Wait, Cypress Hill are still together?"
That was quick. Less than a day after speculation emerged that Lenny Kravitz might be trying out for the empty Velvet Revolver singer slot, the clotheshorse rocker quickly shot down the rumor.
"I know and love the Velvet Revolver guys but there is no truth to the story about me joining their band," the former schoolmate of VR guitarist Slash told RollingStone.com on Tuesday.
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It's kind of like the Summer Olympics, only it comes around about every six years instead of four: It's the Velvet Revolver frontman decathlon, and the hits keep coming.
Who's disqualified: Former Spacehog singer Royston Langdon was scratched from the competition last week, when VR bassist Duff McKagan told Billboard.com that the diminutive glam revivalist was not the band's gold-medal pick.
Who's on deck: Lenny Kravitz. According to the borderline reliable British tabloid The Sun, Kravitz has reportedly been "spotted" in the studio with the band. An unnamed source reportedly told the Sun, "Velvet Revolver's new album will draw heavily on their messy split with Scott. The band wanted a big name who could easily hold his own and reckon Lenny is just the man for the job."
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Scott Weiland is out of the picture, and Sebastian Bach has respectfully bowed out, due to his BFF status with Axl Rose. So Velvet Revolver have dug deep into the 1990s alt-rock well and reportedly started rehearsing with diminutive Spacehog singer (and Liv Tyler's estranged husband) Royston Langdon. The "In the Meantime" vocalist, whose powerhouse operatic glam pipes landed him some David Bowie comparisons back in the day, is high on VR's list after a few good rehearsals, according to Entertainment Weekly.
"They all got along great," an anonymous insider told the magazine of recent jam sessions in Los Angeles. "It was really a refreshing change for the band." While the band's management wouldn't comment other than to say they're still auditioning singers, another unnamed source — this time at VR's label, RCA — confirmed that Langdon is "definitely in the mix."
The EW report comes just a week after Spacehog drummer Jonny Cragg posted news of the band's reunion on the MySpace page of Arckid, another group he plays in with Langdon. Spacehog played a show at L.A.'s Viper Room on Monday, but future plans have yet to be announced.
Who would you like to see fronting VR?
Since it was revealed two months ago that singer Scott Weiland had been booted from the band, the rest of Velvet Revolver have been searching for his replacement. Apparently, the guys have been hosting auditions, and they've even fielded an offer from reality-television producer Mark Burnett, who wanted to make VR the subject of his next "Rock Star" series.
Over the past few weeks, several names have surfaced online as possible future frontmen for the group — including Linkin Park's Chester Bennington, who dismissed those rumors in an interview for this week's Kerrang! magazine.
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