JEORDIE WHITE
Twiggy is among the musicians slated to join Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme on the Desert Sessions Volume 9-10 when recording begins in February at Rancho De La Luna Studios. Others tentatively slated to appear include Dean Ween and P.J. Harvey, and no doubt some of the regulars from previous sessions will also make appearances, i.e. Mark Lanegan, Dave Catching, Chris Goss and Brant Bjork. The album is likely to be released on Mike Patton’s (ex-Faith No More) Ipecac label rather than RekordsRekords, the home of Desert Sessions Volume 7-8. In other news, while it is not official, negotiations are underway for Camp Freddy to submit their live performance of "Paranoid" -- during which Twiggy joined them on guitar -- to the FreeNet Records 2002 free sampler. For more information, visit the FreeNet website here.
Tracking for Twiggy's demo with Chris Goss and Zach Hill was reportedly completed as of late last week at Rancho De La Luna studios. Also, another photo taken of Twiggy at Thursday night's Smirnoff party has been added to the Candid page. Click here to view.
Twiggy was among those in attendance last night when Smirnoff Ice Triple Black hosted a 1980's style roller skate holiday party at the Moonlight Rollerway in Los Angeles. A photo from the event has been added to the Candid gallery and can be seen here.
Here are more details on the Camp Freddy show to be held on December 16th. The venue is the Henry Fonda Theater at 6126 Hollywood Blvd. Line ups will start at 3 p.m. (no line ups will be allowed before this time), with the doors opening at 9 p.m. and the band hitting the stage at 10. Again, there is no guarantee that Twiggy will be a part of this show, but nonetheless, if you are in SoCal it might be worth checking out anyway since it doesn't cost anything to those lucky enough (the first 400 in line) to get in. Also, please note that this is a 21 and over show.
The Kerrang! article is now up and can be read here. I'm very excited for what the future holds for Twiggy and I think you all will be too after reading this. A very special thanks to "lindalou" for her efforts in scanning this and getting it to me so quickly!
Twiggy has finally broken his silence regarding his split with Marilyn Manson. Speaking to Kerrang!, Twiggy says "If I had said something when the bomb dropped it would have been too emotional so I chose to keep my mouth shut and not say anything I might have regretted. But really there was no big drama. We just grew apart in different directions and we both decided we wanted to do different things. We were together for so many years without any waves, and something was bound to happen eventually. We had a pretty successful run." Twiggy insists that he and Manson are still friends. "We might not be sending each other Christmas cards this year, but we spoke a few weeks ago. I'll be interested in hearing his new album." The full story, exclusively detailing Twiggy's future plans, will appear in the new issue of Kerrang! available tomorrow at newsstands in the UK. For those not able to get the magazine, I hope to have the article transcribed and up on the Press page sometime by the end of the day tomorrow.
Meanwhile, the promised year-end public show by Camp Freddy has been announced and will be taking place in Hollywood, CA on Monday, December 16th. The show will be free and approximately 400 fans will be allowed in along with the usual guest list typical of an LA show. Details as to venue and how to get in will be announced on December 12th. There are no indications at this time as to whether or not Twiggy will participate in this particular performance, but since it doesn't cost anything, it's certainly worth a try to get in.
Twiggy's silver dress, worn by him in photo shoots for Mechanical Animals and designed by Terri King, is now up for sale over at mansonmuseum.com. It can be found on the Trade Page and is going for $750.
Camp Freddy is auctioning off a drumhead signed on the night of the October 30th gig by the band and most of the guests who appeared with them. Twiggy has signed it as well as Slash, Casey Chaos, Perry Farrell and Billy Duffy, among others. All proceeds will be donated to charity to help the homeless. Go here to check it out and good luck to anyone bidding. Camp Freddy will be playing at the opening of the Sapphire Gentlemen's Club in Las Vegas on Friday, December 13th, but there are no details as to which guests, if any, will be appearing with them. A show open to the public, to happen before the end of the year, is expected to be announced shortly.
Twiggy's split with Marilyn Manson was briefly recapped on last night's airing of MTV's Ultra Sound, "Baddest Band Break Ups". Included is a clip of Manson's initial statement shown on MTV at the time of the split and various clips of Twiggy, but there is no interview with Twiggy himself, nor are there any updates on his projects since leaving the band. For those who would like to watch, additional air dates are as follows: Sunday 11/17 @ 1:00 p.m. & 8:00 p.m.; Tuesday 11/19 @ 12:30 a.m.; Wednesday 11/20 @ 3:00 p.m.; Friday 11/22 @ 5:00 p.m.; Tuesday 11/26 @ 12:00 p.m. & 12:30 p.m.; and Saturday, 11/30 @ 11:30 p.m. All times are Eastern Standard.
It was reported today that Twiggy has teamed up with Masters of Reality/Queens of the Stone Age/Kyuss producer and collaborator Chris Goss to form a new project to be called Snowballs. Goss has also worked with artists such as the Screaming Trees and the Cult's Ian Astbury. Although the complete lineup of the band has yet to be chosen, Twiggy and Goss have already gotten started on the songwriting process. More info as it becomes available. For more information on Masters of Reality and Chris Goss, a good place to start is here.
A framed and matted 11 x 17 photo taken of Twiggy by Dean Karr during a shoot for Antichrist Superstar is currently up for auction by The Manson Museum through eBay. Click here to check it out and/or place a bid.
Many have been asking who and/or what is Camp Freddy since Twiggy's guest appearance with them on Wednesday night. For anyone wanting further information on who they are, their history and background, past shows, etc., go to the Camp Freddy Official Website at www.billymorrison.net/cf.
Twiggy, Casey Chaos, Slash and Duff McKagan were among the guests who joined supergroup Camp Freddy at LAís Club Ivar last night as part of Blender Magazineís "Blender Sessions". This is the third in a series of special shows played by Camp Freddy, which consists of Billy Morrison, Matt Sorum, Donovan Leitch, Dave Navarro, Scott Ford and a stellar and varied list of guests who've shown up to lend their talents at any given time. Last nightís set list included such classics as "I Wanna Be Your Dog", "Paranoid", "My Generation" and "Fat Bottomed Girls". Twiggy's last appearance with the group was at their very first gig back in May, which was part of the grand opening of The Standard Hotelís downtown LA location.
Twiggy pairing up with Peaches? While headlining Toronto's Electroclash 2002 last week, the Canadian native stated during an interview with Much Music that Twiggy has told her that he would love to play on her next album. Peaches recently opened select dates on Queens of the Stone Age's U.S. tour, including an October 4 stop in Los Angeles.
As an addendum to yesterday's news, here is Josh's direct quote from "Rockline" regarding the status of Head Band: "Headband is almost a concept or idea that Nick and I and Casey and Twiggy were drunkenly talking about, and we jammed together a few times, but there's so much stuff going on with everyone's lives, that it's sort of just on the backburner. I think it's something we'd like to do, but we're not really in a hurry to do anything, you know? I mean we wanna work all the time, but not be in a rush, because you can never take it back... you can always put it out, but you can never take it back.... so you should try really hard for it not to suck. That's a good rule of thumb.”
Here is an update on the Head Band project: Queens of the Stone Age appeared on the nationally syndicated radio show "Rockline" last night and when asked by a listener about the status of Head Band, Josh Homme indicated that it is on hold for the moment, with everyone involved being extremely busy. As many of you probably know, Queens are in the midst of their own world tour to promote the recently released Songs For The Deaf, which is expected to last at least until the beginning of next year. Josh said that they don't want to work on Head Band until they can focus more on it, rather than to rush it and have it suck. Amen's Casey Chaos also spoke of Head Band in a recent issue of Alternative Press, stating that recording will start when the Queens tour wraps up and confirming that Zach Hill will take over drumming chores, replacing Larkin, who recently left Amen to join Godsmack.
It's finally official: The Guns, God and Government DVD will be in stores on October 29th. In addition to concert footage, pulled from various performances throughout the tour, it will also contain a 30 minute short film entitled "The Death Parade", directed by Manson and documenting the band's trip around the world from behind the scenes.
Twiggy is mentioned several times in an interview with Queens of the Stone Age's Josh Homme in the new issue of CMJ New Music Monthly (Josh and Nick are featured on the cover). For those who can't get the magazine, I have transcribed the excerpts mentioning Twiggy and it is now available on the Press page.
Looks like New Jersey-based Dragpipe's new CD, Music For The Last Day Of Your Life, released August 27th on Interscope Records, can be added to Twiggy's list of credits. According to a review/brief interview with the band in a recent issue of Alternative Press, Twiggy assisted with pre-production and in another interview earlier this year with Revolver magazine, guitarist Gino Depinto talks of how the band "spent 10 days working on songs with [Marilyn Manson] bassist Twiggy Ramirez." Though not given specific credits on the CD insert itself, Twiggy is listed in the "Thank You" credits. To read the articles, click here and go to the "Press" section.
The rest of the Cribs audio clips have been uploaded to the Audio page. I've also added a couple of pictures from the ACS era to the Live ACS page, and another one from what looks to be the SLC/POAFF era to the Candid/Miscellaneous page. Thanks to Reinierus for the pictures.
The DVD release has apparently been pushed back again by Eaglevision. As to the new release date, I've heard several different dates, so I'm not even going to speculate at this point. The only thing definite is that you can scratch the October 1st release date.
In case anyone was still a little nervous about recent rumors circulating that had Twiggy joining Limp Bizkit: On the UK's Radio 1 Rockshow last night, Kerrang's Phil Alexander spoke of a recent encounter with Twiggy in LA, at which time he asked Twiggy about the aforesaid rumors. Phil said that he couldn't repeat Twiggy's full reply on a "family" show, just that it ended with "off". I think we get it, and can rest assured that a Twiggy/Limp Bizkit collaboration won't be happening anytime in the near future.
Twiggy's DJ bit from Songs For The Deaf can now be found on the Audio page. On the CD, it can be found between tracks #10 and 11. I must add that this CD kicks major ass and I strongly recommend it. As an added bonus, the the first 200,000 pressings include a free DVD which includes concert clips as well as behind the scenes footage, so be quick or be out of luck!
Keep your ears open for Twiggy on the new Queens of the Stone Age album, Songs For The Deaf. He is one of several guest “DJs” (as in radio jock, not spinning), joining the likes of QOTSA collaborator Chris Goss and Amen’s Casey Chaos in a spoofy commentary on the state of modern rock radio. DJ “bits” and radio gimmicks appear throughout the album, providing interludes between and segues into the tracks on the CD. Songs For The Deaf hits record stores tomorrow, August 27th.
In addition to the work Twiggy has been doing with Head Band, MTV News reports that he has also been working on some songs for a demo that he hopes will secure him a record deal. As of now, he has not decided whether to present himself as a solo artist or with a group. More info on that as it becomes available.
Additionally, Marilyn Manson speaks further of Twiggy’s departure from the band, saying that although the two haven’t spoken in the months since the split, he still considers Twiggy a friend and misses him. For the full read on this (and details on the forthcoming Manson album) go to mtv.com News.
On the chance that they really mean it this time, eaglevisionusa.com is now listing the DVD release date as being October 1st.
In an interview with Zero Now, composer/songwriter/guitarist Gerry Owens of Dublin's Skindive, who appeared at Ozzfest in Dublin back in May, speaks about his meeting with Twiggy. Hanging out with the band in an LA studio, Twiggy played guitar on one of the songs from their self-titled debut album. As things turned out, however, that version of the song never saw the light of day...
ZN: You were in Vancouver doing mixing for the album. You met Twiggy Ramirez [from Marilyn Manson], didn't you?
G:Well, that was in LA. We ended up not using the sessions we did in LA, because I was out there for about 6 weeks to work with a producer and see how it went and although he was a great guy, it was ending up sounding different to how it should have been. A record company, when they take on a band, and are spending a lot of money on them, feels that they need to have the band in a safe pair of hands. And a safe pair of hands is someone who's done it before. Now, the biggest threat to a new band is a producer. 80% of the time a producer will make it sound completely different to the way it's meant to sound. The demos are exactly the same as the end product, except the end product sounds a little bit better, because it's put through better processing et cetera. So my aim is to make sure that the songs stay as they are, because a record company can take on a band and do the album, and not recognise the band that comes out at the end of it. They sign them because they like them, and then somebody else changes them. So I'm not saying that this producer wasn't good - he was really good - but the problem was it was going in a direction that was different. About Twiggy, they [Marilyn Manson] were recording Holy Wood at the time, and they live in LA, so every day Twiggy would come down, talk shit, drink and well, do a lot of drugs. He was really into Skindive, and he actually played on another version of Swallow. But after I came back, I had to sit down and think to myself, I really like his guitar parts, it's great to have him involved, but it's a bit easy to get swept along by that whole "guest appearance" thing. Suddenly, the song becomes known for somebody else rather than the band.
You can find the full interview here.
An update on Twiggy's rumored appearance in the Strokes' "Someday" video: According to a friend who recently caught the video on MTV, it appears that Twiggy does not have a part in it. Thanks to Azazeal for the info.
Although it was initially reported as August 1st, the Guns, God and Government Pay-Per-View will premiere on August 10th at 10:00 p.m. EST. The cost is roughly $20.00 -- prices are determined by your local cable company. Please check your local listings or go to inDemand.com for further information on times in your area and additional showings. Supposedly this footage will differ from the much-awaited DVD which is set to come out...whenever. Still no official word on the release date (unless it was encrypted in one of Mr. Manson's more recent journal entries, which I've yet had time to decipher), and if you go to five different sources (cdnow, amazon.com, etc.) you'll get five different dates. Hopefully, an official release date will be made public soon. (Needless to say, any reporting of this topic at all on this site is with the assumption that footage of Twiggy *will* be a part of both the Pay-Per-View and DVD.)
Just a brief update on the Headband project: Things are reportedly moving along, with Twiggy and Casey having completed demos of a couple of songs. Featured on drums is Zach Hill of the band Hella, in the absence of Amen drummer Shannon Larkin (who is now said to be filling in on drums for Godsmack's new album). More details as they come in...
Here's a little more of a clue as to what you can expect from Headband, as put forth by Queens of the Stone Age guitarist, Josh Homme, during a recent interview with BBC Radio 1:
"We thought that we do a lot of melodic stuff, but we come from a heavy punk background and so does Casey (Chaos of Amen). We all thought it would be great to have a project that unleashes aggressiveness. That's the Headband. It's sort of like the pissed off version of all our bands. In Amen's case, they are already a little bit angry."
According to someone who has heard the band's demo, the music is "very heavy". No word yet on who will play what on the album, although speculation suggests that there could be some switching around on instruments. The album is still tentatively set for a late fall/early winter release.
Though it has not yet been confirmed by the group's spokesperson, look for a possible guest appearance by Twiggy, along with members of Def Leppard, in the Strokes' next video clip, "Someday". Guest artists who are confirmed to appear so far are former Guns N'Roses members Slash, Duff McKagan and Matt Sorum and members of Guided By Voices. No release date has been set for the video, which will be directed by Roman Coppola, son of film director Francis Ford Coppola.
A Marilyn Manson pay-per-view concert has been confirmed by www.indemand.com, to premiere on Saturday, August 3 (no time given), with replay dates as follows: August 10 (10:00 p.m.); August 11 (12:00 a.m., 9:30 p.m.); August 14 (10:00 p.m.); August 15 (9:00 p.m.); August 17 (12:00 a.m.); August 18 (1:00 a.m.). All times are Eastern Standard Time. Since this show was filmed on the Guns, God and Government tour, it will hopefully include some nice footage of Twiggy, as opposed to two hours of just Manson, Manson and more Manson.
Twiggy was on hand at the Troubadour in LA Tuesday night (18th), where friends and former tour mates Monster Magnet played a sold out show. At midnight, Dave Wyndorf introduced "Brother Ramirez" to the crowd as Twiggy joined the band onstage for a full 20 minute version of their classic, "Spine of God", utilizing what was described as a blond telecaster, eminating "spacey, liquidy sound effects". Reviews of those in attendance concurred that this was a "hugely epic moment" and "the highlight" of what was an overall tight, kick ass show.
Twiggy played DJ on Friday night at the Dragonfly Club in West Hollywood, where Nitzer Ebb's Bon Harris showcased his latest project, Maven, which features Bon on vocals. Harris, as you may recall, took credit for editing, programming and pre-production on Marilyn Manson's Holywood.
A little something from Twiggy himself -- this was posted on the official bbs last night by Greg from The Manson Museum:
"I just talked to Twiggy on the phone and I told him how devastated we all are over the news of him leaving the band and no, I knew nothing about it any sooner than any of you did. I don't ask questions concerning business or anything concerning their personal lives. I told him about all the email that I have received with fans' expressing their pain and disappointment. Twiggy told me to that he was very happy right now and that everyone in the band were still friends and there were no hard feelings so I don't think we as fans should have any hard feelings towards anyone either. Twiggy has been a crucial part of a groundbreaking band that has given us some great and memorable music in the past. I think anyone that is a true fan should respect his feelings and only wish him the best of luck in his future projects which leads me to something else he told me. He said that he was very excited about a few projects that he had in the works and was looking forward to getting back in the studio. He also said that one of his main concerns right now was that of the fans. Let's be happy for him and be excited about his projects and not have him worrying about us so he can put all of his efforts towards the music. Oh, and don't worry, we talked about other auction pieces also, so that's something else to look forward to. Rock on, Twiggy!"
A big thanks to Greg for letting us all know! And if you haven't yet been, please be sure to check out his website to view his awesome collection of Manson memorabilia (and, of course, his auctions!).
It has been officially announced today that Twiggy is no longer a part of Marilyn Manson. Manson's statement, posted in the official site's news section, reads as follows:
Marilyn Manson moves forward with a dramatic change in style, attitude and personnel by announcing the departure of longtime friend and bassist Twiggy Ramirez.
“I have spent eight months transforming this band and our new songs into an unstoppable juggernaut, and sadly Twiggy wasn’t able to make himself a part of it,” says Manson. “Unfortunately, I feel that Marilyn Manson, as a lifestyle, is not where his heart is. So I have decided to let him go his own way, otherwise it wouldn’t be fair to us, the music, or especially to the fans. Although you can never replace a best friend like Twiggy, this album and new lineup will redefine anyone’s idea of what Marilyn Manson is capable of.”
Marilyn Manson, John 5, M.W. Gacy and Ginger Fish are joined by bassist Tim Skold. The Golden Age of Grotesque, which is under the production team of Manson, Skold and Ben Grosse is near completion and expected this Fall on Interscope Records.
Of course, Marilyn Manson won't be the same without Twiggy. But, as you've all read here, Twiggy is already emersed in a new project, with a new album on the horizon. I think this is a good move for Twiggy and that this will be his time to shine, to emerge from behind the shadow of Marilyn Manson where the world can see him for the talented musician and songwriter that he really is. I wish him nothing but the best in his new [ad]ventures, and give him my full support. And of course, this site will continue to follow his career and keep everyone as up to date as possible as he moves onward into something new. Feel free to email me or post on the message board with any thoughts and comments you may have. And to Twiggy: May the force be with you!
Twiggy reportedly makes a guest appearance on the new Queens of the Stone Age album, Songs For The Deaf, due out on Interscope Records on August 13. More information regarding Twiggy's possible involvement will be posted when it becomes available.
Twiggy has joined forces with Amen's Casey Chaos and Shannon Larkin and Queen of the Stone Age's Josh Homme and Nick Oliveri to form Headband. The band has now begun recording, with a tentative Fall 2002/Winter 2003 release on RekordsRekords.
I've added a new live shot that appears to be from Twiggy's days with Amboog-A-Lard and, thus, would probably make this one relatively rare. That being the case, it didn't make sense to create a section on the "Live" page for Amboog-A-Lard, with only this one picture and probably not a lot more of these out there, nor did it make sense to integrate it with any of the Manson-era live shots. Instead, you can find this one on the Candid/Miscellaneous page.
Incidentally, it's now been confirmed by NME.com that Twiggy did play last week with Mondo Generator.
While everyone knows that Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters filled in on drums at Mondo Generator's (Queens of the Stone Age bassist Nick Oliveri's side project) show at the Troubadour in LA on Wednesday night, several of those in attendance are saying that the "other" bassist onstage with them was Twiggy, disguised by a monkey mask. Both QOTSA and Mondo Generator kick ass and, if this story turns out to be true, one can only hope that this will lead to further collaboration between Twiggy and these guys!
Two photos have been added to the Candid/Miscellaneous section, taken at a Sydney, Australia in-store appearance in March of 1997, during Marilyn Manson's first time tour of Australia. Thanks to "Gustave" for the pictures!
Twiggy is featured in the new issue of Blender magazine in a section called "38 Useful Tips From the Stars" beginning on page 89. Twiggy offers up his advice on "How to Trash a Hotel Room" as follows:
"You've got to be subtle so the damage will last long -- like a time bomb. So if you order room service -- preferably chicken, or anything that will rot -- stick it between the mattresses. About a week down the road, it'll smell awful. Also, why bother going to the bathroom? Just use the bed! Especially if there's a partner in bed with you. But there's a point where carelessness goes too far: If you wreck a room every night, it's like hitting yourself in the face."
The article features a full page photo of Twiggy, appropriately enough sitting on a bed in a trashed (way) hotel room. A scanned version of the photo can be found on the Candid/Miscellaneous page.
Marilyn Manson is confirmed to be joining Billy Corgan, Motorhead, Rob Zombie and a host of other artists who will lend their renditions of Ramones tunes to an upcoming Ramones tribute album being produced by Zombie. The Mansons (I am, hopefully, assuming correctly that the band will be in on this one!) will cover "The KKK Took My Baby Away" for We're a Happy Family, which is currently scheduled for a summer 2002 release
"Tainted Love", the video and single, is faring very well over in the UK, with the single having made BBC Radio 1's "A" List and the video coming in at #1 for the 9th week in a row on Kerrang!TV's "most requested" charts.