Van Halen drummer and co-founder Alex Van Halen has announced that he is due to begin work on a new album with Toto guitarist Steve Lukather.

Speaking on Iron Maiden drummer Nicko McBrain’s “Metal Sticks” podcast, Van Halen revealed, “I’m getting ready to do this record with Lukather and a couple of other people. It should be exciting.”

Lukather collaborated with Eddie Van Halen on several past projects, including Michael Jackson’s hit song, “Beat It,” on which Lukather plays the main riff and Van Halen plays the solo.

“Eddie and Steve Lukather were very good friends and they often worked together,” Alex said. “There is no one who can do this process with me as well as he can.”

Source: RTT Music News

Legendary musician Billy Joel surprised a Florida crowd over the weekend by joining a tribute band onstage to perform two songs at an outdoor show in Palm Beach County.

It marked Joel’s first live performance before an audience since his touring was halted in May following a brain disorder diagnosis that affected his balance.

Joel performed his hits “Big Shot” and “We Didn’t Start the Fire” along with the group Turnstiles. He was joined on stage by his wife, Alexis Roderick, and introduced two young daughters, Della and Remy, who improvised dance routines throughout the crowd-rousing 12-minute cameo.

Throughout the show, the tribute act teased that a special guest would appear, according to TMZ.

“I wasn’t planning on working tonight,” Joel told the enthusiastic crowd, the Palm Beach Post reports.

In May 2025, Joel revealed that he has normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH), a type of brain disorder. Following the announcement, he canceled all scheduled concerts to begin physical therapy to manage his symptoms. His last full concert took place in February 2025.

Source: RTT Music News

Zak Starkey, the son of The Beatles’ legendary drummer Ringo Starr, has revealed that he resented his father’s iconic band while growing up.

In a recent interview on the New York rock radio station Q104.3, Starkey made the surprising revelation about his father’s band. He admitted that growing up, he purposely avoided listening to the Fab Four’s music.

“I’ll be honest. When I was a kid, The Beatles were in my way, if you see what I mean,” Starkey explained. “I was in groups from a young really young age, and I was getting press attention, but they were only paying me attention and they weren’t paying the rest of the band attention. And I got bit resentful of this, and that sort of got me into a place where I sort of shunned The Beatles for a long time.”

He continued, “A few people have said that’s why I have an identity of my own, you know. But at the end of the day, when I did listen to The Beatles, when I was about 25, it was like, ‘Wow, these guys are amazing! … I should have been listening to this forever.'”

Starkey served as the touring drummer of The Who for nearly 30 years, until he and the British rock legends parted ways earlier in 2025.

Starkey also revealed that he doesn’t “hold a grudge” over being fired from The Who and confirmed he remains friends with Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend.

The Who wrapped up their live career in October when their lengthy North American farewell tour concluded. For their final jaunt, Scott Devours was behind the drum kit instead of Starkey.

Starkey is now focusing on other projects, including a one-man show he’ll be performing on February 20, 2026, in New York City.

Source: RTT Music News

Peter Gabriel has announced a new album and has also shared a preview of the record, “Been Undone.”

The latest album, a follow-up to his 2023 album i/o, is titled o\i.

“Been Undone” was written and produced by Gabriel and recorded at Real World Studios, Bath and The Beehive in London. This is the Dark-Side Mix by Tchad Blake.

“I’m delighted to say that tonight, at the full moon, we will be beginning another year of full moon releases under the name o\i. The songs are a mix of thoughts and feelings,” says Gabriel.

The album will take shape over the course of the year, with a new release each full moon, as Gabriel had done with tracks from 2023’s i/o. Again, there will be both Dark-Side and Bright-Side mixes, handled once again by Tchad Blake and Mark “Spike” Stent, respectively.

As with i/o, each track on the new album will be accompanied by a piece of art and “Been Undone” is accompanied by Ciclotrama 156 (Palindrome) by São Paulo-based artist Janaina Mello Landini.

Source: RTT Music News