• Blabbermouth reports Ted Nugent is known for his outspoken political views and raunchy song lyrics, but he recently showed a softer side when he met hospice patient Michael Golder at the legendary rocker's concert in Peoria, Illinois.  As a teenager, Golder played guitar and had hopes of being a musician. He even moved to Nashville to chase his dream before serving with the Army in Vietnam.  Golder was just 19 and already a veteran when a motorcycle accident left him paralyzed. After a year in the hospital and a series of strokes, he was blind and in a wheelchair.  Even after all he'd been through, music was still a big part of his life, said Golder's brother Stephen Kuhnke.  But the past three decades have taken their toll, and at 55, Golder is now a hospice patient. His life may have changed a lot, but his enthusiasm for rock 'n' roll never has.  "He's a ham," says Golder's nurse Thad Flohr of Passages Hospice. "Michael's a real character."  So Golder's caregivers contacted non-profit organization Hospice Dreams to see what kind of special day they could arrange for the lifelong fan. Hospice Dreams grants wishes for adult hospice patients, with each Dream customized to the patient's favorite activities.  The organization contacted musician Ted Nugent, who was holding a concert at the Peoria Civic Center near Golder's nursing home. Nugent donated tickets and backstage passes to the show so Golder could have "one awesome night."  "I'm gonna meet Ted Nugent," he told everyone he saw the day of the concert.  Nugent welcomed Golder, his brother and his caregivers backstage. Nugent's dog Thunder and drummer Mick Brown were also on hand for the visit.  The Motor City Madman joked that Golder should come on stage and dance with him from his wheelchair. Golder shook his head, but accepted a gift of guitar picks.  "These'll give you some really sexy licks [on the guitar]," Nugent said.  Although Golder couldn't see Nugent on stage, he heard Nugent dedicate a song to him and call out his name.  Golder did his part by bobbing his head and singing along with the music.  "I never knew Michael would get something like this," Kuhnke said. "What a great organization. I'm indebted to everybody that takes care of him."  For more information about Hospice Dreams or to make a Dream come true through a donation, see www.hospicedreams.org.

• Blabbermouth reports according to Law360.com, former KISS guitarist Vinnie Vincent has been ordered to hand over royalty payments (PDF file) to KISS bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons (a.k.a. Gene Klein) to cover attorneys' fees Simmons incurred while defending himself in a legal dispute with the axeman.  Cusano previously argued that his royalty payments were protected from garnishment.  Vincent, whose real name is Vincent Cusano, played with KISS from 1982 to 1984, co-writing "I Love It Loud", "Lick it Up" and other songs.  Back in October 2006, Vincent lost a Supreme Court appeal in a dispute over royalties with his former KISS bandmates and awarded the KISS defendants about $66,400 in attorney's fees and $15,400 in costs.  Justices declined to consider lower court rulings dismissing Vincent's claim that he is owed royalties for his contributions to the band's 1983 album "Lick It Up".
  
  

• Blabbermouth reports Drummer David Morrison has announced his departure from the Christian metalcore band FOR TODAY. Morrison will be moving to South America in September to do mission work in Ecuador through Extreme Nazarene. His replacement in FOR TODAY will be David Puckett, formerly of the band THE CRIMSON ARMADA.  A videotaped message from Morrison can be seen below.  David has also released the following statement: "[FOR TODAY] will not be missing any shows and have a replacement drummer that may end up being permanent. David Puckett will be the drummer for the band on Warped Tour and through the fall, if all works out. I haven't seen the band with Puckett yet, but he's a great man of God and an incredible drummer and I'll be at a couple of the Warped Tour dates. Thank you guys for everything! This has been the best seven-plus years of my life! To God be the glory."  Added FOR TODAY vocalist Mattie Montgomery: "David will always be a part of our family. While he will be missed greatly, we fully support him in where he is going next, and we're excited about this next season for all of us."  FOR TODAY's new studio album, "Immortal" (Razor & Tie), sold 15,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 15 on The Billboard 200 chart. Produced by Will Putney (LAMB OF GOD, SUICIDE SILENCE), the 11-track CD includes special guest appearances by Sonny Sandoval of P.O.D., Jake Luhrs of AUGUST BURNS RED and Tommy Green of SLEEPING GIANT.  Formed in 2005, FOR TODAYis known for its non-stop touring, high-energy live performance, and unrelenting message.  Read more at Noisecreep

• Blabbermouth reports Mikael Åkerfeldt of Swedish progressive metallers OPETH has recorded some vocals in collaboration with legendary GENESIS guitarist Steve Hackett. Mikael is featured on a re-recording of the classic GENESIS mega-epos "Supper's Ready" from 1972's "Foxtrot" album. More information about the upcoming release will be released soon.  In other news, due to popular demand, Mikael has recorded a further eight shows for Swedish national radio. "De Bortglömda Mästerverken" (The Forgotten Masterpieces) is a series of shows where Mikael flips vinyl on air, playing mostly obscure progressive and psychedelic rock. The show is being produced by Andreas Matz for radio P4 and will start airing on July 15. You can also catch it online at www.sr.se.  OPETH recently completed a North America co-headlining tour with MASTODON. The trek kicked off on April 4 in Portland, Maine, and visited more than 30 cities in the U.S. and Canada before wrapping up at Atlanta's Masquerade on May 12.   OPETH's new album, "Heritage", sold 19,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 19 on The Billboard 200 chart. The band's previous studio CD, 2008's "Watershed", opened with more than 19,000 units to land at No. 23.  "Watershed" was the follow-up to the band's acclaimed "Ghost Reveries" CD, which debuted at No. 64 on the Billboard chart back in September 2005 with first-week sales of just under 15,000.  OPETH's 2003 album, "Damnation", premiered with a little over 5,000 copies.  Read more at Loudwire
  
  
  
  
  
• Blabbermouth reports Victory Records has announced the signing of the South Wales, U.K. metal/hardcore outfit CONTINENTS.
  Kerrang! magazine described CONTINENTS' sound as "energy-fueled epic-core with lots of aggression, a healthy blend of raw shouts and low end growls and foot stomping hooks."  "We've always tried to put our own passion for our music before external influence, the most important thing for us is that we enjoy the music we play, and if other people enjoy it too then that's awesome," said CONTINENTS vocalist Philip Cross. "We like to mix elements of our favorite styles and influences, and then put our own perspective on things to see where it takes us."  Formed in 2010, CONTINENTS quickly established themselves within the U.K. music scene. They are five self-proclaimed "lads with a party attitude who love getting groups of people into a room who share their passion for music." In concert, this bunch throws a blistering barrage of songs and energy at the crowd which is evident in their first music video from the band's self-released single "Trials", which received over 10,000 views on YouTube in just the first few days. Thanks to "Trials", the band was voted as a favorite YouTube U.K. metal act in November and was featured on the YouTube home page.  CONTINENTS will be killing it on stage Saturday, June 30, at Leeds University for Europe's biggest indoor metal/hardcore festival, Ghostfest 2012. They will be joining the likes of EMMURE, THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER, COMEBACK KID, DEFEATERand many more.

• Blabbermouth reports SOULFLY, HYPOCRISY and PAIN have been added to the Close-Up Båten cruise, which will leave the Stockholm, Sweden port on September 6 for Åbo, Finland, and return the following day. Also scheduled to appear are ASPHYX, CRASHDÏET, THE 69 EYES, NICKE BORG HOMELAND and RAUBTIER.  Unfortunately, fans from abroad can't order tickets to the cruise via the Internet. The only way tickets can be bought from abroad is to call +46 8 666 33 33 (booking code: CLOSE).  For more information, go to www.closeupmagazine.net.

• Loudwire reports Lost Prophets guitarist says their Warped Tour run is "going to be awesome"

• Loudwire posts a review of the new Red Hot Chili Peppers single "Brendan's Death Song"

• Loudwire posts the final Slipknot "Antennas To Hell" teaser clip with Clown

• Loudwire reports Stormzone SPV detail their dismissal from Sebastian Bach’s U.K. tour

• Loudwire reports how Halestrom's Lzzy Hale inspires females of all ages

• Loudwire reports The Offspring recall finishing last place in a battle of the bands

• Loudwire reports Framing Hanley launch kickstarter campaign to fund next album

• Ultimate Classic Rock posts a review of The Beach Boys in Cleveland

• Ultimate Classic Rock reports Paul McCartney will always make time for Queen Elizabeth

• Ultimate Classic Rock reports Gene Simmons says about reality TV "nobody's forcing you to watch anything"

• Ultimate Classic Rock reports Aerosmith's Brad Whitford says "competition and rivalry" make for "great music"

• Rolling Stone posts an interview with Ben Folds about his new album

• Blabbermouth posts rehearsal footage of Jeff Loomis "Surrender"

• Blabbermouth posts interviews with Slipknot's Clown on "Knotfest", Zakk Wylde, Chad Gray of Hellyeah, In This Moment, Malice guitarist on the comparisons to Judas Preist, Firewind, Kyuss Lives!, Marduk, Evile, Atheist, The Gathering, Voyager and 1349

• Blabbermouth posts performance footage of Metallica at Germany's "AM Ring Rock Festival", Megadeth at France's "Hellfest",  Steel Panther "Download Festival" acoustic performance, Iron Maiden bassist's daughter singing Metallica's "Nothing Else Matters" Exodus in Slovenia, Dark Day Sunday featuring members of Fates Warning and Shadows Fall, and Warbringer from their Central America mini-tour

Read more quick hits at Spinner