The woke mob wants to erase John Schaffer from existence, but the "Classic Metal Show" doesn't play the cancel culture game. Whether it’s Iced Earth’s legal nightmare or Alex Van Halen digging through the vault to spite Sammy Hagar, the truth is always uglier than the liner notes. If you're tired of the sanitized, corporate-approved version of rock history, get the real story behind the velvet ropes right now.

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– John Schaffer and the "Insurrection" that looked more like a guided tour of the Capitol.
– The legal fallout: Bear spray, felony counts, and why the "Classic Metal Show" stayed silent for 20 years.
– Alex Van Halen vs. Sammy Hagar: The vault is open, but the bridge is burned and salted.
– Should fans separate the art from the "crime"? Neely and Akin tear into the hypocrisy of the music industry.
– Motley Crue covering the Sex Pistols? The ultimate proof that some legends stay at the party way too long.

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New Orleans thrash metal legends EXHORDER will return to stages next month on an Eastern US headlining tour. The Tour Of Unsound Minds begins on April 2nd in Morgantown, West Virginia and closes April 19th in Cadillac, Michigan. Support will be provided by Skinlab. The band’s latest trek follows their recent US headlining run with Luicidal, Ringworm, Phobia, and Slowhole.

Vocalist Kyle Thomas comments, “Here we go again – sleep is for rich people! We are looking forward to returning to some familiar places as well as getting out into new territory. Joining us on this run are West Coast stalwarts, Skinlab! By the time this tour begins, Spring will have sprung. Come on out while the weather is nice and let’s rage!”

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Tickets are on sale now! See all confirmed dates below.

EXHORDER w/ Skinlab:

4/02/2026 123 Pleasant Street – Morgantown, WV

4/03/2026 Montage Music Hall – Rochester, NY

4/04/2026 Empire – Albany, NY

4/05/2026 Genos Rock Club – Portland, ME

4/06/2026 Alchemy – Providence, RI

4/07/2026 Jewell – Manchester, NH

4/08/2026 Space Ballroom – Hamden, CT

4/09/2026 AMH – Amityville, NY

4/10/2026 Capital City Music Hall – Harrisburg, PA

4/11/2026 Locals – Manalapan, NJ

4/12/2026 Riffhouse – Chesapeake, VA

4/13/2026 529 – Atlanta, GA

4/14/2026 Chapel Of Bones – Raleigh, NC

4/15/2026 Tribbles – Piedmont, SC

4/16/2026 BoneBar – Chattanooga, TN

4/17/2026 Live At The Shop – Dunbar, WV

4/18/2026 Reggie's – Chicago, IL

4/19/2026 The Venue – Cadillac, MI

Forged in 1986, EXHORDER’s journey has proven exciting, yet tumultuous. After a twenty-seven-year absence following their final Roadrunner Records release in 1992, EXHORDER re-entered the game with an album considered by many to be a contender for the "Best Comeback Album" category. The band released Mourn The Southern Skies in October of 2019 through Nuclear Blast Records. Fraught with euphoric peaks and crippling valleys throughout its existence, lineup changes, and the 2020-2021 pandemic, EXHORDER clawed back through the muck to release Defectum Omnium, the Latin phrase for "The Failure of All,” in 2024. "The world is a dumpster fire, and we are all complicit,” noted singer Kyle Thomas when elaborating on the title.

Produced by EXHORDER and mixed by Jens Bogren, Defectum Omnium puts a foot back into the roots of the band's inception. Wrote Blabbermouth upon the record's release, "A long time ago, many of us used to smash up our bedrooms to Slaughter In The Vatican. Age may have withered us slightly, but EXHORDER still have the power to make metal folk disregard their own safety... their fourth full-length stands shoulder to shoulder with everything else they've released. It spits, it snarls, it has more killer riffs than seems strictly necessary, and it will bulldoze its way into metal hearts with no quarter (or a single, solitary fuck) given." Distorted Sound concurred, "EXHORDER have not lost any of the bite and snarl that have made them such a revered name in heavy music... Defectum Omnium is a solid record that speaks to the essence of what makes metal so thoroughly enjoyable." Added The Sleeping Shaman, "If Defectum Omnium doesn’t catapult them into the hearts and souls of metalheads everywhere, then I don’t know what will, as this is a clear album of the year contender."

This episode first aired on 5/30/09.

Anvil: The Story of Anvil was hailed as the ultimate underdog story, but for the guys at THE CLASSIC METAL SHOW, it felt more like a slow-motion car crash. We’re breaking down why seeing Lips deliver school lunches is the most depressing thing in metal and why "passion" doesn't always pay the bills. Stop lying to yourself about the "glory" of the underground and get the real story.

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WATCH THE TRAILER FOR THE STORY OF ANVIL HERE: 

- Feeling "Fun Sad": Why watching Lips and Robb struggle for 30 years is a brutal reality check.
- The Transylvania Disaster: 174 paid attendees in a 10,000-seat room. That’s not a show; it’s a rehearsal.
- Hot Goulash & Broken Promises: When the promoter tries to pay you in soup instead of cash.
- The "Polished Turd" Review: Why Anvil’s new music still can’t match the hype of the movie.
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