Leave it to a couple heavy metal giants to create the latest supergroup. Black Sabbath guitar god Tony Iommi and Deep Purple's vocalist Ian Gillan have joined forces to form a new group called Whocares, recording a couple songs to help out the people of Gyumri, Armenia in rebuilding the town's music school. Both men have spent a lot of time in the country since the earthquake that struck there in December of 1988.
Here is the Whocares line-up in full:
Tony Iommi (BLACK SABBATH) – Guitar
Ian Gillan (DEEP PURPLE, BLACK SABBATH) – Vocals
Jason Newsted (METALLICA, VOIVOD, FLOTSAM AND JETSAM) – Bass
Nicko McBrain (IRON MAIDEN) – Drums
Jon Lord (DEEP PURPLE) – Keyboards
Mikko "Linde" Lindström (HIM) – Guitar
The new songs, entitled Out of My Mind and Holy Water will come out via a limited edition CD-single and digital download which will include a clip of Out of My Mind and a 40-minute video documenting Iommi and Gillan's work in Armenia.
Iommi puts the cause in perspective:
"Some twenty years ago when the call came, I thought, well at least I've helped, but it was going to Armenia and seeing the actual devastation caused by the earthquake that really made me realize that funds were still needed…here was a music school doing their best, forgotten, in basic tin sheds. After the warmth and honor bestowed upon us during our visit, we just had to help make a difference and get the school rebuilt. And what better way than to hook up with some of rock's greatest players and my old mate Ian, both an honor and a pleasure."
The song has a nice groove and a real Iommi-style crunch to it, let's see if they take this new thing a little further. If there's a group I'd like to hear more from, its this one. Few players match the credibility of these guys. And let's see how many more bands Jason Newsted joins. We might as well start making bets on it.
