Palm Springs was the center of the heavy metal universe earlier this week as the Sound & Vision Awards brought together an incredible roster of musicians. The Monday, March 2 event was held to honor legendary Black Sabbath bassist Geezer Butler and iconic vocalist Paul Rodgers.
To celebrate the honorees, an all-star supergroup was formed for the evening. The stage featured Slipknot frontman Corey Taylor, Halestorm vocalist and guitarist Lzzy Hale, former Guns N’ Roses drummer Matt Sorum, former Deep Purple bassist and singer Glenn Hughes, and Extreme guitarist Nuno Bettencourt.
The unique lineup delivered a set of classic rock covers that thrilled the audience. Corey Taylor took over lead vocal duties for a crushing rendition of the 1970 Black Sabbath anthem “Paranoid“, while Lzzy Hale stepped up to the microphone to belt out the 1980 track “Neon Knights“. For both of these monumental covers, Geezer Butler himself held down the bass lines.
The night also featured a massive group performance of the 1970 hit “All Right Now” by Free, which saw a vocal chorus consisting of Paul Rodgers, Glenn Hughes, Corey Taylor, Lzzy Hale, and Halestorm guitarist Joe Hottinger.
The Sound & Vision Awards show was organized by Adopt The Arts, a non-profit organization founded by Matt Sorum that is dedicated to funding and championing music education in schools. All proceeds from the evening’s ticket sales, along with funds raised from a rock ‘n’ roll memorabilia auction held from February 27 to March 2, were donated directly to the charity.
Since their headlining performance at the Inkcarceration festival in July, Slipknot has enjoyed some rare downtime from touring. However, the band has remained highly active behind the scenes. This April, they are set to release their long-delayed alt-rock project, Look Outside Your Window, for Record Store Day. Furthermore, drummer Eloy Casagrande confirmed in October that the band “are cooking” up brand new material.
Meanwhile, Halestorm continues to support their sixth studio album, Everest, which dropped last August. Following a heavy touring schedule, the band will head to Central and South America for a run of shows later this month. They are also booked for major European and North American summer festivals, while Lzzy Hale and Joe Hottinger are scheduled to play a select series of intimate acoustic shows across the UK and Ireland this June.
This tribute performance was not the first time Lzzy Hale has shared the stage with Black Sabbath royalty. On July 5, she performed at the band’s massive “Back To The Beginning” retirement show at Villa Park Stadium in Birmingham. That historic all-day event featured sets from the founding Black Sabbath lineup and Ozzy Osbourne‘s solo band, taking place just 17 days before the legendary Ozzy Osbourne passed away at the age of 76.
