WGRD 97.9 » Dave Kim

Stone Temple Pilots Recruit Linkin Park's Chester Bennington as New Singer

Dave Kim — Mon, 20 May 2013 21:10:15 +0000

The rock world was in a bit of shock Saturday night (May 18) as Stone Temple Pilots revealed their newest member: Linkin Park vocalist Chester Bennington. STP made a surprise appearance at Los Angeles, Calif. radio station KROQ’s annual Weenie Roast concert. The group performed a number of hits as well as a new track [...]

Hollywood Undead Hype The Crowd at The Orbit Room

Dave Kim — Thu, 16 May 2013 16:45:04 +0000

Los Angeles, Calif. rebels Hollywood Undead took over The Orbit Room in Grand Rapids last night (May 15). Check out photos from the show below. The rap-rockers have been on the road promoting their third studio album, Notes From The Underground, that was released earlier this year. The crowd of over 1,000 people were hooked from [...]

Fall Out Boy, Blink-182, Motörhead + More Set for Riot Fest 2013

Dave Kim — Thu, 16 May 2013 15:47:00 +0000

Lollapalooza may be the most recognized music festival to be based out of Chicago, IL, but Riot Fest has definitely become a must-see weekend destination for rock fans as well. The three-day event will feature Chicago's own Fall Out Boy, punk-pop veterans Blink-182, metal gods Motörhead and more this fall.

Stream Pop Evil's New Album 'Onyx'

Dave Kim — Wed, 15 May 2013 19:41:21 +0000

West Michigan’s own Pop Evil just dropped their brand new album Onyx this week! Stream the record in its entirety below. Onyx is Pop Evil’s best work yet. You’ve heard “Trenches” on GRD for awhile now, which they released a video for last week. The rest of the disc is stellar as well. “Deal With The [...]

Listen to New Skillet Song 'Rise'

Dave Kim — Tue, 14 May 2013 13:39:15 +0000

Memphis, Tenn. rockers Skillet are gearing up to release their ninth studio album Rise next month. Listen to the title track below. Skillet fans will feel right at home with “Rise”. The alternating vocals between lead singer John Cooper and drummer Jen Ledger is similar to previous songs like “Awake and Alive,” from Skillet’s 2009 album [...]

Bullet For My Valentine 'Riot' at The Orbit Room in Grand Rapids

Dave Kim — Mon, 13 May 2013 14:28:39 +0000

Welsh metal act Bullet For My Valentine have never been short on fans in Grand Rapids. That fact was proven again during a SOLD OUT show at The Orbit Room on Saturday night (May 11). Check out our photo gallery from the show below. Bullet For My Valentine are headlining the 2013 hardDrive Live 5 [...]

Pop Evil Fight Back in Music Video for 'Trenches'

Dave Kim — Fri, 10 May 2013 18:10:01 +0000

GRD faves Pop Evil have been hard at work promoting their upcoming album Onyx, due out next Tuesday (May 14). The band just premiered the brand new video for the first single “Trenches,” and it’s as intense as you’d expect from PE. The clip starts off with the band walking up to a gorgeous mansion in Sweden. [...]

Stream Mindless Self Indulgence's New Album 'How I Learned to Stop Giving a Sh-t'

Dave Kim — Thu, 09 May 2013 16:15:56 +0000

Mindless Self Indulgence are getting ready to release their brand new album, How I Learned to Stop Giving a Sh-t and Love Mindless Self Indulgence, next week. Because we’re so generous, stream the entire record now before it hits stores! MSI were able to make the album through a successful Kickstarter campaign launched last October. The [...]

Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong Calls Psy "the Herpes of Music"

Dave Kim — Thu, 09 May 2013 15:16:43 +0000

People who know me are well aware of my contempt for Psy. I should be the one enjoying Internet fame. It seems I'm not the only one who has a negative opinion about the South Korean viral star. Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong has called the "Gangnam Style" leader an STD of the music industry.

Red Wings Fan Jiggles Boobs on National Television

Dave Kim — Tue, 07 May 2013 16:20:58 +0000

The Detroit Red Wings earned a hard-fought victory against the Anaheim Ducks last night (May 6) to tie their quarterfinal Stanley Cup playoff series at two games a piece. Center Damien Brunner scored the game-winning goal during the first overtime period, cashing in on a rebound against Ducks goaltender Jonas Hiller. While that's great news for Wings fans, the real highlight was a young woman in attendance who decided to express self-love during a break in the action.

Metallica, Deftones, Halestorm, Slipknot + More Win at Golden Gods Awards

Dave Kim — Fri, 03 May 2013 18:41:34 +0000

The biggest names in hard rock and heavy metal gathered in Los Angeles, Calif. for the fifth annual Revolver Golden Gods Awards last night (May 2). Artists who took trophies home included metal titans Metallica, Deftones, and Device among others.

Against Me! and Bassist Andrew Seward Part Ways

Dave Kim — Thu, 02 May 2013 21:45:39 +0000

Florida punk rockers Against Me! are down a member as bassist Andrew Seward has decided to quit the band. Seward broke the news on his Twitter page earlier today (May 2), stating that there were no hard feelings. The musician apparently has different priorities that don’t involve Against Me! anymore. See his tweet below. Twitter [...]

Five Finger Death Punch to Release Double Album in 2013

Dave Kim — Wed, 01 May 2013 18:31:49 +0000

Metal heads Five Finger Death Punch announced plans today (May 1) to release their fourth studio album in two installments this year. Much like the way Stone Sour released The House of Gold & Bones in two volumes, Five Finger Death Punch will put out disc one July 23. The second part of the as-yet-untitled record [...]

Listen to New Escape The Fate Song 'Until We Die'

Dave Kim — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 18:42:00 +0000

Fans itching for new Escape The Fate music have been waiting patiently for their new album Ungrateful to be released May 14. The metalcore rockers have made the wait a little more bearable by premiering another track from Ungrateful entitled "Until We Die," which you can listen to below.

Rival Sons Swinging By The Intersection in Grand Rapids

Dave Kim — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 16:49:29 +0000

97.9 GRD is proud to bring one of our favorite new bands, Long Beach, Calif. rockers Rival Sons, to Grand Rapids next month! Rival Sons will make a visit to BeerCity USA May 29 at The Intersection. This is their only announced North American date so far. The group released their third studio album Head [...]

Vinyl Sales Up During Record Store Day 2013

Dave Kim — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 16:02:30 +0000

Independent record stores enjoyed another successful Record Store Day this year. The annual event, which was celebrated worldwide April 20, showed that music fans will still come out of the house to buy offerings from their favorite artists. Vinyl records have been a big reason why local record shops have been able to survive against [...]

Watch Concert Goers Praise Fake Bands at Coachella on 'Jimmy Kimmel'

Dave Kim — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 19:13:11 +0000

Last Sunday closed out the second weekend of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, Calif. Big name acts like the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Blur, Modest Mouse and Social Distortion shared the bill with bands that aren't as well known. Late night funnyman Jimmy Kimmel decided to have some fun with festival attendees that should have probably thought better than to pretend to be a music know-it-all.

Silversun Pickups Set to Headline The Intersection in Grand Rapids

Dave Kim — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 16:20:12 +0000

The Intersection in downtown Grand Rapids has been booking great concerts in 2013. That trend continues with their latest show as Los Angeles alt-rockers Silversun Pickups will perform at the venue in June. Silversun Pickups have been touring in support of their fourth studio album Neck of the Woods, which was released almost a year ago. [...]

Free Beer & Hot Wings Show Host First Annual Adult Field Day at Kent Equipment

Dave Kim — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 15:25:06 +0000

Remember when you were a kid in elementary school and looked forward to field day? 20 teams were able to relive their childhood memories at Kent Equipment in Sparta on Saturday (April 20) during GRD's Adult Field Day with the Free Beer & Hot Wings Show.

Anberlin to Appear at West Michigan Whitecaps Game This Sunday

Dave Kim — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 23:20:06 +0000

Anberlin have played a countless number of shows throughout their decade-long career. This time the Florida alt-rockers are trying something different as they’re set to appear at this Sunday’s (April 21) West Michigan Whitecaps game. The Whitecaps are celebrating their 20th season in Minor League Baseball and want to make this year a little more special [...]