By Rob Goald
rsgoald@comcast.net

 World Xtreme Boxing Challenge Announced by Promoter Don House Here in Las Vegas

Press Conference Held at The Westin Casuarina Hotel and Casino
25 July 2008

Promoter Don House announced his World Xtreme Boxing Challenge with a press conference held at Westin Casuarina Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. House elaborated that the Challenge will bring back the classic art of boxing with a “round-robin” tournament set-up, an exciting new style that has never been done before in the world of boxing. The fights will award cash prizes and fans will find that prices for the Xtreme Challenge will be affordable to the average person. The idea is to fill the gap between fighters that make no money and the fighters who fight for mega-millions. The first event will be held at the Wells Fargo Center in Des Moines, Iowa on August 29, 2008 and will be televised on Fox Sports TV. Fans will also be able to watch on pay-per-view and on HD live web streaming on www.xbclive.com  for $19.95 live as the fights unfold.

Mr. House has a long and esteemed track record in the boxing world and has helped UFC fighters such as Diego Corrales, Freddy Norwood, Chuck Lidell, Tito Ortiz launch their careers. “I’m excited to see my vision, WXBC, come to fruition!” stated creator Don House. He added, “traditional boxing has tarnished the image of the sport, from protected fighters to the numerous ‘red tape’ sanctions. WXBC will revolutionize the sport-----it will level the playing field, allowing talented fighters to showcase their skills and give them the opportunity to win over $2M. World Xtreme Boxing Challenge is an event the public has been waiting for, fans will tune in to pick their favorite boxer represent his country and fight his way, round by round, watching as his purse grows with each bout won”.

In order to qualify for WXBC, each fighter must have at least ten professional bouts under their belt. WXBC will provide a once-per-month event, with every fourth month being held in another country. Each event will feature one weight class, the first being heavyweights, then light –heavyweights, super middle-weights and junior-lightweights. In one day, there will be six elimination bouts, with the seventh being the final, broken down into five three-minute rounds. Open scoring will ensure fair judging and refereeing and fighters will be paid round per round based on performance.

The inaugural event will be held in DesMoines to raise money to help flood victims. This humanitarian component is unique to the WXBC and is named “Fighting For A Better World”. Other possible locations for fights will give consideration to this component.

At the press conference, Mr. House introduced four of the competing boxers: Fres “Fast Fres/Big O” Oquendo from Puerto Rico, Javier “The Sexican” Mora from Mexico, Duncan Dokiwari from Nigeria and Cisse “Cool C” from Mali.

For more information on World Xtreme Boxing Challenge, please visit www.xbclive.com

 THE NO FEAR MUSIC TOUR ROCKS WITH BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE

The House of Blues, Las Vegas
July 26, 2008
Tickets $23-$25

The No Fear Music tour checked in at The House of Blues, Las Vegas last Saturday for a scintillating display of metal fury. The Tour, which marries the fashion and lifestyle brand NO FEAR with LIVE NATION, the world’s largest live music company, is part of a 23 city tour which wraps on August 16th in Cleveland.

Photo courtesy of: myspace.com/bulletformyvalentine

“Last year we partnered up with House of Blues/Live Nation for our inaugural No Fear Music Tour. No Fear couldn’t be more pleased with the fan support and its over all success. We are looking forward to reaching out to our fans once again with this year’s No Fear Music Tour.” Says Britt Galland, Vice President of Marketing for No Fear.

Photo credit: Rob Goald

Photo credit: Rob Goald

“We are thrilled to be working with NO FEAR again this year to utilize our unparalleled national network of clubs to bring the best emerging acts in hard rock to fans around the country,” said Live Nation’s Kelly Kapp, Vice President of Theater and Club Programming. “All of the bands on this bill are helping to define today’s metal scene. This tour is not to be missed.”

Photo courtesy of: myspace.com/bulletformyvalentine

The opening act, Cancer Bats, set the irreverent tone and energy level for the HOB Vegas show. Cancer Bats are fresh off their latest worldwide release, Hail Destroyer, and a European tour. Their lead vocalist Liam Cormier tore through the new album’s title track, which is a typical Bats rocker, with a powerful riff accompanied by Cormier's roaring vocals. The highlight of their set was "Lucifer's Armchair," a serious bulldozer of a tune that rocks harder than anything else this band played. It brings to mind groups like Kyuss or Clouds in its stoner riffage, and was easily the highlight of their performance.

Photo courtesy of: myspace.com/bulletformyvalentine

Next up was Bleeding Through, the American metalcore band from Orange County, California who are made up of Brandan Schieppati (vocals), Brian Leppke (guitar), Jona Weinhofen (guitar), Ryan Wombacher (bass), Derek Youngsma (drums) and the foxy Marta Peterson (keyboards). The band which is often compared to Avenged Sevenfold, roared through their ferocious set with intricate lead lines and layered keyboards. When they sang “I’ll fucking hate you forever” the audience embraced their nihilistic sentiments. Lead singer Schieppati prowled the stage like a rabid wolf and roared his vocals with power and sincere credibility. Bleeding Through left the audience pumped and anticipating the entrée in this three course hardcore extravaganza.

Photo courtesy of: myspace.com/bulletformyvalentine

The Welsh metal-core band Bullet For My Valentine has established itself as world-wide force over the past couple of years by touring extensively throughout the U.K., Europe and the U.S.A. Their 2006 debut album entitled The Poison was acclaimed as “one of the finest debut albums in rock history” and sold over a million copies-a rare achievement in today’s cutthroat music climate.

As they hit the stage at HOB, Las Vegas a sea of waving arms emerged and some in the crowd started a body surfing event which kept the security guards busy carting off those who were tumbling towards the stage. This excitement level was encouraged by the band who performed tunes from their sophomore release, Scream Aim Fire.

Photo courtesy of: myspace.com/bulletformyvalentine

Photo credit: Rob Goald

Front man Matthew “Matt: Tuck performed their up-tempo hybrid Iron Maiden/Pantera-ish songs in an aggressive style as hundreds in the crowd chanted every word.

It was a powerful set as the band went out in true metal fashion encouraging rebellion in their audience. It was a memorable evening.