SCORPIONS‘ “Sin City Nights” Las Vegas residency, which was scheduled to kick off on July 4 at Zappos Theater at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, has officially been postponed. The new dates will be announced soon.

Earlier today (Wednesday, May 20), SCORPIONS released the following message via social media:

“Dear fans…Our Las Vegas Residency in July at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino is postponed, the new dates will be announced soon. We want our fans and everybody involved in the shows to be safe during these uncertain times. Please take good care of yourselves, stay healthy and well, and we see you again when times are better for all of us.

Lots of Love ….. Scorpions”

“Sin City Nights” was slated to include nine performances during July 2020: 4, 8, 11, 14, 16, 18, 21, 23, 25.

SCORPIONS frontman Klaus Meine spoke to SiriusXM‘s “Trunk Nation” about the band’s upcoming studio album. Tentatively due in 2021, the disc will mark the German hard rock legends’ first release since 2017’s “Born To Touch Your Feelings – Best Of Rock Ballads”, which was an anthology of SCORPIONS‘ new and classic material.

Speaking about how the coronavirus pandemic has affected the making of the newSCORPIONS LP, Meine said: “This situation gives us a little extra time. We had planned to release this new album later this year, but, unfortunately, it will be delayed until early 2021. And so it gives us some extra time. Also, to get prepared, when we pick up the tour again, there will be new songs in the setlist, there will be a whole new production, and I guess we will do a couple of videos, maybe, for some songs that will be released. And so there’s plenty of extra time. And it feels good that we can use this time and really make the best out of this situation right now instead of sitting at home and watching the grass grow. We came in here well prepared, because lots and lots of material we wrote already last year, and they’re still in the making and songwriting process — everybody comes up with bits and pieces. It’s really nice every day to come here and to see how all those elements come together and the feeling that we have hopefully a great rock album on the way is growing every day. And that’s really a good feeling.”

Meine went on to say that he is looking forward to working with producer Greg Fidelman, who began his career as the guitarist and songwriter for RHINO BUCKET before launching his career as a producer, engineer and mixer, finding an early mentor in Rick Rubin.

“The vibe and the feel we [are trying] to go back to [is] the days between ‘Lovedrive’[1979], ‘Animal Magnetism’ [1980] and ‘Blackout’ [1982],” he said about the new material’s musical direction. “I mean, it’s impossible to turn back time and start all over again — it’s such a long time ago. But we try to, especially with our producer, with Greg Fidelman, we try to go back to that spirit and make a hard-rocking album.

“Rudolf Schenker, the riff master, he came up with lots and lots of really great tunes, and I wrote more lyrics than probably ever before,” he continued. “So we went back to the same old spirit, like back in those days, and we try to make an album that goes in that direction. I’m not saying it will be like ‘Blackout’ or ‘Animal Magnetism’ — that’s impossible, I think — but it will be different from what we’ve done in the last 10 years. It’s a totally different approach. And hopefully this works out. Right now, what I hear every day, it feels great and it’s a lot of fun and I can’t wait until we can share it with the fans.”

Meine also talked about the new SCORPIONS song “Sign Of Hope”, which was surprise-released late last month. Asked how the track came about, he said: “When we came back from [touring] Asia — in Asia, the situation was pretty tense already, in places like Singapore or Yogyakarta, when we were on the road together with our friends from WHITESNAKE. There were temperature checks on airports, in hotels and shopping malls, so it felt already pretty serious, the whole coronavirus thing. But then when we came home, around the 6th or 7th of March, back here in Germany, it felt kind of still okay. But then, a week later, the whole world situation became more and more tense. And it was great to see so many artists, so many songwriters, picking up the guitar, writing new songs, just trying to reflect the situation we all go through right now, and that’s what I did. I think I wrote the song a couple of days after I came home, and it was just reflecting the whole situation. It had not so much to do, really, with the production of the [new SCORPIONS] album, because we said to the fans, when we started this project, especially when you work with a producer like Greg Fidelman, who is really well known for his amazing work with bands like METALLICA orSLIPKNOT. So we’re focused on the hard edge this time, and we wanna keep it going like this. But this song, it was just reflecting the situation. It was something that was straight from the heart in troubled times. I thought this situation, so many artists around the world come up with special little songs or shows and staying-at-home concept, this kind of home concept, and from the SCORPIONS, I wanted to give the world something we can share together — sending out a sign of hope from the SCORPIONS.”

Klaus Meine ” We’re not getting away from here (Hanover) and we don’t want to postpone planned production (New Album). That’s why we connect every day with our producer Greg Fidelman in Los Angeles via video zoom. The nature of this collaboration works incredibly well “.
Although all band members received negative for Corona, musicians wear protective masks in the studio. Mine of course I sing in a recording booth. But due to the embedded discs, the suspended particles from your breath cannot sing throughout the studio.
” You shouldn’t miss enough distance between us in the studio, although that, of course, is unusual for us. But there’s also something good about working in Hanover. We feel like we’re in our early days when we recorded our first albums here. Makes us feel good “.

Since we can’t be in the US recording a new Album, we‘re on a virtual production with our producer Greg Fidelman in L.A. … Rocks Big Time !!! Scorpions

Klaus Meine spoke to the SCORPIONS‘ official French fan club about the band’s upcoming studio album. Tentatively due in 2021, the disc will mark the German hard rock legends’ first release since 2017’s “Born To Touch Your Feelings – Best Of Rock Ballads”, which was an anthology of SCORPIONS‘ new and classic material.

Regarding how the coronavirus crisis is affecting the work on the new LP, Meine said (hear audio below): “We were supposed to start working in the studio [two weeks ago] and all of us are working in their own studios, but we’re in touch. And we keep going and we try to make the best out of this isolated situation… The last week of March, we were supposed to start working here [in Germany] before we wanted to go out together with the whole band here in the studio in Hannover. Our producer from America wanted to come over here — Greg Fidelman — and then we had to change the whole plan. And it turned out we ended up with everybody doing his own thing, working on songs and working on stuff at his own studio. So, for me, it was good. With the support of [our recording engineer] Hans-Martin Buff, he [took] me through all the different stages to record myself — not only to be a writer and a singer but also become an engineer, recording myself. And it was a nice challenge —and it still is. Every other day, I come up with things and go, ‘Hey, c’mon, Hans-Martin, you’ve gotta show me…’ It’s easy to communicate this way and get things done. That’s, so far, the good part of this in this very difficult time. So I think we’re very privileged that we can be at home and that we can spend time in the studio and do what we do anyway. But I’m sure, and I know there will be a point where it’s about time for the whole band to join together and put things on the next level.”

According to the singer, SCORPIONS “have a lot of songs” written for the upcoming album. “We started writing for this album early last year until June 2019. And then we had to go back on the road,” Meine said. “At that point, we had a couple of great songs already, so the whole thing was in progress. It felt really good at that point. Now, coming back from Australia and Southeast Asia, it was about time to pick up the recording sessions and go back into it. I know when Rudolf [Schenker, guitar] came back, he went to Thailand — the last show was in Singapore in early March and he went back to his place in Thailand — so he picked up the songs and a couple of weeks later, there was a lot of stuff coming back from the riff master. [Laughs] It’s a good creative mood, and it’s really exciting.

“Every other day, I ask myself, ‘Klaus, are we really doing a new album?'” he laughed. “‘Is anybody waiting for a new album from the SCORPIONS out there? But at the same time, it’s wonderful, after all these years, we’re still excited to create new stuff and to create new songs and we’re all into it. And having Mikkey [Dee, drums] in the band now, it’s, like, ‘Wow.’ This could be an album where it’s a little bit more on the harder edge.”

Meine went on to say that he is looking forward to working with Fidelman, who began his career as the guitarist and songwriter for RHINO BUCKET before launching his career as a producer, engineer and mixer, finding an early mentor in Rick Rubin.

“[Greg] used to work with METALLICA and SLIPKNOT, so we feel we have the right producer to go into a production where it’s all about attitude and playing together,” Klaussaid. “Which, unfortunately, right now is not happening — Greg can’t come over here, we can’t go over there to the United States — so right now it’s all a little crazy. And we don’t know how long it will take, really, to keep going and take this to the next level. But right now, it feels good. There’s a lot of work to do, and I’m happy that I can work on new material, and every other day I have songs — I put my vocals on. And the fact I do it myself — this is what I’m most proud of.”

Because the coronavirus pandemic has effectively shut down touring as people are being asked to stay home, Meine and his bandmates have been spending their quarantine time at home with their families.

“This is the time [when] solidarity and creativity are important, and to stay in touch with each other,” Klaus said.

“When we came back from Australia and Southeast Asia, we came here [to Germany], and a few days later, the situation with the coronavirus became more serious every other day. And so we thought it’s important to stay in touch with our fanbase around the world and also encourage them to stay at home in these very, very special times. It’s so important that we all try to not to be too close to each other.

“I haven’t been at home for such a long time in one run, so it’s kind of unusual for all of us, I guess,” he added. “But coming from this long trip, from Down Under, we spent so much time [on the road] in the last couple of years, so it’s, in a way, nice to have a break. And right now, it’s beautiful weather and [I get to] see a blue sky. I can’t complain, because it’s beautiful to be at home with your loved ones and spend some extra time together, and at the same time have a chance to be in my studio and work on new songs, write lyrics.”

SCORPIONS‘ last full-length collection of new recordings was 2015’s “Return To Forever”, partially comprising songs the band had in the vault from the ’80s. It was the final recorded appearance of SCORPIONS‘ longtime drummer James Kottak, who was dismissed from the band in September 2016. He has since been replaced by Dee, formerly of MOTÖRHEAD.

SCORPIONS were scheduled to take over the Las Vegas Strip in July with their exclusive headlining residency show at Zappos Theater at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino.

The band previously played a Las Vegas mini-residency in May 2016, consisting of five shows at The Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino.

German hard rock legends SCORPIONS are the latest musicians to stress the importance of international solidarity as we address the effects of COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus.

There have been more than 169,000 confirmed cases and more than 6,000 deaths so far, putting public health systems and emergency services under immense pressure.

Earlier today (Monday, March 16), SCORPIONS took to their social media to share the following message: “Dear Fans all over the World, wherever you are … please take good care of yourself … more than anything we’re wishing all of you good health … we gotta be strong and united, in this very difficult time … with lot’s of love … SCORPIONS”

There is no known cure yet for the flu-like virus, which originated in China.

In Italy, which has one of the oldest populations in the world, one hundred percent of the people who have died have been over 60, and the vast majority over 80.

According to the Centers For Disease Control And Protection (CDC), coronavirus is thought to spread mainly from person-to-person — between people who are in close contact with one another (within about six feet), and through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs or sneezes. These droplets can land in the mouths or noses of people who are nearby or possibly be inhaled into the lungs.