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U2 Make Surprise Club Appearance In London Last Night
Posted on May 29, 2009 at 10:11 AM
Since 1987, U2 have known nothing but arenas and stadiums. Of course, this is fine; their soaring, anthemic sound is meant for large spaces. But can you imagine what it'd be like to see them in smaller place? A 1500 cap place, for example?
It's happened before—the band played New York's relatively tiny Irving Plaza before the release of How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb, and have done similar "secret" shows elsewhere. But when it's a surprise, as it was last night, it's certainly special.
As it was last night, when U2 took to the stage of London's Shepherd's Bush Empire during the encore of Island Records artist Baaba Maal, who was performing as part of Island 50, a weeklong celebration of Island Records. U2, of course, were for years Island's best known, and best selling, artist. Maal and U2 performed an acoustic version of "One" before the show ended with "Vertigo."
And in other U2 news, their manager Paul McGuinness was interviewed in CNET this week, where he continued his campaign against internet piracy. What does he think of paradigm shifters like Nine Inch Nails and Radiohead?
"I admire what Radiohead have done tremendously in seeking a new model. They would take the view, and I would share it, that perhaps price has been a big problem for the music business. The music business has tried to hold onto a price that was unrealistic for a long time now. I think wider distribution of lower priced things is probably the future."
- Conrad Doucette
Tagged as: Music
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Rihanna To Testify Against Chris Brown
Posted on May 29, 2009 at 08:38 AM
It's the alleged crime of the century of the year: Chris Brown, charged with assault and making criminal threats, both felonies. The alleged victim, Rihanna, has kept a low profile since the Grammy's eve attack, but according to her lawyer, Donald Etro, she plans to cooperate with the district attorney, and will take the stand against her former boyfriend at Brown's preliminary hearing.
It's certainly not good news for Brown, and neither was the other pertinent news from the day: the judge rejected a motion from Brown's lawyers to release police records regarding the leaked photos of a beaten Rihanna, an episode that Brown's team is hoping exposes police misconduct.
It all goes down on June 22nd - mark your legal pads! And of course, if you'd like to see more—a lot more—of Rihanna, look no further than Kanye West's new video.
- Conrad Doucette
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Today's Bonnaroo Password Is...
Posted on May 28, 2009 at 12:00 PM
Superfly. Today's Bonnaroo password is superfly. Go here and enter for a chance to win tickets to Bonnaroo. And remember to text bonn to 38736 for alerts, news, offers and more!
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Cadence Weapon, Your New Poet Laureate (If You're From Edmonton)
Posted on May 28, 2009 at 11:45 AM
Edmonton, Alberta may be far away, it may suffer brutal prairie winters, and it may be looked down upon by its more upscale, down-province neighbo(u)r Calgary, but the city's got cred, dude, and for proof of that, look no further than its newly named poet laureate: Rollie Pemberton, better known as Cadence Weapon.
Putting aside the fact that any city that recognizes a poet laureate is likely a sight more cool than wherever you happen to be, it's a stunningly progressive move, given that Pemberton is a 23 year-old rapper. He's also a poet (in addition to being a lyricist) and writer; in fact, Pemberton is a former contributor to Pitchfork. And did you know that his grandfather Rollie Miles played for the CFL's Edmonton Eskimos? Not entirely relevant, but completely cool.
Pemberton takes over from previous poet laureate E.D. Blodgett, a 74 year-old poet with over nineteen published collections to his name. How does he feel about a rapper taking over the (admittedly limited) duties of poet laureate? According to The Globe and Mail, Blodgett "didn't think that this was how a poet laureate was to be defined." Edmonton mayor Stephen Mandel, however, is ecstatic:
“This guy will bring poetry to a whole new audience, and challenge the rest of us on our conventional perception of what it means to be a poet. I sometimes hear that young people aren't ‘into' poetry, but Roland, as a musician or hip hop artist, will show them they really are into the art form – they just didn't know it.”
- Conrad Doucette
Tagged as: Music
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Depeche Mode's Dave Gahan Enjoying Recovery, The Silence
Posted on May 28, 2009 at 10:50 AM
Depeche Mode, and their fans, have lately had a rough go of it; concert cancellations have led to disappointed concertgoers and have fueled rumors that singer and recovering addict David Gahan may have had a relapse.
Not so, according to a post on DM's official site, which reveals that not only did Gahan have a severe case of gastroenteritus, as the band originally stated, but also that Gahan had a low-grade malignant tumor in his bladder, which has since been successfully removed. Gahan is currently, on doctor's orders, taking a break to rest and recover. The band plan to continue their "Tour Of The Universe" in Leipzig, Germany on June 8th. The tour will take them across Europe through July 12, after which their they'll fly their synths across the Atlantic for a six week North American trek beginning July 24 in Toronto, and then it's off to South America, and then back to Europe. Phew. [via Billboard]
- Conrad Doucette
Tagged as: Music
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Courtney Love: American Express Will See You In Court
Posted on May 28, 2009 at 10:01 AM
If Courtney Love ever asks you for a loan, think twice. Reuters reports that the lawsuit-friendly musician and former Mrs. Kurt Cobain was sued yesterday by American Express, which alleges that Love has a large unpaid balance—really large. The suit seeks $352,059.67 for the unpaid balance, damages, and legal fees. AMEX claims that Love "failed and refused" to make payments. Is anything more rock n' roll than being sued by a major credit card company?
- Conrad Doucette
Tagged as: Music
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Rihanna Helps Kanye West Get "Paranoid"
Posted on May 28, 2009 at 09:27 AM
If you leak it, it will come. Higher quality leaks, that is! For a brief while the world has only had a crap quality copy of the latest Kanye West video in which a scantily-clad Rihanna embarks on a kind of sleepwalk through her deepest fears. But now, a high quality video has appeared, making it all the more clear that Rihanna, very likely, sleeps standing up. Here's 808s And Heartbreak cut "Paranoid." [via Stereogum]
- Conrad Doucette
UPDATE: Ok, so that clip isn't around anymore. Here's one you might dig. Not SUPER high quality, but it ain't bad. And, hey, look! Rihanna!
Tagged as: Music
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Glastonbury Announces 2009 Lineup
Posted on May 28, 2009 at 08:00 AM
The festival's been sold out for months, but Glastonbury, the UK's grandest and most legendary festival, announced the lineup for this year's event this week. The Pyramid Stage is traditionally the home to the biggest names, and this year's main attractions live up to the billing: Friday's headliner is Neil Young, Saturday's is Bruce Springsteen, and Sunday's is Blur, making their triumphant return to the Somerset countryside with prodigal guitarist Graham Coxon in tow.
The full lineup features hundreds of performers, from the indie-riffic (Fleet Foxes, Bon Iver) to the timeless (Madness, Echo & The Bunnymen), to the weird (Spinal Tap, ABBA tribute band Bjorn Again). Peep the lengthy list here.
- Conrad Doucette
Tagged as: Music
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Weezer Announces Wuggie Snuggie
Posted on May 28, 2009 at 07:24 AM
Whether we like it or not, and we often don't, rock n' roll is often about branding. The Rolling Stones lips. Pink Floyd's bricks (or prisms, or airplanes). Even your favorite band's logo has been pored over and eventually approved by a team of managers, publicists and the like.
But rock n' roll is also, whether we like it or not, and we do, about fun. And if you were put together a quick list of "fun" things, wouldn't snuggies be on it? They're on Rivers Cuomo's list, apparently; Weezer is, according to Rolling Stone, set to unleash the Wuggie, a Weezer-branded snuggie. Of course, this all may be a big joke. A fuzzy, comfy joke, that is!
- Conrad Doucette
Tagged as: Music
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Today's Bonnaroo Password Is...
Posted on May 27, 2009 at 12:00 PM
Camping. Today's Bonnaroo password is camping. Go here and enter for a chance to win tickets to Bonnaroo. And remember to text bonn to 38736 for alerts, news, offers and more!
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Beastie Boys Play Old Song On New Show
Posted on May 27, 2009 at 11:49 AM
Memorial Day on TV is generally defined by repeats, reality show marathons, and Star Wars airings. New kid Jimmy Fallon still has something to prove, however, and so he took the opportunity to bust out a new episode of Late Night while you were probably eating that third hot dog.
And what an episode: the Beastie Boys dropped by to promote the reissue of their 1992 album Check Your Head. They also chose Monday to lay the title of the next album on us: Hot Sauce Committee. It's a title that already feels classic.
But back to Check Your Head. Ad Rock, Mike D and MCA discussed the album, as one might expect, but then, yeah, they got up and rocked it. The below clip begins with the band being interviewed on the couch, discussing the re-release. Jimmy then asks if the band might be willing to play a song from the album. It's the talk show host equivalent of the "Oh—I didn't see you there" gambit, and... well, it doesn't work as even ironic comedy, but who cares, because the Roots start playing the music, the Beasties grab mics conveniently located behind their chairs, and they're off into 'So What'cha Want' land.
Watch Jimmy accidentally deftly clap on the upbeat at the :45 mark—dude's got rhythm (maybe not)!
- Conrad Doucette
Tagged as: Music
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New Music From The National: 'The Runaway'
Posted on May 27, 2009 at 11:18 AM
It's been a long time since May 22, 2007. It was on that day that Boxer, the National's fourth full-length album, was released to critical and popular acclaim. Since then, the band has been busy—tours have taken them to Turkey, Russia, Australia and Brazil. Appearances on Letterman and Fallon have been recorded. A mammoth album and concert—Dark Was The Night—was organized, recorded and performed to benefit the Red Hot AIDS charity. And yes, they've been writing and recording a new album. So while two years may seem like a long time between albums, The National certainly haven't been idle.
They also haven't been shy—new songs have begun to creep into their recent setlists. Performances at this winter's Tibet House benefit and the aforementioned Dark Was The Night show at Radio City saw the band test new material in front of actual paying listeners. Currently on a two week tour of the East Coast, Ontario and Quebec, the band has become confident enough to perform a new song at a live radio session in Toronto. The song is called 'The Runaway', and the session went down on the CBC's Q show. Yes, this is the song formerly known as 'Karamazov'. Look for a minor headphone blooper at 5:26:
Lovely tune, no? Additional instrumentation provided by trumpeter Kyle Resnick, trombonist Ben Hofer Lanz, and pianist Thomas Bartlett, aka Doveman. The National are still on this short swing; they hit Atlanta tonight, Raleigh tomorrow, and Philadelphia Friday. Following these shows the band will return home to continue to work on their fifth full album at their home studio in Brooklyn. Perhaps another new tune, 'Blood Buzz Ohio', will make the cut. Head to Stereogum for shiny MP3s of the new songs.
- Conrad Doucette
Tagged as: Music
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Today's Bonnaroo Password Is...
Posted on May 26, 2009 at 12:00 PM
Which stage. Today's Bonnaroo password is which stage. Go here and enter for a chance to win tickets to Bonnaroo. And remember to text bonn to 38736 for alerts, news, offers and more!
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Two Weeks
Posted on May 26, 2009 at 10:03 AM
Album release of the day? Grizzly Bear's Veckatimest. Peep the unsettling video for Two Weeks above.
Maybe it's all the birthday hubbub, but the newly-fifty Morrissey has been having trouble with his throat—this weekend saw Mozzer cancel his Saturday show and his Salisbury show last night. Tonight's London show has also been canceled. For now, his London Brixton Academy shows slated for later this week are still on.
This fall will be all about the Beastie Boys - the NYers (who've just re-released Check Your Head) announced yesterday that their next album has been completed and that it's called Hot Sauce Committee. According to Adam Horivitz, "It's political, depending on what you call political. You know, if toilet talk and fart jokes are political, which they can be, in that sense yeah, very."
Also returning soon with a new album: Linkin Park. The LA rap-rock hybrid will release their fourth album in 2010. Rapper Mike Shinoda says the album will feature more rapping, but then, he would say that.
Today's the day! T.I. has until noon to report to a federal prison in Arkansas to serve a 366 day sentence for his weapons charges conviction. T.I. played a blowout arena show in Atlanta on Sunday, during which he asked the crowd to pray for him. Something worked, because he'll be at a minimum security prison.
As you may have heard by now, former Wilco member Jay Bennett died in his sleep Sunday morning. The cause of death is not yet known; an autopsy is scheduled. Bennett joined Wilco just after the band completed their debut album A.M. Bennett was a key instrumentalist, as well as songwriter and engineer, on the next three Wilco albums: Being There, Summerteeth and Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. By the time of the latter's recording, Bennett and Wilco main man Jeff Tweedy were at odds, a conflict exposed in the film I Am Trying To Break Your Heart. Tweedy fired Bennett, who went on to make several solo albums. Bennett returned to the news last month, when he sued Tweedy for unpaid royalties. The impetus for the suit was apparently the uninsured Bennett's need for hip replacement surgery. The Chicago Tribune's Greg Kot has an appreciation. A beautiful and fun clip from the Bennett era of Tweedy can be found here, and below, watch a boisterous Bennett on guitar during an April 1999 Summerteeth tour show at Irving Plaza in New York.
Links:
Morrissey Cancels London Troxy Gig [NME]
Beastie Boys Complete Hot Sauce Committee' Album [Billboard]
Linkin Park Hard At Work On Next Album [Billboard]
Rapper T.I. To Report To Arkansas Federal Prison [AP]
Jay Bennett Dies At 45: Ex-Wilco Member and Musician Extraordinaire [Chicago Tribune]
Tagged as: Music
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Today's Bonnaroo Password Is...
Posted on May 25, 2009 at 12:00 PM
Vibe. Today's Bonnaroo password is vibe. Go here and enter for a chance to win tickets to Bonnaroo. And remember to text bonn to 38736 for alerts, news, offers and more!
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Today's Bonnaroo Password Is...
Posted on May 24, 2009 at 12:00 PM
Sleeping bag. Today's Bonnaroo password is sleeping bag. Go here and enter for a chance to win tickets to Bonnaroo. And remember to text bonn to 38736 for alerts, news, offers and more!
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Today's Bonnaroo Password Is...
Posted on May 23, 2009 at 12:11 PM
Party. Today's Bonnaroo password is party. Go here and enter for a chance to win tickets to Bonnaroo. And remember to text bonn to 38736 for alerts, news, offers and more!
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Today's Bonnaroo Password Is...
Posted on May 22, 2009 at 12:00 PM
Solar. Today's Bonnaroo password is solar. Go here and enter for a chance to win tickets to Bonnaroo. And remember to text bonn to 38736 for alerts, news, offers and more!
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King Of America
Posted on May 22, 2009 at 09:16 AM
Elvis Costello keeps going and going... The Spectacle host is about to release his latest, Secret, Profane and Sugarcane, on June 2. It's "countryish," but don't let that scare you. It's also on Hear Music, the Starbucks label. Don't let that scare you, either. And it was made with T-Bone Burnett, who produced Elvis's 1986 album King Of America, and 1989's Spike (not to mention last year's Grammy-winning Raising Sand album by Robert Plant and Alison Krauss), which just means this record will be beautiful. Stereogum has a preview of album track "The Crooked Line."
He's Come To Wish Himself A Happy Unhappy Birthday... Happy 50th birthday to Morrissey! The Moz will be celebrating in his hometown of Manchester, England tonight with a show at the Apollo. The years may not be on Morrissey's side, but Keats and Yeats are. What do you get the man who has everything, but presumably wants nothing?
Jay-Z has confirmed that he has left Def Jam, the label that he recorded for, and later ran. Being Jay-Z, his departure is, of course, a classy one: "I thank him for allowing me to be a completely independent artist. Not every artist can say they own or are given the opportunity to own all of their music."
Rolling Stone spells out—in bullet point form—how Adam Lambert lost American Idol. But don't be too concerned about Adam's career; he'll be just fine.
Who will play Frank Sinatra in Martin Scorsese's proposed biopic? Will it be Johnny Depp or Christian Bale? Or will it be Leonardo DiCaprio?
Philly indie art duo Pattern Is Movement isn't afraid to tackle R&B—check out their oft-performed cover od D'Angelo's How Does It Feel (via My Old Kentucky Blog), and see them on tour this month with St. Vincent:
Links:
Johnny Depp In Contention For Lead In Martin Scorsese's Sinatra Biopic? [EW]
Does Leonardo DiCaprio Have The Inside Track To Play Sinatra? [Examiner]
Rapper Jay-Z Confirms Split With Def Jam [AP]
How Adam Lambert Lost "American Idol" To Kris Allen [Rolling Stone]
Tagged as: Music
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Today's Bonnaroo Password Is...
Posted on May 21, 2009 at 12:00 PM
Comedy. Today's Bonnaroo password is comedy. Go here and enter for a chance to win tickets to Bonnaroo. And remember to text bonn to 38736 for alerts, news, offers and more!
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The Roll Off Characteristics
Posted on May 21, 2009 at 09:19 AM
Pitchfork certainly loves Vampire Weekend—they'll devote major pixelage to "news" of VW-related events like DJ nights. But covering this whole Discovery business... that makes sense. The album is collabo between VW keyboardist Rostam Batmanglij and Ra Ra Riot's Wes Miles. The album, described as electro-pop perfect for summertime bopping, also features VW's Ezra Koenig, Angel Deradoorian (of Deradoorian and the Dirty Projectors) and a cover of the Jackson 5's I Want You Back.
Not a complete surprise, given their summer shows scheduled in London, but very welcome news nonetheless: Blur are reportedly considering adding American tour dates to follow their UK shows this summer.
The NYT is in awe of American Idol and its ability to be such a runaway success in a tanking economy, and is also not surprised at Kris Allen's victory. And Allen's thought? "It feels good. But Adam [Lambert] deserves this."
Cornershop were one of the most unique indie bands of the 90s, presenting South Asian vocals and sounds as filtered through the cultural mosaic of North London. They've been away for seven years, but now they are back, with this endlessly catchy song, and an accompanying, beautifully shot Prashant Bhargava-directed video.
Links:
Discovery Album Details Revealed [Pitchfork]
Blur Eyeing US, European Dates [Billboard]
'Idol' Machine Cranks Out A New Star [New York Times]
Tagged as: Music
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Today's Bonnaroo Password Is...
Posted on May 20, 2009 at 12:00 PM
This Stage. Today's Bonnaroo password is This Stage. Go here and enter for a chance to win tickets to Bonnaroo. And remember to text bonn to 38736 for alerts, news, offers and more!
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That Book Is Broken
Posted on May 20, 2009 at 08:55 AM
Green Day's new album is out, and to celebrate, they continue to use their arena gear to test the structural integrity of club-sized venues. The most recent stop on the itinerary: New York's Bowery Ballroom on Monday evening.
Concerts by AC/DC are bound to receive noise complaints. But from twelve miles away? Are the residents of Munich hearing things?
A man has been arrested and booked on suspicion of murdering Atlanta rapper Dolla. The Akon protege was murdered Monday afternoon outside the Beverly Center mall in Los Angeles (though no one seems to have told his MySpace page).
A Louisiana eighth grader tried to shoot her suicide and then attempted suicide after the teacher refused to say "Hail Marilyn Manson." Kids, listen: Not everyone likes Marilyn Manson. OK?
It's been awhile since Toronto superconnected supercollective Broken Social Scene's made headlines but the past few days have brought a 1-2 punch of BSS news: a new album is being made, and a new book is out. Pitchfork has a PDF'd preview of oral history This Book Is Broken—all the better to enjoy the eye-catching layout of images, essays and quotes. Meanwhile, on the BSS blog, main man Kevin Drew drops info on the new album's recording (they're at Soma in Chicago recording with Tortoise's John McEntire) while also, in a dose of typically love-filled, almost-hippiefied (501) streetcar philosophy, advises us to watch out for "this Twiiter sh*t." But what about YouTube sh*t?
Links:
Green Day Rip Into "Breakdown," Fan Favorites At NYC Club Show [Rolling Stone]
AC/DC Gig Draws Complaints For Being 'Too Loud' [NME]
Arrest Made In Murder Of Atlanta Rapper Dolla [NY Daily News]
Eighth Grader Attempts Suicide After Marilyn Manson-Related Altercation With Teacher [TheTripwire]
Update From Kevin [Arts & Crafts]
Tagged as: Music
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Today's Bonnaroo Password Is...
Posted on May 19, 2009 at 12:00 PM
Portapotty. Today's Bonnaroo password is portapotty. Go here and enter for a chance to win tickets to Bonnaroo. And remember to text bonn to 38736 for alerts, news, offers and more!
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'Losing In Front Of Your Hometown'
Posted on May 19, 2009 at 09:43 AM
Morrissey is an artist one would believe to be immune to heckling—his fans are among the most adoring in music. So it's eyebrow-raising to hear that a fan went bananas at a recent Cambridge show, upset the Mozzer wished a happy birthday to a woman in the front row. Guitarist Boz Boorer stepped in to the affair to fire off some heated words and Morrissey polled the audience on whether the "fan" should stay or go. The crowd said 'go,' and the fan was gone.
Commencing 18-24 months of rumors, gossip, and inscrutable website messages: Radiohead have begun work with producer Nigel Godrich on the follow-up to In Rainbows. Sayeth bassist Colin Greenwood to the BBC: "It was very noisy and chaotic and really fun."
Conan O'Brien takes over The Tonight Show on June 1, with guests Will Ferrell and... Pearl Jam, who'll play something from the studio album they're currently working on.
Atlanta rapper Dolla was shot and killed outside the Beverly Center mall in LA on Monday.
With Michael Jackson gearing up for his fifty London shows and Jacko fever in high gear, a bunch of MJ-obsessed, disturbed William & Mary students took it upon themselves to set a world record for most people dancing in a routine to the song Thriller. In the end, 242 people were involved in this bizarre pursuit. Now they've achieved the record, life will be one downhill slide. (No embedding, so head to YouTube to watch the original, which has over 36 million views.)
Links:
Morrissey Halts Gig To Reprimand Fan [ContactMusic, via The Music Slut]
Radiohead In Studio [BBC 6 Music]
Pearl Jam To Kick Off Conan's 'Tonight Show' [Billboard]
Atlanta rapper Dolla Shot Dead Outside Los Angeles Mall [Rolling Stone]
Students Break 'Thriller' Dance Record [Boston.com/AP]
Tagged as: Music
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Today's Bonnaroo Password Is...
Posted on May 18, 2009 at 12:00 PM
Security. Today's Bonnaroo password is security. Go here and enter for a chance to win tickets to Bonnaroo. And remember to text bonn to 38736 for alerts, news, offers and more!
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Working On A Dream Show
Posted on May 18, 2009 at 10:12 AM
Bonnaroo is now mere weeks away, so headliners such as Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band must be busy preparing festival-specific sets right? Wrong, according to E Streeter Steve Van Zandt, who reveals that festival fans see the same shows that Bruce fans see: "We don’t particularly change things according to who the audience is or not. We kind of do what we do, and then you just hope people dig it."
The Yellowbird Project is a Montreal-based non-profit that works with indie artists to create beautiful shirts, and other pieces of art, in an effort to raise money for charities of the artists' choice. So the fact Yellowbird will be releasing an indie rock coloring book is not surprising.
Where have you gone Eric Clapton? The Financial Times examines the current state of the virtuoso guitar solo.
Blink-182 may have launched their reunion a few weeks early at Some Corporate Event last Thursday, but a more musically intriguing event that evening was Weezer's cover of MGMT's "Kids." Thanks to Stereogum, here's some video. Note that Patrick Wilson is out from behind the drums (replaced by superdrummer Josh Freese) and is playing keys:
Links:
Steven Van Zandt Previews Springsteen's Bonnaroo Gig [Rolling Stone]
The Indie Rock Coloring Book Going On Sale July 22 [Consequence Of Sound]
Clapton And The Fate Of Virtuoso Guitar Solos [FT]
Weezer Cover MGMT [Stereogum]
Photo by Andrew Cook from Backstreets.
Tagged as: Music
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Today's Bonnaroo Password Is...
Posted on May 17, 2009 at 12:00 PM
Brooers. Today's Bonnaroo password is brooers. Go here and enter for a chance to win tickets to Bonnaroo. And remember to text bonn to 38736 for alerts, news, offers and more!
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Today's Bonnaroo Password Is...
Posted on May 16, 2009 at 12:00 PM
Weather. Today's Bonnaroo password is weather. Go here and enter for a chance to win tickets to Bonnaroo. And remember to text bonn to 38736 for alerts, news, offers and more!
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My Meeting With Elvis Costello
Posted on May 16, 2009 at 10:12 AM
This past Wednesday, I, your loyal FUSE.TV intern, was given the wonderful opportunity to (very briefly) interview musical legend, Austin Powers cameo-maker, and recent 30 Rock guest star Elvis Costello. It went a little something like this:
Photo: James OMara
Me: “Hi Elvis.”
Elvis Costello: “Hi there.”
But wait — there’s more! Time was limited at the phoner press conference, so when I was told that I could only ask him one question, I thought it’d be cool to raise an issue that’s been on the minds of his rabid fans: Elvis Costello is booked to play at the same time as the Decemberists and Wilco at Bonnaroo. If you search Twitter for “Elvis Costello/Bonnaroo,” there are lots of people freaking out about having to miss any one of these performances. I asked him his thoughts on the dilemma, and Elvis immediately countered my muckraking with a query of his own:
Elvis Costello: “What's Twitter?” Then: “It’s something to do with the Internet, I bet.”
D’oh! Not only is this adorable, but it also uncovers a few Costello imposters on Twitter! This is hard-hitting journalism, folks.
It’s really easy to love Elvis for other reasons, too. When we got back to the question at hand, he told me, “It’s pretty hard to guess who shares [fans] — no two artists are exactly alike. I wouldn't have imagined that Wilco fans were particularly heartbroken to miss my show.” He’s certainly a modest guy.
I’m sure you’re wondering: How does Elvis plan to get around Bonnaroo? “I am going to saddle up my pony and ride from stage to stage.” You mean your golf cart pony? “No. A real pony.” Wow — love this guy!
Rachel Stein
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JAY-Z Video
- JAY-Z on 'The Blueprint 3'
- Toure finds out where the new album resides in JAY-Z's catalog of classic records.
- JAY-Z on Cover Art
- Toure and JAY-Z talk about the inspiration for his new album's cover art.
- Daily Noise: JAY-Z Interview
- We sit down with JAY-Z to talk about his new album and more.
- D.O.A. (TRANSLATED!)
- Watch the video and read Fred Pessaro's translation for the hip hop impaired.
- Run This Town
- Watch JAY-Z, Rihanna and Kanye run this town. Heck, I'd vote for them.
Awsome band!