Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Sting's Birthday Bash

The legendary Sting will be celebrating his 60th birthday in the best city ever with some very special guests.

A concert at the Beacon Theatre in NYC will feature artists Bruce Springsteen, Lady Gaga, will.i.am, Rufus Wainwright, Billy Joel, Mary J. Blige and more. Tickets are on sale only to Sting fan club members ranging from $250 - $2,500.

That's one expensive party.

Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Kim Kardashian: Turn It Off

Once upon a time, Kim Kardashian woke up one morning and decided she wanted to be a singer. And with the aide of computers, fame, money and her big ass, that is what she's done--again proving that becoming a singer does not always require talent. Here is a clip of the video for her oh-so-meaningful debut single "Jam (Turn It Up)" that people will actually buy, simply because it's Kim Kardashian. We can only hope she gets it all out of her system after only one album like Paris Hilton.







Foo Fighters Shoot Fake Gay Porn Video

This is one of the many reasons I love the Foo Fighters -- Check out their video for "Hot Buns."




Monday, August 29, 2011

The VMAs: Best and Worst Moments (Mostly the Worst)

"The VMA's. One day a year when MTV pretends to still care about music," Maroon 5 singer Adam Levine posted on Twitter.

That was how many felt as they watched the VMAs on Sunday.  Needless to say, the cast of the Jersey Shore were in attendance as if they had some sort of relevance to music. But in the end I suppose the cast has the last laugh -- MTV airs their show all day instead of music videos.

After observing Katy Perry and Nicki Minaj's ridiculous outfits, it seemed as though they were not only competing for a Moonman, but also who could dress more like Lady Gaga. This seems to be the general theme in recent years at all award shows.

To everyone's surprise, Gaga decided to open the show dressed as male alter-ego, Jo Calderone, with a cockamamie five-minute monologue that most people didn't seem to even understand. She redeemed herself with an exceptional performance of "You and I" featuring Queen guitarist Brian May, but as many expected the shtick to end after her performance...It didn't.

Gaga presented Britney Spears with the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard award after an insipid tribute, in which MTV clearly made little effort. Gaga, still in character as Jo Calderone, awkwardly did not leave the microphone at first for Britney to make her speech. When it was finally Britney's turn to speak, her very brief acceptance speech quickly turned into reading the teleprompter to introduce Beyonce. It was at that point Beyonce performed, revealing her baby bump, and just like that everyone forgot about Britney Spears.

One of the few memorable performances was when Adele nailed "Someone Like You." That girl has some raw talent and is living proof there's room for women with actual talent in mainstream music.

Last time I checked, part of a singer's performance required singing. Chris Brown barely made any attempt whatsoever to even lip-sync! Are there really that many simpletons out there that believe that his excellent dancing negates the fact he isn't singing? This is not Dancing With the Stars.

REUTERS
Then there was an actual real, deserving tribute--Russell Brand made a very lovely speech about Amy Winehouse. "When a talent like Amy Winehouse comes along, it effects everybody," he said. "And as a consequence, we are drawn to her." Tony Bennett then showed footage from recording a duet with Amy, which was followed by Bruno Mars' performance of "Valerie."


As expected, the popularity vote kicked in once again at the VMAs as Katy Perry accepted the award for Video of the Year, beating out Lady Gaga, Adele and a few other artists that were clearly more deserving. "I feel like I'm doing something right when I sing this song," Katy said. Well, she's not singing right in tune, that's for sure.

The show ended with quite a pointless performance by Lil Wayne. He began with "How to Love" in an auto-tuned speaking voice--a pathetic attempt at singing. As much as I would have loved to hear Lil Wayne degrade women while simultaneously having his pants fall to the ground, the majority of his second song "John" was silence due to MTV editing out cursing.

As always, the VMAs prove to be currently one of the most insignificant music award shows with no credibility whatsoever.

Also see: VMA Preshow Revolves Around 'Jersey Shore'
Also see:  Tyler The Moron at the VMAs

Here's a full list of all VMA winners:

Video of the Year: Katy Perry - "Firework"
Best Female Video: Lady Gaga - "Born This Way"
Best Male Video: Justin Bieber - "U Smile"
Best Collaboration: Katy Perry featuring Kanye West - "E.T."
Best Hip-Hop Video: Nicki Minaj - "Super Bass"
Best New Artist: Tyler The Creator - "Yonkers"
Best Rock Video: Foo Fighters - "Walk"
Best Pop Video: Britney Spears - "Till the World Ends"
Best Video With A Message: Lady Gaga - "Born This Way"
Best Choreography: Beyoncé - "Run the World (Girls)"
Best Visual Effects: Katy Perry featuring Kanye West - "E.T."
Best Art Direction: Adele - "Rolling in the Deep"
Best Editing: Adele - "Rolling in the Deep"
Best Cinematography: Adele - "Rolling in the Deep"








Beyonce performing "Love On Top"






Adele performing "Someone Like You"






Russell Brand and Tony Bennett pay tribute to Amy Winehouse.


Tyler The Moron at the VMAs

Los Angeles rapper Tyler, The Creator is someone I never heard of until VMA night, but he most definitely sounds like an uneducated moron.

During his VMA preshow interview, he stated, "I might kill myself" when asked what his reaction would be if Bruno Mars won Video of the Year. Aside from how unbelievably juvenile of a response that was, it's quite asinine that a new artist deems himself worthy enough to disrespect a talented, more experienced artist.






Tyler, The Creator's VMA Preshow Interview

Bruno Mars performed a cover of "Valerie" as part of a tribute to Amy Winehouse during the VMAs. Tyler later on tweeted, "F--k I Hate Bruno But That Was Really Good." Both Bruno and Tyler lost Video of the Year to Katy Perry, but Tyler snagged the award for Best New Artist. His speech was as follows:

"F--k that. F--k that shit. Yo, I'm excited as f--k right now.  I wanted this sh-t since I was 9. I'm about to cry. I didn't write a thank you speech, but I don't know. F--k. To all the kid's that's watching, you can do this sh-t yourself because f--kin'...Thank you."

 Well said!





Tyler, The Creator wins Best New Artist.


Also see: VMA Best and Worst Moments (Mostly Worst)
Also see: VMA Preshow Revolves Around 'Jersey Shore'

VMA Pre-show Revolves Around 'Jersey Shore'

MTV
The VMA pre-show's main focus this year seemed to desperately revolve around the Jersey Shore cast. Shocking.

Even after the cast's pointless interview and an unnecessary trailer for Season 4 of the Jersey Shore was aired, the camera constantly cut to shots of the cast posing on the black carpet during interviews with actual nominated artists.

Foo Fighters' singer Dave Grohl seemed confused as his interview was awkwardly cut short after one minute, since MTV needed to air some kind of prerecorded Jersey Shore skit. "Yeah! Jersey Shore Package!" Grohl exclaimed sarcastically.





VMA preshow interview with the Foo Fighters.

During the VMAs, Snooki, J-Woww, Deena and Sammi presented Best Female Video with 85-year-old actress Cloris Leachman. Lady Gaga won the award and accepted it as her alter-ego Jo Calderone, completely disregarding them. 





Jersey Shore cast and Cloris Leachman present Best Female Video.

It always seem as though it is The Land of Make Believe where everyone pretends for one day that MTV supports music. In addition, this year everyone also pretended Jersey Shore was actually relevant to music.

MTV felt it was so important for the cast to be in attendance that they were all flown by private jet. According to Vinny, "Being on a private jet is not that bad, except it didn't have Wi-Fi."

When the Jersey Shore cast is considered the most important guests at the VMAs, it's time to throw in the towel.

Also see: VMA Best and Worst Moments (Mostly Worst)
Also see: Tyler The Moron at the VMAs

Happy Birthday to the King of Pop

Happy birthday to the late Michael Jackson, who would have celebrated his 53rd birthday today. Let's celebrate by watching the full version of his legendary video for "Thriller"!

Saturday, August 27, 2011

Rise Against Bullying

Chicago punk rock band Rise Against has been creating a buzz lately with their video for "Make It Stop (September's Children)." The song is the second single from their sixth album, Endgame.

In the video, three homosexual children are bullied almost to the point of suicide, but then realize the positive impact they could have in the future.

"The song was written inspired of the teen suicides in the month of September 2010, who were bullied for being homosexual," singer Tim McIlrath explains. "It deals about how people are treated from homophobic bullying and feeling so tormented that they feel there's no place for them in the future and that killing themselves is a better option."

"Make It Stop" has also been nominated for a brand new VMA category, "Best Video With a Message."

Thumbs up for this video -- It's so realistic that it actually gave me chills.






Irene's a Bitch: Music Event Cancelations

Hurricane Irene is ripping through the east coast this weekend, resulting in many canceled and postponed music festivals.

If you planned on going to any of these below, then you may be S.O.L.:


Saturday, August 27
  • Rib Rock Festival with B.B. King and J. Geils Band at Nikon Jones Beach Theater (Wantagh, NY) 
  • Solopanna Music Festival (Crownsville, MD)
  • Jimmy Buffet at Jiffy Lube Live (Bristow, VA) *Rescheduled for September 1
  • Crosby, Stills & Nash charity benefit concert (Wainscott, NY) *Rescheduled date TBA
  • Arthur Ashe Kids' Day at the USTA National Tennis Center (Flushing, NY)
  • The South Shore Music Circus with The Temptations and Four Tops (Cohasset, MA)
  • N'Dambi & Jay Hayden at Rams Head On Stage (Annapolis, MD) *Rescheduled date TBA
  • John Prine at the Pier Six Pavilion (Baltimore, MD) *Rescheduled for September 23
  • Dave Matthews Band's "Caravan" festival at Governor's Island (NYC) *Rescheduled date TBA
  • HMag Fest with The Walkmen (Hoboken, NJ) *Rescheduled date TBA 
  • Frankie Valli at Borgata's Music Box (Atlantic City, NJ) 
  • Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo at Busch Gardens (Williamsburg, VA)
  • Bill Medley and Paul Revere & The Raiders at The NYCB Theatre (Westbury, NY)
Sunday, August 28
  • The Afro-Punk Festival with Cee Lo Green in Commodore Barry Park (Fort Greene, Brooklyn)
  • Rib Rock Festival with B.B. King and J. Geils Band at PNC Bank Arts Center (Holmdel, NJ)
  • ZZ Top at the NYCB Theatre (Westbury, NY) *Rescheduled for August 29
  • Rockstar Energy Drink UPROAR Festival at Comcast Center (Mansfield, MA) *Rescheduled for September 3
  • The South Shore Music Circus with the Styx (Cohasset, MA)
  • Jessica Lea Mayfield at Rams Head On Stage (Annapolis, MD) *Rescheduled for November 20
  • Lyle Lovett at the Count Basie Theatre (Red Bank, NJ)
  • "American Idols Live" at the Times Union (Albany, NY) *Rescheduled for September 4
  • Dave Matthews Band's "Caravan" festival at Governor's Island (NYC) *Rescheduled date TBA
  • Jagged Edge, Avant and Melanie Fiona at the Central Park Summerstage (NYC) *Rescheduled date TBA
  • Craig Campbell at Ceasar's (Atlantic City, NJ)
  • Lynard Skynard at the Borgata Hotel, Casino & Spa (Atlantic City, NJ) *Rescheduled for October 1
  • Pat Benetar and Neil Giraldo at Busch Gardens (Williamsburg, VA)
  • Travis Tritt at the Indian Ranch (Webster, MA)

Friday, August 26, 2011

Lindsay Lohan Blows Off Best Apology Ever


Lindsay Lohan has rejected Pitbull's apology after the actress/horrible singer slapped him with a big fat lawsuit for lyrics "I got it locked up like Lindsay Lohan" in his song "Give Me Everything." Pitbull said the lyrics are actually "a positive message" and the words "locked up" actually mean "you run the area." 

"For me mentioning it...on the number one record in the world...I thought it would be helping someone's career and keeping them relevant," he said.

Pitbull also mentioned that Lindsay can join him on the performance of the song at the VMAs. Lindsay declined his offer. 

I can't see why not--Apologizing without actually apologizing, admitting to nothing and insulting her seemed to be a very sincere way of going about it. Why wouldn't that entice Lindsay to join him onstage to perform the song she is currently suing him for? Oh, because Lindsay's a "professional actor of good repute and standing in the Screen Actors Guild," as she has stated. 

Well, at least she didn't include "professional singer." Let's take a look at the peak of Lindsay's 30-second music career. Thankfully, this era is over.





Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Everyone's 'Nightmare': Alice Cooper and Ke$ha Duet

Alice Cooper has plans to release Welcome 2 My Nightmare, a sequel to 1975 concept album, Welcome to My Nightmare. Original members Michael Bruce, Dennis Dunaway and Neal Smith will appear on three of the tracks. Oh, and one more thing --Ke$ha will appear in the song "What Baby Wants."

Alice Cooper featuring Ke$ha - "What Baby Wants"

"I met (Ke$ha) at the Grammys," Alice Cooper tells Billboard, "and I immediately looked at her and went, 'This girl is not a pop diva. She's a rock singer.' She would much rather be the female Robert Plant than the next Britney Spears. (Ezrin) said, 'Nobody's gonna expect Ke$ha on your album.' 'Great! Let's do it!'"

...Sorry, I just fainted. Did he seriously say Ke$ha and Robert Plant in one sentence? The fact that he is acknowledging her as a rock singer, or better yet--a singer--is horrifying. I wonder if the majority of Ke$ha fans even know who both Robert Plant and Alice Cooper are.

I must say, the album title Welcome 2 My Nightmare is perfectly fitting. What's next... a Gene Simmons and Miley Cyrus duet?

A typical awful Ke$ha performance on Ellen.

New Music Videos This Week

Ahh, James Blunt. I always think it's wonderful when an artist can make an irritating song sound pleasantly musical.


James Blunt covering Katy Perry's "California Gurls."


Florence + the Machine recently revealed some new songs from their new album due in November. Spin describes the song "What the Water Gave Me" as "gospel-tinged pop," but I don't know how anyone could ever categorize any song from this band as pop in any way, shape or form--I guess it depends on your definition of "pop." For me, this band's music is way more complicated than any pop song. Listen for yourself.


Florence + the Machine - "What the Water Gave Me"


OK Go released another creative music video for their cover of "The Muppet Show" theme song. It has reached almost half a million views in two days. 

OK Go and The Muppets - "The Muppet Show" theme song


Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Amy Winehouse's Death Remains a Mystery

Amy Winehouse's family revealed the singer did not have any illegal drugs in her system when she died, but the toxicology report did show show alcohol present.

Many are dumbfounded, as people predicted this was the cause of her death. Amy had struggled with addiction for years.

Now let's wait to hear if there were legal drugs in her system, because, um, I hear those can kill you too.

Sunday, August 21, 2011

Lindsay Lohan's State of Desperation

Lindsay Lohan
Lindsay Lohan is yet again seeking legal action.

According to TMZ, Pitbull's latest hit "Give Me Everything," which includes the line "I got it locked up like Lindsay Lohan," is driving her to file a suit against Pitbull and the producers of the song. The line is in reference to when she served 13 days in in Los Angeles County Jail.

Lindsay claims the line "by virtue of its wide appeal, condemnation, excoriation, disparaging or defamatory statements by the defendants about the plaintiff are destined to do irreparable harm to the plaintiff." In addition, she is seeking an injunction to stop the defendants from airing the song. 

Lindsay also sued E-Trade for a clearly unreasonable $100 million, due to an infant referring to a "milkaholic" named Lindsay in the company's commercial last year. Remember: Lindsay Lohan is the only Lindsay in the entire world. Sadly, the suit resulted in E-Trade paying her an unknown settlement.

If only there was a way Stevie Nicks could sue Lindsay for this horrible cover of "Edge of Seventeen." (Fast forward to 1:20)


Friday, August 19, 2011

Oasis Brothers Should be Grounded

Oasis
It has finally come to this--Liam Gallagher is taking his brother Noel to court due to his public statements regarding the reasoning behind a canceled Oasis show in 2009 and the band's split.

Liam's statement to The Sun:

"I have taken legal action against Noel Gallagher for statements he made claiming Oasis pulled out of the 2009 V Festival Chelmsford gig because I had a hangover. That is a lie and I want Oasis fans and others who were at V to know the truth. I was gutted when I couldn't play the gig because I didn't want to let the fans down.

"But the truth is I had laryngitis, which Noel was made fully aware of that morning, diagnosed by a doctor. Noel also falsely stated the demise of Oasis followed a massive row in which he claimed I demanded to advertise my clothing range Pretty Green in the Oasis tour programme [sic]. The truth is there was no such discussion or row between us.

"I am used to being called all sorts of things by Noel and I have in the past said things about him. But what Noel has alleged this time went way beyond rock'n'roll banter and questioned my professionalism. I tried to resolve this amicably but have been left with no choice but legal action. All I want is an apology."

An apology? I think all he wants is a check, to be quite honest. For some reason I don't think this will lead to an apology.

I appreciate Liam clearing up all those insignificant details from two years ago. The majority of the world cares just as much about this as Liam's band Beady Eye, a.k.a. a crappy version of Oasis minus Noel. I'd say taking legal action against his own brother regarding this matter was completely necessary!

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Nirvana Bassist Attempts to Relive His Peak

Krist Novoselic, the remaining member of Nirvana whom no one ever seems to remember, will participate in performing the former grunge band's Nevermind album in its entirety for "The Nevermind Live in Sky Church" benefit show. The event will take place on September 20 at the EMP Museum's Sky Church in Seattle.

Novoselic will also be joined by other local Seattle bands including Fastbacks, Vaporland, The Long Winters, Valis, Crypts and others. The museum is hosting a Nirvana exhibit from now until April 2013.

Krist Novaselic: Then and now.
Nevermind was released in 1991 and has sold over 30 million copies. A reissued version will be released on September 27, including previously unreleased songs and rarities. The album is considered one of the best rock albums of all time by many.

Dave Grohl has plans that night, as he will be performing in Cleveland with the Foo Fighters. Therefore, the moral of the story is that in the past 17 years Kurt Cobain has probably accomplished more dead than Krist Novaslic alive.

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Cheater, Cheater, Pumpkin Eater

Katy Perry
It's official -- Katy Perry has made serious history on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. She is now the first artist to tie Michael Jackson's record of having five No. 1 songs from one album. This has been anticipated for the past week when a remix of "Last Friday Night" was released featuring Missy Elliot.

Michael Jackson's five No. 1 singles from Bad were: "I Just Can't Stop Loving You," "Bad," "The Way You Make Me Feel," "Man In The Mirror" and "Dirty Diana." Katy's No. 1s include songs from Teenage Dream: "California Gurls," "Teenage Dream," "Firework," "E.T." remix featuring Kanye West and currently the "Last Friday Night" remix featuring Missy Eliot.

How amazing, right? This record has been untouched since 1988 until now. Wrong. Try again, Katy.

Back to reality, now. Two out of the five Katy Perry songs that have "reached No. 1" are remixes and are not even on the album. The original songs "E.T." and "Last Friday Night" on Teenage Dream did not reach No. 1. Instead, both songs were released as remixes and Billboard has even added the sales from the original and remixed versions of "Last Friday Night" together to calculate these figures and therefore... cheated.

It appears that this supposed record is nonsensical, just like her songs. Katy Perry will most likely never be on Michael Jackson's level in any way, shape or form. She may hold a record "officially," but theoretically she cheated. And Billboard is her accomplice.

Isaac Hanson: The Hypocrite

Isaac Hanson
Isaac Hanson, guitarist in the rock band Hanson (Yes, Hanson is still a band), has blessed us with his opinion regarding Kings of Leon canceling their tour after singer Caleb Followill walked off stage at a concert in Dallas.

"I have a hard time with musicians who act like pricks because it just makes me mad. I just sit there and I go, ‘You know what, dude, no matter whether you’re in a band just surviving or you’re in a bus playing stadiums, one way or another you’re still among the rare breed of people that are actually getting paid to do it,'" he said in an interview with WENN.

Isaac's statement is understandable, but this is all coming from someone in a band that refused to even take photos with their fans until about five years into their career. And to this day, Hanson fans still complain about how certain members in the band treat them poorly at times. Perhaps that could also be considered as "musicians who act like pricks"?

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

A Tribute to Lip Syncing

It has been confirmed that the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards will be paying a tribute the ever-so-talented Britney Spears. How well-deserved --You earned it, Brit.

The guys in Milli Vanilli should seriously write a book called If We Only Waited Ten More Years. For some unknown reason I will never understand, it is now pathetically accepted for artists to lip sync live. People seriously spend hundreds of their hard earned cash to watch a pretend live performance. Computers have the capability of correcting even the severest pitchiness on albums, which means anyone can be a singer...anyone. So, let's celebrate by paying tribute to one of the best known lip syncers...Britney Spears!

Have no fear -- MTV producers said they are trying to fit in a tribute to Amy Winehouse as well. You know, just an afterthought. I mean, who gives a shit about Amy Winehouse? It's only the year of her death in addition to the fact that she wrote all of her own music and had an exceptionally beautiful singing voice, thus making her fully credible as a talented singer/musician... but, but... Britney dances in shiny outfits!

Amy Doyle, executive vice president of Music and Talent for MTV, told Billboard.com, "We said 'let's challenge ourselves to do something unique'."  Isn't it unique enough that MTV continues to hold an awards show honoring music videos they don't even air nor support?  (Also read: I Want My MTV [From 30 Years Ago]!)

The VMAs will air live from LA's Nokia Theater on August 28. Since MTV will be paying a tribute to Britney's high points, let's reflect on this terrible performance (of many), coincidentally from another VMAs in 2007.







Monday, August 15, 2011

Evanescence Hit the Road

Amy Lee
Evanescence announced they will be embarking on a tour this fall in support of their new self-titled album to be released on October 11. This will be their first album since 2006's The Open Door.

MTV luckily took a break from airing Jersey Shore marathons to debut Evanescence's new single "What You Want" this week. Perfectly-pitched singer Amy Lee still continues to belt out those notes that many rock singers would fail to do.

The tour begins on October 2 with a stop in Brazil at Rock In Rio and will continue through the United States and Europe with support act Rival Sons.






Evanescence Tour Dates: 
10/2/11 Rio De Janeiro, Brazil - Olympic Park
10/6/11 San Juan, PR - Coliseo de Puerto Rico
10/10/11 Oakland, CA - Fox Theater
10/11/11 Hollywood, CA - Hollywood Paladium
10/14/11 Phoenix, AZ - Comerica Theatre
10/18/11 San Antonio, TX - Sunken Garden Amphitheatre
10/19/11 Dallas, TX - Palladium Ballroom
10/21/11 Milwaukee, WI - The Rave Eagles Club
10/22/11 Chicago, IL - Congress Theater
10/24/11 Royal Oak, MI - Royal Oak Music Theatre
10/25/11 Toronto, ON - Sound Academy
10/27/11 Montreal, QC - Metropolis
10/28/11 Worcester, MA - The Palladium
10/30/11 Atlantic City, NJ - House of Blues
11/1/11  New York, NY - Terminal 5
11/4/11 London, UK - HMV Hammersmith Apollo
11/5/11 London, UK - HMV Hammersmith Apollo
11/7/11 Manchester, UK - O2 Apollo Manchester
11/8/11 Glassgow, UK - O2 Academy Glasgow
11/10/11 Plymouth, UK - Plymouth Pavilions
11/12/11 Leeds, UK - O2 Academy Leeds
11/13/11 Birmingham, UK - O2 Academy Birmingham
11/17/11 Offenbach, Germany - Stadthalle Offenbach Veranstaltungs GmbH
11/18/11 Dusseldorf, Germany - Mitsubishi Electric Halle
11/20/11 Berlin, Germany - Columbiahalle
11/21/11 Munich, Germany - Zenith


New From The Smashing Pumpkins

The Smashing Pumpkins (a.k.a. Billy Corgan and some new musicians no one cares about) will be debuting new music from Oceania during their upcoming tour in October.

Oceania will be the band's first album since 2007's Zeitgeist and is scheduled to be released sometime early next year. Additionally, the band recently announced a reissuing of back albums over the course of three years:

2011: Gish, Siamese Dream & Pisces Iscariot
2012: Mellon Collie & The Infinite Sadness, The Aeroplane Flies High & Adore
2013: Machina/The Machines of God & Machina II: The Friends and Enemies of Modern Music

This is completely necessary because I'm sure Smashing Pumpkins fans just can't wait to re-buy the eight albums they already have in addition to Oceania.


Smashing Pumpkins Tour Dates:
10/5 Los Angeles, CA - Wiltern Theatre
10/7 Oakland, CA - The Fox Theatre
10/8 Las Vegas, NV - The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas
10/10 Denver, CO - Ogden Theatre
10/13 Milwaukee, WI - Riverside Theatre
10/14 Chicago, IL - TBA
10/15 Detroit, MI - The Fillmore
10/17 Washington, DC - 9:30 Club
10/18 New York, NY - Terminal 5
10/21 Boston, MA - Orpheum Theatre
10/22 Philadelphia, PA - Tower Theatre

Sunday, August 14, 2011

Green Day Perform New Songs at Last Minute Gig

WIRE IMAGE
About 300 of Green Day's fans were in for a treat on Thursday night. The band performed approximately 19 brand new songs at a not-so-secret gig at the Tiki Bar in Costa Mesta, CA.

All cameras, recording devices and even cell phones were confiscated at the door. Green Day took the stage at 10 p.m. for a 90-minute set, opening with a new song, "Nuclear Family." Singer/guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong claimed the song "could be better" and told the rest of the band, "let's do it again." And so they did--The second song was also "Nuclear Family." Armstrong, usually receptive to requests, told fans that the band would be playing "new shit only." The songs were so new that Armstrong read the lyrics from a piece of paper a times. Green Day later had a change of heart, as they ended the concert with hits "Welcome to Paradise," "St. Jimmy," "Minority" and more. 

"Green Day performed 19 new straight-forward rock 'n roll songs," long-time fan DJ Rossstar, 29, said. "Almost every song had a 39/Smooth-esque solo. [Billie Joe's] voice sounded better than ever. So angelic."

The concert was announced Tuesday on Green Day's official website. Tickets were initially to be sold first come, first serve at the venue, but "due to an overwhelming response," the tickets were instead sold through an online pre-sale. All proceeds were donated to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.

Setlist (from setlist.fm):
1. Nuclear Family (Played Twice)
2. Stay The Night
3. Too Young To Die
4. Oh Love
5. Carpe Diem
6. Crushing Bastards
7. Little Boy Named Train
8. Trouble Maker
9. Sweet 16
10. Wow, That's Loud
11. 8th Avenue Serenade
12. Ashley
13. Gabriella
14. Wild One
15. It's Fuck Time (Foxboro Hot Tubs song)
16. Stray Heart
17. Last Gang In Town

Encore:
18. Amy
19. Goodbye to Romance (Ozzy Osbourne cover)
20. Welcome To Paradise
21. Burnout
22. Murder City
23. J.A.R. (Jason Andrew Relva)
24. Only Of You
25. Hitchin' a Ride
26. St. Jimmy
27. Minority

Some poor-quality audio from the show has been surfacing:


"Sweet 16"

"Last Gang in Town"
"Amy"

 "Goodbye to Romance" (Ozzy Osbourne Cover)




Deadly Disaster at Indiana State Fair

GETTY IMAGES
Strong winds caused a stage to collapse during a concert at the Indiana State Fair last night, resulting in five deaths and dozens of injuries.

Approximately 12,000 fans were waiting for country duo Sugarland to take the stage, following singer Sara Bareilles whom had finished her set moments before. The storm began around 9 p.m. when one concert goer said the stage "snapped like a toothpick," according to CNN. Gusts of wind were reportedly as high as 60 mph.  

Bareilles posted on her Twitter page: "I'm speechless and feel so helpless. Please send love and prayers to Indianapolis tonight. My heart aches for the lives lost. #indyiloveu."

Sugarland also tweeted: "We are all right. We are praying for our fans, and the people of Indianapolis. We hope you'll join us. They need your strength."

Only less than a month ago, stages collapsed at both a Cheap Trick concert in Canada and at a Flaming Lips concert in Oklahoma, also due to Mother Nature's powers.

Here's some disturbing fan footage from the incident:




Friday, August 12, 2011

Rebecca Black Banter

YouTube sensation Rebecca Black recently performed a shortened version of her song "Friday" on an episode of NBC's America's Got Talent.

Oh, the irony...having Rebecca Black perform on a talent show. Was the purpose of this to show contestants that there's truly hope for anyone to become famous? 

Warning: The singing is not auto-tuned in this performance.



Rebecca also made a surprise appearance onstage at Katy Perry's sold out Los Angeles show on August 5. The two have been quite chummy ever since she appeared in Katy's "Last Friday Night" video.

Katy began singing an acoustic cover of "Friday," later joined by Rebecca. Thanks for that, Katy. As if it wasn't enough torture listening to one horrible singer on that song.

Katy then strangely introduced the singer as "The infamous Rebecca Black." Infamously bad at singing? Infamously appearing in your crappy video? Do explain what you mean by "infamous," Katy!




 In other Rebecca Black news: She told ABC in a recent interview that she dropped out of school due to constant bullying by her classmates and will continue her education by home schooling.

"When I walk by they'll start singing 'Friday' in a really nasally voice," she said. "Or, you know, they'll be like, 'Oh hey, Rebecca, guess what day it is?'"

Ouch. They really ask her what day it is? Kids can be so cruel!

New Music Videos This Week

Tons of new music this week--American Idol winner Scotty McCreery debuted his first single "I Love You This Big," while runner-up Lauren Alaina conveniently also debuted her first single "Like My Mother Does." What a strange coincidence! Both artists recently signed with Mercury Nashville.

Perhaps Scotty and Lauren are what Idol need to rack in the dough again--The last huge superstar to spawn from Idol was Carrie Underwood in 2005, also a country artist.






 Steve Urkel is back and better than ever--The Voice judge Cee Lo Green's new video features Jaleel White instead of himself in "Cry Baby." A recent tweet from Cee Lo indicated "he had no idea the video for 'Cry Baby' was even shot."

Maroon 5's "Moves Like Jagger" includes singer Adam Levine shirtless throughout the entire video with a bunch of semi-nude women. Have no fear--Christina Aguilera makes a guest appearance, thus including all three Voice judges in new music this week.







Thursday, August 11, 2011

Girl Power: Female Artists Breaking Records

Adele
Some of the biggest female artists in music are reportedly breaking records for the first time in years.

Adele's 21 is currently No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart for the 12th week in row. Santana was the last artist to reach this point in late 1999 and early 2000. The album 21 has sold 2.9 million albums to date.

Nicki Minaj's "Super Bass" is now the highest-charting Billboard Hot 100 rap song by a female without the aide of another artist. Missy Elliot's "Work It" was the last song to do so in 2002 when it spent 10 weeks at No. 2. Considering every other rap song these days features another artist, I suppose the chances were much higher for Minaj to achieve this.

Speaking of Missy Elliot, Katy Perry's "Last Friday Night" remix featuring Elliot could potentially tie Perry with Michael Jackson for the most Billboard No. 1 singles from one album. Read more about this here.

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Green Day to Play Secret Gig

 Photo Credit: Jessica Levy
Green Day performing at the St. James Theater
April 24, 2011
Green Day announced on their official website they will be performing a secret benefit show tomorrow at The Tiki Bar in Costa Mesa, CA.

This came as a pleasant surprise to fans, as it is known Green Day has been busy writing and recording for their new album to be released next year. The band's last concert took place in April when they surprised fans with an hour long set at New York City's St. James Theater following the final curtain call of Green Day's Broadway play, American Idiot.

Rumors are surfacing that this show will preview some of the band's upcoming material since the venue will not be allowing cameras or cell phones into the building. We can only hope this is true!

Tickets are first come, first serve at the door and all proceeds will be donated to Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.

Monday, August 8, 2011

Concert Review: Honda Civic Tour

Gerard Way
The Honda Civic tour made a stop at the Nikon at Jones Beach Theater for the first of two shows on Saturday night, which included rock bands My Chemical Romance and Blink-182. 

"I'm looking at a lot of f**king people tonight and I don't think rock is dead," singer Gerard Way of My Chemical Romance told fans.

He was most definitely right. My Chemical Romance's set actually made me forget for an hour that the Jones Beach Theater foolishly doesn't sell beer.

The band's set started with their hit "Na Na Na," and later included other hits, "Sing," "Helena" and "I'm Not Okay." Enormous beach balls were thrown into the crowd during the hype song "Planetary (GO!)" from the band's current album, Danger Days: The True Lives of The Fabulous Killjoys. Way is an extremely talented front man, dramatically kneeling on stage while elongating perfectly-pitched notes and encouraging fans to jump up and out of their seats during upbeat songs.

The stage lights abruptly turned on as the band walked offstage following their performance of "Sing," causing slight boos from the crowd, since it was revealed the band would not be doing an encore. And I don't blame them--I could tell My Chemical Romance had a lot more to give their fans.

As I waited for Blink-182 to come on stage I knew it would pan out in one of two ways: A) They would have evolved into a more mature, serious band or B) They would remain irrelevant in this decade with "your mom" jokes and constantly talking about how they want to get laid. If you chose "B," then you are correct.

Mark Hoppus
The band opened the show with their 2003 hit, "Feeling This," and played most of their biggest hits including "The Rock Show," "What's My Age Again?,"  "All The Small Things" and "Dammit." It would have been somewhat enjoyable if singer/bassist Mark Hoppus and singer/guitarist Tom DeLonge didn't continue their constant banter at each other and meaningless shtick as if it was the year 2000 all over again. At one point Hoppus shouted out "Happy Birthday" to his wife, and later let the crowd know that he will most likely "get lucky" tonight because of it. Considering Hoppus, 39, is now just about as old as most of his fans' fathers, these jokes come off as quite creepy.

 The worst part is that during Blink-182's five-year hiatus, Tom DeLonge apparently never thought to use that time to get singing lessons. At one point, DeLonge noticeably could not hit one note and actually stopped singing in the middle of the song to let the crowd know "this is as low as I can go." This was a performance that would make any sober adult such as myself want to rip their ears off.

Clearly, My Chemical Romance wins by a landslide for the better performance of the night. Maybe the Honda Civic Tour will put more thought into which band should headline next year.


Sunday, August 7, 2011

Katy Perry's "Last Friday Night" Remix Feat. Missy Elliot

Music sites all over are talking about Katy Perry's "Last Friday Night" remix featuring Missy Elliot that leaked today.

Is it because of how great it sounds? No, of course not. The reason is because this single could potentially tie Katy Perry and Michael Jackson for the most Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 singles from one album. Yes, that's right--Katy Perry and Michael Freakin' Jackson could be tied for a musical record.

Are people in America really that stupid? Whoever actually falls for this marketing gimmick needs to have their ears and brain checked. This is the same exact song with a horrible rap intro by Missy Elliot. And isn't this actually considered cheating? Perhaps Lady Gaga should just record seven different variations of "The Edge of Glory" and beat out both Katy and Michael.

I don't care if Tupac rose from his grave to collaborate with Katy Perry on this song. Crap + Crap = Crap.




Friday, August 5, 2011

August Featured Artist: Jesse Malin & the St. Marks Social


I admit I was initially turned onto singer/songwriter Jesse Malin because of his connection to my favorite band Green Day. His third solo album was released on singer Billie Joe Armstrong and his wife Adrienne Armstrong's label, Adeline Records. Billie Joe and fellow Green Day members, Tre Cool and Mike Dirnt, have also collaborated with Jesse, forming a band called Depression Times. They only released one song called "Rodeo Queens," but I think many people are still hoping for other songs to surface.


D Generation, 1994
Jesse's music career started at the age of thirteen when he played in the hardcore band, Heart Attack. In the 90's, he performed in D Generation until deciding to reinvent himself. After several other projects, Jesse collaborated with friend Ryan Adams and completed his first solo album in just six days. In 2009, St. Mark's Social was formed and shortly after released Love It to Life on SideOneDummy Records.

Photo Credit: Jessica Levy
Tommy Stinson and Billie Joe Armstrong join Jesse Malin onstage at NYC's
City Winery on February 19, 2011.
I saw Jesse for the first time at the City Winery in NYC back in February. I wasn't too familiar with Jesse's music at the time, but yet he still managed to engage me into the show. His high energy and constant story-telling  proved him to be an entertaining front man, rising above many. After performing The Fine Art of Self Destruction in its entirety, Billie Joe Armstrong and opener Tommy Stinson joined Jesse and the band onstage to perform a very exciting four-song encore.

Photo Credit: Jessica Levy
Jesse Malin & The St. Marks Social at Bowery Electric
July 30, 2011
On Saturday, Jesse performed at his very own venue, Bowery Electric--an intimate, hip place in the East Village. After an introduction by WRXP deejay Rich Russo, Jesse started off the show with the ever-so-catchy "Burning the Bowery." The fan interaction was even more intense than at the City Winery show, as Jesse told more hilarious personal stories about his life and career. In the middle of the show he sat among the crowd, insisting everyone sits down with him while he continues story time. The set list also included fan favorites, "Prisoners of Paradise," "Disco Ghetto," "Hotel Columbia" and "Riding on the Subway."

It's quite difficult to make a name for yourself as a local artist, especially in New York City. This doesn't apply to Jesse Malin, who continues to sell out local venues and widen his fan base. He is truly an East Village musical hero.

Catch Jesse Malin & the St. Marks Social in concert with Juliana Hatfield at the City Winery in NYC on August 26, 2011. 


Jesse Malin - "Burning the Bowery"

Wednesday, August 3, 2011

Kings Of Leon Attempt to Dispose of the Evidence

Kings of Leon's management have attempted to remove all footage of a recent show in Dallas when singer Caleb Followill tells the crowd, "I'm gonna go backstage and I'm gonna vomit, I'm gonna drink a beer" before leaving the stage and not returning. The remaining 28 dates of their U.S. tour were cancelled a day later due to "vocal issues and exhaustion."

What, exactly, is the point of this? Hasn't the band and those associated lost enough time and money due to the cancellation of this tour? It's been revealed that the band owes $15 million to anyone that has lost money from the tour. I don't think Kings of Leon's management realizes that once a video is on the Internet, it is there forever--No matter how many times it's removed. And if they think footage removal means it didn't happen then they are sadly mistaken.

With that said, I suppose there is limited time to view the footage on my posting: Kings of Leon Cancel Tour, Hint At Personal Issues, so hurry while you still can. 

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Foo Fighters: Coolest Contest Ever on Video


Earlier this year, the Foo Fighters performed in the garages of eight lucky fans to promote their latest album, Wasting Light. The band recently released a 40-minute documentary showing footage from one of these intimate performances.

Anyone else predict the band would pick some big man-cave?




'The Throne' Revamp Tour Dates

The Throne members Jay-Z and Kanye West have announced a new itinerary for their upcoming tour. Pre-sales for the tour also started today, rescheduled from July 28th.

Rumors have been surfacing that the decision is based on an argument between Jay-Z and Kanye regarding logistics of the tour. Jay-Z has denied these rumors and claims the real reason is due to an overwhelming demand to add more dates. Strangely, the revised schedule now shows 24 stops instead of the previous 17 stops. The group promises there are more dates to come.

The Throne's Updated 2011 Tour Schedule:

10/29/11 Atlanta, GA Philips Arena
10/30/11 Greensboro, NC Greensboro Coliseum
11/1/11 Baltimore, MD 1st Mariner Arena
11/2/11 Philadelphia, PA Wells Fargo Center
11/3/11 Washington, DC Verizon Center
11/5/11 East Rutherford, NJ Izod Center
11/6/11 East Rutherford, NJ Izod Center
11/21/11 Boston, MA TD Garden
11/23/11 Toronto, ON Air Canada Centre
11/26/11 Detroit, MI Palace of Auburn Hills
12/1/11 Chicago, IL United Center
12/5/11 Houston, TX Toyota Center
12/6/11 Dallas, TX American Airlines Arena
12/9/11 Las Vegas, NV MGM Grand Arena
12/10/11 San Jose, CA HP Pavilion
12/12/11 Los Angeles, CA STAPLES Center
12/18/11 Vancouver, BC Rogers Arena

Monday, August 1, 2011

Kings of Leon Cancel Tour, Hint At Personal Issues

Grammy award-winning rock band Kings of Leon announced they are canceling the rest of their U.S. tour, due to singer Caleb Followill "suffering from vocal issues and exhaustion."

This announcement follows an incident Friday night at their concert in Dallas when Caleb left the stage to take a rest and did not come back as promised.

"I'm gonna go backstage and I'm gonna vomit, I'm gonna drink a beer and I'm gonna come back out and play three more songs," he told fans before walking off the stage.

Bassist, Jared Followill, apologized to fans onstage and later tweeted an indication that there is trouble in the land of Leon.

"I know you guys aren't stupid. I can't lie. There are problems in our band bigger than not drinking enough Gatorade," Jared said.



All 28 tour dates will not be rescheduled, but tickets will be refunded. The band will continue their tour in Canada on September 28, according to a statement from the band's publicist.

This will most likely be the first and last of my attempts to see Kings of Leon in concert. I planned on attending their concert at Jones Beach on August 10, but apparently I will have to make other arrangements. Their unprofessionalism overpowers their talent at this point.

About a year ago, Kings of Leon canceled a concert in St. Louis after a pigeon defecated on Jared. First, pigeon crap. Now, the weather is too hot. What's next? Caleb breaks a nail? I suppose Kings of Leon aren't familiar with the popular saying, "The show must go on," or perhaps in this case, "The tour must go on."

I Want My MTV [From 30 Years Ago]!

Happy birthday, MTV...or what's left of it, at least. It's hard to believe it's been 30 years since MTV launched and aired its first music video, The Buggles' "Video Killed The Radio Star," completely changing the music world.

Before MTV, there was no such thing as a VJ, music videos or even really a channel just dedicated to music. The station has contributed to the success of many of the biggest acts in music, such as Madonna, Prince, Michael Jackson and Duran Duran.

Michael Jackson's "Thriller"
 Many shows have come and gone on the station, but the most disappointing change came around the early-mid 2000s when MTV dramatically decreased the amount of air time for music videos. For a while, TRL was one of the few music shows left, but the show was was put to rest in 2008. This seemed to be the beginning of the end of MTV as a music channel.

As of 2010, MTV officially no longer stands for "Music Television." And to me, it stands for "Meaningless Television." It's now a great source for making inane, irrelevant morons named "Snooki" famous, while simultaneously contributing to the downfall of society. But have no fear -- If you happen to watch TV at 5 a.m., you may be lucky enough to catch a music video airing.

Snooki - The current face of MTV.
The station still airs the annual VMAs, but I'm not sure if anyone really knows why. MTV is really meaningless to any music artist that has emerged in the past decade, considering the station has chosen to air reality television such as Jersey Shore marathons every day instead of actual music.



"I have no interest in stuff like Jersey Shore," Mark Goodman, one of MTV's original VJs, told RollingStone.com. "I have an 18-year-old daughter and I have watched other shows with her, but it's not for me. I'm 30 years past the demo."

It's depressing that MTV is a completely different channel now, but we can still celebrate what it once was. Maybe when Snooki dies of alcohol poisoning, we can have our MTV back.



The Buggles - "Video Killed the Radio Star"