Search Results for: System of a Down

Rock ‘n’ roll will never die. Unless it is being made by classic rockers like Rolling Stone frontman Mick Jagger and former Beatle Paul McCartney, whose new albums are barely registering a pulse at cash registers in the United States. The very youth culture that propelled these music legends to stardom back in the 1960s is now discarding them in favor of a new generation of fresh-faced youngsters, such as perky teen queen Britney Spears and spiritual rockers Creed. According to sales data issued on Wednesday, Jagger’s new album “Goddess in the Doorway” (Virgin) debuted at No. 39 on the… Read more »

While concert ticket sales have begun to rebound for top-level acts since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, it’s the medium-range and niche bands that have felt the pinch and are likely to suffer further, industry insiders said. Ticket sales for such mainstream acts as Madonna, U2, Elton John, Bob Dylan and Jimmy Buffett continue to be strong, while tours catering to a niche teen demographic are not selling as well. Notable examples, according to sources, include the Family Values Tour, featuring Linkin Park, Staind and Stone Temple Pilots, and the Pledge of Allegiance tour, which… Read more »

ARTISTdirect CEO Ted Field and company Marc Geiger vice chairman today announced that Heidi Ellen Robinson has been named SVP of press and media relations. In her new post, Robinson will design and implement media campaigns for all facets of the company, including ARTISTdirect Corporate, ARTISTdirect Records and its roster, ARTISTdirect Talent Agency, and all special projects that the company undertakes such as the SnoCore and Fan Nation touring events. Robinson will report directly to Field and Geiger. “Having worked directly with Heidi for years on many projects,” said Geiger, “I know first hand how valuable she is as a… Read more »

Ozzy Osbourne, Rob Zombie, Mudvayne and Soil are inviting fans to A Night of Merry Mayhem, the 33-city jaunt formerly known as the Black Christmas tour. Osbourne changed the tour’s name to the more jovial title in light of the events of September 11. The two-month trek kicks off appropriately on Halloween in Tucson, Arizona, according to Osbourne’s publicist. The creepy caravan will meander through the country before returning to the Grand Canyon State and wrapping up on New Year’s Eve in Phoenix. Plans for the tour, Osbourne’s first solo outing in seven years, were announced in August, with only… Read more »

“Things are different now,” a news anchor commented last Tuesday while covering the terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, D.C. Those words continue to resonate a week later, with sports, travel and entertainment all vastly affected by the East Coast tragedies. In the music industry, the biggest changes are occurring on the air as radio stations around the country alter their playlists to reflect the radically different context in which pop music is now heard as compared to when the music was originally written and recorded. As Bob Buchmann, program director at WAXQ in New York, put it, “The… Read more »

Brooklyn-born rapper Jay-Z’s latest LP, “Blueprint,” led a torrent of new releases at the top of the album charts this week as America’s record buyers continued to shop despite Sept. 11’s terrorist attacks. The Island/Def Jam release flew off shelves last week, shifting nearly 427,000 units, according to data compiled by SoundScan. Sales of “Blueprint” were powered by the near-ubiquity of its first single, “H.O.V.A. (Izzo),” on both urban radio and music television. Island/Def Jam’s chart dominance continued in the latest session with Nickelback’s “Silver Side Up,” which came in at No. 2 with 178,000 copies sold. “Silver Side Up”… Read more »

Hundreds of rock music fans went on the rampage at a free concert in Hollywood on Monday night, trashing the stage and raining rocks and bottles on police, who replied with tear gas and rubber bullets, officials said. Los Angeles Police Department spokesman Jason Lee, describing the scene as “a small disturbance,” said about 10,000 people were at the event, which was a promotion for fast-rising local rock band System Of A Down. When several hundred fans were unable to gain access to a fenced parking lot enclosure where the concert was due to take place for 3,500 people, they… Read more »

Ozzfest 2001 drew to a close Sunday, leaving many fans wondering what the future holds for their favorite bands. Whether it’s working on a new album, heading back out on the road or prepping their next video, to cop a metal cliché from Ozzy’s 1989 solo album, there seems to be no rest for the wicked. For those who missed out on this summer’s hardest happening, the live album Ozzfest 2001: The Second Millennium, featuring live cuts from all the Ozzfest offenders, hits stores Tuesday. Black Sabbath are hoping to book more studio time to finish up their new album,… Read more »

After Aerosmith belter Steven Tyler opens this year’s Indy 500 by singing the national anthem, veteran driver Jeff Ward will slip behind the wheel of the Heritage Motorsports’ Aerosmith “Screaming Demon” car and race against the rest of the field. While various hard rockers including Incubus, Mudvayne, System of a Down, Crazy Town and Dope have had their logos affixed to numerous NASCAR vehicles over the past two years, this marks the first time an Indy 500 race car includes the image of a rock band, a Heritage publicist said. The Aerosmith vehicle will be decorated with a pink and… Read more »

Columbia Records’ Crazy Town, Portrait/Columbia Records’ The Union Underground and American Recordings/Columbia Records’ American Head Charge have all signed on-board on what just might be the heaviest Ozzfest ever. Following a big British blow-out at the Milton Keynes Bowl in England on May 26, Ozzfest 2001 opens full-force stateside at the World Amphitheater in Chicago, Illinois. Launched by the heavy metal pioneer and visionary Ozzy Osbourne, the first Ozzfest, a multi-band festival held in 1996, hit only two markets-Los Angeles and Phoenix-but paved the way for a full-on touring extravaganza the next year. Since then, the Ozzfest has become a… Read more »