Search Results for: GOLD

Headbanging riffs prevail on Marilyn Manson’s “The Golden Age of Grotesque.” “Use Your Fist and Not Your Mouth,” and “mOBSCENE,” with its taunting cheerleader chants, carry a heavyweight sound of bludgeoning rhythms and chainsaw guitars. Perhaps most engaging is the title track, a trawling hummer of a bummer; it’s melodramatic vaudevillian style recalls Pink Floyd’s personal crises of “The Wall” and fades with a chorus similar to Iggy Pop’s “Passenger” as it celebrates an age where the profane is profitable.

The debut album from Montreal pop-punk band Simple Plan has been certified gold this week in the U.S. “No Pads, No Helmets?Just Balls” has sold more than 500,000 copies since its release last year on Lava Records. This year, the band has reached international fame, playing on 5 continents and performing over 300 shows. They’ve already gone gold in Canada and Japan. But there’s no slowing down in sight for Pierre Bouvier (vocals); Chuck Comeau (drums); David Desrosiers (bass, vocals); Sebastien Lefebvre (guitar, vocals) and Jeff Stinco (guitar). Simple Plan will play some dates on the Warped Tour and Avril… Read more »

A Wisconsin senator took aim at radio and concert-promotion giants on Thursday with legislation that seeks to curb alleged anti-competitive practices in the recently deregulated industries. Pointing to a decline in local ownership of radio stations, escalating ticket prices, and strong-arm promotion tactics, Democratic Sen. Russell Feingold said his bill would rein in the worst abuses of an industry that has undergone rapid consolidation since ownership caps were relaxed in 1996. “I think it is time for Congress to make a strong statement on this,” Feingold said. The 1996 Telecommunications ( news – external web site) Act eased restrictions on… Read more »

Leave it to Austin Powers to have two leading ladies, and two fine ones at that. Britney Spears and Beyoncé Knowles will release the leadoff singles from the Austin Powers in Goldmember soundtrack, with Knowles’ “Work It Out” dropping shortly before Spears’ “Boys,” which was remixed by Pharrell Williams of the Neptunes, who produced the original version. Knowles’ up-tempo “Work It Out,” which was also produced by the Neptunes, will premiere Thursday (May 23) on AOL.com. The Destiny’s Child singer will shoot a video for the song in New York in early June. “Work It Out” will also be the… Read more »

Sex PistolsThe Sex Pistols have pulled the plug on a planned gig for the Queen’s Golden Jubilee celebrations in London in June, according to Reuters. “They simply did not want to play that weekend and it will not go ahead,” said John Giddings, managing director of London-based music promotions company Solo, which is organizing the event, as quoted by Reuters. Instead, plans are in the works for the Sex Pistols to get together for another gig, possibly at London’s Crystal Palace National Sports Stadium on July 21, although nothing had been confirmed at press time. Over 2 million people have… Read more »

Jimmy Eat World, Lil’ Romeo, and Adema were among the seven artists who received their first gold records from the Recording Industry Association of America in March. On the rock front, self-titled albums by Jimmy Eat World, Adema, and G. Love & Special Sauce and Default’s The Fallout reached the 500,000 mark. On the urban tip, R&B artist Keke Wyatt’s Soul Sista and pint-size rapper Lil’ Romeo’s self-titled debut met the half-million milestone, as did country singer-songwriter Chris Cagle’s Play It Loud. Jaheim was the only artist to score a first-time platinum award (for sales of 1 million) in March… Read more »

Not only did Brit-rockers Bush change the name of their current single “Speed Kills” to “The People That We Love” in wake of the September 11 terrorist attacks on the U.S., the band also scrapped the planned cover art for their new album, Golden State, which was released this week. Bush frontman Gavin Rossdale said that such changes were necessary. “We had a great cover plan, which was this plane,” he says. “It was a silhouette of a plane, which is so inappropriate now, and of course it would be a horrendous cover to have. But prior to those attacks,… Read more »

It’s official – America has finally gone ape! Virgin Records America is proud to announce that music fans across the United States have gone bananas over the debut record from Gorillaz. Since the group’s debut album was released on June 19, fans have flocked to record stores across the country to buy up over 500,000 copies of the record, earning the sketched supergroup its first gold album. For the week ending August 25, Gorillaz cracked the Top 20 with the album leaping from #21 to #16 with a bullet on the Billboard Top 200 Album chart. The album is expected… Read more »

Once a hip-hop artist achieves any semblance of success, expect to hear about it from his friends. More than simply brag about their platinum-selling homie, though, chances are they’ll rap with him on their own album. Within the last two months, collections from the Nelly-backed St. Lunatics and the Eminem-featured D12 have stormed into record stores. The Lunatics’ Free City debuted on the Billboard 200 albums chart at #3 on June 13, while D12 earned the #1 slot with Devils Night two weeks later. Many other hip-hop acts have turned the same trick, piggybacking a new act on the strength… Read more »

When the superstar pop vocal group ‘N Sync sat down to pick the songs for its upcoming album, the quintet found itself at odds with its record company. The Florida-based group, which has sold more than 25 million records worldwide since debuting in 1997, wanted to rock the boat with “Celebrity,” which is due in stores July 24. But Jive Records executives worried that too much change might make fans disinclined to buy, buy, buy like they have in the past. “They were like, ‘I don’t know. I don’t like that song. I don’t think you should go there. It’s… Read more »