Search Results for: summer school

While being well-prepared is almost always advised for a young band in the studio, spontaneous strokes of creativity are usually the moments the musicians remember best. Of the 13 songs that comprise Yellowcard’s latest album, Ocean Avenue, the band had a dozen of them hashed out beforehand. But while knee-deep in recording, the group stumbled across the riff that became the foundation for “Only One,” which is slated to be the album’s third single. “We discovered a riff for it by accident,” singer Ryan Key said. “We were testing something else out and just tracked it right away. We then… Read more »

Kurt Cobain and his band, Nirvana, spent only three years in the public eye, and they released only three studio albums. But what he accomplished before committing suicide 10 years ago Monday at age 27 – deciding it was “better to burn out than fade away,” as he quoted Neil Young in his suicide note – was remarkable. Beneath this bridge above the muddy banks of the Wishkah River, a troubled young Cobain would come to escape his unhappy home and the persistent gray drizzle of the Washington coast. Among the cracking concrete supports, he would smoke pot and drink… Read more »

You say you want a revolution? Well, you know – we all want to change the world. Except for Chris Colus. He’s the drummer for a reggae-roots-rock band, freshly signed to a major record label, and he’s trying to explain that band’s name, which is O.A.R. – Of A Revolution. “There’s no political motive,” the 25-year-old Rockville, MD native insists. “This is the music we’ve wanted to play, the music we wanted to hear – that’s a revolution for ourselves and our fans.” The “Of A Revolution” name actually comes from “The Wanderer,” a short story singer-guitarist Marc Roberge wrote… Read more »

Payable On Death, the newest album from Grammy-nominated, multi-platinum rock group P.O.D., has just been certified Gold by the RIAA after only four weeks on the album charts. Debuting at No. 9 on the Billboard album charts on November 4, the album has been bolstered by eight weeks of chart-topping airplay for their first single, “Will You,” and a #1 MTV TRL video. Ironically, as Payable On Death achieves Gold status, P.O.D. finds itself banned from Christian bookstores. Around 85 percent of Christian bookstores across the country will not allow kids to buy the new record in their stores because… Read more »

A couple of years ago, a crazed Mooney Suzuki fan bum-rushed the band during a show and squirted mustard on singer/guitarist Sammy James Jr.’s fuzz box guitar pedal. The guy was apparently pissed that the garage rockers had “sold out” and signed with tiny indie label Estrus Records for their 2000 debut, People Get Ready, so he shouted, “Why don’t you have Estrus buy you a new one!” If that’s how he felt then, things could get much uglier next year when the band releases its as-yet-untitled third album, the first under its new deal with Columbia Records. Not to… Read more »

With the summer of 2003 speeding to a close, the boys of Three Days Grace continue to power their way through North America. After a supporting tour for Theory Of A Deadman earlier this summer, 3DG immediately hooked up with alterna-metal heads Trapt in July and since then have continued to take their music to the masses. Yes, it’s been a busy few months for 3DG, but this suits them just fine, thank you very much. “We kind of have this ‘BRING IT’ approach to whatever we do,” says drummer Neil Sanderson. “At the end of the day, our job… Read more »

The legal assault on music file-swappers is an unparalleled move by recording companies desperately trying to survive after failing to fully embrace digital distribution methods and driving up the cost of CDs. But record companies now risk a backlash that could damage far more than their financial results, while still not making a significant dent in music piracy, some observers say. A day after firing off 261 copyright lawsuits against individuals it accuses of each sharing hundreds of music files online, recording industry officials fielded a few calls from defendants eager to avoid paying thousands in damages. The Recording Industry… Read more »

Just when some old-school Metallica fans were ready to write the band off for crafting St. Anger – which prominently features a snare drum that sounds like a screwdriver hitting a trashcan – and for playing snippets of Michael Jackson’s “Beat It” and Lenny Kravitz’s “Are you Gonna Go My Way” at the VMAs, the band has redeemed itself. OK, they were doing fine before the VMAs. Few who attended Metallica’s Summer Sanitarium concerts walked away disappointed. The tour featured the band in peak form, bashing out its oldest and heaviest songs. However, a show on Friday for fan club… Read more »

Hoobastank have announced dates for a headlining club tour today. Kicking off August 20th in San Antonio, TX Hoobastank wanted to give their fans the rare opportunity to hear new songs from their forthcoming album in an intimate setting. “We are so psyched to play our new songs for our fans in a small club atmosphere,” says Hoobastank singer, Doug Robb. “There is nothing better than that intimate environment where we can hang out with our fans.” Labelmates, Die Trying and Letter Kills will open up for Hoobastank on the entire club run. Having spent the summer recording in their… Read more »

It was as if the tattooed hand of a punk rock god reached down and anointed Andrew W.K. The hard partying rocker was enthusiastically playing his anthem “I Get Wet” as the skies opened up and a torrential downpour put an early end to the eighth stop on this year’s Vans Warped Tour. He always sports a maniacal smirk and a dirty T-shirt, but even W.K., surrounded on the stage by a dozen head-banging fans, couldn’t help but laugh. Just one week into a grueling cross-country summer trek, the ninth edition of the punk and extreme-sports tour experienced both kinds… Read more »