Search Results for: 2003

Matt Skiba, lead singer and guitarist for Chicago punk purists Alkaline Trio, feels that there are a lot of misconceptions out there regarding Satanism, and, as a longtime member of Anton LaVey’s Church of Satan, can tell you that it’s not all fire, brimstone and threats of eternal damnation. Really, the faith’s simply about theatrics, how to comport yourself when you’re out and about (for instance, one of the church’s Ten Commandment-like mandates forbids followers from bothering others in open territory, but “if someone bothers you, ask him to stop – if he does not stop, destroy him”) and maintaining… Read more »

Claiming that their free-speech rights had been violated, Mötley Crüe filed suit against NBC, the network that banned the group for dropping the F-bomb on a live New Year’s Eve broadcast of “The Tonight Show.” “This ban constitutes governmentally pressured censorship and violates the law the same as if the government itself had ordered the censorship,” read the suit, filed in Los Angeles federal court on Tuesday. Claiming the ban was a result of an attempt by the network to pacify the government in light of its crackdown on indecency, the band says in the suit that the action has… Read more »

New York, NY – Multi-platinum recording artists Simple Plan recently took a couple of days off during their extensive world tour in order to shoot a poignant video for their new single, “Untitled (How Could This Happen To Me?).” Written and co-directed by the band and director Marc Klasfeld, “Untitled (How Could This Happen To Me?)” is an emotional look at how a family is torn apart by the inconsiderate act of drunk driving. An early cut of the video was sent to Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) for feedback and the organization lauded the band’s bravery in tackling this… Read more »

New York – Multi-platinum recording artists Simple Plan recently took a couple of days off during their extensive world tour in order to shoot a poignant video for their new single, “Untitled (How Could This Happen To Me?).” Written and co-directed by the band and director Marc Klasfeld, “Untitled (How Could This Happen To Me?)” is an emotional look at how a family is torn apart by the inconsiderate act of drunk driving. An early cut of the video was sent to Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) for feedback and the organization lauded the band’s bravery in tackling this important… Read more »

Good Charlotte drummer Chris Wilson – who provided the back beat on the band’s latest album, The Chronicles of Life and Death – has left the group due to undisclosed “personal health problems.” The band made the announcement via a letter posted Tuesday on GoodCharlotte.com. “As many of you know, our drummer Chris Wilson has been on and off the road due to personal health problems,” the band wrote. “Unfortunately, his problems continue, and we have made a collective decision to have Chris stay around his friends and family and begin to truly rehabilitate. This has not been easy on… Read more »

It has long been an accepted fact that Britney Spears isn’t the most gifted songwriter in the world, but a lawsuit filed against the singer alleges her song “Sometimes” was written by someone else. The Associated Press reports Spears, along with numerous record and publishing companies associated with her, has been sued by songwriter Steven Wallace for copyright infringement. Wallace claims he wrote “Sometimes” 15 years ago and wasn’t acknowledged when the song appeared on Spears’ 1999 debut,…Baby One More Time. Spears obtained a copyright for the song that year. Though Wallace did not formally copyright “Sometimes” until 2003, he… Read more »

Following the release of Fall Out Boy’s 2003 full-length debut, Take This to Your Grave, the Chicago quartet was flooded with hyperbolic praise. The group, which was signed by tiny independent label Fueled by Ramen, was declared the “next big thing” by multiple media outlets, and its album sold more than 200,000 copies. So expectations were high for the band’s major-label follow-up, From Under the Cork Tree, which came out on May 3 and will debut at #9 on next week’s Billboard albums chart. Some pundits predicted a groundbreaking pop-punk expedition, and others awaited a heart-rending emo excursion, but Fall… Read more »

When writing the lyrics for “From Under the Cork Tree,” Fall Out Boy’s Pete Wentz, far right, shifted his focus from a romance gone horribly wrong to a more introspective vew of the world. After writing an album’s worth of lyrics about a girl who shattered his heart, Pete Wentz realized that the world is a bigger place than a cold-hearted woman and he needed to pen tunes that reflected that – a world where tsunamis could devastate parts of Asia, a war in Iraq could affect people on a global scale and the Molly Ringwald vs. Samantha Fox debate… Read more »

Detroit – Rapper Eminem’s music label has agreed to an undisclosed financial settlement with Apple Computer Inc. in a lawsuit over copyright infringement claims. In February 2004, Ferndale-based Eight Mile Style filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Detroit against MTV, Apple, MTV’s parent Viacom Inc. and advertising agency TBWA/Chiat/Day. The recording company claimed Apple used one of the rapper’s hit songs in an advertisement without permission. “The parties were able to reach an amicable resolution,” Howard Hertz, a lawyer for Eight Mile Style and Eminem, said Monday. Elizabeth McNamara, a lawyer for MTV and Viacom, said Monday that… Read more »

Modern-rock promotion finds itself at a crossroads as a growing number of terrestrial radio broadcasters tune out the ratings-challenged format. Record companies are attempting to adapt to modern rock’s recent marginalization on the airwaves in major markets like Philadelphia, Miami, New York and Washington, D.C. by emphasizing other options for building buzz. In lieu of airplay, touring, blogs, ringtones, downloads, Internet and satellite radio, videogame tie-ins, alliances with brand marketers, film and TV exposure, sponsorships and placements in commercials all are growing in value. The marketing strategies for a number of big-name rock artists with current or upcoming releases show… Read more »