Search Results for: Nick Major

Maybe you can blame it on some indie-minded guilt. On March 1, Death Cab for Cutie – longtime independent stalwarts recently inked to Atlantic Records – will drop The John Byrd EP, the final release for them on tiny Seattle label Barsuk Records. The EP will only be available in two places: on Barsuk’s Web site or in record stores who are members of the Coalition of Independent Music Stores. It could be the result of a guilty conscience. But it’s more than likely not. “We just wanted to have a properly recorded live record out there, because bootlegs show… Read more »

Hoboken, N.J. – The brooding kid hailed as rock’s next musical genius slouches next to the bar at a tiny, smoky club. No one notices. Not even this crowd of indie music fans recognizes Conor Oberst, the 24-year-old sensation behind Bright Eyes who’s been pegged as this generation’s Bob Dylan, putting words and melody behind those tormented emotions the rest of us struggle to describe. He pops up on stage to join his friends, Yo La Tengo, for their encore. Then he slides back into the crowd, just another skinny guy in jeans and a black hoodie. But the days… Read more »

“Backstreet Men” doesn’t really have the same ring, but make no mistake, the Backstreet Boys are coming back more mature on their first album in five years. The group, which hasn’t released a collection of new music since 2000’s Black & Blue, just wrapped sessions for the as-yet-untitled album, which might surprise people expecting the same pop sound of old, according to member Howie Dorough. “We’ve been working on it for more than a year now, but it really started taking shape and changing over the past six months,” Dorough said. “It’s going in a more pop/rock direction, kind of… Read more »

The owner of a Detroit studio where Eminem purportedly cut his best-selling debut album, The Slim Shady LP, was found dead Tuesday, the victim of an apparent vendetta, according to local authorities. A business acquaintance discovered the body of Amjed A. Abdallah lying in a pool his own blood on the floor of Studio 8. Investigators said the 36-year-old Jordanian engineer was shot at least twice, most likely on Sunday, based on the bloated condition of the corpse. A bullet casing from a.357-caliber handgun was recovered at the scene. Police do not have a definitive motive in the slaying. Initially… Read more »

New York – Ryan Cabrera may be better known as Ashlee Simpson’s ex-boyfriend, but now he’s making a name for himself. His major label debut album, “Take It All Away,” has sold more than 320,000 copies so far, and its first single, “On the Way Down,” hit No. 8 on the Billboard chart. After opening for Jewel and Jessica Simpson and performing on college campuses, Cabrera just kicked off his first headlining tour. But it was hard work – not connections – that brought the 22-year-old singer this far. He first picked up a guitar at age 15 and spent… Read more »

New York, Ny – Punk superstars Simple Plan saw plenty of action as their new album Still Not Getting Any…soared to the top of the charts. The band’s sophomore album entered the Billboard Top 200 at #3 (trailing closely behind hard core rappers Jay Z/R. Kelly and Trick Daddy.) The album, with sales of 139,928, marks the band’s highest chart position to date and the highest rock debut this week. In addition to their monstrous success stateside, Still Not Getting Any…topped the chart in their native Canada at #2 and was the #3 top selling album in Japan. “Simple Plan… Read more »

A month after promoters declared the concert industry healthier than ever, big summer tours such as Ozzfest, Fleetwood Mac, the Dead and Lollapalooza have run into a concrete wall of slow sales. “Ticket sales are mixed, and in some cases they appear to be substantially off from the past,” says Alex Hodges, executive vice president of House of Blues Concerts, one of the three major U.S. promotion companies. The summer’s success stories so far are big-buzz superstar events such as Prince and Madonna, plus low-cost packages including the long-running Warped Tour, Alanis Morissette/Barenaked Ladies and No Doubt/Blink-182. Also, the three-day… Read more »

It’s been 2-1/2 years since the Island Def Jam Music Group acquired a 50% stake in Roadrunner Records. However, the longtime rock-metal independent label still feels like an indie despite its major label parent, president Jonas Nachsin says. “In terms of the Roadrunner’s indie spirit, I don’t think we’ve lost any of that,” Nachsin says. “When the partnership was done, I think the first thing that was decided was not to do anything, which was a very sage and important game plan because when something is working, the last thing you want to do is start to mess with it.”… Read more »

Arista recording artist P!nk is in the final stages of completing her hotly expected third album, entitled TRY THIS – in stores November 11th, it was announced today by Antonio “L.A.” Reid, president and CEO, Arista Records. The first single (and opening track) on TRY THIS will be “Trouble,” co-written by P!nk with Tim Armstrong (of alt-rock heroes Rancid), who also produced the track. Impact date at radio is set for September 29th. The ‘wild west’ concept video for “Trouble” was recently shot on location in Los Angeles. It was directed by Sophie Muller, known for previous clips with P!nk… Read more »