Search Results for: decade

Irreverent and bordering on insolent, the MTV Movie Awards have built a following over the past decade by mocking Hollywood as much as celebrating it. Best Villain? Best Kiss? Best Fight? Lifetime achievement awards for Chewbacca from “Star Wars,” and for cameo character actor Clint Howard, the squinty-eyed little brother of director Ron Howard? Such are the honors bestowed at the MTV Movie Awards, which in its 11th year comes not to praise cinema but to parody it. This year’s ceremony takes place Saturday and will be broadcast Thursday (June 6). “We’re always looking to make people laugh. That’s more… Read more »

Marilyn Manson and bassist Twiggy Ramirez have parted ways. Ramirez had been with the Manson band for eight years, beginning with its 1994 release Portrait of an American Family, and he co-wrote some of Manson’s biggest hits, including “The Dope Show” and “The Beautiful People.” According to a statement by Manson, the split with Ramirez was a result of creative differences over the band’s upcoming album, The Golden Age of Grotesque. “I have spent eight months transforming this band and our new songs into an unstoppable juggernaut, and sadly Twiggy wasn’t able to make himself a part of it,” Manson… Read more »

Strahov Stadium has had it all – communist rallies, anti-globalization protests, gymnastics exhibitions, drive-through movies and, now, Ozzfest. The crumbling structure, which stands as the largest stadium in the world per square foot, lent itself well to Ozzy Osbourne and his latest touring comrades, who hit the venue Thursday night for the seventh stop on the metal tour. With their stage parked in the middle of the field, the hard rockers used only half of the 200,000-capacity stadium, carving out an almost cozy cradle for Bohemia’s metalheads within the concrete monolith. While the tour got off to a less-than-grand beginning… Read more »

Bennett Zier has a fine idea for a new radio format. His eyes light up as he tells you about it. “We play Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr., Dean Martin, Bobby Darin,” he says. “The great thing about it is what we call it. You ready?” He pauses. “Vegas Radio! Is that great or what?” Zier can imagine the whole scene – the deejays, the jingles, the ironic retro-swinger patter. It’s his music, the kind he plays in his car. He’s in love with this idea, and with his natural salesman’s charm, he’s making you love it, too. So why doesn’t… Read more »

The Detroit Electronic Music Festival drew more than 1 million people in each of its first two years. This year, organizers are emphasizing a wider variety of performers – and wondering why techno, which is hugely popular in Europe, is less well-received in the United States. The lineup of nearly 70 performers represents a blend of urban music, and includes Parliament Funkadelic’s George Clinton and the Los Angeles-based hip-hop trio Dilated Peoples. The three-day festival starts Saturday. “What we’re seeing now is a combination between hip-hop music and electronic music, and I think the Detroit festival is capitalizing on that,”… Read more »

Lifehouse will release Stanley Climbfall, the follow-up to 2000’s No Name Face, on September 17th. The band enlisted No Name producer Ron Aniello once again and recorded the album at Royal Tone studios in Hollywood. Lifehouse will have a lot to prove with their sophomore album, as No Name Face yielded “Hanging by a Moment,” rock radio’s most spun song of 2001. But singer-guitarist Jason Wade is confident that the new LP will further establish the band. “I just think we actually have a sound now,” Wade says. “It was our first two years on the road, and I think… Read more »

Trey Anastasio spent 17 years ripping genres apart and sticking them back together at odd angles with the everything-but-the-kitchen-sink uber-jam band Phish. So maybe it’s no surprise he’s whipped up another unusual concoction: a jam/swing hybrid dotted with sugary-sweet love songs and chamber music. The self-titled release has the elements you’d expect from Anastasio, from the drawn-out, frenetic jams to the catchy guitar riffs. But it’s also a departure: It’s got horns, it’s got soul, it’s got more horns. It’s clearly not a Phish album hiding under a different name. “I’ve been listening to a lot of big band music,”… Read more »

Bush guitarist Nigel Pulsford’s break from touring now looks to be a permanent vacation from the band he co-founded a decade ago with frontman Gavin Rossdale. The British rockers will continue with ex-Helmet guitarist Chris Traynor instead of counting on Pulsford’s return, Rossdale said Sunday, shortly before Bush performed at Rock Im Park music festival. Traynor had been subbing for Pulsford on Bush’s tour while he spent time at home with his newly expanded family. “He didn’t get kicked out. He didn’t want to be on tour, and you can’t kick someone out that isn’t there,” Rossdale said as he… Read more »

Elvis Costello and his band, the Imposters, were nearing the end of a rousing, rocking set at a Manhattan club when the audience’s attention began to wander. As he started his final encore, the chilling tale of a jilted sociopath, “I Want You,” loud conversations and laughter could be heard from the Bowery Ballroom bar. Costello didn’t say anything, or even look annoyed. Instead, a malice-filled reading of the song did the work for him. The music quieted to a whisperlike level as Costello stepped away from the microphone to shout the line, “Did you call my name out as… Read more »

“Let me take you to a place nice and quiet,” Usher sang on “Nice and Slow” halfway through an hour-and-a-half headlining set at Key Arena Wednesday night. “Nice” was all taken care of – and “nasty” got equal time, with Usher playing the roles of both sweet lover and triple-X seducer – but the Key was the furthest thing from quiet. The screams of thousands of lust-crazed female fans surged at every hip thrust and low croon, shaking the arena’s foundations in a way even last year’s 6.8 magnitude quake couldn’t touch. Boasting more outfit changes than Cher, the R&B… Read more »