Search Results for: decade

One man largely symbolizes the divergent fortunes of sister stations MTV and VH1. Can you believe it’s Ozzy Osbourne? MTV has him, and the reality sitcom starring the frazzled heavy-metal legend and his family has become the kind of water-cooler hit that cable executives only dream of. “The Osbournes” has helped MTV build the biggest audience in its history. VH1 doesn’t have him. It doesn’t have much of anything else that people are talking about, and that’s reflected in sinking ratings and management uncertainty over the future. The two Viacom-owned companies are racing in opposite directions. “Things seem to be… Read more »

They’re in the studio recording new material, but U2 aren’t working on a new album just yet. Instead, they’re writing songs for inclusion on an upcoming greatest-hits package that will feature songs released between 1991’s Achtung Baby and 2000’s All That You Can’t Leave Behind. The album is due out by the end of the year and will be a companion piece to Best of U2: 1980-90, which the band released in 1998. While some pressings of that record included an additional disc of B-sides, this next installment of greatest hits will likely be contained on a single disc, since… Read more »

While the status of the granddaddy of summer package tours – Lollapalooza – is shrouded in mystery, don’t be fooled by a tour with a similar-sounding name. Locobazooka is the one that’s actually happening. Filter, Sevendust, Fu Manchu, Nonpoint, Mushroomhead, Gravity Kills, Reveille and Earshot are set to perform on the summer trek, which begins June 27 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, according to promoters. The music fest will visit a total of 16 smaller markets before wrapping up July 21. Two more bands are expected to be added to the bill, and a full itinerary should surface in the next two… Read more »

The fourth track on Megadeth’s 2001 album, The World Needs a Hero, is “1000 Times Goodbye.” Written as a breakup song, its title is more meaningful now that after nine studio albums and nearly 20 years, Megadeth have bid the world farewell. Frontman Dave Mustaine made the announcement Wednesday (April 3) in a written statement. “For the time being, I have decided to exit Megadeth and explore other areas of the music business,” he said. Mustaine’s decision was triggered by a series of episodes that date back to the beginning of the year. In January, he relapsed after over a… Read more »

“I only heard it quite recently,” says French composer Jacques Loussier. “In fact, my son had heard it and told me that was my music played on this record, so that is why I’ve been listening to it. And, of course, it’s so obvious that it was a copy of my music.” Loussier is speaking of Eminem’s “Kill You,” a track from the rapper’s 8 million-copy selling The Marshall Mathers LP that Loussier claims contains music lifted from his own composition, “Pulsion.” Loussier filed suit against the rapper and Interscope Records last week in federal court in New York City,… Read more »

Paul McCartney has nothing left to prove. He’s a Beatle. He’s a knight. He’s an honorary American. He’s been everywhere, done everything. But in Oakland Monday night, he showed up simply “to rock ‘n’ roll.” And after a 2 1/2-hourlong feast for the eyes and ears, McCartney had done his job. He left a sell-out crowd of 15,000 satisfied. With a non-stop set dominated by Beatles tunes from “Can’t Buy Me Love” and “Yesterday” to “The End” and “Getting Better,” which McCartney claimed had never before been performed in concert, he rocked, he rolled, he paid tribute to John Lennon… Read more »

Few bands have a résumé as extensive as the one belonging to They Might Be Giants, so it’s no wonder their music should make perfect fodder for a documentary. In their 20 years together, the quirky duo of John Linnell and John Flansburgh have successfully telemarketed themselves into underground celebrity, composed scores and theme music for television and film, and won a Grammy (for “Boss of Me,” the theme to “Malcolm in the Middle”), while recording seven studio LPs and a slew of EPs, live albums and singles. Flansburgh even found time to moonlight as a video director, helming clips… Read more »

What would you say if someone told you Linda Perry, the unforgettable voice behind 4 Non Blondes’ 1992 hit “What’s Up?,” has become one of the hottest producers in pop music? Perhaps, in her words, “Hey, what’s goin’ on?” It’s a behind-the-boards comeback, that’s what, and all the one-hit wonders are doing it. Find it hard to believe Perry co-wrote and produced several songs on Pink’s Missundaztood, including the title track? Or that she’s behind upcoming projects from Christina Aguilera (see “Christina Aguilera: Not Your Puppet”), Solange Knowles and Courtney Love? Consider that Deep Blue Something’s Todd and Toby Pipes,… Read more »

Marilyn Manson have set The Golden Age of Grotesque as the title for their forthcoming album, the band’s namesake singer announced Thursday (March 21). Although the group is still recording, Manson described the album on his official Web site as a “genius deluge of hardcore guitar-drum violence” and “reckless electronic-punk vaudeville mixed with ’30s cabaret decadence.” Producers Tim Skold (KMFDM) and Ben Gross (Filter) are working with the group on The Golden Age of Grotesque, for which Manson said several songs are finished, including one called “Use Your Fist and Not Your Mouth.” Manson described the album last fall as… Read more »

In some ways, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s induction ceremony is like a family reunion, giving loved ones a chance to reconnect and share loving memories. But as with many families, feuds can simmer and threaten to ruin that nice little gathering. The unknown element in the weeks leading up to the hall’s annual event is often whether hard feelings can be set aside. On Monday, the Talking Heads – the foursome that was part of punk’s first generation and stayed together for more than a decade before dissolving in acrimony and lawsuits in the 1990s – were… Read more »