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New York – Of the multitude of New York-based rock bands to garner recent media attention, surely the most unique musical personality belongs to TV on the Radio, a Brooklyn quintet whose two releases on Touch & Go have fueled major interest. Curiosity peaked after the group – then the barely-out-of-the-loft project of lead singer Tunde Adebimpe and producer/multi-instrumentalist David Sitek – released the five-track EP “Young Liars” in July 2003. The record blindsided the indie rock community with the title track, the haunting dirges “Blind” and “Staring at the Sun” and an a cappella doo-wop cover of the Pixies’… Read more »
Prancing around in flattened, jet-black hair and with eyeliner so thick that Keith Richards would cringe, it’s no wonder that screamo mongers From First To Last (or From Worst To Ass as some were calling them) weren’t exactly hitting it off with the aging skater punks that comprise most of Bad Religion ‘s fanbase. Working through a quick half-hour set of typical yet passionate suburban youth anthems laid down over recycled Grade riffs, they were… openers. To their credit, the band worked hard at winning over the less than half-full crowd and eventually did rouse a portion of us into… Read more »
Toronto – Perhaps it was best that Green Day were in Canada on the evening of the U.S. presidential election; after all, it’s here that they can share the almost unanimous anti-Bush sentiments in an almost-packed Air Canada Centre. “Well, hopefully tomorrow we’ll have a brand new President,” Billie Joe Armstrong said to a roar of cheers. “I fuckin’ hate him and I think he’s more of a threat to the world than Saddam Hussein.” And though the dads of pop-punk were away from home, the enthusiastic crowd – which included one fan with a “Fuck Bush” sign – made… Read more »
Saturday marks the second anniversary of the death of Jam Master Jay. As his family members have pressed on, they continue to keep their loved one’s name alive. A small gathering is planned in the Hollis neighborhood of Queens, New York, on Saturday (October 30), and in January they want to put on a benefit concert to celebrate what would have been the Run-DMC DJ’s 40th birthday. “Basically, we are doing fine,” Jay’s mother, Connie Mizell, said on Monday in New York. “We thank God we are doing as well as we are. I’d be remiss if I didn’t say… Read more »
Look out, Chad Hugo, Pharrell Williams may have found himself a new partner in Snoop Dogg. Williams (Hugo’s other half in the Neptunes) and Snoop first worked their tandem magic with “Beautiful,” and their latest collaboration, “Drop It Like It’s Hot,” is a top-10 hit. The bass-heavy club banger is just one of several collaborations on Snoop’s forthcoming album, Snoop Dogg R&G (Rhythm & Gangsta): The Masterpiece, his debut for Star Trak, the Neptunes’ label. Due November 23, the LP also features appearances from 50 Cent, Justin Timberlake, Nelly, Lil Jon and Trina, among others. Snoop also pays homage to… Read more »
If his bubble burst and all else failed, Benji Madden is sure there’d be more than a few regular jobs waiting for him. Flipping burgers, working in department stores, tending cash registers, living in small towns. That’s what Madden and his Good Charlotte bandmates were used to before rock stardom. “One thing I never worry about is money. Because I have my health and my family and I can always go back to work,” Benji said. “We’ve all had a million day jobs,” the 25-year-old guitarist/vocalist said during an interview at a Manhattan hotel. “We got by fine then. If… Read more »
Mississippi blues label Fat Possum Records and its owner Matthew Johnson have sued former joint-venture partner Epitaph Records, alleging that Epitaph hatched “a malicious plot… to financially destroy Johnson and Fat Possum.” The suit, filed Tuesday in California Superior Court in L.A., charges Epitaph with breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, fraud, interference with contractual relations and a host of other abuses. According to the suit, Oxford, Miss.-based Fat Possum – home to R.L. Burnside, Junior Kimbrough and other contemporary bluesmen – was being funded by L.A.-based Epitaph under the terms of a joint-venture agreement reached in July 1997.… Read more »
