Search Results for: extreme

The lyrics to the song “This Is My Life Story” by MXPX run through my head as I hopelessly scramble to the very back of the line. I left later than I had hoped, got caught up in D.C. traffic, and arrived about 5 minutes before doors were scheduled to open. Once inside, I rush to get as close to the stage as I possible. While mashed between about five teeny boppers and their “boyfriends,” anticipation runs through my bones as I eagerly await the first performance. First up is Further Seems Forever. I was a little skeptical about this… Read more »

Concert tours to Southeast Asia have become the latest casualty of recent bomb blasts in Bali and the Philippines with veteran jazz guitarist George Benson and rock groups Red Hot Chili Peppers and Oasis canceling shows. “George Benson did cancel some dates that he had lined up for Indonesia,” promoter Nigel Peters said on Tuesday. “It’s obviously a direct relation to the Bali bombing. That’s the only reason this decision was taken.” A bomb attack at a nightclub on the Indonesian holiday island of Bali on October 12 killed more than 180 people, most of them Australian. Ten people were… Read more »

The British rock group Oasis canceled its concert in the Philippines after a spate of deadly bombings in the country and in Indonesia. The band was scheduled to perform Wednesday at the Araneta Coliseum in suburban Quezon City. “Due to recent terrorist attacks in both Bali and the Philippines, Oasis has regretfully decided not to play its show in Manila on Wednesday,” the band’s British agent, Ben Winchester, said in a statement released Monday by Midas Promotion. The statement said, “The band did not wish to perform a show under the extreme security precautions that would have to be taken… Read more »

A handwritten note by Paul McCartney that includes a two-line quotation from a Beatles song has fetched 1,350 pounds ($2,100) at auction. McCartney quoted the opening lines of “Penny Lane,” the song he penned about a street in his hometown of Liverpool, in a note to an old family friend. Richard Westwood-Brookes of Swindon’s Dominic Winter Book Auctions said Saturday that such quotations are “extremely rare.” The note was sold Friday. The song begins: “In Penny Lane there’s a barber showing photographs of every head he has had the pleasure to know, and all the people that come and go,… Read more »

8 Mile, the semi-autobiographical drama in which rapper Eminem makes his movie debut, might just be as good as Oscar-winning producer Brian Grazer (A Beautiful Mind) once boasted. Playing to a packed house on Sunday night (September 8), director Curtis Hanson (L.A. Confidential) unspooled a “work-in-progress” version of the pic at the Toronto Film Festival. Tickets for the anticipated film were extremely difficult to come by, but apparently the around-the-block queue for seating was worth it. New York Post reviewer Lou Lumenick said the movie is “a rousing Rocky with rappers (that has) astonishing crossover appeal.” He also says the… Read more »

“American Idol” winner Kelly Clarkson may have the magic to put RCA Records back on top. All the major record labels are pulling out their big-gun releases for the fourth quarter in hopes of hitting some high numbers to make up for the year’s extreme sales dip. RCA has been struggling overall because of a weak release schedule. The label has thus far scored hits only with Dave Matthews Band’s “Busted Stuff,” which has sold more than 1.2 million units, and critically acclaimed postpunk band the Strokes, whose “Is This It” has passed the half-million mark. Clarkson’s two-sided single release,… Read more »

If the Hives are the first offensive in a Swedish rock invasion, then In Flames were the early reconnaissance team, quietly spreading their supercharged melodic death metal in whatever North American clubs would take them. Reroute to Remain, In Flames’ fifth album, is their latest missive, an album that’s heavy and pummeling yet accessible enough to potentially crack the limiting ceiling of the extreme underground. And if that happens, in a way, they’ll have Slipknot to thank for it. “We met Slipknot in Italy a couple of years ago,” vocalist Anders Friden relayed from a Detroit dressing room. “We just… Read more »

Just when it seemed all systems were go, it now appears that Lance Bass’ trip into space may be off – though his team insists otherwise. When Bass returned to Moscow over the weekend following a weeklong crash course at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Russian space officials didn’t welcome the singer with open arms. The sticky issue of payment had not been resolved by the last Russian deadline of Friday (August 30), and on Tuesday (September 3), the Russian Space Agency pulled Bass off his training regiment in Star City. To make matters seem more dire, spokespeople for… Read more »

Disturbed are so proud of their new video for “Prayer” that they’ve decided not to let the mainstream see it. Last month, major video outlets chose not to air the clip because they felt the apocalyptic content was too reminiscent of footage of September 11 (see “Disturbed Video Deemed Too Disturbing; Band Examines Plan B”). At first, the band considered re-editing the video or replacing the scenes of destruction with concert footage. In the end, Disturbed opted to stand their ground and leave the video intact and unaired despite the fact that it could have been a huge promotional tool… Read more »

Ever since their self-titled debut album came out in 1984, Bon Jovi have churned out songs about the triumphs and struggles of young working-class America. It’s where Jon Bon Jovi and his bandmates came from, and for many years the singer’s experiences and dreams provided abundant subject matter for rousing anthems and heartfelt ballads. But when former common folk turn into superstars, sometimes it’s hard for them to really still empathize with the everyman. That might explain why on his band’s new album, Bounce, due October 8, Jon Bon Jovi has once again tapped into what he knows, and it’s… Read more »