Search Results for: hard rock

During the first two weeks in January, the most popular album in the country was the soundtrack to “Dreamgirls.” But that statistic was less impressive than it might have been, because for those two weeks, “Dreamgirls” sold around 60,000 copies each week, which made for the two lowest totals for a #1 album in the history of the SoundScan era, which began in 1991. Granted, January is always a pretty slow month for album sales and releases. But around that same time, the new Fall Out Boy album, Infinity on High, leaked online and was one of the most eagerly… Read more »

Around the time Brett Gurewitz was launching Epitaph Records in 1981, his father was lecturing him to take guitar lessons. The Bad Religion guitarist and punk-rock entrepreneur never sat down for courses with a guitar instructor, although he did go to school to learn to be a recording engineer. However, no amount of schooling could have prepared Gurewitz for the next 25 years of his life. Epitaph Records brought a new era of punk rock to the masses in 1994 when the Offspring’s “Smash” turned into one of the biggest rock records of the decade. The success of the label’s… Read more »

Are the re-formed Smashing Pumpkins set to rock Lollapalooza? Will the long-dormant Police return at Bonnaroo? How about a reunited Nirvana taking the stage at South by Southwest, only with Ben Kweller playing guitar and singing Kurt’s vocals? All three sound too good to be true, little more than the pipe dreams of manic music buffs with way too much free time. But incredibly, they’re all “100 percent confirmed” by sources with intimate knowledge about such things. But don’t go crazy just yet. It’s entirely possible that absolutely none of the above information is true. After all, we’re smack-dab in… Read more »

Last we heard from Garbage, in the fall of 2005, the group was going on an indefinite hiatus. Fortunately for fans, that break is not turning out like, say, Blink-182’s “hiatus.” “We’re recording a couple new songs at the end of February,” drummer Butch Vig revealed recently. “I think everyone’s excited about getting back in a room and playing some music together.” The new tunes will be included on a Garbage greatest-hits album the band is putting together for release later in the year. “We’ve been working on it for a while,” Vig said. “There was originally talk about doing… Read more »

2007 is off to a great start for Pepper! Once again these Island boys are gearing up for a two month national tour which kicks off February 14th in San Diego with the Mad Caddies. Pepper has been celebrating the attention from their latest album release No Shame on Atlantic/East West Records. Pepper mixes influences like Nirvana with the likes of Bad Brains and Black Sabbath, creating some of the best “kick back, sunny side, back side, grinding mellow guitar picking, cool wave riding sounds” around. The first single “No Control” continues to climb the Alternative Rock charts. Since its… Read more »

The meeting between two of the most improbable cultural icons of the 1970s lasted all of 30 minutes, but it has fascinated the nation for years. A photo of a cloaked and bejeweled Elvis Presley solemnly shaking hands with a grim-faced President Nixon remains the No. 1 requested document from the National Archives, nearly four decades after the secret meeting took place on Dec. 21, 1970. Now, on what would be the King’s 72nd birthday, the Richard Nixon Presidential Library & Birthplace is giving the curious public a good, long look at the relics of the coming together of The… Read more »

Following are previews of albums due out within the next few months from debut acts or under-the-radar artists due for a breakthrough. PAOLO NUTINI Scottish singer/songwriter Paolo Nutini, who turns 20 January 9, was one of the most noteworthy breakout artists of 2006 for Atlantic Records in the United Kingdom. After an appearance at South by Southwest in Austin last March, his debut single, “Last Request,” reached No. 5 in July on the British charts and also became a substantial airplay hit. His debut album, “These Streets,” subsequently opened at No. 3 with out-of-the-box sales of 35,000, according to his… Read more »

With its monster-selling Vertigo world tour complete, U2 may be ready to rock less, according to frontman Bono “Our band has certainly reached the end of where we’ve been at for the last couple of albums,” the newly dubbed honorary knight said during a BBC Radio interview earlier this week. “I want to see what else we can do with it, take it to the next level; I think that’s what we’ve got to do.” Asked if that might mean a move away from rock ‘n’ roll, Bono replied, “We’re gonna continue to be a band, but maybe the rock… Read more »

A film based on the UK rockers Johnny Depp could be in line to play famed performer Freddie Mercury, according to recent reports. The Hollywood star, who was also recently linked to a biopic about hard rocker Ozzie Osborne, is said to be the first choice to play Mercury in a biopic financed and produced by Robert de Niro’s film company Tribeca Productions. Queen guitarist Brian May revealed on his official website that the film was in early stages of production. “He would be a worthy counterpart for Freddie on screen,” May said of Depp. “I don’t think I can… Read more »

As 2006 comes to an end, Angels & Airwaves are looking back with a strong sense of pride. (We know, big surprise!) “I think we’ve all made the record of our lives,” singer and resident hype machine Tom DeLonge said, referring to We Don’t Need to Whisper . “It’s been a super-spiritual year for our band and for us personally, and I think we’ve offered something extremely imaginative and futuristic to rock and roll. I also think that I’ve become a good dancer along the way.” “Yeah, and you’ve also perfected the art of making the di– jokes seem really… Read more »