Search Results for: hole

Kanye West is  definitely secure with his raps and with himself. On the Grammy stage on Sunday night, he laid the first verse on “Swagga Like Us,” knowing that he had three more acclaimed wordsmiths – Jay-Z, Lil Wayne and T.I. – coming after him on the track, and still felt confident that his rap held up in such strong company. Kanye does exactly what he wants to do, so it’s no surprise that he took the stage in a sparkling jacket that could have come out of Michael Jackson’s closet in 1984. Still, Kanye’s clothes have become a major… Read more »

NASHVILLE —  Watch Nathan Followill breeze into his local Nashville watering hole, and it’s obvious that he’s well known and well liked by the crew at McCabe’s Pub. Clad in sweats and a Yankees cap, the Kings of Leon drummer comes off more as cool local guy than international rock star Nothing in this manner indicates that his Nashville-based rock band’s fourth album is finally making the Kings as big in the United States as they have been in Europe since 2004, when the group had back-to-back No. 1 singles in the United Kingdom According to the band’s label, RCA,… Read more »

List of winners at the 51st Annual Grammy Awards Album of the Year: ” Raising Sand” Robert Plant and Alison Krauss ; T Bone Burnett producer; Mike Piersante, engineer/mixer; Gavin Lurssen, mastering engineer (Rounder) Rap Album: ” Tha Carter III” Lil Wayne (Cash Money/Universal Motown) Male Pop Vocal Performance : “Say,” John Mayer ; track from “Continuum” (Columbia) Record of the Year: “Please Read The Letter,” Robert Plant and Alison Krauss; T Bone Burnett, producer; Mike Piersante, engineer/mixer; track from “Raising Sand” (Rounder) New Artist: Adele Rock Album: “Viva La Vida Or Death And All His Friends,” Coldplay (Capitol) Pop… Read more »

Sony posted a whopping 95% decrease in profits last quarter compared to the same quarter last year. Gaming was was the biggest disappointment down 97%, but music did its part to contribute to the downward spiral.   Even when factoring out the expensive purchase of BMG’s half of the former Sony BMG, music profits declined 41% driven by a 22% decrease in sales. Sony has avoided the recent wholesale staff cuts made by other labels favoring more targeted layoffs. But as losses mount and the world economy worsens, sources hint that Sony’s layoff scalpel could become a hatchet. Sony Financial… Read more »

Three years ago, Cobra Starship weren’t even a band. Two years ago, they weren’t one either, but at least things were beginning to happen. Gabe Saporta – tired of watching his band Midtown being mired in the major-label quagmire – began writing songs on his own, under the name of Cobra Starship (apparently borrowed from a brand of vintage jackets). Somewhere along the way, he got tapped to write the theme song for the Samuel L. Jackson flick “Snakes on a Plane,” which became the first official Cobra release. Since then, they’ve released two full-lengths, kicked out a keytar player… Read more »

Television networks paid more than $5 million for exclusive rights to show events surrounding President-elect Barack Obama’s inauguration, including Sunday’s Lincoln Memorial concert and the Neighborhood Ball where Beyonce will serenade the new first couple.Nearly half the money, $2.5 million, will be paid by HBO. The cable network is showing Sunday’s concert – featuring U2, Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Wonder and others – live and will repeat it that night. Obama’s inaugural committee said the Walt Disney Co. is paying $2 million to show Tuesday’s Neighborhood Ball on ABC and for a kids’ concert Monday on The Disney Channel. MTV is… Read more »

In true Las Vegas fashion, Sin City will usher in the New Year with “Tribute Palooza,” a concert featuring performances by David Bowie, the Eagles, U2, Kiss, the Rolling Stones, Queen, Aerosmith and Billy Joel… impersonators. 2U will substitute for U2, Queen Nation will copycat Freddie Mercury, Aeromyth will channel Aerosmith, the Long Run will welcome you to the Hotel California and much, much more. Unfortunately, despite the presence of not one but two KISS cover bands, neither act is the Rock Daily faves Mini-KISS. The whole fake fest party will go down at Vegas’ infamously tented Fremont Street, where… Read more »

The industry gets upset when anyone calls this a “tax” so I’ll use the “voluntary license” term, even though tax is much more accurate. A true voluntary license wouldn’t require everyone having a certain provider to opt-in, but that’s exactly what this plan would require. In fact, as the slides indicate, eventually it would basically require all ISPs to “opt-in” forcing all of their members to “opt-in.” Suddenly, everyone has to pay. That’s not a voluntary license. It’s a tax. However, even if we step back and pretend it’s really a voluntary license, and even if we grant the premise… Read more »

Before Fall Out Boy soared into the consciousness of the mainstream music world and Pete Wentz became a tabloid fixture, the Chicago-based band cut its teeth in dingy Midwestern clubs. Now, well-versed in pop superstardom and with a new album in the wings, the band returned to St. Louis last Tuesday for an intimate night at the tiny Creepy Crawl. The show was announced only a few days prior, and ticket sales were done day-of-show at the venue. Prior to doors opening, the line of patrons stretched around the building into a back alley, and those first in line were… Read more »

All is fair in Chinese Democracy, except when the citizens are denied the opportunity to drink what the Dr. ordered. Axl Rose, wholely mum when Dr. Pepper announced that it would bestow a free 20-ounce bottle to all Americans when Guns N’ Roses’ years-in-the-making album finally dropped, is taking the company to task via his attorney after learning that not all customers were served. The soft-drink slinger had arranged to bestow online coupons to any thirsty freebie-seeker who visited its website on Nov. 23, but the site crashed due to…well, high traffic brought on by people’s insatiable desire for free… Read more »