The National, Radiohead, Florence + the Machine, Sharon Van Etten, Declan McKenna, and many more artists have donated some incredible items to a raffle benefiting the UK charity Gig Buddies - which pairs volunteers with concert-goers who may be neurodivergent or have various learning abilities.
Both Florence + the Machine and The National have donated autographed books and albums, Sharon Van Etten has donated a bundle of swag, and Declan McKenna has provided 2 tickets to an upcoming gig.
But one of the cooler items being raffled comes from Radiohead - who has generously offered up a test pressing of their album Kid A!
Tico the Parrot and his bandmate Frank Maglio Jr. has been uploading their music videos for a while now - but their jazzy rendition of Led Zeppelin’s Stairway To Heaven is one of the best (or worst?) things on the internet right now ...
Tico doesn’t actually know the words to the song - but we're not sure Robert Plant does either at this point ;)
In 2019 - Lorde announced that she paused working on the follow up to her 2017 album Melodrama due to the death of her dog Pearl.
“I need some time to see the good again, to finish making this for you”
This week - the New Zealand singer is unleashed a brand new single “Solar Power” from a forthcoming album with the same name.
Lorde wrote in her newsletter:
“The album is a celebration of the natural world, an attempt at immortalising the deep, transcendent feelings I have when I’m outdoors. In times of heartache, grief, deep love, or confusion, I look to the natural world for answers. I’ve learnt to breathe out, and tune in. This is what came through...I want this album to be your summer companion, the one you pump on the drive to the beach. The one that lingers on your skin like a tan as the months get cooler again.”
Jack Antonoff co-wrote, co-produced, plays guitar and drums “Solar Power” with Lorde while Phoebe Bridgers and Clairo sing backup vocals on the song, too.
Lorde - Solar Power (Official Music Video)
There is no release date for the album at this time but she did confirm she has more music and videos from the album ready to go
Some people are urging their boss's to let them continue to telework .... not THE BOSS though - Bruce Springsteen has announced his one-man Broadway show, Springsteen on Broadway, is returning for a limited run this summer at Jujamcyn’s St. James Theatre in New York from June 26 through September 4. (tickets are available HERE)
The show is based on the autobiography Born to Run andBruce performed the show 236 times during its initial run between October 2017 and December 2018.
In a new statement, Springsteen shared -
“I loved doing Springsteen on Broadway and I’m thrilled to have been asked to reprise the show as part of the reopening of Broadway”
Proceeds from opening night will go to a variety of New York and New Jersey charities.
Tenacious D's Kyle Gass was so excited about finally getting his COVID 19 vaccination that he wrote a song about it - appropriatly called "Vaccinated". The parody song is set to the tune of "I Wanna Be Sedated" by the Ramones.
And of course - he made a hilarious video to accompany the track - and called on some friends likehis Tenacious D bandmate Jack Black, John C. Reilly, Toto's Steve Lukather, Evanescence's Amy Lee, Samantha Bee, Kathy Najimy, and Danko Jones .
LOCKN’ Music Festival has pivoted away from its 3 day fest in October to a new format - the LOCKN’ Farm, three mini fests - the weekends of Aug. 13-15, Aug. 20-22 and Aug. 27-29 in Arrington, Va.
LOCKN’ Farm Promoter Peter Shapiro said via press release:
“LOCKN’, the music festival, has had an amazing run, with hundreds of thousands of fans witnessing countless epic performances and collaborations by hundreds of legendary artists. Given the realities of COVID-19 and the world we now live in, it feels like the right moment to do something new and a bit more intimate, while keeping the best of what the four-day festival has offered since 2013. This August, LOCKN’ will become a weekly destination — LOCKN’ Farm — a place with a history of good vibes and magic, and instead of hosting a single annual festival we will sprinkle the LOCKN’ spirit across multiple music and camping weekends. Positive things often emerge out of challenging times, and LOCKN’s evolution from a single-weekend festival to a place where bands can host their own special events is going to be one of them.”
Some couples plan an elaborate first dance for their wedding reception ... not Sharon-Rose Molina.
The drumming instructor decided that she'd rather rip through a drum solo for her guests - especially since “ ‘music has always been a huge part’ of her relationship with her now-husband Eric”
Check out the solo -
Bride Performs Drum Solo At Wedding
Note that she even had her wedding dress designed specially to play in!
The Prince estate will release Welcome 2 America - a previously unheard LP by the Purple One - on July 10 (preorder HERE).
This week - the released a track from the album - “Born 2 Die”
According to an official description “Born 2 Die” was “recorded during a flurry of studio activity in the spring of 2010, when President Obama was just a year into his first term and Prince was reflecting deeply on the issues affecting the Black community and the role he hoped to play.”
And that's just what former Pearl Jam Drummer Dave Abbruzzese did when agreeing to a virtual cover of the band's song "Rearviewmirror".
Dave and various members of the popular Facebook group Pearl Jam France got together which originally appeared on Pearl Jam's second studio album, 1993's "Vs."
According to the group who made the final project:
There are 66 participants visible in this video and 69 people if you count those who cannot be seen. It took two months to set up the project from start to finish. From March 30 to June 1, 2021. That is to say 63 days exactly.
Abbruzzese joined Pearl Jam in 1991 and played on the band's first three albums "Ten""Vs." and Vitalogy .... but exited the group prior to the latter album's release
In 2020 - Courtney Love was supposed to get her band Hole back together. Instead - she spent the year in a life threatening battle with anemia. At one point - the grunge goddess weighed 97 pounds.
We are happy to report that her health has improved and part of her rehab has included some musical therapy. The work has gone so well - she has decided to publish some of the low-key jam sessions alongside her friend and Big Moon musician Juliette Jackson. The project - titled Bruises of Love - will be a video series in which she covers her favorite songs with Jackson by her side.
The first installment is an acoustic cover of “California Stars”, the folk-rock staple from Wilco and Billy Bragg’s joint 1998 album Mermaid Avenue featuring lyrics by the late Woody Guthrie.
Future covers will include songs by Simon and Garfunkel and Elliott Smith. Hole told Vogue :
“I just really love these songs and they’re all either tied to memories I have or just examples of great craftsmanship — or a wink at someone or whatever ... First off, my guitar playing is terrible. I used to be okay enough to write songs and play onstage, but for a while I just couldn’t. I was really, really sick during lockdown and trying to use the pain to find solace in my guitar, but I just wasn’t connected with my artistry. It was gone. I read an article about how Laura Marling was giving guitar lessons online and off to the side I saw this girl Juliette [Jackson] from Big Moon was doing the same thing. I wrote to her and made her sign an NDA since everyone on my team is so paranoid and we had three sessions together where we’d just hang out and sing ‘Boots of Spanish Leather’ while playing together.”
As for a rescheduled Hole reunion - don't hold your breath - she was pretty blunt on that not happening -
"you guys have gotta get over it. Our old manager Peter Mensch calls once a year to ask about a reunion: ‘Hey, just doing my thing I do every year with you and Jimmy Page [of Led Zeppelin].’ And I’m so honored to be in that company, but it’s just not gonna happen.”
For the first time since March 2020 - Austin Texas has hosted a sold out concert. And who better to usher live music back in to the live music capital of the world (the town has over 250 music venues) than one of the town's biggest bands - Black Pumas.
And it wasn't just the fans who were excited (some lined up to get in 2+ hours before the doors opened) the band was pretty stoked too - with singer Eric Burton hopping into the crowd to perform among fans on the second song.
Touring is back, but that doesn’t mean live streaming is going anywhere. We previously reported that over 60 music being wired to stream concerts and now Splendour in the Grass, an annual Australian music festival, has announced Splendour XR a “virtual music festival experience,” has been announced for July 24 and 25 as a live stream and as a VR experience.
Vance Joy, Black Pumas, The Killers, Of Monsters and Men, Band of Horses, Grimes and many more will perform on 3 stages over the 2 days.
On the festival - producers said
“Splendour has always offered patrons a deep programming experience with The Forum, Global Village, Little Splendour, and more on offer alongside our favorite artists ... We could not be more excited about Splendour XR and the opportunity to take the Splendour goodness online to our existing community and also to new audiences around the globe.”
So if you aren't ready to hit the pit with thousands of your new best friends yet - virtual fests and live stream shows might be here to stay
Morrissey has a new album ready to be released - but no label to release it.
“The worst year of my life concludes with the best album of my life” Moz says on his website - but the 11 song effort, Bonfire of Teenagers, has no set release date because he is currently unsigned.
Despite being able to release it himself - he is shopping the record 'to the highest (or lowest) bidder'.
Morrissey's last album - I Am Not A Dog On A Chain, was released via BMI in March 2020 - but after new management took over the label - the label dropped him. He was also dropped by Capitol records back in 2014.
To tide you over until the record finds a label to release it - here's the artwork and song listing
Bonfire of Teenagers Tracklist:
01. I Am Veronica
02. Rebels Without Applause
03. Kerouac Crack
04. Ha Ha Harlem
05. I Live In Oblivion
06. Bonfire of Teenagers
07. My Funeral
08. Diana Dors
09. I Ex-Love You
10. Sure Enough, The Telephone Rings
11. Saint In A Stained Glass Window
There's been tons of people offering incentives for people to get their COVID-19 vaccinations - from free donuts to cash from the MD Lottery - but a concert promoter in Florida has come up with a new one - selling $1000 concert tickets to vaccinated music fans for just $18.
The concert - scheduled for June 26 at the VFW Post 39 venue in St. Petersburg - features three punk rock banks: Teenage Bottlerocket, MakeWar and Rutterkin.
Promoter Paul Williams came up with the idea "to be a vaccine drive to get the fence-sitters off the fence .. and to get the kids that want to go to shows to go out and get their shots."
There were 254 tickets available for the show - 250 of the discounted tickets and 4 full price tickets ... the 250 discounted tickets have all been sold - but for those who don't care about the discount - the full price tickets are still available .
After 12+ months of no concerts - the tour announcements are popping up fast and furious ... each week we get a dose of another amazing tour. And four FOO FEELINGS are thinking the Foo Fighters might be one of the next bands to drop the news of a tour on us ...
Let's review the evidence - first off - 2020 was supposed to be a major year for the band - celebrating their 25th anniversary ... and capping it off with an all day festival called DC Jam on the 4th of July - but 2020 2020'd those plans ...
Since then - the band has released a new album (and will want to tour to support it), they have popped up as headliners for a number of festivals- including Lollapaloozain July, Bonnaroo and BottleRock in September, and Boston Calling in 2022.
Then - things get a little interesting ....
Last week - the bands shared a cryptic video on their social media channels of the number 25, with a Foo Fighters logo in the center (just like they did to promote the 2020 tour) - but this towards the end of this video - a hand wearing a spiked wristband comes into the frame and spray paints a “6” over the number “5.”
And it wasn't just the band who shared the video - several Midwest venues and concert promoters shared it too - includingSummerfest in Milwaukee, FPC Live in Madison WI and the Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre in St. Louis.
Then - over Memorial Day Weekend - the band kept the cryptic messages coming - with posts about 'getting back to work on Tuesday morning'
So what does it all mean? We'll have to wait and see - but it could be a major tour announcement ... or maybe we've been watching too many Law and Order marathons
Back in 2015 - a group called a group in Italy calling themselves the Rockin’1000 set out with a mission to perform “four miracles" - find one thousand musicians, get them to play simultaneously at the biggest rock show ever, collect enough money to make it real, convince the Foo Fighters to play a gig in their small town of Cesena.
Amazingly - they were able to accomplish the first three of the 'miracles' and after a video of the performance having millions of worldwide views, the Foo Fighters granted the final miracle and gave a 3 hour concert dedicated to the Thousand, all the donors and the volunteers involved in the July performance.
Learn to Fly - Foo Fighters Rockin'1000 Official Video
But why stop there - the group decided to stick with it and become “the biggest Rock Band on Earth” and even performed a 17 song set together at Manuzzi Stadium in Cesena. And they continued to do so every year until 2020 - check out some of these amazing covers of The White Stripes, Queen, David Bowie, and Nirvana.
Seven Nation Army - Rockin'1000
Rebel Rebel - Rockin'1000
We Will Rock You - Rockin'1000
Smells Like Teen Spirit - Rockin'1000
And next year - the band is getting back together - so if you sing or play a rock instrument, and can be in Paris next May, sign up to be a part of Rockin’1000’s next gig here.
Julien's Auctions has yet another huge rock and roll memorabilia auction going on - and it includes a large amount Nirvana items - ranging from Kurt Cobain's swimming goggles to a self portrait of the late lead singer.
A self-portrait caricature drawing done by Kurt Cobain of himself playing the guitar, signed on the left of the drawing "Kurdt Kobain Rock Star" and handwritten on the right "I don't know how to play and I don't give a hoot!" The drawing is done with black felt pen on TNT Music Centre [sic] in Singapore stationery, mounted on board, with a white matted cardboard frame.
Cobain made the drawing and gifted it to Jacque Chong, a freelance photographer who worked with Cobain during Nirvana's Nevermind album promotional tour in Singapore in 1992. Independent label Dover Street Market Ginza has previously reproduced the drawing on its fashion apparel, with Chong's permission. The additional photographs on view are of Cobain and Chong in his hotel as well as a group photograph that includes the two.
In 2020 - as the world shuttered due to the COVID-19 pandemic - one of the first industries to shut down and last to reopen - was the live music industry. And now with vaccines being put in arms - bands are ready to hit the road and perform live (not live stream) again - and in a big way!
If you've been paying attention this past month - everyone is hitting the road - from Franki Valley to Future Islands and ALL THE festivals ...
The website Bandsintown - which artists can use to help promote their concerts - has released some of their figures this week - and they are CRAZY!
At the beginning of 2021- there were around 85,000 concerts listed on the site (and most of those were virtual live streams) ... the site now reports there are 222,170 shows listed - and 78% of them will occur before year’s end!
And the fans are loving it - with ticket demand meeting the concert supply. Firefly is reporting their best ticket sales ever. Austin City Limits sold out in 3 hours - a festival record!
Bandsintown has seen similar demand, with Fabrice Sergent in a statement. :
“During May, we saw between 250,000 and 550,000 fans per day clicking to buy tickets. We can now predict that the number of fans purchasing tickets is on track to surpass pre-pandemic levels by the end of June,”
Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl has a lengthy resume - and he can now add late night TV show host to it ...
Monday night he co-hosted the Tonight Show with Jimmy Kimmel
Dave was all hands on deck for the show - chipping in on the opening monologue, the interviews, the sketches and even performed a couple of musical numbers.
He also played name that tune (and forgot the words to the Nirvana hit Lithium - oops) they recreated the popular The Best meme, and he told some classic Dave tales - including one about his mom chugging beers with Green Day!
The live-action 101 Dalmatians spin-off film Cruella - is being released on May 28th and Florence and the Machine have released “Call Me Cruella,” a song from the soundtrack to the film (listen below)
Florence Welch said of the project -
“Some of the first songs I ever learned how to sing were Disney songs. And the villains often got the best numbers. So to help create and perform a song for Cruella is the fulfillment of a long held childhood dream. I’m so grateful to Nicholas Britell and Disney for allowing me so much creative freedom, and for trusting me with Cruella’s beautiful madness.”
Florence + The Machine - Call me Cruella
In April, it was announced that Florence Welch will be composing music for a new Broadway musical adaptation of The Great Gatsby
Earlier this year - Lana Del Rey released ‘Chemtrails Over the Country Club’ - and she's already announced her next album - ‘Blue Banisters’ – will be out on July 4
Del Rey has released a trio of new singles from the new record - its title track, ‘Text Book’ and ‘Wildflower Wildfire’ . Preview the songs below
Last month - LDR shared a brief snippet of an unheard song along with the message: “Sometimes life makes you change just in time for the next chapter.”
The music video for Jackson Browne’s new single “My Cleveland Heart” features an appearance by Phoebe Bridgers. The macabre scene shows Browne being brought into an operating room to have heart surgery and Bridgers as a nurse who ends up eating Browne’s heart as he gets fitted with an artificial one.
Jackson Browne "My Cleveland Heart" (Official Video)
Browne said of the scene :
“I thought it was really appropriate to take out my worn-out, useless heart and hand it to Phoebe ... Who better to hand [it] to than somebody young, strong, and possibly as cynical as me?”
Bridgers has repeatedly cited Browne as an influence and she also recruited him for a cover of her song Kyoto
Jackson Browne has announced his new album Downhill from Everywhere. It’s out July 23 via his own Inside Recordings,
Fans of the show Parks & Recreation (and of really awesome music) were sent into a craze a few weeks back when a social media pages were launched for for the band Mouse Rat with a message that just said 5/19/21
The band fronted by local Pawnee, Indiana Parks and Recreation shoeshine employee Andy Dwyer, shared the album's first single - “5,000 Candles In the Wind,” on the 10-year anniversary of the passing of the Pawnee town mascot legend, the miniature horse Li’l Sebastian
In an extra dose of AWESOME, Scott Tanner, of the legendary Pawnee band Land
Ho!, has contributed two new songs to the album in a symbolic passing of the
torch, identifying Mouse Rat as the next band to break from the underground
Pawnee music scene.
The Awesome Album tracklist:
1. 5,000 Candles in the Wind (Bye, Bye Lil Sebastian)
2. The Pit
3. Sex Hair
4. Catch Your Dream (feat. Duke Silver)
5. Two Birds Holding Hands
6. Ann Song
7. The Way You Look Tonight
8. Menace Ball
9. Remember
10. I Get A Kick Out Of You
11. Lovely Tonight
12. I’ve Got You Under My Skin
13. I Only Have Eyes For You
14. Pickled Ginger (*performed by Land Ho!)
15. Cold Water (*Scott Tanner feat. Duke Silver)
If you have no idea what this post is about - yes , Mouse Rat was a band on a TV show and yes they are really awesome and Yes they are putting out a real album
Dead & Company - the supergroup consisting of John Mayer, Grateful Dead members Bob Weir, Mickey Hart and Bill Kreutzmann, Oteil Burbridge, and Jeff Chimenti have announced they’re hitting the road on a 2021 tour, kicking off August 16th in Raleigh, North Carolina (followed by a night in DC at Jiffy Lube Live) and running through Halloween, with a three-night stand at the Hollywood Bowl on October 29th, 30th, and 31st.
Over the past year - Dead &Company remained fairly silent – other than Bob Weir and his Wolf Bros crowdless livestream gigs.
But looks like many other bands - D&C are ready to hit the road and will play 31 dates starting in August
Tickets for these newly announced dates “will go on sale to the general public beginning Friday, May 21 at Noon local venue time through Ticketmaster.”
Dead & Company 2021 Tour Dates
August 16 – Raleigh, NC @ Coastal Credit Union Music Park
August 18 – Bristow, VA @ Jiffy Lube Live
August 20 – New York, NY @ Citi Field
August 21 – Philadelphia, PA @ Citizens Bank Park
August 23 – Bethel, NY @ Bethel Woods Center for the Arts
August 25 – Darien, NY @ Darien Lake Amphitheater
August 27 – Saratoga Springs, NY @ Saratoga Performing Arts Center
August 28 – Hershey, PA @ Hersheypark Stadium
September 2 – Mansfield, MA @ Xfinity Center
September 3 – Mansfield, MA @ Xfinity Center
September 5 – Hartford, CT @ The Xfinity Theatre
September 7 – Cuyahoga Falls, OH @ Blossom Music Center
September 10 – Clarkston, MI @ DTE Energy Music Theatre
September 11 – Cincinnati, OH @ Riverbend Music Center
September 13 – Maryland Heights, MO @ Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre STL
September 15 – Noblesville, IN @ Ruoff Music Center
September 17 – Chicago, IL @ Wrigley Field
September 18 – Chicago, IL @ Wrigley Field
October 6 – West Palm Beach, FL @ iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre
October 7 – Tampa, FL @ MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre
October 11 – Charlotte, NC @ PNC Music Pavilion
October 12 – Atlanta, GA @ Cellairis Amphitheatre at Lakewood
October 14 – Dallas, TX @ Dos Equis Pavilion
October 15 – Woodlands, TX @ Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion Presented by Huntsman
October 22 – Greenwood Village, CO @ Fiddler’s Green Amphitheater
October 23 – Greenwood Village, CO @ Fiddler’s Green Amphitheater
October 25 – Phoenix, AZ @ Ak-Chin Pavilion
October 27 – San Diego, CA @ North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre
October 29 – Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl
October 30 – Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl
October 31 – Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl
Resynator is "a documentary film-in-progress that shares the unique journey of a daughter connecting with her late father through the resurrection of a synthesizer from the 1970s that he invented"
The film maker - who started working for Grace Potter in 2012 - became interested in learning about her father and his invention and made the film about it and wanted to bring it back to life.
Part of that project included getting some pretty cool covers using the synthesizer for its soundtrack. First - is Grace Potter's take on Tom Petty's "Honey Bee"
Another cool take on a Petty classic is The National's Matt Berninger doing "Only A Broken Heart"
Not a Tom Petty cover - but Lucius have submitted their version of Kraftwerk's "Computer Love" with and War On Drugs/Beirut member Jon Natchez
For those interested in the movie - here's the official trailer:
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