The success of last years European tour, the duel in the desert that was Indio, was just too much and the "Big 4" of Thrash Metal have announced yet another single, solitary show date in North America, this time at Yankee Stadium in New York. On September 14th, Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth and Anthrax will come together (again) for what is promising to be the North American metal event of the year(again). Again the question is, of course, is this massive metal machine plotting a course for a bigger tour across North America to come later or will they just keep torturing their fans in the midwest? Slayer already has a summer tour lined up with Rob Zombie, and Megadeth is headlining Mayhem. There may be just enough room to squeeze in one or two more dates.
When pestered Slayers' Kerry King is still mum on the subject. Texas metal fans I'm trying...
by Jeff Barringer - Staff Writer & Photographer
"Lovely to see you again my friend..."
I have a long history with the Moody Blues and so does my music collection. Starting with their "Caught Live +5" release in the 70s, a staple of mail order music clubs, I backtracked and ended up with most of their catalog from the 60's and early 70s. My first live experience with The Moody Blues was in 1981 at the Frank Erwin Center and I saw them there again in 1994. Compared to those shows, seeing them in 2011 at the intimate ACL Live at The Moody Theater was like welcoming friends in for coffee.
Of course they played all their old classics, and yes that included "Knights In White Satin", probably the second or third most requested song in 70's AOR radio, and a late night staple for many. There have been roster changes with a band of this vintage, most notably flutist Ray Thomas who retired in 2002, but frontman Justin Hayward along with Graeme Edge on percussion and John Lodge on guitar remain. Though they had a number of backing musicians doing yeoman work to fill in the rest, they stayed true to the mark. It's stunning to see how well the 65 year old Hayward has aged, its almost as if time stood still.
Athens Georgia based R.E.M. premiered the video for "Every Day Is Yours To Win" on the YouTube homepage today, a video composed entirely of footage from YouTube. Lead singer Michael Stipe and the video's co-director Jim McKay have also posted an intro video and a video featuring a list of their favorite YouTube clips. The "Every Day Is Yours To Win" video is part of the Collapse Into Now Film Project, where artists and filmmakers were asked to create short films for each song on the new R.E.M. album Collapse Into Now.
Reform The Resistance, comprised of former Justifide members Jason Moncivaiz (vocals/guitar) and Sambo Moncivaiz (bass) of Phoenix, AZ and drummer Ryan Dugger (drums) of Nashville, TN, is pleased to announced the digital release of their new album The Truth is Dangerous on Wuli Records. The album will be released physically on May 17th, 2011. The Truth is Dangerous was completed in October 2010 and was produced by Reform The Resistance vocalist/guitarist Jason Moncivaiz. The entire album was recorded and produced in Moncivaiz’s personal studio, with exception of the drums which were recorded in Chicago, IL at Gravity Studios.
The band also recently announced that they will be filming their new music videos for the tracks ‘Kill Lies’ and ‘Tonight We Ride’ which appear on The Truth is Dangerous. The videos will be directed by Ben Monteiro, a skilled graphic designer based in Portugal. Ben will direct and shoot the video for ‘Kill Lies’ in Nashville, TN and ‘Tonight We Ride’ in Chicago, IL beginning on April 27th, 2011. Ben is also a member of the band Triplet, who toured with Reform The Resistance in the past.
Punk pioneer Poly Styrene has passed away - from a press release issued by her publicist -
"We can confirm that the beautiful Poly Styrene, who has been a true fighter, won her battle on Monday evening (4/25/11) to go to higher places. Poly Styrene was born Marianne Elliot Said on June 3, 1957. She passed away due to cancer.
Poly Styrene was a punk amongst punks. A groundbreaking presence that left an unrepeatable mark on the musical landscape, she made history the moment she uttered, “Some people think little girls should be seen and not heard but I think oh bondage up yours!” The influence of Poly and X-ray Spex has been felt far and wide ever since. The seminal album Germ Free Adolescents is a landmark work and a primary influence on Britpop and Riot Grrrl. At the center of it was Poly Styrene, a bi-racial feminist punk with the perfect voice to soundtrack rebellion. Poly never sacrificed the intelligence or the fun in her music and style. Her trademark braces and dayglo clothes were a playful rejection of the status quo and of conformity and complacency. She dissected gender politics, consumer culture, and the obsessions of modern life in a way that made us all want sing along with her.
At the core of Poly’s work from Germ Free Adolescents through Generation Indigo, is a revolutionary with a genuine love for this world and the people and things in it. Her indomitable heart is all over the new material from her championing of cruelty free products and as she put it, "being conscious of the slaughterhouse culture" (“I Luv Ur Sneakers”) to giving voice to marginalized poor people worldwide (“No Rockefeller”) to tackling racism (“Colour Blind”). Poly Styrene never stopped exciting us with her incisive world-view, amazing wit, and her adventurous sound. It is impossible to imagine what modern music would be like without her incalculable contributions but it’s probably not worth imagining a world that never had Poly Styrene in it.
A thrilling work from a true pioneer and rebel in every sense, Poly Styrene’s album Generation Indigo is out today through Future Noise Music and was produced by Youth (The Verve, Killing Joke, The Fireman, Edwyn Collins).The album’s fusion of punk spirit, and fresh sounds has already received rave reviews on both sides of the Atlantic from Spin, NPR, NME, MOJO and countless others. The forward looking Generation Indigo showcases Poly’s humorous musings on pop culture, the internet and fashion whilst also tackling heavier subject matter (war and racism) with her politically aware and intelligent lyrics all in the inimitable voice of a genuine icon."
Richmond, Virginia’s Conditions will be heading out with There For Tomorrow, Life On Repeat, and Oceana on the upcoming ‘There For Tomorrow Tour’ after they finish thier run on 2011 AP Tour, also featuring Destroy Rebuild Until God Shows (D.R.U.G.S.), Black Veil Brides, VersaEmerge, and I See Stars. The tour will take Conditions down the Southern East coast and into several central Southern states.
2011 AP TOUR W/ DESTROY REBUILD UNTIL GOD SHOWS, BLACK VEIL BRIDES, VERSAEMERGE & I SEE STARS
4/25 Orlando, FL @ Beacham Theater
4/27 Nashville, TN @ Rocketown
4/28 Louisville, KY @ Expo Five
4/29 Pittsburgh, PA @ Altar Bar
4/30 Buffalo, NY @ Club Infinity
5/3 Albany, NY @ Northern Lights
5/4 Poughkeepsie, NY @ The Chance
5/5 Allentown, PA @ Crocodile Rock
5/6 Cleveland, OH @ House of Blues
‘THERE FOR TOMORROW TOUR’ W/ THERE FOR TOMORROW, LIFE ON REPEAT & OCEANA
6/14 West Columbus, SC @ New Brookland Tavern
6/15 Greensboro, NC @ Greene St. Club
6/16 Nashville, TN @ Rocketown
6/17 Montgomery, AL @ Lakewood Center
6/18 Tallahassee, FL @ The Engine Room
6/19 Pensacola, FL @ Seville Quarter
6/21 Little Rock, AR @ Juanita’s
6/22 Oklahoma City, OK @ Conservatory
San Francisco musician Holcombe Waller has announced new west coast tour dates with Jenny O. and Barcelona, as well as new northeast/midwest tour dates as a triple co-headline with Haley Bonar and Daniel Martin Moore. With tour dates with Chris Pureka, Laura Gibson and several performing arts centers, Holcombe will be criss-crossing the country all Spring and Summer. Full tour details below.
Midwest with Chris Pureka:
04/27: Pittsburgh, PA @ Club Café
04/29: Ann Arbor, MI @ Blind Pig
04/30: Milwaukee, WI @ Shank Hall
05/02: Minneapolis, MN @ Aster Café
05/03: Des Moines, IA @ Vaudeville Mews
05/04: Evanston, IL @ Evanston SPACE
05/06: Oberlin, OH @ Oberlin College
West coast with Barcelona and Jenny O.:
05/30: Seattle, WA @ Chop Suey
06/02: San Francisco, CA @ Swedish American Hall
06/03: Los Angeles, CA @ Hotel Café
Holcombe Waller and the Healers Performing Arts Center Appearances:
6/11: Seattle, WA @ On the Boards NWNW Festival
6/12: Seattle, WA @ On the Boards NWNW Festival
6/20: Helena, MT @ Myrna Loy Center for the Performing Arts
With Laura Gibson
06/17: Portland, OR @ The Aladdin Theater
With Haley Bonar and Daniel Martin Moore:
06/21: Brooklyn NY @ The Bell House
06/22: Boston MA @ Cafe 939
06/23: New York NY @ The Mercury Lounge
06/24: Philadelphia PA @ World Cafe Live
06/25: Washington DC @ Sixth & I Synagogue (downstairs)
06/26: Asheville NC @ The Grey Eagle
06/28/11: Nashville TN @ The End
6/29/11: St. Louis MI @ Off Broadway
6/30/11 Louisville KY @ Rudyard Kipling House
07/01: Iowa City IA @The Englert Theatre
7/2: Chicago IL @ The Hideout
* co-headline with Haley Bonar only
With the thick smoke and dim lighting setting the mood you could easily mistake Interpol as a band from Birmingham as their music makes Joy Division sound like a beach party. For 14 years this New York based post-punk revivalist band has been making heavy, fuzzy music that draws a respectable audience and on Thursday they brought their dark musical clouds to the Austin Music Hall. Paul Banks, head shorn of the long locks of previous years, provided the appropriate brooding frontman mystique as clouds of machine generated fog swirled around and enveloped him at the rest of the band. It was a good set, though not particularly uplifting, and fans of the band got their moneys worth. Opening for Interpol was School of Seven Bells, a band from New York formed from musicians, including Benjamin Curtis of Secret Machines, that met opening for Interpol on a previous tour.
Interpol has got a few more tour dates left before they jump the pond for a European tour at the end of May. They'll be touring the states again in July. For upcoming tour dates check out Interpol's web site at http://www.interpolnyc.com
Here We Go Magic have announced that both Aroara and Caveman will be joining them on their upcoming North American Tour support the release of of "The January" EP.
Aroara is a new project featuring Andrew from Broken Social Scene, along with vocalist Ariel Engle, a frequent collaborator in the BSS live show.
North American Tour Dates
05.02.11 - San Francisco, CA - Rickshaw Shop $
05.04.11 - Salt Lake City, UT - Urban Lounge $
05.05.11 - Denver, CO - Larimer Lounge $
05.06.11 - Lawrence, KS - Jackpot Saloon ¬ “ >
05.07.11 - St. Louis, MO - Firebird $
05.09.11 - Chicaco, IL - Schuba’s $
05.10.11 - Pontiac, MI - The Pike Room at Crofoot $
05.11.11 - Toronto, ON - Horseshoe Tavern $
05.12.11 - Montréal, QC - Club Lambi $ #
05.13.11 - South Burlington, VT - Higher Ground Lounge $
05.14.11 - New York, NY - Mercury Lounge !+~
05.16.11 - Washington DC - Red Palace
05.17.11 - Chapel Hill, NC - Local 506
05.18.11 - Atlanta, GA - The Earl
05.19.11 - Nashville, TN - The Basement
05.20.11 - Pensacola, FL - Handlebar
05.21.11 - New Orleans, LA - The Den at the Howlin' Wolf
05.23.11 - Houston, TX - Fitzgerald’s Downstairs
05.24.11 - Dallas, TX - Club Dada
05.25.11 - Austin, TX The Parish
06.05.11- Istanbul, The City Festival
06.24.11 - Cambridge, MA - T.T. the Bear's
06.25.11 - North Adams, MA Solid Sound Festival at Mass MoCA
Glasgow’s Twin Atlantic has announced a European tour to support their new album "Free", a follow-up to 2009’s critically lauded mini-album "Vivarium", which will be released digitally on May 3rd in the U.S. via Red Bull Records. After performances at SXSW last month, Twin Atlantic's UK/Europe starts April 27 in Belfast . Summer festival dates throughout the UK and Europe are lining up now, and the band is expected to be back in the U.S. for a tour this fall.
Upcoming Twin Atlantic Tour Dates
4/27 Belfast, UK Speakeasy Bar
4/28 Dublin, Ireland Academy 2
4/30 Aberdeen, SCT Lemon Tree
5/1 Inverness, UK Ironworks
5/3 Newcastle, UK Academy 2
5/5 Manchester, UK Academy 3
5/6 Glasgow, UK Barrowlands
5/7 Leeds, UK Cockpit
5/8 Nottingham, UK Rock City
5/10 Birmingham, UK Academy 3
5/11 Bristol, UK Fleece
5/12 Southampton, UK Joiners
5/13 London, UK Kings College
5/16 Tilburg, NL 013
5/17 Cologne, DE Blue Shell
5/18 Hamburg, DE Molotow
5/21 Stuttgart, DE Zwoelfzehn
5/22 Berlin, DE Comet Club
5/23 Munich, DE 59:1
5/24 Prateeln, SUI Gallery Music Club
5/26 Vienna, Austria Vienna Arena
5/31 Frankfurt, DE Das Bett
6/3 Copenhagen, DK KB18
6/4 Hasselholm, SE Siesta Festival
6/5 Oslo, NO John Dee
For more information check out their web page at twinatlantic.com
For some gigs photographers ought to get combat pay. It's kind of tough to think about what your going to write when your dodging the boots coming over the barrier at a Rise Against concert, but at least this time we made it though our three songs before we had to bail on the pit. The last time I covered them we didn't even make it through the first song before getting ejected by a thoroughly flustered security team. Rise Against concerts are just like that, and you gotta just count your teeth, wipe away the blood, damn the bruises, man up and get back in the pit.
Formed in 1999 this Chicago based punk band fronted by Tim McIlrath always packs em in at Stubb's and Tuesdays sold out set was no exception. Although lots of people had come for the opener Bad Religion, few people left after their set leaving the venue full and the crowd jammed together, hot, and ready.
To experience a set by Gogol Bordello must be a lot like getting like getting swept out to sea by the gypsy pirate version of the Black Eyed Peas. A whirling dervish of sight sound and movement that never stops for two straight hours, engulfs the audience, assimilates them, and turns them into an extension of the living, breathing mass of energy radiating from the stage.
Formed in New York in 1999, the bands sound is a melange of flavors that includes the gypsy spices of eastern Europe, the peppery kick of Brazil, combined with an east coast punk, west coast hip hop base that invites dancing and audience participation. With a road show as engaging and entertaining as Parliament/Funkadelic it's hard not to walk away a fan of the band. This is my second time covering them, both at Stubb's, and I'm look forward to their next Austin stop already. Lucky for us, Gogol Bordello's Austin stop was just a warm up for their gig at Coachella on Saturday, so it was great to see them without having to join the multitudes in the desert.
Unfortunately fans of Gogol won't be able to see the remainder of their current tour. The band has had to cancel it's last 4 dates, all on the east coast, due to a death in the family of one of the band members. For more information please check out the Gogol Bordello web site for more details.