Excellent live version of one of my favorite R.E.M. songs.

Mega promoter Live Nation announced today that they will waive service fees for lawn seats at Live Nation-sponsored concert ampitheaters on all tickets purchased this Wednesday, with plans to offer similar deals on Wednesdays throughout the summer:

“We know the fan has been frustrated by the series of successive fees in the purchase process,” Live Nation Ticketing CEO Nathan Hubbard tells Billboard.biz. “There is attrition in the sales flow once you see your third page with some additional fees. The fan told us they just want to know up front how much the cost of the experience is going to be. We didn’t address that problem completely, but the first step was moving from fans paying a service fee — you might pay a shipping and handling fee, maybe a print-at-home fee, delivery fee, etc. — to consolidating it into a single up-front fee that is there as you cart your inventory.”

A noble gesture on the surface, but not quite as magnanimous as it might appear. After all, as you can see in the quote above, this is the company that has the nerve to make ticket buyers pay for the privilege of printing their own tickets. Let’s examine this supposed treat for the fans a little more closely, shall we?

Live Nation is running this promotion on Wednesdays. Most concert tickets go on sale Saturday morning, and if there is any chance of a same-day sellout (take Green Day’s upcoming tour, for example), no fan is going to wait another five days in order to save ten bucks. No one, of course, knows this better than Live Nation.

The only service fees being waived are lawn seats. This means that the diehard fans of an artist or band, who will naturally want to be as close to the stage as possible, will continue to get boned at the usual rate, while the casual fans of that artist - who are presumably on the fence about attending the show, otherwise they would have bought their tickets the day they went on sale - will benefit. While it would stand to reason that the diehards are the ones that deserve to be rewarded, in fairness to Live Nation, this is right in line with record labels’ tendency to market their wares to the people who are least likely to buy them.

Curiously, no one has discussed helping out the cash-strapped music fan by lowering the price of concert tickets. We suspect that the person who brought that up at the company meeting was tossed out the window like the guy in this Bud Light ad. Because that’s just crazy talk, son.

Free Coldplay.

Beginning today, coinciding with the band’s North American tour, Coldplay fans can download LeftRightLeftRightLeft, a nine-song live album, for free on the band’s web site. As you might imagine, the track listing favors their latest album Viva la Vida, however - and the fans will love this - it focuses on album tracks over singles. “Strawberry Swing” and “42″ are here, while “Talk” and “Yellow” are not. Bravo, gentlemen.

Fans have until the end of their US tour to download LeftRightLeftRightLeft, while the band will be giving away CD copies of the album at their concerts. Dig in, kids.

To download LeftRightLeftRightLeft, click here.

If you’re a fan of Fleetwood Mac, then you no doubt got more than a little bit giddy at the tail end of 2008 when the band - still holding strong with the fab foursome of Lindsey Buckingham, Stevie Nicks, Mick Fleetwood, and John McVie - announced that they’d be touring in 2009. Word on the street is that things have been going swimmingly thus far, and the tour will continue to roll on into June; you can check out the current dates rather easily, as they’re right on the homepage of FleetwoodMac.com.

In the meantime, however, if you’re on the fence about whether to go see them or not, take a gander at this clip of Lindsey Buckingham - recorded during a solo performance at Bass Performance Hall, which is available as a CD/DVD combo - as he takes “Big Love” and either makes you wish you could play guitar or makes you never want to pick one up again because you’ll never, ever be able to play it as well as he can.

Canadian rock duo USS (Ubiquitous Synergy Seeker) brought their high energy rock to RedGorilla Music Fest Wednesday, complete with techno inspired beats and homemade smoothies (they made them on stage), giving everyone a taste of what it would be like if Nirvana went to a rave.

It’s true there are thousands, probably millions of independent bands in the US alone. They record in their basements or garages, tour on meager merch sales, and survive purely on adrenaline. Most of them will never make a dent in the mainstream rock market, but every now and then a band comes along that possesses enough talent and drive (the combination is key) to take them straight to the top. Case and point: USS.

You may not be familiar with USS yet, but these guys have been enjoying great success in Canada thanks to heavy radio rotation and a never-ending desire to create something completely unique. With the help of their trusty MacBooks, USS has been creating Nirvana inspired indie-rock laced with infectious beats and energy to boot, for years. Now, with intuition to guide them, USS is embarking on the ride of their life: the release of their upcoming album, and an exciting tour to follow.

USS’s set at RedGorilla Music Festival last Wednesday was an experience in and of itself. Their energy, above everything else was intense. They ran around stage shouting lyrics in perfect harmony, and spitting energy with their wicked rhymes. To top off the night, USS took the audience on a strangely entertaining ride when they proceeded to make homemade smoothies on stage, while singing. Ash would sing a line, pick up a banana, rub it all over his face and then sing another line. He’d do some more rubbing and then place the banana into the blender and pick up a strawberry. After some more singing and eccentric expressions, he would rub the strawberry all over his face, sing some more and then throw it into the blender with the other fruits. The set ended with the two drinking the smoothies and acting surprised as to how they wound up with smoothies in their hands. It was borderline train wreck, but it was brilliant, and the music was so spot on live it was incredibly entertaining. I laughed my head off, danced my heart out, and still have their melodies stuck in my head. USS puts on such a great set it’s a wonder they haven’t been around longer.

For USS, the journey to the top of the Canadian charts was surprisingly organic. It began with Ash’s desire for something he had never heard before. After swapping his electric guitar for a new MacBook—the first computer he had ever used in his life, mind you—Ashley Boo-Schultz paired up with pal and turntable master the Human Kebab. The evolution of the duo’s thoughts and desires came to fruition in the bass-heavy sound that can be heard on the band’s new record Questamation that is currently on iTunes, and will hit stores soon.

Interestingly enough USS has recorded, produced, marketed, promoted, and distributed their music without any help from a label. They’ve also been fortunate enough to grow a significant following without falling victim to mainstream media, bypassing the hoops of fire most new artists are forced to jump through to secure radio play. Instead, USS’s music has spoken for itself. The synth-pop and grunge-inspired rock that defines them has risen above the masses of indie music as some of the freshest, most promising tunes on the radio. Here’s to USS and their incredibly unique brand of indie-rock. If you missed this band at RedGorilla you should be ashamed of yourself. Trust me—you want to get to know USS, they’re coming your way. It’s only a matter of time before they’re dominating radio and tour circuit here in the states, and when they do all I can say is “I told you so!”

I spent the last seven days in Austin, TX immersed in live music from both SXSW and an independent music festival called RedGorilla Music Fest.

If you haven’t heard of RedGorilla, it’s a renegade festival started by Brian Waymire and Chris York, of Dreamscapers International.  The pair is based out of both Nashville and Austin, and focus on discovering and promoting the best in independent music today.  While RedGorilla is in no way associated with SXSW, they do have an unmistakably large presence in Austin, during the same week as the mother festival, with 11 venues and over 500 bands playing up and down 6th st.  This year the RedGorilla lineup was killer, and featured The Matches, The Effects, The Hollywood Kills, Luna Halo, AutoVaughn, Dizzy Balloon, and many more.

I started the week off strong, seeing The Matches playing a killer set for SXSW, and then two secret shows for RedGorilla.  All three were incredible and even in the Texas heat people were dancing their little hearts out to staples like, “Papercut Skin” and “Sunburn Vs. The Rhinovirus.”  Complete with new bassist Dylan Rowe these Oakland rockers brought a taste of nor-cal to Austin in all the right ways.

I caught some incredible pop/rock from The Hollywood Kills Friday and Saturday night at RedGorilla.  This little band from Nashville is making big waves thanks to a polished sound that has evolved from garage rock to commercially shiny, alternative pop/rock.  There’s an element to their live performance that instantly draws you in and, whether you like it or not, keeps you dancing to their tunes all night long.  If you haven’t heard of THK yet, make sure to check out CakeOrDeath Productions for a FREE DOWNLOAD of four songs off their new record Idiot’s Guide To Desertion

One of the many surprises I encountered over the week was Ace Enders’ set at the Photo Finish Records Showcase for SXSW on Friday.  Formerly of The Early November, Ace played some new tunes for the Audience for the Recover Reunion show and had everyone’s ears on him.  It was great to hear the new project and get a tast of what’s to come from such a talented artist.  Make sure to check out Ace Enders And A Million Different People’s new record When I Hit The Ground asap.  You’ll love it!

Another high point of RedGorilla was Tulsa, Oklahoma rockers The Effects.  Now, these guys wouldn’t usually fall into a category of music I normally keep on shuffle, but after seeing them live all that has changed.  These boys are 100% rock ‘n roll.  They’ve put a sparkly millennial twist on classic rock with screaming guitar solos, and beats that keep your eyes fixed on drummer Erin to see what he’s going to lay down next.  The one drawback to The Effects is that they don’t currently have recordings that do them justice.  This is a live band through and through, and to truly experience the magic of their music you have to see them live.  So…make sure you check out their MySpace for a complete list of upcoming tour dates near you.

One final experience I’d like to share with everyone was a set by a somewhat unknown band called Dizzy Balloon.  Hailing from Oakland, CA this five-some is everything I could have ever asked for in a new band.  They’ve got the looks, the sound, the stage presence, and the personality to take them straight to the top.  With their Beatles-inspired sound and insanely catchy tunes like, “Raise A Glass” and “Chinatown” Dizzy Balloon kicked ass this week at RedGorilla.  I was most impressed by a cover they did of “I Want You (She’s So Heavy)” by the Beatles.  At first listen you wouldn’t think their poppy sound fits with the appropriately named, heavy tune, but DB pulled out all the stops on this one, mimicking the iconic song effortlessly, while still putting a signature twist on the classic riffs and turn-arounds that define it.  There’s a clear Beatles influence in Dizzy Balloon’s sound, and this was a perfect cover to round out their phenomenal set this weekend.

Whether you were in Austin for SXSW, RedGorilla, or even Texas Rock Fest this week, all the music on 6th St. was amazing.  Live music has the power to move people, bring people together, and keep them coming back for more long after their first listen, and that’s what all these festivals are about.  A good band is a good band, but a good band that is also good live automatically becomes a great band, surpassing the hordes of wanna-be’s and has beens chasing fame without a prayer.  Thanks to all the amazing bands for playing your hearts out at all three festivals, and making the trip to Austin to share your music with people that truly appreciate it.

Peace

The Spinal Tap gang is back.

They’ve put the wigs in a closet and kept the mini-Stonehenge in storage, but the members of Spinal Tap are back onstage. Not in character as the comical and perpetually washed up metal act, but as themselves: actor-musicians Christopher Guest, Michael McKean and Harry Shearer, together performing an acoustic “Funky Sex Farm,” adding vocal grunts and heavy breathing between lyrics. “Getting out my pitch fork/ Poking your hay …”

It’s part of a medley of tunes at the House of Blues in West Hollywood, California, on Monday to announce what amounts to a busy year in 2009, with a 30-city “Unwigged & Unplugged” tour beginning April 17th in Vancouver. The trio is also finishing a new Spinal Tap album, combining studio re-recordings of songs from the original film and brand new material.

Consequence of Sound is reporting that U2 will be playing a secret show at Fordham University in New York. The articles they are snagging their information from believe that this “secret show” will coincide with their weeklong  stretch on Letterman. Consequence is also saying:

The performance will likely be packaged as part of the band’s upcoming performance on Good Morning America, which is also to take place on Friday at a “yet to be announced” location. It will mark U2’s first live U.S. show this year.

The work of U2 is never done. And with all their attempts at saving the world they have managed to record a new album, No Line on the Horizon. It comes out on March 3rd. You can read of a review of the record at Bullz-Eye. Or just go to the secret show, make all your friends jealous and come back with a signed copy and a feeling of having just been inspi(red).

With Barack Obama in the White House, we have a president who doesn’t go to bed at 9:30 with a glass of warm milk. President Obama and Michelle Obama like to have fun, and Stevie Wonder rocked the White House the other night.

The East Room of the White House, normally a place for staid presidential news conferences and other Washington happenings, was switched into a nightclub Wednesday night as Stevie Wonder stepped inside and rocked the house.

Wonder was the winner of The Library of Congress’ Gershwin Prize, which was bestowed on him by President Obama.

In a celebration to be broadcast on PBS Thursday night, Wonder serenaded the first couple, kicking things off with a version of “Sir Duke” and later Wonder classics like “Isn’t She Lovely” and “Superstition.”

But the night was also a tribute to Wonder. Tony Bennett, Paul Simon, Will.i.am and Martina McBride all paraded though, each with their own rendition of Wonder’s hits.

President Obama and Michelle Obama, in an elegant emerald gown, along with Vice President Biden and his wife Jill, took in the show from the front row.

Good stuff.

The merger is valued at $2.5 billion and the surviving company will be called Live Nation Entertainment.

The deal is subject to the usual legal issues, including regulatory review, and there’s sure to be some pressure against it from the music industry and others who see this consolidation as a threat.

—Management: A lot of ego to fit into one space … Barry Diller, chairman of Ticketmaster Entertainment, will be chairman of the board with Michael Rapino, now CEO of Live Nation, as CEO and president, and Irving Azoff, now CEO of Ticketmaster, as executive chairman and CEO of Front Line.

—The name change: Dropping the Ticketmaster brand in favor of Live Nation could be the first step toward distancing the new company from the negative press surrounding the long-standing ticketing giant. A WSJ source said management wants to diminish the impression that the “company is out to gouge” consumers—as concert-goers have long complained about the service fees Ticketmaster tacks on to ticket prices.

It will be interesting to see if this passes the anti-trust test. I suspect they will have some trouble, but who knows.

The news is coming at a time when Ticketmaster is struggling with some bad press following the Springsteen ticket fiasco.

Bruce Springsteen has responded to his fans’ outcry following Ticketmaster’s problem-laden sale of his Working on a Dream tour tickets earlier this week. Countless fans reported technical malfunctions during the onsale, while others complained that Ticketmaster forwarded them to the company’s secondary ticket site, TicketsNow, even though seats were still available through Ticketmaster. The New Jersey Attorney General has also announced an investigation into the sale. Ticketmaster has since issued an apology to Springsteen, and vowed to make amends to confused fans.

“Last Monday, we were informed that Ticketmaster was redirecting your log-in requests for tickets at face value, to their secondary site TicketsNow, which specializes in up-selling tickets at above face value. They did this even when other seats remained available at face value. We condemn this practice,” Springsteen and his tour team said in a letter posted on Bruce’s official site. “We have asked this redirection from Ticketmaster to TicketsNow cease and desist immediately and Ticketmaster has agreed to do so in the future and has removed its unwanted material from their and our site.”

As for the merger, Bruce wasn’t very supportive of that idea.

Springsteen isn’t keen on the idea of a Live Nation Ticketmaster merge either. “A final point for now: the one thing that would make the current ticket situation even worse for the fan than it is now would be Ticketmaster and Live Nation coming up with a single system, thereby returning us to a near monopoly situation in music ticketing,” Springsteen writes. “If you, like us, oppose that idea, you should make it known to your representatives.”

Bruce Springsteen has written a journal on his web site about his Super Bowl experience.

Since the inception of our band it was our ambition to play for everyone. We’ve achieved a lot but we haven’t achieved that. Our audience remains tribal…that is predominantly white. On occasion, the Inaugural Concert, during a political campaign, touring through Africa in ‘88, particularly in Cleveland with President Obama, I looked out and sang “Promised Land” to the audience I intended it for, young people, old people, black, white, brown, cutting across religious and class lines. That’s who I’m singing to today. Today we play for everyone. I pull myself upright with the mike stand back into the world, this world, my world, the one with everybody in it and the stadium, the crowd, my band, my best friends, my wife come rushing into view and it’s “teardrops on the city…”

I know I’m biased as a big Springsteen fan, but I felt he really delivered an exceptional performance for the Super Bowl. The song selection was excellent, and he delivered a 12-minute party that most people enjoyed. Even Howard Stern, who loves to criticize Bruce, argued that is was a fantastic performance.

Q104.3 says yes, if Ronnie Wood has his way.

The Rolling Stones are reportedly putting plans in place for a 2009 tour - after guitarist Ronnie Wood’s hopes of reuniting The Faces fell through.

Wood was eager to get the seventies band back together, telling Rolling Stone magazine that he and former frontman Rod Stewart were working on new material and talking about a series of concert dates later this year.

But Stewart dismissed the comeback reports, with his representative saying, “There are no plans for a Faces reunion tour this year.”

However, it is alleged Wood is eyeing a Rolling Stones tour because he is desperate to earn more cash to cover his impending divorce from estranged wife Jo.

The insider adds, “Keith (Richards) is particularly close to Ronnie and told him it would be a great way of getting back on his feet, both personally and financially, after all that’s happened over the past several months.”

Wood left his wife of 23-years in 2008 after his affair with 20-year-old Ekaterina Ivanova was exposed. He subsequently moved out of the family home and has offered Jo a reported $4.9 million-a-year divorce deal.

If you can, forget for a moment the picture of Wood, 61, having an affair with a 20-year-old. I mean, he literally could be her grandfather. Ew. But what if this affair ultimately resulted in the Stones going on tour so that he could generate some cash to pay for his divorce?

That’s some expensive nookie.

It’s almost a year away, but that didn’t stop the folks at Rolling Stone from throwing out the names of a few potential acts to follow in Bruce Springsteen’s footsteps.

It’s a tall order to fill: applicants must be legendary but still active, rocking but not raucous, and as big as the game itself. So who’s left? Oddsmakers are already lining up favorites for next year’s Lombardi Trophy (The Patriots? Really? No love for your new champs, the Pittsburgh Steelers? Your loss, Vegas.), so we thought we’d set the odds for next year’s halftime show. The NFL could go country (Tim McGraw? Taylor Swift?) or pop (Kelly Clarkson will soon return to us), but you have to presume they’ll stick with what works — big rock from big names. We have, of course, completely pulled these names and numbers out of thin air, plus gambling’s illegal just about everywhere, so keep your money in your wallet.

The Who
Pros: Legendary band with a sound louder than the game itself.
Cons: None. They’re the Who.
Odds: 3/2

In addition to the magazine’s suggestions — The Who (solid), Bon Jovi (solid), AC/DC (too hard), John Mellencamp (solid), Metallica (too hard), Van Halen (maybe), Nickelback (why?), Green Day (big enough profile?), Foo Fighters (see Green Day), Jay-Z (didn’t he retire?) — I’ll throw a few out there as well: Bob Seger, Neil Diamond, Fleetwood Mac, Eric Clapton, the Black Crowes, the Eagles and the Steve Miller Band.

Who do you think should provide the halftime entertainment next year?

EW.com’s PopWatch summarizes the Bonnaroo headliners, but you can see the full lineup here.

You’ve got your classic-rock powerhouses (Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Elvis Costello), your reunited jam-band institution (Phish), your ’90s-survivor cult act (Nine Inch Nails), your rap elders (Snoop Dogg, the Beastie Boys), your old soul legend (Al Green), your new funk goddess (Erykah Badu), your country icons (Merle Haggard, Lucinda Williams) — and, of course, dozens of your top-tier indie rockers (Animal Collective, the Decemberists, TV on the Radio, Grizzly Bear)

The article didn’t even mention Wilco or David Byrne. That’s a nice lineup.

The festival runs from June 11th to the 14th. Tickets go on sale this Saturday.

The conversation usually starts late at night, you and your new college friends in someone’s dorm room with a 12-pack, dishing about the lives you lived before they knew you. An old song comes on, and someone says, “This was the first rock concert I ever saw.” This claim is usually met with a “They suck!,” followed by a “Hey, I was 12, I didn’t know any better!” From there, the conversation turns into a can-you-top-this game of who saw the most “embarrassing” band as their first concert. Twenty years later, of course, the shame turns back into pride, as you realize the band was better than you once gave them credit for, but you wouldn’t have convinced the 18-year-old version of yourself of that at the time. Being cool is hard, you know.

And so, over the course of nearly a hundred emails, the Bullz-Eye staff racked their booze-addled brains to recall the first time they heard the roar of the crowd as the lights went down, and the magic that followed. This is our chronological history of the staff’s first shows. Not surprisingly, most of us were baptized by arena rock fire, but as it turned out, one of us was fortunate enough to see the birth of one of the greatest bands of all time.

Curious which one it was…? Just click the graphic below…and when you’re finished with the piece, don’t be afraid to pop back ’round and let us know about your first time!