Category: News (Page 17 of 136)

Collaborations, collaborations

October 1, 2009 /

Flea

During a lengthy discussion about records, a friend of mine once told me that music is so incredible because it is rewarding when experienced alone, but also when shared.

I couldn’t agree more. I rarely write or learn songs just to keep them locked inside my inner musical being. After spending time with a new track, I want to call over my friends and have a hootenanny. I want to stay up late in a garage drinking beers and recording whatever happens.

As we know, collaborations and supergroups are not a new trend by any means. Nevertheless, a slew of unlikely pairings have surfaced over the past week. I’ve summarized them below.

– Thom Yorke has recruited a band consisting of Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea, Radiohead producer Nigel Godrich, REM collaborator Joey Waronker, and Brazilian instrumentalist Mauro Refosco. The band will back Yorke live as he tours in support of his solo material.

– Broken Bells is the new collaboration between Danger Mouse and Brian Mercer of the Shins. How this came about, I have no idea. Of all the recent match-ups, I’m most amped about this one. Hip hop mixed with jangly pop? Could work.

– On that note, what about hip hop merging with some dirty blues? The new Black Keys album, Blakroc, will feature Mos Def, Ludacris, RZA, Raekwon, Q-Tip, Pharoahe Monch, and many more.

– But Dr. Dre collaborating with Lady Gaga? Really? Sounds like a very smart move constructed by their publicists. However, I don’t really see the relevance, or the possibility of sonic magic coming from these two in the studio.

Ah, to play music every day and get paid for it…

News

New Paul McCartney live CD/DVD on the way

September 30, 2009 /

Decades removed from their break up, the Beatles are possibly busier than they’ve ever been. Almost every day, an interesting bit of news surfaces with connection to the band. Earlier this week, Lucy Vodden, the underlying inspiration for “Lucky in the Sky with Diamonds,” passed away. Four days ago, an essay written by Paul McCartney when he was 10 about the Queen was unearthed. Of course, this news pales in comparison to The Beatles: Rock Band and the remasters of their entire catalog, which were released on September 9th. It looks like Beatlemania will never end and I couldn’t be happier.

On November 23rd, Paul McCartney will release a 2CD/1DVD package of his performances from earlier this year at New York’s Citi Field. Good Evening New York will highlight each night’s 33-song set filmed with 15 high-definition cameras.

A deluxe edition will feature an additional DVD featuring McCartney’s performance at the Ed Sullivan Theater. The live album will also be issued on vinyl.

The gigs, at which McCartney played songs by The Beatles and Wings, as well as selections from his solo back catalogue, took place on July 17, 18 and 21.

They were significant for McCartney as The Beatles played the venue in 1965 when it was known as Shea Stadium.

This will be McCartney’s second release on Hear Music, which is owned by Starbucks Corporation.

Artists, Boxed Sets, Concert CDs, Concert DVDs, News

Warner and YouTube agree to music video deal

September 28, 2009 /

YouTube

When YouTube and Warner failed to reach a licensing agreement last December, the music group removed all of their music videos from the beloved website. Talks have since resumed, and the two are close to completing a deal that will put videos from Madonna, Green Day, and label-mates back on YouTube.

What hasn’t been reported, so far: The deal terms themselves. Neither company is talking, but sources familiar with the negotiations tell me the new pact will be similar to the one Google’s (GOOG) video unit struck earlier this year with Universal Music Group.

That deal created Vevo, a sort of “Hulu for music videos” owned by Universal and Sony (SNE). So think of Warner’s deal as a “son of Vevo”.

The big idea is the same: Try to create more value for videos by limiting their distribution and creating a more ad-friendly atmosphere around them, and share ad revenue between YouTube and the videos’ owner.

Then there’s the ad platform itself: I haven’t been able to get a concrete definition of what this is supposed to look like , but for now I’m imagining something like the “channels” YouTube has made for partners like ESPN, except they’d be made on an artist-by-artist basis.

All in all, this sounds like a fair deal. Warner loses a guaranteed revenue stream, but if its contention about the value of its videos is correct, it will make even more than it did under the old arrangement. Meanwhile YouTube gets to hang onto “premium” inventory, without being locked into the kind of pay-per-play arrangement that helped drive the site’s expenses sky-high.

While it’s unclear when Vevo will launch, remember that the site will only stream videos from Universal artists. This potential deal with Warner will keep its content on YouTube. Of course, this is all subject to change.

News

Clapton and Beck to play London next year

September 25, 2009 /

Beck Clapton

Wow, I get to mention Jeff Beck again. The old dudes of rock are really making a statement this year, aren’t they? The inventive guitarists — who are popular the world over — both got their start with the Yardbirds in the ’60s. Though they never actually played together in the band, it was Jeff Beck that Eric Clapton recommended as a replacement after he quit the Yardbirds to join Jon Mayall & the Bluesbreakers. The two had such a good time playing together in Japan earlier this year that they’re going to reconvene for a London gig in 2010.

The one-off show at London’s O2 Arena on February 13, 2010 will be the second time the guitar legends have played together in recent times.

Jeff Beck speaking about their live collaboration, says: “Eric and I played together in Japan earlier this year and had a blast. Since then we have been in regular contact and talked about doing a similar show for our fans.”

“I’ve always considered Jeff Beck to be one of the finest guitar players around. He’s a friend, a great guy, and a truly gifted musician. We had such a fun time in Japan that it seemed natural to play together again,” responds Eric Clapton.

Each musician will play a set of their own music before pairing up to finish the show. This is the concert I would have attended if I wasn’t already flying to New York to see Pavement. Wait, never mind. This show is in England. Who can afford to fly there?

Concerts, News

Slash prepares new album, recruits entire music industry

September 24, 2009 /

Slash

Renowned guitarist Slash has been preparing his very first solo album since 2007. The former Guns ‘N’ Roses and current Velvet Revolver member plans to release the record, Slash and Friends, sometime in 2010. The list of these “friends” is very lengthy. Those announced so far include Flea, Ozzy Osbourne, M. Shadows, Alice Cooper, Chris Cornell, Ron Wood, Iggy Pop, Fergie, and Adam Levine. Now Dave Grohl and Duff McKagan have even entered the fold. Josh Freeze will drum and Chris Chaney will play bass on the majority of the album.

“Doing a track for my record with Dave Grohl on drums & Duff on bass tonight, it promises to be killer,” Slash tweeted about the studio session before returning the 140-character Website to report “Great jamming w/Duff & Grohl tonight, the track is a killer instrumental, very heavy.”

With this effort, Slash is slowly becoming our generation’s Jeff Beck, recruiting established musicians to enhance his guitar work. For example, The Jeff Beck Group’s 1969 album Beck-Ola featured vocalist Rod Stewart and Ron Wood (again!) on guitars. The Jeff Beck Group would evolve over the years until Beck completely broke out on his own, recording whatever the hell he wanted to at the time.

The thing is, with these albums, the music rarely sounds cohesive. Slash has created a definitive guitar sound, but mixed with these various vocalists and eccentric musicians, I think the record is going to be all over the place. Oh well, I’m sure a few tracks will rip!

News

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