Archive: March 2009 (91-100 of 123)

Mar 20 2009 07:56 PM ET

Stephen Colbert and Michael Steele: The latest, greatest 'hip-hop' feud

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Forget East Coast-West Coast. The premiere rivalry in hip-hop is the "East Hampton-Westchester" feud between Stephen Colbert and Michael Steele, chairman of the Republican National Committee. The two engaged in a faux-rap battle on last night’s Colbert Report. No, Steele didn’t show up in person (like he has said he’d be willing to do). But that didn’t stop Colbert from busting out his rhyme skills (sample lyric: "You better get a voucher because your rhymes are failin’ / Your game’s a dying moose and I’m Sarah Palin"). In turn, Steele’s "response" was a hilarious video created by the Colbert team. The clip spliced together snippets of his speeches and television appearances, with an awesome tip of the hat to "Swagger Like Us" near the end. Needless to say, it is must-see TV. Let’s hope Steele physically makes a Jim Cramer-esque appearance on Colbert sometime soon.

The Colbert Report Mon – Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
Michael Steele’s Rap Battle Response
comedycentral.com
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor Mark Sanford

More on Stephen Colbert:
‘The Colbert Report’ to tape in the Persian Gulf. Stephen is ready.
Stephen Colbert wants own NASA-sanctioned room in space
Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert: Mock the Vote

Mar 20 2009 06:56 PM ET

M.I.A. replaces Amy Winehouse in Coachella lineup

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Filed under: News

Miacoachella_l The promoters of Coachella have announced today via Twitter that rap sensation and new mom M.I.A. will perform at this year’s festival. It will be the singer’s first public performance since the Grammys. M.I.A. is taking over the Saturday slot originally slated for Amy Winehouse, who dropped out of Coachella, due to her current legal woes. Additional artists scheduled to play Coachella this year include Paul McCartney, Morrissey, The Killers and The Ting Tings.

More on M.I.A. and Amy Winehouse:
M.I.A. gives birth: It’s a boy!
M.I.A.’s Grammy performance: Give that girl a solo!
Amy Winehouse charged with assault

Mar 20 2009 06:45 PM ET

Springsteen news: Steve Van Zandt talks about the E Street Band's new drummer

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Stevevanzandt_lJust before Steve Van Zandt took the stage for a 75-minute speech today at SXSW about the state of the music industry (today’s music is “sucking major moose c—,” he said at one point, to much applause. “Nobody’s buying records? No s—. They suck!”), news broke that Max Weinberg’s son, Jay, will be filling in on drums for any dates on the upcoming Springsteen tour that conflict with Max’s gig on Conan O’Brien’s new show. Afterward, we grabbed Van Zandt, who is hosting two showcases at SXSW today, for a little more info. “I’ve been avoiding this question for weeks!” he says. “Thank God they finally announced it. We already did three days of rehearsals. Jay’s a fantastic drummer. It’s in the Weinberg DNA. Although it’s gonna be tricky. No matter how much work he does, Max has an ability that no one has, which is the ability to read Bruce’s mind. That’s become a requirement over 30 years. So I’m sure there will be some slight adjustments as far as that goes. Bruce may have to actually tell him what song we’re about to play, you know what I mean? [Laughs] Those little things. But other than that, it’s gonna be great.”

But will the E Street Band still rock with a different Weinberg behind the kit? Or will you miss Max while he’s on Conan? Share your thoughts below.

More on Steve Van Zandt:
Official website

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Mar 20 2009 05:32 PM ET

Jane's Addiction give away two free Trent Reznor-produced tracks

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Jane’s Addiction fans will get the chance to download two free tracks from the band today via ninja2009.com. The downside? The songs aren’t exactly new. "Whores" and "Chipaway" were both featured on the band’s 1987 self-titled live release, but have been re-recorded by Trent Reznor (Nine Inch Nails are slated to tour with Jane’s Addiction this summer) and producer Alan Moulder. Are you excited, Jane’s Addiction fans? Will you give the re-vamped tracks a listen?

More Jane’s Addiction and Nine Inch Nails:
Jane’s Addiction to headline Lollapalooza ’09
Tom Morello, Boots Riley’s Street Sweeper to tour with NIN

Mar 20 2009 04:49 PM ET

Mandy Moore's new single: a kinder, gentler Kelly Clarkson?

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Mandymoore_lMandy Moore’s career trajectory continues to fascinate. While the angel-voiced singer may be more famous these days for her acting and recent surprise marriage to Ryan Adams, the one-time sugary sweet pop princess has made an active effort to shun her mainstream roots in her music. In the process, she’s become much more interesting as an artist. First came a cover album (called, uh, Coverage) that featured a track by idiosyncratic British act XTC, of all bands. Then came her last album, Wild Hope, where she collaborated with talents like The Weepies and Rachael Yamagata.

Moore seems to be traveling further down that same road on her new album, Amanda Leigh (due May 26). The bouncy first single, "I Could Break Your Heart Any Day of the Week", hit iTunes this week — and sounds a bit like a lighter, softer, folksier Kelly Clarkson. (Nothing wrong with that!) But snippets of other tracks off her forthcoming album, which have been added to her website, are more left field. Moore has been rather open about her struggles with depression, and that manifests itself on a song called "Everblue." ("Clearly, I was in a bit of a deep, dark place and although the song is heavy, I feel like it has a comfortable, resigned sadness," she wrote on her website.)

Amanda Leigh will probably not be the album to catapult Moore back into the mainstream. And I’m more than fine with that. But what do you all think? Do you like Moore’s new single (which you can listen to after the jump)? Do you like the direction she has taken her music, or do you wish she’d return to bubblegum, radio-friendly pop?

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Mar 20 2009 04:20 PM ET

Grizzly Bear does some soul-saving at SXSW

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Grizzlybear_lIf anyone has a better art-rock song than Grizzly Bear’s "Ready, Able" in the works, then 2009 is going to be one hell of a year. By far my favorite standout from their upcoming album Veckatimest, "Ready, Able" blew my mind when I first heard it played with the Brooklyn Philharmonic last month. Ditto for when the band played it at eMusic’s SXSW showcase at Austin’s Central Presbyterian Church last night. Something about the lilting melody that singer Edward Droste dives into for the song’s final two minutes and the whirling psychedelic waltz that surrounds it just gets me every time.

Veckatimest is a consummate headphones album, with a level of sonic detailing that Grizzly Bear’s previous releases barely hinted at. Seeing them translate that sound into a vivid, immediate live performance last night with just the four of them on stage was something to behold. They kicked off the evening with a sublime "Cheerleader," Droste splitting vocal duties with drummer Chris Bear. Later highlights included the insanely catchy single "Two Weeks"; a leaner, spacier version of their 2006 breakout "Knife"; a devastating "While You Wait for the Others" featuring killer guitar work from co-frontman Daniel Rossen; and the band’s contextually complex cover of the Crystals’ "He Hit Me (It Felt Like a Kiss)." (Check out a full setlist after the jump.)

Practically from the opening notes on, the audience was in full worship mode — appropriate enough, considering the location. Grizzly Bear rocking beneath a vaulted church ceiling with an enormous cross on the wall behind them: Now that’s salvation I can believe in. I can’trecommend highly enough that indie-rock fans try to secure tickets tothe Griz’s upcoming spring tour.

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Mar 20 2009 04:15 PM ET

Big Boi plays SXSW. Now, where's that album?

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Bigboi_l“The album is done,” Big Boi told the assembled masses at the Austin Music Hall shortly after 1 a.m. this morning. It was a theme the OutKast kingpin would return to repeatedly throughout his show. Maybe he thought we needed reassuring, or maybe he wanted to reassure himself. His solo debut, Sir Luscious Left Foot, has been pushed back too many times to count. Big Boi told the crowd that Sir Luscious Left Foot will arrive in “June or July” last night, but a rep for his label tells me that the album has no confirmed release date. At this point, it’s reasonable to start wondering whether it will ever really come out, whether it’s done or not.

Despite his frequent references to newer material, Big Boi’s actual set last night leaned heavily on selections from OutKast’s well-stocked cabinet of wildly innovative hits. “Rosa Parks,” “ATLiens,” “Skew it on the Bar-B,” “So Fresh, So Clean,” and “Elevators (Me & You)”  haven’t aged a day in over a decade. The show’s peak came when Big Boi laced into the mighty “B.O.B.”, inspiring protegee Janelle Monae to dash out on stage and dance a manic two-step shuffle to that diabolical beat.

Was it all just a nostalgia trip? Tough to call when those ‘Kast cuts are still light-years ahead of anything in present-day rap. Sure, it would have been even nicer to see Big Boi performing them along with OutKast partner Andre 3000, whom he acknowledged in a perfunctory shout-out toward the end of his set. But seeing him perform those songs with most of his old vigor, the question isn’t really whether Big Boi has another solid album in him. It’s how much longer we can afford to wait for it.

Mar 20 2009 03:17 PM ET

M. Ward, Lou Barlow, Laura Marling, and more help EW take SXSW

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Sxswparty320At a festival full of over-capacity venues, it was nice to have at least one place where my fellow travelers and I knew for sure we could get in the doors with no trouble: the performance lounge that this publication put together at Smokin’ Music for EW subscribers and their guests on Thursday afternoon.

First up on EW’s bill were Annuals, with what one band member pronounced a "more acoustic than usual" set for them. Next, Laura Marling (pictured here, far left, with M. Ward in the sunglasses and Diane Birch far right, along with EW’s Rob Brunner, Leah  Greenblatt, Jason Adams, me, and Whitney Pastorek) brought us some very lovely finger-picked folk from the U.K. She can sure write a tune, even if she’s barely 19. Also: Maybe it was just the heat addling my brain, but Marling’s multialented accompanist on accordion/drums/finger-snaps/mandolin looked eerily like a young, British version of Coach Taylor from Friday Night Lights. (Hey, that show does tape in Austin…)

M. Ward blew the crowd away with the short but intense set that followed. It’s not easy to straight-up shred on unaccompanied acoustic guitar, but he pulled it off. After a brief blast of slow-burning soul from Diane Birch, the afternoon closed with a powerful set from Lou Barlow with Imaad Wasif that mixed more recent material with at least one Sebadoh classic. Give Barlow his due: He’s been plying the melodic indie-folk road shared by most of our lounge’s performers for more than two decades, and he shows no signs of stopping.

All in all, we think we had a pretty awesome lineup, no? (Particularly astute observers might have noticed that all five of those acts are represented by Press Here Publicity, which co-sponsored the event.) If any of you reading this post were there in attendance, we hope you had a grand time, too!

More on these artists:
Album review: M. Ward, Hold Time
Album review: Annuals, Such Fun
The best new female singer-songwriters, including Laura Marling
I Love the ’90s, Lo-Fi Edition: Sebadoh

Mar 20 2009 12:00 PM ET

The Decemberists 'Hazards of Love,' now streaming exclusively on EW's Music Mix

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Decemberists_lThe Hazards of Love is a full-on rock opera that functions as the newest album from The Decemberists, and though it won’t be available in stores until next Tuesday, those of you pondering an early purchase on iTunes can preview it all exclusive-like on the Music Mix right now, thanks to the magic of Imeem. (This, we are assuming, means the Music Mix is now your new very favoritist music blog on all of the earths.)

More than any record in recent memory, Hazards has caused some very (yay!), very (nay!) differing opinions within our sparse but convivial Music Mix ranks. After the jump, feast upon the dramatic festivities with your own ears, make up your own mind… and why not share what you think in the comments?

READ FULL STORY »

Mar 20 2009 07:29 AM ET

SXSW Discovery Hour: Singer-Songwriter Zee Avi

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The newest (and most estrogen-having) member of Jack Johnson’s Brushfire Records family is 23 year old Zee Avi, a tiny girl with a warm smile who filled the lonesome last spot at the KCRW showcase on Wednesday night. It was huge opportunity for the newcomer — her self-titled debut will be out May 19 — filling in for Norwegian rocker chick/hype magnet Ida Maria, who was reportedly stuck in U.S. customs.

Avi is a Malaysian native with one of those dream stories: She was discovered off her YouTube channel by Raconteurs drummer Patrick Keeler, who passed her video on to manager Ian Montone, who passed her on to Brushfire, who signed her to what is quickly becoming one of my favorite artist lineups around. While I’ve been told it’s not necessary to play the ukelele if you’re signed by the happy Hawaiian, it no doubt helped, as did Avi’s sweet songcraft and lilting, jazzy, of-the-moment voice. As the last drunks of the night milled about the top floor of Buffalo Billiards (I especially enjoyed the two girls having a very loud conversation about farting in women’s restrooms), those paying attention were treated to some minimalist lyrics and a nearly-unrecognizable cover of Interpol’s “Slow Hands.” And to be fair, some of the most overserved audience offenders did approach Avi’s label rep during her last (very quiet) song to scream (very loud) repeated requests for him to spell her name so they could text themselves a reminder to buy her album in the morning.

But Avi appeared legitimately gracious and grateful to have the shot to play SXSW, no matter the bizarre conditions. And in my best Carrie-Bradshaw-of-music-festivals inner monologue voice, I couldn’t help but wonder: What kind of intestinal fortitude does it take, exactly, to sing your adorable, slightly Disney-heroine-esque heart out in a deserted venue at 1 a.m., while tuning out the human dregs who are squawking and scurrying haphazardly about the floor less than six feet from your mic stand? Is that a skill you can learn, or — like good actors and the ability to handle constant audition rejection — is it a genetic prerequisite for the barding life?

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