Archive: May 2009 (41-50 of 150)

May 21 2009 07:06 PM ET

Members of Vampire Weekend, Ra Ra Riot form indie super-duo: Who else would you like to see join forces?

Rarariotvampire_lHow’s this for a dream-team collaboration: Members of Vampire Weekend and Ra Ra Riot have joined cool-kid forces to create Discovery, a sort of electro-y glitch-pop version of their respective bands. Take that, Tinted Windows!

Unlike the melting pot that is TW, Discovery is just a twosome: Ra Ra lead singer Wes Miles and VW keyboardist Rostam Batmanglij. Their self-titled debut album will drop on July 7; Pitchfork has the blindingly bright album art here.

Two of the album’s 10 tracks are streaming on MySpace, but sadly, neither are the songs that’ll feature guest vocals from Ezra Koenig (frontman of Vampire Weekend) or Angel Deradoorian, of Dirty Projectors.

Even so, this much indie-ness is enough to make the heart palpitate, people. Ra Ra Riot’s The Rhumb Line and Vampire Weekend’s self-titled debut were two of my favorite records from last year, so I could not be more curious/excited/fanboyish about this side-project. (Actually, ‘favorite’ feels like a gross understatement. I have played "Dying is Fine" and "M79" hundreds of times. Hundreds!)

The band’s MySpace (jokingly?) lists their music as R&B and neo-soul, and there’s even a promised cover of the Jackson 5′s "I Want You Back" — and certainly, the first track on their MySpace, the sunny, slick "Orange Shirt," has some R&B flavor to it. Long story, short, they had me at hello. Or, they had me at the first Ra. Is anyone else excited? What are some other bands you’d like to see come together for new projects?

More from EW’s Music Mix:
Vampire Weekend play charity gig, look for ‘new sounds’ with their second album
Vampire Weekend perform new song, talk second album on ‘Jimmy Fallon’
Green Day’s live MySpace show: On the scene in New York City
Tom Morello launches ‘Axis of Justice’ show on Sirius XM
Dave Matthews on the new DMB album — and why they almost broke up

addCredit(“Vampire Weekend: Vorassi; Ra Ra Riot: Andy Cotteril”)

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May 21 2009 05:36 PM ET

'Glee' propels Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" to go on and on and on and on

Categories: Glee, Journey

Journey’s "Don’t Stop Believin’" hasn’t just taken on another life, it’s going to outlive us all. What started as a top-10 power ballad back in 1981(it peaked at no. 9 on the pop charts) has become the song with more lives than nine cats. The most notable return to the pop culture zeitgeist came, of course, with the Sopranos series finale, but it’s also turned up in the current Broadway show Rock of Ages, as well as Laguna Beach (which landed the song on to iTunes Top 10 back in 2005) — even the memorable roller-rink scene in 2003′s Charlize Theron Oscar bait Monster.

And just when we’d thought we’d escaped the grasp of Steve Perry’s epic plea to "hold on to that fee-eee-ee-lin’" Fox’s Glee came along and put the ultimate earworm back in its rightful place: the number-one spot on iTunes. Of course, it sounds slightly different in this Freaks and Geeks meets High School Musical pilot, but it’s a good kind of different. Even if you aren’t one for show choirs (which, is quite frankly, shocking), it’s pretty damn hard to resist. What do you think, Music Mixers? Are you loving Glee‘s take on "Don’t Stop Believin’," or are you ready to ship it back on the midnight train goin’ an-y-where?

More Glee:
‘Glee’: Share your favorite show choir memories. We know you have them.
‘Glee premiere tonight: The music is available already! Woot!
‘Glee’: Please watch tomorrow…or else we can no longer be friends!

May 21 2009 04:19 PM ET

New albums on the way from Circulatory System...and the Olivia Tremor Control?

Circulatorysystemband_lA key item on my "seriously anticipated, possibly mythical projects" wish-list got checked off this month when Circulatory System’s second album finally got an official title and release date. I realize that band’s name may or may not mean much to you, but for fans like me, this is huge. Circulatory System rose from the ashes of the late, great band the Olivia Tremor Control at the close of the ’90s; put out a superb self-titled LP in 2001; then went more or less silent for the next eight years. If Signal Morning, due August 4, is even half as good as Circulatory System’s first album, it’ll be a true gift for anyone who digs psychedelic indie-folk orchestrations and joyous pop melodies. Read on after the jump for the Music Mix’s interview with Circulatory System frontman Will Cullen Hart about the new album — plus one unbelievably awesome tidbit about the future of the Olivia Tremor Control.

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May 21 2009 02:00 PM ET

The Alchemist preps new solo album, including Eminem collaboration

Alan "The Alchemist" Maman and Eminem go way back. They first met when Em had just signed to Interscope a decade ago. In 2005, the Alchemist went out on tour as Eminem’s DJ. And this year, he’s jumped back into that role, spinning for Em at performances like last week’s Jimmy Kimmel Live appearance. So when it came time for Alc to record his second solo album, naturally he reached out to his old pal for a guest verse. The Alchemist tells EW that the resulting tune featuring Eminem will be the title track on his album, Chemical Warfare, due this summer. "All the time and the patience that I had, waiting for the right time for us to work together [on a song], is coming full circle now," says the Alchemist.

Between the positive buzz surrounding Eminem’s own new work and the Alchemist’s highly distinguished resume as a producer (Dilated Peoples, Mobb Deep, Lil Wayne), this is definitely a pairing for hip-hop heads to get excited about. Check out the Alchemist’s current single "Smile" below, plus another Alchemist-produced classic after the jump, and let us know if you’re looking forward to "Chemical Warfare" as much as I am.

The Alchemist feat. Maxwell and Twista, "Smile"

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May 21 2009 01:19 PM ET

EW exclusive!: Hear previously unreleased Crosby, Stills & Nash track

Stephen Stills is one of my all-time musical heroes. Seriously, his first two solo albums, 1970′s Stephen Stills and 1971′s Stephen Stills 2, are absolute classics. If I met him I would be reduced to a gibbering wreck. And I know this for certain because I did meet him in the lengthy line for the restroom at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony a couple of years back. Stills jocularly remarked that we should have brought a pack of cards to pass the time. My response went something along the lines of, "Uh… Yeah… You’re Stephen freakin’ Stills!"

I hope to be slightly more eloquent on the subject of the Crosby, Stills and Nash track you can exclusively download below. It’s an alternate version of the beautiful, Stills-penned "You Don’t Have To Cry," which is one of a dozen previously unreleased numbers featured on the new CD Crosby, Stills & Nash Demos, out June 2.

Anyway, check out the song and tell us what you think. Are you CSN fans out there excited for Demos, or are you happy with the versions you already own?

More from EW’s Music Mix:
Dave Matthews on the new DMB album
What’s the loudest band you’ve ever seen (or been deafened by)?
Joe Perry talks Aerosmith tour, ‘Guitar Hero,’ and… mac ‘n’ cheese!

May 21 2009 11:01 AM ET

Rihanna returns in new Kanye video

Categories: Kanye West, Rihanna

Kanyerihanna_l

Last night Island Def Jam had a media event to preview upcoming releases, including a clip for Kanye West’s "Paranoid" that extensively features Rihanna. Want an early peek? One enterprising blogger recorded it on flipcam, so a poor-quality version is floating around the internet. Not much really happens (she stands in her underwear staring alluringly into the camera, she drives a car around staring angrily into the camera), but it’s probably a smart move for her, a high-profile way to easy back into public view without having to really do much.

What do you think? Is it finally time for Rihanna to return to performing? And is this the best way to do it?

More from EW’s Music Mix:
Rihanna’s mentor speaks: An exclusive interview
Soula Boy opens up about his pals Chris Brown and Rihanna
Beyonce vs. Ciara: Video deja vu?

 

May 20 2009 09:34 PM ET

What's the strangest tour lineup you've ever seen?

Upcomingtours_lWe like to think of ourselves here at the Music Mix as people of far-ranging tastes — proclivities that extend, even, to having no taste at all. Still, we were mildly flummoxed today to hear news of a tour featuring three acts that seem to have little in common beyond a vaguely shared indie cache, the same box of Clairol Nice ‘n Easy in Medium Brown, and their biological lady parts: Juliette Lewis, Cat Power, and the Pretenders, featuring ageless frontman Chrissie Hynde.

We can get behind all three on their own (or more accurately, the second two — Juliette’s musical efforts so far are kind of the DQYDJ equivalent of Michael Jordan’s baseball career).

Still, a fickle finger on the iPod shuffle button is one thing; pogo-ing through actress-turned-sometime-singer Lewis’s snarling Sunset Strip rawk revivalism, then laying down for Cat Power’s dusky, intimate ballads, and then somehow rallying for the Pretenders’ spiky, melodic jangle sounds like a recipe for a thoroughly tri-polar evening. (As bad-ass and shouty as Chan Marshall looks above on the far right, Cat Power is, in concert, decidely not so.) 

But readers, I’m sure you’ve seen far odder tuna-and-peanut-butter style bills in your time. Do tell, in the comments section below!

More questions from EW’s Music Mix:
What are your picks for the song of the summer? We’ve got a few ideas
What’s your favorite movie-music moment?
What’s the loudest band you’ve ever seen (or been deafened by)?

May 20 2009 05:37 PM ET

Green Day's live MySpace show: On the scene in New York City

Categories: Concert Reviews

Greenday_lThis summer they’ll be playing some of the biggest arenas in the world, including two nights at New York’s Madison Square Garden. But last night, Green Day performed an electric set comprised largely of their new album, 21st Century Breakdown, for a lucky — and relatively miniscule — audience of roughly 1400 at the city’s historic East Village venue Webster Hall.

Presented as part of MySpace’s The List concert series (300 MySpace users were issued free passes; the rest were able to watch it stream live on the site), the show kicked off promptly at 9pm, and rarely let up for the next two hours. Now eight albums into a 22-year(!) career, the Bay Area punk-pop trio are as tight and well-oiled as any band out there today, and it shows in a live setting: From the first notes of the album’s title track, the group — aided by several backup players, including a guest saxophonist — went hard and fast, stopping only to incite the crowd to call-and-response singalongs, and for frontman Billie Joe Armstrong to throw out phrases like "This is f—in’ religion right now, this is rock ‘n roll," bounce from the amps like a Tigger in black guyliner, and demand that security remove the f—in’ boxes near the stage that were f—in’ keeping him from the fans he wanted to get f—in’ closer to. Naughty mouth!

Nearly all the album’s high points were hit, including first single "Know Your Enemy," "The Static Age," "!Viva la Gloria!," and "Last of the American Girls," though a few slower paces were allowed, as when Armstrong announced, "We’re going to do a little campfire song" for the relatively ballad-esque "Before the Lobotomy," and later, the soaring "21 Guns."

Just when it seemed that Breakdown would be hogging the night’s entire set list, the band returned to the stage with the title track to their 2004 monster-smash American Idiot, along with "Jesus of Suburbia" and "St. Jimmy," a track from the group’s largely unknown first E.P., 39/Smooth, as well as a fan request from 1992′s Kerplunk!, plus favorites from 1994 breakout Dookie, including "She," "Longview" and "Basket Case." Not content to leave the house without a cover (or two), they also launched into the Isley Brothers’ "Shout" and Cheap Trick’s "Surrender" before finally bidding the ecstatic, exhausted room goodnight.

If you’re in the New York metro area — and you’ve got ninja ticket skills — you just might be able to make your way into tonight’s "secret" show at PC Richards & Theater; otherwise, they’ll be making the rounds on Letterman and Colbert in the next few days, hitting up the Today Show Friday morning, and kicking off their official summer tour July 3 at Seattle’s Key Arena. Tell us, Music Mixers, will you be joining them?

More from EW’s Music Mix:
Green Day dominates the albums chart with a single weekend’s sales
Blink 182′s first comeback performance on ‘Leno’: Did you watch? Do you care?
What’s the loudest band you’ve ever seen (or been deafened by)?
Linkin Park returns for new ‘Transformers’ tune: Welcome back?
‘True Blood’ exclusive: CC Adcock’s "Bleed 2 Feed"

May 20 2009 04:33 PM ET

Tom Morello launches 'Axis of Justice' show on Sirius XM

Categories: Tom Morello

Just how many pots does Tom Morello have cooking at this point? In the past year or so, the guitarist has played reunion gigs with Rage Against the Machine; released a sweet sophomore album under his nom de folk, The Nightwatchman; repeatedly joined Bruce Springsteen on stage; recorded an album with the Coup’s Boots Riley under the name Street Sweeper Social Club; made a cameo in Iron Man; and I’m probably leaving a few things out. His schedule got a little more crowded a few days ago, when Sirius XM aired the first episode of Morello’s Axis of Justice radio show. Three Sundays a month, Morello will be taking over the satellite airwaves, with occasional assistance from his pal Serj Tankian of System of a Down. That’s right, this guy is using music to fight global oppression full-time — even on the weekends.

"We will spin rebel jams and we will reveal dangerous truths." Morello promises in a press release. "If you’re not listening we are not responsible for the consequences." Nice! Lemme tell ya, if there’s one thing I love more than rebel jams, it is dangerous truths. Check out a clip of Morello performing his Nightwatchman tune "Midnight in the City of Destruction" last year below to give you a taste of the kind of music he’ll be bringing to Sirius XM, then chime in: Are you looking forward to tuning in to Axis of Justice?

More from EW’s Music Mix:
Blink 182′s first comeback performance on ‘Leno’: Did you watch? Do you care?
What’s the loudest band you’ve ever seen (or been deafened by)?
Joe Perry talks Aerosmith tour, ‘Guitar Hero,’ and… mac ‘n’ cheese!

May 20 2009 03:48 PM ET

Dave Matthews on the new DMB album -- and why they almost broke up

Categories: Dave Matthews Band

Davematthewsband_lThe Dave Matthews Band’s new album Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King (out June 2) is a tribute, in large part, to saxophonist LeRoi Moore, who passed away last August at the age of 46 following injuries incurred in an ATV accident. Just a couple of years ago, however, relations between the group’s members became badly strained. "As far as our friendships, we’d not been in top form," admits frontman Dave Matthews. "And inthe last few years we have taken the time to rediscover each other, soto speak."

After the break, Matthews talks about Big Whiskey…, how the band dragged themselves back from the brink, and his fond memories of Moore’s foul-mouthed ways.

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