Most artists can’t even keep my attention for one full set these days. I don’t know, I guess I’m getting old.
But Butch Walker? Wednesday night residency all November at Hotel Cafe in LA? Four shows, walking distance from my home? Sign. Me. UP!
And we’re not talking 4 weeks of the same old song either. Butch is performing a full album each week. Which means… every week is totally different and every week is a must see event!
Nov 4 Letters
Nov 11 The Rise and Fall…
Nov 18 Sycamore Meadows
Nov 25 Fan Selected Set! (submitted via Twitter!)
Plus every week will include a cover that fans will also request through Twitter, and a bonus new song from his upcoming album “I Liked It Better When You Had No Heart” due out early next year. This just reminds me of why I steal don’t often buy music these days… so I have money in the bank for occasions like this.
How much would you pay for Insane Clown Posse felt finger puppets? We’re talkin’ the FULL SET here… Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope!
If you have either 2 or more fingers, or 1 finger + 1 pen, pencil, mozzarella stick or anything skinny, cruise on over to Etsy and make these yours today for the low, low price of $20.00! “These puppets are waiting for you.”
Real product description:
This set of two hip-hoppers make hard core music together. If you’re a fan of the horrorcore band, Insane Clown Posse’, then these puppets are waiting for you. They are felt finger puppets that will fit most if not all finger sizes. Also, they play well on pens, pencils, anything skinny. They include construction paper detail for the mouths and face paint. Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope are splendid companions for all your clowning around.
Get it? Forking. Like Forks, Washington. The town in Twilight? Oh whatever.
The “New Moon” soundtrack line up was announced this week, and just like the fans, its grown up a bit. Gone are the Paramores, Linkin Parks, Collective Souls… and in their place, the more edgy and eclectic stylings of Thom York, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, the Editors and Grizzly Bear.
Death Cab for Cutie – ‘Meet Me On the Equinox’
Band of Skulls – ‘Friends’
Thom Yorke – ‘Hearing Damage’
Lykke Li – ‘Possibility’
The Killers – ‘A White Demon Love Song’
Anya Marina – ‘Satellite Heart’
Muse – ‘I Belong To You (New Moon Remix)’
Bon Iver and St Vincent – ‘Rosyln’
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club – ‘Done All Wrong’
Hurricane Bells – ‘Monsters’
Sea Wolf – ‘The Violet Hour’
OK GO – ‘Shooting The Moon’
Grizzly Bear – ‘Slow Life’
Editors – ‘No Sound But The Wind’
Alexandre Desplat – ‘New Moon (The Meadow)’
The immortal Muse survived from the first soundtrack, which is good because they really did get ripped off with that cheesy baseball scene.
Lip syncing isn’t just for pop stars… it’s a harsh and degrading reality of TV magic. Muse decided to have some fun while performing “Uprising” on an Italian TV show where they were forced to mime the single by swapping roles and just acting ridiculous. I wonder if the audience knew what was going on here with “The Muse”?
Think you know all there is to know about social media? I did! Until I found this article from Social Media Rockstar which breaks down the past 30 years of the digital age and social media revolution, including “phone phreaking,” Prodigy (my fam’s first foray into digital life), AOL (100 hours FREE!), IMing, file sharing and beyond.
One interesting part that kinda puts Twitter into perspective. I’ve always equated Twitter to AIM away messages, but didn’t realize how far back the connection went:
“People have been addicted to “tweeting” their real-time status updates (using hash tags (#) and at-signs (@)) for over 20 years. IRC, or Internet Relay Chat… was notably used to break news on the Soviet coup attempt during the media blackout and keep tabs on the first Gulf War. Many people stayed logged into IRC constantly… using it to share links, files and keep in touch with their global network – the same way Twitter is used today.”
Kinda makes the “simpler times” seem a lot less simple, eh?
Guitar Hero 5 came out quietly, in the shadow of the fanfare of Rock Band: The Beatles. That is, until one gamer uploaded a video exploiting the exploits of an unlocked Kurt Cobain avatar, singing utterly un-Cobain-y tunes like Bon Jovi’s “You Give Love a Bad Name.”
The video went viral (cuz its funny), but Cobain fans and journalists were not amused, so the usual suspects came forth to defend themselves.
Courtney Love took to Twitter to clear her name, firing off 140 (x10) characters to say she never signed off on the avatar use. Whether or not you’re convinced, she clearly couldn’t have been sober enough to sign anything (she shouldn’t even hold anything as sharp as a pen…).
Former Nirvana-mates Krist Novoselic (who emerged from the Where Are They Now? file only to be re-filed into the There You Are But Where’s Your Hair?! file) and Dave Grohl released their own statement:“We want people to know that we are dismayed and very disappointed in the way a facsimile of Kurt is used in the Guitar Hero game. The name and likeness of Kurt Cobain are the sole property of his estate – we have no control whatsoever in that area… We urge Activision to do the right thing in “re-locking” Kurt’s character.”
Activision responded, “Guitar Hero secured the necessary licensing rights from the Cobain estate in a written agreement signed by Courtney Love to use Kurt Cobain’s likeness as a fully playable character. Krist Novoselic and Dave Grohl… have no say whatsoever in the usage of Kurt Cobain’s likeness.”
Even Jon Bon Jovi… the real victim here… spoke out to the BBC, “I don’t know that I would have wanted it either… To hear someone else’s voice coming out of a cartoon version of me? I don’t know. It sounds a little forced.”
Calm down everyone. Hate the player, not the game! The object of Guitar Hero is not to give Kurt a bad name. It’s a secret nerd feature you can only access by “unlocking” him, whatever that means. Fans shouldn’t be interested in making Kurt act a fool, and haters (or cynical fans) will have a laugh and try to get viral attention at any opportunity, handed to them or not. Would this be as big a deal if not for this nerd’s viral clip? If it were different songs? If it were a hack instead of a secret feature?
From the moment some geek conceived the first Guitar Hero, we’ve been bastardizing classic rock tunes. Pushing colored buttons is not the same as strumming, tweens who can sing “Kool Thing” aren’t Sonic Youth fans, and a modified long-haired Mario isn’t meant as a homage to our real guitar heroes.
Forget picnics… today’s the day the teddy bears have their UPRISING! They’ve been forced, degraded and controlled for too long. Consider the new Muse video “Uprising” your warning:
Los Angeles-based concert promoter Live Nation is introducing a sort of season pass for club-level concerts, allowing fans to reserve a spot at non sold-out shows for the rest of the year by purchasing a “passport” for $49.99.
LA fans will probably benefit most, as Live Nation runs 5 area clubs – the Wiltern, the Hollywood Palladium, the Avalon and the House of Blues clubs in West Hollywood and Anaheim. Most cities may only have one.
Here’s a current list of participating LA Live Nation club shows (more will be announced each Monday pending availability):
The Wiltern:
Snow Patrol (Oct. 19 only)
Moby (Oct. 14)
Billy Squier (Sept. 26)
Los Enanitos Verdes (Oct. 3)
The Hollywood Palladium:
Brand New (Oct. 18 only)
Avalon:
Brazilian Girls (Oct. 19)
Ladyhawke — Perez Hilton Presents Tour (Oct. 3)
The Get Up Kids (Sept. 24)
White Tie Affair (Oct. 13)
House Of Blues — Sunset Strip:
Dinosaur Jr. (Nov. 5)
Dragonforce (Friday)
Saosin (Nov. 6)
Caspa (Saturday)
DJ Quik (Sept. 25)
BET’S 106 & Park Tour (Sept. 29)
— with Trey Songz & Mario
Better Than Ezra (Sept. 24)
Revolting Cocks (Sept. 27)
– with Jim Rose Circus & more
Tech N9NE & Slaughterhouse (Oct. 23)
Sippy Cups (Nov. 7)
KC & the Sunshine Band (Dec. 30)
House of Blues — Anaheim:
The Psychedelic Furs & Happy Mondays (Saturday)
Motorhead (Oct. 7)
Gov’t Mule (Sunday)
Citizen Cope (Sept. 23)
Murs (Oct. 9)
Los Lobos (Oct. 16)
Randy Travis (Oct. 1)
State Radio (Oct.
Lights – A Premier Tribute to Journey (Sept. 26)
Back in the summer of 2004, “New York Is So Cool” (or “N.Y.I.S.C.”) by a short lived musical experiment called X-1 was all the rage. Well, in LA at least. It was played all the time on this brand new LA radio station called Indie 103.1… a station all the hipsters knew would last forever (it didn’t) and change the radio business (it didn’t).
But anyway, this isn’t about LA. “N.Y.I.S.C” is a hipster’s account of “a month long visit/bender” in NYC written by Brian O’Keeffe (check out his comment on Stereogum). And on 9/11, after all the sadness and remembrance, it just seems like a nice time to post this old gem and celebrate some things that make NY so cool. To hipsters on vacay, at least.
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Paramore’s new track “Brick by Boring Brick” is kind of interesting, for Paramore at least. Reminds me a little more of Eisley and a little less of… Paramore. A little more mature maybe? Their new album brand new eyes comes out 9/29, and though I like how they are saving everyone the trouble of capitalization, I hate when bands name their albums all lower case like that. I feel like I should add a (sic) to it, which, in the end, is just more work. Bah!
