WFMU, one of the greatest radio stations out there, is in emergency mode as of yesterday. Code green! Just like everyone else in the world, WFMU is having a rough time in our crappy economy. The station’s latest fundraiser came up short by $100k, and the lease on its transmitter has ended. And since the station is 100% listener-supported, it needs our help. In fact, WFMU has given its listeners 24 hours to send some cash. This 24-hour time period started yesterday at 7 PM, so time is extremely limited.

So, get out your credit cards, log in to your PayPal account, or just go sell a kidney, because WFMU needs you now more than ever. Click here or give them a call at 1-800-989-9368 and pledge anywhere from $15 to $3000. They’ll make sure to repay you with some sweet WFMU swag and years of awesome weirdness.

Slash, former lead guitarist for hair-metal maestros Guns N’ Roses, was pretty upset that Axl Rose actually managed to get Chinese Democracy out; he, like everyone else on the planet who wasn’t Axl Rose, thought that the album would never actually be released. Well, as we all know, the album is totally available for purchase, but this whole situation had Slash pretty upset, so he decided that, in order to feel better, he has to release a bitchin’ solo CD.

Slash called up all of his famous friends — people like Adam Levine, Nicole Scherzinger, Iggy Pop, Cypress Hill, Fergie, Alice Cooper, Ozzy Osbourne, Meat Loaf, Dave Grohl, Flea, Chris Cornell, and every non-lead singer member of Guns N’ Roses — wrote a bunch of songs, and set about making that bitchin’ album. But then Slash realized that one of his songs had no vocals. So, accordingly, he called up Jack White, because Jack White is already in a bunch of bands and Slash totally digs Jack White.

Then the unexpected happen: “I wanted to get Jack White to sing on something, but he didn’t want to sing. He said ‘I’ll play drums, I’ll play guitar, but I don’t wanna sing.’ He was one guy that I wanted to work with. Pretty much everyone else that I went after I managed to get.”

From Chunklet (via onethirtybpm):

Getting phone calls at three in the morning on a Saturday night are never a good sign, and the one I got last night is no exception. Fred Weaver called and left a message on my voice mail which I immediately returned to get some of the most grim news of my life.

Jerry Fuchs, drummer extraordinaire, illustrator par excellence, Chunklet contributor and rock solid friend, died last night. I’m still awaiting to get more news, but here’s what I know: Jerry was at a party in Brooklyn and fell down an elevator shaft. He was immediately rushed to the hospital where he was admitted in critical condition. Shortly after, he died in the early hours of Sunday, November 8 while an entire waiting room of friends were there for him.

 Jerry Fuchs Wikipedia entry

One of the best things about Chicago, in addition to the endless hot dog joints, is that you can find so many entertaining and free ways to listen to music. There’s a ton of $0.00 block parties during the summer that ALWAYS have bands worth watching. Then, of course, there are the free concerts at Millennium Park, and let’s not forget Jazz Fest, Blues Fest, Downtown Sound, Music Without Borders, SummerDance, etc.

But Chicago is in a little financial crisis, just like everyplace in this great, empty-pocketed country of ours. And how does America usually solve its financial problems? By cutting arts and music. However, there is something you can do besides just heading to City Hall and yelling at the endless stream of business-suited government officials. Friends of Chicago Music have set up an online petition that you can sign, with a message to all those government fat cats. Please ensure that my (and, to a lesser extent, your) free-music summer will be entertaining and sign the petition.

Well, it looked like the ’90s were back and better than ever (depending on how you feel about the ’90s) during Cypress Hill’s Smoke Out Festival, where former Sublime bassist Eric Wilson and drummer Bud Gaugh played with a new singer, Rome Ramirez, under their former moniker. Although they were "thrilled to reconnect with their fans around the world," the long arm of the law wasn’t feeling as mushy.

According to Los Angeles judge Howard Matz, the passing of former Sublime frontman Bradley Nowell means that the Sublime name can’t ever be resurrected, no matter how many original band members are still breathing. The Nowell family maintains: "Prior to his untimely passing, both Bud and Eric acknowledged that Brad Nowell was the sole owner of the name Sublime. It was Brad’s expressed intention that no one use the name Sublime in any group that did not include him, and Brad even registered the trademark ’Sublime’ under his own name." So much for sharing the love.

For now, Sublime’s two remaining members fully intend to "take the court’s advice and work on a business solution to this issue." Take your time, guys.

Top 6 "Famous Last Words" *

6. "Wonderful! Wonderful this death!" — William Etty, English painter (1787-1849)

5. (To a priest) "Hold your tongue! Your wretched chatter disgusts me!" — Chrétien Malesherbes, French politician (1721-1794)

4. "Die, my dear doctor? That’s the last thing I shall do." — Henry Temple, 3rd Viscount of Palmerston, English politician (1784-1865)

3. "The executioner is, I believe, very expert... and my neck is very slender." — Anne Boleyn, wife of Henry VIII (1504-1536)

2. "Why not, why not, why not. Yeah." — Timothy Leary, American counter-culture guru (1920-1996)

1. "The Rakes have always been very adamant and proud of the fact that we give 100% to every gig we’ve ever played. If we can’t give it everything then we won’t do it. That was the rule we set ourselves from day one. After much deliberation we have come to the shared conclusion that we can’t give it 100% anymore and regret to announce that The Rakes are calling it a day. We are sorry to let down all the people who were coming to see us on the U.K. & U.S. tours. Writing your own obituary is a surreal thing to do but we want to give particular thanks to our much-loved fans, all the great people we’ve worked with over the years, our management and loyal record label. We feel privileged to have had the opportunity to write music together and perform around the world. Genuinely, thanks for the good times.... That was one hell of a party! But now, we really must get some sleep." — The Rakes, British music group (2004-2009)

Alright. I’ll admit number 1 is a bit long-winded and out of place on this "famous" list but what it lacks in creativity and pizzazz it makes up for in timeliness and pertinence in this forum. As the above statement claims, British indie, arty, post-punk band The Rakes have split up, cancelling all outstanding, previously-announced tourdates. Although often overshadowed by their impeccably mod sense of dress, the London quartet was a firm favorite on the live circuit since its birth and was adept at capturing, celebrating, and escaping the realities of life in memorable singles like "Strasbourg," "22 Grand Job," and "Work, Work, Work (Pub, Club, Sleep)." The Rakes leave behind a three album legacy — Capture/Release, Ten New Messages, and Klang (all on V2).

* Why "Top 6"? Why not, why not, why not. Yeah.

From the San Francisco Gate (via The Daily Swarm):

Norton Buffalo, harmonica virtuoso, one-of-a-kind performer and consummate accompanist to the stars, died Friday night from cancer in Feather River Hospital, near his home in Paradise (Butte County). He was 58.

“He was the antithesis of East Coast cynical,” said Raitt, who spent Sunday morning watching Buffalo videos on YouTube. “He was always in funny mode without being too gooey about it. He’s been that guy all this time. In one guy, you got all the hope and optimism of the ‘70s.”

Mr. Buffalo played on the Grammy-winning Doobie Brothers album “Minute by Minute,” and the recent children’s music CD by Kenny Loggins. With Bette Midler, he played in the band and acted in the film “The Rose.” He collaborated on tours and a series of recordings for more than 20 years with blues guitarist Roy Rogers. One of their songs, “Ain’t No Bread in the Breadbox,” was a cornerstone in the ‘90s live repertoire of the Jerry Garcia Band.

 Norton Buffalo official website
 Norton Buffalo Wikipedia entry

Apparently this was a hoax! Apologies for any confusion.

From NPR:

 Chuck Biscuits Wikipedia entry

Kemado Records, the smallish indie record label based in NYC, is gearing up to open its very own record store in Brooklyn, called Co-Op 87. Kemado, along with its imprint Mexican Summer, decided to launch Co-Op 87 right smack in the middle of CMJ week, what with the entire music industry being in town to consume various alcoholic beverages and peep through the watering holes’ windows hoping to catch the "next big thing."

Kemado’s owners apparently have quite the thing for vinyl, and they figure, what could be better than to share their love with the entirety of Brooklyn? That said, Co-Op 87 is mostly comprised of indie and local band vinyl, along with a smattering of CDs and cassette tapes (a.k.a. the new vinyl — did you hear the ’90s are back?). Kemado has also fitted their new store with a hybrid analog-digital recording studio which they plan to rent out to local bands in need. So far, Kemado has utilized their new recording space by doing the local bands a solid and recording their daytime CMJ showcases. Not too shabby.

According to Andres Santo Domingo, one of Kemado’s founders, "The plan is to use the studio as often as possible and keep the store open maybe three days a week. It’s not going to be anything like a traditional record store."

Kemado is home to to some small but powerful indie rockers, including The Sword, Langhorne Slim, Cheeseburger, and Elefant. Check out a recent New York Times feature on the storefront here.

Craig Finn, front man of The Hold Steady, and Tom Ruprecht, longtime writer for Late Night With David Letterman, have acquired the rights to bestselling memoir Fargo Rock City, written by Chuck Klosterman, and plan to co-write and produce a feature film based on the book. Klosterman will also lend a hand in producing the film.

The book is about a bunch of nerdy teenage metal-heads from the podunk town of Fargo (located in the Devil’s asshole that is North Dakota) attempting to rise above their humble home town and its local residents, who are less than enthusiastic about either KISS or Guns N’ Roses. The movie is set to revolve around a group of soon-to-be high school graduates who try to get laid, become more than just geeks, and overall live a life perfectly fit to be represented in next year’s surefire “Quirky Coming-Of Age Hit Comedy.”

Finn, who has so far made his name writing Springsteen-influenced bar rock, explained his interest in the project to Risky Business blogspot:

Seventeen or eighteen is the perfect age for characters in a movie like this, because it’s at that age that you have drivers licenses and a certain amount of independence, but you’re still young enough that you can totally make terrible decisions. And you’re still young enough that you can have a two-hour argument over whether Motley Crue would beat Guns ‘N Roses in a fight.

Finn and Ruprecht have begun their first draft of the screenplay and are hoping to secure interest and financing once the script is done.