Burning Star Core and Wasteland Jazz Unit Will Tour Decaying Midwest in April
By Mike McHugh on Mar 25 2009
Do you waste your days away in America’s crumbling heartland? Are you looking for an evening of aural terrorism to drown out the dying cries of your Midwestern home if only for one night? Well you’re in luck, living dead, because the Cincinnati sound slayers of Burning Star Core and Wasteland Jazz Unit will be fixin’ up a proper dose of all sorts of destruction round these parts, including my favorite record store Apop Records in beautiful St. Louis, MO.
So perk up, Midwest! Things can only get better if our local artists tear this crapshack the hell down.
04.02.09 - Cincinnati, OH – Art Damage Lodge
04.03.09 - Detroit, MI - UFO Factory
04.04.09 - Cleveland, OH - Now That's Class
04.05.09 - Columbus, OH - Skylab
04.06.09 - Toledo, OH - Woodchuck's
04.07.09 - Milwaukee, WI - Cactus Club
04.08.09 - St. Paul, MN - Big V's
04.09.09 - Minneapolis, MN - Treehouse *
04.09.09 - Iowa City, IA - Basement of 204 North Gilbert
04.10.09 – Chicago, IL - The Mopery
04.11.09 - St. Louis, MO – Apop Records
04.12.09 – Lexington, KY - The Fact House
* Free show: Spencer Yeh/Paul Metzger/Michael Yonkers
Photo: [Seth Tisue]
RIP: Uriel Jones, Motown drummer
By Shane Mack on Mar 25 2009
From Reuters:
Motown drummer Uriel Jones, whose hard-driving funk propelled classic tunes by the Temptations and Marvin Gaye, died in a Michigan hospital on Tuesday after suffering complications from a heart attack, a family member said. He was 74.Jones, the last surviving drummer in the Motown session band known as the Funk Brothers, was stricken in mid-February but had been showing signs of improvement, said his sister-in-law Leslie Coleman. He relapsed last Tuesday, and died at Oakwood Hospital & Medical Center in Dearborn, she told Reuters.
He was a key component of the "psychedelic soul" foray by the Temptations, including "Cloud Nine" and "I Can't Get Next to You," and brought a party feel to their earlier hit "Ain't Too Proud To Beg."
- Uriel Jones Wikipedia entry
Check Your Wallet! Beastie Boys’ Slacker-Rap Classic Check Your Head Gets 4LP Deluxe Treatment
By Couscous on Mar 25 2009
You can't front on this. The Beastie Boys' third album Check Your Head, originally released in 1992, is getting re-released on April 7. Optional configurations of the album, available through the band's website, will include a 4LP 180 HQ vinyl version and t-shirts to help you truly become "the master blaster drinking up the Shasta."
Check Your Head was a landmark album for the group primarily because it was the first time the trio had picked up instruments since its days as a New York City hardcore band. In place of the wall-of-samples sound that hallmarked the album's predecessor, Paul's Boutique, Check Your Head vibrated with instrumental funk jams and (dare I say it?) rap rock that was actually good. Add keyboardist Money Mark and producer Mario Caldato, Jr. and you had what turned out to be one of the funkiest and most forward-thinking albums of the ’90s.
In other news, the Beasties are set to headline L.A.'s Hollywood Bowl on September 24. Pre-order the Check Your Head deluxe reissue at the band's website: http://www.beastieboys.com.
Full list of Check Your Head reissue configurations is as follows:
- Digital Download (album and b-sides)
- Deluxe Digital Option (also includes videos and video commentary)
- Deluxe, limited collector's vinyl + Digital Download
- Standard double vinyl + Digital Download
- Ecopack double CD + Digital Download
- Shirt combos:
- Deluxe Digital + shirt:
- Standard Vinyl + shirt:
- CD + shirt:
- Deluxe, limited collector's vinyl + shirt
Live Nation Slaps Concertgoers with Fishy Parking Fees; No One Surprised
By Kasia Galaxy on Mar 24 2009
In New Jersey, the PNC Bank Arts Center -- a joint that Live Nation promotes -- allegedly charged concertgoers a $6 parking fee per head, not per vehicle.
The New York Daily (via Digital Music News) uncovered the extra charge, which even supposedly dropped on people arriving on a bus. Live Nation maintains that it's charged this before; it's an overall facility fee, alleviates traffic, yadda yadda yadda. Either way, it's pissing people off.
It's uncertain what this might mean for the proposed Ticketmaster and Live Nation merger, but it seems disgruntled folks and artists are speaking up now more than ever.
Ticketmaster Loses $1 Billion in Last Quarter of 2008; Finally, Some Bad Economic News we Can All Revel In!
By Brom on Mar 24 2009
For the past six months, we’ve been hit with worsening economic news week after week. Whether it's unemployment, manufacturing output, or GDP growth, business news has been like watching a car crash in slow-motion and we’re still witnessing crumpling metal, shattering glass, and the painful screeching of tires on tarmac. Nevertheless, in the midst of this ugly, shocking scene, there is a bright spot: Ticketmaster lost $1 billion in the last quarter of 2008 -- heehee!
The company’s share price has fallen from $20, when it spun off from IAC/InterActiveCorp, to March 19's price of $4.09. Consequently, Ticketmaster had to take an impairment charge to account for its falling share price, resulting in this billion dollar loss. Additionally, the organization’s fourth-quarter revenue was down 4% from the previous year, thanks to the struggling economy, Live Nation’s launch of its own ticketing platform in January, and a dearth of high-profile tours compared to the same period a year prior.
For a company who screws the artists, their fans, uses personal information aggressively, and wants to monopolize the entire market for tours and events with Live Nation, forgive me if I don’t look on in glee at this particular economic car crash. The gnashing of bodywork is oh so sweet!
