How Does It Feel, To Be On Your Own, With No Direction Home: Bob Dylan to Release Christmas LP, to Voice GPS System?

By Liz Louche on

Imagine the surprise and delight on Grandma’s face when she opens that special CD-shaped gift below the Christmas tree this year. Of course, it’s obviously a CD, but which one? Mannheim Steamroller? Trans-Siberian Orchestra? Or… none of the above? Boy will she be impressed when she opens that little package to find none other than THE BRAND NEW BOB DYLAN CHRISTMAS CD!!!! That’s right, just in time for the holidays, the legendary songsman is releasing Christmas in the Heart to spread a little good ol' fashioned holiday cheer among you and yours. Featuring holiday classics like “Winter Wonderland” and “Here Comes Santa Claus,” sales of the album will benefit the United States’ biggest domestic hunger-relief charity, Feeding America, as well as other hunger organizations around the globe. Christmas in the Heart comes out October 13 via Columbia Records.

In other exciting, potentially not real Dylan-related news, the man himself told listeners to his Theme Time Radio Hour that he is in talks to be the voice of a GPS navigator. But don’t take it from me. Take it from Bob!

I am talking to a couple of car companies about being the voice of their GPS system. I think it would be good if you are looking for directions and hear my voice saying something like: “Left at the next street, no a right - you know what? Just go straight.” I probably shouldn’t do it because whichever way I go I always end up at one place: Lonely Avenue.

If this were to happen, I would totally shill out for a GPS device. What could be more soothing than — while in the midst of traffic or being totally lost on a lonely desert highway — to hear the voice of Mr. Dylan? Much more comforting than, say, Henry Rollins or like Nick Cave.

Blur Fans Rejoice! Noel Gallagher Leaves Oasis (But Oasis Never Leaves Him)

By Kat Gardiner on 08-31-2009

Noel Gallagher, the main songwriter and guitarist from Oasis (a.k.a. "the sane one" or "Charlie from Lost"), stormed the fuck out, after his brother and lead singer Liam smashed his guitar before a show in Paris, Friday night. Noel posted this on the band's website shortly after:

It's with some sadness and great relief to tell you that I quit Oasis tonight. People will write and say what they like, but I simply could not go on working with Liam a day longer.

Ouch. Thanksgiving's liable to be awkward at the Gallagher's this year, especially since they don't normally celebrate this otherwise North American holiday.

RIP: Ellie Greenwich, 60s girl-pop Brill Building songwriter

By Shane Mack on 08-26-2009

From Spinner:

Songwriter Ellie Greenwich, who co-wrote many of the classic hits of the girl group era, has died at age 68. According to her niece, Greenwich died of a heart attack at St. Luke's Roosevelt Hospital in New York, where she had been hospitalized for pneumonia.

Greenwich's songs, mostly written with her then-husband, Jeff Barry, include such '60s girl-pop standards as 'Be My Baby' and ‘Baby I Love You,’ by the Ronettes, 'Da Doo Ron Ron' and ‘Then He Kissed Me,’ by the Crystals, and ‘Leader of the Pack,’ by the Shangri-Las. Her songbook also includes penning ‘Chapel of Love’ for the Dixie Cups and ‘River Deep, Mountain High’ for Ike & Tina Turner.

Greenwich and Barry were part of New York's Brill Building songwriting factory alongside the likes of Neil Diamond, Carole King, Neil Sedaka and Burt Bacharach. The songwriting and onetime married couple had their songs recorded by performers including Tommy James and the Shondells (‘Hanky Panky’), Lesley Gore (‘Maybe I Know,’ ‘The Look of Love’) and Manfred Mann (‘Do Wah Diddy Diddy’). Greenwich also had a Top 20 hit of her own with ‘The Kind of Boy You Can't Forget’ under the group name the Raindrops.

- Ellie Greenwich official website
- Ellie Greenwich Wikipedia entry

Swedish Authorities Pull the Plug on The Pirate Bay, Nerds Swiftly Plug It Back In; Swedish Authorities Left with No Other Recourse but to Ogle Beautiful Women and Enjoy Top-Notch State-Sponsored Health Care

By Mike McHugh on 08-26-2009

The planks have been holstered, the wenches dismissed, and the rum, yes, it is gone. It’s official, folks: after nearly six years of sailing the open cyber seas and plundering every shining doubloon of media in sight, The (Swedish) Man has slashed the masts of The Pirate Bay for good. But don’t you all unsheathe your inhalers at once. For all you content-hungry but empty-pocketed individuals left listless by the absence of your precious TPB, be not so nervous, be not so frail , because the opportunity for unspoiled riches abounds at these two-dozen-plus-one other torrent sites that can get you a fat slice of that torrenty goodness, just like Pirate Bay used to make.

But I get why you’re so upset right now. Sure, The Pirate Bay was just one twinkling star in a constellation of other reliable torrent sites, yet you trusted TPB more than the others. The incessant watch-doggery of the commenters kept you safe from viruses, and the bevy of seeders made for quick and easy downloading. Yep, there’s nothing in this world that can replace The Pirate Bay, except, perhaps, an (almost) exact fucking copy of The Pirate Bay . Sure, it may look different, but all your favorites are there. From the high-quality DVD rips of your favorite TV shows to the super-suspect porn that managed to slip onto the servers, TPB is not only alive and well in the hearts of nerds the world over, but also on your very own Internet. Good lord it’s just so precious I can hardly stand it!

In the days before its demise, one loyal Pirate Bayer went to the trouble of compressing the entire catalog of TPB’s hosted content into one convenient 21.3 gigabyte torrent. The file essentially is a backup copy of the more than 800,000 torrents hosted on TPB website. Since many torrents tracked by TPB were not hosted on its servers, the better part of its 2 million torrents couldn’t make it on the backup, but (conjecture alert) one would assume that the most popular and reliable torrents would be hosted on the site itself. Either way, thousands downloaded the torrent over the weekend, including one helpful soul who loaded all the content (before TPB even shut down) onto a clone site that has every file on the backup available to download. It’s even possible (again with the conjecture!) that there are other TPB clone sites ready to launch should this new haven face flak from the powers that be. For closing remarks on this story, I humbly defer to this t-shirt .

World’s Fair Label Group Goes Under

By Mr P on 08-26-2009

World's Fair has ceased operations starting yesterday. Created in 2004, the NY-based group was a full-service international admin company that did everything from press and radio promotions to online marketing and finance services. The group worked with a vast array of artists, indie labels, and distribution companies over the past several years. Its most recent clients included labels Daptone, Bella Union, PIAS, and Rough Trade; artists Secret Machines, Lyrics Born, and British Sea Power; and distributors ADA, Caroline, and The Orchard.

Whether or not you were aware of the actual group, chances are you were exposed to some of these artists/labels through its legwork.

Sub Pop Wants You to Enjoy Some Male Bonding

By Liz Louche on 08-26-2009

Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Dalston, London three-piece Male Bonding to the Sub Pop roster. “Who?” you may be asking. Why, the Dalston, London three-piece who, prior to their signing with Sub Pop, released a handful of split 7-inches and who -- oh, what the hell. Let's make this a list!

----

The Top Four Reasons You Should Be Into Male Bonding

(No, there will be no jokes about buddy movies here or 1980s Chicago sitcom Perfect Strangers or that period of time when everyone said “I love you, man” because of that Budweiser commercial. Nothing of that sort. Just good, old-fashioned REASONS.)

1. They’re a garage rock kind of band, but not in that derivative “oh God not another neo-garage rock band” kind of way.
2. They recorded a track for a Flipper tribute 7-inch to which Lovvers, Ponytail, and PPM Allstars also contributed.
3. Their MySpace headline thingy says “Ride the Dreamcatcher.” I will! Just on your suggestion.
4. They toured in the UK alongside Vivian Girls and have played with the likes of HEALTH, Fucked Up, Magik Markers, Mika Miko, and others.

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