RIP: DJ Roc Raida of the X-Ecutioners

By Shane Mack on

From MTV:

In another terrible loss for the hip-hop community, Grand Master Roc Raida (real name: Anthony Williams) of the X-Ecutioners passed away on Saturday due to complications from a mixed-martial-arts accident, according to a statement released by his family. Raida had a two-decade career which skyrocketed in 1995 when he won the DMC World DJ Championship. He released seven solo albums along with several LPs with his famed crew, the X-Ecutioners. Over the last few years, Raida had been Busta Rhymes' live DJ, where his showmanship skills were a perfect marriage for Busta and Spliff Starr's energetic stage antics.

A statement released by Raida's family released over the weekend reads: "Anthony Williams p/k to the world as the Legendary Grand Master Roc Raida has passed away unexpectedly today, September 19, 2009. He is survived by his wife, three lovely daughters, mother and friends. Raida was recently in a mixed-martial-arts accident, something that he has been practicing for several years. Although he had undergone two surgeries with great success, was released to an inpatient physical therapy facility and was in great spirits the past few days, this morning he started to have complications and passed. The family asks for privacy at this time."

- Roc Raida Wikipedia entry

Madvillain Ascends from the Murky Depths to Make Rare Live Appearance at We The People Festival

By E. Nagurney on 09-21-2009

Does Madvillain still exist? Sure hasn’t seemed like it lately. Ever since putting out 2004’s classic Madvillainy (TMT Review), the duo of DOOM and Madlib have kept pretty quiet. There’s been little word on a sophomore album; Madlib’s full-length remix of the debut came and went without notice; and both sides of the duo have been busy with other projects. If Madvillain simply disappeared forever, it wouldn’t be that surprising.

Yet out of nowhere, the duo has announced a show in Los Angeles at the We The People Festival on November 21. Details for the show itself are scarce, so it is unknown whether both DOOM and Madlib will be there. And considering that DOOM is known to use impersonators behind his mask in his live performances, there’s a lot of ambiguity around what the performance will actually be like. Still, the prospect of hearing all the classic Madvillainy jams is pretty exciting. “Accordion!" “America’s Most Blunted!" Yep, all your favorites!

[Photo: Eric Coleman]

Leonard Cohen Collapses On Stage, Expected to be Right as Rain in No Time

By Liz Louche on 09-21-2009

Leonard Cohen, everyone’s favorite heartbreakingly depressing Canadian singer/songwriter, collapsed while performing Friday in Spain. Near the end of his song “Bird on a Wire,” the 74-year-old Cohen collapsed on stage at the Valencia Luis Puig Velodromo, with his bandmates rushing to help him. That’s the bad news. The good(ish) news is this: according to the BBC, the likely cause of Cohen’s troubles was food poisoning, which—you know—while pretty awful, isn’t usually insurmountable.

A spokesperson told the media that Cohen had been taken to the hospital afterwards, just to make sure everything was alright. He had been suffering from stomach cramps earlier in the evening.

Here's some footage of the incident:

Cohen’s next scheduled show, at the Palau Sant Jordi in Barcelona on Monday, is still expected to go forward. Yay, Leonard! Get well soon and enjoy beautiful Spain!

The Decemberists to Unveil Animated Film at Upcoming LA Show! (Yaaaaay!) But It’s a Hazards of Love Thing! (Booooo!) But It’s Also a Benefit for High School Music Programs! (Yaaaaay!)

By Nobodaddy on 09-18-2009

Damn those wiley Decemberists! Colin Meloy and his cronies just keep finding ways, against all odds, to extend the shelf-life of their, umm, ambitious song-cycle The Hazards of Love (TMT Review). This time, the big idea is to squeeze a little extra drama out of the tangled and vaguely literary web of lovers and fawns and rakes and forest queens and rivers and ghosts and whatever else, by performing the album live in its entirety in sync with an original animated film. Actually, now that I think about it, we all knew this announcement was coming, didn’t we?

Anyway, all of this will go down on October 19 at UCLA’s Royce Hall in Los Angeles, which is not coincidentally the band’s last U.S. performance on their never-ending “A Short Fazed Hovel” Tour. Here Come The Waves: The Hazards of Love Visualized, as the project is called, will feature the work of four filmmakers -- Guilherme Marcondes, Julia Pott, Peter Sluszka, and Santa Maria -- each of whom have created their own animation to accompany a portion of the band’s proggy, windchime-stroking, pysch-folk jams. The Decemberists will perform the entire record synchronized with the animation, as well as (yes!) an additional second set of older and newer material (come ooooooon, “Mariner’s Revenge Song!”). Presented in association with global film/art/event hub Flux, the whole shebang is also, commendably, a benefit for The Grammy Foundation’s Grammy in the Schools music education programs for high school students. That’s nothing to get your hovel out of faze at!

Tickets will go on sale for this "happening" tomorrow, and the band will also kick off the final leg of their “A Short Fazed Hovel” tour... tomorrow. I have a feeling that this might be the last gasp for all of their Hazards of Love touring, so now’s probably your last chance to catch this spectacle and use it as a “performance credit” for your college Musical Theater courses.

“A Short Fazed Hovel” tour keeps chugging:
09.18.09 - Orono, ME - University of Maine
09.19.09 - New York, NY - Terminal 5
09.20.09 - Burlington, VT - Flynn Theater
09.21.09 - Montclair, NJ - Wellmont Theater
09.23.09 - Norfolk, VA - The Norva
09.24.09 - Charlottesville, VA - Charlottesville Pavilion
09.25.09 - Asheville, NC - Thomas Wolfe Auditorium
09.26.09 - Athens, GA - The Classic Center
09.27.09 - Nashville, TN - Ryman Auditorium
09.29.09 - St. Augustine, FL - St. Augustine Amphitheater
09.30.09 - Orlando, FL - Hard Rock Live
10.02.09 - Houston, TX - House of Blues
10.03.09 - Austin, TX - Austin City Limits Music Festival
10.04.09 - Tulsa, OK - Cain's Ballroom
10.06.09 - Lexington, KY - University of Kentucky, Lexington
10.07.09 - Columbia, MO - Ninth St. Fall Fest
10.08.09 - Chicago, IL - Riviera Theatre
10.09.09 - Minneapolis, MN - State Theatre
10.18.09 - San Francisco, CA - Treasure Island Music Festival
10.19.09 - Los Angeles, CA - UCLA Royce Hall
11.18.09 - London, UK - Forum
11.19.09 - London, UK - Coronet
11.21.09 - The Hague, Netherlands - Crossing Border Festival

RRRecords Finds 1000 Ways to Endlessly Annoy Your Neighbors: A Noise LP Including 1000 Locked Grooves by Prurient, C. Spencer Yeh, Aaron Dilloway, Kevin Drumm, Incapacitants, and More!

By Jon Lorenz on 09-18-2009

RRRecords has always been one of the most daring record labels. Label owner Ron Lessard (a.k.a. Emil Beaulieau) has pushed the idea of what a record can be to the extreme and is one of the most important supporters of noise music ever since he started the label in the early 80s. His newest release does not disappoint.

RRR-1000 Lock Groove LP, RRRecords' newest compilation, features some of the biggest names in today's noise world submitting 50 short tracks with each one ending in a locked groove, making them endlessly loop for all time. Participating artists are AMK, Aaron Dilloway, Thomas Dimuzio, Kevin Drumm, Carlos Giffoni, Incapacitants, GX Jupitter-Larsen, Jason Lescalleet, Francisco López, Lasse Marhaug, The New Blockaders, Jerome Noetigner, Prurient, RLW, Damion Romero, Runzelstirn & Gurgelstock, Sudden Infant, Keith Fullerton Whitman, C. Spencer Yeh, and Otomo Yoshide.

In proper RRRecords fashion, each LP comes with its own handmade record cover, done by Ron Lessard. To see a short video of the record covers and to hear samples of Keith Fullerton Whitman's submissions, go here. You can also check samples of C. Spencer Yeh's submissions. If you'd like to be able to endlessly annoy your neighbors or cover up the sound of your roommate getting it on at 4 AM, this may just be your record.

Photo: [Seth Tisue]

[UPDATED] Pavement Reunion Show Sells Out in Two Minutes, Second Four Shows Added

By Mr P on 09-18-2009

UPDATE: There are now a total of four Pavement shows set -- all at the same place, from September 21-24. Okay? Okay!

According to Matador's Matablog, the Pavement reunion show announced yesterday sold out in roughly two minutes. What's a band to do? Easy -- add another show, that's what! And that's exactly what they have done: Pavement have added another show for the next day, September 22, at the same venue, New York's Central Park Summerstage.

Tickets are on sale now, so get 'em quick, because they're not going to last. Maybe a third show will be slated once these tickets sell out?

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