By Shane Mack on Feb 11 2009
From the BBC:
Buena Vista Social Club founding member Orlando "Cachaito" Lopez has died in Cuba aged 76.The double bass player died in a Havana hospital from complications after having prostate surgery.
Lopez became a worldwide sensation as part of the group of elderly musicians who were living quietly in Cuba before being brought together in 1996.
He was considered to be Buena Vista's "heartbeat" in the band's mix of traditional Cuban rhythms.
- Orlando López MySpace
- Orlando López Wikipedia entry
Death Cab for Cutie Speak Out Against Auto-Tune, Accidentally Raise Male Breast Cancer Awareness
By Kasia Galaxy on Feb 11 2009
While Twitter kept you informed about the Grammy Awards against your will, you probably didn't see Death Cab for Cutie sauntering around wearing light-blue ribbons. The cause: an anti-Auto-Tune campaign.
The digital manipulation of people's voices is affecting thousands of singers, Ben Gibbard told MSN UK, "So we just want to raise awareness while we're here and try to bring back the blue note... The note that's not so perfectly in pitch and just gives the recording some soul and some kind of real character."
It was only a matter of time before some sort of Auto-Tune backlash emerged. Let's look at its pros and cons:
Pros:
- Makes people "sound good"
- Can be used as an instrument
- Ribbons bring out your eyes
Cons:
- Not what "real people" sound like
- Nation looks to American Idol for talent
- Sounding like T-Pain
No word yet on the 5K run against Auto-Tune
03.07.09 - Miami, FL - Langerado Festival
04.07.09 - Upper Darby, PA - Tower Theatre #!
04.08.09 - Washington, DC - DAR Constitution Hall #!
04.09.09 - Davidson, NC - John Belk Arena/Davidson College #!
04.10.09 - Louisville, KY - Louisville Palace #!
04.11.09 - Memphis, TN - Orpheum Theatre #!
04.12.09 - Tulsa, OK - The Brady Theater #!
04.13.09 - Omaha, NE - Holland Theatre #!
04.15.09 - St. Paul, MN - Roy Wilkings Auditorium #
04.17.09 - Chicago, IL - Aragon Ballroom #!
04.18.09 - East Lansing, MI - Breslin Events Center/Michigan State University #
04.19.09 - Waukesha, WI - Van Male Fieldhouse/Carroll College #!
04.24.09 - Spokane, WA - McCarthey Athletic Center/Gonzaga University #!
04.25.09 - Boise, ID - The Morrison Center #!
04.27.09 - Sacramento, CA - Memorial Auditorium #!
04.29.09 - San Diego, CA - RIMAC Arena/UC San Diego #!
05.01.09 - Austin, TX - Austin Music Hall #$
05.02.09 - New Orleans, LA - Contemporary Arts Center #$
05.04.09 - Nashville, TN - Ryman Auditorium #$
05.05.09 - Birmingham, AL - BJCC Concert Hall #$
05.06.09 - Atlanta, GA - Fox Theatre #$
# Ra Ra Riot
! Cold War Kids
$ Matt Costa
Earth to Tour Selected Parts of Actual Earth (Namely Europe)
By Couscous on Feb 10 2009
Legendary drone band Earth, better known to you as both the band that destroyed most of your inner ear during freshman year of college and the band that released its well-received seventh album The Bees Made Honey in the Lion's Skull (TMT Review/TMT Feature) last year, is packing up the Sunn amps and heading to Europe this spring. In addition to promoting last year's album and split LP with experimental guitarist and Sun City Girls member Richard Bishop, the band will be spreading awareness about Wikipedia's terrible disctinction between its pages for Earth (the band) and Manfred Mann's Earth Band
03.26.09 - Amsterdam, Netherlands - Paradiso
03.27.09 - Leuven, Belgium - Stuk
03.28.09 - Nantes, France - L'olympic
03.29.09 - Poitiers, France - Le Confort Moderne
03.30.09 - Bilbao, Spain - El Balcon De La Lola
03.31.09 - Porto, Portugal - Passos Manuel
04.01.09 - Madrid, Spain - Caracol
04.02.09 - Barcelona, Spain - La[2]
04.03.09 - Lyon, France - L'epicerie
04.04.09 - Paris, France - Glaz'art Moderne
04.05.09 - Kortrijk, Belgium - Sonic City Festival
04.06.09 - Hamburg, Germany - Molotow Club
04.08.09 - Oslo, Norway - Inferno Festival
04.09.09 - Stockholm, Sweden - Strand
04.11.09 - Berlin, Germany - Prater
04.12.09 - Leipzig, Germany - Ut Connewitz
04.13.09 - Munich, Germany - Feierwerk
04.14.09 - Stuttgart, Germany - Club Schocken
04.15.09 - Koln, Germany - Gebaeude9
04.16.09 - Brighton, UK - St Andrews Church
04.17.09 - Birmingham, UK - Hare and Mound
04.18.09 - Manchester, UK - Islington Mill
04.19.09 - Glasgow, Scotland - Stereo
04.21.09 - Dublin, Ireland - Whelans
04.22.09 - Leeds, UK - Brudenell Social Club
04.23.09 - Bristol, UK - The Croft
04.24.09 - London, UK - The Borderline
04.25.09 - Tilburg, Net - Roadburn Festival
Ratatat Tour North America; If Ratatat Isn’t Your Cup Of Tea, This Article Also Talks About Animal Collective!
By Scott Lauer on Feb 10 2009
Ratatat seem pretty cool to me; their signature guitar-electro sound evoke ecstatic feelings that tingle throughout my body. That is why I recently slapped on LP3 (TMT Review) and proceeded to do a “happy dance,” which was not a pretty site but certainly worth it for the band. Then I realized the band would not be touring anywhere near me, so I began to sulk. But I suppose that is another story for another time... Anyway, according to The Beggars Group, Ratatat will take their show to the masses this March and April, which must be exciting for those of you who can actually attend.
One thing that has always made Ratatat that “extra” kind of special are their mixes, where they remake rap songs to fit their own personal aesthetic (Ratatat, if you are reading this, please send us a sign that Volume 3 is in the works). However, it looks like another pretty popular act, Animal Collective (TMT Review) have stepped up to give Ratatat the remix treatment, turning the track "Mirando" into a 10-minute techno ear-orgy. The track has been available since February 3, so if you haven’t scooped it up yet, get over to your iTunes store and get downloading!
Ratatat tourdates:
03.21.09 - Cincinnati OH - Bogart
03.22.09 - Pontiac MI - The Crofoot
03.23.09 - Chicago IL - Metro
03.24.09 - Columbia MO - Blue Note
03.25.09 - Omaha NE - Slowdown
03.27.09 - Aspen CO - Aspen Gondola Plaza
03.28.09 - Boise ID - Knitting Factory Boise
03.29.09 - Seattle WA - Showbox SoDo
03.30.09 - Portland OR - Crystal Ballroom
04.01.09 - San Francisco CA - The Fillmore
04.02.09 - San Francisco CA - The Fillmore
04.04.09 - Los Angeles CA - Hollywood Palladium
04.08.09 - Houston, TX - Meridian
04.16.09 - Washington, DC - 930 Club
04.20.09 - Boston, MA - House of Blues
04.21.09 - New York, NY - Terminal 5
Live Nation and Ticketmaster Announce $2.5 Billion Merger Deal
By Mr P on Feb 10 2009
By the second half of 2009, Live Nation (LYV) and Ticketmaster (TKTM) hope to merge into one giant entity called Live Nation Entertainment, "the world's premier live entertainment company." The deal would be a tax-free, all stock merger, totaling roughly $2.5 billion. According to the official press release, Live Nation Entertainment hopes to:
- Improve Access and Transparency
- Improve Ticket Pricing Options
- Invest in Better Ticketing Technology
- Increase Event Attendance
Sounds pretty good right? WRONG. If the merger goes through, don't be too surprised if you have to start fighting with your concert buddies for those tickets ("ticket-moshing"?): among the many fears is that the new company would bypass the primary ticketing market and begin auctioning tickets (through the Ticketmaster-owned TicketsNow) in the secondary market. Not only would this system favor the tech savvy who have the cash to pony up, but it'll also create a ridiculously overwhelming presence in both the primary and secondary markets for a single company. Hell, even if the company chooses to focus on the primary ticketing market, there would be significantly less competition for venues and tours after the merger. And those much-hated "convenience" fees? They'll probably be rolled into the face charge.
Of course, the actual merger hasn't taken place yet, as the companies still need to go through the usual legal process -- namely, the regulatory review -- and I'd expect to hear some loud antitrust cries resonate throughout the industry (there are already plenty, including this one from LiveStub CEO Michael Hershfield). Hopefully the cries will be loud enough to reach the smellholes of the Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission. Obama, where are you?
Meanwhile, TMT's rebranding experts hail the possible enterprise a great idea, as the word "Ticketmaster" itself is already among the chief causes of high blood pressure in music lovers between the ages of 15 to 28. TMT's in-house critics, however, are puking as I type this.
