Country, folk, and pop singer-songwriter Jewel is returning to California this next month for a series of concerts covering all twelve of her studio albums, including last year’s Picking Up the Pieces. The signer, guitarist, producer, poet, novelist and actress will kicked off the current tour in Louisiana last month. [Read more…]
80s music and Grammy Award-winning New Wave icons Culture Club released a brand new single, “More Than Silence”, today; with news of an all-new sixth studio album, Tribes, due out early next year. The much anticipated 2014 North American tour kicks off on November 15th in Rancho Mirage, California. The band will be touring with all of the original members: Boy George (lead vocals), Mikey Craig (bass guitar), Roy Hay (guitar and keyboards) and Jon Moss (drums and percussion). [Read more…]
“We had a new song come out today… We got a lot of comments on the site. You know, people asking us, are we a rock band? Or are we a folk band? Are we an electronic band? The answer is: fuck off!” Comments from The Airborne Toxic Event’s frontman Mikel Jollett, before kicking into that new song, “Wrong”, toward the end of the initial set at Ace of Spades in Sacramento. The comment might read as negative, but their music and connection with the crowd was anything but, with that same signer and guitarist jumping off stage and interacting with the crowd several times throughout their one and a half or so set. At one point, he even held a young boy in the air, asking (somewhat rhetorically) if he had the coolest mom there, but virtue of his presence. The band, and supporting act In The Valley Below before them, put on a fantastic show with great music. They are both certainly worth checking out. Even Mikel said, at the end, “Every now and then you get to have a night like tonight – I think this is the best show I’ve ever played in Sacramento!”, and I suspect the fans agree.
The Ting Tings have launched a special PledgeMusic campaign for their upcoming album, Super Critical, offering different editions of the new studio album as well as other extras, such as t-shirts and hats, setlists, handwritten lyric sheets and more. The album is finished and due for release in the UK next week. This will be Katie White and Jules De Martino’s third album, and it was co-produced by Duran Duran’s founding member and former guitarist, John Taylor. The first hint at their new sound came with the disco-infused “Wrong Club”, and marks a different direction from a band that has always been growing and evolving. Updated with U.S. Dates as of November 21st… [Read more…]
“Do you want more?” Mette Lindberg at Bimbo’s 365 Club in San Francisco Friday night, to a crowd mesmerized by the amazing show put on by The Asteroids Galaxy Tour. Kicking off a new headlining tour, following a summer of festival appearances and the debut of Bring Us Together, their third studio album last month, the group, as she put it at one point during the hour and a half set, got to play a lot of their new songs. This was my first time seeing the band live (I was always traveling in past opportunities), and I have to say it definitely ranks I think within the top five of my favorite concerts so far in 2014. Incredible music to be sure, but they bring it to life in a concert setting in a way that truly surprised and impressed me. Mette’s vocals were just spot on, and the sound was dialed in perfectly, and the band has a way of bringing their brilliant sound to life on stage that has to be seen and heard to truly appreciate. I came away from the show a much bigger fan to be sure, and will definitely turn out for any future show that I can to experience it all over again. One of the best newer bands active today.
The Asteroids Galaxy Tour this week released their latest studio album, Bring Us Together, which debuted in the iTunes Top 50. They also have a new music video out for “My Club”. Next month they will be headlining a short concert tour targeting major cities in the U.S., including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Boston, New York, Washington, and Philadelphia. [Read more…]
Country, folk, and pop singer-songwriter Jewel is playing a handful of shows up and down California this month. The signer, guitarist, producer, poet, and actress will start playing shows beginning next week at The Center for The Arts in Grass Valley, followed by Mountain Winery in Saratoga, and then two Southern California shows. Jewel released a new song last month, “Sing On” for the American Lung Association’s LUNGFORCE initiative to help fight lung cancer. When you download “Sing On” on iTunes, all proceeds will go directly to #LUNGFORCE. [Read more…]
Picking up from my announcement last January about the European and UK dates by The Breeders and their celebrating the 20th anniversary of the second album, Last Splash, the band this month kicks off the North American leg of their tour, which continues on to Mexico and Australia in October. Amidst all the concert dates will be the special deluxe vinyl reissue of the album due out from 4AD on September 2nd, as well as new music coming from Kim Deal. The 3-CD reissue is available directly from 4AD today HERE. [Read more…]
“I’ve been losing my voice, so I’m probably going to be singing a lot of sweet, falsetto songs tonight. I apologize for not being able to do more of my trademark growling and Janis Joplin screaming that I’m so famous for… but I’ll do what I can.” A few songs into her set, how singer-songwriter Jewel framed her performance at Ovations LIVE! at Wild Horse Pass Hotel & Casino last night in Chandler, Arizona, well into her “Greatest Hits Tour”. Having had an opportunity to meet her backstage before the show, where conversation was limited to whispering, I wasn’t too sure what to expect. Amazingly, sitting in the audience, you would never have any idea that she was having any issues at all, as she put on an incredible showcase performance, reflective of her place in the music world as one of our most gifted vocalists in popular music today, with range, versatility, and emotion bursting out of every song. Having penned over 500 songs, later in the show Jewel mentioned that no two shows are ever the same, yet in addition to the music she provided some personal insights into her life and journey in music, both of which seem forever intertwined. It was really a fantastic evening, and her (mostly) solo, all acoustic show is definitely a must see in live music today.
Electronic Beats will be presenting a special Depeche Mode concert in Vienna next month, which will be free (via contest to fans) and streamed online worldwide. The Delta Machine launch party concert is slated for March 24th at MuseumsQuartier in Vienna, Austria. “Reporter Fans” are encouraged to submit their own case for why they should get an invite to the exclusive concert event via the Electronic Beats Facebook page (due by March 7th). [Read more…]