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After an enormously successful headlining tour of Scandinavia, Swedish rockers The Sounds have confirmed a 40-date North American tour beginning March 22nd at The Henry Fonda Theatre in Los Angeles, CA. The tour will coincide with the band’s new album DYING TO SAY THIS TO YOU coming out March 21st on Scratchie / New Line Records. Morningwood and Action Action will be the support for the entire tour.

Barely out of high school when the band members recorded their debut album, LIVING IN AMERICA, The Sounds have been firmly established as a band to watch, as they played more than 300 gigs since its release, logging many miles on the Warped Tour as well as with the Foo Fighters and the Strokes.

Besides being on every late-night TV show and featured in almost every national US publication, including the New York Times Sunday Magazine, which is startling for any band, let alone one from such a remote place as the small southern Swedish city of Helsingborg, The Sounds were anxious to start writing new songs, after 3 plus years of constant touring.

Ready to record their sophomore album, the band began work with producer Jeff Saltzman (The Killers) at Studio 880 in Oakland, CA, where Green Day recorded “American Idiot.” Bringing an even stronger fusion of the band’s punk attitude and pop savvy that they established on their debut, the band presents a diversified and deeper version of the sound on DYING.

The band will also make an appearance at this year’s SXSW Festival in Austin, TX on March 18th.

Dates to be announced shortly.

Widespread Panic has completed recording of its next studio album, due in June via Sanctuary Records. As previously reported, the group worked for the first time with producer Terry Manning (Big Star, ZZ Top) at Compass Point Studios in Nassau, Bahamas. The as-yet-untitled set will boast new songs and “an old favorite or two,” according to the band. Additional details have yet to be announced.

While it’s been three years since Panic released a new disc, the group has put out new music recently. The group recorded the track “Perfect Hair” for the Cartoon Network “Adult Swim” series “Perfect Hair Forever” and also utilized it in a short shown during a New Year’s Eve concert in Atlanta. The clip can be viewed via the Adult Swim Web site.

Source billboard.com.

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame members U2 captured the Grammy Award for album of the year for the disc “How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb.”

It was the band’s second major award of the night, having won song of the year for “Sometimes You Can’t Make It on Your Own,” one of the album’s songs.

Lead singer Bono explained earlier that the atomic bomb in the album’s title referred to his father, whose death inspired many of its lyrics.

“This is really a big, big night for our band,” Bono said.

U2 beat out Mariah Carey’s best-selling “The Emancipation of Mimi,” shutting out the songbird from any of the major Grammy Awards in her comeback year. Other nominees included Paul McCartney’s “Chaos and Creation in the Backyard,” Gwen Stefani’s “Love. Angel. Music. Baby.,” and Kanye West’s “Late Registration.”

Other notable winners include:

Alternative Music Album: “Get Behind Me Satan,” The White Stripes.

Rock Instrumental Performance: “69 Freedom Special,” Les Paul and Friends.

Solo Rock Vocal Performance: “Devils & Dust,” Bruce Springsteen.

Hard Rock Performance: “B.Y.O.B.,” System of a Down.

Alternative Performance: “Welcome to Jamrock,” Damian Marley.

Top Collaboration With Vocals: “Feel Good Inc.,” Gorillaz Featuring De La Soul.

Traditional Blues Album: “80,” B.B. King and Friends.

Traditional Folk Album: “Fiddler’s Green,” Tim O’Brien.

Contemporary Folk Album: “Fair & Square,” John Prine.

Bluegrass Album: “The Company We Keep,” The Del McCoury Band.

Jazz Instrumental Solo: “Why Was I Born?” Sonny Rollins.

Jazz Instrumental Album, Individual or Group: “Beyond the Sound Barrier,” Wayne Shorter Quartet.

Contemporary Jazz Album: “The Way Up,” Pat Metheny Group.

Dance Album: “Push the Button,” The Chemical Brothers.

Best Long Form Music Video: “No Direction Home” ( Bob Dylan).

Click here for a full list of winners.

Galactic is proud to announce the upcoming 2006 Coup De Gras Midwest Tour. The spring run is an extension of February’s Coup De Gras Tour, which was inspired by New Orleans’ annual celebration of Mardi Gras. The tour will feature openers throughout that represent an eclectic mix of funk, rock and the best that the Crescent-City has to offer. Each stop will be a unique New Orleans’-style celebration centered around Galactic’s progressive funk. Kicking off in Augusta, GA on March 29th, the tour winds north through the Midwest, making stops in Nashville, Chicago and Minneapolis, before heading back south and culminating with a pair of shows in Atlanta, GA on April 21st & 22nd.

Opening for several dates in the middle of the tour, percussionist Mike Dillon adds his rock/latin/jazz fused combo, aptly dubbed Mike Dillon’s GoGo Jungle, to the mix. Also Les Claypool’s percussionist and often a live collaborator with Galactic, Dillon’s unique style adds to Galactic’s progressive funk like no other and makes for a must-see experience. Memphis natives The Gamble Brothers Band bring their mix of old-school Memphis R&B and southern rock to the first third of the tour. New Orleans’ own Dirty Dozen Brass Band will open on April 2nd in Indianapolis, IN, joining Galactic for a very special night of funk and collaborations. One of the most prolific brass bands ever to emerge from New Orleans, their one-night-only performance with Galactic will be a true representation of the musical talent and diversity New Orleans has to offer. The final tour dates will include the Rebirth Brass Band, one of the Crescent-City’s most well-known and loved acts.

CONFIRMED TOUR DATES BELOW:

MARCH
29 The Mission Augusta, GA *
30 City Hall Nashville, TN *
31 Headliners Louisville, KY *

APRIL
1 Michigan Theatre Ann Arbor, MI *
2 Music Mill Indianapolis, IN **
5 Opera House Toronto, ON ***
6 Mr. Smalls Pittsburgh, PA ***
7 Beachland Ballroom Cleveland, OH ***
8 The Intersection Grand Rapids, MI ***
9 Barrymore Theatre Madison, WI ***
11 Canopy Hall Urbana, IL ****
12 Memorial Union Ballroom Iowa City, IA ****
13 Cabooze Minneapolis, MN ****
14 The Vic Theatre Chicago, IL ****
15 Copper Dragon Carbondale, IL ****
20 Sogo Live Baton Rouge, LA
21 & 22 Roxy Theatre Atlanta, GA

* – Gamble Brothers Band supporting
** – Dirty Dozen Brass Band supporting
*** – Mike Dillon’s GoGo Jungle supporting
**** – The Rebirth Brass Band supporting

Television guitarist/vocalist Tom Verlaine will simultaneously release two new albums this spring. “Around,” a 16-track set in the vein of the 1992 instrumental album “Warm and Cool,” and “Songs and Other Things,” Verlaine’s first “vocal” release since 1990’s “The Wonder,” will arrive in late April via Thrill Jockey.

“Around” features drumming Television’s Billy Ficca on several tracks, highlighted by the beautiful, late-night instrumental “Eighty Eights,” the strutting, nearly honky-tonk “Wheel Broke” and guitar-only exercises like “Mountain.” Elsewhere, bass-aided cuts like “Balcony” wouldn’t sound out of place on an album from Verlaine’s new Thrill Jockey labelmate Tortoise.

As for the 14-song “Songs and Other Things,” it finds Verlaine dabbling on bass in tandem with Television’s Fred Smith. Among the notable tracks here are the genial “From Her Fingers,” the snaking guitar lines of “The Day on You” and the confident rock of “All Weirded Out,” which bears the unmistakable lineage of vintage Television.

Verlaine is planning to debut a live band in New York in late April or early May in advance of his first world tour in more than 10 years. As for Television, Verlaine told Billboard.com last year the group had “about seven [new songs] nearly ready to record” but added, “I have no idea who for — what label, that is.”

Source billboard.com.

On the heels of the recently released Taught To Be Proud, San Francisco’s Tea Leaf Green has announced a March tour.

The album, released in November ’05 on Reincarnate, comes on the heels of an epic year of growth for TLG. The band’s mid-afternoon Bonnaroo set attracted an estimated crowd of 10,000 people, and the buzz has been swelling ever since. Recently, the band has sold out shows in Chicago, Denver, Minneapolis, and others.

Current confirmed tour dates include:

February 17 Belly Up Taven Solana Beach CA
February 18 14 Below Santa Monica CA
February 19 Coach House San Juan Capistrano CA
March 01 Grey Eagle Asheville NC
March 03 The 5 Spot Atlanta GA
March 04 Barley’s Knoxville TN
March 05 Local 506 Chapel Hill NC
March 07 Alley Katz Richmond VA
March 08 State Theatre Falls Church VA
March 09-10 The Knitting Factory New York NY
March 11 NXNW Philadelphia PA
March 12 8×10 Baltimore MD
March 14 The Haunt Ithaca NY
March 15 Iron Horse Music Hall Northampton MA
March 16 The Paradise Boston MA
March 18 Wiseguys Lake Placid NY
March 19 Toad’s Place New Haven CT
March 21 Crowbar State College PA
March 22 Mr. Smalls Theatre Millvale PA
March 23 Milestones Rochester NY
March 24 El Mocambo Toronto ON
March 25 Town Ballroom Buffalo NY

More dates to be announced. Visit tealeafgreen.com for more information.

Toronto

egendary rock trio Cream, which reunited last year for a handful of concerts in London and New York after a bitter breakup in 1968, has scheduled more shows, according to vocalist/bassist Jack Bruce.

But don’t expect a world tour. Rather, Bruce says he, guitarist Eric Clapton and drummer Ginger Baker will set up camp in select cities for multiple dates, just as they did last year.

“What we feel is that it’s so special, and also so emotionally draining that it’s not something we could do every day,” he says. “We will play more, but where and when I’m not at liberty to say.” He declined to say when an official announcement might be made, joking that he would “get chopped” if he said anything.

Bruce is in Los Angeles to accept a lifetime achievement award for Cream at tonight’s (Feb. 8) Grammy Awards. He will be the group’s sole representative, saying Clapton had other commitments, while it was impractical for Baker to leave his farm in South Africa.

Prior to last year, Cream hadn’t played live since its 1993 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In the spring, the group grossed $3.6 million from four sell-outs at London’s Royal Albert Hall. An Oct. 24-26 run at New York’s Madison Square Garden grossed more than $10.6 million and drew 56,151 people, according to venue officials.

Bruce says he is less explosive in his old age, and the band know better how to handle problems, but there remains an underlying, brotherly tension with Baker. On the other hand, he describes Clapton as “the most beautiful, kindest, most understanding guy that I’ve come across.”

Source billboard.com.

An upcoming four-day music and film event in New York is being touted as the biggest Earth Day (April 22) celebration in the United States. The inaugural Green Apple Music & Arts festival will get underway on April 20 with the sixth annual The inaugural Green Apple Music & Arts festival will get underway on April 20 with the sixth annual Jammy Awards and will continue through April 23 in 20 venues throughout the city.

Although participating artists have not yet been announced, organizers Peter Shapiro and Relix magazine promise 50 shows ranging from rock, blues, folk and world music. Concerts will be held at such venues as Carnegie Hall, Irving Plaza, the Blue Note, B.B. King’s, Nokia Theater, the Bitter End, the Bowery Ballroom and the Knitting Factory. Details will be listed on Greenapplemusicfestival.com.

The Jammys are scheduled to take place at the Theater at Madison Square Garden. The event will include an all-star tribute to Frank Zappa, who will be posthumously honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award.

“The Green Apple Music & Arts Festival was created to raise the visibility and awareness of Earth Day,” says Shapiro, who owned the environmentally focused New York venue Wetlands Preserve. “What better way to celebrate Earth Day than to bring it to every major music venue in New York?”

The festival is being put together in conjunction with the non-profit Earth Day New York. That organization will stage its annual EarthFair April 21-22 outside of the city’s Grand Central Terminal, which will also feature free family entertainment and musical performances.

Additionally, the film festival will be held April 23 at the American Museum of Natural History and a series of children’s events is being planned.

Throughout the Green Apple Music & Arts Festival, attendees will receive information on environmental issues and causes at each venue.

If things go well, Shapiro and Relix intend to stage the festival in multiple cities in the future. “We want to spread awareness to people who aren’t already environmental experts,” adds Relix president/publisher Steven Bernstein. “We want to make them aware of what they can do in their daily routine that will make a difference to the environment.”

Source billboard.com.

Singer/songwriter Neko Case will begin a spring tour March 17 in Austin, Texas, as part of the South by Southwest music festival. The trek comes in support of her new album, “Fox Confessor Brings the Flood,” due March 7 via Anti-. Two days later, Case will perform on NBC’s “The Tonight Show With Jay Leno.”

The artist is hoping to bring solo artist Kelly Hogan and Visqueen principal Rachel Flotard on the road with her as part of her backing band. Martha Wainwright will open on at least six dates, with other support acts to be announced.

As previously reported, Giant Sand’s Howe Gelb, Calexico’s Joey Burns, the Band’s Garth Hudson and the Sadies all helped contribute to “Flood,” as did Flotard and Hogan.

“My personal time is the same as my road time and my studio time,” Case tells Billboard.com. “All my closest friends and family are already in the bands [that] I’m around.”

Though a regular contributing vocalist for the New Pornographers, Case will not join the band for its own spring tour. “They always make sure they cover territory twice,” Case says of the Pornographers. “But I have to work on my own stuff.”

Later this year, Case will also be seen at the Sasquatch Music Festival in Quincy, Wash., (May 27) and at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival in Colorado (June 15). Dates in Japan and Australia are also in the works.

As reported yesterday, Case was among the many guests joining the Sadies over the weekend in Toronto for two shows taped for an upcoming Yep Roc live album.

Here are Neko Case’s tour dates:

March 17: Austin, Texas (Antone’s)
March 29: Minneapolis (First Avenue)
March 31: Chicago (Vic Theatre)
April 1: Lansing, Mich. (Temple)
April 4: Monteal (Club Soda)
April 5: Boston (Roxy)
April 6-7: New York (Webster Hall)
April 9: Washington, D.C. (9:30 Club)
April 12-13: Carrboro, N.C. (Cat’s Cradle)
April 14: Atlanta (Variety Playhouse)
April 15: Memphis (Hi-Tone)

Source billboard.com,