News

Alison Krauss and Union Station will strike while the iron is still hot with the Nov. 23 release of their next Rounder album, “Lonely Runs Both Ways.” Krauss has reached a new peak in visibility this year, performing at the Grammys and the Oscars and garnering five nominations for the upcoming Country Music Association awards, at which she will also perform with Brad Paisley.

The new 15-track set finds Krauss and guitarist/vocalist Dan Tyminski, dobro player Jerry Douglas, banjo/guitarist/vocalist Ron Block and bassist/vocalist Barry Bales tackling such songs as Del McCoury’s “Rain Please Go Away,” Woodie Guthrie’s “Pastures of Plenty” and Gillian Welch and David Rawlings’ “Wouldn’t Be So Bad.”

Krauss co-wrote “This Sad Song” with Alison Brown, while Block turns in “I Don’t Have To Live This Way” and album closer “A Living Prayer.” The set is rounded out by four tunes penned by Robert Lee Castleman, including opener “Gravity” and first single “Restless.”

“Lonely Runs Both Ways” follows 2002’s “Live,” which debuted at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Bluegrass Albums chart, and the 2001 studio set “New Favorite,” which hit No. 2 on the same tally.

Although a run of December tour dates is not yet confirmed, Krauss and Union Station will perform during release week on NBC’s “The Tonight Show With Jay Leno” and the following month on ABC’s “Good Morning America.”

Here is the track list for “Lonely Runs Both Ways”:

“Gravity”
“Restless”
“Rain Please Go Away”
“Goodbye Is All We Have”
“Unionhouse Branch”
“Wouldn’t Be So Bad”
“Pastures of Plenty”
“Crazy As Me”
“Borderline”
“Poor Old Heart”
“This Sad Song”
“Doesn’t Have To Be This Way”
“I Don’t Have To Live this Way”
“If I Didn’t Know Any Better”
“A Living Prayer”

Source billboard.com.

According to a news posting on the Ween site, “Due to personal reasons we have decided to postpone the upcoming shows. We are extremely sorry to those of you who purchased tickets and made travel plans, but we will be back and much better for it next year. We fully intend on making up the dates in the same cities and same clubs at a later time when our chi is better aligned or something. Again we are very sorry about this, but it’s necessary right now. Thanks for understanding.”

For more info see chocodog.com

U.K. rock act Snow Patrol will cap a breakthrough year with the concert DVD “Live 2004: Mums and Dads of the World Be Patient With Your Children.” Due Nov. 23 via Interscope, the 15-track release chronicles a sold-out August show at London’s Somerset House, featuring the smash U.K. singles “Run” and “Chocolate” plus such obscurities as the B-side “Post Punk Progression.”

The package also includes videos for “Run,” “Chocolate,” “Spitting Games” and “How To Be Dead,” as well as band-shot behind-the-scenes footage from its tours of North America, Japan and Ireland.

Snow Patrol crashed into the mainstream this year on the strength of its third album, “Final Straw,” which hit No. 1 on the Oct. 16 edition of Billboard’s Heatseekers chart after 27 weeks and has sold 158,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. In the U.K., the set has been certified double platinum for shipments of 600,000 units.

Also on Nov. 23, “Final Straw” will be reissued in DualDisc format, featuring the regular album on one side and a DVD side boasting three videos, a performance and interview on “Sessions@AOL,” a Surround Sound audio mix and a photo gallery.

As previously reported, the band has approximately 10 new songs written in advance of hitting the studio in February to record its next release. Beforehand, Snow Patrol will embark on an already-sold out U.K. tour, beginning Nov. 22 in Belfast. Frontman Gary Lightbody recently told Billboard.com the group would return to North America to play a handful of radio station-sponsored holiday shows, but none have yet been confirmed.

“It’s a wonderful, blessed life that people in bands lead,” Lightbody said. “We had nine lean years, I suppose, but bands that actually sell records are in a privileged position to sit back and listen to other peoples’ records. When your job is your hobby, it’s amazing.”

Source billboard.com.

Jam Cruise 3 is sold out. The cruise will set sail on January 6th, 2005 with 1800 music lovers on board.

Madison House Travel is still taking names for the wait list, in case any cabins open up or any holds are released. To sign up on the wait list email jamcruise@madisonhousetravel.com with your name, phone number, e-mail, and number of people are in your party. You can also sign up on the mailing list at www.jamcruise.com to get updates on availability and information on Jam Cruise 4 in 2006, which is already in the works.

Jam Cruise 3 will set sail from Jacksonville, Florida on January 6, 2005. 1800 Jam Cruisers will hit the high seas for 4 days aboard Carnival Cruiselines’ Celebration. The ship will stop in Freeport, Bahamas and, fulfilling a popular request on a questionnaire filled out by last year’s cruisers, will offer passengers two full days at sea to enjoy over 40 musical performances. The festival line up includes Galactic, Les Claypool, Sound Tribe Sector 9, Keller Williams, Col Bruce Hampton and the Aquarium Rescue Unit, Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe, Jazz Mandolin Project featuring Jamie Masefield and Jon Fishman, Zilla featuring Michael Travis, The Remarkable Elba Kramer featuring Kyle Hollingsworth, North Mississippi Allstars, Ozomatli, Peter Rowan & Tony Rice, Robert Walter’s 20th Congress, Umphrey’s McGee, Garaj Mahal, MOFRO, Benevento/Russo Duo, Tishamingo, DJ Logic, and DJ Harry. In addition to incredible performances by many of the genre’s most celebrated musical pioneers, the Jam Cruise experience promises once-in-a-lifetime artist collaborations and opportunities for hang time with the musicians who are so often inaccessible backstage.

Jam Cruise is presented by Cloud 9 Adventures: a partnership between Mark Brown of Florida’s Brown Coffee Productions, Athens promoter Josh Moore of Jomo Entertainment, Roger Naber of Legendary Blues Cruises, and Attorney Joe Hanan.

U2 and Apple Computer Inc. are expected to announce next week that they have signed a deal to sell custom iPods.

According to a source, the Irish rock band’s upcoming album “How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb,” due Nov. 23 via Interscope Records, will come preloaded on iPods that will be available the week of street date.

Interscope, a unit of Universal Music Group, declined to comment; an Apple spokesperson could not be reached.

E-mails from Apple chairman and CEO Steve Jobs and U2 members Bono and the Edge have invited members of the press to a “special event” scheduled for October 26 in San Jose, California.

U2’s new single “Vertigo” is featured in current television ads for the iPod. The track is currently No. 2 on Billboard’s airplay-based Modern Rock Tracks chart, and No. 44 on the Hot 100, which is based on both retail sales and radio airplay.

Source CNN.com.

Depeche Mode- Dave Gahan, Martin Gore, Andy Fletcher- are unique. For nearly 25 years they have been making groundbreaking music, which has influenced generations of artists.

Depeche Mode have always been at the vanguard of remix culture since its inception, and the history of Depeche Mode is inextricably linked with the history of the remix. Very early on in their career the band worked closely and extensively with up and coming remixers who would go on to become pivotal figures in the field including Francois Kevorkian, Adrian Sherwood, William Orbit, Portishead and Air.

HeadCount, a non-profit group that registered more voters than any all-volunteer organization in the country, will stage an Election Eve Rally in New York City on Monday, Nov. 1 at the Mercury Lounge.

The event, which will celebrate HeadCount registering 50,000 voters nationwide, will feature New Jersey-based rock band Rana as well as Big Fuzz, a new project led by former Deep Banana Blackout frontman Fuzz, and the Katy Pfaffl Band.

Also on the bill is Moshi vs. Omen, an electronica duo featuring Disco Biscuits keyboardist Aaron Magner. Jon Gutwillig, guitarist for the Disco Biscuits, will also perform. HeadCount was founded by Disco Biscuits bass player Marc Brownstein, who will serve as the emcee for this event.

The Election Eve Rally will raise money for HeadCount’s future while celebrating its success in 2004. Launched only in February, the organization aligned itself with Dave Matthews Band, Phish and the Dead as well as about 25 other major concert acts.

HeadCount sent voter registration volunteers on the road with bands and also produced public service announcements – starring Dave Matthrews, The Dead and Trey Anastasio of Phish – that have been airing on TNT and TBS. The PSA’s have been seen more than 100 million times.

An organization that is truly grassroots in structure, HeadCount has no paid employees, no major corporate funding and no central headquarters. But through a network of 2,000 volunteers and the backing of a board of directors that includes The Dead’s Bob Weir, HeadCount became one of the most successful voter registration groups

“The event will be our last of about 1,000 acts to encouraging and facilitate voting,” said Andy Bernstein, HeadCount’s co-chair. “Our volunteers are absolutely exhausted, but we figured they have one night of celebration left in them.”

Upcoming Show Details

Monday Nov. 1, 2004
The Mercury Lounge (www.mercuryloungenyc.com)
217 E Houston St – New York, NY
7:30 pm
$12
Tickets at www.headcount.org

Back in the

So, what’s Bob Mould been up to lately?
He spent the

Geffen has confirmed additional details regarding the Nirvana boxed set, “With the Lights Out,” due Nov. 23. The three-CD, one-DVD package will include 81 tracks, 68 of which are previously unreleased. Included are a selection of Kurt Cobain’s home demos, live tracks and studio outtakes. The DVD boasts footage of the fledgling band playing a 1987 house party as well as studio and rehearsal clips.

“With the Lights Out” was originally intended for release in Christmas 2001, to coincide with the 10-year anniversary of Nirvana’s breakthrough album, “Nevermind.” But surviving members Dave Grohl and Krist Novoselic were thwarted by lawsuits from Cobain’s widow Courtney Love, who objected to their planned use of the previously unreleased track “You Know You’re Right” in the set.

The dispute was eventually settled in September 2002, with the parties agreeing to earmark “You Know You’re Right” for a self-titled Nirvana compilation released the following month.

Source billboard.com.