Things are heating up this summer for pedal steel guitar phenom Robert Randolph as we approach the release date of his first studio album with the Family Band on August 5th
After ridiculing Saddam Hussein in the animated feature “South Park: Bigger Longer & Uncut,” the cartoon’s creators are taking on terrorism, marionette-style, in a new film project.
Trey Parker and Matt Stone are writing the untitled project, previously known as “American Heroes,” which Paramount Pictures is expected to distribute. Parker and Stone will direct and voice the film as well. According to several sources, the project in development is a marionette movie about superheroes on a mission to eradicate such things as terrorism and certain celebrities who have outworn their welcome in the public eye.
Source etonline.com.
The embattled music industry disclosed aggressive plans Wednesday for an unprecedented escalation in its fight against Internet piracy, threatening to sue hundreds of individual computer users who illegally share music files online.
The Recording Industry Association of America, citing substantial sales declines, said it will begin Thursday to search Internet file-sharing networks to identify users who offer “substantial” collections of mp3 music files for downloading. It expects to file at least several hundred lawsuits seeking financial damages within eight to 10 weeks.
Source CNN.com,
Blues Traveler has signed with Sanctuary for the Aug. 5 release of a new studio album, “Truth Be Told.” The set was recorded at Sound Design Studio in Santa Barbara, Calif., with producer Don Gehman (John Mellencamp, Hootie & the Blowfish). Tracks include “This Ache,” “Partner in Crime” and “Can’t Get Free,” marked by a trademark harmonica solo from frontman John Popper.
The 12-track set is Blues Traveler’s first studio album since 2001’s “Bridge,” its final release for A&M/Interscope. That album peaked at No. 91 on The Billboard 200 and has sold 137,000 copies in the U.S., according to Nielsen SoundScan. A live album, “What You and I Have Been Through,” was issued last October by iMusic.
Blues Traveler will spend the bulk of the summer on the road in North America. The group’s next show comes Saturday (June 28) in Granite Falls, Minn.
Source and tour dates visit Billboard.com.
In order to integrate Comedy Central with Viacom’s MTV Networks, which purchased AOL Time Warner’s half-interest in the network in April, Comedy Central on Tuesday announced the layoff of 20% of the company, which affected many different areas, particularly departments that would overlap with MTV’s centralized operations, including affiliate sales, legal, finance, human resources and research.
“This has been a very difficult process for us to go through,” the network said in a statement. “We truly have some of the best and brightest people in the business at Comedy Central and, unfortunately, implementing the integration plan means that some very capable, devoted and hard working people will be leaving us.”
Source yahoo.com.
Justin Timberlake, the Flaming Lips, AC/DC, the Guess Who, the Isley Brothers, and Canadian acts Sam Roberts, Kathleen Edwards, Sass Jordan and La Chicane are among the artists who will join the Rolling Stones in Toronto’s Downsview Park July 30th for an all-day benefit concert.
The concert, which the Stones confirmed yesterday, is intended to mitigate the major economic hit Toronto has taken since Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) was first diagnosed there this winter. Like last weekend’s Concert for Toronto that featured Avril Lavigne, Sum 41, Sarah McLachlan and others, the event will promote tourism to the city’s downtown, but the upcoming show will also directly benefit the local economy.
“All of the profit after the basic costs are covered will go toward our healthcare workers and our hospitality workers who have been hit hard,” says Member of Parliament Dennis Mills. Thousands in those industries are out of work as a result of the SARS outbreak.
The site holds a half-million people, and 250,000 tickets go on sale Friday at $21.50 Canadian (approximately $16 U.S.).
More acts will be added to the bill in the coming weeks.
Source Rollingstone.com.
Before the band that bears his name was formed, Robert Bradley was the blind man with the guitar and stool riding the Greyhound from city to city for 18 years. He would hop off the bus, hang out on street corners and play songs he made up on the spot. Since a fated day in 1992 when he joined a jam session with the Nehra brothers, Robert Bradley’s Blackwater Surprise have redefined the term road hogs, playing more than 400 shows in recent years alongside Dave Matthews Band, Sonic Youth, Brian Setzer Orchestra, Beck, and Ben Folds Five. The band has announced a new run of dates in support of the band
Phil Lesh and Friends has added concerts on September 13-14 at Seaside Park in Bridgeport, CT as part of Terrrapin’s Summit on the Sound at Seaside Park. This concert will feature old friends – Jimmy Herring, Rob Barraco, and John Molo. However, the show will also be special as this version of Phil and Friends will feature Joan Osborne, guitarist John Scofield, and saxophonist Branford Marsalis in an ensemble constructed specifically for Summit on the Sound.
The familiar Phil and Friends lineup of Lesh, Herring, Barraco, Molo, and Warren Haynes returns for three nights at the Warfield in San Francisco on September 25, 26, and 27.
Source Philzone.com.
According to the band’s official website, “due to forces and some personal situations” beyond their control Sonic Youth will not be appearing with Wilco at tonight’s Boston date or in Connecticut tomorrow. The dates after that (New York, Philly and DC) are still in limbo at the moment.
The Wilco shows will go on as planned in both Boston and Connecticut. Mission of Burma will replace SY in Boston, no word yet on the Wallingford show.
for more details, see sonicyouth.com.
A massive free Rolling Stones concert has been scheduled for July 30 in Toronto. The outdoor show is aimed at giving the city an economic boost in the wake of the SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) outbreak earlier in the year. Although the official announcement is expected tomorrow (June 24), a taped video message from the band due to be played during a press conference was shown to several local media outlets over the weekend.
“We’re happy to tell you that we’re coming to play on July 30 in a great concert for the people in the city of Toronto, to help bring back the energy to our favorite city,” Stones frontman Mick Jagger says in the message taped at the site of the Stones recent show in Munich.
The event will take place in the docklands area of the city, with the downtown skyline as a backdrop. It is estimated that 10 to 15 supporting acts will be announced.
Source Billboard.com.
