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Independence In a Time of Crisis: Reimagining Festival Culture In a Socially Distant World
“Nothing can replace the euphoric feeling of live entertainment.” This is an opinion column. The thoughts and viewpoints expressed are those of the author, Gabriel Mattachione. Mattachione is the president of Beyond Oz Productions. Earlier this year, what feels like a lifetime ago, the entire event space experienced an armageddon-type situation with COVID-19, one which hurt the scene, but impacted festivals, organizations, and groups differently. Running Ever After Music Festival in Kitchener, ON, we experienced things through an independent lens. What does it mean to be an independent festival? Being an independent festival is both creatively satisfying and corporately frustrating. The independence you carry when choosing not to involve big corporations or blockbuster sponsors...
You Can Now Stream Full DJ Sets from Tomomorrowland’s Virtual Edition on Apple Music
Stream Tomorrowland Around The World sets from Armin van Buuren, Afrojack, and more. Following Tomorrowland‘s grand foray into the virtual festival space, Apple Music has released a bevy of Tomorrowland Around The World performances for its subscribers. Starting today, August 5th, 2020, Apple Music subscribers can listen to DJ sets from the first-ever (and hopefully last) digital version of the venerated Belgian festival, which amassed a staggering 1 million viewers. Tomorrowland organizers erected 4 elaborate green screen studios for its performers in Belgium (Boom), the US (Los Angeles), Brazil (São Paulo), and Australia (Sydney), which were fitted with a cutting edge DJ booth and a centrifuge of polychromatic LEDs. Apple Music subscribers can now immerse themselves ...
New York’s Crackdown on Illicit Raves Continues with Arrests of “Floating Nightclub” Organizers
The owners of the Liberty Belle have been arrested for violating New York City’s social distancing provisions and ban on large gatherings. The owners of the Liberty Belle, a boat that hosted an illicit nautical party on August 2nd, 2020, have been arrested for violating New York City’s social distancing provisions and ban on large gatherings in light of COVID-19. Following a tip-off to police, the “floating nightclub,” a four-level, 600-capacity vessel which contained 172 partygoers, was seized roughly two hours after it embarked from Pier 36 in Lower Manhattan. The boat’s owners, Ronny Vargas and Alex Suazo, have been arrested for organizing the illegal event and running a bar without a liquor license. “I want the business in New Yor...
GLENN HUGHES Will Keep Writing Music Until His Final Day
In a brand new interview with the “Thunder Underground” podcast, legendary bassist/vocalist Glenn Hughes was asked if he will continue writing music up until his “final day.” He responded (hear audio below): “I will. People ask me that question — not all the time, but they do ask that question. “A good friend of mine, who you know of — I won’t say who he is — but we’ve had a conversation about retirement. And I know a lot of people older than me that are still going — [Mick] Jagger and Robert Plant; friends of mine. They’re still going ’cause they love music. “If you are a musician who’s a songwriter, you just continue to write,” he added. “And that’s what I do — I’ve been doing it for 50 years....
BRIAN MAY Joins NUNO BETTENCOURT, STEVE VAI, ZAKK WYLDE, YNGWIE MALMSTEEN And TOSIN ABASI For ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ Jam (Video)
EXTREME guitarist Nuno Bettencourt was joined by his “Generation Axe” tourmates — Steve Vai, Zakk Wylde, Yngwie Malmsteen and Tosin Abasi — along with QUEEN‘s Brian May for a six-guitar performance of QUEEN‘s timeless classic “Bohemian Rhapsody” as part of AXS TV‘s “At Home And Social With Nuno Bettencourt & Friends” special. Video footage of the performance can be seen below. “At Home And Social With Nuno Bettencourt & Friends” aired this past Monday (August 3) and benefited the Music Forward Foundation‘s Crew Nation initiative, raising funds and awareness for the touring and venue crews who are vital to the live music experience and have been negatively impacted by the shutdowns resulting from COVID-19. In th...
QUEEN + ADAM LAMBERT’s ‘You Are The Champions’ To Be Released on 7″ Vinyl And CD
Furthering their support for raising funds and awareness of the COVID-19 pandemic, QUEEN + ADAM LAMBERT are releasing special limited-edition CD and seven-inch vinyl versions of their lockdown track “You Are The Champions”. Both versions of the new formats are limited to 3000 copies each and will be numbered. They will be available to order only through QUEEN‘s online store from today. Recorded in lockdown between their homes in London, Cornwall and Los Angeles, the QUEEN + ADAM LAMBERT version of the classic QUEEN track was first revealed on the band’s Instagram accounts. Overwhelmed with calls for the track to be made available to download, the resulting “virtual jam” version titled “You Are The Champions” was made available on all streamin...
DEE SNIDER On Possibility Of A TWISTED SISTER Reunion: ‘I Don’t Know If I See That Happening In This Lifetime’
During a brand new interview with SiriusXM‘s “Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk”, Dee Snider was asked if thinks TWISTED SISTER will ever play live again, four years after the band completed its farewell tour. The singer responded: “Look, I know that some of my bandmembers have recently said ‘never say never.’ I wrote a song called ‘Never Say Never’ many years ago, so I’ll go with that for their benefit, but I will say this: it was so hard fought to find a Dee Snider [solo] sound, to find my place in the community, the metal community. Mentally, if I do anything moving forward, I want it to be continuing on this path that I finally found. “As I sit here thinking about, okay, I’ve got these movies I’m gonna make, I just wro...
Patti Smith to Hold Special Virtual Performance and Book Reading
Patti Smith will hold a special performance featuring music and a reading of excerpts from her most recent memoir, Year of the Monkey. Filmed by acclaimed cinematographer Matthew Schroeder, “An Evening of Words & Music With Patti Smith” will take place at the Murmrr Theatre in Brooklyn. Aside from the book reading, Smith will play a brief set with her longtime bandmate Tony Shanahan. This isn’t the only livestream Smith has participated in this year. To celebrate Earth Day (April 22), she, along with a group of artists including R.E.M.’s Michael Stipe, Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Flea and Cat Power, performed at Pathway to Paris Earth Day 50: A Virtual Festival. Earlier today, Smith paid tribute to her son, Jackson, on his birthday. In January, she penned a special poem to...
Former Machine Head/Crowbar Drummer Tony Costanza Dies at 52
Former Machine Head/Crowbar drummer Tony Costanza has died at age 52. The news was confirmed by former Crisis bandmate guitarist Afzaal Deen, who paid tribute on Tuesday (Aug. 4) writing, “It is with a very heavy heart that I have to accept and inform everyone concerned that I lost my brother, band mate, home boy and family today. Tony Costanza was one of a kind. A man with a huge heart, love and loyalty for the ones close to him. I cannot relate to this reality of loss yet. I know he had a lot of admirers, and I was one of his biggest. He would have literally taken a bullet for me. Thats the kind of gangster brother he was. Tony died in his sleep this morning so I am sure he was at peace and in no pain.” At press time, no cause of death was available. Deen also posted a GoFund...
Marshmello Is One of the Most Adaptable Stars in Modern Music — And the Charts Prove It
Let’s start with a clunky but (arguably) relevant comparison, and say that while marshmallows seem to have only one fairly specific use as a food, the pillowy treats go well with a number of other desserts, and are enjoyed by a wide and diverse segment of humanity. The same can be said of the EDM producer named for and styled in homage to these fireside snacks. Since emerging in the EDM scene circa 2015, Marshmello has become a dominant brand not only in mainstream dance music, but in a grab bag of genres including hip-hop, rock, pop and country. Having worked with everyone from Tyga and Chris Brown to Chvrches to Svdden Death and Blackbear to Kane Brown to Bastille, the artist has scored hits on Billboard’s Hot 100, Country Songs, Rap Songs, Alternative Songs, Rock & Alter...
Makin’ Tracks: Danielle Bradbery Displays New Artistic Maturity In ‘Never Have I Ever’
When LeAnn Rimes came to national attention at age 13, she embarked on a wildly successful streak, selling millions of albums loaded with songs featuring adult viewpoints, even though she was too young to vote. Rimes arguably found her adult voice at age 22 with This Woman, an album produced by Dann Huff (Keith Urban, Brantley Gilbert) that lobbed three singles into country radio’s top five, a level she has not attained since. With “Never Have I Ever,” Danielle Bradbery looks to flip the script on that precedent. She similarly entered the national spotlight as a teen, winning NBC’s The Voice at age 16 in 2013. Her run over the next few years was nothing like Rimes’ — Bradbery’s debut single, “The Heart of Dixie” (No. 12, Country Airplay), is ...
Gabby Barrett Brings Out Husband Cade Foehner For Billboard Live At-Home Performance
Gabby Barrett brought out her husband Cade Foehner for an intimate Billboard Live At-Home performance Wednesday (Aug. 5) to raise money for MusiCares. Foehner played an instrumental part during the couple’s set, when he sang alongside Barrett while playing the acoustic guitar, but he also played his part as her muse for her radio sensation “The Good Ones.” “This song was written about this man beside me,” the 20-year-old country star said. “I was just thinking back to when him and I were dating during American Idol at the time. And some of my family members would just ask me, be like, ‘Oh, how’s your boyfriend doing?’ and I’d be like, ‘Oh, he’s good. He’s a good one, he’s a keeper.’… Not every s...
