Alternative Music
Michelle Branch’s Domestic Assault Case Dropped
Michelle Branch’s domestic assault case has been dismissed. The singer-songwriter was arrested and charged with misdemeanor domestic assault after allegedly slapping her estranged husband, Patrick Carney, on August 11th. The two apparently got into an argument after Branch learned about Carney’s infidelity. Now, the charge against Branch has been dropped “at the request of the state.” Following the arrest, Branch filed for divorce from Carney on August 15th, ending three years of marriage. “To say that I am totally devastated doesn’t even come close to describing how I feel for myself and for my family,” she said in a statement. “The rug has been completely pulled from underneath me and now I must figure out how to move forward. With such small children, I ask for privacy and kindness.” Re...
2022 Zona Music Festival: Beach House, Portugal. the Man, and Bleachers Lead Lineup
Phoenix, Arizona is home to the brand new Zona Music Festival. The inaugural two-day festival goes down on December 3rd and 4th at Margaret T. Hance Park, and boasts a lineup led by Beach House, Portugal. the Man, and Bleachers. Tegan and Sara and Japanese Breakfast are also set to play Zona this year. “We are beyond thrilled to be among this incredible lineup and return to one of our favourite cities in the United States,” the former act said in a statement. “It’s been a long three years, and we are very much looking forward to getting on stage and strutting our stuff at ZONA in December!” Other notable acts include Waxahatchee, Kevin Morby, Bartees Strange, Jeff Rosenstock, Lucy Dacus, Pom Pom Squad, SASAMI, Lucius, The Regrettes, Beach Goons, Chicano Batman, Chloe Lilac, Destroy Boys, f...
Ozzy Osbourne Swore Off Acid After Talking to a Horse for an Hour
Ozzy Osbourne has had his fair share of run-ins with animals over the years, including famously biting the head off a bat onstage in 1982. But a lesser known story involves the metal icon taking acid and talking to a horse for an hour. The Daily Star recently dug up some Ozzy quotes from the 2015 Black Sabbath biography Symptom of the Universe by Mick Wall, and it’s since been picked up as a “new” story by several outlets. While the story itself isn’t new, it’s certainly worth sharing. “At that time in America, people were very fond of lacing your drinks with acid. I didn’t care,” Ozzy said in the book. “I used to swallow handfuls of tabs at a time. The end of it came when we got back to England.” Advertisement Related Video He continued, “I took 10 tabs of acid, then went for a walk in a ...
Warner Bros. Discovery Doesn’t Have the Money to Release Movies, Delays Aquaman and Shazam Sequels
The team at Warner Bros. Discovery has doubled down on a scorched-earth strategy to cut costs in recent months, but it doesn’t seem to be working. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the company is so low on money that it’s pushed back the release dates of two movies, Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom and Shazam! Fury of the Gods, in order to spread out the costs associated with marketing and distribution. Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom was originally slated to drop on March 17th, 2023, but it has now been delayed to December 25th, 2023. Fury of the Gods now has the former movie’s original March release date after initially being slated for a December 2022 release. The horror flick Salem’s Lot, meanwhile, has been taken off Warner Bros. Discovery’s calendar altogether, with n...
Ukrainian Punks Gogol Bordello Play Secret Show for Ukrainian Soldiers: Watch
Gogol Bordello spent years framing themselves as nationless punks, with frontman Eugene Hütz singing in 2013, “Borders are scars on the face of the planet.” But after Russia‘s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, Hütz discovered something unexpected: patriotism. Now, his multinational band proudly touts his Ukrainian heritage, and as VICE reports, they recently traveled to his homeland to play a secret concert for Ukrainian soldiers. “We had an opportunity to support our fighters, defenders, border guards and some refugees with our band — [to] support musically, morally, spiritually,” he told VICE. “Music remains to be a very serious force… a very serious weapon of defense for people for whom burning out and getting tired of war is not an option… People of Ukraine [are] stan...
Neil Gaiman Reveals He Killed a Sandman Movie by Leaking the “Really Stupid” Script
Before Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman became a certified smash on Netflix, there were multiple efforts to adapt the comic series into a movie. In a new interview with Rolling Stone, the author revealed that he squashed one of those early attempts by leaking what he dubbed “the worst script I’ve ever been sent.” The story comes from the late-’90s, after director Roger Avary (The Rules of Attraction) had been fired from a Sandman movie for wanting to use stop-motion animation for scenes taking place in The Dreaming. By 1998, William Farmer (Jonah Hex) was onboard to write a new draft of the script under the guidance of producer Jon Peters. Rumors had it that the story was being turned into something of an action movie, with massive changes to Gaiman’s original tale bungling up the magic. “I haven...
Life is Beautiful Organizers Take Us Inside 2022’s Global Lineup
When done right, a city festival offers a unique experience that speaks to the heart of its urban surroundings. In the case of Life is Beautiful, much of this exists solely in its location within Las Vegas — rather than add to the glitz and fanfare of the Las Vegas strip, the festival takes place just a few miles north in downtown Vegas, sectioning off the famous Fremont Street and over 18 square blocks of Vegas’ classic, original townsite. “I don’t think any festival in the country takes over 18 square city blocks,” says Allen Scott from Another Planet Entertainment, the company that assists in booking Life is Beautiful each year. He’s joined by Craig Nyman, the head of music and programming for Life is Beautiful Festival, who is similarly proud of the way the festival has transformed alo...
Joni Mitchell Receives Honorary Doctorate from Berklee: “My Mother Would Be Really Proud”
That’s Dr. Mitchell, to you. Joni Mitchell has received an honorary doctorate degree from Berklee College of Music. Berklee’s Office of the President and Institute of Jazz and Gender Justice presented Mitchell with the much-deserved honor yesterday, August 23rd, at a private event in Santa Monica. As Pitchfork points out, the ceremony was hosted by Linda and Russell Brown of MaddocksBrown Foundation, during which the legendary folk musician quipped: “Well, luckily I’m too old to get a swelled head.” Naturally, she also wore a custom beret to the ceremony, embroidered with her new name “Dr. Joni Mitchell.” “It’s a beautiful event. Words can’t describe it. I’ve got my good friends here with me,” Mitchell told the crowd, which included Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter. “I wish my parents were...
Curb Your Enthusiasm Renewed for 12th Season
HBO has officially renewed Curb Your Enthusiasm for a 12th season. The news is hardly surprising, as Larry David confirmed his return earlier this year. However, given the state of flux at HBO following the merger of Warner Bros. and Discovery, nothing is a given these days. Fortunately, on Tuesday HBO issued a press release confirming Curb’s impending return. “Larry outdoes himself season after season and always manages to come back when the audience needs him most,” Amy Gravitt, Executive Vice President of HBO Programming, said in a statement. “We’re thrilled for him, Jeff Schaffer, and our phenomenal cast to continue making us laugh and cringe in equal measure.” Related Video David issued his own statement reacting to today’s announcement: “Playing the role of Larry David has been the g...
Psycho Las Vegas 2022 Invades Sin City with Mercyful Fate, Emperor, and More: Recap + Photos
With a new and larger venue at Resorts World, the 2022 edition of the Psycho Las Vegas festival took place this past weekend, serving up its most diverse lineup yet. The six stages offered something for everyone, and despite a few last-minute scheduling changes the festival once again went off without a hitch. The festivities unofficially kicked off on Thursday (August 18th) with the annual Psycho Swim party, which brought many to the pool area to soak up the sun (and the beer) while watching Uniform, Starcrawler, Death Chant, Bridge City Sinners, Elders, and Eyehategod, before Midnight closed out the evening with one of their heaviest and most frantic sets in recent memory. The festival got its official start on Friday (August 19th) and highlights throughout the day included Devil Master,...
Arctic Monkeys Announce New Album The Car
Arctic Monkeys have announced their long-awaited new album. Entitled The Car, the band’s seventh studio effort is due out on Friday, October 21st. The Car features ten new songs written by frontman Alex Turner, produced by James Ford, and recorded at Butley Priory in Suffolk, RAK Studios in London, and La Frette in Paris. A press release describes the album as “running wild in a new and sumptuous musical landscape and contain[ing] some of the richest and most rewarding vocal performances of Turner’s career.” Earlier this year, drummer Matt Helders teased the band’s new album by saying “it kinda picks up where” 2018’s loungey Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino left off. “I mean, it’s never gonna be like [the band’s 2012 single] ‘R U Mine?’ and all that stuff again, you know, the heavy riff...
Warner Bros. Discovery Lost $20 Billion in Market Cap Trying to Cut $3 Billion in Costs
Since completing its April 8th merger, Warner Bros. Discovery has been on a cost-cutting frenzy, with an announced goal of finding $3 billion in savings. The process began when WBD axed CNN+ on April 21st, and since then the company has shelved Batgirl, removed over 200 classic episodes of Sesame Street, and iced dozens of upcoming projects — with a result that WBD has lost a total of $20 billion in market cap and counting. Importantly, this isn’t an apples-to-apples comparison. WBD is trying to save $3 billion in cash, while market cap is the stock market’s estimate of a company’s total value, found by taking the amount of stock in circulation and multiplying that by the stock’s price. And there are several other factors dragging down the stock, especial...
