music
Apple Launches Free, 24-Hour Music Video Channel
Remember the days when MTV was the home of music videos? Looking to bring back that kind of programming, Apple has now launched its own free, 24-hour music video channel. Simply called Apple Music TV, the nonstop livestream promises “exclusive new music videos and premiers, special curated music video blocks, and live shows and events as well as chart countdowns and guests,” according to a statement via Variety. One such countdown — the Top 100 most-streamed songs on Apple Music — was the focus of today’s kick-off event. During its inaugural week, Apple Music TV will also celebrate Bruce Springsteen and his new album, Letter to You, with “an all day Bruce takeover” on Thursday, October 22nd. In addition to popular music videos from The Boss, the channel will air a special livestream f...
43 Years After its Release, Fleetwood Mac’s Rumors is Again a Top 10 Album
Ever since Nathan Apodaca jumped on his skateboard, with a jug of Ocean Spray Cran-Raspberry in hand, and began singing along to Fleetwood Mac’s “Dreams”, the band’s music has been surging up the charts. Last week, “Dreams” re-entered the Billboard Hot 100 at No. 21, marking Fleetwood Mac’s first such appearance on the chart since 1977. And now, the album from which the singles comes from, Rumours, has climbed all the way into the Top 10 of the Billboard 200 Album Charts. According to Billboard, Rumours earned 33,000 equivalent album units in the US in the week ending October 15, good enough for the No. 7 spot on this week’s charts. Upon its release in 1977, the album spent a record-setting 31 nonconsecutive weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, but this marks Rumours’ first Top 10...
Shura Remixes Becca Mancari’s “Lonely Boy”: Stream
Back in June, Becca Mancari released her excellent debut album, The Greatest Part, via Captured Tracks. Today, our former Artist of the Month has shared a remixed version of the single “Lonely Boy” by none other than our former CoSign, UK electro-pop artist Shura, Although The Greatest Part was produced by Paramore’s Zac Farro, Mancari’s sound has more roots in indie music than pop or pop-punk. The original version of “Lonely Boy” is a catchy indie rock track with a bumpy bassline and a dreamy hook, but there’s a spaciness to the song that translates really well in Shura’s dance-pop context. In the remix, the main hook of the tune remains intact, but Shura adds some clubby flair and an epic drum breakdown that transitions into a dazzling synth melody. In their respective press st...
Phoebe Bridgers Performs with Conor Oberst at #SOSFest: Watch
While Phoebe Bridgers has set the gold standard for pandemic-era digital performances, the Punisher singer knows the importance of physical music venues. On Saturday, she joined Foo Fighters and Miley Cyrus at #SOSFest, an online festival raising money for venues impacted by the pandemic. Performing from the Troubadour in Los Angeles, Bridges and her band delivered a seven-song set with help from a few special guests. Conor Oberst joined Bridgers for the Punisher track “Halloween” and then stuck around for “Dylan Thomas” from the duo’s collaborative album as Better Oblivion Community Center. Christian Lee Hutson performed “Lose This Number” from his Bridgers-produced album Beginners, and Charlie Hickey got time under the spotlight to play one of his own song. Rounding out the setlist were ...
Benny the Butcher Flexes His Street Cred on the Star-Studded Burden of Proof: Review
The Lowdown: Despite how prolific Griselda have been in 2020, it has been a full year since we have gotten a solo Benny the Butcher project. In that time, Griselda have signed a Roc Nation management deal, dropped a group album, performed on Fallon, and tested the limits of how many solid albums a collective can drop in a short period of time. People have been waiting on Benny ever since 2019’s The Plugs I Met, an EP that brought him to a higher level of fame for its coke tales, OJ comparisons, and 38 Spesh’s lamb and stick. Benny is a man of history. The East Buffalo-bred MC has studied the game to a tee and has all of the co-signs that other rappers spend a whole career wishing they could boast. Growing up on the infamous Montana Avenue, he has spent a lifetime waiting for this moment to...
R.I.P. Gordon Haskell, Former King Crimson Singer-Bassist Dies at 74
Onetime King Crimson singer-bassist Gordon Haskell has died at the age of 74. The sad news was announced via the musician’s Facebook page, but no cause of death was given. “It is with great sadness we announce the passing of Gordon, a great musician and a wonderful person who will be sadly missed by so many,” read the statement on Haskell’s passing. Haskell had a brief tenure in King Crimson during the pioneering UK prog-rock band’s early years. He was a classmate and teenage bandmate of founder Robert Fripp in the group League of Gentlemen, and was recruited to sing lead vocals on the song “Cadence and Cascade” on King Crimson’s second album, 1970’s In the Wake of Poseidon. Greg Lake sang lead on all of the LP’s other tracks. After Lake left the band to form Emerson, Lake, and Palmer, Has...
Brian Wilson, Al Jardine Condemn Trump’s Beach Boys Benefit Concert
The Beach Boys have seen better days. On Sunday, Mike Love’s Frankenstein twist on the legendary outfit performed at an Orange County campaign benefit in support of Donald Trump. Former members Brian Wilson and Al Jardine were not fans. “We have absolutely nothing to do with the Trump benefit today in Newport Beach. Zero,” Wilson and Jardine told Variety through a spokesperson. “We didn’t even know about it and were very surprised to read about it in the Los Angeles Times.” True to the spirit of Trump, the event was a ghoulish display of garish festivities. Tickets ranged from a jaw-dropping $2,800 per donor to a downright criminal $150,000 a couple for co-chair status with The Beach Boys at the center. Of course, every self-respecting fan of The Beach Boys knows this isn’t really The Beac...
Run the Jewels Debut RTJ4 Live with Zack de la Rocha, Josh Homme, and Others: Review
GOTV Meets WFH: We’re eight months into a global pandemic and 17 days away from the strangest presidential election in modern memory, so it’s no huge shock that this year’s get-out-the-vote efforts look drastically different than past cycles. Mostly, that’s meant a shift away from performing at rallies and towards ensuring that all votes get counted safely and fairly. Those efforts have taken various shapes that conform to our current isolation, from the swing state organizing of Justin Vernon’s for Wisconsin initiative to charity Bandcamp compilations like Talk-Action=Zero Vol. 2 and Good Music to Prevent the Collapse of American Democracy to weary remote testimonials shared in a recent Pitchfork feature. Enter Run the Jewels. The Atlanta hip-hop duo of Killer Mike and El-P already owned ...
Adele to Host Saturday Night Live
Adele will get a chance to show off her comedic chops when she hosts Saturday Night Live this coming weekend. In a surprise booking, the powerhouse pop singer has been announced as the host of SNL’s October 24th episode. Even more interesting, she won’t double as the evening’s musical guest. Instead, H.E.R. will take the stage as the evening’s musical performer. In an Instagram post announcing her impending appearance, Adele wrote, “Bloooooody hellllll I’m so excited about this!! And also absolutely terrified! My first ever hosting gig and for SNL of all things!!!! I’ve always wanted to do it as a stand alone moment, so that I could roll up my sleeves and fully throw myself into it, but the time has never been right. But if there was ever a time for any of us to jump head first into the de...
Beastie Boys License a Song for an Ad for First Time and It’s for Joe Biden: Watch
Believe it or not, but the Beastie Boys has never licensed a song for any advertisement — that is, until now. As Variety points out, the legendary New York outfit gave the green light to Joe Biden to use “Sabotage” in his latest campaign spot. The spot in question revolves around how COVID-19 has affected the live music industry, zeroing in on the collateral damage to Ann Arbor’s historic venue The Bling Pig. Founded in 1971, the club has played host to everyone from Joan Baez to Nirvana. “For 50 years, the Blind Pig has been open and crowded, but right now, it’s an empty room,” Joe Malcoun, co-owner of the Blind Pig, explains in the commercial. This is the reality of Trump’s Covid response.” Malcoun adds, “This is Donald Trump’s economy: There is no plan and you don’t know how to go ...
GWAR Announce “Scumdogs XXX Live” Streaming Concert
GWAR have announced an upcoming streaming concert dubbed, “Scumdogs XXX Live!”, which will see the intergalactic barbarians performing their 1990 debut album, Scumdogs of the Universe, in its entirety Taking place on Halloween Eve, October 30th, at 8 p.m ET, the concert comes in celebration of the 30th anniversary of Scumdogs of the Universe. Though some as-yet-unnamed special guests will make an appearance during the livestream, there will be no in-person audience. Snger Blōthar the Berserker doesn’t seem to mind, however. “We always wanted to do a concert without an audience in the room,” Blōthar said in a press release. “The audience is always the worst part. Well, that and the fact that we’re constantly being attacked by a bunch of assholes while we try to get through a set. Man, I hop...
Foo Fighters Play First Show Since Pandemic at the Troubadour for #SOSFest: Watch
On Saturday, the members of Foo Fighters reunited for their first show together since the beginning the pandemic. As part of #SOSFest, a three-day digital festival benefiting independent music venues, Dave Grohl and co. delivered a five-song acoustic set from the Troubadour in Los Angeles. Grohl, Taylor Hawkins, Pat Smear, Chris Shiflett, Nate Mendel, and Rami Jaffee stuck to their greatest hits, playing songs like “Skin and Bones”, “My Hero”, and “These Days”. The performance then concluded with a pair of Grohl solo performances, as he crooned his way through “Times Like These” and “Everlong”. In between songs, Foo Fighters reminisced about their personal history with the Troubadour over the years. Grohl recalled playing the venue with his pre-Nirvana band Scream, while Smear remembe...
