Rock Music
Pearl Jam to Celebrate 30th Anniversary of First Concert with Archival Performance of Ten
October 22nd, 1990 marks the 30th anniversary of Pearl Jam’s first-ever concert. To commemorate the occasion, the band will unlock another legendary performance from their vault and stream it live online for the first time. A full recording of Pearl Jam’s April 29th, 2016 concert in Philadelphia, newly mixed in stereo and 5.1 digital surround sound and featuring full-color HD footage, will be available to stream on Nugs.tv from October 22nd to 25th. The 32-song, three-hour performance opened with a full performance of PJ’s debut album, Ten, and also touted rare performances of “Breakerfall” and “Who You Are”. The two-song encore was packed with a number of covers, including Pink Floyd’s “Comfortably Numb”, Neil Young’s “Throw Your Hatred Down”, Dead Boys’ “Sonic Reducer”, and The Who’s “Ba...
Jack White Comes to the Rescue as Last-Minute SNL Musical Guest
Saturday Night Live has found a last-minute replacement to fill in as musical guest for this weekend’s episode: Jack White will take the stage at Studio 8H for his first live performance in nearly a year. White is replacing country singer Morgan Wallen, whose appearance was canceled after he violated COVID-19 safety protocols. As SNL head Lorne Michaels explained, due to the last minute nature of the booking, “It has to be somebody who is ready to go,” and Jack answered the call. Comedian Bill Burr will host the episode. It’ll mark White’s fourth appearance on SNL and third as a solo artist. He most recently served as musical guest in 2018 in support of his most recent solo album, Boarding House Reach. Earlier this week, The White Stripes announced their first-ever greatest-hits compilatio...
Jack White Reworks “Ball and Biscuit”, Plays Eddie Van Halen Guitar on SNL: Watch
Not all heroes wear capes; some rock out on guitar. After this weekend’s original musical guest, country singer Morgan Wallen, violated COVID-19 safety protocol, Saturday Night Live found itself in need of a last-minute replacement. Jack White answered the call. Accompanied by drummer Daru Jones and bassist Dominic John Davis, White ripped through some of his greatest hits with a few unexpected twists. For his first performance of the evening, White played a bit of his Beyoncé collaboration, “Don’t Hurt Yourself”, before transitioning into “Ball and Biscuit”. The Elephant track was reworked to feature lyrics from “Jesus is Coming Soon”, a traditional gospel song about the 1918 Spanish Flu that was famously performed by Blind Willie Johnson. The lyrics are just as relevant to...
The Kills Announce Rarities Album Little Bastards, Share Unreleased Demo “Raise Me”: Stream
The Kills have shared a previously unreleased demo called “Raise Me”. The song is taken from the band’s newly announced rarities collection, Little Bastards, arriving December 11th via Domino. The compilation comprises recordings dating from The Kill’s earliest 7-inch singles in 2002 through 2009. Featuring remastered B-sides, demos, and covers, Little Bastards collects many tracks originally recorded for bonus inclusion on CD singles. As that format vanished in the wake of digital streaming, most of those songs were abandoned — hence the title Little Bastards. The name is also a reference to the drum machine the duo used to expand their sound during the early days of their career, lovingly dubbed Little Bastard. “It was a Roland 880,” The Kills’ Jamie Hince explained in a statement, “whic...
10-Year-Old Music Prodigy Nandi Bushell Wrote Dave Grohl a Theme Song: Watch
The best rock and roll story of the year just got even cooler. The 10-year-old wunderkind Nandi Bushell has written an original theme song for Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl called “Rock and Grohl”, making it the latest delightful update in what’s now a legendary and lovable rivalry. Bushell and Grohl started playing a game of musical tag when the former uploaded a video of herself cover Foo Fighters’ “Everlong” and challenged Grohl to a drum battle. Not only did he respond praising her skill, but Grohl also jammed to Them Crooked Vultures’ “Dead End Friends” in the clip and challenged her to do the same — which she quickly did. So the seasoned rocker admitted defeat and penned a theme song for Bushell to honor her talent, and it seems Bushell felt inclined to do the same for Grohl. “Mr ...
Mark Lanegan Announces New Christmas Album Under the Name Dark Mark
Sure, Dolly Parton and Andrew Bird have holiday albums coming down the chimney this year, but 2020 deserves a darker sort of seasonal sing-a-long. Thankfully, Mark Lanegan is here to abide with his new Christmas album, Dark Mark Does Christmas 2020. Due out exclusively via Rough Trade record stores, the album is actually the ex-Screaming Trees frontman’s second holiday release under the Dark Mark moniker. The first, Dark Mark Does Christmas 2012, was a tour-only 12-inch EP featuring six tracks: “The Cherry Tree Carol”, “Down in Yon Forest”, “O Holy Night”, “We Three Kings”, “Coventry Carol”, and a cover of “Burn the Flames” by Roky Erickson. Five of those, including the Erickson cover, will make it onto the new LP, along with five freshly recorded songs. The new material comprises covers, ...
Tenacious D Perform a Post-Apocalypto Medley on Jimmy Kimmel: Watch
Tenacious D teleported down from their space station on Tuesday night to join Jimmy Kimmel for a late night chat and rock session. The duo of Jack Black and Kyle Gass Zoomed in to promote everything Post-Apocalypto, from their latest album to their newly released graphic novel (which apparently features 96 hand-drawn penises). Despite causing a ruckus in their own homes (with Black flailing around a Pickle Rick pillow), the D assured Kimmel they were responsible rockers respecting quarantine. “There’s only like three bands that don’t quarantine now,” joked Black, “You’ve got Kanye, you’ve got Smash Mouth, and Kid Rock. But other than that, everyone’s on the same page.” Black, who was wearing Black Sabbath’s Black Lives Matter shirt, went on to explain how the band’s 2018 album, Post-Apocal...
Beyond the Boys’ Club: Orianthi
Beyond the Boys’ Club is a monthly column from journalist and radio host Anne Erickson, focusing on women in the heavy music genres, as they offer their perspectives on the music industry and discuss their personal experiences. This month’s piece features an interview with acclaimed guitarist Orianthi. Australian guitarist, singer, and songwriter Orianthi has performed with some of the biggest acts in the world, from Michael Jackson to Alice Cooper. Back in 2009, Orianthi was knee-deep into rehearsals for Michael Jackson’s “This Is It” tour, but sadly, Jackson passed away before the tour could come to fruition. That same year, she scored a solo hit with “According to You”, and she went on to join Alice Cooper’s band for two world tours. Now, Orianthi keeps busy with her own solo music and ...
The Smashing Pumpkins Announce New Double Album CYR, Share Trailer for Animated Series: Watch
The Smashing Pumpkins have formally announced their new double album. It’s called CYR and arrives ahead of the holidays on November 27th via Sumerian Records. Produced by singer-songwriter Billy Corgan, the 20-track album was recorded in the band’s hometown of Chicago, Illinois and includes previously released singles “Cyr” and “The Colour of Love”. In addition to Corgan, the album features founding members James Iha and Jimmy Chamberlin, along with guitarist Jeff Schroeder. The Pumpkins have also announced an accompanying animated series. Titled In Ashes and created by Corgan, the series spans five episodes and comes soundtracked with new music. The first two episodes — “As the Crow Flies” and “Inspirations, Aspirations” — arrive on September 25th. Editors’ Picks Pre-order...
Dave Grohl Writes Theme Song for 10-Year-Old Drummer Nandi Bushell: Watch
The year’s best rock and roll story just keeps getting better. Following an epic virtual drum duel, Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl has written a theme song for his worthy challenger, 10-year-old wunderkind Nandi Bushell. Bushell and Grohl first crossed paths when the former called for a drum battle with a video of her jamming to Foo Fighters’ “Everlong”. Grohl responded with a clip of him rocking Them Crooked Vultures’ “Dead End Friends”, which Bushell then matched beat for beat. The more seasoned rocker admitted defeat, but promised round two would be “something special.” Now, Grohl has shared a video of a new theme song for Bushell that he wrote “off the top of my head.” With his daughters (The Grohlettes) providing backing vocals, Grohl delivers a signature tune fit for a true rock su...
PJ Harvey Releases To Bring You My Love Demos Album: Stream
PJ Harvey is continuing her year-long archival campaign today with a new album consisting of demos from To Bring You My Love. Stream it in full below via Apple Music or Spotify. This demos collection, which comes paired with a proper reissue of the original 1995 LP, features early recordings of singles “Down By the Water”, “C’mon Billy”, “Send His Love to Me”. There are also raw takes on “Working for the Man”, “Long Snake Moan”, and “I Think I’m a Mother”. Audio was mastered by Jason Mitchell at Loud Mastering under the guidance of Harvey’s longtime associate John Parish. If that name sounds familiar, Parish actually co-produced the acclaimed official version of To Bring You My Love alongside Harvey and Flood — marking the trio’s first of many collaborations. Editors’ Picks Harv...
Tom Petty’s Family Shares Previously Unreleased Song “Confusion Wheel”: Stream
Tom Petty fans will soon have a new prized piece to add to their collections: Wildflowers & All the Rest, a sprawling reissue of his 1994 album. In addition to cozy home recordings and fascinating alternate takes, the box set boasts a disc containing five previously unreleased songs. Today, one of those tracks has been unearthed, a contemplative yet optimistic tune titled “Confusion Wheel”. “One of these days my old friend, you and I won’t have to worry no more/ One of these nights it’ll all wash away,” sings the music legend, as though comforting us and our weary, pandemic-worn souls from the grave. “And we’ll wake up singing a brand new song/ We’ll wake up singing a whole new song.” The song’s corresponding visualizer looks like the inner workings of a mind curious about the truths o...
