Beastie Boys playing a 'Gala Event' in Cologne - June 23, 2007 (CRED)

'The Mix Up' is out today. In other news, I assume that the Beastie Boys show I originally thought was going to be "early July" is actually in "early August". It's also not that small....

Continue reading "Beastie Boys "Gala Event" shows added"

DOWNLOAD: Bad Brains - Give Thanks and Praises (MP3)

The above MP3 is off the brand new Bad Brains album "Build a Nation" out June 26, 2007 on Megaforce, and produced by Adam Yauch of the Beastie Boys ("It also represents the first studio album, outside Beastie Boys albums, to be recorded at the Beastie Boys’ Oscilloscope Laboratories and Studio compound in New York City.") You can listen to the whole new Bad Brains album at MySpace. You can listen to the whole new Beastie Boys album on BrooklynVegan.

Bad Brains are playing The School of Rock Festival in Asbury Park, NJ today (June 24). Tomorrow is their sold out NYC concert cruise aboard The Temptress. I rode the Temptress just this past Friday for the also-sold-out Weakerthans show which also the first show of the Rocks Off season. Not only were the Weakerthans great - so was the weather and the view. Here are two pictures I took off the side of the boat:

More, and larger, photos @ my Flickr.

Do you want to see Bad Brains on the boat on Monday (June 25), but don't have tickets? Now you have one more chance. I have one pair of tickets to give away, and I'm going to split that pair in half - so instead of one prize, I now have two. To win one of these two tickets Email BVCONTESTS@HOTMAIL.COM (subject: Bad Brains), and let me know your favorite album of 2007 so far. Include your first and last name for guestlist. Two winners will be picked at random, and contacted. Contest ends Monday at noon - seven hours before the voyage starts boarding.

BB tour dates & stuff below....

Continue reading "BAD BRAINS - album stream, MP3 & free boat tix to WIN"

And on the cool check in
Center stage on the mic
And we're puttin' it on wax....

Continue reading "STREAM: (the new) BEASTIE BOYS (album) - 'The Mix Up'"

DOWNLOAD: Beastie Boys - Stop That Train (quarterbar Remix) (MP3)

Though I just mentioned the Summerstage show was on sale, I left out that McCarren Park is also on sale, and the part about it only being the pre-sale until Saturday (you know that if you've been reading the comments though). PASSWORD=MIXUP (thx all)

Also - is it true the McCarren Park show is the Beastie Boys' first Brooklyn show ever? (someone told me that) And is it true that the Beastie Boys will be playing a second Brooklyn show soon - possibly at Studio B in early July - not long after the June 26th release date of their new instrumental album The Mix Up?

BONUS QUESTION: On August 9th: Are you going to Beastie Boys @ McCarren Pool in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, OR Daft Punk @ Keyspan Park in Coney Island, Brooklyn, OR The Hold Steady @ Pospect Park in Park Slope, Brooklyn, OR The Black Crowes @ Central Park Summerstage, OR none of the above?

Beastie Boys - August 2007 Tour Dates
8/1 Philadelphia - Festival Pier
8/6 Boston - Bank of America Pavilion
8/8 New York - Summerstage
8/9 Brooklyn - McCarren Pool
8/16 Denver - Red Rocks
8/23 Santa Barbara - County Bowl
8/25 Berkeley - Greek Theater

The above dates will feature Beastie Boys in all their traditional hip hop glory. Additional, more intimate dates showcasing the band configuration featured on The Mix-Up (due out June 26 on Capitol) will be announced shortly.

Pre-sales for the above dates begin Thursday June 14th, with on-sales following Friday June 15th and Saturday June 16th. For more details, visit beastieboys.com.

Mitch from Voxtrot & Mike D. Separated at birth?

Voxtrot @ Great American Music Hall - May 30, 2007 (CRED - SPIN)

Beastie Boys @ Sasquatch - May 26, 2007 (CRED)

The 11th Annual Webby Awards will take place at Cipriani Wall Street in NYC on June 5, 2007. David Bowie (Webby Lifetime Achievement), eBay CEO Meg Whitman (Webby Lifetime Achievement: The eBay Community), Beastie Boys (Webby Artists of the Year), and Steve Chen/Chad Hurley, co-founders of YouTube (Webby Person of the Year) are being honored. Rob Corddry (The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, The Winner) is hosting.

A new Voxtrot YouTube video HERE. Reviews of Beastie Boys @ Sasquatch HERE and HERE. Neko Case's corset sold for $300 on eBay. More Webby details below....

Continue reading "David Bowie, Beastie Boys, eBay & YouTube to be honored @ Webbys on Wall St."

The following review of Day 2 (May 27, 2007) of the 2007 Sasquatch! Festival in George, Washington is brought to you by Jerry Yeti exclusively for BrooklynVegan.com. If you're just joining us, you may want to start with Day 1.

Things kicked off at the Gorge on Sunday with a few more blankets, a nice spot on the terraced grass, and a sweet DJ set by Mix Master Mike. This was followed up by the hip hop duo Blackalicious. Both of these acts got the early attendees jumping. Blackalicious brought out their "Alphabet Aerobics" with its increasingly sped up delivery, but it was "Rhythm Sticks" that got people truly moving. If the ground wasn't on bedrock, the floor would have given way under all that impact.

All warmed up, Bad Brains was the only set on Sunday we were sure not going to miss. While we waited near the epicenter of anticipated mayhem, one of their most enthusiastic fans attempted to get others around him equally as stoked. He singled out a small guy that -as he informed him- was going to be propelled into the air. And sure enough, when the band appeared, he launched the poor kid into the unsuspecting crowd behind him. No, the bedrock below him did not give way. As the mosh pit grew in size, so did the size of the guys thrashing around in it. One giant of a man wore a Professional Slam Wresting shirt and bulldozed his way around. H.R. is a startling front man, appearing quite tranquil despite the tumult below - like a prophet amidst a storm. Dashingly dressed, if you had a video on mute, you would be baffled by the calm on stage, and the reaction below.

Unfortunately that was the last full set on the main stage before Polyphonic Spree had to cease for the blustery wind. It got cold within minutes, and sundown was still four hours away. While the crew re-prepped the stage to handle the winds, and let the worst of them pass, people migrated over to Tokyo Police Club at the Wookie. The Toronto band sensed they were playing for a much larger crowd, and they delivered. Their invigoration and charm very likely won over a few new fans.....

Continue reading "Sasquatch! 2007 | Sunday review in words & pics"

DOWNLOAD: The Beastie Boys - Now Get Busy (MP3)

Reports from the 2007 Sasquatch Festival in Gorge, Washington are starting to filter in. One such report involves alt-country's corset queen Neko Case

"I'm going to see if I can make it through an entire set this year," Neko Case said when she began at 3:40 p.m. Last year, Case's Sasquatch! set was plagued by hail; this year, she got lots of sunlight, which didn't prevent her from playing Bob Dylan's "Buckets of Rain." Case's largely acoustic performance was a good mid-day balm. [Seattle Times]

Beastie Boy Ad Rock looks cool while playing the guitar during an intimate show at the Crocodile Cafe Friday night. The concert was a warm up show for the group's two sets at the Sasquatch! Music Festival in George during Memorial Day Weekend. Photo by Travis Hay

It should also be noted that both comedians Aziz Ansari & Sarah Silverman arrived (VERY) late to the festival. That in turn left two of the three stages un-hosted for most, or all, of the first day. Michael Showalter was spotted doing his job though.

Stay tuned right here for more reports from Sasquatch 2007 - including those from the yeti himself.

For their new album, Beastie Boys are bringin' it instrumentally.....

Continue reading "VIDEO: BEASTIE BOYS - 'Off the Grid' ++ instrumental new album cover & track list"

I'm as conflicted as you, but that was then, and this is now (?)...

New York NY -- March 2, 2007 -- Megaforce Records is proud to announce it has entered into a worldwide deal with the legendary punk band Bad Brains. The new album (Build A Nation) is currently being finished in New York and will be released worldwide this spring 2007 (June 26th). Adam Yauch (MCA of the Beastie Boys) produced the yet-to-be-titled Bad Brains album and it represents the first recording, aside from Beastie Boys' recordings, from the Oscilloscope laboratories and studio. The Bad Brains recently honored the legendary punk club CBGB's closing in 2006 by performing three shows, which sold-out in record time.

"The Brains are one of most powerful and unique bands in the world. They have been a huge influence on me, and it was an honor to work with them on this record," comments Adam Yauch.

They and the Beastie Boys are also playing the Sasquatch Festival and the Virgin Festival in Baltimore. More tour dates and pictures below.....

Continue reading "BAD BRAINS on a boat, new album - BEASTIE BOYS too & 2007 Tour Dates"