Daft Punk are back, as you know because you don't live in a cave with no internet or cell service, but now it's officially in a big way. The duo's new album, Random Access Memories, debuted at #1 on the Billboard Album Chart, selling 339,000 copies their first week. The single, "Get Lucky," is currently at #10 on the Hot 100.

The National's Trouble Will Find Me did pretty well its debut week two, enough for it to hit #3 with 75,000 copies. Sandwiched in between is former Hootie & the Blowfish singer Darius Rucker whose new solo album, True Believers, sold 83,000 copies putting it at #2. The #4 and #5 slots are held by rapper French Montana's Excuse My French and The Great Gatsby soundtrack.

Last week's #1, Vampire Weekend's Modern Vampires of the City, fell to #7.

Still no word on Daft Punk touring plans. What gives?

Continue reading "Daft Punk are #1 (The National are #3)"

Madonna @ MSG (more by Dana (Distortion) Yavin)

According to Billboard....

Continue reading "Top 25 Grossing Tours of 2012"

photos by Tim Griffin

The Rosebuds in Texas

Viscous blue light drowned the stage as the highly anticipated headliner, The Rosebuds, captured attention and hearts with "Go Ahead", an indie-rock summer anthem, plagued with melancholy, but overflowing in beauty.

From their 2007 album, Night of the Furies, The Rosebuds performed "Cemetery Lungs" with unwavering energy, beneath bright pink and fuchsia lights. Also from Night of the Furies, one of the crowd favorites was clearly the upbeat and danceable indie-folk track, "Leaves Do Fall".

Promoting their latest album, Loud Planes Fly Low..., The Rosebuds primarily performed tracks featured on that particular album, such as "Limitless Arms", "Come Visit Me", "Cover Ears", and "Second Bird of Paradise". Loud Planes Fly Low, is the first album produced by The Rosebuds since front-musicians Kelly Crisp and Ivan Howard's divorce. Staying together for the sake of music, this particular album exuded more humanity and vulnerability than anything The Rosebuds produced before. -[Red River Noise]

The Rosebuds spent a Friday night (June 25) in Austin at The Parish, where they linked up with Oax and Other Lives for a show as part of their current ongoing Southwest/West Coast headlining tour. Pictures from the Texas show are in this post.

Its in Justin Vernon's home state of Wisconsin that The Rosebuds will link up with Bon Iver for a string of dates on their way back East, eventually landing at the final two sold-out dates of the tour in NYC, 8/9 at United Palace and 8/10 at Prospect Park Bandshell. Rosebuds tour-mate Other Lives will open shows for Bon Over in September. All dates are listed below.

Speaking of Bon Iver, as you may have heard:

Jill Scott earns her very first No. 1 album on The Billboard 200 with "The Light of the Sun," as the new set starts with 135,000 copies sold last week. The R&B singer's previous charting best was 2004's "Beautifully Human: Words and Sounds, Vol. 2," which peaked at No. 3. Her last studio album before a foray into acting was 2007's "The Real Thing: Words and Sounds, Vol. 3" which made it to No. 4.

Meanwhile, Bon Iver has a big week as the self-titled sophomore set enters at No. 2 with 104,000. These numbers easily best his former highs: his 2009 EP "Blood Bank" debuted and peaked at No. 16 with 23,000. Mastermind Justin Vernon's first album under the moniker, "For Emma Forever Ago," never made it higher on the chart than No. 64. [HitFix]

Loud Planes Fly Low is The Rosebuds new LP, out now via Merge. Look for it at the merch table of one of their tour dates, which are all listed with more pictures from The Parish, below...

Continue reading "The Rosebuds played the Parish w/ Other Lives (who are also touring w/ Billboard #2 Bon iver) -- pics & dates"

photos by Josh Darr

"With Soundgarden grinding out giant slabs of sludgy metal on one end of Grant Park in Chicago, Arcade Fire closed out Lollapalooza with an epic batch of songs from their three critically-acclaimed albums. While they didn't have any costume changes (as Lady Gaga did) or T-shirt cannons (which Green Day had), they still managed to pack a tremendous amount of drama into their set.

For Arcade Fire, it's all in the songs, which use an eclectic combination of instruments (chiming guitars, humming organs, languid strings, ramshackle percussion) to stack bits of melody on top of each other and create a head-spinning swirl of quiet moments, crescendos, comedowns and climaxes. There's a distinct possibility that Arcade Fire are the best band in the world right now, and they do it with exquisite songwriting and passionate commitment.

And sweat. Lots and lots of sweat." [MTV]

Continue reading "Arcade Fire played Lollapalooza (pics, setlist), got the #1 spot on the Billboard chart"

The National @ The High Violet Annex (more by David Andrako)

Combine the downward trend of album sales with a week of no major releases and what do you get? The fewest number of total album sales, 5.3 million, in a single week since Nielsen SoundScan started its tracking in 1991. Topping this week's Billboard chart is Justin Bieber's "My World 2.0" (Island), its fourth time in the spot, with sales of just over 60,000, barely escaping the specter of being the lowest selling No. 1 album in SoundScan's history. (The "Dreamgirls" soundtrack sold about 300 fewer copies in January 2007.) Lady Antebellum's "Need You Now" (Capitol Nashville), the year's most consistent seller, stayed at No. 2 for the fourth straight week, moving 54,000 copies.

The top new album was "High Violet" (4AD) from the National, selling 51,000 copies, good enough for No. 3. [NY Times]

photos by Bao Nguyen

New York band Vampire Weekend sees its sophomore set "Contra" debut at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with 124,000 copies sold according to Nielsen SoundScan. The set is only the 12th independently distributed album to top the Billboard 200 chart since SoundScan began powering the list in May of 1991.
Vampire Weekend not only celebrates its first No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 chart, but the New York band also notches its best sales week yet. The quartet's previous best sales frame was earned when its self-titled first album opened with 28,000 copies in its opening week. That set debuted and peaked at No. 17 on the chart and has since sold 498,000.

"Contra" also is the second independently-distributed album to hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart in the past year. It is distributed by Alternative Distribution Alliance and marks the first indie set to top the tally since Pearl Jam's self-released "Backspacer" debuted at No. 1 on the chart dated Oct. 10, 2009. [Billboard]

Continue reading "Vampire Weekend played Bowery (pics), #1 on Billboard chart"

Moby @ Issue Project Room benefit 4/24 (more by Toby Tenenbaum)

How's it going?
The album just came out and it would be #1 euro charts if not for michael jackson re-releases.
So that's good.
But here's something funny: the best selling itunes track is 'shot in the back of the head'.
Why is that funny?
Because its the track we've been giving away for free for the last 2 months and that we're still givng away for free.
Odd.
How are you?
Moby [via Bob Lefsetz]

Moby is currently on tour in Europe. This fall, he'll be touring North America behind the new album, Wait for Me (which is out now). That includes a Monday, September 21st show at Irving Plaza. Tickets go on Live Nation and Radio presale July 16th at 10am. General sale starts July 17th at 10am. Two videos from his new record, with all tour dates (with more TBA), below...

Continue reading "Moby - new album, free track theories & 2009 tour dates"

"I am plainly shocked that the record has been number one in Europe this week, and I want to pause and thank all the people around the world that made that happen, and who have supported me with so much heart over the last few years, and come to my shows, and collected up all the press from around the world on the justonestar website, and wished me well, and shared some time with me at live shows. Thank you for urging me forward through a glorious dream, the likes of which is more your creation than mine. Antony x"

Antony & the Johnsons @ Keswick Theater in PA (Michael Alan Goldberg / SPIN)

"Antony & the Johnsons' "The Crying Light" (Rough Trade) makes a dramatic debut at No. 1 on Billboard's European Top 100 Albums chart, as Katy Perry's "Hot N Cold" (Virgin/EMI) scores a fourth week atop Eurochart Hot 100 Singles.

"The Crying Light," easily the highest charting of the U.S.-based act's three albums, makes a series of eye-catching debuts across the region. It's in at No. 2 in Spain and Sweden, No. 3 in Denmark, No. 4 in France, Holland and Norway, No. 9 in Italy and No. 18 in the United Kingdom, the latter with sales of 10,000 units. It also climbs 2-1 in the Belgian region of Flanders.

"Light" is the follow-up to 2005's "I Am A Bird Now," which won the U.K.'s Mercury Music Prize for the group led by New Yorker Antony Hegarty. It qualified for the prize because Hegarty was born in the U.K." [Billboard - January 29, 2009]

Continue reading "Antony played Letterman (video), plays NYC tonight & Friday"

Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band in Philly, Oct 6, 2007 (CRED)

"This would mark Springsteen's third No. 1 on The Billboard 200 among his last four studio albums." [Billboard]. AOL is still streaming the album for free.

Bruce's Saturday night Philly setlist below....

Continue reading "Springsteen scores another number one album"