This letter, signed by a ton of artists and pictured above, is set to appear in an ad in Billboard:

We are big fans of Pandora. That's why we helped give the company a discount on rates for the past decade.

Pandora is now enjoying phenomenal success as a Wall Street company. Skyrocketing growth in revenues and users. We celebrate that. At the same time, the music community is just now beginning to gain its footing in the new digital world.

Pandora's principal asset is the music.

Why is the company asking Congress once again to step in and gut the royalties that thousands of musicians rely upon? That's not fair, and that's not how partners work together.
Congress has many pressing issues to consider, but this is not one of them. Let's work this out as partners and continue to bring fans the great musical experience they rightly expect.

Pink Floyd, Down, Primus, Dead Kennedys (with our without Jello?), Nas, Alabama, Sheryl Crow and many more big major label names signed this (or someone signed it on their behalf). Check out the full list below, and head to fairpayforartists.com for more information on their point of view..

The issue is that Pandora is supporting the Internet Radio Fairness Act which they say will "help end the long-standing discrimination against internet radio". Artists are mad because that possibly means less money for them, but Pandora and other Internet radio providers argue they can't stay in business the way things are now.

Continue reading "A bunch of artists wrote an open letter to Pandora who support the Internet Radio Fairness Act"

WU LYF @ Mercury Lounge in July (more by Dana (distortion) Yavin)

today in NYC
* Sting @ Roseland Ballroom
* Slavic Soul Party @ Barbes
* Jay Reatard movie screening
* Thundercat @ Le Poisson Rouge
* The Ocean, Family @ Saint Vitus
* Michael Dessen Trio @ The Stone
* Matt & Kim @ Windows Phone thing again
* The Fling, Floating Action @ Maxwell's
* Motoko Honda, Jesse Gilbert @ The Stone
* Jay-Z, Kanye West @ Madison Square Garden
* Joan Baez, Kris Kristofferson @ Beacon Theatre
* Ski Lodge, The Denzels, Rarechild @ Brooklyn Bowl
* Kleenex Girl Wonder, The New Lines @ The Rock Shop
* WU LYF, Crystal Antlers @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
* The Sea and Cake, Brokeback, Adam's Castle @ Bowery Ballroom
* Darius Jones, Shahzad Ismaily, Ryan Sawyer, Sam Amidon @ Union Pool
* Slim Cessna's Auto Club, Joe Fletcher & The Wrong Reasons @ Mercury Lounge
* Chappo, Dynasty Electric, Northern Bells, Bridges & Powerlines @ Glasslands
* Strange Shapes, Trevor Wilson, I Love You, Relatives @ Big Snow Buffalo Lodge
* Red Dwarf, Newport Reds, Porches, Snuffy, Slam Down Birthday Cake @ Death By Audio
* My Favorite Things, Pure Horsehair, Pete Vogl, Shahzad Ismaily, Sugarlife @ Zebulon
* Ensemble Signal, Brad Lubman, JACK Quartet (In Memoriam Henryk Mikolaj Górecki) @ Le Poisson Rouge

David Crosby and Graham Nash played for Occupy Wall Street today.

What else?

Bruce Springsteen & Tom Morello @ MSG (BMoreSweet)

U2 closed the second night of the MSG Rock & Roll Hall of Fame shows on October 30th. At the first (10/29), it was Bruce Springsteen & Billy Joel (before one big group sing on Jackie Wilson's "Higher and Higher")...

After "Badlands" much of the drained audience began leaving and then rushed back to their seats when Billy Joel sat down at the piano and launched into "You May Be Right," "Only The Good Die Young" and "New York State Of Mind." (The pair were uniting the kindred spirits of New Jersey and Long Island, Springsteen explained.) "Higher and Higher" wrapped up the night. The official set list had the show ending at 11:36:55 (yes, they thought they had it down to the exact second), but the final notes rang out at 1:31 a.m. Six straight hours of music, and that was just the first of two nights. [Rolling Stone]

Bruce was actually there both nights (one of many possibly "filling in" for Eric Clapton, who canceled last minute on the second). Those in attendence on the 30th got to see U2, Bruce Springsteen and Patti Smith sing together on "Because the Night." (And U2 + Mick Jagger (another unannounced guest) + Fergie + Will.i.am sing "Gimme Shelter"...). Ray Davies, Lou Reed, and Ozzy Osbourne all performed with Metallica. Many played with Stevie Wonder. Full setlists below.

HBO will be airing four hours of highlights on Thanksgiving weekend.
(November 29th at 8PM ET).

Bruce's current tour wraps up November 22nd in Buffalo. He was at Giants Stadium earlier this fall, playing the last concerts ever there. U2 also played the venue for two nights in September, and will be back in Jersey in 2010 as part of their just-announced tour.

Set lists for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame shows are below...

Continue reading "Rock & Roll Hall of Fame hosted 2 very long shows @ MSG (setlists), will air on HBO Thanksgiving weekend"