DOWNLOAD: The Superions - Fruitcake (YACHT remix) (MP3)

Destination...Christmas, the new Christmas album by The Superions (featuring Fred Schneider of the B-52's) is available for just $5.00 at Amazon. The original version of "Fruitcake" can be heard in the official video below....

Continue reading "YACHT & Fred Schneider made a 'Fruitcake' (MP3 & video) "

tonight in NYC
* Brooklyn Hip Hop Festival
* Nominon, Evoken @ Bowery Electric
* Tony Malaby's Novela @ The Stone
* Lady Gaga @ Madison Square Garden
* Katzenjammer, Um @ Mercury Lounge
* Prince Rama, La Big Vic @ Glasslands
* She & Him, Eugene Mirman @ Terminal 5
* B-52s, Supercluster @ Highline Ballroom
* Beirut, Woom @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
* The Nels Cline Singers @ (Le) Poisson Rouge
* Cary Brothers, Greg Laswell, Harper Blynn @ Maxwell's
* The Felix Hernandez Rhythm Review @ Soundview Park
* Liturgy, Child Abuse, White Suns, The Dreebs @ Death By Audio
* Milkfat, HolidayHoliday, Fredericks Brown, The London Souls @ The Cameo
* Ed Kowalczyk (of Live) @ the 2nd Annual Hudson Square Music & Wine Festival

Now that tonight's B-52's show is sold out and about to be over, maybe they'll announce who the special guest is for the August 19th show in Coney Island.

Liturgy is NOT playing Death By Audio tonight. Greg is sick and they had to cancel.

She & Him play Termoinal 5 tonight. Maybe you caught them on the 4th of July on Governors Island.

New Books video for "A Cold Freezin' Night", below...

"amanda palmer getting filmed in a bathtub for the "No Surprises" radiohead ukulele video" below...

What else?

Continue reading "What's going on Tuesday?"

The full schedules for this year's Asser Levy/Seaside concerts and MLK Wingate Field shows are posted below. The Seaside series in Coney Island will go on despite the debate over the bandshell's renovations. There's still one TBA on the Seaside schedule (which we have some hints about).

Full schedules for both are below...

Continue reading "2010 Coney Island & Wingate Field concert schedules"

The B-52's @ Hammerstein Ballroom - Halloween 2008 (photo by Faith-Ann Young)

tonight in NYC
* DANCE
* Xtreme @ Highbridge Park
* Marc Ribot @ Hudson Square
* Mugison @ Pete's Candy Store
* Regina Spektor @ Barnes & Noble
* B-52s @ Beach at Governors Island
* DJ Premier vs. Pete Rock @ Red Hook Park
* Steve Ruel Quartet w/ Tyshawn Sorey @ The Stone
* The Breeders, Whispertown 2000 @ Bowery Ballroom
* Lemonade, Cale Parks, Dinowalrus, Teengirl Fantasy @ Santos Party House
* Ambulance Ltd., The Picture, Savoir Adore, Melati Malay @ Mercury Lounge
* June Madrona, Cabinet of Natural Curiosities, Little Gold, Fall Harbor @ Cake Shop
* Love & Rockets tribute release show w/ Frankenstein 3000, David Johansen, more @ Ben Sherman Store

Free outdoor music tonight includes a DJ battle of DJ Premier vs. Pete Rock hosted by Danny Castro of Lyricist Lounge at Red Hook Park and Xtreme plays Highbridge Park.

City Winery presents a rain date for Marc Ribot's Ceramic Dog with special guest Eszter Balint at the final show of its free, outdoor Hudson Square series.

De La Soul was supposed to play at Ortley Surf Club in NJ tonight, but apparently it's been cancelled.

Regina Spektor plays a free show at Barnes & Noble Union Square. She plays Radio City on October 14th.

The Ben Sherman Store in Soho (95 Spring St) hosts the release party for New Tales To Tell: A Tribute To Love And Rockets, out today, with music from Frankenstein 3000, Earl Slick, Dennis Dunaway and David Johansen. The party starts at 8.00pm. Video of VEX covering Love and Rockets' "It Could Be Sunshine", below...

The B-52s play the Beach at Governors Island. First person to email BVCONTESTS@HOTMAIL.COM (subject: B52s) gets a free pair of tickets. Include your first and last name.

The Breeders kick off two nights at the Bowery Ballroom. Whispertown 2000 opens.

Lemonade and Cale Parks launch their tour together at Santos with Dinowalrus and Teengirl Fantasy.

Ambulance Ltd., The Picture, Savoir Adore and Melati Malay play Mercury Lounge. Last night was at Union Hall.

Mugison is playing a free show in every NYC borough today. SI and Queens were earlier today, but you can still catch him at Bronx River Art Center (5pm), City Winery (8pm) and Pete's Candy Store (11pm). Why?

...to create awareness and support for the pioneering worldwide human rights advocacy group. In association with local art and music collectives, Mugison will play one free concert in each of New York's five boroughs in one day, August 18th. A limited edition event poster will be offered at the shows and proceeds will benefit Amnesty International.

The Stone's August curator, drummer Tyshawn Sorey, returns to the venue tonight after a stint in Europe. He joins saxist Steve Ruel (who also plays with the Stone's early set) in a quartet.

Ricky Gervais reps the NY Comedy Festival, which presents him at Carnegie Hall in November, in a video below.

What else?

Continue reading "What's going on Tuesday?"

"The Highline Ballroom, along with Liberty Event Management & Water Taxi Beach, is proud to announce the Beach on Governors Island. This unique venue will quickly become New York's premier live outdoor venue, resting on the coast of the New York Harbor, providing stunning views of Lower Manhattan. In addition to the concert area, the Beach will feature a café, several bars, and a shaded courtyard beer garden. The Beach isn't just a concert venue; it's an experience.

Governors Island, in the heart of New York Harbor, is only 800 yards from Lower Manhattan, and even closer to Brooklyn. The Beach @ Governor's Island, will operate in conjunction with NY Water Taxi, who will be providing continuous ferry service to the island for ticket holders on their fleet of boats." [The Beach on Governors Island]

The beach, which is currently a parking lot (I heard they drop the sand around July 4th), will be operating a lot like Water Taxi Beach in Long Island City. You can take a water taxi there and hang on the beach, and drink and eat. Most days will be deejays, and AEG and Highline Ballroom are working with Water Taxi to also bring bands there. The stage will be set up at the end of the beach, and you'll watch from the sand (or at least some people will... I think there will be some non-sand places to watch from too). The first big beach show announced is The B-52's...

The Highline Ballroom is proud to announce the addition of The B-52s to our second annual Governors Island Concert Series: The Beach on Governors Island. The B-52s on The Beach will be a rain-or-shine, all-ages performance scheduled for August 18th on beautiful Governors Island, located only 800 yards off of Lower Manhattan.

To add to the fun, the fifty-two girls (and "girls") attending the show dressed in the most creative beach or nautical attire (sailor suits, bikinis, marine uniforms, mermaid costumes, etc) attending the concert will be given free tickets to a future show at The Highline Ballroom.

Tickets for that show are currently on AmEx presale. General sale starts Monday, June 29th. Girls, ready your nautical attire. Guys leave it at home?

Other acts at the Beach this summer include Erykah Badu on August 4th, and a free show with Tragedy, an "All Metal Tribute to the Bee Gees". Many more shows TBA, but you can see the full lineup for now, below. Some shows are free. $52 tickets for Erykah Badu go on sale Saturday, June 27th at noon.

The Highline/AEG-produced shows aren't the only music events on Governors Island this summer, though not all events there happen on the beach. Folks on the Island will happen on the island, and, Punk Island, a Make Music NY event in its second year, took place there on Sunday, June 21st. How did that show go? It looks like, despite the rain, headliner Reagan Youth drew a pretty sizeable crowd. Videos below.

The B-52s performing "Love Shack" with country act Sugarland at the CMT Awards on June 26th, is also below, along with with the full Beach at Governors Island schedule with all upcoming B-52s tour dates...

Continue reading "concerts on the BEACH ON GOVERNORS ISLAND - Erykah Badu, the B-52s & more TBA ++ Punk Island happened"

!!! is playing ACL 2009 (more by Chris Graham)

"The 2009 Austin City Limits Music Festival will showcase a diverse blend of acts both fresh and familiar at the eighth edition of the event in Zilker Park October 2-4. Pearl Jam, Dave Matthews Band, and Beastie Boys are performing for the first time at the Festival, with Kings of Leon, Ben Harper and Relentless7, and Thievery Corporation returning to Zilker Park once again. John Legend, The Dead Weather, and The Levon Helm Band will also make their ACL Festival debut, while Austin's own Ghostland Observatory will no doubt deliver another memorable set for festival goers.

With over 130 artists on this year's bill, the list of acts awes at each note with the likes of Sonic Youth, Mos Def, Toadies, Flogging Molly, The B-52s, Lily Allen, Citizen Cope, Arctic Monkeys, The Decemberists, Coheed and Cambria, Andrew Bird, Girl Talk, and many more.

In the tradition of the TV show from which it was born, the Festival has always aimed to offer musical discovery for the fans. The 2009 lineup is rich with pop, country, folk, bluegrass, blues, reggae, indie rock, hip-hop, and gospel, to name a few, spanning cultures and countries from New Orleans to Venezuela to France."

The entire 2009 lineup is below...

Continue reading "ACL (Austin City Limits) - 2009 festival lineup announcement"

Love it or hate it, licensing songs seems to be the new reality for "indie" bands (or any bands) looking to make money and gain exposure. As an avid music fan and Senior Director of Advertising & Video Games at Primary Wave Music Publishing, Ryan Barkan makes sure to stay on top of news related to artists getting their songs in ads, on TV, in movies, in video games and just about anywhere else a band would get paid to put a song. As someone who never pays attention to any of that, I thought the site could use a weekly column to identify who sold out this week help fill in what I'm missing (think M.I.A. in the Pineapple Express commercial, Nick & Norah, Santogold shilling Bud Light, Chairlift & CSS for Apple, etc..). For that...please welcome Ryan (who also goes by the blog and photographer name "Fresh Bread")....

---

by Ryan Barkan

Microsoft's Halo 3 video game commercial was so amazing that it won the Grand Prix (i.e. best of show) at this past year's Cannes Advertising Awards, in June, in the "Film" ad category. The spot, titled "Believe", was created by San Francisco advertising agency T.A.G. and featured the dramatically delicate "Raindrop Prelude No 15" by Chopin against a violent and disturbing war scene.

Another huge 2008 release for Microsoft is the upcoming sequel to the game Gears of War, creatively called....wait for it...Gears Of War 2 (available November 7th exclusively on Xbox360). What works once should work again right? T.A.G. thought so and took the same approach with the music as they did with the "Believe" spot, juxtaposing the hard war visuals against a beautiful song, but this time with a more contemporary artist, Devotchka. The beautiful song they used by the Colorado band is called "How It Ends" and the trailer will debut on network television this Sunday, November 2, during NFL Sunday Night Football. You can also watch it right now. The video for that, and of the full version of "Believe", are below.

----------

Other Notable Licensing News:

The Walmart-exclusive AC/DC edition of Rock Band is out November 2nd and now MTV/Harmonix have announced a Beatles video game that will be based on the "Rock Band" engine, but not branded "Rock Band". "The Best Of The Who" edition of Rock Band was released in July as DLC (downloadable content).

Hypebeast has the info on a new line of Miles Davis-inspired T-shirts by urban boutique and shoe company, Supreme.

Flaming Lips, the B-52's, BB King and others were commissioned by NBC to create their own interpretation of the network's classic "Chime In"...

You may not know that the notes to NBC's famous chimes are G, E, and C, but chances are you'd recognize the Peacock jingle in an instant. With that in mind, executives at the network decided to have some fun with their famous chimes and launched a national campaign calling for a 21st century reinvention of the 75-year-old television staple. [Hollywood Insider]

Wayne Coyne talks about it in an interview to EW you can watch HERE.

What do Friendly Fires, The Duke Spirit, The Submarines, The Black Keys, Black Kids, The Virgins, and Robyn have in common? They've all had songs featured in an episode of Gossip Girl this month.

What about Lykke Li, Passion Pit and The Kooks? Well, as you may have read earlier, they'll all be appearing in future episodes of Gossip Girl/OC-creator Josh Schwartz's new "music-themed scripted web series" Rockville, CA.

I really dig the new spot for the Google Android Phone. The commercial features a song by The Black Angels called "Black Grease" - not sure if it'll convince me to switch from the iPhone but it's a nice placement nonetheless. Video below...

Continue reading "It's Not Selling Out Anymore -- This Week in Music Licensing"

The B-52s are playing a show at Hammerstein Ballroom in NYC on November 1st, 2008. In 2007 they played a show on Halloween with The Rapture at Roseland. This year they play the day after Halloween with Hercules & Love Affair and Special Disco Version (James Murphy and Pat Mahoney deejaying). Both years cost $50. Tickets are on sale (@ 10am).

Hercules & Love Affair and The B-52's also have a bunch of other fall shows scheduled without each other. All dates are listed below....

Continue reading "Hercules & Love Affair tour dates, the B-52s, James Murphy"

Tickets Only Available Through New York Public Television Stations

Continue reading "The Police's final concert will be @ Madison Square Garden"

The Today show hosts free outdoor "concerts" at 7:00am on Fridays at Rockefeller Center in NYC. This past Monday (Memorial Day) was the B-52's who have a new album out called Funplex. The bizarro-world videos from that performance and interview, and the rest of the 'TODAY Toyota Concert Series' 2008 summer schedule below.....

Continue reading "2008 TODAY Toyota concert series schedule & B-52s videos "

The B-52's @ Roseland Ballrooom, NYC - Oct 31, 2007 (CRED)

File under "REALLY?" -- "THE B-52'S TO RELEASE FIRST STUDIO ALBUM IN 16 YEARS ON ASTRALWERKS FEBRUARY 26, 2008". More below....

Continue reading "The B-52's played Roseland, releasing new album"