Wolfmother to tour for upcoming album

Grammy winning Aussie rock band Wolfmother have released “Pretty Peggy,” the newest track from their upcoming album, Victorious, out Feb. 19 through Universal Music Enterprises. A “Pretty Peggy” lyric video can be viewed HERE.

“Pretty Peggy” follows the premiere of “Victorious,” the kitschy sci-fi companion video to the band’s lead single.

Over the course of the past few weeks, the band has been giving fans a sneak preview of the album, starting with the Zane Lowe/Beats 1 radio show debut of "Victorious" and "City Light." 

Fans can get four songs as instant downloads by clicking HERE to pre-order the album on iTunes. The CD is also available for pre-order through Amazon HERE and pre-orders and exclusive merch bundles are also available at http://smarturl.it/wolfmotherstore.

Wolfmother will be including some of the new songs on their headline tour of North America, set to kick off Feb. 24 in Minneapolis (see full itinerary below). Ticket info is available at www.wolfmother.com.

The follow-up to 2009’s Cosmic Egg and 2014’s New Crown, Victorious spotlights songwriter/vocalist/guitarist Andrew Stockdale’s artistry. It was recorded at Henson Studios in Los Angeles with Grammy winning producer Brendan O’Brien (Pearl Jam, AC/DC, Chris Cornell, Bruce Springsteen).

In addition to vocals, Stockdale played guitar and bass and brought in Josh Freese (Nine Inch Nails, Bruce Springsteen, A Perfect Circle) and Joey Waronker (Air, Beck, REM) to split drum duties.
 
Tour dates:

Feb 24 – Minneapolis, MN – First Ave
Feb 25 – Chicago, IL – Metro
Feb 26 – Detroit, MI – St. Andrews Hall
Feb 27 – Toronto, ON – Danforth Music Hall
Feb 29 – Boston, MA – Paradise Rock Club
Mar 2 – Washington, DC – 9:30 Club
Mar 3 – New York, NY – Webster Hall
Mar 4 – Philadelphia, PA – Trocadero Theatre
Mar 5 – Raleigh, NC – The Ritz
Mar 7 – Atlanta, GA – Center Stage
Mar 8 – Nashville, TN – Marathon Music Works
Mar 9 – Memphis, TN – Minglewood Hall
Mar 11 – Lawrence, KS – Granada Theater
Mar 12 – Oklahoma City, OK – Diamond Ballroom
Mar 14 – Dallas, TX – Granada Theater
Mar 15 – Houston, TX – House of Blues
Mar 21 – El Paso, TX – Tricky Falls
Mar 23 – San Diego, CA – House of Blues
Mar 25 – Santa Ana, CA – The Observatory
Mar 26 – Los Angeles, CA – The Fonda Theatre
Mar 28 – San Francisco, CA – The Fillmore
Mar 30 – Portland, OR – Wonder Ballroom
Mar 31 – Seattle, WA – The Showbox
Apri 1 – Vancouver, BC – Commodore Ballroom

New music series set to air on PBS

Launching nationwide on public television this April is the new series “Live At 9:30” – a modern-day music variety show.

Located in Washington, D.C., the 9:30 Club is among the most-attended music clubs of its size in the world – a 1200-person venue where world-famous artists have started their careers, refined their sounds, and played legendary shows.

Each one-hour episode of “Live At 9:30” will feature a collection of acts from different genres, interspersed with insightful and entertaining interviews, short films, and comedic bits.

It is filmed with more than a dozen cameras, including hidden GoPros and an airborne cable-cam.

The first three episodes of the 12-episode premiere season will feature performances by Garbage, The Arcs, Tove Lo, Ibeyi, El Vy, MisterWives, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Frank Turner, MS MR, Cold War Kids, Youth Lagoon, and Jess Glynne.

Wayne White, of “Pee-wee’s Playhouse” fame, will be “Live At 9:30’s” art director. Episodes will feature different contributors and hosts, including Henry Rollins, NPR Music’s Bob Boilen, Hannibal Buress, Jill Kargman, Ralphie May, and others.

Squarespace will host the digital destination of the show on www.LiveAt930.com. The first "Live At 9:30" teaser reel and show stills can be viewed on the site. This spring, fans will have the opportunity to view full episodes and access exclusive content.

“We’ve been approached countless times to do a TV show here, and we’ve always passed,” said Seth Hurwitz, chairman of I.M.P. and co-owner of the 9:30 Club. “But ‘Live At 9:30’ is a great opportunity to work with people we trust to bring music variety to life in a way no one has even attempted. When I said we had no interest in just another concert program, they totally got it. They have come up with a truly entertaining bunch of new ideas on how to change the way people watch live concert shows.”

“I’ve been going to the 9:30 Club for 20 years, and my favorite concert memories are from here,” said Michael Holstein, executive producer of ‘Live At 9:30’. “This club is pure magic. Seeing how the community has rallied around this show – artists, managers, the D.C. Office of Cable Television, Film, Music, and Entertainment and more – that really drives home that this is much more than just a music club. For the 9:30 Club to trust us to make a TV show about this amazing institution is an awesome opportunity and responsibility.”

Contributing hosts include:

Henry Rollins – former front man for seminal punk band Black Flag, actor, spoken word artist, radio host, columnist, author
Bob Boilen – host and creator of NPR Music’s “All Songs Considered” and creator of Tiny Desk Concert
Hannibal Buress – comedian, writer, star of Comedy Central’s “Why? With Hannibal Buress” and “Broad City”
Jill Kargman – creator, star of Bravo’s “Odd Mom Out,” novelist, writer for Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, Interview
Ralphie May – stand up comedian, “Last Comic Standing” and “Unruly”

Shonen Knife go on an 'Adventure'

Osaka, Japan's legendary all girl pop punk trio Shonen Knife will be celebrating their 35th anniversary in 2016 with the release of new album Adventure on April 1 via Good Charamel Records in the US.

 

The release will be followed by a worldwide tour which will hit North American shores in the Fall.

Featuring sisters and original members, vocalist/guitarist Naoko and bassist Atsuko with newest member Risa on drums, Shonen Knife recorded the new album in their hometown of Osaka in late '15. It is the follow up to 2014's Overdrive.

 

Among the 10 new tracks are first single "Jump Into the New World" and others where they cover pop culture topics like the concert t-shirt ("Rock N’ Roll T-shirt"), spicy condiments ("Wasabi"), and dreamy technicolor fluff ("Cotton Candy Clouds").

Listen to "Jump Into the New World" here:
http://www.stereogum.com/1857400/shonen-knife-jump-into-the-new-world-stereogum-premiere/mp3s/

While Japanese culture has seen growing interest in the Western World as of late, the band has enjoyed sharing their ever-evolving career for decades, touring the world with rock royalty such as Nirvana, Sonic Youth, BMX Bandits and Redd Kross.

 

With appearances on Lollapalooza, MTV’s 120 Minutes, Beavis & Butthead as well as a well-received tribute to The Carpenters where they covered "Top of the World" in past decades, Shonen Knife have had no problem making a name for themselves.

More Monkees studio album news

Today, I received a press release with even more details on the new Monkees studio album...
 
The Monkees are ready to have some fun this year as the iconic band celebrates its 50th anniversary with a tour and the group's first new album in 20 years, appropriately titled GOOD TIMES!.

GOOD TIMES! features all three surviving band members - Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith, and Peter Tork. The unmistakable voice of the late Davy Jones is also included with a vintage vocal featured on one song. To produce the new album, the band found the perfect musical co-conspirator in Grammy® and Emmy®-winning songwriter Adam Schlesinger (Fountains Of Wayne, Ivy). GOOD TIMES! will be available June 10 on CD and digitally, with a vinyl version coming out on July 1.

Much like The Monkees' early albums, GOOD TIMES! features tracks written specifically for the band by some of the music world's most gifted songwriters, including Rivers Cuomo (Weezer), Ben Gibbard (Death Cab for Cutie), Andy Partridge (XTC), and Zach Rogue (Rogue Wave) as well as a song co-written by Noel Gallagher and Paul Weller. The album also includes songwriting contributions by Nesmith ("I Know What I Know") and Tork as well as producer Schlesinger.

To help bring the anniversary full circle, The Monkees completed songs for GOOD TIMES! that were originally recorded and written for the group during the 60s, including "Love To Love" by Neil Diamond, which features a vintage vocal by Jones. Harry Nilsson wrote the title track "Good Times!" which he recorded at a session with Nesmith in January 1968.

The production was never completed, so the band returned to the original session tape (featuring Nilsson's guide vocal) and have created a duet with his close friend Dolenz. "Good Times!" will mark the first time Dolenz and Nilsson have sung together since Dolenz' May 1973 single "Daybreak." Other vintage 1960's tracks included on GOOD TIMES! feature L.A.'s famed "Wrecking Crew" of session musicians.

"This is one of the most exciting Monkee projects I've been involved in for decades!" says Dolenz. "Working with Adam Schlesinger has been a pure delight and the opportunity to sing a duet with my old buddy, Harry Nilsson, is just beyond cool!"

In other Monkees news, the band will release the entire series of "The Monkees" television show on Blu-ray for the very first time. All 58 episodes have been painstakingly restored in high-definition from the original film negatives. The 10-disc Blu-ray collection also includes the 1968 cult-classic "Head," along with many never-before-seen outtakes from the film.

Limited to 10,000 individually numbered pieces, the set will be available April 29 and can be purchased exclusively at Monkees.com for $199.98.

During the band's time together, The Monkees amassed a dozen Top 40 hits, including a trio of tunes that soared to #1. Between September 1966 and December 1967, "Last Train To Clarksville," "I'm A Believer," and "Daydream Believer" collectively occupied the top position for 12 weeks.

Sales of their LPs were more phenomenal still: The Monkees occupied the #1 position for 13 consecutive weeks, and More Of The Monkees for 18 weeks. Both Headquarters and Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn & Jones Ltd. went to the top as well, for a four-in-a-row feat in the incomprehensible space of 13 months. The final tally: 16 million albums and 7.5 million singles sold in a mere 2 1/2 years.

The Monkees' 50th Anniversary Tour and new album

Micky Dolenz and Peter Tork will launch a Monkees 50th Anniversary Tour on May 18. The jaunt boasts nearly 50 North American dates through the end of the year including a homecoming gig at the Pantages Theater in Los Angeles on September 16.

 

Meanwhile, The Monkees first new album in nearly 20 years, Good Times!, is due out June 10. It features songs written for the group by Rivers Cuomo, Ben Gibbard and Andy Partridge (XTC). It also contains songs by Harry Nilsson, Neil Diamond, Tork and Nesmith.  Monkees member Davy Jones, who died in 2012, appears posthumously. 

 

Tickets go on sale February 12 and all tickets purchased through Ticketmaster will come with a free digital download of the new album. 

 

Tour Dates:

May
18-Fort Myers, FL----Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts Hall
19-Melbourne, FL----King Center for the Performing Arts
20-Tampa, FL----Ruth Eckerd Hall
21-Atlanta, GA----Frederick Brown Jr. Amphitheater
24-Charlotte, NC----Blumenthal PAC - Belk Theater
26-Washington, DC----Warner Theatre
27-Boston, MA----The Wilbur Theatre
28-Philadelphia, PA----Keswick Theatre
29-Red Bank, NJ----Count Basie Theatre

June
1- New York, NY----The Town Hall
3- Toronto, ON----Casino Rama - Entertainment Centre
4- Windsor, ON----The Colosseum at Caesars Windsor
5- Cleveland, OH----Hard Rock Live Northfield Park
7- Fort Wayne, IN----Foellinger Theatre
10-Louisville, KY----Louisville Palace Theatre
11-Hammond, IN----The Venue At Horseshoe Casino
12-Indianapolis, IN----Murat Theatre at Old National Centre
14-Dayton, OH----Rose Music Center at The Heights
28-Dallas, TX----AT&T PAC – Winspear Opera House
30-Tulsa, OK----Hard Rock Hotel & Casino – The Joint

July
1- Mayetta, KS----Prairie Band Casino & Resort – Grand Lakes Ballroom
16-Hampton Beach, NH----Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom
22-Hot Springs, AR----Oaklawn Racing and Gaming – Finish Line Theater

September
14-Tucson, AZ---- Fox Tucson Theatre
15-Phoenix, AZ----Mesa Arts Center – Ikeda Theater
16-Los Angeles, CA----Pantages Theatre
17-Las Vegas, NV----Primm Valley Casino Resorts – Star of the Desert Arena
20-San Francisco, CA----The Warfield
21-Modesto, CA----Gallo Center For The Arts
23-Lincoln City, OR----Chinook Winds Casino Resort
24-Lincoln City, O----Chinook Winds Casino Resort
25-Seattle, WA----The Moore Theatre

October
1- Biloxi, MS----Hard Rock Live Biloxi
22-Paso Robles, CA----Vina Robles Amphitheatre
29-Shippensburg, PA----Shippensburg University – H. Ric Luhrs PAC

The Raveonettes Single of the Month subscription series

Sune Rose Wagner and Sharin Foo of The Raveonettes recently released a new track titled ‘This World Is Empty (Without You)’ as part of a series of releases.

The Danish duo band have created an official Rave-Sound-of-the-Month playlist where they’ll be uploading a freshly recorded track every month from now until the end of the year.

They’re breaking with the norm and creating what they’re labelling an 'anti-album'. A collection of songs that aren't bound by the constraints of the format.

Wagner said of ‘This World Is Empty (Without You)’, “Writing a simple song's super hard and challenging so it took awhile for this one to be just right. The music, the words, the vibe, everything has to be just perfect. It’s one of the only songs I’ve ever written where adding a guitar simply didn’t work, not sure why, just happens I guess. The beat is my take on an 80’s Freestyle beat ala Debbie Deb, and the overall vibe of the song is much darker for sure.” 

The duo will follow this track up on the last Friday of every month until December, when they’ll deliver the final track of this body of work. 

To subscribe to the monthly playlist, go to: www.theraveonettes.com

Cyndi Lauper goes country

Cyndi Lauper's celebrated musical journey takes an unexpected southern turn on DETOUR, her 11th studio album, which finds the Grammy®, Emmy® and Tony®-winning singer-songwriter putting her signature spin on a dozen classic country songs.

DETOUR showcases Lauper's unmistakable voice on country classics from the '40s, '50s and '60s and features guest appearances from county music stars Vince Gill, Emmylou Harris, Alison Krauss, and Willie Nelson. Lauper recorded the album in Nashville alongside a band comprised of the city's top session players.

The album is Lauper's first for Sire Records and is executive produced by legendary Sire founder, Seymour Stein. DETOUR will be available May 6 on CD ($18.98), LP ($24.98), and digitally.

Lauper says recording a country album is something she's dreamed about for many years. Growing up, she recalls listening to singers like Patsy Cline, Loretta Lynn, and Wanda Jackson in her Aunt Gracie's kitchen. "When I was a really young kid, country music was pop music, so this is what we grew up listening to. These songs are part of some of my earliest memories so it has been an absolute thrill to revisit them."

Lauper sounds right at home from the start, beginning with the album opener, "Funnel Of Love," a track Wanda Jackson, the Queen of Rockabilly, recorded in 1960. Another highlight is the rollicking take on "Heartaches By The Number," a country standard previously covered by everyone from George Jones to Waylon Jennings to Dwight Yoakum. DETOUR also features stunning covers of two classic Pasty Cline songs, "Walkin' After Midnight" and her #1 smash, "I Fall To Pieces." Lauper says, "I spent a lot of time in my room singing with Patsy. I had to sing a Patsy Cline song - or two - because her voice was like one of my girlfriends. That's how close I felt to her."

For the album, Lauper duets with several special guests, including country music royalty: Emmylou Harris (on the title track), Willie Nelson ("Night Life," a song he wrote over 50 years ago), Vince Gill (Loretta Lynn and Conway Twitty's "You're The Reason Our Kids Are Ugly") and Alison Krauss (Dolly Parton's "Hard Candy Christmas." Jewel also makes an appearance on DETOUR, showcasing her prodigious yodeling skills on "I Want To Be A Cowboy's Sweetheart," which was the first country song by a woman to sell one million copies.