News Roundup: 2/9/2011

Former American Idol champion Fantasia Barrino is set to star in a biopic of legendary gospel singer Mahalia Jackson. Based on the 1993 book Got to Tell It: Mahalia Jackson, Queen of Gospel, the film will be directed by Euzhan Palcy (A Dry White Season) and will depict Jackson’s rise from poverty in New Orleans to success as a gospel star and supporter of civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr. [Billboard.com]
Experimental indie-rock ensemble Battles have finished work on the follow-up to the band’s 2007 debut, Mirrored. Although prospects for finishing the album dimmed after the departure of multi-instrumentalist/vocalist Tyondai Braxton last year, Battles forged onward, with guest artists like Boredom’s Eye lending vocals. The as-yet-untitled album is set for release this summer. [Pitchfork.com]

British garage-punk band the Vaccines have moved up the release date of their debut album. The record, What Did You Expect From The Vaccines?, will now be released on March 14 so as not to compete with the Strokes’ upcoming album, which is set for release on March 21. [NME.com]
American Idol executive producer Nigel Lythgoe is set to launch a new singing competition on CMT. Slated for ten episodes starting in April, CMT’S Next Superstar will feature contestants participating in both business- and performance-related challenges. [MonstersandCritics.com]
The classical music label Decca celebrated a relaunch on Monday under the new name Decca Classics. Already part of the Universal Music Group, Decca Classics will become part of Universal UK under the relaunch. Decca Classics is home to such artists as Vladimir Ashkenazy, Daniel Barenboim, Cecilia Bartoli, Renee Fleming, and others. [Reuters.com]

News Roundup: 2/7/2010

British blues guitarist Gary Moore died at age 58 on Sunday while vacationing in Spain. Moore started the blues-rock band Skid Row with Phil Lynott, who went on to found Thin Lizzy; Moore joined Lynott in the band for two stints, the latter resulting in 1979’s Black Rose. He also worked on Lynott’s 1980 solo album, but Moore was first and foremost a bluesman, playing with B.B. King, Albert Collins, Otis Taylor and John Mayall and issuing his own albums, including 1990’s Still Got the Blues and 2008’s Bad for You Baby. [Blurt-Online.com]
The Super Bowl seemed to feature almost as much music as it did football. Along with the Black Eyed Peas’ halftime performance, one of the game’s most noteworthy musical moments was Christina Aguilera’s fumbled rendition of “The Star-Spangled Banner.” She sang “what so proudly we watched” instead of the correct lyrics, “o’er the ramparts we watched.” Aguilera explained in a statement, “I got so caught up in the moment of the song that I lost my place … I can only hope that everyone could feel my love for this country and that the true spirit of its anthem still came through.” [RollingStone.com]
Meanwhile, Eminem dominated two of the big game’s commercials, appearing in an animated ad for Lipton Brisk Iced Tea and a Chrysler commercial in which he drove through the streets of Detroit to the strains of “Lose Yourself.” [AOLRadioBlog.com]
Much of North America may be covered by snow, but it’s never too early to think about the summer festival season. The Sasquatch Music Festival announced this year’s lineup, which features veteran acts like Foo Fighters, the Flaming Lips, Archers of Loaf and the Decemberists as well as newer faces like Sleigh Bells, Surfer Blood and Best Coast. This year’s event will take place from Friday, May 27 through Monday, May 30. [TheDailySwarm.com]
Speaking of festivals, this year’s Glastonbury’s lineup is starting to emerge, with Coldplay becoming the first announced headlining act. The festival is already sold out, possibly in part because there won’t be a Glastonbury in 2012 due to the London Olympics. [Spinner.com]
As part of the Streets’ last hurrah, Mike Skinner took over The Guardian’s music section and made the last ever Streets song, “Close the Book,” available for download. [Guardian.co.uk]
Whoa, man: Check out NME’s 50 druggiest albums. [Stereogum.com]
A/V Roundup: Download a new song from the Vivian Girls; watch Ted Leo in drag in the New Pornographers’ video for “Moves”; and listen to new albums by PJ Harvey and …And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead. [Artrocker.com; ConsequenceofSound.net; Pitchfork.com]

New uploads on Youtube

I will be uploading some new music videos of Aaron onto Youtube.  Look out for them.

News Roundup: 2/4/2010

Get ready for the Black Eyed Peas’ half-time performance on Sunday, with cameos by Usher and Slash. Also performing during the Superbowl are Christina Aguilera and Lea Michele, who will sing the national anthem and “America the Beautiful,” respectively. Keith Urban and Maroon 5 will also take the stage during the pre-game festivities. [Billboard.com]
Death From Above 1979, who were thought to be permanently disbanded until their inclusion on the bill for Coachella, have begun talking about their reunion. “It’s been five years since Death From Above 1979 played a show,” drummer Sebastian Grainger wrote on the band’s website. “So… why not say yes to Coachella? Why not say yes to playing the music we designed to be an undeniable source of power?” Hey man — you don’t have to convince us. [NME.com]
Forget the Green Lantern. There’s a new green superhero in town, and his name is… Marijuanaman? The comic-book character was created by Ziggy Marley, who will release the accompanying comic book (written by Joe Casey and illustrated by Jim Mahfood) on April 20th. [Spinner.com]
The Billboard charts hit another all-time low this week, with Amos Lee’s Mission Bell scoring the top slot with first-week sales of just 40,000 copies. That’s 4,000 units less than the previous record-breaker, Cake’s Showroom of Compassion, which debuted atop the chart two weeks prior. On a brighter note, this is Lee’s first number one album; his last release, Last Days at the Lodge, peaked at 29. [Variety.com]
Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band are slowly unveiling dates for their 2011 spring tour, few of which venture very far from the songwriter’s Michigan home. The latest show, the third date of what will supposedly be a 20- to 30-date tour, will be held at the Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids. [RollingStone.com]
Luther Campbell, known to most hip hop fans as Luke from 2 Live Crew, is planning to run for mayor of Miami. “I am mad frustrated,” he told the Miami New Times earlier this week, going on to detail his problems with local city officials and his plans to review the budget, build gated communities in the inner city, and enact a tax on local strippers. [MTV.com]

News Roundup: 2/1/2011

Miranda Lambert continues to rack up nominations for her 2009 release, Revolution. She’s up for seven awards at the 46th Academy of Country Music Awards, which airs on April 3rd. Although Lambert earned more nods than any other artist this year, both Kenny Chesney and the Zac Brown Band received five nominations apiece, with Taylor Swift and The Band Perry following closely behind with four. [Billboard.com]
 
Also announced this week were the 2011 Juno Awards nominees, whose names included heavyweights like Arcade Fire, Drake, and Justin Bieber. In honor of the ceremony’s 40th anniversary, a 40th category — Electronic Album of the Year — has also been established, with Caribou, Crystal Castles, Holy F—, Poirier and Chilly Gonzales all competing to be the award’s inaugural winner. [Spinner.com]

Warm It Up: A Blizzard Playlist

We’re battening down the hatches in preparation for the biggest snow attack since 1974, apparently, and the last thing I’m going to do before leaving the compound for higher ground is to post some videos to help keep the pipes from freezing. Summer sunshine, hot licks, car washes, Harriet Wheeler, and shoe-meltingly hot playgrounds just might keep things warm while we’re gone.

News Roundup: 1/31/11

R.I.P. Oscar-winning composer John Barry,who died Sunday in New York at age 77. Barry won five Oscars over thecourse of his career, including one each for the score and theme songto the 1966 movie Born Free, as well as one each for his music for The Lion in Winter, Out of Africa and Dances with Wolves. Barry also wrote the music for a dozen James Bond movies, including 1962’s Dr. No (though his work was not credited), Goldfinger, Thunderball, You Only Live Twice, Diamonds are Forever, Moonraker and 1998’s The Living Daylights,which was his final Bond score. Said Barry in a 1991 Associated Pressinterview, ” “The James Bond movies came because we were successful inthe pop music world, with a couple of big instrumental hits. Theythought I knew how to write instrumental hit music.” Prior to his filmwork, Barry trained as a pianist, took up the trumpet, and founded thejazz group the John Barry Seven in 1957. [Billboard.com]

Composer Milton Babbitt, one of the mostinfluential and polarizing figures in contemporary classical music diedon Saturday, January 29 in Princeton, NJ at the age of 94. He was knownfor the uncompromising complexity of his work, which made strenuousdemands of listeners and gained him a reputation as an exemplar of thekind of “difficult” academic composer whose music drove audiences outof concert halls. He was widely respected by colleagues for the rigorof his discipline and his intellectual integrity, and received a numberof the music world’s highest awards. He is frequently remembered forhis 1956 article (whose title he was not responsible for choosing),“Who Cares if You Listen?” which suggested that, as was the case withphysicists or mathematicians, it was not the concern of seriouscomposers whether or not the general public understood their work.
[NYTimes.com]