BIG BIG News! Fans of dancehall and reggae have often discussed the elements of homophobia, racism, sexism, and other nasties in Jamaican music. The music industry goes through cycles of acceptance and rejection of these messages in music. ([More →])

Enjoy some gas. Not the globally warming CO2 gas that is already in excess, but pure oxygen! The microscopics label has re-mastered and re-released gas 0095 as the premiere release on their “new” label. ([More →])

Eve has a new album coming out on August 7th, titled Here I Am. The first single, “Tambourine” features Swizz Beats (see the vid below) while the second single, “Give It To You” features the lovely lady wiggling on the hip of Sean Paul. ([More →])

White Noise is reissuing their debut LP, An Electric Storm! Originally released in 1969 by members of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop, the recording has been remastered and will be reissued on July 2nd in the UK. ([More →])

Do you know where Buju Banton, Lady G, Doug E. Fresh, Inner Circle, Leon & The Peoples, BB Seaton & The Gaylads and more will be enjoying their 4th of July weekend? In Chicago, at the International Festival Of Life. All these artists plus more will be rocking and crooning to crowds of all ages and all backgrounds. ([More →])

Southern Lord is giving away FREE STUFF including tickets to west coast shows on the 777 Tour, Sunn O)))/Boris LPs and Southern Lord goodies. This is your chance if you don’t already have tickets to see Earth, Sunn O))), Wolves In The Throneroom, and Weedeater in either LA, San Diego, Portland or Seattle. ([More →])

BIG NEWS Sonic Youth Fans of the South! Sonic Youth just announced 2 new headlining shows plus a FREE show all in Texas!
([More →])

It looks like Mr. J Medeiros has started his own youtube channel. Check it out, he’s even started a video blog! Here is the first video from the blog, go to his channel to see the sequel:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_1DCwv4mVU]

Medeiros Channel on youtube

And, YES! The interview with the founder of The Procussions is finished and will be posted here within the next few hours! Keep a lookout! Or sign up for the RSS or email delivery and have it sent directly while the ink is still fresh! Just use the link in the sidebar on the right for your choice of RSS (works with all readers) or email delivery, OR to add HT to your google homepage as a widget.

No matter how you get your daily dose of hearing tests, thanks for tuning in!

The Roots are preparing to release their 10th album, currently being called Rising Down. ?uestlove took some time out to discuss the upcoming release with Aqua at AllHipHop.com and says that this release is going to be just as exciting as previous albums, with some songs coming across real strong. For example:

“Malik B is on this album more than he was on Game Theory,” divulged ?uestlove. “Peedi just dropped his [verse] and he set a bar so high I don’t even know if we can follow it. I don’t want to use the cliché, ‘It’s crazy!,’ but I’m excited about it.”

?uestlove also states that The Roots are very grateful to have 10 chances to refine and promote their message and that they continue to push the envelope of what they can do for hip hop. As usual, the band will be recording an insane amount of material and then pulling out what they want to use on the album. So far, the album is proving synth-heavy with Kamal tapping the keys more than plucking the Fender Rhodes. ?uestlove added, “I will call this the synth record.”

The album has not been compiled yet, but will be released on Def Jam some time this year.

The Roots LINKS

?uestlove Interview on AllHipHop.com
Official band website
Music$pace

Spoon’s frontman Britt Daniel spoke briefly with NME magazine about the upcoming Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga. Daniel talks about recording in Austin, stories written during the end of his previous relationship, and how he feels that this is the best record the band has ever made. I think I agree with that last statement. Click over to NME to see what you agree with:

NME Speaks With Britt Daniels

Launching your artwork into the world can be a whirlwind of manic activity, especially when it’s your first time. Mr. J Medeiros is not new to releasing albums, he’s put out 3 albums as a member of the Procussions. But putting a solo work out into the world is a whole new game. ([More →])

The Cribs are enjoying massive success at home with the release of their newest album, Men’s Needs, Women’s Needs, Whatever. You can bet they will be playing new material from Needs on the US and UK tours that the band just announced. First a whirlwind US tour with 14 shows spanning a mere two and a half weeks, leading up to their performance at Lollapalooza fest on August 5th. They play a festival in Belgium and a few shows in the UK in August, then a full UK tour in October. Tickets for the US and the UK tour went on sale this weekend exclusively from The Cribs’ website. The trio played the Glastonbury Festival this past weekend, and did this interview with NME before jumping on stage:

Video of Cribs Interview:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R3L1GvKX88M]

US TOUR:

July 2007
23 - San Diego, CA - The Casbah
24 - West Hollywood, CA - The Troubadour
25 - San Francisco, CA - Slim’s
27 - Portland, OR - Doug Fir Lounge
28 - Seattle, WA - Capitol Hill Block Party
29 - Vancouver, British Columbia - Richard’s on Richards

August 2007
1 - Minneapolis, MN - The Turf Club
2 - Milwaukee, WI - Pabst Theatre
4 - Chicago, IL - Empty Bottle
5 - Chicago, IL - Lollapalooza
6 - Detroit, MI - Magic Stick
7 - Toronto, Ontario - Lee’s Palace
9 - New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom
10 - Philadelphia, PA - Johnny Brenda’s
11 - Washington, DC - The Black Cat

UK TOUR:

OCTOBER
05 Birmingham - Carling Academy
06 Sheffield - University
07 Norwich - UEA
09 Dundee - Fat Sams Live
10 Edinburgh - Potterrow
11 Bradford - University
13 Oxford - Academy
14 October - Southampton Guildhall
15 Exeter - Lemon Grove
17 London - Forum

TICKETS TO THE CRIBS:

The Cribs - official website
The album has already been released in their UK home and on iTunes, but doesn’t hit US soil until July 17th.

Tracklist For Men’s Needs, Women’s Needs, Whatever:

1. Our Bovine Public
2. Girls Like Mystery
3. Men’s Needs
4. Moving Pictures
5. I’m a Realist
6. Major’s Titling Victory
7. Women’s Needs
8. I’ve Tried Everything
9. My Life Flashed Before My Eyes
10. Be Safe
11. Ancient History
12. Shoot the Poets

Listen to 2 songs from Men’s Needs, Women’s Needs, Whatever:
“Men’s Needs”:

“Our Bovine Public”:

Buy Men’s Needs, Women’s Needs, Whatever on Amazon

You may recall this video for the single, “Men’s Needs” - I posted it previously when a hysterical woman called MTV and somehow had it banned from UK television. The felt that the violence and self-mutilation inflicted on this women was too horrifying. What do you think:

This message is so important that I have decided to repost it with some extra information. SaveNetRadio.org has declared a Day of Silence for internet radio broadcast on Tuesday June 26th. The stations that participate will give listeners only a taste of what it will be like after July 15th if the increased royalty rate is upheld. Stations that go silent will likely include Pandora, Live 365, Yahoo LAUNCHcast, and MTV Online, and NPR member stations. These stations, plus others like AccuRadio, Radioio, Digitally Imported, Rhapsody and many more would be seriously impacted by retroactive royalty increases equal to 50-300% of the station’s current revenue income. In Rhapsody, Pandora and Live365’s cases, the increase would also penalize their multiple channels platform, causing rate increases equal to more than 1000% of their current revenue. 1000%! According to the RAIN (Radio And Internet Newsletter):

Webcasters will be alerting their listeners that “silence” is what Internet radio may sound like on or shortly after July 15th, the day on which 17 months’ worth of retroactive royalty increase payments are due to the SoundExchange collection organization under the terms of a recent Copyright Royalty Board (CRB) decision.

Read more about the situation on the RAIN website and check out SaveNetRadio.org for more options of what you - the listener, the musician, the dj, the webcaster - can do to help.

LINKS To Contact Your Congress

US Senators Home Page
Write Your Representatives Page

DO ANYTHING THAT IS WITHIN YOUR POWER TO SAVE NET RADIO!!

Please spread the word, copy and save this image and use it on your own blog. Tell all your friends. Write to the US Congress using the links above. If you can think of other ways to get involved, please share them in the comments here…

This report has been submitted to DIGG and Reddit. Please add your support to either.

REDDIT THIS!

After rumours of a new studio album, The Cure have announced a 3 tour schedules that will land them in Australia, China and the US. The tour reaches well into October and will be opened by 65 Days of Static. I cannot tell if this band will also open the Australian or Chinese shows.

The Cure In The East:

FRIDAY 27TH JULY
FUJI FESTIVAL 2007
ONSTAGE 21:30
(ONLY 90 MINUTES TO CURFEW… )

MONDAY 30TH JULY
ASIA WORLD ARENA
HONG KONG
ONSTAGE 20:00
(FOR AS LONG AS WE WANT?!!)

TICKETS:
Hong Kong Ticketing -
Hotline + 852 31 288 288
www.hkticketing.com

WEDNESDAY 1ST AUGUST
SINGAPORE INDOOR STADIUM
SINGAPORE
ONSTAGE 20:00
(FOR AS LONG AS WE WANT?!!)

TICKETS:
Sistic - Hotline + 65 6488 5555
www.sistic.com.sg

The Cure Down Under:

SATURDAY 4TH AUGUST
CHALLENGE STADIUM
PERTH

MONDAY 6TH AUGUST
ENTERTAINMENT CENTRE
ADELAIDE

WEDNESDAY 8TH AUGUST
ENTERTAINMENT CENTRE
BRISBANE

FRIDAY 10TH AUGUST
ENTERTAINMENT CENTRE
SYDNEY

SUNDAY 12TH AUGUST
ROD LAVER ARENA
MELBOURNE

AUCKLAND CONFIRMATION TO FOLLOW VERY SHORTLY…
OOOOOPS! I WASN’T SUPPOSED TO WRITE THAT!

It’s signed RSX…. Robert Smith with kisses?

Tickets to AUS shows can be acquired via tick-master:
http://www.ticketmaster.com.au

The Cure In The US:

Thu-Sep-13 Tampa - St Pete Times Forum
Sat-Sep-15 Atlanta - Gwinnett Center
Mon-Sep-17 Charlotte - Charlotte Bobcats Arena
Wed-Sep-19 Washington DC - Patriot Center
Fri-Sep-21 Philadelphia - Wachovia Spectrum
Sun-Sep-23 New York City - Madison Square Garden
Tue-Sep-25 Boston - Agganis Arena
Wed-Sep-26 Montreal - Bell Centre
Thu-Sep-27 Toronto - Air Canada Centre
Sat-Sep-29 Chicago - Allstate Arena
Tue-Oct-02 Denver - Red Rocks Amphitheatre
Thu-Oct-04 Salt Lake City - E Center
Sat-Oct-06 San Francisco - Shoreline Amphitheatre - Download Festival

Mon-Oct-08 Seattle - Key Arena
Tue-Oct-09 Vancouver - General Motors Place
Thu-Oct-11 Santa Barbara - Santa Barbara Bowl
Sat-Oct-13 San Diego - Cox Arena
Sun-Oct-14 Los Angeles - Hollywood Bowl
Tue-Oct-16 Houston - Toyota Center
Wed-Oct-17 Dallas - American Airlines Center

The studio album that The Cure started recording last year is yet to be named, and the release date is tentatively being whispered as October of this year.

LINKS

You can find more info about tours and such at the official Cure website…

And this is just plain strange - I thought there was something eerily familiar about “Spider” and “Smile” but I had not made the overt connection yet. Apparently somebody else did:

Just days ago, Live Earth organizers announced the addition of Shanghai to the concert roster, thereby bringing the total number of cities that will host Live Earth Concerts to nine! But today, sadly, that number is back to eight, as Istanbul canceled the concert for their city. Official statements say that local businesses did not want to get involved with the high profile event out of fear of environmental organizations. I guess local Turkish industry is a big contributor to global warming and did not want to end up under the microscope by mis-aligning its brands. The lack of local sponsorship led to the cancellation of a live event, however, the Live Earth organizers will still set up 8 giant screens in Istanbul (one for each concert) to project live footage from other concerts around the globe. Wow! Is that going to be like 8 big drive-in movies? That would be wicked! I think this says a lot about the power and influence that has been achieved by environmental NGO’s in the last decade.

Live Earth website

On the bright side, Shakira and Enrique Iglesias have signed on to perform at the concert in Hamburg. That brings the full Hamburg lineup to this:

CHRIS CORNELL
ENRIQUE IGLESIAS
JAN DELAY
JULI
KATIE MELUA
LOTTO KING KARL
MANÁ
MANDO DIAO
MARIA MENA
MIA
MICHAEL MITTERMEIER
REAMONN
ROGER CICERO
SAMY DELUXE
SASHA
SHAKIRA
SILBERMOND
SNOOP DOGG
STEFAN GWILDIS

Shakira video for “No”:

German portal for Live Earth online

Info about Shakira and Iglesias from the Live Earth press release:

Shakira is a two-time Grammy Award-winning and eight-time Latin Grammy Award-winning Colombian singer, songwriter and producer and has sold more than 50 million albums worldwide. Her 2001 English language breakthrough, LAUNDRY SERVICE, sold more than 20 million albums and made her a global sensation. In early 2005, Shakira released the Oral Fixation project: Fijación Oral Vol. 1 and Oral Fixation Vol. 2 have sold a combined 15 million copies worldwide to date and earned five Latin Grammys, including Album of the Year, six Latin Billboard Awards, two Almas Awards, and numerous other awards around the world. She also just completed her Oral Fixation Tour around the world that included 120 sold-out dates. In 1995, Shakira created the Pies Descalso Foundation aimed at helping Colombian children who are victims of violence. She was also instrumental in the creation of Alas, an orgaLEarthnization of the Latin world’s biggest stars who are working to bring awareness to the social and economic conditions of children in Latin America.

Enrique Iglesias, the Madrid-born, Miami-raised singer, has sold more than 40 million albums and has topped the charts and gone platinum with both English and Spanish language works. Iglesias won the Grammy for Best Latin Performer in 1997 and the Latin Grammy for Best Male Pop Album in 2003. His new album, Insomniac, was released last week, and the single “Do You Know? (The Ping Pong Song)” has jumped to the top of the US, UK, Mexico, Sweden, Netherlands and other charts. Iglesias is the most successful Spanish-language singer in the world with 17 #1 Billboard Latin hits, more than any other artist in history. His albums have gone gold or platinum in more than 30 countries.