Bad Meets Evil – Eminem
Blow (Cirkut Remix) – Ke@ha
We Are the Champions – Queen
When You Love Somebody (iTunes session) – The Decembrists
I Want to Break Free – Queen
Hippy Chick – SOHO
Fire Fire – Flyleaf
22 – Lily Allen
Angel at My Door – NeedToBreathe
Gimmie Something – FIDLAR
Fried My Little Brains – The Kills
What’s the 411? – Mary J. Blige w/ Grand Puba
Union of the Snake – Duran Duran
Monster – Skillet
Artificial Nocturne – Metric
The Boxer – Mumford & Sons
Hologram – Bassnectar
Crazy Kids – Ke$ha
Ping Pong – Bassnectar

” ‘Call You Out’ ” was one of the first songs written during the New Horizons sessions, said bass player Pat Seals. “The stomping opening verse evolved over time into this aggressive but very calculated track that closes with Sameer using chaotic guitar sounds to sort of burn it to the ground – engages you all the way through.”

Formed in Central Texas in 2002 when long-time friends Sameer Bhattacharya (Guitar) and Jared Hartmann (Guitar) merged their considerable talents with James Culpepper (Drums), Lacey (Lead Vocals), and later Pat Seals (Bass), Flyleaf quickly became a touring force on the road supporting their first two albums between 2005-2010. A break followed as Lacey and her husband announced her pregnancy in 2010 and gave birth to their baby boy in 2011.

The band regrouped in the studio last year and began work on New Horizons. Bass player Pat Seals has designed the album cover for the band’s upcoming release, and the fold out poster as part of the packaging.

Their debut self-titled album has now sold 1.3 million copies and is certified platinum. “All Around Me” reached the Top 10 on Top 40 Radio. Flyleaf have also charted six singles of modern and rock radio.

Flyleaf’s last album, Memento Mori, debuted at #8 on the Billboard Top 200 album chart and has gone on to sell over 325,000 copies in the US alone. “Again” from the album went all the way #2 at Modern Rock Radio (Breaking through the #1 and #3 spots held by Muse).

The tracks on New Horizons: Fire Fire, New Horizons, Call You Out, Cage On The Ground, Great Love, Bury Your Heart, Freedom, Saving Grace, Stand, Green Heart and Broken Wings.

Surrender stretches the weekend out, with Dada Life and Morgan Page stoking the embers on Thursday. The I-just-titled-them breakout twins, Porter Robinson and Steve Aoki rule the fever on Friday, that last day to celebrate August. Burns starts the fire for Calvin Harris Saturday night and Afrojack and Sidney Samson fan the flames higher Sunday. That leaves you Monday to relax.. but, oooh wait.

At the Encore Beach Club (to give it it’s full, random, name) Deadmau5 ices the gamblers that Monday eve, and Unhooked cools the room. They chill the tone and ice pack the muscles starting with Bingo Players and Nervo, Friday, august 31, then Steve Angello Sept. 1, David Guetta Sunday.

Too much going on. They’ve just got it going on. Attend and tell us what’s up – party@soundlust.com. We’ll post pictures and anything you got.

Over the last week, as Devo embarrasses itself creating a song about Mitt Romney’s dog and Megadeth’s Dave Mustaine mouthing off about Obama directly involved in the Aurora movie theater shootings – well, politics and music ain’t what it used to be,

So it’s some kind of weird circle of awkward that brings the actions of a Cold War opponent to the forefront of music actually, again, being an agent of change. The women in the punk band Pussy Riot were each sentenced on a count of hooliganism to two years of jail time for singing a 1-minute anti-Putin prayer song in a church in Moscow, Russia. Vladamir Putin was just re-elected to the presidency after taking some time off to .. hold the post of Prime Minister.

Here are the lyrics to Pussy Riot’s prayer song, Virgin Mary, Put Putin Away:

Virgin Mary, Mother of God, put Putin away
Рut Putin away, put Putin away

Black robe, golden epaulettes
All parishioners crawl to bow
The phantom of liberty is in heaven
Gay-pride sent to Siberia in chains

The head of the KGB, their chief saint,
Leads protesters to prison under escort
In order not to offend His Holiness
Women must give birth and love

Shit, shit, the Lord’s shit!
Shit, shit, the Lord’s shit!

Virgin Mary, Mother of God, become a feminist
Become a feminist, become a feminist

The Church’s praise of rotten dictators
The cross-bearer procession of black limousines
A teacher-preacher will meet you at school
Go to class – bring him money!

Patriarch Gundyaev believes in Putin
Bitch, better believe in God instead
The belt of the Virgin can’t replace mass-meetings
Mary, Mother of God, is with us in protest!

Virgin Mary, Mother of God, put Putin away
Рut Putin away, put Putin away

The performance group rocked their song February 21 at the Christ the Savior Cathedral before the seen-as-inevitable Putin re-election. There’s confusion about whether the convictions are based more on blasphemy or were hurt by the politics. The poin5t is, guess what, this shit mattered. Fighting the powers has become weak in America because truly, in many areas, there’s nothing left to hang on to. Not really. Evidence Exhibit 1 – Devo!

Hello friends,

It is with many memories and deep feelings that we relay to you the decision we have made over the course of the last year. January 1st 2013 will mark the end of our traveling ministry for the foreseeable future.

It has become very clear to us that this chapter of our journey, initiated by God, is drawing to a close. While we mourn the end of this season we also celebrate over a decade of ministry. It has been hard work and our families have paid a big price. The friends, songs, experiences, and lives changed as a result of hearing the truth of God’s love have sustained us through many years and miles.

For those of you who know us well, you know that this is not a band break up. In fact, we are open to playing a select few shows or events in the future. After many years and miles spent together we have become a band of brothers who love each other dearly. There is not one single variable that has initiated this change; rather it would seem the same sovereign hand that has guided us together for this season is now leading us in different directions. We are grateful for the role you have played in our lives. Your encouragement and support over the years has carried us through thick and thin.

We have always wanted to finish well. We believe that means finishing together, as a band… and that is what we are going to do. We are working on setting up a few wrap-up shows this fall – more information will be forthcoming as things get solidified.

Sincerely,
Jason, Marc, Glenn, & Jeremy

Where the songs on Jackson-Holman’s debut, When You Dream were intended to be universal and interpreted by the listener, her latest release Cardiology expresses a very personal journey, specific to the study of her own heart this past year.

“This album centers around themes of love and loss and my experiences with each over the course of this last year,” Jackson-Holman says. “Some songs, like “Do I Make It Look Easy” and “For Albert” are about moving on from situations – realizing and accepting that you can’t change people, which is challenging, but at the same time empowering, because that understanding ultimately provides you with a sense of peace. I also wrote songs to sort through what it means to lose someone you love, and what you do with that feeling of loss.”

Co-produced by Jackson-Holman, Keith Schreiner (one of Portland’s best known composers and performers who programmed synths and beats), and Skyler Norwood (producer of Blind Pilot, Horse Feathers, and Jackson-Holman’s When You Dream) at Miracle Lake Studios. … Jackson-Holman’s songs are fleshed out by a cast of strong supporters inlcuding Skyler Norwood on drums and bass, Jack Norwood on bass, Jessie Dettwiler on cello, and Basho Parks on violin,

For her sophomore album, Jackson-Holman took a much different approach to her songwriting and production process.

“Recording my first album was about learning the process; it was extremely informative. I had never been in a studio, so to see the inner-workings of production firsthand changed my entire perspective. For Cardiology, I actually produced full, 30-track demo versions at home for several of the songs on Garageband before bringing the tracks to the studio for final beats, synth sounds, and additional production. I wrote the songs in varied ways – some originated from sitting at the piano, others from humming a melody, and still more from writing a beat first then crafting the rest of the song around it.”

All that work took seven months. It was during this period that Jackson-Holman lost someone very close to her.

“My grandfather was a big part of my musical upbringing and his death came as a shock. When I was young he would drive three hours from Portland to Bend just to watch me play for seven minutes in my classical piano competitions, and when I had branched out into pop music, he’d come to my shows in Portland. I was in the midst of recording and needing to be creative, so the process became an outlet for my confusion and grief. His death was profoundly influential as I wrote the final songs for my album.

“Freight Train” is a song I wrote when I had no words to express my grief. “Come By Fire,” “Can’t Take My Love,” and “For Albert” (his middle name) were also all written within three weeks of his passing. (“For Albert” is derivative of the classical piece “Für Elise,” a sort of homage to my background). I miss him very much, and to me, his being so much a part of my songs keeps him and his memory close to my heart.”

Her classical training and love of Chopin, Schumann, and Bach is where this artist gets her affinity to minor, brooding music and sense of musical structure. It is the foundation upon which weightless strings and heavy layers of warm and soulful melodies swell as they weave through each song.

For the then 20 year-old piano performance and writing college student from Bend, Oregon, nothing could have prepared her for the trajectory her life was about to take; propelling her from student life, to recording her first CD, to hearing her debut single “Into the Blue” close out the ABC hit show “Castle” in the emotional Season 2 finale Recently, her songs have been placed in MTV’s Chelsea Settles and CW’s Ringer. Her debut garnered rave reviews and comparisons to Adele, Amy Winehouse, and Feist.

(via In Music We Trust release)

A collection of 11 songs recorded over ten days in the summer at Type Foundry with engineer/producer Adam Selzer, Malheur was written in the months following the death of one of his best friends growing up. The album takes its name, French for misfortune, from the county in Eastern Oregon where he grew up.

“He and I were in a band together in high school and every aspect of my musical life began with him,” mbilly says of his friend who passed. “We began playing shows together, writing songs, and recording; all of it was done for the first time with him.” In a fitting coincidence, the album’s June 5th release date would have been his friend’s 32nd birthday.

“We weren’t close at the time of his death, but it brought out a lot of feelings and questions that I hadn’t anticipated and couldn’t easily articulate. I have a similar ambivalence towards Eastern Oregon, where I grew up. It’s very much part of who I am and I am anchored by it in an unidentifiable way, but I also felt very disconnected from it and at odds with it.”

Attempting to address the parallels between his friend and his hometown, the songs mbilly wrote became an album of open-ended questions.

“I didn’t attempt to answer them,” he says. “In past songs I’ve written I’ve tried to resolve them with an answer of some kind. The nature of the questions asked in these songs is such that there are no simple answers, nothing neat in the way things are wrapped up.”

Another thing new for mbilly, who recorded his debut full-lengthalbum, Mister Nobody Baby, at four studios over the course of three years, is the structure in which this record was made. Spending plenty of time on pre-production with Selzer, mbilly knew exactly what he wanted to do with the songs when he went into the studio.

“I knew from the beginning that I wanted all the percussion on the album to come from old analog rhythm machines, so I started using them as I was writing the songs. I love the way they sound rigid and stiff, but at the same time organic and rich.”

His thought behind the drum machines was that they would create a nice, static foundation for the songs in contrast to the fairly loose instruments on the record. The result is an album that shines with its late-night starkness and airy, less-is-more instrumentation choices; however, that is not to say the instrumentation feels short, because the full-sounding compositions complement the space beautifully.

Malheur may have been conceived from the idea of death and memory, but the forward-thinking album doesn’t dwell in the past. It questions what really makes us who we are as adults and if we can ever really understand their influence. It’s simplicity, yet depth, will stun those that pay attention; meanwhile, the well-crafted melodies and spacious songwriting will have you mesmerized by every note.

(Release from In Music We Trust)

Outside Lands Festival. August 10, 11, 12

This party at Golden Gate Park has been going since 2008. San Francisco. Pay attention to the DJ Dome. Tickets are about to go on sale (4/19)

Alabama Shakes | Allen Stone | Amadou & Mariam (French) | Andrew Bird | Animal Kingdom | Beck | Big Boi | Big Gigantic | Bloc Party | Bomba Estereo | Caveman++ | City and Colour | Die Antwoord | Dirty Dozen Brass Band | Dispatch | Dr. Dog | Electric Guest (new album, April 24) | Explosions In The Sky | Father John Misty (see their 3-hour non-music film) | Fitz and the Tantrums | Foo Fighters | Franz Ferdinand | Fun. | Geographer | Grandaddy | Honey Island Swamp Band | Jack White | Jovanotti | Justice | Metallica | Michael Kiwanuka | Mimosa | MSTRKRFT | Neil Young & Crazy Horse (together again, new album, June 5) | Norah Jones | Of Monsters and Men** | Papa | Passion Pit** | Portugal. The Man. | Rebelution (look at them with their triple album!) | Reggie Watts | Regina Spektor | Santigold | Sean Hayes | Sharon Van Etten | Sigur Ros | Skrillex | Stevie Wonder | Tame Impala | Tanlines++ | Tennis | The Be Good Tanyas | The Kills | The M Machine | The Oh Sees | The Walkmen | Trampled by Turtles | Two Gallants | Wallpaper | Washed Out** | White Denim | Wolfgang Gartner | Yacht | Yellow Ostrich** | Zola Jesus++.

** also playing at Lollapalooza
@@@ also playing Bonnaroo
++ also played Rhapsody Rocks Austin

All that in relatively tiny Golden Gate Park. Serious foods and wine, too.

I’m starting to understand why Axl Rose may have included that Charles Manson song on the Spaghetti Incident? release. They’re both fucking crazy. Manson directed his destruction outward, Rose’s destruction is all directed inward.

Have some fucking fun man. Fuck. Go attend Saturday’s Rock N Roll Hall of Fame induction. Yeah, you have to visit Cleveland, but still….

I haven’t been following all the ins and outs and travails of Guns ‘n’ Roses past or present in recent years. Guilty. But, fuck Axl, you had some accomplishments and GnR once ruled the world – acknowledged with talent AND respect. Not you by yourself but with a tight unit of talented people – especially in the early years – who loved you and yes, you created beautiful music together.

Don’t cry about not wanting to get on stage with people who may have said some nasty wasty things about your behavior – or the ultimately disappointing Chinese Democracy. And don’t refuse to be inducted because you’ve somehow got it stuck in your mind that you’re achieving anything by doing so. If you don’t like the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame, that’s different, because it’s pretty fucking useless and the standard bearer for oxymoron. But you’re not saying that.

Do two things for self-respect. Lose some fucking weight, because you might be losing your mental edge but you don’t have to lose everything. And two, show up to the fucking ceremony you big baby. Whose music I love. I couldn’t give a shit if anyone’s inducted to the fucking place – whatever. But if you do something, and you may respect this, do it for a good fucking reason otherwise you’re just wasting everyone’s time. Like the 10 minutes it’s taken to write this for a start.

Axl Rose wrote the following letter to the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame saying, “na-ah” and “I donwanna.”

To: The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, Guns N’ Roses Fans and Whom It May Concern,

When the nominations for the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame were first announced I had mixed emotions but, in an effort to be positive, wanting to make the most of things for the fans and with their enthusiasm, I was honored, excited and hoped that somehow this would be a good thing. Of course I realized as things stood, if Guns N’ Roses were to be inducted it’d be somewhat of a complicated or awkward situation.

Since then we’ve listened to fans, talked with members of the board of the Hall Of Fame, communicated with and read various public comments and jabs from former members of Guns N’ Roses, had discussions with the president of the Hall Of Fame, read various press (some legit, some contrived) and read other artists’ comments weighing in publicly on Guns and the Hall with their thoughts.

Under the circumstances I feel we’ve been polite, courteous, and open to an amicable solution in our efforts to work something out. Taking into consideration the history of Guns N’ Roses, those who plan to attend along with those the Hall for reasons of their own, have chosen to include in “our” induction (that for the record are decisions I don’t agree with, support or feel the Hall has any right to make), and how (albeit no easy task) those involved with the Hall have handled things… no offense meant to anyone but the Hall Of Fame Induction Ceremony doesn’t appear to be somewhere I’m actually wanted or respected.

For the record, I would not begrudge anyone from Guns their accomplishments or recognition for such. Neither I or anyone in my camp has made any requests or demands of the Hall Of Fame. It’s their show not mine.

That said, I won’t be attending The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Induction 2012 Ceremony and I respectfully decline my induction as a member of Guns N’ Roses to the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.

I strongly request that I not be inducted in absentia and please know that no one is authorized nor may anyone be permitted to accept any induction for me or speak on my behalf. Neither former members, label representatives nor the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame should imply whether directly, indirectly or by omission that I am included in any purported induction of “Guns N’ Roses”.

This decision is personal. This letter is to help clarify things from my and my camp’s perspective. Neither is meant to offend, attack or condemn. Though unfortunately I’m sure there will be those who take offense (God knows how long I’ll have to contend with the fallout), I certainly don’t intend to disappoint anyone, especially the fans, with this decision. Since the announcement of the nomination we’ve actively sought out a solution to what, with all things considered, appears to be a no win, at least for me, “damned if I do, damned if I don’t” scenario all the way around.

In regard to a reunion of any kind of either the Appetite or Illusion lineups, I’ve publicly made myself more than clear. Nothing’s changed.

The only reason, at this point, under the circumstances, in my opinion whether under the guise of “for the fans” or whatever justification of the moment, for anyone to continue to ask, suggest or demand a reunion are misguided attempts to distract from our efforts with our current lineup of myself, Dizzy Reed, Tommy Stinson, Frank Ferrer, Richard Fortus, Chris Pitman, Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal and DJ Ashba.

Izzy came out with us a few times back in ’06 and I invited him to join us at our LA Forum show last year. Steven was at our show at the Hard Rock, later in ’06 in Las Vegas, where I invited him to our after-party and was rewarded with his subsequent interviews filled with reunion lies. Lesson learned. Duff joined us in 2010 and again in ’11 along with his band, Loaded, opening in Seattle and Vancouver. For me, with the exception of Izzy or Duff joining us on stage if they were so inclined somewhere in the future for a song or two, that’s enough.

There’s a seemingly endless amount of revisionism and fantasies out there for the sake of self-promotion and business opportunities masking the actual realities. Until every single one of those generating from or originating with the earlier lineups has been brought out in the light, there isn’t room to consider a conversation let alone a reunion.

Maybe if it were you it’d be different. Maybe you’d do it for this reason or that. Peace, whatever. I love our band now. We’re there for each other when the going get’s rough. We love our fans and work to give them every ounce of energy and heart we can.

So let sleeping dogs lie or lying dogs sleep or whatever. Time to move on. People get divorced. Life doesn’t owe you your own personal happy ending especially at another’s, or in this case several others’, expense.

But hey if ya gotta then maybe we can get the “no show, grandstanding, publicity stunt, disrespectful, he doesn’t care about the fans” crap out of the way as quickly as we can and let’s move on. No one’s taking the ball and going home. Don’t get it twisted. For more than a decade and a half we’ve endured the double standards, the greed of this industry and the ever present seemingly limitless supply of wannabes and unscrupulous, irresponsible media types. Not to imply anything in this particular circumstance, but from my perspective in regard to both the Hall and a reunion, the ball’s never been in our court.

In closing, regardless of this decision and as hard to believe or as ironic as it may seem, I’d like to sincerely thank the board for their nomination and their votes for Guns’ induction. More importantly I’d like to thank the fans for being there over the years, making any success we’ve had possible and for enjoying and supporting Guns N’ Roses music.

I wish the Hall a great show, congratulations to all the other artists being inducted and to our fans we look forward to seeing you on tour!!

Sincerely,
Axl Rose

P.S. RIP Armand, Long Live ABC III

Released to widespread acclaim, Blind Pilot’s We Are The Tide (Expunged Records) debuted at #56 on Billboard’s “Top 200” chart, hit #22 on the “Overall Digital Albums” chart, and has sold over 33,000 copies. It was featured in NPR Music’s “First Listen” series. Following the album’s release, the band appeared on KCRW’s “Morning Becomes Eclectic” and “Late Show with David Letterman.”

The band also recently released a Yours Truly video session, shot in San Francisco, for its song “Half Moon.”

We Are The Tide follows the band’s grassroots break-out debut, 3 Rounds and a Sound, which has sold over 65,000 units to date and was featured in NPR’s “Best Music of 2008” roundup. Recorded at Type Foundry in Portland, OR during the spring of 2011, the new album was produced by the band and Skyler Norwood and mixed by Tucker Martine (The Decemberists, My Morning Jacket). Of making the album, founding member Israel Nebeker says, “We had a good idea of what we wanted the album to sound like and what all the instrumentation would be. … Fortunately, the creative process has a way of obliterating your expectations, and while we had a plan for each song, eventually the songs told us the way they needed to be.

“We learned a whole lot in the process and when I listen to the album now, I hear all these good surprises we didn’t know were going to be on there.”

Co-founding member Ryan Dobrowski goes on to say, “I love the first record, but it was really exciting to work on arrangements with the whole band in mind. There are some songs on We Are The Tide that sound like an extension of 3 Rounds and a Sound, but a good number that are exploring new areas.”

Blind Pilot began in 2007 when Israel (vocals, guitar) and Ryan (drums) embarked on a West Coast bicycle tour playing mostly to unfamiliar listeners at small-town venues. The band now exists as a 6-piece ensemble featuring fellow Oregonians Luke Ydstie (upright bass, backing vocals), Kati Claborn (banjo, dulcimer, backing vocals), Ian Krist (vibraphones) and Dave Jorgensen (keyboards, trumpet). The band’s music has been heard on episodes of “Chuck,” “Covert Affairs,” and “One Tree Hill.”

BLIND PILOT TOUR DATES
4/26 – Bear Tooth Theatre – Anchorage, AK
5/25 – Les Schwab Amphitheater (supporting The Shins) – Bend, OR
5/25-5/28 – Sasquatch! – George, WA
5/28 – Red Butte Garden Amphitheater (supporting The Shins) – Salt Lake City, UT
5/29 – Red Rocks Amphitheatre (supporting The Shins) – Morrison, CO
5/31 – Harrah’s Council Bluffs (supporting The Shins) – Council Bluffs, IA
6/02 – Molson Amphitheatre (supporting Dave Matthews Band) – Toronto, ONT CANADA
6/03 – Blossom Music Center (supporting Dave Matthews Band) – Cuyahoga Falls, OH
6/05 – Webster Hall – New York, NY
6/06 – The National, Richmond, VA
6/07 – Neighborhood Theatre – Charlotte, NC
6/07-6/10 – Bonnaroo – Manchester, TN
7/06 – The Fillmore – San Francisco, CA
7/07 – The Fonda Theatre – Los Angeles, CA
7/08 – Belly Up Tavern – Solana Beach, CA
7/10 – The Crescent Ballroom – Phoenix, AZ
7/11 – Santa Fe Sol – Santa Fe, NM
7/13 – La Zona Rosa – Austin, TX
7/14 – Kessler Theater – Dallas, TX
7/15 – Fitzgerald’s – Houston, TX
7/17 – Mercy Lounge – Nashville, TN
7/18 – 20th Century Theatre – Cincinnati, OH
7/20-7/22 – Firefly Music Festival – Dover, DE
7/23 – Interlochen Center for the Arts – Interlochen, MI
7/25 – The Opera House – Toronto, ONT CANADA
7/26 – Corona Theatre – Montreal, QC CANADA
7/27 – Port City Music Hall – Portland, ME
7/28 – Newport Folk Festival, – Newport, RI
8/12 – Mishawaka Amphitheatre – Bellvue, CO

(via In Music we Trust release)