If you weren't able to get to the SXSW festival or just didn't get your fix of indie sounds, there is another festival that takes place down the road from March 20^th to 22^nd.  There are two stages in a beautiful drive-in movie theater on the side of a mountain in the Sierra Madre Oriental, located at Avenida Lázaro Cárdenas #1818 Colonia Las Torres, Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico.

Tickets are $30 USD for a 3-Day pass, which will have 78 bands, including headliners - No Age, Liars, Neon Indian, Andrew WK, and Washed Out. The festival includes a substantial visual art element as well, with the perimeter of the space decorated by huge original murals and projected video pieces (on the drive-in screen of course!) by such artists Stephanie Davidson, Sumi Ink Club, Jesse Spears, Katja Mater, JD Beltran and many more.

FINAL SCHEDULE

|| SATURDAY ||

:: 10:30 - LOS PLANETAS (Spain)

:: 10pm - ACID MOTHERS TEMPLE (Japan)

:: 9:30 - CHIKITA VIOLENTA (Mexico)

:: 9pm - TELEPATHE

:: 8:30 - QUIERO CLUB (Mexico)

:: 8pm - Das Racist

:: 7:30 - Lázaro Valiente (Mexico)

:: 7pm - Male Bonding (UK)

:: 6:30 - Hunx and his Punx

:: 6pm - El Resplandor (Mexico)

:: 5:30 - Wet Hair

:: 5pm - Pocahaunted

:: 4:30 - Soho Riots (Mexico)

:: 4pm - Teengirl Fantasy

:: 3:30 - Yo! Linares (Mexico)

:: 3pm - Explode Into Colors

:: 2:30 - The Coathangers

:: 2pm - Kría Brekkan - of múm / Storsveit Nix Noltes (Iceland)

:: 1:30 - Anamanguchi

:: 1pm - Coasting

:: 12.30 - Videohippos

:: 12pm - Drawlings

:: 11:30 - Adventure

:: 11am - Le Macabre Party (Mexico)

:: 1am - Aa (aka BIG A little a)

:: 1:30 - Sun Araw

:: 2am - Young Prisms

:: 2:30 - Campfires

:: 3am - Ringo Deathstarr (Texas)

|| SUNDAY ||

:: 12pm - ANDREW WK

:: 11:30 - DAN DEACON

:: 11pm - FUCKED UP (Canada)

:: 10:30 - LOS FANCY FREE (Mexico)

:: 10pm - WASHED OUT

:: 9:30 - GRANT HART --- of Hüsker Dü

:: 9pm - INDIAN JEWELRY (Texas)

:: 8:30 - Toro Y Moi

:: 8pm - Tanlines

:: 7:30 - Small Black

:: 7pm - Los Margaritos (Mexico)

:: 6:30 - Chinese Stars

:: 6pm - Banjo or Freakout! (UK)

:: 5:30 - The Wave Pictures (UK)

:: 5pm - Talk Normal

:: 4:30 - The Beets

:: 4pm - XYX (Mexico)

:: 3:30 - So Cow (Ireland)

:: 3pm - Beach Fossils

:: 2:30 - Antoine Reverb (Mexico)

:: 2pm - The Bitters (Canada)

:: 1:30 - TV Ghost

:: 1pm - Los Llamarada (Mexico)

:: 12:30 - Total Abuse (Texas)

:: 12pm - Cloud Nothings

:: 11:30 - White Ninja (Mexico)

:: 11am - Piyama Party (Mexico)

:: 10am - Modern Dance from Mexico & USA

:: Mexican dance curated Estrella Sanza (Los Llamarada)

:: US dance curated by Busy Gagnes (Telepathe)

:: Performances include:

:: Crepusculo

:: La Bruja

:: Prefiero Consumirme Que Disolverme

:: Defectos

:: El Yo y El Entorno

:: 1am - MNDR

:: 1:30 - The Mantles

:: 2am - Teeth Mountain

:: 2:30 - KIT

:: 3am - Twin Sister

:: DJ Jonathan Toubin

:: Soul Clap and Dance-Off

|| MONDAY ||

:: 12am - LIARS

:: 11:30 - NO AGE

:: 11pm - NEON INDIAN (Texas/Mexico)

:: 10:30 - Ratas del Vaticano (Mexico)

:: 10pm - THEE OH SEES

:: 9:30 - Lemonade

:: 9pm - BamBam (Mexico)

:: 8:30 - Lucky Dragons

:: 8pm - Liturgy

:: 7:30 - Jóvenes y Sexys (Venezuela)

:: 7pm - Salem

:: 6:30 - DD/MM/YYYY (Canada)

:: 6pm - Alexico (Mexico)

:: 5:30 - Best Fwends (Texas)

:: 5pm - Sandwitches

:: 4:30 - Mockinpott (Mexico)

:: 4pm - Fergus and Geronimo (Texas)

:: 3:30 - Big Troubles

:: 3pm - HEALTH (Rhinoceropolis)

:: 2:30 - Pictureplane (Rhinoceropolis)

:: 2pm - Gauntlet Hair (Rhinoceropolis)

:: 1:30 - Tearist (Rhinoceropolis)

:: 1pm - Josephine and the Mousepeople (Rhinoceropolis)

:: 12:30 - HIGH PLACES (Rhinoceropolis)

:: 12pm - Mentira Mentira (Mexico)

:: 11:30 - Sr. Amable & Mr. Racoon (Mexico)

:: 11am - Baths

:: 10am - Bilingual, Women's Drum Workshop hosted by Tom Tom Magazine

:: 1:30 - Air Waves

:: 2am - Fluffy Lumbers

:: 2:30 - Lawrence Arabia (New Zealand)

:: 3am - Teenage Cool Kids (Texas)

:: DJ Jonathan Toubin

For full information about band info, transportation, and ticket purchase, click here.

Gorillaz' third album, Plastic Beach, is the latest saga from Damon Albarn, who can also be found as the lead vocal in Blur and The Good, The Bad, and The Queen.  Plastic Beach is the follow up to the critically acclaimed Demon Days and Albarn kept the same recipe, a concept album with a ton of guest spots (maybe too many). But those seem to be the only qualities these two records share; Plastic Beach isn't nearly as poppy as it's predecessors and the commercial singles of "Feel Good Inc." and "19-2000" seem to be long gone.

The record starts with the Orchestral Intro and the soothing sounds of waves rolling up and seagulls squawking in the distance. Before you know it, you're listening to Snoop Dogg welcoming you to the world of the plastic beach and you know right from the start, this is going to be different than anything you've ever heard. "Rhinestone Eyes" is a synth heavy track with only 2D(voiced by Albarn) singing lyrics that are up for interpretation that might have some global warming implications: "With future pixels in factories far away / So call the mainland from the beach / Your heart is now washed up in bleach / The waves are rising for this time of year / And nobody knows what to do with the heat / Under sunshine pylons we'll meet while rain is falling like rhinestones from the sky."

The first single "Stylo" ft Mos Def and Bobby Womack is definitely an album highlight but once Womack crashes in out of nowhere, it almost puts the track to a dead stop and leaves you feeling completely confused as to why it's there in the first place.

The catchiest chorus belongs to "Superfast Jellyfish" on what seems to be a commercial spoof ft De La Soul. The upbeat synth and infectious chorus leads into "Empire Ants" ft. Little Dragon. This slow moving jam picks up intensity and eventually sounds like you stepped out into a 1980's disco club.

"Some Kind of Nature" features Lou Reed almost rapping, but not quite and is followed by one of the few times Damon Albarn sings by himself on "Melancholy Hill" that has his vocals over a gothic organ.

Plastic Beach has a grand theme and it feels that way when you listen to it, almost too grand for its own good. There's so many guest spots, so many different sounds that it doesn't feel as unified as the previous Gorillaz albums. But one thing is for sure, and that's when you hear a Gorillaz song, you know it's a Gorillaz song. Damon Albarn has continued to make a unique original sound with quite a few highlights but just not as many as we're used to.

Acrassicauda Only The Dead See The End Of The War

Alberta Cross Broken Side Of Time

Before Their Eyes Untouchable

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club Beat The Devil's Tattoo

Broken Bells Broken Bells

Frightened Rabbit The Winter Of Mixed Drinks

Gorillaz Plastic Beach

jj jj n3

Liars Sisterworld

Monica Still Standing

The Morning Benders Big Echo

New Young Pony Club The Optimist

Numero Group Good God! Born Again Funk

Pavement Quarantine The Past: The Best Of Pavement

Josh Rouse El Turista

Standard Fare The Novelle Beat

The Steel Wheels Red Wing

Ted Leo and the Pharmacists The Brutalist Bricks

Titus Andronicus The Monitor

James Murphy's electro gang LCD Soundsystem is finally going to give the fans what they want, a new record. Set for a May 18th release for the as-of-yet-untitled third album, Murphy stated on the bands blog, "Looks like we added another Paris gig. Oh, and something else. The fucking record is done." Murphy sent it off to be mastered by Bob Weston and by the looks of his comments; it seems to be a relief. Murphy spoke to Rolling Stone about the struggles of recording and coming up with song titles, "You ever listen to a song 40 times?" he asks. "That's why I don't write the lyrics until as close to the day I sing it as I can, so I don't get sick of them." And when it comes to the titles Murphy thinks it should be, "the most repeated, obvious phrase... because that's what people are going to say anyway!"

The three-month recording session took place at a Laurel Canyon Mansion that also had the Chili Peppers for Blood Sugar Sex Magik. The grueling recording process was broken up when Murphy wrote a score for the film Greenberg. And when he returned it's safe to say that he was a bit tired, "It was brutal after the soundtrack," he admits. "The last half of the album was brutal. It was like working on a meal when you've already burned something. I spent a lot of time on self-doubt. I had to go back and find my head again."

LCD Soundsystem has announced their upcoming tour and has mostly planned their European dates, with the exceptions of a few festivals in the States like Bonnaroo and the newly announced Camp Bisco in upstate New York.

Here is the track list for the upcoming LCD Soundsystem album:

1.     Dance Yrself Clean

2.     Drunk Girls

3.     One Touch

4.     All I want

5.     Change

6.     Hit

7.     Pow Pow

8.     Somebody's Calling Me

9.     What You Need

I guess it's safe to say that Jay-Z has a lot of friends in the hip-hop community. Cameos are no longer a shock when Jay-Z plays a sold out show at Madison Square Garden, but last night no one could have guessed who would stop by:

The world's most infamous criminal (well, not yet, because Lil Wayne's sentencing was postponed on the 2^nd due to a serious fire in Manhattan's Criminal Court where three people were injured). This is the second postponement of Wayne's sentencing, the first was due to an "emergency dental surgery" where he had eight root canals performed.

About 45 minutes into Young Jeezy's set (Jay-Z's tour mate), he explained Lil' Wayne's situation at the courthouse for the audience. Immediately following, the beat for "I'm Goin' In" blared from the speakers and the soon-to-be-incarcerated criminal emerged from the side of the stage to perform to a raving crowd. Soon after, Drake blessed the audience with his appearance, and the crowd almost turned into a full-scale riot.

Lil Wayne is expected to be sentenced to a one-year prison term for gun possession charges stemming from a 2007 arrest. Lil' Wayne made a statement to his fans Monday night via Twitter: "yesterday I smiled, today I smirked, tomorrow I stop ...................thanks for your thoughts and prayers, they're needed. They kant lok up my heart bekuz ya'll already have it on lok......thank u."

Hopefully he'll be attending some much needed English and grammar courses while serving his time.

Lady Gaga kicked off her huge Monster Ball: The Electro Opera in England this past week, and did I mention that it's huge? Only Gaga can battle a 30 ft. tall squid and have it somehow work into the theme of her "opera." The show, which is broken up into four acts, spans over 20 songs and 15 costume changes.

The stage and concept has been completely changed from her U.S. tour, and she has now added her new single, "Telephone" to the set list. Also, "Glitter and Grease," "Vanity," and "Brown Eyes" have taken the place of "Paper Gangsta," "Eh,Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say)," and "Fashion" for the European tour.

Here's a clip of Gaga battling the half fish half squid in Manchester's Men Arena.

Set list:

Act 1: City

-Dance In The Dark

-Glitter and Grease (unreleased track)

-Just Dance

-Beautiful Dirty Rich

-Vanity (Unreleased track)

-The Fame

Act 2: Subway

-Lovegame

-Boys Boys Boys

-Money Honey

-Telephone

-Brown Eyes

-Speechless

-So Happy I Could Die

Act 3: Forest

-Monster

-Teeth

-Alejandro

-Poker Face (Acoustic)

-Poker Face

Act 4: Monster Ball

-Paparazzi

-Bad Romance

Just when you think the Rolling Stones don't have any more classic songs to be released, they dig deep into their archives and find more! Exile on Main Street, the Rolling Stones' classic 1972 album, is set to be reissued with an additional 10 previously unheard tracks.

On May 18^th, Universal Records will be reissuing the classic record and asked the Stones if they could search for any unearthed tracks, the band was convinced they had released everything for the 1972 double album. But with some determination, the Stones found Plundered My Soul, Dancing in the Light, Following the River, and Pass The Wine, while the special re-issue includes alternate versions of album tracks Soul Survivor and Loving Cup.

Mick Jagger told Rolling Stone Magazine that he and Keith Richards tweaked some of the songs, "I added some percussion and some vocals. Keith put guitar on one or two." But mostly Mick Jagger felt that the majority should be left alone, "I really wanted to leave them pretty much as they were, I didn't want to interfere with the Bible, you know. They still had that great basement sound."

The deluxe edition will also have a documentary directed by Stephen Kijak, which follows the band in the process of making Exile on Main Street.

It's been reported that Keith Elam, better known as ‘Guru' of Gang Starr, is in a coma after suffering a heart attack and will undergo surgery today (March 1^st). DJ Premier of Gang Starr confirmed the terrible news in a Sirius radio interview.

If you don't know Gang Starr, they can easily be described, as the pioneers of combining New York swing jazz and hip-hop. The hip-hop community has regarded Gang Starr as one of the most influential rap groups in the 90's even during their ‘long pause' until 2003 when their last record The Ownerz was released. Even now, it's unclear whether Gang Starr is finished or not with both DJ Premiere and Guru giving confusing statements about the groups status. Guru on many occasions has stated that Gang Starr is done while DJ Premiere has refused to acknowledge the group's end. Recently, on twitter, Guru wrote a message asking if the fans are ready for a new Gang Starr album, so who knows?

Guru has been credited for the idea of rapping over actual live jazz and released, Jazzmatazz, Vol. 1. He would follow the release with an entire Jazzmatazz series, which included 4 volumes.

Our thoughts and prayers go to Keith Elam and his family.

Gang Starr Discography

No More Mr.Nice Guy (1989)

Step in the Arena (1991)

Daily Operation (1992)

Hard to Earn (1994)

Moment of Truth (1998)

The Ownerz (2003)

Guru Discography

 Jazzmatazz, Vol.1

Jazzmatazz, Vol.2: The New Reality

Jazzmatazz, Vol.3: Streetsoul

Jazzmatazz, Vol.4: The Hip-Hop Jazz Messenger: Back To The Future

Let the manic refreshing begin, thousands will be glued to their computer screens as they relentlessly check to see if W.A.S.T.E. has opened the ticket booth. What's W.A.S.T.E. you might ask? W.A.S.T.E. is the website that Thom Yorke and Radiohead have used to sell pre-sale tickets to a lucky few for a chance to stand in the pit and witness the rock gods up close and personal.

Thom Yorke has announced via Dead Air Space, that he will embark on a small US tour with his solo band, Atoms For Peace, which includes Chili Peppers' bass player Flea and long time producer of Radiohead and Beck, Nigel Godrich.

Mr. Yorke explained that they "had too much fun to just leave it there..." speaking of the few shows they played in England.

The tickets for the New York and Boston pre-sale go on sale sometime tomorrow, while the Chicago shows will be up on the 3^rd, and the California gigs will go on sale on the 4^th.

If you're unable to get a pre-sale ticket, the general sale starts at 10 AM from ticketmaster.com

Good luck! Well actually, I'll only wish you luck after I get my ticket.

Tour Dates

4/5 Roseland Ballroom NY, NY

4/6 Roseland Ballroom NY, NY

4/8 Citi Wang Theatre Boston, MA

4/10 Aragon Ballroom Chicago, IL

4/11 Aragon Ballroom Chicago, IL

4/14 Fox Theater Oakland, CA

4/15 Fox Theater Oakland, CA

4/17 Santa Barbara Bowl Santa Barbara, CA

4/18 Coachella Festival Indio, CA

Benjy Davis Project Lost Souls Like Us

Peter Gabriel Scratch My Back

Groove Armada Black Light

Jamie Cullum The Pursuit

Jamie Foxx Body

Natalie Merchant Leave Your Sleep

Mumford & Sons Sigh No More

Rogue Wave Permalight

Sharam Jay In My Blood

These New Puritans Hidden

Josh Wolf (of WHY?) Jet Lag

Daniel Merriweather was born in a proletarian area in Melbourne, Australia, and spent a lot of his childhood alone, traveling long distances and creating his own world with his much heightened imagination. Daniel created a passion for philosophy throughout his childhood but found himself often distracted during in teenage years and consequently dropped out of high school. However, music thankfully has always been able to guide Daniel in the right direction. Daniel started playing the violin when he was 4 years old and has been singing since he was born.

The current 28-year-old Aussie's first commercially released recording was a guest appearance on the track ‘All I want” from Australian dance at Disco Montego’s self titled album in 2002. His debut single “City Rules” became a huge success produced by Mark Ronson and featuring raps from New York’s MC Saigon. Both of Daniel’s songs later became favorites in popular Australian hot spot clubs.

In 2005, Daniel co-wrote and co-produced much of Phase’s album Talking with Force and even sang on three of the tracks including chart topping single “Catch Phrase.” Recently Daniel has been on tour promoting his new album Love and War which was released in June of 2009.

Be sure to catch Daniel when he returns in NY and performs at Webster Hall on 5/3/2010, get tickets while they're still available!

When the Black Eyed Peas put on a concert in New York, they never stop entertaining. Literally. After their concert tonight at the legendary Madison Square Garden, they will be hosting a huge after party at M2 Ultralounge.

The concert (in support of their multi-platinum #1 selling album The E.N.D.) itself will feature special guests Ludacris and LMFAO. It's also the first time since 2006 that will.i.am, apl.de.ap, Taboo and Fergie will unite for a North American tour.

The Black Eyed Peas themselves are hosting the party, which starts at 11pm at M2 Ultralounge - and some of the Peas will also be doing a DJ set during the party.

There's no RSVP required, just show up and get ready to dance!

"This Will Be Our Year" was the first OK Go song I ever listened to. It was the first track on a popular indie compilation album from 2004 entitled The Future Soundtrack of America. The compilation was chock-full of brokenhearted music, but OK Go sounded different. Their song emitted warmth, solace in love, and hope. "This Will Be Our Year" was instantly lovable and infectiously catchy.

In subsequent releases, in spite of the heartache their lyrics displayed in "OK Go" and "Oh No," the warmth and optimism remained. Just check out "Get Over It." There's anger there, sure, but the conclusion is positive. You might be alone, in a lot of pain, but this isn't forever. Get up, lift your head, and face tomorrow. OK, go. Behind these lyrics are some of the tastiest licks in all of rockdom, featuring multi-layered songs, complex keyboard and bass lines, and hooks that would make your grandmother tap her feet.

So it's 2010, and Of the Blue Colour of the Sky has been out for a month and a half, and I've listened to the album a dozen times. Each listen gets more interesting: electric guitars, xylophones, kick drums; a wonderful fusion overall, always coming back to an honest optimism.

Opening track "WTF?" is a hard scramble of lyrics, opened with distortion, in which lead singer and guitarist Damien Kulash admits he's just an animal. The chorus of the following track, "This Too Shall Pass" has two of the best lyrical hooks I've heard in a while: "Let it go, this too shall pass / You can't keep lettin' it get you down." A killer duo. Followed by a heavy "All Is Not Lost," the album opens with three five-star songs in a row. These guys are on fire, and the album is just getting started. They hit you with smatters of keyboards, they ring out timely notes, and they pluck at heart strings. OK Go challenges you, they tell you, and they reflect you. If your life is a total mess, an emo crying shame, they recognize you, and then they demand you pull your head out of your ass and OK Go, embrace the world. These guys have the talent and complexity to back it all up.

Ok Go has been compared to Weezer and Elliott Smith, but neither one fits the bill for me. The hint of sadness in their lyrics invokes the Smith comparison, but these guys have too much hope, too much fun, in their guitars to be in the same category. As for Weezer, maybe their later stuff compares with OK Go, but never too distinctly. Weezer's older, more engaging work was fun, but unpolished. This group, on the other hand, shot out of the gates like long-term professionals. If they're to be likened to anyone, OK Go is most reminiscent of Spoon. Both bands deal with heavy-hearted issues using a lighter touch, and incidentally, they've both already released killer albums this year. 

In this new release, Ok Go is on point. They're now mature, well-oiled musicians. They lost lead guitarist Andy Duncan to creative differences in the early '00s, but they're still producing. Of the Blue Colour of the Sky isn't their best - that honor goes to their self-titled debut in 2002. There isn't a track on OK Go that isn't top notch.  But Of the Blue Colour of the Sky is a strong effort. It's inviting, and at times excellent. Trust me, after hearing their junior full-length, you won't want to miss what they bring to the table senior year. "I want you so bad, I can't breathe." Now, that's love.

When did the music industry become so complicated? I'll tell you when: when record companies started losing big money because the public figured out that it no longer had to pay for music. In an age where everything is digital, music is more accessible now than it ever has been; you can own an album, upload it to the website of your choice, and millions around the world can download it for free. Twenty years ago, this was nowhere near possible, and the record labels have begun to feel the effects, so they're looking for any way to make money off their investments.

YouTube became a primary target for industry titan EMI. For example, with the success of OK Go's music video for "Here It Goes Again," with views in the tens of millions, EMI came back demanding payment for their streamed material. (The band's lead singer/guitarist, Damian Kulash Jr., wrote an op-ed piece for the New York Times on the situation. You can read it here. Also, you can embed their video for "This Too Shall Pass" via Vimeo.) YouTube agreed to pay the record company a tiny amount for each stream, but - here's the crux of the problem - they pay only when the videos are viewed on YouTube's own site.

Embedded videos - those hosted by YouTube but streamed on blogs and other websites - don't generate any revenue for record companies, so EMI disabled the embedding feature. Now fans or anyone else who wants to post a video on their blog or site will be unable to. If you want to watch it, it can only be viewed on the specific EMI YouTube channel.

Now, EMI says it will work with YouTube to develop business models enabling people to legitimately incorporate videos and performances from EMI artists into their user-generated content on YouTube. The record label said it will rely on YouTube's content management tools to track EMI content and compensate its artists, or in some cases, request the removal of copyrighted work.

Before the EMI deal, Google (who owns YouTube) had successfully negotiated licensing deals with Warner Music Group, Universal Music Group, Sony BMG Music Entertainment, CBS and the BBC.

In the end, the big business wins...again. So just remember, every time you click on Lilly Allen's music video for "Smile," a couple more cents go into the pocket of some big wig wearing a three-piece suit.

Alkaline Trio This Addiction

All Time High Friends In High Places

Dan Black ((un))

David Broza Night Dawn: The Unpublished Poetry of Townes Van Zandt

Michelle Branch Everything Comes And Goes

Brian Jonestwon Massacre Who Killed Sgt.Pepper?

Cassidy Problem Is Back

Fan Death A Coin For The Well [EP]

David Byrne and Fatboy Slim Here Lies Love

DJ Khaled Victory

Fang Island Fang Island

Free Energy Stuck on Nothing

Jaga Jazzist One Armed Bandit

K-OS Yes!

Lifehouse Smoke & Mirrors

Daniel Merriweather Love & War

Holly Miranda The Magician's Private Library

Kidz In The Hall Land Of Make Believe

N.A.M.B BMAN

The New Loud Can't Stop Not Knowing [EP]

Joanna Newsom Have One On Me

Past Lives Tapestry Of Webs

Phantom Communique The Wolf And The Sheep

Quasi American Gong

The Radio Dept. Clinging to a Scheme

The Rocket Summer Of Men and Angels

Shout Out Louds Work

The Streets Computers and Blues

Butch Walker I Liked It Better When You Had No Heart

Xiu Xiu Dear God, I Hate Myself

Rocky Votolato True Devotion

After giving much ear to the new sweet Swedish sounds of the upcoming album Work by one of Stockholm's most credible indie bands, Shout Out Louds, I have only been able to draw one conclusion: that everyone is, in fact, going through an existential crisis! Scheduled to debut this upcoming Tuesday, February 23rd, Work will surely reinvent your most necessary rainy day mix tape.

The third and most melancholic album, Work, may be received by audiences as a bit of a dispiriting effort. However, Shout Out Louds are letting you in on their feelings about feelings and suggesting that “If you're going to break, then let it break.”

Adam Olenius (vocals/guitars), Ted Malmros (bass), Carl Von Arbin (guitars), Eric Edman (Drums), and Bebban Stenborg (vocals, keyboards) have been making music at as Shout Out Louds since 2003, and have been extensively touring the world since their debut Album Howl Howl Gaff Gaff. Opening for bands like The Strokes, Kings of Leon, and The Magic Numbers, Shout Out Louds have been gaining notoriety as well as fans for nearly a decade.

With small synth beats, steady sticks, and some distorted string strumming the intensity of opening track "1999" transforms it into less of an introduction song, and more into an introduction anthem. As creatures of habit, Shout Out Louds always begin their album with their most physically stimulating tracks (ie: "Tonight I Have To Leave It" off their sophomore album, Our Ill Wills). Work continues by revealing its stories of frustration, self-loathing, abandonment, excessive drinking, and learning how to deal with the cards you have been dealt. Track 4 and newly released single, "Walls," is a great example of their storytelling and advice, so to speak, that suggests, “To get to know yourself you have got to run away/ Never trust anyone/ so run, run, run.”

The album as an entirety is a response to the unwanted, which includes empty voicemail boxes, Sunday morning hangovers, and not wanting to be where you are. It's everything you experience the moments before you actually grow up.

In terms of progression, Work allows all tracks to stand on their own feet, without just highlighting the singles. After all, an album is a project and not a popularity contest. Instead of these songs competing against each other, they work with each other to convey a feeling, which really for any musician requires a whole lot of dedication and well...work.

The boys from England seem to be extremely busy these days, Thom Yorke recently announced on the band's blog Dead Air Space that he will performing a "low key solo thing at the Cambridge Corn Exchange on the 25^th of Feb." Mr. Yorke explained the significance of this intimate concert, "It's because a friend of mine Tony Juniper (who used to be head of Friends of the Earth and who I went to the Copenhagen Summit with) is hoping to become one of the first Green Members of Parliament in the UK. And I wanted to help him out somehow."

The proceeds from the event will go to the Green Party in efforts to support climate awareness.

Thom has also been doing some remixing; he'll be lending a remix to Major Lazer's upcoming Lazers Never Die EP that will be out in April.

Here's the track list for Lazers Never Die:

1.     Sound of Siren ft. M.I.A. and Busy Signal

2.     Good Enough ft Collie Buddz and Lindi Ortega

3.     Can't Stop Now ft. Ms. Banks

4.     Bruk Out (Buraka Som Sistema Mix)

5.     Jump Up (Thom Yorke Remix)

And there's more, recently Peter Gabriel embarked on a new project ‘Scratch My Back' where he would cover a song and then the artist would return the favor and cover a Gabriel song.  Peter picked to cover Radiohead's Street Spirit from The Bends and seems a bit worried that Yorke hasn't responded yet, "I still haven't had a response from Thom Yorke. He originally wrote to say he wanted to do a version of ‘Wallflower', but I haven't heard what he thinks of my version. Not everyone likes it and I've no real idea whether he likes it or hates it. We have a little clue, though. We gave out codes for the artists to listen to their songs on a stream and we could see how many times they've heard them. I think he's only streamed ‘Street Spirit' once, which isn't a good sign, but who knows?"

Thom Yorke isn't the only one making waves in the Radiohead camp, Phil Selway has announced his own solo tour. Phil will be releasing a solo record sometime this year and will be touring the Mediterranean to promote it.

Tour Dates:

3-27 Turin, Italy - Spazio 211

3-28 Florence, Italy - Sala Vanni

3-29 Ferrara, Italy - Sala Estense

3-30 Bologna, Italy - Covo Club

3-31 Rome, Italy - Cicolo Degil Artisti

4-1 Milan, Italy - Tunnel

4-3 Barcelona, Spain - La de Apolo

4-4 Valladolid, Spain - Auditorium

4-5 Puerta de Santa Maria, Spain - Mucho Teatro

4-6 Libson, Portugal - Aula Magna

Dum Dum Girls Jail La La

Raheem DeVaughn The Love & War Masterpeace

Freeway and Jake One The Stimulus Package

Field Music Field Music (Measure)

The Game The R.E.D. Album

Adam Green Minor Love

Jessica Harp A Woman Needs

Juliana Hatfield Peace and Love

Lusine Twilight

James Otto James Otto

Ike Reilly Hard Luck Stories

Robert Pollard We All Got Out of the Army

Story Of The Year Constant

Tindersticks Falling Down a Mountain

Wu-Tang Return of the & Friends

Quincy Jones's remake of We Are the World debuted during the opening ceremony of the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver this past weekend. The video that was showed was slightly edited but the longer version is now available on iTunes.

The video, which was directed by Academy award winner Paul Haggis, begins with Jamie Foxx speaking a few words about Haiti and the original We Are the World. Foxx encourages support from everyone, "Do more than just watch, whatever you have, no matter how big or how small, it all counts."

The song has basically the same format as the original but with a simple electronic beat and some verses of rapping, yes, you read it right. There's rapping.

The song opens with Justin Bieber singing Lionel Richie's verse and is then followed by a grocery list of artists, but the most creative moment was when original footage of Michael Jackson was superimposed with his sister Janet, to sing the first verse of the chorus.

The rest of the video then shows quick shots of various artists singing solo or in the star powered choir but none of it compares to the rapping segment. Which even Jay-Z didn't like. He commented about the We Are the World remake, "I think ‘We Are the World' is like [Michael Jackson's] ‘Thriller' to me. I don't ever wanna see it touched." He added, "Some things are just untouchable. It was a valiant effort, but for me, it's gonna be untouchable."

Jay-Z was putting it nicely but how can he like it when Lil Wayne, Akon, and T-pain are singing auto-tune on a classic?

Only time will tell how this remake will stand up against the original but it's the thought that counts, right?

If a revolution was ever to take place in America, I can only hope that Rage Against The Machine will be playing in the background somewhere. Can you think of any other band that has been more connected to protesting or rising up for a cause in the past 15 years than Rage Against The Machine? I can't, so it only makes sense that Rage has done it again.

Tom Morello announced on the band website that if their single "Killing In The Name" is number one on the Christmas Week UK pop charts over the single from Simon Cowell's X-Factor," Rage would play a huge free concert in the UK to celebrate the victory of this historic people's campaign".

Well the people of the United Kingdom have spoken and "Killing In The Name" shot to number one and Tom Morello responded, "A historic grassroots rebellion made our song 'Killing in the Name' the number one Christmas single of 2009. The people of the UK toppled the X-Factor giant, raised a great deal of money for homeless charities, and shocked the world. As a thank you to our UK fans and freedom fighters we promised to play a free show. Well...here we come. June 6th, Finsbury Park, the celebration/party/revolution is ON!!"

The band performed live on the BBC to announce the ‘victory' and to play the number one single. Zach de le Rocha commented on the people's voice, " The kids all over the UK have responded to this incredible Internet campaign, and I think it says something about the real tensions that people are experiencing all over the UK and the United States as well. And they would like to hear a song that reflects that. "

The show will be played on June 6^th at Finsbury Park.