By now are probably aware of a lady called Susan Boyle. Her performance on the TV show 'Britain's Got Talent' - the same show that launched tenor Paul Pott's to global fame - has captured the hearts of millions of people across the world.
Susan Boyle is such an average lady - at least on first glance. She is 47 years old, unemployed, and lives in a village in Scotland. She's also never been kissed. It was not surprising that Simon Cowell gazed at her mockingly on first sight. The audience also seemed primed to split their sides laughing, at what on appearance looked like another wannabe-singer ready to get rejected by the judges and suffer the himulation of being embarassed on TV in front of millions.
But then Boyle sang. And, my how she sang!! If you have not seen this video yet then you need to. Susan Boyle has one of the most amazingly beautiful voices you will ever hear.
Click to watch Susan Boyle on YouTube
Susan Boyle is a rare gem, and such refreshing find for a music industry that is dominated by airbrushed popstars and rockstars. On top of that, she has now become the champion of all underdogs. Boyle is an inspiration to any one out there who may have been trambled in life - she has never let go of her dreams, and in the end she has done achieved the seemingly impossible, the incredible.
Monday, April 20, 2009
Monday, April 6, 2009
Metallica Inducted Into The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame
Today Metallica were entered into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, in Cleveland, Ohio.
Flea of the Red Hot Chilli Peppers described Metallica as “fucking rad” before inviting the band onto the stage. The other 2009 inductees were Jeff Beck, Little Anthony & the Imperials, Bobby Womack and Run-D.M.C.
I've got to admit that I'd never heard of Little Anthony & the Imperials before now, or at least they've escaped my memory. A quick search on Google helped me discover who they were... I guess chances are I've heard a song or two by them at some point in an old movie or something.
Clearly there is a large variety in style and sound of the artists that are inducted into the Hall Of Fame. I was curious as to who may be missing from the hallowed museum's walls. A quick look into the inductee archives revealed a few glaring omissions of artists who are surely worthy for a place in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. Nirvana, Iron Maiden, Green Day and Flea's band the Chili's are just a few of rock's elite who have yet to be inducted.
Flea of the Red Hot Chilli Peppers described Metallica as “fucking rad” before inviting the band onto the stage. The other 2009 inductees were Jeff Beck, Little Anthony & the Imperials, Bobby Womack and Run-D.M.C.
I've got to admit that I'd never heard of Little Anthony & the Imperials before now, or at least they've escaped my memory. A quick search on Google helped me discover who they were... I guess chances are I've heard a song or two by them at some point in an old movie or something.
Clearly there is a large variety in style and sound of the artists that are inducted into the Hall Of Fame. I was curious as to who may be missing from the hallowed museum's walls. A quick look into the inductee archives revealed a few glaring omissions of artists who are surely worthy for a place in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. Nirvana, Iron Maiden, Green Day and Flea's band the Chili's are just a few of rock's elite who have yet to be inducted.
Friday, March 20, 2009
Dangerfields' Andrew's Husky Sled Challenge
Two blogs about fundraising musicians in one day? Well I find this stuff more worthy of mentioning than most the other stories that pass as being newsworthy in the music world right now. Do I care that The Edge from U2 is angering neighbours in Los Angeles who are disputing his plans to build multiple homes on a prime piece of real estate? Zzz, seriously...
This morning I posted a blog about the Deftones quest to raise money for their coma-induced bassist Chi Cheng. Across the globe, in Belfast, Northern Ireland, local music man Andrew 'Griswold' Johnston is about to embark on a Husky Sled Challenge in the Arctic in aid of the UK charity Mencap.
Andrew is music writer, and the drummer and founder of the Dangerfields - a band I know well, and who I met while filming My Tour in 2007. (Andrew is the guy on the left in this Dangerfields video interview.)
This Saturday, March 21, at The Bunker at Lavery's pub in Belfast, Andrew is holding a fundraising gig, a day before he sets off on his Arctic challenge. Entry is only £4, so if your live in Belfast you should check it out. As I write this Andrew still has over £1000 to raise in order to reach a target of £4500.
You can also support Andrew's expedition for Mencap by sponsoring him online. Visit his page here on JustGiving.com to find more about the challenge.
Isn't it nice to be reminded that there are some musicians out there that are actually doing some good for others? Best of luck to Andrew and his expedition teammates in the Arctic.
This morning I posted a blog about the Deftones quest to raise money for their coma-induced bassist Chi Cheng. Across the globe, in Belfast, Northern Ireland, local music man Andrew 'Griswold' Johnston is about to embark on a Husky Sled Challenge in the Arctic in aid of the UK charity Mencap.
Andrew is music writer, and the drummer and founder of the Dangerfields - a band I know well, and who I met while filming My Tour in 2007. (Andrew is the guy on the left in this Dangerfields video interview.)
This Saturday, March 21, at The Bunker at Lavery's pub in Belfast, Andrew is holding a fundraising gig, a day before he sets off on his Arctic challenge. Entry is only £4, so if your live in Belfast you should check it out. As I write this Andrew still has over £1000 to raise in order to reach a target of £4500.
You can also support Andrew's expedition for Mencap by sponsoring him online. Visit his page here on JustGiving.com to find more about the challenge.
Isn't it nice to be reminded that there are some musicians out there that are actually doing some good for others? Best of luck to Andrew and his expedition teammates in the Arctic.
Deftones launch a fund for their comatose bassist Chi
Deftones bassist Chi Cheng has been in a coma since November last year, after being involved in a car accident. The band have now launched a fund raising website, OneLoveForChi.com, with an aim of raising $20,000 to help cover medical costs.
There website states that other fund raising events are in the pipeline.
The Deftones have not played a gig since Chi's accident, but are scheduled to play at the Bamboozle - Left festival in Irvine, CA, this April.
This website was created to help raise funds for Chi and his medical expenses. Any amount that you can donate is very much appreciated by the Cheng family! All funds raised are sent directly to Chi's mother, Jeanne Cheng, via PayPal.com. - Deftones
There website states that other fund raising events are in the pipeline.
The Deftones have not played a gig since Chi's accident, but are scheduled to play at the Bamboozle - Left festival in Irvine, CA, this April.
Friday, March 13, 2009
Polar Bear Club Announce UK Dates
Polar Bear Club are heading to Britain for a couple of weeks worth of gigs, from May 23. I like these guys and recommend you check them out. I first saw them live back in December at The Mod Club in Toronto - click here for that gig review.
The tour dates look pretty familiar - the usual deal of a band playing a lot of gigs across England, then just one token night in Scotland. Incidentally, that's the reason why gigs in Glasgow are usually always so damn good, because international touring bands rarely travel any farther north than the two big cities of Glasgow and Edinburgh. This means that so long as the band are at least half-decent then the show will sell-out, and a frenetic atmosphere is almost guaranteed.
As I write this, Polar Bear Club have yet to post these UK dates on their MySpace, but here they are;
May 23 - Kingston, Peel
May 24 - Leeds, Slam Dunk Festival
May 25 - Bristol, Croft
May 26 - Brighton, Freebutt
May 27 - Birmingham, Academy
May 28 - London, Underworld
May 27 - Nottingham, 7
May 30 - Exeter, Phoenix
June 1 - Glasgow, Cathouse
June 2 - Newcastle, Academy
June 3 - Manchester, Musicbox
June 4 - Norwich, Marquee
Look up your local venue or use the power of Google to find out about tickets for these dates.
Brian, Editor, MusicVice.com
The tour dates look pretty familiar - the usual deal of a band playing a lot of gigs across England, then just one token night in Scotland. Incidentally, that's the reason why gigs in Glasgow are usually always so damn good, because international touring bands rarely travel any farther north than the two big cities of Glasgow and Edinburgh. This means that so long as the band are at least half-decent then the show will sell-out, and a frenetic atmosphere is almost guaranteed.
As I write this, Polar Bear Club have yet to post these UK dates on their MySpace, but here they are;
May 23 - Kingston, Peel
May 24 - Leeds, Slam Dunk Festival
May 25 - Bristol, Croft
May 26 - Brighton, Freebutt
May 27 - Birmingham, Academy
May 28 - London, Underworld
May 27 - Nottingham, 7
May 30 - Exeter, Phoenix
June 1 - Glasgow, Cathouse
June 2 - Newcastle, Academy
June 3 - Manchester, Musicbox
June 4 - Norwich, Marquee
Look up your local venue or use the power of Google to find out about tickets for these dates.
Brian, Editor, MusicVice.com
Friday, March 6, 2009
Michael Jackson's London Farewell Concerts
Heard the news? Michael Jackson announced details yesterday of ten London gigs. The ten shows, with the tag-line, 'Is This It?', will be played at London's O2 Arena.
The first concert will be on July 8, with tickets going on sale for £50-£75. Those tickets will be like gold, and will likely have a re-sale value for over 10 times that price. That's one news story I'm definitely expecting to hear about in July; there will probably be some touts re-selling tickets for over £1000.
Chances are that you either regard the man as a being freak-show Wacko or, alternatively, the legendary King Of Pop - I think it's probably safe to call him both. In any case it is certain that this will be one of the most publicised and talked about events of the year.
Just don't expect those shows to go smoothly... I wouldn't be surprised if the whole thing get's cancelled after a couple of nights.
For anyone interested, the official ticket pre-sale site is available here.
The first concert will be on July 8, with tickets going on sale for £50-£75. Those tickets will be like gold, and will likely have a re-sale value for over 10 times that price. That's one news story I'm definitely expecting to hear about in July; there will probably be some touts re-selling tickets for over £1000.
Chances are that you either regard the man as a being freak-show Wacko or, alternatively, the legendary King Of Pop - I think it's probably safe to call him both. In any case it is certain that this will be one of the most publicised and talked about events of the year.
Just don't expect those shows to go smoothly... I wouldn't be surprised if the whole thing get's cancelled after a couple of nights.
For anyone interested, the official ticket pre-sale site is available here.
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Faith No More Announce European Reunion Tour
Faith No More are once more again.
A European comeback tour seems to be on the cards for this summer, but details are still very sketchy. There have been rumours circulating for a few months now, speculating about a possible comeback from the alt-metal 80's superstars.
As yet, there are still no dates announced, but singer Mike Patton and keyboardist Roddy Bottum have both confirmed via their representatives that a European tour will be happening.
Apparently the band have no plans as yet to do any reunuion touring back home in their native North America. It's a good thing then that airline flights are cheap again, (or cheaper anyway), because I've already had thoughts of flying back to Europe to catch a festival or two this year. It'd definitely be an extra temptation to check out a fest if Faith No More were on the bill.
Recently Mike Patton has been busy with Fantomas; a band made-up of members of The Melvins and Slayer. Fantomas are currently out on the road, and they starred at Big Day Out 2009, in Perth Australia - (click here for our review on that.)
Brian, Editor, MusicVice.com
A European comeback tour seems to be on the cards for this summer, but details are still very sketchy. There have been rumours circulating for a few months now, speculating about a possible comeback from the alt-metal 80's superstars.
As yet, there are still no dates announced, but singer Mike Patton and keyboardist Roddy Bottum have both confirmed via their representatives that a European tour will be happening.
Apparently the band have no plans as yet to do any reunuion touring back home in their native North America. It's a good thing then that airline flights are cheap again, (or cheaper anyway), because I've already had thoughts of flying back to Europe to catch a festival or two this year. It'd definitely be an extra temptation to check out a fest if Faith No More were on the bill.
Recently Mike Patton has been busy with Fantomas; a band made-up of members of The Melvins and Slayer. Fantomas are currently out on the road, and they starred at Big Day Out 2009, in Perth Australia - (click here for our review on that.)
Brian, Editor, MusicVice.com
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