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The Rock Dirt Archives
Dec 2005
The Week in Dirt
Posted: Fri, Dec 23Nothing smells like flat broke more than selling your dead husband’s legacy. So it goes for Courtney Love. The oft-troubled Love is selling a quarter of Nirvana’s back catalogue to daytime domesticate Martha Stewart in a deal that will net some £70million - 121 million in US dollars - the London Sunday Mirror reported. Don’t bother figuring Martha for a fan; she wants the songs as an investment. Additional reports say this deal gets Courtney out of heaps of financial trouble. A house purchased by her for Kurt’s sister just went up for public auction after the bank foreclosed as she hasn't made a payment on it since 2003. That’ll do it.
Radiohead plans to get its shit together with a test tour in May. It’s merely a way to work some new songs on fans before hitting the studio. Guitarist Ed O’Brien told U.K.’s “NME” that the band is considering working with producer Mark “Spike” Stent (U2, Oasis) on the new record.
www.nme.comThe Who announced the band will do a full-fledged world tour in the new year. The first full-fledged tour in nearly 4 years. Dates will cover the U.S., Europe, Japan, Australian and South America. The band, now consisting of Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend backed by bassist Pino Palladino, keyboardist John "Rabbit" Bundrick, guitarist Simon "Pete's brother" Townshend, and drummer Zak Starkey (son of Ringo) was forced to lay low in 2005 due to Zak's touring commitments to the smarmy Gallagher bros, known to the world as Oasis, and Pino's stint with the John Mayer Trio. The band will convene in February to record the cleverly titled, "Who2."
All was quiet on the Velvet Revolver front. The band now has a working title for its upcoming sophomore release, “Libertad” - the Spanish word meaning freedom. In a recent interview, Scott Weiland said the band is setting its sights on a concept album, much like the Rolling Stones and Pink Floyd, both of whom have influenced the band.
New year, new record. Stone Sour will get to work in Dave Grohl’s L.A. studio in January. If all goes well it’s expected as early as June via the band’s Roadrunner Records label.
Speaking of Roadrunner, the label’s anniversary compilation, “Roadrunner United: The All Star Sessions” would make a nice stocking stuffer for the metal fan in the family. It features 57 artists from 45 of the label’s past and present roster with the central characters being Joey Jordison of Slipknot, Dino Cazares formerly of Fear Factory, Machine Head’s Robert Flynn, and Matthew Heafy of Trivium. A unique team of musicians was assembled to appear on each of the 18 songs.
www.roadrunnerrecords.com
Misfits have a series of dates lined up in South American and Mexico in the new year. They include Jan 25 in Mexico City, Feb 1 in Bogotá, Columbia and Feb 6 in Santiago, Chile. Could they come north?
The Rock Dirt
Published: Weds, Dec 21U2’s Bono has been recognized by nearly everyone this past year for his tireless humanitarian efforts but this one may take the cake; Time magazine has named him one of its “Persons of the Year” along side Microsoft’s Bill Gates and his wife Melinda. In other news, U2’s Vertigo tour is the top-grossing tour of the year earning some $260 million with 3 million tickets sold and 90 sellout shows.
Far removed from his rock antics while in Led Zeppelin, Jimmy Page’s years of humanitarian work helping poor children in Brazil has earned him the title of Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) by Queen Elizabeth.
Only in New Jersey. A senator from Bruce Springsteen’s home state recently introduced a proposal for a “Born to Run” –themed license plate in honor of its golden child. If it passes, proceeds would go to the state’s Community Food Bank.
Sevendust plans its own headlining tour in the new year in support of new disc, “Next.” The band will cover the US beginning Jan 18 in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. With Nonpoint, Socialburn, ONE, and Wicked Wisdom (Jada Pinkett Smith’s band, fyi) in tow. See ‘em all Jan 27 at the Worcester Palladium.
www.thepalladium.netWith all the drama that was Ozzfest 2005, next year’s tour has big shoes to fill. Though the snow is high, organizers are thinking up what will be next for one of the longest running summer shed fests and are giving fans the opportunity to help decide who ends up on Ozzfest 2006. It’s also very important for them to know whether you’re carnivorous and horny, dark and desparing, or hot and nasty. Answer now at http://www.ozzfest.com/survey/2005/index.html. By all means.
Stoner rock. Queens of the Stone Age has been invited by grandaddies of rock the Rolling Stones to open for its upcoming American tour. QotSA will do two shows; Las Vegas on March 4 and Los Angeles on March 6.
Tool is in the mixing stage of its next record. Safe to say we’ll get it some time in 2006. One Tool related product we will get sooner is wine from Maynard James Keenan’s personal vineyard. Sounds delicious.
www.caduceus.orgWhat’s next for Dave Navarro now that his foray into reality TV co-hosting is over? He’s teamed with internet radio site Live365 for his own station called "Spread Radio." Dave will do his own live broadcasts on Tuesday and Thursday nights.
www.live365.comIn preparation for his upcoming solo record, “On An Island” (due March 6), Pink Floyd’s David Gilmour will launch a rare solo tour on March 10 in Dortmund, Germany. So far only European dates are scheduled but more are expected stateside.
Organizers of the The New England Punk Goth & Metal Festival are holding auditions for what will be its second annual show. Selections are made via "Slaughter House Saturday" at Reflections Lounge in Chelmsford, MA. For more information, visit www.nepgmfest.com.
I wish you peace and love this holiday season and in the year to come.
The Rock Dirt
Published: Weds, Dec 14Rock is well-represented in the 48th Annual Grammy Awards as nominations were recently announced. Virtually everyone’s favorite band U2 earned five nods, Foo Fighters scored a few too as as did Green Day and Paul McCarthey. Others nominees in various categories include Gorillaz, Coldplay, System of a Down, Shadows Fall, White Stripes, Audioslave, Death Cab for Cutie, Nine Inch Nails, and Beck. The awards dole out will be broadcast live on Feb 8 and is typically excruciating to watch.
www.grammy.comLegendary club CBGB’s will have a reprieve for now. After months of legal wrangling to remain at its famed Bowery location, the club will be allowed to stay in business for one more year and will close for good on Oct 31, 2006. Owner Hilly Kristal plans to reopen and is exploring other Lower Manhattan locations but is considering moving to another city like Las Vegas.
Cheers to Cambridge, Mass-based game development company Harmonix for its latest beat matching game, “Guitar Hero” that brings the magic of rock and roll to your, er, your loved one’s gaming console this holiday season. What’s better is that this thing comes complete with its own custom guitar-shaped controller allowing any Joe to play shred master. The soundtrack includes some 30 rock songs (like White Zombie’s “Thunderkiss ’65,” Queens of the Stone age’s “No One Knows” and every guitar players first song, Deep Purple’s “Smoke on the Water”), A brilliant move on the part of the makers is they’ve tapped into the Boston music community to include a bundle of locals’ as “unlockable” material, including Graveyard BBQ, Upper Crust, the Acro-brats, Freezepop, Count Zero, and Din. No surprise that “Guitar Hero” was recently awarded the 2005 Spike Video Game Award for Best Soundtrack.
www.guitarherogame.comBlack Label Society and Ozzy guitar master Zakk Wylde will be inducted into Hollywood's RockWalk next month. Zakk got his start with Ozzy’s band back in 1987 at the tender faced age of 19.
No rest. Nine Inch Nails extends its current “With Teeth” tour into 2006. The band will resume the tour after a two-month break, returning to the road on Feb 10 at the University Of Illinois. Two area dates: Feb 27, Mullins Center, Amherst, MA and Feb 28, Cumberland County Civic Center, Portland, ME.
Knotted. Marilyn Manson and his betrothed, burlesque dancer Dita Von Teese, were married in what appears to be a rather - by Manson standards - uneventful ceremony on Dec 3 in Ireland. Mildly more eventful was the couple’s cookware registry viewable via Williams-Sonoma by entering the initials either of their birth names - Brian Warner and Heather Sweet.
Queen + Paul Rodgers play the DCU Center, Worcester on March 10.
www.ticketmaster.comBeat Christmas. Boston DJ, MC and producer D-Tension releases his ode to Christmas “D-Tension Beats Christmas” to include original songs plus some remixes of holiday classics. ”Beats” is available exclusively thru D and is absolutely free. Thing is copies are limited and going fast. You can download "The Feast of Steven" at www.myspace.com/dtensionbeats.
The Week in Dirt
Published: Weds, Dec 7
System of a Down changes historyRock and Roll history was made when System of a Down’s latest effort, “Hypnotize” debuted at the tip top of Billboard Top 200 – a huge feat by itself for any act. What’s historic is that SOAD became the first band to debut at the top twice in the same calendar year with separate studio releases. “Mezmerize,” part one of the band’s current releases, showed up at #1 in May.
Rock and Roll history had a good week when the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame announced its list of inductees for the class of 2006. They include masters of all that is metal Black Sabbath, Southern rock heroes Lynyrd Skynyrd, newly eligible new wavers Blondie, jazz great who influence rock Miles Davis, and UK punk forefathers The Sex Pistols. The Lifetime Achievement Award in the Non-Performer category will go to A&M records founders Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss – the men behind the likes of the Police, Peter Frampton, and Joe Jackson to name a few. The 21st Annual Induction Ceremony takes place March 13 at the Waldorf Astoria in NYC.
www.rockhall.comSafety in oldness. I mean no disrespect but its highly unlikely that the Rollling Stones will behave inappropriately in any way when they play the Super Bowl XL halftime show Feb 5 at Detroit’s Ford Field. This’ll be straight up, clothed rock n’ roll, the NFL – and the FCC we’ve learned - wouldn’t have it any other way.
Former Libertines leader, certified idiot, and Kate Moss’s on-again-off-again coke supplier, Pete Doherty was arrested again. This time it's on suspicion of possessing drugs last week in London.
This Thurs, Dec 8 marks the 25th anniversary of the passing of John Lennon. If you’ve never heard anything he’s recorded or performed, please take a moment to listen. It just got easier as Lennon’s solo work will be available for download beginning this week.
In this week of anniversaries, Dec 9 marks the one year anniversary of Dimebag Darrell Abbott’s passing. He was killed while on stage at an Ohio club doing what he loved most – playing music. Regardless of whether you followed any part of his career while in Pantera and later Damageplan, he was taken far too soon and far too brutally. There’s no suspect, no trial, as his killer did not live past that night. Three others were killed; music fan Nathan Bray, club employee Erin Halk, and Damageplan security guard Jeff "Mayhem" Thompson.
www.pantera.comIf walls could talk I’d love to hear what they had to say about former Creed singer Scott Stapp’s scuffle with the 311 guys on Thanksgiving at a Baltimore hotel. Evidently Stapp showed up at the bar drunk, belligerent and looking for a fight but it’s his rude comments to one woman that lead 311 drummer Chad Sexton to ask that he step away. It’s then when Stapp is said to have “sucker-punched” Sexton. Could this anger stem from Scott realizing that he was in Creed?
Anngelle Wood - Radio DJ, music & entertainment writer, rock enthusiast, and founder of Anngelle Wood Productions - is keeping her ear to the ground to give you the week in dirt. Got dirt? Feedback? E-mail it: anngelle@gmail.com
The Rock Dirt written by Anngelle Wood
copyright © 2005-2007 the rock dirt/anngelle wood productions