New Radio Format Known as 'Jack' is Sweeping the Nation

I first encountered Jack rather haphazardly several months ago when I turned my radio dial to the local hip-hop channel. Rather than hearing the expected Ludacris and Nelly, I heard instead Billy Joel followed by Alien Ant Farm followed by Johnny Cash. Intrigued, I listened for nearly 20 minutes before a pre-recorded promo voice came on saying, "Welcome to The Bus. We're kind of like an iPod on shuffle, playing what we want," or something to that effect.

Fast forward to last Friday when I receive the newest issue of Rolling Stone (the one with Jimi Hendrix on the cover) and lo and behold there is an article on the very radio format I speak of. Known as 'Jack,' this new radio format is known for its eclectic playlists and absense of any sort of DJ. Only a few years old, the format has been implemented by a significant number of stations across the country. You can learn all about Jack-FM here.

So, for those of you who are clueless as to why your former favorite radio station is now all of a sudden playing random tracks from no particular genre or era, it is probably because the station has switched to Jack, the radio version of an iPod shuffle.

Steve's On Hiatus

I just wanted to let all our readers know that I will have only sporadic internet access for the next week and a half or so. And while I may be able to sneak in a post at work, it is safe to say that my stream of submissions will be few and far between until I move into my new apartment August 5th.

Don't fret, however. I am confident Tae and Ted will more than fill the void of my absense. Again, thank-you for your patronage and all that you do.

I Was Listening to "Now 1" While You Were Still Shittin' Yellow!

Will someone please stop the insanity?? Now 19 debuted at #1 on the Billboard Top 200. This is the seventh time the pop compilation has debuted at the top spot. When will they stop making these things? Why do so many people keep buying them???

And I have some words of advice for those who seem content blowing twenty bones each time one of these pop-culture abominations are released: get a CD burner and a file sharing program (legal or otherwise).

Green Day to Run 'American Idiot' Into the Ground

American Idiot has sold roughly 4 million copies since its initial release almost one year ago. In fact, for every Clear Channel Kiss station you turn into you are bound to encounter either 'Holiday' or 'Boulevard of Broken Dreams' within a 60 minute listening period. Yet, despite the saturation of the pop-punk super album on top 40 radio, Green Day, themselves, claim they still aren't exhausted of the recording:

But isn't the group tired of "American Idiot," which has sold 3.8 million copies in the United States, even just a little? "No," frontman Billie Joe Armstrong tells Billboard.com without hesitation. "I was just listening to the record today, to tell you the truth [laughs]. I'm really proud of this record. Because there's so much content in it, I think that's why it still has legs."

With MTV VMA nominations and further tour dates on the docket, the band seems quite content to ride out Idiot's success as long as the album continues to have momentum---despite how burned out on it the many of us may seem to be.

So, what about a new album?:

...Armstrong has a head start as far as that's concerned, admitting he has "about 15 new songs" in the hopper already. "Right now, it's that no-pressure/fun stage of just getting on a four-track and coming up with some goofy stuff," he says. "Eventually, something sort of unfolds. It's exciting. The juices are always flowing."

The Nicest Guy in Rock Still Feuding Love

According to a Spin article, Courtney Love and Dave Grohl are still at odds over who has the rights to Nirvana's earnings. Claiming that Grohl was "taking money from [her] child [Frances Bean]," Love continued to berate the grunge band's former drummer by calling him one of rock's "biggest jerks."

"Dave gets to walk away unscathed and be the happy guy in rock, when he's one of the biggest jerks," Love says in the August issue of Spin, on newsstands Friday. "He's been taking money from my child for years."

As for being the "nicest guy in rock," Grohl wonders where the title came from.

"I don't know. Because I don't do coke?" Grohl asks Spin. "I supposed it's not taking anything for granted and feeling lucky to be here.

As for my two cents, I personally think Courtney Love is a selfish, marginally-talented slob who is trying to get a piece of her deceased husband's pie before it goes to her daughter, Frances, once she turns 18.

Veda to Release New Album Tomorrow

Kansas City, Mo.'s indie-alternative quartet, Veda, will be releasing their new album The Weight of an Empty Room July 26th on Second Nature Recordings. Vocalist Kristin May channels the likes of Rilo Kiley, while the band could evoke a wide range of comparisons. The band, which has only been together for a year, has taken off quickly with the local and national scene, drawing lots of attention and acclaim. Veda will be on tour with Dredg through September, and then hit the road again with Thrice during the October-November months.

Only a year into their existence, Veda has not only built a fervid underground following, but they've crafted a wholly unique sound that is as equally rapturous as it is leveling. Kristen May's charmingly colossal voice navigates a musical ship riveted together by its stunning melodic qualities and powered by its anthemic passion. Brian Little's guitar lines lie somewhere between U2 and Elliot while the rhythm section of Jason Douglas and Drew Little is reminiscent of the infamous Will Goldsmith/Nate Mendel anchor of Sunny Day Real Estate. Musical prowess alone, however, is nothing without the work ethic to give up the comfort and security of home to jump in a van and hit the road. So far in the first part of 2005 alone they've toured the US four times and are looking at a full schedule for the remainder of the year.

Check out Veda's homepage and myspace links to hear tracks from The Weight of an Empty Room.

Neil Young - 'Down By the River'

In this track the Godfather of Grunge, Neil Young, implements rustic guitar and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young-esque harmonization to paint the picture of a relationship gone awry. Not real lyrically intricate, the guitar-heavy tune carries on for a whopping nine minutes, but is worth every second. Bluesy, organic and reflective, 'Down By the River' serves as one of Decade's most laid back slow jams.

'Down By the River' MP3

========================

Be on my side,
I'll be on your side,
baby
There is no reason
for you to hide
It's so hard for me
staying here all alone
When you could be
taking me for a ride.

Yeah, she could drag me
over the rainbow,
send me away
Down by the river
I shot my baby
Down by the river,
Dead, oh, shot her dead.

You take my hand,
I'll take your hand
Together we may get away
This much madness
is too much sorrow
It's impossible
to make it today.

Yeah, she could drag me
over the rainbow,
send me away
Down by the river
I shot my baby
Down by the river,
Dead, oh, shot her dead.

Be on my side,
I'll be on your side,
baby
There is no reason
for you to hide
It's so hard for me
staying here all alone
When you could be
taking me for a ride.

Yeah, she could drag me
over the rainbow,
send me away
Down by the river
I shot my baby
Down by the river,
Dead, oh, shot her dead.

Detroit Reporters Don't Know Jack; Eminem NOT Retiring

Detroit reporters had released information last week citing rapper Eminem was calling it quits---forever. However, a week later, the lyrical gangsta says "not so fast!" According to an MTV News article the rapper claimed he was only simply taking a break, nothing more, nothing less:

"When I say I'm taking a break, I'm taking a break from my music to go in the studio and produce my other artists and put their albums out. That's called taking a break for me," Em told MTV News. "When I know my next move, I'll tell everyone my next move. Not some reporter who writes a story about 'This is Eminem's last album.' I never said [Encore] was my last album. I never said anything yet. I don't know what I'm doing yet. Nothing is definite, you know what I'm sayin'? Nothing is written in stone."

Frances Bean Out; Sally Field's Son In

The New York Post reports that Courtney Love is flaming mad that love child with Kurt Cobain, Frances Bean, was left off of Steven Spielberg's son's Bar Mitzvah guest list. Sawyer Spielberg knows Frances via their shared love of horses. In related news, Sally Field's son, Sam, was invited to the bash.

Autolux Gearing Up to Open for Nine Inch Nails

LA Hypno Rockers Autolux are preparing for one of the biggest gigs in their band's short life: being the opening act for Nine Inch Nails and Queens of the Stone Age in their approaching fall tour. Apparently, Trent Reznor has been a fan of the group for some time:

"There were one or two interviews with Trent Reznor where he talked about us and then soon after that, someone contacted us about the tour. That's what's really nice about it -- it came from him. I think he had two or three bands he wanted to open the tour and we were one of them." [Guitarist Greg Edwards]

Autolux is slated to tour throughout the rest of 2005, with thoughts of writing and recording a new album increasingly creeping into the picture:

"I'm sort of hoping that at the end of this year that we'll be done but then again, it all depends on what happens," Edwards says. "If the record starts taking off more, then there is more pressure to tour. If that happens, wonderful, but if not, wonderful also because that means some time in the next
three or four months we'll get to start working on the next record."

XFM Poll: Muse is Greatest Indie Band Evaaaah!

According to listeners of the UK's XFM (not to be confused with XM Satellite Radio here in the colonies) the greatest indie band in the world right now is Muse. The Radiohead sound-alike band found mainstream success here in the States throughout the past year with the singles 'Time is Running Out' and 'Stockholm Syndrome.'

The XMF Greatest Indie Band Vote asked listeners to rate their favorite musicians in the realms of vocals, drums, guitar and bassist. From there, the plan was to combine the top vote-getters of each category in order to make the best hypothetical indie band. Since Muse musicians topped all four categories (Matt Bellamy took both the singer and guitarist slots), essentially the greatest indie band is the non-hypothetical, already existent Muse.

Runner-ups included:

Singer:
Thom Yorke (Radiohead)
Liam Gallagher (Oasis)

Guitarist:
Jonny Greenwood (Radiohead)
Noel Gallagher (Oasis)

Bassist:
Andy Bell (Oasis)
Mani (The Stone Roses / Primal Scream)

Drummer
Dave Grohl (Nirvana)
Phil Selway (Radiohead)

Sweet Mash-up: Deelite vs No Doubt

Found this little gem over at Between Thought and Expression. It's Deelite's 'Groove is in the Heart' vs. No Doubt's 'Hella Good.' Check it out!

Weiland's 2003 Drug Charge Dropped

It's good to see that one of the greatest frontmen of all time is beginning to get his drug addiction under control:

A felony drug charge filed in 2003 against Velvet Revolver frontman Scott Weiland was dismissed following the singer's stint in rehab.

The artist's decade-long battle with heroin addiction was cited as one reason his former band, Stone Temple Pilots, broke up. He was first arrested for heroin possession in California in 1995. He served five months in jail in 1999 before being arrested again in 2003.

Drowning Pool to Reveal New Singer

According to Drowning Pool's official website, the metal act will unveil their new lead singer at their Dallas Ozzfest Main Stage performance - Thursday August 25th at the Smirnoff Music Center.

To those interested in their single "Think" you can download the MP3 safely here.

Most Likely to be Mistaken for a Homeless Person: Marcus Congleton

Quite a few underground music news publications have been having field days lately ripping on the not-so-pretty performers at Coney Island's Siren Festival that occurred over the weekend. However, when it comes to Ambulance LTD's Marcus Congleton, Spin magazine, in particular, has bestowed upon him the not-so-great label of Most Likely to be Mistaken for a Homeless Person:

Marcus Congleton, the emaciated singer and guitarist of beloved indie band Ambulance Ltd., may have a model-worthy face, but his dirty wife-beater and stringy hair made him look like he should have been begging for change on the seaside instead of fronting a band. Luckily, Congleton's singing voice didn't seem to be affected by the dirt as he led Ambulance through a tight set that mixed old favorites with a few new songs. One promising new track was entitled "Somalia," maybe because Congleton currently empathizes with its inhabitants.

The last I checked, the more homeless looking an artist, the better his/her music was. Does the grunge music explosion ring any bells?? Tell ya what Spin, how 'bout you stick to covering music, and we'll leave the male fashion tips to GQ.

Kaiser Chiefs Favored For Mercury Music Prize

The Kaiser Chiefs' debut album, "Employment" (B Unique/Polydor), is the leading contender for the 2005 Nationwide Mercury Prize, the shortlist for which was unveiled today (July 19) in London. The prize recognizes the best albums of British and Irish music.

The So-So-So Exciting World of Hillary Duff

Hilary Duff has a message for anyone who thinks they know her: You don't.

The 17-year-old teen queen, who's used to dealing with the pressures of the glaringly hot media spotlight, is breaking loose in the video for her new single, "Wake Up," unveiling some new looks and a more mature pop-techno sound.

Hillary Duff: So rebellious, so feisty....so cliche! Give me a break.

Gretchen Wilson Single Takes Ringtone Route

The latest in the recent convergence of pop music and technology, another artist has chosen to release their single first via cellphone ringtone:

Cingular Wireless customers are the first to hear the latest single from Gretchen Wilson. The country artist's "All Jacked Up," the title cut of Wilson's forthcoming sophomore, is available as a ringtone via the wireless carrier's Cingular Sounds program before it can be heard on radio or purchased in any other format.

Wilson's single is the second to bow via Cingular's exclusive ringtone program, following Coldplay's "Speed of Sound" in April. The initiative has offered exclusive post-release ringtones from Gwen Stefani's Interscope album "Love, Angel, Music, Baby."

Woo hoo for Cingular customers. Boy, do I sure envy them...considering how much I like country music and all. I really think this whole ringtone craze is rather ridiculous. Listening to music blare through your tiny cellphone speaker is kind of like having your overzealous friend call you from the Slayer concert he's attending. He holds his phone up to the band, and all you can make out on the other end is a loud cackle of static. Honestly, if you absolutely can't wait until 'All Jacked Up' hits the stores and radio airwaves to the point you feel the need to pay for the rights to download it as a ringtone, perhaps you should have your musical tastes reassesed.

The Who - 'Eminence Front'

Eminence Front
The Who
It's Hard


After years of intense success, British rockers The Who were slammed by tragedy. With the death of legendary drummer Keith Moon in 1978, just months after the release of Who Are You, the band had seemed to have met an all-too-abrupt end. Prior to Moon's death, the band members had already been forming independent careers, and it wasn't unknown that Moon and guitarist-songwriter Pete Townshend had each struggled with addictions; however, the band had held together. After Moon's overdose, the remainder of the band had to consider whether or not to go on working together.
In 1979 they hired a new drummer and added a keyboardist, and decided to work on new material and tour towards the end of the year. But that wasn't an end to the band's tragedies. In December, eleven people were trampled to death while trying to attain festival seating at a show in Cincinatti. The band fell apart, with each of the three going solo. After a solo album featuring the hit 'Let My Love Open the Door', Townshend became addicted to cocaine, tranquilizers, heroin, and alcohol - nearly dying himself from an O.D. in '81.
That same year they managed to reform, and put out two final LPs by the end of '82. Face Dances, the first of the two, sold well but received mixed reviews. The second, It's Hard, wasn't that lucky. Critics thought the band was starting to sound too much like Townshend's solo creations, but without producing anything all that captivating.

So this finally brings me to the real meat of this post. Now, some die-hard fans of The Who might disagree with me here, but for their last album, they did produce at least one song that I feel is most definitely worth mentioning. 'Eminence Front', a song which Townshend lends his vocals, is a great track - chilling, and worthy of being one of the group's last recording efforts. The song opens with keyboards,and then the other instruments enter to break it down to a groove. The guitar whips out a mellow solo within the first two minutes prior to any vocals. From there, Townshend begins to lay down his concise,unnerving lyrics over the funk of the rhythm section; periodically breaking into a call and response of "It's an eminence front - It's a put on!" The entire song reminds me of something you'd expect to hear on some '80s cop-drama, maybe even Miami Vice. Apparently the song is featured on the Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas soundtrack, so maybe that is appropriate. Anyway, the song continues this path, with Townshend reminding the listener that "people forget that they're hiding." To me, this might be the perfect ending to the band. The three original members later admitted that they felt The Who died with the loss of Keith Moon, and the fact that the band had tried to forge on into the '80s might make the entire song. Aging rockers faced with the crossroads of where to go next, perhaps? Maybe Townshend was reflecting upon himself, pondering about hiding his feelings about Moon's death, or his subsequent struggles with drugs afterwards? These are all just my own thoughts on the song, but despite the true meaning, the song has a quality of strength - denying to go down without a fight.



The sun shines and people forget
The spray flies as the speedboat glides, and people forget
Forget they're hiding
The girls smile and people forget
The snow packs as the skier tracks, and people forget
Forget they're hiding
Behind an eminence front
Eminence front, it's a put on
Come and join the party, dress to kill
Won't you come and join the party, dress to kill
The drinks flow, people forget
The big wheel spins, the hair thins, people forget
The news slows, people forget
The shares crash, hopes are dashed, people forget
Forget they're hiding
Behind an eminence front
Eminence front, it's a put on
Come and join the party, dress to kill
Won't you come and join the party, dress to
Won't you come and join the party, dress to
Won't you come and join the party, dress to
Won't you come and join the party, dress to
Dress yourself, dress to kill

Etheridge to Release Tom Petty Cover; Breaks Hearts of the Heartbreakers in Process

Melissa Etheridge is set to release her rendition of 'Refugee' as the first single off her soon available greatest hits collection. Frankly, I haven't heard the recording yet, but I am willing to bet it sucks horribly (or is it horribly sucks?). I can actually dig some of Missy's stuff from time to time, but judging from the following description, this cover seems only to serve as a springboard back onto top 40 AC and pop rotation:

Melissa Etheridge takes on Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers' "Refugee" as the first single from her forthcoming greatest-hits album, "The Road Less Traveled." While the Petty original had an uncluttered, solid groove and a fairly uptempo beat, Etheridge goes the slow-burn, jangle-rock route. She and producer John Shanks throw in a mess of guitars and turn the song into a semi-personal anthem for Etheridge. While the singer's radio fortunes have faded over time, her stellar Grammy Awards performance earlier this year might make programers take a second listen.

Jangle-rock??? Going the way of REM with one of Tom Petty's sweetest songs sounds WAY......uh....awesome. Yeah right. Great job Melissa.