Rock Concert Reviews

Rolling Stones Honolulu Show Added

ericclapton — Sat, 23 Sep 2006 12:12:36 +0000

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The Rolling Stones launched their latest round of North American tour dates Wednesday in the Boston area. Meanwhile, the Rock and Roll Hall of Famers have expanded their fall schedule to include a stop in Honolulu.

The newly announced show in Hawaii is set for Nov. 22 at Aloha Stadium and, as it now stands, is the final date on the group’s current US/Canada tour. Tickets for the Honolulu show go on sale to the general public Sept. 30, according to the Stones’ official website.

The Stones opened their current “A Bigger Bang” world tour in August 2005 at Boston’s Fenway Park, returned to the city to play a pair of packed arena shows in January, and revisited the region last night for yet another sold-out gig at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, MA.

“Folks who’ve faithfully attended all concerts were no doubt pleased with a substantially rejuvenated list of songs,” Boston Herald reviewer Christopher John Treacy wrote of last night’s show.

The Stones continue to tour behind last year’s “A Bigger Bang,” the group’s first new studio set since 1997′s “Bridges to Babylon.” The disc debuted at No. 3 on The Billboard 200 album chart.

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary September

Rolling Stones Tickets September 27 Giants Stadium East Rutherford NJ
Rolling Stones Tickets September 29 Churchill Downs Louisville KY

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary October

Rolling Stones Tickets October 1 Cessna Stadium Wichita University KS
Rolling Stones Tickets October 4 Grizzly Stadium Missoula
Rolling Stones Tickets October 6-8 Mosaic Stadium Taylor Field Regina Saskathewan
Rolling Stones Tickets October 11 Soldier Field Chicago IL
Rolling Stones Tickets October 17 Qwest Field Seattle WA
Rolling Stones Tickets October 20 Sun Bowl El Paso
Rolling Stones Tickets October 22 Zilker Park Austin
Rolling Stones Tickets October 27 Boardwalk Hall Atlantic City

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary November

Rolling Stones Tickets November 3 BC Place Stadium Vancouver
Rolling Stones Tickets November 5 McAfee Coliseum Oakland
Rolling Stones Tickets November 8 Cardinals Stadium Phoenix AZRolling Stones Tickets November 11 MGM Grand Las Vegas NV
Rolling Stones Tickets November 14 Idaho Center Nampa ID
Rolling Stones Tickets November 18 Dodger Stadium Los Angeles CA
Rolling Stones Tickets November 22 Aloha Stadium Honolulu HI

Rob Evans/LiveDaily

Click here to buy Rolling Stones Tickets online.

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Red Hot Chili Peppers Concert Review and Tickets

ericclapton — Wed, 23 Aug 2006 16:22:13 +0000

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A burst of rare summer thunderstorms rained down on fans waiting in line to see the Red Hot Chili Peppers Monday (8/21) at the Phoenix area’s Glendale Arena, but that didn’t dampen the spirits of the near-sold out crowd.

Drenched fans crowded souvenir stands to buy dry, warm clothes during the opening set by The Mars Volta, whose erratic, frenzied performance paled in comparison to The Red Hot Chili Peppers’ chill-inducing, explosive set.

Chili Peppers guitarist John Frusciante, bassist Flea and drummer Chad Smith kicked off the set with an instrumental funk jam. Once finished, black-and-white-clad singer Anthony Kiedis arrived on stage like a boxer preparing for a fight. Frusciante’s opening riff to “Can’t Stop” sent the audience into a frenzy as Smith tossed a drum stick in the air, but missed when trying to catch it. That sent the Michigan-bred drummer into laughter. Four video screens with black-and-white footage of the band slowly arose from behind Smith, complementing the giant wall of lights that filled the back of the stage. A wall of horizontal lights also ascended from the top of the stage and extended to the scoreboard in the middle of the arena.

The band followed “Can’t Stop” with a pitch-perfect rendition of “Dani California,” from its first No. 1 album, “Stadium Arcadium.” Audience members simultaneously released their fists as Kiedis sang the chorus, during which the video screens alternated quickly between shots of Frusciante’s and Flea’s fingers.

It was hard to tell what was more popular with the crowd: Kiedis’ punchy dancing, Frusciante’s blistering guitar solos or Flea’s slap-happy bass licks. During “Dani California,” some fans played air guitar to Frusciante’s parts, and others danced spastically to solos by Flea, who was dressed like a Cirque du Soleil member.

“I hope you all brought love to this party,” Kiedis said during a rare word to the audience. “That’s all you need to bring.”.

Adding to the 1-2-3 punch of the opening numbers, Kiedis’ words segued into “Scar Tissue.” Chandelier-like lights with hidden speakers and search lights descended from the ceiling and lit up the crowd. Proving his athletic prowess is still in tact, Kiedis ended the song with a handstand on Smithâ€™s bass drum.

“Stadium Arcadium” was obviously a big part of the two-hour show, offering “Charlie,” which delivered more heat than the album rendition, “Readymade,” the title track and “Snow (Hey Oh).”

On the covers front, the Chili Peppers played a few bars of “London Calling,” and later Frusciante sang an impressive rendition of Simon and Garfunkel’s “For Emily (Wherever I May Find Her).”

The almost 20-song set also featured the melancholy “Soul to Squeeze,” “Blood Sugar Sex Magik” and “By the Way,” during which red lights searched the audience, landing on random ticket holders. Encores included the mega-hits “Under the Bridge” and “Give It Away.”

Red Hot Chili Peppers Tour Dates

Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 8/22 – San Diego, CA – ipayOne Center
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 8/24 – Oakland, CA – Oakland Arena
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 8/25 – Oakland, CA – Oakland Arena
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 8/27 – Fresno, CA – Selland Arena
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 8/28 – Sacramento, CA – Arco Arena
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 8/31 – Los Angeles, CA – The Forum
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 9/01 – Los Angeles, CA – The Forum
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 9/14 – Vancouver, BC – General Motors Place
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 9/16 – Calgary, AB – Pengrowth Saddledome
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 9/17 – Edmonton, AB – Rexall Place
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 9/19 – Saskatoon, SK – Saskatchewan Credit Union Center
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 9/20 – Winnipeg, MB – MTS Centre
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 9/23 – Baltimore – Virgin Festival – Pimlico Race Course
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 9/25 – Toronto, ON – Air Canada Centre
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 9/26 – Toronto, ON – Air Canada Centre
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 9/28 – Montreal, QC – Bell Centre
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 9/29 – Ottawa – Scotiabank Place
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 10/01 – Quebec City, QC – Colisee Pepsi Arena
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 10/02 – Boston, MA – TD Banknorth Garden
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 10/17 – East Rutherford, NJ (New York) – Continental Airlines Arena
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 10/18 – East Rutherford, NJ (New York) – Continental Airlines Arena
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 10/20 – Boston, MA – TD Banknorth Garden
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 10/21 – Albany, NY – Pepsi Arena
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 10/23 – Philadelphia, PA – Wachovia Center
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 10/24 – Philadelphia, PA – Wachovia Center
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 10/26 – Atlanta, GA – Gwinnett Civic Center
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 10/28 – New Orleans – Voodoo Music Experience (venue TBA)
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 10/30 – Columbus, OH – Schottenstein Center
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 10/31 – Cleveland, OH – Quicken Loans Arena
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 11/02 – Grand Rapids, MI – Van Andel Arena
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 11/03 – Detroit, MI – Palace of Auburn Hills
Red Hot Chili Peppers Tickets – 11/05 – Minneapolis, MN – Xcel Energy Center

Christina Fuoco/liveDaily

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Rolling Stones Concert Review and Tickets

ericclapton — Wed, 23 Aug 2006 15:49:54 +0000

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Despite the recent slew of setbacks threatening their world tour, the Rolling Stones were back with a bang Sunday night–A Bigger Bang.

The “Start Me Up” rockers returned to the stage after being forced to cancel two concert dates in Spain last week while frontman Mick Jagger recovered from a bout of laryngitis.

The 63-year-old singer reportedly made no mention of his ailment during the show, but he had no problems referencing those of his coconut-wrangling guitarist Keith Richards, whom he introduced as “Keith Headbanger.”

Of course, as with most dates on the Stones’ never-ending world tour, the concert was not without its hitches.

Originally scheduled to take place in London’s Wembley Arena, the gig was rerouted to the slightly smaller Twickenham Stadium when it became clear there was not adequate time to prep the first location.

“We were meant to be at Wembley,” Jagger said by way of explanation. “I think they’re going to get Wembley ready for the farewell tour of the Arctic Monkeys.”

Still, the new locale made the U.K. gig even more of a homecoming for the boys, as the stadium was no more than a stone’s throw, as it were, from where Jagger, Richards, et al. first banded together.

“It’s strange how you wind up back where you started, here in Twickenham, in Richmond,” Jagger said.

According to critics, the band was back in fighting form as well.

Britain’s Guardian newspaper said the concert showed every sign of “going on until the end of time, not unlike Keith Richards himself.” Which is at least partially a compliment. London’s Independent, meanwhile, proclaimed that there was “no expense spared” on the gig, though they followed up the praise by adding there was also “no taste wasted.”

The concert date marked the resumption of a tour that has been almost ridiculously marred by mishaps.

Last spring, shortly before the Stones were set to kick off the European leg of A Bigger Bang, Richards notoriously tumbled head-first from a coconut tree while vacationing in Fiji. His concussed cranium resulted in the group postponing their tour by nearly two months.

In June, when it was slated to resume, reports surfaced that Wood had entered rehab, prompting rumors the tour would again be postponed, though it did begin as planned on July 11.

Last week, the tour was again plagued with misfortune as Jagger was diagnosed with laryngitis and ordered to rest his voice, causing the cancellation of the sole two Spain dates on the tour.

The Stones are due to play their second gig in London tomorrow night.

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary September

Rolling Stones Tickets September 20 Gillette Stadium Foxborough MA
Rolling Stones Tickets September 23 Halifax Commons Halifax Nova Scotia
Rolling Stones Tickets September 27 Giants Stadium East Rutherford NJ
Rolling Stones Tickets September 29 Churchill Downs Louisville KY

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary October

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary November

Rolling Stones Tickets November 3 BC Place Stadium Vancouver
Rolling Stones Tickets November 5 McAfee Coliseum Oakland
Rolling Stones Tickets November 8 Cardinals Stadium Phoenix AZ
Rolling Stones Tickets November 11 MGM Grand Las Vegas NV
Rolling Stones Tickets November 14 Idaho Center Nampa ID
Rolling Stones Tickets November 18 Dodger Stadium Los Angeles CA

Gina Serpe/E-Online

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Eric Clapton at the End of the Highway

ericclapton — Wed, 23 Aug 2006 14:24:10 +0000

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Eric Clapton walks alone into the light and sits down. Wearing a blue shirt and khaki pants, cradling an acoustic guitar, he starts picking Big Bill Broonzy’s “Key to the Highway” for a rapt crowd of 6,800 at the Forum in Copenhagen. The rhythm of Clapton’s left foot, thumping the floor, is strong and clear. So is his voice. Two days short of his fifty-sixth birthday, Clapton sings Broonzy’s travelin’ blues, cut in 1941, with the leathery authority of one who has been on the road almost as long.

The next two hours are a soulful roll with his five-piece band through Clapton’s own life story: “Tears in Heaven,” “Bell Bottom Blues” and “Layla”; the autumnal pop of his new album, Reptile, dedicated to his late uncle, Adrian Clapton. Then at the end, after a gleaming “Sunshine of Your Love,” Clapton sits down again with the acoustic guitar and plays an unexpected blues: “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” from The Wizard of Oz. Swinging slightly behind the beat, Clapton digs into the song with juke-joint force. But there is an exhausted melancholy in his performance too, the sound of a man nearing the end of his highway.

“It was born on holiday,” Clapton says the next day in his kingly hotel suite, still wearing those khaki slacks, this time with a 1970s-vintage Stevie Wonder T-shirt. On a recent trip to the Caribbean, Clapton – who never travels anywhere without a guitar – learned “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” purely “to test my musical intelligence.” He kept fiddling with the tune in tour rehearsals: “The sound guys were going, ‘What the fuck is this all about?’ ” But the song,” Clapton says, “insisted itself into the show.” As a youngster in Ripley, England, a village in the Surrey countryside outside London, Clapton went to the cinema with his uncle, usually on Adrian’s dates with his future wife, Eric’s Aunt Sylvia. “I was their chaperon,” Eric recalls. “We would see movies like Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, High Society and Carousel. The music from that period was so powerful.”

“As I get into my old age,” he continues, “those songs are coming up. I may have to do another couple of albums to get these things out of my system – before I can lay down and rest.” Clapton delivers that line with a laugh. But he means it. Clapton’s current world tour, he says, is his last.

Now in his fourth decade of recording, Clapton enjoys a unique, continuing relevance. He is virtually alone among his classic-rock peers in terms of his work rate – Reptile is his fourth studio project in five years – and sales. Last year’s Riding With the King, Clapton’s record with longtime idol B.B. King, sold more than a million copies. Personally, Clapton declares, “I’m in a good space with my domestic life.” He is expecting a child by his girlfriend of the last two years, Melia McEnery, a twenty-five-year-old graphic artist from Ohio.

Yet Clapton admits that as he was planning this tour, which began in England in February and ends on August 18th in Los Angeles, “I was musing that it might be the last time. Now I’m going, ‘This is definitely the last time.’ It’s hard. It doesn’t work for me anymore. I get indigestion. I get tired.” He grins. “Just talking to you – I’ll pay for this.”

“I will leave the door open for a couple of projects, to play the odd theater,” says the guitarist, who has two albums left in his Warner Bros. deal. “But I’d say this was near the end.”

“Anyone I talk to about it goes, ‘Oh, you’ll never stop.’ I won’t, in truth. I will always want to express something. But,” he insists, “I don’t need to do it like this anymore.”

“It’s been ten years I’ve been doing this with Eric,” says Clapton’s rhythm guitarist, Andy Fairweather-Low, over coffee before showtime. “And I still haven’t figured out why when he goes – he makes a screaming-guitar sound – it has that effect on you.”

“I have one bit tonight that I do – I’ll mull over what I’m going to do when it’s my turn,” says Fairweather-Low, a buoyant Welshman who sang with the 1960s group Amen Corner and made several fine solo LPs in the 1970s. “But Eric doesn’t even think. Jump on him at any time, say ‘Go!’ and he’ll take you to another level. Then if you say ‘Once more,’ he’ll take you even higher.”

“Jump on me,” Fairweather-Low adds, “I’ll freeze.”

At the Forum with Fairweather-Low, bassist Nathan East, drummer Steve Gadd, keysman David Sancious and percussionist Paulinho Da Costa, Clapton plays with compact fire. In the 1970s, he could roll out diamond riffs for a quarter hour in a single blues like T-Bone Walker’s “Stormy Monday.” But tonight’s high points include the precise shiver of Clapton’s break in “River of Tears,” from the 1998 album Pilgrim, and his gabba-gabba burst of wah-wah in the Reptile cover of J.J. Cale’s “Travelin’ Light.” “I can’t play long solos anymore without boring myself,” Clapton contends. “I think it’s important to say something powerful and keep it economical. That wasn’t available to me as a younger player. I was motivated by ego. If I thought I was doing something good, I would do it all night.” Backstage, Clapton is a man without any visible superstar pretensions. In the band lounge, he greets visitors warmly, fixes his own cappuccino and tries to coax band mates and crew members into table-soccer matches. (It’s a tough sell; Clapton is an ace player.) The owlish spectacles he wears offstage, combined with his close-cropped hair and grayish beard, lend him a professorial air. But it suits his encyclopedic passion for music. During the opening set by guitarist Doyle Bramhall II and his band, Smokestack, Clapton cocks an ear at a quote in one of Bramhall’s solos. “‘Stone Free,’” Clapton says quickly, referring to the Jimi Hendrix song.

Clapton is “definitely a fan of music,” says the Texas-born Bramhall, who contributed songs and guitar to Reptile and Riding With the King. “I grew up playing the blues. I know some obscure artists. I thought I would hip him to some: Louisiana stuff like Lightnin’ Slim.” Bramhall laughs at his audacity. Clapton “knew all about them: the artists, the other people who played on the records, the producers.”

Clapton talks of his own career with a directness that reflects years of acute study. Asked whether there is any misconception about him as a musician that he would like to clear up before he retires, he simply says, “That I’m any good, really.” Even in front of the most adoring audience, he goes on, “I’m just trying my best to sing in tune. I’m focusing with all my might to get the next note on the money.”

But Clapton is not embarrassed by acclaim. “It was great support,” he says of the legendary graffiti, CLAPTON IS GOD, that appeared in London during his 1965-66 tenure with bluesman John Mayall. “It was instrumental in giving me the confidence to push forward. When I left the Yardbirds, then John Mayall and Cream, these were all scary decisions to make. I could have stayed and cleaned up. But I used that support to say, I must be doing the right thing.”

Clapton is fearless about assessing his earliest successes, how the immediate superstardom that came in the 1960s with Cream and Blind Faith both fed and masked his emotional insecurities. “I was so disappointed,” he says of listening to the disc of unreleased jams that came with the recent reissue of the Blind Faith album. “At the time, I thought these were magnificent things we were doing, just jamming away. But I was a kid. The only personality I had was within my fingers. I could play it, but I couldn’t say it. When we didn’t have a song, I’d just think, ‘Let’s get stoned.’ Which we did when we didn’t know what we were doing.”

Clapton looks back on his records from the mid-1970s – after his recovery from heroin addiction and as he sank into a drinking problem that lasted into the mid-1980s – with the same honesty. “My attitude was anti-guitar playing, and I thought I was doing the absolute right thing,” he says. “A lot of it was wrapped up in my alcoholism. There was a denial in the way I was approaching those records: One in Every Crowd, Another Ticket, Backless. I got a lot of flak, and I wouldn’t listen.”

“Since I got sober, I’ve just been trying to develop . . .” – Clapton pauses, searching for the right phrase – “a career with dignity, records where I can say, ‘I finished it, it’s complete.’ Whether or not it’s up to the standard of the current thing, it’s complete.”

Eric Clapton was born on March 30th, 1945. His mother, Pat, was sixteen and unmarried; she left Eric in the care of her mother, Rose, and Rose’s second husband, Jack, who raised Eric in Ripley. Pat later married a Canadian serviceman and had three more children, a boy and two girls. Clapton is still not certain who his own father was: “My father, I think, was Canadian,” he says. “I’m not 100 percent sure.” But in Pat’s brother Adrian, Eric found a valuable paternal influence, one he celebrates in conversation as well as on Reptile.

The album title, Eric explains, is local Ripley slang, “a put-down, but only in a way that you would say to someone you really like.” To Eric, Adrian was indeed a reptile, an endearing rogue who taught him much about the world.

“He was a rebel, a local James Dean,” Eric says. An old photo in the Reptile CD booklet – a handsome, raffish Adrian with Sylvia at a British seaside resort – confirms Eric’s description. Adrian was an engineer for a motor company. He was also an atheist and a science-fiction enthusiast (“He had all of the early Kurt Vonnegut books,” Clapton notes). Adrian played the chromatic harmonica and introduced Eric to jazz and the swing music of Stan Kenton and Woody Herman. “I started getting to the blues from other people,” Eric says. But “hearing that dance-band stuff – messages were coming through.”

At fifteen, Clapton got his first guitar; by eighteen, he had dropped out of Kingston College of Art and was in the Yardbirds. Over time, the bond between uncle and nephew “got lost,” in Clapton’s words. When the guitarist stopped drinking, he broke off nearly all contact with Adrian. Eric deeply regrets that now.

“When I got sober,” he says, “I had to re-evaluate all of the old people, places and things, see how dangerous they are to staying sober. My mother and uncle were big boozers. I deliberately removed myself. I became very anti-social and hardly spoke to him at all. For the last ten years of his life, I was not there.” Adrian died in the spring of last year. Reptile did not start out as a memorial to Adrian. Clapton set a date to start recording, showed up, then realized, as he puts it, “that I didn’t have an idea what I was there for.” He took a break to visit his half sisters, who live in Canada, and spent a lot of time with them talking about Adrian: “I went, ‘Of course, that’s what’s going on in me, and I’m not attending to it.’” Clapton had already been working on a country-blues shuffle, “Find Myself.” “The chorus didn’t make any sense,” he says, “until I wrote the verses about my experiences with my uncle and the way I felt about him. I had the musicians, I had the studio time. Then I got the message: ‘I need to sing about this area of my life.’”

Nightly, onstage, Clapton revisits specific, painful chapters of his past: in “Bell Bottom Blues” and “Layla,” his desperate and, at the time, unrequited love for Pattie Boyd, ex-Beatle George Harrison’s then-wife, whom Clapton eventually married in 1979; in “Tears in Heaven,” the 1991 death of his first son, Conor, in a fall from a high-rise apartment window in New York. Clapton accepts that these songs are hits, that he is obligated to play them at every show. But it has not been easy.

He remembers going on tour in 1992, after “Tears in Heaven” went to Number Two. “I’d walk out, start playing that, and the applause . . . they would drown me out,” he says. “I would get furious. Afterward, offstage, I would be inconsolable. I was feeling vulnerable and exposed – and they’d be chanting and yelling and whistling. I was raw and not able to make sense of it.”

“I don’t go back to that specific event when I perform the song now. I honor the way I was, try to reflect on it and do a good performance. It isn’t difficult now. It’s good fun.” Clapton made Reptile with the same intention. Much of the record is given over to pure pleasure: covers of “Come Back Baby” by Ray Charles and Stevie Wonder’s “I Ain’t Gonna Stand for It,” in which Clapton admits, with a wink, that he is “honoring my own taste.” But Reptile commemorates the individualism Adrian passed on to his nephew. “That’s why I had such a great love for him: You could not bat him off course,” Eric says. After Adrian died, Eric learned that his uncle never begrudged Eric for being out of touch.

Adrian “never tried to contact me or ask for anything,” Eric says. “And from what I’ve gathered, he wouldn’t hear a word spoken about me in criticism. People would say, ‘How come Eric hasn’t been around to see you?’ He’d say, ‘Well, that’s his business.’ He’d stop ‘em short. A wonderful man.”

In the band lounge at the forum, after his second Copenhagen show, Clapton is talking about retirement again. “I’ve been retiring since I was seventeen,” he exclaims cheerfully. “It was imminent. When I left the Yardbirds in 1965, it was over!”

“I think I’ve always been looking for the journey to end,” he adds with more seriousness. “My life in music is eternal. But the notion of trying to fit into an industry that I no longer have any admiration for . . .” His voice trails off, not in disgust or weariness but sadness.

Clapton already knows what he wants to do on his last two Warner Bros. records. One will be a collaboration with the Impressions, who contributed backing vocals to Reptile. The other will be “soulful rock blues, like an old Tony Joe White record.”

And he is clearly thinking about the end of the road. Asked what he would like to play as the final encore of his last-ever show, Clapton recoils in mock-horror. “God!” he exclaims. “What a leading question.” He has an idea, though. “There’s a great song that I discovered on a Nat “King” Cole trio album that I’m going to learn, ‘For All We Know.’”

“The first verse goes, ‘For all we know/We may never meet again.’ I know this from the mortalities that have happened in my life. The real shock was my son. What I learned from that was that every moment is precious. Either one of us could walk out of this room, and I would never see you again, for one reason or another. We have to get the max out of every moment. So me doing a tour – it really is a good idea to think about it as, ‘You and I may not do this again.’”

“People think it’s a drama-queen attitude,” he says. “It’s a reality check. This is probably the last time, guys. So I’m going to try and give it my best shot.”

“And I hope you can make it.”

Eric Clapton Tour Dates:

Eric Clapton Tickets 9/16: Minneapolis – Xcel Energy Center
Eric Clapton Tickets 9/18: St. Louis – Savvis Center
Eric Clapton Tickets 9/20: Chicago – United Center
Eric Clapton Tickets 9/21: Grand Rapids MI – Van Andel Arena
Eric Clapton Tickets 9/23: Auburn Hills MI – Palace of Auburn Hills
Eric Clapton Tickets 9/24: Toronto – Air Canada Centre
Eric Clapton Tickets 9/26: Ottawa ON – Scotiabank Place
Eric Clapton Tickets 9/28: New York – Madison Square Garden
Eric Clapton Tickets 9/29: New York – Madison Square Garden
Eric Clapton Tickets 10/3: Boston – TD Banknorth Garden (Fleet Center)
Eric Clapton Tickets 10/6: Uncasville CT – Mohegan Sun Casino
Eric Clapton Tickets 10/7: Uncasville CT – Mohegan Sun Casino
Eric Clapton Tickets 10/9: Philadelphia – Wachovia Center
Eric Clapton Tickets 10/10: Washington DC – Verizon Center
Eric Clapton Tickets 10/12: Charlottesville VA – John Paul Jones Arena
Eric Clapton Tickets 10/14: Duluth GA – Gwinnett Center
Eric Clapton Tickets 10/15: Raleigh NC – RBC Center
Eric Clapton Tickets 10/17: Charlotte NC – Charlottte Bobcats Arena
Eric Clapton Tickets 10/18: Birmingham AL – Birmingham Jefferson Arena
Eric Clapton Tickets 10/20: Orlando – TD Waterhouse Centre
Eric Clapton Tickets 10/21: Jacksonville – Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena
Eric Clapton Tickets 10/23: Miami – American Airlines Arena

David Fricke

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Technorati Tags: Music, News, Entertainment, Events, Metal, Blues, Rock, Concerts, Heavy+Metal, Event, concert, Live, Tickets, Rock+And+Roll, Hardrock, Hard+Rock, Ticket, Concert+Tickets, Cheap+Tickets, Eric+Clapton+Ticket, Eric+Clapton+Tickets, Eric+Clapton

Upcoming Gigantour News and Tickets

ericclapton — Mon, 21 Aug 2006 21:56:41 +0000

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With the start of the second annual Gigantour looming on the horizon, organizers have tinkered with the schedule a bit, to include adding several new stops to the run.

Originally due to launch Sept. 7 in San Diego, the outing will now get underway Sept. 6 in Boise, ID, and won’t hit San Diego until Sept. 9; the move knocks off the schedule a previously announced Sept. 9 show in San Luis Obispo, CA. Meanwhile, new stops have been added in Oklahoma City, OK; Boston; and Atlantic City, NJ.

The main-stage roster for the majority of the tour features headliners Megadeth, as well as Lamb of God, Opeth, Arch Enemy, Overkill, Into Eternity, Sanctity, and The Smashup. The Phoenix, Oklahoma City and Boston stops, however, won’t include Into Eternity, Sanctity and The Smashup, and those three bands, as well as Overkill, won’t be on board for the tour’s Las Vegas engagement, which is now confirmed to take place at the House of Blues.

Tickets for most shows are on sale now, while those for stops in Chicago and Atlantic City will hit the box office Saturday (8/26).

Gigantour is the brainchild of Megadeth frontman Dave Mustaine, who last year mounted an inaugural run that also included Dream Theater, Fear Factory, Dillinger Escape Plan and Nevermore. That trek is documented on the forthcoming “Gigantour 2005,” a live set that comprises a two-disc audio version that hits stores tomorrow (8/22), and a two-DVD video version that surfaces Sept. 5.

Earlier this year, Megadeth signed a new record deal with Roadrunner Records.

“It is exciting to be some place you are respected, understood and appreciated,” Mustaine said a statement. “The truth is there’s a lot of people I’ve known there over the years. I’m stoked we’re all coming back together again to work on this project.”

Roadrunner plans to release “United Abominations,” Megadeth’s follow-up to 2004′s “The System Has Failed,” later this year, according to the label.

September

October

Gigantour Tickets October 1 House of Blues Atlantic City NJ
Gigantour Tickets October 6 – St. Pete Times Forum Tampa FL
Gigantour Tickets October 7 – Hard Rock Live Orlando FL
Gigantour Tickets October 8 – Bank Atlantic Center Sunrise FL
Gigantour Tickets October 21 The Riverstage Brisbane Australia
Gigantour Tickets October 22 Hordern Pavilion Sydney Australia
Gigantour Tickets October 24 Festival Hall Melbourne Australia

Jon Zahlaway/liveDaily

P.S. Check out Gigantour Tickets here.

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Tool Tour Update and Tickets

ericclapton — Sat, 19 Aug 2006 21:39:11 +0000

Check out Tool Tickets here.

More shows continue to surface for Tool’s upcoming North American run behind its long-awaited fourth album, “10,000 Days,” the itinerary for which now spills into October.

The group has penciled in a second night in Los Angeles, as well as new September shows in Phoenix, Pittsburgh and Washington, DC, and has nailed down a handful of early October dates that are scattered throughout the Northeast.

Earlier this month, Tool wrapped up a run on the European summer-festival circuit. After its US arena outing, the group will head back to Europe for a winter headlining tour. Details about the band’s Euro tour plans are posted at the group’s website.

Released in May, “10,000 Days” is Tool’s fourth studio album and its first since 2001′s “Lateralus.” The disc moved about 550,000 copies during its first week in stores, which earned it a No. 1 debut on The Billboard 200 chart.

As previously reported, Tool has recruited rock quintet Isis to open the upcoming shows. The group recently finished mixing its first new studio collection since 2004′s “Panopticon,” and plans to release the set on Halloween, according to the band’s website.

Tool Concert Dates

Tool Tickets 8/22 – Vancouver British Columbia – General Motors Place
Tool Tickets 8/24 – Calgary Alberta – Pengrowth Saddledome
Tool Tickets 8/25 – Edmonton Alberta – Rexall Place
Tool Tickets 8/27 – George WA – The Gorge
Tool Tickets 8/29 – West Valley City UT – E Center
Tool Tickets 8/30 – Englewood CO – Coors Amphitheatre
Tool Tickets 9/1 – Las Vegas NV – Theatre Under The Stars
Tool Tickets 9/2 – Marysville CA – Sleep Train Amphitheater
Tool Tickets 9/3 – Oakland CA – Oakland Arena
Tool Tickets 9/5 – Bakersfield CA – Rabobank Arena
Tool Tickets 9/7 – Los Angeles CA – Staples Center
Tool Tickets 9/11 – The Woodlands TX – C.W. Mitchell Pavilion
Tool Tickets 9/12 – San Antonio, TX – AT&T Center
Tool Tickets 9/14 – Dallas TX – American Airlines Center
Tool Tickets 9/15 – Kansas City MO – Kemper Arena
Tool Tickets 9/16 – Minneapolis MN – Target Center
Tool Tickets 9/18 – Rosemont IL – Allstate Arena
Tool Tickets 9/21 – Columbus OH – Nationwide Arena
Tool Tickets 9/22 – Auburn Hills MI – Palace of Auburn Hills
Tool Tickets 9/23 – Toronto Ontario – Molson Amphitheatre
Tool Tickets 9/25 – Cleveland OH – Wolstein Center
Tool Tickets 9/28 – Camden NJ – Tweeter Center
Tool Tickets 9/29 – Mansfield MA – Tweeter Center

Jon Zahlaway/liveDaily

P.S. Check out Tool Tickets here.

Def Leppard and Journey Concert News and Tickets

ericclapton — Fri, 18 Aug 2006 14:22:18 +0000

Check out Def Leppard & Journey Tickets here.

Def Leppard and Journey, who are in the midst of a co-headlining summer tour, will remain linked for a newly announced batch of fall shows.

After wrapping up the in-progress summer run in late September, the fellow rock vets will return to the stage for about a dozen October dates that are booked into arenas and amphitheaters throughout the US. Details are included below.

Def Leppard continues to back its May release, “Yeah,” a covers album that features the band’s takes on works by The Kinks, Badfinger, T. Rex, David Bowie, Sweet, Roxy Music, Mott the Hoople, Free, The Faces and Thin Lizzy, among others. The set features the group’s rendition of David Essex’s “Rock On,” the music video for which recently made its way into the Top 10 on VH1′s “Top 20 Countdown.”

“Yeah” follows last year’s “Def Leppard–Rock of Ages: The Definitive Collection,” a two-disc best-of set. Later this year, the band plans to issue “Hysteria: Deluxe Edition,” a souped-up version of its multi-platinum 1988 album, “Hysteria.” The disc is scheduled to surface in “late 2006,” according to the group’s website.

Journey continues to back last year’s “Generations,” its 13th studio album. Produced by Kevin Elson–who also produced Journey’s multi-platinum “Escape,” “Departure” and “Frontiers” albums, as well the double-platinum live set “Captured”–”Generations” is the band’s first collection of all-new material since its 2002, four-song EP, “Red 13.”

Journey recently replaced lead singer Steve Augieri with vocalist Jeff Scott Soto, citing a vocal ailment Augieri is battling.

Augieri had fronted the band since the late ’90s, at which time he took over for original lead singer Steve Perry, who sang on the band’s best-known songs, including hits such as “Don’t Stop Believin’,” “Wheel in the Sky,” “Any Way You Want It” and “Open Arms.”

Soto, who got his start fronting guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen’s band in the mid-’80s, previously worked with Journey guitarist Neal Schon in a side project dubbed Soul SirkUS. He has spent a number of years helming the group Talisman, and has also released several solo albums.

Def Leppard and Journey are both members of an exclusive list of artists who have seen at least one of their albums achieve Diamond certification by the Recording Industry Association of America, signifying sales of 10 million copies. Leppard accomplished that feat with 1983′s “Pyromania” and its follow-up, “Hysteria,” while Journey scored the award for its 1988 best-of set, “Journey: Greatest Hits.

Def Leppard and Journey Fall Concert Dates

August 2006

September 2006

October 2006

Jon Zahlaway/liveDaily

P. S. Check out Def Leppard & Journey Tickets here.

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Guns N’ Roses Concert News and Tickets

ericclapton — Fri, 18 Aug 2006 13:32:21 +0000

Check out Gun N’ Roses Tickets here.

Comeback rockers Guns N’ Roses are beginning to commit to their long-promised US tour plans, with a pair of two-night stands now on the books for Las Vegas and San Francisco.

The Las Vegas dates are set for Sept. 16 and 17 at the Hard Rock Hotel, while the San Francisco shows are booked for Sept. 20 and 21 at The Warfield.

More dates are expected to surface in the coming days.

Guns N’ Roses recently wrapped up a European tour that was fairly uneventful by frontman Axl Rose’s standards. However, Rose was arrested following his band’s Stockholm, Sweden, stop for allegedly scuffling with a security guard and busting up a hotel lobby; the singer also fell ill near the end of the European tour’s final show at London’s Wembley Arena. (Former Skid Row vocalist Sebastian Bach took over to finish out the set.)

GN’R's most recent major US tour was in 2002. That troubled outing was cut short with more than a dozen shows remaining on its schedule, after Rose failed to show up for two gigs.

Rose is the only remaining original member of Guns N’ Roses. The group is currently rounded out by keyboardist Dizzy Reed, bassist Tommy Stinson, keyboardist Chris Pitman, drummer Brian “Brain” Mantia, and guitarists Robin Finck, Richard Fortus and Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal.

The band has been working the road in advance of its supposedly soon-to-be-released album, “Chinese Democracy.” The disc, which has been in the pipeline for about a decade, and the release of which has been delayed repeatedly over the years, will be the group’s first collection of original material since the early ’90s. No specific release date has been announced.

Guns N’ Roses Concert Dates

September 2006

Guns N’ Roses Tickets September 16, 17 Hard Rock Hotel Las Vegas NV
Guns N’ Roses Tickets September 20, 21 The Warfield San Francisco CA

Rob Evans/liveDaily

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Dragonforce: Faster Than You

ericclapton — Fri, 18 Aug 2006 13:17:58 +0000

Check out Dragonforce Tickets here.

Nobody on Ozzfest sounds like Dragonforce and that’s cool with founder and guitarist Herman Li. The band, formed in the United Kingdom in the late ‘90s, draws from metal’s most outdated influences – the Power Metal, Speed, Thrash and Progressive sounds that were all the rage in the ‘80s updated with furious musicianship, slick production and over the top vocals. It’s a recipe for being big in Japan and Germany however the band’s Inhuman Rampage was released on Roadrunner, is selling records in America even though radio doesn’t know what to do with the band, and their popularity forced Ozzfest organizers to add the band to their main stage for this year’s tour.

Herman called in to discuss Ozzfest, video games and if it bugs him that some hipster kids love the music that they play as a way to be ironic…

U Weekly: Herman, enquiring minds want to know… Dude, how do you shred so hard?

(Laughter) I don’t know! That’s one of those hard to answer questions. We just play what we think sounds cool and if people think that’s cool then we have something in common.

U Weekly: It does surprise many that you never took any formal lessons in your life…

No, I pretty much learned from watching videos and listening to music, things like that. I never had any guitar lessons or anything like that. I just played and tried different things and work it out and see what works and what doesn’t. I can’t read music either. I did think about (taking lessons) but I never really had the time. I used to skip my music lessons when I was in school, anyway. All that stuff about timing and reading, I just skipped it and didn’t go.

U Weekly: You call yourself “Video Game Metal.” Where does that come from?

Our musical influences actually come from video game music! Games in the ‘80s had great melodies because back than, with such shitty sound to work with then, I guess they had to make great melodies.

U Weekly: Is Dragonforce the only “real” metal band on Ozzfest?

It’s hard to define what metal is. I think there are a lot of metal bands on Ozzfest – you can say they pretty much are all metal bands – but metal has evolved. As times progress, things change and people approach it differently. People think that metal has to have solos – which I actually don’t disagree because metal is the only kind of music that you really can kind of let your guitar go sometimes – but I think there are a lot of great metal bands on Ozzfest like Strapping Young Lad. There are some cool bands onstage.

U Weekly: Whether it’s “real” or not, Dragonforce plays a form of metal – Power Metal – that was almost extinct save for a few dinosaurs and purists. What attracted you to this kind of music?

I always liked many styles of metal, not just Power Metal. I love Progressive Metal like Dream Theater and Symphony X, Thrash Metal, Death Metal, Hard Rock… Even though a lot of people like to call us Power Metal, the only influences that come from that is the melodic vocals. But I find it sounding more Hard Rock. Maybe it’s because we have Dragon in our name… But I don’t think that we sound exactly like the traditional older European Power Metal bands.

U Weekly: Regardless of what it exactly is, bands that sound like you are not getting signed to big labels such as Roadrunner and playing Ozzfest. What do you think accounts for your rapidly growing popularity?

I think it’s because the way we approach the music; us mixing up styles makes us different from those other bands. That and our live performance is what make us Dragonforce. We do have an identity, people hear our songs and they know who we are.

U Weekly: Dragonforce is attracting fans who do not usually like this kind of music – indie rock hipster kids are digging your sound. Does that crossover surprise you?

We definitely notice it and we think it’s kind of cool. We always thought that in our songs, even though there are lots of guitar solos and it’s really intense, that there’s a lot of melody there and our songs are memorable. Maybe they like this kind of guitar playing but they’ve just never heard it before.

U Weekly: Would it bug you if some people listened to you because of the ironic factor?

To be honest, I’ve never thought about it. I can’t judge someone’s motivations for listening to us by the way they look. Really, I don’t care. As long as they enjoy it, that’s cool.

Dragonforce Concert Dates

Dragonforce Tickets – 9/8/2006 – Wiltern LG – Los Angeles CA
Dragonforce Tickets – 9/9/2006 – Warfield – San Francisco CA
Dragonforce Tickets – 9/19/2006 – The Pageant – Saint Louis MO
Dragonforce Tickets – 9/22/2006 – Bogarts – Cincinatti OH
Dragonforce Tickets – 9/23/2006 – Harpos – Detroit MI

Brian O’Neill/U Weekly

P. S. Check out Dragonforce Tickets here.

Social Distortion Concert News and Tickets

ericclapton — Fri, 18 Aug 2006 12:48:33 +0000

Check out Social Distortion Tickets here.

Long running Orange County punk band Social Distortion have announced more about their recently announced East Coast tour.

The band has tapped both perennial rock’n'roll devotees Supersuckers as well as Blackpool Lights which features former Get Up Kid Jim Suptic. They are supporting their full length debut, This Town’s Disaster which garned comparisons to Limbeck and later-era Get Up Kids.

Frontman Mike Ness has recently announced that Social D are currently working on their follow-up to 2004′s “Sex, Love and Rock ‘n’ Roll”, which is due out in 2007 via TimeBomb Recordings. The album is also going to be their first release with current bassist Brent Harding, the replacement of longtime bassist John Maurer, who left before the release of “Sex, Love and Rock ‘n’ Roll”. A 2006 release for it is still not planned at this time, partly due to Social D involved in their upcoming tour. It is still unknown what the album is going to be called and the only two known new songs ever peformed live are “Diamonds in the Rough” and “Bakersfield”.

Social Distortion Concert Dates

PunkNews.Org.

P. S. Check out Social Distortion Tickets here.

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Inland Invasion Concert News and Tickets

ericclapton — Thu, 17 Aug 2006 15:33:15 +0000

Check out Inland Invasion Tickets and Guns & Roses Tickets here.

Los Angeles radio station KROQ has recruited some of rock’s heaviest hitters to anchor its sixth annual Inland Invasion festival.

On Monday evening, the station revealed that Avenged Sevenfold — fresh from their mainstage stint on this summer’s Ozzfest (which wrapped Sunday in West Palm Beach, Florida) — and Alice in Chains were among the artists opening for Guns N’ Roses at the end-of-summer event.

The Inland Invasion is set to take over Devore, California’s Hyundai Pavilion at Glen Helen on September 23.

Invasion organizers have mined rockers Papa Roach, Muse, 30 Seconds to Mars, Rise Against, Atreyu and Buckcherry to round out the bill.

Axl Rose’s Guns recently wrapped a run of European festival shows, following a string of sold-out gigs at New York’s Hammerstein Ballroom in May — the band’s first American gigs in more than three years, after their 2002 comeback tour sputtered to a halt.

The Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas will play host to Guns N’ Roses for two shows at the Joint, scheduled for September 16 and September 17. Tickets for those dates will go on sale August 19. Earlier this month, via a press release, Rose said that he plans to return to the road this fall for another round of U.S. touring.

Alice in Chains, who’ve been touring with Comes With the Fall singer William DuVall filling in for late frontman Layne Staley, hit the road back in May for a successful run of five club dates. The band unveiled plans last week for a total of 40 gigs this fall throughout the U.S., with one date in Canada. That trek gets underway September 22 in Las Vegas and runs through November 26 in San Francisco, with additional dates expected to be added over the next few weeks.

In addition to the Inland Invasion, Avenged Sevenfold have booked nine North American dates for September, with three gigs in the U.S. — September 7 in Anchorage, Alaska; September 13 in Fargo, North Dakota; and September 15 in Des Moines, Iowa — and the remainder scheduled for Canada.

Chris Harris

P. S. Check out Inland Invasion Tickets and Guns & Roses Tickets here.

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Arch Enemy Ready for Gigantour

ericclapton — Wed, 16 Aug 2006 21:46:47 +0000

Check out Gigantour Tickets here.

An official update from Arch Enemy reads as follows:

“Yes, the DVD is out all over the world now and the reviews are glowing and more importantly, the positive feedback from the fans is HUGE!

On another note, we played our last summer festival show this year in Gothenburg on Tuesday, really cool show with a great Swedish Metal crowd and tons of family and friends backstage – a great way to end this summer!

We played a completely different kind of show in London, UK on Thursday, it was the Kerrang! Day Of Rock and it was basically an in-store type deal in the basement of the Virgin Megastore on Oxford Street. We played a brief 30 minute set and thanks to the fans that came down and supported us it was actually fun!

We’ve had a blast this summer playing the European festivals, the shows have been so cool and in some cases even AMAZING (Hello Wacken!). It’s been a real treat to meet all the Arch Enemy fans at the signing sessions of these festivals too – we love it!

So now we have a little time off from the road before we head back to the U.S. for the Gigantour – we are all really looking forward to that tour…”

As previously reported, Arch Enemy’s new double disc DVD set, Live Apocalypse, is now available just in time for the group’s return to North America on Gigantour this September. A new E-card is now available that features two videos taken from the DVD for the tracks ‘Ravenous’ and ‘My Apocalypse’, along with a new photo gallery. You can view the E-Card by clicking here.

Arch Enemy Gigantour 2006 Schedule

September

October

Vayne Theories

P.S. Check out Gigantour Tickets here.

Flaming Lips Berkeley Concert Review and Tickets

ericclapton — Mon, 14 Aug 2006 15:13:12 +0000

Check out Flaming Lips Tickets here.

I knew from the first note of the first song that this was gonna be the best show I had ever seen. And from there it only got better.

Years of show-going and hundreds of concerts have given me the degree of experience to assuredly say something I’ve never said before. The Flaming Lips are the best thing going in live music right now – the most inspired, most inspiring, most ridiculous, most profound, most musical, most theatrical. And their Greek Theatre show found them at their best.

You want examples? Like any moment of transcendence, it’s tough to enumerate just what made the whole thing so freakin’ wonderful. It was far more than just music, I can tell you that. But I’ll start by talking about Ween.

Still don’t get ‘em. So much talent, so little to say. Some would argue they possess a Zen-like quality inherent to any totally shamelessly goofball display of virtuosity. There’s another potpourri four-piece who for years noodled goofily across genres and gained a rabid following doing so. People say it’s all about the music, or the meaning is in the meaninglessness – to “surrender to the flow,” which is fine, if that’s all you’re after. But there’s more to life than music.

Halfway through Ween’s opening set at the Greek, my friend Fi keeled over, a victim of too much heat and not enough water. We hauled her to the clinic at the side of the stage where medics immediately took care of her. She came to and was fine moments later, but there we were backstage while Ween was raging and lead Lip Wayne Coyne was watching from the wings. Another friend walked over to him and mentioned that Fi was so excited to see the Lips that she straight passed out. “Really?” he said, and then he went to where she was laying on the clinic’s cot. He knelt beside her attentively, and they spoke for a few moments until she convinced him she was fine. He left telling her to “always have fun” while Fi was astounded at how lucky she was.

Wayne Coyne gets it. Thanks to our encounter with him, it was obvious he gets it before he even stepped on stage. He’s a musician who’s concerned with more than just music. He’s a humble entertainer who orchestrates epic experiences – a celebration of music and art and life and death – so that you and I can have a singular, day-glo memory to carry around with us.

“When you go home tonight, I want you to tell your friends that I descended from the sky above the crowd in this space bubble,” Coyne said from center stage, his band behind him waiting to start the show. “It’s ok, you can lie.” It had just gotten dark and the Lips hadn’t even begun, but already Coyne was arranging the post-show story of seven thousand people at the Greek. He squeezed inside his inflated, clear plastic beach ball and wafted out over the crowd’s outstretched arms. The audience went wild as Coyne stumbled and rolled over their heads, making it back to the stage just in time for the first notes of the first song – the triumphant “Race for the Prize.” Surrounded by 25 or so of my closest friends, San Francisco lights twinkling across the Bay, perfectly cool night air wrapping it all together, I was totally sure after mere seconds: Best. Show. Eva.

Sure, the space bubble is a gimmick, like the confetti cannons, dancing Santas, smoke machines, balloons, and hand puppets. Just for a minute, you’d think maybe that would get old, watching the same set and seeing the same toys every show. Which is funny, because only music fans who (like me) have heard 50 versions of “Piper” or can articulately critique the guitar solo of “Chilly Water” – who are basically spoiled by their total immersion into musical variety – could ever think of getting bored by the Technicolor spectacle that is the Flaming Lips.

And sure, Coyne didn’t have the best singing voice and Steve Drozd didn’t take 10-minute solos, but man, their baroque wacko-pop electro-rock sounded amazing. The music incorporates a palette of sonics heard nowhere else – altered guitars, subsonic bass, gorgeous melodies. From songs about career-driven scientists, kung-fu robot killers, and alternative breakfast condiments arose the unifying themes of life overcoming death, love beating complacency, going out and doing something instead of staying home and not. The Lips sang of humanity versus larger, ambiguous menaces – a powerfully resonant modern message – and made the case that our humanity is ultimately our greatest power. “Do you realize that everyone you know someday will die?” Yeah, I’m looking around at all my friends and thousands more who do realize, right now, that this is all we have, and we realize just how good it is. And we’re all that much stronger because we do.

It’s a lot to take away from a 90-minute show, but the Lips pack in way more joy than your average band. It was nice seeing bassist Michael Ivins getting to play with some of Coyne’s toys; he donned rubber hands the size of boogie boards for the finale. I could tell you the set list, but it’s sorta irrelevant. I think the Lips would be the first ones to tell you that it was more than the music that made the night so spectacular. It was all of us in it together making a memory that’s still as bright as it was three weeks ago. I keep meeting people who were there, and we keep agreeing. If there is a modern rock ‘n’ roll hero, it’s Wayne Coyne, and if there’s gonna be a B.S.E., this is it.

Flaming Lips Tour Dates

August 2006

Flaming Lips Tickets August 24 Minnesota State Fair St. Paul MN
Flaming Lips Tickets August 25 Harrah’s Stir Cove Council Bluffs IA
Flaming Lips Tickets August 26 The Pageant St. Louis MO
Flaming Lips Tickets August 28 Promowest Pavilion Columbus OH
Flaming Lips Tickets August 31 Allentown Fair Allentown PA

September 2006

Jonathan Zwickel

P.S. Check out Flaming Lips Tickets here.

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Black Crowes Concerts and Tickets

ericclapton — Mon, 14 Aug 2006 14:34:20 +0000

Check out Black Crowes tickets here.

The Black Crowes, who last week kicked off a brief round of summer shows, continue penciling in dates for their fall headlining run.

New to the group’s schedule are a half dozen shows scattered through September and October, including an Oct. 28 performance at the second-annual Vegoose Music Festival in Las Vegas.

Meanwhile, the Crowes will cap off their current road trip tomorrow (8/12) with a performance at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Colorado, and will then catch their breath before launching their next leg of shows Sept. 7 in Richmond, VA. Details are shown below.

Later this month, The Black Crowes will serve up “The Lost Crowes.” Scheduled for release Aug. 29 from Rhino Records, the two-disc collection comprises tracks from two albums that the group recorded but never officially released: 1993′s “Tall” and 1997′s “Band.”

Also on Aug. 29, Rhino will deliver the DVD version of “Who Killed That Bird Out on Your Window Sill,” a repackaging of a home video originally shot by the band in 1992. The disc will feature live performances, interviews, backstage and studio footage, videos from the group’s first two albums, and “additional bonus footage,” according to a press release.

The Black Crowes continue to enjoy a resurgence that began in March of last year when Chris Robinson (vocals) and Rich Robinson (guitar) resurrected the group for a multi-night stand at New York City’s Hammerstein Ballroom. Originally set for five nights, the sold-out engagement turned into a seven-night run.

The success of the Big Apple outing led to a full-blown headlining tour.

September 2006

October 2006

November 2006

Black Crowes Tickets November 12 – Castaic CA – The Love Ride

Jon Zahlaway/liveDaily

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Black Crowes Concerts and Tickets

ericclapton — Mon, 14 Aug 2006 14:34:20 +0000

Check out Black Crowes tickets here.

The Black Crowes, who last week kicked off a brief round of summer shows, continue penciling in dates for their fall headlining run.

New to the group’s schedule are a half dozen shows scattered through September and October, including an Oct. 28 performance at the second-annual Vegoose Music Festival in Las Vegas.

The success of the Big Apple outing led to a full-blown headlining tour.

September 2006

October 2006

November 2006

Black Crowes Tickets November 12 – Castaic CA – The Love Ride

Jon Zahlaway/liveDaily

P. S. Check out Black Crowes tickets here.

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Van Morrison Joins Stones’ Tour-Support Caravan

ericclapton — Mon, 14 Aug 2006 14:23:21 +0000

Click here to buy Rolling Stones Tickets online.

Van Morrison is the latest high-profile act tapped to support The Rolling Stones on their upcoming North American “A Bigger Bang” tour dates.

Morrison will join the Stones’ bill for the tour’s Nov. 3 stop in Vancouver, British Columbia, and will stick around for the Nov. 5 show in Oakland, CA.

Meanwhile, the Dave Matthews Band, which was the previously announced opener for the tour’s Oct. 20 El Paso, TX, gig, will also open for the Stones on Oct. 17 in Seattle.

Other acts who will open select dates include Kanye West and Three Days Grace.

Tickets for the upcoming Stones tour have been rolling out over the last few weeks, and more on-sales are set for the coming days. On-sales begin Saturday (8/12) for the El Paso show, while on-sales begin Monday (8/14) for the tour’s Louisville, KY; Missoula, MT; and Las Vegas stops. On-sales for Seattle take place Aug. 21.

For the upcoming North American dates, 90% of the ticket inventory will be priced at $89 for the stadium shows and $99 for the arena shows, according to organizers, and a “limited number of Gold Circle seats” will be available as well.

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary September

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary October

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary November

Rolling Stones Tickets November 3 BC Place Stadium Vancouver
Rolling Stones Tickets November 5 McAfee Coliseum Oakland
Rolling Stones Tickets November 8 Cardinals Stadium Phoenix AZ
Rolling Stones Tickets November 11 MGM Grand Las Vegas NV
Rolling Stones Tickets November 14 Idaho Center Nampa ID
Rolling Stones Tickets November 18 Dodger Stadium Los Angeles CA

Rob Evans/liveDaily

Click here to buy Rolling Stones Tickets online.

Red Hot Chili Peppers Concert News and Tickets

ericclapton — Sat, 12 Aug 2006 15:07:27 +0000

Check out Red Hot Chili Peppers tickets here.

Following a sold out tour of Europe, an appearance at the Fuji Festival in Japan and a headlining slot at Lollapalooza, Red Hot Chili Peppers take off this Friday, August 11, for the North American leg of their World Tour in support of the platinum Stadium Arcadium.

The two-CD set, produced by Rick Rubin, debuted at #1 in 28 countries around the world, including the band’s home turf.

This week the band actually has two tracks in the Modern Rock top 10. “Dani California” at #5 has been joined by the newly issued second single “Tell Me Baby” at #10.

In other news, in the video for “Tell Me Baby,” the group’s fans will see the members of the group vying against complete unknowns in what seems to be an audition for a spot in the Chilis, according to MTV News.

The clip was helmed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris (Smashing Pumpkins, Weezer), the directorial team behind several Red Hot videos including “Californication,” “Otherside” and “By the Way” and the new independent film “Little Miss Sunshine.” And according to Flea, it’s “the best video of our career.” The bassist even feels the clip is “the most beautiful piece of film that has ever represented us.”

P. S. Check out Red Hot Chili Peppers tickets here.

The Who Concert News and Tickets

ericclapton — Thu, 10 Aug 2006 19:29:28 +0000

Check out Who Tickets here.

With the launch of their North American tour just a little more than a month away, veteran Brit-rockers The Who continue adding dates to the run.

New to the band’s itinerary are a September stop in Des Moines, IA, an early November show in San Jose, CA, and a late-November return to Philadelphia, where the band kicks off the trek on Sept. 12. Tickets for the Des Moines show go on sale Saturday (8/12), while those for the new San Jose and Philly dates, as well as a previously announced second night in Los Angeles, hit the box office Monday (8/14). Details are included in the itinerary shown below.

The upcoming tour couches the Oct. 23 release of “Who 2,” the first new studio set from The Who since 1982′s “It’s Hard.”

As previously reported, surviving group founders Pete Townshend (guitar) and Roger Daltrey (vocals) have recruited drummer Zak Starkey (son of Beatles drummer Ringo Starr), guitarist/vocalist Simon Townshend (Pete’s younger brother), bassist Pino Palladino and keyboardist John “Rabbit” Bundrick to back them during the upcoming tour.

Original Who bassist John Entwistle died of a cocaine-induced heart attack in 2002 at the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas, where the band was preparing for a North American tour that was scheduled to launch three days later. Daltrey and Townshend canceled the first two shows, but ultimately forged ahead with the outing.

Original drummer Keith Moon died of a drug overdose in 1978.

“This is not the old Who,” Townshend wrote in a recent diary entry posted at his website. “We never said it would be. It is something else. It matters.”

The Who Tour Dates

September 2006

October 2006

The Who Tickets October 3 MTS Centre Winnipeg Manitoba
The Who Tickets October 5 Pengrowth Saddledome Calgary Alberta
The Who Tickets October 6 Rexall Place Edmonton Alberta
The Who Tickets October 8 General Motors Place Vancouver British Columbia
The Who Tickets October 10 Rose Garden Portland OR
The Who Tickets October 11 Key Arena Seattle WA

November 2006

The Who Tickets November 4 Hollywood Bowl Los Angeles CA
The Who Tickets November 5 Hollywood Bowl Los Angeles CA
The Who Tickets November 8 HP Pavilion San Jose CA
The Who Tickets November 24 The Borgata Atlantic City NJ
The Who Tickets November 25 Wachovia Center Philadelphia PA

December 2006

The Who Tickets December 4 Air Canada Centre Toronto Ontario

Jon Zahlaway/liveDaily

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Alice in Chains Fall Tour News and Tickets

ericclapton — Wed, 09 Aug 2006 23:07:51 +0000

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With a successful six-city club trek now in the books, Alice in Chains has unveiled plans for a large-scale comeback tour.

The club tour–which featured Jerry Cantrell (guitar/vocals), Sean Kinney (drums) and Mike Inez (bass)–marked Alice in Chains’ first outing in more than a decade. Handling lead vocals was William Duvall of Atlanta-based rock trio Comes With the Fall, who had worked with Cantrell during some of the guitarist’s solo outings. Duvall will be back for the fall dates.

Original Alice in Chains frontman Layne Staley died four years ago of a drug overdose; Inez joined the band in 1993, replacing original bassist Mike Starr.

Fans in need of a crash-course in Alice in Chains can turn to the forthcoming album “The Essential Alice in Chains,” due in stores Sept. 5. The two-CD set features 28 tracks culled from all four of the band’s studio albums, as well as their two EPs and their live “MTV Unplugged” set. Rounding out the set are two tracks that appeared on the “Last Action Hero” soundtrack album.

Alice in Chains formed in Seattle during the late ’80s, and released their debut album, “Facelift,” in 1990. The disc spawned the group’s breakthrough hit, “Man in the Box,” and secured the band’s place in the pantheon of early ’90s Seattle-based acts–which also included Nirvana, Pearl Jam and Soundgarden–credited with ushering in the grunge scene.

Alice in Chains went on to release two additional full-length albums (1992′s “Dirt” and 1995′s “Alice in Chains) and two EPs (1992′s “Sap” and 1994′s “Jar of Flies”).

Following its ’92/’93 touring cycle in support of “Dirt,” the group did not tour behind any of its subsequent releases–reportedly due to Staley’s addiction–but did give a 1996 performance on “MTV’s Unplugged,” which was released in album form later that same year. The group also filled the opening slot on the first four dates of KISS’ 1996 reunion tour.

Alice in Chains Tour Dates

September 2006

Alice in Chains Tickets September 22 The Joint Las Vegas NV
Alice in Chains Tickets September 25 Marquee Theatre Phoenix AZ
Alice in Chains Tickets September 26 Rialton Theatre Tucson AZ
Alice in Chains Tickets September 27 County Coliseum El Paso TX
Alice in Chains Tickets September 29 Lonestar Amphitheatre Lubbock TX
Alice in Chains Tickets September 30 Cain’s Ballroom Tulsa OK

October 2006

November 2006

Rob Evans/liveDaily

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Black Label Society Concert News and Tickets

ericclapton — Tue, 08 Aug 2006 14:08:22 +0000

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After finishing up his current stint on the soon-to-wrap Ozzfest (music) tour, Ozzy Osbourne guitarist Zakk Wylde (music) will lead his other band, Black Label Society, on a fall tour of the US club and theater circuit.

Wylde and company launch the run in mid-October, and three-dozen shows are lined up through early December. Before then, Wylde–who is pulling double duty backing Ozzy and fronting Black Label Society on the Ozzfest roster–has two more Ozzfest dates left to tackle. Details are shown below.

Also on tap for Black Label Society is a September tour of Australia and New Zealand; details are available at the band’s website.

The upcoming roadwork supports Black Label Society’s forthcoming seventh album, “Shot to Hell,” which is due out Sept. 19 on Roadrunner Records. Two cuts from the disc–”Concrete Jungle” and “Black Mass Reverends”–are streaming at the label’s website.

Black Label Society Tour Dates

Jon Zahlaway/liveDaily

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Rolling Stones Churchill Downs News and Tickets

ericclapton — Tue, 08 Aug 2006 13:51:27 +0000

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Even as the veteran rockers continue to line up opening acts, The Rolling Stones upcoming North American itinerary has been expanded to include a Sept. 29 stop at Louisville, KY’s Churchill Downs.

“As home to the Kentucky Derby, Churchill Downs has treated horse racing fans to the ‘Greatest Two Minutes in Sports’ for 132 years,’ racetrack president Steve Sexton said in a press release. “So it is truly appropriate for the world’s most legendary racetrack to host one of the world’s most legendary rock bands.”

Tickets for the Churchill Downs show will go on sale to the general public on Aug. 14, according to organizers.

Meanwhile, the Stones continue to name new support acts for their upcoming gigs: Alice Cooper and Sloan (tickets | music) will join previously announced opener Kanye West (tickets | music) during the Stones’ appearance in Halifax, Nova Scotia; Three Days Grace (tickets | music) will open both of the Stones’ gigs in Regina, Saskatchewan; and the Dave Mathews Band will support on the tour’s El Paso, TX, stop.

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary September

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary October

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary November

Rolling Stones Tickets November 3 BC Place Stadium Vancouver
Rolling Stones Tickets November 5 McAfee Coliseum Oakland
Rolling Stones Tickets November 8 Cardinals Stadium Phoenix AZ
Rolling Stones Tickets November 11 MGM Grand Las Vegas NV
Rolling Stones Tickets November 14 Idaho Center Nampa ID
Rolling Stones Tickets November 18 Dodger Stadium Los Angeles CA

Rob Evans/liveDaily

Click here to buy Rolling Stones Tickets online.

Kanye West, Red Hot Chili Peppers Lead Lollapalooza ‘06 Lineup

ericclapton — Sat, 05 Aug 2006 22:54:29 +0000

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AUSTIN, Texas — Last year, Perry Farrell was just looking to re-establish the good name of his Lollapalooza festival. This year, with a successful run at Chicago’s Grant Park already under his glittery belt, he was clearly looking to go style points.

So you can understand why — as he strode into the press room of the posh Four Seasons Hotel to announce the lineup for Lollapalooza 2006 (to the strains of the theme from “Good Times”) — he was wearing not just Fred Astaire’s suit jacket, but also a giant smile. After all, he’s put together a group of artists with style to spare.

Kanye West, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Death Cab For Cutie and Queens of the Stone Age are among the more than 70 acts tapped to perform at this year’s Lollapalooza, returning to Chicago August 4-6 (see “Lollapalooza Returning As A Three-Day Festival”).

“It’s a kick-ass lineup. We know you’re going to have a sloppy good time,” Farrell said. “We made a concerted effort to book more hip-hop this year, and to mix it with a bunch of other amazing things too. And what we’ve ended up with is a beautiful, amazing thing.”

This year’s “beautiful, amazing thing” is an eclectic mix of hip-hop (West is joined on the bill by Common, British grime MC Lady Sovereign and Gnarls Barkley — the collaboration between Cee-Lo and producer Danger Mouse), rock (the Flaming Lips, the Shins, Jack White’s Raconteurs, Panic! At the Disco) and, um, jam bands (Blues Traveler, the Disco Biscuits).

More artists will be announced in the coming weeks, with organizers promising a grand total of more than 130 acts on 8 stages.

Last year’s Lolla — billed as a return to basics after an ambitious, coast-to-coast touring fest was canceled due to poor ticket sales in 2004 — was a tremendous success, packing more than 65,000 fans into Grant Park, despite brutal heat and swirling dust storms (see “Lollapalooza Thrives In Withering Heat With Killers, Weezer, Pixies”). And though much of the concert industry was shocked by that success, Farrell said he knew it would happen all along.

“We knew going in last year that it was going to be a challenge, but we pounded away and ended up with something great. But I knew that the formula we had would work, and it did,” Farrell said. “And now, the goal this year is to build on it. I like the idea of always expanding, of adding new wings. We don’t want anyone to come to this year’s Lollapalooza and be like ‘Oh, I’ve seen this already.’ “

James Montgomery

P. S. Check out Red Hot Chili Peppers tickets here.

Rolling Stones and Kanye West Concert News and Tickets

ericclapton — Sat, 05 Aug 2006 14:02:11 +0000

Click here to buy Rolling Stones Tickets online.

The Rolling Stones have lined up rapper/producer Kanye West to open the first three stops on their upcoming North American tour.

West has signed on as a special guest for the tour’s September stops in the Boston area, in Nova Scotia and in the New York City area. Tickets are on sale now for all three shows.

Meanwhile, ticket on-sales have been scheduled for two of the tour’s other upcoming stops. Tickets hit the market Friday (8/4) for a newly announced, second show in Regina, Saskatchewan, set for Oct. 6; and Monday on-sales are planned for the tour’s Nov. 17 stop in the Boise, ID, area.

The Stones have also made a couple of minor tweaks to their previously announced schedule, moving up the dates for its shows in Wichita, KS, and Missoula, MT. Details are in the itinerary below.

Members of the Stones’ official fan club have access to pre-sale tickets and special VIP ticket packages for those shows beginning July 26. More information is available at the group’s website.

Concert-industry magazine Pollstar ranked the first North American leg of the Stones’ “A Bigger Bang” outing as the second-highest-grossing tour of the first half of 2006. According to the magazine, the Stones took in $52.5 million, second only to Madonna’s $54.3 million take.

The 2005 edition of the Stones’ “A Bigger Bang” tour was the year’s top-grossing outing, according to Pollstar. The group pulled down $162 million over the course of only 42 shows thanks to an average ticket price of about $134.

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary September

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary October

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary November

Rolling Stones Tickets November 3 BC Place Stadium Vancouver
Rolling Stones Tickets November 5 McAfee Coliseum Oakland
Rolling Stones Tickets November 8 Cardinals Stadium Phoenix AZ
Rolling Stones Tickets November 11 MGM Grand Las Vegas NV
Rolling Stones Tickets November 14 Idaho Center Nampa ID
Rolling Stones Tickets November 18 Dodger Stadium Los Angeles CA

Chris Lambie/Halifax-Chronicle Herald

Click here to buy Rolling Stones Tickets online.

Poison Toronto Concert Review and Tickets

ericclapton — Thu, 03 Aug 2006 21:54:22 +0000

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TORONTO – Maybe 20 years in the music business has made hair-metal pioneers Poison experts at faking it.

Or maybe — and this seems the more likely scenario, based on last night’s spectacle at the Molson Amphitheatre — maybe they just really, really love to rock and effing ROLL, baby.

Because last night’s show, the umpteenth time Bret Michaels, C.C. DeVille, Bobby Dall and Rikki Rockett have touched down here in the Middling Smoke, was nothing if not sincere.

Big, loud, nostalgic and over-the-top, but sincere. The concert bowl and its 5,500 souls existed inside an irony-free bubble, where every

pyrotechnic blast and flickering laser and twirled drumstick and power ballad and guitar solo was pure, legit and unapologetically old school.

“You can never have enough cowbell!” crowed Michaels, relishing Poison’s cover of Grand Funk Railroad’s We’re An American Band as he laid into Blue Oyster Cultist Gene Frenkle’s signature instrument with gusto. And later: “I’ll tell you something, Toronto. I’ve been wanting to get back here since the KISS tour in 2004. It’s been way too long!”

The crowd? They agreed. Yeah, the band’s hair isn’t as teased (or plentiful) as it was in their ’80s heyday, and the make-up has been toned way down, and there wasn’t a stitch of spandex in sight. But despite smog and humidex warnings advising the elderly to stay indoors, Poison showed up prepared to rock.

Cheesy? Maybe, but not as much as you might expect. Fun? Oh, hell yeah. If you can’t have fun at a Poison show, you’re probably sans pulse. Sympathies to your family.

Opening with Look What The Cat Dragged In — with lasers! And fire! — the band spooled out every hit and demi-hit in their library, including I Want Action, Ride The Wind, I Won’t Forget You and the almost-worth-the-price of admission coupling of Every Rose Has Its Thorn and Unskinny Bop.

The crowd, surprisingly youngish but peppered

with bleached-blond veteran rockers whose tattoos

probably seemed like a good idea at the time, lapped up every note.

The big screen behind drummer Rockett alternated appropriately between old music video footage of the band in their lipstick-lathered heyday (no shunning origins here) and video montages of album cover art, Sunset Strip scenes and big-boobied women cupping their chests.

And while the boys have been around a long while (and guitarist DeVille might be best known to some young’uns as that guy from Season 6 of The Surreal World), they haven’t lost any of their musical chops.

At the start of the night, after California’s Endeverafter warmed up an already sweltering crowd, Poison’s fellow ’80s glam-rockers Cinderella got their licks in.

Though it was sweet to hear Nobody’s Fool again, frontman Tom Keifer’s voice has been rendered a little over-raspy by years of hard livin’ and hard rockin’, and a muddy sound mix didn’t help.

But like someone once said, every rose has its thorn. And for the most part, it was a night of sweet-scented, old school party rock. No faking.

Poison Tour Dates

Poison Tickets August 22 – Orlando FL – Hard Rock Live
Poison Tickets August 23 – Myrtle Beach SC – Hard Rock Live
Poison Tickets August 25 – Atlanta GA – HiFi Buys Amphitheatre
Poison Tickets August 26 – Memphis TN – Mud Island Ampitheatre
Poison Tickets August 27 – Little Rock AR – Riverfest Amphitheatre
Poison Tickets August 29 – St. Paul MN – Minnesota State Fair

Steve Tilley/Toronto Sun

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A Look at the Stones Concert Rider

ericclapton — Thu, 03 Aug 2006 21:18:20 +0000

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When the Rolling Stones come to Halifax next month, they’ll want to watch cricket on the telly and play billiards on their own table.

The concert rider for the Bigger Bang tour, posted on the Smoking Gun website, specifies how the band wants each of its large shows to run. For example, Mick Jagger’s dressing room, dubbed Work Out, needs to have a high-speed Internet connection and satellite or cable television.

“Please find out what channel is showing cricket,” says the rider. “That is the channel we need most of all.”

Don’t worry about providing a TV, though. Sir Mick brings his own.

In his dressing room, the strutting front man also demands four electrical circuits, a pair of two-metre-long banquet tables and four folding gig chairs.

Stones riders used to call for Ping-Pong tables and video games. But the geriatric rockers seem to have dropped the kids’ stuff, preferring to unwind now in their own snooker room.

“The tour carries their own snooker table,” says the rider.

Last year, when the band played Moncton, they signed the table and left it behind to be auctioned off for charity.

The dressing room for Keith Richards is called Camp X-Ray, after the U.S. navy’s detention facility for suspected terrorists in Guantanamo, Cuba.

The 62-year-old guitarist, who has reportedly recovered completely from a head injury suffered in an April 27 fall from a tree while vacationing in Fiji, needs three banquet tables (two of them skinny), a phone line, four folding gig chairs and one large trash can.

X-Ray also needs “one medium white, Casablanca lily arrangement with weeping eucalyptus, delivered in a vase.” The other two band members demand the same, but Sir Mick is adamant he doesn’t want any flowers.

Guitarist Ron Wood’s dressing room, Recovery Room, and that of drummer Charlie Watts, Cotton Club, both need a banquet table, two folding gig chairs and a trash can.

The female vocalist dressing room needs one medium white lily arrangement with white freesia and weeping eucalyptus and one small fresh lavender plant.

The two supporting bands get bouquets of wildflowers. The backstage lounge must have two more lily arrangements and four dozen long-stem white roses.

The roses have to be de-thorned and wrapped in paper. “We will arrange these ourselves,” says the rider.

If the dressing room compound is composed of trailers, they need to be of the “clean, late-model” variety, says the rider.

In fact, the self-described “greatest rock ‘n’ roll band in the world” seems to be a tad obsessed with tidiness.

“All dressing rooms and rest-rooms should be thoroughly cleaned before our load-in and arrival,” says the rider. “On the morning of show day, we will be requesting another cleanup! Please be sure the cleaning staff has a working vacuum cleaner and uses it thoroughly!”

Concert organizers won’t need to worry about providing couches and curtains for the Stones.

“We carry our own furniture and pipe and drape,” says the rider.

More than 100,000 people are expected to cram the Halifax Commons for the Sept. 23 concert.

“In outdoor situations without toilets, we will require an executive toilet trailer with facilities for men and women,” says the rider. “This trailer must have flushing toilets with hot and cold water. These toilets are to be used only (by) band members and staff. If functioning toilets are not available for non-principals, portajohns may be used as a last resort.”

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary September

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary October

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary November

Rolling Stones Tickets November 3 BC Place Stadium Vancouver
Rolling Stones Tickets November 5 McAfee Coliseum Oakland
Rolling Stones Tickets November 8 Cardinals Stadium Phoenix AZ
Rolling Stones Tickets November 11 MGM Grand Las Vegas NV
Rolling Stones Tickets November 14 Idaho Center Nampa ID
Rolling Stones Tickets November 18 Dodger Stadium Los Angeles CA

Chris Lambie/Halifax-Chronicle Herald

Click here to buy Rolling Stones Tickets online.

Wolfmother Tour News and Tickets

ericclapton — Thu, 03 Aug 2006 15:40:46 +0000

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Australian hard-rock trio Wolfmother will back its self-titled debut during a late-summer/early fall run through the US.

The bulk of the group’s schedule is set in September, and features a mix of headlining club and theater shows alongside a number of festival appearances, including a lone foray into Canada for the Sept. 10 Virgin Festival. Three August festival performances are also in the pipeline.

The upcoming trek marks Wolfmother’s return to the US following a spring headlining run that wrapped up in mid-June. That outing included a May stop at the Palms Resort in Las Vegas, where the group filmed a performance that is now available exclusively via Apple’s iTunes Music Store.

Released in the states in May, “Wolfmother” was produced by D. Sardy (Oasis, Dandy Warhols), and is certified double-platinum with 210,000 units sold in the group’s native country, where it hit stores last fall.

Wolfmother Tour Dates

UltimateGuitar.com

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Avenged Sevenfold Concert News and Tickets

ericclapton — Thu, 03 Aug 2006 15:17:18 +0000

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Currently on the road as part of Ozzfest’s mainstage roster, rockers Avenged Sevenfold plan to go it alone during a September run through Canada and the Northern Plains region.

Following the Aug. 9 Ozzfest finale, and a subsequent run through Japan and Australia, Avenged Sevenfold will return to the states for a Sept. 7 concert in Alaska. A half-dozen Canadian and three US shows follow before the end of that month.

Avenged Sevenfold continues to back its major-label debut, last year’s “City Of Evil.” The disc has spawned the hit single “Bat Country,” as well as follow-up cut “Seize the Day.” The music video for the latter track, which debuted last month, was directed by Wayne Isham, whose resume includes videos for Metallica, Bon Jovi, Britney Spears, Dave Matthews Band, Faith Hill and more.

“It was a f—ing amazing experience working with Wayne Isham who made sure every frame of this video was perfect,” the band wrote in a blog entry posted at its MySpace website, which features a streaming version of the clip.

Avenged Sevenfold Tour Dates

UltimateGuitar.com

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Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young Concert News and Tickets

ericclapton — Wed, 02 Aug 2006 15:51:01 +0000

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Let’s not mince words.

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young have reunited for their third tour this decade, having ended a decade-plus period of dormancy in late 1999 with the sweet, aptly titled album “Looking Forward.”

This time out, however, the quartet of 60-somethings has rallied around a decidedly strident work, Young’s “Living With War,” easily the most bluntly outspoken response to the president and the Iraq war yet recorded. Slammed out in a six-day rage, the disc’s nine straightforward anthems (and choir rendition of “America the Beautiful”) scream for CS&N’s harmonies and willingness to take a similar stand.

So the often-fractious unit (“But now we’re getting along better than ever,” assures David Crosby) was reassembled once more for a trek dubbed Freedom of Speech `06.

Trust me, these won’t be your grandfather’s CSN&Y shows. Yeah, across 30-plus songs in two sets, they typically toss in “Our House” and “Helplessly Hoping” to temper the attack. But with the majority of Young’s fed-up firebombs alternating with Vietnam-era staples like “Ohio” and “Chicago” and “For What It’s Worth,” this throwback to change-the-world rock will surely be the most protest-heavy series of shows since 2004′s Vote for Change.

I had 20 minutes with Mr. “Almost Cut My Hair” late last week. And if you thought the chat wouldn’t instantly turn political, well … um … you have heard of David Crosby, right?

Orange County Register: Many critics are saying this tour has brought renewed relevancy to your music.

David Crosby: They’re right. Part of our job is just to rock you, and part of our job is to be like troubadours, carrying the news from one town to another, like town criers. And that part of our job this time is much stronger because Neil came with an entire album of immensely strong songs.

And they’re very direct songs, man. They’re not complex and wispy and out there. They’re not “Guinnevere.” They are right in your face. You know, Neil’s (angry). He doesn’t think this is a just war, and neither do we.

A lot of people in this country feel like they’ve been hoodwinked. If they’re Democrats, they feel that the elections were stolen. If they’re Republicans, they feel like their party got swiped and dragged off to the extreme right. There are a lot of people who are unhappy about the lies that have been told.

There’s a huge mistake going on there, man. It’s war for profit rather than principle, and that’s really, really a gross thing. The way we feel – we think that the young people who go to war are some of the best ones we’ve got. They’re the ones who believe in this country enough to put their lives on the line. And to send them over there so Haliburton and Bechtel and Exxon can make a profit, man? That’s just not good enough.

This administration has been disrespectful to those soldiers all along – unless they’re behind them on the TV cameras. To them, they’re just cannon fodder. But to us they’re human beings, and every one of them has a mother.

OCR: You know, I saw Linda Ronstadt two years ago, when she got booed out here.

DC: Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know all about that whole thing.

OCR: Well, I saw her again a few weeks ago. And this time, instead of dedicating “Straighten Up and Fly Right” to the guys at Enron, she dedicated it to George Bush instead.

DC: (Laughs heartily.)

OCR: This time the crowd erupted – and this is Orange County, which is as much a stronghold of Republicanism …

DC: … as there is on the planet, yeah.

OCR: But that response made me think how the mood has changed lately. It makes me wonder if you could have done a tour so overtly political even two years ago.

DC: Well, we might have. People almost expect it of us. We have been like this for a long time, you know, when most people wouldn’t do what we’re doing, now or then. But I also think that now there’s a groundswell about this.

Have you ever heard of this girl Pink? Have you heard that song “Dear Mr. President”? Holy (bleep)! That’s the thing. Two years ago people weren’t speaking their minds as much. Now it’s really coming on strong from more people.

OCR: I just saw Cyndi Lauper, and even she was doing “What’s Going On” and “Imagine.”

DC: There’s an awful lot more of it now. I mean, fair is fair: There are a great many performers who never do benefits and don’t ever take a political stand – who just don’t do anything. You know, the Janet Jacksons of the world.

OCR: That’s their prerogative, though.

DC: Yeah, I suppose. I don’t understand it. They live here, too. But they have a right to be whoever they are. I just don’t get not helping when there are so many people who need help. Even if you don’t get political at all, there are still people everywhere you can help.

I’m very happy about this tour, though, because there is a feeling inside of us of being validated – of being able to maintain what we think our contribution should be, and not just play old songs that everybody wants to hear. Yes, we can do that. We can play for five hours that way. But that’s not all we do, and it never was all we did.

This feels like “Ohio” and “For What It’s Worth” and “Long Time Gone” and all those other old songs now have more weight and new meaning. Night before last I sang, “You know there’s something going on around here that just will not stand the light of day” – and the whole audience cheered. In the middle of the song! `Cause they feel what I was talking about.

OCR: But it makes sense that people would turn to the four of you at a time like this. You are among the very few artists of any generation that has steadfastly carried this torch – of using your platform to speak your mind.

DC: Well, there’s also Bonnie Raitt, there’s Jackson Browne. There are a lot of people of principle out there. The Indigo Girls, for God’s sake – there aren’t many people who have worked harder for other people than them.

OCR: John Fogerty got back to social issues. He even wrote an anti-war song (“Deja Vu All Over Again”).

DC: Yeah, and it’s a good song, too. And Springsteen – he’s a strong guy.

OCR: But we’ve just named a bunch of people over 50.

DC: Yeah, but that Pink song … that just blew my mind out of my ear.

OCR: Does this validation come with any sense of melancholy? Those old protest songs are indestructible, but it would be better if they weren’t so relevant right now.

DC: We think that, too. We don’t think it’s really OK for us to be picking up pieces after the government. But we didn’t think we’d ever have to do benefits for AIDS research, either. We thought the government would just be concerned about it and do something about it. But for years the only people who did anything about AIDS were performers – especially Elton (John).

We’d rather that the situation didn’t exist, but it does. And it’s part of our job to look that squarely in the eye and give the most honest report on it that we can.

OCR: How does the mood of audiences now compare to how it was during, say, the Vietnam era?

DC: It’s very similar, man. The country is very, very polarized. There are two distinct sides, and they have very strong feelings. And the administration that is in power is doing a lot of the very same things that were going on during the Nixon years. What people seem to dislike most is having this administration try to marginalize them, tell them that if they don’t agree with their politics, then they are being un-American.

Which is just nonsense. We don’t agree with this administration, but we love the country. And the people in our audience seem to feel the same way. They believe in this country, in the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, the Declaration of Independence. They love this place, and they don’t like having it swiped away. We don’t either.

OCR: A detractor might look at this tour and think: “They’re just preaching to the choir.”

DC: Oh, there are Republicans in the audience, too. I see `em get up and leave when we sing “Let’s Impeach the President.” (Laughs.)

OCR: See, that’s what makes me wonder how it will go down here.

DC: I guarantee you we will make some people leave. And I’m fine with that. I’m very happy to see that sort of dissent. I heard, actually, that there were going to be people picketing us at some of the places. I think that’d be great, but I haven’t seen it yet.

OCR: Neil has said part of why he made “Living With War” was because he kept waiting for the younger generation to step up and do likewise. Several young artists have issued protest songs recently, but no one’s made anything like Neil’s album.

DC: Yeah, some of them are outspoken, but not the ones that are really big stars. Neil was hoping that somebody could actually grab the wheel – get enough attention that they would become the focal point, the rallying point. That Pink song is proof that the intent is there. But, you know, how many people know about that song vs. how many people know about us.

OCR: I often hear people say that the only thing that will really shake up the youth …

DC: … is a draft. Yeah. That’s a very serious subject with me, because I have an 11-year-old boy, and if they institute a draft, which I think they very well might … . You know, they don’t have enough cannon fodder to do what they intend to do, what their plan is for the Middle East. Their enlistments are way down. They’re having to extend people from the National Guard way over, which is (ticking) them off a lot. And every time they swear they’re not gonna put a draft in, well, they’ve lied about everything else, so I kinda think they’re lying about that, too.

And if they do, then I have to leave. Because they get my boy over my dead body, and no other way. If it were a war for principle, that’d be one thing. But a war for profit? I’m sorry. Not good enough.

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young Tour Dates

August 2006

1, 2 – New York, NY – Beacon Theatre
3 – Bushkill, PA – Mt. Laurel Center
5, 6 – Atlantic City, NJ – Borgata Hotel/Casino
8 – Uncasville, CT – Mohegan Sun Casino
10 – Verona, NY – Turning Stone Casino
11 – Reading, PA – Sovereign Center
13 – Vienna, VA – Wolf Trap Filene Center
14 – Solomons, MD – Calvert Marine Museum
16 – Salem, VA – Salem Civic Center
18 – Hilton Head Island, SC – Sea Pines Resort
19 – North Charleston, SC – Coliseum

Ben Wener/Orange County Register

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Rolling Stones: Pleased to Meet You, Hope You Got Our New Date

ericclapton — Wed, 02 Aug 2006 15:20:46 +0000

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That weekend date you’ve planned with the Rolling Stones is now a midweek affair.

The Stones are rolling their Missoula concert date forward two days, and will play at Washington-Grizzly Stadium on Wednesday, Oct. 4 – not Friday, Oct. 6 as originally scheduled.

The reason? According to news reports in Regina, Saskatchewan, the Oct. 8 concert there sold out in 20 minutes, so the Stones added a second concert for Oct. 6 and bumped up the Missoula date.

The date change was confirmed Tuesday on the Rolling Stones Web site and later by University of Montana concert organizers. The change also affects the Wichita, Kan., concert, which was moved from Oct. 2 to Oct. 1.

“Mostly we understand, because they’re currently on tour and their organization is working from the road,” said Gale Price, executive director of UM Productions. “It’s really tough for everybody, but we have the utmost patience.”

Patience, too, for the announcement of ticket sales. As of yet there is no word when tickets go on sale or how much they will cost; last week, the Missoulian reported a tentative announcement date of Aug. 7. Ticket prices for the Stones shows so far have ranged from $60 to $350.

The delay may have to do with Ticketmaster’s unfamiliarity with Washington-Grizzly Stadium, Price said.

“The stadium hasn’t been used (for a concert) since 1998, and so there are certain things that have to be worked out to figure out the seating chart,” she said.

Tuesday’s news could have been worse. Because the Rolling Stones and the University of Montana have not yet inked a contract, the Stones were not obligated to honor the concert.

Price said UM folks behind the concert were quickly notified of the date change and were confident the Stones would not cancel.

“UM was immediately in negotiations,” she said. “Of course, if they had canceled, it would reflect on the university and also on the promoter and the artists themselves, and nobody wanted to have that bad situation to happen.”

For a brief period of time Tuesday, the Web site had both the Missoula concert and the new Regina concert on the same Oct. 6 date, prompting e-mails and calls from fans fearing the Missoula concert had been canceled.

Still, the change will certainly disappoint some fans who were looking forward to a weekender, and out-of-town concertgoers who may suddenly have to burn more vacation time.

While the date change won’t affect things much from the university’s end of things, it will put a lot of pressure on the Rolling Stones road crew, who will have less time to erect the gigantic, six-story stage at the south end of Washington-Grizzly Stadium.

“What they will be doing is a compressed build, which is building 24 hours a day,” said Marlene Hendrickson, adviser to UM Productions.

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary September

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary October

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary November

Rolling Stones Tickets November 3 BC Place Stadium Vancouver
Rolling Stones Tickets November 5 McAfee Coliseum Oakland
Rolling Stones Tickets November 8 Cardinals Stadium Phoenix AZ
Rolling Stones Tickets November 11 MGM Grand Las Vegas NV
Rolling Stones Tickets November 14 Idaho Center Nampa ID
Rolling Stones Tickets November 18 Dodger Stadium Los Angeles CA

Jamie Kelly/The Missoulian

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Rolling Stones Canada Show Concert News and Tickets

ericclapton — Wed, 02 Aug 2006 14:33:01 +0000

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The Rolling Stones will play a second concert in the Canadian city of Regina during their fall North American tour, and have accordingly rescheduled their dates for Missoula and Wichita.

In addition to a sold-out October 8 stop at Regina’s Mosaic Stadium, the band will now play there on October 6, according to its Web site (http://www.rollingstones.com). In all, the Stones will play four Canadian shows, with Halifax (September 23) and Vancouver (November 3) also on the itinerary.

They were originally supposed to play Missoula, Montana on October 6; their show at Grizzly Stadium will now take place on October 4. Additionally, they will play Cessna Stadium in Wichita, Kansas on October 1, one day earlier than first announced.

Tickets for the new Regina show will go on sale to the public on Friday.

The Rolling Stones, who are three weeks into a tour of Europe, will start their latest North American swing on September 20 in Boston.

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary September

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary October

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary November

Rolling Stones Tickets November 3 BC Place Stadium Vancouver
Rolling Stones Tickets November 5 McAfee Coliseum Oakland
Rolling Stones Tickets November 8 Cardinals Stadium Phoenix AZ
Rolling Stones Tickets November 11 MGM Grand Las Vegas NV
Rolling Stones Tickets November 14 Idaho Center Nampa ID
Rolling Stones Tickets November 18 Dodger Stadium Los Angeles CA

Reuters

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Rolling Stones Phoenix Concert News and Tickets

ericclapton — Mon, 31 Jul 2006 21:52:57 +0000

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The Rolling Stones keep rolling. The Rolling Stones tour will once again showcase their diversity as musicians and performers. Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Charlie Watts and Ronnie Wood will perform songs from their latest album, “A Bigger Bang,” released in 2005. The Rolling Stones A Bigger Band Tour comes to Cardinals Stadium in Glendale, Sunday, November 8 – 7:30PM.

The Rolling Stones will be back on tour this fall for the North American encore of their multi-continent “A Bigger Bang” tour. It will launch on Sept. 20 at Boston’s Gillette Stadium, recreating the magic of their historic Fenway Park kick-off one year earlier. The Rolling Stones hold the record for the most successful U.S. and world tour in 2005 and have already been named the number #1 touring band in the world for the first half of 2006 by Billboard. The U.S. tour dates will be sponsored by RadioShack.

The Rolling Stones who have already played to over four and a half million fans on “A Bigger Bang” tour will once again perform for fans in cities including New York, Boston, Chicago, Seattle, Los Angeles, Phoenix and Las Vegas. This time around, playing primarily stadiums with a select number of arenas, they will also travel to many new markets to give fans an opportunity to experience the band at their best. The stadium shows will bring back the awe-inspiring production and grand scale excitement with the intimacy of the famed b-stage that brings the band up close to the fans.

“We’re very excited about coming back to the U.S. and Canada. Most of the shows are going to be on the big stadium stage with fans in the balconies behind us. We’re going to play many cities we didn’t get to before and also return to some of our favorite places,” said Mick Jagger. “There is plenty of time for rehearsals and to be able to make some set changes — we’ll have a variety of material ready so we can keep it fresh.” Jagger adds, “Keith’s fine, his heads better, he’s playing well and enjoying himself so we’re all looking forward to this leg of the tour.”

“I thought we left too soon you know, so that’s the reason we’re coming back. I’m really happy that we got some more gigs in America and Canada,” said Keith Richards. “I’m feeling great and can’t wait to get there. We’re going to have the b-stage to get that very close thing happening with the band and the fans.”

The Rolling Stones will bring young, contemporary opening acts to the stage for this leg of the tour. Artists to be announced shortly.

“The return to North America is a celebration of the fact that the most enduring rock n’ roll band of all time is feeling and sounding better than ever before and are ready to rock,” said Michael Cohl, tour promoter. “The response from fans and reviewers to the recent shows in Europe has been amazing. To give more fans an opportunity to see the band we’re lowering the ticket prices on average 10-15% and taking an additional $20 off tickets for students.”

“The Rolling Stones are icons of the music world, and we at RadioShack are excited to join with them as they return to the U.S. for their fall tour,” said Tori Binau, senior vice president, marketing for RadioShack Corporation. “Many loyal RadioShack customers are also fans of The Rolling Stones, so what better way to thank them than by offering special opportunities tied to the tour in the U.S. And with more than 6,000 stores in virtually every neighborhood in America, everyone gets an opportunity to participate. There’s no better way to start off the fall season than a ‘bigger bang’ with The Stones & RadioShack.”

Tickets for the public in New York, Chicago, Boston, Halifax and Regina will go on sale beginning Monday, July 31 and will be available at all usual outlets.

There will be a limited number of Gold Circle seats available while the remaining 90% of the house will average $89 for stadiums and $99 for arena shows. In most cities, students will receive an additional $20 off. (Current ID required). Buys will be limited to 12 tickets per person. Additionally, 200 fans will have the opportunity to be onstage with the Rolling Stones as part of the stadium set and share in the excitement. These seats will also be available at the time of the general ticket on-sale. For additional on-sale information check local listings.

The U.S. dates for “A Bigger Bang” tour will be sponsored by RadioShack. The North American leg of the tour will be presented by Concert Productions International and The Next Adventure and produced by WPC Piecemeal Inc.

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary September

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary October

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary November

Rolling Stones Tickets November 3 BC Place Stadium Vancouver
Rolling Stones Tickets November 5 McAfee Coliseum Oakland
Rolling Stones Tickets November 8 Cardinals Stadium Phoenix AZ
Rolling Stones Tickets November 11 MGM Grand Las Vegas NV
Rolling Stones Tickets November 14 Idaho Center Nampa ID
Rolling Stones Tickets November 18 Dodger Stadium Los Angeles CA

The Rolling Stones

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Rolling Stones and Alice Cooper Concert News and Tickets

ericclapton — Mon, 31 Jul 2006 21:30:43 +0000

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The Rolling Stones are plenty, but Alice Cooper just makes the show a whole lot better, said fans lining up for tickets yesterday to the Sept. 23 show.

Under the shade of the Metro Centre’s outdoor concourse area off Duke Street, the group of about 20 fans yesterday evening said they were happy to hear that the famed hard rocker was joining the lineup for the concert.

Cooper’s website reported this weekend that he would play the Halifax Common concert, although nothing has been confirmed yet by the show’s organizers.

Dartmouth resident Doug Glenn said seeing Cooper would be a great addition to the show.

But the 46-year-old crossing guard was the first in line to buy two tickets and it was just one band that mattered to him – the Rolling Stones.

“I said as a child growing up, if they came to Halifax, I’ll go,” Glenn said.

He counts Satisfaction as among his favourite Stones’ tunes, and will take his wife Melissa to the show.

“I’ve never seen the Stones; I couldn’t afford to go to Moncton, so this is sort of a dream come true,” he said.

Lounging on a red sleeping bag with a small cooler at his side, Glenn said he lined up at 7 a.m. yesterday for the two $116.25 general admission tickets.

It took another three hours before he got some company.

Ellershouse resident Terry Anthony, 41, was second in line at 10 a.m.

“I do this a lot,” she said with a laugh, perched in a canvas folding chair.

In fact, Anthony estimated that this is her 15th or 16th line-sit. She did it for the Rolling Stones’ Moncton concert last summer, for Pearl Jam, and for the Juno Awards, among others.

She’ll buy at least nine tickets, she said.

Tickets go on sale starting this morning at 10 a.m. at Ticket Atlantic box offices.

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary September

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary October

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary November

Rolling Stones Tickets November 3 BC Place Stadium Vancouver
Rolling Stones Tickets November 5 McAfee Coliseum Oakland
Rolling Stones Tickets November 8 Cardinals Stadium Phoenix AZ
Rolling Stones Tickets November 11 MGM Grand Las Vegas NV
Rolling Stones Tickets November 14 Idaho Center Nampa ID
Rolling Stones Tickets November 18 Dodger Stadium Los Angeles CA

Emily Bowers/The Daily News

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Stones Ticket Sales Rolling Along

ericclapton — Mon, 31 Jul 2006 21:19:24 +0000

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Jill Crow and her friends spent the night together lining up for Rolling Stones tickets and discovered you can always get what you want.

“They’re such a big band, they’re legends,” said Crow. “It will be great to just go and see them and say that we did.”

Crow and her three friends slept only a few hours while camping outside the Halifax Metro Centre.

When the ticket office opened at 10 a.m. Monday, about 150 people were lined up looking for tickets to the Stones’ Sept. 23 show.

But Tom Melloy, who works security at the centre, says he’s seen longer lines, particularly for the Garth Brooks concert in 1996.

“We’ve seen [fans] way up Brunswick Street,” he said.

Melloy believes the line for the Stones is smaller because more people are buying tickets online, and because there are simply more of them available.

The Stones concert is being held at the Halifax Common, the central park that hosted 80,000 people for Pope John Paul II’s visit in 1984.

Organizers expect 60,000 people will turn out to see the British rockers.

“I think we will sell tens of thousands of tickets today,” Fred MacGillivray, chairman of Events Halifax, said early Monday.

“I think the concert will definitely sell out.”

Though the $99 (plus service charge) tickets for the public went on sale Monday, special VIP tickets went on sale Wednesday. Tickets are already on eBay, with some special gold seats listed at $400 and up.

Meanwhile, organizers are still working out the details of how to manage the concert crowd.

Alice Cooper is the opening act.

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary September

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary October

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary November

Rolling Stones Tickets November 3 BC Place Stadium Vancouver
Rolling Stones Tickets November 5 McAfee Coliseum Oakland
Rolling Stones Tickets November 8 Cardinals Stadium Phoenix AZ
Rolling Stones Tickets November 11 MGM Grand Las Vegas NV
Rolling Stones Tickets November 14 Idaho Center Nampa ID
Rolling Stones Tickets November 18 Dodger Stadium Los Angeles CA

CBC News

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Warped Tour News and Tickets

ericclapton — Sun, 30 Jul 2006 18:28:03 +0000

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Kevin Lyman is spinning plates.

Among the immediate issues the Vans Warped tour founder and producer juggled at a recent underperforming date in Nashville were a crew member’s minor medical emergency, an upcoming European on-sale for his Taste of Chaos tour, tracking album sales for his two labels and the magical appearance of a key piece of sound equipment that had been chasing the tour across several cities.

Lyman’s production office at Starwood Amphitheatre was packed with tour personnel, transportation coordinators, press, artists and a wealth of other, mostly heavily tattooed, individuals who all seem to function at a high level of organized chaos.

A partnership among Vans, Lyman’s 4fini Productions and Creative Artists Agency’s (CAA) Darryl Eaton, Warped has become one of the most consistent touring properties ever. While it may appear to the casual observer a dysfunctional punk family, the tour, now in its 12th year, works for reasons that transcend the bottom line.

“If this was purely driven by economics, there would be a lot of Warpeds,” Lyman says. “But if I laid it all out for you economically, no one could figure out how it works. It doesn’t make sense, because it’s not really always based on finances.”

What Warped is about is the care, feeding and shepherding of 800-plus people, including more than 100 bands, on 187 vehicles from town to town, and then setting up and putting on a show for thousands of punk kids. Virtually every detail of Warped eventually ends up in Lyman’s lap, particularly if there’s a problem, and he delegates with aplomb.

“I think he probably learns from his mistakes,” observes veteran road warrior Joan Jett, a headliner on this year’s tour. “I heard early on the food sucked, and now the food is excellent. I’m sure there are a million little details you have to get together if you’re going to make this type of thing work.”

It works. Last year, Warped enjoyed its best outing ever, with attendance of 700,000 and a gross exceeding $16 million from a ticket that is generally priced for less than $30.

For a dozen years, Lyman and Warped have continuously pumped new blood — fans and bands — into the punk-rock scene, contributing significantly to the genre’s vitality.

The sense of community appeals to groups as does the potential new audience.

“Warped gives us a chance to play for people who may not necessarily get a chance to see us otherwise,” says Andrew Everding, keyboardist for post-hardcore band Thursday, which played its first Warped in 2002. “The kids that are showing up now that are 16 were 12 back then, and for the younger kids the only concert they might go to is the Warped tour.”

Others credit Warped with an even bigger role in their development. “I think the reason we have a career is because of the Warped tour,” saxophonist J.R. of Less Than Jake says. “We’ve been doing this so long, we ended up building our fan base on tour, on this tour.”

A shared sense of punk purpose surely greases the wheels, but it takes more than good intentions to keep turnstiles spinning, particularly with a tour that practically turns over its audience every three to four years. Warped works — with the venues, promoters, bands, sponsors, crew and, most importantly, the fans.

“We aim to deliver a great experience for the fan coming to the show, the artists that come out on the road with us, our sponsors, crew,” CAA’s Eaton says. “It is truly a unique community that transcends the ‘business’ of the tour.”

The Brands
Asked to profile the “Warped kid,” Lyman responds, “Thirteen to 19 years old, active, very open-minded to the music and the scene, very musically knowledgeable. We’ve gotten to the point where we’re about 50/50 male/female, but I also have noticed this year that we’re getting some of the older fans back with bands like Helmet and Joan Jett.”

As far as an economic profile, “They come with some money, they buy T-shirts and records, and music is cheap out there. They’re ready to take music home with them.”

Ten stages notwithstanding, Warped has the look and feel of a punk-rock county fair with row after row of booth space. Sixty-seven sponsors and vendors are onboard for this year’s 50-date outing.

Exhibitors have turned into Warped’s second-highest revenue stream, up 20% this year. “Now we have to turn a lot of people down, just like bands,” says Lyman, who adds that 60%-80% of the “seven-figure” sponsorship value is pumped back into the tour. “It underwrites moving this thing down the road.”

Warped sponsors and vendors are not exactly mainstream, outside of entities like Cingular Wireless and Major League Baseball. Instead, most are small indie labels (including Lyman’s own SideOneDummy Records and Warcon Records), alternative fashions and other left-of-center concerns.

While southern California fashion brands like Hurley and PacSun have raised awareness through their association with Warped, none has been boosted like the title sponsor. Footwear company Vans has presented 11 of the 12 Warped tours in the most long-lived tour sponsorship in the business.

“We were an $80-million to $100-million-a-year company back in 1996 when we got involved with Kevin,” says Steve Van Doren, Vans VP of promotion and events, whose father Paul (now retired) started the company 40 years ago.

Van Doren says the Warped association has been a highly effective marketing tool, allowing Vans to become known outside of southern California. “Our customers are 12- to 18-year-old boys and girls. We’ve always been into skateboarding and snowboarding, and music has been a great tie-in.”

This year, Vans is projecting revenue of $500 million, and Van Doren attributes much of the growth to the Warped association.

The Bands
With more than 1,000 submissions to participate this year, bands obviously love being on the tour, and many are veterans.

Bands break on Warped. “The tour has consistently been the launch pad for the next round of new superstar bands,” Eaton says. “Just last year’s tour alone saw bands like My Chemical Romance, Avenged Sevenfold and Fall Out Boy, to name a few, rise to the top. I think the tour really provides a platform for fans to go out and discover their new favorite artists.”

Less Than Jake has done at least eight Warped tours. “There’s nothing like this tour,” J.R. says. “It’s truly like summer camp. You get up, you go stand in line for breakfast, you stand in line for lunch, you go play a show, run around. The camp counselor is Kevin Lyman.”

Warped is not the best payday in the world. According to Lyman, “There are bands out here making 50 bucks (a night) to no bucks, to bands that are making $10,000-$12,000.”

The majority of the bands have album releases scheduled somewhere around the tour. Veterans know a Warped slot is a huge opportunity for career development.

“You have to utilize the time you’re out here,” J.R. says. “There’s a lot of bands that don’t. They just jerk around, go watch other bands. You’re out here all summer, you’ll have a chance to watch bands. But make friends, network, meet people, because the band that’s playing on the SmartPunk stage could be selling 2 million records next year.”

Lyman sees too many bands playing rock star too early in their careers. Most Warped bands should be in, well, a van.

“I’ve got bands in two buses that are playing on my small stages. I tell them, ‘You’re going to be changing my oil at Jiffy Lube before long. You’re going to be broke.”‘

Unlike other multi-act tours, Warped lacks a tangible amount of drama. For a veteran artist like Joan Jett, that’s a relief. “There’s been a lot of camaraderie among the bands, which is pretty unique from what I can gather,” she says. “Some other people have made comments that the atmosphere is so much better than on something like the Ozzfest, where there seems to be many more head trips. I haven’t experienced that. I’m experiencing this, where everything is really low-key and down to earth.”

Warped Tour Dates

07/25 – St. Louis, MO UMB Bank Pavilion
07/26 – Cincinnati, OH Riverbend Music Center
07/27 – Pittsburgh, PA Post Gazette Pavilion
07/28 – Indianapolis, IN Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre Lot
07/29 – Detroit, MI Comerica Park and Street
07/30 – Chicago, IL First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre
08/01 – Buffalo, NY Darien Lakes Fields
08/02 – Fitchburg, MA Fitchburg Airport
08/03 – Camden, NJ Tweeter Center at the Waterfront
08/04 – Scranton, PA Montage Mountain
08/05 – New York, NY Nassau Coliseum
08/06 – Old Bridge, NJ Englishtown Raceway
08/08 – Charlotte, NC Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre Lot
08/09 – Virginia Beach, VA Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre Lot
08/10 – Washington, DC Nissan Pavilion Lot
08/11 – Cleveland, OH Tower City
08/12 – Toronto, ONT Park Place
08/13 – Montreal, QUE Park Jean Drapeau

Ray Waddell/Billboard

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Pet Shop Boys “Fundamental” Tour News and Tickets

ericclapton — Sat, 29 Jul 2006 21:07:32 +0000

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British synth-pop icons Pet Shop Boys are set to return to North America with a major tour late this fall supporting their recently released new album “Fundamental.”

The duo of Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe, who have only been making sporadic concert appearances during the last few years, have mapped out a full-on blitz this summer, with a full slate of European shows leading up to their autumnal North American dates.

The duo’s trek through North America will begin with an Oct. 10 show in Montreal. The 23-city slate includes stops in major cities across the continent, ending with a pair of Mexico dates in mid-November.

“Fundamental,” the band’s ninth studio album, and first since 2002′s “Release,” hit stores in June. The album contains 11 new originals penned by the duo, as well as a Dianne Warren composition entitled “Numb.” The disc was produced by Trevor Horn (Paul McCartney, Tina Turner).

The album’s first single, “I’m With Stupid,” became a Top 10 hit upon its release in the UK. A second single, “Minimal,” was released shortly after the album hit store shelves.

A streaming video of “Minimal” is currently available for viewing on the Boys’ website.

Pet Shop Boys Tour Dates

P. S. Check out Pet Shop Boys Tickets here.

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Korn Family Values Concert News and Tickets

ericclapton — Sat, 29 Jul 2006 13:49:49 +0000

Check out Korn Tickets and Family Values Tour Tickets here.

It’s still over three months until Election Day, but the Family Values crowd is on the move. Korn resurrects the tour of that name Saturday, July 29 in Antioch, Tennessee, with a line-up featuring Deftones, 10 Years, Stone Sour, Flyleaf and others. This will be Korn singer Jonathan Davis’ first live excursion since a blood infection felled him in Europe last month, and he told Launch he’s chomping at the bit. “We’re just gonna go out there and rock the house,” he said. “I think I’m gonna be extra hungry ’cause it was taken away from me from Europe, so it’s gonna be good. Production-wise, I mean, it’s gonna be different, it’ll be cool. I mean, we’ve got stripper poles, wading pools, paintball gun fields, all kinds of crazy, weird s*** that we’re gonna be doing in each town, so it should be good.”

Davis spent much of the last month recovering from the rare, potentially fatal disorder that forced Korn to cancel most of its European tour in June.

The first Family Values package debuted in 1998 and featured Rammstein, Limp Bizkit, Ice Cube and Orgy in addition to Korn. Two later editions, in 1999 and 2001, included acts like Staind, Stone Temple Pilots, Linkin Park, Filter and Method Man.

Family Values Tour Dates

August

Korn Tickets August 20 – Marysville CA – Sleep Train Amphitheatre
Korn Tickets August 24 – Bonner Springs KS – Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
Korn Tickets August 25 – Maryland Heights MO – UMB Bank Pavilion
Korn Tickets August 26 – East Troy WI – Alpine Valley Music Theatre

September

P. S. Check out Korn Tickets and Family Values Tour Tickets here.

Staind and Seether Concert News and Tickets

ericclapton — Sat, 29 Jul 2006 12:18:47 +0000

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Staind has announced the first dates of its upcoming tour with Seether and Three Days Grace. After a short trip to Australia and New Zealand, Staind will play a July 23 radio festival in Wisconsin before getting the trek underway on August 5. Staind has been on the road for nearly a year in support of its latest album, “Chapter V”, and guitarist Mike Mushok told Launch the band is perfectly happy to keep working. “You take it when you can get it, you know, and the thing is, the record’s doing pretty good, and we’re able to stay out, so we’re gonna,” he explained. “That’s really kind of how we’re approaching it, you know. Things are going well, and we’re real thankful for that, and we’re going to a lot of places and a lot of towns that we’ve never been to, so that’s a good thing also.”

Most of the shows will also feature Soil, with some other acts in the mix as well. More dates will be announced soon.

Staind and Three Days Grace recently toured together on the latest edition of the Jagermeister Music Tour.

Confirmed Staind Tour Dates (with Seether and Three Days Grace):

Staind Tickets Aug. 22 – Pikeville KY – Eastern Kentucky Expo Center
Staind Tickets Aug. 23 – Johnson City TN – Freedom Hall
Staind Tickets Aug. 25 – Memphis TN – Mud Island Amphitheatre
Staind Tickets Aug. 29 – Monroe LA – Civic Center
Staind Tickets Aug. 30 – Birmingham AL – Boutwell Auditorium
Staind Tickets Sep. 03 – Hampton Beach NH – Hampton Beach Casino
Staind Tickets Sep. 11 – York PA – York College
Staind Tickets Sep. 16 – Huntington WV – Harris Riverfront Park

Launch Radio Networks

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Foreigner Concert News and Tickets

ericclapton — Wed, 26 Jul 2006 21:40:16 +0000

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When singer Lou Gramm left Foreigner for the second time four years ago, guitarist Mick Jones believed the band he founded would be relegated to the saddest of rock clichés.

“We just couldn’t carry on anymore,” Jones says by telephone from New York City. “The fact is we created this together and I have a great respect for that, but we couldn’t get along. I really didn’t know what I was going to do.”

A couple of jam sessions in Los Angeles with friend and drummer Jason Bonham (son of Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham) changed all that.

“I’ve known Jason since he was about 18,” Jones says. “He’s a huge fan of Foreigner and said he would love to join the band if I reformed it.”

So that’s what Jones did.Adding Bonham, bass guitarist Jeff Pilson (Dokken, Dio) and vocalist Kelly Hansen (Hurricane) to a lineup that also features longtime keyboardist Jeff Jacobs and rhythm guitarist/saxophonist Tom Gimbel, Foreigner has set out on a 115-date tour, which includes Saturday’s stop at the Elkhart County 4-H Fairgrounds in Goshen.

“I had a little trepidation how this would be received without Lou,” Jones says. “But I feel good about it. Instead of Foreigner going out on a sour note, I’d like to bring a certain level of respect back to the band.”

Foreigner originally formed in 1976 when Jones, a British journeyman rocker (Nero and the Gladiators, Spooky Tooth and The Leslie West Band) and Ian McDonald (King Crimson) created the band with Lou Gramm, Dennis Elliot, Al Greenwood and Ed Gagliardi.

The band’s self-titled debut sold more than four million copies in the United States and featured such hits as “Feels Like the First Time,” “Cold as Ice” and “Long, Long Way From Home.” Subsequent albums included the hits “Hot Blooded,” “Double Vision,” “Head Games” and “Urgent.”

The first of several personnel changes began in 1980 when Gagliardi and Greenwood were dismissed and Rick Wills joined to play bass.After releasing “4″ (“Jukebox Hero”), and “Agent Provocateur” (“I Want To Know What Love Is”), the band went on hiatus and Jones and Gramm turned to solo efforts. In 1987 Foreigner regrouped long enough to release “Inside Information,” (“Say You Will” and “I Don’t Want To Live Without You”). Then, the band dissolved. In 1990, Jones reformed Foreigner with vocalist Johnny Edwards, but by 1992, Gramm rejoined the band and produced their second greatest hits album, “The Very Best and Beyond.” Three years later, Foreigner released, “Mr. Moonlight,” to poor record sales.

“There was a time in the ’90s when I felt I may be throwing it in,” Jones says, “but if you can rediscover that passion, that can help you become energetic.”

Foreigner continued to tour throughout the United States until 2002. That’s when Gramm left Foreigner again to embark on his solo career, forming the Lou Gramm Band.

Jones (the only remaining original member of Foreigner) says he hesitated using the name when Bonham first asked him to reform the band.

“I guess it could have been my name with the band,” Jones says, “but my desire was to be in a band and not put any single name out front. By the same token, Foreigner’s a name I’ve devoted a great deal of my life to. As long as I could recapture the sound we had … we would continue.”Pilson, who had appeared alongside Bonham in the movie “Rockstar,” came on board immediately, but finding a singer to replace Gramm took a little longer.

“That was the major stumbling block,” Jones says. “I knew people would want to hear (Foreigner’s) songs even if it wasn’t a similar sounding voice, but I also knew I had to hit it right on the money.”

Then, Jones received a demo from Hansen singing a few classic Foreigner tracks.

“The songs immediately took on a new life,” Jones says. “He sang incredibly well, and made the decision easy.”

Throughout the summer tour, Jones and Co. have been playing classic Foreigner tracks (“Hot Blooded,” “Dirty White Boy,” “Urgent”) and a few that the original lineup rarely played live (“At War With the World,” “Say You Will” “Woman in Black”). They also often slip into Zeppelin’s “Whole Lotta Love” to honor Bonham’s father.”It’s been overwhelming, honestly,” Jones says. “I have to think of the early days to remember this kind of excitement. It’s really got a life of its own.”

Jones says that he’s writing new material and the band has plans to bring a portable studio on the road. They’ve already recorded a live album that’s available only at their concerts and expect to record in the studio as early as November.

“We might have new tracks coming out by the spring of next year,” Jones says.

If Jones sounds optimistic, it could be because there’s no in-fighting going on in Foreigner’s current incarnation.

“We all get on so well,” he says. “There’s a lot of smiles and laughing that goes on. It’s contagious in this natural way. I’m having so much fun again.”

Foreigner Tour Dates

Foreigner Tickets August 24 – Fraze Pavilion – Dayton OH
Foreigner Tickets September 7 – DTE Energy Music Center – Clarkston MI
Foreigner Tickets September 8 – Charter One Pavilion – Northerly Island Chicago IL
Foreigner Tickets September 22 – Chastain Park – Atlanta GA
Foreigner Tickets September 24 – Sound Advice Amphitheatre – West Palm Beach FL
Foreigner Tickets September 28 – Casino Rama – Rama ON
Foreigner Tickets September 30 – Trump Marina – Atlantic City NJ
Foreigner Tickets October 14 – Cerritos Center – Cerritos CA

Jeremy D. Bonfiglio/South Bend Tribune

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Warped Tour Review

ericclapton — Wed, 26 Jul 2006 19:55:46 +0000

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Sound: The sound of almost all the bands was flawless. You could hear every singer/instrument perfectly. What’s even better was that it was it was open air, so my ears didn’t ring that much afterward.

Perfomance: Everyone in the crowds for the bands I saw was having a great time. We were all just enjoying ourselves on the pier and we could not have been happier. Here’s the bands I saw:

Escape The Fate – I had never heard of these guys, but they were pretty damn good.

Underoath – Fantastic. This was my second time seeing them. They had so much energy and it really rubbed off on the crowd. We were singing along to almost every song, and afterwards, I got them to autograph a poster for me!

Senses Fail – I saw them for the second time from a distance because I was waiting in line for an Underoath autographed, but they kicked ass, as usual, and played some songs from their upcoming album, Still Searching, as well as some favorites from Let It Enfold You, like “Rum Is For Drinking,” “Buried A Lie,” (which, according to them is Billy Idol’s favorite song) and “You’re Cute When You Scream.”

Anti-Flag – Hell yeah, these guys rocked. There was this huge circle pit going on, and the guys in the band loved it. Everyone was going crazy during songs like “Die For Your Government,” and “Fuck Police Brutality.” Anti-Flag alone made the day worth the ticket price.

Rise Against – They absolutely tore it up. I love Rise Against, and seeing them live was amazing. The crowd was going nuts. There were only two problems with their set: it was going on at the same time as Every Time I Die, and I lost my autographed Underoath poster! But, afterwards, I got an autographed ETID poster (and I might be in their upcoming DVD) and I got my ticket autographed by Rise Against.

Joan Jett & the Blackhearts – I heard her playing while I was waiting in line to meet Every Time I Die, and she sounded really good. She played crowd favorites like “Bad Reputation” and “I Love Rock & Roll.”

The Bouncing Souls – I caught the last of their set after meeting Rise Against, and they were lots of fun. I got in the circle pit and it was a perfect end to a great day. // 10

Impression: USA, San Francisco, CA at Pier 30/32 on July 8, 2006. I loved seeing and meeting Rise Against and Underoath, seeing Anti-Flag, and meeting Every Time I Die. I hated the fact that Rise Against and Every Time I Die were playing at the same time, and that I lost my Underoath poster. The ticket cost $30, and it was definitely worth it, thanks to Anti Flag, Rise Against, and Underoath. Unforgettable moments included the HUGE circle pit during Anti Flag, meeting Underoath, Rise Against, and Every Time I Die, and Rise Against and Underoath’s sets. I most likely will go next year, but hopefully in San Diego, because the San Francisco stop ended at 7:00 (as opposed to 10:30 in San Diego) so less bands got to play. It was still a great show though.

Warped Tour Dates

Review by I’m Not Mental

P.S. Check out Warped Tour 2006 Tickets here.

Rolling Stones Boston Concert News and Tickets

ericclapton — Wed, 26 Jul 2006 12:48:08 +0000

Click here to buy Rolling Stones Tickets online.

The Rolling Stones will kick off the second leg of their “A Bigger Bang” world tour at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough on Sept. 20, the band announced yesterday. The group, which apparently has a soft spot for Boston, began the tour last August with a pair of concerts at Fenway Park.

“A Bigger Bang,” already ranked the top moneymaker for the first half of 2006, is expected to become the biggest-grossing concert tour in history, according to Billboard magazine.

The Stones made the announcement via satellite from Paris, one of 20 European cities the group is playing prior to its return visit to the United States . An assortment of as-yet-unnamed “young, contemporary opening acts” will join the Stones stateside, according to the band’s website.

In addition to the Gillette Stadium date, the North American fall tour will include stops at stadiums and arenas in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Oakland, Seattle, Vancouver, and Halifax, Nova Scotia.

“Keith [Richards is] fine, his head’s better, he’s playing well and enjoying himself,” Mick Jagger says in a statement on the band’s website. The Stones’ guitarist required surgery for a head injury he sustained after falling from a tree while vacationing in Fiji in April, forcing the group to postpone the first 15 dates of its European tour. In June the Stones’ other guitarist, Ron Wood, checked into an alcohol rehab center, further delaying the European dates.

Jagger also promises some changes to the set list.

“We’ll have a variety of material ready so we can keep it fresh,” says the singer.

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary September

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary October

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary November

Rolling Stones Tickets November 3 BC Place Stadium Vancouver
Rolling Stones Tickets November 5 McAfee Coliseum Oakland
Rolling Stones Tickets November 8 Cardinals Stadium Phoenix AZ
Rolling Stones Tickets November 11 MGM Grand Las Vegas NV
Rolling Stones Tickets November 14 Idaho Center Nampa ID
Rolling Stones Tickets November 18 Dodger Stadium Los Angeles CA

Joan Anderman/Globe Staff

Click here to buy Rolling Stones Tickets online.

Rolling Stones Canada Concert News and Tickets

ericclapton — Wed, 26 Jul 2006 12:35:19 +0000

Click here to buy Rolling Stones Tickets online.

HALIFAX — The Rolling Stones have added a few Canadian dates to their A Bigger Bang tour.

The legendary rock group confirmed on their website yesterday they’ll play Halifax on Sept. 23, Regina on Oct. 8 and Vancouver on Nov. 3.

“We’re going to play many cities we didn’t get to before and also return to some of our favourite places,” lead singer Mick Jagger said.

“We’ll have a variety of material ready so we can keep it fresh.”

Other shows added to the tour include New York, Boston, Chicago, Seattle, Los Angeles, Phoenix and Las Vegas.

According to the website, tickets for the Halifax and Regina shows are set to go on sale Monday. The date for Vancouver ticket sales wasn’t immediately available.

Jagger also provided a status report on bandmate Keith Richards, who suffered a head injury in April after falling from a tree while he was vacationing in Fiji.

“Keith’s fine, his head’s better, he’s playing well and enjoying himself so we’re all looking forward to this leg of the tour.”

Added Richards: “I’m really happy that we got some more gigs in America and Canada.”

“I’m feeling great and can’t wait to get there.”

The Bigger Bang tour began last August. The band has already played before 4.5 million fans since it began.

The Halifax concert will be held at the Halifax Commons, a large park in the middle of the city. The Regina show will be held at Mosaic Stadium at Taylor Field. The Vancouver performance will be at BC Place Stadium.

The band played to tens of thousands of fans last summer in Moncton, N.B.

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary September

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary October

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary November

Rolling Stones Tickets November 3 BC Place Stadium Vancouver
Rolling Stones Tickets November 5 McAfee Coliseum Oakland
Rolling Stones Tickets November 8 Cardinals Stadium Phoenix AZ
Rolling Stones Tickets November 11 MGM Grand Las Vegas NV
Rolling Stones Tickets November 14 Idaho Center Nampa ID
Rolling Stones Tickets November 18 Dodger Stadium Los Angeles CA

Click here to buy Rolling Stones Tickets online.

Rolling Stones US Concert News and Tickets

ericclapton — Wed, 26 Jul 2006 12:10:43 +0000

Click here to buy Rolling Stones Tickets online.

Though there’s no official confirmation from The Rolling Stones, word is that they have plans for some additional North American shows, reports liveDaily.com.

The Boston Herald, citing an unnamed source, reported Wednesday July 19th that The Rolling Stones will likely launch the tour in September at the Gillette Stadium near Boston.

Radio station Z99 in Regina, Saskatchewan is reporting that the Stones are expected play an October 8th gig at Regina’s Taylor Field. Tickets for that show reportedly will go on sale July 31.

An official tour announcement is reportedly planned for this week.

The rumored new Stones shows would follow their current European tour, which ends September 3rd in Denmark.

In other news, The Rolling Stones are the top touring band in the world for the first half of 2006.

Their tour grossed $147.3 million from 45 shows in U.S. arenas and international stadiums from November 1, 2005, through mid-May, according to figures reported to Billboard Boxscore.

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary September

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary October

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary November

Rolling Stones Tickets November 3 BC Place Stadium Vancouver
Rolling Stones Tickets November 5 McAfee Coliseum Oakland
Rolling Stones Tickets November 8 Cardinals Stadium Phoenix AZ
Rolling Stones Tickets November 11 MGM Grand Las Vegas NV
Rolling Stones Tickets November 14 Idaho Center Nampa ID
Rolling Stones Tickets November 18 Dodger Stadium Los Angeles CA

Click here to buy Rolling Stones Tickets online.

Megadeth and Lamb Of God Gigantour Tour News and Tickets

ericclapton — Tue, 25 Jul 2006 22:46:35 +0000

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The Gigantour is back for more.

A second helping of Dave Mustaine-endorsed metal is ready to hit the road as the Megadeth frontman’s answer to Ozzfest returns on September 7, seeking to replicate the success of last year’s inaugural run. Gigantour is scheduled to shred across 25 cities, launching in San Diego and wrapping up October 8 in Sunrise, Florida.

As with last year’s festival, 2006′s Gigantour will be anchored by headliners Megadeth, who have an LP titled United Abominations in the bag and due this fall.

The festival’s bill — handpicked by Mustaine — is rounded out by Virginia post-thrash five-piece Lamb of God, Swedish death metal act Opeth and their aggressive countrymen Arch Enemy, New York thrash quartet Overkill, Canadian death metallers Into Eternity, North Carolina thrashers Sanctity and New York post-hardcore outfit the Smashup. Additional second-stage artists will be announced in the coming weeks. The first Gigantour featured Dream Theater, Fear Factory, Anthrax, Nevermore, Life of Agony, Dillinger Escape Plan, Symphony X, Dry Kill Logic and Bobaflex.

“This is the concert that I, as a heavy metal music fan, would want to see,” Mustaine said in a press release. “It is going to be something to look forward to each year, to see what kind of tremendous talent we can assemble for Gigantour festivals in the years to come.”

Gigantour will be rolling through several major U.S. and Canadian cities, including Las Vegas, Denver, Chicago, Detroit, Toronto, and Orlando. Details on at least five of the stops at have yet to be revealed.

Lamb of God — who are out on the road through July 26 with Slayer’s Unholy Alliance tour, featuring Mastodon, Children of Bodom and Thine Eyes Bleed — will be using the Gigantour to promote their forthcoming album, Sacrament, due August 22.

Lamb of God guitarist Mark Morton said he’s looking forward to sharing the stage with Megadeth.

“Megadeth is one of the main reasons I started playing metal guitar in the first place,” Morton said in a statement. “To finally tour with them is really exciting and it’s a great way to start off our world tour supporting Sacrament. We’ve been dying to get the new material up and running on the live stage. We’ve worked so hard on the new record — it’s really a great sense of accomplishment to see the new tunes come to life in a live setting. We’re really looking forward to this one.”

September

October

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Tom Petty Concert News and Tickets

ericclapton — Tue, 25 Jul 2006 19:05:15 +0000

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MALIBU, Calif. — While getting his 14th studio album off the ground, Tom Petty happily discovered he was past the point of learning to fly.

“All the craft I’ve picked up and all the life experience I’ve had rolled into a place where making records is easier,” he says. “If I get an idea, I know how to put it down. When I was a kid, that was the struggle. Now I can do what rolls through my head without a lot of effort. It validates the idea of being in rock ‘n’ roll when you’re 55. I feel, what’s the word?”

He frowns, then brightens.

“Relevant!” he says, erupting into laughter.

“I feel like there’s a reason to buy another Tom Petty record. Once you’ve put out 10 or 12, is there a reason to make more? In any job, you eventually ask yourself, ‘What’s the point?’ I feel I still have something to say and something to contribute.”

He’s relieved and surprised to find himself in this spot 30 years after he and The Heartbreakers released their debut album.

Since then, the band has sold more than 50 million albums globally while cementing a reputation as inventive rock traditionalists with unyielding integrity and commitment.

Despite nursing a toothache, Petty is unusually buoyant as he discusses his third solo disc, Highway Companion, out today. First single Saving Grace is No. 1 on triple-A and classic rock radio charts. In this digital age of one-track buys, he has built another carefully sequenced song cycle, a sparse but textured soundscape slashed by Mike Campbell’s sterling slide guitar and overlaid by Petty’s tales of searching, escaping and yearning.

“These characters are all on the move, leaving home, going home, wondering where home is,” Petty says. “It’s not a real loud record or an all-out rock fest. It’s quieter but not mellow. I wanted to make this for a long time. It’s not a record I could have made in the ’70s. I wasn’t seasoned enough.”

Ensconced in a dressing room at the Malibu Performing Arts Center, Petty fetches a bottled Coke after stubbing out a Camel. A few creases betray his years, but his look has altered little over the decades: wispy blond hair, faded jeans, scarf and loafers, a sly grin.

He’s proud of Highway, a close-knit collaboration with co-producers Jeff Lynne and Campbell, the only other players on the album. Petty revised his writing habits, approaching melodies only after painstakingly finishing lyrics and completing songs before entering the studio. He played guitar, bass, harmonica, keyboards, even drums.

“We were like young kids,” Petty says. “We never hit any bumps. Wildflowers (1994) was good, but it was a lot of trial and error. A lot got thrown away. This didn’t seem like work.”

His joy today sharply contrasts the pressures that clouded recent projects. The Last DJ, 2002′s concept album that took aim at music industry greed, drew heat from all corners of the business.

“Yeah, I got beaten up pretty good and halfway expected to be,” Petty says. “At that point in my life, I had gotten so upset about all that stuff, and I had a lot to say. It was a relief to have it out of my head. I knew it wasn’t going to be popular at the record company, but I think it will stand the test of time.”

He’s less enamored with 1999′s Echo, which opens with the grim Room at the Top, “one of the most depressing songs in rock history,” Petty says, grinning.

“If anything will make you want to kill yourself …”

He trails off, then adds glumly, “I was in a rough place when I did that record.”

Depleted by divorce and other personal blows, Petty opted for a hermitic existence in a ramshackle Los Angeles hideaway.

“I had some long periods of severe depression,” he says. “I took some hard knocks and retreated from the world and lived in this little cabin. I didn’t see a lot of people. I wasn’t happy, and I didn’t want to lay that on everybody.

“Even when I was in public, I didn’t want to be there, and that’s a terrible feeling. It took me a while to want to come back.”

Petty, who says he maintains very few close friendships, also was crushed by the deaths of best buddy George Harrison in 2001 and Howie Epstein, who overdosed on heroin in 2003 shortly after being fired from The Heartbreakers.

Petty’s saving grace was Dana York, whom he married in 2001.

“She saved me from going down the tubes,” he says. “She got me to a good place where I did want to rejoin society and keep going. I’ve got a great girl, and she’s strong. It took a strong person to deal with me at that point.

“It got pretty dire. I had a lot of repair work to do with my family and children. I had to grow up in a lot of ways. If you do this all your life, you don’t have a normal experience. The rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle does not encourage you to be responsible. I’m still sorting it out, but I’m on better ground.”

Little can deflate Petty’s mood these days. He’s blasé on the talk about unmistakable similarities between his 1993 rocker Mary Jane’s Last Dance and the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ current Dani California. It’s not grand theft, he says. Possibly Petty larceny?

“I don’t know if they stole it or not,” he says. “It’s their cross to bear, not mine. That one does sound particularly close in meter and chord and even subject matter. I think it’s odd that Rick Rubin produced both records and never noticed it when my gardener did. I won’t sue, but I wouldn’t mind if they cut me in for a piece.”

He laughs and adds, “I sometimes hear my stuff in other songs, and I don’t get that upset because I do the same thing. You don’t set out to steal something, but there are only so many notes and chords.”

It’s little surprise that artists deliberately or subliminally lift from Petty’s hit-heavy catalog, says Paul Zollo, author of Conversations with Tom Petty, the first exhaustive overview of the rocker’s career.

“He’s had so many powerful hits, but he’s never contrived hits to get on charts,” Zollo says. “His songs are about solid songwriting, craftsmanship, inventive lyrics and tremendous musicianship. It’s never about trends and fitting into one time. He had an authentic rock ‘n’ roll dream and realized it without getting derailed in a way so many musicians were.

“More significantly, he had a burst of greatness in his 20s, but unlike so many others, he continued to create music with substance and meaning, and sustained that quality over decades. He’s certainly in the pantheon.”

A reluctant elder statesman, Petty claims to have little understanding of the industry’s modern machinery and doubts he’d survive the rigorous media drills imposed on newbies.

Band websites may be cool, but music on the Internet is “so vast and unfocused,” he says. “It’s impossible to keep up. I miss the idea of record stores.”

He’s encouraged that music lovers are digging up the past for inspired sounds, but he believes the beloved rock ‘n’ roll that set fire to his youth has gone the way of jazz and blues and is no longer a driving force in pop music.

As a kid in the ’60s, he reveled in ’50s rock. He still looks back, marinating in “the beautiful purity” of Chess label blues and rooting out even older fare he may have overlooked.

Likewise, he’s a Turner Classic Movies junkie, favoring Howard Hawks and John Ford and sophisticated ’40s films.

But that’s a luxury his music obsession rarely accommodates. His wife leans on him to slow down, and he might curtail touring duties — to make more records.

“There’s rumor that I’m not going to tour anymore,” he says. “I don’t think that’s true, but I’d like to take a long break. I have recording projects I want to do, and that’s going to last longer than the shows. I love playing, but it eats up so much of your life.

“I’m really conscious of wasting time. It’s funny when you realize there are time limits. I’m impatient now with anything that gets in the way of what I want to do. I want to get everything down. Why would I want to do anything else? Rock ‘n’ roll is such a good job.”

Current Tom Petty Tour Dates

By Edna Gundersen, USA Today

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Nickelback Concert News and Tickets

ericclapton — Sun, 23 Jul 2006 21:27:45 +0000

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Touring trade publication Pollstar recently revealed that Nickelback ranked 3rd behind only U2 and Bon Jovi in worldwide ticket sales for the first quarter of 2006.

Coincidentally, the band will be touring Europe with Bon Jovi from May 15 through June 11th before returning to North America in July and playing select dates as Special Guests on Bon Jovi’s North American stadium tour. Needless to say, the pairing of two of the biggest worldwide live draws on one bill promises to be the ultimate summer event!

Nickelback also plans to headline concerts in U.S. markets it missed on its previous outing prior to the Bon Jovi dates, and again afterward.

P.S. Check out Nickelback Tickets here.

Foo Fighters Announce More “Afoostic” Tour Dates

ericclapton — Sat, 22 Jul 2006 13:29:05 +0000

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The Foo Fighters, who last month announced what they said would be the final dates of the current unplugged tour, have tacked on a couple of new shows.

The new, so-called “Afoostic” shows are set for Aug. 31 at the Pantages Theater in Los Angeles and Sept. 2 at Southern California’s Santa Barbara Bowl. Tickets for both of the newly announced shows will go on sale Saturday July 22nd, according to a press release.

All of the other planned “Afoostic” shows have already sold out, organizers said.

Setlists for the shows will include cuts from Disc Two of the group’s latest album, “In Your Honor,” as well as other material from the group’s catalog.

Foo Fighters Tour Dates

Foo Fighters Tickets 8/21 – New York NY – Beacon Theater
Foo Fighters Tickets 8/22 – Boston MA – Wang Theater
Foo Fighters Tickets 8/23 – Toronto Ontario – Hummingbird Center
Foo Fighters Tickets 8/25 – Chicago IL – Auditorium Theater
Foo Fighters Tickets 8/29-30 – Los Angeles CA – Pantages Theater
Foo Fighters Tickets 8/31 – Los Angeles CA – Pantages Theater
Foo Fighters Tickets 9/2 – Santa Barbara CA – Santa Barbara Bowl

P.S. Check out Foo Fighters Tickets here.

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Queensryche Summer/Fall Tour News and Tickets

ericclapton — Fri, 21 Jul 2006 20:36:52 +0000

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In conjunction with the April release of “Operation: Mindcrime II,” the long awaited sequel to their 1988 magnum opus, Queensrÿche is soon to start a full summer/fall tour for 2006. The tour, presented by VH1 Classic, will feature a full stage show, including surround sound, new video imagery and actors playing out both parts of the “Operation: Mindcrime” saga.

Operation: Mindcrime II contains a 15-song story and is performed by the Seattle-based quintet-singer and chief songwriter Geoff Tate; guitarists Michael Wilton and Mike Stone; bassist Eddie Jackson, and drummer Scott Rockenfield.

“‘Operation: Mindcrime II’ is about revenge and what it does to people — their emotions and the situations they find themselves in,” says Tate, who conceived the sequel’s direction last year while working on a screenplay based on the original album. The character of Nikki has now been in prison for 18 years. I thought, ‘What would I do?’ I’d be analyzing every move I ever made, especially the wrong ones. I’d want to get the guy who put me there. Nikki’s revenge is about getting out, getting him and getting even.”

Also featured on the tour will be a unique charity auction. Erik Buell, of Buell Motorcycles, has offered to donate two custom Queensrÿche motorcycles for Geoff Tate and Mike Stone to ride throughout the tour. They will be inviting others to come out and ride with them and at the end of the tour, both motorcycles will be auctioned off for VH1′s Save The Music Foundation.

Current Summer/Fall Queensrÿche Tour Dates Include:

P.S. Check out Queensryche Tickets here.

Sounds of the Underground Tour News and Tickets

ericclapton — Fri, 21 Jul 2006 19:41:28 +0000

P.S. Check out Sounds of the Underground Tickets here.

Fireworks flew across the country on July 4th, but four days later the skies flashed and roared like the blast from an atomic bomb as the second annual Sounds Of The Underground rocked Cleveland, Ohio on July 8th.

For the next five weeks, the intense, ultra-aggressive metal and hardcore tour will criss-cross North America exposing the masses to some of the best bands playing today. The extravaganza will be headlined by As I Lay Dying, and will feature nine other showstoppers: In Flames, Trivium, Cannibal Corpse, GWAR, Terror, Black Dahlia Murder, Behemoth, The Chariot and Through The Eyes of the Dead.

Select shows will also feature the following hellraisers: Converge, Evergreen Terrace, Horse The Band, Killswitch Engage, Machine Head, E. Town Concrete, Shadows Fall, VOD, Job For a Cowboy, It Dies Today, Still Remains, Above This Fire, Ringworm, This is Hell, Municipal Waste, Dog Fashion Disco, The Last Starfighter, Killamora, A Heartfelt Tragedy, Sworn to Secrecy and Foreverendeavor.

The last day of this monumental tour is August 12 in Los Angeles.

Tickets for the second annual Sounds of the Underground are still available, but they’re going fast, ensuring maximum sized crowds for the chaos. Lambgoat.com are offering fans to chance to win tickets to the show of their choice as well as meet and greet passes for any band on the bill. For more information log here.

In addition, WSOU are giving away tickets to the July 15th Sayreville, New Jersey show. Enter the contest on wsou.net between July 3 and July 13 for a chance to win.

Fans who want to gear up for this year’s Sounds Of The Underground can pick up an exclusive CD and DVD collection at Hot Topic. The package features 22 songs on two discs from various bands on the bill along with a DVD of videos from 11 Sounds bands and another six acts on labels sponsoring the bill, including Metal Blade, Truskill, Ferret, Eulogy, Prosthetic and Mono Vs. Stereo.

Don’t miss the concert event of the summer.

07/31 – Denver, CO – City Lights Pavilion w.MH
08/02 – Sauget, IL – Pop’s Outside w.MH
08/03 – Clarkston, MI – DTE Energy Music Theatre w. MH
08/04 – Milwaukee, WI – Eagles Ballroom w.MH
08/05 – St. Paul, MN – Roy Wilkins Auditorium
08/06 – Winnipeg, MB – Convention Centre
08/07 – Saskatoon, SK – Credit Union Center
08/08 – Edmonton, AB – Northlands Agricom
08/10 – Vancouver, BC – The PNE Forum w/ 3 inches of Blood
08/12 – Los Angeles, CA – Gibson Universal Amphitheatre

P.S. Check out Sounds of the Underground Tickets here.

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American Idols Live Concert Review and Tickets

ericclapton — Fri, 21 Jul 2006 18:24:18 +0000

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Guilty pleasure is the only way to describe the American Idols Live! tour, which rolled into Long Island on July 16. While many people claim not to be fans of the manufactured pop stars, the audience consisted of a variety of enthusiastic fans with a wide age range.

There were tons of signs proclaiming devotion to a favorite “Idol,” and the evening’s individual performances probably did little to change anyone’s mind about who they came to see.

The men definitely outshined the women, and Taylor Hicks showed why he ended up on top. With no introduction, he made his way through the crowd singing “Jailhouse Rock.” He proceeded to sing “Hollywood Nights,” “Living for the City” and of course, “Do I Make You Proud.” He played the guitar, the harmonica, banged a tambourine and didn’t disappoint as he offered his infamous uncoordinated, but charming dancing. Of all the Idols, he seemed most comfortable in his skin and with the band.

While Taylor definitely conjured up his share of screams, Chris Daughtry certainly rivaled him there. Looking very much the rock star, Chris opened the second act of the show with his version of Zeppelin’s “Whole Lotta Love.” While Robert Plant need not worry about the competition yet, Chris’ version was more than respectable, and the crowd went wild. A cover of Bon Jovi’s “Wanted Dead or Alive” had the added flavor of his guitar playing. However, it was “Renegade” that really showed what this guy can really offer. Chris has some stage presence, but not enough; probably the reason he came in fourth.

Perhaps the biggest surprise of the night was Ace Young. Ace, who always looked nervous on TV, showed confidence and energy, particularly when he rocked out to “Harder To Breathe.” While showing off his trademark falsetto, he was able to exhibit a side of himself that probably would have given him a higher place finish than seventh had it been more apparent on the show.

The biggest disappointment of the night came when it was announced, finally, that Katharine McPhee had laryngitis and wouldn’t be performing. The timing of the announcement was tacky, since she was first runner up and had a lot of fans anticipating her performance. In place of Kat, the guys sang Guns N’ Roses’ “Patience” as her video played behind them. It seemed a bit like a memorial.

As for the rest of the performers, Elliot Yamin offered a mellow set highlighted by “Moody’s Mood for Love” but overall, while not unpleasant, it was pretty forgettable. His duet with Daughtry, however, on Nickelback’s “Savin’ Me” was one of the more enjoyable moments of the show. The vocals were barely audible over the cheering.

Bucky Covington evinced a lot of showmanship with an audience sing-a-long of “Drift Away.” He even managed to pull off the somewhat corny duet of “You’re the One That I Want” with Kellie Pickler. Pickler, Mandisa and Lisa Tucker, while all good singers, didn’t overwhelm. Paris Bennett seemed to be the female crowd favorite, but her Beyonce/”Flashdance” moves were more than a little contrived.

To close the two-hour-plus show, Hicks came back to the stage for an encore and then was joined by the rest of the crew for “We Are the Champions” and “Living in America.”

While last year’s tour was a bit more inspiring since it was the first year with both a strong country singer (Carrie Underwood) credible rock artists (Bo Bice and Constantine Maroulis), these Idols still managed to make their show a fun night out on the town.

American Idols Live Tour Dates

Debbie Galante Block

P.S. Check out American Idol Tickets here.

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Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young Tour News and Tickets

ericclapton — Thu, 20 Jul 2006 23:32:28 +0000

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There are doubtless some who shelled out for tickets to Saturday night’s Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young show at St. Paul’s Xcel Energy Center in order to indulge in a mellow evening of acoustic nostalgia buoyed by the harmonies the foursome patented circa ’70.

But those who came expecting a wistful walk down memory lane must have found the first half of the three-hour concert a jarring experience. For these 60-something singer-songwriters were determined to indulge the rockier side of their personas with a high-voltage show clearly fueled by the ebullient energy of Neil Young, and Stephen Stills’ desire to sip from Young’s fountain of youth and trade explosive guitar solos with him.

Not to say that the 11,000 or so in attendance didn’t get to hear some of the group’s sweeter, folk-flavored fare: The evening’s second set opened with a melancholy hootenanny feel on ‘Helplessly Hoping,’ ‘Our House,’ ‘Only Love Can Break Your Heart’ and the hypnotic harmonies of David Crosby and Graham Nash on ‘Guinnevere.’

But the quartet also seemed determined to prove that they aren’t fossils of a bygone era. Despite their more electrified inclinations during the concert’s first 90 minutes, it was the spirit of protest the folkies brought to the decade they met – Woodstock was one of their first gigs – that informed the songs chosen. Be it the post-apocalyptic explosion of 1969′s ‘Wooden Ships’ or one of the recent antiwar songs penned by Young, it was a set designed to invoke eerie parallels between then and now, concluding with ‘D j Vu’ and the refrain of ‘We have all been here before.’

However, it was a trio of songs from Young’s new ‘Living With War’ album that may have been the highlight of the concert. ‘Restless Consumer’ found Young applying his high tenor voice to a set of condemnations akin in fury to Crosby’s incredulous cries near the end of ‘Ohio.’ Similarly passionate were ‘Shock and Awe’ and the album’s title track.

But the Vietnam/Iraq comparisons grew more pronounced over the evening, as did the similar disdain the group has held for the commanders-in-chief in each era, culminating in Young’s recent ‘Let’s Impeach the President’ being followed by vivid slices of their time like ‘For What It’s Worth,’ ‘Chicago’ and ‘Ohio.’

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young Tour Dates

August 2005

Ron Hubbard/Mpls. – St. Paul Pioneer Press

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Def Leppard Concert News and Tickets

ericclapton — Sun, 16 Jul 2006 13:35:03 +0000

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The group has sold more than 65 million albums. Played for tens of millions of people on almost every continent and have been rocking for almost three decades.

After all that, Def Leppard wanted to glam it up and get back to its roots, so it recorded “Yeah!” to show they’re more than just a hard rock band.

Singer Joe Elliot, speaking from an island off the coast of Spain, explained, again, why Def Leppard should not be lopped into the category of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal.

AP: Why now, after 25 years of playing hard rock, did you decide to cover the glam rock era of the ’70s?

Elliot: People would ask if we’re a heavy-metal band and we’d say, “No, that’s Black Sabbath, Anthrax.” It may come as a bit of a shock to some people, but we weren’t weaned on Black Sabbath and Deep Purple. These songs are a major part of where we come from. It was the opportunity to show the world where our true roots lie.

AP: Why call it “Yeah!” and not something like “Glam It Up!”

Elliot: I think it’s more to the point. It’s the one word that everybody shouts when their favorite band starts or your favorite team scores a goal. It’s a collective, excitable utterance that really summed up what these songs meant when we heard them. I’ve wanted to do a covers album from as soon as I could walk. It’s not like we’ve run out of ideas — we have half the next album written.

AP: But you just put out “Yeah!”?

Elliot: We have loads written and demo-ed. Hopefully, when we finish this tour, we won’t be starting from scratch. We’re one step ahead of ourselves for the first time in our careers. I doubt very much (the recording) will happen this year.

AP: At this point, why keep touring?

Elliot: It’s what we do! That’s like asking a doctor, why do you still want to be a doctor? Why would you want to end it if you enjoy it? We’re 20 years younger than the Stones. They’re still touring and they certainly don’t need the money.

AP: Do you think you still rock out as hard now?

Elliot: I think so. I could run faster back then but I couldn’t sing as well. How fast do you actually have to run? I think (Mick) Jagger rocks out more now than he did back in the day. Now, he’s like 62 years old … and I’m like 18 years younger. We don’t just stand around doing nothing, but we rock I suppose. It’s a funny word to use.

AP: What’s your biggest backstage diva request?

Elliot: We’re a big juicing band. We drink pints of juice. We’re very into the organic stuff. We have two-and-a-half vegetarians in the band. As long as we have our organic vegetables and decent grub — you have to look after yourself on the road.

AP: What’s something you need to have on the tour bus with you?

Elliot: The telly. We have the attack bus and the wuss bus — one is nonsmoking and nondrinking. We stay up later (on the attack bus), have a satellite dish, which is great until you go under a bridge.

AP: How does it feel that Arctic Monkeys, another Sheffield band, just broke a first-week debut sales record in the UK?

Elliot: I think they’re fantastic. I completely dig ‘em. I’m sure if anyone asked the Arctic Monkeys if they liked us, they would say they absolutely hate us.

Def Leppard and Journey Fall Concert Dates

August 2006

September 2006

October 2006

Ari Bendersky/Associated Press

P. S. Check out Def Leppard & Journey Tickets here.

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Black Label Society Tour News and Tickets

ericclapton — Sun, 16 Jul 2006 13:14:00 +0000

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At 19, Zakk Wylde was plucked from a New Jersey gas station to become the lead guitarist and sometime co-songwriter for the Prince of Darkness, Ozzy Osbourne.

Now, 20 years later, the Black Label Society frontman, who was just inducted into the Guitar Center Rock Walk by Ozzy and Rob Zombie, still owes much of his success to the Black Sabbath singer and reality TV star.

Living on a compound in Southern California with his three kids — 10 if you include the dogs — Wylde will headline the second stage at this year’s Ozzfest, where he will promote his forthcoming album, “Shot to Hell,” the follow-up to 2005′s Top 20-charting, platinum-selling “Mafia.”

AP: What is the Black Label Society?

Wylde: The running joke was that it was a bowling and drinking club. But we suck at the bowling and just drink more. When Black Label started, it was heavier music and I was thinking about naming it black something. My wife asked me the name of the hard alcohol — Black Label. It’s just the term for your best stock.

AP: How does it feel to more or less be launching your new album — after the success of the last one — with a second-stage headlining spot on Ozzfest?

Wylde: It’s awesome. It’s called “Shot to Hell.” It’s all about our pancreas, kidneys and livers after Ozzfest. We have a batch of extras on ice all the time. If you blow one out, we’ll stick another one in you and pour you another cocktail at the same time.

AP: So you’re a pretty big party guy?

Wylde: I never did hard drugs. The only partyin’ I ever did was drink beer and that’s pretty much what I do now. I like being in control all the time anyway. I would never show up onstage smashed.

AP: What about Ozzy?

Wylde: One thing with the boss, when I first joined the band he was still getting loaded — drinking, doing coke. But he never drank before the shows. After the shows, he’d get (messed up) and I’d wonder how we were going to do the show the next day. He’d always show up. I heard stories with Sabbath where he’d disappear for three days and they couldn’t find him.

AP: What’s your most outrageous backstage diva request?

Wylde: I never go backstage. These days I just stay on the bus. You’re looking at a $1 million tour bus with everything on there — guitars, ESPN, satellite TV. I sit and practice all day and I have beer and guitars. Why the hell do I need to get off? I’m married with three kids — I’m the Al Bundy of metal. It would just lead to trouble.

AP: You have three kids and seven dogs — do you ever get any sort of peace at home?

Wylde: It’s definitely an insane asylum. I wouldn’t change it for nothin’. I don’t care how much money you make, if you don’t have anyone to share it with, what’s the point of having it?

Black Label Society Concert Dates

Ari Bendersky/The Associated Press

P.S. Check out Black Label Society and Ozzfest Tickets here.

Disturbed? Not if you’re David Draiman

ericclapton — Sun, 16 Jul 2006 12:56:22 +0000

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Disturbed lead singer David Draiman enjoys sipping wine, dining in French restaurants and cruising on multimillion-dollar yachts.

Fans might envision the hard-rocking frontman doing shots of whiskey, getting wasted and passing out. But the band recently took a helicopter to a winery on an island off the coast of New Zealand, had a private cruise in a $8 million yacht and Draiman then took a solo scuba-diving jaunt to the Great Barrier Reef in Australia.

“The fans who know us, and me in particular, know the type of people we are. I like the finer things,” Draiman said on the phone from Melbourne, Australia, during a tour there with Korn.

“We’ve gone through our McDonald’s and Burger King phase. (Now we) hit cities across the world and want to experience what they have to offer.”

That’s very different from the days when Draiman bounced around between five different parochial and boarding schools while growing up. One might say he was a problematic teen, but Draiman really just wanted to be a regular kid.

“(I was) just troubled in the respect of being forced into living in a way I wasn’t prepared to live. You go to these schools and you have to abstain from just about everything that a normal teenage boy would normally indulge in,” Draiman said in a distinct Chicago accent.

“Everything was very regimented. I just wanted to do the things that all normal teenagers wanted to do. So I did become quite rebellious.”

Which may have led him into seeking out and creating the music that has made his band a household name in the metal world.

Disturbed’s latest album, “Ten Thousands Fists,” beat out Bon Jovi to claim the No. 1 chart position when it was released in late 2005. That album, and its predecessor “Believe,” have both gone on to platinum status in the U.S. That strength translates overseas as well.

On Disturbed’s recent tour Down Under, they played before 10,000 people in Sydney, many of them first-time show-goers since this was only the band’s second visit to Australia. Draiman said that out of the crowd maybe 1,000 people had seen them before, but they left Sydney selling more than $60,000 in T-shirts and hats.

“It kind of gives you an idea the impression we left with people,” he boasted.

This success will likely carry over to Disturbed’s main stage slot on this summer’s Ozzfest, alongside Ozzy Osbourne, System of a Down and others, where they will no doubt see 10,000 fists in the air, as the album title intimates.

“It’s gratifying and intoxicating. You are affecting that many people simultaneously,” Draiman said. “To be able to inject that much energy into that many people, it’s the ultimate drug.”

Ari Bendersky/The Associated Press

P.S. Check out Disturbed Tickets here.

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Creedence Clearwater Revisited Summer and Fall Concert Dates and Tickets

ericclapton — Sun, 16 Jul 2006 12:15:51 +0000

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Creedence Clearwater Revival founding members and Rock and Roll Hall of Famers Stu Cook and Doug “Cosmo” Clifford have announced summer and fall concerts to be performed by their band Creedence Clearwater Revisited. The two former members of the legendary group Creedence Clearwater Revival launched the Creedence Clearwater Revisited project to once again perform live Creedence Clearwater Revival hits – the touchstones of a generation. The 2006 summer and fall tour will take the group around the United States and Canada, highlighted by appearances at Milwaukee’s Summerfest, two nights at Detroit’s DTE Energy Music Amphitheater, both the Ventura and Los Angeles County Fairs and Woodstock, New Brunswick’s Classic Rock Festival.

Creedence Clearwater Revisited also includes lead singer/rhythm guitar player John Tristao, lead guitarist Tal Morris and multi instrumentalist / vocalist Steve Gunner.

Creedence Clearwater Revisited’s album “Recollection” (Hip-O/Universal Records) is on track for Platinum RIAA certification this fall.

Hollywood Reporter critic John Lappen described a Creedence Clearwater Revisited concert as “… an amazing list of hit after hit that was done serious justice by the players involved. The cheering crowd had big smiles and whoops of joy at hearing live some of the best American rock ever written and recorded.”

Creedence Clearwater Revisited Tour Dates

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Poison Tour Concert News and Tickets

ericclapton — Sat, 15 Jul 2006 21:58:31 +0000

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After this summer’s “20 Years of Rock Tour,” Poison will leave the road and get back into the studio.

Front man Bret Michaels recently talked about that plan as well as family life and the road.

AP: Can you believe it’s been 20 years since you first teased out your hair?

Michaels: It’s been a pretty shocking and awesome career. It started in Pennsylvania in small towns and small bars. It’s a pretty awesome feeling to be doing it 20 years later.

AP: Musically, Poison has had some outspoken critics.

Michaels: (Laughs) We’re not one of the most critically acclaimed bands! We’re not putting U2 or R.E.M. out of business. I enjoy what I do, and that’s important to me. We’ve had a long run with fans who saw past the bashing. I’m the first to say if we had a bad show or wrote a bad song. I also say go out there without fear. Our success and our failure is our own.

AP: Will you keep making music with Poison?

Michaels: I’m not going to say the words “farewell tour,” but after this it’ll be a two- to three-year hiatus. I firmly believe our band has to go into the studio as friends and write great new music again — regardless if it’s played or how it’s perceived.

AP: How have things changed for you personally since you started?

Michaels: I have two beautiful daughters. It changed my life for the better. They look up to me and respect me. I’m a good dad. I like being around them. … I show them how to play music. Life and music was always a way to express myself. That’s what I give to them.

AP: What’s essential to have on the tour bus with you?

Michaels: I take a trailer and my motorcycle and my mountain bike. I’m big into sports and anything I can do on the road I love. It helps with my diabetes. Insulin and syringes.

AP: What’s your biggest “diva” request backstage?

Michaels: My most demanding thing is to make sure there are beautiful women backstage for the hospitality room to have a good time. I’m pretty anti-diva. We’re pretty down-to-earth guys.

AP: What’s the most out-of-control rock-star thing you’ve ever done?

Michaels: Let’s go to early in the career. Walking up to Texas Stadium to play. It’s Aerosmith and Poison. (Kiss’) Paul Stanley is going to come up on stage. Walking up to the stage with Steven Tyler on one side and Paul on the other, that was really cool. Afterwards being with one of the hottest Texas strippers ever and getting so drunk … As we left town that night, after playing for 83,000 people, not an hour outside of town we stopped at a truck stop in Carl’s Corner, Texas, and there wasn’t a truck driver or anyone in there who even remotely knew who we were. It evened it out. It let you know you’re living a bit of a fantasy and to get grounded now. It was my best lesson ever.

Ari Bendersky/The Associated Press

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The Who: North American Tour Concert News and Tickets

ericclapton — Sat, 15 Jul 2006 21:13:46 +0000

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Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey, surviving founders of The Who, have revealed the initial dates for the group’s first world tour in over 20 years, which gets underway with a round of North American shows this fall, reports liveDaily.

So far, the rock legends have inked 15 September and October tour dates that kick off in Philadelphia Sept. 12 and focus on the northeastern US and Canada. A lone November show in Los Angeles and a lone December show in Toronto have also been confirmed.

Members of the band’s official tour club will have early access to tickets via an online presale that began July 13th and runs until Saturday July 15th, as well as access to special VIP ticket packages. More information is posted at the tour’s official website.

In addition to announcing their tour plans, Townshend and Daltrey have also nailed down an Oct. 23 release date for a new album tentatively titled “Who 2,” which is The Who’s first new studio collection since 1982′s “It’s Hard.”

“For the first time in 25 years we are returning to the USA with great live music — the entire catalogue of our old stuff — and new music,” Townshend said in a press release. “We have a great new video show, a new Mini-Opera and plans to do some special shows with special themes. Our European shows are warming us up, and we will be in great form when we start the tour in September,” said Pete Townshend. “I don’t think I’ve ever looked forward to a tour as much as this one. Roger and I are both fit and well, ready to rock.”

“Pete and I are really excited to be returning to the US with some brand new music to play,” Daltrey added. “We’ll also be digging out some rarities that we’ve not played for a long time. We’re looking forward to reconnecting with our American fans and hopefully seeing some new ones coming along too.”

The Who Tour Dates

September 2006

October 2006

November 2006

December 2006

The Who Tickets December 4 Air Canada Centre Toronto Ontario

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Tool North American Club Tour News and Tickets

ericclapton — Sat, 15 Jul 2006 20:43:57 +0000

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Tool have tripled the size of the itinerary for a tour behind their latest album, “10,000 Days,” that kicks off early next month and now stretches into the fall.

The group, which announced nine August shows last month, has added one more August stop and 17 September concerts to its docket and more dates are expected, according to Tool’s website.

In addition to rolling out the new shows, Tool have also tapped Isis to hold down the opening slot during the upcoming run for all shows from Aug. 22 on.

Tool Tour Dates

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Dave Matthews Band Concert News and Tickets

ericclapton — Sun, 09 Jul 2006 16:38:31 +0000

Check out Dave Matthews Band Tickets here.

Dave Matthews has long been touted as one of the hardest-working guys in the music business. With yet another extensive summer tour rolling into Boston for a pair of sold-out shows at Fenway Park on Friday and Saturday and the follow-up to 2005’s “Stand Up” in the works, it looks like he’s living up to that description.

It’s hard to believe that the Dave Matthews Band, which grossed $57 million in 2005 from touring North America and has consistently placed in the top five grossing tours annually over the last decade, still has the stamina to push on. But when you’ve built your success on playing live, you tend to stick to a pattern that works.

“We do change the sets and let the music evolve and look for spontaneous moments in what we’re doing,” Matthews said.

“Maybe I get tired of not being in one place or not having the same pillows every night, but as long as we like playing, it sort of makes all the other (stuff) more bearable.”

DMB has a following equal to other improvisational rock bands like Widespread Panic and Phish, and they quickly learned to capitalize on the fact that their fans relish following them around the country. “More than anything, what has driven our career is touring,” Matthews said. “If you’re lucky enough to find something you enjoy, you put up with traffic jams.”

This summer, like nearly every summer for the past 10 years, DMB itself is creating many of those jams, incorporating new songs into their stretched-out, jazz-inspired live sets.

This week, longtime fans can expect to hear DMB dig deep into its musical repertoire and dust off old favorites like “JTR,” which the band pulled out during their encore at this year’s New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival.

As for what other surprises they have in their bag, Matthews simply replied, “the rest I should just keep to myself.”

Before hitting the road, the band spent the spring working on fresh material in their new studio in Charlottesville, Va., for a forthcoming album slated for a late 2006 or early 2007 release. It’s in this studio – in a renovated house in their hometown – that they’ve been able to really get back to their roots.

“It’s our place. There’s no pressure,” Matthews said. “We can show up at the studio and just sit around and eat and talk and not do a thing. That lack of pressure, in a strange way, creates an environment that is even more creative.”

For this album the band re-teamed with Mark Batson, who produced the platinum-selling “Stand Up.” “There’s a back and forth between the band and Mark that is very . . . rich,” Matthews said. “We’ve only scratched the surface.”

Dave Matthews Band Tour Dates

August 2006

Dave Matthews Band Tickets August 23 – Phoenix AZ – Cricket Pavilion
Dave Matthews Band Tickets August 25 – Irvine CA – Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre
Dave Matthews Band Tickets August 26 – Chula Vista CA – Coors Amphitheatre
Dave Matthews Band Tickets August 28 – Los Angeles CA – Hollywood Bowl
Dave Matthews Band Tickets August 30 – West Valley City UT – USANA Amphitheatre

September 2006

Dave Matthews Band Tickets September 1-3 – George WA – Gorge Amphitheatre
Dave Matthews Band Tickets September 6 – West Sacramento CA – Raley Field
Dave Matthews Band Tickets September 8, 9 – Mountain View CA – Shoreline Amphitheatre
Dave Matthews Band Tickets September 12, 13 – Denver CO – Pepsi Center
Dave Matthews Band Tickets September 15 – Tinley Park IL – First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre
Dave Matthews Band Tickets September 22, 23 – Charlottesville VA – John Paul Jones Arena

Ari Bendersky/The Associated Press

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Bon Jovi Concert News and Tickets

ericclapton — Sun, 09 Jul 2006 16:02:19 +0000

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Faced with continuing declines in attendance and a potentially disastrous void as the cash-cow classic acts from the ’60s and ’70s retire, concert promoters searching for answers might do well to examine the enterprising route taken by Jon Bon Jovi.

Along with Madonna, Kenny Chesney, Tim McGraw and Dave Matthews Band, Bon Jovi and his eponymous band have emerged this summer, perhaps surprisingly to some, as one of the few sure things on the road. Business is so strong that the group is bypassing arenas and amphitheaters in favor of much larger outdoor stadiums, at roughly 50,000 seats per show. In recent years, only Matthews, a resurgent Green Day, Metallica and a handful of others have been able to attract that many fans.

This month alone, the band is expected to earn more than $25 million from nine dates, with grosses for the entire tour (which launched in November with the first of about 90 dates) exceeding $100 million.

While most free-spending, over-40 concertgoers now seem to prefer comfortable indoor shows to the event-style concerts in football stadiums that once ruled, for some acts the big outdoor show remains very much a part of the equation. For Jon Bon Jovi, a guy mistakenly written off years ago as little more than a big-haired ’80s novelty, regularly filling such venues worldwide seems testament to the more unorthodox decisions he has made through the years.

Detail-Oriented

“His mind is always turning,” says Ron VanDeVeen, associate general manager of the Meadowlands Sports Complex in East Rutherford, N.J., where the band will close out the final leg of its Have a Nice Day tour July 29 with the last of three Giants Stadium shows. “He thinks like the customer. He knows the specifics of every deal down to the last dime.”

That attention to detail — along with a hummable catalog, accessibly priced tickets, alliances with pro sports (he’s majority owner of the Arena Football League’s Philadelphia Soul) and a willingness to stay the course while ignoring traditional promotional advice — has kept the band strong for nearly 24 years.

Sturdy new material, high-profile charity work and a reputation for exuberant live performances also have helped Bon Jovi make a major leap in recent years — from mere lucrative rock group to the kind of career act that’s relatable across genres and generations.

“We did ‘em in 2000 and 2003, and now we’re doing more of them,” Bon Jovi said of his various stadium runs during a recent phone call from London, where he was finishing up the European tour leg that included gigs at 17 soccer stadiums. “Last tour, we did Philly, Detroit, Boston and New York; this year we’ve added Chicago (Soldier Field), Pittsburgh (Heinz Field) and Montreal (Parc Jean-Drapeau).”

“Home” Run

In April, Bon Jovi became the first rock band to top Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart, landing the No. 1 spot with “Who Says You Can’t Go Home,” a collaboration with Jennifer Nettles of the rising country band Sugarland. The song also is part of a breezy tourism campaign on behalf of New Jersey, where Jon Bon Jovi still lives.

“Not only does Jon have great business sense, but he gives you the feeling that he’s a good guy,” says Bernie Dillon, general manager of the 5,600-seat Hard Rock Live in Hollywood, Fla., where the band will kick off this tour leg Monday with a rare small-hall show. “People like that about him.”

Continually expanding the audience, rather than simply playing to their original fans, also has been paramount. During the height of the boy-band frenzy of the late ’90s, Bon Jovi and sideman Richie Sambora (now 44 and 46, respectively) unabashedly exploited their movie-star looks, targeting older but no less passionate female fans — half-jokingly calling themselves “a man band.”

Suggestive film roles, Jon Bon Jovi’s stint on “Ally McBeal” and Sambora’s Hollywood romance with Heather Locklear had already been resonating with women. When radio and MTV dried up for the band, they took their music direct to housewives via home shopping channel QVC. More recently, the band engineered productive partnerships with AOL and XM Satellite Radio, both of which have beamed concerts live.

“They have always found a way to reach their fans. And it doesn’t hurt that they’ve discovered the fountain of youth,” Randy Phillips, president and CEO of AEG Live, promoter of the tour, says of the guys’ devotion to fitness and clean living. “But the fact is this band still sells a lot of records.” Their 2005 Island Records release “Have a Nice Day” sold 200,000 units in its first week.

“We have always been aware of the future coming,” Bon Jovi said. “When some radio conglomerate says you’re not relevant anymore, we went to a lot of places that no one else would go, like Asia and Central and South America, knowing we’d always have some place to play.”

Phillips noted that the band’s career-long decision to hold the line on ticket prices also has been smart. Tickets now routinely exceed $300 a pop for some superstars, but Bon Jovi is charging $35-$125 per show (excluding the Hard Rock gig).

“I do know how to run our business,” Bon Jovi said. “There are so many other (entertainment) options today — and I remember very well what it’s like to live paycheck to paycheck.”

By Deborah Wilker
Reuters/Hollywood Reporter

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White Zombie Reunite Onstage

ericclapton — Sun, 09 Jul 2006 14:15:58 +0000

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Original White Zombie members Tom Five (guitar) and Ivan De Prume (drums) have teamed up to perform with Healer on the San Diego stop of the Vans Warped Tour. The concert will take place on July 6 at the Coors Ampitheatre.

Healer’s lineup for the performance will be as follows:

# (mungk) SiddiQ – Vocals/Singing Bowls
# Tom Five – Guitars/Vocals
# Nathaniel Grant – Guitars/Percussion/Vocals
# Jerry Scott – Bass/Vocals
# Martin St-Pierre – Violin
# Ivan de Prume – Drums/Percussion

Formed in July of 2003 by Ivan de Prume, drummer/percussionist and founding member of the multi-platinum selling band White Zombie, Healer’s mission is “to bring more tribal energy into this world by strengthening the social foundation in hopes of bringing all walks of life together to see, appreciate and enjoy the real value in all living things through-out the world.”

P.S. Check out Vans Warped Tour Tickets here.

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Jimmy Buffett Concert News and Tickets

ericclapton — Sun, 09 Jul 2006 14:02:44 +0000

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Jimmy Buffett, who has been touring on-and-off since April, has confirmed plans to play September gigs in the Detroit area and in New York City.

Buffett and his Coral Reefer band are set to play a Sept. 12 concert in Clarkson, MI, as well as a Sept. 14 show at New York’s Madison Square Garden.

Buffett is taking a break during the month of July, but returns to the road in August for another short stint of shows.

Every concert on Buffet’s current tour is airing live on Margaritaville, Buffett’s signature Sirius Satellite Radio channel. Each of the commercial-free concerts includes a 30-minute pre-show broadcast from backstage, featuring music and interviews with Buffett or members of his band, according to a press release issued earlier this year.

In April, five new recordings by Buffett — including a cover of the late Warren Zevon’s “Werewolves Of London” — turned up on the soundtrack to “Hoot,” a family film that Buffett co-produced.

His latest studio album is 2004′s “License To Chill,” which features guest appearances by several country artists, including Kenny Chesney, George Strait and Toby Keith. This spring, Buffett called in to Radio Margaritaville and said that he is working on a new album that he hopes to release in the fall.

Jimmy Buffet Concert Dates

Jimmy Buffet Tickets September 12 – Clarkston MI – DTE Energy Music Theatre
Jimmy Buffet Tickets September 14 – New York NY – Madison Square Garden

P.S. Check out Jimmy Buffet Tickets here.

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Bob Dylan Summer Tour News and Tickets

ericclapton — Sun, 09 Jul 2006 13:39:00 +0000

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For the third summer in a row, folk/rock legend Bob Dylan will mount a tour of minor-league ballparks throughout the US, in the midst of which he’ll release a new studio album, reports liveDaily.com.

The outing, dubbed The Bob Dylan Show, gets underway in mid-August, and is scheduled to make stops in 17 ballparks by early September. Tickets, which go on sale next month, will be priced at $49.50, and children under 12 get in free with each adult ticket holder, according to organizers.

Joining Dylan and his band on the run will be guitarist Jimmie Vaughan — brother of the late Stevie Ray Vaughan — featuring veteran roadhouse singer Lou Ann Barton and Austin-based musician Junior Brown, who plays “a demonic hybrid ‘guit-steel’ instrument, a combination 6-string electric guitar and pedal steel guitar, a device he cooked up one night in a dream,” according to a press release.

On August 29, Dylan issues “Modern Times,” his 44th album and first new set in five years.

According to Columbia Records, the album features 10 new Dylan originals he recorded this winter with his touring band — guitarists Stu Kimball and Denny Freeman, multi-instrumentalist Donnie Herron, bassist Tony Garnier and drummer George Recile. Dylan sang and played keyboards, guitars, and harmonica.

Bob Dylan Tour Dates

Bob Dylan Tickets 8/23 – Reading PA – First Energy Stadium
Bob Dylan Tickets 8/24 – Pawtucket RI – McCoy Stadium
Bob Dylan Tickets 8/26 – Pittsfield MA – Wahconah Park
Bob Dylan Tickets 8/27 – Manchester NH – Merchantsauto.com Stadium
Bob Dylan Tickets 8/29 – New Britain CT – New Britain Stadium
Bob Dylan Tickets 8/30 – Rochester NY – Frontier Field
Bob Dylan Tickets 9/1 – Wappingers Falls NY – Dutchess Stadium
Bob Dylan Tickets 9/2 – Cooperstown NY – Doubleday Field
Bob Dylan Tickets 9/3 – University Park PA – Medlar Field at Lubrano Park
Bob Dylan Tickets 9/5 – Fort Wayne IN – Memorial Stadium

Ultimate-Guitar

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Aerosmith & Motley Crue Tour Dates

ericclapton — Sat, 24 Jun 2006 15:57:29 +0000

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Aerosmith — “America’s greatest rock’ n’ roll band” — will return to the road September 14 with Mötley Crüe — “America’s most notorious rock band” — to spawn what is the ultimate must-see rock event of 2006: a massive North American tour of predominantly outdoor amphitheatres. Bigger, louder, faster, and harder than what rock fans have experienced before, the tour gets underway in Holmdel, NJ and lasts through November 24 in West Palm Beach, FL. With each band featuring all their original members, this marks the first time that rock’s bad boys have embarked on a tour together.

The first few dates of the Live Nation-produced tour — Camden, NJ, Boston, Washington, Tinley Park, IL, East Troy, WI and Detroit — go on sale June 24. Two more shows (Holmdel, NJ and Jones Beach, NY) go up June 26. Other on-sale information is TBA. For the tour, Aerosmith — Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, Brad Whitford, Tom Hamilton and Joey Kramer — will thrust themselves into the middle of the audience, turning the seats along the 70-foot-long ramp into one big front row experience that will enable fans to get up close and personal with rock’s quintessential live act. Aerosmith were most recently on the road with their hugely successful and wildly acclaimed “Rockin’ The Joint” tour, which packed arenas from October ’05 through February ’06 in what critics called “an exultant return,” “a wet, wild and totally sweat-filled night” and “a testosterone-charged set of their patented blues-soaked rock.” Coming off one of the most successful tours of 2005, Mötley Crüe is bringing a whole new bag of tricks out this year, with massive production and pyro, determined to out-do themselves in the decadent Mötley fashion. Major surprises are in store from the world’s most infamous rock band. “As comebacks go, this one is monstrous,” Rolling Stone said of their wildly successful Red, White & Crüe tour, and this year proves to be even bigger.

Aerosmith & Motley Crue Concert Dates

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Shinedown to Open for Godsmack/Rob Zombie

ericclapton — Sat, 17 Jun 2006 23:28:13 +0000

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Jacksonville, Florida’s Shinedown has been confirmed as the opening act on the upcoming Godsmack/Rob Zombie U.S. co-headlining tour, according to Blabbermouth.net.The trek is a two-month alliance starting in Dallas, TX at the Smirnoff Music Center and ending October 1 in Concord, CA at the Chronicle Pavilion. Godsmack has teamed with I Love All Access to offer special VIP ticketing packages including up-close seating, pre-show party, exclusive Godsmack gifts and many more surprises.

Godsmack Rob Zombie Concert Tickets

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Korn’s Jonathan Davis Hospitalized with Blood Ailment; Tour Canceled

ericclapton — Sat, 17 Jun 2006 23:09:08 +0000

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Korn frontman Jonathan Davis was admitted to a London hospital over the weekend for treatment of a blood disorder called immune thrombocytopenic purpura, forcing the band to pull out of at least one European festival gig and deliver an abbreviated set with guest singers at Saturday’s U.K. Download Festival. According to a band spokesperson, Davis may be sidelined for the next three weeks, as he continues to recover.

Korn, who did not perform at Ireland’s Download Festival on Sunday, are also expected to cancel a performance at the Heineken Music Hall in Amsterdam on Tuesday; the remainder of the band’s European tour has been canceled.

A post from Davis on Korn’s official Web site confirmed the illness — a disorder in which a low blood-platelet count prohibits the blood from clotting as it should.

“I started getting these weird bruises all over my body about two weeks ago,” Davis wrote. “I was getting very weak after the shows so I saw a doctor in London Friday. He took some blood tests and when the results came in, they rushed me to the hospital. It turned out that I have ITP … a blood infection where, because of an allergic reaction I had to some medication, my blood platelets were really low. If I continued to headbang onstage, I could have had a brain hemorrhage and dropped dead on the spot.”

According to Davis, while most people have between 140 and 400 platelets in their blood cells, “I had five — no joke.” He has been ordered by his doctors to remain under the hospital’s supervision until “they [can] get my blood in some kind of healthy shape. The doctors are telling me that each day I’ve been here in the hospital, my platelet count has been going up and I should be healthy to play in a few weeks. The doctors have cleared me to walk around a bit but I am unable to perform a show or travel right now. We will do our very best to come back soon to play any dates we are unable to play on this tour.”

During the U.K.’s Download Festival, which took place at Donington Park, Korn delivered an abbreviated 30-minute set with guest singers filling in for Davis.

When guitarist James “Munky” Shaffer, bassist Reginald “Fieldy” Arvizu and drummer David Silveria took the stage, a bandmember told the crowd, “We’ve had some issues” but would “play on with some friends of ours,” the Download Festival site reports.

Korn recruited a number of artists to stand in for Davis. Jesse Hasek of 10 Years grabbed the microphone for “It’s On!” while Avenged Sevenfold frontman M. Shadows belted out “Falling Away From Me.” Former Coal Chamber and current DevilDriver frontman Dez Fafara handled vocals for “Somebody, Someone” and “Coming Undone,” and Skindred’s Benji Webbe tackled “A.D.I.D.A.S.” Slipknot/ Stone Sour singer Corey Taylor performed “Clown” and “Freak on a Leash,” and Trivium’s Matt Heafy joined the band for “Blind.”

According to a press release issued Monday (June 12), Korn are still expected to headline this year’s 30-city Family Values Tour, which kicks off July 27 in Virginia Beach, Virginia (see “Korn Resurrect Family Values Tour With Deftones, Stone Sour”). The Deftones, Stone Sour, Flyleaf and Dir En Grey are also on the mainstage bill, with the second-stage bill to be announced in the coming weeks.

“We were truly looking forward to playing the rest of the overseas dates,” the members of Korn said in a joint statement. “So we have tremendous regrets about not being able to connect with our fans, whom we know are the best in the world. We want to thank them for their understanding and loyal support — and, at the same time, let them know that we will see them when we return to Europe.”

Family Values Tour Dates

August

September

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Warped Tour 2006: Get Ready!

ericclapton — Fri, 16 Jun 2006 22:42:33 +0000

Check out Warped Tour 2006 Tickets here.

You waited patiently and the punk gods have once again delivered.Vans Warped Tour is unleashing its stronghold across North America and will likely reaffirm why Rolling Stone has dubbed it “America’s most successful festival” (June, 2005).

For the music lover out there who has already purchased his or her ticket – perhaps referring to it as “my precious” – your wait is over. The Warped Tour kicks off in Columbia, Md., on Thursday, June 15, making a name for itself with its lineup of mega-bands, extreme activities, and something to see or hear around every corner. In its 12th year, the event will offer plenty that Warped devotees have come to know and love as yearly traditions, but it will also have a few extras in store.

To include every little detail of what you can expect from Warped Tour would be impossible without the aid of extremely tiny font, so here is a little taste of the best of it what the tour has to offer in 2006.

The Sound, The Fury

When it comes down to it, music is the primary enticement for most Warped Tour fans. With the approximately 10 stages and 100-plus bands playing this year, the festival could very well be considered the best bang for your buck. This is particularly true this year, with a Warped giving a nod to more than just one decade of music.

Perhaps one of the most anticipated acts this year is Joan Jett and The Blackhearts. Sure, a cover of “I Love Rock N’ Roll” may have been massacred by Britney Spears, but that is all the more reason to covet the original artist’s rendition. Since her days in the 70′s group The Runaways, Jett has set a high bar for all melodic punk rockers – not just the ladies. Not only did The Blackhearts achieve Billboard’s #28 song of all time with “I Love Rock N’ Roll,” the group also did it on its own terms by creating an independent label after being rejected by 23 major labels.

All the members of the AFI’s loyal fan base Despair Faction are undoubtedly enthralled by the California-based group’s decision to join this year’s Warped Tour. With a more new wave sound on the band’s latest CD “Decemberunderground,” AFI should offer an interesting flair to the straightforward punk atmosphere at the festival.

If any of the bands could inspire both a riot and a swing dance party, it would be Australia’s The Living End. The band proves that playing your instrument with skill and finesse is not a forgotten ideal. Give these boys a double bass, a hollow-body guitar, and nice drum set, and you’re likely to be entertained, impressed and educated in the art of punkabilly performance.

On a platform other than the mainstage, a few bands will do where few Warped Tour bands dare not do: Turn off their amps. Although it can be said that one of driving force behind Warped comes from the musical energy that emerges from distorted guitar and crashing drums, the tour is planning to take a chance on a few acoustic guitars. Main stage bands Saves the Day and Senses Fail will be performing an acoustic show on the MLB Authentic Collection/Vagrant Stage, which should be one of the more interesting and gutsy shows.

Under The Big Top

If you decide to take a quick sojourn away from the music and venture into the land of tents and/or booths at Warped, there are a few sites that might upstage the bands this time around.

Tent World will give a much-deserved bow to the past. Even if you weren’t yet able to talk at the time when The Ramones ruled the punk scene, it’s likely that at some point and time you’ve heard the unforgettable line, “Twenty, twenty, twenty-four hours to go; I wanna be sedated.” Almost as famous as the lyrics is The Ramones logo – an eagle with its wings outstretched as if on a presidential seal – that was created by the band’s long-time friend (and often considered an honorary Ramone), Arturo Vega. It was Vega who put together Ramonesworld, a glimpse at Ramones memorabilia that includes posters, personal items, and photos. For more information, go to ramonesworld.com.

And if you have a computer, it’s probably silly to ask if you’ve visited MySpace. The addictive site, which keeps friends connected and complete strangers often times even closer, will be providing its own take on this whole Warped Tour business. Drop by the MySpace Tent and it’s likely you’ll get a chance to chat with the band you just caught performing onstage. The bands are encouraged to use the tent as they please – whether for a spontaneous live show or a meet-and-greet location. If you are hoping to share your innermost punk rocker, wait no longer. The MySpace House Band performs throughout the day and karaoke is highly encouraged.

The Girls Are In The House

The ladies are making their presence known and this year they don’t have to crash the party to do it. The Gritty In Pink Tour is a hallmark to female fortitude, spearheaded by band Shiragirl. Vocalist Shira recalls how a ladies stage was not necessarily a go back in 2004. “That was the year we had to crash it. Everyone thought we were crazy driving up in our pink RV.” Indeed, it was the signature pink tour bus that began to lure people to where the ladies would take the stage. After Warped Tour founder Kevin Lyman saw the crowd’s reaction, a new stage was born. Named after the band who pioneered it all, The Shiragirl Stage will be proving that girrrls have something to sing about – and often prove it loudly.

Are You Truly A Guitar Hero?

So you’ve been an enthusiastic and appreciative audience member at The Warped Tour and now you’d like to prove you’ve got the musical goods as well? Step up to the plate, my friend. The game that dreams are made of, Guitar Hero, is ready for your nimble fingertips in the PlayStation Tent. If you prove yourself to be a guitar god too quickly, this tent also allows you to sample various titles from the PlayStation Portable System.

Punk With Heart

One of the most admirable aspects of the Warped Tour is its continued efforts and charitable work. This year, Warped Tours founder Kevin Lyman teamed with the Volunteer Center of Southwest Louisiana and Cameron Community Action/Council on Aging to help out Louisiana’s communities affected by Hurricane Katrina. The Warped team is going to take a tour “off day” on June 29 and help rebuild hurricane-ravaged areas of Louisiana.

On With The Show

For those wishing to learn more about this year’s Vans Warped Tour, visit warpedtour.com. At the site, you’ll be able to view videos, audio, and much more in this year’s lineup. The tour, presented Cingular Wireless, will begin Thursday, June 15 in Columbia, Md., and wrap up on Aug. 13 in Montreal, QC.

Here’s list of scheduled bands on the 2006 roster:

* 18 Visions
* AFI
* Aiden
* Against Me!
* Alexisonfire
* Amber Pacific
* Anti Flag
* Armor For Sleep
* ASG
* Billy Talent
* Bouncing Souls
* Bullet For My Valentine
* Buzzcocks
* Die Hunns
* Down To Earth Approach
* Dropping Daylight
* Eight Fingers Down (BBQ Band)
* Emanuel
* Emery
* Every Time I Die
* Flashlight Brown
* From Autumn To Ashes
* From First To Last
* Gatsbys American Dream
* Greeley Estates
* Gym Class Heroes
* Hellogoodbye
* Helmet
* Joan Jett & The Blackhearts
* Less Than Jake
* Moneen
* Motion City Soundtrack
* Mute Math
* NOFX
* Over It
* Paramore
* Pistolita
* Plain White T’s
* Protest The Hero
* Red Jumpsuit Apparatus
* Rise Against
* Riverboat Gamblers
* Saosin
* Say Anything
* Saves The Day
* Senses Fail
* Silverstein
* State Radio
* Stretch Arm Strong
* The Academy Is
* The Bled
* The Casualties
* The Early November
* The Fully Down
* The Germs
* The Living End
* The Pink Spiders
* The Sounds
* The Sunstreak (BBQ Band)
* Thursday
* Underoath
* Valient Thorr
* Voltera

Warped Tour Dates

P.S. Check out Warped Tour 2006 Tickets here.

Carlos Santana Plots US Tour

ericclapton — Sat, 10 Jun 2006 10:15:00 +0000

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Carlos Santana and his eponymous band are finally ready to embark on a major US tour to support his latest album, “All That I Am.”The US trek, currently scheduled to visit 18 cities, launches July 27 in San Diego, and will remain on the West Coast through early August. The tour revs up again in mid-September for a round of East Coast shows.

Santana is currently touring Europe, and will be traversing that continent through mid-July. The group also is scheduled to play a pair of shows in Japan before launching the North American trek.

Carlos Santana Tour Dates

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Dimefest 2006 Details

ericclapton — Sat, 10 Jun 2006 10:14:00 +0000

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The 2006 edition of Dimefest — the annual benefit concert in remembrance of late Pantera/Damageplan guitarist “Dimebag” Darrell Abbott — will take place on Saturday, August 19 at the Ridglea Theater in Fort Worth, TX. Last year’s event was almost completely sold out and this year is sure to be equally successful.

Dimefest 2006 lineup, according to Blabbermouth.net:

12:45 – Jacknife (Dallas, TX)
11:45 – Premenishen (Abilene, TX)
10:45 – Driven Below (Dallas, TX)
09:55 – Course Of Ruin (Round Round, TX)
09:05 – Proofed (Dallas, TX)
08:15 – Kaliya (Dallas, TX)
07:25 – Status Hate (Dallas, Texas)
06:35 – Threat Level (Kokomo, IN)
05:45 – Splinter (Ft. Worth, TX)
04:55 – Plague (San Antonio, TX)
04:05 – Scum Scunge (Dallas, TX)

There will be a Dean tribute guitar raffled off at the show and much more. Proceeds from the event will be donated to the Dimebag Darrell Memorial Fund, which has been set up to help the victims of the December 8, 2004, Alrosa Villa shootings in Columbus, Ohio.

P.S. Check out Dimefest Tickets here.

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10 Years Plot More Shows

ericclapton — Sat, 10 Jun 2006 10:13:00 +0000

10 Years are lining up more headlining U.S. dates for the summer, with five shows in late June and early July tentatively confirmed andmore to be announced shortly, reports Launch Radio Networks. The group will take Soil and Faktion out as support on the trek. 10 Years just completed its first-ever headlining jaunt in support of its 2005 debut album, “The Autumn Effect”.

Singer Jesse Hasek told Launch that the band and its crew have found a new way to pass the time on tour when they’re not traveling, playing or doing interviews. “Recently, a lot of the guys have gotten together to form a workout alliance,” he said. “We all try to exercise and we found out the payoff to that is we feel a lot better, and we wake up not feeling like we’ve been hit by a train. We wake up and feel like we have energy for a change.”

10 Years shot two new music videos last Monday (May 22) at the legendary Whisky A Go Go club in Los Angeles, for the band’s current single, “Through The Iris”, and the title track of “The Autumn Effect”.

10 Years recently made an EP of four acoustic tracks available exclusively through the iTunes online music store. The digital EP includes unplugged versions of “Wasteland” and “Through The Iris”.

Tentative 10 Years tour dates, according to Blabbermouth.net:

06/20 – Beaumont, TX – Cactus Canyon
06/21 – Baton Rouge, LA – Varsity Theatre
06/24 – Pensacola, FL – Seville Quarter
06/25 – Tallahassee, FL – Floyd’s
07/02 – El Paso, TX – El Paso Country Coliseum (w/ Puddle Of Mudd)

The entertainment events described in this blog are provided courtesy of the Event Ticket Outlet

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European Unholy Alliance Tour: Rumored Bands

ericclapton — Sat, 10 Jun 2006 10:11:00 +0000

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The rumored lineup for the European edition of the Unholy Alliance Tour, set to take place this fall, is as follows:

· Slayer
· In Flames
· Children Of Bodom
· Lamb Of God
· Thine Eyes Bleed

At this time, there has been no confirmation on the billing from any of the acts that are rumored to be involved in the tour, according to Blabbermouth.net.

Nuclear Blast Records had previously announced that their recent signing, the up-and-coming U.K. band Mendeed, will take part in the European version of the Unholy Alliance Tour. However, this has not been officially confirmed by the Slayer camp.

The Slayer-headlined North American edition of the Unholy Alliance Tour will kick off June 15 in Camden, New Jersey, and run through July 26 in Denver. Also appearing on the bill are Lamb Of God, Mastodon, Children Of Bodom and Thine Eyes Bleed.

P.S. Check out Unholy Alliance/Slayer Tickets here.

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The Number Twelve Looks Like You on Tour

ericclapton — Sat, 10 Jun 2006 10:10:00 +0000

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New Jersey’s The Number Twelve Looks Like You announced this week the full schedule for their “The Outta The Mist” headlining tour. The package includes dates with Heavy Heavy Low Low, The Jonbenet, Yakuza and label-mates Signal To Noise running from late June in Buffalo through the end of July in Nashville.

In August, there is rumor of a co-heading run Fear Before The March of Flames before heading back into the studio in the fall to begin working on their sophomore full-length for Eyeball Records due out in Spring 2007

Tour Dates

· Jun. 10, 2006 (Sat)@ KC’s Music Alley – Fredericksburg, Virginia – w/ TBA
· Jun. 11, 2006 (Sun) @ The Stone Pony – Asbury Park, New Jersey – w/ TBA
· Jun. 30, 2006 (Fri) @ The Buffalo Icon – Buffalo, New York – w/ Heavy Heavy Low Low, The Jonbenet, Yakuza
· Jul. 01, 2006 (Sat) @ Grog Shop – Cleveland Heights, Ohio – w/ Heavy Heavy Low Low, The Jonbenet, Yakuza
· Jul. 02, 2006 (Sun) @ Alvin’s – Detroit , Michigan – w/ Heavy Heavy Low Low, The Jonbenet, Yakuza, Local
· Jul. 03, 2006 (Mon) @ The House Cafeacute; – DeKalb , Illinois – w/ Heavy Heavy Low Low, The Jonbenet, Yakuza
· Jul. 05, 2006 (Wed) @ Creepy Crawl – St. Louis , Missouri – w/ Heavy Heavy Low Low, The Jonbenet, Yakuza
· Jul. 06, 2006 (Thu) @ House Of Bricks – Des Moines, Iowa – w/ Signal To Noise (Eyeball Records), Heavy Heavy Low Low, The Jonbenet
· Jul. 07, 2006 (Fri) @ Ascot Room at The Quest – Minneapolis, Minnesota – w/ Signal To Noise (Eyeball Records, Heavy Heavy Low Low, The Jonbenet
· Jul. 08, 2006 (Sat) @ The Bottleneck – Lawrence, Kansas – w/ Signal To Noise (Eyeball Records), Heavy Heavy Low Low, The Jonbenet
· Jul. 09, 2006 (Sun) @ Marquis Theatre – Denver, Colorado – w/ Signal To Noise, Heavy Heavy Low Low, The Jonbenet
· Jul. 10, 2006 (Mon) @ Club Boom VA – Ogden, Utah – w/ Signal To Noise (Eyeball Records), Heavy Heavy Low Low, The Jonbenet
· Jul. 11, 2006 (Tue) @ The Venue – Boise, Idaho – w/ Signal To Noise (Eyeball Records) , Heavy Heavy Low Low, The Jonbenet
· Jul. 12, 2006 (Wed) @ Fat Tuesdays – Spokane, Washington – w/ Signal To Noise (Eyeball Records) , Heavy Heavy Low Low, The Jonbenet
· Jul. 13, 2006 (Thu) @ Chop Suey – Seattle, Washington – w/ Heavy Heavy Low Low, The Jonbenet, local
· Jul. 14, 2006 (Fri) @ Hawthorne Theater – Portland, Oregon – w/ Heavy Heavy Low Low, The Jonbenet
· Jul. 15, 2006 (Sat) @ The Boardwalk – Orangevale, California – w/ Heavy Heavy Low Low, The Jonbenet
· Jul. 16, 2006 (Sun) @ Masonic Lodge # 286 (Paso Robles) – Paso Robles, California – w/ Heavy Heavy Low Low, The Jonbenet
· Jul. 17, 2006 (Mon) @ The Belmont – Fresno, California – w/ Heavy Heavy Low Low, The Jonbenet
· Jul. 19, 2006 (Wed) @ Showcase Theatre – Corona, California – w/ Heavy Heavy Low Low, The Jonbenet
· Jul. 20, 2006 (Thu) @ Soma – San Diego, California – w/ Heavy Heavy Low Low, The Jonbenet
· Jul. 21, 2006 (Fri) @ Celebrity Theater – Las Vegas, Nevada – w/ Heavy Heavy Low Low, The Jonbenet
· Jul. 22, 2006 (Sat) @ The Clubhouse – Tempe, Arizona – w/ Heavy Heavy Low Low, The Jonbenet
· Jul. 23, 2006 (Sun) @ Skrappy’s – Tuscon, Arizona – w/ Heavy Heavy Low Low, The Jonbenet
· Jul. 25, 2006 (Tue) @ White Rabbit – San Antonio, Texas – w/ Heavy Heavy Low Low, The Jonbenet
· Jul. 26, 2006 (Wed) @ Walter’s On Washington – Houston, Texas – w/ Heavy Heavy Low Low. The Jonbenet
· Jul. 27, 2006 (Thu) @ Gypsy Tea Room – Dallas, Texas – w/ Heavy Heavy Low Low. The Jonbenet
· Jul. 28, 2006 (Fri) @ The Complex – Memphis, Tennessee – w/ Heavy Heavy Low Low. The Jonbenet
· Jul. 29, 2006 (Sat) @ Rocketown – Nashville, Tennessee – w/ Heavy Heavy Low Low. The Jonbenet

P.S. Check out The Number Twelve Looks Like You Tickets here.

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Rolling Stones Tour News and Tickets

ericclapton — Sat, 10 Jun 2006 10:07:00 +0000

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Temporarily postponed after guitarist Keith Richards accidentally injured his head in a fall while on holiday in Fiji, the Rolling Stones’ A Bigger Bang trek is starting up again with a newly revamped schedule that will take the band to over 11 European countries, reports E! Online.

The Stones official website confirmed that Richards has made a “complete recovery.” Tour promoters unveiled a fresh slate of stadium shows that will kick off in Milan, Italy on July 11 and make stops in over 20 cities including Vienna; Munich; Berlin; Paris; Amsterdam; Zurich; Porto, Portugal; Valladolid, Spain; London; Glasgow; and Bergen, Norway, among others.

“We are delighted to announce the Stones tour is back on track and thank all the fans and ticket holders for their patience,” promoter Michael Cohl commented in a statement. “We have put in as many shows in as many countries as was feasible. This is still going to be the most incredible rock show ever.”

For his part, Richards offered a mea culpa to fans for the delay.

“Excuse me, I fell off of my perch!” the 62-year-old rock god said. “Sorry to disrupt everyone’s plans but now–it’s full steam ahead! Ouch!!”

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary September

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary October

Rolling Stones Concert Itinerary November

Rolling Stones Tickets November 3 BC Place Stadium Vancouver
Rolling Stones Tickets November 5 McAfee Coliseum Oakland
Rolling Stones Tickets November 8 Cardinals Stadium Phoenix AZ
Rolling Stones Tickets November 11 MGM Grand Las Vegas NV
Rolling Stones Tickets November 14 Idaho Center Nampa ID
Rolling Stones Tickets November 18 Dodger Stadium Los Angeles CA

Click here to buy Rolling Stones Tickets online.

Death Cab for Cutie Announce Summer Tour

ericclapton — Sat, 10 Jun 2006 10:06:00 +0000

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Death Cab For Cutie have unveiled details of their upcoming summer tour. The band’s busy schedule includes a series of major North American, European, and Australian festival appearances, as well as a number of eagerly awaited headline dates around the world.

The band launched their busy summer on Memorial Day weekend with a Sunday night co-headline performance at their hometown Sasquach! Music Festival. On Friday, June 16th, Death Cab will hit Manchester, Tennessee for an appearance at the much-anticipated Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival. From there, the quartet cross the Atlantic for two weeks of shows, including headline dates in London, Leeds, and Amsterdam, along with performances at such renowned European festivals as Denmark’s Roskilde and Scotland’s T In The Park.

Death Cab will then head Down Under for a half-dozen headline and festival dates throughout Australia. After a brief late July respite, they’ll return to the road in August, kicking off with an August 3rd appearance at the Kuyahoga Festival at Cleveland’s Blossom Music Center along with The Flaming Lips and Sonic Youth. The next day will see the bandheading to Chicago’s Grant Park for a prime spot on the annual Lollapalooza lineup. And as if that weekend weren’t busy enough, Saturday, August 5th will find Death Cab in Lawrence, Kansas, headlining the inaugural Bleeding Kansas Arts & Music Festival (other acts include Broken Social Scene and Keane).

The following evening, Sunday, August 6th, will see the start of Death Cab’s headline tour of the western U.S., beginning at Denver’s Fillmore and followed by stops in Utah, Oregon, and California. The bandrecently added second shows at the Greek Theatre at UC Berkeley and the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles after tickets for the initial dates sold out instantly. Joining Death Cab on all dates will be acclaimed indiepop duo, Mates of State, with Spoon also sharing the bill on the California itinerary.

Death Cab for Cutie Tour Dates

August

08/03 – Cuyahoga Falls, OH Kuyahoga Festival
08/04 – Chicago, IL Lollapalooza
08/05 – Lawrence, KS Bleeding Kansas Arts & Music Festival
08/06 – Denver, CO The Fillmore
08/08 – Orem, UT McKay Events Center
08/10 – Veneta, OR Secret House Vineyard
08/11 – Berkeley, CA Greek Theatre – UC Berkeley
08/12 – Berkeley, CA Greek Theatre – UC Berkeley
08/13 – Los Angeles, CA Greek Theatre
08/14 – Los Angeles, CA Greek Theatre
08/15 – San Diego, CA Embarcadero Marina Park South

P.S. Check out Death Cab for Cutie Tickets here.

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Social Distortion Add More Tour Dates

ericclapton — Sat, 10 Jun 2006 10:03:00 +0000

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Veteran L.A. punkers Social Distortion have added more concert dates to their summer tour.

It has now been months since the band has postponed many upcoming shows before and after frontman Mike Ness was seriously injured in a skateboarding accident last February and TSOL guitarist Ron Emory to fill his place on guitar for the tour while he continues to sing for the band with his arm in a cast and sling. However, Ness never officially left the band.

Look for Social Distortion’s as-yet-untitled follow-up to 2004′s “Sex, Love And Rock ‘n’ Roll”, expected for a worldwide release in late 2006/early 2007 via TimeBomb Recordings. The band are currently in the process of working on it, but plans for a 2006 release are still unconfirmed. The new album will be their first release with recent bassist Brent Harding, who replaced Matt Freeman (ex-Operation Ivy, Rancid), who was the replacement of John Maurer who left the band before the release of “Sex, Love and Rock ‘n’ Roll”.

Social Distortion Fall Concert Dates

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Social Distortion Reveal US Tour Dates

ericclapton — Sat, 10 Jun 2006 10:02:00 +0000

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Social Distortion will hit the road this summer for two weeks. The tour will begin on July 6 in Seattle, Washington. Earlier this year, various scheduled tours have been sold out, due to frontman Mike Ness’ injury in skateboarding accident. He has been replaced by TSOL’s Ron Emory.

Social Distortion are currently in the process of working on their follow-up to 2004′s “Sex, Love And Rock ‘n’ Roll”. Although, there are currently no plans for the album’s release any time in 2006. “Sex, Love and Rock ‘n’ Roll” is the band’s first album featuring new material since 1996′s “White Heat, White Light, White Trash” and is also the first release with current guitarist Johnny Wickersham, who is the replacement of the late Dennis Dannell, who died from aneurysm in 2000.

Social Distortion Fall Concert Dates

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Mary J. Taking Her Breakthrough Experience on the Road

ericclapton — Sat, 10 Jun 2006 10:00:00 +0000

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What a year 2006 is shaping up to be for road-tripping women. First Madonna, then Mariah, and now Mary J.

According to Blige’s representative, the queen of hip-hop soul will kick off her next tour July 14 at the UMB Bank Pavilion in St. Louis with openers Jaheim and LeToya Luckett. The last stop will be September 8 at Concord,California’s Chronicle Pavilion. The singer, whose The Breakthrough LP is on its way to becoming her best-selling album to date, has named the outing Mary J. Blige: The Breakthrough Experience.

Blige, who was a headliner at Sunday’s Summer Jam in New York, will have two more high-profile warm-up shows before the official tour launch. She takes the stage with New Edition at Houston’s Essence Music Festival on July 1, and she’s also taking part in Milwaukee’s Summerfest.

Mary J. Blige Tour Dates

Mary J. Blige Tickets 8/20 – Clarkston MI – DTE Energy Music Theater
Mary J. Blige Tickets 8/25 – Miami FL – American Airlines Arena
Mary J. Blige Tickets 8/26 – Tampa FL – Ford Amphitheater
Mary J. Blige Tickets 8/27 – Atlant, GA – HiFi Buys Amphitheatre
Mary J. Blige Tickets 9/1 – Irvine CA – Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
Mary J. Blige Tickets 9/2 – Las Vegas NV – Mandalay Bay
Mary J. Blige Tickets 9/3 – Universal City CA – Gibson Amphitheater
Mary J. Blige Tickets 9/6 – Phoenix AZ – Cricket Pavilion
Mary J. Blige Tickets 9/7 – Marysville CA – Sleep Train Amphitheater
Mary J. Blige Tickets 9/8 – Concord CA – Sleep Train Pavilion

Shaheem Reid

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Godsmack and Rob Zombie Team Up for 25-Date U.S. Tour

ericclapton — Sat, 10 Jun 2006 09:59:00 +0000

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It’s been little more than a month since the release of Godsmack’s latest studio outing, and it’s going to be another three months before the New England hard rock collective’s American fans get a chance to experience this new material in a live setting.

While most rockers chase the release of a record with a healthy dose of U.S. touring, the Sully Erna-led outfit didn’t and won’t in the coming weeks. But before fall begins, Godsmack will, at long last, hit the road for a 25-date U.S. trek that’s set to launch August 25 in Dallas and they’ll be bringing rocker/horror king/road warrior Rob Zombie along for the ride.

Godsmack whose fourth LP, IV, debuted atop Billboard’s album sales chart early last month have forged an alliance with Zombie, and the two acts will be traveling the nation for a two-month stretch. The tour’s finale is set for October 1 in Concord, California.

Drummer Shannon Larkin said this fall tour is Godsmack’s way of thanking its fans for being so loyal and generous with their dough.

“Debuting at #1 was a testament to our fanbase,” he said. “They ran out and bought the album the first week and made us #1, which, you know, we will give back to them this fall when we come back on tour. We’ll give back to crowd for going out and buying our record and making us #1. We’re bringing the biggest show we’ve ever brought to America, and we’re going to be bringing Rob Zombie out with us. So, it’s going to be an amazing thing. Hopefully, we can return the love to our rabid fanbase, and so we have to bring a great show to these people.”

In a statement, Erna said that the band’s “fans should expect the biggest Godsmack spectacle yet.This tour will be a virtual, visual, and aural circus. Expect the unexpected when we hit your town.” According to a press release, Zombie will be setting the stage during each stop on the tour, turning the venue “into a funhouse of mystery and madness ascreatures walk the stage of pyrotechnics, smoke, and mirrors. This is a no-holds barred show so hold on for the ride.”

Larkin said Godsmack will spend much of this summer concocting a worthy set list, one that’ll satisfy the fans who’ve been with them since the beginning as well as those who’ve just discovered the ‘Smack.

“With the band having what, 13 top 10 rock hits? we want to play all the hits, of course, but you don’t want it to be just all radio songs,” Larkin said. “You want to put some deep cuts on there, and you want to get some songs from the new record that we’re so attached to and love so much, because it’s fresh and new to us” like the first single, “Speak”and the forthcoming second single, “Shine Down.” “It’s hard to cram all this stuff into one set, so we’re being very meticulous about picking our set list,” Larkin explained. “We don’t want to be that band that plays too long either, and we’re thinking of maybe having multiple set lists. There are a good 10 songs we have to play every night “Voodoo,” the staples of the set.”

The drummer said that Godsmack jumped at the chance to tour this fall with Zombie: “As soon as it was Rob Zombie, we were sold, because he’s not only an icon in rock but I’m such a huge fan of horror movies, and his films are just amazing.”

This summer, in addition to working on his numerous film projects, Zombie will be heading out with thrash metal icons Anthrax for the “American Witch” tour, which kicks off June 30 in El Paso, Texas, with dates running through August 4 in Salem, Oregon. Zombie whose Educated Horses debuted at #5 on Billboard’s chart in April will be accompanied by a backing band featuring former Marilyn Manson guitarist John 5, bassist Matt “Piggy D” Montgomery, and drummer Tommy Clufetos.

Godsmack Rob Zombie Concert Dates

Chris HarrisP.S. Check out Godsmack Rob Zombie Tickets here.

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Crucifixes, Leather and Hits

ericclapton — Sat, 10 Jun 2006 09:57:00 +0000

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The dancing queen of spectacle concerts, Madonna has the unique ability to transform garish production values into powerful autobiography. The opening Los Angeles date of Madonna’s Confessions Tour wasn’t a reinvention so much as it was a refinement of the elaborately choreographed, sexually provocative extravaganza she created with 1990′s Blond Ambition Tour. As its title implies, Confessions is very much all about Madonna.

After making her descent to the stage in a giant disco ball, Madonna sang a medley of ”Future Lovers” and Donna Summer’s synth milestone ”I Feel Love” in Jean-Paul Gaultier-designed equestrian drag while ridinghunky male dancers similarly clad in S&M-inspired harnesses. For a ballsy, full-voiced rendition of ”Like a Virgin,” she mounted a studded leather merry-go-round saddle as video screens flashed X-ray photos. Only Madonna could deliver a seriously hot pole dance while referencing her bone-cracking tumble from a horse on her forty-seventh birthday last August.

Less successful was her organ-laden version of ”Live to Tell,” which found the singer strapped to a mirrored crucifix as African AIDS statistics flashed onscreen — the show’s tone darkening so suddenly that this potentially poignant image instead came across as bombast. ”Forbidden Love” redeemed the sequence: A pair of male dancers interlocked arms in an understated, mesmerizing ritual that thesinger joined.

For ”I Love New York,” she broke out a guitar to paraphrase the slashing chords of the Stooges’ ”I Wanna Be Your Dog,” and strutted up and down her catwalk with Iggy Pop-ian abandon for ”Let It Will Be.” Paying tribute to Saturday Night Fever, Madonna peaked the concert with an ingenious mash-up of the Trammps’ classic ”Disco Inferno” and her own ”Music.”

Throughout the show, Madonna voiced her continued dissatisfaction with fame even as she justified her own. It’s an old complaint, but when Madonna celebrated her gift for substantial glitz, she seemed nearly as youthful as when her lucky star began rising a long, long time ago.

Madonna Confessions Tour Dates

Aug. 03 London Wembley Arena
Aug. 06 Rome Olympic Stadium
Aug. 09 London Wembley Arena
Aug. 10 London Wembley Arena
Aug. 12 London Wembley Arena
Aug. 13 London Wembley Arena
Aug. 15 London Wembley Arena
Aug. 16 London Wembley Arena
Aug. 20 Dusseldorf LTU Arena
Aug. 22 Hannover Niedersachsen
Aug. 24 Horsens (Denmark) Forum Horsens Outdoor
Aug. 27 Paris Bercy Stadium
Aug. 28 Paris Bercy Stadium
Aug. 30 Paris Bercy Stadium
Aug. 31 Paris Bercy Stadium
Sept. 03 Amsterdam Arena
Sept. 04 Amsterdam Arena
Sept. 06 Prague Sazka Arena
Sept. 07 Prague Sazka Arena

Barry Walters

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‘American Idol’ Top 10 Add 20 More Shows to Summer Plans

ericclapton — Fri, 09 Jun 2006 16:16:00 +0000

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With newly crowned champ Taylor Hicks still basking in the glow of his win Wednesday night, the “American Idol” TV juggernaut isn’t the only 800-pound gorilla in the franchise. The American Idols Live Tour has added 16 fresh stops and tacked on second shows in four markets to make it one of the summer’s biggest outings.

The now 59-date tour will kick off with a pair of shows in Manchester, New Hampshire, on July 5 and 6, then hit Worcester, Massachusetts, for a two-fer on July 7 and 8, before doubling up a week later in East Rutherford, New Jersey (July 13, 14) and Uniondale, New York (July 15, 16).

The additional September dates will keep the 10 finalists Paris Bennett, Bucky Covington, Chris Daughtry, Taylor Hicks, Mandisa, Katharine McPhee, Kellie Pickler, Lisa Tucker, Elliott Yamin and Ace Young on the road through a September 24 date in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, at the Wachovia Center, according to a press release on the official “Idol” Web site. Tickets for the new dates will go on sale Saturday.

American Idols Live Tour dates, according to the show’s official Web site:

Gil Kaufman

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Alice In Chains Wrap Up String of U.S. Club Dates in New York

ericclapton — Fri, 09 Jun 2006 16:15:00 +0000

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NEW YORK The spirit of grunge rock was alive and well inside the Bowery Ballroom on Tuesday night as the surviving members of Alice in Chains took the cramped club’s begrimed stage for the fifth and final stop on the iconic band’s brief U.S. club run.

The concert was preceded by days of speculation about which “special guests” would join the rockers to sub for late frontman Layne Staley, who died in April 2002 from a mixture of heroin and cocaine. The most popular of the rumors had been Guns N’ Roses frontman Axl Rose, who was in New York for four gigs at the Hammerstein Ballroom. There was also talk of Velvet Revolver’s Scott Weiland, Type O Negative’s Peter Steele or ex-Pantera mainman Phil Anselmo joining the band.

Alas, there were no surprise guests Tuesday. Even Velvet Revolver bassist Duff McKagan, who’d been touring with the group on this trek as a second guitarist, was missing. But that didn’t seem to distract the hundreds who congested the Bowery’s floor towitness the Chains revival.

The mob bellowed at the sight of guitarist Jerry Cantrell, who emerged from the backstage area in a “Reefer Madness” T-shirt, black jeans and Converse sneakers, hoisting his ax high in the air. Bassist Mike Inez rushed to the front of the stage and rowdily slapped the outstretched hands that greeted him. Drummer Sean Kinney took his place behind the kit and winked and nodded at the audience. Comes With the Fall singer William DuVall a member of Cantrell’s touring band and the man Alice recruited to handle lead vocals for the group’s upcoming slate of international gigs was welcomed genially. But it was going to take some convincing to convert these die-hards, who at first leered at the afroed singer.

Without much warning, Alice in Chains dove right into “Sludge Factory,” from the band’s final studio LP, the self-titled 1995 “three-legged dog” disc. Next up was “Dam That River” from Alice’s breakthrough 1992 album, Dirt. Cantrell’s expert guitar-shredding was executed effortlessly and anchored by Inez and Kinney’s meticulous rhythm section.

The band tackled such classic cuts as “We Die Young,” “Junkhead” and “Down in a Hole” throughout the night. And while Alice was once Staley’s band, the group belongs now to Cantrell, who elicited chants of “Jer-ry, Jer-ry” between songs and during his commanding solos. Toward the end of “Rain When I Die,” Cantrell cocked his left leg and rested his foot atop one of the speakers situated at the edge of the stage. Several fans crushed forward, just so they could brush their fingers across his guitar. One stood before Cantrell, looking up at him with sheer adoration, and began caressing his calf.

It was clear Cantrell, Inez and Kinney loved every minute of it. Inez couldn’t stop smiling throughout the hour-long set. DuVall proved himself an able Staley understudy not by merely replicating the late singer’s signature wounded style, but by leaving his own mark on Alice’s bleak tunes.

After delivering “Rooster,” “It Ain’t Like That” and “Them Bones,” DuVall yelled, “Good night,” and everyone but Cantrell raced off the stage. The guitarist grabbed DuVall’s mic stand and thrust it over the audience to amplify the unwavering screams and applause. Several audience members reached up and snatched it from his clutches. “Someone’s always got to be a dick,” Cantrell said.

The night ended with three encore songs: “Would?,” “Angry Chair” and “Man in the Box.”

“I’ll tell you what,” Cantrell said. “It f—ing feels good.”

By the end of the night, DuVall wonover the crowd members, who conveyed their approval by chanting, “New guy, new guy.” The gig ended with Cantrell launching himself from the stage onto the crowd, only to be consumed by a swarm of appreciative arms and lost in a sea of sweaty flesh.

Alice in Chains Fall Concert Dates

September 2006

October 2006

November 2006

Chris Harris

P.S. Check out Alice in Chains Tickets here.

Flaming Lips Announce Summer Tour Dates

ericclapton — Fri, 09 Jun 2006 16:13:00 +0000

Check out Flaming Lips Tickets here.

The Flaming Lips are hitting the road this summer, and they’ll no doubt bring their smoke machines with them. And their giant balloons, their confetti, their fuzzy bunny costumes and as many other of their fun onstage props as they can fit into their trucks.

You’ll be able to catch it all at a club near you (or an amphitheatr, state fair, whatever) when they launch a full-scale headlining tour on July 22 at the Greek Theatre in Berkeley, California. Acts that will accompany them at various dates include the Go! Team, Sonic Youth, Ween and Wolfmother.

The Lips will mix their headlining gigs with a string of appearances at summer festivals, including slots on the Hedgpeth Festival in Twin Lakes, Wisconsin, on July 28, Lollapalooza on August 5 in Chicago (see “Kanye West, Red Hot Chili Peppers Lead Lollapalooza ’06 Lineup”) and Austin City Limits in, um, Austin, Texas, on September 15. The band will also jet off to Japan to play two festival dates in mid-August.

According to a spokesperson for the band’s label, Warner Bros. Records, more dates will be announced in the coming weeks. The Flaming Lips’ latest album, At War With the Mystics, was released last month and debuted at #11 on the Billboard albums chart the band’s highest-ever debut.

Flaming Lips Tour Dates

August 2006

September 2006

James Montgomery

P.S. Check out Flaming Lips Tickets here.

Eric Clapton Busts Out Dominos Tunes on New Tour

ericclapton — Fri, 09 Jun 2006 16:10:00 +0000

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Eric Clapton will embark on a twenty-two-date North American tour this fall, kicking off September 16th in Minneapolis. The sixty-one-year-old rocker is currently in the middle of a run to kick off his European summer tour at London’s Royal Albert Hall — backed by guitarists Derek Trucks and Doyle Bramhall II — on which he’s been performing rarely played Derek and the Dominos tunes.

Clapton last graced a U.S. stage last October when he reunited with drummer Ginger Baker and bassist Jack Bruce to play three Cream shows at New York’s Madison Square Garden. The guitarist will return to the venue for two nights this summer as well.

The world tour also features solo classics and songs off Clapton’s 2005 release, Back Home. The Robert Cray Band is slated to open.

Eric Clapton Tour Dates:

CHARLEY ROGULEWSKI

P.S. Check out Eric Clapton Tickets here.

New Orleans Jazz Fest Ends on High Note

ericclapton — Thu, 25 May 2006 16:46:00 +0000

NEW ORLEANS (AP) – Fats Domino tipped his hat to thousands of cheering fans, briefly appearing on stage during the final day of Jazz Fest. But the headliner did not perform.

“He wasn’t feeling well, so we took him to the doctor. He’s OK, but he doesn’t feel up to performing,” longtime friend Haydee Ellis said Sunday.

Domino lost his home, his pianos, his gold and platinum records, and much of the city he loves during Hurricane Katrina.

His scheduled performance at the 37th annual New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival was to be his first since he was rescued by boat from his flooded home in the Ninth Ward after Katrina struck Aug. 29.

Last week, Domino, 78, canceled an autograph session for his latest album “Alive and Kickin’,” saying he was fatigued and wanted to rest up for the Sunday performance.

Heinz Tumeltshamer flew from Austria to see the Hall of Fame performer. The 63-year-old Tumeltshamer, wearing a T-shirt that read “Fats Forever,” first saw Domino as a teenager and was disappointed Domino did not perform.

Still, he was grateful for the appearance.

“It was a pleasure just to see him,” Tumeltshamer said.

Local musicians and others including Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Jimmy Buffett and Paul Simon performed at the six-day event that spanned two weekends. Organizers declined to say how many people attended the event, which typically draws about 500,000 people, but as in past years the lawns and sidewalks were crammed every day.

Many performers said the festival was part of rebuilding the city, which suffered devastating flooding and the loss of neighborhoods.

“We’ve gotta get this town back together, and this is one way to do it,” said jazz clarinetist Pete Fountain before taking the stage Sunday.

The 75-year-old was saddened to learn that Domino canceled his performance.

“When you’ve been through a lot like he’s been through … it’s just a shame,” said Fountain, who also lost a home in the storm and then had quadruple bypass heart surgery in March.

Fountain’s home in Bay St. Louis, Miss., was wiped out, along with his gold records, memorabilia and 10 musical instruments. His New Orleans home has been repaired.

Jazz Fest was held at the New Orleans Fair Grounds Race Course, which was under 5 feet of water at the height of the flooding.

“This has been a Jazz Fest like no other,” said Barbara Martin, whose New Orleans home took in 8 feet of water. “So many artists have come down for us. They’re trying to inspire us to restore and rebuild New Orleans, both musically and emotionally.”

Soul singer Irma Thomas played before a rain-soaked crowd in the afternoon, opening her act with, appropriately, “It’s Raining.”

Her tone became more somber for “In the Middle of it All,” which she said represents the state of the city and its people right now.

“I sang this song to let you know that we’re all hurting, but we have hope,” Thomas said.

Many musicians returned to New Orleans for the festival, some for the first time since Katrina.

Others, however, were unable to make the trip, including Aaron Neville, who for more than a decade had performed with his brothers Art, Cyril and Charles on the festival’s closing day.

Art, who played the festival last weekend with his New Orleans-based band The Meters, is the only Neville brother living in New Orleans since the storm.

Michelle Roberts
Associated Press

The entertainment events described in this blog are provided courtesy of the Event Ticket Outlet

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Tom Petty to Rock 5-Day Bike Fest

ericclapton — Thu, 25 May 2006 16:38:00 +0000

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NEW YORK (AP) Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers are slated to join Keith Urban, the Black Crowes, Big & Rich and Nickelback at Rock ‘n the Rally, a five-day music festival to be held this August in South Dakota during the celebrated Sturgis Motorcycle Rally.

“We’re building a world-class music festival right into the worlds largest bike rally,” the festival’s producer, Mark Russo of Dork Fish Ink, said in a statement to The Associated Press on Wednesday. “Rock ‘n the Rally has been two years in the making and we’ve built it from the ground up.”

The festival, to be held from Aug. 6-10, will take place in a new 34-acre amphitheater on Glencoe Camp Resort in Sturgis, where hundreds of thousands of motorcycle enthusiasts from around the nation converge for the motorcycle rally, now in its 68th year.
“Sturgis Bike Week is a celebration of independence and freedom, the same concepts that define Rock ‘n Roll,” said Glencoe owner Gary Lippold, who along with Dork Fish Ink is presenting the festival.

Other performers for the music festival include Joe Cocker, Shooter Jennings, Sammy Hagar, Cheap Trick and .38 Special. Organizers plan to make Rock ‘n the Rally an annual event.

Current Tom Petty Tour Dates

The Associated Press

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Brooks & Dunn Announce Vegas Hilton Deal

ericclapton — Thu, 25 May 2006 16:32:00 +0000

P.S. Check out Brooks & Dunn Tickets here.

LAS VEGAS (AP) They won’t just be showing up for rodeo week in Las Vegas any more. Country music duo Brooks & Dunn announced a two-year contract Monday with the Las Vegas Hilton.

“It’s really exciting. The Hilton has given us an opportunity to play more than once a year,” Kix Brooks said at a news conference. “I’m really looking forward to a little more Las Vegas.”

In addition to their National Finals Rodeo performance Dec. 4-6, Brooks said he and Ronnie Dunn would perform at the Hilton hotel-casino in March and July next year, then return for the rodeo in December 2007.

The announcement came on the eve of the 41st Academy of Country Music awards at the MGM Grand. Brooks & Dunn are nominated in five categories and have won 19 ACM trophies – more than any other artist. Their current album “Hillbilly Deluxe” peaked at No. 1 and has gone gold, selling more than 500,000 copies.

Asked if they would adjust their high-energy performance for Las Vegas, Dunn jokingly replied, “We’re reading the Wayne Newton books now.” Then quickly added, “Nah, we’re going to do the Brooks & Dunn show.”

Brooks noted shows range in Las Vegas from four Cirque du Soleil presentations to Newton, to Broadway (“Mamma Mia!” and “Hairspray”), to David Copperfield and Celine Dion.

“Audiences here come from all over the world. They’re so hip, you can do your thing here,” Brooks said.

The duo was introduced Monday by Reba McEntire, who performed at the Hilton earlier this month and will host Tuesday’s awards show (8 p.m. EDT, CBS) for the eighth time.

“It is my great pleasure to introduce these guys to the Hilton family,” McEntire said.

Brooks & Dunn Concert Dates

August 2006

Brooks & Dunn Tickets 8/23 – Meadville PA – Crawford County Fairgrounds
Brooks & Dunn Tickets 8/25 – Kansas City KS – Verizon Wireless Music Center
Brooks & Dunn Tickets 8/26 – Oklahoma City OK – Ford Center
Brooks & Dunn Tickets 8/27 – Dallas TX – Smirnoff Music Centre

September 2006

Brooks & Dunn Tickets 9/1 – Milwaukee WI – Marcus Amphitheater
Brooks & Dunn Tickets 9/2 – Cincinnati OH – Riverbend Music Center
Brooks & Dunn Tickets 9/3 – Green Bay WI – Resch Center
Brooks & Dunn Tickets 9/4 – St. Paul MN – Minnesota State Fair
Brooks & Dunn Tickets 9/8 – Scranton PA – Toyota Pavilion @ Montage Mountain
Brooks & Dunn Tickets 9/9 – Hartford CT – Verizon Wireless Music Center
Brooks & Dunn Tickets 9/10 – Saratoga Springs NY – Saratoga Performing Arts Center
Brooks & Dunn Tickets 9/24 – Houston TX – Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion

October 2006

November 2006

Brooks & Dunn Tickets 11/11 – Tampa FL – Ford Amphitheatre
Brooks & Dunn Tickets 11/12 – West Palm Beach FL – Sound Advice Amphitheatre

December 2006

Brooks & Dunn Tickets 12/4-6 – Las Vegas NV – Las Vegas Hilton

TOM GARDNER
Associated Press Writer

P.S. Check out Brooks & Dunn Tickets here.

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Dixie Chicks Announce Tour Dates

ericclapton — Thu, 25 May 2006 16:25:00 +0000

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – The Dixie Chicks are launching a 43-city North American tour in July to promote their new album, “Taking the Long Way.”

The first show will be July 21 in Detroit, and the tour is scheduled to wrap up on Nov. 11 in Tacoma, Wash., the group announced Thursday. Stops include New York City, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, Dallas, Atlanta and Toronto.

The Chicks are teaming up with Target stores and MSN to promote the tour.

The Columbia label CD goes on sale May 23, and fans who buy it from Target stores will get a passcode to buy four concert tickets before general sales begin in early June.

All tour information is being posted on MSN, which also will offer a behind-the-scenes look and a Webcast at http://dixiechicks.msn.com of the Dixie Chicks’ June 15 London concert.

The trio of lead singer Natalie Maines, banjo and guitar player Emily Robison and fiddle and mandolin player Martie Maguire had several hits, including “Wide Open Spaces” “There’s Your Trouble” and “Landslide,” from their first three albums.

But their music was boycotted by some U.S. radio stations after Maines told a London audience on the eve of the war in Iraq that the group was “ashamed” the president was from their home state of Texas.

The single “Not Ready to Make Nice” has been getting country-radio airplay and was listed at No. 50 on this week’s Billboard chart after peaking at 36.

Dixie Chicks Tour Dates

October 2006

Dixie Chicks Tickets 10/27 – Ottawa Ontario – Scotiabank Place
Dixie Chicks Tickets 10/28, 29 – Toronto Ontario – Air Canada Centre

November 2006

December 2006

Dixie Chicks Tickets 12/1 – Nashville TN – Gaylord Entertainment Center
Dixie Chicks Tickets 12/2 – Atlanta GA – Philips Arena
Dixie Chicks Tickets 12/4 – Austin TX – Frank Erwin Center
Dixie Chicks Tickets 12/5 – Dallas TX – American Airlines Center

The Associated Press

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Candlebox Reignite for CD, Tour

ericclapton — Thu, 25 May 2006 15:31:00 +0000

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Remember Candlebox? The Nineties Seattle band burst on the scene in 1993, hitting the Top Ten with their self-titled debut, then rode the grunge wave to a string of hit singles — “Far Behind,” “Don’t You,” “Simple Lessons” — before seemingly falling off the radar altogether.

So what happened? “I’ve been producing. I have a solo project called the Hiwatts on my own label — started that in 2000,” frontman Kevin Martin says of what’s been keeping him busy since Candlebox went on “indefinite hiatus” in 1999. “And I got married last year.”

Getting married is an important part of the story, asMartin credits his wife with helping to reunite the group. “I met my wife five years ago. She’s Australian — she’s very grounded,” he explains. “And she made me realize I was longing to play with these guys again, because I was continually talking aboutit.”

That, and an upcoming best-of collection due next month, prompted Martin to get the ball rolling to bring guitarist Pete Klett, drummer Scott Mercado and bassist Bardi Martin (no relation to Kevin) back together. “I contacted Pete in the fall,” he says. “We got together over Christmas when I was in Seattle to visit my family, and we contacted Bardi and Scott and asked them if they’d be interested.”

The reformed Candelbox hits the road July 1st for a full-fledged tour, with a few one-offs scheduled before then. The band isn’t reuniting to be merely a nostalgia act though: They’ve got plans to record an album in the fall for spring 2007 release.

Martin, who admires the political stances of artists such as Green Day, Neil Young and System of a Down, wants to use his new music to speak out on the issues as well. “There hasn’t been a great musical movement since the early Nineties, and hopefully that changes,” he says. Martin points to one of Candlebox’s new songs, tentatively dubbed “Stand.” “It’s not a new concept — it deals with exactly what we’ve been talking about: ‘Stand up for who you are,’” he explains. “People want great music. And if you can give them great music that has a point and is poignant, I think you can change people’s opinions.”

Since so much has changed in the decade since Candlebox was on top — not least, the political climate — how does Martin think the band will be received? “The response to our deciding to go back out and making another record has been great,” he says. “It’s weird — you think when you end something, it’s done. But you continue to sell records and people continue to write you and the music doesn’t ever die.”

Then, in another sign of the changed times, Martin adds, “We’re adding MySpace friends everyday.”

Candlebox Tour Dates Thus Far:

6/10: Kansas City, MO, Liberty Memorial Park
6/17: The Woodlands, TX, C.W. Mitchell Pavilion
7/6: Mokena, IL, Pearl Room
8/2: Sayreville, NJ, Starland Ballroom
8/5: Raleigh, NC, Moore Square Park
8/18: Lake Buena Vista, FL, House of Blues

STEVE BALTIN

P.S. Check out Candlebox Tickets here.

Dashboard Confessional Readies an Emo Tour of America

ericclapton — Thu, 25 May 2006 15:15:00 +0000

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Dashboard Confessional fans will get a dose of frontman Chris Carrabba’s moody melodies and heart-on-sleeve lyrics when the emo outfit hits the road this summer for six weeks, beginning June 30th in Toronto. Pre-tour, Dashboard will visit several radio festivals — including Irvine, California’s KROQ Weenie Roast and Columbia, Maryland’s HFStival — to give audiences a taste of some long-awaited new songs.

The summer trek — with support from Aussie singer-songwriter Ben Lee and emo punks Say Anything — launches three days after the release of Dashboard’s fifth studio album, Dusk and Summer. The band recorded the new material with Don Gilmore (Pearl Jam, Linkin Park), as well as Daniel Lanois (Bob Dylan and U2).

Tracks on Dusk and Summer include “Heaven Here” and “Don’t Wait,” which came to Carrabba one night after a show. “I walked offstage and wrote the song,” he told Rolling Stone about the single. “I was really drawing on that energy.” Carrabba, when he hits dates this summer in cities like Las Vegas and Milwaukee, will no doubt tap whole new reservoirs of energy.

Dashboard Confessional Tour Dates:

5/13: Irvine, CA, Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre
5/28: Columbia, MD, Merriweather Post (HFStival)
6/9: Chula Vista, CA, Coors Amphitheatre (91X X-Fest)
6/18: Detroit, State Theatre (89X Birthday Bash)
6/30: Toronto, ON, Molson Amphitheatre
7/1: London, ON, John Labatt Centre
7/3: Thunder Bay, ON, Community Auditorium
7/4: Winnipeg, MB, Winnipeg Convention Center
7/6: Edmonton, AB, Rexall Place
7/7: Calgary, AB, Jack Singer Concert Hall
7/9: Vancouver, BC, Plaza of Nations
7/10: Seattle, Paramount Theatre
7/12: Berkeley, CA, Berkeley Community Theatre
7/14: Las Vegas, House of Blues
7/15: Mesa, AZ, Mesa Amphitheatre
7/19: Houston, Verizon Wireless Theater
7/22: Lake Buena Vista, FL, House of Blues
7/23: Lake Buena Vista, FL, House of Blues
7/24: Atlanta, Atlanta Civic Center Theatre
7/25: Nashville, Ryman Auditorium
7/27: Milwaukee, The Rave
7/28: Chicago, Chicago Theatre
7/29: Bonner Springs, KS, Verizon Wireless Amphitheater (98.5 The Buzz Beach Ball)
7/30: Council Bluffs, IA, Westfair Amphitheatre (89.7 The River “River Riot”)
7/31: Minneapolis, Orpheum Theatre
8/2: Columbus, OH, Lifestyle Communities Pavilion
8/3: St. Louis, The Pageant
8/5: Pittsburgh, Chevrolet Amphitheatre
8/7: Myrtle Beach, SC, House of Blues
8/8: Norfolk, VA, Chrysler Hall
8/11: Camden, NJ, Tweeter Center
8/12: New York, Radio City Music Hall
8/13: Boston, Opera House

NICOLE FREHSEE

P.S. Check out Dashboard Confessional Tickets here.

Skynyrd’s Johnny Van Zant Finds His Country Heart

ericclapton — Thu, 25 May 2006 14:58:00 +0000

Check out Lynyrd Skynyrd Tickets and Allman Brothers Band Tickets here.

It was the Fox Theatre in Atlanta, 1976. A simpler time and what felt like real personal freedom. A time when a young, barefoot Ronnie Van Zant took the stage with his new Southern rock band, Lynyrd Skynyrd, which — cheered by a sell-out crowd of sweaty fans and with a Confederate flag unfurling behind them — brought the house down with an encore rendition of “Sweet Home Alabama.” All hell broke loose, and a rock legend was born.

A lot has changed in thirty years — but one thing persists: It’s still possible to crack open a beer, drift back on a daydreamcalled “Freebird” and see Rock & Roll Hall of Famers Lynyrd Skynyrd at their white-hot best, live. The good ol’ boys still do up to 100 shows a year, mostly in the summertime. (Lead singer Johnny Van Zant also tours with his brother and .38 Special founder, Donnie, as Van Zant, a country music duo.) On June 23rd, Skynyrd will square off with 3 Doors Down, Bo Bice and Hank Williams Jr. at Atlantic City’s Trump Taj Mahal, followed by a co-headlining trek with 3 Doors Down and a solo jaunt from late June through mid-September.

Not only does performing in front of their fans keep them energized, it’s what saved them in 1976. Those three sold-out nights at the Fox scored them a platinum album, One More From the Road, at a time when the band desperately needed help. Three years after signing with MCA, their last studio effort, Gimme Back My Bullets, had petered out on the charts. Furthermore, they were exhausted from touring as many as 123 nights straight — so exhausted that drummer Bob Burns and guitarist Ed King had stepped off the bus for good. But in placing all their chips on a live album, Skynyrd won big: One More From the Road became their best-selling record, ever.

A little over a year after the album’s release, of course, tragedy struck: Ronnie Van Zantand guitarist Steve Gaines were killed in a plane crash, and the Skynyrd amps were turned off for ten long years. But Ronnie’s younger brother Johnny managed to help resurrect his big brother’s band, and he’s been at the Skynyrd mike since 1987. “He’s just like Ronnie,” says lead guitarist Gary Rossington. “He looks just like him, and he sounds just like him.” (Only he does wear boots onstage, unlike his brother, who went barefoot.)

Today, Billy Powell, 54, still tears up the keys and Rossington, 53, delivers some of rock’s best-known licks on a Gibson axe, a re-issue of a 1959 Les Paul he named “Dottie,” after his wife. (The venerable guitar company even issued Rossington his own signature-model Les Paul.) It’s the combination of that tough, gravelly VanZant vocal, Powell’s painful piano fills and Rossington’s searing guitar riffs that pack in three generations of fans to hear “Freebird.” Rossington says he never gets tired of playing the epic anthem.

“Every time I play it in front of people, I see theiremotions come up,” he says. “Some people have old memories of it, and they just lose it — they’re crying, and they’re singing every word. You just can’t stand in front of thousands of people doing that and not feel some emotion. Sometimes they sing louder than us and you can hear them over the PA.”

For Johnny Van Zant, 47, music is as much about a love of performance as it is about a love of family. Little more than a year ago, he teamed up with middle brother Donnie to do something that Ronnie always wanted to do: make a country album. As the country music duo Van Zant, the brothers released Get Right With the Man last May and watched as singles like the earnest “Help Somebody” and the deviant “Nobody Gonna Tell Me” climbed the country charts, putting Get Right on the path to go gold by summer’s end. Now they’ve just released another single, “Things I Miss the Most,” and they’re up for the Top Country Music Duo award at the Academy of Country Music awards the end of May.

“We’ve already won, really,” Johnny says. “Who would’ve thought that we’d even be in a category like that? especially with folks who’ve been in the country music business for so long, like Montgomery Gentry and Brooks and Dunn.”

But the transition has felt natural, having grown up in Jacksonville, Florida, watching the Grand Ole Opry. “Rock & roll has kept us alive for all these years,” Johnny explains. “But we just love country music. It’s in our blood. It’s the steel guitar, it’s the violin, it’s the banjo. And not only that, but just the people in the country field. It’s the down-home feel, and that’s what we’re about.”

So while Skynyrd was just inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, and Johnny and the crew are rocking amphitheaters across the U.S., he’s also carving a place for himself in the world of country, out on the road with Donnie singing about the “dogs out barkin’ in the yard and the tractors in the field.”

Says Johnny, “Sometimes, hell, we get around these rock bands, and they’re like, ‘You guys are hicks!’”

Lynyrd Skynyrd North American summer tour dates:

August 2005

Lynyrd Skynyrd Tickets 8/24 – Rapid City SD – Central States Fair
Lynyrd Skynyrd Tickets 8/26 – DuQuoin IL – DuQuoin State Fair
Lynyrd Skynyrd Tickets 8/27 – Sparta WI – Fort McCoy Army Base
Lynyrd Skynyrd Tickets 8/28 – Saint Paul MN – Minnesota State Fair

September 2005

October 2005

Lynyrd Skynyrd Tickets 10/1 – Atlanta GA – HiFi Buys Amphitheatre (w/ The Allman Bros. Band)
Lynyrd Skynyrd Tickets 10/ 2 – Charlotte NC – Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre (w/ The Allman Bros. Band)

December 2005

Lynyrd Skynyrd Tickets 12/2-4 – Las Vegas NV – Las Vegas Hilton

WAYNETTE GOODSON

P.S. Check out Lynyrd Skynyrd Tickets and Allman Brothers Band Tickets here.

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Madonna Launches Tour With Disco Crucifixion

ericclapton — Thu, 25 May 2006 14:44:00 +0000

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Though Madonna’s latest world tour has been dubbed the Confessions tour in honor of the singer’s latest album, Confessions on a Dance Floor, the trek, which began Sunday night before a sold-out audience at L.A.’s hallowed Forum, was much more Cirque du Soleil than a night of intimate revelation.Descending from the heavens at a quarter to nine in a ton-and-a-half disco ball — covered in 2 million dollars? worth in crystals — Madonna began the “Equestrian” portion of the show (the nearly two-hour show was broken down into four sections) with Confessions’ “Future Lover.” Clad in horseback-riding attire, complete with top hat and riding crop, she moved around the stage’s center inlet, which stretched halfway through the floor, before making her way to center to pay homage to another disco queen, with Donna Summer’s “I Feel Love.” She returned to the new album for “Get Together,” performing the song without much assistance from her cadre of backup dancers — and proving why the disco-tinged track is one of the album’s high points.

But since the majority of the frenzied throng paid as much as $350 a ticket for some high-powered spectacle, Madonna would not let the faithful down. And she didn’t: The pop diva rode a mechanical saddle/stripper pole during “Like a Virgin” and displayed her gymnastics skills in “Jump.” Madonna re-emerged for the “Bedouin” portion of the evening on a mammoth disco crucifix wearing a crown of thorns to perform “Live to Tell.” She returned to religious imagery for Confession’s “Isaac,” which featured a woman dancing in a cage. The singer showed some of that who-gives-a-fuck attitude that first made her a star with “Like It or Not,” a rendition spiked by her burlesque-style dancing with a chair. And that was only in the first half of the evening.

Changing costumes again for the “Never Mind the Bollocks” section, Madonna came out rocking an electric guitar for “I Love New York,” which featured projections of the city skyline on a large video screen. She held the guitar while exhorting the crowd to dance for a hard-rocking version of the title track of Ray of Light. In keeping with the theme of this portion, the background dancers reemerged, New Wave’d out in black-and-white ties.

Madonna’s career has been marked by her chameleon-like ability to reinvent herself, and indeed, in the annals of pop music, her talent in that category may be second only to David Bowie’s. Throughout the night, she continually assumed new roles — even playing the balladeer remarkably well, in renditions of “Drowned World” and “Paradise (Not for Me),” the latter of which was a duet with Yitzhak Sinwani, whom she introduced as her friend.

The singer’s most recent role in the pop world has been dance diva, and she assumed that mantle proudly for the evening’s final “Disco” theme. Emerging to the beat of the Tramps’ “Disco Inferno” in a John Travolta-style white suit (circa Saturday Night Fever, of course), Madonna became the dancing queen for high-energy versions of “Music,” “La Isla Bonita” (complete witha cavalcade of dancers and tropical-island images), a techno-fied “Lucky Star” and the closer, “Hung Up.” With the climax of that runaway single, gold balloons descended from the rooftops.

Madonna had played many roles in the first night of her Confessions tour — but confessor was not one of them. Apparently, in all the pomp and circumstance, there was no room for warmth, or even the attitude that made her recent Coachella festival performance so memorable.

Performing at Coachella before a largely foreign audience, she appeared as the Madonna of old: defiant, hungry, ready to fight. A determined Madonna, one who might spar with the crowd, seemed largely absent this weekend at the Forum. She limited her interaction to platitudes like, “Are you ready for aride, L.A.?,” “The show is just beginning!” and “Put on your dancing shoes.”

Then again, she didn’t have anything to prove to these fans. They got exactly what they wanted on this night: a celebration of all things Madonna, for better or worse.

Madonna Confessions Tour Dates

Steve Baltin

P.S. Check out Madonna Tickets and Confessions Tour Tickets here.

Mariah Carey Readies First Tour in Three Years

ericclapton — Wed, 24 May 2006 16:36:00 +0000

Check out Mariah Carey Tickets here.

Five-time Grammy winner Mariah Carey will take to the road this summer for a two-month, thirty-city arena run slated to kick off in Miami August 5th and run through October 10th in Phoenix. The Adventures of Mimi: The Voice, the Hits, the Tour will be Carey’s first outing in more than three years. Dancehall star Sean Paul will open the first month of the trek, with more openers to be announced. Special guests will also appear in select cities.

Carey will be touring in support of last year’s The Emancipation of Mimi, which has thus far sold more than six million copies. According to the singer’s Web site, which boasts of the “most elaborate concert production of Mariah’s career” and promises “surprises every night,” Carey will also draw on her back catalog of hits, a few of which have never been performed live.

In December, the divine Miss M’s single “Don’t Forget About Us” reached Number One, tying Elvis Presley’s total of a whopping seventeen Number One songs, and bringing the diva just three chart-topping singles shy of the Beatles’ record.

“In the past, I knew people wanted certain formulaic things from me,” Carey told Rolling Stone early last year. “By ‘people,’ I mean executives. But the funny thing is, I’ve always known that what I really love would be commercially successful.”

Mariah Carey Tour Dates:

DANE SMITH

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Korn Resurrect Family Values Tour With Deftones, Stone Sour

ericclapton — Fri, 21 Apr 2006 16:28:00 +0000

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Eight years after creating and headlining the inaugural Family Values Tour, Korn are relaunching the traveling festival this summer with co-headliners the Deftones.

“The first [Family Values] with us on it was the best, and we just decided, let’s do this again,” Korn singer Jonathan Davis said of 1998′s outing with Limp Bizkit, Ice Cube, Rammstein and Orgy.

“We’re gonna break out the old Family Values stuff we got in storage and really put on a cool show.”

Rounding out the mainstage lineup will be Stone Sour, Flyleaf and Dir En Grey, who Davis described as “this crazy Japanese band that are just out of their minds.”

For the first time, the trek will also feature a second stage, with acts to be announced soon. “We’re gonna have some hip-hop acts and some other variety stuff gong on,” Davis said during a recent studio session with Dem Franchize Boyz (see “Are Korn Coming Undone? Rockers Turn To Crunk, Acoustic Songs”). “I think it’s gonna be a really cool summer show.”

Korn are putting the value in Family Values, offering $9.99 lawn tickets at each stop on the tour, which kicks off July 27 in Virginia Beach.

“No band can go down to $9.99 and do the production and that kind of stuff that we’re doing, but the deal we did [becoming equal partners with EMI and promoters Live Nation] allows us to be able to do that, which is really cool,” Davis said. “I don’t want to slap bands for making their ticket prices so high, ’cause I understand production and that stuff costs a lot. … But Madonna’s are like 300 bucks a ticket. I can’t even believe that. Ten bucks for a show is ridiculous, and I think kids that aren’t Korn fans will wanna go just to check out other bands or just go to have a good time.”

Having a good time will also be a priority for Korn, who will balance their intense sets with a lot of backstage hanging out.

“We haven’t toured with [the Deftones] since ’97 or ’96, and we’re really excited,” Davis said. “We love those guys. We started out together. Literally it was us and them, and back in the day we used to drive to Sacramento [California] and play at their home clubs. And they would drive to Huntington Beach and play the clubs we’d play, so we’ve been friends for a long, long time, and it’s cool to be back together again and sharing the same stage.”

And the feelings are mutual, according to Deftones singer Chino Moreno.

“We’ve had a crazy relationship because we’ve always distanced ourselves from Korn so we could be our own band,” Moreno said. “Their first record came out before ours, so it was always like we were following in their footsteps. And I think we had to do that, and now it’s time to just have fun. We don’t care so much about that stuff anymore. We just want to play with friends.”

Moreno also confirmed Davis’ promise that their bands will be performing their collaboration “Wicked” onstage together. “There’s a bunch of cool stuff I want to do,” Moreno said.

Korn just finished a headlining arena trek heavy on album tracks (see “Korn Rock Hometown, Have Street Named After Them On ‘Official Korn Day’”) but are planning a much different show for the summer.

“We’re gonna bring in different songs and play for two hours,” Davis said. “That’s our new thing. We never played for two hours in our whole career. We thought we would die, but now when I get onstage, I want to do more. So it might be more, you never know.”

Deftones will be using the tour to debut new material from their fifth studio album, due in September (see “Why Is The New Deftones Album Taking So Long?”). The bandmembers just came off the Taste of Chaos Tour with Thrice and Atreyu but are looking forward to another festival (see “Taste Of Chaos ’06 Tour Dates Revealed”).

“That was weird because we were the oldest band there. You see a lot of the younger bands, and it’s just a reminder of how things are now,” Moreno said. “It was a good time, but we felt like grandparents out there sometimes.”

After 1998′s run, Family Values returned a year later with Limp Bizkit, Filter, the Crystal Method, Primus, Staind, Mobb Deep, Ja Rule, and Method Man and Redman. In 2001, Stone Temple Pilots, Linkin Park, Staind, Static-X and Deadsy revived the name.

Family Values Tour Dates

August

September

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Metal File: DragonForce

ericclapton — Fri, 21 Apr 2006 16:27:00 +0000

In two months U.S. record stores will, at long last, be able to stock an album by British power-metallers DragonForce. While the band’s been around since 1999, the sextet’s presence in the U.S. hasn’t been felt much, considering DragonForce’s three albums – 2003′s The Valley of the Damned, 2004′s Sonic Firestorm and 2006′s Inhuman Rampage, which was issued four months back — haven’t been released here. Hell, the band has yet to set foot on American soil, so DragonForce fans here have been deprived to say the least.

But that’s all about to change, guitarist Herman Li said. Visa problems kept DragonForce from performing at New York’s CBGB club back in November, but Li said that’s not going to happen again on April 30, when the band plays its first U.S. gig at the New England Hardcore and Metal Festival. But he did warn fans that DragonForce shows aren’t like most metal shows.

“We’re famous for accidents onstage now,” he said. “We have trampolines we jump on and four different boxes of different heights, which allow us to jump in the air and spin around. Even though the music is really fast and complicated, we’re jumping in the air, playing the guitar upside down … it’s fun. We finish each tour with bruises on our legs and everything.”

Eight additional U.S. club dates have been lined up: May 2 (New York), May 3 (Philadelphia), May 4 (West Springfield, Virginia), May 5 (Cleveland), May 6 (Chicago), May 8 (Denver), May 10 (San Francisco) and May 11 (West Hollywood, California), with Protest the Hero and Sanctity. Most of those shows have already sold out, but Li did mention that the band’s working on securing a spot on an American festival tour, like Sounds of the Underground or Gigantour 2 — so fans who miss them this time around might be able to catch the ‘Force this summer. But Li said the band hopes, in time, to be headlining tours in the U.S.

First, though, there’s the matter of getting an album on store shelves. On June 20, Roadrunner Records will release Inhuman Rampage in the U.S., but DragonForce have already begun writing new material for that record’s follow-up. Fans, Li said, can expect the new stuff to be just as fast, frenetic and technically perverse.

Most of Li’s guitar stylings have been inspired by video game music, he said. In fact, on Inhuman, he tweaked and scratched the strings to create sounds he claims he borrowed from “Pac-Man.” And those sounds are difficult to replicate live.

“When we finish an album, it’s like, ‘Whoa — we’ve got to learn these songs? It’s going to be tough,’ ” Li said of the recording process. “But it’s better that way because it makes you a better player afterwards.”

Dragonforce Concert Dates

Chris Harris and Jon Wiederhorn

The sports and entertainment events described in this blog are provided as a courtesy by the Event Ticket Outlet.

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Tom Petty Readies Summer Tour

ericclapton — Fri, 21 Apr 2006 16:26:00 +0000

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Last summer, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers’ tour was one of their most successful ever, drawing manic and younger crowds that, according to Petty, sang “so loud they actually drowned us out” and included girls “throwing their underwear.” This year, the rock legend and the five-member Heartbreakers crew are heading back on the road with the Highway Companions Tour, kicking off June 9th in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Major acts — many of which typically headline amphitheaters themselves — will join Petty. The first leg will run through June and July and feature jam-band titan Trey Anastasio, followed by Pearl Jam. The Allman Brothers Band will serve as support for leg two, in July and August, while openers for leg three — slated for September and October — have yet to be announced.

Petty will also be headlining the Bonnaroo Music Festival on June 16th; Summerfest in Milwaukee, on June 29th and 30th; and the Austin City Limits Festival on September 17th.

The Highway Companions Tour may be Petty’s final major summer outing. “I think we should do this tour and then put an end to doing national tours, and just play now and then where we want to play,” Petty told Rolling Stone recently, citing his thirty years in the business. (The group released their self-titled debut in 1976.) “The idea of doing sheds or arenas . . . you turn into an animal by the time it’s done.”

In the meantime, Petty is also finishing work on Highway Companion, his third solo album and follow-up to 1994′s stoner-friendly Wildflowers. The new record is due this summer.

“It’s a quieter album than I’ve done before,” Petty said of the album, which features accompaniment from Heartbreakers guitarist Mike Campbell and fellow Traveling Wilbury Jeff Lynne. “I don’t think I wasted any lines on this album. I think the songs are all there.” Among the albums cuts are “Square One,” “Turn This Car Around,” “Saving Grace” and “Big Weekend” — the latter two will debut in upcoming promos for the NBA finals.

Also, filmmaker Peter Bogdanovich (The Last Picture Show) has begun shooting a documentary about the Heartbreakers’ history.

But with a new solo album, huge summer tour and documentary in the works, fans shouldn’t get too nervous that the fifty-five-year-old Petty will be stopping anytime soon. “The only thing keeping me from wrapping things up is just going, ‘Well, I wonder if there’s one more in me?’”

Current Tom Petty Tour Dates

Charley Rogulewski

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Tool Announce North American Club Tour

ericclapton — Fri, 21 Apr 2006 16:25:00 +0000

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Maynard James Keenan and Tool will be spending much of this summer overseas, playing the European festival circuit. But before the band crosses into international waters — and just days after its closing set at this year’s Coachella festival in Indio, California – Tool will be crisscrossing North America, previewing material from their forthcoming album, 10,000 Days, as part of a 15-gig club trek that’s set to kick off May 2 in Seattle.

10,000 Days — the band’s fourth studio LP and its first batch of new songs in more than five years — will also be released on May 2. The follow-up to 2001′s Lateralus will boast 11 cuts, including “Jambi,” “Lipan Conjuring” and “Rosetta Stoned.” The 77-minute-long album’s first single, “Vicarious,” hit the nation’s rock radio airwaves over the weekend.

The dates for the tour were released Monday (April 17) — which also happens to be Keenan’s 42nd birthday.

Tool Tour Dates

Chris Harris

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Bruce Springsteen Hits the Road

ericclapton — Fri, 21 Apr 2006 16:24:00 +0000

This summer Bruce Springsteen will hit U.S. ampitheaters and arenas with the brand new Seeger Sessions Band, the seventeen-member ensemble which also features his wife Patti Scialfa on vocals. The twenty-three national dates are in support of We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions, Springsteen’s first-ever album of covers of traditional folk songs, mostly inspired by folk legend Pete Seeger. The album has been a quiet work in progress since as early as 1998, and is finally set for release April 25th.

First, Springsteen will head back to New Jersey’s Asbury Park — the namesake of his 1973 debut, Greetings From Asbury Park, NJ — for a four-night April residency, followed by a headlining slot at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival on April 30th. After a sold-out May tour in Europe, Springsteen and the Seeger Session Band will return for eighteen stateside dates, beginning May 27th in Boston.

“The album has a light, swinging, incredibly joyful sound to it — it rocks,” Springsteen’s manager, Jon Landau told Rolling Stone of We Shall Overcome. “It’s folk and old-timey instrumentation mixed with a large horn section and a big vocal-chorus sound.”

“It was a carnival ride, the sound of surprise and the pure joy of playing,” Springsteen said in a statement about recording the album. “Street corner music, parlor music, tavern music, wilderness music, circus music, church music, gutter music, it was all there waiting in those old songs, some more than one hundred years old . . . It was a way back and forward to the informality, the freeness and the eclecticism of my earliest music and then some.”

Bruce Springsteen and the Seeger Session Band tour dates:

4/20: Asbury Park, NJ, Convention Hall

4/24: Asbury Park, NJ, Convention Hall

4/25: Asbury Park, NJ, Convention Hall

4/26: Asbury Park, NJ, Convention Hall

4/30: New Orleans, Fairgrounds Racetrack New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival

5/27: Boston, TD Banknorth Garden (Fleet Center)

5/28: Bristow, VA, Nissan Pavilion

5/30: Columbus, OH, Germain Amphitheater

5/31: Noblesville, IN, Verizon Wireless Music Center

6/3: Glendale, AZ, Glendale Arena

6/5: Los Angeles, Greek Theatre

6/6: Concord, CA, Chronicle Pavilion

6/10: Des Moines, IA, Wells Fargo Arena

6/11: St. Paul, MN, Xcel Energy Center

6/13: Tinley Park, IL, First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre

6/14: Milwaukee, Bradley Center

6/16: Cuyahoga Falls, OH, Blossom Music Center

6/17: Clarkston, MI, DTE Energy Music Theatre

6/20: Camden, NJ, Tweeter Center At The Waterfront

6/21: Saratoga Springs, NY, Saratoga Performing Arts Center

6/22: New York, Madison Square Garden

6/24: Holmdel, NJ, P.N.C. Bank Arts Center

6/25: Holmdel, NJ, P.N.C. Bank Arts Center

Charley Rogulewski

The sports and entertainment events described in this blog are provided as a courtesy by the Event Ticket Outlet.

Madonna Tour Tickets Selling Quickly

ericclapton — Fri, 21 Apr 2006 16:23:00 +0000

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Initial ticket sales for Madonnna’s upcoming Confessions tour have been predictably huge, with shows added in several cities and virtually all dates selling out.

The tour, which begins May 21 in Los Angeles, has sold out four shows in Paris at Bercy Stadium beginning August 27, seven shows at London’s Wembley Arena beginning August 1, two shows at the 40,000-capacity Amsterdam Arena beginning September 3, and four shows in New York’s Madison Square Garden beginning June 28, as well as doubles in Los Angeles, Montreal, Miami and Chicago.

Also sold out are Las Vegas (May 27), Philadelphia (July 12), Hartford, Conn. (June 25), Phoenix (June and San Jose (May 30).

Tour producer Arthur Fogel, president of Live Nation’s TNA International, told Billboard.com there had clearly been no resistance to ticket prices that range from $50 to $350. “What you have is a recognition that she creates and delivers a spectacular show every time she goes on the road,” said Fogel. “And this tour will be no different.”

With a gross potential in the $200 million range, Confessions could be the top-grossing tour ever for a female artist. In 2004, Madonna’s Re-Invention tour grossed $125 million and drew more than 900,000 fans to 56 shows.

Ray Waddell

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Metal File: Walls of Jericho

ericclapton — Sat, 15 Apr 2006 06:57:00 +0000

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Candace Kucsulain isn’t a morning person — not in the slightest. So this summer’s Ozzfest should be interesting for the tattoo-veneered singer who fronts Detroit metalcore collective Walls of Jericho.

It’s bad enough Kucsulain’s going to have to get up at the crack of dawn — she’ll also be expectedto scream at the top of her lungs for hundreds if not thousands of rabid metalheads trying to pound enough brewskis to get them through the morning. But it’s not as though she’s complaining — she’s more than willing to adjust her snoozing schedule for the greater good. It is Ozzfest, after all. “You’ve gotta do what you’ve gotta do,” she said, with a hesitant laugh.

“It’s such a huge step for us,” she added. “We have to get up there and give it our all. We have to prove ourselves [to the crowd] because there are so many great bands on Ozzfest this year. You know whoever’s playing after you will show you up, so you have to make sure you hold your own out there” — even if you’re taking the second stage at the profane hour of 9 a.m.

But a huge step it is. Walls of Jericho, she said, are used to rattling the walls of nasty dives in front of 300 kids (tops). They’re used to hitting the road crammed in rundown vans (this summer they’ll share a bus with All That Remains) and crashing on strangers’ couches. They’re all still working full-time jobs to pay the bills.

“It’s nice to think you might be able to go out, play to more kids and do this on a regular basis without worrying about those bills,” Kucsulain said. “We never even thought we’d get on Ozzfest. We’ve been together eight years, and all we want to do is make music and have people like it. Ozzfest is perfect for us, and it’s a great time to be doing it, with our record coming out — a record that we know is one of our most important, and what we’ve been putting everything we have into.”

That album, With Devils Amongst Us All, will be in stores June 27 — two days before Ozzfest kicks off in Auburn, Washington. Produced by Ben Schigel (Chimaira, Zao), it will feature about a dozen tracks, none of which have official titles yet. The band started recording the disc March 6 and wrapped things up April 4.

Before Ozzfest, the band will do a run of shows with Bullet for My Valentine and Roses Are Red as part of the Trustkill Takeover Tour. It kicks off May 12 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and winds down May 28 in Sayreville, New Jersey.

Chris Harris and Jon Wiederhorn

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Guns N’ Roses to Play New York

ericclapton — Sat, 15 Apr 2006 06:56:00 +0000

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When Axl Rose told Rolling Stone in January that he’d have new music for Guns N’ Roses fans this year, he wasn’t kidding. After a decade of working on Chinese Democracy, the follow-up to 1993′s platinum-selling The Spaghetti Incident, and three years away from American stages, GN’R are ready to play New York next month. Tickets for May 15th and 17th at the Hammerstein Ballroom, go on sale April 21st.

While there’s no definite word as to what music Axl and his current GN’R lineup will play live, the notoriously reclusive rocker told Rolling Stone of his new songs, “I’m trying to do something different. Some people are going to say, ‘It doesn’t sound like Axl Rose, it doesn’t sound like Guns N’ Roses.’”

Thirty-two songs — including the Axl faves “Better,” “There Was a Time” and “The Blues” — are in the works for the new album, to be narrowed down to thirteen. Versions of “Better” and “There Was a Time” were among the tracks leaked online — and, briefly, to radio — in February.

After these two U.S. dates, GN’R are also slated to play a string of dates in Europe, starting May 27th in Lisbon, Portugal.

An official release date for the now-mythical Chinese Democracy has yet to be announced.

Guns N’ Roses Concert Dates

September 2006

Guns N’ Roses Tickets September 16, 17 Hard Rock Hotel Las Vegas NV
Guns N’ Roses Tickets September 20, 21 The Warfield San Francisco CA

Charley Rogulewski and Steve Baltin

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Jewel, Rob Thomas Ready Summer Trek

ericclapton — Sat, 15 Apr 2006 06:55:00 +0000

Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Jewel will launch a summer tour with fellow label-mate and Matchbox Twenty frontman Rob Thomas, on May 23rd in Clearwater, Florida. The jaunt finds Thomas supporting his first solo effort, last year’s platinum-selling chart-topper, . . . Something to Be. The Alaskan crooner will be supporting her new album, Goodbye Alice in Wonderland, due May 2nd.

For the follow-up to 2003′s 0304, Jewel teamed with Green Day producer Rob Cavallo, and ended up exploring a number of musical styles — from the country tinge of “Stephenville, TX” and upbeat pop of “Satellite,” to the folksy opener “Again and Again.”

Jewel programmed Alice’s thirteen songs — all recorded live — as if the album were a concert. Thinking of taking her new material on the road, she told Rolling Stone, “If I can, I’d love to play the record from top to bottom.”

As for Thomas’ solo show, he credits former collaborator Carlos Santana with helping him work up the nerve. “Carlos kind of fortified my belief that ‘Hey, I’m a songwriter, and this is what I’m supposed to do,’” Thomas told Rolling Stone after launching his first solo jaunt last spring. “And it just gave me the confidence to be able to say, ‘OK, I can step off for the next couple years and just be on my own.’”

Jewel and Rob Thomas tour dates:

5/23: Clearwater, FL, Ruth Eckerd Hall

5/24: Boca Raton, FL, Mizner Park Amphitheatre

5/25: Orlando, TD Waterhouse Center

5/27: Jacksonville, FL, Metropolitan Park (Rob Thomas only)

5/27: Anderson, SC, Freedom Weekend (Jewel only)

5/28: Anderson, SC, Anderson Sports Complex (Rob Thomas only)

5/28: Atlanta, Chastain Park (Jewel only)

5/29: Atlanta, Chastain Park (Rob Thomas only)

5/30: Myrtle Beach, SC, House of Blues (Jewel only)

5/31: Portsmouth, VA, Harbor Center

6/2: Atlantic City, NJ, The Borgata

6/3: Atlantic City, NJ, The Borgata

6/4: Uncasville, CT, Mohegan Sun Arena

6/7: Scranton, PA, Toyota Pavilion

6/8: Vienna, VA, Wolf Trap (Jewel only)

6/9: Boston, Bank of America Pavilion

6/10: Wantagh, NY, Tommy Hilfiger at Jones Beach Theater

6/11: Holmdel, NJ, PNC Bank Arts Center

6/12: Cleveland, Plain Dealer Pavilion

6/13: Columbus, Promowest Pavilion

6/14: Cuyahoga Falls, OH, Blossom Music Center

6/15: Detroit, DTE Energy Music Theatre

6/16: Niagara Falls, Niagara Fallsview Casino Theatre (Jewel only)

6/17: Chicago, Charter One Pavilion

6/18: Minneapolis, MN, Northrop Auditorium

6/20: Nashville, Gaylord Entertainment Center

6/21: Birmingham, AL, Verizon Wireless Music Center

6/23: Austin, TX, The Backyard

6/24: Spring, TX, Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion

6/25: Hidalgo, TX, Dodge Arena

6/28: Morrison, CO, Red Rocks Amphitheatre

7/1: Anaheim, CA, The Theatre at Arrowhead Pond

7/2: Santa Barbara, CA, Santa Barbara Bowl

7/5: San Diego, Bayside Concerts

7/7: Murphys, CA, Ironstone Amphitheatre (Rob Thomas only)

7/8: Kelseyville, CA, Konocti Field Amphitheatre (Rob Thomas only)

Jessica Robertson

The entertainment events described in this blog are provided courtesy of the Event Ticket Outlet

Bon Jovi Happy to Be on the Road

ericclapton — Thu, 13 Apr 2006 15:27:00 +0000

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It might seem a bit odd to head off on an international tour when your lead guitarist is nursing a broken arm and you’ve got a hit called “Who Says You Can’t Go Home” rising up the charts.

But, hey, this is Bon Jovi.

“We’re working the world with a new record,” lead singer Jon Bon Jovi said in an interview Friday in Tokyo, where the band was to kick off a series of six concerts. “We’ve been out touring for six months. We’ve got four more to go. This is great.”

It’s profitable, too – their “Have a Nice Day” tour has pulled in more than $1.2 million (euro0.97 million) , making it the most lucrative tour going right now.

But it hasn’t exactly been easy.

Guitarist Richie Sambora fell in his Los Angeles home and fractured his left arm in two places last month. Bon Jovi said Sambora will be able to play the Japan dates, but he may have to cradle the guitar sitting down, and has been experimenting with putting the strap over his other shoulder.

“We’ll see how it goes,” Bon Jovi said at his Tokyo hotel. He added that after Japan, the band has three weeks off before heading on to Europe. “That will give him some more time to heal.”

The upcoming European leg has had some glitches as well.

Bon Jovi had to change the venue for two live shows in Britain this summer because of concerns the new national stadium at Wembley wouldn’t be ready in time. The rock band’s June 10-11 concerts will be held at the nearby Milton Keynes Bowl.

Problems aside, Bon Jovi, who turned 44 last month, said that the tour marks something of a turning point.

“I don’t need to make records, I don’t need to tour,” he said. “I’m not chasing anybody anymore. I’m not chasing anything. That’s what you do in your youth.”

But he acknowledged that staying fresh can be a challenge.

“It’s a matter of doing it on a level that you’ve grown accustomed to, while you’re also contributing in a relevant way, a new way, bringing in new generations of fans,” he said. “It’s been 22 years of making records and I must have been to Japan 25 times or more. There’s not too many things in the world I haven’t seen.

“Am I going to be doing this when I’m 88? I don’t know.”

Lest anyone accuse Bon Jovi of being past their peak, however, he noted that along with the sellout crowds on the tour stops, his latest hit, a duet with Jennifer Nettles, is currently No. 3 on the U.S. country music charts.

“This isn’t nostalgia. This isn’t a reunion tour,” he said. “This is the continuation of a career – a big one and a long one.”

Eric Talmadge

P.S. Check out Bon Jovi Tickets here.

Bumbershoot Acts Announced

ericclapton — Thu, 13 Apr 2006 15:17:00 +0000

Kanye West, AFI, A Tribe Called Quest, Yellow Card, Shooter Jennings, The Blood Brothers, Hawthorne Heights and Atmosphere are among the lineup of diverse acts performing at the 36th annual Bumbershoot music and arts festival Sept. 2-4 at The Seattle Center.

Other musical acts include Feist, Mates of State, Of Montreal, Matt Costa, Bettye Lavette, the Subdudes, Ivan Neville’s Dumstaphunk, Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings, Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey and Yerba Buena, as well as The English Beat, Gossip, 3 Inches of Blood, Deerhoof, Laura Veirs, Nouvelle Vague, Breakestra, Jamie Lidell, Vashti Bunyan, Dengue Fever and Metric.

The 2006 festival offers three days of live music, comedy, dance, “indie” crafts, spectacle, film, theater, kid’s activities and literary and visual arts. The festival has been shortened by one day and begins this year on Saturday, Sept. 2, but more than 1,500 artists of all genres are expected to perform at 20 venues on the 74-acre site.

Bumbershoot is produced by One Reel, the Seattle-based non-for-profit events producer that also produces Teatro ZinZanni and the Summer Nights concert series, which will resume in 2007 at a new location.

Providing some of the spectacle that Bumbershoot is known for is the Flat Track Derby Invitational, featuring seven of the best flat-track roller derby teams from around the country, all vying for cash prizes and Bumbershoot’s first title of this kind. Co-hosts of the event are the Rat City Roller Girls. Skaters in outrageous outfits and madcap announcers are part of the fun.

The dance lineup features headliner Rubberbandance Group of Montreal, making its Seattle debut, as well as co-headliner Pacific Northwest Ballet. Choreographer Victor Quijada has led the Rubberbandance Group in performances in Japan, Holland and Finland, as well as London and New York City.

As part of the literary arts program, author, cultural critic and rock journalist Greil Marcus is featured. Marcus is author of “Mystery Train,” “Lipstick Traces” and the upcoming “The Shape of Things to Come: Prophecy and the American Voice.” Also featured is Mary Gaitskill, author of “Veronica,” nominated for the National Book Award and cited as one of the 10 best books of 2005 by the New York Times.

Flatstock 9, featuring innovative underground poster artists and their work, is presented by Bumbershoot in conjunction with the American Poster Institute.Lisa Leingang of CBS-TV is curating the lineup of national and regional comedians. And the Seattle International Film Festival, the biggest film festival in the United States, is curating the 1 Reel Film Festival for the first time.The Northwest Rooms offers visual-arts exhibits addressing the theme of “High Tech vs. Home Ec.” — exploring technology-based art at a time when the crafts movement gaining momentum.

Regional theater programs co-curated by Bumbershoot and Theatre Puget Sound are offered all three days.

Gene Stout

The entertainment events described in this blog are provided courtesy of the Event Ticket Outlet

Metallica, Alice in Chains Concert

ericclapton — Thu, 13 Apr 2006 14:59:00 +0000

Check out Alice in Chains Tickets here.

In addition to receiving the prestigious Stevie Ray Vaughan Award, Metallica frontman James Hetfield, along with the band’s bassist, Robert Trujillo, will be performing with Alice in Chains‘ Jerry Cantrell and Sean Kinney at the second annual MusiCares MAP Fund benefit concert, to be held Friday, May 12 at The Music Box in Hollywood, CA. Black Rebel Motorcycle Club will open the show and the evening will include a performance from Jason Mraz. Jim Breuer will be on hand to present James with the award while Margaret Cho will present the night’s other honoree, Bill Silva, with the From the Heart Award. Balcony seats are still available for $250 (it is tax deductible). Contact Wynnie Wynn at WynnieW@grammy.com to purchase tickets.

Hetfield will be honored as the recipient of the Stevie Ray Vaughan Award for his dedication and support of the MusiCares MAP Fund and his devotion to helping other addicts with recovery process. Bill Silva will be the recipient of the MusiCares Heart Award for his unconditional friendship and dedication to the mission and goals of the organization. The evening will feature a buffet dinner and performances by a range of special musical guests.

Metallica are currently writing music for their ninth studio album, which they plan to record this summer/fall with producer Rick Rubin. An early 2007 release is likely. The group will play some European and Japanese gigs this summer. No U.S. shows are planned.

Alice in Chains Fall Concert Dates

September 2006

October 2006

November 2006

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Arctic Monkeys Expand U.S. Tour

ericclapton — Thu, 13 Apr 2006 14:58:00 +0000

Following a sold-out U.S. club tour this spring, ultra-hyped British buzz band the Arctic Monkeys will kick off another U.S. headlining jaunt in support of their debut, Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not, beginning June 2nd in San Diego.

Released in the U.K. earlier this year, Whatever sold more than 350,000 copies its first week, becoming the fastest-selling debut in British history, and earned the Monkeys a heavyweight following that includes David Bowie, Mick Jagger and fellow British rock giants Oasis. In February, the album bowed more modestly on these shores — at Number Twenty Four — spearheaded by the single “I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor.”

Despite the rapid ascension, the Sheffield, England quartet — singer/guitarist Alex Turner, guitarist Jamie Cook, bassist Andy Nicholson and drummer Matt Helders — are taking it all in stride. “Last year at this time, we were driving around playing shows near Sheffield,” Turner told Rolling Stone just before their spring jaunt. “Now, it feels like we’ll at least have a go at it.”

Arctic Monkeys Tour dDates:

6/2: San Diego, Soma
6/3: Los Angeles, Wiltern
6/4: Tempe, AZ, Marquee
6/6: Dallas, Granada
6/7: Austin, Stubbs
6/8: Houston, Warehouse
6/10: Atlanta, Roxy
6/11: Norfolk, VA, Norva
6/12: Baltimore, Sonar
6/14: New York, Roseland
6/15: Boston, Avalon

Jessica Robertson

The entertainment events described in this blog are provided courtesy of the Event Ticket Outlet

Kelly Clarkson Readies Summer Tour

ericclapton — Thu, 13 Apr 2006 14:55:00 +0000

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American Idol and reigning pop queen Kelly Clarkson will launch a twenty-four-date summer trek, dubbed the Addicted tour, on June 30th in West Palm Beach, Florida. The jaunt will be the last leg in support of Clarkson’s Grammy-winning sophomore album, Breakaway.

Since its 2004 release, Breakaway has sold more than five million albums and spawned four Number One hits, including the radio staples “Since U Been Gone” and “Behind These Hazel Eyes.” In addition to performing these crowd faves, Clarkson plans to preview new material before heading into the studio to record her third album.

“I think people know that when I perform live, I usually win the audience over,” Clarkson told Rolling Stone before her first Breakaway tour.

Tickets for all dates go on sale April 22nd.

Kelly Clarkson Tour Dates:

6/30: West Palm Beach, FL, Sound Advice Amphitheatre
7/1: Tampa, FL, Ford Amphitheatre
7/3: Raleigh, NC, Alltel Amphitheatre
7/4: Charlotte, NC, Verizon Amphitheatre
7/6: Washington, DC, Nissan Amphitheatre
7/7: Virginia Beach, VA, Verizon Amphitheatre
7/9: Holmdel, NJ, P.N.C. Bank Amphitheatre
7/10: Buffalo, NY, Darien Amphitheatre
7/12: Wantagh, NY, Jones Beach Amphitheatre
7/15: Hartford, CT, New England Dodge Amphitheatre
7/16: Boston, Tweeter Center
7/18: Pittsburgh, Post Gazette Amphitheatre
7/21: Kansas City, KS, Verizon Amphitheatre
7/22: Chicago, First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre
7/24: St. Louis, UMB Bank Amphitheatre
7/25: Indianapolis, Verizon Amphitheatre
7/28: Houston, CWM Amphitheatre
7/29: San Antonio, TX, Verizon Amphitheatre
7/31: Phoenix, Cricket Amphitheatre
8/1: Irvine, CA, Verizon Amphitheatre
8/3: San Francisco, Shoreline Amphitheatre
8/4: Sacramento, CA, Sleep Train Amphitheatre
8/6: Seattle, White River Amphitheatre

Jessica Robertson

P.S. Check out Kelly Clarkson Tickets here.

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Tom Petty’s Summer Tour His Last?

ericclapton — Sun, 09 Apr 2006 13:00:00 +0000

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In 1976, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers released their debut album, and this summer Petty plans to celebrate the thirtieth anniversary in grand style. He and the Heartbreakers will hit the road in June on a tour that Petty says might be the band’s last major summer outing; there’s an ambitious documentary in the works; and Petty is finishing Highway Companion, a solo album tentatively due on Rick Rubin’s American Recordings label this summer.

“It’s a quieter album than I’ve done before,” Petty says, sitting behind the sound desk in his home studio in Malibu. “I don’t think I wasted any lines on this album. I think the songs are all there.”

Petty exudes genuine pride as he debuts for Rolling Stone nine of the songs slated for Highway Companion, including “Square One” and “Turn This Car Around.” He began recording the album last year with Heartbreakers guitarist Mike Campbell and fellow Traveling Wilbury Jeff Lynne. Each contributes guitar parts, Lynne plays keys and a Hofner bass, Campbell plays a hefty amount of slide guitar (“He’s never been better,” says Petty) and, for the first time on record, Petty plays drums. Though they all but finished recording in February, Petty says, “The only thing keeping me from wrapping things up is just going, ‘Well, I wonder if there’s one more in me?’”

Petty plans to incorporate some of these songs into the Heartbreakers tour this summer, which will kick off in June with openers including Pearl Jam, John Mayer, Trey Anastasio and, Petty hopes, the Strokes and the Allman Brothers Band. “I think we should do this tour and then put an end to doing national tours, and just play now and then where we want to play,” he says. “The idea of doing sheds or arenas . . . you turn into an animal by the time it’s done.”

Also, filmmaker Peter Bogdanovich (The Last Picture Show, Mask) has begun shooting a documentary about the Heartbreakers’ history. “We’ve given him access that we’ve never given anybody,” says Petty. Bogdanovich will interview Petty at length and hopes to talk with Bob Dylan, Stevie Nicks and members of Petty’s family.

“We’re trying to give a sense of what happened to this group of kids that came from Gainesville, Florida — how they made the big time,” says Bogdanovich. “How did that change them, and how did they change the world?

“I’m not an expert on Tom Petty, I’m just a fan,” adds Bogdanovich. “But what appeals to me is that he’s a real American artist — an impressionist — very much of the American grain.”

Current Tom Petty Tour Dates

AUSTIN SCAGGS

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Snow Patrol North American Tour

ericclapton — Sun, 09 Apr 2006 12:57:00 +0000

Most of the stops along Snow Patrol’s short U.S. run last month sold out in mere minutes, leaving some fans out in the cold. But the band is returning to North America May 23 — two weeks after the release of its latest outing, Eyes Open – for a 19-gig trek set to launch in Denver and hit cities including Boston, New York, Dallas, Chicago and Seattle before winding down June 20 in Los Angeles.

The band will be showcasing its forthcoming LP for fans during the tour, which will also cross the border for a trio of Canadian dates. Tickets for most of the shows go on sale Friday, while others will be available Saturday and Sunday.

Eyes Open, the follow-up to 2004′s Final Straw, will feature 11 tracks, including “You’re All I Have,” “Chasing Cars,” “Finish Line” and the first single, “Hands Open.” The disc will land in stores on May 9, and features guest spots from Big Star and R.E.M.’s touring keyboardist Ken Stringfellow, Martha Wainwright and some of Scotland’s indie elite, including Eugene Kelly (the Vaselines) and Charlie Clarke (Astrid).

“Hands Open” marks the band’s first flirtation with rock-radio riffs, according to frontman Gary Lightbody, who spoke with MTV News during last month’s South by Southwest Music Conference. Snow Patrol struggled to get the song just right, and Lightbody admitted it hasn’t been easy pulling the tune off live.

“We’d never written a riff before, and there were no vocals over the riff either when we did it — that took me ages to work out, because when we play it live, it’s one of the only songs we’ve ever done where I don’t play guitar, because I can’t play that riff and sing at the same time,” he said, adding that most nights, when the song comes up on the set list, “I end up in the audience.”

There’s no word yet on who will open up for the band, but an announcement is expected within the next few weeks.

Snow Patrol’s North American tour dates, according to the band’s publicist:

5/23 – Denver, CO @ Paramount Theatre
5/25 – Dallas, TX @ Granada Theater
5/26 – Austin, TX @ Stubb’s
5/27 – Houston, TX @ Verizon Wireless Theatre
5/29 – Atlanta, GA @ Coca-Cola Roxy Theatre
5/31 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
6/2 – Boston, MA @ Avalon
6/3 – New York, NY @ Roseland Ballroom
6/5 – Philadelphia, PA @ Electric Factory
6/6 – Montreal, QC @ Metropolis
6/7 – Toronto, ON @ Kool Haus
6/9 – Pontiac, MI @ Clutch Cargo
6/10 – Chicago, IL @ Vic Theatre
6/11 – Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue
6/14 – Vancouver, BC @ Commodore Ballroom
6/15 – Seattle, WA @ Paramount Theatre
6/16 – Portland, OR @ Roseland Theatre
6/18 – San Francisco, CA @ Warfield Theatre
6/20 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Wiltern LG

Chris Harris, with additional reporting by James Montgomery

The entertainment events described in this blog are provided courtesy of the Event Ticket Outlet

NGDB Teams With Nelson During 40th Anniv. Tour

ericclapton — Sat, 08 Apr 2006 05:55:00 +0000

As it celebrates its 40th anniversary, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band will hit the road in North America throughout the year. Among the plans are a string of Canadian dates opening for Willie Nelson.

The tour with Nelson opens April 27 in London, Ontario, and stretches through a May 14-15 stand in St. John’s, Newfoundland. The group will reunite with Nelson for a May 26 show in Uncasville, Conn., and again Sept. 3 in Morrison, Col., for a concert at the famed Red Rocks Amphitheatre.

The summer will find the Dirt Band playing a slate of fairs and festivals including Country Music Festival USA (June 17), North Carolina’s Appalachian Summer Fest (July 15) and the Central Wisconsin State Fair (Aug. 30). More dates are expected.

NGDB currently features founding members Jeff Hanna (guitars, vocals), Jimmie Fadden (drums, harmonica, vocals) and John McEuen (banjo, fiddle, guitar, mandolin) and as well as “newcomer” Bob Carpenter (keyboards, accordion, vocals), who has been in the band for 26 years. The group has released more than 30 albums, including three all-star volumes under the “Will the Circle Be Unbroken” banner.

Earlier this year, Hanna won a best country song Grammy award for co-writing the Rascal Flatts hit “Bless the Broken Road.”

Here are the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band’s tour dates:

April 27: London, Ontario (John Labatt Centre; w/Willie Nelson)
April 28: Ottawa (Civic Centre; w/Willie Nelson)
April 29: Peterborough, Ontario (Memorial Centre; w/Willie Nelson)
April 30: Hamilton, Ontario (Copps Coliseum Arena; w/Willie Nelson)
May 2: Toronto (Air Canada Centre; w/Willie Nelson)
May 3: Montreal (Bell Centre; w/Willie Nelson)
May 5: Fredericton, New Brunswick (Aitken University Centre; w/Willie Nelson)
May 6: Moncton, New Brunswick (Moncton Coliseum; w/Willie Nelson)
May 7: Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island (Island Civic Centre; w/Willie Nelson)
May 9: Saint John, New Brunswick (Harbour Stadium Civic Centre; w/Willie Nelson)
May 10: Halifax, Nova Scotia (Metro Centre; w/Willie Nelson)
May 11: Sydney, Nova Scotia (Centre 200 Arena; w/Willie Nelson)
May 13: Cornerbrook, Newfoundland (Arts and Cultural Center; w/Willie Nelson)
May 14-15: St. John’s, Newfoundland (Mile One Stadium; w/Willie Nelson)
May 19-20: Jackpot, Nev. (Cactus Peteís)
May 26: Uncasville, Conn. (Mohegan Sun Casino; w/Willie Nelson)
June 17: Sauk Centre, Minn. (Country Music Festival USA)
June 18: Deadwood, S.D. (Downtown Deadwood)
July 1: Springfield, Mo. (Springfield-Branson Airport)
July 15: Boone, N.C. (Appalachian Summer Fest)
July 25: Dayton, Wyo. (Scott Centennial Park)
July 26: Lewistown, Mon. (Central Montana Fair)
July 27: Medicine Hat, Alberta (Medicine Hat Stampede)
July 29: Caldwell, Idaho (Canyon County Fair)
July 31: Layton, Utah (Kenley Centennial Amphitheatre)
Aug. 3: Redmond, Ore. (Deschutes County Fair)
Aug. 4: Colusa, Calif. (Colusa Indian Bingo & Casino)
Aug. 30: Marshfield, Wis. (Central Wisconsin State Fair)
Sept. 1: Bayfield, Wis. (Big Top Chautauqua)
Sept. 3: Morrison, Col. (Red Rocks Amphitheatre; w/Willie Nelson)
Oct. 7: Fort Yates, N.D. (Prairie Knights Casino)

Barry A. Jeckell, N.Y.

The entertainment events described in this blog are provided courtesy of the Event Ticket Outlet

Pearl Jam Plots Summer Tour, Petty Dates

ericclapton — Sat, 08 Apr 2006 05:51:00 +0000

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Following the June 3 close of the first leg of Pearl Jam’s North American tour, the band will return to the road June 23 in Pittsburgh. Fourteen dates are set for the second leg through a July 22 show at the Gorge Amphitheatre in George, Wash., with more to be expected.

The Gorge show will be “an evening with” Pearl Jam and won’t feature an opening act. Sonic Youth will support on all but the first two second leg shows, which will boast a performance by former Guided By Voices frontman Robert Pollard.

As tipped here last month, Pearl Jam will also team up with Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers for a June 26-27 stand in St. Paul, Minn., and a July 2-3 engagement in Denver. In most cases, the summer shows will be available for download immediately after their completion from Pearl Jam’s Web site.

Pearl Jam is touring in support of its self-titled debut for J, which arrives May 2. First single “World Wide Suicide” is No. 1 for a third consecutive week on Billboard’s Modern Rock chart, which will be posted tomorrow (April 6) on Billboard.com.

Fans who preorder the album through Apple’s iTunes Music Store will receive exclusive video footage of the band in the studio plus a bonus audio track of “Why Go,” drawn from a Dec. 31, 1992, show in New York. That full concert is included as a bonus CD for preorders submitted via the Pearl Jam site.

The band has also confirmed an April 15 return to “Saturday Night Live” (its first appearance on the NBC show since 1994) and an April 20 club gig at London’s Astoria.

Here are Pearl Jam’s tour dates:

April 20: London (Astoria)
May 9-10: Toronto (Air Canada Centre)
May 12: Albany, N.Y. (Pepsi Arena)
May 13: Hartford, Conn. (New England Dodge Music Arena)
May 16: Chicago (United Center)
May 19: Grand Rapids, Mich. (Van Andel Arena)
May 20: Cleveland (Quicken Loans Arena)
May 22: Auburn Hills, Mich. (Palace of Auburn Hills)
May 24-25: Boston (TD Banknorth Garden)
May 27-28: Camden, N.J. (Tweeter Center)
May 30: Washington, D.C. (MCI Center)
June 1, 3: East Rutherford, N.J. (Continental Airlines Arena)
June 23: Pittsburgh (Mellon Arena)
June 24: Cincinnati (US Bank Arena)
June 26-27: St. Paul, Minn. (Xcel Energy Center)
July 2-3: Denver (Pepsi Center)
July 6: Las Vegas (MGM Grand)
July 7: San Diego (Cox Arena)
July 9-10: Los Angeles (Forum)
July 13: Santa Barbara, Calif. (Santa Barbara Bowl)
July 16, 18: San Francisco (Bill Graham Civic Auditorium)
July 22: George, Wash. (the Gorge)
Aug. 25: Leeds, England (Leeds Festival)
Aug. 27: Reading, England (Reading Festival)

Jonathan Cohen, N.Y.

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Twenty Years Of Rock

ericclapton — Sat, 08 Apr 2006 05:50:00 +0000

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Poison and Cinderalla have a 10-week birthday party planned together this summer, taking place at amphitheatres and fairs across North America.

The two bands, both of which have been together for 20 years, will launch the 52-date tour June 13 in Mankato, Minn. The packed itinerary includes one Canadian date, in Toronto, and stretches through August 25, when they’ll wrap things up at Atlanta’s HiFi Buys Amphitheatre.

Poison just released a new collection, The Best of Poison: 20 Years of Rock, to be followed by a deluxe CD/DVD tour edition in May.

Cinderella also has a best-of compilation coming out soon, with the 2CD Cinderella: Gold set to hit stores April 25.

P.S. Check out Poison Tickets here.

Underground Summer

ericclapton — Sat, 08 Apr 2006 05:50:00 +0000

Check out Sounds of the Underground Tickets here.

Dates are in for the second annual Sounds of the Underground tour, with nearly a dozen bands on board to showcase the many faces of metal.

The summer trek is to span five weeks, starting July 8 in Cleveland and hitting amphitheatres in 27 North American cities.

The tour lineup comprises As I Lay Dying, In Flames, Trivium, Cannibal Corpse, GWAR, Terror, The Black Dahlia Murder, Behomoth, The Chariot, and Through the Eyes of the Dead.

In addition, Evergreen Terrace will jump on board starting July 19 in Jacksonville, Fla., and several special guests will appear in select cities, including Killswitch Engage, Shadows Fall, It Dies Today, and Still Remains.

The final show is to take place August 12 in Los Angeles at the Gibson Amphitheatre.

Tickets for most dates go on sale April 15.

P. S. Check out Sounds of the Underground Tickets here.

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James Gang Hitting The Road This Summer

ericclapton — Tue, 04 Apr 2006 15:10:00 +0000

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Classic rock outfit the James Gang will tour for the first time in 35 years this summer. Original members Joe Walsh, Jimmy Fox and Dale Peters are on board for the trek, which will kick off Aug. 9 at Colorado’s famed Red Rocks Amphitheatre.

Best known for the riff-heavy single “Funk #49,” the James Gang formed in Cleveland in 1966 and released three albums before Walsh departed in 1971, ultimately joining the Eagles. His slot was filled by various guitarists until the James Gang’s 1976 split.

In recent years, the band has played a few one-off shows, including a 1996 election rally for U.S. president Bill Clinton.

James Gang Tour Dates:

James Gang Tickets Aug. 22: Westbury NY (Westbury Music Fair)
James Gang Tickets Aug. 24: Atlanta GA (Chastain Park)
James Gang Tickets Aug. 26: Boca Raton FL (Mizner Amphitheatre)
James Gang Tickets Aug. 27: Tampa FL (Ruth Eckerd Hall)
James Gang Tickets Aug. 30: Dallas TX (Nokia Live)
James Gang Tickets Sept. 6: Los Angeles CA (Gibson Amphitheatre)
James Gang Tickets Sept. 8: Saratoga CA (Mountain Winery)
James Gang Tickets Sept. 9: San Diego CA (Concerts in the Park)

Jonathan Cohen, N.Y.

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Goo Goo Dolls, Counting Crows Team for Tour

ericclapton — Tue, 04 Apr 2006 15:09:00 +0000

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The Goo Goo Dolls and Counting Crows will team up for a summer North American tour. Dates and venues have yet to be announced, but the outing will begin in June and run through December, according to the Goo Goo Dolls’ Web site.

As previously reported, the Goos’ new album, “Let Love In,” will be released April 25 via Warner Bros. First single “Stay With You” will be available tomorrow (April 4) via Apple’s iTunes Music Store. A video for the track is being filmed today.

Counting Crows have played only a handful of shows in the past year and have not released a studio album since 2002′s “Hard Candy” (Geffen). The group will warm up for the summer tour with an April 22 one-off in Kansas City, Kan., as well as a late May appearance at the HFStival in Columbia, Md.

“Things are brewing,” vocalist Adam Duritz writes on the band’s Web site. “We may even see the inside of a studio soon. Things are stirring. It may even be possible to get me out of my house. Kicking and screaming and being dragged… but out.”

Duritz and Crows guitarist David Immergluck recently contributed to demos for a rapper named Notar, whom Duritz calls “one of the best lyricists I’ve heard in ages. Hopefully some lucky record company will see what we see and snap us all up.”

Goo Goo Dolls Concert Dates

August 2006

Goo Goo Dolls Tickets 8/21 – Antioch, TN – Starwood Amphitheater
Goo Goo Dolls Tickets 8/23 – Raleigh, NC – Alltel Pavilion
Goo Goo Dolls Tickets 8/25 – Camden, NJ – Tweeter Waterfront
Goo Goo Dolls Tickets 8/26 – Bristow, VA – Nissan Pavilion
Goo Goo Dolls Tickets 8/28 – Virginia Beach, VA – Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
Goo Goo Dolls Tickets 8/29 – Charlotte, NC – Charlotte Verizon
Goo Goo Dolls Tickets 8/31 – West Palm Beach, FL – Sound Advice Amphitheater

September 2006

Goo Goo Dolls Tickets 9/1 – Tampa, FL – Ford Amphitheater
Goo Goo Dolls Tickets 9/3 – Atlanta, GA – HiFi Buys Amphitheater
Goo Goo Dolls Tickets 9/5 – Birmingham, AL – Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
Goo Goo Dolls Tickets 9/7 – The Woodlands, TX – Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
Goo Goo Dolls Tickets 9/8 – Selma, TX – Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
Goo Goo Dolls Tickets 9/9 – Dallas, TX – Smirnoff Amphitheater

Jonathan Cohen, N.Y.

P.S. Check out Goo Goo Dolls Tickets here.

Snoop Regroups with Dogg Pound for Album, Tour

ericclapton — Tue, 04 Apr 2006 15:08:00 +0000

Snoop Dogg and Tha Dogg Pound have reunited to record the album, “Cali Iz Active,” which will arrive June 27 via Koch and Snoop Dogg’s Doggy Style Records. The set features guest appearances by Busta Rhymes, David Banner, Paul Wall and B-Real, in addition to production by Sean “Diddy” Combs, the Alchemist and Jazze Pha.

The first single is the title track, which was produced by Battlecat. “A lot of people came together to make this Dogg Pound record the biggest and best it can be, and with Snoop’s leadership we can never go wrong,” says Kurupt, also known as Young Gotti. Snoop Dogg adds, “I’m letting everybody know that the West Coast is definitely making a strong comeback.”

Tha Dogg Pound will serve as the opening act for Ice Cube’s upcoming tour, which kicks off April 20 in Anaheim, Calif. and runs through June.

Daz Dillinger and Kurupt released their first album, “Dogg Food,” in 1995 as Tha Dogg Pound, after contributing to debut efforts by both Dr. Dre’s “The Chronic” and Snoop’s “Doggystyle.” The duo’s last album, 2005′s “Dillinger & Young Gotti, Vol. 2: Tha Saga Continues,” has sold 113,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

Clover Hope, N.Y.

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Red Hot Chili Peppers “Stadium” Tour News and Tickets

ericclapton — Tue, 04 Apr 2006 15:07:00 +0000

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The Red Hot Chili Peppers have revealed the cities they will visit on their upcoming North American tour. Dates and venues have yet to be announced for the trek, which will begin in August. A second round of North American shows will get underway in October. Tickets begin going on sale May 7 to fan club members and May 13 to the general public.

The tour comes in support of the Chili Peppers’ double album “Stadium Arcadium,” due May 9 via Warner Bros. First single “Dani California” can be streamed from the band’s Web site. Beforehand, the Peppers will be in Europe for headlining and festival dates from May 30 in Barcelona through a July 14-15, 17-18 stand in London. Also in the pipeline is a May 6 appearance on NBC’s “Saturday Night Live.”

“Stadium Arcadium” will be available in a limited edition package with a bonus DVD featuring the “Dani California” video and a making-of segment, plus track-by-track interviews with band members. This version will be housed in a 3D shadow box with a wooden top, a notepad and a note from each band member.

In addition, fans who pre-order the album from Apple’s iTunes Music Store will receive an exclusive audio interview with the band plus a pre-release download of “Dani California.” Users will also be given a code that grants access to a May 9 tour pre-sale opportunity.

P. S. Check out Red Hot Chili Peppers tickets here.

AmericaJR.com Presents the 24th Annual Downtown Hoedown

ericclapton — Mon, 03 Apr 2006 16:40:00 +0000

AmericaJR.com is proud to present the 24th Annual Downtown Hoedown at Hart Plaza. Detroit’s Downtown Hoedown is known as the World’s Largest Free Country Concert. The event is held each year at Hart Plaza along Detroit’s Beautiful Riverfront bordering Windsor, Ontario. It is a three-day event featuring music, dancing and fun for all ages.

AmericaJR.com will be Broadcasting LIVE from the Downtown Hoedown. We are featuring “The Best Coverage. PERIOD.” on our website. Meeting the Stars, Going Backstage, In Concert, In the Broadcast Center, It’s AmericaJR.com LIVE at the Downtown Hoedown. This year, we have expanded our coverage to include Hoedown News. Read stories about the artists that will be taking the stage.

[ 2006 HOEDOWN :: Schedule of Stars ]
AmericaJR.com is proud to present…

FRIDAY, MAY 19, 2006 –
Local bands TBA
7:00 p.m. Miranda Lambert
8:00 p.m. Josh Gracin
Time TBD Trent Tomlinson
More artists TBA
Headliner-Terri Clark

SATURDAY, MAY 20, 2006 –
Local bands TBA
Time TBD The Kentucky Headhunters
More artists TBA
Headliner-Clay Walker

SUNDAY, MAY 21, 2006 –
Local bands TBA
Time TBD Jamey Johnson
Time TBD Josh Turner
More artists TBA
Headliner-TBA

The entertainment events described in this blog are provided courtesy of the Event Ticket Outlet

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Madonna Ready To Dance On Summer Tour

ericclapton — Mon, 03 Apr 2006 15:30:00 +0000

Check out Madonna Tickets here.

As expected, Madonna will hit the road this summer in support of her 2005 album “Confessions on a Dance Floor.” The tour will begin May 21 in Los Angeles and has dates on tap through a Sept. 3 show in Amsterdam. Contrary to scuttlebutt that the outing would play smaller venues than usual, the Confessions tour will visit arenas throughout the world.

The show itself will “be all out disco, with lots of disco balls,” Madonna told Billboard last summer. “I would focus on dance music and the new record. I already did the older stuff on my Re-Invention tour.” That outing grossed $125 million, according to Billboard Boxscore.

The tour will feature direction by Jamie King, music direction by Stuart Price and costume design by Arianne Phillips and Jean Paul Gaultier.

As previously reported, Madonna will warm up for Confessions with the first festival performance of her career on April 30 at Coachella in Indio, Calif.

Here are Madonna’s tour dates:

April 30: Indio, Calif. (Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival)
May 21: Los Angeles (Forum)
May 27: Las Vegas (MGM Grand Garden Arena)
May 30: San Jose, Calif. (HP Pavilion)
June 5: Fresno, Calif. (Save Mart Center)
June 8: Phoenix (Glendale Arena)
June 14: Chicago (United Center)
June 21: Montreal (Bell Centre)
June 25: Hartford, Conn. (Civic Centre)
June 28-29: New York (Madison Square Garden)
July 6: Boston (TD Bank Garden)
July 12: Philadelphia (Wachovia Center)
July 16: Atlantic City, N.J. (Boardwalk Hall)
July 22: Miami (American Airlines Arena)
July 30: Cardiff, Wales (Millennium Stadium)
Aug. 1, 3: London (Wembley Arena)
Aug. 6: Rome (Olympic Stadium)
Aug. 20: Dusseldorf, Germany (LTU Arena)
Aug. 22: Hannover, Germany (AWD Arena)
Aug. 24: Horsens, Denmark (Forum)
Aug. 27-28: Paris (Bercy)
Sept. 3: Amsterdam (Arena)

Jonathan Cohen, N.Y.

P.S. Check out Madonna Tickets here.

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Pearl Jam, Franz, Muse Set For Reading/Leeds

ericclapton — Mon, 03 Apr 2006 15:22:00 +0000

Check out Pearl Jam Tickets here.

Pearl Jam, Franz Ferdinand and Muse will headline this summer’s Reading and Leeds Festivals in England, which will be held Aug. 25-27. Pearl Jam will headline Leeds on Aug. 25 and Reading on Aug. 27, while Franz Ferdinand will lead the bill at Reading on Aug. 25 and Leeds the following day. Muse is set to perform Aug. 26 in Reading and the next evening in Leeds.

Tickets for the festival go on sale tonight (April 3). Other acts set to appear include Audioslave, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, My Chemical Romance, Belle & Sebastian, the Raconteurs, Primal Scream, Maximo Park, the Futureheads, the Streets, Arctic Monkeys, Placebo, Kaiser Chiefs and Feeder.

For Pearl Jam, these will be the band’s first festival performances since June 30, 2000, at Denmark’s Roskilde Festival, when nine fans were killed during a crowd surge. As previously reported, Pearl Jam will play its first U.K. show in six years on April 20 at London’s Astoria.

As for Muse, the band will release its next, as-yet-untitled album July 3 in the United Kingdom. Franz Ferdinand’s Reading and Leeds appearances will cap a summer European tour in support of its sophomore album, “You Could Have It So Much Better.”

Jonathan Cohen, N.Y.

P.S. Check out Pearl Jam Tickets here.

Foo Fighters “Afoostic” Tour News and Tickets

ericclapton — Mon, 03 Apr 2006 15:21:00 +0000

Check out Foo Fighter Tickets here.

Although the Foo Fighters are taking it easy until frontman Dave Grohl’s first baby is born, the band is still planning to follow through on a previously discussed acoustic tour. “We’re going to start rehearsing very soon,” drummer Taylor Hawkins tells Billboard.com of the trek, which will focus on the less aggressive songs on the 2005 double album “In Your Honor.”

Hawkins expects rehearsals to begin right after the April 24 completion of a two-week solo tour with his band the Coattail Riders. The group’s self-titled debut was released March 21 via Thrive Records.

The Foos are already slated to play several U.K. festivals in June, but no North American dates have been announced yet. “We might do some stuff before [June], but there is nothing on the books,” says Hawkins, adding, “We’re knockin’ some stuff around, though.”

For the acoustic dates, the Foos have signed up an auxiliary backing band featuring multi-instrumentalist Petra Haden, pianist Rami Jaffee and percussionist Drew Hester. Haden and Jaffee both guested on “In Your Honor”; Haden’s Foo Fighters association dates back a decade, when her band, that dog, toured with the Foos in North America.

Despite his impending fatherhood, Grohl has found time to guest behind the drums on the new album from Juliette & the Licks, who are fronted by actress Juliette Lewis. The as-yet-untitled set is expected in early fall.

Foo Fighters Tour Dates

Katy Kroll, N.Y.

P.S. Check out Foo Fighter Tickets here.

Fall Out Boy ‘Black Clouds And Underdog Tour’ Invades Tampa, FL On Thursday April 27, 2006

ericclapton — Sat, 01 Apr 2006 11:42:00 +0000

Fall Out Boy brings their ‘Black Clouds And Underdogs’ 2006 arena tour to the St. Pete Times Forum April 27 with special guests All-American Rejects and Hawthorne Heights. In addition, Fall Out Boy has been nominated for a Grammy Award in the “Best New Artist” Category, alongside Ciara, John Legend, Keane and Sugarland. This year’s MTV2 VMA award-winner, Fall Out Boy, recently featured on the cover of the December issue of Spin magazine and currently as Alternative Press ‘Artist Of The Year’, was also named the ‘Breakout’ band of the year by Entertainment Weekly and the ‘Breakthrough’ act by People. Their RIAA platinum-plus major label debut album on Island Records, From Under The Cork Tree, is currently #11 on the Billboard 200 Albums chart.

After completing their two-month sold-out headlining spot on the ‘Nintendo Fusion’ tour last Fall, Fall Out Boy move up from ballroom and auditorium dates to full-out arena shows – headlining a bill with All-American Rejects, Hawthorne Heights, From First to Last, and a Decaydance Records act to be named.

From Under The Cork Tree, produced, recorded and mixed by Neal Avron (New Found Glory, Everclear, Wallflowers) was released on May 3rd to a rave review in Rolling Stone; it went on to hold the #1 spot on the influential Alternative Press ‘Reader’s Chart’ for months.

“Sugar, We’re Goin’ Down,” a career-defining single, made it to #1 on MTV’s TRL countdown shortly after its debut in April, stayed in the TRL countdown for over 10 weeks, and was the #1 most played video on MTV. At the same time, MTV2 “unleashed” the clip with a rare all-day video premiere, and it rose to the music channel’s “Elite 8,” emblematic of the support for Fall Out Boy going back to 2004, when MTVU first ran a contest during the recording of the album. The cable network FUSE has also been influential in Fall Out Boy’s success, with the video airing hundreds of times since its premiere on Seventh Avenue Drop.

“Dance, Dance,” made its TRL premiere in October and quickly hit #1 on the countdown. After enjoying premieres on MTV2, FUSE and Yahoo!, “Dance, Dance” followed its predecessor into “Elite 8″ rotation on MTV2 and is receiving extensive play on MTV. The track, currently #15 with a bullet on Billboard’s Top 40 Monitor, is a Modern Rock radio favorite and is currently the # 5 most downloaded song on iTunes and # 1 most streamed single at Rhapsody, the # 5 selling Soundscan digital single and the #5 video On AOL Music. “Sugar, We’re Goin Down” peaked at #3 on the Modern Rock Tracks chart, #6 on both the Top 40 Mainstream and Pop 100 lists, and #8 on the Hot 100. It remains a top seller at iTunes, the # 2 most streamed single at Rhapsody, a top video at Yahoo! Music, AOL Music and the # 10 selling Soundscan digital single.

Fall Out Boy – Patrick Stump (vocals/guitar), Pete Wentz (bass), Joe Trohman (guitar), and Andy Hurley (drums) – won over audiences on the annual ‘Vans Warped Tour’ this past summer, playing to thousands of fans daily and drawing the biggest crowds each night. It was followed by their headline run on the sold-out ‘Nintendo Fusion Tour.’ Critics lauded the band and their performance on the tour. The Chicago Sun Times claimed, “Fall Out Boy’s music has a great sense of urgency and depth… Fall Out Boy’s wild stage presence is also a breath of fresh air. “

Also appearing on the ‘Black Clouds And Underdogs’ tour is Hawthorne Heights and All-American Rejects. Hawthorne Heights debut album, The Silence in Black and White, has sold more than 325,000 copies, heading rapidly towards a gold certification. The bands second album, If Only You Were Lonely, is set to release February 28. The All-American Rejects recently released Move Along with their current hit “Dirty Little Secret.” Their song “The Bite Back”, is available exclusively at iTunes.

Pollstar – the international newsweekly of the music industry, and one of the concert industry’s leading publications, released a report today on ticket sales for the first half of 2005. The St. Pete Times Forum, in its ninth year of operation, ranked as the number one venue in the United States, and second in the world, with a total of 238,627 tickets sold to concerts, events and family shows for the period of 1/1/05 – 6/30/05. The study ranked the top 100 venues in the world by actual ticket sales for concert events and family shows.

The entertainment events described in this blog are provided courtesy of the Event Ticket Outlet.

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INXS Announces Second Leg of North American Tour

ericclapton — Fri, 31 Mar 2006 16:37:00 +0000

Responding to numerous sellouts and hands-down critical acclaim from the “Switched On” tour, multi-platinum rock group INXS will be mounting a second leg to the mega-successful 2006 North American concert trek in the spring. Tour producer Metropolitan Talent Presents is proud to announce that the Australia-based band will kick off the run on April 21 in Memphis. The tour will be highlighted by triumphant returns to New York City, Los Angeles and Chicago, plus 12 stops in Canada, homeland of new lead singer J.D. Fortune.

Fans can expect additional cities all along the West Coast and Texas to be announced in the coming weeks. Confirmed cities so far are listed below.

“The first leg proved that INXS’ winning combination is undeniable” says Metropolitan co-CEO John Scher. “They’re already an iconic group with long time fans. Add in their smash reality TV show, hot new album and phenomenal fan response and its no surprise that almost every seat was snatched up. It’s clear INXS is the don’t miss band to see in 2006.”

INXS has been performing an electrifying mix of songs from its recent album, Switch, including Top 10 hit “Pretty Vegas” and the new single “Afterglow,” along with a jukebox full of past chart-toppers, from “Suicide Blonde” and “New Sensation” to “Never Tear Us Apart” and “What You Need.”

INXS is Andrew Farriss (keyboards/guitar), Tim Farriss (guitar), Jon Farriss (drums), Kirk Pengilly (guitar/saxophone), Garry Beers (bass) and lead singer J.D. Fortune.

INXS ‘Swithed On’ Tour Itinerary – Leg Two
*All dates On Sale Now unless otherwise noted

4/21 Memphis, TN Orpheum Theatre
4/22 Nashville, TN Ryman Auditorium
4/23 Cincinnati, OH Aronoff Center
4/25 Columbus, OH Palace Theatre
4/26 Louisville, KY Louisville Palace
4/28-29 Atlantic City, NJ House of Blues
5/1 Pittsburgh, PA Heinz Hall – on sale 3/27
5/2 Washington, DC DAR Constitution Hall
5/4 Bridgeport, CT Arena at Harbor Yard
5/5 New York, NY Radio City Music Hall
5/8 Moncton, NB Moncton Coliseum
5/9 Halifax, NS Metro Centre
5/11 Montreal, PQ Bell Centre
5/12 Ottawa, ON Scotiabank Place
5/14 Toronto, ON Air Canada Centre
5/15 London, ON John Labatt Centre
5/16 Kitchener, ON Memorial Auditorium
5/19 Cleveland, OH State Theatre – on sale 3/31
5/20 Milwaukee, WI Riverside Theatre
5/22 Indianapolis, IN Murat Theatre – on sale 4/8
5/23 Chicago, IL Rosemont Theater
5/25 Minneapolis, MN Orpheum Theatre
5/26 Winnipeg, MB MTS Centre
5/27 Saskatoon, SK Credit Union Centre
5/29 Calgary, AB Pengrowth Saddledome
5/30 Edmonton, AB Rexall Place
6/1 Vancouver, BC General Motors Place
6/16 Los Angeles, CA Greek Theatre – on sale 4/1

The rock concert events described in this blog are provided courtesy of the Event Ticket Outlet.

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Korn Rock Hometown, Have Street Named After Them On ‘Official Korn Day’

ericclapton — Thu, 30 Mar 2006 17:13:00 +0000

Check out Korn Tickets and Family Values Tour Tickets here.

It’s not exactly one of Bakersfield’s busiest streets, but the back access road to Rabobank Arena was named Korn Row on Friday, a day Mayor Harvey Hall officially declared Korn Day.

The green street sign, which stands just a few feet from train tracks that run behind the venue, uses the band’s signature logo, backwards “R” and all.

“It kind of makes us get teary-eyed a little bit,” singer Jonathan Davis confessed to the few hundred fans who attended the mid-afternoon ceremony where the sign and a Korn plaque on the venue were unveiled. “It’s because of all you coming and supporting us.”

After the presentation, the singer told MTV News that the whole thing felt a little surreal.

“This [city] was a place that I dreaded as a teenager because there wasn’t much stuff to do, but it’s always going to hold a special place in my heart,” he said. “It’s a little bit too much to handle. Like, what are these politicians doing here saying they like us?”

It was quite a sight to see a gray-haired mayor man-hugging Fieldy, a state senator’s spokesperson telling fans to “rock on” and a county supervisor calling Korn “the godfather[s] of heavy metal,” but chalk it up to a little hometown pride.

“I asked them to name a Korn song, and they did,” Davis said.

Friday’s street naming was held in conjunction with the kickoff to Korn’s See You on the Other Side tour, which marked the band’s fourth time playing Rabobank, more than any other band.

The show, living up to Davis’ promise of a something special, was heavy on rarities and featured twice as many musicians on stage as a usual Korn performance.

Following sets from 10 Years and Mudvayne, the band took the stage with “It’s On!” and followed with three additional lesser-known tracks (“Clown,” “Divine” and “Love Song”) before playing a hit single, “Falling Away From Me.”

The first three songs featured the band’s current lineup Davis, guitarist Munky, bassist Fieldy and drummer David Silveria — but before “Love Song,” curtains on both sides of Silveria dropped to reveal a second percussionist, second guitarist, keyboardist and backup singer/multi-instrumentalist.

All wearing different animal masks, the additional musicians helped fill the shoes of departed guitarist Brian “Head” Welch and conquer the additional instrumentation on Korn’s latest album, See You on the Other Side. But more than anything else, the extra musicians gave the band an added thickness, especially with thunderous cannon drums.

“It’s exciting with the new elements there,” Davis said backstage. “We knew we wanted to do something different and over the top and not a typical Korn show, so we’re doing new things.”

Another Korn first was packaging some of their hits and live favorites into a medley, which kicked off with Davis returning to the stage in a kilt and playing the bagpipes intro to “Shoots and Ladders” — yielding the loudest crowd response of the night.

A few songs later, after “Got the Life,” Davis closed the first set by himself, delicately singing “Tearjerker” over the sound of guitar feedback.

For the encore, Korn re-emerged with “Twisted Transistor” and another new one, “Hypocrites,” before going out with the one-two punch of “Freak on a Leash” and “Blind,” featuring a momentum-building extended opening from Silveria.

During both the show and the ceremony before, Davis kept his banter to a minimum.

“I’m not trying to go out there and be the center of attention,” the singer explained backstage. “I don’t have LSD: lead singer’s disease.”

During the street sign presentation, however, he did make sure to promise one thing to Korn’s screaming fans, congregating in front of a massive “Welcome Home Korn” sign hanging from a nearby building.

“We will work on getting a real street some day,” he said with a smile.

Family Values Tour Dates

August

September

P. S. Check out Korn Tickets and Family Values Tour Tickets here.

Soul2Soul: Tim McGraw & Faith Hill Tour

ericclapton — Thu, 30 Mar 2006 16:52:00 +0000

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Husband-and-wife team Tim McGraw and Faith Hill will head out this spring on their first co-headlining trek since their 2000 “Soul2Soul” tour.

The outing, dubbed “Soul2Soul II,” is set to launch April 21 in Columbus, OH, and is expected to visit more than 70 cities. Hill hasn’t toured since the 2000 co-bill with McGraw, which barely edged out the Dixie Chicks as the top-grossing country tour of that year.

Organizers have announced cities and venues for seven of the tour’s stops, as well as a long list of additional markets for which additional information is pending. Details are in the itinerary below.

“Along with some never before seen musical performances and what insiders are calling one of the most unique set designs ever made, the latest in visual technology and lighting design, ‘Soul2Soul II’ tour will include many of Tim and Faith’s biggest hits and duets,” reads a press release announcing the tour, which is being presented by The Hershey Company.

Hill is backing her 2005 release “Fireflies,” which last August entered The Billboard 200 album chart at No. 1. The 14-track set spawned the hit single “Mississippi Girl.”

McGraw, a mainstay on the tour circuit who is also one of the concert industry’s top draws, released his latest album, “Live Like You Were Dying,” in 2004.

Faith Hill/Tim McGraw Soul to Soul Tour Dates

08/05/06 – Salt Lake City, UT, US
08/06/06 – Boise, ID, US
08/08/06 – Portland, OR, US
08/09/06 – Seattle, WA, US
08/10/06 – Seattle, WA, US
08/12/06 – Sacramento, CA, US
08/13/06 – San Jose, CA, US
08/14/06 – Fresno, CA, US
08/17/06 – Los Angeles, CA, US
08/18/06 – Los Angeles, CA, US
08/19/06 – Los Angeles, CA, US
08/25/06 – Phoenix, AZ, US
08/26/06 – Phoenix, AZ, US
09/01/06 – Las Vegas, NV, US
09/02/06 – Las Vegas, NV, US
09/03/06 – Las Vegas, NV, US

P.S. Check out Soul to Soul Tickets here.

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A Lollapalooza of a Show

ericclapton — Thu, 30 Mar 2006 16:43:00 +0000

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This summer’s Lollapalooza lineup has been announced and the Chicago event goes like this:

Three days, 120 artists including Red Hot Chili Peppers; Chicago’s own Kanye West, Wilco, Common, Umphrey’s McGhee, Poi dog Pondering, Smoking Popes, the Redwalls and the M’s.; Manu Chao, The Flaming Lips, Ween Death Cab for Cutie, Raconteurs, Queens of the Stone Age, The Shins, Iron & Wine, Matisyahu, Ryan Adams, Sonic Youth, Nada Surf, the New Pornographers, Dresden Dolls, Sleater-Kinney, Sparta, She Wants Revenge … and the list goes on and on.

“We want the fans to discover and explore,” said Perry Farrell, founder and creator of what is considered the “original” modern festival. “That’s what Lollapalooza is all about: sounds of all genres swirling about as you walk through the expanse of Grant Park.”

Tickets are now officially on sale for the August 4-6 party in Grant Park.

P.S. Check out Lollapalooza Tickets here.

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Ozzfest Goes to 11

ericclapton — Thu, 30 Mar 2006 16:32:00 +0000

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Metal’s perenial metal behemoth, Ozzfest, lumbers into its second decade this July with Ozzy Osbourne, System of a Down, disturbed, Hatebreed, Lacuna Coil, and a whole bunch more.

Ozzfest will roll out July 1 in San Francisco and visit 20 cities. Founder and namesake Ozzy Osbourne is set to headline just 10 shows this summer “because after 10 years I feel it’s time to let someone else share the headlining spotlight.

We want to shake it up a bit this year,” Ozzy said. “I’ve closed virtually every Ozzfest performance for a decade now and I feel I can finally let other artists headline our festival and that’s my intention for the future.”

This year’s main stage lineup features headliner System Of A Down and such formidable artists as Disturbed, Hatebreed, and Lacuna Coil. Fans can expect a major main stage addition to be announced May 23.

P.S. Check out Ozzfest Tickets here.

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Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival

ericclapton — Thu, 30 Mar 2006 16:07:00 +0000

The 2006 Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival will be held April 29-30 at Empire Polo Field in Indio, California. More than 80 artists are scheduled to play the seventh edition of the two-day fest. Depeche Mode, Tool, Franz Ferdinand, Paul Oakenfold, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Sigur Rós, Common, Matisyahu, TV on the Radio, Danger Mouse, Damian Marley, HARD-Fi, She Wants Revenge, Cat Power and the Like are among the artists scheduled to play.

Depeche Mode will close the first night on the main stage, and Tool closes up the show on Sunday.

The official lineup:

Saturday, April 29 Depeche Mode, Daft Punk, Franz Ferdinand, Sigur Ros, Damian Jr Gong Marley, Common, Atmosphere, Carl Cox, My Morning Jacket, TV on the Radio, Ladytron, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Tosca, Cat Power, animal Collective, HARD-Fi, Derrick Carter, Devendra Banhart, She Wants Revenge, The Walkmen, The Juan Maclean, Imogen Heap, Audio Bullys, Lady Sovereign, Deerhoof, The Duke Spirit, Eagles of Death Metal, Lyrics Born, Matt Costa, The New Amsterdams, The Zutons, Platinum Pied Pipers, White Rose Movement, Chris Liberator, Colette, Joey Beltram, Hybrid, Living Things, Wolfmother, The Like, Nine Black Alps, Celebration, The Section Quartet, Shy FX & T Power, Infusion

Sunday, April 30 Tool, Massive Attack, Madonna, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Bloc Party, Paul Oakenfold, Scissor Sisters, Matisyahu, James Blunt, Sleater-Kinney, Mogwai, Coheed and Cambria, Wolf Parade, Gnarls Barkley, Phoenix, Coldcut, Digable Planets, Amadou & Mariam, Louie Vega, Mylo (DJ Set), Seu Jorge, Ted Leo & Pharmacists, The Go! Team, Kaskade, Metric, Editors, Art Brut, Dungen, The Dears, Jamie Lidell, The Magic Numbers, Los Amigos Invisibles, Jazzanova, stellastarr, Michael Mayer, Murs featuring 9^th wonder, Mates of State, Gilles Peterson, Infadels, Gabriel & Dresden, The Subways, Minus the Bear, OneRepublic, Be Your Own Pet, Youth Group, Giant Drag, Kristina Sky, The Octopus Project

The sports and entertainment events described in this blog are provided as a courtesy by the Event Ticket Outlet.

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Get Your Motor Runnin (Sturgis Motorcycle Rally)

ericclapton — Thu, 30 Mar 2006 13:59:00 +0000

Check out Tom Petty tickets here.

The massive Stugis Bike Week is a 65 year American tradition for motorcycle fans but this year you can get yer motor runnin’ and rock out, too.

A new concert series, Rock’n The Rally, will present Aerosmith, Sammy Hagar, Big & Rich, Keith Urban, Steve Miller, Cheap Trick, Steppenwolf, Fabulous Thunderbirds, REO Speedwagon, .38 Special, Foghat, Georgia Satellites, Greg Rollie, Cross Canadian Ragweed, Shooter Jennings and others in Sturgis, S.D., August 6-10.

The concerts will take place in a 34-acre natural grass amphitheatre that will seat tens of thousands.

Construction on the Rock’n The Rally site began last September at the Glencoe Camp Resort. Glencoe owner Gary Lippold, along with festival producers Dork Fish Inc., have planned the Rock’n The Rally as an annual event.

“We took the reverse view of the ‘build it and they will come’ theory,” Dork Fish’s Mark Russo said. “We figured, 600,000 people attend Sturgis Bike Week each year, let’s build it where they already are.”

This will be the first year that a stand-alone festival coincides with motorcycle extravaganza, which runs from August 7th through the 13th.

“We are providing a safe, modern, and expansive venue with a full line-up each day of world-class acts that appeal to the Bike Rally’s audience,” property owner Gary Lippold said.

“For 66 years, Sturgis Bike Week has been a celebration of independence and freedom, the same concepts that define Rock ‘n Roll. We’re adding a new music festival to Bike Week in a classy way… to give our guests a great concert experience.”

Current Tom Petty Tour Dates

Check out Tom Petty tickets here.
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New Cars Ready To Roll With Album, Tour

ericclapton — Thu, 30 Mar 2006 12:52:00 +0000

Confirming long-standing speculation, Cars guitarist Elliot Easton and keyboardist Greg Hawkes have drafted Todd Rundgren to front a new version of the band, appropriately dubbed the New Cars. The lineup is rounded out by singer/bassist Kasim Sulton and Tubes drummer Prairie Prince. Original Cars vocalist Ric Ocasek is not involved in the new endeavor; original bassist/vocalist Ben Orr passed away in 2000.

“When Ric made it clear to us that he really no longer wished to tour, and Greg and I wanted to do this thing, we sort of cast about for who we could get to be in the band. Who would be a great frontman and a great writer?” Easton tells Billboard.com. “I sort of came up with a very short list, and Todd was at the top of it. To my very pleasant surprise, he was receptive to the idea. It’s just a great fit. It sounds terrific. He’s a lot of fun to play with.”

The newly formed quintet debuted in front of an invite-only audience in January in Burbank, Calif. Several tracks from that show will be released May 9 on the album “It’s Alive” via Eleven Seven Music. The set also features three new tracks penned by Easton, Hawkes and Rundgren, “Not Tonight,” “Warm,” and “More.” A European release will follow shortly thereafter.

“We have played, but they’re not shows in the sense that it was a venue where somebody could buy a ticket,” explains Rundgren. “We had to come up with some sort of recorded product, and it was always the intent to come up with a live album. It just was also the intent to have played live before we did that [laughs]. So we had an invited audience on a soundstage, and we played three nights. We tried to make it as much of a gig as possible, but reality-wise, it was the first three shows we ever played.”

As for the new tracks, Rundgren says “they were the final product of a process of various combinations of us getting together and trying to write songs — including alone, in twos and sometimes all of us together. Just trying to figure out what we wanted to play, and how we could update the sound and not lose original Cars fans.”

The New Cars will hit the road with Blondie beginning May 12 in Robinsonville, Miss. “The hopes are after that to do Europe and beyond that, Australia, Asia and New Zealand, and then come back, and do another swing of the States,” Easton says. Fans who purchase tickets via VH1Classic.com or Ticketmaster.com will receive free five-song download bundles from eMusic.com of tracks from “It’s Alive” plus unreleased live Blondie recordings and the band’s new cover of Roxy Music’s “More Than This.”

Easton insists there is no ill will between Ocasek and the New Cars. “I have been in contact with [Ocasek],” he says. “I read in some press thing that Ric did where he said he just wanted to see Greg and I be happy. I thought that was a very nice thing to say, and I wish him the same.”

Here is the track list for “It’s Alive”:

“Just What I Needed”

“Let’s Go”

“Candy-O”

“You Might Think”

“Best Friend’s Girl”

“I Saw The Light”

“You’re All I’ve Got Tonight”

“Not Tonight”

“Drive”

“Moving In Stereo”

“Shake It Up”

“Dangerous Type”

“Bye Bye Love”

“Open My Eyes”

“Good Times Roll”

“Not Tonight” (new studio recording)

“Warm” (new studio recording)

“More” (new studio recording)

Here are the New Cars/Blondie tour dates:

May 12: Robinsonville, Miss. (Grand Casino)

May 13: Grand Prairie, Texas (Nokia Theatre)

May 17: Phoenix (Dodge Theatre)

May 19: Las Vegas (Aladdin Theatre)

May 20: Universal City, Calif. (Gibson Amphitheatre)

May 23: Alpine, Calif. (Viejas Casino)

May 25: Saratoga, Calif. (Mountain Winery)

May 26: Reno, Nev. (Events Center)

May 27: Kelseyville, Calif. (Konocti Field)

May 30: Englewood, Colo. (Coors Amphitheatre)

June 3: Highland Park, Ill. (Ravinia Pavilion)

June 4: Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio (Blossom Music Center)

June 6: Vienna, Va. (Wolf Trap)

June 7: Boston (Bank of America Pavilion)

June 9: Wantagh, N.Y. (Jones Beach)

June 10: Holmdel, N.J. (PNC Bank Arts Center)

June 13: Orlando, Fla. (Hard Rock Live)

June 14: Clearwater, Fla. (Ruth Eckerd Hall)

June 15: Hollywood, Fla. (Seminole Hard Rock Hotel)

June 17: Atlanta (Chastain Park Amphitheatre)

June 18: Charleston, S.C. (Oyster Shell)

June 21: Toronto (Molson Amphitheatre)

June 23: Montreal (Bell Centre)

June 24: Atlantic City, N.J. (Borgata)

June 25: Uncasville, Conn. (Mohegan Sun)

June 30: Clarkston, Mich. (DTE Energy Music Theatre)

July 1: Saratoga Springs, N.Y. (Saratoga Springs PAC)

Greg Prato, N.Y.

The rock concert events described in this blog are provided courtesy of the Event Ticket Outlet.

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South by Southwest: An Embarrassment of Rock Riches Despite the Crowds

ericclapton — Wed, 29 Mar 2006 17:33:00 +0000

If you’re on a plane sitting next to a suited-and-booted A&R guy blabbing about the new band he’s signed, a sort of “Spanish System of a Down, but with an edge,” and British singer/songwriter Beth Orton is seated in an exit row in front of you, it’s a pretty safe bet that you’re on a flight bound for the South by Southwest music conference in Austin, Texas.

Every March, SXSW turns the college town/state capital of Austin into the epicenter of the music world with a pulsating, weeklong party where bands come to get noticed, get famous, get drunk and get … some other things too.

But it’s not just musicians flooding the city — label bosses, industry yes-men, publicists, writers, party planners and fashion designers flock to Austin as well. And this year, they seemed to outnumber the bands — no small feat considering there were more than 1,400 acts booked throughout the city.

The headline of Friday’s Austin American-Statesman asked “Is it too big?” and many who attended the 20th annual incarnation of the festival would probably say yes. SXSW has grown each year — particularly over the last five — and some of the things that had previously made it so appealing (a laid-back disposition, the ability to casually hop between several gigs a night) are no longer present as crowds and pressures have grown. Many of the biggest shows had long lines to get in, and attendees became a lot more selective about which gigs they wanted to see. Indeed, so many people didn’t even bother trying to get in to the conference’s most buzzed-about show — a set by the Arctic Monkeys — that up to 45 minutes before the band hit the stage, people were still breezing in with a minimal wait.

But make no mistake: SXSW is still the greatest rock combo platter on earth, it just takes a lot more work to get what you want out of it.

On Wednesday night, anyone lucky enough to wander over to the parking lot of local watering hole the Fox & Hound were treated to a surprise gig from the Flaming Lips, who ripped through a surreal, smoke-and-balloon-filled set highlighted by a thundering version of Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” and a fuzzy take on “The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song,” the first single from their upcoming At War With the Mystics.

Other highlights included a bubbly set from Athens, Georgia’s Of Montreal at Emo’s (followed by a screeching onstage workout from Austin’s own … And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead), and Norway’s Serena Maneesh, a wild-looking band whose feedback-laden fusion of My Bloody Valentine, Spiritualized and Sonic Youth was slightly overshadowed by their striking bassist: a 6-foot tall, rail-thin pale woman with bleached-blond hair and a ferocious stage presence.

SXSW afternoons are rife with parties (inevitably featuring multiple bands), and the Fader‘s was unquestionably the highlight, held in the backyard of a house on Sixth Street and featuring a mixture of rock and hip-hop artists playing 30-45 minute sets. The odd man out in both of those realms was Argentine/ Swedish singer José González, who performed gentle songs redolent of bossa nova, accompanied only by his classical guitar; the fans up front loved him but sadly the majority spent his set talking. Far removed from Gonzalez were the Eagles of Death Metal — with Queens of the Stone Age‘s Josh Homme on drums — who must have shouted out the ladies in the house 15 times during their 45-minute set of bone-basic riff rock.

A bit farther up Sixth, at the French Kiss Records showcase, much-buzzed Minneapolis noiseniks the Plastic Constellations played a raw and rollicking 45-minute set full of detuned, ringing guitars and shouted, youthful vocals (plus a guest appearance by the Hold Steady‘s Craig Finn.)

The Flaming Lips served up another surprise (acoustic) gig on Thursday, but the week’s biggest secret show was the Beastie Boys early in the evening at Stubb’s — although it was far from secret by Thursday afternoon, when a long line started to wrap around the block. The Beasties — in town to promote their new live film, “Awesome: I F—in’ Shot That!” — served up a set peppered with classics like “Brass Monkey,” “Paul Revere” and “No Sleep Till Brooklyn,” Ad-Rock, MCA and Mike D made inside jokes that they called “banter,” which MCA explained to the industry crowd was an “industry term.”

Morrissey also trotted out the hits during his not-so-secret show across town at the Austin Music Hall, where — even though he said he’d turned down an offer to reform the Smiths for a $5 million gig — songs from his former band punctuated his set, from “How Soon Is Now?” to “Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me.” But rather than live in yesterday, Morrissey made a point out of showcasing several new songs from his libido-loaded Ringleader of the Tormentors album, which includes such promising titles as “Life Is a Pigsty.”

Thursday wrapped with a stunning set from the husband-and-wife duo Mates of State, whose soaring harmonies and startling dynamic range (their sound consists entirely of keyboards/drums/vocals) are in their best form yet on their brand-new LP, Bring It Back. A quick dash up the street to the Blender bar yielded a raucous set from the very loud and very British Rakes.

Friday got under way with a hushed, mumbled performance from Baltimore teenagers Metal Hearts but quickly shifted into high gear thanks to a fiery (and free) afternoon set from My Chemical Romance, who took the stage to a cacophony of camera flashes and screaming female fans. Frontman Gerard Way — looking a bit like a gothic Elvis Presley — flailed and strutted through it all, acknowledging MCR’s apparent rust (they hadn’t played live in almost three months) and talking up the band’s upcoming new album.

The night ended with the aforementioned Arctic Monkeys, who took the stage at La Zona Rosa riding a wave of SXSW buzz. Despite some snottiness at the beginning of the set due to the overabundance of photographers, they managed to live up to the hype, tearing through songs from their debut, Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not, with a professionalism and poise that belied their young years.

Saturday started off early with a rousing set from L.A.’s the Color, who dress like the Black Crowes circa 1990 (all scarves, pointy boots and black jeans) and hew a similarly simple but effective rootsy riff rock. Most impressively, they were playing a small bar at 12:30 on a very rainy afternoon to about 20 people, yet they preened and strutted as if they were headlining Madison Square Garden.

A stop at another Fader party featured this month’s cover artists, Sweden’s Love Is All (who play a kind of angular indie pop heavy on saxophone, percussion and enthusiastically shouted vocals). After an approximately 90-minute wait, Ghostface Killah finished off the party with an hour-long set loaded with material from his forthcoming LP, Fishscale, as well as a couple of Wu-Tang chestnuts and a touching moment of silence for ODB (during which Ghostface had the lights dimmed and asked the crowd to hold their cell phones aloft), followed by a quick version of Dirty’s “Shimmy Shimmy Ya.”

The festivities closed with a completely unhinged party held by Vice magazine at a warehouse-sized art gallery outside of downtown that had a giant blue genie on its roof. At the show — which stretched well into Sunday morning — Toronto’s Stills played their second set of the evening (the first of which had ended less than two hours earlier) loaded with songs from their mature and impressively far-reaching forthcoming LP, Without Feathers. They were followed by Wolfmother, who played a blistering, abbreviated set that left ears ringing, amps feeding back and the bandmembers staggering off the stage. The show came to a close with a hefty performance by Tres Hombres, a portly ZZ Top tribute band that provided some Texas-sized entertainment for those who hadn’t already had enough.

The rock concert events described in this blog are provided courtesy of the Event Ticket Outlet.

Sheryl Crow Reschedules First Round Of Tour Dates

ericclapton — Wed, 29 Mar 2006 17:15:00 +0000

Check out Sheryl Crow Tickets here.

Sheryl Crow, who has been undergoing radiation treatment since having minor surgery for breast cancer last month, has rescheduled her first round of tour dates following the postponement of her North American spring trek three weeks ago.

The 44-year-old nine-time Grammy winner, who broke the news of her illness on her Web site in late February isn’t letting the disease get the best of her as she kicks off her tour June 12 in Indianapolis and wraps it up June 27 in Atlanta.

Crow also announced she will support the Dave Matthews Band when they take the field at Boston’s Fenway Park July 7 and 8 as part of their extensive summer outing.

Crow hopes to reschedule additional shows at a later date, according to her Web site, including ones in Omaha, Nebraska; Newark, New Jersey; Manchester, New Hampshire; Norfolk, Virginia; Erie, Pennsylvania; and Verona, New York. Unfortunately gigs in Houston, St. Louis and Atlantic City, New Jersey, will not be reworked due to “scheduling complications.”

Crow will be promoting her latest effort, Wildflower, currently fueled by the deeply personal second single, “Always on Your Side.” Texas-bred crooner Jack Ingram will occupy the supporting slot.

Sheryl Crow’s rescheduled tour dates, according to her record label:

6/12 – Indianapolis, IN @ Murat Centre
6/13 – Evansville, IN @ The Centre
6/14 – Bloomington, IL @ U.S. Cellular Coliseum
6/16 – Minneapolis, MN @ Orpheum Theater
6/17 – Cedar Rapids, IA @ U.S. Cellular Center
6/20 – Grand Prairie, TX @ NOKIA Theatre
6/21 – Corpus Christi, TX @ Concrete Street Amphitheater
6/22 – Austin, TX @ Bass Hall
6/24 – Memphis, TN @ Orpheum Theater
6/25 – Huntsville, AL @ Von Braun Center Arena
6/27 – Atlanta, GA @ Fabulous Fox Theater
7/4 – Rama, ON @ Casino Rama
7/5 – Rama, ON @ Casino Rama
7/6 – Boston, MA @ Fenway Park
7/7 – Boston, MA @ Fenway Park

— Brandee J. Tecson

P.S. Check out Sheryl Crow Tickets here.

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Def Leppard, Journey to Rock Arenas

ericclapton — Wed, 29 Mar 2006 17:01:00 +0000

Check out Def Leppard & Journey Tickets here.

No strangers to arenas, Eighties rockers Def Leppard and Seventies ballad masters Journey are teaming up for a massive, three-month summer tour that kicks off June 23rd in Camden, New Jersey, and wraps August 31st in Seattle.Journey has sold more than seventy-five million albums over the course of their three-decade career. Last year, the band released their nineteenth album, Generations, and were honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Although Journey, after seven years of animosity, were reunited with former vocalist Steve Perry at the unveiling of their star last January, Perry will not be touring with the group. Journey’s current lineup, in place since 1998, features Steve Augeri on vocals, founding guitarist Neal Schon, bassist Ross Valory, keyboardist Jonathan Cain and drummer Deen Castronovo.

Meanwhile, Def Leppard released a twenty-fifth anniversary greatest hits package last year, and spent the better part of 2005 touring alongside Bryan Adams and Cheap Trick. While the rockers are slated to release Yeah! — a collection of covers of tunes by bands from E.L.O. to Thin Lizzy — in time for their summer tour, the group is also preparing to record a new studio album, due in 2007.

“We’ve really tried to gather ideas on the road,” guitarist Vivian Campbell told Rolling Stone earlier this year.

Def Leppard and Journey Fall Concert Dates

August 2006

September 2006

October 2006

Dane Smith

P. S. Check out Def Leppard & Journey Tickets here.

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