LAME.

LAME. LAME. I can't think of anyone who would be interested in such a thing. Let me know if I'm wrong.

Live Nation Teams With Microsoft

What do you get when the world’s largest concert promotion company teams up with the biggest software company on the planet? A browser that gives you a free Nickelback song.

Fans who download a customized version of MS Internet Explorer 8 at www.ie8-nickelback.com will get exclusive access to a live version of the band’s “Something In Your Mind” along with those always popular “behind-the-scenes” videos of life on the road.

In addition to the Nickelback-enabled version of IE 8, Live Nation and Microsoft are also offering a Bamboozle-flavored browser. Located at www.ie8-thebamboozlefestival.com, the customized browser provides access to interviews from more than 50 Bamboozle bands, including All Time Low, 3OH!3 and We The Kings.

As you’ve probably guessed by now, IE 8 is a sponsor of Nickelback’s Dark Horse 2009 tour and Live Nation’s Bamboozle Music Festival. The LN/MS hookup demonstrates the flexibility of the IE 8 browser and how it can be customized to provide users with information such as ticket deals, onsale dates and promotions. You can bet there are more customized browsers waiting in the wings.

Click here for www.ie8-nickleback.com.

Click here for www.ie8-thebamboozlefestival.com.

Click here for Live Nation’s announcement.

[From Live Nation Teams With Microsoft]

Shazam Update [iPhone]

Definitely one of my favorite apps on the iPhone. Not so great with independent music, but when sitting around and arguing who sang that cheesy classic, this app rules.

Shazam Update Brings Intriguing New Features to iPhone App
Written on June 25, 2009 by Darrell Etherington and No one has commented

Shazam (Free, iTunes link) is one of the very few apps that I’ve actually gotten regular use out of, even nearly a year since its initial release. It does what my brain, radio DJs and movie credits can’t always do, which is identify music that I hear in passing while at the mall, during a movie or on the radio. I tag an album, carry it around for a while, remember that I’ve tagged it and pick up a nice new album here and there.

A new update just released for Shazam brings more features, including some that I wouldn’t expect in this kind of software. Expected or not, they are intriguing, and I’m looking forward to finding out if I’ll actually put them to good use.

continue reading... [From Shazam Update Brings Intriguing New Features to iPhone App]

This Weekend - Making it in the 216

There's just so much going on this weekend, I don't even know where to begin...

Okay, maybe I do. Tonight kicks it off early with Ha Ha Tonka at the Beachland or Thunderheist at the Grog Shop. Two diametrically opposed shows, but both worthy of your presence.

Friday is the Au Revoir Simone show at the Grog Shop. You may have seen them highlighted in The Zender Agenda over at Spangle Magazine.

Friday also begins the Made in the 216 event over at the Gordon Square Arts District. Performances will be happening both Friday at Saturday at the Happy Dog. See the bands below.

Saturday continues with the Made in the 216 event.

There's also the Waterloo Arts Festival.

It's also the Larchmere Flea Market & Festival.

It's also the closing night of the This is Cleveland (All the Stuff I See) exhibit happening over at the Lowlife Gallery on Waterloo.

Whew... Sunday is definitely recovery.

Waterloo Arts Fest Music Schedule

This Saturday you should check out some of the music at the Waterloo Arts Fest.

I've been checking out some of these bands, which are openers for other shows this week. Looks to be a pretty good lineup!

Music Stage Schedule

BEACHLAND TAVERN STAGE

12:45-1:30-The Lighthouse and the Whaler

2:00-2:45-Arte Povera

3:15-4:00-The Muttering Retreats

4:30-5:15-The Modern Electric

5:45-6:30-Home and Garden

SCULPTURE GARDEN STAGE

1:15-2:00-Mary Taylor-Brooks with Al Moses & Fred Grupe

2:30-3:15-Heelsplitter

3:45-4:30-Miles Beyond

5:00-5:45-Nelken

6:15-7:00-The Church of the Lazy Bastards

BLUE ARROW RECORDS DJ STAGE

noon-1:30pm - DJ Gaw from WRUW's "On the One" (if it's got a good beat and you can dance to it, he'll be playin' it)

1:30-3:30pm - Miss Allisun (glam, punk, proto-punk, post-punk, etc.)

3:30-5:30pm - Drive Time Radio with Kid Flamingo and The 185th Street Shuffle (all things rock)

5:30-7:00pm - DJ Lawrence Daniel Caswell of WCSB's "No Ways Tired" (spinning soul music and other music for the soul)

DJ Rehka

Here's a couple cool pics from the DJ Rekha performance at CMA's Summer Solstice party... and a party it was. We unfortunately missed Dan Deacon while we were waiting in that mess they called a line, but at least we got in.

DJ Rekha was fun. Very danceable, but that might have been the Great Lakes beer.

picture by Ken

Download the Asher Roth Mixtape [Bonus Tracks]

If you haven't already bought tickets for the Kid Cudi / Asher Roth show, get them now because they're going fast!

This was the album that got me interested in Asher Roth. While it's a very fun mix and highlights Asher's amazing abilities, it's track 13 is what made me respect him. Download it below for free.

The Greenhouse Effect [ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY]
Posted by KUSH on June 18, 2009 at 5:35pm

It's been one year since we first introduced you to Asher Roth. In commemoration of The Greenhouse Effect's original release, we have added a few tracks you may or may not have heard before and a brand new download link.

1. Start The Show
2. Roth Boys
3. Humansirkme
4. SeeMe (Ft. DJ Drama)
5. Cannon
6. Black Mags
7. Mr. Me 2
8. Battle Me
9. Rub On Your Titties
10. SawYou
11. The Sun God Free
12. The Lounge
13. Just Listen
14. Morning Do
15. Demonic
16. Gimme Your Box (Ft. The Roomates)
17. Keep Bouncing (Ft. The Roomates)
18. ThedailyKUSHdotcom (Ft. DJ Drama)
19. Dey Know
20. Morris Roth
21. Cartoon Chick
22. StopWaitingOnTheWorldToChange
23. The Day I Got Crowned
24. Family Man
25. Throw Some Water On ‘Em
26. A Milli
27. The Reading

DOWNLOAD HERE!

[From The Greenhouse Effect [ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY] - The Daily Kush]

New Gossip

The Gossip just released the video for their first single "Heavy Cross" from their new album Music for Men (out on Tuesday). Definitely polished and "glamed" up, but that's what you'd expect with a major label release and with Rick Rubin as a producer (U2, Weezer, Linkin Park, Justin Timberlake, etc.). I think this is going to be a phenomenal album.

Check out the album cover:

THE GOSSIP'S MUSIC FOR MEN ALBUM ART

When posting the Gossip's "Heavy Cross," we suggested the trio's Rick Rubin-produced fourth album Music For Men had its own heavy cross to bear, i.e. whether or not the Grammy man's slightly tweaked sound and the band's new Columbia label would push Beth Ditto & Co. further into the crossover section of the record store. It's too early to say, but it's not too early to note that the album art evokes KD Lang, Morrissey's Viva Hate, David Bowie, Johnny Cashy, Vanilla Ice, James Chance, and a million other iconic folks and pics with its cool b&w, splash of pink, and distant stare. That said, the band tells us the photo was inspired by the Germs. True?

Music For Men is out 6/22 via Columbia/Sony.

[From The Gossip's Music For Men Album Art - Album Art - Stereogum]

New Girlyman - Everything's Easy

Just getting back from a long (and wonderful) camping weekend in West Virginia. Four days from technology is refreshing (and quite necessary). I'm digging through the mound of emails that have piled up and noticed that Girlyman has a new CD on the way. They've usually been one of my favorite artists to listen to while camping, but that's not been the case recently. Not sure exactly why, but I'm willing to give their new album a try.

ABOUT THE CD:

Everything's Easy contains 15 original Girlyman songs, and was recorded and produced by Girlyman right here in Atlanta, GA. This album comes straight from our Girlyhearts, y'all. We spent hours in the studio building up textures and layers of sound on some songs and letting others be raw and stripped down. Then, we went and mixed with one of the very best in the biz, Ben Wisch. His artistry helped to bring the CD to a whole new level.

ALSO:

Each $25 pre-order includes domestic shipping and sales tax (overseas orders add $2), and helps us here at Girlyman Central to recover some of the costs of recording and manufacturing the new CD. Your order literally helps us to keep making music. And your support means the world to us, so thank you.

Again, all pre-orders must be received by midnight on Friday, July 3, 2009.

To pre-order, go to:

http://girlyman.com/preorder

Trampled by Turtles (6/8/09)

Great show... but that's to be expected when seeing a power bluegrass show in the intimacy of the Beachland Tavern. Opening was Cleveland's own bluegrass band, JP & the Chatfield Boys (pic). They were fun, performing an unexpected cover of Jessica Lea Mayfield's "For Today" and a more expectant cover of Johnny Cash.

Trampled by Turtles (as you can see) is a group of 5 young guys who rock out as hard as any metal band. With a name like that, emphasis should be on the trampled, because they mauled through a great set. I was surprised (and a bit disappointed) to hear they'd been here 3 times before. I don't plan on missing them again.

(one of their more mild ditties)

Severe Disappointment in eMusic Changes

So eMusic is changing their pricing plans at the same time they're adding the Sony back catalog. I've heard that eMusic said the two are not related, but obviously that's hard to swallow. I checked on my plan and I'm losing 20 of my 50 downloads per month... all for music I never plan to download from eMusic anyway, and isn't the reason I signed up for the service.

I wrote them an email expressing my disappointment and that I was planning on canceling my membership as a result. The responding email was cold and stated that they cancelled my plan. WTF? I quickly responded back saying that I did not ask to have my plan canceled and that I plan to do so when I'm ready, not to have it done for me. I find this shocking. It seems like with the acquisition of the Sony catalog, they also are adopting the arrogance of the major label corporations.

eMusic Adds Sony, But Could Pay A Price

eMusic was founded as a fierce supporter of independent music and has continued to maintain that stance...until now. Soon eMusic's 400,000 monthly subscribers will have access to the music of Michael Jackson, Billy Joel and the others artists from Sony's deep catalog of labels including Arista, Columbia, Epic, Jive, LaFace, Legacy and RCA. The offering will be restricted to rleases more than two years old.

But the addition of Sony to eMusic comes at a price. As part of the deal, eMusic will raise prices and reduce the number of downloads on some of its plans, according to reports. It is unclear if the deal will effect eMusic's use of 25-75 free tracks to entice subsribers.

[From hypebot: eMusic Adds Sony, But Could Pay A Price]

Justin Townes Earle (6/4/09)

What a night. I first had to skip yoga to make it to Kent in time for this show, missing the Speedbumps perform in the alley before the show (what's up with all these "alley" performances?). Being that I recently saw them at Southside, it wasn't a big deal. But shortly after I got there, Tim introduced me to Justin's opener, Tom Evanchuck. He performed earlier in the alley (with the Speedbumps I presume) and Tim couldn't say enough good things about it. Luckily he was also asked to open for Justin on the main stage. I say luckily because after seeing him perform, I know I would have been disappointed had I not. Tom is young, but you wouldn't know otherwise from his performance. He has this Dylan, Dan Bern, quality about him. Unassuming and barefoot, he laid out songs of a maturity and style that's rare for his age. He's definitely one of the best local musicians I've seen perform. I'm ecstatic to see him perform at the Barking Spider at the end of this month (Tuesday, June 30th).

(Tom Evanchuck - Patronize)

On to Justin. Let's just get it out of the way that Justin Townes Earle is the son of Steve Earle. I say that because while it may be interesting and talked about, it's not really relevant otherwise. Justin is a true performer in his own right, and perform he did. He walked up on stage, thin as a rail, hair slicked, fitted suit, and looking like a 1940's southern preacher. And in many ways, he embodied that persona, evoking a higher power of story and song on stage. From his albums, I expected him to be a little more laid back, but on stage he was on fire. Accompaning him on stage was one other guy (who's name I wish I could remember), who was equally entertaining. He also looked to be of a bygone era, wearing suspenders, playing the banjo, mandolin and harmonica. These guys were definitely a power duo, and now I see why they were the talk of the Kent State Folk Festival.

Bonnie Prince Billy (5/13/09)

Kinda forgot about this show. The band was good... he was sillier than I thought he'd be. Didn't stay for the whole thing... maybe I would have stayed longer if I had a beard like everyone else there (I kid).

June's Zender Agenda

Check out my best of the best concert listing for June over at Spangle Magazine.

SUH_WEET!! I am actually postponing my trip to Chicago (for Pitchfork) for this show. These last couple months (KC) and weeks (Asher) have been all about these guys. Sure I bet all the engrained hip-hop think this'll be lame, but who cares. I think this is going to be a GREAT show. Friday, July 17th at House of Blues.

Kid Cudi, Asher Roth Team For Great Hangover Tour

Asher Roth (Photo: Hannibal Matthews) Lara Marsman and Monica Herrera, N.Y. Rap newcomers Asher Roth and Kid Cudi are setting off on their first co-headlining tour this summer. The two Universal Motown artists will hit 19 cities around the U.S. as part of the Great Hangover Tour with support from B.O.B., an Atlanta-based rapper. Labelmates Pac Div will be on the bill for 11 of the dates, and the other eight will be treated to additional support from 88 Keys. Roth, who released his highly-anticipated "Asleep In The Bread Aisle" debut on April 20th, has sold 121,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan, and debuted at No. 5 on the Billboard 200 chart the week of release.

[More... Kid Cudi, Asher Roth Team For Great Hangover Tour]

Article: New Flexibility at Music Labels Aims to Help Web Start-Ups Thrive

Another (small) step. (thanks Philip)

Music Labels Cut Friendlier Deals With Start-Ups
By BRAD STONE
Published: May 27, 2009

SAN FRANCISCO — With CD sales dropping fast, it is not hard to imagine how the major music labels could benefit from the growth of Web start-ups like Imeem. The company’s service lets people listen to songs, discover new artists and share their favorites with friends. And in return, Imeem owes the labels licensing fees for use of the music.

But two months ago, Imeem’s founder, Dalton Caldwell, was ready to pull the plug. While 26 million people a month were using the service, Imeem owed millions of dollars to the music labels, and income from advertising was nowhere close to covering expenses. “It reached a point where it was not even clear it was worth doing any more,” Mr. Caldwell said.

Then the ground shifted. This month, Warner Music Group forgave Imeem’s debt, and both Warner and Universal Music agreed to relax the terms of their licensing deals with the site. That allowed Imeem to raise more money from investors and plan for a profitable future.

Imeem’s amnesty is one sign that a new accommodation is being forged between Web music start-ups and the companies on which they are almost wholly dependent, the major music labels. The recording industry is considering an all-digital future in which it needs popular Web services like Imeem, both as sources of revenue and as supplements to older channels of promotion like radio and MTV.

As a result, music labels are now striking more favorable terms with Web companies, and the start-ups have come to realize they cannot rely on Web ads to support themselves. For example, as part of its new plan, Imeem will try to push users into buying more T-shirts and concert tickets, and will soon add its own MP3 download store similar to iTunes, sharing revenue with the labels.

It is not yet clear whether any of this is enough to produce sustainable online businesses — or even to help mitigate the chronic pain of the music industry. But it is offering some hope.

More... [From New Flexibility at Music Labels Aims to Help Web Start-Ups Thrive - NYTimes.com]