Mar 28 2009
Britney Spears Enterprises, if there is such a thing, has assembled a dazzling "Circus" tour, but it's painfully evident that they don't want press coverage.
In Pittsburgh, they almost didn't get it, partly due to their own stubbornness and partly because of Britney's crazy-bad luck rubbing off on me.
Here's how it went:
-- First of all, there were no interviews or teleconferences with the print media, at least, to promote the tour, even though it would have been a chance for Britney to talk about something positive for once. (In truth, reporters would have tortured her.)
-- Unlike 99 percent of the acts that come to town, they demanded the critic buy a ticket, in the top-level, $130 range (but didn't guarantee one would be available). A lot of papers seemed to balk at the purchase, because there haven't been a lot of reviews. The PG decided we wanted the review and sent the form back on Tuesday with the credit card number. We got our confirmation that the ticket was approved -- no sooner than 2:15 on Friday, the day of the show.
-- We were offered a photo pass. However, the release form stated that our photographer was "for hire." In other words, we could run photos for 30 days, and then they were Britney's property. We had to give up the copyright. Even though it would have been nice to have a picture in Saturday's paper, our photo department refuses to sign such a contract. Apparently, so have most papers.
-- Somehow I managed to compound these problems with my own stupidity. I picked up my ticket at the window. No problem. Glanced at it quickly. Walked toward Igloo Club One East, where I checked the basketball score (looked real bad for Syracuse; my bracket had Oklahoma; fine).
I figured I'd get rid of the ticket envelope. So I stuck the receipt ticket in my wallet, pitched the envelope. And somehow lost my ticket in the process! I dug through all my pockets three times and even fished around in the nasty trashcan, which no doubt made me look like a bum (in my Ramones shirt) to all the hot girls standing at the bar. In 20-some years of covering concerts, I don't remember ever losing a ticket.
I remembered it being in Row G, seat 8, and the usher reluctantly let me sit there. Till the girls who had those seats showed. Finally, I texted Jamie, the sweet arena publicist, and she graciously helped me out. I was actually in Igloo One WEST, Row G, seat 8.
-- So, wanting to get the review in by 11:30, I wrote about two-thirds of it while staring at Britney and her eye-opening circus entourage. After hearing a few minutes of the last song, "Womanizer," I ran out the door about 10:55. Even though I've never done this before, it occurred to me to call my wife and dictate the review while I ran in the rain to my car down on 5th Avenue. She agreed to it, even though she was still dealing with kids (thanks Mare). When I got to the PG at 11:07, the partial review was in my email. I pasted it into the word file, smoothed things out, added some more stuff, and was done around 11:20. Cool. Went to hit save and send and -- poof! -- like the lady in the box, it was gone. The whole review. I'm not a crying man, but I was close to it. I swore instead. After 15 minutes of trying to revive it with the technical guys, I pasted the email back in and started again. It wasn't as smooth, but I think they got it about 11:55.
-- Whew! I wish the best for Britney, but I kind of hope she chills for another five or six years before she comes back to town.
Comment below, or register to comment
Mar 26 2009
Blender Magazine announced today that it will cease print publication after its April issue, which features Kelly Clarkson on the cover.
Maybe Rolling Stone and Spin will go back to fewer, more in-depth reviews, but probably not.
The aggressive Blender style of reviewing 100 albums with just a paragraph most likely will stick as one of its legacies.
Among its other marks on the pop-music industry is the babe on the cover and the sensational, attention-grabbing list, like the 50 Most Sleazy Moments in Rock and the 50 Worst Songs of All Time, which included "The Sounds of Silence."
The one I remember most is the "50 Worst Artists in Music History," which nailed both The Doors and Mick Jagger.
Folks who can't live without such nonsense can still find it online at blender.com.
Comment below, or register to comment
Mar 25 2009
WYEP has kindly invited me to show up at the South Side studios Friday morning around 9 a.m. with my top five favorite songs I associate with the station.
This is not an easy task given WYEP's 35-year history.
I'm busy working on this list, which I quickly decided will not include any Indigo Girls songs.
It will include one homage to the late Harry "The Wire" Wagner, who started playing records on 'YEP in 1978 when he was only 18.
Harry is partly to blame for my career choice. We grew up in Stanton Heights and I was friends with his younger sister. He was an full-blown geek who would try to lure her friends down to the basement to play them records. I couldn't help but oblige, over the protests of his sister.
In the early to mid '70s, he turned me on to bands like Kiss, Blue Oyster Cult ("Secret Treaties") and Mott the Hoople, who all seemed dark and mysterious to me when I was 14, and it really opened up a new world of underground music.
By the time he got to YEP and into the clubs, Wagner made his legend for having his finger on the pulse of post-punk and New Wave.
So, gotta have a track from that era.
I'll add a rarity from Mr. Zimmerman, a vintage alt-country track and at least one song from a band in this century.
Comment below, or register to comment
Mar 23 2009
The Iron City Houserockers took it to church Saturday night, playing a righteous reunion gig on the pulpit at Altar Bar in the Strip.
The band's towering frontman Joe Grushecky used to hit his head on the stage at their old homebase, the Decade. No worries of that at Altar with its cathedral ceiling, where parishioners in the packed house circled the loft for a good view.
The original six Houserockers hadn't taken a stage together in 16 years, but they played so often for so long between 1976 and 1984, muscle memory prevailed on Saturday night.
The Houserockers lived up to their billing as "the best bar band in the country" with a fearsome frontline of Grushecky, guitarist Eddie Britt, blues harmonica master Marc Reisman, pianist Gil "Duke" Snyder and the air-tight rhythm section of Art Nardini and Ned Rankin.
In some ways the spotlight was on Britt, the hold-out in past reunions, and he delivered with one searing lead after another.
The Houserockers opened with "Blondie" and "Sweet Little Sixteen," then treated the faithful to fist-pumping anthems like "Pumpin' Iron" and "Don't Let Them Push You Around."
Snyder donned his accordion and belted out a raspy "Old Man Bar," in honor of "godfather of rock," the Decade's Dom DiSilvio, and then Grushecky and company ripped right into "Junior's Bar," about the girl who's barely 17 (they might wanna raise that age a few years).
They closed the set with a pair of songs that have taken on new poignancy: "Have a Good Time (But Get Out Alive)" and "We're Not Dead Yet." Not only are they not dead, but they all looked pretty good up there.
Throughout the set, it was fun watching Grushecky's son, Johnny, carry on in the wings. For that last song, he brought that energy to the stage, along with Rankin's son Anthony, who were both part of the impetus for the reunion.
The Houserockers encored by going back to their first single "Hideaway," during which I saw one member of the Decade family wipe away a tear.
The whole thing was too good for them to not do it again, and Reisman said Monday morning to watch out for a possible outdoor gig summer.
He said for the band "it was just like riding a bicycle. There was some sloppiness, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. You don't want to see a band play things note for note. Some wonderful things happen when it gets a little sloppy."
Photos by John Altdorfer
Top: Marc Reisman, Joe Grushecky, Anthony Rankin, Art Nardini.
Bottom: Eddie Britt, Johnny Grushecky, Joe Grushecky, Anthony Rankin.
Comment below, or register to comment
Mar 20 2009
The other night, when I got home from the Morrissey show, my 9-year-old daughter was on the phone with Ed Masley's daughter in Phoenix.
I got to say a quick hello to Ed -- whom you certainly know as the brilliant former PG music critic -- but he said he had to run - "American Idol" was on.
There is endless humor and irony in the concept of Masley watching "American Idol," as he was always the anti-"Idol." Now, he covers it for the Arizona Republic in a blog called "Idol Virgin."
Ed used to laugh at me for getting caught up in "American Idol."
It was fairly hard to resist. My wife and daughters were into it from Season 1 when Kelly beat Justin, and I could hear it playing through the house. They would often ask me for an opinion on a singer, so I would pop in for bits and pieces, but I really had no interest.
Somehow I got snagged by Season 2, impressed with the Barry White-quality of Ruben Studdard (who's turned out to be a bust) and his campaign to beat the nerdy white guy.
Of course, Simon's put-downs added to the fun, as did the cat-fights with Paula and Randy.
Season 3 with Fantasia was eh, but Season 4, with Carrie Underwood and Bo Bice, was must-see TV, and Underwood is still impressive most of the time. After the Taylor Hicks debacle in Season 5, though, it was pretty much finished. Along with the crappy albums the winners kept churning out, I just got frustrated with the singers I liked being voted out. Cowell's Bob Dylan-Kelly Clarkson comparison (which I can't even remember exactly) was another turn off.
Anyway, Ed would always goof on me for watching "Idol," and I would tell him, "Dude, I'm not watching it for the music, just the entertainment."
Now, I'm a free man on Tuesday and Wednesday nights. And he's stuck (for now).
I'm giddy over this turn-about.
Comment below, or register to comment
Mar 18 2009
The Jonas Brothers, who are about to tour on an album due in June, did a teleconference today with the print media.
I got to ask one question, about the Grammys - "You didn't win Best New Artist, but you did get to perform with Stevie Wonder. So was that a good tradeoff?" - that drew a reverent but rather dull reponse.
Anyway, here are some highlights, including a squabble over ticket prices and a little fudging on an Elvis Costello question:
Reporter: Last year to see the Jonas Brothers it was $47.50. This year, the top ticket price is $89.50. I've had parents tell me over the half the arena costs $89.50. I'm curious, in this economy, how do you explain and justify that kind of ticket price?
Jonas brother (not sure which one): In the staging of this tour we really wanted to add ... to do this in the round, so we had way more top-selling tickets in the front row and up close. The stage is built in a way that it's going from 140 feet from point A to point B all the way across the arena, so there is not just one row of 20 seats in the front row. The entire bottom half of the arena, plus the upper deck is essentially a front row ticket...
Reporter: OK, but how do you explain the ticket price in this economy. It's still pretty huge jump?
Jonas: We wanted to provide a bigger and better show for our fans, and this was one of the ways we had to do so.
Reporter: OK, so you don't have any concern about the ticket price?
Jonas (tense): Sir, I think you've asked your follow-up question. We'd like to move on, thank you very much.
***
Reporter: Out of curiosity, did you see the South Park episode. What did you think? Is that something you could laugh at?
Nick Jonas: I think we also like to be open to make fun of ourselves. You know, we'll be the first to. We did it on SNL and it was kinda fun. But I think for us, we're so focused on what we're doing on this tour and our album and everything, we didn't have too much time to see it.
[Are you buying that?]
***
Reporter: I always get the impression that you guys are very controlled, which is something I don't necessarily associate with teenagers. Does it ever get a little heavy? Does it ever get frustrating for you guys? Do you ever want to be normal kids for a while?
Joe Jonas: Um, what people don't really understand is that we are secretly over the age of 40, and so we already lived through our shelf-life time, so we are going back and trying to reinvent ourselves.
***
Reporter: It's been said that your influence has got the proportions of something like Beatlemania. I was wondering if you guys see any similarities in yourselves?
Jonas brother: I think the Beatles are the Beatles and no one can touch that and we're honored that some people say that, but for us, we're just trying to be ourselves and just trying to be inspired by a lot of things - artists like the Beatles, Elvis Costello, Johnny Cash, Prince. Just continue to learn and have fun.
***
Reporter: You guys have mentioned Elvis Costello a lot and I just wanted to ask what's your favorite Elvis Costello album and why?
Nick Jonas: I think for me my favorite would have to be a compilation of the first 10 years of his work. It's the first thing I was introduced to of his. I'm not one of those people who is offended by compilation CDs. I think they're a great way for people to be introduced to an artist...
[OK, does that mean he can't name an Elvis Costello record? Granted, few teenagers could but he's supposed to be a huge fan. Nick, check out "Get Happy" all the way through.]
Comment below, or register to comment
Mar 17 2009
It's show day, the sun is shining and all signs point to Morrissey playing tonight at Carnegie Music Hall in Oakland.
If all goes well, it will be his first show here since 1986 with the Smiths.
Reports are that the Moz's bus is already outside the Hall. Can't wait to hear if he says anything about the last two canceled shows here (1991 and 2000).
Here is what he played last night in New Jersey:
This Charming Man
Billy Budd
Black Cloud
How Soon Is Now?
Irish Blood, English Heart
Let Me Kiss You
I'm Throwing My Arms Around Paris
Ask
How Can Anybody Possibly Know How I Feel?
The Loop
Death Of A Disco Dancer
Something Is Squeezing My Skull
Seasick, Yet Still Docked
Why Don't You Find Out For Yourself?
Best Friend On The Payroll
Mama Lay Softly On The Riverbed
Sorry Doesn't Help
I Keep Mine Hidden
The World Is Full Of Crashing Bores
I'm OK By Myself
First Of The Gang To Die
Mar 13 2009
Things are looking up for the Morrissey tour actually making it here on Tuesday.
He played Durham, N.C., on Wednesday night, opening with "This Charming Man," and fans are besides themselves about how good the show was.
At Morrissey-solo.com, one wrote: "Best show Ive ever seen...15th time seeing him."
Another wrote: "Get ready to be blown away!"
***
The cover story in Weekend Mag got readers thinking about those canceled shows in 1991 and 2000. And about whatever happened to their tickets.
Jennifer wrote: "Great article. It totally reminded me that I never got my money back from the last time he was supposed to play and cancelled at the AJ Palumbo Center. When asking for a refund, we were told we could not get one because the concert was not ‘Cancelled' and simply ‘Postponed.' I wonder if Ticketmaster can pull my file for this show... Eh. He will probably cancel anyway!!"
Jonathan wrote: "My wife has tickets for Tuesday and is holding her breath. I protested...he still owes me for 6 tickets for the show he cancelled..I was never able to get a refund from Ticketmaster..."
***
I did hear from a local musician who remembers getting a refund on his credit card. And one who wrote, "My ticket from the canceled 2000 show is in a box somewhere in the attic of my folks' house. I love The Smiths, and pretty much everything I've heard of his solo stuff. However, I think that he's a jaggoff."
Mar 11 2009
Recession?
Not in the summer concert season, at least judging from the early results.
The Post-Gazette Pavilion schedule is filling up with all varieties of shows, from country to punk to metal to actually modern pop like No Doubt (pictured).
Some of the shows, like Jimmy Buffett and Phish, have already sold out.
Here's what the spring/summer lineup of major concerts is looking like so far, and this is without the proposed tent amphitheatre at Station Square.
Post-Gazette Pavilion
May 23 - George Strait/Blake Shelton
May 30 - Coldplay
June 10 - Nine Inch Nails/Jane's Addiction/Street Sweeper
June 13 - No Doubt/Paramore
June 18 - Phish
June 19-20 - Dave Matthews Band/The Hold Steady
June 23 - Jimmy Buffett
July 8 - Vans Warped Tour
July 10 - Def Leppard/Poison/Cheap Trick
July 18 - Nickelback/Papa Roach/Hinder/Saving Abel
Aug. 1 - Rockstar Energy Mayhem Festival with Marilyn Manson, Slayer, Trivium, All That Remains, God Forbid, Cannibal Corpse, Job For A Cowboy, Behemoth, The Black Dahlia Murder, Whitechapel.
Aug. 16 - Crue Fest with Motley Crue
Aug. 22 - Rod Stewart
Aug. 28 - Rascal Flatts
Sept. 11 - Toby Keith
Mellon Arena
March 27 - Britney Spears
May 7 - Dane Cook
May 12 - Yanni
May 19 - Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band
July 25 - The Jonas Brothers/Jordin Sparks
Aug. 13 - Keith Urban/Jason Aldean
Heinz Field
June 6 - Kenny Chesney/Montgomery Gentry/Sugarland/Lady Antebellum/Miranda Lambert
A.J. Palumbo Center
April 22 - Kings of Leon
Petersen Events Center
April 28 - "Music As a Weapon" Tour with Disturbed, Bury Your Dead, Chimaira, Crooked X, Killswitch Engage, Lacuna Coil, Spineshank, Suicide Silence.
Comment below, or register to comment
Mar 09 2009
The first Lollapalooza, the 1991 model, played Cleveland but not Pittsburgh.
Now, 18 years later, here come the two principles: Nine Inch Nails and Jane's Addiction.
The two bands that helped set the tone for the dark music decade of the ‘90s play the Post-Gazette Pavilion on June 10. No sale has been set yet.
The two bands are sharing the stage for the first time since 1991. It was prompted by NIN's Trent Reznor being tapped by Jane's to produce its reunion album. This is the first run for the original lineup of Jane's Addiction - vocalist Perry Farrell, guitarist Dave Navarro, bassist Eric Avery and drummer Stephen Perkins - in 17 years.
Reznor recently blogged: "Towards the beginning of my career in Nine Inch Nails, our biggest break came in the form of an invitation to perform a series of shows with Jane's Addiction. These performances essentially created and defined the term ‘alternative' rock in the U.S., created an ongoing festival franchise that is still thriving (Lollapalooza), set the stage for Nirvana to shift popular taste a few months later, and were really [expletive] FUN to play and attend - truly the best times I've had. The shows were epic. So epic, they propelled NIN to the ‘next level' (whatever that means), but caused Jane's to implode. The band broke up at the end of that tour."
Navarro responded, "Since our reformation, we have been spending a lot of time with Trent in the rehearsal studio and in the recording studio, working on new stuff, addressing some old stuff and more importantly, creating a friendship and working relationship. It's rare that touring partners have an opportunity to spend so much time together creatively before a tour. Regardless of the collaborative outcome, our time with Trent has brought forth a new focus and sense of purpose that we plan to share with you on a nightly basis."
Also on the tour will be Street Sweeper, a collaboration between Tom Morello of Rage Against The Machine/The Nightwatchman and Boots Riley of The Coup.
Comment below, or register to comment
More Posts
Next page »