Archive for the Uncategorized category.
Jay-Z, Thom Yorke, and Muse will be headlining 2010’s Coachella Valley Music and Art Festival in Indios, CA April 16th-18th. The Colorado Desert concert well known for its diverse lineup of music’s best bands and artists has become one of the biggest festivals in America since 1993 when Pearl Jam rocked the first Coachella. Other big name acts that will be playing the festival include the innovative group MGMT, Austin Indie heroes Spoon, and reunited soul legends Sly & The Family Stone. The Empire Polo Field is the exact name of the grounds where the festival is located where people from around the country flock to every year. In past years Paul McCartney, Madonna, Roger Waters, Radiohead, and Rage Against the Machine have all headlined the festival. Look for this year’s version of Coachella to live up to reputation the festival has earned in recent years.
Last night, Lady Gaga was scheduled to perform in West Lafayette, Indiana, where there was a packed house of fans. The two warm-up acts went on. But then a police officer came onstage and everyone looked at one another. Was this part of the act? It turned out that the singer had become ill backstage before the show and passed out. She says that she wanted to get out onstage anyway, but they wouldn’t let her. The audience was disappointed, but it appears that there weren’t any really hard feelings about it. Besides, they told us that she guaranteed she would reappear in just a couple weeks for a rescheduled performance. She tweeted at length about the situation. She felt bad about the cancellation and was “crying for hours”. Hopefully she’s ok and this was just a small issue rather than anything more serious. It sounds like she’s resting comfortably and will be back on tour tomorrow night.
I have good news and bad news for those of you who love Jay Leno. His 10 pm Eastern time show has been canceled. It wasn’t doing well enough to keep going and it was giving the local networks a problem getting their audiences back. Most people were watching other networks by then, it would appear, and then didn’t flip back to the NBC local news. But the bad news is this: he won’t be back out on the comedy club tour for all of you to see. You might have thought that he would be ready to get back out to live performances with the end of his nightly show. But thus comes some good news. He will apparently be back in the 11:35 slot, the traditional beginning of the Tonight Show. They haven’t yet announced whether he will simply take back the Tonight Show and Conan O’Brien goes elsewhere or if Conan’s Tonight Show will simply start after a half hour of Jay Leno. It’s a tough situation for everyone involved, but you probably shouldn’t expect to see any of them on the comedy circuit anytime soon.
When U2 took the stage last year, it was pretty clear that they were going to have a greatly successful tour. The band is full of great musicians who are able to give a great show too. The music that they present you has been among the best developed in decades. The group has reached a level of longevity that most bands can only dream of. If you didn’t get a chance to hear their latest hits, you’re really missing something. Their “No Line on the Horizon” is perhaps the best release of 2009, with songs like “Get on Your Boots”. There’s no really deep message in the songs, but it’s just fun to listen to. And we enjoy dancing to the songs or just chilling out listening to them. The tour continues, so you still have a chance to see them this year. Their tour netted the most out of any other tour of 09, so that tells you something about the quality of the show that they put on!
I didn’t know his name before! But I sure do know his music. Duncan Sheik’s Barely Breathing is a staple of adult contemporary radio these days. He’s one of the most important musicians of pop music right now, with a lot of different hits, though none of them are bigger than Barely Breathing was. But according to people who saw some of his most recent concerts will attest that this guy is no one-trick pony. He can sing his songs, but he’ll throw in some great new renditions of Broadway hits and some other exciting covers from other bands. And he doesn’t do any of this in a dull way either. In Dallas, his performance was in a small and comfortable venue, which is unusual for such a famous singer. You can’t do that kind of performance well unless you’re really talented, because you can’t hide behind light shows and special effects.
When you think of the best rock music of the last 3 decades, one of the first names that will come to your mind would have to be Bon Jovi. His songs have become some of the most important and interesting of that time and many people still put on his music when they are feeling down. I certainly enjoy seeing this guy out on stage because he still knows how to put on a real show and his songs have held up remarkably well! In 2010, he will be on tour again in cities all around the country. Get 2010 Bon Jovi concert tickets and you will get to see this legendary performer onstage and hear some of the most fun music of all time! It is an inexpensive and fun way to enjoy a great concert!
Taylor Swift, Beyonce and the Black Eyed Peas are going to be some of the main performers at the upcoming Grammys ceremony. It’s going to be a lot of fun too, because these performers are definitely among the best of the year. They have also been nominated for Grammys over the last few years, in Swift’s case, this year will be her first, if I remember right. I have enjoyed these performers a lot and their music will give the evening an extra bounce that it generally doesn’t have. It would seem that Swift has had an incredible year in publicity and in music. She has become one of the nation’s most recognizable stars and one of the most talented singers at the moment. We can expect more of the same as 2010 rolls by!
Sting put forward a nice holiday concert this year. While he is starting to look like a Civil War era politician in his clothing choices and beard, he also has some fun music that he’s doing. His holiday show wasn’t the usual fun, family Santa-based thing. He seemed much more likely to go into medieval music and perform it. With his backup band of harps and lutes and other obscure instruments, we found that he was able to perform such unusual Christmas pieces. It’s not exactly “Every Breath You Take” but when you look back at songs like that, you can hear a little bit of the same kind of melodic work like in the medieval songs that he likes so much. What an interesting development for such a talented musician.
When you see the Trans-Siberian Orchestra, you know it’s Christmas time. They have even opened up several different groups of performers all around the country. It will be interesting to look around at the different groups. I kind of wish I could see a bunch of them and then compare. But either way, their full-fledged musical experience is one of the most well-known examples of its kind. From the beginning, through all the rollicking pieces, the exciting pyrotechnics and everything else, you should check out this show if you get the chance. It’s a lot of fun and will give you an experience you will never forget!
One of the people that you hear frequently during the holiday season is Kenny G. It’s not that he’s a particularly holiday type of character, but he does have a few CDs out that you can enjoy this time of year. He performs occasionally during the holiday season, with his interesting arrangements of holiday music. The one that I always have in mind is his mix of “We Three Kings” and “Carol of the Bells”. We would love to hear him in person, but you will have to check the schedule of concerts that he has released to see if he’s actually going to perform there. Enjoy his great music either on CD or in concert this year! Make sure that you bring your friends and family too, because it’s going to be particularly fun,
