- Doug Stephen in FOR FUCK SAKE EVERYONE KNOCK IT OFF WITH THE GOD DAMNED ACCORDIONS JESUS CHRIST Woah, okay Vice Magazine.
- Doug Stephen in Vampire Weekend - S/T I’ve never listened to a solo Paul Simon record, or to Graceland, so I don’t know about that. But the songs I’ve heard by Vampire Weekend...
- bjyhore in New Single: Patrick Wolf’s “Accident and Emergency” She had actually been robbed of it cant be cruel. Mistress. I could do. jennifer lopez porn Three.
It’s hard to write a post announcing an impending Turbonegro US tour without slumming it in the title. Seriously, “Are you ready for some darkness?” That song title has probably been used by dozens upon dozens of music bloggers/writers/”journalists” over the years for the same tour date posts year after year. But heck, what else am i gonna go with? “Get it On?” “Good Head/Great Tour?” “Motherfucking Touring Tonight?” Turbonegro Hate the Kids; Love Touring?” All lame.
But who cares? The point is that Norway’s kings (queens?) of hedonism, the glam-punkers that black metal church burners Mayhem referred to as “the most evil band in the world,” TURBOfuckingNEGRO, are BACK. Hank, Happy Tom, and the (euro)boys will be stateside for nearly a month promoting their new album Retox (which will be released in the USA on August 14th). Here’s hoping that Retox isn’t as completely worthless as their last release, Party Animals, because frankly, i was sort of hoping there was no album tied to this tour. I sort of want as little new material as possible. Stick with the classics, guys. Please?
Despite the severe dropoff in quality attached to Party Animals (and hey, maybe Retox will be a return to form! Knock on wood!), Turbonegro are quite possibly the greatest live band in the world. Yes, i realize i tend to say that about Melt-Banana and the pAper chAse as well, but i genuinely mean it when referring to any of those bands. A live Turbonegro set featuring the hits from Apocalypse Dudes and Ass Cobra will change your life. But don’t take my word for it:
9/19 - Metro, Chicago, IL
9/20 - Smalls, Detroit, MI
9/21 - The Grog Shop, Cleveland, OH
9/22 - Phoenix Concert Theater, Toronto
9/24 - Paradise, Boston, MA
9/25 - Nokia Theater Times Square, NYC
9/26 - Black Cat, Washington, DC
9/28 - Ziggy’s, Winston-Salem, NC
9/29 - Center Stage, Atlanta, GA
10/01 - Granada Theater, Dallas, TX
10/02 - Emo’s, Austin, TX
10/04 - Brickhouse Theater, Phoenix, AZ
10/05 - HOB, San Diego, CA
10/06 - Downtown LA, Los Angeles, CA
10/07 - Henry Ford Theater, Los Angeles
10/08 - Slims, San Francisco, CA
10/10 - Showbox, Seattle, WA
10/11 - Commodore Ballroom, Vancouver
10/12 - Roseland Ballroom, Portland, OR
Finally, according to the band’s website, they are “looking for Turbojugends in each territory to get to us via Camilla and start working on after shows parties for each city.” Get on it, American Punk Rock Boys and New Wave Hooker Girls. I’ll see you at the Metro (provided the Metro’s website ever gets ticket info posted–hurry up, FIBs!).
Since Smashing Pumpkins‘ Zeitgeist is all the buzz here at Superstarcastic, I figured I would bandwagon this little tidbit. If you open up your music sleeve inside your properly purchased non-pirated copy of Smashing Pumpkins, you have may have come upon an image of America’s most loved to be hated celebutant.
(waits a second for you to check. )
No, your eyes have not betrayed you. That is indeed Paris Hilton inside your Zeitgeist insert. No, you do not have herpes. But Billy Corgan may. NME.com has reported that Smashing Pumpkins frontman Billy Corgan took the photos of Hilton, who he had met previously.
Billy Corgan said: “The original idea was we were gonna see if Lindsay (Lohan), Britney (Spears) and Paris would all shoot..(but) Paris I knew personally and hung out with her a few times, and so I asked her…and God bless her, she came, she showed up at 10am on a Sunday morning, sat in the chair, got made up and (I) shot her.”
To you negligent personal assistants out there, this is another situation where someone could have replaced a camera with some form of fire arm and made the world a better place for everyone. Shame on you, Billy Corgan’s personal assistant. Shame on you!
(I feel the need to preface this by basically saying that i tried, folks. I really did try. I swear. I tried to listen to this record with an open mind, despite the Smashing Pumpkins occupying a place in my brain neighboring Weezer and Fall Out Boy, two other bands who make my blood pressure rise and my right eye twitch. That objectivity, however, went out the window a few seconds into Zeitgeist–specifically, when Billy Corgan began singing with that trademark “masturbating ostrich” style he’s perfected over the years. So do keep this in mind when you read this. I tried, but i failed. If you want more even-handed reviews from people who aren’t predisposed to pile on the hate, Borch and Christine are here to hook you up. And now…)
People, help me out. Is there anyone out there anymore who takes Billy Corgan seriously as a musician? Is there anyone out there who doesn’t see him as what he truly is–an egomaniacal snake-oil huckster? Let’s examine the timeline of major album releases, and maybe we’ll see what i’m getting at:
-After the phenomenal commercial success of Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness (which Corgan apparently described as “The Wall for Generation X”–um, hint #1, people), Corgan and the band begin giving interviews saying that conventional rock music is dying and that electronic music is the future, following these proclamations by releasing the electronica-influenced Adore.
-Adore, of course, tanks, leading Corgan to proclaim “um, just kidding about that whole ‘rock is dead’ thing, heh heh.” The band releases Machina/The Machines of God, which is a guitar rock album that also tanks because (i like to think) people finally started smelling bullshit.
-After Machina tanks, and after a period that saw the band actually do something right by trading up for ex-Hole bassist Melissa Auf der Maur, only to completely screw the pooch by then making her pose with the band for this photo (Jesus Christ), the band breaks up. Corgan and drumming trainwreck Jimmy Chamberlin form “supergroup” Zwan, which lasts a whole, what, two years?
-After Zwan goes down in flames, Corgan decides that maybe he should try banking on his own name instead of some random “supergroup,” releasing a solo album. Perhaps predicting that it would sell about as many copies as Warrant’s third record, he announces on the day of the release that he’s getting the old band back together. How does he do this? By taking out a full-page ad in the goddamn Chicago Tribune. Because obviously the news that the Pumpkins are “reuniting” is Very Important and the people of Chicago are sure to give at least one shit, maybe two.
And of course, how was this “reunion” executed? By Corgan and Chamberlin essentially collaborating together on another Billy Corgan solo album, only making sure to call it “Smashing Pumpkins.” Look, you can move the Cleveland Browns to Baltimore, rename them the Ravens, and set up an expansion team called “The Browns” to replace them, but guess what? The team Jim Brown played for is wearing purple and black these days. You can hire a blonde chick bass player and sort of dress her like D’Arcy (seriously, Billy…really?), but all we’re gonna do is laugh at you. And her. Read more »
“Hi, my name is Billy and I’ll be your server. The special of the day - and the only thing available tonight - are apocalypse cutlets sautéed in a succulent arena-rock reduction, and served on a plate so hot that you may burst into flames should you touch it.”
“We call it Zeitgeist,” he adds.
Of course, Billy recommends it. He whets our appetites by informing us that not only is it his favorite item on the menu, but comes directly, in fact, from his heart and soul. The three of us submit to his suggestion because he’s already told us so much about it, and we’re too curious to go somewhere else and leave w/o having a taste, for good or ill.
The dish eventually comes out on warm (but hardly combustible) plates, and an unusual odor fills the room. Some are pleased and have a look of familiarity in their eyes; they lick their lips as they think about the first time they inhaled this comforting fragrance. The others look bored if not repulsed, remembering all too well the first time their faces were stuffed with Flair de Corgan, and had thought they’d never have to go back there. Their stories follow:
* * *
Billy Corgan and the ‘Smashing Pumpkins’ are back sans D’arcy and James Iha (which, following that formula, would have constituted a Beatles reunion on almost every one of Ringo’s solo albums), and are out to prove relevancy after years of wishful reunion speculation and full-page apologies in the Chicago Reader and Tribune. This Zeitgeist… Corgan has plenty to say about the state of the world, and very little of it exceeds the level of conversation with someone who saw the headlines and got pissed, but skipped to SuDoku without reading the story. Like talking to a dim but driven activist, we can assume that “they” represent either the government or fat, dumb Americans (the two of which are interchangeable, mind you), and he invokes “them” quite a bit. Read more »
Having accompanied Patrick through the rollercoaster ride that was our high school choral program, I always knew he had the ability to reach notes that are well above the average singer’s stratosphere. However, I was not aware that the now seasoned singer accompanies his voice with silky smooth guitar rifts.What strikes a chord about Patrick is the passion and conviction he conveys through his original music. While displaying the capability of covering critically acclaimed artists such as Ray Lamontagne and Jeff Buckley, the original songs Patrick played were what really captivated the audience at the show I recently attended at The Globe in the Lakeview neighborhood of Chicago. Armed with little else but his guitar, a microphone and a beer, he had the entire well attended venue enthralled and on the edge of their seats.
“19 Year Old Junkie” is a song that I dare you to get out of your head after listening to it a few times (much like the theme from Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. I’ll send you a cookie if you can get that out of your head). The tune tells the true story of Patrick’s trials and tribulations as an aspiring musician in the harsh, unforgiving entertainment business and how he coped with his struggles while living in Califorinia trying to become a star. The upbeat rhythm of the song does well in keeping the audience captivated to hear Patrick sing his story and it was a perfect song to start his set with.
“Waiting” is what i would consider Patrick’s go-to song, a perfect example of his vocal and musical ability shining through his song writing. Once again, I was very impressed with the ease in which his voice was able to hit the upper reaches of his range, something that cannot be ignored when listenig to him perform.
My only complaint is that I would have liked to see Patrick complimented with a complete band to see what he is fully capable of. His musically inclined brother did take the stage with him creating a mixed voice and guitar duet for the second portion of his set. But that was just a taste of how adding parts around Patrick has the potential for a special sound. Check out Patrick’s Myspace Page to listen to a few of his tracks and to find out when and where he’ll be gracing the stage with his presence next.
Patrick’s answers to the 5 questions after the jump: Read more »
Montreal’s Stars have settled on dates for this autumn’s U.S. tour. If your idea of a great band involves (1) a weird frontman who play the mouth organ, (2) a sweet-voiced woman on guitar, and/or (3) a lust for life, you can catch them at one of these stops:
October 17, 2007 / Higher Ground, Burlington, VT
October 18, 2007 / Town Hall, New York, NY
October 19, 2007 / Berklee, Boston, MA
October 20, 2007 / 9:30 Club, Washington, DC
October 24, 2007 / Starlight Ballroom, Philadelphia, PA
October 26, 2007 / Cat’s Cradle, Carrboro, NC
October 27, 2007 / The Variety Playhouse, Atlanta, GA
October 28, 2007 / Club Downunder, Tallahassee, FL
October 30, 2007 / Stubb’s, Austin, TX
October 31, 2007 / House of Blues, Dallas, TX
November 2, 2007 / Vic Theatre, Chicago, IL
November 3, 2007 / Pantages Theatre, Minneapolis, MN
November 4, 2007 / Slowdown, Omaha, NE
November 6, 2007 / Gothic Theatre, Denver, CO
November 8, 2007 / Rialto Theatre, Tucson, AZ
November 9, 2007 / House of Blues, San Diego, CA
November 10, 2007 / The Orpheum, Los Angeles, CA
November 13, 2007 / Bimbo’s, San Francisco, CA
November 14, 2007 / Bimbo’s, San Francisco, CA
November 15, 2007 / The Crystal Ballroom, Portland OR
November 16, 2007 / The Showbox, Seattle, WA
Stars’ new album, In Our Bedroom after the War, will be released on September 25.
