The New York Times’ report on the wave of… MORE »
Posts Tagged ‘Festivals’
Ozzfest Goes Dark For 2009
The official spin regarding Ozzy Osbourne’s summer festival taking a hiatus this summer: Ozzy was struck with the inspiration to record the follow-up to his 2007 album Black Rain so hard, he simply had to postpone the package tour this summer so he could get something on whatever store shelves are standing come Black Friday 2009. And he can’t do it this spring, because he has a not very anticipated family variety hour to attend to! MORE »
the biz
In Case You’re Thinking Of A Last-Minute Application, Here’s How Bands Get Picked For SXSW
Hey bands! Tomorrow is the deadline for applying to SXSW, the annual Austin-based conflagration of music, hype, Tex-Mex, and free Sparks*! I actually love SXSW, although it can seem a little overwhelming if you take it all too seriously and care about getting into things like The Levi’s/FADER Big Blogger Breakfast. (Of course, if you care about stuff like that, you’re probably a jerk.) Me, I take it all like a leaf on the wind, blowing from free beer to free beer while seeing plenty of great stuff. SXSW’s palette of bands is much, much larger than any other festival out there, CMJ included, and the selection process must be a total nightmare. Right before CMJ 2008, I interviewed Matt McDonald about the ins and outs of selecting bands. Today, I talked to Darin Klein, Senior Music Festival Programmer at SXSW, about the selection process and how bands should help themselves get accepted**. Protips after the jump! MORE »
Idolator goes to cmj
How Does CMJ Choose Which Bands Get In? An Idolator Special Report
Just yesterday, intrepid reporter Kate Richardson asked a very pertinent question about CMJ 2008: “Who are all these bands?” Up until very recently, I worked as a publicist for an indie PR firm, and I know a ton of small acts because of it. Some I worked, some I tried to work, some I researched, and some I know from competitors and colleagues. I also read/skimmed nearly every magazine, indie Web site, and blog out there, particularly looking at coverage of small bands. Plus, I’m in a few bands myself, and have played with a bunch of different out-of-towners. My point here is not to brag, but to state my qualifications: I’ve heard of a ton of indie bands, and a lot of them aren’t good. When I haven’t heard of an artist, I get rather suspicious of quality, to be honest, but, then again, I regard all new acts with a measure of suspicion.
Looking over the CMJ 2008 lineup, I have to second Kate. MORE »
London’s Underage Festival is setting its sights… MORE »
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Bumbershoot, Day Two: Late-Arriving Divas And Smart Local Jazz
It was 2:30 p.m. Keyshia Cole was supposed to go on a half-hour before, and the booing was getting louder. Behind me in the far stands, a couple was talking. He: “She has a new album out Sept. 25.” She: “I have the feeling if I bought it, it wouldn’t start for 20 minutes.” MORE »
ON THE SCENE
Bumbershoot, Day One: Comedy, British Soul, and Singer-Songwriter Couples Fight Off the Rain
I’ve been a pretty unabashed fan of the Seattle music and arts festival Bumbershoot, which has occurred every Labor Day weekend since 1971 since I first heard of it, with the caveat that I first heard of it under rather good circumstances. An old roommate had told me about it in 1994, but I’d forgotten all about it until the August 1996 road trip I wrote about here, I defected, via Greyhound, to Seattle from the group’s intended San Francisco, and I wound up at the Green Tortoise, a rooming house near Seattle Center, where Bumbershoot was underway. I went to the gate, paid my fee, and caught good sets by Ani DiFranco, Los Lobos, and the Sex Pistols without realizing I could see any of them before arriving at the hostel. (I also saw a superb Elvis Costello show–a separate ticket–that weekend, his final-ever with the Attractions.) If I have an unusually rosy view of Seattle, it was installed that day. MORE »
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All Points West: Come For Radiohead, Stay For The Chance To Complain About The Beer Policies
I didn’t make it across the river to this weekend’s inaugural All Points West festival, which could have easily been retitled “Two days of Radiohead shows with lots of opening bands plus another underattended Jack Johnson show,” but the festival, which was put on by Coachella presenters Goldenvoice, has opened up the floodgates for complaints about many things, from a no-umbrella policy despite rain being in the forecast to the Roots being shunted off to a side stage while Kings Of Leon (?!) got the pre-Radiohead slot. The No. 1 reason for complaining, though, was the show’s policy on alcohol consumption, which was restricted not just by area (there were a few beer tents scattered around the grounds) but by volume; the 21-and-over wristbands that allowed people into the beer tent had five tabs on them, and each time a festivalgoer ordered a drink, a tab was ripped off by the person behind the counter, thus restricting consumption of beers to five per 10-hour day. On the bright side, this saved people money (beer cost between $7 and $9 a pop), but if there’s one thing people who spent a lot of money for a show don’t like, it’s the feeling of being pushed around in order to be able to spend their hard-earned cash. MORE »
Lineups
Cranking The Lineup Of The 2008 Decibel Festival
I know this is city-based favoritism to some degree–it doesn’t hurt that I live within walking distance of nearly everything going on–but the lineup for the 2008 Decibel Festival in Seattle makes the annual electronic dance music fete look like one serious party. The headliners were announced a few weeks ago, and the organizers have been sending Facebook friends the semi-final lineups ahead of their website; we’ve copied them below the jump. The showcases are well chosen, and the best of them are as good as anything you’ll see in Europe at similar events. Pay attention especially to the “Detroit: Past, Present & Future” lineup and the final night’s headliners: by themselves these should be pretty amazing, and throwing in a Saturday in the park (a park I live three blocks from; yes!) and a Sunday BBQ and you’re talking a techno fest every bit as attractive as its overseas (and cross-border–holla, Mutek) counterparts. MORE »
