Costing upwards of $500-600 dollars, we can’t blame the bass monster for rolling his eyes at yet another label cash-in. According to Lemmy:

Unfortunately greed once again rears its yapping head. I would advise against it even for the most rabid completists!

The only problem is that Motorhead didn’t get a vote on this one, since they don’t own or control the recordings in question. The ‘Early Years’ bundle includes a compendium of early albums, starting with the self-titled debut and pushing through ‘No Remorse.’  And, a smattering of singles sprinkled on top.  Toss in a few posters, a photo book, some pins, concert program replicas and a plastic skull with red light-up eyes, and you get the overloaded idea.

Weller returns this spring for his only scheduled appearances in North America this year.  Weller and his band will perform at a two-night stand at the Best Buy Theater in Times Square, New York on May 18th & 19th.

His New York shows will be in support of Sonik Kicks, which is scheduled for release on March 27th 2012 on Yep Roc Records. The album is the follow up to the Mercury Prize Award nominated Wake Up The Nation and is also Paul’s eleventh solo album.

Sonik Kicks features fourteen brand new tracks: “Green,” “The Attic,” “Kling I Klang,” “Sleep of the Serene,” “By the Waters,” “That Dangerous Age,”  “Study in Blue,” “Dragonfly,” “When Your Garden’s Overgrown,” “Around The Lake,” “Twilight,” “Drifters,” “Paperchase,” and “Be Happy Children.” Both Noel Gallagher and Graham Coxon appear as special guests on the album.

2012 marks two important anniversaries for Paul Weller.  In 1977 (35 years ago) The Jam burst on to the music scene with their debut album In The City, which without question was one of the most important punk albums to ever be released.  Since then Weller consistently changed and evolved his sound through his work with The Style Council and as a solo artist.  It was also 20 years ago in 1992 when Weller released his self-titled first ever solo album.

With Sonik Kicks, Weller once again shakes up his palate and stirs his influences anew.  He mixes pop art punch with soulful communication; jazzy explorations into psychedelia and dub with razor-sharp melodies and abstract soundscapes with clear-eyed forest-folk.

Anyway, this week we take a look back at our 2001 cover story on Death Cab for Cutie. We interviewed the band before the release of their third album, and way before their national breakthrough.

Read the entire cover story below, or download the PDF here (right click and choose Save As).

Enjoy!

Independent artists and labels celebrated another huge year at the 54th GRAMMY® Awards, taking home 34 awards in a wide variety of categories, including Best New Artist, Best Country Song, and Best Album awards in ten categories.

Bon Iver’s Best New Artist win marks the second consecutive indie victory in the leading category, following Esperanza Spalding in 2011. Other indie highlights from this year’s ceremony include Best Pop Instrumental Album for Booker T. Jones’ ‘The Road From Memphis,’ Best Alternative Album for Bon Iver’s ‘Bon Iver,’ and two statues each for Taylor Swift and Alison Krauss & Union Station’s ‘Paper Airplane.’

This year also marked the second consecutive year, since A2IM started keeping track in 2006, that independent labels and artists led industry nominations with over 50% of all awards; a true sign of the continued strength and importance of independent music. Altogether, independents held 194 of the 387 possible nomination spots.

Jim Mahoney, Vice President of the American Association of Independent Music (A2IM), pointed out that “Justin Vernon from Bon Iver thanked his label Jagjaguwar during his acceptance speech from Best New Artist for, among other things, their support and transparency – spotlighting the strong bonds that are common between indie labels and our artists. We congratulate Bon Iver and all of the talented artists and indie labels who were recognized at the 54th GRAMMY Awards.”

Said Jagjaguwar President Darius Van Arman, “Justin Vernon embodies the celebration, not celebrity of music. Bon Iver winning two GRAMMYs is well-deserved recognition of a very special talent whose first instinct is to raise up everyone around him. He is, essentially, the independent artist. We are so proud of Justin Vernon and the whole Bon Iver family.”

Scott Borchetta, President and CEO of the Big Machine Label Group in Nashville noted “We could not be more proud of our GRAMMY nominated artists including Taylor Swift, The Band Perry and Martina McBride. Taylor walked away with two victories last night, one for Best Country Song and Best Country Solo Performance, and her performance on the show– along with The Band Perry’s tribute to Glen Campbell– have already been labeled by television critics as some of the best of the night. We’ve achieved so much as an independent label since we opened our doors a little over six years ago. Because we are independent, we are able to stay focused on our artists and making great music for the consumer.”

Anti/Epitaph GM Dave Hansen said on behalf of the label, “We congratulate both Booker T. Jones and Tinariwen on their GRAMMY wins. We are proud to be working with both artists on these outstanding records.”

Glen Barros, Concord Music Group President, echoed their enthusiasm, stating “Being associated with 7 GRAMMY winners in a year where there are 31 less categories makes us feel especially great. We’re blessed to work with some of the greatest artists in the world, and we congratulate all those who received awards as well as those who were nominated this year.”

Naxos of America CEO Jim Selby said “Naxos of America is proud to be the North American distribution home for so many GRAMMY-winning recordings and artists this year. The independent record labels continue to be recognized by the industry as influential leaders, and I am compelled to say that this trend will continue well into the future. Congratulations to all of the independent label artists who were nominated or who have come home winners from the 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards.”

Denny Stilwell, President of Mack Avenue Records extended congratulations to winner Christian McBride, noting “As one of the most prolific musicians of his generation, Christian has won several GRAMMY awards as a sideman but had never been nominated as a leader. When news broke that he received his first nomination for the ambitious big band project, we were thrilled for him. And now that he has won, we are even more thrilled. Congratulations, Christian!”

The performance line-up, meant to showcase S.O.B’s commitment to musical diversity, includes acts like Miguel, Machine Gun Kelly, and 2 Chainz, as well as rap supergroup Slaughterhouse [Joe Budden, Joell Ortiz, Royce Da 5'9, Crooked I], Elle Varner, Nikki Jean, Maya Azuceña, Airplane Boys & Hoodie Allen. Opening honors will be performed by warm-up alumn, Anthm. AllHipHop, who have supported S.O.B.’s with on-the-scene media coverage for the past decade, is the event’s media partner. YouHeardThatNew’s infamous founder, Low Key, will host the evening with 2DopeBoyz’s DJ Meka providing the musical backdrop in-between sets.

Founded in June of 1982 by owner and director, Larry Gold, on what was then a barren stretch of land at the corners of Varick and Houston Streets, to expose the musical heritage of the Afro-Latino Diaspora, S.O.B.’s has gone on to become renowned as the premier venue for not only World Music, but all genres, in New York City and the world over. The list of music legends to have graced the stage in the past thirty years is too extensive to list but the venue’s contributions to connecting music to fans doesn’t stop there. S.O.B.’s has also developed a reputation in the industry as a breeding ground for up-and-coming artists and trends. A show at S.O.B.’s can be a springboard for emerging artists, garnering them press from mainstream local, national and even international media as well as attracting attention from music industry professionals. This has been the case with uncounted artists including John Legend, Erykah Badu, Kanye West, Common, Drake and Ryan Leslie. In fact, the venue spawned the long-standing Breeding Ground feature on AllHipHop, on which the site has highlighted its picks from the crop of Hip Hop hopefuls over the years.

The partnership between S.O.B.’s and International Creative Management to present the venue’s thirtieth anniversary made perfect sense as the two, working closely with Noizy Cricket!!, have collaborated for many years to provide amazing live entertainment to New York audiences.

“We could have provided an entire month’s worth of concerts with all of the talent that has stepped on to the S.O.B’s stage over the past thirty years.” shares Noizy Cricket!! founder, Le’Roy Benros. “We’ve gathered some of the freshest talent out today who’ve put on legendary performances here in New York and brought them to SXSW for a night to remember!”

“After 30 years of building S.O.B’s into one of the elite music venues in NYC we are honored to finally be showcasing some of the best of Urban Music at SXSW.” adds owner, Larry Gold.

“We have been working with Larry and the S.O.B.’s family for many years and this will be a great way to celebrate their 30th anniversary,” says ICM Agent, Zach Iser.  “Our clients are proud to be a part of this special evening of live music.”

Media is encouraged to attend this momentous occasion in New York City’s music history at one of the nation’s biggest and best music festivals, SXSW. Attendance is free to all on a first come, first served basis with SXSW wristbands and select media will be given access to talent for interview purposes.

Times have been rough for indie record shops around the country, and Criminal Records is no exception – which is why the “Save Criminal Records” campaign started a few months back, to help the shop stay in Little Five Points. Read more on that here or visit the Save Criminal Records website for info on how you can help.

“Your donation of $10.00 will grant you access to our archives page. We’ll continue to put the various gifts that our friends, co-workers and community members offer us, along with other perks and opportunities that come our way. Please help us spread the word and our deepest, heart-felt thanks to everyone, for the gift of song especially, but for everyone’s collective help, interest and enthusiasm. Criminal Records will continue with a little help from our friends.

Keep checking back for songs and videos from former Criminal Records team members, like Tommy Chung, DJ Swivel & CX Kidtronik and past in-store performances from Mike Farris, Death on Two Wheels, West End Motel, The Charlatans. Joseph Arthur has promised a painting and a song. Ohhhhh.

-With Love and Thanks from Eric“

I’m 99% sure this video is historically accurate. Enjoy!

·Leave a comment below

·Include your email address

·Deadline to enter: 3/31/2012

In honor of Audio-Technica’s 50th Anniversary, we are excited to be giving away 3 pairs of ATH-M50s/LE special edition headphones (MSRP $209.00)!

Winning is easy – simply leave a comment below and you’re automatically entered. Contest deadline is March 31, 2012, so get those comments in on time. Winners will be notified in early April.

And now for the juicy details. Good luck!

To celebrate Audio-Technica’s 50th Anniversary, A-T has introduced a special limited edition ATH-M50s/LE Anniversary Headphone in a silver-colored metallic finish.

With the ATH-M50s/LE professional studio monitor headphones (silver color with straight cable), Audio-Technica has achieved an exceptionally accurate response and long-wearing listening comfort. Designed especially for professional monitoring and mixing, these studiophones feature an efficient collapsible design for space-saving portability and storage. Circumaural ear pieces swivel 180° for easy one-ear monitoring and luxuriously padded ear cushions create an outstanding seal for maximum isolation. The adjustable headband is generously padded for ultimate comfort during long mixing sessions. A straight cable at the left earpiece terminates to a gold-plated mini-plug with included screw-on ¼” adapter.

Audio-Technica’s sophisticated driver technology and superior components deliver exceptional power handling and very high SPL capabilities while maintaining clarity of sound throughout their extended range, with deep, accurate bass and outstanding high-frequency extension. The headphones feature proprietary large-aperture drivers with neodymium magnet systems for ultra-efficient signal transfer.

• Special 50th anniversary edition in silver-colored metallic finish
• Exceptional audio quality for professional monitoring and mixing
• Collapsible design ideal for easy portability and convenient storage
• Proprietary 45 mm large-aperture drivers with neodymium magnet systems
• Closed-back cushioned earcup design creates an outstanding seal for maximum isolation
• Adjustable padded headband for comfort during long mixing/recording sessions
• Single-sided straight cable terminates to gold-plated mini-plug with screw-on ¼” adapter
• Available in black color with coiled cable (ATH-M50), white color with coiled cable (ATH-M50WH), and black color with straight cable (ATH-M50s)

 

Type	Closed-back dynamic
Driver Diameter	45 mm
Magnet	Neodymium
Voice Coil	CCAW (Copper-clad aluminum wire)
Frequency Response	15 – 28,000 Hz
Maximum Input Power	1,600 mW at 1 kHz
Sensitivity	99 dB
Impedance	38 ohms
Weight	284 g (10 oz) without cable and connector
Cable	3.5 m (11.0′), OFC litz wire
Connector	Gold-plated stereo 1/8″ (3.5 mm) connector with strain relief and professional screw-on 1/4″ (6.3 mm) adapter
Accessory Included	Protective pouch

They feature one of the HAAARDEST rhythm sections of any modern funk outfit, and I can atttest to this from personal erxperience, having seen the Time in concert on a few separate occasions.

So sit back, relax, and take a trip back in time to 7th Street Entry with Morris Day and the Time.

If you haven’t been exposed to djent , then here’s the skinny. Some metal maniacs insist djent is a technique, and not a genre. And then there are those Meshuggah worshipers who swear it is indeed a legit genre. No matter which side of the fence you stand on, there are some things that we can all agree on.

Djent is a heavy metal music subgenre (well, that’s hotly contested) that emerged as a spin-off from progressive metal. Coined by the band Meshuggah, it was popularized through the internet by Periphery, specifically guitarist Misha Mansoor. The word “djent” is an onomatopoeia for a heavily palm-muted, distorted guitar chord. Typically, the word is used to refer to music that makes use of this sound, to the sound itself, or to the scene that revolves around it.

Djent, in its original meaning, is a heavily digitally processed power chord, and is the name for an elastic, syncopated guitar riff. Djent as a style has been described as featuring heavily palm-muted, distorted guitar chords alongside virtuoso soloing, and is characterized by rhythmic complexity and palm-muted riffing. Another major contribution to “djent” is computerized sound. Many djent musicians, such as Misha Mansoor, started their careers in home recording using amp modeling and programmed drums. Furthermore, a frequent characteristic of djent music is the seven or eight string guitar, which provides a heavier feel to the music.

So what do you think – is djent a real genre or not? Sound off below.