RANCID’S TIM ARMSTRONG ANNOUNCES TIM TIMEBOMB’S ROCKNROLL THEATER

Posted in Artist Watch, News, Releases with tags , , , , on October 4, 2011 by Randy

DEBUT EPISODE TO PREMIER EXCLUSIVELY ON VEVO

OCTOBER 21, 2011 AND WILL BE FIRST SCRIPTED PROGRAMMING ON THE WORLD’S LEADING ALL-PREMIUM MUSIC VIDEO AND ENTERTAINMENT PLATFORM 

STORY AND MUSIC BY TIM ARMSTRONG
October 4, 2011 – Los Angeles, CA – Iconic musician and GRAMMY®Award winning producer Tim Armstrong today announced his creation of a new and original series entitled Tim Timebomb’s RockNRoll Theater. The debut episode will premier exclusively on VEVO, the world’s leading all-premium music video and entertainment platform, on October 21, 2011 with a trailer airing beginning on October 4, 2011.

“Doing a show centered on musical theatre isn’t really a stretch for me,” says Armstrong. “For 25 years I’ve been making music and collaborating with friends, been involved in hundreds of videos, and it’s really just a direct extension of my world.” Armstrong adds, “VEVO is the perfect partner to premiere the show because their platform is extensive and will bring lots of eyeballs to our show.”

“We are so thrilled Tim is bringing his passion project to VEVO,” said Scott Reich, VP, Original Content and Programming at VEVO. “This is a big moment for both Tim and VEVO, as his RockNRoll Theater is the first time we’ve featured a character driven narrative. Tim has assembled a true cast of characters that could only come from rock ‘n’ roll. We can’t wait to bring the tales of Tim Timebomb to VEVO fans!”

Homage to the classic American Musicals, Tim Timebomb’s RockNRoll Theater will center on Armstrong as today’s punk rock Rod Serling, leading and narrating suspenseful episodes with a variety of special guest actors and musicians. Each episode will feature extensive song and dance numbers with hard-hitting rock musical songs and rousing dance numbers all wrapped in a dark edge all written by Armstrong.

“I’ll play music til the day I die, and this takes everything in an exciting new direction,” Armstrong adds. “I love collaborating with other artists and all I want to do is continue to make these episodes. That’s the spirit of the project.”

The pilot episode of Tim Timebomb’s RockNRoll Theater entitled “Dante,” will bring the 14th Century epic poem, Dante’s Inferno, roaring into the 21th Century with a new take on greed and corporate corruption. The episode stars AFI frontman Davey Havok, guitarist and vocalist Lars Frederiksen of Rancid, and actor Robert David Hall known for his extensive work on CSI.

Tim Timebomb’s RockNRoll Theater marks the first scripted piece of original programming featured on VEVO, enriching the platform’s catalogue of 45,000 premium music videos, live performances and popular original series such as GO Shows (impromptu live performances held in venues meaningful to the featured artists like The Airborne Toxic Event, Kid Cudi and Florence + The Machine), Stylized (a series exploring how music and fashion mutually inspire) and ASK:REPLY (a live chat interview series).

Armstrong teamed up with longtime collaborator David Robertson who has also produced work for Eminem, Metallica, Britney Spears, and Madonna, to produce the series. Director Kevin Kerslake, best known for his work in forging the visual identity of the MTV generation through his work with Nirvana, Green Day, Smashing Pumpkins and Rancid, directed and shot the pilot episode. Michael Rooney known for his multiple MTV Video Music awards for choreography, including Spike Jonze’s Fatboy Slim video for the song “Praise You” starring Christopher Walken, will choreograph the show. Mary Vernieu (Black Swan, Sin City, The Wrestler) will cast the series.

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BLUE OCTOBER’S JUSTIN FURSTENFELD LAUNCHES ANYMANINAMERICA.COM

Posted in Artist Watch, News with tags , , , , , on October 3, 2011 by Randy

PARENTAL ADVOCACY GROUP PROVIDES A PLACE FOR PARENTS WHO ARE DEALING WITH SHARED CUSTODY

Any Man in America, Blue October’s New Album, Out Now

Art-rock band Blue October‘s front man Justin Furstenfeld has launched a new website in support of a cause near and dear to his heart.  AnyManInAmerica.com is a place for fathers, mothers and children who have dealt, or are dealing with, the issues of shared parenting and child custody to find their voice and speak their mind.  The goal of the site is to provide a positive and uplifting platform and support group for anyone who has dealt with the life-altering act of divorce and losing the ability to be with your child or parent on a daily basis. The way the site works is simple in that it allows anyone to upload a photo of themselves or a message they wish to send to their loved one.  The site uses LiveShare to stream the photos and allows members to interact and comment as well.  The site also links to other resources for anyone who has questions or needs more info dealing with this situation. Furstenfeld was moved to start this site because of his painful experience with his own ongoing divorce and struggle to remain an active part of his daughter’s life, something that has become the topic of his band’s latest release, Any Man In America.

Video | “The Feel Again (Stay)”

Any Man In America is Blue October‘s sixth studio album, and takes the listener on a cathartic journey chronicling the deeply personal events that have unfolded in lead singer/songwriter Justin Furstenfeld’s life over the last several years. USA Today states “this one’s a doozy…It’ll tear your heart out,” giving it a 3-star (out of 4) rating.

The idea for the site came to Furstenfeld after filming the video for the song “The Feel Again (Stay)”.  In it, Furstenfeld sits in a chair singing the words while holding up paper messages for his daughter to read assuring her that the situation is not her fault.  The overwhelming response to that video showed Furstenfeld that he was not alone.  Justin Furstenfeld andBlue October have always been known for their charity work and have teamed up with the likes up Post Secret, Pick Up The Phone, 1 800-Suicide and To Write Love On Her Arms to name a few.  Justin decided to team up with The American Coalition for Fathers And Children after seeing their moving documentary Guilty Until Proven Innocent and speaking with Michael McCormick, who runs the organization.

McCormick says: “With the ‘Any Man In America’ website and album, Justin Furstenfeld and Blue October have provided a very real window that highlights a major flaw in society. Family court practices, which separate over 4,000 children from a parent every day claiming ‘the best interest of the child’, are barbaric.  Justin is focused on a top domestic social policy concern for children and parents.  All citizens have a stake in the outcome, show your support for Shared Parenting and tell your story at www.anymaninamerica.com”  
Blue October will be bringing representatives from the American Coalition for Fathers and Children on the road with them to educate fans about Family Breakdown, Divorce and Emotional Child Support during their current Any Man In America tour. Dates are listed below.

10/4/11 |George’s Majestic Lounge | Fayetteville, AR

10/6/11 | Cain’s Ballroom | Tulsa, OK

10/7/11 |Mid America Center |Council Bluffs, IA

10/9/11 | House of Blues | Cleveland, OH
10/11/11 | House of Blues | Chicago, IL

10/12/11 | Royal Oak Music Theatre | Detroit, MI

10/13/11 | Tower Theater | Upper Darby, PA

10/14/11 | The Fillmore | Silver Spring, MD

10/15/11 | Webster Hall | New York, NY

10/16/11 | Water Street Music Hall |Rochester, NY

10/17/11 | House of Blues | Boston, MA

10/19/11 | The Fillmore Charlotte | Charlotte, NC

10/20/11 | Buckhead Theater | Atlanta, GA

10/21/11 | House of Blues | New Orleans, LA

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GARBAGE RETURN :::: BAND PUTTING FINISHING TOUCHES ON NEW STUDIO ALBUM DUE OUT IN 2012

Posted in Artist Watch, News with tags , , , on October 3, 2011 by Randy

Los Angeles, CA – October 3, 2011 – Garbage is currently in the studio putting the finishing touches on their fifth studio album and their first in seven years. The new album is being recorded in a basement in the Atwater Village area of Los Angeles, CA, the first to be recorded outside of Madison, WI. The as yet untitled album will be released in Spring 2012, and is being produced by Garbage, engineered by Billy Bush, and mixed by Butch Vig and Billy Bush.

 

“Years-worth of pent-up music came out in some bizarre ways- bleary cell phone memos became real songs, conversations turned into lyrics, and new computer gizmos inspired wicked tangents,” said the members of Garbage. “Ghosts came in, had their say. Everyone brought ideas, and everyone fought their corner.  At the end of the day it all gets shoved through the four-way brain filter that is Garbage and it ends up sounding like nobody else. Red feathers and black tar.”

 

Even though it’s been seven years, there hasn’t been a female-fronted band since that has matched their inimitable sound, brashness and energy. Now free of all their corporate obligations, the band has been able to start again with a clean slate on their own terms. They add, “We are making a record filled with the music we love to hear. The new songs have been inspired more by what we haven’t been hearing rather than by what we have.”

 

After forming in Madison, WI, Garbage released their self-titled debut album in 1995 and rode a wave of visually arresting, female-fronted alternative rock bands. The album spawned the hit singles “Stupid Girl” and “Only Happy When It Rains” and was certified double platinum in Australia, theUnited Kingdom, and the United States. The band won the Breakthrough Artist Award at the 1996 MTV Europe Music Awards. Their second album, Garbage 2.0, was released in 1998 and topped the charts in the United Kingdom. It was nominated for two Grammy Awards including Album of the Year and Best Rock Album. 2001’s Beautiful Garbage was named one of Rolling Stone Magazine’s Top 10 Albums Of The Year. In 2005, Garbage released Bleed Like Me, earning the band it’s highest chart position with a No. 4 on the Billboard Top 200 Album Chart. In 2007, the band released a retrospective collection called Absolute Garbage. Garbage has sold over 12 million albums worldwide.

 

Garbage is Shirley Manson (vocals, guitar), Steve Marker (guitars, keyboards), Duke Erikson (guitars, keyboards) and Butch Vig (drums, loops).

www.garbage.com

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ED STONE ROCKWEAR™ Launches TEXTURES Clothing Line

Posted in Artist Watch, News with tags , , , on September 30, 2011 by Randy

British clothing brand ED STONE ROCKWEAR™ and Dutch progressive technical metal band TEXTURES are proud to announce the launch of an exclusive t-shirt line based on song titles from the band’s new album Dualism, out now in North America, Europe, South America, Australia, and Asia.

The 100% cotton t-shirts have a strictly limited run of 100 pieces per design.  Once the first design sells out, the next design in the series will be revealed. The inaugural design, based on the TEXTURES song “Arms of the Sea,” was created by Jeremy Packer at ZombieYeti Studios and can be pre-ordered through October 14th here.  (NOTE: Pre-order only accepts English pounds.)

States the band on this new venture: “It’s really cool to be able to expand our collaboration with Ed Stone even more, with the release of the TEXTURES / Ed Stone clothing line!  Oh yeah!”

The Dualism CD can be purchased physically at Nuclear Blast USA, Indiemerch.com,  Amazon.com, FYE,  Metal Club Stores, or your favorite local / national music retailer.  Dualism can also be purchased digitally at Amazon.com MP3 and iTunes.

View the “Reaching Home” video on the band’s YouTube page.

GuitarWorld.com recently teamed up with the band to bring you an exclusive full album stream of Dualism. The exclusive also features a special video introduction recently filmed at the Guitar World studios in New York City. Head to GuitarWorld.com now to listen!

TEXTURES are currently on their first ever North American tour with Periphery, The Human Abstract and The Contortionist.  Remaining “Frak The Gods” tour dates are:

29-09-2011                 Mojoe’s                                   Joliet, IL                       United States

30-09-2011                 Rave Bar                                  Milwaukee, WI            United States

01-10-2011                 MXTP                                     Grand Rapids, MI        United States

02-10-2011                 Wreck Room                           Toronto, ON                CANADA

03-10-2011                 La Tulipe                                  Montreal, QC               CANADA

05-10-2011                 The Palladium                           Worcester, MA            United States

06-10-2011                 Gramercy Theatre                     New York, NY            United States

07-10-2011                 First Unitarian Church               Philadelphia, PA           United States

08-10-2011                 The Kingdom                           Richmond,VA              United States

Pre-sale tickets can be purchased via the online links on the band’s Facebook page.

Upcoming European shows for TEXTURES include:

German Release show

22-10-2011     Euroblast                                  Koln                             Germany

Dutch Release show with TesseracT supporting

23-10-2011     Mezz                                        Breda                           Netherlands

Face Tomorrow and Steak Number Eight supporting

17-11-2011     Vera                                         Groningen                     Netherlands

18-11-2011     Tivoli de Helling                        Utrecht                         Netherlands

20-11-2011     LVC                                        Leiden                          Netherlands

U.K. Co-Headline tour with The Ocean & opener Aliases

24-11-2011         Joiners                                  Southampton                United Kingdom
25-11-2011        Garage                                  London                        United Kingdom
26-11-2011        Rescue Rooms                      Nottingham                   United Kingdom
27-11-2011        Academy  3                           Manchester                  United Kingdom
28-11-2011        Cathouse                               Glasgow                       United Kingdom
29-11-2011        02 Academy  2                      Newcastle                    United Kingdom
01-12-2011        02 Academy  2                      Birmingham                 United Kingdom
02-12-2011        The Haunt                             Brighton                       United Kingdom

The Ocean supporting

03-12-2011     La Scene Bastille                      Paris                             France

Follow TEXTURES online at:

www.TEXTURESBAND.com
www.facebook.com/TEXTURES
www.youtube.com/TEXTURESTV
Twitter.com/TEXTURESBAND
www.myspace.com/TEXTURES

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