Friday, August 1, 2014

Music News and New Music For August 1st, 2014

So of course, when running your own blog it can be tough to keep up with the s**tload of stuff that comes across our ears over a weekend!  Some good, some bad, some not even worth mentioning.  I guess that's how I use AFGM in general.  These articles that I go through everyday from various sites (Blabbermouth, CBC, National Post, AV Club, Google, Wired, Exclaim, Music News, Rolling Stone, etc.) and sort of "filter" some of the nonsense news such as the latest fashion design, who's got beef with who and who ISN'T doing music...still.

These articles brought forth are for a few different reasons:

1. It is relevant music information that pertains to you as a reader, no matter the level of intent or the genre.

2. They are relevant to the music I would be currently listening to or a genre I have put some attention and focus on.

3. I am rather patriotic about my Canadian music, so that always comes as a first for me.  I enjoy music from all parts of the world respectively, but I still have to promote local if I can.  Canadian music rocks!

4. Because it's humorous and we can always use a good laugh.  Rarely will it be at someone's expense...but then again I am just the guy talking about it.  They're the ones causing the comments.

So in closing, I trust you all will not read EVERY single article posted here.  But I hope you find something of use here and keep the conversation going by forwarding it onto someone else.  Click on each article heading for redirection to the full article.  Cheers!



5 truths about music we’re no longer sure are true this week:

1. Streaming is the future.
2. Michelle Shocked’s career is dead.
3. Neil Young can’t take a weirder detour than Pono.
4. Online dating has nothing to do with music.
5. YouTube broadens musical taste.

Read the rest of the article here.


Deaf Montreal boy hears music for first time after unusual surgery:

"This will be a long process of a few months, a few years, for him to learn to distinguish sound, to hear and to start maybe eventually talking.  He will be a deaf person all his life, and we truly acknowledge and embrace that.  Our expectations are not that high, but at the same time, this, for us, is really proving that what we did was a good thing." -Sophie Gareau


Zach Horowitz Steps Down as Chairman/CEO Universal Music Publishing Group:

“After a wonderful 30 years at Universal Music Group it is time for me to move on and explore other opportunities.  I consider that experience to be a true touchstone of my career in the company." -Horowitz


"Heavy Metal And Punk Fossils" On Tour:

"The exhibition has gained a huge international interest, and I am very pleased that the exhibition now is opening in Norway. Other museums that have shown interest in the exhibition are Museum Für Naturkunde in Berlin, The Royal Ontario Museum in Canada, and the Natural History Museum of Bern, Switzerland. My absolute dream would be to see the exhibition travel all around the world, bridging the gap between rock music and natural history." -Jesper Milàn


B.C. music festival’s headdress ban strikes a chord:

"There are five First Nations bands in the Nicola Valley, where Bass Coast takes place. The site is on the traditional territory of the Coldwater Indian Band. While Chief Lee Spahan was surprised at the ban – he heard about it on the radio – and wishes local bands had been consulted, he supports the decision. 'It’s culturally insensitive because they’re used in our culture. … Our leaders, some of them are Grand Chiefs, and they do use headdresses.'"


Inside The Software That Shapes Your Music: Steven Slate (Part 1):

"Given this new reality, it’s slightly ironic that the world of audio software runs rampant with algorithms seeking to emulate the Holy Grails of yesteryear: drum sample libraries, bass replications of all kinds, modelings of speaker cabinets and amplifiers—credible digital emulations of previously physical entities now exist; indeed, they are taking over the industry."


THREE DAYS GRACE Almost Done With 'Aggressive' New Record:

"We've been writing non-stop and recording a lot. We have a good 10 songs, probably, recorded. We're almost done with this record. We have another couple months to do in this studio and we're done with this thing. It'll hopefully be out by early next year." -Brad Walst


Twitch starts streaming live music today:

"We pride ourselves on listening to both the wants and needs of our community and then working to implement these requests.  Since live music is something a lot of our users have requested, it will be interesting to test these waters with a popular artist like Steve Aoki." -Kevin Lin (chief operating officer of Twitch)


Sloan Share New Track "Keep Swinging (Downtown)":



"Commonwealth" will be released on September 9th, 2014 via Yep Roc.


Lorde appointed as 'sole curator' of music for next Hunger Games film:

“I sat down with Lorde on the set of Mockingjay this spring and I was immediately struck by how she so innately understood what we ... were trying to accomplish with the film.  Her immense talent and keen understanding of Mockingjay’s characters and themes not only had enabled her to create a song of her own that completely captures the film’s essence, but her insight and passion for our project make her the perfect creative force to assemble the other songs on our soundtrack.” -Francis Lawrence


PUNISH MUSIC PIRATES WITH FINGER AMPUTATIONS, ARTIST SAYS:

“Cutting their fingers off will stop them, by the time you cut off two people’s fingers others will stop.  If their fingers are cut, they won’t [be able to use the hands] in pirating the works.  They will learn and it will be faster in stopping them; without a drastic measure they won’t stop.” -Stella Monye


DREAM THEATER's JORDAN RUDESS: 'We're Passionate About Making Music':

"We love what we do. We're passionate about making music and as composers; that's just who we are. DREAM THEATER has never been a band that hit at a particular fashionable point and said, 'OK, that's basically it.' We're a band that really… It's important to us to write music and put it out there and to work together. And we love it. And that's why we keep going." -Rudess


Musical rarities - the hidden sides of the great composers:

"Here’s a five-part primer of pieces we hardly ever encounter, the other dimensions of composers that posterity has decided aren’t worth the candle - but which I think we ought to hear to be truly aware that the Great Composers didn’t just write the masterpieces that centuries of canon-formation and music-historical image-making have decided are the best. Everyone has a musical twilight zone of pieces that history has forgotten, but which we shouldn’t..."


Diplo and Skrillex Are Definitely Working on a Jack U Mixtape:

"Although the Mad Decent label boss carefully avoided sharing a release date for Jack U's proper debut effort, he has previously confirmed via Twitter that a full-length project is in the works. Additionally, fans on the site SkrillexMothership.net reported that Diplo confirmed that the song "El Cuco" is another collaboration with Skrillex."


KILLSWITCH ENGAGE's JESSE LEACH Says He Has Started Taking Vocals Lessons Again:

"For me, that's still a struggle. I feel like we're such different singers. Like, he's got such a… almost like a… and I use this word loosely, 'cause I know he probably wouldn't like me saying this… almost operatic [feel]. He's got a real strong, melodic tone to his voice that comes naturally to him. For me, I'm a punk/hardcore guy, so for me singing was not second nature; it's something I had to learn. And even now, even in my recent performances, 'cause I've had to review some of them for a release we're gonna be doing soon, I'm still pushing a little more than I should as a singer. And I've actually started to [take] vocal lessons again.

"I really wanna hone my craft and do the songs justice, and it's something that I really appreciate when people say that I'm pulling it off, 'cause that's a feat in its own, but I'm gonna be getting better.

I feel like it's one of those things where, if you're an artist, and you sort of give up and think you're at the top of your game and that's it, I think you're doing it wrong. And for me, I just wanna learn what else my voice can do and how to sing even better and have more control. So that's kind of my new thing. We're coming up on a break, and I'm gonna be going back in vocal training to learn how to sing better." -Leach


Hop Farm organiser Vince Power banned from staging live music events:

"In addition to banning Power from playing music in public until he brings his licences up to date, the judge also ordered the promoter to pay £7,987 in legal costs run up by PRS.

If Power does not obey the ban, he could face contempt of court which could mean extra costs and a possible prison sentence."


SLASH, MIKE SHINODA Appear In New Short Film 'The Distortion Of Sound':




JOHN 5 Says That He Has Made An 'Incredible' New Album With DAVID LEE ROTH:

"[Dave and I] just made another record, and it's, like, the 'California Sessions', [Dave] was calling it. And it's 11 of the greatest songs you'll ever hear, and it's just me and Dave, and we had Gregg Bissonette play drums on it. And it's unbelievable. There's a song called 'Somewhere Over The Rainbow Bar & Grill'. And you know, just great, great songs. And hopefully sometime it'll see the light of day. But he's, of course, busy with VAN HALEN and all that stuff. But it's an incredible record.

"[The new album with Dave] was made not too long ago — like, probably, maybe, a year and a half ago or something like that. 'Cause I always go over to his house and we write music and things like that. It's a lot of fun. They're all original songs. I would just go over to his house during the day and write this music and then he would book the studio at night. So we would go into A&M Studios — Henson Studios, it's called now — and we'd record. And it's so great. I mean, it sounds like just Dave from that 'Van Halen I' or 'II' or 'Women And Children First' era, [in terms of his] singing [style], and it's incredible, man. It's really incredible. He loves it too, so maybe it'll see the light of day sometime." -John5


Dick Wagner, Guitarist for Alice Cooper and Lou Reed, Dead at 71:

“There was just a magic in the way we wrote together.  He was always able to find exactly the right chord to match perfectly with what I was doing. I think that we always think our friends will be around as long as we are, so to hear of Dick’s passing comes as a sudden shock and an enormous loss for me, rock ’n’ roll and to his family.” -Alice Cooper


Former RAMONES Drummer/Producer TOMMY RAMONE Dies At 65:

"Tommy Ramone, the last surviving original member of the legendary New York punk quartet the RAMONES, died Friday at his home in the Ridgewood, Queens, New York following treatment for bile duct cancer."


FOO FIGHTERS Complete Work On Eighth Album:

"We are officially done with the new FOO FIGHTERS album. 23 straight days mixing! IT'S EPIC!!!" -Butch Vig


Feds Charge Man in Drug-Related Death at Electric Zoo 2013:

"Patrick Morgan, who at 23 is the same age that Mr. Russ was when he died, was arrested on Wednesday in Buffalo on charges of narcotics distribution and narcotics conspiracy, after an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration that zeroed in on the group of friends involved in the alleged drug deal as recounted in the criminal complaint against Mr. Morgan. Both charges carry a maximum prison term of 20 years."


Young Metal Band UNLOCKING THE TRUTH Signs With SONY:

"The group will reportedly receive $60,000 to record the first disc and possibly as much as $325,000 for the second CD. Sony also has an option to release four more albums from UNLOCKING THE TRUTH that could push the label's financial investment to around $1.7 million ($325,000 for the second album, $400,000 for the third, $450,000 for the fourth and $550,000 for the fifth). It should be noted, however, that the band will only see the real money after an initial $60,000 advance if their debut album sells more than 250,000 copies, a prospect that seems highly unlikely in an age of diminishing record sales."


Limp Bizkit Release New Song “Endless Slaughter” For Free:



"Stampede of the Disco Elephants" will be out sometime in 2014 via Cash Money Records.


The Dillinger Escape Plan, Cold Cave, Etc. Added To Nine Inch Nails & Soundgarden Summer Tour:

With Oneohtrix Point Never:

07/19 Las Vegas, NV – Planet Hollywood
07/21 Denver, CO – Red Rocks Amphitheatre
07/22 Morrison, CO – Red Rocks Amphitheatre
07/24 Tinley Park, IL – First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre
07/26 Clarkston, MI – DTE Energy Music Theatre
07/27 Toronto, ON – Molson Canadian Amphitheatre
07/29 Mansfield, MA – XFinity Center
07/30 Camden, NJ – Bank Center
08/01 Wantagh, NY – Nikon at Jones Beach Theatre

With The Dillinger Escape Plan:

08/02 Holmdel, NJ – PNC Bank Arts Center
08/04 Bristow, VA – Jiffy Lube Live
08/05 Virginia Beach, VA – Farm Bureau Live at Lakewood
08/07 Charlotte, NC – PNC Music Pavilion
08/08 Atlanta, GA – Aaron’s Amphitheatre at Lakewood
08/10 West Palm Beach, FL – Cruzan Amphitheatre
08/11 Tampa, FL – MidFlorida Credit Union
08/14 Austin, TX – Austin360 Amphitheatre
08/16 Woodlands, TX – Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion

With Cold Cave:

08/17 Dallas, TX – Gexa Energy Pavilion
08/19 Albuquerque, NM – Isleta Amphitheatre
08/21 Chula Vista, CA – Sleep Train Amphitheatre
08/22 Irvine, CA – Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre
08/24 Mountain View, CA – Shoreline Amphitheatre
08/25 Los Angeles, CA – Hollywood Bowl
08/27 Sacramento, CA – Sleep Train Amphitheater
08/29 Portland, OR – Sleep Country Amphitheater
08/30 Seattle, WA – White River Amphitheater


Former DRAGONFORCE Singer's I AM I Taking A 'Bolder Path' With New Material:

"Ultimately, fans are there for the music, and that's the bottom line. And as long as they appreciate that and the music gets played right, then [that's all that matters].

You have to have the hunger, and after all this time, I've still got the hunger. Everyone else doesn't necessarily feel the same way about it as I do, and there you go. Things move on. I'm out here to be onstage and do music, and that's all I care about. And I wanna surround myself with people that feel the same way. Onwards and upwards." -ZP Theart


Flaw Seek To Crowdfund $30,000 For New Album Pre-Production And Touring:




COREY TAYLOR On Recording New SLIPKNOT Album: 'We Knew It Was Gonna Be Heavy':

"It was interesting.  We knew it was gonna be heavy. We knew it was gonna be one of those things where it's like, 'Okay, we're in uncharted territory right now, so what do we do?' You know. And Jim [Root, guitarist] and Clown [Shawn Crahan, percussionist] really stepped up, you know. They kind of started leading the charge and really getting stuff together. So by the time we really got into the studio, we had a really great template of music to check out." -Taylor


NEW MEDICINE: 'Breaking The Model' Due In August:

1. Breaking The Model
2. Desire Into Gold
3. One Too Many
4. Broken Girl
5. All About Me
6. World Class Fuck Up
7. Dead Love Song
8. Like A Rose
9. Heart With Your Name On It
10. Fire Up The Night
11. Boy Like Me

"Breaking The Model" will be released on August 25th, 2014 via Imagen Records.

"I hope people appreciate that we pushed the envelope and didn't make the samerecord twice.  We tried some new things, but we never lost our attitude or lost sight of where we came from. We want to make rock 'n' roll cool, young, dangerous, and exciting again." -Jake Scherer


Linkin Park Readying Acapellas & Instrumentals Version Of “The Hunting Party”:


1. Keys To The Kingdom (Acapella)
2. All For Nothing (Feat. Page Hamilton) (Acapella)
3. Guilty All The Same (Feat. Rakim) (Acapella)
4. War (Acapella)
5. Wastelands (Acapella)
6. Until It’s Gone (Acapella)
7. Rebellion (Acapella)
8. Mark The Graves (Acapella)
9. Final Masquerade (Acapella)
10. A Line In The Sand (Acapella)
11. Keys To The Kingdom (Instrumental)
12. All For Nothing (Instrumental)
13. Guilty All The Same (Instrumental)
14. The Summoning (Instrumental)
15. War (Instrumental)
16. Wastelands (Instrumental)
17. Until It’s Gone (Instrumental)
18. Rebellion (Instrumental)
19. Mark The Graves (Instrumental)
20. Drawbar (Instrumental)
21. Final Masquerade (Instrumental)
22. A Line In The Sand (Instrumental)


Primus To Release New Book “Primus, Over The Electric Grapevine…”:

“Primus, Over the Electric Grapevine: Insight Into Primus and the World of Les Claypool is a fascinating and beautifully curated oral history that tells the tale of this truly one-of-a-kind seminal band. Compiled from nearly fifty all new interviews conducted by journalist/author Greg Prato, this collection—which also features a 16-page full-color photo insert with rare and never-before-seen images—is sure to appeal to longtime fans of the band.”


Samsung's Milk Music Joins the Premium Radio Service Race:

"For $3.99 per month, Milk Premium adds offline listening and unlimited song skipping to the regular offering of 200 stations and a personalization features. Both Milk Premium and the free version of Milk Music are free of advertisements."


Meshuggah To Release New Live Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Set “The Ophidian Trek”:

DVD/Blu-Ray:
01 – “Swarmer“
02 – “Swarm“
03 – “Combustion“
04 – “Rational Gaze“
05 – “obZen“
06 – “Lethargica“
07 – “Do Not Look Down“
08 – “The Hurt That Finds You First“
09 – “ I Am Colossus“
10 – “Bleed“
11 – “Demiurge“
12 – “New Millennium Cyanide Christ“
13 – “Dancers To A Discordant System“
14 – “Mind’s Mirrors” / “In Death – Is Life / In Death – Is Death“
15 – “The Last Vigil“


Live CD 1:
01 – “Swarmer“
02 – “Swarm“
03 – “Combustion“
04 – “Rational Gaze“
05 – “obZen“
06 – “Lethargica“
07 – “Do Not Look Down“
08 – “The Hurt That Finds You First“
09 – “ I Am Colossus“

Live CD 2:
01 – “Bleed“
02 – “Demiurge“
03 – “New Millennium Cyanide Christ“
04 – “Dancers To A Discordant System“
05 – “Mind’s Mirrors” / “In Death – Is Life / In Death – Is Death“
06 – “The Last Vigil“

“We’re really stoked about this new Meshuggah live DVD! It’s been 4 years since the release of “Alive” and with the band celebrating 25 years, we felt that we just had to get another one of these puppies out there! Audio/Video was recorded during our European stretch of “The ophidian trek” tour, as well as at the Wacken open air festival – and we’re super proud of how it came out! For this one we used the extremely talented photographer Anthony Dubois for filming and editing etc and he’s really done a stunning job with it! Hope you guys dig it and here’s to another 25!!” -Tomas Haake

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