Spinner

Maximum Balloon's Dave Sitek Combines Recording and Dinner Parties

Steve Baltin — 2010-09-08T15:00:00 00:00

For Maximum Balloon, the new solo project from TV on the Radio's Dave Sitek, the musician/producer enlisted an all-star cast of guests for the band's first album, including bandmate Kyp Malone, Yeah Yeah Yeahs singer Karen O, Shivaree's Ambrosia Parsley, Dragons of Zynth's Aku and legendary Talking Heads singer David Byrne.

So, what was Sitek looking for in these collaborators? "People who could tolerate my bulls---," he tells Spinner with a laugh. "It was more about fun than anything else. Just winging it, that's about it."

Heart Rev Up the Rock for 'Red Velvet Car' -- Exclusive Video

Steve Baltin — 2010-09-08T12:00:00 00:00

Filed under: News, Video, New Music, Exclusive

Heart's Ann and Nancy Wilson came to musical prominence in the '70s, a decade in which muscle cars like the Camaro and Trans-Am were rock stars in their own right. The iconic sisters' new album, 'Red Velvet Car' -- their first studio effort in six years -- and the track 'Wheels' brings to mind that era with a recurring automobile motif.

When the Wilson sisters visited AOL's L.A. studios for a video chat about the new album, guitarist Nancy explained the origins of the title track. "We started working on the song, 'Red Velvet Car,' and we went, 'Wow, this album is about travel,'" she said. "There's something about the modern psyche and the heart of the modern culture that is on its way through. The good old image of home and heart has really altered lately. Everything is fast and moving, everyone's on a plane and that's the lonelier aspect of the modern world. 'Red Velvet Car,' it's another travel song with a lonely center, looking for a rescue, which is what a red velvet car is: A friend who comes, no matter what, with a red velvet car to get you."

Interpol Celebrate Album Release With Intimate Los Angeles Gig

Steve Baltin — 2010-09-07T14:00:00 00:00

Filed under: Concerts and Tours, News, New Music

Despite calling New York City home, Interpol spent Monday -- the night before the release of their self-titled fourth album -- having a very L.A. experience. To celebrate, the band performed an eight-song set for 150 people at legendary producer Bob Clearmountain's studio, which is located a few blocks from the beach.

The hour-long performance and interview, recorded for L.A.'s KCRW and airing Thursday, Sept. 9, found original remaining members Paul Banks, Sam Fogarino and Daniel Kessler -- as well as current bassist David Pajo and keboardist/backing vocalist Brandon Curtis -- mixing older material like 'NYC' and 'Evil' with new tracks 'Lights,' 'Summer Well' and 'Success,' the first song from both their album and the evening's set.

Steve Miller Admits to Being a Reluctant Rock Star, Once Hating the Rolling Stones

Steve Baltin — 2010-09-03T17:30:00 00:00

Filed under: Spinner Interview

By his estimation, Steve Miller has sold about 8 million albums in the '90s, a monumental feat considering he last released a new album in 1993. It's less surprising, however, when one takes a look at classic-rock radio playlists and finds songs such as 'Jet Airliner,' 'Fly Like an Eagle,' 'Take the Money and Run,' 'Rock'n Me,' 'Swingtown,' and The Joker,' all from Miller's chart-topping '70s heyday. The sheer volume of sales puts him on par with other '70s acts such as the Eagles and Fleetwood Mac. So why don't more people realize just how big Steve Miller was? Because he didn't want you to.

"Whenever I got to the very tippity-top of the charts and was ruling the world for a minute, I always ducked for a minute," Miller tells Spinner. "I didn't want that crown." Miller also didn't do a lot of press, instead happily touring and playing for his legions of fans. But now with a new album, 'Bingo!' -- his first in 17 years and one particularly near to his heart, as he takes the blues songs he grew up loving in Texas and turns them into Steve Miller Band tunes -- Miller is cranking up his visibility once more. In a wide-ranging interview, Miller speaks about the importance of music education, how being one of the biggest rock stars on the planet in the '70s wore him out, and why it took him so many years to warm up to the Rolling Stones.

How is the tour going so far?

So far, it's just going great. We put a whole new show together, incorporating the new stuff from the album along with the greatest hits. It's totally changed the way I look at my material, so I'm really enjoying it. The interesting thing for me is that two songs that I was pretty much done with were 'Livin' in the USA' and 'Space Cowboy.' We worked out the original version of 'Space Cowboy.' We always sort of tossed 'Space Cowboy' off as just a joke and so we've put it back together and it's going over quite well.

Carlos Santana Gets Olivia Harrison's Blessing for 'While My Guitar Gently Weeps' Cover

Steve Baltin — 2010-09-02T16:00:00 00:00

Filed under: Concerts and Tours, News, New Music, Exclusive

For Carlos Santana's latest album, 'Guitar Heaven: Santana Performs the Greatest Guitar Classics of All Time,' the axeman teams with vocalists like Chris Cornell, Rob Thomas and Scott Weiland to cover songs by Led Zeppelin, Cream, the Rolling Stones and more. During a recent press junket in Las Vegas, the guitar legend admitted that the album, which was conceived by Clive Davis, initially made him nervous.

"I feel really grateful and really honored that he pursued with a lot of intensity and diligently, because I was afraid, straight up," Santana said of working with Davis. "Each time he convinced me, he took layers and layers of fear and made me realize there's a way to crystallize these beautiful songs in a way that, like Wayne Shorter would say, 'We have arrived completely new, totally familiar.'"

The Silver Lake Chorus' Enthusiasm Enchants Ben Lee -- Exclusive Video

Steve Baltin — 2010-08-31T16:00:00 00:00

Filed under: News, Video, New Music, Exclusive

A good-looking, fun-loving chorus with an ear for indie music is going to draw a lot of comparisons to a certain hit TV show on Fox of the moment. But for Ben Lee, who's producing the debut album for the Silver Lake Chorus, the musically uplifting brainchild of founder Sam Rader, it was a past TV phenomenon that inspired him to want to work with the group.

"It felt like when you watched 'Friends' and you were like, 'That's kinda what it should be like moving to New York in your 20s,'" Lee told Spinner when we dropped by one of the group's rehearsals. "You find a group of friends, you all live together in two apartments across the hall -- a complete fantasy. Silver Lake Chorus just felt like that but real for L.A. It was like all these disparate people, all these different backgrounds who love to sing, who came together."

Slash Recalls Dressing in Drag, Getting Arrested on the Sunset Strip

Steve Baltin — 2010-08-26T16:00:00 00:00

Filed under: Concerts and Tours, News, Exclusive

As an icon of the Sunset Strip and its famous haunts (the Roxy, the Rainbow, the Whisky, etc.), Slash may have more tales than anyone about the famed street.

"I moved here when I was a kid, I was raised here, I've been a part of this neighborhood forever, I started playing guitar here, all of my bands were from here," this year's honoree at the Sunset Strip Music Festival tells Spinner. "I feel very much a part of this whole neighborhood."

Linda Perry Wonders Where the Hard-Rocking Women Are

Steve Baltin — 2010-08-25T14:00:00 00:00

Filed under: News, New Music, Exclusive

When Courtney Love was working with Linda Perry on the album that would eventually become 'Nobody's Daughter' -- though not the version produced by Perry -- the Hole singer wanted to put an all-female band together. As someone who's worked with a who's who of female artists including Pink, Christina Aguilera and KT Tunstall, Perry is the first to support woman rockers, but she had to dash Love's dreams of an all-woman band.

"She did start finding all these people and I was going to rehearsals and they sucked," Perry tells Spinner. "It was this wimpy ass f---ing girls who didn't rock. But you know what they did? They had a good look. It's still hard to find a girl who straps on a f---ing guitar and rocks and isn't worried about her f---ing fingernails or what she looks like."

Rufus Wainwright Takes Cues From Mozart, Nina Simone on Current Tour

Steve Baltin — 2010-08-23T14:00:00 00:00

Filed under: Concerts and Tours, News, New Music, Exclusive

When Spinner spoke with Rufus Wainwright during the making of his acclaimed 'All Days Are Nights: Songs for Lulu' album, he described the recording of the music, which is just piano and voice, as being "intense and naked." Now that the album has been out for some months and he's taken it to the stage, has the music gotten any easier for him?

"It's pretty tough, just technically, on both the piano and the voice," Wainwright tells Spinner. The tour will end in December at New York's famed Carnegie Hall, and although Wainwright has played the venue before, he says the gig is making him nervous. "Just the thought of having to do this there is pretty nerve-wracking," he says. "For any classical music fan and pianist, or even singer for that matter, to go and do a whole show alone on that stage is pretty much the apex of the musical existence in a sense. There's no bigger than that in so many worlds, whether it's jazz, whether it's classical, if you're a solo performer. So it's got a lot of baggage -- good baggage, full of gold and silver and diamonds and so forth, but heavy."

Bad Religion Celebrate 30th Anniversary and Label Success -- Exclusive Videos

Steve Baltin — 2010-08-19T16:05:00 00:00

Filed under: News, Video, New Music, Exclusive

2010 marks both Bad Religion's 30th anniversary and the release of their 15th album, 'The Dissent of Man.' To commemorate these milestones, Spinner was invited to the Los Angeles offices of Epitaph Records to meet with band co-founder and label owner Brett Gurewitz for two exclusive video interviews.

While discussing the evolution of Bad Religion's songwriting, Gurewitz told Spinner about some surprising influences on the band. While he admits they started out trying to write Germs-style songs, the new album finds some heavily classic rock influences, such as the lead single, 'The Devil in Stitches.' "I was trying to write a Bruce Springsteen song," he said.

Mayer Hawthorne Finds 'Redemption' at AOL's Geek Awards

Steve Baltin — 2010-08-19T11:30:00 00:00

Filed under: Concerts and Tours, News, Exclusive

Wednesday night at L.A.'s Conga Room, AOL's Geek Awards honored the biggest geeks in the fields of film, style, music and more. For his part, music honoree Mayer Hawthorne was incredibly excited. "This is redemption for me. I've been waiting my whole life for somebody to give awards to geeks," the silver-suited Hawthorne told Spinner as he walked the pink carpet.

The soul singer did double duty, picking up a Geek Award and rocking a 30-minute set after the ceremony, hosted by the hilarious Ken Jeong ('The Hangover,' 'Role Models') Hawthorne was equally stoked to be providing the soundtrack for a party that included film winner Kevin Smith and new Web darling Elyse Porterfield (better known as "Jenny HOPA" to the Web geeks out there for her famed white board hoax on the Chive). "This is awesome. I feel like we're at 'Animal House' or 'PCU' or something and we're Parliament-Funkadelic," Hawthorne said, proving his geek knowledge with movie references.

'Scott Pilgrim' Director Welcomed to Toronto by Metric, Broken Social Scene

Steve Baltin — 2010-08-16T14:00:00 00:00

Filed under: News, Exclusive, Movies

'Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World' director Edgar Wright was a long way from his native England during filming of the movie in Toronto, but he was welcomed into the city by the local music scene. "I remember, as an example of the generosity and spirit of the camaraderie there, when I first met Kevin Drew he sent me to a record shop on Queen Street called Rotate This and basically just told me all these albums to get," Wright tells Spinner. "He's like, 'OK, Hidden Cameras, you gotta get this, listen to this.' He was telling me what other things I should be listening to from Toronto, so that was cool."

Hailing from London, Wright knows a thing or two about successful music scenes, but he says the Toronto music community is special because of the interaction. "Through Arts & Crafts, Broken Social Scene's label, there's a very interesting kind of co-op feel to the music scene that a lot of people kind of collaborate on each other's work," he says. "And sometimes you go see Broken Social Scene and there'll be 20 people onstage and it always seems like a great collective because Emily Haines can drop by and sing a song and Feist'll come back. I saw a concert at Christmas before we started shooting where Modest Mouse were part of the band for the night. I guess there's a much smaller scene than in London so it certainly seems like there's an interesting family vibe."

'Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World' Director Edgar Wright Fulfills His Musical Dreams

Steve Baltin — 2010-08-13T15:00:00 00:00

Filed under: News, New Music, Exclusive, Movies

As readers of the 'Scott Pilgrim' graphic novel series are well aware, it is a world immersed in music, from the title character/protagonist's role as bassist in the garage band Sex Bob-Omb to his romantic interest's evil exes. For director Edgar Wright ('Hot Fuzz,' 'Shaun of the Dead'), turning the beloved series into the film version starring Michael Cera was a musical dream come true.

"It was an embarrassment of riches to have so many people that I'm huge fans of," Wright tells Spinner of getting people like Beck, Metric, Cornelius, Dan the Automator, Broken Social Scene, Kid Koala and more to lend their songs to 'Scott Pilgrim vs. the World.' "I covered so many bases with 'Scott Pilgrim.'"

Tom Jones Matures Enough to Make the Album He's Always Dreamed

Steve Baltin — 2010-08-11T17:30:00 00:00

Filed under: Spinner Interview

Tom Jones found himself back in the headlines earlier this year when his new 'Praise & Blame' album was reportedly criticized by an official at his label, who in a leaked e-mail called the record "a sick joke." It's curious because if the Island Records label exec truly doesn't like the record, he might be the only one.

'Praise & Blame' not only debuted at No. 2 in the UK, it has earned the icon some of the greatest reviews of his career, with Jones pointing out that one reviewer even said he never was a fan of the Welsh singer until this album. For Jones, who grew up on gospel and says this is an album he always wanted to make but was just never allowed to, the reviews and fan response have been some of the most rewarding of his 45-year career. But at 70, Jones is reinventing himself as an elder statesman of music, a title he's happy to take, as he shares stories of hanging with Elvis Presley, meeting the Beatles and the so much more he's seen in his storied run.

The early reviews for the record have been phenomenal. Given this is a record you wanted to make forever, how gratifying has the initial response been?

It's great; it's more than I expected. Some reviewers have said it's the best thing I've done in 20 years, and one guy said he didn't particularly like me before but finally I've recorded songs that are worthy of my voice. I knew it was going to be a good record because I knew most of the songs and I wanted to do them for a long time. And Ethan Johns, who's a great producer, produced it, the musicians we used were great, and we did it in Real World in Wiltshire[, England], which is Peter Gabriel's studio. So all the ingredients were there, but it really turned out better than I expected. I love the sound.

Soundgarden Warm Up for Lollapalooza With Chicago Club Gig

Steve Baltin — 2010-08-06T11:40:00 00:00

Filed under: Concerts and Tours, News

When the Lollapalooza lineup was revealed months ago, arguably the biggest news was that Soundgarden would be playing their first show in 12 years. Since the announcement, the Seattle grunge vets played a secret show in their hometown of Seattle and, Thursday night, around 1,500 lucky fans got a preview of the band's Sunday headlining set when Chris Cornell, Kim Thayil, Matt Cameron and Ben Shepherd took the stage at the Vic Theater.

Coming out at 9:45PM and opening with 'Searching With My Good Eye Closed,' the quartet quickly kicked the crowd into overdrive with a raucous 'Spoonman.' The 1994 hit prompted screaming along and an appropriate boatload of air guitar in a venue peppered with 'Guitar Hero' posters on the doors and walls.

Crowded House Content With Current Fame

Steve Baltin — 2010-08-03T14:00:00 00:00

Filed under: Concerts and Tours, News, New Music, Exclusive

Since its June release, Crowded House's new album 'Intriguer' has earned great reviews but frontman Neil Finn doesn't expect the record to repeat the success of the band's '80s heyday, when smash singles like 'Don't Dream It's Over' propelled the group to Top 10 status.

"I don't have expectations that it's going to be as big as it used to be," Finn admits to Spinner. "We had a peak back in the '80s commercially that would be probably not something to base any assessment on."

Tom Jones Praises Frank Sinatra's Character

Steve Baltin — 2010-07-30T14:00:00 00:00

Filed under: Concerts and Tours, News, New Music, Exclusive

With more than four decades of chart-topping success, Tom Jones has rubbed elbows with the titans of music. Few men still alive today can tell tales of hanging in a Las Vegas hotel suite singing gospel tunes with Elvis Presley or grabbing a drink with Frank Sinatra at Caesar's Palace, but the 70-year-old Jones can. Even after all he's accomplished in his legendary career, including the massive popularity of his new critically acclaimed 'Praise and Blame' album, the Welsh icon remains truly in awe of the things he's experienced.

"Those people, they've gone on since. They've passed away, so I think, 'My god, I was there. I knew them. I knew these people,'" Jones tells Spinner. "It reminds me, when I'm telling people about it and they're going, 'Wow,' I'm still going, 'Wow' myself. It's a thing that I haven't gotten used to."

Gavin Rossdale 'Excited' for Bush's Comeback

Steve Baltin — 2010-07-29T14:00:00 00:00

Filed under: Concerts and Tours, News, New Music, Exclusive

After an eight-year detour that saw him front the side project Institute and release a solo album, Gavin Rossdale is returning to Bush, hitting the stage at California's Epicenter Festival in September and releasing a new album, 'Everything Always Now,' this fall. Like many fans, Rossdale has been waiting for this moment for some time.

"My last show with Bush was, I think July 2002 and I didn't know at that point that it would take so long to return. Then when it started taking years, I wasn't sure how I'd ever get it back," Rossdale tells Spinner. "I've been waiting semi-patiently for eight years for the guys to join me to have that pristine reunion of the whole band and that very super Spinal Tap [moment] and really enjoy it, treasure it and savor it."

Fran Healy Keeping Vegetarian Promise to Paul McCartney

Steve Baltin — 2010-07-26T11:00:00 00:00

Filed under: News, New Music, Exclusive, Holy Hell

We're sure musicians everywhere would like to know the answer to this question: how do you get Paul McCartney to play bass on your album, as Travis frontman Fran Healy did? For starters, it helps that Healy has known McCartney for some time, even if their first meeting wasn't an auspicious one.

"I've known Paul since 2000. We did this TV show and he was so nice," Healy tells Spinner. "I sat down and he asked me to come and do a duet with him when he was doing his gig on this TV show. I was like, 'Ah, f---. Yeah, OK,' and I had to learn this rock 'n' roll song. I went up and did it, I completely forgot all the words and it was an absolute embarrassment. It was terrible, but it was funny."

Rage Against the Machine Ready for 'Battle' Against Arizona Immigration Law

Steve Baltin — 2010-07-22T10:00:00 00:00

Filed under: Concerts and Tours, News, Politics as Usual

In advance of this Friday's protest concert against Arizona's controversial new immigration law, Rage Against the Machine's Zack de la Rocha and Tom Morello and singer-songwriter Conor Oberst held at a press conference Wednesday morning at the Hollywood Palladium, the venue that will host the concert. The musicians were joined by Chris Newman, lead counsel in the fight against Arizona SB 1070, Salvador Reza of Puente, Arizona, one of the leading organizations protesting the law, and legendary activist Dolores Huerta, co-founder of the United Farm Workers of America.

The sextet kept the focus almost entirely on the issue at hand: defeating the law. All of the speakers had very strong words, with Reza saying of Arizona, "We have become a new apartheid" and Oberst surprisingly having the harshest words, declaring the law "racist, un-American, unconstitutional, immoral," among others.