Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Monday, October 10, 2011
Watching The Wheels - John Lennon
John Lennon's 71st birthday is marked by Yoko Ono
Photo: PA
Yoko Ono has marked John Lennon's 71st birthday by switching a light beacon on in Iceland tonight (October 9).The singer turned on the 'Imagine Peace Tower' on Vioey Island, near Reykjavik at 9pm (BST) with son Sean Lennon who was also celebrating his birthday today.
Over 1,000 people joined the pair to sing 'Imagine' as the tower was lit. A beam of light shot 4,000 metres into the air and it projected the words 'Imagine Peace'.
The tower is lit every year on Lennon's birthday until December 8, the anniversary of his death. Ono officially switched the tower of light on for the first time in 2007.
"I hope the 'Imagine Peace Tower' will give light to the strong wishes of world peace from all corners of the planet and give encouragement, inspiration and a sense of solidarity in a world now filled with fear and confusion," Ono said in a statement. "Let us come together to realise a peaceful world."
She later said: "I am so happy that friends and family have joined me here to celebrate John's life. October 9 is also the birthday of my son Sean so today is a day of very deep emotions for me. On this day I urge everyone in the world to imagine peace for our planet."
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Slated to sell for $200, 10% of each purchase will benefit Prop 8 Films, who create "socially conscious" documentary movies; the band have been long-time supporters of the company's endeavors. The organization's first project is a documentary focusing on the issues of Proposition 8 and same-sex marriage around the country.
Monday, October 3, 2011
George Harrison: Living In The Material World
The remaining members of The Beatles reunited for the London premiere of new the film George Harrison: Living In A Material World last night (October 2).
Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr were joined by Harrison's widow Olivia and son Dhani, along with friends, family and high-profile admirers including the director Martin Scorsese, plus Yoko Ono, Sir George Martin, Noel Gallagher, Sir Ben Kingsley, Billy Connolly, Terry Gilliam, Ronnie Wood and Harrison's first wife Pattie Boyd.
McCartney told BBC News that his bandmate, who died of lung cancer in 2001 aged 58, was "a great man". He continued:
Every time I see something to do with George it brings back more memories than you would believe. He was my little mate on the school bus. A lot of fond memories. He's sorely missed by us all.
A simultaneous premiere was held in the band's hometown of Liverpool. The exhaustive film, which took Oscar-winner Scorcese five years to complete, documents the guitarist's rise to fame and his dedication to his philanthropic work.
The director said:
For years, his music seemed to be dealing with themes that I connected with. I found comfort in them and a hope and a special experience listening to his music. I was fascinated by him.
After a limited run in cinemas, the documentary will be screened in two parts on the BBC in the UK and HBO in the US in November.
Here is the trailer for the documentary. Enjoy!
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
The band, who have taken to releasing single tracks online as part of their 'Teargarden Of Kaleidoscope', will put 'Oceania', their ninth studio record, later this year and Corgan has said how it is received will define the future of the band.
He told Billboard: "If we're able to get that sense that something is happening again and get people to rally behind us a bit, I think the next three, four years will be very interesting for the band. I think if ['Oceania'] basically hits the same wall a lot of the other stuff has hit, we're going to have to step back and really evaluate where we're going, because it's a tremendous amount of energy to put out to just feel like you're throwing a pebble in the ocean."Corgan has said that he overestimated the impact that releasing music straight on to the internet would have and felt that he needed to go back to making an album in the traditional manner again to have a real impact.
Asked why the band had gone to releasing music in a traditional album format:
I just saw we weren't getting the penetration in to everybody that I would have hoped. I mean, we have 1.3 million followers on our Facebook page, right? So you think you put a song up and 1.3 million people are going to see it, but only if they're looking at the exact moment it goes up. They're not necessarily searching and they're friends aren't necessarily going to tell them about it. I just saw that we weren't reaching the sort of casual person who still gets their information from traditional sources. So I thought, 'What do I need to do?' and then I thought, 'OK, I'll go back to making an album.The singer also spoke about the album and said it features: "Some of the most melodic work I've ever done, but somehow it rocks pretty hard, too. It's probably the most open-sounding album I've ever made. The general description I've heard from people who have heard it is that it reminds them of the Pumpkins in the way they like the Pumpkins, but somehow it sounds new."
Monday, September 26, 2011
Coldplay- tribute to REM
Watch Coldplay Cover R.E.M.'s "Everybody Hurts"
Michael Stipe / Chris Martin (Photo: Retna, Martin)
Everybody hurts, it's true, but not everybody gets to attend one's own funeral. R.E.M. find themselves in that strange and enviable position, as the legendary alt-rock band's decision last week to throw in the towel has led to a wave of tributes. One of the highest-profile salutes came Saturday night at the Music Midtown Festival in Atlanta, where Coldplay covered R.E.M.'s ballad "Everybody Hurts"
Coldplay's Chris Martin introduced the song, from R.E.M.'s 1992 classic Automatic for the People, by asking fans to "appreciate the gesture" rather than judge the performance for its merits. "One of our favorite bands of all time, R.E.M., for some crazy reason have finished -- and it's sad," he says in the fan-made video. "So with the most respect in the world … this is just to show how much they meant to us." The crowd can occasionally be heard singing along during this strummy, subdued cover of R.E.M.'s melancholy yet reassuring tear-jerker.
Watch: Coldplay, "Everybody Hurts"
Coldplay's new album Mylo Xyloto arrives October 24. The recently played album cut "Paradise" on The Late Show With David Letterman.
R.E.M. will release a career-spanning greatest hits album on Nov. 15. Titled Part Lies, Part Heart, Part Truth, Part Garbage, 1982-2011, the collection includes tracks from the band's years at both Warner Bros. (1988 to 2011) and the IRS label (1982 to 1987). As Warner Bros. announced this morning, the release will also feature three new tracks the band recorded this summer with producer Jacknife Lee, who also oversaw their final two albums, Accelerate and Collapse Into Now. Check out the tracklist below.
R.E.M., Part Lies, Part Heart, Part Truth, Part Garbage tracklist:
Disc 1
1. Gardening At Night
2. Radio Free Europe
3. Talk About The Passion
4. Sitting Still
5. So. Central Rain
6. (Don't Go Back To) Rockville
7. Driver 8
8. Life And How To Live It
9. Begin The Begin
10. Fall On Me
11. Finest Worksong
12. It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)
13. The One I Love
14. Stand
15. Pop Song 89
16. Get Up
17. Orange Crush
18. Losing My Religion
19. Country Feedback
20. Shiny Happy People
Disc 2
1. The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite
2. Everybody Hurts
3. Man On The Moon
4. Nightswimming
5. What's The Frequency, Kenneth?
6.New Test Leper
7. Electrolite
8. At My Most Beautiful
9. The Great Beyond
10. Imitation Of Life
11. Bad Day
12. Leaving New York
13. Living Well Is The Best Revenge
14. Supernatural Superserious
15. UeBerlin
Watch: Coldplay, "Everybody Hurts"