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Bands We Like: Fitz And The Tantrums

Posted 7/12/11 3:30 pm EST by in Bands We Like

By Zachary Swickey

A phone call from an ex-girlfriend was the defining moment that led Michael Fitzpatrick to create the throwback indie pop sounds of Fitz and the Tantrums. Fitz, a dapper young David Bowie lookalike, had already spent years in Los Angeles as a sound engineer for producer Mickey Petralia (Beck’s Midnite Vultures), but had yet to discover the sound that truly defined him personally as an artist. Fitz’s ex explained that her neighbor was moving out in a hurry and had an organ that she thought he’d be interested in.

The same night Fitz brought his new organ home, he wrote the first song that would become the archetype of his new soul-driven sound: “Breakin’ the Chains of Love.” Inspired, Fitz sought to create an original Motown sound, with the saxophone taking place of the lead guitar. The singer recruited saxophonist James King, an old college friend. King suggested sultry singer Noelle Scaggs and drummer John Wicks also join the fold. Rounding out the band, Wicks brought in bassist Ethan Phillips and keyboardist Jeremy Ruzumna, who was previously the musical director for Macy Gray.

In December 2008, the group played their first show ever at the Hotel Café in Hollywood, which Fitz had quietly booked just one week after the group’s inception. The troupe worked the California scene and soon recorded their debut EP, Songs for a Breakup, Vol I, in the singer’s home in Los Angeles. After the EP’s release in August 2009, the band got their first big break when they got to open a stint of shows for Maroon 5. Rapper K’naan had unexpectedly dropped off Maroon’s college campus tour, and ten days later – after a recommendation from lead singer Adam Levine’s tattoo artist – Fitz and the Tantrums found themselves as the new opening act.

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Adele's Success Makes 'Platinum Hit' Producer Evan Bogart's 'Soul Happy'

Posted 5/13/11 2:52 pm EST by in Bands We Like, billboard, Charts

By Kara Warner

Despite the presumed dominance of the many high-profile album releases over the last few months (Britney, J,Lo, the Beastie Boys, etc.), the biggest-selling star is British powerhouse Adele, whose sophomore album "21" just snagged the #1 spot on the Billboard albums chart for the seventh week since its release.

Adele fans aren't surprised, given the album's rave reviews and the chart-climbing single "Rolling in the Deep," but the fact that the somewhat lesser-known U.K. import has basically defeated pop-music royalty has raised a few eyebrows.

One man who couldn't be more excited about the new crop of album sellers is songwriter/producer Evan Bogart. When MTV news caught up with him recently to discuss one of his many projects — he's an executive producer on the upcoming Bravo songwriting contest "Platinum Hit," which premieres May 30 — we got sidetracked with a conversation about the state of pop music and current chart-toppers.

"I think the songwriting is getting a lot better," Bogart said. "I think that the general public is becoming more in tune with real artists and you see the recognition finally of people like the Black Keys and people like Mumford & Sons jumping on the scene, and obviously people like Adele," he said. "I think those people are selling albums, and I think there's a lot of top 40 candy pop — which, by the way, I definitely write some of — are selling a lot of singles. I think the line between who's selling singles and who's selling albums has been drawn in the sand."

Bogart, who's responsible for hits like Beyoncé's "Halo" and Rihanna's "SOS," went on to say that it's becoming more apparent which artists are in it for the single and which ones are in it for a career.

"The people who are in it for the career are starting to cut through the nonsense," he said, which brought us back to Adele and "Rolling in the Deep."

" 'Rolling in the Deep' is still climbing, like, 2,000 spins a week. It's still flying up the top 40 charts. That makes me so happy," Bogart said. "I know at this point, people who are Adele fans or people who are on it are like, 'Oh my God, I'm sick of this song, can we just talk about the rest of the album?' But it's so important that this song gets into the top five and reaches #1," he emphasized. "It's so important for music. People don't understand how important it is that someone like Adele can top the top 40 charts; it's going to change music. Real music can be done, and it doesn't have to be something with a four on the floor and a rehashed synth with the same kind of chords played in a different order, basically the same song written over and over and over again, in order to get top 40 success.

"It really, really makes my soul happy to see a song like that flying up the charts," he continued, adding that it's a sign of very good things to come. "I think both the music business and the actual music within the music business are on the precipice of a new golden era, a new golden age."

Do you agree with Bogart? Are we on the precipice of a new age in music? Tell us in the comments!

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Beastie Boys Make Fans Hungry For Hot Sauce Committee, Due In September

Posted 5/26/09 1:31 pm EST by in Bands We Like, beastie-boys

By Rya Backer

Fellow Beastie Boys superfans, have you had an extra spring in your step lately? Noticed the birds are chirping a little louder, a little more melodically? Is there silver lining on everything that comes in your path? That's because it's lead-up season: the all-encompassing promotional blitz (remember the infomercials and paper cups for Hello Nasty?) that takes effect before the drop of a new, long-awaited album by our favorite band.

And no, I'm not talking about their next re-release (but that's happening, too — 1994's Ill Communication will receive the same deluxe, remastered treatment on July 14 that 1988's Paul's Boutique and 1992's Check Your Head got earlier this year).

Rather, the trio announced last night on "Late Night With Jimmy Fallon" that their new album will be titled Hot Sauce Committee, refuting initial reports (likely the byproduct of a joke gone too far) that it would be called Tadlock's Glasses. They also mentioned that the album is completely finished and awaiting a September release.

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I Graduated From College And Celebrated With Green Day

Posted 5/20/09 3:13 pm EST by in Bands We Like, green-day

By Melanie Wolfson

Monday afternoon, I received a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and Media Studies from Rutgers University. And then I booked it to Webster Hall.

See, Green Day were playing a (semi) secret show there, and luckily, my family understood that seeing Green Day could not wait ... and a celebratory post-grad dinner could.

Having had the opportunity to meet the guys just last Friday when I tagged along to an interview, I was extremely excited to see Green Day put their words into action as they played a good chunk of 21st Century Breakdown, which I have had on constant rotation since it came out five days ago.

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Who Needs Sleep When You Can Meet Green Day?

Posted 5/15/09 1:42 pm EST by in Bands We Like, green-day, Heartbreaking Acts Of Staggerin Insanity

By Melanie Wolfson

Last night, I sacrificed a night of sleep in the name of Green Day. And with only a few hours to go before I get my chance to meet them, I am shaking in my seat and trying to think of what I will possibly say to them in the event that I don’t pass out.

After hearing that the guys would be doing an album signing at the Best Buy in Midtown Manhattan on the day their 21st Century Breakdown album hit stores, and that wristbands to a meet-and-greet with the band would be handed out to the first 500 people to buy that album, well, I knew I would be there dark and early.

I began my adventure at 1:30 am when I took the last train of the night from my Jersey town into the city and grabbed my spot on the line at exactly 3am. As I got closer to Best Buy, I could already see people crowded around the corner of the store. I later learned that I was the 99th person in line. At first, I thought it was crazy that there had been nearly 100 people on the line by 3 am, but it's Green Day, and Green Day fans are crazy.


Take Rich for instance, the guy who nabbed the first place on line. He’s been waiting since 9am yesterday morning. That’s right ... he's been in line 24 hours and counting. Mad props to that dude. He was prepared ... me? Not so much. And you can read about my night on the mean streets of NYC after the jump. Read More...

Mark Hoppus And Pete Wentz Sent Us An Octopus Drive!

Posted 5/11/09 1:38 pm EST by in Bands We Like, Blink-182, Contest!, Fall-Out-Boy

Flash Drive... And they want us to give it away to one lucky fan.

It all started last month, when Wentz revealed to us that he and Hoppus were collaborating on a ultra-limited flash-drive that would contain remixes and other cool stuff. He said the drives would be distributed one at a time, in mysterious and creative ways. And, then on Friday, that flash drive arrived in my mailbox.

There are only 100 of these things made -- Hoppus and Wentz have distributed them to their favorite people across the world, with the instructions that they must be given away -- and so far, they've been handed out via Twitter scavenger hunts, won in raffles and, um, dug up from beneath lifeguard stands in Santa Monica.

(You can follow all the action over on the Friends Or Enemies "Octo-Drive" blog.)

And now, it's our turn to give one away. And while we're not going to make you follow a bunch of 140-character clues or break out the sand shovel, we are gonna do something that requires both smarts and strength (though no actual digging): We're having a video essay contest!

Here, watch me explain the details in this video:

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No Doubt Return To The Stage (For Real) At The Borgata

Posted 5/3/09 10:30 am EST by in Bands We Like, no doubt

Forget Friday's three-song warm-up on the "Today" show; this was the real return of No Doubt: Saturday night at the Borgata Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey, the O.C. hitmakers blasted back with full force, skanking and strutting their way through a ridiculously tight, upbeat, 90-something-minute workout in front of a raucous, fist-pumping crowd.

It was full-speed ahead, all hits, no misses. Gwen and the guys looking (and sounding) like they hadn't missed a beat, despite the fact -- as Stefani pointed out -- that it was their "first show in five f---ing years."

Taking the stage to a super-heroic instrumental track (DUNNN-DAAA-DUNNNNNN!) and the delighted squeals of long-waiting No Doubt fanatics, the band made up for their half-decade hiatus. Wasting nary a word (aside from Stefani’s shouted instructions for the crowd to "put your hands in the air!"), they launched headlong into "Spiderwebs," all breezy horns and ska-stroked guitars, Stefani bobbing and weaving across the stage, bassist Tony Kanal and guitarist Tom Dumont popping in place and grinning like kids.

And the energy didn't let up for a second.

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Paramore's Hoop Dreams Revealed

Posted 4/30/09 1:53 pm EST by in Bands We Like, In The Studio, Paramore, Sports

ParamoreAs you probably know by now, earlier this week, Paramore invited MTV News into the studio, where they're working with producer Rob Cavallo on their third album, tentatively due in September.

Now, while we're not allowed to write about everything we saw (and heard) just yet, we'd be remiss if we didn't share one bit of top-secret studio story with you: Paramore are pretty terrible at basketball.

See, the "studio" they're working in is actually attached to Cavallo's house, and right next to it is a regulation hoop, which means that after laying down a vocal track, Hayley Williams can wander outside and shoot some free throws. Josh Farro can record a guitar solo, then drain some threes. This is theraputic ... a break from the monotony and minutiae of making an album.

And since they've been doing this for more than a month now, you would think they'd be getting pretty good at basketball. Well, you'd be wrong. And we have photographic proof of this, which you can see after the jump Read More...

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Deborah Gibson, NKOTB's Jonathan Knight Inspire New Electric Youth

Posted 4/29/09 2:45 pm EST by in Bands We Like

By Rya Backer

This past weekend, MTV premiered "Camp'd Out: I'm Going to Performing Arts Camp," which featured three young hopefuls vying for stardom ... in an Upstate New York summer-camp performance of "Carousel." And it looks like Debbie — sorry, Deborah — Gibson has followed suit with her own haven on the other side of the country, called Deborah Gibson's Electric Youth. According to its Web site, the camp is "committed to offering the highest level of performing arts camp for serious young performers available in the industry."

Last night, Gibson and Ryan Black's 88's Cabaret hosted an Evening of Electric Youth with Deborah Gibson. It was described as "a benefit event for the Gibson Girl Foundation," which offers scholarships to her various performance clinics. Many a performer showed up, including other teen idols of past and present: Jonathan Knight of New Kids on the Block (who also sang alongside Gibson), Howie Dorough of the Backstreet Boys and Nolan Gerard Funk of "Spectacular."

But the star of the show appeared to be Gibson's stylist. According to photos of the event, Deborah Gibson's evening saw four costume changes.

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Paramore Invite Us Into The Studio!

Posted 4/28/09 10:40 am EST by in Bands We Like, In The Studio, Paramore

On Monday, MTV News headed into the winding hills of Calabasas, California, to producer Rob Cavallo's palatial estate (seriously, he's got a regulation basketball hoop and a soft-serve machine in the garage), where Paramore are hard at work on their new album.

At first, it seemed like a rather odd place — a suburb in the middle of nowhere — for a platinum-plus rock act to be hammering away on their new album, but it seems like the surroundings have only brought out the best in the guys (and gal), judging from their sunny demeanors, lack of haggard studio beards, and, well the six brand-new songs we heard.

And while we can't say anything about the new tunes just yet (but know that they do, in fact, rock pretty hard), we do have one rather HUGE bit of news that we can break to you: a release date for the record!

When? Well, read on to find out!

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