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Rock On The Range 2011: Five Bands You Must See

Posted 2/1/11 1:30 pm EST by in Music


A few weeks ago, we heard about the lineup for the 2011 version of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, which will feature the likes of Kings of Leon, Kanye West, Arcade Fire and the Strokes. Around the same time, a fake Coachella poster advertising a festival called "Brochella" got passed around the Internet, which featured the likes of Nickelback, Creed and a number of others. But early this morning, the lineup for Rock on the Range 2011 was unveiled, and it looks alarmingly like the batch of bands pulled together for "Brochella." This year's festival (which will be held on May 21 and 22 in Columbus, Ohio) features headliners A Perfect Circle, Avenged Sevenfold, Disturbed, Korn, Stone Sour and Staind. They'll be joined by the likes of Hollywood Undead, Alter Bridge, Bullet For My Valentine and a number of other high-adrenaline rock bands.

It's a pretty heavy lineup that skews heavily in the direction of the type of post-grunge and hybrid metal that has dominated rock radio over the past few years, and there are probably more duds than not in the lineup. However, here are the acts that are definitely worth a second look should you be making your way out to Columbus in the spring.

Danzig
Glenn Danzig is an undeniable metal god who has fronted seminal bands like the Misfits and Samhain, and he's an incredibly dynamic performer no matter whose songs he is performing. The Danzig set promises to be dark, intense and endlessly entertaining.

Fu Manchu
Genre shifts will be the highlight of Rock on the Range 2011, and Fu Manchu will provide one of the best diversions. The stoner rock combo play a hard-partying, sludgy, psychedelic version of stoney swamp rock. It may not work exceptionally well at a festival, but it should be a punchy sidetrack.

The Damned Things
Anthrax members Scott Ian and Rob Caggiano already have one high profile show this spring (they're playing with Metallica, Megadeth and Slayer as part of the Big 4 concert in Indio, Caliofornia), but they'll also be playing with their supergroup (which also consists of members of Fall Out Boy and Every Time I Die and who put out one of the most criminally overlooked albums of 2010 in Ironclast). Their hard rock hybrid should equally inspire mosh pits and singalongs.

Rev Theory
Their 2008 album Light It Up showed off their considerable chops and a knack for hooks, and their soon-to-be-released follow-up Justice promises to be one of the best rock records of the year. The new songs should sound stellar in a live setting, which makes Rev Theory's set a can't-miss.

My Darkest Days
Worth it just to watch them play "Porn Star Dancing," which is the greatest Def Leppard song in decades.

Who do you most want to see at Rock on the Range 2011? Let us know in the comments!

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Before You See 'The Tourist,' Fire Up The Lemonheads, Korn And AC/DC

Posted 12/10/10 9:30 am EST by in Music


Though there are a handful of high-profile films opening at your local cinema this weekend, you should really do your best to get out to one of the few theaters that are screening it and see "Black Swan." It's an absolutely stunning accomplishment, full of striking images, deft storytelling, creepy effects and some genuinely impressive performances. But if you've already seen it (or can't get into a theater because shows are still sold-out wall-to-wall), then you have a few alternatives. If you're into epic flights of fancy, the latest entry in "The Chronicles of Narnia" hits theaters today (the full title is "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader," which you should definitely spout in its entirety when buying a ticket). There's also the Julie Taymor-directed Shakespeare adaptation "The Tempest," the Christian Bale and Mark Wahlberg boxing flick "The Fighter" and the lush, sexy drama "The Garden of Eden."

However, you need look no further than "The Tourist" for that deft combination of thrills and star power. The international espionage thriller is directed by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck (he of "The Lives of Others") and stars Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp, perhaps the two biggest stars in the world. The twisty plot involves Depp's character (the titular traveler) being mistaken for a spy and dragged into a web of intrigue that sees his life threatened on multiple occasions (it's sort of a riff on "North by Northwest"). It's jam-packed with boat chases, shootouts and good-looking people, which makes it an ideal distraction from whatever holiday shopping you have left to do.

In order to properly prepare yourself for "The Tourist," check out the music video playlist below. There are homages to travel and nods to spies, but it's mostly a tribute to the movie's two stars. Johnny Depp played in a band called P (immortalized by the Rentals' classic single "Friends of P") and Jolie has appeared in a number of music videos, including Korn's "Did My Time" and the Lemonheads' "It's About Time."

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Korn Work Out Their Issues: Wake-Up Video

Posted 11/16/10 8:30 am EST by in Wake-Up Video


Back in 1999, it could be reasonably argued that, for at least a brief period of time, Korn were the biggest rock band in the country. Their songs were all over rock radio (with the occasional crossover tune storming the pop chart) and their visually intense videos were all over MTV. The fall of 1999 was full of high-profile rock releases from Foo Fighters, Counting Crows and Rage Against the Machine, but Korn's fourth album Issues — released on this day in '99 — may have been the biggest of them all.

Korn had scored their biggest smash yet with their third album Follow the Leader, which turned them from an underground favorite into arena-filling superstars with high-profile singles like "Got the Life" and "Freak on a Leash." Though they had been slowly purging the hip-hop influences from their music (the most embarrassing song on Follow the Leader was a relatively straight hip-hop duet with Limp Bizkit's Fred Durst called "All in the Family"), the band decided to almost completely purge those sounds for Issues. What's left was their most raw, metal-sounding album yet, full of dark riffs and even darker lyrics courtesy of frontman Jonathan Davis. Issues even has an MTV connection, as the album covers were designed by fans in a contest hosted by the network.

Though it received mixed reviews when it was released, Issues was still a massive seller and was launched in incredible style: The band played the album in its entirety at the legendary Apollo Theater in Harlem and broadcast the concert on radio stations around the country. They also had a big coming out party for the first single "Falling Away From Me," which made its debut on an episode of "South Park." The video is a delightfully weird bit of heavy cinema directed by Durst.


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Korn Make Life Peachy: Wake-Up Video

Posted 10/15/10 8:30 am EST by in Wake-Up Video


Has there ever been a more unlikely chart-topping band than Korn? Conceived in the post-grunge era and dominant as the millennium clock turned over, Korn took elements from a dozen different types of music (thrash metal, hardcore punk, droning experimental noise, whatever it was that Primus made) and infused it with hip-hop swagger and a frontman Jonathan Davis' naked, unhinged approach to lyrics and vocals. Their self-titled debut earned them plenty of admirers, and on this day in 1996, the group kicked it up a notch when they released their second album Life Is Peachy.

In a weird way, Life Is Peachy actually represented something of a de-evolution for Korn, as it took away any of the clean production lines on their debut and replaced them with jagged edges and more guttural rhythms. Life Is Peachy really belongs to bassist Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu, as the bass thuds and drones are extra low and powerful. There is bass sludge all over the album, from the opening lunatic buzz of "Twist" to the intestinal punch that is "Good God." Much of Life Is Peachy is ugly, and there is none of the playfulness that would surface on their third (and breakthrough) album Follow the Leader. Follow the Leader was clearly conceived as a crossover album, while Life Is Peachy is pure Korn id — nothing but anger and violence and black metal howling. Even their cover of War's "Low Rider" sounds sort of evil.

That's not to say it's a bad album — on the contrary, Life Is Peachy is one of the more fascinating (if inconsistent) entries in the nu metal canon. Plus, it contains "A.D.I.D.A.S.," one of the only tunes that could be described as "fun" on all of Life Is Peachy (though be warned that the video is pure darkness).


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'Married To Rock': The Wives They Should Have Recruited

Posted 10/14/10 2:00 pm EST by in Music


Considering the rampant success of shows like "Basketball Wives" and the "Real Housewives" series, it was only a matter of time before reality show cameras started tracking the daily trials and tribulations of the spouses of rock stars. Just such a thing will be happening when E! premieres "Married to Rock," a show that will focus on a handful of women married to rock stars and will premiere on November 7. Since shows like this live and die on the personalities of the people involved, the cast is very important, and this batch includes Susan Holmes McKagan (wife of former Guns N' Roses member and current Velvet Revolver bassist Duff McKagan), Etty Farrell (wife of Jane's Addiction frontman and Lollapalooza godfather Perry Farrell), Josie Stevens (wife of Billy Idol guitarist Steve Stevens) and AJ Celi (the not-quite-wife of the Cult guitarist Billy Duffy).

It's a strange mix of people, to be sure. Duff McKagan writes great columns for The Seattle Weekly and Playboy, and by all accounts his wife is also a dynamic personality who will probably be the alpha of the group. Etty Farrell has had a bit of a public life (she is working on her own album and has collaborated with husband Perry on a handful of other projects), though the other two women are sort of mysteries. It's not a bad mix, though in a perfect world, the following women would have been cast members on "Married to Rock."

Mariqueen Maandig
Trent Reznor's wife is a musician in her own right (she was the singer of West Indian Girl and currently serves as one third of Reznor's latest project Hot to Destroy Angels), though she remains relatively mysterious to the outside world. Her participation would not only get her involved but also may reveal a few things about home life with the man behind Nine Inch Nails (though it's painfully clear that Reznor would never, ever go for something like this).

Karen Elson
Elson is a beautiful model, musician and wife to Jack White. Again, her involvement would not only be interesting (Elson is extremely talented and stunningly beautiful) but also a revealing look behind the curtain at her husband (who is notoriously private).

Tana Munblowsky
Another mysterious, low-profile spouse, Munblowsky married the Killers frontman (and recent solo star) Brandon Flowers back when the band was first breaking, and a look into her private life (no doubt full of complicated religious conversations and the excesses of Las Vegas) would be fascinating.

Deven Davis
Not only is Davis the wife of Korn frontman Jonathan Davis, she is also the mother of their three children and a former porn actress. She would undoubtedly have some perspective on home life and have something to say, wouldn't she?

What rock and roll wives would you have cast on "Married to Rock"? Let us know in the comments!

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Pearl Jam, Nine Inch Nails, Soundgarden, Korn And Ice Cube Help Us Look Back At Lollapallooza

Posted 8/6/10 10:00 am EST by in Music


The 2010 Lollapalooza festival is about to begin in Grant Park in the heart of downtown Chicago. Once things get started with These United States (who have the honor of playing the first set of this year's festival), the music won't stop until Soundgarden and Arcade Fire both wave goodnight following their festival-closing sets on Sunday (August 8). Along the way, there will be huge performances care of Lady Gaga, Green Day, Phoenix, the Strokes, the Black Keys, Erykah Badu and dozens of others, and MTV News will be delivering the goods on every last note.

Ever since the first Lollapalooza way back in 1991 (which Jane's Addiction frontman Perry Farrell put together as a farewell tour for his seminal band), the festival has morphed and evolved along with the popular tastes of the day. There has rarely been a better barometer of what's going on in the rock universe than the Lollapalooza lineup, be it the rise of grunge (1992), the explorations into dance music (1997), flirtations with metal (1996) or the growing influence of hip-hop and R&B (2008). MTV News has been on the ground with many of the Lollapaloozas of the past, so all this week, MTV News' James Montgomery has been preparing for this year's festival with a series he called "Lollapalooza Lookbacks." Check out the noisy trip down memory lane below.

1992: Soundgarden Stand on the Verge of Greatness
No band has ever played Lollapalooza more than Soundgarden (in addition to this weekend, they also hopped on in '96 and '92), and in 1992, they were crossing the country with the touring festival just as they were starting to pick up steam on the back of Badmotorfinger. But guitarist Kim Thayil was also into the idea of catching up with bands he liked. "I'd like to come and see Boo-Yaa T.R.I.B.E.," he told MTV News in 1992.

1997: Korn Can Take the Heat
Lollapalooza 1997 will probably always be remembered as the "electronica year," as acts like the Orb, Orbital and the Prodigy owned the main stage. But just as it was for many bands in the past, Lollapalooza provided a proving ground for Korn, who were only just building up the nu-metal wave. Drummer David Silveria summed up the experience of playing the touring summer festival nicely. "I think it means, like, spending the summer in hot-ass Africa," he joked.

1992: Ice Cube Goes Buck Wild
Lollapalooza founder Perry Farrell has always said that he wanted his festival to be a celebration of all types of music, and he has largely stuck to his guns. Read More...

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Backstreet Boys And Korn Team Up To Protest BP On Upcoming Tours

Posted 6/10/10 4:30 pm EST by in Music


In the weeks and weeks following the British Petroleum oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, a number of celebrities, including Kevin Costner and Sandra Bullock, have been vocal about their support of those affected. And, now, two of the biggest bands to rise out of the "TRL" era of pop music, Backstreet Boys and Korn, are expressing their concern for the region. Both bands are asking that fans not buy oil from BP.

"I'm devastated by what I've seen first hand and on the news," Backstreet Boy Nick Carter said in a statement. "I've always been a marine activist and seeing pictures of oil-covered animals breaks my heart."
 
Currently the band is on tour, and they ask that other touring bands join them in their protest of using BP oil. "We just played Biloxi last week and I have to tell you people are really worried down there," Brian Littrell added. "This boycott is about making a statement, letting people know how we feel and to stand for something."

At the MTV Movie Awards over the weekend, Bullock, while accepting her Generation Award told the crowd, "When we all go to bed at night we should think about all the people that are being affected in the Gulf and just say a prayer for them." Meanwhile, Costner met with Congress to discuss a possible solution to the problem: Ocean Therapy Solutions, which has created a machine that purifies water using centrifugal force.

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Kane Sees No Evil: Wake-Up Video

Posted 5/19/10 9:15 am EST by in Wake-Up Video


It's no secret that there are a healthy handful of professional wrestling fans here in the MTV Newsroom. And as regular watchers of sports entertainment, we can safely say that not everything always works. That being said, there are the occasional angles that are incredibly effective. Such was the case in 2006 when WWE wrestler Kane was set to star in his first film, a slasher flick called "See No Evil."

As a build-up to the release of the movie (the first theatrical release for WWE Films), the on-screen character Kane became obsessed with a specific date. In storyline, it was the date that something horrible happened to him (Kane's backstory suggests that he was burned as a child, possibly by his on-screen brother the Undertaker). In reality, the date was simply the release date of the film. That date? May 19.

Kane, a heel, didn't want people talking about that date, which of course lead audiences to constantly chant it at him during shows. It was an ingenious marketing technique, as every time Kane was on screen, "May 19" would immediately resonate throughout the crowd. It was impossible for anybody watching not to know when "See No Evil" hit theaters, and it was so effective that it's still the first thing the wrestling fans in the MTV Newsroom think about whenever this date rolls around.

In the film, Kane plays a character named Jacob Goodnight, a deranged killer who was abused as a child and hangs out in an abandoned hotel so he can kill unsuspecting teens and steal their eyeballs. As a tribute to Kane and the above-average slasher that is "See No Evil" (totally worth a Netflix, by the way), check out Korn's "Blind," a nice little bit of rage to get you over the hump.

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Slash's Label Leads The List Of Silly Vanity Imprint Names

Posted 4/14/10 11:10 am EST by in Music


After years of toiling in some wildly successful rock bands (most notably Guns N' Roses and Velvet Revolver), Slash has finally made his way into the center of the spotlight with his first true solo album. It just debuted in third place on the Billboard album chart, moving over 60,000 copies in its first week on the strength of the behatted guitarist's non-stop promotion and the single "By the Sword" (a team-up with Wolfmother frontman Andrew Stockdale.

Slash is actually a tremendous collection of hard rock songs that center around the axe man's signature chunky, swirling riffs. His backing band features all of the original members of Guns N' Roses (Duff McKagan, Izzy Stradlin and Steven Adler — only Axl Rose is absent). In Santana style, each track has a guest vocalist, some of which work really well (Stockdale, Ian Astbury, Chris Cornell, Dave Grohl) while others stumble a bit (Fergie, Myles Kennedy). On balance, it's an excellent album, and it feels good to have that classic Slash sound back.

But there is one thing that stands out about the record: It has been released on Slash's own imprint. The label's title? Dik Hayd Records. Like the top entry on yesterday's list of ridiculous band names, "Dik Hayd" combines a juvenile joke and bad grammar for a truly silly stew. In fact, it immediately rockets to the top of the list of silliest vanity label names. It sits about the rest of these.

Elementree Records
Founded by Korn in 1997, Elementree Record (another wacky for no reason spelling choice) provided a home for the likes of Orgy, Deadsy and Videodrone. When Jonathan Davis' crew exited Epic Records (also the home of Elementree), the label folded up, but it lives on in the minds of fans of horrorcore rapper Marz.

Decaydance Records
What is with rock stars and wacky puns? Pete Wetz's imprint may provide the world with music by Panic! at the Disco, the Academy Is... and Cobra Starship, but it's hard to pronounce and is guilty of violating the Funky Spelling Rule (which I just invented yesterday).
Read More...

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Jay-Z And Jack White's Song Will Definitely Be Better Than The Five Worst Rap/Rock Team-Ups Ever

Posted 3/17/10 4:05 pm EST by in Music


In a recent interview with GQ, Jack White let it be known that he had just recorded a song with none other than Jay-Z and that said song is "unbelievable-sounding."

And while we have no reason to doubt the man's word, we're still a bit wary. After all, the last time White ventured outside his comfort zone was in 2008, when he recorded "Another Way To Die" — the theme song to that year's James Bond vehicle "Quantum of Solace"
— which was one part total brilliance and three parts train wreck (though it's possible that the movie itself was the real culprit).

Also, it's not like the history of rock-n-rap collaborations is all that great anyway. Aside from a few watershed moments — like the Beastie Boys' entire career, Run-D.M.C. teaming up with Aerosmith for "Walk This Way," the soundtrack to 1993's "Judgment Night" (Biohazard and Onyx! Sonic Youth and Cypress Hill!) — you're basically looking at two decades of Limp Bizkitry and Kottonmouth Kinging, which is a pretty dire legacy, if you think about it.

And while White played coy when asked just when or where his Jay-Z track would surface, from the sound of things, he's very interested in getting it out there. So in celebration of two of the best in the business getting together and making magic, we've compiled a list of rock/rap team-ups that are the complete opposite of that. These are some of the most painful, irritating and downright unnecessary rock/rap collaborations of all time.

Helmet feat. House of Pain, "Just Another Victim"
Okay, so not everything on the soundtrack to "Judgment Night" is great. Witness "Victim," a wheezing, shambling track featuring sludgy, plodding guitars-n-wailing, plus an aggro cameo by House of Pain. Nothing really gels, but hey, it was the '90s. People were into that sort of thing back then. It makes us want to go out and break something — most notably our ear drums.

Limp Bizkit feat. Method Man, "N 2 Gether Now"
The talents of DJ Premier and the Ticallion Stallion go to waste on this rather, uh, limp Bizkit track. Read More...

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