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Live In Las Vegas For The ACM Awards: Beatles, 'Berace And Birds Of Prey

Posted 4/19/10 12:00 pm EST by in Music


The last time I was in Las Vegas, it was for the launch of U2's Popmart tour in 1997, and the only thing I remember is that the giant lemon they were supposed to emerge from during the show malfunctioned in a very Spinal Tap way. I also couldn't get the sound of plinking quarters out of my head for weeks afterward.

It's a whole other ball game now. The old, quaint Vegas of that time is gone, replaced by the rumbling life-sized pirate ships outside of the Treasure Island casino, the fake Manhattan skyline of New York, New York, the candy-colored dancing water display at the Bellagio and the absence of grimy buckets of coins in favor of plastic cards. Not a gambler or a drinker by nature — which kind of makes me stand out like a militant vegan at a Louisiana rib festival — I decided to try and have the most Vegas experience I could without resorting to penny slots and "Guitar Hero"-sized, Stratocaster-shaped drink specials.

Instead of blowing my per diem in a smoky casino, my Saturday (April 17) would consist of plugging quarters into vintage pinball games, gawking at Liberace's feathered get-ups, the Beatles' Cirque du Soleil show "Love" and a nightcap of rock with Them Crooked Vultures at the Hard Rock Casino.

Ostensibly in town to cover the Academy of Country Music Awards on Sunday night (April 18), I got in a day early and made a beeline for a part of town none of my cab drivers were familiar with. First stop: The Las Vegas Pinball Hall of Fame and Museum. For a silver ball junkie like me, this was like visiting the Louvre. In addition to tons of really boss vintage games like the amazing Elton John-themed "Captain Fantastic," there were some of my all-time arcade favorites, like "Xenon," "Twilight Zone," "Terminator 2," "Spy Hunter," "Shaq Attack," "Pin-Bot," "Tron" and "Dragon's Lair," the first "interactive" video game, which used then-cutting edge laser disc technology.

Literally across the street is the Liberace Museum, a memorial to perhaps the most Vegas of all Vegas performers, the spangly "Mr. Showmanship" himself. Lady Gaga has nothing on the Big L. From feather and crystal-dripping costumes that weighed more than 200 pounds (such as the awe-inspiring "King Neptune" get up) to mirror-bedecked Rolls Royces, a rhinestone encrusted Baldwin grand piano and a white and yellow gold piano-shaped ring with 260 diamonds. Liberace was so over-the-top he even made Cher blush.

That evening, after dodging the gauntlet of what seemed like hundreds of hawkers trying to hand me cards for escort services, pushing my way past freaks dressed as Na'vi, storm troopers, Jack Sparrow, Edward Scissorhands and more than half a dozen Michael Jacksons, I hit up the Mirage to catch the Cirque du Soleil show "Love."

I'd read plenty of rave reviews of the Beatles revue, and I've seen a number of Cirque shows before, but none of that prepared me for this spectacle. Read More...

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Green Day, Them Crooked Vultures Invade This Week's 'Late Night Lineup'

Posted 4/12/10 11:30 am EST by in Music


The biggest news in late night comedy this week has nothing to do with anything being broadcast on the airwaves. Conan O'Brien, the former host of "The Tonight Show" who walked away from his post at the beginning of the year in a storm of controversy and Jay Leno, kicks off his tour on Monday night (April 12). He'll begin in Eugene, Oregon and cover over a dozen cities across the country. It will be interesting to see what he rolls out and how it plays into his potential return to television later this year.

But there are things happening on television too. Last week was a remarkably great few days for live music on talk shows, and this week is no different. "The Late Show with David Letterman" is on hiatus this week (perhaps they're all taking the next few days off to celebrate the host's birthday, which is today), but there are plenty of other people burning the midnight oil in an effort to entertain the sleepy and the unemployed. On "The Tonight Show," Leno will have sets from Sade on Monday, Lady Antebellum on Tuesday (April 13) and Collective Soul on Friday (April 16). He'll also chat with "30 Rock" star Tracy Morgan, Nicolas Cage, Hugh Jackman and Betty White.

"Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" will follow with another fantastically eclectic group of musical guests, highlighted by the Specials on Tuesday, Kaki King on Wednesday (April 14) and the Flaming Lips on Friday. He'll also talk to NFL prospect Ndamukong Suh, Green Day (to talk about "American Idiot") and "Greenberg" breakout star Greta Gerwig.

But Jimmy Kimmel will top them all, as "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" features two nights worth of music from Them Crooked Vultures. The power trio — consisting of Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl, Queens of the Stone Age mastermind Josh Homme and legendary Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones — will play both Monday and Tuesday night. And just to kick it up a notch, Kimmel will have Spoon play a song on Thursday's show.

What is your favorite talk show for live music? Let us know in the comments!

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MTV News' Musical March Madness: Phish Vs. MMJ, DMB Vs. Them Crooked Vultures

Posted 3/23/10 12:10 pm EST by in Music


It's Musical March Madness! The sprawling bracket — both a parody and a tribute to the NCAA basketball tournament, masterminded by MTV News' James Montgomery — takes the 65 biggest names in rock, splits them up into four regions, assigns them seeds and puts them up against one another in a single-elimination series of match-ups in a winner-take-all contest. We're leaving it to you to decide an actual champ in this field of 65. Over the next few weeks, we will present a series of polls that will allow you to vote for the match-ups presented in MTV News' Band Bracketology. You vote for the winners, we'll keep advancing the seeds and, in the end, we'll have some sort of champion. What will the winner receive? Little more than our esteem (as well as that of the fans) and some Internet bragging rights.

The voting in the South region is already heating up, so let's get to our next two opening round match-ups.

(3) Dave Matthews Band vs. (14) Them Crooked Vultures
A cluster of rock veterans going head-to-head here, and DMB's constantly evolving sound and vision goes up against the supergroup composed of Foo Fighters' Dave Grohl, Queens of the Stone Age's Josh Homme and Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones. That's a lot of rocking experience in a single power trio, but DMB have seven studio albums, a ton of live recordings and legions of devoted followers behind them. Will that stand strong against the power of the underdog Vultures?

(6) Phish vs. (11) My Morning Jacket
The jam kings are probably ranked a little too low (though they did score a higher seed than the University of Vermont), and they've got some stiff competition with the also jam-centric My Morning Jacket. My Morning Jacket probably have the better records (they put out the best Prince album the Purple One never made in 2008's Evil Urges), but Phish host their own three-day festivals. Who will reign supreme?

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Dave Grohl Loves Coffee, Internet Video, New Foo Fighters Music

Posted 3/16/10 10:00 am EST by in Music


By Joel Hanek

Fact: Dave Grohl is awesome. When he's not churning out rock anthems as the frontman for the platinum-selling Foo Fighters, Grohl is in the studio recording with his rock heroes like Lemmy Kilmister and John Paul Jones. And when Grohl isn't making music, he finds time to make hilarious cameos in "Saturday Night Live" sketches. The man makes more guest appearances than Lil Wayne.

How does he do it? With copious amounts of highly-caffeinated coffee, obviously. In a hilarious and slightly hypnotic new video posted to Them Crooked Vultures' YouTube account, Dave Grohl terrorizes his bandmate (and Queens of the Stone Age mastermind) Josh Homme with incessant demands for more coffee by screaming what I hope will be the new catchphrase of 2010: "Fresh pots!" Homme's confessional on Grohl's caffeine addiction makes me pine for a TV special like "True Life: I'm Addicted to Caffeine (And I Am Dave Grohl)."

While the video concludes that Grohl was rushed to the hospital as a result of his high coffee intake "for reals," the multi-talented star is perfectly fine and keeping up his busy schedule. In fact, last week Dave Grohl quietly let slip last week to Rolling Stone that the Foo Fighters were back in the studio working on a follow up to their 2007 album Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace. This announcement is sure to please fans since the group announced they would be taking a hiatus after their tour in 2008. The singer/guitarist/drummer also revealed that for their upcoming seventh studio album, they would be working with rock producer heavyweight Butch Vig on what Grohl calls will be the Foos' "heaviest album yet." Grohl added a twist by saying the new record would be recorded entirely analog.

Whether it's videos or new music to look forward to, we hope Dave keeps it up, and we raise our ceramic mugs to him.

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Coachella 2010: Jay-Z, Them Crooked Vultures And The Winners And Losers

Posted 1/19/10 1:04 pm EST by in Music


The 2010 festival season is officially underway, as the annual Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival (which will be held in the usual place in Indio, California on April 16, 17 and 18) now has an official lineup. Jay-Z, Muse, Pavement, Gorillaz, Faith No More and Vampire Weekend lead the way at the top of the pile, but there are also plenty of up-and-comers who will be worth spending time with in the desert heat (you should already schedule time to see Beach House play their new songs on Saturday).

Since no lineup is perfect, let's take a look at the five bands we're most looking forward to, along with the five bands that make us go "Huh?"

The Best

Them Crooked Vultures: They're perhaps the best live band working right now, and Josh Homme songs always sound better when you're a little bit dehydrated.

Public Image Limited: We sort of forgot Johnny Rotten got his other band back together, but we're glad that they'll be back to play classic tunes like "Swan Lake."
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Happy Birthday, Dave Grohl: Wake-Up Video

Posted 1/14/10 10:00 am EST by in Wake-Up Video


Everybody raise a glass to salute Dave Grohl, who turns 41 years old today. The Foo Fighters frontman can currently be seen sitting behind the drum kit for Them Crooked Vultures, the superstar power trio that also includes Queens of the Stone Age mastermind Josh Homme and Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones. It's a comfortable spot for Grohl, who got his start in the music business as a skinsman for Washington, D.C. hardcore band Scream. He used those early gigs to sharpen the rugged, almost melodic style that helped define the sound of Nirvana, the group he joined in 1990.

As a part of one of the defining acts of the alternative rock revolution, Grohl's drums became as important as Kurt Cobain's wail. Just consider how powerful the snare crashes the party during the intro of "Smells Like Teen Spirit" or the way the fills flesh out the hook during "In Bloom."

When Nirvana ended, it seemed highly unlikely that Grohl would step off the drum riser and into his role as the frontman of what would become one of the biggest rock bands in the world, but that's exactly what happened. (Just look as his discomfort in this clip and compare it to his gregarious nature now for proof.)

The first Foo Fighters record dropped in 1995 (save for a guitar solo by Afghan Whigs frontman Greg Dulli, it was recorded entirely by Grohl). The albums kept coming (along with smash hits like "Learn to Fly," "Everlong," "Times Like These" and "Long Road to Ruin"), and along the way he has contributed to a number of side projects — including the metal-centric Probot, a collaborative project with a number of metal icons. That band yielded the incredible "Shake Your Blood," featuring Grohl on drums and Motörhead frontman Lemmy on vocals.

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Lady Gaga, Shakira, Heidi Montag Defy The Odds: 10 In 2009

Posted 12/21/09 1:52 pm EST by in Music


2009 is coming to a close, which means that it's time to check in on what the favorite albums, artists and songs were among the fine folks in the MTV Newsroom. Be sure to check out James Montgomery's definitive year-end list for 2009, and enjoy the "10 In 2009" series that will be running over the next two weeks.

By Joel Hanek

I was surprised to find out that making this list wasn't as easy as I thought it would be. A lot of the music I listened to had been from late '08 or stuff I've been revisiting. Anyway, here's what I came up with (in no particular order).

Lady Gaga, The Fame Monster
Yes, the second album (which is sort of the re-release of the first album until it wasn't — I got confused too) is much more cohesive, has better singles ("Bad Romance" and "Monster" trump "Poker Face" and "Just Dance"), and this is much more representative of the powerhouse that Gaga is becoming (and will become). (I suddenly realize I sound frighteningly like Perez Hilton.) While The Fame felt like a collection of good singles, The Fame Monster felt like a great album.

Mariachi El Bronx, Mariachi El Bronx
When a hardcore band releases a straight mariachi record, it's pretty badass. Defy expectations much?

Kid Cudi, Man on the Moon
I really wanted to put Kid Cudi on here because I love his mixtapes and I think the guy has a huge career on the horizon. I liked this album, but I wasn't in love with it. I appreciate that it was a concept album and it was his creative manifesto. However, I don't think the album shows his full potential (especially considering the lack of rapping). Anyway, Steven Roberts said he was an artist to watch in 2009, and looking back we can confirm Steven Roberts is omniscient.
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MTV News #MusicMonday: Shakira, Them Crooked Vultures And John Mayer

Posted 11/30/09 8:08 pm EST by in Music


Really, you should be listening to music every day, but thanks to Twitter, Monday has become the best day of the week to discover new songs, show some love to the tune currently dominating your iPod playlist and quietly judge the listening habits of your closest friends. Yes, it's #MusicMonday, one of Twitter's most enduring trending topic. Hence "MTV News' #MusicMonday," a weekly look at the songs we're obsessing about here in the Newsroom. Here's what's on our playlists right now.

Jim Cantiello, MTV News Correspondent: "She Wolf, Shakira's jaw-droppingly wild and deliciously unpredictable new CD, is one of my favorite pop albums of the year (if not the decade — yes, I said decade). The standout Shakira song for me is "Mon Amour," a playfully nasty kiss-off. In the song, the She Wolf hopes her ex and his new lover have a horrible relationship-ruining vacation in Paris. The brilliantly-specific lyrics elevate the song to dizzying heights of lover-scorned insanity. "Hope the French fleas eat you both alive/ And your room smells and the toilet doesn't flush." Love it. Even better? The track's new wave sound mashes influences as varied as the Cure, the Beach Boys and Cyndi Lauper. As far as "Pissed Off Ex-Girlfriend" anthems go, "Mon Amour" belongs right up there with Kelly Clarkson's "Since U Been Gone" and Alanis' "You Oughta Know." Can I get an amen? (Or at least an "Awooooo?")"

Kyle Anderson, Newsroom Blog Editor: "Lately, my brain is melted daily by the self-titled debut album from Them Crooked Vultures, the supergroup that brings together Queens of the Stone Age's Josh Homme, Foo Fighters' Dave Grohl and Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones. The most brain-meltingest song on the album is a track called 'Mind Eraser, No Chaser.' Like the best Queens of the Stone Age tunes, it's probably about taking copious amounts of drugs (or at least contemplating taking copious amounts of drugs), and it's got an incredibly heavy riff. It's also one of the few spots on the album that features Grohl's vocals. The back half of the record gets a little too psychedelic, but I haven't found a better first six songs on a rock record this year."
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Them Crooked Vultures Stream Their Entire Album

Posted 11/10/09 12:21 pm EST by in Music


By Joel Hanek

In the event of a world-ending nuclear disaster, I'm pretty sure the only remaining creatures on earth will be cockroaches and the members of Them Crooked Vultures. This rock supergroup — comprised of Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl, Queens of the Stone Age singer/guitarist Josh Homme and legendary Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones — have survived decades of musical waves where tracks with guitars have weaned in relevancy.

Since the band announced its existence a mere six months ago, fans have been waiting in anticipation to get their hands on some music. Unfortunately, the only place to hear any Them Crooked Vultures songs were either going to one of the few live shows or by enduring a tinny camera-phone bootleg. Now fans can finally get their fix. After releasing an album track on iTunes last week for free, the band has put their entire album up for stream on YouTube.

After listening to the 13 tracks on the record, it's hard not draw comparisons to the members other projects. While Josh Homme steps up for lead vocals, many of the TCV songs lean to a more amped-up blues than the stoner-rock vibe of Queens of the Stone Age. Some songs have an inescapable QOTSA feel to them though, especially the sedated "Interlude with Ludes."

Fans of Dave Grohl will get the best of both worlds. Grohl returns behind the drum kit but also lends his backing vocals to many of the tracks, prominently featured on such tracks as "Mind Eraser, No Chaser" and "Dead End Friends."

Then there are some refreshingly unexpected tracks on the album. "Caligulove" is an organ-accented song that ventures into '60s psychedelic rock and is immediately followed by "Gunman," a distorted funky rock song that diverges into minor-soaked choruses.

The forthcoming self-titled debut will be released on November 17.

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Them Crooked Vultures Offer Free Download Of 'Mind Eraser, No Chaser'

Posted 11/4/09 11:43 am EST by in Music


Dave Grohl's primary band Foo Fighters have a new greatest hits collection out this week, and though it has two new songs on it (including the single "Wheels"), Grohl is focusing his new output on the supergroup Them Crooked Vultures. The band reunites Grohl with Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme (Grohl played drums on QOTSA's Songs for the Deaf) and adds Led Zeppelin bass player John Paul Jones. The result is a throwback power trio whose debut album is full of swampy riffs, doomsday vocals and lots and lots of volume.

The band is currently offering up a free song on iTunes called "Mind Eraser, No Chaser." Built around a psychedelic guitar loop, the tune is the perfect blend of classic rock and modern guitar music tropes. Homme and Grohl share vocal duties, including a call-and-response section where Grohl shouts "All I wanna do is have my mind erased!" It's mostly just refreshing to hear Grohl behind the skins again, as his drum style is uniquely savage and — keeping in step with the rest of the band — extremely loud.

It's a big week for fans of Grohl's rhythmic skills, as this week also marks the release of Nirvana's "Live at Reading," the album and DVD of the legendary band's notorious set at the Reading Festival in 1992. It's the portrait of a band absolutely hitting on all cylinders and unleashing a difficult, anthemic set to a rabid festival crowd. Grohl's work behind the kit is fantastically brutal, especially on the rarity "Been a Son."

In the meantime, Them Crooked Vultures' debut album self-titled debut will hit stores on November 17.

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