Author Archives: Tankboy

Kong Studios is back and open for business, which can only mean one thing. The Gorrilaz are getting ready to get back in action. To build up the buzz, they?re offering an on-line talent search a la ?(fill-in-your-country-here? Idol.?

Welcome to the World’s First Online-Only Talent Competition! Get Yer Skills out! Win a Chance to be a new Gorillaz Collaborator and get your work shown around the world.

We are looking to shine a light on brand new talents, and are asking people from all creative fields to send in submissions. Entries could be anything from animations, musical, sickly off-cuts, brief sketches, film scenes, caught-on-cameras clips, out-takes, voice-overs, bits of unused footage, whether humorous, dark, edgy, juvenile, insightful or thought provoking.

We are hoping that this will throw up some truly creative fresh talents, and provide an open forum for people who would normally have no outlet to display their work.

We’re not looking for people to send in the slickest most, professional formats. It’s much more about the execution of simple ideas, however bizarre, dark, funny, ingenious or off the wall. The nature and content of the submission is entirely up to you. (full details)

The winner gets to collaborate with The Gorillaz in ?a way they see fit.? Could be cool. Or it could be lame. I guess we?ll just have to wait and see?

Pete Townshend has announced that there will likely be a new album coming out by The Who.

Townshend says:

My working-title for the project – ?Who2? – is only partly tongue- in-cheek. If the recording works out we will tour with the usual band in the first half of 2005.

What usual band, there’s only two guys left? Now I love the idea of Townshend and Roger Daltry working together, and I even liked the new songs released on their umpteen-millionth “Hits” re-package, but please don’t call any album created by the two of them a “Who” disc in any way…

That’s what the papers are saying.

We’re saying those papers are a bunch of slow-pokes since we announced that Graham was chummy with the band months ago and a regroup might be in the cards!

DoneWaiting…waaaaay ahead of the news.

This just announced:

Singer/songwriter Mark Lanegan was injured in a car accident in Los Angeles last night, forcing the cancellation of seven upcoming East Coast tour dates. Lanegan was not at fault and was not seriously hurt, but is under doctor’s orders to rest for several weeks, his spokesperson tells Billboard.com.

The artist is expected to return to the road Oct. 10 in San Diego, with dates on tap through an Oct. 26 performance in Brussels. (full story)

I was supposed to see him next Tuesday damnit! At least he’s okay…

Fireside Bowl has been the numero uno punk rock all-ages venue in Chicago that has weathered years of rumors predicting its imminent demise.

Unfortunately, the rumors seem to have caught up with fact and the club has closed its doors to live music without warning. Brian Peterson of MPshows, the man responsible for bringing music to Fireside Bowl in the first place, is still booking a number of other local venues so it reamins to be seen if bands that were on the calendar for Fireside Bowl will be relocated.

The developing story will unfold in the Lost In Guyville column.

From today’s Chicago Tribune (I’m just goig to print the whole thing since it’s short and the Trib is subscription only):

Rock stars, like businesses, have contract disputes. Former Wilco drummer Ken Coomer sued the band’s lead singer, Jeff Tweedy, for breach of contract, claiming that Tweedy didn’t hold up his side of the bargain when Coomer split from the Chicago-based band in 2001. Coomer claims that according to an agreement band members signed in 1995, members who leave the group sell their shares of the “corporation” to remaining members for “par value.”

Coomer claims that Tweedy has refused to compensate him despite numerous requests. He’s asking for more than $50,000.

A spokeswoman for Wilco said the band had no comment. (Reported by Jim Kirk)

Can I buy some stock in that “corporation?” I think it’d be a wise investment. Then I could ask the chairman of the board why the hell Wilco ain’t playing in their hometown of Chicago this summer!

Continuing the tradition of great rock operas transformed into bloated Broadway beasts we go from The Who?s current “hit” Tommy to the announcement that Pink Floyd?s The Wall is headed into (please pronounce dramatically) the THE-a-TAH:

Roger Waters, who co-founded Pink Floyd in 1965 and conceived the semi-autobiographical 1979 concept double album, will write the Broadway show’s book and arrange and orchestrate music for the stage production. (full story)

That doesn?t sound too bad, eh? Waters (in my mind) is Pink Floyd and is probably best suited to adapting his own work, right? Wrong.

Said Waters of the planned Broadway show, “Now I can write in some laughs, notable by their absence in the movie.”

Oh dear.

Un-pardonmyfuckingfrench-fucking-believable!

Pop star Michael Jackson, facing a trial on child molestation charges, is about to become a father to four more children — quadruplets — by way of a surrogate mother, Us Weekly magazine reported on Tuesday. (full story)

Fuel up the rocket-ship, I’m outta here!

So, many folks were sad to hear The Dishes broke up. But be sad no more since the demise of one band means the birth of two! Here it is straight from Kiki Yablon?s, ex-guitarist for the Dishes, mouth:

Sarah’s [Sarah Staskauskas] brand-spanking-new band is Camaro Rouge, with Andrea Jablonski (Drapes) on bass and Arman Mabry (Hamicks, Whiteouts) on drums. They’re making their debut Saturday, July 24, at the Third Annual Cal’s Fest, in the alley two doors west of Cal’s Liquors at Wells and Van Buren. They play at 8 PM but the fest goes on all day, starting at 11:30 in the morning. It’s $5 and proceeds go to Working Bikes, which donates refurbished bikes to folks who can’t afford new ones.

To get further updates on Camaro Rouge, e-mail cherrytimebomb@hotmail.com.

My new band [that’d be Kiki Yablon] the Red Eyed Legends, with Chris Thomson (Circus Lupus, Monorchid, Skull Kontrol) on vocals and guitar, Jason Dummeldinger (Silverbacks, Cinco de Gatos) on bass, and Paul John Higgins on drums, is playing Thursday, July 22, at 10 PM at the Empty Bottle with Federation X and the Cheeps. This will be my first show playing guitar as well as Farfisa in REL.

This also answers the questions I?ve been sent about Jablonski?s rumored departure from The Drapes! I love it when news nuggets tie everything so neatly together?

U2 is missing their new CD!

Speaking to U2.Com, Edge said, ‘A large slice of two years work lifted via a piece of round plastic. It doesn’t seem credible but that’s what’s just happened to us…and it was my CD.’

The CD went missing during a photo-shoot in the south of France. The band recently completed much of the recording of the highly anticipated new album in Dublin and have been involved in post-production work in France.

It will be the first new studio album from U2 since All That You Can?t Leave Behind nearly four years ago.

French police have already launched a major investigation. (full story)

Wasn’t Inspector Clouseau French? I’m sure they’ll find that disc in a jiff…

On Kazaa!