Peoria, IL’s Hawks and Doves, featuring Gared O’Donnell of Planes Mistaken For Stars, is set to enter the studio to record the band’s debut album with George Rebelo Hot Water Music / The Draft on drums and Chad Darby Averkiou on bass. Gared had this to say:

As it stands the songs are shaping up to be more of a full band approach and less singer/songwriter than I initially thought, which is fine seeing as there are plenty other acoustic beardy guys doing the genre right? That is not to say you won’t get a bit of my more rustic side. It’s inevitable that this project will get it’s share of comparisons to Planes and that’s fair {being I sing/play git/write the songs} but I must say in regard to that its shaping up to be kind of photo negative of a Planes LP.

The band will enter Crescendo studios on January 14th to record nine tracks with Derron Nuhfer and Addison Burns. The band previously released a seven inch at last year’s The Fest for the song “Hush Money.”
Source Continue reading Hawks and Doves (Gared from Planes Mistaken for Stars) hit the studio →

Our stream today comes from Oakland, CA-based Nobunny. We’ve got a stream of the band’s full length, Love Visions. Our own Justin August wrote this about the album:

Ramones worship of the worst variety: the doo-wop songs! A bunny mask? A severe lack of pants? On-stage cutting? But listen to “I Am a Girlfriend” and “Chuck Berry Holiday” and tell me you don’t want to buy a jean jacket and lean up against a wall somewhere with this playing in the background. Or maybe you’d rather be in a seedy bar in Oakland with a few too many Pabsts in you dancing around like you did before you put up your “way too cool” facade. Either way, fans of Jay Reatard may see themselves jumping to a new beat after hearing this under-the-radar release.

You can check it out on their Punknews.org Profile
Source Continue reading Nobunny: “Love Visions” →

Apple today announced that they would be removing the digital copy protection for eight million songs in the iTunes Music Store. As the store contains approximately 10 million songs, the vast majority of the music is now available without copy protection. This mirrors the design of the Amazon.com music store which also sells major label music DRM-free.

This is a significant move because with iTunes added weight behind it, almost all digital music is now being sold without any copy protection. Of course, some may point out that almost all CDs sell without copy protection and have for some time, so digital music has finally embraced the same rights as CDs have offered for decades.

Of note, is that Steve Jobs – the CEO and co-founder of Apple – came out strongly against copy-protection for music back in 2007.
Source Continue reading iTunes drops DRM, adds tiered pricing →

Defiance, Ohio has posted some news regarding new songs and releases. First up will be four songs available for download based on a sliding scale donation. All of the money from those donations will go towards a project of their choice. They are currently in talks with and considering The Icarus Project. The songs will appear later on a 7″.

The band goes on to say that there is a Northwestern tour in the works for April and France and the UK in May. We’ll bring you those dates when we get them.

Their last LP was The Fear, The Fear, The Fear in 2007.
Source Continue reading Defiance, Ohio planning donation-based release, 7″ →

Meg & Dia have released the first song from their upcoming album, Here, Here and Here. The record is due out in the spring.

You can find the song here.
Source Continue reading Meg & Dia: “What If” →

Naples, FL’sFake Problems, one of SideOneDummy’s latest signings, have announced that they will be filming their first ever video on Janurary 10th for the song “The Dream Team” from upcoming album It’s Great To Be Alive. Notably, the band have invited fans to participate in the recording:

We are shooting our very first music video ever for “THE DREAM TEAM”, on January 10th 2009 at the Perry House in Naples. Bring yourself, bring a friend, bring your beer and let’s rock together! Shooting is going to start at nightfall, around 6pm !!!

It’s Great To Be Alive is due to be released via SideOneDummy on February 17, 2009. It is the follow-up to Viking Wizard Eyes Wizard Full of Lies [7 inch] which was released earlier this year. You can find more details about the video shoot at the band’s MySpace page.
Source Continue reading Fake Problems to shoot first video, invite fans to participate →

The Economist’s new spinoff magazine, More Intelligent Life, has a lengthy article about the newfound reemergence of touring as a crucial part of a band’s career. The article notes:

[In the 70s], touring was a loss leader. However much the gigs fizzed with anarchic energy, in economic terms they were little more than a long marketing slog to sell records. Now the tables have turned. Because of falling sales, rampant piracy, and digital distribution, recording revenues are dwindling. The price of an album has remained roughly level in the 20 years that CDs have been the main format, whereas ticket prices have soared.

The lengthy piece looks at everyone from The Clash and the Police to the Beatles and Bright Eyes.

Check out the rest of the article here.
Source Continue reading The importance of the live show →

Ron Asheton, guitarist of influential proto-punk act The Stooges was found dead this morning at his home in Ann Arbor, MI. According to a report, police received a call asking them to check on Asheton because the caller said he had not heard from the guitarist in a few days. Police went to his home and found him deceased.

In 2003, Rolling Stone magazine named Ron the 29th greatest rock guitarist of all-time. The band was also nominated for the Hall of Fame with inductees expected to be announced soon. The Stooges released The Weirdness in 2007. It was their first album since 1973’s Raw Power.

Our condolences to his friends and family.
Source Continue reading Ron Asheton of The Stooges (1949-2009) →

From First to Last have posted an update on their plans:

I just wanted to say thanks for everyone who came out to shows, hung out, partied, and raged with us this year. We had a lot of fun! 2008 was a year of growing learning and working and now we’re ready to go hit the studio again and make a new record so we can do it again in 09

The band released From First to Last in 2007.
Source Continue reading From First to Last to record →

Deathcycle have called it quits. The band explained:

After almost 6 years, we have mutually decided that we are all heading in different directions and the band cannot continue to create as we have. Some of us have changed, some of us have remained steadfast. I guess not so much “musical differences” as much as “directional differences”. The important thing is that we have come forth and been honest with what we all want and expect from each other not just as a band, but as friends. Anyway, we leave off with records we can be proud of, and our friendships intact.

The band has a final show planned for February 28th at the Rockstar Bar in Brooklyn, NY. You can find some more details here.
Source Continue reading Deathcycle (2002-2009) →

Norv Gorica, Slovenia’s Elvis Jackson have posted a new single online for streaming. The song is titled “This Time” and will appear on their album Against The Gravity. You can listen to the song on the band’s MySpace page.

Southern California’s The Lyrics Game, has announced the release date for their debut EP, Home Edition. The record will be released on January 23, 2009, and will be available in California record stores and online retailers. For more information check out the band’s MySpace page.

Philadelphia, PA’s The Anchor Boys have posted recently recorded demo It’s Been Yesterday For A While Now, Been Driving Since Tomorrow in its entirety on their MySpace page.
Source Continue reading Elvis Jackson, The Lyrics Game, The Anchor Boys →

If You Make It has posted the latest in their Pink Couch Sessions. The Bouncing Souls sat down on the couch during this year’s Fest 7. The band recorded an acoustic version of their recent digital release “Gasoline.” You can check out the video here, at the Pink Couch Sessions site.

The song will also appear on a forthcoming 7″ that will collect the entries from January through March plus a bonus track. The song was produced by Ted Hutt, who worked on 2006’s The Gold Record along with recent recordings from the Gaslight Anthem, Flogging Molly, and Street Dogs.
Source Continue reading The Bouncing Souls: “Gasoline” (Pink Couch Session) →

Philadelphia-by-way-of-Scranton-based punk band The Menzingers have announced some upcoming east coast tour dates. They are still supporting their 2007 release A Lesson in the Abuse of Information Technology, however, they will be announcing upcoming recording plans soon.

You can check out the dates below by clicking Read More.
Source Continue reading The Menzingers →