David Byrne
Pearl Jam, David Byrne, R.E.M. Sign on for Abortion Rights Benefit Album
Pearl Jam, David Byrne with Devo, R.E.M., Bob Weir, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard and Sleater-Kinney are among the artists contributing rare or previously unreleased music to Good Music To Ensure Safe Abortion Access To All, a benefit compilation that will be available for only 24 hours on Bandcamp starting at midnight ET Friday (Oct. 7). Proceeds will benefit organizations facilitating abortion access for those impacted by new restrictions and regulations in their home states, in the wake of the Supreme Court’s recent decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. The cover art for the collection was drawn by Kim Gordon and is also available in t-shirt form through compilation partner NOISE FOR NOW. No track list has yet been made available, but Pearl Jam announced on Twitter that it was contribu...
Arcade Fire and David Byrne Cover ‘Give Peace A Chance’ at Bowery Ballroom Show
Arcade Fire were joined by none other than David Byrne for their final intimate show at New York City’s Bowery Ballroom. They performed a cover of John Lennon and Plastic Ono Band’s “Give Peace A Chance.” This is the fouth time Byrne has joined Arcade Fire, with the previous appearances taking place twice in 2005 and again in 2014. The performance was Arcade Fire’s fourth and final consecutive show at the New York venue. All shows were announced at the last minute to benefit Ukraine, which frontman Mike Myers discussed with the crowd last night. After Arcade Fire performed “Wake Up,” they debuted another new track, “Unconditional I (Lookout Kid).” The band is gearing up for their upcoming record, WE, which is out May 6. Even though he worked on the record, founding band member Will Butler ...
David Byrne and Mitski Perform ‘This Is a Life’ for Sci-Fi Film Soundtrack
David Byrne and Mitski teamed up for the indie-rock jam “This Is A Life,” the first single off the soundtrack for the upcoming sci-fi film Everything Everywhere All At Once. [embedded content][embedded content] The track was scored by Son Lux, and is one of the 49 tracks off the soundtrack for the Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert sci-fi action-adventure. The massive record arrives on April 8. “This Is A Life” follows the heels of Mitski’s sixth studio record, Laurel Hell, and Byrne’s long-running Broadway musical, David Byrne’s American Utopia. Everything Everywhere All At Once hits the big screen April 8, and features actors Michelle Yeoh, Stephanie Hsu, Ke Huy Quan, Jenny Slate, Harry Shum Jr., James Hong, and Jamie Lee Curtis. Everything Everywhere All At Once Soundtrack ...
The 100 Greatest Rock Stars Since That Was A Thing
Three of the 100 are in this picture! The Rolling Stones, in 1964, from left to right: Bill Wyman, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Charlie Watts and Brian Jones. The problem with lists like this is they are invariably bullshit. So our prime objective was to make sure we didn’t do a bullshit list. I’m not saying we did a scientific one either. Because that isn’t possible — actually, it is, if you wanted some compilation of who sold the most records/concert tickets/has the most fans/got the most death threats, etc., and someone could come up with a bunch of very empirical metrics and create a “heat index” or something, and could deliver an actual scientific ranking! But we, um, didn’t do that. In fact we didn’t even, technically, do the “we...
David Byrne Doesn’t Think Trump Was a ‘Surprise,’ But His Continued Support Is
Joe Biden is officially president-elect, but those who avidly support Donald Trump refuse to admit it and talk of conspiracy theories and fraud. During a recent interview with The Independent, David Byrne expressed his surprise over the continued enthusiasm for Trump post-election. “We’ve all had our dystopian fantasies of what could go wrong, and there’s plenty of books and TV shows that represent that. But then to see this happen…Trump was not a surprise,” Byrne said. “He is what he is. What is surprising is how many people still support him [even after the election].” He continued: “When you see the coronavirus exploding across the United States, and how many dead there are, and how many people just don’t care about that or think it’s a conspiracy, you just go, ‘Wow, the count...
Pearl Jam, David Byrne, Postal Service and More Contribute New Songs to Voting Rights Compilation
If you thought the first Good Music to Avert the Collapse of American Democracy, which featured R.E.M., Hayley Williams, Matt Berninger, Phoebe Bridgers and more was a colossus, wait ’til you see this. Good Music to Avert the Collapse of American Democracy, Volume 2, featuring 77 previously unreleased songs from Pearl Jam, David Byrne, Postal Service, Mark Ronson, Big Boi and Sleepy Brown, Yeah Yeah Yeahs and many more will be available for 24 hours only on Bandcamp This Friday, Oct, 2. One hundred percent of those net proceeds go to Voting Rights Lab, a nonpartisan organization that brings state advocacy, policy, and legislative expertise to the fight for voting rights. GMTATCOAD Volume Two will feature a slew never-before-heard new songs, covers, remixes, live versions, ...
Watch the First Full Trailer for David Byrne’s American Utopia
A few weeks ago, a snippet of a trailer dropped for the upcoming film that chronicles David Byrne’s American Utopia Broadway show that ran from October 2019 through February of this year. As you can see below, the slightly longer trailer gives a closer look at the performance, including glimpses of the 11 musicians in action. [embedded content] Spike Lee directed a version of the performance for HBO Max that will be released on Oct. 17. “It is my honor and privilege that my art brother, Mr. David Byrne, asked me to join him in concert, to invite me into his magnificent world of American Utopia,” Lee said in a statement. Byrne added in a statement of his own: “Spike and I have crossed paths many times over the years, obviously I’m a huge fan, and now final...
David Byrne Apologizes for Wearing Blackface in Stop Making Sense Promo Video
Ex-Talking Heads singer David Byrne has apologized for wearing Blackface in a promo video for the band’s 1984 film Stop Making Sense. In a series of tweets, Byrne said that a journalist recently pointed out his wearing of Blackface as he portrayed several characters in the promo video. He said he’d forgotten about the video until it was brought to his attention. “To watch myself in the various characters, including Black- and brownface, I acknowledge it was a major mistake in judgement that showed a lack of real understanding. It’s like looking in a mirror and seeing someone else—you’re not, or were not, the person you thought you were,” Byrne said. He pointed out in another tweet that at the end of his American Utopia show he says that he needs to change as well. A filmed v...
Watch the First Teaser Trailer of David Byrne’s American Utopia
Earlier this year in the before times, David Byrne was the musical guest on Saturday Night Live for the first time in over 30 years and performed two well-received songs from his American Utopia Broadway show. Spike Lee directed a version of the performance for HBO Max that will be released on Oct. 17 and the first trailer for it dropped today. As you can see below, the film will feature Byrne and his ensemble cast of musicians and singers (11 of them in total) as they perform songs across the Talking Heads singer’s entire catalog. The performance took place at New York City’s Hudson Theatre from October 2019 through February 2020. Check it out below. [embedded content] You Deserve to Make Money Even When you are looking for Dates Online. So we reimagined what a da...
Talking Heads’ Chris Frantz Recalls Band’s Tense Final Meeting
Talking Heads drummer Chris Frantz breaks down the turbulence of the band’s final days in his newly issued memoir, Remain in Love — including a particularly awkward group meeting in 1991 where singer David Byrne allegedly yelled, “You should be calling me an asshole.” Byrne’s quote seemingly implies an internal struggle: that the frontman had long wanted to break up the band but his bandmates aimed to continue. But Frantz says that he and the other members, bassist Tina Weymouth and guitarist Jerry Harrison, maintained their composure during the encounter. “We had heard this before, so we thought, ‘If we keep our cool, this will blow over and we’ll get to do another Talking Heads record,’” the drummer told The Guardian. Instead, everyone moved on to other projects: Byrne with hi...
Whitney Announce Covers Album, Release Rendition Of The Roches’ ‘Hammond Song’
Few bands can emulate the twang of John Denver. Fewer can come close to showcasing the soul of SWV. And, well, only one band can really do both. Chi-town indie rockers Whitney announced this morning that they’ll be releasing a 10-track album, Candid, next month with covers ranging from Denver’s “Country Roads” to SWV’s “Rain.” Also in the mix are tracks by Kelela, David Byrne and The Roches, whose single “Hammond Song” was reimagined by the group and shared today in promotion of the record. “This could’ve been as simple as saying we really love these songs and we love our bandmates and making a covers record just felt right,” drummer and singer Julien Ehrlich said, “but it truly became an exploration into how we can evolve as a band going forward.” On Twitter, the group explained that they...
Iggy Pop, David Byrne and More Appear in Artist Maurizo Cattelan’s Bedtime Stories
Iggy Pop, David Byrne and other artists are collaborating on a new art project by Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan. Titled Bedtime Stories, the digital art project asks each collaborator to read from their favorite book — whether it’s “a sentence, passage, chapter, or more.” Some contributors have read their favorite passages while others have shared something they wrote themselves. There were some who also shared an impromptu performance. To kick off the series, which is available on New Museum’s website, Pop pays tribute to his dog. “You were such a good-looking little dog,” he said in the recording. “And the next thing I knew, there you were, standing by my truck, looking up at me. I picked you up, put you on my lap and thought about keeping you — and in less than a minute I was co...
