Rock & Roll
Queen Release New Mobile Rhythm Game Rock Tour
Queen were hoping to bring a massive concert experience around the world in celebration of their 50th anniversary, but the pandemic has put a damper on those plans. Instead, they’ll bring tiny concert experiences from throughout their history into fans’ homes with the Queen: Rock Tour mobile game. Coming from Universal Music Group and Gameloft, Queen: Rock Tour is a rhythm game much like Rock Band or Guitar Hero, except in this mobile version all the rocking out is done with your fingertips. Players can tour 10 famed international venues and tap along to 20 of Queen’s iconic songs, including “Bohemian Rhapsody”, “We Will Rock You”, “Radio Ga Ga”, “We Are the Champions”, and more. You can also change the look of the band, choosing from over 40 instantly recognizable costumes worn ...
Bruce Springsteen’s Jeep Commercial Yanked from YouTube Following DWI
Well that didn’t last long. Three days ago on Super Bowl Sunday, Jeep unveiled their new ad “The Middle”, which had the honor of being the first-ever commercial to feature Bruce Springsteen. But after reports emerged this morning that The Boss had been charged with a DWI late last year, Jeep had to throw the whole campaign in reverse. Now, as InsideHook reports, the commercial has been yanked from YouTube and Jeep’s social media pages, and the company seems to be mulling junking the whole thing. On November 14th, Springsteen was arrested in Gateway National Recreation Area and charged with driving while intoxicated, reckless driving, and consuming alcohol in a closed area. National Park Spokesperson Daphne Yun told the New York Times that, “Springsteen was cooperative throug...
St. Vincent Covers Nine Inch Nails’ “Piggy” with Dave Grohl on Drums: Stream
St. Vincent (David Brendan Hall), Nine Inch Nails (Lior Philips), Dave Grohl (Wiki) In just a few days, Nine Inch Nails will be formally enshrined in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. To celebrate the band’s illustrious career, St. Vincent has teamed up with Amazon Music to release a new cover of “Piggy” that features Dave Grohl on drums. This is part of a whole series of covers curated by Amazon and honoring the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2020. They’ve also got Real Estate taking on The Doobie Brothers’ “What a Fool Believes”, The Kills reworking T. Rex’s “Cosmic Dancer”, Eyelids powering through Depeche Mode’s “Enjoy the Silence”, and Jehnny Beth of Savages stepping into Nine Inch Nails classic cut “Closer”. As for St. Vincent, she’s an incurable music nerd, and her ...
Trump Supporters Play Bruce Springsteen’s “Born in the USA” Outside Military Hospital
Because the whole Donald Trump has COVID-19 thing isn’t enough of a fiasco, the president’s supporters had to drag Bruce Springsteen into this. A small group of MAGA sycophants stood outside Walter Reed Medical Center on Sunday to show their love for Trump — by playing “Born in the USA”. To emphasize for what has to be the bajillionth time, “Born in the USA” is not a pro-patriotism song. It’s a lament for a country addicted to feeding its working class populace into pointless wars, only to leave them neglected once they return. So the fact that these people were blasting this protest song outside of a military hospital, where actual members and veterans of the military are trying to rest and be cared for, crosses irony over to actual ignorant cruelty. That’s without even mentioning Springs...
Roger Waters Unveils Live Album Us + Them: Stream
Roger Waters has unveiled the companion album to his latest live concert film Us + Them. Stream it below using Apple Music or Spotify. In 2017 and 2018, Waters embarked on the massive “Us + Them Tour”, which spanned 156-dates across four continents. Footage of those shows captured the old songwriter with some new tricks, including dazzling light displays and a rainbow laser pyramid. Waters co-directed the film alongside Sean Evans, and now the movie soundtrack is available in a 23-song double-CD or double-LP package. Grab your copy here. The collection covers plenty of Pink Floyd favorites, which isn’t a surprise — after all, the tour got its name from a cut off Dark Side of the Moon. But it also prominently features his recent solo work, especially the 2017 album Is This the Life We ...
The Struts Announce New Album Strange Days, Drop Single with Robbie Williams: Stream
British glam rockers The Struts have announced their third studio album. It’s called Strange Days and it’s due out October 16th via Interscope. While there’s only a few weeks to go until that release date, The Struts have decided to share the record’s title track featuring Robbie Williams now so that fans can bask in the unique timeliness of the tender anthem. Remarkably, Strange Days was created during the coronavirus quarantine. As such, several of the full-length’s 10 songs touch upon what it’s like riding the emotional rollercoaster that is this year. And while “Strange Days” is a bittersweet epic about finding solace in gratitude, the other tracks tread on different themes with different collaborators, including Albert Hammond Jr., Tom Morello, and Joe Elliott and Phil Collen of Def L...
Starcrawler’s Arrow de Wilde Accuses The Growlers of Misconduct
Starcrawler’s Arrow de Wilde (photo by Kimberley Ross) and The Growlers’ Brooks Nielsen (photo by David Brendan Hall) The Growlers were at the center of the accusations recently raised against Burger Records, which ultimately led to the label shutting down. At the time, frontman Brooks Nielsen said the band was “committed to conducting ourselves in a way our mothers, wives, sisters, and daughters would be proud of.” However, it seems as recently as January the band was engaging in misconduct, as Starcrawler’s Arrow de Wilde has levied new accusations against the band. Starcrawler joined The Growlers on their 12-date Australian tour at the top of the year. When de Wilde got off stage after finishing a Melbourne show, she was covered in sweat and fake blood, a typical part of Sta...
Little Richard Tributes: Mick Jagger, Iggy Pop, Jimmy Page, Cyndi Lauper Honor Rock Pioneer
Little Richard, one of the greatest artists in the history of popular music died on Saturday. Words like “trailblazer” and “pioneer” somehow feel insufficient; Little Richard was rock and roll, embedded deep within the genre’s DNA. His reach extended far beyond hits like “Tutti Frutti”, and his innovations in vocal technique, fashion, sexual expression, and concert spectacle influenced generations of musicians. In the wake of his passing from cancer at the age of 87, thousands of artists released statements expressing all that the late titan meant to them. “When we were on tour with him I would watch his moves every night and learn from him how to entertain and involve the audience and he was always so generous with advice to me,” Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger remembered. “...
Reignwolf Fights “Cabin Fever” with New Song Recorded in His Garage: Stream
Jordan Cook of Reignwolf has been isolating like the rest of us, and like the rest of us he’s going a bit crazy. He’s channeled those emotions into the new quarantine banger “Cabin Fever”. Cook recorded the song in his garage using one mic and a a 4-track recorder. He pounded out that violent drum beat himself, while attacking the guitar riffs with nervous, almost jittery fingers. The lyrics are urgent and wild. “I go insane! Insane! Insane! Insane!/ Wait for tomorrow to be yesterday.” In a statement, he explained how the song came together with “tension” baked in. “The song came together quickly and I didn’t want to wait to record it so I used what was available. I dusted off the 4-track, set up a single mic in the garage and went to work. It felt like old times when I used to r...
