In a special interview Janelle Monáe discusses her unique life journey, Dirty Computer, the PYNK pants, working with Prince and the importance of Afrofuturism.
Bandzoogle Celebrates 15th Anniversary with $15,000 Donation to MusiCounts Band Aid Program, Helping to Launch New Grant Increase
Bandzoogle, the most effective platform for musicians and bands to build their website and manage direct-to-fan marketing and sales, will help launch Canadian music education charity MusiCounts’ new school instrument grant increase by contributing $15,000 for the MusiCounts Band Aid Program. Previously capped at $10,000, the program now allows schools in Canada to apply for up to $15,000 in musical instruments and equipment for their music programs.
The donation is being made in honor of Bandzoogle’s 15th anniversary, which the company is celebrating this Fall. Founded in late 2003 by Chris Vinson, who now serves as Chairman, Bandzoogle started life as a single website for Vinson’s alt-rock band Rubberman. Today, the company powers over 36,000 websites for musicians, who have sold more than $36 million in music and merch commission-free through the platform.
Now led by CEO Stacey Bedford, who came onboard in 2007 as the company’s only support technician and third overall hire, Bandzoogle’s staff now consists of 25 employees who are mostly musicians themselves and all work remotely with no central office, a testament to the company’s commitment to work-life balance. This remote team has launched a record number of new tools for musicians in recent years, all without increasing the price of the subscription service. These tools include SoundScan reporting for music sales, new features to help musicians sell more music and merch, and a complete revamp of the platform’s design tools.
“Bandzoogle started out as a way to help independent artists effectively promote their music online, so it is fitting that we celebrate our 15th anniversary by helping MusiCounts nurture the next generation of musicians,” said Bedford. “Bandzoogle believes strongly in giving all children the opportunity to experience music education. We look forward to supporting a deep appreciation and understanding of music as art in future generations as we embark on our next 15 years.”
“We are thrilled to have Bandzoogle as our first $15,000 contributor since the announcement that schools can now apply for up to $15,000 in instruments and equipment via the MusiCounts Band Aid Program,” said Kristy Fletcher, Executive Director of MusiCounts. “This generous contribution from Bandzoogle will provide generations of students access to instruments and the endless benefits of music education.”
Schools can apply to the MusiCounts Band Aid Program beginning on September 17 at musicounts.ca with submissions closing on November 14. Schools selected as recipients will be notified in early 2019.
Kid Theater with Jack Black
Jack Black and Jimmy Fallon read scenes written by little kids based on the movie title “The House with a Clock in Its Walls.”
Win a Deluxe Collectors Edition Box Set of Paul McCartney & Wings’ classic 1975 album Venus & Mars
Check out this Deluxe Collectors Edition Box Set of Paul McCartney & Wings’ classic 1975 album Venus & Mars. It includes the remastered original album, a disc of extras and a DVD, along with tons of memorabilia — all in a numbered hardcover book.
Would you like to have it? Of course you would. And we’re happy to oblige. Tinnitist and myself — Canada’s two most-followed music nerds if I may say so — are teaming up to give it away to one lucky winner in Canada or the continental U.S. Here’s how to enter:
1) Retweet this tweet:
WIN Deluxe Collectors Edition Box Set of Paul McCartney & Wings’ 1975 album Venus & Mars!
1. RT this.
2) Visit https://t.co/RViHlVnrhw & https://t.co/WXuFLHS9ZD and sign up for our newsletters.
We’ll announce a winner on Oct. 8
Stay tuned to Tinnitist & I for more contests! pic.twitter.com/3GTKRdQmFD— Eric Alper (@ThatEricAlper) September 25, 2018
2) Visit ThatEricAlper.com & Tinnitist.com and sign up for our newsletters.
3) Follow each of us on one of our social media accounts. You’ll find links on our websites.
That’s it! We’ll announce a winner on Monday, Oct. 8 — Thanksgiving Day in Canada.
Stay tuned to Tinnitist & I for more contests!
Bee Gees ‘Timeless: The All-Time Greatest Hits’ To Be Released On 2LP Vinyl October 26
On October 26, Capitol/UMe will release the Bee Gees’ Timeless: The All-Time Greatest Hits in a 2LP vinyl edition. Already available on CD and digitally, the career-spanning collection of top hits by one of music’s most legendary and acclaimed groups features 21 tracks personally selected by Bee Gees co-founder Barry Gibb. Sequenced in chronological order, ‘Timeless’ spans decades of Bee Gees smash hits, from their first Australian chart-topper, 1966’s “Spicks and Specks” to “How Deep Is Your Love,” “Night Fever,” and “Stayin’ Alive” from Saturday Night Fever to 1987’s UK Number One single “You Win Again.”
“There is a spirituality about this album and these songs always meant the most to us,” says Barry Gibb in his written introduction for Timeless: The All-Time Greatest Hits. “Although there are many other songs, these songs, I feel, are the songs that Maurice, Robin, and I would be most proud of.”
The Bee Gees – brothers Barry, Robin and Maurice Gibb – have earned their stature as one of the world’s most popular and bestselling groups of all time. Having recorded 22 studio albums and for numerous soundtracks, including the monumentally successful Saturday Night Fever, the Bee Gees infused popular culture with dozens of worldwide hit singles that featured their singular and highly influential three-part harmonies. They achieved nine Number Ones and 23 Top 10 singles on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, including “How Deep Is Your Love,” “Night Fever,” and “Stayin’ Alive” from Saturday Night Fever, and graced charts around the world with many other classics, including “How Can You Mend A Broken Heart,” “I Started A Joke,” “Lonely Days,” “Words,” and “You Win Again.”
Among the honors bestowed upon the Bee Gees are five GRAMMY Awards®, as well as The Recording Academy’s Lifetime Achievement Award and Legend Award; five American Music Awards; a Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music; and a Legend Award from the World Music Awards. They have been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Songwriters Hall of Fame, BMI Icons, the Vocal Group Hall of Fame, and the Dance Music Hall of Fame. All three brothers were appointed Commanders in the Order of the British Empire in 2001.
Bee Gees ‘Timeless: The All-Time Greatest Hits’ [2LP Vinyl]
Side A
1. Spicks and Specks (1966)
2. New York Mining Disaster 1941 (1967)
3. To Love Somebody (1967)
4. Massachusetts (1967)
5. Words (1968)
6. I’ve Gotta Get a Message to You (1968)
Side B
1. I Started a Joke (1968)
2. Lonely Days (1970)
3. How Can You Mend a Broken Heart (1971)
4. Jive Talkin’ (1975)
5. Nights on Broadway (1975)
Side C
1. Fanny (Be Tender With My Love) (1975)
2. You Should Be Dancing (1976)
3. How Deep Is Your Love (1977)
4. Stayin’ Alive (1977)
5. Night Fever (1977)
Side D
1. More Than a Woman (1977)
2. Too Much Heaven (1978)
3. Tragedy (1979)
4. Love You Inside Out (1979)
5. You Win Again (1987)
Pharrell Williams’ Powerhouse Debut, ‘In My Mind,’ Gets Re-Released On Black 2LP Vinyl & Limited Edition Blue 2LP Vinyl
One-half of the super production troupe N.E.R.D, Pharrell Williams transcended his role as a simple beatmaker to cultural figure and fashion icon with his debut, In My Mind. Today, Urban Legends releases In My Mind in black 2LP vinyl and limited edition blue 2LP vinyl packages.
Pharrell’s In My Mind was not only a deviation from N.E.R.D’s hard-driving production style, but also a hugely successful debut for the artist turned tastemaker, moving close to 150,000 units within its first week of release. Pharrell’s first project minus longtime partner Chad Hugo, the album not only charted well internationally, but also hit number three on the Billboard 200.
In My Mind is a vibrant mix of out-for-self narratives wrapped in production that teeters between mainstream radio hits and smoothed out, heady tracks—all of it couched in a star-studded mixture of celebrated collaborations. “Stay With Me” features Pusha T’s intricately crime-driven bars, while “Number One” features Kanye West. In addition, Snoop Dogg makes an appearance on “That Girl” and Gwen Stefani pops in on the album’s opener, “Can I Have It Like That.” Towering iconic rap figure/CEO, Jay-Z, appears on “Young Girl/I Really Like You.”
The album is a polished effort, finding Pharrell’s mainstream-driven sights realized as he croons on some songs while delivering raps on others in an easy-to-follow approach that lends to the album’s commercial, easy listening aesthetic. None of the tracks are particularly gangster but the album has hard production edges (“Keep It Playa” featuring Slim Thug, for example). The cult of Pharrell grew astoundingly following this project and its catchy, varied soundscapes aided in making Pharrell the cultural figure he is now. In My Mind was nominated for a GRAMMY® in 2007 for Best Rap Album and it has sold more than two million units in the U.S. to date.
Pharrell Williams: In My Mind [2LP black vinyl; 2LP blue vinyl]
Side A
Can I Have It Like That (feat. Gwen Stefani)
How Does It Feel?
Raspy Shit
Side B
Best Friend
You Can Do It Too
Keep It Playa (feat. Slim Thug)
Side C
That Girl (feat. Snoop Dogg)
Angel
Young Girl/I Really Like You (feat. JAY-Z)
Take It Off (Dim The Lights)
Side D
Stay With Me (feat. Pusha T)
Baby (feat. Nelly)
Our Father
Number One (feat. Kanye West)
Show You How To Hustle (feat. Lauren)
Common’s 2007 Studio Album, ‘Finding Forever’ Gets Re-Released On Black 2LP Vinyl & Limited Edition White 2LP Vinyl
Today, Urban Legends releases Common’s seventh studio album, 2007’s Finding Forever, in black 2LP vinyl and limited edition white 2LP vinyl packages. Both versions feature the bonus track “Play Your Cards Right (featuring Bilal)” on vinyl for the first time.
Common’s follow-up to his hugely popular Be album, Finding Forever saw most of the production helmed by Kanye West and was also a part of GOOD Music’s wildly ambitious rollout, becoming a vibrant chart-topper for Common in his mid-career phase. In the wake of Dilla’s passing, the overall feel and vibe of the album is colorfully soulful, a tribute of sorts to the legendary producer, according to Kanye West. In fact, “So Far To Go (featuring D’Angelo)” is actually credited to Dilla himself, as is the intro to “Southside.”
The album is a solid work by Common, whose rhymes are as thoughtful here as in previous recordings—introspective, fluid, detailed storytelling with aplomb. Chart-wise, the album was a success, selling 155,000 units in its first week and topping the Billboard 200 at number one. The album was critically acclaimed, with Spin magazine rating Finding Forever 9 out of 10 stars. Finding Forever was certified gold and nominated for three GRAMMY Awards, for Best Rap Album, Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group, and Best Rap Solo Performance.
Major guest spots are also plentiful. “Start the Show” features Kanye West, while “Drivin’ Me Wild” has vocal additions from celebrated, affable chanteuse Lily Allen. While the release is a later Common project, it’s a tight effort with lyrical content that’s gritty and descriptive, and inventive, as well; relaxed when the textured, boom-bap production needs to breathe. Finding Forever is a star-studded, production-fueled, later-in-the game triumph for the Chicago rap veteran.
Common: Finding Forever [2LP black vinyl; 2LP white vinyl]
Side A
1. Intro
2. Start The Show
3. The People
4. Drivin’ Me Wild (feat. Lily Allen)
Side B
1. I Want You
2. Southside (feat. Kanye West)
3.The Game
Side C
1. U, Black Maybe
2. So Far To Go (feat. D’Angelo)
3. Break My Heart
Side D
1. Misunderstood
2. Forever Begins
3. Play Your Cards Right (feat. Bilal)
Jack Black Plays Toy Sax In His Elaborate Tonight Show Entrance
Jack Black breaks down the reason behind each move he did during his energetic Tonight Show entrance.
https://youtu.be/vMDWUep_XAc
‘Weird Al’ Yankovic Looks Like ‘Buddy Holly’ In Weezer’s Music Video of Toto’s ‘Africa’
The blessings don’t stop??? Weezer’s new Africa video starring ‘Weird Al’ Yankovic is out now.
A Brief History of Electric Guitar Distortion
Distortion and overdrive are forms of audio signal processing used to alter the sound of amplified electric musical instruments, usually by increasing their gain, producing a “fuzzy”, “growling”, or “gritty” tone. Distortion is most commonly used with the electric guitar, but may also be used with other electric instruments such as bass guitar, electric piano, and Hammond organ. Guitarists playing electric blues originally obtained an overdriven sound by turning up their vacuum tube-powered guitar amplifiers to high volumes, which caused the signal to distort. While overdriven tube amps are still used to obtain overdrive in the 2010s, especially in genres like blues and rockabilly, a number of other ways to produce distortion have been developed since the 1960s, such as distortion effect pedals. The growling tone of distorted electric guitar is a key part of many genres, including blues and many rock music genres, notably hard rock, punk rock, hardcore punk, acid rock, and heavy metal music. So let’s go back to the beginning.