Apr 19

Serbian activists oppose Rolling Stones gig
[source: NME.com] Animal rights protesters in Belgrade are opposing plans to hold The Rolling Stones' concert at the city's Hippodrome, saying it will cause immense distress to the 300 horses housed there.
ORCA, Serbia's largest animal protection society, are lobbying to have the show moved to another venue, as loud noise and vibration are proven to be a major source of upset for animals.
Plans are afoot to sedate horses that may panic during the concert but that solution has enraged the animal lovers. Moving the horses to another location would also cause distress to the animals.
If ORCA fails to convince organisers to move the gig to another venue, they plan to contact the band with their concerns.
The show, which would be The Rolling Stones' first appearance in Serbia, is set to take place on Saturday July 14. Two previous shows planned for the country were cancelled.

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Ben Lee lines up celebrity guests on new album
[source: NME.com] Australian singer-songwriter Ben Lee has enlisted the help of his celebrity friends for new album Ripe, currently being recorded in Los Angeles.
Good Charlotte's Benji Madden co-wrote a song called "Love", while actress Mandy Moore duets with Lee on the 50s-influenced "Birds And Bees". Members of LA rockers Rooney also appear.
Ripe is the follow-up to 2005's Awake Is the New Asleep and is being recorded at the same studio as the new Smashing Pumpkins album, which Lee describes as "exceptional".
"I went to the Smashing Pumpkins album-wrap party and heard their awesome newie," Lee wrote on his website. "Seriously, it's the heaviest and most intense thing they have ever done. It's really exceptional. It sounds like the world needs a record like that right now."
Ripe is due to be released in September.

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Klaxons begin second album
[source: NME.com] Klaxons, currently on tour in the US, claim they have started writing new material for the follow-up to this year's debut LP Myths Of The Near Future.
"We've written the opener of the next album," singer Simon Taylor said. "We're thinking of making a prog album – like a huge, tribal prog album.
"We've all been listening to bands in England like Caravan, so we're definitely going to make a prog album."

http://bigpondmusic.com/Artist/Klaxons.aspx


Radiohead post new song clip
[source: NME.com] Radiohead have posted a short sample of new song "15 Step" on www.radiohead.co.uk.
It can be heard when you click on the "HODIAU DIREKTION" banner on the official site. Meanwhile, the lyrics can be read at www.teaseweb.com.
The band premiered the track on the first date of their 2006 tour at KB Hallen in Copenhagen and it featured regularly on their 2006 jaunt.
A live MP3 of the track can be found at www.finefinemusic.com.

http://bigpondmusic.com/Artist/Radiohead.aspx


Australian Live Earth line-up revealed
In an interview this week, surfer-turned-singer Jack Johnson revealed some of the names who will appear at Sydney's Live Earth event on Saturday July 7.
In a move initiated by Al Glore, seven cities across the globe will stage huge concerts on the same day to help raise awareness of global warming.
Jack Johnson said he will perform in Sydney alongside local artists Silverchair, John Butler Trio, Wolfmother, Crowded House and a reunited Midnight Oil.
"New York and Australia are about the same distance for me," Johnson revealed yesterday, when asked about both shows. "But Australia's waves are a lot better, so that made the decision easy."
Despite Johnson's claims, organisers of the local Live Earth concert have been quick to state no acts have been 100 per cent confirmed.

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Arcade Fire singer undergoes operation
Montreal-based outfit Arcade Fire were forced to cancel a series of dates in Europe this month after singer Win Butler required urgent surgery on his sinuses.
The band will resume touring duties in America next week after it was revealed Butler's recovery from the intense bronchial infection was complete.
"I just wanted to let you all know that the surgery was successful and I am recovering nicely," Butler said. "Thank you for all of your thoughts and emails… It has been a blessing in disguise to be forced to stay home and read (pick up Cormac Mccarthy's The Road if you are feeling like a little post apocalypse… don't let the Oprah Book Club sticker scare you away)."
Butler also let it slip that, together with bandmate Regine Chassagne, he's currently working on new songs.

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Evermore head out on the road
New Zealand-via-Sydney sibling trio Evermore promise to "grab people's attention and leave them with something to think about" when they embark on a series of shows in Melbourne, Perth, Adelaide, Sydney and Brisbane in June.
The three Hume brothers – Peter, Jon and Dann – toured across the country with the Big Day Out back in January and will do the same in June when they're joined by UK songsmith Aqualung and Brisbane chanteuse Kate Miller-Heidke.
Tickets go on sale at 9am on Friday April 27.

Tour dates:

Friday June 8 – Palais Theatre, Melbourne
Sunday June 10 – Metro City, Perth
Thursday June 14 – Thebarton Theatre, Adelaide
Friday June 15 – Enmore Theatre, Sydney
Saturday June 16 – Tivoli Theatre, Brisbane
Sunday June 17 – Tivoli Theatre, Brisbane

http://bigpondmusic.com/Artist/Evermore.aspx
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Mark Ronson releases solo debut
You mightn't know his name, but fans of Christina Aguilera, Robbie Williams, Ghostface Killah, Lily Allen, Amy Winehouse or Rhymefest will have inadvertently heard the hot production skills of UK-based DJ Mark Ronson.
Now, on Saturday May 5, Ronson will deliver his own album, Version. Ronson has taken 12 classic tracks (including songs by The Supremes and The Smiths) and reworked them with the help of Robbie Williams, Lily Allen and Australia's own Daniel Merriweather.
Robbie Williams takes on The Charlatans' "Only One I Know", while Lily Allen gives the Kaiser Chiefs a spin with "Oh My God". Ronson is set to visit Australia for a promo tour this winter.

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Madonna says David's dad is "part of the family"
While visiting local welfare projects she's helped fund in Malawi, pop icon Madonna has met with the father of her new son, David Banda.
The singer arrived in the country on Monday April 16 and has been spending time at the Mchinji orphanage where she first spotted her son.
Together with her husband, director Guy Ritchie, the singer was accused of using her status to bypass local adoption laws when she took baby David back to London in October 2006.
According to British newspaper The Sun, Madonna had a tearful reunion with David's father and told him she was "proud to be a mother to his son".
The official adoption process should be completed by mid-2007.

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