Oh Canada Week: Billy Talent Pt 3

antiMusic reports: This week we turn our eyes to Canada with two artists that may come from the same part of the world but come from different worlds musically- Serena Ryder and Billy Talent. We recently spoke with Billy Talent's Aaron Solowoniuk's about the band's new live release 666.

?: Over the past few years you've toured the world, where is favorite place to play and why? And the best show or shows you've played?

Aaron: I'd say Rock am Ring was our best show hands down. Playing in Europe is always a treat for us.

?: Why a live album at this point? And did 666 come out as good as you wanted?

Aaron: 666 turned out just the way we wanted. We really wanted a DVD/live album on this record so the timing just worked out..

Check out the band's - Myspace video page for a taste of 666.

Britney World Tour?

antiMusic reports: You just got out of a mental hospital, so what are you gonna do now? Go to Disneyland? Not if you're Britney. Apparently the poptart would rather travel the world to dance and lipsync. At least that's the latest rumor. We'll we're not sure on the lipsync part, but she's been known to do it at her "concerts". Contact Music has the story:

Troubled pop star BRITNEY SPEARS is planning a world tour - just weeks after she was hospitalised for psychiatric evaluation, according to reports. Spears was discharged last week (06Feb08) after a seven-day stay at Los Angeles UCLA Medical Centre, following a troubled and headline-grabbing start to the year (08).

And the Toxic singer is keen to quickly turn her life around, starting with a series of gigs around the globe to promote her latest album Blackout - and kickstart her music career. [yeah, we don't know how much stock to put into the word of "insiders," but this was a rare music related Britney story that we couldn't pass up for the novelty of it all. And yes the words music and Britney Spears do not really below together.] - more on this story

The Police Plan Farewell Tour

Billboard.com reports: The Police will take one more victory lap through North America on their massively successful reunion tour before calling it quits for good, sources close to the tour tell Billboard.com.

The Police -- Sting, Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland -- will play another 30-odd dates in May and July in North America, with 15 previously announced European concerts sandwiched between in June.

Elvis Costello & the Imposters will open the entire run of North American dates, which wraps the first week in August. This final leg will play primarily amphitheaters with a few arenas, beginning May 1 in Ottawa. - more on this story

Lil Wayne Indicted

Wenn reports: Rapper LIL' WAYNE has been indicted on drugs and weapons charges after he was arrested in Arizona last month (Jan08).

At an arraignment hearing on Friday (08Feb08) the 25-year-old - real name Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. - pleaded not guilty to charges of possession of a narcotic drug for sale, possession of dangerous drugs, possession of drug paraphernalia and misconduct involving weapons.

The rapper's tour bus was stopped on 22 January (08) at a U.S. Border Patrol checkpoint near Dateland, Arizona, Federal agents searched the bus and arrested Carter after reportedly finding marijuana, cocaine, ecstasy and miscellaneous drug paraphernalia as well as a 40-caliber pistol. - more on this story

Lenny Kravitz Postpones Tour

AP reports: Lenny Kravitz was taken to the hospital Tuesday and will postpone his upcoming European tour due to a bout of bronchitis.

Kravitz was set to begin the tour this week. It was to run through the end of March, accompanying the release of his new album, "It Is Time for a Love Revolution."

The 43-year-old singer had been struggling with a series of severe respiratory tract infections and the flu since mid-January, his spokeswoman, Carleen Donovan, said in a statement. - more on this story

Shakira Sells Bra for Kids

Gigwise reports: A Shakira fan has forked out a massive $3,000 for a Roberto Cavalli designed bra which once supported her "small and humble" breasts.

The pop star is personally auctioning off various items in her wardrobe to raise funds for the charity Bare Feet Foundation, which is currently building schools for poor children in Shakira's native Colombia.

Shakira has raised in excess of $60,000 so far, with the highest bid coming from a fan who paid $14,100 just to meet her. - more on this story

Futureheads Say Major Labels Have No Future

Gigwise reports: The Futureheads believe the era of major labels will soon be coming to an end, and that bands should do everything they can to avoid them.

They have also heaped praise on Radiohead for showing an alternative to the traditional way of releasing music, but criticised them for not taking things even further.

Speaking to Gigwise, songwriter Barry Hyde said: "The infrastructure for indie labels to be successful is still being built up, but once it is, major labels are finished. - more on this story

Grammys Voters Said Mary Poppins Was Better Than the Beatles

antiMusic reports: Here is a fun one from our friends at Gibson about the punchline known as the Grammys, who have always showns their cluelessness: Whether you actually believe all the votes for Kanye West and Amy Winehouse canceled each other out or that the Grammy nominating committee is just woefully out of touch, there's no denying that giving Herbie Hancock the Album of the Year prize was divisive. Even the 67-year-old winner, who had his last major hit in 1983 with "Rockit," was stunned by the verdict, dropping all his thank-you notes as he took the stage. But we know it was just Grammy being Grammy, the capricious industry showcase with a history of colossal upsets. Here are some of the biggest.

5) Jethro Tull out rocks Metallica: In 1988, arguably one of the best vintage years ever for heavy metal, the Grammy committee had an easy opportunity to win over a previously untapped demographic simply by honoring Metallica in the Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance category for its thrash masterpiece, And Justice for All. It was a total no-brainer, right? So how did flute playing, bandana-wearing folkies Jethro Tull sweep in and win the prize for their little-heard album, Crest of a Knave? It's a question philosophers are still pondering two decades later.

4) The Beatles get beat down by Mary Poppins: In 1964, with the British Invasion in full swing, the Recording Academy decided to shun the Beatles' soundtrack for A Hard Day's Night in the Best Original Score Written for a Motion Picture category in favor of a bunch of songs sung by a fictional nanny with a bad accent and magical umbrella called Mary Poppins. Given a chance to correct its mistake two years later when the Beatles' "Eleanor Rigby" was up for Best Rock and Roll Recording—alongside the Beach Boys' "Good Vibrations," the Monkees' "Last Train to Clarksville," the Association's "Cherish," and the Mamas and the Papas' "Monday Monday"—Grammy did the right thing. They awarded it to a long forgotten novelty single, "Winchester Cathedral." - See the Top 3

Clear Channel Settle Great White Fire Suit

BW&BK reports: Clear Channel Broadcasting has agreed to a $22 million settlement with survivors of a 2003 Rhode Island nightclub fire and relatives of those killed. Lawyers for both sides have filed paperwork Wednesday indicating a tentative deal has been reached.

Hundreds of survivors and victims' relatives sued after the February 2003 fire at the club, which occurred when pyrotechnics used by the 1980s rock band GREAT WHITE ignited flammable soundproofing around the stage.

Clear Channel was sued because one of it's radio stations sponsored the Great White concert by running on-air advertisements. - more on this story

Honda Civic Tour Adds Dates

PR reports: The 2008 Honda Civic Tour (HCT) featuring Panic At The Disco is one of the hottest tickets in town, selling out shows on both coasts and announcing additional dates.

With tickets going fast, a second set of dates will go on sale Feb. 16, and fans will have a chance to snap up tickets in a pre-sale on Feb. 13 by visiting www.hondacivictour.com.

The nationwide trek, which begins April 10, will take Panic to more than 40 cities, with support acts Motion City Soundtrack, The Hush Sound and Phantom Planet along for the ride.

Due to overwhelming demand a second show has been added at San Francisco's Warfield Theatre, on April 11, New York's Roseland Ballroom, on May 8, and at Chicago's Congress Theatre, on May 24. Tickets for theSan Francisco and New York dates are on sale now, while the second Chicago date goes on sale on Feb 16. - dates

Voivod Plan Final Album

BW&BK reports: Canada's pioneering metal band VOIVOD will enter the studio this spring to record their final album using songs left behind by founding guitarist Denis 'Piggy' D'Amour who died in August 2005 from colon cancer.

An official band statement reads: "There remain 13 songs that guitarist Denis D'Amour (Piggy) had written with the band before his death, yet to be recorded.

"Michel Langevin (Away) and Denis Belanger (Snake) will track the last songs this spring bringing all the past and present members together to participate in a homage to the guitar legend of Piggy and the legacy of 25 years of a brotherhood forged by exploring metal, rock and punk ethics with an other worldly premise." - Read more and find out who else will be playing on it

Bad Religion's Brooks Releases Solo CD

antiMusic reports: We're a little late on this but in all fairness it was just brought to our attention and now we're bring it to your attention. Brooks Wackerman of Bad Religion fame has taken on the role of frontman in his own side group "The Kidneys" and released an album that you can buy on their Myspace page.

Here is a little more about the group from their Myspace (it's a little out of date): "In 2003 Brooks Wackerman of Bad Religion formed his own band named "Kidneys", in which he not only plays the guitar and sings but also writes, produces, and plays drums for all of the in studio recordings.

Brooks recently finished his work on the album and is looking forward to the brand new CD release later this year. Brooks is not the only accomplished musician behind Kidneys. When playing live this band features drummer Tony Palermo of Unwritten Law and bassist Josh Paul of Suicidal Tendencies & The Kelly Osbourne Band. Both are well respected musicians with an undeniable soul and pageantry that is a pleasure to watch. - Preview the music and buy the CD here

New Replacements for those Replacements Albums

Filter reports: Rhino has confirmed a long-rumored re-release for The Replacements Twin/Tone catalog, with each album decked out with unreleased tracks and home demos that even the most ardent 'Mats bootleggers won't have.

1981's Sorry Ma, Forgot To Take Out the Trash, 1982's Stink EP, 1983's Hootenanny and 1984's Let It Be will all be released on April 22.

The label also confirmed that the band's later output for Sire will be also be reissued later this year with similar unreleased gems from The Replacements' vaults. - more on this story

Jack Tops Chart, While Sheryl Hits New Low

Reuters reports: Singer/songwriter Jack Johnson scored his second No. 1 on the U.S. pop album chart Wednesday, while Sheryl Crow debuted at No. 2 with one of the lowest sales totals of her career.

Johnson's "Sleep Through the Static" sold 374,619 copies in the week ended February 10, according to Nielsen SoundScan data, the biggest selling debut of a very slow year.

Crow's anti-war album "Detours," sold 92,000 copies, and became her fourth consecutive album to open at No. 2. - more on this story

Radiohead Remixes Now Up

Filter reports: When Amplive's In Rainbows remix project got the breaks after it was served a cease & desist a couple of weeks ago, many were unsure if any of those tracks would ever be released.

Well that was then and this is now. Staring today, Rainydayz Remixes is available to the general public for free.

An agreement was reached between all parties and Rainydayz Remixes is available for download in zip format - here

Wait there is more!

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