Concert Dates, Concert Tour News, Artist Information

Metallica Hall of Fame Show

Metallica will be reuniting the band that was on hand in 1986 for their Black Album for their upcoming Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction this Saturday (April 4) in Cleveland. Jason Newsted, who replaced the late Cliff Burton on bass in 1986 and left Metallica in 2001, told Billboard.com that he thought the induction was going to be a modest affair until drummer Lars Ulrich called him last week and said, “We want you to rock with us.” The band’s current bassist, Robert Trujillo, will not be on hand to play Saturday thus Newsted will be stepping in to recerate the band circa ’86.

Newsted told Billboard.com that he had no qualms about the current incarnation of Metallica playing at the ceremony: “I felt strongly they should go as that band and represent Metallica because they’re strong right now, together. Those four guys in Metallica are out there knocking the s**t down, standing tall, able, prowess, chops are in order… There aren’t many times the Hall of fame can induct a band that’s full capable like that.”

Get your Metallica tickets at StubHub.com.

Metallica: Tour Addicts

Metallica takes their music seriously and getting them to stop playing would be a task for the strong willed.  But then who would want the deafening silence?  Metallica just recently announced a whole new set of tour dates for the U.S. and Canada in support of their Grammy-winning album, Death Magnetic.  From September through December this rock-steady band will be blasting the life out of listeners’ eardrums and you will want to be in the thick of the vibrations!

Some dates that have already been posted include: September 14 at the Sommet Center in Nashville; October 1 at the Bank Atlantic Center in Ft. Lauderdale, November 9 at the Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Michigan and December 12 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose.  Other stops for the heavy metal pioneers include: Indianapolis, Montreal, Tamp, Ottawa, Albany and Anaheim.  Other news involving Metallica: on March 29 Activision released the “Guitar Hero Metallica” video game, with 28 cool songs and April 4 the band will have to be on good behavior for their induction into the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame.  Get ready to rock with your Metallica tickets from Stubhub.com!

What Colin Meloy and Morrissey have in common

The A.V. Club have an interview up this morning with Decemberists frontman Colin Meloy, and naturally it plunges straight into his inspiration for the recently released concept album The Hazards of Love. The record is a kind of rock-opera—something Meloy acknowledges indie rock bands don’t really do anymore, but that he wanted to try to as a way of breaking out of the mold. Most indie rock today has its roots in punk and post-punk, which was sort of the answer to the classically trained prog-rock bands of the ’70s, who often did experiment with epics and concept albums. In a sense, Hazards is the concept album punk birthed.

He has a lot to say on this subject, but more interesting are his comparisons between his own songwriting and that of Morrissey (whom he is a big fan of). He notes that Morrissey always had to deal with critics who thought he was taking himself too seriously, though when you listen to the music, you realize there’s an immense amount of humor in it as well—he’s taking the piss out of himself, as the Brits say. The Decemberists often find a similar criticism leveled at them: That they’re too precious and dramatic. But similarly, they aspire to blend enough down-to-earth meaning and humor into their music that fans can appreciate it.

If you agree, you’d might as well get concert tickets. Decemberists tickets are sure to sell out quickly on this tour, but they’re available now at StubHub.com.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs album earning high marks

Since 2003, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs have been turning out amazing indie rock—and vocalist Karen O. is a major part of their performance. Her shrieked or yelped vocals, combined with the incredible energy and bizarre costumes that have become staples of their live shows, have attracted legions of followers. Fans are sure to be impressed with their latest offering, It’s Blitz!

The A.V. Club gives the record a B, saying essentially that it sounds great, but the addition of synthesizers to the band’s punky fire seems like jumping on the bandwagon after many other bands have already experimented with this. There may be something to be said for that, though if you’re a fan of said bandwagon, you can probably bump the score up to an unofficial A. And actually, even if you aren’t, the band offers a lot more to the listener than most indie rock bands just throwing a synthesizer into the mix—they have the astonishing Karen O., as well, and the band itself is dedicated to pushing limits and seeing what kind of odd sounds they can coax out of their instruments. There’s a lot to enjoy here for sure.

There’s even more to enjoy by getting concert tickets to some of the band’s live shows. Fortunately for you, Yeah Yeah Yeahs tickets are available now at StubHub.com.

Get A Taste of the New Bob Dylan Album

Bob Dylan fans can now get a taste of his forthcoming album, Together Through Life, by taking advantage of a free download of the album’s opening track, “Beyond Here Lies Nothin’” on Dylan’s official Web site.  Dylan commented on why the song had no solo earlier this month in an interview posted on his Web site.  “Soloing is not a big part of my records anyway,” he said.  “Nobody buys them to hear solos.  What I try to do is to make sure that the instrumental sections are dynamic and are extensions of the overall feeling of the song.”

This new album was inspired by a song Dylan wrote for the film My Own Love Song.  “You would never expect the record after Modern Times to sound like this,” a source in the Dylan camp told Rolling Stone.  “Bob takes all of those disparate elements you hear and puts them into a track.  But you can’t put your finger on it — ‘It sounds exactly like that.’  That’s why he’s so original.”  Rolling Stone described the album as having “a seductive border-café feel.”  Together Through Life, Dylan’s 46th studio album, is scheduled to be released on April 28th.

To get Bob Dylan tickets, visit StubHub.com.

TV on the Radio touring with Dirty Projectors

If you’re the kind of music fan that haunts music blogs like Pitchfork, you’re probably pretty familiar with a little band that’s coming up in the world. Dirty Projectors have been gathering a lot of notice as of late, and you can expect to be hearing a lot more from them in the future. The band is going to be touring with indie rock darlings TV on the Radio, who are still not what you might call a major band in mainstream music but have earned a wide-reaching base of fans among indie-rock fans.

This will definitely be a tour worth checking out, as Pitchfork points out. They also have a nifty little list of tour dates stating when and where you can get concert tickets to see these two bands together. TV on the Radio tickets can always be found at StubHub.com.

TV on the Radio and Dirty Projectors together:

05-22 Oakland, CA - Fox Oakland Theater
05-23 Portland, OR - Roseland Theater
05-25 Vancouver, British Columbia - Malkin Bowl
05-27 Edmonton, Alberta - Edmonton Events Centre
05-28 Calgary, Alberta - Macewan Hall
05-29 Saskatoon, Saskatchewan - Louis’  Pub
05-30 Winnipeg, Manitoba - Burton Cummings Theatre
06-02 Toronto, Ontario - Sound Academy
06-03 Montreal, Quebec - Metropolis
06-04 Boston, MA - House of Blues
06-05 New York, NY - Central Park Summerstage
06-08 Washington, DC - 9:30 Club
06-09 Washington, DC - 9:30 Club
06-10 Richmond, VA - The National
06-11 - Charlotte, NC - Amos’ Southend

Coldplay, Beastie Boys and Tool Lead All Points West Festival Bill

The second annual All Points West Music & Arts Festival will be held July 31 - August 2 at Liberty State Park in New Jersey and will feature headliners Coldplay, the Beastie Boys and Tool. Also heading to the multi-stage festival just across the Hudson River from lower Manhattan will be Echo & the Bunnymen, Vampire Weekend, My Bloody Valentine, MGMT, Gogol Bordello, MSTRKRFT, The Black Keys, Neko Case, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Fleet Foxes and Arctic Monkeys.

A portion of the proceeds from the Goldenvoice-produced festival will benefit Friends of Liberty State Park, which is helping to make environmentally friendly improvements to the venue. According to the festival producers, the festival layout and transportation options will be improved upon this year with free rides on the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail trains available for festival ticket holders and additional ferry service at a reduced price from Manhattan.

Get your All Points West Festival Tickets at StubHub.com.

Flaming Lips headlining Pitchfork Music Festival

The Flaming Lips have one of the most intense and colorful live shows of any major working band, so it’s only natural that Pitchfork would seek them out for this year’s Pitchfork Music Festival. The band’s ebullient music and trippy, sunny sense of humor manages to get even the most dour shoegazer dancing, and they’re always a good way to cap off a music festival of any sort. They do tend to play a lot of them, but getting concert tickets to their shows never seems like a bad idea—the show always changes and evolves, with mastermind of weirdness Wayne Coyne adding little twists and suprises that keep things interesting.

From Pitchfork’s post on the subject: “Past Flaming Lips shows have featured confetti, fake blood, naked dancers, animal costumes, and Wayne walking on top of the crowd inside a big plastic bubble. Who knows what they’ve got up their sleeves for our festival!”

Can you really pass on that? Get Pitchfork Music Festival tickets now at StubHub.com!

A New Ben Harper: Band, Album, Sound

Ben Harper fans have learned throughout the years to never assume anything about a new Harper album.  The introspective musician never ceases to surprise his listeners, with leanings toward different genres coming forth from record to record.  Harper has always shown his central influences to be roots music and blues, even on some of his acoustic-based efforts, but apparently his new album is going to be more rock than anything else.  “It’s absolute, unapologetic rock music,” Harper was quoted as saying by the Smoking Section. “It’s rock music from the places that you want rock to be from.  There’s some Queen in there, and some Floyd-isms, and there’s a good dose of blues and soul.”

This new brand of Harper comes with a new band, The Relentless7.  Harper has traded in The Innocent Criminals, his longtime band, for a trio of new bandmates that have helped shape this forthcoming record.  “It’s a sound I’ve been looking for and reaching for in my mind,” Harper said in a Rolling Stone story.  “We’ve taken turns kicking each others’ asses in the most gracious fashion, pushing this into new places.”  The new album, White Lies For Dark Times, is set to hit shelves May 5th.

To get Ben Harper tickets, visit StubHub.com.

The Dead Says No to Scalping

The Dead have a plan to trip up scalpers, the veteran jam band is auctioning primo seats for its upcoming tour as a way to both ensure fans (not scalpers) will get tickets and to raise money for its Rex Foundation. Percussionist Mickey Hart told Billboard.com, “We want to keep away from all of that. You always keep your fingers crossed that the bad guys don’t get in there and turn profits for themselves.” Guitarist Bob Weir agreed, expressing his view that any type of scalping “should be illegal,” and continuing to say, “Nobody benefits but a few people. The band doesn’t get any of that money. The people have to pay more money for what they should rightfully be getting for way less. It’s immensely frustrating.”

The Dead is auctioning off the fristfive rows center for its shows to high bidders through Charity Folks (charityfolks.com) and hopes the auction will raise $250,000 for the Rex Foundation, an arts charity the Dead established in 1983, as well as for the Unbroken Chain Foundation, the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society and the Further Foundation. The upcoming tour will be the Dead’s frist since 2004 and begins in Greensboro, N.C. April 12. To read the full article check out Billboard.com.

Get your The Dead tickets at StubHub.com.