ILL EQUIPPED: AVENGED SEVENFOLD NIXES TWO GIGS!
Avenged Sevenfold was forced to cancel last night's planned concert in Quebec City and tonight's in Montreal due to "artist illness." As was previously reported, last Sunday's show in Baltimore was also cancelled. Last month, the band announced it was scrapping a series of UK dates because of singer Matt Shadow's throat problems. The two Canadian shows are expected to be rescheduled.
GOING NOWHERE: ARREST MADE IN OASIS ASSAULT!
An arrest has been made stemming from Sunday's onstage attack of Oasis guitarist/singer Noel Gallagher while he was performing as part of the Virgin Festival in Toronto. Local police have arrested Daniel Sullivan and charged him with assault. His unprovoked attack on Gallagher resulted in the rock star suffering ligament damage and a possible fractured rib and forced the group to cancel last night's planned show in London, Ontario, Canada.
NO BULL: SONIC YOUTH INKS MATADOR DEAL!
Sonic Youth will release its next studio album (due next year) through indie label Matador Records, frontman Thurston Moore tells Billboard magazine. "Matador is a super strong, high-profile label with an indie distribution system that is exactly what a band like us in this current climate needs more than anything," he said. The band's last album with Geffen Records was 2006's Rather Ripped.
SOUL OF A MAN: AMOS LEE BARES, SHARES HIS!
Singer/songwriter/soul man Amos Lee's voice harkens back to the unforgettable vocals of some of music's most important and potent names: Curtis Mayfield, Teddy Pendergrass, Al Green, Bill Withers, Marvin Gaye, and on and on and on. Throughout his brilliant set Monday at the Music Box in the heart of Hollywood, Lee, whose third album, Last Days at the Lodge is in stores now, displayed a range of emotion via his emotive tunes generally reserved for the top-shelf talent mentioned above. Relationship-driven songs such as "What's Been Going On" and socially conscious cuts like "Jails and Bombs" from Last Days build a bridge to Gaye's classic What's Going On album, while Lee's current classic, "Won't Let Me Go," deals with crossing that classic friends-to-lovers bridge. With apologies to Fenway Park's giant left field wall, the real green monster – jealousy – rears its ugly head a few times throughout Last Days at the Lodge, especially in "Truth" and "What's Been Going On." Catch Lee performing September 26 on NBC's Late Night with Conan O'Brien. Lee's tour continues Friday in Reno, NV and Sunday in Tucson, AZ. Be sure to visit www.amoslee.com for a full list of tour dates and be sure to spend days, weeks, months and years with Last Days at the Lodge.
PUSH-PULL: STEREOPHONICS' 'UPLIFTING' SONG BLASTS!
Despite its grenade-influenced titled Pull the Pin album having just arrived in stores, Stereophonics frontman Kelley Jones says the band has already demoed "about six or eight songs" for its next album. "The songs are very, very kind of big melodies and have that euphoric kind of sound," Jones tells Billboard. "I don't know where that comes from, but they're very uplifting kinds of songs. The band's in a good place right now." The band is also in several good places – literally – right now, having recently launched a U.S. tour, which stops tomorrow in Washington, DC and runs through a September 21 show in Seattle.
CORE BUSINESS: APPLE UNVEILS, UPGRADES NEW IPODS!
Singer/songwriter Jack Johnson helped Apple chief Steve Jobs introduce the latest line of beefed up iPods by treating Apple's assembled audience to a brief performance. But clearly the star of the show, dubbed "Let's Rock," was the new line of iPods, which includes a newer, thinner iPod Touch and iPod Nanos as well as an upgraded, juiced up classic iPod, the 80GB model at 120GB but staying at the same $249 price. The new generation of iPods will be in stores for the holidays.
CLASSIC ROCK NEWS
DARK SIDE OF THE NEWS: GILMOUR PULLS PINK'S PLUG!
Former – emphasis on former – Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour – again – told fans and reporters there would not be another Pink Floyd reunion. Speaking to reporters on his London houseboat, Gilmour said, "There have been all sorts of farewell moments in people's lives and careers which they have then rescinded, but I think I can fairly categorically say that there won't be a tour or an album again that I take part in." Ironically, the event that gave fans hope a reunion would occur, 2005's Live 8 reunion, was the very incident that made Gilmour so sure there would be no further reunions. "The gig itself was excellent, really enjoyable," he said. "The rehearsals were less enjoyable. The rehearsals convinced me it wasn't something I wanted to be doing a lot of."
HONORS ROLL: THE WHO TAPPED FOR KENNEDY HONORS!
Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey of The Who will join Barbra Streisand, country legend George Jones, actor Morgan Freeman and choreographer Twyla Tharp as this year's recipients of the Kennedy Center Honors. All of the honorees will receive their awards at a ceremony to be held December 7 and broadcast on CBS. The honors recipients are recognized for their lifetime contributions to American culture through the performing arts.
HEART ATTACK: WILSON SISTERS PLOT NEXT ALBUM!
According to Nancy Wilson of Heart, the band's next studio effort will be "a concept album," but further details surrounding the record are still a precious commodity. "I think it's a really fresh idea," she tells Billboard, "so I'm not quite ready to unveil it yet. I don't want other people to rip us off. So I'm keeping the details quiet right now." Nancy and her sister Ann are already writing songs for the future release, which will be the follow-up to 2004's Jupiter's Darling.
OH, NO: YES MULLING COVER BAND FRONTMAN!
While Yes vocalist Jon Anderson continues to recover from an unspecified illness, www.melodicrock.com reports the other members "have selected a tribute band singer" named Benoit David "to replace its iconic frontman" for a possible upcoming tour and potential new album. Yes' planned 40th anniversary tour was put on ice due to Anderson's illness. David fronts the Canadian Yes cover band Closer To the Edge (www.ctte.net). Watch YouTube footage of David singing here.
CAMERA SHY: RARE ROCK PHOTOS EXPOSED!
Former rock photographer Michael Lessner, who for years worked for Philadelphia's alternative newspaper The Drummer, has teamed with rock merchandiser and producer Denny Somach to release previously unpublished photos of some of rock's biggest names. From 1971-1976, Lessner shot performers in concert that include Led Zeppelin, Rod Stewart, the Rolling Stones, George Harrison, Paul McCartney, John Lennon, David Bowie, Bruce Springsteen, Pink Floyd and Yes, just to name a few. Lessner's images will be released as a large format book and as limited edition prints.
CORE BUSINESS: APPLE UNVEILS, UPGRADES NEW IPODS!
Singer/songwriter Jack Johnson helped Apple chief Steve Jobs introduce the latest line of beefed up iPods by treating Apple's assembled audience to a brief performance. But clearly the star of the show, dubbed "Let's Rock," was the new line of iPods, which includes a newer, thinner iPod Touch and iPod Nanos as well as an upgraded, juiced up classic iPod, the 80GB model at 120GB but staying at the same $249 price. The new generation of iPods will be in stores for the holidays.
