Run Devil Run
The Roxy – Hollywood, CA
3/20/2009

Jeremy Aric-Lead Vocals/Guitar
Domo-Lead Guitar
Randy Austin-Keyboards/Vocals/Percussion
Sally Hope-Bass
Dave Plesh-Drums

Run Devil Run debuted their latest EP,5 BY 5, on Friday the 20^th. It’s the first EP of new music from the group since changing their name from Poets and Pornstars to Run Devil Run. It’s a new band in essence and a new name. Don’t get me wrong, the band rocks more than ever with their new frontman, Jeremy at the helm.

If you are unfamiliar with Run Devil Run these guys (and Sally) are good old rock and roll and in the day in age where many bands forget what it is to rock Run Devil Run set the new standards for this era.  They have a massive following in Hollywood but that didn’t stop their fans in the likes of Chicago to come out and root them on Friday.

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Blue October
House of Blues – San Diego, CA
3/18/2009

Justin Furstenfeld – vocals.guitar.piano
Ryan Delahoussaye – violin.mandolin.keys
Jeremy Furstenfeld – drums
CB Hudson III – guitar
Matt Noveskey – bass

Ahh…didn’t realize what a cult following these guys have until I posted news months back about the tour they are currently on. I was reading message boards where fans were planning trips just to see Blue October. I am not saying that’s a bad thing. I love seeing fans come together for a band that they have so much passion and energy for and Blue October’s Fans came out in full force.

I honestly thought they were going to be just another rock band until I actually saw them on that beautiful Tuesday night in San Diego. Justin is a very memorizing frontman. He hypnotized all the ladies that made up the first 10 rows of people at the HOB. Plus the stage setup was very interesting. It wasn’t how artists traditionally setup a stage. Normally all the musicians onstage face the crowd, but not on Blue October’s stage. They set the stage so several mics were facing to the side of the stage. It made for a great visual and an unexpected surprise.

Tour dates and more photos after the jump…

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Live concert experience also announces new pricing

LAS VEGAS – March 31, 2009 – Platinum Masters’ Monster Circus is pleased to announce Twisted Sister front man Dee Snider is set to return as the April special guest. The April performances are set for Thursday, April 16 through Saturday, April 18 and Thursday, April 23 through Saturday, April 25 inside the legendary Hilton Theater.

Additionally, tickets have been restructured including specially discounted tickets for locals. Beginning today, all regular seating for Monster Circus is available at $39 per ticket with a locals’ special of just $30 per ticket. VIP seating is still available at the new price of $59 per ticket and includes a meet-and-party pass, seating on the stage, photos and an opportunity to hang with the band after the show. All ticket prices exclude tax and fees. Tickets can be purchased at the Las Vegas Hilton box office, online at www.lvhilton.com, www.vegas.com, www.ticketmaster.com or by calling 702-732-5755 or 1-800-222-5361. Guests 12 to 17 years of age must be accompanied by an adult.

Upcoming Monster Circus dates and show times include (special guests TBA):

Thursday, May 21-Saturday, May 23 *11 p.m. show times

Thursday, May 28-Saturday, May 30 *11 p.m. show times

Thursday, June 11-Saturday, June 13 *9 p.m. show times

Thursday, June 18-Saturday, June 20 *11 p.m. show times

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Despite reports that Rihanna wasn’t helping the Los Angeles district attorneys prepare their case against Chris Brown, Rihanna’s lawyer, Donald Etra, reiterated to Us yesterday, “She will do everything that the law requires her to do… nothing has changed.” A district attorney spokeswoman backed up Etra’s statement, saying, “We deal with her attorney, who says she is a cooperating victim.”

Brown still hasn’t entered a plea after being charged on March 5th with a pair of felonies for assault and making criminal threats. Brown will be arraigned on the charges next Monday, April 6th. Last month, after reports surfaced that Brown and Rihanna had reunited at Diddy’s Florida mansion following their alleged February 8th incident, lawyer Etra still said, “At this point, she is willing to do anything that the law requires her to do. If subpoenaed, she will testify.”

Regardless, Rihanna’s further cooperation likely isn’t that key to the case at this point, even if the singer refuses to testify. There’s proof of abuse in that “horrific” photograph of a battered Rihanna, plus there are Rihanna’s statements to police immediately after the incident.

Both Rihanna and Brown were no-shows at this past weekend’s Kids Choice Awards. Which is amazing to me since Rihanna has been on a publicity train, going out to dinner & clubbing it up without Chris. Not to mention Chris being seen out and about like everything is right in the world. The two young stars were nominated for Favorite Singer and Favorite Song, but on March 11th Brown withdrew himself from competition in light of his pending charges. Rihanna lost Favorite Female Singer to Miley Cyrus, and Favorite Song went to Beyoncé’s “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)” rather than “Don’t Stop the Music.”

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Art Brut Vs. Satan Out May 12th On Downtown Records, Produced By Black Francis

Pitchfork Media Premieres “Alcoholics Unanimous”

RCRD LBL Premieres “Just Desserts” B-Side

“If we can’t change the world/ Let’s at least get the charts right!” Art Brut ‘Demons Out!’
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Lady GaGa
House of Blues – Chicago, IL
March 24, 2009

Lady GaGa is fierce. Posh who? Lady GaGa owns the world of music now. Her second single “Poker Face” is the #1 Top Song on iTunes. Words cannot explain how much I love this girl. I want to be her! But honestly, who doesn’t? She can play the piano, as well as any other keyboard or synthesizer). She can sing. She writes (or co-writes) her own songs. She can dance. She does NOT lip-synch – unlike many of her pop diva contemporaries ruling the Top 40 airwaves (ahem, Britney?!). Basically, Lady GaGa is fearless. And I love her for that. The woman is only 23 years old!

I was lucky enough to catch both of Lady GaGa’s Chicago shows – the early show and the late show. Each set had the same five amazing costume changes with Lady GaGa performing the same set of songs. GaGa only had her DJ (Space Cowboy) and three male backup dancers accompany her on stage. When it came time for the slow part of the evening, GaGa was on stage alone with her piano to serenade her adoring fans. Decked out in some sort of bubble mini-dress (seriously, you should’ve been there to see it), Lady GaGa performed the increasingly popular piano & voice version of “Poker Face.” At one point during the song, GaGa asked the audience “What do you need me for?” after realizing we all knew every word and could sing the song with her just playing the chords to keep us in key.

Fans were then treated to a brand new song called “Future Love” that GaGa had recently written. Hopefully it will be recorded for her next album, because I LOVED it. Another slow acoustic piano & voice ballad, “Future Love” had Lady GaGa singing to her imaginary lover, which happened to be a mannequin. Again, you should’ve been there to see it.

“All right, let’s get to the song you all came here for,” Lady GaGa told the crowd before launching into her mega-hit “Just Dance.” Maybe the “radio fans” only came to see her sing “Just Dance” because that’s all they know, but not me. I loved every single note GaGa sang/played of every song. She. Is. Amazing. I don’t even know what else to say… Check out TONS of photos from the early show after the jump!

Set list from both sold out shows last Tuesday at the House of Blues (songs may not be in order):

Paparazzi

LoveGame

Beautiful, Dirty, Rich

The Fame

Money Honey

Eh, Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say)

Poker Face (acoustic piano ballad version)

Future Love (new unrecorded song)

Starstruck (w/ Space Cowboy)

Just Dance

Encore

Boys Boys Boys

Poker Face

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Releases New Single “In This Lonely Town”
US Tour Starts Next Week

Click Here To Download “In This Lonely Town”

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Chester French
House of Blues – Chicago, IL
March 24, 2009

Maxwell Drummey (guitar, keyboards)

Chester French played two SOLD OUT shows in a row last Tuesday night while opening for Lady GaGa on The Fame Ball tour. I was lucky enough to get into both the early and late show, so I saw the Chester French guys twice in one night, having never seen them before.

I first took notice of the band while reading up on Mark Hoppus’s blog. Mark had posted their music video on his site after hearing about the band from Travis Barker. The video is for Chester French’s first single “She Loves Everybody” and basically consists of having the two dudes in the band get beat up buy some chick while they’re playing their song. Pretty simple, yet so classic, Black and white. I love it. The song is catchy as hell. Trust me, you’ll love it. If not after the first listen, then you’ll definitely be hooked after the second or third time.

I honestly didn’t like “She Loves Everybody” the first time around, but it grew on me! For those of you unfamiliar with Chester French, it’s a band made up of two dudes: Maxwell Drummey (Max) and David-Andrew Wallach (D.A.). Max plays the majority of the instruments during their live show, as well as writes most of the music. D.A. is the lead singer and writes the majority of the lyrics. He’s also quite talented at playing the triangle and the shaker by the way, which is clearly evident when performing “She Loves Everybody.” Max and D.A. only had less than half an hour to warm up the crowds at each show, but both sets including an AWESOME cover of No Doubt’s “Hella Good.” Any band that covers No Doubt is good enough for me. They have a fan for life in yours truly.

Make sure you check out Chester French when they hit up a city near you. These guys are going to be huge! Their fans already include big names like Kanye West, Jimmy Iovine, Pharrell Williams, Mark Hoppus, Travis Barker, Pete Wentz, Clinton Sparks, N.E.R.D., Common, and much more! You don’t wanna be the last one to hear about Chester French. More photos after the jump!

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After two packed SXSW shows in Austin, Alaska in Winter is headed to the West Coast for his first shows in two years. Last time he was here he was opening for Beirut, and this time these are his first headlining shows…
Sophomore Release “Holiday” Out On Milan Records

March 26th at Bordello in Los Angeles, CA
March 29th at DNA Lounge in San Francisco, CA
March 30th at The Standard (DJ Set) in Los Angeles, CA
April 2nd at Chop Suey in Seattle, WA

Check out remix of BERLIN by Dr Rosen Rosen

If you have yet to listen to much loved sophomore release HOLIDAY, now is the time!

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JIM GAFFIGAN – Comedian, actor, family man, and diehard advocate for all things Bacon returns this week with his Stand-up Special and album, King Baby. The special debuts on Comedy Central March 29th. The following Tuesday King Baby will be released on DVD and CD on March 31st.

Gaffigan has proven himself a major talent beloved to a wide range of audiences after achieving milestones in stand-up, acting and writing. As approachable as he is edgy, Jim is responsible for some of the funniest and most memorable moments in recent comedy and has seen huge success with his first two albums- Doing My Time and Beyond The Pale.

As a stand-up comedian, Gaffigan’s clever, quiet style is captured to perfection on his third album. Featuring the signature Gaffigan jokes you’d expect on topics ranging from bowling to bacon (he really likes bacon), “King Baby” is an hour of Jim at his hilarious best.

Hear And Watch Clips From The “King Baby” eCard Including DVD-only Footage

The “King Baby” Trailer – featuring Sarah Silverman, Jimmy Dore, Todd Glass

Obama Endorses Jim Gaffigan’s “King Baby”

More Jim and tour dates after the jump…

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