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Joanna Newsom Kicks Off Hollywood Cemetery Residency

Joanna Newsom Kicks Off Hollywood Cemetery Residency

Joanna Newsom, perhaps the most famous harpist in popular culture since Harpo of the Marx Bros., is back to performing live after taking a long hiatus.

The singer/songwriter/actress (and long-time wife of Andy Samberg) has put recording new material on the back burner after 2015's Divers which debuted atop the Billboard's Alternative Album chart.

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Today is Janet Jackson’s Birthday

Tour or event poster for Today is Janet Jackson’s Birthday

If it seem like Janet, pardon me, Miss Jackson, has been around forever, despite turning just 58 today, it's because she has been trying to get our attention since she could walk.

In both a blessing as a curse, Janet being the adorable little sister of the Jackson 5 came with more disadvantages than nepo plusses.

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Setlist History: Queen in Montreal 1981

Setlist History: Queen in Montreal 1981

By the time Queen made it to chilly Montreal for a pair of late November shows, they had already completed 5 legs of a world tour of 80 shows, soon to be 82. Those two would live forever because they were beautifully documented in a film that has gone from the silver screen to IMAX and starting today, streaming on Disney+.

It couldn't be a better representation of this remarkable assemblage of very different musicians peaking creatively and as a live unit.

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Kings of Leon Live Debut Five Songs in Nashville

Kings of Leon Live Debut Five  Songs in Nashville

The Kings of Leon treated a lucky crowd in Nashville, on May 9, to nearly a half dozen new tunes and from their latest record Can We Please Have Fun. as well as hits from their deep catalogue to kick off their new tour.

The band livestreamed a private concert in one of the prettiest Tennessee barns you'll ever see and played for over an hour, delivering six tunes from their first record with their new label, Capitol.

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Setlist History: Led Zeppelin Reunites for Atlantic Records’ 40th

Setlist History: Led Zeppelin Reunites for Atlantic Records’ 40th

To celebrate its 40th birthday, on May 14, 1988, Atlantic Records rented out Madison Square Garden for the day and night and got their money's worth as they put on a 13-hour star-studded celebration that was simulcast on FM radio stations around the globe and on a fledgling cable outlet relatively new to original programming called HBO.

Founded in 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abrahamson, the label gave the world R&B legends like Aretha, Ray Charles, Sam & Dave, Wilson Pickett, and Otis Redding. In the mid '60s it branched out into rock when it signed Yes, CS&N, and the mighty Led Zeppelin.

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Tones on Tail Reunite at Cruel World

Tones on Tail Reunite at Cruel World

While Southern California was deep in FOMO from watching an endless parade of social media posts of the colorful, other worldly Northern Lights auroras seen by millions; Pasadena, California had something of its own to be jealous about: another Cruel World festival of '80s artists.

This year Duran Duran, Blondie, Gary Numan, and Simple Minds had grey haired Gen Xers squeezing back into their Doc Martens to relive the halcyon days of MTV, import 12-inch records and a different type of British Invasion.

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Five Not-So-Cruel Moments at Cruel World 2024

Five Not-So-Cruel Moments at Cruel World 2024

Saturday Cruel World returned for its third year at the Brookside Golf Course next to the Rose Bowl in Pasadena with headliners Duran Duran, Interpol, Blondie, Simple Minds, and a reunion four decades in the making from Tones on Tail.

Last year freak lightning forced the even to be cut short but the Goldenvoice organizers (who also put on Coachella) brought Iggy Pop and others back the next day for more rock of the '80s and especially that new-wave, goth, industrial stuff Gen X was blessed with during high school.

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Steve Albini’s Idealism Remembered by PJ, SY, Pixies & Nirvana

Steve Albini’s Idealism Remembered by PJ, SY, Pixies & Nirvana

Steve Albini, the idealistic punk rock musician and engineer died Wednesday at 61 years old after suffering a heart attack.

His legacy will live on through a wide range of records that helped push the boundaries of alternative music. Albini's work ethic, no-nonsense style, and commitment to supporting musicians by refusing to take royalties on the records he had a hand in is extremely rare and should be celebrated.

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Cat Power Continues to Cover Dylan’s Infamous Concert

Cat Power Continues to Cover Dylan’s Infamous Concert

Cat Power is one of the most interesting singers in music and she's been on a fascinating tour.

Notoriously shy on stage, the singer (who is no stranger to covering other artists) spent the last few months traveling North America and Europe mirroring Bob Dylan's notorious 1966 "Royal Albert Hall" concert.

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