Hey all,
I hope everyone is well and that you’ve been listening to good music.
I’m trying something new this week. Rather than having separate emails—one for the newsletter and one for the podcast—I’m attempting to combine these into one email. If this works, the podcast show notes will be the content of this email. It may be a horrible failure, but I won’t know until I try.
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Okay, enough shameless self-promotion.
Ground control to reader. Take your protein pills. Put your helmet on.
This music newsletter ain’t gonna read itself.
“If you cannot find peace within yourself, you will never find it anywhere else.”
—Marvin Gaye
ROCK THE VOTE
:: MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD
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WEEKLY PLAYLIST #50
:: NEW MUSIC EVERY WEEK
Featuring: Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, Lana Del Rey, Bluhm, Nickel Creek, Matthew Logan Vasquez, The National, Rufus Wainwright, Proper Pet, Darling West, Spooky Mansion, Tommy Newport, The Lemon Twigs, GoGo Penguin, Radiohead, Yves Tumor, The Utopiates
MASTER PLAYLIST (ALL WEEKS)
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MUSIC NEWS
:: WHAT’S GOING ON
Nick Cave to Embark on Rare North American Solo Tour This Fall
Radiohead bassist Colin Greenwood to accompany Bad Seeds frontman for 18-date trek starting this September. [RollingStone]
Taylor Swift Is Donating to Food Banks on The Eras Tour Route
The superstar has already made surprise donations in both Arizona and Nevada. [Billboard]
Devo Are Getting Their First-Ever Authorized Documentary
American Movie director Chris Smith will attempt to tell the story of beloved art rock weirdos. [RollingStone]
Pussy Riot to Receive 2023 Woody Guthrie Prize
The Woody Guthrie Prize is given annually to an artist who best exemplifies Woody Guthrie’s spirit and work by speaking for the less fortunate through music, film, literature, dance, or other art forms and serving as a positive force for social change. [RollingStone]
Henry Rollins Teases Mysterious Project He Put His Life Savings In
The enigmatic activity "will make people smile until their faces hurt." [Consequence]
Sly Stone Announces New Memoir With Foreword by Questlove
The upcoming book is set to be released on October 17 and will provide a never-before-seen insight into the funk icon’s personal life. [NME]
Ween Announce 2023 US Tour
The newly announced 14-show trek follows a brief string of April dates and kicks off on July 28th in Los Angeles. See their full tour schedule at the link. [Consequence]
Original Misfits Announce Summer 2023 US Shows
Various support will be provided by Megadeth, The Gaslight Anthem, AFI and Fear. [Consequence]
Sleater-Kinney, Brittany Howard, Band of Horses Lead 2023 Bumbershoot Fest
The Seattle festival returns in September for its 50th anniversary with Sunny Day Real Estate, AFI, the Revivalists, Jawbreaker, Fatboy Slim and more. [RollingStone]
Lollapalooza 2023 Lineup Boasts Kendrick Lamar, Billie Eilish, Chili Peppers & More
Lana Del Rey, Karol G, TOMORROW x TOGETHER, The 1975, and Odesza are among the other big names heading to Chicago this summer. [Consequence]
Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Son Nicholas Dies After Battle With Cancer
Nicholas Lloyd Webber, the Grammy-nominated composer, record producer and eldest son of Andrew Lloyd Webber, died Saturday (March 25) in England after a protracted battle with gastric cancer and pneumonia. He was 43. [Billboard]
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OTHER NEWS
:: MAY OR MAY NOT BE MUSIC-RELATED
Listen to T-Pain’s Soulful Cover of Black Sabbath’s ‘War Pigs’
You read that right, and guess what? T-Pain covering Black Sabbath is actually pretty damn good. [NME]
Just Can’t Get Enough: The Warring Depeche Mode Tribute Bands Of Los Angeles
Apparently, Depeche Mode has a very active tribute scene in southern California. [Stereogum]
Designer of Foo Fighters Pinball Machine Describes Band’s Input: ‘Nothing But ‘F–k Yeahs!’ Left and Right’
Stern Pinball's Jack Danger says working on the new game was the dream of a lifetime. [Billboard]
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Z-REX
:: ZAPPA’S RECOMMENDATIONS
+ One of my favorite music journalists, Amanda Petrusich, writing for the New Yorker, interviewed Nick Cave and discussed grief, resilience, and of course, music.
+ Jason Isbell will be the subject of an upcoming HBO Original documentary, the network announced today. Jason Isbell: Running With Our Eyes Closed debuts Friday, April 7, as part of Bill Simmons’ Music Box Series for HBO. The doc will focus on Isbell’s creative process, his collaborative relationship with his wife, Amanda Shires, and the recording sessions for his 2020 album with the 400 Unit, Reunions. Watch the trailer for the film below.
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NEW RELEASES
:: RECENTLY DROPPED MUSIC
Black Country, New Road: Live at Bush Hall [listen]
Caroline Rose: The Art of Forgetting [listen]
Depeche Mode: Memento Mori [listen]
Lana Del Rey: Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd [listen]
Nickel Creek: Celebrants [listen]
Pink Floyd: The Dark Side of the Moon (Live at Wembley 1974) [listen]
Pink Floyd: The Dark Side of the Moon (50th Anniversary) [listen]
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RELEASE RADAR
:: UPCOMING RELEASES
- MAR 31 -
Alberta Cross: Sinking Ships
Boygenius: The Record
Crazy Horse: All Roads Lead Home
The Hold Steady: The Price of Progress
The New Pornographers: Continue As a Guest
The White Stripes: Elephant (Deluxe)
William Tyler & The Impossible Truth: Secret Stratosphere
- APR 1 -
Nick Waterhouse: The Fooler
- APR 7 -
Blondshell: Blondshell
Devon Gilfillian: Love You Anyway
Groundlift: “Bottleneck” (single)
Matthew Logan Vasquez: As All Get Out
Mudhoney: Plastic Eternity
Oracle Sisters: Hydranism
Thomas Bangalter: Mythologies
Wednesday: Rat Saw God
- APR 14 -
Angel Olsen: Forever Means EP
Chat Pile & Nerver: Brothers in Christ EP
Feist: Multitudes
Fruit Bats: A River Running to Your Heart
GoGo Penguin: Everything is Going To be OK
Kiersten Blue: “Thriving” (single)
Metallica: 72 Seasons
Natalie Merchant: Keep Your Courage
The Tallest Man on Earth: Henry St.
- APR 21 -
Everything But the Girl: Fuse
St. Paul & The Broken Bones: Angels in Science
The Smashing Pumpkins: ATUM (Act 3)
- APR 28 -
The National: First Two Pages of Frankenstein
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ON THIS DATE
:: MUSICAL HAPPENINGS OF HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE
- MAR 27 -
Birthdays: Tony Banks of Genesis (1950) • Andrew Farriss of INXS (1959) • Mariah Carey (53/1970) • Fergie (1975) • Kimbra (1990) • U2 performed from the roof of a store in downtown LA to make the video for “Where The Streets Have No Name” attracting thousands of spectators and bringing traffic to a standstill. The police eventually stopped the shoot. (1987)
- MAR 28 -
Birthdays: Steve Turner of Mudhoney (1965) • Salt (Cheryl James) of Salt-N-Pepa (1969) • Dave Keuning of The Killers (1976) • Lady Gaga (37/1986) • Led Zeppelin released their fifth studio album, Houses Of The Holy. (1973)
- MAR 29 -
Birthdays: Evangelos Papathanassiou (a.k.a. Vangelis) (1943) • Bobby Kimball of Toto (1947) • Michael Brecker of Brecker Brothers (1949) • Perry Farrell (64/1959) • Austrian singer Falco started a three-week run at #1 on the U.S. singles chart with “Rock Me Amadeus.” (1986)
- MAR 30 -
Birthdays: Graeme Edge of The Moody Blues (1942) • Eric Clapton (1945) • MC Hammer (61/1962) • Tracy Chapman (59/1964) • Joey Castillo of Queens of the Stone Age (1966) • Norah Jones (44/1979) • Prince released his ninth studio album Sign o' the Times. (1987) • Soul singer Bill Withers died from heart complications aged 81. (2020)
- MAR 31 -
Birthdays: Herb Alpert (1937) • Angus Young of AC/DC (68/1955) • Jack Antonoff (39/1984) • Chuck Berry's rock 'n' roll classic “Johnny B. Goode” single was released. (1958) • Kenny Loggins started a three-week run at #1 on the U.S. singles chart with “Footloose.” (1984) • Rapper Nipsey Hussle died, age 33, after being shot multiple times in the parking lot of his store, Marathon Clothing, in South Los Angeles. (2019)
- APR 1 -
Birthdays: Rudolph Isley of The Isley Brothers (1939) • Henry Gross (1951) • Jeff Porcaro (1954) • Method Man of Wu-Tang Clan (52/1971) • As an April Fool's joke, John Lennon and Yoko Ono issued a statement to the press that they were having dual sex change operations. (1970) • Marvin Gaye was shot dead by his father at his parent's home in Los Angeles. The argument started after his parents squabbled over misplaced business documents, Gaye attempted to intervene, and was killed by his father using a gun he had given him four months before. (1984) • Cynthia Lennon, first wife of John Lennon, died at her home in Spain following a short battle with cancer. (2015) • Singer-songwriter, producer, guitarist Adam Schlesinger, best known for his work with Fountains Of Wayne, died at the age of 52 as a result of health complications caused by COVID-19. (2020)
- APR 2 -
Birthdays: Marvin Gaye (1939) • Leon Russell (1941) • Emmylou Harris (76/1947) • Fleetwood Mac went to #1 on the U.S. album chart with Rumours. (1977) • Buddy Rich died aged 69 due to complications caused by a brain tumour. (1987) • Nirvana went into Smart Studios in Madison, Wisconsin and started working on demo versions of songs for Nevermind with Butch Vig producing. (1990)
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Be good to each other,
CZ 🤘🏻
Zappagram #50: Nick Cave is coming to town