Motley Crue bassist Nikki Sixx has hit out at MTV for stalling production on The Dirt, a biopic on the metal veterans.
The group reached a deal with MTV Films/Paramount in 2006 to turn their best-selling autobiography into a movie but have been unable to generate momentum for the project.
Sixx told Reuters: "We're trying to get them out of the way to make this movie that should have been made a long time ago.
"MTV has become bogged down in its own way. It's a channel that used to be hip and has now actually become unhip. We signed with them because we believed they were right, but they haven't come to the table. We need to find the right partner. They are not the right partner."
The Dirt, which the band co-wrote with Neil Strauss, details the band's formation, rise to fame and decadent lifestyles.
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Thursday, 26 June 2008
Tuesday, 24 June 2008
Plies' Definition Of Real Debuts At #2, Making Up For Past Disappointments
For some, the reality of first-week record sales means utter exaltation. A stamp of approval from the masses. For others, it can be deflating. A show that you weren't on as many people's radar as you expected. Last August, Plies' initial Nielsen SoundScan numbers were the latter, but he promised himself never to let up.
"I guess I looked at my situation differently last time," he said, recalling the debut of his first album, The Real Testament, which scanned 96,500 copies in its first week. "To be able to come back ... I tell people all the time: You can sell a million records off hype in this game in the first two weeks. When you really see what your album is made of is after week four. Week four will show you the true response of how people view your material. For me to sell 96,000 records the first week, I was crushed by that number. All the work I put in, I expected bigger. That turn made me come up with the whole [mantra] of 'God don't make mistakes.'
"I had the blessing of selling another 400,000 records after week one," he added. "It doesn't really happen that way. A lot of times you see big artist sell 300,000 records the first week and still don't get to that mil. Or artists that sell 500,000 the first week and just get to a mil."
Plies should be satisfied with the opening week of his second album in under a year, The Definition of Real. With sales of 214,000 copies, Plies' latest landed the #2 spot on next week's Billboard albums chart. That's not even close to Lil Wayne's 1 million sales, but it is double Real Testament's opening numbers.
Plies has built his popularity by cementing his street cred while still maintaining a strong appeal with the ladies. For every record that has women screaming, such as "Bust It Baby Part 2," he drops another for the "goons," such as his latest, "Worth Goin Fed Fo."
"I'm at a cross point in my career right now," he explained. "I had a gold album on my last record. I could play over there in that realm, or I could make friendlier, more acceptable music to try to sell records. At this point in time, I don't feel that that gamble is worth it for me.
"I'm not one way all the time," he continued. "Sometimes, I may get off a phone call and be in a verbal confrontation with a cat out of the streets. That's enough to make me formulate a whole song off of that conversation. Sometimes, I'm in my woman mode, like we all are. Sometimes, I can look at the newspaper and see an indictment just happened, and it makes write a song, like I just did on my sophomore album, called 'Worth Goin' Fed Fo.' ... I never force myself to go to the studio and to feel the pressure of trying to come up with good music. I feel there's so many problems in the world, you should never run out of things to talk about that are important."
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Monday, 23 June 2008
Martin Helped Clinton To Victory In Puerto Rico
Crooner Ricky Martin is claiming credit for Senator Hillary Clinton's success in the Puerto Rican primary on Sunday (1Jun08) after he delivered a rousing speech encouraging his countrymen to offer her their support. The 35-year-old, born in the capital San Juan, is a staunch supporter of the Democrat candidate, and was keen to offer his support ahead of Sunday's vote. He said, "Senator Clinton has always been consistent in her commitment with the needs of the Latino community. "Whether fighting for better education, universal health care and social well-being, as first lady and senator from New York - representing millions of Latinos - she has always fought for what is most important for our families." Martin's words may have made a difference - Clinton romped to victory over rival Barack Obama.
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Actress, dancer Cyd Charisse dead at 86
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Actress and dancer Cyd Charisse, the impossibly long-legged movie musical star who gained fame for her on-screen pairings with Hollywood dance greats Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly, died on Tuesday at age 86.
Charisse, a sinuous, athletic performer once described by Astaire as "beautiful dynamite," died early in the morning of a heart attack at a Los Angeles-area hospital, according to her agent, Scott Stander.
Publicist Gene Schwam said she had only recently celebrated her 60th wedding anniversary with her second husband, singer Tony Martin, whom she married after a romance with millionaire Howard Hughes.
"What was special about Cyd was that she was always stylish and graceful, and when I saw her two weeks ago, she was still dressed beautifully and her hair was done properly," Schwam told Reuters. "She was such a loving and gracious woman throughout her life."
Born Tula Ellice Finklea in Amarillo, Texas, she took her professional surname from her first husband, ballet instructor Nico Charisse. The moniker of Cyd was adapted from a childhood nickname, Sid, coined by her brother.
Joining the Ballet Russe as a teenager in the mid-1930s, she broke into movies in 1943 dancing opposite Don Ameche in "Something to Shout About," billed then as Lily Norwood.
That appearance led to a long-term contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, where she first danced with Astaire in a brief routine in "Ziegfeld Follies" and made her film acting debut with Judy Garland in "The Harvey Girls," both released in 1946.
But Charisse cemented her status as an MGM star as Kelly's dance partner in their provocatively memorable "Broadway Melody Ballet" routine in the finale to the 1952 classic "Singin' in the Rain."
Charisse, a sinuous, athletic performer once described by Astaire as "beautiful dynamite," died early in the morning of a heart attack at a Los Angeles-area hospital, according to her agent, Scott Stander.
Publicist Gene Schwam said she had only recently celebrated her 60th wedding anniversary with her second husband, singer Tony Martin, whom she married after a romance with millionaire Howard Hughes.
"What was special about Cyd was that she was always stylish and graceful, and when I saw her two weeks ago, she was still dressed beautifully and her hair was done properly," Schwam told Reuters. "She was such a loving and gracious woman throughout her life."
Born Tula Ellice Finklea in Amarillo, Texas, she took her professional surname from her first husband, ballet instructor Nico Charisse. The moniker of Cyd was adapted from a childhood nickname, Sid, coined by her brother.
Joining the Ballet Russe as a teenager in the mid-1930s, she broke into movies in 1943 dancing opposite Don Ameche in "Something to Shout About," billed then as Lily Norwood.
That appearance led to a long-term contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, where she first danced with Astaire in a brief routine in "Ziegfeld Follies" and made her film acting debut with Judy Garland in "The Harvey Girls," both released in 1946.
But Charisse cemented her status as an MGM star as Kelly's dance partner in their provocatively memorable "Broadway Melody Ballet" routine in the finale to the 1952 classic "Singin' in the Rain."
Dryft
Artist: Dryft
Genre(s):
Electronic
Discography:
The Mytotyc Exyt
Year: 2002
Tracks: 8
Cell
Year: 2000
Tracks: 11
Barkin' Bill
Artist: Barkin' Bill
Genre(s):
Blues
Discography:
Gotcha!
Year: 1994
Tracks: 14
Princess Beatrice's Pampered Workday
Hotline: Pixies get "Rock Band" treatment
Attention “Rock Band” gamers: Here comes your band.
The Pixies’ seminal 1989 classic album “Doolittle” will be added next week to the game’s downloadable catalog, allowing faux-shredders to rock out to alt-rock classics like “Here Comes Your Man,” “Debaser” and “Monkey Gone To Heaven.”
“Doolittle” is only the third full album to be released through the Rock Band Music Store, joining Judas Priest’s “Screaming for Vengeance” and the Cars’ self-titled work among the roughly 200 songs available for download. Players got a taste of “Doolittle” in November when standout track “Wave of Mutilation” was included with the original release.
“Doolittle” will be available for Xbox Live on Tuesday, with PlayStation consoles getting access on June 26. The full album costs $18.99. Individual tracks are available for $1.99.
Dieselboy motors on
The Elements dance night at the Phoenix Landing is bringing one of the best DJs in the biz to Cambridge Thursday: acclaimed drum-and-bass mixer Dieselboy.
Making his first appearance in three years at the weekly Central Square techno gathering, Dieselboy is the top-selling drum and bass DJ in America. But beyond that and his internationally recognized Human Imprint record label, the Florida native has another claim to fame: He’s the son of Bertie Higgins, the bearded rock singer who gave us the 1982 yacht rock classic “Key Largo.”
We’re still waiting for that updated “Key Largo” drum-and-bass remix, but we’re fairly sure it will never happen.
Baez at Berklee
Roughly six months after her sold-out-three-months-in-advance performance at the Club 47/Passim Center 50th anniversary bash, Joan Baez returns home this fall.
The Belmont-reared folk singer and activist will perform two dates at Berklee Performance Center, Nov. 1 and 2. The shows are Baez’s only New England appearances in support of her new Steve Earle-produced album, “Day After Tomorrow,” which drops Sept. 9.
Tickets, $39-$49, go on sale Friday at the Berklee box office and Ticketmaster locations. Call 617-747-2261.
The Pixies’ seminal 1989 classic album “Doolittle” will be added next week to the game’s downloadable catalog, allowing faux-shredders to rock out to alt-rock classics like “Here Comes Your Man,” “Debaser” and “Monkey Gone To Heaven.”
“Doolittle” is only the third full album to be released through the Rock Band Music Store, joining Judas Priest’s “Screaming for Vengeance” and the Cars’ self-titled work among the roughly 200 songs available for download. Players got a taste of “Doolittle” in November when standout track “Wave of Mutilation” was included with the original release.
“Doolittle” will be available for Xbox Live on Tuesday, with PlayStation consoles getting access on June 26. The full album costs $18.99. Individual tracks are available for $1.99.
Dieselboy motors on
The Elements dance night at the Phoenix Landing is bringing one of the best DJs in the biz to Cambridge Thursday: acclaimed drum-and-bass mixer Dieselboy.
Making his first appearance in three years at the weekly Central Square techno gathering, Dieselboy is the top-selling drum and bass DJ in America. But beyond that and his internationally recognized Human Imprint record label, the Florida native has another claim to fame: He’s the son of Bertie Higgins, the bearded rock singer who gave us the 1982 yacht rock classic “Key Largo.”
We’re still waiting for that updated “Key Largo” drum-and-bass remix, but we’re fairly sure it will never happen.
Baez at Berklee
Roughly six months after her sold-out-three-months-in-advance performance at the Club 47/Passim Center 50th anniversary bash, Joan Baez returns home this fall.
The Belmont-reared folk singer and activist will perform two dates at Berklee Performance Center, Nov. 1 and 2. The shows are Baez’s only New England appearances in support of her new Steve Earle-produced album, “Day After Tomorrow,” which drops Sept. 9.
Tickets, $39-$49, go on sale Friday at the Berklee box office and Ticketmaster locations. Call 617-747-2261.
Academy Foundation awards grants
Hands out a total of $500,000 to 58 film-related nonprofits
The Academy Foundation, the educational wing of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, has awarded grants totaling $500,000 to 58 film-related nonprofit organizations, including universities, museums and career development programs, throughout the United States and in Canada.
"One of our primary goals is to increase access to professional opportunities in the motion picture industry," Grants Committee chair Andrew Marlowe said. "These grants also will help generate greater public interest in film events and screenings throughout the U.S."
In the category of internship programs, $15,000 grants were awarded to California Institute of the Arts (Valencia); Columbia University School of the Arts (New York); Loyola Marymount University (Los Angeles); New York University -- Kanbar Institute of Film & TV; University of North Carolina (Chapel Hill); University of Southern California Master of Professional Writing Program; and USC School of Cinematic Arts.
Stanfrod University won a $13,000 grant. Grants worth $12,500 each were awarded to Columbia College Hollywood (Tarzana, Ca.) and North Carolina School of the Arts (Winston-Salem). Grants of $10,000 are going to NYU Archiving Program; University of California, Los Angeles -- Film & Television Program; Workplace Hollywood (Hollywood, Ca.); and Yale University Film Studies.
The recepients of $7,500 grants were Emerson College (Boston); Hampshire College (Amherst, Ma.);Pennsylvania State University (University Park); University of North Carolina (Wilmington); and University of the Arts (Philadelphia).
In the second category of institional grants, $25,000 was awarded to New York's FilmAid International for its African screening program.
$10,000 grants were earmarked for Chicago's Facets Multi-Media for its Facets Film School and Facets CineChat; Hollywood Cinema Production Resources (L.A.) -- Job training program; the MacDowell Colony (Peterborough, N.H.) -- Filmmaker residency; Tufts University (Medford, Ma.) -- Filmmaker-in-residence; and UCLA Film & Television Archive -- screening series.
New York's Whitney Museum of American Art won a $9,500 grant for its Alice Guy Blache retrospective program.
Grants worth $7,500 each were awarded to the following: Austin Film Festival, -- Writers' Ranch and seminar series; Berklee College of Music (Boston) -- visiting artists; California State Summer School for the Arts (L.A.) -- visiting artists; Drexel University (Philadelphia) -- visiting filmmakers; Echo Park Film Center (L.A.) -- filmmaking workshop and screening programs; Frameline (San Francisco) -- screening series; Harvard Film Archive -- visiting filmmakers; Institute of American Indian Arts (Santa Fe) -- summer film workshop; Media Arts Center San Diego -- screening and workshop programs; Miami Film Society -- MIFF Abroad; Museum of Fine Arts, Houston -- visiting filmmakers; New York Women in Film & Television -- female filmmakers screening series; Salt Lake City Film Center -- visiting artists; Visual Effects Society (Encino, Ca.) -- training and mentoring program; and Winnipeg Film Group (Manitoba, Canada) -- documentary film conference.
Seattle's Northwest Screenwriters Guild was awarded a $6,000 grant for its visiting speaker series.
Grants worth $5,000 were awarded to the following: Bard College (Annandale, N.Y.) -- filmmaking workshop; Cineaste Magazine (New York) -- Film Editing supplement; Cinestory (Idyllwild, Ca.) -- A Film from the Screenwriter's POV; Columbia College (Chicago) -- artist-in-residence; The Drawing Center (New York) -- Drawing on Film exhibition; Kentucky Film Lab (Lexington) -- Filmmakers' Studio; Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum (Fremont, Ca.) -- Silent film screening series; Ninth Street Independent Film Center (San Francisco) -- Canyon Cinema screening series; Outfest (L.A.) -- Access LA seminar series and screenwriting lab; Paramount Center for the Arts (Peekskill, N.Y.) -- screening series; San Francisco Cinematheque -- artist-in-residence; Squaw Valley Community of Writers (Ca.) -- screenwriting workshop; University of Houston -- visiting filmmakers; and Walker Art Center (Minneapolis, Mn.) -- Filmmakers in Conversation.
The University of Colorado at Boulder won a $4,000 grant for its Brakhage Symposium.
New York's Film Form received a $2,500 grant for its screening series.
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The Style Council
Artist: The Style Council
Genre(s):
Rock
Discography:
Cafe Blue: The Style Council Cafe Best
Year: 2002
Tracks: 13
Our Favourite Shop
Year: 2000
Tracks: 15
The Complete Adventures of The Style Council - 5
Year: 1998
Tracks: 12
The Complete Adventures of The Style Council - 4
Year: 1998
Tracks: 16
The Complete Adventures of The Style Council - 3
Year: 1998
Tracks: 20
The Complete Adventures of The Style Council - 2
Year: 1998
Tracks: 21
The Complete Adventures of The Style Council - 1
Year: 1998
Tracks: 21
Live! Home and Abroad
Year: 1998
Tracks: 12
In Concert
Year: 1998
Tracks: 20
In Concert
Year: 1998
Tracks: 19
Here's Some That Got Away
Year: 1994
Tracks: 11
Presidents of the United States of America
Artist: Presidents of the United States of America
Genre(s):
Rock
Discography:
The Presidents of the United States of America
Year: 1995
Tracks: 13
The Presidents of the United States of America were one of the well-nigh improbable success stories of the post-grunge alternative rock scene in Seattle. Where the lie of their Seattle brethren traded in heavy guitars and heavy angst, the Presidents rejected bedevilment for wittiness, writing short, simple, and absurd punk rocker songs that relied more than on goofy attitude than sludgy riffs and tortured screams. It was a formula that worked, as the group's self-titled debut album became a double-platinum record a great deal to the surprise of many critics, music industry insiders, and the dance orchestra itself.
Childhood friends Chris Ballew (lead vocals, two-string basitar) and Dave Dederer (three-string guitbass, support vocals) played in a bit of groups and projects ahead forming the Presidents of the United States of America about 1990. The duette recorded a demonstration tape, which began circulating some the Seattle melodic biotic community and, in the work on, earned them a cultus following. Drummer Jason Finn, a member of Love Battery, saw the duet in 1991 and, after a few years of persuading, joined the isthmus in 1993. Within a class after Finn joined, the Presidents became one of the well-nigh popular bands in Seattle. In the bound of 1994, they released their eponymic debut album on Pop Llama Records. The record became an sovereign hit and the band attracted the attention of major record labels; the radical eventually signed with Columbia Records, world Health Organization re-released the Presidents' debut in the saltation of 1995. By this time, Finn had left Love Battery to become a full-time President.
The Presidents of the United States of America became a hit in the summer of 1995, when MTV and modern stone radiocommunication began public exposure "Lump" oftentimes. "Oaf," followed by the tuner hit "Pool" in the hang and the radio/video hit "Peaches" in the outflow of 1996, propelled the album to a surprise Top Ten, double-platinum condition. The stria quickly capitalized on their sudden success by releasing their second album, The Presidents of the United States of America: II, in November of 1996.
In December of 1997, the Presidents called it quits after Chris Ballew left the band to spend more sentence with his kinsperson. A leave-taking concert followed in February 1998 and a rarities album, Thoroughgoing Frosting, was released in March. Rumors of a possible reunification and collaboration with chap Seattle resident Sir Mix-a-Lot (under the collective name Subset) floated about in 1999, just the project never materialized. However, the stria did reconvene in 2000 (without a rapper) under the officially sawn-off soubriquet the Presidents and released their third base album, Freaked Out and Small. Another long hiatus preceded the release of Love Everybody in 2004. That same year the ring reissued their debut album on their have label in "Super Bonus Thrillpack" edition featuring a DVD. Late in 2007 the Presidents proclaimed a new album, These Are the Good Times People, would be delivered in the springtime of 2008.
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