(Press Release) When we look back at history, one of the things that define an era is its music. Parlor music of the gilded age, the honky-tonk sound of the jazz age and the strident sounds of early rock make it easy for the listener to be transported to a time period of history. Music leaves an indelible mark and its legacy remains intact through the vintage posters which advertised them. For music lovers, history buffs and poster aficionados The International Vintage Poster Dealers Association (IVPDA) proudly presents it new vintage poster web show, “Vintage Music Posters: Opera to Rock ‘n’ Roll.”

“Vintage music posters are hard to find and highly sought after by collectors. These posters, which were once free, can be very valuable today. A good example is Milton Glaser’s Bob Dylan poster from 1966 fetched over $2,000 recently.” says Mireille Romand president of the IVPDA. “IVPDA members are pleased to share vintage music posters of this caliber through this exhibit.”

All of the original vintage posters offered through the exhibit have been handpicked by the world’s most trusted poster dealers. The exhibit presents a lineage of music and the eras it shaped through the past century and beyond. Included in the IVPDA’s exhibit are posters for dramatic Operas, such as Massenet from the 1880’s and 1890’s and light operas such as Franz Lehar from the 1920’s and 1930’s. Jazz age posters such as those featuring Josephine Baker are featured along with posters from the 1950’s which conjure up memories of the swinging sounds of the time. The unbridled excitement of the 1960’s is captured through a selection of rock posters which conclude the exhibit.

“Vintage Music Posters: Opera to Rock ‘n’ Roll.” is part of a series of ongoing online exhibitions offered by the IVPDA. Collectors can buy with confidence as all posters sold by IVPDA members are guaranteed to be original vintage posters. Please visit the IVPDA website at www.ivpda.com to explore the online exhibit, find a poster dealer or learn more about original vintage posters.

The International Vintage Poster Dealers Association (IVPDA) is a non-profit organization comprised of the world’s most knowledgeable vintage poster dealers. Founded in 1996, the IVPDA provides strict guidelines to promote ethical and fair business practices throughout the vintage poster industry. Dealers displaying the IVPDA logo have passed a series of stringent membership requirements.

Last week music history was made as fans from 139 countries across the world tuned in to watch and inspire Maroon 5 as they wrote and recorded a brand new track in just 24hrs at the Coca-Cola Music 24hr Session.

Today, “Is Anybody Out There”, the up-tempo track created at the session, is released for free download at www.cocacola.com/music. For the first 100,000 downloads, Coca-Cola will make a donation to support Replenish Africa Initiative (RAIN) in their work to provide access to safe drinking water  to communities in Africa.The band entered Metropolis studios in London at 5pm GMT on March 22 and worked around the clock to create the track using inspiration sent in by fans via the @Coca-Cola Twitter stream.

Over 350,000 views were logged on the live stream throughout the duration of the session as fans tuned in to watch the creative process unfold. Providing inspiration for the song, over 25,000 fans tweeted their thoughts and messages of support via @cocacola using #withMaroon5 to the band in the studio.

Commenting at the end of the 24hrs, Adam Levine of Maroon 5 said; “This has been an amazing and entirely unique experience. It was 24hrs of creativity, brought to you by Coca-Cola.  We’d like to thank all our fans for their Tweets of support, ideas and inspiration throughout a really productive and intense 24hrs.”

I learn so much about my life from music. Doesn’t matter the genre or even how “good” the song is, there are certain songs that are touch points to important moments in my life. So many songs have had a strange connection to motivating and inspiring me. Looking through my iPod or iTunes is almost like flipping through a scrapbook. There’s “Irish Hymn” by Kevin Max, a rallying cry for a friend of mine who was suffering depression. The lyrics, “This one’s for all you people, who hit the rock bottom but climbed it back up again,” gave her hope that my reassurances could not.

Then there’s “Wordplay” by Jason Mraz, a song that always rallies me to enjoy writing and remember what the real reason for writing is — the wordplay. In the song Jason sings, “are you prepared to take a dive into the deep end of my head?” Every time I say, “yes.. yes I am.”

Because of this it’s easy to see how the amazing songs on the Pretty Little Liars soundtrack can be part of the soundtrack of not only the characters on the TV show, but viewers as well. Of course, the immediate connection is the theme song, which brings back the show almost instantly.

For example Fay Wolf’s cover of The Outfield’s “Your Love” is the song played in the season’s 14th episode, “Careful What U Wish 4,” when Sean (Chuck Hittinger) breaks up with Hanna (Ashley Benson) at the dance for dancing with Lucas (Brendan Robinson). With lyrics like the haunting line, “I just wanna use your love tonight, I don’t wanna lose your love tonight.” it’s easy to see why this song can match perfectly the emotions of the scene and the experience of the viewers. (I should also point out that the cover by Fay Wolf is only available on the Pretty Little Liars sountrack and very popular). You can watch this video of Fay talking about the song:

Catch Pretty Little Liars Mondays 8/7c on ABC Family, and visit iTunes to preview songs and pick up a copy of the album here: http://bit.ly/e2S527.

I have been hired by Warner Bros. WBWord division to promote the Pretty Little Liars Soundtrack.

The first CD I ever owned that was truly mine was a soundtrack to a TV show: Due South. Music and film have been tied together before there was even sound. It’s almost impossible to tear away a visual story from the music aspect. I’ve never thought of my favorite shows without thinking about the music behind the scenes. Like the episode of Buffy where Angel shows up to her prom after saying he wouldn’t then “Wild Horses” by The Sundays plays. Or when “Back in Black” plays when the Winchesters resolve to hunt down the thing that killed their mother in Supernatural. Music is inevitably tied to those emotions.

So it was no surprise how much I enjoyed the Pretty Little Liars soundtrack. If you don’t know the ABC teen drama the series follows the lives of four beautiful girls living in the town of Rosewood; they’re carrying a heavy secret about a friend who disappeared a year ago while trying to figure out who they are. The CD is a great collection of songs for fans and people who haven’t watched the show yet and it enhances the TV show — this isn’t your teen rock pop collection, it’s a smart collection of fantastic songs and artists you should know.

Before I get to the songs though, I have to say how great the CD was itself. Using the iconic promo picture of four main characters with muddy arms, legs and faces sets up the music perfectly. I also loved the shout out to the fans on the CD insert (what did they say? You’ll have to pick up the CD and see for yourself). It’s always great when TV shows recognize their fans as being the reason they’re still on the air.

The show’s theme song “Secret” by the Pierces is haunting, beautiful and is the perfect theme song for Pretty Little Liars. It starts off with the lyrics:

Got a secret, can you keep it?

Swear this one you’ll save,

better lock it, in your pocket,

taking this one to the grave………

Another great song on the track is Andrew Belle’s “All those Pretty Lights” (Andrew Belle’s music has also been on  hit TV shows including Grey’s Anatomy, The Vampire Diaries and One Tree Hill ).

Catch Pretty Little Liars Mondays 8/7c on ABC Family, and visit iTunes to preview songs and pick up a copy of the album here: http://bit.ly/e2S527 .

“I have been hired by Warner Bros. WBWord division to promote the Pretty Little Liars Soundtrack.”

likeZEBRA.com will be spotlighting indie sensation Hellogoodbye as their featured Artist of the Week beginning November 9, 2010. In an effort to grow the indie community and inspire underground musicians, likeZEBRA.com features a new artist each week. As Artist of the Week, Hellogoodbye will be giving away a band hoodie, tote bag, and an autographed CD of their new album, “Would it Kill You,” exclusively to a likeZEBRA fan.

On a mission to reignite the independent music movement, likeZEBRA provides fans with access to the hottest indie tunes. The site’s comprehensive platform also provides independent and unsigned artists with valuable music promotion tools to assist them in connecting with fans, distributing music, booking shows, and getting paid to play. Supplied with virtually every tool needed to thrive in the music business, likeZEBRA artists are getting their music heard without having to sacrifice creative control.

“More bands are opting out of their major labels and making the switch to indie. Hellogoodbye is a great example of a band thriving without a major label. They’ve found success and freedom in the indie community, making them a perfect fit for likeZEBRA’s Artist of the Week,” says Jon Taggart, Director of A&R of likeZEBRA. “As technology evolves, it continues to make a huge impact on the music industry. Artists must provide fans with digital access to their music to stay relevant, and likeZEBRA provides indie artists with the crucial tools to get their music heard.”

Excited to celebrate Hellogoodbye as its Artist of the Week, likeZEBRA will be providing fans with the chance to win exclusive band merchandise, including Hellogoodbye’s new release. Other indie bands and artists who are interested in being featured as likeZEBRA’s Artist of the Week can create a free artist profile at www.likezebra.com. Hello, indie music revolution; goodbye major record labels.

(Via Press Release)

LOS ANGELES, CA – September 14, 2010 – For their Red Album in 2008, Weezer invited YouTube stars to be in their video for “Pork and Beans.” The inclusion of such Web celebs as Tay Zonday (“Chocolate Rain”), the Numa Numa Guy, and the melodramatic Chris “Leave Britney Alone” Crocker struck a chord with the viewing public, as well as the media, and ultimately led to the Weezer clip winning a GRAMMY for “Best Shortform Music Video.” Two years later, the band has decided to turn the tables by making themselves available to leading YouTubers for inclusion on their channels. Today, on the release date of Weezer’s new album Hurley (Epitaph, Sept. 14), a de-facto Weezer-ization of YouTube is in effect, as all the participating videos are being featured, in rotation, on the site’s homepage all day.

Weezer, long known for their satirical and quirky world-view, originally chose to embrace the “outsider” talent found on YouTube for “Pork and Beans,” and now they have let it run rampant. To facilitate this free-form taping, they set aside two days in a Los Angeles studio with instructions that read, “We’re up for just about anything that can be filmed in the studio. The finished clip will be yours to release and distribute on Sept. 14, 2010. Acting, performance, interview, make-up, comedy — you let us know what you want to do and how much time you think it might take to film.” It was then up to the YouTubers-whose channels have millions of subscribers and aggregated well over a billion total video views-to write and produce the segments with the band.

The talent/channels that took Weezer up on their offer include:
AutoTune The News: http://www.youtube.com/schmoyoho
Cyr1216: http://www.youtube.com/cyr1216
DaveDays: http://www.youtube.com/davedays
Fred: http://www.youtube.com/fred
Hot For Words: http://www.youtube.com/hotforwords
MagicHugs: http://www.youtube.com/user/magichugs
Mystery Guitar Man: http://www.youtube.com/user/mysteryguitarman
Onision: http://www.youtube.com/onision
Ray William Johnson: http://www.youtube.com/user/RayWilliamJohnson
Real Annoying Orange: http://www.youtube.com/user/realannoyingorange
StSanders aka Kiss Shreds: http://www.youtube.com/StSanders
Tay Zonday: http://www.youtube.com/user/TayZonday
The Key of Awesome: http://www.youtube.com/barelypolitical
UsofAnderson: http://www.youtube.com/usofanderson
KeepTheHeat (Snuggie cameo) http://youtube.com/keeptheheat

In addition to the YouTube invasion and the “Pork and Beans” video, Weezer have a history of idiosyncratic and collaborative works. Their Red Album tour was even unveiled as a “Hootenanny,” where fans were invited to bring their own instruments to play along with the band. They have written songs for a myriad of other performers, as well as crowd-sourced Weezer material from the population at large (via IndabaMusic.com and YouTube). Recently, the band was in heavy rotation in South Africa and around the globe, when Rivers’ pet project, an anthem for the U.S. Men’s National Soccer Team, was embraced by the team after its debut on the band’s “Radio Weezer.”

This winter (November/December), Weezer will launch a multi-city U.S. tour, dubbed by fans as the “Blinkerton Tour.” The band will play two shows in each market-on the first night Weezer will play the Blue Album in its entirety, and the second night they will play Pinkerton in its entirety.

The top online destination for music creation, Indaba Music, is proud to announce that Matisyahu fans and fellow musicians can visit www.indabamusic.com/remixmatisyahu to remix the singer’s track “One Day,” and have the chance to win a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to create a new song with the artist. Matisyahu, whose music merges reggae beats, hip-hop and rock, wants fans to create a new version of the tune, which has been used extensively as the theme song for NBC’s “Countdown to Vancouver” Olympics campaign. “One Day” is the lead single from Matisyahu’s third album, Light, which was released by Epic Records in August, 2009.

The “One Day” Remix Contest will launch on Thursday, February 11th –one day before the opening ceremonies of the Winter Olympics. There will be a four-week submission period and a two-week voting period. A public vote will determine the top 10 winners to receive a pair of Skull Candy Agent headphones and be featured on both www.matisyahuworld.com and www.myspace.com/matisyahu. The First Place Winner and two Runners-Up, selected personally by Matisyahu, will also see a link to their mix Tweeted to Matisyahu’s 1.2 million followers and will each receive a year’s Indaba Music Pro Membership and a signed vinyl copy of Light. The First Place Winner will also be awarded the opportunity to participate in a one-on-one collaboration with the singer through Indaba Music.

Matisyahu will play a pair of shows during the Winter Olympics — at The Whistler Village Square on February 14th, and LiveCity Vancouver on February 15th. Indaba Music will integrate news and content from the Winter Olympics throughout the contest period.

Since his very first album, Matisyahu has had a reputation as an artist who transcends boundaries – musical, religious and ethnic – and encourages a united world view through his music. The singer emerged in 2004 with his debut album Shake Off the Dust…Arise, followed by Live At Stubb’s, which reached #1 on the Billboard Heatseekers charts. His sophomore studio album, Youth, debuted at #4 on Billboard, reached #1 on the Reggae Albums charts, and featured the hit single “King Without a Crown.” Appearing on shows such as Jimmy Kimmel Live!, The Late Show with David Letterman and The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien, Matisyahu is a true global artist and citizen of the world, selling nearly three million records and hundreds of thousands of concert tickets worldwide.

Indaba Music offers the leading suite of online tools that enable artists all over the world to create music together online. Members can connect with an international community of musicians to create online recording sessions, editing and mixing tracks recorded in different parts of the world using its digital audio workstation (DAW). Indaba’s collaboration opportunities have previously featured such diverse artists as Weezer, The Roots, Yo-Yo Ma, Mariah Carey, Crystal Method, John Legend, Alkaline Trio, Har Mar Superstar and more.

http://www.matisyahuworld.com
http://www.indabamusic.com/featured_programs

If you’re like me, there’s a couple people on your Christmas list that are almost impossible to find gifts for. You could get a tacky Christmas gift pack from Walmart, but where’s the fun in that? Instead why not give them the gift of music?

Beginning Monday December 14, the Amazon Music Store will begin a week of hot lightning deals, and they’ve done all the guess work for you. Visit the calendar for great prices on music, including a day of all Beatles deals: http://www.amazon.com/gp/browse.html?node=2233633011

So head on over and get your family or friends some great tunes to get them through 2010!

(Photo: SXC.hu/LotusHead)

Looking for some funk in your life? Tired of the only options to keep your groove being pop-rock choices (like the Black Eyed Peas)? Then you need to do yourself a favor and check out this group – Fort Knox Five or pick up The New Gold Standard 2 available on November 17, 2009. If you can’t wait, you can check out their music on their Myspace page or download their DJ mix “All Good Things Come in 5′s” for free from SoundCloud.com.

About Fort Knox Five

FORT KNOX FIVE is a DC based funk and global recording four-part group and they’ve had a huge impact on the international funk and breaks scene over the past couple of years. With the release of five critically acclaimed singles on their own independent label, Fort Knox Recordings, the FK5 have been thrust into the spotlight and caught the attention of music lovers around the world.

Review:

I received an advanced copy of the album for review and knew nothing of Fort Knox Five before listening. What impresses me the most about the Fort Knox Five songs on this album is the complex layering of sounds, instruments and vocals. This truly is modern funk at it’s best. With some of the songs feeling extremely old school (like the Jazz-funk track “The Sax Pusher”) to the modern, Eastern-influenced single “Shift”. All of these songs are great for a club or to get you moving at home.

“The New Gold Standard 2″ is a compilation and a follow up to 2006′s “The New Gold Standard” and contains 15 new tracks including “Shift” featuring hip hop and international masterminds Afrika Bambaataa and Mustafa Akbar. It’s great to have a compilation album that isn’t just the same 14 songs you already have on your iPod and one new song, so if you’re looking for some new music, this is a great purchase.

If you’re interested in learning more about Fort Knox Five check them out on Twitter, Fort Knox Five, or Myspace. Also check out their upcoming shows in November in Hawaii, Hong Kong and Singapore.

Shop for a good cause! Tea Stain Clothing has just launched The Music Fashion Project. This philanthropic initiative pairs some of the rock scene’s biggest names with their favorite style of Tea Stain Clothing to raise money for music-related charities. Participating bands include well known bands like Papa Roach and The Donnas. The project also features some bands ‘on the verge’ like Framing Hanley, currently holding the #1 video spot on Fuse TV, and Lovehammers featuring Marty Casey from NBC’s Rock Star INXS. Some benefiting charities include VH1 Save The Music, Little Kids Rock and Rock ‘N Renew. To contribute to the project, fans simply purchase their favorite band’s selected charity style. Tea Stain Clothing takes care of the rest by donating a portion of the proceeds directly to that band’s specified charity.

The project is web based and every band’s feature is completely sharable. “This is the next generation of social media and web based marketing. We wanted to make a difference and make it easy to spread the word.” founder Devin Hajek says. “Even if someone isn’t able to spend money on a shirt, they can still support their favorite band/charity by simply clicking ‘share’. From there they have the option to email their friends or post it on their myspace, facebook and a host of other social networking outlets.”

For more information check out – http://www.teastainclothing.com/

The good folks over at DLF.tv have posted a great behind the scenes teaser video with the Beach Boys concert in Fairfield, Iowa (on Sept 7th, 2009).

You can even sign up on their site to be notified when the concert footage goes up! So head on over to DLF.tv and get some good vibrations going on: http://dlf.tv/

Country music superstar Kenny Chesney is launching his new clothing line Blue Chair Bay at MAGIC Marketplace in Las Vegas and is kicking his latest venture off in style with an invite-only concert at the Hard Rock Hotel on Tuesday, September 1, 2009.

Chesney’s new clothing line Blue Chair Bay, a vintage brand of ageless, simple styles, will launch at MAGIC in the Premium Men’s platform – on the Concourse (Booth PR20800). A non-traditional booth set-up, Blue Chair Bay will exhibit in a vintage Airstream trailer (a first for MAGIC!) and will also host a Corona-sponsored Happy Hour on Monday, August 31st from 4:00 – 6:00 pm.

“They tell me MAGIC is the biggest show for this sort of the thing in the world, and I love the idea that these clothes are out there for the buyers who truly know – to get to see them,” says Kenny Chesney, the biggest North American concert draw this century. “The clothes are casual, comfortable and easy to wear wherever you’re headed… and that was the whole point. Whatever you’ve got to do, something in this line will work — and for someone who lives gone most of the time, one place to find everything — like MAGIC — is a real gift.”

“MAGIC offers the ultimate exposure to its exhibitors and is the perfect setting for Kenny Chesney’s clothing launch,” said Chris DeMoulin, MAGIC International President and Executive Vice President of Advanstar’s Fashion Group. “MAGIC provides a day-to-night platform that encourages a variety of exciting lifestyle launches like this, and we couldn’t be more thrilled to have Kenny.”

Blue Chair Bay captures Chesney’s laidback style for men and women. The line reflects his casual lifestyle with ageless, simple styles and a focus on quality fabrics, textures and details. The mid-priced line (ranging from $35 for a T-shirt to $72 for khakis) will include t-shirts, khakis, shorts and button-down shirts with the feel of that shirt that you’ve had forever. Chesney was extremely involved in the design process and even named a few items after friends.