Albums On Sale: 03/24

- Rock album releases this week (always Tuesday unless stated otherwise)
-> Approaching Normal by Blue October* - "Dirt Room"
-> Blitz by KMFDN - "Potz Blitz"
-> Crack The Skye by Mastodon - "Divinations"
-> Falling Up by Falling Up*- "Lotus and the Languorous"
-> The Hazards of Love by The Decemberists - "The Rake's Song"
-> Hymn to the Immortal Wind by Mono - "Ashes In The Snow"
-> Metamorphosis by Pape Roach - "Lifeline"
-> Three by Joel Plaskett - "One Look"
-> Ten (reissue) by Pearl Jam - "Even Flow"

2009 Festival Update

- Dates and Location: August 7 to 9 at Grant Park, Chicago

- Confirmed Headliners: Beastie Boys, Depeche Mode, Jane's Addiction, Kings of Leon, The Killers, Tool

- Other Confirmed Performers: Andrew Bird, Atmosphere, Ben Folds, The Decemberists, Delta Spirit, Friendly Fires, Kaiser Chiefs, Lou Reed, The Ravonettes, Neko Case, The NewNo2

- Confirmed Performers Include: Ben Harper and the Relentless 7, Boombox, Buckethead, Assembly of Dust, Galactic, Cornmeal, Les Claypool, Umphrey's McGee

- Dates and Location: July 17 to 19 in Chicago

- Confirmed Acts: Built to Spill, Grizzly Bear, The Jesus Lizard, The National, The Pains of Being Pure At Heart, Pharoahe Monch, Tortoise, Vivian Girls, The Walkmen, Yo La Tengo

Death Magnetic Dates Announced for Fall Metallica Tour

Metallica has announced the next leg of their World Magnetic Tour. Their fall trek will see them play across North America, beginning in Nashville on September 14th and ending on December 12th in San Jose.

The complete lists of dates are:

September 14 - Nashville, TN @ Sommet Center
September 15 - Cincinnati, OH @ US Bank Arena
September 17 - Indianapolis, IN @ Conseco Fieldhouse
September 19 - Montreal, QUE @ Bell Centre
September 28 - San Antonio, TX @ AT&T Center
September 29 - Dallas, TX @ American Airlines Center
October 1 - Ft Lauderdale, FL @ Bank Atlantic Center
October 3 - Tampa, FL @ St Pete Times Forum
October 4 - Atlanta, GA @ Phillips Arena
October 12 - Winnipeg, MA @ MTS Centre
October 13 - Minneapolis, MN @ Target Center
October 15 - Cleveland, OH @ Quicken Loans Arena
October 17 - Charlottesville, VA @ JPJ Arena
October 18 - Charlotte, NC @ Charlotte Bobcats Arena
October 26 - Toronto, ON @ Air Canada Centre
October 29 - Ottawa, ON @ Scotiabank Place
October 31 - Quebec City, QUE @ Colisee Pepsi
November 9 - Grand Rapids, MI @ Van Andel Arena
November 10 - Buffalo, NY @ HSBC Arena
November 12 - Albany, NY @ Times Union Center
November 14 - New York, NY @ Madison Square Garden
December 5 - Las Vegas, NV @ Mandalay Bay
December 7 - Nampa, ID @ Idaho Center
December 8 - Sacramento, CA @ ARCO Arena
December 10 - Anaheim, CA @ Honda Center
December 12 - San Jose, CA @ HP Pavilion

E Street Rehearsal for New Springsteen Tour

On March 23rd, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band played the first of two planned rehearsal contests to a few thousand lucky fans. The show was said to contain much more optimism and hope due to the start of the Obama presidency. It was also revealed that Max Weinberg's 18-year-old son, Jay, would replace his dad for some of the tour due to Weinberg's commitment with the Tonight Show.

The rehearsal setlist was:

“Outlaw Pete”
“My Lucky Day”
“Night”
“Out in the Street”
“Working On a Dream”
“Johnny 99″
“I Ain’t Got No Home”
“Good Eye”
“Radio Nowhere”
“Candy’s Room”
“Because the Night”
“Mary’s Place”
“The Wrestler”
“This Life”
“Long Walk Home”
“Surprise, Surprise”
“Badlands”
“No Surrender”

Encore:
“Hard Times Come Again No More”
“Mustang Sally” (w/ John Eddie)
“Thunder Road”
“Born to Run”
“American Land”
“Seven Nights to Rock”

SXSW 2009

From March 13 to March 22, the South by Southwest Festival was in full swing in Austin, Texas. While many bands performed, here are some of the reported highlights.

- Indie rock band The Decemberists performed their upcoming album The Hazards of Love in its entirety. The album has been viewed as a rock opera in the vein of Tommy.

- Jane's Addiction, who recently reunited and will hit the road with Nine Inch Nails this year, played a ten song set in the strange venue of a former supermarket. The group ripped through several hits from their first decade, ignoring their post-Ritual de lo Habitual material. The setlist included "Mountain Song," "Stop!" and "Been Caught Stealing."

- Metallica played a 90 minute greatest hits set that surprisingly didn't include Enter Sandman. Probably one of the strangest factors of the show was the band's opening act. Instead of a traditional band playing, three contest winners played Guitar Hero: Metallica tracks.

- Other acts that performed at the show included Kayne West, Ben Harper and the Relentless7, Devo, Fleet Foxes, Ra Ra Riot, Silversun Pickups, The Duke Spirit, The Morning Light, The Used, and Tori Amos.

Dylan's New Album Revealed

Bob Dylan's new album will be called Together Through Life and is expected to be released on April 28th. The album cover is a shot from famous photographer Bruce Davidson. Dylan has stated that the album contains "struggling love songs" and is very different from his previous album, Modern Times.

Phish Extends Reunion Tour and Plans New Album

Following the success of their 3-night reunion stand at Virginia's Hampton Coliseum, Phish has extended their reunion tour and plan to record a new album this April. The tour, lasting from June to August, will start and end in New York and includes stops such as the Bonnaroo Music Festival. Jam band fans rejoice.

Here are the complete tour date listings:

June 4 - Wantagh, NY @ Nikon Theatre at Jones Beach
June 5 - Wantagh, NY @ Nikon Theatre at Jones Beach
June 6 - Mansfield, MA @ Comcast Center
June 7 - Camden, NJ @ Susquehanna Bank Center
June 9 - Asheville, NC @ Asheville Civic Center
June 12 - Manchester, TN @ Bonnaroo
June 14 - Manchester, TN @ Bonnaroo
June 16 - St. Louis, MO @ Fox Theatre
June 18 - Burgettstown, PA @ Post Gazette Pavilion
June 19 - Noblesville, IN @ Verizon Wireless Music Center
June 20 - East Troy, WI @ Alpine Valley
June 21 - East Troy, WI @ Alpine Valley
July 30 - Morrison, CO @ Red Rocks Amphitheatre
July 31 - Morrison, CO @ Red Rocks Amphitheatre
August 1 - Morrison, CO @ Red Rocks Amphitheatre
August 2 - Morrison, CO @ Red Rocks Amphitheatre
August 5 - Mountain View, CA @ Shoreline Amphitheatre
August 7 - George, WA @ The Gorge
August 8 - George, WA @ The Gorge
August 11 - Chicago, IL @ Toyota Park
August 13 - Darien Center, NY @ Darien Lake Performing Arts Center
August 14 - Hartford, CT @ Meadows Music Theater
August 15 - Columbia, MD @ Merriweather Post Pavilion
August 16 - Saratoga Springs, NY @ Saratoga Performing Arts Center