At some point in the mid to late 1990s, there was an interesting subcultural shift that moved through the local punk and burgeoning electronic music communities. It came by way of the hardcore scene’s gradual nexus with the Drum N’ Bass arena. What was surprising about the meeting grounds was that this did not exclude hardcore’s straight-edge followers, who have by definition aligned with a drug-free philosophy. So to see straight edge kids having a love affair with rave and drug culture was like witnessing Capulets and Montagues dancing together in forbidden corners....
For the first time since the Rolling Stones formed nearly 50 years ago, Mick Jagger is part of a new band: Super Heavy – featuring Dave Stewart, Joss Stone, Damian Marley and Indian film composer A.R. Rahman. The band has quietly been recording together over the past 18 months, with their debut LP planned for sometime around September. "It's different from anything else I've ever been involved in," Jagger tells Rolling Stone. "The music is very wide-ranging – from reggae to ballads to Indian songs in Urdu."
The group got its start two years ago when Dave Stewart called Jagger from his home in Jamaica. "I live in Lime Hall right above St. Ann's Bay," says Stewart. "It's kind of the jungle, and sometimes I'd hear three sound systems all playing different things. I always love that, along with Indian orchestras. I said to Mick, ‘How could we make a fusion?' We were talking about an experiment, and then we started talking about voices. It was all born from that conversation."...
My Chemical Romance, 30 Seconds To Mars, Avenged Sevenfold, Bullet For My Valentine and Bring Me The Horizon will go head-to-head at the Kerrang! Awards 2011 Fuelled By Relentless Energy Drink in June.
My Chemical Romance lead the charge with five nominations. The New Jersey rockers are in the running for Best Album for Danger Days: The True Lives Of The Fabulous Killjoys, Best International Band, Best Video presented by Kerrang! TV for Na Na Na, Best Single presented by Kerrang! Radio for Planetary (GO!), and Best Live (presented by Download) at the star-studded ceremony, which is set to take place at a top-secret location in London on Thursday, June 9....
Could Beastie Boys possibly give less of a fuck about trying to sound young? In a word, no. As Ad-Rock proudly declares on their excellent new Hot Sauce Committee Part Two, "Oh, my God, just look at me/Grandpa been rapping since '83!" The Beasties revel in their older-than-old-school references ("Be kind, rewind") and cultural touchstones ("braggadocio" rhymes with "I'll make you sick like a Kenny Rogers Roaster"). Where they used to boast about rocking Adidas instead of Fila, now MCA has different footwear issues: "I don't wear Crocs, and I don't wear sandals/The pump don't work 'cause the vandals took the handles."...
Picture in courtesy of Spin