Rocking with the Pirates

July 12, 2006

Recording work has wrapped on a compilation CD that was thought up by none other than Johnny Depp and director Gore Verbinski while the duo were working on the latest “Pirates of the Caribbean” movie - titled Rogue’s Gallery: Pirate Ballads, Sea Songs & Chanteys, the double-disc set was produced by Hal Willner, and features contemporary interpretations of pirate-friendly songs by a wide variety of musicians.  Among those participating in the quirky-cool project are Bryan Ferry (“The Cruel Ship’s Captain”), Nick Cave (“Fire Down Below”), Sting (“Blood Red Roses”), Rufus Wainwright and Kate McGarrigle (“Lowlands Away”), Bono (“Dying Sailor to His Shipmates”), Pulp’s Jarvis Cocker (“A Drop of Nelson’s Blood”), Lou Reed (“Leave Her Johnny”) and Ed Harcourt (“Farewell Nancy”); 43 songs in all are included, and the YARRR-filled set is due out on August 22nd...
 
Las Vegas indie rockers The Killers are currently in London finishing up mixing duties on their next album, which will serve as the follow up to their hit 2004 disc, Hot Fuss.  The guys may have recorded the bulk of the album in their hometown, but they feel that it’s sounding a lot more “serious” of an album than their previous effort, reflecting, perhaps, the past two years that they’ve spent touring the world.  Singer Brandon Flowers revealed to NME that the band “is growing up,” and that that growth is reflected in their new songs. Some of those very songs that are being considered for inclusion in the new disc are “Have You Ever Seen the Lights?,” “Uncle Johnny Took Cocaine,” and “Bling”...
 
Alt-country modern rocker Ryan Adams his prepping for a 12-city summer tour with hi band, The Cardinals, that will see Adams and crew playing live sets in Norfolk, Virginia (7/22), Myrtle Beach, South Carolina (7/27), Atlanta, Georgia (7/29), and Indianapolis, Indiana (8/3) among other stops;  Adams will also be appearing at the upcoming Lollapalooza Festival in Chicago’s Grant Park on August 4th.  Adams has already played two warm-up shows in New York City at the Beacon Theater and also at the Bowery Ballroom.  Fans are flocking to Adams’ shows as he has yet to announce a new album or even what his next recording project will be...
 
And, after 42 years on their air, the BBC announced last week that it has decided to cancel the influential and legendary music TV show Top of the Pops, whose very first episode in 1964 featured performances from The Beatles and the Rolling Stones.  Many bands considered an appearance on Top of the Pops to be one of the landmarks of a pop music career, and the show’s guests spanned everyone from the Beatles and Stones to Nirvana and the Spice Girls.  The show, which had in recent years become a ratings victim to the Internet and cable TV, will air its very last episode on July 30th...
 
MODERN ROCK LINK OF THE WEEK:  Remember the Jack Black movie “School of Rock”?  Well, there really is a School of Rock - the Paul Green School of Rock Music, to be exact - and you can now check it out online at www.schoolofrock.com;  while you’re checking out the website, also check out the School of Rock All-Stars, who are on tour this summer...
MINI BUZZ:
Arctic Monkeys are short one monkey, namely bassist Andy Nicholson, who took some time out from the Monkeys’ tour due to “fatigue,” and who has now been replaced, amicably, by Nick O’Malley, who stood in for Nicholson during the band’s North American dates...
Singer-songwriter Jason Mraz is set to play several solo acoustic shows in July - the dates, dubbed “Songs for Friends,” will take place on July 17th and 19th at Chicago’s Schuba’s Tavern and on July 21st at NYC’s Irving Plaza...
Pet Aid 2006 will take place on August 26th at the Oregon State Fair this year, featuring sets from Cake, The Days, Derby, The Violent Femmes, and Decemberists, with proceeds earmarked for Portland’s Animal Hospital and the Oregon Humane Society...
UK band Boy Kill Boy have been tapped to hit the tour road with Echo and the Bunnymen as they embark on their US East Coast tour; they’ll also be making an appearance at Lollapalooza...
The Hollywood Walk of Fame has finalized their 2007 honorees, with Mariah Carey, Shania Twain, LeAnn Rimes, and The Doors all set to receive those legendary stars on the sidewalk...
And The Postal Service have reportedly just barely begun work on what is expected to be their follow-up album to their 2003 release, Give Up...
ON CD:  Thom Yorke’s The Eraser... Muse’s Black Holes & Revelations... Johnny Cash’s American V: A Hundred Highways... TV on the Radio’s Return to Cookie Mountain... Dashboard Confessional’s Dusk and Summer... and John Digweed’s Transitions... ON DVD:  The Who: Quadrophenia Live with Special Guests...  Herbie Hancock’s Possibilities... Son Volt - 6 String Belief... and My Chemical Romance: An Unauthorized Documentary Film ... and that’s the buzz for this week’s Modern Rock.
Questions, comments, rants, raves, on this column or your fave musicians?  Send ‘em to Kristi at modernrocker@gmail.com!