March 29, 2024

A very special Xmas DVD

Dec. 19, 2007
The first ever DVD collection of the Very Special Christmas series is just out, complete with classic holiday videos and live performance videos from U2, No Doubt, Sting, Run DMC, Sheryl Crow, Stevie Wonder, and plenty of others as the series hits its 20th anniversary. The project, launched in 1987, now encompasses eight very special albums, with the proceeds benefitting the Special Olympics. Titled A Very Special Christmas: 20th Anniversary Music Video Collection, the DVD is in stores now and would make a great last-minute stocking stuffer...
Here’s another great gift for rock music fans - although you’ll have to wait until 2012 to get it. Arizona has been chosen as the lucky spot for an $800 million rock and roll theme park that’s been dubbed Decades and is planned to accommodate six million visitors a year. Befitting the name (‘natch), the park will be divided into different regions representing different decades in music; one proposed example would be the 1960’s section, which would emphasize Motown and the British Invasion. Early ideas for park attractions include the “Whole Lotta Shakin’” roller coaster, the Beach Boys wave pool, and the (cough) Hotel California, although we’re thinking that park developers may have not used the song’s lyrics to think that one all the way through just yet...
Bjork is re-teaming with French music video/filmmaker Michel Gondry for the first time in almost ten years. The reason for the occasion? The filming of a vid for Bjork’s new tune, “Declare Independence.” Inspired in large part by George Orwell’s 1984, the video will appear on music video shows, obviously, as well as on a special single release of “Declare Independence” (the third single from Bjork’s Volta album) which will also include four special remixes of the track...
And the Futureheads are planning to continue their holiday festive-ness through the beginning of the year as they head out on a post-Christmas winter tour trek in the UK; live dates will include stops in London (1/16), Hull (1/21), Liverpool (1/22), Glasgow (1/24), Leeds (1/27), and Norwich (1/28.) The band is also prepping to record their next album, which will serve as the follow-up to their fans and critically-acclaimed 2006 News and Tributes set...

MINI BUZZ:
The Killers have issued their second annual holiday single, “Don’t Shoot Me Santa,” which, in addition to being festive, of course, will also raise funds for the RED Campaign...
The White Stripes have completed a music vid for their track “Conquest,” in which Jack White trained with well-known red-cape-slinging bullfighter Dennis Borba to play his own part of a bullfighter in the video...
Summer is months away, but the Latitude Festival has already started planning things out for next summer’s event, which is now scheduled to take place on July 17-20 in Suffolk, UK; the music lineup has yet to be announced, but you can keep an eye on www.latitudefestival.co.uk to get first peek at the details...
Arctic Monkeys kicked off their winter tour last week in the UK, and snagged The Rascals as support band...
Madonna is busily working on her final Warner Bros. studio album, which is due in late April, and she’s reportedly dubbed it Licorice - two early song titles include “Candy Shop” and “The Beat Goes On”...
And Gibson’s limited edition “Robot Guitar” hits stores this week, but you’d better move fast - they’re only making 4,000 copies available of the Les Paul special model, which features the world’s first self-tuning technology; oh, yeah, and in case we forgot to mention, it’ll run you a cool $2,499 - so you’d better have a hefty bank account, too....

ON CD: Rivers Cuomo’s Alone: The Home Recordings of Rivers Cuomo... Vangelis’ Blade Runner Trilogy: 25th Anniversary... Monk’s Casino: Complete Works of Thelonius Monk... Ratpack Christmas... The Irish Rovers’ Songs of Christmas... and the Limited Edition re-release of John Lennon’s Imagine... ON DVD: Oasis’ Lord Don’t Slow Me Down... The Unseen Beatles... The Moody Blues: Lovely to See You Live... and This is Tom Jones Christmas... and that’s the buzz for this week’s Modern Rock.
Questions, comments, rants, raves, suggestions on this column or your fave musicians? Send ‘em to Kristi at modernrocker@gmail.com.

Trending

Mysterious Michigan Reads

We can’t think of a better way to spend spring break than with a great book. Northern Express asked local bookseller... Read More >>

Heirloom Recipes With Heritage, History, and Nostalgia

Before we begin to stash our coats and put winter behind us, let us remember what years past have taught us…fake sp... Read More >>

A Floral Family Affair

In the quaint downtown of Elk Rapids sits Golden Hill Farms, a shop where the artistry of floristry meets the rustic charm... Read More >>

A Look at Originalism

O Tempora O Mores! Oh the times, oh the culture. This Latin phrase relates to both the 18th century and our current times.... Read More >>