March 28, 2024

Tea Time with Moby

May 12, 2004
Drink like Moby!  Techno guru Moby is prepping for yet another new release, but it doesn‘t have much to do with music this time around.  Moby opened a cafe/tearoom - called Teany - in New York City back in May of 2002, and he‘s now expanding Teany‘s offerings with a Teany cookbook and a line of Teany Ice Teas and Tea-Juice Fusions.  (Moby‘s first entry into the world of cookbooks was as a collaborator on The PETA Celebrity Cookbook.) The Moby-fied drinks will be sold first in NYC, with a national line also in the works; so look for Teany‘s very own Vanilla Berry Hibiscus and Peach Green Tea coming soon to a store near you...
 
The 29-member pop “experience“ The Polyphonic Spree are currently on the road with David Bowie through June 5th, after which they‘ll head on over to join up with the Lollapalooza tour two days after they‘ll release their sophomore album, *Together We‘re Heavy.*  The Spree sez that their latest disc is more “sonically rich“ than their previous effort, with as many as 120 tracks on a single song;  the group is also expected to release a DVD about the history of their project sometime later this year...
 
A sequel to the politically minded CD compilation *Rock Against Bush Vol. 1* is currently in the works, with contributions from the likes of No Doubt, The Foo Fighters, Green Day, Bad Religion, The Used, Yellowcard and Flogging Molly.   Due in August, many more artists are expected to be added to the tracklisting.  Confirmed tracks so far include The Foo Fighters‘ cover of the early ‘80s punk song “Gas Chamber“... No Doubt will throw in “Comforting Lie“... and Bad Religion will contribute the track “Let Them Eat War,“ which will also appear on their new album *The Empire Strikes First* (due out June 8th).  NOFX frontman Fat Mike is heading up the compilation series, and has also invited Good Charlotte to appear on the new album. *Rock Against Bush Vol. 1* featured tunes from Alkaline Trio, the Ataris, Sum 41, and the Offspring, among others;  it debuted on the Billboard albums chart at #54...
Several notable releases heading your way:  On May 18th, Dashboard Confessional will drop a deluxe reissue of their album *A Mark, A Mission, A Brand, A Scar* that will contain a bonus DVD including the band‘s entire MTV2 “Album Covers“ set, in which DC covered all of the songs on R.E.M.‘s 1992 album *Automatic For the People*... They Might Be Giants have announced that their 10th full-length album (have they really been around that long?), which has been dubbed *The Spine* and which TMBG had produced by Pat Dillett (David Byrne), will hit stores on July 27th;  TMBG will promote their upcoming disc with a tour that will “Be“ gin on May 29th in Baltimore... and a little fresh Phish will hit stores soon, too, in the form of *Undermind,* the jam band‘s follow up to their 2002 release *Round Room*...
 
MINI BUZZ:
Elliott Smith‘s final studio album is currently in the mixing stages and is expected to be released this fall...
A record 50,000 music fans crowded the California desert for last weekend‘s Coachella Music and Arts Festival, which featured sets by Radiohead, the Pixies, Kraftwerk, Beck, and Basement Jaxx, among others...
And look out - American Idol is going on the road, bringing all top ten finalists on a 48-city tour that will make stops in Grand Rapids MI (7/27), Detroit (7/28), Chicago (8/5), and Toronto (9/16)...
The Darkness have snagged legendary rock producer Mutt Lange to head up the recording of their next album...
Reggae star Shaggy has already finished work several new songs for his next album, which is scheduled for a 2005 release...
Wilco have been added to three stops on the Lollapalooza tour - Detroit, MI‘s Pine Knob (8/3), Toronto (8/6), and Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio (8/11)...
And, in the “huh??“ department, former Sex Pistol Johnny Rotten (aka John Lydon) has chosen Justin Timberlake to play him in a new film based on his autobiography...
 
New releases for you to peruse this week...  ON CD:  The Icarus Line‘s *Penance Soiree*... Lola Ray‘s *I Don‘t Know You*... Los Lobos‘ *The Ride*... and Mission of Burma‘s *Onoffon*...  ON DVD:  *Ween: Live in Chicago*... *Martin Scorsese Presents the Blues: Godfathers & Sons, Red, White & Blues and the Road to Memphis*... and that‘s the buzz for this week‘s Modern Rock.
 
*Questions, comments, rants, raves about your favorite artists or this column?  Send ‘em to Kristi at expressmodernrock@hotmail.com!*
 
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