Jewel takes another spin

Former Interlochen Center for the Arts student Jewel is reportedly quite close to completing work on her sixth album, which she has been recording at Sunset Sound in Hollywood. Collaborating on many of the songs with producer Mike Pela, the Alaskan singer-songwriter is also rumored to have been working with Rob Thomas (Matchbox Twenty) and Brooks and Dunn on her latest effort. No title has been given for the album as of yet (nor a release date less vague than “fall”), but a couple of song titles have been advanced, namely “Again, Again, Again” and “Satisfied.” Jewel is also poking through her own vault of unrecorded tunes to see if there are any additional older songs to add to the disc. And the singer-songwriter will be back at Interlochen again for a live performance this year on July 28...

Seal - just married to supermodel and Project Runway host Heidi Klum - is keeping busy with plenty of his own new releases, plus a schedule of U.S. live shows. June 7 will see the DVD-A reissues of both Seal’s 1991 debut disc and 1994 sophomore album (both titled Seal just to confuse ya), and both reissues will include several remixes of Seal songs by the likes of Trevor Horn and William Orbit as well as more video extras. Speaking of more video extras, Seal’s first concert DVD, titled Live in Paris, is also set to hit stores on June 7, and will be available as either DVD only, or DVD with a bonus audio CD. And, just in case Seal’s datebook isn’t filled up enough already, he has also just launched a schedule of live U.S. shows that will continue into late June, with an additional schedule of West Coast dates to follow later this year...

The Meltdown Festival in London is scheduled for June 11-26 this year, with an eclectic and impressive roster of shows on the docket for those of you able to make it there for the rilly big event. Headed up by legendary punk-poetess Patti Smith, the schedule will include shows by Television, UK buzz singer-songwriter Ed Harcourt, Richard Hell (who will read from his new book), the Eels, the Coral (with special guests including Cat Power and My Bloody Valentine’s Kevin Shields), modern rock singer-songwriter Beth Orton, Sinead O’Connor, Kristin Hersh (Throwing Muses), John Frusciante, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and former Velvet Undergrounder John Cale, who will sit in with Patti Smith as she performs her entire Horses album live on June 25...

And, also in the UK, All Tomorrow’s Parties festival organizers are sending their live music events onto the road for a series of traveling shows this summer, kicking off the first half of their concert series on June 2 with a rare appearance by Aphex Twin and guests in London. Other early appearances will include shows by Coco Rosie and Yo La Tengo. In August, the series will take on a new tone - titled “Don’t Look Back,” the second round of live shows will present musicians who will play a retrospective of one of their works in its entirety. Running through October, confirmed acts for “Don’t Look Back” will include The Stooges, Mudhoney, Mum, Cat Power, and Belle + Sebastian. Even more concerts are expected to be added over the summer...

MINI BUZZ:
A two-disc, 37 track best of Iggy Pop album titled A Million in Prizes is now scheduled to drop into stores on July 26...
A documentary about singer-songwriter Rufus Wainwright that aired on UK TV in March is now out on DVD, titled All I Want - the DVD includes live performances and extra footage not seen in the TV version...
Forever a Smashing Pumpkin Billy Corgan will kick off an 18-date North American tour on June 22, the day after his debut solo disc, TheFutureEmbrace, will hit stores...
The Latin Grammy Awards, much ignored on CBS TV, are now planning to jump their show over to Spanish-language television giant Univision for this year’s ceremony on November 3...
Mexico City rockers Jaguares are heading north to the U.S. for a summer tour that will keep them on the road until the end of the season; their new album, Cronicas de un Laberinto (“Chronicles of a Labyrinth”), will serve as their sixth studio release, and is out this week...
And Stereophonics, who are currently promoting their new album Language. Sex. Violence. Other? are also just wrapping up a month’s worth of U.S. tour dates...

ON CD: Oasis’ highly anticipated Don’t Believe The Truth... Better Than Ezra’s Before the Robots... The Duran Duran Tribute Album, featuring covers of Duran Duran songs by the likes of Less Than Jake, Bjorn Again, Eve’s Plum, Jimmy Eat World, and more... Bjork’s Army of Me: Remixes and Covers... Esmerine’s Aurora... and the import reissue of Green Day’s American Idiot with a bonus CD recorded live in Tokyo... ON DVD: The Partridge Family - The Complete First Season... on a related note, David Cassidy’s Greatest Hits Live... Coheed and Cambria: Live at the Starland Ballroom... and Live from Bonnaroo 2004 including performances from Guster, Damien Rice, Chris Robinson, Beth Orton, Dave Matthews, Burning Spear, and many more... and that’s the buzz for this week’s Modern Rock.

Questions, comments, rants, raves about this column or your fave musicians? Send ‘em to Kristi at modernrocker@gmail.com!

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