Rocker Hand-me-downs Up for Auction

Dec. 8, 2004

A holiday auction is being held in order to raise money for two Recording Academy Charities, the Grammy Foundation and MusiCares - and music fans will benefit alo with those receiving the charity proceeds. Memorabilia will be auctioned off from musicians including the Foo Fighters, Madonna, U2’s Bono, Annie Lennox, Dave Matthews, and more - plus a handful of VIP adventures will be on the auction block, including trips to the 47th Annual Grammy Awards and the 2005 Montreaux Jazz Festival. Those wanting to bid, contribute, or just drool over all the offerings (hint: great holiday gifts!) can check it out at www.ebay.com/grammy...

“The Modfather,” better known as Britrock elder statesman Paul Weller (formerly of The Jam and The Style Council), has just released his first album of cover songs, titled Studio 150, on which he puts his own spin on a variety of tracks old and new. Among the quirky roster of tunes given the Weller sound are Bob Dylan’s “All Along The Watchtower,” Neil Young’s “Birds,” Gordon Lightfoot’s “Early Morning Rain,” and Oasis’ “One Way Road” - an interesting pick given that Oasis themselves have cited Weller as an influence. Weller’s Studio 150 is out now...

Rilo Kiley frontwoman Jenny Lewis has been hard at work on her solo debut disc, which is set to be released on Bright Eyes’ Conor Oberst’s new label Team Love. Recorded in just six days with producer Mike Mogis, Lewis’ first solo effort is set for tentative release in the summer of 2005, but that doesn’t mean that Lewis will be just sitting around until then. Lewis also appears on singer/songwriter Ben Lee’s next disc, Awake Is The New Sleep, which is due out on February 22, and Rilo Kiley is set to hit Europe on tour with Bright Eyes in February, and are also scheduled to play the Bonnaroo and Coachella festivals...

Alanis Morissette may not have known the proper meaning of “ironic,” but she’s sure to finally get it after reading this... a Scotland-based royalties agent has filed a legal claim on behalf of the 23 students of Islington Green School that sang on the chorus of Pink Floyd’s single, “Another Brick in the Wall Pt. 2,” back in 1979. The agent is looking to secure over $10,000 for the students (who were between 13 and 16 years old at the time of the recording sessions), whose vocals - which read, in part, “We don’t need no education/we don’t need no thought control” - were recorded as a shout-out against authority, and which were also recorded without the permission of the Islington School’s headmistress; the students were banned from appearing on TV or radio after the headmistress heard the dark, anti-school song. Did the kids or the school get anything for their troubles? At the time, yes - about $1800 and a platinum record. But now that The Wall has been named the third best-selling album of all time, these rebellious youth have decided in their older age that they want a little of those retroactive corporate spoils...

MINI BUZZ:
Interpol are set to drop the second single off of their album, Antics, in mid-January; listen for “Evil” on a radio station near you...

Moby is set to release his fifth studio album on March 14; titled Hotel, the album, which, ironically given the release date, will have 14 tracks, will be preceded by an as-yet-unchosen single at the end of February 2005...
The Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade featured a highly eclectic roster of musical performers this year - for those of you who missed it, you missed “performances” from the likes of Fantasia, Gavin DeGraw, Ryan Cabrera, Raven Symone (huh?), Andrea Bocelli, and Bering Strait...
Gwen Stefani, Elton John, and Ozzy are set to take the stage at London’s Coliseum Theatre on December 14 for the Royal Variety Show, which will feature none other than Prince Charles in the audience...
Kylie Minogue and Duran Duran were the top winners at the “Spanish Grammys,” the Premios Ondas Awards, which took place last week in Barcelona, Spain...
Tal Bachman’s new CD, Staring Down The Sun, is due for release either late this year or early next year, depending on which company Bachman chooses for his U.S. distribution deal...
And the month of March, 2005, has been revealed as the host month for new albums from both Coldplay and Doves...

In the meantime, this week hosts a bunch of new releases of its own... ON CD: the long-awaited Nirvana box set, With The Lights Out... Goo Goo Dolls’ Live In Buffalo July 4, 2004... Pete Yorn’s Live... Chili Pepper John Frusciante’s A Sphere in the Heart of Silence... Shawn Colvin’s Polaroids: A Greatest Hits Collection... and Sarah McLachlan’s Afterglow Live... ON DVD: Aerosmith’s You Gotta Move... Jet’s Family Style... Hoobastank’s Let It Out... and MxPx’s B Movie... and that’s the buzz for this week’s Modern Rock.
Questions, comments, rants, raves about this column or your fave artists? Send ‘em to Kristi at expressmodernrock@hotmail.com!