Welcome back to The SMonday Swindle Sheet.
I’d rather not acknowledge the Super Bowl. I said that it would be nice if Rex and the defense could all keep their heads out of their asses for one more game. That was apparently waaay too much to ask. Oh well, we’ve still got the first fifteen seconds of the game…
OPENING SHOT
BLURBS OF THE WEEK
Yes, folks… it is official. According to a press release made last Tuesday by the Recording Academy, The Police will reunite for at least one night to open the 49th annual Grammy Awards ceremony on Feb. 11. While many have speculated (read: hope) that this means the band will follow up the performance with a summer tour, they’re not commenting on the rumors. However, interesting to note that Sting mentioned last month, in an interview with the Television Critics Association, that they’d been talking about doing something this year to commemorate their 30th anniversary.
Down/Corrosion of Conformity guitarist Pepper Keenan said recently that the upcoming Down album, Down III, which is almost completely written, will feature several angry songs about God and Jesus. Juuuust kidding… they’ll be angry songs about Hurricane Katrina and Dimebag Darrell.
Among the artists with the most nominations for the Shockwave NME Awards (scheduled for March 1 in London) are The Killers, Muse, My Chemical Romance, Arctic Monkeys and Kasabian, with four nominations each. My Chemical Romance and The Killers are up against The Strokes, We Are Scientists and Brazilian electro-rock band Cansei de Ser Sexy will compete as readers vote for Best International Band, while Muse, Kasabian, Arctic Monkeys, Oasis and Babyshambles are all up for Best British Band. Babyshambles singer Pete Doherty celebrated the band’s nomination by smoking some crack, while I recently celebrated my 142nd edition of The SMonday Swindle Sheet by going to Quizno’s.
Don Henley recently announced during a show at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday that the Eagles would be releasing their first studio album since 1979’s The Long Run. “It’s coming out in 60 to 90 days, if we don’t kill each other first,” he said. The band reunited in 1994 for a tour, but hasn’t released any new material since The Long Run.
After the recent departure of drummer Nick DeWitt, indie rock band Pretty Girls Makes Graves has decided to disband after their upcoming tour, citing in a statement that “it wouldn’t be right to continue on without him.” It’s not certain whether they will get DeWitt to tour with them, or if they’ll need to find a replacement drummer. Speaking of replacement drummers, Testament has reportedly enlisted Dimmu Borgir/Cradle of Filth drummer Nick Barker for the group’s first new album since 1999, while Soilwork continues to suck balls.
Esoteric jazz-funk band Galactic will be heading in a decidedly hip-hop direction with their sixth studio album, due out this summer. Guest appearances confirmed for the as-of-yet-unnamed album are Chali 2na of Jurassic 5, Lyrics Born, Gift of Gab and Lateef the Truth Speaker of Quannam Projects, Mr. Lif, Ladybug of Digable Planets and Boots Riley of The Coup. Absent from the list, however, were Lil Wayne, Dem Franchise Boyz, Bubba Sparxxx, and anyone else who’s made a shitty song in the last year. Good.
Jay-Z will be appearing at a relaunch event for Coca-Cola’s Cherry Coke brand on Wednesday in New York. He will also serve as an “unofficial brand strategist” for Cherry Coke, and will help the company produce a new identity and commercials for the soft drink. While he will have some bit of input on the operation of the rebranding and ad campaign, he was not given carte blanche, after having suggested that Cherry Coke retires for two years, and then comes back with a ridiculously giant buildup and a flagship single that samples Wreckx-N-Effect. Coca-Cola nixed the idea after they feared that Lil Wayne would get upset and proclaim that he is a much better soft drink than Cherry Coke. Yeah, they really don’t need the publicity that would come with having any sort of relation to Lil Wayne.
Cheers
-JF2k7!
