The music world is still reeling from the sudden (if not completely unexpected) death of singer Scott Weiland, with many musicians, critics, and fans expressing sorrow over the loss and paying tribute to his work in Stone Temple Pilots, among others. It is worth taking the time to read old interviews with Scott, including these pieces from Esquire, Alternative Nation, and Popdose.
On a lighter note, check out this fascinating interview with Jonny Greenwood of Radiohead as he explains the technical intricacies of Indian music with his collaborator Shye Ben Tzur.
Speaking of India, their version of GQ has a look at the Atlanta strip club that has had an unexpected impact on the hip-hop industry and the music world in general.
News, music videos, and other fun stuff to help kick off your March…
It seems like there has been buzz about the new Kanye West album for months now, but the follow-up to Yeezus finally has a name: “So Help Me God”. New material has been trickling out for some time now, and today the studio version of the club-friendly “All Day” was released, with an accompanying video to which we will link but not embed because of a certain amount of nudity that may not be welcome in all work establishments (Update: the video has been pulled).
Our favorite video of the week is Action Bronson’s “Actin Crazy”, which mashes up a ridiculous CGI video with a behind-the-scenes look at the making of said goofy video.
Alabama Shakes stopped by Saturday Night Live this weekend in preparation for the April 21 release of Sound & Color. “Don’t Wanna Fight” was a nice little peppy funk number, but the standout performance was the electric “Gimme All Your Love”.
Followers of The Thermals on Twitter have long known that singer/guitarist Hutch Harris is a funny guy, but they still may have been surprised by his recent forays into stand-up comedy. Hutch talks to Splitsider about his longtime interest in the form and the difference in performing comedy versus on-stage as part of a band. But don’t despair Thermals fans, Hutch hasn’t ditched his regular gig yet, and the band is working on a new album as we speak.
And finally, we regret that we weren’t able to post this video when it happened last week, but frankly it has taken this much time just to process what happened: Jimmy Kimmel had Warren G perform his classic “Regulate” with help from Kenny G. I’m speechless.
Kicking off the week with some videos and various other fun ephemera…
Janelle Monáe released the music video for the title track of last year’s brilliant release, The Electric Lady. Pitchfork gives a rundown of the various cameos in the video, as well as some notes about how both Michelle and Barack Obama are big fans of Janelle. I personally would love to see the “dancing” video that is apparently in Janelle’s possession.
Lots of news and profiles and interviews for a weekend of #longreads.
Interpol announced that they will be releasing their new album entitled El Pintor this fall, on September 9. If you’re wondering about the name, yes, it is Spanish (for “the painter”), but if you look closely, you should realize it’s an anagram of the band’s name (the stunning cover art helps a little bit in making the connection). It appears they haven’t officially replaced departed bassist Carlos D, as Paul Banks assumed bass duties for the album in addition to his vocal and guitar work.
We finally got official word that the new Spoon album will be released on August 5, and it’s to be called They Want My Soul. We’re still not exactly sure what the “R.I.P. June 10” business is quite yet, but it makes sense considering the album title. Check out this great interview that the band did with NPR.
AV Club takes a look at Travis’s The Man Who for their Permanent Records feature through the lens of their influence on Coldplay, while making a case for the album on its own merits. I have long been a fan of that album, not just for their adolescence-ready lyrical themes (is there a more universal sentiment than wondering at some point “why does it always rain on me?”), but also for some gorgeous guitar work. The solo in “As You Are” has to rank among the high points of music in 1999, not necessarily for its technical merits but for its ability to capture the emotional climax of the song.
This week saw some big new album releases for indie rock, and we’ll be working our way through reviews soon, but in the mean time you can look at multiple interviews with Parquet Courts, one with the New York Times and another with Stereogum, and if you’re looking to get into the post-hardcore sound of Fucked Up but are not quite sure you’re ready for it, Stereogum’s top ten should provide a useful guide.
As I’ve said before, 1994 was a huge year in music, so there’s going to be a ton of retrospectives this year. This week, the eyes of nostalgia turn to Stone Temple Pilots, as Stereogum celebrates the release of Purple, probably their best album (though contrary to their claim, the band never was and never will be better than Pearl Jam; let’s just acknowledge STP was better than their detractors claim and move on).
And finally, since the weather seems to have officially changed into summer, now’s the perfect time to check out this look back at the beginning of Warren G’s career and his influence on the rise of G-Funk, courtesy of Pitchfork.
Rust Is Just Right 