The Brit, and self-proclaimed disco creator (ppsshh), Calvin Harris has taken a stab at the yet to be released “The Reeling” from Passion Pit’s debut LP Manners, due out 5/19 here in the States. Calvin claims he added some “banging” danceability to the track…sounds to me like he’s added some disco-slap bass, some extra highs, sped it up a few BMPs and removed the most bangin parts of the track… the straight 4/4 drum beat and deep, synthy bass line. Nice job Calvin. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve rocked Calvin track “Colours” at a party or two, but the rest of the album failed to impress my decks, as does this remix.

MARILYN MANSON ”The High End of Low” (release: May 26 2009) tracklisting is out. We’re From America brought me back…Arma-goddamn-motherfuckin-geddon is unimpressive. The Twiggy and Marilyn reunion should blow us away…so they’ve got some ground to cover and some asses to kick and better come correct.

1.)  Devour
2.)  Pretty as a Swastika
3.)  Leave a Scar
4.)  Four Rusted Horses
5.)  Arma-goddamn-motherfuckin-geddon
6.)  Blank and White
7.)  Running to the Edge of the World
10.) Wight Spider
11.) Unkillable Monster 
12.) We’re From America
13.) I Have to Look Up Just to See Hell 
14.) Into the Fire
15.) 15

The lineup for Austin City Limits music festival is out. Much like Lollapalooza, the headliners…were headlining festival over a decade or more ago. The “big” names @ ACL 09 include: Pearl Jam, Beastie Boys, Dave Matthews Band, Thievery Corp, etc. The remainder of the roster looks pretty well stacked and should be a great weekend. The likes of: Kings of Leon, The Dead Weather, Lilly Allen, The Decemberists, Girl Talk, STS9, Phoenix, Bassnectar, Medeski, Martin & Wood, Grizzly Bear and Passion Pit will grace the stages October 2-4th @ Zilker Park, Austin, TX. Read the full lineup here.

The Kills were forced to cut a show early Wednesday night in Boulder, CO. The band is currently on tour supporting their most recent album (and one of my tops for 08, Midnight Boom). Lead singer Allison Mosshart (and of newly formed The Dead Weather) was taken to the hospital for observation. She’s ok and the group plan to continue the remainder of the US tour (just make it to Detroit in May…)

Official statement from tour manager:

“Alison was suffering from a cold which, combined with a cough and the altitude in Boulder, affected her ability to breathe properly while singing. She was taken to the hospital and was kept there for a short while for observation. She was released later that night and is doing fine today.”

The official line up poster for Lollapalooza 2009 in Grant Park Chicago, IL. Including: Depeche Mode (new album Sounds Of The Universe out yesterday), Tool, TV on the Radio (new remix out April 14th Read Silence), Thievery Corporation, Vampire Weekend, The Decemberists, Crystal Castles, Santigold, Atmosphere, Cold War Kids, Deerhunter, Peter Bjorn and John, Bat for Lashes (new album out April 7th Two Suns)…just to name a few of the acts I’ll attempt to see.

Lollapalooza 2009 Line Up

Nine Inch Nails APP: Approved and Here. Download it for free at iTunes.

Few indy EPs, or complete albums for that matter, make an impression on me as Surf City’s self titled EP has. It was released late last year but I only discovered it a few weeks ago. The opening track “Headin’ Inside” begins with classic, early 60′s, southern Cal guitar pickin (though the band calls the other side of the Pacific their home in New Zealand). Then thrashes into upbeat, good times, outdoor party music complete with fun melodies to sing to. The EP continues with “Records Of A Flagpole Skater” further encouraging me to buy a long-board and hit the salty shores. “Dickshakers Union” boasts the groups delightfully playful sounds and intelligently crafted structures. This is the track I could see getting some airtime. “Canned Food” pushes their surfer vision and borderlines and early R.E.M. classic. “Mt. Kill” adds a tween summer time romance to the EP but also add epic space with the intro guitar riff taking center stage. The release closes with “Free The City” which further enforces the good time sing along grooves. The entire release embraces the lo-fi, garage-studio sound with washed-out guitar and vocals, which although I could use a tad less reverb and some decent tracking… right now, it may just be a requirement for a breakout indy release. Highly recommended. I’ll be jammin this on the way to the beach all summer.

Two of my fav rock icons, Jack White (The White Stripes, Raconteurs) and Alison Mosshart (the Kills), have formed a new group, The Dead Weather. If Jack on drums and vocals and Alison on vocals wasn’t enough…they also have Queens of the Stone Age’s Dean Fertita on guitar, and the Raconteurs’ Jack Lawrence on bass. Last month they debuted a single “Hang You From the Heavens” and have a full length album, Horehound, set to drop in June on White’s Third Man imprint. They also have they’re first public show set for New York City’s Bowery Ballroom on April 14. Tickets on sale tomorrow, April 8. You can preview “Hang You From the Heavens” along with a cover of another hero of mine, godfather of synth-pop Gary Numan’s, “Are Friends Electric?” and pseudo-classic video at the bands website.

Musicians and brands alike need to pay attention to Nine Inch Nails…they, Trent Reznor and Rob Sheridan creative NIN masterminds, really know how to create a user/fan experience. They hit the nail on the head when they created the new nin.com 2.o with deep user community interaction with remixes, photos, videos, forums and more. They’ve now taken the concept 2 steps further and developed a free iPhone App where you can access your nin.com user account from for iPhone or iPod Touch. But wait, there’s more. You can access all the vids and pix and conversations and add the pictures to your wallpaper, but really cool things start happening using your GPS enabled iPhone. You can choose your phone to use your current location and get involved in a conversation with people near by. They’re also going to add a pinpoint to google earth for each concert they play, each time a new comment pops up, google earth will cross the globe and pinpoint the user. Very cool when a large group on fans are in one area for a show. Plus you can take pictures from your phone and post and share your experience instantly. Don’t want people to know exactly where yer at? They’ve developed a “fuzzy” location feature which randomly changes your position within a mile. Never a dull moment in nin land…  Stay tuned to access.nin.com the app will drop sometime this month.

Lovin the new track from Eels, “Fresh Blood” from Hombre Lobo out early June. The band’s first album in four years should turn out to be a real teeth sharpener…the albums title literally translates to “werewolf.” Check out the new track @ myspace.com/eels