As summer nears and bands kickstart their warm weather tours, Incubus is no different.  Vocalist Brandon Boyd, lead guitarist Michael Einziger, drummer Jose Pasillas II, bassist Ben Kenney and DJ Kilmore are packing up and heading out on a 31-city tour of the United States.

Their tour, celebrating the release of their two-disc collection “Monuments and Melodies” (scheduled to drop June 16) begins July 9 in San Diego California.  Along the way Incubus will stop in Las Vegas (July 11), Chicago (July 21) and Cleveland (July 29).

“Monuments and Melodies” is more than just a greatest hits compilation.  While the first disc features 13 of Incubus’ hits, including four #1s, the second disc features 3 new tracks and 11 rare recordings—one rumored to be a cover of Prince’s “Let’s Go Crazy.”

This is not the first time a band has released a disc of top singles, paired with a disc of rare/unreleased tracks, covers, and perhaps even concert footage. No Doubt, who is currently touring, released a similar fan package in 2003.

Incubus fans get an even bigger treat.  When purchasing “Monuments and Melodies,” fans will also get access to “The Vault,” a new section on the band’s official website.  This will allow fans to view over 500 rare and unreleased videos, mp3s, and photograph.

The East coast leg of the tour starts in August, including shows in Boston (August 1), New York (August 4 and 5), Charlotte (August 12), and Miami (August 16).  The tour ends August 25, in Phoenix, Arizona.

Incubus recently released their album’s first new video single, “Black Heart Inertia.”  While the video itself achieves nothing all that creative or envelope-pushing—the basic premise involves a production assistant (played by Boyd) getting thrust in front of the camera as the leading man after he spills coffee on the intended actor (also played by Boyd).  It’s a music video concept that is tired and a bit boring; the video’s plot almost overshadows the music with its mediocrity.  Luckily, however, the music pulls the band through an otherwise mundane visual experience.  The video is of course at its best when it features Incubus doing what they’re made to do—playing a song, rocking out, and entertaining their audience.  Their sound is still familiar, still inherently Incubus, but evolving enough to attract new listeners while still engaging lifelong fans.

The video for “Black Heart Inertia” reconfirms perhaps the most important thing about Incubus’ upcoming tour—they still rock.  The sounds are fluid and evocative and all indicators are still pointing to Boyd as a great frontman.  Whether you see them jamming in Los Angeles or Toronto, fans will be a part of a musical experience they won’t soon forget.

There was a time, not too long ago, when no self-respecting musician would have used the term “Sun City” in the title of their summer tour.

Sun City is the name of a resort in South Africa.  During the reign of the country’s apartheid government (legalized racial segregation), Sun City, and the surrounding area, was labeled a “homeland” and given nominal self-rule.  In truth, it was nothing more than a South African client state, and all the nations of the world recognized the farce.

Even so, many top name artists, such as Elton John, Tina Turner, Ray Charles, Queen, Black Sabbath and Rod Stewart played at the resort (which was sort of an African Las Vegas).  Opponents viewed playing Sun City as supporting apartheid.

In the mid-1980’s, E Street Band member, and future Sopranos star, Steven Van Zandt lead a group of musicians known as Artists United Against Apartheid.  This diverse group produced a song called “Sun City” in which they professed their intentions to avoid performing at the resort.

Despite being a far superior song, “Sun City” failed to achieve even half the success of its cousin, “We Are The World.”  However, it did raise a lot of money for people in need and unlike the ill “We Are The World” was trying to eliminate, apartheid no longer exists in South Africa.

“Sun City” was released in 1985, apartheid ended in 1994 and now in 2009, country music superstar Kenny Chesney is currently in the midst of his “Sun City Carnival Tour.”

Certainly time heals all wounds and many of those buying Kenny Chesney tickets aren’t old enough (or sober enough) to remember the Sun City controversy or even apartheid.  Nor is this the first time a musician has re-appropriated a phrase with such negative connotations.

In 1988, U2 took back “Helter Skelter.” Bono proclaimed on the opening track of Rattle and Hum, “this song Charles Manson stole from The Beatles...we're stealing it back."

We must digress.  Mentioning such somber and depressing subjects in conjecture with the “hillbilly rock star” is a great disservice.  Kenny Chesney’s Sun City Carnival Tour is the exact opposite of strife and suffering.  It’s the absolute best party of the summer.

Four times Chesney has won the Academy of Country Music’s Entertainer of the Year Award.  He’s not only the best country music performer, he’s one of the best performers in all of music. 

Whether Chesney is playing Nashville or Bristow, whether he’s performing in a small venue like the Clark County Amphitheater in Ridgefield, Washington or a giant stadium like Heinz Field in Pittsburgh his concerts are always the must-attend event of the year. 

He puts so much energy into his shows that his audience gets tired just by watching.  Chesney is known to sweat from the first note to the closing chord—probably explains why he’s frequently sleeve-less.  He seldom stops for small talk or idle chatter, instead he devotes all of his stage time to blowing the roof off the place.

While bringing this ebullient presence to the stage, he also has the luxury of choosing from a catalog of material that features 16 number ones songs and more than 30 top ten hits.  

If you’re at a concert in Fargo or Seattle expect to hear Chesney classics like “Young,” "Big Star," "I Go Back," and Out Last Night."  He kicks off his epic show with a rousing rendition of "She Thinks My Tractor's Sexy."

Accompanying Chesney on his Sun City Carnival Tour are Miranda Lambert and Lady Antebellum.  Sugarland appears for the all-day stadium concerts as does Montgomery Gentry, however they will miss four dates. 

The traveling party also makes stops in Atlanta, Foxboro and Chicago.  The tour ends September 19th in Indianapolis. 

The party like atmosphere found on his tour and the dedication he puts into his performances, is why fans have made Chesney one of the highest grossing acts in country music.  It also helps that while attending one of his shows, whether it’s in Raleigh, Jacksonville or Philadelphia, you have so much fun you forget all about the troubles of the world.

If anyone can add a positive connotation to the term “Sun City,” it’s Chesney.

America Voted….And Got More Of The Same in Idol Finale

I almost think that at this point, the outcome of the American Idol season does not even matter. I mean, after all, this show has proven that you don’t even need to be the season winner any more; you simply need to make it to the Top 10 and stand out in some way.

I mean, really, the proof of this theory rings aloud and clear in finalists like Jennifer Hudson. Clay Aiken. Katharine McPhee. Chris Daughtry. Bo Bice. None of them won Idol’s top spot, but all of have gone on to have pretty solid music careers.

Here’s to hoping the same is true of Adam Lambert.

I was one of those that said that Adam probably wouldn’t win, though he sure deserved it. I think America just wasn’t quite ready for a flamboyant, glam-rock (and openly gay) Idol, IMHO. Kris Allen was clearly the safer choice, but he just doesn’t push the envelope quite like Adam does.

Though they both clearly have that star factor, Adam has more of it. He is fresh. Different. Exciting to watch. Kris is…well…regular. A regular, average superstar musician who is clearly very talented. But so are hundreds of other people; doesn’t mean you want to watch them.

Adam’s glammed out, rock-star style is different from other musicians out there today. Kris has that acoustic sound that several people have already perfected. Think John Mayer meets Jason Mraz.

Comforting. Semi conservative. Decent music.

But hardly the stuff of excitement, like Adam.

And as I, and millions of other fans, eagerly await next season, I am hoping once again that Idol fans will dare to choose someone that really breaks the mold, both in musical talent and personality. I would love to see voters stop going with the safe choice and gamble on a fresh, completely different kind of talent, no matter what package it comes in.

Truth be told, the Counting Crows have never been on my Top 10 list of favorite bands (Top 20 or even 30, for that matter). It’s not that I don’t like them at all; I bop my head to “Mr. Jones” every now and then and reminisce about the fact that “Mr. Jones” was the IT song the year I was learning to play hacky-sack with my friends in high school.

But thereafter, they kind of fell out of commercial favor and being the youth that I was with a short-attention span, they fell off of my musical radar. They haven’t made their way back on ever since.

The Counting Crows are known for doing lots of live shows, which is undoubtedly a great way to connect with fans. It’s just that I like the sound of my stars to be slick and polished, a la most studio albums, and then get a sampling of the live music at a concert or two. However, the Counting Crows seem to thrive on getting lots of exposure through their tours and live shows, which is fine. Just not for this spoiled fan.

That being said, I am going to check out their latest studio offering “Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings” because I hear it is some of their best work to date. And true to form, the band is on the road with the The Saturday Night Rebel Rockers Traveling
Circus & Medicine Show.

Featuring opening acts Michael Franti, Spearhead and Augustana, this show is a great choice for fans of homegrown,  eco-conscious rock. I haven’t gotten the album yet, but I do like the name of the album and explanation behind it’s choice,as Adam Duritz explained in a recent media interview: "Saturday night is when you sin and Sunday is when you regret. Sinning is often done very loudly, angrily, bitterly, violently.”

While I’ve never personally been to a show, I do hear that the Counting Crows know how to throw one heck of a party. They do a lot of acoustic, sing-along style sets and some bouncing around the stage for the more up-tempo numbers.  Duritz explained the Medicine Show tour to Jam Base like this, “We won't know what we're going to do until we do it but we're gonna try and make a glorious noise. One way or another, by the time my pals and I walk off that stage, we're gonna make sure you remember that the Circus came to town."

Tour dates are spanning the country with stops for Counting Crows in Cincinnati, Nashville, Houston and more. Counting Crows tour tickets Atlantic City are on sale as well as New York City Counting Crows tickets and Miami Counting Crows tickets to reach fans in all regions of the country.

 

While there are already millions of reasons to visit Las Vegas—concerts, casinos, a chance for general debauchery—the Wynn Las Vegas has given travelers one more reason to make the journey: Cirque Du Soleil’s show Le Reve.  Exclusively at Wynn Las Vegas, La Reve expands on the aquatic section so popular in their show O. 

This aquatic masterpiece, which also includes Cirque Du Soleil’s trademark aerial acrobatics, is performed in a “theater-in-the-round,” a circular stage surrounded by audience seating.  Le Reve, French for “the dream,” depicts the Lord of Dreams and his Sandman-like interactions with a man.  Easily one of Cirque Du Soleil’s most erotic shows, Le Reve bathes the audience in sensuality and mysticism. While those unfamiliar with Cirque Du Soleil’s performances may be uncomfortable with the provocative nature of the show, Le Reve is neither explicit nor abrasive.  Instead the cast, made up of 85 people, take the audience on a journey of visual wonder.

I have never been a fan of interpretive dance or experimental theater.  While I enjoy more than merely mindless entertainment, I generally enjoy cohesive performances that don’t leave me with the question, “What just happened?”  I do, however, like to be impressed.  First timers will get a kick out of the gravity-defying acts and those familiar with Cirque Du Soleil’s work will be wowed yet again by Le Reve’s fetes of strength, agility, flexibility, and grace. 

Yes, La Reve may not be the most conventional show, but what else would you expect from the combination of Cirque Du Soleil and Las Vegas?  It is a trippy show that suits the Vegas strip perfectly.  You’ll leave feeling a little confused, a little shocked, and wildly entertained.

As a bonafide Atlanta Braves fan, let me just say that I don’t easily excite over specific players. The whole game is so diluted with the comings and goings of various players, it’s hard sometimes to keep up with who is on what team this season.

I mean, you know the drill, you get Chicago Cubs tickets in hopes of seeing your favorite players in action and poof, you didn’t notice in the off-season half the team was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals or some other team you don’t like.

In fact, if you are like me and don’t pay attention in the super short off-season or spring training, you miss it all.

Therefore, I spend my time rooting for the team instead of individual players to keep myself from being attached to any one person. Then, my heart isn’t broken when they end up elsewhere the next season. 

But, I broke my rule. I am completely hyped up about Derek Lowe this season. What’s worse is that he’s a freakin’ free agent, which means at the end of his four-year tenure with my beloved Braves, he could be headed for dustier diamonds elsewhere.

But for now, I (and every other female Braves fan out there) think this guy is hot!

Not just in a general, rugged sense, but his record this season already speaks for itself. On Opening Day, he pitched eight innings of two-hit ball against the Phillies and last week, he pitched into the seventh inning against the New York Mets.

Ok, so he wasn’t necessarily hot stuff taking on the Marlins, but he has won his past four starts and beat both Cincinnati and Houston, which puts him at 3-1 against NL East and 2-0 against NL Central. Perhaps that sweet $60 million contract has put a little extra oomph behind some of his pitches, to the delight of this Atlanta Braves fan.

For a while, I actually wasn’t a fan of Lowe. After all, his personal life is tabloid fodder after he left his wife for a Dodgers broadcaster (I mean, of all of the chicks you could choose from, a freakin’ Dodgers broadcaster?!).

I also wasn’t too fond of a stunt he pulled when he signed on with the Dodgers. He left the Red Sox (who wouldn’t have wanted a better gig than Boston?) for L.A. in 2005. However, since that was the year the Red Sox actually managed to get out from that curse, even after actually starting for the Dodgers, Lowe showed up to the World Series ring ceremony in his Red Sox uniform…sooo not cool. Not a great way to make an impression on your new fans.

However, all that’s water under the bridge as I look forward to watching Lowe take my Braves to new heights this season with that arm of his.

I have great faith since, according to the Braves site, he is one of maybe three other people in the entire league who have managed to play for at least 12 seasons without one getting on the disabled list, which is uber impressive for a pitcher.

His record last year speaks for itself, as he finished 14-11 for the seventh year in a row, with at least 12 victories. His skills are phenomenal and I am looking to see him help my Braves clinch it this year for the MLB National League’s Eastern Division.

They say defense wins championships, but in the 2009 NBA Western Conference Semifinals it appears offense is the key to victory.

Fans with Lakers playoff tickets and Rockets playoff tickets probably expected to see low scoring affairs but the winner of every game in the series has scored 99 points or more.  Twice the Lakers have scored more than 110 points.

In the other Western Conference Semifinals between the Denver Nuggets and the Dallas Mavericks, the winner of every game scored well into the triple digits.  Only once did a team fail to reach the century mark and on three occasions the Nuggets scored more than 117 points.  
 
Denver fans with Nuggets playoff tickets saw their team score a combined 350 points in their three playoff games at the Pepsi Center.  Despite losing the series, Mavericks playoff ticket holders saw Dallas average a respectable 107 points a game.

Conversely, in the Eastern Conference Semifinals teams have managed to eclipse the 100-point mark only three times.

As for shooting percentages, the Nuggets, for the entire semifinals, shot an amazing 51 percent from the field.  Always a robust offensive team, the Mavs shot 48 percent from the field. 

The Lakers, matching up against a Rockets team that held opponents to under 45 percent shooting during the regular season, managed to sink 47 percent of their shots.  And as you might expect, the depleted Rockets struggle to score, shooting just 43 percent.
 
With the exception of the Lakers, every team in the Western Conference Semifinals has allowed a higher field goal percentage in this round of the playoffs then they allowed in the regular season.  

These poor defensive numbers seems contrary to not only what we’re led to believe about playoff basketball but what we’re led to believe about the players on the court.
 
The Houston Rockets have some of the league’s best defenders in Ron Artest, Shane Battier, Yao Ming (before he was lost to injury) and Chuck Hayes.

The Denver Nuggets have a couple all-world defenders of their own in Kenyon Martin and Dahntay Jones.  Chris Anderson and Anthony Carter are very good off-the-ball defenders and both bring a lot of energy to the court.

While the Lakers aren’t known for their shutdown defenders, the squad does know a thing or two about team defense.  After all they were in the NBA Finals last year and you can’t make it that far without playing some good defense.

Mavericks aren’t a defensive team by any stretch of the imagination, but in the first round against the San Antonio Spurs, they did hold Tim Duncan and company under a hundred points in every game but one.  And in Game 3 of that series, the Mavs held the Spurs to a franchise playoff low 67 points.  So the Mavs can play defense when they want too.  Unfortunately for them and their fans, they seldom ever want too.

Putting the numbers aside, none of these games, especially if you’ve watched them, have resembled a back-and-forth offensive battle.   Instead, these games have resembled just a battle.  

In Game 2, Lakers point guard Derrick Fisher was ejected (and later suspended) for tackling Rockets forward Luis Scola.  Ron Artest was also ejected from the game after he confronted Kobe Bryant.  Artest took exception to Bryant elbowing him in the throat. 

In the other series, after Game 3, Mavs owner Mark Cuban told the mother of Nuggets forward Kenyon Martin that her son was a thug and a punk.

Needless to say, both series have been full of hard fouls, technicals, and cheap shots.   However, all the physical play isn’t necessarily keeping the other team from scoring.

Regardless of how it may appear, defense still wins championships, even if offense gets you there.  For the Mavs, the saying is entirely true because their lack of defense is why their season is over.  For the Rockets, their defense is fine.  What they need is more scoring.

For the Lakers and Nuggets—two teams apparently on a collision course to meet in the Western Conference Finals—it may literally come down to which team scores a 100 points first, which team shoots 50 percent from the field, or better yet, which team has the ball last.  

After all, there’s room for three digits on a NBA score board for a reason.

There are many, many music buffs out there that would argue that they are the biggest U2 fans of all time. Those people know every humans right quote ever spoken by Bono and can sing the lyrics to every song in the U2 music library. However, most of the biggest fans haven’t gone so far as to go scary stalker on someone in the name of trying to catch a U2 concert. Now that’s something Massachusetts banker Joseph Carreiro can say he did all for his love of this legendary band.

Good ol’ Joe wanted to catch the U2 secret show held in March in Somerville, MA so badly, that he alledgedly stalked someone for their tickets. Not to make light of the potentially violent aspect of the situation, but come on, really?! This guy turned into a creepy stalker on someone for their freakin’ U2 tickets?!

Here’s the thing: as much as I would love  to see the U2 “360 Degrees” tour (because they put on a most amazing live show) and as much as I still think Achtung Baby is one of the greatest records in the history of the world, I would never think that going to jail is the best way to show my love for the band. Particularly when the head of said band is so staunchly anti-violence and all about human rights and stuff. Somehow, I do not believe that Bono would approve of such behavior.

Now, of course, Carreiro denies this ever happened, but William “Billy” Tauro, a local newspaper publisher is sticking by his story that Joe straight-up stalked him for at least three days, threatened to release all of Tauro’s private banking info (if that scared him, he must have much more money in his account than I do in mine) and even posed as a private detective --- all in the name of snagging those precious U2 tickets.

Now, Tauro had been mistakenly named as an organizer of this super secret show, so he had been getting inundated with requests for tickets like crazy because….well….U2 is one of the greatest rock groups ever.

Carreiro hasn’t been arrested --- yet --- but a criminal complaint has been filed against him. Someone should have told good ol’ Joe that U2 is going on tour, man. Around the world. Stopping at venues all around the U.S., and other places. If he wanted to see U2 that badly, there are going to be plenty of chances this summer from the U2 360 Degrees tour East Rutherford, NJ across the country to the stop for the U2 Rose Bowl in California.

Additional stops include the Toronto U2 360 Degrees tour stop as well as Foxboro, Dallas and Phoenix, to name a few. And with the critical praise of U2’s new album “No Line on the Horizon,” most of the stops of the U2 360 Degrees tour are likely going to be sell-out stops. The tickets, at least the good ones, are a bit on the pricey site with the range starting at a very reasonable $32 all the way to a “YIKES! I just shelled out a lot of money for a concert ticket” amount of $252. In fact, the first U2 show in Chicago, slated for September, has already sold out --- and it’s only May.

So no fear, Joe, you don’t have to stalk people to get tickets to see U2. You could simply purchase a ticket to one of the many U2 tour stops around the country. But do it early, so you are assured your tickets and enjoy your “Beautiful Day” the safe, nonviolent, legal way!  

Shop for U2 Tickets

 

Creed has announced a 2009 reunion tour and plans to record a new album, Full Circle.

The title is quite fitting as the band reunites both professionally and personally after six years apart.  Time heals all wounds and it has certainly healed the wounds created during the tumultuous half-year leading up to their abrupt split.

Front man Scott Stapp, guitarist Mark Tremonti, bassist Brian Marshall, and drummer Scott "Flip" Phillips have reconnected and now they want to reconnect with their fans.  

Creed’s reunion tour launches on August 6th in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania and finishes on October 14th in Nashville, Tennessee.   During the summer, expect to see Creed rocking out in Camden, Columbus, Dallas and Milwaukee.

No opening act has been announced, but in an interview Stapp mentioned the bands Staind and Flyleaf.

As for their album, Creed would like to have their first single out before their tour starts but they don’t plan on releasing the album until September (about when the band is performing in Atlanta).  Howard Benson (Daughtry, Hoobastank) will produce.  It will be the band’s first studio album in eight years.
 
Some song titles from Full Circle have already been leaked: "A Thousand Faces," "Slow Suicide" and "Just Fine."  According to Stapp, the album is going to sound "like Creed: heavy, melodic, [and] creative."

Creed dominated the music industry between 1999 and 2004, selling more than 35 million records worldwide and selling hundreds of thousands of Creed Tickets during several arena tours.   Then suddenly, in 2004, after a difficult six months, the band broke up.

Stapp went on to release a solo album while the other members of Creed formed the band Alter Bridge with Spokane, Washington’s Myles Kennedy (good news for Alter Bridge fans, all the members of the band have adamantly stated that after the Creed tour they will be back in the studio to record their third studio album).

The public story of their reunion is quite unusual as it involves Dee Synder of Twisted Sister and legendary rock band Led Zeppelin.  

In early November of 2008, Synder reported that Led Zeppelin was going to reunite with Myles Kennedy replacing Robert Plant (not much of a reunion), thus paving the way for a Creed comeback. The logic being if Kennedy leaves Alter Bridge to sing for Jimmy Page then nothing is stopping a Creed reunion.  

A month later, Rolling Stone magazine reported that a Creed reunion was on the horizon despite both Jimmy Page’s manager and Kennedy denying the rumor of a new Zeppelin band.  

While salicous, it soon became apparent that a Creed reunion had nothing to do with Kennedy nor Led Zeppelin.  In Mid-March, a Creed tour-teaser was leaked on their website but soon pulled.  On April 2nd, the newly revamped creed.com posted a single message on its homepage, “coming summer 2009.”   Then finally, on April 27th, the band made it official.  They were reuniting and heading back to the studio.  

The real genesis of their reunion occurred late last year in Orlando when Stapp and Tremonti held a personal meeting with one another.  The two apologized and quickly picked up their relationship like they were old friends.  Time had indeed healed all wounds.

A band meeting soon followed in which apologies were sincerly given and humbly accepted.  The members of Creed realized they were ready for a reunion, and more importantly, they were ready to rekindle their friendships.

Amazingly, Creed had come full circle.

Here is the thing for me about American Idol: I always kind of think that the judges --- and for the most part, America --- have no clue what they are doing. It seems to me like the best singers on the show --- or at least those that have the best shot at real celebrity-style stardom --- go home in the third, fourth or fifth round.

This is why I was disappointed to see Matt Girbaud get eliminated after the judges instituted the first save in the history of the show. I mean Matt was smoking hot --- just like a jazzy version of Justin Timberlake. And that whole jazz bit was sexy, probably because it wasn’t cheesy and overdone and well…no one else is doing it.

Now, we are left with Adam Lambert, Kris Allen, Allison Iraheta and Danny Gokey. They are all good. They can all sing and perform their hips off. But I have to say that there is one remaining Idol competitor that has me still watching and that is the ever faaaaaabulous Adam. Ok, I admit that part of my reasoning for wanting to see Adam walk away a winner is because I think it would be cool to have a gay Idol (assuming he is gay which of course I don't know for sure one way or the other, but I think he is).

And, I think part of his appeal is the fact that he dances to the beat of his own drum and just puts it all out there. I like people who are real enough and unafraid enough to take some chances. He has really shown that he not only has the vocal chops to make it in the industry, but also he has the showmanship needed to put on a pretty darn good show. I enjoy watching him sashay across the stage in a manner that rivals any of the current divas in the industry.

I could so see Adam on the summer tour that inevitably follows after the season, cultivating a huge following for American Idol Boston, American Idol L.A. and American Idol Philadelphia shows, as well the other stops on the American Idol tour. Moreover, I think his presence so high in the top ten will encourage other openly gay performers to pursue this opportunity without the need to conform when American Idol kicks back up next season.

Allison would be the next in line for my vote and I like her punk edge. But it seems contrived to me at times, which is why she’s okay, but she doesn’t excite me. And I definitely just don’t see the superstar power in those other two duds.

What it boils down to is that if Adam gets the boot, I will probably tune in to the Law & Order re-runs, until it’s time to watch the next round of hopefuls next season because the truth is, I won’t be able to stomach Simon’s nails-on-a-chalkboard British accent and musical mediocrity.