† NillaMora †

Video from WSYR

A Mannsville teen was one of several people injured in a mosh pit at a State Fair concert last night.

Officials estimate 30 to 40 people were injured during the Projekt Revolution concert at the State Fair Grandstand. The concert featured Linkin Park, My Chemical Romance and Taking Back Sunday.

According to reports, a group from the audience was in a mosh pit during the My Chemical Romance concert, when emergency responders were called to a “Level 2 Mass Causality Incident,” which they say is standard when there were this many injuries. They say some people have head injuries, some concussions, and some people were unconscious.

13-year-old Stephennie Nichols, of Mannsville, said from her infirmary bed that people were "crowd surfing," and "this big guy kicked me in the head."

Concertgoers said the crowd became violent after security tried to force the crowd back into the Grandstand area and stop the crowd surfing.

“A whole bunch of people jumped on top of people and started crowd surfing and kicking people in their heads and the security took them off and told them to get out but people kept doing it anyway,” concert attendee Nikki Gray told WSYR-TV.

David Corey, head of the fair infirmary, tells the Syracuse Post-Standard that two people were hospitalized for broken arms and a third for a broken leg. Others were treated for scrapes, bruises and other pit-related minor injuries.

Mosh pits are known as an area where audience members dance aggressively, slamming into each other.

My Chemical Romance and Linkin Park light up the projeckt Revolution stage at the state fair

Media Credit: Lindsay Adler [Click to enlarge]

Sure, Linkin Park was listed as the headliner as the Projekt Revolution tour arrived at the New York State Fair Tuesday.

That doesn't mean they were the main act of the night.

That honor, due to a combination of audience enthusiasm and extreme showmanship, was bestowed upon My Chemical Romance.

This has very little, though, to do with the band. In the greater scheme of musical talent, My Chemical Romance is just not that great. They are a mildly interesting alternative rock band with a slew of mildly catchy radio hits, all of which were played during the show.

What separated this band from the 11 others that played during the festival was frontman Gerard Way. Dressed in his trademark black-and-red leather marching band outfit, Way made a direct connection with the audience, starting with his first song. He then worked hard to hold it all the way through the hour-long set.

"You people over there," Way screamed at the group not centered around the stage, "Are you waiting for the pisser, or to get a hot dog? Or are you waiting for an invitation to fill in this f*cking space. (You) must be waiting for something good, because this s*it right here is pretty f*cking amazing."

Way bounded around the set, sweating profusely, as he and his bandmates played both hits from their latest album, "The Black Parade," as well as their classics, like "Helena" and "Give 'em Hell, Kid."

Way never slowed down, hurling commands and curses at the audience to get them out of their seat and excited.

"I like you guys so much today," he said. "Maybe not next week, but right now. I want you to high-five each other, because it's that kind of event."

The audience responded; hands across the stadium were slapped.

This was just one demonstrative command among many during My Chemical Romance's set. The most memorable being Way's persuasion to get all the guys spinning their shirts above their heads. And that they did.

The band's set was topped off by a fantastic stage show, including pyrotechnics from the very beginning. Fireworks, stage fog and flames were all part of the set's hype.

"It was awesome, the fire, you could feel it from way back," said Sydney Desaw, 21, of Lafayette and a student at St. John Fischer's College.

Projekt Revolution started in 2002, bringing together artists and fans of both rock and hip-hop. The show ran from 12:45 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. Tuesday.

Although My Chemical Romance was certainly the height of the show, they weren't the only memorable act.

Linkin Park, playing for almost two hours, was a semi-pleasingly angry end to a long day. The band's music sounded exactly like their albums, with lead singer Chester Bennington belting his way through songs, topped by a scream that makes blood run cold.

They played all their big hits, including "Crawling," "In The End" and "Numb," as well as songs from their latest album, "Minutes to Midnight," released last May.

"They are so loud and obnoxious," said Christina Garcia, 14, of Courtland, and a student at Monroe High School. "It's awesome."

Linkin Park played their set in front of a giant digital screen, which created an effect like watching a screen saver. At best, it was pretty-animated scenes from their "Breaking the Habit" video-and at worst, cheesy-clip-art style lightening.

But after watching My Chemical Romance, it was disappointing that one could get the same effect of a live Linkin Park show if they put the band's CD into their computer and then let the machine rest.

Another notable act of the night was Placebo, who pummeled through a quick half-hour set of musical force including their hits "Pure Morning" and "Every You Every Me." Also worth mentioning was Taking Back Sunday, who pumped up the audience for the headlining acts.

"[Taking Back Sunday] was here last year and they [brought] the same energy," said Tiffany Lambolin, 32, a bartender from Courtland, N.Y.

Still, no act could overshadow My Chemical Romance and their charismatic frontman's wild stage antics.

"I can't say you're the best crowd of the tour, but you're sure as f*ck my favorite crowd of the tour," Way said.

It's safe to say the audience felt the same way about him.


Projekt Revolution 2007 Lineup
Madina Lake
Styles of Beyond
The Bled
Saosin
Mindless Self Indulgence
Julien-K
Placebo
HIM
Taking Back Sunday
My Chemical Romance
Linkin Park

Silver chair

"Young Modern"

Release Date: August 21, 2007

Record Label: Eleven Records

www.chairpage.com

The biggest problem with the new Silverchair album "Young Modern" is that as it plays it is easy to forget that a CD is playing.

Perhaps the reason for this is that the album doesn't use any catchy intros to draw listeners into the music, instead each track comes straight at you with generic vocals and a sound that may be unique. But unique is not always a good thing.

The songs "Reflections of a Sound" and "All Across the World" sound more like show tunes for an upcoming Broadway show than modern rock and roll. Both of these songs seem out of place on the album and drag on for way too long.

While it's hard to compare the new album with any band past or present, the fluctuating vocals and the use of piano and other instruments on "Young Modern Station" and "Reflections of a Sound" give the album some similarities with an unrefined old school Sonic Youth or Pixies.

Daniel John's vocals in the new album are its only saving grace. They are a lot more powerful and he has definitely shown he has a decent singing voice that can go to all tempos and vary along with the bass line and drum beat of each song.

The lyrics of the new album have to be the biggest disappointment, though. Obviously the progression of the band has taken them from frivolous songs from their high school days to a more deep symbolic path. However, many of the words, such as when Johns says, "In the sun we are found to be reflections of a sound," rhyme well and fit in with the music but can't possibly be deciphered as meaning anything other than words thrown on a page.

It is hard to believe the same band that produced hit songs like "Tomorrow" or "Freak" came out with this album. Granted, the trio has obviously grown up since the long haired flannel shirt days of their first album "Frog Stomp," but a more subtle change would have been a better path.

In the five years since Silverchair has come out with an album, it is safe to say their musical approach has taken a full 180. Unfortunately, with their new approach, it almost seems like they are trying too hard to gain acceptance in the artistic genius ranks of Bono or Elton John and should have just been content with being alternative rock stars in the same ranks of a Candlebox or Collective Soul.

The singer had no such concerns when Silverchair made a triumphant return to their native Newcastle last night.

The Newcastle rockers rarely take second place to anyone, particularly in their home town, but they bowed to age, rather than experience as their older collaborators, Powderfinger, closed the show at the beginning of their joint tour last night.

The crowd of more than 7000 at Newcastle Entertainment Centre was more concerned with the quality of this rare double bill than its running order. In fact, the Newcastle trio will spend the next nine weeks opening for their Brisbane colleagues on the Across the Great Divide tour, the biggest run of concerts either band has undertaken in Australia.

The two giants of Oz rock have joined forces to take their talents to places that rarely feature on the mainstream touring schedule, such as Bendigo in Victoria, Tamworth in NSW and Toowoomba in Queensland, alongside 11 other regional centres and state capitals. The tour winds up where it began last night, in Newcastle, on October 26.

Silverchair's set included material from their latest album, Young Modern, and crowd favourites from their back catalogue, such as Freak and The Greatest View. It was one of the best warm-ups Powderfinger fans have ever had. The Brisbane outfit also impressed with new songs Who Really Cares? and Black Tears alongside their earlier numbers.

The two groups are also working to promote reconciliation in Australia throughout the tour, in particular the work of the Reconcilation Australia organisation.

Both bands have had long lay-offs in the lead-up to this tour. Young Modern is Silverchair's first album in five years, while Powderfinger's recent Dream Days at the Hotel Existence comes four years after their previous album, Vulture Street.

The bands are expected to feature highly among the nominations for this year's ARIAs.

The tour moves to Powderfinger's home territory, Brisbane, tomorrow.

Silverchair lead singer Daniel Johns is receiving rave reviews following his performance at the Lollapalooza Festival.

After contracting laryngitis and struggling to get through a performance on the Jay Leno show, publicity for Silverchair’s latest US tour did not get off to the best of starts. But on the final performance of the tour, Daniel Johns could not have gone out on a higher note, receiving rave reviews following a performance at the Lollapalooza Festival in Chicago which saw 'the chair' front man take his shirt off and literally send fans into a frenzy.

The shirtless performance received praise not often seen for Johns with one reviewer stating “shirtless and sporting a headband, leader Daniel Johns embraced his inner rock star”, and even Perez Hilton got in on the action, stating “When did Daniel Johns get so damn hot?” “He's two scoops of yum with a meow on top!”

Just five years ago, Johns appeared frail as he battled anorexia and reactive arthritis, keeping him out of action for nearly a year. Sporting tattoos, piercings on both nipples and a headband, comments about Johns’ appearance, as well as his health, have never been so good.

Silverchair now head over to Europe briefly before returning to Australia to tour with Powderfinger on the Across The Great Divide tour which starts in Newcastle on 29 August.

Borders Group Inc., the nation’s second-largest bookseller, said Tuesday that it widened its net loss in the second quarter on heavy charges, overcoming a boost in revenue from sales of the seventh book in the Harry Potter series.

For the quarter ended Aug. 4, the company reported a loss of $25.1 million, or 43 cents per share, versus a loss of $18.4 million, or 29 cents per share, in the prior-year quarter. The company said excluding charges for a tentative agreement to settle litigation in California, it had a loss of 26 cents per share for the quarter.

The British Board of Film Classification updated their website today with a list of some deleted scenes that are to be included on the upcoming Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix DVD. Running a total of 10m 10s, the scenes listed under the title of "DELETED DRAMATIC CLIPS" are as follows:

00:02:31:17 "TRELAWNY EATING"

00:00:13:08 "NEVILLE SPEAKS UP FOR HARRY"

00:00:26:02 "STEADY CAM AROUND"

00:02:46:18 "UMBRIDGE QUESTIONS TRELAWNY"

00:00:17:21 "MALFOY, CRABBE AND GOYLE BULLY A STUDENT"

00:00:21:06 "FILTCH BLOWS ON UMBRIDGE'S HAIR"

00:01:47:14 "HARRY HERMIONE AND UMBRIDGE - EXTENDED"

00:00:37:22 "HARRY ENTERS"

00:01:07:23 "HARRY AND RON PACKING"

As reported earlier, the Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix DVD is widely rumored (although not yet officially confirmed) to be released around the November 12 time frame. On a related note, one of many purported covers of the boxes to the DVD is now online, this one from the movie informer, although we are unable to obtain any source or information about this website, so again, please keep this in the rumor category for now as well.

Information about the upcoming release of the 5th Harry Potter movie, Harry Potter and the Order of Phoenix has been slowing emerging through the internet. The Movie Informer has posted the reported front and back cover of the 2 disc DVD collection. The cover art has not been confirmed by Warner Brothers, so this is merely speculation. There had been some (now seemingly) false information out and about regarding the special features that will be on the DVD - this new example lists the special features to include:

- Additional Scenes
- Conversations with the Cast
- Reflections on the Fifth Film
- The Noble House of Black
- A New Order
- Ministry Mysteries
- Flight of the Phoenix
- Theatrical Trailers
- EA Game Demo

 

Bhopal, Aug.28 (ANI): Visually impaired kids who may have missed the thrills of the famous Harry Potter series, need not worry anymore.

Thanks to the Bhopal-based NGO Arushi, the escapades of Harry Potter from part I to VI are now available in Braille.

The seventh and the final book of the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, is being transcribed in Braille.

The book, transliterated in English Braille, is not for sale and will be made available free for the visually-impaired by order.

"The idea behind this is to ensure that the visually impaired children also get to read and enjoy the Harry Potter books like other children," said N J Anthony, Member, Arushi.

The book contains 1897 pages and will be released in eleven volumes, as the Braille takes more pages as compared to the printed version.

Visually-challenged children say they are glad that they don't have to depend on others to know about Harry Potter's adventures.

"Its is a big favour for us, as the visually-impaired cannot read normal books. If the book will be released in Braille, the visually-impaired can read it themselves anytime," said Rajendra Dhruvrey, a visually impaired boy.

Members of Arushi say Harry Potter book in Braille is being introduced in India for the first time.

Earlier, there were only Audio CDs of the book available in the market which only few visually impaired children used to understand.

Arushi has plans to publish the sixth book of the Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince in Braille.

The Harry Potter series of seven fantasy novels has been written by English author J. K. Rowling and is about an adolescent boy wizard named Harry Potter and his best friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger.

The story is mostly set at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, a school for young wizards and witches, and focuses on Harry Potter's fight against the evil wizard Lord Voldemort, who killed Harry's parents as part of his plan to take over the wizarding world.

Since the release of the first novel, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (retitled Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in the United States) in 1997, the books have gained immense popularity, critical acclaim and commercial success worldwide, spawning films, video games and assorted merchandise.

The seven books published to date have collectively sold more than 325 million copies and have been translated into more than 64 languages.

The seventh and last book in the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, was released on 21 July 2007. (ANI)

Jared Leto has said his band's win at last Thursday's Kerrang! Awards shows they have finally been accepted as a credible act.

30 Seconds To Mars beat off stiff competition to scoop the best single gong for 'The Kill'.

Leto's acting career has meant the group has faced a battle to be taken seriously in the industry, but he believes their problems are now in the past.

He said: "We've been working hard for a long time for people to accept the band. It's a wonderful feeling now they have."

The 35-year-old recently turned down a part in Clint Eastwood movie Flags Of Our Fathers because it clashed with the group's world tour.

Last weekend, Stephen Fry, the voice behind the British version of the Harry Potter audio books, celebrated his 50th birthday and author JK Rowling, as well as some actors from the movies, participated in a televised celebration on the BBC's Stephen Fry 50 Not Out program.

You can watch video from the show featuring JK Rowling, Emma Thompson (Trelawney), Kenneth Branagh (Lockhart), Imelda Staunton (Umbridge), David Tennant (Barty Crouch Jr) & Rick Mayall (Peeves) here.

The Phoenix.com's list of the 100 unsexiest men

[21] GERARD WAY Goth doughboy My Chemical Romance singer may be the only rocker who aspires to look more like Billy Corgan. His fashion sense evidently arrested shortly after the re-release of The Nightmare Before Christmas.

Enormous beer guts. Embarrassing bowl cuts. Double chins. Mullets. With all of the ugly dudes out there — like that guy with the porno mustache sitting across from you on the Green Line right now — you’d think compiling a list of the 100 unsexiest men in the world would be easy. Like Paris Hilton easy.

But when it comes to sexiness in men, there’s so much more to it than looks. (If you don’t believe that, ask yourself how at least four dog-faced wretches could all claim paternity of a Playboy centerfold’s offspring.) Yes, so much of what defines unsexiness in men is behavioral. So in addition to poring over thousands of repugnant photographs of the planet's least appealing gents, overworked researchers at the Phoenix's underground Unsexiest Laboratory had to utilize a formula that also took loathsomeness into account.

And that made things a little more difficult.

But when the smoke cleared, there was one repulsive, poorly coiffed man standing alone atop Homely Mountain. Click below to find out the undisputed winner of this year’s Golden Gilbert, the trophy named in honor of last year’s unsexy champ, Gilbert Gottfried. Our 2007 #1 was the clear winner because he is both an ugly person and an unattractive man — the worst of both worlds!

To see who else made the unkindest cut, click below to get started. We advise, however, that you wait at least half an hour after eating your last meal, just to be safe. And if you feel so compelled, you can discuss the list and post your own in the forum.

 

Gerard Way talks about the Projekt Revolution tour

Gerard Way

Slideshow: Projekt Revolution at the Tweeter Center, August 24, 2007

In preparation for the Projekt Revolution tour — at the Tweeter Center, August 24 — thePhoenix.com talked with co-headliners Linkin Park, My Chemical Romance, and Taking Back Sunday via teleconference. Below is what Gerard Way, lead singer of My Chemical Romance, had to say about the upcoming rock/hip-hop tour, pyrotechnics, and anti-ambition. (And Chester Bennington, lead singer of Linkin Park, rambled on mainly, about himself. Highlights at the bottom.)

On choosing to join Linkin Park and Taking Back Sunday as co-headliners on the Projekt Revolution tour:
Well, I think maybe the only thing that is atypical about the choice is the fact that we usually try to pick tours that are extremely different for us — and I think that’s very atypical of our band to do. 

It was an amazing opportunity and a real honor to be asked to join the tour with Linkin Park… and then as far as joining it with Taking Back Sunday, that’s a no brainer because those guys are some of our best friends.

On the return of a sense of ambition to music:
Basically, from a younger band’s perspective, coming up — or even before we started MCR —  there weren’t a lot of [ambitious] bands. There were a few bands that had ambition. I think Linkin Park is one of them. I think there are a few other bands, too, that had a lot of ambition. Green Day, obviously, is one of them.

But coming up and starting a band, there weren’t a lot of bands [like that]. It was almost like there was this anti-ambition put out there. And it was almost the point to be the least ambitious as possible. And that was extremely frustrating for us even back then. So, I think that is kind of why, at least from our perspective, our growth spurts have been so dramatic with each record because we couldn’t wait to get to a record like this. And I think we pretty much cant wait to get to the next in that regard.

We felt like we had to make up for a lot of lost time of [not] making ambitious records. I think it’s an exciting time in music for that reason. I think a lot of people are now really wanting to make ambitious records.

On tour production:
I think we’re going to be performing in a setting or in a space. So, it’s not going to be overdone… it’s not going to be anything like we had on The Black Parade tour. But, at the same time, I think we’ve become very addicted to pyro. I think we’re bringing out a lot of pyro — right now it’s just fun for us to do. And having just done The Black Parade as a full band with pyro and effects and everything, I think it’s nice to kind of maybe to now do it as My Chem with pyro because we really never used pyro as My Chemical Romance so it should be interesting.

On tour production themes:
I’ve kind of worked out a theme that I’m finalizing right now for the set up. Everything has generally been black [in the past] so I think I’m going for something a little different. And, we’ll just see how it goes. We’re also focusing heavily on performance and it will be nice to get back to playing some more aggressive sets and an hour is a perfect amount of time to do that in.

On performing The Black Parade on the Projekt Revolution tour:
Being that we’re playing in front of a lot of Linkin Park fans and a lot of fans of other bands that are playing, we’d kind of like to mix it up and be able to show them a lot of different colors of the band. I’m sure people can guess the favorites. I mean, they know the favorites of the band and we always play those.

Top 10 Chester Bennington quotes, in no particular order:
1. “We kind of want to be a band that’s kind of ambiguous.”

2. “We want to put on cool light shows, if we can, and we want to blow shit up.”

3. “If at the end of the day all we did was plant a bunch of trees, that’s cool with me.”

4. “I hope that that’s what we go down as, you know, a good rock band.”

5. “It’s like super recycled.  It’s like even our inks are environmentally friendly.”

6. “I have quite a few theories on how companies can help their bands achieve greater success and stop just hemorrhaging money, but that’s not part of the question.  The reality is I have no idea.”

7. “There is going to be plenty of information out there and we’ll be giving out some crap, too, that people can take home with them.  It’ll be cool.”

8. “I think people get annoyed when they feel like it’s their responsibility to save the world, even though it kind of is our responsibility.”

9. “So, if you want to step out there and put your nuts on the line, go for it.  We’re all for it.”

10. Press conference moderator on Bennington: “Did we lose Chester again?”

Do you have the key? Here is a hint to unlock the current door on Heartagram.com

By Chris Faraone

There’s no better time to show off new tattoos and get your cleavage signed than the last Friday before school re-opens.

     Luckily, Linkin Park, My Chemical Romance and assorted emo heroes were at the Tweeter Center in Mansfield on Friday to facilitate such critical end-of-summer rituals at this stop on their Projekt Revolution tour.

     The motorcade rolled in early, with rising groups Madina Lake, The Bled and Mindless Self Indulgence cranking on the smaller “Revolution Village” stage.

     New York’s Taking Back Sunday earned its spot as Projekt Revolution’s most unique spectacle. Front man Adam Lazzara is so psychologically sideways that he can touch the emotionally disturbed demographic without jacking standard noise pop formulas and wearing makeup.

Judging by the number of kids wearing its T-shirts, My Chemical Romance was the tour’s main attraction. From the moment lead singer Gerard Way declared himself the “sheriff of Emo Town,” no pyrotechnic went unfired, and no teenage girl went silent. From the amphitheater-charging “Sharpest Lives” through the lighter “Father,” New Jersey’s dark princes unwound genuine rock pimp moments with raining flames and glitter to boot.

    While the emo tide has all but washed up the rock-hop wave that Linkin Park started riding 10 years ago, the two genres actually complement each other well. Linkin Park MC Mike Shinoda’s rhymes pierced the crowd’s collective consciousness.
    Shinoda and co-vocalist Chester Bennington might sport pretty-boy profiles, but their laments are the favored battle cries of suburban white kids everywhere. Even after nine hours in the sun, fans had energy saved to sing along to “In Pieces,” “Numb” and “Somewhere I Belong.”
    Sure, most teenage girls in the crowd came wearing My Chemical Romance apparel. But when Linkin Park’s mile-high LED blanket uncurled from the rafters to resounding roars, it was clear who most of the Projekt Revolutionaries on hand really came to see.
    LINKIN PARK, with MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE, TAKING BACK SUNDAY, HIM and others at the Tweeter Center, Mansfield, Friday night.

From last year's Toronto International Film Festival:

Actor/singer JARED LETO is thrilled his band 30 SECONDS TO MARS scooped an award at a recent rock ceremony because it proved they are now seen as a credible music act. Frontman Leto and his fellow bandmates won Best Single at Britain's Kerrang! Awards last Thursday (23Aug07). The band have struggled to be taken seriously in the past because of Leto's acting career - but they now believe things are changing. Leto says, "We've been working hard for a long time for people to accept the band. It's a wonderful feeling now they have."

Hollywood is good for business, including the tourism business in the UK. In a new report released today, locations used in many films such as the Harry Potter series are a big draw, and have led to a boost for the tourism industry, with fans flocking to locations such as Alnwick Castle in large numbers. The beautiful castle, used as a setting for Hogwarts, “led to a 120% rise in visitors to Northumberland’s Alnwick Castle, and had brought about £9m worth of tourism to the region,” reports the BBC.

Other locations in Scotland and England are also very popular, such as the King’s Cross train station in London (and popular with certain PotterCasters who paid a visit there in July). At this station, reports the Independent, there is a plaque marking “Platform nine and three quarters” in response to the huge visitor demand to know where schoolchildren heading for the Hogwarts school depart.” Settings used in not only the Harry Potter films, but others such as The Da Vinci Code, Braveheart, Pride and Prejudice (both the latest film version and the classic mini-series with Colin Firth), Monty Python and the Holy Grail, and hit tv series Monarch of the Glen have resulted in a boost to the UK economy “to the tune of £1.8bn,” and the trend is likely to continue.

“There are countless examples of visitors flocking to locations they’ve seen in films or on TV and the effect can last for years. Margaret Hodge, the minister for film and tourism, said it was “terrific” that the locations of successful fims were “becoming destinations in their own right as people seek to relive their favourite movie moments”.

You can learn more about traveling to these locations via the VisitScotland and, Visit Britain websites.

Earlier tonight at the 2007 Teen Choice Awards, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix walked away with the surfboard for Choice Summer Movie - Drama/Action Adventure. Other movies in the category included Fantastic 4: Rise of the Silver Surfer, Live Free or Die Hard, Transformers and the Bourne Ultimatum.

HOLLYWOOD - British theater casting directors are searching for the next Harry Potter to star in a musical based on the smash-hit books.

Producers are already working on a script for an all-singing, all-dancing show of J.K. Rowling's stories to open at London's West End next year.

Now a search is on for a young boy to take over the role from Daniel Radcliffe, who played the wizard on screen, as well as a big-name composer to write the music for the show.

A theater insider says, "The musical has the potential to be huge. You are already off to a head start with the most popular book of recent times. Everyone loves the characters and the mythical world Rowling has invented.

"The difficulty is condensing the seven books into a manageable show. They are exploring various ideas. One possibility is to tell the whole story. Another is to just take a single plot.

"The plan is for spectacular flying scenes, live Quidditch and big showdowns with Voldermort."

Aug-26-2007

Less than a year after snagging film star Daniel Radcliffe for a controversial play, it looks like Harry Potter himself is on his way to the theater district.

Producers are trying to piece together what they feel will be the ultimate Harry Potter musical, taking either aspects from all seven books or concentrating on a specific plot. And they expect to have it all ready to open to the public sometime in early 2008.

"The musical has the potential to be huge," a theater insider recently told Contact Music. "You are already off to a head start with the most popular book of recent times. Everyone loves the characters and the mythical world [author J.K. Rowling] has invented."

So the search is under way for who will play the bespectacled wizard along with some of the other popular characters like Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger.

"The difficulty is condensing the seven books into a manageable show," the source said, "They are exploring various ideas. The plan is for spectacular flying scenes, live Quidditch and big showdowns with Voldemort."

Of course, none of this has been confirmed by anyone officially in the theater biz, so it should be treated as any rumor would. Radcliffe, who has starred as Harry Potter in the last five movies, appeared in West End earlier this year in a highly controversial performance of "Equus." He is expected to appear in the final two Harry Potter movies that will be released by the end of the decade.

Check out an exclusive Silverchair interview with Daniel, Ben and Chris!

The guys recently sat down on the AT&T blue room couch and candidly chatted about the band “then and now”, their amazing career so far, songwriting and the making of their album “Young Modern”.

Been counting down the sleeps until you next see the band live? Well here is your instant gratification! You’ll also see exclusive live performances of “The Man That Knew Too Much”, “Young Modern Station” and “Reflections Of A Sound” recorded on the bands recent American leg of the “Young Modern World Tour”.

See it all at the AT&T blue room! Simply head to attblueroom.com/music 

John Kosik, The Associated Press

Wily veterans now in their late 20s - the Australian trio were all of 15 when they recorded their 1995 debut "Frogstomp" - Silverchair has again taken a huge leap in artistry and sophistication with its fifth long-player, "Young Modern."

Those who haven't heard much from the band over the years - its breakout hit "Tomorrow" was the most-played song on American modern rock radio in 1995 - should prepare for a real eye-opener.

Lead singer, guitarist and songwriter Daniel Johns' eloquent and passionate vocals are a far cry from his pubescent nasal wailing, and they compliment complex arrangements and crack rhythm from bassist Chris Joannou and drummer Ben Gillies.

Only the pulsating title track serves as a bona fide hard rock song, with a majority of the disc relying on acoustic guitars, piano and lush orchestration courtesy of Beach Boys and U2 collaborator Van Dyke Parks.

Highlights include a diverse three-part suite in "Those Thieving Birds," the light touch of "Reflections of a Sound" and "All Across the World," and the sweetly romantic "Waiting All Day."

After breaking nearly every record for an Australian recording artist, it might be time for a U.S. audience to rediscover Silverchair.

24/08/2007 16:24

 

 

"Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you. We never in a million years thought we'd win any award." Actor/rocker JARED LETO after his band 30 SECONDS FROM MARS were awarded the Best New Single Award at Thursday's (23Aug07) Kerrang Awards in London.

AUGUST 24, 2007 at 1:18 PM

In a lecture to fans recently, John Williams said "with confidence" that he thinks he will be back to score the final Harry Potter movie, according to a report.

Nicholas Hooper will score David Yates' Half-Blood Prince, due out next year. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is expected to be released in 2010.

AUGUST 24, 2007 at 8:45 PM

With filming to start on Harry Potter and Half-Blood Prince later next month comes news that some filming of the movie will take place at Lacock Abbey where scenes from the first two movies were filmed.

According to the article:

Production on the movie is scheduled to start in September and if you happen to be at any area when filming is taking place and you won't get into trouble, try and send HPANA some pictures, we would really appreciate it.

2 What is "A Beautiful Lie"?

A Beautiful Lie is a story riddled with pain, frustration, ambition, and ultimately purification. It’s a raw emotional journey. It’s a story of life, love, death, pain, joy and passion; what it is to be a human. It refers to the contradiction of life, basically, the contradictions of humanity.

"This record is written from the point of view of someone on the crossroads of life, someone who has to make really intense changes in order to move forward as a human being," Jared Leto said. "It's really about going to war, going to war with yourself and ultimately winning the battle. There are all kinds of metaphorical and different narrative elements that are cohesive, there's lots of continuity throughout the album thematically. I used a lot of very strong, violent imagery to represent an internal struggle. So 'Attack' and 'The Kill' (are) about very violent, emotional situations."

3 What's it like going from being an actor to a musician? / Which do you like better?

Jared: "Right now music is definitely the priority. Thankfully, it's a very busy time and we are having an incredible experience out here on the road. We have been touring for about two years straight in support of A Beautiful Lie, the only exception was when I madea film called Chapter 27 last January for 6 weeks. When I make a film I shut off and focus on that completely so it doesn't feel so much like a clash, but it is difficult to find time to do both. A lot of people ask me what I like better or what would I choose if I had to, butI don't look at myself as an actor making music or a musician wanting to act; I love doing bothand I am very gratefulfor the opportunities."

 

4 How do you describe your music?

“The songs Jared writes are purely from the soul – they’re the real deal. And we all get to be a part of that. It’s a real band, not in any way contrived,” Tomo says.

Jared: “The songs constantly are evolving and having played them for about 2 years now they have taken a life of their own. There’s something about songs that’s very much like a living, breathing organism, and as you change, they change, we’re constantly defining and redefining how we present the songs at the shows. And I feel, as the rest of the band does, very fulfilled playing the songs live. It’s a definitely unique and wonderful opportunity.”“Everything on this album is about real human experience. That is the single most inspiring source for us, the human struggle. Lyrically, it's a very personal album that sometimes uses otherworldly elements and/or conceptual ideas to illustrate a truthful personal situation. I think there are enough people singing about their girlfriends or their dads and doing a pretty good job of it. I prefer to look to other sources for inspiration.”

This is something I thought a lot about while we were making the music because it's conceptual, in a sense. I hate to use that word because it's so misappropriated and misused these days and it kind of smells of sudden death. There are definitely common themes and narratives shared from song to song. Like I said, it doesn't exist in the same way that a singles-driven band might. To me, 30 Seconds To Mars is dynamic, atmospheric, melodic, lyrical and at times, hopefully, challenging. It's something that has substance and power.

 

 

EMO eller ej, de ser en smule moody ud.

 

5 Who are the Echelon?

Echelon is a 30 Seconds To Mars street team, which helps in bringing friends to the shows, convincing fans to buy band merchandise, phoning local radio stations to request the band's songs, putting up posters, posting to band forums or related bulletin boards online, and maintaining zines or websites dedicated to the band. It is also a name of one of their songs from the debut the album "30 Seconds To Mars".

6 What happened to Matt? / Where did you find Tim? / Is Tim in the band?
Matt was the bass player for 30 Seconds To Mars from 2001 to 2007. His last show in the band was on March 1 in El Paso, Texas. He left to spend more time with his family back at home in California. Tim Kelleher is the new touring bass player. He was formerly with a band called My Darling Murder.

7 When did the band start making music?

Shannon: “It’s been kind of happening all of our lives. I started by banging on pots and pans, and he started playing guitar at a very young age. It just kind of progressed throughout our lives. I remember sitting in my bedroom, I set up this kit in my room, and he had this Marshall amp and a guitar. It was 1996 or so. We were talking and decided that we wanted to share this performance with other people. So we brought in a bass player. In no time, we were playing outside L.A., in venues, under different names. We wouldn’t have the same name, we would pick random names, so no one would attach themselves to it. We just wanted to play in front of people.”

8 Do you get along with your brother? / What's it like having your brother on tour?

The band grew out of Jared Leto's musical experimentation with his older brother Shannon, who's been playing drums since he was a child. But Leto insists Shannon isn't in the band because he's the movie star's brother, he's there because he's got the chops.
"The best part is I get to play with such an incredibly talented drummer," Leto said of his brother. "If he wasn't such a great drummer, we wouldn't be playing together."

9 How do you come up with the ideas for the songs?

Jared: “I find that I learn and am inspired by all kinds of different experiences in my life. Sometimes, the process of writing 30 Seconds To Mars material causes me to look from the outside in, sometimes from the inside out. It depends on what my intentionis.”

“I usually have an idea of what were going to do first, and we’ll flesh it out; sometimes on the acoustic, sometimes on the computer. Sometimes I’ll finish an idea almost in its entirety, but my brother Shannon always improves upon what I do with the rhythmic elements. The rest of the band contributed a lot on A Beautiful Lie, unlike the first record, where it was me playing all the instruments and my brother playing live drums. I still write all the songs, but I have the other guys there to play bass and guitar on the songs as well.”

“The songs Jared writes are purely from the soul – they’re the real deal. And we all get to be a part of that. It’s a real band, not in any way contrived,” Tomo says. (YRB cover story)

10 What do the symbols mean?

Jared: “We have always been interested in iconographic images, signs, and symbols, and their relationship to cultures. We have 4 symbols called GLYPHICS that represent different elements in our band.”

1st Symbol - intertwined 3's standing for 30.

2nd Symbol - Clock Hands pointing counter clockwise supposed to mean seconds.

3rd Symbol - An inverted Roman Numeral of 2 (to)

4th Symbol - Drawing of Mars.The). two dots represent Phobos and Diemos, Mars' moons

11 Would you consider yourselves an emo band? Do you categorize yourself in that category?

“No, we're simply a rock band.”

 

 

Related Groups: Jared Leto, [Echelon]

August 25, 2007, 07:05 PM

Tonight, a documentary special was broadcast on the BBC, calle “British Film Forever: Magic, Murder and Monsters,” and this included a small segment on the Harry Potter films. Thanks to our Order partner RupertGrint.net, you can now watch this segment here, which includes new interviews with Rupert Grint (Ron Weasley) and Timothy Spall (Peter Pettigrew), as well as comments from actress Mischa Barton.

HANOI (AFP) - Police were called in to control an unruly crowd of Vietnamese Harry Potter fans who were jostling for free tickets for a showing of the boy wizard's new movie, a cinema employee said Friday.

A crowd of fans mobbed a cinema ticket counter in downtown Ho Chi Minh City on Wednesday which had offered 500 free tickets for an advance screening of "Harry Porter and the Order of the Phoenix" next Friday, August 31.

"Thousands of people queued from 5am to try to get one of the 500 free tickets," said Tran Dang Ngoc My of the Thien Ngan Galaxy cinema. "The situation was really chaotic. Police had to intervene to maintain order."

The cinema soon decided to give away another 500 tickets for a second daytime screening next Friday before the movie officially premieres that night.

After the 1,000th ticket was handed out, police had to disperse the other disappointed fans, local media reported. There were no injuries or arrests.

Enlarge photo

Unsigned band Enter Shikari were double winners at the Kerrang! Awards.

The foursome from St Albans were named Best Live Band and also picked up the Spirit of Independence Award.

Enter Shikari have enjoyed a meteoric rise in the past year despite having no record deal. They released debut album Take To The Skies in March on their own record label and saw it reach number four in the chart.

The metal band formed four years ago and recorded their early material in the bass player's garage, which he converted into a makeshift studio.

With the fathers of two band members acting as their managers, they built up their fanbase through MySpace and sold CDs at gigs, which they travelled to in a converted Post Office van. Last year they became only the second unsigned act to sell out the 2,000-capacity Astoria in London.

They have turned down recent offers of record deals with major labels, but do have a publishing deal with Universal - which funds their distribution and marketing.

The Kerrang! Awards were hosted by Scott Ian of Anthrax and held at the Brewery in London's East End.

My Chemical Romance had been nominated in four categories but came away with just one award, Best International Band.

Welsh rockers Lostprophets were named Best British Band for the second year running.

Best British Newcomer went to Watford band Gallows, and Best Single was 30 Seconds To Mars by The Kill, fronted by Hollywood actor Jared Leto.

The rock hotbed of Hertfordshire triumphed over the forces of “emo”, the latest parent-worrying strand of US metal, as Enter Shikari celebrated victory at the Kerrang! awards.

The St Albans band, who mix ear-shredding rock with techno beats, have built a cult teenage fanbase while remaining independent of the main-stream music industry.

Building a “buzz” through websites such as MySpace, the band self-re-leased their debut album (with a little administrative help from their parents). DayGlo fans in hoodies flock to the band’s sold-out shows.

Enter Shikari took the Best Live Act and Spirit of Independence awards at the metal magazine’s awards, held last night at The Brewery, East London.

They outshone My Chemical Romance, black-clad leaders of the emo scene, whose songs about dying cancer patients have topped the pop charts. The New Jersey group settled for the Best International Band award. Britain is enjoying a revival in “hard-core” metal as younger fans seek an alternative to the radio-friendly sounds of Kaiser Chiefs and Razor-light.

Another Hertfordshire band, the generously tattooed Gallows, who claim to be the loudest band in the world, achieving 132.5 decibels, took the Best British Newcomer award. The Watford quintet, a big attraction at this weekend’s Reading and Leeds Festivals, were rewarded with a £1 million Warner Bros record contract and are already making waves in the United States.

Welsh arena rockers Lostprophets were named Best British Band, while Birmingham “metal gods” Judas Priest were inducted into the Kerrang! Hall of Fame. The actor-turned-rocker Jared Leto accepted Best Single with his band 30 Seconds To Mars. Juliette Lewis presented the influential US “industrial” band Nine Inch Nails with an Icon award.

By: Don Kaye

Daughtry's concert at the Red Rocks Casino in Las Vegas on Thursday night (August 23rd) will be taped by AOL Music Live!, which will stream the complete performance eight days later on August 31st. The band led by former American Idol contestant Chris Daughtry continues to tour in support of its multi-platinum self-titled debut, with headlining dates booked well into November. Daughtry will also join My Chemical Romance and other acts as openers for Bon Jovi during the latter band's inaugural stand at Newark, New Jersey's new Prudential Center from October 25th through November 10th.

Chris Daughtry said in a statement, "It is a double honor to be part of the opening of the Prudential Center and to perform with New Jersey's very own Bon Jovi, who have been a personal inspiration and who we have the utmost respect and admiration for."

In other online concert news, Wednesday's (August 22nd) Projekt Revolution stop in Clarkston, Michigan was streamed live in its six-hour entirety on MySpace, making it the longest live stream in the site's history. The event included performances from Linkin Park, H.I.M., My Chemical Romance and others. MySpace is one of the sponsors of the Projekt Revolution traveling festival.

Welsh rock band LOSTPROPHETS are celebrating after they were named Best British Band at the Kerrang! Awards on Thursday night (23Aug07). The rockers have now won the award two years in a row after beating Muse, Enter Shikari, Biffy Clyro and Funeral For A Friend to the title. Elsewhere at the London award ceremony, MAChine Head's The Blackening claimed Best Album honours, actor Jared Leto's group 30 Seconds To Mars won Best Single for The Kill, and My Chemical Romance scooped up the Best International Band award. Rising rock band Enter Shikari won Best Live Band and the Spirit of Independence Award. Judas Priest took home the night's Hall of Fame honour, while Nine Inch Nails received the Icon Award from actress/rocker Juliette Lewis.

AUGUST 23, 2007 at 10:30 AM

Daniel Radcliffe from the Harry Potter series will be doing publicity in the U.S., UK and Australia for his upcoming movie December Boys in the coming weeks and a list of scheduled events and interviews has appeared online.

Dan will be a guest on the Live with Regis & Kelly, Rachel Ray Show, the Tonight with Jay Leno show and the Jimmy Kimmel Live show in the U.S., to name a few. You can keep up-to-date with his appearances on shows in the States by going here as the lists of guest appearances are updated weekly.

There will be two premieres for the movie, September 9th in Melbourne at the Rivoli Cinemas in Camberwell and on September 11th at Hoyts, the Entertainment Quarter. Additional interviews with Dan and Australian media we appear shortly thereafter.

You can go here and here for the complete lists on the publicity tour for December Boys which includes media screening information.

The movie opens in the U.S. on September 14 in limited release, and nationwide on September 28. Additional release dates will be announced shortly.

AUGUST 23, 2007 at 2:29 PM

This past weekend Harry Potter actors Rupert Grint (Ron Weasley), Oliver Phelps (George Weasley), and Tiana Benjamin (Angelina Johnson) attended this year's V Festival in England and pictures and video from the event are online.

Also while at the event Rupert had a quick chat with Jo Whiley for her radio show on BBC1. During the interview Rupert mentions that the cast has had a read-through of the Half-Blood Prince movie script:

The interview is in real player and located under Monday under "Listen Again." Rupert is at the 21 minute mark.

August 23, 2007,

Previously we told you about the Open Book Tour author J.K. Rowling would be undertaking this fall here in the United States, making three appearances for school children only at schools in Los Angeles, New Orleans, and New York City. She will also be appearing at Carnegie Hall in New York on Friday October 19 at 7pm, and as a reminder, tickets for this stop are available to the public via a special sweepstakes which will close in one week on August 31.

Scholastic has now updated with information that Jo will be reading from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows at the event in NYC, and ” will answer questions about the entire series. Following the reading and Q & A, Ms. Rowling will be signing books for audience members. In order to make sure that she is able to sign a book for everybody, she will only sign one book per person. Each person will receive a copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, but, if an audience member chooses to bring a favorite copy of any book in the series, Ms. Rowling will sign that instead.”

Aug 23, 2:51 PM ET

 

Reuters Photo: A Barnes and Noble store in an undated file photo. Barnes and...

NEW YORK (AFP) - Barnes & Noble, Inc., the world's biggest bookseller, revealed Wednesday that Harry Potter's magic had helped boost its second quarter profit to over 18 million dollars.

The giant bookseller said editions of British author J.K. Rowling's "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" book had flown off its shelves, driving profits up in the most recent quarter.

The US chain said it sold 1.7 million copies of the book in its stores and a further 400,000 online as of August 4.

"Record breaking sales from J.K. Rowling's 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows' was the principal driver behind our comparable store sales growth in the quarter," said Barnes & Noble chief executive Steve Riggio.

The seventh and final Harry Potter book has enjoyed the worldwide success garnered by the earlier stories depicting the adventures of a boy wizard by Rowling. Sales of the book have made Rowling a billionaire.

Barnes & Noble reported a second quarter net profit of 18.1 million dollars and a 7.6 percent spike in sales to 1.2 billion dollars.

Other top-selling titles during the quarter included "The Reagan Diaries," Al Gore's "The Assault on Reason," and "A Thousand Splendid Suns" by Khaled Hosseini.

August 24, 2007

Barnes & Noble, the world’s largest bookseller, said yesterday that second-quarter profit rose 8.9 percent as demand for the latest Harry Potter book produced the fastest revenue growth in almost three years.

The company, which is based in New York, also raised its annual earnings forecast.

Barnes & Noble slashed prices on J. K. Rowling’s “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” by 40 percent in the first week after its release on July 21 to lure customers into stores, and by 30 percent after that. The discounts narrowed operating margins, and, excluding a tax gain, profit dropped, the company said.

Barnes & Noble said net income increased to $18.1 million, or 26 cents a share, for the second quarter through Aug. 4, from $16.6 million, or 24 cents a share, a year earlier. Sales advanced 7.6 percent, to $1.24 billion.

Excluding some items, Barnes & Noble said it would have earned 12 cents a share.

Barnes & Noble increased its annual profit forecast to $1.69 to $1.87 a share because of an income tax benefit, lower-than-expected costs to close a distribution center and stock buybacks. Previously it expected $1.49 to $1.67 a share.

Barnes & Noble shares increased 90 cents, or 2.58 percent, to $35.82.

August 23 2007

My Chemical Romance singer Gerard Way has produced his first comic book called The Umbrella Man.

Talking about his latest venture the 'Black Parade' singer told NME: "This is the kind of superhero book that needs to exist and they don't exist anymore. I want to do work that pushes the boundary and I want people to love it.

"I hope it gets people into comic store who normally wouldn't go there. That's a success to me."

The rocker added: "That's why I'm finally happy to talk about it in music magazines, because the point is to show people how much great stuff is out there. Comics are a struggling art form. I'm psyched about it."

Way worked with artist Gabriel Ba on the comics, which are released on September 19 and are published by Dark Horse Comics.

The singer's graphic novels reportedly chart the adventures of seven troubled superheroes who try to save the planet under the tutorship of a character named Dr. Reginald Hargreeves.

In the book "H.I.M. - His Infernal Majesty", author Reinhardt Haydn recounts the full story of the band's rise from a Helsinki covers group to 'global rock phenomenon' as the press release puts it. Expect a wealth of interviews and anecdotes plus exclusive images of this highly visual band. In addition to global albums sales in excess of 3 million copies, frontman Ville Valo is regularly featured in Kerrang! and other popular rock magazines. The band's most recent studio album "Dark Light" was a Top Twenty hit in the UK and their follow up, "Venus Doom", is scheduled for release on 17 September 2007. After reading the manuscript of "His Infernal Majesty", the band's management granted permission for the patented 'Heartagram' logo to be used throughout the book. The book holds 128 pages and 80 colour photos and is published by Plexus.

23 Aug, 2007

Check out the new poll on HIM's mobile website! Go to him.mobileplay.com from your mobile phone to answer "What Was the first single that HIM changed their name from 'His Infernal Majesty'?".

See EXCLUSIVE stills from the new video & join HIM'S MOBILE COMMUNITY

by Adam Graham

August 22, 2007

Reprise

My Chemical Romance

 

Here's some news to make any My Chemical Romance fan wear black, if they weren't already: Gerard Way says there won't be another MCR album for quite awhile.

"I think it will be a couple of years before there's another record," says the MCR frontman, on the phone from New York last week. "I would say about 2009."

Cue the tear-smeared eyeliner.

Way says the band will go on a hiatus of sorts "to really evaluate what the band is, to reshape it yet again," following its 2006 epic "The Black Parade." That album, an ambitious rock opera about life, death, hope and fear, established the New Jersey five-piece as one of today's most ambitious and grandiose bands.

But don't fret yet -- touring commitments will keep the band on the road for the better part of the next year, and the band plays DTE Energy Music Theatre tonight as part of Linkin Park's Projekt Revolution tour.

The pairing of the rap-rockers and MCR doesn't seem natural at first -- don't Linkin Park fans beat up My Chem fans? -- but Way says the billing is logical.

"Along the lines of their new material, I think it makes a lot of sense," says Way, 30. "I think they took a giant risk and, creatively, they really pushed themselves, and I think they desired the same things out of this record we desired out of ours."

To wit, Way saw "The Black Parade," which has sold 1.2 million copies in the U.S., as a way to achieve "total separation from us and a lot of modern music, especially a lot of genre-specific modern music." (He means emo, which he calls "garbage.")

Mission accomplished.

"The Black Parade," MCR's third album and the follow-up to 2004's "Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge," was one of 2006's most acclaimed releases, combining classic and modern-rock sensibilities. Equal parts Bowie, Queen, Green Day and Broadway, it put them on a plain altogether different from their peers.

Like most of MCR's output, it is death-obsessed, a byproduct of Way's Catholic upbringing.

But Way says, "I might be through with that subject." He looks forward to refocusing the band "and come back with completely fresh ears and say, 'What do we now want to say?'"

Meantime, Way says what he wants in his new Dark Horse comic "The Umbrella Academy," a six-parter that debuts Sept. 19. It follows seven children raised by a space alien to save the world. Way describes it as "The Doom Patrol" meets "The Royal Tenenbaums."

He's writing it on tour, where he says he and his band have got a second wind after nearly bottoming out last winter. He hopes the energy carries through to the band's next record, a long way off though it may be.

"You make a record if you have something to say," Way says, in between puffs on a cigarette. "And I think I have at least one more great thing to say."

Why do I see Bandwidth Exceeded instead of my images on MySpace (or other website)?



If you have a Photobucket account, log in and click on 'account options'.

-Scroll down the page to 'Account Dashboard' and check your Monthly Bandwidth.

-If it has exceeded - that is why the logo has replaced your images.

-When you 'go pro' or when your monthly anniversary date arrives this will reset to zero and your images will reappear.

-If you have not exceeded this allowance or you are not a Photobucket member then you probably have an image incorporated in your MySpace background (or other website) that is hosted in a Photobucket members album which has exceeded this allowance. Simply disable that image and the logo will go away.

To avoid this please consider going 'pro' - this will change your account to having unmetered bandwidth and you will likely never have this problem again.

If you are not a Photobucket member, please consider joining and using your own account to host the images you wish to display around the web.

Why do I see red 'x's instead of my images, on a webpage that I posted them on?



First, check the Photobucket Blog to see if there is maintenance or upgrades currently happening. Most maintenance activity on the Photobucket site does not affect images displayed via direct links. However, there are limited times when all links may temporarily be disabled during a maintenance window.


One of the main reasons the red 'x' may be displayed instead of your image is when an image has been moved in your album to a different sub album or deleted from your album altogether. Moving or deleting the image will break any links, and the image will no longer work.

Some users with Firefox/Mozilla browsers also have problems, depending on what extensions they have installed. There is additional information on Firefox settings within the Photobucket Forums.

Which Finnish artists do you want to compete for the prestigious award "Best Finnish Act" at this year's MTV Europe Music Awards?

Now YOU have the chance to vote to decide which five acts will make it to the finals!

All you have to do is to check out the list below and start voting!

On November 1, 2007, the 14th MTV Europe Music Awards will be held in Munich, Germany!

 

Click Here to vote 

August 22, 2007,

Actor Rupert Grint has made a few public appearances lately, attending the popular V festival concert in the UK (photos here), as well as appearing on the Jo Whiley Radio Show. Thanks to our Order parter RupertGrint.net, we now know that during the radio interview which was broadcast on BBC Radio, Rupert spoke about the upcoming sixth Harry Potter film, which is due to begin filming next month. Rupert is quoted as saying:

We sort of read the script through. We got all the cast to come around to read the script and we’ll be filming it for another year so.. Ron’s got a girlfriend in this one. It’s a little bit more intense for him! [laughs] So it should be fun!”

To listen to this interview, click here, select Monday under where it says “Listen Again.” Rupert talks about the HBP film just after the 21:00 mark on the player. Also be sure to check out a very funny interview taped with Rupert at the V festival concert, where Rupert shows us a very cool jacket that has …goggles (rather useful too for Quidditch). Enjoy!

Washington, August 21 (ANI): Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and Spider-Man 3 have been nominated for a number of awards at Britain's inaugural National Movie Awards. U.K.

Following the success of the National Television Awards (NTA), TV network ITV is launching an annual award ceremony to honour the year's most successful films at the U.K. box office.

Similar to the NTA, the winners for various categories, including best family film, best action film, best comedy and best animation, will be chosen by the public via voting, reports Contactmusic.

Actresses up for the Best Actress award include Keira Knightley (Pirates Of The Caribbean: At World's End), Kirsten Dunst (Spider-Man 3), Emma Watson (Harry Potter), Megan Fox (Transformers), Eva Green and Dame Judi Dench (Casino Royale).

Best actor nominees include Bruce Willis (Live Free Or Die Hard), Daniel Craig (Casino Royale), Shia LeBeouf (Transformers), Tobey Maguire (Spider-Man 3), Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom (Pirates Of The Caribbean: At World's End), Rupert Grint and Daniel Racliffe (Harry Potter).

Meanwhile Flushed Away, Happy Feet, Shrek The Third and The Simpsons Movie have been nominated for Best Animation.

The first National Movie Awards will be held at London's Royal Festival Hall on Sept 28 and will be broadcasted on ITV1 the following night. (ANI)

August 21, 2007

For Harry Potter fans, the publication of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" brought joy and sadness in the conclusion of the J.K. Rowling series.

A Rutgers University-Camden children's literature expert will put the series into a larger context and offer suggestions on what Potter fans could read next during a free lecture at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 18.

J.T. Barbarese, an associate professor of English at Rutgers-Camden, will talk about how the final installment fares with previous books in the series, as well as with classics in children's literature.

Barbarese will also provide insight on whether Potter fans will continue to feed their reading frenzy and what books could possibly fill the void.

Barbarese has incorporated Rowling's series into his children's literature courses at Rutgers-Camden, where he also teaches creative writing in fiction and poetry.

This free event will be held at Barnes & Noble, 200 West Route 70, Marlton.

Ages 8 and under will be judged in the Gryffindor category, while ages 9-12 will compete in the Hufflepuff. Ravenclaw will be reserved for ages 13-15 and Slytherin for ages 16 and up.

An unlimited amount of vouchers will be sold, but receiving a voucher does not mean customers will get the book.

The franchise location is allowed only an undisclosed amount of copies for the release.

Ashley Herrick, 20, is a fan of the Harry Potter series because of the details used throughout each book. A Hammond resident and LSU student, she said she has read all six books of the series, and recently returned from a 10-month stint in Swansea, Wales of the United Kingdom.

Herrick said she has a new appreciation for the books after living in the U.K.

“When you live in Wales, you begin to better understand the books,” Herrick said. “When I look back at the other books, I better understand them because of my understanding of the setting.”

Herrick said she does not intend to participate in Friday nights festivities, but she does plan to buy the book as soon as possible.

“It's the last one,” Herrick said. “Everyone wants to know if Harry is going to die. They say he is going to die because people would write spin-offs if he lived.”

J.K. Rowling's fantasy series has sold more than 325 million copies worldwide, but not all readers enjoy the books characters.

“There is too much witch craft,” Bria Sims, 13, said of Kentwood. “It's boring. There is too much evil spirits. There is just a little too much fantasy for me.”

Gerard Way, lead vocalist of My Chemical Romance, says of the song in an interview with Kerrang:

"It's a commentary on kids being viewed as meat; by the government and by society. That's how I felt in school, and after 9/11 happened that's how I felt in general. It's very important that this song is here because I always viewed this as about these kids in the parade who had killed themselves, who had made a big mistake. It's a very powerful song."

In "Teenagers," My Chemical Romance depict current society as one in which teenagers are watched for any inkling of getting out of line with enforced norms. They are seen as simply fodder for advancing the goals of adults in power. The response, according to the song, is violence. It's a warning and explanation that have been made before, but rarely so directly in mass popular culture.

My Chemical Romance come forward as a band attempting to cast light into the dark corners of teenage experience and bring things forward to help keep kids from making big mistakes. At the same time, the music is often intense, catchy, and, yes, fun. Listen to "Teenagers" a few times and you may find yourself shouting along "Teenagers scare the living s**t out of me!"

8/20/2007

 

by : Angela Gattuso

 

 

more: : Angela Gattuso with Jared Leto

           : Angela Gattuso with Shannon Leto

A crowd surfer may have fallen on me but...yeah, it was the best concert that graced the summer months of my concert going addiction. It was about two o'clock on Friday, July 14 of 2006 when my best friend Rachael and I pulled into the grounds of the Pepsi Center. By that time, the sports had already begun. You may be asking yourself, sports? Why is she talking about sports? When we entered the gates that hot July day, we entered the Right Guard Open Dew Action Sports Tour. Were we there for the sports though? Absolutely not, we were there for the evening entertainment; a band that we together were building an obsession over: 30 Seconds To Mars.

We each handed our ticket to a crew member at the gates. She ripped our tickets and stepped aside, revealing the way to vast heat-soaked asphalt being trampled by hundreds of teenagers and young adults. Wide-eyed we walked across the parking lot absorbing each and every sound, smell, and sight. For months we had been waiting for this day to come, and now it was here and we were apart of it. Sun pounded onto our already glistening faces as we headed towards the Pepsi Center itself to explore further and ultimately to cool down. After some meandering and a following of the crowds we came to the arena, where we found two huge ramps ridden with bicyclists and our well sought for air conditioning. Going back and forth between the arena and the outside sports and vendors made up our day as we waited for the sun to set and for "our boys" to take the stage. With about three hours until the real show started (at least for us) we found ourselves sitting outside in the bleachers watching still more bicyclists. Flipping through the free tour pamphlet, I discovered that we had missed the chance to meet 30 Seconds To Mars at a vendor tent earlier that day. Shocked with anger and disappointment, we could do nothing more than shrug it off. Soon after the tragic discovery, we headed to the other side of the grounds to the gates of the concert tent, where the real excitement and adventure of concert going began.

Other small groups of fans were already sitting outside the tented venue when we arrived. Still though did we find ourselves five to ten people back from the doors that led to what we had been waiting for. Rachael left some time later to get food and drink from the gas station across the way; I manned the base. At her return we together indulged in mustard pretzels and a large cherry slushie. For a good two hours or so we invested in hundreds of random and creative conversations, one of the funniest and most memorable traditions of our concert going. As time passed and the bag of pretzels emptied and the slushie was slurped down, more and more people began to add themselves to the quickly elongating line. Then finally the time came; the doors opened. A wave of excitement again washed over us as we literally ran to our destination of front and center stage. Time seemed to slow as we dashed people and objects...until through the haze of it all we were hit with the voice of a staff member exclaiming, "Walk girls!" And so time again returned to it's normal speed as we power walked our way over to the stage as fast as we could without breaking into yet another run. About one or two feet from the barrier at center stage we then sat with the others and began our next wait: the hour until the show started. Random conversations were again ensued until the concert "host" came out and finally the show began. Two enjoyable opening bands played sets and we were already finding ourselves hot in the crowd. It was the last set change and soon the band we had been waiting all day for would take the stage. Getting ready for the chaos to take place, I tied my hair up and rolled my pants up as best I could given the tiny bit of room I had. It was minutes to show time and we found ourselves in the perfect spot of a packed audience: front and center about three feet away from the stage. Then out of nowhere it began, the lights dimmed and the famous "O Fortuna" started to play from the speakers. As the intensity of the song mounted, so did my excitement. The first time I saw them in concert, not long before this, the same "O Fortuna" was played as their entrance song, and I loved it. Again as it played it built up the anticipation for the moment the members would step onto the stage. One by one, each of the members made their entrance. Matt Wachter on bass, Tomo Milicevic on lead guitar, Shannon Leto on drums, and finally, Jared Leto on second guitar and lead vocals. Now the concert truly had begun.

Cameras flew over our heads as song after song was lashed out from the stage. The whole concert was being filmed for live television as part of the sports event. Sure the cameras were fun, but the music is what really blew us away. We were taking part in the music of one of our favorite bands while they themselves were literally right in front out our faces. Numerous times was front man Jared Leto singing into the crowd right at us. Sure there was hundreds of people around me, but it seemed like every time we were making eye contact. From "Buddha For Mary" to "From Yesterday," songs old and new were played throughout the night. The songs weren't just played though, they were communicated. High energy was pouring out of the theatre as every person in that audience seemed to sing along with each and every lyric. During "The Kill," Jared Leto even dared to climb the support ladders holding up the tent. About 30 feet above the audience he startled a rung and let his vocals soar. Intensity built as he motioned for the crowd below to get ready for his jump. Then he did it, he jumped from 30 feet up into the fans beneath him, their arms stretched out ready for his aerial arrival. Further more, crowd surfers were constantly floating their way up the front of the stage over our heads. Being only 4'11", Rachael tried her best to warn me when yet another body would be flying over. It was a great system in the working for us...until one of them escaped. As the music continued, the chaos level increased and we were slowly being pushed towards the left end of the stage. At some point in our involuntary movement, an escaped crowd surfer swiftly made his way up and then suddenly fell on me. I got crushed and he fell straight into the floor, but everyone around us was sure to rapidly help in getting him up. I had some pains here and there and may have lost and earing or two but hey, what else can you expect when at a concert? The concert was coming to a close by the time we had been pushed almost completely out to the side of the crowd. Rachael and I decided to move out and catch some fresh air outside of the audience in the unused seats surrounding the standing crowd. We sat and listened and watched on the big screen as Jared Leto covered every inch of the stage in entertainment. This is when we started thinking. Before the show started we were informed that after the show, with the purchase of any band merchandise, you would be able to meet the band. The deal was the same at the last show we saw them at, but we didn't even bother considering it then. At concerts the way to truly meet bands is it sit around outside in the back of the theatre with a dozen or so other fans for a good hour or more, regardless of the weather, and wait for the band to come out. Both of us seemed to push that thought of tradition to the back of our minds though as we began to talk about whether we should take the cheater way out so we could meet the guys. With little time left until the end of the show we came to a decision: we were going to do it. It did feel wrong to meet a band this way, but we had had the time of our lives and decided, what the heck? Let's do it.

We left early to get to the meet and greet line...or so we thought. After leaving the crowd during what turned out to be the last song, we found that apparently others were thinking just like us and got to the line way in advance; we were lucky we left the concert when we did. Shirts and their newest CD, "A Beautiful Lie," filled up the merchandise tent. Now I already had a copy of their second CD, but the shirts were too much to consider, so I ended up buying yet another copy of "A Beautiful Lie." In the end, so did Rachael. So with our copies of the disk we walked to the back of the long, winding line and began yet another wait. We unwrapped our CD's and allowed for the random conversations to take their course. In the midst of some topic or another, the cheers began from the front of the line. This was it, it was time to meet the band.

Now I've met my fair share of bands and musicians, but for Rachael, this was a first. As the line got shorter we both got excited, but nervous. When you're not used to it, or even when have had your experience, meeting a band is a hard thing to do. You think they're the coolest people in the world and you absolutely love their music, and now you're about to confront them. What do I say? What do I do? These questions seemed to have rushed over Rachael's thoughts as she told me as we got ever closer, "You go first." With a chuckle I agreed that I would go first. After a set of fresh deep breaths, it was my turn to step up to the table. First seated was drummer Shannon Leto. He's the brother of front man Jared Leto and a small role movie actor. I stepped up and with a smile and literally, and accidently, threw my CD pamphlet on the table for him to sign. It slid across the table and was about to either fall off or slide right into him seconds before he caught it. At this point I felt like an idiot for throwing paper at the drummer of one of my favorite bands. He just smiled though and asked how I was doing and commented on my shirt. After some small talk and getting his autograph, it was time to move onto the next member of the band: Tomo Milicevic, lead guitarist. I looked down at him and he gave a little smile and proceeded to sign my CD booklet. There was a slight hold up in the line and I was about to move along. Last minute though I built up my courage and turned to him and exclaimed, "Oh! I really like the Manson shirt you had on at your last show!" For most people this would have been an extremely bizarre comment, seeing as in saying "Manson," I was referring to cult leader Charles Manson. What was the first and last time I saw the band in concert, and in many pictures of the band that I had seen, Tomo had on the same shirt largely displaying the face of Charles Manson. He looked up at with a smile and gave a little chuckle as he motioned with a single finger for me to come closer. Confused, I bent over the table as he too stood up and bent over his side the table, meeting me in the middle. With his head right next to mine he whispered into my ear something along the lines of how he couldn't wear it that night because the performance was filmed on live television. As he stepped back a bit, I too returned to a normal standing position as a smile began to form on my face. I looked at him with a smile, laughed, and let out an "Ooohh" of understanding and amusement. He just looked right back at me and smiled and too shook his head in an understanding. Slightly shaken to what had just happened to me, I moved on to Matt Wachter, bass player. We simply just smiled at each other and I moved on. Now it was time for me to meet the last and final member of the band: Jared Leto. Not only is Jared Leto a great, talented musician and a nice guy, but he is also a Hollywood actor. Starting his career on 1994 television show "My So Called Life," he later became an actor in many movies. You may be thinking right now that OK, he's an actor, but I don't know that name; I haven't seen any of his movies. "Fight Club," "Highway," "Requiem For A Dream," "Alexander, " "Sunset Strip," and "Lord of War" are all just some of the movies Jared Leto has been apart of, cast in both small and big rolls. Now you tell me that you haven't seen any of his movies. As if him being the lead singer of an amazing band and being an actor wasn't enough, the man is gorgeous. Big blue eyes and a cute little round nose only complement is built body and ever so young looking figure. I told myself to just be calm and cool as I stepped up to him. After each of us asked how each other was doing, he signed my booklet and looked up. I decided that now or never was my chance, and so I sucked it up and stuck out my hand to shake his. He looked at it with his head slightly turned for what seemed minutes. I didn't know what to do. Did he not want to shake my hand? Was he confused as to what I was doing? Finally, he took my hand in both of his and allowed it to rest on the table. Relieved, I told him that it was great to meet him and that it was an amazing, great show. As he continued to hold my hand, he said his thanks and how he was glad that I came out and enjoyed the show. He then asked me if they would be seeing me that next week at Warped Tour. At that time I already knew that I wasn't going to Warped Tour that year, but from the shock of what was taking place, I instead simply shook my head "yes" and smiled as I told him, "absolutely." I lied to Jared Leto. Later on I couldn't get over it, I had lied to Jared Leto. So I didn't go to Warped Tour, but since then I have seen them two separate times, so I figure he can't be too mad, right? It turned out Rachael did great meeting rock starts for the first time. Like me with Shannon, she did have her silly, nervous, awkward mess up moments though. Ask either of us if it was worth it though, and without hesitation we'll both say absolutely.

So with that we concluded our long day and night of 30 Seconds To Mars jam-packed action. It was a night that both of us will remember for the rest of our lives, as cliche as it may sound. That night we both got a higher appreciation for the band, as well as built an even bigger obsession with them. In September of that year, on her eighteenth birthday, Rachael even got the band glyphs tattooed on her wrist. I haven't gone that far, but my Jared Leto movie collection has grown, I now own three copies of their second CD alone, and have seen them two additional times live, one of which did I meet the Leto brothers for a second time, that time getting my picture taken with each of them. Every summer concert I went to that year, and each year before and after that one, was something to remember. From getting to the show hours before the doors open, to the performance itself, to waiting outside in insane weather to meet the band, every concert has a story worth telling. This summer concert though ranks in the top of a good couple of dozen. I burned in the sun, sat and watched sports all day, sweated in a crowd of hundreds, and had a crowd surfer fall on me, but yeah...it was worth it.

For its 10-night stand opening the Prudential Center in Newark, Bon Jovi has invited fellow Jersey act My Chemical Romance and four other acts to open two shows each.

The other openers for the Oct. 25 to Nov. 10 shows will be Big & Rich, Gretchen Wilson, Daughtry and The All-American Rejects.

The Prudential Center is the first major entertainment and sports venue to open in the tristate area in more than 25 years. The concerts are expected to draw more than 150,000 fans.

“Growing up in Jersey isn't like growing up anywhere else; there’s an amazing amount of pride involved,” said Gerard Way, My Chemical Romance's frontman. “To be asked to open up for New Jersey's own Bon Jovi at the grand opening of the Prudential Center is an amazing honor. It’s more than anything a group of kids from the Garden State could ever ask for.”

Nick Wheeler of The All-American Rejects added, "It will be an honor to share the stage with a band that is responsible for me doing what I do for a living. And in their home state, too!”

My Chemical Romance will perform Oct. 25 and 26; Big & Rich, Oct. 28 and 30; Gretchen Wilson, Nov. 1 and 3; Daughtry, Nov. 4 and 7, and All-American Rejects, Nov. 9 and 10.

Tickets are available at (201) 507-8900 and www.ticketmaster.com.

Bon Jovi’s "Lost Highway" is in stores now and features the first single “(You Want To) Make a Memory,” plus the hit title track. The new album’s release marked the band’s first No. 1 debut in the U.S., as well as their highest one-week sales ever, with more than 291,000 copies sold. For more on the disc and for the latest news on the band, visit www.bonjovi.com.

2007-08-21

Phoenix and Cradle of Filth were the bands that had the most numerous audience at Stufstock festival, held during four days at the end of the past week, on the Black Sea side, at Vama Veche.

Stufstock, organized initially as a protest with rock bands willing to play for free, has turned along the years into a real musical festival. At the present year edition, the festival organized chiefly by the Association for the Conservation of the bio-culturally protected areas had a budget of EUR 400,000. If initially the access to the first editions of the festival was free, now a subscription for the four days of live music was RON 80.

At the beginning, the festival was organized directly on Vama Veche beach, but last year it moved at the complex Marina Park from the resort. With the access subject to tickets, starting this year, the number of spectators dropped from 30,000 in 2004 to around 7,000 in 2006.

According to organizers, some 8,000 spectators have been counted this year. Initially, Stufstock wanted to militate concurrently with the movement “Save Vama Veche” against the chaotic tourist development of the former fishermen village. This year, the ecological message refreshened, and the new name of the event was Stufstock-Greenfest.

Over 50 groups sang at the current year edition of the festival. The heads of the bill were Cradle of Filth, Zdob si Sdub, Toy Dolls, Phoenix, Dandy Warhols, Defunkt and Mircea Baniciu.

“The same as last year, the veterans from Phoenix had the most numerous audience from all the evenings at the Festival Stufstock-Greenfest. Over 5,000 fans listened to Phoenix, and the only group that came close to this record this year was the black metal formation Cradle of Filth,” declared Mircea Toma, president of the Association for the Conservation of the bio-culturally protected areas, the main organizer of the festival, quoted by “Cotidianul.” “It is clear that the myth won, both formations being already myths among the domestic fans. It is a pity that those from Toy Dolls or Dandy Warhols did not have the same state of mind, the audience looking with curiosity at the two groups which did not qualify for the myth category,” said Toma. “I don’t have the slightest idea about what Stufstock will look like next year. Every year we discuss whether to continue it or not. Some critics say that Stufstock is more damaging, than helpful, but I don’t agree with it, because the effect of the festival was however positive. Anyway, if it continues, we want to preserve the festival at small dimensions, 10,000-12,000 spectators at most, because Vama is not tailored for U2 like concerts,” told us Mircea Toma. The festival was frequently criticized because, instead of preserving the character of Vama Veche, it affects it through the big number of tourists attracted by the event which crowded the small seaside resort.

According to organisers, there were no significant incidents connected with the abuse of alcohol. Vama Veche was less crowded than expected during the festival, even if tourists from the nearby resorts came to the concerts.

August 20, 2007

by Shehzaad Jiwani

It's been a while since Silverchair have been on the scene, so ChartAttack recently caught up with band leader Daniel Johns to talk about what they've been up to and why it took so long to release their latest record, Young Modern.

ChartAttack: It's been five years since you put out Diorama. What have you guys been doing this whole time?
Daniel Johns: We've all been doing separate stuff. I've been writing with a lot of people, producing different stuff, working on The Dissociatives. Ben [Gillies] did a side-project, Chris [Joannou] did some production work. After I did all that work, I started writing this new material, and we did this tsunami benefit show after the tsunami, and that was the first time we played together for a few years. I had about 52 new songs written, and we really enjoyed playing together, so that was when I said to the guys, "I'm ready to do another Silverchair record," and they really wanted to. It's taken a long time, but to us, it wasn't long at all. We were all working and trying to learn new things, staying inspired.

Silverchair

What was it like getting back together after so much time apart?
It was pretty instantaneous, right from the first rehearsal we had. It just felt really natural. That's why we decided to do another record, it felt really natural playing together. I didn't feel that we had to pick up any momentum, it just felt like we picked up where we left off. There were a few moments where we're like, "Fuck, how did that one go?" and you're trying to remember. The vibe and the energy in the room was really positive, and everyone was excited. There were a few moments where I forgot words or chords and a few things… [laughs]

You're usually pegged as a control freak during the songwriting process. What do the other members contribute to the songs?
The other guys don't write, they're happy to let me do the songwriting and I'm happy to do it. They definitely add an element that can't be achieved without them. Whenever I write a song, I demo things or whatever, and it always sounds so much better with Chris and Ben adding their thing — it sounds like a rock 'n' roll band. They're still my best friends and we still get on really well. I'm happy to have guys behind me to make my songs sound better. It's not unusual for a band to have a chief songwriter or whatever. I like to follow one path and have a strict vision. I don't want to be in a band where I bring in a song and people go, "I don't like the way that sounds, I think this should go here…" Shut up! Stay out of it! [laughs]

Diorama seemed to float under the radar here in North America. How was it received back in Australia?
It's weird, it's the biggest record we've ever had in Australia. Our hardcore fans heard it, but as far as the mainstream perception is concerned, Diorama didn't really happen. A lot of people think Neon Ballroom was our last record. I consider our first two records to be by a high school band. I don't even see it as the same band anymore. It's just the same name. I find it to be quite natural, not even that unusual. Most musicians are embarrassed about their first bands, their high school bands or whatever, because they're silly young kids, and it's the same with us except we were phenomenally successful. [laughs] Everyone has this perception of us as being teenage grunge sensations from down under.

It's strange that you've already made such a significant artistic progression at your age, when most bands would be making these progressions well into their thirties.
It's a blessing and a curse at the same time. I do feel that it's more of a positive thing that we've got such a heads up on people. We started when we were 12 years old, and now we're on our fifth record, my sixth as a recording artist. A lot of bands coming out that are older than us are on their first record. I do feel privileged to have the opportunity to have been in the industry and to learn so much so young. At the same time, you always wonder, what would have happened if the first record we put out was Neon Ballroom? What would the perception be? It's definitely one of those things where you can only speculate. My perception is that there's a slight element of sentimentality with Silverchair. People have seen us grow up, but people still see us as a teenage kid playing grunge music. But I definitely see it as a positive thing. There's people that have seen us grow up and progress, so the fact that people still care, I feel very privileged.

Each album seems to be vastly different from the last. Where do you find new influences for each record?
The influences come from just being a fan of music. I want to always try something new and not back myself into a corner. That just comes from liking different kinds of music. That's why every album sounds completely different. I don't want to get into that sort of situation where you do one thing, and people expect a certain thing from you, then they're disappointed when you don't do it. I feel like we're one of the few bands left that are trying to avoid having an identity, as opposed to most bands trying to find "their sound." I don't ever want to have a "sound."

 

Only joking ... Ian Rankin. Photograph: PA

Earlier this week, you were told about a Scottish novelist's comment stating that JK Rowling was writing a crime novel. In a new interview with the author Ian Rankin, he describes the rumors as a "joke that got out of hand. There were 600 people in the audience, and only one person didn't laugh."

Emma Schlesinger, speaking for Rowling's literary agent, has commented on the theories concerning Jo and her next book.

"JK Rowling is taking a well-earned break following the English language publication of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and there are no firm plans as yet as to what her next book may be."

by Jessie Burche

8/20/07

Millions of readers are disoriented and depressed. The Harry Potter phenomenon has come and gone. What do we do now?

We persist. The group of readers should not die out because the most popular book series of the 21st century is over.

Believe it or not, there are other fantasy books out there just as satiating as the Harry Potter series. Some are, dare I say it, even more satisfying than those famed seven books.

The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis is another series of seven books. The best known is "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe." Even though these are supposedly children's books, they are engrossing for adults as well. By the end you'll be wishing your name was name was Lucy.

Philip Pullman has written an amazing trilogy that deals with original sin, where we go when we die and the corruption of the church in the "His Dark Materials" series. Much of the series takes place in an alternate universe.

The main character, Lyra, is a lovable little girl who grows up during the series and makes friends with gypsies, armored polar bears and witches. These books are actually targeted more toward adults than children although the main focuses are children.

Another author that doesn't get nearly enough mainstream attention is Susanna Clarke. To date, she has written one giant novel and a book of short stories. Her novel, "Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrel," is written like a more readable Jane Austen novel, but with some magicians thrown in. Read about moral quandaries, the raven king and dinner parties in one book.

Neil Gaiman is gaining mainstream popularity because his book Stardust is now a movie. To be honest, I didn't think "Stardust" was all that. However, some of his other books like "American Gods," "Neverwhere" and "Anansi Boys" are relevant to modern life and entertaining.

Of course, classic books such as "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy, the "Dune" series and "The Stand" are worthwhile reads. Trust me; the movies don't begin to compare with the glory of the books.

Don't be afraid to take the trek into the science fiction and fantasy aisle at the book store. A lot of the books look the same and have the same kind of weird titles, but some of them turn out to be real gems. Sharon Shinn is another great author for a reader who just wants some good old Sunday afternoon fluff to go with their coffee.

So despair not avid readers! You no longer have to obsess about whether or not Ron and Hermione will get together or what that triumphant gleam in Dumbledore's eye was all about. But you do have thousands of other fantasy worlds awaiting your grand entrance.

THE EVENTS SURROUNDING THE DEATH OF KURT COBAIN ARE FILLED WITH LIES, CONTRADICTIONS IN LOGIC, AND COUNTLESS INCONSISTENCIES. Kurt had 3 times the lethal dose of heroin (225 mgs) in his blood system. Medical experts say such an amount will leave you incapacitated and cause you to lapse into a coma within seconds, if not kill you instantly. Kurt could not have done this, neatly put away all his belongings, roll down his sleeves and been able to pick up a shotgun to shoot himself. According to the police reports, there were NO fingerprints on the shotgun, on the pen found with the "suicide" note, or the box of shotgun shells found beside Kurt. This indicates the crime scene was "swept" clean before the body was discovered. There is evidence that circumstances were manipulated to prevent Kurt from using his own car and gaining access to his own money in the days leading up to his death. Someone also attempted to use his credit card up until the morning of April 8th. Medical examiners determined Cobain had died on April 5th. Courtney Love was facing a divorce. There is documented proof, including her own voice on recordings, that indicates Kurt wanted out of the marriage, out of the music industry, and possibly full custody of their daughter Frances. Dave Grohl confirmed that Nirvana were about to break up at the time. Courtney's father claims Kurt was going to divorce her on adultery charges. Cobain also took steps to write her out of his will. Eldon Hoke, singer of a band called the Mentors, claimed he was offered $50,000 by Courtney to kill Kurt in December 1993. On March 6, 1996, Hoke was administered a polygraph test by Dr. Edward Gelb, who is one of the country's leading polygraph experts and teaches the advanced polygraph course for the FBI. Hoke passed a lie detector test with 99.7% certainty that he was telling the truth. Kurt said he wasn't suicidal to many people in the weeks prior to his death, including the Seattle police, a doctor that treated him in Rome, the people at the Exodus rehab center in LA, his lawyer, and many friends, including his best friend Dylan Carlson who bought him the shotgun on March 30th. Kurt told Dylan he was afraid of intruders at the house. Cobain's friends say the only person who started telling the media he was suicidal, after he died, was Courtney Love. This goes against everything Kurt himself told people in the weeks leading up to his death. The media decides to go with Courtney's story with no questions asked. These are just a FEW of the reasons many around the world are wondering just what really happened that first week of April 1994. This information has since been the subject of books, films, television, radio shows, and many articles in recent years. Major media outlets like VH1 and programs such as Unsolved Mysteries have run stories.

www.justiceforkurt.com

Timeline of Events - Police Reports Audio & Video Clips of Media Coverage