By Hans fink
LimeWire, the last bastion of major P2P file sharing, has been effectively beaten down and curb-stomped by the Recording Industry Association of America and could quite possibly be in its final days. A federal court decision held that LimeWire must pay the RIAA $1 billion in damages. The number was calculated at roughly $750 per infringement. Honestly, this should not be a shock to anybody: Does Napster ring a bell? Like Napster, LimeWire’s only hope is to reach a reasonable settlement with the RIAA and change its business model to that of a paid subscription service. The point is, after a battle that spanned almost two decades, P2P is dead. But torrents live on . . .
Legendary bass player, singer and songwriter MIKE WATT has finished penning his third punk rock opera. Famous for co-founding the bands MINUTEMEN, DOS and fIREHOSE, Watt’s storied career also saw him involved with Perry Farrell’s PORNO FOR PYROS and the recently reformed THE STOOGES. Watt claims that, unlike his previous two punk rock operas, Contemplating the Engine Room (1997) and The Secondman’s Middle Stand (2004), this opera, titled Hyphenated-Man, has no beginning or end. Watt says it “is all middle, which makes some sense maybe since I am 52 and kind of a weird middle-aged person.” Way to be punk rock and avant-garde at the same time.
Speaking of avant-garde legends, P-FUNK guitarist GARRY SHIDER, famous for being a funk innovator as well as frequently wearing a diaper on stage, passed away after a lengthy battle with brain and lung cancer. He was 56. He was the original funk guitarist, working as musical director for both of George Clinton’s projects, PARLIAMENT and FUNKADELIC. Shider penned some of the greatest guitar parts in funk history, including “One Nation Under Groove,” “Atomic Dog” and “Cosmic Slop.”
The Vans Warped Tour is upon us once more, for the one-millionth year in a row. The longest running punk rock festival has over the past few years grown to encompass more than punk rock, bringing in a wide variety of punk, hip-hop, metal and other styles into their lineup, including EVERCLEAR to VOODOO GLOW SKULLS, AS I LAY DYING, BOUNCING SOULS, THE DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN, FACE TO FACE, and apparently, the reformed GREEN JELLY. It’s impossible to catch every band at the festival, but well worth the price of admission. Between you and me, this is the only music festival where I wasn’t overcharged for crappy food. Rather, I was only slightly overcharged for a variety of palatable foods.
Speaking of festivals, the SMASHING PUMPKINS have been tapped to headline this year’s Sunset Strip Music Festival. As of press time, very little has been released about the other artists who will grace the three-day event. But it is known that the first day will kick off with a tribute concert honoring rock icon SLASH for “his contribution to the legacy of the Sunset Strip.” Rock onward, Hollywood. I’ve personally witnessed a homeless man “contribute” to the Sunset strip as well, by way of public bowel movements. However, they choose to honor Slash instead of that guy. Go figure.
Similar to GUNS ‘N ROSES’ Chinese Democracy, DR. DRE apparently has a long overdue project of his own called Detox, which was originally set for a 2004 release date but now, apparently, is set to be released in 2010, only two years before the world ends. An incomplete track featuring JAY-Z has been leaked onto the Internet, proving that there actually has been some work done on this otherwise elusive album. The track itself is called “Under Pressure,” and has no apparent correlation to the QUEEN/DAVID BOWIE song of the same name. It’s reported that it samples KRAFTWERK, and features a few soon-to-be dated rhymes that spoof events that were current about eight months ago. At last—someone who can outdo AXL ROSE in terms of chronologically lengthy album production. Since Dre has stated this will be his final album, let’s hope the master producer goes out with a bang.
