MK Magazine News 2008

It seems like last year, Johnny Depp was bounced around to a few unexpected projects. He spent some time filming Public Enemies, then jetted off to replace Heath Ledger, along with Jude Law and Golden Globe winner Colin Farrell in Terry Gillaim’s The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus. It seems like we heard that Tim Burton was going to be filming Alice In Wonderland for Disney mere weeks before he was actually filming it and Depp was on hand as The Mad Hatter.

That’s a lot of work, back and forth, from a guy who was exclusively Captain Jack Sparrow for a few years there.

Now, we’ve got a casting announcement that suggests Depp’s next project will be The Rum Diary, which would see him reprise his role from Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas and bring Hunter S. Thompson to screen once more…

The casting call is for Chenault, the love interest in The Rum Diary, who - from the casting info - seems to just be walking sex:

THE RUM DIARY (One Role) Feature Film
PRODUCTION COMPANIES: GK FILMS & INFINITUM NIHIL
UNION: SAG
Writer/Director: Bruce Robinson Based on the novel by Hunter S. Thompson
Casting Director: Denise Chamian
Casting Associate: Angela Demo
NY Casting Associate: Julie Schubert
Sounds steamy….

Casting Assistant: Krysti Charron

Start Date: March 2009

SUBMIT JULIE SCHUBERT TEL: XXX-XXX-XXXX

[PAUL KEMP] -Johnny Depp

SEEKING: [CHENAULT] A beautiful, 25 year old, translucent vision from Connecticut, with a killer smile and a wry, enigmatic personality, she wears barely-there sarongs, sunbathes nude, and oozes sexuality in everything she does. She enchants and mesmerizes Kemp from the moment they meet: while both escaping a tedious, high-end party. Chenault is dating and possibly engaged to Sanderson, but clearly feels an attraction to Kemp. She’s a daredevil who loves to dance and drive fast. She gets into big trouble with a lust-crazed, violent crowd during Carnival in St. Thomas. .. LEAD. This role contains nudity.

STORY LINE: 1960: Divorced alcoholic and struggling novelist PAUL KEMP decides to kick around San Juan until his ship comes in, working as a journalist for a daily newspaper that’s on its last legs, drinking gallons of rum and experimenting with LSD. With his new friend BOB SALA by his side, he becomes entangled in a corrupt hotel development scheme with a slick PR consultant named SANDERSON, and falls in love with Sanderson’s unattainable girlfriend, CHENAULT. . .

Paul Kemp is one of the alter egos of 22-year-old Hunter S. Thompson, and the one that Johnny Depp will be inhabiting for the film (Johnny Depp as 22? We’ll worry about that later).

Word on the production street is that Krysti Charron, the casting assistant is partial to Keira Knightley and Scarlett Johannson, but readings for this role will probably include a swath of relatively unknowns.

No one has yet been cast, but when they are, expect The Rum Diary to start spinning it’s wheels.

The iconic American rock band Cheap Trick is close to finalizing a headliner deal with the Las Vegas Hilton that would feature the group performing The Beatles’ epic album “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” live with a full orchestra.

Word has it their performances could begin as soon as March and stretch throughout 2009.
 
Cheap Trick’s original members would be involved in the exclusive agreement with the Hilton.

The band has sold 20 million records and produced 29 movie sound tracks. They hit it big in 1979 when “I Want You to Want Me” peaked at No. 7 on Billboard’s Top 40. “The Flame” topped the charts in 1988 and their cover of Elvis Presley’s “Don’t Be Cruel” reached No. 4 a couple of months later.

VH1 listed Cheap Trick No. 25 among the “100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock.”

This is likely the only time we’d ever publish Britney Spears lyrics, and it is a very clever move on her part. KUDOS MISS SPEARS! - az

NEW YORK (Billboard) – The Parents Television Council is warning parents about the Britney Spears song “If U Seek Amy” and urging radio stations not to broadcast it because the nonprofit organization believes it “would violate the broadcast indecency law” if aired between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m.

Saying the title phrase quickly out loud produces a sound akin to spelling out the F-word, said PTC president Tim Winter. “There is no misinterpreting the lyrics to this song, and it’s certainly not about a girl named Amy,” he said of the track, the third single from Spears’ new Jive album, “Circus.”

“It’s one thing for a song with these lyrics to be included on a CD so that fans who wish to hear it can do so, but it’s an entirely different matter when this song is played over the publicly-owned airwaves, especially at a time when children are likely to be in the listening audience,” Winter says.

Founded in 1995, the PTC describes itself as “a nonpartisan education organization advocating responsible entertainment.” Jive was unavailable for comment on the PTC’s advisory.

The controversy isn’t stopping U.S. radio from playing “If You Seek Amy.” Six top 40 stations have the song in rotation this week, enough to place the track at No. 92 on the Billboard Pop 100 chart. Leading the pack is WFLZ-Tampa, Fla., which has played it 19 times.

“We’re confident the version of the song we air is not crossing any lines,” program director Tommy Chuck told Billboard.com, adding that WFLX plays a Jive-created edit of the song that changes “Seek” to “See” as well as a jokey version in which morning host MJ shouts his name every time the word “Amy” appears.

Digitally, “Amy” has sold 107,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

The Lyrics
Oh baby baby have you seen Amy tonight?
Is she in the bathroom? Is she smokin up outside? Ouuh
Oh baby baby does she take a piece of lime
For the drink that I’ma buy her
Do you know just what she likes so?
Oh oh tell me have you seen her
Cuz I’m so-oh oh
I can’t get her out of my brain
I just wanna go to the party she gon’ go
Can somebody take me home?
Ha ha he he ha ha ho

Love me, hate me
Say what you want about me
But all of the boys and all of the girls are begging to If U Seek Amy
Love me, hate me
But can’t you see what I see?
All of the boys and all of the girls are begging to If U Seek Amy

Amy told me that’s shes gonna meet me up
I don’t know where or when and now their closing up the club Ouuuh
I’ve seen her once or twice before she knows my face
But its hard to see with all the people standing in the way ouuuh

Oh oh
Tell me have you seen her cause I’m so oh
I can’t get her off of my brain
I just wanna go to the party she gon’ go
Can’t somebody take me home
Ha ha he he ha ha ho

Love me, hate me
Say what you want about me
But all of the boys and all of the girls are begging to If U Seek Amy
Love me, hate me
But can’t you see what I see?
All of the boys and all of the girls are begging to If You Seek Amy

By RACHEL JONES
Special to 2theadvocate.com
Some bands choose to make music for fame and fortune, while others — like Baton Rouge-based band Nadjia — love to create an experience that pushes the musical envelope.

Band members Mark Williams (vocals), Chris Deaton (keyboards), Jeff Smith (guitar), Nik Sharp (bass) and Kenny Cohen (drums) have a passion for writing and sharing music that is unique and anything but ordinary.

Nadjia has been around for nearly a decade, and while the personnel has changed and grown over the years, the original idea of making music with a fresh take has remained the same.

“I started this band in ’96 when I was in grad school, and it was myself, a violin player and a computer, essentially,” said Williams, the band’s founder. “It was a different sort of vibe, because we didn’t use a drummer, and we would sample a toaster or a steamroller or a washing machine and make rhythm out of that. It was real avant-garde and real different having a violin player opposed to a guitarist or a keyboardist.”

These days Nadjia has added drums, guitars and keys, but they aren’t used in the traditional sense. They are continuing to use their new instrumentation to push their sound even further.

“The guitar and bass in our band are more the rhythm section, and the focus is more on the keyboard. Chris is left-handed so he plays a lot of his rhythm with his left hand in the bass section of the keyboard. It gives our songs a different rhythm and a different spin to them as well,” Williams said.

It’s no surprise that Nadjia strives for more than the standard rock sound when you understand their influences and what they take away from some of their favorite bands.

“My four favorites are Depeche Mode, Ministry, Skinny Puppy and Nine Inch Nails. It was nontraditional music, and it had a different kind of feel, a different kind of vibe to it,” Williams said. “It wasn’t that cookie-cutter rock-n-roll. It was experimental and aggressive and emotional, a new sort of art. It’s not as new now, but those guys were constantly pushing the envelope and breaking barriers to look for a new angle and a new approach to music.”

They not only take a unique approach to their music, but their lyrics and writing are inspired by the world. Williams’s career sends him across the globe, and it’s his experiences the band incorporates into their lyrics.

“The vibes from the cultures definitely adds a different perspective to what we’re doing. One of the longer trips I took this year was the full tour of South America. I was in earthquakes in Mexico, isolated in Rio because it was the off-season, and in Buenos Aires, Argentina, there was a lot of political unrest. I write what different things are happening in these countries and how they affect me and then we try to build that into the music,” Williams said.

Building everything into their music is no easy task. They claim that 10 weeks of preparation goes into every 10 minutes of music. It’s the cooperation of the entire group that puts Williams’ writing in the sound of Nadjia.

“I’ll be writing down ideas as I go around, and I’m in constant communication with Chris. A lot of times he’ll be writing something as I’m experiencing a different country or a different place, and we’ll bounce ideas back and forth, and then when we come into the studio, we’ll work through the song and piece it together. If you look at all of our songs, every one kind of relates to one of my trips or going to another country,” Williams said.

Time spent traveling has given the band a chance to gather more material, and they have begun putting together one more album. Still in production, this new album should be out sometime in 2009.
“We’re fortunate enough to finish tracking an album tentatively titled ‘Angels of Rust,’ which is a reference to airplanes,” Williams said. “The visual is the Angel of the North, a large statue northeast of London that I stumbled across. There are several songs that reference traveling and flying, and angels of rust has kind of become the reoccurring theme.”

While the heart of the band is writing and recording, they love to create shows that aren’t typical to draw the audience into the moment. With videos, lighting, art sculptures and, of course, music they give their audience something that will leave a lasting impression.

“We prefer to make it more of an event. We take a different approach to music, and we have a really good time with our shows. We want to try and imprint on the people that see us a little piece of ourselves and give them something different and something more unique than just your standard rock show. It’s a musical experience; it’s art in motion,” Williams said.

Their next musical experience will be Jan. 9 at the North Gate Tavern in Baton Rouge.

“Typically at our shows we give away discs, and we usually do a different cd for every live show we do,” Williams said.

Williams said the best way to get free music is just to go to Nadjia’s show.

“Just come out and see us and we’ll share our music with you,” he said. “We’ve got to adjust our main Web site, but eventually you’ll be able to download it all from one of our Web sites.”

To learn more about Nadjia and hear their innovative sound you can go to their myspace page at www.myspace.com/deadhaus.

Rhino Presents Career-Spanning Collection that Spotlights 14 of the Band’s Finest Including Studio Recordings, Rare Radio Edits and Soundtrack Contributions

 A rare mix of power and finesse, Filter hangs its hard rock angst, electronic sheen and industrial grit on memorable hooks, rendering finely sculpted sonic broadsides that have distinguished the band over the course of four studio albums. Rhino takes aim at the band’s career—so far—with its first retrospective, THE VERY BEST THINGS (1995-2008). The single-disc collection will be available from Rhino Records March 31 for a suggested list price of $11.98 (CD) and $9.99 (digital).

The compilation’s 14 songs encompass studio recordings, rare radio edits and a scattering of soundtrack contributions. It begins with “Hey Man Nice Shot,” the Top 10 hit that put the band on the musical map in 1995 and pushed Short Bus—Filter’s debut—to platinum status. From there, the retrospective touches on songs that reflect the evolution of the band’s music, including “Soldiers Of Misfortune,” from their 2008 album Anthems For The Damned.

THE VERY BEST THINGS features 5 tracks from 1998’s Title Of Record, the certified-platinum follow-up to the band’s debut, including “The Best Things,” “I’m Not The Only One,” and the radio edits for the singles “Welcome To The Fold” and the smash hit “Take A Picture.” Taken from 2002’s The Amalgamut, the collection also features “The Only Way (Is The Wrong Way)” and the single edit version of “Where Do We Go From Here.”

In addition to its studio albums, Filter was also known for writing songs that appeared on a number of popular soundtracks. THE VERY BEST THINGS gathers several, including the savage intensity of “Jurrasitol” from The Crow – City Of Angels; “(Can’t You) Trip Like I Do” the band’s collaboration with The Crystal Method for Spawn: The Album; as well as “One (Is The Loneliest Number)” and “Thanks Bro,” two songs recorded for different X-Files albums.

After a six-year hiatus, Robert Patrick brought Filter back to active duty last spring with the release of the politically charged and critically acclaimed album Anthems For The Damned. The band followed up with the November digital only release Remixes For The Damned, which features brand-new remixes of various tracks from Anthems. Filter is planning a string of U.S. tour dates in the spring, with full details to be announced shortly.  
THE VERY BEST OF FILTER

Track Listing

“Hey Man Nice Shot”
“Welcome To The Fold” – Radio Edit
“Jurrasitol”
“(Can’t You) Trip Like I Do”
“Take A Picture” – Radio Edit
“Soldiers Of Misfortune”
“Where Do We Go From Here” – Single Edit “Dose”
“I’m Not The Only One”
“Skinny”
“One (Is The Loneliest Number)”
“The Best Things”
“The Only Way (Is The Wrong Way)”
“Thanks Bro”

Source:The Hollywood Reporter,
Mickey Rourke (The Wrestler) and Sam Rockwell (Frost/Nixon) are in talks to star as the villains in Marvel Studios’ Iron Man 2, being directed by Jon Favreau from a script by Justin Theroux, according to Variety and The Hollywood Reporter.

THR says that Rourke would play a tattooed Russian heavy named Ivan who becomes a man with deadly, technologically enhanced coils. Variety adds that Rourke would play the Crimson Dynamo. “He’s considered to be an evil version of Iron Man because he battles the superhero in a nuclear-powered suit of armor,” says the trade.

Rockwell would play Justin Hammer, a multibillionaire businessman and a rival of industrialist Tony Stark, AKA Iron Man, being played by a returning Robert Downey Jr.

Rourke and Rockwell would be joining a cast that also includes the returning Gwyneth Paltrow and Don Cheadle, who is replacing Terrence Howard.

Another part — one for Stark’s assistant Natasha — is still open.

The project is eyeing a spring start in Manhattan Beach. Paramount will release the movie May 7, 2010

Atlanta’s NASHVILLE PUSSY will release its long-awaited fifth album, “From Hell To Texas”, on February 3 in Europe and February 10 in the U.S. via SPV/Steamhammer Records. The CD was recorded and mixed at Pedernales Studio in Spicewood, Texas with producer Daniel Rey and was engineered and mixed by Gordie Johnson and Jacob Sciba. It was mastered by Howie Weinberg and Matt Agoglia at Masterdisk.

NASHVILLE PUSSY’s live DVD, “Live! In Hollywood”, came out on September 30 via MVD Visual. According to a press release, the disc features “NASHVILLE PUSSY rifling through 19 blistering songs at the Key Club in Hollywood. Blaine Cartwright, Ruyter Suys, Jeremy Thompson, and newcomer Karen Cuda give the crowd exactly what they want and more. All your favorite tracks are here, plus a bonus feature entitled ‘Pussy Home Movies’ has been added. So sit back, grab your bottle of whatever, and let the pussy do the work!”

MLive.com reports that THE STOOGES guitarist Ronald “Ron” Asheton was found dead in his home in Ann Arbor, Michigan this morning (January 6), police said.

Asheton, 60, was an original member of THE STOOGES, a garage-rock band headlined by Iggy Pop and formed in Ann Arbor in 1967.

His personal assistant contacted police late Monday night after being unable to reach Asheton for days, Detective Bill Stanford said.

Officers went to the home on Highlake Avenue at around midnight and discovered Asheton’s body on a living-room couch. He appeared to have been dead for at least several days, Stanford said.
 

REVOLTING COCKS (REVCO) has set a March 3 release date for its new album, “Sex-O Olympic-O”.

“This is the best REVCO album I’ve ever done,” founding member Al Jourgensen (MINISTRY) commented. “As a matter of fact, I think this is the best album — including MINISTRY, PAILHEAD, LARD — anything I’ve ever done, period. Production-wise, song-wise, I’m really, really happy with this record. It’s the first CD I’ve ever gotten back from the mastering studio that I didn’t have anything to bitch about. No complaints. I listened to the whole thing and just went, ‘OK, that’s a wrap. Let’s go’!”

Now that “Sex-O Olympic-O” is in the can, Jourgensen and his “knuckleheads” plan to begin tracking yet another REVCO release at his 13th Planet Studios in El Paso, Texas. As he did with “Sex-O”, Jourgensen will produce this next release as well as be involved in writing and playing on the album. REVCO will then initiate rehearsals for the upcoming REVCO world tour, scheduled to begin in April 2009. While Jourgensen won’t claim a bunk on REVCO’s tour bus for the duration of the trek, he does plan to perform with the band on a few choice dates.

States vocalist Josh Bradford, “The challenge will be coming up with a name for the REVCO tour, since Al already took all of the REVCO-appropriate tour names such as CliTour, Sphinctour, FornicaTour, and MasterBaTouR for MINISTRY.

“Sex-O Olympic-O” retains the unmistakable REVCO industrial-dance-metal sound, and sees Sin Quirin, Bradford and Clayton Worbeck (Keyboards) let first-wave glam rock seep into their already rich sound. Case in point, the soon-to-be quirky anthem (and first single from the album), “I’m Not Gay”, which debuted on MINISTRY’s 2008 C U LaTouR” live shows and is now a solid staple on MySpace and Facebook homepages around the world.

Tracks such as “Hookerbot 3000″ and “The Red Parrot” show evidence that REVCO’s affection for frequenting strip clubs has certainly rubbed off on them musically, as many of the songs sound like a custom-made soundtrack for strippers worldwide to strut their stuff to. But if you dig deep into the lyrics, you’ll be afforded a direct look into the warped and twisted mind of Bradford. “Josh recorded a lot of these vocals in his apartment, really thin walls with no soundproofing,” points out Worbeck. “He was tracking in the middle of the night with headphones on, yelling at the top of his lungs these bizarre phrases that are in the song. If you think about it, his neighbors weren’t hearing music, all they were hearing was him yelling these strange lyrics. His neighbors must think he’s insane.”

SOURCE www.acefrehley.com
 
Former KISS guitarist Ace Frehley has set “Anomaly” as the title of his new solo album, tentatively due this spring.

In an early 2008 interview with Billboard, Frehley stated about his forthcoming solo CD, “Basically, I’m trying to get back into the mindset I was in when I did my first solo record [1978's 'Ace Frehley']. That record seemed to have all the elements everybody liked — a real cool instrumental, a hit single, some real heavy rockers, a nice variety of different genres of music.”

Among his favorite new tracks are “A Little Below the Angels”, hard-rocking “Pain in the Neck” and an instrumental called “Fractured Quantum”, which is a follow-up to his previous instrumentals “Fractured Mirror” and “Fractured Too”. Another favorite is “groove song” titled “Genghis Khan”, which he likens in tone to LED ZEPPELIN’s “Kashmir”.

Frehley told MyrtleBeachOnline.com that he’s shooting for 12 tracks on his next album, his first in 18 years. Studio work has spanned several months, and some of the songs go back 12 years.

Frehley recently spent time on the road fronting a band that featured second guitarist Derek Hawkins, drummer Scot Coogan (ex-BRIDES OF DESTRUCTION) and bassist Anthony Esposito (ex-LYNCH MOB).