Britney Spears, Pink, 'NSYNC Songs Get Punk Makeovers
05.07.2002
The thin line between pop and punk just got thinner.
Green Day, Blink-182 and Sum41 have long charmed the "TRL" audience with their pop hooks and eye candy videos, but now there's a new crop of punk bands going after pop fans a little more directly. OK, a lot more.
On Punk Goes Pop, released last month on Fearless Records, several up-and-coming punk bands cover hits from the cream of the pop star crop.
Further Seems Forever speeds up 'NSYNC's "Bye, Bye, Bye," Stretch Arm Strong gives Pink's "Get the Party Started" a hardcore makeover, and the Starting Line turn Jennifer Lopez and Ja Rule's "I'm Real" into a mosh pit anthem.
Britney Spears and Mandy Moore each have two hits remade, including a rollicking "... Baby One More Time," as does Madonna, whose "Borderline" and "Like a Prayer" join covers of "Heaven Is a Place on Earth" and "Send Me an Angel" as the album's retro pop salutes.
Few of the "TRL" usuals are spared, as Punk Goes Pop also features remakes of tracks by the Backstreet Boys, Destiny's Child, Nelly Furtado, Michelle Branch, O-Town and even Faith Hill.
In just a month, Punk Goes Pop has eclipsed the sales of the album's predecessor, 2000's Punk Goes Metal, which features more widely known punk bands, such as AFI, A New Found Glory, Guttermouth and the Aquabats.
"Some of the kids just getting into Saves the Day and Dashboard Confessional now were listening to Britney Spears last year," Fearless' Wyatt Miller, who organized the album, said. "We wanted to continue the Punk Goes series and Punk Goes Pop was a way to hit that audience and expose the punk bands we like to them."
Miller said not one of the bands he approached for Punk Goes Pop thought the concept was stupid. "Some bands even heard about it and asked us if they could be on it," he said.
Some of the groups, like Noise Ratchet and Yellowcard, have found their pop covers to be the crowd favorites in their live performances.
Fearless did not have to get permission from the artists because the lyrics are not altered, but Miller said he has heard that some of the artists are excited about the compilation. "I guess O-Town have told people to check it out," he said.
Next up for Fearless is Punk Goes Acoustic, which will feature punk and hardcore bands performing their own material unplugged. Miller expects it to be released by November.
Punk Goes Pop track list, according to Fearless Records:
Dynamite Boy - "I Want It That Way"
Slick Shoes - "Candy"
Yellowcard - "Everywhere"
Stretch Arm Strong - "Get This Party Started"
Rufio - "Like a Prayer"
Further Seems Forever - "Bye, Bye, Bye"
Noise Ratchet - "Crush"
Element 101 - "I'm Like a Bird"
Knockout - "Survivor"
The Starting Line - "I'm Real"
Keepsake - "The Way You Love Me"
Reach the Sky - "Sometimes"
Fake ID - "All or Nothing"
Showoff - "Borderline"
Thrice - "Send Me an Angel"
Nicotine - "... Baby One More Time"
Student Rick - "Heaven Is a Place on Earth"
—Corey Moss
Posted by Jen on Wednesday, May 8, 2002 @ 02:30 p.m.
Natasha from Atomic Kitten has told Radio 1 that she's not going to leave the band once her baby is born.
The Kitten's are still busy working, despite Natasha being six months pregnant. The new single 'It's OK' is out next Monday and they will be playing the Queen's Golden Jubilee concert next month and at the London Mardi Gras in July.
Former Kitten Kerry Katona quit the band to have her baby, but Natasha says she'll take a short break and then get straight back into it;
"I'm definitely not leaving the band - in October I'm back promoting our third single, and then the month after we're doing the album so it's all full steam ahead."
She also revealed she'll be calling her baby Josh, which is her dad's nickname.
Posted by Jen on Wednesday, May 8, 2002 @ 02:24 p.m.
(5/8/02, 1 p.m. ET) -- Less than four months after it was certified gold for sales reaching 500,000, Michelle Branch's debut album, The Spirit Room, has now joined the platinum club for sales of 1 million, the Recording Industry Academy Of America has announced.
The certification comes on the heels of the Maverick Records release's second successful single, "All You Wanted," which followed her breakout hit, "Everywhere."
With greater popularity potentially come the trappings of fame. Branch got a taste of this around the time of the release of The Spirit Room in 2001. The teen singer-songwriter tells LAUNCH that her relocation to Los Angeles from Sedona, Arizona was not as simple as she had assumed it would be.
"I found the perfect place and I was all ready to move into it and all of the sudden all these people called me up and they were just like, 'What's the security of the building?' And I was like, 'It's in a good area.' And they were like, 'No, does it have, like, have a gate? Is there a buzzer?' And I was like, 'No.' And they're like, 'Well, you might not want to move there. You know, you're going to be there, like, for a year.' And I was like, 'Why? Why should I think about that?' And they were like, 'Well, you know, in the next year things could change and there could be people knocking on your door and you don't want that happening.'"
Other newcomers with major-label debuts earned gold certifications in April, including rockers John Mayer and Pete Yorn for their Columbia Records releases, Room For Squares and Musicforthemorningafter, respectively. Others still included pop singer Josh Groban for his self-titled Warner Bros. album, soulstress Tweet for her Elektra debut Southern Hummingbird, and hip-hop group Nappy Roots for its breakthrough effort Watermelon, Chicken & Gritz.
-- Neal Weiss, Los Angeles
Posted by Jen on Wednesday, May 8, 2002 @ 02:23 p.m.
Clair iO Delivers Superior Sound for Paul McCartney Tour and Other Shows Including Britney Spears, Cranberries, Creed, N'Sync, Tim McGraw and The Who
SAN FRANCISCO, May 7 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- This Spring hundreds of thousands of fans will hear Paul McCartney perform live on his first tour in nearly 10 years. And every note they hear will demonstrate the latest advances in crossover, dynamics, delay, and equalization provided by the Clair iO, a new DSP loudspeaker controller from Australia-based Lake Technology Limited (ASX: LAK). The Clair iO will also deliver superior sound at performances by Britney Spears, Cranberries, Creed, N'Sync, Tim McGraw and other top artists this concert season.
The Clair iO is a 2-input, 6-output loudspeaker controller that employs 40-bit floating point DSP processing for a wholly innovative approach to live sound. Lake developed the iO in conjunction with Clair Brothers Audio Enterprises, the world's largest touring sound company and sound engineers for major artists, including McCartney.
Troy Clair, president of Clair Brothers, noted, "Reliability and technical leadership are crucial in concert sound production. Our sound engineers see a different venue each night, each with its own set of acoustic challenges. The iO's groundbreaking technology lets us provide our clients with unmatched sound quality. Lake has impressed us by helping us impress our clients!"
Clair iO Raises Bar for Live Sound Quality and Control
The new Clair iO introduces innovative filtering and management capabilities not available in ordinary EQ tools.
Unlike all other DSP loudspeaker controllers, the Clair iO synthesizes filter responses, providing the most precise and flexible control available for front-of-house and monitoring systems. It permits sound engineers to define any EQ curve they desire by layering multiple curves on top of each other. This technology supports a virtually unlimited number of EQ curves in comparison to conventional processors, which have a limited number of available parametric EQ sections.
The iO's innovative design also extends to the way the processor receives commands. It is unique in its wireless network capability. Using a wireless touchscreen controller, sound engineers can move around a stadium or an arena, hear exactly what the audience will experience in each location, and make appropriate adjustments on the spot.
Sound engineers configure the Clair iO and adjust its parameters using iO Controller software, which is compatible with Windows 98, 2000, ME and XP. In a typical set-up, each iO processor is configured as 2 modules. Each module has one input and up to three outputs so that it can implement a 2-way or 3-way crossover, or just an equalizer. Alternatively, an iO processor can be configured as one module so that it can implement a 4-way, 5-way, or 6-way crossover.
The user selects a module within the Controller software to build EQ curves and configure crossover filters. By employing a revolutionary mathematical approach based on raised cosines, Lake's DSP design provides the precision needed to create an entirely new filter type: the Mesa curve. Mesa curves are an extension of the standard parametric EQ, but they also let sound engineers create very useful audio functions, such as frequency response tilts and tapers, that are unavailable using ordinary EQ tools.
Crossover networks are created using a variety of linear phase, traditional, or non-traditional IIR crossover filters. The linear phase filters are ultra-steep brick wall with a perfect linear phase response. Traditional filters include Bessel, Butterworth, and Linkwitz-Riley, with all filter types up to 8th order (48 dB per octave). High pass and low pass crossover filters can be controlled independently. Extra general purpose biquad filters (high pass, low pass, high shelf, low shelf or band pass) are available on each output depending on the type of crossover selected.
Clair iO Hits the Road with Top Performers This Season
The Clair iO will be on the road this concert season with many major artists, including Enrique, Elton John, The Eagles, Alan Jackson, Britney Spears, Moby, Cranberries, Creed, N'Sync, O-Town, Paul McCartney, Tim McGraw, Korn and Willie Nelson - to name a few. Howard Page, engineer for the Showco division of Clair Brothers, commented, "I spend my life looking for better ways to bring the best live sound to concertgoers, and the iO does precisely that. It's going to change the way audio is experience by artists, audiences and engineers."
The iO's design team was headed by Bruce Jackson, vice president of product development at Lake Technology, and founder of Apogee Electronics Corp. Bruce has won 3 TEC awards for live sound engineering. Jackson said, "We have developed entirely new solutions to meet the problems that are encountered in providing cross-overs in large speaker arrays, utilizing the latest generation of floating point processors. We're proud to know that millions of people will share in an elevated concert experience through our new technology."
The shipment of the iO processor marks both a phenomenal advance in audio engineering and a highly productive phase for Lake Technology. During March and April of this year Lake manufactured and shipped more products than ever before in its history. Chris Gilbey, CEO of Lake Technology, said, "The iO is a highly complex piece of electronic hardware coupled with an equally complex suite of software. Its development has provided Lake with the opportunity to create an exciting new suite of platform-based products."
Posted by Jen on Wednesday, May 8, 2002 @ 02:17 p.m.
Wednesday May 8, 1:37 pm Eastern Time
Press Release
``So Big. So Close.'' Theme Is Right In Tune With Six Flags Theme Parks' Family Demographic
OKLAHOMA CITY--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 8, 2002-- Major recording artists are earning a little extra cash working at Six Flags this summer.
Nine recording stars, primarily from Warner Music Group's Lava/Atlantic Records, are featured in broadcast and print advertising to show how cool it is to visit a Six Flags park. "The artists selected for the campaign cover a wide variety of musical styles," Hank Salemi, senior vice president of marketing for Six Flags, Inc. (NYSE:PKS - news), said. "We are confident that the spots featuring a rockin' line-up like Sugar Ray, Willa Ford, Uncle Kracker, Angela Via, Simple Plan, Beth Hart, La Ley, Titiyo and Lina will only add to the fun and excitement of the Six Flags experience." Starting today, music and theme park fans can preview the television spots at www.sixflags.com.
"The campaign was designed to appeal to a broad audience of teens, tweens and moms," Salemi continued. "The recording artists selected songs they felt reflected the thrills and fun of a Six Flags park." Sugar Ray performs Fly as an anthem to the parks' soaring roller coasters and thrill rides. Willa Ford performs I Wanna Be Bad and Uncle Kracker sings Keep It Coming. "The song fit," Uncle Kracker said. "It's an up-tempo song and a feel-good song and it goes along with the feel-good Six Flags theme park."
Uncle Kracker and Willa Ford reworked the lyrics of their hit singles to better reflect the fun family entertainment found at Six Flags. "I actually did a version of I Wanna Be Bad that was I Wanna Do That, meaning I wanna be in the park...I wanna have fun." Willa Ford said. "I Wanna Be Bad was such a staple for me and it was great to remake it into a Six Flags version."
Willa Ford, Simple Plan, Angela Via, Beth Hart and Uncle Kracker recorded their Six Flags music videos at the company's Los Angeles park. "I had fun," Ford exclaimed. "It's hard to have fun sometimes on a shoot, but to actually shoot in an amusement park was the coolest thing."
Special tear-away costumes were created for Willa Ford and Uncle Kracker. Both artists appear as Six Flags employees at the beginning of their spots -- Willa as a candy store girl and Uncle Kracker as a landscaper. The artists then magically lose their costumes and become singing stars amid soaring visuals of Six Flags parks. "I was working in the candy store in a pink apron dress with Six Flags on it," Willa Ford explained. "During my song, I rip the little candy girl outfit off and I become Willa Ford and I am obviously in my black boots and little black jumpsuit."
"A key extension of the campaign is a nationwide Six Flags concert tour featuring Sugar Ray," Salemi explained. "Sugar Ray will perform at seven Six Flags parks across the US this summer." In addition, the Scooby-Doo movie soundtrack that features Sugar Ray, Uncle Kracker and Simple Plan will include a special discount Six Flags coupon. Just in time for the movie premiere, Six Flags will open two family rides based on the popular cartoon series at its parks in San Antonio and St. Louis. Artists' merchandise will also be available at in-park retail locations.
"The theme So Big. So Close. was created to remind the public that you don't need to board a plane or book a hotel to enjoy the huge entertainment product available at Six Flags parks," Salemi concluded. "The aerials of our parks and attractions used in the spots show the enormous scope of our entertainment product. We think this campaign is really going to fly."
The television commercials will air in 77 Six Flags markets across the U.S. starting in April. Spanish language spots featuring Le Lay will air in select markets including San Antonio, Chicago, San Francisco and Denver. Ackerman McQueen Advertising in Oklahoma City created the campaign.
Posted by Jen on Wednesday, May 8, 2002 @ 02:13 p.m.
Wed May 8, 7:02 AM ET
By DEEPTI HAJELA, Associated Press Writer
NEW YORK (AP) - Kevyn Aucoin, a master makeup artist who worked on famous faces from Cindy Crawford to Britney Spears, has died. He was 40.
Aucoin died Tuesday at Westchester Medical Center from complications of a metabolic disorder, his friend Marcy Engelman said. He had been treated for a pituitary brain tumor in the past year, she said.
Aucoin, born on Valentine's Day (news - web sites) in 1962, had a lifelong love of makeup. During his youth in Lafayette, La., Aucoin would rip out photos from magazines and try to replicate the models' makeup on his sisters.
He moved to New York in January 1983 and spent his time making up models for free. His big break came eight months later, when Vogue magazine booked him to work on a photo shoot of Meg Tilly. He did his first cover in 1986, working with Richard Avedon.
"He had such a rapid rise because he was so extraordinarily talented," said Linda Wells, editor in chief of Allure magazine, where Aucoin had a column until February.
Aucoin was in demand as makeup artist to the stars, including Janet Jackson, Sharon Stone, Madonna (news - web sites), Julia Roberts and Gwyneth Paltrow.
Aucoin was the author of three books, "Face Forward," "Making Faces" and "The Art of Makeup," and had recently started his own product line. But while he was famous and highly paid, he never presumed to dictate how people should use cosmetics.
"I don't use 'always do this,' 'never say that,' and I never give advice because I'm not the end-all, be-all authority," he told The Associated Press in November.
He was also an activist, remembered as an opinionated person with strong political views who was outspoken about gay rights, Wells said.
Posted by Jen on Wednesday, May 8, 2002 @ 02:10 p.m.
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