Morning Music Notes – Proof That Talent and Album Sales are Rarely Correlated

Lollapalooza Shuts Down for a Few Hours, and Announces Expansion to Israel

Of the four times I’ve been to Chicago for Lollapalooza, I’ve always been treated to 3 gorgeously sunny days – not a drop of rain that I can recall. For concert attendees this year, of which I was not one, they had to be evacuated due to severe weather on Saturday (via MTV). The evacuation kicked off around 3:30pm local time on Saturday (Day 2), with announcements coming from the speakers telling people that they needed to leave due to high winds, hail, lightning, and a potential tornado!

Some people refused to leave, citing the hundreds of dollars they paid to see the festival. I’m sure they wouldn’t be complaining if they were injured in a collapsed stage and in the hospital. Actually, they probably would complain – fuckin’ punks. But hey, what a boon for local businesses – 60,000 people taking shelter from the rain inside a Starbucks or a bar. After a few hours, people were let back inside, and treated to a revised schedule – meaning 8 hours of Justin Bieber and 0 hours of the bands they actually wanted to see.

Lollapalooza has also announced its 2013 dates, and another surprise announcement – they are going to Israel in 2013 (via Pitchfork). Didn’t Lollapalooza stop for a few years because they were making no money touring around North America?! The now-four country festival will take place on the following dates in 2013:

Brazil: March 29-31
Chile: April 6-7
Chicago, USA: August 2-4
Tel Aviv, Israel: August 20-22

Check out Mr. Lollapalooza, Perry Farrell, making the announcement below.

New Paul Banks Album Out October 23, Has Original Name

Interpol might not be up to much these days, but lead singer Paul Banks is. He release an EP under his Julian Plenti name, called Julian Plenti Lives… Now, we have an announcement for a new album, called Banks (via Pitchfork). I’m not sure where he got the idea for that album name. The album is out on October 23, and we can now listen to a track called The Base.

The track starts off with some shimmering guitar work, before building a little heavier as different instruments come in with Paul’s vocals. The percussion is a little muted, and Paul’s vocals lead the way over the catchy riffs. Everything drops away in the bridge before coming back in the chorus. You can download the mp3 over at Matador’s blog, or listen to an upload of the track on YouTube below. I prefer the latter option because I, like you, am lazy.

Paul Banks – The Base

Eminem Almost Never Got Into Rap After a Horrible First Performance

Too bad Justin Bieber never had these doubts – Eminem almost quit rapping after a disasterous first performance (via Gigwise).

“The first time I rapped in front of actual people that mattered, in a club, I got booed. And it was very traumatic for me. I just remember it being so fucking traumatic, and I think I went home and I was like, man, I quit. And you know a week later, a day later, an hour later I got the urge, and I was like, I gotta get up, I gotta do it again.”

Well, what is it Eminem – a week, a day, or an hour? Lies – all lies!

British Boy Band One Direction Are Racking Up the Sales!

British boy band One Direction made headlines when they ‘cracked’ America and landed at number 1 in the Billboard charts earlier this year. They have now sold an estimated 12 million records, which is more than Arctic Monkeys, Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, Mumford & Sons, and Kasabian – COMBINED (via NME). The most amazing thing about the accomplishment? The sheer lack of talent the band possesses!