Last night during NBC’s coverage of the Olympics, a montage capturing all 19 medals won by U.S. swimmer Michael Phelps caused an unusual stir. Apparently more than a few Phish fans were watching the London Games and recognized the use of Tweezer Reprise for the video clip’s score. The recognition transferred to Twitter where “Tweezer Reprise” became a worldwide trending topic (Update: Apparently it only trended in the U.S.). NY Daily News writer Colin Jones (@Colin_Jones) tweeted this screengrab showing the trend just a few slots below Phelps.
The Outside Lands music and art festival returns to the Bay Area August 10- 12 in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park. Ranger Dave (@sfoutsidelands), the avatar of the official Twitter account for the event, is the central source for updates on the fest. Today Ranger Dave hinted that the release of the schedule for the daily lineup of performers was imminent.
Last night at Jones Beach Phish (@Phish) pulled out the biggest bust out in their history by opening the show with Little Feat’s Skin It Back. Having not played the tune since July 29, 1988 at The Roma in Telluride, Colorado, the 1,417 show gap edged out the Fuck Your Face 2010 bust out in Charlotte by only six shows. Thanks to the webcast offered by Live Phish for both of the Jones Beach shows, fans both in attendance and on #couchtour were able to catch the epic opener. Plenty of fans recognized the significance of the opening number and tweeted their reactions, below I’ve rounded up a few to get a feel for how special of a performance this was.
They’re nailing Skin It Back. Unreal that it’s even being played
Yo La Tengo (@TheRealYLT) is back in the studio recording the follow-up to their stellar 2009 album, Popular Songs. The trio from Hoboken recently played the Primavera Sound festival in Spain and now find themselves in the studio, presumably in Chicago. For a little over a week they’ve sent daily tweets featuring a picture from inside the studio. As the tweets below show, they’re spending plenty of time digging through the cool gear and artifacts lying around the studio, while also responding to Emily White and taking in a Mets game against the Cubs at Wrigley field.
Recording, day 1: photo taken just before using all of these at once. http://t.co/aTmfvSTl
A few items of note popped up on Twitter recently that seemed worth sharing. One band is playing a secret show in Nashville this evening. A British singer is in the studio working on her long awaited new material. Also, there’s a photo contest going on from one of our favorites here at Hidden Track.
First we have a tweet from The Black Keys (@theblackkeys) announcing a secret show tonight. It starts at 7 PM somewhere in Nashville. Follow their feed for (hopefully) more information.
Next up were a few tweets between Lily Allen (@lilyrosecooper) and the website Pop Justice (@Popjustice) in which Allen declared she was in the studio working with producer Greg Kurstin (@GregKurstin). Kurtsin produced Allen’s previous two albums, the last being 2009’s It’s Not Me, It’s You, which earned him a Grammy Award nomination for Producer of the Year.
i must say i think Kate Nash’s new jam is pretty cool. i know its controversial but more power to her i say! gwaaarn Nasher
While in the midst of a tour with The Marcus Roberts Trio, banjoist extraordinaire Béla Fleck (@belafleckbanjo) will appear solo at Clearwater’s Great Hudson River Revival at Croton Point Park in Croton-on-Hudson, New York. Fleck will play an hour long solo set Saturday at the festival’s Rainbow Stage starting at 6:30 PM. Other acts performing at the fest include Ani Difranco, Martin Sexton, Dawes, Punch Brothers Featuring Chris Thile, Deer Tick, Donna The Buffalo and many others. Fleck is in New York City coming off a run of shows with The Marcus Roberts Trio at Blue Note and tweeted a couple of hints as to what to expect from this weekend on the Hudson River.
Clearwater Festival this weekend, should be a nice crowd out on the Hudson River. http://t.co/xitDQul8
After a few months off, Phish tour finally launches in Worcester, Mass. tonight. For those of us who are stuck at home, following the shows via Twitter is the next best thing to, well, couch tour. The band already sent out a few choice updates from their official account (@phish) and their official tour account Phish: From the Road (@Phish_FTR).
Tickets for tonight’s show are on sale now: http://t.co/VakfSukf. Remaining tix will be at the box office. Tomorrow’s show is SOLD OUT.
As we reported yesterday, legendary flat picker Doc Watson died at age 89 in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Watson was an incredibly influential figure in the development of American bluegrass music and touched the lives of many in the music industry. Tributes to Watson have begun appearing on Twitter demonstrating his wide ranging impact. The first tweet, from Steve Silberman (@stevesilberman), includes a link to the Appalachian State University digital collections website where you can stream what is believed to be the first recording made of Watson, picking and singing at age 14.
Doc Watson’s 1st recording as a teen. Rarely heard, sent by former member of Bill Monroe’s band. RIP. http://t.co/BSZlWI0Y
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers (@tompetty) are currently on a break from their extensive tour across North America and Europe. The band is great at keeping fans in loop while they’re on the road, using the hashtag #TPATHLive2012 while tweeting updates from each city and offering up stellar pictures taken during their shows.
With a few days off, the band has instead been tweeting pics of their classic album and single covers including a couple which are from their international vinyl releases. These choice images give a glimpse into the Petty vault which we’re hoping continues into the future.
Pioneering funk guitarist Chuck Brown (@chuckbrowndc) died yesterday at Johns Hopkins University Hospital in Baltimore. Brown, 75, was a legend of the Washington D.C. music scene, earning the title “the Godfather of Go-go,” after a style of funk music he helped to popularize. With his band, the Soul Searchers, Brown stormed the Go-Go circuit developing an intensely enthusiastic live show. Brown and his band had a series of hits in the 1970s, with Busting Loose and Ashley’s Roachclip becoming widely well-known and heavily sampled by hip-hop artists. His devoted fans and others around the music world have been tweeting condolences which we’ve rounded up below.
The Brown family would like to thank everyone for their love and support over the years. We know that Chuck’s… http://t.co/fyn0z6vq
The Red Hot Organization (@RedHotMusic) is prepping another compilation album to benefit the international HIV and AIDS awareness charity. Since 1990 the organization has tapped popular musicians to contribute tracks to differently themed releases. These albums often pair artists of varying backgrounds to perform collaborative tracks and the non-profit has tweeted some insight into one such combination.
Though the 2002 compilation Red Hot + Riot: The Music and Spirit of Fela Kuti focused on music from the Nigerian musician the above tweet indicates there’s more coming in tribute to the Afrobeat master. One such collaboration has Merrill Garbus of tune-yards (@tuneyards) recording with Questlove of The Roots (@questlove) and Ray Angry (@RayAngry) at The Bunker Studio in Brooklyn, New York (@bunkerbrooklyn).
Wayne Coyne (@waynecoyne) of The Flaming Lips (@theflaminglips) is one of my favorite people to follow on Twitter. The band’s frontman and all around freak keeps a running diary of his everyday life through the various pictures and videos he almost constantly tweets. Lately he’s been keeping his followers apprised of the process of adding blood to a special limited edition vinyl pressing of their 2012 Record Store Day released The Flaming Lips and Heady Fwends. The 13 track, double LP features a slew of guest artists who donated blood samples to Coyne for inclusion in the super limited edition of the record. Thanks to Coyne’s tweets we can see how the process went down.
We recently reported on POP ETC (@popetcetera), the newly named band formerly known as The Morning Benders. Along with the name change, the band issued the POP ETC Mixtape for free download. The mixtape was reviewed by Listen Before You Buy (@ListenB4YouBuy) and in a candid exchange on Twitter the band and the website shed light on how reviews are crafted and how a band reacts to a “bad” review.
gonna chat on here for a minute. tweet @ us if u got a question or just want to say hey.
Tomorrow is Record Store Day, your chance to wait in line for the opportunity to buy some rare vinyl records. We’ve already given you the low down on the Phish Junta package, previewed some of the products on Twitter and profiled our Top 5 releases. We were also able to chat with a few record stores from across the country, including Criminal Records where Record Store Day was first hatched.
Now in its fifth year, Record Store Day is bigger than ever. We wanted to reach out to a few independent purveyors of physical music products and get their take on the current state of RSD. Up first is Eric Levin Record Store Day co-founder and owner of Criminal Records.
HT: What is the best aspect of Record Store Day?
Eric Levin: The global and local celebrations are amazing. While I’m enjoying my own party, I know that the fun is happening coast to coast and around the world.
Like, while Patterson Hood and Drive-By Truckers are playing at my store in Atlanta, World Party are playing at Fingerprints in Long Beach, California. When this was first discussed five years ago, we had no idea anyone would care, and now, it’s just unbelievable.
With Record Store Day, or “Waiting in Line for Limited Vinyl Day” as I like to call it, right around the corner, this week’s B List features my Top Five picks for RSD 2012. Now in its fifth year, the impressive list of limited edition, largely vinyl releases continues to grow. Get to your local independent record store early Saturday if you want to have a chance at getting the wax you really want. At this point, I’m hoping to get even one of the entries on my list.
I tend to flock toward LPs rather than 45s and releases that are particularly exclusive to RSD. Reissues and compilations are cool, but I get most excited for new music and first time on vinyl product over stuff you might find elsewhere.
1. Phish – Junta (5,000 copies)
Phish stepped it up big time this year with the remarkable Junta 3-LP set. Their first proper studio album getting its first proper vinyl release, it’s one of the most extensive releases of any for RSD this year. Let’s hope these end up in the hands of fans before making it to Ebay.
