KURT COBAIN
With the eerily realistic resurrection of Tupac via hologram at Coachella this past weekend, we couldn't help but imagine what it would be like to see more of our favorite lost legends come back to life. What we'd pay to see them in the flesh (kinda) once more! This is an open letter to the Hologram Gods, here's a list of icons you need to get to work on next. Chop chop.
10. Kurt Cobain/Nirvana
Ah, Courtney Love. The mere mention of the shameless rocker's name alone constitutes an automatic shaking of the head. Or at least it does for me. And yet, she is just so deliciously entertaining to watch...
What is the Hole frontwoman talking about now?
This time, actually, she talks to Vanity Fair about her late husband - Kurt Cobain of grunge band Nirvana. His apparent "suicide" in 1994 has affected not only rock fans everywhere, but the entire music industry as well. Their most popular album, Nevermind (1991), has become a cultural icon. Left behind are his wife and their now 19-year-old daughter Frances Bean Cobain.
Though reactions to Amy Winehouse's demise have ranged from sympathetic to brutal "she had it coming" sentiments, one thing is certain --she is not the first, and likely not the last musician to suffer such a fate. It's known as the 'Forever 27' club, it includes Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, Kurt Cobain and Jimi Hendrix, who all died tragically and unnaturally.
Marco Perego created a sculpture two years ago called, 'The Only Good Rock Star Is a Dead Rock Star.' The piece shows Amy Winehouse shot in the head by William Boroughs. Winehouse replaces Joan Vollmer, Boroughs' wife who was shot during a game of William Tell in 1951. The sculpture was part of 'The Truth Is All of These Things. The Truth Is None of These Things. The Truth Is Some of These Things,' at Half Gallery.
Been really looking forward to seeing a festival line up all year? The last one was amazing, its competitors were amazing, now you just really need to see the line-up. You hear the hype, you hear it until you can’t take it any longer, “Who’s it gunna be, who’s it gunna be” and then… oh the disappointment! It’s the same headliners you ALWAYS see and like bad smells, there is just no getting rid of them. Now, it’s nice to catch one of the good ol’ rock legends that have been going ever since you were residing in your mother’s womb, but let’s face it -when all they play are festivals, release no new music, play no private gigs and generally hog a slot that could showcase another worthy legend, contemporary or not, that’s where the problem lies.
The 30 Seconds to Mars singer posted on his blog a tribute to Kurt Cobain who passed away 17 years ago.
The video features Leto dressed from head-to-toe exactly like Cobain, performing acoustic covers of the late star's greatest hits.
He explains on his blog why he decided to post the video, "I heard today (April 5) was the day Kurt passed away 17 years ago," he wrote. "Can’t believe it’s been that long. So grateful for his contribution and inspiration. Not sure I’d be doing this if it weren’t for him."
He added, "I shot a short piece of film when I heard they were making a film celebrating his life. I made it to explore the character and explore creative possibilities. I never sent it to the studio or to anyone but thought I’d share it now."
A book written by Nick Strauss called Everybody Loves You When You’re Dead has revealed that the Hole singer wanted to snort her lover Kurt Cobain's ashes.
The author of the book, Strauss, claims that she tried to get him to inhale the ashes of Nirvana's leader.
He told RadarOnline: “She actually said she would offer his ashes to me first to snort and then said she would like them."
"Too bad you don't do coke," Love said, according to Strauss. "Otherwise I'd suggest taking a metal straw to it."
The ashes finally remained unsnorted...
Peter Gabriel has long been a monster in the music biz, immortalizing himself with hits like "Solsbury Hill," "Sledgehammer," and "In Your Eyes". It's the former Genesis lead singer's place in the classic rock canon that makes his most recent album so surprising: a cover album. And among the classic rock hits he reinvents (Bowie, The Kinks, Paul Simon, Lou Reed, Neil Young), Gabriel also pays homage to the present indie scene. The list includes Bon Iver, Regina Spektor, The Magnetic Fields, and Arcade Fire. There's also some Radiohead in there, too - something I never thought I'd hear from Mr. Gabriel.
As with many great things in life, my tenure as an intern at Joonbug had come to a close. Finishing up my last day was almost as difficult to get through as my first one. I was lingering in the office on a Friday evening, putting the final touches on my last Featured Artist Profile, when the editor-in-chief, Kelley Baker, came bouncing up to my workstation (which was quite unprecedented, since she was seated only ten feet away at her own desk) and tapped me on the shoulder.
"You're on the list to see Dinosaur Jr. on the 17th!"
Daniel Johnston
Genre: Folk/Indie
Website: www.hihowareyou.com
After a long, sleep-deprived week, I was readying myself last night for a well-deserved night’s rest before another day of journalistic prosperity here at the joonbug offices. I predicated my slumber with the positive, reinforcing words of Henry Rollins’ spoken word performances; a new personal obsession which, I feel, brings hope and assurance to my often bleak view of everyday life. As my eyes began to involuntarily close, I decided to close-out my session of “youtube-ery” with a video from the site’s side-bar suggestions, namely, a musical performance. I saw the name of a performer I was unfamiliar with and thought, “Why not?” as I clicked on the less-than encumbered thumbnail. In a clip from the former hardcore-singer’s talk-show on cable’s IFC, I saw an exceptionally overweight, middle-aged man in sweat-pants and what looked like a hand-Sharpied t-shirt timidly fist-strumming mangled chords on an acoustic guitar. When he opened his mouth, his nasal, slightly off-key voice began singing a song of love by way of poetic despair that made the world around me float away until all that was left was the music pouring from my computer speakers and my heart that was breaking with each word the man spoke. I replayed the song over and over again, mesmerized at the aural magnetism of the song despite its apparent simplicity. Hours and hours later, early into the morning, I found myself lying on my bed, unable to get to sleep, weeping uncontrollably at the beauty of Daniel Johnston’s music.
After a long and highly successful career, the post-grunge alternative band Foo Fighters are going the route that innumerable groups before them have traveled, i.e. they will be releasing a Greatest Hits album. Although, even after 15 years of making music, seven albums, and various music videos featuring pop-culture references and hilarious cameos, this does not signify the end of one of the most accessible bands in modern American music. After all, they have a countless assortment of fans to keep happy.
After the disintegration of Nirvana following the suicide of Kurt Cobain, Dave Grohl’s future was uncertain. As a goof, he sent self-produced demo tapes to friends where he played and sang a number of different songs. Eventually, these tapes found their way into the offices of some the top labels in the music industry, and Grohl found himself the focus of a bidding war. He called a few of his friends and organized a band to accompany the music he wrote for the demos. Thus, Foo Fighters was born.
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