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  1. MTV Newsroom Reports

    Van Halen Begin The End: Wake-Up Video

    by Kyle Anderson in Wake-Up Video

    Hindsight is always 20/20, especially in the world of rock and roll. Given the gift of access and the ease with which everything can be reconfigured in different contexts, fans and critics are always going back over rock history and re-creating narratives that may not have been obvious then but seem painfully trite now. It seems obvious now that the men of Van Halen would go their separate ways circa 1984 (and 1984), but on this day that year, it was simply an opportunity to launch a 103-date world tour that ended up being the last jaunt with frontman David Lee Roth for over two decades.

    The year opened well for Van Halen, as they had just celebrated the release of 1984, the album that contained some of their biggest hits (including "Jump," "Hot for Teacher" and "Panama") and went on to sell over 10 million copies. The tour for that album was to be the group's biggest and most ambitious yet, and though it started off promisingly with a blistering opening in Jacksonville, Florida, the stress of the road began to wear on the band members, whose relationships were already frayed (especially between principal members David Lee Roth and Eddie Van Halen). The stories vary, but the tensions seemed to grow out of them being envious of the other one's work outside of the band — Roth was scoring solo success with the singles "California Girls" and "Just a Gigolo" (which came from his debut solo EP Crazy From the Heat, released in January 1985) and Eddie had lent his guitar skills to other artists, most notably to Michael Jackson (whose Thriller kept Van Halen's 1984 from reaching the top of the Billboard album chart, something that reported annoyed Roth).

    In the end, Roth left the group to work on his solo career and the remaining members of Van Halen soldiered on with former Montrose singer Sammy ...
  2. Gibson Lifestyle Reports



    Sean Patrick Dooley | 01.18.2011

    Right Now: Van Halen to Record New Studio Album

    The rumor mill has been churning for months, but it appears Van Halen are heading into the studio to record a new studio album with Grammy-winning producer John Shanks (Bon Jovi, Keith Urban, Pink, Celine Dion).

    Melodicrock.com is reporting the band will be joined in the studio by original frontman David Lee Roth for their first new studio album since 1998’s Van Halen III. It will be Roth’s first new album with Eddie and Alex since 1983’s 1984.

    There is no word about a completion date for the album nor any subsequent tour, though Melodicrock.com reports that Eddie is not interested in touring without new music in his quiver. It is also reporting that the band’s Warner label might want to release a career-spanning box set after reaching new publishing deals with Roth, Sammy Hagar and Michael Anthony.

    http://www.gibson.com/en-us/Lifestyl...len-0118-2011/

    Sean Patrick Dooley Bio
    http://www.gibson.com/en-us/lifestyle/bios/43

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  3. melodicrock.com Reports



    Monday, January 17, 2011

    VAN HALEN COMMENCE WORK WITH PRODUCER JOHN SHANKS:
    Van Halen will formally start work on a new studio album with Grammy Award winning producer John Shanks Monday January 17. The news of the band's plans was confirmed by myself this weekend.
    Rumours of Shanks' involvement with the band surfaced a couple of months ago at the Van Halen Newsdesk. It can now be confirmed.
    The band will record their first all-new studio album since 1998's Van Halen III and their first with original singer David Lee Roth since 1983's 1984.
    There are no further details available about this latest stint in the studio, nor any suggestion of when the band will be finished and anything subsequently released. Manager Irving Azoff is said to be pushing the band to tour, but I'm told Eddie Van Halen is reluctant to do so without any new material to release.
    So while a 2011 tour has been publicly mentioned previously by Azoff, it remains up in the air as to when, or even if a tour will happen this year. A record needs to be completed and I doubt anyone will want to start speculating as to when that will happen.

    Questions remain about what happened to the much discussed 2010 recording sessions with producer Ross Hogarth. Officially denied, and not likely to ever be addressed, the fact remains the band were in the studio writing and working for much of 2010. Several famous names commented positively about hearing new material during 2010, including Dweezil Zappa & John 5.
    Additionally Warner Publishing issued a press release mid-year stating that the band had re-signed to the company, adding that they were (at that stage) in the studio recording.

    Additional rumors remain about Warner's desire to release remastered versions of the band's Sammy Hagar fronted albums and I'm hearing talk of a career spanning Box Set at some stage ...
    Categories
    David Lee Roth
  4. Supreme Court won't review music download antitrust case

    Quote Originally Posted by Blaze View Post


    – Mon Jan 10, 10:15 am ET

    WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Supreme Court on Monday declined to review a ruling that reinstated an antitrust lawsuit alleging major record labels conspired to fix prices and terms under which music would be sold over the Internet.

    The justices rejected without comment an appeal by a number of companies that included Sony Corp, a unit of Vivendi SA, Warner Music Group Corp and EMI Group of the ruling by a U.S. appeals Court in New York.

    The appeals court ruled that a federal judge had erred in 2008 in dismissing the lawsuit filed on behalf of people who downloaded music over the Internet. They had sued record labels that control more than 80 percent of U.S. digital music sales.

    The lawsuit accused the record companies of agreeing to the wholesale price floor of about 70 cents a song when rivals began offering music on the Internet at a much cheaper rate.

    The appeals court ruled the plaintiffs had described enough facts to suggest an antitrust price-fixing conspiracy and sent the case back for further proceedings before the judge.

    Attorneys for the companies appealed and said the case raised important, recurring issues that required the Supreme Court's resolution.
    They said the appeals court erred in ruling that a lawsuit can state a claim without alleging sufficient facts under the legal standard that will apply in considering the claim at the summary judgment stage or at trial.

    Attorneys for the plaintiffs opposed the appeal and said the appeals court correctly applied the legal standard from recent Supreme Court decisions in considering the facts alleged in the lawsuit.

    Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Sonia Sotomayor recused themselves and did not consider the case.

    The Supreme Court case
    ...
  5. 5 Predictions for the Music Industry in 2011

    Quote Originally Posted by Blaze View Post
    Brenna Ehrlich

    The music industry continued suffering its hardcore identity crisis in 2010, buffeted by the languishing major labels, continued leaks/file-sharing and that most confusing of conundrums: How to get music to fans in a way that makes sense — without losing money.

    Still, despite the industry’s continuing difficulty to adapt to the digital age in a truly profitable way, we have seen some stirrings of change: the expansion of the online music video oeuvre, more creative and diverse methods of releasing albums (via Ping, Facebook and even mobile apps), and more mainstream, established publications and institutions embracing social media all the more.

    There’s a lot of noise out there in the music world — and we’re not just talking about the genre — and we’re all hoping that out of that tangle of ideas and sounds comes the antidote that will fix a system that is so obviously in flux. Although I don’t quite see that antidote being concocted this coming year, I do see more trial and error and creativity brewing that could, in the end, lead to the music industry’s eventual rebirth. Either that or it will all implode and we’ll live in eternal silence, but somehow I doubt it.

    And with that I bring you my predictions for 2011.


    1. Subscription Services Will Be Popular, But Not Profitable

    If Spotify’s $26.7 million loss in 2009 is any indication, subscription services still have a ways to go before they’ll actually become profitable. Hell, Last.fm isn’t even turning a profit yet — although it could be getting close.

    Still, this year and the end of last year saw services gaining even more steam — MOG launched its all-you-can-eat service in December, followed by Android and iPhone apps, and, most recently, an app in the Chrome Web Store. Rdio also launched to much excitement, and Slacker Radio announced that it would be launching an on-demand offering as well
    ...
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