Three hours in Auckland was enough time for Ricky Malcolm and Cameron Betts to win 99 U2 concert tickets and meet American hip-hop star Jay-Z.
“We were standing there and Jay-Z walked past, so we said `hey bro’ and he said `hey guys’,” Ricky said.
Yesterday morning the New Plymouth pair were greeted at Auckland airport by the Cambell Live crew, who filmed them being taken to Mt Smart Stadium to see the concert set-up and their reaction to winning the national competition.
“We were sitting there waiting for the other two finalists to arrive and they said we better announce the winner and it was us,” Ricky said.
“Our faces just lit up and we were screaming.”
And after the prize of 99 tickets was handed out the boys got a surprise win of 10 inner circle tickets, which allow them to get even closer to the stage – and possibly another close encounter with their new mate Jay-Z, who will open for U2’s concerts tomorrow and Friday.
Ricky and Cameron were part of a five-strong New Plymouth group who recreated the U2 video Elevation for the Cambell Live contest and plan to divvy up the tickets among themselves.
But they also want to give away 10 double passes.
If you want to win one of the double passes you need to be one of the first 10 people, dressed as Bono, to meet the group on Puke Ariki Landing in New Plymouth at 5.30pm today.
The group encouraged people of all ages to dress up and race down to the landing, but warned you must be decked out in the lead singer’s rock costume.
“We want them really dressed up.
“They have to show us they are a hard core fan,” Cameron said.
more info at http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=176705495676061&num_event_invites=0
Until next time keep rockin’
The 0800 Jukebox crew.
www.0800jukebox.co.nz
Rhythm and blues legend Joe Cocker is set to play at the Bowl of Brooklands this summer.
Joining him on stage for the January 28 show is master of the slide guitar George Thorogood and his Destroyers.
The Sheffield-born singer is one of the most successful and popular singers of the last 40 years. The 66-year-old is also one of music’s most loved and most respected, becoming an international sensation with his performance at Woodstock in 1969.
Cocker will be performing songs from his latest offering Hard Knocks in addition to songs in his illustrious back catalogue including You Can Leave Your Hat On, Unchain My Heart, Up Where We Belong, The Letter, and You Are So Beautiful.
Support artist George Thorogood and his band The Destroyers are also stars in their own right. The blues and rock specialist has sold more than 15 million albums worldwide, amassing a loyal following for his scorching live performances. Their hits include Move it on Over, You Talk Too Much, Bad To The Bone, and One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer.
Tickets are available through Ticketmaster from November 26.
Until next time keep rockin’
The 0800 Jukebox crew.
www.0800jukebox.co.nz
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| http://www.prideofmanchester.com/music/hollies.htm |
The Hollies will play at New Plymouth’s TSB Bowl of Brooklands on February 6 as part of a seven-stop New Zealand tour.
The show will be the third time the English rock group have performed at the Bowl, first appearing there in the mid-70s.
The New Zealand tour coincides with the release of their new compilation album, The Midas Touch, which focuses on the group’s 60s and 70s recordings.
Promoter Ian Magan, of Pacific Entertainment, described the band as “pop royalty.”
“The Hollies have a pedigree most groups can only dream of,” he said.
The band will also perform at Tauranga, Matakana, Christchurch, Nelson, Wellington and Auckland.
Unlike so many groups of their day, the Hollies have continued touring and recording with the current six-piece line up Tony Hicks, Bobby Elliott, Ray Stiles, Ian Parker, Steve Lauri and lead vocalist Peter Howarth.
The Hollies were inducted to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this year. Among their hits are Air That I Breathe, He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother, Bus Stop, Long Cool Woman and Carrie Ann.
Tickets go on sale October 9 at Ticketmaster.
Until next time keep rockin’
The 0800 Jukebox crew.
www.0800jukebox.co.nz
Some footage of Slash and Myley Kennedy form Gtaranaki on Saturday
Until next time keep rockin’
The 0800 Jukebox crew.
The Datsuns have announced that they will be touring New Zealand in September. The Cambridge band are currently busy working on their fifth studio album.
Tour Dates
24/Sep/10
Auckland @ Kings Arms
17/Sep/10
Nelson @ Phat Club
16/Sep/10
Christchurch @ Al’s Bar
11/Sep/10
New Plymouth @ The Basement
10/Sep/10
Wellington @ Bodega
Until next time keep rockin’
The 0800 Jukebox crew.
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| CAMERON BURNELL/The Taranaki Daily News |
Parents around Taranaki will be covering their ears this weekend as a New Plymouth musician attempts to create a Guinness World Record. On Saturday, West Coast School of Rock director Rimu Tahuaroa will endeavour to generate the loudest guitar lesson in the world.
“There is the world’s loudest band, audience and guitar player so we thought we would give it a go,” Mr Tahuaroa said.
The music teacher has been chatting to Guinness officials about the attempt and all signs so far are positive.
“We have been emailing and while I am not paying for an adjudicator to come down, we have noise scientists.”
Mr Tahuaroa has already busted a speaker on a practice run, which saw levels reach 118 decibels, but he has a heavy duty one for the real deal.
“We are obviously doing the attempt in our sound-proof room and we are wearing ear plugs and acoustic earmuffs.”
He says the lesson will only be about five or 10 minutes as he is not looking to bother neighbours and their pets. His mate and The Rock disc jockey Paul “The Axeman” Martin will be receiving the lesson for the record. The level he wants to achieve is 120 decibels which is intolerable to the human ear.
“At that kind of level, you can feel your insides moving.”
The independent noise scientists will provide the equipment needed to measure the decibels for the record attempt. Mr Tahuaroa says he plans to make the record and will be prepared to defend it in the future, even if it does not end up an official record.
“Guinness is very interested in it and I would be challenging other music teachers to take on the challenge.”
Once the lesson is complete, noise scientists will collaborate the data and take it to Guinness officials.
“If they tick all the right boxes then we have set a record but if not, at the very least we have set the New Zealand record.”
stuff.co.nz
Until next time keep rockin’
The 0800 Jukebox crew.
Before I Am Giant head off to Australia and America, the band decided to sneak in a couple of extra New Zealand shows.
‘We were getting fans hitting us up on Facebook wanting us to play in their town, and since we had a weekend free before going overseas, we thought it would be a great thing to do !’ says drummer Shelton Woolright.
The gigs wraps up a few whirlwind months which have seen the band shoot a video featuring world surf champion Kelly Slater, recorded a live to air for XFM in the UK, complete a handful of London gigs, performed in Vietnam for Tiger Translate, fly to France to play at the opening of the new Quiksliver headquarters and tour New Zealand on the massively successful State of Rock tour.
I Am Giant’s first ever release, the ‘Neon Sunrise/City Limits EP’, recently debuted in the NZ singles chart at No 18 and is still in the Top 30. The EP will also be released later this year in Australia and Asia via Sony Records.
I AM GIANT UPCOMING DATES
New Zealand
Thursday August 5th New Plymouth – The Basement
Friday August 6th Palmerston North – The Royal
Saturday August 7th Ohakune – Hot Lava
Australia
Wednesday August 11th Sydney – Beach Road Hotel, Bondi Beach
Friday August 13th Melbourne – The Esplanade, St Kilda
America
Tuesday August 17th Los Angeles – The Viper Room
Tuesday August 24th New York – The Mercury Lounge
For more details go to www.iamgiant.com
NZ tickets $20 plus booking fee available via www.iamgiant.com and venues
Until next time keep rockin’
The 0800 Jukebox crew.
The lineup was announced today for the festival known as G-TARanaki 2010, a five-day musical celebration of the guitar to be held in New Plymouth.
The headline act is ex-Guns ‘N Roses/Velvet Revolver axe-man Slash. He will be joined by Alter Bridge vocalist Myles Kennedy along with bassist Todd Kerns (Sin City Sinners, Static in Stereo, Age of Electric), rhythm guitarist Bobby Schneck (Green Day, Weezer) and drummer Brent Fitz (Alice Cooper, Vince Neil).
Also visiting from overseas is Uli Jon Roth ex-Scorpions. The classically trained German rock guitarist appeared at the 2008 G-TARanaki summit. He’ll offer workshops and masterclasses and lead an all-star jam session as part of the Friday night concert.
Jennifer Batten, who was Michael Jackson’s live guitarist across three world tours and worked with Jeff Beck in the late 1990s, will perform at G-TARanaki also. Batten is a class player with chops that allow her to move from metal shred to world music, to funk, fusion and electronica.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/blogs/blog-on-the-tracks/3737795/G-TARanaki-2010
Vinnie Moore is also on the bill. He was discovered due to a demo tape he sent to Guitar Player magazine. From there he became an influential shredder then toured and recorded with Alice Cooper and is currently playing with UFO.
Hail! is a metal supergroup with a shifting lineup. For G-TARanaki it will be Scott Travis of Judas Priest banging the skins, Scott MacAlpine (from Steve Vai’s band) on lead guitar and Tony Franklin Jennifer Batten(The Firm, Quiet Riot, Blue Murder) on bass.
From Mountain – and from work with the likes of Van Halen, Mick Jagger and Billy Joel – Leslie West will be on board.
California Guitar Trio will work through almost every genre of music.
Joining the California Guitar trio and performing solo is bass legend Tony Levin. You would know his work from King Crimson, from touring and recording with Peter Gabriel – from his Chapman Stick playing as well as his bass playing; possibly even from his inclusion on John Lennon & Yoko Ono’s Double Fantasy album.
Another great bass player making the trip is Guy Pratt. Pratt took on the role of bass player for Pink Floyd for the post-Roger Waters albums and tours. He has also toured (including New Zealand) with Bryan Ferry and has played extensively with Robert Palmer, was a member of Icehouse and played on the tour behind the Coverdale Page album. In 2007 he published a memoir – filled with great touring and recording stories – My Bass and Other Animals. And from there he has gone on to a sideline career in standup comedy – touring with his music anecdotes.
Oli Brown Band features Britain’s newest blues guitar prodigy, Oli Brown. He released his debut, Open Road in 2008. He was just 19. From there Mike Vernon, producer of early John Mayall and Fleetwood Mac albums, came out of retirement to produce the Oli Brown Band’s follow-up, Heads I Win, Tails You Lose.
Speaking of young stars, Desiree Bassett is just 17. Here’s a clip of her, aged 15, covering Jimi Hendrix. From here she has gone on to release three CDs and play alongside Jimmie Vaughan and Sammy Hagar. She is from New Haven, Connecticut.
There are New Zealand bands performing as part of G-TARanaki also.
The Checks will be there. In Dread Response is an Auckland metal band. For the cheekier side of metal try Shotgun Alley. And there’s also The Thomas Oliver Band from Wellington, Kara Gordon Trio, an Auckland group that performed at 2008’s G-TARanaki, and Blue Monkey Racket, a Taranaki blues band.
So, how does this all work? And what’s happening?
A Friday night concert at the TSB Stadium will see The Checks, Desiree Bassett and Oli Brown Band as well as Tony Levin with the California Guitar Trio. This evening will be headlined by the Uli Jon Roth All-Star Jam with Leslie West, Desiree Bassett, Vinnie Moore and Jennifer Batten.
On Saturday there will be a concert at the TSB Stadium that kicks off with Shotgun Alley and In Dread Response. Then there will be sets by Vinnie Moore, Jennifer Batten and Hail! Finally, Slash will close the evening. There’s a chance the likes of Batten and Moore may join him for an all-star jam to conclude.
There are three midnight sessions at Puke Ariki. Thursday’s will see The Thomas Oliver Band, Guy Pratt, Levin with the California Guitar Trio, Oli Brown Band and Desiree Bassett.
Friday will feature Kara Gordon Trio, Leslie West, Desiree Bassett, Guy Pratt, Vinnie Moore and then Tony Levin solo.
Saturday’s midnight session will be the Brian Hatcher Band, Jennifer Batten, Uli Jon Roth, Hail! and Slash.
At the Sky Academy on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday Uli Jon Roth will be sharing his knowledge with music students in afternoon sessions (1.30-5.30).
There are forums and clinics across the Friday and Saturday – everything from local bands showing how to shred to Dominion Law discussing the legal side of the music business. One of the highlights will surely be Tony Levin discussing working with the likes of Paul Simon, Peter Gabriel, John Lennon and King Crimson.
There’s also a G-TARanaki Guitar Exhibition.
Tickets go on sale to the public from Monday, May 31. Visit here (official G-TARanaki site) to sign up for e-newsletters and to receive further information.
Until next time keep rockin’
The 0800 Jukebox crew.
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Two years after his first visit, Jack Johnson will once again be at the TSB Bowl of Brooklands with a new album under his belt, and a back catalogue of hits spanning his multi-platinum selling albums “Brushfire Fairytales”, “On and On”, “In Between Dreams” and “Sleep Through The Static”.
Performing such classics as “Inaudible Melodies”, “Sitting Waiting Wishing”, “Flake”, “Taylor”, and “Times Like These”, alongside his latest hit “You And Your Heart” Jack brings in tow his ever faithful travelling companions, and will be touring once again with long time band members Adam Topol (drums), Merlo Podlewski (bass) and Zach Gill (keys).
After selling an astonishing 18 million records worldwide, Jack Johnson, is set to release his fifth studio album – the aptly titled “To The Sea” – produced by Robert Carranza, and Jack Johnson, which also features guest appearances from long time collaborator and friend G. Love, and Paula Fuga. The first taster from the record comes in the shape of single and first track on the album “You And Your Heart” – a beautiful, melodic slice of acoustic bliss, that is indicative of – and perfectly introduces – “To The Sea”, to Jack’s ever faithful, and ever growing audience.
As with his last world tour in 2008, and in a continuing effort to acknowledge and support the important work that non-profit groups are doing in communities across the planet, Jack Johnson’s 2010 world tour is reaching out to groups who are activating positive change in the realms of water quality, community and school gardens, land preservation, environmental education and more. Jack Johnson has again engaged a number of these organisations to be present at his Australian shows to raise awareness of their objectives.
100 per cent of Jack Johnson’s 2008 tour profits were used to establish the Johnson Ohana Charitable Foundation, an endowment founded by Jack and Kim Johnson to support environmental, art and music education now and into the future. This initiative is building upon his philanthropic efforts, and Jack Johnson will once again donate 100 per cent of his 2010 world tour profits to support the Johnson Ohana Charitable Foundation and will offer direct and matching donations to All At Once partner non-profits.
http://www.newplymouthnz.com/VisitingNewPlymouth/MajorEvents/JackJohnsonConcert.htm
Until next time keep rockin’
The 0800 Jukebox crew.
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Playing this invisible instrument is not easy. But here in New Plymouth, we have a champion. Ben Greaney, 24, has won the air guitar national championship twice, the second time last weekend beating nine others.
Usually competitors have to qualify for the nationals by winning a regional final, but New Plymouth didn’t have a competition this year. It was cancelled for some reason.
“So I managed to get a wild card straight to the final because of my past accomplishments.”
There was no big cheque for the winner. Playing the air guitar has not been a lucrative career for him, he says. And, unlike in 2006, he didn’t win tickets to the worlds in Finland in August.
The rules changed. The prize was flights to and accommodation in Canberra to compete in the Australian air guitar championships. The winner of that wins air tickets and accommodation for the worlds.
2010 New Zealand (NZ) Champ: ‘Ben Greaney’ aka ‘The HellmuTT Experience’.
Age: 24 / eternal. Occupation: unemployed / free spirit. Preferred playing hand: Right.
Free Round song: ‘Power To Love’ by ‘Jimi Hendrix’.
Air Guitar Style: face melting watchamacallit
Musical influences: Psycodelic rock blues
Rock quote: ‘Even though you can’t experience and enjoy the pleasure of being hellmuTT, you can still enjoy the pleasure of the hellmuTT experience.’
There might be two Ben Greaneys. There is the quiet Greaney, who is shy when it comes to talking about himself. He works doing “heaps of different things” at an aluminium place in Bell Block and wears jeans and a T-shirt with Guinness written across the front. He has a bit of rocker look going on, with shoulder-length unruly blond curls and bit of facial hair.
And then there is the other Ben Greaney, the one who rocks to Jimi Hendrix and Angus Young wearing bright yellow and black tie-dyed tights, big furry boots and a colourful shirt.
The one who calls himself The Helmutt Experience.
He is not entirely sure, so he reckons, about how the name came into being. It had something to do with having a few drinks and wearing a beer box on his head.
Knowing how to play an actual guitar, helps in playing the air guitar, he says. It helps him play in time to the music.
Some people ask him why doesn’t he play the real guitar.
“They say, You don’t have any skills compared to someone or other who plays the guitar.”
But, he says, he has a whole different skill set.
Greaney has come full circle in his air guitar career, having gone back to what he was doing originally. And he did a riff off last weekend, which he had never done before.
A riff off is where the competition ends in a tie and the finalists go on stage together and play to music they haven’t heard before.
http://www.airguitaraustralia.com/AAGC.htm
http://www.stuff.co.nz/taranaki-daily-news/features/3672783/Airhead
Until next time keep rockin’
The 0800 Jukebox crew.
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