While we have to wait until next year for Gorillaz to drop their eighth album, CrackerIsland, the band is heading out on a North America 2022 tour starting in September. Cracker Island will feature appearances from Thundercat, Beck, Bad Bunny, Tame Impala, and others, but the slate of openers for their concert tour is different from the album’s guests.
Who Is Opening Gorillaz’s Tour In North America?
The Gorillaz North America tour begins on September 10th at Vancouver’s Rogers Arena and ends on October 23rd at Miami’s FTX Arena. The two opening acts on the tour are EarthGang and Jungle. Credit to Gorillaz for choosing two vastly different-sounding acts to support them on tour, but who both fit perfectly within the scope of the Gorillaz musical universe.
EarthGang are the hip-hop duo from Atlanta consisting of Olu and Wow Gr8. They’ve drawn comparisons to fellow ATLiens Outkast with their funky, eccentric style and dropped their most recent album, Ghetto Gods, earlier this year on J.Cole’s Dreamville label.
Jungle are an electronic-leaning band from London led by the duo of Josh Lloyd-Watson and Tom McFarland. They’ve stood out with their vocally-charged songs that feel more like being on the West Coast than in the UK. Their latest album, Loving In Stereo, came out in 2021 via their own Caiola label and AWAL.
Check out the full list of Gorillaz’s tour dates with EarthGang and Jungle below and get tickets here.
09/11 – Vancouver, BC @ Rogers Arena
09/12 – Seattle, WA @ Climate Pledge Arena
09/14 – Portland, OR @ Moda Center
09/17 – Las Vegas, NV @ Life is Beautiful Festival
09/19 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Vivint Smart Home Arena
09/21 – San Francisco, CA @ Chase Center
09/23 – Los Angeles, CA @ Kia Forum
09/26 – Phoenix, AZ @ Footprint Center
09/28 – Denver, CO @ Ball Arena
09/30 – Austin, TX @ Moody Center
10/01 – Irving, TX @ The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory
10/03 – Chicago, IL @ United Center
10/05 – Detroit, MI @ Little Caesars Arena
10/06 – Toronto, ON @ Scotiabank Arena
10/08 – Montreal, QC @ Bell Centre
10/11 – Boston, MA @ TD Garden
10/12 – Brooklyn, NY @ Barclays Center
10/14 – Philadelphia, PA @ The Met Philadelphia
10/17 – Columbia, MD @ Merriweather Post Pavilion
10/19 – Alpharetta, GA @ Ameris Bank Amphitheater
10/21 – Orlando, FL @ Amway Center
10/23 – Miami, FL @ FTX Arena
The Creative Arts Emmy Awards were handed out this weekend and it was a big moment for some notable folks in the music industry: Adele, Eminem, Paul McCartney, and Ringo Starr all won awards, which puts them each just a Tony Award victory away from attaining the coveted EGOT status — meaning they’ve won an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar (Academy Award), and Tony.
The Adele: One Night Only concert special won a total of five awards, as did the The Beatles: Get Back documentary, getting Adele, McCartney, and Starr their first Emmys. This year’s Super Bowl Halftime Show also got three awards, giving Eminem his first Emmy.
Those four artists now join a list of musicians who are just one win away from the EGOT, as they all already had Grammy and Oscar wins under their belts. Aside from the aforementioned, performers just missing a Tony include Cher, Common, producer/composer Ludwig Göransson, Randy Newman, Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross, Barbra Streisand, and composer John Williams. Meanwhile, Oscar Hammerstein II, Elton John, and Stephen Sondheim are an Emmy shy of their EGOT. As for artists who are an Oscar shy, that list includes Quincy Jones, Cyndi Lauper, Bette Midler, and Lin-Manuel Miranda.
The short list of those who have gotten their EGOT already includes Richard Rodgers (who secured his in 1962), Helen Hayes (1977), Rita Moreno (1977), John Gielgud (1991), Audrey Hepburn (1994), Marvin Hamlisch (1995), Jonathan Tunick (1997), Mel Brooks (2001), Mike Nichols (2001), Whoopi Goldberg (2002), Scott Rudin (2012), Robert Lopez (2014), Andrew Lloyd Webber (2018), Tim Rice (2018), John Legend (2018), Alan Menken (2020), and Jennifer Hudson (2022).
Find the full list of people (musician or otherwise) who are one win away from an EGOT below.
Anybody who thought the vinyl resurgence was just a fad was mistaken: The industry has experienced a legitimate revival. As a result, music fans are interested in physical media in ways they may not have if the decades-old medium hasn’t made a comeback. That doesn’t mean everybody is listening to just their parents’ old music, though. That’s part of it, sure, thanks to rereleases that present classic albums in new ways. A vital part of the renewed vinyl wave, though, is new projects being released as records, of which there are plenty.
Whatever you might be into, each month brings a new slew of vinyl releases that has something for everybody. Some stand out above the rest, naturally, so check out some of our favorite vinyl releases of August below.
Beastie Boys — Check Your Head (Deluxe Edition)
UMe
1992’s Check Your Head was an important album for Beastie Boys, as it was their second top-10 LP and it featured standout singles “So What-cha Want” and “Pass The Mic.” Now that the album turns 30 this year, they’re reissuing the album, specifically the rare 4-LP deluxe edition that was previously an artist store exclusive. It’s worthwhile for fans of the album, most notably due to the two LPs of bonus material like remixes, live versions, and B-sides.
Oasis’ 1997 album Be Here Now had the unenviable task of following the colossal success of “Wonderwall” and (What’s The Story) Morning Glory?. It fared well, though, becoming their third No. 1 in the UK while hitting No. 2 in the US (still the band’s highest chart rank in the region). Now that the LP is 25 years old, there’s a new limited collectors’ edition, pressed on silver-colored double heavyweight vinyl. Also, revisit our recent song ranking on the band.
Porter is a soul legend, a Songwriters Hall Of Fame inductee who’s credited on songs by everybody from Aretha Franklin to Drake to ZZ Top to Wu-Tang Clan. Now, he’s releasing his first new music in nearly 50 years, teaming with the folks at Vinyl Me, Please to drop Chapter 1…Back In The Day as a vinyl-exclusive project.
Interpol — Turn On The Bright Lights (Vinyl Me, Please Reissue)
Vinyl Me, Please
Not only was Interpol’s 2002 album Turn On The Bright Lights a defining release of its era, it still holds up today. The album turns 20 this year, so Vinyl Me, Please have re-pressed it on gorgeous red vinyl. Furthermore, this edition is also a proud Uproxx moment, as our own Danielle Chelosky penned a new listening notes booklet for it.
For R.E.M., it all started with the 1982 EP Chronic Town, a release that turns 40 years old in 2022. So, the band is reissuing it as a standalone CD for the first time ever, but for vinyl lovers, there’s also a lovely picture disc edition available.
Cigarettes After Sex — Cigarettes After Sex (5th Anniversary Limited Edition)
Partisan Records
Cigarettes After Sex was a strong debut for the titular band, a critically enjoyed album that also landed on the Billboard 200. It’s been five years since the fateful day the 2017 album was released, so now the band is celebrating with a lovely white and clear vinyl edition. They’re going on tour, too, so here’s a chance to hear at least some of these things both on your turntable and your local concert venue.
Super young Paul McCartney fans might know the Beatles leader best by his latest solo album, 2020’s McCartney III (or perhaps the next year’s McCartney III Imagined project featuring contemporary artists). Well, as the title suggests, it’s part of a trilogy of albums, which have now been collected in a new box set. The vinyl edition includes special photo prints as well as notes about each album from McCartney himself.
Blondie’s giant new box set arrives with good timing, as the group recently had a memorable moment on the beloved show Better Call Saul. As for what’s included in this retrospective release, it features newly remastered pressings of releases from the band’s original era, as well as 36 previously unissued songs, two volumes of liner notes, and more.
Madonna had yet another wild appearance with Jimmy Fallon on The Tonight Show earlier this month, but through all the antics, she was there to promote her new remix album, Finally Enough Love: 50 Number Ones. The vinyl edition of this massive collection comes with alternate cover art that’s more straightforward than that from other formats.
Pavement — Slanted And Enchanted (30th Anniversary Reissue)
Matador
Pavement set the table for years of esteem with their broadly appreciated 1992 album Slanted And Enchanted. That was 30 years ago now, and the album has been reissued on a lovely red-colored LP with black and white splatters, a perfect visual complement to the iconic cover art. Aside from the vinyl, the band is also offering a treat for diehard fans: A replica of Courting Shutdown Offers, the cassette the band used when trying to sell the album to record labels.
On The Up is back after a short break, once again highlighting five new artists you should be listening to this month. September’s picks jump from a surging Bay Area R&B singer to a new face on the Brazilian music scene signed to Stones Throw Records. Fans of Big Thief will be hyped on one of our picks, while a dizzying LA rapper and rising Aussie psych-pop group round out September’s group. Check ’em out and listen in below.
Zyah Belle
We’ve been featuring some of Zyah Belle’s tracks in our Best New R&B column dating back to when the Bay Area singer signed with Guin Records last year and dropped the silky Who’s Listening Anyway EP. She hasn’t let up in 2022 and has her album, Yam Grier, set to drop on September 9th. “Not The One” beams with some serious mystique from her and LA rapper Tempest, while “DND” is armed with a sultry, electro-R&B bounce. Named after ’70s blaxploitation film queen Pam Grier (who also starred in Quentin Tarantino’s 1997 cult classic, Jackie Brown), Yam Grier sees Belle channeling that alpha woman energy Grier made famous on the silver screen and she says the album is, “The embodiment of a woman who has finally come into her own, unapologetically.”
Gabriel Da Rosa
When Brazil’s Gabriel Da Rosa arrived in LA eight years ago, he was armed with a guitar, a backpack, a dog, and a rock and roll dream. Where he’s at today looks very different — well, at least musically. The latest signee to the always-eclectic Stones Throw Records label, Da Rosa is making music in the mold of the Brazilian samba, bossa nova, and tropicalia greats. On his debut single, “Jasmim Parte 1,” that uncanny breezy guitar, pairs with lush Wurly keys, bossa horns and a gorgeous Brazilian sidewalk flute. In the song’s video, the avid vinyl collector flips through records from legends like Joao Gilberto, Novos Baianos, Gal Costa, etc… and if any of those names mean something to you, you’re gonna want to press play on “Jardim Parte 1” stat.
Tenci
We’ve got a soft spot for so many artists on Austin’s indie workhorse label Keeled Scales. Acts like Sun June, Why Bonnie, and Katy Kirby are helping shape the label’s roster and now Chicago’s Tenci are pushing towards their second album on the imprint. A Swollen River, A Well Overflowing is due out on November 4th, and lead single “Two Cups” showcases singer/bandleader Jess Shoman’s imaginative arrangements and inviting vocals that harken to Adrianne Lenker’s distinct range.
Rhys Langston
LA’s off-kilter art rap scene has always rested on the foundations of MCs dropping stream-of-consciousness raps that in actuality, aren’t that at all. For these cats are just delightful, highly-intelligent weirdos with a microphone and a lot to say. Rhys Langston is one of these artists and the POW Records-signee has a sharp-tongued, verbose approach that comes across as trippily as smashing melons on the shores of the La Brea tar pits. The Sufjan Stevens-esque-titled “I Will Stop At Nothing (I A Magnetized And I Move!)” is a spiraling display of wordsmithery, as Langston spits in a controlled fury, “And my voice box full of stuffing, dressings, fixings / MacGuyver’d, Epoxy, aluminum wire. Ready-made, sculpted tableau portmanteau…” His album Grapefruit Radio is set to drop on September 14th and also features Jersey’s Fatboi Sharif, LA mainstay The Koreatown Oddity, and others.
Babe Rainbow
In a most unusual, but wholly welcome collaboration last year, Jaden Smith guested on the sunny, shore-break airiness of Babe Rainbow’s “Your Imagination.” It was another high-profile co-sign for the Aussie psych-y surf pop band following a release on Danger Mouse’s 30th Century Records and King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard’s Stu Mackenzie producing their debut. Now the group are pushing towards a new album as tunes like “Smash The Machine” have grown increasingly more psychedelic. It’s no surprise that their upcoming tour begins on Sept 30th at SoCal’s buzzy, psych rock-focused (but still eclectic) Desert Daze festival alongside Tame Impala, King Gizzard, and Sky Ferreira.
Keeping track of all the new albums coming out in a given month is a big job, but we’re up for it: Below is a comprehensive list of the major releases you can look forward to in September. If you’re not trying to potentially miss out on anything, it might be a good idea to keep reading.
Friday, September 2
The Amazons — How Will I Know If Heaven Will Find Me? (Blood Records)
Ayka — Eleven EP (Glassnote Records)
Armani Caesar — The Liz 2 (Griselda Records)
Bitchin Bajas — Bajascillators (Drag City)
Creature Canyon — Remarks (Gnu Roam/Kartel Music)
Coma Girls — No Umbrella For Star Flower (Baby Robot Records)
George FitzGerald — Stellar Drifting (Domino)
The Front Bottoms — Theresa EP (Wuacasokle/Fueled By Ramen)
The Hu — Rumble Of Thunder (Better Noise Music)
Jon Pardi — Mr. Saturday Night (Capitol Nashville)
Lean Year — Sides (Western Vinyl)
Lee “Scratch” Perry — King Scratch (Musical Masterpieces from The Upsetter Ark-ive) (Trojan Records)
Megadeth — The Sick, The Dying… And The Dead! (Tradecraft)
Nina Nesbitt — Älskar (Cooking Vinyl)
Pale Blue Eyes — Souvenirs (Full Time Hobby)
Parker Gispert — Golden Years (Normaltown/New West Records)
Rina Sawayama — Hold The Girl (Dirty Hit)
S. Raekwon — I Like It When You Smile EP (Lex Records)
Stereolab — Pulse Of The Early Brain [Switched On Volume 5] (Warp/Duophonic UHF Disks)
Tom Chaplin — Midpoint (BMG)
Two Door Cinema Club — Keep On Smiling ([PIAS])
Unloved — The Pink Album (Heavenly Records / [PIAS])
Warmduscher — At The Hotspot EP (Bella Union)
The Wonder Years — The Hum Goes On Forever (Hopeless Records)
Yungblud — Yungblud (Locomotion/Geffen)
Friday, September 9
The Afghan Whigs — How Do You Burn? (Royal Cream/BMG)
Ari Lennox — Age/Sex/Location (Dreamville/Interscope Records)
Beacon — Along The Lethe (Apparent Movement)
Built To Spill — When The Wind Forgets Your Name (Sub Pop)
Breland — Cross Country (Bad Realm Records/Atlantic Records/Warner Music Nashville)
Charles Stepney — Step On Step (International Anthem Recording Co.)
Charley Crockett — The Man From Waco (Son of Davy/Thirty Tigers)
Daniel Romano’s Outfit — La Luna (You’ve Changed Records)
The Deer — The Beautiful Undead (22 Sound Records)
Flogging Molly — Anthem (Rise Records))
Foreign Air — Hello Sunshine (Lex Records)
George Riley — Running In Waves (PLZ Make It Ruins)
Highly Suspect — The Midnight Demon Club (Roadrunner/FRSKT)
Holy Fawn — Dimensional Bleed (Wax Bodega)
Jackson Wang — Magic Man (Team Wang)
Jockstrap — I Love You Jennifer B (Rough Trade Records)
John Legend — Legend (Columbia)
JR Slayer — Not Rotten EP (Memory Music)
Kane Brown — Different Man (Sony Music Nashville)
Lake Street Dive — Fun Machine: The Sequel EP (Fantasy Records)
Living Hour — Someday Is Today (Kanine)
Marlon Williams — My Boy (Dead Oceans)
Mike Adams — Graphic Blandishment (Joyful Noise Recordings)
Miya Folick — 2007 EP (Nettwerk)
Oliver Sim — Hideous Bastard (Young)
Ozzy Osbourne — Patient Number 9 (Epic Records)
The Paranoyds — Talk Talk Talk (Third Man Records)
Parkway Drive — Darker Still (Epitaph Records)
Preoccupations — Arrangements (self-released)
Reuben And The Dark — In Lieu Of Light (Arts & Crafts)
Robbie Williams — XXV (Columbia)
Sampa The Great — As Above, So Below (Loma Vista)
San Fermin — Your Ghost EP (Better Company Records)
Santigold — Spirituals (Little Jerk Records)
Sarah Davachi — Two Sisters (Bleep)
Son Little — Like Neptune (ANTI-)
Sudan Archives — Natural Brown Prom Queen (Stones Throw)
Suzi Analogue — Infinite Zonez (Disciples)
Tyler Bryant & The Shakedown — Shake The Roots (Rattle Shake Records)
Wyldest — Feed The Flowers Nightmares (Hand In Hive)
Friday, September 16
Bazzi — Infinite Dream (Atlantic)
Behemoth — Opvs Contra Natvram (Nuclear Blast)
The Beths — Expert In A Dying Field (Carpark Records)
The Black Angels — Wilderness Of Mirrors (Partisan Records)
Blackpink — Born Pink (YG Entertainment/Interscope Records)
Carina — Spaceout! EP (Mini Mind Museum)
Carl Cox — Electronic Generations (BMG)
Clutch — Sunrise On Slaughter Beach (Weathermaker Music)
Con Brio — Seasons EP (self-released)
Crack Cloud — Tough Baby (Meat Machine)
Daniele Luppi And Greg Gonzalez — Charm Of Pleasure (Mute)
Danielle Ponder — Some Of Us Are Brave (Future Classic)
Daya — In Between Dreams EP (Sandlot Records)
Death Cab For Cutie — Roman Candles (Atlantic)
Dear Boy — Forever Sometimes (Mono Mundo/Thirty Tigers)
Disco Doom — Mt. Surreal (Exploding in Sound)
Djo — Decide (AWAL)
Ela Minus & DJ Python — Corazón EP (Smugglers Way)
Fletcher — Girl Of My Dreams (Capitol Records)
Gloria de Oliveira And Dean Hurley — Oceans Of Time (Sacred Bones)
Since the ’80s, Rick Rubin has been consistently praised and hailed as one of the most important producers in music. One of his most frequent collaborators is Red Hot Chili Peppers, as he’s produced all of their albums since their 1991 breakthrough Blood Sugar Sex Magik (except for 2016’s The Getaway, which Danger Mouse produced). That said, Josh Klinghoffer, RHCP’s guitarist for The Getaway and 2011’s I’m With You, didn’t see Rubin as an asset.
In a recent interview with VWMusic, Klinghoffer was asked about his takeaway from his time as a Chili Pepper. He teased some strong feelings, saying he’s “incredibly conflicted” about his output with the band because with both albums he was a part of, “producers got in the way of us truly making great music or a great record.”
He didn’t mention Danger Mouse by name but he did call out Rubin directly, saying, “I like almost all of the songs that we wrote together, but seldom did we capture them in the best way. I will say that in the case of I’m With You, I feel Rick Rubin was way more a hindrance than a help. He told me once, ‘I just want to help the songs be the best they can be.’ I should’ve said, ‘Well, then get your driver to come and get you.’”
When the MTV VMAs happen on August 28th, not only will the best music videos of the past year be crowned, but over a dozen performers will also take the stage. Hosted by LL Cool J, Jack Harlow, and Nicki Minaj, the MTV VMAs 2022 will be broadcast live from the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey beginning at 8 p.m. ET. Along with performances from hosts Minaj and Harlow, there’s some serious talent that’ll be performing throughout the evening.
Who Is Performing At The 2022 MTV VMAs?
Nicki Minaj’s performance will be a notable one, given that along with hosting duties, she’ll also be receiving the 2022 MTV Video Vanguard Award. Red Hot Chili Peppers will be performing and are receiving the high honor of the 2022 MTV VMAs Global Icon Award. Other performers at the 2022 VMAs include Lizzo, Blackpink, Harlow, Maneskin, Anitta, Panic! At The Disco, Kane Brown, Marshmello x Khalid, and J Balvin. And if you’re tuned into the pre-show, you’ll be able to watch performances from Dove Cameron, Yung Gravy, and Saucy Santana.
The 2022 MTV VMAs are on August 28 at 8 p.m. EST. It’ll be broadcast on MTV and multiple other networks. Get full details on the award show here.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
It seems like Elon Musk never stops, and in early 2020, he even found time to release an EDM song, “Don’t Doubt Ur Vibe.” It’s been about two-and-a-half years since the track came out and now it’s back, via a new Tesla ad.
The clip runs for about 90 seconds and features four Tesla cars putting on a light show in a warehouse, synchronized to the song. The tune’s lyrics — “Don’t doubt your vibe / Because it’s true / Don’t doubt your vibe / Because it’s you” — are also projected on a wall.
Meanwhile, Musk was recently amused by a Billie Eilish meme about him, which has childhood photos of them both and reads, “One day, Billie Eilish was walking outside and she saw a boy crying. She said to him ‘Here kid, have a roll of Air Conditioning Pair Coil 1/4’ by 3/8’ 410A 20m Polyethylene UV protected insulated Copper heat resistant to 120C. You’re destined to do great things.’ That boy was Elon Musk.” Musk added, “Still so grateful.”
Elsewhere, the world’s richest person recently declared his two main goals for the year are getting his SpaceX Starship to orbit and the wide release of FSD (full self-driving) in Tesla cars, adding, “Many other things, of course, but those are the 2 giant kahunas. Will require insane work by many super talented people, but, if anyone can do it, they can. It is an honor to work with such awesome human beings.”
2 main goals this year:
– Starship to orbit – FSD wide release
Many other things, of course, but those are the 2 giant kahunas. Will require insane work by many super talented people, but, if anyone can do it, they can.
It is an honor to work with such awesome human beings.
One of the benefits of all the advancements in technology we’ve seen over the years is that nearly everything has become more convenient. Even music festivals have seen the benefit of adopting a hybrid streaming option, because not everyone can always make it out in person. While my experience in this respect is limited – usually, I’m either there or I’m not, as watching a stream on TV just doesn’t appeal to me as much – I got the chance to compare the live and streaming experiences side-by-side over the weekend thanks to 88rising’s annual Head In The Clouds festival.
Held at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena this year (moving from Los Angeles State Historic Park), you’d think this would make the festival extremely convenient for me as I headed over after watching the Drew League playoffs in Torrance. But that’s only because you don’t know those LA County logistics (Angelenos read “Pasadena” and “Torrance” in the same sentence and involuntarily cringed on the inside). It wasn’t that bad of a drive, though! It took less than an hour to actually get to the Rose Bowl and I was excited to catch acts that I’d only heard peripherally like Jay Park or that I’ve nurtured a burgeoning affection for like Audrey Nuna, who was billed for a joint set with Deb Never (a clever combination that I secretly pulled for, for like a year before they teamed up).
However, after running into a snag with parking, which was at least partially my fault, my girlfriend and I wound up running behind. Fortunately, this was the first time that the hybrid experience came in handy. While sorting out our passes, we were able to watch Audrey Nuna and Deb Never’s energetic set from my phone even as we could sort of hear their stage’s sound from just outside the Bowl. Watching them bounce around and trade sarcastic bars in their matching skate punk outfits on the stream, we still felt included, and the experience only amplified the excitement of getting in.
Once we were inside, we quick-marched to the 88rising stage to catch Jay Park. Park’s a name I’ve seen a bunch, but I’ve rarely had the opportunity to check him out and since I knew I was coming to see him in his element, so to speak, I decided it’d be fun to go in fresh. The eclecticism he exudes is genuinely fascinating to me as someone who grew up with hip-hop in the musically stratified ‘90s. My brain is wired to separate genres like rap and rock and pop into separate categories; it’s incredibly interesting to me to see how folks who grew up experiencing pop culture through a different lens synthesize those experiences and styles as if the differences were nonexistent. Park, who grew up B-boying in Seattle and spent a significant chunk of his adulthood as a K-pop trainee, has a completely different musical perspective that took me a minute to adjust to but was very enjoyable.
A fun aspect of going to festivals live is checking out all the food options. Here, because the target audience’s palates are a bit more diverse than usual, it appeared (to me, at least) that there were more interesting options than the usual pizza and fries. And while most festivals will have maybe a KBBQ bowl place or a Sweetfin pop-up, I’ve never seen squid skewers at a festival before. We opted for kalbi skewers and bulgogi bowls due to our orthodontic needs and snacked while listening to Filipino crooner Yeek from a distance. Next up was Mxmtoon, who I found charming. She reminded me of the sort of twee pop stuff that had a moment in the 2000s and 2010s, but with a bit more bite. It probably helps that her upbeat, infectiously sweet anthems are backed by chunky, four-on-the-floor, honest-to-goodness get-down beats.
The in-person drawbacks reared their heads as we left, though. Because the parking was set up on the massive golf course next to the Rose Bowl and there were few markers left to help guide attendees back to their cars in the dark, many of those heading home could be seen wandering the endless-seeming rows of vehicles with bewildered faces, doubling back, and even walking in circles trying to figure out where they parked. There weren’t too many parking attendants either, making the process to exit much more chaotic than it has been at comparable festivals like Camp Flog Gnaw.
That was something that we took into consideration on Sunday as the Drew League Championship Game wrapped up. Did we want to risk getting stuck in another situation like the one from Saturday night? Another consideration that I hate to bring up but must was the security check as we entered. You’d think that after multiple highly publicized incidents at festivals – including a fatal one less than a year ago only a 20-minute drive down the same freeway that goes to Pasadena – festival security companies would be hypervigilant about what all attendees are carrying into the fest. Considering that we were waved in without so much as a cursory glance in our bags on Saturday, I didn’t like what that assumed about the crowds or about the potential safety situation.
Which is why I loved that we could simply put the festival on via Prime Video and catch the remaining sets that we wanted to see, including Rich Brian, Raveena, and Teriyaki Boyz. Of course, we missed out on the excellent food and the shared sense of community that comes from being in the crowd rubbing shoulders with fellow fans. Experiencing it both ways, though, allowed that perspective to come through. Usually, by day two, I’m grousing about the dirt and dead foliage filling up my shoes and getting a little sunburnt from being outside all day. This time, I was able to miss the feeling of being outdoors and among crowds of like-minded individuals all looking to have a good time.
It turns out that there are pros and cons to the streaming experience, just like everything in life. Head In The Clouds is definitely a festival I’d want to visit again, but if I don’t, I know exactly what I’ll be missing out on – and what I won’t. Considering it’s still a relatively young festival, perhaps the kinks that kept me on the couch Sunday will be worked out enough to warrant hanging out in person for both days.
There have been a lot of random anniversaries of classic records this year, but yesterday marked the 20th birthday of the app Shazam. If you don’t know — which, how? — Shazam is an app that always comes in clutch by telling you the title and artist of a song after it hears a brief clip.
To celebrate, they’ve put together a playlist made up of the most Shazamed song of each year for the past two decades. It’s on Apple Music and will definitely cause strong feelings of nostalgia, reminding you of when Adele’s “Rolling In The Deep” was virtually inescapable, or Evanescence’s “Bring Me To Life” had everyone turning emo, or Gotye‘s “Somebody That I Used To Know” was everywhere.
Adele has been able to keep up the momentum since that hit, but she recently had to postpone her Las Vegas residency. “There was just no soul in it,” she explained. “The stage setup wasn’t right. It was very disconnected from me and my band, and it lacked intimacy. And maybe I tried too hard to give it those things in such a controlled environment.” She added, “The first couple of months was really, really hard. I was embarrassed.”
