Spain’s beloved Mad Cool Festival is kicking off this weekend. If you’ll be fortunate enough to find yourself there (or just want to torture yourself with what you’re missing out on), here’s what to know about who’s performing when.
Mad Cool Festival Set Times For Wednesday, July 10, 2024
Highlights from the first day include Soccer Mommy at 5:40 (all times local and p.m. unless otherwise noted) on the Orange stage, Janelle Monáe at 7 on the Mad Cool Stage, Garbage at 8:05 on the Region Of Madrid Stage, Dua Lipa at 9:30 on the Mad Cool stage, Sexyy Red at 9:40 on the Orange stage, and The Smashing Pumpkins at 11:15 on the Region Of Madrid Stage.
Mad Cool Festival Set Times For Thursday, July 11, 2024
Leading Day 2 are Keane at 9:10 on Region Of Madrid, Pearl Jam at 10:40 on Mad Cool, Bonobo (DJ set) at 10:45 at The Loop Iberdrola, and Greta Van Fleet at 12:50 a.m. on Region Of Madrid.
Mad Cool Festival Set Times For Friday, July 12, 2024
Those playing Friday include Alvvays at 7 on Orange, Unknown Mortal Orchestra at 7:05 on Mad Cool, Tom Morello at 9:50 on Orange, Sum 41 at 11 on Region Of Madrid, and Jessie Ware at 11:25 on Orange.
Mad Cool Festival Set Times For Saturday, July 13, 2024
Highlights from the final day include Tyla at 5 on the Mad Cool stage, Arlo Parks at 7 on the Region Of Madrid Stage, Avril Lavigne at 8:15 on the Mad Cool stage, Lord Huron at 8:25 on the Orange Stage, and The Killers at 11 p.m. on the Mad Cool Stage.
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 June below.
Johnny Cash — Songwriter
Universal
In 1993, Johnny Cash recorded a set of songs at LSI Studios in Nashville, and they were ultimately shelved. Now, they’ve been revamped with new arrangements (The Black Keys’ Dan Auerbach plays a guitar solo on one song, for example), and you can own them on vinyl.
Seven Swans is Stevens’ fourth album and one of his most beloved. It’s also 20 years old now, and Stevens has dropped quite the deluxe vinyl edition to celebrate. The record doubles as a zoetrope, meaning that when you play it, you’ll be able to actually see an animated swan flapping its wings. Sufjan may be often associated with albums about states, but this set from that same era is one of his best.
1960s singer-songwriter Margo Guryan had a slow burn, ultimately becoming a cult favorite starting in the ’90s. Those who have finally caught up now have a new 3LP box set to enjoy, and it comes with 16 previously unreleased recordings.
Monsters Of Folk — Monsters Of Folk (Deluxe Edition)
ATO
Bright Eyes’ Conor Oberst and Mike Mogis, My Morning Jacket’s Jim James, and M. Ward was a mind-blowing supergroup in its day, and now the band’s self-titled album is getting another moment in the sun. This new deluxe edition comes in various multi-color vinyl editions and some previously unheard bonus tracks.
The late ’70s is a memorable era in the Joni Mitchell oeuvre, and that’s commemorated in a new box set. It includes the albums Hejira (1976), Don Juan’s Reckless Daughter (1977), Mingus (1979), and the live album Shadows And Light (1980), all of which have been freshly remastered. As Joni prepares to perform live again this summer, this is the ideal collection to prepare for these live events.
Fat Possum’s Spaceman Reissue Program continues with another fresh Spiritualized release. This time, it’s Songs In A&E, which has been freshly remastered and comes with new album cover art for this edition. Pretty much every Spiritualized album is a must-own for fans and collectors alike, and this new pressing is the ideal way to hear this 2008 classic.
Just like the stark green cover art, Charli XCX went simple but effective for the vinyl pressing: It’s black, but slightly translucent. If you’re fine straying from the green, there’s also a pretty striking red picture disc edition available.
Animal Collective — Merriweather Post Pavilion (15-Year Anniversary Deluxe)
Domino
Merriweather Post Pavilion was an era-defining album, and it’s somehow been 15 years since then. Animal Collective is celebrating with the project’s first-ever pressing on color vinyl, as a 2-LP in Translucent Green and Bluish (Get it? Like the song!).
Los Campesinos! — We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed (Vinyl Me, Please Reissue)
Vinyl Me, Please
We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed locked up a slot as one of Vinyl Me, Please’s records of the month for July and it’s a beautiful celebration of the MySpace era. As tends to be the case with VMP releases, this new edition comes pressed on perfectly colored vinyl and comes with carefully considered listening notes.
A press release describes this project as “one of music’s most mythical live albums,” and it’s finally available to the masses. The album consists of live studio sessions from 1974, which have now been properly mixed, making it a substantial upgrade over the bootlegs that have been circulating for years.
Linda Ronstadt — Cry Like A Rainstorm – Howl Like The Wind
Iconic
The iconic singer’s late-’80s offering comes back to vinyl for the first time in years. This 140-gram translucent blue vinyl pressing features one of Ronstadt’s most iconic hits, the Aaron Neville duet “Don’t Know Much,” as the beloved New Orleans icon features throughout the collection. This album was massive in its time, selling over three million copies, and shines a light on a particularly fruitful creative moment from Ronstadt.
This loss of news and entertainment history is a bummer, but it’s not surprising. There’s actually already a name for what’s going on here: We’re in the Digital Dark Age.
To be clear, Paramount isn’t the only offender, and this is far from a new problem: The term “digital dark age” was used as far back as 1999, and it refers to the loss of information and resources due to outdated digital file formats, lack of preservation, and other reasons.
Pew Research Center shared some startling data last month. Their analysis found that 38 percent of webpages that existed in 2013 are gone today. Furthermore, 23 percent of online news articles contain at least one broken link.
The MTV News archives were full of original journalistic work that’s an important part of its era. This 2005 interview with Gerard Way as My Chemical Romance was achieving mainstream success? Gone! (“But you put a link!” Yes, more on that in a second.) This 2014 Jay-Z interview about tensions with Nas and Cam’ron? Zapped! This 2003 feature written shortly after the death of Elliott Smith, providing fascinating historical context about how the world reacted to the loss? Bye-bye!
Then there’s the TV side of things. As Consequence notes, the Comedy Central website hosted the entire Colbert Report series and clips from every Daily Show episode since 1999. Welp, not anymore. That content isn’t otherwise available to stream, either: The Colbert Report isn’t streaming anywhere, and only Seasons 28 and 29 of The Daily Show are on Paramount+.
Not directly related to the issue that sparked this conversation, but preservation is a major issue in the video game space, too. If, for example, you want to play Pokémon Platinum today, a used copy of the game will cost over $100 (per PriceCharting data), and then there’s the matter of getting a working Nintendo DS. So, many have turned to piracy for playing retro games. Valve president Gabe Newell has a relevant, oft-cited quote: “Piracy is not a pricing issue. It’s a service issue. The easiest way to stop piracy is not by putting anti-piracy technology to work. It’s by giving those people a service that’s better than what they’re receiving from the pirates.”
I don’t want to bring potentially unwanted attention to certain preservation efforts, but there are active online communities dedicated to the preservation of large amounts of data. Again, I’m not going to point you in the right direction, but (illegal copies of) retro video games can be easily found online. If you look hard enough, you can find a ton of Colbert Report episodes for free. Less secretively, The Internet Archive has long championed preservation of online resources, and that’s how I was able to link to (archived versions of) those MTV News stories above.
These solutions, though, are imperfect and relatively niche. Most people aren’t going past the second page of Google results in a deep-dive search, or check the Internet Archive when they find a dead link. To the average consumer, this information is just gone. It’s ultimately on those with resources to do their part for cultural preservation, even if it costs them a redirect to PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie.
I won’t pretend to know what it takes to maintain a website network as sizeable as Paramount’s, but surely, it can’t be significantly resource heavy for a company of its scale. (I don’t know if it can, but don’t call me Shirley.) It’s OK, they have an excuse: In a statement, Paramount explained (as The Hollywood Reporter notes), “As part of broader website changes across Paramount, we have introduced more streamlined versions of our sites, driving fans to Paramount+ to watch their favorite shows.”
What they’ve also introduced (or, in acknowledgement of the fact that they’re far from the sole perpetrator here, helped propagate) is a more streamlined version of cultural history, one in which important details have been sanded away, and less glorified but still-valuable information is lost to time.
Complaining is fun, but often pointless. Is there anything we can actually do? On a small scale, yes. The main thing you can start doing today is to use the Internet Archive to back up news stories or any other valuable webpages you can think to preserve. It’s a quick process and an easy way to help yourself and others maintain access to the world’s knowledge.
This is also an opportunity to consider your own personal data. If your phone or laptop died today, how screwed would you be? Would you lose irreplaceable childhood photos, old creative projects, or vital personal information? I personally subscribe to the “3-2-1 Rule“: Maintain three copies of your data (the original and two backups), use at least two different media types for storage (like a hard drive and cloud storage), and keep one copy of the data offsite (again, cloud storage).
Given the variety of forces and interests involved, the Digital Dark Age is probably not a problem that can be fixed. But, there are things we can do to shine a light during these dark times and stop losing recipes.
Militarie Gun is taking their signature “ooh ooh” to the ring.
The Los Angeles-based punk band, who released one of the best albums of 2023, provided a new lyric-free song as Post Malone‘s entrance music for the WWE 2K24 video game. “Gun Under The Gun (MFG)” has the trademarks of a Militarie Gun stomper, including a killer riff and, yes, a “ooh ooh.”
You can listen to the song above, and watch Post Malone’s entrance video below.
“I focused on finding iconic elements and figuring out how to make it my own. A wrestling intro needs to start big and iconic, get more aggressive, and then go heavier. That’s how the song ended up — starting big and spacey, then more aggressive, and finally half-time for a total beatdown,” he said. “It’s such a strange crossover and an even stranger song to accompany such a crossover. It’s a very fun thing to put out into the world and see what people think.”
As for why Malone didn’t use one of his own songs as his entrance music, Shelton thinks it’s because “he wanted something that sounded like a wrestling intro, something aggressive, which his own catalog doesn’t necessarily have. He gave us the shot because he believes in us.” Maybe Militarie Gun can join him on the F-1 Trillion Tour?
In case you missed it: In late May, Spotify CEO Daniel Ek shared a statement in which he described the “cost of creating content” as being “close to zero.” His comments were more likely about the barrier to entry being lower than it has before than it was about devaluing or underestimating the resources is takes to create music. Still, what he said rubbed people the wrong way.
Today, with the cost of creating content being close to zero, people can share an incredible amount of content. This has sparked my curiosity about the concept of long shelf life versus short shelf life. While much of what we see and hear quickly becomes obsolete, there are…
That includes Deadmau5, who caught wind of the quote a few days ago and wrote on Instagram, “Incorrect. The cost of creating content was 25+ years of my life and much of those proceeds going to your company you complete f*cking idiot.” In response to a comment about hating Spotify, he responded (as NME notes), “I feel that, I’m about to pull my catalog from these f*cking vultures, enough’s enough.”
In the comments, Dutch DJ Leroy Styles went long outlining some of the costs involved with making music:
“This is crazy. It’s almost zero or a couple of zeros!!
Here’s a breakdown of some of the costs.
High-Performance Laptop for Music Production
For a high-performance laptop suitable for music production, consider models such as:
Apple MacBook Pro 16-inch (M1 Max, 64GB RAM, 2TB SSD): Around $3,499
Dell XPS 17 (32GB RAM, 2TB SSD): Around $3,000
Razer Blade 15 Studio Edition (32GB RAM, 1TB SSD): Around $3,999
Total Estimated Cost
Adding up these costs, assuming no sales or discounts:
VST Plugins:
Omnisphere: $499
Komplete 14 Ultimate: $1,599
Waves Mercury: $7,599
UAD Ultimate: $4,999
EastWest ComposerCloud X: $239.88/year
FabFilter Total Bundle: $899
iZotope Everything Bundle: $1,999
Soundtoys 5 Bundle: $499
Arturia V Collection: $599
Slate Digital All Access Pass: $179.88/year
Total for Plugins: $18,910.76 + $419.76/year
And then your time making music. Recording Studio Time:
Professional studios can charge from $50 to $500+ per hour.
Producer Fees:
Producers might charge per track or hour, ranging from $300 to $10,000+ depending on their reputation and experience.
Session Musicians:
Rates can range from $50 to $500+ per hour or per song.
Mixing and Mastering:
Mixing engineers typically charge $200 to $1,000+ per track.
Mastering can cost between $50 to $500+ per track.
Equipment and Software:
Purchasing or renting instruments, microphones, and recording software can range from a few hundred to several thousand dollars.
Promotion and Distribution:
Digital distribution services (like DistroKid, TuneCore) can charge $20 to $50+ per year.
Marketing campaigns, including social media ads, can range from $100 to $10,000+.
Miscellaneous Costs:
Travel, lodging, and other incidental expenses can add up.
Overall, the total cost to produce a single song can range from a few hundred to tens of thousands of dollars, while a full album can cost significantly more. My 1st album has cost me 18k euro.
And don’t forget your time!!”
Ek responded to the original wave of backlash in early June, writing, “I understand how it came across as very reductive and that wasn’t my intent. Just to clarify – my original point was not to devalue the time, effort, or resources involved in creating meaningful works, whether it’s music, literature, or other forms of creative expression. […] The significant drop in the cost of creation tools (microphones, laptops, cameras) has led to an unprecedented explosion in the volume of what people are able to produce.”
Obviously seeing the feedback to this one and wanted to respond. It’s clear I was far too vague in the post, including with my clumsy definition of content. I understand how it came across as very reductive and that wasn’t my intent. Just to clarify – my original point was not to… https://t.co/kMR0zE17Ay
All Drake wanted to do was have some fun. But even folks on the country side aren’t having his Tupac cosplay. In an interview with BBC, country icon Sheryl Crow expressed her chagrin toward artists using AI in their music. Specifically, Drake’s use of AI to imitate Tupac’s voice on his Kendrick Lamar diss track, “Taylor Made Freestyle.”
“You cannot bring people back from the dead and believe that they would stand for that,” Crow said. “I’m sure Drake thought, ‘Yeah, I shouldn’t do it, but I’ll say sorry later.’ But it’s already done, and people will find it even if he takes it down. It’s hateful. It is antithetical to the life force that exists in all of us.”
The track was removed from online shortly after its release, largely in part to Tupac’s estate threatening a lawsuit. However, Crow says that Drake’s actions cannot be undone.
But luckily, she isn’t too shaken up about the possibility of AI creeping into the industry. Especially because artists can do what AI can’t — perform with live with pure, raw vocals and instrumentation.
“AI can do lots of things, but it can’t go out and play live,” Crow said. “So as long as we have live music, as long as we have hands holding a paintbrush, all is not lost.”
Remember the episode of Lil Dicky’s Dave when he visited iconic music producer Rick Rubin, and the whole experience was this mystical, surreal waking dream? That’s not far off from how a lot of people see Rubin, who has long been the kind of person to do his own thing and think in his own ways.
Well, he was at it again recently: As Variety reports, this past weekend, he hosted Festival Of The Sun, an essentially secret music festival that took place primarily in an Italian church. The event was celebrated as the summer solstice took place.
Featured at the event was an eclectic lineup including Kirtan musician Krishna Das (who has been called yoga’s “rock star”), Twitter co-founder and former CEO Jack Dorsey, James Blake, Win Butler and Régine Chassagne of Arcade Fire, and Rhye, among others. There was also a screening of the Nick Cave documentary This Much I Know To Be True.
Rubin welcomed about 150 invitees into the church, although there was another stage that was open to the public for free. Those in attendance included Måneskin’s Thomas Raggi and Ethan Torchio, actors Riccardo Scamarcio and Benedetta Porcaroli (the latter of whom stars alongside Sydney Sweeney in Immaculate), and Italian rapper Ghali.
Some photos of the event were posted on the Festival Of The Sun Instagram account, so check them out below.
The price of everything seems to be going up, and it seems that way because it’s true. Now, though, Spotify has introduced a new “Basic” plan that is now its most affordable premium offering.
What Do You Get With Spotify’s New ‘Basic’ Plan?
The announcement post from Spotify says, “Enjoy the music streaming benefits of your Premium plan without the monthly audiobook listening time. Starting at $10.99/month for eligible users.” As for what the Premium plan offers, the post relays, “Enjoy offline and ad-free music listening anytime, anywhere with unlimited skips. Your plan gives you 15 hours of audiobook listening time per month from our subscriber catalog of over 250,000 titles. $11.99/month.” So, as stated, Basic offers all that except for the audiobook element.
As TechCrunch notes, this new plan comes just weeks after Spotify upped the price of the Premium plan from $10.99 to 11.99. With the introduction of the Basic tier, Spotify for $10.99 a month is back on the table after a brief absence.
As for when the Basic plan will be available, it actually is right now, as it’s currently an option on the Spotify Premium page.
The available Spotify tiers seem likely to undergo continued change beyond this. Last year, there were reports that a more expensive premium subscription is in the works.
On September 28, the Great Lawn in New York City’s Central Park will play host to the 2024 Global Citizen Festival. The event is coming into shape with the headliners announced today, June 18: Doja Cat, Post Malone, Jelly Roll, and Rauw Alejandro lead the way, while additional performers are set to be announced.
The event is set to be hosted by Hugh Jackman (a Global Citizen Ambassador), while Jane Goodall and Coldplay’s Chris Martin (the latter being the Global Citizen festival curator) are expected to appear.
There are two main ways to get tickets. There’s a general on-sale that begins today at 10 a.m. ET via Ticketmaster, or you can earn free tickets by “taking action” through Global Citizen. More information is available on the event website.
Doja said in a statement (as Billboard notes), “It’s been a few years since I was last on the Global Citizen Festival stage in Paris, and I’m excited to join forces with Global Citizen once again in Central Park this September to drive as much action as we can to make the world a better place. We all have a part we can play to help end extreme poverty and stand up for equity. I’m looking forward to being part of this major evening of positive change.”
A statement from organizers also notes, “The hunger crisis continues to grow, infectious diseases are still spreading, debt is on the rise, and last year was the hottest on record. Meanwhile, governments everywhere are reducing their contributions to foreign aid, with more than half of G7 countries having proposed cuts this year. Despite the emerging gap between what the world needs and what seems politically possible, the plight of the world’s most vulnerable communities is more urgent than ever. This is a critical year for the global community to support frontline organizations, invest in lifesaving solutions, and act today, to save tomorrow.”
Tanner Adell is taking over the country landscape. Last summer, she stepped onto the scene with the viral hit “Buckle Bunny,” which propelled her into instant stardom. A feature on Beyoncé’s “Blackbiird” from her Cowboy Carter album skyrocketed Adell to the next level. Tonight (June 14), Adell has even more heat for the ladies with her new single “Too Easy” from the soundtrack to Twisters.
On “Too Easy,” Adell isn’t fazed by any man vying for her attention. She sees right through the facade as she repeats “Boys are too easy” on the song’s chorus.
Throughout the course of the song, she encourages the ladies to get dressed up and styled for the people that matter most — themselves.
“Go and get you a manicure for something that a man can’t cure / French tips, French kiss / I’ll leave you in the dust like this,” Adell sings.
In the song’s accompanying video, Adell is joined by the world famous PBR Nashville Buckle Bunnies, who deliver some killer choreography over the fast-paced track.
Newly independent after a recent departure from Columbia Records, Adell is taking her artistry into her own hands. And through maintain a consistent output of solid country bangers, she is bound to be the voice of the new country landscape.
