Mos Def has an album aimed for Feb

Jonathan Cohen, N.Y.

Mos Def will release his Downtown debut, "The Ecstatic," on Feb. 9, Billboard.com can reveal. The first single, "Life in Marvelous Times," will hit iTunes as an exclusive on Nov. 4.

The veteran rapper's last album, "Tru3 Magic," barely made a ripple upon its late 2006 release via Geffen and has sold just 93,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Its predecessor, 2004's "The New Danger," has sold 484,000.

Mos Def will be on the road starting Oct. 31 in Prague with the European installment of the Rock the Bells tour, alongside Nas, De La Soul, EPMD and the Pharcyde, among others.

On the acting front, the artist plays Chuck Berry in the film "Cadillac Records," due Dec. 5 in U.S. theaters.

Courtesy of Billboard.com

Green Day back to the lab with Butch Vig

Jonathan Cohen, N.Y.

Confirming news that Garbage frontwoman Shirley Manson let slip recently on "The Carson Daly Show," Green Day is in the studio with veteran producer Butch Vig working on the follow-up to 2004's "American Idiot."

In a video posted over the weekend on YouTube, the band is seen in the control room as the camera pans over to Vig, who smiles and extends his middle finger. Instrumental bits of two new songs are heard in the background.



Vig is best known for his work on Nirvana's "Nevermind" but has also logged time behind the boards with Smashing Pumpkins and Sonic Youth, in addition to his musician role in Garbage. Of late, he has produced albums from Jimmy Eat World, Against Me! and Tad.

Green Day worked with producer Rob Cavallo on "American Idiot," a runaway smash that has sold 5.8 million copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

The group reappeared this spring masquerading as the band Foxboro Hot Tubs, releasing an album and playing a handful of small club shows. The upcoming Green Day album, as-yet-untitled, is expected next year via Warner Bros.

Courtesy of Billboard.com

Coldplay's EP is coming and Jay-Z makes a surprise visit!

Jonathan Cohen, N.Y.

Coldplay will in November release an eight-song EP, "Prospekt's March," which will include a new version of the song "Lost" featuring rapper Jay-Z. Six of the eight tracks on the EP are new studio recordings, including "Glass of Water," which the band has been performing live of late.

The track list is rounded out by the Jay-Z version of "Lost" and the Osaka Sun remix of "Lovers in Japan."

Coldplay will begin a North American tour Oct. 20 in Ottawa, Ontario, in support of its latest Capitol album, "Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends." The set is the second-highest selling U.S. release of 2008, according to Nielsen SoundScan, at 1.77 million copies.

Here is the track list for "Prospekt's March":

"Life In Technicolour II"
"Postcards From Far Away"
"Glass Of Water"
"Rainy Day"
"Prospekt's March / Poppyfields"
"Lost +"
"Lovers in Japan" (Osaka Sun remix)
"Now My Feet Won't Touch The Ground"

Courtesy of Billboard.com

Morrissey has a new deal

Jonathan Cohen, N.Y.

Less than a month after splitting with U.K.-based ie: music, Morrissey has signed with Irving Azoff for management, according to TrueToYou.net. Before that, the former Smiths frontman was represented by Merck Mercuriadis.

Morrissey is presently without a U.S. label. His already completed new album, "Years of Refusal," is due Feb. 2 internationally via Universal.

Coming a week before via BMG is a reissue of the artist's 1995 album "Southpaw Grammar," with the previously unreleased songs "Honey, You Know Where To Find Me," "Fantastic Bird" and "You Should Have Been Nice To Me" inserted into the original sequence.

In January, Morrissey will play four shows in New Zealand, followed by gigs in Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide, Australia, with dates to be announced.

Meanwhile, the Smiths retrospective originally titled "Hang the DJ" and due Oct. 7 via Rhino has been renamed "The Sound of the Smiths" and is now arriving Nov. 11.

The Killers are back with something for the people!

Jonathan Cohen, N.Y.

After a detour into earnest arena rock on 2006's "Sam's Town," the Killers are back firmly on the dance floor with the Stuart Price-produced "Day & Age," due Nov. 25 via Island. The club-ready first single "Human" debuts this week at No. 13 on Billboard's Modern Rock chart.

Opener "Losing Touch" sets the template, with a David Bowie-inspired groove and buzzing horns. Frontman Brandon Flowers' lyrics remain inscrutable: "The legend grows of you got lost but you made your way back home / You sold your soul like a Roman vagabond."

Later, the Killers test out Duran Duran-style white funk on "Joyride," replete with a saxophone solo. Sax, steel drum, harp and acoustic guitar form an exceedingly unusual instrumental bed on "I Can't Stay," while "Spaceman" is a full-throttle new wave rocker with shades of Queen.

"Day & Age" concludes with the dark, bombastic epic "Goodnight, Travel Well," which runs almost seven minutes.

The Killers will perform "Human" this weekend on NBC's "Saturday Night Live." The group will also play a handful of shows in the coming weeks, beginning Oct. 20 in its Las Vegas hometown and wrapping Nov. 3 in London.

Here is the track list for "Day & Age":

"Losing Touch"
"Human"
"Spaceman"
"Joyride"
"A Dustland Fairytale"
"This Is Your Life"
"I Can't Stay"
"Neon Tiger"
"The World We Live In"
"Goodnight, Travel Well"

Courtesy of Billboard.com

Britney tells with the new "Womanizer" joint

Jonathan Cohen, N.Y.

"Womanizer," the first single from Britney Spears' upcoming album "Circus," hit U.S. radio outlets this morning. The track, produced by up-and-coming Atlanta team the Outsyders, has a thick, synthy sound that should lend itself to remixes and club play.

Lyrically, "Womanizer" finds Spears rebuffing the advances of man with the "swagger of champions." "Must mistake me as a sucker / To think that I would be a victim not another / Say it, play it how you wanna / But no way I'm ever gonna fall for you," she sings.

Among the other contributors on "Circus" are Dr. Luke, who wrote and produced the title cut, Danja, Guy Sigsworth, Max Martin and Bloodshy & Avant. The album's release on Dec. 2 coincides with Spears' 27th birthday.

Although its video isn't quite ready yet, "Womanizer" will play during Monday's (Sept. 29) episode of the MTV show "The Hills."

Courtesy of Billboard.com

The Mars Volta and others join up for Voodoo Experience

Jonathan Cohen, N.Y.

The Mars Volta, N*E*R*D, TV On The Radio, Irma Thomas, the Butthole Surfers, Fishbone and Ben Jelen have joined the lineup for the 2008 Voodoo Experience, to be held Oct. 24-26 at New Orleans' City Park.

They augment a bill that also features R.E.M., Nine Inch Nails, Stone Temple Pilots and Lil Wayne, among hundreds of others.

Festival founder/producer Stephen Rehage admits he was considering last-ditch options for Voodoo had Hurricane Gustav struck New Orleans with the force of Hurricane Katrina three years earlier. Luckily, the city was mostly spared this time around.

"I remembered all the struggles of 2005 and the options we might have to consider, but not moving forward this year never crossed my mind," says Rehage, who also produces the New Orleans Essence Festival.

Tickets are on sale through Ticketmaster and TheTenthRitual.com.

Courtesy of Billboard.com

It's a Fall Out Boy Fifth!

Jonathan Cohen, N.Y.

Fall Out Boy will release its fifth album, "Folie a Deux," Nov. 4 via Island, the same day as the U.S. presidential election. The project was heralded yesterday (Aug. 25) with the release of an online mixtape, "Welcome to the New Administration."

On it were five Fall Out Boy demos expected to appear on the album, including "Lake Effect Kid," "America's Sweethearts," "I Don't Care (27)," "ALPHAdog and OMEGAlomaniac" and "Catch Me if You Can/Proclamation of Emancipation," the latter featuring Gym Class Heroes' Travis McCoy.

"Folie a Deux" is the follow-up to 2007's "Infinity on High," which has sold 1.3 million copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

Fall Out Boy will hit the road briefly in October in Europe, beginning Oct. 13 in Paris.

Courtesy of Billboard.com

Bloc Party is dropping the Digital this week

Jonathan Cohen, N.Y.

Bloc Party will make its third album, "Intimacy," available for digital download Thursday (Aug. 21), more than three months in advance of its Oct. 28 physical street date via Atlantic.

The CD will contain as-yet-unnamed "different tracks" from the digital version, according to the band. Fans who opt to pre-order "Intimacy" in physical form via BlocParty.com will receive the digital version immediately.

The band says the decision to go digital so far ahead of physical was based on the early leak of its 2007 album, "A Weekend in the City." That set has sold 148,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

The 10-track "Intimacy," produced by Paul Epworth and Jacknife Lee, is led by the single "Mercury," which debuted yesterday at No. 16 on the U.K. singles chart.

Here is the track list for "Intimacy":

"Ares"
"Mercury"
"Halo"
"Biko"
"Trojan Horse"
"Signs"
"One Month Off"
"Zephyrus"
"Better Than Heaven"
"Ion Square"

Courtesy of Billboard.com

McKagan + McCready = Seattle Tattoo Expo

Jonathan Cohen, N.Y.

Velvet Revolver's Duff McKagan and Pearl Jam's Mike McCready will rock out with their side projects in the coming days as part of the seventh annual Seattle Tattoo Expo, which kicks off tomorrow (Aug. 8) at the Seattle Center.

Both McKagan's Loaded and McCready's Flight to Mars will play an event after-party tomorrow night at El Corazon. Loaded will also play Sunday at the Expo, which is hosting a concert stage all weekend featuring Nashville Pussy, Nevermore, Tiger Army and many others. For tickets and information, visit SeattleTattooExpo.com.

McKagan fits right in at Tattoo Expo, considering he has 13 of them, the most recent of which he obtained last Friday. "My wife and I have been riding motorcycles a lot lately, and she told me I needed to get a skull tattoo," he tells Billboard.com. "The guy started in on it right in this really sensitive area. I always realize what a sh*tty idea it is. I love the result but the process sucks."

Read the whole story here.

Courtesy of Billboard.com

Guns N Roses tracks leaked...but plugged just as fast!

Jonathan Cohen, N.Y.

Nine purported "mastered, finished" tracks from Guns N' Roses' 14-years-in-the-making album "Chinese Democracy" were leaked online yesterday (June 18) by the Web site Antiquiet.com, prompting a quick cease-and-desist from the band's handlers and the removal of the links.

Six of the songs have already leaked in one unfinished form or another: "Better," "The Blues," the title track, "Madagascar," "IRS" and "There Was a Time." But these versions appear to be much further along on the path toward completion, and feature new touches like organ and tambourine on "IRS" and a beefed-up chorus with multi-tracked vocals on "Madagascar."

The three previously unheard songs are "Rhiad and the Bedouins," "If the World" and a track whose title is unknown.

"Rhiad," which was played live by Guns N' Roses in 2001 and 2002, is a pounding rocker with a trademark down-and-dirty main guitar riff and a flashy solo. "If the World" is a head-spinning blend of flamenco guitar, industrial synth tones, bluesy piano licks and Rose at the top of his vocal register, while the unnamed track is an even more unusual melange of piano-led crooning, orchestral bombast and a serene instrumental outtro.

"Chinese Democracy" was last on Interscope's release schedule in March 2007. In late March of this year, the Axl Rose-led band signed a new management deal with industry heavyweights Irving Azoff and Andy Gould and began what it described as "negotiations" with Interscope to release the album.

But even if its release is drawing near, "Chinese Democracy" will likely go down as the album with the most troubled birth in rock history. Work began on it way back in 1994, and since then, Rose has burned through a reported $13 million in production costs as well as every lone original member of the group.

The endless delays reached comic levels this spring, when soft drink manufacturer Dr Pepper offered to send a free can of the drink to "everyone in America" (excluding ex-GNR members Slash and Buckethead) if "Chinese Democracy" arrives anytime during the calendar year 2008.

Courtesy of billboard.com