Classic Hits

The upcoming Power Trip festival is bound to be a good time, and AC/DC is giving fans yet another way to enjoy themselves. 

The rockers, who’ll be hitting the stage for the first time in seven years, just announced they’re launching their very own bar outside the festival, where those headed to the shows can stop by for a drink and a fun time.

The AC/DC High Voltage Dive Bar will be open October 5-8 from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. It’s located in Indio, California, about 10 minutes away from the Empire Polo Grounds, where the festival is taking place. The bar’s Instagram page notes it will close early, at 9:30 p.m., on October 7, when AC/DC takes the stage.

“It’s the ultimate way to connect and plug in with fellow AC/DC fans over the weekend and check out iconic AC/DC props and exclusive merch,” reads the bar’s website.

Power Trip kicks off October 6, with performances from Iron Maiden and Guns N’ Roses, followed by Judas Priest and AC/DC on October 7, wrapping with Tool and Metallica on October 8. Complete details can be found at powertrip.live.

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Madonna is selling limited-edition merchandise for her upcoming Celebration Tour for a good cause.

The merch consists of two collectors’ item tote bags, with 100% of the proceeds going to two different charities: Madonna’s own Raising Malawi and the Chema Vision Children’s Center in Kenya, established by Julian Prolman, president of Ministry of Tomorrow. Ministry of Tomorrow is the fashion house Madonna is collaborating with for the tote bags.

You can buy the tote bags online and at select tour venues. Made of 100% certified organic and fair trade cotton, they feature two top handles, a shoulder strap, a signature charm and exclusive Madonna artwork by Prolman.  They cost $40 each.

Madonna will launch her long-awaited Celebration Tour October 14 at the O2 in London. It’ll arrive in North America starting December 13 at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center.

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Queen’s Brian May has hit out at researchers who seem to have discovered that listening to the band’s music could help release insulin and keep diabetes under control in patients.

The guitarist shared an article originally posted in Forbes about the discovery, explaining on Instagram that while he’s happy “We will Rock You can be good for your health,” he’s not happy scientists “tortured mice” in order to test their theory.

“It’s now well known that many drugs and procedures that work in mice or rats do NOT work in humans,” he writes. “And, ethically, causing pain to one species to cure the ills of another is clearly unjustifiable. So the laws requiring tests on animals MUST be changed.”

He adds, “I’m horrified that these scientists could gaily make these unfortunate animals suffer to prove a point that should have been made using human volunteers. Then I would have been smiling.”

Finally, May concludes, “It’s so easy to gloss over the disgusting way we treat animals. It has to stop. It’s high time that scientists became responsible for what they do. Time they took responsibility for the way they behave,” adding, “I will NOT be celebrating this news tonight.”

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On This Day, October 2, 1982…

Genesis reunited with ex-singer Peter Gabriel and ex-guitarist Steve Hackett for a benefit concert at the Milton Keynes Bowl in Buckinghamshire, England.

It was the first time either had played with the band since their departures from Genesis: Gabriel left in 1975 and Hackett in 1977. It was also the last time Gabriel performed any of the band’s songs. 

The beneficiary of the concert was Gabriel, who was close to financial ruin after the failure of his World of Music, Arts and Dance (WOMAD) Festival. The money bailed him out, and he went on to stage the festival for the next 40 years.

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This Barbie is a Gold Dust Woman.

Yes, Mattel has launched a Stevie Nicks Barbie Doll, which is available now. She’s dressed in a black outfit inspired by the one Stevie wore on the cover of Rumours, and also wears platform boots and a crescent moon necklace. She even comes with a ribbon-festooned tambourine.  Her flowing blonde hair is styled in bangs, and she’s wearing smoky eye makeup.

Stevie showed off the doll to fans while onstage at New York’s Madison Square Garden on Sunday night, October 1, and then presented it to an audience member.

The doll costs $55 and is available at Target, Walmart and other stores.

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Grateful Dead just released the 50th anniversary deluxe reissue of their album Wake of the Flood and is giving fans a unique way to enjoy it. 

Dead Heads can now go to the band’s website to explore Playing In The Band: Wake of the Flood, described as “an interactive mixing board” that allows them to jam along with classics on the album like “Eyes of the World,” “Stella Blue” and “Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodeloo.”

Playing In The Band gives fans a chance to play around with the contributions of each band member. They can press solo to listen to each artist’s specific performance and even mute them in order to fill in using their own instrument.

And the Dead has even more Wake of the Flood goodies to share with fans. On October 15, exactly 50 years after Wake of the Flood was released, over six hours of never-before-heard material from the album’s recording sessions will stream as a YouTube Live exclusive event.

Released in 1973, Wake of the Flood was the first album released on the band’s own record label, Grateful Dead Records. Featuring new members Keith and Donna Godchaux, it was also the first album released following the death of founding member Ron “Pigpen” McKernan and the temporary departure of drummer Mickey Hart.

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The second of three episodes of The Continental: From the World of John Wick is now streaming on Peacock. 

Set in “the hell-scape of 1970s New York City,” it was up to director Albert Hughes, as well as Wick franchise producers Basil Iwanyk, Erica Lee and their production team, to recreate the bad old days of the Big Apple — very far from New York, no less. 

One way of painting that landscape was through the music. The soundtrack is filled with hits from the era, from Heart to Gerry Rafferty to Pink Floyd. Hughes was the driving force behind it, and credits Peacock and Lionsgate with not pushing back, in spite of the hefty licensing fees.

Hughes explains to ABC Audio, “There was a certain budget for music at the beginning, and I go, like, ‘Oh you guys, it’s going to be three or four times that. There’s no way.'” One big chunk of that budget went to getting Pink Floyd’s Wish You Were Here track “Welcome To The Machine” for episode two; Hughes notes it was the most expensive song in the series.

To their credit, Hughes says the studios were all in. “I saw the music as a replacement for Keanu Reeves because I don’t have Keanu Reeves and a dead puppy,” he jokes. “So I need another kind of actor, you know, in theory, a personality, and it was the music. And it also helps with time and place and nostalgia, all that other good stuff.”

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Former Yes guitarist Trevor Rabin has released the brand new song “Oklahoma” from his upcoming album, Rio, which will be his first solo album of vocal material in 34 years.

Rabin says the song was inspired by the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing that killed 168 people.

“It traumatized the entire nation and will always be a dark day for the country,” Rabin shares. “Thirty plus years later I believed the time was right and OK to tackle the song I had written. It’s dedicated to family and friends who lost loved ones.” 

You can listen to “Oklahoma” now via digital outlets and watch the video on YouTube.

Rio, named after Rabin’s granddaughter, is available for preorder now.

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It’s been 50 years since Elton John released his now-classic album Goodbye Yellow Brick Road and he’s giving fans a new way to enjoy it.

In honor of the anniversary, Elton has released the album in Dolby Atmos for the first time. Fans are now able to listen to tracks like “Bennie and the Jets,” “Candle In the Wind,” “Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting,” the title track and more in high-definition sound. 

Elton is also marking the anniversary with a new line of Goodbye Yellow Brick Road merchandise, including T-shirts, hoodies, mugs and sweatshirts. 

You can listen to Goodbye Yellow Brick Road in Dolby Atmos via digital outlets.

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Neil Young launched his Archives series back in 2009 with Neil Young Archives Vol. I: 1963-1972, and fans who missed out on getting a copy now have a second chance. Young is set to reissue Archives Vol. 1 on November 10, marking the first time it’s been back in print in over a decade.

Like the original, the reissue will be released in its eight-CD format, with each CD getting its own custom sleeve. It also contains a 24-page booklet and Archives poster.

In addition to early Young recordings with the Squires, Buffalo Springfield, Crazy Horse and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, the set contains music from Young’s early solo career. There are also three discs of live recordings: Live At The Riverboat (Toronto 1969), Neil Young & Crazy Horse – Live At The Fillmore East (New York 1970) and Live At Massey Hall (Toronto 1971).

The reissue of Neil Young Archives Vol. I: 1963-1972 will be available at Young’s Greedy Hand online store, at retail outlets and through most digital service providers. All Greedy Hand store purchases come with free hi-res digital audio downloads.

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