Month: March 2022

Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder has teamed with NASA for a video for his song “Invincible,” which features footage of the agency’s upcoming Artemis I Moon mission interspersed with a live performance of the song off Vedder’s recent solo album, Earthling.  Artemis I will lift off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center for a crew-less mission to the moon in the coming months, and plans for the future include landing the first woman and first person of color on the lunar surface as part of a planned long-term human presence there.

Footage included in the video, produced by Sami Aziz and edited by Lacey Young, features pre-launch tests and renderings of the Orion spacecraft’s eventual orbit of the Moon and return to earth.  You can check out the video for “Invincible” – here.

Pearl Jam will also be returning to the road in North America this spring as part of a rescheduled tour in support of its 2020 album Gigaton. The group is also working on its 12th studio album with producer Andrew Watt, who co-wrote and produced Earthling.

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An early toxicology report states that Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins had 10 different psychoactive substances in his system when he passed away in Bogota, Columbia at the age of 50. The Office of the Attorney General of Colombia released a statement saying that preliminary toxicology tests found 10 substances, including marijuana, tricyclic antidepressants, benzodiazepines and opioids. Hawkins was found dead in his hotel room in Bogota, where Foo Fighters were scheduled to perform at Festival Estereo Picnic. Bogata’s Secretariat of Health issued a statement explaining that an ambulance responded to an emergency call stating that Hawkins was suffering chest pains.

The band confirmed his death via social media: “The Foo Fighters family is devastated by the tragic and untimely death of our beloved Taylor Hawkins. His musical spirit and infectious laughter will live on with all of us forever. Our hearts go out to his wife, children and family, and we ask that their privacy be treated with the utmost respect in this unimaginably difficult time.”

Hawkins joined Foo Fighters in 1997, after serving as the Alanis Morissette’s touring drummer for two years. Hawkins played drums on eight consecutive Foo Fighters albums. He also performed on Hail Satin, the band’s 2021 Bee Gees tribute album, and released three albums with the Coattail Riders, one LP with his prog-rock side project the Birds of Satan, and fronted the rock ‘n’ roll cover band Chevy Metal, which toured regularly for more than a decade.

Hawkins played his final show with Foo Fighters five days before his death, on March 20 at Lollapalooza Argentina. Grohl said that night:  “You know the best thing about Taylor Hawkins, he’s the best f*****g drummer in the world. We love him so much.”

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Red Hot Chili Peppers have shared their new song, “Not the One,  the third song released from the band’s 12th studio album Unlimited Love, due out on April 1.

The album, which follows 2016’s The Getaway, is the Chili Peppers first since guitarist John Frusciante returned to the group in 2019.  The band are also planning to embark on a world tour this summer; the North American leg will kick off in Denver, Colorado on July 23 at Empower Field at Mile High, before wrapping-up in Arlington, Texas on September 18 at Globe Life Field.

Take a listen to “Not The One” – here.

You can pre-order Unlimited Love here.

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