All posts in: Weezer

13 Jul 2011

In the News…

***** Hey readers! Brace yourself – it was a big news day!

The UK’s Daily Mail published a photo along with a headline naming the wrong Olsen twin. For most of their early lives (Ages 0-16,) I believed they were identical because they were always dressed alike, but these days I can tell the two of them apart within seconds. You don’t have to see it in their faces to tell who is who, but you will see it in the way that they are dressed. Need some help telling the fashion icons apart? Check out Fashionista for their guide here.

– If you loved Lauren Conrad’s recently dyed tips as much as I did then learn how to do them yourself with the help of Lauren’s hair stylist Kristin Ess in this step-by-step tutorial. [Source]

Rihanna will be the star of Armani’s campaigns this fall/winter 2011. [Source]

Kal Penn will have a recurring role on How I Met Your Mother. [Source]

Kurt, Rachel, and Finn will not be returning for Season 4 of Glee, but of course we already knew that when Ryan Murphy said they would be graduating after this next year. [Source]

MTV has renewed Teen Wolf for a second season. I seriously only watch it for these two. [Source]

Lindsay Lohan apparently thought she was good enough and should have been considered for the role of Nina Sayers in Black Swan. Girl, you delusional? [Source]

– An exact replica of the house from “Up” has been built. Would you live in it? [Source]

Miranda Kerr named her son Flynn after a late boyfriend. [Source]

Rosie Huntington-Whitely is the new face of Burberry Body. [Source]

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen are also launching a handbag line. Do these girls ever stop working? [Source]

– Today, one of my favorite bands has officially broken up. Sad day Rilo Kiley. [Source]

– The original stars from the classic “American Pie” will all return for the fourth installment “American Reunion.” [Source]

Daisy Lowe will pose in next month’s issue of Playboy. Daisy is the daughter of Bush frontman Gavin Rossdale who is also the husband of Gwen Stefani. [Source]

– Meet the 20 new competitors for Project Runway. They all look like such characters! [Source]

– Who wants to wear a dress with Steve Buscemi’s face on it? Not I… [Source]

Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie are finally getting married. It’s been 6 years. [Source]

– Time to start building your Bumbershoot schedule! [Source]

Yogurtland is collaborating with Hello Kitty. I wish the real life characters would visit our Capitol Hill location though… [Source]

– In case you missed it (like I did) the US women’s soccer team is headed to the world cup finals! [Source]

Weezer is offering a concert cruise. [Source]

Cupcake Royale ended up raising $10,000 towards the It Gets Better Project selling their rainbow-covered cupcakes last month. Tomorrow, founder of Cupcake Royale Jody Hall, will present Dan Savage with the check at 4:30 PM at the Capitol Hill location. [Source]

Amon Tobin and Moby will headline Seattle’s Decibel Festival. [Source]

The Black Eyed Peas are going on hiatus. Not phased by this. [Source]

Chris Brown is securing his spot as the celebrity no one will ever like again. [Source]

– The first teaser poster for the Dark Knight Rises. [Source]

Weezer and The Flaming Lips will share the stage together in New Jersey on July 28th and New York on July 29th. Literally. As in… all of their gear will be up on stage at the same time and they will take turns performing a song. Yeasayer will open each night. AWESOME. [Source]

06 Oct 2010

Local believes that Weezer breaking up would make everyone better off

Seattlelite James Burns dislikes the band Weezer so much that he decided to create a campaign to raise $10 million to see them quit the music industry forever. Of course, he has to get them to agree to quit if they can even raise that much money. Oh, the things you can do on the internet…

Below: His open letter to Weezer.

I have never been a fan of this band. I think that they are pretty much horrible, and always have been. Even in the early 90’s.

But this isn’t about me. This is about the Weezer fans. They are our brothers and sisters, our friends, our lovers.

Every year, Rivers Cuomo swears that he’s changed, and that their new album is the best thing that he’s done since “Pinkerton,” and what happens? Another pile of crap like “Beverly Hills” or “I’m Your Daddy.”

This is an abusive relationship, and it needs to stop now.

I am tired of my friends being disappointed year after year.I am tired of endless whimsical cutesy album covers and music videos.

I’m sick of hearing about whatever this terrible (and yes, even if you like the early stuff, you should be able to admit that they are wretched now) excuse for a band is up to these days.

If all 852,000 of you (really?) who bought “Pinkerton” pitch in $12, we will meet our goal.

I beg you, Weezer. Take our money and disappear.

To donate to the campaign click here. You’ll only be charged if they can reach their goal of $10 million.

Supposedly this campaign has been receiving some buzz and Weezer drummer Patrick Wilson took to his Twitter to respond:

To learn more about why James is incredibly passionate over this issue, click here to read his interview with The Stranger.

Source

22 Sep 2010

Meet: Jessie Payo

It was only just a year ago that I had started doing interviews for Yow Yow! and the first person I asked was Jessie Payo. Earlier that year, her band Jupiter Rising, had released their second album The Quiet Hype, which was packed with both pop-rock and hip-hop influenced tracks. Their songs were picked up and featured in episodes of The Hills, Criminal Minds, and The City. Jessie was the first person I wanted to interview because I was a huge fan of Jupiter Rising and had also met her for the first time a few years back. Anyways, a year went by and I decided to reach out to Jessie again. Luckily, we were able to get this going the second time around. She is an absolute sweetheart! I hope you enjoy this everyone.

Q: How old are you and where are you from?

Jessie: I’m a youngster from Los Angeles.

Q: Growing up, did you always see yourself becoming a singer? How did your career first start out?

J: When I was little I wanted to be a painter, then a dancer, then an actress.  It never really crossed my mind that I would want to spend my life as a musician.  My parents were very artistic and they had all sorts of artist friends that would come over and play music.  One time at a backyard party, there were a bunch of musicians jamming out to a Janis Joplin song…at the time I had become a huge fan of Janis.  So when the song began, I started singing really loud into the mic.  I surprised my parents…and myself.  Soon after that, my father started a band with a bunch of our church friends.  We played coffee houses and small festivals with Aretha Franklin covers and blues songs.  After that, I knew I wanted to keep on playing live.  It wasn’t until later that I started writing my own songs.

Q: So Jessie, I actually met you three or four years ago at the black Friday event at Alderwood Mall in Washington. I’m sure you don’t remember meeting me, but I caught your performance w/ Jupiter Rising and after the show I met you and your band manager. I remember being so excited because I had never met a band that wasn’t local before. Back then, I told you that I was interested in booking you guys for a show at the venue I worked for so I was in shock when I received my first business card from your manager. Who was the first person that you met in your music career that has left you speechless?

J: Wow, Katie!  That was a really fun show…really freezing too;)  I’m so happy you remember that show because I had a great time at that show!  Well, the first person I met that left me speechless was Jonny Lang when I was, like, 15…I’m not sure if you know who he is but at the time he blew up as this  teen, blues prodigy!  I was really into the blues at the time and it was so inspiring to meet someone that was young and playing music so enriched in the roots of American music.  I was soooo in awe of his talent…and not to mention his amazing smile.  Later on we got to share the stage together, and that was killer!

Q: You recently told me that you are no longer with Jupiter Rising. I’m sad to hear that especially because I still listen to both of your albums pretty often. What made you decide to end up going solo?

J: Yes, it was a sad breakup but a lot of things happen for a reason.  Spencer Nezey is one of the most talented producers out there and he is now working on a project called Her Majesty and the Wolves.  I felt I wasn’t being honest in myself as an artist and I also felt it was unfair to Spencer because he knew exactly where he wanted this band to go.  I needed to step away to ask myself that difficult question “What is it that I want?”  So now I’m feeling incredibly amazing writing new music and laying the foundation for more exciting things to come.

Q: I follow your Twitter as well and heard that you were trying out for American Idol. Is it true? If so, that’s very exciting! Are you able to tell us anything about it or is it pretty hush hush?

J: I can’t really share the details but it was a great experience.

Q: Who are you usually compared to? And do you think that this person and you are alike?

J: I’m usually compared to Nelly Furtado, Erykah Badu, Bonnie Raitt and Nikka Costa.  I totally see the comparisons yet these four artists have completely different sounds.  I take them all as a compliment

Q: Who were your influences growing up?

J: My first influence was Madonna.  I would imitate her dance moves and bring my “Like a Virgin” cassette to kindergarten…where it was deemed inappropriate.  Haha!  After that I was heavily influenced by Aretha Franklin, The Beatles, Eric Clapton , Big Mama Thorton, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Erykah Badu, Nikka Costa and PJ Harvey…that’s quite a list of random.

Q: Who is your guilty pleasure collaboration? Who would you like to collaborate with that your fans might find a bit surprising?

J: I would LOVE to work with Jack White….DONE!

Q: The music industry is tough business to get into, what has been your biggest challenge and what piece of advice would you give to those who aspire to become a successful musician.

J: My two biggest pieces of advice is:  Don’t stop working…there’s always something to be said about being a hustler.

Second piece of advice is never make any apologies for the work that you put out there .

Q: At the end of the day, what makes it all worth it for you?

J: What makes it all worth it at the end of the day, is the endless amount of support I get from my friends and family.  Whenever I feel like I’ve reached my breaking point I always have a good friend or family member to remind me to get some perspective.  Leaning on them at times and a good way to step outside of myself when it gets too hard.

Q: Who are you listening to these days?

J: I’m listening to the new Black Keys album “Brothers”, The Avett Brothers, Marina and the Diamonds and the new Weezer Album.  Great stuff!

Q: What’s a typical day for Jessie Payo?

J: I’d like to say that I have a typical routine, but I don’t.  A lot of it consists of running around from rehearsals to shows to sessions to vocal lessons.   Each day brings its own adventure.  Right now I’m working on building the next Empire that is Jessie Payo.

Q: Jessie, you are dating magician Justin Kredible. Has he ever played a trick on you?

J: There’s always magic in the house.  But once he put my head into a vintage head chopper to test it out and it scared the crap out of me to have my head locked into a contraption with a huge blade above it.  Thank goodness nothing went wrong…my head’s still attached to my body.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btbBLGGM1h8]

Q: Where can we see you next Jessie?

J: Keep on the look out for a brand new Jessie Payo EP that’s in the works as we speak!  Also, I’m starring in a film called “Rising Stars” that’s soon to be out!

Q: Anything else?!

J: Check out more to come from Jessie Payo on www.jessiepayo.com

And follow me on twitter at @jessiepayo

Thanks Jessie! We wish you the best of luck!

09 Aug 2010

In the News…

Entourage will wrap up the series in the summer of 2011 with approximately six episodes to the season. This is the longest running show on HBO. [source]

Rachel Bilson and Hayden Christensen have called off their engagement. [source]

Survivor has a new cast in for season 21 in Nicaragua. Meet the cast here. Tribes have been divided into the under age 30 tribe and over age 40 tribe. Why is this show not over yet?

Jane Lynch will host the October 9th episode of Saturday Night Live.

Portia de Rossi will legally be changing her name to Portia DeGeneres. Portia and Ellen married in August 2008. [Source]

Weezer’s new album Hurley will be released on September 14, 2010. The picture above of Hurley from LOST is actually  the album cover. How fitting!  Rivers Cuomo says of the image, “I just loved this photo of Jorge Garcia — it just had this amazing vibe. We didn’t want to do a fourth self-titled record and we knew people would refer to it as ‘the Hurley record’ even if left it without that title, so we just called it ‘Hurley.’ No words are on the cover because all we wanted was his amazing face.” [source]

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-f-b5K7FOjI&feature=player_embedded]

Justin Bieber is the new face of Proactiv.

– Meet the new MTV TJ [Twitter Jockey] Gabbi Gregg. She beat out 20 contestants and was known as being the plus-size fashion blogger. The 24-year old has earned a $100,000 contract as the official social media face of the network. Read more about her future plans as the new TJ here.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZY5nFzretw]

The UK’s Metropolitan Police has released a new interactive PSA. So far, every PSA from the UK that I have seen continues to be extremely powerful. It’s definitely something that should be here, but isn’t.

Lady Gaga managed to make out with a fan WHILE she was crowd surfing during her performance at Lollapalooza this past weekend. It takes skills to multi-task.

In Seattle news…

Seattle’s own Via Tribunali and Pike Street Fish Fry will be heading to Ludlow Street all the way in New York! [Source]

Homegrown sandwiches on Capitol Hill will begin serving dinner on August 16h.

– I also spotted some construction going on today at the new Rock Box karaoke bar opening in the fall on Pine Street today.

Source

In favorite graphics of the day…

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31XMbQAoRNo&feature=player_embedded]

B-girl Grandma Tracy knows how to bust a move in NYC.

Source

This post is dedicated to my dear friend Beth who told me today over lunch that she felt smarter when she read my blog because she was able to contribute to conversations. I’m glad I can do that for you 🙂

03 Nov 2009

Jack’s Mannequin News

Andrew McMahon’s DVD, Dear Jack, a documentary that follows his journey of leukemia will be released tomorrow.  For more info, read my post about it here

I love him? I’m so happy to hear that he is returning on tour.

New Tour Dates With Weezer, Phoenix, Manchester Orchestra, Fun, Vedera And More
Jack’s Mannequin will launch into winter supporting Weezer on their upcoming tour and then kick off a headlining run to start 2010. More dates will be announced for the headlining tour soon. Please visit JacksMannequin.com.
Tue Dec 1 2009 (w/ Weezer)Chicago IL Aragon Ballroom
Wed Dec 2 2009 (WRXP Show w/
Manchester Orchestra and Phoenix)New York NYHammerstein Ballroom
Thu Dec 3 2009 (w/ Weezer)Milwaukee WIEagles Ballroom
Sat Dec 5 2009 (w/ Weezer)Toronto ONTAir Canada Centre
Mon Dec 7 2009 (w/ Weezer) Boston MAAgganis Arena
Wed Dec 9 2009 (w/ Weezer)Fairfax VAGeorge Mason University
Thu Dec 10 2009 (w/ Weezer)Selinsgrove PASusquehanna University

Fri Feb 5 2010 (w/ Fun & Vedera)Seattle WA – The Showbox SODO

Sat Feb 6 2010 (w/ Fun & Vedera)Portland ORRoseland
Sun Feb 7 2010 (w/ Fun & Vedera) Spokane WAKnitting Factory
Tue Feb 9 2010 (w/ Fun & Vedera)Salt Lake City UTIn The Venue
Thu Feb 11 2010 (w/ Fun & Vedera)Sacramento CASacramento State University
Fri Feb 12 2010 (w/ Fun & Vedera)Las Vegas NVHouse of Blues
Tue Feb 16 2010 (w/ Fun & Vedera)San Antonio TXThe White Rabbit
Wed Feb 17 2010 (w/ Fun & Vedera) Dallas TXHouse of Blues
Fri Feb 19 2010 (w/ Fun & Vedara) Kansas City MOThe Beaumont Club
Sat Feb 20 2010 (w/ Fun & Vedera)Minneapolis MNFirst Avenue
Wed Feb 24 2010 (w/ Fun & Vedera)Indianapolis INEgyptian Room
Fri Mar 5 2010 (w/ Fun & Vedera)Norfolk VAThe Norva

I’m so there!

25 Jun 2009

Virgin Mobile FreeFest

Yesterday, Virgin Mobile announced that their annual music festival on August 30th this summer in Columbia, Maryland will be absolutely free!

The organization has recognized our country’s economic status and current recession and have decided to not put a fee on these tickets, however Ticketmaster will still charge for ticket delivery unless you decide to pick them up on call.

Instead the festival will be soliciting a $5 donation towards the RE*Generation, an organization that helps homeless youth agencies across the country.

And if I were you, I would donate! You’re only paying $5 to see bands like GIRL TALK, Blink 182, Weezer, Franz Ferdinand, Jet, Taking Back Sunday and MORE.

If I didn’t live on this side of the country, I would be there in a heart beat.

For more information about FreeFest click here