Michelle Branch is heading to Chicago this weekend to shoot a video with Carlos Santana and director Paul Fedor for Santana's upcoming album, Shaman, due October 22. Branch sings on a pop/rock song called "Game of Love," written by ex-New Radicals leader Gregg Alexander and producer Rick Nowels. ... "Well, I guess this is growing up" is right. Blink-182 bassist Mark Hoppus and his wife, Skye, welcomed baby Jack, their first child, into the world on August 5. ... Weezer will support Guns N' Roses at England's London Arena on August 26, according to the band's Web site. ... Who are the best bands in the world? According to British metal mag Kerrang!, they're Sum 41, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Slipknot, Linkin Park and Nickelback, who are all up for the Best Band in the World award at the Kerrang! Awards 2002, which will be awarded August 27. ...
Underworld, who are returning with their latest, A Hundred Days Off, on September 24, have lined up a U.S. mini-tour that begins October 14 at Chicago's Riviera Theater. The "Born Slippy" kings then hit Clutch Cargo's in Pontiac, Michigan, on October 15, New York's Hammerstein Ballroom on October 18 and San Francisco's Warfield on October 20 before winding up at the Wiltern Theatre in L.A. on October 21. ... Following a September tour of the U.K., Jerry Cantrell will return home for a 24-date headline tour that begins October 10 in San Antonio and ends November 15 in New Orleans. Cantrell is currently opening for Creed. ... Six Feet Under, featuring former Cannibal Corpse vocalist Chris Barnes, will support Hatebreed on a string of dates in September. The trek kicks off September 9 in Houston, Texas according to the death metal group's Web site. ...
Metallica welcomed two fans from the Make a Wish Foundation, their families and two of their friends into the San Francisco studio where they're recording their new album, played them two new tracks and hooked them up with a ton of free swag, according to the group's Web site. Lars, Kirk, James and producer/temporary bassist Bob Rock also invited their new friends to jam with them for over an hour, rocking out on "Enter Sandman," "For Whom the Bell Tolls," "Sad But True," "... And Justice for All," "I Disappear" and the rarely aired "Dyer's Eve," and Lars sent them all off with handfuls of classic hard rock CDs after one of the kids expressed an interest in Iron Maiden. ... Original Pirate Material, the garage-flavored, Mercury Music Prize-nominated album by the Streets (a.k.a. 21-year-old Mike Skinner), will arrive in America October 22 through Vice Records. ...
08.21.02
P. Diddy is among the first hip-hop stars lined up to participate in the relaunch of Rap the Vote, the voter registration, education and empowerment initiative that aims to promote political awareness through means such as rallies, concerts, PSAs and personal appearances. Russell Simmons and Def Jam President Kevin Liles have joined forces with Rap the Vote and the NAACP to help get the word out. ... Ryan Adams, Wilco, Emmylou Harris, Luna and the Jayhawks are among the acts lined up for the first Austin City Limits Music Festival, which is scheduled for September 28 and 29 at Zilker Park in Austin, Texas. Other acts scheduled for the fest include Gillian Welch, Nickel Creek, David Garza, G Love & Special Sauce and Eyes Adrift, the new trio of Nirvana's Krist Novoselic, the Meat Puppets' Curt Kirkwood and Sublime's Bud Gaugh. ...
Moby, Our Lady Peace and DJs Sasha & Digweed are headlining a pre-party for the MTV Video Music Awards on Pier 54 in Manhattan on Tuesday, August 27. Tickets are free (though limited) and can be obtained starting Wednesday (August 21) at Manhattan's two Virgin Megastore locations. ... Musiq and Nappy Roots will appear at MTV2 Nominee Night on Wednesday, August 28, at Jimmy's Uptown in New York. Tickets are being given away through local radio station Power 105. ... The same evening, Dirty Vegas and Slum Village will perform at the World in Times Square as part of MTV's 24 Hours of Music celebration. Tickets are on sale through the venue's box office. ...
A court hearing of lawsuits filed by former Hole frontwoman Courtney Love and Universal Music -- the label filed theirs when Love failed to deliver a new album pursuant to her contract, and she sued back to break said contract -- was postponed Tuesday until September 3. The two sides are reportedly negotiating a settlement. ...

Phish drummer Jon Fishman and Primus guitarist Larry LaLonde have created their own Frank Zappa mixtape masterpieces to be released as the first in a series of compilations dedicated to the legendary artist's work. The two Zappa Picks anthologies will arrive in stores on October 15, each with liner notes by its respective compiler. ...
Before heading out on the Sprite Liquid Mix Tour, 311 recorded a song called "Express Yourself" with the Black Eyed Peas for the rap group's upcoming album, Elephunk. Papa Roach and Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker have also contributed to tracks for the project. ... Grandmaster Flash has developed a mixing board for electronics company Rane that will correct sonic deficiencies in vinyl. Dubbed Empath, the product will be available in September. ... Kevin Cadogan, the guitarist who was ousted from Third Eye Blind in January of 2000, will unveil his new band, Bully, on September 12 at the Roxy in West Hollywood. The group has recorded four songs that are available for download at www.kevincadogan.com. ...
Chicago punk band Mest will headline a two-month club tour with Home Grown, Catch 22 and Madcap beginning September 12. After the tour, Mest are scheduled to record their fourth album, with Goldfinger singer John Feldmann and Miguel (Sublime) producing. ... Guttermouth, Gob, Authority Zero, Nerf Herder and 1208 will team up for 10 weeks on the Punk-O-Rama Tour, which kicks off on September 15 in Santa Cruz, California. The outing winds up November 23 in Atlanta. ... Swami Satchidananda, the guru who opened the original Woodstock festival in 1969, died Monday in Madras, India, according to The New York Times. He was 87.