News Bits: Phoenix and Queens of the Stone Age Announce (Separate) Fall Tours + More
Suffering early-onset summertime blues? Sit tight 'til fall -- Phoenix are coming to make it all better!
Queens of the Stone Age are doing likewise!
Avett Brothers Discuss Family Dynamics, ‘The Neo-Folk Thing’ and Chicken Cheddar Biscuits at Mountain Jam 2013 [Exclusive Video]
When the Avett Brothers sat down with Diffuser.fm at this past weekend's Mountain Jam festival, the rain was falling hard, and the mud was starting to flow. Hence our icebreaker: "Do you feel you're a better rainy- or sunny-day act?" The North Carolina group had never heard that question, and after giving it a thoughtful answer, the fellas went on to discuss past Mountain Jams, their devoted fan base and the family dynamics that allow brothers Scott and Seth Avett to play music together without coming to blows.
Mountain Jam 2013: 9 Things We Learned at This Year’s Festival
Some music sites might cancel festival plans because of inclement weather, but at Diffuser.fm, we literally embrace the crud out of it. When we piled into our VW Bus (or you know, '97 Accord) and headed to Hunter, N.Y., for this weekend's Mountain Jam 2013 festival, we knew we were in for some rain and mud. But as Neil Young might say, we didn’t let it bring us down. Instead, we let loose, rolled up our pant legs, chatted with some cool peeps and heard some incredible music. We also interviewed the fine folks in Elijah & the Moon, the Avett Brothers, Deer Tick and the Lumineers -- all of whom are princes.
Lumineers Take the Music to the People at Mountain Jam 2013 – Exclusive Photos
Folk music is supposed to be the music of the people, not the music of critics or hipster tastemakers, and in that sense, the Lumineers are about as authentic as they come. Performing Saturday night (June 8) at Mountain Jam
Gary Clark Jr. Bends Genres, Blows Minds at Mountain Jam 2013 – Exclusive Photos
Gary Clark Jr. is all things to all people, and Saturday afternoon (June 8), the genre-jumping blues guitarist was everything to a field full of Mountain Jam revelers psyched to not be standing in the rain. The weather had cleared hours before the uber-talented Texan took the stage, and as he jumped from Black Keys-style garage boogie to straight-up blues and even R&B-inflected Top 40 pop, Clark played it astonishingly cool, standing stone-faced in his signature hat and peeling off tasty notes on his big ol' Gibson. He even offered up his show-stopping cover of Jimi Hendrix's 'Third Stone from the Sun.' Check out our exclusive photos below.
Michael Franti & Spearhead Bring ‘Sound of Sunshine’ to Mountain Jam 2013 – Exclusive Photos
It's beginning to look a lot like Mountain Jam. After two days of rain, the sun shined down Saturday afternoon (June 8) at Hunter Mountain, and festival-goers finally got to strip off their ponchos and party down as the music gods intended. Among the first to capitalize on the nice weather was Michael Franti, who took the stage at 3PM with his band, Spearhead, and threw a funky, punky reggae party.
Deer Tick Bring Positive Thinking, ‘Negativity’ Preview to Mountain Jam 2013
Deer Tick's John McCauley came into Mountain Jam 2013 with what you might call PMA: positive mental attitude.
"I had a good feeling people would show up, even though the weather is not so great," he said Friday afternoon (June 7), as he looked out over a cruddy, muddy field loaded with poncho-clad peeps.
Elijah & the Moon Deliver the Folk-Rock Goods at Mountain Jam 2013
The folk-rock thing is all the rage these days, but Elijah & the Moon aren't your average Jeremiah-come-lately vest-wearing bandwagon jumpers. This fivesome from the Catskills, N.Y., write stomping tunes befitting of a rock band -- they just happen to play them on old-timey instruments. Friday afternoon, opening day two of Mountain Jam 2013, leader Elijah Wolf-Christensen and his merry gang of players served up tunes from their brand-new album 'The Lonesome World Beyond the Trees,' inspiring a fair bit of dancing in the mud pit in front of the stage.
News Bits: Nine Inch Nails Announce Tour Dates for 2013 + More
We know you're still hungry for more NIN news.
Bad news: No Modest Mouse tour. Good news: New Modest Mouse album.
Nine Inch Nails Release New Song ‘Came Back Haunted,’ Dish on New Album ‘Hesitation Marks’
Nine Inch Nails took to Twitter last night (June 5) to unveil their new single, 'Came Back Haunted' (listen below), and announce the Sept. 3 release of 'Hesitation Marks,' their first album since 2008. NIN mastermind Trent Reznor is no stranger to social media -- he won an Oscar for his 'Social Network' score, after all -- or savvy marketing, and already, the Internet is abuzz over the latest musical offering from the industrial legends.