Sting, Weir, Roots To Play Climate Rally In DC
Sting, John Legend, the Roots, Jimmy Cliff, Passion Pit, Bob Weir, Willie Colón, Joss Stone, Robert Randolph, Patrick Stump, Mavis Staples, and Booker T will help celebrate Earth Day’s 40th birthday this Sunday during a possibly massive Climate Rally on the National Mall. Scheduled speakers at the 11 a.m. event include the Rev. Jesse Jackson,…
Polatik’s Tea Party Rap
If this doesn’t kill rap to death, nothing will. Polatik, a “26 year old Texan who has gone from convict to community leader in three short years,” lays out the movement’s tenets behind some ponderous beats. Meanwhile, the video concentrate’s on the Party’s dozen or so black members. And as Polatik reassures us, “it’s not…
Robbie Conal, Political Animal
Robbie Conal is to protest art what Bob Dylan used to be to protest music – an eviscerating force to be reckoned with. The son of a pair of Marxist-Leninist union organizers (he recalls “dinnertime quizzes about use value”), Conal was raised in New York City during the fifties as your typical “red diaper baby,”…
HeadCount Food & Farm Policy Issue Update: The Unsettling Truth About Food & Advertising
It’s about time! The media has turned some serious attention on the marketing practices behind so-called “organic” food products. The limited and often inaccurate information available to consumers regarding food makes it difficult to know whether our dollars are supporting the type of industry we can believe in. The biggest shocker came last week when Mother Jones…
Happy Record Store Day
Tomorrow, April 17, is Record Store Day – a day to celebrate and support your favorite local independent record store. More than 700 independently owned record stores across the U.S., and hundreds of international stores, will take part in this event. The goal is to bring customers into shops who now have to compete with…
How Little Do Musicians Earn Online?
Well, this is depressing – especially for working musicians who think they can still make a living wage from selling those anachronistic items known as “albums,” or even “downloads.” Responding to self-serving organizations that claim to protect musicians’ digital rights, David McCandless has come up with this nifty chart at his Information Is Beautiful blog…
A Visit To Planet Paprika
“Some say that I come from Russia, some think that I come from Africa. But I’m so exotic, I’m so erotic, ’cause I come from the Planet Paprika.” I’m not quite sure why I love this track as much as I do. Turned on to Shantel thanks to Richard Goldstein’s smart take on the French…
Hey Vegetarians, Can I Interest You In a Little Neurotoxin?
Think you’re making the healthy choice by eschewing meat? If you’re opting for a non-organic veggie burger made by Boca Burger, Garden Burger or Morningstar (among others) you may be in for a surprise. Earlier this week Mother Jones’ Kiera Butler cited a Cornucopia Foundation study finding the majority of veggie burgers on the market…
Simon Posford: Electronic Music On The Live Circuit
Simon Posford, has become almost as well known in the U.S. as he is in his native England, after a series of collaborations with the Disco Biscuits and other festival circuit staples. His various incarnations include Hallucinogen, Schpongle and Younger Brother, the latter of which includes DJ Benji Vaughan and, when performing as a full…
Interview: Bob Weir Part 4 – At Home In The White House
“These days when I go to D.C. I go to the White House and I do business….I feel like I belong there. I think we all belong there.” Those are the words of HeadCount board member Bob Weir, who has been a semi-frequent guest at the White House along with other members of the Grateful…