OPEN WINGS-BROKEN STRINGS TOUR

August 26th, 2009

hey everybody

just wanted to fill you in on the latest news which i’m really excited about. i’ll be hitting the road in october w/ my good friends eddie kowalczyk of live and leigh nash of six pence none the richer for a very special acoustic tour called OPEN WINGS-BROKEN STRINGS.

we’re playing all the songs you know and love and sharing the stories behind them in a really unique and compelling way. more tour dates will be posted soon so stay tuned….you wont want to miss it.

“Stripped down and acoustic, you’ll hear the strings on the guitar
vibrate and buzz, the vocal chords hum and pulsate as the songs you
love come to life like you never knew they could. In this intimate
environment, the rockstar steps out from behind the layers of decibel
and drama to greet you with the essence, the story, and the song.
Quiet, just might be the new loud.”

- Eddie Kowalczyk

September is National Addiction Recovery Month. In recognition of this Ashely Cleveland is offering a free SHARE CD for each purchase between now and September 30 (mp3 downloads are excluded from this offer). This 18 track compilation disc includes Ashley Cleveland’s version of “Needle And The Damage Done.” Additional artists include Russ Taff, George Jones, Martina McBride, and Marshall Chapman, all with songs reflecting on “What it was like, what happened and what it’s like now.” Please enter the appropriate cart to shop: US/INT, CDN.

For more information, go to www.purpledoor.com

HM Proposes SXSW Panel on Christian Rock

We proposed a panel on Christian rock for SXSW 2010. The way the music festival chooses its panels (out of 100s of proposals) is partly decided by online voting. If you recall, there was a panel on Christian rock at SXSW 2002, which HM editor Doug Van Pelt was part of. It was pretty good. We figured it has been a long enough gap to do it again and we think we came up with some good topics. To vote, just follow this link and give it a thumbs up and (better yet) log in and leave a comment. Make suggestions on questions or topics to bring up during the panel. here.

Many of you already know that Jars is headlining Creation Festival: The Tour this fall. The tour will feature Thousand Foot Krutch, Audio Adrenaline, B. Reith, FM Static and This Beautiful Republic. More information can be found here. We are very excited to announce the first round of confirmed dates for the tour:

Based on the internationally acclaimed novel by Zülfü Livaneli and set against the backdrop of Turkey’s natural wonders, Bliss is the most acclaimed Turkish film of the decade - an eye-opening story about the taboo subject of honor killings.

When 17-year-old Meryem is found dishevelled and unconscious by the side of a lake in the countryside, her family believes the worst - that her chastity has been lost. They turn to the ancient principle of “tore,” a strict moral code that condemns Meryem to death. When she refuses to take her own life, the duty of upholding the family’s honor falls upon a distant cousin, Cemal, who has just completed a brutal tour in the military. A deeply affecting yet life-affirming portrayal of traditional and modern-day Turkey, Bliss is unforgettable.

Breaking a long period of silence and inactivity, Blindside have announced via myspace that they will be releasing a brand new full-length album in the first half of 2010! The record will be produced once again by Howard Benson (P.O.D., Motorhead, Skillet), who produced for Blindside previously on Silence and About a Burning Fire.

The band is doing two shows in the USA this year and then all focus will go to the new disc. Check out the full press release here.

HM Magazine’s site just got a face-lift today! Check out the new layout at www.HMmag.com now… and subscribe to the magazine. It’s cheap for a year and you know - still actually a print magazine. Ding!