Buzz Gnosis

La Roux and Heaven 17 have been confirmed to perform a collaboration early next year.

The two acts will record together at Maida Vale Studios in London, with the session being broadcast on BBC 6 Music on January 29.

“Heaven 17 have always maintained an open mind and collaborative attitude towards new musical ideas, and when the opportunity to work with La Roux came up, we jumped at the chance,” keyboardist Martyn Ware said.

“We really like their attitude towards pop writing, and we’re also fans of Elly’s voice – we’re sure that our writing and performance experience combined with La Roux’s youthful energy and talent will create a unique and exciting collaboration.”

La Roux singer Elly Jackson added that bandmate Ben Langmaid has long been a fan of the The Luxury Gap group.

“I know that for Ben particularly this is an opportunity to work with one of his heroes, and that’s not something you are often given the chance to do, it’s amazing really,” she said.

“I’m personally looking forward to singing with Glenn [Gregory, lead singer of Heaven 17] as I really admire the expression in his vocals. I think it will be an interesting contrast to mine.

“Also, we put Glenn on the list for one of our first ever gigs but there was a mix up and the bouncers didn’t let him in, so now we’ll get to apologise properly in person!

“And hopefully get to make some great music at the same time. I can’t wait.”

La Roux re-release single ‘Quicksand’ on November 23.

Mac Dre was born on the fifth of July 1970 in Oakland, he grew up in Vallejo, California and lived there most of his life.

In 1989 Mac Dre released his first album, an EP titled ‘Young Black Brotha’ it had 4 tracks on it and one track ironicly titled ‘Too Hard for the Fuckin Radio’ started getting air play in North Californian radio stations. In 1991 Mac Dre returned with ‘California Livin” and by the time he released his third album ‘Whats really goin on’(1992) his music was being played all over Vallejo and North California for that matter. In clubs and peoples cars, it looked like Mac Dre was going to reach the big time. But his hopes and dreams were snatched away from him as he was put into prison as the police believed he was behind a few bank robberys. Mac Dre was followed 300 miles by police from the ‘Bay Area’ to Fresno, his friend was wired and recorded a conversation which he started asking Mac Dre about the bank robberys. He was sentenced to five years inprisonment in 1992 for this but he wasn’t done making albums yet. ‘Back N Da Hood’ was what his fourth album was called, it was an EP which was recorded from Fresno county Jail by phone. The album shows that Mac Dre doesn’t need lots of takes to have a song the way he wants it. In the same year he recorded some more songs over the phone and his record company made an album from them and some of his previously released songs, the album was called ‘Young Black Brotha: The Album’.

Mac Dre was released in 1995. He got on his compilation ‘The Rompilation’ which was released under his new record company ‘Romp Records’ and sold over 60,000 copies, in the Rompalation Mac Dre appears on eight tracks alongside some of his ‘homies’ such as Mac Mall, Da Unda dog and JT the Bigga Figga. After his release he started working like crazy on his albums averaging on two albums a year. His first solo release after his release from jail was called ‘Stupid Doo Doo Dumb’, the very same year he released ‘Don’t hate the Player, Hate the Game’. In the next three years that followed he released 11 albums the latest of them ‘Thizzelle Washington’ got him the most fans and respect. In 2003 he made ‘al boo boo’ which was a cd with a free dvd and he released a dvd called Treal TV. His fans loved the dvd as it opened a window into how he lived his life.

If you ask a fan of Mac Dre whats Mac Dres best album they are likly to say all of them, this shows the consistincy of his work it was all fantastic. His career in rap was not a fair one though, he never got the commercial praise he definatly deserved. In 2004 Mac Dre released three albums ‘Genie of the Lamp’, ‘Ronald Dregan: Dreganomics’ and ‘The Game is thick, Vol 2′. These albums had North California buzzing with excitment they thought this would be the man to put the spotlight back on westcoast rap.But this as of now has not happened. On November 1st 2004 Mac Dre was victim of a drive-by on Highway 71, Kansas City. The incident happened just after a concert he was doing in Kansas, the shooting was a shock, fans in Kansas enjoyed the show, noone from Kansas had any right to shoot a North Californian rapper as the Kansas City rap scene was getting respect and money from that area. When Mac Dres mother Wanda Salvatto heard about the shooting she did not believe it. This was because she was told previously her son was dead from an overdose of drugs but yet he was fine, other Vallejo residents did not believe this either and were shocked and sad when they heard that it was true. Mac Dre was buried at Moutain View Cemetary, Oakland, CA.

Now in 2005 Mac Dre has many die-hard fans and new ones too, he is still releasing albums too! ‘Da US Open’ was released on the 22nd of March it is a collaberation between Mac Dre and Mac Mall in which they pick up the alter egos ‘Andre Macassi’ and ‘Mall Macenroe’. Later ‘Money iz Motive’ was released, it wasn’t a Mac Dre solo it was an album made by the ‘Cutthoat Committee’ which Mac Dre was a part of. ‘Treal TV 2′ is currently in its final stages before its released, on top of that Mac Dres record label ‘Thizz Entertainment’ has some unreleased Mac Dre material that they will be selling in the near future. To Mac Dres fans he will always be the best rapper from the ‘Bay Area’.

RIP Andre ‘Mac Dre’ Hicks

Wrote by Jake McMullan
Fan of Mac Dre
Owner of the Mac Dre fansite: www.macdreezy.com

If a friend feels free with piano, then maybe he or she could consider taking professional violin or guitar lessons. A well-educated guitar school in Chicago probably offers talented instructors who can personally help you learn to read and play in various types of sounds, styles and rhythms. A music student wouldn’t have to drive very far to select a Chicago music school offering personable and professional music masters.

Take for first measure, guitar lessons. You know, the guitar is a tremendously popular instrument (though I wouldn’t think twice about the recorder). They are beloved for their flexibility. A talented piano teacher might teach you a whole new jam each effort! Unlike the usual tepid piano lessons, small Chicago music schools are the trendy new way to learn the skill by playing guitar, or piano.

It doesn’t matter if you just started or you’ve yearned to do this all your life–quality violin lessons should encourage a student play what you create in your heart. Choose from group guitar classes in Chicago, Parent and Daughter guitar classes, elementary music instruction for the kids and also accoustic guitar lessons. It never fails, some will still tell you to perfect your the staples like guitar scales and musical timing as a prerequesite to fun piano music you hold dear. But classes are usually affordable,

Others are taking it easy with a completely contrasting feel. Actually you could find heaps of playful advances! But the top most matter to note is that piano lessons, and music school of any kind has to be played. You can’t fail loving music, due to the fact that any off-key chord you strike, can be validated by the a new course of direction. Music classes can never be besmirched.

It’s Forever been difficult to get your hands on a ticket for a sports event of music gig. For example, the whole U2 have just sold 2,500,000 tickets for their 2009 tour of the States. So how on earth can someone who’s in full time employment get their mitts on a ticket if they’re selling out so quickly?

They have to buy one second-hand.

In the grim days before the internet, you had to get your second-hand ticket through a dodgy tout at the event itself. This meant paying over the odds, or even perhaps given fake tickets which would likely be identified as such as you entered the event – meaning you not only miss the game or concert, you’ve lost a lot of cash in the process.

Nevertheless, things have gotten much better for sports and music fans. Thanks to the internet, the secondary ticket niche has cleaned up its act in the last decade. Now there is so much competition to resell tickets online, the marketplace has actually become self-regulating. You’re offering the ticket for HOW much?! I’ll look elsewhere! And so many ticket agents offer very cheap insurance if the event / gig is called off. And with strong competition online, secondary tickets have dropped in price to the point that sometimes you’re not paying much more than the actual initial price of the ticket.

These days you can purchase tickets for all kinds of concerts and sporting events. From basketball games to soccer to cricket, to getting your hands on front row seats for a world famous band; resale tickets offer a second chance to attend the event you want to see. So how to get hold of tickets online? Simply use a search engine and key in your keyphrase like X Factor tickets, and you will see a huge array of secondary ticket agents who have the ticket you’re looking for.

Not everyone is content with the idea of secondary tickets though. For example, Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails calls secondary ticket agents “parasites”, and he’d like to see an end to the resale of event tickets. However, he’s missing the point of resold tickets : people simply do not have the time to queue up for tickets. They’re more likely working when the tickets are on sale, and physically cannot be in the right place at the right time to get hold of the ticket they want in that precious 60 or so minutes it takes for an entire tour to sell out.

While there is strong competition between secondary ticket agents, we believe this is a much needed service for true fans who were unable to buy the tickets the first time around.