Chris Cornell Filling In For Robert Plant On Led Zeppelin Tour? That's News To Him

'I have not been approached to fill in for Robert Plant on the Zeppelin tour, but that isn't to say I won't be,' singer says.
By Chris Harris


Chris Cornell
Photo: MTV News

Former Soundgarden and Audioslave frontman Chris Cornell has spoken out for the first time about rumors that he's been asked to fill in for Robert Plant on a proposed Led Zeppelin reunion tour. The trek would feature original guitarist Jimmy Page, original bassist John Paul Jones and Jason Bonham taking over on drums for his late father, John Bonham.

Cornell has been mentioned — along with Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl, former Van Halen frontman Sammy Hagar, White Stripes mastermind Jack White and Alter Bridge's Myles Kennedy — as a potential Plant fill-in. Plant has already said that he wouldn't take part in the tour.

"I have not been approached so far to fill in for Robert Plant on the upcoming Zeppelin tour, but that isn't to say I won't be," Cornell told MTV News. "I've heard that from about 200 people now, and it might be one of those situations where it's just an online rumor or it might be true. But if you see anyone from Led Zeppelin around, let me know. I think I should actually fill in for Jimmy Page on the Robert Plant/ Alison Krauss tour."

Cornell's denial comes just a day after Aerosmith guitarist Brad Whitford confirmed reports that frontman Steven Tyler recently met with Zeppelin for an impromptu jam session. "They did it for fun," Whitford said during an appearance on the syndicated show "Todd N Tyler Radio Empire." "I actually think Jimmy wanted Steven to come over and play a little bit because I think he was trying to light a fire under Robert."

Rumors of a Zeppelin reunion tour have abounded since the iconic band played a single reunion set last year at London's O2 Arena. Twisted Sister frontman Dee Snider added fuel to the fire last month when he revealed that the group was thinking of touring, with or without Plant.

According to Snider, the rest of the band told Plant, " 'We're all rehearsed, we're ready to go. Here's a gazillion dollars on the table. If you don't do it, we're going out with this kid [Myles Kennedy].' "

"And he can sing the sh-- out of Zeppelin," Snider added. "They're going to hope that Robert, at the last minute, will go, 'OK,' and step in."

In a recent interview, Jones told BBC Radio Devon that a new singer was being sought to take over for Plant. "We are trying out a couple of singers," he said. "We want to do it. It's sounding great, and we want to get on and get out there."

But Jones insists that he, Page and Bonham aren't interested in finding a Plant clone. "It's got to be right," he said. "There's no point in just finding another Robert. You could get that out of a tribute band, but we don't want to be our own tribute band. There would be a record and a tour, but everyone has to be onboard."

Of course, even if Zeppelin were to approach him, Cornell might be too busy to take over vocals for the band. His upcoming Timbaland-produced solo LP, Scream, will be released within the next few months. Cornell told MTV News last month that some of his fans might consider Scream something of a departure, but he doesn't see it that way.

"It makes me happy that there's this perception that I have a group of fans that I'm now sort of throwing a curve at and what their reaction will be," he said. "But I've been in this situation so many times already. When I put out [1999's] Euphoria Morning, my main goal was to create an album that sounded like nothing I'd done in Soundgarden, and I did that. I also had that with Temple of the Dog, where I showed up with songs that weren't necessarily riff-based. And then, of course, the pairing of me and members of Rage Against the Machine had everyone sort of speculating about what that would sound like.

"It feels like I've done this so many times that when it's presented to me as being a departure, I feel that's a misconception," he added. "I feel like that's my theme at this point."

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1598367/chris-cornell-debunks-led-zeppelin-rumors.jhtml

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Sony HomeShare RMN-U1 universal remote hands-on

Trade shows obviously aren't the best environment for evaluating a universal remote, but we couldn't resist taking Sony's RMN-U1 HomeShare IR / WiFi controller for a quick test drive here at the CES. Physically the device is surprisingly light and has a decent screen resolution. Clicking the home menu displays icons for every system component as well as an activities button for accessing online music services like Slacker, playing tracks from a networked Blu-ray player / iPhone / iPod, or even sending media files between DLNA-networked devices. If a BRAVIA TV is connected to the system, users can select the particular input they'd like to hear audio from or cue a movie. Once a track is playing, the screen will display the song's album art and metadata along with playlists. Overall the RMN-U1 looks pretty capable at managing music -- though it's a bit menu heavy. It also seems fairly expensive considering what else is available at its $300 price point, but then again, we're not aware of another IR universal remote that's compatible with Sony's WiFi HomeSharing. Check out our gallery below for more shots of the interface and you may even spy photos of the rest of the new HomeShare line too.

Sony HomeShare RMN-U1 universal remote hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 08 Jan 2011 18:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Tron Light Discs As a Lamp [Tron]

Confession: I've never watched Tron. Whatever! It doesn't change the fact that I'd kill for this lamp aptly named 'Ring' by Loris Bottello. It's lit by bioluminescent polymers and its intensity can be adjusted by rotating the disc. Purrty. [designboom] More »


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Garmin GTU 10 GPS locator hands-on

Among tons of generic GPS devices at its booth, Garmin had the new GTU 10 GPS locator out for the world to see on the CES floor. If you need a refresher, this little tracker connects to AT&T's network and and lets you keep tabs on anything you choose to hook it onto. The signage showed the compact locator on a dog collar, though there's also a carabiner attachment so you can attach it to pretty much anything. We spotted the tracking app running on a Galaxy Tab, so it looks like Android support is definitely on the table -- we're still in the dark on compatibility with other mobile operating systems. Other than that there's not much to say, but feel free to peruse our shots of the discreet black blob in our gallery below.

Garmin GTU 10 GPS locator hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 08 Jan 2011 12:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/01/08/garmin-gtu-10-gps-locator-hands-on/

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Michael Jackson Doctor To Claim Singer Killed Himself

Prosecutor thinks Dr. Conrad Murray's lawyers will say Jackson self-administered lethal dose of propofol.
By Gil Kaufman


Michael Jackson
Photo: Sony/ AEG

More than 19 months after Michael Jackson's shocking death at the age of 50, the only person charged in the case, the singer's former personal physician Dr. Conrad Murray, is due in court next week. And, according to a Reuters report, Murray's lawyers plan to defend Murray against a charge of involuntary manslaughter by claiming that the pop icon killed himself when he self-administered a large dose of propofol, a surgical anesthetic Jackson used as a sleep aid to combat chronic insomnia.

Murray has pleaded not guilty to a felony charge of involuntary manslaughter and has admitted to giving Jackson propofol. Murray's lawyers have said the physician did not administer any drugs that "should have" caused Jackson's death. The investigation into his death was lengthy, lasting more than eight months, after which Los Angeles prosecutors charged that Murray gave the King of Pop a lethal combination of propofol and other painkillers and sedatives in the hours before the singer was found dead in his rented Los Angeles mansion on June 25, 2009. Murray faces up to four years in prison if convicted.

Reuters reported that in a Wednesday court session to discuss evidence in the case against Murray, Los Angeles Deputy District Attorney David Walgren said he thinks that the doctor's attorneys appear to be preparing a defense claiming that Jackson self-administered the lethal dose while Murray was out of the room.

Murray's attorney would not respond to questions about Walgren's statements. Murray's trial is slated to begin on January 4 with a preliminary hearing that will determine if there is enough evidence to proceed to a full trial. Prosecutors and defense attorneys said they expect the preliminary hearing to take around two weeks.

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1655106/michael-jackson-doctor-claim-singer-killed-himself.jhtml

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Adam Lambert's 'Whole Lotta Love': The Story Behind The Cover

Glam rocker tackled the legendary 1970 Led Zeppelin song for 'American Idol' rock night.
By Gil Kaufman


Adam Lambert performs "Whole Lotta Love" on "American Idol" on Tuesday
Photo: R. Mickshaw/Getty Images/ Fox

Imagine a freight train speeding toward you at midnight. Or a rockslide barreling down a hill as you try to outrace it. That's the feeling of the ominous, chugging Jimmy Page riff that kicks off Led Zeppelin's 1970 Stonehenge of rock, "Whole Lotta Love." And that's before singer Robert Plant leans into one of the nastiest, ecstatic rock screams this side of the Who's "Won't Get Fooled Again."

That's the song Adam Lambert chose to sing on "American Idol" rock night Tuesday (May 5), and, needless to say, it was a challenge that the eyeliner-loving Los Angeles stage veteran was more than up for, hitting a series of high notes and rock screams that would have made Plant proud. It was a risky maneuver that paid off for Lambert, who chose a tune that came in at #75 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time" in 2004.

The legendary British rock act recorded the tribute to Chicago blues icon Willie Dixon during their second U.S. tour after working it out in their live show, including it on their 1969 classic album Led Zeppelin II. Like many of the songs Zeppelin performed early in their career, "Love" was a blues standard turned on its head with a heavy dose of crunching psychedelic guitar and thundering drums, courtesy of late drummer John Bonham. The song was based on a 1962 tune by another blues forefather, Muddy Waters, called "You Need Love," which was penned by Dixon.

For Zeppelin's version, Plant customized the lyrics by adding some lyrical quotes from a few other songs Dixon wrote for Howlin' Wolf, "Back Door Man" and "Shake For Me," nailing the tricky vocal in a single take. It was also inspired by 1966's "You Need Loving" from the British rock group the Small Faces, for whom Zeppelin had great affection, but they also did not credit Dixon for his part in writing the original lyrics. The song became Zeppelin's first U.S. single and their only U.S. top 10 hit. Though their manager would not let them release singles in the U.K. because he thought it cannibalized album sales, the song was finally released as the band's only British single in 1997.

Dixon sued Zeppelin over the song in 1985, claiming it borrowed too heavily from his "You Need Love," and Zeppelin reached an agreement with him, with Dixon using the money he received to set up a program that provided musical instruments for schools. A cornerstone of heavy rock, the tune -- which was the theme song for the long-running British countdown show "Top of the Pops" in the 1970s and '80s -- has been covered by dozens of artists over the years, from Tina Turner and Ben Harper to Prince, Slash, Leona Lewis, Train's Pat Monahan, the London Symphony Orchestra and Jane's Addiction.

Get your "Idol" fix on MTV News' "American Idol" page, where you'll find all the latest news, interviews and opinions.

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1610709/adam-lamberts-whole-lotta-love-story-behind-cover.jhtml

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Were we so scared of the future that kids once dressed in foil? [Imagecache]

This is an awesome picture taken in the early 1900s in America. All the boys are wearing foil for some odd reason. Was foil in style? Was it to protect themselves from an alien invasion? Did it represent the future? More »


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Flyde is a super-fast retro racing Time Waster

flyde
I liked Flyde from the moment I laid eyes on it. It reminded me of an anciet DOS game I used to play as a kid, where you had to race around in 3D and jump platforms while the level rushes by. [I totally played that game too -- anyone remember the name?! -Ed]

In Flyde there's no jumping per se: you control a white triangle that drives on or flies over a track made out of squares. There are colorful squares and black squares. The black squares are actually "holes" - when you drive over them, you fall into the abyss of space and die.

But it gets a little more complicated than just "not driving over the black squares". Instead of only one track, you have two tracks. When you drive over a square in the color of the other track, you switch tracks! The second track is above you, so when you switch, you're actually flying upside-down.

To keep from driving over the black squares, you have to continuously switch from track to track by touching the colorful squares. You're going pretty fast so navigating between those evil black squares and switching tracks just at the right moment is pretty challenging, and also a lot of fun.

The soundtrack consists of a robot with an attitude problem, but it also tells you how many points you've accumulated. This, along with nice electronic background music, makes Flyde a truly engaging time waster, even if you're not into retro gaming.

Oh, and don't judge me by the score in the screenshot. My top score is actually 12,610 - what's yours?

[Update: The old DOS game is called SkyRoads. Thanks, TnS! Awesome commenting there.]

Flyde is a super-fast retro racing Time Waster originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 03 Jan 2011 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://downloadsquad.switched.com/2011/01/03/flyde-is-a-super-fast-retro-racing-time-waster/

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