Rock Along Productions

Announcements

rockalongproductions — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 02:59:43 +0000

Welcome to Rock Along Productions,

Rock Along Productions is committed to providing quality entertainment in Arizona. Rock Along Productions handles every aspect of planning and coordinating live concerts in all genres of music. This site is your connection to the latest news in local music, events.

Please join our mailing list so you don’t miss a beat!

To get your $1 Off Card to the Guitars in Bars Rock show on Saturday February 7th CLICK HERE

Click About Us to meet the staff.
Visit our myspace page for more information and to join our list of bands and contacts.

Post Footer automatically generated by Add Post Footer Plugin for wordpress.

Technorati Tags: announcements, music home page, Music News, rock along productions, rockalongproductions

Concert Etiquette: Sit or stand at a rock show?

rockalongproductions — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 01:11:19 +0000

For those live-music fans in the area or those who have lived here in the past and enjoyed many good times and late nights, a great debate has brewed. I’ve been wondering about this myself. It’s about perceived behavior at shows and surely the conversation can extend past personal curiosity. Does anyone know the unwritten/unspoken code? I’ve been to plenty of shows but the question still remains?

The question is: Sit or stand? I think it depends on the venue myself. A small type bar atmosphere you are more likely to grab a bar stool, but not a chance in hell if you are standing rail side in a pit! If you sit at any place, is some of the energy is lost by sitting perhaps.

Though they seem to be all fun and games , a typical concert should be taken extremely seriously.

Depending on the type of music (rock, hardcore, hardcore-rock, emo, screamo, indie, indie-rock, indie-dance-pop, indie-dance-pop-rock, etc), the audience expectations range from strict, to near-deadly.

The knowledge of correct concert behavior is critical to your enjoyment of the show, as well as your enjoyment of those around you.

1. Choosing a show that ‘fits.’

What’s right for you? (In the musical sense)

2. Procuring Tickets

Proper Procedure

3. Concert Attire

The “do’s” and “don’ts” of the concert fashionista

4. Getting to the show

Practicality is key

5. Getting through the doors

What to bring, how to act, and how to seem older than you really are

6. Pre-Concert Behavior

How to find a good “spot”, and how to properly wait

7. Opening Act Behavior

How to act during opening acts ranging from bad, to ‘mind-meltingly brilliant’

8. Set Change Behavior

Key word is ‘Respect’

9. Waiting for the Headliner

Patience young grasshopper, patience

10. Headlining act behavior

How to dance, avoid beer stains, and punch that tall guy that always ends up in the front

11. After the Show

For the groupie, stalker, and fan-girl/boy in all of us

Also lets all remember that music means different things to many people and we are all there to enjoy that meaning. The rude people that make it bad for everyone else are total idiots, yes that is what I said!

people, people, people………..

Lets just ROCK!

Post Footer automatically generated by Add Post Footer Plugin for wordpress.

Technorati Tags: concert etiquette, concert information, rock concerts, rock shows, show behavior, sit or stand at rock show

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

rockalongproductions — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 01:58:05 +0000

Whatever Christmas means to you, whether it be family, friends or faith, Rock Along Productions would like to wish everyone a very happy holiday! 2009 looks very bright for Rock Along and we look forward to seeing you all at the upcoming shows.

Please continue to check back to our site for upcoming info. Also join our mailing list, We don’t send any spam, just info on shows!

-Rock Along Productions

Post Footer automatically generated by Add Post Footer Plugin for wordpress.

Technorati Tags: MERRY CHRISTMAS!, rock along productions

Big Rock Records, Music Biz Still Struggling

rockalongproductions — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 12:00:06 +0000

The state of the business is uncertain as a whole. Though AC/DC, Guns N’ Roses, the Killers and Fall Out Boy are all releasing big-ticket rock albums this season, in addition to potential blockbusters from Nickelback as well, retailers say rock albums will lead the holiday music-shopping season. But no retailers really expect the superstar-packed slate to substantially improve the fortunes of the reeling record business, which has seen sales fall 36 percent from 2000 to 2007. Even with a solid release schedule of music like G n’ R’s long-awaited Chinese Democracy. It is doubtful that even that can turn around the overall industry decline and help make up for the fact that the economic time is difficult.

Expected hits by U2, Dr. Dre and Jay-Z have been bumped to next year. But among the confirmed superstar records due are Kanye West’s 808s & Heartbreak, on November 25th; 50 Cent’s Before I Self Destruct, in mid-December; Britney Spears’ Circus, December 2nd; Beyoncé’s I Am . . . Sasha Fierce, later this month; and new albums by Akon, American Idol winner David Cook and possibly, by year’s end, Eminem.

After 14 years of delays, Chinese Democracy is finally came out on November 23rd. But with Axl Rose unlikely to do many promotional appearances, the album will have to rely on radio play and Best Buy’s marketing machine, which ran a clever ad during Saturday Night Live. The first single, “Chinese Democracy,” hit Number Nine on hard-rock radio in its first two weeks. Fans may go out and buy this thing the minute it hits. The timing was really right, Beyond G n’ R, Best Buy has high expectations for Beyoncé’s two-disc set and Nickelback’s Dark Horse, out as of November 18th. Heres hoping to multiplatinum sales! These types of albums tend to do well for a while.

But on the retail front, things continue to look bleak. Walmart is reportedly continuing to cut its shelf space for music to make room for Blu-ray discs and other products. And Circuit City, a major music outlet, recently said it would close 155 stores. But the rock records already released this fall provide a rare bit of good news: AC/DC’s Black Ice has sold more than 1 million copies in two weeks, and Metallica’s Death Magnetic has moved more than 1.25 million copies since it came out on September 12th. “Seeing how AC/DC and some other groups did well with recent releases makes things a little more positive,” says Ron Burman, senior vice president of A&R for Nickelback’s label, Roadrunner. “I would like to think rock isn’t necessarily affected by the economy. People want to rock.”

NO, Rock is NOT dead, and YES people want to ROCK! (stupid question)

Post Footer automatically generated by Add Post Footer Plugin for wordpress.

Technorati Tags: big rock records, Entertainment News, music biz, Music News, rock music, struggling music

CD Sales Are Icy

rockalongproductions — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 20:21:07 +0000

Becoming an annual winter tradition, CD sales are having yet another icy December, with sales down 21.7 percent compared to the first week of December 2007. It’s hard to blame this year’s slate of releases, as the Top 10 albums are selling better than their counterparts last year. So what’s to blame? Most likely the recession: iPods and Wiis aren’t selling out like in previous years, either.

The big retailers are being battered on the CD sales front, the season has been slightly better for indie stores, as they’ve seen only a 8.6 percent decrease in album sales. And there was good news for places like Starbucks and online music stores: sales are actually up 8.7 percent. In fact, the number of digital songs sold this year will top 1 billion. So what does the future hold? Stores are already starting to cut down on the floor space they dedicate to CDs. DVD, Blu-ray are doing great it appears, the CD however is not. Expect next year that stores will be cutting back on CD buying… That means less of each title will be available.

Post Footer automatically generated by Add Post Footer Plugin for wordpress.

Technorati Tags: CD News, CD Sales Are Icy, Entertainment News, Music News

Nintendo Faces the Music

rockalongproductions — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 00:34:52 +0000

It seemed like a surefire hit: Unite Nintendo’s top-selling Wii console with the popular music-simulation game genre to create Wii Music. Surely, the world would lift high its lighters and cheer for an encore.

So why the deafening silence?

Wii Music has been a disappointment, according to data showing that Wii Music sold just 297,000 copies last month. That doesn’t compare well to Activision Blizzard’s Guitar Hero World Tour; its Wii version moved 475,000 copies in the same month.

The article also points out that older Nintendo titles, like Wii Fit and Wii Play, are outselling the music-improvisation game.

Activision’s Guitar Hero franchise has a few years of brand recognition under its belt, so of course it’ll have the initial advantage. Wii Fit has benefitted from initial shortages when it first came out, so the breakthrough exercise title is still coasting on months of built-up demand.

None of which guarantees that Wii Music won’t be a flop, of course. Game designer Shigeru Miyamoto created Mario, Link, and in recent years, Nintendogs for the DS and Wii Fit. Nintendo’s willingness to take chances on Miyamoto’s wild ideas has helped the company smoke Sony in the latest round of the console wars. But obviously, not every bet will pay off.

If anything, Nintendo may ultimately miss here because it showed up fashionably late for a change, long after Guitar Hero and Viacom’s Rock Band carved out their shares of the market. Wii Music introduces new wrinkles into the genre, but not enough to really stand out. And it lacks the modern soundtrack that is driving sales of the two niche leaders.

However, Nintendo doesn’t need Wii Music to be a hit this season. The 11 best-selling items in Amazon.com’s video game category as of this morning are all Wii-related products.

And yes, Wii Music is one of those best-sellers. Maybe this musical bet will prove a sleeper hit on its way to the top of the charts.

Post Footer automatically generated by Add Post Footer Plugin for wordpress.

Technorati Tags: game news, guitar hero, Music News, nintendo news, nintendo wii, rockband, wii music, wii music news

Blockbuster price hike will send customers packing?

rockalongproductions — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 00:33:37 +0000

The company continues to struggle with balancing its online rental plans with its more profitable in-store business. The company said yesterday it’s raising prices for its Total Access subscription plans.

In a nutshell, the premium plan increases by a shocking $10 to $35 a month. That plan allows you to rent three DVDs at a time online with unlimited in-store trades.

If you rent one DVD at a time, the price increases by $2 to $12 a month. The most popular plan, which gets you three DVDs at a time, will cost $21 a month. These plans let you rent DVDs online or at stores. To ease the pain, Blockbuster is cutting the monthly price of some of its by-mail plans by $1.

Rival Netflix saw an immediate gain from the decision, with shares jumping nearly 10% yesterday to $27.24. Blockbuster shares barely moved and closed at $3.55. Blockbuster has 3.1 million online subscribers, compared with 7 million for Netflix.

I think Blockbuster is trying to drive online customers away — and into its stores. Online rentals is a niche market, one that Netflix has successfully dominated. There just isn’t room for another big competitor, and Blockbuster found that going toe-to-toe with Netflix was too expensive and distracting.

So Blockbuster’s going to focus on its stores, paying the short-term price of customers jumping to Netflix. Blockbuster has an obvious brick-and-mortar advantage: You can get a movie right away, without having to wait for a DVD to arrive in the mail. (Netflix is offering streaming movies, which gives instant access, but that business isn’t mature yet.) Also, Blockbuster can seize the in-person rental opportunity to sell other goodies, including used movies and video games as well as popcorn and candy.

It’s really interesting to watch this company figure out its online business. Blockbuster acquired Movielink last year, so it’s obviously keen on some sort of digital offering. The company just isn’t moving forward with it, and that’s OK for now. But Blockbuster can’t ignore the Internet forever.

Post Footer automatically generated by Add Post Footer Plugin for wordpress.

Technorati Tags: blockbuster, dvd's, movie rentals, movielink, movies, netflix, online movies, video

Howard Stern leaving Sirius XM?

rockalongproductions — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 18:31:54 +0000

Sirius XM already has a few nails pounded into its coffin. Could Stern’s leaving the company be the final doom for Siirius XM?

Stern is making some noise about leaving when his contract ends in 2010.

Granted, this could be a lot of bluster. You never know with Howard Stern. But if he’s serious about leaving, then Sirius XM stands to lose a good chunk of its subscribers.

Much of Sirius XM’s ability to attract new customers hangs on the Big Three (new car sales are a major subscriber source). But the company’s ability to keep current customers? Well, a lot of that hangs on Stern.

He knows that, and this gives him more leverage with the company than ever.

Sirius shares, by the way, are down to 14 cents.

Post Footer automatically generated by Add Post Footer Plugin for wordpress.

Technorati Tags: howard stern, sirus radio, stern leaving sirius, xm radio

Iron Maiden to Rock Brazil!

rockalongproductions — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 03:16:06 +0000

Veteran hell-raisers Iron Maiden have announced five new tour dates in Brazil, within months of playing to capacity crowds in some of country’s biggest music venues.

Last March, they packed the 40,000 capacity Palmeiras Stadium in Sao Paulo. Next March, they’ll be following in the formidable footsteps of Formula One World Champion Lewis Hamilton, rock band Kiss and the Pope, no less, to wow the crowds at the Autodromo de Interlagos.

The race track is one venue they don’t expect to sell out.

“Capacity is about 400,000. I don’t think we’ll get 400,000,” Iron Maiden’s manager Rod Smallwood said in a recent interview, “We’re set for about 60,000 and we hope to go past that.”

The band has every reason to be confident of strong ticket sales in South America where fan loyalty verges on fanaticism.

Post Footer automatically generated by Add Post Footer Plugin for wordpress.

Technorati Tags: Brazil Music, Iron Maiden, Iron Maiden goes to Brazil, Music News, Rock News, Rod Smallwood

Guns N’ Roses lashes out at Dr Pepper

rockalongproductions — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 03:14:59 +0000

The band, which released its first album in 17 years last week, has found itself in a legal tussle with soft drink giant Dr Pepper over a promotion turned awry.

Dr Pepper rolled out a marketing campaign in March promising a “free soda” to “everyone in America” on one condition — Axl Rose, lead singer and frontman for Guns N’ Roses, had to “finally release his 17-year-in-the-making belabored masterpiece, ‘Chinese Democracy,’ in 2008.”

Guns N’ Roses, often called GN’R by its fans, released the album last week. And Dr Pepper followed through, posting a coupon on its Web site for a can of soda. There was one catch: fans had 24 hours to go the Web site and print out the coupon.

That’s when the Pepper hit the fan.

So many GN’R fans — and, no doubt, fans of free stuff in general — tried to get the coupon that they choked the site and it crashed. Disgruntled and downright ticked off, some blamed the band.

“When you go on the blogs and you read the responses from the fans, they associated Axl with this promotion … and blame him for the fact that they didn’t get their free soda,” said GN’R lawyer Laurie Soriano.

That’s when GN’R became GN’RN’L. Soriano fired off a letter to Dr P. No one is LOL.

Her letter asked the soft drink company to make good on its offer. She has yet to hear back, Soriano said this week.

Post Footer automatically generated by Add Post Footer Plugin for wordpress.

Technorati Tags: Dr Pepper, Guns N Roses, Guns N Roses Dr Pepper, Media, Music News, musicians