The hour-long show starts Sunday March 4th at 8pm, with subsequent shows airing on March 11th, March 18th and March 25th.

Electronic 80s With Howard Jones dovetails Howard’s April 2012 UK Tour, which begins at the O2 Academy Bristol on Wednesday April 11th.

This marks the first time Howard will perform his first two studios albums Human’s Lib and Dream Into Action, back-to-back in their entirety on a nationwide tour. Both albums feature iconic 80s pop hit singles, including New Song, What Is Love?, No One Is To Blame, Hide and Seek, Look Mama, Everlasting Love, I’d Like To Get To Know You Well, and Things Can Only Get Better.

A classically trained pianist, he applied his musical knowledge to create a very English song-writing style whilst pioneering the use of synthesizers.

A lot has happened since we last heard from the talented, complicated Fiona Apple. Her most recent album, Extraordinary Machine, was released all the way back in the mists of 2005.

Since then she’s largely retreated from the spotlight, leaving patient fans to make do with musical descendants (or poor Xeroxes, depending on your point of view) Lana Del Rey and the like. But no more!

If your location and Ticketmaster deftness plays in your favor, you’ll get to see the singer-songwriter live for the first time in, well, a while.

Apple is slated to play two dates at this year’s South By Southwest festival in Austin, Tex. and then a short mini tour.

For the most updated information, go to her website.

Fiona Apple 2012 Tour Dates

15 – Austin, Texas @ Central Presbyterian Church (SXSW)
19 – Chicago, Ill. @ Lincoln Hall
21 – Washington, D.C. @ Sixth and I
23 – Brooklyn, N.Y. @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
24 – Atlantic City, N.J. @ Music Box
26 – New York, N.Y. @ Bowery Ballroom
27 – Boston, Mass. @ Royale

LOS ANGELES, Calif. — In the wake of his critically acclaimed album A Map of the Floating City, and the groundbreaking FloatingCity.com transmedia game he co-designed, Thomas Dolby will embark on a 26-date North American tour this March, with a rather unusual vehicle in tow.

The Time Capsule is a chrome- and brass-plated road trailer that seats three. With handcrafted leather and wood fittings, and complex electrical wiring that could have been designed by Nikola Tesla, it resembles a Jules Verne/HG Wells-inspired time-travel machine. Inside is a high-tech video recording suite that allows a music fan or guest artist to upload a personal video message to the Future. The Time Capsule will be parked in the street outside each venue on Dolby’s month-long North American tour, and in front of select local radio and TV stations. It will capture hundreds of 30-second clips over the course of the tour, assembling them into an online video montage.

Thomas Dolby’s Time Capsule (pic: Paul Sizer)

Fans will be able to walk up and step into the Time Capsule to make their own fully produced and effected digital 30-second video clip. The clips will then be automatically uploaded and viewable on a brand-new YouTube channel along with the individual user’s own Facebook and Twitter pages. The most viewed clips will win prizes. Dolby’s label Lost Toy People Records is in discussion with several potential sponsors for the project.

“If you had 30 seconds to explain to an alien visitor what went wrong with our civilization, what would you say?” said Thomas Dolby. “Our species may not be around on this planet much longer, so you might as well leave a welcome message for the next guys!”

The Time Capsule Tour kicks off at SXSW in Austin, TX March 12-17, and will take in 24 U.S. cities and two in Canada. A full list is at http://www.thomasdolby.com/tour, while news, merchandise and additional perks are available at the Flat Earth Society fan club. Anyone joining before January 31, 2012 will earn a free download of an exclusive three-remix Thomas Dolby EP entitled “Return to Oceanea.”

In a smashing return to classic form, Duran Duran has released an epic new video called ‘Girl Panic!’; nine and a half minute puff of fluff, sparkles, lipstick, leather and legs featuring  Naomi Campbell, Cindy Crawford, Helena Christiansen and Yazmin Le Bon as stand-ins for members of the band.

The glossy short film shot by Jonas Åkerlund – known for his ‘Telephone’ video for Lady Gaga – reunites five of the first “Supers,” as they vamp in costumes by Dolce & Gabbana, who also make a cameo during a photoshoot segment of the video.

Photos from an actual fashion shoot will appear in the December issue of Harper’s Bazaar in a bold co-branding arrangement that also featured The Savoy Hotel in London, Swarovsky Elements and multiple other tie ins which only enhance the glitz and glamor as Duran retake their thrown as the kings of synth pop and glam.

Click here to view the video on YouTube.

Thomas Dolby is firmly planted at the intersection of technology and music. The Music Director for the world wide TED Conference, Dolby has also had a long career as a synth pioneer, most notably with 80s MTV hits such as ‘Blinded Me With Science‘ and ‘Airwaves‘. To his dedicated fan base, Dolby is appreciated for the breadth of his darker material, including the atmospheric and emotive ‘Airwaves’ as well as the early electronic pop of ‘Leipzig‘.

Dolby will visit San Francisco’s beautiful Bimbo’s 365 Club on Thursday, October 13. Tickets are available here. The very special (and brief) tour consists of the following dates:

October 5 – 92Y – Tribeca, New York City, NY
October 7 – Martyrs’ – Chicago, IL
October 10 – Triple Door – Seattle, WA
October 13 – Bimbo’s 365 Club – San Francisco, CA
October 14 – Mason Lodge at Hollywood Forever Cemetery, Los Angeles, CA
October 15 – Grammy Museum – Los Angeles, CA

Visit Thomas Dolby’s official website for more info here.

Win a pair of tickets to the show!

To win a pair of tickets to this show, tell us your interpretation of your favorite Dolby track and then share this event on Facebook.

A live performance from Chicago: 

Click here to view the video on YouTube.

Dave Wakeling is the founder and principal songwriter for the legendary ska band The English Beat as well as the wildly popular General Public. In the middle of his lengthy music career, he has also been an executive at Greenpeace, helping raise awareness and money for the organization while still writing hit material.

Known for his hits such as Mirror in the Bathroom’, ‘Stand Down Margaret’, ‘Tenderness’, ‘Save it for Later’ as we as his activism for human rights, Wakeling is always good natured and ready to meet fans.

The English beat tour relentlessly, playing thousands of shows, with sold out dates in nightclubs and theaters across the country.

The English Beat will be headlining the fantastic Folsom Live this Friday, September 22. The weekend long event showcases 30 bands on 10 stages over two nights in historic old town Folsom, including Los Lobos and Tainted Love. The English Beat will hit the stage at 8p on Friday night. Be sure to get tickets and more info here.

Win a pair of tickets to the show!

‘Share’ this page on Facebook and leave us a message below. We’ll select a winner randomly and notify you by Wednesday evening!

Enjoy the classic video for ‘Save it for Later’

Click here to view the video on YouTube.

Duran Duran at the GQ Man of the Year Awards

Pop Icons Duran Duran added another lifetime achievement award to its collection Tuesday at the GQ Men of the Year awards at the Royal Opera House in London. Duran Duran’s hit singles - ranging from their Eighties heyday right up to the recent, Mark Ronson-produced “All You Need Is Now” - and their pioneering music videos ensured that their style became as well-known as their songs. Or, in the words of presenter Alex James, “amazing hair, amazing trousers”.

Click here to view the video on YouTube.

Alex James of Duran-influenced British band Blur presented the award to band members Simon Le Bon, Nick Rhodes, John Taylor and Roger Taylor.

Performing the legendary album ‘Closer‘ from his former band, Joy Division, Peter Hook returns to San Francisco with his new band The Light, which features his son on bass as Hooky takes the reigns with vocals.

Hook’s last show with us was a memorable sold out evening where he performed ‘Unknown Pleasures‘, another classic album from his influential history as a bassist and songwriter for Joy Division.

Hook brings his show to Mezzanine in San Francisco on Saturday, September 17 with special guests Oona and Tomas Diablo (Strangelove)  Tickets are available here.

UPDATE: Both Perry Farrell of Janes Addiction and Moby showed up to perform with Hooky at his LA date. Heard the show was amazing.

Original members Paul and Andy

After a wildly successful first leg of their tour of the US, OMD returns with two nights at Irving Plaza in NY (9/20, 9/21) and a visit to San Francisco’s beautiful Warfield Theater on 10/3.

Win a pair of tickets here by posting your favorite OMD song. Winners notified via e-mail by 9/28.

]

His biggest solo hits include Don’t Stop The Dance (1985) and Kiss and Tell (1988), which was featured in the motion picture Bright Lights, Big City (1988).

Ferry’s latest album, Olympia is sensuous, densely layered, sophisticated music in which slinky, soaring guitars pierce shifting undercurrents of tangled sonics, anchored by coiling beats. But, of course, at its center is Ferry’s elegant voice, same as it ever was.

Ferry brings his show to the Fox Theater in Oakland on Friday October 14. Tickets are available here.