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(neua/flickr)Straight to Video Games
Music video games like "Guitar Hero" and "Rock Band" have grown so popular that bands like Guns 'n' Roses and Metallica are releasing their music on the consoles before the record store. Today we take a look at the power of video games to sell songs. Also: The New York rock quartet Ambulance LTD draws on influences ranging from The Beatles and the Rolling Stones to My Bloody Valentine. They worked with The Velvet Underground's John Cale on their latest album and today they join us to perform live.
Straight to Video Games
Guns 'n' Roses will release one song from its long-overdue, much-leaked album "Chinese Democracy" on the new Rock Band 2. Metallica is making every song from the upcoming “Death Magnetic” available on the latest versions of Guitar Hero. And Wii Music lets Nintendo geeks simulate the playing of 60 different instruments. New York Times contributor Robert Levine joins us to talk about music's new "halo" inside the video game industry.
Great Lawn – or Great Lie?
Just under 50,000 people showed up to the recent Bon Jovi concert at Central Park, and yet the Great Lawn looked full. One wonders how that's that possible, given the Simon & Garfunkel, Elton John and other concerts that have drawn hundreds of thousands? New York Times columnist Jim Dwyer joins us to explain next.
Ambulance LTD
The New York rock quartet Ambulance LTD draws on influences ranging from The Beatles and the Rolling Stones to My Bloody Valentine. They worked with The Velvet Underground's John Cale on their latest album and today they join us to perform live.
Ambulance LTD plays the Bowery Ballroom tomorrow night. Doors open at 8.
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Go behind the scenes!
Find out what John Schaefer and the Soundcheck staff have to say about recent segments on the show. Plus, watch videos from in-studio performances.
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Introducing our Video Contest
Soundcheck
John Schaefer gives the lowdown on Soundcheck's music video challenge with the Fiery Furnaces.
In Studio: Angel Deradoorian
Soundcheck
The 22-year-old multi-instrumentalist performs live in our studio.
- Comments [7]
Cucu Diamantes Performs Amor Cronico
Soundcheck
Cucu Diamantes went from a tough childhood in Havana, Cuba, to an art school in Rome to underground New York City, where she co-founded the Latin alternative band Yerba Buena.
- Comments [1]
In Studio: Stephanie McKay
Soundcheck
The local singer-songwriter performs "Jackson Avenue," a nostalgic toast to her childhood in the South Bronx.
- Comments [3]
In Studio: The Decemberists
The Portland, Ore., band's latest album, "The Hazards of Love," is a concept album with a mythological flair. They joined Soundcheck to play live for a studio audience in WNYC's Greene Space.
Sound Off
Soundcheck
Throughout May, Soundcheck presents “Sound Off” a Friday series on the many aspects of noise in music and our lives. The series -- which coincides with “Better Hearing and Speech Month” -- looks at issues like New York’s noisiest neighborhoods, the latest research on iPods and hearing loss, and what happens when noise becomes a musical ingredient.
