WHAT: The third annual Hatch Audiovisual Arts Festival (www.hatchfest.com) is being held in Bozeman, Montana from October 3 to 8, with competitions and/or exhibitions of film, music, fine art, design, fashion, photography, architecture and writing. The unique mission of the festival is to provide mentorship, education, inspiration and recognition to the next generation of creative innovators.

This 2006 edition of HATCHfest brings in student filmmakers from around the world. In Bozeman they have the opportunity to work with and be mentored by seasoned professionals in their field. The Festival pays all travel and accommodation for these young "Groundbreakers," who come from as far away as Australia, Israel and Singapore, and as close as Missoula, Montana. Their short films have been selected from more than 200 submissions and a jury of industry and academic professionals is choosing the final winner.

Feature length films, which are...

Intersound Records has announced the September 19, 2006, release of two collector's compilations, North Mississippi All-Stars "The Early Years" and "The Greats of Sacred Steel."

"THE GREATS OF SACRED STEEL": This 2 album/2 CD set features the original release of "The Word" (a self-titled album by a group comprised of Robert Randolph, The North Mississippi All-Stars, and John Medeski), and "Nothing But The Righteous" (a compilation of the best in sacred steel artists). "The Word" album was influenced by the release of the original Sacred Steel album on the Arhoolie label (a bluesy style of gospel music played on the steel guitar). These two albums together represent the best in bluesy gospel. The appeal of this music seems to cross every boundary of race, age, faith, and musical interest. Sacred steel buffs range from young rock and metal fans to strictly gospel devotees and alternative country enthusiasts. The range of expression of each musician in this compilation ensures that t...

After years of admiring each other's musical masterworks and Clapton covers of Cale songs such as "After Midnight" and "Cocaine," guitar greats J.J. Cale and Eric Clapton have teamed up for the first time to create an original album together, "The Road To Escondido." The 14-track CD was produced and recorded by the duo in August 2005 in California. The resulting music defies being labeled into any one category, but instead finds influence across the spectrum of blues, rock, country and folk. A hybrid sound that is unique musically, while still bearing the signature styles of Cale and Clapton recognized by fans around the world. The songs are warm and rich, with deep flowing rhythms, yet use an economy of words to express much.

In a true collaboration, Cale and Clapton jointly produced and recorded the album, each playing and singing on the tracks. Cale wrote 11 of the songs, Clapton wrote "Three Little Girls," John Mayer wrote "Hard To Thrill" and the duo cover the blues classic ...

Street-smart pop-soul singer-songwriter MoZella will tour this Fall in anticipation of the release of her debut album "I Will," which is due out November 7th on Warner Bros. Records. Previously opening for Daniel Powter, Lifehouse and the Dave Matthews Band, this nine-date tour with Stephen Kellogg, launches October 11th in Baltimore, MD, and culminates October 20th in Ann Arbor, MI. It will stop at clubs across the country, giving audiences a chance to preview material from the 24-year-old Detroit native's upcoming debut album, including the first single "Amnesia."

MoZella, who has already released a self-titled five-song EP on Maverick in July 2005, is fast becoming known for her idiosyncratic approach to songwriting. On "I Will," which was produced by fellow singer-songwriter Jude Cole, MoZella layers acoustic guitar melodies over spare programmed beats and tops it off with her soulful, jazz-inflected vocals. Some listeners may be familiar with her ballad "Amazed," which was fea...

Universal Music Enterprises (UMe) today announced the immediate availability of a unique iTunes download of the sheet music and guitar tablature for "Blooze" from Peter Frampton's new album, "Fingerprints." This is the first time content of this nature has been made available to fans and the free .pdf download is available exclusively to all who purchase the new album from the iTunes Store (www.itunes.com).

"For a highly respected guitar player, such as Peter Frampton, who continues to influence new generations of musicians, his first instrumental album was the perfect opportunity for us to offer fans access to this outstanding content," said Bruce Resnikoff, President, UMe. "After we had the song transcribed, we showed it to Peter and he absolutely loved it."

"This is the first time such a bonus download has been offered to fans via the iTunes Store," added Jay Gilbert, Vice-President New Media, UMe. "We are committed to making more of th...

Legendary guitarists Joe Satriani and Steve Vai announce plans for a benefit concert for music industry veteran and friend, Cliff Cultreri. "The Cliff Show" will take place on Saturday, September 30th at the House Of Blues, Hollywood, and will feature performances by both Satriani and Vai, as well as special guests to be announced.

Cliff Cultreri is the A&R executive who "discovered" both Satriani and Vai as well as many other popular recording artists, while working at Relativity Records. Cultreri is currently suffering from a host of Auto-Immune and Connective-Tissue disorders that are attacking his immune system, a one in 100 million occurrence that causes severe pain and physical problems. Satriani and Vai hope to raise funds to help Cultreri and his family's financial needs.

Cultreri is currently VP of A&R at KOCH Records where he has worked with such artists as RZA, B.G., Turk, Ying Yang Twins, Kurupt, Death Row, Big Gipp & Goodie Mob, Master P, and many other...

Get your punk rock fix this fall when Misfits Records presents Fiend Fest '06 featuring legendary punk outfit the Misfits with a very special guest set by Osaka Popstar and the American Legends of Punk who will close the show each night. Joining them on the road are The Adicts, UK Subs, Juicehead and Orange. The must-see whirlwind tour kicks-off on October 13th with two nights at the Galaxy Theater in Santa Ana, CA and will make stops in Los Angeles, Scottsdale, Hartford, Allentown, New York City, Toronto, Montreal, Detroit and Chicago.

Summer 2006 saw the self-titled debut release of Osaka Popstar and the American Legends of Punk led by vocalist John Cafiero. The Osaka Popstar line-up also consists of punk rock luminaries Jerry Only (Misfits) on bass, Dez Cadena (Black Flag) on guitar, Ivan Julian (Richard Hell & The Voidoids) on guitar and Marky Ramone (The Ramones) on drums. The CD/DVD combo package features thirteen infectious punk-pop tunes that are full of high-speed ...

The Used, from Orem, UT, have announced the departure of drummer Branden Steineckert from the band.

In a joint statement, band members Bert McCracken, Jeph Howard, and Quinn Allman said, "We felt that we needed to move forward without Branden as our drummer. We wish Branden well, and owe a great deal of gratitude towards him for his hard work over the years. We could not have gotten this far without him. We all wish much happiness and success in Branden's future endeavors -- wherever they may lead."

The Used became an instant musical force shortly after the release of their critically acclaimed self-titled debut in June 2002. The record, and the bands unpredictable live shows were influential in popularizing a genre of music that is now embraced by many a rock fan around the world. Their follow up, "In Love And Death," was a musical powerhouse of the aggressive kind, fueling band record sales past the 2 million mark worldwide. Since their debut, The Used has...

Fresh off the road with Slayer and now in support of their Reprise Records debut album, "Blood Mountain" (released Sept. 12), MASTODON is striking the U.S. with a headlining tour! The Atlanta rock visionaries are joined by Converge and The Bronx for the journey, which began September 6 in Baltimore, Maryland.

As the anticipation builds for the tour, the momentum behind the September 12 release of "Blood Mountain" grows. Decibel Magazine describes the album as "epic level!" Guitar World hails it as "...a breathtaking thrill ride, the likes of which people will be analyzing for years." "Blood Mountain" will also be available in a CD+DVD package, offering expanded artwork, a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the album, a gallery of still images taken during the recording process and a live video of the track "Capillarian Crest."

"This album is a nice collaboration of everybody's character and individuality," says singer and bassist Troy Sanders. "I always felt we were four ...

Fueled By Ramen recording group This Providence has announced details of their upcoming tour plans. The Seattle-based quartet -- who has already logged over 1 million total plays at their MySpace site -- will release their much-anticipated self-titled label debut on Tuesday, September 12th.

This Providence are currently wrapping up a major multi-artist itinerary alongside their FBR labelmates Paramore and Cute Is What We Aim For. The trek winds up later this month with a September 30th date at Nashville's Rockettown.

From there, This Providence will team up with June for a series of October dates as the main support. The tour, which also features Park and Tyler Read, will kick off on October 13th at the School of Rock in South Hackensack, New Jersey. From there, the four-band bill will travel the U.S. through an October 24th show at Minneapolis' The Quest.

Next up, This Providence are set to join The Hush Sound on their upcoming North American tour. The six-week itiner...