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Here are exclusive pictures from last night’s Ron Asheton tribute concert, photographed by David Dominic, Jr. In a review of the show, AnnArbor.com wrote: “Security must have had a collective coronary when Pop invited the crowd to “get on stage and dance with The Stooges.” What looked like a couple of hundred people took advantage of the opportunity and rushed up front. It was a mob scene where pure anarchy seemed to reign … The show was LOUD. There were some 30 speakers aimed at the crowd, not including the onstage monitors. Raw power indeed.”

Just before the show ended, Pop sat down on the edge of the stage and reminisced about Asheton as he and guitarist James Williamson performed a special acoustic tribute song. “I have to thank Ron for Iggy,” he said. “When I wanted to start a band, Ron was the first guy who would get behind me. … He had a gift, sort of a charm — his compositions were very simple but very memorable.”

Pop also expressed his appreciation to the audience, and Stooges’ fans in general. “Thanks for showing up … thanks for giving me a life,” he added.

Read more at AnnArbor.com

Iggy Pop is raising his voice against Canada’s horrific seal slaughter. Each year, sealers club hundreds of thousands of seals to death and sell the animals’ pelts on the international fur market. Iggy has joined forces with PETA to denounce the seal slaughter by starring in a public service announcement and spreading the word that “Canada’s club scene sucks.” You can watch the PSA video below. (Some of the images are violent.) For information on how you can help, please visit PETA.org.

Along with the new Iggy Pop track “Milk Cow Blues,” this original piece of Vinyl Art by Daniel Edlen is now available at PledgeMusic to benefit the David Lynch Foundation’s “Download for Good” campaign. It is an exclusive offer painted especially for DLF Music and autographed by Iggy Pop. Vinyl Art by Daniel Edlen gives something physical back to those who’ve gone digital and online with their music. It celebrates the cultural creativity that comes together in the production of vinyl recordings.

As part of the David Lynch Foundation’s partnership with PledgeMusic, Iggy Pop has contributed the track “Milk Cow Blues” to help raise money for the DLF’s work in teaching stress-reducing meditation to at-risk youth and veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder. The song is now featured at PledgeMusic.com, where you can make your pledge and participate.

The track is part of a 17-track compilation download featuring other artists including Arrested Development, Au Revoir Simone, Ben Folds, Peter Gabriel, Mary Hopkin, Moby, Maroon 5, Neon Trees, Ozomatli, Heather Nova, Carmen Rizzo, Salman Ahmad, Slightly Stoopid, Dave Stewart, Andy Summers and Tom Waits. You can read more in the press release below:

David Lynch Foundation partners with PledgeMusic to release exclusive music tracks by star studded line up; Direct Artist to fan pre-launch activity has campaign over 50%

Arrested Development, Au Revoir Simone, Ben Folds, Moby, Neon Trees, Iggy Pop, Maroon 5, Peter Gabriel, Dave Stewart, Slightly Stoopid, and Tom Waits are among first featured artists

PledgeMusic, a leading international direct-to-fan platform for raising funds for musicians to record and tour, today announced a partnership with the David Lynch Foundation (DLF), to raise funds with the sale of exclusive unique tracks by the world’s top artists. All funds will go to support the work of DLF in their global outreach, including teaching stress-reducing meditation to one million at-risk youth and 10,000 veterans with PTSD.

In addition to supporting philanthropic efforts like PledgeMusic through his music, last week Lynch also unveiled his newly designed website, www.davidlynch.com which spotlights the growing catalog of releases from his David Lynch Music Company.

One of the most renowned avant-garde film directors and visual artists of his time, Lynch has always had a deep connection to music. Today, he combines those qualities with his Foundation’s partnership with PledgeMusic.

During the Pledge Campaign, supporters pledge for exclusive items from participating artists and are rewarded with Pledgers Only access to artist videos, music tracks, photos and blogs. Additional items include signed lyric sheets, albums and books from various artists (including David Lynch) and, one of the more unique items to date, the Neon Tree’s 2010 Tour Carpet!

At the end of the campaign, everyone who pledges receives the group of exclusive tracks from all the participating artists and other behind the scenes exclusives.

The artists involved have been so enthusiastic they generated a ground swell of support amongst their fans which thrust the campaign to over 50% before the official press launch had even begun.

“One of PledgeMusic’s core objectives has always been to raise money for charity,” said PledgeMusic founder, Benji Rogers. “Working with the David Lynch Foundation and the calibre of artists that have come together to support their mission is more than we could have hoped for. ‘Music for a change’ was our unofficial slogan throughout the founding of the company and today we have come together with a brilliant partner and a great cause.”

For more information, please visit www.pledgemusic.com or www.davidlynchfoundation.org.

About The David Lynch Foundation
The David Lynch Foundation was launched six years ago to bring the stress-reducing, health-promoting benefits of Transcendental Meditation to underserved populations, including at-risk inner city youth and veterans returning home from combat with post traumatic stress disorder, as well as American Indians, the homeless and prisoners. To date, DLF has provided scholarships for nearly 150,000 adults and students to learn to meditate, eliminating the traumatic stress that undermines academic achievement and fuels substance abuse and violent behavior. Independent published scientific research shows that meditating students have dramatically better test scores, grades and graduation rates, while dropout rates, suspensions, and expulsions greatly decrease.

About PledgeMusic
PledgeMusic was founded by musician Benji Rogers to give artists a DIY option for pursuing and augmenting their careers. The company was designed to be transparent and open, while benefiting artists and fans. Artists will get the funding and promotional support that they need, the fan will get the music and artist interaction that they want at the price that they want to pay, and charities who have scant fundraising resources will receive a percentage of the money raised.

Iggy and the Stooges have added another performance date to their tour schedule. The band will play at the Hop Farm Music Festival on July 2nd in Paddock Wood, Kent, U.K.

You can find more information at HopFarmFestival.com, and buy tickets at SeeTickets.com!

STEVE MACKAY
“Sometimes Like This I Talk” CD
Radon 2010

The pioneering saxman from such diverse projects as The Stooges, Violent Femmes, Snakefinger, Commander Cody, and The Radon Ensemble unleashes his third solo album. This collection of songs, captured in 5 countries and with a cast of 30 conspirators, represents the most comprehensive collection of Steve Mackay’s composed works.

For the last decade, Mackay has relentlessly crisscrossed the States, Europe and the world, bringing his unique musical vision to stage. His projects have included joining forces with jazz-core unit Zu, fronting his own band The Radon Ensemble, uniting with his first crew Carnal Kitchen and bar band Third Thursday, collaborating with underground luminaries like Dirt Bombs, Ovo, Smegma, Laundryroom Squelchers, Amps For Christ and Mike Watt, and sharing the spotlight with Rock ’n’ Roll Hall of Fame inductees Iggy and the Stooges.

“Sometimes Like This I Talk” is a voyage that brings you to the forefront of Mackay’s musical history and invites a multitude of his primary backing musicians along for the ride.

This latest offering from Steve Mackay, a compelling musical figure, welcomes a new era for a far too often neglected instrument: the saxophone.

More information is available at PolyglotAgency.org.

Iggy and the Stooges will be playing the main stage at the 25th annual Suikerrock Festival in Tienen, Belgium on Friday, July 29th! Ticket presales will begin on Thursday, March 3rd at Suikerrock.be, and also at Belgian subsidiaries of Free Record Shop.

Iggy & the Stooges “Raw Power Live: In the Hands of the Fans” is the vinyl document of the reformed Stooges’ (Iggy Pop, Scott Asheton, James Williamson, Steve Mackay, Mike Watt) Raw Power performance at the All Tomorrow’s Parties Festival on Friday, September 3, 2010.

Of the performance, Ben Ratliff of the NY Times writes, “Iggy Pop, now 63, knew that his body language translated into still photographs resembling Mannerist paintings…The Stooges attacked the album’s eight songs, in a different order, just about perfectly.”

Iggy and the band sound flawless as they rip through the archetype riffage of “Search and Destroy,” “Raw Power,” “Gimmie Danger” and more. This record is being rush released for Record Store Day 2011.

“Getting this top-notch performance of the entire Raw Power album by The Stooges realized a life long dream,” Iggy Pop “This shit really sizzles and we are so obviously a crack band in a class of our own.”

Raw Power Live: In the Hands of the Fans

The documentary Outside Industry: The Story of SXSW, which includes rare footage of legends including Johnny Cash, Iggy Pop and dozens of others, will premiere at the 2011 South by Southwest Film Festival. The film chronicles the origins and early evolution of the SXSW Music Festival, from breakthrough performances to fights over how to handle growth.

Outside Industry: The Story of SXSW, will play in the 24 Beats Per Second Category on Wednesday, March 16th at 4:30 p.m. at The Paramount Theater, and also Saturday, March 19th at 12 p.m. at the Vimeo Theater, both in Austin, Texas. You can watch the movie trailer below.

Outside Industry: The Story of SXSW Trailer from Arts+Labor on Vimeo.

David Lynch Foundation Music is bringing together the world’s top and emerging recording artists to support the good works of the DLF’s stress-reducing, meditation-based educational programs.

In a 6-week Pledge campaign, the DLF is offering a 17-track compilation download featuring artists including Iggy Pop, Arrested Development, Au Revoir Simone, Ben Folds, Peter Gabriel, Mary Hopkin, Moby, Maroon 5, Neon Trees, Ozomatli, Heather Nova, Carmen Rizzo, Salman Ahmad, Slightly Stoopid, Dave Stewart, Andy Summers and Tom Waits.

If you Pledge for the compilation download, or any of the other items and experiences during the campaign, you’ll gain access to exclusive updates from participating music artists. Each week you’ll receive 2 or 3 of DLFMusic’s featured tracks, plus exclusive videos, photos and blog updates to give you an insider’s view into the artists’ lives and experiences.

You can visit PledgeMusic.com to make your pledge and participate.

Iggy and the Stooges fans have been buzzing since last Friday when it was announced that they would be returning to the Ann Arbor concert stage with a special performance at the Michigan Theater, April 19, 7:30pm.

“The Stooges and I wanted to do a concert in memory of Ron and his music. We’ve chosen to do this in Ann Arbor where our group, our attitudes and our ideals were forged. It really was the birth of a movement. We’re planning to involve musicians across the spectrum from classical to youth groups and have a fucking big blast in memory of Ron. Teenage musicians from the Neutral Zone, Ann Arbor’s teen center will open performing early Stooges songs. I may join them on vocals if they don’t have somebody who can kick my ass. Deniz Tek from Radio Birdman who was Ron’s closest friend in music outside the group is going to join me for a couple of Ron’s best numbers. Henry Rollins who articulates so many things about music so well has volunteered to MC and try yet again to defeat me in a musical duel. He may think he’s got a better chance now that I’m 64, and he’s only 50, we shall see. Henry was given his pick of Stooges songs to perform and he chose a great one.

The full and present Iggy and the Stooges line up will then perform a full set, songs from The Stooges, Fun House, Raw Power – James Williamson – guitar, Scott Asheton – drums, Iggy Pop – vocals, Mike Watt and Steve Mackay, Bass and Sax respectively.”

– Iggy Pop

Reserved seats, $59.50 & $39.50 plus a limited number of gold circle seats, go on sale Friday February 18, 10am. Buy tickets at Ticketmaster.com and all Ticketmaster locations. By phone at 800-745-3000. Proceeds from this concert will benefit the
Ron Asheton Foundation.

• Iggy and The Stooges
• Henry Rollins
• Plus Deniz Tek and special guests

April 19, 7:30 pm
Michigan Theater, Ann Arbor
On sale Friday February 18, 10am

Iggy and the Stooges rocked the final show of the Big Day Out Festival in Perth, Australia! You can view more photos from the show, held on February 6th, at Getty Images.

The Stooges have several more concert dates scheduled through this summer, so keep checking for updates and subscribe to the official newsletter!