"The Hobbit" films get titles and release dates

Tue May 31, 2:07 am ET

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) – Peter Jackson's two upcoming movies based on J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Hobbit" have been given official names and release dates.

The first of the two films, which are currently being filmed back-to-back in New Zealand, "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey," arrives in theaters on December 14, 2012.

The sequel, opening December 13, 2013, will be known as "The Hobbit: There and Back Again." Both will be released through Warner Bros.

The two prequels to Jackson's "Lord of the Rings" trilogy follow the adventures of Bilbo Baggins -- to be played by Martin Freeman, with Ian Holm reprising his role as the elder Bilbo -- in his quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor from the dragon Smaug.

The sprawling cast includes a number of other "Rings" veterans: Ian McKellen as Gandalf the Grey; Cate Blanchett as Galadriel; Orlando Bloom as Legolas; Christopher Lee as Saruman; Hugo Weaving as Elrond; Elijah Wood as Frodo; and Andy Serkis as Gollum.

Heavy Metal for Children

A friend made me aware of comic Jim Breuer's presentation of how to coincide his favorite music of heavy metal into the standard children's song fare.
Very funny indeed....and maybe not such a bad idea....



This also reminded me of another similar idea - lullabies for infants created from the classics. For instance, Rockabye Baby presents "Metallica."

Happy Memorial Day!

~Click here to see the official music video~
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Bohemian Rhapsody - Exclusively on Bass!

I was enlightened by my friend Joseph about this video showing bassist Simon Fitzpatrick play all of Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" entirely on his bass.  Enjoy!

Dream Theater's New Drummer!

Well, it was announced last year that Mike Portnoy, the drummer for Dream Theater, decided to leave the band. (Read Mike's and Dream Theater's statements here)

So Dream Theater embarked upon a quest for a new drummer. Interestingly, they decided to film the auditioning process, and created a documentary and released it in installments this week. Watch their journey here with the new drummer revealed at the end!

Here are the songs they had the drummers audition with:

The Dance of Eternity
A Nightmare to Remember
The Spirit Carries On




Read the interview Mike did with Modern Drummer Magazine on his new future with Dream Theater.

Read the Interviews that Drum Magazine conducted with Mike.
Read the interview that Music Radar conducted with John Petrucci and Jordan Rudess about their ordeal as a band in search of a new drummer and the future of Dream Theater.

Watch the video below to see some of Mike's previous work as well as how he attained his title of World's Fastest Drummer.  (and a cute commercial he was in demonstrating his mad skills)