Niki N. Phaser

                  Smashing Pumpkins have premiered a new single, Widow Wake My Mind, through MySpace. The song is the second installment in Billy Corgan & co.’s 44 tracks project, entitled Teargarden by Kaleidyscope. It’s quite a different kind of tune than first single, A Song For a Son, which was made available as a free download last month. Maybe it’s just the infectious hopeful sound of this new track, but this diversity promises an interesting project. It is not set yet, but if this will be a one-by-month kind of venture, Smashing Pumpkins might become a favorited show, though waiting 30 days for a new episode is a bit frustrating. Anyway, it’s nice to always have a little pleasure to look forward to. Like the rest of the tracks which Teargarden by Kaleidyscope is comprised of, Widow Wake My Mind is a free download.

LISTEN TO THE WIDOW

          A Song for a Son marks the beginning of Smashing Pumpkins’ new album, Teargarden by Kaleidyscope. If that sounds slightly weird, we can ‘blame’ Billy Corgan for it. After remaining the last original Pumpkin in the band, the singer decided to give up on the idea of a standard album and instead release a series of 44 singles. When they’re all done, they’ll be put together in the mega-album Teargarden by Kaleidyscope. Till that happens, the band are offering the songs as free downloads, as well as four EPs, for those of you who still need to read liner notes, while listening to a freshly bought record. This new song is not quite a revelation, sounds more like a recent recorded try at a shelved project. No worries, there are still 43 to come, though it’s still unclear when.

Listen or Download (or both) Here

An online auction has been recently set by The Chi Cheng Special Needs Trust with the help of CharityBuzz.com. All earnings will go to the said fund to help pay the medical bills. The auction will conclude on December 8, 2009. For more than a year, the Deftones’ bassist has been, at first, in a coma and then, in a minimally conscious state. Since the tragedy happened, on November 4, 2008, his family and band have been met with the utmost support by fans and fellow musicians.

The latest effort is this  online auction, which is based on the help offered by some of the biggest names in contemporary rock. First of all, there is a lot of original and signed ”rock apparatus” (guitars, drum kits), that would grace any collector’s showroom. The list contains stuff signed by the likes of Metallica, 311, System of a Down, My Chemical Romance, Deftones, Green Day or country star, Tim McGraw. Remaining in the ”signed by” territory, you can also acquire promo material and albums by Coldplay, Iron Maiden, Gallows, Mastodon, Sepultura, Slayer, Alexisonfire.

More special gifts are offered, for example, by HIM. The highest bidder will get a chance to see the band perform at Helldone this year, as well as a meet&greet session, travel expenses and lodgings being also provided. Rise Against are doing something similar, involving their KROQ Almost Acoustic Christmas Show gig. Another great proof of generosity comes from Blink 182′s Mark Hoppus, who is willing to produce a track for one lucky (or rich) band, meaning you get to spend a day in the studio with him. One of the most coveted items in the offer is the Velvet Hammer Golden Pass, which, among other magic tricks that it performs, will grant you access to any Velvet Hammer artist show for one year. To see the entire list of items and to place your bid, go AWAY.