Tokio Hotel pictures from Rolling Stone

Tokio Hotel Strip Down for Rare Acoustic Rendition of “Automatic”

German rockers Tokio Hotel aren’t often in America and they rarely play acoustic, which makes their performance of “Automatic” in Rolling Stone’s New York offices earlier this week an extra special treat for the band’s loyal fans. “Automatic was one of the last songs we wrote for Humanoid,” Bill Kaulitz tells RS of the track off the band’s recently released album (their second English-language disc). “I got the idea for that song in the car. The song is about automatic feelings in a girl — she h

Published: 2009-10-23 Provider: Rolling Stone Keywords: Live at Rolling Stone, Videos

Preview Tokio Hotel’s “World Behind My Wall” from “Humanoid”

In our second exclusive preview clip from Tokio Hotel’s Humanoid (due October 6th), the German pop-rockers turn introspective with the wistful ballad “World Behind My Wall.” As singer Bill Kaulitz — who fronts the band with his twin, Tom — explained when we premiered an excerpt of the more metallic-sounding title track, Tokio Hotel’s second English-language album has “many different parts and melodies.” (Hear the clip after the jump.) As Rolling Stone also reported, the brothers Kraulitz co-prod

Published: 2009-09-22 Provider: Rolling Stone Keywords: Rock News

News Ticker: Them Crooked Vultures, MTV Europe Awards, Ryan Adams, Bob Dylan

Them Crooked Vultures have announced their first New York City show: an October 15th gig at Roseland Ballroom. According to the band’s Crooked Times newsletter, the presale begins September 24th at 4 pm ET. Lady Gaga and Kings of Leon lead MTV Europe Music Awards nominations with five nods apiece. So far Green Day, Leona Lewis and Tokio Hotel are set to perform at the November 5th show in Berlin, Reuters reports. Ryan Adams has responded to Courtney Love’s claims that he owes her money in a stat

Published: 2009-09-22 Provider: Rolling Stone Keywords: Morning News Roundup

VMAs Video: Are Panic at the Disco Depressed? Why Do Paramore Blog?

Rolling Stone’s trip to the VMAs was quite educational: we learned that Linkin Park are developing a designer drug with the goal of enslaving all humanity (seriously, watch Chester Bennington explain it), and that Panic at the Disco are in a weird state of mind — see for yourself by watching our interview above. “We’re going to do a record over the winter,” Ryan Ross says, and the band shares an Axl Rose story. Want more tales from the red carpet? Click the jump to catch Paramore explaining why they keep blogging, T-Pain gushing about Eminem and Tokio Hotel sharing hairspray secrets. Paramore Talk Seeing Rihanna Without Makeup, Blogging T-Pain on the Best VMAs Performances Ever (Eminem’s, That Is) Tokio Hotel Prepping for New German-to-English LP

Published: 2008-09-09 Provider: Rolling Stone Keywords: Rock News, Videos, MTV Video Music Awards

Rewind: The Week in Rock Daily

American Idol fever swept through Rock Daily as David Cook received twelve million more votes than David Archuleta. We live-blogged the song-off and highlighted our favorite moments of the finale. Next week, we perilously trap Cook into a corner and make him answer your question. We put our tape recorders to good use and had the interns transcribing double-time as we talked to Genesis about their massive reunion tour, Mudhoney’s Mark Arm about Superfuzz Bigmuff, Bun B about his fallen rap partner Pimp C and Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Anthony Kiedis about the festival he’s curating and his band’s hiatus. All we learned in that pre-law class we took sophomore class finally came to fruition as the R. Kelly trial kicked off, Slick Rick got pardoned and Phil Spector will once again spend many days in a courthouse. The video department was on Final Cut overload as Tokio Hotel taught us how to speak German and Breaking band Sam Champion performed in a van. [Photo: Becker/Getty]

Published: 2008-05-23 Provider: Rolling Stone Keywords: Rock News

“Guitar Hero World Tour” Offers Deluxe Drum Kit, Studio Capabilities

After Rock Band stole music game headlines last year with its drum kit and expanded options, the folks at Activision knew they had to strike back big. Guitar Hero World Tour marks a giant leap forward for the franchise that jumpstarted the music game craze, featuring a drum kit and microphone but also a new guitar design and the ability to build your own tracks in a virtual studio. The drum kit contains three drum pads and two virtual cymbals, which makes the percussion experience all the more realistic. The pads themselves are also velocity-sensitive, so the harder you hit them, the louder they sound. The new guitars are especially impressive: there’s a touch-sensitive patch on the neck that allows for sliding solos and more realistic hammer-ons, which allows players to look more and more like Eddie Van Halen (but hopefully with better dental work). As for the song lineup, there’s an excellent balance between stone-cold classics like Michael Jackson’s “Beat It” (which is incredibly difficult to sing), Jimi Hendrix’s “The Wind Cries Mary” (which is equally difficult to drum) and Van Halen’s “Hot For Teacher” along newer hits by Tokio Hotel and the Mars Volta. But the most unique aspect of Guitar Hero World Tour lies in the new studio mode, which lets you put down up to five tracks on a single song, meaning you can birth anything from a minimal drum and bass track to a Neil Young-esque three guitar attack. Once those songs are recorded, players will be able to upload them and let the online community go to town on them. Guitar Hero World Tour hits stores on October 26. Related Stories: • Guitar Hero World Tour Unveils Full Track List • Slash on Guitar Hero, Guns N’ Roses • Smashing Pumpkins Debuting “G.L.O.W.” Exclusively on Guitar Hero • Rock Band, Guitar Hero Battle for Bands

Published: 2008-09-17 Provider: Rolling Stone Keywords: Rock News

Tokio Hotel: Adored by Hair-Loving Fans, Inspired by Nena

It’s a cold, rainy Saturday in New Jersey, and hundreds of hoodie-clad teenyboppers are scrunched shoulder to shoulder in the Meadlowlands parking lot, screaming for Tokio Hotel. “Bill, I want to comb your hair!” shrieks a teen girl in the front row as the band — fronted by glammed-out singer Bill Kaulitz, 18, and his dreadlocked twin, guitarist Tom — kick into “Ready Set Go.” Bill doesn’t answer — after all, if he complied with every hair-combing request, his trademark porcupine spikes would be defunct. Instead, he swivels his skinny hips, pumps his fist skyward and sings. Since Tokio Hotel’s third album, Scream, was released in the U.S. on April 29th, the German emo rockers — who blend lashing riffs and forceful wails into dark, snarling anthems — have become superstars, snagging a spot on MTV’s TRL, sold-out shows in New York and LA and legions of admirers. “When we played [New York’s] Irving Plaza in February, the audience sang all the songs — even two German ones,” says Bill. “In Europe we play big concerts, but in America it’s so cool to see all the people — and all the girls.” A few years ago, Bill and Tom were performing for tiny crowds in their hometown, the small salt-mining town of Madgeburg, part of former East Germany. “Every weekend we played to, like, 15 people in the same club,” says Tom, who picked up his first guitar at age seven, around the same time that Bill decided he wanted to be a star. (”I saw a concert with Nena singing ‘99 Red Balloons’ on TV and I said, ‘I will also go onstage and sing,’” he recalls.) Tokio Hotel was born in 2001, when local teens Gustav Schafer (drums) and Georg Listing (bass) caught one of the duo’s gigs. “We said, ‘Oh my god, someone should help them!’” jokes Listing. Scream — which is culled from tracks on the

Published: 2008-06-03 Provider: Rolling Stone Keywords: Rock News