SXSW Review: Frank Marshall & Ryan Suffern’s ‘Jazz Fest: A New Orleans Story’

Arcade Fire performed their special live-streamed gig in New Orleans, Louisiana last Friday (April 1), during which they played three songs from their forthcoming sixth album, ‘WE’.The set, which took place at Woldenberg Park as part of a “block party” event hosted by US telco AT&T, ran for over an hour and a half. The indie-rock trailblazers performed a total of 18 tracks, drawing material from all six of their full-length efforts (as well as 2020’s standalone single ‘Generation A’).Kicking off the set were the first two tracks released as singles from ‘WE’, ‘The Lightning I’ and ‘The Lightning II’, which set a soaring and anthemic tone for the night’s performance.

EXCLUSIVE: Time Studios has entered a shopping agreement with Niki Russ Federman and Josh Russ Tupper, fourth-generation members of the Russ family who now own its iconic New York culinary brand Russ & Daughters, to develop a scripted series examining its history and the family behind it.

Selome Hailu “City on Fire,” Apple TV Plus’ upcoming drama series from creators Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, has added nine new cast members.Jemima Kirke, Nico Tortorella, Ashley Zukerman, Xavier Clyde, Max Milner, Alexandra Doke, Omid Abtahi, Kathleen Munroe and John Cameron Mitchell will all be series regulars alongside previously announced stars Chase Sui Wonders and Wyatt Oleff.Based on Garth Risk Hallberg’s 2015 novel of the same name, “City on Fire” is set in 2003 New York, when an NYU student named Samantha (Wonders) is shot in Central Park with no witnesses and very little physical evidence. As the crime is investigated, Samantha is revealed to be the crucial connection between a series of mysterious citywide fires, the downtown music scene and a wealthy uptown real estate family fraying under the strain of the many secrets they keep.

Arcade Fire are set to perform a special livestream show in New Orleans, Louisiana this Friday (April 1).The Canadian band, who recently returned with the single ‘The Lightning I, II’, will play a live set as part of a “block party” event hosted by the US phone company AT&T.Per an official listing, fans will be able to “experience Arcade Fire from every angle with real-time, multi-camera views” via “the power of AT&T 5G”. Support comes from King Princess and the Preservation Hall Jazz Band.Win Butler and co.

David Benedict “We’ve discussed this. We’ve discussed this many times.” That wearied line, which appears in the final scene of David Hare’s new play “Straight Line Crazy,” is spoken by Ariel Porter (Samuel Barnett), the long-suffering right-hand man to New York’s legendary urban planner Robert Moses (Ralph Fiennes).

NEW ORLEANS -- The school board in the city where jazz took root is preparing to undo a little-known 1922 rule that bans jazz music and dancing in public schools.Officials tell The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate that the policy has racist origins, as its creators sought at the time to distance New Orleans schoolchildren from the African Americans who created the genre. The rule has been ignored for decades.

Netflix has released the complete list of titles heading to the streaming service in April 2022!

Joe Leydon Film CriticIt may sound counterintuitive at best, tone-deaf at worse, to label a documentary focused on food providers aiding people in the wake of disasters as a feel-good movie. But that’s an honest, accurate and, yes, appreciative label for “We Feed People,” Ron Howard’s technically polished and emotionally stirring close-up view of celebrity chef José Andrés and his nonprofit World Central Kitchen.The movie effectively begins in media res, with the robustly gregarious Andrés and his dedicated crew  years into their vocation, providing hot meals to isolated residents of Wilmington, N.C., in the wake of 2018’s Hurricane Florence — and coming perilously close to tasting their own disaster when floodwaters almost topple their delivery truck — before backing up to explain just who Andrés is and what started him on his mission.A native of Spain, Andrés moved to the U.S.

Joe Leydon Film CriticLet’s not mince words: “Jazz Fest: A New Orleans Story” is a high-stepping, hand-waving, spirit-lifting gas. Co-directors Frank Marshall and Ryan Suffern, with the invaluable assistance of editor Martin Singer, have fashioned an infectiously exuberant overview of the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, the Big Easy’s unique and enormous celebration of its music, cuisine and multiculturalism, by combining their own footage of performances and interviews at the 50th iteration of the star-studded annual event — the last before COVID-19 forced cancelation of the 2000 and 2001 editions — and archival footage dating back to the festival’s earliest days.Those days might have begun earlier, fest co-founder George Wein reveals during an interview conducted before his 2021 passing, if he had accepted a 1962 invitation by locals to establish the New Orleans equivalent of his Newport Jazz Festival.

Franz Ferdinand have announced a North American tour following the release of their greatest hits compilation, ‘Hits To The Head’ – buy tickets here.The US leg runs from August to September with stops in Atlanta, New York, Washington DC, and Los Angeles and will mark the Scottish band’s first tour of the country since 2018. General on-sale for the tour kicks off Friday (March 18) at 10am local time.

Amanda Warren has been tapped as the lead in the CBS drama pilot East New York.

Arcade Fire song has emerged on YouTube – watch ‘Rabbit Hole’ below.It’s come from their last-minute Ukraine benefit concert in New Orleans earlier this week (March 14), where the band also performed two other unreleased tracks.Taking place at Toulouse Theatre, all proceeds from the “pay-what-you-can” gig went to benefit the Plus1 Ukraine relief fund, which is supporting Ukrainian people through non-profits providing humanitarian aid as Russia’s invasion of the country continues.The gig was live-streamed via TikTok and Instagram, and snippets from that recording sees the band performing ‘Lightning I, II’, a song they recently revealed would be released this Thursday (March 17).The band also performed a second unreleased track, ‘Age Of Anxiety’. The song borrows elements from ‘Memories Of The Age of Anxiety’, a 45-minute instrumental ambient track they released for a meditation app last year.

Sony Pictures Classics announced today that its feature documentary Jazz Fest: A New Orleans Story, co-directed by five-time Oscar nominee Frank Marshall (The Bee Gees: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart) and Ryan Suffern (Mr. A & Mr. M: The Story of A&M Records), will hit theaters in New York and Los Angeles on May 13, before expanding to additional markets in the following weeks. It will open against IFC Films’ horror-thriller The Innocents, Roadside Attractions’ comedy Family Camp and Universal’s horror-thriller Firestarter starring Zac Efron and more.

Jack White has announced the acts who will appear as support on his upcoming world tour – buy your tickets here.The former White Stripes frontman announced two new albums – ‘Fear Of The Dawn’ (out April 8) and ‘Entering Heaven Alive’ (July 22) – back in November, previewing the releases with singles ‘Taking Me Back’, ‘Hi-De-Ho’ and ‘Queen Of The Bees’.In support of the releases, White will perform an extensive run of headline shows, dubbed ‘The Supply Chain Issue Tour’. He’ll begin with a string of North American dates next month, with stop-offs scheduled for Detroit, Chicago, New York, Los Angeles and other cities throughout the month and into May/June.White will then touch down in the UK for a two-night billing at the Eventim Apollo in Hammersmith, London (June 27/28).Following his appearances in the capital, White is due to hit the road in Europe throughout July before returning for an additional stint in the US. He’ll also perform at Mad Cool Festival in Madrid on July 10.Today (March 15), White has unveiled the names of the acts who will appear as special guests throughout the tour.For his UK and European dates, he will be joined by Chubby & The Gang, Yard Act, SONS, Doctor Victor, Ko Ko Mo, Larkin Poe, Equal Idiots, and Mdou Moctar.For the North American leg, support includes The Kills, Ezra Furman, Be Your Own Pet, Natalie Bergman and many more.

Charli XCX has shared a new song ‘Every Rule’, ahead of the release of her new album ‘Crash‘ this Friday (March 18) – listen below.The slow-burning, tender ballad has a gentle beat, soft-synths and auto-tuned vocals throughout.Last week, Charli XCX shared the full track listing for ‘Crash’, which is made up of 12 songs including ‘Every Rule’.The new single is joined on the record by the previously unveiled ‘Good Ones‘, ‘Baby‘, her collaboration with Rina Sawayama, ‘Beg For You’ and her song with Christine and the Queens and Caroline Polachek, ‘New Shapes’.Following the release of ‘Crash’, Charli will be heading out on a European and North American tour, with shows in Los Angeles, London, Paris and more.Get your tickets here and see the full list of tour dates below.MARCH 202226 – Fox Theatre – Oakland, CA29 – Crystal Ballroom – Portland, ORAPRIL 20221 – The Observatory North Park – San Diego, CA3 – The Greek Theatre – Los Angeles, CA6 – Ogden Theatre – Denver, CO8 – ACL Live at The Moody Theater – Austin, TX9 – House of Blues Houston – Houston, TX10 – House of Blues Dallas – Dallas, TX12 – Orpheum Theater – New Orleans, LA13 – The Eastern – Atlanta, GA15 – The Orange Peel – Asheville, NC16 – The NorVa – Norfolk, VA18 – The Fillmore Philadelphia – Philadelphia, PA20 – House of Blues Boston – Boston, MA22 – Hammerstein Ballroom – New York, NY23 – Hammerstein Ballroom – New York, NY25 – Massey Hall – Toronto, ON26 – Royal Oak Music Theatre – Royal Oak, MI28 – Palace Theatre – Saint Paul, MN29 – Byline Bank Aragon Ballroom – Chicago, ILMAY 202213 – Olympia Theatre – Dublin, Ireland15 – O2 Academy – Glasgow, UK17 – Victoria Warehouse – Manchester, UK18 – O2 Academy – Birmingham, UK19 – Alexandra Palace – London, UK21 – UEA –