Up in It

MusiCares paid homage to Metallica's James Hetfield and manager-promoter Bill Silva for their sobriety recently during a very special night in L.A. The evening featured Velvet Revolver's acoustic version of Pink Floyd's "Wish You Were Here," as well as performances by Jason Mraz, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, as well as Hetfield and Metallica mate Robert Trujillo alongside Alice in Chains' Jerry Cantrell and Sean Kinney for a blistering set dubbed "Metalice in Chains." Perhaps most impressive was a very rare appearance by none other than Tom Waits. "Being in the company of Tom Waits is always a huge thing," said Metallica's Lars Ulrich, while Velvet bassist Duff McKagan admitted to some nerves about sharing the stage with Waits. "That's freaking me out. I saw him on that tour in Seattle in 1999, and it was one of those concerts that just changes your life."

The man of the night, though, was Hetfield, who admitted to some trepidation of his own. "I'm very grateful that people have shown up to support it. It sounds like I'm the center of the universe at times, and I'm not -- and I don't want to be," he told Rolling Stone before the show. "I'm nervous." His Metallica mates were thrilled to be on hand to support their comrade in arms. "This is a great way to celebrate all the achievements and ground that James has covered in his sobriety," said Kirk Hammett. "Him being clean and sober is something that he holds so close to heart. We acknowledge it every day, but it's just great to see other people acknowledging it, too."

The next day of a busy weekend on the L.A. music scene saw radio station KROQ hold its annual Weenie Roast show. Among those on hand was Damian Marley, who talked tour plans: The reggae newcomer will head back to Europe this summer as well as open for Ben Harper in the States. For Marley, who has become a hit among musicians, that kind of attention is especially thrilling. "To be a musician's musician is an honor," he said. "There are people we're fans of who are becoming fans of our music."

Also on hand at the Roast -- which featured an eclectic array of acts, from Rob Zombie and headliners the Red Hot Chili Peppers to Panic! at the Disco and AFI -- was Taking Back Sunday. When TBS's Matt Rubano was asked about his dream festival lineup, he said, "Mine would probably only sell a few tickets. I would have Can, Miles Davis Quintet from '65, Fugazi, the Police and Jeff Buckley to close the night." Where would Rubano fit in on the bill? "I might have Jeff Buckley's bass player sit out, and maybe I'll learn the tunes. But I'd rather see that guy. I would be MC'ing. I would introduce each band and tell people why they're there," he said. "Except the Miles quintet -- Miles wouldn't have that shit." Rubano had to admit that he was on a serious sugar rush for the Roast: "I had, like, a super Mexican food surprise melange, three slices of cake and some ice cream. I was kind of treating it like a little kid's birthday party."

As mentioned, topping the bill were hometown heroes the Chili Peppers. We recently had a chance to ask frontman Anthony Kiedis which of Stadium Arcadium's twenty-eight songs he was most looking forward to playing live. He instantly name-checked the tracks "Wet Sand," "Snow" and "Charlie." Kiedis confessed, "The list kind of goes on and on and on."

Finally, DJ Tiesto reports that two titans of the dance-music world got together recently. "I was working with BT on a couple of tracks," the Dutch treat said of a recent excursion to L.A. "BT made a great impression on me, the way he works. It was amazing to stay in his studio, very inspirational," Tiesto said. The tracks are likely to end up on Tiesto's next artist album.