Cut The String Cheese:

Another summer, another band stands up to Ticketmaster. One-upping an over-the-pond service seeking to bring ethics back into ticket purchases that debuted last March, effectively eliminated service fees for good, jam band icons, String Cheese Incident, have enlisted willing fans and friends of the band to buy up hundreds of tickets on the band’s dime, to in turn sell them back to fans through the band’s website. The Cheese plan to do this all summer, as often as they can, according to a recent feature in the New York Times. Of the handful of lawsuits against the monopolistic ticket service, String Cheese Incident have had the most success, with their first battle in 2003 rallied around a breach of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act, settled under the table and allowing the band to control their own ticket sales through 2009. Hopefully one day fairness and equality will synergize.

Voodoo Fest:

N’awlins, get ready, Voodoo Fest is afoot. Announcing its 14th year in the festival game via press release yesterday, event founder and producer Stephen Rehage uttered, “I believe this year’s line-up is developing into something really special.” So far that means Green Day‘s only 2012 gig in the U.S. and Neil Young & Crazy Horse claiming headlining duties. While a tease of the whole 150+ lineup to be announced at a later date include Justice, Skrillex, Tomahawk, Say Anything, Bootsy Collins, Gary Clark Jr., AWOLNATION, K’Naan and Preservation Hall Jazz Band thus far. Additionally, this year marks the first that attendees will be able to camp on-site.

Hard Knock Discrimination:

Following the press conference for his Made in America music festival on Monday, Jay-Z fielded a few questions about same-sex marriage in the political spotlight these days, specifically regarding legal recognition. I’ve always thought it as something that’s still holding the country back. What people do in their own homes is their business…it’s no different than discriminating against blacks. It’s discrimination, plain and simple,” H.O.V.A. told CNN, before tying in President Obama’s recent stance on the issue, expounding, “I think it’s the right thing to do, so whether it costs him votes or not – again, it’s not about votes. It’s about people,” he said. Contradicting words for an artist rife with perceivable homophobic lyrics, as Spin dutifully points out. Though humans grow, it’s what we do best.

Just Breathe:

Shortly before Willie Nelson dropped his kitchen sink collection of collaborations and covers, Heroes, on Monday, the country icon took to Sirius XM satellite radio to tease a few songs. Pseudo sad face he didn’t orchestrate the Snoop Dogg cameo-ode to spliffs “Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die.” You’ll have to go and buy the album for that one. But this cover of Pearl Jam‘s Into The Wild-esque “Just Breathe” will bring on plenty of happy faces, Nelson aching along with sons Lukas and Micah and a handful of longtime musician friends, “As we sit alone, I know someday we must go/Oh I’m a lucky man, to count on both hands the ones I love” (via the L.A. Times).