Talking Heads and more come to Rock Band

12:40 PM on 08.28.2009   |   Colette Bennett

33 comments

As a kid I remember watching Talking Heads videos on MTV and thinking they were like the weirdest band I'd ever seen. Then I grew up and realized that's exactly what they were. Now you can practice your awkward David Byrne head movements in Rock Band with this week's DLC, which includes “And She Was”, “Crosseyed & Painless”, “Girlfriend is Better”, “Once in a Lifetime” and “Take Me to the River".

You can download these tracks on September 1st for Xbox 360 and September 3rd for PS3. Along with Talking Heads, you can also score new songs from Avenged Sevenfold, The Jam, Oasis and Rage Against the Machine (look after the break for the full track list). The Talking Heads pack will retail for $8.49.

If you have a Wii, you can choose from new tracks from Billy Idol, Fleetwood Mac, Jet, Tom Petty, Barenaked Ladies, Judas Priest, Nikko, The Pretenders and Billy Squier. Rock Band Unplugged fans can also grab new Franz Ferdinand and Guns n' Roses tracks. All in all, plenty to choose from! Any of this new stuff catching your eye?

**ROCK BAND MEDIA ALERT**
 
TALKING HEADS OFFER UP FIVE TRACKS FOR ROCK BAND
Plus tracks from Tom Petty, Billy Idol and Fleetwood Mac for Wii and Franz Ferdinand and Guns N’ Roses for Rock Band Unplugged!
Cambridge, Mass. – Aug. 28, 2009 - Harmonix and MTV Games today announced that a five pack of songs from new wave rockers Talking Heads, as well as singles from Avenged Sevenfold, The Jam, Oasis and Rage Against the Machine will be available in the Rock Band Music Store of downloadable content next week for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system.
 
Additional tracks from Tom Petty, Billy Idol, Fleetwood Mac and Judas Priest will be available in the Wii™ Rock Band Music Store bringing the number of downloadable tracks for Wii to 647, and tracks from Guns N’ Roses and Franz Ferdinand will be available for download for Rock Band Unplugged on PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) system.
 
Rock Band DLC Additions for Xbox 360 and PLAYSTATION 3 System
Rock and Roll Hall of Famers Talking Heads add an additional five downloadable tracks to Rock Band, joining the already available “Psycho Killer.” The five-pack spans a good deal of Talking Heads’ career, including “Take Me to the River” from the band’s second album, More Songs About Buildings and Food; “Crosseyed & Painless” and “Once in a Lifetime” from the band’s fourth studio album, Remain in Light; “Girlfriend is Better” from the band’s fifth album, Speaking in Tongues; and “And She Was” from the band’s sixth album, Little Creatures. Additionally, singles from Avenged Sevenfold, The Jam, Oasis and Rage Against the Machine will be available in the Rock Band Music Store next week.

Tracks available on Xbox 360 (Sept. 1) and PLAYSTATION 3 system (Sept. 3):

·         Avenged Sevenfold – “Bat Country”

·         The Jam – “A Town Called Malice”

·         The Jam – “Going Underground”

·         Oasis – “Supersonic” (Live)

·         Rage Against the Machine – “Guerilla Radio”

·         Talking Heads – “And She Was”

·         Talking Heads – “Crosseyed & Painless”

·         Talking Heads – “Girlfriend is Better”

·         Talking Heads – “Once in a Lifetime”
·         Talking Heads – “Take Me to the River”
 
(All tracks are original master recordings)
 
These tracks will be available for purchase as Talking Heads Pack 01 and as individual tracks on Xbox 360 and PLAYSTATION 3 system.
 

 
Price:             $1.99 USD, £.99 UK , €1.49 EU (160 Microsoft Points for Xbox 360) per track
                        $8.49 USD, £5.25 UK , €6.59 EU (680 Microsoft Points for Xbox 360) for Talking Heads Pack 01
 
Wii Additions

 American rocker Tom Petty breaks onto Rock Band for Wii next week with two of his biggest solo hits, “I Won’t Back Down” and “Runnin’ Down a Dream,” both from his 5x platinum 1989 album, Full Moon Fever. This was Petty’s first solo album, after parting with The Heartbreakers; it reached No. 3 on the Billboard 200. Classic rockers Fleetwood Mac and English rocker Billy Idol return to Rock Band, as well as Australian rockers Jet with, “She’s a Genius,” from the band’s new album, Shaka Rock, which hit shelves Aug. 25. Back-catalog tracks from Judas Priest and The Pretenders will also be available in the Wii Rock Band Music Store next week. These tracks come from the catalog of Rock Band music already released to owners of Xbox 360 and PLAYSTATION 3 system. With the addition of these tracks, there are now more than 647 tracks in the Wii Rock Band Music Store.

Additional tracks available for Wii (Aug. 25):

·         Billy Idol – “Mony Mony”

·         Billy Idol – “Rebel Yell”

·         Fleetwood Mac – “Don’t Stop”

·         Fleetwood Mac – “World Turning”

·         Jet – “She’s a Genius”

·         Tom Petty – “I Won’t Back Down”

·         Tom Petty – “Runnin’ Down a Dream”

·         Bare Naked Ladies – “Hanukkah Blessings” *

·         Billy Squier – “Christmas is the Time” *

·         Judas Priest – “(Take These) Chains”

·         Judas Priest – “Bloodstone”

·         Judas Priest – “Devil’s Child”

·         Judas Priest – “Fever”

·         Judas Priest – “Pain & Pleasure”

·         Judas Priest – “Riding on the Wind”

·         Judas Priest – “Screaming for Vengeance”

·         Judas Priest – “The Hellion/Electric Eye”

·         Judas Priest – “You’ve Got Another Thing Comin’”

·         Nikko – “Break My Heart” *

·         Nikko – “Don’t Tell Me” *

·         Pretenders – “Blue Christmas” *
·         Pretenders – “Precious”
 
Price:                         $2.00 USD (200 Wii Points) per track
                                   *Denotes $1.00 (100 Wii Points) per track
 
Rock Band Unplugged Tracks for PSP®System

Rock Band Unplugged fans will enjoy the addition of Franz Ferdinand’s “Lucid Dreams” and Guns N’ Roses’ “Riad N’ The Bedouins” to the 35 tracks already available via the Rock Band Unplugged in-game music store for the PSP system.

Tracks available for Rock Band Unplugged (Sept. 3):                 

                + Franz Ferdinand – “Lucid Dreams”
                + Guns N’ Roses – “Riad N’ The Bedouins” 

 

Price:           $1.99, £.99 UK , €1.49 EU per track on the PSP system

** Dates for Rock Band game tracks are tentative and subject to change. **
 

Website Links:
For more information, please visit:
 
 
Rock Band Website
 Talking Heads Website
 Oasis Website
 The Jam Website
 Avenged Sevenfold Website
 Rage Against the Machine Website
 

Rock Band 2 is available for Xbox 360, PLAYSTATION 3 system, PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system and Wii system. Xbox 360, PLAYSTATION 3 system and Wii versions support downloadable content.

Downloadable content for Wii is purchased via the in-game Rock Band Music Store using Wii Points purchased through the Wii Shop Channel and can be downloaded to the system memory or to an SD card for additional storage.  The tracks stream directly from the SD card for seamless play.

There are now more than 835 tracks available to date via disc and download purchase (complete list of tracks at www.rockband.com/music). Rock Band continues to satisfy music fans’ and gamers' voracious appetite for rock with more than 50 million paid downloads since its launch Nov. 20, 2007.  The Rock Band Music Store allows players to preview and purchase downloadable individual music tracks and packs from the vast selection of offerings available to date without ever leaving the game as they buil d their own custom Rock Band library.

Rock Band and Rock Band 2 are rated "T" for Teen (lyrics, suggestive themes) by the ESRB. Music downloads are not rated by the ESRB.

For more information on Rock Band 2 and Harmonix Music Systems please visit www.rockband.com  and www.harmonixmusic.com.

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“PlayStation” is a registered trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.

Wii is a trademark of Nintendo.