Joey “Shithead” Keithley, frontman of Vancouver hardcore pioneers D.O.A., is the subject of a new documentary from Scott Crawford called 'Something Better Change' (named after D.O.A.'s 1980 debut album), Rolling Stone reports. It shows the journey of a punk-rocker to a position of power, and possibility to change stuff. The doc will explore "connections between music and activism," and it features Henry Rollins, Keith Morris, Jello Biafra, Krist Novoselic, Duff McKagan, and Beto O'Rourke.

Smaller summer festivals in the UK are "still possible" this summer, despite the cancellation of Glastonbury - Paul Reed, the head of the Association of Independent Festivals, told the BBC. Glastonbury 2021 was cancelled by its organizers, but, as Reed says, it is "a different beast to most festivals and most likely ran out of time due to the size and complexity of the event". Smaller events could still happen if the government ensures organisers can access cancellation insurance, Reed believes, adding - "for most festivals, the cut-off point is more likely the end of March". The UK government doesn't still believe that insurance is the right way to help the concert industry, Guardian reports

"People close to Britney Spears and lawyers tied to her conservatorship now reassess her career as she battles her father in court over who should control her life" - the press release for the upcoming documentary 'Framing Britney Spears' says. It is a part of 'The New York Times Presents' series and it comes out Feb. 5.

Billie Eilish and Rosalía release their dramatic pop ballad 'Lo Vas a Olvidar'; Emma Ruth Rundle & Thou follow their last year's debut collaboration with a new EP - 'Orphan Limbs' is the stand-out track from it; Forhist of Blut Aus Nord shares a sympho/black-metal song 'II'; Vast Aire of Cannibal Ox bites hard on 'Good Fuel'; NYC rapper Marlon Craft releases a melancholic albeit determined political song 'State of the Union'.

A great read in LA Magazine - an excerpt from the book 'Sonic Boom' by Peter Ames Carlin about the rise of Warner/Reprise from a jazz small-house to a rock'n'roll powerhouse. It all started when Reprise Records president Mo Ostin signed Jimi Hendrix which turned out to be a great success, against expectations from other label bosses. Then, in an afternoon in 1967, Ostin gave the company’s troops the most unexpected direction ever uttered by a top executive at a corporate record label: “Let’s stop trying to make hit records”. Grateful Dead, Joni Mitchell, Fleetwood Mac, James Taylor, Jethro Tull, Frank Zappa, Alice Cooper, Deep Purple, and Gordon Lightfoot followed.

Glastonbury Festival has been cancelled for 2021 due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, and organisers have revealed that ticket deposits will be rolled over to 2022. "As with last year, we would like to offer all those who secured a ticket in October 2019 the opportunity to roll their £50 deposit over to next year, and guarantee the chance to buy a ticket for Glastonbury 2022" - the organisers said, adding - "we are very appreciative of the faith and trust placed in us by those of you with deposits, and we are very confident we can deliver something really special for us all in 2022!".

Huff-Post lists several reasons why we should try and discover new music, especially if it seems hard to do so:

It nourishes our brains - new music listening activates areas of the brain from root to tip, from the early auditory processing centres to the outer reaches of our cortex

New music provides the potential to add to our valuable music memory bank

Acts as social cue, helping us better understand other people

Music has ability to keep us open-minded, which experts believe is key to helping us think better.

The wife and the publishing company of Jacques Levy, who co-wrote 7 of 9 songs from Bob Dylan’s 1976 album 'Desire', are suing the songwriter for $7.25m, the New York Post reports. Levy estate's lawsuit claims that Dylan owes Levy’s family 35% of income from the songs he co-wrote for 'Desire' – 'Hurricane', 'Isis', 'Mozambique', 'Oh, Sister', 'Joey', 'Romance in Durango' and 'Black Diamond Bay'. Dylan’s has recently sold his songwriting catalogue to Universal Music for a reported $300m.

Foo Fighters, Katy Perry, Demi Lovato and Bon Jovi performed at the star-studded inauguration of the new American president. The theme of the concert was unity, with Bruce Springsteen kicking off the event with his song 'Land Of Hope and Dreams'. John Legend powered through a big band arrangement of Nina Simone's 'Feeling Good', while Demi Lovato sang an upbeat cover of Bill Withers' 'Lovely Day', accompanied by doctors and nurses in their hospital scrubs. Texan soul band Black Pumas played their uplifting anthem Colors, and the concert was closed by Katy Perry, who sang a rousing, orchestral version of her signature song 'Firework'. Alexis Petridis compares this and previous inauguration: "Donald Trump couldn’t secure a Springsteen tribute band for his inauguration, whereas Biden had Springsteen himself – plus Lady Gaga, Jennifer Lopez and even a Republican in Garth Brooks". Outside the official ceremony, Indie Drummer Collective - including drummers of Thursday, The Promise Ring, Helmet, Titus Andronicus, and Cymbals Eat Guitars covered 'We Are The World' for Inauguration Day.

PopMatters found another batch of 20 great jazz albums from last year including: Dave Douglas' 'Marching Music' - "a mixture of heavy and luminescent"; Rob Mazurek's 'Dimensional Stardust' - "new jazz at its best, with complex composition easing seamlessly into improvising, classical notions slipping into jazz and hip-hop/electronics"; Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah's 'Axiom' - "a great band"; Matthew Shipp's 'The Unidentifiable' and 'Live in Nuremberg' - "whew and wow and WONDERful. Musician of the year, ladies and gentlemen"; Immanuel Wilkins' 'Omega' - "new jazz of hip-hop rhythmic inclinations, complex time experiments, and compositional complexity".