2010 Music History: Key Events, Band Formations & Album Releases
Acts Formed
babymetal
Tokyo, Japan
Kawaii Metal
Black Moth
Leeds, England
Stoner Rock
Car Seat Headrest
Leesburg, Virginia, USA
Indie Rock
Daughter
London, England
Dream Pop
Deafheaven
San Francisco, California, USA
Blackgaze
Death Grips
Sacramento, California, USA
Industrial Hip Hop
Khruangbin
Houston, Texas, USA
Psychedelic Folk
King Gizzard &
the Lizard Wizard
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Psychedelic Rock
Lord Huron
Los Angeles, California, USA
Indie Folk
Mannequin Pussy
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
Punk
Noel Gallagher's
High Flying Birds
Manchester, England
Indie Rock
Parquet Courts
New York, New York, USA
Post-Punk
Pinegrove
Montclair, New Jersey, USA
Alt-Country
Protomartyr
Detroit, Michigan, USA
Post-Punk
Purity Ring
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Synth-pop
Tennis
Denver, Colorado, USA
Dream Pop
The Crane Wives
Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA
Indie Rock
Turnstile
Baltimore, Maryland, USA
Punk
TV Girl
San Diego, California, USA
Dream Pop
Unknown Mortal
Orchestra
Auckland, New Zealand
Psychedelic Rock
Waxahatchee
Birmingham, Alabama, USA
Country Rock
Wolf Alice
London, England
Indie Rock
January 13th
Teddy Pendegrass dies at 59 of respiratory failure.
January 24th
A new type of music file, MusicDNA, is unveiled at the MIDEM conference is Cannes. The format includes not only the song, but lyrics, artwork, music videos, and tour dates.
January 26th
Beach House release Teen Dream.
January 31st - Grammy Awards
Album of the Year: Taylor Swift - Fearless
Song of the Year: Beyoncé - 'Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)'
Febuary 3rd
A man impersonating Paul Simon, Rafael Ramos, is arrested in New York after attempting to withdraw $4,300 from the singer's account.
February 19th
Elton John claims Jesus was a 'compassionate, super-intelligent gay man' in an interview with Parade magazine. He is later banned from entering Egypt and faces the fury of the evangelical right.
February 23rd
Joanna Newsom releases Have One On Me.
February 26th
Japanese hip-hop producer Nujabes dies at 36 in a road accident. He is credited as an inventor of lo-fi hip hop.
March 2nd
The closure of BBC Radio 6 is announced as a cost-cutting measure. The decision is later overturned due to public outcry.
March 6th
Mark Linkous, of Sparklehorse, commits suicide at 47.
March 29th
Ricky Martin confirms that he is gay in a statement on his official website.
April 12th
The British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors label Spotify payments to artists as 'tiny'.
April 14th
Peter Steele, of Type O Negative, dies at 48 of heart issues.
April 19th
Guru, of Gang Starr, dies at 48 of multiple myeloma, a form of blood cancer.
April 22nd
The lead singer of Poison, Bret Michaels, is rushed to hospital with a brain haemorrhage. Doctors later discover he has a hole in his heart.
April 26th
Anaïs Mitchell releases Hadestown.
May 4th
Roc Marciano releases Marcberg.
May 18th
LCD Soundsystem release This Is Happening.
May 24th
Slipknot bassist Paul Gray dies at 38 from an overdose of fentanyl and morphine.
May 31st
After winning a court case in Germany, Rammstein are permitted to release their album, Love is There for Everyone, in the country's record shops. It was previously banned for being harmful to children.
June 6th
Rage Against the Machine play a free concert in London to thank British fans for making their song, 'Killing in the Name', the Christmas number 1 in 2009. 40,000 fans attend.
The money generated from sales of the song, £162,000, is donated to the homeless charity Shelter during the show.
July 4th
Frank Ocean published an open letter detailing a romantic relationship with a man. Despite his own refusal to adopt the label, the music industry immediately branded him as a 'gay' artist, a move that significantly boosted his critical standing.
This created a stark irony. Ocean became the face of progress in R&B, despite his own affiliation with Odd Future and their history of homophobic slurs.
July 5th
Country music producer Daniel Lanois seriously injured in motorbike accident in Los Angeles. He breaks his collarbone, pelvis, and six ribs and spends three weeks in intensive care.
July 24th
21 are killed in a crowd crush at the Love Parade electronic dance music festival in Duisburg, Germany. Approximately one million people attended the event.
August 3rd
Arcade Fire release The Suburbs.
August 5th
Former Fugees vocalist Wyclef Jean announces his candidacy for President of Haiti during an interview with CNN. He is later disqualified for failing to have five consecutive years of residency in the country.
August 13th
Erykah Badu is fined $500 and given six months probation for stripping naked at the JFK assassination site in Dallas while filming her music video for 'Window Seat'.
September 7th - Mercury Prize
Best British Album: The xx - The xx
September 27th
Deerhunter release Halycon Digest.
September 28th
Women release Public Strain.
October 10th
Rock and roll hall of famer Solomon Burke dies at 70 of a heart attack at Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam.
October 16th
The rapper Eyedea, of Eyedea & Abilities, dies at 28 of an opiate overdose.
October 20th
Ari Up, of The Slits, dies at 48 of cancer.
October 25th
Gregory Isaacs dies at 59 of lung cancer.
October 26th
The filesharing site Limewire is shut down following a court order.
November 19th
Jay-Z reveals that he shot his brother when he was 12. His elder brother, Eric, had stolen his ring.
November 26th
Chrysalis Music is sold to the German media giant BMG Rights Management for £107 million. The sale includes the publishing rights of artists like Blondie and Billy Idol.
November 29th
A Stradivarius violin worth £1.2m stolen is stolen from a Pret A Manger in London. The thieves later attempted to sell the instrument for only £100 in Tottenham.
December 9th
The Doors frontman Jim Morrison is posthumously pardoned by Florida for his 1970 indecent exposure and open profanity conviction.
December 17th
Captain Beefheart dies at 69 from complications related to multiple sclerosis.
2010
Courtney Love grants Kurt Cobain's image rights to her daughter Frances Bean Cobain in exchange for a $2.7 million loan.
