Beastie Boys updates

On winning a Grammy…

"No, we weren't surprised at all that we won it," Horovitz says. "I feel like we're a well-oiled instrumental machine, and we were guaranteed a win. And we paid extra money to win it. (laughs) No, it is weird... Best Pop Instrumental? I definitely wouldn't have thought that 20 years ago. But it's kinda cool. “Instrumental' is a very wide spectrum... Twenty years ago, I was into jazz and dub-reggae, which are instrumental also... We're actually proud of it." (New Times)

On Yauch’s documentary…

Adam Yauch of the Beastie Boys decided to bring this one-of-a-kind event to the big screen by directing “Gunnin’ For That #1 Spot,” a documentary that chronicles eight players participating in the Elite 24 and premiered last week in New York.

It could’ve simply been a documentary of the game itself, but the film instead gave a behind-the-scenes look at the best players high school hoops has to offer, which made it that much more compelling. For instance, there were fascinating stories, old pictures and video clips of these potential NBA stars as they rose to superstardom.

The flick also features a hot soundtrack that includes such hip-hop legends stars as Jay-Z, Nas, Lil Wayne, The Game and of course, the Beastie Boys. (Rise Magazine)

Yauch said he aims to release the movie around the time of the NBA draft this summer. (Billboard)

On the new album…

"We're gonna be rapping, ya know, on the mic," Horovitz says feigning the voice of an old man. "We'll be MCing, or however the kids say it these days... “ (New Times)

"It's all new, original," says MCA, aka Adam Yauch, "but I don't think it's gonna come out this year, no." (Billboard)

The next Beastie Boys album will probably be out sometime next year, as according to them, they are either "a fifth, or a third" of the way through. (The Tripwire)

On the Mix-Up vocal album…

Jarvis Cocker and Snoop Dogg have both turned in spoken words for the album, and M.I.A. has created a song as well. (The Tripwire)

On hip-hop, the band, and the sitar...

“Honestly, people always freak out about hip-hop. I don't understand — why do people think this is still an issue? It's clearly the biggest music in the world. It's as if they're still asking the question 'Is hip-hop gonna last?'... What does that even mean? Do people still ask is rock 'n' roll gonna last? It's silly. Record sales in general are down. People don't buy records anymore. That's the way it is. It's not just rap."

Horovitz says he can't even conceive of the group parting ways. "What for?" Horovitz says with a laugh. "We're friends first, and we're gonna be friends if this thing ever ends. We just made a pact a long time ago that it was more important for us to be friends and enjoy what we're doing than any of the other stuff. That's the main priority. And it's like, why make it a bad thing? We're all friends, we're making money, this is paying our bills... what's the problem? We split everythingevenly... It's just weird when you see all these good bands break up."

It's clear that these guys know their way around their respective instruments, but sitar? "It wasn't actually a sitar; it's a guitar sitar — like an electric guitar with a few extra strings that make it sound like a sitar," says Horovitz, starting to laugh as if he's just gotten away with something. "I bought it on eBay for 100 bucks!" (New Times)

On Langerado…

When the Beastie Boys hit the stage on Friday night for their first-ever concert in the Everglades, rapper-drummer Mike D wants to arrive like a Floridian. "I'm thinking airboat," he said.

"In a festival-type environment we're not going to do 'jazz odyssey'; it would be a fool's errand," he said, adding that the band would likely concentrate on "material people know a little better." [Mike D] (Sun-Sentinel)

Horovitz says the band is stoked to get out of the frigid New York air for a bit. "Dude, it's 20 degrees up here," he says. "We're gonna get paid to be warm for a couple of days and play music... There wasn't really a second thought about it."

"We're really looking forward to Langerado," Horovitz says. "We don't know much about it yet, but I'm sure by this time next week, we'll be down there with everybody having a whole lot of fun." (New Times)