New This Week

  • Can I Be Blunt?

    By | New This Week – Sun, Sep 16, 2007 8:33 PM EDT

    Well, this was the big week when rappers 50 Cent and Kanye West went head-to-head in their dramatic battle to sell the most records! And I know I wasn't alone in quivering with excitement! Best of all--as a special bonus to buying the CDs, consumers were actually allowed to listen to them!

    So forget the sales brouhaha--let's talk quality! I was pretty excited by the 50 Cent album, mostly because of that great picture in the CD booklet showing him actually eating a gun from a dinner plate! And the Kanye West album was great because one of the three billion tracks it blatantly ripped off--er, I mean, one of the fab tracks it included prominently credited Can, the ultragreat German band, who'll probably be getting lots of unexpected royalty money as a result!

    The real winner? I'd say it was journalists all over the world, who could spew meaningless copy everywhere during an otherwise dreary news week! Just like me! Hey, I'm not proud!

    James Blunt: All The Lost Souls (Custard/Atlantic)

    Read More »

  • Wow! Am I ever energized! Must be because I inadvertently watched some of the MTV Music Awards ceremony a little while ago--and now I am more enthused than ever about today's fabulous pop music scene! Talk about feeling at one with my peeps! This may be the best time in the history of music!

    But of course the drama's not over. Because this is the week that starts the Battle Royale of 2007's record sales! Will 50 Cent sell more copies of his new album than Kanye West? Will Kanye West sell more copies of his new album than 50 Cent? Will Kenny Chesney surprise everyone and beat them both with his new album? Will the world suddenly, tragically explode and thus deprive us all of the resolution to this grim and historic struggle?

    Hah! No way!

    And now on to the good stuff!

    50 Cent: Curtis (Shady/Aftermath/Interscope) Well, as we all know, the quality of any album is completely a function of how many unrelated guest stars can be crammed onto it, so Mr. Cent's album must be a masterpiece!

    Read More »

  • Maybe the upcoming 50 Cent vs. Kanye West album sales melodrama has convinced people that boatloads of great albums are arriving in droves every week, but I'm here to tell you that, uh, the ship didn't make it to port this week and the losers are arriving in droves!

    Usually when I put together this list I find about 20 albums worth noting and cull that list down to the 10 you eventually see. At the moment I've found only eight, and let's just say my notion of "worth noting" might not exactly be everyone else's! Hopefully I'll think of two more or--what the heck--make a couple up for kicks! No one's ever noticed before, so why should they now?

    Ted Nugent: Love Grenade (Eagle) Might as well start with the best!  Lovable Ted is back, is produced by his Damn Yankees buddy Jack Blades (of Night Ranger fame!), and has actually remade his first pop hit, "Journey To The Center Of The Mind."  Back in '68 when he made it, most people thought the lyrics were about drugs 'n' stuff--but now, the

    Read More »

  • Everything Is Great!

    By | New This Week – Mon, Aug 27, 2007 9:48 AM EDT

    Newcomers, famous names, weirdos and veritable saviors of humanity are among the countless thousands who'll be releasing new albums this week--and it's now my honor to recount many of them!

    But you know something? When I look at this list--which I haven't written yet, but I soon will--something strikes me. And that's the fact that it's likely there isn't a single person on this earth who would be a fan of all of these albums! It's true! Sadly, today's music fans have such divergent tastes, no one really seems capable of truly liking everything.

    But I do. Yes, that's correct. I do indeed like everything, and in fact I probably like it more than you do!

    But--and here's where it gets tricky--it has to start with a certain letter! And today's letter is Q!

     

    Atreyu: Lead Sails Paper Anchor (Hollywood) Cleverly taking their name from the French pronunciation of "After You," these fun-loving hard-rockers will open the doors of your perception and more! With a massive fan base behind them-- I

    Read More »

  • Let The Battle Begin!

    By | New This Week – Mon, Aug 20, 2007 7:00 AM EDT

    The industry's a-buzzin' about the showdown coming in just a few weeks--when 50 Cent and Kanye West release their long-awaited new albums on the same day!  If Kanye outsells me, then I will retire from the music business, sort of, declared Mr. Cent himself! It's so dramatic that I can barely stand it, and I'm sure you feel the same way!

    Maybe it's just me, but ever since they passed that new law declaring that every recording artist's worth is directly proportional to the number of album he or she sells, I'm starting to wonder if the artists I like are, well, you know, popular enough! Like, I don't want to back any losers, you know what I mean?

    I think to play it safe we should all buy copies of both of those guys' albums! You know, maintain the status quo! Like, why make waves? Who knows--maybe one day they'll buy us dinner or something!

    Aiden: Conviction (Victory) I knew something was up with this lovable Seattle band when I noticed they actually credited the person who gives them

    Read More »

  • Back To High School!

    By | New This Week – Mon, Aug 13, 2007 10:34 AM EDT

    It was a sad night last week when I--in the midst of my vacation--checked to see whether last week's blog thing was up and running and saw the heartbreaking comment left by someone named "Salma." The poor dear, who apparently dresses like a pirate, offered some advice that was, I admit, somewhat sage: "lets stick 2 the present and future," she wrote, "and not worry about the past."

    As it happened, I read her note just minutes after attending a concert in New Bedford, Massachusetts, featuring both Eric Burdon & the Animals and the Yardbirds! In 2007! Cost of admission for four people? A marvelous $175!

    Salma, U R right on the $$! I have learned my lesson and from now on will embrace the future with gusto! And may I suggest you check out Momus for further fashion tips?

    ***

    Television Soundtrack: High School Musical 2 (Walt Disney) Don't know how you feel about it, but "quivering with anticipation" best describes my take on what's bound to be one of the year's biggest records! And that,

    Read More »

  • If someone would have told me many, many years ago that there would such a thing as "the Internet," and that while typing on a "personal computer," I would say that one of the week's spotlight "CDs" would be a reissue by the Fifth Dimension, I would have grabbed them, tied them down, and tortured them until they revealed incredibly valuable stock tips that would make me a multi-millionaire with absolutely no need to use "the Internet" at all! Sadly, however, that never happened, and I've led a bitter, lonely life.

    But enough about me! Let's talk about the new Fuel album!

    ***

     

    Fuel: Angels And Devils (Epic) Is this the best Fuel album ever? Well, that's hard to say.  I can report that the band has a new lead singer named Toryn Green, and that Mr. Green would in fact have been the exciting Chris "American Idol" Daughtry had fate not intervened! I can also report that the band's new drummer was formerly in Godsmack! Most notably, I can report that with today's exciting digital

    Read More »

  • Anyone who'd dare suggest that today's pop music scene is getting "dumbed down" by design--and there's more than a few saying precisely that--will be in for a rude awakening this week!  Sure, there's a lot of dopey music videos out there and, OK, maybe a tad too much emphasis on the risqué, but while you're out there complaining, you're missing the big picture! Common's new album is called Finding Forever! Yo-Yo Ma's new album is called New Impossibilities! Korn's new album is called Untitled!

    I have seen the future of contemporary music, and at least two-thirds of it wants to teach us calculus!

    ***

    Common: Finding Forever (Geffen) A hot return indeed for this soulful and intellectual performer, featuring some fine production from our old friends Kanye West and will.i.am, among others, and guest appearances from Lily Allen and D'Angelo--who, silly me, I had completely forgotten about! Largely because I was envisioning a future scenario wherein Common is at a bar, repeatedly asked his

    Read More »

  • Prince Vs. Galactus!

    By | New This Week – Mon, Jul 23, 2007 11:20 AM EDT

    It's a week of spectacular returns! Just ask anybody working behind the counter at a record store! Yep, this week's awe-inspiring release schedule includes the latest from some longtime big names, some unexpectedly groovy discs from former teen faves, and also... Sum 41! All things considered, life could only be better were it I who'd penned the new slogan for Capt. Morgan's Rum--which I saw on a billboard today and am compelled to include here if only to praise its sheer artistry:

    "What Rum Would Drink If Rum Could Drink Rum."

    Dude: Who says it can't?

    ***

    Prince: Planet Earth (Columbia) He's back, he's playing in tiny hotels, and he's giving his album away to English people who buy newspapers! Yes, it's the fabulous Prince, and his new record is actually very good indeed. Were I the sort of guy who coached careers for a living, I do believe I'd tell the guy that all he really needs now to be back on top is an actual hit record. Because people generally like him but--let's be

    Read More »

  • If you're like me, good new albums this week by the Chemical Brothers, Suzanne Vega, and the superbly named Editors are just what the doctor ordered! Cultural critics from here to Timbuktu are always ragging on artists who fill their albums with "one good song and the rest is junk," and if you ask me--and by definition you are--that consistency thing is a bogus argument that presupposes lots of crummy songs are good in the first place! Get my drift? Consistency is great, most of the time! And sometimes it isn't! Stop trying to frame my perception of the music business, dude!

    The Chemical Brothers: We Are The Night  (Astralwerks) Back and better than ever, England's lovable Chemical Brothers return with a danceable "sonic collage" featuring guest appearances by the Klaxons, Willy Mason, some guy from Midlake and mysterious rapper Fatlip, who appears courtesy of himself! Long a fixture in the UK dance/electronica scene, it's time the Chemical Brothers were individually singled out for

    Read More »

Pagination

  1. 26
  2. 27
  3. 28
  4. 29
(287 Stories)

News for You

  • The new consoles from Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony

    NEW YORK (AP) — Microsoft is the last of the three big video game console makers to unveil its latest gaming system. The unveiling comes nearly eight years after the Xbox 360 went on sale. It follows last fall's debut of Nintendo's Wii U and a preview in February of the upcoming PlayStation 4 from Sony.

  • Singer Kellie Pickler named new 'Dancing' champ

    LOS ANGELES (AP) — Kellie Pickler came into the final "Dancing With the Stars" episode in second place but finished in first.

  • Woman on Trump: 'Somebody had to stand up to him'

    CHICAGO (AP) — An 87-year-old woman who alleges Donald Trump cheated her in a skyscraper-condo sale told jurors Monday she had qualms about suing the real estate mogul and TV celebrity. But, she quickly added, "Somebody had to stand up to him."

  • Restaurant learns online reviews can make or break

    PHOENIX (AP) — It was the customer service disaster heard around the Internet.

  • Disney-owned ESPN cutting hundreds of jobs: source

    By Liana B. Baker (Reuters) - ESPN, the sports channel that is Walt Disney Co's most profitable unit, is cutting 300 to 400 jobs across the company and closing a small Denver office, a person with knowledge of the cuts said. The job cuts, comprising 4 to 6 percent of ESPN's staff of 7,000, include open positions that will not be filled, said the source, who asked not to be named because the information is not public. But ESPN will continue hiring for other open positions, the person said. The channel has recently won rights to exclusive coverage of the U.S. ...

  • First Look: New Xbox elegant, but much unknown

    REDMOND, Wash. (AP) — Will gamers want One?

Show More

TOP VIDEOS

  1. Can't Hold Us
    1.
    Can't Hold Us
    Macklemore & Ryan … | Warner
  2. 2.
    Just Give Me A Reason
    P!nk, (f/ Nate Ruess …
  3. 3.
    Mirrors
    Justin Timberlake
  4. 4.
    When I Was Your Man
    Bruno Mars
  5. 5.
    Stay
    Rihanna, (f/ Mikky E …
  6. 6.
    Come & Get It
    Selena Gomez
  7. 7.
    Thrift Shop
    Macklemore & Ryan …
  8. 8.
    Radioactive
    Imagine Dragons
  9. 9.
    I Love It
    Icona Pop
  10. 10.
    Cruise
    Florida Georgia Line