New This Week
  • Coldplay, Warm Heart!

    There's one thing you can always count on!

    As we get closer and closer to the holidays--that glorious period in which friends and family members start looking for meaningful presents to give to their loved ones--the best records of the year will methodically emerge!

    And as a result, a simple rundown of the week's best new album releases--which during certain times of the year can be drearily depressing--often offers up a non-stop array of fabulous and recognizable names!

    Still, the holidays themselves, and all the emotion they typically engender, might lead one to wonder about their actual mortality--like, how long will I actually be here before I pass on and ultimately become dust in the wind?--and spend less time with trivialities such as new albums, new clothes, or whether it really makes sense to give any money to those official-looking dudes who stand in front of Rite-Aid all day wearing white suits and holding canisters of coins ostensibly intended for a "charitable cause"!

    But

    Read More »from Coldplay, Warm Heart!
  • Couch Trip!

    It's been one heck of an exciting week!

    I spent this weekend watching superstars the likes of Lady Gaga, Bono & The Edge and Usher wish former President Bill Clinton a happy birthday at the Hollywood Bowl during a gala celebration that was conspicuously streamed by Yahoo!

    I bought a brand new computer that I am at this very minute writing with--and as we all know, getting a new pencil, pen or computer means that any writer will write better, more succinctly and more directly to the point than he or she ever has before!

    Finally, I am listening to an advance of the complete Chess Masters of blues legend Howlin' Wolf--and anticipating writing about the first solo album by a former member of highly regarded pop combo Fall Out Boy!

    Best of all? Earlier today I brushed my teeth!

    Read More »from Couch Trip!
  • Bowling For Dollars!

    A fascinating array of new releases by well-known names, reissues by people who've been making records for 40 years or so, and debut albums by talentless know-nothings make this the best album release week ever!

    On Mars!

    Oddly, however, here on Earth we must content ourselves with a rather dull array of mildly OK releases by not-bad-at-all artists whose new albums each cost more than a single month of Spotify or other all-you-can-eat Internet music services!

    And one could easily pop for 10 bucks a month and spend the rest of one's financial allotment for more meaningful products like alcoholic beverages, Frito-Lay products, and cheaper-than-ever hard drives!

    And after that? It's all up to you!

     

    Peter Gabriel: New Blood (Special Edition) (Real World)  A disarming collection of singer Peter Gabriel's best songs performed live with innovative orchestral backing? Hey, I'll take a dozen! The latest by the former lead singer of Genesis is as innovative as you might expect, from its

    Read More »from Bowling For Dollars!
  • The F Word!

    With great new records by the likes of the immaculately contemporary Feist sitting side by side with worthy new releases by such names as the Hollies, Paul McCartney and everyone's unanimous favorite, Styx, this may be the finest album release week since three weeks ago!

    On the other hand, this may be the last glimmer of hope record buyers will ever have until their inevitable bankruptcy and homelessness makes music purchasing a sad, near-surrealistic memory!

    And on the third hand, this could be a completely normal release week--nothing new, nothing special, same-old same-old--marred only by an unexpected meteor shower that destroys most of the northern hemisphere!

    With all those options, then, there's only one winnable strategy! Stay at home, keep your curtains drawn, call up every person you've ever offended in your life, apologize to them, and then scrunch your eyelids up real tight and imagine you're onstage singing with the Foo Fighters!

    That's always worked for me!

    Read More »from The F Word!
  • Pink Floyd Vs. Nirvana!

    Qualitatively speaking, I'd say that this is the strongest week of new album releases of the entire year!

    And why not? Here we've got the complete works of Pink Floyd, the classic Verve recordings of legendary jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery, and a deluxe reissue of Nirvana's Nevermind!

    Yet ironically--and perhaps serving as a statement regarding the state of today's music--most of these fabulous albums were recorded 20 or more years ago!

    But no matter! Television is better than ever, there's a fabulous 3D remake of The Lion King out there, gas costs nearly 4 dollars a gallon, and if I really want to know what new albums are worth buying, I can just check out what my friends are listening to on Facebook!

    The only bummer? Now I have to start making friends!

    Read More »from Pink Floyd Vs. Nirvana!
  • Duets From Heck!

    It struck me last night--while the Emmys ceremony was apparently on TV--that I was not being deliberately obtuse or contrary by instead preferring to listen to the complete discography of Kiki Dee--or at least as much of it as I could muster--than watch a show celebrating humans I was barely familiar with!

    Indeed, hearing the strangely attractive Ms. Dee exchange promises with her good friend Elton John that she would not go breakin' his heart--bless them both--filled me with an unexpected warmth and excitement that, dare I suggest, I might not feel watching an episode or two of Glee!

    Still, on the drive to work this morning, I saw a dead squirrel on the side of the road and two people arguing in the car next to mine! The marine layer was thick over Santa Monica, and for a moment, quite profoundly, I wondered how many years I had left on this earth!

    Then some jerk in a Subaru cut me off and the guy behind me couldn't keep his hand off his horn!

    It was then I decided to write my blog

    Read More »from Duets From Heck!
  • It's once again that time of the year when, unbelievably, great new records mystically appear!

    Some say it's a natural function of greedy record labels holding back their hottest product until the holiday season approaches--at which time, the theory goes, potential customers will a) have money to spare and b) actually be able to locate a record store somewhere!

    Others say it's a natural by-product of nearly a year's worth of crummy records being released! At this rate, informed sources report, nearly anything will look good!

    Still others suggest it's all purely a coincidence--don't worry, more crummy records will be coming out soon, so don't start thinking you should save up your money and lose out on hot new video games and luscious energy drinks! There's bound to be a new Ke$ha album coming down the pike!

    Meanwhile...heck! My pulse is racing!

     

    Lady Antebellum: Own The Night (Capitol Nashville)  Few can deny the entire world has been waiting for the new Lady Antebellum album! One of

    Read More »from That Was No Lady Antebellum!
  • Ten Utterly Fantastic New Albums!

    If you're like me, and have spent some portion of your life completely enraptured with popular music, you may have noticed that at one particular instant--one brief, memorable moment--your perception of what was good and what was not suddenly veered from what some would call "common consensus."

    Maybe you liked Limp Bizkit too much. Maybe you couldn't understand the appeal of rap music. Maybe you wish grunge had never died. Maybe you spent six months writing a 250-page graduate school thesis on the merits of Seven Mary Three, and one of your professors looked at it and said, "Hey, man--they suck!"

    In my case, however, I would pinpoint the exact moment I went off the rails to the release of what I still maintain was one of the finest songs of the past few decades--Aqua's awe-inspiring "Barbie Girl"--and yesterday's stunning news that the readers of Rolling Stone have declared it to be not one of but absolutely the worst song of the '90s!

    Read More »from Ten Utterly Fantastic New Albums!
  • Red Hot & Blue!

    There are times when I wonder if I'll ever again be capable of feeling "at one" with today's music-buying audience!

    Frankly, there have been recent occasions when I look at some of today's biggest bestsellers, and say--to myself, mind you, for I surely wouldn't want to alienate any of my many loyal readers--Good God, is it just my imagination, or is this current bestselling artist a talentless moron who has based his or her career entirely upon such flimsy concepts as his or her wealth, status, or public appeal rather than his or her innate musical talent?

    At other times, I watch my TV and see pop music's biggest stars parading around onstage, lacking only the clown outfits they surely need, and ask myself, Whatever happened to those artists who I'd not only watch with fascination but, at times, even wish I could be?

    But you know what? Things have changed after this weekend! I just watched the MTV Music Video Awards show--and my goal in life is to now dress like a man and kiss Britney

    Read More »from Red Hot & Blue!
  • Game On!

    In many ways, pop culture superstar Barbra Streisand and celebrated rapper The Game are alike!

    For starters, they both are releasing new albums this week!

    Secondly, they both tend to receive significant press coverage now and again--especially, in the Game's case, exactly when he's about to release a new album!

    And perhaps most importantly, according to respected retail sources around the country, fans of Barbra Streisand are extremely vocal about their affection for The Game and vice-versa!

    "As far as I can see," said one reputable source, "every person who's ever come in here looking for a Barbra Streisand album hasn't left without buying a Game album as well!"

    Adds another respected music wholesaler: "Hip-hop and MOR have never been closer--not only as far as a common customer base, but as far as fan identification as well! The number of people who are buying both the new Throne album and Celine Dion's latest set would blow your mind!"

    Both sources laughed when asked if they found

    Read More »from Game On!

Pagination

(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.

  • 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."

  • 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. ...

  • Man pleads guilty in Picasso vandalism case

    HOUSTON (AP) — A man accused of vandalizing a 1929 Pablo Picasso painting in a Houston museum — an act that was caught on cellphone video — agreed Tuesday to a two-year prison term as part of a plea deal with prosecutors.

  • NY Cuomo letter warns Kardashian over T-shirt logo

    ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo's sent a letter to Khloe Kardashian informing the reality star the logo on her T-shirt line may be violating copyright law.

  • A diversion in the air for 'Today'

    NEW YORK (AP) — Two charter airplanes carrying the "Today" show anchor team and their crew from Hawaii to Yellowstone National Park were diverted in the air to Oklahoma for coverage Tuesday of the catastrophic tornado outside of Oklahoma City.

TOP VIDEOS

  1. Can't Hold Us
    1.Macklemore & Ryan … | Warner
  2. 2.P!nk, (f/ Nate Ruess …
  3. 3.Justin Timberlake
  4. 5.Rihanna, (f/ Mikky E …
  5. 6.Selena Gomez
  6. 7.Macklemore & Ryan …
  7. 8.Imagine Dragons
  8. 9.Icona Pop
  9. 10.Florida Georgia Line