Photo: MTV News

If you hate non-biodegradable Styrofoam packaging as much as I do, well, then today is like spring break, Christmas and your 21st birthday all rolled into one. It's Earth Day, the annual celebration of environmentalism, ecological awareness and, uh, recycling (or something). But, of course, you probably knew that already.

Anyway, if you're like me, you're celebrating Earth Day by churning the compost heap, grilling up seitan patties and — most importantly — recycling some old albums.

And when I say "recycling," I don't mean "using them as coasters" or "trading them in to SecondSpin.com for a copy of 'MLB '09: The Show.' " No, I'm talking about rediscovering some gems that warrant a second chance — albums that, whether it was due to the fickle nature of the scene or your evil college girlfriend stealing them from you, never really got the shine they deserved.

And since this is the final Earth Day of the decade, I've decided to focus on albums from the 2000s. So here are 10 overlooked albums that should be recycled ... and not just because music really is a renewable resource. Consider it as yet another way to think globally (and act locally), only, you know, you don't really have to do anything at all. Every one you listen to will save roughly 10,000 trees and offset your entire family's carbon footprint. Or something like that.

The Glands, S/T (2000): A swoony, spindle-legged indie album from Athens, Georgia, that plays like a tour through the town's musical history (R.E.M.'s jangle, the B-52s' bizarre party-pop, the entire Elephant 6 collective's sun-dappled retro-ism). The brainchild of singer/guitarist/songwriter Ross Shapiro, the Glands' self-titled second album laid the blueprint for the success of acts like the Shins with songs like "Mayflower" and "Livin' Was Easy," and the fact that the band has yet to release a follow-up only adds to its mystique.

Green Day, Warning (2000): After the prom anthem ("Good Riddance") and before the rebirth (American Idiot), which is to say "at the exact time when no one cared about them." Warning is the band's worst-selling album, though it's rather unjustly overlooked. Billie Joe Armstrong's writing is super strong — he really begins his blue-collar period here — and tracks like "Minority" and "Warning" proved that GD could still be plenty snotty when they wanted to.

Modest Mouse, The Moon And Antarctica (2000): The album where Modest Mouse got arty. Not as urgent as The Lonesome Crowded West or as uniting as Good News for People Who Love Bad News, the wandering Antarctica is a conceptual work of sorts, about loneliness and isolation (it's reportedly about the soul-crushing time frontman Isaac Brock spent in seemingly disparate locales like Seattle and Gainesville, Florida). Not exactly listener-friendly — the middle section of the album consists of three songs spanning 17 downward-spiraling minutes — it's where Brock began to mature as a lyricist (and a musician). Uneasy listening at its finest.

Q and Not U, No Kill No Beep Beep (2000): Jagged, art-damaged post-punk from impossibly skinny D.C. kids, this is probably the finest record Dischord released this decade. It's also probably the most overlooked, for reasons I'm not exactly clear on. Songs like "Little Sparkee" and "Y Plus White Girl" bristle with spastic energy, the kind the band would forgo on following albums (2002's Different Damage and '04's Power, both of which are plenty good too). They called it quits a few years back, which is a shame. They'll be missed.

Mewithoutyou, Catch for Us the Foxes (2002): Ignore, if possible, the rather bizarre rantings of frontman Aaron Weiss (who is sort of like a Freegan preacher, if that makes any sense) and focus on the searing guitar work on tracks like "January 1979" and "Paper Hanger," or the slow burn of "The Soviet." Actually, Weiss is really good here too, sounding very much like he's on the verge of mental collapse ... which he actually could be. Sorta Christian-core, kinda post-hardcore, Mewithoutyou have always been indefinable. And this is their most indefinable album. It's also their finest.

Brand New, Deja Entendu (2003): Sure, kids in the scene (whatever that is) can claim this one, but can you? Probably not ... though you probably should. Originally intended as a sort of commentary on the state of modern rock, Deja has become a landmark album of so-called "emo-punk" (even though it's nothing of the sort), thanks to songs like "Sic Transit Gloria ... Glory Fades" and "I Will Play My Game Beneath the Spin Light," both of which sound like they could be part of a Fall Out Boy set list today. If you want to trace the evolution of punk from Refused's The Shape of Punk to Come to FOB's From Under the Cork Tree, this is your middle stop.

The Fiery Furnaces, Blueberry Boat (2004): A highly conceptual, overlapping work of art-rock (and art-wonk), Boat confounded pretty much everyone who had buzzed about the Furnaces' debut, Gallowsbird's Bark, though it remains one of the decade's greatest accomplishments. Featuring more than 20 instruments, songs that stretch to 10 minutes and lyrical mentions of Damascus and the 1917 World Series, it's an album that deserves to be heard. And debated. And probably misunderstood.

... And You Will Know Us by the Trail Of Dead, Worlds Apart (2005): A total and complete disaster of an album, one that effectively destroyed all the good will Trail of Dead had built with 2002's monumental Source Tags & Codes. The epic World's Apart is a testament to ego and excess, full of chanting choirs, screaming eagles and violin workouts. It also happens to feature thunderous guitars and drums, not to mention one of the greatest album intros of the decade. TOD deserved better than the backlash they got for this.

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah!, Some Loud Thunder (2007): Hey, speaking of backlash, this is maybe the most backlashiest album released this decade. From the self-release to the production to the shrillness of "Satan Said Dance," CYHSY went for broke on Thunder, and, well, it broke them. Given a few years, I've grown to appreciate this one, if not for the sheer amount of risks the band took, but for the really great second half, highlighted by songs like "Yankee Go Home" and "Underwater (You and Me)."

Panic at the Disco, Pretty. Odd. (2008): I have a love/hate relationship with this band and this album (and I've written plenty about them/it that falls under either category), but I will just say two things: 1) A year after its release, I still listen to P.O. regularly; and 2) Give this one a decade ... we could have another Pinkerton on our hands.

Questions? Concerns? Hit me up at BTTS@MTVStaff.com.

• Green Day
• Modest Mouse
• Panic at the Disco
• Brand New
• Mewithoutyou

Jay-Z's <I>Kingdom Come</I>
Photo: Roc-A-Fella

Zzz: In case you've been sleeping for the past month or so, a fellow by the name of Jay-Z has a new album dropping this week. If that whole weekend promo stunt he pulled wasn't enough to wake you up, maybe Kingdom Come guest spots by his lover, Beyoncé, as well as contributions from John Legend, Usher and Pharrell will. Still not convinced? The deluxe version boasts a DVD with live clips, behind-the-scenes footage and more. Expect this one to wake up the chart in a big way.

The Poop on Snoop: With Jamie Foxx, Nate Dogg, LaToiya Williams and Stevie Wonder helping him out with his new album, Snoop Dogg doesn't have much to feel blue about. But that shouldn't stop you from feeling his LP, Tha Blue Carpet Treatment: It's packed with 21 tracks, including "Candy (Drippin' Like Water)," "I Wanna F--- You" and "Beat Up on Yo Pads."

UTube: U2 have bundled up 18 slices in the form of U218 Singles, but if that's not enough to entice you, they've also put together a limited version with a DVD that, not-so-incidentally, is also being sold separately. Oh, and the music comp also features two new cuts: their cover of "The Saints Are Coming" with Green Day, plus "Window in the Skies," a second tune they laid down at Abbey Road Studios with producer Rick Rubin.

Killer: As if the artwork of their new As Daylight Dies weren't enough, Killswitch Engage gave fans who preordered — get this — a dog tag designed by bassist Mike D'Antonio. Said item has a code that unlocks a Web site featuring an outtake from the Daylight recording sessions. On top of that, New England retailer Newbury Comics offered fans a signed booklet from the Boston band with their preorders.

Pac'ing It Up?: In case you didn't hear, Tupac Shakur apparently left a song or two lying around after he passed. The seemingly endless line of posthumous releases continues this week with Pac's Life, a 13-cut comp featuring Ludacris ("Playa Cardz Right [Male]," which also features Keon Bryce), Lil Scrappy ("Don't Sleep") and Chamillionaire ("Sleep"). Swizz Beatz also contributes, putting his remix sheen on the lead track, "Untouchable."

Dudes by Any Other Name: "American Idol" finalist Chris Daughtry might be taken for a slimmed-down Vin Diesel, but he's bringing his own action this week with Daughtry, a 12-track disc he's releasing under the same name. He recorded the effort with session musicians — oh, and some guy named Slash, who appears on "What I Want." Another aspiring singer, Lukas Rossi, also gets a shot this week with Rock Star Supernova's eponymous debut, finally overshadowing the legal issues that have dominated news surrounding the band that also features GN'R vet Gilby Clarke, ex-Metallica bassist Jason Newsted and Mötley Crüe skin-pounder Tommy Lee. That CD — preorders of which were tacked with a bonus DVD — includes songs called (seriously) "Make No Mistake ... This Is the Take," "Be Yourself (and 5 Other Cliches)" and "Social Disgrace." Yeeeah.

Winging It: The wait is over, peeps: Winger are dropping their first album in 14 years. Winger IV — which, notably, is the band's fourth album — finds founding fathers Kip Winger, Reb Beach and Rod Morgenstein ganging up for one more dose of hair-brained tuneage. Ethan Van Sciver, who pencils "Superman" and "Batman" comics when he's not doing Winger artwork, also lends a hand with the album cover. And in the blue corner, there's Europe, who also have a new Job-ber — sorry, that one's for "Arrested Development" fans only — in the DVD "Live in Sweden: The Final Countdown Tour 1986 - 20th Anniversary Edition." That sucker has a previously unissued goodie, the instrumental "Where Men Won't Dare" — yes, the jokes keep coming this week — plus some bonus video of the band recording The Final Countdown. Unfortunately, it doesn't come with a ringtone.

Brand-New Brand New (Couldn't Resist): Long Island, New York, is getting a bit louder this week with the evocatively titled The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me, the latest by emo pop-punkers Brand New. The LP sees the band on its third label in as many albums and setting forth "Archers Bows Have Broken," "Limousine (MS Rebridge)" and "Welcome to Bangkok." Unfortunately for those across the pond, the effort won't be hitting European stores until January 12. At which point it won't be so brand-new. On to the next release ...

Not Brand-New at All: It's getting to be the holiday season, which means it's also time to hit the vaults for some surefire sellers. P.O.D.'s Greatest Hits (The Atlantic Years) chalks up 17 songs by the Christian critters, including the never-before-released "Going in Blind" and "Here We Go," plus the "Passion of the Christ" soundtrack contribution "Truly Amazing." There's also a repolished version of MxPx's Let It Happen - Deluxe Edition, with six unreleased tracks and a bonus DVD; Emery's The Question: The Deluxe Edition, also with a wealth of unreleased cuts and a DVD; Jamiroquai's self-explanatory High Times: Singles 1992-2006, with two fresh joints; The Legend of Johnny Cash Vol. II, which pulls together hookups with Dylan, Hank Williams Jr. and Waylon Jennings; and rare 1971 releases from Karen Dalton (In My Own Time) and Jackie Mittoo (Wishbone), the former of which includes adoring liner notes from Nick Cave and Devendra Banhart.

But while those might fit into your stocking, this batch of back-catalog boxes won't: Robert Plant's Nine Lives contains a hefty nonet's worth of CDs, brimming with unreleased treats, not to mention a nifty DVD; the Doors' limited 40th anniversary Perceptions goes two steps further with a dozen discs, loaded with unearthed tracks and surround-sound mixes; and David Crosby's three-disc Voyage, which culls recordings from the sperm donor himself as well as slices from the Byrds, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Crosby & Nash and ... oh, well, you get the idea.

Song Title of the Week:

"The World Gets Smaller When You Dream" from Dave Fischoff's Crawl

Other Notables:

Various artists' Plague Songs: Haven't read the Bible? Perhaps you'd like to hear it instead. No, we're not talking book-on-tape style, we're talking Plague Songs, a fresh comp that finds artists taking delight in revisiting the storied tales of locusts, boils and other desert desserts. The 10 original tracks feature rocketing newbie Imogen Heap, Rufus Wainwright, the Magnetic Fields' Stephin Merritt, plus a long-awaited return from woefully underrated Roots buddy Cody Chestnutt. Now that's sick.

Swan Lake's Beast Moans: With songs like "A Venue Called Rubella," "The Partisan but He's Got to Know" and "Are You Swimming in Her Pools?," how can you go wrong with this 13-track platter of indie-rock goodness? The maiden release by this north-of-the-border band brings together Daniel Bejar (New Pornographers, Destroyer), Spencer Krug (Wolf Parade) and Casey Mercer (Frog Eyes), who collaboratively wrote and produced the opus.

Various artists' Brats on the Beat: Ramones for Kids: Enough of your 'Mon-ing — it's time to let your kids in on the action. Partly an effort to support St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital, the outing corrals members of Alkaline Trio, Pennywise, TSOL and the Donnas, who all lend their "kiddified" expertise to classics by the punk pioneers. Former Queens of the Stone Age bassist/singer Nick Oliveri also rears his head, for an appropriate rendition of "Suzy Is a Headbanger."

New Releases:

· Stephen D. Anderson - Remembering the Rain: The Music of Bill Evans (Art of Life) · Antiquus - Eleutheria (Cruz del Sur) · Tim Barry - Rivanna Junction (Suburban Home) · Ben & Vesper - More Questions (Sounds Familyre) · Maya Beiser - Almost Human (Koch) · Cheryl Bentyne - The Book of Love (Telarc) · Blackmore's Night - Winter Carols (Locomotive) · Woody Bradshaw - Lightning in a Bottle (Thump) · Brand New - The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me (Interscope) [Buy Now] · Paul Brill - Harpooner (Young American) · Guy Clark - Workbench Songs (Dualtone) · Steve Cole - True - (Narada) · Crescent Shield - The Last of My Kind (Cruz del Sur) · Dark Meat - Universal Indians (Cloud) · Darzamat - Semidevilish (MVD Audio) · Daughtry - Daughtry (19 Recordings/ RCA) [Buy Now] Read: "Chris Daughtry Drafts Fuel Guitarist, My Chemical Romance Producer For LP" · Dirty Faces - Get Right With God (Jagjaguwar) · Enter Chaos - Dream Worker (MVD Audio) · Fat Jack and Mascaria - Timespan · Dave Fischoff - Crawl (Secretly Canadian) · Frontside - ... For Ours Is the Kingdom, the Power and Glory ... (MVD Audio) · Robin Gibb - My Favorite Carols (Koch) · Great Big Sea - In Concert: Courage & Patience & Grit (with DVD; Zöe/Rounder) · Handful of Hate - Gruesome Splendour (Cruz del Music) · Hopewell - The Notbirds EP (Tee Pee) · Hybrid - I Choose Noise (Distinct'ive) · Il Divo - Siempre (Columbia) [Buy Now] · Jay-Z - Kingdom Come (deluxe version with DVD also available; Roc-A-Fella) [Buy Now] Read: "Jay-Z's 'Retirement' Is Finally Over: New Album Due In November" · Simon Joyner - The Skeleton Blues (Jagjaguwar) · Killswitch Engage - As Daylight Dies (Roadrunner) [Buy Now] Read: "Killswitch Engage Turn On The Heavy For Glass-Shattering As Daylight Dies" · Kyau & Albert - Worldvibe (enhanced; Water) · Patti Labelle - The Gospel According to Patti Labelle (Bungalo) · Loreena McKennitt - An Ancient Muse (Verve) · Nightmares on Wax - My Definition: One Artist, One Album, One Journey (My Definition) · P-1 - Power (Esntion Silver) · Marty Raybon - When the Sand Runs Out (Aspirion) · Rock Star Supernova - Rock Star Supernova (Epic) [Buy Now] · Satellite - A Street Between Sunrise and Sunset (MVD Audio) · The Scumfrog - Mega Scum (Effin) · Sizzla - The Overstanding (Koch) · Snoop Dogg - Tha Blue Carpet Treatment (Geffen) [Buy Now] · Speakerfire - Audio Alchemy (EP; Piermont) · Tomasz Stanko - Wolnosc W Sierpniu (MVD Audio) · Summer Hymns - Backward Masks (Misra) · Swan Lake - Beast Moans (Jagjaguwar) · Tralala - Is That the Tralala (Audika) · Turbo - Identity (MVD Audio) · Jimmy Van M - Balance 010 (three CDs; E.Q.) · TK Webb - Phantom Parade (Social Registry) · John Wetton - Amata (MVD Audio) · Winger - Winger IV (Shrapnel) · Darryl Worley - Here and Now (903) · David Young - A Christmas I'll Remember (Universe) · Various artists - Abstract Latin Journey Mixed by Julius Papp (MVD Audio) · Various artists - Brats on the Beat: Ramones for Kids (Go-Kart) · Various artists - Forever, for Always, for Luther: Volume II (digipak; Rendezvous) · Various artists - Plague of Songs (4AD) · Various artists - Rockpalast: Crossroads Festival Vol. 1 (Inakustic) · Various artists - Thankful (Temporary Residence) · Various artists - "Bobby" soundtrack (Island) · Various artists - "The History Boys" soundtrack (Rhino) · Various artists - "National Lampoon's Van Wilder: The Rise of Taj" soundtrack (Eleven Seven)

Notable Reissues and Archival Material :

· Abba - Number Ones (Polydor/UMe) · Charly Antolini - Knock Out 2000 (MVD Audio) · Audionom - Retrospektiv (Kemado) · Kevin Ayers - Joy of a Toy (Water) · Beatles - Love (special edition with DVD also available; Apple/Capitol) · Behemoth - Sventevith (MVD Audio) · Buckcherry - Buckcherry - Special Edition (comes in a slipcase and with a bonus DVD; Geffen) · Eddie Calvert - Songs of the Golden Trumpet (ASV Living Era) · Johnny Cash - The Legend of Johnny Cash Vol. II (Island) · Billy Cobham - Stratus (MVD Audio) · David Crosby - If I Could Only Remember My Name (with DVD) and Voyage (three-CD box set) (Rhino) · Karen Dalton - In My Own Time (Light in the Attic) · Doors - Perceptions (limited-edition box set with six CDs and six DVDs; Rhino) · Emery - The Question: The Deluxe Edition (with bonus DVD; Tooth & Nail) · Enya - Amarantine (box set; Reprise) · Big John Hamilton - How Much Can a Man Take (Sundazed) · Jagged Edge - "The Hits" (Epic) · Jamiroquai - High Times: Singles 1992-2006 (Epic) · Kiss - Alive! 1975-2000 (four-CD box set) and 20th Century Masters: The Best of Kiss - The Millennium Collection Volume 3 (Island) · Kottonmouth Kings - Hidden Stash III (two CDs and DVD; Suburban Noize) · Bettye LaVette - Do Your Duty (Sundazed) · Vera Lynn - The Forces' Sweetheart (two CDs; ASV Living Era) · Freddie Mercury - Lover of Life, Singer of Songs: The Very Best of Freddie Mercury Solo (Hollywood) · Mirah - Joyride: Remixes (K) · Jackie Mittoo - Wishbone (Light in the Attic) · MxPx - Let It Happen - Deluxe Edition (with DVD; Tooth & Nail) · Oasis - Stop the Clocks (special edition with bonus CD and DVD also available; Epic) [Buy Now] · Pendragon - Acoustically Challenged (MVD Audio) · Robert Plant - Nine Lives (nine-CD box set; Rhino) · P.O.D. - Greatest Hits (The Atlantic Years) (Rhino) [Buy Now] · Reel Big Fish - Greatest Hit ... and More (Mojo/Jive) · Sufjan Stevens - Sufjan Stevens Presents: Songs for Christmas Singalong (five-CD box set; Asthmatic Kitty) · Chris Tomlin - The Early Years (two CDs; Sparrow) · Tupac Shakur - Pac's Life (Amaru/Interscope) [Buy Now] · U2 - U218 Singles (limited-edition version with DVD also available; Interscope) [Buy Now] · Tom Waits - Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers & Bastards (three CDs; Anti) · Robert Pete Williams - An Introduction to Robert Pete Williams (Fuel) · Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings - Struttin' Our Stuff (MVD Audio) · Various artists - A Fine Time! The South Side of Soul Street (Sundazed) · Various artists - An Introduction to Classical Music (Fuel) · Various artists - Dreamgirls - Original Broadway Cast Album: Special Edition (two CDs; Decca Broadway/ UMe) · Various artists - Southern Fried Funk: 22 Funky Soul Grooves From New Orleans and the Deep South (Grapevine)

Music DVDs :

· Natasha Bedingfield - "Live in New York City" (Epic) · Tony Bennett - "An American Classic" (Columbia) · Bizzy Bone - "Live in Concert" (MVD Visual) · Blackalicious - "4/20 Live in Seattle" (MVD Visual) · David Bowie - "Under Review 1976-1979: The Berlin Trilogy" (MVD Visual) · Edgar Broughton Band - "At Rockpalast" (MVD Visual) · John Cale - "An Exploration of the Life and Work of One of the Most Influential and Enigmatic Figures in Music" (Kultur) · Cream - "Classic Artists: Cream" (Image) · Diamond Head - "To the Devil His Due" (MVD Visual) · Europe - "Live in Sweden: The Final Countdown Tour 1986 - 20th Anniversary Edition" (MVD Visual) · Fall Out Boy - "Solid Gold Uncertainty" (Chrome Dreams) · Chris Farlowe - "At Rockpalast" (MVD Visual) · Focus - "Music in Review" (two DVDs; Classic Rock Legends) · Free - "The Free Story: The Essential Albums of All Time" (Classic Rock Legends) · John Wesley Harding & Friends - "A Bloody Show: Live at Bumbershoot 2005" (Arcanum) · Il Divo - "Live at the Greek Theater" (Columbia) · Nils Lofgren & Friends - "Live Acoustic" (MVD Visual) · Joe Lovano Nonet - "Paris Concert" (MVD Visual) · Johnny Mathis - "Gold: A 50th Anniversary Celebration" · Meat Beat Manifesto - "Travelogue Live 05" (MVD Visual) · Reba McEntire - "Video Gold I" and "Video Gold II" (MCA Nashville) · Mission of Burma - "Not a Photograph: The Mission of Burma Story" (MVD Visual) · Murder Junkies - "European Invasion 2005" (MVD Visual) · Nirvana - "In Utero: A Classic Album Under Review" (MVD Visual) · The Osmonds - "Live in Concert: London 2006 - Collectors Edition" (MVD Visual) · Pendragon - "And Now Everybody to the Stage" (limited-edition package with two CDs; MVD Visual) · Elvis Presley - "The Ed Sullivan Shows" (three DVDs; Image) · Archie Shepp Band - "Geneva Concert" (MVD Visual) · Smokey Robinson and the Miracles - "Definitive Performances: 1963-1987" (Motown) · Bruce Springsteen - "Music in Review: The Ultimate Critical Review" (with book; Classic Rock Legends) · U2 - "U218 Videos" (Interscope) · Wendy O. Williams and the Plasmatics - "10 Years of Revolutionary Rock and Roll" (MVD Visual) · The Who - "Who's Better, Who's Best" (Geffen) · Robbie Williams - "Music in Review" (Classic Rock Legends) · Various artists - "A Very Special Latin Christmas: Noche del Paz" (Hip-O) · Various artists - "Awol One: Culturama 777: Audiovisual Bombshelter Vol. 3" (MVD Visual) · Various artists - "No More to Say & Nothing More to Weep For: An Elegy for Allen Ginsberg" (Kultur) · Various artists - "Our Forefathers: The Proto-Punk Box" (four-DVD box set; MVD Visual)

Coming Attractions :

November 28 :

· Incubus - Light Grenades (Epic) [Preorder] Read: "Incubus' Mike Einziger Lends Agent Sparks A Hand Making The Best Brunch LP Ever" · Ying Yang Twins - Chemically Imbalanced (TVT) [Preorder] · Young Buck - Buck Tha World (Interscope) [Preorder]

December 5 :

· Ciara - The Evolution (enhanced; LaFace) [Preorder] Read: "Ciara Talks Single Life, Dreams Of Acting Like A Boy On Evolution" · Lil Scrappy - Bred 2 Die, Born 2 Live (Reprise) [Preorder] Read: "Lil Scrappy Enlists Eminem, 50, Lil Jon For 'Half Sorry, Half Party' LP" · Metallica - "The Videos: 1989-2004" (Warner Bros.) · Gwen Stefani - The Sweet Escape (Interscope) [Preorder] Read: "Gwen Stefani's New LP, The Sweet Escape, Set For December" · Various artists - Eminem Presents the Re-Up (Shady) [Preorder] Read: "Eminem, New Shady Artists Join 50 Cent, Lloyd Banks On The Re-Up" · Various artists - "Fast Food Nation" soundtrack (Park the Van)

December 12 :

· Mary J. Blige - Reflections (A Retrospective) (Geffen) [Preorder] Read: "Mary J.'s Greatest-Hits LP Brings Three New Songs, Brushes Off Rumors" · Fantasia - Fantasia (J) [Preorder] Read: "Fantasia Collaborates With Her American Idol, Aretha Franklin" · Taylor Hicks - Taylor Hicks (RCA) [Preorder] Read: "Taylor Hicks Planning To 'Wamp' It Up With New Sound On Debut LP" · Bobby Valentino - Special Occasion (Def Jam) [Preorder] Read: "Bobby Valentino Asks Sean Garrett, Rodney Jerkins To Attend Special Occasion" · Young Jeezy - Thug Motivation 102: The Inspiration (Def Jam) [Preorder] Read: "Jeezy Waiting On Kanye For LP; Addresses Rumors Of Tour With Jay, Nas"

• Roca-Air: Jay-Z's Hangar Tour

• Jay-Z
• Snoop Dogg
• U2
• Killswitch Engage
• Tupac

Fall Out Boy's Patrick Stump
Photo: Dan Higgins

Last year organizers of the Bamboozle Festival ran into a bit of trouble with one particularly zealous fire marshal in Asbury Park, New Jersey. So much so that they've decided to take Bamboozle 2006 from their beloved Asbury and move it some 60 miles north to the Meadowlands in East Rutherford. And they're bringing a bunch of today's biggest pop-and-emo punk acts with them.

Event organizers have confirmed to MTV News that Fall Out Boy, Taking Back Sunday and Motion City Soundtrack are booked for Bamboozle 2006, to be held May 6-7 at the Meadowlands Sports Complex. Organizers said the two-day fest will pack more than 100 bands into the lots surrounding Giants Stadium, and while they wouldn't officially confirm any more acts, they did say Yellowcard, Hawthorne Heights, Thursday, All-American Rejects, Panic! at the Disco and Brand New might be playing, along with an appearance by a special guest "that no one will expect."

Last year's Bamboozle packed well over 100 bands into three days (see "My Chemical Romance, Brand New, Thrice To Headline Bamboozle Fest On Jersey Shore") but was marred by the last-minute cancellation of headliners, unannounced changes of set times, expensive lodging for out-of-town fans and a general sense of chaos. Organizers promised that Bamboozle 2006 will run much smoother, thanks in no small part to the cooperation of the Meadowlands.

This year's Bamboozle will feature five stages, including a special indoor acoustic venue, and tickets will run $35 for a single day or $55 for a weekend pass. A special presale will begin on December 2 at the festival's site, TheBamboozle.com.

• Fall Out Boy
• Taking Back Sunday
• Motion City Soundtrack
• Yellowcard
• Hawthorne Heights

Emo Mash-Ups

Let it be known that the Los Angeles-based mash-up collective Legion of Doom have nothing to do with former tag-team wrestling greats the Legion of Doom (née the Road Warriors, Hawk and Animal, they of the facepaint and spiky shoulderpads). For starters, this Legion of Doom don't have fierce-sounding nicknames. In fact, they don't have any names at all.

"We are called the Legion because we are many — well, there's at least two of us," laughed the person we'll call Legionnaire 1. "How about at least one member but less than 100? We're trying to de-emphasize the focus on who is really participating in this, because some guys could get in trouble if they were found out."

Let's cut through the mystery. This Legion of Doom are a Los Angeles-based mash-up collective that has taken a bunch of songs by acts in a genre that has rarely (if ever) been mashed — emo-punk — and mixed them up with songs by other emo-punkers. The end result is a collection of tracks with clever titles like "The Quiet Screaming" (a mash of Brand New's "The Quiet Things That No One Ever Knows" and Dashboard Confessional's "Screaming Infidelities"). They then post these bootleg mash-ups on their the-legion-of-doom.com Web Site, where fans can download them for free.

And that's where all the problems started.

"The ones we've released now are not authorized and not licensed. And we've already run into a wall with the people involved," Legionnaire 1 said. "Taking Back Sunday apparently didn't like us messing with their music in our way. And we anticipated that possibility. Not everyone is going to be thrilled to see us meddling with their work."

The Legion took the offending mash-up — a combo of TBS and Senses Fail called "I Know What You Buried Last Summer" — off the site, and they've heard from at least one band (or label) involved in each mash-up they've created, many of whom were less than pleased. Which is discouraging to Legion of Doom, because, as Legionnaire 1 put it, they view their mashes as an extension of "the punk-rock ethos."

"We're excited about music as a fluid, living medium. No longer is a piece of recorded music done when an artist puts out a record. People now can take a piece of recorded music and turn it into something else. It's a sort of cool, new folk-art movement," he said. "You have to be aware that once you release a record, it's fair game. You can take steps to defend the recording, but in the digital world, once it's out there, it's out there — you've got to be comfortable with that. And in our case, you can reap the rewards."

And there are definitely rewards to be reaped, because the Legion of Doom are putting the finishing touches on their debut album, a collection of fully licensed mashes that will benefit both masher and mashee. It's a long, legalese-filled process, but the Legion are working through it, because they don't want to "pull a Danger Mouse," a reference to the hip-hop producer who drew the ire of music publishing giant EMI when he released the no-samples-cleared The Grey Album, which paired Jay-Z's The Black Album with the Beatles' White Album (see "Producer Of The Grey Album, Jay-Z/ Beatles Mash-Up, Gets Served").

"Everything on our record will be authorized. It's a fairly sophisticated arrangement to have to reach. You're dealing with so many different people, but we're doing it because we want it to be a real product, sold in stores, rather than just slipping it out over the Internet," Legionnaire 1 said. "It would be great — we thought — if people could walk into stores and buy it, and people who wrote the songs can get paid too."

The group hopes the album, called Incorporated, will hit stores this month or next. Until then, there's plenty to keep the Legion busy: dodging the ever-present cease-and-desist orders from pesky publishers, a constant danger in the mash-up trade (see "Beatles Publisher Tells Metallica Mash-Up Band To Get Back"), doing remixes for emo-punk acts and plotting their first tour.

"We've talked about going out on the road, and a live band would be kind of crazy," Legionnaire 1 said. "I mean, we're not DJs, and we don't get up there with turntables. These mash-ups weren't done in that way. These are fairly complex studio productions, so it would be kind of difficult to take it live. But man, we're going to try."

• Brand New
• Dashboard Confessional
• Taking Back Sunday
• Senses Fail

My Chemical Romance (file)
Photo: Getty Images/Scott Gries

Hey, what are you doing on the last weekend in April? If you're like 85 percent of the music industry and a lot of fans, you'll be heading to Indio, California, for the 2005 version of the Coachella festival.

But if you're just a normal fan who doesn't want to shell out $150 for a two-day Coachella pass (not to mention maxing out that credit card on plane tickets, a hotel room and/or a rental car), then you can head to Asbury Park on the New Jersey shore to catch the Bamboozle Festival, which takes place April 29-May 1 at several venues.

A true anti-Coachella, this year's Bamboozle is three days of punk and emo in just about every subgenre imaginable: My Chemical Romance, Brand New, Alkaline Trio, Thrice, the Starting Line, Fall Out Boy, the Bouncing Souls, Straylight Run and Flogging Molly are among the headliners, and more than 50 other acts round out the bill. And a ticket for all three days costs just 79 bucks.

The festival was started three years ago by of a couple of Jersey guys — John D'Esposito and Kevin Kopacko — who wanted to not only celebrate the bevy of local talent that's sprung to national prominence over the past few years (most of the bands on this year's bill hail from the Garden State or nearby), but also because they were sick of seeing festivals pass up their beloved Asbury Park.

"I came up with the name for the festival one day when I was looking out the window of the Stone Pony [a landmark rock club in Asbury Park], just staring at this building that was three-quarters completed, then just abandoned," D'Esposito recalled. "And I was like, 'Some corrupt politician just bamboozled the city again.'

"Asbury lost the Warped Tour to another market a few years ago, and the city has such a rich musical scene and history. It's had such a rough 12 years, that we wanted to make a festival that would develop as the city develops."

So they decided to start a festival in the Warped Tour model — low ticket prices, massive lineups — and after two years of calling the Stone Pony home, this year's Bamboozle has expanded to several other Asbury venues, like the Convention Hall (which also has a storied musical history) and Bradley Park. And even though they're going up against the Coachella, D'Esposito isn't worried about Bamboozle going under anytime soon.

"We went up against Bonnaroo a few years ago, and this year, while we have had five to seven bands decline our invitation to play, we're still getting a ton of cool bands," he said. "The bands come here for the same reason the kids do: They know it's going to be a party. It's a punk-rock spring break. There's the beach and the hotels, and it's three days of nonstop music and partying."

For more information about the Bamboozle festival see www.TheBamboozle.com.

• My Chemical Romance
• Brand New
• Thrice

Brand New
Photo: Brian Appio

Brand New reserve their rocking for the concert stage, not the soundstage. When it comes to making videos, the emo quartet would rather make none at all than film a clip that finds them playing a pseudo-show.

In the video for "Sic Transit Gloria ... Glory Fades," the second single from their second album, Deja Entendu, Brand New pick up where they left off with their previous clip, "The Quiet Things That No One Ever Knows," and display a similar cinematic slant.

"What's nice is that there's no performance in it," singer Jesse Lacey said. "There are no shots of us holding our guitars and pretending to play the song. Most of our favorite videos are like mini-movies. Something else is going on other than the band actually playing."

Filmed in Los Angeles by director Marc Webb (P.O.D., AFI) in mid-October, the clip focuses on Lacey as its main character, and, like the video for "The Quiet Things," a bit of the supernatural plays a part. Instead of roaming around as a ghost, however, this time Lacey acts like a human voodoo doll. He discovers that when he moves a particular body part, so does the target of his powers.

"Since the song is about taking advantage of someone else," he said, "there's a pretty strong correlation between the video and the song."

So much so, it's a bit surprising to know that the idea for the clip came from its director, who had harbored the idea for some time. Brand New just happened to be the band to take him up on his offer.

"It's cool to be able to let someone who's talented run with whatever they want to do," Lacey said. "You have to understand that [Marc] has a vision as well. And you have to give him the leeway to go ahead with it."

The clip is expected to appear in a few weeks, while the single has just begun to surface at radio.

Brand New are on the road with Hot Rod Circuit and Eisley through early December, after which they'll play various radio-sponsored festivals. Lacey jokingly calls the idea of performing on a bill with the likes of Michelle Branch and Vanessa Carlton "interesting," but you won't hear him complaining about it. Where 2001's Your Favorite Weapon went virtually unnoticed by the mainstream, radio and video outlets picked up "The Quiet Things" to help Deja Entendu sell more than 173,000 copies during the five months it's been out.

"It's been incredible," Lacey said of the past year's success. "The response we've gotten from radio has been awesome. We never thought that would ever happen, and all of a sudden it just came out of nowhere. We thought it was only going to last a week or a week and a half, but it kept on growing. Us, on the radio, is huge. It's just crazy. So we're pretty grateful for that."

• Brand New

Brand New
Photo: Razor & Tie

"Short and sweet" is perhaps a phrase with which Brand New singer Jesse Lacey isn't familiar ... as it pertains to song titles, anyway.

Take, for example, "I Will Play My Game Beneath the Spin Light," "The Boy Who Blocked His Own Shot," "Good to Know That If I Ever Need Attention All I Have to Do Is Die" and the single "The Quiet Things That No One Ever Knows." It's possible that Lacey thinks artists who employ titles with fewer than a half dozen words are selling themselves short.

And the song titles on Brand New's second album, Deja Entendu, that aren't as longwinded still have mental complexity to them. "Tautou" is a paean to French actress Audrey Tautou ("Amelie"), "Guernica" takes its name from Pablo Picasso's 1937 mural, and "Me Vs. Maradona Vs. Elvis" is a depiction of Lacey's worst nightmare.

"I'm a big soccer fan and [Argentine striker Diego] Maradona is kind of like the Elvis of the soccer world," he explained. "He was a star and then he let the world get to him, and then he was this washed-up figure, but he had these shining moments when his old magic came out. And I can totally see myself — maybe 10 years down the road — ending up the same way, becoming this washed-up figure who used to be great and who isn't really anymore. I can't imagine anything more awful than that."

If Lacey and bandmates Garrett Tierney (bass), Vin Accardi (guitar) and Brian Lane (drums) stay the course they're on now, however, they shouldn't have to worry much about being has-beens. "The Quiet Things," with help from its epic video (see "Already Heard Of Underground Upstarts Brand New? Consider Yourself Lucky"), is getting increasingly more spins at radio, and sales of Deja Entendu, at more than 51,000 copies, are closing in on the sales of its predecessor, 2001's Your Favorite Weapon, after just seven weeks.

The band is on the Vans Warped Tour through Sunday and will open for the sonically likeminded Dashboard Confessional beginning August 30. Confirmed tour dates run through early October. A headlining tour is being planned thereafter, and sometime during a break in the action, they'll shoot a video for the second single, which may be either "Sic Transit Gloria ... Glory Fades" or "Okay I Believe You, But My Tommy Gun Don't."

If the song titles are confusing, Brand New's approach to songwriting is anything but. The chunky riffage and ethereal harmonies of "The Quiet Things" make it instantly infectious, while the steady throb of "Sic Transit Gloria" lends itself to involuntary head-nodding. He may have been lacking one adage when it came to titling his songs, but when it came to writing them, Lacey maintained another: Keep it simple, stupid.

"When I'm in the middle of a song and I hit a wall, instead of trying to think it out ... usually the best way for it to go is how you'd expect it to go," he said. "Instead of trying to do something crazy or new, it's kind of like, this is the part that just has to come next just because that's how the song already goes, even though it's not there yet. It's a strange thing, it's almost like you're not writing, you're just taking it from somewhere else.

"In a way, I always feel like I'm fooling people with that," he added. "None of us really know how to write songs; we're kind of just winging it."

• Brand New

Brand New
Photo: Razor & Tie

Jesse Lacey's got one hell of a nerve.

While his Long Island, New York, quartet's name is Brand New, their second album is titled Deja Entendu, French for "already heard." Where does Lacey get off performing stale tunes with such a fresh-sounding band name?

"It's very tongue-in-cheek," the singer said of the title to Brand New's second album, which was released Tuesday. "No matter who you are or what your band is about, you can't put a record out without people saying it's derivative of something else. So by saying the record's already been heard, it's kind of like saying, 'Yeah, you're right. We're doing something that's already been done before.'

"And in a sense we are. We're not trying to break new ground in music. We're just trying to make good music."

While some might say Brand New have picked up the emo torch only to run in circles with it, thousands of fans of the underground upstarts staunchly disagree. Three shows of the band's 24-date headlining trek with Moneen, Senses Fail, and the Beautiful Mistake have sold out, a feat accomplished without a single being played on radio or video outlets. Word of mouth, touring and Internet message boards have done wonders to create a buzz that culminates in hundreds of fans singing along to Brand New's debut, Your Favorite Weapon (2001), in concert, Dashboard Confessional-style.

It also helps to get a recommendation from that band's frontman, Chris Carrabba.

"It's very strange," Lacey explained. "The songs are things I wrote on my acoustic guitar in my bedroom. Before you know it, people fall in love with them and thousands of people are singing the words to them when I'm playing. It's very surreal."

Brand New open for Dashboard Confessional in August, following the close of the Vans Warped Tour, which they join July 23 (see "Dashboard Confessional Bail On Beck Tour").

The future promises to only get brighter for Lacey, bassist Garrett Tierney, guitarist Vin Accardi and drummer Brian Lane when Deja Entendu's first single, "The Quiet Things That No One Ever Knows," hits the airwaves July 9.

"The song's a little bit about regret," Lacey said. "How there can be problems in a relationship and they get ignored. And how that often ends up as a broken home or some kind of bad situation down the road. It's kind of something that if it wasn't overlooked in the first place, you can kind of get through it."

A video for the song was shot earlier this month in Boston, exemplifying regret in the form of unresolved closure. After a severe car accident, a mortally wounded Lacey cannot depart for the next world until he knows the his girlfriend, also injured in the crash, is safe in this one.

"The video is about death or losing someone and it's those moments that you kind of look back on your life and realize all the regrets that you had, and all the things you wish you could change," Lacey said.

Conceived by Lacey and director Kurt St. Thomas (Fannypack, Northern State), the clip is decidedly high-concept for a "baby band." But while the album title riffs off played-out sounds, they didn't want a tired feel for their vision.

"We didn't want to do a video where we're playing in a living room and the lights are going out and the walls are falling apart," Lacey said, "or we're riding around the street in low-riders. That's been done a zillion times. When we play the lights don't really go out and the building doesn't really shake. So we figured we shouldn't do that in the video, either."

Brand New tour dates, according to the band's publicist:

• 6/20 - New York, NY @ Irving Plaza
• 6/24 - Scranton, PA @ Tink's
• 6/25 - State College, PA @ The Crowbar
• 6/26 - Pittsburgh, PA @ Club Laga
• 6/27 - Toledo, OH @ Frankie's
• 6/28 - Indianapolis, IN @ Rehearsal Studios
• 6/29 - Covington, KY @ Jillian's Entertainment Center
• 7/1 - Saint Louis, MO @ Creepy Crawl
• 7/2 - Chicago, IL @ Metro / Smart Bar
• 7/3 - Minneapolis, MN @ Ascot Room at Quest Club
• 7/4 - La Crosse, WI @ The Warehouse
• 7/5 - Iowa City, IA @ Gabe's Oasis
• 7/6 - Lawrence, KS @ The Bottleneck
• 7/7 - Boulder, CO @ Tulagi
• 7/9 - Seattle, WA @ Graceland
• 7/10 - Portland, OR @ Meow Meow
• 7/11 - San Francisco, CA @ Slim's
• 7/12 - West Hollywood, CA @ The Troubadour
• 7/13 - Anaheim, CA @ Chain Reaction
• 7/15 - San Diego, CA @ Mira Mesa Epicentre
• 7/16 - Tempe, AZ @ Marquee Theatre
• 7/18 - Dallas, TX @ The Door
• 7/19 - Houston, TX @ Fat Cat's (formerly Mary Jane's)
• 7/20 - Austin, TX @ Emo's

• Brand New

Brand New live at Liberty Hall in Lawrence, KS November 21, 2003

• Brand New

Advance Warning Volume 3. Photos

• Brand New
• Lupe Fiasco
• Elephant Man
• Dwele
• Ima Robot

MTV Exclusive: Brand New Photos

• Brand New

Brand New: Photos

• Brand New