Gordon Gano
Photo: Jill Epstein

With so many visitors it's sometimes hard to know who's the star and who's the guest, hip-hop has perfected the art of the cameo.

But with the exception of Santana's multi-platinum Supernatural and recent CDs from Stevie Nicks and Sheryl Crow, most rock artists have been less willing to share their albums with a raft of guest vocalists and players.

A pair of upcoming albums from two punk/new wave legends, though, takes the idea of star-studded collabos and twists them around in two unexpected ways.

The solo debut from Violent Femmes lead singer Gordon Gano, Hitting the Ground (August 27), is so star-studded that the nasally voiced singer could only squeeze his vocals onto three of the 11 tracks.

Of course, it helps when your songs are sung by the likes of two different members of the Velvet Underground (Lou Reed and John Cale), PJ Harvey frontwoman Polly Jean Harvey, former Pixies singer Frank Black, They Might Be Giants, and ex-4 Non Blondes singer and Pink/Christina Aguilera producer Linda Perry.

On the flip side, John Doe, singer for Los Angeles punk legends X and leader of the John Doe Thing, simply called some of his friends in to help out on his upcoming fourth full-length solo album, Dim Stars, Bright Sky (August 20). His friends just happen to be folks like Jakob Dylan, Aimee Mann, Juliana Hatfield and Go-Go's member Jane Wiedlin, whose contributions are decidedly more subtle than Gano's collaborations.

"I thought, 'Wouldn't it be cool to sing with them ... people who I respect as people and artists?' " Doe said of his first acoustic album, which he tagged as "folk soul." "I have a difficult time separating the two, because if I don't like the person I usually don't like what they sing about."

Gano came by his high rollin' cameos through a back door. His first solo effort after 20 years fronting the Femmes was conceived as the soundtrack to a film by David Moore ("Polish Spaghetti"). The indie filmmaker tapped Gano for the project after seeing a performance of the "Blister in the Sun" singer's musical, "Carmen: The First Two Chapters" at New York's avant-garde Knitting Factory club.

"It started because I thought that, for a movie, it seemed silly if the same voice is singing in the background all the time," Gano said. While, like Doe, Gano nabbed some friends to voice his songs, he'd never met some of the guests, such as Perry.

"I was vaguely familiar with her, but there were probably only five or 10 seconds of the 4 Non Blondes record that had something that I liked vocally," he said candidly. The two bonded on the phone, though, over their mutual love of smoky jazz singer Nina Simone, and Perry turned in a nuanced, sensual vocal that surprised both her and Gano.

In another surprise, Polly Jean Harvey's take on the title track features her amazing, quavering imitation of Gano's signature vocal style over a driving folk punk track, which he took as a high compliment.

Though Gano wrote all of the songs and recorded rough demos for his colleagues (and in some cases finished songs awaiting their vocals) to work off of, only punk godfather Lou Reed got a co-songwriting credit.

"I told him about the project and he said if he had time and was inspired that he would try to do something," Gano said of his musical hero. "Well, at the point where I thought it wasn't going to happen, he called and said he was done, but that he'd changed some of the lyrics." As it turned out, in addition to rewriting more than half of the lyrics to the playful sung/spoken "Catch 'Em in the Act," Reed also completely rearranged the song's phrasing in a way that Gano said he could have never imagined.

Being the old-school punk that he is, Doe had always eyed all-star albums with a healthy dose of skepticism. But, after years of being asked why he hadn't recorded an all-acoustic album, Doe finally decided that the songs he'd been writing seemed to call for a more mellow setting, so he swallowed his punk rock pride and unplugged.

Bringing along his friends for the ride suddenly didn't seem like such a bad idea, either.

"The same part of me that resisted doing an acoustic album resists being pigeonholed and worries about getting old, or soft," Doe said. "It's difficult to maintain that intensity after you've relied on electric guitars and fast tempos. Making rock music is very seductive and you always wonder, 'I've been at 10, am I getting to 10 this way?' "

While he traded bashing drums, electric guitars and loud vocals for pedal steel, mandolin, acoustic guitars and piano, Doe found a different kind of intensity. Paired with female singers who complement his voice in a more seductively poppy way than the edgier vocals of his longtime partner in X, Exene Cervenka, Doe's voice takes on a mellower, wounded tone on the album. Songs like "Closet of Dreams," "Still You" and "Backroom" are a series of elliptical poems about lives hanging in the balance and fuzzy portraits of characters barely keeping hold of the ones they love, and in some cases, themselves.

With a solo career that has frequently drawn more accolades than record sales, Doe said he thought the novelty of an acoustic album, paired with the guests, couldn't hurt his prospects.

"I'd be a liar if I said I did it strictly because of the art," he said. "Eighty percent of the people that say 'I love John Doe' have no idea what I sound like. But I also realize that it's cool and people like those things in an age where there's so many things going on at once and every small advantage my help you make another record."

Similarly, Gano said he wasn't concerned that his voice doesn't appear all over his solo debut, because his guests wont' likely hurt sales, either. "It was just very natural in how it developed," he said. "Maybe it's like my version of a hip-hop solo record!"

• Gordon Gano
• John Doe
• Lou Reed
• John Cale
• PJ Harvey

Blake Babies' John Strohm and Juliana Hatfield
Photo: Mammoth

Pioneering alterna-pop trio the Blake Babies will support their first new album in a decade with a brief tour in June, according to the group's publicist.

The Boston-based Babies — whose lineup maintains original members singer Juliana Hatfield, guitarist John P. Strohm and drummer Freda Love-Smith — will begin their curt courtship with the road June 6 in Columbus, Ohio. Only eight shows are confirmed so far, but more are expected to be added, the publicist said.

God Bless the Blake Babies, released March 6, is the first new music from the band since the Babies' 1991 Rosy Jack World EP. The 12-track LP features the song "Brain Damage," a duet between Hatfield and her former boyfriend/frequent muse, Lemonheads frontman Evan Dando, who penned the tune with Australian singer/songwriter Ben Lee.

Blake Babies tour dates, according to their publicist:

• 6/6 - Columbus, OH @ Little Brother's
• 6/7 - Cleveland, OH @ Grog Shop
• 6/8 - Detroit, MI @ Magic Stick
• 6/9 - Chicago, IL @ Double Door
• 6/10 - Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue
• 6/13 - Seattle, WA @ Crocodile Cafe
• 6/15 - San Francisco, CA @ Great American Music Hall
• 6/16 - Los Angeles, CA @ Knitting Factory

• Blake Babies
• Juliana Hatfield

Juliana Hatfield

The sound of the early-'90s alt-rockers — singer/bassist Juliana Hatfield, singer/guitarist John Strohm and drummer Freda Love-Smith (née Boner) — who disbanded in 1991 but recently reformed and released God Bless the Blake Babies this month, has changed quite a bit since their heyday.

There was a time when they sounded comparable to their contemporaries Galaxie 500, the Lemonheads and Dinosaur Jr. But at South by Southwest, in their Rounder Records showcase at Momo's on Saturday, they sounded as if they'd fit better on an adult contemporary radio playlist — not unlike Hatfield's semi-acoustic solo album of last year, Beautiful Creature. Their set leaned heavily on songs from the new album. Hatfield introduced "Until I Almost Died" as the song about the time she almost jumped out a window, and she insisted that she didn't want to play "Take Your Time," because the lyrics were too honest. They also played "Baby Gets High," "Disappear" and "Nothing Ever Happens" — the first Blake Babies song written by Smith.

Hatfield was on rhythm guitar, because Daniel Johnston (a young man from Alabama, not the notable Austin singer/songwriter), has been playing bass with the Blake Babies on their limited tour with the Starlight Mints. This end of the tour was marked by this performance, which was marred by a capacity problem in the club.

Fire marshals inspected Momo's just before the Blake Babies' set and declared the capacity crowd was a fire hazard. They insisted that the club move half of the audience outside on the porch or close down for the night. After about a half-hour delay, and after half of the annoyed audience was moved outside, the band was finally allowed to start its set before a half-empty club with a line down the block.

Hatfield apologized to the audience and explained that she could sympathize, because she had been unable to get in to see Creeper Lagoon at Buffalo Billiards earlier that evening herself. The band played an extra-long set to make up for the inconvenience. Eventually, everyone drifted back inside and got to see at least a little of this decade-in-the-making reunion.

• Blake Babies
• Juliana Hatfield

Jurassic 5
Photo: Interscope

When the electronica revolution hit Austin, Texas' South By Southwest festival four years ago, it was hard to picture how anonymous DJ culture was going to coexist with four nights of indie rock, Americana and roots music.

But now, even though the electronica invasion has faded somewhat from public consciousness, you're almost as likely to see a rapper or button-pushing mixer during the fest as you are a standup bass player or string-tie-wearin' Tex-Mex combo.

When the 14th annual music gathering kicks off Wednesday, it will have the usual wide variety of acts — 1,000 total. But as far as creative director Brent Grulke is concerned, at this point beats and boots are just business as usual in this music Mecca.

"The interaction between electronic music and hip-hop now represents a really significant part of the festival in a way that was virtually nonexistent a few years ago," said Grulke, who has been involved with the festival every year of its existence.

Part music-industry confab, part band showcase and all about schmoozing, SXSW is the kind of place where you can see ya'llternative singer/songwriter Sally Timms playing just a few doors down from ghetto tech star DJ Assault.

Its 8,000-plus registered attendees will descend on the college town and state capital to stumble from venue to venue, drink beer, eat barbecue and check out panels on such topics as, "How Do You Publicize a Mike Watt in a Britney Spears World?" "It's not just the numbers [of hip-hop groups] involved," Grulke said. "We now have very established talent that performs, we have two of our largest venues, Stubb's and the Austin Music Hall, with entire nights dedicated to hip-hop this year." Among the big names on tap for this year are twangy singer/songwriter Lucinda Williams, who will debut some of the material from her upcoming album, Broken Butterflies, (due in the spring) and the Black Crowes, in town to preview songs from their upcoming album, Lions (May 8).

Also performing are hip-hoppers Jurassic 5, the Liks and Black Eyed Peas; local rockers Fastball; experimental turntablist DJ Spooky; and a rare show from ex-Tina Turner hubby Ike Turner with his Ike Turner Revue.

Psychedelic popster Robyn Hitchcock will head up a reunited version of his late-'70s psych-pop band the Soft Boys, and Juliana Hatfield will take the stage for a reunion with her mid-'80s Boston pop rock group the Blake Babies.

Other acts performing on more than 40 stages include bluegrass star Ricky Skaggs, Los Angeles rock 'n' soul act the Bellrays, arty poppers the New Pornographers, Japanese pop punkers Ex-Girl, Canadian live house band the New Deal, turntablists X-ecutioners, world beat star Thomas Mapfumo, Latin all-star band Los Super Seven and Los Angeles punk rockers Texas Terri & the Stiff Ones.

Grulke said the festival also will feature one of the biggest slates to date of world music acts. Joining such international rock bands as Aterciopelados (Colombia), Coccoon Pit (Japan), the Gift (Portugal) and Yao (China) will be more than 70 other acts spanning the globe, including Moroccan reggae group Sawt el Atlas, world beat singer Henri Dikongue (Cameroon), Hungary's DJ Pozsi and hip-hoppers Pepe Deluxe (Finland).

SXSW's star-making mythos has been overstated in the past, but it is a good opportunity for bands to get in front of what is arguably one of the biggest concentrations of U.S. music media. No pressure, right? Just imagine if it was among your first-ever U.S. performances. That's the case for English hip-hop/punk group Brassy, who will have played just five shows in this country before unleashing their Digital-Hardcore-meets-Luscious-Jackson sound on the media elite Friday night.

"I don't know anything about it," said lead singer/guitarist Muffin Spencer, 32, an expat American who said she left the U.S. 14 years ago because she thought British bands were more interesting. "We met with our former publishing company and there was a little old man there who said it [SXSW] is a place to go and get smashed on tequila, which sounds fine." Spencer, younger sister of Jon Spencer Blues Explosion leader Jon Spencer, said she thinks the festival will be a good chance for critics who might have missed the recent U.S. release of the band's full-length debut, Got It Made, to check out their energetic live show. The 17-track album features such break-beat pop as "Work It Out" and the band's electro-punk anthem "No Competition." Grulke said one thing that won't be as prominent in the festival's sprawling trade-show area this year is the proliferation of dot-com booths that sprung up like weeds last year. "A lot of those companies that didn't know what their business agendas were are gone," Grulke said.

• Jurassic 5
• DJ Assault
• The Mekons
• Lucinda Williams
• The Black Crowes

Boston-based singer-songwriter and alt-rock veteran Juliana Hatfield will be hitting the road in May to support not one, but two new albums.

"Beautiful Creature" will released under Hatfield's name proper on May 16, while a second record, "Total System Failure," credited to Juliana's Pony, will hit stores on the same day. Both discs will be on Zoe Records, an offshoot of Rounder Records.

"It's a little complicated," Hatfield told MTV News of her double-disc situation. "'Beautiful Creature' is a bit more mellow, but it is 'the Juliana Hatfield record.' Juliana's Pony is a little side project band, and that [album is] more rock. It's harder, maybe a little more fun. Well, they're both really fun, actually.

"A whole bunch of different people played on 'Beautiful Creature,' and a bunch of different producers and studios as well," Hatfield explained. "David Garza played a bunch of different stuff on it. He played some bass, and guitar and some piano, and he co-produced some of it. My friend Damon Richardson, who played with Hayden, played some drums on it. He's really good. [Jack Drag drummer] Jason Sutter played some drums on it as well.

"The other album, 'Total System Failure,' is sort of a power trio." Hatfield said. "It's more of a band. Me on guitar and vocals, [Weezer's] Mikey Welsh on bass, and Zephan Courtney on drums."

On her upcoming tour, Hatfield plans to use an all-new band and feature material from both new albums.

"The band that I have live will do some of the 'Pony' stuff, probably, but it's mostly going to focus on the 'Beautiful Creature' stuff," Hatfield noted. "The record label is still not sure what album they will work a single [from]. They may work both at the same time, but I'm pretty sure they will focus on a song from 'Beautiful Creature' called 'Somebody Is Waiting For Me.'"

From her early touring days in the late '80s with former group the Blake Babies through the '90s, Hatfield had steadily toured and attracted an audience that she feels continues to evolve.

"Every tour I do, I get the feeling that I have turned on a few new people, who had no idea or no interest, or thought they didn't like my stuff," Hatfield said. "I get the sense that people bring their friends who might have thought they didn't like me but get dragged along, and they actually end up liking it. I get a lot of people who come back and say, 'Wow, I never really knew that you were doing that, and I really like it.'

"I think that I'm better live than before, and... God, I hate praising myself, but I think the live thing is a lot different than my old records, which is all some people know," she said. "I think the live thing is a lot richer, and deeper, maybe."

In the last year, Hatfield has certainly been busy. In addition to recording "Beautiful Creature" and "Total System Failure," she also found time to work on a new project with her old group, the Blake Babies.

"We made a record a couple for months ago," Hatfield said. "I think it was Freda's idea [Freda Love, drummer for Blake Babies, Antenna, and The Mysteries Of Life]. She called us up, and we all had a little timeframe when we weren't doing anything, so we went to Indiana to record.

"John Strohm [guitarist for Blake Babies, Antenna, and occasional Lemonhead] came up from Alabama," Hatfield continued. "Evan [Dando] came out too, and he played some guitar and some bass and some vocals, and contributed a song he wrote with Ben Lee. It was a really cool thing. John and I came up with some songs that we started working on through the mail.

"We don't know who is going to put the record out or when," she added. "We are going to work on that when my record is done.

"I think there are more people interested in the Blake Babies now than when it was actually happening," Hatfield offers. "We are all keen on touring a little bit when the record comes out, so we'll see."

Despite her ambitious studio output of the last year, the singer-songwriter still is looking forward to getting back on the road.

"I think that you can really ever understand or know a band or artist or whatever until you see them live," Hatfield concludes. "The live thing captures a completely different kind of energy than being in the studio, at least for me."

To catch Juliana Hatfield on the road, here's where to go:

• 5/25 - Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground
• 5/26 - Ottawa, ON @ Zaphod Beeblebros II
• 5/27 - Toronto, ON @ Lees Palace
• 5/28 - London, ON @ The Embassy
• 5/30 - Pittsburgh, PA @ Rosebud
• 5/31 - Columbus, OH @ Little Brothers
• 6/1 - Cleveland, OH @ Grog Shop
• 6/2 - Detroit, MI @ Magic Stick
• 6/3 - Chicago, IL @ Metro
• 6/4 - Madison, WI @ The Annex
• 6/5 - Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue
• 6/7 - Denver, CO @ Lion's Lair
• 6/9 - Seattle, WA @ Crocodile Café
• 6/10 - Portland, OR @ Crystal Ballroom
• 6/12 - San Francisco, CA @ Slim's
• 6/13 - Los Angeles, CA @ Troubadour

• Juliana Hatfield

In a world where the radio airwaves are dominated by a new breed of electronic programming-meets-guitar heavy rock, Juliana Hatfield has chosen to lie in a different bed, so to speak.

• Juliana Hatfield

October 29 [7:55 EDT] -- Juliana Hatfield has a poignant tribute to the late Jeff Buckley on a new six-song EP that arrived in stores on Tuesday.

Hatfield's tribute to the singer, called -->"Trying Not To Think About It," -->turns up on her new six-song EP titled "Please Do Not Disturb."

Buckley had toured with Hatfield before his untimely death this May. The singer drowned in the Mississippi River while recording a new album in Memphis.

The album Buckley was working on before his death, titled "My Sweetheart The Drunk," won't be out before next spring.

Meanwhile, Hatfield will launch a U.S. tour in Boston on November 14. Here's how Pollstar says the first few dates of the tour shape up:

• 11/17 - Cleveland, OH @ Peabody's Down Under
• 11/18 - Toronto, ONT @ Lee's Palace
• 11/20 - Detroit, MI @ Magic Stick
• 11/21 - Cincinnati, OH @ Bogart's
• 11/22 - Chicago, IL @ Metro
• 11/23 - Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue