Opiate for the Masses
Photo: Century Media

If you listen very closely to Opiate for the Masses' latest LP, Manifesto, which dropped this week, you may hear some slight snoring.

That's because the album, which is the band's first in three years, was tracked in guitarist Jim Kaufman's home studio. Kaufman is a dog lover, and his two bulldogs were a constant presence in the studio during the recording sessions.

"You can probably hear them on several of the tracks on the record, because they sleep all the time and snore, and the microphones picked that up all the time," explained Opiate's newest member, Anna Kjellberg, who has played bass for Drain STH, Hanzel und Gretyl and, for one tour back in '06, Ministry frontman Al Jourgensen's Revolting Cocks. "They're a pretty big part of the album, actually."

But the canines would never have made the record if Kjellberg had not replaced Ryan Head last year. Opiate for the Masses — who are on the road with the reunited Filter through August 8, and will join Sevendust, Drowning Pool, and Nonpoint for the GrindCo Tour on August 10 — had actually been sitting on the effort for several months before it was decided they'd update the opus, with Kjellberg rerecording all the bass parts.

"It was kind of a weird procedure to get this album together," she said of the set, which features a cover of Portishead's "Wandering Star" ("We thought it was a really cool song," she said, "and I think we did make it our own, even though it's still true to the original in many ways"). "When I joined the band, they basically had a finished album, and they all, including me, felt that we needed to update it a bit and add some songs and take others away. We basically ripped up the mixes and started over with a second producer. So we wrote three songs together that we added onto the album, and I retracked the bass on all of the songs, so, really, there were two editions of the album.

"I think the record is more solid and more uniform than the previous album," the bassist continued. "It is a lot more straightforward and more cohesive. All of the songs fit together really well. The melodies are still there. Opiate always had very melodic songs. It's still heavy, and there's still lots of guitars, but you still have the choruses and all that."

Kjellberg said she's looking forward to working on the follow-up to Manifesto so she can be there from start to finish. "I am very much a songwriter, and I love to be involved in the whole songwriting process," she said. "I'm glad I got a chance to be as involved as I turned out [being] on this record, because I came into the band at such a late stage. We actually have a studio in the back lounge of our bus. We're not jumping on it yet, but when the time comes, and the inspiration comes, we can start tracking those ideas."

For Kjellberg, the Opiate experience has been drastically different from those she'd had with her previous bands, because this time around, she's playing side-by-side with her husband of five years, drummer Seven Antonopolous.

"When Opiate decided to change bass players, it was [frontman Ron Underwood] and [Kaufman] who suggested they should bring me in," she said. "Seven and I discussed it thoroughly: Was it a good idea or not, to be married and be in the same band and be on tour together? But it's actually working out really well. He's my best friend, and we're lucky to be able to do this together. It's easier than I think we both thought it would be. We talked so much about it, because we didn't want to risk our marriage, and we didn't want to be that annoying married couple in the band. It would be a nightmare for the other guys, to have a married couple bickering at each other all the time. But we don't. It works really well."

But the couple's wedding rings do little to dissuade third parties from making their moves. "We know where we are in this relationship, and we're both very aware, of course, that there will be guys hitting on me and there will be girls who will hit on Seven," she said. "That's part of the job. As long as we don't do anything, there's no reason to get jealous that other people find my husband attractive. I can't blame them."

While Kjellberg gets her fair share of male groupies, she said they're not nearly as upfront as their female counterparts. "These girls come to a show with a purpose," she said. "They know which bandmember they want, and they go for it. They dress not-so-much and go for it, and they get it. Girls come more prepared for that. Guys are much more polite. They'll bring you gifts, flowers ... it's a different approach. They don't come up and suggest that you go to the back lounge with them — girls will. Guys send love letters, and they're more creepy about it, actually. I think that's because, for a guy, it's more intimidating to approach a girl who can play an instrument, goes out on tour, and does the things they wish they could do."

The rest of the week's metal news:

Sad news to report this week, as Paul Stitt, the former lead singer for 1990s metallers Angellic Rage, was shot to death during a liquor-store holdup in Las Vegas on July 8. Stitt was working as a clerk in the store when two men, wearing baseball caps, entered the business, guns drawn. Police believe the gun may have fired accidentally, striking Stitt in the head. Police are now reviewing surveillance footage of the murder and hope the tape will help lead them to the two gunmen. ... Opeth will be touring this fall, with High on Fire, Baroness and Nachtmystium along for the ride. That tour is set to commence September 16 in Buffalo, New York, and runs through October 26 in Baltimore. ...

Calling all Maggots! On July 18, MTV will be filming a new episode of "FNMTV," during which Slipknot's video for "Psychosocial" will make its world premiere. Interested in being part of the taping? Well, if you live in or around the L.A. area, head on over to 1Iota.com and sign up for free tickets. Make sure to enter "Slipknot" in the comments box when making your ticket request. ...

Did Lemmy Kilmister break a German law by wearing a Nazi cap? Seems there's an investigation into a picture of the Motörhead frontman that appeared in a German newspaper before the band's July 5 performance at "Wacken Rocks Seaside." In Germany, "anti-constitutional propaganda" is illegal. ... A September 30 release date has been set for Trivium's forthcoming album, Shogun. Look for the effort to feature 11 tracks, including "Torn Between Scylla and Charybdis," "Into the Mouth of Hell We March" and "Like Callisto to a Star in Heaven." Whatever. ...

Clutch will be teaming up with the Sword for a spate of gigs this fall. The first has been booked for September 19 in Jacksonville, North Carolina, and the trek is expected to wrap October 9 in Sacramento, California.

• Opiate for the Masses
• Opeth
• Slipknot
• Portishead
• Filter

Madonna's <i>Hard Candy</i>
Photo: Warner Bros.

Mariah Carey's two-week reign as the music industry's leading lady has come to an end, thanks to the Queen of Pop.

With sales totaling nearly 280,000 — by no means her strongest opening — Madonna's 11th studio offering, Hard Candy, becomes the nation's newest #1 and the seventh chart-topping debut of the Material Girl's illustrious, 26-year career.

Hard Candy, tracks from which she performed last week during an intimate gig at New York's Roseland Ballroom, will also become the singer's fourth-consecutive LP to open on top, following the successes of 2000's Music (which generated week-one sales of 419,600), 2003's American Life (241,000) and 2005's Confessions on a Dance Floor (350,000).

Madonna's latest pummeled Carey's E=MC², which, according to the latest SoundScan totals, suffered a 48 percent drop in retail interest to end the week with 95,400 scans. Mariah's record falls to the chart's #2 position on next week's Billboard albums sales chart.

Hard Candy was the highest-charting (duh!) new release of the week, but was one of almost 30 records that will be impacting next week's top 200 — and among seven to enter the chart in the top 10.

Following Carey at #3, selling close to 84,000 copies during its fourth week of commercial availability, is Leona Lewis' Spirit. The next five albums on the chart are all newcomers: R&B hunk Lyfe Jennings' Lyfe Change enters at #4 with 80,000 scans, while antiquated hair-metallers Def Leppard's Songs from the Sparkle Lounge bows at #5 with 54,800 copies sold. The Roots' Rising Down debuts at #6 with sales reported at 53,700, and Portishead's Third follows at #7, scanning close to 53,000 units. The self-titled LP from Mudcrutch — Tom Petty's pre-Heartbreakers band, which has reunited more than 30 years after splitting — sold 38,000 copies, which was good enough for a #8 debut, and Tim McGraw's Greatest Hits 1 & 2 rounds things out at #10, selling 29,300 copies.

Wedged in between Mudcrutch and McGraw, we find a top-10 mainstay: Now That's What I Call Music!'s 27th installment falls three chart positions to #9, with week-eight sales of 30,800.

Elsewhere on the chart, Steve Winwood's Nine Lives enters at #12 with 26,400 sold, while Carly Simon's This Kind of Love follows at #15 with 23,000 scans. Augustana's Can't Love, Can't Hurt opens at #21 with 21,400 copies snatched up, while Lil Mama's VYP: Voice of the Young People claims the #25 slot, scanning 18,600 units. Mindless Self Indulgence's If follows at #27 with 17,700 in sales, and Estelle's Shine enters the chart at #38 with 14,800 sold. "American Idol" alum Phil Stacey's self-titled new one bows at #43 with sales reported at 13,100 and change, while Forever the Sickest Kids' Underdog Alma Mater can be found two chart positions down, thanks to sales of 13,000-plus.

Thrash titans Testament return at #59, selling 11,400 copies of their latest, The Formation of Damnation, while Santogold's self-titled debut enters at #74 with 9,500 sold. Robyn's self-titled offering debuts at #100 with 7,200 sold, and New Found Glory's two-disc Tip of the Iceberg/ Takin' It Ova! opens at #136 with 5,000 copies sold.

• Madonna Reflects On New Album, Evolving Career

• Madonna, Justin Timberlake At New York's Roseland Ballroom

• Madonna
• Mariah Carey
• The Roots
• Portishead
• Lyfe Jennings

Portishead's Beth Gibbons
Photo: Adam Faraday

The last time Bristol, England, trip-hop visionaries Portishead released a full-length studio album was back in 1997, when artists — and the music industry, as a whole — didn't lose sleep over the possibility of their work prematurely leaking to millions of illegal downloaders several weeks ahead of their LP's commercial release. A lot can happen in 11 years.

"We definitely weren't expecting that," Portishead multi-instrumentalist — and founding member — Adrian Utley said of their new album's leak, in an interview with MTV News last week. "And we're definitely pissed about it. But I suppose there's nothing you can do about it. We know how it leaked, and I would love to tell you, but I can't. You can only hope that it's not going to f--- everything up for you, because I think, in this world, there are downloaders and people who buy. I don't know if you can convince downloaders to buy. If we don't sell records, we can't make any more records. We're just not rich people."

What Utley doesn't realize, though, is that — like Guns N' Roses' Chinese Democracy — Portishead's Third may be one of the most anticipated records of the last decade. Eleven years is a long time to wait, so it was never a question of if, but rather when the record would hit the Net. And in all sincerity, Utley's sort of oblivious to the rabid demand for Third, which finally lands in stores April 28.

"We were just in Paris and Berlin doing some television shows, and when we took the stage, there was the hugest cheer — it was really affirming," Utley explained. "When you're in the studio you have the Internet, so you sort of sense what's going on to some extent. But we'd see each other every day, and we'd talk about biscuits or tea or politics, music — we didn't really talk about the outside world or the world's perception of us very much. We've just started to sense it now."

And while fans the world over may be ecstatic for new Portishead material, Utley said the band is not quite as psyched. They're just happy to be back on the scene with an album that, in the opinion of this writer, is deserving of the wait.

" 'Excited' is not something that we ever get, really," he said. "I'm excited that you're excited, and that's good enough. I'd have to say that my own relationship with [Third] is complex, and I don't know that it will ever be resolved. The same thing happened with [1994's] Dummy. I've never listened to it. I've never listened to Portishead, and I'll probably never listen to Third again. I don't mean that in a bad way, but once you've done it, it's out in the world for other people to hear. I am proud of what we've done, but the flame burns so brightly when you're making it, that it's almost like being sick — you don't want to revisit it if you don't have to."

In the time since Portishead's release, singer Beth Gibbons went off to record a solo album, 2002's Out of Season, and Utley and instrumentalist Geoff Barrow worked on several other projects as well. Portishead had always planned on recording a third set, but now that they've all started families, it took them a lot longer to get cracking on the tracks.

"There was no sense that we weren't ever going to do a record again," Utley said. "Geoff and I had already started working on the stuff earlier on, I'd say around 2001. So we always knew we were going to do it, but we wanted to do other stuff, too. We'd grown exhausted with what we were doing, and we were touring almost nonstop since Dummy. We couldn't take care of all the other aspects of our lives. It's quite exhausting in the end, so we wanted to do other things, but we didn't want to not do Portishead."

When Utley and Barrow first started throwing ideas around for Third, they "didn't feel right — it wasn't happening really." So they decided to take a few more years to think about what they wanted to do with the record and reconvened in 2004. "And that's when we wrote the track 'We Carry On.' That was the beginning of a new us, really. That's when we thought, 'OK, this is going to work now.'

"But it's never prolific and easy," Utley continued. "It always just takes a long time, and it's just particular to us working together, because if we work outside of this context, we can work a lot quicker. For us, every track has to live somewhere — it has to have a world that it's going to live in, rather than just being a song straight away."

The problem the band originally faced back in 2001 was that, while they wanted to retain some semblance of their signature sound, the songs they were working on sounded, well, not like Portishead at all, Utley said.

"This other stuff that we did didn't work earlier on, because it wasn't right," he said. "It didn't sound like us, if you like. You might have thought it was us, but it didn't feel like it was us. One of our rules is, we don't want to repeat what we've done before, and I imagine a lot of people are like that. We couldn't possibly go back to doing a 'Glory Box,' or doing a 'Strangers' or doing a 'Cowboys.' It's done. So that was one of the hard things — we had to find a new voice but retain that old voice as well, and be relevant. We wanted to incorporate some of the influences we've had since [Portishead], and I think we've done that."

Unfortunately, aside from their appearance at next month's Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival (see "M.I.A., Roger Waters, Portishead Lead Coachella Lineup; East Coast Festival Also Announced"), Portishead don't plan on touring the States at all — not this year, or the next. And Utley is "deeply sorry for that." But if the band were to do an extensive tour, that would make the wait for the band's fourth record that much longer.

"To do a massive tour at the moment would be a folly, I think," he said. "If we do a year of touring again, we won't want to see each other for a while. It won't be another 10 years, I swear. Man, it's just that life passes so quickly, and you get home and do other things and you try to enjoy your life. We've got children now, and we just wanted to live life, rather than being slaves to this career, if you like. It's not like we've gone off and spent time having children and just doing nothing but that, but time just goes by like that. We finished the album late last year, and it's springtime already."

• Portishead

M.I.A.
Photo: Roger Kisby/Getty Images

As usual, this year's Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival will feature more than 100 acts, including several reunited alternative-rock giants mixed in with some of the hottest acts touring today. The festival will take place on the weekend of April 25-27 in Indio, California, and be headlined by Jack Johnson, Jack White's Raconteurs, reunited bands the Verve and the Breeders, Death Cab for Cutie, My Morning Jacket and former Pink Floyd leader Roger Waters (who will perform Dark Side of the Moon).

Festival organizers also confirmed that they are launching a new event on the East Coast called All Points West Music & Arts Festival, a three-day event set for August 8-10 at Liberty State Park in New Jersey. No lineup or ticketing information has been announced for the event, which appears to be in direct competition with the Vineland Music Festival slated to launch in New Jersey this summer from the people behind Lollapalooza and England's Reading Festival.

Among the rarely touring acts performing over the course of the Coachella weekend are trip-hop legends Portishead, who are releasing their first album in more than a decade in April, as well as German techno pioneers Kraftwerk and long dormant English psychedelic rockers Spiritualized. The first night of the festival is packed with some of the best dance and alt-rock bands of the moment, including the National, Animal Collective, Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings, Battles, Aesop Rock, Spank Rock, Santogold, Vampire Weekend, Black Lips, Rogue Wave and Architecture in Helsinki.

Saturday night's lineup is just as strong, with acts that include M.I.A., Cold War Kids, Café Tacuba, Rilo Kiley, Mark Ronson, Islands, Cinematic Orchestra, Jamie T, VHS or Beta, Bonde Do Role, Akron Family, MGMT, and the Bird and the Bee. In addition to the sure-to-be-trippy capper from Waters, the final night will also feature a reunited Love and Rockets, dance stars Justice, gypsy-rock punks Gogol Bordello, Chromeo, the Streets, Metric, Simian Mobile Disco, Murs, Autolux, Les Savy Fav, the Cool Kids, Sia, Black Kids, Black Mountain, Kid Sister with A-Trak, I'm From Barcelona, Manchester Orchestra and the Horrors.

Tickets for the fest will be available this Friday, with three-day admission going for $269 and single-day tickets for $90; camping is an additional $55 per person.

The full lineups for each day are:

Friday, April 25: Jack Johnson, the Verve, Raconteurs, the Breeders, Fatboy Slim, Tegan and Sara, Madness, the Swell Season, the National, Animal Collective, Slightly Stoopid, Múm, Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings, Stars, Battles, Aesop Rock, Midnight Juggernauts, Does It Offend You, Yeah?, Minus the Bear, Spank Rock, Dan Le Sac Vs Scroobius Pip, Diplo, Adam Freeland, Santogold, Jens Lekman, John Butler Trio, Vampire Weekend, Dan Deacon, Architecture in Helsinki, Sandra Collins, Busy P, Cut Copy, Black Lips, Datarock, Professor Murder, Reverend and the Makers, the Bees, Porter, Rogue Wave, Modeselektor, American Bang, Lucky I Am.

Saturday, April 26: Portishead, Kraftwerk, Death Cab for Cutie, Café Tacuba, Sasha & Digweed, Rilo Kiley, Dwight Yoakam, M.I.A., Hot Chip, Cold War Kids, Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks, DeVotchKa, Flogging Molly, Mark Ronson, Turbonegro, Scars on Broadway, Islands, Enter Shikari, Calvin Harris, Boyz Noize, Junkie XL, Cinematic Orchestra, Jamie T, the Teenagers, VHS or Beta, Carbon/Silicon, Erol Alkan, Yo Majesty!, Little Brother, Bonde Do Role, St. Vincent, Akron Family, MGMT, Institubes DJs (Surkin, Para One and Orgasmic), James Zabiela, Sebastian, Kavinsky, Dredg, the Bird and the Bee, Grand Ole Party, New Young Pony Club, 120 Days, Yoav, Electric Touch, Uffie.

Sunday, April 27: Roger Waters, Love and Rockets, My Morning Jacket, Spiritualized, Justice, Gogol Bordello, Chromeo, the Streets, Metric, Danny Tenaglia, Simian Mobile Disco, Booka Shade, Murs, Dmitri from Paris, Autolux, the Field, Linton Kwesi Johnson, Les Savy Fav, the Cool Kids, Sons & Daughters, Sia, Holy F---, Black Kids, Black Mountain, the Annuals, Kid Sister with A-Trak, Man Man, Duffy, I'm From Barcelona, Manchester Orchestra, Deadmau5, the Horrors, Austin TV, Shout Out Louds, Plastiscines, Brett Dennen.

Planning on going to Coachella or any other big music fests this year? Be sure to join the You R Here community, where you can upload your concert photos, videos and reviews. Go there now to check out coverage of last year's Lollapalooza and Bonnaroo festivals.

• Rage Against The Machine, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Amy Winehouse, More At Coachella 2007

• M.I.A.
• Pink Floyd
• Portishead
• Jack Johnson
• Raconteurs

Akon
Photo: MTV News

Another Akon concert disaster: The R&B singer's planned Thursday (October 25) gig at Atlanta's Emory University was canceled after several people, including his drummer, were injured while setting up for the show, TMZ reports. The left side of the concert stage reportedly collapsed after a canopy fell while crews were setting up lights. At least one student was also reportedly injured in the incident, which spurred campus police to cordon off the area as fire trucks and ambulances responded. ...

Owen Wilson's first interview since his suicide attempt in August will be posted online at midnight on Friday as part of MySpace.com's Artist on Artist series, according to USA Today. Wilson reportedly chatted Thursday with his friend Wes Anderson, who has directed the actor in all his films, including the recently released "The Darjeeling Limited." It's not yet known if the interview will deal with Wilson's personal struggles. ...

Jennifer Lopez hasn't officially announced her reported pregnancy yet, but her ex-boyfriend Diddy is already dishing his best wishes to the singer. "She's going to make a great mother," he told UsMagazine.com. "She is one of the most caring people I've ever met. When I went out with her, I saw that quality." Diddy did not tell UsMagazine.com whether he knew for sure that Lopez is expecting, but according to the outlet, she is almost five months pregnant. Previous reports indicated that she is expecting twins with husband Marc Anthony. "I'm extremely happy for her, and I will be sending some expensive god-daddy presents to her baby," Diddy said. ...

Could twins also be in Christina Aguilera's future? According to the New York Daily News, the singer is expecting two children. Aguilera has been very hush-hush about her reported pregnancy, although Paris Hilton might have taken the wind out of her sails by blabbing about the news during VMA weekend. ...

While Britney Spears is due in court Friday for another hearing in her child-custody dispute with ex-husband Kevin Federline, attention turned on Thursday (October 25) to her other case: a car crash on August 6 that resulted in two driving-related misdemeanors. Spears' lawyer Michael Flanagan entered a not-guilty plea on behalf of the singer, who was not required to show up at the courtroom in Van Nuys, California. According to The Associated Press, Los Angeles Superior Court Commissioner Susan Speer ruled that Spears no longer has to face a hit-and-run charge in the crash, as she has already compensated Kim Robard-Rifkin, who owns the Mercedes-Benz that the singer hit in a parking lot. (People reports the amount was approximately $1,000.) But the charge of driving without a license was not dismissed, and Speer scheduled a pretrial hearing for November 26. Flanagan told AP outside the courthouse that Assistant City Attorney Michael Amerian had offered the singer a plea deal relating to that charge, but that the deal would involve 12 months' probation. But Flanagan said that wouldn't be necessary, since Spears recently obtained a valid California driver's license. "She got a license, she has insurance, has always had insurance. The question is: Is probation really necessary?" he asked. Flanagan added that Spears had a license in Louisiana, and he also contended that she didn't have a valid California one because a camera wasn't available at the Department of Motor Vehicles when she tried to apply for a license prior to the August accident. Spears may also face fines, People reports. ...

Just weeks after Nas announced the controversial title of his December 11 album, rapper/poet Saul Williams has announced that he's given his own upcoming LP a name that is likely to cause a stir. In a post on the album's Web page, Williams said, "It is my greatest honor to present to you The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust!, my new album produced by Trent Reznor and mixed by Alan Moulder," who has also worked with the Smashing Pumpkins and Reznor's Nine Inch Nails. He elaborated on the concept of the album — the title of which is clearly a play on David Bowie's The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars — in the post, saying, "Most people aren't aware of the world of art and commerce, where exploitation strips each artist down to 'nigger.' Each label, like 'apartheid,' multiplies us by our divide and whips us 'til we conform to lesser figures ... the only way to choose is to jump ship from old truths and trust dolphins as we swim through changing ways." The track list for the album — which is coming out November 1 in digital form on the Inevitable Web site — includes "Black History Month," "Tr(n)igger" and "NiggyTardust." Perhaps taking a tip from Radiohead, the site lets fan choose to pay $5 for the album — or nothing at all. For five bucks, customers can get either 83MB (high quality) or 128MB (very high quality) MP3 files. A third $5 option is also available, in the Free Lossless Audio Codec format, which is similar to MP3 but doesn't lose quality in the compression process — that version has CD quality (395MB) but isn't playable on iTunes or Windows Media. The free option provides an 83MB zip file that contains lower-quality, DRM-free MP3s of the songs. ...

A third teen teen testified in Vincent "Don Vito" Margera's Colorado trial on two counts of sexual assault, according to the Rocky Mountain News. Trey Hughes, 15, said he was sitting near Margera, uncle of Bam Margera, at his autograph signing at a Colorado mall in August 2006 when Vincent Margera saw the man grab at girls who asked for their photos to be taken with him. "I saw Vito grabbing girls in inappropriate places," he said. "He would touch their boobs. I saw him grab their butts." Hughes added that he saw Margera sticking out his tongue and wagging it around, "pretending like he was licking them." On Tuesday, two other teens testified in the trial. Fourteen-year-old Mina Darnell said, like Hughes, that she saw Margera grabbing at girls at the signing. "When a girl came up to get a picture, I saw him grab their boob or their butt," Darnell said Tuesday. "I wasn't focused on it the whole time, but [it happened to] at least one-quarter to one-half of all the girls who were there." She also said that after girls had their picture taken with Vincent Margera, they would say, "He just touched me!," as they were leaving. She said she did not get an autograph herself from Margera. A 15-year-old boy also testified Tuesday, saying he was shocked when he saw Margera allegedly put a sticker on his friend's breast. ...

Did Lil Wayne skimp on his bling? A New Orleans jewelry store claims in a recently filed lawsuit that the hometown rapper (real name: Dwayne Michael Carter Jr.) purchased a $138,000 diamond ring and $32,000 gold-and-diamond necklace — but that the Cash Money Records president failed to come up with all the cash money for the items, according to The Miami Herald. Jack Sutton Fine Jewelry claims Wayne owes $146,000 on the $170,000 purchase, which he allegedly made over the telephone with the store's owner, Jack Sutton, on October 6, 2006. Sutton says he and Wayne agreed to a monthly installment plan for the payments, but that when he deposited the second check, a $24,000 payment, he discovered that a stop payment had been placed on it. The jewelry-store owner claims he has reached out to Wayne to no avail, and that he is surprised because, as he told the Herald, the rapper is "one of my best customers. He spent a lot of money with me. I thought we have a really good relationship. I don't know what happened, unless it's a misunderstanding. ... I've been doing business with him for at least 10 years. He's always been wonderful with paying me." Wayne's entertainment attorney in California, Ron Sweeney, also spoke with the Herald, saying ''This is clearly a misunderstanding. If, in fact, the allegations are true, then it will be resolved. My client is very responsible." ...

Hey Harry Potter fans, got 41 grand in your piggy bank? That's how much an anonymous private bidder threw down for a copy of the hardback first edition of "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" — which was subsequently retitled "Sorcerer's Stone" for its U.S. publish — that was autographed by the author as "Joanne Rowling." The bidder paid $40,326 at Christie's auction house in London, but believe it or not, that actually isn't the highest amount a copy of that 1997 edition has gone for — a copy inscribed with a Rowling personal dedication went for more than $50,000 in May at Christie's. About 500 copies were pressed for the novel's initial run. ... So much for Paris Hilton's philanthropic efforts — People reports that the children's charity that had organized the heiress' trip to Rwanda has postponed the trek due to restructuring. "Paris has been a loyal and gracious supporter of Playing for Good but the foundation has to regrettably reschedule this trip," the organization said in a statement on Thursday, according to People. "Playing for Good would like to thank Ms. Hilton for her generosity and her continued support of this initiative and is looking forward to rescheduling the trip with her at a later time." ...

Coheed and Cambria's logo has been creating something of a situation at the University of Kansas this week. After a number of dorm windows were shot out, a set of seemingly cryptic symbols were found spray-painted throughout the campus with the date "10/23/07" underneath them. The symbols were Coheed's logo, and the date referred to the release of the band's latest LP, No World for Tomorrow. Rumors spread across the campus that another shooting was being planned, and campus police were swamped with phone calls and questions about potential impending violence. ...

Metallica's forthcoming yet-untitled LP could be in stores as early as February, drummer Lars Ulrich revealed in a recent interview with The San Francisco Examiner. He also explained the metal band's decision to work with Rick Rubin rather than longtime producer Bob Rock. "For our own sanity, our own creative survival, we needed to work with a different set of circumstances and dynamics," he said. "So we've been stripped of our defense mechanisms, and it's been very invigorating to be challenged again. Rick's taken everything we've known about making records and completely turned it upside down." He said that the songs for the new LP are different from those on the band's previous offering, St. Anger. "Well, most of the intros are four to five minutes. I don't know — Metallica and short songs just don't go that well together. But whereas St. Anger was an exercise in over-pummeling the listener, these new songs echo some of our stuff from the '80s — long, epic journeys through different musical landscapes, heavier, but a lot more melodic." ...

Disturbed have entered a Chicago studio to begin recording their fourth album, the yet-untitled follow-up to 2005's Ten Thousand Fists. The band will be producing the effort itself and hopes to have it ready in time for a spring release. According to a statement from frontman David Draiman, the disc "seems to have taken on a darker character than the previous albums. It's more furiously paced and complex." ... The track list for Mudvayne's forthcoming compilation LP, By the People, for the People, has been revealed. The disc will boast 16 tracks, including a live version of "Dig"; demo versions of "Happy," "All That You Are" and "Silenced"; and an acoustic version of "Forget to Remember." Look for the album to hit stores November 27. ...

The Dave Matthews Band will play two free shows for Army football at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York, on November 14 and 15. Robert Randolph & the Family Band will open the shows, which the cadets won (beating out Navy, Air Force and 100 other colleges) as part of the World's Loudest Pep Rally contest, sponsored by AT&T. ... Long-off-the-radar "American Idol" runner-up Clay Aiken is getting into the holiday spirit with an upcoming Christmas in the Heartland tour. Before hitting the road, he'll perform at the Neil Sedaka: 50 Years of Hits show on Friday in New York — the event will benefit the Elton John AIDS Foundation. After that, Aiken will hit the rink November 6 in Las Vegas for a guest spot at the Capital One Holiday Celebration on Ice, which features a host of champion skaters and will air on NBC on Christmas Day. His tour launches on November 26 in Wichita, Kansas, and stops in Missouri, Illinois, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut and Minnesota before winding up at the Star Plaza Theatre in Merrillville, Indiana, on December 22. And of course in January, he joins the Broadway cast of the Tony Award-winning show "Monty Python's Spamalot," playing one of the leads, Sir Robin. ...

With one racy music-video appearance under her belt and her pipes warmed up from singing in the Beatles-themed "Across the Universe," actress Evan Rachel Wood is reportedly close to signing a deal with Interscope Records for her debut album. Entertainment Weekly reports that Wood — whose boyfriend, Marilyn Manson, is signed to Interscope — is in negotiations with the label, with a possible announcement of a deal just weeks away. ... Prince's Purple Rain tops Vanity Fair's list of the 10 best movie soundtracks of all time. Next on the magazine's list is the soundtrack to "A Hard Day's Night" by the Beatles, and ones for the reggae classic "The Harder They Come," "Pulp Fiction," "The Graduate," "Superfly," "Trainspotting," "Saturday Night Fever," "American Graffiti" and "The Big Chill." ... Kate Hudson and Chris Robinson's divorce was finalized in Los Angeles Superior Court on Thursday, AP reports. Details of the former couple's custody arrangement over their 3-year-old son, Ryder, were not disclosed, nor were the terms of their property division. ...

It seems the Blood Brothers are calling it quits. While there hasn't been an official announcement yet, the band's management says the group is going on hiatus and will reconvene in the not-so-distant future to decide its fate. Meanwhile, a source close to the band tells MTV News that the Brothers have, indeed, split up, but did not offer an explanation for the band's demise. ... Cave In frontman Stephen Brodsky has announced the formation of a new side project, a power-pop outfit called Pet Genius. The act reunites Brodsky with former Cave In drummer John-Robert Conners, as well as bassist Johnny Northup, who played with Brodsky in Octave Museum. Pet Genius' debut hit stores Tuesday and features 11 tracks, including "The Visiting Dynamiter," "Emit Fo Deeps Eht Esare" and "Trash Heap Swing." ...

Though they won't be in attendance, the Flaming Lips are celebrating the 10th anniversary of their bold sonic experiment Zaireeka — a set of four CDs meant to be played simultaneously — with a series of in-store "performances" of the magnum opus. The first of the anniversary parties took place Monday at Seattle's Crocodile Cafe, and more will follow on Sunday at Size Records in their hometown of Oklahoma City, Tuesday at Dallas' Good Records, November 2 at Criminal Records in Atlanta and November 6 at Luna Music in Indianapolis. In addition to a costume contest, the festivities include a "virtual" appearance by singer Wayne Coyne via DVD in which he'll explain how the album works. ... Pete Doherty has been freed of a court drug-treatment order after a judge said she had received advice from experts, BBC News reports. The troubled Babyshambles frontman appeared in court on Wednesday for a review of the order, for which he had six months left to serve, but the judge said he had already been supervised over 18 months and that she was convinced the plan for the musician to stay drug-free was going to be followed. ...

Our long international nightmare is over: Both Ace of Base and "Barbie Girl" band Aqua have announced reunion tours. Swedish pop tarts Base have scheduled a series of gigs in November and December in Russia and Eastern Europe, while Danish one-hit wonders Aqua announced recently that they will be playing shows this year in conjunction with a greatest-hits album. ... For the first time in more than three decades, pioneering funk rockers Sly and the Family Stone will perform a live show, in New York on December 7 at the B.B. King Blues Club.

10.24.07

Mariah Carey paid "TRL" a visit on Wednesday (October 24) and gabbed about her new fragrance line and upcoming studio album. "I've been working on this record while I'm working on the fragrance," she revealed, saying that her yet-untitled LP and just-released M by Mariah Carey line "kind of work together." "I wanted [the fragrance] to be sensual. ... It's really been like writing a song ... this was almost the same creative process." She also explained why she pushed back her yet-untitled album, which had previously been scheduled for December 4, to next year. "You can't really put records out in December if you want the whole world to have a chance to actually hear it, [and] my fans all over the world are very important to me," she said, adding that she also wants to put out a pair of singles before the album drops. Carey dropped another hint about the effort, saying she "just had a really, really hot session with somebody in Miami," and while she was stubborn about letting us know just who the person in question is, she did let it slip that it's a man and that he's "somebody very popular." When asked what advice she might give Britney Spears, Carey didn't mention Spears specifically but said, "You gotta go through the ups to have the downs; you gotta go through the downs to have the ups. You have to go through life like any other person. To me, you just stay grounded spiritually, get your rest, and don't take it all so seriously." ...

Britney Spears and Kevin Federline were at the Beverly Hills Hotel in Southern California on Wednesday (October 24) to attend their first Parenting Without Conflict session. TMZ.com reports that the two attended a two-hour class during which a parenting coach gave the ex-spouses tips on how a divorced couple should bring up their kids, who were reportedly not present. A judge ordered Spears and Federline to attend the program in September, as well as participate in joint co-parenting counseling. In other Brit news, did she stiff the backup dancers who performed with her at the VMAs? According to UsMagazine.com, some of them were not compensated for their work on September 9, and the problem might stem from Spears being dropped by her management company, the Firm, on September 17. ...

A 15-year-old boy testified in the trial of Vincent "Don Vito" Margera, uncle of Bam Margera, on Wednesday during the second day of his Colorado trial on two counts of sexual assault, according to the Rocky Mountain News. Vincent Margera is accused of groping three 12- to 14-year-old girls during at an autograph signing at a Colorado mall in August 2006. Steve Wilson said he was more than surprised when he saw Margera allegedly put a sticker on his friend's breast. "I was really shocked because she's very young and he's — I don't know — probably like 50," Steve Wilson said of Margera, who is 51. The boy also said his friend was shaken after the alleged incident, during which Margera is also accused of putting a sticker on an underage girl's thigh. "She came up, and she was really shocked that it had happened, and she asked me, 'Did you see what he just did?' She was very serious and like terrified." Margera's attorney, Pamela Mackey, contended to the jury Tuesday that Margera was playing his "goofy, outrageous and vulgar" TV character because "that's what got the laughs." ...

Sean "Diddy" Combs says the media has been blowing out of proportion a man's accusation that he was punched by the hip-hop mogul inside a store in New York on October 13, according to Reuters. "It was something that was just totally overblown. I don't fight over girls!" he said in regards to the alleged dispute, which police have reportedly said was over an unidentified woman. However, Combs did admit that, "I am a human being, and I will get into an argument at times." Steven Acevedo alleges Combs punched him in the face twice inside Kiosk, a store located in New York's Soho neighborhood that hosts parties by night. The mogul made his remarks at a news conference in which he announced a new beverage deal with alcoholic-drink maker Diageo PLC, to develop its Ciroc vodka brand. The mogul will have a 50 percent profit share in the Diageo PLC premium line, and he could make up to $100 million over the course of the multi-year deal, depending on the vodka's success. "It is not an endorsement deal. This is something that will have my daily attention," he told The Associated Press. "I'm not just a celebrity endorser, I'm a brand builder. I'm a luxury-brand builder." Diddy added that he will be responsible for marketing the brand and deciding where to sell it. ...

First Kid Rock fought with Tommy Lee at the VMAs, last month, then he got involved in a scuffle at a Waffle House last weekend, and then he just got knocked off the top of the Billboard albums chart by Bruce Springsteen ... could things get any worse for the Rock N Roll Jesus? Apparently so: The rocker is being sued by a Kentucky man who claims his song "Slow Death" is similar to Rock's "So Hott," according to TMZ. Maurice Foreman claims he has the copyright to his song, which he wrote in 1997. Foreman says the lead-guitar notes are identical in both songs and that Rock sings "so hot" three times," just as Foreman sings "slow death." ...

Beyoncé singing "Somewhere Over the Rainbow"? Carrie Underwood taking on "The Sound of Music"? Fergie covering "Live and Let Die"? Believe it or not, that's what will be happening on December 2 at Los Angeles' Kodak Theatre during Movies Rock, a film-and-music event modeled after Fashion Rocks. Adding even more weight to the star-studded roster, Mary J. Blige and John Legend will team for a rendition of the "Casablanca" song "As Time Goes By," Jennifer Hudson will perform "Goldfinger" from the James Bond flick of the same name, and Elton John will tackle songs from animated flicks. The show will air December 7 on CBS, and proceeds from the event itself will go to the Entertainment Industry Foundation, which funds more than 300 charitable organizations in the greater Los Angeles area. ...

T.I., who is accused of trying to illegally purchase machine guns and silencers, says he's learned how to deal "appropriately" with conflicts and wants to set a "good example" for young people. "Sometimes man, I can be a real rational, clear-thinking, level-headed, trouble-solving person," the Atlanta rapper said in an interview before his arrest in the new issue of Complex, which hits newsstands November 6. "I can really figure out how to deal with issues appropriately and apply them to it. If I don't allow myself that time, if I don't exercise patience and really end up straight to do that, I can also let myself go into a whole 'nother level of being carried away. So I'm tryin' to exercise moral strength and rational living these days. You know, I'm 27 years old now, man? So it ain't really the best thing for me to be doing, going out there actin' like ... today is a good example to be setting for the 19-, 21-year-olds, you know?" ...

Alicia Keys headlined the Heineken Red Star Soul tour's final stop in New York on Tuesday night, performing a medley of her hits, as DJ Jazzy Jeff and No I.D. looked on at Spotlight Studios. The latter two were awarded Independent Achiever Awards, as were Antonio "AD the Voice" Delgado, J. Carter, W. Ellington Felton and Ralph McDaniels. Posthumous nods were given to Gerald Levert and J Dilla as well. Newcomer Emily King opened and DJ Cassidy manned the turntables for the festivities. ... UsMagazine.com reports that Lindsay Lohan may be gearing up for her big club-scene comeback. According to the site, the starlet will host this year's New Year's bash at red-hot Las Vegas club LAX. She had previously been slated to host her 21st birthday party at Vegas' Pure nightclub, but she had to back out of the event after entering rehab. ...

Rick Ross' album Trilla will be out December 18. Earlier this week, the bearded-hustler poster child debuted his song "Speedin' " for New York at club Home. The track features R. Kelly. ... Fabolous performed at Canal Room in Manhattan, New York, on Tuesday night as part of the AT&T-sponsored one-year anniversary celebration for trendy tech site BoyGeniusReport.com. Diddy, DJ Clue, and football star Michael Strahan and Nicole Murphy, were in attendance. Super-producer Just Blaze held down DJ duties. ...

Jay-Z has a deal with Budweiser, 50 Cent with Vitamin Water — and now Diddy has put the finishing touches on his own beverage deal, to develop the Ciroc vodka brand, The Associated Press reports. The mogul will have a 50 percent profit share in the Diageo PLC premium line, and he could make up to $100 million over the course of the multi-year deal, depending on the vodka's success. "It is not an endorsement deal. This is something that will have my daily attention," he told AP. "I'm not just a celebrity endorser, I'm a brand builder. I'm a luxury-brand builder." Diddy added that he will be responsible for marketing the brand and deciding where to sell it. ...

One person has been arrested in DeKalb County, Georgia, in connection with a series of incidents at the Tupac Amaru Shakur Center for the Arts. According to a spokesperson for the center, on Saturday morning vandals defaced the building and placed a noose around the neck of a Shakur statue in the center's garden. In a subsequent attack on the statue, it was plastered with "handbills of garbled rants that include references to 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina, as well as vague threats against various record companies and rappers." ...

Tommy Lee has dismissed rumors that he's mulling an offer to be the subject of an upcoming season of VH1's "Rock of Love." In his newsletter, Lee said, "I am not, nor would I ever, do a stupid show like the 'Rock of Love.' " Lee, however, had no problem signing on for "Tommy Lee Goes to College," a 2005 reality series that focused on the former Mötley Crüe drummer's experience as a student at the University of Nebraska, and didn't pass up the chance to participate in CBS' "Rock Star: Supernova," a program designed to find a frontman for a band featuring Lee and several other well-known musicians. ... Korn have written and recorded an original song inspired by the upcoming PlayStation 3 video game "Haze." The song, which shares the name of the game, will be shipped to radio and video outlets next month, coinciding with the game's November 27 release. ...

Democratic presidential candidate Senator Barack Obama has added a gay minister to the lineup for his three-day concert series in South Carolina after coming under fire from gay activists for including a gospel singer who has said he believes homosexuality is a choice, AP reports. The Rev. Andy Sidden, who is openly gay, has been invited to the Sunday event in Columbia after Obama reportedly discussed his inclusion with Joe Solmonese, president of the Human Rights Campaign, which supports gay rights. Solmonese thanked Obama in a statement but said he was disappointed the series will still include Grammy-winning gospel star Donnie McClurkin, whose assertions that homosexuality is a choice led to calls for Obama to cancel the singer's performance. After saying on Monday that he thought sexual preference "is a matter of choice," McClurkin told the Chicago Tribune on Tuesday that his ideals and his ministry were being severely misconstrued. "I don't believe that even from a religious point of view that Jesus ever discriminated toward anyone, nor do I," McClurkin said. "Most of the things that were said were totally out of context, and then other things weren't true." McClurkin lived as a gay man for 20 years and now says he is straight. He said his ministry is open to those who say they no longer want to live as a gay person, but he added that "there's never been a statement made by me about curing homosexuality. People are using that in order to incite anger and to twist my whole platform on it. There's no crusade for curing it or to convert everyone. This is just for those who come to me and ask for change." ...

In other Obama news, in an apparent slip of the tongue, Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney accused the senator of urging terrorists to congregate in Iraq, according to The Associated Press. In an appearance in South Carolina on Tuesday, Romney said, "Actually, just look at what Osam — Barack Obama — said just yesterday. Barack Obama, calling on radicals, jihadists of all different types, to come together in Iraq." Romney apparently was referring to an audiotape aired Monday in which a speaker believed to be Osama bin Laden called for insurgents in Iraq to unite. A Romney spokesperson said, "He misspoke. He was referring to the audiotape of Osama bin Laden and misspoke. It was just a mix-up." ...

An arrest warrant has been issued by a Jamaican judge for dancehall singer Beenie Man after the 34-year-old Grammy winner failed to show up in court to present his plan for paying back taxes. Reuters reports that Beenie Man (born Anthony Moses Davis) appeared in court three weeks ago on tax-evasion charges and was told he owed the Jamaican revenue department $415,000, plus $246,000 in penalties, after not paying taxes for more than a decade. The singer said he was unaware he owed the money and blamed it on the company that formerly handled his business affairs. ... In the wake of the devastating fires that have driven nearly 1 million Southern California residents from their homes, San Diego rock station FM 94.9 has been carrying a 24-hour news feed from public radio station KPBS in place of its music programming. The station handed over its airwaves on Tuesday morning after KPBS' transmitter was lost in the fire on Mount San Miguel. ...

Portishead are almost done recording their third full-length album, according to a post on the trip-hop outfit's Web site. Co-founder Geoff Barrow wrote that the band has been in London finishing up the long-awaited follow-up to its 1997 self-titled album. "I think one more day messing about with it, and it will be done," he wrote. "Then into the wonderful world of mastering." He added that the group is now "working on some artwork and getting the live stuff together." In related news, GZA has been added to the Portishead-curated All Tomorrow's Parties Nightmare Before Christmas event happening in England on December 7-9. He'll also perform his classic album Liquid Swords in its entirety in London on December 9. ... Former "American Idol" contestant Kellie Pickler has been added to the performance lineup for the upcoming Country Music Association Awards. The November 7 show has also added several new presenters, including Sheryl Crow and Gretchen Wilson. ...

His music has been in Victoria's Secret commercials, and now rock legend Bob Dylan is joining the SUV crowd. In a cross-promotional stunt to hype his XM radio show, Dylan is appearing in print, online and TV ads for the Cadillac Escalade, coinciding with a Cadillac-themed episode of his "Theme Time Radio Hour" XM show. In one commercial, a determined-looking Dylan, wearing an all-black cowboy getup, is seen hurtling through the desert in a black Escalade (listening to satellite radio, of course) and properly using his turn signal to overtake a truck. ...

It might be a while before we hear from Jet again. According to a post from drummer/singer Chris Cester on Jet's MySpace page, the Australian group is going on hiatus to recharge its batteries. "We've just decided to take some well-earned time off," he said. "After touring for, well, ever, we sat ourselves down and realized that with all the time we have spent away from home, Jet could finally use some down time."

[This story was originally published at 1:32 pm E.T. on 10.25.2007]

• Britney Spears' Ongoing Saga: What's Next?

• Diddy
• Jennifer Lopez
• Britney Spears
• Saul Williams
• Lil Wayne

Lil' Kim
Photo: Evan Agostini/Getty Images

Lil' Kim's legal problems aren't over yet — though the rapper is out of jail after serving 10 months on perjury charges, she's now facing a copyright-infringement lawsuit. The suit, which also names Kim's record label Atlantic and was filed last week in a New York federal court, claims that Kim stole her song "Durty" nearly word for word from a 1997 track by Jamaican reggae singer Tanya Stephens called "Mi and Mi God." In response, Kim's lawyer L. Londell McMillan claims the song wasn't stolen, but interpolated, "which happens all the time in hip-hop." Stephens claims in her suit that she was shocked to hear her words in Lil' Kim's song — even though Kim had flown her out to New York in 1999, asked her to sing on one of her albums, and sang "Mi and Mi God" to Stephens to demonstrate how much she liked her music. Kim counters, however, that Stephens never objected to the use of her song until after she failed to get more money for it being licensed. "This matter should have been resolved, but it appears to be another money and media play at Lil' Kim's expense," her lawyer said. Stephens claims she should receive all past and future royalties on the song. ...

Foxy Brown (real name Inga Marchand) pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault charges Monday (August 28), but then quickly tried to retract her plea, The Associated Press reports. The charges stemmed from her notorious nail-salon fight in 2004, and the plea deal will result in three years of probation and anger-management classes — but no jail time, according to a Manhattan, New York, district attorney spokesperson. She is due to be sentenced October 23. Brown's plea has wavered since the incident: In April 2005, she pleaded not guilty to the charges, but was then expected to make a deal in December. On Monday, after entering her guilty plea, she returned to the courtroom claiming she had been rushed into the decision. "The plea stands," the judge told her. ...

Protests have prompted concert promoters in Moscow to change the venue for Madonna's long-awaited concert there on September 12, AP reports. City officials feared police would not be able to monitor the originally scheduled venue in Vorobyovye Gory, and now it will be taking place at Luzhniki Stadium instead. ... The All-American Rejects have no intentions of returning home anytime soon. In late October, the band will launch its Tour-Nado run with openers the Gym Class Heroes, Starting Line and the Format on the first half of the tour, with the latter two bands plus Motion City Soundtrack warming up the audience on the second half. The trek kicks off in Poughkeepsie, New York, on October 27, with 26 dates scheduled through December 19 in Chicago. ...

When he's done working on new music with Britney Spears and Jennifer Lopez, Swizz Beatz plans to move on to the next Usher album — which the singer can't really record until he finishes up his current Broadway stint in "Chicago" on October 1. "He's a music man, so he's probably studying his lines and coming up with hooks at the same time, multitasking," Swizz said. "I've been in the background working on the album, so when he spins the wheel and it stops on me, I deliver." Don't worry, Swizz — Usher promises he's thinking ahead: "You got to stay tuned," he teased. That's good news for label head Clive Davis, who Usher claimed disrupted his Broadway debut with his Cassie ringtone (Clive swears it wasn't him). "Get off your cell phone and make a great album 10 weeks from now," Davis teased. "That's an order!" ...

Now that he's showed off his rhyming skills, Kevin Federline is setting out for triple-threat territory. The singer/dancer is scheduled to appear on an episode of "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" on CBS this fall. The 28-year-old — whose previous TV series experience came with the widely panned reality show "Britney & Kevin: Chaotic" — started shooting his part in Los Angeles on Thursday night. He plays a menacing, arrogant teen who harasses two investigators on the show. The episode is tentatively scheduled to air in October. ...

John Mayer will also appear on "CSI," but he's sticking with what he does best. Mayer will have a cameo on the series' two-part season premiere (airing September 21 and 28 on CBS) in a scene set in a Las Vegas club. He'll perform the tracks "Waiting on the World to Change" and "Slow Dancing in a Burning Room" from his latest album, Continuum, due September 12. In other John Mayer news, the singer missed a concert in Hartford, Connecticut, on Saturday due to "sudden onset" of laryngitis, according to a press release. The show went on with co-headliner Sheryl Crow and opening act Mat Kearney. Ticket holders who did not enter the gates are eligible for a refund. ...

Teddy Geiger is playing a benefit show at the Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center in New York on Wednesday. The concert will help support the Stella Maris Regional School Music in Education program, which provides keyboards, guitars and music lessons to students. For more information on the show, visit WHBPAC.org. ... Guitarist Jesse Pintado, a founding member of grindcore/ death-metal specialists Terrorizer and the man who replaced Bill Steer in Napalm Death back in 1990, died over the weekend in a hospital in Holland, a spokesperson for his label has confirmed. The pioneering metal guitarist left Napalm Death in 2004 to revive Terrorizer. Century Media Records will be releasing further details on Pintado's passing later this week. ...

A Broadway-style musical based on Michael Jackson's biggest hits, "Thriller Live," made its debut in London's West End theater district on Sunday, according to BBC News. The show features more than 80 performers singing and dancing along to the '80s pop star's most memorable tunes — from the early Motown years as part of the Jackson Five, to his success with Thriller and other solo albums — alongside a gospel choir and a children's ballet troupe. While Jackson was not involved with the production, he has given it his blessing, according to the show's producer. ... And it may no longer be his home, but Jackson was likely watching intently on Friday as a wildfire came within a quarter-mile of his Neverland Ranch in California, scorching more than 40 acres but not harming any of his zoo animals or amusement park rides, The Associated Press reported. The cause of the blaze is being investigated. ...

"High School Musical" took two of the six Emmys it was nominated for — scoring Choreography and Children's Program honors at last week's presentation of Creative Arts awards — while "American Idol" was shut out after receiving seven nominations. The winners of the big prizes at Sunday night's 58th annual Primetime Emmy Awards were "24" and "The Office," while "The Daily Show" took two trophies. (Click to see red-carpet shots of Eva Longoria, Randy Jackson, Stephen Colbert and more.) ... When they're not using their MySpace page to post diatribes against Paris Hilton or Danger Mouse, long-idle British trip-hoppers Portishead are posting material from their much-anticipated third album on the site. They've just posted two selections that are really just beats — an ominous, jittery number called "Greek Jam," and a chiming piece called "Key Bored 299 03," reminiscent of a Boards of Canada tune. There is still no title or release date for the band's new album, their first since 1997's Portishead.

08.25.2006

Eminem has teamed with Nike to auction off a limited-edition series of Air Max sneakers to benefit the rapper's Marshall Mathers Foundation and NineMillion.org, an agency dedicated to protecting refugees worldwide. The partnership will see the Shady Records CEO design eight models of the popular shoe, and they will be available to bid on at Nike stores and via eBay. "We're always looking for new ways to try to raise money and awareness for the foundation, so when Nike approached us we jumped at the chance," Eminem said in a statement. "When we got the info on NineMillion.org, it made even more sense. Who wouldn't want to design their own line of Nikes? And to do it for charity makes it that much better." Only 64 pairs of sneakers will be made available, with each set autographed by the multiplatinum star. The four-week auction begins Thursday. ...

A candlelight vigil for Aaliyah will be held Friday night (August 25) in New York's Central Park at the weeping willow tree that was planted in the singer's memory. The memorial, being held five years after her tragic passing, will take place at 7 p.m. Services took place earlier in the day at Ferncliff Cemetery, where Aaliyah is buried. The Aaliyah Memorial Fund recently partnered with Zingy, which is devoting 100 percent of the proceeds from sales of Aaliyah ringtones and wallpaper to the nonprofit organization. Fans who want to make a direct donation to the fund or send letters can do so at MemorialFund.Kintera.org. ...

Panic! at the Disco frontman Brendon Urie got a rather rude welcome to the stage at the Reading Festival on Friday: a bottle to the face. The band had just launched into the opening chords of its first song on the main stage at Reading — one of the U.K.'s oldest summer festivals — when someone in the crowd launched a bottle that clocked him square in the kisser. Urie immediately collapsed and was surrounded by his bandmates and roadies before getting back on his feet. Urie was OK, and Panic finished their set without further bottle-related hijinks. ...

DMX has done it again. The unpredictable rap star, who was scheduled to perform for troops in Kuwait and Iraq on a United Service Organizations tour this week, failed to arrive for his flight on Wednesday, the organization announced Thursday. "We are extremely disappointed that DMX decided not to complete the tour he asked us to arrange for him," a USO spokesperson said in a statement. "[He] let a lot of people down." X was initially scheduled to depart on Tuesday, but the rapper's representatives asked to postpone the flight by a day. The next morning, however, X was a no-show. "DMX missed the flight," his management responded via e-mail. "[But] we did not anticipate that this would lead to the entire tour being canceled. He was extremely disappointed and saddened. This trip was planned with the greatest of intentions. He admires these soldiers and wants the troops and the USO to know that he will do anything to make it up to them." ...

If you like Beyoncé's "Ring the Alarm," you ain't heard nothing yet, says the track's producer, Swizz Beatz. "That's just one of the many presents I gave her for her B'Day," he said. "I have the most tracks on her album as a single producer, and just wait till you hear the other three. I've never heard a singer singing on tracks like this. It hasn't been done in R&B yet, and if she can pull this off, it's going down. We're taking stuff to the next level." ... Swizz promises something just as groundbreaking for the new Britney Spears album, which he's currently working on with songwriter Sean Garrett. "That's my partner in crime right there," Swizz said. "The Britney stuff, we're creating just for her. It's a lot of tempo, a lot of hard drums, a lot of sonic changes. It's just something that when you hear it, you get goose bumps. She's back for real." ... Also keeping Swizz busy with his beats is Jennifer Lopez, who's working with the producer on her upcoming ska-pop album. "It's coming out incredible," he said. "We're putting together some great things, and not what everyone's expecting. Think a little Jamiroquai, a little Sade. It's real feel-good music." ...

Beck has decided on "Cell Phone's Dead" as the first single from his new album, The Information, due October 3. Michel Gondry directed the video ... Aerosmith bassist Tom Hamilton will be on the sidelines when the band begins its Route of All Evil Tour with Mötley Crüe on September 14 in Holmdel, New Jersey. Hamilton, who just finished a seven-week course of radiation treatment for throat cancer, will be with his family until he rejoins the band in mid-October. David Hull, who played with Aerosmith's lead guitarist in the Joe Perry Project, will be filling in. ... Plenty of "American Idol" top-10 finishers have released albums, but a 13th-placer? Make way for Ayla Brown, 18, the basketball-playing almost-finalist from the most recent "Idol" season who announced Thursday — just hours after her "Idol" obligation lapsed — that she is releasing her debut, Forward, on October 17 on the Double Deal Brand Records label. According to the singer's Web site, the first single, "Know You Better/ I Quit," will be released on September 12. The album is slated to feature songs written by Grammy winner Diane Warren, David Eriksen (Clay Aiken, Lindsay Lohan), Ruby Amanfu, singer Jonatha Brooke and Phil Thornalley (Natalie Imbruglia's "Torn"). ...

A man who claimed to be the illegitimate son of producer/singer Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds pleaded guilty on Thursday to a misdemeanor intimidation charge for his role in trying to extort millions from the singer. According to the Indianapolis Star, John Travis Clark will spend three months in a work-release program and be on probation for six months after threatening to go on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" and announce he was Edmonds' son unless he was paid $20 million. Edmonds did not attend the hearing, but said in a statement, "I want to make it emphatically clear that John Clark is not my son. I do not know his mother. [He] sought to ruin my reputation by broadcasting his lies to the entire country, which would not only destroy my family but would resonate loudly in the music industry." ... Moby and John Digweed will headline Ultra.NY, a live DJ event scheduled for September 22 at Rumsey Playfield in New York's Central Park. Soulwax Nite Versions, Junkie XL, Benny Benassi, Boris and David Waxman are also on the bill. ... "I Trust You to Kill Me," a documentary following Kiefer Sutherland as a tour manger for Rocco DeLuca & the Burden in a jaunt through Europe, will hit select theaters beginning September 8 in New York and a week later in Los Angeles. Rocco DeLuca is the first act on Sutherland and Jude Cole's Ironworks label.

• Usher
• Kevin Federline
• Michael Jackson
• Swizz Beatz
• John Mayer

Ja Rule (file)
Photo: Peter Kramer

Ja Rule recently revealed that "Caught Up" will be his next single. He's shooting the video this week in Miami. ... R&B singer D'Angelo's arraignment on charges of drunk driving and drug possession has been pushed back to February 11. The charges stem from a January 9 incident in which the singer was stopped for a traffic violation near his hometown of Richmond, Virginia. A subsequent search of his vehicle turned up substances believed to be cocaine and marijuana. ...

Jennifer Lopez is providing a glimpse at her first-ever fashion show, which will debut her fall clothing line, in an hour-long special set to air on MTV. "Jennifer Lopez: Beyond the Runway" will document the singer/actress running her clothing company while juggling her other career duties as her show at Olympus Fashion Week approaches. "I've had a passion for fashion for so long," Lopez said in a statement. "I am that girl who comes from the street, who comes from the Bronx, but has traveled the world and can bring all of those glamorous qualities, so it's like a sexy street glamour." The special airs February 24 at 10 p.m. ET. ... Mos Def, Macy Gray and Robert Bradley are not just in "Lackawanna Blues," an HBO film premiering February 12, they also each contributed new music for the soundtrack, due February 8. Mos plays a charismatic club band leader and Bradley portrays a blues singer in the flick. ...

Dave Matthews Band bus driver Stefan Wohl was charged in Chicago on Wednesday with reckless conduct and pollution for allegedly dumping waste onto passengers aboard a boat on the Chicago River as his bus crossed a bridge over the waterway in August, according to newswire reports. Wohl, 42, turned himself in and was released; a hearing is scheduled for March. The charges each carry a penalty of up to a year behind bars. ... System of a Down, Beastie Boys and Korn are among the artists who have donated items to a Waxploitation Records-sponsored auction (www.ebay.com/sudanrelief) to raise money for the victims of genocide in Sudan. Good Charlotte, Limp Bizkit, the Donnas, Tom Morello and Rob Zombie are also participating. ... Raphael Saadiq, Jon B. and Tank are among the R&B stars set to perform at a tsunami benefit Thursday at the Derby in Los Angeles. Calvin Richardson and former "American Idol" finalist Corey Clark are also performing, and the Youngbloodz and Truth Hurts are expected to be in attendance. ...

Juliette Lewis is heading back into the studio later this month with her band to record a full album, which they'll produce themselves and release May 31. Juliette and the Licks previously released a five-song EP called Like a Bolt of Lightning, which was only available online but will now hit stores on January 25. Meanwhile, the actress has collaborated with Southern California footwear company DVS Shoe to create the "Juliette" shoe for the summer/fall line (hitting stores in June). ... Tom Petty gets lucky during his upcoming guest stint on "King of the Hill," in which he'll provide the voice of Luanne's new love interest, named, well, Lucky. The rocker will appear in three episodes starting February 13 at 7 p.m. ET on FOX. ...

An all-star metal band featuring members of Disturbed, Iron Maiden, Ministry, the Misfits, Murderdolls, Type O Negative, AC/DC, Orgy, Danzig, Fear Factory and others will unite Thursday at the Hard Rock Cafe in Beverly Hills, California, for a benefit for the Raven's Heart Foundation. Prong, Ours, Uncle Dad (featuring former members of Guns N' Roses and Quiet Riot) and a Thin Lizzy tribute band are also performing. ... Jill Scott's Blues Babe Foundation will hold a fund-raiser on Sunday at Philadelphia's Saks Fifth Avenue. Event patrons will be able to take part in a silent auction featuring items from Scott, Destiny's Child, Patti LaBelle and Teddy Pendergrass, among others. The Blues Babe Foundation, launched in 2002 and named after Scott's grandmother, was established as a means to nurture the artistic and academic pursuits of lower-income, college-bound students of color. ...

Contrary to speculation due to their longtime inactivity, Portishead are still very much alive. It's been eight years since the trip-hoppers' self-titled sophomore record, but the Bristol, England, group has nearly completed its third album. Portishead will play a rare live show with Massive Attack at the Bristol Academy on February 19 to support tsunami-relief efforts. ... The Slits' classic 1979 album, Cut, will be re-released Tuesday via Koch Records. Formed in 1976 and led by then 14-year-old Ari Up, the pioneering female punk rockers cemented their place in history by joining the Clash's 1977 White Riot Tour. Two bonus tracks appear on the record: "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" and "Liebe and Romanze." ...

For every kid who can recite song lyrics word-for-word but can't commit school-related information to memory, Kaplan Test Prep and Defined Mind have created a CD of vocabulary-filled rock, hip-hop and R&B tracks as an SAT study aid. A slew of up-and-coming independent artists were asked to pen songs that featured at least 20 SAT-level vocabulary words for inclusion on the Vocabulary Accelerator disc. The result? Lyrics like "At this proximity you are deleterious to my tranquility" and "I am resplendent in the day/ Scoff at all that is in my way." Students can check out www.kaptest.com for more information. ... While he's recorded four previous albums on his own, Graham Coxon's first post-Blur solo LP, Happiness in Magazines, is set for a Tuesday release. The 13-track album, produced by longtime Blur producer Stephen Street, will feature the single "Freakin' Out." Despite rumors, Coxon says he has absolutely no plans to rejoin Blur. "There would be no need to go back. I'm in a new phase now," he said. ...

01.18.2005

Ashlee Simpson has bought her first home, in Studio City, California, which she's sharing with two of the girls who appeared as her friends in her video for "La La." "It's so much fun," she recently told MTV Europe. "We've been decorating it and everything, it's kinda got like a retro vibe. Hopefully when I'm home next month, I'll be able to do some work around the house. I am the messiest in the house, by far. My girlfriends are messy, too, but I win. I take the cake!" ...

Meanwhile, sister Jessica has autographed a sky-blue sweatshirt for an auction to benefit the Skin Cancer Foundation. The clothing, which can be seen at www.yogaforce.com, will be auctioned off in May, which is also Skin Cancer Awareness month, at www.auctiondrop.com. ... Jessica's husband, Nick Lachey, has signed to Jive Records, and will document the process of working with the label, recording songs and promoting the album on his upcoming still-untitled solo reality show, which is set to premiere on MTV in April. "Viewers will see a different side of me than in 'Newlyweds,' " he said in a statement, "and be able to understand exactly what goes into the making of an album. I look forward to sharing this experience with my fans." ...

Pharrell Williams and Reebok have decided to end their brief licensing relationship. Pharrell signed with Reebok in December 2003 to launch his Ice Cream footwear and Billionaire Boys Club clothing lines. As a result of the separation, Reebok will continue to sell Ice Cream sneakers through June 30. Pharrell sued Reebok International for more than $4 million last month, claiming the sportswear giant didn't produce clothing meeting BBC's standards and failed to distribute the clothing line to stores by an agreed-upon deadline. Pharrell will announce future plans for both lines shortly. ... It's been years since we've heard from Xscape, the quartet that Jermaine Dupri discovered and helped bring to platinum fame, but now they're in the studio working on a new album called Unchained for Warner Bros., minus member Kandi Burruss. Sisters LaTocha and Tamika Scott have once again joined forces with Tameka "Tiny" Cottle, and they've added a new member, Keisha Miles. Besides their album, the ladies are also shopping a reality show called "Unchained," which would document their realignment. ...

Eddie Vedder, Rob Zombie, Vincent Gallo, Nicolas Cage, Rick Rubin and other celebs joined several hundred black-T-shirted fans to memorialize Johnny Ramone with a larger-than-life statue of the punk rock pioneer at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery on Friday (click to see exclusive photos from the event). Zombie took credit for the statue (which he designed), Vedder called Ramone a "father figure" and Gallo wondered why Ramone had so many good friends while being such a tough guy. ... After four years of declining global music sales due to, among other factors, the abundance of illegal file-sharing, online music stores may now have a hand in increasing sales in 2005. According to Reuters, the market expects to see a 1 percent increase in 2005 with the help of online music sales and music DVDs. That may seem like a minor increase, but it could return the industry's sales levels to $39 billion (from the $32.1 billion in 2004) over the next six years, a number not seen since before the advent of file-swapping services and inexpensive CD burners. ...

With keynote speaker Robert Plant already on board, the lineup for the annual South by Southwest Music Festival in Austin, Texas (March 16-20) is coming together. Among the hundreds of roots, rock, hip-hop, pop and dance acts on the bill are Elvis Costello, Bloc Party, Death From Above 1979, Ditty Bops, Dogs Die in Hot Cars, the Donnas, Doves, Fatboy Slim, the Futureheads, Hot Hot Heat, Billy Idol, the Kills, Aimee Mann, the Raveonettes, Sleater-Kinney and the Soundtrack of Our Lives. ... British indie-rockers the Futureheads are crossing the pond for a series of North American tour dates. Their trek kicks off on February 21 in Washington, D.C., and makes stops in cities including New York, Philadelphia, Boston and Los Angeles before winding up in Dallas on March 19. ...

Interpol might earn the title of indie road warriors at this rate. Still supporting their sophomore album, Antics, the gloomy New York rockers are taking to the road yet again on a 16-date North American trek with Blonde Redhead. The tour commences February 7 in Cincinnati and ends February 28 in Philadelphia. ... After supporting Interpol on their fall tour, the Secret Machines are ready to hit the road on their own in support of their major-label debut, Now Here Is Nowhere. The Dallas trio's first full-blown North American tour will comprise 27 dates starting in Toronto on February 2 and then wrapping up a month later in New York on March 5. ...

Ted Nugent did his part to make sure one high school band could rock out for President Bush in his inaugural parade. The Motor City Madman played a benefit concert on Saturday at the Crawford High School gym in Texas' McLennan County, where he now lives, to help the school's band — the only Texas high school band invited to participate — raise enough money to travel to Washington, D.C., to perform in the parade. The show raised about $19,000, according to the town's newspaper, the Waco Tribune-Herald, which covered the cost of the trip and will allow the band to get new uniforms and a new sound system for its school gym. ... Afro'd prog-rockers the Mars Volta will release their second disc, Frances the Mute, on March 1. The follow-up to De-loused in the Comatorium will feature 77 minutes of music spanning across five songs, three of which will be broken up by movements and passages, much like an orchestral suite. The first single will be "The Window." ...

• Ja Rule
• Jennifer Lopez
• Mos Def
• System of a Down
• Portishead

Outkast, the Roots, Talib Kweli, Blackalicious and Mos Def will fill the hip-hop portion of the Audiotistic - The Future Sound Festival on April 13 in San Bernadino, California. Roni Size, DJ Q-Bert and Money Mark, DJ Swamp, Pete Rock, King Britt, DJ Dan, Donald Glaude and Jason Bentley are among the electronic music entertainment scheduled for the sixth annual event. ... David Bowie will release his new album, Heathen, on June 11 on Columbia Records via his own ISO label. The disc is Bowie's first studio venture in three years and reunites the Thin White Duke with producer Tony Visconti, who worked with Bowie on Young Americans, Low, Heroes and Scary Monsters. ...

The laws of space and time can't get more bent than with "Love Song" and "Dead or Anything," two tracks written in Scotland by Australian singer/songwriter Ben Lee and former Lemonhead Evan Dando and recorded in New York with help from 51-year-old Cheap Trick bassist Tom Petersson and 21-year-old Phantom Planet drummer Jason Schwartzman. The two-song single will become available April 1 through the Web site of Australian indie label Trifekta (www.trifekta.com.au). ... Portishead's performance with the 30-piece New York Philharmonic at New York's Roseland Ballroom in July 1997 will be released on DVD on April 30. "PNYC" will include the entire show, which featured favorites such as "Cowboys" and "Sour Times," along with an unreleased acoustic version of "Wandering Star," short films for "To Kill a Dead Man" and "Road Trip," a documentary on the performance and additional tour footage. ...

"Addicted to Love," "Simply Irresistible," "I Didn't Mean to Turn You On" and eight other Top 40 hits will be featured on Best of Both Worlds: The Robert Palmer Anthology (1974 - 2001). Due April 30, the 42-track collection will also include tracks from Palmer's stint with the Power Station and live cuts from last year's Live at the Apollo. ... Elvis Costello will promote his first album in six years, When I Was Cruel, due April 23, with a U.S. tour beginning May 18 in Portland, Oregon, and ending June 24 in Atlanta. The legendary crooner will also make in-store appearances at Tower Records in Philadelphia, Chicago and New York and perform at a free, radio-sponsored show on April 21 in Chicago. ... Meanwhile, Costello will join U2 singer Bono and Tom Waits on the board of advisors for DMZ Records, a new label founded by producer T-Bone Burnett and filmmakers Joel and Ethan Coen, the team behind the Grammy-winning "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" soundtrack. ...

Former Wallflowers guitarist Michael Ward's new band, Ward, will open for Crystal Method, Cake and Stone Temple Pilots at Rock for the Roses in Austin on April 12. Ward left the Wallflowers last October to work on new music with former Cupcakes member Preston Graves. ... Lit will launch an upcoming tour with an April 7 radio show in Austin, Texas, and play 16 dates before ending May 8 in Boston. ... Pressure 4-5 will join Lit's tour on April 18 after wrapping their own headlining outing, which begins March 31 in Los Angeles. On May 7, they'll join the MTV2 Handpicked Tour with Lost Prophets and Apex Theory. ... India.Arie and Joe Henry will appear on Concrete Love, English singer-songwriter Julia Fordham's first album in five years, due June 18. ... Laptop-toting duo Plaid, who toured with Autechre last year, will release a new EP, P-Brane, on April 30. Now on a North American tour, they hit Brooklyn Thursday (March 28) and will continue down the East Coast before finishing up in Los Angeles on April 11. ...

03.27.02

Lil' Romeo and Silkk the Shocker have been added to the roster of celebrities, athletes and industry execs who will compete at the third annual T.J. Martell B-Ball Classic, taking place in New York City on April 25. Master P was previously announced as the event's Commissioner of Basketball, and Hot 97 DJ Miss Jones will sing the national anthem. ... Kelly Osbourne and ex-Smashing Pumpkins-heads Melissa Auf Der Maur and James Iha were among those taking in the Andrew W.K. show at New York's Bowery Ballroom on Tuesday. ...

Marilyn Manson's crotch-rubbing case in Clarkston, Michigan, progresses, as a pre-trial hearing date has been set for April 25, at which the rocker plans to plead guilty to two misdemeanor charges (assault and battery, disorderly persons). At a motions hearing on Wednesday (March 27), Judge Gerald E. McNally denied a request by the prosecution to recuse himself, leaving the prosecution with 21 days to appeal ... Actor Billy Bob Thornton will show off the crooner within when he launches a two-week tour to promote his debut album, Private Radio. The eight-city jaunt will start in Los Angeles on May 17, according to Reuters.

• OutKast
• Portishead
• David Bowie
• Mos Def
• Lit

Buyer, beware: a rash of rip-offs has been plaguing music fans this week from Florida to Moscow to New Hampshire.

• Nas
• Portishead
• Red Hot Chili Peppers

July 15 [16:00 EDT] -- Britain's Portishead will be previewing their second album in a special concert backed by a 30-piece orchestra at The Roseland in New York city July 24. The Bristol-based band will also be launching their official website July 23, which will allow fans internationally to view rehearsals for the preview as well as access an international press conference scheduled for July 25. The album is being released Sept. 29 in the U.K. and Oct. 7 in the U.S. by Go!Beat/Polygram.

A limited vinyl edition of 7,500 copies of the single "Cowboys," backed by an instrumental track, was released in the U.K. last week and sold out within hours.

• Portishead