T.I.
Photo: Frank Micelotta/ Getty Images

After spending two weeks as Billboard's best-seller, rapper T.I.'s Paper Trail has been usurped by one of country's most beloved singers, Kenny Chesney. Despite generating solid, third-week sales of nearly 131,600, T.I.'s new LP just couldn't fend off Chesney's Lucky Old Sun, which enters the chart on top with more than 176,400 copies scanned.

Chesney's was among 20 new releases impacting next week's albums sales chart, and one of four to enter the chart in the top 10, according to the latest sales data from Nielsen SoundScan. Following T.I. at #3 is folk artist Ray LaMontagne's Gossip in the Grain, which debuts with 60,500 sold, while rockers Keane return at #7, having sold 43,500 copies of their latest, Perfect Symmetry. Bowing at #9, with 34,700 scans, is Lucinda Williams' Little Honey.

The remainder of the top 10 is filled out by the usual suspects. Dropping two spots to #4 next week is Metallica's Death Magnetic, with 50,600 scans, followed by Jennifer Hudson's self-titled debut at #5, with 45,800 sold. Kid Rock's Rock N Roll Jesus climbs one spot to #6, selling another 45,200 units. Ne-Yo's Year of the Gentleman holds at #8, with sales clocked at 40,400, and holding for a second week at #10, with 31,500 sold, is James Taylor's Covers.

Ingrid Michaelson's Be OK opens at #35 on next week's chart, scanning 15,000 copies its first week on store shelves, while Massachusetts metalcore outfit Unearth's March debuts at #45, with 10,900 sold. Copeland's You Are My Sunshine bows at #48, with 10,300 scans. Haste the Day's Dreamer enters at #68, with 7,700 sold. Santana's Multi-Dimensional Warrior checks in at #82, after selling almost 6,700 units, and Between the Buried and Me's Colors: Live follows at #100, with 5,400 sold.

Joe's Greatest Hits sold more than 4,700 copies, which earns it the #125 spot on next week's Top 200. Meanwhile, metallers Gojira's Way of All Flesh enters at #138, with 4,200 scans. Nikka Costa returns at #157, with her latest, Pebble to a Pearl, scanning 3,600 copies. And finally, "Pushing Daisies" star Kristin Chenoweth's A Lovely Way to Spend Christmas enters at #187, with 3,100 sold.

• T.I.
• Kenny Chesney
• Metallica
• Kid Rock
• Keane

Gerald Levert's <i>In My Songs</i>
Photo: Atlantic

No offense to the week of February 13, 2007, but we're starting to feel like we've been dressed up for the letdown.

The first quarter began in earnest on January 30 with new LPs by pop's leading ladies: Madonna, Katharine McPhee and Norah Jones (with junior mint Lily Allen also in the mix). The rockers kicked things up a notch the following week, making sure Fall Out Boy, Bloc Party and the Used fans got their fill of fresh material.

That brings us to this week, which is cowering in the wake of the two previous powerhouse Tuesdays. If there's a metaphor to encapsulate this batch of new releases, it might be the 2000 Senate re-election bid ex-Attorney General John Ashcroft made against then-Governor Mel Carnahan. Carnahan defeated Ashcroft in November — even though he died two weeks prior to the election. Similarly, the recently departed Gerald Levert has a strong chance of trumping Lucinda Williams and the rest of the pack this week.

Beyond that, how do influential '90s underground crustaceans Seafood taste these days? Are Iceage Cobra something to be afraid of? Does this guy Soulkid#1 have any relation to Musiq Soulchild? And what are members of a reputed skateboard crew doing in a video for a song called "Porn" — by a band named Tack, no less?

Time to round up the mongrels.

Levert's Leavings: Gerald Levert, who passed away November 10 from a heart attack at the tender age of 39, has left us with one heck of a tear-jerker. Before the lauded R&B singer begins crooning on In My Songs, his father — Eddie Levert of the O'Jays — details in a spoken-word passage how excited his son was about the LP. From that point onward, it's all Gerald, lending support to a female friend on "Hang in There" and picking up the pace with the dance-floor-ready "DJ Don't." The final track could not be a more fitting close to the effort: It's called "Is This the Way to Heaven."

Lucinda's Laments: Lucinda Williams has a knack for picking impeccable backing-band musicians — Doug Pettibone and Bob Dylan collaborator Charlie Sexton among them — and she's found some equally seasoned talent as she heads West. Longtime Lou Reed collaborator Hal Willner sits behind the boards as guitar master Bill Frisell and Gary Louris of the Jayhawks chime in on the LP, which is already drawing raves. Williams seals the set with four song titles beginning with the letter "W": "What If," "Wrap My Head Around That," "Words" and "West."

See? Food: Britain has a bad reputation for aliments, but indie-rockers worldwide have developed a palette for Seafood since the band began in 1996. Tours with Dashboard Confessional and Jimmy Eat World have helped cast a spotlight on the band, and now it's looking for even more success with its latest opus, Paper Crown King. The effort was recorded during frontman David Line's 10-month recovery from a collapsed lung and features "I Will Talk," "Last Outpost" and "How You Gonna Live Without Me?"

For Reel: If "Singles" was the '90s film for the grunge set, "Half-Cocked" was the flick that harnessed an indie-rock scene festering even deeper underground. Members of unsung heroes June of 44, the Make-Up and the Grifters star in the fictional 1997 flick that documents the Louisville, Kentucky, netherworld — and if you think Seattle was gritty, you're in for a surprise. On DVD for the first time, the ultra-low-budg movie is furthered with an accompanying film, "Radiation," which documents the failed tour of Spain the "Half-Cocked" filmmakers made and features Will Oldham and members of Stereolab. And speaking of movies, the soundtrack to romance-drama "Starter for 10" has a somewhat random cast including the Cure, Motörhead and Kate Bush.

Folk, That: If you enjoyed East Vancouver, Canada's Po'Girl the first time around, you're in for a surprise. The group — which originated as a duo in 2002 when Allison Davies and Trish Klein of the Be Good Tanyas collaborated to perform jazz songs — has since reconfigured itself into a crew of five multi-instrumentalists. Their sophomore LP, Home to You, is likely to win over even more folk fans as they get an additional boost from beat-boxer C.R. Avery and Chris Brown. No, not that Chris Brown — the one helping out here is the Canadian pop performer who frequently collaborates with Kate Fenner. Sink your ears into even more rootsy goodness with Fork in the Road by Nashville bluegrass sextet the Infamous Stringdusters and Martha Scanlan's The West Was Burning, which was partially recorded at a house owned by Levon Helm of the Band.

Sk8tr Boyz: What does Chicago punk rock have in common with pornography? Roller-skating, of course. Dead Town Revival — a crew of rookie punks from Chi-Town's South Side who recently opened for the Smoking Popes — granted those who preordered their Hasta la Muerte debut with guest passes to see the band perform at an upcoming South by Southwest party hosted by its label, Sinister Muse, and the Lonestar Rollergirls. Likewise, Tack — a politically charged band started up by Colin Edwards of Bay of Pigs — just shot the video for their album's title track with a gang of professional and amateur skateboarders. The song deals with a heavy topic, though: It's about an American soldier stuck in Iraq.

All in the Family: Some Midnight Kissin', the full-length debut by Florida pop-rockers the Dark Romantics, was produced by Starflyer 59's Jason Martin and features two sets of spouses. Another squad of newcomers, Santa Rosa, California's the New Trust, also features a husband and his wife. This week they dish up Evolve Into Nothing, which features the snarky song titles "You've Got to Be F---ing Sh---ing Me," "Chill the F--- Out" and "Wake Up, It's the Nineties." And Sophe Lux, an indie-pop outfit from Portland, Oregon, are fronted by singer Gwynneth Haynes — sister to "Far From Heaven" and "Velvet Goldmine" director Todd Haynes.

Song Title of the Week:

"Do the Black Lung" from Iceage Cobra's Brilliant Ideas From Amazing People

Other Notables:

Soulkid#1's Americanized: After selling more than 100,000 iTunes downloads of their song "(More Bounce in) California" — a number that's also become a "Laguna Beach" staple and was featured in both "Win a Date With Tad Hamilton" and "Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde" — it's time for the former DreamWorks signees to finally step up with their debut disc. The album — which was written more than five years ago and deals with a foreigner's experience living in the U.S. after 9/11 — is frothing forth via the band's own Secret Agent Records.

Ben Davis's Battle of the Beards: While this album is being considered a solo release by the onetime Sleepytime Trio and Milemarker operative, the toned-down, lush effort is really a collaborative affair between Davis and Aimee Argote of punk-rockers Des Ark. This isn't the first time they've pooled their talents, though: Argote sang throughout and scribed two songs on Davis' 2004 effort, Aided and Abetted.

The Visitors' The Visitors: The umpteenth debut album hitting stores this week is by Brooklyn, New York's latest garage-rock sensations. But while they have plenty to say on their first, 12-track opus, they make room to update two vintage tunes: "I Walked With a Zombie" by Roky Erickson and "Stop What You're Doing" by the even more obscure Viscaynes. Now that's digging deep.

New Releases:

· Chris Bruni - Watch Me Burn (Realize)
· The Dark Romantics - Some Midnight Kissin' (Lujo) [Buy Now]
· Ben Davis - Battle of the Beards (Lovitt)
· Dead Town Revival - Hasta la Muerte (Sinister Muse) [Buy Now]
· Iceage Cobra - Brilliant Ideas From Amazing People (Iceage Cobra) [Buy Now]
· The Infamous Stringdusters - Fork in the Road (Sugar Hill) [Buy Now]
· Gerald Levert - In My Songs (Atlantic) [Buy Now]
· Anaïs Mitchell - The Brightness (Righteous Babe)
· Mick Overman & the Maniacs - Good Thing Happen (Max)
· The New Trust - Evolve Into Nothing (Slowdance) [Buy Now]
· Papercuts - Can't Go Back (Gnomonsong) [Buy Now]
· Po'Girl - Home to You (Nettwerk) [Buy Now]
· Rio en Medio - Bride of Dynamite (Gnomonsong) [Buy Now]
· Travis Rush - Come and Get It (Broken Halo/ Mason)
· Martha Scanlan - The West Was Burning (Sugar Hill)
· Seafood - Paper Crown King (Cooking Vinyl) [Buy Now]
· Sophe Lux - Waking the Mystics (Zarathustra)
· Softlightes - Say No! To Being Cool - Say Yes! To Being Happy (enhanced; Modular Interscope) [Buy Now]
· Soulkid#1 - Americanized (Secret Agent)
· Storyhill - Storyhill (Red House)
· Tack - Porn (Tarpit) [Buy Now]
· The Visitors - The Visitors (Eschatone)
· Lucinda Williams - West (digipak; Lost Highway) [Buy Now]
· Young Dubliners - With All Due Respect: The Irish Sessions (429)
· Various artists - "Barbie Fairytopia" soundtrack (Koch)
· Various artists - "Music and Lyrics" soundtrack (Atlantic)
· Various artists - "Starter for 10" soundtrack (Rhino)

Notable Reissues and Archival Material:

· Blue Öyster Cult - Some Enchanted Evening: Legacy Edition (with DVD) and Spectres (Columbia/Legacy) [Buy Now]
· Doobie Brothers - The Very Best of the Doobie Brothers (two CDs; Rhino) [Buy Now]
· Nina Hagen - Fearless (Koch)
· Van Morrison - Van Morrison at the Movies: The Soundtrack Hits (Manhattan/EMI)
· Various artists - Ricky Jay Plays Poker: Deluxe Edition (with DVD; Octone/Legacy)

Music DVDs:

· Jaco Pastorius - "Live and Outrageous" (Shanachie)
· Various artists - "Half-Cocked" (with "Radiation"; Rumur)
· Various artists - "The U.S. Vs. John Lennon" (Lionsgate)

Coming Attractions:

February 20:
· Calla - Strength in Numbers (Beggars Banquet) [Preorder]
· Kittie - Funeral for Yesterday (X of Infamy) [Preorder]
· Various artists - Kidz Bop 11 (Razor & Tie)

February 27:
· Beck - The Information (deluxe-edition reissue; Geffen) [Preorder]
· Fabolous - From Nothing to Something (Def Jam) [Preorder]
Read: "Fabolous Opens Up About Shooting Incident; Hooks Up With Jeezy, Ne-Yo"
· Slim Thug & Tha Boss Hogg Outlawz - Serve & Collect (Koch)

March 6:
· Arcade Fire - Neon Bible (deluxe edition with book due same day; Merge) [Preorder]
· Jonny Greenwood - Jonny Greenwood Is the Controller (Trojan)
· Albert Hammond Jr. - Yours to Keep (enhanced; New Line)
· Korn - MTV Unplugged (Virgin) [Preorder]
Read: "Korn Quiet Down With The Cure, Amy Lee For 'MTV Unplugged' "
· Relient K - Five Score and Seven Years Ago (Capitol) [Preorder]
Read: "Relient K Pump Serious Rock, Sugary Pop In The Tank For Upcoming LP"

• Gerald LeVert
• Lucinda Williams
• Seafood
• Visitors
• Ben Davis

Is the public ready for the King's Kid? Lisa Marie Presley thinks so.

Her first LP, To Whom It May Concern, and its single, "Lights Out," hit shelves this week alongside Godsmack's Faceless, which finds Sully and company revving their hard rock on songs like "I F---ing Hate You," "Changes" and "I Stand Alone."

Russell Crowe — yes that Russell Crowe — and 30 Odd Foot of Grunts release Other Ways of Speaking, an album full of tunes about the labor of love. Crowe, with his rough manner and voice, tears through songs like "Unfaithful Man," "What's Her Name?" and his duet with Chrissie Hynde, "Never Be Alone Again."

Some good old-fashioned, melodic indie rock comes from Yo La Tengo's Summer Sun and the Fruit Bats' Mouthfuls, while the X-ecutioners follow up on last year's Built From Scratch with Scratchology, a mixtape combining classic songs from Grandmaster Flash and Herbie Hancock. The joint also features new cuts from Rob Swift, Roc Raida and DJ Qbert, and Scarface serves up Balls and My Word, you understand?

And finally, what's new is old again — or something like that. This week, new releases of old material come from Fear Factory's B-sides and remixes album, Hateflies; Hot Hot Heat's Scenes One Through Thirteen, a collection of early recordings with nary a guitar to be found; the Sahara Hotnights' C'mon Let's Pretend, the precursor to last year's Jennie Bomb; and Stereolab's ABC Music: The Radio 1 Sessions, a two-disc retrospective ranging from 1991-2001.

Out Tuesday, April 8:

• 13 Cats - 13 Tracks (Cleopatra)
• Amazombies - Bitches and Stitches (Go Kart)
• Atari Teenage Riot - Burn Berlin Burn (Digital Hardcore)
• Autechre - Draft 7.30 (Warp)
• Black Keys - Thickfreakness (Fat Possum)
• Boomkat - Boomkatalog One (DreamWorks) Read: "Eminem, Britney Pave Boomkat's Road To Success"
  Buy Now: Boomkatalog One (DreamWorks)
• BPM - Brazilian Vibe Music (Iris)
• Peter Brotzmann - More Nipples (Atavistic)
• Johnny Cash - Sings the Songs That Made Him Famous (Varese)
• Catch Up - Catch Up (Crippled Dick)
• Central Falls - Love and Easy Living (Atavistic)
• Common Cold - Bleep Bleep Bloop (Action Driver)
• Countdown to Life - Tragedy Is So Irresistible (State of Grace)
• Country Sareno - 13 With a Bullet (Teen Angel)
• Russell Crowe and 30 Odd Foot of Grunts - Other Ways of Speaking (Artemis)
• Defecation - Intention Surpassed (Nuclear Blast)
• Delirious? - Access: D (Furious)
• DJ Scud - Ambush (Rephlex)
• The Essex Green - Long Goodbye (Merge)
• Fatal Flying Guilloteens - Get Knifed (Estrus)
• Fattburger - Sizzlin' (Shanachie)
• Fear Factory - Hateflies (Roadrunner)
  Buy Now: Hateflies (Roadrunner)
• Flashlight Brown - My Degeneration (Hollywood)
• Freeform - Condensed (Finest Filets from 1997 - 2002) (EFA)
• Fruit Bats - Mouthfuls (Sub Pop)
• Gallery of Mites - Bugs on the Bluefish (Meteor City)
• Generation X - Anthology (Capitol)
• Genuine - Bury the Hatchet (State of Grace)
• Ginuwine - Senior (Sony)
  Buy Now: Senior (Sony)
• Gob - Too Late No Friends (Nettwerk)
• Godsmack - Faceless (Universal)
  Read: "Godsmack Know They Can't Be Eminem In New Video"
  Buy Now: Faceless (Universal)
• Golden Dawn - Art of Dreaming (Napalm)
• Golden Dawn - Masquerade (Napalm)
• Hot Hot Heat - Scenes One Through Thirteen (Ohev)
  Read: "Hot Hot Heat Achieve Coolness By Writing Good Muzak"
• Immersed in Blood - Killing Season (Arctic)
• Internal Bleedings - Extinction of Benevolence (Crash)
• Jayhawks - Rainy Day Music (Universal)
• Jay-Z - The Blueprint 2.1 (Extra Tracks, Def Jam)
  Read: "Jay-Z Cutting Away The Fat And Releasing Blueprint 2.1"
• Jet Black Summer - Ladder of Divine Ascent (Lakeshore)
• Josefus - Dead Box (Akarma)
• Judas Priest - Live in London (Steamhammer)
• Kulia - Kulia (Fat Katz)
• Lagwagon - Blaze (Fat Wreck Chords)
• Last Second - Darkness Before Dawn (Acts 26)
• Lil' Cuete - There's Only One Way About It (East Side)
• Lullacry - Crucify My Heart (Century Media)
• Matchbook Romance - West for Wishing (EP, Epitaph)
• No Fun at All - Master Celebrations (Epitaph)
• Not Long After - Contrary to Popular Belief (New School)
• Maktub - Khronos (Velour)
• Mandingo - Reflexiones (Fonovisa)
• Martyr - Extracting the Core: Live 2001 (Skyscraper)
• Mary Lee's Corvette - 700 Miles (Bar None)
• Mensen - Oslo City (Gearhead)
• Mic Geronimo - Long Road Back (Warlock)
• MC Honky - I Am the Messiah (Spin Art)
• Mono - One More Step and You're Dead (Arena Rock)
• Mouse on Mars - Glam (Thrill Jockey)
• Mpact - Losing Sleep (The Orchard)
• NDE - End of Trust (Crash)
• Odetta - Odetta (Silverwolf)
• Panthers - Let's Get Serious (EP, Dim Mak)
• Lee Perry - Cutting Razor: Rare Cuts from the Black Ark (Rounder)
• Porch Ghouls - Bluff City Ruckus (Sony)
• Portastatic - Summer of the Shark (Merge)
• Elvish Presley - Black Elk Speaks (Bulb)
• Lisa Marie Presley - To Whom It May Concern (Capitol)
  Buy Now: To Whom It May Concern (Capitol)
• Radio Pirata - Ahora (Fonovisa)
• Red Snapper - Red Snapper (Lo)
• Rise Against - Revolutions Per Minute (Fat Wreck Chords)
• Santana - Birth of Santana: Complete Early Years (Cleopatra)
• Sahara Hotnights - C'mon Let's Pretend (Jet Set)
• Savettes - Nearer My God to Thee (Liquid 8)
• Scarface - Balls and My Word (Rap-a-Lot)
• Schneider Tm - 6 Peace (EP, Mute)
• Seven Witches - Passage to the Other Side (Noise)
• Shaggy - Lucky Day (SACD, MCA)
• Betty Sise - Moon Pastels (Silverwolf)
• Slam - Fabric 9 (Fabric)
• Soft Machine - Turns on 2 (United States)
• Soft Pink Truth - Do You Party (Soundslike)
• Soul of Darkness - Cry of the Inner Pain (Skyscraper)
• Stereolab - ABC Music: The Radio 1 Sessions (2 CDs, Koch)
• Stratford 4 - Love and Distortion (Jet Set)
• Summoning - Lost Tales (Napalm)
• Trey - Trey (Liquid 8)
• T Spigot - Experiments in the Hypnotic Production of Crime (Varese)
• Vonray - Vonray (Elektra)
• Sean Watkins - 26 Miles (Sugarhill)
• Lucinda Williams - World Without Tears (Universal)
• Cassandra Wilson - Jumpworld (Winter and Winter)
• Wolfsheim - Casting Shadows (Metropolis)
• X-ecutioners - Scratchology (Sequence)
  Read: "Mixtape Mondays: X-ecutioners"
• Yo La Tengo - Summer Sun (Matador)
• Various artists - "61" soundtrack (Jellybean)
• Various artists - "Ah My Goddess" soundtrack (Pioneer)
• Various artists - Babylon is Ours: USA in Dub (EFA)
• Various artists - "Armitage: Dual Matrix" (Pioneer)
• Various artists - "Bulletproof Monk" soundtrack (Lakeshore)
• Various artists - Complete Tribute to Britney Spears (Also Cher, Garth Brooks, Shania Twain, Big Eye)
• Various artists - Hip Hop Rap (Thump)
• Various artists - "Irreversible" soundtrack (Thrive)
• Various artists - "It Runs in the Family" soundtrack (Verve)
• Various artists - Lost Songs of Lennon and McCartney (RPH)
• Various artists - "Lupin 3" soundtrack (Pioneer)
• Various artists - "A Mighty Wind" soundtrack (Sony)
• Various artists - "Monday in the Sun" soundtrack (Milan)
• Various artists - Nu Electronica (Beechwood)
• Various artists - Playboy Jazz After Dark (2 CDs, Playboy Jazz)
• Various artists - Shut the Punk Up Vols. 1 and 2 (New School)

April 22:

• Evan Dando - Baby I'm Bored (Bar None)
• Flaming Lips - Fight Test (EP, Warner Bros.)
  Buy Now: Fight Test (EP, Warner Bros.)
• Madonna - American Life (Warner Bros.)
  Read: "Madonna To Follow Spiritual Muse For New Album"
  Buy Now: American Life (Warner Bros.)

April 29:

• Kelly Price - Priceless (Universal)
  Buy Now: Priceless (Universal)
• Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Fever to Tell (Touch & Go)
• Various artists - American Idol Season 2: All-Time Classic American Love Songs (RCA)

May 13:

• Macy Gray - The Trouble With Being Myself (Epic)
• Third Eye Blind - Out of the Vein (Elektra)
  Read: "Third Eye Blind Recruit Fred Durst, Andrew W.K. For Third Album"
  Buy Now: Out of the Vein (Elektra)

June 10:

• Metallica - St. Anger (Elektra)
  Read: "Metallica To Give Rock And Roll A Good Thrashing"

June 17:

• Limp Bizkit - Bipolar (Interscope)
  Read: "Snoop Dogg, Bubba Sparxxx May Appear On Limp Bizkit Album"

• Godsmack
• Lisa Marie Presley
• Jay-Z
• Lucinda Williams
• Boomkat

Alicia Keys almost left Los Angeles' Staples Center Wednesday night (February 27) with a perfect Grammy record, if U2 didn't have to "Walk On" and break her winning ways.

Winning five of the six categories in which she was nominated, the R&B singer/pianist was the artist with most wins at the 44th annual Grammy Awards, including two of the big four awards: Song of the Year for "Fallin' " and Best New Artist. Keys also took home trophies for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance, Best R&B Song and Best R&B Album, for Songs in A Minor.

(Click for photos from the show.)

"I was excited — very, very thrilled," Keys said in the press room following the ceremony. "You have to be involved as an artist. Never let people tell you what to do, or you will never do anything."

U2, who stood to take home the lion's share of statuettes with a pack-leading eight nominations, made good in four categories: Record of the Year for "Walk On," Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocal for "Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of," Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocal for "Elevation," and Best Rock Album for All That You Can't Leave Behind. Their four wins brings the Irish quartet's all-time Grammy total to 14, two of which came last year when they took both Song of the Year and Record of the Year honors for "Beautiful Day," from the same album.

Music from the film "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" was actually bestowed the most awards — six in all — including the official soundtrack's wins for Best Compilation Soundtrack Album and Album of the Year, besting LPs by India.Arie (Acoustic Soul), Bob Dylan (Love and Theft), Outkast (Stankonia) and U2 (All That You Can't Leave Behind). The soundtrack's producer, T-Bone Burnett, won for Producer of the Year, Non-Classical, while Down From the Mountain, an LP of live soundtrack songs and tunes inspired by the film, won for Best Traditional Folk Album.

"We are very, very surprised," said one of the album's featured artists, Emmylou Harris, perhaps echoing the sentiment of those taken aback by a bluegrass and roots music album cleaning up the way it did. "If the soundtrack moves people the way it moves me, then I'm very happy."

India.Arie, who was second among those with the most nominations, came away wanting, coming up empty in her seven chances, including all big-four categories.

After performing, the sultry songbirds of "Lady Marmalade" — Christina Aguilera, Mya, Pink and Lil' Kim — took home the award for Best Pop Collaboration With Vocals, trumping the efforts of Ricky Martin and Christina Aguilera, Brian McKnight and Justin Timberlake, Shaggy and RikRok, and Tony Bennett and Billy Joel. With the evening's second award presentation, the ladies set a "first you perform, then you win" trend that continued with Train's "Drops of Jupiter" (Best Rock Song), the Soggy Bottom Boys' "O Brother" contribution "I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow" (Best Country Collaboration With Vocals), Alicia Keys' "Fallin' " and Outkast's "Ms. Jackson" (Best Rap Album).

Nelly Furtado made good on one of her four nominations, winning Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for "I'm Like a Bird."

In the midst of the night's well-scheduled flow of award presentations and performers (see "Mary J. Fights The Drama, Outkast Fight For Attention On Grammy Stage"), Michael Greene, president of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the organization behind the Grammys, addressed the issue of illegal file-sharing and CD-copying in his annual speech, condemning those who engaged in the unlawful practice and equated them to thieving from the artists' pockets directly.

"Many of the nominees here tonight, especially the new, less established artists, are in immediate danger of being marginalized out of our business," he said. "Ripping [CDs] is stealing their livelihood one digital file at a time, leaving their musical dream haplessly smeared in this worldwide Web of theft and indifference."

Eighty-nine of the evening's 101 total Grammy Awards were doled out before the Grammys' televised broadcast began, and the early winners there often foretell the night's overall outcome, as it did last year when Eminem and Dr. Dre each went into the ceremony with two pre-telecast Grammys and Slim Shady eventually walked away with three total. This year was no different: the "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" soundtrack had three wins before the ceremony started.

Although losing to Keys in the Best New Artist category, Linkin Park didn't walk away empty-handed. The group that churned out the best-selling album of last year won for Best Hard Rock Performance with "Crawling" from Hybrid Theory.

"The Wizard," by Best Metal Performance nominee Black Sabbath, couldn't put a jinx on Tool, whose "Schism" took the title over Slayer, Slipknot and System of a Down.

"Thanks to my parents for putting up with me, and I want to thank Satan," Tool drummer Danny Carey joked from the podium, before bassist Justin Chancellor directed his appreciation even further back: "I want to thank my dad for doing my mom."

Usher won his first Grammy for "U Remind Me" from his latest album, 8701, in the Best R&B Male Vocal Performance.

Atlanta rap duo Outkast, with five total nominations, started off on the right foot, scoring a Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group win for "Ms. Jackson," from Stankonia, which later won Best Rap Album honors. Missy Elliott took home the Best Rap Solo Performance for last year's ubiquitous "Get Ur Freak On," while Eve and Gwen Stefani were the two that tangled best in the Best Rap/Sung Collaboration category, with "Let Me Blow Ya Mind."

Destiny's Child's "Survivor" won for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocal, giving the group its second Grammy, following last year's win in the same category for "Say My Name."

In a category dominated by veteran artists, Best Male Pop Vocal Performance, sensitive singer/songwriter James Taylor's "Don't Let Me Be Lonely Tonight" won over pop tracks by Michael Jackson, Elton John, Brian McKnight and newbie Craig David. The Best New Artist of 1985, Sade, brought her winning ways to the new millennium by picking up her third all-time Grammy, landing Best Pop Vocal Album honors for Lovers Rock, beating LPs by 'NSYNC, Janet Jackson, Elton John and Best New Artist nominee Nelly Furtado.

For Best Solo Rock Vocal Performance, Lucinda Williams' "Get Right With God" beat out songs by Tori Amos, Melissa Etheridge, PJ Harvey and Stevie Nicks in the female category; while Lenny Kravitz's "Dig In" won out over nuggets by Ryan Adams, Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan and John Mellencamp in the male category. Guitar virtuoso Jeff Beck won for Best Rock Instrumental ("Dirty Mind"), knocking out Godsmack's only shot at a Grammy this year.

Although Radiohead's Amnesiac could not take the title of Best Alternative Music Album from the grasp of Coldplay's Parachutes, the Oxford, England, quintet didn't leave the Staples Center without a statue, as it picked one up for Best Recording Package for the well-designed Amnesiac.

Other notable pre-telecast winners include Janet Jackson, who bested Daft Punk, Depeche Mode, Gloria Estefan and Lionel Richie for Best Dance Recording ("All for You"); Fatboy Slim, who, thanks to the lovable Christopher Walken, takes another honor for the "Weapon of Choice" video; Deep Dish, whose reworking of Dido's "Thank You" helped him take Remixer of the Year; They Might Be Giants, whose "Boss of Me" from "Malcolm in the Middle" was deemed Best Song for TV or a Movie Soundtrack; Ozomatli, for Latin Rock Alternative Album (Embrace the Chaos); and Enya, who won Best New Age Album for her multiplatinum A Day Without Rain.

Jon Stewart hosted the proceedings for the second year in a row with his self-deprecating humor. In his opening monologue that spoofed the extra security precautions instituted at this year's ceremony, he was hassled by a guard while attempting to pass through an onstage metal detector before two burly men in black suits strip-searched him down to his socks and boxers. "Welcome to the Grammys," he said, speaking into the clip-on mic he now held in his hand. After the "Lady Marmalade" performance, he joked that he lost his virginity to that song — not Labelle's 1974 hit, mind you, but last year's cover version, unfortunately.

For a list of Grammy winners, click here.

For more Grammy news, check out the MTV News Grammy Archive.

• U2
• Alicia Keys
• Coldplay
• Christina Aguilera
• Mya

Beck
Photo: MTV News

If all that glimmers isn't gold, the opposite is also true — at least in the record industry.

Great albums that fall shy of gold certification (having sold fewer than 500,000 copies) will be recognized when a small group of music-industry players — including the artists Beck, Dave Grohl, Mos Def and Lucinda Williams — determine the best album of the year.

For the inaugural Shortlist Prize for Artistic Achievement, an assembly of 16 musicians, producers and journalists will transcend genres, whittle down the year's offerings to a list of 10 nominees and decide on the year's top LP, according to the award's publicist. The United Kingdom's annual Technics Mercury Music Prize, limited to U.K. releases, is awarded via a similar process.

In keeping with the Shortlist's goal of honoring albums that fall under the radar, rather than redundantly give more juice to established hits, albums must have sold fewer than 500,000 copies at the time of nomination.

Albums released for a year after July 1, 2000, are eligible for consideration.

Artists Macy Gray, Trent Reznor, Aimee Mann and Roots drummer ?uestlove; producers Dan the Automator (Gorillaz), Steve Lillywhite (U2, Dave Matthews Band) and Ross Robinson (Korn, Slipknot); and music writers for the Los Angeles Times, URB and Rolling Stone round out the panel of judges.

Each of the 16 judges, or Listmakers, chose five albums apiece for contention. The 80 nominations constitute the Long List, which includes the latest albums by Air, Joe Henry, Si Sé, Spearhead and the Dandy Warhols (visit www.shortlistofmusic.com for the complete Long List). The Long List will be narrowed down to the 10-nominee Shortlist after Labor Day and announced at a panel discussion in New York on September 14 as part of the New York Times Arts and Leisure Weekend Lecture Series. Listmaker and Times music writer Neil Strauss will moderate the panel.

The winner of the Shortlist Prize for Artistic Achievement will be announced October 30.

The Shortlist Award was created by MCA Records vice president of A&R Tom Sarig and manager/marketer Greg Spotts, who hope to throw a party and concert in Los Angeles the day after the winner is announced. The Halloween bash is expected to feature onstage collaborations between Listmakers, Shortlist artists and special guests.

• Beck
• Foo Fighters
• Mos Def
• Lucinda Williams
• Macy Gray

Lucinda Williams
Photo: James Minchin

Alt-country songstress Lucinda Williams has found her essence.

Not just because Essence is the name of her sixth album, which will debut next week at #28 on the Billboard 200 albums chart, coming in one notch ahead of Nashville diva Trisha Yearwood. And not just because "Essence" is the disc's first single, a typically yearning Williams track about wanting love so badly you'll do anything to get it.

No, she's literally found her "essence" — what her astrologer tells her is the fragrance that embodies her personality and spirit.

"He told me it was either magnolia, which is the state flower of Louisiana, where I'm from, or lotus," Williams said from a Montreal hotel room, where she was signing 100 lotus-scented candles — promotional trinkets to be handed out to fans, radio personalities and the like. "We decided on lotus because I'm from the swampy part of the country and a lotus kind of comes up through the mud and the muck to the top of the water." That's a fitting description of the music Williams has made during her more than two-decade career. Williams songs like "Right in Time," "Changed the Locks" and virtually everything on Essence dig through the dirt of love and loss to reveal beauty out of pain, hope out of heartbreak.

Which is why she bristles a little when people pigeonhole her as some sort of romantically tragic figure.

"I think that's kind of pedantic when people start saying that's what I'm all about. I mean, whose songs don't focus on tragedy and loss," Williams said. "In the end, there's something else going on there. I'm not just being stepped on all over the place. If you look at the bulk of my material, it's about trying to find some strength through that." The 48-year-old singer, who got her first taste of mainstream success with 1998's Grammy-winning Car Wheels on a Gravel Road, said she began to reap the benefits of success when she found herself playing to crowds of 3,000 or more on her current tour, as opposed to the 1,000-capacity clubs she'd been used to. And that's right where she wants to be.

"It's still intimate enough that it's not the arena-rock thing. I'd rather play five nights at the Fillmore than one night at an arena," she said with the been-there, done-that tone of someone who's opened for Bob Dylan and Van Morrison. "It's a real good level to be at. I'm fine if I just stay here." She might not be able to, with the strong showing of Essence in its first week on the charts. In addition to its slinky grooves and emotionally honest lyrics, the album features what Williams thinks is the best singing of her career.

"I'm more relaxed with my voice and the limitations of my voice," she said, recalling songs like "Passionate Kisses" and "The Night's Too Long," which were later recorded by Mary Chapin Carpenter and Patty Loveless, respectively. "I wouldn't think about the range of a song. When I would sing 'Passionate Kisses,' it jumps up, ... and my voice doesn't go there naturally." Williams said listening to jazz vocalists like Nina Simone and Brazilian singers like Virginia Rodrigues and Astrud Gilberto helped her literally find her voice.

"This is really kind of a sit-down album, much in the same way I imagine Billie Holiday or someone sitting down in the studio and singing. They would make the song kind of fit their voice, more than making the voice fit the song." Williams is on tour until August 5, with Australian country singer Kasey Chambers opening up.

Lucinda Williams tour dates, according to her management:

• 6/15 - Pittsburgh, PA @ Three Rivers Arts Festival
• 6/16 - Pontiac, MI @ Phoenix Plaza Amphitheater
• 6/18 - Chicago, IL @ Navy Pier
• 6/20 - Madison, WI @ Orpheum Theatre
• 6/22 - Kalamazoo, MI @ Kalamazoo State Theatre
• 6/23 - Cleveland, OH @ Odeon Concert Club
• 6/25 - Columbus, OH @ Southern Theatre
• 6/26 - Cincinnati, OH @ Bogart's
• 7/14 - Indianapolis, IN @ Indy Jazz Fest
• 7/15 - St. Louis, MO @ Pageant
• 7/17 - Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue
• 7/20 - Vancouver, BC @ Orpheum Theatre
• 7/22 - Seattle, WA @ Summer Nights at the Pier
• 7/23 - Portland, OR @ Crystal Ballroom
• 7/26 - San Francisco, CA @ Warfield
• 7/28 - Aptos, CA @ Fat Fry Music Festival
• 8/5 - Salt Lake City, UT @ Red Butte Garden

• Lucinda Williams

Webb Pierce
Photo: Country Music Hall of Fame

NASHVILLE — Gail Davies will begin production in mid-June on Caught in a Webb, an all-star tribute album to Webb Pierce. The project will feature such luminaries as Mark Knopfler, George Jones, Willie Nelson, Lucinda Williams and Dwight Yoakam.

Pierce dominated the country charts during the 1950s, outstripping such formidable competitors as Eddy Arnold, Lefty Frizzell and Jim Reeves. He died in 1991. Proceeds from the album will be given to the Minnie Pearl Cancer Foundation, Davies said. All participants are donating their services. "Most girls grow up wanting to be Patsy Cline," Davies said. "I wanted to grow up to be Webb Pierce." Indeed, Davies' first charted single, "No Love Have I" in 1978, was a cover of Pierce's 1959 hit. While Davies is best known as a singer and songwriter, "The Encyclopedia of Country Music" also credits her as "the first woman in country music to produce and arrange her own recordings." She says she started planning the Pierce album about three months ago. No deal has yet been struck with a record company for the album.

Davies says she hopes to release the album in October. She is also planning to stage a benefit concert around the album on Oct. 24. Tentative tracklist for Caught in a Webb, according to Davies:

• Willie Nelson -"That's Me Without You"
• Lionel Cartwright - "That Heart Belongs to Me"
• Crystal Gayle - "More and More"
• Mandy Barnett - "Slowly"
• Emmylou Harris - "Wondering"
• George Jones - "Yes I Know Why"
• Lucinda Williams - "I'm Tired"
• Rosie Flores - "I Ain't Never"
• Guy Clark - "Honky Tonk Song"
• Dwight Yoakam and Debbie Pierce (Webb's daughter) - "Why Baby Why"
• Dale Watson - "In the Jailhouse Now"
• Billy Walker - "I Don't Care"
• Robbie Fulks, Joy Lynn White and Jamie Johnson - "Tupelo County Jail"
• Hank Williams III - "If You Were Me"
• Gail Davies and Chris Scruggs - "It's Been So Long"
• BR549 - "There Stands the Glass"
• The Del McCoury Band - "I'm Walking the Dog"
• Kevin Welch and Jan Howard - "Even Though"

• Webb Pierce
• Willie Nelson
• Lucinda Williams

Emmylou Harris
Photo: Matthew Barnes&#160;

A tribute album to the late Texas songwriter Townes Van Zandt will be released September 11 on Free Falls/Pedernales Records. Titled Poet: A Tribute to Townes Van Zandt, the 15-track compilation features singer/songwriters Emmylou Harris, Lucinda Williams, Willie Nelson, Steve Earle, John Prine, Billy Joe Shaver, Guy Clark and others. "Like a lot of the great poets, I think Townes is someone people are going to discover and come to after his death," Free Falls president Bob Freese said. "And I think if you're going to remember Townes and do it right, you really do need to take it to the people who were most impacted by his music — other songwriters and true artists." J.T. Van Zandt, his son, recorded "My Proud Mountains" for the project. Townes Van Zandt, known for his songs of yearning and loss, wrote "Pancho and Lefty," a #1 country hit for Nelson and Merle Haggard in 1983. Delbert McClinton covers the song on the tribute album. Other artists on the collection include Nanci Griffith, the Cowboy Junkies, Ray Benson (of Asleep at the Wheel), the Flatlanders (Joe Ely, Butch Hancock and Jimmie Dale Gilmore), Robert Earl Keen and Pat Haney. Freddy Fletcher produced the set. A hard-living troubadour, Van Zandt died January 1, 1997 of a heart attack. He was 52.

• Townes Van Zandt
• Lucinda Williams
• Emmylou Harris
• Willie Nelson

Lucinda Williams
Photo: Matthew Weber

Having surpassed all previous attendance counts with this year's opening weekend of Jazz Fest (April 27-29), Louisiana Heritage Fair personnel expect to break those records again during the longer second weekend (May 3-7), weather permitting. The chances look good that they will, as there's been no real threat of rain while the harsh southern sunshine has been offset by brief reprieves of overcast coolness.

Scanning the lineup for the 2001 Fair, the second weekend of Jazz Fest could have been renamed Jam Fest. Widespread Panic, the Dave Matthews Band, moe., Galactic and other jammers are among the acts booked this year that could be expected to attract big crowds with their dedicated audiences.

Outside one of the Jazz Fest entrances opening weekend, a young girl in raggedy jeans and an apron shirt sold Jello shots while a young guy lounged on a nearby lawn next to a case full of glass paraphernalia for sale. An offer of "nugs for extras" to a sold-out non-Jazz Fest String Cheese Incident gig didn't even seem so out of place considering some of the bands on the bill. Yet beyond the gates was quite a different world.

The fairgrounds were riddled with flags — a rainbow Phish logo on white, a Grateful Dead "Steal Your Face" on black, a rubber chicken with a doll's head and a touching banner that read "Gabba Gabba Hey Joey" attached to a fishing pole. It was in front of the main stage and amidst all these flags that the local jazz fans, there to see the Dirty Dozen Brass Band's set, most noticeably overlapped with the jam fans who were there to claim space early for two sets of Widespread Panic.

Introduced as the band that "created the modern brass band" and "changed the New Orleans sound forever," the Dirty Dozen hit hard with their unique brand of funky jazz. When Widespread Panic singer/guitarist John "J.B." came out to sing during a scorching rendition of "It's All Over Now" (a favor the DDBB would return for several tunes during Panic's set), 'Spread heads went wild. Meanwhile, the House of Blues/Old School 102.9 stage held Chris Thomas King, who was busting a more mellow blues vibe with father Tabby Thomas. The Banks Family occupied the Gospel stage under the tent o' the Lord, whipping a crowd full of house shakin', foot stompin', hand clappin' believers into a soul sparkin' frenzy. On the BET/WWOZ stage, Irvin Mayfield was laying down the straight jazz for a rapt seated audience that was ready at all times to jump up for a standing ovation after a hot solo. Czech swingers J.J. Jazzmen's set was in perfect keeping with the Louis Armstrong 100th anniversary series of exhibits and panel discussions that were taking place during the festival. The five-piece outfit gave Satchmo's style a whirl in the Cox Communications Economy Hall tent. There, old folks with parasols floated past the front row and a wooden dance floor in the corner gave several couples, a few young children and a lone tap dancer a place to find their own thrills. On the Sprint PCS/LG stage, across the fairgrounds from thousands of happy heads, roots rocker Lucinda Williams accumulated an equally impenetrable mass of twang-inclined fans for her first ever Jazz Fest appearance. With acts like Williams and upcoming performances by Paul Simon, Mystikal, Keb' Mo', Wilson Pickett and Ellis Marsalis, the neo-hippie invasion predictions had thus far been — and most likely will continue to be — proven false for the fest proper; the grounds were far from overcome with tie-dye wearing, patchouli doused, dreadlocked stereotypes.

The annual During Jazzfest nighttime music series by Superfly Presents (unaffiliated with the official festival), however, has added to the jam focus by pitting bands like local favorite groove funkers Galactic against southern rockers Gov't Mule, the String Cheese Incident against Ben Harper and Jaques-Imo's or moe. against Deep Banana Blackout and Ozomatli by booking them at the same times in different venues. While some fans were wandering around with a finger in the air looking for extra tickets to sold-out shows and some "lot venders" were spotted selling burritos and goo balls on the street, the series was more about the music than the scene surrounding it.

Superfly sponsors at least one SuperJam series a year. Last year's historic meeting of Les Claypool (Primus), Stewart Copeland (The Police) and Trey Anastasio (Phish) was followed this year by two SuperJam groups. This year, the festival unofficially began Wednesday night at the Maple Leaf with the first of two performances by the Jaques-Imo's Café AllStars, featuring Jon Fishman (drums, Phish), Jamie Masefield (banjo/ mandolin, Jazz Mandolin Project), Gregory Davis (trumpet, Dirty Dozen Brass Band), Kirk Joseph (tuba, former DDBB), Lucien Barbarin (trombone) and Tim Laughlin (clarinet). The group played Wednesday and Thursday to packed crowds, blasting local flavors like "Mardis Gras New Orleans" and a requisite jam of "Iko Iko." String Cheese Incident and Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals went toe to toe across the street from one another at the Saenger Theater and the State Palace Theater respectively. A percussion and horn-driven Ozomatli (a Santana for the hip-hop generation), opened for Harper, who appeased his audience with his soulful lap guitar funk, then floored the lot of them with a four-song encore, three of which featured the Blind Boys of Alabama. Overcome with emotion, he buried his head in his lap, collected himself and then exited the stage. He and the band returned for a second encore that included "Sexual Healing" and a thunderous "Faded"-into-"Whole Lotta Love"-back-into-"Faded" medley. Over at the Saenger, String Cheese gave their rambunctious glitter-happy, glow-stick-wielding audience two sets, separated by a 20-minute set break. Opening act Femi Anikulapo-Kuti joined the Colorado jamgrassers for a rendition of "Outside and Inside" (from String Cheese Incident's upcoming CD), and closed the first of a two-night run with the Allman Brothers Band classic "Jessica." Medeski Martin & Wood, Joshua Redman, Robert Walter's 20th Congress, DJ Logic, Gov't Mule, Karl Denson's Tiny Universe and moe. are all scheduled at New Orleans clubs and theaters throughout the city for the festival's second weekend, as is a different SuperJam, featuring Carter Beauford (drums, Dave Matthews Band), Meshell Ndegèocello (bass), John Medeski (keyboards), Joshua Redman (sax) and Marc Ribot (guitar).

• Widespread Panic
• Lucinda Williams
• The Dirty Dozen Brass Band
• Paul Simon
• Mystikal

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