Kanye West took the prize for Best Solo Artist at this year's ShockWaves NME Awards, held in London on Thursday, while the Strokes were designated the Best International Band. More than 80,000 people cast votes for the prizes, which are picked by the British music magazine's readers. The evening's biggest winners were the Arctic Monkeys, who were named Best New Band as well as Best British Band and scored the Best Track prize for their song "I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor." Franz Ferdinand took home the award for Best Live Band, and the Kaiser Chiefs' Employment was honored as the year's Best Album. Madonna scored Sexiest Woman, while Darkness frontman Justin Hawkins won the Worst Dressed award and James Blunt's Back to Bedlam earned the award no one wanted: Worst Album. "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" was chosen as Best Film. ...

"Goblet of Fire" has earned more than just the affection of NME readers; it's also racked up $600 million in international box-office receipts, making it only the fifth film to do so. According to Variety, the latest "Harry Potter" film joins "Titanic" (which has grossed $1.2 billion worldwide), "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" ($750 million), "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" ($657 million) and "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" ($616 million) in the list of films that have crossed the $600 million barrier. ... On Friday (February 24) a Detroit judge granted a request by Red Light District Video to delay a decision in a case involving Kid Rock until March 23. On Tuesday lawyers for Rock won a temporary injunction barring RLDV from distributing a sex tape involving their client, former Creed frontman Scott Stapp and four women. While the lawyers were hoping that U.S. District Court Judge John Feikens would grant their request for a permanent injunction on Friday, RLDV had retained the services of a Detroit-area attorney and will now have until the 23rd to present their case. ... The Gorillaz have slated their "Demon Days Live" DVD for a March release. The disc captures moments from the group's five-night stand at the Manchester Opera House, when 'Rillaz mastermind Damon Albarn played the Demon Days album in its entirety and was joined onstage by De La Soul and Ike Turner. The DVD includes full-screen visuals, created specifically for the Manchester shows by Gorillaz illustrator Jamie Hewlett. ...

Former "American Idol" hopeful Jennifer Hudson -- who'll be making her feature film debut alongside Beyoncé and Jamie Foxx in "Dreamgirls" -- has been named ShoWest's Female Star of Tomorrow, Variety reports. Hudson, who's recording an album that'll hit stores in 2007, will claim the honor at the closing night banquet during this year's annual ShoWest convention in Las Vegas on March 16. Hudson's in good company, as past recipients of ShoWest's Star of Tomorrow prize include Heath Ledger, Hilary Swank and LL Cool J. ... On Thursday, Apple's iTunes Music Store sold its billionth downloadable song to Alex Ostrovsky of Michigan. Ostrovsky was unaware that his purchase of Coldplay's "Speed of Sound" would afford him much more than an opportunity to crank the volume, but according to The New York Times, that $0.99 earned him a 20-inch iMac, 10 iPods and a $10,000 gift card for more downloads. Apple is also going to set up a scholarship at the Juilliard School in his name. ... English rockers Test Icicles have quickly gone from NBT to D.O.A. The bandmembers announced Tuesday that they're calling it quits, canceling in the process the U.S. tour that was scheduled to begin March 1. Guitarist Rory Atwell said in a longwinded statement, "In our current state of disrepair it was never going to happen and if we did try and make it happen it probably would have led to something much worse happening and the three of us disappearing somewhere near Utah never to be seen again, or something like that." The band's debut album, For Screening Purposes Only, came out in late January. ...

The body of a man found in a Brentwood apartment February 5 has been identified as Todd Kevin Wallace, the 44-year-old paparazzo who was facing assault charges stemming from an incident with actress Reese Witherspoon. According to The Associated Press, the coroner's office confirmed his death Thursday, but the cause of death is still under investigation pending toxicology results. Wallace was charged with assault and battery following an incident at Disneyland involving Witherspoon and one of her daughter's friends; he was alleged to have hit a 5-year-old girl in his attempts to snap a shot of Witherspoon, who refused to have her picture taken. In December, a warrant was issued for Wallace's arrest when he failed to turn up for a bail hearing. ... The Walkmen are set to release the follow-up to 2004's indie-riffic Bows + Arrows with A Hundred Miles Off on May 23. In addition to the 12-track disc, the band also recently re-recorded Harry Nilsson's 1974 collaboration album with John Lennon, Pussy Cats; the new version, Pussy Cats Starring the Walkmen, is due later this year. The band is scheduled to follow up their Coachella appearance with a full-blown U.S. tour. ...

To My Surprise, the side project of Slipknot percussionist Clown, have been booked for this year's South by Southwest Festival. The band will take the stage of Exodus in Austin, Texas, on March 16 before heading overseas to Europe for a spate of festival appearances. A North American tour is in the works for this fall. ... H.I.M. will soon shoot a video for the track "Killing Loneliness" with director Nathan Cox (Queens of the Stone Age, Staind). The clip will feature an appearance by noted tattoo artist Kat Von D, whose work has been featured on the reality series "Miami Ink." ... Haste the Day have grown by one. Stephen Keech was named the band's new singer, replacing Jimmy Ryan, who left the ranks three months ago for personal reasons. Keech was introduced as the group's newest member onstage in Denver Thursday night. Haste the Day are currently on the road with Bleeding Through and Every Time I Die. ... Bay Area rockers Stroke 9 will be hitting the road in late March, in support of their latest offering, Café Cuts. The 9 have lined up 18 gigs in all, beginning March 23 in San Juan Capistrano, California. The tour will hit Detroit, Baltimore, San Francisco, and Philadelphia before finishing up in Chicago May 21.

02.23.2006

R.E.M. frontman Michael Stipe, Bright Eyes and Public Enemy's Chuck D are among the artists slated to appear at "Bring 'Em Home Now," a March 20 concert to benefit the anti-war organizations Veterans for Peace and Iraq Veterans Against the War. The concert -- to be held on the third anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq -- will take place at New York's Hammerstein Ballroom and also feature a speech by activist Cindy Sheehan. Other artists scheduled to perform include Rufus Wainwright, Fischerspooner and Peaches. Tickets for the "Bring 'Em Home" benefit range from $28-$150, but if you can't afford it, you'll still be able to at least hear the show: Janeane Garofalo will broadcast her Air America Radio program, "The Majority Report," live from the Hammerstein. ...

Before kicking off their latest tour Friday in their hometown of Bakersfield, California, Korn will have a street in the city named after them. Mayor Harvey Hall will unveil Korn Row at a 3 p.m. ceremony. ... Gorillaz are upping their animated ante by launching a game for cell phones in April. The four bandmembers will be represented in a game whose graphics aim to blend old-school, arcade-style visuals with the band's already-established look and artwork. For more information about the mobile game, go to MrGoodLiving.com/Gorillaz. ... Nominees for the sixth annual Jammy Awards -- which honor "artists who thrive in the live music environment" (read: jam bands) -- were announced Thursday. Tennessee rockers My Morning Jacket are among the leaders with three nods, although Widespread Panic, the Allman Brothers Band and Ryan Adams will be vying for awards as well. The hardware will be handed out during a concert/awards show to be held April 20 (4/20, dude!) in New York at the Theatre at Madison Square Garden. For more information visit Jammys.com. ...

O.A.R. will tour college campuses across the country beginning March 29 at Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts, and ending April 26 at the Northern University of Illinois in DeKalb. The video game "MLB '06: The Show," for which O.A.R. contributed an original track called "Of a Revolution," is sponsoring the trek. ... She Wants Revenge, who recently entered the Billboard albums chart at #38, have signed on to open for Depeche Mode on their North American spring tour. Dates have yet to be confirmed, but the outing is slated for April and May. ... "Rock of Ages," the Los Angeles musical that pays homage to hair metal and stars Tenacious D's Kyle Gass, has been extended through March 18. Beginning March 2, the show will move from the Vanguard to the larger RenMar Studios in Hollywood. ... Mudvayne will headline Tampa, Florida, radio station 98Rock's Livestock 15 on April 29. Set for Festival Park in Zephyrhills, the bill will also feature Staind, Rob Zombie and Saliva. ...

Jewel will headline the pre-race show for the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series Auto Club 500 at California Speedway on Sunday. Fox will televise the event. ... The Vines have settled on Vision Valley as the title for their forthcoming disc, due in stores April 4. The album will feature 13 tracks, including "Anysound," "Nothins Comin" and "Futuretarded." ... A new line of Jerry Garcia-inspired teas will hit premium tea shops and gourmet food stores starting next week. Called J. Garcia Artisan Teas, there are five blends in all named after the late Grateful Dead guitarist. A portion of the proceeds from the teas will benefit DrawBridge, a nonprofit that provides art supplies for children in homeless shelters. The teas in the Garcia line are Morning Brew, Shady Grown, Magic Herb, Spirit of Sage and Jerry Cherry. ... SideOneDummy Records will celebrate their 10-year anniversary March 22, 24 and 25 with a series of show at the Key Club in Los Angeles. Flogging Molly, Gogol Bordello and MxPx are among the acts scheduled to perform. ... The Accident Experiment, former P.O.D. guitarist Marcos Curiel's new band, will finally release their debut, United We Fear, in May. The band will promote the record with a performance at South by Southwest. ...

The Go! Team will trek across the States beginning March 15 at South by Southwest in Austin, Texas. Dates in Washington, D.C., New York, Boston, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Las Vegas will follow before the band hits Coachella April 30. ... Secret Machines will release their new record exclusively to online retailers for several weeks beginning February 28. Ten Silver Drops, featuring first single "Alone, Jealous and Stoned," is due in stores April 18. Former Afghan Wigs singer Greg Dulli will release the fourth album under his Twilight Singers moniker May 16. Powder Burns will feature appearances from Joseph Arthur and Ani DiFranco. ... Nothing like five 10- to 13-year-old kids singing "Whip It!" Devo have created a kids' group called Devo 2.0 that will debut with a CD and DVD on March 14. ... Police guitarist Andy Summer has signed a deal with U.K. publisher Portrait/ Piatkus to write his memoir, "One Train Later." Summer's autobiography is due later this fall and will include his early days in the London music scene to his superstar heyday with the Police. ... The Charlatans UK will release their new album, Sympatico, May 2. Steering away from their typical Brit-rock dance/techno vibe, the new disc will instead consist of light, upbeat reggae tunes. The Charlatans will perform at South by Southwest on March 18 and kick off a headlining trek after the album's release.