Burned By The Sun........

-This is interesting. Rivers Cuomo is going back to school. VH1 reports that the admissions essay he sent in is four times the length of the average essay, and details his frustrations in making Weezer's fifth album. Four times the normal length? Was that really necessary? C'mon, do you really think some Harvard admissions officer is going to say, "Yeah, he's gotten into Harvard before, he's in a pretty famous and successful rock band, and can easily pay the tuition, but we're not going to admit him"? He probably could have written, "Me want to study at Harvard" and they'd let him in.

- The other day I was pondering why most people at shows seem to be under the age of 30. Sure, people say that as you get older, you like less and less new music. But there's always so much stuff out there, it seems impossible not to find at least one good new band. And then today I go on the computer and find that the Onion has answered my question.

- This is probably the best article I've read about The Libertines' recent troubles.

- US Tour dates: Franz Ferdinand and Wilco. No LA dates for either of them, though.

-Misc: Jack White is working with Beck on his new album, and Jude Law may play Ian Curtis in a film about Joy Division.

-Hey, does anyone remember when MTV used to make a point of booking at least one good rock act at their stupid awards shows (e.g. the Yeah Yeah Yeahs at the Movie Awards) just to make people like me watch? Well, I just got a look at the performance list for the upcoming VMA's (I'm too lazy to go back for the link). It seems those days are over. On the one hand, I'm glad, because now I don't have to watch the wretched thing. On the other hand, it's kind of depressing that they won't even accomodate token quality acts.

I Love the Hives!
I should probably mention something about the Hives concert I went to a few days ago, since it was most likely the best show I've seen this year (it's a tough call though. Radiohead was really good), and without question the best show I've ever seen them play (I saw them two years ago at the Majestic in Detroit and at Coachella last year). This show was at St. Andrews Hall, which has the greatest sound system known to man, and it was total pandemonium ( the audience moshing, pogoing, screaming every word to the song) from the very first chord. Meanwhile, Howlin' Pelle and Nicholaus Arson (the singer and guitarist, for you non-fans) spent more time in the audience and climbing the giant speaker stacks on either side of the stage than they did on the actual stage (actually, during one of the songs, Pelle climbed all the way to the top of one of those speaker stacks, which allowed him to get in the faces of people in the balcony). Also, they insulted people who flipped them off, demanded more applause, and chatted with a fan who told them they should sell their souls to the gods of rock and roll. The show was insane and hilarious and sweaty and loud and everything a great rock show should be. After we got out of the venue, my brother and I looked like we had been mauled by bears. When you look like you've been mauled by a bear, you know you've had a great time.

This Is Why You Make Copies
As online piracy is all the rage, some bands go to extreme measures to prevent their new music from leaking on the internet. U2 is not one of them. Apparently, the band left a CD of their unfinished new album (due this fall) lying around at a recent photo shoot. And you'll never guess what happened. Somebody took it! Police have not yet determined whether the theft was intentional or accidental. Right.

Misc.

-Good news out of nowhere: There's gonna be a new double album from Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds out on September 21. The tracklisting is here.

-Speaking of Nick Cave, he, PJ Harvey and Damon Albarn have contributed songs or collaborated with Marianne Faithfull for her new album.

-LA residents, the schedule for this year's Sunset Junction festival (August 21-22) is up. I'll be going Saturday, as there are a bunch of local acts I've been wanting to see and haven't had the chance. Also, I like Ben Kweller. If you've never been to Sunset Junction before, I highly recommend checking it out. There are tons of cool kiosks selling pretty much anything you can think of, and are carnival rides! However, the main draw is the people-watching. It's like a fashion show where everyone wears their coolest or most outrageous ensembles in an effort not to be outdone by the person standing next to them.

Actually, I wrote most of this yesterday, but Blogger wasn't working. So I'll give it a shot today.

I take a week and half off blogging, and suddenly everything happens.

New York Dolls bassist Arthur "Killer" Kane died in an LA area hospital of advanced leukemia Tuesday. Courtney Love is now hospitalized while a warrant is outstanding for her arrest. David Bowie is recovering from heart surgery. There's actually some definitive news on the new Nine Inch Nails album, and Dave Grohl is doing the drumming. And the 1997 home video Closure is being reissued on DVD, so you can watch the lovely "Happiness In Slavery" video with greater clarity (actually, that video is really disgusting, and is best not watched). It sounds like Pete Townshend and Michael Moore have some kind of feud. And ODB and Macy Gray have recorded a cover of Elton John's "Don't Go Breaking My Heart", which is one of two things I remember about the 80s (the other thing is the theme music from Beverly Hills Cop). And if that's not enough craziness, there's a sudden (at least to me) Libertines date at the Troubadour, conveniently scheduled the day after "move in day" at my school. It sure would be great if Pete could detox in time for the US shows (as far as I know, they're only playing New York and LA), but even if he doesn't, I am still psyched.

Misc.
-Billboard's got a tracklisting for the new Bjork album.
-The Strokes have begun work on their third album. There are three demos. That's all the info available right now, but I felt like mentioning it.

I don't really have too much time today, because my brother will try to kick me off the computer in five minutes (and he will probably succeed, because he is much bigger than I am).

- Album leaks of importance:
The Libertines
The Prodigy

I haven't had a chance to listen to these yet, but I'll share my thoughts eventually.


- Recap of the Tastefest thing I went to Friday: Here I was, all psyched to take my little brother to see his first great band, and the Electric Six had to cancel. Oh well, it was still an enjoyable evening (not an evening that will show up on the year end Top 10 list, but enjoyable nonetheless).

First act: EsQuire
The Tastefest's website describes him as a cross between Eminem and Fred Astaire. I think a better description would be if Austin Powers did rap. But without the British accent. The dude dresses like Austin Powers, and shares the stage with a couple of go-go dancers.

Second act: Rooney
I'm not a big fan of the record, but the live show was enjoyable. They played two new songs, "One-Armed Man" and "Paralyzed" that seemed to be more rock than the pop that's on the record.

Third act: The Sights
They filled in for the Electric Six. I had seen them before, and I remembered they were pretty good, but I had forgotten how good their singer is. He's got one of those great belter-type voices (a la Mitch Ryder).

AAHHH!! My brother is fucking CHOKING me!! That's it for today.