Billboard.com

Fuck Guilty Pleasures: Critics Need to Lay Off Macklemore

[Editor's Note: Fuck Guilty Pleasures celebrates the over-produced, commercial, artless, lowbrow music that we believe is genuinely worthwhile. Like, among the best music ever.] The number one song in the country, as you probably know, is a Seattle-based white independent hip-hop artist's ode to sh ... More >>

Why Is There So Much Indie Rock on Television? Music Supervisor Alexandra Patsavas Explains

It's hard not to notice: Indie bands seemingly soundtrack just about every sitcom, film and television commercial today. But why? Influential music supervisor Alexandra Patsavas swears it's not just about cheap labor. "It's far more of a creative decision than a monetary one," she says. "We're pick ... More >>

What's Better, Fifty Shades of Grey or Staind's 14 Shades of Grey?

[Editor's note: Deathmatch pairs two things that have something in common, and determines who is better. It's a concept we sort-of ripped off from MTV, except that instead of claymation it's the printed word!] Released in 2003, 14 Shades of Grey is the fourth studio album from alt-bro / tough-guys- ... More >>

Kreayshawn's New Album Is Not, In Fact, the Worst-Selling Ever

The internet is broken again. It's telling us that first-week sales of Kreayshawn's debut Somethin' 'Bout Kreay -- released last week, it moved about 3,900 units -- are the weakest ever for a major label release. Thanks for the misinformation everyone, which has come fast and furious, often with th ... More >>

We Review Richie Sambora's "Indie Rock" Album

Stadium rocking superstar Richie Sambora is, for some reason, attempting crossover success in the vegan-chorizo taco world of Los Angeles indie rock. See also: Richie Sambora Is Putting Out an Indie Rock Album on Dangerbird. No, Seriously After getting clean and sober and renewing his relationship ... More >>

The Five Upcoming L.A. Rap Albums We're Most Excited to Hear

Top Ten Rap Albums For People Who Don't Know Shit About Hip-Hop Top 60 Worst Lil Wayne Lines on Tha Carter IV Top 20 Greatest L.A. Rap Albums Of All Time The 20 Worst Hipster Bands Ah, the fourth quarter. The season of brown leaves, event records and holiday shopping -- also known as "the least bad ... More >>

Luke Bryan's "Drunk On You": Why This Song Sucks

[Editor's note: Why This Song Sucks determines why particular tracks blow using science. It appears on West Coast Sound every Wednesday.] See also: If You Don't Like Country Music You're a Blue State Elitist Song: Luke Bryan's "Drunk On You" History: "Drunk On You" is a song by country musician ... More >>

Hot Chelle Rae's "I Like It Like That," Featuring New Boyz: Why This Song Sucks

[Editor's note: Why This Song Sucks determines why particular tracks blow using science. It appears on West Coast Sound every Wednesday.] Song: Hot Chelle Rae's "I Like It Like That," featuring New Boyz History:"I Like It Like That" is the second single from Hot Chelle Rae's sophomore album, Whate ... More >>

Wait, Now Korn Invented Dubstep?! Here Are Five Other Nu-Metal Groups Who Could Also Make Dubstep Comebacks

​See also: *Porter Robinson: The Libertarian Dubstep Guy *In Defense Of "Fratstep:" An Open Letter To James Blake It's been a controversial week on the dubstep front. First, there's a libertarian dubstep guy, and then we had to deal with a spin-off called "fratstep." Now Korn is saying they ... More >>

Animal Control Shenanigans

Music Picks: Katy Perry, Phish, Deerhunter, Sia, Warped Tour

Also, Big Audio Dynamite, Jill Scott, Cypress Hill and others

How Katy Perry Tied MJ's Singles Record, and Why She's More Relatable Than Beyonce

Xposurephotos.com​Yesterday Katy Perry's boppy single "Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)" rose to the number one slot, making Teenage Dream the first album in the near 19-year history of Billboard's Mainstream Top 40 chart to produce five number ones. Big news. But today could bring Perry's career ... More >>

Marc Maron on KCRW: LA Weekly's Ultimate Guide to the Top 10 Comedy Podcasts

Doug SadlerHost Howard Kremer, guest Zach Galifianakis and co-host Kulap Vilaysack fart up, err chart up the room on the podcast Who Charted?​ As the Buggles once forecasted in their 1980s pop single: "Video Killed the Radio Star." Today, it's more accurate to say that the podcast resurrecte ... More >>

Last Night: Bruno Mars, Janelle Monáe and Mayer Hawthorne at the Gibson Ampitheatre

Sarah BennettBruno Mars​ Bruno Mars, Janelle Monáe, and Mayer Hawthorne June 12, 2011 Gibson AmpitheatreFresh off their smashing performance at this year's Grammys, Bruno Mars and Janelle Monáe linked up once again to tour. With the addition of Mayer Hawthorne, you've got three of the truest pu ... More >>

Lady Gaga's Born This Way Could Set Record for Highest Opening Sales in a Decade

​Via Billboard.com: Lady Gaga's Born This Way will debut with first-week sales of at least a million units, far outpacing earlier projections, thanks to explosive sales at Amazon, which priced the album at 99 cents for two days this week. The 99-cent price tag was not, by the way, due to a ... More >>

Kerli and Chubby Bunny Launch The Bubble Bunny Contest for DIY Fashion and Art Projects

Dianne GarciaKerli at Chubby Bunny's "Bunnies and Bows" event at JapanLA​Estonian singer Kerli, who topped Billboard's dance chart last week, has earned legions of fans across the globe, not just for her danceable pop songs, but also for her clever sense of style, which she calls "Bubble Goth. ... More >>

Page Two: Love album Black Beauty at the Roxy

Arthur Lee's long-lost Love album re-emerges, live

Full Warped Tour Lineup Leaked Early (Did Somebody Say Crabcore?)

Full Warped Tour Lineup Leaked Early (Did Somebody Say Crabcore?)

What 78-Year-Old Woman Beat Lady Gaga and Britney to the Top of the Billboard Dance Chart? (And It Was Her 6th Consecutive #1)

​Earlier this month, Billboard announced that someone had beaten the likes of Lady Gaga, Britney Spears and every high-profile DJ you know (yes, even Tiesto!) to the top position on their Dance Music chart. That someone was a 78-year-old woman. The track in question was called "Move on Fast, ... More >>

Music Picks: Balkan Beat Box, Cake, Ted Leo, Vanessa Paradis

Also Red Cortez, Troy Walker, Bun B and others

Wanna Buy Slash's Corvette, Top Hats -- Dinosaurs?

LA Weekly​Billboard reports that Guns N Roses (and Velvet Revolver, Snakepit, etc.) Slash will be holding a garage sale of unwanted stuff that has accumulated in his house. Now, him being Slash, this means the garage sale is run by a big-time Beverly Hills auction house and that if you wanna g ... More >>

Public Radio Music Under Attack

Right-wingers’ “Defund NPR” campaign threatens the local music scene (among other things)

Odd Future is Going to Perform at Coachella 2011, Missing Member Earl Sweatshirt Might Be "Freed" to Perform with Them

​ [UPDATE: Ed's note: We've received a freaked out message from people associated with OFWGKTA that implies that our little scoop might jeopardize the previously almost certain chance of Odd Future performing at the festival. C'mon Goldenvoice: let Odd Future play! And shouldn't you be penaliz ... More >>

Huge Tree Bakery

For You Tiao, Niu Ruo Shao Bing and all good things Chinese

Best Music of the Year Lists: Do Pitchfork, Billboard, NME, Vibe Have A Certain Gender Bias?

"Hey bro, we hear you like bros, so we put some bros in your End of the Year Best Music Lists so you can bro while you bro!"​Well, 'tis the time of year for lists and charts! Several mags and blogs attempted to answer the question you've been dying to ask: Who had the best album/"new music"? ... More >>

Mystery Dance Track Leaks: Early Reports It's LA's Armenian-American Princess Kim Kardashian Backed by The Neptunes Denied, Still Would Make Great Ad Music for the ShakeWeight

Shake Shake Shake​Billboard got egg on its proverbial, industry-fellating face this morning when it released a "leaked" dance track that purported to be a collaboration between Kim Kardashian and The Dream. Then they had to backtrack, after everyone's favorite/least favorite (America: so spli ... More >>

The Melvins To Play Spaceland Residency Every Friday in January 2011

Just like the monkey says​The Melvins have just announced they will be playing a Spaceland residency every Friday in January 2011. LA Weekly's Erin Broadley recently talked to Buzzo about their current wave of success (Billboard 200 album? check), and he continued extolling the virtues of bei ... More >>

The Ireland That Never Was

Wanna Smell like Sid Vicious?: The Incredibly Strange World of Sex Pistols Merchandising (Yes--They've Just Put Out a Perfume)

I wannna beeeeee perfume-ayaaaaaa!​Eau de Rotten? No, just "Sex Pistols -- The Fragrance," ready to be issued in the US by Paris-based perfume brand Etat Libre d'Orange. There's gonna be a "Never Mind the Bollocks" soap as well. No, really. We've been reading Billboard's fascinating article ... More >>

Avenged Sevenfold's Fans Push "Nightmare" to Top of the Charts, Begin Beef With LA Times

​Huntington Beach metal band Avenged Sevenfold's new album, Nightmare, shot this week to the top of the Billboard chart, pushing Eminem to the second slot. This is a really impressive achievement for the band, particularly as it comes so soon after the tragic death of drummer Jimmy "The Rev" ... More >>

This Weekend's Good Deed: Rising Songwriter Rocco DeLuca at "White Light White Night" Fundraiser

​[West Coast Sound's Lily Borghi points out this very special fundraiser happening this weekend:] "Rocco DeLuca will be headlining this Saturday's summer party, White Light White Night. It's the big annual fundraising event for Walk With Sally, a local non profit that provides mentoring progr ... More >>

Katy Perry Parody "California Dorks": In-N-Out Burgers, Mountain Dew, and Star Wars Toys

​You may say Katy Perry's "California Gurls" video gives an unrealistic image of the Golden State. Most of us don't spend our days traipsing around a 3D version of the board game Candyland trading quips with a cupcake-suit wearing pimp and avoiding menacing gummy bears (most of us who know bet ... More >>

Sludge Rock Originators The Melvins Storm the Billboard Charts

Sludge Rock Originators The Melvins Top the Charts (sort of...)

Rage Against the Machine, Sonic Youth, Massive Attack and Many Others Push for Boycott Against Arizona Law

​(Via Billboard) A number of influential musicians and other artists have now joined their voices to the organized repudiation of the recent immigration legislation in Arizona. The following names have been posted on the website thesoundstrike.net endorsing a boycott of Arizona, most likely b ... More >>

50 Cent Loses 50 Pounds

50 Cent's Facebook page (via Billboard)​ Billboard reports that 50 Cent will be playing "a football player who is diagnosed with cancer in his upcoming movie, Things Fall Apart. To make the film more realistic, the once buff and brawny 50 (aka Curtis Jackson) lost more than 50 pounds to play t ... More >>

Today in WTF: Free "Exile on Main Street" Remaster, Brought to You by...Target?

​Back in 1972, the Rolling Stones brand stood for heroin, bisexuality, hanging out with the homeless in L.A.'s Skid Row (read all about it in Michael Simmons' article in the print edition of LA Weekly this week), banned films called "Cocksucker Blues," and sundry unsavory matters. Fast forwar ... More >>

Today in WTF: Meat Loaf To Plug Bizarre Concept Album on Shopping Network QVC

billboard.comJesus Christ Super Meatloaf​The Baron of Bombast himself is back (back again, that is--he's back twice a decade)! A few weeks ago Meat Loaf released a new single, with the unfortunate title "Los Angeloser," which could be the stupidest West Coast song title since the Red Hot Chil ... More >>

Courtney Love and Billy Corgan on Facebook: It's Complicated

​Attention: new communication from Planet Courtney! Apparently Billy Corgan recently dissed Hole's new album (which he helped create), but Courtney took the high road (sorry, we couldn't resist) and did what any mature 45-year-old woman would. She wrote him a public love letter on Facebook. ... More >>

Crazy Heart: Misery and Gin ...

... country music, faded stardom, liquor and age

THE LAMEST CLASSICAL PICK EVER WRITTEN

Silversun Pickups Make Jeopardy! Debut, Return To Morning Becomes Eclectic

File this under "You know you've made it when." On Wednesday, May 6, Silversun Pickups were the subject of a Jeopardy! clue referencing the origin of the band's name. Read it below, preferably aloud and with impeccable posture. Evidence of fame, item #1 Notice the show's writers didn't specify wh ... More >>

Heavenly and Historical

Anonymous 4 turns its vocal chops on "The Cherry Tree"

Anonymous 4 Rings in the Holidays

USC Thornton School of Music Announces New Popular Music Performance Program

Wanna be famous as a superstar musician? Learn how to bed groupies by the sheer force and magnetism of your stage strut? Find out which hallucinogens will help best develop the plot of your career-defining Concept Album? Before now, you'd have bang your head against your snare a few times, have to s ... More >>

Chinese Democracy Gets a Release Date Just in Time for Turkey Day

"> The big question: will anyone be able to stomach two turkeys in one week? (I'm just a little pissed because of this quote in the Billboard article: "Beyond enticing pre-Thanksgiving shoppers, the move is tied to the structure of Best Buy's sales week, which runs from Sunday to Saturday." Jeezy c ... More >>

A Small New Future

ALEC HANLEY BEMIS on the casualties and survivors in the war between the Cynics and the True Believers

Sing Now, or Forever Hold Your Peace

Where are the new protest songs?

The Nine Lives of Rave

What I Pinched on My Summer Vacation

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