Today's Hotness: Maybe It's Reno, CocoRosie, Nosferatu D2

Maybe It's Reno
"Gravestones and Christmas Trees" (mp3)
from Maybe It's Reno
(Teenbeat Records)
Buy at iTunes Music Store
More On This Album

>> We were holding the new record from former Unrest bassist Bridget Cross in our hands Sunday and we opted to put it down in order to get deluxe editions of certain records we name below. Well, we also put it down because it was selling for $13, which for a cheapskate like us with a substantial music buying habit is 30% more than we are comfortable spending on a single CD. But anyway, after hearing the promo track "Gravestones And Christmas Trees" and streaming samples from Ms. Cross' new set under the moniker Maybe It's Reno we are strongly questioning that decision, as the music is superlative. Cross is joined on the self-titled set at various times by her former Unrest bandmates Mark Robinson, who also runs Teenbeat Records, and drummer Phil Krauth. Everybody thank IODA Promonet for the MP3 on the count of three: 1, 2, 3.

>> We have strong opinions about luxury brands, particularly relative to their utility and perceived importance in a world filled with catastrophe, disease and starvation. If you think we're being overly dramatic we invite you to click over to The Washington Post web site to look at the photo stream it posted today of body parts and shattered buildings in China. All that said, this animation created to glorify a certain "high-end" "fashion" "line" is mesmerizing. And the soundtrack was created by Brooklyn-based sister act CocoRosie. The duo's most recent set The Adventures of Ghost Horse And Stillborn was issued by Touch + Go in April 2007. You may recall this song being on it.

CocoRosie -- "Rainbowarriors" -- The Adventures of Ghost Horse And Stillborn
[right click and save as]
[buy CocoRosie recordings from Newbury Comics here]

>> This Crave item about new and improved Tamagotchis seems an appropriate enough reason to post the mighty Nosferatu D2's incredible "Broken Tamagotchi." So here it is below. Holy cow that band -- now sadly defunct -- was good. You can download a whole mess of Nosferatu D2 stuff from the band's Last.FM page here. And for those of you not familiar with our prior posts praising all things Ben Parker [1, 2, 3], you can follow Mr. Parker's latest musical exploits as Superman Revenge Squad here.

Nosferatu D2 -- "Broken Tamagotchi" -- Nosferatu D2
[right click and save as]
[download an album's worth of amazing material from Last. FM at the links above]

Muxtape #5: Just Like You Said, Everything Is Happening

As promised to Twitter scrapers and Facebook noseys, here is the link to the new Muxtape. Assorted notes and musings below.

1. Come -- "Yr Reign" -- Don't Ask, Don't Tell
(In an era of good feel-bad songs, this one might take the cake. Perhaps the closest Come gets to sounding like Nirvana, with the same sort of primordial, the-gods-are-against-me pathos. The title to this Muxtape comes from the terribly affecting lyric in this number. This song is a four-minute rain of sledgehammers with the word "BUMMER" embossed on one of the long dimensions.)

2. Moped -- "Does Your Back Hurt?" -- It Won't Sound Any Better Tomorrow
(We saw what might have been the final Moped show at Philadelphia's Silk City Lounge. They may or may not have opened for Idaho, those dudes with all the custom four-string guitars. We requested this song. And then they played it. And for a moment we had the world by the tail. This whole song is a best part, but perhaps the best part of the best part is the screamed backing vocal in one of the final verses. Exhilarating. We used to scream along in our silver Volvo sedan after charging 12 packs of beer to the family gas card when we were sequestered in Virginia. A memory that makes us wonder where our copy of Bardo Pond's Amanita is.)

3. Drop Nineteens -- "Delaware" -- Delaware
(Title track from important record from erstwhile Boston act. Not as catchy as "Winona" and not as epic as "Kick The Tragedy," but even so this song provides the blueprints to the exceptional first iteration of this band. With My Bloody Valentine reunited and hosting that jawn in New York state in September -- which we can't go to because of work -- and with Lilys now on the bill, the only thing that would make our non-attendance at the event more tragic would be if Drop Nineteens reformed to play this record front to back.)

4. Kimbashing -- "Ultraeasy" -- Parades Of Homes EP
(We loved the K logo this band used. The act featured future members of every Philly band except the ones you were in. We recall there was a Pro-Teen single these guys did that had a blue sleeve, and if you really want to be our friend you'll email us MP3s of that. There also may have been a 10-inch, although we may be confusing Kimbashing with Buddy Sevaris on that one. Anyway, this song requires playback at heroic volumes so the churning muck of the guitars rises to waist-level. An argument could be made that this is the best track on the Parade Of Homes vinyl EP, as Haywood's "Devon Lanes" ends up sounding relatively one-dimensional compared to the exceptional material that followed it, and Barnabys/Sweeney never quite got a version of "Tiny Ships" recorded that matched the live versions we witnessed.)

5. Drunk -- "Gizmo" -- A Derby Spiritual
(Mrs. Clicky Clicky says this song sounds like it should have been on "The Muppet Movie" soundtrack. And of course she's right. Incidentally, word is our boss' cousin, who you know from popular movies and television programs, has inked an agreement to write a new script for the Muppets film franchise. Anyway, back to Drunk. This track graced an early Jagjaguwar release. When we lived in Virginia the dude who ran Jagjaguwar was the graphic designer at the arts weekly where we sold classified ads. We can't remember any of the other tracks on the record, as this song eclipses them all.)

6. Hip Young Things -- "Gizmo" -- Shrug
(This German act's record seems largely overlooked, which is too bad. It was released around 1995 and is on par with the 18th Dyes and occasionally even the Pavements of the era. We select this one because it is good, and also because it is interesting to hear two songs named "Gizmo" in a row. Every band should have a song named "Gizmo.")

7. The 6ths -- "Falling Out Of Love (With You)" -- Wasps' Nest
(Dean Wareham sings Stephin Merrit, to thrilling effect, if your idea of a thrill is hearing songs that are sad delivered by a guy who does deadpan better than most, probably without trying.)

8. Ted Minsky -- "Porque No Hablo" -- Madame Le Ted
(A curveball track from a record filled with curveballs. We've searched the Internetz now and again to see if Ms. Minsky ever released another record besides this one on the Austrian Angelika Kohlermann label, but we never find anything. Which is too bad. This record is special.)

9. Spoon -- "Me And The Bean" -- Girls Can Tell
(Many of the songs on this Muxtape were selected in response to having watched the popular film "There Will Be Blood" Friday night. The line "I have your blood inside my heart" in this track has particular relevance. We just received our copy of the vinyl reissue of Girls Can Tell and have been enjoying it thoroughly.)

10. Blonde Redhead -- "Jetstar" -- Zero Hour Threadwaxing Space compilation
(The stylistic development of Blonde Redhead is fairly remarkable if one stops to think about it. Nothing they've done this decade has really resonated with us, but there was a time in the mid-'90s when the band was dark, dangerous and boundlessly sexxy with two x's. That time was probably after this song was recorded, as we pinpoint it to the material released on the peerless La Mia Vita Violenta record. But still, this is a stirring ballad.)

11. Crooked Fingers -- "When U Were Mine" -- Reservoir Songs
(Bachmann's spin on Prince's classic is revelatory. Great backing vocal in here. If anything, Bachmann's sorrowful take seems more appropriate to Prince's tale of the lover that would not be controlled, and the lovee too weak-willed to do anything about it.)

12. Palace -- "You Have *** In Your Hair And Your D*ck Is Hanging Out" -- Arise Therefore
(This is one of the songs that plays in the movie adaptation of the sequel to your life. Incidentally, you've been chosen as an extra. You have just been told off in the hotel lobby right in front of all the bellboys and the over-friendly concierge. She walks out. This is the saddest song ever recorded, and something about the weird mix of Oldham's voice, the creaky first-wave drum machine, guitar, piano and Albini's spare production gives this the song the impact of an entire shelf of books collapsing on your heart.)

Today's Hotness: Robert Pollard, The Replacements, Big Science

>> Still catching up... We were minding our business early last week listening to the "tape delay" of one of the prior week's episodes of WMBR's crucial "Breakfast of Champions" program when a tune caught our ear. It was distinctly Pollardian, and so it was little surprise when the DJ back-announced that the track was from a forthcoming Robert Pollard solo set. We made a note to look for more info on the Internet, but before we even had a chance to sit down and look an email had already hit our inbox with the details. Indeed, Mr. Pollard will issue a new solo set Robert Pollard Is Off To Business June 3, and it will be released on his own new label GBV Records. Pollard's previous four records were released on Merge, and probably all within one twelve-month period, given the man's ability to churn out records like most of us churn out blog posts. Anyway, the track that caught our ear is titled "Gratification To Concrete," and it is the promo track for the new set. Download at will.

Robert Pollard -- "Gratification To Concrete" -- Robert Pollard Is Off To Business
[right click and save as]
[pre-order Robert Pollard Is Off To Business here]

>> Interesting grab bag of news for the taking in this Man Without Ties post. To whit: the reissues of The Replacements catalogue will not be available at ITunes (and presumably no other digital music storefront) prior to the release of the Sire titles in September; and apparently Paul Westerberg has taken up ice hockey. More notable tidbits at the link supra.

>> Chicago-based sort-of newcomers Big Science was slated to play its first show Friday night. Not a big deal in and of itself, as new bands play first shows somewhere every day. But the quartet's blend of Big Country hooks and Talking Heads-ish radio pop sensibilities make us believe Big Science will break big at some point. The band, which sprung in part from the ashes of defunct San Deigo post-hardcore act The North Atlantic, recently made its MySpace offerings downloadable, and we recommend snatching them all. To get you started here is the demo for the tune "My Career As A Ghost."

Big Science -- "My Career As A Ghost" -- MySpace demo
[right click and save as]
[more at the band's MySpace tent here]

>> So our initial excitement about Jim Guthrie's new project Human Highway is tempered by the two tracks recently posted at the band's MySpace yert here. "The Sound" is a playful strummer with a canned beat that sounds a bit like '80s TV show soundtrack music. It's something like Men At Work, but without Colin Hay's voice and personality. The second track, "Sleep Talking," seems to reimagine Modest Mouse's "Sleep Walkin'" without any of Isaac Brock's pilled-up melancholy. On the whole the songs seem to lean more in the direction of the prior work of former Islands guy Nick Thorburn, who is the other principal member of Human Highway. We'll be interested to hear what else the act has to offer, but for now we're not sure if it is going to excite us at all. The duo's full-length Moody Motorcycle will be issued by Suicide Squeeze Aug. 18.

Today's Hotness: Icy Demons, Ringo Deathstarr, 65DaysOfStatic

>> Bob Extrawack! suggests Oxfam America's Cyclone Relief and Rehabilitation Fund as the vehicle for your donations to help ameliorate the suffering in Myanmar. More info here. And now on to the music...

>> We've got a huge backlog of stuff to share that will probably not be cleared until we get a couple more posts up, so we're just jumping in anywhere. Jazzy post-rock outfit Icy Demons return in July with a third set titled Miami Ice. The Chicago-and-Philly-rooted band's sophomore collection, Tears of A Clone, was issued on Scott Herren's Eastern Developments imprint. But the new nine-song collection will be issued July 15 on Obey Your Brain, a new label set up by Icy Demons bandleaders Chris Powell (also in Man Man and Need New Body) and Griffin Rodriguez (Need New Body, Bablicon). On the new set the pair are joined by musical luminaries including Tortoise guitarist Jeff Parker and Prefuse 73/Sam Prekop collaborator Josh Abrams on bass. You can hear three of the new tracks -- "Spywatchers," "Buffalo Bill" and the title track -- at the band's MySpace dojo here. We reviewed Icy Demon's Tears Of A Clone here in 2006. Here's an MP3 of our favorite jam from the set, the album-closer "The Flea Garden."

Icy Demons -- "The Flea Garden" -- Tears Of A Clone
[right click and save as]
[buy Icy Demons records from Newbury Comics here]

>> A brief note from Texas shoegaze giants Ringo Deathstarr reports the band's planned next release will likely be an EP released digitally and on vinyl. Please, God, let it be 10" vinyl, as that is the coolest vinyl format that is still useful (sorry Boyracer, but that 5" was so small it was hard to keep track of). The quartet is also in pre-production on a new self-made music video, likely for the track "Sweet Girl," although "Down On You" is in the running as well. In the meantime you can watch a nice live clip of the band performing "Sweet Girl" over at Switchburn right here. The Deathstarr's next live appearance is June 3 at Emo's in Austin with the mighty and resurrected Swervedriver.

>> While our familiarity with the band doesn't go beyond a few listens to their first (The Fall Of Math, recently reissued) and last (The Destruction Of Small Ideas) records, we are very surprised about how-dance oriented the new 65DaysOfStatic EP is. Of course, the fact that the EP is titled The Distant And Mechanized Glow Of Eastern European Dance Parties should have been more of a hint than it was. Based on the title -- because even at 34 we still make stupid assumptions now and again-- we were hoping to hear something akin to Silkworm's devastating "There Is A Party Tonight In Warsaw." But Sheffield, England-based 65DaysOfStatic's new EP is as close to a rave mix as we've probably subjected ourselves to in about 15 years. We expect there is a big audience for music of this stripe, particularly across Europe. But we're not feeling it. The quartet this past week commenced a strand of dates opening for legendary alt-rock act The Cure; the tour comes to Boston's Agganis Arena Monday night. The Distant And Mechanized Glow Of Eastern European Dance Parties was issued April 29, and you can stream it in its entirety here.

>> We're just getting going with our new laptop, but here are two things we are excited about: 1) the onboard sound (that is the quality of the sound coming from the built-in speakers) on our new Dell 1720 is far superior to that produced by our five-year-old Dell 5150; 2) the optical drive rips discs at up to 17x, almost three times faster than our old drive. Cool.

From The Admin Cubicle: A New Machine For Blogging

Greetings blog fans. We are in receipt of our new Dell 1720 laptop blogging apparatus. We're going to be spending the next couple of days transferring files and getting up to speed on the new machine. We'll see you when we get back.

Today's Hotness: Shannon Worrell, Frightened Rabbit, City Breathing

>> While we were mucklucking around the Internerdzez Sunday looking for information about Shannon Worrell (because of our most recent Muxtape) we happened upon Ms. Worrell's MySpace dojo. And there we found information that surprised us: the former fronter of September 67 is making a return to recorded music after about eight years of relative silence. The set will be titled The Honey Guide and one song intended for it, "Driving In The Dark," is posted at the aforementioned MySpace destination. The tune is more traditionally country-sounding than September 67 and Worrell's solo material with which we are familiar. But it's got a good hook and a rich sound. It's no "Little Lantern Face," "Bring Back The Weight" (posted at the MySpace page, grab it) or "Deep Sea Swimmer" (check it out within our most recent Muxtape below), but it is very listenable. We expect Worrell will be playing new material at two upcoming dates in Charlottesville, VA: Tuesday night at Gravity Lounge and May 24 at Satellite Ballroom. We're posting below another track from Worrell's 2000 set The Moviegoer -- we believe this is the unmastered mix as found by Mr. Mystical Beast a few years ago.

Shannon Worrell -- "The Loneliness Of The Long Distance Runner" -- The Moviegoer
[right click and save as]
[buy Shannon Worrell and September 67 records here and here]

>> While researching entertainment options in Aberdeen, Scotland this coming week for our friend The Well-Traveled Texan we checked in at Frightened Rabbit's MySpace page. And lo and behold, we discovered there are additional east coast (U.S.) dates; the band will return to Great Scott in Boston May 26. The Selkirk, Scotland-based quartet previously played the club as a trio in November, and were just in Boston in March after a successful spate of dates at the annual South By Southwest confabulation. We initially posted the dates the band will play when it returns to North America here last month. The dates below are more recent additions. We reviewed Frightened Rabbit's incendiary March show here.

05/24 -- M Room -- Philadelphia, PA
05/26 -- Great Scott -- Boston, MA
05/27 -- Pianos -- New York, NY

>> One of the submissions that has stuck with us in recent weeks has been City Breathing's Look How It's Snowing Upwards, Look How They Move Towards Heaven. The Brooklyn-based dreampop trio contacted us recently ahead of a local gig and we were taken in by what we heard, but too arsed with other things to make the performance. The set has clear standout tracks, namely "Rain And Revolution" and "Footsteps, Leaving The Scene." The former song in particular strikes us each time we hear it as the singer (we can't figure out which one is the singer) incants "remember I remember you" over and over like a solemn prayer. Generally the proceedings remind us of Starflyer 59, but the clean, glistening guitars do also suggest Texans Explosions In The Sky. City Breathing recently sold out its hometown debut and there are nine forthcoming dates booked that we're posting below the obligatory, and very good, MP3.

City Breathing -- "Rain And Revolution" -- Look How It's Snowing Upwards, Look How They Move Towards Heaven
[right click and save as]
[purchase or download for free Look How It's Snowing... at the band's MySpace cabin]

05/07 -- Matchless -- Brooklyn, NY
05/14 -- Matchless -- Brooklyn, NY
05/21 -- Matchless -- Brooklyn, NY
05/23 -- Northside Tavern -- Cincinnati, OH
05/24 -- All Go Signs -- Cleveland, OH
05/25 -- Beat Kitchen -- Chicago, IL
05/28 -- Matchless -- Brooklyn, NY
06/05 -- Glasslands Gallery -- Brooklyn, NY
06/14 -- Club Cafe -- Pittsburgh, PA

I Only Talk About You: Muxtape Numero Cuatro

We're a little late with the weekly Muxtape, but we hope you'll agree the extra time resulted in an incremental increase in quality. We've unearthed rarities, elevated the under-known or under-appreciated, and celebrated the obviously worthy. Click this link to listen in, and read below for the play-by-play.

1. Mclusky -- She Will Only Bring You Happiness -- Mcluskyism
(at first it is a bit hard to believe that this is from the same band that brought us the undeniable and apocalyptic screamer "Light Saber C*ck Sucking Blues." But the band reveals its true colors with a snicker at the end of this relatively breezy pop gem when it confesses its old singer is a sex criminal. Everybody always asks us whose track this is whenever it comes on. It's that good.)

2. Up Up Down Down Left Right Left Right B A B A Start -- Janet Bateman -- Girls Names EP
(not the track we intended to upload -- all those girls' names get mixed up in our head. That said, every track is a winner on this Jersey band's EP, and on most of their EPs and records for that matter.)

3. Superchunk -- Unbelievable Things -- Indoor Living
(Is it a coda? Whatever it is, when Mac gets to the part where he sings "I'm starting to believe," it is transformative. We're still not sure when exactly indoor living was all the rage, but we expect it is popular with different people at different times. No Superchunk album as a whole thrills us the way On The Mouth did, but Indoor Living certainly has its share of high points, although we have to confess weathering some dissatisfaction as the pop tendencies began to creep into Mac's music around this time.)

4. Seaweed -- Bill (Live) -- Internation Pop Underground comp
(this song immediately inspired in us a desire to like Seaweed a lot. But besides this track and the cover of Beat Happening's "Foggy Eyes" on the Fortune Cookie Prize comp, we've never been able to get on board with the band. But the fact that the band has recorded what we consider to be two monumental tracks is no small feat.)

5. The Replacements -- Left Of The Dial (Live) -- More Sh*t For The Fans
(a very nice recording and performance of one of the most important rock songs ever. We hate when people cordon off the so-called "post-punk era" when making such claims. This song doesn't need to be handicapped, it doesn't need you to lace your fingers and give it a boost: it's Beatles good, it's Stones good, it's Zep good, it's Pistols good...)

6. The Joey Sweeney -- Pull The Lever Down -- Girl's High
(oh how we wish this record was released. We finally got nice digital files a couple years ago so we could rock out like it was 1995 every day. Mr. Sweeney had many great performers at his side over the years and a number of notable lineups, but he never rocked before or after like he did when he had a Radnor High School-bred rhythm section.)

7. Vehicle Flips -- Steelers' Fight Song -- In Action
(this song is heavily associated with autumn for us, but it is so good we can't ignore it the other nine months of the year. Perhaps the cold, wet weather this weekend has brought it prematurely to the fore of our mind. In Action is out of print and we had to beg the wider BCO population for a copy several years ago and thankfully someone obliged us. Sturdy indie pop, a bit more grown up than twee. Incidentally, we like to believe there is some nexus between the Vehicle Flips track "Potomac" and Eggs' "Evanston, Ill.")

8. Varsity Drag -- Summertime -- For Crying Out Loud
(we've covered Ben and Lisa Deily's Varsity Drag in recent months, and this song is strong evidence why. The funniest comment about the Drag's 2006 set For Crying Out Loud is "Wow, you can really tell the record was recorded in a...er...metal shipping container." Even the blunt recording can't dull the hooks in this tune, and as the weather warms up, we can't help but sing along even when it isn't on.)

9. Superman Revenge Squad -- Angriest Dog In The World -- God Is In The TV digital single
(unbridled emotion. Remarkably, this song about the angriest dog is among the saddest of the many sad songs written by England's Ben Parker, whose work is regularly stunning and whose musical accomplishments should certainly be more widely celebrated).

10. Hypo -- Nice Day
(this very pleasant electronic track came off a compilation whose title and derivation has long since escaped us. But Google reminds us Hypo, which we think was Japanese or at least included a Japanese singer, recorded for the small Parisian label Active Suspension, which also has released recordings by Domotic. Google also reveals to us that the Active Suspension web site now features a delightful animated Bigfoot. Check it out.)

11. The Warlocks -- Dreamless Days -- Heavy Deavy Skull Lover
(we wish this song was an hour long. So sleepy and reverby and yet riveting.)

12. Shannon Worrell -- Deep Sea Swimmer -- The Moviegoer outtake
(we've never understood what Shannon Worrell is talking about here, but the track itself seems like a lullabye. This track didn't make it on her 2000 release The Moviegoer, and we wouldn't have even known about it if it hadn't been for Mr. Mystical Beast having encountered some CDs out for the trash one day in Brooklyn and deciding to pick them up. Time was we were whiling away our early 20s in Virginia and Ms. Worrell was our boss' wife. Certain folks may recall she formerly was the songwriting and guitar-playing half of the duo September 67. We just learned that she is finally recording a new record; we'll have more about that later in the week.)

Today's Hotness: Lilys, The Cure, Glen Campbell?

>> Been busy this week with the day job, a new blog for a service organization, and testing new software for our new blogging machine, which is slated to arrive this coming week. In the meantime a lot has piled up. We guess we've got to start somewhere, so let us just jump in.

>> Alternative rock veterans The Cure aim to build buzz for their 13th full-length set by releasing a series of four singles prior to its release Sept. 13. The singles will be issued the 13th of each month preceding the Sept. date, beginning with "The Only One" b/w "NY Trip" May 13. How many times can we type the number 13 in this item, we wonder? The second single will be titled "Freakshow" and will include on the reverse the number "All Kinds Of Stuff." Incidentally, we just learned the German word for "stuff" the other day and it is really fun to say. But anyway... apparently none of the single b-sides will be contained on the full-length, which will be issued by Suretone/Geffen. The Cure plays commences a strand of North American tour dates May 9 which brings the storied British group to Boston's Agannis Arena May 12. Hit this link to Billboard for full tour dates and what little other details we didn't steal from it. An item below has covers on our mind, so to celebrate the impending tour here's erstwhile D.C. indie rockers The Dismemberment Plan's cover of The Cure's fabulous "Close To Me."

The Dismemberment Plan -- "Close To Me" -- Give Me The Cure compilation (1996)
[right click and save as]
[buy Dismemberment Plan and Cure recordings from Newbury Comics here]

>> You Shall Know Our Discography here has ripped and posted the vinyl version of sometimes-Philly-based Lilys' crucial, out-of-print (and now apparently forever lost through the odd intricacies of a bankruptcy proceeding) EP A Brief History Of Amazing Letdowns. This is likely our favorite record, period. We've even learned to love the closing noise titled "Evil Kneivil;" the population at large will likely recognize the opening track "Ginger" from its odd placement in teevee commercials for a certain luxury car brand and for a popular clothing, housewares and scent brand. Hit this link, download the set, and leave a comment thanking Mr. Discography for his public service.

>> Here's an interesting perspective from Digital Audio Insider. Because ITunes hasn't raised prices for its standard digital music files in line with inflation over the course of its five years of operations, the files it sells are actually becoming less expensive. We expect that greater adoption of broadband and cheaper storage hardware and players will ultimately drive the digital music business toward higher fidelity/lower compression audible media. But then again, it's 2008 and we suspect the market for higher fidelity files made commercially available can only be described best as "niche." That said, in 2003 dollars, which of course none of us has to spend any longer, ITunes downloads now cost a mere $.86. Still, that's akin to waxing nostalgic about how a pack of gum used to cost a dime: it doesn't put any gum in your mouth, now does it?

>> The Paul Westerberg blog Men Without Ties reports here on a No Depression item that says "Rhinestone Cowboy" s(l)inger Glen Campbell will cover the late period Replacements downer "Sadly Beautiful" on a forthcoming collection. The set will be titled Meet Glen Campbell, but it appears it will be comprised solely of covers of songs by folks including U2, Foo Fighters and Nico/Jackson Browne. Two questions: is the album title supposed to be funny? It kind of is. Also: is Rick Rubin behind this? Because it sort of has the scent of Johnny Cash's late resurgence in popularity to it, no?

>> You didn't think we'd post without mentioning Johnny Foreigner, did you? Fans of the stellar Birmingham, England-based indie rock trio can now pre-order the single "Eyes Wide Terrified" from HMV.co.uk right here. As we've reported previously, the B sides are "I Heard, He Ties Up Cats" and "What Burlesque Won't Stand." The single is released by Best Before May 19 -- about two weeks before the arrival of the band's debut full-length Waited Up Til It Was Light -- and delivery is free, we expect so long as you live in the UK. Given the poor condition our copy of the last Johnny Foreigner single, which we purchased from HMV, we think we'll wait to see who else will sell it to us.