Backstage Pass

From the moment Jesse Lacey opened his mouth at Friday night's concert at Webster Hall -- the final date on Brand New's guerilla U.S. tour -- you could tell something had changed.

Read the full concert review here.

Nine years after the slaying of rap star Biggie Smalls, LAPD Chief William J. Bratton has launched a task force of senior homicide detectives to hunt down the killer, a rare show of force for a cold-case murder with no new evidence, the Los Angeles Times is reporting.

The beefed-up Los Angeles Police Department probe comes in the wake of a wrongful-death lawsuit against the city of Los Angeles by the rapper's mother, Voletta Wallace, and other relatives. Whatever new evidence the police turn up could bolster the city's contention that LAPD officers played no role in the rapper's death. Wallace maintains they did.

Full story

DMX is back - still gruff as a Harley, still subtle as a sledgehammer - and he is looking to make this, as his new album title declares, "Year of the Dog ... Again" (Sony Urban).

Trouble is (and wherever the Dog goes these days, there seems to be plenty of trouble), this isn't 1998, when he dominated hip-hop and landed two No. 1 albums in the same year. And today's DMX isn't the same rabid barker from "It's Dark and Hell Is Hot."

Full review here

Listen to "Year of the Dog... Again" here.

Watch "Lord Give Me a Sign" here.

John Mayer is a sharp, well-spoken guy. So if he wants to bite from Curtis Mayfield's "People Get Ready" for his new single "Waiting on the World to Change" (Columbia/Aware), that's cool. He can probably come up with some pretty good reasons for it. He can probably even defend watering down one of soul music's greatest breakthroughs into pandering, pre-packaged blandness.

But the lyrics for "Waiting on the World to Change" are ridiculous, especially when he tries to speak like the voice of a generation. "We see everything that's going wrong with the world and those who lead it," he sings. "We just feel like we don't have the means to rise above and beat it. So we keep waiting, waiting on the world to change." Is he serious? Can he really be advocating that even though he and all his friends are against the war in Iraq, they should not speak out, but simply do nothing and wait on the world to change? Music is filled with great protest songs urging people to stand up for what they believe in. Mayer may hold the shameful title of being the first to encourage people to sit down.

Listen to "Waiting on the World to Change" here.

Yeah, one-third of the Backstage Pass posse was at The Killers' listening party this week. Yeah, we saw Jay-Z there, representing with the shiniest bling we've seen in a while and definitely the whitest kicks in the place. No, we didn't get the chance to ask whether he really is recording a secret comeback album with Dr, Dre, Timbaland or whoever for release in November. But when you see how effortless Jay makes things look in this video or on the Rick Ross single, you just know he's not rusting away in retirement.

Watch "Deja Vu" on the jump

The "Now 22" compilation hangs on to the No. 1 spot with 207,000 copies sold last week in a slow week. How slow? No. 2 went to Los Lonely Boys' "Sacred" (One Haven/Or) with 67,000 sales and No. 3 was country singer Rodney Atkins' "If You're Going Through Hell" (Curb) with 55,000 sales.

Full story

Newsday's Top Albums and Singles (compiled by Billboard) on the jump

Ryan Star's burst of energy changed Supernova's minds, but Jill Gioia's humpty-hump didn't fare so well.

Lots of Long Island scenesters on TV this week. Taking Back Sunday will be on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" tonight and "Last Call with Carson Daly" on Friday. Ashanti will be repping her new movie "John Tucker Must Die" on "Live with Regis and Kelly" tomorrow. Of course, there's Ryan Star and Jill Gioia still hanging tough on "Rock Star: Supernova" on Tuesday and Wednesday nights. And, maybe my favorite, because I end up seeing it a bunch of times a day,1-800-OK-CABLE has started running that catchy Early Edison jingle again in its campaign -- this time with a new video.

Though Tom Petty's lyrics are uniformly strong and his voice is as even-tempered as usual, the small changes on "Highway Companion" - in style or tempo or arrangement - make his songwriting sparkle more than usual.

Full review here.
Listen to "Highway Companion" here. (Rhapsody registration required)

The problem with all this new-new-new wave stuff is that the copies are getting so exact that there gets to be no need for the latest version. British quartet Boy Kill Boy, for example, has zeroed in on all The Killers' various tics that it renders itself unnecessary on its debut "Civilian" (Island). If people want a new Killers album, they can wait.

Listen to "Civil Sin" and "Suzie" here.

Taking Back Sunday's new single in England is "Twenty-Twenty Surgery," out in August. What's the next single in the U.S.? Good question. It looks like Warner will wait to see if "MakeDamnSure" catches on with the help of all those Verizon commercials before unleashing single No. 2. Anyway, in "Surgery," the band gets its Folsom County Prison on, channeling a bit of The Man in Black via "Walk the Line." Adam Lazzarra could be mistaken for a young Joaquin Phoenix, I suppose -- well, not really. The video looks pretty great, but the highlight for me is drummer Mark O'Connell's new shades. Sweet.

The video's high-quality version is at the band's UK site here.

The 22nd edition of the "Now" compilations debuts at No. 1 with nearly 400,000 copies sold last week -- more than four times more than its nearest competitor, Thom Yorke's "The Eraser" (XL), which lands at No. 2.

Full story

Newsday's Top Albums and Singles (compiled by Billboard) after the jump

The funnies were flying fast and furiously at Webster Hall during the Pink concert -- and that doesn't even count whatever jokes Rosie O'Donnell may have been dishing out in the VIP section. Pink was her usual amusing self, jokingly announcing "I can't concentrate" before mock-confusedly saying, "I want to play this song for you because it's hot" and launching into "Stupid Girls." She would scream "You're not the boss of me!" in pretend-indignation when audience members would request songs.

Opener Matt Nathanson was actually even funnier, explaining how his song "Curve of the Earth" was about having sex in a parked car on the Upper West Side. "Now I don't condone it," he added quickly. "I don't even condone the Upper West Side."

Full review

SETLIST: Cuz I Can / Trouble / Just Like a Pill / Stupid Girls / Who Knew / Family Portrait / 18 Wheeler / I'm Not Dead / Don't Let Me Get Me / There U Go / What's Up? / Leave Me Alone (I'm Lonely) // ENCORES: The One That Got Away / Dear Mr. President / Get the Party Started

Ryan Star went on the attack and turned in his best performance yet this week, but the Supernova crew remained unimpressed.

Oh (your name here), Jessica Simpson really likes you.

She likes you so much (your name here) that she is willing to sing part of her new single “A Public Affair” especially to you, (your name here). For a mere $1.99 – what’s an extra buck between friends, right (your name here)? – you can download the personalized version from Yahoo! Music to play for your friends.

It’s the same as the single only the name is dropped into the song three times – in the line, “Hey (your name here), I see you looking over here, (your name here), are you gonna keep looking or get up?” and “(Your name here) is stepping out for a public affair.”

The idea is part of Epic Records’ Custom Cuts program, which launched yesterday the company said will spread beyond Yahoo! Music next week. It sounds like backing singers, not Simpson, sat in a studio recording each of the 500 names available in the songs, but in the course of the song, it’s hard to tell. And, in case you’re wondering, (your name here), she sings one to Nick, too.

Listen to "A Public Affair" (unpersonalized) here.

After a long hiatus, Fiona Apple's at Jones Beach, back on tour: grown, happy, independent.

Full story here.

This year's Mercury Prize shortlist includes the expected nods for Arctic Monkeys, Muse, Editors and Thom Yorke, as well as surprise nominees Lou Rhodes (formerly of Lamb) and Scritti Politti. Also on the shortlist: Isobel Campbell and Mark Lanegan, Hot Chip, Sway, Richard Hawley, Guillemots, and Zoe Rahman.

Who's missing? Well, Corinne Bailey Rae seemed like an obvious choice, along with the reinvigorated Morrissey and Kate Bush.

Arctic Monkeys and Muse will be the favorites, but the Mercury Prize, the British equivalent to the Album of the Year Grammy, is always hard to predict. Last year, it went to Antony and the Johnsons over Coldplay and Kaiser Chiefs.

Full BBC story

Watch Arctic Monkeys' "I Bet You Look Good on the Dance Floor" here.
Watch Editors' "Blood" here.
Listen to Muse's "Knights of Cydonia" here.
Listen to Guillemots here.

Sure, The American Idols Tour is messy -- clumsy in places, lumbering in others. But its heart is in the right place. For the most part, this year’s class of American Idols, especially winner Taylor Hicks, just wants to entertain and will do whatever it takes to get that done.

Full review

SETLIST: Mandisa – I’m Every Woman / Mandisa – If I Was Your Woman / Mandisa and Ace Young – I’m Your Angel / Ace – Father Figure / Ace – Harder to Breathe / Lisa Tucker – Signed, Sealed and Delivered / Lisa – Your Song / Lisa – Someone Saved My Life Tonight / Lisa and Paris Bennett – Waterfalls / Paris – Midnight Train to Georgia / Paris – Crazy in Love / Bucky Covington – Superstition / Bucky – Drift Away / Bucky and Kellie Pickler – You’re the One That I Want / Kellie – I’m the Only One / Kellie – Walking after Midnight/Something to Talk About (Medley)

SECOND SET: Chris Daughtry – Whole Lotta Love / Chris – Wanted Dead or Alive / Chris – Renegade / Chris and Elliott Yamin – Savin’ Me / Elliott – Never Too Much / Elliott – Moody’s Mood for Love / Elliott – Trouble / Elliott, Chris, Ace and Bucky – Patience / Kellie, Paris, Lisa and Mandisa – I’m a Woman/Man! I Feel like a Woman (Medley) / Taylor Hicks – Jailhouse Rock / Taylor – Hollywood Nights / Taylor – Living for the City / Taylor – Don’t Let Me Down / Taylor – Do I Make You Proud?

ENCORES: Taylor – Takin’ It to the Streets / Elliott, Chris, Kellie, Bucky, Paris, Lisa, Ace and Mandisa – We Are the Champions / All – Living in America

Five Things You May Have Missed at The American Idols Show

1. Kevin Covais: OK, so he may have been hard to miss when the spotlight was on him, but the “Idol” finalist from Levittown was as sweet as his TV persona suggested, signing autographs and shaking hands during the breaks. And when Paris started doing “Midnight Train to Georgia,” he was out of his seat, dancing and waving his white cap in the air.

2. Elliott’s mom: Mama Yamin proved to be a minor celebrity as she made her way backstage during the intermission. And Elliott gave her a nice shout-out during “Never Too Much,” saying, “I love you, Ma. Thanks for coming.”

3. Mandisa’s crush on Ruben Studdard: “If you see Ruben walking down the street, let him know I’m looking for him,” she said, after tossing his name around during “If I Was Your Woman.”

4. Wallets: It's pretty much against the rocker credo, but Bucky Covington and Chris Daughtry both kept their wallets in their pockets while they performed. Is there rampant backstage theft that they're worried about? (At least they weren’t wearing watches.)

5. When Kellie Pickler said she had to go backstage to get out of her corset because “I’m about to bust a seam – again,” she wasn’t kidding.

Newsday file photo by Michael E. Ach

In case you've forgotten what the Bandcamp boys look like, the Seaford-based band put a pretty cool homemade video for "Celebrity" online. Not only does it feature lots of live footage of the soon-to-be celebrities, it also includes shots of Long Island luminaries like WLIR's Harlan Friedman, Jay from Greener and one-third of the Backstage Pass posse.

When the British band Art Brut released "Bang Bang Rock & Roll," it seemed tailor-made to appeal to the jaded music intelligentsia.

Full Story

Listen to three Art Brut songs here.

If "Rock Star: Supernova" were a horse race, Ryan Star would be the dark one.

Kelly Clarkson rolled out a a lot of new songs on her "Addicted" tour, but she was also very conscious of the nasty thunderstorms that were rolling into the area during her show. "Don't worry," she told the crowd at Nikon Jones Beach Theater, "if it starts raining, I'll get out there with you." She managed to pack her set and Rooney's set in the two hours or so in between the two major stormfronts Wednesday night, but that involved a shorter-than-usual set change and the elimination of her encores. (She moved "Breakaway" and "Since U Been Gone" into the main set.) Those moves meant that most of the crowd got to their cars before the downpours came.
Full review

Listen to "Go" here. (Yeah, it's part of an ad, but that's the only place it is online, um, legally.)

SETLIST: Addicted / Behind These Hazel Eyes / Maybe (new) / Gone / Anymore (new) / Because of You / Shelter (Ray LaMontagne cover) / Thankful / Home (Marc Broussard cover) / Miss Independent / Go (new) / Beautiful Disaster / Hear Me / Yeah (new) / Walk Away / Breakaway / Since U Been Gone

With all the "American Idols" running around this week, it seemed like a good time to catch up with the One That Got Away, aka Mario Vazquez. The Bronx native sent the "Idol" world into a tizzy last year when he left the show voluntarily for "personal reasons," just as it looked like he was a shoo-in to march into the finals

Full story

Listen to Vazquez's "Gallery" here.

Johnny Cash's great "American V: A Hundred Highways" (American/Lost Highway) debuts at No. 1, giving The Man in Black his first No. 1 album since 1969.

TOP 5: 1. Johnny Cash, American V: A Hundred Highways" (American/Lost Highway) / 2. Nelly Furtado, "Loose" (Geffen) / 3. india.arie, "Testimony: Vol. 1, Life & Relationship" (Universal Motown) / 4. Dixie Chicks, "Taking the Long Way" (Columbia) / 5. Gnarls Barkley, "St. Elsewhere" (Downtown/Atlantic).

Full story
Billboard report

Syd Barrett, the troubled talent who co-founded Pink Floyd but spent his last years in reclusive anonymity, has died, a spokeswoman for the band said Tuesday. He was 60.

Full story

Method Man delivers a searing attack on critics in "Say" (Def Jam), throwing out lines like, "Radio is the same, a whole lot of speculatin' ... That ain't where the hip-hop live, it live in the streets. We eat to live, they livin' to eat. I'm fed up." To keep things from getting too dark, though, Meth piles all his stored-up bile - which comes mostly from the drubbing his last album, "Tical 0: The Prequel," took - on a sunny-sounding sample from Lauryn Hill doing Bob Marley's "So Much Things to Say." It's not just a case of biting the hand that feeds, the first single from the forthcoming "4:21" album is a smackdown. But, as one of his most accessible-sounding singles in years, it will likely prove too popular for radio to not play.

Listen to "Say" here.

Two Long Island contestants debuted on the season premiere of "Rock Star: Supernova" last night and avoided landing in the competition's dreaded "bottom three."

Donavon Frankenreiter's professional surfer past seeps into everything in his life, including his relatively new career as a singer-songwriter.

"Surfing has taken me around the world, and it has shown me the world's a beautiful place," Frankenreiter said, calling from a tour stop in Paris, where he was soaking in the atmosphere at an outdoor cafe in the middle of World Cup mania. "Southern California is my home, but I feel like a global citizen. When you see how beautiful a wave looks, you think, 'This is what it is all about.' Music is like that, too. I can get on a plane and fly 22 hours to South Africa, and when I get to play for people, connect with them in their hometown, that's worth it to me."

Full story

Watch out, summer concertgoers. Some in the industry say the end is near.

Once Paul McCartney, the Rolling Stones, The Who, Eric Clapton and their '60s rock contemporaries hang up their guitars and stop touring, the industry will collapse because, as one concert promoter recently told The New York Times, "We will run out of headliners."

Give me a break. That's the kind of "the world begins and ends with me" narcissism generally associated with teenagers, not savvy businessmen.

Full column

Lil' Kim was released this morning from a federal detention center in Philadelphia, after spending nearly 10 months behind bars for lying about a shootout between her crew and Capone-N-Noreaga's crew outside Hot 97 in 2001.

Full story here.
Listen to "Lighters Up" here.

Johnny Cash's final album "American V: A Hundred Highways" (American/ Lost Highway) is a heartbreaker.

Even without the back story of it being The Man in Black's final album - written and recorded between November 2002 and Sept. 12, 2003, the day Cash died of complications from respiratory failure - "American V" would still be a stunning meditation on death and dying.

The 12 tracks don't all deal with death - whether to accept or fight it. But it is almost tangible on the album. It hangs in the air, informing his song choices, his delivery and, especially, his voice.

Pharrell is in a slump. Once unstoppable, the flashier half of The Neptunes has released his second dud single in a row - dragging Kanye West, who contributes some of his blandest rhymes, down with him this time. "Number One" (Star Trak/Interscope) is choppy, with a clunky chorus of "Number One, smashing, off the charts, classic" that sounds like it was a Michael Jackson cast-off.

Full review
Listen to "Number One" here. (RealPlayer needed)

With Taking Back Sunday's first tour as arena headliners now under way, the second wave of promotion for the Rockville Centre-based band has launched.

The band's video for "MakeDamnSure" is now in MTV's Big 10 rotation, making it one of the channel's most-played clips. That single is already being used in the new Verizon Wireless ad campaign, the same one that helped build the buzz around Shakira's "Hips Don't Lie" and Nelly Furtado's "Promiscuous." The campaign will run through July.

"Spin," which is expected to be the band's next single, will get a boost this summer as part of Electronic Arts' campaign for Madden NFL '07, as well as the video game's soundtrack along with AFI, Dashboard Confessional and Rise Against. "Spin" will be the soundtrack for the "Madden" trailer that will be shown in movie theaters for the next few months.

"Year after year, the music selected for inclusion in EA's smash hit football series invariably becomes the soundtrack of the football season, moving beyond the game to turn up in football stadiums and on live TV broadcasts," Steve Schnur, EA's worldwide executive of music and music marketing, said in a statement. "The Madden NFL Football franchise is recognized across North America as a driving force behind breakout bands ... this year, EA does it again."

This week's The Buzz