Idolator: Music News, Reviews, And Gossip http://idolator.com Music News, Reviews, And Gossip Mon, 09 Nov 2009 23:01:46 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.7.1 en hourly 1 It’s Time (For Me) To Say Goodbye http://idolator.com/5290342/its-time-for-me-to-say-goodbye http://idolator.com/5290342/its-time-for-me-to-say-goodbye#comments Mon, 09 Nov 2009 22:45:40 +0000 Maura http://idolator.com/?p=5290342
Hi everyone. Just wanted to let you know that today is my last day as editor of Idolator. The site will continue on, and I will continue to write about music, but we've decided to part ways. Despite my nominal status as a "writer," I am straight-up terrible at goodbyes. So I just have a list of people to thank before I exit stage left. MORE »]]>

Hi everyone. Just wanted to let you know that today is my last day as editor of Idolator. The site will continue on, and I will continue to write about music, but we’ve decided to part ways. Despite my nominal status as a “writer,” I am straight-up terrible at goodbyes. So I just have a list of people to thank before I exit stage left.


Thank you to Brian Raftery, Lockhart Steele, and Nick Denton for calling up a music writer from the baseball-house-organ minors. Thank you to Jeff Leeds and the folks at BuzzMedia for putting up with me from 3,000 miles away all these months. Thank you to Jess Harvell for being a terrific foil. Thank you to Christopher R. Weingarten, Lucas Jensen, Dan Gibson, Anthony Miccio, and Mike Barthel for being awesome co-bloggers. Thank you to Maggie Bandur, Andy Beta, Chuck Eddy, Tim Finney, John Gary, Alex Goldberg, Matt Goldenberg, Rohin Guha, Eric Harvey, Rob Kemp, Molly McAleer, Chris Molanphy, Kate Richardson, Dan Rivkin, and Al Shipley — and anyone else who I might have forgotten, please accept my deepest apologies — for pitching in with some of the best music writing I ever had the privilege to edit. Thank you to all the incredible commenters who added to every bit of this site’s essence, to anyone who ever linked to something I wrote, to the people who transformed from e-mail addresses to friends over the past three-plus (!) years, to you reading this right now. I am so lucky to have done this for so long.


If you want to find me, I’ll be around the Internet… try as I might, I can never stay away for too long. You know?


-30-


Spice Girls - Goodbye (VideoClip) [Dailymotion]

]]> http://idolator.com/5290342/its-time-for-me-to-say-goodbye/feed No. 31: 50 Cent, “Amusement Park” http://idolator.com/5290252/no-31-50-cent-amusement-park http://idolator.com/5290252/no-31-50-cent-amusement-park#comments Mon, 09 Nov 2009 18:00:18 +0000 Maura http://idolator.com/?p=5290252 "Shorty, you ain't gotta take your panties off... just move 'em to the side." Never let it be said that Curtis Jackson isn't a romantic! MORE »]]> currrrtis“Shorty, you ain’t gotta take your panties off… just move ‘em to the side.” Never let it be said that Curtis Jackson isn’t a romantic!



Opening with a very classy line about just how he would get to his paramour’s ladyparts—it certainly takes balls, I guess, to start off your track with an image that’s a throwback to a key scene in the 1996 thriller Fear—50 Cent’s 2007 “Amusement Park,” was a hit-you-over-the-head followup to “Candy Shop” that was supposed to serve as an invitation to a sexual great adventure of sorts, with really obvious references to “riding” roller coasters, water rides, and carousels. But the overall effect was like riding one of those mouse-coasters that spin around maybe once or twice before using up four of your tickets—i.e., not fun at all. Curtis drawls middle-school sex euphemisms like “watch me pull a rabbit out of my hat / then I can use the rabbit all over your cat” with all the passion of someone who checking his stock quotes in another browser window. Not exactly someone you want to use your E-Ticket on, you know?


50 Cent Amusement Park [Dailymotion]
This Is 50 [Official site]
F2K: Idolator Counts Down The 50 Worst Songs Of The ’00s, One By Ear-Splitting One

]]> http://idolator.com/5290252/no-31-50-cent-amusement-park/feed Bon Jovi Put Their Noses To The Grindstone One More Time http://idolator.com/5290222/bon-jov-put-their-noses-to-the-grindstone-one-more-time http://idolator.com/5290222/bon-jov-put-their-noses-to-the-grindstone-one-more-time#comments Mon, 09 Nov 2009 15:00:30 +0000 Maura http://idolator.com/?p=5290222 Our look at the closing lines of new music reviews continues with a roundup of reactions to The Circle, the eleventh studio album by New Jersey arena-rock stalwarts Bon Jovi: MORE »]]> bonjoviOur look at the closing lines of new music reviews continues with a roundup of reactions to The Circle, the eleventh studio album by New Jersey arena-rock stalwarts Bon Jovi:


• “Longtime fans will be delighted, but those who think Jon Bon Jovi and crew are thieving hacks will have 12 more examples to bolster their argument.” [Bill Brotherton, Boston Herald]


• ”But even while Mr. Bon Jovi is sympathizing with the common man, the scrape in his voice is never wrenching. And while the arrangements are mildly darker than on the group’s previous albums, this group is still drawn magnetically to swelling choruses, its ambition of scale still grander than its ambition of import. On ‘We Weren’t Born to Follow’ and ‘Thorn in My Side,’ the flamboyant guitarist Richie Sambora manages to show off a bit. But while invigorating, these feel like moments of indulgence — rare flashes of id in a band now moving with common purpose.” [Jon Caramanica, New York Times]


• ”Jon Bon Jovi has floated several interpretations of the album’s title. ‘Some may say that with this album we have come full circle. Others may see the circle as never-ending,’ he has said. He has also suggested that the title has something to do with the band’s inner circle. To me, it evokes the theme of returning to a state of lost innocence that is central to ‘When We Were Beautiful’ (and is echoed in several other songs), and the fact that Bon Jovi has managed to have so much success, over such a long period of time, without changing very much. Most musical journeys are linear — the artist starts in one place, and ends up in a very different place. But this band’s path seems almost circular. Twenty-five years after its debut, it really hasn’t changed much.” [Jon Lustig, Newark Star-Ledger]


• “Throughout it all, ‘Hell yeah!’ has replaced ‘Hee Haw.’ And as they say in New Jersey, that’s a good thing, capece?” [Wayne Parry, AP]

]]> http://idolator.com/5290222/bon-jov-put-their-noses-to-the-grindstone-one-more-time/feed http://idolator.com/5290192/5290192 http://idolator.com/5290192/5290192#comments Mon, 09 Nov 2009 14:45:43 +0000 Maura http://idolator.com/?p=5290192 The eight tracks that were originally going to be tacked on to the deluxe reissue of Lady GaGa's The Fame won't only be available to people who re-buy the record; they will also be available as an eight-dollar EP called The Fame Monster, which I think is a pretty nice thing for GaGa and her label people to do in these high-unemployment times. [GaGa Daily] MORE »]]> 51awytxl6vl_sl160_aa160_The eight tracks that were originally going to be tacked on to the deluxe reissue of Lady GaGa’s The Fame won’t only be available to people who re-buy the record; they will also be available as an eight-dollar EP called The Fame Monster, which I think is a pretty nice thing for GaGa and her label people to do in these high-unemployment times. [GaGa Daily]

]]> http://idolator.com/5290192/5290192/feed Chris Brown Gongs Himself http://idolator.com/5290162/chris-brown-gongs-himself http://idolator.com/5290162/chris-brown-gongs-himself#comments Mon, 09 Nov 2009 14:30:45 +0000 Maura http://idolator.com/?p=5290162 MORE »]]> chris-brown-graffiti-deluxeTabloid-dogged R&B singer Chris Brown capped a weekend in which he watched as people reacted to the demise of his relationship and asserted his La Roux fandom with a release of the album art for the deluxe edition of Graffiti, which has been moved up to a release date of Dec. 8. The new art… well, it basically adds a golden tinge to the moon behind Brown and his critter-like… pals? antagonists? paparazzi? It’s all so hard to tell. But what does it say about the way Brown’s comeback has gone so far that the first thing I thought of when I saw that big, goldish-tinged moon was him appearing on a show hosted by… Chuck Barris?





Chuck Barris gets gonged [YouTube]
Earlier: Hands Up If You, Too, Thought That Chris Brown Was Going For An “Alvin & The Chipmunks” Thing With His New Album’s Cover

]]> http://idolator.com/5290162/chris-brown-gongs-himself/feed Idolator On “Idol” On NPR http://idolator.com/5290132/idolator-on-idol-on-npr http://idolator.com/5290132/idolator-on-idol-on-npr#comments Mon, 09 Nov 2009 14:00:17 +0000 Maura http://idolator.com/?p=5290132
Yesterday on All Things Considered I talked about new albums from a few Simon Cowell-shepherded artists with host Guy Raz: Carrie Underwood's Play On; Kris Allen's self-titled debut; Adam Lambert's For Your Entertainment; and Susan Boyle's I Dreamed A Dream. (This segment has caused some consternation among the more insane Idol fans out there, especially some who think I was unfairly slamming Kris for being "'90s." If they only knew how much I loved that decade!) [NPR] MORE »]]> thebigfour
Yesterday on All Things Considered I talked about new albums from a few Simon Cowell-shepherded artists with host Guy Raz: Carrie Underwood’s Play On; Kris Allen’s self-titled debut; Adam Lambert’s For Your Entertainment; and Susan Boyle’s I Dreamed A Dream. (This segment has caused some consternation among the more insane Idol fans out there, especially some who think I was unfairly slamming Kris for being “’90s.” If they only knew how much I loved that decade!) [NPR]

]]> http://idolator.com/5290132/idolator-on-idol-on-npr/feed The Michael Jackson Séance: A Whole New World (Of Ways To Fill TV Airtime) http://idolator.com/5290082/the-michael-jackson-seance-a-whole-new-world-of-ways-to-fill-tv-airtime http://idolator.com/5290082/the-michael-jackson-seance-a-whole-new-world-of-ways-to-fill-tv-airtime#comments Sat, 07 Nov 2009 16:00:04 +0000 Maura http://idolator.com/?p=5290082 Last night in the UK, a televised attempt to contact the spirit of Michael Jackson was transmitted to TVs. And people actually watched it! Popjustice's Peter Robinson called it "the worst thing I have ever seen... [yet] strangely arousing"; another blogger noted that whatever Jackson was saying wasn't too important---the cosmos-crossing communication was stopped midway through one of his utterances "because Eddie Murphy and Beverly Hills Cop III is on at 11pm." So was it totally useless? Well, not 100%! MORE »]]> handsacrossthecosmosLast night in the UK, a televised attempt to contact the spirit of Michael Jackson was transmitted to TVs. And people actually watched it! Popjustice’s Peter Robinson called it “the worst thing I have ever seen… [yet] strangely arousing”; another blogger noted that whatever Jackson was saying wasn’t too important—the cosmos-crossing communication was stopped midway through one of his utterances “because Eddie Murphy and Beverly Hills Cop III is on at 11pm.” So was it totally useless? Well, not 100%!


Here is a clip of medium Derek Avorah explaining away Jackson’s metaphysical absence—and then all of a sudden being slain in the spirit of Jackson!





Michael Jackson spoke in tongues? Huh. Anyway, the big “revelation” of the night was that Jackson was upset to not be buried next to Marilyn Monroe: “I wished to lie alongside her. I suppose it’s of no consequence.” Also that he was happy to see his grandparents on the other side. Unfortunately he did not say “why are you using my name to boost your profile,” but maybe that happened after Beverly Hills Cop III came on?


Medium: I Talked To Jacko [The Sun]
[Daily Mail]
Michael Jackson Live Seance Sky 1 Derek Acorah [YouTube]

]]> http://idolator.com/5290082/the-michael-jackson-seance-a-whole-new-world-of-ways-to-fill-tv-airtime/feed The Five Best Things About Robbie Williams’ “You Know Me” Video, Aside From The Obviously Amazing Rabbit Suit Robbie Wears http://idolator.com/5290052/the-five-best-things-about-robbie-williams-you-know-me-video-aside-from-the-obviously-amazing-rabbit-suit-robbie-wears http://idolator.com/5290052/the-five-best-things-about-robbie-williams-you-know-me-video-aside-from-the-obviously-amazing-rabbit-suit-robbie-wears#comments Fri, 06 Nov 2009 21:00:22 +0000 Maura http://idolator.com/?p=5290052 The video for Robbie Williams' throwbacky "You Know Me" conceptually flips around the title of the crooning 9/11 conspiracy theorist's new album, Reality Killed The Video Star. Only here it's the video that's killing anything resembling reality, with Williams using an extended dream sequence as an excuse to dress up in a bunny suit and flit around like he's late for a very important date with a choreographer and a batallion of backup dancers. The video, and five of my favorite things about its way-too-short three minutes, after the jump. MORE »]]> bunniesinthebodhitreeThe video for Robbie Williams’ throwbacky “You Know Me” conceptually flips around the title of the crooning 9/11 conspiracy theorist’s new album, Reality Killed The Video Star. Only here it’s the video that’s killing anything resembling reality, with Williams using an extended dream sequence as an excuse to dress up in a bunny suit and flit around like he’s late for a very important date with a choreographer and a batallion of backup dancers. The video, and five of my favorite things about its way-too-short three minutes, after the jump.





5. Williams’ bunny-suited imitation of the MGM lion at the video’s very end.
4. Is it just me, or is the midair flip the bunnified Williams does at the 1:17 mark a product not of a stunt double, but of… CGI?
3. The toads as backup singers. Such a Disney musical number detail. Dear every video director: This (and the aforementioned flip) is how you use your computer-generated imagery talent, not on bad Lisa Frank landscapes.
2. The parts of the video where he’s dancing around with the walking-stick, which combines with the track’s retro glossiness in such a way that I can’t help but make me wonder if he’s paying at least a little bit of homage to the Monkees’ Harry Nilsson-penned “Daddy’s Song,” which Davy Jones did a little bit of soft-shoe to in Head. (Here’s the dancing; here’s the song.)
1. The way that this clip pretty much takes all those recently leveled “Robbie’s gone crazy” allegations and runs with them. I mean, between this and a flack of his telling another UK paper that he pulled out of his MTV EMA performance because Viacom was too cheap, he’s at least making things interesting, you know?


Robbie Williams You Know Me Official Music Video Full HD [YouTube]

]]> http://idolator.com/5290052/the-five-best-things-about-robbie-williams-you-know-me-video-aside-from-the-obviously-amazing-rabbit-suit-robbie-wears/feed Kris Allen Is Running Out The Clock http://idolator.com/5290012/kris-allen-is-running-out-the-clock http://idolator.com/5290012/kris-allen-is-running-out-the-clock#comments Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:30:12 +0000 Maura http://idolator.com/?p=5290012
Baby-faced American Idol victor Kris Allen's first music video, for his cover of the Script's seize-the-day anthem "Live Like We're Dying," is a simple---and pretty beautifully shot!---affair in which he performs in front of a desert-erected clock, which is presumably counting down the minutes until "living like we're dying" turns into something that involves lopping off the first three words of that phrase. It's a pretty effective clip, although I would like to voice my objection to the old "piano on the sand" trope that's rapidly turning into a Serious Artist video cliché---especially since in this arrangement, the piano plays, like, fourth string to all of the strumming going on. (No pun intended, ha ha ha.) Related: I will be on NPR's Weekend All Things Considered this, er, weekend, talking about Allen's new record, as well as new releases from other Simon Cowell-assisted singers like Adam Lambert, Carrie Underwood, and Susan Boyle. Tune in! [YouTube] MORE »]]>
Baby-faced American Idol victor Kris Allen’s first music video, for his cover of the Script’s seize-the-day anthem “Live Like We’re Dying,” is a simple—and pretty beautifully shot!—affair in which he performs in front of a desert-erected clock, which is presumably counting down the minutes until “living like we’re dying” turns into something that involves lopping off the first three words of that phrase. It’s a pretty effective clip, although I would like to voice my objection to the old “piano on the sand” trope that’s rapidly turning into a Serious Artist video cliché—especially since in this arrangement, the piano plays, like, fourth string to all of the strumming going on. (No pun intended, ha ha ha.) Related: I will be on NPR’s Weekend All Things Considered this, er, weekend, talking about Allen’s new record, as well as new releases from other Simon Cowell-assisted singers like Adam Lambert, Carrie Underwood, and Susan Boyle. Tune in! [YouTube]

]]> http://idolator.com/5290012/kris-allen-is-running-out-the-clock/feed The Jacksons’ American Dream Reaches Its Inevitable Conclusion http://idolator.com/5289982/the-jacksons-american-dream-reaches-its-inevitable-conclusion http://idolator.com/5289982/the-jacksons-american-dream-reaches-its-inevitable-conclusion#comments Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:00:27 +0000 Maura http://idolator.com/?p=5289982 The Jacksons: A Family Dynasty---a six-episode series that will chronicle the efforts of Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon, and Randy to embark on a reunion tour, which was shelved by producers but revived after the June death of their brother Michael---will debut on A & E on Dec. 13. Because what better way to gear up for the holidays than to watch the adventures of a dysfunctional family trying to get its livelihoods back, right? Sigh. [AP] MORE »]]> jacksonfamilyThe Jacksons: A Family Dynasty—a six-episode series that will chronicle the efforts of Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon, and Randy to embark on a reunion tour, which was shelved by producers but revived after the June death of their brother Michael—will debut on A & E on Dec. 13. Because what better way to gear up for the holidays than to watch the adventures of a dysfunctional family trying to get its livelihoods back, right? Sigh. [AP]

]]> http://idolator.com/5289982/the-jacksons-american-dream-reaches-its-inevitable-conclusion/feed