Did You Know?

:: Jay-Z and Beyonce attended L.A. Reid‘s wife’s private book signing in New York. We hope she didn’t mind having her thunder stolen by the famous couple’s absolutely adorable presence. [MTV Buzzworthy]

:: Is Amber Riley leaving Glee? Mercedes isn’t even a graduating senior! What’s going on here?! [Just Jared]

:: Rock band Against Me!’s frontman will soon become a frontwoman — Tom Gabel has come out as transgender, and will be known as Laura Jane Grace from now on. [EW]

:: Blink-182 have cancelled their headlining spot at next weekend’s Bamboozle festival in New Jersey due to Travis Barker undergoing an emergency tonsillectomy. My Chemical Romance will take their spot, so pop-punk-rock fans shouldn’t be too bummed out. [Consequence Of Sound]

:: Take a peek at Lindsay Lohan‘s upcoming Glee guest appearance. We’re surprised she managed to even get to the set on time. (Oh, wait…) [Pink Is The New Blog]

After the jump, find out which music acts will be hitting the tube today. 

Music on TV:

:: Late Show with David Letterman (CBS) — Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros
:: Jimmy Kimmel Live (ABC) — Carrie Underwood
:: Ellen DeGeneres (ABC) — Nicki Minaj
:: Late Night With Jimmy Fallon (NBC) —  Awolnation
:: Last Call with Carson Daly (NBC) — Katharine McPhee, Outlaw Empires, wallpaper.
:: Conan (TBS) —  the Wombats

Though our specialty is reviewing music, we’re often distracted from an artist’s tunes by their amazingly awful album cover. In 2011, there were 10 (mostly) high-profile releases with cover art so ridiculous, so badly designed, and just so straight-up weird that we had to share them with all of you. Last year, MGMT nabbed the highest honor here for their hallucinatory surf’s-up-kitty album cover art for Congratulations — but even that hot mess looked like it should be hanging in a museum compared to this year’s entries. Check out our 10 picks for worst cover art for albums and mixtapes released in 2011 (with one exception), and check back tomorrow for a palate cleanser of the year’s 10 best.

When we recently asked J. Cole about some of the classic rap albums that have inspired him, the Roc Nation MC told us, “Hopefully mine is one of those that you gotta pop in on your road trips.” The Roc Nation MC is off to a good start: Cole World: The Sideline Story, his debut LP, debuts debuts at #1 on Billboard‘s Top 200 chart.

Cole’s album, which features the singles “Work Out” and “Can’t Get Enough,” moved enough copies (218,000) in its first week to edge out Blink 182′s Neighborhoods — the California punk-pop band’s first album in eight years — and force it to enter at #2. Neighborhoods sold 151,000, according to Billboard.

When we highlighted Cole World in our Fall Music Preview, J. told us he was aiming to make the LP an “emotional rollercoaster” for listeners:

“I wanted to do things the best. So if I had a super emotional record that’s supposed to touch your heart, I wanted to do the things to really make you cry when you hear it. Or if I was doing a party song or a fun song, I really wanted to do it the best and really have you feel like you’re really jamming for real. Or, you know, if I was riding in the car, doing a rap record, I really wanted to go hard and do everything to the fullest extent. I don’t wanna have anything half-ass on the album.”

Four other records dent the upper tier of the album chart this week, all from rock acts: Wilco’s The Whole Love (#5, 82,000 copies), Switchfoot’s Vice Verses (#8, 45,000), Chickenfoot’s Chickenfoot III (#9, 42,000) and Mastodon’s The Hunter (#10, 39,000).

Next week we find out how the latest American Idol winner, 17-year-old Scotty McCreery, fared out of the gate with his debut LP Clear As Day. (So far, so good: he’s #1 on iTunes and #3 on Amazon.com’s music bestseller list.)

The Top 10 Of Billboard‘s Top 200 Chart:

1. J. Cole, Cole World: The Sideline Story *new* *1 week*
2. Blink 182, Neighborhoods *new*
3. Adele, 21
4. Tony Bennett, Duets II
5. Wilco, The Whole Love *new*
6. Lady Antebellum, Own The Night
7. Lil Wayne, Tha Carter IV
8. Switchfoot, Vice Verses *new*
9. Chickenfoot, Chickenfoot III *new*
10. Mastodon, The Hunter *new*

Though Blink-182′s “Up All Night” may be a bit of a lyrical downer, the music vid for the trio’s latest single is anything but. In their first music video in more than half a decade, the band gives thanks to anyone who ever illegally used their music on YouTube, by making a vid entirely comprised of fan footage uploaded to video sharing site. Copyright infringement: why beat ‘em when you can join ‘em? Watch the Neighborhoods group below.

Blink-182 — “Up All Night”:

Just one question: how in the world are fans going to pay tribute to this video?

The video for reunited pop-punkers Blink-182′s new single “Up All Night” is on its way, and the band’s cover art for Neighborhoods, sixth studio album (and their first one in eight years) is here! Well, almost — the first portion of the cover premiered on Buzznet yesterday, and today we’re revealing yet another piece of the puzzle. Make sure you head to Absolute Punk tomorrow to see the whole cover in all its glory!

What do you think of Blink’s first new artwork in almost six years? Let us know on Twitter, Facebook or in the comments below. (And don’t forget to catch them on tour this summer).

Travis Barker has been off collaborating with — well, pretty much everyone — on his solo release Give The Drummer Some, but Barker’s ready to jam out with the rest of his bandmates. Blink-182 have an upcoming album and tour planned for this year, and this morning the band debuted their first single in six years, “Up All Night”. No longer a bunch of scruffy, silly 20-somethings, these men are now concerned with “all these demons [who] keep me up all night.” Check it out below.

Blink 182 – “Up All Night”

A little bit harder than their previous radio-friendly pop-punk, this ska-infused, somewhat ominous tune will no doubt be played on the radio incessantly all summer by Blink fans thrilled by new music from the band.

As the song’s lyrics go, “Everyone raises kids in a world that changes life to a bitter game” — not exactly the cheerful, summer jam we were expecting, but it’s good for the boys in Blink to be back, even if they’re in a morose mood.

Who better than to close out the final day of Reading Festival 2010—pop’s oldest music fest—than mega bands Paramore, Weezer and Blink-182? Fresh from the Honda Civic tour, Paramore’s frontwoman Hayley Williams donned a cute and punky fuzzy leopard print jacket while belting out hits like “That’s What You Get” and “Let The Flames Begin”. While Weezer slipped in a cover of Wheatus’ “Teenage Dirtbag” into their set. Flip through to check out all the action that went on yesterday across the pond.

appx total: 697 dollars
21st 435 dollars

Welcome back to our weekly series where we highlight the top songs over the last 50 years that start with a specific letter of the alphabet. It’s time now to move on to the letter “D”. Our list this week includes a song that highlights an organ, a song with a spotlight on a piano, and a song that’s all digital baby. And if you’re thinking that Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin’” is on this list—think again. Don’t agree with us on our selections? That’s cool. Just leave your comments below, and don’t forget we’ll be doing the letter “E” next Friday. So if there’s a song you think deserves a slot, give us a shout.

Jump below to see the best “D” songs over the last 50 years.

60′s – “Dance To The Music” – Sly And The Family Stone

70′s – “Don’t Stop Me Now” – Queen

80′s – “Don’t Dream It’s Over” – Crowded House

90′s – “Dammit” – Blink-182

00′s – “Digital Love” – Daft Punk (and any cover of this song)

After visiting Anderson Cooper 360 earlier this week to call a “state of emergency” for his home country of Haiti following the disastrous earthquake, Wyclef Jean personally flew down to the devastation to provide hands-on support.

While standing right in the middle of what Jean describes as “the apocalypse,” he and his wife were interviewed by a Fox News reporter who calls the rapper/singer “Haiti’s version of Bono [and] Bruce Springsteen.” Interview after the jump, including other efforts made by Lady Gaga, Blink-182 and other notable names in music to help out the victims from Tuesday’s tragic 7.0 earthquake.

Wyclef Jean flies back to the U.S. today, but he spent the last few days in Port-au-Prince doing whatever he could do to help support the victims of the quake. “We spent the day picking up dead bodies,” he told Fox News on Thursday. “The cemeteries are filled up.”

Wyclef claims that the victim count is considerably higher than what’s being reported. “The count is not 100,000,” he desperately pleads. “It’s more like four to five hundred thousand that is about to die… We have to raise a million dollars a day, otherwise in four or five days, this whole country is going to be in chaos.”

He might very well reach his goal—his non-profit organization Yele Haiti has raised over $2 million in text message and online donations, and many other musicians are joining Wyclef in aiding the victims of the Port-au-Prince disaster.

Lady Gaga announced her own plans for relief while on Oprah today. “On the the 24th, the Monster Ball in New York City—all of the money that I make in ticket sales and merchandise that day is going to go to Haiti,” Gaga told Oprah. “And on the 24th, you can also go onto LadyGaga.com if you’re not going to the Monster Ball, and any merch that you buy on the website, not a dollar is going to anybody else but Haiti.”

Coldplay frontman Chris Martin is urging fans to donate to Oxfam. “I visited Haiti with Oxfam a few years ago,” says Martin. “It’s a country of extreme poverty and brutal living conditions. Most people in Port-au-Prince live in tin shacks. The earthquake that has struck Haiti will have turned the city into an unimaginable hell. The people of Haiti will be desperate for help and assistance.”

Blink-182 are selling T-shirts on their Merch page (which you can purchase here, first shirt on the left) for $15, with all the proceeds going to the Red Cross. So far, so good—according to Blink’s Twitter page, they’ve already raised ten thousand dollars.

How can you help? Go here and donate whatever you can. (The site previously crashed due to traffic, but is up and working again.)

Clear Channel has flipped one of its Louisville stations to a format called “Louie,” which the bigwigs are actually saying is the first firmament in what will be come to known as “Gen X radio.” Yes, the generation that inspired so much Boomer disdain is finally getting a format to call all its own, although the music associated with it may not be what you necessarily think of when you think of slackers and Singles. Quoth CC market president Bill Gentry: “It’s focused on a musical experience… [that] crosses cultures from grunge, hip-hop, hair bands, boy bands and more.” And another CC higher-up has this to say: “[Louie will] capture how 30-somethings listen to music, and it ignores genres and categories.” Sounds sorta Jack-y to me, but then again, perhaps that ill-conceived marketing will inspire further nostalgia for those 30somethings who remember all too well being ineptly pandered to back in the day. The playlist of Louie’s inaugural hour after the jump.

2 Unlimited, “Get Ready For This”
Nirvana, “Smells Like Teen Spirit”
Montell Jordan, “This is How We Do it”
No Doubt, “Just A Girl”
Coolio, “1, 2, 3, 4 (Sumpin’ New)”
EMF, “Unbelievable”
OMC, “How Bizarre”
blink-182, “All The Small Things”
D-Mob, “C’mon and Get My Love”
Sublime, “Santeria”
Marky Mark & The Funky Bunch, “Good Vibrations”
Dave Matthews Band, “Ants Marching”
Culturebeat, “Mr. Vain”
Spin Doctors, “Little Miss Can’t Be Wrong”
Jennifer Lopez, ”If You Had My Love”

So… the dance songs are actually kind of awesome (“Mr. Vain”!!) but that first hour seems to be made for highlighting just how dreary the “alternative” “revolution” was in retrospect. (Sublime and the Spin Doctors? Oh God.) That said, the EMF/OMC back-to-back is a nice touch. Do you think they’ll eventually throw an All Acronym Weekend, just for kicks?

Louisville’s classic hits “Louie 100.5″ goes “Gen X” [Radio-Info]
[Image via DrankTank]

This year’s Virgin Mobile Fest, headlined by blink-182 and Weezer, has been rechristened the Virgin Mobile FreeFest thanks to its total ticket price of $0–provided you don’t get your tickets delivered, at which point Ticketmaster will charge its customary delivery fee. Ticket buyers who pick up their ducats at the festival’s site (the Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Md.) or the 9:30 Club in Washington, D.C., will have all convenience fees waived. Tickets go on sale–er, will be made available to the general public on Saturday; Public Enemy, St. Vincent, Franz Ferdinand, the National, and Jet are also on the bill for the festival, which will happen on Aug. 30. [Official site / Billboard]

Our pals at Absolute Punk have a listing of the dates for blink-182′s summer tour, with a handy code telling you which supporting acts–of the array encompassing Fall Out Boy, Weezer, the All-American Rejects, Asher Roth, Chester French, Taking Back Sunday, and Panic At The Disco–will be on which dates. [AbsolutePunk]

Last night, blink-182 took to the stage for the first time in four years when they played a mini-set at a party for T-Mobile in Los Angeles; the trio was the surprise addition to a bill that already featured TRVS/DJ-AM (featuring blink drummer Travis Barker) and Weezer (who’s touring with the band this summer). Perhaps because of the cell-phone-centric nature of the party, there are quite a few clips from the evening. Above, “Rock Show,” accompanied by someone who is totally freaking psyched to be there; a clip of “Dammit” (complete with “AT & T can suck my dick” shout-out) after the jump.





Mark Hoppus blogged about the show in the wee hours of this morning:

the return of blink-182 to the stage!!! t-mobile threw a big party at the paramount lot here in los angeles to launch their new sidekick, and they asked us to play. the whole thing was a secret. travis and dj-am were already scheduled to perform, and as a surprise ending, blink-182 came out at the very end and played a few songs. during the night, weezer performed and played the hits, along with a few covers. TRVS/DJ-AM dominated (as they always do), and then we played. to be honest, it was one of the best nights of my life. thanks to everyone who was there. thanks to t-mobile. and most of all, thanks to travis and tom. you are my brothers, and it feels amazing to share the stage with you once again.

After Four Long Years [himynameismark.com]
Blink 182 – Rockshow Live 05.15.2009 [YouTube]
blink-182 – Dammit (live) FIRST SHOW BACK!!!! www.blink182.fan.pl [YouTube]

Fall Out Boy has been added to blink-182′s tour this summer with Weezer. No dates to announce yet, but this certainly adds a new wrinkle to Dan’s hypothesizing last month about which bodily function the tour would name itself in honor of. [himynameismark.com]

Congratulations to Andrea, who was the first person to find me in Union Square on Saturday and who, as a result, won a shiny little USB drive featuring exclusive Fall Out Boy/Blink 182 content. (She beat out a gaggle of other people, who I tried to console with candy. I hope it worked.) Unfortunately, because everything happened at the speed of Internet that afternoon, I didn’t get a photo–or even her last name–but I’m hoping that wherever she is, she’s enjoying the drive and the goodies within. [Previously / Pic via himynameismark]

We’re giving away one of the Fall Out Boy/Blink 182 limited-edition USB drives–designed by Mojo Labs, stuffed with content like a remix of “America’s Suitehearts” and some exclusive videos, and packaged with a chain so you can wear it around your neck like Pete Wentz is in the photo at left–and because it’s supposed to be a nice weekend, I figured I’d have a little fun with the contest. Tomorrow afternoon I’ll be hanging out around Union Square in New York City, and at 2 p.m. ET (on the dot) I will send a message out to our Twitter account with my exact location and a password. The first person to find me and tell me the password gets the drive, and a picture of your smiling face on Idolator.


If you’re not in the NYC area, there’s a running journal of where the other ones are cropping up. (Apparently there are about 95 more to be given away.) Good luck!


The great Octopus Drive of 2009. Story developing… [Friends Or Enemies]
Twitter / Pic via petewentz.com]

blink-182′s comeback single is not going to be called “Reborn,” nor will it be released in June, contrary to previous reports. Or maybe it just won’t be called “Reborn” but will be released in June? Gah, this whole spoiling other peoples’ games of telephone business can be so semantically tiring! [markhoppus@Twitter]

I’m probably not in the target demographic for this particular tour, but the announcement that Weezer would be opening for Blink-182′s reunion tour this summer conjured up an “oh, that’s still happening?” response from me. (Then I pondered which bodily function the tour’s name would pun around with.)

Blink-182 was getting a little more interesting immediately before they broke up—“I Miss You” wasn’t too bad—but putting these two bands on a bill together seems to ensure that every music-loving Abercrombie shopper within a 50-mile radius of a shed will have something to do the night that the tour blows into town.

If you’ve been wondering what songs Blink might pull out of the dustbin for the tour, Mark Hoppus posted a photo of words written on a piece of paper to his Twitter that might provide a few hints.

It’s been a long road for Weezer from when they headlined their first national tour, which had Lutefisk and Possum Dixon opening. Possum Dixon’s former lead singer Zabrecky is apparently making a living as a magician these days, but if Weezer ever wants that bill to have a reunion tour of its own, I might be willing to sit through Weezer playing “Pork and Beans” to see it. (Well, only if Rivers and pals agree to play “My Name Is Jonas,” too.)

Possum Dixon, “Watch That Girl Destroy Me”:

Blink-182 Taking Weezer On Summer 2009 Tour [Buzznet]

The phone calls between Mark Hoppus, Travis Barker, and Tom DeLonge that took place a few months ago have sort of borne fruit: blink-182 will present an award at this Sunday night’s Grammys, presumably while wearing clothes and not playing music. Hooray? Also on the telecast now: performances by M.I.A., Neil Diamond, Robin Thicke, Stevie Wonder, and a Bo Diddley tribute featuring Buddy Guy, B.B. King, John Mayer, and Keith Urban. Full list of performers after the jump! It’s a long one, and I’m starting to think that this year’s telecast is going to be way heavy on the blurted-out, pre-commercial-break omnibus lists of winners.

U2
Lil Wayne
Taylor Swift / Miley Cyrus
Coldplay
Rihanna
Stevie Wonder
Estelle feat. Kanye West
Paul McCartney feat. Dave Grohl
T.I. and Justin Timberlake
T.I., Jay-Z, Kanye West, and Lil Wayne
Radiohead
Kid Rock
Sugarland
M.I.A.
Neil Diamond
Robin Thicke
Stevie Wonder
Chris Brown
Robert Plant and Alison Krauss
Carrie Underwood
The Jonas Brothers
Adele
Terence Blanchard
Kenny Chesney
Smokey Robinson
Allen Toussaint
Jennifer Hudson
Bo Diddley tribute feat. Buddy Guy, B.B. King, John Mayer, and Keith Urban
Four Tops tribute feat. Duke Fakir, Jamie Foxx, and Ne-Yo
Katy Perry feat. the My Grammy Moment “winner”

That’s 31 performers! Is this thing going to run six hours or what?

Grammys [Official site]

It’s been four years since Blink-182 petered out after their peculiar Robert Smith phase (which was not terrible, but just something of a death rattle). In the interim Mark Hoppus has been blogging heavily and producing generic pop-punk, while Tom DeLonge has dedicated himself to exploring the deepest depths of nauseating self-importance. It seemed for a while that the once fantastically crude duo would never reconcile their divergent life paths. But! According to Hoppus’ latest blog post there may actually be a glimmer of hope for a second Belle Époque of fart jokes.

in the midst of everything else that has happened lately, tom, travis, and i have all spoken together. first through a number of phone calls, and then a couple of weeks ago we all hung out for a few hours. they’ve all been great, very positive conversations. we’re just reconnecting as friends after four years of not talking. it’s a good thing. obviously the first question for a lot of people will be “does this mean a blink-182 reunion?” the answer is none of us know. we haven’t talked about it at all. right now it’s just good for the three of us to see one another, reconnect, and let the past be the past. the events of the past two months supersede everything that happened before. life is too short.

There’s no telling what they’ll come out with if they actually do get back together, but here’s sincerely hoping that the re-formed Blink-182 is a little more “Dammit” and a little less “Down.”

Hello Again. [himynameismark]