blog/sound-charity-sol-republics-anthem-tracks-hd-ear-h Feeling charitable this holiday season? Options abound for more meaningful holiday gifts, so we singled out one of our favorites: SOL REPUBLIC's Anthem Tracks HD On-Ear Headphones. This gear not only delivers crisp sound and style, but it also benefits the Michael Phelps Foundation, as a portion of proceeds go toward the athlete's grant organization for young swimmers ...
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music/motion-city-soundtrack If My Dinosaur Life has a theme it’s about a breakup and whether Motion City Soundtrack singer Justin Pierre really wants to care about it. On opener “Worker Bee”—a blast of Blink-182 riffs (whose Mark Hoppus produced this album)—he sings, “It went from no good to fucked up to over.” Later, on “Her Words Destroyed My Planet ......
Green Day is interviewed as the August 2009 cover story....
A hulking Russian ex-swordfighter with tattooed forearms - sounds like the lead in a new Guy Ritchie flick, no? Alas, you will have to watch old DVD's if you're hankering for violence and British slang. Because this rugged new character is none other than Santa Claus, the benevolent lead in Dreamworks' recently released "Rise of the Guardians."
Seldom have ......
Recently single Kat Von D is currently recording her first album. After success within the tattoo industry and LA Ink, we have no doubts that she will make some headway in the music industry as well. "I've been passionate about music all my life," Von D told E! News this weekend at the Rage video game launch in Los ......
The subject of the e-mail was: “Dude’s system shreds a phone book!” The body of the e-mail was a YouTube link that played a video of a goateed guy in a flat-brimmed ball cap and sleeves taking you through the sound system he built in a Chevy Tahoe. His name is Steve Meade......
Jón “Jónsi” Þór Birgisson gained fame as the frontman for Icelandic post-rock act Sigur Rós, but his solo release sees him transposing his gift for orchestral explosions into a pop-friendly context (mostly because he’s singing in English). Jónsi’s voice is so distinctive that the songs sound similar to Sigur Rós’s in many ways, but sweetly syncopated tracks ......
Roky Erickson is an American treasure, and his first album in 14 years is a not-so-subtle reminder that his relevance hasn’t waned. Produced by Will Sheff and featuring his band, Okkervil River, True Love Cast Out All Evil is a heady mix of psychedelia, pop, and ambient experimentation. On tracks such as Crazy Horse–inflected “Goodbye Sweet Dreams” it ......
Matt Pond PA may not have the same hype surrounding them that peers like Vampire Weekend do, but when it comes to sweetly satisfying indie rock, it’s hard to top Pond’s unique brand of heartbreak. Their eighth album doesn’t disappoint; from orchestral-tinged ballads such as “Running Wild” to ambient excursions like “Winter Fawn,” the album sees Pond ......
Dr. Dog have always prided themselves on their lo-fi aesthetic, so it’s slightly odd that they worked with producer Rob Schnapf (Elliott Smith, The Vines) on their latest. Thankfully, the improved production enhances the band’s sound on harmony-rich songs like “Shadow People.” While Shame, Shame still teems with the band’s brand of psychedelia, confessional songs like “I ......
As you can tell by the title, the latest effort from experimental indie rock act Xiu Xiu isn’t going be 2010’s most uplifting album, but it may be one of the most sonically satisfying. Produced by Deerhoof’s Greg Saunier, Dear God, I Hate Myself sees Xiu Xiu mastermind Jamie Stewart fully realizing his band’s sound on ......
When you’re named after a Shakespeare play and you have a song that’s named after a Civil War–era naval battle (“The Battle Of Hampton Roads”), chances are someone in your band went to grad school. However, instead of being plodding and pretentious, Titus Andronicus’s second album sounds like a collaboration between The Hold Steady and Conor ......
Past Lives may feature three members of the defunct act the Blood Brothers, but if you’re expecting fractured post-screamo you’re in for a surprise. On the band’s debut full-length, Tapestry of Webs, the four-piece transpose their sound into a more pop context without forsaking their avant-garde edge. The result is an album that’s teeming with ambitious ......
Scotland is known for a lot of things, like its whiskey and … some other stuff we can’t recall. We do know that the country’s second most satisfying export is the indie rock act Frightened Rabbit, whose third album, The Winter of Mixed Drinks, proves they can transcend their own hype. From expertly crafted ballad “Swim Until You Can ......
The career of Fucked Up has been, well, fucked up. The Canadian band blew up the formula for hardcore with the album Hidden World, played stunt gigs such as performing for 12 straight hours in NYC, then released The Chemistry of Common Life, a massive wall of noise complete with violins. Despite that, this two-CD collection of B-sides and alternate ......
Which is wilder to consider: that it’s been 18 years since Nirvana released Nevermind or that Dave Grohl’s Foo Fighters have released six albums since? While Nirvana was dragged kicking and screaming into playing arenas, Grohl built the Foos and their sound to fill them. Among the 16 tracks assembled on their first greatest hits collection are obvious ......
Hot damn if the Reverend Horton Heat didn’t lay down some wide-open guitar licks in his day. The good Rev has slowed with age, and on his first new album in five years it’s obvious that he’s more content observing from his La-Z-Boy than a bar stool—a fact he addresses on “Beer Holder,” an ode to ......
Legendary MC Q-Tip can do whatever the hell he wants. After revolutionizing hip-hop with A Tribe Called Quest and paving the way for Kanye, Tip is more experimental than ever these days. On this album, delayed since 2001 and remixed for release, the lyrical master sounds more like Curtis Mayfield than a mic-rockin’ MC. He weaves his trademark flow through ......
If the unbelievable geography, waterfront restaurants, and nearby vineyards aren't reason enough to visit Cape Town, South Africa, consider this news from Damian McGrath, the founder of tattoos.com: “Tattooing down there is sort of what tattooing was like 15 to 20 years ago in North America. There are lots of emerging artists, and the scene isn't as ......
If there's one man the entire music world wants a piece of, it's Pharrell Williams. From Jay-Z and Kanye West to Gwen Stefani and Justin Timberlake, the Virginia Beach, VA native is a Top 40 kingmaker, a sonic architect who has built career-making hits for some of music's most elite players. His own project, N.E.R ......
When tattoo veterans Brad Fink and Mark Andrews decided to open Iron Age Tattoo in 1994, they modeled the new shop after a place most people hate—the dentist. “When we opened, there were only nine shops in the St. Louis area, and they were all older and dingier,” Andrews explains over the sound of music and buzzing needles. “We ......
Music producer Shondrae Crawford, a.k.a. Bangladesh, is known for creating beats so original that they sometimes cause a problem—no one can rhyme to them. "I never thought of my sound as that unique," admits the 30-year-old music producer. "But people kept telling me it was like nothing they'd ever heard before. It's foreign to their ......
It’s freezing in Boston, but Sandy Poirier pays the cold weather no mind—he’s sporting his typical uniform. “If I die, I want to be buried in a rock and roll T-shirt, tight jeans, Chrome Hearts jewelry, and sneakas,” he says, with a voice that sounds like a scratched-up recording of John F. Kennedy. At first glance ......
“I decided I wanted to be a clown when I was 7 years old,” says Theo Kogan, lead singer of Theo and the Skyscrapers. The whole clown thing didn’t quite work out, but, she says, “I think in a way I sorta became a clown on my own, especially with Lunachicks [Kogan’s first band]. That was taking clown ......
It’s true a British accent makes anyone sound more interesting, but that’s only part of what makes people want to listen to rapper Misfit Dior. She first got attention for starring on VH1’s White Rapper Show (she was the only contestant good enough not to have to audition), but she’s been rhyming since she was 12 ......
Considering most, if not all, of the songs from Eagles of Death Metal’s first two albums are about screwing almost anything with a vagina, it’s funny that lead singer Jesse Holmes never got laid until he met his wife. “Girls didn’t want to have sex with me, and they had no problem letting me know. The song ......
Mike Jones is known for giving out his cell phone number, screen name, and e-mail address to fans, but, ironically, he can be a hard man to get in touch with. Some calls to him go straight to a busy signal, and once, while attempting to schedule this interview, his manager said he had just dropped his cell phone in ......
Marshall amps are an iconic standby in the music scene, and now they can add one more product to their ever-growing list: the Hanwell.
Don't judge a speaker by its size! The compact loudspeaker has 6" long throw woofers and a max output of 110DB. Specs aside, the Hanwell boasts impressive design and construction. The Hanwell pays homage to ...
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games/mlb-10-show Can you rattle off the lineup of the 1951 New York Yankees at a moment’s notice? If so, MLB 10: The Show is your game. The deepest baseball simulation in the majors returns with its signature game play, plus a few additions. The new Catcher Mode in The Show lets any wannabe Joe Mauer call games from behind the ...
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games/final-fantasy-xiii It took nearly four years to develop the latest Final Fantasy game, and to answer fanboys everywhere: Yes, it’s worth the wait. This time, the role-playing juggernaut introduces a fresh set of spiky-haired, androgynous protagonists in whose hands the fate of the world balances. To get the job done, players must skillfully employ the improved Active Time Battle system ...
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games/dantes-inferno Talk about a loose adaptation. In the classic poem The Divine Comedy, a timid poet reluctantly journeys through the nine circles of hell, while the video game version features Dante, a revenge-driven mercenary more interested in killing monsters than chronicling their suffering. Armed with a scythe he stole from Death and a holy cross, Dante fights his way through each ......
With rampant cheating, broken leader boards, and poorly balanced weapons, the rough launch of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2’s multiplayer mode sent some virtual soldiers AWOL. Bad Company 2 gives those mercenaries a new home. Melding its signature destructible environments with large, open maps and firepower-happy vehicles like choppers and tanks, Battlefield stresses tactics and teamwork over the ...
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games/mass-effect-2 The original Mass Effect had everything the Star Wars prequels didn’t: an engaging intergalactic plot, badass protagonists, and universal acclaim from fans and critics alike. The sequel to this mind-blowing action RPG doesn’t waste any time in kicking ass. When human colonies start disappearing from outer reaches of space, Commander Shepard assembles a new squad to take on ...
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games/dark-void Pilot-for-hire William Grey should have known better than to fly across the Bermuda Triangle. His plane inevitably goes down over the legendary trouble spot, and he’s teleported to a parallel dimension dominated by an alien race known as the Watchers. Joining other human survivors, Grey must find a way back to Earth while fending off attacks from his oppressors ...
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games/army-two-40th-day Here’s the setup: Two steroid-shooting, joke-spewing mercenaries are in Shanghai for a routine mission. When the city comes under siege from a rival private military contractor, the cocky duo ditch the bravado and prepare for the worst. Escaping the chaotic disaster zone won’t be easy, with buildings collapsing around them, panicked civilians running for their lives, and a ...
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games/bioshock-2 Real estate in Rapture must be at an all-time low. Ten years after Andrew Ryan’s empire of individualism was disrupted, a new figurehead has taken over the underwater city. With an ex-priest rallying deranged citizens to the new leader’s cause and an army of Big Sisters enforcing a rigid view of humanity, each player becomes a rogue Big ...
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games/bayonetta “Infinity climax action” sure sounds dirty, and that’s just how Platinum Games describes its latest. Taking cues from Devil May Cry and an LSD binge, Bayonetta stars a scantily clad witch who wears only her long hair for clothing, shoots guns with her feet, taunts enemies with innuendo, transforms into deadly creatures, and uses her hair for special attacks ...
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games/saboteur Part Sin City, part Casablanca, The Saboteur stands out from the overcrowded collection of WWII games by going black and white. After the Germans invade France, the only color left is the bold red of Nazi banners hanging over Paris. To restore color to the City of Lights, street-smart Irish race car driver turned French Resistance supporter Sean Devlin must ......
The best undead shooter on the planet returns with even wilder brain-feeding frenzies. The sequel’s five new campaigns span the Deep South as you move through shopping malls, amusement parts, and a murky bayou while facing an array of relentless new zombie types. Zombies in riot gear are almost impossible to kill with gunfire from the front, so players ...
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games/assassins-creed-ii You didn’t dream of screwing with the clergy in medieval Italy. But when Ezio Auditore da Firenze’s father is wrongly executed, the nobleman turns assassin and takes up the blade to exact revenge on the corrupt politicians, businessmen, and men of the cloth who conspired against his family. With the help of family friend Leonardo da Vinci’s ...
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games/forza-motorsport-3 Spend more time with your cars than with your girlfriend? Look into counseling and clear your schedule. With 400 road burners from 50 manufacturers, Forza 3’s garage makes Jay Leno’s car collection look like a used car lot. The second Forza title in three years delivers even more grease monkey realism with a new physics system that includes ......
With gamers suffering from a Guitar Hero overdose, it’s time for turntables to take center stage. With consulting help from legendary artists Jay-Z and Eminem, this hip-hop take on Guitar Hero’s addictive gameplay wins over wannabe mix masters with its turntable controller that features a sample button, cross-fader, and a record platform for scratching. Playing as characters such ......
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare is the superpower of shooter games. This sequel takes the first-person-shooter genre to new heights with a thrilling story that picks up from the last game and features frantic co-op challenges and the best multiplayer around. The explosive single-player campaign includes dangerous new war scenarios that find you scaling icy mountains to infiltrate a top-secret ...
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games/borderlands Finally, a shooter that drops the half-baked sci-fi story and lets the bullets fly. The mission in Borderlands is self-explanatory: The barren world of Pandora holds untold alien treasures, and your job is to find them. Choose one of four characters, take the safety off your weapon, and start shooting your way through baddies in the barren Mad Max–like ...
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games/uncharted-2-among-thieves Picking up a couple of years after Sony’s blockbuster title Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, this sequel finds Abercrombie & Fitch adventurer Nathan Drake searching for the treasures of Marco Polo’s lost fleet. When Drake recovers historical documents indicating that Polo was searching for the mythical city of Shangri-La, he retraces the famed merchant’s footsteps into a hail of ......
With record TV ratings, raucous fistfights, and the dazzling skill of young stars Patrick Kane and Sidney Crosby, hockey is back. The NHL’s newfound success injects new life into this award-winning series. Players now scrum along the boards while fighting for possession, score from their knees, and bat pucks out of the air for goals worthy of the highlight ......
With Master Chief elsewhere in the universe, ODST follows an elite group of soldiers known as Orbital Shock Drop Troopers. As the team descends into New Mombasa amidst the heavy Covenant onslaught, they get separated, and a new recruit known as The Rookie must traverse the war zone and piece together what happened. As The Rookie uncovers information, players are ......
Roadies spend the majority of their time hauling equipment and tuning instruments. Not Eddie Riggs. After he spills blood on his badass belt buckle in a backstage mishap, the world’s best roadie is transported to an alternate universe ripped straight from a heavy metal album cover. Under the reign of evil Lord Doviculus and his glam rockin’ minion General ......
If you're in the market for a new smartphone this holiday season, forget the iPhone 5. Samsung is overshadowing Apple with its latest and, according to techies worldwide, greatest creation: the Galaxy Note 2. Samsung recently released the Note 2 to the eager public, and we have some exclusive insights as to why you Need. This. Phone.
For starters ......
Rocket scientists are supposed to be dull. Male. Nerdy. That is not the case with the brilliant Sonia Sanchez, a heavily tattooed systems engineer who works on research and development for satellites at a powerful aerospace firm. ...
