Music News: Will Young Goes Through "Changes", Plus The Verve, Lily Allen, P!nk, Franz Ferdinand

Robbie Daw presents a weekly pop music update here on Towleroad! Robbie runs his own site called Chart Rigger.

Openly gay British pop star Will Young has a pretty groovy new single called "Changes," which will precede the September U.K. release of his fourth album Let It Go. It's been three years since Young's last album, and as he says on his official site, putting together the new material was no easy task.

"['Changes'] is one of my most personal songs. I was in a bit of a rut and I didn’t even know it. Writing about the changes I needed to make actually helped me get out of a situation where I felt trapped by my own actions. That really is songwriting as therapy!"

Here's the video, wherein Will gets shirtless, nearly spontaneously combusts, then is struck by lightning:

Young, who's been open about his sexuality since winning the very first season of Pop Idol—the British program which begat American Idol—has scored four #1 hits in his home country and a total of nine Top 10 singles since 2002.

In a recent interview, he talked about doing a gig this past weekend at the V Festival in Staffordshire, as well as the Glastonbury Festival earlier in the summer. "...I feel like it's the right time now, and I feel we've probably gauged it right. If I'd gone and done Glastonbury a year after winning Pop Idol there would have been quite a lot of resentment but I think people feel and I feel it myself that I've earnt my stripes."

As for new album Let It Go, Will's site promises it will contain "various genres from disco, soul and funk to orchestral chamber pop." The set will be available on import from the U.K. on September 29.

   The Verve (pictured right) close England's V Festival with style, after a decade-long gap between albums.

   With "Disturbia" knocking Katy Perry's "I Kissed A Girl" off the top of the Billboard Hot 100 Singles chart last week, Rihanna is now tied with Mariah Carey and Beyonce for the most U.S. #1 hits this decade. Each of them have scored four apiece since 2000.

   At a roughly $46 million payout, Phil Collins' divorce from his third wife has broken records to become the most expensive ever in the U.K.

   Annie Lennox is recovering in London after undergoing spinal surgery for an impinged nerve she suffered in Mexico while attending an AIDS conference: "I should have been attending the final press blitz of the week, but my back suddenly went into spasm last night, giving me more pain than I've ever experienced in my life, and a totally numb left foot! A very nice doctor from Cancun had given my aching vertebra some adjustments, and a great big cortisone shot, which should help me to get to the airport tonight!! I'm gutted, of course, because I was really primed up to attend the media event, but at this point in time, I'm actually having difficulty getting out of bed." Unable to do any promotion, The Annie Lennox Collection, her forthcoming greatest hits (with two new songs), has been pushed to next year.

   Gun-toting John McCain supporter Heidi Montag, star of The Hills, has a new single called "Overdosin." It was premiered Monday on Ryan Seacrest's KIIS-FM L.A. morning show.

   Lily Allen is baffled as to why her second album Stuck On The Naughty Step has yet to be released: "The record industry is a very political place at the moment and I am on EMI records, lots of people have been fired or have taken redundancy recently as the company was taken over by a private equity firm called Terra Firma. Many of these people were people assigned to my projects and now I don't quite know what's going on. I'm sure everyone will find their feet soon enough and I'll be able to put the album out."

   TODAY'S NEW RELEASES:

Raw Footage, a new album from Ice Cube. Next month a greatest hits set from the rapper will be released.

"So What," the lead single off P!nk's upcoming, as-yet-untitled fifth album. The track was produced by Max Martin, and co-written by Martin, P!nk and Shellback.

"Lucid Dreams," apparently a one-off single from Franz Ferdinand now that their third album has been pushed back till 2009.

The Dandy Warhols' ...Earth To The Dandy Warhols..., the band's first self-released album. It was initially offered in May via an online pay subscription service.

The Illusion Of Progress, the sixth album from hard rockers Staind.

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Towleroad Guide to the Tube #340

ANNIE LENNOX: At the International AIDS Conference last week in Mexico City.

NO ON PROP 8: West Hollywood couple Charlie David and Brandon Rolph for Love Honor Cherish.

ARKANSAS DEMOCRATIC PARTY CHAIRMAN: Shot at Little Rock headquarters.

OLYMPIC INJURY: Hungarian weightlifter dislocates elbow while lifting (warning: very graphic).

Check out our previous guides to the Tube here.

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News: AIDS, Amy Winehouse, Olympics, Matt Lucas, Liberia

"Elite" HIV wife may hold key to AIDS vaccine: A woman who has never shown symptoms of infection with the AIDS virus may hold the secret to defeating the virus, U.S. researchers said on Tuesday. Infected at least 10 years ago by her husband, the woman is able somehow to naturally control the deadly and incurable virus -- even though her husband must take cocktails of strong HIV drugs to control his. She is a so-called 'elite suppressor,' and studies of her immune cells have begun to offer clues to how her body does it, the team at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore said. 'This is the best evidence to date that elite suppressors can have fully pathogenic virus,' said Dr. Joel Blankson, who led the study."

Spanish Olympic basketball team under fire for 'slant-eye' photo.

Amy Winehouse seeking revenge on charts for being dumped by James Bond producers: "I do think they could have waited a bit. If they want a worldwide hit I have them all up here (pointing to her beehive)."

Annie Lennox talks AIDS from the International AIDS Conference in Mexico City: "There have been around 25,000 people who have come to take part in this extraordinary event. A conference like this gives tremendous focus and profile on the issue of HIV/AIDS...There are representatives from all walks of life. HIV is a very complex issue, and it effects people in all kinds of different ways. So to be a representative of those people, whether they're gay and lesbian men and women - whether they're transsexuals, or mothers, or children - whoever it happens to be - it's deeply moving just to take a moment to look at who's here. It's like a microcosm of the world, in actual fact."

McCain forced to remove attack ad with Wayne's World clip. Doesn't think he's gone negative.

Australia Capitol Territory says civil partnerships exceed expectations: "Attorney-General Simon Corbell says 23 gay or lesbian couples have already registered their partnerships."

A psychiatrist who Provincetown being re-branded to go after heterosexuals?

Clay Aiken leaves the hospital with his boy.

In June I reported that Little Britain creator Matt Lucas and his partner Kevin McGee were seeking a divorce. Well, it looks like they've made up, for the moment.

A chat with Olivia Newton-John.

The NYT visits Graydon's Carter's Waverly Inn: "The reservations system has miniprofiles on clients: the number of times they have eaten at the restaurant, (Mr. Menicheschi, the publisher, supposedly is near the top of the list with more than 200 meals) whether they complained about the food, whether they yelled at a waiter or ever wrote an unflattering word about Mr. Carter. No, not really on the last one. Has anyone been blacklisted? Mr. Carter won’t say, but Mr. Varda admits that there is one group. 'B-list stars who call the paparazzi from inside the restaurant,' he said. 'They are not invited back.'"

Anti-gay professor indicted in Israel: "Hillel Weiss, who helped found his nation's religious peace movement, has been indicted on two charges of inciting violence and intimidation after two very crude outbursts, including one about the abominable gays..."

The little girl who sang at the Beijing Olympics Opening Ceremonies was a fake. Music designer Chen: "The reason why little Yang was not chosen to appear was because we wanted to project the right image, we were thinking about what was best for the nation. The reason was for the national interest. The child on camera should be flawless in image, internal feelings, and expression."

Madonna on track to adopt a baby girl from Malawi.

Study shows sexual abuse of male soldiers common in Liberia: "More than 40% of female combatants said they had experienced sexual violence, compared with less than 10% in the general population. Surprisingly, 33% of male combatants said they had been similarly abused. 'Mental health policies need to address males as victims of sexual violence,' Lawry says."

Ready for Mantyhose?

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Music News: Keane Go "Spiralling," Plus The Killers, Chris Brown, James Murphy, Morrissey, Annie Lennox

Robbie Daw presents a weekly pop music update here on Towleroad! Robbie runs his own site called Chart Rigger.

Perhaps taking a cue from Coldplay, Brit trio Keane are offering "Spiralling," the lead single of their upcoming third album Perfect Symmetry, as a free download for one week only on their official website. To these ears, the glammy, uptempo track is reminiscent of Roxy Music's "Let's Stick Together" and David Bowie's "Young Americans."

Stuart Price, Jon Brion and Andy Green are doing production chores on Perfect Symmetry, along with Keane themselves. The album is due out mid-October.

In the meantime, Price—one of the main hands in Madonna's 2005 Confessions On A Dancefloor—is also twiddling knobs on The Killers' forthcoming third studio set, rumored to be titled Day And Age.

Meanwhile, last week The Killers played "Spaceman" and "Neon Tiger" (below), two new tracks likely to be on the new record at a fanclub-only show at New York City's Highline Ballroom.

 

I'll admit that Chris Brown's (pictured right) overly-poppy "Forever" is my not-so-guilty pleasure this summer, and I was hoping for more of the same from him down the line. So it was with a bit of dismay that I first read about the Wrigley's gum jingle deal and saw this. Well, only a slight bit.

   LCD Soundsystem frontman James Murphy (who signed queer act Hercules And Love Affair to his DFA Records label) is joining drummer Pat Mahoney on the road for the Special Disco Version DJ tour. It kicks off tonight at Mighty in San Francisco: "People hear that word disco, and they see bellbottoms and That '70s Show. No, no, no. This is real liberation music for people who know where to go. This is the real deal. With SDV, I can keep experimenting with remixes that we're working on, I can keep playing new stuff, and I can keep finding old records."

   The release date of Morrissey's new album Years Of Refusal has been pushed back from September to early next year, following producer Jerry Finn's severe brain hemorrhage last month. Finn was the mixer for Green Day's Dookie and Insomniac, and producer of Blink 182's Enema Of The State and Morrissey's You Are The Quarry.

   Does The Annie Lennox Collection get it right?

   Acts such as R.E.M., Pearl Jam, My Morning Jacket, OK Go and Trent Reznor are petitioning to have Barack Obama and John McCain debate in New Orleans about Louisiana coastal wetlands restoration and hurricane recovery. Google and YouTube are organizing the Presidential forum, of which neither candidate has committed to.

   There's at least one girl who won't kiss Katy Perry. Actually, make that two.

   THE WEEK'S NEW RELEASES:

Fasciination, the self-released fifth album from The Faint. The band had previously released their albums on fellow Nebraskan Conor Oberst's Saddle Creek label.

Conor Oberst's self-titled solo album.

Brazilian Girls' New York City.

Santogold's "L.E.S. Artistes" remix EP.

New singles from Cassie ("Official Girl"), the Jonas Brothers ("A Little Bit Longer"), Hayden Panettiere ("Wake Up Call"),  The Game & Lil Wayne ("My Life"), Bob Dylan ("Dreamin' Of You") and Raphael Saadiq ("Love That Girl").

 

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Music News: Chris Martin Answers The Gay Questions, Plus Sub Pop, Yaz, Beck

Robbie Daw presents a weekly pop music update here on Towleroad! Robbie runs his own site called Chart Rigger.

No, it didn't come during an interview with a gay magazine. Rather, Coldplay frontman Chris Martin was posed with the question, "Do you know how I know you're gay?" while answering reader questions submitted to Blender's "Dear Superstar" column. The answers are posted at the magazine's website in audio form.

So came Martin's reply: "We have a lot of gay fans. It's something I'm very proud of. In fact—well, I'm proud of anybody after us—a lot of gay guys like us 'cause of the music. Guy [Berryman, guitarist] does have a big gay following as well, because he's...you know. One of our best concerts ever, this gentleman came up to us after the concert, and he went straight up to Guy and said, 'More light on you. They need to put more light on you.' We were like, Yep, you tell him, man."

What Chris Martin, who admittedly has only had one other relationship before Gwyneth Paltrow, stopped short of saying was that Guy Berryman (pictured right) is pretty darn hot...something he actually goes into full-on when answering another question. But first, the Blender moderator jumped into the gay questioning.

BLENDER: "When I was doing some research for this interview, I read—this is probably a pretty fairly common experience among, I will say, boys or dudes of our demographic—where at boarding school for awhile, you weren't quite sure. You felt that you might be gay up until a certain age."

CM: "Every kid does, man. When you're 14 or 15, you're like, 'Hey, what am I? What's the deal here? What am I gonna turn out like?'"

BLENDER: "Was there any kind of boarding school experimentation?"

CM: "Sadly not. I wish I could report... I was very lucky because we lived right next to a girl's school. So there was never that sort of 'Which one on the island would you eat first?' kind of period."

Interesting choice of analogy. Anyway, here's what he went on to say about Guy Berryman: "My entire life is spent trying to push him forward at photo shoots. This is a serious answer—he is our packaging. He's a good-looking guy. The rest of us look OK—we work hard to stay thin and all that stuff—but he's a handsome bastard, and none of us pretend that if he wasn't in the band we'd be as popular... He's reponsible for all of our calendar sales."

Sub Pop—the seminal Seattle indie label that unleashed Nirvana, Soundgarden, emo, The Shins and Postal Service into the mainstream—has turned 20. It's latest slogan? "Sub Pop...going out of business for 20 years." Billboard runs through the label's top 20 moments, albums and videos, as well as interviews co-founder Jonathan Poneman. iTunes also has a special selection of discounted top picks from Sub Pop's back catalog to celebrate the anniversary.

The Los Angeles Times interviews Vince Clarke and Alison Moyet of Yaz ahead off the duo's three L.A. shows this week: "I'm aware that I have a lot of gay fans, and I love it. In the 1970s when I grew up as a punk rocker, we were all on the outside and I think that we found common ground with one another." The four-disc Yaz box set, In Your Room, was released yesterday.

Pinned by Prince Charles: Kylie Minogue received an Order of the British Empire (OBE) last week at Buckingham Palace.

And here you were thinking Kanye West is just plain annoying...

Annie Lennox just another name being floated around—along with Duffy, Duran Duran and Leona Lewis— for singing the next James Bond theme, for the fall's Quantum Of Solace.

Here is a video, something completely new and exciting from Mariah Carey that you've surely never seen before—her writhing around in a bikini.

THIS WEEK'S NEW RELEASES:

Modern Guilt, Beck's eighth studio album, produced by himself and Danger Mouse.

Patches From The Quilt, an EP from Gym Class Heroes released ahead of the group's September release of the full Quilt album.

Alison Moyet's The Turn, a solo album that initially was releaded in the U.K. last fall, but no doubt has been put out here to coincide with the Yaz reunion, box set and tour.

Estonian pop singer Kerli's Love Is Dead.

Moby's EP for single "I Love To Move In Here," featuring 12 remixes of the track.

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It's 3am and There's a Republican Staring in the Window

The McCain Girls are back and what should strike terror into the hearts of most Americans is the amount of songs left that have "rain" in the title.

Watch them butcher the Eurythmics, AFTER THE JUMP...

Previously
They're the GOP's Weather Girls and Have They Got News for You [tr]

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News: Annie Lennox, Penguins, Judy Shepard, Spitzer's Promise

Maxim Thorne, a member of Obama's LGBT leadership council, resigns after angry posts to listserv reviving Clinton sex scandals.

Dave Navarro's piercings take no prisoners.

Annie Lennox launches "Sing" campaign to fight HIV/AIDS.

Teacher survey: homophobic abuse "endemic" in UK schools: "Homophobic abuse is endemic in schools, with 'gay' now the most common put-down by pupils in the classroom, teachers say. A 'conspiracy of silence' in schools and colleges means homophobia is now seen as so normal that some teachers believe they risk disrupting classes - and making themselves a target of abuse - if they challenge students' behaviour. More than 70% of teachers have heard put-downs in their school or college that refer to sexuality, according to a survey of 268 teachers by the Association of Teachers and Lecturers. In particular, teachers report that pupils routinely use the term 'gay' in a pejorative manner."

Concerned Women for America's Matt Barber calls Angels in America "racist gay porn."

John Turner, gay physician who treated early AIDS patients, dies at 63. Jane Shull, executive director of Philadelphia FIGHT: "In the 1980s, when AIDS was new and there were no drugs, or drugs that were virtually useless, when people were dying every single day, and there seemed to be no end in sight - every patient who came to see John left his office less afraid than when he went in."

USA Today profiles Judy Shepard and her mission to end hate crimes: "Shepard also points out what has and what hasn't changed in the 10 years since her son was murdered. What hasn't is that hate crimes continue. She mentions the recent murder of Lawrence King, a gay 15-year-old junior high student in Oxnard, Calif., who was shot to death by a fellow student. 'This terrible incident underscores the fact that we cannot let hate go unchecked in our schools and communities,' Shepard says. 'Our young people need our direction and guidance to prevent this type of crime from happening.' What has changed, she says, is that when she was growing up in Wyoming, 'no one talked about it' — 'it' being homosexuality. At 55, Shepard says the past 10 years have been exhausting. Only recently has she begun to dream about Matt, which she looks upon as a good sign."

Bring some passion back to Albany: Spitzer fulfills promise.

How Jude Law, Johnny Depp and Colin Farrell, will help complete Heath Ledger's last film, The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus: "Since the format of the story allows for the preservation of his entire performance, at no point will Heath’s work be modified or altered through the use of digital technology. “Each of the parts played by Johnny, Colin and Jude is representative of the many aspects of the character that Heath was playing."

Penguin fan? Here's a whole lotta them.

More juice on Britney's guest star turn on How I Met Your Mother.

British government sends Iranian gays to their executions: "An Iranian lesbian who fled to Britain after her girlfriend was arrested and sentenced to death faces being forcibly returned after losing the latest round in her battle to be granted asylum. The case of Pegah Emambakhsh, 40, comes a day after The Independent reported on the growing public outcry over the plight of a gay Iranian teenager who fears he will be executed if he is deported to Iran….In turning down Ms Emambakhsh and Mr Kazemi’s asylum applications, the Home Office has said that, provided Iranians are discreet about their homosexuality, they will not be persecuted."

Police confront hundreds of angry, naked cyclists in Eugene, Oregon. Cyclists win.

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Music News: Pop Go The Brits As The Majors Fall Apart, Plus Annie Lennox, Katharine McPhee, Justin Timberlake, Natalie Imbruglia

Robbie Daw presents a weekly pop music update here on Towleroad! Robbie runs his own pop music site called Chart Rigger.

The 2008 Brit Award nominations were announced yesterday, and news and entertainment headlines are focusing on how surprisingly pop-oriented this year's nods are.

London's Times Online notes: "Take That, Leona Lewis (pictured right) and Mika, million-selling stars who sing songs the milkman can whistle, each received four nods for the music industry’s big night. An event traditionally dominated by 'credible' rock bands, acknowledged that reality show-created stars and 'manufactured' groups kept the industry afloat during a disastrous sales slump. Take That, the reformed Nineties boyband, finally enjoyed critical recognition."

EMI, one such stable of "credible rock bands" (and owner of American label Capitol Records), increasingly appears to be in a world of hurt. Arctic Monkeys and Kaiser Chiefs, who are signed to EMI, are also nominated for Brits this year, but each posted disappointing album sales in 2007. The BBC reports that after equity firm Terra Firma purchased EMI last year, it was announced 2,000 staff members would be cut.

Both Paul McCartney and Radiohead fled EMI last year, and the BBC points out, "Recent reports suggest two of EMI's other biggest-selling artists, Kylie Minogue and Coldplay, are both considering their future with the label. And last week, Robbie Williams' manager Tim Clark told the Times his client would not deliver his new record to EMI because 'we have no idea how EMI will market and promote the album.'"

As of this morning, EMI artists The Verve have now joined in the album-withholding strike.

And so, at least for 2008, the Brit Awards are choosing to highlight the more commercial artists who still sell well in the digital format with both singles and albums. Other pop acts nominated include Sugababes, Kylie and Mutya Buena. Leona Lewis, who won television competition X Factor in 2006, isn't the only reality show alum to be recognized by the awards this year; Girls Aloud, who were put together in 2002 on Pop Stars: The Rivals, are nominated for British Group.

Below is the video for Girls Aloud's latest British single, "Call The Shots."

   Perhaps a further sign of the times for the music biz: Annie Lennox's recording contract with Sony BMG has not been renewed. She appears to have been completely caught off guard by the move: "They totally ignored me. It was bizarre. It was a kick in the teeth. They didn't return my phone calls or emails for three weeks. I'm trying to find out what's behind it. Probably a good thing I'm no longer with them - mild understatement. Unless it's them trying to tell me something... It feels like I'm spent, as if I've completely run out of energy. I'm going to take my time over the coming months to figure out what to do with this freedom."

   Talk about a package deal; Justin Timberlake appears in a Pepsi commercial that's set to air during the Super Bowl. The spot will tout a $1 billion giveaway of Amazon.com videos MP3s, CDs and electronics.

   Sure to at least raise a few eyebrows during the seventh season of American Idol, which kicks off tonight, is the March release of judge Randy Jackson's Music Club, Volume 1. First single, "Dance Like There's No Tomorrow," features Paul Abdul on vocals.

   Last week I mentioned that former American Idol winners Ruben Studdard and Taylor Hicks were dropped from their major label contracts. That same day it was announced that 2006 Idol runner-up Katharine McPhee was let go from Sony BMG, as well. McPhee will, however, be starring alongside Anna Faris in the summer movie I Know What Boys Like.

   Rumors abound on whether or not Aussie pop/soap star Natalie Imbruglia will appear opposite Hugh Jackman in the forthcoming X-Men Origins: Wolverine .

  TODAY'S NEW RELEASES:

The Stephen Merrit-led Magnetic Fields return with the 13-track Distortion. The band will embark on a small tour next month in support of the album.

Olivia Newton-John's third live album, Olivia Newton-John And The Sydney Symphony: Live At The Sydney Opera House, arrives along with a companion DVD.

Ringo Starr's Liverpool 8, which was initially produced by Mark Hudson before Eurythmics' Dave Stewart was brought in to "re-produce" the album.

If you're an Eels fan, your in luck. Universal releases the '90s rock band's Meet The Eels: Essential Eels 1996 - 2006, Vol. 1 on CD and DVD today, along with the 2-disc Eels Useless Trinkets: B-Sides, Soundtracks, Rarities And Unreleased.

Trisha Yearwood's Love Songs, comprised of previously-released material.

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Fabio and George Clooney's West Hollywood Catfight

Not enough room in the restaurant for two, wildly different, 'icons' of romance entertainment. I posted about it briefly yesterday. Here, via TMZ, is the photo that started it all.

And more bird-flipping from Annie Lennox. I tend to believe she had a good reason. But hasn't the world turned into an angry place?

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Music News: Can Sugababes Cross Over? Plus Rufus Wainwright, The Smiths, Nas, Buffy, Amy Winehouse, Annie Lennox

Please welcome Robbie Daw, who will be penning occasional music posts for us here on Towleroad! Robbie runs his own pop music site called Chart Rigger.

This week, pop/rock/electro trio (as they're billing themselves these days) Sugababes celebrate the triumph of having both the #1 single ("About You Now") and #1 album (Change) on the official U.K. charts. It's no small feat, as the 'babes have been around long enough to issue five LPs and the ubiquitous greatest hits, and have surpassed the typical sell-by date that sees most pop acts reduced to subpar reality show stints.

But "About You Now" -- written by Cathy Dennis (yes, that Cathy Dennis, who had the early '90s green-bodysuit solo career and later penned Britney's "Toxic" and Kylie's "Can't Get You Out Of My Head") -- actually marks the Sugababes' sixth British #1. In their home country, they've had more hits than the Spice Girls, and this year they became the first pop act to play the main stage at the Glastonbury Festival.

So where's the love for the curvy threesome in the States? In recent years, urban-heavy American radio has warmed up again to British acts, such as Coldplay, Natasha Bedingfield, James Blunt and Amy Winehouse. Sugababes (aka Keisha, Heidi and Amelle) write a majority of their own material, and certainly their R&B-tinged pop merits them being a shoo-in for at least a hit or two on these shores.

Granted, the gals don't play their own instruments, but then again, you never saw Beyoncé or Kelly Rowland shredding a whammy-bar-kickin' guitar solo, either. It just seems that in a land where the only thing passing for fun pop on the American charts these days is Britney Spears, surely we should welcome the Sugababes with open arms.

Here's the video for "About You Now":

Rufus Wainwright does Judy! Judy! Judy! on CD and DVD this December.

Morrissey performs a new track on Last Call With Carson Daly while Johnny Marr goes back to school and receives top honors.

British pop star and X Factor winner Shayne Ward (pictured left) turns 23.

Rapper Nas chooses yet another eyebrow-raising album title.

Annie Lennox and Peter Gabriel to headline South African HIV/AIDS benefit concert for Nelson Mandela's 46664 campaign. Lennox writes about her involvement with the campaign as a 46664 ambassador in the November issue of Instinct magazine.

U2 to reissue four different versions of The Joshua Tree in November for the set's 20th anniversary.

The successful life and quick death of the nationwide Buffy The Vampire Slayer sing-alongs: "I was under the impression that everything we were doing was completely legal and had been cleared by the appropriate people," says Buffyoke organizer Clinton McClung.

Post-rehab, Amy Winehouse and Pete Doherty record a song together.

TODAY'S NEW RELEASES:

The Killers' new single, "Shadowplay" -- a Joy Division cover featured on the Control soundtrack as well as the forthcoming Killers' collection of B-sides and rarities, Sawdust (due November 13).

Thirty years after its initial release, iTunes adds Never Mind The Bollocks Here's The Sex Pistols.

Soul singer Angie Stone's The Art Of Love And War, from the newly relaunched Stax label.

The album/DVD combo R.E.M. Live.

Jimmy Eats World's Chase This Light, exec-produced by Nirvana and Smashing Pumpkins producer (and Garbage member) Butch Vig.

Ultimate Santana, featuring the guitar legend's greatest hits and new tracks with Chad Kroeger and Jennifer Lopez.

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Music News: Will.i.am Got It From Daft Punk, Plus Radiohead, Britney Spears, Morrissey, Spice Girls, Kylie Minogue

Please welcome Robbie Daw, who will be penning occasional music posts for us here on Towleroad! Robbie runs his own pop music site called Chart Rigger.

Some of hip-hop's more luminary figures have been sampling French house duo Daft Punk in recent years -- Busta Rhyme's "Touch It" contains a sample of the outfit's "Technologic", while more recently Kanye West wrapped "Stronger" around the melody of "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger", and took it to #1 in several countries. But the buck apparently stops with will.i.am.

The Black Eyed Peas singer's solo album dropped last week, and a new video for a remix of his latest single, "I Got It From My Mama" (below) -- which is basically a mash-up with Daft Punk's 1997 hit "Around The World", and contains a humorous solo by blonde singer Aria -- has began circulating online. Will.i.am apparently didn't get permission before using the hook, and it seems Daft Punk's lawyers are now involved.

Today, Pitchfork Media posted an interview with the duo's Thomas Bangalter, done over email, and noted that questions regarding the will.i.am remix were left unanswered by the robotic Frenchman.

Despite all this, and whatever the outcome, it's still a damn catchy mix.

As mentioned here yesterday, Radiohead are offering up their new album In Rainbows, available next week, at whatever price buyers wish to pay. British rock journal NME are asking readers to write in and explain how much they plan to plunk down for the record, and they've already begun posting the wide-ranging answers on their website.

While country trio Rascal Flatts look set to have the best-selling album on the charts this week, Britney Spears has maintained the top download on iTunes for the past five days with her single, "Gimme More." Depending on the amount of radio airplay it's receiving, "Gimme More" could be a contender for the #1 position on Billboard's Hot 100. The song is currently at #68 on the chart tallied before the single became commercially available.

Morrissey (pictured right) says he'll release his ninth studio album next year: "The plan is to make a new album after this tour. It's absolutely written and completely ready."

An "insider" claims Bono has written a new track to be included on the Spice Girls' Greatest Hits, due out in November: "There's been a bit of unease as to how the album will perform, and if there's still a solid Spice Girls fanbase out there. However, Bono's involvement has lifted the whole camp, and he's delighted to have been asked to add this experience."

Kylie Minogue has axed a few scenes from White Diamond, the upcoming documentary on her recovery from breast cancer: "In one scene you can see a glimpse of Kylie’s boobs. She wanted to show other cancer survivors there is nothing to be ashamed of. No scarring is visible because she had clever reconstructive surgery after the partial mastectomy to remove her cancer. But she felt it was too much and was extremely unhappy so it got chopped."

TODAY'S NEW RELEASES: New singles from Seal ("Amazing," produced by Madonna's Confessions On A Dancefloor collaborator Stuart Price), Natasha Bedingfield ("Love Like This," also featuring Sean Kingston) and David Gray ("The World To Me").

Bruce Springsteen's Magic, Annie Lennox's Songs Of Mass Destruction, PJ Harvey's White Chalk and Siouxsie Sioux's solo album, Mantaray.

Young R&B singer J. Holiday's Back Of My Lac'.

A ton of hits: Matchbox Twenty's Exile On Mainstream, Amy Grant's Greatest Hits, The Very Best Of Mick Jagger, Faith Hill's The Hits, Elton John's Elton 60 - Live At Madison Square Garden and Frankie Valli's Romancing The 60s.

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Music News: Annie Lennox Takes The Dark Road, Plus Kanye West, Jordin Sparks, Rick Astley, Ari Gold

Please welcome Robbie Daw, who will be penning occasional music posts for us here on Towleroad! Robbie runs his own pop music site called Chart Rigger.

Though she's one of popular music's most iconic figures, Annie Lennox is gearing up to release only the fourth album of her 15-year solo career. Songs Of Mass Destruction is out October 1 throughout most of the world, and a day later in the U.S.

The video for the first single, "Dark Road," just found its way online yesterday.

Also, the album track "Sing" has leaked. "Sing" features a bevy of female guest vocalists, including Madonna, Céline Dion, Pink, Melissa Etheridge, Fergie, Beth Gibbons, Faith Hill, Angelique Kidjo, Beverley Knight, Gladys Knight, k.d. lang, Sarah McLachlan, Beth Orton, Bonnie Raitt, Shakira, Shingai Shoniwa, Joss Stone, Sugababes, KT Tunstall, and Martha Wainwright. Lennox was inspired to record the song after being involved with Nelson Mandela's Treatment Action Campaign, which fights to protect human rights and promote education for those affected by the HIV virus.

Songs Of Mass Destruction features production by Glen Ballard, who is perhaps most famous for twiddling the knobs on Alanis Morissette's Jagged Little Pill and, more importantly, Wilson Phillips' self-titled debut.

As we read last week, Kanye West is still waxing philosophical about homophobia within the hip-hop community. Meanwhile, some other folks seem a bit preoccupied with the sunglasses he's been sporting lately -- particularly in the video for "Stronger," his latest single that's built around a sample of Daft Punk's "Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger." In fact, there's even an entire thread devoted to the topic in the forum at AllHipHop.com, where one member incitefully wrote, "GAYEST THREAD EVER!!!!!!!!"

As it turns out West's shades were designed by Jeremy Scott, whose pop star clientele also includes Fischerspooner, Kylie Minogue, Björk and Madonna.

Elsewhere, "Stronger" unseated Robyn's "With Every Heartbeat" to become the #1 U.K. single this week.

Recent American Idol winner Jordin Sparks has a new single, "Tattoo," hitting radio on Monday, though traditionally Top 40 stations have been lukewarm about embracing the winners of the FOX reality show. The New York Post reports that Sparks' album will be out in November, after having inked a deal with 19 Recordings/Jive. The previous five Idol winners had all been signed to RCA.

TREND ALERT: AOL reported on it, Urban Dictionary has multiple entries for it, but if you haven't yet been "Rick rolled," hold on to your coiffed locks, because the wait is finally over. Rick rolling is essentially the process by which you email a pal, tell them they simply have to check out a crazy new video file of Lindsay Lohan yacking up her lunch in the checkout line at Fred Segal, then actually send them a link to '80s blue-eyed soul crooner Rick Astley's #1 hit from 1987, "Never Gonna Give You Up." Yeah, I don't get it, either, but in the midst of all this, one thought came to mind: just how many times did Stock Aitken Waterman cart their artists through that chintzy set for a video shoot?

Did Jason Donovan complain when he got Rick rolled under the same arches for "When You Come Back To Me"? Did Big Fun wave chiding fingers after shooting "Handful Of Promises"? (Actually, it may have been a different set for the latter, but it's easy to get distracted while watching, arguably, the gayest video ever.)

NEWS BITES: Madonna to leave Warner Music after 25 years?

One Céline Dion fan reports from the "freaking amazing" album preview focus group.

Morrissey shacks up in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco for six weeks.

Dr. Dre sues former label Death Row over The Chronic.

Donald Trump calls Britney Spears "a f***ing mess." Then he offers her a job.

Sheryl Crow, Avril Lavigne and Fiona Apple work themselves into a Girlfrenzy.

After the jump, The Feeling's Dan Gillespie-Sells, Ari Gold and the today's new releases.

In England, Dan Gillespie-Sells, The Feeling's openly-gay frontman, made a dapper appearance at Virgin's V Festival over the weekend...

...while across the pond, Ari Gold performed at here lounge in West Hollywood.

During his set, Ari performed his new single, "Where The Music Takes You." His new album Transport Systems will be released October 2.

TODAY'S NEW RELEASES: Former Savage Garden singer Darren Hayes' third solo album, the two-disc This Delicate Thing We've Made, featuring production by Justin Shave.

Brooklyn-based rapper Talib Kweli's Eardrum, featuring guests Norah Jones and UKG, with production by Kanye West and will.i.am.

Rilo Kiley's fourth album, Under The Blacklight. It's also the indie band's debut on Warner Bros.

Kala, the sophomore album from London-based Sri Lankan artist M.I.A.

Country singer Travis Tritt's The Storm, featuring tracks co-written by Rob Thomas, Richard Marx and Diane Warren.

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