Music News: Frankmusik, Rihanna, NKOTB, Beatles iPod

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

Frankmusik is the electro-music project of 22-year-old London remixer Vincent Frank, an upcoming artist in his own right who recently finished a U.K. tour with Sam Sparro and Alphabeat.

In an interview last month with Click Music, Vincent spoke about working with Stuart Price (who is currently working on the Killers' third set) on his debut Frankmusik album: "Because the album's not coming out until March 2009, I've got Stuart Price working on the record. I could namedrop the fact that, you know, he did Madonna's last album... but I don't need to... sorry. [laughs]. He's very, very, very talented, and very successful, and I think he sees a bit of me in him, when he was younger. He's very inspiring to work with, and there's no ego, and there's no bullshit, like a lot of big producers can have, when you go into their studio, and take up their time - this is very much an us project. He's gone to America to do The Killers' album, when he comes back in July, we'll be working on mine for about three weeks.

In the meantime, a track called "In Step" is available from U.K. iTunes. (Here on the U.S. store, you can download the tracks "Perfect Symmetry" and "Time Keeps Movin'" by Baby Origami and Frankmusik.)

This is the recently released video for "In Step":

Emo poster children Fall Out Boy record a duet with rapper T.I., which bassist Pete Wentz describes as sounding like "something from The Nightmare Before Christmas."

Rihanna to be the face of Gucci's new UNICEF charity campaign. In the meantime, the pop diva appears on the cover of In Style's August issue, where she talks about her own look, and being inspired by Grace Jones: "It has evolved without my even noticing it. Lately I’m obsessed with Thierry Mugler…Grace Jones inspires me…she has extraordinary style and she’s fearless. I love designer Martin Margiela: Kanye West told me about him. I also like Dsquared, Chloé, Zac Posen—he makes flattering lines."

First New Edition and now Michael Jackson: If reports are to be believed—and at this point, nothing's shocking—the onetime King Of Pop is recording a duet with New Kids On The Block. "It's very exciting, says 38-year-old Kid, Donnie Wahlberg. "It's one big party and everyone wants to join us."

Bloomingdales will offer a limited-edition Beatles iPod during the holiday season, stocked with every song from the band's back catalog. Of course, by limited, I mean there will only be 100 available. The Fab Four's songs are still unavailable on iTunes, but Bloomingdales recently acquired the rights to Beatles images from Apple Records.

Any bedroom DJ can become Mariah Carey's top MySpace friend.

After not appearing on television since 1975, legendary rock act Rush to do The Colbert Report. Says Stereogum, "The best part of all this, of course, is that thanks to Stephen's tendency to interview bands post-performance, we'll finally get to stop wondering if Geddy Lee speaks like an ordinary guy."

It's not out stateside till Friday, but Mamma Mia! has already topped the U.K. box office in its opening weekend.

THE WEEK'S NEW RELEASES:

The ninth studio album from Nas, Untitled. Somewhat controversially, the set was originally to be called Ni**er.

Madonna's "Give It 2 Me" remix EP.

John Mellencamp's folk rock album, Life, Death, Love And Freedom, available on iTunes and at a Starbucks near you (as it's on the Hear Music label).

Australian diva Delta Goodrem's U.S. debut, Delta.

Former American Idol contestant Ace Young's self-titled set.

Rockin'! It's Foreigner's No End In Sight: The Very Best Of...

New singles from the Jonas Brothers ("Pushin' Me Away"), The Cure ("Down Under"), Pat Green ("Let Me") and Lil Mama ("What It Is").

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News: Peter Cook, Bermuda, James Dobson, Iran, IBM, San Diego

Truth Wins Out launches effort to block Focus on the Family founder James Dobson's induction into the Radio Hall of Fame. Wayne Besen: "It is outrageous and insulting that James Dobson would be nominated for the Radio Hall of Fame. We believe that character counts and nominees should have careers based on honesty and integrity - not discrimination, distorting research and outright lying."

Iran state media Photoshops missile test image to make it seem more impressive.

Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court rules benefits to gay couples following the 2004 marriage decision can't be applied retroactively.

Spotlight on Jennifer Hudson's album cover.

Following GLAAD's lead in April, Californians Against Hate launches boycott of San Diego's Manchester Grand Hyatt.

Divorce drama: beefcake GQ cover of Christie Brinkley's husband Peter Cook unearthed from 1981.

California's Kern County rebuffs conservative group, refuses to ban same-sex marriages: " The Campaign for Children and Families hoped the passage of a gay marriage ban in Kern County would embolden other counties to follow suit. But supervisors declined to act on the measure after Bernard Barmann, the county's lawyer, said it would be illegal for the county to adopt its own same-sex marriage ban. The Kern County clerk's office stopped offering all marriage ceremonies on June 15, the day before gay marriage became legal."

What's inside "Just for Men" hair color?

Bermuda man who attacked gay man with a machete gets seven years in prison: "Cooper, 26 – older brother of the murdered Cooper twins – had a history of violent crime and homophobia before he launched the attack on Shawn Nusum, 25, in the early hours of November 15 last year. His Supreme Court trial heard how he had taunted Mr. Nusum, of St. David's on previous occasions over his sexuality, calling him a 'faggot' and similar names. On the night in question, the pair got into a dispute in Club Ovation, Water Street, St. George's, when Cooper taunted Mr. Nusum once again. He later lay in wait for Mr. Nusum, and as he left the premises he hit him about the face with a machete. The victim suffered a fractured nose, jaw and cheekbone. A cut to his left eyebrow has left him unable to raise it, and he will be permanently scarred."

T.R. Knight and Mark Cornelsen take the kids out for a ride.

Michael Jackson arrives in Vegas wearing pyjamas, a dreadlocked wig, a surgeon’s mask, a baseball cap and sunglasses.

A Guide to the Philadelphia Gay and Lesbian Film Festival which kicks off tonight.

Michelle Williams planning Heath Ledger film: "The actress - who was left devastated when her former fiance was found dead in his apartment after an accidental drug overdose in January - wants the actor's friends and co-stars to share their stories on him so little Matilda can see her father through their eyes."

Former gay porn model "Lamar" killed in head-on collision following Chicago's black gay pride celebration.

Lesbian adopted by lover into IBM family fights for share of fortune: "Patricia Spado was adopted by Olive Watson, the daughter of Thomas Watson Jr, in 1991 when the pair were both in their 40s and at a time when gay couples were not allowed civil partnerships. They lived together for 14 years but, a year after the adoption, their relationship ended. Miss Spado, now 60, claims the purpose of the adoption was to allow her to qualify as an heir to Miss Watson's inheritance."

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News: Michael Jackson, Presbyterians, Michelle Obama, Unicorn,

How gay is your Shul? "In June, Jewish Mosaic and their partners will start surveying nearly every congregation in the U.S. on their policies and practices of inclusion—for example, whether they offer same-sex spousal benefits, follow a written nondiscrimination policy regarding sexual orientation, or use nonexclusive language on membership forms. When the survey concludes later this summer, Jewish Mosaic will use its findings to create a "resource guide to best practices" on LGBT inclusion for synagogue leaders, who have few places to turn for help with questions on sexuality and gender."

Unicorn discovered in Italy!

Gee, thanks: Bakersfield, California police say they won't arrest couples getting married outside the county clerk's office. "The Rev. Byrd Tetzlaff, minister of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Kern County, told The Chronicle on Tuesday that the police would not allow them to conduct the ceremonies there. On Wednesday, Tetzlaff said it had been a misunderstanding."

Two men punched to pub floor in homophobic UK assault. Police seek witnesses.

Michael Jackson designing clothing line.

The impossible divorce: Rhode Island Superior Court judge refuses to hear case of lesbian couple "but questioned whether the law that barred the women from ending their marriage unconstitutionally denied them a right enjoyed by heterosexual Rhode Islanders."

Police chief in Budapest, Hungary bans gay pride: "Budapest police chief Dr. Gábor Tóth has banned the Gay Pride March, it emerged last night. The march, which Dr. Tóth said would disrupt traffic in the city, was scheduled to take place on Saturday July 5 on Andrássy, one of Budapest’s main streets."

Presbyterian church of Wales in harassment and discrimination lawsuit: "Giving evidence on Tuesday, Mr Price, who is openly gay, said he worked alongside Ms Jones at the church's 250-year-old Trefeca centre, a 37-bed retreat near Brecon, Powys, visited by church groups from around Britain. He told the hearing he was forced to quit as the assistant manager because of Ms Jones's ceaseless comments about sex, which included calling him a 'stupid poof'."

Pittsburgh Presbyterian minister remains under fire for conducting same-sex union ceremonies: " A Presbyterian minister from Pittsburgh still faces two charges that she conducted a prohibited gay wedding ceremony. But the Rev. Janet Edwards will not face charges for performing the ceremony improperly when her church trial resumes in October. Church officials have dropped charges alleging Edwards committed errors when she omitted Bible readings and references to Christian traditions in the ceremony. Edwards made the changes because one of the lesbians she married in 2005 is Buddhist."

Oprah tops Forbes' richest celebrities list — again.

High School Musical stage production outs character that was "coded gay" in the films. Playwright: "I wanted to present Ryan as something from my own past, a version of me, I guess — though he's a lot better dancer than I ever was! In the movie, the character has a gay tint. But in the stage version, I wanted to more fully articulate that tint and say, hey, this kid is who he is. Yes, I consider him a young gay guy without ever having to say it. I’d rather say it with behavior and action. And we do." Film role was played by Milk's Lucas Grabeel.

Matt Damon to play rugby captain in new film.

FOX calls Michelle Obama "Obama's Baby Mama".

TIME: California's Gay Marriage Rush. "A report released by the Williams Institute at UCLA law school says fully half of the state's 102,000 gay couples could wed in the next three years. UCLA law professor Brad Sears told TIME that the number is in keeping with experience in Massachusetts, where gay marriage is also legal, and Vermont, which permits civil unions. Another 67,000 or so are expected to arrive from other states, says Sears, the report's co-author."

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Music News: This Is Thriller, Plus Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Ferras, Rob Halford, Mariah Carey, British Sea Power, The Wiz

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

The slightly askew piano in Journey's "Don't Stop Believing," the thick synth intro to Van Halen's "Jump," and, well, pretty much every note on Michael Jackson's Thriller album...for those of a certain age in the 1980s, these were a few of the decade's inescapable and typically oversized pop productions. It was a time when business was booming and a few larger-than-life anthems or one hit album was all it took to pad a record label's finances for a year.

So it's with some irony that, as the music industry is floundering after its worst year of business on record, Thriller, "the world's biggest selling album of all time," arrives this week in a special 25th anniversary edition. And so many things about it seem alien a quarter of a century later.

Popping in the newly amped-up Thriller for probably my first full-length listen since 1984 seemed like an innocent enough task. But from the opening, staggered shuffle-beats of "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'," one thing became clear: they don't make 'em like this anymore.

And really, they don't. Thriller originally only had nine tracks, but did anyone ever notice? The majority of the songs are so vastly different in genre, listening to them is like sifting through a long-lost mix tape, or at the very least, one artist's far-spanning greatest hits.

Remember the big duet-crossover hat trick pulled by Michael and Paul McCartney, where they split "The Girl Is Mine" and "Say Say Say" between their respective albums out at the time? It was a feat not repeated that successfully until 15 years later, with Brandy and Monica's pseudo-homage, "The Boy Is Mine." In retrospect, Paul got the better deal; hearing "The Girl Is Mine" again is like pinpointing the very moment when elevator music became almost tolerable. But as it ends, the mood changes instantly with the set's title track -- and just for the record, what is "Thriller"? How do you even categorize it. If you really break it down, it's probably the world's most famous novelty song. Recorded by anyone else, the ghoulish "Thriller" probably would have gone the way of Rockwell's "Somebody's Watching Me" to become a one-hit-wonder.

The album's centerpiece (and master stroke) is the one-two punch of "Beat It" and "Billie Jean" -- two brilliant pop achievements that sound as cinematic today as Jackson probably initially imagined them and then brought to life with their videos. Half these emo boy bands should be grabbed by the scruff, sat down and scolded with Eddie Van Halen's guitar solo from "Beat It" over and over again. Some of today's radio-friendly young poppets would also do well to toss out their cookie cutter ballads and use "Human Nature" as a template, the complicated layers of which I'm realizing initially escaped me at age nine.

Whether he grasped that it was going to happen or not, Michael Jackson caught lightning in a bottle with Thriller in the early '80s. In a time before the mountain of career-destroying weirdness consumed him, he stepped through the pop culture window opened by E.T. and Pac Man and sent millions of suburban kids off dreaming. While I wanna think, Never say never, it's pretty much safe to assume a mega-selling phenomenon like that record could never happen again.

As for the included remixes and updates of the classic singles on the 25th anniversary edition, with guest appearances by Fergie, Kanye West and Akon -- utterly pointless, and mostly unlistenable. Even re-releasing the album doesn't seem that necessary. Undoubtedly, Sony and Michael likely felt they had to throw on the extras to lure in a new generation and give fans a reason to get their wallets out.

At the very least, Thriller 25 makes the original songs a nice place to re-visit. There's also a DVD inside containing Jackson's performance of "Billie Jean" from the Motown 25: Yesterday, Today And Forever special. But I haven't watched it. I'm still stuck on "Beat It."

Yesterday Andy mentioned 25-year-old singer Ferras, whose piano ballad "Hollwood's Not America" was chosen to be the song played on American Idol this season when a contestant gets booted each week. Yesterday Ferras performed the song live on The Today Show:

Ferras counts old-school David Bowie as one of his influences, which is a bit more evident in his tune "Aliens And Rainbows." His album by the same name is due out April 1.

Out headbanger Rob Halford of Judas Priest in a new interview with Metal Edge: "It was no big surprise to me to find that there were other gay metalheads, it’s an absolute fact. I would get some of the coolest emails, especially from younger metalheads struggling with their sexual identity, saying ‘because you did what you did, I was able to tell my friends at school, or tell my family, or whatever, and they’ve accepted me.’"

Sophie Ellis-Bextor to gay up nightlife in London?

Mariah Carey wants to be touched, but not pillaged. MP3 blog KeviPod Music was shut down by Blogger after apparently receiving several warnings from the host site. The final straw was when Madrid-based Kevin posted Carey's new single, "Touch My Body" before its release.

He whipped up a new blog (with a slightly altered title) immediately, and his statement on the incident evidenced the mindset online toward music and MP3 distribution, legal or illegal: "'Kevipod Music' recieved sometimes complains via emails from Blogger.com - i guess at request from the labels - about copyright songs. There were some songs i posted and i guess the labels saw them and contacted blogger to contact me to please remove them. They did warned that several complains would mean in a delete of the blog. And yesterday seems i got one more complain and so Blogger deleted the blog. I think i only recieved like 5 complains, and i don't think that's several, and I really didn't think Blogger would actually do it but what's done it's done you know. This day would come someday and i knew it. Every music blog is destined to this i guess someday. When you get popular, labels have the EYE more on you and complain the more and stuff."

He then re-posted the MP3 of "Touch My Body."

THIS WEEK'S NEW RELEASES:

Brighton, England-based British Sea Power's third studio album, Do You Like Rock Music, gets a domestic release.

11i, from L.A. electronic duo The Supreme Beings Of Leisure.

British girl trio The Puppini Sisters' The Rise And Fall Of Ruby Woo.

New singles from Celine Dion and Josh Groban ("The Prayer") and Adele ("Hometown Glory"), as well as EPs from OneRepublic ("Stop And Stare") and Joshua Radin ("Unclear Sky").

And finally, speaking of Michael Jackson -- The Wiz: 30th Anniversary Edition DVD, containing a bonus CD of the soundtrack.

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News: Heath Ledger Hoax, Italy, Matt Damon, Mexico, Diana Ross,

Time magazine looks at the 15th anniversary of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell": "The issue exploded during Clinton's first week as President, triggered by those in the Pentagon and on Capitol Hill opposed to his campaign pledge to reverse an executive order barring gays and lesbians from serving. 'The issue is whether men and women who can and have served with real distinction should be excluded from military service solely on the basis of their status,' Clinton said at the time. 'And I believe they should not.' While the phrase 'don't ask, don't tell' wasn't used at that January 29, 1993, press conference, that's what everyone soon began calling the policy."

Not that Oz: Matt Damon in the Emerald City.

Diana Ross BOOED in Jamaica: Not ready for her close-up.

200 Mexican youths and parents march to raise awareness about HIV/AIDS: "Participants marched through the city's main streets chanting slogans, such as 'Not One More Infected Person' and 'Equal Rights for Young Homosexuals.' Some of the participants also dressed in costumes and distributed condoms. Josue Quino, head of the CAIPAJ gay adolescent and youth center, said the march was necessary to warn youth that a 'single unprotected [sexual] encounter is enough to' contract HIV. Members from the Group of Mothers and Fathers for Diversity also marched in the demonstration, carrying signs that said 'We're Proud of Our Children' and 'Our Children Have United Our Families.'"

Manchester UK police investigate rape at gay sauna.

Clay Aiken: no love.

Which one's Twiggy, which one's Keira Knightley?

Barbara Walters bans Kathy Griffin from The View...again. Griffin: "I was supposed to be on 'The View' [today]. But then I get a call from [producer] Bill Geddie and he says, 'You were too mean to Barbara [Walters] on your last special, so you can't come on.' Can you believe it? I've been banned before, but never re-banned!"

Scammer, posing as Heath Ledger's father, takes advantage of doctor, funeral home, Tom Cruise, and John Travolta: " Cops want to arrest the con man on fraud and larceny charges, and sent detectives to Ledger's wake at the funeral home Friday in hopes of catching him, Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said. But police do not know the identity of the impostor - who also tried to finagle from one unidentified Hollywood star the numbers of actors Mel Gibson and Christian Bale, who have co-starred in movies with Ledger."

Michael Jackson to get additional reconstructive surgery — this time to his album Thriller.

Method Acting: Sean Penn and James Franco, playing Harvey Milk and his lover Scott Smith, respectively, in the Gus van Sant biopic Milk, reportedly wanted to shack up together for a while before filming started to get to know one another, but due to scheduling difficulties, those plans fell through.

Study finds middle age is truly depressing: "For men and women the probability of depression slowly builds and then peaks when people are in their forties -- a similar pattern found in 72 countries ranging from Albania to Zimbabwe, the researchers said. About eight nations -- mostly in the developing world -- did not follow the U-shaped pattern for happiness levels, Oswald and his colleague David Blanchflower of Dartmouth College in the United States wrote. 'It happens to men and women, to single and married people, to rich and poor, and to those with and without children,' Oswald said. 'Nobody knows why we see this consistency.' One possibility may be that people realize they won't achieve many of their aspirations at middle age, the researchers said. Another reason could be that after seeing their fellow middle-aged peers begin to die, people begin to value their own remaining years and embrace life once more. But the good news is that if people make it to aged 70 and are still physically fit, they are on average as happy and mentally healthy as a 20-year old."

German airline to offer nudist flight.

Italian MP called 'faggot, fairy' and 'traitor' for voting against party lines in order to defend Italian Premier Romano Prodi: "The name-calling erupted on the floor of the Italian Senate on Jan. 24 as Sen. Stefano 'Nuccio' Cusumano shocked fellow members of the tiny Udeur Party by declaring his support for Prodi. The party decided a week earlier to withdraw from Prodi’s fragile ruling coalition, forcing a 'confidence' vote under Italy’s parliamentary system. The Senate voted 161 to 156 to defeat a resolution of confidence for Prodi, forcing him to resign immediately. Although the Udeur Party had helped Prodi form his center-left government in 2006, the party strongly opposed legislation backed by Prodi to provide legal rights and benefits for same-sex couples."

Gay Fort Worth city councilman Joel Burns talks to the Victory Fund, calls anti-gay attack a galvanizing moment: “That morning was an awful, terrible, not good morning. I thought of my mother and father, the little rural town that they live in, and waking up and reading the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and seeing my name on the front page. No parent ever wants to see their child attacked, even if they’re an adult.”

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Music News: It's Once Again, Plus Natasha Bedingfield, Yaz, Franz Ferdinand, Mariah Carey, Cat Power

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

Thank you, Motion Picture Academy, for not forgetting about last spring's Once when it came time for nominations in the Best Original Song category for this year's Oscars! Once, which grew into being a modest indie hit last year, is an Irish film starring real-life rocker Glen Hansard as "Guy," a street musician -- or, a busker -- who meets Czech immigrant "Girl" (played by Markéta Irglová, also a musician) and enlists her to cut what he hopes will be a career-making demo.

The two wrote the majority flick's songs, including the just-nominated "Falling Slowly". In addition to the music, part of the appeal of Once is that Glen and Markéta enter into what has to be the most chaste coupling since Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson in Lost In Translation.

"Falling Slowly" is up against three songs from partly-animated fantasy film Enchanted, as well as one from August Rush. But the real fairy tale will be if comparatively unknown Hansard and Irglová end up triumphing over the mighty Disney with their duet from Once, a movie whose budget was $160,000.

Here's "Falling Slowly".

In November I had some fun noting the similarities between the cover art for Alicia Keys' As I Am and current U.K. sensation Leona Lewis' Spirit. Maybe London-based Natasha Bedingfield is hoping some of that success will pay off for her, as well? Her Pocketful Of Sunshine is out today.

Bedingfield released her sophomore album N.B. outside of the U.S last May. For whatever reason, Sony retitled the record Pocketful Of Sunshine, had her cut seven new songs for it and waited till now to put it in the States. (Six of the original tracks from N.B. remain intact, though gone is the U.K. single "I Wanna Have Your Babies.") The tactic seems to have worked so far, as her current single featuring Sean Kingston, "Love Like This", hit #17 on Billboard's Hot 100 and was recently certified gold.

Grammy-nominated Amy Winehouse: crack perhaps not so wack?

I'm not sure anyone could have predicted this one; 25 years after Santa Claus got me the "Don't Go" 12" for Christmas, Alison Moyet and Vince Clarke (pictured right), better known as Yaz -- or Yazoo in Europe -- are back together for the four-disc box set In Your Room (due in May) and the Yazoo Reconnected: Live tour.

Mariah Carey set to be That Chick on April Fool's Day, while Franz Ferdinand are getting down and dirty with Russian synthesizers for their summer release.

If you can't beat controversy, why not embrace it? Morrissey, perhaps in a nose-thumbing nod to the NME, includes "The National Front Disco" in the set for his latest London gig.

TODAY'S NEW RELEASES:

Jukebox, the eighth album from Cat Power. It's all cover versions, as the title alludes to, save for the lone original, "Song For Bobby."

Lisa Loeb's The Purple Tape, a set of her original demos not to be confused with the same-titled original 17-track demo recorded by the Pixies 21 years ago.

A re-recording of Michael Jackson's "Wanna Be Startin' Something" featuring Akon, from the forthcoming special anniversary edition of Thriller.

Rooney's "I Should've Been After You" digital EP.

Hey Venus!, the first studio album from Welsh band Super Furry Animals in 12 years, gets an expanded edition added to iTunes after its initial August release date.

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Music News: Sarah Cracknell And The Feeling Banking On Hits In '08, Plus Radiohead, Juno, Apple, Michael Jackson, Mariah Carey

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

While everyone's currently bedazzled by Radiohead's In Rainbows and the new Janet Jackson video, here are a couple alternatives you might have missed when their clips popped up over the busy holidays.

Mark Brown featuring Sarah Cracknell - "The Journey Continues": Built around a piece of classical music composed by Elena Kats Chernin that's currently being used in commercials by U.K. insurance firm Lloyd's, DJ and dance label head Mark Brown wisely chose Saint Etienne frontwoman Sarah Cracknell to sing over the haunting track. It's already become a radio hit abroad, ahead of its February 4 single release. We stateside folk can download "The Journey Continues" from 7 Digital. Incidentally, The Sun reports that the video is made up of 30,000 still photographs. Cracknell herself makes a Hitchcockian, blink-and-you'll-miss-it appearance during the second verse.

The Feeling - "I Thought It Was Over": Last month I posted a fan-made YouTube clip of the first single off The Feeling's upcoming sophomore album Join With Us, but here now is the official video. Openly-gay lead singer Dan Gillespie Sells has some fun with tongue-in-cheek wordplay during the chorus. While Interscope put out the band's debut album here in the States last year, there's no word yet on a domestic release for Join With Us yet. The album is out in the U.K. February 18, a week after "I Thought It Was Over" is made available digitally and in stores.

Billboard reports today that Radiohead's In Rainbows has debuted atop the album chart after it was finally made available in retail outlets and on iTunes. The publication also points out that In Rainbows only sold 122,000 copies compared to the 300,000 first-week copies 2003's Hail To The Thief moved, though the new album has been selling untracked by SoundScan for two months already at Radiohead.com.

Meanwhile, the Juno soundtrack, which has been dominating the iTunes download chart for a couple weeks, makes a somewhat official debut on the Billboard tally. Though it was only available digitally until yesterday, several retailers violated the physical CD's street date and put it out last week. The soundtrack enters the official Top 200 Albums chart at #8.

Apple drops iTunes prices in the U.K. to avoid an expensive antitrust conflict.

Mariah Carey to People on the reported J. Lo "pig" comment: "This is just some internet gossip and it's pathetic that people actually entertain the thought that this could be real. This is another sad example of two strong women being pitted against each other." She'll probably save the real zingers for this spring, when her new album is expected to drop alongside Madonna's.

Former American Idols Ruben Studdard and Taylor Hicks have been let go from J Records, making Hicks the first winner not to make a second album while signed to a major label.

The YouTube "teaser" clip for next month's 25th Anniversary Edition of Michael Jackson's Thriller contains lots of fluffy commentary by Mary J. Blige, Wyclef Jean and Pharrell Williams, as well as some interesting tidbits from Quincy Jones.

THIS WEEK'S NEW RELEASES:

If you love Lily Allen, then Kate Nash's Made Of Bricks will be right up your alley. The 19-year-old Irish singer and her annunciated accent finally wash onto American shores this week, after having a major U.K. smash last year with "Foundations."

Sia's third studio release, Some People Have Real Problems, via Starbucks' Hear Music label. The album contains "Day Too Soon," which was initially put out in EP form last fall.

"The Silence Between Us," a new single from former Hüsker Dü and Sugar frontman Bob Mould.

The World's Top DJs compilation from dance label Ultra. If you haven't already, be sure to check out the retro-rave-y "I Found U" by Axwell.

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News: Newark, Spencer Pratt, Chicago, Charlie Crist, Uruguay

Following the murders of two gay black men on Chicago's south side in the past month, authorities are wondering if a serial killer may be responsible: "On November 17, 24-year-old Larry Bland was shot to death in his Englewood home. Bland, a security guard at Northwestern Hospital was shot more than once after struggling with a man who had entered the house through an unlocked basement door. Then on December 23, 47-year-old Donald Young, the choir director at Trinity United Church of Christ, was shot multiple times in his South Side apartment. His roommate found his body."

Spencer Pratt of The Hills turns down offer from Michael Lucas to appear in gay porn movie. Lucas: "He was born to be in a gay-porn blockbuster. Lucas Entertainment would do anything to be able to center our next major all-male production on Spencer Pratt."

Will Smith apologizes for Hitler remarks.

Harassment of gay teen prompts uproar, petition, review of policies at Pennsylvania high school: "Few days went by without his being punched, kicked or tripped by classmates at Susquehanna Twp. High School in Dauphin County. The teenager, an openly gay boy described by friends as kind and compassionate, said he was constantly harassed, though he never reported it to anyone, not even his friends. Finally, when classmates told him to 'go kill himself' to "make the world a better place," the teen decided he'd had enough. He said he left school in the middle of his senior year because he could no longer bear the torment."

GREEN: Times Square New Year's Eve ball converted to energy-saving LEDs.

Thomas Morgan III, former president of the National Association of Black Journalists and reporter and editor at the New York Times, dies at 56 of AIDS-related complications.

Madonna to make directorial debut with Filth and Wisdom at the Berlin International Film Festival in February.

Southwest Airlines makes attempt to land in gay market, misses runway?

Uruguayan President Tabare Vazquez signs first nationwide same-sex civil union law in Latin America.

Florida Governor Charlie Crist "not moved" to support Florida marriage amendment. Perhaps too much "moving" might rattle a few skeletons out of the closet.

"Homosexuality is a human condition": Mayor of Rome criticizes Catholic political leader Dr. Paola Binetti for resisting legislation that would bar discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.

Do you believe: Chastity Bono and Cher developing reality show to help gays come out of the closet.

Mr. Cellophane: turns out that the reason Michael Jackson was so bandaged up the other week was because his five-year-old son accidentally smacked him in the face and his (plastic) upper lip collapsed.

Newark, New Jersey gay voguing balls finding a new place in the city's culture: " The city's gay ball subculture -- in which men and women compete in rituals of posing and runway walking, sometimes as the opposite gender -- is earning a place for itself in civic life, with outreach efforts and charity drives. And nowhere is that more surprising than in Newark, a city with no openly gay nightlife, where the 4-year-old murder of 15-year-old lesbian Sakia Gunn, killed for rejecting a man's advances, is still invoked as a symbol of intolerance. The houses, which have a combined membership of more than 100, are now touted by politicians as a significant force in the fight against AIDS and discrimination."

Hilton sisters get lump of coal from grandpa.

Oregon's same-sex couples eagerly await the new year and its new benefits.

David Beckham flattered: "I'm very honoured to have the tag of gay icon. Maybe it's things like (the fact) I like to look after myself, I like to look smart and presentable most of the time."

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Feedback: Janet Jackson Now Has a Digital Va-Jay-Jay

So, who likes the new Janet Jackson cover and who thinks she's just trying to one-up the Svedka robot?

Click photos to enlarge.

And now that Janet has a digital vagina what do you think Michael's going to do to his, um? Never mind.

Hmm. Maybe he's slowly turning into a cyborg too. I'm so confused.

God, I hope LaToya's okay.

>

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Music News: The BBC Edits "Faggot" Out Of The Pogues' Christmas Classic, Plus Britney Spears, Michael Jackson, Mary J. Blige, Shelby Lynne, Gary Barlow

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

In the U.K., the BBC backed down a day after announcing its decision to censor the word "faggot" from Radio 1 plays of The Pogues' holiday classic, "Fairytale Of New York". The 1987 song, a duet with deceased vocalist Kirsty Maccoll, features reminiscent bickering between fictional ex-lovers, wherein Maccoll admonishes Pogues' singer Shane MacGowan with "you scumbag, you maggot, you cheap lousy faggot," and he refers to her as "an old slut on the junk."

The BBC had previously said, "We are playing an edited version because some members of the audience might find it offensive." Today, the BBC reported, "Controller Andy Parfitt said the original decision was 'wrong'."

The decision came after the Stonewall organization took the BBC to task for its apparent hypocrisy, as popular morning show DJ Chris Moyles refuses to apologize for his frequent use of the word "gay" in a manner "more associated with homophobic playground language."

Stonewall chief Ben Summerskill said to PinkNews.co.uk: "We would be happier to see Radio 1 take action against the persistently anti-gay Chris Moyles rather than bleep one word of a Christmas classic." In an awards ceremony put on by Stonewall last year where Chris Moyles was named Bully Of The Year, host Ian McKellen commented, "Chris Moyles repeatedly uses the word gay in the playground sense, without apology, that is inappropriate language for a host of a national breakfast show who speaks to millions of young children."

The U.K. paper The Telegraph also published comments from readers regarding the censorship of "Fairytale Of New York." Said one man identifying himself as gay: "To begin altering songs made long ago would mean bleeping out a lot of the music back catalogue. However, if the song was made today and directed at homosexuals solely then I do think that would be a whole different story."

"Fairytale Of New York" is a Christmastime staple on U.K. radio. The song originally peaked at #2 on the British chart in December 1987, held back by the Pet Shop Boys' "Always On My Mind." It has been re-released on several occasions, and is currently at #8 in this week's U.K. Top 10.

Within three days of its YouTube debut, Britney Spears' "Piece Of Me" video has garnered over 1.6 million views. There's nary a Chris Crocker cameo to be seen in the paparazzi-themed clip, but dig those backing vocals by Robyn.

Specifically designed to make you feel old, Epic will release the Thriller: 25th Anniversary Edition (pictured left) February 12. Michael Jackson's landmark album will feature the nine original songs -- which include "The Girls Is Mine," "Beat It," "Wanna Be Startin' Something" and "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)" -- as well as remixes, unreleased tracks "Carousel" and "Someone In The Dark," and a bonus DVD with three music videos and Jackson's original performance of "Billie Jean" from the Motown 25: Yesterday, Today And Forever special, where he first unleashed "the moonwalk" upon an unsuspecting world.

Martha Wainwright will join her brother Rufus on stage tomorrow at New York's Highline Ballroom for a Christmas charity performance benefiting SaveDarfur.org.

TODAY'S NEW RELEASES:

Pretty much the only album from a major artist this month, Mary J. Blige's Growing Pains, is out. The singer worked with Ne-Yo, The Neptunes, Polow da Don and Stargate on the record.

Also made available on iTunes are singles from Nick Lachey ("Ordinary Day") and Shelby Lynne ("Anyone Who Had A Heart"). Lynne's full album of Dusty Springfield covers drops in February.

HOLIDAY CLIPS: I'll leave you with the music video (featuring a Matt Dillon cameo) for The Pogues' "Fairytale Of New York," and a perhaps less-offensive clip -- or more, depending on your tolerance for schmaltz -- of a 15-year-old, pre-Take That Gary Barlow performing his original composition "Let's Pray For Christmas" in a 1986 song competition on BBC's Pebble Mill. He didn't win.

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Music News: Kylie Minogue's "2 Hearts" Pops Up Early, Plus Michael Jackson, Robyn, Radiohead, Jennifer Lopez

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.

Well, Kylie Minogue's new video for "2 Hearts" has been popping up and disappearing from video sharing sites over the past few hours, so watch while you can (and let the inevitable Madonna/Goldfrapp comparisons begin). Kudos for the new direction, but after hearing the very similar original version of this song by Kish Mauve, one can't help but wish Kylie had made her version sound a bit more...Kylie.

Not surprisingly, the single itself leaked yesterday after a radio promo copy was uploaded online. Meanwhile, the singer was awarded a Q Idol Award by London-based Q Magazine on Monday. Former guitarist for The Smiths, Johnny Marr, picked up the Lifetime Achievement award, and Paul McCartney was given the Q Icon honor.

"2 Hearts" will have an official digital release November 5 in Europe, with her album X dropping there November 26. A U.S. release is expected sometime in the new year (at which point, no doubt, most folks who want them will have handily gotten their hands on the tracks already).

As of today, Radiohead's new album is just a click away.

Michael Jackson has written a letter to his fans: "Hopefully, you've all seen the results of my recent photo shoot with L'Uomo Vogue. Soon I will be sharing exciting and surprising news with you from my other efforts."

Look out, MySpace! Rumors are mounting Facebook will be partnering up with Apple soon by finally allowing musicians to create artists pages, and previewing 30-second clips of tracks with an iTunes widget.

Robyn (pictured left) gets boxed in for her new video. She'll also see a U.S. release of her latest self-titled album, via Interscope, on December 4.

Jennifer Lopez is four months pregnant with twins, according to US Weekly.

Employees at a U.K.-based Kwik-Fit have apparently been playing their radios too loud, causing the Performing Rights Society to sue the auto repair shop for almost $400,000 (or £200,000) for copyright infringement and artists royalties.

THIS WEEK'S NEW RELEASES:

Brave, the sixth (!) studio album from Jennifer Lopez.

Kid Rock's Rock N Roll Jesus, which isn't being offered on iTunes this week. Makes sense. The Beatles, Kid Rock...

Alt rockers She Wants Revenge's This Is Forever.

Miss Patti's Christmas, a mixture of traditional classics and new yuletide concoctions from Patti LaBelle, plus Josh Groban's holiday set, Noel.

Brother-and-sister duo The Fiery Furnaces' Widow City.

Vanessa Carlton's Heroes & Thieves, and LeAnn Rimes' Family.

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Michael Jackson Meets Chad White

I'm not sure exactly when or where this was taken, but the King of Pop certainly seems taken with the boyish good looks of model Chad White.

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