SPIN - Daily Noise

Paramore and Tegan and Sara are touring together all summer, sharing more than 30 stages across America and spending lots of time hanging out backstage.

But what, exactly, do Hayley Williams, the flame-haired singer for the Tennessee pop-punk band, and Canadian twin sisters Tegan and Sara Quin talk about? What else: Romantic relationships, the hardships of being a girl in the music biz, and... Barbie Dolls.

Before last week's opening date of the Honda Civic Tour in Raleigh, NC, (read SPIN's concert review here) the three huddled together to chat with SPIN.com about their lives. Williams carried a present from a fan: a SpongeBob SquarePants Barbie Doll still in its package. It's not her first.

"I have only like 20 right now," said Williams. "That’s a lot of Barbies for a 21-year-old."

"20 more than I have," said Sara, 30.[Laughs.]

Read on for more of the trio's wholly fun and entertaining backstage conversation:

SPIN: When did Paramore first meet Tegan & Sara? TQ: We met at Chad [Gilbert, New Found Glory guitarist and Williams' boyfriend]'s house. I was doing a lot of things, specifically chasing Lindsey, my girlfriend at the time. I was trying to convert her, and I successfully did. Chad's house helped with that, so thank you for that. Love prevailed. We met through Hayley's boyfriend -- Do you guys talk about that? Is it OK to stay that? HW: Oh yeah, of course. I'm actually a real person with a boyfriend.
SQ: And then it was in Nashville that we met. We were doing a headlining show at the Ryman. We had played there one other time, but this was the first time we were headlining. So it was an exciting night, and Hayley was there to support. TQ: She booed the whole show. She was very, very drunk.
HW: I was. I was wasted. TQ: She came down in like this weird swinging harness, like this Cirque du Soleil thing. "Make it about you, Hayley." [Laughs].
SQ: No, you were so lovely. We thought you were so sweet, and after the show we were like, "I wanna crush her she's so cute." TQ: We were all really excited to do the tour. I'd only met you, and I think that's when Sara stopped complaining about having to do the tour. Just kidding.
HW: That was a good show, though. I brought a lot of friends and a lot of them had never seen you guys or heard a lot of your music.

 

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SPIN: Hayley, Why did you ask Tegan and Sara to come on this tour?
HW: Honestly, a lot of my friends got me into you guys a while ago, people I met when we first started touring. We never tour with girls, and I guess there's not a lot of girl singers I just love. TQ: You could've asked Rihanna.
HW: Oh, that's true. SQ: Or, Cher. [Laughs].
HW: There's not a whole lot of females right now in music where I'm like, "I want to play with those people." This tour is a really big deal for us, and I wanted to have a band that has been around long enough to establish something important. I wanted an important band. TQ: You wanted to siphon our importance.
HW: I did. I wanted to steal it. I want to watch how you guys sing every night and take that as well. SQ: It's so sweet that you say that because that's how we always look at the bands that are opening for us. We always think, "What will appeal to our audience? What will make an impression on them in a positive way?" We always try to bring out girls. We got into a phase of bringing out people that were doing alternative hip-hop, because we wanted to open up some of these kids' minds to something outside of rock music. I think that's so cool that you do that, too.
HW: We've never really brought out much other music than rock music. Honestly, you guys are probably the most outside-of-the-box band that we've toured with for so long.

SPIN: Are you nervous for Tegan and Sara?
HW: No, I'm not nervous for them at all. Our fans are so psyched. On our LiveJournal -- not to creep you out -- there are little icons for people that write in messages, and all of them are Tegan and Sara's faces, all blown up. I see you guys every day, multiple times a day in pictures that you probably hate but everyone else loves. SQ: Does that happen to you, where people really obsess over images that you wish they'd stop seeing?
HW: Oh, I hate it. This is going to sound like I care way too much because I totally don't, but I went through a little phase where I kept gaining weight on the road. I see photos from that little phase, and I'm like, "Those are the fat days." But those are the pictures that people save. That makes me feel good at the same time. SQ: It's probably that you looked really happy, and your body was ready to bear life.
HW: Oh, great. It's called puberty. SQ: I went through this phase where I had short blond hair, and it was really puffy and I would wear a headband. You cannot get worse than that.
TQ: Let's think: That would have been in 2000. So how old would you have been, Hayley? HW: I was still living in Mississippi, so I was listening to Aaliyah.
TQ: So how old were you 10 years ago? 11? 12? And Sara was on Letterman with a headband and spiky blond hair. That's our favorite era. Do you think at 10 you would have liked our band? HW: Totally. [Laughs]. When I lived in Mississippi, there wasn't any music whatsoever, but I loved looking different. I liked anything that made me different than the people I was always surrounded by. I don't know if you've ever heard of Mississippi, but it's not really the kind of place you want to liken yourself to.

SPIN: Tegan and Sara, are you guys nervous for the tour?
SQ: I think we're just nervous because we have this ridiculously hypersensitive fear of disappointing people. We have child-of-divorce syndrome, and we don't want anybody to be let down. We're really quiet and we don't want to impose on anyone, so there's that sense of wanting to go out and show yourself and prove yourself. But you want to stay out of the way, and you don't want to fuck anybody's shit up. We are a headliner all the time, so I know that it's a fine line with opening bands and stuff. TQ: I feel really nervous. Sara and I haven't done any support stuff in four-and-a-half years. We did festivals and shows last year with Death Cab for Cutie. So this is terrifying for me. We toured with the Killers and we did a tour with Cake and Gogol Bordello. Those were the last two support tours we did, in 2005. On the Cake tour we all did the huddle before the show -- crew, band, everyone. It was our first time having our own bus. We got in the huddle and I was like, "This is going to be amazing." We'd had a really good year and "Walking with a Ghost" had finally made it onto the radio. I do this whole big rousing speech about how this is going to be so fun because people are going to know us. It was a disaster. We had people quit. There was a comedian on between all of the bands and he was really amazing and funny. But the audience in a lot of cities didn't get him. So one night they were all chanting "Faggot!" when we had to go onstage. We were like, "No, we're lesbians!"

SPIN: When did you two first hear Paramore?

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SPIN: When did you two first hear Paramore?
TQ: When I first heard your music, and this was before I'd even met Chad, I heard about you guys through our publicist. He was trying to get us on the cover of Alternative Press. He said, "They've already had a girl on the cover this year," because that's how it works in the world. And I was like, "What bitch is on the cover?" [Laughs]. I'm kidding. I was like, "Who is on the cover?" And he's like, "This band Paramore." I said, "I've never heard of Paramore." I Googled it and I was like, "That girl's hot." This was right when Riot! came out, so I downloaded that. SQ: It's true. Tegan came in and was telling everybody and playing it.
TQ: Because there really is only one spot for girls in the world to be popular at one time, I was like, "Here's the queen now of our music, and we must all bow down to Hayley." No, I was like, "This band is so cool." That's the kind of music I listen to, and that's the kind of music I grew up listening to. I thought your image was really cool, too, because right away I found out how young you were, and in all your interviews, you were talking about wanting to keep that image. We graduated high school and then we signed a record deal. But everybody pushed us to be models. They were like, "You guys are pretty. You should wear makeup. Move in this direction." We were like, "We want to play our guitars and wear headbands on Letterman." It took us a while. They were really pushing us to be something we weren't, and I think you held out to be what you wanted to be.

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SPIN: Hayley, have you experienced the same pressure to be someone else?
HW: That's the worst. When we first got signed we had never done real publicity photos. We had only had friends take pictures of us. We had this guy come out and take photos for the album and he wanted me to wear ChapStick to make my lips look shinier. I didn't wear makeup, so I was like, "No!" I pitched a fit, and everyone said, "Oh, Hayley's a bitch." That was my first experience with photo shoots. I wanted to be a guy pretty much. TQ: Don't we all?
HW: Right? TQ: It's a funny thing in our industry, because if you're not really glammed out or girly, you are in this weird gray zone. They don't know where to place you, and you have to fight to hold on to your uniqueness. I think it's good that you did.
SQ: Did you ever find that once you hold onto it and you're accepted into the mainstream, then the people that aren't in the mainstream start saying, "You're actually not that hardcore"? That happened to Tegan and I. We were really representing alternative women, and we were queer and all these things. All of the sudden we started to get more popular. We were able to sell more records. We were able to tour with the Killers. People were like, "You sold out. You're not alternative anymore." TQ: You're not a woman anymore. Your vagina is gone.
SQ: You're actually a straight man now, so congratufuckinglations. You're just like, "Oh my god, really? We're not cool and alternative and queer?" That's hard, too, sometimes. HW: I went through the phase where I didn't want to wear ChapStick. I didn't want to wear makeup. I didn't want to be a girl at all. But I started to grow up, and I was like, "OK, I think I'll try to wear mascara onstage now." It evolved and my hair got brighter. People noticed and said, "What happened to this girl that looks like a guy?"
TQ: "She joined Tegan and Sara!" In a weird way, it's an analogy for growing up. Being in a band is like a living proof of your second adolescence. You start to change, from the way your music sounds to the people you tour with to the people around you, even. It's tough sometimes. We send Sara to her room a lot. HW: [Laughs]. You can come on our bus if that happens.

SPIN: Paramore has had its fair share of support slots. Hayley, what do you like best -- opening or headlining?
HW: I like both. TQ: Queen. [Laughs].
HW: I've always loved being the underdog. So, in one sense, to headline, you almost feel like it's a copout. If we're playing a festival and NOFX is there, I know I'm going to get hounded from the other stage from some other band. I love that. I like the challenge and the intimidation of that, going up there and exploding on stage. This tour is cool to me because we've been on tour for five-and-a-half years now, and the same kids that were there in the front row at these tiny little places, like when we played CBGBs for the first time, some of the kids that went to that show come to our shows in New York now at these bigger venues. It's really rewarding. To me, we did something right if those kids can come to the show and have fun and not be like, "Hayley, you don't look like a boy anymore. I hate you."

Is social media big enough to contain Kanye West?

He's long been blogging, but this week the Grammy-winning rapper favored Facebook with an impromptu a cappella performance, then joined Twitter and added 300,000 followers in just three days. That's a lot -- and he noticed.

While Kanye sometimes uses Twitter for news -- revealing an album title change, or new lyrics -- he mostly showcases his fabulous life. And it's pretty, pretty fabulous.

Here are five ways Kanye West's life is better than yours:

No. 5: Kanye West makes extravagant purchases -- then does stupid things with them.
Tweet: Is the Versace sofa to[o] hood? Might need to cover it in plastic!!!

No. 4: Kanye West drinks from golden goblets, instead of water bottles.
Tweet: I hate half empty water bottles so I copped these #goblets to drink out of.

No. 3: Kanye West is on a horse. And is a king.
Tweet: I need this horse... Kings need horses.

No. 2: Kanye West won't settle for private jets that aren't bigger than a baby mama's.
Tweet: I'm bout to hop on this #BABYMAMAJET the jets Billionaires give to they baby mamas or they 1st 2nd or 3rd wife / Man this jet small as hell Don C!!!!

No. 1: Kanye West has cooler friends than you, and will rub that in your face (while creating new adjectives no less).
Tweet: I wish I had a Twitter when I was at the Lanvin store in Paris 3 weeks ago with Jay & B uuuuugh so many missed stuntastic moments.

What's your favorite Kanye Tweet? Sound off below.

The Pretty Reckless singer and Gossip Girl star is the face of Madonna's Material Girl line.

If National frontman Matt Berninger ever decides to change careers, he could be a preacher or a shaman or the dictator of a small country.

During the hour and a half or so that he and his four bandmates (plus assorted guest players) commanded New York City's Terminal Five stage Thursday night, as part of the week-long SPIN25-ZYNC concert series, the elegant, epically tall singer transformed three-thousand sticky, demanding, and somewhat inebriated fans into an obedient mass of joyful disciples. When he raged, they raged. When he was still and pensive, they were still and pensive. When he danced awkwardly, thrashing his head along with twin guitarists' Aaron and Bryce Dessner's cacophonous noise, they thrashed too, and didn't care how they looked. To be there was to be free.

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Photos by Ben Rowland and Sean O'Kane  
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The National build a live set the way they've built their career: slowly, deliberately, and with breathtaking confidence. They began with the slow-burn anthem "Start A War" off their 2007 career-making album The Boxer, the crowd mouthing -- but not actually singing -- every word of the first few delicately delivered verses so as to participate without interfering. And they seemed to hold their breath through the entire propulsive elegy "Anyone's Ghost." But by the third song, "Blood Buzz Ohio," Berninger started to let his supplicants off the leash a bit, their voices joining his rich baritone as it rose above Bryan and Scott Davendorf's driving drums and bass to moan-sing "I was carried to Ohio in a swarm of bees."

Swigging cheap white wine from a plastic cup, Berninger whipped through the next few songs, pacing the stage in between vocal parts, like a possessed ringmaster. The typically restrained chorus to "Squalor Victoria" became a surge of unleashed aggression as Berninger spat the lyrics into the mic, pounding his fists together like a bare-knuckled boxer as the audience raged back at him. And then it was on. The singer took the crowd from rapt with meditative attention on "Afraid of Everyone" and "Lemonworld" to crazed banshees howling "my mind's not right" on "Abel."

There was a lot to look at onstage -- from the badass violinist who was a dead ringer for David Foster Wallace, to the geeky but fly trombonist in Kelly green pants, to the undeniably foxy twin guitarists -- but it's Berninger, decked out like a hipster undertaker in his all-black three-piece suit and tie combo, who is the rock star.

Introducing "Lemonworld," Bryce Dessner, who delivers most of the band's interstitial banter, said, "This song is really hard to play," then clarified, "Well, it's really easy to play, it's hard to make sound good." Berninger took one step up to the mic, smiled slyly and countered, "I think it always sounds good." The crowd cackled. "He only has reverb on his voice in his ear so it's easier!" Dessner said with mock indignance. "Yeah, see I can't hear that," the singer quipped. The crowd clapped so loudly and for so long that they drowned out the beginning of the next song.

Berninger's lyrics have been helping the National's fans sleep at night since he used to mumble them into a borrowed mic during gigs at the now-defunct Luna Lounge back in the late '90s. A decade or so later, the band has become a celebrated icon of cerebral-but-emotive cool, a kind of grown-ups' rock band with soul.

But the assembled crowd still needed Berninger to put them to bed, and he didn't disappoint, closing the set with "Fake Empire" off The Boxer (which begins with the lyric "stay out super late tonight/ picking apples, making pies") and ending the encore with an ecstatic, abandoned rendition of the "Terrible Love" off this year's High Violet. "I can't fall asleep without a little help/ It takes awhile to settle down" Berninger admitted, though it felt more like a forecast for the way the audience would feel for hours after the show. How can you sleep after a rock and roll revival like this?

The National had some help riling up the crowd, courtesy of Suckers, whose smart dance-pop coaxed the audience away from the bars and vegan hot dog stands and up to the front of the stage. But it was the first opener, eccentric singer songwriter Kurt Vile, who made the biggest impression. Vile is one of those precocious young artists who seems to play in sixteen different bands (okay, three: War On Drugs, with the Violators, and solo) and jumps with astounding ease from one style of music (Neil Young-ish Americana) to another (grimy punk rock) without even changing instruments. He looks like an earnest hippie but the kid's got wit -- he titled his debut solo album Childish Prodigy and likes to introduce his more obscure tracks (and they are all obscure) by deadpanning, "This song was a huge hit for us." Keep an eye on this one.

Setlist:
1. Start A War
2. Anyone's Ghost
3. Blood Buzz Ohio
4. Mistaken For Strangers
5. Brainy
6. Squalor Victoria
7. Afraid of Everyone
8. Vanderlyle Crybaby Geeks
9. Lemonworld
10. Conversation 16
11. Apartment Story
12. Abel
13. England
14. Fake Empire

Encore:
1. Runaway
2. Mr. November
3. Terrible Love

EXCLUSIVE: Frontman Karl Hyde documents his band's recent trip to Italy with photos, poetry, and more!

Morrissey's songs might not be the most upbeat, lyrically, but the man sure can croon -- and he looks great in a suit -- so it's no surprise that Katy Perry and Russell Brand, who's a pal of the Moz, would love to have him perform at their upcoming nuptials.

"It's going to be a small ceremony, so I don't think we'll have a proper band," Perry tells U.K. tabloid The Sun. "I'd love to have Morrissey."

Pop star Perry (whose album Teenage Dream drops August 24) and actor-comedian Brand (who's filming a reboot of Arthur in NYC) are reportedly tying the knot this September in India. Perry recently met Morrissey for the first time, and chatted about the upcoming wedding over tea.

But the Moz, an invited guest to the affair, wasn't too supportive about the idea of marriage. "[Morrissey] swooned and sighed, 'Oh, left hand third finger, don't do it,'" Perry says. "It was just so eloquent and poetic and like one of his songs."

Not a shocker coming from the Pope of Mope, though: Morrissey made his opinions on relationships very clear in a 2004 SPIN interview with Marc Spitz. "I don't believe in that at all," he said, when asked if he thought he'd one day meet a special someone who'd change his life. "I don't actually believe in, as you so eloquently term it, 'one day.'" Instead, he said he'd rather devote his time to animal rights causes: "I still prefer horses to human beings."

Would you like Morrissey to sing at your wedding? What song? Sound off in the comments.

Lots of musicians tweet -- but all that Twitters is not gold.

That's why you'll want to check out SPIN.com every Friday to see whose tweets we're reading this week – then update your TweetDeck! (Obligatory Self-Promotion: …while you're at it, be sure to follow @SPINmagazine!)

In honor of next weekend's Lollapalooza Music Festival, which runs from Aug. 6-8 at Chicago's Grant Park, we've been following some of the acts scheduled to perform. Check 'em out to get yourself psyched for the festival:

• Soundgarden's Chris Cornell

  @chriscornell

  Why You Should Follow: This year's Lollapalooza marks an important milestone for Chris Cornell and his Soundgarden bandmates: It's their first scheduled performance in 12 years. Since Cornell announced the band's reunion via Twitter in January, they've played a secret show in Seattle but haven't made any official appearances. Until now, that is. As you await the grunge legends' Sunday night show, whet your appetite with Cornell's thoroughly entertaining tweets. When he's not pondering whether people in Spain or the Netherlands smoke more dope ("The population of Spain is almost 3 times that of The Netherlands, and though weed is not legal there im guessing they don't give a shit"), he's picking fights with the Westboro Baptist Church and posting Twitpics of Soundgarden in rehearsal. Bonus points: You can always count on him to post something random, like this video of Mt. St. Helens exploding.

  Best Tweet of the Week: "Just read that Santana has the same Birthday as me. So does Stone Gossard and Andrew Stockdale"

• Deer Tick

  @deertickmusic

  Why You Should Follow: This Providence-based indie rock band -- known for their grungy, bluesy sound -- is a lot of fun to follow. Their mischievous antics on the road lead them to icing their friends, jumping fences to swim in other people's pools, and reviewing reviews of their latest album, The Black Dirt Sessions, which dropped in June. Look out for hilarious Twitpics, like this one of the band messing with a truck stop sign (the caption reads "Yo, Floyd Virginia Shell station, you just got TICKED!") and this one of lead singer John McCauley being an "absolute fucking idiot" in Roanoke, VA. Also, keep an eye on their Twitter feed on Saturday -- there's a good chance they'll tweet from backstage at Lollapalooza.

  Best Tweet of the Week: "Deer Tick in a dry county in the mountains of Virginia? Where the shrooms at?" v

• Raphael Saadiq

  @rayraysaadiq

  Why You Should Follow: This Grammy-nominated crooner may have an old school Motown sound, but he's all modern when it comes to Twitter. He tweets and re-tweets with the best of them, documenting his life as he hops from city to city and plays at some of the country's best music festivals ("I'd perform at every summer festival if I could," he tweeted). Follow him as he pays homage to the musicians who inspire him (including Smokey Robinson and MGMT), fights against the use of the "neo-soul" label, and defies big-time artist stereotypes ("Picking up new rims for Clive Davis Grammy party tonight… I mean spectacles, eyewear, not car rims, LOL come on people"). He brings tons of excitement and energy to every performance, so if you're hitting up Lollapalooza, make sure to check out his Friday afternoon show. Who knows? He might just give you a Twitter shout-out afterward.

  Best Tweet of the Week: "LOL especially on stage at summerstage RT @MOSCOT: Even properly adjusted eyewear will slip in this NYC heat. #sweatingmyeyeglassesoff"

Desert rock juggernauts Queens of the Stone Age are releasing a deluxe edition of their classic album Rated R on August 3, featuring six b-sides and a recording of their Reading Festival set in 2000. Listen to the previously-unreleased-in-the-U.S. track, "Ode to Clarissa," below!

"Clarissa" is classic Queens of the Stone Age -- badass, supercharged rock'n'roll. A thunderous drum intro gives way to a piercing guitar riff.

QOTSA completists might already be familiar with "Ode to Clarissa": It appeared as the 12th track on the Japanese pressing of Rated R; on a limited-edition vinyl version of the album; and as the b-side on the U.K. single for "The Lost Art of Keeping a Secret," the album's best-known tune. A live version of the "Clarissa," recorded at the Reading Festival, is included on the new Rated R special edition, as well.

Rated R landed at No. 8 on SPIN's 20 Best Albums of 2000 list, with Sia Michel lauding the record's "mysteriously beautiful, smartly stoopid psychedelic jams."

In other QOTSA news, the band is set to play a benefit concert August 12 in L.A. for Eagles of Death Metal bassist Brian O'Connor, who was recently diagnosed with cancer. The show is sold out, but the Eagles are auctioning off some special ticket packages via their website. Another site is collecting donations for O'Connor, too -- click here for details.

What do you think about "Ode to Clarissa"? Tell us in the comment section below!

LISTEN: Queens of the Stone Age, "Ode to Clarissa"

Of Montreal visited Late Night with Jimmy Fallon Thursday dressed as fashionable ghouls in white face paint and suits and gowns to debut "Sex Karma," a new song from their September 18 release False Priest -- and they brought along a little help: Solange Knowles, aka Beyonce's younger sister. Watch below.

Frontman Kevin Barnes and Knowles traded verses on the funky, Motown-esque number with tongue-in-cheek lyrics about sex: "I know that you want to scream / Honey, touch my everything / I look like a playground to you," Knowles sang. "Close your eyes and count to three / I'll kiss you where I shouldn't be," Barnes replied as Knowles gyrated down her microphone stand. A group of mimes (um… drinking milk?) joined the band on stage, too. Steamy… and weird!

While the song will appear on False Priest, Barnes told SPIN that it was originally intended as a solo track for Knowles. "When I wrote 'Sex Karma' I thought it would be cool if it appeared on [Solange's] record," Barnes said. "I sent it to her and for a while that was the plan. But I really liked it and changed my mind, and we decided to record it as a duet." Good choice.

What do you think about their performance of "Sex Karma"? Tell us in the comment section below!

WATCH: Of Montreal with Solange Knowles, "Sex Karma"

[Updated: 6:14 P.M.]

NEWS:

 

SLIPKNOT Divided Over Future of Band After Bassist's Death
Members of the Des Moines, IA, alt-metal group have differing opinions about the band's return... or lack-thereof. [MTV]

Tour Gallery: UNDERWORLD in Italy
EXCLUSIVE: Frontman Karl Hyde documents his band's recent trip to Italy with photos, poetry, and more! [SPIN]

TOUR EXCLUSIVE: TEGAN & SARA & HAYLEY Backstage
The Canadian duo hang out with the Paramore singer on their hit summer tour. SPIN.com captures their conversation! [SPIN]

FRANZ FERDINAND Writing and Recording Songs for Fourth Album
Scot rockers are hard at work on their follow-up to 2009's Tonight: Franz Ferdinand, which could drop in early 2011. [BBC]

THE NATIONAL Deliver Big at SPIN25 Live Concert!
Smart, funny, musically enthralling --- what's not to like about the Brooklyn-based qunitet? [SPIN]

LIAM GALLAGHER Says New Album Will 'Best of the Next 50 Years'
Rocker said that the debut from Beady Eye, his band with ex-Oasis members, will drop in early 2011. [Gigwise]

MORRISSEY to Sing at KATY PERRY's Wedding?
The pal of her fiancee, Russell Brand, is invited to attend the nuptials, but he isn't sure the marraige is a great idea. [SPIN]

LCD SOUNDSYSTEM and HOT CHIP to Tour Together
So far the only joint date is set for October 22 in Milwaukee, but more shows should be revealed shortly. [Pitchfork]

REPORT: JENNIFER LOPEZ to Replace ELLEN DEGENERES on 'AMERICAN IDOL'
Ellen walked from the show because it "didn't feel like the right fit for me," she said. [DEADLINE]

SHARON JONES & THE DAP KINGS Announce Fall Tour
After appearances at summer fests, the soul singer and her band will return to the road in September. [Paste Mag]

ROBERT POLLARD Plans to Release Five New Albums
Rocker will release a solo album, plus records with Boston Spaceships, Lifeguard, Mars Classroom, and more in next 10 months. [Pitchfork]

Q&A: GAVIN ROSSDALE to Reunite BUSH
"If I was smart I would've made Sixteen Stone over and over again. But that's not me." [SPIN]

 

MP3s & VIDEOS:

 

WATCH: INTERPOL Rock 'Letterman'
New York band play "Barricade," the latest single off their upcoming self-titled album (Sept. 7). [YouTube]

WATCH: EMINEM Posts Behind-the-Scenes Video from Album Cover Shoot
See Em on the set of his Recovery photo shoot in downtown Detroit on a chilly, 33-degree day in April. [Eminem]

LISTEN: Unreleased QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE Track
"Ode to Clarissa" appears on the upcoming reissue of the Cali rockers now-classic Rated R. [SPIN]

WATCH: OF MONTREAL Rock 'Late Night' with SOLANGE
The Athens, GA, psychedelic band debut "Sex Karma" on live TV with help from Beyonce's sister. [SPIN]

LISTEN: GORILLAZ Live in Syria
Damon Albarn and guests (Bobby Womack, De La Soul, the Pharcyde) play the 1,000-year-old Damascus Citadel. [NPR]

DOWNLOAD: New Song from THE BLACK ANGELS
The Austin psych rockers go '60s retro on "Telephone," a taste of their upcoming third album. [SPIN]

WATCH: THE FLAMING LIPS Rock 'Letterman'
Oklahoma psychedelic band freak out on a version of "See the Leaves," from their latest album Embryonic. [YouTube]

The Flaming Lips may be the longest-running band to perform during the week of concerts being held in celebration of SPIN's 25th anniversary -- presented in partnership with ZYNC from American Express -- but the Black Keys, who headlined Terminal 5 Wednesday night in Manhattan, have the deepest musical roots.

In a 90-plus minute set featuring a big greasy handful of songs found on the latest album, Brothers, from Akron, Ohio's favorite sons (sorry, LeBron), drummer Patrick Carney and guitarist Dan Auerbach gave a lesson on the enduring power of the blues, sending the sold-out crowd into near-delirium with their seemingly endless, endlessly entertaining variations on simply sinister chord patterns and brawny shuffle rhythms.

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The band's concept is easy to pin down -- the guys juice the sweaty juke-joint drones of past blues masters like Junior Kimbrough and R.L. Burnside with distortion, volume, and, in the hard-hitting Carney's case, raw power -- but that doesn't make it any less satisfying.

Opening song "Hold Me In Your Arms," from 2003's Thickfreakness, set the tone early, as the bearded, doleful-eyed Auerbach, dressed for work in black jeans and a dark blue button-down shirt, alternated between spiky treble notes and thudding bass string riffs, while the lanky, bespectacled Carney battered out a fatback beat. "Ah, it sounds so good!" said the dude beside me in between snare hits on his invisible drum kit. No argument here.

Given the repetitive, limited melodic nature of the blues, a lot of the Black Keys' stuff sounds, on the surface at least, sorta samey, so much of the pleasure in seeing the band live is in the nuances, the way that, on "The Breaks," from 2002's The Big Come Up, Auerbach conjured a tortured guitar tone that made it sound like he was pulling bent notes from his guitar against their will, or the wounded falsetto warble he'd add to the end of lines on the jittery "Busted" (which featured the guitarist down on his knees, coaxing squalling feedback from his instrument), a trick that emphasized the sly, wry attitude behind so much of his singing. (This was the blues though, so pretty much every lyric was about a woman done her man wrong, a man done his woman wrong, or some combination of the two.)

And maybe only magic and practice can explain the genius-like interplay between the two musicians. How do they do such a good job of staying out of one another's way? Auerbach would explode in a torrent of wailing bends and Carney would be right there with him, crashing away on the cymbals. Carney, shoulders hunched, looking off to the side, would launch into a thunderous fill, and his partner would intuitively let low spooky notes ring calmly through the storm.

Vocally, though, Auerbach may have learned something from opening act Lee Fields, a powerfully raspy singer who developed in the early '70s when soul was mutating into funk, and who delivered a fun set heavy on strutting come-ons and stuttering horn lines. He also earned bonus points for his shiny gold suit.

Earlier, jeans and t-shirt clad Athens, Georgia, trio the Whigs didn't show as much fashion flare as Fields, but wowed with their sneering, melodic garage rock.

But the show belonged to Auerbach and Carney -- even when they had help. About halfway into the set, two members of Fields' backing band came out to play bass and keyboard for a few numbers. The extra muscle made songs such as Brother's "Everlasting Light" sound a tad conventional when compared to the lean aggression that fired "I Got Mine," from 2008's Attack & Release, but the former song's creeping eighth note bassline and eerie, clanging keyboard stabs were thrilling in their own right.

The Black Keys may be making music based in a style that predates SPIN's 1985 founding by, oh, 70 years or so, but as they proved last night, some sounds never get old. And as long as they're played with as much fire and passion as they were on this night, there's no reason they ever will.

Setlist:
1. "Hold Me In Your Arms"
2. "Girl Is On My Mind"
3. "10 A.M. Automatic"
4. "The Breaks"
5. "Stack Shot Billy"
6. "Busted"
7. "Everywhere I Go"
8. "Strange Times"
9. "Same Old Thing"
10. "Everlasting Light"
11. "Next Girl"
12. "Chop and Change"
13. "Howlin' For You"
14. "Tighten Up"
15. "She's Long Gone"
16. "Ten Cent Pistol"
17. "Your Touch"
18. "I'll Be Your Man"
19. "I Got Mine"

Encore:
20. "Too Afraid To Love You"
21. "Sinister Kid"
22. "Til I Get My Way"

Everything is Zen with Gavin Rossdale.

The London-bred rocker has two sons (Kingston, 4, and Zuma, 23 months) with his wife, No Doubt singer Gwen Stefani, and a successful solo career; his debut album WANDERlust hit No. 8 on the rock charts in 2008. Now he's returning to his musical beginnings by reforming the post-grunge hitmakers Bush, who split eight years ago.

In June, the band unveiled plans for a reunion concert (singer Rossdale and drummer Robin Goodridge are the participating original members) on September 25 at Los Angeles' Epicenter Music Festival. Even better, the quartet -- also featuring bassist Corey Britz and guitarist Chris Traynor -- will release their fifth studio album, Everything Always Now, in October, followed by a worldwide tour.

Chatty and buoyant, the 42-year-old rocker phoned SPIN from his L.A. home to discuss his band's "evolved" new album, why he can't say the word "grunge," and his desire to play Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich in a match of tennis.

Hey, Gavin. How's it going?
Great. L.A. is super hot. Being English and living here feels like you're on holiday every day. It's the weirdest thing. As a kid, if you ever got to go away to the sun, you'd come back with a tan. It was so fun having a tan. The weirdest thing about living here is you go away somewhere, and it's sunny, then you come back and it's sunny.

What a nice problem to have.
[Laughs] On a superficial level, it's great.

So, the Bush reunion. Exciting! But why now?
For eight years I've been patiently waiting, gently pressing those guys and saying, "Come on, what else is there? What else are we going to do? We're doomed if we're not working with Bush." Then when I began to work on these songs after the WANDERlust tour, I was thinking that the only thing working against this material is me. Being released under my name sucks. It gives the album a ceiling. On the solo tour I was thinking, "Awwww, man, it would be so much better if I could do these songs with Bush, as Bush, and give them a fair run." So I rang the band up and asked them to do it, and just took whoever was willing [laughs]. Fuck it. Mark E. Smith can do it and it's always called the Fall. Why can't I be in that situation?

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Did you have any worries about reuniting the band?
Not really. In a way it was liberating. I just wanted to make music I'm proud of and tour. I look at it like a great festival bill. When you're looking down a bill with great bands, whether it's Sonic Youth or Pixies or the National, just having your own name up there always felt so weird to me. With Bush it feels far more natural.

Why aren't original guitarist Nigel Pulsford and bassist Dave Parsons in on the reunion?
Well, I've been speaking to Nigel a lot and each time I do a record, I'd ask him to do it. He's happy and it's not something he wanted to do -- he has a family. I spoke to Dave. I was surprised because I thought he'd do it. He thought about it for the weekend and then said he couldn't. He didn't want to commit and then back out -- he didn't know how long he could tour. It's an absurd amount of work. After all this time away we can't expect to just reappear without a lot of effort, you know?

How do you balance your personal life with your music?
It's always painful when I leave on tour. It's the hardest thing. It never used to be difficult -- I just had my dog and that was it. Now it's not easy, but it's reality. I want to set an example for my kids. I say, "Look at this house… this is how you get it." I don't understand the idea that you're unable to do both. People have done it for a long time, and you find a balance. I'm not going to be one of those dads who are always away and doesn't have any contact with home. I'm the opposite. I like that nomadic lifestyle and bringing the kids along is cool -- they love it.

NEXT: What can fans expect from Bush's new album? >>

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Our sound is a bit evolved. It's interesting seeing the reactions to [first single] "Afterlife." It's like, "You're damned if you do, damned if you don't." Some reactions are, "Man, this is great! I love it! Bush are back!" Others are, "This sucks. You should listen to what they were like in 1995." You can't win. I would be easy to recreate the same sound -- just turn the guitars up and be a little more reckless. But everyone is meant to evolve. [Laughs] But if I was really smart I would've made Sixteen Stone over and over and over again. But that's not me. Being English, there's that whole club element, too. With The Science of Things, I was trying to expand with songs like "The Chemicals Between Us." It had some bleeps and whistles and drum machines. With this record it's about finding the balance between uplifting music that's got real energy and real vibe, but isn't bone crushing. Bush, to me, was never a heavy band, but we always had the right amount of thrust. I hope we captured that with this record. I was just mastering the album and it still worries me: "More guitar? More drums?" It keeps me awake at night, but it's so close to being done. But we're not recreating what Bush once was. Over our five records, Bush was a different band each time.

Tell me about a few songs on the record.
The album opens with a song called "The Mirror of the Signs," which is a powerful song. It's about when you look back on your life and eulogize or get nostalgic about where you've been. I lost a couple close friends this last year, one who committed suicide and one who overdosed. It's rough when you lose people unexpectedly. It makes me wistful for more carefree days. This song is about looking back and seeing yourself in the mirror. You catch these moments when you think about what went down or what happened. I would've liked to have more time with those two people. My friend Sean committed suicide while I was on the road. That was really bad. He was a close friend and a great inspiration, but I couldn't make it back for the funeral. So I wrote something and Gwen read it. She stopped because it was too painful. That shaped the album a lot. Life is so precious but it's easy to be a little bombastic and not appreciate it.

Has becoming a father and husband changed your writing?
Not really. It's funny now because in the age that we live in there's such a focus on celebrity, with Gwen and the whole paparazzi thing. It's weird when you think of Bob Marley, who had like 14 kids. I don't know if he was ever asked that question.

Can fans expect a full U.S. tour?
Yeah. We're talking about possibly releasing an EP before the full album because there was a lot of excitement that came from the first news that we were reforming. Then the single came out, and now it's doing great on radio… whatever that means nowadays. The record comes in October, but October is a long time from now. I love the idea of an EP. It makes me feel like I'm on Rough Trade Records, which of course I'd love to be [laughs].

Is the Bush reunion a one-off album project?
No, I think it's the opposite. Obviously, there's danger in nostalgia. We don't want people to say, "just please play Sixteen Stone." I want to make to keep making records that people dig and -- "dig," wow, that's so Santana, I've never used that word. I want to make records that people connect to and I think I've done that with this one.

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What is the meaning of the album's title, Everything Always Now?
It's about the culture we live in and the idea of instant gratification. With music, I love that ability to identify pain and come through it. And even though it's a difficult for me to say the word "grunge," I like depressing music because I identify with it. But I also like uplifting, powerful stuff. Opening for U2 for five weeks and watching them onstage every night was incredible. Seeing a crowd truly love what they're watching is amazing, even when the songs are quite painful. There's a collective happiness that I wanted to get into the album's title.

You're collaborating with Santana to cover a T-Rex song. That seems like an odd pairing.
He's like Mr. Music. Think of him playing guitar and zoning out onstage at Woodstock… it's amazing. You don't turn Mr. Music down. I really wanted to cover [Pink Floyd's] "Comfortably Numb" with him. I thought he would really nail it. He could out-Gilmore Gilmore. The other track I suggested was T-Rex's "Bang a Gong" and he picked that one. I was like, "Really?" Anyways. I sang it and now he goes to play on it. He's the king. I just love to do collaborations and weirdly, well, maybe not weirdly, I've been asked to do a lot. I recently did a song with [Finnish cello rockers] Apocalyptica, too.

You're an avid tennis player. Have you ever played another rock star?
No, not really. But I heard Zach [De La Rocha] from Rage [Against the Machine] really likes to play. I know that [Metallica drummer] Lars Ulrich's dad was a pro and that Lars went to the [tennis school] Bollettieri Academy. I don't know if Lars plays anymore, but I'm sure he's still a great player. I'd love to play him.

Austin, Texas, rockers the Black Angels have always reached back into the past for musical inspiration, but on the super catchy "Telephone," a cut from their upcoming third album, Phosphene Dream (out Sept. 14), the band is trading in some of their earlier influences (the Velvet Underground, '80s shoegaze) for the perky '60s sounds of fellow Austinites and garage pop trailblazers the 13th Floor Elevators. Download the track below!

Working with producer Dave Sardy (Wolfmother, Oasis), the quintet reeled in the noisy, stretched out sprawl of their first two records: "Telephone" is barely two minutes long, and it's a gleeful shimmy, with splashy organs and handclaps galore.

But underneath the giddy exterior, the song has a darker lining: Singer Alex Maas' lyrics describe fruitless attempts to reach a lover on the phone, only to cross paths with them later, on the train. "You make me sick inside," Maas howls at the end, after the maddening discovery. "You make me wanna die!"

"It's about no one hearing your calling, while everything around you is crumbling, about being left lonely and nothing seeming holy," guitarist Christian Bland tells SPIN.com.

As for the sound of "Telephone," Bland has a supernatural theory of how the song came to be. "I bought a 355 12-string Rickenbacker in April '09 while we were out recording [Phosphene Dream] in L.A., and the song must've been stuck inside the guitar, because once I picked it up to play, it came right out," he says. "It was waiting for me to channel."

But fans of the band's earlier work need not worry: There are plenty of heady trips on Phosphene Dream, and they temper a psychedelic, Jefferson Airplane vibe with the pop acumen of the Lovin' Spoonful.

As of now, the Black Angels have but one scheduled U.S. live date: September 5 in upstate New York, for this year's All Tomorrow's Parties festival.

What do you think of "Telephone"? Download the track and sound off in the comments.

LISTEN: Black Angels, "Telephone" (DOWNLOAD MP3)

After kicking off their first tour in two years earlier this summer (read SPIN's review here), Interpol have added 13 more dates in the United States this fall -- starting on October 18 at the Fox Theater in Oakland, CA. See the new dates below.

The former SPIN cover boys, touring for the first time since the departure of longtime bassist Carlos D, are making the trek in support of their self-titled fourth album, which drops September 7.

The tour's current leg hits Richmond, Virginia, Norfolk, Virginia, and Atlantic City in the coming days, and wraps August 21 in Miami -- click here for the full itinerary.

Fans who can't wait another month for new Interpol tracks can pre-order the LP on iTunes here, and will receive a free MP3 of the first single "Barricade." The band also released "Lights" as a free single -- watch the video here.

For a sneak peek at what's in store on this tour, check out the band's performance tonight on The Late Show with David Letterman.

How do you feel about Interpol's new tunes so far? Tell us in the comment section below!

New Interpol tour dates:
10/18, Oakland, CA (Fox Theater)
10/21, San Diego, CA (Soma)
10/22, Las Vegas, NV (The Joint)
10/23, Los Angeles, CA (The Greek)
10/25, Denver, CO (Ogden Theater)
10/27, Dallas, TX, (Palladium)
10/28, Austin, TX (Stubb’s)
10/29, Houston, TX (Verizon)
10/31, New Orleans, LA (Voodoo Festival)
11/01, Atlanta, GA, (Tabernacle)
11/03, Washington, DC (Constitution Hall)
11/04, Philadelphia, PA, (Tower Theatre)
11/05, New York, NY (United Palace)

Singer-songwriter Pete Yorn has worked with a wide range of collaborators, including R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck, actress Scarlett Johansson, and performer-producer Butch Walker (Pink, Avril Lavigne). His latest partner: Pixies frontman Frank Black. Yorn recruited the alt-rock pioneer to produce his self-titled new album, due September 28. Download the first leak, "Precious Stone," in exchange for a retweet, here, or listen below!

The song is a back-to-basics pop rock track with enough gritty electric guitars, hummable melodies, and lovelorn lyrics to make Wallflowers-era Jakob Dylan blush. "I found a way to live forever / I found a place where no one cares / I see your eyes so blue / You talked to me with such sincerity / Oh, how I wanted you," he sings, before letting loose a guitar solo that's uncharacteristically rippin', and then dropping into a ohhhhh, ahhhhhh, ahhhhhh sing-along. Catchy!

Yorn explains that he recorded the eleven "fucked up and raw" tracks for the new album at Black's Salem, OR, studio. The stripped-down production is characteristic of Black's countrified Nashville solo albums. "Frank has an incredible ability to distill a song down to its core," Pete Yorn says.

"There's something about it that's really empowering. It's a minimalist record for me, all of the instrumentation is distilled down to a more simple form…. It's filled with imperfections, but I like that, it just seems more natural that way."

"I tried to get the session into a fearless and raw place," Black says of working with Yorn. "To his artistic credit Pete took his songwriting to a fearless and raw place. This listener will find his or herself sitting right next to Pete on the couch. And the record totally rocks out."

What do you think of "Precious Stone"? Let us know in the comments section below!

LISTEN: Pete Yorn, "Precious Stone"
Pete Yorn by Oedipus

[Updated: 7:04 P.M.]

NEWS:

 

Q&A: GAVIN ROSSDALE to Reunite BUSH
"If I was smart I would've made Sixteen Stone over and over again. But that's not me." [SPIN]

MICHAEL JACKSON Doctors Won't Be Charged in Pop Singer's Death
Investigators excuse seven doctors who treated the singer, focus efforts on his personal doc Conrad Murray. [MTV]

KANYE WEST Debuts New Songs at Twitter Headquarters
One day after previewing new tunes at Facebook HQ, the rapper heads to Twitter for another acapella show. [MTV]

'80s New Wave Band CARS to Reunite?
Ric Ocasek and co. post a photo of themselves in a Boston studio, suggesting they're ending 23-year split and reuniting. [Stereogum]

EMINEM Holds No. 1 Spot on Charts for Fifth Week Straight!
Recovery sells another 187,000 copies, topping albums from Rick Ross (No. 2), Sheryl Crow (No. 3). [Billboard]

INTERPOL Add U.S. Tour Dates
The New York City rockers add 13 stops in the U.S. this fall. [SPIN]

MADONNA to Announce "Hip-Hop" Tour
Madge will return to her New York City roots with the "street" feel of her six-month trek, expected to be announced soon. [GigWise]

M.I.A. Disses LADY GAGA, OPRAH
Sri Lankan provocateur said O gave her the "cold shoulder" at a recent party, and that Gaga's rise to fame wasn't "that difficult." [Time Out London]

THE FLAMING LIPS Wow for SPIN's 25th Anniversary
Twenty-seven years into their existence, the Okies from Weirdville bring energy, vitality, and musical relevance to an adoring crowd. [SPIN]

ARCADE FIRE's Butler Lauds BONO, President BUSH
In a new interview, the frontman applauds the AIDS relief work of the U2 singer and the former president. [SPIN]

 

MP3s & VIDEOS:

 

DOWNLOAD: New Song from THE BLACK ANGELS
The Austin psych rockers go '60s retro on "Telephone," a taste of their upcoming third album. [SPIN]

WATCH: THE FLAMING LIPS Rock 'Letterman'
Oklahoma psychedelic band freak out on a version of "See the Leaves," from their latest album Embryonic. [YouTube]

DOWNLOAD: JENS LEKMAN Premieres New Song
Swede singer-songwriter offers hope to the heartbroken with "The End of the World Is Bigger Than Love." [Jens Lekman]

LISTEN: New KID CUDI Song
Hear "Mojo So Dope," off the Cleveland rapper's Man On The Moon II, scheduled to drop October 26. [Nah Right]

WATCH: Trailer for 'YOGI BEAR' Featuring Voice by JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE
Pop singer continues his shift from music to the silver screen with this CGI movie, out December 17. [Yahoo]

FIRST LISTEN: PIXIES' FRANK BLACK Produces PETE YORN
New Jersey troubadour releases track from his upcoming self-titled album, out September 28. [SPIN]

WATCH: FOO FIGHTERS Guitarist Debuts Video for Solo Project
Chris Shifflet & the Dead Peasants post performance clip for "Get Along," a rock ballad from their debut album. [Punk News]

WATCH: ISLANDS Premiere Two New Songs Acoustic
Canadian indie rockers play "Shotgun Vision" and "Lonely Love," both off their upcoming album. [You Ain't No Picasso]

WATCH: KANYE WEST Performs for FACEBOOK Staff
Ever the bizarre self-promoter, the rapper drops new, a cappella verses in a conference room. [SPIN]

WATCH: New Video from THE ROOTS with JOHN LEGEND
The cinematic clip features a post-apocalyptic death march with a cryptic conclusion. [SPIN]

"Everyone always says that when bands play places like L.A. and New York that no one wants to have a good time," frontman Wayne Coyne told the giddy crowd at Manhattan's Terminal 5 before The Flaming Lips' show last night. "But I think that's fucking bullshit!"

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Photos by Ben Rowland and Jackie Roman  
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New York may have a blasé reputation (well-deserved or not), but on Tuesday the Lips' fans proved the city's critics wrong, and Coyne right. And really, how could they not have had a good time? Together for 27 years, The Flaming Lips are the only band playing SPIN's week-long 25th anniversary concert series (presented in conjunction with ZYNC from American Express) who are older than the magazine itself. But despite their age, Coyne and his cronies have remained one of rock's most thrilling, most inventive—most euphoric—live acts.

Nearly every song Tuesday night came with its own wacky prop. For the show's opening instrumental jam, Coyne brought out his man-sized "space bubble"—a giant transparent ball that allowed the singer to literally walk on top of the crowd's outstretched hands in a sort of zero gravity crowd-surf.

For "See the Leaves," Coyne donned a massive pair of prosthetic hands that he used to (what else) reflect light beams back at two disco balls hanging above the stage.

For "Pompeii Am Gotterdammerung," Coyne played a gong with lights mounted on its frame that exploded in a riot of blues and reds with each whack. And there was, of course, a near constant stream of confetti and balloons throughout the night, the former shot from canons mounted on either side of the stage.

But the Lips' best trick may have been their very first. Every band member save for Coyne emerged onstage birthed out of a woman's crotch—or to be more precise, out of a trap door in a screen on which a giant projection of a naked woman sat splayed, her vulva bathed in an iridescent glow. New York loved it.

Of course, The Flaming Lips didn't win three Grammys for nothing. They also write great songs. And last night was full of them. "Silver Trembling Hands," from last year's weird and wonderful Embryonic, was a turbulent ride through horror-movie psych and smooth funk. It also went on for nearly 10 minutes, coming to a near stop twice only to start up again, Steven Drozd's buzz-saw guitar egged on by Coyne's manic vocal riffs on the song's chorus ("When she's high")—"I wanna fucking fuck high!"

The Lips also found time for a little sweetness and light. "She Don't Use Jelly," a surprise radio hit back in 1993, was a welcome blast of nostalgia—the audience mouthing every word. And for "I Can Be a Frog," also from Embryonic, Coyne roped the crowd into an old-fashioned game of call-and-response: Every time the frontman inserted a new animal or thing into the song's verse (as in "I can be bear" or "I can be a warrior Indian") the crowd had to respond with the appropriate noise (in this case, rrrroarr, roar and yee yee yee yeee). Which they dutifully did, smiling all the while. Talk about blasé...

The Lips proved they are more than their reputation. Despite how crazed and strange the band can be, they're really romantics who just want to change the world with a little peace, love, and rock 'n' roll. "Everyone always tells me The Flaming Lips play to the greatest audiences that can ever be," Coyne said before the band's encore, an ecstatically beautiful "Do You Realize??" which had everyone in the building singing along. "And it's true. They always bring the most energy, enthusiasm, and love—and that's really the stuff that can change the world." Now how weird is that?

Meanwhile... Brooklyn's Fang Island opened the show with a good dose of enthusiasm themselves. Sporting three guitarists with a phalanx of Orange amps behind then, the quintet turned out rah-rah fight songs full of major-key melodies, hearty sing-alongs, and stunning guitar harmonies. Their Andrew W.K. meets Thin Lizzy sound was a little confusing for the Lips fans, who aren't the head-banding sort. But they couldn't deny Fang Island's righteous flag-waving, particularly when, by the band's epic closer, some dude (presumably a member of the band's entourage) was actually onstage waving a giant orange flag. Wayne would be proud.

Setlist:
1. Intro Jam
2. "Worm Mountain"
3. "Silver Trembling Hands"
4. "She Don't Use Jelly"
5. "Yeah Yeah Yeah Song"
6. "The Sparrow Looks Up at the Machine"
7. "In the Morning of the Magicians"
8. "I Can Be a Frog"
9. "Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots Pt. 1"
10. "See the Leaves"
11. "Pompeii Am Gotterdammerung"
12. "Taps" (cover)
13. "The W.A.N.D."

Encore:
14. "Do You Realize??"

The end of the world, according to the Roots, looks a lot like post-World War II Europe, only worse. Shot in dusty, dulled, almost-black-and-white, the band's video for new song "The Fire" is a nightmarish five minutes of kidnapping, cannibalism, and murder, all set to the track's haunting groove and John Legend's vocals: "You don't say good luck / You say don't give up."

Directed by hip-hop video regular Rik Cordero, the film's plot centers around a splinter cell of military officers traveling the countryside, kidnapping young men and killing pretty much anyone they feel like. The theme is survival -- the enslaved young men struggle on, despite cannibalistic cookouts and frequent point-blank executions. Cryptically, the group's carries a white tin box with a leaf painted on top; in the beginning of the clip, he holds it up, advising: "This is not a game."

Eventually, one captive escapes with the box, which seems to be they key to it all. Only, it doesn't seem like there's anything in the box. To quote Brad Pitt in Seven, "What's in the booooox?" Who knows. Its deep. It's the end of the world.

"The Fire" comes from the group's latest release, How I Got Over, an album showcasing a more "fulfilled" (yet still politicized) Roots. On deck for the band is a full-length collaboration with John Legend, a '60s and '70s cover album entitled Wake Up!, out September 21.

Watch the video for "The Fire" below -- post what you think's in the box in the comments section!

WATCH: The Roots "The Fire" feat. John Legend

Hip-hop has already conquered the board room, but Kanye West now has his sights set on the conference room. The Chicago rapper took the wraps off some new rhymes from his next album (rumored to be out Sept. 14), and delivered them without musical accompaniment to an audience of Facebook staffers in their Palo Alto, CA, office. Watch the videos below.

"I've been writing new stuff for the new album, and I've got a couple of raps I really like," West said with a smile, standing on a conference table in his well-tailored suit, hoping he wasn't "wearing out his welcome" at the social media company. But the biz-casual crowd egged him on, and West delivered, dropping verses in a freestyle manner that sounded more church preacher or poetry slammer than chart-topping MC.

"Let's break out of this fake-ass party, turn this into a classic night," West rhymed on one song, which blog 2DopeBoyz is calling "Lost in This World." "If we die in each other's arms, still get laid in the afterlife."

On "Chain Heavy," West unleashed this line: "They try to tell me aliens built the pyramids / I swear, life's a bitch on her period." And on another untitled song, West boasted about hanging on a speedboat, in his boat shoes, and walking into Nobu like it was Whole Foods.

In a blog post on his official site, West enthused about the experience with his "friends from Facebook": "Many times in life I've had to deal with moments of doubt. And as it’s been a minute since I've performed any fresh material in front of an audience, this could've been one of those moments… but it wasn’t. Your energy was a gift so electric, so genuine, that it really helped me give my best. The energy was so inspiring I had to keep going!"

So far, West has just released one new single from the new album, "Power," which he immediately put up for sale via iTunes. Among the reported contributors: Q-Tip, RZA, Nicki Minaj, Kid Cudi, Pete Rock, and many more. Meanwhile, Hype Williams just completed shooting on a video for "Power."

While much of the world has yet to hear anything beyond "Power," the praise for 'Ye's new music is already coming in hot and heavy, particularly from Rick Ross. "I was just like, Wow... It's The Chronic all over," the Florida rapper told MTV, referring to Dr. Dre's classic album. "That's exactly what I said when I walked into the room: This is The Chronic, this is how it had to be."

West also joined Twitter today, in the midst of a slew of meetings in Silicon Valley, and tweeted that he'd scrapped Good Ass Job as the title of his new album.

WATCH: Kanye West Intro

WATCH: Kanye West, "Lost In This World" and "Chain Heavy"

WATCH: Kanye West, "Mama's Boyfriend"

What do you think of Kanye's conference room sessions? Sound off below.

Arcade Fire lead singer Win Butler is praising fellow rocker Bono not just for his infamous political philanthropy, but for "engaging" with former president George W. Bush in a discussion of American AIDS relief policy.

Although the U2 singer's collaborations with Bush had been criticized by fans and bandmates alike, Butler applauded Bono's dedication in a new NME piece. "As much as people slag Bono, I will forever give him credit for engaging with George W. Bush when he was president," Butler said. "Even though it was a deeply unpopular move, even in his own band … Bono was engaged in the work, even when the situation wasn't ideal."

Bono made public appearances with Bush in 2002, when the president unveiled a $5 billion AIDS package at the White House, and in 2006, where he praised Bush's African relief efforts at the National Prayer Breakfast.

Butler also praised the Bush administration's HIV relief policies, saying that "the HIV medications in Africa, every aspect of the U.S. foreign policy -- it was a hell of a lot more than any other president before had done."

Arcade Fire's 10-stop string of North America dates in anticipation of their upcoming album, The Suburbs (out August 3). Their August 5 show in New York City will be broadcast online -- click here for details.

How do you feel about Butler praising Bono and Bush? Sound off below.