March 2008 Archives

by Piotr Orlov

We all know by now that remixing classic songs -- like remaking classic films -- is the folly of the foolhardy. (Fatboy Slim's take on "Sympathy for the Devil" or Tim Burton's Planet of the Apes -- choose your pop-culture poison?) But every once in a while, a mash-up combo comes along that you can not argue with -- at least not before you've had a little taste, and maybe not even then. And whaddaya know, not only have we got a trio of said combos, pitting a few well-worn tracks vs. some of today's rhythm specialists, they're all free as air! How's that for a deal?

From the vaults of Delicious Vinyl Records, the late '80s/early '90s Los Angeles label that helped define hip-hop's New School, come remixes of their biggest artists: First off, B-more breaks specialists Aaron LaCrate & Debonair Samir pull up to the bumper of Young MC's stone-cold "Know How" and pimp into a 21st century ride. Then, Peaches, our favorite Canadian tart, drags Tone-Loc and his multi-platinum R-rated anthem "Wild Thing" into a XXX hot-tub orgy. You know you wanna hear that! (And a full album of Delicious Vinyl remixes is on the way...)

John Norris is back for the second of his intensive, incisive and exclusive video interviews for Rhapsody. In this episode, John catches up with Bradford Cox, who muses on the creative processes behind Deerhunter and Atlas Sound and some of the music that inspired both projects. Check out part two of their chat after the jump.

by Chuck Eddy 

Not that Prophecy’s quite batting 1.000; for instance, Throne of the Depths from Northern Germany’s Drautran just gives me a headache. And IIII, by fellow Krauts Farsot, doesn’t really grab me until “Thematik: Trauer,” the uplifting 20-minute-plus semi-pianofied monster dirge it ends on. (Farsot do have crazy names, though: 10.XIXt does vocals, v.03/170 keyboards, 3818.w and Pi: 1T 5r guitars, R₂15k drums.)

Song: Go Cubs Go
Album: No Big Surprise: The Steve Goodman Anthology
Artist: Steve Goodman
Selected by: Jon Maples
Date: March 31, 2008

It has been said that hope springs eternal, but fans of the Chicago Cubs have suffered through 99 springs of high expectations only to be crushed by the fall. So on the 100th anniversary of the Cubs last championship season, we turn to Steve Goodman to tip off the season.

Play It Now

By Toshitaka Kondo

Song: Mo Better
Album: Love Behind the Melody
Artist: Raheem Devaughn
Selected by: Toshi Kondo
Date: March 28, 2008

Clocking in at a little over seven and a half minutes, Raheem DeVaughn channels the classic soul of yesteryear. Over slow, soothing horns and sharp guitar riffs, he paints a picture of how euphoric true love can be.

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by Chuck Eddy 

It didn’t really click with me that Ashton Shepherd’s debut album is called Sounds So Good until long after I’d started noticing how good it sounds. And it sounds really good, no kidding - so good that I’ve repeatedly played it from beginning to end, even though, rare for a country album of its visibility, it seems somewhat lacking in startling peaks.

Song: Rollerskate Skinny
Album: Satellite Rides
Artist: Old '97s
Selected by: Nate Cavalieri
Date: March 27, 2008

This rollicking dedication to someone "pretty as a penny, rollerskate skinny" was a highlight for the Old '97s. Even if the lyrics don't make so much sense at face value, when the big falsetto hits, singing "I believe in love, but it don't believe in me," it makes all the sense in the world.

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By Toshitaka Kondo

On this exclusive Rhap Session video interview, funky-fresh-to-death Chicago hipster rap duo The Cool Kids stop by to talk about the birth of their hit “Black Mags,” ponder the power of blogosphere, and explain why “this whole generation of entertainers is out of their minds right now.”

“’Je Voix Te Voir’ is a funny dis,” says French electro-pop chanteuse and MTV Artist of the Week Yelle. “I talk about his short d*ck. I just say, ‘You think you are a pimp, but you are not!’” Sacré blue! What is this chick talking about? Well, she’s explaining the concept behind “Je Voix Te Voir,” a jokey jab at French rap group TTC’s Cuizinier, and the song that propelled her to stardom in France and set off a buzz about the perpetually spandex-clad Day-Glo fly girl ‘round the globe. While talking smut has caused quite a hoopla, Yelle, equal parts doe-eyed honey and swaggering b-girl, proves that le freak c'est chic and thrives on taboo, a realm she returns to over and over on her debut album Pop Up, which she crafted alongside beatsmiths and homeboys Grand Marnier and TEPR. Yelle made her stateside debut this past February at New York’s Knitting Factory (read our review here), and blew adoring fans out of the water with her high-octane rock-rave-rap show antics. The very cheeky Yelle took some time to talk to Rhapsody about her naughty lyrics, the Tecktonik dance craze (as seen in these MTV spots) and working with MIA. 

Song: Think About You
Album: Appetite for Destruction
Artist: Guns N' Roses
Selected by: Jen Guyre
Date: March 26, 2008

Axl & co. saved one of their best heavy-metal love songs for the mega fans. They bury this fist-pumping, high-energy treasure in the faultless track listing of their debut masterpiece, Appetite for Destruction.

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by Chris Ryan

Once upon a time, I went out to Long Island with a friend to go see a couple of N-th wave emo bands share their MySpace with some kids at an all ages show. It's a testament to my oncoming senility that I can't remember the exact year, nor can I recall more than two of the half-dozen bands playing at the Bennigans-turned-rock-club that served as a venue; but, given that one of the bands playing was Paramore, and given that they weren't headlining (that slot was taken up by Cute Is What We Aim For), and given that they went on to blitz the hearts and wallets of the teen-at-heart, let's call it the time 2006, and let me admit that that was probably the last time I really devoted brain cells to the Tennessee four-piece. That is, until Idolator shouted out their new video yesterday.

By Rachel Devitt

He's got the whole world in his hands.

Sure, you love Kelly, Clay and Jordin. And Randy, Simon and Paula? They're like old, kind of annoying, possibly crazy friends by now. But what about Rini, Thaeme and Timi? The winners of Indonesian Idol,  Idolos Brasil and Idols West Africa might not be household names in the U.S., but they're well on their way to becoming big stars in their home regions, thanks to the many Idol spin-offs that have cropped up around the world since the franchise launched in the U.K. in 2001. We review the best, the brightest and the most YouTube-worthy moments of Idol's international incarnations.

Song: Hip-Hop Saved My Live
Album: The Cool
Artist: Lupe Fiasco
Selected by: Sam Chennault
Date: March 25, 2008

Over the past years, even the most dedicated hip-hop heads have become cynical about the role of the genre in urban culture. But Lupe’s song is unapologetic in its optimism about the possibility that hip-hop can be transformative, if not in the service of some greater cultural agenda than at least in a small, personal way.

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by Chuck Eddy 

One of 2008’s more stomachable byproducts of the bands-landing-songs-in-videogames phenomenon (and maybe the Nickelback-raking-in-zillions-for-Roadrunner-Records phenomenon for that matter) has been the U.S. success - or okay, to be more precise, the U.S.not-absolute-failure - of Runnin' Wild, the debut full-length by the four-Aussie-brat-band Airbourne. Basically, I’m applying the Jet rule here, which states: If a band from Australia who sort of sound like AC/DC are selling records, it can’t be a bad thing.

by Chuck Eddy 

The blues and punk have been swapping spit and other infected bodily fluids since the glory days of Killdozer, if not the Gun Club, if not Motor Boys Motor, if not the Animals, if not John Lee Hooker. And more power to bands like the White Stripes to Black Keys if they can make money off the age-old miscegenation this late in the game. Something else those two acts have in common (besides the color-names and two-people stuff I mean) is that they both come from the Midwest. And they’re not alone there.

Song: Entropy Reigns (in the Celestial City)
Album: I Need You to Hold on While the Sky Is Falling
Artist: Kelly Polar
Selected by: Dan Shumate
Date: March 24, 2008

If you close your eyes real tight, you might mistake Kelley Polar’s “Entropy Reigns” for the electro-funk confections of the Thompson Twins. But it’s brand new and done without affectation or the slightest bit of irony by a reclusive Juilliard-trained musician.

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by Chuck Eddy 

This year’s best country single so far - not to mention the most hip-hop-cognizant country-funk of its kind since Big & Rich’s eternal “Rollin' (The Ballad of Big & Rich)” four years ago - is “Holler Back” by Hotlanta  fivesome the Lost Trailers. The rhythm is a highly volatile mixture of banjo and bass, and here’s how the words go: “I got a city boy friend in the hip-hop world/He goes by E-Diddy but his name is Earl/Cocks his hat to the side in his grandma’s ride pumping nothing but bass/He says things like, 'Dawg are you down with that and don’t that fly girl got some back'/And I feel so doggone out of place.” Then there’s holler-and-response parts, and instructions for cowgirls to shake their sassafras (see also: “Hot Smoke and Sassafras,” Bubble Puppy, 1969), which cowgirls at the Dusty Armadillo in Rootstown, Ohio, are already doing.

Song: I Miss You
Album: Harold Melvin & The Bluenotes
Artist: Harold Melvin & The Bluenotes
Selected by: Angela Bruno
Date: March 21, 2008

If you’re gonna kick yourself about the one that got away (as fast as they could) no thanks to your own foolish inanities, please do it properly. Just follow Teddy Pendergrass’ lead: get down on your knees and plead, kick, scream and beg until you’ve collapsed into a heap and exorcised all that regret from your system. The Blue Notes will help wipe the tears away.

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by Chris Ryan

Even if you don't have the liquidity to purchase an Ice Cream Denim Monster Popsicle "Crystals" jacket (easily had at the "what recession?" price of $880), Pharrell Williams and the rest of the shadowy Billionaires Boys Club have something else more tailored to the everyman's price range: a free MP3.

by Chris Ryan

A while back, Rhapsody talked with Sonic Youth's Thurston Moore about the then recently released Rather Ripped. We also took the opportunity to ask Moore about Sonic Youth's 25 years of beautiful noise-making, and the songs and artists who've inspired envy and adoration from him over his long career.

Song: Melos
Album: O Danima
Artist: Darkwood Dub
Selected by: Sarah Bardeen
Date: March 20, 2008

Serbian rockers don't top anybody's list of anything -- except in Belgrade -- but they should. This dreamy, beautifully executed song holds an ocean of calm in its arms.

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by Chuck Eddy 

So this month’s big rock’n’roll news from the land Down Under, as you’ve probably noticed seeing how it’s been all over the media (well, okay, buried on page A5 in The New York Times last Friday) has nothing to do with sharing vegemite sandwiches or traveling in a fried-out combie. Nope - it’s about Peter Garrett (former lead Gumby of all-time earnest rock band Midnight Oil, now environment minister of Oz) refusing to stop the killing of kangaroos! Four hundred of the critters, to be exact, in the Australian Capital Territory, where Aussie officials plan to exterminate them via “sedation by darting, then euthanasia by lethal injection,” according to the Times piece, in order to prevent overpopulation that would in turn put other flora and fauna, including the ‘roos themselves, in harm’s way.

Song: Chicago Zoo
Album: Black Mags
Artist: Cool Kids 
Selected by: Toshi Kondo
Date: March 19, 2008

Chicago’s Cool Kids bring a futuristic electronic sound with a gritty retro feel. Without being gratuitous, they capture the essence of their city, deftly mixing in gang references with lines about fly fishing.

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by Chris Ryan

Next time you find yourself shuffling through the crowd at a D.C. indie-rock show, and you hear a young, blonde woman listlessly utter, "I liked their early stuff," take note! It could be John McCain's indie-spawn Meghan McCain! Check out Meghan's campaign trail playlist over at her McCain Blogette site (which we came across via the always quick to the draw folks at Wonkette). One look at the abundance of indie (from Wolf Parade to Neutral Milk Hotel to mid-'90s Screaming Trees) will be enough to prove Meghan ain't a member of the Republican or Democratic party; sister votes All Tomorrow's Parties (rimshot!).

Further Reading:
Meghan McCain's Blogette Playlists (McCain Blogette)

by Chris Ryan

What’s new? What’s good? What will you find here that you won't hear anywhere else this week? Sit back, relax and click through to the premieres, the originals and the exclusives available only on Rhapsody! This week:

Madonna (feat. Justin Timberlake), "4 Minutes" (Rhapsody Exclusive)
Madonna has enlisted the talents of Timberlake and Timbaland to up jump her boogie and help out with beats, rhymes and her scheduled creative reinvention. The result is a blistering track that makes up for its vagueness, in regards to how they plan on saving the world, with a beat that'll rescue you from a boring night out.

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Black Tide, Light From Above (Rhapsody Ones to Watch)
The young guns from Florida drop metal sing-a-longs of their own ("Warriors of Time") as well as pay tribute to their heroes with Metallica's "Hit the Lights."

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by Chuck Eddy 

Like many great rock bands, alt- and otherwise, Cleveland art-punk pioneers Pere Ubu stuck around too long resting on their laurels, so maybe their legacy suffered. If you came of age in the ‘90s or ‘00s, maybe you read some unjustifiably glowing review of, say, 1995's Ray Gun Suitcase, shelled out shekels, and felt understandably rooked. Perhaps that’s why young bands - even the noise hordes these days who occasionally cite no wave legends like Mars or the Contortions - almost never seem to namedrop Ubu anymore.

Song: Honey Honey
Album: The Reminder
Artist: Feist
Selected by: Rachel Devitt
Date: March 18, 2008

If we hear freaking "1234" ONE more time, we're gonna show Feist one of our digits. Yeah! But there's something so spellbinding about “Honey Honey.” Maybe it's the harp. Or maybe it's because it was just used in a particularly hot “L Word” scene. (That's right. Spelling is the new counting, Leslie.)

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Here's something new for you: The Rhapsody blog got MTV News' John Norris to put some questions to electronic pop wunderkind White Williams in this exclusive Rhapsody video interview. And it turned out so well, that we decided to make a series of it. "John Norris Interviews ... White Williams" is the first of many video Q&As with young and adventurous artists, conducted by Norris. And you will find them on Play: The Rhapsody Blog. Part two of Norris' interview after the jump.

Song: Wild Rover
Album: Fire in the Belly
Artist: The Kissers
Selected by: Linda Ryan
Date: March 17, 2008

This favorite Irish drinking song gets a punk makeover by Wisconsin's The Kissers, who clearly know their way around The Pogues' catalog. Normally played with lulling fiddles and mandolins, this amped-up version of "Wild Rover" uses pounding drums, electric guitars, a few fist-pumping “hey, hey, heys!” and a banjo to cut a swath up to the bar.

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Just when you thought it was safe! Another "Drunk Dialing" moment from Austin, Texas. He's freed minds (with The Clash) and he's encouraged asses to follow (in Big Audio Dynamite), but he has also made that most human of errors; he has dialed while imbibing. Behold Mick Jones' "Drunk Dialing" moment.

by Dan Shumate

photo: Jade Tree Records

On Wednesday night (March 12), after seeing a screening of the excellent wartime music documentary Heavy Metal Baghdad and fighting to stay awake for a 1 a.m. Naked Raygun show, I decided to let serendipity take over my rigorously planned schedule. At around midnight, a couple of buddies coaxed me into going to see F*ck*d Up at Trailer Park, a used record store on the easterly outskirts of Austin.

by Dan Shumate

[Ed.: The following is Dan Shumate's Get in the Van-esque tale of the mountain-moving, Red-River-boiling Rhapsody Rocks Austin show, held last night in Austin, Texas. No Age brought the laughs; British Sea Power brought the rock; and Clipse, after an adventure in babysitting a parking space by our courageous author, brought the house down. Behold the making of a Rhapsody-orchestrated housequake.]

I’m not one to brag (it’s the way I was raiiissse!), but the Rhapsody Rocks show Thursday afternoon (March 13) with Clipse, Cut Copy, British Sea Power, No Age, Sons & Daughters and $mall ¢hange was as good as it gets in Austin. Despite going head-to-head with much-hyped showcases featuring Motörhead, Napalm Death and Vampire Weekend, we packed them in at the Mohawk: from British Sea Power’s first grinding infectious riff, all the way into the late afternoon, during Clipse’s necking-snapping, thudding stomp. It was the best party we’ve ever done, and we’re sure the 650 of our closest friends would agree.

by Piotr Orlov

By local Texas lore, a “button” is a baby rattlesnake, more ornery and poisonous than the elderly reptiles. The music of F*ck Buttons, a noisy duo from Bristol, U.K., bears the same nature. On Thursday night, that nature was one long 40-minute coil of sound, an abrasive mixture of digital and analog noise pumped out by machines complicated and crude (voice effects courtesy of a Fischer-Price My First Tape Recorder), driven by a lone drum, and crushing the relatively puny confines of Red Eyed Fly.

by Matty Karas

To get to R.E.M.'s much-hyped SXSW performance late Wednesday night, you had to walk by a tent where the Lemonheads were performing the entirety of their 1992 power-pop classic It's a Shame About Ray, in order. You would have missed this if you had actually gotten to the R.E.M. show in time, but if you had actually gotten to the R.E.M show in time you would have never gotten in. The trick was to wait 45 minutes and stroll right in as people started walking out in droves.

by Matty Karas

Gather 17,481 bands (not the official number, just my estimate) in one small place, and you're bound to experience some strange currencies and coincidences. Wednesday night in Austin, Texas, you were able to shuffle, in a matter of minutes, between the serene St. David's Church, where pioneering classical/minimalist/electronic composer Steve Reich cheered on several acts executing pieces he wrote for combinations of live and taped instruments, and the cavernous Buffalo Billiards, where a Manchester, U.K., pop duo The Ting Tings tackled their own songs pretty much the same way -- but different.

Even legends make mistakes. And even punk rock icons sell out to the temptations of ill-advised romantic gestures via Alexander Graham Bell's instrument of mass destruction (the telephone ... not yellowcake). Here, with another installment of our "Drunk Dialing" audio confessionals, recorded at SXSW by our team of love detectives, is the (basically) immortal Jon Langford of The Mekons.

By Toshitaka Kondo

One of music’s greatest triumphs is when an artist comes out with a totally left-field song that actually works. Sheek Louch, who’s always been known as the enforcer of legendary Yonkers crew The Lox, achieved exactly this, celebrating life’s simple pleasures over a nostalgic Betty Wright sample on the unexpected, upbeat single “Good Love.” Long-time fans fret not. Louch’s third solo album, Silverback Guerilla, featuring collaborations with Jim Jones, Bun B, The Game and Fat Joe, packs plenty of his signature jailhouse anthems. Rhapsody caught up with Louch to talk about the concept and video behind “Good Love,” working with The Notorious B.I.G., getting publishing rights back from Diddy, and being mentioned in Prodigy’s infamous blog.

Song: Tyrants
Album: In the Futrure
Artist: Black Mountain
Selected by: Stephanie Benson
Date: March 14, 2008

"Tyrants" could very well have been split into at least five separate songs. But Black Mountain's brilliance in slipping traces of epic mystique à la Zeppelin in between menacing metal beats, proggish booms and Amber Webber's stunning operatic vibrato makes their jolty transitions sound completely and compellingly natural.

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Like some kind of Alan Lomax of the mobile age, we continue to make field recordings of heartbreak and voicemail, live from Austin, Texas, at the South By Southwest festival. Here's Franz Nicolay of The Hold Steady on his most memorable drunk dialing experience.

Who better to give their appraisal of this year's SXSW festival than one of the participants? Our very own Piotr Orlov talked to Cut Copy's very own Tim Hoey. The bassist for the thrilling electro group (who happen to have rocked the spot at our Rhapsody Rocks Austin party today) gave us his early impressions on the festival.

Reply | Copy This

By Tim Quirk

The hits keep on coming. Another round of "Drunk Dialing" from SXSW. In this episode: Eli from Throw Me the Statue on his most memorable drunk dialing disaster.

by Chuck Eddy 

I used to think the alleged early/mid-‘80s “New Wave of British Heavy Metal” was just a figment of limey metal mags’ over-marinated imaginations. After all, there was metal before, and metal after, and though Def Leppard and Iron Maiden and Saxon (basically a biker boogie band) came from the same place at the same time, they never really sounded sound all that much alike, did they? (Kind of reminds me of my reaction to when people used to say a rap record sounded "very West Coast," which I'm still not sure is an actual sound either.)

By Tim Quirk

Another installment of "Drunk Dialing" from SXSW, wherein your favorite musicians talk about their most memorable moments of regrettable telecommunication. In this episode, Tim Quirk talks to the legendary Gang of Four bassist, Dave Allen.

By Tim Quirk

Another installment of our "Drunk Dialing" series. Here's British Sea Power, talking to Tim Quirk at the SXSW Festival in Austin, Texas, about their most memorable (or barely remembered) drunk dialing experience.

By Toshitaka Kondo

When it comes to longevity, Fat Joe’s 15-year rap-game tenure is often overlooked. But no one can ignore how the Bronx native has effortlessly bridged generations. A member of both the old school and the new, Joey Crack still shouts out his legendary Diggin’ in the Crates crew members like O.C. and Lord Finesse, while collaborating with new artists like Lil Wayne, Rick Ross, T.I. and Young Jeezy. His new album, Elephant in the Room, is a blend of both eras, featuring J. Holiday and Lil Wayne, along with KRS-One and DJ Premier. Unfortunately for Joe, his musical accomplishments have been overshadowed as of late because of a recent physical altercation with Brooklyn emcee Papoose. The media frenzy surrounding these events made it really hard to catch up with him, but Rhapsody finally got Fat Joe on the phone. Here, he talks about booking the Notorious B.I.G. for his first-ever show at the Bronx’s legendary Fever, Prodigy’s disparaging remarks about him, and his feelings on hip-hop becoming so tabloid-driven.

By Tim Quirk

Every night at South By Southwest is a night to remember that you will likely forget. When the bands, industry insiders and journalists descend on Austin, Texas, the beer flows like wine. And who among us has not found ourselves in the precarious position of possessing liquid courage in one hand and a telephone in the other? We are all guilty of drunk dialing, my friends. Let ye without a call history cast the first stone.

With that in mind, our intrepid reporter Tim Quirk, embedded with the bands at this year's SXSW, will be asking some of your favorite musicians about their most (un)forgettable drunk dialing trespasses. In our first installment: David Gedge of the Wedding Present and Cinerama.

Reply | Copy This

Song: Gangsta Lean
Album: Lord Willin'
Artist: Clipse
Selected by: Toshi Kondo
Date: March 13, 2008

Yes, it’s yet another hip-hop song about marijuana. But Pusha T and Malice slyly execute the “weed is my girl” metaphor, with Pharrell crooning the hook over exquisite Neptunes production.  As close to a natural high as one can get.

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by Chris Ryan

There are lots of people to see and places to be in Austin this week as the annual South By Southwest music festival takes over the lovely Lone Star captiol city. But the place to be is, without a shadow of reasonable doubt, the Rhapsody Rocks Austin party at the Mohawk on Thursday night. With a lineup featuring the Virginia mixtape kings Clipse, the noise-rock duo No Age, blip-pop wizards Cut Copy (to name just a few), you'd be crazy to miss out on this gathering of the gods.

by Chris Ryan

What’s new? What’s good? What will you find here that you won't hear anywhere else this week? Sit back, relax and click through to the premieres, the originals and the exclusives available only on Rhapsody! This week:

Sheek Louch, Silverback Gorilla (Rhapsody Premiere)
The comic relief of NYC tough-guy clique The Lox, Sheek Louch comes into his own on his second solo effort. Silverback ... features Dipset collabos, an homage to Houston and plenty of the Yonkers bad boy's patented bluster.

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Devotchka, A Mad & Faithful Telling (Rhapsody Premiere)
Devotchka offers another beguiling set of pan-global folk-rock. A gorgeous record for fans of Calexico, Gogol Bordello and Dresden Dolls.

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by Chuck Eddy

So, apparently, the Steve Morse recently quoted by wire services about how Madonna shouldn’t be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame because she didn’t get played on rock radio enough is not the same Steve Morse who used to play in Dixie Dregs (who didn’t get played on rock radio much either, I don’t think), but rather the “longtime Boston Globe music critic” one.

Song: Fake Friends
Album: Album/Glorious Results of a Misspent Youth
Artist: Joan Jett & the Blackhearts
Selected by: Mike McGuirk
Date: March 12, 2008

The best time to hear “Fake Friends” may be in seventh grade, right after getting your ass beat by fifth graders. Even if you weren’t lucky enough to have had that particular experience, the lyrics remain words to live by today, and this song, from 1983, remains one of if not the finest song Joan Jett ever wrote -- after “Bad Reputation,” maybe. It doesn’t matter, this song is awesome. If I were you, I’d play “Crimson and Clover” next.

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by Sarah Bardeen

Señor Flavio, aka Flavio Cianciarulo, is a founding member of Los Fabulosos Cadillacs, one of the greatest rock bands on any continent, from any era. (Not that we're biased.) With Los Cadis on long hiatus, the good Señor has taken to releasing solo albums under the name the Flavio Mandinga Project, and his latest, Supersaund 2012, is a blast from the same ska-reggae-rock furnace that made the Cadillacs so great. The veteran rocker took some time to answer a few questions about himself, his favorite songs and what the heck "mandinga" means.

by Piotr Orlov

When actor Jason Hervey is not busy playing the role of Scott Baio's best friend on VH1's celeb reality show Scott Baio Is 46 and Pregnant, he's playing it in real life. And when he's not doing that, he's tooling around Los Angeles listening to an eclectic mix of the Southern rock, West Coast rap and hair-metal that he grew up on. Dive into Hervey's "Soundtrack to Reality."

Song: Bridging The Gap
Album: Bridging the Gap 
Artist: Nas
Selected by: Chris Ryan
Date: March 11, 2008

In honor of today's hotly contested Mississippi Democratic primary we thought we'd offer a great, if untraditional, anthem of that state's long and rich musical legacy. Albeit one made by a rapper from Queens , NY . Nas' "Bridging the Gap," which rides tough over the "Mannish Boy" melody, celebrates the Delta that gave birth to most forms of modern American pop. Whether it's country, blues rock or rap, we go down to the river. Here's to you ole' Miss.

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By Rachel Devitt

A few nights ago, I found myself somewhere I never thought I'd be: with my dad at a Larry Carlton and Robben Ford show. Enjoying myself. It's not that I don't appreciate a meticulous blues aesthetic, dexterous finger-styling or a serious rock 'n' roll pedigree, all of which both these legendary rock session guitarists turned bluesy solo artists have in spades. It's just that they play, well, dad rock -- and more specifically, the brand of rock preferred by my own pops: Jim Devitt, lifelong guitarist and consummate baby boomer.

Song: Who Knows Where the Time Goes
Album: Rhapsody Originals
Artist: Cat Power
Selected by: Nick Dedina
Date: March 10, 2008

One of the joys of Rhapsody is having your favorite artists come in and cut special sessions for their fans. Here, Chan Marshall (aka Cat Power) sits down at the piano and knocks an old classic out of the park. Americans may know Nina Simone's version while Brits proudly clutch battered copies of Sandy Denny's brilliant reading to their chests. If Cat Power keeps it up, her name may also be on the lips of future generations.

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by Chuck Eddy

Remember the old days, back when the Dixie Chicks were actually allowed on country stations, and Sugarland had two girls and one guy, before they got rid of the girl who looked like she could beat the guy up? (I’ve always suspected a conspiracy myself.) I don’t know what happened, but if it didn’t, Texas trio Lantana (not to be confused with Santana) might well be stars now. I mean, dig this concept: High maintentance women! Three Shania Twains in one band! One of whom looks like the coach's wife on Friday Night Lights! Plus they cover REO Speedwagon! 

by Nate Cavalieri

(Or: Big Mac Attack: Michael McDonald @ NYC's Blue Note)

The day after the release of Michael McDonald's Soul Speak, the silver-haired Doobie brought selections of his latest album of covers to a two-night stand at New York City's Blue Note, performing a set that left your correspondents in a state of flustered, disoriented awe. Here, we recap the evening, note by sweet, soul-stirring note.

7:40: Squeeze into packed Blue Note. Electricity, scent of Elizabeth Taylor's "White Diamonds" in the air. Audience members find their seats, occasionally vocalizing their excitement in McDonaldesque falsetto "OOOOOHs."  At our shared table, a woman orders chardonnay and expresses disappointment in Rudy Giuliani's failed presidential bid.

Song: Juicy
Album: Ready to Die
Artist: The Notorious B.I.G.
Selected by: Toshi Kondo
Date: March 7, 2008

The come-up is one of life’s most compelling themes. Brooklyn’s Notorious B.I.G. captured the essence of going from ashy to classy perfectly on his classic debut single, which sampled Mtume’s “Juicy Fruit.” On the 11th anniversary of his tragic murder (March 9, 1997), we've chosen to celebrate his drive rather than mourn his death.

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by Chuck Eddy

Maybe it’s because the Elvis-zombie shtick goes back at least as far as the Cramps, but  you hardly ever hear Americans pulling off quality psychobilly anymore. In fact, it doesn’t even seem like many try. When they do, they frequently sound like they live in a museum—though not necessarily The Addams Family’s house.

By Toshitaka Kondo

Bun B’s allegiance to staying trill has never interfered with him being one of hip-hop’s most forward-thinking artists. The Houston native has collaborated with everyone from hipster rappers like Wale to backpack heroes like Little Brother, boasting a topical versatility that finds him speaking eloquently about any and everything. In his politically charged verse on M.I.A.’s “Paper Planes (Diplo Street Remix),” he opines that “being poor is a disease” and urges the underprivileged to “get your Robin Hood on, put some pressure on the man.” Rhapsody couldn’t wait to get Bun’s perspective on one of the most inspiring politicians in years, Barack Obama.

Song: Gila
Album: Devotion
Artist: Beach House
Selected by: Dan Shumate
Date: March 6, 2008

Sleepy-eyed, woozy, a little bit weepy but knowing the worst is over, and hope is around the bend: these are just some of the emotions expressed on “Gila” from this Baltimore slow-core duo’s latest album, Devotion. Singer Victoria Legrand's hushed vocals are softly nudged by Alex Scally's slide guitar for one gentle, euphoric ride.

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By Toshitaka Kondo

It’s hard to think of another artist who experienced higher highs or lower lows in 2007 than Bun B, one-half of the legendary Houston rap group UGK.  After 15 years in the game, UGK enjoyed its first number one album with UGK (Underground Kingz), and its first Grammy nomination for Best Rap Performance By a Duo or Group for the smash single, “Int’l Players Anthem (I Choose You).” But for all the triumph, there was also tragedy: his best friend and UGK rhyme partner Pimp C died suddenly in December. Bun initiated the healing process by talking about how he was coping with the loss and sharing his plans for the future in numerous candid interviews. Thankfully for fans, another UGK album is in the works, as is his second solo album, II Trill. Bun seemed to be in better spirits when Rhapsody caught up to him at his publicist’s office in New York to discuss Lil Wayne’s syrup addiction, his personal drug use and out-rapping Jay-Z.

Click here to read Bun's thoughts on Barack Obama.

by Chuck Eddy

In a February seemingly loaded with music obituaries - reggae pioneer Joe Gibbs, drum legend Buddy Miles, Christian-rock godfather Larry Norman, crunk haven TVT Records - one of the more discouraging was the 13-year-old roots Americana magazine No Depression.

Song: Tristesse/Joie
Album: Pop Up
Artist: Yelle
Selected by: Angela Bruno
Date: March 5, 2008

The title of this bipolar little ditty from electro-pop fly girl Yelle translates into “Sadness/Joy.” Manic-depressive forest nymphs plug away at the keyboard, while pudgy, sadistic gnomes pounce on toads ... until suddenly a fairy godmother by the name of  Carpe Diem swoops in to drop a pair of rose-colored specs over the chanteuse’s big doe eyes.

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by Chris Ryan

What’s new? What’s good? What will you find here that you won't hear anywhere else this week? Sit back, relax and click through to the premieres, the originals and the exclusives available only on Rhapsody! This week:

Simple Plan, Rhapsody Originals

Simple Plan's blueprint goes like this: emo-ish sentiment over arena-rock hooks and power-pop harmonies. On their eponymous full-length from last year, they added the stuttering R&B beats of acclaimed producer Danja. With this Rhapsody Originals recording, the Canadian band strips down their sound to the essentials and deliver soaring acoustic takes on songs likes "When I'm Gone" and "Your Love Is a Lie."

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Vampire Weekend, Spanking New Session
The Ivy League Afro-pop/indie-rockers deliver a subtle and sunny acoustic version of their fan favorite, "Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa." 

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Fat Joe, Elephant in the Room (Rhapsody Premiere)
Elelephant in the Room sees Fat Joe swinging his trunk around, stomping over top-notch tracks from Scott Storch, Swizz Beats and a classic track from DJ Premier. Arguably Don Cartagena's most complete album to date.

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by Chuck Eddy

Honestly, I didn’t even realize Maxim had album reviews. So a few weeks back, when a bogus write-up of the impending Black Crowes album (which freelancer David Peisner admits he hadn’t heard, and in fact, insists he’d only been assigned to preview) became the most famous album review since Almost Famous, it caught me by surprise in more ways than one. Oddly, I had previously been assigned to critique the album for another publication -- a review that never materialized, because, I’d been told, advance copies weren’t available. So as despicable as the Maxim fraud was, part of me also figured it served the Crowes right. When a band is that protective, it’s hard not to detect some arrogance involved.

by Chris Ryan

Simple Plan's power-ballads and emo-dance (dancemo?) invasions seem effortless, no? No! They take blood, sweat, tears and the help of an acclaimed R&B producer! In these exclusive Rhapsody videos, the band breaks it down. Above, the boys talk about their new album, their old album and their new friend, gossip blogger Perez Hilton. Below, check out the band talking about its fruitful collaboration with venerated hip-hop producer Danja.

Further Listening
Simple Plan, Rhapsody Originals

Song: Rock el Casbah
Album: Tekitoi
Artist: Rachid Taha
Selected by: Judy Cantor-Navas
Date: March 4, 2008

Algerian rocker Rachid Taha grew up in France, and his lyrics often address the clash of cultures and politics in his adopted country and beyond. Taha’s rough rai-punk version of The Clash’s “Rock the Casbah” naturally reverberates in the context of current global affairs.

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By Toshitaka Kondo

For Lil' Cease, being The Notorious B.I.G.'s best friend had its benefits. He got to be his hypeman and the frontman for Biggie's offshoot rap clique, Junior M.A.F.I.A. He was also immortalized in unforgettable Big rhymes ("Cease will drop you off when he see his P.O."). Unfortunately, since Biggie's murder in 1997, Lil' Cease has weathered quite a storm. His solo career fizzled out, and a very public falling out with fellow Junior M.A.F.I.A. member Lil' Kim culminated in his testimony against her during a 2005 trial that resulted in jail time for the Queen Bee. Here, Cease puts the drama aside to honor the anniversary of Biggie's passing (March 9), and counts down his favorite Biggie verses of all time.

by Chris Ryan

Erykah Badu is riding high off the release of her new album, New Amerykah (which we broke down in this post here). Check out her bawdy tune, "Annie," part of a beguiling live performance from VH1's Soulstage on VH1.com.

by Sarah Bardeen

Photo: Heather Sarantis

When Spanish flamenco sensations Son de la Frontera came to San Francisco on Saturday, March 1,  the hip, educated Bay Area audience thought it was ready. There'd been a stellar article about the rough rural outpost, Morón de la Frontera, where most of the band members come from and the region's passionate, raw music. The show opened with a video clip of the band's inspiration, guitarist Diego del Gastor, and his vocal collaborator La Fernanda de Utrera. The Bay Area Flamenco Partnership even gave not one but two introductions before the show started. But nothing could prepare the crowd for what they would experience over the next hour and a half: a live show so stunning it defied all classification.

Song: Warhorse
Album: Short Sharp Attack
Artist: SSS
Selected by: Jen Guyre
Date: March 3, 2008

The thrash resurgence is indeed upon us, and Short Sharp Shock are at the helm of Earache Record’s role in it. Taking the speed and aggression of '80s Bay Area thrash guitars and the take-no-prisoners vocals of NYHC, SSS sound as tough as they are exciting and as vintage as they are modern.

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