The duo also took the opportunity to list some of the favourite things that have happened to them while in the band. The message read: “Some crazy highlights and fun memories include when The B-52’s told us we inspired them to record; Bumping into Nile Rodgers of Chic on a New York street corner and listening to him sing us one of our own songs - which made Jesper Jr. speechless for half-an-hour; Recording and having the best laughs with the legendary Motown ladies The Velvelettes on a cold Chicago weekend (’more Pops [soda] Senior’); Dancing with Bobby Gillespie’s mom on ‘Later…with Jools Holland’ while UK singer Lulu hit on our bass player Filip; Playing in front of 40,000 people at UK’s Reading Festival, which started with having bottles of piss thrown at us and only minutes later turned into everyone dancing; Walking the beautiful streets of Nashville for two weeks while mixing our second album; Performing on US morning show ‘Live With Regis and Kelly’ while Roseanne Barr looked on screaming ‘WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE?’, and so much more…”

Sister Bliss (aka Ayalah Bentovim) of global dance superstars Faithless chatted to Skrufff recently to promote her new compilation �Nightmoves’ and revealed that despite her enormous success she remains firmly grounded. “It might look like I’m confident to the outside world but I’m constantly thinking �No, this is shit, we’re not good enough’, absolutely,” she told Skrufff’s Benedetta Ferraro. “And, you know, there have been periods in the past when I wasn’t working very much. I remember when I was DJing at Café De Paris in the mid 90s and everything was going great then suddenly everything fell apart,” she recalled. “I didn’t really have many gigs in London and that’s really the reason why I started making records, because I didn’t feel any security coming from DJing. I couldn’t survive on £30 every three weeks, I just couldn’t. Then eventually after getting through that really tough period things started taking off.” “What can I say, extremely hard work did pay off and it was the same with Faithless; we had gigs with literally five people in the audience, thinking this is just diabolical. How are we ever going to get people to come and see us?” said Ayalah. “And remember Faithless were on a very small label with nobody really there to promote us, so all the promotion we did was done the hard way. It took a long, long time for us to have a proper hit, I remember our first record selling five copies a week. Well, they say if it comes too easy it’s not worth having,” she laughed. She also dismissed England’s thriving celebrity culture centred on reality TV shows and restaurants, declaring �that’s a lot of nonsense, isn’t it’. “It’s just never interested me. If I go out, I go to the cinema, the theatre or to a club for dancing,” she said. “If I go to a club, I go to hear great music not because I want to fuck a footballer, although some of them have got nice legs! Max gets recognised a bit, but we were never that kind of band. We never sold sex or an image. Our video for �Insomnia’ came out a year after the record did. We never get that kind of attention. We’re too old! Too old and too ugly!” RSS del.ici.ous Digg Facebook

When it comes to jazz music, there is often a question of accessibility. For a variety of reasons, the common perception is that the general 'popular music' fan is too unschooled in jazz to appreciate the genre. In fact, jazz - much like classical music - is a demanding art form that requires some level of knowledge to truly understand. But I have always rejected the idea that jazz is reserved for some kind of musical elite. Absolutely anyone can listen to, and be touched by, this eclectic soundscape. The new DVD Jazz Icons: Lionel Hampton Live In '58 is a great example of this all-inclusive point of view. Supremely entertaining, this hour-long program is a testament to the joys of watching great musicians doing what they love. Available on September 30, Jazz Icons: Lionel Hampton Live In '58 is among the third wave of DVDs in the 23 title Jazz Icons series. The concert presented here was filmed on February 17, 1958, at the Royal Theatre Opera House in Liege, Belgium. Lionel Hampton was a masterful showman and bandleader whose primary instrument was vibraphone. He also played, as seen on this DVD, percussion and piano. Throughout the performance, Hampton keeps the pace quick and the tone varied as he leads his big band through nine numbers. This isn't, it should be noted, the full concert. The DVD booklet explains that there was additional material performed by the band. Apparently not all of it was filmed - or was possibly edited out at the time and subsequently discarded. This is clear simply from watching the film, as Hampton refers to having performed "Round Midnight" but that tune is never heard. Furthermore, the first piece presented is "The High And The Mighty," though trumpeter Art Hoyle states emphatically, "We had played tons of stuff before that part." Regardless, it serves as a captivating opening with Hampton playing his vibes with four mallets. Though I was previously aware of Lionel Hampton, I must confess to having heard very little of his music. Right from the very start, my appetite was whetted for more. "Hamp's Piano Blues" provides a taste of Hampton soloing on piano. He had an unusual playing style, using primarily the index fingers of both hands pointing straight down to strike the keys. The band's regular piano player is right next to Hampton, comping along. Later in the performance, there is a series of tunes designed to provide a sort of History of Jazz. I wouldn't describe it as coherent or particularly informative, though Hampton attempts to put the different styles in context for the audience. The Dixieland throwback is fun, with some nice clarinet soloing. Also of note is a very lively bebop workout with some great playing from the horn section.page 1 | 2

NEW YORK — He smokes, he swears, he watches porno and he’s nude — and yet that’s not nearly what makes playing Alan Strang in “Equus” the most adult role Daniel Radcliffe has played. Demonstrating a range beyond his years during his opening night Thursday, the celeb-filled audience called it his “breakout.” “I was actually in the third row,” said Christy Carlson Romano, who starred alongside Shia LaBeouf in the Disney Channel sitcom “Even Stevens.” “You could smell everything. It was sexy and super-stimulating, and Daniel did an astounding job.” Romano was sitting in front of Haley Joel Osment and to the left of “Inside the Actors Studio” host James Lipton. Sitting nearby were Kathleen Turner, Lili Taylor, Glenn Close, Judith Light and Dominic Cooper. Up in the balcony was “Project Runway” designer Austin Scarlett, who was dressed for the occasion in jodhpurs and riding boots. “The audience in the U.S. has so far been incredible,” Radcliffe said. “There’s a couple of laughs we don’t get in England,” he said of performing the play in London’s West End versus performing on Broadway, “only because the Americans get it so much.” The play is a look at the therapy a disturbed young boy receives after he inexplicably blinds six horses. To play Strang, Radcliffe has to exhibit both hostility and vulnerability. As the play progresses, he begins to open up and explain, through flashbacks, how he views horses — especially one named Nugget (played by Lorenzo Pisoni) — as his gods, slaves and lovers. At times, Radcliffe is crumpled up in the fetal position as his doctor, mother and father discuss his condition. Other times, he has nightmares and outbursts, sometimes singing commercial jingles instead of answering straightforward questions. Radcliffe said one thing that makes live theater so exciting for him (”I’m still buzzed from the adrenaline!”) is the amount of chances for slip-ups — and his opening night wasn’t without a few. “During the ride,” he said, “the microphone inside of Lorenzo’s horse head actually came loose and started hitting him in the head, which was quite funny. And at one point, the clips which I clamp him in with didn’t go in right and subsequently would not come out, so I had to leave him onstage in a blackout while the technicians actually got him off at the intermission. So most of the mistake moments involved Lorenzo, but he’s cool.” “I don’t want to be that guy who drops Harry Potter!” Pisoni laughed. “So I certainly scuff my shoes to make sure I don’t slip. I don’t have a lot of experience in platform shoes, so the little six-pound heels without the heel [that make up the hooves]? It certainly has taken a little getting used to. And the set is slanted, and we have to have our arms behind our backs [to resemble horses]. Add in the masks, and it gets a little treacherous. But it’s working out. Everything’s all right. I’m used to it now.” One of the big differences between the London production and this one is how the horses interact with Radcliffe, since director Thea Sharrock and choreographer Fin Walker wanted to make this show more “visceral.” “We tried to find other moments within the play where we could slowly incorporate the horses,” Sharrock said, “so the notion of Equus grows into the finale.” That finale includes the much-talked-about nude scene from the young star. Radcliffe is not alone in baring it all on stage, since it’s an aborted love scene with his co-star Anna Camp, who plays stable girl Jill Mason. “Nobody ever mentioned the chick getting naked!” Romano said. “I was not prepared for that. I was actually kind of alarmed. She’s doing the whole thing!” “He carries the show, and he’s Harry Potter, so everybody’s so focused on him and waiting for him to take his clothes off,” Camp said. “But it’s really about my character being the one in control and guiding him through the entire thing. It’s so important to the story that we do take our clothes off, because it’s about confronting him with complete sexuality, and that’s how the last event of the play can occur, only if he’s truly, truly confronted.” Sharrock called the scene “beautiful” and “low-key,” while other actors called Radcliffe’s choice a brave one. “The material is what’s crucial here,” Osment said. “And it’s a choice many actors have to make. ‘Is it what I need to do? Is it necessary for this character?’ And in this case, it was. I think he gave a wonderful performance, and I’m sure he’s going to gain the respect of a lot of people with it.” “By the time the nudity happened, it wasn’t about the nudity at all,” Romano said. “It was more about the art. I was riveted.” “He’s proved he’s not Harry Potter, he’s Daniel Radcliffe,” Sharrock said. “He’s not a star, he’s an actor.” Since “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” was delayed from its planned November release, Radcliffe no longer has to juggle being a movie star and a Broadway actor this fall — he can concentrate on the play, instead of promoting the movie at the same time. “It’s a disaster for the fans, and I totally appreciate that,” he said. “I am very, very sorry for them, but it was worked out very nicely for the run of ‘Equus.’ ”

It's been goshawful busy over here at the Round-Up, with summer and fall releases piling up and lots of good music bursting insistently out of the piles of magical plastic. There's something for nearly everyone in this week's edition, from bluegrass innovators and a blues traditionalist to a solo disc from a member of Matchbox 20 and a couple of sharp "comeback" CDs. Onward to the music… Cadillac Sky, Gravity's Our Enemy One of the most rewarding experiences a new music aficionado can have is to come upon a band that both fulfills and transcends a beloved genre. Cadillac Sky is every bit a bluegrass band, but the Texas quintet quietly expands the frontiers on its second CD, and the result is one of the best discs to have hit my mailbox this year. They establish their country and bluegrass credentials right away, with principal songwriter Bryan Simpson's high-lonesome keen opening "U Stay Gone." Close harmonies, banjo picking, a call-and-response section, and a mournful fiddle solo from Ross Holmes all follow, building into and out of hummable choruses - and that's just the first song. The tempo picks up with the nervously jumpy "Goodbye Story," which is topped with sweet-as-molasses harmonies, another inventive fiddle solo, short features for Simpson's mandolin and Matt Menefee's banjo, and a clever breakdown section. "Bible By the Bed" is a gentle, sad ballad with a standard country music structure under a catchy, pop-inflected melody which devolves into a tasteful, wordless coda. "My Precious Waltz" brings a spooky Eastern European flavor, aided by a guest appearance from Dan Cantrell on musical saw. It serves as an introduction to the fast-picked "I Hate How Happy She Is," which draws a twisted classic-rock sound from a set of acoustic bluegrass instruments and also showcases banjo wizard Menefee, while Simpson wails, "Why can't she be as miserable as me?" That sense of humor is one reason these extremely skillful musicians never sound too studiously virtuosic. The CD continues with sad songs, inventive instrumentals, and some very un-bluegrassy moments, like the quirky instrumental break in "Wouldn't Put It Past Love," the old-time jazzy verses of "Inside Joke," and the unexpected minor-chord changes and plucked rhythms in "The Wreck." Simpson's also handy with traditional country-music songwriting rhetorical devices, as evidenced by "It Won't Be Over You," which closes pithily: "When my bones grow weary of this world / And my days are numbered few / I might hang my head down in regret / But it won't be over you." Donna Lewis, In the Pink After making a couple of sultry splashes in the late '90s with hits like "I Love You Always Forever" and "Love Him," Welsh-born Donna Lewis took a hiatus to raise a family. Now she's back, picking right up where she left off with an excellent new disc of danceable electronica-pop. Many of the songs have a meditative bent but also just enough catch that one's ears stay perked up. The songs with the livelier beats (like "Shout" and "Obsession") should stand up to any sort of dance-club use or abuse, while the quieter moments (like "Kick Inside" and the folky "You To Me") have a thoughtful and slightly exotic quality, reminding me of Emiliana Torrini.page 1 | 2 | 3

The agreement is designed to settle how the industry calculates royalty rates for limited downloads and music that is streamed online, including when it is provided by subscription and advertising-supported services. Fans using on-demand music streaming can select the songs they want to hear but do not keep a permanent copy. Under the proposal, providers of such services will pay a mechanical royalty of 10.5 percent of revenue after other royalties are calculated. The agreement does not cover merchandise or permanent downloads and a ruling on the proposal by Copyright Royalty Judges is expected by Oct 2, the groups said. The Digital Media Association (DiMA) described the agreement in a statement on its Web site as a breakthrough that would facilitate new ways to offer music to consumers online. The other groups involved include the National Music Publishers' Association, which represents American publishers, the Recording Industry Association of America, the Nashville Songwriters Association International and the Songwriters Guild of America. "This agreement provides a flexible structure to support innovative business models in the digital music marketplace that will benefit music fans, creators and online services," said Mitch Bainwol, Chairman and CEO of the RIAA (Reporting by Savio D'Souza in Bangalore; Editing by Kate Holton and David Cowell)

In a potentially myth-shattering new Lennon biography due out next month, son Sean Lennon recounts for the first time a violent outburst by his peace-espousing papa that resulted in a trip to the doctor. "[He was] teaching me how to cut and eat steak, which was a mystery to me at age 4; how to stick the fork in and cut behind it, and that was how you got a piece in your mouth," the younger Lennon, John's sole child with Yoko Ono, reveals to author Philip Norman in John Lennon: The Life. "I think it was that night when he got very upset with me, I think because of something I did very cheekily with the steak. He did wind up yelling at me very, very loudly to the point where he damaged my ear, and I had to go to the doctor." The quotes were confirmed to E! News by Michael McKenzie, spokesman for Echo Publishing, an imprint of HarperCollins. There was no immediate comment by a representative for the younger Lennon or Yoko Ono. In the book, Sean Lennon, now 32 and a musician in his own right, says his father was ashamed by the incident and was instantly remorseful. "I remember when I was lying on the floor and hurting, and him holding me and saying, 'I'm so sorry.' He did have a temper." Sean also recalls that his father was a compassionate person, even bursting into tears at the death of the family feline. "Alice, our black cat, had jumped out the window after a pigeon and died, and I remember that was the only time, I think, I ever saw my dad cry."

Metallica's Death Magnetic staved off the Reaper this week, holding onto the No. 1 slot despite challenges from Ne-Yo's Year of the Gentleman, Nelly's Brass Knuckles and Darius Rucker's Learn to Live. Despite the triple threat, Death Magnetic ruled the week ended Sunday by selling another 337,000 copies, per Nielsen SoundScan, bringing its 10-day tally to 827,000 discs. While this should have been Metallica's debut week, the band moved up the release date by four days to combat piracy. Despite being on sale for just one weekend, Death Magnetic still topped last week's chart with ease. It was a good week for the veteran metalheads. On Monday, they learned they were first-time finalists for induction in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Leading the challengers, songsmith turned singer Ne-Yo nabbed the No. 2 spot , selling 250,000 of Year of the Gentleman, his third album in less than three years. Ne-Yo, whose new album features the hit singles "Closer" and "Miss Independent," previously topped the charts with 2006's In My Own Words and last year's Because of You. Nelly capped his long hiatus with a disappointing No. 3 start for Brass Knuckles, his first new album in four years, which moved a relatively meager 84,000. His last albums, 2004's simultaneously released Sweat and Suit, debuted in the top two spots with a combined 738,000 first-week copies. Pulling a Jessica Simpson, Hootie & the Blowfish main man Darius Rucker tossed his hat into the country-music ring with Learn to Live, which sold 60,000 copies at No. 5. His lead single, "Don't Think I Don't Think About It," has topped the Hot Country Songs chart, making Rucker the first African-American artist to accomplish this feat since Charley Pride's "Night Games" in '83. All told, there were five top 10 debuts, with DJ Khaled selling 49,000 copies of We Global at No. 7 and L.A. rockers Buckcherry selling 47,000 copies of Black Butterfly at No. 8—career highs for both. Elsewhere, All That Remains sold 29,000 copies of Overcome in the No. 16 slot, while Raphael Saadiq's first album in four years, The Way I See It, bowed in at No. 19, with 23,000. Other noteworthy debuts include Avenged Sevenfold's CD/DVD Live in the LBC & Diamonds in the Rough at No. 24, the Eli Young Band's Jet Black & Jealous at No. 33, Colby O'Donis' Colby O at No. 41, Jem's Down to Earth at 43 and American Idol contestant Kristy Lee Cook's Why Wait at No. 49. With her new album Fearless set to drop Nov. 11, Taylor Swift's self-titled debut celebrated its 100th week on the charts at No. 25 with more than 3.4 million. Over on the Digital Tracks chart, Pink sold 218,000 copies of "So What" for her third straight week at No. 1, though Kanye West's "Love Lockdown" debuted less than 6,000 copies behind at No. 2. Overall, album sales are up a tick from last week but down 17 percent compared to the same week in 2007, when Reba McEntire's Reba Duets topped the charts. Here's a rundown of the top 10: 1. Death Magnetic, Metallica 2. Year of the Gentleman, Ne-Yo 3. Brass Knuckles, Nelly 4. Rock N Roll Jesus, Kid Rock 5. Learn to Live, Darius Rucker 6. The Recession, Young Jeezy 7. We Global, DJ Khaled 8. Black Butterfly, Buckcherry 9. Tha Carter III, Lil Wayne 10. LAX, The Game

Based on the hip, wildly popular young adult novel by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan, Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist follows the young, romantically burned bass player Nick (Juno and Superbad’s Michael Cera) over the course of an adventurous, sleepless night lived after hours in the underground indie rock scene of New York.  Joining him in his musical scavenger hunt to discover the location of a secret show featuring a legendary band is the far worldlier Norah (Charlie Bartlett’s Kat Dennings). As the two opposites attract over their taste in killer tunes in director Peter Sollett’s cinematic adaptation of Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist.   Arguably the Fall release that’s been receiving the most buzz in the film world with infectious trailers and interactive opportunities for fans to build their own streaming musical playlist, video, or photo filled widgets from Sprout Builder and Sony Pictures, while the film itself doesn’t open until October 3, the soundtrack has been garnering pre-orders since August.  Set to hit the street on September 23, the jam-packed, eclectic and catchy fifteen track album (which will also be released in limited edition in vinyl directly from Atlantic Records), offers listeners the chance to play musical detectives right along with Nick and Norah as we groove to the alternately snappy and splendorous offerings by some of indie rock’s finest bands who have yet to catch on to the general public.    After only a few listens, with refreshingly a different artist for each and every tune, I was hooked. Ready to track down more from nearly every act included and thankfully via MySpace and band websites, you’ll be able to locate them far quicker than Nick and Norah do in the film.  Of course, had they just grabbed a laptop, there would’ve been no need for a book, let alone a movie.    The disc opens with the melancholic yet pretty “Speed Of Sound,” by the late Chris Bell which helps evoke Nick’s heartache audibly as it laments tragedy throughout the endlessly depressing lyrics making the beauty of the track seem like an ingeniously ironic counterpoint.  However, Devendra Banhart’s “Lover,” a toe-tapping and peppy propositional come-hither tune with a great hook about ninety seconds in, establishes the sheer joy and optimism of whimsical and surprisingly funny new young love.    Ratcheting it up several decibels, Bishop Allen’s “Middle Management,” a ska-punk lite track is a highpoint and used throughout promos for the film and can be heard as one of many soundtrack tunes in the veritable musical scrapbook that is the film’s official trailer. page 1 | 2 | 3

Cold War Kids have written a poem in tribute to author David Foster Wallace who committed suicide earlier this month. The band explained on their Myspace blog that ‘This Is Water’ might be turned into a song. “Those of you who are familiar with the writer David Wallace know how much his passing affects us all,” they wrote. “We wrote a short poem with him in mind that will hopefully become a song soon.” Cold War Kids have named the author behind the 1996 novel ‘Inifinite Jest’ as a big inspiration for them in the past. Wallace was found dead by his wife on Friday September 12. The poem reads as follows: ‘This Is Water’ First thing you taught me Was to keep digging inside At my intentions Keep asking why why why Second thing you taught me Was to be sincere Not like all these smart alec sarcastics Drowning in fear You reminded me - This is water! And It feels good to swim! After you hooked me and you reeled me up And threw me out again Talked like professors You talked like policemen and whores You became so many people I felt like I had known them before The third thing you taught me Is that when I’m waiting in line At the supermarket checkout That my time is not worth more than your time Your head like a lightning rod Your heart a cocoon We certainly won’t have another like you Anytime soon.