Elbow Win 2008 Mercury Prize

Mancunian underdogs, Elbow, have won the 2008 UK Nationwide Mercury Music Prize for their album The Seldom Seen Kid (pictured left). Was good to see something a bit unexpected once again from the judges (no one was really expecting Klaxons to win last year). Odds favored Burial, who recently revealed his identity, but failed to win.

I think most people were pretty pleased with the shortlist this year as it included some fab women like Laura Marling, Adele and Estelle. However I, and a number of others, were definitely wondering what the hell they were thinking not nominating Hot Chip and Mystery Jets.

Watch Jools Holland present the award to Elbow and their acceptance speech:

MP3: Elbow - Grounds For Divorce or zShare

Win Tickets for Beck + MGMT Tour

NYC is not listed yet but hopefully will be included soon, keep checking back I suppose. Enter here. Listen to Kids from the band's debut, Climbing to New Lows under the name The Management.

MP3: MGMT - Kids (Afterschool Dance Megamix) or zShare

Bloc Party Show Their Talons

TALONS

Our new single 'Talons' will be premiered on Zane Lowe's Radio One show this evening.

The single isn't on the digital album that was released last month, but if you've already bought the album you will get the digital track immediately after it's played on Radio One, and it will be on the CD that will hit shops on the 27th of October. The single will be released on the 20th of October.

Make sure you tune in to Radio One tonight or listen online.

via Mailing List

Also, click here to enter the Bloc Party Playlist contest to see them free in NYC on September 18th!

MP3: Bloc Party - Mercury (Flosstradamus Remix) or zShare

Top Shop USA Site Launches TODAY

This warms the cockles of my heart: Top Shop USA site launches today.

This does not: Topshop is running into delays with its SoHo flagship and is now eyeing a

November opening, instead of mid-October as originally hoped.

In other news, Kate Moss' 7th collection for Top Shop launches today as well. Enjoy shopping her Autumn/Winter collection in $$$ here. Oh life's simple pleasures.

Keep an Ear Out For The Courteeners at...Your Local Mall

I'm now convinced that reasonably priced US fashion mecca, Forever 21, is lifting its in-store playlists from Radio 1...or Top Shop? Was shopping in the Union Square location the other day and caught myself singing along to Not Nineteen Forever by The Courteeners. wha?! I was so surprised and also quite happy and wondered if any of my fellow shoppers knew the tune as well. I got a warm fuzzy feeling and in the spirit of the occasion, decided that the dress I was on the fence about was indeed worth my $25.

Check out their performance of Not Nineteen Forever from Glastonbury 2008 below. Hard to believe any band capable of eliciting this kind of response from this many people has not even played NYC yet. Hoping that will soon change.

Oasis Terminal 5 Ticket Lottery

Everyone is wondering what the heck is going with the lottery tickets for Oasis this Friday. E-mails have been sent, here is proof. I received mine today. Anyone have luck on this?


ETA: Finally got it to work after re-entering 30,000 times.

Brit Awards 2009

NME reports that the Annual bash will be hosted by Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne and will held at Earl's Court Arena on February 18th, 2009.

Performers are set to include: Paul McCartney, Amy Winehouse, Klaxons, Kaiser Chiefs, Leona Lewis and Mark Ronson.

MP3: Mark Ronson (Featuring Amy Winehouse) - Valerie or zShare

Peter Bjorn and John New Album Details

Surprise delight of the day, Peter Bjorn and John have announced the release of their new album Seaside Rock on September 23rd! The album is said to be a collection of instrumentals inspired by their childhood. Writers Block was the soundtrack of my Eurotrip last fall and one of my favorite PBJ tracks is Up Against The Wall, which is mostly primarily an instrumental track. Excitement ensues.

The following songs are now available to stream on their Myspace Page:
Needles and Pills, At the Seaside, and Say Something (Mukiya).

The band plays London's Koko on September 16th. Looking forward to seeing them on tour once they hit NYC again.

MP3: Peter Bjorn and John - Up Against The Wall or zShare

Christina Aguilera Keeps On Gettin' Better, Goes Electro

• MTV

Video Feature: Empire of The Sun

MGMT+LSD+Antony Hegarty:

Thanks Goldie!

Charlotte Ronson Spring 2009 Runway Show

I attended my first ever New York Fashion Week runway show in Bryant Park this morning. It rained HORRIBLY the night before and NYC has been rather muggy, but back to the whole point of this entry. Fashion, celebs, paparazzi, glitz, and glamor. Spotted at the Charlotte Ronson fashion show were of course the Ronsons: Mark, Charlotte and Samantha, Lindsay Lohan (both especially cute), Jay from Project Runway, Miss Jay from America's Next Top Model, Cory Kennedy, Sean Lennon among others.

My friend nudged me as the tent lit up with the incessant paparazzi camera flashes and everyone stood to their feet to get a better view. I turned around to see Lindsay Lohan and her cleavage right in front of me smiling with Samantha Ronson in hand. I am such a sucker for the Lindsay Lohan - Samantha Ronson "are they or aren't they" saga. I'm also very impressed with the Ronson clan who have successfully hit up every facet of the industry: Fashion, Art, Music, Modeling, etc. Check some more pictures from the show below. I'm off to see Mark and High Places at the South Street Seaport, then to the Charlotte Ronson After-party. I swear I'm not stalking them!

MP3: Of Montreal - Suffer For Fashion or zShare

ETA: The Mark Ronson East Village Radio Festival gig has been moved for tomorrow September 7th, before the VMAs. Also a pic I took from the after party.

«More Pictures from the Charlotte Ronson Fashion Show 9/6/08»

Kings of Leon Countdown 'Til Take Over

TLC had the pleasure of seeing Kings of Leon open for Radiohead at the All Points West Festival back in August. Now the band is gearing up with a countdown to the release of Only By Night and the kick off of their World Tour on September 23rd! Check out their feature, 23 Videos in 23 Days. Also, read an interesting piece on the band by MTV here.

Award Nominations:
+ Q Awards: Best Live Band & Best Act In The World Today. Vote.
+ MTV EMA's. Vote.
Tour Dates:
Webster Hall: September 23rd
02 Arena: December 11th
Wembley Arena: Dec 22nd
More Tour Dates Here.

MP3: Kings of Leon- On Call (Grum Disco Mix) or Zshare

Additional Performers Added to This Year's VMA's

The rumors are true, Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera have been added to MTV's VMA playbill along with Kanye West. The pop diva will perform "Genie in a Bottle" and premiere a new song, "Keeps Gettin' Better" from her upcoming Greatest Hits CD. Aguilera will also be releasing a new album next year which she describes as "futuristic pop."

Despite her pathetic comeback last year, and his bratty antics, Britney will open while Kanye will close Sunday's star-studded event. This should be interesting!More MTV VMA Press Pictures Here.

MP3: Christina Aguilera - Fighter or zShare

The 25th Annual MTV Video Music Awards

Russell Brand hosts The 25th round of the MTV's Video Music Awards This Sunday Sept 7, 2008 Live AT 9PM ET.

I'm interested to see what MTV has up it's sleeve this year, hopefully it won't be as painful to watch as last years' [see]. Rumor has it that pop princesses Christina Aguilera and hot-mess Britney Spears will once again take the stage, another Madonna triple-kiss perhaps?

Confirmed Performers: DJ AM, Travis Barker, Jonas Brothers, Kid Rock, Lil' Wayne, Lupe Fiasco, Paramore, Katy Perry, Pink, Rihanna, T-Pain, T.I., The Ting Tings.

Presenters: Drake Bell, Josh Peck, Ciara, Miley Cyrus, High School Musical 3 Cast, Scarlett Johansson, Lindsay Lohan, Michael Phelps, Christopher Mintz-Flassen, Slash, Britney Spears, Twilight Cast.

More Info Here.

MP3: Britney Spears- Piece of Me (Mike Rizzo) or zShare

«2008 MTV VMA Nominees»

Video of the Year:
Chris Brown, Forever
Jonas Brothers, Burnin' Up
Pussycat Dolls, When I Grow Up
Britney Spears, Piece of Me
The Ting Tings, Shut Up and Let Me Go *

Best Female Video:
Mariah Carey, Touch My Body
Katy Perry, I Kissed A Girl
Rihanna, Take A Bow
Jordin Sparks, No Air
Britney Spears, Piece of Me

Best Male Video:
Chris Brown, With You
Flo Rida, Low
Lil Wayne, Lollipop
T.I., No Matter What
Usher, Love This Club

Best Hip Hop Video:
Mary J. Blige, Just Fine
Lupe Fiasco, Superstar
Flo Rida, Low
Lil Wayne, Lollipop
Kanye West, Homecoming

Best Pop Video:
Danity Kane, Damaged
Jonas Brothers, Burnin Up
Panic at the Disco, Nine in the Afternoon
Britney Spears, Piece of Me
Tokio Hotel, Ready, Set, Go!

Best Dancing in a Video:
Chris Brown, Forever
Danity Kane, Damaged
Madonna, 4 Minutes
Ne Yo, Closer
Pussycat Dolls, When I Grow Up

Best Rock Video:
Fall Out Boy, Beat It
Foo Fighters, The Pretender
Linkin Park, Shadow of the Day
Parmamore, crushcrushcrush
Slipknot, Psychosocial

Mariah Carey and Designer Drugs

New York band, Designer Drugs, have taken part in the Remix Mariah Carey contest by Indaba Music, an online community for asipiring and established artists and producers.

Contestants will be judged by members of the site and will win $5,000, the possibility of having the track released, and earn the distinction of being Mariah’s top MySpace friend for four whole weeks. Entries are no longer being accepted, let's see how this duo ranks. Check out the remix below:

Thank you to Sheena Beaston for this fun tidbit!

Landmark London Club The End To Close In January

First Trash, now this. Durrr club night posted this MySpace bulletin yesterday:

Sad but true, our long time home THE END is closing down at the end of January.....between now and then we will bringing you some very special parties including our NOT NEW YEARS EVE party on December 29th and our second birthday and final party on January 19th.

Find out why here.

This news comes as a shock and is a tragic blow to the London club scene. It hits close to home with me as well since it was on that very dancefloor that I had some of the absolute best nights of my life with some of my all-time favorite people (including Erol Alkan and the famous mustachioed tissue man). Support this wonderful place while you still can! Let's hope Rory Phillips and Durrr find a new home. Monday nights will never be the same.

MP3: Midlake - Roscoe (Erol Alkan Remix) or zShare

Morrissey is Eclectic

Last Friday (August 29) Morrissey took over as guest DJ on Nic Harcourt's 'Morning Becomes Eclectic' show on Santa Monica's radio station, KCRW.

Click here to listen to Morrissey talk about tracks that have impressed, inspired and entertained him throughout the years.

via Myspace

MP3: The Smiths- Big Mouth Strikes Again or zShare

Does it Offend You, Yeah? Continue Their NYC Stay

TLC saw Does it Offend You, Yeah? open for Bloc Party on August 6th at Webster Hall...and they seem to have stuck around. The band opened up for Nine Inch Nails on August 27th, headlined Bowery Ballroom on August 30th, and are headlining again tonight at Maxwell's in NJ.

Are we sick of them yet? No. DIOYY will be at the Chemical Brothers' Official Brotherhood CD Release party at Hiro Ballroom tomorrow night. Check out the flyer on the left, get on the guest list, and make sure you hit the open bar up. Drinks are a bit pricey here.

New Teenagers Video: Feeling Better

Did your video submissions make the final cut? Check out the new video below:

Santogold Announces The Goldrush Tour

Santogold announces her first headlining North American Tour, complete with a "full backing band and DJ." Tickets are on sale now. I got right up front for the the Central Park Summerstage Santogold + Diplo + A- Trak gig...very excited for this! Tonight Santogold plays Koko in London and wraps up her European tour in Manchester at the Becks Fusion Festival before coming back to NYC.

Friday, September 19 @ The Fillmore

TIP: If you plan on going to the Fillmore aka Irving Plaza date, make sure you buy them at the box office. Total charge after Ticketbastard rapes you: $25 [ticket price] + $7.40 Convenience Charge + $5.40 Processing Charge = $37. I HATE Ticketmaster.

MP3: Santogold - Lights Out [Remix] or zShare

The Streets HMV Oxford Street In-Store

Found a lovely note from Mike Skinner in my inbox today. It was chock full of album release revelry info, so for those of you not on The Streets mailing list, here's the rundown:

On September 15, the release date of new album Everything Is Borrowed, Mike will be playing a free in-store at the Oxford Street HMV in London at 6pm. NO WRISTBANDS! FIRST COME FIRST SERVE!

The Streets will perform this Friday, September 5th on a new episode of Jonathan Ross on BBC1 and a new installment of Mike's totally awesome show, Beat Stevie, will air on Channel 4. Us US kiddies can catch all the goodness on YouTube after the fact.

Even if you don't like The Streets, but are looking for serious quality entertainment, watch episodes of Beat Stevie NOW!

Read the Guardian Mike Skinner interview.

Video for title track, Everything Is Borrowed:

Diplo in Mad Mad World: Episode 1

Diplo + Dark Meat | 40 Watt & Whirlyball from jason miller on Vimeo.

via Myspace.

Welcome Back DRA

For those who have missed RyRy's ceaseless rants, short films, self reflections, & fun songs as much as I have. Or if you've ever wanted to know what Ryan Adams would think/say/do if given the chance to go on tour with Oasis, I have some very wonderful news for you...Foggy has returned!

With new Hotelrock songs & the lovely Cardinals posting alongside him, Foggy shares tales from the road with Oasis. Remember to back check often & keep your fingers crossed that Foggy doesn't leave us again for a very long time.

Bloc Party Releases Tickets for the Q Awards Gig

Along with releasing a stellar new album, Intimacy, the band sent out this message to their mailing list this morning:

We have released the last tickets for the Q Awards : The Gigs show at the Kentish Town Forum on the 30th of September. You can get yours by visiting this link.

PLEASE NOTE : These tickets are limited, and are first come first serve. Tickets are not guaranteed so please be quick, and they are limited to 2 per person!

Bloc Party

Don't forget to pick up your digital copy here, and a physical copy on it's October 27th release date.

For a list of Q Award Nominees, visit this link.

MP3: Bloc Party- Helicopter (Diplo Remix) or zShare

The Teenagers Tonight at The Proud Gallery

DETAILS HERE

TICKETS THERE

COME!

XOXO
TEENZ

via: Myspace Bulletin

See The Ronson For Free At South Street Seaport

Mark Ronson has been added to the bill of the East Village Radio Festival in South Street Seaport this coming Saturday, September 6th. Nice of Marky to grace NYC with his increasingly more and more British self. This is a bit of a family affair actually since Mark hosts a weekly radio show called Authentic Shit for this independent NYC station. Listen here.

He's playing the 7:15pm slot. Check out the event over at Last.fm where you can peruse some the attendees.

Artist Spotlight: Pete & The Pirates

Pete & The Pirates are an indie band from Reading, UK whose debut album, Little Death, was released in the UK in January. Not quite twee (Belle & Sebastian), not quite folk (Noah and The Whale) and not quite straight up Brit Rock (Courteeners), Pete & The Pirates are what I'd perhaps venture to call thoughtful British indie fringe-rock...just skirting the mainstream enough to be radio friendly and a cult favorite a la Mystery Jets and Cajun Dance Party (previous TLC artist spotlight).

I picked up Little Death at Rough Trade East back in January and remember thinking it was a really good debut with lots of fun, straight-forward guitar pop tunes. Unfortunately in the following months, this little gem fell behind some of the more overwhelming and powerful releases in my iTunes rotation. I rediscovered this band last week when I noticed their catchy-as-all-hell single, Mr. Understanding, in the commercial for Hamlet 2, the new comedy starring Steve Coogan. Hopefully this will bring some well deserved attention to the band here in the States.

Mr. Understanding video:


MP3 - Pete & The Pirates - She Doesn't Belong To Me

Gossip Girl Season 2 Premiere

You've seen the scandalous ads plastered all over NYC. And now, the wait is over. Everyone's guilty pleasure [see New York Magazine's: "The Genius of Gossip Girl"] is back for more juicy goodness tonight with the premiere of Season 2.

TLC blog idol, Gossip Girl, follows and dishes ruthlessly about Manhattan's Upper East Side social elitists as they deal with sex, drugs, jealousy, and other OMFG-worthy scandals.

Catch up with Season 1 on DVD now, or check out the following links:
Season 1 Recap
The CW's Gossip Girl
New York Magazine


MP3: The Gossip - Listen Up! [MSTRKFT Remix]

What Happened Last Season:



XOXO