In an attempt to fight the peer-to-peer file-sharing that often beats traditional CDs to record-store shelves, two hot acts have tried to regain the upper hand. Originally set to debut in early April, Grammy Award-winning duo Gnarls Barkley surprised everyone with the full digital release of The Odd Couple last week and the Downtown Records CD in stores. Also speeding things up and keeping secrets are Jack White's Raconteurs, wrapping up the recording of Consolers of the Lonely just weeks ago, and rush-releasing the album this week on the Third Man/Warner Bros. imprint. With the nontraditional success of Radiohead's In Rainbows, followed by Nine Inch Nails' million-and-a-half-dollar estimated earnings for Ghosts I-IV in its first week as five-buck download, artists big and small have enacted the ultimate revenge against pirates and monolithic record labels.
One of the most heartfelt cover collections in memory arrives in stores next week, bowing down in thanks to the inspiration and challenge of U2's Bono. Shout Factory Records has assembled In the Name of Love: Africa Celebrates U2, benefiting The Global Fund. Featuring tribute interpretations from Les Nubians, Angelique Kidjo, Vieux Farka Touré, and the Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars, one cut is a must hear: the Soweto Gospel Choir's a cappella grace through "In the Name of Love."
Television Alert:
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno welcomes Jose Gonzalez tonight, Allison Moorer on Thursday, k.d. lang on Friday, and The B-52's on Tuesday; The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson presents Counting Crows on Monday overnight; Jimmy Kimmel Live boasts the Jonus Brothers this evening, Black Tide on Thursday, and Serj Tankian on Friday overnight; The Ellen DeGeneres Show gets chatty with Flo Rida on Monday; Tavis Smiley charms Carole King on Friday; and Saturday Night Live's musical guest this weekend is Wilco.
New Releases Coming Tuesday, April 1:
Alone at 3AM - City Out of Luck (Tiberius) Cincinnati garage band washing away their sins in "Whiskey & Gin"
Bad Brains - Build a Nation (Oscilloscope/Megaforce) special reissue box set of three colored-vinyl seven-inch singles and one picture disc
Black Francis - Syn Fngrs (Cooking Vinyl) CD EP recorded and mixed in less than a week
The Black Keys - Attack & Release (Nonesuch) with producer Danger Mouse, and featuring a duet between Dan Auerbach and Jessica Lea Mayfield
Blue Man Group - "Canta Conmigo" (Rhino) Latin-language remix CD EP with Nickodemus, DJ Moni, Funky Junction, and Onionz
Blue Man Group - How to Be a Megastar Live! (Rhino) CD and DVD set featuring backstage footage and the video for "I Feel Love"
Albert Castiglia - These Are the Days (Blues Leaf) previously named Miami's "best blues guitarist"
The Clash - Tory Crimes & Other Tales (Koch) two-DVD set exploring the band's history with founding drummer Terry Chimes and road manager Johnny Green, with drawings by cartoonist Ray Lowry
Colour Revolt - Plunder, Beg, & Curse (Fat Possum) full-length debut of blood-bathing, howling, full-moon contortions from Oxford, Mississippi
Ani DiFranco - Live at Babeville (Righteous Babe) DVD filmed in high def over two nights this past September in her hometown of Buffalo, New York
The Dino-5 - Baby Loves Hip Hop (Baby Loves Music Records) alter-ego beats from Prince Paul, Wordsworth, Chali 2na of Jurassic 5, Lady Bug Mecca of Digable Planets, and Scratch of The Roots
Dream Theater - Greatest Hit & 21 Other Pretty Songs (Rhino) two-CD set divided into a "dark side" and a "light side," featuring B sides and remixes
Ferras - Aliens & Rainbows (Capitol) featuring the single "Hollywood's Not America"
Samuel James - Songs Famed for Sorrow & Joy (Northern Blues) smokin' hot blues from this modern-day Delta wanderer and his storytelling, slide-caressed National guitar
Kathy Mattea - Coal (Captain Potato/Thirty Tigers) ode to West Virginia with Marty Stuart and Patty Loveless
Moby - Last Night (Mute) described as "a love letter to dance music in New York City," with guests Grandmaster Caz and Aynzli Jones
Van Morrison - Keep It Simple (Lost Highway) all new
Hawk Nelson - Hawk Nelson Is My Friend (BEC/Tooth & Nail) featuring songs co-written with Chantel Kreviazuk, Richard Marx, and Our Lady Peace's Raine Maida
Willie Nelson - One Hell of a Ride (Columbia Legacy) four-CD box set culling 100 tracks from myriad labels, and selected covers by Fred Neil, Hoagy Carmichael, and Townes Van Zandt
No Use for a Name - The Feel Good Record of the Year (Fat Wreck) also available in a "milk with meat" colored-vinyl edition
Planet P Project - Levittown (Baby Boomer Music) Tony Carey is back with the second CD in his new trilogy
Radiohead - "Nude" (XL Recordings) CD and seven-inch single, featuring B sides from the In Rainbows box set
R.E.M. - Accelerate (Warner Bros.)
Edward Rogers - You Haven't Been Where I've Been (Zip) with guests Marty Willson-Piper of The Church and Roger McGuinn of The Byrds
The Rolling Stones - Shine a Light (Interscope) 2006 tour documentary directed by Martin Scorsese with guests Jack White, Christina Aguilera, and Buddy Guy; available as single or double CD or a USB stick
Santana - Multi-Dimensional Warrior (Columbia Legacy) career-spanning two-CD retrospective with one disc of instrumentals
Sandrine - Dark Fades Into the Light (Nettwerk) domestic debut from this hip, talented, honey-voiced Australian pop star who took a huge musical turn from her Christian-rock roots when she was presented with a copy of The Rolling Stones' Sticky Fingers LP
Joe Satriani - Professor Satchafunkilus & the Musterion of Rock (Epic) featuring the single "I Just Wanna Rock" and the acoustic "Andalusia"
Sevendust - Chapter VII: Hope & Sorrow (7Bros) all new on the band's artist-owned label; guests include members of Alter Bridge and Chris Daughtry
Sun Kil Moon - April (Caldo Verde) with guests Bonnie Prince Billy and Ben Gibbard, this is the first new music from Mark Kozelek of Red House Painters in five years
The Sword - Gods of the Earth (Kemado) fight-club metal, storming the hills with massive sludgy riffs and thunderclap doom
Tally Hall - Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum (Atlantic) smartly dressed in their white shirts and color-coordinated ties, the new album promises a concoction of everything but the kitchen sink
The Teenage Prayers - Everyone Thinks You're the Best (MRI/Red) produced by Steve Wynn of The Dream Syndicate, this dynamite New York City act cracks the whip with harmonic soul gyrations, boogie guitars, and sly, infectious energy
Theory of a Deadman - Scars & Souvenirs (Roadrunner)
Think of One - Camping Shaabi (Crammed Discs) like a Middle East Tom Tom Club, this party-time Belgium collective spins its globe in Moroccan shaabi beats; featuring guest vocalist Veronique Vincent of the Honeymoon Killers and a variety of Arab stars
The Wood Brothers - Loaded (Blur Note) brothers Chris and Oliver with guests Pieta Brown, the Be Good Tanyas, and Amos Lee, featuring cool covers of Jimi Hendrix's "Angel" and Bob Dylan's "Buckets of Rain"
Victor Wooten - Palmystery (Head's Up) with guests Mike Stern and Keb' Mo'
various artists - Farm Aid: 20th Anniversary Concert (Image) DVD featuring Neil Young, Dave Matthews, Willie Nelson, Emmylou Harris, Arlo Guthrie, and Wilco
