Tapes ‘n Tapes aren’t just talking the talk when it comes to their new Walk It Off LP. They’re walking the walk as well. And they were hoping you could do it with them. You see, Tapes ‘n Tapes have this record coming out called Walk It Off (release dates: April 7 in the UK and April 8 in the U.S. on XL). To celebrate, they’re looking for folks to register as "Team Tapes ‘n Tapes" at breast cancer research walk-a-thons in their hometowns. The top fundraiser in each city will not only get the satisfaction of helping out a good cause, but a personalized, autographed copy of the vinyl version of Walk It Off. Walk-a-thons are taking place across the country throughout the spring, summer, and fall. Tapes ‘n Tapes encourage you to check out the sites of the American Cancer Society’s Making Strides Against Breast Cancer, the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer, or the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure for information on a walk taking place in your city. The band puts particular emphasis on the Susan G. Komen Twin Cities Race for the Cure, which takes place May 11– Mother’s Day, don’t you know– in the band’s native Minneapolis/St. Paul. Charity, as they say, begins at home. Though without a Lear jet or something, Tapes ‘n Tapes won’t be anywhere near the upper Midwest that particular May weekend, as they’ll be on tour on the West Coast. However, the band plans to participate in a breast cancer walk once their tour ends in the summer. And, in other Tapes news, Walk It Off’s first single, "Hang Them All", hits UK shelves March 31. Tapes ‘n Tapes: 04-08 New York, NY - Virgin Megastore Union Square (in-store) 04-10 Minneapolis, MN - First Avenue * 04-11 Chicago, IL - Metro * 04-12 Detroit, MI - The Magic Stick * 04-14 Toronto, Ontario - The Opera House * 04-15 Montreal, Quebec - Cabaret Music Hall * 04-16 Burlington, VT - Higher Ground * 04-17 Boston, MA - Paradise Rock Club * 04-18 New York, NY - Irving Plaza * 04-19 Brooklyn, NY - Music Hall of Williamsburg * 04-22 Philadelphia, PA - First Unitarian Church * 04-23 Washington, DC - 9:30 Club * 04-24 Chapel Hill, NC - Local 506 * 04-25 Atlanta, GA - The Earl * 04-26 St. Augustine, FL - Café 11 * 04-28 Orlando, FL - The Social * 04-29 Gainesville, FL - Common Grounds * 04-30 Birmingham, AL - Bottletree * 05-02 Austin, TX - Antone’s * 05-03 Denton, TX - Hailey’s * 05-06 Tucson, AZ - Club Congress * 05-07 San Diego, CA - The Casbah * 05-08 West Hollywood, CA - Troubadour * 05-09 West Hollywood, CA - Troubadour * 05-10 San Francisco, CA - Fillmore * 05-12 Eugene, OR - W.O.W. Hall * 05-13 Vancouver, British Columbia - Richards on Richards * 05-14 Seattle, WA - The Showbox * 05-16 Salt Lake City, UT - In the Venue * 05-17 Denver, CO - Bluebird Theater * 05-28 London, England - The Garage 05-30 Birmingham, England - Barfly 06-01 Manchester, England - Academy 06-03 Paris, France - Nouveau Casino 06-04 Brussels, Belgium - Recyclart 06-05 Amsterdam, Netherlands - Paradiso 06-06 Njimegen, Netherlands - Doornroosje 06-07 Berlin, Germany - Bang Bang Club 06-09 Hamburg, Germany - Logo 06-10 Cologne, Germany - Gebaude 9 * with White Denim

Foals have announced details of a large UK tour, commencing at the end of September. The tour will kick off at Aylesbury Civic Centre on September 27 and culminate at London’s Brixton Academy on October 16. Foals will play: Aylesbury Civic Centre (September 27) Cardiff University (28) Norwich UEA (29) Nottingham Rock City (30) Hull University (October 2) Liverpool Academy (3) Aberdeen Music Hall (4) Glasgow Barrowland (5) Newcastle Academy (7) Manchester University (8) Leeds Academy (9) Lincoln Engine Shed (10) Southampton Guildhall (12) Bristol Academy (13) Birmingham Academy (14) London Brixton Academy (16)

The do-it-yourself hardcore act Enter Shikari has released Take To The Skies on their own label, Ambush Reality. Normally this is nothing new to hear — that a band has released a CD under their own label — but this is the band’s debut CD. The band actually turned down offers from heavy hitting labels in favor of releasing the CD on their own. British act Enter Shikari is not your ordinary hardcore band. They are on their own level when it comes to assigning them a genre. It is hardcore, but slammed up, with synthesizer making it almost a genre of music that has not been defined yet. It’s futuristic hardcore complete with group vocals, heavy screaming, and keyboard solos.  I have not heard anything quite like it yet, and I must say I am impressed. It’s like listening to a horrific collision of techno and hardcore - and sounds much better than you think. The members met in school and formed a band. They actually stepped it up a bit and acted like a band by touring and getting their name out there on their own. While working hard, they discovered their sound and mixed up elements of hardcore, screamo, and trance to create a sound more or less what Prodigy may have sounded like if they had come out 10 years later. Staring off the CD is an untitled introduction gently preparing you for “Enter Shikari,” a post-hardcore sounding track with equal amounts of harmonious vocals as well as throat scraping screaming and group vocals. If that is not enough for you, there are trance-like keyboard riffs in the background. This is a crazy song and I can see a lot of people feeling overwhelmed while listening to it and declaring it sucks. “Mothership,” the band’s first single, continues to blend musical styles such as hardcore, emo, and trance. The song is brutal and danceable at the same time. “Anything Can Happen In The Next Half Hour…” follows with a more emo-meets-techno feel at the beginning, but soon explodes into a track that one way or another will move your body.  In between some of the songs were little interludes I felt were inserted to help your brain not explode. With everything going on, it was nice to have a couple of soft, quiet moments to re-gather my thoughts.page 1 | 2

Earlier this week, eagle-eyed Paul McCartney fans realized that Macca’s new song “Mister Bellamy” was (possibly an intentional) anagram of “Mills betray me,” making reference to McCartney’s now-ex-wife Heather Mills. Thus, this week we examine those songs that a true (or untrue) hidden meaning or an urban legend behind it. Here’s a couple of our favorites (complete with their backstories). • The Beatles – “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” – A painting by John Lennon’s son, or more likely a reference to LSD. • Peter Gabriel – “In Your Eyes” – This song (and Toto’s “Rosanna”) are supposedly about Desperately Seeking Susan actress Rosanna Arquette. • Neil Diamond – “Sweet Caroline” – After years of speculation, Diamond revealed the Caroline in question was Caroline Kennedy. • Brian Eno – “King’s Lead Hat” – An anagram for “Talking Heads,” whose second album Eno would go on to produce. • Jimi Hendrix – “The Stars that Play with Laughing Sam’s Dice” – Like “Lucy in the Sky,” a pretty apparent reference to LSD. • Nine Inch Nails – “Starfuckers, Inc.” – Reportedly about Marilyn Manson and Courtney Love. • Derek & the Dominoes - “Layla” – Eric Clapton’s unrequited love song about George Harrison’s then-wife Pattie Boyd. • Carly Simon – “You’re So Vain” – The victim of Simon’s insult is still unknown, but guesses range from Mick Jagger to Warren Beatty. • Peter, Paul and Mary – “Puff the Magic Dragon” – May or may not be about smoking a joint. • Pink Floyd – “Pigs (Three Different Ones)” – Roger Waters’ scathing indictment of former U.K. Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and the British version of Tipper Gore, Mary Whitehouse. • Don McLean – “American Pie” – Alludes to the deaths of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper. • Guns N’ Roses – “Mr. Brownstone” - Heroin. • Thom Yorke – “Harrowdown Hill” – About the “suicide” of U.K. biological warfare expert David Kelly, who died of suspicious (possibly murderous) circumstances in 2003. • Phil Collins – “In the Air Tonight” – The urban legend goes Collins witnessed a drowning in which a man could have helped the victim but didn’t. • The Ohio Players – “Love Rollercoaster” – Supposedly, someone dies at the 2:32 mark in the song.

Thom Yorke grills Mayor of London on climate change; Liars work with Kenneth Anger As George Washington once famously said, "I cannot tell you how much Liars kick ass." Radiohead know this too, which is probably why they’ve enlisted G-Dub’s fave noise rock trio to open their first round of 2008 U.S. dates. That’s right, folks: the rumors are true. The rabble-rousing fibbers will join forces with Thom Yorke and his Rainbows warriors beginning May 5 in West Palm Beach, Florida. Liars have a trio of EU dates before then– including two in Russia!– while Radiohead have their previously mentioned BBC Radio 2 gig April 1, and plenty of live activity following their Liars meet-up. Apart from the two Russian gigs, Liars will also appear at the Donaufestival in Krems, Austria in late April, where they’ll link with acclaimed and influential filmmaker Kenneth Anger to present Anger’s new "audiovisual live-performance project" Technikolor Skull. Anger will also premiere his new feature Ich Will! at the festival. Unfortunately, Liars have had to cancel a pair of UK gigs– including their appearance at the Explosions in the Sky ATP– in order to accommodate the Radiohead itinerary. In other news from the Radiohead front, Thom Yorke recently sat down with Mayor of London Ken Livingstone to discuss the climate crisis, carbon emissions, London’s congestion charge, bicycles, and the like. Check out the Observer Magazine interview here, and read Yorke’s introductory letter as Observer Magazine guest editor here. Finally, don’t forget to dust off that VHS-playing apparatus… Radiohead + Liars: 05-05 West Palm Beach, FL - Cruzan Amphitheatre 05-06 Tampa, FL - Ford Amphitheatre 05-08 Atlanta, GA - Lakewood Amphitheatre 05-09 Charlotte, NC - Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre 05-11 Bristow, VA - Nissan Pavilion at Stone Ridge 05-14 St. Louis, MO - Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre 05-17 Houston, TX - Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion 05-18 Dallas, TX - Superpages.com Center Radiohead: 04-01 London, England - BBC Radio Theatre at Broadcasting House 06-06 Dublin, Ireland - Malahide 06-07 Dublin, Ireland - Malahide 06-09 Paris, France - Bercy 06-10 Paris, France - Bercy 06-12 Barcelona, Spain - Parc del Fòrum 06-14 Nimes, France - Arenes 06-15 Nimes, France - Arenes 06-17 Milan, Italy - Civica Arena 06-18 Milan, Italy - Civica Arena 06-20 Neuhausen ob Eck, Germany - Southside Festival 06-22 Scheeßel, Germany - Hurricane Festival 06-24 London, England - Victoria Park 06-25 London, England - Victoria Park 06-27 Glasgow, Scotland - Glasgow Green 06-29 Manchester, England - Lancashire County Cricket Club 07-01 Amsterdam, Netherlands - Westerpark 07-03 Roskilde, Denmark - Roskilde Festival 07-05 Werchter, Belgium - Rock Werchter Festival 07-06 Arras, France - Main Square Festival 07-08 Berlin, Germany - Wuhlheide 08-08 Jersey City, NJ - All Points West Festival 08-09 Jersey City, NJ - All Points West Festival 08-15 Toronto, Ontario - Molson Amphitheatre 08-22 San Francisco, CA - Outside Lands Festival 10-04 Tokyo, Japan - Saitama Super Arena 10-05 Tokyo, Japan - Saitama Super Arena Liars: 04-30 Krems, Austria - Donaufestival # 05-02 Moscow, Russia - B2 05-03 St. Petersburg, Russia - A2 05-14 London, England - Astoria ^ 05-16-18 Minehead, England - Butlins Minehead Holiday Centre (Explosions in the Sky ATP) # with Kenneth Anger ^ with Battles, Fuck Buttons

At long last, I’ve finally found a band I can truly call a more industrial version of Xiu Xiu, but minus the lyrics. Andrew Hung and Benjamin John Power make up the British duo Fuck Buttons, a band that further blurs the distinction between music and noise. Is there a difference between the two? I guess it ultimately falls on the listener (and sometimes, perhaps the artist) to decide. One person’s audible euphoria is another person’s induced aneurism. Many different stylings and themes are interspersed throughout the album’s six tracks. There’s the hopeful optimism found in many science fiction movie soundtracks (”Sweet Love For Planet Earth”), the animalistic and raw sounds of a pagan ritual (”Ribs Out”), and the static frequencies of radio communication (”Okay, Let’s Talk About Magic”). Other than their name, I can easily see why the Fuck Buttons would turn off most people. They don’t make your typical style of music. Without a catchy chorus — or even lyrics for that matter — it might drive people to hit the stop button on iTunes or the off position on their ears. FB has challenged the average listener with something unconventional (although they’re not the first), and probably very unpopular, but very listenable. That’s when the listener is confronted with that age-old question: What is music? The question will never be answered to anyone’s true satisfaction, but more personal questions are then posed. What is the purpose of music? Is music meant to be listened to or to be experienced? With Street Horrrsing, I think both can be done. It could easily be mistaken for a film score, but listening to its range and diversity can really envelope someone in a particular moment. Reviewing an album like this is extremely hard. At best it seems like I’m sidestepping landmines by relating Fuck Button’s full-length debut to music in general. At worst it seems like I gunned straight toward the emergency exit and didn’t look back. The noise pop genre sure has gained another member. It’s music like this that is really in that grey area of art. Music like this doesn’t distract, and instead engages you. It just plays and lets you deal with it.

Miley Cyrus and fellow teen idol Mandy Jiroux debuted the “Miley and Mandy Show” on YouTube yesterday. In the video, the two wear matching checked hats and giddily talk about their upcoming projects and how much they, like, totally adore each other’s work. Find out their favorite bands, how long they’ve been official BFFs, their natural hair colors, their favorite colors, how they feel about Jesus (really!), and so much more.

Pete Wentz shocked fans at a recent suicide prevention event when he confessed he suffered from anxiety and depression, and even attempted to end his own life. The Fall Out Boy bassist, along with Mary J. Blige, Smashing Pumpkin’s frontman Billy Corgan and Say Anything’s Max Bemis, has teamed up with the Jed Foundation, a nonprofit focused on suicide prevention among college students, to relaunch the Half of Us campaign. “The darkest moment was when we had just finished recording our major label record and two days later we were going to go to Europe and I felt completely lost and out of control,” Wentz revealed in a video interview.During his darkest hour, the rocker says he took a handful of prescription drugs and immediately called his manager, who then called his mother. Wentz was rushed to he hospital. “I came home and we realized that we needed to do more than just keep [my] head above water,” the singer explained. “It’s about feeling all right and feeling safe in your own skin.”R&B diva Mary J. Blige revealed that she turned to a higher power to get through the rough times. “I just said ‘God I’m sick, I need you to help me. I don’t want to die, but if something doesn’t change I’ll just kill myself,’” Blige confessed. The singer also received comfort from her husband, who forced her to examine her life, ultimately making the R&B sensation realize she needed to “go through the pain to get better.”

As if promoting that “doof doof rubbish” wasn’t enough, Pete Tong is now being held partly accountable for inciting a mass gate-crash at an 18th birthday bash in Devon, England. The BBC Radio 1 host gave one of his regular on-air “shout-outs” for the mansion party, which was sent in by a listener. Unfortunately, the do was an invites-only affair with 100 guests. The 18-year-old’s mother, Rebecca Brooks, told local media up to 2000 uninvited teenagers turned up, causing thousands of pounds in damage. Needless to say, the four bouncers hired for crowd control were unable to stem the Corey-style carnage. “We had no chance,” the family told the BBC. “They absolutely wrecked the place.” The contents of the house were trashed, and when police arrived they were attacked with broken glass. All this leaves poor ol’ Pete in something of a sticky position. However, the BBC has issued a statement absolving their man of liability. “Pete did not specify the name or address of the venue, but read out details of a mansion party taking place in Bovey Tracey, sent in by a listener,” the statement reads. “He gives shout outs on his show every week – listeners are familiar with this format – and he would never knowingly give an identifiable address for a private party.” Any parents looking to silence Pete Tong in the future could do worse than joining this anti-Tong alliance.

(Daresbury, UK) - Next August sees the 10th edition of the Creamfields festival in Daresbury, just outside the port city of Liverpool in England. To celebrate a decade at the forefront of the rock/dance scene, this year’s event has been expanded to cover two days and comes with the most diverse lineup ever.In previous years, Creamfields has become one of the leading international festivals of Europe, attracting thousands of visitors that enjoy an exciting clash of the best in rock and electronic dance music. 2008 sees a myriad of live bands playing alongside over 100 DJ’s in 10 outdoor areas on the festival’s idyllic countryside setting - the new setting since 2006 when the festival moved from it’s former home of Old Liverpool Airfield. The full lineup is yet to be announced, but confirmed live performances include Simian Mobile Disco, The Gossip, Kasabian, and Fatboy Slim among others. Some of the most notable jocks at this year’s edition are Sasha, Tiësto, Dubfire, Felix Da Housecat and Paul Oakenfold.Creamfields will also organise twelve spin-off events around the world with dates in Spain, Brazil, Malta, Romania and the Czech Republic.Confirmed artists:Kasabian, Fatboy Slim, Ian Brown, Paul Van Dyk, Tiësto, Soulwax, Pendulum, Gossip, Simian Mobile Disco, Chic Featuring Nile Rogers, Roots Manuva, Erick Morillo, Paul Oakenfold, Sasha, David Guetta, 2many DJ’s, Ferry Corsten, Pete Tong, Dubfire, Eddie Halliwell, Hernan Cattaneo, Felix Da Housecat, Steve Angello, Axwell, Sebastian Ingrosso, Annie Mac, Luciano, Claude Von Stroke /Danny Howells, Sander van Doorn, Judge Jules, Tom Novy, Kissy Sell Out Live, Dirty South, Dave Spoon, Mason, Tocadisco, Henrik B, Andy C, Marky, Hype,, High Contrast, Peter Hook, Mike Pickering /Graeme Park, Dave Haslam, Laidback Luke, Jon Da Silva, Adam Sheridan, Gareth Wyn, Harry Choo Choo Romero, Rob Tissera, John Kelly, Matt Hardwick, Tidy Boys, Lisa Pin up, BK, Mark EG, Amber D, Alex Kidd, Kutski, Tidy DJS, Ben Stevens, Paul Maddox, JP & Jukesy, Kym Aryes, Rodi Style, Morgan, Alan Hartley, Andy Mac", more to be announced.Creamfield weekend tickets (excluding camping fees) cost GBP 105.00 and are available through Ticketmaster.