Rolling Stone's Weekend Playlist "Saddam's Hanging, The Musical!" Upsets Some Folks

Check out the comments going on over at the above link, where Rolling Stone suggests a few songs to be the soundtrack to Saddam's execution:
* “Dead Man Walking,” Bruce Springsteen
* “25 Minutes to Go,” Johnny Cash
* “Gallows Pole,” Led Zeppelin
* “Let Him Dangle,” Elvis Costello
* “Hang On,” Teenage Fanclub

I'll say it's tasteless, regardless of how you feel about the situation in Iraq, the death penalty, and so on, but people are really up in arms about this! *Yawn* back to The L Word on DVD for me!

Revolver Magazine Profiles Christian Metal; Get Dark With MP3 From Kittie

In the February 2007 issue of Revolver Magazine, the cover story is about Christian metal bands. Bands covered include As I Lay Dying, Norma Jean, Underoath, and Demon Hunter (what, no Stryper?) The Christian metal scene, dominated in the mainstream by labels such as Tooth & Nail and Solid State, has really blown up in the last two years. Norma Jean and As I Lay Dying have both played Ozzfest, Underoath played Warped Tour (before dropping off amidst a near break-up), and sites like PureVolume are inundated with these groups.

I don't want to judge a band based on its message, nevertheless an entire scene. Wait, I do that with bands like My Chemical Romance and the Killers, so I could, but I actually like Norma Jean! And if bands can profit off of pretending to be Satanists or clowns or mimes (see MCR's makeup for their Halloween show), why can't these bands actually write about what they are motivated by? Christians of these bands' variety are bound, by the tenets of their faith, to proselytize and use their capabilities to spread the message of Jesus. Rage Against The Machine (or at least Zach de la Rocha) felt obligated to spread their message of political change via their music, and only those of a closed mind spoke ill of that. We must not have closed minds about what this metal scene is saying, but enjoy the music. I didn't go crazy and join rebels in Central America listening to RATM, and I don't think anything similar will happen to me listening to Underoath (even though I don't). And besides, kids could do worse than listen to church music.

On an unrelated completely metal but not Christian metal note, here's an MP3 from Kittie: Funeral For Yesterday. Their new album hits stores on February 20, 2007.

The British Invasion Is So Over! NME Invades America

British magazine NME begins its trek into the American market with its new website, www.nme.com. NME is nothing new to the world of music, having been around for 54 years, but this site is its foray into the US, along with brand marketing concerts in a "NME Presents. . ." series. The site has been around for a short time, but is already the third most popular music magazine site on the web. Source: DMNews.

Spike Lee To Direct James Brown Movie; Wolfgang's Vault Slapped With Lawsuit

James Brown's body hasn't even gotten cold yet, and Spike Lee is talking about directing the Soul Man's biopic. The word is, James Brown has granted Spike full access to his music. Of course, who wouldn't, if there was a movie to be made?

On another note, Wolfgang's Vault, the museum of free online recordings of classic rock shows which also sells all kinds of memorabilia, has been sued by Led Zeppelin, The Doors, The Grateful Dead, and Santana to stop access to the recordings. The attorney for Wolfgang says "We believe while this lawsuit will attract a lot of headlines it has no basis or fact in law whatsoever. Wolfgang's Vault bought all of this decades' old material legally, paid their rightful owner and own all the rights necessary to conduct its business. We fully expect to be victorious in the court of law."

Bono To Get Knighted, James Brown Passes On To The Big Jam In The Sky

Bono will be getting knighted (honorarily, he doesn't get a suit of armor, won't be called "Sir", or anything really cool) by the British Empire just after the New Year. The knighting is somewhat of a sensitive issue, since Ireland (of which Bono is a native) seceded from the British Empire almost 60 years ago. Source: Billboard



James Brown died early Christmas day while hospitalized with pneumonia. He was 73. Peace out, JB. Even a couple years in jail for going at some insurance sales reps with a shotgun and running from the 5-0 couldn't hold you down! Show everyone on the other side that you got soul!

Happy Holidays! See You In A Couple Days

Happy Holidays to all of you! I will be away for a couple days with family, but will return on the 26th. Looking forward to it!

Sebadoh Original Lineup Reuniting, Touring in 2007

Sebadoh will be reuniting in its original formation (Eric Gaffney, Lou Barlow, and Jason Loewenstein) and touring in 2007. Their local stop will be at 9:30 Club on April 3. Source: Filter

Sebadoh's most known member, Lou Barlow, was formerly with Dinosaur Jr. but dismissed in 1989. Subsequent to that dismissal, he went on with Sebadoh, which had previously been a side project of his with Eric Gaffney.

Barlow is also known for his project Folk Implosion, and compiling the soundtrack to the movie Kids, which also features a winner from a sadly defunct band called Slint. Check out the ridiculously amazing Spiderland, Slint's best-known release.

Sebadoh disbanded in 1999, but now they're back!

Free Sufjan Stevens MP3: "That Was The Worst Christmas Ever"

iTunes is giving away a free Sufjan Stevens MP3 this week: "That Was The Worst Christmas Ever" from the 5-disc holiday collection Songs For Christmas. All you indie kids better cop that one.

Trixie Little & The Evil Hate Monkey at Ottobar, Hatebreed at 9:30 Club

For a taste of Baltimore burlesque, head on over to the Ottobar on December 22 for the Holiday Spectac-u-thon with Trixie Little and The Evil Hate Monkey! Only 10 bucks! Or if you can't make it on Friday, catch them Saturday at The Palace of Wonders in DC.



After the Christmas lull, check out the Stillborn Fest with headlining Hatebreed along with Sick Of It All, Full Blown Chaos, Subzero, and Damnation A.D. on December 26. The Fest will be at Philadelphia's Electric Factory on December 27.

Free MP3: The Thermals "Here's Your Future"

Here is your free MP3 of the day:
The Thermals - "Here's Your Future"



Went to see the GZA at Sonar last night. It was a free show for those who RSVP'd, but some of us have to keep a regular 9 to 5 schedule, and as of 11:30 PM, he had yet to be seen, so my pal and I had to take off. Anyone who was there, let me know how awesome it was.

Warner Music Group Acquires Approximately 3/4 Share Of Roadrunner Records

"Warner Music Group Corp. today announced it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire 73.5 percent of Roadrunner Music Group B.V., which includes Roadrunner Records, one of the leading hard rock and heavy metal labels, for $73.5 million in purchase price and other considerations." Source: Lambgoat

Concert Review: Killswitch Engage, Hatebreed, Bury Your Dead, 2 Cents at Rams Head Live!, 12/15/06

As slick and well-designed as Rams Head Live! is, you can't really end up in a bad location for a show there. The place is only two years old, has nice bars, flat screen TVs all around, and bathroom attendants. Yes, I went to a hardcore show and had a man pump soap into my hand and offer me a spritz of Drakkar (OK, the Drakkar reference belongs to my dear friend who yet remains unnamed as this individual has not consented to my use of her name, even with prior request herein, indicating she has much in common with most of the world, as she must not have read that post).

2 Cents features a singing drummer. I tend to consider that a laughable situation, since the singer then becomes attached to his instrument and can't really move. The singer's stage persona is 100% bogarted from Jack Black, sharing JB's cadence and with his typical petty commentary and inane teenage-minded humor, not to mention the lack of respect for women. The performance was surprising, if only because it relieved the audience's having to listen to the singing drummer speak. The lead guitarist displayed some fancy fingers as he channeled Metallica's Kirk Hammett with blazing solo work. Not at all bad for an opening band, 2 Cents set the show off right so long as they played and didn't let the singer speak.

Bury Your Dead followed up with a crushing set including material from the current and previous albums (the latter of which featured songs named after various Tom Cruise films), and showed why they were so loved on the Family Values Tour this past summer. Bury Your Dead doesn't write complex songs (listen to the bonus track on Cover Your Tracks in which a chugging riff complements the vocal repetition of the band's name with an F-bomb thrown in for flavor), they write tough-guy hardcore. Dropped tuning, power chords, and screaming are the lot of their skill set. But live performances of "Mission: Impossible", "Top Gun" and "Magnolia" explain how this is a band best seen live than heard on CD, even with the poor behavior of throwing full bottles of water into the audience and spraying mouthfuls of beverage into the crowd. As I said, tough-guy hardcore. The singer is especially demanding on stage, jumping on top of half-stack amps and climbing the metalwork of Rams Head to join the balcony audience before dismounting to crowd-surf.

My most anticipated performance of the night was Hatebreed, who joined the tour after Shadows Fall dropped off to finish recording their forthcoming album. Hatebreed tours relentlessly, and as soon as this current tour ends, they will begin their own headlining tour which stops at 9:30 Club on December 26. After adding an additional guitarist (hardcore hero Franky "Three-Gun" Novinec, who sported a GG Allin t-shirt on this particular evening) this year, Hatebreed's sound has become even harder, and their live show even more bone-crushing. Material spanned the Hatebreed catalogue, from Satisfaction Is The Death Of Desire's "Before Dishonor" as well as a healthy serving of Perseverance, The Rise Of Brutality and plenty of Supremacy, including "Destroy Everything" which is one to really amp up the crowd. Hatebreed's infectuous love for the genre and the scene make them one of the best bands to see, even if Jamey Jasta's deceptively positive lyrics (which have become somewhat less inspired on the most recent album) don't strike up the artistic stroke most critics seek. An instrumental onslaught, championed by Jasta's solid vocals, and cornerstoned by a commendable work ethic make Hatebreed one of my favorite live bands.

As for the headliner, Killswitch Engage, they are much more technical than their tourmates, but don't carry the same weight that other bands in their scene do. Their songs are much more accessible, because even with the death-metal vocals, they include melodic and anthemic choruses and pop influence that draws a cross-over audience. Cape-sporting guitarists aside, Killswitch makes more critically impressive music, and are poised for an even more popular breakout with their new album As Daylight Dies, but somehow lack the progressive metal reputation they've developed, and strike as less metalcore than crossover metal with their aforementioned anthemic choruses as well as breakdown bridges. Definitely a tight, respectable live performance, but less energy on this night than Bury Your Dead and Hatebreed.

Jeff Tweedy Rolls Solo in 2007; Bill Gates Has Nose Hair, Hates DRM

Jeff Tweedy, frontman for alt-country band Wilco, has announced some solo tour dates for January 2007:
16 - Memphis, TN - Germantown Performing Arts Center
17 - Nashville, TN - James K. Polk Theater
19 - Tulsa, OK - Cain's Ballroom
20 - Dallas, TX - Granada Theater
21 - Marfa, TX - Liberty Hall
23 - Austin, TX - Hogg Auditorium
26 - New Orleans, LA - House of Blues
29 - Atlanta, GA - The Tabernacle
30 - Knoxville, TN - Bijou Theatre
31 - Charlottesville, VA - The Paramount Theatre

You can bet there will be more dates announced, so stay posted. So far, the closest to Baltimore/DC is the Charlottesville show, but from what we see in those dates, they are in the south, so Jeff could very well be working his way up the east coast in February.


Holy crap, Bill Gates! Take 10 bucks and buy a nose hair trimmer! While we wait for BG to touch up, he's been hating on digital rights management (DRM), the software that allows the MP3s you download to be compatible only with one media player, or preventing you from sharing. Bill suggests you just "buy a CD and rip it. You are legal then." I like that idea. Until DRM disappears and I can listen to the music I paid for on any MP3 player I please, I'll stick with CDs. Source: TechCrunch

Justin Timberlake Hosts Saturday Night Live, Promotes New Movie Alpha Dog

Last night, Justin Timberlake hosted Saturday Night Live. This is his second time as host, and he is hilarious. Among other things, there was an Omeletteville sequel, a Barry Gibb talk show sequel, a viral video with Andy Samberg, and performances of "My Love" (as introduced by JT's girlfriend, Cameron Diaz) and "What Goes Around". The latter performance was the better of the two, with Justin really hammering away at the piano. Go look it up on YouTube, if it's not illegal yet. And he has a movie coming out on January 12, Alpha Dog. As you can see above, he's all inked up for it, too. This one better beat that Edison Force movie with LL Cool J and Morgan Freeman. That isht was whack.

Any Given Tuesday's Top 10 Albums of 2006

After much deliberation over whether to do a top 10, and much delay in deliberating over whether to do a top 10, here are Any Given Tuesday's Top 10 Albums of 2006:

#1: Cat Power - The Greatest

#2: Mastodon - Blood Mountain

#3: Deftones - Saturday Night Wrist

#4: Regina Spektor - Begin To Hope

#5: The Decemberists - The Crane Wife

#6: Justin Timberlake - FutureSex/LoveSounds

#7: Tool - 10,000 Days

#8: Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Show Your Bones

#9: Wolfmother - Wolfmother

#10: Hatebreed - Supremacy

Coming Soon To Ram's Head Live, Verizon Center: Killswitch Engage, Clutch, The Who, Sean Lennon, and more

Shows in the near future in Baltimore/DC:

Tonight - Killswitch Engage w/ Hatebreed, Bury Your Dead @ Ram's Head Live! Baltimore - On sale now

December 22 - Sean Lennon w/ Jim Noir @ Ram's Head Live! - On sale now

December 31 - Clutch w/ The Sword, William Elliot Whitmore @ Ram's Head Live! - On sale now

January 4 - The Wailers @ Ram's Head Live! - On sale now

January 11 - Senses Fail w/ Saosin, Alexisonfire, The Sleeping @ Ram's Head Live! - On sale now

February 1 - Bob Seeger & The Silver Bullet Band @ Verizon Center, DC - Tickets on sale this Saturday at 10.

February 5 - Dir En Grey w/ Fair To Midland @ Ram's Head Live! - On sale now

March 8 - The Who w/ Rose Hill Drive @ Verizon Center - On sale now

Guns N Roses Set Another Tentative Release Date for Chinese Democracy

On the official website, Axl Rose of Guns N' Roses has posted an "open letter" about the true release date of Chinese Democracy, and it is set for March 6, 2007. This is after public declarations of having the album out by the end of 2006, of course, but the album has been perpetually delayed for longer than some of you My Chemical Romance fans have been alive. At this point, I'm done with GNR. Axl is cancelling tour dates like blind dates, showing up on stage late like always, and it's old. He can't even keep up with the Rolling Stones, and that's pretty lame. Bye bye, Axl. I'll let Use Your Illusion be your final statement.

Rolling Stone Names 50 Best Albums Of 2006

Click the title to see Rolling Stone's 50 Best Albums of 2006. Bob Dylan's Modern Times takes RS's title this year. I understand how America kowtows to Bob Dylan, and any other time I'd call BS on this one, but I can't say that I thought anything was necessarily better this time around. Actually, it's a pretty good top 10, but c'mon, is The Hold Steady really that good that they get #8, not to mention that they beat Mastodon? Blood Mountain shreds. The Hold Steady play bar rock and rip off Jack Kerouac in one giant cliche of an album. Cat Power is definitely top 10 material, and clocks in at #6.
The New York Dolls hit #11, in what must be the band's 11th incarnation, as band members drop like flies. Pearl Jam comes in at #13, which seems like a fair shake for them. Wolfmother at #15 is decent. That's my top-secret album of right now, as I can't get enough of this '70s metal redux.
I love seeing my girl Regina Spektor at #21! My personal bias would bump her up about 10 spots, but she definitely makes the list. Also, The Decemberists (#23), Justin Timberlake (#26), Tool (#38), Yeah Yeah Yeahs (#44), and Neko Case (#45) come in, deservedly so, regardless of where you think they fall on the spectrum.
Some sadly included albums were Lady Sovereign (#48, she's not that good), Sean Lennon (#41), Thom Yorke (#34, go back to Radiohead, like, now), and My Chemical Romance (#20, maybe in the top 50, but somewhere below 25 would be appropriate).

Trent Reznor Reports New Nine Inch Nails Album Might Be Ready

Trent Reznor, the mastermind behind Nine Inch Nails, reports that a new NIN album to follow With Teeth might be ready. Per the site, it's "highly conceptual. Quite noisy." We'll take it.

Sufjan Stevens Performs Free At Kennedy Center In DC On February 5, 2007

On February 5, 2007, with help from Target and The Fannie Mae Foundation, The Kennedy Center will present an evening of free performances including the US Navy Jazz Ensemble, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, the National Symphony Orchestra, and Sufjan Stevens as the headliner. Sufjan will be accompanied by the Kennedy Center House Orchestra.

Tickets are free, but limited to one of the above performances. Those who have a ticket to one performance will be able to view the others in simulcast from inside the Kennedy Center. Information about how to get tickets will be forthcoming.

NPR All Songs Considered: Ray LaMontagne Live From 9:30 Club; In Stores Today

NPR is streaming Ray LaMontagne's performance at 9:30 Club from last night. Listen to it here.

New albums available today from Fantasia Barrino & Taylor Hicks of American Idol fame, Sonic Youth (a B-sides & Rarities album), and more.

The Current State Of The Music Industry; Mistakes In Grammy Nominees Omit Ludacris

According to The New York Times, while physical CD sales are plummeting, sales of digital and cell phone content are keeping the music industry afloat. But watch out, because now the labels want a cut of ticket sales and t-shirt sales, which have heretofore been untouchable by the label and totally in the hands of the artist.
So are brick-and-mortar record stores going bye-bye? Will artists be forced to allow the label to get a cut of concert tickets and clothing?



And poor Ludacris got left out in the press release regarding this year's Grammy nominations, but don't fret, he's nominated up against Justin Timberlake, Gnarls Barkley, Beyonce, T.I., etc. Unlike Ludacris, film composer John Williams was over-nominated. Originally nominated for five, he is actually up for four Grammys. But he's got 18 already, so he's not sweating it.Source: Reuters

New Metallica in the works, Rick Rubin to produce

Metallica is set to record its ninth studio album, the follow-up to "St. Anger", with producer Rick Rubin at the helm. Lars Ulrich spoke to NME and said the album will hark back to the seminal 1986 "Master Of Puppets".

100th Post: 49th (2006) Annual Grammy Nominees

For the 100th post, here are the nominees for the 49th Annual Grammy Awards.


Record Of The Year
• Be Without You - Mary J. Blige
• You're Beautiful - James Blunt
• Not Ready To Make Nice - Dixie Chicks
• Crazy - Gnarls Barkley
• Put Your Records On - Corinne Bailey Rae

Album Of The Year
• Taking The Long Way - Dixie Chicks
• St. Elsewhere - Gnarls Barkley
• Continuum - John Mayer
• Stadium Arcadium - Red Hot Chili Peppers
• FutureSex/LoveSounds - Justin Timberlake

Song Of The Year
• Be Without You - Mary J. Blige
• Jesus, Take The Wheel - Carrie Underwood
• Not Ready To Make Nice - Dixie Chicks
• Put Your Records On - Corinne Bailey Rae
• You're Beautiful - James Blunt

Best New Artist
• James Blunt
• Chris Brown
• Imogen Heap
• Corinne Bailey Rae
• Carrie Underwood

Best Female Pop Vocal Performance

• Ain't No Other Man - Christina Aguilera
• Unwritten - Natasha Bedingfield
• You Can Close Your Eyes - Sheryl Crow
• Stupid Girls - Pink
• Black Horse And The Cherry Tree - KT Tunstall

Best Male Pop Vocal Performance
• You're Beautiful - James Blunt
• Save Room - John Legend
• Waiting On The World To Change - John Mayer
• Jenny Wren - Paul McCartney
• Bad Day - Daniel Powter

Best Pop Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal
• My Humps - The Black Eyed Peas
• I Will Follow You Into The Dark - Death Cab For Cutie
• Over My Head (Cable Car)- The Fray
• Is It Any Wonder? - Keane
• Stickwitu - The Pussycat Dolls

Best Pop Collaboration With Vocals
• For Once In My Life - Tony Bennett & Stevie Wonder
• One - Mary J. Blige & U2
• Always On Your Side - Sheryl Crow & Sting
• Promiscuous - Nelly Furtado & Timbaland
• Hips Don't Lie - Shakira & Wyclef Jean

Best Pop Instrumental Performance

• Mornin' - George Benson (& Al Jarreau)
• Drifting - Enya
• Subterfuge - Béla Fleck & The Flecktones
• Song H - Bruce Hornsby
• My Favorite Things - The Brian Setzer Orchestra

Best Pop Instrumental Album
• New Beginnings - Gerald Albright
• Fire Wire - Larry Carlton
• X - Fourplay
• Fingerprints - Peter Frampton
• Wrapped In A Dream - Spyro Gyra

Best Pop Vocal Album
• Back To Basics - Christina Aguilera
• Back To Bedlam - James Blunt
• The River In Reverse - Elvis Costello & Allen Toussaint
• Continuum - John Mayer
• FutureSex/LoveSounds - Justin Timberlake

Best Dance Recording
• Suffer Well - Depeche Mode
• Ooh La La - Goldfrapp
• Get Together - Madonna
• I'm With Stupid - Pet Shop Boys
• Sexy Back - Justin Timberlake & Timbaland

Best Electronic/Dance Album
• Supernature - Goldfrapp
• Confessions On A Dance Floor - Madonna
• A Lively Mind - Oakenfold
• Fundamental - Pet Shop Boys
• The Garden - Zero 7

Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album
• Duets: An American Classic - Tony Bennett
• Caught In The Act - Michael Bublé
• Wintersong - Sarah McLachlan
• Bette Midler Sings The Peggy Lee Songbook - Bette Midler
• Timeless Love - Smokey Robinson

Best Solo Rock Vocal Performance
• Nausea - Beck
• Someday Baby - Bob Dylan
• Route 66 - John Mayer
• Saving Grace - Tom Petty
• Lookin' For A Leader - Neil Young

Best Rock Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal
• Talk - Coldplay
• How To Save A Life - The Fray
• Steady, As She Goes - The Raconteurs
• Dani California - Red Hot Chili Peppers
• The Saints Are Coming - U2 & Green Day

Best Hard Rock Performance
• Crazy Bitch - Buckcherry
• Every Day Is Exactly The Same - Nine Inch Nails
• Lonely Day - System Of A Down
• Vicarious - Tool
• Woman - Wolfmother

Best Metal Performance
• Redneck - Lamb Of God
• Colony Of Birchmen - Mastodon
• Lies, Lies, Lies - Ministry
• Eyes Of The Insane - Slayer
• 30/30-150 - Stone Sour

Best Rock Instrumental Performance
• Chun Li's Flying Bird Kick - Arctic Monkeys
• The Wizard Turns On... - The Flaming Lips
• Black Hole Sun - Peter Frampton
• Catsellorizon - David Gilmour
• Super Colossal - Joe Satriani

Best Rock Song
• Chasing Cars - Snow Patrol
• Dani California - Red Hot Chili Peppers
• Lookin' For A Leader - Neil Young
• Someday Baby - Bob Dylan
• When You Were Young - The Killers

Best Rock Album
• Try! - John Mayer Trio
• Highway Companion - Tom Petty
• Broken Boy Soldiers - The Raconteurs
• Stadium Arcadium - Red Hot Chili Peppers
• Living With War - Neil Young

Best Alternative Music Album
• Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not - Arctic Monkeys
• At War With The Mystics - The Flaming Lips
• St. Elsewhere - Gnarls Barkley
• Show Your Bones - Yeah Yeah Yeahs
• The Eraser - Thom Yorke

Best Female R&B Vocal Performance
• Ring The Alarm - Beyoncé
• Be Without You - Mary J. Blige
• Don't Forget About Us - Mariah Carey
• Day Dreaming - Natalie Cole
• I Am Not My Hair - India.Arie

Best Male R&B Vocal Performance
• Heaven - John Legend
• So Sick - Ne-Yo
• Black Sweat - Prince
• I Call It Love - Lionel Richie
• Got You Home - Luther Vandross

Best R&B Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals
• Breezin' - George Benson & Al Jarreau
• Love Changes - Jamie Foxx Featuring Mary J. Blige
• Everyday (Family Reunion)- Chaka Khan, Gerald Levert, Yolanda Adams & Carl Thomas
• Family Affair - (Sly & The Family Stone), John Legend, Joss Stone With Van Hunt
• Beautiful, Loved And Blessed - Prince & Támar

Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance
• Christmas Time Is Here - Anita Baker
• God Bless The Child - George Benson & Al Jarreau Featuring Jill Scott
• I Found My Everything - Mary J. Blige Featuring Raphael Saadiq
• You Are So Beautiful - Sam Moore Featuring Billy Preston, Zucchero, Eric Clapton & Robert Randolph
• How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You) - The Temptations

Best Urban/Alternative Performance
• Crazy - Gnarls Barkley
• That Heat - Sergio Mendes Featuring Erykah Badu & Will.i.am
• Mas Que Nada - Sergio Mendes Featuring The Black Eyed Peas
• Idlewild Blue (Don't Chu Worry 'Bout Me) - Outkast
• 3121 - Prince

Best R&B Song
• Be Without You - Mary J. Blige
• Black Sweat - Prince
• Deja Vu - Beyonce feat. Jay-Z
• Don't Forget About Us - Mariah Carey
• I Am Not My Hair - India.Arie

Best R&B Album
• The Breakthrough - Mary J. Blige
• Unpredictable - Jamie Foxx
• Testimony: Vol. 1, Life & Relationship - India.Arie
• 3121 - Prince
• Coming Home - Lionel Richie

Best Contemporary R&B Album
• B'Day - Beyoncé
• Chris Brown - Chris Brown
• 20 Y.O. - Janet Jackson
• Kelis Was Here - Kelis
• In My Own Words - Ne-Yo

Best Rap Solo Performance
• Touch It - Busta Rhymes
• We Run This - Missy Elliott
• Kick, Push - Lupe Fiasco
• Undeniable - Mos Def
• What You Know - T.I.

Best Rap Performance By A Duo Or Group
• Ridin - Chamillionaire Featuring Krayzie Bone
• Georgia - Ludacris & Field Mob (Featuring Jamie Foxx)
• Grillz - Nelly Featuring Paul Wall, Ali & Gipp
• Mighty "O" - Outkast
• Don't Feel Right - The Roots

Best Rap/Sung Collaboration
• Smack That - Akon Featuring Eminem
• Deja Vu - Beyoncé Featuring Jay-Z
• Shake That - Eminem Featuring Nate Dogg
• Unpredictable - Jamie Foxx Featuring Ludacris
• My Love - Justin Timberlake Featuring T.I.

Best Rap Song
• It's Goin' Down - Yung Joc
• Kick, Push - Lupe Fiasco
• Money Maker - Ludacris feat. Pharrell
• Ridin - Chamillionaire Featuring Krayzie Bone
• What You Know - T.I.

Best Rap Album
• Lupe Fiasco's Food & Liquor - Lupe Fiasco
• Release Therapy - Ludacris
• In My Mind - Pharrell
• Game Theory - The Roots
• King - T.I.

Best Female Country Vocal Performance
• Kerosene - Miranda Lambert
• I Still Miss Someone - Martina McBride
• Something's Gotta Give - LeAnn Rimes
• Jesus, Take The Wheel - Carrie Underwood
• I Don't Feel Like Loving You Today - Gretchen Wilson

Best Male Country Vocal Performance
• Every Mile A Memory - Dierks Bentley
• The Reason Why - Vince Gill
• The Seashores Of Old Mexico - George Strait
• Would You Go With Me - Josh Turner
• Once In A Lifetime - Keith Urban

Best Country Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal
• Not Ready To Make Nice - Dixie Chicks
• Heaven's My Home - The Duhks
• Boondocks - Little Big Town
• What Hurts The Most - Rascal Flatts
• Leave The Pieces - The Wreckers

Best Country Collaboration With Vocals
• Who Says You Can't Go Home - Bon Jovi & Jennifer Nettles
• Tomorrow Is Forever - Solomon Burke & Dolly Parton
• Calling Me - Kenny Rogers & Don Henley
• Midnight Angel - Rhonda Vincent & Bobby Osborne
• Love Will Always Win - Trisha Yearwood & Garth Brooks

Best Country Instrumental Performance
• Jerusalem Ridge - Casey Driessen
• Gameshow Rag/Cannonball Rag - Tommy Emmanuel
• Whiskey Before Breakfast - Bryan Sutton & Doc Watson
• The Eleventh Reel - Chris Thile
• Nature Of The Beast - Jim VanCleve

Best Country Song
• Every Mile A Memory - Dierks Bentley
• I Don't Feel Like Loving You Today - Gretchen Wilson
• Jesus, Take The Wheel - Carrie Underwood
• Like Red On A Rose - Alan Jackson
• What Hurts The Most - Racal Flatts

Best Country Album
• Taking The Long Way - Dixie Chicks
• Like Red On A Rose - Alan Jackson
• The Road To Here - Little Big Town
• You Don't Know Me: The Songs Of Cindy Walker - Willie Nelson
• Your Man - Josh Turner

Best Bluegrass Album
• Long List Of Heartaches - The Grascals
• Bluegrass - Jim Lauderdale
• Instrumentals - Ricky Skaggs And Kentucky Thunder
• Live At The Ryman - Marty Stuart And His Fabulous Superlatives
• All American Bluegrass Girl - Rhonda Vincent

Best New Age Album
• A Posteriori - Enigma
• Amarantine - Enya
• Beyond Words - Gentle Thunder With Will Clipman & AmoChip Dabney
• Elements Series: Fire - Peter Kater
• The Magical Journeys Of Andreas Vollenweider - reas Vollenweider
And

Best Contemporary Jazz Album
• The Hidden Land - Béla Fleck & The Flecktones
• People People Music Music - Groove Collective
• Rewind That - Christian Scott
• Sexotica - Sex Mob
• Who Let The Cats Out? - Mike Stern

Best Jazz Vocal Album
• Footprints - Karrin Allyson
• Easy To Love - Roberta Gambarini
• Live At Jazz Standard With Fred Hersch - Nancy King
• From This Moment On - Diana Krall
• Turned To Blue - Nancy Wilson

Best Jazz Instrumental Solo
• Some Skunk Funk - Randy Brecker w/Michael Brecker
• Paq Man - Hilario Duran And His Latin Jazz Big Band
• Freedom Jazz Dance - Taylor Eigsti
• Hippidy Hop (Drum Solo) - Roy Haynes
• Hope - Branford Marsalis

Best Jazz Instrumental Album, Individual or Group
• Sound Grammar - Ornette Coleman
• The Ultimate Adventure - Chick Corea
• Trio Beyond - Saudades - Jack DeJohnette, Larry Goldings & John Scofield
• Beyond The Wall - Kenny Garrett
• Sonny, Please - Sonny Rollins

Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album
• Some Skunk Funk - Randy Brecker With Michael Brecker, Jim Beard, Will Lee, Peter Erskine, Marcio Doctor & Vince Mendoza conducting The WDR Big Band Köln
• Spirit Music - Bob Brookmeyer - New Art Orchestra
• Streams Of Expression - Joe Lovano Ensemble
• Live In Tokyo At The Blue Note - Mingus Big Band
• Up From The Skies - Music Of Jim McNeely - The Vanguard Jazz Orchestra

Best Latin Jazz Album
• Codes - Ignacio Berroa
• Cubist Music -Edsel Gomez
• Simpático - The Brian Lynch/Eddie Palmieri Project
• Absolute Quintet - Dafnis Prieto
• Viva - Diego Urcola, Edward Simon, Avishai Cohen, Antonio Sanchez & Pernell Saturnino

Best Gospel Performance
• Victory - Yolanda Adams
• Not Forgotten - Israel & New Breed
• The Blessing Of Abraham - Donald Lawrence & The Tri-City Singers
• Made To Worship - Chris Tomlin
• Victory - Tye Tribbett & G.A.

Best Gospel Song
• The Blessing Of Abraham - Donald Lawrence & The Tri-City Singers
• Imagine Me - Kirk Franklin
• Mountain Of God - Third Day
• Not Forgotten - Israel & New Breed
• Victory - Tye Tribbett & G.A.

Best Rock Or Rap Gospel Album
• DecembeRadio - DecembeRadio
• Where The Past Meets Today - Sarah Kelly
• Turn Around - Jonny Lang
• End Of Silence - Red
• Bone-A-Fide - T-Bone

Best Pop/Contemporary Gospel Album
• Sound Of Melodies - Leeland
• Coming Up To Breathe - MercyMe
• Wherever You Are - Third Day
• See The Morning - Chris Tomlin
• Introducing Ayiesha Woods - Ayiesha Woods

Best Southern, Country, Or Bluegrass Gospel Album
• Kenny Bishop - Kenny Bishop
• Give It Away - Gaither Vocal Band
• Precious Memories - Alan Jackson
• The Promised Land - The Del McCoury Band
• Glory Train - Randy Travis

Best Traditional Gospel Album
• An Invitation To Worship - Byron Cage
• Paved The Way - The Caravans
• Still Keeping It Real - The Dixie Hummingbirds
• Alive In South Africa - Israel & New Breed
• Finalé Act One - Donald Lawrence & The Tri-City Singers

Best Contemporary R&B Gospel Album
• Set Me Free - Myron Butler & Levi
• Hero - Kirk Franklin
• A Timeless Christmas - Israel And New Breed
• This Is Me - Kierra Kiki Sheard
• Victory Live! - Tye Tribbett & G.A.

Best Latin Pop Album
• Adentro - Arjona
• Lo Que Trajo El Barco - Obie Bermúdez
• Individual - Fulano
• Trozos De Mi Alma 2 - Marco Antonio Solis
• Limón Y Sal - Julieta Venegas

Best Latin Rock, Alternative Or Urban Album
• Lo Demás Es Plástico - Black:Guayaba
• The Underdog/El Subestimado - Tego Calderón
• Calle 13 - Calle 13
• Superpop Venezuela - Los Amigos Invisibles
• Amar Es Combatir - Maná

Best Tropical Latin Album
• Fuzionando - Oscar D'Leon
• Salsatón: Salsa Con Reggaetón - Andy Montañez
• Hoy, Mañana Y Siempre - Tito Nieves
• Directo Al Corazón - Gilberto Santa Rosa
• What You've Been Waiting For - Lo Que Esperabas - Tiempo Libre

Best Mexican/Mexican-American Album
• Historias De Mi Tierra - Pepe Aguilar
• No Es Brujería - Ana Bárbara
• 25 Aniversario - Mariachi Sol De Mexico De José Hernández
• A Toda Ley - Pablo Montero
• Orgullo De Mujer - Alicia Villarreal

Best Tejano Album
• Sigue El Taconazo - Chente Barrera
• It's...All Right - Jimmy Edward
• Live In Session - Bob Gallarza
• All Of Me - Jay Perez
• Rebecca Valadez - Rebecca Valadez

Best Norteño Album
• Algo De Mí - Conjunto Primavera
• Puro Pa' Arriba - Los Huracanes Del Norte
• Historias Que Contar - Los Tigres Del Norte
• Piénsame Un Momento - Pesado
• Prefiero La Soledad - Retoño

Best Banda Album
• 20 Mil Heridas - Banda Machos
• Mas Fuerte Que Nunca - Banda El Recodo de Cruz Lizárraga
• Amor Gitano - Cuisillos
• A Mucha Honra - Ezequiel Peña
• Más Allá Del Sol - Joan Sebástian

Best Traditional Blues Album
• Brother To The Blues - Tab Benoit With Louisiana's Leroux
• Bronx In Blue - Dion
• People Gonna Talk - James Hunter
• Guitar Groove-A-Rama - Duke Robillard
• Risin' With The Blues - Ike Turner

Best Contemporary Blues Album
• Live From Across The Pond - Robert Cray Band
• Sippiana Hericane - Dr. John & The Lower 911
• Suitcase - Keb' Mo'
• Hope And Desire - Susan Tedeschi
• After The Rain - Irma Thomas

Best Traditional Folk Album
• I Stand Alone - Ramblin' Jack Elliott
• Gonna Let It Shine - Odetta
• Adieu False Heart - Linda Ronstadt & Ann Savoy
• We Shall Overcome - The Seeger Sessions - Bruce Springsteen
• A Distant Land To Roam - Ralph Stanley

Best Contemporary Folk/Americana Album
• Solo Acoustic Vol. 1 - Jackson Browne
• Black Cadillac - Rosanne Cash
• Workbench Songs - Guy Clark
• Modern Times - Bob Dylan
• All The Roadrunning - Mark Knopfler & Emmylou Harris

Best Native American Music Album
• Voice Of The Drum - Black Eagle
• Heart Of The Wind - Robert Tree Cody & Will Clipman
• American Indian Story - Jana
• Long Winter Nights - Northern Cree & Friends
• Dance With The Wind - Mary Youngblood

Best Hawaiian Music Album
• Generation Hawai'i - Amy Hanaiali'i
• Grandmaster Slack Key Guitar - Ledward Ka'apana
• The Wild Hawaiian - Henry Kapono
• Hawaiian Slack Key Kings - Various Artists
• Legends Of Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar - Live From Maui - Various Artists

Best Reggae Album
• Too Bad - Buju Banton
• Love Is My Religion - Ziggy Marley
• Youth - Matisyahu
• Rhythm Doubles - Sly & Robbie
• Who You Fighting For - UB40

Best Traditional World Music Album
• Music Of Central Asia Vol. 2: Invisible Face Of The Beloved: Classical Music Of The Tajiks And Uzbeks - The Academy Of Maqâm
• Endless Vision - Hossein Alizadeh & Djivan Gasparyan
• Hambo In The Snow - Andrea Hoag, Loretta Kelley & Charlie Pilzer
• Golden Strings Of The Sarode - Aashish Khan & Zakir Hussain
• Blessed - Soweto Gospel Choir

Best Contemporary World Music Album
• Tiki - Richard Bona
• M'Bemba - Salif Keita
• Wonder Wheel - The Klezmatics
• Long Walk To Freedom - Ladysmith Black Mambazo
• Savane - Ali Farka Toure

Best Polka Album
• Batteries Not Included - Eddie Blazonczyk's Versatones
• As Sweet As Candy - Lenny Gomulka & Chicago Push
• Party Dress - LynnMarie & The Boxhounds
• Good Friends Good Music - Walter Ostanek & Fred Ziwich
• Polka In Paradise - Jimmy Sturr And His Orchestra

Best Musical Album For Children
• Baby Einstein Meet The Orchestra - Various Artists
• Beethoven's Wig 3: Many More Sing Along Symphonies - Beethoven's Wig
• Catch That Train! - Dan Zanes And Friends
• My Best Day - Trout Fishing In America
• The Sunny Side Of The Street - John Lithgow

Best Spoken Word Album For Children
• Blah Blah Blah: Stories About Clams, Swamp Monsters, Pirates & Dogs - Bill Harley
• Christmas In The Trenches - John McCutcheon
• Disney's Little Einsteins Musical Missions - Various Artists
• Peter Pan - Jim Dale
• The Witches - Lynn Redgrave

Best Spoken Word Album (Includes Poetry, Audio Books & Story Telling)
• I Shouldn't Even Be Doing This! - Bob Newhart
• New Rules - Polite Musings From A Timid Observer - Bill Maher
• Our Endangered Values: America's Moral Crisis - Jimmy Carter
• The Truth (With Jokes) - Al Franken
• With Ossie And Ruby: In This Life Together - Ossie Davis & Ruby Dee

Best Comedy Album
• Blue Collar Comedy Tour - One For The Road - Bill Engvall, Ron White, Jeff Foxworthy & Larry The Cable Guy
• The Carnegie Hall Performance - Lewis Black
• Life Is Worth Losing - George Carlin
• Straight Outta Lynwood - "Weird Al" Yankovic
• You Can't Fix Stupid - Ron White

Best Musical Show Album
• The Color Purple
• The Drowsy Chaperone
• Jersey Boys
• The Pajama Game
• Sweeney Todd - The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Best Compilation Soundtrack Album For Motion Picture, Television Or Other Visual Media
• Brokeback Mountain
• Cars
• Grey's Anatomy - Volume 2
• Little Miss Sunshine
• Walk The Line

Best Score Soundtrack Album For Motion Picture, Television Or Other Visual Media
• The Chronicles Of Narnia - The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe
• The Da Vinci Code
• Memoirs Of A Geisha
• Munich
• Pirates Of The Caribbean - Dead Man's Chest

Best Song Written For Motion Picture, Television Or Other Visual Media
• Can't Take It In (From The Chronicles Of Narnia - The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe) - Imogen Heap

• I Need To Wake Up (From An Inconvenient Truth) - Melissa Etheridge
• Our Town (From Cars) - Randy Newman
• There's Nothing Like A Show On Broadway (From The Producers) - Nathan Lane & Matthew Broderick
• Travelin' Thru (From Transamerica) - Dolly Parton

Best Instrumental Composition
• Argument - Taylor Eigsti
• A Concerto In Swing - The Henry Mancini Institute Orchestra & Big Band
• A Prayer For Peace - John Williams
• Sayuri's Theme And End Credits - John Williams, Yo-Yo Ma & Itzhak Perlman
• Valentine - Fred Hersch

Best Instrumental Arrangement
• Attack Of The Killer Tomatoes - Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band
• Three Ghouls - Chick Corea
• Three Women - Gil Goldstein
• Tom & Eddie - The Henry Mancini Institute Orchestra & Big Band
• Up From The Skies - The Vanguard Jazz Orchestra

Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s)
• For Once In My Life - Tony Bennett & Stevie Wonder
• Good Morning Heartache - Chris Botti & Jill Scott
• My Flame Burns Blue (Blood Count) - Elvis Costello With The Metropole Orkest
• Stardust - Dizzy Gillespie All-Star Big Band
• Suninga - Gil Goldstein

Best Recording Package
• The Best Worst-Case Scenario - Fair
• Personal File - Johnny Cash
• Reprieve - Ani DiFranco
• 10,000 Days - Tool
• Versions - Thievery Corporation

Best Boxed Or Special Limited Edition Package
• The Cellar Door Sessions 1970 - Miles Davis
• Fonotone Records - Various Artists
• A Life Less Lived - The Gothic Box - Various Artists
• One Kiss Can Lead To Another: Girl Group Sounds Lost & Found - Various Artists
• Stadium Arcadium - Red Hot Chili Peppers

Best Album Notes
• Good For What Ails You: Music Of The Medicine Shows, 1926-1937 - Various Artists
• If You Got To Ask, You Ain't Got It! - Fats Waller
• Lost Sounds: Blacks And The Birth Of The Recording Industry 1891-1922 - Various Artists
• Pirate Radio - Pretenders
• There Is A Season - The Byrds

Best Historical Album
• Good For What Ails You: Music Of The Medicine Shows, 1926-1937 - Various Artists
• Lost Sounds: Blacks And The Birth Of The Recording Industry 1891-1922 - Various Artists
• One Kiss Can Lead To Another: Girl Group Sounds Lost & Found - Various Artists
• Poetry On Record: 98 Poets Read Their Work (1888-2006) - Various Artists
• Rockin' Bones: 1950's Punk & Rockabilly - Various Artists

Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical
• Adieu False Heart - Linda Ronstadt & Ann Savoy
• At War With The Mystics - The Flaming Lips
• Like Red On A Rose - Alan Jackson
• The Phat Pack - Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band
• Suitcase - Keb' Mo'

Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical
• Howard Benson
• Every Man For Himself (Hoobastank)
• Flyleaf (Flyleaf)
• In With The Out Crowd (Less Than Jake)
• One-X (Three Days Grace)
• The Paramour Sessions (Papa Roach)
• Popaganda (Head Automatica)
• Saosin (Saosin)
• T Bone Burnett
• Thunderbird (Cassandra Wilson)
• The True False Identity (T Bone Burnett)
• Walk The Line - Soundtrack (Joaquin Phoenix & Various Artists)
• Danger Mouse
• Pieces Of The People We Love (The Rapture)
• St. Elsewhere (Gnarls Barkley)
• Rick Rubin
• American V: A Hundred Highways (Johnny Cash)
• God's Gonna Cut You Down (Johnny Cash)
• Stadium Arcadium (Red Hot Chili Peppers)
• Taking The Long Way (Dixie Chicks)
• 12 Songs (Neil Diamond)
• Will.i.am
• About You (Mary J. Blige Featuring Will.i.am)
• Big Girls Don't Cry (Fergie)
• Damn Girl (Justin Timberlake Featuring Will.i.am)
• I Am Somebody (Santana Featuring Will.i.am)
• I Love My B**** (Busta Rhymes Featuring Kelis & Will.i.am)
• Mas Que Nada (Sergio Mendes Featuring The Black Eyed Peas)
• Timeless (Sergio Mendes)

Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical
• Be Without You (Moto Blanco Vocal Mix) (Mary J. Blige)
• Damage Thorn (Buick Project Remix) (Tiefschwarz & Tracey Thorn)
• Deja Vu (Freemasons Club Mix - No Rap) (Beyoncé)
• Talk (Thin White Duke Mix) (Coldplay)
• World Hold On (E-Smoove Remix) (Bob Sinclair)

Best Surround Sound Album
• Immortal Nystedt - Ensemble 96 Conducted By Øystein Fevang
• Long Walk To Freedom - Ladysmith Black Mambazo
• Morph The Cat - Donald Fagen
• Straight Outta Lynwood - "Weird Al" Yankovic
• A Valid Path - Alan Parsons

Best Engineered Album, Classical
• Elgar: Enigma Variations; Britten: The Young Person's Guide To The Orchestra, Four Sea Interludes - Paavo Järvi & Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra
• Látigo - Quartet San Francisco
• Mahler: Symphony No. 2 - Pierre Boulez, Wiener Philharmoniker, Christine Schäfer, Michelle DeYoung & Wiener Singverein
• Requiem - Craig Hella Johnson & Conspirare
• Vaughan Williams: Mass In G Min., And Other A Cappella Works - Norman Mackenzie & Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Chamber Chorus

Producer Of The Year, Classical
• Manfred Eicher
• Honegger/Martinù/Bach/Pintscher/Ravel (Frank Peter Zimmermann & Heinrich
Schiff)
• Kurtág: Kafka-Fragmente (Juliane Banse & András Keller)
• Nuove Musiche (Rolf Lislevand, Arianna Savall, Pedro Estevan, Bjørn Kjellemyr, Guido Morini, Marco Ambrosini & Thor-Harald Johnsen)
• Schubert: String Quartet G Maj. (Gidon Kremer & Kremerata Baltica)
• Silvestrov/Pärt/Ustvolskaya: Misterioso (Alexei Lubimov, Alexander Trostiansky & Kyrill Rybakov)
• Stephen Johns
• Angel Dances (12 Cellists Of Berliner Philharmoniker)
• Holst: The Planets (Sir Simon Rattle & Berliner Philharmoniker)
• Schubert: Symphony No. 9 'The Great' (Sir Simon Rattle & Berliner
Philharmoniker)
• Shostakovich: Violin Concerto No. 1; Prokofiev: Violin Concerto No. 1 (Sarah
Chang & Simon Rattle)
• Vivaldi: Flute Concertos (Emmanuel Pahud & Richard Tognetti)
• James Mallinson
• Beethoven: Symphonies Nos. 1-9 (Bernard Haitink & London Symphony Orchestra)
• Elgar: The Dream Of Gerontius (Sir Colin Davis, Anne Sofie Von Otter, Alastair
Miles, David Rendall, London Symphony Chorus & London Symphony Orchestra)
• Prokofiev: The Complete Symphonies (Valery Gergiev & London Symphony
Orchestra)
• Sibelius: Kullervo (Sir Colin Davis, Monica Groop, Peter Mattei, London
Symphony Chorus & London Symphony Orchestra)
• Smetana: Má Vlast (Sir Colin Davis & London Symphony Orchestra)
• Elaine Martone
• Del Tredici: Paul Revere's Ride; Theofanidis: The Here And Now; Bernstein:
Lamentation (Robert Spano, Norman Mackenzie, Hila Plitmann & Atlanta Symphony
Orchestra And Chorus)
• Elgar: Enigma Variations; Britten: The Young Person's Guide To The Orchestra,
Four Sea Interludes (Paavo Järvi & Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra)
• Gershwin: Rhapsody In Blue (Michel Camilo, Ernest Martinez Izquierdo &
Barcelona Symphony Orchestra)
• Mahler: Symphony No. 1, Songs Of A Wayfarer (Benjamin Zander, Christopher
Maltman & Philharmonia Orchestra)
• Renaissance Favorites For Guitar (David Russell)
• Sid McLauchlan
• Beethoven: Symphonies Nos. 5 & 7 (Gustavo Dudamel & Simón Bolívar Youth
Orchestra Of Venezuela)
• Golijov: Ainadamar: Fountain Of Tears (Robert Spano, Kelley O'Connor, Women Of The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Chorus, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra & Dawn
Upshaw)
• Italia, Ti Amo (Plácido Domingo, Eugene Kohn & Budapest Philharmonic
Orchestra)
• Simple Gifts (Bryn Terfel)
• Wagner: Excerpts From 'The Ring Of The Nibelung' (Ben Heppner, Peter
Schneider, Burkhard Ulrich & Staatskapelle Dresden)

Best Classical Album
• Beethoven: Symphonies Nos. 1-9 - London Symphony Orchestra
• Lieberson: Rilke Songs, The Six Realms, Horn Concerto - Justin Brown & Donald Palma; Michaela Fukacova, Lorraine Hunt Lieberson & William Purvis; Peter Serkin; The Odense Symphony Orchestra
• Mahler: Symphony No. 7 - San Francisco Symphony
• Martha Argerich And Friends: Live From The Lugano Festival 2005
• Mozart: La Clemenza Di Tito - Freiburger Barockorchester

Best Orchestral Performance
• Bax: Tone Poems - BBC Philharmonic
• Glazunov: Symphonies 4 & 7 - Royal Scottish National Orchestra
• Mahler: Symphony No. 6 In A Min. - Budapest Festival Orchestra
• Mahler: Symphony No. 7 - San Francisco Symphony
• Prokofiev: The Complete Symphonies - London Symphony Orchestra

Best Opera Recording
• Bennett: The Mines Of Sulphur - Glimmerglass Opera Orchestra
• Golijov: Ainadamar: Fountain Of Tears - Women Of The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Chorus; Atlanta Symphony Orchestra
• Mozart: La Clemenza Di Tito - RIAS Kammerchor; Freiburger Barockorchester
• Smetana: The Bartered Bride - The Royal Opera Chorus; Philharmonia Orchestra
• Verdi: La Traviata - Konzertvereinigung Wiener Staatsopernchor; Wiener
Philharmoniker

Best Choral Performance
• Immortal Nystedt - Bærum Vokalensemble & Ensemble 96
• Mozart: Great Mass In C Min. - Sarah Connolly, Neal Davies, Timothy Robinson &
Camilla Tilling; Gabrieli Consort; Gabrieli Consort & Players
• Pärt: Da Pacem - Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir
• Requiem - Conspirare
• Whitacre: Cloudburst And Other Choral Works - Thomas Guthrie, Elin Manahan Thomas & Simon Wall; Polyphony

Best Instrumental Soloist(s) Performance (with Orchestra)
• Brahms: The Piano Concertos - Gewandhausorchester
• Henze: Violin Concertos Nos. 1 And 3 - Saarbrücken Radio
Symphony Orchestra
• Messiaen: Oiseaux Exotiques (Exotic Birds) - Cleveland Chamber Symphony
• Rachmaninov: Piano Concertos 1 & 2 - Berliner Philharmoniker
• Schmidt: Concertos - Danish National Symphony Orchestra / DR

Best Instrumental Soloist Performance (without Orchestra)
• Bach: The Sonatas And Partitas For Violin Solo - Gidon Kremer
• Bacheler: The Bachelar's Delight - Paul O’Dette
• Beethoven: The Piano Sonatas, Vol. II - András Schiff
• Chopin: Nocturnes - Maurizio Pollini
• Primrose: Viola Transcriptions - Roberto Díaz

Best Chamber Music Performance
• Chamber Works For Winds And Strings By Mozart - The Chicago Chamber Musicians
• Corigliano: Violin Sonata, Etude Fantasy - Andrew Russo
• Intimate Voices - Emerson String Quartet
• Martha Argerich And Friends: Live From The Lugano Festival 2005 - Martha Argerich And Friends
• Shostakovich: Piano Trios 1 & 2, Seven Romances On Verses By Alexander Blok - Beaux Arts Trio

Best Small Ensemble Performance
• Angel Dances - 12 Cellists Of Berliner Philharmoniker
• Ikon - Harry Christophers, conductor; The Sixteen
• Miguel De Cervantes - Don Quijote De La Mancha - Romances Y Músicas - Jordi Savall, conductor; Hespèrion XXI & La Capella Reial De Catalunya
• Padilla: Sun Of Justice - Peter Rutenberg, conductor; Los Angeles Chamber Singers' Cappella
• Shostakovich/Sviridov/Vainberg: Chamber Symphonies - Yuri Bashmet; Moscow Soloists

Best Classical Vocal Performance
• Britten: Song Cycles - Ian Bostridge
• Canciones Argentinas - Bernarda Fink & Marcos Fink
• Consider, My Soul - Thomas Quasthoff
• Rilke Songs - Lorraine Hunt Lieberson
• Songs Of Amy Beach - Patrick Mason

Best Classical Contemporary Composition
• Boston Concerto - Elliott Carter
• Golijov: Ainadamar: Fountain Of Tears - Osvaldo Golijov
• The Here And Now - Christopher Theofanidis
• Paul Revere's Ride - David Del Tredici
• A Scotch Bestiary - James MacMillan

Best Classical Crossover Album - BBC Philharmonic
• The Film Music Of Erich Wolfgang Korngold
• Invention & Alchemy - The Grand Rapids Symphony
• Látigo - John Santos
• Simple Gifts - London Voices; London Symphony Orchestra
• Song Zu Ying: The Diva Goes To The Movies - China National Symphony Orchestra

Best Short Form Music Video
• 8th Of November - Big & Rich
• When You Were Young - The Killers
• Here It Goes Again - OK Go
• Dani California - Red Hot Chili Peppers
• Writing On The Walls - Underoath

Best Long Form Music Video
• Flow: Living In The Stream Of Music - Terence Blanchard
• Directions - Death Cab For Cutie
• Demon Days - Live In Manchester - Gorillaz
• I'm Going To Tell You A Secret - Madonna
• Wings For Wheels: The Making Of Born To Run - Bruce Springsteen

50 Cent Fired Up About Guns

50 Cent is hot about no one complaining about movie posters for "Casino Royale" and "Mr. And Mrs. Smith" that contain characters holding guns. When 50's "Get Rich Or Die Tryin'" came out, people protested his holding a gun on posters for the film, but now, critics remain strangely silent. I'm going to have to go ahead and, ummmm, agree with 50 there. Source: School of Hip-Hop

New Web Address

Any Given Tuesday can now be reached by a new link, which will bring you to the same old familiar webpage. The link is www.anygiventuesday.info. Use it, and tell your friends about it!

Baltimore City Council Stalls Smoking Ban

Today, the Baltimore City Council was expected to vote on whether to ban indoor smoking in Baltimore City. However, on Tuesday, the bill was sent back to committee to avoid being defeated or weakened by its detractors. It is expected to appear before the Council again next month. Source: Baltimore Sun

Shows Coming To Recher Theatre

Coming soon to the Recher Theatre in Towson, MD:

December 6 - Vs. The Earth - $5, 9PM Doors
December 8 - The Hint w/ Dropout Year; American Diary; Stella, Wake Up - SOLD OUT
December 9 - Voodoo Blue w/ Empty Gratitude - Adelphi - Bandcamp - $7, 7PM Doors
December 10 - The Big Ladies - Eye Cry Fire - The Mannekins - Automatic Stallions - $5, 6PM Doors
December 12 - Braddigan w/ Mike McFadden - Drunken Camel - PlainView - $10, 7PM Doors
December 13 - Vs. The Earth - $5, 9PM Doors
December 14 - Fairgreen - Some like it Hot - Long Term Hero - Failure to Excel - $7, 7PM Doors
December 15 - Freedom Enterprise - Injoy - Doug Murphy and The Others - Bob Ross and The Happy Trees - $7, 8PM Doords
December 16 - CKY w/ Down The Drain - $15, 8PM Doors
December 17 - Dark Star Orchestra - $25, 7PM Doors
December 20 - Vs. The Earth - $5, 9PM Doors
December 21 - Judd & Maggie w/ Syncope - Exit Clov - Carousel Rogues - $7, 7PM Doors
December 22 - Victory by Revenge - As Daylight Dies - Stockcar Syndrome - Tolerance for Tragedy - $5, 7PM Doors
December 23 - Plunge w/ Of Broken - Bad Apples - Hard - $10, 7PM Doors
December 26 - Catch 22 w/ Patent Pending - Bomb The Music Industry - $12, 7PM Doors
December 27 - Glassjaw w/ This is Hell - Crime in Stereo - $20, 7PM Doors
December 28 - All Time Low w/ Gatsby Gets the Green Light - Permanent Me - The Late Night - The Last Conservative - $7($9 at door),5:30PM Doors

January 12 - Kill Hannah w/ The Pink Spiders, Love Arcade, Action Reaction - $12($15 at door), 7PM Doors
January 27 - Lotus w/ The Frequency - $12, 8PM Doors

Deftones on Conan O'Brien Tonight

Rounding out the discussion of the Deftones, note that they will be performing on Late Night with Conan O'Brien, their first live television performance in three years, tonight.

Concert Review: Deftones with Deadsy - 9:30 Club, December 4, 2006

Three out of five stars.

On this cold night in December, the Deftones decided to round out their fall tour in support of Saturday Night Wrist with their DC area fans, and did so with the support of glam-goth rock group Deadsy, who also participated in this summer's Family Values Tour with Korn and the Deftones.

As the lights went down, an ominous tune from "A Clockwork Orange" came forth, and Deadsy took the stage with matching black military shirts and complementing makeup. Stage presence was solid, with lots of feedback, frantic guitar swinging, and even the bass player's jump down to the crowd towards the end of the set, and pretty much burying his face into a sea of hands. Musically speaking, however, not much can be offered. The singer requires an effect on his voice at all times, the first sign of a singer who is unsure of himself. And the best song the band had to offer was a cover of Rush's "Tom Sawyer".

The Deftones are a studio band. Chino Moreno cannot recreate his vocal parts on a live stage. He gives it the requisite effort, however, but some of the clutch parts on the albums sound more like the high notes of a whale song than a scream. Pulling out a wealth of older material, including closing the set with "7 Words" from Adrenaline, the band's debut album, is a definite crowd-pleaser. A tour in support of Saturday Night Wrist ends with a show where the songs from that album selected for performance, including "Hole In The Earth", "Rats!Rats!Rats!", and "Beware", are performed as if the band wrote the songs years ago. Other standouts include "Bored" from Adrenaline and "My Own Summer (Shove It)" from Around The Fur.

Fans of "tight" shows that recreate studio performances will not be satisfied by the Deftones, simply for Chino's vocals. Musically, the performance is, indeed, tight. And, at times, it is surprisingly so, with guitar landscapes that sound as good in person as they do in the car or in the dorm room. But the band puts on a live show with real energy, plenty of material from each album, and never loses momentum throughout the night.

Tonight's Show: Deftones At 9:30 Club; Tomorrow's Releases

Tonight, fighting off the rest of the flu that's sidelined me the last few days, I will be seeing the Deftones live at the 9:30 Club. Look for the post on that tomorrow.

New releases tomorrow, December 5: Gwen Stefani's "The Sweet Escape", an Arrested Development Collection, Slipknot's "Voliminal" DVD, an Aerosmith live album, "Eminem Presents: The Re-up", Babyshambles' "The Blinding" EP, Built To Spill's "You In Reverse", I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness' S/T album, to name some highlights.

Thursday Announce Tour

Thursday have announced a new tour, and have done so with a new website. They will be stopping at The 9:30 Club on January 19 with support from Fear Before The March Of Flames, Murder By Death, and Heavy Heavy Low Low.

Coming To 9:30 Club In December; "M" Is For Metal MP3s: Cassius, The End

Dec 1,2 Dark Star Orchestra
Dec 3 Jet
Dec 4 Deftones
Dec 5 Lupe Fiasco
Dec 6 Copeland
Dec 7 The Dan Band
Dec 8 Victor Wooten w/ Deanna Bogart Band
Dec 10 Gwar
Dec 11 Ray Lamontagne
Dec 13 Matisyahu w/ Moshav Band
Dec 15 Children of Bodom w/ Amon Amarth, Gojira, Sanctity
Dec 16 Keller Williams
Dec 16 Blowoff
Dec 17 Rasputina
Dec 19 Gogol Bordello
Dec 20-23 Thievery Corporation
Dec 26 Hatebreed
Dec 27 Trey Anastasio
Dec 28 Railroad Earth w/ The Hackensaw Boys
Dec 30 Soulive - The Greyboy Allstars
Dec 31 The Greyboy Allstars - Soulive

Alright. The rundown. Jet?? No. Lupe Fiasco, worth a shot. He's also at Sonar in Baltimore on December 10. Deftones, I'll be there. Gwar, that's worth seeing one time in your life. Ray LaMontagne, I would be there except, well, it's 30 bucks. Matisyahu does a pretty good live bit, but he's turning into somewhat of a parlor trick. Gogol Bordello is supposed to be wicked live, so that's worth checking into. Thievery Corporation, 3 days in a row? Aren't people over them yet? And Hatebreed, heck yeah. But I'm going when they are at Ram's Head Live with Killswitch Engage on December 15.

And here's some MP3s of pure effin' metal:
Cassius "Home"
The End "Throwing Stones"