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It's Thursday, and that means it's time for Lady Gaga's music video for "Judas"! The video is a colorful, kitschy pop-culture take on a love triangle between Mary Magdalene (Gaga), Judas (Norman Reedus) and Jesus (Rick Gonzalez), filled with religious pomp and circumstance, as well as very cool clothes. (We know this 'cause it leaked! Eeks!)

Gaga and her boys live someplace (we have no idea what time or place we are — hey, this must be a Gaga video!) where biker gangs run amok and couture is their currency. (How do we get to this place? Is it through some Born This Way vortex?) Leather jackets, bejeweled crowns and gowns rule the "Judas" world.

Now, while all the scenes are quite memorable (Gaga riding on a motorcycle clutching her love, Jesus, longing for Judas; Gaga in a black dress and habit torn between her two loves; Gaga's lipstick gun; Gaga bathing with both men), it's the final setup that will certainly have everyone chatting.

Dressed in a huge, beautiful, silvery-white gown that almost looks like a wedding dress and a veil-like headpiece, Gaga appears at a big event. Is she marrying one of her loves? Has she decided between Judas and Jesus? No, instead she has arrived at her own fateful end, the viewer quickly realizes. She falls to the ground, her dress cascading around her, as she is stoned to death. Her crime? Well, we'd like to think she was killed because she looked so killer throughout the clip.

What was your favorite scene in "Judas"? Tell us in the comments!

By Zachary Swickey
Rage Against the Machine have finally spoken up regarding rumors of a new album. After an interview between vocalist Zack de la Rocha and a Chilean newspaper got lost in translation last year, rumors quickly spread that the band were in the writing stage and about to hit the studio. We had our hopes, but through an interview with the Pulse of Radio, Tom Morello has put the rumors to rest with some rather buzzkill news:

"Right now there are no … You know, the band is not writing songs, the band is not in the studio," he said, while making his guitar go WICKY-WICKY-WAAAH (not really). "We get along famously and we all, you know, intend to do more Rage Against the Machine stuff in the future, but beyond sort of working out a concert this year, there’s nothing else on the schedule."

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Tags Noooooooooo!, Rage-Against-The-Machine

There was a time, like a season or two ago, when "American Idol" judge praised contestants for taking chances and thinking outside the box with quirky arrangements and oddball song choices.

And while they dinged Haley Reinhart pretty hard on Wednesday night for covering the as-yet-unreleased Lady Gaga tune "You and I" on the "Then and Now" performance show (nicely played, Jimmy Iovine -- Born This Way, coming soon!) they really took out their knives when Jacob Lusk attempted to perform a duet, with himself, on former "Idol" champ Jordin Sparks' "No Air."

Was it as terrible as they said? Well, yes. We've been predicting Jacob's demise for weeks … and we've been wrong every time. I've not been shy about saying that I think Lusk has little-to-no commercial prospects as a result of a grating personality and, let's face it, pretty annoying vocal style.
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Tags Jacob Lusk, James Durbin, Scotty McCreery

Vaughn Schoonmaker

Kylie Minogue's Aphrodite tour wrapped its third consecutive night at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City Wednesday night to a packed house of mostly gay men, with about 5 percent of the audience consisting of her other Tri-State fans (though don't hold me to that for accuracy since it could have been more like 3 percent).

Kylie Minogue has mastered the art of walking in slow motion. Amidst her sultry hip swivels, belly dances and fairy-like arm gestures, the vivacious Australian made use of her enormous classical Rome-styled stage by walking up and down it in perfectly beautiful slow motion on quite a few occasions. While this may seem a minuscule observation, it grabbed my attention because it provided a great contrast to the dynamic and astonishing spectacles surrounding her throughout the dazzling two-hour set.

The most notable aspect of the performance, besides the beautiful singer in various states of goddess attire and her slo-mo expertise, was the sheer size of the stage production. Kylie Minogue is a household name in many parts of the world, especially in the U.K., where she has been known to sell out arenas. In the United States, however, her following is significantly smaller. When she announced that she would bring her massively successful Aphrodite tour to the U.S. for a toned-down version of the show, I expected, well, a toned-down version of the show. Read more...

Tags Kylie-Minogue

Wednesday night, the "American Idol" atmosphere was "electric" thanks to regal Oscar winners, Jacob Lusk crotch grabs and James Durbin's armpits. The producers had a fool-proof script banged out for our "enjoyment," which included the phrases "in it to win it," and "finding your perfect song." And the night's guest mentor told MSNBC back in 2007 that "['Idol'] undermines art in every way and promotes commercialism, I am sad people love it so."

In other words, this is "American Idol X: Abandon Hope All Ye Who Enter Here."

The theme was "Now & Then" which meant the contestants had two performances to rehearse. One was a current song (or in the case of Haley's to-be-released "Born This Way" deep cut, a future song) and round two was all about songs from the '60s. (Or, um, the '70s, if your name rhymes with Tames Surbin.)

Before I go on a rant about how "Idol" has revealed itself to be a total farce and has messed with my head so much that I'm even starting to question whether Haley Reinhart is secretly the producers' favorite, let me remind you that my weekly Web show "Idol Party Live" is happening right here in this blog at noon ET. [We taped it already, but it's repeating in that video player now!] We're not only gabbing about "Then & Now" week, but we'll also be debuting hilarious new segments from my recent sit-downs with Casey Abrams and season-eight champ Kris Allen. Plus, we recently scored some time with "judge" Jennifer Lopez. So click play, drop us a tweet using the hashtag #idolparty and join the fun.

On to the performances!
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Tags American Idol, Haley Reinhart

CINCINNATI — I'm not sure what I was expecting. I've seen Neil Young probably a dozen times over the years and I know the rock legend isn't one to toss out emotional statements at his shows ... beyond the ones he makes with his trusty, fuzzed-out black Stratocaster and high and shaky voice, of course. The words and music are more than enough when your catalog includes everything from "Ohio" to "Rockin' in the Free World."

But when he touched down here on Tuesday (May 3) night for his first show since the killing of terror mastermind Osama bin Laden by U.S. Navy SEALs on Sunday, I thought maybe old Neil would need to get some things off his chest. Touring in support of his excellent new solo album, Le Noise, Young silently took the stage in a pair of comfy Levi's, a black T-shirt, a white linen jacket and a beat-up straw fedora. With minimal staging aside from a giant cigar store Indian, a few Tiffany-style lamps over his baby grand and upright pianos and his favorite pump organ, I knew the night would be a minimal affair.

As much as I hoped he'd stray from the set list of chestnuts and new tunes and bust out his Todd Beamer-inspired 9/11 anthem "Let's Roll," or something from his 2006 war protest album Living with War, Young opened gently with a trio of acoustic gems: "My My, Hey Hey (Out of the Blue)," "Tell Me Why" and "Helpless."

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Tags Love And War, Neil Young

By James Dinh

After days of speculation and referring to them on Twitter as #dembabies, Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon have finally unveiled the names of their newborn twins. Born Saturday morning, the couple's son is named Moroccan Scott Cannon (nicknamed "Roc"), while their daughter is Monroe Cannon. But instead of looking to a traditional baby-name book, it appears as if the couple created these names as a reflection of their lives. Take a peek at some of their inspiration in naming their children.

Moroccan Style: Not only is the top tier of Mimi's New York City apartment known as the Moroccan Room (due to its Moroccan-inspired décor), but it's also the place where Nick proposed to Mariah. With the multiple connections, it's no surprise that the duo decided to name their son Moroccan.

Family Ties: While the couple chose to give their newborn son the same middle name as Nick (Scott, which is his grandmother's maiden name), they opted not to give her daughter one because Mimi doesn't have one herself.

Marilyn Monroe: Mariah and Nick decided to name their daughter after the Hollywood icon because of the huge inspiration she's had in the pop singer's life. Fun fact: Mimi actually purchased Monroe's white piano from Christie's auction house.

Do you see any other influences in the names? Let us know in the comments below!

Tags Mariah Carey, nick-cannon

By James Dinh

From Diddy to Ben Affleck and the many men in between, it's no secret that Jennifer Lopez's past was full of romantic woes. But even with her six-year (and counting) marriage to Marc Anthony, J.Lo still questions the many facets of love on her appropriately titled new album Love?, which hit stores today. "You still have questions. There's still so much to learn and that's why the question mark," the singer recently revealed on the "Today" show. "Love is the answer, but it's a question too. I think we always have to be challenging ourselves to be better."

Like many artists, Jenny from the Block has been singing about the ups and downs of love ever since her musical debut. In honor of her brand-new LP, we decided to take a look back at some of the entertainer's earlier perspectives on this oh-so-complicated topic.

"If You Had My Love" (1999): On her debut single, Jennifer confronts her admirer with a number of ground rules before they begin their relationship. "Now if I gave you me, this is how it's got to be/ First of all I won't take you cheatin' on me/ Tell me who can I trust if I can't trust in you/ And I refuse to let you play me for a fool" she sings on the Darkchild-produced number. It seems like the pop star lets her insecurities get the best of her in this one.

"Love Don't Cost a Thing" (2000): In addition to birthing the public persona known as "J.Lo," this track is also the tale of a materialistic relationship (full of credit cards and lavish gifts) on the lead single to her sophomore effort. "Think you gonna keep me iced, you don't/ Think I'm gonna spend your cash, I won't/ Even if you were broke/ My love don't cost a thing," Lopez sings during the chorus. Rumor has it that the tune was about her high-profile relationship with Diddy.

"Baby, I Love U!" (2002): Leave it to J.Lo to turn the somber music of John Barry's 1969 "Midnight Cowboy" score into a blissful (and kind of cheesy) tune about being a hopeless romantic. "What I wanna know is/ Are you willing to try?/ Can you love me for a lifetime/ In just one night?" she sings. R. Kelly also got into the mix of things when he hopped on a remix of the track. Cue the Bennifer references.

"I, Love" (2005): On this trippy mid-tempo Rebirth cut, Lopez tries to convince her lover how much she really does care for him, despite his ignorance. Suggesting that their chemistry is "not pretend" or "make believe," the pop star goes as far as saying she'd die before hurting her lover.

"Como Ama una Mujer" (2007): Love is a universal thing and J. Lo was eager to explore it in Spanish. In this track off her first Spanish-language album of the same name, Lopez sings about listening to her heart's instinct, regardless of the outcome.

"(What Is) Love?" (2011): After all these years, Jenny Lo still finds herself singing about her struggles with the search for her true love. From blind dates to church boys and even musicians, Lopez admits she's tried it all. While a part of Love?, this fan favorite was originally attached to her 2010 romantic comedy "The Back-up Plan."

What is your favorite J. Lo love-themed tune? Share your comment below.

Tags J.Lo, Jennifer-Lopez, love

Zach Swickey

The Smashing Pumpkins have treated us to yet another new tune from their 44-track behemoth endeavor Teargarden by Kaleidyscope. Song number 10 "Owata," which is streaming now on LAWeekly.com, is a departure from the usual dark, melancholic feel that the group is known for (this is a band who dubbed an album, Melon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, after all). Deriving its peculiar name from the past tense Japanese term for "to finish" or possibly a play on the lyrics, "Oh what a beautiful night!," the song opens to some fun, bouncy strings that catch the listener off-guard.

Singer/mastermind Billy Corgan sounds upbeat with the keyboards adding the audio equivalent of the sun's rays. The chugging drums contrast against the smooth plucks of the acoustic guitar, and the song can't help but force you to crack a smile as you bounce along to this newfound positivity. While the group has fallen short of their "one song a month" goal for Teargarden, it is hard to complain when the music is free.
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Tags Billy Corgan, smashing pumpkins

Zachary Swickey

Who would've thought that three Jewish white boys could rap? All right, so MCA, Mike D and Ad-Rock – known to the music world as the Beastie Boys – proved that 25 years ago with the release of Licensed to Ill, a sample-heavy album that probably helped contribute to our current copyright laws.

But who would've thought that three Jewish boys could still rap in their mid-40s?

Well, the Beastie Boys have done just that with the recent release of Hot Sauce Committee, Part Two, the sequel/retooling of the album we never heard due to Adam "MCA" Yauch's cancer diagnosis back in 2009. Following two lackluster releases, Part Two may just be the best work the group has brought us in the 21st century. Since our ears have had time to get acquainted with the new tunes, we took a look at what the music world at large has to say about the album.

Rolling Stone magazine seems to be the biggest proponent of the Boys' eighth record and views it as a return to form: "We get the sound of master musicians in their comfort zone, doing everything their own way. Nobody would want to hear the Beasties try anything else."

The publication also credits the group's self-production skills and points out that the Boys could care less about their age with Ad-Rock proudly boasting, "Oh my God, just look at me/ Grandpa been rapping since '83!" (4/5 stars) Read more...

Tags Ad-Rock, beastie-boys, Hot Sauce Committee Part Two, mca, Mike D