Hangin' Out In 100b

OK first off, the most exciting news I’ve heard since I learned about deep fried mars bars, the New Kids On The Block are getting back together after 13 long years!! But Tamboosh, aren’t you sick of all the reuniting late eighties/early nineties bands? Uh yah, but this is NKOTB!! I was soooo an NKOTB-er between the ages of nine and ten. Yup, that is what I called myself. They are the pop equivalent of a black velvet painting, and they’re probably more like Old Men In The Suburbs by now, but they are Pop pioneers. Good God man, I played their cassette – that’s right, cassette – until it started to sound like an old news reel. I went so far as to buy a video of a behind-the-scenes look at the band. I would give my left pinky toe to still have that video, but my stupid, skanky friend (yes, even at ten) ‘borrowed’ it and never gave it back. She definitely didn’t have the ‘right stuff’. Zing!

Phew, what a bombshell. I got to wind down with some not-so-surprising news. Like Pete Doherty not showing up at his solo gig. These next headlines have less to do with music and more to do with the public’s hunger for sensational stories. You’ll be shocked to learn that Amy Winehouse is on drugs, people. A day doesn’t go by that we’re not given some supposedly new insight into the drama that is Amy’s and Britney’s life by the ‘press’. I’m not claiming the paparazzi made them turn to mind altering substances, but it doesn’t help. This latest tidbit prompted more informative debates about the wickedness of crack and such. Oh, and of course there’s the news that Suge Knight was named a member of a notorious Compton gang by the police. Again, shocker. He has been associated with that same gang ever since I can remember, but apparently now it’s news. I don’t think some people understand what the word news means. Pete Doherty showing up for a gig, Amy Winehouse sober, Suge Knight, beloved member of the boyscouts, now that’s news!

While Suge Knight accuses the police of using his name for publicity, The Enemy pull a similar stunt by calling the Arctic Monkeys dull. Do you really have to pull a Gallagher and slag off other bands to stay in the news? How is this in any way productive? They only upped the pressure on their following releases. They better be flippin’ brilliant, because todays XFM/NME darlings are tomorrows fodder for future up-and-coming bands to call dull.

Moving on to more surprising things. UB40′s lead singer is quitting the band. Ehm, did everybody know that they were still together??

Ah, a week doesn’t go by without me peeing myself over some free mp3s. This time the providers of the delicious swag are The Charlatans, who plan to give away their CD next month, and One Little Indian, label of Dan Sartain, Jesse Malin and Asobi Seksu among others has a free CD featuring their artists on eMusic.

NME reports that Busta Rhymes escaped prison. No, not in a daredeviling Michael Scofield kinda prison break; he got away with a fine and community service for assaulting his driver and a fan. Foxy Brown didn’t have as much luck when her petition for early release was denied.

Oh for crap’s sake. How many times do you think a person should be allowed to nickname themselves?!? I thought that once was enough, ok maybe twice, because when you’re bald and named Curly it’s kinda funny, but when your hair grows back and it’s straight it’s just weird. In those rare cases it’s OK to change your name again, but P.Diddy takes the cake. He went from Puff Daddy, to P.Diddy, to Diddy, and now he wants the world to call him Sean John. Come on, pick one and stick with it, man. I’ve had it, I’m just gonna call him Hey-Diddle-Diddle from now one. So there.

   New Kids On The Block – You Got It (The Right Stuff)