Bono to Speak About Religion and Faith

You can tell that U2 is gearing up for a new album because of how available and visible they're becoming these days.

Bono recently sat down with Irish broadcaster RTE for a show called Meaning of Life to talk about religion and faith. He also talks about his parents' marraige and what that meant to him.  Here's a preview.

And speaking of being available, Bono took Michelle Obama down to the pub for a pint of Guinness. Or something.  I guess they were both bored of the G8 yakking.

Wanna Buy Some Handwritten Bowie Lyrics?

Back in 1972, David Bowie scribbled down these lyrics for a song that he called "The Jean Genie." They're going up for auction July 3 in the UK.  They might fetch as much as $23,000.

I Like This: Murray A. Lightburn

Such a harsh title for such a mellow song.  In case you don't know, Murray is the lead singer/songwriter for The Dears.  He calls this album--entitled MASS:LIGHT--a "DIY experiment" and an "electronic pop opera."

I Like This: Dinosaur Bones

New single from their upcoming sophomore record, Shaky Dream, which will be out on August 6 through Dine Alone.

25 Years Ago Today, Depeche Mode Played the Rose Bowl and the Alt-Rock Sea Change Began

It was a landmark gig for what up until now had been something of a cult band--at least in North America. Sure, the alternative kids knew about Depeche Mode and the group got love from college radio stations as well as a handful of commercial radio outlets, but it wasn't as if the band were mainstream heroes.

Or maybe they were.

On June 18, 1987, Depeche Mode rolled into the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, to play the final show on their "101" tour, which was in support of Music for the Masses.  Exactly 60,452 people turned up to see this cult band (hah!) perform.  A live album and a documentary (shot by the legendary D.A Pennebaker) were made the same night.

And one more thing came out of the event:  the thought that maybe, just maybe, this weird thing called "alternative music" wasn't so negligible a thing after all.  A few years later, alternative would launch its asault on the mainstream and take over.  The stirrings of that coup were seen that night in Pasadena.

(Via Slicing Up Eyeballs)