Ask Rob Thomas Your Questions (through VH1)

Rob Thomas is in the middle of a big promotional push for his upcoming album cradlesong, and fans (or non-fans) have half a day left to post a question on the VH1 Blog for the singer/songwriter and Matchbox Twenty frontman. Through his Twitter account, Thomas announced that he is recording his responses to selected fan questions tomorrow.  Click here to visit the "Ask Rob Thomas Anything You Like!" entry on the VH1 Blog and post a question.

View the music video for "Her Diamonds," the first single from cradlesong:

The full cradlesong album is streaming online on both VH1's The Leak and Rhapsody. [Rob Thomas' Twitter]

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Music News: Free Album from Del The Funky Homosapien

How's this for a serious music flashback? Oakland hip-hop artist Del The Funky Homosapien (of "Mistadobalina" fame) is offering his newest album, Funk Man (The Stimulus Package), in its entirety as a free download. To listen to or download the album, click here. Warning: lyrics NSFW.

Del has eight dates left on his US club tour in support of this album. Dates and cities as follows:

• May 14th - Boulder, CO
• May 15th - Denver, CO
• May 16th - Colorado Springs, CO
• May 18th - Salt Lake City, UT
• May 22nd - Geneva, MN
• June 5th - San Francisco, CA
• June 6th - Santa Cruz, CA
• June 12th - West Hollywood, CA

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Watch the music video for "Get It Right Now" from Funk Man (The Stimulus Package):

Watch the music video for "Mistadobalina":

[Reuters via Yahoo! News][Del The Funky Homosapien's MySpace]

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Doves - Kingdom of Rust

Four years since their last release (Some Cities) the UK's Doves are back with Kingdom of Rust. Way back in January, guitarist Jez Williams told the NME that the songs recorded for the record were "so schizophrenic, but... also strangely cohesive." Truer words have never been spoken.
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The first three tracks alone are a perfect illustration of Williams' statement. The album starts out with "Jetstream," which begins harmlessly enough before gaining a disconnected, tense quality thanks to its methodically-layered synths and percussion. This somehow manages to flow perfectly into the album's title track, which blends elements of country and orchestral music, while still managing to sound like classic Doves thanks to its cheerfully melancholy vibe. When the song is over, the listener is instantly transported into what feels like a chase scene in a science fiction movie during the first few seconds of "The Outsiders."

It looks like the Doves have gained back a bit of the edge they seemed to have lost back when Some Cities came out, and the end result is a delightful, genuinely interesting mix of sounds. This is also the album where Doves' past as dance act Sub Sub becomes obvious — this may be part of the reason why the album has such a triumphant sound.

The only place where the dance influence becomes a bit of a problem is during "Compulsion," which is a little too reminiscent of Blondie. While I'm not the first person to make this comparison, I would like to note that I'd actually avoided reading and listening to much about/of the album. But I actually found myself humming the melody from "Rapture," when I first heard the opening beats of "Compulsion," which indicates a slight lack of innovation in the latter.

Nonetheless, it can safely be said that this is one of the strongest albums to emerge so far in 2009, and it marks a positive return for the Doves. Long absence or not, they're still a band worthy of the attention they receive. It will be interesting to see what they'll do next.
Stream Kingdom of Rust below:

Kingdom Of Rust - Doves

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Hannah Montana: The Movie Soundtrack

It's a given that the legions of tween girls who have been devoted Hannah Montana fans for the past several years are going to love the soundtrack to the upcoming movie. Luckily, it's also an album that most parents can listen to with their tweens without cringing, and there are quite a few tracks that are more sophisticated than your standard kid-friendly fare.

The seven songs credited to Hannah Montana are high-energy tween pop tracks in the same vein as the two multi-platinum Hannah Montana TV soundtracks. The songs credited to Miley Cyrus are generally slower tempo songs with a slightly more mature sound. "Hoedown Throwdown" is one of the exceptions to this rule of thumb. Oddly enough, the song mixes bubblegum pop, country and a touch of hip hop, which should be a train wreck waiting to happen, but instead the result is cute, catchy and playful.

"The Climb" is part of the more mature, less tween-pop middle of the album that reflects the characters' return to Tennessee in the movie. It's Miley's strongest performance on the soundtrack by far. "The Climb" is also her most mainstream, radio-friendly single yet and further shows what the 16-year-old can do as a singer without the Hannah Montana persona. Sure enough, the track entered the Billboard Hot 100 at #6 (her highest-charting single to date) and is holding at #8 after 4 weeks on the chart.

Watch the music video for "The Climb":

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"Butterfly Fly Away" is a lullaby duet between Miley and her real-life and onscreen dad, Billy Ray Cyrus. This well-known connection gives the track a wistful sweetness, even though the lyrics are specific to their characters' backstories. Billy Ray Cyrus also contributes the title track of his new country album (which was released today) to the movie soundtrack. Unfortunately, "Back to Tennessee" isn't a very strong or memorable song. It lacks the fun of his most famous single or the emotional resonance of "I Learned From You," his last duet with Miley. The "I"s at the end of many of the lines sound more like the growls of a papa bear than the end of a musical lyric.

Country music superstars Rascal Flatts recorded new, acoustic versions of a couple of their hits for the Hannah Montana movie soundtrack. "Backwards" was originally released on their Me and My Gang (2006) album and is a hilarious novelty song that plays off of the old joke question, "what happens when you play a country song backwards?" The soundtrack version has been rewritten to eliminate less "kid-friendly" references to bars and beer, and a friend named Jack has been renamed Jackson, Hannah Montana's older brother in the show and movie. References to heart attacks were also changed (with a wink and a nudge) to "achy breaky hearts."

"Bless the Broken Road," the second re-recorded Rascal Flatts' hit on the soundtrack, was originally included on their Feels Like Today (2004) album. The acoustic version of this gentle ballad soars with a simple guitar accompaniment to the harmonies for which Rascal Flatts is known.

The album also includes two tracks from Steve Rushton -- an artist from the UK who recently signed with another Disney music label, Hollywood Records -- but no family-oriented album about a girl returning to her Tennessee roots would be complete without an original song from country music ingénue Taylor Swift. While not a standout track, "Crazier" is appealing to both tween girls and their parents and is a solid addition to an album whose country/pop mix will likely introduce a whole new audience to the current generation of country music.

Walt Disney Records usually releases a two-disc special edition set for high-profile soundtracks such as this, so fans who want possible bonus materials like additional or alternate version tracks, music videos and/or behind-the-scenes video features may want to hold out until around the time of the Hannah Montana: The Movie DVD release . . . although it's doubtful that many tween fans would be able to wait that long.

Hannah Montana: The Movie opens this Friday, April 10; soundtrack is available now.

Listen to audio clips from all 18 Hannah Montana: The Movie tracks and watch the "Hoedown Throwdown" music video here.

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Metric - Fantasies

Metric finally released their latest studio offering, Fantasies, in digital format via their website and iTunes on Tuesday. It's the fourth studio album for the group — and the first full-length album since 2005's Live It Out, if you don't count the 2007 rerelease of Grow Up and Blow Away.

While some bands have a tendency to change their sound as much as possible during a hiatus from the studio, the members of Metric seem content to stick with their usual sound. On one hand this is slightly disappointing — the acoustic tracks that accompanied Fantasies preorders are fantastic, and frontwoman Emily Haines has shown that she can do the quiet, broody piano thing on solo album Knives Don't Have Your Back. It would be pretty interesting if the band would start incorporating a greater variety of influences and ideas while working on Metric material.

That being said, Fantasies is a great spring/summer album. In classic Metric fashion, it features a hefty amount of new wave-influenced fuzzy guitars, synths and punchy beats. Haines' vocals alternate between sweet (as heard on "Gimme Sympathy") and slightly sinister (as evidenced on tracks like "Blindness"). Though songs do slow down a bit and begin to blend into each other during the latter half of the album, Fantasies goes out on a strong note with the rousing "Stadium Love."

It may not be the next White Album or Kid A, but Metric have proved that they have a strong formula that works for them. So if you're looking for some indie, alternative pop to bop around to, you're definitely in the right place.

Stream Fantasies below:

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Music News: U2 360° Tour

U2 has updated the dates and cities included on their upcoming U2 360° tour, which opens in Barcelona on June 30. The tour site now lists 11 North American stadium shows following 23 European dates.

The first North American leg of the tour starts in Chicago, IL at Soldier Field on September 12. According to a news item on the band's website, "the shows in Chicago, Boston and New York were instantaneous sell-outs" when tickets went on sale yesterday morning. [U2 360° Tour Site]

Read our review of U2's most recent album, No Line on the Horizon, here.

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Glasvegas - Glasvegas

Glasvegas' eponymous debut album was released in fall 2008, but with a busy spring and summer ahead of them, a lot more people are about to learn about this band. They've just started a 16-date North American tour that wraps up with a plum spot on Coachella's Saturday line up, and this summer in the UK they'll be opening for U2 and Kings of Leon.

Even if you don't know about the band's Scottish origins, the moment the vocals on the opening track, "Flowers and Football Tops," start, you'll know that Glasvegas is European rock, not American. Lead singer James Allan has a brogue so thick you could cut it with a knife, but even when you lose the lyrics in his accent, it doesn't detract from the musicality of the songs. The album as a whole is angsty, but with enough lightness to be appealing and not just depressing.

Glasvegas includes quite a few strong tracks. "Geraldine" transitions seamlessly into "It's My Own Cheating Heart That Makes Me Cry," although both songs are enjoyable singles on their own. "Daddy's Gone" takes its place alongside Harry Chapin's "Cat's In the Cradle" and Everclear's "Father of Mine," although it may be the most cheerful-sounding song ever in which a son mourns his abandonment by his father. "Stabbed" opens memorably with Allan voicing the lyrics, "I'm gonna get stabbed," over the mournful strains of Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata. "S.A.D. Light" starts with a sweet mournfulness before the intensity ramps up on the chorus.

While I can easily listen over and over again to all of the tracks I've already mentioned, the one that's become my favorite is the playful-sounding "Go Square Go," which, when you listen to the lyrics, is actually about a frightened kid working himself up to face off with the schoolyard bully who's been terrorizing him. The chorus and the crescendoing "here we go" end of the song beg to be shouted out loud along with the band during a live performance. With any luck, quite a few people will be doing exactly that in '09.

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U2 - No Line on the Horizon

The last U2 album I fell in love with at first listen was 2000's All That You Can't Leave Behind. For me, reaction-wise No Line on the Horizon is closer to their last album, 2004's How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb -- I liked the album after the first listen, but I can tell that I'll fall in love with it slowly as I discover something new to appreciate and enjoy each time I listen to it.

Though public response has been lukewarm, I liked "Get On Your Boots" right off the bat. It's a get-happy bit of spun sugar on an otherwise soulful album. Other early favorites include the almost seven-and-a-half-minute-long "Moment of Surrender," which pairs mellow instrumentals with Bono's passionate vocals. My one complaint about this track is that the lyrics "I was punching in the numbers/at the ATM machine," while relatable, may rank right up there with George Michael's "guilty feet have got no rhythm" on the Why Would You Include a Phrase Like *That* In a Song list.

Another track that immediately caught my ear and that I could see being a second single off the album is "Stand Up Comedy." The song has an upbeat, anthemic feel and driving guitar line that sounds like the U2 most people expect. It's definitely less challenging and experimental than the cut "FEZ-Being Born," which starts out with over a minute of ambient-style music with repeated echos of the "let me in the sound" cry from "Get On Your Boots," along with other melodic vocalizations. Listeners definitely feel the presence of album co-producer Brian Eno in this song.

While it's an album that takes a little longer to fall in love with, U2 takes chances in No Line on the Horizon, continuing to experiment with new sounds and influences while putting together lyrics that are smart, unique and never fail to produce an emotional response. And somehow the experimentation doesn't feel like the band is pushing at their boundaries for vanity's sake -- trying something new just because they've been around for 30+ years so they can. Perhaps it's the moody earnestness of the album, but in No Line it feels like U2 is experimenting because these musicians are still looking for ways to grow, improve and make their music more.

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