Subject: Katy Perry

• Last Night: MC Chris, Totally Michael, Sirah at Chain Reaction

  Last Night: MC Chris, Totally Michael and Sirah at Chain Reaction in Anaheim, Oct. 21, 2008. Better Than: All three of the "Star Wars" prequels. Sorry, "Revenge of the Sith" apologists. Download: Totally Michael's self-titled debut, released last week and on iTunes. MC Chris isn't a fan of the "nerdcore" label that's followed him throughout his career. Writing at length on the subject in his MySpace blog, he essentially doesn't want to be the figurehead of any movement, or associated with the

  October 22, 2008

• On Sale This Weekend: Jingle Ball, 'High School Musical: The Ice Tour,' More

  Lots of stuff this weekend, especially if you're a tween. You're probably not if you're reading this blog, though. Sadface.

  November 7, 2008

• Tickets for KIIS 102.7 FM Jingle Ball Going Fast

  As far as these things go, the lineup for this year's "KIIS 102.7 FM Jingle Ball," Dec. 6 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, is fairly impressive. And by "these things," of course I mean a concert where pre-fab, manufactured teeny bopper acts perform 15 minute sets in the name of promoting a radio station owned by a scary multinational corporation (in this instance, Clear Channel). But still. Solid. So it shouldn't be too much of a surprise that tickets, which just went on sale this past Saturday,

  November 10, 2008

• Rihanna to Make 'Special Guest Appearance' at KIIS Jingle Ball

  Live Nation by way of the inimitable Ryan Seacrest announced this morning that Rihanna (she of "Disturbia," "Umbrella," "S.O.S.," "Shut Up and Drive" et al. fame) will be making a "special guest appearance" at the KIIS-FM Jingle Ball, Dec. 6 at the Honda Center in Anaheim. "Special guest appearance" is promoter carny for "not performing," but presumably she will come out and say hi and perhaps even announce one of the acts. Ooo! And the lineup, as discussed here last week, is pretty impressiv

  November 20, 2008

• Akon Added to Jingle Ball

  As if the KIIS-FM Jingle Ball could get any more awesome, this morning Senegalese-American rapper Akon, he of "Don't Matter" and simulated sex with a 15-year-old and pulling a dude on stage and throwing him off fame, has been added to the bill. I notice you noticing him.Akon just released a new album, Freedom; the inimitable Ben Westhoff wrote about it here.Full set-times for the Jingle Ball, tomorrow at the Honda Center in Anaheim, after the jump.

  December 5, 2008

• Live from KIIS-FM Jingle Ball, a.k.a. Bizarroworld

  I didn't know there were people--especially this many--that would actually be happy to see Ryan Seacrest. But tonight at the Honda Center in Anaheim, for the KIIS-FM Jingle Ball, they were not only happy but, I dunno, elated?Jubilant? What kind of twisted, parallel universe have I stepped into?Katy Perry is on stage now, in a Santa's helper-type outfit, singing "I Kissed a Girl." R.I.P. feminism.

  December 6, 2008

• The Year in Music: 2008's Top Ten Pop Songs

  BY ANNIE ZALESKIPop music often gets a bad rap for being disposable or vapid, and in many cases that's true. (Katy Perry, Danity Kane and the Pussycat Dolls, step right up!) But every year, a few irresistible bits of innovative ear candy rocket up the charts and seep into our subconscious. The following ten singles saturated the Top 40 -- or what passes for hit-oriented radio in this topsy-turvy musical climate -- while proving that accessibility doesn't necessarily preclude creativity.

  December 17, 2008

• Hitsville: The Year in Music, by the Numbers

  You don't need a half-wit music critic to tell you it's been a remarkable year for America, one historians will be discussing and researching for centuries to come. War, financial collapse, politics, technology: All have been dinner-table topics for many Americans. Racial barriers in 2008 were demolished by a Midwestern black man, and gender barriers were hurdled by an Arkansan and an Alaskan.Democracy has a few awesome new dance moves rolling into the Obama presidency, and it'll be a feast f

  December 18, 2008

• Daily Coachella Update: Still No Lineup, but There is a Fake One

  It's getting to the point where the idea of the Coachella lineup is actually more appealing than whatever the eventual Coachella lineup will be, even if the actual lineup is really impressive. It's like Spock said, "having is not such a pleasing thing as wanting."So yeah, still no official Coachella bill, but a relatively entertaining fake one has made the rounds, with a mix of heavily rumored names (Paul McCartney, The Killers, Fleet Foxes), reasonable estimates (The Knux, She & Him, Yeasay

  January 28, 2009

• Wener Watch: Compound Sentences Galore!

  We've all heard that there's an elegance in simplicity. Well, all of us except for the Orange County Register's music critic/blogger Ben Wener, apparently.Here's the opening paragraph to his nearly 900-word (!) review of U2's latest, No Line on the Horizon. Bring a bookmark:"It's been streaming free for a week on MySpace and just arrived at your nearby Target and Best Buy and such, yet rabid fans who await new U2 missives with evangelical fervor, as well as overheated critics who egg them on,

  March 4, 2009

• Incoming: No Doubt Add Yet Another OC Show, Katy Perry to Open

  (Yes, I could have used another No Doubt picture to illustrate this blog, but I'm using this Katy Perry pic instead. Deal with it. We need hits.) Waaay sold out. No Doubt has added yet another Verizon Wireless Amphitheater show--their fourth!--to their triumphant reunion tour, this one happening on August 4. The July 31, August 1 and August 2 shows are all already sold out (as are three shows at the Gibson Amphitheatre). Tickets for this one are on sale next Saturday (NEXT Saturday), April 4, at

  March 25, 2009

• Who Wins In the Worst Lyrics of 2008 Tournament? You Do

  December 18, 2008

• KIIS-FM's Jingle Ball 2008

  December 4, 2008

• [Pucker Up] Straight Men Who Have Sex With Men

  July 31, 2008

• Last Night: Travis, Republic Tigers at the House of Blues, Anaheim

  Photo by Andrew YoussefLast Night: Travis, Republic Tigers at the House of Blues, Anaheim; April 9, 2009.Better Than: Seeing Travis Barker or Randy Travis (I've only seen the former, but I'm making an educated guess).Least Appealing Snack Offer: "Delicious Parmesan potato chips basket for $2.00," which was just store-bought potato chips scooped from a bowl. Very eight-grade dance, but sort of odd for a big-budget operation like the HOB.In an parallel universe somewhere, Travis is the biggest ban

  April 10, 2009

• Ida Maria

  June 25, 2009

• Welcome to Agrestic, errrrr, Orange County

   When did Showtime's Weeds, which is set in Valencia or Calabasas or Santa Clarita or Stevenson Ranch or Gorman or wherever the hell it is, spring up in Orange County? It's sure seeming very Agrestic-like based on two police incidents mere hours apart Wednesday.First, cops started going door-to-door in the 1100 block of East First Street in Tustin because someone had called saying marijuana was being grown and sold in the area. The odor led officers to a particular home around 9 a.m., and w

  July 23, 2009

• [Sound Guy] No Doubt It Out Loud

  July 30, 2009

• Four Days of No Doubt Shows in Irvine Starting...Now. Almost.

  ​Yeah, No Doubt is obviously one of the biggest bands from Orange County of all time. (Some might say "the;" feel free to debate that point as much as you'd like!) As such, it's appropriate that their return to Orange County--after a five-year layoff, save a quickie reunion during the encore of one of Gwen Stefani's solo shows in 2007--is appropriately big.Tonight begins four shows at Verizon Wireless Amphitheater in Irvine (the same site as their 2007 jam), and we'll have a goodly amount of c

  July 31, 2009

• Last Night: No Doubt, Katy Perry, the Sounds at Verizon Wireless Amphitheater

  No zoom on the iPhone, folks!​Last Night: No Doubt, Katy Perry, the Sounds at Verizon Wireless Amphitheater, Irvine; August 4, 2009.Better than: The three previous No Doubt shows at Verizon. Maybe. Actually, they were probably all equally fantastic, unless you hate Katy Perry.Number of dudes dressed up in Alice in Wonderland-esque garb like Gwen Stefani in the "What You Waiting For" video: Only spotted one. Which was plenty.Do you enjoy...joy? Well, you'd probably have had a swell time at the

  August 5, 2009

• Out Takes: No Doubt & Katy Perry at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater

  Andrew YoussefWelcome home.​ Have you seen our slideshow of night two of No Doubt at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater in Irvine yet? No? Well you should. Then you should come right on back over here and view our awesome outtakes that we just didn't have room for. And a BONUS: Katy Perry photos from 8/4!

  August 5, 2009

• (Tragic) Kingdom Come Again, Leaving No Doubt Who Rules OC

  August 13, 2009

• Slideshow: Saturday's No Doubt, Paramore, the Sounds Concert at Verizon Wireless Amphitheater

  Andrew Youssef​It's No Doubt Central around here. Amanda Parsons threw up the setlist from Friday's show, and here are Andrew Youssef's pictures Gwen, Tony, Tom and Adrian-filled from Saturday's way beyond sold-out gig (he couldn't even stay past three songs, poor guy). Coming up: John Gilhooley's doubtlessly dazzling shots from Sunday night at Verizon Wireless Amphitheater, and a review of Tuesday night's final Irvine show, with supporting act Katy Perry stepping in for Paramore. (The Sounds

  August 3, 2009

• Travis Barker: More Hip Hop than Hip Hop

  ​Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker has had plenty of side gigs over the years. Box Car Racer and 44 both featured other Blink members, while a duo called TRV$DJAM included his friend Adam Goldstein. Known as DJ AM, Goldstein, of course, was with Barker in a Learjet crash that killed four people in September, 2008, and he died late last month in an apparent drug overdose.

  September 17, 2009