An ambitious, swirling, downright paranoid thing, full of songs that try very hard to shed much of the fanbase the band earned with the success of “Kids,” Congratulations is very much the end product of a young band facing the twin specters of fame and expectation, staring them down, then saying “F— it, let’s go surfing.”

Which, of course, is exactly how the guys planned it.

“I think the album in general is kind of, like, lyrically and musically, a reaction to fame and success. We said that it wasn’t going to be, but then we realized that was impossible, because we were just writing songs that were coming from whatever mindset we were in at the time,” MGMT’s Andrew Van Wyngarden told MTV News.

“And the mindset we were in was post year-and-a-half of touring, chaos, like we had been in a tornado of chaos, so we didn’t really know what to do, so we wrote songs that ended up being about that. But they’re also about that pseudo-mystical … bullsh–.”

Case in point — the title track, which Van Wyngarden describes as “kind of meandering upon the possibly negative effects of success,” or the very weird “Lady Dada’s Nightmare,” which is about, well …

“It’s about having sex with Lady Gaga,” Van Wyngarden laughed.

Congratulations is a very heady trip indeed, featuring 12-minute songs about surfing in Siberia, jittery odes to Brian Eno and the first single, a kitchen-sink affair called “Flash Delerium”. There’s a whole lot to digest, which is why the band (supposedly) decided to have fans hear it as an entire piece, rather than through a string of singles. Though these days MGMT maintain that whole ideal was taken out of context.

“We didn’t say that we weren’t releasing singles. What we said was that this album didn’t really have immediately accessible, catchy dance songs, like the first album had … I don’t even know why I said that,” Van Wyngarden sighs. “But we kind of felt like it’s something that’s best first listened to as a whole, though, as it turns out, we did release a single. You know, ‘Flash Delerium.’ ”

And though it was probably difficult to pry one song out of Congratulations’ craw, “Delerium” works as the first single, most notably because it serves notice that MGMT have been through the ringer.

“It’s kind of the most, um, everywhere-at-once song on the album; it’s like chaos. It’s supposed to be about kind of going nuts and feeling completely overwhelmed, and everything’s falling apart,” Van Wyngarden laughed. ”And it’s funny to watch people’s reactions to it, because it’s kind of a love-it-or-hate it thing … we just kind of kept piecing it together, just wanted to make something that felt like you were going mad. And there’s nothing really pleasant about that.

“We went through periods of paranoia, where there’s all these people around you telling you things, then you never really know if you’re doing something bad,” he continued. “I think that’s why a lot of artists make really crappy albums, because everybody’s telling them it’s so good … so we don’t know if our new album is crap or not.”

Gaga’s first arena tour, sponsored by Virgin Mobile, includes 31 shows throughout Canada and the U.S. through the summer, ending on September 19 in Raleigh, N.C. According to a press release, Gaga plans to make this leg of the tour “even more eye-popping” than the first.

Last week, Gaga’s label, Interscope Records, told MTV News that “there are talks about a 3-D concert and DVD in the near future.”

Before Gaga returns to North America, she will play 10 dates in Europe, wrapping up on June 4 in Sheffield, U.K. Longtime pals and roadmates Semi Precious Weapons are opening for her.

As for this next leg of the tour, promoter Live Nation’s global touring CEO Arthur Fogel said in a statement, “Lady Gaga has set out to revolutionize pop music and with her new production she continues to do exactly that. We’re thrilled to take the Monster Ball to fans around the world.”

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After all, at a gathering of thousands of Internet- and communications-dependent geeks, many of whom were toting Apple’s hit smartphone, staying connected, both by phone and over the Internet, wasn’t important; it was crucial.

In the wake of that debacle, AT&T had promised that it would do better at this year’s SXSWi, and in the previous weeks, a slew of articles came out in which the telecommunications giant said things would be fine–that it had identified the problems and taken care of them. In short, the message was, “trust us.”

And now, with as many as 15,000 SXSW attendees, plus many more who are here for the accompanying film festival, and iPhones everywhere you can see, it does appear that AT&T has delivered.

“It seems really good,” said Marc LaSpina, a Web architect from Cleveland. “I haven’t had any problems with it.”

That was the sentiment of Gary Gumanow, a product manager for Dell who lives in Austin. “It’s going pretty well,” Gumanow said, adding that AT&T’s 3G service was performing better for him than the conference-provided Wi-Fi network.

And Nate Parsons, a technology consultant from Washington, D.C., also reported no problems. He recalled that at last year’s SXSW, the iPhone “was pretty much unusable as a phone,” and that it had been “sort of a communications blackout on AT&T.” But this year, he said, “it seems like they’ve really fixed it.”

Parsons said he hasn’t been making too many phone calls, but that text messaging, which is how he’s been communicating with most people while here, has been simple and “just as good as it is back home.”

AT&T KNOWS IT WAS BAD

To its credit, AT&T has not shied away from taking responsibility for last year’s mess. In a phone interview Friday, AT&T spokesman Mark Siegel acknowledged that the “huge amount of traffic” overwhelmed the company’s networks at SXSW 2009. “We learned from last year and have taken even stronger steps” this time around, he said.

“First of all, we’re monitoring the network 24/7 in Austin,” Siegel said, “and so far, we’re seeing pretty good overall performance, and we’ve put a lot of effort [into] preparing for the volume of broadband traffic at SXSW.”

Among the steps Siegel said AT&T took this year were installing a new distributed antenna in the Austin Convention Center in order to boost capacity; expanding the capacity of the network by using 850MHz spectrum that is particularly good, Siegel said, for providing in-building service; deploying two cell sites on wheels (COWs) at the convention center and another one in Austin; and improving and augmenting the backhaul capacity to the sites that support the convention center.

“What you have to look at in an event like this,” Siegel said, “is that there are a very large number of people using their [iPhones] heavily, and very large numbers of very sophisiticated users. And that’s what you [have to] factor into planning for an event like this.”

EXPECTATIONS OF POOR PERFORMANCE

Despite AT&T’s pre-SXSW assurances that its networks would be up to the task of supporting the thousands of iPhone users on hand here, many attendees said they headed to Austin with very low expectations of what they would experience, once they got here.

“I was dubious” about AT&T’s promises of making sure the network would be strong enough, said Parsons. “That’s what they said last year. I was definitely coming prepared for it to be bad, so I was pleasantly surprised.”

Parsons said his preparations involved making more advance plans with friends, and making sure that initial conversations in Austin were about what he and his friends were doing, not more mundane social small talk.

For Gumanow, the first sign that things might not be as bad as he’d feared was when he saw AT&T trucks in downtown Austin last week and found himself asking, “What’s that AT&T truck doing with an antenna up in the air?”

And now that things seem to be going well?

“It’s refreshing not to have to think of a backup plan,” LaSpina said.

The Bootleg Theater is just one of these surprises. On the outside, the venue looks like a dilapidated warehouse that rests along a rundown street constantly undergoing construction. But the façade does not reflect the beauty inside, as the building boasts an intimate ambiance for small shows and performances.

Last weekend the venue witnessed Jarrod Gorbel caressing a hundred hearts, bringing with him a handful of new, beautiful songs and an optimistic vision of a solo career that could finally separate him from his former outfit, The Honorary Title. Performing his set on an unconventional stage of finely polished woodwork before a small crowd, Gorbel played a fair share of cherished songs from his earlier days, in addition to some newer gems.

Throughout he was clear about his desire to play the songs that he wanted to play, he let concergoers know just as much that he wanted to allow them to hear some older songs like “I’ll Do Better,” which came before Gorbel brought Orenda Fink of Azure Ray fame onto the stage to help him with “How Long” and “Ten Years Older.” While the tracks did not necessarily seem any different from what The Honorary Title created, for Gorbel they were products of a change in approach. As a self-proclaimed solo artist, he was now able to have complete control over their structure.

“The content is similar, but it’s just the fact that I’ve grown up,” Gorbel told idobi. “There’s no more of the big ‘rock out’ drums. I was always pushing for the mellower side of things. Obviously, the core of it was my songs, but there was just some stuff that I wouldn’t have done otherwise.”

The audience listened on as he occasionally went into silly tangents about what was on his mind at that moment, from Chatroulette to the antics of close family members. He poked fun at himself from time to time, acknowledging that he has an immature side that can sometimes get a little overbearing. Nonetheless, the crowd laughed at every single quip and gesture.

“I’ve always been goofy and silly,” Gorbel told idobi. “I think once I gathered this kind of audience via [The Honorary Title], it just gave me an excuse to be as stupid as I seem to be, or just be like how I am with my friends. The songs are one side, but nobody’s somber all the time. I do get bummed out and I do get serious, but I’m also equally a total dork who just wants to make people laugh.”

Opening the quiet, cozy night was Fink, whose ethereal, dreamy set easily captured the attention of the crowd. With “Why Is The Night Sad” setting a gentle mood, her light and velvety music plus her ability to make incredibly fluid ballads with a few simple strums of the guitar lulled the small audience of about a hundred people into a quiet peace. With her airy, delicate yet commanding voice, Fink showcased some of her newer songs such as “The Fox” but also returned to her older works such as the ever-haunting “Easter Island.”

Gorbel, however, was the night’s main attraction. After taking the stage in a brisk yet unruffled manner he flashed a smile to the crowd, and then hit the first resonating notes of “Far More,” a song off The Honorary Title’s Scream and Light Up the Sky. After that he launched into crowd favorites “Stay Away” and “Along the Way,” which provoked a unified whisper from the audience in response to Gorbel’s strong presence and incredibly powerful voice.

But now that his focus has been honed and modified, Gorbel is able to start anew. By dropping The Honorary Title moniker and using his own name, he is able to change all that may have displeased him when he was dealing with the complications that arose from his former band. Nothing may really change in terms of his jawdropping vocal talents and intricate writing capabilities, but all of the liberty is his for the taking.

As he embarks on his solo career he is not alone. If his show at the Bootleg Theater proved anything, it is that he still has a handful of dedicated fans that support his efforts no matter what changes. What is also clear is that Gorbel is dead set on wanting to start a new chapter in his career. For him, the need to differentiate himself from The Honorary Title became increasingly salient once he realized he wanted to depart from the style with which he was once associated.

“In [The Honorary Title], we just toured with a lot of bands that were associated with Vans Warped Tour,” said Gorbel.“We never belonged there, but that was just where our friends were and, on the business side, who we associated with. I think a lot of people that didn’t know the band just saw the name and thought it was an “emo punk pop” band, and I just felt like I did not want that association.”

The energy displayed by the Provo, Utah natives on the first full-length effort, Habits, is quite apparent even from opening track “Sins of My Youth.” As vocalist Tyler Glenn starts the album with a few solemn words, drummer Elaine Bradley immediately picks up the pace with the percussion, serving as a backdrop for the rest of the band to create a unique musical landscape.

Friend of the band and lead Sugarcult singer Tim Pagnotta produced the album, and the pop-punk gloss that he created in his main project shows through here. Pagnotta also helped write the song “Animal,” which has landed Neon Trees atop every alternative chart leading up to the March 16 release date.

It would be foolish to judge the album based on its shorter than average length. All too often the general public views records as a 10 to 12 song compilation of discontinuous songs wrapped around several catchy singles. But this debut provides a serious punch of slick pop rock all the way through, making up for its brevity. It certainly helps that Neon Trees has a distinctive sound of its own that closely resembles that of a new wave band practicing in a garage.

Alternative Press has declared the group a “2010 Band to Watch” and Mark Hoppus has recommended it as his Spin “Band of the Week.” Its slick, upbeat sound combined with the excellent songwriter courtesy of Glenn was to attract The Killers, which recently recruited the band as its opener. Neon Trees will also be opening for 30 Seconds to Mars and Mute Math starting April 9.

Just looking at lyrics like “Me and you, you and me / Let’s go out, let’s go back / 1983 is calling / I been on my knees and crawling back to you / It’s coming all back to me” shows how Neon Trees easily ended up at the forefront of the alternative music scene. But to be frank, every lyric and every beat could set the stage for this near half hour of danceable tunes. In a musical landscape that is growing duller by the day, Neon Trees has certainly provided something real. (3.5/5.0)

“Wind-Up’s employees are genuine fans of our band and share the same vision that we have for the future of our sound and career,” frontman Anthony Raneri explained. ”We are so glad to have found a home where they share our passion for creating music and not a product.”

“When Bayside became available, I immediately went out to see a live show and I was blown away by their creativity and energy,” Wind-Up President Ed Vetri said.

“This is a band that has done the heavy lifting, put in the time and effort needed to build a strong core fan base, and has consistently delivered to that core base over the years. We share the same vision as Bayside, and within our business model, we will be able to provide the platforms necessary to allow the band to do what they do best, create great music and perform live!”

The band, formed in 2000, signed with Victory Records in 2003 and released four studio albums through that label, the most recent of which being 2008’s Shudder. Bayside will release its Wind-Up debut this fall.

The actor, who rose to fame in the 1980s alongside longtime pal Corey Feldman, was found unresponsive in his apartment near Burbank, Calif., police told the station. He reportedly died at 3:30 a.m. PT, and his mother was at his home at the time of his death. He was pronounced dead Providence St. Joseph’s Medical Center in Burbank, police said.

Haim was born in Ontario in 1971 and as a teenager found fame in Hollywood. He first starred in 1984’s “Firstborn” with Sarah Jessica Parker and Robert Downey Jr. He was a star of the decade, alongside other notable actors of the era like C. Thomas Howell, Rob Lowe, Judd Nelson and Emilio Estevez. He starred in films like “Silver Bullet,” Lucas” and most famously 1987’s “The Lost Boys,” with Feldman as well as Kiefer Sutherland.

In the 1990s Haim played more obscure roles yet continued to work steadily in films like “National Lampoon’s Last Resort” and “Prayer of the Rollerboys.” Haim struggled with substance abuse through much of his career.

In the past decade, however, Haim made moves for a career comeback. He starred alongside Feldman on their A&E reality show, “The Two Coreys,” for two seasons. He was also made a cameo in the “Lost Boys” sequel, “Lost Boys: The Tribe,” where he reprised his role as Sam Emerson. He also had several films in production at the time of his death.

Group members Jeremy Enigk, Dan Hoerner, William Goldsmith and Nate Mendel have been fleshing out new material since last fall, coinciding with the band’s  first live shows as a unit since 1994. One untitled new song was played during that tour but it is unknown whether it will make the cut for the album.

Before disbanding, the original Sunny Day Real Estate lineup made two hugely influential albums for Sub Pop, 1994’s Diary and an untitled 1995 album referred to as LP2 or The Pink Album. The band returned, minus Mendel, who still plays bass in Foo Fighters, for 1997’s How It Feels To Be Something On and 2000’s The Rising Tide. Mendel then rejoined Enigk and Goldsmith, but not Hoerner, to record a self-titled album as the Fire Theft in 2003.

SDRE has a handful of shows on tap this spring, including its first appearance at the Coachella festival in Indio, Calif., on April 18, a show in London four days later and an April 23 appearance at Belgium’s Groezrock Festival.

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Danger Mouse, a talented producer whose work spans a myriad of different musical styles, is already well established in the industry. After gaining mainstream popularity after his Beatles remix White Album became an Internet hit, he went on to produce the Gorillaz’s second studio album Demon Days for which he received a Grammy nomination for producer of the year. In 2009 Paste Magazine named him producer of the decade.

In the meantime, Mercer has came upon incredible success as the singer/songwriter of indie-rock band The Shins, which so far has released three critically acclaimed studio albums. In addition Mercer has two featured songs on the Grammy award-winning Garden State soundtrack.

On this album, no doubt one of the strongest of the year so far, the duo has performed beautifully. “The High Road” serves as a great introduction, with soothing multi-layered vocals and beautiful lyrics weaving in and out of hypnotizing drum beats, synths and various other instruments. When asked to describe their sound, the duo noted, it was “melodic, but experimental, too.”

“Sailing to Nowhere” is one of, if not the best songs on the album. A perfect combination of Danger Mouse’s trippy and hypnotic beats and Mercer’s s incredible vocals, the song is carried by introspective lyrics which make it sure to be a fan favorite. Similarly, “The Mall and The Misery” is a strong closing track for a great album. Lines like “Use your intuition / It’s all you’ve got / Keys are revving / There’s a dozen locks / Standing your way/ So goes the gold age / To your entire life” stand out as examples of brilliant lyrics that mix perfectly with the musical backing.

If nothing else, this album demonstrates that Mercer and Danger Mouse are both musical geniuses at the top of their careers. The duo has already been confirmed to be working on its second studio album, and if its debut is any indication of what’s to come, then there is definitely reason to be excited.

Broken Bells showcases exactly the type of music that major labels should be trying to release in order to win back those who have given up on them. While it may seem implausible, there are moments on this album that are reminiscent of Radiohead. That is not to say the music is composed in a similar style, but rather that both bands have the ability to write eclectic and unique songs that still contain strong elements of pop. In this case, Mercer and Danger Mouse have produced an album that both casual music listeners and hipster indie fanatics alike will be able to appreciate and enjoy.

(4.5/5.0)

Broken Bells can be purchased on iTunes.

People aware of the projects, however, have told GigaOM that iTunes LP has had mixed results at best. Since it was launched, the format has only grown to about 29 titles, almost half of which are holdovers from the September launch. Apple went so far as to pay for the productions itself, handing out as much as $60,000 per album to a contractor. The cost is high enough that one contributor doubts any other iTunes LPs would follow if it had to pay a similar amount itself, although added marketing from Apple compensated for the high initial cost.

The iPad has done little to spark interest in the format even though it should be ideally suited to the format, the music business workers said. Many would instead prefer to offer iPhone/iPad/iPod apps, which can not only show many of the same features as iTunes LP but can include live content and other features beyond the initial album.

As such, many industry insiders liken the format to a movie-enhanced physical album launch, such as enhanced CDs from the 1990s or bundled DVDs from this past decade. The format is a bonus for dedicated fans but does little to change the mainstream, which often doesn’t care enough about most artists to pay extra for an album and still prefers to buy the better tracks individually.

Apple has often been singled out by major labels for special treatment as its dominance of digital music, especially in the US, has made them wary of either giving too much control to iTunes or doing anything that would jeopardize its role as the most profitable online music store. Universal and likely other labels are known to have deliberately withheld DRM-free music from iTunes until Apple agreed to variable pricing, even when they had been more willing to offer DRM-free support to services like Amazon MP3 and Napster.

The iPod-friendly music store has also been home to a number of other minor experiments meant to boost multi-track sales, such as “digital 45s” that recreate the heyday of vinyl singles with B-sides.

After a few listens, it is quite obvious that this album is more dynamic than the debut on Decaydance. The lulls may be a bit duller but the riffs are heavier where they need to be without overdoing it, and massive gang vocal sing-a-longs inspire continous head-bobbing and toe-tapping.

The dueling call and return vocals of singers and guitarists Alan Day and Dan O’Connor have become nearly perfected in this second full length release of original material.  The guitar work of both frontmen has advanced beyond simple chord strumming into sometimes intricate melodies that sound incredibly layered at times. The subtle yet consistent synthesizer expertise of backup vocalist Josh Lyford assists drummer Jackson “Jake” Massucco in setting the tone for every song, while bassist Joe Weiss keeps the rhythms chugging along.  And when all three vocalists combine their efforts, a vocal onslaught few bands can match creates violently beautiful harmonies.

The band teamed up with top producer Machine, who worked with the crew on 2009’s Explains It All, a 90s alternative rock cover album. This is the same Machine that has produced, mixed and engineered various albums and songs with pop, punk, rock and hardcore acts such as Fall Out Boy, Armor For Sleep, Boys Night Out, Clutch and Every Time I Die.  In the past few years, this maestro has harnessed the true abilities of these Red Sox fans, refining their already incredibly catchy sound.

Four Year Strong has even crafted some tunes on the pop side of things. Of course the pop side of Four Year Strong’s audio spectrum errs on the side of hardcore more than traditional pop music. This may be due to the aforementioned cover album that sharpened a hardcore edge onto existing pop songs.  The possible 311 homage “Flannel is the Color of My Energy” could one day be considered for the couples’ skate at the local roller rink, with lyrics like “I don’t want to live a day / Without a piece of you to keep me company.”

All of the songs on this album are crafted for live performances, which they receive on the current tour in support of the record. Specifically, the band has been previewing a trio of sweet new jams: “It Must Really Suck to be Four Year Strong Right Now,” “What the Hell is a Gigawatt?” and “Wasting Time (Eternal Summer).” All are much more entertaining than songs from the first disc when heard from a mosh pit, if that is at all possible.

(4.0/5.0)

Enemy of the World can be purchased online through iTunes.

“I mean, anybody who knows me already calls me that. No one in my circle calls me Travis. Even my family, at a young age started calling me ‘Travie,’ ” he said, cracking up slightly.

 ”So I want people to feel comfortable calling me ‘Travie.’ It’s almost like inviting people in. You can be part of the family, so long as you buy the album.”

And that brings up the second point — his long-in-the-works solo album, which McCoy wants you to know is no longer called The Lazarus Project, for legal reasons … involving Paul Walker.

“Unfortunately we had to change the title to just Lazarus, because there’s already this movie out there called ‘The Lazarus Project,’ ” he explained. “So we’re just calling the record Lazarus now. It’s more to the point.”

And all this talk of labels, nicknames and titles is sort of relevant to McCoy in general. Because ever since he burst onto the scene with Gym Class Heroes (McCoy and the band are currently at work on a new LP), people have struggled to slap a label on the charismatic frontman.

Is he a rapper? A rock star? Something in between? Certainly GCH’s hip-hop leaning 2008 album The Quiltdidn’t help matters any and now, with Lazarus on the horizon (it’s tentatively due in June), McCoy is facing another round of critical labeling. And yes, it’s a bit annoying.

“It’s hard to put a stamp on the record. With anything I do, it’s hard to categorize it. With any project, I just go in and blindly start writing songs and then find out which way we want to go with it. This one took a bit longer to find the lane,” he said.

“It was a year in the making. … We thought we had found the lane, then I started doing other sh–. Now that it’s done and I’ve listened to it a bunch of times, I’ll say that it’s got a pop appeal … the songs will appeal to a broader range of people as opposed to the hip-hop crowd or conventional GCH crowd.”

Initially, the songs on Lazarus reflected the dark times in McCoy’s life … inspired mainly by his breakup with longtime girlfriend Katy Perry. But in the months following the split, he said he found a new outlook on life. And the new songs he wrote reflected that shift.

“A lot of the music started off pretty dark and introspective, but now a lot of the records are happy. I stopped being so bitter about my life and situations,” McCoy said.

“I hate going back to this, but I went through a sh—y breakup, so a lot of records were bitter in the beginning. Sad and mad about sh–, but then I found a median with myself. I realized I don’t have it that bad, so I figured, why dampen the mood with sad, sh—y records?”

And on March 8th fans can get an official taste of what Lazaruswill offer, when the first single — a song called “Billionaire” — premieres on MTV.com. But don’t let the title fool you: This isn’t your average, run-of-the-mill song about Benjamins.

” ‘Billionaire’ is basically about, you know, like ‘Brewster’s Millions.’ It’s me talking about what would happen if I would somehow manage to become a billionaire. What would I do with the money?” he explained.

“Don’t get it wrong, I’m far from a billionaire. I think I just made it out the ‘thousandaire’ category. So it’s about what I would do with the money and, the same time, it opens up the question, if you were in a position to do something with a decent chunk of money, what would you do?”

And that’s sort of the balance McCoy is striking on Lazarus — a little bit of the serious, a little bit of the social, but, of course, a whole lot fun, too. That’s the point of making songs like this, no matter how you choose to label them.

“I’ve always wanted this album to come out in the summer, because that’s when most of the memorable music drops,” he said. “You want music to have a good time to, music to connect to. You wanna play it at the party.”

“It just goes hand in hand with rock ‘n’ roll,” the 44-year-old guitarist says with a seen-it-all laugh. “It’s a very volatile world. And I actually thrive on it — but at the same time it makes it really hard to get anything done.”

Getting stuff done was the primary motivation behind Slash’s self-titled solo debut, due April 6 in the United States on the artist’s own Dik Hayd Records via EMI Label Services.

“After the last Velvet Revolver tour, I was like, ‘I just need to do something on my own,’” says the musician, who’s also released a pair of discs with Slash’s Snakepit.

 ”‘Something where I can make my own decisions and do whatever it is that I want to do, without having to conform to anyone else’s taste.’”

Not that “Slash” is free of other creative input: The 13-track set contains collaborations with an eclectic roster of guest vocalists, including Ozzy Osbourne, Chris Cornell, Kid Rock, Ian Astbury and Iggy Pop.

Slash says the idea behind the all-star hookups was simple: “I just wanted to get different people I admired and thought were great on my record. I’d been doing that on other people’s records forever.”

Avenged Sevenfold frontman M. Shadows — who lends lead vocals to the hard-rocking “Nothing to Say” — insists that despite the expansive guest list, the album is undoubtedly Slash’s show.

“You can tell he’s doing the record as a way to try different things,” Shadows says. “He definitely branched out, and the result is all over the place. But the guitar playing is so obviously Slash. That holds it all together.”

“Slash is a guy who appeals to everyone,” says Maroon 5’s Adam Levine, who sings “Gotten,” a bluesy ballad. “He was in Guns N’ Roses but he also wasn’t afraid of playing on a Michael Jackson record. I’ve always loved his attitude toward music, the way he embraces tons of different styles.”

Slash says the album’s stylistic diversity — where you can find Motorhead frontman Lemmy Kilmister (“Doctor Alibi”) rubbing elbows with Fergie of the Black Eyed Peas (“Beautiful Dangerous”) — developed in an organic fashion.

“Once I came up with the concept, there was no forethought as to who exactly should be on the record,” he says. “I just started writing music and compiling stuff from old tapes. Then I sat down with it and kept thinking, ‘This song would great for so-and-so.’ Once I got the songs into reasonable demo form, I’d send them out to different people and just hope they were interested.”

After contacting friends and acquaintances, he moved on to artists he didn’t know, such as Shadows, Rocco De Luca of alternative rock act the Burden (“Saint Is a Sinner Too”) and Wolfmother frontman Andrew Stockdale, who appears on the lead single, “By the Sword.”

“He’s Australian and kind of hard to find,” Slash says of Stockdale. “But after months of looking, it turned out he lives right up the street from me.”

Shadows and Levine both say Slash welcomed their contributions.

 ”Before we met he sent over a verse riff and a chorus and basically said, ‘What can you do with this?’” Shadows recalls. “At first I was just doing some vocal melodies, but after a while I was like, ‘I kind of want to make this a little more in-depth,’ so I brought in a new verse and turned the chorus into a pre-chorus. Slash was super laid-back. He wasn’t pissed that I was coming up with new things.”

Slash wasn’t inclined to enter a traditional record deal. “One of the things he was really keen on was full control,” says Jeff Varner of Slash’s management firm, Collective Music Group.

“It’s this innate thing of, ‘Is this cool or is this corporate-y sellout?’” Varner says. “He knows who he is and he knows when something doesn’t pass the smell test. But he’s also said to us, ‘Look, I realize times have changed and that you can’t market records the way you used to.’”

A near riot broke out in front of the Manhattan Criminal Court Building when the superstar MC entered, escorted by police and his Cash Money crew. Photographers aggressively angled to capture the last images of the rapper before he was formally sentenced to one year in prison.

Dressed in black jeans, a black shirt and a gray jacket, Lil Wayne made his way in, before Judge Charles H. Solomon sentenced the rapper. The New Orleans native sat next to his lawyer, Stacey Richman, without addressing the court.

After Solomon reminded Wayne of his charges, the rapper firmly nodded that he understood. Police then handcuffed Lil Wayne and he stood up to be taken away.

He paused momentarily before leaving and nodded to Cash Money execs Birdman and Slim, who were present in the courtroom. Just like that, Wayne was gone.

The rapper reached a deal with prosecutors in November to plead out to a lesser deal, and in return, he is expected to be released from prison as early as October. In 2007, Lil Wayne was arrested for attempted gun possession following his first headlining performance in Manhattan at the Beacon Theatre.

New York is among the toughest states in the country when it comes to gun-possession laws. In other states, Lil Wayne could have gotten off with a misdemeanor rap and probation. However, in New York, only law-enforcement officials and those affiliated with authorities are permitted to carry firearms.

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2. Owl City – Fireflies
3. Paramore – Brick By Boring Brick
4. Boys Like Girls – Two Is Better Than One
5. Green Day – 21 Guns
6. Muse – Uprising
7. The Script – Breakeven
8. Motion City Soundtrack – Disappear
9. Flyleaf – Again
10. 30 Seconds to Mars – Kings and Queens
11. Muse – Resistance
12. Cage The Elephant – Back Against The Wall
13. We The Kings – Heaven Can Wait
14. Owl City – Vanilla Twilight
15. Hellogoodbye – When We First Met
16. Phoenix – Listzomania
17. Hot Chelle Rae – I Like to Dance
18. We The Kings – Promise the Stars
19. Young and Divine – Shake that Bubble
20. Quietdrive – Jessica

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