Playboy's music poll 2008

FOR THIS YEAR'S BREAKTHROUGH ARTISTS-KATY PERRY, FOR EXAMPLE, OR DUFFY OR SANTOCOLD-GRIT IS A DEFINING CHARACTERISTIC. OTHER ACTS PROVED THEIR METTLE TOO: METALLICA STORMED BACK, LIL WAYNE AND N AS BEAT THE ODDS TO FOLLOW SUCCESS WITH SUCCESS, PORTISHEAD REEMERGED SPECTACU-LARLY AFTER 10 YEARS. IT'S TRUE NOW MORE THAN EVER: DONTSTOP BELIEVIN'. .. -"'

With "I KisseaanpHMHc off Katy Perry's debut album, One of the Boys, the 24-year-old erstwhile rocker chick grabbed hold of the pop charts and re­fused to let go. The instantly catchy tune earned the singer a number one spot in more than 20 countries. She's the daughter of pastors; her singing ca­reer has now taken her from churches to the Warped Tour.

1 were you first exposed to sicr

I remember bringing home my first CD, Incubus's Make Yourself, and walking into my room and stuffing the comforter in the crack of my door so no one could hear any­thing. I pulled out the CD, and it broke in two. I was like, "Oh my God. This is a sign." It didn't stop me from wanting to be informed about pop culture and hear what was going on, though.

Are your lyrics about you? PERRY: All the songs are specifically about me. It is my life. The relationship songs were inspired by certain males. I don't know how to tell them what I want to say—I'm just scared of 1 ' ' ted, so I write it in a song.

: Are you concerned about your ing too much on display? RY: I've always lived my life as an open 1 book. I'm not afraid to be flawed, have zits and not be the most perfect person. Girls can; relate to that. Females in the pop industry always want to come off as composed, but

ing to try to live a perfect life. ., ..- This seems to resonate with fans. We just saw a picture on MySpace of a guy with your signature tattooed on his wrist.

PERRY: He got it? I remember him from when I did signings on the Warped Tour. He said, "I'm gonna get your name tattooed on my wrist." I was like, "No you're not."

PLAYBOY'S

MUSICSSPOLL2:

' HERE'S THE BALLOT. CAST YOUR VOTE. PULL TH^otiT. MAIL IT IN.

YOU CAN TICK OFF BOXES OR, IF YOUR FAVORITE ARTIS^ OUR NOMINEES, WRITE IN YOUR OWN. SOUND LIKE A HASSI

VOTE ONLINE AT PLAYBOYMUSICPOLL.COM.

N'T AMONG

FALL OUT BOY, FOUE A DEUX

THE HOLD STEADY, STAY POSITIVE

THE KILLERS, DAY 0-ACE

KINGS OF LEON, ONLYBYTHENICHT

METALLICA, DEATH MAGNETIC WRITE-IN VOTE:

BEST

HIP-HOP ALBUM

COMMON, INVINCIBLE SUMMER LIL WAYNE, THA CARTER III NAS, UNTITLED

KANYEWEST,

8085 a-HEARTBREAK

YOUNG JEEZ Y, THE RECESSION WRITE-IN VOTE:

BE (TRONIC

CRYSTAL CASTLES, CRYSTAL CASTLES

LUOMO, CONVIVIAL M83, SATURDAYS=YOUTH PORTISHEAD.3

THIEVERY CORPORATION, RADIO RETALIATION

WRITE-IN VOTE:

BEST

COUNTRYALBUM

ALAN JACKSON, GOOD TIME

PATTY LOVELESS, SLEEPLESS NIGHTS

BRAD PAISLEY, PUV

RANDY ROGERS BAND, RANDY ROGERS BAND

SUCARLANO, LOVE ON THE INSIDE

WRITE-IN VOTE:

DAVE HOLLANO QUINTET, PASS IT ON

WILLIE NELSON 6 WYNTON MARSALIS, TWO MEN WITH THE BLUES

GREG OSBY, 9 LEVELS

BOBOSTENSONTRIO, CANTANDO

MIGUEL ZEN6N, AWAKE WRITE-IN VOTE:

BEST

SOUNDTRACK

21

AMERICANTEEN

FORGETTING SARAH MARSHALL

MY BLUEBERRY NIGHTS

NICK AND NORA'S INFINITE PLAYUST

WRITE-IN VOTE:

III i

LEONA LEWIS,HBLEEDING LOVE LIL WAYNE, "LOLLIPOP" M.I.A., "PAPER PLANES" KATY PERRY, "I KISSED A GIRL" FLO RIOA, "LOW" WRITE-IN VOTE:

BEST [WORLD MUSIC ALBUM,

CARLABRUNI,

COMME SI DE RIENN'ETAIT

KA5AIALL5TARS, CONCOTRONICS

MILTON NASCIMENTO/IOBIM TRIO, NOVAS BO5SA5

ROOTZ UNDERGROUND, . | MOVEMENT : I

ROKIATRAORE, TCHAMANTCHE WRITE-IN VOTE:

I

TO VOTE BY MAIL, FOLD, PUT IN ENVELOPE AND SEND TO:

PLAYBOY MUSIC POLL -» 73O FIFTH AVENUE -» NEW YORK, NY1O019

-> HAIL IN YOUR ENTRY NO LATER THAN DECEMBER IS, 2008

BEST

LIVE ACT

BECK

KID ROCK

MOTLEY CRUE

RADIOHEAO

STONE TEMPLE PILOTS

WRITE-IN VOTE

DUFFY

MCMT

PARAMORE

SANTOCQLD

VAMPIRE WEEKEND

WRITE-IN VOTE:

BEST

REISSUE ALBUM

DENNIS BROWN, THE NINEY YEARS

BOB DYLAN, TELL TALE SIGNS

POLK MILLER AND HIS OLD SOUTH QUARTETTE

JOHN PHILLIPS, PUSSYCAT

DENNIS WILSON, PACIFIC OCEAN BLUE

WRITE-IN VOTE:

Caroline" as the seventh-inning-stretch sing-along at Fenway Park is enough to justify his entry into any Hall of Fame. But Diamond's career highlights also include writing the 1967 song of the year ("I'm a Believer" for the Mon-kees), having his works wonderfully covered by everyone from UB40 to Urge Overkill and, this year, making a breathtakingly beautiful, largely acoustic album with Rick Rubin.

With a new greatest-hits album on the shelves and a massive nationwide tour under his belt, Idol's rebel yell is once again ringing out loud and clear. Spirit of 76 punks,

classic rockers and fans of 1980s glittering pop can all get behind the man whose MTV-read\ sneer made him a global icon.

Straight Outta Compton dropped 20 years ago and changed not only hip-hop but the entire music industry. Brutal, reality-driven street tales of gun violence and gangsterism adrenalized rap's rhymes. Dr. Dre's West Coast production style rewrote the beat book. And the collective's "express yourself" business approach revolutionized the model of success.

With prog all the rage in some new-music circles, the band that practically in­vented the genre is as big as ever. Rush's musl-

cat virtuosity, intricate time changes, suite-style song cycles and cerebral texts continued to fill arenas this year as the trio extended its Snakes o-I to release a live DVD.

SMASHING

With

the 1991 IP Clsh, this band, as much as Nirvana, created the sound of the 1990s. Now out on the road celebrating the band's 20th anniversary, Billy Corgan and company are innovating again by creating a multiset tour concept: They are of­fering ticket bundles to multiple shows featuring mutually exclusive music. And with a catalogue that includes such seminal albums as Slamesi, Dream and Mellon Collie, why not? Jj

two decadeson: the impact of n.w.a-s straight outta compton is still felt

When N.W.A released Straight Outta Compton 20 years ago, the group changed the world. There was Dr. Dre's distinctive production. There was Eazy-E's commercial acumen. There was Ice Cube's photojournalistic writing that basically invent­ed gangsta hip-hop. And there was the astounding result: a multiplatinum record without radio play, without major-label backing, without a national tour to promote it. Ice Cube talked with us about Compton's anniversary.

PLAYBOY: What was going on in the streets in 1988 when the record came out?

CUBE: It was mean on the streets—the aftereffects of mean-spirited Reaganomics, when the regular people suffered. And crack cocaine and the despair and violence that went with it was a disease going from house to house, destroying families and lives. By 1988 the shit was unbearable. Somebody had to speak on it. That pimple on your face, it's been building up and it's ready to pop, but it don't pop, and that's where we were, right there. Something had to break. Some­body had to say something, and N.W.A said it on Straight Outta Compton. Then when the Rodney King riots happened in 1992, it proved what we were saying on the record was no lie. PLAYBOY: Compton was hardly on the national radar until the rec­ord. Why the specific geographic identity?

CUBE: Eazy-E was always going on about how East Coast songs would mention the New York boroughs—the South Bronx, Brook­lyn—that they were putting their hoods on the map. Eazy was ada­mant about putting Compton on the map, more than anybody or anything in Compton. He's kind of like the founder of Compton. PLAYBOY: What has been the most far-reaching impact of Straight Outta Compton on the music scene? CUBE: We never thought our records would go anywhere outside of our neighborhood, but things snowballed and we busted down doors. Before N.W.A, a record like that would've been considered a "blue" record, a Redd Foxx-raunchy kind of deal. It opened the doors for artists to do it how they feel it—all the good, the bad and the ugly. When we did that record, you could count on one hand the groups using profanity in their lyrics. Now everybody is doing it, so you go figure. For me, it changed hip-hop forever. PLAYBOY: What's your take on the state of hip-hop today? CUBE: The mainstream used it and abused it. Now they want to throw it back and say it's dead. But through the Internet and other means, the B-boys got hip-hop back in our hands again. When Lil Wayne, a good lyricist, comes out with a record that blows to the top of the charts and sells a whole lot of records, it tells me the universe is still right with hip-hop.

THIS YEWHrseClfFWEItAND AND STONE TEMPLE ' PILOTS FLEW HIGH AGAIN BACK ON THE ROAD

Scott Weiland left Velvet Revolver for a huge 65-date re­union tour with Stone Temple Pilots. Given STP's tumultu­ous history, just bringing the quartet together again seemed like a minor miracle. But the re-formed STP rekindled the energy that made it one of the most dominant bands of the 1990s. We caught up with Weiland, who has also somehow found time to record Happy in Galoshes, his first solo album since 1998's 12 Bar Blues.

PLAYBOY: What was the reaction in the Velvet Revolver camp when

you decided to get back with STP?

WEILAND: When I told Slash I was gonna do some festivals with

STP, he said, "Thank you for being straight up with me." It wasn't

until later that another member of the band had some issues with it.

But I had already committed to doing it by then. It's a shame certain

people have a hard time letting go of past resentments and try to

throw them onto other people.

PLAYBOY: Were you already feeling creatively confined in VR before

you committed to the STP tour?

It was never an issue of creative freedom. But when you start bickering about little piddly financial things, it takes the fun out of it for me. It's like, this is not why I got into this. We're all doing pretty good, so if you're going to fuck the relationship up over this, I don't want to be involved. PLAYBOY: How was the reunion?

It has been great. The tour made a few bucks. I'm sure there will be some offers for a record.

PLAYBOY: These were your first shows together in five years. How did it feel?

At first I felt physically uncomfortable, because the rhythm and sound of the band is completely different. I'm a lot about movement. So onstage it was almost as if I hadn't heard that rhythm and pulse in such a long time. It took me a couple of shows to get that groove beating back into my heart again. PLAYBOY: How much of it was reestablishing a personal connection versus a musical one?

It was all musical, really. You dance to one form of rock and roll differently from how you dance to another. You wouldn't dance to the Grateful Dead the way you would to Elvis Presley. So the first show was a little weird, but after three shows we got our thing going. Not that there haven't been any bad shows. Even the best teams play lousy on some days.

PLAYBOY: Did you always know there would be a reunion? ¦.""'" ' Yeah, I knew there was one bookend left to this story. I didn't know when, but I always felt it wasn't complete.

¦sc

'*<

SCARLETt'!^M^dWisfH'A^lV THE FIRST ACTRESS TO TRY SINGING. HERE'S A BRIEF HISTORY

Johansson's recent collection of Tom Waits songs, Anywhere I Lay My Head, has serious indie-rock cred: It was produced by TV on the Radio guitarist Dave Sitek, and David Bowie lent his talents. Meanwhile, Zooey Deschanel teamed with rootsy guitarist M. Ward this year as She and Him for Vol­ume One. a collection of excellent soft-rock songs. These women are part of a tradition that stretches back to Marilyn Monroe and beyond. Sound dodgy? You decide.

MINNIE DRIVER She started out as a member of the go-nowhere band Puff, Rocks and Brown, which she aban­doned for acting. She returned to her musical roots in 2004, charming critics with her folk-pop Everything I've Cot in My Pocket and 2007's Seastories.

JULIETTE LEWIS Lewis has always been best in roles that are sexy, smart and just a little bit crazy, and that bad-girl image fits her current role as a club rocker. But not even Dave Crohl, who drummed on Juliette and the Licks' 2006 Four on the Floor, could improve the music.

JADA PINKETT SMITH When not attending red-carpet premieres with her A-list husband, this mom of three works out her aggression fronting her abrasive funk-metal outfit, Wicked Wisdom. The group formed in 2003 and by 2005 was at Ozzfest. Sadly, Wicked Wisdom's songs are generic Mr. Bungle knockoffs.

TIA CARRERE playboy's January 2003 cover girl had her pop solo debut, Dream, go platinum in the Philippines in 1993. Recently she veered into more interesting territory with last year's Howaiiona. a collaboration with noted slack-key guitar and ukulele player Daniel Ho, which was nominated for a best Hawaiian music Grammy.

JENNIFER LOVE HEWITT At the age of 12 she was already a pop star in Japan. She got her first crack at the American market after Party of Five cast her as sexy tomboy Sarah Reeves. While 1995's Let's Co Bang was a flop, Hewitt kept her chin up and four years later scored her first U.S. hit, "How Do I Deal," off the / Still Know What You Did Last Sum­mer soundtrack. She really hit her stride in 2002 when she embraced her inner boho vixen on BareNoked.

LYNDA CARTER Wonder Woman jumped aboard yacht rock with 1978's Portrait, a smooth-rock album with a heavy Carpenters influence. Her voice is forgettable, as are most of the original tracks, save for "Toto (Don't It Feel Like Paradise)," a bizarre ode complete with snip­pets of dialogue from The Wizard ofOz.

3RICITTE BARDOT BB was already established as an nternational sex symbol when she released her first jlbum, Behind Brigitte Bardot. in 19G0. More records fol-owed. and she easily surpassed the low bar set for her with a campy mix of jazz, pop, swinging lounge exotica and tango. Things got more serious later in the decade when she paired with her then-lover Serge Cainsbourg for 3 series of singles, most notably the sultry 1968 duet 'Bonnie and Clyde." Perhaps the pair's hottest collabora-:ion-the original version of "je T'Aime, Moi Non Plus," ecorded in 19G7—didn't surface until years later, as Bar-dot's orgasmic moans were too hot for radio.

HOTTUNES

NEW SOUNDS AND RECENT GOODIES

"JOY RIDE," THE KILLERS Sprightly Franz Ferdinand disco com­plete with steel drums, sax and castanets from strong new Day & Age LP.

"PLEASE JUST TAKE THESE PHOTOS FROM MY HAND,'

SNOW PATROL Harder than the band's signature sweeping love epics.

"UP ALL NIGHT," HINDER Scorching, unapologetic neo-hair ode to a one-night stand, with huge guitars and sing-along chorus.

"MONEY," THE DOORS From Uve at the Matrix, the band entertains itself in front of a small crowd in 1967, just weeks before becoming stars.

"NATURAL DISASTER," PLAIN WHITE T'S They called her out by name on "Hey There Delilah." Here the Chicago band gets a bit more cryptic

"I WANNA," ALL-AMERICAN REJECTS New producer Eric Valentine's touch shows up in cool arrangement of this cracking tune.

""UN COUP DE LANGUE," PROTOTYPES Slinky track from| French New Wavers has us hoping that girl is singing something naughty.

"SKYWAY," THE REPLACEMENTS From the Minneapolis reissued catalogue, this highlights Paul Westerberg's wistful side.

heroesA

"SHAME OF THE OTAKU," MC FRONTALOT This may be nerd core, but the bright production and Japanese female vocals transcend genre.

"NO DIRECTION," LONGWAVE Cascading guitars, brooding atmospherics, driving bass and drums. Think 112 on speed.

"PAST LIVES," THE BRONX Ingenious combination of Minor like hardcore with down-and-dirty barroom rock from sweaty new LP, /

"DO WHAT YOU DO," MUDVAYNE The first single from

The New Game: The melody lulls you before serious heft kicks in. fl

"BLUE MONDAY 02")," NEW ORDER From reissue of the band's catalogue, this DJ stalwart is the greatest 1980s single ever released.

| "THE BOYS," DRACONETTE Bonus track on US. version of CahreLP s a throbbing re-rub of Calvin Harris's lascivious electropop tune The Girls."

"GERALDINE," GLASVEGAS If Billy Bragg had collaborated wJ Big Country or Simple Minds, it might have sounded like this.

withfl

"EVERYTHING IS BORROWED," THE STREETS The sooth

ing strings and sentiment of the new LP's title track are still ringing in our head.

f'g "UNATTAINABLE," LITTLE JOY Pretty, mellow ditty by trio of

Fab from the Strokes, his girlfriend Binkr and Rodrigo Amarante.

"IN SILENCE," THURSDAY From new split album with Envy, this dark instrumental unfurls with a majestic roar.

"RED DRESS," TV ON THE RADIO We're still grooving to this ¦ Oingo Boingo-like horn-fueled freak funk from the Dear Science album. I

"CHAMPAGNE OF CHRISTMAS," THE FLESHTONES _

Raw-throated garage-rock ode to getting lubed at holiday parties. Cheers. ¦

»D FDfl TRACKS BY THE BRONX. THURSDAY. MMUIUIW AND DRACONETTE AT PmYBOY.COM/MAGAZlKC/aiS.