Music

Finding fertile soil in the burgeoning punk scene of Bakersfield, California, Loser Life is a gritty, piss-and-vinegar-filled street-punk group led by singer/drummer Steve Koontz.

A glut of hip-hop heavyweights will pay tribute to the late Jam Master Jay (Jason Mizell) tonight at Hammerstein Ballroom in Manhattan. Q-Tip (A Tribe Called Quest), Raekwon (Wu-Tang Clan), Everlast (House of Pain), DJ Muggs (Cypress Hill), De La Soul, Snoop Dogg, Dead Prez, and former bandmate DMC will perform at the inaugural J.A.M. Awards.

Canadian hardcore outfit Cursed have put the finishing touches on their third full-length album. Not one to delve into complex album titles, the band will simply call their latest long-player III, following their previous efforts I (2003) and II (2005).

Now a quintet with four vocalists, three of whom are also guitarists, Haram explores the noisier, artier implications of post-hardcore on Drescher, their second release from northern Virginia’s Lovitt Records.

Tommy Shaw (shown left), guitarist and singer for ’70s arena rockers Styx, is going green on tour for 2007-2008 stints with his famous group as well as side project Shaw/Blades. Biodiesel and logistics will be provided by innovative company BidForGreen.

With Shelter from the Ash, guitarist Ben Chasny (of psychedelic rock band Comets on Fire) returns to the lonely recesses of his dry, desert-like contemplation. Chasny, who titles his solo project Six Organs of Admittance, opts for repetition and drone through virtuosic guitar picking.

After selling a staggering 163,000 tickets in 24 hours for their June 6 & 7 stand at London’s Wembley Stadium, Foo Fighters have set their sights on America. The band has confirmed the bulk of their first American tour in support of their new album Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace.

Continuing their tradition of putting out singles whenever they feel like it, Canadian punks Fucked Up are celebrating this holiday season by releasing a festive seven-inch record called David Christmas. According to the band, the B-side of the record features a “very special Christmas / Hanukkah / Kwanzaa song” in which the hardcore quintet collaborates with some unlikely characters.

My Downfall (Original Soundtrack) has been billed as Venetian Snares’ spiritual and stylistic successor to his landmark album Rossz csillag alatt született, which married strings and jungle breakbeats to an effect stronger than anything this side of Aphex Twin’s Richard D. James Album.