In a song that speaks to Los Angeles, birthday boy David Byrne reflects on the blight of nature as it overtakes the majesty of Earth's Pizza Huts, Dairy Queens, and honky-tonks in this 1988 faux-anti-green anthem (Nothing But) Flowers from the Talking Heads' final album Naked. Today's video lunch is a solo performance from 1992 that includes an important history lesson about Jurassic technology, "From the age of the dinosaurs, cars have run on gasoline. Where, where have they gone? Now, it's nothing but flowers." more ›

If you are already familiar with the music of Os Mutantes, the Brazilian Tropicalia band, you will be very pleased to know that Sérgio Dias Baptista has again unleashed his eclectic sensibilities in sound, instrumentation, music and themes to produce an album, Mutantes' first new music in 35 years, that fits like a velvet glove around the throat of today's cultural, political and economic necrophilia. And if you aren't, imagine an alternate universe in which Devendra Banhart, Frank Zappa and Tom Waits join Sérgio Mendes for a drink, then invite Sinead O'Connor and Lani Hall over to join them, and they decide to write music that will make everyone want to dance while they paint murals representing peace, love and justice on the government buildings. Something like that, anyway. more ›

With both David Letterman and Conan O'Brien sporting beards, pop-culture talking heads have been all a buzz of late about the return of the beard. The return of the beard. Which brings us to this blog post from Best Week Ever called, The 10 Most Inspiring Beards Of All Time. more ›

Post Xmas doldrums have hit the tube big time, here's what's worth watching tonight: more ›

Architecture In Helsinki harness a preternatural exuberance that no other band carries. Perhaps it's due, in large part, to the fact that they're headquartered in the land down under. I'd like to think so. Whichever the case may be, their band bio sums their presence up best: "Like a giant Voltron robot uniting at the sunset." I arrived at the Troubadour on Wednesday just in time for Nike "Dunk"-laden AIH to take stage. They were... more ›

What can I say? We're huge fans of Aussie collective Architecture In Helsinki. Mr. Sternberg gave you 5 reasons to go see them back in June and for good reason. AIH's funk-infused, pop jams make you feel downright good. Their latest album Places Like This is an addictive romp that draws comparisons to Talking Heads and Muppets On Crack. I don't care what Pitchfork has to say. Their music is adorable and inspires lighthearted shimmying.... more ›

"Yeah, I do think this one sounds grittier, but the songwriting on both are kind of dark. On the first album, some of the songs are immediately catchy, where some of the people don’t realize it’s dark and on the second one, the music can be a bit darker, immediately." more ›

This excellent mashup inspires essential questions that remain unanswered years later, including: -- What exactly are we fighting for? -- Will these talking heads ever shut up? -- Can you acknowledge Rosh Hashanah on-air without knowing when Ramadan is? -- What song is that killer sample from? -- Where is Osama bin Laden? -- What would Jean-Luc Picard do? and more.... Courtesy Guerrilla News Network.... more ›

Hilly Kristal, the founder of legendary New York punk rock club CBGBs, died yesterday of lung cancer. He was 75. Kristal had the good sense to put Blondie, Television, the Ramones and the Talking Heads on stage. He also had the good sense to keep his New York thing in New York, so Gothamist's remembrance seems appropriate. But we couldn't let this hallmark of punk pass without our own wave farewell. Despite the fact that... more ›

From the first beat of “Silver Lining”, Rilo Kiley announces a truly more adventurous sound – one that departs from country-tinged acoustics and embraces slick beats with a retro flair. Under the Blacklight, the first effort from the band since 2004, is Rilo Kiley’s unapologetic brush with the dance floor. On the first track, the deliriously catchy “Silver Lining”, Rilo Kiley boasts a sound somewhere between techno and soul. Over handclaps and an R&B... more ›

Zuma Dogg needs a dramatic and evocative musical score to accompany him as he travels back and forth to City Hall fighting injustice without the help of a cape or sidekick in stockings. Sadly, this is not that music. However, please to help yourself to some songs about the government and the city. Talking Heads - Don't Worry About The Government &righticonhover=0x333232&text=0x333232&slider=0xF2F2F2&track=0xFFFFFF&border=0xFFFFFF&loader=0x838383&soundFile=http://andysternberg.com/laist/08 Don't Worry About The Government.mp3"> The Modern Lovers - Government Center &righticonhover=0x333232&text=0x333232&slider=0xF2F2F2&track=0xFFFFFF&border=0xFFFFFF&loader=0x838383&soundFile=http://andysternberg.com/laist/12... more ›

5. The Melbourne, Australia-based sextet will perform a high-energy, boogie-inducing set featuring songs from their third LP, "Places Like This" (due August); so if you've seen them before, it's time to go back for more. AIH incorporates what's best described as Australian bush yelping reminiscent of early Midnight Oil while managing to sound at times like the B-52s, Gang of Four, Devo, and Talking Heads. Oh, and vocalist / multi-instrumentalist Kellie Sutherland has a most... more ›

They look like they just won the talent show, and they sound like something your grandmother would have liked. Old timey strings and brass arrangements mashed up with Talking Heads sensibilities mixed with a little something called originality and you begin to scratch the surface of the Arcade Fire. Playing an equal assortment of new faves from the recently-released Neon Bible to the old hits off 2004's Funeral, the 9-piece band of multi-instrumentalists from... more ›

That was the Talking Heads and the next 24 videos will either be love songs, romantic songs, sexy songs, or tunes you should download and get on your mix list tonight bitches. And although it's not in our nature to apologize for a post during the post, we apologize for the versions of the songs that we are presenting today. Viacom has decided to shoot itself in the foot by demanding that YouTube take... more ›

It’s all about promoting stars in the NBA — and two of the biggest collide at 12:30 (on ABC 7) when Kobe Bryant and his Lakers take on LeBron James and his Cavaliers. A match-up made in NBA executives’ dreams (and their dreams all involve ratings and marketing tie-ins). more ›

Wanna' know what's hot and fresh on our playlists? Look no further. Here's the 411 on what your favorite LA-centric blog is listening to. Whether it's sick and twisted or straight up embarrassing to mention -- it's all here: more ›

Remember when the Talking Heads had that sweet song "Nothing But Flowers" from their Naked album? Remember albums? There was a line in the idealistic song that went "Once there were parking lots / Now it's a peaceful oasis". If the LA City Council gets it together we might see peaceful oasises on top of parking lots as well as on top of city buildings. The ultimate LA win-win. L.A. Deputy City Engineer Deborah... more ›

Seattlest saw a house party get senselessly attacked with a shotgun and end in seven dead. A local senator is debated and their version of the big dig is investigated. To truly get to the bottom of it they interview the writer Jonathan Raban. more ›

If you see Jennifer Love Hewitt today, wish her a happy birthday; she turns 27. And she's not the only one celebrating. Charlotte Church, the little "voice of an angel" soprano, turns 20. Musician Mark Arm from Mudhoney turns 44 and Jerry Harrison of the Talking Heads will be (yikes) 57. This was Nina Simone's birthday too, but she's not around anymore for someone to put a little sugar in her bowl. more ›

Okay, so nobody has Showtime so you probably haven't seen Sleeper Cell, the premium channel's newest show burning through all it's episodes this month with the second round of episodes starting tonight. LAist had the show stored on it's tivo and blew through the first 4 hours this morning alternating between being completely enthralled and terrified by the characters and situations playing out on-screen. See, Michael Ealy plays a practicing American muslim FBI agent in deep cover with a terrorist cell run by Oded Fehr's Faris Al-Fark who also owns a security company and pretends to be Jewish. Now, that would all be fine and dandy and the potential for great television all on it's own except for one thing - the series is based in LA. more ›

LAist reader Craig showed up at the Arclight for the Talking Heads documentary Stop Making Sense on the wrong night (Tuesday) only to find it wasn't playing and was furious at us. Don't worry, Craig, even if you had shown up on Wednesday, you wouldn't have gotten in (update: Craig did better than we did and made it in). Tickets for the Jonathan Demme directed concert film have been mostly sold out for the last two weeks. LAist couldn't get in either so we decided to do the next best thing: watch it at home with friends. more ›

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In support of the day that is—at least in some circles—the highlight of the week, check below for new releases in music, film and television. more ›