We've acknowledged it before: Rock stars have superb senses of style. That must be why several of them have wanted to see us mimic their styles, while also turning a profit.

Sonic Youth frontwoman Kim Gordon is the latest rock lady to make a foray into fashion. She recently launched her line, Mirror/Dash, with friends/designers Melinda Wansbrough and Jeffrey Monteiro.

What's special about Mirror/Dash is that the items will be limited edition, so the first piece (an awesome military-inspired jacket) will only be available to 50 consumers via the website for a cool $415. … continue reading

Avril Lavigne is a threat to the youth of Malaysia. The 23-year-old pop singer is so smoking hot that members of a Malaysian Islamic opposition party do not want any of their impressionable youth seeing her in concert. Lavigne will have to shake her moneymaker in front of some other country’s young pliable minds because this opposition party isn’t having any of it. The Malaysian conservative group is convinced that her moves are “too sexy” for their teenagers, and they believe her August performance must be stopped.

The group appealed to the Malaysian Ministry of Culture, Arts, and Heritage to cancel the concert and the Ministry agreed. "It is not timely. It's not in the good spirit of our National Day. If we go ahead with the concert, it is contrary to what we are preparing for," said a senior official from the Ministry. Apparently, National Day is a countrywide day set aside to prepare against the evils of wristbands and tube socks.

Malaysia has a history of strict guidelines, which have led many female performers to cancel their shows. The Malaysian government’s rules require that all female performers wear conservative clothing that do not bear any “obscene” images. Additionally, all clothing must cover you from the chest to the knee. (Why am I getting flashbacks of "dress-down days" at my Catholic elementary school?) Beyonce moved her scheduled concert to Indonesia as a result of these mandates, and Christina Aguilera opted to not perform there at all. Gwen Stefani decided to perform, agreeing to cover up her trademark washboard stomach. She called her decision to wear a bit more clothing on stage “a major sacrifice” (and I will add, a terrible loss to that nation). … continue reading

Alanis Morissette’s angst-ridden “You Oughta Know” was the first hit for the Canadian singer/songwriter. It was also a big slap across the face to some idiot cad who had the nerve to break Alanis’s heart. Whatever this guy did to her, listeners thought, she got him back ten-fold by exposing the intimacies of their relationship, right down to the promises he made and broke and the kinky things the couple did in movie theaters.

Naturally, as soon as “You Oughta Know” hit airwaves, everyone in their right mind wondered who the song was about. Oh, how I wish you guys could have been there the first time I heard the rumor that Alanis penned “You Oughta Know” — the ultimate hell-hath-no-fury-like-a-woman-dumped tune — about comic actor Dave Coulier.

“Dave Coulier?” That dufus from Full House?” I cried. Looking back, I know wasn’t the right thing to say. Dave seems to be a fine man; both Ashley and Mary-Kate Olsen gravitated toward him when they were kids and they grew up levelheaded. I guess I expected the guy who devastated Alanis to be more, I don't know, heartbreaker-y. It was hard to imagine Uncle Joey lovin’ them and leavin’ them, but, what do I know of heterosexuality? And to my credit, the only famous Canadian people I know are lesbians. … continue reading

You know how when you find out that an artist you like also likes another artist you like, you have that kindred spirit moment? You know, that moment when you imagine all three of you becoming friends, hanging out, braiding each other’s hair and rewatching the log dance scene from Dirty Dancing ... What, no? That’s just me? Whatever, fine.

Well, I had just that kind of moment when I saw that Shirley Manson had joined Gwen Stefani onstage this weekend at the once and future No Doubt-ers Los Angeles show. They sang "Wonderful Life" together to what can only be properly defined as squeals of delight from the crowd. … continue reading