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Middle Class Rut Defy Death In ‘New Low’ Video

Rock duo joke to MTV News that surviving execution in clip parallels their ’15 years of playing music.’ By Aly Semigran, with reporting by Ade Mangum Middle Class Rut Photo: MTV News Middle Class Rut are not only a hard-rocking band — their no-holds-barred sound has drawn comparisons to Rage Against the Machine and Deftones — but also one determined to push the envelope thanks to an anxiety-inducing video for their single “New Low.” Just before being named MTV’s Push Artist of the Week , Middle Class Rut sat down with MTV News to discuss the video, a mini-movie of sorts which features bandmates Zack Lopez and Sean Stockham suffering various executions — ranging from a hanging to a firing squad — none of which actually result in death. “It’s funny, that song, when we wrote it, it was nothing like we’d ever done before,” Stockham explained of the single from their return-to-rock-roots debut album, No Name No Color. “Normally, it’s like, me hitting loud drums and [Lopez] hitting loud guitar and {both of] us screaming over it.” The track is “a total departure,” as Stockham put it, for the duo, and they wanted to stretch the limits with the video as well. “We didn’t want to do just a performance video. We wanted to do something different.” After recruiting a friend who “came up with something pretty cool,” Stockham and Lopez found something oddly familiar about the idea narrowly escaping death. Stockham explained, “I mean, the idea of going from one execution scenario to the next without actually ever dying? That sounded like our 15 years of playing music.” What do you think of Middle Class Rut’s video for “New Low”? Related Artists Middle Class Rut

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Middle Class Rut Defy Death In ‘New Low’ Video

Grammys Give Lady Gaga, Justin Bieber Immediate iTunes Bump

Cee Lo, Esperanza Spalding, Lady Antebellum and more also see post-show sales increases. By Gil Kaufman Lady Gaga performs at the Grammys on Sunday Photo: Kevin Winter/ Getty Images It didn’t take long for the big winners at Sunday night’s Grammy Awards to get an iTunes bump. Less than 24 hours after the show, the iTunes singles and albums charts were flooded with songs that were either performed on the show or which won awards during the program. At press time on Tuesday morning (February 15), the iTunes singles tally was topped, not surprisingly, by Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way,” which got its televised debut during the show, followed by Dr. Dre’s “I Need a Doctor,” which Eminem and Dre (making his first televised performance in nearly a decade) also performed on the show. Justin Bieber’s “Never Say Never” was at #3, followed by Cee Lo Green’s “F— You,” which was one of the most colorful and bizarre live spots in the three-and-a-half-hour show thanks to his outer-space Henson Puppet band and a cameo from a sultry Gwyneth Paltrow . Mumford & Sons also got some iTunes love after playing on the show with folk legend Bob Dylan, which helped their song “The Cave” hit #5, followed by the night’s big Grammy victors, Lady Antebellum , and their Song and Record of the Year winner, “Need You Now.” Although she didn’t perform “Firework” on the Grammys, Katy Perry’s anthem hung in at #7, ahead of Rihanna, who had two shots onstage at the Grammys. Her “S&M,” whose video is the subject of legal action, came in at #8, with Bruno Mars ‘ “Grenade” and non-Grammy performer Avril Lavigne’s “What the Hell” rounding out the top 10. Just outside the top 10, there were plenty more Grammy bumps to be found: Cee Lo’s censored “Forget You” (#11), Mumford & Sons’ “Little Lion Man” (#12), Muse’s “Uprising” (#20), Rihanna and Drake’s “What’s My Name?” (#21), Eminem’s “Love the Way You Lie” (#24) and Florence and the Machine’s “Dog Days Are Over” (#29). The iTunes album chart told a similar story, with Mumford’s Sigh No More holding on to the #1 slot, followed by Bieber’s Never Say Never remixes disc, Album of the Year winner the Arcade Fire’s The Suburbs was back in play at #3, proceeded by Grammy performers the Avett Brothers’ I and Love and You at #4, with Best New Artist Esperanza Spalding’s Chamber Music Society climbing to #6. Other Grammy album action included: Lady Antebellum’s Need You Now (#7), Bieber’s My World 2.0 (#8), Eminem’s Recovery (#9), Rihanna’s Loud (#10), Florence and the Machine’s Lungs (#11), Bieber’s My Worlds Acoustic (#12), the 2011 Grammy Nominees compilation (#14), as well as albums by the Black Keys (#17), Muse (#19), Bruno Mars (#21) and Spalding’s 2009 Esperanza release (#28). Did you do any post-Grammy downloading? Tell us what you’re listening to in the comments! For more Grammy Awards analysis, interviews, fashion and more, stick with MTV News! Related Videos 53rd Annual Grammy Awards Performances Related Photos The 2011 Grammy Awards Show Related Artists Lady Gaga Justin Bieber

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Grammys Give Lady Gaga, Justin Bieber Immediate iTunes Bump

Will Eminem Or Justin Bieber Rule The Grammys? Oddsmakers Weigh In

Ladbrokes and Bodog both like Em and Bieber’s chances on Sunday night. By James Montgomery Eminem Photo: Getty Images The 53rd annual Grammy Awards air Sunday from the Staples Center in Los Angeles, and while most will be tuning in to see if Eminem can capitalize on his industry-leading 10 nominations or catch Lady Gaga performing “Born This Way” for the first time, we’ll be watching to see how all our bets panned out. See, we love gambling nearly as much as we love the Grammys (and that’s a lot ), and, with the big show just a few days away, we figured it was time to place our bets in the Big Four categories: Album, Record and Song of the Year, plus Best New Artist. And to help insure our wagering success, we’ve once again gone to two of the best oddsmakers in the universe — Ladbrokes and Bodog — to get their take on music’s biggest night. And, strangely, their picks sort of mirrored our own opinions : They both see a big night for Eminem. But unlike us , they also see Justin Bieber hoisting the hardware. And, really, who are we to disagree? After all, they’re professionals. So here, for your last-minute wagering, are Ladbrokes’ and Bodog’s odds for the 2011 Grammy Awards. Ladbrokes “The odds reflect the sensational musical year we’ve had, which makes our jobs considerably harder. When it comes to arriving at our conclusions, personal tastes do come into play, but our main job is predicting public sentiment and where we think the money will go,” Ladbrokes’ Alex Donohue said. “Some of the categories look like they have nailed-on winners — namely Eminem and Jay Z and Alicia Keys — whereas others are much closer. The quality of the short list means we can’t rule anyone out, and we’d expect one or two surprises along the way.” Album of the Year

Justin Bieber Vs. Drake: Best New Artist Grammy Cheat Sheet

Florence and the Machine, Mumford & Sons and Esperanza Spalding are also in the running at Sunday’s show. By Jocelyn Vena Justin Bieber Photo: Johnny Nunez/ WireImage Every year, a new crop of up-and-comers duke it out for the Best New Artist prize at the Grammys . Before the big show kicks off Sunday night, get to know each of the nominees in the coveted category. Justin Bieber In 2010, Bieber presented at the Grammy Awards, and now he returns this year as a two-time nominee and performer . He released two albums last year; hit the road, selling out venues at every stop; and managed to not only become the teenage dream, but also find creditability in the world of hip-hop, thanks to collabos with MCs like Ludacris and Kanye West. Drake Drake quickly emerged in 2010 as the go-to MC for hip-hop heads and teenyboppers. He asked fans to Thank Me Later on his debut album, on which he rapped about girls, fame and himself. Drake showed that he had some street cred and a lot of heart on the album. Florence and the Machine Florence Welch emerged as rock newcomer of the year with her inescapable hit “Dog Days Are Over.” The flame-haired songstress belted out tunes that had fans worshipping at her musical temple, especially after her electric performance at the Video Music Awards . Her 2009 album, Lungs, proved to have some legs when “Dog Days Are Over” took Hollywood by storm and also top 40 stations. Mumford & Sons Their album Sigh No More (released in 2009) flew under the radar for some time, before their Grammy-nominated song “Little Lion Man” launched them into the mainstream last year. In addition to the Best New Artist nod, the tune is also up for Best Rock Song, thanks to the English group’s sparse, folky approach to making music. Esperanza Spalding Like Mumford & Sons, Spalding has been releasing music for years. In 2010, Prince announced she’d be one of the many artists hitting the road with him for a leg of the Welcome 2 America Tour. Now, she’s poised to reach even more audiences thanks to the Grammy nod. Who do you think will win Best New Artist on Sunday? Tell us in the comments! Don’t miss “Snooki & Sway: Live From the Grammys,” a red-carpet live stream kicking off Sunday at 6 p.m. ET on MTV.com. And stick with us all Grammy night for coverage of the red carpet, the show, the afterparties and beyond! Related Photos 2011 Grammy Performers 2011 Grammy Awards Snubs Related Artists Justin Bieber Drake

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Justin Bieber Vs. Drake: Best New Artist Grammy Cheat Sheet

Lawyer asks judge to block video of Conn. boy’s Uzi death from ex-police chief’s trial

BOSTON — Eight-year-old Christopher Bizilj — 4-foot-3 and 66 pounds — stepped up to the firing range to shoot an Uzi as his father and 11-year-old brother watched from a few feet away. As Christopher fired the 9mm micro submachine gun at a pumpkin, the weapon flipped backward and shot him in the head. He was pronounced dead at the hospital. Prosecutors brought manslaughter charges against the gun club where the machine gun shoot took place, two men who supplied the weapons and a small-town police chief who owns a company that sponsored the gun fair. On Monday, the first trial begins in what is expected to be a heart-wrenching recounting of Christopher's death on Oct. 26, 2008. Edward Fleury, the former police chief in the tiny western Massachusetts town of Pelham, has pleaded not guilty to involuntary manslaughter as well as four counts of furnishing a machine gun to a minor. Full Story: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40517427/40518258 added by: Radical_Centrist

Grammy Nominations Concert: Katy Perry And Justin Bieber Perform, Earn Nods

B.o.B, Bruno Mars and Train also hit the stage for the nominations special. By James Montgomery Katy Perry performs during the GRAMMY Nominations Concert Live!! in Los Angeles on Wednesday Photo: Kevin Winter/Getty Images Even though the Grammy Awards are still more than two months away, Eminem should probably start getting his acceptance speech ready. Or, more specifically, acceptance speeches. Em landed three huge nominations during Wednesday night’s (December 1) Grammy Nominations Concert at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles — Record and Song of the Year for his massive hit “Love the Way You Lie” and an Album of the Year nod for the equally big Recovery — making him the early favorite to take home the hardware February 13, when the Grammys will be handed out. Another early favorite is Cee Lo, whose “F— You” scored noms for both Record and Song of the Year and — of course — country juggernauts Lady Antebellum, who matched Eminem with nominations for Record, Song and Album of the Year. Both Eminem and Lady Antebellum were expected by most to pick up nominations in the so-called “big four” categories, but that doesn’t mean the Grammy nominations special was without its fair share of surprises. Katy Perry’s Teenage Dream picked up a nod for Best Album, along with Lady Gaga’s The Fame Monster and, in the night’s most unexpected twist, indie stalwarts the Arcade Fire and their disc The Suburbs. All of those categories figure to be close, but the Grammy for Best New Artist appears to be a race between two Canadian heartthrobs: Justin Bieber and Drake, who are the presumptive favorites in a field that also includes Florence and the Machine, Mumford & Sons and Esperanza Spalding. Bieber — who appeared live via satellite from London — couldn’t contain his excitement (or find the right words, for that matter) after learning he’d been nominated, telling the night’s host, LL Cool J, that “It feels amazing … I can’t believe I’m in this position! I don’t know what to say!” Of course, the nominations were just half of the show. In true Grammy tradition, the telecast also featured a host of high-profile performances. Perry kicked things off with a holiday-themed take on “California Gurls” (meaning she wore some ornaments in her hair) and was followed by Bruno Mars, who strummed his way through “Just the Way You Are,” backed by a trilling string section and a pianist. Train performed their massive “Hey, Soul Sister” — which, rather shockingly, was shut out of the Big Four — Bieber reappeared for an acoustic version of “My Favorite Girl,” and Mars teamed up with B.o.B to put a lilting spin on “Nothin’ on You,” which picked up a nomination for Record of the Year. Grammy nominees announced during Wednesday night’s telecast: Album of the Year

The 2011 Grammy Nominees Revealed … Possibly

Eminem, Jay-Z, Lady Gaga and more Grammy guesses, in Bigger Than the Sound. By James Montgomery Eminem and Jay-Z Photo: Kevin Mazur/ WireImage On Wednesday night (December 1), CBS will broadcast one of my favorite events of the year: the annual Grammy Nominations telecast/concert/thingy. Not only is it the unofficial kickoff of the self-congratulatory season, but it gives me a chance to wager on another largely arbitrary and oft insane awards show. So, you know, I’m pumped. After all, it’s not exactly news to readers of Bigger Than the Sound that I fancy myself quite the prognosticator, particularly when it comes to shows like the Grammys (or the VMAs ). This is partially because I consider myself an expert on these kinds of things, but also because I have a huge gambling problem. Sometimes, I even manage to hit the nail on the head, like I did with my predictions for last year’s Grammys (who among us can forget my triumphant 4-for-5 performance in Record of the Year?!?), though, more often than not, I fail miserably. Still, I keep trying. It seems I cannot turn down the opportunity to pick the nominees at crazy awards shows, and the 2011 Grammys (which will air Sunday, February 13) are perhaps the craziest in recent memory. After all, back in April, the Recording Academy — the folks behind the Grammys — decided to randomly extend the eligibility period to 13 months (from September 1, 2009, to September 30, 2010), which meant a whole lot of albums that I practically forgot about (Jay-Z’s The Blueprint 3, Muse’s The Resistance, John Mayer’s Battle Studies ) were all of a sudden back in play. All of that is a rather longwinded way of saying that these picks are nothing more than informed guesses, really — though, in keeping with the general WTF-ery of the Grammys, I suppose that makes them strangely perfect. In an attempt to save myself from total humiliation, I’ve decided to tackle only the so-called Big Four categories: Record, Album and Song of the Year, plus Best New Artist. So here, for your wagering pleasure (and mine) are my predictions for the 2011 Grammy nominations. Record of the Year This is the Grammy for song of the year (in olde-tyme speak — and hip-hop — songs are referred to as “records”), though they might as well call it the Group of Death, since over the past 13 months, so many massive artists released so many massive songs. Last year, Academy voters gave the award to the Kings of Leon’s “Use Somebody,” though this year, I have a feeling it could be a rapper taking home the hardware. My picks:

Body scanner saved 35,000 ‘naked’ images | ZDNet

This is very shocking stuff: At the heart of the controversy over “body scanners” is a promise: The images of our naked bodies will never be public. U.S. Marshals in a Florida Federal courthouse saved 35,000 images on their scanner. These are those images. A Gizmodo investigation has revealed 100 of the photographs saved by the Gen 2 millimeter wave scanner from Brijot Imaging Systems, Inc., obtained by a FOIA request after it was recently revealed that U.S. Marshals operating the machine in the Orlando, Florida courthouse had improperly-perhaps illegally-saved images of the scans of public servants and private citizens. So much for not being able to store, print, transmit or save the image. If you believe that, you’ll believe anything … idiots. (click on the link for the whole article and to access the in-text links) added by: Vierotchka

infoMania’s Ben Hoffman Interviews Baba Booey This Thursday!

Do you have a backlog of questions for “The Howard Stern Show” producer Baba Booey that you just haven't gotten to ask? Lucky for all of us, Ben Hoffman's covering everything possible with man himself this Thursday at 11pm. Watch infoMania to see Gary Patrick Dell'Abate talk about his new book, “The Call Me Baba Booey,” not getting paid as much as people assume, and what's next for Howard Stern. infoMania is a half-hour satirical news show that airs on Current TV. The show puts a comedic spin on the 24-hour chaos and information overload brought about by the constant bombardment of the media. Hosted by Conor Knighton and co-starring Brett Erlich, Erin Gibson, Ben Hoffman, Bryan Safi, Ellen Fox, and Sergio Cilli, the show airs on Thursdays at 11/10c on Current TV. Go to http://current.com/infomania for more, and make sure to check out our Facebook profile for special features at http://facebook.com/infomania . added by: Ben_Hoffman

TSA pats down a screaming toddler

You might think a 3-year-old would whiz through security. A child is non-threatening, wears slip-on shoes, and carries little luggage. Mandy Simon suffered through a TSA pat down. Mandy Simon suffered through a TSA pat down. Not the case for Mandy Simon who was passing through security with her dad at the airport in Chattanooga, Tenn. A TSA employee gave Mandy the pat down and she started screaming and kicking her legs. Her dad, Steve, happens to be a TV reporter and caught 17 seconds of the ordeal on his cell phone (watch below). Why was Mandy searched in the first place? She started crying when she was asked to put her teddy bear through the X-ray machine. This made it difficult for her to walk calmly through the metal detector and she set the machine off twice, which meant she “must be hand-searched.” more at link added by: Darevalo