to leave behind even more front-and-center than on Get Rich or Die Tryin' ? It's hard to say, but 50's developed a questionable gun fetish here. With firearms plastered all over the liner notes, and throughout most of his lyrics--on "In My Hood" he retorts "…I don't go nowhere without my strap"--apparently his nouveau rich status has only accelerated the number of enemies he's accumulated. On "I'm Supposed to Die Tonight" he even awkwardly forecasts Notorious B.I.G.-like, Tupac-ian rap game death scenarios. "Piggy Bank," a virtual diss fest further cements his "How to Rob" persona as Nas and Fat Joe get the lyrical smack down; so does A-list actor Vivica Fox ("Get In My Car") for even daring to consider their rendezvous to be anything more than a fling. Despite be...  (less)

of melodic songs with unsettling lyrics; ominous music that suddenly becomes colorful and danceable; crushing guitars backing angelic vocals. Even their name is a contradiction. But there's a difference with this new record - their new found confidence and the energy of their much praised live shows has been captured with the renowned engineering help of Dave "Rave" Ogilvie.  (less)

on their next album for late 2007, Metropolis is re-releasing this out-of-print, self-released 2002 record, featuring early versions of the popular tracks "Happy Birthday", "Horror Show", "Video Kid", "The Dream", and five unavailable since the band's release went out of print.  (less)

From the start, they were as much a meta-band that mocked themselves and others for taking themselves too seriously, which had the effect of the band's music not being taken too seriously. Which is a shame (or was one until the release of the 2004 documentary Dig! ) because BJM's mischievous, recombinant retro sounds have always been at least as great as Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Dandy Warhols, and Beachwood Sparks. These five songs constitute a "mini album" rather than an EP, likely because a few are rather long. The tunes are all very strong. "God Is My Girlfriend" is a lot of fun in the way it mixes Byrds jangles, modal harmonies and spacey drum loops, while the Beatles-versus-Stones number "Never Become Emotionally Attached to Man, Woman, Be...  (less)

moody Pop. A.  (less)

the Guyana cult overlord who killed himself and his congregation with poisoned vats of Kool-Aid. Strung Out in Heaven , the band's eighth release since 1995, is a retrodelic janglefest of Altamontian proportion. Blending the smarmy, drug-addled sonics of late-'60s Stones with the chime of the Byrds, the hooks of the Animals, and the monochromatic drone of Velvet Underground within their swirl of 12-string guitars, farfisa organs, and jaded vocals, Brian Jonestown Massacre cull some of the most head-spinning moments of '60s rock into a single, unified expression. But unified is the last word you'd use to describe their interband chemistry. Since they formed, they have been through nearly 60 members, and their live shows are as li...  (less)