NOISE

"Half the time I think the best way to follow up is to do something different."

"Fans who know the Roots know that we switch our steeze up every album."

Empire Ballroom is a classy joint with all the makings of a sophisticated live-music venue. The stage, draped with the quintessential velvet curtain, is intimately poised with a shallow apron that lent an air of accessibility to Bad Religion's performance October 21. Empire's sound-engineering station is a professional setup, and though appropriately generous with the volume, no earplugs were required. Their light show was simple but effective and the massive chandelier above the show floor added a subtle ambience between sets. Empire is a grown-up Huntridge, with a classic theater vibe, age-appropriate amenities and that feeling of familiarity so rare on the Las Vegas club scene.

From Paul Geller's
www.pissedatweezer.com :

"Why am I so pissed at Weezer? Why should you be? What can we accomplish by being pissed? Who is listening?

"I am pissed at Weezer because they have betrayed me and you and all of their respective fans across the globe. This is not just a band that once wrote great songs and now panders to an unresponsive Offspring crowd. This is not the case of a band that has passed its prime. It is a case of confusion. They are simply confused about what sells records right now. ...

"The reason we should be pissed, as true Weezer fans, is because we think that they deserve success. We continue to buy their albums even though the content is not one-tenth the quality that it used to be. WE ARE THE FANS STILL SUPPORTING WEEZER. We are the ones who buy their records on vinyl. We are the ones that spin them at indie rock nights where crowds swept with nostalgia jump on each others' backs at the delight of taking their board to work while David Geffen takes his car. "

OPM has announced the November 11 debut of hip-hop's legendary DJ Kid Capri, the most recent celebrity DJ signed exclusively to a Vegas club. When in town, Capri will appear exclusively at least one Friday every other month. This is the fifth such contract signed by a nonresident, world-renowned DJ, the first being Donald Glaude at Ice, then DJs Mark Ronson, AM, and Grandmaster Flash at Pure Management Group, which runs Pure, Tangerine, Bikinis and Coyote Ugly. You could also make an argument for DJ P at MGM, too. Should the trend persist, expect a continued influx of top talent and nightclub choices decided no longer on the basis of who's mixing a killer cosmo, but who's mixing a killer set.

Jamiroquai


Dynamite (3 stars)

With his sixth studio album, Jay Kay stays true to his Stevie Wonder-like vocals and grab bag of '70s musical influences and early '80s synth stylings, even approaching house on "Electric Mistress." But it begs the question: Why settle for imitation when you can get the real thing at the iTunes Music Store?