Robin Laananen
Pretty girls make Kelly happy.
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Folky-shmolky—that Beck has one nasty temper. Or so you would think if you saw the Flaming Lips' Wayne Coyne on Conan O'Brien the other night; he blamed his mean-looking black eye on a rumble with his current tourmate (they play Benaroya Hall Nov. 30). Only later did he admit to an NME reporter that it was actually just a Conan makeup artist embellishing his already bandaged eyeball—irritated by the swirling confetti used in their shows—"to stir up some controversy." Coyne says he and the Beckster are actually getting on like gangbusters, but he's already got ideas for more Lips tour collaborations. "If you run into David Bowie, tell him we're doing this with Beck and we want to go on tour with him. We'll play what we feel are his best songs, kick him into shape." . . . The ever-prolific Ryan Adams also wants to collaborate with limeys; he's approached Doves—whom he calls "the best"—to be his band at Abbey Road Studios while he records the follow-up to Love Is Hell, currently due for a February release. . . . A not-so-funny joke went down last week in San Francisco, where increasingly erratic hip-hop visionary Kool Keith failed to show up for a gig at Slim's; instead, his crew "warmed up" the crowd briefly before abruptly halting, muttering something about the bossman being arrested on Mission Street, and making off with the house receipts, leaving a stunned capacity crowd in their wake. According to a club rep, the boys—who had refused to go on stage without being paid in advance, contrary to common club M.O.—returned the money at around 2 a.m. after calls to the police, but not before staff spent several hours practically staving off a riot and writing out handmade tickets to other upcoming shows in order to soothe the savage beast that was a Keith-less crowd. . . . In other petty theft news, Stereo Total's packed show last Tuesday at Graceland was marred by one stickyfingered fan who made off with the band's treasured banner, which has accompanied them on tour for the last seven years. Hey jerk-off: Whatever it means to you, it means more to them, so give it back! No questions asked. . . . Pretty Girls Make Graves: Osbourne approved! Little birds tell us that PGMG's recent L.A. show was decorated by aspiring pop star and Girl of a Thousand Hairdos Kelly Osbourne dancing front and center. Apparently, she never misses a chance to see them. . . . Harsh. Insiders are saying that Arista Records have decided to re-audition all their acts and keep only the good ones. There will be showcases in which staff members use special appraisal forms, with only the high scorers keeping their contracts. . . . R.E.M. are currently recording in Vancouver—which we're guessing means Peter Buck is either wreaking terror in the skies once again, or merely throwing yogurt around a tour bus. . . . Death Cab for Cutie have amicably said so long, farewell to drummer Michael Schorr, making him the umpteenth kit-sitter in a near Spinal Tap-ish progression. . . . So where have Granddaddy been since 2000's excellent Sophtware Slump? April 2003 is their month, apparently, as the band launches both their own Internet record label, Sweat of the Alps (eww), and a Slump follow-up. Singer Jason Lytle says they've got at least two albums' worth of material and ideas for a more ambitious live show to boot, with Canadian auteur Matt Burke devising a set of mini-films based around the concept of Fantasia for the stage. Fancy. . . . They come and they go, no? At Onelinedrawing's recent Paradox show, singer Jonah Matranga informed the crowd that the much-loved all-ages venue would be closing in two months, though club reps won't confirm. Meanwhile, the space of many faces—e.g., Foxxes, Jack's Roadhouse, etc.—became the glorious Continental as of this past weekend, with an inaugural blowout featuring Tractor Sex Fatality, the Charming Snakes, the High Beams, and more for a paltry $3. We wish them the best of luck and commend them for having the foresight to also feature good greasy pizza on-site. . . . Does anybody do their own goddamn work anymore? First New Order has fans put together their box set, and Moby has them filming his next video; now Damon Gough, a.k.a. Badly Drawn Boy, says he'll record the song of whoever wins the competition to "find the golden fish," in order to mark the release of his new Have You Fed the Fish? album. There are, supposedly, five golden fishies hidden in CDs set out around the world, check www.xl-recordings.com for more info. . . . Don't cry, children—it's not really over between Drew Barrymore and Strokes drummer Fabrizzio Moretti; though the age-disparate pair renounced their love on the LAX tarmac right before Fabbie's band headed off for a British festival gig, they've been spotted once again smooching it up all over L.A. Ain't love grand?
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