spreading gossip

spreading gossip

Members of the band Gossip knew precisely when they hit the big time. It wasn’t when Sony agreed to put out their new album. Nor was it when Grammy-winner Rick Rubin showed up to produce it. And it wasn’t when they traded in their former dingy recording studios for a sleek one by the beach in California.

When was it exactly, then? “When we got asked to do ’The Simpsons’’ theme song,” says Brace Paine, the guitarist, bassist and music creator for the Portland, Ore.-based trio. He isn’t kidding: Gossip, known for its fusion of rock, punk and disco, jumped at the chance to contribute to a new version of the song that kicks off Bart and Co.’s 20th anniversary episode next year. “That’s the moment when you go, ’This is the big time, baby,”’ says Beth Ditto, the band’s irrepressible lead singer and lyricist.

Gossip will release its first full-length studio CD, “Music for Men,” this month.

‘this is it’ preview

A 12-minute clip of the new Michael Jackson movie “This Is It” shows a strong-voiced King of Pop enthusiastically practicing some of his biggest hits.

Jackson is shown warming up his vocals during a performance of “Human Nature.” That’s followed by Jackson running through the song in various outfits.

Later, he playfully dances with a woman as he sings “The Way You Make Me Feel,” touching her thigh and holding her waist.

Jackson died June 25 at 50. He was preparing for his comeback concerts in London at the time. “This Is It” — based on rehearsals for those concerts — will premiere globally on Tuesday and run for two weeks.

hot song

“American Idol” Kris Allen introduces his new album with a way-too-faithful version of Irish pop sensation The Script’s “Live Like We’re Dying” (19/Jive), which, in turn, feels like a Jason Mraz retread. It’s a nice enough song, but if it wasn’t enough to break The Script, why exactly would it be a home run for Allen? With all the top-notch songwriters and producers at his disposal, Allen should have landed something far better than this.

nailing your costume

When it comes to Halloween costumes, no detail should get left behind. Take your nails, for instance.

Popular nail company Dashing Diva has introduced special nails for this holiday season: Skull & Diamonds, Black French and French Hearts. The first feature white skulls on a black surface with a diamond-studded eye, while the Black French is a twist on a classic with black nails and a white tip. The French Hearts nails feature a standard French manicure with hearts and other accents.

Each kit has 28 self-adhesive nails. Find them for $10 each at Sephora.com.

‘tough love’ returns

Last season, VH1 had a hit with “Tough Love.” Throughout the course of the season, professional matchmakers Steve Ward and his mother JoAnn Ward transformed the lives of eight women. Almost 2 million viewers tuned in regularly to witness the struggles each woman went through to find a healthy, loving relationship. This fall, VH1 will bring back “Tough Love” for a second season. The latest installment will focus on a new group of unlucky-in-love women who are willing to do whatever it takes to find Mr. Right. Along the way, Steve will share his unique male perspective in attempt to reform each of their “destructive” dating habits. Catch the second season of “VH1 Tough Love” premiering at 9 p.m. Nov. 15.

facebook offering

Facebook is allowing friends to send each other 10-cent Web songs to stream online or 90-cent songs in the MP3 format that recipients can download as gifts from online retailer Lala.

The offering became available Thursday afternoon. It is starting with a limited group of Facebook users and will spread gradually.

The development bolsters Facebook’s existing gift offerings that include virtual birthday cakes and pints of beer, while putting Palo Alto startup Lala in front of millions of potential new customers. The service will only be available in the U.S.

“Instead of just selling an MP3, we’re selling an event for someone,” Lala co-founder Bill Nguyen told The Associated Press.

Purchases will use Facebook’s payment system, in which customers buy credits worth 10 cents each with a credit card.

Nine-credit song downloads will be of higher quality than one-credit streaming song gifts.

More than 8 million songs from all the major recording companies and independent labels will be available at launch.

Facebook, also based in Palo Alto, downplayed expectations for a big revenue increase from the new service. “Some revenue is generated from the Gift Shop, but advertising is still our core business and we are focused on growing that,” the company said in a statement.