Watch this space

OK, so you're going to vote, right? But like any good music fan you want to get a little pumped up before the big event. What'll ya have? Maybe a little Springsteen as a tip of the hat to the Vote For Change tour or Europe's "The Final Countdown" (of course, you can hear that played to death at any college sporting event). What you pick is probably determined by your feeling about this election or maybe the last one. I'm thinking The Who's "Won't Get Fooled Again" if you're still fuming over 2000. A quick survey of our little hotbed of lefties at the office came up with "War Pigs" by Black Sabbath, "Liar"--The Meters' cover of the Three Dog Night hit, "Nothing Can Change the Shape of Things to Come" by Max Frost and the Stormtroopers and, naturally, The Beatles "Revolution"--slow version please. We put a little survey up on our Web site (www.indyweek.com) to let our readers chime in on their choices for music to vote by.

We'll publish as many responses as we can in the next issue. Happy voting.

Say it isn't so! (Part one)
Yep, it's true: Britney's on extended hiatus. She's taking a little time off to enjoy life, she says in a frank letter to her fans on her Web site. Why, she even seems, uh, cynical about it.

"My prerogative right now is to just chill & let all of the other overexposed blondes on the cover of Us Weekly (sic) be your entertainment... GOOD LUCK GIRLS!!"

She also admits to have woken up to the idea that she was--get this--used by the music industry.

"It's amazing what advisors will push you to do, even if it means taking a naive, young, blonde girl & putting her on the cover of every magazine."

Whew, glad she finally caught on.

Say it isn't so! (Part two)
Not content to let his 1968 rendition of "Lucy in the Sky (with Diamonds)" be his only claim to recording fame, William Shatner is out with a new record. The release, Has Been, is the result of a collaboration with Shatner buddy and former Isley Street resident Ben Folds and includes a duet with Henry Rollins. Shatner's lucky to have lived long enough to see this day. Sebastian Cabot, after all, blew him out of the water with his 1967 spoken word album of Bob Dylan songs. Would that he had lived long enough to be retrocool and record again.