Don't tell grandpa: Radiohead to perform on Grammys

Mark your calendars, kids, cuz Radiohead will play the Grammy Awards ceremony this year, making for an astonishing addition of talent to an otherwise bland lineup of live performances from the likes of Coldplay, Carrie Underwood, the Jonas Brothers, Kenny Chesney and Katy Perry (and the very unbland Lil Wayne and Jennifer Hudson, too). The Grammys, live from lalaland, will air Sunday, Feb. 8, sometime in the early evening on channel whatever. Along with potentially scoring in the Best Album and Best Alternative Album categories for In Rainbows, Radiohead's Best Rock Song nominee "House of Cards" is up against Bruce Springsteen, Coldplay, Death Cab for Cutie and Kings of Leon (who, with "Sex on Fire," have the most rocking song in the category in my semi-humble opinion, though you won't see me revolt if HOC takes the prize):

An eye on early '09 releases

Pitchfork did the legwork and compiled winter 2009 release dates for albums of note. Here's where my money's going: Jan. 6 Animal Collective: Merriweather Post Pavilion [Domino] [vinyl release] Jan. 20 John Frusciante: The Empyrean [Adrenaline Music] Thom Yorke: The Eraser Rmxs [XL] [Japanese release] Feb. 10 Dan Auerbach: Keep It Hid [Nonesuch] Feb. 17 Beirut/Realpeople: March of the Zapotec/Holland [Pompeii/ Ba Da Bing] [U.S. release] Morrissey: Years of Refusal [Attack/Lost Highway] [U.S. release] Telepathe: Dance Mother [IAMSOUND] March Grizzly Bear: TBA [Warp] April 21 Tortoise : TBA [Thrill Jockey] And whenever it comes out Yeah Yeah Yeahs: TBA [Interscope]

List time: Best ofs, albums and shows

The best five albums of 2008, according to my ears and brain: 1. Portishead "Third" 2. Deerhunter "Microcastle 3. Wolf Parade "At Mt. Zoomer" 4. Atlas Sound "Let the Blind Lead Those Who Can See But Cannot Feel" 5. Vampire Weekend "Vampire Weekend" And since I saw more live music than heard new albums, here's: The top 10 shows of 2008, according to my ears, brain and eyes: 1. Radiohead @ Hollywood Bowl Aug. 25 2. Radiohead @ Chula Vista, Aug. 27 3. Entrance Band @ Great American Music Hall, Nov. 23 4. Lanterns, Silian Rail, Japandi, Planets @ The Bike Kitchen, Jan. 11 5. Wolf Parade @ Fillmore, July 17 6. Worker Bee, By Sunlight, Silian Rail @ Gingerbread House, July 11 7. Entrance Band @ Henry Miller Library, May 10 8. Les Savy Fav, The Dodos @ Great American Music Hall, April 27 9. Entrance Band, Menomena, Broken Social Scene @ Sunset Junction Festival, Aug. 23 10. Holy Fuck, A Place to Bury Strangers, White Denim, Veil, Veil Vanish @ Bottom of the Hill, Feb, 29 10.1 Metallica @ Oracle Arena, Dec. 20

Listen up: Pitchork's 1-25 tracks of 2008

Pitchfork's staff ranked its top 100 tracks of 2008 and posted nearly all of the songs in their entirety. It's pretty cool -- you can go to the Pitchfork site and listen to 100 songs you may have missed this year. Now I'm not really considering this list as a "best of 2008" and judging it as such, but more using it as a reference to discover new bands. Today I checked out their #1-25. Here's what I thought: 1. Hercules and Love Affair - "Blind." Boring disco dance track that feels like going for a casual stroll through an antique British town, if you know what I mean. 2. Fleet Foxes - "White Winter Hymnal." Oh how much I'd love to pan this band sheerly for spite, as I'm kinda sick of hearing how great they are. But how great they are. 3. Hot Chip - "Ready For the Floor." Boring disco dance number. 4. Santogold - "L.E.S. Artistes." Sounds like something I'd hear at 24 Hour Fitness. And the vocals are all "Gwen Stefani." Enough said. 5. M83 - "Kim & Jessie." If I wanted to get back to 1985 I'd hop in a DeLorean. 6. Deerhunter - "Nothing Ever Happened." Ah, a fuzzy good marathon of weirdo rock. So on my Christmas list. 7. Cut Copy -"Hearts on Fire." - Another '80s disco dance number, blech. 8. Air France - "Collapsing on Your Doorstep." Boring. Disco. Dance. Number. 9. Portishead - "Machine Gun." Already kid-tested and mother-approved, though let me just say "The Rip" is more my jam. 10. Estelle - "American Boy." - So this is the song that's always playing when I walk into a Forever 21. 11. David Byrne and Brian Eno - "Strange Overtones." Totally refreshing and relevant from two legends. 12. Cut Copy - "Out There on The Ice." Get me out of the discoteque. Now. 13. Kanye West - "Flashing Lights." The 24 Hour Fitness Theme Song. Totally. 14. Lil Wayne - "A Milli." I just don't get it. 15. Amadou & Miriam - "Sabali." Africa has unofficially entered the space age. Sweet and stimulating. 16. The Mae Shi - "Run to Your Grave." Singalong children's song. Just not my style. 17. Wiley - "Wearing My Rolex." The first dancey track on the list I dig. 18. Women - "Black Rice." Two thums up! 19. Vivian Girls - "Where Do You Run To." Twee girl rock. Um, no. 20. The Juan Maclean - "Happy House." Now this is a track - 12 1/2 minutes And it's dance! 21. Hercules and Love Affair - "Hercules' Theme." B.D.D.N. 22. Santogold - "Lights Out." Still not sold on Santogold. 23. Beyonce - "Single Ladies." Surprisingly better than a lot of the stuff preceding it. 24. Gang Gang Dance - "House Jam." B.D.D.N. 25. The Hold Steady - "Constructive Summer." Another rock song in the top 25? Vocals not my cup of tea, though. As you can tell, I'm not too keen on electropop dance crap. But these are first impressions. To sum, the good in the top 25: Already knew about Fleet Foxes, Deerhunter, Portishead, David Byrne and Brian Eno Bands for further exploration: The Juan Maclean, Amadou & Miriam, Women, Wiley.

:)

Oh. Hell. Yes.