M.I.A. - Xxxo

Album: MAYA

After having a mega-hit with “Paper Planes” two years ago, she has been busy. She has given birth to her baby, worked on a song for Christina Aguilera’s new album, and recorded her third album, titled MAYA. Her multi-cultural background (growing up in Sri Lanka, India, England) shows in her music. The single, “Xxxo” is slightly more mainstream sounding than her past songs (she admits to it as well), but it stays in my head.

New Politics - Yeah Yeah Yeah

Album: New Politics

I was surprised to learn that these guys are from Denmark. But when I thought about it the first band that came to mind when I heard this song was The Hives (though they are from Sweden, not Denmark). New Politics is a new rock band that is currently touring around small clubs in the US. Right now, this song is available for a free mp3 download from Amazon MP3. Or you can get the live version of this song for free by going to their official homepage.

Scissor Sisters - Fire With Fire

Album: Night Work

Scissor Sisters are yet to experience the breakthrough success in the US, but this latest single from their third album, Night Work, has already enjoyed top 20 successes in multiple countries including UK and Japan. They are actually an American band.

Taio Cruz - Dynamite

Album: Rokstarr

Following his successful single, “Break Your Heart” featuring Ludacris, UK newcomer, Taio Cruz is back on US top 10 with “Dynamite.” I’m not quite sure why this song is a hit yet, but maybe I just need to listen to it some more. I’m not quite sure why the song, “Dirty Picture” featuring Ke$ha wasn’t selected as the second single in the US (it was in big hit in UK), but I would guess that should be coming out in near future. Although, Rokstarr is Taio’s debut album in the US, he has already released an album in UK titled, Departure, back in 2008.

Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers - I Should Have Known It

Album: Mojo

I haven’t really listened to Tom Petty, other than hearing their songs at bars on jukebox like, “Free Fallin’” and “Mary Jane’s Last Dance.” I remember seeing them perform half time at Super Bowl in 2008, but I didn’t think much of them then either. Their latest album, Mojo, is the first album in eight years, and debuted at #2 album chart. I’m digging their first single, “I Should Have Known It”. It has a rocking guitar solo.

Weezer - Represent

Album: Represent (Single)

no sample

Who knew that Weezer frontman, Rivers Cuomo was such a soccer fan. He claims that his father was Italian American and he grew up watching and playing soccer most of his life. Even during tours, he tries to squeeze in a game here and there. To show his appreciation for the sport, he recorded unofficial US soccer team anthem. It sounds quite a bit different from their usual recording with 80s anthem style keyboard (think “Final Countdown”). But it’s catchy and I kind of like it.

Fuji Rock Festival 2010 (Fri)

The first day of the Fuji Rock has a lot for everyone, starting with a Japanese singing sensation, Superfly. UK rockbands like Ash and The Cribs will also put on a show. One thing to watch out for is that Foo Fighter drummer Taylor Hawkins will be on the Field of Heaven stage with his side project band. Considering that Foo’s leader Dave Grohl will be performing as Them Crooked Vultures later in the night, there might be some Foo Fighters performance. Below are some of the bands I look forward to seeing. Bands that are not mentioned below, but are worth seeing on Friday are Miike Snow, Ash, !!!, The Cribs, Dirty Projectors, Mutemath and Rusko.

	Broken Bells - October Album: Broken Bells I’m surprised that Broken Bells are playing so early in the day (at 4:40pm on Red Marquee stage). They consist of The Shin’s lead singer James Mercer and Gnarls Barkley’s non-singing half, Danger Mouse. I really like their debut album which includes the single, “The High Road.”
	The XX - Crystalised Album: XX To be honest, their music kind of puts me to sleep. I’m not sure if their live show will be just as slow and boring, or they will bring something else to the stage. The XX comes from UK, and what makes them sound interesting is the male and female vocals. They will be on the Red Marquee stage from 6:20pm.
	Them Crooked Vultures - Mind Eraser, No Chaser Album: Them Crooked Vultures I’m surprised that they don’t get the headliner slot, but based on the record sales, Muse might have an upperhand over this super group. Them Crooked Vultures consists of Josh Homme (lead singer of Queens of the Stone Age), John Paul Jones (bassist of Led Zeppelin), and Dave Grohl (former drummer of Nirvana and current singer of Foo Fighters). Their self titled debut album was one of the best rock albums to come out last year. Check them out on the Green Stage from 7:20pm.
	Corinne Bailey Rae - Closer Album: The Sea After a hard rock performance of Them Crooked Vultures, checking out British singer, Corinne Bailey Rae at the White Stage might be a good idea. She is most famous for her hit single, “Put Your Records On” from 2006 from her debut album. Since then her husband had died, which caused delay on her follow up album. The second album was just recently released, including this jazz single, “Closer.”
	Broken Social Scene - World Sick Album: Forgiveness Rock Record Before you head out to Green Stage to check out Muse close the show, it might be good to check out Broken Social Scene at Red Marquee. They are sort of a supergroup from Canada, where members can range from a few to massive. Sometimes you might see Feist taking the vocal role, or Emily Haines of Metric singing. One thing is certain that their live shows are worth seeing. Catch them from 8:30.
	Muse - Resistance Album: The Resistance Muse has had quite a following in Japan and their native country of England for several years now. But now that they are an international superstar, they will take the stage to prove to everyone that they deserve this recognition. Speaking of which, last year, they were voted as the Best Live Act in the World Today from the British music magazine, Q.

Fuji Rock Festival 2010 (Sat)

The second day at Fuji Rock might seem like the least impressive lineup, but how often will you get to check out legendary band Roxy Music or Creedence man, John Fogerty perform his greatest hits. Saturday also features current “it” band such as MGMT as well as jazz-pop sensation Jamie Cullum. Other bands not mentioned below, and worth noting are 22-20s, Parachute and Kula Shaker.

	Third Eye Blind – Blinded (When I See You) Album: Out Of The Vein Really? Third Eye Blind will be performing at the White Stage in the afternoon? It’s been 13 years since their mega hit debut self-titled album which had people singing along to, “Semi-Charmed Life”, “How’s It Going to Be” and “Jumper.” Since then, they haven’t had much hits. Their latest effort, Ursa major from last year didn’t generate any top 40 hits. But if they are going to be playing a lot of their older hits, I’d like to see them at the White Stage.
	Jamie Cullum - Wheels Album: The Pursuit Jamie Cullum is a British singer songwriter who is classified as a jazz musician. But don’t think of him as a boring guy playing for only older folks. He taps his foot and plays cover songs like White Stripe’s “Sven Nation Army” or Kanye West’s “Gold Digger.” He should be a fun person to check out live.
	John Fogerty - The Old Man Down The Road Album: Centerfield Some of you may know him as the lead singer of Creedence Clearwater Revival from the 60s. Or some of you may know him as the guy who sings, “Centerfield.” But one thing to note is that he has so many hits from his band and solo career that his performance on the Green Stage right around the sunset time should be a treat for all of us.
	One Day As A Lion - Wild International Album: One Day As A Lion - EP I wondered what would happen to One Day As A Lion. They are a group formed by Rage Against the Machine vocalist, Zack de la Rocha, and Mars Volta’s drummer, Jon Theodore. They released an EP album in 2008, which had a decent rock hit with, “Wild International.” But they sort of disappeared after that. They should put on an exciting show on the White Stage from 8:20pm.
	Roxy Music - More Than This Album: Avalon To be honest, I don’t know much about a band called, Roxy Music, except for the song, “More Than This.” Which I seem to hear on numerous occasions (mostly commercials, maybe?) They are a British rock band, lead by Bryan Ferry, and at one point included Brian Eno, who is now famous for producing for U2 and Coldplay. They will be rocking on the Green Stage, but I will most likely just check them out a bit after One Day As A Lion show ends.
	Flogging Molly - If I Ever Leave This World Alive Album: Drunken Lullabies This song by the Irish-American rock band, Flogging Molly is a crowd favorite at their live shows. It was used in the 2007 romantic film called “PS I Love You”. They will be the closing act at the Red Marquee. I suggest you check them out just before MGMT.
	MGMT - The Handshake Album: Oracular Spectacular I still haven’t gotten myself to go get MGMT’s latest album (though I own the first two singles), but that may be because their debut album Oracular Spectacular was so spectacular that I can still listen to all of their songs. They have gotten some press that they are not that entertaining live, but I’ve always enjoyed their shows. Catch them close the White Stage from 10pm. It should be a trippy show in the dark.

Fuji Rock Festival 2010 (Sun)

There is so much good music to choose from, on the final night of three day festival. On Sunday, UK triphop veteral Massive Attack are headlining. There are a lot of good dance/electronic music to check out as well, such as Boom Boom Satellites, LCD Soundsystem, Scissor Sisters and Hot Chip. There are also selections of laid back indie rock bands like Vampire Weekend, Yeasayer and Foals. Here is a review of some bands worth checking out at Fuji Rock on August 1st.

	Matt & Kim - Lessons Learned Album: Grand Matt & Kim are so fun to see live. You can tell how much they enjoy playing music on their video to their hottest track to date, Daylight. Another single from the album, Grand, is “Lessons Learned”, which has Matt and Kim stripping to complete nude in middle of New York’s Times Square. I don’t know how they shot this video, but it’s worth checking out.
	Codeine Velvet Club - Vanity Kills Album: Codeine Velvet Club The Fratellis band leader Jon Fratelli recruited Lou Hickey for this side project, Codeine Velvet Club. Their songs has the approachable pop sound that The Fratellis was so good at creating, and having the female vocalist adds more character. But sometimes, it sounds like they might be trying too hard. For example this song sounds like Jon Fratelli trying to pull Amy Winehouse. I still enjoy their music and look forward to seeing them on the Red Marquee stage.
	Diane Birch - Rise Up Album: Bible Belt If you like easy going piano pop songs by Carole King or Sara Bareilles, chances are you will enjoy Diane Birch perform on Field of Heaven stage. As her father was a preacher, she has lived in various places during her childhood including Zimbabwe and Australia. The song, “Rise Up” was featured as a free download from iTunes.
	Thom Yorke - Atoms For Peace Album: The Eraser Radiohead front man Thom Yorke will be performing as Atoms For Peace at Fuji Rock. Atoms For Peace includes other musicians such as Flea of Chili Peppers, and they have already performed at Coachella this year. There is no recording of Atoms For Peace as a band, so I am forced to select Thom Yorke’s solo song titled the same.
	Air - Sexy Boy Album: Moon Safari French duo, Air takes its name from Amour, Imagination, Reve, which means Love, Imagination, Dream. They have been around since the mid 90s. “Sexy Boy” was used in the film, 10 Things I Hate About You, back in 1999. They are mostly popular in their native country France as well as UK and Australia. Catch them on Red Marquee stage from 8:30pm.
	Massive Attack - Live With Me /ft. Terry Callier Album: Collected British trip-hop act, Massive Attack also headlined Sasquatch festival this past May. Although they haven’t had a breakthrough huge hit in the US (with the exception of “Teardrop” from 1998), they have been appreciated around the world. They even released greatest hits album titled, Collected.
	Belle And Sebastian - Another Sunny Day Album: The Life Pursuit I don’t know much of their music, but I seem to read about them a lot on indie music magazines. Despite their name, they are not a two person band, but instead have seven members in their group. They are Scottish band are quite popular in UK. They haven’t released anything since their last album, The Life Pursuit in 2006, but rumor has it that they are almost finished with the new album, which they could test at Fuji Rock this year.