Time To Get Away: LCD Soundsystem Bid Farewell Tonight

After a decade of Daft Punk references, white suits and Muppet videos, James Murphy announced the dissolution of LCD Soundsystem a little over a month ago. And now, with ticket scalping drama and four celebratory, three-hour-long shows at Terminal 5 past, their alleged final show ever as a band will take place tonight at MSG. But even if you didn't get tickets, you can watch anexclusive stream of the whole show at Pitchfork starting at 9 p.m. In the meantime, you can check outthe collective mourning process going on across the internet. Pitchfork has an excellent, definitive look back at the complete LCD Soundsystem oeuvre, which comes to a tidy 46 studio tracks, spread over three official albums, one instrumental album, and various singles. It's especiallyappropriate considering thatLCD Soundsystem were arguably the Pitchfork band of the decade; after all, they ranked Sound of Silver #17 in the 2000s albums of the decade list, and named This Is Happening the second best album of 2010.

Florida pastor Terry Jones’s Koran burning has far-reaching effect


The charred Koran that inspired a deadly attack and violent protests across Afghanistan now sits in a plastic Home Depot bag in a storage room here in a run-down church. It has beenstashed atop a pile of cardboard boxes, next to a tattered pair of boxing gloves. It still smells of kerosene. http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/florida_pastor_terry_joness_koran_burning_has_far_reaching_effect/2011/04/02/AFpiFoQC_story.html?wprss=rss_homepage

NCAA Final Four: Kemba Walker Needs to Carry UConn Against Balanced Kentucky

NCAA Final Four Features Connecticut's Kemba Walker Against the Kentucky Wildcats As the Connecticut Huskies face off with thefavorite Kentucky Wildcats tonight in the Final Four, Kemba Walker's play should be the determining factor as to who will advance to the national championship game. But, then again, this is old news for Walker, who has put the Huskies on his back ever since the start of the Big East Tournament and carried them to one win shy of atitle opportunity. Against Bucknell in the Huskies' opening matchup in the NCAA Tournament, Walker scored 18 points and dished out 12 assists. Against Cincinnati, he put up 33 points. Against San Diego State, he dropped 36 points on 12-of-25 shooting. And against Arizona, he scored 20 points to go along with seven assists. It's beginning to make a lot of people wonder if Walker can indeed be stopped in March Madness, a guard who has risen in the eyes of NBA scouts based on his postseason heroics. But he may face his mostdaunting challenge tonight against the Wildcats, a team that just knocked out North Carolina and poses a fearsome duo in Brandon Knight and Terrence Jones, not to mention Josh Harrellson and the balance to roundit out. Walker will score his points, there's no doubting that, but he will also need to find his open teammates, particularly rising freshman Jeremy Lamb, who posted 24 points against San Diego State and 19 points against Arizona. The two have worked well together in the tournament and Lamb has clearly gained Walker's trust. But beyond that, Walker is going to have to find ways to split double teams and work for shots for himself if the Huskies are going to advance. Their success primarily lies in him, and is the reason they've gotten this far. Can the Wildcats contain Walker? I wouldn't be surprised at this point if they can't. For a look at Walker's developing NBA draft stock, check out James Evens' piece . Most recent updates: VCU Butler Score: Bulldogs Outlast Rams, Advance to National Championship Game Matt Howard: Can Butler Survive With Howard in Foul Trouble? Detroit Tigers: Are the Tigers In for Another Long Summer in the AL Central? http://m.bleacherreport.com/articles/652668-wayne-rooney-cricket-world-cup-final-four-and-saturdays-sports-news/entry/58507-ncaa-final-four-kemba-walker-needs-to-carry-uconn-against-balanced-kentucky

Ashley Boo Turns a Facebook Profile Into an Interactive Marketing Campaign


Ashley Boo’s Facebook profilemay look like any other page,but it isn’t long until Ashley jumps off the page and starts dancing, screaming or headbanging. That’s becauseBoo is actually an interactive Facebook app inspired by lastyear’s successful “Hunter Shoots a Bear” YouTube campaign. Ashley Boo is a video profile designed to promote Rounds , a video chat client for Facebook. The page, built in Flash, allows for a range of different user interactions, based on what you click or type. The key to the Ashley Boo campaign is the Facebook status update bar, which asks, “What would you like todo together?” Typing in something will trigger Ashleyto participate in one of 35 different activities, from shooting her friends to goingon a date. “We thought about what the best way to show the world what Rounds is all about, andalthough demos and screenshots are nice, with our product, they usually don’t fully transfer the full-blown experience,” Rounds CEO Dany Fishel told Mashable . “We believe the Ashley Boo campaign does it — it’s unique, it’s fun, it’s entertaining and it shows that you can do almost anything together with your friends on Rounds.” The interactive Facebook campaign is directly inspired by Hunter Shoots a Bear , a viral YouTube campaign by Tipp-Ex that gave users the option to wrestle, hug or chest bump a bear (among other things). So while the concept itself may not be original, Rounds has made sure to stock Ashley Boo’s page with plenty of Easter eggs. The company has published a partial list of Ashley’s different moves if you don’t want to discover them all on your own, but theit promises to give Ashley more to do over time. While we hope Rounds tones down the narrator constantly asking you to typein something (you can’t keep the tab open elsewhere because of it), Ashley (played by Maya Volberg) is definitelylikable, and the campaign caters to most imaginations (just type in “sex” or “undress” to see what I mean). Rounds has amassed 700,000users since its relaunch in August (it originally launchedas a web app called 6rounds in July 2009). However, if the success of “Hunter Shoots a Bear” is any indication, we bet Ashley Boo helps Rounds snag a bunch of new users in quick order.

Trendy Gay Hipster:"Jersey Shore" is this Summer's Must Gay Look!


It was a bittersweet moment in my life when I realized that MTV's Jersey Shore had completed its 3rd season. In fact, I became so depressed about it that I've been seriously lacking in the GTL department (Gym, Tanning, and Laundry). Seriously I’ve never looked sopale — it's gagging! Plus, my laundry is piling up so quickly! The guys of Jersey Shore What am I supposed to do with my Thursday nights now? Stimulate my brain by watching the History Channel? Gah! Give me Pauly D and a jar of pickles to snack on any day! So in honor of my love of the Shore , I wanted to share what is probably this year’s hottest fashion trend for gay men – the Guido Jersey Shore look! Guido apparel has been an underdog in the fashion industry for quite a few years, but thanks to reality television, the trend has caught on with the mainstream audience like anout-of-control wildfire — making it the must have lookfor every gay man’s summer wardrobe. via

Second wave of Opening Day starts with Roy Halladay and the Phillies


The second wave of Opening Day games begin today. There are nine home openers on tap, 11 games in all. CAPTION By David Goldman, AP The day begins with NationalLeague Cy Young winner Roy Halladay on the mound as he and the Philadelphia Phillies host the Houston Astros. It ends with American League Cy Young winner Felix Hernandez and Seattle Mariners ace against the Oakland Athletics. The nine openers (all times ET): Astros at Phillies, 1:05 p.m.; Pirates at Cubs, 2:20 ; White Sox at Indians, 3:05; Red Sox at Rangers, 4:05; Diamondbacks at Rockies, 4:10; Twins at Blue Jays, 7:07; Orioles at Rays, 7:10; Mets at Marlins, 7:10; and Mariners at Athletics, 10:05. Follow the afternoon action in the Daily Pitch, starting at 1:05 p.m. ET: PHILLIES-ASTROS BOX SCORE 3:41 p.m. ET: Howard singles up the middle on closer Brandon Lyon. Runners on first and second. 3:32 p.m. ET: The Phillies are down to their final three outs. With Jimmy Rollins on first, Ryan Howard can tie the game with one swing of the bat. 3:09 p.m. ET: The Phillies two-run seventh inning closes the lead to 4-2. 2:49 p.m. ET: Astros break it open in the seventh on a two-run triple by Michael Bourn. Bourn makes it 4-0, scoring on a sacrifice fly. 2:34 p.m. ET: The Astros get to Halladay and take a 1-0 lead after a Hunter Pence double and Bill Hall infield outin 6th inning. Halladay is pinch-hit for the bottom of the inning. His day is over. 2:24 p.m. ET : Bad news for Cardinals fans. Left fielder Matt Holliday to undergo an appendectomy procedure today after going 3-for-4 on opening day Thursday. 2:14 p.m. ET: The Astros havethree hits through 5 innings. Myers has two of them. 2:10 p.m. ET: On deck - the Cubs host the Pirates at Wrigley Field. Ryan Dempstervs. Kevin Correia. A $125 million payroll vs. $45 million. Guess which team has the smaller payroll? 2:09 p.m. ET: Ben Francisco, Jayson Werth's replacement in right field, gets fooled by afly ball in the wind and drops the ball. Astros' Humberto Quintero reaches second base. 2:05 p.m. ET: Myers is matching Halladay in a pitching duel. Only four hits allowed after four innings. 1:38 p.m. ET: Halladay's no-hitter through 2 2/3 inning was broken up by former Phillies pitcher Brett Myers. Score remains 0-0. 1:20 p.m. ET: c Of the 846 players on the 25-man opening day rosters, disabledor restricted list, 234 (27.7%)are foreign-born players. TheNew York Yankees have the most. 1:16 p.m. ET: A strong start for Halladay, a 1-2-3 first inning. 1:05 p.m. ET: The heart-and-soul of the Phillies, ChaseUtley, will sit out the opener and the next few weeks witha knee injury. 1:04 p.m. ET: For those who forgot, Halladay threw a perfect game last May and a no-hitter in the National League Division Series. 12:59 p.m., ET: Roy Halladay ready to make his ninth consecutive opening day start, second with the Phillies. It's the longest streak in the majors.

'Top Chef All-Stars' finale: We have a winner(and a really, really sad loser)


You know who wants to be "Top Chef?" These dudes. After several false alarms, the actual "Top Chef: All Stars" finale kicked off with Richard Blais and Mike Isabella indulging their self-congratulatory soliloquies about deserving to win. Then, they both proceeded to explain why they're the underdog. (Wait a minute... Let's get one thing clear. Richard Blais is not the an underdog. He went into this competition as the most likely to succeed.Most of us were probably surprised that Mike Isabella was even cast. Just saying!) To decide on which of the 15 fallen "All-Stars" would help out the final two in their restaurant challenge, each cooked a dish for a blind taste test that Mike and Richard would pick from to choose their sous chefs. That's right. They have to compete to prolong their embarrassment. Richard picks... Antonia, Spike and Angelo . Mike picks... Carla, Tiffani and Jamie (ha!). They plan their menus and come up with the restaurant names. Richard settles on"Tongue and Cheek" and Mike picks "Iz." Superficial advantage: Blais. Because this is a truly epic finale, we even get a live interlude from a Los Angeles hotel. Padma is yelling compliments at Antonia and Fabio . Really, why is she yelling? The split up in their respective kitchens, where the judges will visit in separate groups. Tongue & Cheek Poor Richard. Homeboy couldnot be putting more pressure on himself over this, but at least he's not cracking. He offers up a meal of raw hamachi, black cod, braised short rib and cornbread with foie gras ice cream -- the latter of which he retools for the second group of judges. (Padma and co. were not impressed.) The food looks great, and we're happy to see no big snafus, but the real winner here is Spike. Abandoning hissous-chef to gauge judge reactions, the editorialized game of telephone that playsout when he reports back to Richard is fantastic. Why wasn't he this funny earlier in the season? Iz "I don't know if anyone would have picked you getting here..." Tom tells Mike while he's cooking the most important meal of his life. Um, us neither, but we certainly wouldn't choose now to tell him. (Tom spends his time out of the kitchen asa freelance parade-rain-on-er.) As for the food, it starts out alittle weak (beat salad, nondescript fish), but it picks up with a pepperoni-glazed braised pork shoulder and a magical flan-esque thing. Thejudges eat it up. Food pun! Judges' table Before deliberating the meals course by course, the judges share some pretty spot on observation. Tom briefly crawls out of his garbage can on Sesame Street to pronounce it "the best food of any finale." The much sweeter Gail observes that she would choose Mike'srestaurant on a weeknight and Richard's restaurant on aweekend. Hmm... portentous. Since it's the finale to end all finales, Bravo flew out the duo's respective families to watch their shining/humiliating moment.Richard's wife isn't there -- because she's so freaking pregnant. But lucky her because she's having a baby and a winner. Richard wins, making every annoying elimination of the season suddenly worth the journey. This was his season to lose, and his ample tears make us forget every time we ever questioned that. We love you, Richard. Now drop a little of that $200k on a razor and nix the Jersey turnpike facial hair.

The Biggest Find Since the Dead Sea Scrolls


The Daily Mail has the story about an amazing find in a Jordanian cave. From the piece ... If the dating is verified, the books would be among the earliest Christian documents, predating the writings of St Paul. The prospect that they couldcontain contemporary accounts of the final years ofJesus’s life has excited scholars – although their enthusiasm is tempered by the fact that experts have previously been fooled by sophisticated fakes. David Elkington, a British scholar of ancient religious history and archeology, and one of the few to have examined the books, says they could be ‘the major discovery of Christian history’. ‘It is a breathtaking thought that we have held these objects that might have been held by the early saintsof the Church,’ he said.

Detroit Tigers must play capable defense


Outside of Austin Jackson, you're not going to find many Gold Glove caliber players on the Detroit Tigers. They'll have to play solid defense to help their pitchers. This week we will explore five keys for the Tigers as they make a run at the Central Division title. Those keys are staying healthy, playing better on the road, finding success against right-handed pitching, finding a starting pitcher to step up and join Justin Verlander andMax Scherzer as front line starters, and playing better defense than expected. Do teams need a stellar defense to win Major League Baseball games? Of course not. Does it help? Of course it can help. For the Tigers , defensive will definitely play an important role. Why's that? Pitchers who putthe ball in play will be inhabiting the mound for quite a few innings this year.Obviously, that's not the casewith Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer. But look at the strikeout rates of the next three in the rotation: Brad Penny had rates of 5.66 strikeouts per nine innings each of the past two years. Rick Porcello 's career rate is 4.67 strikeouts per nine innings. Phil Coke 's rate was a more palatable 7.49 per nine innings but was just 5.81 during spring training. Infield defense might be especially important to Penny and Porcello, both of whom have striven to keep the ball low in the zone and have the groundball rates to show for it: better than 50% groundball rates for each. On paper, there's reason to worry about the Tigers defense. No one makes any claims that Jhonny Peralta isa good fielder. Even his general manager points out his range is limited. First baseman Miguel Cabrera may destroy the baseball at the plate, but he is not known for his range in the field, either. At second base, the scouting report on Will Rhymes and Scott Sizemore peaks at"average." If Carlos Guillen returns to the position with his surgically repaired knee, below average is likely to be seen. That leaves Brandon Inge as the infield's lone plus infielder, and even he has quickly dropped in his abilities the past few years. Reason to worry? Maybe. I'm not sure I'd use the word"worry" quite yet though. A better word to choose might be "concerned." One should definitely be a bit concerned about the overall team defense this season. So an early theme to watch will be the team's defense. The defensive efficiency is one way to do that. Basically,it's a measure of how many balls in play are turned into outs. When Detroit went to the playoffs last, the DEF was.702, the best in the American League. In 2009, it was a division-leading .695. In 2008? A division-worst.685. How about 2010? The team finished in third place in the division, and the DEF was a middling .691. Defense isn't everything. Theidea in baseball isn't scoring the most runs, or allowing the least. It's run differential that helps you win ballgames. But putting a good defense on the field hashelped the team in the past, and putting a poor one on the field managed to bring a highly-hyped 2008 club back to earth. How the TIgers' defense actually plays out will go a long way to deciding if they are a true Central Division contender this year.
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