Month: August 2024

The recent run of crowd-pleasing video game adaptations has come to an end. And then some.

Based on Gearbox Software’s video game series of the same name, Eli Roth’s new movie Borderlands is getting brutal reviews. “This sci-fi gobbler mixes inept directing, terrible writing, indifferent acting and gawdawful CGI into such stupefying boredom, it feels like nothing could top it for badness,” the Toronto Star critic Peter Howell wrote, while Rolling Stone‘s David Fear called it “not a movie for critics, as the saying goes. Nor is it suitable for consumption by most gamers, film lovers, or 99 percent of carbon-based life forms.”

Borderlands, which has an overqualified cast including Jack Black, Jamie Lee Curtis, Édgar Ramírez, Gina Gershon, Ariana Greenblatt, Florian Munteanu, and Lydia Tár, answers the question no one was asking: what if Guardians of the Galaxy was bad?

But is Borderlands the worst-reviewed movie of the year?

Bored-erlands, as Norm Macdonald would have called it, currently has a 7 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Among 2024 films with at least 50 reviews, that puts it lower than stinkers like Unfrosted (42 percent), Argylle (33 percent), The Exorcism (27 percent), Harold and the Purple Crayon (27 percent), The American Society of Magical Negroes (26 percent), Night Swim (20 percent), Atlas (19 percent), Tarot (18 percent), Rebel Moon: Part Two – The Scargiver (17 percent), and, yes, even Madame Web (11 percent). Borderlands has an equally abysmal Metacritic score of 29, but hey, that’s three points higher than Madame Web! Take a win where you can get it.

Still, it’s safe to call Borderlands the worst-reviewed movie of the year.

Shawn Mendes is back as the pop star just dropped two new songs, “Why Why Why” and “Isn’t That Enough.” The former song in particular might raise some eyebrows.

Towards the end of the track, Mendes sings (per Genius), “I thought I was about to be a father / Shook me to the core, I’m still a kid / Sometimes, I still cry out for my mother / Why, why, why? Why, why, why?”

The lyric seems to suggest a pregnancy scare, and while it’s not clear who Mendes is singing about, he was most famously in a relationship with Camila Cabello for years.

The song falls in line with the vulnerability Mendes teased when he announced the album, writing, “Music really can be medicine. 2 years ago I felt like I had absolutely no idea who I was. A year ago I couldn’t step into a studio without falling into complete panic. So to be here right now with 12 beautiful finished songs feels like such a gift. Honestly thank god for my friends and family. Life can be brutal but having a small group of people you deeply trust to walk you through makes it so much better. I have no idea how I would have made it through the last couple years let alone make an album without you.”

Listen to “Why Why Why” and “Isn’t That Enough” above.

Shawn is out 10/18 via Island Records. Find more information here.

Travis Scott has found himself in legal trouble again.

The rapper was arrested in Paris, France, early Friday morning following an incident involving a security guard and his bodyguard, NBC News reports.

“I can confirm that on August 9, 2024, police officers were called to the George V hotel and arrested the rapper nicknamed Travis Scott for assaulting a security guard,” the Paris prosecutor’s officer said in a statement. “The security guard had intervened to separate the rapper from his bodyguard. The Paris public prosecutor’s office has referred the case to the 1st district of the judicial police.”

Scott is in Paris for the 2024 Summer Olympics. Prior to the incident, he caught the US Olympic men’s basketball team stage a thrilling comeback to beat Serbia and advance to the gold-medal game against France.

Back in June, Scott was arrested in Miami on charges of disorderly intoxication and trespassing on property after a warning. “Mr. Scott was briefly detained due to a misunderstanding,” his lawyer Bradford Cohen said in a statement at the time. “There was absolutely no physical altercation involved, and we thank the authorities for working with us towards a swift and amicable resolution.” The disorderly intoxication charge has since been dismissed.

In July, the opening ceremony of the 2024 Olympics had some firepower, featuring performances from Lady Gaga, Celine Dion, and Gojira. Now, the event is nearing its end, as the Olympics are set to wrap up this Sunday, August 11.

There’s going to be a closing ceremony, too, and now we’re starting to get word about which musicians will be involved in that spectacle.

A new report from Variety that cites “multiple sources” indicates that Billie Eilish, Snoop Dogg, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers are set to perform. The performances will reportedly take place in Los Angeles (the host of the 2028 Olympics) and will be a combination of live and pre-taped performances.

Meanwhile, People also reports that HER will participate as well, by singing the United States National Anthem. Her performance will take place in Paris, live from Stade de France.

This follows reports that French bands Phoenix and Air would also perform during the closing ceremony, and there will apparently also be a large-scale stunt from Tom Cruise. Variety has since confirmed the reports of Phoenix and Air’s performances.

The 2024 Olympics Closing Ceremony is set to broadcast on NBC, and stream on Peacock, on August 11 at 2 p.m. ET (11 a.m. PT).

Steven and Ian open this week’s episode with a quick Politics-cast about Tim Walz, the VP candidate whose life resembles a middle-aged man’s version of a Hold Steady song. From there, they discuss a range of not-quite-indie topics — the retirement of Aerosmith from the road, the explosion of Chappell Roan, and whether John Mayer’s “Daughters” is the worst song ever written (as suggested by St. Vincent).

In the mailbag, a reader asks for advice on which upcoming show he should see, and the guys instead end up talking about the ethics of selling a birthday present bought by your wife.

In Recommendation Corner, Ian talks about the latest from Parannoul and Steven reps the new album by Oso Oso.

New episodes of Indiecast drop every Friday. Listen to Episode 201 here and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. You can submit questions for Steve and Ian at [email protected], and make sure to follow us on Instagram and X (formerly Twitter) for all the latest news. We also recently launched a visualizer for our favorite Indiecast moments. Check those out here.

There’s Trouble In Paradise, but Chloe X Halle fans are probably more than happy to hear it, as the new album from Chlöe, the older half of the sister act, finally reunites with her younger sibling Halle on the standout track, “Want Me.” A wistful track that finds the duo pondering one of life’s most relatable phenomena (“why is it the ones we don’t want that want us?”) over a downtempo beat composed of a simple guitar loop complimented by finger snaps.

“Want Me” represents the first time the sisters have released a record together since 2020, when they released their breakout sophomore album, Ungodly Hour, which launched them into the upper echelons of stardom. Since then, they’ve both embarked on successful, but disparate solo careers, with Chlöe delving into more grown-up material with her debut solo single, “Have Mercy,” in 2021, and eventually releasing her first solo album, In Pieces, last year.

Halle, meanwhile, took a seemingly more wholesome route after securing the lead role in Disney’s The Little Mermaid remake, then landing a vital role in the musical Color Purple film. Halle kicked off 2024 with the announcement of the birth of her baby Halo, and while she’s released a solo track of her own, she also decided to take a break from being in the public eye to regroup after admitting to having “severe” postpartum depression.

You can listen to “Want Me” above.

Trouble In Paradise is out now via Parkwood. You can find more info here.

LL Cool J wanders a rap bordello in the video for his newest single, “Proclivities,” which features Saweetie and is produced by Q-Tip. Over a ’80s New Wave-ish sample, LL raps about various kinks and fetishes — y’know, his usual, raunchy material — while Saweetie croons on the hook and references past LL hits like “Jingling Baby.” Naturally, there are plenty of scantily clad women scattered throughout the video, so maybe don’t watch on your work computer. If anyone was worried about LL’s previous proclamation that he had to “teach myself to rap again,” have no fear — his pen game sounds as sharp as ever (if anything, he sounds a lot like Nas, another Queens native).

“Proclivities” is set to appear on LL’s upcoming album, The FORCE (Frequencies Of Real Creative Energy), the rap pioneer’s first official studio album in over eleven years and first under Def Jam since 2008’s Exit 13. The album will be LL’s fourteenth studio album overall, and was executive-produced by fellow Queens native Q-Tip. He’s been working on the album for over a year, and in that time, he revealed that he actually shelved another album produced with 50 Cent. Prior to “Proclivities,” he also dropped the single “Passion.”

Watch LL Cool J’s video for “Proclivities” featuring Saweetie above.

The FORCE (Frequencies Of Real Creative Energy) is due on 9/6 via Def Jam Recordings / Virgin Music Group. You can find more info here.

Latto and Megan Thee Stallion have so far made for one heck of a tag team. The two Southern rappers first paired up on “Budget” from Megan Thee Stallion’s second album Traumazine, while Latto invited the Houston Hottie to join her on the remix of her own hit single, “Sunday Service,” alongside Flo Milli. They reunite on Latto’s new album, Sugar Honey Iced Tea, on the song “Squeeze,” making Meg the only artist to appear twice on the album and one of the five non-Atlanta artists to appear.

Their team-up is unsurprising; they’re both from the South, they’ve both got reputations for being girls’ girls within hip-hop, they pride themselves on their lyrical skills, and they rank pretty high on the list of Nicki Minaj’s least-favorite people (right under Cardi B, who is, presumably, a lot of the reason she doesn’t like them after both collaborated with her mortal enemy, a high crime in her mind). They’ve also both got a fondness for twerking at their shows and challenged each other to a friendly twerk-off during Megan’s recent tour. Meg and Latto expressed plenty of excitement about their latest collab on Twitter (never calling it “X”), with Meg also revealing her video for “Mamushi” is on the way.

You can listen to “Squeeze” above.

Sugar Honey Iced Tea is out now via RCA Records. You can find more info here.

The Killers are hitting the strip — metaphorically and literally — with their latest video, “Bright Lights.” The song is a singalong anthem in which they implore, “Turn the bright lights on,” while the video sees them taking the tables in a casino, betting on black at the roulette wheel (and potentially mixing up games, as a pair of cards also hit the table indicating blackjack).

Still, bright lights are a fitting theme for the song, which also celebrates the band’s upcoming Las Vegas residency at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace. The video gives fans an early glimpse of what to expect from the show, which commemorates the 20th anniversary of the group’s debut album, Hot Fuss, which they’ll play front-to-back for the first time ever. The band recently played Governors Ball festival in New York.

Unfortunately, if you want to see the show, and haven’t already gotten your tickets, you’ll have to try the secondary market, as all the shows have been sold out — although, who knows? Maybe the residency’s success will prompt an extension, as we’ve seen from shows from Adele, Mariah Carey, and Usher.

You can check out “Bright Lights” below, while the video will be available above at 10am ET/ 7am PT. You can also see the residency dates below.

08/14 @ The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas *SOLD OUT*
08/16 @ The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas *SOLD OUT*
08/17 @ The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas *SOLD OUT*
08/21 @ The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas *SOLD OUT*
08/23 @ The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas *SOLD OUT*
08/24 @ The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas *SOLD OUT*
08/28 @ The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas *SOLD OUT*
08/30 @ The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas *SOLD OUT*
08/31 @ The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas *SOLD OUT*
09/01 @ The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas *SOLD OUT*

Calvin Harris has been pretty busy for the past eight years. He’s released “One Kiss” with Dua Lipa, “Miracle” with Ellie Goulding, and “Desire” with Sam Smith, among others, and now, he’s compiled all those works into a new album, 96 Months. The album also features megahits like the Rihanna collab “This Is What You Came For” and “How Deep Is Your Love” with Disciples.

Harris teased the album with a short-lived post on Instagram, prompting speculation among fans about just what songs would make it onto the final tracklist. Spoiler alert: All the ones you’re thinking of are included. Longtime fans may consider this a return to form for the producer, who released two albums since getting “bored with EDM” after releasing Motion in 2014 and followed up with the poppier sounds of Funk Wav Bounces volumes one and two. After the second volume caught lukewarm reviews, though (undeservedly, I’d argue, but hey, we were hip-deep in a pandemic between the two editions and a lot of folks weren’t trying to hear Kashif-inspired smooth funk or nu-disco bops), it’s unsurprising that he’d want to remind fans that he’s got a deep bag of dance hits.

You can check out the tracklist for 96 Months below.

96 Months Tracklist

01. “Free” with Ellie Goulding
02. “How Deep Is Your Love” with Disciples
03. “This Is What You Came For” with Rihanna
04. “My Way”
05. “One Kiss” with Dua Lipa
06. “Promises” with Sam Smith
07. “Giant” with Rag’n’Bone Man
08. “I’m Not Alone” (2019 Edit)
09. “Miracle” with Ellie Goulding
10. “Desire” with Sam Smith
11. “I Can’t Wait (Hypnogogic)”
12. “Lovers In A Past Life” with Rag’n’Bone Man
13. “Nuh Ready Nuh Ready” with PartyNextDoor
14. “Body Moving” with Eliza Rose
15. “Live Without Your Love” with Steve Lacy
16. “Lonely” Feat. Riva Starr
17. “By Your Side” with Tom Grennan