Preschool of rock: Ralph’s World versus No Age

This weekend, we conducted an experiment on our child. But there's no reason to call Child Protective Services, unless you think noise rock is a toxic substance. We'd already had a kid's music outing planned to see our old fave Ralph's World at the Echoplex. When we found out that No Age would be playing on the Getty plaza the night before, we thought we'd see which band did a better job hitting a 4-year-old's joy button.

Buzz Bands: Little Ones sign to Chop Shop; album due in September

The Little Ones, who lost their U.S. record deal with EMI/Astralwerks early this year, have been signed to Chop Shop Records, the year-old imprint that was spun off Chop Shop Music, the music supervision company that has curated the soundtracks to television shows such as "The O.C.," "Grey's Anatomy," "Gossip Girl" and "Boston Public," among others. Look for the Little Ones' debut album, "Morning Tide," to finally be released in September -- more than two years after their "Sing Song" EP marked the L.A. outfit as a band to watch.

"They're growing and we're growing," singer-guitarist Ed Reyes says. "It's back to basics for us -- it's great to deal with a group of people who are enthusiastic about our music."

James Hunter makes ‘The Hard Way’ easy

On Tuesday night, James Hunter is bringing his unique variety of soul to the Troubadour. Unique, you may well question? Yes, unique.

Aerosmith’s Tyler went to rehab for pain meds

Aerosmith singer Steven Tyler now says that his recent stint in rehab was to help him through a developing addiction to pain and sleep medications he was taking following recent foot surgery.

"I just put the brakes on and checked into detox and just pulled the plug on all of it," Tyler told the Associated Press while promoting the new Guitar Hero 3: Aerosmith edition dedicated to his band's music.

Coachella in the City: Electric Daisy Carnival’s huge crowd Saturday stuns even promoters

So, how many dance music fans, exactly, descended upon downtown Los Angeles Saturday night for the Electric Daisy Carnival?

That all depends on whom you ask. Several local media reports estimated that the crowd of rave-happy teenagers was between 15,000 to 20,000 at L.A. Memorial Coliseum and the surrounding area, who were there to take in acts like Moby and Paul van Dyk.

But promoters for the event told Soundboard that the actual numbers were closer to 60,000. Take a look for yourself at this photo gallery.

Image, attitude and snarl at the Sunset Strip Music Fest

Last night the Sunset Strip Music Festival started off with a bang as Everclear, L.A. Guns, Soul Asylum and several other bands including Camper Van Beethoven rocked the House of Blues and the Whisky.

Tribune Co. sister Metromix was the co-sponsor of the brand-new three-night fest that continues tonight with the likes of Juliette Lewis, Hot Hot Heat, Slash and others playing at historic West Hollywood venues like the Roxy and the Viper Room, to name a few.

‘Night Flight’ flies again

Depending on which part of the country you grew up in, or what kind of cable system you had in the 1980s, you might remember a little counter-culture TV program called "Night Flight" that frequently showcased concert footage and early '80s music videos from the likes of Red Hot Chili Peppers, Duran Duran and Wendy O. Williams. The music was thematically packaged with the odd cartoon (early "Beavis and Butt-head" shorts) or full-length movies, such as France's animated "Fantastic Planet."

"Night Flight" aired on the fledgling USA Network from 1981 until 1988. Creator Stuart S. Shapiro and co-producer Stuart Samuels got their hands on archived tapes of the show just last year and are hoping to bring this iconic program back to its stoner glory.

Cops won’t quit with the Coup’s Boots Riley

Norfolk, Va. police sure picked a belated time to come to the realization that hip-hop artists occasionally use four-letter words. During his set with the funk band Galactic at the Bayou Boogaloo & Cajun Food Festival in Norfolk on June 21, the Bay Area-based rapper Boots Riley of the Coup came under fire for the obscure charge of "abusive language," under a law that the city hasn't invoked in 26 years, and never against a performer.

Nas goes “Fox” hunting with new track

Nas' latest offering, "Sly Fox," off of his anticipated disc ("Untitled," dropping July 15), is making the rounds on ye olde internets in a big way today (following leaks of songs such as "Black President" in weeks past). The scathing, guitar-driven song takes direct aim at Fox News and the entire Rupert Murdoch empire, with lyrics including: "Only Fox that I loved was the red one/only black man that Fox loved is in jail or a dead one."

When is a TV theme song a political weapon?

When it's the theme from "The Sopranos" used just coincidentally by the Washington state Democratic party in an ad against Republican gubernatorial candidate Dino Rossi. The ad is ostensibly a criticism of Foselli's close ties to a lobbying group, the Building Industry Assn. of Washington, and Rossi's own ads against Washington governor Chris Gregoire.