• Report: Rihanna’s Injuries “Horrific”
• Plant & Krauss, Lil Wayne Win Big at Grammys
• Live Nation, Ticketmaster Announce Merger
• Inside 2009’s “Scratch: The Ultimate DJ” Game
• Your Grammy Highlights: Hudson? Coldplay?
• What You Didn’t See at the Grammys
• Snoop Partners With MTV For LP, Talk Show
• Coheed and Cambria Talk “Melodic” Next LP
• Wolfmother Return With New Members
• News Ticker: Tool, Orlando Lopez

Top stories from the last three days:

• Green Day’s 21st Century Breakdown Due May
• Grammys: Backstage With Adele, McCartney
• KOL, Coldplay Celebrate at Afterparties
• U2’s “Boots” Video Returns to Web
• Blink-182 Make Reunion Official
• Office Space Cast Reunite for 10th Bday
• Readers’ Rock List: Super Bowl Halftime Acts
• TV on the Radio Rock SNL
• Whitney Houston Returns to the Stage
• McCartney & Grohl: The Grammy Bromance
• Grohl, Coldplay Cover Diamond at Tribute
• Axl Rose Talks Democracy, Slash in Interview
• Sean Penn: Story Behind the Story and Q&A
• Wolfgang “Is a Part of Van Halen”
• Clive Davis: Whitney Is Ready to Return
• Daniel Lanois on U2’s Horizon
• Joe Satriani “Roots” for Coldplay at Grammys
• Ticketmaster Apologies to Springsteen
• The Cramps’ Lux Interior Dead at 62
• Pearl Jam Head to Studio for ‘09 LP
• Phil Lesh Talks Obama Inaugural Gig
• Van Halen to Rock on With Roth
• The New Issue: Sean Penn
• Live Nation, Ticketmaster Close to Merger
• Breaking: Bishop Allen
• Phish, Bruce to Headline Bonnaroo 2009
• Yeah Yeah Yeahs Talk April’s It’s Blitz

Scroll down for full news stories, commentary and much more in Rock Daily.

Just hours after revealing that he has split from Interscope/Geffen, Snoop Dogg has mapped out his next conquest: A 360-like deal with MTV that includes a new album, television show and a Rock Band tie-in.

Snoop’s new album, Malice in Wonderland, the follow-up to last year’s Ego Trippin’, features “seemingly unlikely musical guests” and tracks produced by Dr. Dre and Pharrell. As part of his new MTV deal, a selection of songs from throughout his career will be added to Rock Band, marking the first time an overtly hip-hop artist has made the game’s rock-heavy track list.

The variety talk show, dubbed Dogg After Dark debuts Tuesday, February 17th. “Screw ya wigz on tight and tune in on Tuesday nights for the first step to the next level of Snoop D-O-double-G,” Snoop said in a joint statement with MTV. (more…)

Five months after jettisoning his band’s drummer and bassist, Wolfmother’s lone remaining member Andrew Stockdale made his return to the stage with three new additions backing him. Performing under the temporary band name White Feather, Stockdale and his new Wolfmother played a pair of shows this weekend, one at the Valley Studios in Brisbane and the other at Sydney’s Oxford Art Factory, according to ABC.au. The band’s sets included hits from Wolfmother’s only album (their 2005 self-titled debut) including “Woman” and “Joker & The Thief,” as well as a batch of new material.

In August 2008 drummer Myles Haskett and bassist Chris Ross left Wolfmother, citing personal and musical differences with Stockdale, who kept control of the Wolfmother moniker. Ross and Haskett have since focused on their side project, reportedly called Doom Buggy. “A few things have happened,” Stockdale told the Sydney crowd this weekend. “I have got to say it’s so great just to be able to play some music and share the music — do what we know, do what we love.” (more…)

Hip-hop-loving gamers who have looked on enviously as their rocker peers enjoyed Rock Band and Guitar Hero will soon get a game that fulfills their own music-making fantasies. This summer, Genius Products and Genco Interactive will release Scratch: The Ultimate DJ, a music-based video game made with hip-hop fans and wanna-be disc jockeys in mind.

To add credibility to their product, the companies recruited rap industry vet Quincy Jones III to help develop it. “Having been in music for 25 years and produced for like LL Cool J and Tupac and Ice Cube and all those guys, I thought there was a huge void in the gaming market place for something in the urban space,” Quincy Jones III, or QD3, told Rock Daily just days after debuting his company’s Lil Wayne documentary at Sundance. The gameplay will be similar to other major music titles, but players will be working on a turntable controller and drum pad.

Just like in real life, the DJ in Scratch has one job: Get people on the dance floor. The more feet on the floor, the more points you score and the more gigs you unlock. “You might start doing a block party. You have other venues and they’re all really unique venues that have amazing graphics,” QD3 says.

Of course a music-based game is only as good as its soundtrack, so Jones and his team at Genius grabbed tracks from Run-DMC, Eric B & Rakim, Kanye West and Gorillaz for the game’s playlist. (more…)

Every week Poison frontman Bret Michaels searches for a worthy life partner on Rock of Love Bus, while Rock Daily searches for ways to say “smoking hot” in our recaps. Here’s our take on episode five:

Sixty Minutes of Rockin’ Reality in Five Sentences: First of all, Rock of Love went on hiatus the week of the Super Bowl but aired Sunday night against the Grammys!? So much for honoring rock & roll, Bret. While the music industry celebrates its biggest night, Michaels brings his girls to a strip club in Missouri (since the women didn’t know where that is, chances are they missed his “Meet Me in St. Louis” reference) for a makeover challenge. But wait, there’s a catch! The three “frumpy” gals wind up joining the tour because Brets’ original crew are neither smoking, hot or hotties. (more…)

According to an official press release, the boards of Live Nation and Ticketmaster have agreed to terms to merge the two companies into one massive live-music giant called Live Nation Entertainment. Although Live Nation recently launched its own ticketing service and signed artists like Madonna and Jay-Z to huge contracts, and Ticketmaster joined forces with Irving Azoff’s Front Line Management (which oversees the careers of superstars like Guns n’ Roses and Christina Aguilera), both companies have seen their stock shares plummet and relationships with consumers sour in recent weeks. Rolling Stone reported on the possible merger last week; the two companies hope to complete it by the second half of 2009.

According to the press release, Live Nation and Ticketmaster will combine their ticketing, marketing, data centers and back-offices. “The companies will be combined in a tax-free, all-stock merger of equals with a combined enterprise value of approximately $2.5 billion,” it reads. “Under the agreement, Ticketmaster shareholders will receive 1.384 shares of Live Nation common stock for each share of Ticketmaster they own, subject to certain adjustments defined within the agreement. Live Nation and Ticketmaster shareholders will each own approximately 50 percent of the combined company.”

So how will this affect consumers? (more…)

Photo: Foley/FilmMagic

The last time Coheed and Cambria played Madison Square Garden, they shared a bill with Linkin Park. And the crowd was, well, sedated in comparison to what the band has encountered on their new tour — with Slipknot. The kids in the audience on this tour wear Jason masks. They death growl at each other in the halls. And frankly, they don’t all like Coheed. “There’s nights where we stick out like a sore thumb,” says frontman Claudio Sanchez, relaxing in his tour bus before their show at New York’s famous venue last week. One particularly challenging night, Sanchez recalls “a lot of middle fingers.”

The prog-rock band, which hails from Nyack, New York, have built a loyal following over the last 14 years that includes Allman Brother Warren Haynes, Foo Fighter Taylor Hawkins and Howard Stern’s Richard Christy, who on-air, admitted to peeing his pants during their May 2008 Bamboozle set so he wouldn’t have to miss “even one minute of the show.” It was the same day that Bret Michaels asked Coheed if they’d join him onstage for a collabo.

Now, as Coheed prepares to release their fifth concept album, Sanchez is brimming with details. (more…)

Photo: Lauren/WireImage

• Snoop Dogg’s tenure at Geffen/Interscope has come to an end. The Doggfather confirmed to All Hip-Hop that he and his label of 10 years have abruptly parted ways. “We are pushing the envelope on getting everything finalized,” Snoop said. “But I will not be releasing anymore projects under Interscope/Geffen.”

• Orlando “Cachaito” Lopez, the bassist and “heartbeat” of Cuba’s famed Buena Vista Social Club, passed away yesterday, February 9th, at the age of 76 following complications from prostate surgery. Lopez, the nephew of Israel “Cachao” Lopez, is the fourth Social Club member to die in recent years. “I will remember him as marvelous, both in his music and as a person,” Cuban musician Manuel Galban told the AP. “He was extraordinary, affable, a great bassist.”
• Some members of Tool are plotting the follow-up to 2006’s 10,000 Days. “It’s been coming along… great! I’m writing and [bassist] Justin [Chancellor]’s been writing,” Tool guitarist Adam Jones told Guitar World, “but Maynard [James Keenan] has been working on his wine.
• Boston’s Tom Scholz has sent a cease-and-desist letter to the administrator of Boston fan message board CoolTheEngines after boarders railed against Scholz’s treatment of late Boston singer Brad Delp, the Boston Globe reports. Scholz is seeking “substantial monetary damages” unless all references to himself and his wife are removed from the site. The administrator, George Gouldsmith, said he would take down the site this week.

Photo: Polk/FilmMgaic

More details have emerged about the severity of Rihanna’s wounds following the alleged Chris Brown battery incident Saturday night in Los Angeles. Police sources tell TMZ that when they arrived at the Hancock Park crime scene, they took photos of the singer’s injuries, which they called “horrific.” There were reportedly major contusions on both sides of Rihanna’s face, and her lip was split and nose was bloody. There was also “serious swelling and bruising,” as well as several bite marks on her arm and several fingers.

Rihanna reportedly refused treatment at the crime scene, but permitted the photos; she later sought medical attention at an L.A. hospital. The photos were described as “devastating proof of abuse.” TMZ also reports that Rihanna told police her assailant did the damage solely with his fists and did not have any weapons. MTV reports that the couple’s relationship had become strained in recent weeks as a result of the high-profile pressure and constant rumors about the pair concerning infidelity. (Check out photos of Rihanna and Chris Brown in the days and hours leading up to the incident in their Grammy weekend gallery.)

Rolling Stone has learned that on Friday, the day before the incident, Brown was picked up at 1:30 p.m. from his the London Hotel and went to the Staples Center for Grammy rehearsals. (more…)

Photo: Henze/WireImage

The Decemberists ready Hazards of Love with the first leg of their 2009 jaunt, Black Tide ebbs across the country before embarking on the Warped Tour and STS9 set up residencies in San Francisco and Athens, Georgia. Full dates for all three treks, after the jump. (more…)

Photo: Kravitz/FilmMagic

Last week, following Bruce Springsteen’s Super Bowl halftime performance, Rock Daily asked our readers who should take the stage during halftime of the Big Game in 2010. After more than 400 responses, the readers agreed that it was about time the Who got their due. Considering the game will be broadcast on CBS, home of those CSI shows that feature the Who as theme music, the pick makes perfect sense. Other acts making the list include the possible (Van Halen) to the impossible (Led Zeppelin) to the awesomely impossible (Guns n’ Roses.) Check out the full readers’ list below:

1. The Who
2. Pearl Jam
3. Guns n’ Roses
4. Van Halen
5. Dave Matthews Band
6. Foo Fighters
7. Red Hot Chili Peppers
8. AC/DC
9. Neil Young
10. Led Zeppelin (more…)

Photo: Bedder/Getty (Jewel), Nunez/Wireimage (Kim)

LiL Kim and Jewel are among the musicians that will go from making albums to ballroom dancing on the next season of ABC’s bizarre hit show Dancing With the Stars. Jewel is no stranger to reality television, having hosted Nashville Star and guest-judged on American Idol. The Queen Bee, who has not released an album since 2005’s The Naked Truth will compete against fellow artists like the Go-Go’s lead singer Belinda Carlisle and country singer Chuck Wicks, according to ESPN, of all sources. All three will battle for the honor of being the C-list celeb who can best pick up dancing, as decided by a home audience and a panel of judges.

Jewel will actually be competing against her husband, bull rider Ty Murray, on the show, which will also feature Olympian Shawn Johnson, actress Denise Richards, Blankman star David Alan Grier, Steve-O of Jackass fame, “computer guru” Steve Wozniak and Rock Daily’s personal favorite, New York Giants Hall of Fame linebacker, Lawrence “LT” Taylor. (more…)

Saturday Night Live continued to lend their stage to indie rockers this past weekend, giving TV on the Radio two songs at their 30 Rock studio. While the Fleet Foxes somehow managed to shine despite the murky acoustics of the SNL stage, TVOTR didn’t fare so well, delivering a jerky version of “Golden Age” that was plagued by loud horns and guitarist Kyp Malone’s strained voice (watch the video, above). For a superior version of the song, check out the band’s Dear Science, which also happened to be named Rolling Stone’s Best Album of 2008. The Bradley Cooper-hosted episode also featured a TVOTR performance of “Dancing Choose” and a skit where Kristen Wiig pretended to be Bjork.

Grizzly Bear’s Ed Droste put it best on his very active Twitter, writing, “Why is sound for bands on SNL always bad? Why? I love TVOTR, amazing guys, but that system didn’t do them justice!” (more…)

Photo: Twentieth Century Fox/Getty Images

“What does TPS stand for?” asked one of the audience members at last night’s 10th anniversary screening of the cult flick Office Space.

“I guess I can settle this once and for all,” Mike Judge, the movie’s writer and director, said of the dreaded report his protagonist, Peter Gibbons, failed to attach a cover sheet to, despite his eight bosses’ memo to do so. “When I was an engineer, it stood for Test Program Set. Isn’t that exciting?”

The screening was over and Judge was standing on the stage of the Paramount Theatre, in Austin, the city where the movie was filmed. He was participating in a Q&A with the cast, save for Ron Livingston, who played Gibbons, and Jennifer Aniston, who played Gibbons’ squeeze Joanna. Amid roars from Judge’s droll response, Stephen Root, who played mumbling stapler freak Milton, summoned his own breakdown of the acronym. “It stands for … totally pissed off,” Root said in the dopey voice of Milton, not quite approximating all three letters.

Everybody has filled out their own version of a TPS report. Everybody has been threatened by downsizing. Everybody has waged war against the copier machine. Everybody has had an annoying boss who sports two-tone button-downs. Everybody has wanted to set fire to their workplace, or has at least thought about it. That’s what makes Office Space so universally appealing. (more…)

Photo: Mazur/WireImage

Last night, Green Day presented the Album of the Year award to Plant & Krauss at the 51st Annual Grammy ceremony. This time next year, the punk trio’s role might be reversed — today word arrived that the Cali band’s forthcoming album, called 21st Century Breakdown according to their official Website, would be released in May. The band made no mention of the new disc before presenting the award.

Warner Music confirmed the title and is now accepting pre-orders for the album at the early-bird price of $11.99. According to AP magazine, the new LP will feature 16 songs spread across three Acts: Heroes and Cons, Charlatans and Saints and Horseshoes and Handgrenades. Among the reported song titles include the title track, “Viva La Gloria,” “Know Your Enemy” and “March of the Dogs.” Garbage’s Shirley Manson and then a series of YouTube videos revealed that Butch Vig (Nirvana’s Nevermind, Smashing Pumpkins’ Siamese Dream) would be producing. Rolling Stone will have a host of details on Billie Joe and Co.’s latest next week — we joined the band in their San Francisco studio for a sneak peak at 21st Century Breakdown, and the full report will run in the next issue. (more…)