'Drinking in L.A.,' Bran Van 3000
From 1998's 'Glee'

I was drinkin' in L.A. the first time I heard this song -- iced tea, I think. And my first thought when it was playing was, "Hold the phone. This is going to be a smash." I was like, "This is the summer song to end all summer songs." The repetitive 3-note piano, the electric guitar background sample, the oooh waaa ooooh backing vocals, the humorous, self-deprecating rapping -- all were oh, so catchy. 'Drinking in L.A.' might as well have been screaming, "Get those windows down in the Corolla and put your arms out. Rock this jam on 11 as you roll down the boulevard. And for God's sake, soak in this beautiful summer sun." Then I realized that it wasn't summer yet.

'I Hope I Didn't Just Give Away the Ending,' New Radicals
From 1998's 'Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too'

New Radicals frontman Gregg Alexander disbanded the group just 10 months after the release of their first and only record, 'Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too,' after growing prematurely tired of kissing proverbial radio and retail ass and being labeled a one-hit wonder with the tune 'You Get What You Give.' Of course, the irony being that throwing in the towel at that point pretty much cemented that status.

Noah Kerner, a DJ turned marketer, and Gene Pressman, a former CEO of clothing retailer Barneys, wrote the book on cool -- literally: Their 'Chasing Cool' analyzes the people and products that have attained and maintained their cachet, and makes the case that cool is the outcome of a process, not a strategy that can be manufactured. The duo has selected five artists who each exemplify one of the many tenets of cool, who achieved it, without chasing it.

1. Public Enemy: Public Enemy is for sure the hip-hop group that took the biggest risks. They veered left when everyone was moving right. Always. It should be inspirational for anyone launching a brand or creative endeavor. The group started a revolution in hip-hop that not only converted fans but also scared the shit out of everybody who wasn't a fan. Imagine an album today titled 'Fear of a Black Planet.' At the end of the day, you sell product when you put your balls on the line. People should do it more often.

2. Yellowman: You need to remember where you come from and always stay true to your DNA. My [Kerner's] father used to play Yellowman on the car radio at full blast blast and while this was embarrassing, since my dad's a little Jewish man. In retrospect, it helped me become who I am today. So I guess my DNA is part albino reggae artist.

'Breathe,' Fabolous
From 2004's 'Real Talk'

The backbone of this song is as gritty as it is simple -- a dark drum beat and a Supertramp piano sample. What else do you need? The sparse instrumentation allows Fab to let loose some ridiculously entertaining lyrics: "Rollin' with my baby/Grippin' on a toy/That you won't find in KayBee," and my fave, "Every chick I bone/Can't leave the d*** alone/So I know it's one of them/Every time I flip my phone." The words might look a little awkward in the written form, but Fab has no problem making them flow. What the song lacks in content originality -- his MC greatness, how much cash he has and how much chicks dig him -- makes up in the delivery.

We stole the very vibey Sessions footage that our pals across the pond shot with KOL and encoded it for all y'all. Take a peek at their performance of 'On Call' below. It literally looks like it was shot in 1976, and dude's sweater is worth the price of admission alone.



The band performed five more songs from 'Because of the Times,' including 'Arizona,' 'McFearless,' 'Black Thumbnail,' 'My Party' and 'Charmer.' You can watch all of 'em and the interview here.

The other day, we were sitting around here at Spinner HQ, trying to make a little spot of tea. And every single time we tried, it came out tasting like shite. It was either too weak or too strong. Too much milk or too little.

We were about to give up hope when one of our interns (who we normally ignore) was like, "Hey most glorious bosses ever! I got it! Let's ask that dude from Aqualung how to make a cup of tea. He has an English-sounding accent and he named his band after a Jethro Tull song, for the love of God." We promptly told him to shut his unpaid mouth and sent him to Starbucks. No foam, minion!

But it got us thinking, that Aqualung guy probably does make a mean cup of tea. So we commissioned the dude that shot those sweet Toyota/Loch Ness commercials and sent a whole crew to shoot a tea-making demo with Matt from Aqualung. Six cameras, HD, the whole nine. I'm so into tea now that if my middle name wasn't Baggen, I would totally change my first name to Tea.

We've got so much juice that we got Feist to answer a few questions. Some make more sense than others, but they're all enjoyable. You're welcome.

1. What do you get artistically from being a solo act that you didn't from being in Broken Social Scene, and vice versa?

One is the family picnic, croquet games, lawn darts and relay races. The other is making pasta and eating it out of the pot while reading a book in your pajamas.

2. As a one-named singer, who are your favorite mono-monikered vocalists of the past and/or present?

The voices of Voltaire, Shakespeare, Hugo and Dickens have been quite audible to me.

The rest + Feist's latest video after the jump.