When the Southern California stoner band Dios changed their name to Dios (Malos) back in 2004, it wasn't because they were looking something different. Nor did they mean any ill will towards god or to say that gods are bad, as the Spanish interpretation of that name may imply (technically "dios malos" translates into a singular "god" and a plural "bad"). In fact, they wouldn't have changed their name at all if it weren't for meddling metal man Ronnie James Dio, who had his lawyers send the band a cease and desist letter.

"I mean, if you think a band named themselves Dios because they were trying to pluralize Dio then you're a weird dude," guitarist/vocalist Joel Morales tells Spinner. "The lawyers said Dio's fans were being 'confused' by the band name, which kinda explains why they're Dio fans to begin with."

In an effort to bring live music to passengers awaiting flights, Jet Blue kicked off a concert series last Friday at their JFK International Aiport Terminal 5, nabbing New Jersey-bred musician Nicole Atkins for the first show. While Atkins recalls playing some odd gigs in her time -- from an Irish Pub that sold sushi to a private party held at a fine restaurant in Shreveport, La., where she and her band did all Black Sabbath covers -- but playing an airport ranked right up there as far as weird places she's done. "Sometimes I feel like we're Flight of the Conchords," she tells Spinner, laughing. "We played [New York's] Irving Plaza a couple weeks before and it was sold out, but I was way more nervous to do this. It takes you out of your element completely."

The stage setup is right past the security gates and isn't very big, forcing Atkins to pare down her band to just her and her drummer before they treated passengers to two 30-minute sets of both old and new material. "It's very futuristic," she says of the space. "The reverb was amazing."

"I've finally got 'round to a book but I can't remember anything." --Ozzy Osbourne

For those fans of his reality TV (and legendary stage) pursuits, it may come at no surprise that the 60-year-old rocker is a little fuzzy these days. He concluded, "It's gonna be the thinnest book in the world."


Download Black Sabbath Songs

Though the members of Novalima grew up together surrounded by the rich, if somewhat obscured, Afro-Peruvian music and culture, they had to scatter to far-flung locales in order to connect to that heritage and create the music showcased on the vibrant new album 'Coba Coba.' A decade ago, childhood friends Rafael Morales, Grimaldo Del Solar and Carlos Li Carrillo headed to London, Barcelona and Hong Kong, respectively. After their individual experiences all led them to new and profound connections with their roots, they and Ramon Perez Prieto, who'd remained in Lima, started sending MP3s of music they'd been working on around to one another for a truly global collaboration that has evolved now during the course of their three albums.

Frankly, that music couldn't have happened any other way, not just from their separate cultural epiphanies about the power of Peruvian music but with the sounds they each latched onto in their various settings -- dub, funk, electronica, salsa, Cuban and Middle Eastern styles among them. One could make the case that their dispersion has been essential to Novalima.

Well, so much for that. Now they're all back in Lima. And that's having new impact on the music.

Ozzy Osbourne's clan will return to TV on Fox this January for what's being billed as a variety series. But Ozzy's not a fan of the "V" word. "The word variety sticks in my throat," he tells Spinner. "It's not like we're Sonny and Cher or something."

Details on the show have been tight-lipped, but Kelly Osbourne says that viewers shouldn't expect a lot of big-name guests. "It's not so much a celebrity-based show -- it's more audience participation," she says. "We can call up anyone in my mom's phone book and you would have a great show. But we wanted it to be more than that."

While Jack Osbourne has said in the past that the family's hit MTV series "tarnished the public perception of my dad," Ozzy isn't worried about this venture. "It's work," he says. "I'm hoping for success, but it's good to have the family back again, working together."

Ozzy's Outrageous Rider

Best known for his role as the tightly wound Dwight Schrute on TV's 'The Office,' Rainn Wilson has become something of a cultural icon. (How many Schrute Bucks do you have?) And while he's held several smaller roles on both the big and small screen, including last year's runaway indie hit 'Juno' and HBO's cult series 'Six Feet Under,' he makes his starring debut as an overspandexed has-been drummer from the '80s in 'The Rocker.' Wilson took time out to catch up with Spinner and talk about his real-life role as a music enthusiast and his own rock-star tendencies.

"There were a lot of perks," he told us of his recent promotional tour, which had him making appearances at music festivals this past spring, including Sasquatch. "I got to interview the Who. I was terrible. But it was a dream come true," he admits, calling Pete Townshend an "icon" and maintaining that behind Bob Dylan, "there's no other person I wound rather meet." But he isn't just about the veterans. During our talk, he drops names like Cold War Kids, the National, Fleet Foxes, the Raconteurs, Kings of Leon and Wilco. "I love Wilco," he gushes. "I just think they will be remembered like the Byrds were, as just a great American rock band. But ask him for his favorite of all time, he's quick to answer "Radiohead."

Black Sabbath

Old Singer: Ozzy Osbourne
New Singers: Ronnie James Dio, Tony Martin, Ian Gillan, Glenn Hughes, Ray Gillen, David Donato

While none of them exploded – a fate that befell drummers for the fictional Spinal Tap – a half-dozen singers went down in flames trying to replace Ozzy, who split from the Sabs in 1979. Each had his advantages –- Dio looked like a hobbit, Martin sang like one – but Sabbath didn't rise from the catacombs until Ozzy returned to the fold 18 years later.