The Cranberries have commended Miley Cyrus for her recent cover of the band’s hit ‘Zombie’, saying they think late frontwoman Dolores O’Riordan would be “very impressed”. Cyrus performed a raucous rendition of the 1993 song from LA venue Whisky A Go Go for the virtual #SaveOurStages (#SOS) Fest, which was a fundraiser to preserve grassroots music venues affected by the coronavirus pandemic in the US. She also covered The Cure‘s classic ‘Boys Don’t Cry’ and closed out the set with recent single ‘Midnight Sky’. [embedded content] Advertisement The Cranberries took to Twitter earlier today (October 20) to approve of Cyrus’ version, sharing a link to the video. “We were delighted to hear of Miley Cyrus’ cover of Zombie at the Whisky a Go Go #SOSFEST in LA at the weekend,” they wrote. “It’s one of the finest covers of the song that we’ve heard. We think Dolores would be very impressed!” We were delighted to hear of Miley Cyrus’ cover of Zombie at the Whisky a Go Go #SOSFEST in LA at the weekend. It’s one of the finest covers of the song that we’ve heard. We think Dolores would be very impressed! Check it out here: https://t.co/ysFxUZLKnl — The […]

Patti Smith appeared today on Marc Maron’s WTF podcast promoting the paperback edition of her 2019 book The Year of the Monkey, her relationships with Chelsea hotel denizens like William S. Burroughs and her “cowboy writer” Sam Shepherd, and the time Allen Ginsberg tried to pick her up because he thought she was “a very pretty boy.” Check out the whole thing below. In September Smith performed her song “People Have the Power” virtually with Michael Stipe, Joan Baez, Cyndi Lauper, Angélique Kidjo, and more in coordination with Pathway to Paris. She was awarded the 2020 PEN Literary Service Award, given annually to an author who writes about “the human condition.”  Read Pitchfork’s 5-10-15-20 interview with Marc Maron.

GM’s advertising blitz for its revived Hummer vehicles—this time, as all-electric beasts—starts Tuesday evening at 8 p.m. ET on two popular shows on two TV networks, as the Detroit News first reported. Online versions of the launch ads will be available as well, and you can watch the new pickup revealed right here on our site. GM will start taking orders for the 2022 Hummer EV pickup coinciding with the ad takeover. If you’re more interested in the planned SUV version of the electric Hummer, you’ll have to wait until GM is ready to reveal more details on that model at some point in the future. General Motors wants all eyes on its electric Hummer this week. That’s why the automaker is taking over for a few moments during both the first game of baseball’s World Series and The Voice music show tomorrow night, October 20. As Phil Brook, GMC’s vice-president of marketing, was quoted by the Detroit News: “In terms of audience reach, we anticipate this will be one of the brand’s most ambitious stand-alone campaigns ever.” Tuesday’s launch advertising will include what GM is calling a short film—i.e., an ad—that GMC spokesman Chad Lyons said in a statement […]

Calling all Carrie Bradshaws: Manolos are dropping at NET-A-PORTER. Chances are, if you live and shop in New York, New Jersey or Connecticut, you’ll be well aware of NAP’s Premiere same-day delivery service, which as of Monday, October 19, will now include Manolo Blahnik shoes. After long last, the eponymous designer has finally joined the 100+ footwear brands at the retailer. The man himself couldn’t be happier: “NET-A-PORTER is the leader in luxury e-commerce and for over 20 years has partnered with some the world’s leading brands. Their buying team has an incredible eye for what women really want to wear when it comes to luxury fashion and accessories, and I’m thrilled that we are finally able to work together!” Of course, the feeling is mutual. NET-A-PORTER’s Global Buying Director, Elizabeth von der Goltz explains their take on the selection. “Signature classics will be showcased in a new, fresh way and their new seasonal styles are a true expression of the brand’s flawless craftsmanship and extensive creativity.” She calls out the ankle-chain embellished Fombra and the Cluntius shearling knee-high boots as some of her favorites we can look forward to in the coming weeks. The curated selection also includes timeless […]

In September, Alphabet’s DeepMind published a paper in the journal Physical Review Research detailing Fermionic Neural Network (FermiNet), a new neural network architecture that’s well-suited to modeling the quantum state of large collections of electrons. The FermiNet, which DeepMind claims is one of the first demonstrations of AI for computing atomic energy, is now available in open source on GitHub — and ostensibly remains one of the most accurate methods to date. In quantum systems, particles like electrons don’t have exact locations. Their positions are instead described by a probability cloud. Representing the state of a quantum system is challenging, because probabilities have to be assigned to possible configurations of electron positions. These are encoded in the wavefunction, which assigns a positive or negative number to every configuration of electrons; the wavefunction squared gives the probability of finding the system in that configuration. The space of possible configurations is enormous — represented as a grid with 100 points along each dimension, the number of electron configurations for the silicon atom would be larger than the number of atoms in the universe. Researchers at DeepMind believed that AI could help in this regard. They surmised that, given neural networks have historically […]

Ultimately, Webb says, the limiting factor on the road that morning wasn’t the car—its 5.9-L twin-turbo V8 was still good for at least another 20 mph, SSC engineers estimate—but the conditions. “We didn’t have six lanes on a test track to play with,” says Webb, who competes in multiple race series, including Le Mans and the World Endurance Championship, in addition to being a test and stunt driver. “This is two lanes, and if you get pushed over one lane you only have 6 inches before it’s game over. So it was me deciding to back out of the run. In ideal conditions, we could have gone faster.” The effort is the culmination of a 10-year development process for the $1.6 million Tuatara, which succeeds the company’s SSC Ultimate Aero. That car had set the record in 2007 for fastest production car, with a speed of 256.18 mph. SSC approached the design of the new car with the record in mind, Shelby says, and the team paid particular attention to the engine—developed in collaboration with Nelson Racing Engines—and aerodynamics, as you’d expect. They had to be more than just good enough to keep the car on a racetrack: The car […]

Being your very own boss has many advantages. It offers flexibility and freedom on all aspects of your work. If you’re considering starting a business, home improvement is one of the best choices in the construction industry, especially if you have the skills and knowledge. Here are some of the business ideas you may want to try. Flooring and Decking Business New buildings require flooring. Even existing ones need maintenance or replacement. For this reason, flooring businesses are among the most failproof home-based businesses you can start. Aside from the interior, many homeowners want to create beautiful outdoor spaces. Plastic decking supply business and other related businesses are also in-demand. Starting these lucrative types of business is relatively low-cost, only requiring the necessary tools and the skills and experience to work with decks and floors. General Repair and Renovation If you’re pretty handy with most tools, you can consider starting a general repair and renovation business. Depending on your skills, you can work on basic tasks such as painting, repairing walls, or fixing windows or doors. If you have the technical knowledge or licenses, you can expand to other specialized types of services, such as electric works or plumbing. In […]

Unfortunately, for many of us, when the weather gets colder and the nights get longer, our mood goes down and our weight goes up. Here’s the motivation you need to kick off your winter training and set a seasonal best. WHAT’S CAUSING YOUR WINTER WEIGHT GAIN Winter weight gain is a thing, but don’t worry – it’s not the 2kg pile-on that we read about in magazines. Actually, the average weight gain over the winter season is a mere 0.48kg. (1) The problem is, these extra pounds stick around. They don’t disappear during the summer months and, over time, can lead to obesity.(1, 2) The cause of winter weight gain is debated, but the evidence points at two key factors; lifestyle and biology. It’s no surprise that in the winter months we prefer to cuddle up inside and put away our running shoes. Add to that the heavy meals, chocolate and alcohol we consume during the holidays, and you have a recipe for weight gain. BIOLOGICAL ORIGINS OF WINTER WEIGHT GAIN The biological origins of our cold season kilos are much deeper: We humans possess an innate drive to gain weight as a way of surviving food scarcity. (3) Historically […]

Taylor Swift is auctioning off the guitar she recently played ‘Betty’ with at the Academy of Country Music Awards in an effort to raise funds for COVID-19 relief. The black 2018 Gibson acoustic guitar has been personally inscribed and dated by Swift, and is estimated to go for anywhere up to $40,000 USD. The guitar also comes with a case, strap and five personalised Taylor Swift guitar picks, including one commemorating her 2017 album ‘reputation’ and the other four commemorating her 2019 album ‘Lover’. Advertisement Swift’s guitar is being submitted for the forthcoming online auction, titled ‘NASHVILLE: An Auction To Benefit ACM Lifting Lives COVID-19 Response Fund’. Another new addition to the auction that arrives today is the semi-hollow Gibson guitar Bradley Cooper used alongside Lady Gaga during the rehearsals for and filming of 2018’s A Star Is Born. Both of these join the already announced item belonging to Dolly Parton – a Swarovski-crystal bedazzled four-string dulcimer, which the country music legend owned for 30 years. “Seeing my country music community suffer due to the pandemic has broken my heart,” Parton said in a press statement. “It was important to donate the dulcimer that was designed for my 50th Opry […]

Michael Shuffet didn’t waste any keystrokes when responding to a message about the automated email writer he’s building. He tapped out “Yes 45m” and clicked a button marked “Generate email.” His app, Compose.ai, drafted a courteous three-sentence reply with a link to schedule a 45-minute call. Shuffet checked it over and clicked Send. Compose is one of several automated writing tools built on striking new text-generation technology known as GPT-3, revealed in June by OpenAI, an artificial intelligence research institute. GPT-3 went viral this summer after people marveled at how it could fluently crank out memes, code, self-help blog posts, and Hemingway-style Harry Potter fanfic. WIRED and others showed that GPT-3 can also spout nonsense and hate, because its algorithms learned to generate text by digesting wide swaths of the internet. Now, some entrepreneurs are harnessing GPT-3 to perform real work, like drafting emails or marketing copy. “Billions of people write email,” says Shuffet, a cocreator of Compose. “It’s a space that has not had much innovation for years.” Google’s Gmail will suggest ways to complete sentences and supply short, peppy replies to some emails—”Thanks so much!” But it doesn’t draft fuller messages. Snazzy.ai, which launched to early testers last […]

President Donald Trump is holding a fundraiser event in Newport Beach, California today that’s being headlined by Mike Love’s current touring lineup of the Beach Boys, the Los Angeles Times reports. Brian Wilson and Al Jardine, who are unaffiliated with Love’s touring version of the band, shared a statement with Variety distancing themselves from the event.  “We have absolutely nothing to do with the Trump benefit today in Newport Beach. Zero,” Wilson and Jardine wrote. “We didn’t even know about it and were very surprised to read about it in the Los Angeles Times.” This is not the first time this year that Wilson has distanced himself from an event played by Love’s version of the Beach Boys. When the touring group performed at Reno, Nevada’s Safari Club International Convention. “This organization supports trophy hunting, which both [bandmate Al Jardine] and I are emphatically opposed to,” Wilson wrote. “We look forward to a night of great music in Reno and, as always, support freedom of thought and expression as a fundamental tenet of our rights as Americans,” Mike Love responded. Wilson and Jardine have not been members of the Beach Boys since their 50th anniversary tour in 2012. In the […]

There’s only one vehicle in the futuristic world of Cyberpunk 2077 based on a real car, and it’s a modified 1977 Porsche 930 Turbo. The car has been upgraded to fit in with the flying police cars and cybernetic enhancements of this universe, so it now has autonomous drive capabilities and a color scheme to match main character Johnny Silverhand (Keanu Reeves). Porsche built a one-off physical version of the digital car, and it’s on display at the Porsche Museum in Germany this week. There are game masters who take their role-playing seriously, and then there’s Porsche. To bring people into your game, you could spend time painting miniatures and landscape while coming up with the perfect villain to challenge your party. Or you could dive head-first into re-creating a car from the 1970s for a video game set in the 2070s that’s set to release in 2020. Porsche took the latter route. This content is imported from YouTube. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. In the ever-evolving Cyberpunk world, which stared as a tabletop RPG released in the 1980s and […]

Bob Biggs, who helped put Los Angeles punk on the map with his independent label Slash Records, has died, according to Deadline. He was 74. Biggs launched Slash Records in 1978, coming on to the Los Angeles punk zine Slash and developing the label out of the publication after its original founding. Along with Slash, Biggs’ label helped establish Los Angeles punk as a serious presence to national audiences. The label’s first release was a three-song 7-inch by the Germs titled Lexicon Devil. The label maintained a steady and even growing presence with its subsidiary Ruby Records in the 1980s. During the decade, Slash issued the Violent Femmes’ Hallowed Ground, X’s debut album Los Angeles, and three albums by Los Lobos. Slash issued Faith No More’s A Small Victory in 1992, plus several other records by BoDeans, L7, and Grant Lee Buffalo. After Warner subsidiary London Records bought the label in 1986, Biggs continued to lead the label until its closure in 2000. In 2003, having bought back the rights from former London Records head Roger Ames, Biggs relaunched Slash as a reissue label. Its later releases included 2005’s Permanent Record: The Very Best of the Violent Femmes. Biggs worked […]

Jeff Rosenstock has shared a 30-minute live-streamed performance on his YouTube channel. The performance was first streamed on October 16 and featured tracks including ‘Nikes (Alt)’, ‘Honeymoon Ashtray’ and ‘Pash Rash’. Watch the concert below: Advertisement [embedded content] Rosenstock surprise-released his fourth studio album ‘No Dream’ back in May. The record intended to have a regular promotional cycle behind it, but the ongoing pandemic put a halt to these plans. “We had big fun plans of releasing this record this summer, touring the world and seeing everyone again,” he said. “Frustratingly, like everyone in a band right now… we have no idea when we’re going to be able to play shows for you again.” Since the release of ‘No Dream’, Rosenstock has shared a handful of songs on his Bandcamp. The collection of tracks, titled ‘2020 DUMP’, included collaborations with Laura Stevenson and Skatune Network’s Jeremy Hunter, as well as a cover of Belle and Sebastian’s ‘Fox In The Snow’. The tracks were shared as a non-commercial release, with Rosenstock not expecting fans to spend any money on them. Advertisement “Please do not feel obliged to spend money on this music. I do not intend for it to be monetised,” […]

The US House of Representatives antitrust subcommittee released its findings last week after a year-and-a-half-long investigation of Big Tech companies Google, Apple, Facebook, and Amazon. Right at the beginning of the 400+ page report, the committee didn’t mince words about its findings: “To put it simply, companies that were once scrappy, underdog startups that challenged the status quo have become the kinds of monopolies we last saw in the era of oil barons and railroad tycoons.” Those of us in Silicon Valley who have worked up close with these firms were not surprised to find not only that these companies in particular had become de facto monopolies, but that they were using their monopoly powers to discourage competition and violate antitrust laws. In fact, I wrote just last month about how Apple has been abusing its monopolistic power in the App Store for many years. Apple’s multiple roles as the provider of the operating system, curator, and gatekeeper of the only allowed app store on the billions of devices it has sold, not to mention creator of its own applications, is an excellent example of how today’s “digital monopolies” are both similar to and different from the industrial monopolies of […]

Planning for a post-COVID-19 future and creating a robust enterprise strategy require both strategic scenario planning and the ability to recognize what scenario planners call “news from the future” — data points that tell you whether the world is trending in the direction of one or another of your imagined scenarios. As with any scatter plot, data points are all over the map, but when you gather enough of them, you can start to see the trend line emerge. Because there are often many factors pushing or pulling in different directions, it’s useful to think of trends as vectors — quantities that are described by both a magnitude and a direction, which may cancel, amplify, or redirect each other. New data points can also show whether vectors are accelerating or decelerating. As you see how trend vectors affect each other, or that new ones need to be added, you can continually update your scenarios. Sometimes a trend itself is obvious. Twitter, Facebook, Google, and Microsoft each announced a commitment to new work-from-home policies even after the pandemic. But how widespread will this be? To see if other companies are following in their footsteps, look for job listings from companies in […]

Sony finally revealed the PlayStation 5 UI, and Microsoft lifted the embargo for the Xbox Series X. So let’s talk about all of that on this week’s episode of the GamesBeat Decides podcast. In the news, GamesBeat editors Mike Minotti and Jeff Grubb talk about the latest NPD sales report. Also, Mike played five hours of Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla, and Jeff couldn’t stop playing Pikmin 3 Deluxe. Join us, won’t you? You can’t solo security COVID-19 game security report: Learn the latest attack trends in gaming. Access here

Manchester’s legendary Night And Day venue and Oxfordshire’s Truck Festival are among the 558 recipients of a share of £76million in the next wave of the Culture Recovery Fund. Earlier this week, the music industry celebrated over 1,000 venues, festivals and arts spaces being awarded Cultural Recovery Funding to survive until April and weather the storm of closures and complications brought on by the coronavirus pandemic. Following that handout of £257million, now the next round of recipients of the £1.57billion bailout fund have been revealed. Manchester’s Night And Cafe, which fought an artist-supported battle against closure back in 2014, will receive a £64,745 grant, enabling the venue to host local socially-distanced showcases from December until it can host full capacity shows again next year. Advertisement “We’re delighted to have received support from the Cultural Recovery Fund,” said Night And Day director Jennifer Smithson. “The grant enables us to plan for the future when we look forward to having live music back at the venue once again.” Meanwhile, Sheffield’s Yellow Arch Studios (where the likes of Arctic Monkeys, Pulp and Richard Hawley have recorded) will be getting £161,053, the capital’s Fighting Cocks Bar & Venue is due £163,732, The Dev Camden […]

If you’re the type who lives one quarter-mile at a time, this week’s Window Shop episode is definitely for you. Acceleration is king this week and episode 32’s challenge is simple: scour the internet for the fastest accelerating car for less than $10,000. All we’re concerned with is zero-to-60 and quarter-mile times. Quickest car wins. Since C/D tests over 300 cars per year, we relied on our test numbers to decide our armchair drag race. C/D contributor John Pearley Huffman turns up with a Chevrolet Camaro Z/28 and while his six-speed Camaro is in good condition and only has 50,000-or-so miles, his pick’s 5.2-second time to 60 is a lot slower than the others and the only car in the five-second range. Senior editor Joey Capparella a finds a 470-hp British sedan with a supercharged 5.0-liter V-8 that many have forgotten and Testing Director K.C Colwell presents a 500-hp V-8 supersedan with one of the worst single-clutch automated manual ever built and a reputation for devastating its owners with repair bills. The other drag-race contenders include a C5 Corvette and a twin-turbo Mercedes-Benz. If you watch all the way through, you’ll get to hear Huffman do his bizarre tough-guy character […]

Courtesy Toe Lace-Up Balenciaga balenciaga.com $1,290.00 If you were concerned that it’s been quiet on the ugly shoe front, Balenciaga is here to shake things up. As they do. The label debuted a collaboration with the Italian brand Vibram on its fall-winter runway back in February, but they’re finally hitting the market today to fulfill your toe-separation anxiety: introducing Balenciaga’s new toe shoes. Under the reign of designer Demna Gvasalia, Balenciaga has run the gamut on delivering fringe footwear styles. The French design house practically kickstarted the dad shoe trend in 2017 with their now-iconic Triple S sneakers, and since then has released high fashion hikers, and a cycling shoe that wouldn’t look unnatural on a Peloton. But it begs the question: how far is too far? The toe sneaker just might be the final frontier of forbidden footwear. Vibram is an innovative rubber sole label that introduced the world to its infamous Fivefingers toe shoes back in 2004. The style features five individual toe “pockets”—feel free to squirm—intended to replicate the feeling of walking barefoot. Vibram lent its flexible soles to three new Balenciaga styles, all made of recycled knit. There’s a lace-up sneaker with a suspended heel not […]