"Kidstuff" - Tenderhooks
This song wallops me with its late-'70s new wave vibe but I can't put my finger exactly on why. Put early Elvis Costello, the 1977-79 Kinks, Television, and the Undertones in a blender and this song maybe pours out, with its ringing guitar line, observational wordplay, and solid pop melody.

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"Trouble" - Over the Rhine
As the noisy part of today's music scene is dominated almost fascistically by those obsessed with what is bright and shiny and new, there fortunately remain many musicians to listen to who are not simply brand new, thank goodness. To think of the depth and richness we would lose if we really were only listening to the latest MySpace and Pitchfork sensations--but no worries, we're not, and never will. Because some of the best new bands will stick around and hone their art in fruitful and unanticipated ways over the years, just as some of today's most wonderful not-new-anymore bands themselves once gleamed with the newcomer's glow. Long-time Fingertips favorites Over the Rhine are a categoriocal example of how impressive musicians can become as they have the chance to mature and write and perform together.

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"Move = Move" - Wheat
And this one oozes the ramshackle charm of 1967-or-so Rolling Stones (the melody to my ears partially echoes "Sing This All Together Now"), without any of the silly bad-boy posturing. And yet "Move = Move" likewise feels rooted right here in the indie-rock-saturated '00s, with its sculpted sound and stray electronic lagniappes. There's a real looseness on display that I find totally wonderful in such an otherwise brisk and focused tune, epitomized by the almost haphazard way the harmony vocals weave in and out of both awareness and alignment.

We have been testing the iPhone for two weeks, in multiple usage scenarios, in cities across the country. Our verdict is that, despite some flaws and feature omissions, the iPhone is, on balance, a beautiful and breakthrough handheld computer. Its software, especially, sets a new bar for the smart-phone industry, and its clever finger-touch interface, which dispenses with a stylus and most buttons, works well, though it sometimes adds steps to common functions.

The Apple phone combines intelligent voice calling, and a full-blown iPod, with a beautiful new interface for music and video playback. It offers the best Web browser we have seen on a smart phone, and robust email software. And it synchronizes easily and well with both Windows and Macintosh computers using Apple’s iTunes software.

It has the largest and highest-resolution screen of any smart phone we’ve seen, and the most internal memory by far. Yet it is one of the thinnest smart phones available and offers impressive battery life, better than its key competitors claim.

The phone is thinner than many smart phones.

It feels solid and comfortable in the hand and the way it displays photos, videos and Web pages on its gorgeous screen makes other smart phones look primitive.

For consumers who can afford one ($499 or $599, plus the cost of a two-year wireless plan with exclusive carrier AT&T), iPhone is by far the most chic cellphone I've seen. And there are terrific reasons — besides announcing to neighbors how cool you are — to try to nab the device when it finally goes on sale at Apple and AT&T stores at 6 p.m. local time Friday across the country.

For starters, iPhone is a breeze to set up and fun to use, evident from the moment you slide your finger across the screen to unlock it. It's a wonderful widescreen iPod and fabulous picture viewer. Smart sensors change the orientation of the display from portrait to landscape mode, based on how you hold the device and what you are doing at the time. Once you get the hang of its "multitouch" interface — give it a few days — you won't have to schlep a separate iPod and cellphone in your pocket.

Internet radio DJs are replacing their eclectic playlists with a "Day of Silence" today, a protest against new royalty rates they say could decimate the fledgling digital broadcasting industry.

Earlier this year, a congressionally appointed three-judge panel drastically increased the royalty fees the stations must pay for music streamed over the Internet. Critics say the rates, which would be retroactive to 2006, will make it impossible for small stations, public broadcasters and specialty startups that cater to the industry to stay in business. The new rates are scheduled to go into effect July 15.

"For us, the royalties went from $20,000 to $600,000 per year," said Rusty Hodge, whose 11-channel SomaFM Web site was launched in 2000 and operates in San Francisco's Mission District. "That's about three times the total income we made in 2006. We're not getting rich off of this."

Tune in to the AT&T blue room June 15-17 to see the LIVE Bonnaroo 2007 webcast, straight from Manchester, TN. Only the blue room can give you an exclusive front row seat to the show without even having to leave your computer!

A four-day, multi-stage festival, the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival brings together some of the best performers in rock and roll, along with dozens of artists in complementary styles such as jazz, Americana, hip-hop and more. Bookmark the blue room because you won't want to miss this year's all-star lineup including the String Cheese Incident, Cold War Kids, Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals, Brazilian Girls, John Butler Trio, Gillian Welch, Michael Franti, Spearhead, The Flaming Lips and more!