A billboard in Rancho Cucamonga asking viewers to "imagine no religion" was taken down this week after residents and the city complained about its message. The Freedom From Religion Foundation advertisement was first installed last week causing local conversation and complaints. The pressure quickly built up and the General Outdoor sign company took it down. The foundation's co-president Annie Laurie Gaylor was not so happy, as expressed in a statement they sent out: "Are......

The first of the 22 off-site projects at the 2008 California Biennial were installed last week on billboards around town, compliments of LAXART Public Art Initiatives and ForYourArt. The two are Raymond Pettibon’s iconic 1989 image that references the myth of a glamorized, idealized California with the scrawled caption, “I thought California would be different” is in West Hollywood near the House of Blues. Karl Haendel’s 2008 "A year from now, what will I wish......

Photo by Chris Ameruso/Used with permission One thing that stuck out from Obama's Election-night speech Tuesday was his promise to his two young daughters that they could get the puppy they've wanted for so long when they moved to the White House. Yesterday, Obama gave his first post-Election press conference, and was asked what kind of dog the Obama family had in mind. He explained that they were hoping to get a dog from......

That was fast. I guess this proves that billboards and a massive, massive, massive amount of flyers put around the neighborhood can get your dog back. For background on Hedkayce (that's the dog's name), check out yesterday's story.......

Photo by toastycakes via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr In an attempt to avoid the voter confusion rampant in the state during this year's Super Tuesday balloting, LA County officials are doing their best to educate the public about the InkaVote Plus system, including the audio options for disabled and multilingual voters. It seems "fire season" in the Southland is now a year-round thing. After yesterday's Griffith Park fire comes news of another......

Jobing.com: Employment for Bad Spellers | Photo by Andy Sternberg for LAist This billboard has been bugging me for months and it's all over LA. WTF is "Jobing?!?" Surely it's more than just a website designed to capitalize on typos of the unemployed. But what is this Jobing Community of Greater Los Angeles all about anyway? Is it community in the Eco-Village sense? Is there a secret society that worships the prophet Job? Do......

Well, whatcha know, Radiohead's In Rainbows, which hit stores on New Year's Day, sits atop the Billboard charts nearly three months after the band offered the album as a pay-what-you-want digital download via their Web site. Today we have confirmation of the cities (albeit neither venues nor dates) that our favorite Glaswegians Englishmen will visit this summer. California stops include Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, San Diego, and San Francisco:The first leg will come prior......

Taken today in Venice at Lincoln and Venice Blvds., the above picture shows a billboard that has kicked the bucket. Did it finish its "bucket list" too? Three people were shot and injured today in Lincoln Heights near Daly and Mozart streets at 1:22 p.m. *UPDATE, 7:43 p.m.: LAPD is confirming to LAist that one died at the scene, making this the fourth murder for 2008. More police dog news from San Diego, this......

This morning on NPR's Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me!, outed CIA Agent Valerie Plame Wilson played a game called "You're a Blond Bombshell Who'll Do Anything For Attention." The focus of the three questions was LA's own billboard celebrity, Angelyne. Wilson failed miserably, as a CIA agent probably should, but how will you do? Answers after the jump... Her intense expensive efforts to get work as an actress did pay off eventually, only about 15 years......

Procrastinating gift givers everywhere can stop at their local Best Buy to grab a CD from a plethora of music superstars and avoid the dreaded regifting faux pas. The holidays have always been a time when record labels ramp up their releases to make a pretty penny off of shoppers. Don’t know what to get your kid? Take your pick of shiny round plastic discs with a fancied up singer on the front. Of course......

It's a dream date for fans of Canadian songstress Feist and Austin's Spoon. Feist is just now making her break on the world stage, with a little help from Uncle Steve. But anyone with an ear to the Toronto indie rock scene could hear her coming ever since her solo debut, Monarch, was released on the heels of By Divine Right's "Bless This Mess" Tour (she was their rhythm guitarist). For most of this......

Nick Hogan has been criminally charged with reckless driving because he was drinking before his August car crash. Another faux- celeb headed to the clink? - TMZ Bitch Fight! George Clooney and Fabio get into a physical fight after Fabio's ladies were taking pics of Clooney and his gf at El Coyote restaurant - Defamer Britney Spears's nearest and dearest, the few that are left, claim its not drug use thats causing her irrational......

Interpol the international police organization is everywhere (186 member countries), even though you never really take notice of them. So it’s fitting that the post-punk rock band of the same name has reached similar ubiquitous status, though dipping still ever so slightly below the radar. But now it appears the secret is out. Ever since Interpol announced the release of Our Love to Admire in May, they’ve been scouring the world, touring virtually non-stop.......

Britney Spears has been having a bad week. I thought it was bad a couple weeks ago when she had a hit and run, bombed at the VMA's and had her lawyer drop her. That was actually sunshine and roses compared to this week... It all started this week when it was alerted to the authorities that Brit was driving without a California license, and had in fact never had one. Us Weekly is......

It seemed like a ridiculous challenge, and now it appears that all 50 Cent did by declaring that he would give up his solo career if his new record was outsold by Kanye West's new record was help Kanye's record. Both discs dropped on Tuesday and 50 looks like he might be the one having to drop out - if the former crack dealer is good with his promise. Billboard is reporting that first-day......

OUT TODAY: Junior Senior - Hey Hey My My Yo Yo (Rykodisc) [MP3]: “We R The Handclaps” via Fluxblog Eisley - Combinations (Reprise / Wea) [MP3]: “Invasion” via Lullabyes Linda Thompson - Versatile Heart (Rounder) [MP3]: “Beauty (feat Antony)” via Homo Eclectic The Wildbirds - Golden Daze (Universal Republic) [MP3]: “Way Down Low” via Come Pick Me Up You Say Party! We Say Die! - Lose All Time (Paper Bag) [MP3]: “Giant Hands” via......

OUT TODAY: Flight Of The Conchords - The Distant Future (Sub Pop) [MP3]: “Business Time” via Tunes Consumed Magnolia Electric Co - Sojourner (Secretly Canadian) [MP3]: “Leave The City” via Aquarium Drunkard The Budos Band - The Budos Band II (Daptone Records) [MP3]: “Chicago Falcon” via Inflight at Night Okkervil River - The Stage Names (Jagjaguwar) [MP3]: “Unless It’s Kicks” via Music For Kids Who Can’t Read Good Augie March - Moo, You Bloody......

Ever read the Shel Silverstein poem, True Story? That's why New Music Tuesday is on a Friday. Go forth into your weekends, and rock. OUT NOW: Bat for Lashes - Fur & Gold (Caroline) Common - Finding Forever (Geffen) Josh Rouse - Country Mouse City House (Bedroom Classics) Culver City Dub Collective - Dos (Everloving) 1990s - Cookies (Rough Trade) Dr. Hook - Greatest Hooks (Capitol/EMI) G. Love & Special Sauce - A Year......

OUT TODAY: Tegan and Sara - The Con (Sire) Juliette and the Licks - Four on the Floor (Hassle) UNKLE - War Stories (Surrender All) Mexican Institute Of Sound - Pinata (Nacional Records) Robbers on High Street - Grand Animals (New Line) Manu Chao - Rainin In Paradize [EP] (Nacional Records) Prince - Planet Earth (NPG) VHS or Beta - Bring On The Comets [Single] (Astralwerks) Hanson - The Walk (Cooking Vinyl) Manic Street......

Interpol Our Love to Admire Capitol Records released: July 10, 2007 On Our Love to Admire, their major label debut on Capitol, Interpol still sound like Joy Division and they are not apologizing for it regardless of how often they are knocked for it. And really, they shouldn’t. The band has long transcended the comparisons and established its own identifiable sound, full of machine-like guitars, ominous piano lines and ennui-infused vocals. Interpol is as......

OUT TODAY: These and other new releases are conveniently located at your neighborhood record store (sigh) or online retailer… The Chemical Brothers - We Are the Night (Astralwerks) Suzanne Vega - Beauty and Crime (Blue Note) The Dark Crystal: 25th Anniversary Soundtrack - Trevor Jones (La-La Land) KT Tunstall - Hold On [SINGLE] (Relentless Records) Editors - An End Has a Start (Epic) Meat Puppets - Rise to Your Knees (Anodyne) The Cribs -......

Spoon - Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga (Merge) Gogol Bordello - Super Taranta! (Side One Dummuy) Mark Ronson - Version (RCA) Oh No! Oh My! - Between The Devil And The Sea (Dim Mak) Gravy Train!!!! - All the Sweet Stuff (Cochon Records) Danzig - The Lost Tracks of Danzig (Evilive) The Monkees - Headquarters [DELUXE EDITION] (Rhino) Chris & Rich Robinson - Brothers of a Feather: Live at the Roxy (Eagle) They Might......

Sara Bareilles - Little Voice (Epic) Velvet Revolver - Libertad (RCA) Iron and Wine - Boy With A Coin [SINGLE] (Subpop) Various Artists - Transformers: The Movie Soundtrack (Warner Bros.) 2 Many DJs - 50 Million Soulwax Fans Can't Be Wrong [LIMITED EDITION] [IMPORT] (Waxed Soul) Rilo Kiley - The Moneymaker [SINGLE] (Warner Bros.) Queensryche - Mindcrime at the Moore [LIVE] (Rhino) Face the Music - 2007 Encores! Cast Recording (Drg) Widespread Panic- Capricorn......

Vans Sky Gallery is featuring artists from the LA area on billboards around the LA area....

Beastie Boys - The Mix Up (Capitol) Bryan Ferry - Dylanesque (Virgin) Metric - Grow Up and Blow Away (Last Gang) Love - Blue Thumb Recordings (Hip-O) Ryan Adams - Easy Tiger (Lost Highway) Sinead O'Connor - Theology (Koch) Blondie - Eat To The Beat [REISSUE] (EMI) Chris and Thomas - Land of Sea (Defend Music) Bad Brains - Build A Nation (Megaforce) Nick Lowe - At My Age (Yep Rock) Taste the rainbow.........

-- For £10 million and a private jet you’d do it too. They’re getting the band back together. [AOL Canada] -- $80 for the new Smashing Pumpkins record? Fantastic. [Shoutmouth] -- Rape me and a bag of chips. [Pitchfork] -- Leaking the leakers. Applications for 'snitch’ now being accepted. [Idolator] -- Choose your own Bob Dylan adventure. [Billboard] -- Woody “I don't want to move to a city where the only cultural advantage is......

The White Stripes - Icky Thump (Warner Bros.) The Polyphonic Spree - The Fragile Army (TVT) Art Brut - It’s A Bit Complicated (Downtown) The Aliens - Astronomy For Dogs (Astralwerks) The Moony Suzuki - Have Mercy (Elixia) David Vandervelde - Nothin' No (Secretly Canadian) Dimitri From Paris - Cocktail Disco (BBE) Nouvelle Vague - New Wave (District 6) Bon Jovi - Lost Highway (Mercury Nashville) Van Morrison - Best Of Vol.3 (Manhattan/EMI) But......

LAist is proud to offer a weekly chart roundup of Billboard Magazine's most coveted rankings. Join us as we revel in the conventional standard of musical success. Let us cross our fingers, hoist our lighters, and dream together of the supreme resurrection of artist-driven recordings that will forever eclipse the dark cloud of big label greed, A&R sleaze and disposable audio. Amen. Here are this week's chart toppers. Behold the #1s. ___________________________________________________________________________________________ Billboard Charts Issue......

LAist is proud to offer a weekly chart roundup of Billboard Magazine's most coveted rankings. Join us as we revel in the conventional standard of musical success. Let us cross our fingers, hoist our lighters, and dream together of the supreme resurrection of artist-driven recordings that will forever eclipse the dark cloud of big label greed, A&R sleaze and disposable audio. Amen. Here are this week's chart toppers. Behold the #1s. ___________________________________________________________________________________________ Billboard Charts......

Billy Corgan got the band back together, sorta, and the Smashing Pumpkins are really going to have a new record this summer. James Iha probably won't be on it, and our girlfriend D'arcy or our other girlfriend Melissa Auf der Maur will probably also be replaced, but Billy and Jimmy Chamberlin didn't do us wrong on Zwan, and that rhymes with bring it on. LA street art pioneer and Obey founder Shepard Fairey's official......