(Clockwise from top) Jennifer Hudson, who’s straight, is finally
releasing her solo debut. She became a gay fave in ‘Dreamgirls,’ for
which she won the Oscar. Her costar in the film, Beyonce, has a
November release slated. In stark contrast to those divas is lesbian
rock/pop rocker Catie Curtis, whose ‘Sweet Life’ drops Sept. 9. (Hudson
courtesy of jenniferhudsononline.com; Beyonce courtesy of
Sony/BMG; Catie Curtis by Tony Baker)
|
REBECCA ARMENDARIZ
Friday, August 22, 2008
 Divas
and
gay
indie
rockers
alike
released
a
slew
of
albums
this
spring,
leaving
the
fall
with
a
mere
smattering
of
noteworthy
releases.
Madonna,
Janet
Jackson,
Mariah
Carey
and
Kylie
Minogue
blessed
the
world
with
their
fabulous
efforts
earlier
in
the
year.
Bob
Mould,
Mark
Eitzel
and
Stephin
Merritt
did
the
same.
So
what’s
to
look
forward
to
for
fall?
Love
or
hate
’em,
New
Kids
on
the
Block
are
back,
and
at
least
they’re
better
looking
(and
more
fashionable)
than
before.
“The
Block,”
the
quintet’s
first
release
since
1994,
drops
Sept.
2
on
Interscope
Records.
The
group
wasn’t
shy
about
playing
old
hits
—
“Please
Don’t
Go
Girl”
sounds
great
post-puberty
—
during
their
inaugural
appearance
on
“The
Today
Show,”
showing
a
welcome
lack
of
reinvention.
“The
Block”
won’t
be
much
different
from
the
tracks
the
group
released
15
years
ago.
First
single
“Summertime”
seems
almost
a
pathetic
attempt
at
keeping
their
teen
fan
base.
In
reality,
it’ll
be
the
20-
and
30-somethings
buying
this
record.
The
video
shows
them
shirtless
on
a
beach
(not
bad!)
ogling
too-young
girls
in
bikinis.
Most
of
the
members
have
wives,
ex-wives
and/or
children
at
this
point.
But
those
who
are
looking
to
reminisce
will
probably
forgive
the
flaws
for
a
chance
to
relive
NKOTB
fandom.
Jessica
Simpson
will
release
“Do
You
Know”
a
week
later.
This
is
her
second
record
since
her
divorce
from
male
teenybopper
counterpart
Nick
Lachey,
and
the
first
in
her
crossover
to
country
music.
She
keeps
to
her
usual
pop
sentiments,
however,
and
just
adds
slide
guitar
and
cheesier
lyrics
to
the
tunes
to
get
that
bumpkin
feel.
The
album
features
a
duet
with
Dolly
Parton.
Also
on
Sept.
9
comes
the
ninth
studio
album
from
lesbian
singer/songwriter
Catie
Curtis
called
“Sweet
Life,”
on
Compass
Records,
an
indie
label
based
out
of
Nashville
that
focuses
on
folk
and
bluegrass
artists.
Curtis,
who
describes
her
music
as
folk/pop,
says
the
album
is
upbeat
and
celebrates
resilience.
Her
music
has
been
included
in
movies
like
“A
Slipping
Down
Life”
and
“500
Miles
to
Graceland”
and
on
TV
shows
“Desperate
Housewives,”
“Alias,”
“Dawson’s
Creek”
and
more.
She’s
a
past
winner
of
GLAAD’s
album
of
the
year
award.
Curtis
plays
the
Birchmere
in
Alexandria
on
Nov.
21.
Welsh
singer-songwriter
Jem,
née
Jemma
Griffiths,
made
mini-waves
with
her
first
album,
“Finally
Woken,”
released
on
Dave
Matthews’
record
label
after
radio
buzz
landed
her
recognition
for
her
demos.
A
few
of
her
tracks
have
been
featured
on
mainstream
TV
shows.
Jem’s
first
single
of
her
new
album,
“Down
to
Earth,”
made
it
big
with
an
appearance
in
the
“Sex
and
the
City:
the
Movie.”
She
produces
new
wave
backbeats
and
sings
operatically
over
the
trippy,
mellow
music.
If
Jem’s
release
on
Sept.
16
doesn’t
sound
mainstream
or
popular
enough,
never
fear
—
Sony
will
release
the
Annie
Lennox
Collection
on
both
CD
and
DVD
the
same
day
to
quench
those
who
thirst
for
a
more
established
diva.
The
compilation
of
12
hits
and
two
new
songs
will
be
the
first
“best
of”
release
for
the
Scottish
beauty
and
former
member
of
the
Eurythmics.
Since
the
band’s
demise
in
1991,
Lennox
has
made
a
name
for
herself
with
a
spectacular
solo
career.
She
is
also
a
prominent
AIDS
activist.
Songs
like
“Walking
on
Broken
Glass,”
“Why”
and
“No
More
I
Love
Yous”
have
today
become
classics.
Jennifer
Hudson,
Oscar
winner
and
former
“American
Idol,”
will
finally
release
her
self-titled
debut
on
Arista
Records
Sept.
30.
The
soulful
R&B
singer
showcases
her
pipes
in
an
empowered
performance
akin
to
her
Effie
White
role
in
“Dreamgirls.”
For
a
woman
who
cites
Whitney
Houston
as
an
influence,
Hudson
is
well
on
her
way
to
becoming
her
equal
(she’s
on
Whitney’s
label,
Arista).
First
single
“Spotlight,”
written
by
Ne-Yo,
could
be
Hudson’s
“I’m
Every
Woman,”
and
other
contributors
on
the
album
—
Timbaland,
Robin
Thicke
and
Tricky
—
should
please
anticipating
fans.
Jenny
Lewis,
while
not
exactly
“underground,”
isn’t
as
celebrated
as
most
other
prima
donnas
in
music.
But
she’s
no
less
talented.
The
front
woman
of
indie
rock
band
Rilo
Kiley
went
twangy
and
alt-country
with
her
first
solo
record,
“Rabbit
Fur
Coat”;
her
next
effort,
“Acid
Tongue,”
will
hit
stores
Sept.
23.
Lewis
is
everything
a
straight
girl
wishes
she
was,
everything
a
lesbian
wants
to
be
with
and
everything
a
gay
man
admires
in
a
woman.
Lewis
seems
to
have
leapt
into
full
country
mode
on
“Acid
Tongue,”
but
somehow
manages
to
pull
off
every
feat
she
attempts.
Murray
Lightburn,
lead
singer
of
Montreal’s
the
Dears,
has
been
called
“the
black
Morrissey”
because
of
his
almost
identical
syrupy
voice
and
dark
lyrics
he
pens.
The
Dears,
ironically,
toured
with
the
gay
icon
and
former
Smiths
lead
singer
on
a
recent
solo
tour.
The
band
releases
its
fourth
studio
album
Oct.
21
on
indie
label
Arts
&
Crafts,
titled
“Missiles.”
The
group’s
lineup,
excluding
Lightburn,
constantly
changes,
helping
its
orchestral
evolution
along.
Deerhunter
front
man,
openly
gay
Bradford
Cox,
also
moonlights
on
his
solo
project,
Atlas
Sound.
He’s
a
multi-instrumentalist
from
college
rock
town
Athens,
Ga.,
and
with
his
four
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