Foo Fighters examine loss
There’s hardly a greater purpose for music than expression of feelings, and the Foo Fighters have brought quite a collection of them to their latest album.
“But Here We Are” sounds like the most grown-up of the 11 studio records from the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame band, a vintage recipe of relentless guitar riffs, unsettled yet subtly sweet melodies, and the raging, raspy vocals of front man Dave Grohl.
Their first release since the sudden death of beloved drummer Taylor Hawkins while on tour last year is essentially the album they needed to make — and probably the one their families, friends and fans needed to hear.
Grohl’s grappling with loss — the album is dedicated to Hawkins and his mother, Virginia — is painfully palpable and artfully woven throughout the 10 songs. There’s no escaping each facet of grief in these characteristically uncomplicated lyrics that are about coping, reflecting and realizing life must go on.
The opening line on the opening track “Rescue Me” delivers the shock and leaves no doubt this is a Foo Fighters record: “It came in a flash, it came out of nowhere, it happened so fast, and then it was over.” “Show Me How” features guest vocals from Grohl’s 17-year-old daughter, Violet, and is a simple reminder the bond of loved ones is strong enough to overcome a bad day.
Bill Cosby facing a new sexual assault lawsuit
LOS ANGELES — A former Playboy model who alleges Bill Cosby drugged and sexually assaulted her and another woman at his home in 1969 sued him Thursday under a new California law that suspends the statute of limitations on sex abuse claims.
In her lawsuit, Victoria Valentino, 80, says she was an actress and singer 54 years ago, when she met Cosby, now 85. The comedian and actor later approached her at a Los Angeles cafe, where he spotted her crying over the recent drowning death of her 6-year-old son.
Cosby offered to pay for a spa treatment for Valentino and a friend, and then sent a chauffeured car to pick the women up for dinner. That evening at a steakhouse, Cosby gave them each a pill, she said in the court filing.
“Here! Take this!” the lawsuit alleges Cosby said to them. “It will make you feel better. It will make us ALL feel better.”
Cosby then drove the women to his house, where Valentino passed out on a couch, and later woke up and witnessed him sexually assaulting her unnamed friend, according to the lawsuit. The court documents allege Cosby then “engaged in forced sexual intercourse” with Valentino while she was incapacitated from the drug.
Valentino’s allegations come on the heels of lawsuits last year by six Cosby accusers in New York under a similar provision known as a “lookback” law.
The former “Cosby Show” star, who has been accused of rape, sexual assault and sexual harassment by at least 60 women, has denied all allegations involving sex crimes. He and spent nearly three years at a state prison near Philadelphia before a higher court threw out the conviction and released him in 2021.
His spokesperson, Andrew Wyatt, said Thursday that Valentino's lawsuit lacks “any proof or facts" and that so-called lookback laws violate constitutional rights aimed at protecting crime victims and “those that are accused of a crime.” — The Associated Press
Alicia Keys making a musical inspired by her life
NEW YORK — For more than a decade, Alicia Keys has been quietly developing a musical inspired by her own turbulent adolescence growing up among artists in New York City. Now that musical, “Hell’s Kitchen,” is almost ready for viewing: It will be staged this fall at the Public Theater, the downtown nonprofit where “A Chorus Line” and “Hamilton” were born.
By any measure, the musical will be big: It has a cast of 20, the biggest budget of any show the Public has ever done, and, of course, music by Keys, an R&B and pop singer who has sold tens of millions of records.
“Hell’s Kitchen” doesn’t precisely track the events of Keys’ own life, but there are strong parallels. Set in the 1990s, it takes place over a few months in the life of a 17-year-old named Ali, who is being raised by a single mother in Manhattan Plaza, a large housing complex where many of the residents are performing artists; there is family tension, sexual exploration and musical discovery. (Ali, like Keys, is transformed by a passion for piano.)
“Hell’s Kitchen” is scheduled to begin previews Oct. 24 and to open Nov. 19.