Pundits have long gone around making lists of ways in which rock & roll is hazardous to the health, but, at long last, a respected institution has gone on the record giving credit where credit is due - by honoring KISS for their efforts in battling sexually transmitted diseases. The National Museum Of Health has given two thumbs - or some body parts - up to the band's "members" by featuring a logo-emblazoned KISS condom in a newly added display about venereal disease.

Pop babe Charlotte Church has reportedly refused a lucrative deal to model bras. The Welsh songstress is said to have turned down the Wonderbra offer - made just days after the teenager was snapped looking sexy in a bikini while on holiday in the Caribbean - because neither her breasts or her career need the boost. The star's mum Maria confirmed the brunette beauty won't be posing for the padded bra firm.She said: "At her age she doesn't need a Wonderbra, she has a great figure. "I'm sure she was flattered, but it's just not her thing".

More dates have been added to the upcoming International Extreme Music Festival tour which features The End Records acts Thine Eyes Bleed , Epoch of Unlight and Lilitu. The tour will cross North America this fall and is headlined by Netherlands death metal act God Dethroned and also includes Byzantine, Nightrage and Hell Within.
IEMF Dates
9/10 -The Bluebird - Denver CO
9/11 -Combat Academy - Salt Lake City UT
9/12 -The Core - Boise ID
9/14 -Studio Seven - Seattle WA
9/15 -Rock And Roll Pizza - Portland OR
9/17 -Vault 350 - Long Beach CA
9/22 -Fitzgeralds - Houston TX
9/23 -Boomerz Boiler Room - Seminole FL
9/24 -Culture Room - Ft. Lauderdale FL
9/26 -Hi Tone Café - Memphis TN
9/27 -Masquerade - Atlanta GA
9/28 -Jaxx - Springfield VA
9/30 -Harpos - Detroit MI
10/01 -The Metro - Chicago IL
10/07 -The Opera House - Toronto ON Canada
10/09 -The Palladium - Worchester MA

Avril Lavigne has a pet hate - bad room service. The 20-year-old singer admits she spends so much time in hotels she now only checks into the best. She revealed: "Sometimes I feel like I live in hotels, so it's good to stay in a really cool one" .She added: "I hate hotels that have crappy service, like when you need something from the front desk or room service and no one answers the phone. That sucks!" Meanwhile, Avril has confessed she lives on a diet of vegetables.

VELVET REVOLVER were forced to cancel their previously announced appearance on ABC's "Jimmy Kimmel Live" because the group's drummer, Matt Sorum (ex-GUNS N' ROSES), recently broke his wrist in a waterskiing accident. The band was expected to perform their new song, "Come On, Come In", live for the first time ever on the "Kimmel" show airing Monday night, August 8. "Come On, Come In" was written and recorded for the "Fantastic Four" film and soundtrack album. The track was recorded in Raleigh and Cleveland in May during the band's U.S. headlining "Electric Wonderland Show" arena tour. VELVET REVOLVER co-produced the song along with Doug Grean and Nick Raskulinecz.

Marc Cohn, Grammy-winning musician and husband of ABC news reporter Elizabeth Vargas was treated at a hospital and released Monday after being shot in the head during an attempted carjacking following a performance.  Cohn, who is best known for his hit song "Walking in Memphis", was struck in the temple Sunday night when a man fired into his band's van in a parking garage

Police files from 1969 show an interesting interpretation of Mick Jagger's drug claim - Newly released police files from 1969 show what the police thought of Sir. Mick Jagger. The records, declassified by Britain's National Archives, detail Jagger's claim that detectives planted drugs on him during a raid on his London apartment that took place in '69. Jagger was fined 200 pounds (the equivalent of approximately $500 for that time) for possession of cannabis after the raid on his Chelsea home.   The Metropolitan Police launched an investigation into Jagger's claim that a drug squad officer, Det. Sgt. Robin Constable, had tried to plant white powder inside a box in the house. "I think he put the box down and opened the folded paper. He said `Ah, ah, we won't have to look much further,''' Jagger said in a statement to police. "As I got to him he showed me the paper and I saw it contained some white powder. I said `You bastard, you planted me with heroin.' '' Jagger then claimed Constable replied "Don't worry, Mick, we can sort it all out.''   Scotland Yard launched an investigation, interviewing supporters of Jagger who ranged from a lawyer and a member of Parliament to minor drug dealers. "The private persons interviewed during the course of this investigation represent extreme ends of the scale. At one end are public figures whilst at the other are the dregs of society,'' noted Cmdr. Robert Huntley, who oversaw the inquiry.
  The investigation concluded with no "substantial corroborative evidence'' for Jagger's claim against the "hardworking and competent police officer'' Constable. Police considered Jagger, "an intelligent young man, and doubtless is on the fringe, if not embroiled in the world of users of dangerous drugs.'' The case was referred to the Director of Public Prosecutions, who concluded that no further action should be taken against the police.

Jon Bon Jovi: The New Jersey rocker knows how fortunate he is to have a solid career and financial security. He also knows the importance of volunteerism. The singer delivered the keynote speech Thursday at the 2005 National Conference on Volunteering and Service in Washington. He told attendees, " I've done it all, but I got more of a rush when I went to the Northern Home for Children in North Philly and said, We built a playground. " Bon Jovi is not just a rock star. He also is a majority owner of the Arena Football League team the Philadelphia Soul, which has contributed more than $400,000 to community groups in the Philadelphia area. There's a reason he is so successful. It can be found in this simple article.

Diecast will be playing the '1st' annual' Rockpile Fest'in Saugus, MA. The band will share the lineup as follows: Saturday 8/27 -
Nonpoint, Hed(pe), Brides of Destruction, Ramone (yes, that Marky Ramone), Diecast, Hell Within, Ra, Alston, Breaking Point, Trash Light Vision, Crossbreed, Byzantine, Guilt By Association (battle for ozzfest band), Seemless, and more tba plus a bunch of great local bands on 5 stages all day @ The Palace in Saugus, MA. For tickets check out their site at http://www.rockpilefest.com

David Bowie, Destiny's Child, Duran Duran, Gwen Stefani, Nelly and Tim McGraw lead the lineup for the 2005 Fashion Rocks concert, which will be held Sept. 8 at New York's Radio City Music Hall during the city's annual Fashion Week. Also set to appear are Alicia Keys, Rob Thomas, Shakira, Joss Stone, Billy Idol, and, improbably, indie rock sensation the Arcade Fire. CBS will broadcast the Conde Nast Media-organized show the following evening.

Marilyn Manson has had enough of music for a while, and plans to make a series of shortfilms, titled Phantasmagoria: The Vision of Lewis Carroll. Manson has created a new word to describe his new genre, horripilation (short for "horrifying" and "depilatory"). In the series Manson wants to portrait Lewis Carrol , the author of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland . Manson has already started filming, when he the other day took a 80 year old stuffed monkey, put fire on it in his pool, and filmed the whole thing under water. Manson said it was beautiful, as if Titanic, Hindenburg and King Kong were combined. The shortfilms will be finished this winter, and can be downloaded at his own homepage. Manson has been confirmed to appear in a small role in supernatural thriller Rise (S am Raimi's Ghost House Pictures) which is currently shooting in L.A. The film stars Lucy Liu as a young female reporter who wakes up in a morgue to discover that she is no longer among the living. She vows revenge against those responsible for putting her there and hunts them down. Other cast members include people like Michael Chicklis, Carla Gugino, and Robert Forster.,

Music Video Distributors (mvdb2b.com) have a new DVD on GUNS N' ROSES frontman Axl Rose . Titled Axl Rose: The Prettiest Star, documents and reveals the true story of Axl's life and career, from his earliest days growing up in Lafayette, Indiana, through his escape from abuse and neglect via music and onto his incredible success with Guns N' Roses. The film also shows Axl's more recent activities including the recording of the his anticipated Chinese Democracy album. It includes previously unseen film footage of both Axl and Guns N' Roses and exclusive in-depth interviews.

U.S. District Judge George B. Daniels ruled that the best-selling thriller "The Da Vinci Code" does not infringe on the copyrights of a book published in 2000 by another author. He explains his ruling by saying that Dan Brown's book exploring codes hidden in Leonardo Da Vinci's artwork is not substantially similar to "Daughter of God," by Lewis Perdue.   "Although both novels are mystery thrillers, 'Daughter of God' is more action-packed, with gunfights and violent deaths," Daniels said in a ruling, "'The Da Vinci Code,' on the other hand, is an intellectual, complex treasure hunt and does not focus on physical adventure." He also ruled out any copyright violations of Perdue's 1983 novel "The Da Vinci Legacy." Brown and publisher Random House Inc. asked the court last year for a declaratory judgment that Brown's 2003 novel does not infringe on Perdue's work after Perdue threatened to sue. In a countersuit, Perdue asked the judge to rule for infringement and to award him $150 million in damages.
"Ideas and general literary themes themselves are unprotectible under the copyright law," the judge said. Brown and his lawyer Elizabeth McNamara said she and her client were pleased with the decision.