Brought to the stage by director Michael Mayer, the man behind 2006's surprise Broadway hit Spring Awakening, the stage-musical version of Green Day's American Idiot is currently enjoying a trial run in the band's native East Bay, and early indicators were promising: Ushers in the Berkeley Repertory Theater handed out earplugs before the show -- what is this, My Bloody Valentine?

"Giants Stadium: The House That Bruce Built," read one proud fan's sign. Friday night Bruce Springsteen returned one final time to the 70,000-seat New Jersey venue to tear it all down.

"The whole idea of this tour is to write the new Travis record," announced Fran Healy as he and the group's guitarist Andy Dunlop launched their back-to-basics North American tour Thursday at San Francisco's ornate Swedish American Hall.

Now a major-label act with U.K. chart hits whose bluesy garage-punk style has been streamlined by producer Rick Rubin, the Gossip are no longer underground scrappers. But somebody forgot to inform vocalist Beth Ditto, who was her old exuberant subcultural self when the band began its first U.S. tour in three years early Wednesday night at Washington, D.C.'s 9:30 Club.

In baseball terms, attending Thom Yorke’s “rehearsal” show on Friday night at the Echoplex in Los Angeles was like showing up at the stadium early to watch a slugger hit home runs in batting practice.