Like what you hear in GURU’s featured videos? Two of those tracks come care of New York garage pop band ModRocket, founded in 2001 when all four members were in junior high.

They’re all still in their teens and channeling their Daria-esque wit and angst into tunes like “Sonic” (featured this month in our “Lazy Sunday” GURU video) and “July 5th” (featured in our “Shower” video), with their sound falling somewhere between the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and an all-lady version of The Virgins (with some sprinklings of Sonic Youth and the Libertines for good measure).

ModRocket’s good vibe and energy has such broad appeal they’ve been featured in both Teen Vogue and on Vice TV (video below), where they can be seen practicing in the East Village equivalent of a garage and, uh, stuffing their face with Oreos. What? What do you want them to do? They can’t even drink yet (at least not legally).

Watch this space for GURU Energy Drink’s continuing quest for fresh sounds, and check out ModRocket’s MySpace for more info on the band.

Are you the last person on Earth still not afraid of clowns? What about famous spokesclown Ronald McDonald? How about if he’s played by a demented Andy Dick?

Dick recently joined forces with animal rights group PETA and Canadian comedian Martin Short – in character as inept entertainment reporter Jiminy Glick – for a Funny or Die Exclusive to promote the parody site McCruelty, which was launched in 2000 as part of a campaign to get McDonald’s to change its methods of slaughtering chickens (including boiling them alive).

In the video, Glick interviews Mr. McDonald about his (and the fast food giant’s) animal rights track record. When the creepy clown isn’t scratching his face with a butcher’s knife he’s demonstrating how he frightens children. And if you’re not scared of clowns after watching it, you’re a stronger person than all of us here at (proudly – thankfully – organic) GURU Energy Drink.

Even if you’re not a PETA supporter, there’s another kind of animal being abused by fast food chains – human beings. About 127 million adults in the U.S. are overweight, 60 million are obese and 9 million are severely obese. And just having access to fast food can affect obesity rates, especially for children. A Canadian study showed that for every additional fast food restaurant for every 10,000 people, a city’s obesity rate rises three per cent.

Scary stuff.

Good things may come to those who wait, but there’s nothing like getting something early!

Jay-Z’s anticipated new album, The Blueprint 3, is available now, ahead of schedule (thanks, internet leak!) and already garnering rave reviews. The UK’s Daily Telegraph gave it four stars and said of the accomplished artist: “At 40 years old, [he] comes across as a well-rounded, sophisticated and diplomatic human being, more reliant on wit, charm and persuasive argument than all-out verbal assault.”

The first “Blueprint” album was released September 11, 2001, and Brooklyn native Jay-Z made waves last week with a 9/11 benefit show at Madison Square Garden, with appearances by artists like Rihanna and John Mayer.

Jay-Z also recently made a rare appearance on Bill Maher, who gave the rapper a gift of all his lyrics bound up in a book (aww, could it be that sharp-tongued Maher is just a big ol’ softie?).

Need more evidence that the rapper’s in line with the GURU philosophy? Jay-Z’s single “D.O.A.” has him touting the virtues of going all-natural – hey, just like GURU! – and calling the time of death on voice-distorting, robot-friendly Auto-Tune.

RIP Line-la-pas-fine, you are a french-Canadian icon/guru.

If we’d go again
All the way from the start,
I would try to change
The things that killed our love.

I’m into the show “Swingtown” like a set of keys in a Tupperware bowl. It’s irreverent. It’s naughty. It’s my summertime guilty pleasure. But wait, wasn’t Sex and the City, The Movie supposed to be my big guilty pleasure this summer? How did a show that’s basically about our parents or (Lord have mercy) our grandparents that takes place 32 years ago in the boring old ‘burbs end up being fresher and edgier than the big movie that takes place in the city and even has “sex” in the title? I have four good reasons.

1. Swingtown is intentionally cheesy. SATC is just cheesy. With Grant Show’s big moustache and lines like, “What’s cookin’, good lookin’,” one cringes, but in a good way. He’s supposed to be a douche. Plus, it was the ‘70s, and it was cool to say shit like that. When Carrie Bradshaw does her impromptu closet fashion show and talks about “love” with her starry-eyed assistant, I don’t feel a sentimental sense of friendship; I feel my lactose intolerance kicking in.

2. They dress for success. Trina Decker’s cleavage-bearing halter dresses, even in ’76, bring sexy back. A white dress with a flower the size of a Smart Car… um, not exactly Spanish fly.

3. They make lovin’ fun. Whether it’s through the help of a Quaalude, a movie camera, or a good old fashioned four-way, Swingtown knows how to mix it up. SATC gave us Miranda’s big red beaver. You decide.

4. Actions speak louder than words. The ladies on SATC talk a lot about sex. The swappers on Swingtown don’t talk about sex … because they’re having it.

__Melissa B