Hip-hop and rap go with gin and juice. Or Cristal. Or Cristal boycotts.

Generally, the rule of thumb is whatever is impossibly glamorous, effervescent, recherché and good going down but bad 12 hours later goes with hip-hop. And you probably can’t afford it, son.

Leave it to a gentleman saddled with the inauspicious nom de guerre Belchie (Branson Belchie, or Branson B.) to make his, er, name, providing hip-hop’s elite and the hordes of hoi palloi that emulate them with the choicest quaffs. It was Branson B. who ushered in the era of Cristal, Taittinger, Clicquot and Dom Perignon, turning the likes of Sean “Diddy” Combs and the Notorious B.I.G. onto the stuff back in the early ’90s.

Now Branson has introduced his own champagne to the world, a heady brew that is as much a product of his Midas marketing touch as his uber-palate. He’s started small, rolling out 100 cases of a blanc de blanc, a brut rosé and a vintage Grand Cru under the label Guy Charlemagne Selected By Branson B. All three earned high marks from “Wine Spectator.”

Branson’s timing couldn’t be better.

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Icelandic singer-songwriter Ólöf Arnalds will release her sophomore album Innundir skinni, out September 13 in the U.K. and September 14 in the U.S.

Produced by Sigur Rós’ Kjartan Sveinsson, the album features fellow Icelander and Blonde Redhead contributor Skúli Sverrisson, in addition to Björk. There’s a new video for the first single “Crazy Car” here.

Next month Arnalds begins a month long European tour before heading Stateside, where she’ll eventually team up with Blonde Redhead for West coast dates. Maybe she’ll run into this guy again.

Someone always gets snubbed. Despite launching the careers of many musicians, the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences doesn’t hand out Emmys for music supervision. If the songs featured on a show were previously recorded or created without the show in mind, they don’t count. No original score? No dice.

Music purists side with the Academy, and for reasons fair enough. But even if music supervision is the red-headed step child of the Nielsen family, there’s no denying the lucrative exchange between music and television.

So which shows score high with music fans? “Treme” leads the way for showcasing New Orleans jazz and cajun music–as well as musicians–naturally weaving them into the storyline. Steve Earle (Justin Townes Earle‘s dad) was nominated this year for “This City,” a song written for his character, though the show was otherwise ineligible for an Emmy.

“Gossip Girl,” “Weeds” and “True Blood” are also favorites for introducing indie acts like the Mountain Goats, Grizzly Bear, Beach House and White Rabbits to the mainstream. And “Glee,” well, you’ve heard about “Glee.”

From the artist’s perspective, no one talks about selling out anymore. Licensing is arguably the best way to make a living these days, and several talented bands from our roster have licensed their music to television shows. Hear Jace Everett, Fanfarlo and The Pierces explain the impact of television on their careers, and we’ve also included a blooper from Mugison on showcasing your talents the way Dolly Parton does.

Commercial cross promotions are generally as awesome and helpful as that time your dad, in a ham-fisted attempt to score you a prom date, stood on a corner and yelled about how nice, old-fashioned and pretty you are. (Don’t ask me how I know this.)

Leave it to the Cracker Barrel to team up with country singer Rodney “Cleaning This Gun (Come On In Boy)” Atkins to promote each other’s all-American, artery-clogging cheese. In return for Rodney’s  promotion of the interstate-highway huggin’, rockin’ chair sportin’ sad family dining chain, the Barrel will unleash a compendium of his hits (including one previously unreleased song) on an unsuspecting, innocent world.

According to Cracker Barrel’s press release, Rodney likes nothing more than rollin’ his tour bus up to the ol’ Barrel.

“Menu favorites for Rodney include the open roast beef sandwich, biscuits n’ gravy, hash brown casserole (WTF is that? It sounds like deep fried carb bliss on crack with a side of bacon and I think I may need to hit that shit up), chicken n’ dumplins [sic] and of course a ‘big ol’ glass of sweet tea with lemon.

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Pixtape is a round up of the best new tracks you may have missed from the month of August.

1. Teams vs Star Slinger “Say Please”
Dig if you will this easy breezy throwback soul collaboration between Teams and Star Slinger. We want more.
Download track via Gorilla vs Bear

2. Cee Lo “Fuck You”
The embodiment of smiling through gritted teeth, though Cee Lo reassures it’ll be alright after all.
Download track via Kick Kick Snare

3. Spoek Mathambo “Mshini Wam”
Crank this up and enjoy the last days of summer to the fullest.
Download track via the FADER

4. Jaill “The Stroller”
Riff-based straightforward rock from the latest Sub Pop acquisition (they’re working on that whole world domination thing).
Download track via Indie Rock Cafe

5. Slow Trucks “Gota Move Away”
Honest to goodness indie rock reminiscent of the days before we knew what to call it.
Download track via Tympanogram

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They may be a new band, but catchy, lo-fi punk never gets old. Male Bonding formed in London just two years ago, first cutting their teeth on covers of Black Flag and Mission of Burma songs before releasing a split 7” with PENS on their own Paradise Vendors label. The band then hit the road with everyone from Vivian Girls to Graffiti Island, slowly making friends and fans across the globe.

They released their debut full-length, Nothing Hurts, in May via Sub Pop to positive reviews. Clocking in at a mere 30 minutes, the album was described by critics as “joyful, guile-free surf-grunge” by a band “racing from hook to hook, plowing happily through breakdowns and guitar blasts.”

Starting next month Male Bonding will tour across the States and Canada, playing select shows with Titus Andronicus, Free Energy and Best Coast. Then it’s back to Europe for dates alongside No Age, Crystal Castles, Abe Vigoda, Frankie and the Outs and Blood Red Shoes.

And should you catch them at a show, why not suggest a new tattoo?

Some people seem to spring from their mama’s wombs with briefcase, toque or tuba in hand. For the rest of us, destiny doesn’t manifest itself so specifically.

Take my favorite dairy purveyor, Douglas Quint. For 20 years, the man tirelessly (and thanklessly!) devoted himself to the grubby life of an itinerant musician, sans the street cred. A bassoonist trained at the hoity Manhattan School of Music and the toity Juilliard School, Douglas tooted away with the likes of the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra and the woodwind quintet, Zephyros Winds.

Until he stumbled upon a Big Gay Ice Cream Truck.

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