God, Please Save These Troubled States

With a band like A Fire Inside (AFI), fans become used to seismic shifts in appearance and musical direction. It's been three years since decemberunderground and the band's widespread exposure influenced a scathing and upbeat set of songs that make up their new record, Crash Love. And, of course, they've brought with them a complete shift in their sound and presentation. Will you love Crash Love?

Full review of AFI's Crash Love inside...

So, we're set to host a really interesting interview with the wonderfully talented Tegan and Sara. We're going to have the two singers/songwriters interview each other. Here's your task: What would you have them ask of each other? What would you want to learn about the band from its members? Get out your thinking caps!

Full instructions for our unique Tegan and Sara interview inside...

Your life is significantly lacking in quality if you don't get your butt over to AFI's MySpace IMMEDIATELY to give Crash Love a full spin while it streams for the next 48 hours. The record, which comes out in a week on September 29, is totally different from decemberunderground and welcomes a new era for the group. What am I saying? GO LISTEN NOW NOW NOW NOW NOW.

Listen to AFI's new record and tell us what you think...

Our photo assignment for the past week, "Fear/Courage" did quite well for such a difficult subject. You'll definitely want to see how your fellow Buzznet photographers interpreted the idea of contrasting emotions. Additionally, we're set to start our next assignment, which will allow you to experiment with depth of field. Get into it!

Full results for photo assignment 56 and instructions for number 57 inside...

This past week, Buzznet's photographers tackled the contrasting ideas of "big" and "small." We only had a small handful of submissions, but they're impressive and creative! For the next week, our photo assignment will deal with two opposing sensations: "fear" and "courage." How will you represent these in photographic form?

Full photo assignment results and new assignment inside...

No, this isn't a joke. Head on over to VeronicaSawyer.com and download "Fainting Spells," a Decemberunderground B-side that will finally be released on deluxe editions of Crash Love. Thoughts? Complaints? Excessive fanboy/girling? It's time!

New AFI song inside...

The Orange County Register ran a sports column from Mark Whicker this Monday, which imagined that Jaycee Dugard, who was kidnapped, raped, and imprisoned in a tent in Phillip Garrido's backyard, had missed out on 18 years of sports in Southern California. (She's from Northern California, for the record.) The article quickly spread across Twitter and Facebook and Whicker posted an apology for the piece last night. I'm here to inform you, if it wasn't obvious already, that Whicker's apology is a lie.

Find out more about Mark Whicker's apology inside...

There are few bands that have affected me quite as personally as NIN has over the years. I can't count the times I've spent drowning myself in the music, using it as a personal catharsis for my own demons. Standing in front of the stage at the Henry Fonda Theatre last night, in what might very well have been the second to last NIN show ever, I couldn't help but feel sad that a huge part of my life was passing on.

Full review of the second to last NIN show inside...

In honor of Shane Acker's new film 9, which is produced by Tim Burton, we're giving away nine copies of an incredibly rare 9 Movie Book to Buzznet members! Every 24 hours, we'll pick the best comment describing what nine things you'd take with you during the apocalypse. You've got nine days to win one of these incredible books. Get commenting!

Full instructions for our exclusive 9 contest inside...

You know, there is no rhyme or reason to having separate journals for this. You should be able to see the results from the previous week on the same day you get a new assignment. So, from this moment on forward, these will be condensed into a single volume. We'll wrap up the "Plain/Elaborate" theme and move forward with this week's contrast: "Big/Small."

Results of assignment 54 and instructions for the new photo assignment inside...