Music vet and New Times scribe Lee Zimmerman shares observations, insights and updates relating to South Florida's musical environs. This week, Roger Houdaille gives the music away for free and accepts no guarantees.

I'm an unabashed fan of Ex Norwegian, mostly due to my fondness for their music (of course!), but also because I love to make jokes about their name. What's the significance of an ex-Norwegian, I've asked them time and time again without getting any kind of serious response. And yet, if that seems like a strange handle, it sure beats the one they started out with early on, that being "Father Bloopy." Consequently, I saw the shift in identification as a sign of progress, if not necessarily a means of further clarification.

Nevertheless, my commentary detailing their name is getting old already, so it's fortunate that there's a new Ex Norwegian album, entitled House Music, to focus on instead. Even so, this isn't any ordinary album, at least in the traditional sense. For starters, the band plan to put it out online for free, a decidedly unorthodox tack to be sure, but one strategized to bring them wider exposure. Consequently, I asked Roger Houdaille, the band's chief musical mainstay, what his rationale was for literally giving it away.

Mick's looking craggy lately, but he's still one cool dude!

Music vet and New Times scribe Lee Zimmerman offers his insights, opinions, and observations about the local scene. This week: Senior citizens and rock realities.

Many people would have you believe that advanced age and rock 'n' roll are simply not in sync. That's understandable really, given the fact that rock, especially in its earliest incarnations, was always a young person's game. For its first couple of decades, it was a sound synonymous with rebellion and defiance of society. And for as long as I can remember, at least, those causes have always been those of the youthful, whose innate intention is to reject parental values and strike out in directions of their own choosing.

Sayre Berman

Look, even Pitbull's psyched you can make a collage out of him on this new app. Dale!

I have to admit, I'm not always comfortable with new technology. Anyone who's seen me scream in frustration when I get an error message on my computer or I'm asked to create a spreadsheet of some sort can attest to that. Hell, it seems like only yesterday I was printing out pages from my nifty word processor and squeezing a tape into the old eight-track player. And when I learned that my cell phone could actually take pictures... Well, my gosh, the dawn of a new age had truly arrived for me. (Never mind that it's come kind of late.)

Music vet and

In the world of radio, anything can happen, even at a moment's notice. The news that DJ Laz, a radio institution in South Florida for well over two decades, had suddenly parted company with Power 96 came as a shock to longtime listeners this past week. Likewise, the unexpected departure of morning staple Donna Davis from oldies station Majic 102.7 a few months back was equally surprising, considering how she had become a well-known morning voice in our market. A few months ago, Coast 97.3 made a similar move, removing the popular Tamara G from the Two Girls in the Morning program, where she had been a fixture for several years. The reasons for these changes aren't altogether clear. DJ Laz has remained tight-lipped about his leaving, merely saying in a statement that it was his decision and he wished his former station well. Davis' scenario allegedly had something to do with new management at Majic and a reshuffling of more than a dozen positions. (Indeed, both the station's program director and promotion director also left at nearly the same time.)