Pick six: A half-dozen cool things in music

A half-dozen cool things in music, from two points of view:

The Sounds, First Avenue. Known for their Geico caveman commercial song "Hurt You," this Swedish group delivered live, utilizing unique sounds, great vocals and crazy lighting with a serious rock-'n'-roll attitude, resulting in a stellar concert.

iConcertCal.com. For live- music-aholics, this fantastic iTunes plug-in is a must-have. iConcertCal will monitor your iTunes and notify you when any artist in your library is playing in your area or releasing a new album. Instead of following tons of musicians with the various social networking options, I quickly find out what is going on with my favorite artists.

Music at work. I work in an environment where it is uncommon to see someone working without headphones. Just the right album can get me through a really tough assignment or motivate me to meet a deadline. What others are listening to also serves as an ongoing workplace conversation. We talk about the musicians we all love, often expose one another to new things and occasionally mock what colleagues are listening to.

MAXINE WICKS, MINNEAPOLIS

Contribute: popmusic@startribune.com

Rihanna talks to Diane Sawyer, ABC's "20/20." Her interview was shockingly frank. The line that stood out: "I went to sleep as Rihanna and woke up as Britney Spears." She was referring to the media chaos, not the tragedy of her situation. Sad.

Kiss, Target Center. Even though it was the same old mindless, rudimentary rock-'n'-roll escapism, the band played with more verve and precision than in the recent past. Highlights: Paul Stanley's between-song shouts when he sounded like Edith Bunker and "Rock and Roll All Nite" as a blizzard of confetti, energy and happiness.

Wynonna Judd, Mystic Lake Casino. She filled the room with her big voice, oversized personality and unstoppable spirit. She was pretty funny, too. Highlights: the finger-poppin' "That's How Rhythm Was Born," the sassy "Women Be Wise," the moody bluesy "Ain't No Sunshine" and the goosebump-inducing "I Want to Know What Love Is."

Jon Bream, Star Tribune