Welcome to HNGN's weekly top picks, where we cull the best and brightest releases in music, fashion, tech and pop culture. Come back each week for more of-the-moment goodness.
MUSIC
Annie Lennox: Nostalgia (Island)
Annie Lennox is known for her originality, but she also has a fondness and flair for reimagining the songs of others. The Scottish singer's new release "Nostalgia" is her third album of cover songs, and this time she employs jazz interpretations to perform American classics like "Summertime," "Georgia On My Mind" and Screamin' Jay Hawkins' "I Put a Spell On You." Watch the video for "I Put a Spell On You" here:
Cold War Kids: Hold My Home (Downtown/V2)
The California indie rock outfit's fifth album "Hold My Home" finds the band "accomplishing many of the things they've strived for on their previous albums," according to an AllMusic review. Check out a video for Cold War Kids' r&b-infused "All This Could Be Yours" here:
Billy Idol: Kings & Queens of the Underground (BFI Records)
British punkish hard rocker Billy Idol returns for his seventh album, released concurrently with his new memoirs, "Dancing With Myself." "Kings & Queens of the Underground" is Idol's first album of new material since 2005's "Devil's Playground."
Bush: Man On The Run (Zuma Rock Records)
Gavin Rossdale and company celebrate the 20th anniversary of their smash debut "Sixteen Stone" with a new album "Man On The Run," their second since reforming after an eight-year hiatus. See Bush in all of their alt-rock glory in the video for "The Only Way Out" here:
Aretha Franklin Sings The Great Diva Classics (RCA)
Like Annie Lennox, the Queen of Soul focuses her new release on classic songs by other singers. The theme of Franklin's 38th album, released last week, is songs made famous by female singers, like Alicia Keys' "No One" and Adele's "Rollin' In The Deep."
DVDs/BLU-RAY RELEASES
The Purge: Anarchy (Universal Pictures)
The mayhem continues in the sequel to the 2013 sleeper hit "The Purge." Another group of citizens will have to survive the 12-hour "Purge" when all crime is legalized.
Special features on the Blu-Ray edition include deleted scenes, a behind-the-scenes featurette and a Digital HD copy with UltraViolet.
Sex Tape (Sony Pictures)
Jason Segel and Cameron Diaz discover the evils of "the cloud" when their private sex tape gets widely disseminated to family and friends. The couple will go to great and hilarious lengths to make sure no one sees the embarrassing video.
Special features on the DVD/Blu-Ray include audio commentary with Segel and Diaz, a gag reel and a making-of featurette.
Snowpiercer (Anchor Bay Entertainment)
Chris Evans took a break from his "Captain America" duties to star in this sci-fi thriller. A failed experiment to solve global warming leads to the next ice age and only a few inhabitants survive.
The remaining board a train called the Snowpiercer where passengers are divided by class. Evans will lead his fellow lower-class passengers in an uprising as they move from the last car to the front.
The two-disc DVD edition features an audio commentary, an interview with stars Evans and Tilda Swinton and more cast interviews. The special features also include several making-of videos, a behind-the-scenes look at the movie's promotional tour through Texas and concept art for the film.
Earth to Echo (Twentieth Century Fox)
This family-friendly movie uses a "found footage" style in a sort of "E.T." for the modern world. A group of kids receive strange messages and a map on their smartphones that leads them to the small robotic alien. The four friends must ban together to help the lost alien, called Echo, return to his home planet.
Special features on the Blu-Ray include a making-of featurette and two behind-the-scenes specials. The disc also has six deleted scenes.
Mad Men: The Final Season Part One (Lionsgate)
Don Draper, Peggy Olson and the rest of Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce will bow out gracefully next year. Until then, fans can relive the first half of the Emmy-winning Mad Men's final season on DVD.
The Blu-Ray and DVD special features include four featurettes. One gives a behind-the-scenes look at the much talked about fantasy song and dance scene performed by the late Bert Cooper (Robert Morse).
Movies and TV Streaming Online
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
Catch up with Katniss Everdeen, Peeta Mellark and Haymitch Abernathy in the second installment of "The Hunger Games" trilogy, before part one of "Mockingjay" premieres in theaters on Nov. 21.
Katniss and Peeta enter the 75th Hunger Games and the third edition of the Quarter Quell again as unwilling participants to the Capitol's sinister twist. The two will band together with a few other Tributes to break out of the arena in an attempt to ruin the games.
Netflix and Amazon Prime both have "Catching Fire" available to stream. iTunes also has it available for purchase.
Django Unchained
Quentin Tarantino won his second Academy Award for his screenplay of the 2012 American western. The film stars Jamie Foxx, Leonardo DiCaprio, Kerry Washington and Christoph Waltz, who also won an Oscar for his role in the film.
Foxx's freed slave Django sets off to rescue his wife from a brutal Mississippi plantation owner. Waltz's German bounty hunter accompanies him on his journey.
Netflix and Amazon Prime both have "Django Unchained" available to stream. iTunes also has it available for purchase.
The 100 (Season One)
The CW launched another successful series based on a book last year. The book by Kass Morgan is a post-apocalyptic adventure that finds 100 juvenile offenders from a space station community relocated back to Earth after a nuclear war 97 years ago.
Netflix has "The 100" available to stream.
Sons of Anarchy (Season Six)
The SAMCRO boys will wrap up their story in the show's seventh and final season on FX later this year. In the penultimate season, Jax struggles to keep SAMCRO together and tries to push the group toward more legitimate business.
Netflix and Amazon Prime both have all 13 episodes of season six available to stream. iTunes also has it available for purchase.
TECH
Leeo Smart Alert Nightlight
Leeo's first product is the Leeo Smart Alert Nightlight, a device that can change colors while you sleep. The device also listens for your smoke detector and carbon monoxide detector and is able to hear these sounds and let you know if something is wrong. The app that comes with the nightlight can be used to change the brightness, set the colors and sense the temperature and humidity in the room. When the nightlight senses an issue, the app provides a pre-recorded clip and the user can say it's a false alarm or call 911 through the app and get connected with emergency services that are close to the nightlight.
Dyson Hygienic Mist Humidifier
Dyson has introduced its first humidifier, the Hygienic Mist, which is available in Japan now for 59,800 yen ($560). The device has the ability to work as a fan and includes ultraviolet light that Dyson says can kill 99.9 percent of bacteria in water. The humidifier can work for up to 18 hours before getting a refill and features a remote control for creating sleep timers and adjusting air flow levels. Dyson plans to give its humidifier a new name when it hits stores in the U.S. in fall 2015. The device will also be available in the U.K. and Australia next spring.
Hendo Hoverboad
California startup Hendo Hover has started a Kickstarter campaign for a real hoverboard that can levitate one inch off the ground above conductive surfaces. The $10,000 hoverboard comes with a battery that lasts seven minutes. Those who pledge $5 will get a mention on Hendo's social media accounts, and those who pledge $100 will get to ride on the hoverboard for five minutes. The goal for the campaign is $250,000 and there are currently 10 hoverboards available on the campaign.
FASHION
Fashion recycles itself every two decades or so, and this fall seems to be the age of '60s mod-inspired clothing, in particular the go-go boot. The tall, calf-hugging boots with a short block heel are named after the go-go dancers who wore them in nightclubs during the swinging 1960s. But it was fashion designer André Courrèges who introduced them to the fashion world with his sleek white boots inspired by the era's fascination with the moon and all things futuristic, according to Vogue Italia. Instead of stealing your mother's pair, check out these short, leopard print go-go boots from Zara. Or get your mod-chic on with go-go boots, a mini dress and a pair of opaque tights.
Tom Ford Velvet Orchid
This 2014 twist on an old classic from American designer Tom Ford will have you smelling like the sexiest flower garden on earth, with notes of jasmine, orange blossom and fuchsia orchid. There are also hints of rum and honey. Velvet Orchid, the successor to Tom Ford's Black Orchid, is a bit pricey at $112 for a 1.7 ounce bottle, so unless you have a generous bank account you might want to take a trip to Sephora and ask for one (or 30) perfume samples.
Face oil
Fall is the start of totally horrid dry-skin season, an unpleasant yearly reminder to change your face washing regimen - again. That's why it's super important to invest in a good moisturizer, which these days seems to be all about face oils, including Argan, Jojoba, Tea Tree and Vitamin C. Even if you have oily skin, it would be wise to continue reading because believe it or not, face oils can help reduce the production of sebum, that oily gunk that is secreted from tiny glands in your skin.
Josie Maran's 100 percent Pure Argan Oil (starting at $48) seems to be the most coveted of face oils, according to both Sephora and TotalBeauty.com. There's also Black Currant Complexion Oil from Ole Henrisken to help repair environmental damage from the sun.
World's Most Powerful Facial
This Amazon.com $10 best-seller from Aztec Secret promises to make you "feel your face pulsate" and lift pimples and blackheads with its Indian Healing Clay pore cleansing mask, according to the beauty company's website.
It's made from pure calcium bentonite clay, which has been used for thousands of years dating back to Cleopatra (the messiah of makeup). But unlike Cleopatra, who probably got her clay from the Nile, Aztec Secret's clay comes from California's Death Valley and is left to dry in the sun for six months at scorching temperatures of up to 134 degrees Fahrenheit.
Exfoliant
Also in the category of fall skin care must-haves in an exfoliant to scrub off any excess dead skin cells that might be lingering on your face.
To spare you the headache of getting lost in the overwhelming number of choices at your local beauty supply store - or worse, the Internet - HNGN took the liberty of offering a couple of suggestions. You're welcome.
Sugar Face Polish from Fresh ($58), Sephora's best-selling exfoliant, is made with brown sugar and wild strawberries (yum) that are blended with macadamia and citrus oils to gently lift dead cells and brighten the skin underneath.
Cure Natural Aqua Gel (about $30) is an Amazon best-seller made with water as a base and extracts from ginko and rosemary. The manufacturer swears one bottle is sold every 12 seconds in Japan.
FALL CIDERS
As we get into the fall season, one of the best ways to relax is by kicking your feet up with an ice-cold cider in hand. These are some of our favorites:
The Saint (Crispin)
This beer-like cider is one of our favorite fall blends. It's super fruity, with a slight taste of maple and apple to really set the mood for fall.
Pacific Pear (Crispin/Fox Barrel)
This cider is one of our favorites because it's made with real pear juice, giving it a strong, crisp taste. Most ciders - no matter the flavor - are apple juice based, making it difficult to find a good pear cider. Problem (finally) solved.
Serious Cider
Unlike the first two on our list, Serious Cider is a drier choice with slight yellow apple notes. It's a more sophisticated cider with small bubbles - comparable to champagne. We love pairing it with a hearty fall salad.
Cider Dry (Mercury)
Cider Dry is one of our favorites because of its balance between dryness and sweetness. The cider is not quite as sweet as some of the more popular selections, but it's also not as bitter as beer. We love an ice cold Cider Dry served in a tall glass.
"GOTTA HAVE IT" GIFT IDEAS
The Kodak PixPro SL10
If Kodak keeps moving in this direction, there might soon be no need for DSLR cameras altogether. Picture this: the ability to shoot using a 10X optical zoom, 28mm wide-angle lens to capture just about anything you'd likely post on Instagram anyway. That's what the SL10 Smart Lens Camera does - attach this HD video-compatible lens to your smartphone and skip the filter. The lens can also wirelessly connect with smart devices, and allows you to stream and share albums with ease.
Stetson Caliber
Ditch that Acqua Di Gio this coming fall - try on a new scent for size. Stetson Caliber spray - a mix of black pepper, deep Sequoia and sandalwood - is for the "straight-shooting man that lives by a different code," according to the company, which has been around since 1865. Pick up Caliber in 0.5 oz. or 1 oz. sizes at any Walgreens or Kmart and start smelling like the season.
Minuteman MM04 DLC Men's Watch
Your timepiece is weak, son. At least, in comparison to this guy: the Minuteman MM04 DLC Watch. Made in the United States with 25 percent of the proceeds going to help injured veterans and their families, this stainless steel, all-black watch features a changeable leather and nylon strap, luminous hands and dial and a Diamondblack DLC coated case and crown. Sales from the first round of production will also go toward The Gary Sinise Foundation, an organization that honors defenders, first responders and members of service.
(Reporting by: Michael Lello, Emily Morgan, John Nassivera, Oulimata Ba, Amanda Bernocco and Maxine Wally. Editing by: Maxine Wally and Michael Lello. Want to be considered for Coveted? Send your product information, with photos, to m.bullerdick@hngn.com or send product samples to Michael Q. Bullerdick HNGN/33 Universal, 33 Whitehall Street - 7th Floor, New York, NY 10004)
