The Ataris - Rumorstore search

With a handful of indie releases and a few hectic years of touring under their belts, this release marks the Ataris big-label bow. And if the concept uniting it is an ode to the power of memory--a conceit attributed to Richard Hell, but one that ironically might as well have originated with the likes of Billy Joel--Kris Roe and company blitz their way through it with kinetic power and hooks to spare. But therein lies the rub: Fans will find this an album rife with positive energy, bright, well-constructed songs, and upbeat deliveries (if sometimes in service of awkward intellectual pretensions like "Unopened Letter to the World"'s parallels between Kurt Cobain and no less than Emily Dickinson); cynics may hear at as further evidence that punk and alternative rock have been co-opted in service of formulas as well-honed--and rigid--as anything the dreaded Corp Rock '80s ever yielded. Still, if play-it-to-the-back-rows, unabashed power-pop is what the Ataris were after here, they've delivered it with nigh perfection, right down to a slick, pumped up cover of Don Henley's classic-rock warhorse "The Boys of Summer." --Jerry McCulley

Atari's 80 Classic Games is a compilation of unforgettable and authentic Atari titles. Each one is faithfully reproduced with all the great sights, sounds and fast action that made them so popular. Whether you played these games in their original arcade cabinets or on an Atari 2600 console, you're sure to find a favorite. It's the largest collection of classic games ever assembled on one disk! Games include: Crystal Castles Gravitar Major Havoc Black Widow Battlezone Pong Space Duel Tempest Warlords 3D Tic-Tac-Toe A Game of Concentration Adventure Missile Command Super Breakout Liberator Red Baron. and many more!

The original Atari 2600 Video Computer System that started the home video game revolution.

Much more than the passage of time has occurred in the four years between the release of The Ataris's So Long Astoria and Welcome the Night: Half of the group left while the two existing members (frontman Kristopher Roe and guitarist John Collura) decided to change their sound considerably. Losing much of their previous punk/pop leanings and gaining an atmospheric hue, Welcome the Night is more of a darkly-lit whole than a series of radio-friendly singles. A Killers-esque vocal style weaves in and out of the disc, most notably on the opening two tracks ("Not Capable of Love," "Cardiff-by-the-Sea") while a handful of other numbers ("Secret Handshakes," "And We All Become Like Smoke") ooze with the affectation of Disintegration-era Cure. The group finds their own engaging sound on a handful of tracks; "Whatever Lies Will Help You Rest" and the uncredited track 15 contain a strong sense of emotional theatre, thanks to frontman Roe's soaring vocals. His gothy, clichéd lyrics, however, are nearly cringeworthy to hear ("I will drown inside the anguish of your heart" from "Act V Scene IV"). The Ataris are in many respects still a young band, showing influences on their sleeve a little too clearly while they search for their own identity. Their overt change in sound may disenfranchise the group from some longtime fans, but it will likely engage more new ones with deeper roots than ever before. --Denise Sheppard

As we live in a world where video games look as real as live television, who would have thought that it all originated from Pong? Classic games like Pong, Centipede, and Asteroids began a video gaming revolution. Atari, the video game pioneer, is bringing back these and 8 other 2-dimensional classic games, giving it an updated look for the 21st Century and introducing a new way to play them - and no need to dust off your Atari 2600! These classic games are now available for you to take everywhere you go on the PSP system. Whether you're looking for that classic, retro experience, or you're looking for new-age graphics, each game will be playable in both classic and evolved forms to satisfy your itch. As an added bonus, you'll be able to unlock over 50 Atari 2600 titles giving you non-stop gaming action.

The crown jewel of the Kung Fu Records organization. The 14 songs on End Is Forever (The Ataris 3rd LP for Kung Fu) accurately reflect the dedication to the craft of songwriting that has skyrocketed this Santa Barbara, California quartet into becoming the fastest growing punk band in recent memory. Punk, pop-punk, and emo fans alike have been gravitating to Kris Roe's heartfelt hyper-melodic punk tales of teenage dreams and broken hearts in alarming numbers that are giving the band their highest weekly sales now, as we speak. The momentum that popped when Fat Wreck Chords released their Ataris E.P. in 1998 (as a favor to all of us), has been carried on by incessant touring throughout North America, Australia, Japan, and in the fall of 2000, Europe.

Kung Fu and the Vandals have done all they can to help develop this band and the results have been very satisfying for all of us. The Ataris now command their own league of followers. Demos pour in daily to Kung Fu from bands trying to sound like them, look like them, and play with them. They say imitation is the sincerest form of punk rock.

Just plug the Atari controller into your TV and play these classic Atari games. Fans of early Atari games will love the "paddle" replica controller, inspired by the Atari 2600. Compact, lightweight controller plugs into any TV with an ATV input jack.

Games include:

• Super Breakout
• Casino
• Warlords
• Steeple Chase
• Nightdriver
• Breakout
• Canyon Bomber
• Demon to Demand
• Video Olympics
• Pong
• Arcade Warlords
• Circus Atari
• Streetracer