I would be beyond remiss if I let the day pass without giving infinite props to Apple founder Steve Jobs, who lost his battle with cancer last night.

Without Steve Jobs, much of what I do would not be possible. My blogging activities started on a PowerBook G4. I listen to music on an iPod when I’m writing. The main character in Resonant Blue was “born” on the PowerBook G4, as was the world of Here Is The Wonderland. I use an iPad to help stave off my Mac jones (my PowerBook died in 2007 and I’ve been dealing with Windows machines since then, albeit reluctantly), and I was already planning to switch to an iPhone upon their next upgrade (the iPhone 4S, revealed this past Tuesday and going on pre-orders tomorrow) after several months of battling a BlackBerry.

Most of us owe Steve Jobs a world of thanks, especially if my (and your) Twitter and Facebook feeds are any indication. I don’t think there’s a single reader out there who doesn’t use an Apple product of some sort, even if it isn’t one of his computers. My own Apple experiences go back to the Apple IIc back in my high school days (Reina Tanaka’s parents probably hadn’t even met, let alone had sex, back then – we’re talking 1984-85, here, folks) – and all the better for it. They got me interested more sincerely in computers, which got me started on writing more seriously long before there was an Internet, and I used to go for the Apple computers in Penn State Hazleton’s computer lab when my friend and I used to visit there on occasion before we got our own PCs and Internet accounts. Simply put, without this man’s vision and testicular fortitude, very little of what we all do would be possible.

Thanks for everything, Steve.

Macs at half-mast.

Damn! Talk about picking up where you left off – Anthrax just released the first single from their long-delayed new album Worship Music (out September 13th) this afternoon through their website. (Check the artwork for the single there, too!) From the sounds of things, they seem to have gotten back their sense of humor that was pretty much lost since Attack of the Killer B’s without losing the heaviness of Persistence of Time. Hopes for this album should be nice and high at this point. Stream or download below:

Veteran singer/songwriter Marshall Crenshaw (best known for his hit “Someday Someway” and his portrayal of Buddy Holly in the Ritchie Valens biopic La Bamba) is commemorating his 30th year in the music business (his first single “Something’s Gonna Happen” [live performance from a very recent NYC show with his current band here] was released by the venerable Bomp! label back in 1981) with a 30th anniversary tour (where he’ll be playing both classic cuts as well as songs from his current album Jaggedland) – and a free download of a newly discovered live recording of another classic M.C. tune, done at the landmark First Avenue nightclub in Minneapolis in 1987. Marshall isn’t identifying exactly when this track was recorded or who comprised his backing band, but he’s offering a bonus download of another unreleased recording to the first ten fans who can answer both questions! (Details at his website.)

LA goth/electro-pop outfit Shiny Toy Guns have released as a free download the first single from their forthcoming third album, III. This is the first I’ve heard of this band, to be honest, but so far I like what I’ve heard. Stream the song below, then follow the link to cop the free download.

Download: Shiny Toy Guns “The Sun”

If this advance single is any indication, the Meat Puppets’ third post-reunion album Lollipop (out April 12th – the day after my fifth blogging anniversary) is going to be a good one. The Kirkwood Brothers and returning drummer Shandon Sahm (who played on Golden Lies, the only MP studio album without bass brother Cris) still sound like the years between their initial split and their reunion never happened. Stream the tune below, then snag it from the app (courtesy of Rolling Stone) above!