Kate Beckinsale

Kate Beckinsale was born on 26 July 1973 in England, and has resided in London for most of her life. Her mother is Judy Loe, who has appeared in a number of British dramas and sitcoms and continues to work as an actress, predominantly in British television productions. Her father was Richard Beckinsale...

alizee

The name Chateau Marmont might conjure images of Gallic decadence, but in reality it’s the name of the Sunset Boulevard hotel where John Belushi took his fateful final speedball. Chateau Marmont is also the name of a Parisian electronic quartet, and just as their namesake is a bit of a geographical misnomer, the group’s heavy use of old synthesizers makes it dif­ficult to pin what year they’re originating from. To clear things up, they’ve named their upcoming debut album, made up of two previous EPs, 2008-2009-2010. “The way we use old synthesizers,” says keyboardist Guillaume de Maria, “it’s the type of sounds we were used to hearing as children when we watched cartoons, so when we use those sounds, it’s meant as an escape, creating our own bubble.” The group went with their moniker as a sort of travel substitute as well. They’ve never visited California or the famed, 84-year-old hotel that’s housed numerous celebrities in various states of decay, so the name always had a fantastical connotation for the four childhood friends.

Chateau Marmont first made their marks as remixers, putting retro-futuristic touches on La Roux’s “Quicksand” and Midnight Juggernauts’ “Into the Galaxy.” They’ve released two EPs that will make up the bulk of their first full-length, and are currently working on an entirely new album. The Solar Apex and Nibiru EPs are mostly instrumental, although after having written songs for French pop singer Alizée, de Maria says the group is pushing into more vocal-heavy territory. They’ve already undergone a few sonic changes since forming in 2005, going from Pink Floyd-style ’70s space-rockers to almost entirely instrumental electro to, now, embracing their pop side.

De Maria adds that they’d like to keep a recurring theme for their forthcoming second album, probably relating the quartet’s collective interest in astronomy and UFOlogy.

“We’re actually really passionate about it. We’re always reading books on UFOs and visiting websites. I’d say we’re pretty up-to-date concerning all the experts in the field. We’re interested in the history of it—although back home people tend to think we’re pretty crazy

Maria Sharapova

Maria Yuryevna Sharapova born April 19, 1987) is a former World No. 1 Russian professional tennis player. In a career marred by serious injury, Sharapova has won 22 WTA singles titles, 3 WTA doubles titles and 3 Grand Slam singles titles, consisting of the 2004 Wimbledon, 2006 US Open and 2008 Australian Open. She was also runner-up at the 2007 Australian Open. She has also won the year-ending Sony Ericsson Championships in 2004. Since her shoulder injury in 2008, she has not recovered her championship form.