Pop & Hiss strives to provide the best, most relevant and entertaining music coverage of the week. Hey, it's a goal, be nice. Sometimes we have some posts that hit the mark. Sometimes we don't and others do. Here's a quick look at some of the best of what Pop & Hiss and The Times had to offer this week, as well as some stuff we missed. 

From the ol' Pop & Hiss: 

- Gentle men: The softer side of rock flourishes again. In the 1970s, it was America and Bread with the wispy vocals and gentle guitars. Now, Fleet Foxes and James Blunt have rediscovered soft rock. 

- 'They needed some Mexicans in there': Pop & Hiss premieres the Los Lobos theme to 'Rango'. By the time Los Lobos were brought in to contribute music to "Rango," band principal David Hidalgo estimates that there were already somewhere between 12 and 20 takes at the theme to Gore Verbinski's spaghetti western-like animated feature. It was composer Hans Zimmer, said Hidalgo, who admitted defeat at trying to craft authentic mariachi music. 

- Pop & Hiss premiere: 'Thrust,' from Alpha Pup's recent signing, Virtual Boy. Virtual Boy is the latest Alpha Pup act to emerge from the packed dance floors and earthquake bass of the Airliner. 

- Five great White Stripes covers: Dylan, Beefheart, Son House and more. One of the best measures of a band's versatility is its ability to perform cover songs. 

- John Barry, composer of iconic James Bond music, dies; highlights of an amazing musical life. The British-born composer not only helped define the feel of the Bond films but crafted music that served as a 1960s soundtrack to a new kind of jet-setting lifestyle. 

- Game talks 'Purp & Patron' and 'The Hangover.' The Interscope-signed rapper has claimed in interviews that the tape has been downloaded more than 1 million times in just one week. Ernst & Young has yet to confirm.