Courtesy of Topshop

For years Brits have had a style advantage—Topman. Now you can get in on the action without flying to London. The cult shop opens its first U.S. store in New York's SoHo neighborhood this month. Like the behemoth Topman in Oxford Circus, the shop here will fill its floors every couple of weeks with a fresh lineup of affordable jeans, shirts, suits, and coats. "The store has everything that's current right now," says design director Gordon Richardson. In addition to shopping Topman's regular mix, you can peruse the brand's upscale collection, Topman Design, or sift through its new Black Trouser Project—a collaboration between Topman and five designers, including Americans Patrik Ervell and Tim Hamilton—for the perfect pair of pants. And while you can't get fish and chips, you can get a taste of London, thanks to Topman's imported in-store stylist, Harry Hazel, who, at no extra cost, will whip up outfits for you.

LONDON CALLING
Topman's Harry Hazel has styled rock stars, and now hes here to dress you.

Q: What's a quick fix for a guy who wants to look more modern?
A: Start with a fitted suit. It provides a smart, versatile base and allows the wearer to add personal touches.

Q: What's an easy way for a man to make sure his clothes fit properly?
A: Don't always go by the size on the label. Take some time and try on a few different sizes. The best fit for you is not necessarily in the size that you think you are.

Q: You've styled rock stars, like the guys from Coldplay, MGMT, and Kings of Leon. Do they try to look like rock stars?
A: We're still seeing skinny jeans, although where it was in the obligatory black or blue, we're now seeing them in every color and wash. The rock look is constantly being updated with accessories like straw trilby hats and printed scarves.

Q: What's one U.K. fashion trend that Americans should co-opt?
A: The great thing about London is that it's about being individual and you can dress how you like—everything goes. Courtney Colavita

The Jesus & Mary Chain, The Power of Negative Thinking [Rhino]

Our Reissue Report Card Ratings:

Archival Material: A
Obscure tracks from 1988's Barbed Wire Kisses (plus 62 rare additions)

New Tracks: A-
Eight feedback-soaked pop jewels

Extras: B
Rare photos, artwork, and a poster charting the group's rotating lineup

Overall Grade: A-
White noise never sounded so good.

The music video for "Just Like Honey"

Taj Mahal, Maestro [Heads Up International]

Our rating: 3 out of a possible 5

It's a trusted gimmick—pairing a legend with some radio-friendly younger talent—and the bluesman had the sense to recruit more quality collaborators (Los Lobos, Ben Harper) than not (Jack Johnson). Too bad none of the powwows live up to the master's solo work. Matt Hendrickson

A preview of Taj Mahal's new album

Nina Simone, To Be Free: The Nina Simone Story [RCA/Legacy]

Our rating: 4.5 out of a possible 5

The lady could do it all: blues, pop, soul, gospel, jazz. This three-CD-and-one-DVD set spans her 30-plus-year career and includes eight previously unreleased tracks and a slew of sublime live recordings, such as an 18-minute cover of George Harrison's "My Sweet Lord." Matt Hendrickson

Simone performing "Ain't Got No, I Got Life" in Harlem in 1969

Courtesy of DWR

Design Within Reach branches out with Tools for Living, a general-store-style home boutique that sells MOMA-caliber flat-ware, tape dispensers, screwdriver sets, and dog bowls. Courtney Colavita

Courtesy of 42West

Got a minute? Actor turned director Stuart Townsend opens up about the panic on Wall Street and Battle in Seattle, his new film, starring his long-term love, Charlize Theron, about the violent riots at the World Trade Organization's 1999 Ministerial Convention.

Q: You've acted for film, theater, and TV, and now you're directing. What do like the most?

A: With theater you don't get paid anything, but you really learn your craft. Film is amazing because you get to take a peek behind the scenes—and you make money, which is nice. And I love directing. I don't like the finance or distribution, but I love filming and editing.

Q: What made you pick this project for your directorial debut?

A: It was a very visual event, with colorful demonstrations and mass movements that escalated into riots and a state of emergency. That's very cinematic. But also, the issues the people were fighting about were very important. They've been sidelined by the war on terror and the war in Iraq, but these issues haven't gone away.

Q: Does the recent Wall Street collapse make Battle in Seattle more relevant?

A: The media pretends the financial crisis is a shock, as if it came out of nowhere. A very systematic, designed construct has fallen apart and made the rich infinitely richer. Now we have to bail them out—we have to give money to the same guys who created the problem in the first place. Where's the outrage? The outrage is in Battle in Seattle. A financial crisis hits, and most people can't connect the dots. This film's an entertaining way to connect the dots. We really get inspired when we connect to a story rather than when we're told facts or figures or preached at.

Q: Was it challenging to make a film about such a recent event?

A: Most people have forgotten about it. When I started researching it, I was blown away by what actually transpired. In ways it was easier, because we didn't have to do period costumes.

Q: Are you going to stay behind the camera for a while?

A: Hell, yeah. I have a couple of ideas I've developed. I love political films, horror, fantasy, and thrillers, but it's not about genres to me. And of course, when you're in the business, you have to ask, are you going to make any money? That certainly helps the career a little bit. Ryan Wenzel

The trailer for Battle in Seattle

Photographs by Brian Finke at Bliss Spa

Getting a massage may be relaxing, but booking one can be stressful. Do you need Thai or Swedish? Relaxation or rejuvenation? A lot of pressure or a little? Here's a guide to picking the kind that will give you the best fix. Kayleen Schaefer

SPORTS

What It Is: The rub is similar to a deep-tissue massage, but the kneading and pressure are concentrated on one sore or stressed area of the body—whichever part you say is ailing you.
Who Should Get It: Anyone with an injury, such as a hurt knee or shoulder
The Tip: To make sure the therapist knows what hes doing, ask if he offers therapeutic massages.

DEEP TISSUE

What It Is: This massage—focused on the neck, shoulders, and back—works out kinks and knots deep in the connective tissue of your muscles.
Who Should Get It: Guys who spend all day in one pose: hunched over a computer screen
The Tip: Flush out the toxins released during the massage by drinking at least 12 ounces of water afterward.

SWEDISH

What It Is: In this head-to-toe, low-pressure massage, the muscles are stroked in the direction the blood flows to your heart, which improves circulation and relieves aches and pains.
Who Should Get It: Any first-timer—but women are usually bigger fans than men, because it's full-body
The Tip: Ask the therapist to use lotion instead of oil so you won't need a post-massage shower.

HOT STONE

What It Is: Warm rocks are placed on your back, hands, and feet to relax your muscles and allow the therapist to apply deeper pressure.
Who Should Get It: Anyone with chronic back pain or arthritis
The Tip: Don't worry about getting burned: The stones aren't hot enough to leave any red marks.

THAI

What It Is: This massage is designed to stretch your muscles. The therapist places your body in various yogalike positions and even cracks your knuckles and walks on your back.
Who Should Get It: Those stiff from a red-eye flight or a strenuous tennis game
The Tip: This massage will keep you at the spa longer than most. It usually takes about two hours.

Photograph by John Francis Bourke/Corbis

Q: Should you request a male or a female massage therapist?

A: "Eighty percent of our clients ask for a female," says Pirooz Sarshar of the Grooming Lounge, in Washington, D.C. While most guys don't like being touched by another man, Sarshar prefers men, because of their strength: They can get deeper into the muscle than women can. And silence is key. "As long as they don't talk," he says, "I don't care what sex they are."

Not many sports cars have a 45-year pedigree, so it's no small achievement that Porsche manages to keep improving its 911 while maintaining its noble heritage. The latest revamp sees sleeker, speedier iterations of four models—the Carrera Coupe, the Carrera Cabriolet, and the high-performance "S" versions of those designs. The look is futuristic, with new LED daytime-driving lights and a touch-screen navigation system—good news for anyone who's ever tried to type WEST PALM BEACH with a tiny cursor. Porsche has also managed to boost horsepower and improve gas mileage by 13 percent, and a new optional seven-speed double-clutch gearbox lets you shift through gears faster than Han Solo kicks into hyperdrive. Prices start at $75,600 for the Carrera Coupe and $120,400 for the lethal Carrera S Cabriolet. Ian Daly

TIMELINE OF A LEGEND

The 911 is entering its 10th generation. Here, some milestones from its near half-century of evolution

1964: The 911 hits dealer lots, replacing the 356, which was essentially a modified VW Beetle.

1973: Porsche introduces the first race-car-inspired Carrera edition, with flared fenders and a ducktail rear spoiler.

1976: The Turbo Carrera (otherwise known as the 930) becomes the first turbocharged production car.

1986: Porsche produces the streamlined 959, which tops out at 197 mph. Only 200 are made.

1998: The 911's first clean-sheet re-design, the 996, is unveiled with a brand-new body and engine.

The 2009 Porsche 911 on the road

Photograph by Andrew Councill/The New York Times/Redux

With his latest, The Given Day (William Morrow, $28), the 43-year-old Bostonian finally arrives in the big leagues, weaving a gargantuan historical epic involving police strikes, anarchist bombings, and the Red Sox' infamous 1920 trade of Babe Ruth to the Yankees.

Q: Why did a crime writer like you decide to write a historical novel?

A: I began to believe—after I wrote Mystic River [2001]—that I was living in a time I was incapable of writing about. The post-9/11 world is one that I'm only capable of reflecting on by writing about the past. I just don't think I could write about Facebook. Were I to write about the political landscape in the last seven years directly, I'd get enraged.

Q: Was it hard to maintain authenticity while writing about a different era?

A: I discovered with only one draft to go that there was a great swearword that I can't use: motherfucker. If I'm doing my job correctly, I should be able to write about anywhere. It's the people that I have to have a comfort level with. I can write something set in, say, the Dust Bowl in the thirties, because I grasp what they were going through. But I don't do rich people well. I don't understand what's in their kitchens.

Q: So did you need to do a lot of research?

A: For this book I read everything I could get my hands on about that time period, about the Boston police strike. Then I put all of that aside and just wrote. It took four years to write. I'd rather make it up and then double-check if I got it right later, because I won't get hemmed in by the way things really happened. Who gives a shit how it happened? It's what's dramatically interesting. Timothy Hodler

Photograph by Karl Walter/Getty Images

In a world of cut-and-paste music, nobody wields the sonic glue gun as boldly as mash-up artist Gregg Gillis, a.k.a. Girl Talk. On his frenetic, fist-pumping fourth album, Feed the Animals, the 27-year-old Pittsburgh native blends almost 300 samples—and proves that Soulja Boy and Thin Lizzy can live side by side in perfect harmony.

Q: You released Animals digitally, with a pay-what-you-want structure, and followed with a CD—like Radiohead. Would you have done it if they hadn't?

A: No. It wasn't a legitimate model until they did it. But it's also the first time I've had an audience who was hungry for a new record, so someone would have leaked it. It's just better to be up-front with people.

Q: You sampled In Rainbows. Did you pay for the download?

A: Nope. The industry tries to scare people into thinking it's illegal to use any copyrighted material. But there's fair use.

Q: Do you get pissed when people call you a DJ?

A: I'm not a DJ, but I see why people feel the need to label what I do. I've never played a dance club. My gigs are at the same scuzzy places as rock bands'. I don't just get up there and push play.

Q: Your shows are notoriously anarchic, with crowds dancing onstage. Do you ever worry about the safety of your laptop?

A: Yeah, I went through three last year. Lately I've been using this Panasonic Toughbook. They say you can't break it, but I broke it in Tulsa this summer. Pretty good, though—lasted me six months. Matt Hendrickson

"Play Your Part," the opening track on Feed the Animals