TOM WAITS performs "Chicago" at the Ed Sullivan Theater.

HOLOGRAMS are streaming their self-titled debut LP.

THE WALKMEN stopped by The Current for a chat and mini-set.

JD McPHERSON stopped by The Current for a chat and mini-set.

PAVEMENT, Live at Mississippi Nights, Oct. 14, 1999.

THE KILLERS drop "Runaway" as the single from the upcoming Battle Born LP.

THE LAST SHADOW PUPPETS are "Standing Next to Me."

MISSION OF BURMA talks to Rolling Stone about their second time around.

OF MONSTERS AND MEN: Nanna Bryndís Hilmarsdóttir and Ragnar "Raggi" þórhallsson talk America, influences and more with Filter.

LUSH: Emma Anderson does a ranging interview at Consequence of Sound.

SPIN is being purchased by Buzzmedia, which already owns Stereogum, Hype Machine, and Idolator.

TOM CRUISE & KATIE HOLMES: Why did their divorce get settled so quickly? Cruise "didn't want his family dragged through the mud," a source told People.  Likely the understatement of the year.

BRITNEY SPEARS stormed off the X Factor set after listening to a cover of one of her songs.  After all, who wants to listen to that?

SOFIA VERGARA & NICK LOEB are engaged.

JESSICA BIEL's engagement ring was totally Justin Timberlake's call.

THE HUNGER GAMES trilogy will be four films, in the grand tradition of Twilight, Harry Potter and Mammon.

FIFTY SHADES OF GREY will head to the big screen, led by the producers of The Social Network.

THE DARK KNIGHT RISES soundtrack is streaming at Empire.

THE UNITED STATES: Rezwan Ferdaus, a Muslim American with a degree in physics, will plead guilty to terror charges in exchange for a reduced sentence. Ferdaus was arrested last fall by federal agents posing as al Qaeda operatives as he plotted to use model airplanes packed with explosives to bomb the US Capitol and the Pentagon.

KENYA: Police said that two Iranian Qods Force members arrested June 19 were planning attacks in Kenya. They face terror charges for shipping over 200 pounds of RDX to Kenya; 33 pounds have been found.

EGYPT's Islamist-dominated parliament opened a new front in the country's leadership showdowns Tuesday by meeting in defiance of orders that disbanded the chamber and brought President Mohammed Morsi in conflict with both the powerful military and the highest court.

OTTERS hopping at the Chester Zoo.

TORI the ORANGUTAN needs to guit smoking, but zoo visitors enable her.  She wants to be like them.

DOGS may protect babies from infections.

LEON the LEMUR let an umbrella be his umbrella.

CHUMBAWUMBA calls it quits this year. They claim there will be no reuinion, but you know, they get up again.

NEW RELEASES from Dirty Projectors, Mission of Burma, Old Crow Medicine Show and more, plus a best of the English Beat are streaming this week at Spinner.

FANG ISLAND is advance streaming Major.

LUCERO stopped by World Cafe for a chat and mini-set.

EXITMUSIC plays a Tiny Desk Concert at the offices of NPR.

THE RAVEONETTES drop "She Owns the Streets" ahead of Observator.

ARIEL PINK'S HAUNTED GRAFFITI drops the oh-so-summery “Only In My Dreams" ahead of Mature Themes.

THE STANDELLS play "Dirty Water" and "Storm A'Comin" live on the Mike Douglas Show on May 27, 1966. BONUS "Hey, Joe" for Threefer Tuesday.

REGINA SPEKTOR is profiled by The Telegraph.

JAPANDROIDS talk to Interview about band bios, their preferred narrative mode, The Hold Steady, and why Celebration Rock may not be a summer album after all. (Thx, Chromewaves.)

THE GOSSIP: Beth Ditto does a Q & A with The Guardian.

MICK JAGGER, DAVID BOWIE & THE PLAYBOY MODEL: The classic tale, reprised for Mick's biography.

TOM CRUISE & KATIE HOLMES have signed a divorce settlement hammered out by their lawyers. The issues of custody and religion are reportedly quite detailed.

SCARLETT JOHANSSON is set to pocket a record-breaking 20 million bucks to reprise her comic-book heroine role in an "Avengers" sequel.

KOURTNEY KARDASHIAN and boyfriend Scott Disick have welcomed their second child, a daughter named Penelope Scotland Disick.

SIENNA MILLER and fiance Tom Sturridge welcomed their first child over the weekend in London.

LILY ALLEN is expecting her second child with husband Sam Cooper.

PHILIP SEYMOUR HOFFMAN has signed on to play Plutarch Heavensbee in Catching Fire, the much anticipated second movie in the Hunger Games trilogy.

HAPPY DAYS are here again: Five cast members have settled their royalty lawsuit with CBS.

FRANCE: A TV station yesterday broadcast audio clips of recordings between Toulouse shooter Mohammed Merah and police negotiators during the siege before his death in March. In the recordings, Merah claimed links with al Qaeda members in Pakistan.

SYRIA: Al Qaeda in Iraq and other jihadist groups have been operating from within Syria for years, with the support of the Syrian government, and are now turning on their state sponsor.

IRAQ: The trial of Vice President Hashemi has been postponed as a federal court reviews an appeal.

AFGHANISTAN: The Taliban publicly executes a woman as the crowd cheers.

DACHSHUND vs CRAB: Who you got?

WOODCHUCKS are suspected in a rash of NY cemetery flag thefts, but I think they should be looking at squirrels.

AN IGUANA was rescued by Miami firefighters from a car dashboard.

KING PIG, a one-ton porker worshipped in China has been laid to rest at his own temple.

BLUR drops an in-studio video for "Under the Westway."

JEFF THE BROTHERHOOD is advance streaming Hypnotic Nights.

CLARE & THE REASONS advance stream KR-51 (which is a model of moped).

BARONESS is advance streaming the Yellow and Green double set.

KC & THE SUNSHINE BAND: "Boogie Shoes," live in Miami, circa 1974.

THE REPLACEMENTS: Pleased to Meet Me turns 25. I drove Music Works' Paul Miller out to the UPS depot to pick it up first thing that Tuesday morning.  I saw the opening show of the tour at First Ave. (w/ Young Fresh Fellows opening).  Get off my lawn.

CRO-MAGS co-founder Harley Flanagan attacked two current members of the band with a hunting knife before a gig at the CBGB Festival.

SLEIGH BELLS:  Derek and Alexis finish off each other’s sentences as they talk to Drowned In Sound about unleashing Reign Of Terror, Freddie Mercury as the ultimate front-person, and how they would have stopped at nothing to be the band they want to be.

20 SONGS for Sticking It to The Man.

WEEKEND BOX OFFICE: The Amazing Spider-Man tops the chart with 65 million (and a 140 million total to date).  That's good, but not nearly as good as The Avengers or The Hunger Games.  Indeed, it is not as good as the not-good 151-176 million Spider-Man 3 made in its first 3-6 days.  Still, it has a 341 million global total to date against a 230 million budget.  Ted places with a leggy 32.6 million and a mere 40 percent drop from its debut; its domestic total is 120 million against a 50 million budget, and hasn't played worldwide yet.  Brave shows with 20.2 million and continues to perform somewhere between Up and Wall-E.  Savages debuts in the fourth slot with 16.1 million against a 45 million budget.  Magic Mike rounds out the Top 5 with 15.6 million on a 60 percent drop -- which isn't terrible considering the subject and the fact that Warner Bros paid only 7 mill to distribute a film that has raked in 72.8 million domestic.

SAVAGES: If you needed proof that Oliver Stone still does sex, drugs and violence better than overt politics, Savages is your ticket. That said, Stone's adaptation of a novel by Don Winslow often seems to lack the propulsive narrative drive of his Scarface screenplay.  In a movie like JFK, Stone realized he needed sharp editing to keep folks interested; anyone thinking this will be paced like a Quentin Tarantino film will be disappointed (despite the occasional nod in that direction). However, setting aside the expectations set by the marketing, this is Stone's best film in years.  He largely succeeds in the not-easy task of getting you to buy the romantic triangle of the three ostensible leads, even making a sharp observation on it later in the film. And I say ostensible leads because Salma Hayek, Benicio Del Toro and John Travolta get the diabolically fun roles that are the real reason to see the film.  I suspect the divided opinion on this movie has much to do with its ending, which is a crazy, but entirely reasonable twist if you have fully invested, or a terrible cheat if you have not.

TOM CRUISE & KATIE HOLMES have called a temporary truce while their lawyers try to negotiate a full divorce settlement.

ELLIE KEMPER (The Office) has finally swapped her bridesmaid dress for a wedding gown.

GEORGE CLOONEY & STACY KIEBLER got food poisoning in Italy.

JENNIFER LOPEZ is developing an drama for ABC Family about a lesbian couple who suddenly have their already child heavy household turned upside down when a wayward teenage girl moves in.

NATALIE WOOD's death certificate has been changed from “Accident” to “Undetermined.”

ERNEST BORGNINE, the beefy screen star known for blustery, often villainous roles, but who won the Best Actor Oscar for playing against type as a lovesick butcher in "Marty" in 1955, died Sunday. He was 95.

A CAT eats watermelon.

THE SQUIRREL THREAT: 30 escape the zoo... 38 are recaptured.

THE SWARM: A honey producer near Grande Prairie, Alta., suspects another beekeeper may be responsible for the theft of millions of his bees.

...AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT: A fish with genitals on his head.

THE WEEKEND STARTS HERE:

...with PRINCE!  A full-length, unauthorized UK documentary on the Mpls icon, his career, and influence is available to watch in full via the internets.

BEACH HOUSE stopped by Morning Becomes Eclectic for a session.

TWIN SHADOW is advance streaming Confess. (Click through for a link to the similarly 80s-synthy Chromatics LP.)

NEIL YOUNG stopped by World Cafe for a chat and some true Americana.

THE REPLACEMENTS' Final Show, July 4, 1991.

SPINNER produced its June mixtape for July.

IGGY POP & BETHANY COSENTINO recorded a song for the True Blood soundtrack called "Let's Boot And Rally."

WALTHAM: "Cheryl (Come and Take a Ride)" would've been a smash in the 80s.

PAUL HEATON (Housemartins, Beautiful South) is interviewed by Gareth Paisey (Los Campesinos!) at Drowned In Sound about Heaton's "soul opera," The 8th.

THE TOP 20 PUNK PROTEST SONGS, according to PopMatters.

10 GREAT VIDEOS WITH PUPPETS, courtesy of Paste.

THE BEST of 2012 (So Far), according to The Line of Best Fit, Part 1 and Part 2.

CUTOUT BIN: From the Jesus & Mary Chain to Jan & Dean, from the Beatles to Big Country, from  Brendan Benson to George Benson, plus Queen, Love & Rockets, James Brown, the Ramones and more -- this Friday's fortuitous finds are streaming from the Pate page at the ol' HM.

NOW SHOWING:  In addition to The Amazing Spider-Man, which is currently scoring 73 percent on the ol' Tomatometer, this weekend's wide releases include Oliver Stone's Savages, scoring 51 percent; and Katy Perry: Part of Me, scoring 78 percent. (Updated.)

TOM CRUISE & KATIE HOLMES have cut off all contact with each other, and her people are making it difficult for Tom to have contact with his daughter.

MATTHEW McCONAUGHEY and his wife, Camila Alves, are expecting a thrid child.

CLAIRE DANES & HUGH DANCY are expecting their first child.

JOHNNY DEPP & VANESSA PARADIS reportedly were on the rocks for two years.

THE BLUES BROTHERS: Never-before-seen photographs.

THE 10 BEST TV SHOWS of 2012 (So Far), according to Paste.

THE 10 BEST YEARS for SUMMER BLOCKBUSTERS, according to Paste.

THE DEJA VU of Indie Movie Love.

THE UNITED KINGDOM: Antiterrorism police arrested six people, including three brothers from Stratford, the site of the Olympic Games.

SYRIA: Opposition political groups meeting in Cairo agreed to a transition plan and to support the Free Syrian Army, but failed to form a unified representative body.

IRAQ has "solid information" that al Qaeda militants are crossing from Iraq into Syria to carry out attacks and has sent reinforcements to the border, the foreign minister said on Thursday.

A BOSTON TERRIER cuddles a BABY GUINEA PIG...

LIL BUB will be a kitten forever for medical reasons.

CAT RESCUED FROM A TREE: It only took a week.

THE WORLD'S TINIEST FLY decapitates ants - then lives in their heads. 

JEFF the BROTHERHOOD's video for "Sixpack" may be NSFW.

DIRTY PROJECTORS are advance streaming Swing Lo Magellan via the NYT. David Longstreth talks to Pitchfork about writing personal songs and moving away from abstraction.

BRENDAN BENSON stopped by The Current for a chat and mini-set.

BRANDI CARLISLE stopped by The Current for a chat and mini-set.

DELTA SPIRIT stopped by The Current for a chat and mini-set.

FANG ISLAND drops "Seek It Out" ahead of Major.

BO DONALDSON & THE HEYWOODS: "Billy, Don't Be a Hero," from the Summer of '74. Workin' the Elvis jumpuit look.

SMASHING PUMPKINS: Billy Corgan thinks the next Lennon or Cobain will come from "India, Africa or China."

MATTHEW DEAR explains how he put his latest album together at The Line of Best Fit. (Thx, LHB.)

THE TOP 20 ALBUMS We've Been Waiting For Forever.

A HISTORY OF ROCK 'N' ROLL in 100 Riffs.

SEEKING A FRIEND FOR THE END OF THE WORLD: A romantic indie dramedy using the apocalypse for its meet-cute was almost certainly doomed to have a problem finding itself. Even so, Keira Knightley and Steve Carell are pretty charming in this tale of the state of love in the state of nature.  The highlights here -- e.g., a scene in a roadside restaurant, Knightley talking about her record collection -- make up for the gloom generally hangining over the proceedings.  Not compelling, but ultimately touching.

THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN shattered the Tuesday box office record. But what happened to the stuff in the trailer?

TOM CRUISE tops the Forbes Highest-Paid Actors List.

KATIE HOLMES's decision to leave Tom Cruise may have seemed sudden, but it involved meticulous planning.  Holmes reportedly was desperate to save Suri from a form of interrogation practiced by the Church of Scientology.

JACK REACHER, in which Tom Cruise plays 6' 5", has a teaser trailer online.

EVA LONGORIA and... Jets QB Mark Sanchez?

KATE BECKINSALE prefers normal aging to plastic surgery.

THE BEST INDIE MOVIES of 2012 (So Far), according to IndieWire.

SYRIA: Assad expressed regret over shooting down a Turkish jet. Turkey scrambled fighter jets for a third day after Syrian helicopters flew near to the Turkey-Syrian border.

PAKISTAN reopens the NATO supply route after the US apologizes for losses suffered by the Pakistani military.

A TWO-LEGGED KITTEN plays with a ball and gets around fine.

AN ABANDONED BABY KANGAROO is being hand reared by keepers in Germany.

ZOMBIE WORMS use acid to eat the bones of seabed skeletons.

PET HOARDING: 30 Cats, 1 Jeep.