MONSTERS OF FOLK "Say Please" on the Tonight Show.

FANFARLO has an interview plus tracks streaming via All Things Considered.

THE RURAL ALBERTA ADVANTAGE stopped by The Current for a chat and mini-set streaming via MPR.

ERIN McKEOWN palyed the World Cafe Friday; you can stream the gig on demand via NPR.

THE AVETT BROS did a World Cafe chat and mini-set streaming via NPR.

U2 played "Breathe" and "Moment of Surrender" from No Line On The Horizon and closed with "Ultraviolet (Light My Way)" fromAchtung Baby live on Sat. night.

PETE YORN and SCARLETT JOHANSSON have an interview plus duets streaming via NPR.

THE BASEBALL PROJECT: Steve Wynn talks to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution about his side gig: "It's pretty funny. I've been making records for 25 years. But it took me going back to sports writing to get on the Letterman Show."

BUILT TO SPILL: Doug Martsch talks to the Mpls City Pages about touring, recording, etc.

JOHN VANDERSLICE talks to Austinist about his latest work, 2009's Romanian Names, which he'll be showcasing at the ACL Festival next month.

WEEKEND BOX OFFICE:  Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs repeats at No.1 with 24.6 million, on a mere 19 percent drop.  It will lose some screens next weekend to the Toy Story 3-D re-releases.  Surrogates comes in second with 15 million -- which looks pretty bad against an 80 million budget.  The Fame remake debuts in third with 10 million, which looks better against an 18 million budget.  The Informant! came in fourth with 6.9 million, and is doing better than most thought, having just about recouped its 22 million production budget.  Tyler Perry's I Can Do Bad All By Myself rounds out the Top Five, and is doing about average for a Perry flick.  Below the fold, Pandorum opened in sixth with 4.4 million, against a 40 million budget. Ouch.

ROMAN POLANSKI was arrested by Swiss police as he flew in for the Zurich Film Festival and faces possible extradition to the US for having sex in 1977 with a 13-year-old girl. Since there are people in showbiz and the media who will try to paint this as some sort of injustice, I'm linking to Bill Wyman's writings on the Polanski documentary, as well as the 13-year-old's grand jury testimony in the cae. Those who cite the now grown woman's support of Polanski tend to omit mention that she reached an out-of-court settlement with him.  They also tend to forget that criminal cases are brought by the State on behalf of its people, not a particular victim.

CONAN O'BRIEN reportedly suffered a concussion after hitting his head while filming a stunt for the show on Friday with Desperate Housewives actress Teri Hatcher.

KHLOE KARDAHIAN and LAMAR ODOM: Hitched.

BIJOU PHILLIPS says she knew about Mackenzie's claim of a ten-year relationship with their father "Papa" John Phillips -- and gives a modified limited hangout reaction.

JAIME PRESSLY got hitched to entertainment lawyer Simran Singh in an evening ceremony Saturday.

PAMELA ANDERSON is more than a million bucks in debt.

TAWNY KITAEN was busted on suspicion of DUI. There she goes again on her own.

MILEY CYRUS will be in Sex and the City 2.

IRAN admitted it is building a clandestine underground nuclear fuel manufacturing plant, which Iran's leaders have hidden from weapons inspectors. Pres. Obama said "the size and configuration of this facility is inconsistent with a peaceful program."  Experts say Iran must be building at least one other unreported facility.  The classified version of our 2007 National Intelligence Estimate suspects that Iran has 10 to 15 other nuclear-related facilities, never opened to international inspectors, where enrichment activity, weapons work or the manufacturing of centrifuges might be taking place.

AFGHANISTAN: US forces are welcomed in the provincial capital of Day Kundi in central Afghanistan. Osama bin Laden on Friday issued a fresh warning to European countries to part ways with the US and withdraw their forces from Afghanistan. The most dangerous course, according to some military strategists and diplomats in Afghanistan, is the middle ground.

WILD TURKEYS are wreaking havoc in a Cherry Hill, NJ neighborhood.

STINKY THE CAT: Eight lives left.

A TINY INSECT threatens California's 1.6-billion dollar citrus industry.

KITTEH in the engine.

THE WEEKEND STARTS HERE:

... with THE BYRDS! The turning of the seasons had me in the mood for this rare live threefer of "Turn! Turn! Turn!", "Bells of Rhymney" and "Mr. Tambourine Man", introduced by... David McCallum? There are more screaming girls, plus go-go dancers when they hit Shivaree for "All I Really Want to Do" and "Feel A Whole Lot Better."  There are even more dancers when they cover Buddy Holly's "Not Fade Away" for Shindig! on June 23, 1965, while I'm pretty sure that's Ed Wynn introducing "Chimes of Freedom." 

HOPE SANDOVAL and the WARM INVENTIONS are streaming their album at Amazon. Look for the "listening party" link

BRANDI CARLILE stopped by The Current for a chat and mini-set streaming on demand via MPR.

THE TOP SONGS OF 1980, according to the AOL radio blog, with embedded audio.

NOUVELLE VAGUE, specializing in cover songs with a twist (or a Bossa Nova), played a session for Morning Becomes Eclectic.  The band "goes Hollywood" for this set, covering songs from 80s soundtracks.

GANG OF FOUR, a Pate fave, plays their classic "Damaged Goods" on Later! with Jools Holland.

RICHARD HAWLEY talks to MAGNET about his new album, and guest-edits their blog, with entries on the Velvet Underground, the 13th Floor Elevators, John Steinbeck, Smoke Fairies, and more...

OF MONTREAL, 2009-09-18 in NYC, courtesy of nyctaper.

RICHAR BUCKNER talks to Access Atlanta from a motel in rural Ohio.

CUTOUT BIN: From the Beach Boys to Led Zeppelin, from the Clash to Tommy James and the Shondells, from Lucinda Williams to the Stooges, plus Stevie Wonder, the Raveonettes, the Outfield and more   -- this Friday's fortuitous finds are streaming from the Pate page at the ol' HM.

NOW SHOWING: This weekend's wide releases are the Fame remake, currently scoring 22 percent on thin reviews at the ol' Tomatometer; the Bruce Willis sci-fi flick Surrogates, currently scoring 63 percent; and the Dennis Quaid sci-fi flick Pandorum, which was not screened for critics.

RANDY QUAID and his wife Evi will reportedly be charged three felonies: defrauding an innkeeper, conspiracy and burglary.  Law enforcement sources tell TMZ they believe Randy and Evi Quaid have a pattern of staying in pricey hotels and stiffing the joints when they leave.

MACKENZIE PHILLIPS will return to the Oprah show with her half-sister Chynna

SAVED BY THE BELL: Dustin Diamond's shocking tell-all, Behind the Bell, claims drug use and sex were rampant on the set of the hit NBC Saturday-morning sitcom..

KHLOE KARDASHIAN and LAMAR ODOM's quickie wedding is a publicity stunt, says singer Mya.  Plausible.

JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE and JESSICA BIEL will climb mt. Kilamanjaro to raise awareness for the global need for clean water.

ERIC IDLE responds to fatuous YouTube commenters.

JULIA ROBERTS disrupts an Indian religious festival.

TIM BURTON'S SUPERMAN: Leaked photos show why this never got the green light.

TERROR in the USA: A grand jury indicted a 24-year-old Afghan immigrant on a charge of conspiring to carry out bombings in the US, alleging he and unnamed others planned to make explosives from hair products and household cleaners in what officials say may be the first al Qaeda cell disrupted on American soil since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

IRAN: The White House is hailing a brief public comment from Russian President Dmitri Medvedev that raises the specter of sanctions against Iran as a breakthrough for US efforts to win support for a tougher global line against Tehran's nuclear program. We'll see.

DWARF MONGOOSE PUPS: Let's go to the video.

DOZENS OF SEA TURTLES DIE in marriage proposal.

A LARGE WATER RAT sneaked into a motor home and attacked a woman as she lay in her bed, after she had mistaken the animal for her three-legged cat.

MAFIA CROCODILE seized in Naples.

IF ONLY it had a catchy name.

YO LA TENGO shot a Takeaway Show for La Blogotheque, starting with a cover of The Troggs' "With a Girl Like You."

SONDRE LERCHE stopped by The Current for a chat and mini-set streaming on demand via MPR.

DAN WILSON also stopped by The Current for a chat and mini-set.

SOULSAVERS, featuring Mark Lanegan, are streaming the Broken album.

A FALL MUSIC PREVIEW, including Jay Farrar and Ben Gibbard, the Flaming Lips and a Kinks choral track, is streaming via All Songs Considered.

MONSTERS OF FOLK are in "The Right Place."

THE ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAME Nominees for 2010 the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Kiss, Genesis, ABBA, L.L. Cool J, Darlene Love, Donna Summer, Jimmy Cliff, Laura Nyro, the Chantels, the Hollies and the Stooges.  Now that one of the Stooges is dead, perhaps these bozos will finally wake up.  Snubbed: Yes, Rush, Chicago, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Willie Nelson, the Monkees, Neil Diamond, Judas Priest, Bon Jovi, Brian Eno and Gram Parsons.

MADONNA: NPR is streaming Madge's big hits (inexplicably missing "Like a Virgin") to mark her latest "best of" package.

FLAMING LIPS: Wayne Coyne talks to Brooklyn Vegan about the band's upcoming LP, curating and headlining All Tomorrow's Parties New York, and more...

NO AGE: Randy Randall and Dean Allen Spunt talk to CMJ about the band's origins.

CHYNNA PHILLIPS already knew about -- and believes Mackenzie Phillips's claim that she had a 10-year affair with her father, musician John Phillips.  Michelle Phillips doesn't buy it, telling the Hollywood Reporter that Mackenzie has "a lot of mental illness," and that "she's had a needle stuck up her arm for 35 years."

ELLEN POMPEO (Grey's Anatomy) and husband Chris Ivery have welcomed their first child, a girl.

BRITNEY SPEARS: A court document detailing 11 months of the pop wreck's credit card spending has leaked online.

K-FED (Britney Spears's Fed-Ex) is joining the cast of VH-1's Celebrity Fit Club.

KHLOE KARDASHIAN and LAMAR ODOM's quickie wedding has shocked Odom's baby mama.

ANNA NICOLE SMITH IS STILL DEAD, but attorney Howard K. Stern faces new charges in the death of former Playboy model.

JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE and JESSICA BIEL... and Rihanna?

JACKLYN SMITH, contrary to Honduran media reports, is alive, but her stunt double was shot.

DIABLO CODY is in talks to adapt the Sweet Valley High books for the big screen.

TERROR in the USA: Police in NYC stepped up their patrols and increased their random searches on subways and buses Wednesday following reports that as many as 24 more people are under observation in a suspected cross-country terror plot.

IRAN: Argentina, Australia, Britain, Costa Rica, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, New Zealand and the United States walked out on Ahmadinejad at the UN General Assembly.

AFGHANISTAN: Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal writes that he has evidence that factions of Pakistani and Iranian spy services are supporting insurgent groups that carry out attacks on coalition troops.

BORN FREE: A man and 38 lions, hanging out together... mass hysteria!

MONKEY on a GOAT on a VASE on a ROPE: Your Seussian photo of the day.

A GIANT SQUID, larger than a New York City taxi, was captured in the Gulf of Mexico.

A DUCT-TAPED CAT: Is there anything lower?

A DOG-FIGHTING RING at a daycare center. I guess we have an answer.

SHARKS on a plane.

PANDAS, Die with Dignity!

EDITORS: "Papillon" has a touch of the Factory sound about it.

THE RAVEONETTES are advance streaming In and Out of Control.

THE AVETT BROTHERS are advance streaming I And Love And You via NPR.

LOU BARLOW (Dinosaur Jr., Sebadoh) is advance streaming Goodnight Unknown via NPR. 

CURSIVE did three free songs for Daytrotter, including covers of "Love Cats" and "Modern Love."

DUMPTRUCK: "Back Where I Belong."  Freakishly, I discover I posted this video almost exactly a year ago. It must be back-to-school music in my brain.

LUCINDA WILLIAMS got hitched onstage last Friday! Congrats!

THE MONSTERS OF FOLK  talk to Paste about the making of their album, which Jim James compares to summer camp.

VOLCANO CHOIR guitarist Chris Rosenau talks to Express Night Out about working with Bon Iver mastermind Justin Vernon. (Thx, LHB.)

F***KED UP frontman Damian Abraham talks to the Toronto Star after winning the 2009 Polaris Prize.

HEATHER LOCKLEAR is returning to Melrose Place.

MACKENZIE PHILLIPS claims she slept with "Papa" John Phillips. Quotes optional in this case. Ew.

SARAH MICHELLE PRINZE and FREDDIE PRINZE JR. welcome a daughter.

DAVID HASSELHOFF claims he was hospitalized for an ear problem, not alcohol poisoning.

KHLOE KARDASHIAN and LAMAR ODOM are getting married this weekend. Not wasting time, these two.

ANNA NICOLE SMITH IS STILL DEAD, and court documents her pharmacist refused to fill her prescription, and called the list of drugs ordered by her doctor, "pharmaceutical suicide."

LINDSAY LOHAN was friends with man arrested for allegedly burglarizing her house.

JASON SEGEL... and Chloë Sevigny?

VERA LYNN: Does anyone here remember her?  She said "We'll Meet Again," some sunny day. She talks to TIME about topping the British charts at age 92.

SHERLOCK HOLMES isn't due until Christmas, but they're already talking sequel.

TERROR in the USA: Detectives were combing Queens storage facilities for stockpiled explosive chemicals that Al Qaeda terror thugs planned to use to bomb New York, sources said.  The Queens imam arrested in the Denver terrorism probe is an FBI informant the feds say became a double agent - tipping suspects that they were in the government's crosshairs. And it is possible that the NYPD blew the case early.

IRAN's nuclear chief on Tuesday claimed Teheran has built a "new generation" of high capacity centrifuges.

AFGHANISTAN: McClatchy reports that military officers close to Gen. McChrystal said he is prepared to resign if he isn't given sufficient resources to implement a change of direction.

BABY TIGER: Let's go to the video.

A RUNAWAY EMU was tased and cuffed in Scott County, Mississippi.

SOUTH AMERICAN PIRANHA caught in the Delaware River.

DEAD SALMON... or just resting?

GREAT LAKE SWIMMERS: "Still."

NEW RELEASES: Pearl Jam, Amy Millan, Hope Sandoval, Islands, Richard Hawley, Sea Wolf, Vic Chestnutt, Early Day Miners, Girls, Hidden Camera, Times New Viking and more are streaming in full via Spinner this week.  Paul Westerberg has a download-only EP out today, too.

TELEKINESIS performed a Tiny Desk Concert as a duo at NPR.

DAVID GRAY stopped by the World Cafe for a mini-set streaming now via NPR.

BIG STAR: Jody Stephens talks to Aquarium Drunkard about his influences, the Memphis scene, and the new box set.

THOM YORKE put out a new 12-inch single, "Feeling Pulled Apart By Horses," b/w "The Hollow Earth," just in time for Twofer Tuesday.  The latter is an actual video, and more my bag than the former, I guess.  Who cares what's on the flip side? I do!

THE MONSTERS OF FOLK talk to the L.A. Times about the writing and recording of their collaboration.

THE PAINS OF BEING PURE AT HEART: Kip Berman e-mails the SF Appeal about the band's origins, children's stories, and more... (Thx, LHB.)

RUFUS WAINWRIGHT talks to the L.A. Times about his live CD/DVD, out today.

FAVORITE ALBUMS OF THE DECADE, according to Pretty Much Amazing.

ZOOEY DESCHANEL and BEN GIBBARD got hitched Saturday night. Granted, we all knew this was coming, but I'm still calling Darth Vader.

DAVID HASSELHOFF was reportedly taken by ambulance to a hospital because he again has alcohol poisoning.

IGGY POP will appear in Lego Rock Band for the holidays. You want to see the pics. Yes, you do.

JESSICA SIMPSON's friends fret that the pneumatic blonde is in a tailspin after losing her beloved Maltipoo Daisy to a coyote attack.

THE EMMYS rebounded in the ratings, for which credit must be due to Neeil Patrick Harris, as most of the rest of the show was lame.

KRISTIN CHENOWITH was checked by paramedics after her emotional Emmy win for migraine symptoms.

MEGAN FOX wears a bag over her head for an interview with the National Lampoon.

DREW BARRYMORE and ELLEN PAGE, kissing, just in time for Gratuitous Tuesday.

TERROR in the USA: After arrests this weekend in the alleged New York terror plot, FBI agents believe an active terror cell directed by al Qaeda was preparing an attack on NYC, and authorities say they have yet to identify everyone involved.

IRAN: Ahmadinejad said he was proud that his denials of the Holocaust have enraged the West. Russian Pres. Medvedev said Israel is not planning on a preemptive strike against Iran. The head of Russia's assembly denied any US-Russia deal on Iran.

AFGHANISTAN: According to a leaked report, Gen. McCrystal is seeking more troops and a change in strategy or the US will encounter "mission failure." Coalition and Afghan troops have halted offensive operations to observe the UN's International Day of Peace; no word on whether the Taliban and al Qaeda are reciprocating.

DOG WALKS ON A BALL: Let's go to the video.

THE SQUIRREL THREAT: A squirrel has been seen attempting to savage a fruit bat to death.

A MONKEY has pushed a woman off a cliff in China.

BIG BULL seeks match in Malaysia.

SPIDER-MAN LIZARD, Spider-Man Lizard, does whatever a Spider-Man Lizard can.