VAMPIRE WEEKEND, doing an appropos Hallowwen Kimmel hit, debuted "Unbelievers."

SNOW PATROL stopped by The Current for a chat and mini-set.

LORD HURON plays a Tiny Desk Concert at the NPR offices.

CALEXICO stops by Oregon Public Broadcasting for a session.

PASSION PIT plays a Tiny Desk Concert at the NPR offices.

PERE UBU is back with a new song, "Free White," from a new album, Lady From Shanghai, due in January.

THE MAMAS & PAPAS: Can't trust that day.

TITUS ANDRONICUS and Punk Patriotism.

LOU REED: PopMatters catalogs his 10 spookiest songs. MTV Hive picks top covers of The Velvet Underground & Nico LP. (Thx, LHB.)

BOB MOULD, HUSKER DU & SUGAR: Ranked by Stereogum.

20 HITS written for other artists.

WEEKEND BOX OFFICE: Wreck-It Ralph has this weekend's high score with 49.1 million, despite Hurricane Sandy, raising the prospect it will make money on its 165 million budget domestically and clean up worldwide. Flight places with 25 million, well above tracking estimates, but right about on target for a Denzel Washington movie. Look for this to clean up on a 31 million budget, and do well in awards season.  Argo shows with 10.2 million --  not bad in light of competition from Flight; Affleck & Co have grossed 75.9 million domestic against a 44.5 million budget.  The Man With the Iron Fists debuts in fourth with 8.2 million against a 15 million budget; pretty good for a flick that could go on to some cult following.  Taken 2 rounds out the Top 5 with 6 million on a 125 million run.  Below the fold, Cloud Atlas and Hotel Transylvania take it in the chops.

AMANDA BYNES threatens suit against InTouch magazine: "I'm not 'troubled.' I don't get naked in public. I'm 26, a multi-millionaire, retired. Please respect my privacy."

ROBERT PATTINSON & KRISTEN STEWART laughed and joked their way through first TV interview together since the affair scandal.

CEE LO GREEN: The woman who filed a police report accusing the singer of sexual battery secretly recorded a a reportedly damaging conversation with him.

JESSICA SIMPSON's dad denies stories he's gay. NTTAWWT.

BRITNEY SPEARS: A Los Angeles judge dismissed a lawsuit by Sam Lufti, the one-time confidante of the pop tart, ruling there was insufficient evidence to go forward with the trial on allegations of defamation, assault and breach of contract.

LEONARDO DiCAPRIO and supermodel Erin Heatherton are dunzo.

LIBYA: A bomb attached to a police car exploded in front of a Benghazi police station, injuring three policemen and damaging the building. Police have arrested several suspects.

SYRIA: A bomb attached to a police car exploded in front of a Benghazi police station, injuring three policemen and damaging the building. Police have arrested several suspects.

EGYPT: Salafists demonstrated in Cairo for greater use of sharia law in Egypt's constitution. Salafists clashed with Liberal protesters who chanted slogans against President Mursi. Police arrested 12 suspects linked to al Qaeda; weapons and explosives were also seized.

COATI nibbles FENNEC FOX...Mass hysteria!

RODENTS OF UNUSUAL SIZE: The new livestock?

DON'T BRING A DEER GUN to a bear fight.

HUNDREDS OF YETIS live in Siberia, according to a "controversial" Russian scientist.

THE WEEKEND STARTS HERE:

... with TALKING HEADS! To maintain a low profile, I won't mention the title of this set, which should be known to some of you. I saw this tour and it remains one of the more impressive shows I have seen. This selection includes "Psycho Killer," "Heaven," "Thank You For Sending Me An Angel," "Found A Job," "Slippery People," "Burning Down The House," "Life During Wartime," "Making Flippy Floppy," "Swamp," "What A Day That Was," "This Must be the Place (Naïve Melody)," "Once In A Lifetime," "Genius Of Love" (as Tom Tom Club), "Girlfriend Is Better," Pate staple "Take Me To The River" and "Cross-eyed and Painless." 

ARIEL PINK'S HAUNTED GRAFFITI stopped by Morning Becomes Eclectic for a session.

TWIN SHADOW stops by World Cafe for a chat and mini-set.

MATTHEW DEAR stopped by Morning Becomes Eclectic for a session.

SUGAR: Live at Cat's Cradle, Nov. 19, 1994.

COUSTEAU: "The Last Good Day of the Year." Or close to it.

PETE TOWNSHEND talks to The Guardian and reads an excerpt from his autobiography.

BETH ORTON talks to All Things Considered about how songwriting is like maple syrup, and more.

THE TOP 5 BANDS That Should Be Way Bigger Than They Are is up for discussion at All Songs Considered.

BILL DEES, songwriter whose notable hits included Roy Orbison's "Oh, Pretty Woman" and "It's Over," died in Arkansas last week at age 73.

CUTOUT BIN: From Patterson Hood to Toto, from Jimi Hendix to the Jesus & Mary Chain, from Led Zeppelin to This Mortal Coil, plus the Only Ones, Specials, Knack, Urge Overkill, Faces 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: Wreck-It Ralph, which is currently scoring 83 percent on the ol' Tomatometer; The Man with the Iron Fists, which is scoring 75 percent in early reviews; and Flight, scoring 82 percent.

CHARLIE SHEEN is back to his old ways, snorting cocaine and smoking crack on a daily basis, according to RadarOnline.

GENE HACKMAN had given clothes, money and rides to a homeless man whom Hackman slapped this week after the man became aggressive toward the Oscar-winning actor and his wife.

CHRIS BROWN decided to be a Taliban fighter for Halloween. Classy.

ASHTON KUTCHER & DEMI MOORE have taken no steps to end their marriage... legally.

BENEDICT CUMBERBATCH (Sherlock) will star in a Brian Epstein biopic.

SYRIA: Secretary of State Clinton called for reorganization of the Syrian opposition to better reflect those fighting in the conflict, dismissing the Syrian National Council as remote and warning that extremist groups were trying to hijack the revolution.

IRAN: The Syrian revolution has significantly affected Iran's image in the Arab world and clearly had a negative impact on Arab perception of Iranian policies in the region.

EGYPT: Minorities Fear End of Secularism.

SLEEPY KITTY: The supporting cast makes this clip. (Thx, Zoey.)

500 CATS rescued from death in Chinese restaurants.

THE SQUIRREL THREAT: Halloween edition.

THOUSANDS OF NYC RATS may have drowned in superstorm Sandy.

PAUL BANKS (Interpol) got "Young Again" at the Ed Sullivan Theater.

CALEXICO plays and talks tacos at WNYC Soundcheck.

MENOMENA play a few for WNYC Souncheck and discuss the changes to their lineup, the family histories that inspired this latest release, and why drummer Danny Seim will always love Amy Grant.

LOST IN THE TREES plays a session at Morning Becomes Eclectic.

BETH ORTON stopped by Morning Becomes Eclectic for a session.

PSYCHEDELIC FURS perform an unpluggedy "Love My Way."

DEPECHE MODE: Dave Gahan tries to avoid spoilers about the new LP in an interview with Consequence of Sound.

LOU REED: Tablet explores his relationship to the work of Delmore Schwartz.

CAT POWER: Chan Marshall has money and health issues.

PETRA HADEN will be working her (mostly) a cappella magic when she "Goes to the Movies."

DISNEYLUCAS: Vader celebrates his assimilation by the Mouse. I have a bad feeling about this.

JESSICA SIMPSON's dad hired a gay male escort, according to RadarOnline. He also is reported to have lavished gifts on a boy toy.

CEE-LO GREEN is the target of an LAPD sexual battery investigation, but the singer adamantly denies the allegation.

GENE HACKMAN pimp-slapped a homeless man who physically threatened the actor and his wife outside a New Mexico restaurant.

EVAN RACHEL WOOD & JAMIE BELL tied the knot.

STEVEN TYLER and his longtime fiancée, Erin Brady, are on the rocks.

KATE MOSS talks Johnny Depp and raising Hell with Vanity Fair.

CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER firms up its cast, including Scarlett Johansson, Cobie Smulders and Anthony Mackie.

GERMANY: Police arrested Fouad Charouali, a French national wanted for his role in the 2003 Casablanca bombings, at an airport in Munich as he was traveling with his family from Paris to Dubai.

YEMEN: A pipeline transporting liquefied natural gas to the Balhaf terminal was bombed. Yemen's former ambassador to Syria said that country was used as a conduit for Iran to foment unrest in Yemen.

IRAQ: Al Qaeda in Iraq assassinated a tribal leader who opposed the group in Haditha. Security forces killed an al Qaeda leader in Mosul. The Ministry of Defense said it is creating a counterterrorism studies center in Anbar.

JUSTIN, the painting horse.

A BABY COCKATOO is born to two birds illegally smuggled into Britain. No word on citizenship.

RACCOONS introduced by the Nazis have officially occupied Germany after experts admitted they are there to stay.

A FOX steals a handbag... then returns it.

BOB MOULD tears through the chock-full-o-references "Keep Believing" for Conan.

A HALLOWEEN MIX, streaming courtesy of Folk Alley.

THE JON SPENCER BLUES EXPLOSION stopped by The Current for a chat and mini-set.

LOW played a short set on the Mountain Stage.

BRIAN ENO is advance streaming LUX, a return to his ambient thing.

GUADALCANAL DIARY: From the "Where Are They Now?" file (and MTV's 120 Minutes), we have a semi-live take on "Watusi Rodeo."

TITUS ANDRONICUS: Patrick Stickles talks to The Guardian about the nature of art, beards - and what happens when you grow up and move to Brooklyn.

NOEL GALLAGHER spoke with The A.V. Club about abandoning projects, feeding his cat, working with hippies, and looking like Keith Richards.

SAINT ETIENNE: Sarah Cracknell talks to the WaPo about the band's seven-year nonhiatus.

10 FORGOTTEN SUPERGROUPS YOU SHOULD KNOW, according to NME.

DISNEY BUYS LUCASFILM for 4.05 billion in cash and stock; Star Wars Episode VII targeted for 2015 release.  What say you, Lord Vader?  One would like to think that the Mouse could do better with this franchise, but George already has story treatments.  That said, this is a relative steal for Disney, which paid more for Pixar.  Disney gets not only the residuals and merch rights, but also Industrial Light & Magic and Skywalker Sound, which work on most every Hollywood blockbuster  -- including those from Marvel Studios, which Disney also bought not too long ago.  The Avengers 2 just got cheaper to make through the magic of creative accounting, wherein Disney pays itself for work it once paid Lucas.

JESSICA SIMPSON's dad's affair with an aspiring male model unraveled after his wife Tina made a mad dash to New York City to confront her husband about the alleged trysts, according to RadarOnline.

RUSSELL BRAND just got sued by a pedestrian who claims the actor drove into him earlier this year in Los Angeles.

TONI BRAXTON fraudulently transferred 53,490 to her estranged husband in order to avoid paying back creditors in her bankruptcy case - so says the trustee of Toni's bankruptcy estate.

OCTOMOM checks into rehab; the litter is with nannies.

ELIZABETH TAYLOR tops the latest Forbes list of Top-Earning Dead Celebs.

MAD MAX: FURY ROAD - There's no love lost between Tom Hardy and Charlize Theron on the set.

SYRIA: Warplanes bombed rebel targets with renewed intensity on Tuesday after the end of a widely ignored four-day truce.

PAKISTAN: The Taliban's attack on education goes well byond the attack on Malala Yousufzai.

IRAN aims to defy sanctions through domestic production.

A GIRL cuddles a CAMEL...Mass hysteria!

THE SQUIRREL THREAT: Halloween edition.

DOGOWEEN: They will turn against us, someday.

CATOWEEN: Oh yes, they will turn against us.

THE SEA & CAKE drop a video for "Harps," about 3 mos after releasing the single.

NEW RELEASES from Andrew Bird, Chad Valley, Lulu Gainsbourg and more are streaming this week via Spinner.

THE SHINS & DR. DOG played Austin City Limits and the whole shebang is streaming now.

GRIZZLY BEAR performs tracks from its new album and chats with David Dye at World Cafe.

ANDY STOTT is advance streaming Luxury Problems.

RANK AND FILE: The seminal country-punk band formed by brothers Chip and Tony Kinman -- and including Alejandro Escovedo -- checks in with "Amanda Ruth" and their title song for Twofer Tuesday.

BOB MOULD talks to MOJO about returning to guitar rock, and the fate of the Hüsker Dü catalog.

PAUL BANKS (Interpol) gives Drowned In Sound a track-by-track tour of his solo LP.

GUIDED BY VOICES: Tobin Sprout talks to Rolling Stone about the reunited band's new LP.

THE 10 MOST PRETENTIOUS ALBUMS, according to NME.

MILA KUNIS sparks pregnancy rumors. Or possibly had a large lunch.

LINDSAY LOHAN doesn't think Hurricane sandy is a big deal.

TOM CRUISE is not leaving Scientology.

KRISTEN STEWART & ROBERT PATTINSON: Headed Down Under?

BRITNEY SPEARS' ex-nanny -- who called BS on Sam Lutfi's accusation the singer had crystal meth in her house -- is a liar and a fraud ... according to Lutfi.

HULK HOGAN has settled his lawsuit against his ex-BFF, Bubba the Love Sponge, over the sex tape scandal -- but presses on with others.

SPEED RACER: Unsung Masterpiece. Easier to follow than Cloud Atlas, anyway.

YEMEN: US drones killed four al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula operatives in an airstrike in Saada in the north. Two Saudi financiers are said to have been killed in the strike.

SYRIA: A UN-sponsored truce ended as fighting resumed across the country. Fighting spread to Kurdish sections of Aleppo. Sunni and Shia fighters from Iraq have entered Syria, bolstering forces on both sides of the conflict.

WHY IRAN Wants to Attack the United States.

A PUPPY escapes, with a little help from his friend.

THE SQUIRREL THREAT: A militant rodent was caught trying to inflitrate the sewer system in Munich, Germany.

CANE TOADS learn to survive on cow pats. Another reason not to lick them.

OFT-ESCAPING PIG confiscated in Brockton, MA.