THE WEEKEND STARTS HERE:

...with THE BEAT FARMERS!  Because I was in the mood for an encore of this more sober than usual, professionally-shot, early BF gig recorded at Universal Studios, including "There She Goes Again" (VU); "Road to Ruin," "Bigger Fool," "Reason to Believe" (Springsteen), "Powderfinger" (N. Young), "Happy Boy," "Big Ugly Wheels," "Bigger Stones," "Gun Sale at the Church," "Dallas Blues," "I Wanna Be Free," "Lakeside Trailer Park," "Death Train," and "Seven Year Itch."  If you're new to the band, my picks would be "Bigger Stones," "Happy Boy" and the cover of your choice.  SUPER-SPECIAL BONUS:  Now how much would you pay?  But wait... there's more!  If you really want to see someone put the "bar" in "bar band," watch these NSFW clips from Houston, TX of the late Country Dick Montana leading the band through "Lucille" (K. Rogers) -- complete with his favorite beer bottle stunts -- followed by "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Wino," "Are You Drinkin' With Me, Jesus?" and "Mondo."

JOHN VANDERSLICE is advance streaming his album, Romanian Names, via NPR.

NOMO stopped by The Current for a chat and mini-set streaming on demand via MPR. The Current refers to avant garde jazz, funk and Afrobeat, but they sound more accessible than that might suggest.

ST VINCENT: Annie Clark talks to the New York Times about rocking out and more... 

SPINAL TAP is streaming a new song, "Back From The Dead," via Billboard.

BOB MOULD talks to The Quietus about Sugar, Husker Du, being a trance DJ and his sexuality.

SIR PAUL McCARTNEY: "Birthday."

BOB DYLAN, btw, would like to work with Sir Paul McCartney. 

JANE'S ADDICTION: Perry Farrell talks to Billboard about the pros and cons of the band's reunion.

SCHOOL OF SEVEN BELLS guitarist Benjamin Curtis answers the infamous 20 Questions for PopMatters.

CUTOUT BIN: From Leonard Nimoy to Alice Cooper, from the Vogues to the Tom Tom Club, from The Move to Mazzy Star, plus The Who, The Replacements, The Kinks, Calexico, Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich and more  -- this Friday's fortuitous finds are streaming from the Pate page at the ol' HM.

STAR TREK, apparently, was a TV show in the 60s, and it's now this movie by JJ Adams, the guy who created Felicity and Lost -- and the creator of Lost turns out to be a good choice for what goes on this movie.  The Onion was right that it is fun and watchable, though I didn't hear too many disappointed Trekkers coming out of the screening.  There are some major violations of Trek canon built in, but there were also plenty of nods to quirks from the original series for the more hardcore fans.  None of this should detract from enjoyment by casual fans or strangers to the original series (though it's good to know what nacelles are). Ebert is correct that there's not a lot of deep thinking or diplomacy in this reboot, but that's okay, as it gives them something to work into the sequel.  It would be unfair to pigeonhole it as another summer action flick -- the dialogue and characterizations are pretty snappy, well-delivered by the cast.  Although this franchise is all about Kirk and Spock, I must say that Karl Urban and Simon Pegg steal scenes as McCoy and Scotty, respectively.  And that Zoe Saldana makes a hawt -- and smart -- Uhuru.  It's not a perfect movie -- Kirk's childhood is a bit ham-handed, there's a slight bit of slack in the second act, etc. -- but given the magintude of the job and the expectations for it, Abrams delivers.

NOW SHOWING: Aside from the Star Trek reboot, whcich is currently scoring a whopping 94 percent on the ol Tomatometer, this weekend's only wide release is the comedy Next Day Air, which has not been screened for critics.

KIEFER SUTHERLAND will surrender to prosecutors in several weeks and face only a minor assault charge for headbutting a fashion designer at a party.

PAULA ABDUL claims he was never addicted to painkillers and never checked into a rehab clinic.

LINDSAY LOHAN has another sleepover at Samantha Ronson's pad.

MY LITTLE PONY: Reign of Buttercup Sprinkles. The surpsise action smash of the Summer.

MARY STEWART MASTERSON is knocked up. Some kind of wonderful.

FARRAH FAWCETT: Ryan O'Neal speaks for the first time about the devastating illness of his longtime partner, Farrah Fawcett, who has battled cancer for the past two and a half years.

AFGHANISTAN: The Taliban have momentum that makes any effort to negotiate with them difficult, says US SecDef Gates.

IRAQ: Times are tough for the Iraqis who build concrete security barriers. The AFP managing to see the gey lining to the silver cloud.

WATERSKIING MONKEYS: Let's go to the video.

DONKEY BASKETBALL appears to be thriving in south-central Iowa, but PETA is on the case. The Daily Mail has pics from the dark heart of Moravia.

MAN SAVES DOG Saves Man. From a mountain lion!

WAITER, there's a severed snake head in my soup.

HAPPY ODD DAY: This only happens six times per century.

GRIZZY BEAR previews "Two Weeks" on Later with Jools Holland.

DAWES did the four free songs thing for Daytrotter. Nicely done.

MAXIMO PARK drops an advance track, "Let's Get Clinical," along with tour dates, at Pitchfork.

THE SHINS have a new lineup.

WILCO is getting sued by former member Jay Bennett; Jeff Tweedy responds by e-mail at Paste.

AMPLIFIED: ABCNews anchor Dan Harris interviews his favorite indie bands, including The Hold Steady, Camera Obscura, Neko Case, Andrew Bird and more...

THE THERMALS frontman Hutch Harris talks to The Badger Herald and The Hartford Advocate.

THE VON BONDIES drummer Donny Blum answers the infamous 20 Questions for PopMatters.

MANIC STREET PREACHERS Nicky Wire and James Dean Bradfield to discuss their new album at The Quietus.

BROOKLYN is declared "indie music central" by the Times of London.

KEIFER SUTHERLAND "defended" BROOKE SHIELDS by headbutting a man at an after-party for the Met costume gala in NYC. However, Shields does not have Sutherland's back.

KIRSTIE ALLEY: Bigger than ever.

RYAN REYNOLDS may star in a Wolverine spinoff.

RENEE ZELLEWEGER is taking an extended absence from Hollywood and "working on getting bored." Might I suggest she watch her past few films?

SHERLOCK HOLMES: There's an "early look" at the Robert Downey Jr./Jude Law/Guy Ritchie reboot at USA Today.

BETWEEN TWO FERNS welcomes Natalie Portman and her dog, Whiz. Likely NSFW.

STAR TREK:  JJ Abrams talks to Charlie Rose about the reboot.

TREME, the new project from Wire creator David Simon, has been greenlit by HBO.

IRAN: US SecDef Gates tells allies in the Mideast that the prospects for closer ties to Iran are remote: "We'll just have to see how the Iranians respond to the offer from the president. Frankly, some of the first things that have happened as a result of the extension of that open hand have not been encouraging."

AFGHANISTAN: A wandering goatherd held up a lethal attack on Taliban roadside bombers.

PAKISTAN: The information minister for the North-West Frontier province predicted as many as 500K people may flee the Swat Valley. He said the government is preparing temporary camps to house those who have nowhere else to go.  Coordinated attacks - along with other threats  - suggest that the Taliban are bleeding out of their traditional havens in the Northwest Frontier Province into Pakistan's Punjab heartland.

OBNOXIOUS GROUNDHOG: Let's go to the video.

THE SQUIRREL THREAT: Montreal is doing its part. Are you?

HAVE BREAKFAST, photograph a python devouring a cockatoo.

AFGHANISTAN'S ONLY KNOWN PIG has been locked in a room, away from visitors to Kabul zoo where it normally grazes beside deer and goats, because people are worried it could infect them with the virus popularly known as swine flu.

BAT FOR LASHES make their US TV network debut, playing "Daniel" at the Ed Sullivan Theater.

JASON LYTLE of Grandaddy is advance streaming his album, Yours Truly, The Commuter, via NPR.

ALL SONGS CONSIDERED: Tracks from Sonic Youth, Bat For Lashes and Manchester Orchestra are among those streaming in the latest edition of the NPR series.

ILLINOIS did the four free songs thing for Daytrotter, with introductions.

THE BEST DRIVING SONGS, according to the Montreal Gazette, in a piece examining the death of the car song.

DENT MAY & HIS MAGNIFICENT UKELELE play "Howard" from his current album, The Good Feeling Music of Dent May & His Magnificent Ukulele.

THAO NGUYEN talks to Decider Denver and the Idaho Statesman about gender issues and more...

BEIRUT frontman Zach Condon gives Filter a guide to Santa Fe, NM.

BOOKER T. talks to The A.V. Club.

SONGS ABOUT FOOD & BEVERAGES, compiled by Idolator.

STAR TREK: Chris Pine and Zach Quinto interview each other about the imminent reboot, and being cracked up by Simon Pegg.  Although Trekkies bash the film as fun and watchable, there's already sequel chatter. I'll be seeing it Thursday, solely as a service to you.

DOM DeLUISE, the portly actor-comedian whose affable nature made him a popular character actor for decades with movie and TV audiences as well as directors and fellow actors, is dead at 75.

PAULA ABDUL recently kicked a 12-year-long painkiller addiction. Who knew?

CHRISTINA AGUILERA will make her film debut in Burlesque, playing an ambitious small-town girl with a big voice who finds success at an L.A. neo-burlesque club. Does not sound like a stretch.

VICTORIA PRINCIPAL is accused in a lawsuit of threatening her former maid with a gun.

UP has posted an exclusive clip at at Hulu.

MICHAEL CAINE will leave Britain if taxes get any higher. Andrew Lloyd-Webber, too.

MIA FARROW is on a three-week hunger strike to support Darfur refugees.

AFGHANISTAN: A single company of fresh US troops has turned the Jalrez valley into a lab test for Pres. Obama's Afghanistan troop surge.

PAKISTAN: The porous border between Afghanistan and Pakistan may hinder US efforts to rout the Taliban? Who knew? Intense gun battles are ongoing in the Swat valley. The US national security adviser says that Washington needs guarantees from Pakistan that its nuclear arsenal is safe from militants.

IRAQ: The Iraqi Integrity Committee vowed to arrest senior Trade Ministry officials who evaded arrest. Members of Iraq's parliament said Sunni parties are pressing for the release of jailed insurgents.

OTTERS PLAY BASKETBALL: Let's go to the video.

THE WORLD'S LARGEST RABBIT suddenly dropped dead - just hours before she was to star on a television show.

A WOLF PACK has taken up residence near Yellowstone National Park's headquarters.  Yogi has competition ofr those pic-a-nic baskets.

THE SQUIRREL THREAT: Chicago is doing its part.  Are you?

LIZ PHAIR: "Cinco de Mayo." Obvs.

PEE WEE HERMAN: "Tequila." Obvs.

NEW RELEASES: St. Vincent, Conor Oberst, New York Dolls and more are streaming in full this week via Spinner.

CHOOGLIN' stopped by The Current for a chat and mini-set streaming via MPR, which describes the band as "somewhere between James Brown and the MC5."

THE NEW YORK DOLLS: David Johansen talks to PopMatters about the band's history, reunion and new album.

GRIZZLY BEAR is profiled by New York magazine and The New Yorker.

LOS LOBOS: "Evangeline" and "Will the Wolf Survive?" Both circa 1985.  Dosfer Cinco de Mayo.

RHETT MILLER is interviewed by author Ben Greenman as part of the "Largehearted Boy Cross-Media Cultural Exchange Program."

ART BRUT: Jasper Future talks to MusicRadar about recording Art Brut Vs Satan with Frank Black.

STEPHIN MERRITT of Magnetic Fields talks to Metromix about scoring the stage musical of Coraline.

PATTI SMITH may soon be Meg White's mother-in-law.

JESSICA SIMPSON: Vanity Fair has a think-piece on the pneumatic blonde at the crossroads of Obscurity and Re-invention.

MAGGIE GYLLENHAAL & PETER SARSGAARD tied the knot in an exchange of vowel-filled vows in Italy.

DAVID HASSELHOFF denies reports claiming he was rushed to an LA hospital after suffering alcohol poisoning.  He says it was food poisoning, with just a smidge of alcohol.

LINDSAY LOHAN falls down, goes boom outside a club in Montreal.

DENISE RICHARDS tortured Cubs fans with her version of "Take Me Out to the Ball Game," but it was for a good cause.

MEGAN FOX shot some video for her Esquire cover story, so it must be Gratuitous Tuesday.

DENNIS RODMAN rebounds to rehab.

IRANIAN AIRCRAFT attacked three villages inside Iraq over the weekend.  Meanwhile, the American journalist on a hunger strike for two weeks to protest her imprisonment in Iran was briefly hospitalized after she intensified her fast by refusing to drink water, Reporters Without Borders said Monday.

AFGHANISTAN: Justin Kelly, a recently retired Australian army officer with service in East Timor and Iraq, argues that a strategy focusing on the annihilation of Taliban power is the only way to achieve broad political progress.

IRAQ: The 130K American troops serving in Iraq are more likely to die in accidents, from natural causes, or in other "nonhostile" incidents than at the hands of insurgents, according to Defense Department statistics for the past eight months ending in April.

KITTEH VS. FAN: Who you got?

PIGLET & RABBIT, living together... mass hysteria. And Tigger, too!

A PREGNANT COUGAR returned safely from a day-long walkabout on her own late Sunday in Poinciana, FL, but her three kittens did not survive a Cesarian section.  This is a story about a wildcat... you know that, right?

HEY, IS THAT A SNAKE IN YOUR LAP, or... oh, it is.

SONIC YOUTH reveal "What We Know" on Later with Jools Holland.

CONOR OBERST is advance streaming his next album, Outer South, via NPR.

PETER BJORN & JOHN played the World Cafe on Friday; you can stream the whole gig on demand via NPR.

CAUSES 2, a Darfur benefit album featuring tracks from The Decemberists, Davendra Banhart, Gnarls Barkley, My Morning Jacket, Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings and more, is streaming in full via MTV.

BOB DYLAN gets a special section at Paste marking his 33rd LP.

BIG AUDIO DYNAMITE: I shoulda posted "The Bottom Line" before the Kentucky Derby, but better late than never.

DEVO, recently featured here, is profiled at The Guardian.

COTTON JONES (Michael Nau and Whitney McGraw, formerly of Page France) break out at Rolling Stone, with embeded video.

DOVES' manager died, their studio burned down, and they missed out on a No 1 spot by four sales. But they are still rolling and talking to The Guardian.

THE BREEDERS talk to The Observer about switching drugs and drink for good food and music.

WEEKEND BOX OFFICE: Wolverine finishes first with 87 million, right about in the middle of gurus' predictions. This is less than X3's opening, but not low enough to end the franchise.  Ghosts of Girlfriends Past places with 15.3 million, disappointing compared to past Matthew McConaughey openings, and middling as counter-programming to Wolverine. With a 60 million budget, this may end up a flop. Last week's champ, Obsessed, drops 57 percent to third place with 12.2 million.  But Obsessed has already made 47 million on a 20 million production budget. 17 again drops 45 percent to the fourth slot, taking in 6.4 million.  Mosters vs. Aliens crept back into the Top Five with 5.8 million.  Below the fold, Battle for Terra opened in the 12th slot.

ADVENTURELAND: I finally got to see this tale of post-college kids working at a second-rate amusement park circa 1987, and regret not seeing (and plugging it earlier).  More realistic than an Apatow comedy, with much less gross-out humor, this slice of life is carried by its charming performances and direction, not to mention its excellent soundtrack -- filled with The Replacements, Lou Reed, Husker Du, and hits of the period, plus incidental music from Yo La Tengo.  It's on only 200 screens or so now, but see it or queue it when it goes to DVD.

MADONNA: The man believed to be the biological father of Mercy, the 4-year-old Malawian girl Madge is trying to adopt, says he he wants to raise her in his own culture.

BRITNEY SPEARS: A stage-jumper was arrested at her gig in Connecticut.

PINK admits to being bisexual.

DISTRICT 9: A Peter Jackson production about aliens living as refugees in South Africa, has a trailer online.

SCARLETT JOHANSSON's directorial debut is a flop.

JAY LENO's recent hospitalization was due to exhaustion.

PAKISTAN is continuing to expand its nuclear bomb-making facilities despite growing international concern that advancing Islamist extremists could overrun one or more of its atomic weapons plants or seize sufficient radioactive material to make a dirty bomb, US nuclear experts and former officials say. The government established Islamic courts in the Malakand Division.  The Taliban rejected them and said their followers would never surrender their weapons, as the security situation in Swat rapidly deteriorates. The Guardian claim's Pakistan's army is as inept as it is corrupt.

IRAQ has not allowed the US military to interrogate a detainee the Iraqis contend is the leader of the Sunni insurgent group al-Qaeda in Iraq. Iraqi forces backed by US troops have arrested a US-allied Sunni Arab militia leader.

FRIENDLY DOG: Very friendly. Very, very friendly.

SHOW-JUMPING BUNNIES! Awww...some pics at the link.

MEERKAT PUPS were abandoned by their mom at the London Zoo, but the pics are awww...some.

HENRY the CAT BURGLAR was nabbed after stealing dozens of socks from his neighbors.

SHARKS UNDER the DANCE FLOOR at a bar in Austin TX.  Gonna need taller platform shoes.