JARVIS COCKER joined THE STROKES on The Cars' "Just What I Needed" at the Reading Festival (NSFW due to F-Bombs from the stage).

NEW RELEASES from Blood Orange, Tom Morello, Tinariwen, Male Bonding, Total Babes and more are steaming this week at Spinner.  Albums from Jill Scott, Tommy Stinson, Kittie and more are streaming at AOL.

BLITZEN TRAPPER is advance streaming American Goldwing.

THE DRUMS are advance streaming Portamento.

BALAM ACAB is advance streaming Wander/Wonder.

CHRIS CORNELL drops "The Keeper" from the Machine Gun Preacher soundtrack.

WAVVES drops "I Wanna Meet Dave Grohl" from the upcoming Life Sux EP.

BUFFALO SPRINGFIELD lip-synchs "Mr. Soul" from a show that cannot be mentioned (minus bassist Bruce Palmer for legal reasons), plus a live take on "Rock'n Roll Woman" for your Twofer Tuesday.  And while "Mr. Soul" opens with a bit of "For What It's Worth," you can get a full serving as a bonus.

BLONDIE: Debbie Hary talks to the New York Times about her influences, including cartoons and cult movies, and revealed a bit of rock 'n' roll history.

OKKERVIL RIVER frontman Will Scheff talks to Pitchfork about the music he has loved throughout his life.

TUNE-YARDS: The Observer chronicles the path of Merrill Garbus, from the lowest of lo-fi beginnings in 2009 to as close to a superstar as a ukulele-playing, radically political ex-puppeteer can get.

THE SQUAREST ROCK ACTS, according to Flavorwire.

MATTHEW FOX was detained by cops in Cleveland, Ohio Saturday night after allegedly assaulting a woman outside of a bar. The woman claims she punched Fox in self-defense

JAY-Z refused to applaud Chris Brown at the MTV VMAs. Apparently not a fan of beating women. ALSO: Beyonce's pregnancy affects Clint Eastwood's musical remake of A Star Is Born..

ZOE SALDANA thinks it's now trendy -- and racist -- to hate America, but doesn't explain why a lot of the same people hated America when Bill Clinton and George W. Bush were president.

HILARY DUFF banked 100K for not appearing in the new Bonnie and Clyde movie.

SIN CITY 2: Robert Rodriguez and Frank Miller are bringing in William Monahan, who won an Oscar for The Departed's screenplay, to work on the script.

STEVEN SODERBURGH plans to quit Hollywood and become a painter. For now.

THE TOP 100 Out-of-Print Books for 2011.

YEMEN: Ten Yemeni soldiers and 26 al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula fighters were killed during fighting in Dawfas in Abyan province.

SYRIAN unrest fuels fear about the country's chemical weapons stockpile.

IRAN's nuclear chief claimed the country is prepared to cooperate more closely with the IAEA. Oh, sure.

IRAQ: UN envoy Ad Melkert said Iraqi security forces have made "clear improvements" but declined to say if he thinks they are ready to protect the country without help from the American military.

AFGHANISTAN: Direct US talks with the Taliban had evolved to a substantive negotiation before Afghan officials, nervous that the secret and independent talks would undercut Pres Karzai, scuttled them, Afghan and US officials told The Associated Press.

THE SQUIRREL THREAT disrupts a women's pro soccer game.

SIAMESE CROCS: One of the world's rarest crocodile species has moved a little bit further from extinction with the hatching of 20 wild eggs plucked from a nest found in southern Laos.

SNAKE in a... helmet?

HEY, ARE THOSE BIRDS TAPED TO YOUR CHEST, or... oh.

LUCINDA WILLIAMS drops her first offcial video ever, for "Copenhagen."

WILD FLAG, ft. members of Sleater-Kinney, Helium and The Minders, is advance streaming their self-titled debut.

BLIND PILOT is advance streaming We Are the Tide.

NEUTRAL MILK HOTEL is streaming two previously unreleased songs in advance of a digital and vinyl box set.

THE HEAVY covered the Blood, Sweat & Tears classic, "And When I Die" for the True Blood season finale.

SYL JOHNSON: Fresh Air discusses The Complete Mythology.

THE DRUMS kick off the  the Visiomento live performance series with a new song, "What You Were."

BEIRUT frontman Zach Condon talks to the Irish Independent about panic attacks and giving up the rock lifestyle.

MY LIFE AS A VAMPIRE: Nitsuh Abebe, pop music critic at New York Magazine, has a different take on nolstagia and the role music may play in your life. 

ART BRUT frontman Eddie Argos talks comics at the San Francisco Examiner.

KEITH RICHARDS, LORD OF THE UNDEAD, has written one of the best-selling rock memoirs of all time. Life has sold over one million copies since its release last year, equivalent to going platinum in the music world.

DAVID LOWERY (Camper Van Beethoven, Cracker) got married in business class; Drive-By Trucker Patterson Hood was the best man.

WEEKEND BOX OFFICE: The Help repeats at the top of the chart with 14.3 million, on a historically slow pre-Labor day weekend slowed further by Hurricane Irene. Columbiana debuted at No. 2 with 10.3 million, which ain't great against a 40 million budget, although it's better than the last opening for either Zoe Saldana (The Losers) or producer Luc Beeson (From Paris With Love). Fun Fact: 57 percent of the Columbiana audience was female.  Don't Be Afraid of the Dark debuted in third with a likely disappointing 8.7 million against a 25 million budget.  Rise of the Planet of the Apes dropped 46.3 percent to the fourth slot, but the estimates are so close it may wind up in third; the simians have raked in 148.5 million domestic against a 93 million budget.  Our Idiot Brother rounds out the Top 5 with 6.6 million against a 5 million budget.  55 percent of the audience was female; the chicks must like them some Paul Rudd.

BEYONCE KNOWLES revealed her pregnancy at the MTV Music Video Awards.

THE 2011 MTV VMAs, btw, went to these folks.

MINKA KELLY & DEREK JETER split up after three years of dating. So of course there are already rumors about a growing late-night friendship between Kelly and her costar Ramon Rodriguez.

BRAD PITT saved a woman from being trampled in a zombie invasion.

SOFIA COPPOLA & THOMAS MARS (Phoenix) got hitched in Italy.

JENNIFER ANISTON & JUSTIN THEROUX have officially moved in together, according to People.

ASHLEE SIMPSON drunk-dialing her ex, Pete Wentz?

MAD MEL UPDATE: Gibson and fmr gf Oksana Grigorieva officially reached a financial and child custody agreement.

EMMA WATSON is reportedly living with her new beau, actor Johnny Simmons, in the swanky attic rooms of her father's multi-million dollar home in north London.

CHELSEA HANDLER lived up to her party-girl reputation at a summer bash for her hotelier boyfriend, Andre Balazs, when she was escorted out of the men's bathroom at the Frying Pan by bar security.

THE RUM DIARIES has a trailer online, featuring a fire-breathing Johnny Depp as Hunter S. Thompson (again).

THE 10 BEST TV SHOWS to watch all at once, according to Gawker.

AL QAEDA's second-in-command, Atiyah Abd al-Rahman, has been killed in Pakistan, delivering another big blow to a terrorist group that the US believes to be on the verge of defeat, US officials said Saturday. Pakistani officials doubted the report, but this is the same bunch that claimed they didn't know where Osama bin Laden was.

IRAN: A court sentenced an Iranian man to death for assassinating a nuclear scientist; Iran claimed he was an agent of Israel. Iran said it would defend Syria if NATO intervened, but called on the government to recognize its people's "legitimate" demands (pot, meet kettle). Iran "discreetly" provided food and medical aid to Libyan rebels.

LIBYA: Lockerbie bomber Abdel Basset al-Megrahi is comatose, near death and likely to take secrets of the attack on Pan Am Flight 103 to his grave.

THE BIRDS attack Huntington, West Virginia.  Video at the link makes clear there's high anxiety there.

A FLAMING RACCOON caused a grass fire in an industrial area of Salt Lake City.

A GIANT RAT was killed with a pitchfork at the Marcy Houses project in Brooklyn.

CATTLE RUSTLING: Don't do the crime if you can't do the time.

THE WEEKEND STARTS HERE:

... with GRAM PARSONS! As a member of both The Byrds and The Flying Burrito Brothers, and as a solo artist, Parsons anticipated the so-called country rock of the 1970s and the alt-country movement that began around 1990. There is not a lot of GP video floating around, but "Christine's Tune" is a good place to start, though the video for "Older Guys" is great because someone made them go out to christen Judge Smails' sloop. The Hell's Angels make an unfortunate cameo in the clip of "Six Days o­n the Road" from the infamous Altamont festival in 1969. The posthumous video for "Sin City" is nice also. BONUS: Dwight Yoakum covers "Wheels" at a Parsons tribute concert. DOUBLE BONUS: Frequent duet partner Emmylou Harris covers "Return of the Grievous Angel" with alt-country icon Ryan Adams (and Buddy Miller o­n bass) at a different tribute.

JOHN DOE stopped by KEXP for a solo acoustic set of songs from his latest album.

RICHARD BUCKNER stopped by KEXP for a live session with his old busking partner, Jeff Kazor.

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

JEFF MANGUM (Neutral Milk Hotel), Live in Toronto.

BON IVER & JAMES BLAKE join on "Falls Creek Boys Choir."

THE PIPETTES: "Your Kisses are Wasted On Me." Before it all went wrong. Sigh.

STEPHEN MALKMUS talks to Pitchfork, Drowned In Sound and Salon (where he's interviewed by Dean Wareham).

TEN MYTHS about grunge, Nirvana and Kurt Cobain.

DOES 50s MUSIC STILL MATTER? Uber-critic Robert Christgau meditates.

MINISTRY returns. Or "relapses."

AEROSMITH will add never before released digital versions of their classics to iTunes.

CUTOUT BIN: From the Turtles to T. Rex, from Wanda Jackson to Neko Case & MMJ, from Violent Femmes to Grand Funk, plus the Troggs, Tommy Keene, GbV, Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell and more -- this Friday's fortuitous finds are now streaming from the Pate page at the ol' HM.

NOW SHOWING: This weekend's wide releases include: Columbiana, which is currently scoring 59 percent on the ol' Tomatometer; Don't Be Afraid of the Dark, currently scoring 53 percent; and Our Idiot Brother, scoring 70 percent.  But all of those were on a small sample of reviews.  It's late August, so I would guess lower on all of them.

JADA PINKETT SMITH & MARC ANTHONY: Multiple members of the crew that work on "HawthoRNe" tell TMZ it was clear to everyone that the two were not intimate on the set.

LINDSAY LOHAN begged director Steven Soderbergh to not say he wouldn't work with her.

KIM KARDASHIAN & KRIS HUMPHRIES signed a pre-nuptual agreement; a lawyer breaks it down for you.

RHIANNA is the latest celeb to have a possible sex tape issue.

ROSE MacGOWAN talks about how her family fled the Children of God cult.

JIM CARREY makes a creepy video expressing his desire for Emma Stone.

SARAH MICHELLE GELLAR talks to Entertainment Weekly about Ringer, Buffy and motherhood.

SEVEN CHAPTERS of Zooey Deschanel's origin story.

JEREMY PIVEN would like to play Keith Moon. Not seeing it.

THE 10 MOST OVERUSED SONGS in Movie History.

HURRICANE IRENE: If you're an East Coaster in the cone where Irene may strike, and haven't evacuated, consider stocking up on: bleach (plain chlorine bleach for cleaning and purifying tap water); bottled water; a first aid kit; toilet paper; paper plates; plasticware; garbage bags; baby wipes; camping lamps; flashlights and batteries; a landline phone that doesn't need batteries; cash; high calorie foods like PB&J and chocolate; boxed and canned foods (w/ manual can opener); fruit; veggies; a handcrank radio; a chainsaw; ammo (if you're a gun owner); clear plastic containers and plastic bags of all sorts, incl. ziploc bags for valuable papers; a charcoal grill, charcoal, lighter fluid and matches (if you don't have a gas stove); duct tape.  Also, gas up the car, take pics of everything for insurance; fill your bathtubs with water for cleaning and to fill your toilet; write down any phone numbers you might need from your phone or computer; try to notify family of any backup plans.

LIBYA: Rebels continued to battle loyalist resistance in Tripoli, Sirte, and Sahba. The search for Gaddafi himself is ongoing. National Transitional Council head Mahmoud Jabril asked for Western financial aid to help restore services and stabilize the country.

PAKISTANIS remain in denial, 10 years after 9/11.

AFGHANISTAN: The transition from NATO to local forces in Laghman province has been rocky.

CRUISER the TORTOISE chases Josef in his motorized chair.

THE SQUIRREL THREAT: Militant rodents raid a police memorial in Toledo, OH.

A COW misjudges the height of a guardrail.

HEY, IS THAT AN ALBINO BOA CONSTRICTOR IN YOUR PANTS, or... oh, it is.

OK GO & THE MUPPETS join for "The Muppet Show Theme Song."

STEPHEN MALKMUS & THE JICKS stopped by Morning Becomes Eclectic for a session.

PETER BJORN & JOHN turned up for a studio session at KEXP.

T-BONE BURNETT talks to All Things Considered about the 10th anniversary of the O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack.  Plus songs at the link.

BEN FOLDS drops "House," which claims is his first new song in 10 years.

RYAN ADAMS drops "Lucky You," the first single from his upcoming Ashes & Fire.

CROOKED FINGERS drops "Typhoon" from the upcoming Breaks In the Armor.

THE JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE: "Stone Free," live in Frankfurt. Dig this, baby.

THE HOLD STEADY frontman Craig Finn talks to the Riverfront Times about  running, his upcoming solo album, and tepid reception of the band's most recent album, Heaven is Whenever. (Thx, LHB.)

GIRL TALK: Greg Gillis talks to Straight about his fifth and latest opus.

NIRVANA: Producer Butch Vig recalls the recording of the Nevermind album.

GUIDED BY VOICES: Jim Greer shares part of the story of the time the band was courted by Warner Bros.

PAUL McCARTNEY signs with Decca, a mere 50 years after the label turned down one of his earlier bands.

WILL & JADA PINKETT SMITH are using their legal team regarding the false report they are separating.  However, rumors of marital problems persist.

CHRISTINA AGUILERA is firing back at rumors she's somehow responsible for a giant bruise on her son's face.

RYAN REYNOLDS & SANDRA BULLOCK engaged? Probably not.

JENNIFER ANISTON bought bf Justin Theroux a jacket once owned by James Dean.

SIMON COWELL talks Punk, The X Factor, and more at GQ, while holding a bunny rabbit.

STEVE JOBS resigns as Apple CEO.

CONAN THE BARBARIAN 3D: What's it like to have your film flop at the box office? Screenwriter Sean Hood explains.

THE 2011 MTV VMAs will have no host, but eight or nine performances.

THE TOP 10 FILMS That Should Be Remade.

YEMEN's prime minister became the first senior politician injured in a June assassination attempt on President Ali Abdullah Saleh to return home from Saudi Arabia.

LIBYA: The Pentagon said on Wednesday that Libya's stockpile of chemical weapons are secure but that an arsenal of thousands of shoulder-launched missiles remained cause for concern. A research center near Tripoli has stocks of nuclear material that could be used to make a "dirty bomb," a former senior UN inspector said on Wednesday, warning of possible looting during turmoil in Libya.

BANZAI KITTEN wakes up.

A GEORGIA DOG ate 10K of diamonds.

A LOOSE EMU was captured in Maryland.

A STOLEN GOAT was recovered in Portland, OR, and does not exactly thank the police.

JERRY LEIBER, the lyricist who, with his partner, Mike Stoller, wrote some of the most enduring classics in the history of rock 'n' roll, including "Hound Dog," "Jailhouse Rock," "Yakety Yak," "Love Potion No. 9," "There Goes My Baby," "Stand By Me," "On Broadway," and many more (and even more as producers) died of heart failure on Monday in Los Angeles. He was 78. The Biography Channel did a 43-minute documentary on Leiber & Stoller.

SOMEONE STILL LOVES YOU BORIS YELTSIN is streaming their new LP of unreleased songs, Tape Club.

COTTON JONES does an extended eight song set at Daytrotter.

RED HOT CHILLI PEPPERS are advance streaming I'm With You via iTunes.

TOM WAITS, as anticipated, drops the title track for his upcoming Bad As Me. And holds a private listening party.

BJORK drops another Biophilia track, "Moon."

GIRLS premiere (and discuss) "Honey Bunny" from the upcoming Father, Son, Holy Ghost.

BASIA BULAT plays Ted Leo's "Where Have All the Rude Boys Gone?" for the A.V. Club Undercover.

THE REPLACEMENTS: Paul and Tommy mull a reunion, but it doesn't look likely.

KRISTIN HERSH compares memoirs at State. (Thx, LHB.)

MICK JAGGER talks about his current listening at the L.A. Times.

DUFF McKAGAN moves from Guns 'N Roses to Stocks 'N Bonds this fall.

KATE WINSLET saved Richard Branson's 90-year-old mom from a burning house during a tropical storm on Necker Island.

WILL & JADA PINKETT SMITH: Rumors of their separation appear to be incorrect.

DENISE RICHARDS turns down Two and Half Men.

AMY WINEHOUSE's family claims toxicology tests prove Amy was not on any sort of illegal drugs at the time of her death ... but she had been drinking. 

MEGAN FOX explains her Marilyn Monroe tattoo removal.

ANGELINA JOLIE was allowed to live with her boyfriend "like a married couple" at 14 years old.

RYAN GOSLING broke up a fight near New York City's Astor Place last weekend.

DAVID LETTERMAN joked about the Islamist death threat against him.

LIBYA: No one can be sure who controls the Libyan government's weapons stockpiles, a stew of deadly chemicals, raw nuclear material and some 30K shoulder-fired rockets that officials fear could fall into terrorists' hands in the chaos of Gaddafi's downfall or afterward.

AFGHANISTAN's Ministry of Commerce and Industries has signed a fuel purchase deal with Russia under which Russia would supply 500 kilotons of fuel as fuel prices in Afghanistan have gone skyrocketing recently.

IRAQ: Turkey claimed it killed nearly 100 PKK fighters in airstirkes in northern Iraq.

A HORSE somersaults unintentionally.

SWIMMING DANISH RACCOONS threaten to invade Sweden.

"PREDATOR" CRAB resembling the movie monster captured by a British fisherman.

A SKUNK ACTION PLAN is needed in Joliet, IL. I hate Illinois skunks.