SONNY & THE SUNSETS drop a video for "Cheap Extensions" ahead of Talent Night at the Ashram.

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

KAREN O  stopped by Morning Becomes Eclectic for a session.

GALA DROP advance streams II. Electro-psych isn't really my bag, but it's interesting.

LOU REED, Guest DJing on WPIX, circa 1979.

LOS CAMPESINOS! drops "When Christmas Comes,” ahead of A Los Campesinos! Christmas EP.

THE SMASHING PUMPKINS drop the new-wavey "Tiberius" ahead of Monuments To An Elegy.

CAVE PEOPLE drop "Cluster" ahead of their Older EP.

AC/DC goes "Rock Or Bust."

BOTH SIDES NOW: Joni Mitchell performs her 1968 song in 1970 and in 2000, for a reflective Twofer Tuesday.

STEVE ALBINI spoke in Melbourne about the advantages of the internet, the death of the major label system, copyright law and that ‘purple dwarf in assless chaps'.

IDLEWILD frontman Roddy Woomble ranks the indie band's albums.

DROPKICK MURPHYS scrapped the last date on their US tour after a man threw himself in front of their bus in a suspected suicide.

U2: Bono injured his arm in a Central Park cycling accident and requires surgery. Between thta an the airplane mishap, not a good week for ol' Paul.

CHRIS PRATT is profiled by GQ and is one of the mag's Men of the Year.

AMY ADAMS is profiled by Vogue.

TILA TEQUILA gave birth to her first child, a baby girl, on Sunday.

JADEN & WILLOW SMITH talked to the New York Times Magazine, and Will & Jada likely wish they had not.

JENNIFER LAWRENCE talks about shopping at IKEA, among other things.

AMANDA BYNES apologized for making death threats against her father.

SOLANGE KNOWLES released wedding pics that are very Solange.

UKRAINE: As fighting increases in eastern Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin is vowing that Moscow will not allow pro-Russian rebels in the region to be defeated while Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko is threatening "total war."

YEMENI tribes say they will resist Houthi takeover of oil facilities.

IRAN: The United States is disappointed with Iran's failure to engage with a U.N. nuclear agency investigation into suspected atomic bomb research.

THE ISLAMIC STATE: CENTCOM reported that since Nov. 14, US forces have conducted 11 airstrikes against Islamic State targets in Syria, and US and partner forces have carried out 20 airstrikes in Iraq against the group. A US intelligence official indicated that US targeting in Syria and Iraq is hampered by insufficient intelligence on the ground.

A SEAL sexually harrasses a penguin. And the other penguins just watch. The BBC is on it.

A TEXAS DOG jumped on the back of an ambulance to ride on the bumper after his 85-year-old owner was taken to the hospital. 

A SNAKE appears to have committed suicide.

DO LABRADORS bite the most?

BAND AID 30 busts out “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” again, this time to help combat Ebola.

FLAKE MUSIC: James Mercer's pre-Shins band is advance streaming the reissued When You Land Here, It's Time To Return.

TWO INCH ASTRONAUT is advance streaming their second album, Foulbrood.

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

METRONOMY stopped by WFUV's Studio A for a chat and mini-set.

NANCY SINATRA: "These Boots Are Made For Walking." Are you ready?

TV ON THE RADIO, essayed by Ann Powers.

THE MOUNTAIN GOATS' John Darnielle, interviewed by Paste.

ARIEL PINK continues to troll everyone, especially Grimes.

THE TEN WORST BEATLES SONGS, according to Vice, in full-on troll mode.

WEEKEND BOX OFFICE: Dumb and Dumber To tops the chart with 38.1 million, almost matching the film's production budget in its first weekend. Insofar as Jim Carrey's comedies tend to do well overseas, the question now is how well it does as counter-programming when The Hunger Games storms cnemas this week, particularly with a B- Cinemascore.  Big Hero 6 places with 36 million with a 36 percent drop,suggesting this will perform on par with Disney's successful Wreck-It Ralph. Interstellar shows with 29.2 million on a 39 percent drop.  The Nolan flick has grossed about 322 million worldwide,and probably needs 500 million to profit.  Beyond The Lights debuts in the fourth slot with 6.5 million; against a reported 7.2 million budget.  Gone Girl hangs onto the bottom of the Top 5, with another 4.6 million and 319 in worldwide receipts to date.

THE HOLLYWOOD FILM AWARDS: Awards season kicks off with a strange Johnny Depp speech, a risque Ben Affleck joke, and a Kirsten Stewart wardrobe malfunction.

EVAN RACHEL WOOD and Katherine Moennig have split.

AMANDA BYNES has Daddy issues.

KRISTIN CHENOWETH is single once more.

SOLANGE KNOWLES tied the knot with video director Alan Ferguson in New Orleans on Sunday.

THE HUNGER GAMES: MOCKINGJAY will not have a CGI Philip Seymour Hoffman.

DANIEL BRUHL is set to play the villain role in the next Captain America: Civil War.

GLEN A. LARSEN, who was behind a string of hit series in the 1970s and '80s, including Magnum, P.I., Knight Rider, Quincy M.E. and the original Battlestar Galactica, died Friday at UCLA Medical Center in Santa Monica. He was 77.

THE UNITED ARAB EMIRATES on Saturday issued a list of 83 Islamist groups which it classified as "terrorist organizations".

THE ISLAMIC STATE's rapid consolidation of the Sunni parts of Iraq and Syria has used a double-pronged strategy to gain the obedience of Sunni tribes. While using their abundant cash and arms to entice tribal leaders to join their self-declared caliphate, the jihadists have also eliminated potential foes, hunting down soldiers, police officers, government officials and anyone who once cooperated with the United States as it battled Al Qaeda in Iraq.  But its propaganda masks setbacks on the ground.

AFGHANISTAN now faces a wave of refugees from Pakistan.

A YOUNG ELEPHANT vs 14 LIONS: Who you got?

BUDDY THE DOG got stuck in a cathouse.

TIGER ON THE LAM near Paris? Might just be a large cat.

BULLY CHIMPS are more likely to be fathers.

THE WEEKEND STARTS HERE:

... with DAVID BOWIE! The 1980 Floor Show was really recorded live at the Marquee, circa October 1973.  It aired on The Midnight Special the following month. Your selist includes: "Sorrow," "Everything's Alright," "Space Oddity," "I Can't Explain," "Time," "The Jean Genie," and "I Got You Babe," ft. Marianne Faithfull.

CHUMPED advance streams Teenage Retirement.

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

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

TOM VEK stopped by Morning Becomes Eclectic for a session.

HEAVY ROTATION: 10 Songs Public Radio Can't Stop Playing.

PETER BJORN & JOHN cover Paul McCartney's "Put It There." It's a bonus track from the Sir Paul tribute LP.

EX-CULT drops "Cigarette Machine",” the title track from the band’s upcoming EP.

THE YOUNG FRESH FELLOWS THEME: T.G.I.F.

PINK FLOYD: Pipers at the Gates of Punk?

THE AFGHAN WHIGS: Greg Dulli takes SPIN on a track-by-track tour of the classic Gentlemen.

BONO's private plane lost a hatch as it was coming in for a landing in the German capital but the U2 singer was never in any danger. His luggage is another matter.

GENESIS, ranked by Stereogum.

CUTOUT BIN: I'm streaming a little more nostalgia via the Pate page at the ol' HM.

NOW SHOWING: This weekend's wide releases are Dumb and Dumber To, which is currently scoring 26 percent on the ol' Tomatometer; and Beyond The Lights, scoring 84 percent.

RICHARD SIMMONS has been in a deep depression following an injury.

SEAN PENN & CHARLIZE THERON had their morning hike interrupted by cops Thursday ... after another hiker accused them of possibly mistreating Charlize's toddler ... but TMZ reported the police determined they did nothing wrong.

AMANDA BYNES and her parents are on the verge of getting sued for allegedly trashing the apartment where she's been staying.

JENNIFER LOPEZ inspired Sir-Mix-A-Lot's "Baby Got Back."

CAKE BOSS Buddy Valastro was arrested early Thursday AM for driving while intoxicated.

NICK LACHEY doesn't miss Jessica Simpson, it seems.

THERE WENT HONEY BOO BOO: Mama June admitted not only she believes that "something did happen" to Anna, but that she also dated another registered sex offender named Michael Anthony Ford - and he's daughter Lauryn "Pumpkin" Shannon's real dad.

AN OPEN SECRET: The spotlight again will be trained on the alleged sexual abuse of minors by powerful Hollywood players when Amy Berg's disturbing new documentary debuts in New York on Nov. 14.

THE ISLAMIC STATE & AL QAEDA: Militant leaders from both groups gathered at a farm house in northern Syria last week and agreed on a plan to stop fighting each other and work together against their opponents, a high-level Syrian opposition official and a rebel commander have told The Associated Press.

SYRIA: US and allied forces conducted 16 airstrikes in Syria since Nov. 10; 10 of them near Kobane. US President Barack Obama has requested a review of policy towards Syria and may be open to the deposition of the Assad regime, according to senior officials interviewed by CNN.

IRAQ: Kurdish leaders have quietly expanded a request to Washington for sophisticated arms and protective equipment to battle the Islamic State, but American officials have so far rebuffed the appeals out of concerns about defying the Iraqi government, according to Kurdish officials.

RAFI knows how to dog sled.

TIGGER ON THE LAM: Scores of police patrolled a small town west of the French capital on Thursday night after a tiger eluded a massive search and remained on the prowl in the region near Disneyland Paris.

...AND THERE WERE TURKEYS all over the highway.

HOW CATS decided to domesticate humans.

DEERHOOF's video for "Exit Only" features Michael Shannon.

DIRT DRESS advance steams the Revelations EP.

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

ROYAL BLOOD stopped by The Current for a chat and mini-set.

ZOLA JESUS stopped by Morning Becomes Eclectic for a session.

GANG OF FOUR --just Andy Gill, really --drops "Broken Talk," ft. Alison Mosshart.

TRANSLATOR is "Everywhere That I'm Not," including the "Where Are They Now?" file.

WILL OLDHAM talks to Bomb about this new record, what makes a recording “definitive,” Humphrey Bogart, and Dick Cheney.

ROBERT PLANT & RICHARD BRANSON deny the" 800 million dollar tour offer" story.

EAGULLS talk to Drowned in Sound about the new LP and tour.

IDLEWILD: Roddy Woomble and Rod Jones talk to The Quietus about getting old, getting annoyed and coming back with a new album. (Thx, Frank Yang.)

KIM KARDASHIAN breaks the internet, or Photoshop, with a NSFW Paper photoshoot.

KHLOE KARDASHIAN, otoh, Instagrammed something about the Klan.

LEONARDO DiCAPRIO turned 40 among a horde of models, just like every other day.

ROBIN WRIGHT called it quits with her fiancé of 10 months Ben Foster.

JOAQUIN PHOENIX shared his childhood experience of being raised in the religious group Children of God and whether his encounter was nearly as traumatizing as other stars have claimed.

GWYNETH PALTROW: "I’m not the type to look in the mirror and study my looks." Then she was struck by lightning.

RANDY JACKSON is exiting American Idol after 13 seasons.

THE ISLAMIC STATE has a new residency in Egypt, according to a YouTube message posted Sunday.

THE UNITED ARAB EMIRATES is a vital part of the U.S.-led campaign against Islamic State militants.

IRAQ: The Iraqi government dismissed 26 senior military commanders and retired 10 more.

A SNOWY OWL can't stop laughing.

AN UNEXPLODED WHALE endangers a beach in France.

A RANDY PORPOISE was found dead in a housing estate alleyway, in Tarring, West Sussex.

ALPACAS, hanging out at a retirement home.

BELLE & SEBASTIAN jam on "Sukie in the Graveyard" for Halloween in Paris.

PINK FLOYD dropped The Endless River on Spotify.

TV ON THE RADIO advance streams Seeds via iTunes.

THE ART OF McCARTNEY, with tracks from Bob Dylan, Billy Joel, Willie Nelson, the Cure, Smokey Robinson, Brian Wilson, Robin Zander and Rick Nielsen, and more, is advance streaming.

EXIT VERSE is advance streaming a tasty self-titled debut.

RED RED MEAT advance streams the reissue of There's a Star Above the Manger Tonight.

SHE & HIM cover the  1934 jazz standard “Stars Fell On Alabama.”

MARK RONSON drops "Uptown Funk" with Bruno Mars, and "Daffodils," one of three featuring Tame Impala singer Kevin Parker.

CHRISTOPHER OWENS drops a new track, "America," just months after his second ssolo LP. It's not the Paul Simon tune, tho it is unplugged.

DUSTY SPRINGFIELD: "I Just Don't Know What to Do With Myself."

THE WRENS signed with a record label to release their long-awaited album.

BOB DYLAN: Flavorwire rounds up companion reading for The Basement Tapes Complete.

YO LA TENGO: Pitchfork rounds up facets of the band's live performances.

THE CHARLATANS' Tim Burgess talked to Drowned In Sound about the band's new projects and past honors.

JENNIFER ANISTON has been doing tons of PR, including Harper's Bazaar and E! Online, to promote Cake and Horrible Bosses 2.

EMINEM threatens to punch Lana Del Rey in the face, completely misjudging his ability to generate faux controversy at this stage of his career.

JENNIFER LAWRENCE: Not a fan of social media.

JEFF GOLDBLUM married longtime love Emilie Livingston after more than three years of dating.

ROBIN WILLIAMS' suicide was triggered by a horrible disease called Lewy Body Dementia.

GERI HALLIWELL is engaged to Formula 1 racing team boss Christian Horner.

LIV TYLER is profiled by Town & Country.

EGYPT: The Egyptian military announced the arrest of 14 suspected terrorists and the "destruction of 30 'terrorist hideouts'" in the Sinai. Egypt has relieved over 200 school teachers and transferred them to "administrative posts in the ministry," and it has banned Libyan schools in Egypt due to links to the Muslim Brotherhood.

JORDAN has fortified its borders and put its air force and intelligence service to work in the U.S.-led alliance against the self-declared caliphate in Syria and Iraq. To counter the low thrum of support for extremist movements on the home front, the kingdom is not only prosecuting Islamic State recruiters and cracking down on anyone waving an Islamic State banner, but it has turned its attention to the nation's 7000 mosques.

IRAQ: The mass killings of Sunni tribesmen battling the Islamic State have added urgency to Iraqi government efforts to support pockets of resistance against the insurgents. But distrust, a lack of financing and corruption threaten to slow the process, tribesmen and officials say.

A BLACK CAT overshoots the roll.

PET HOARDING? The City Council last week told Hermosan Betty Starr she would have to get rid of two of her four cats, following a four-year neighborhood skirmish over dead birds, poop in yards, and who called who a you-know-what.

A PARROT picked two locks on his cage and made his escape while being transported in a car in Essex.

TWO FIGHTING BUCKS had to be rescued from a window well in Pocatello, ID.