DEVENDRA BANHART has a new Bollywood-themed video for "Carmensita," featuring new squeeze Natalie Portman.

PAUL WESTERBERG: PopMatters thinks that 49:00 -- a single 49-minute track where the songs bleed into each other, layered over one another, with some of them nothing more than snippets (as if some invisible hand is spinning a radio dial) -- might be one of the best releases of his solo career.  Billboard has some backstory for the project, including the 'Mats-like mash-up at the end.

THE TING TINGS played DC's 9:30 Club last night, so you should be able to stream the gig on demand via NPR now.

PAT BEACH, longtime friend of Pate and features writer for the Austin American-Statesman, ran afoul of liberal megasite Daily Kos over a snarky piece he wrote about their convention, which his editor has pulled from the Internet.  Ironically, he called the Kossacks humorless.  Doubly ironic, afaik, he's still a pretty liberal guy, but is getting defended by right-leaning sites like Newsbusters and Michelle Malkin.

JAYHAWKS Gary Louris and Marc Olson both talk to Paste about getting back together and making an album.

BECK has posted the video for "Orphans" from his Modern Guilt album.  No cameo from Cat Power, alas.

THE HOLD STEADY stopped by The Current for a chat and mini-set you can stream on demand via MPR.

JOHN LYDON, a/k/a Johnny Rotten, has responded to allegations of his involvement in a racist assault on Bloc Party's Kele Okereke by saying his accuser is a liar and in need of the publicity.

THE MURCURY PRIZE nominees for 2008 have been announced.

BLACK KIDS and their blog buzz are covered by Reuters. Their debut is streaming for a second week at Spinner.

CHRISTIAN BALE denied allegations of assault made against him by his mother and sister.  Bale voluntarily submitted to police questioning in London on Tuesday and was released without being charged. There are reports circulating that the arrest was for verbal assault, and one of Bale's reps is echoing that. Sources directly connected to the case tell TMZ there was physical contact between Christian and his mom, but it amounted to next to nothing.

ALEC BALDWIN is said to have turned testy when Diane Sawyer had to reschedule an interveiw about his divorce memoir because of her husband Mike Nichols' heart surgery.  But a Baldwin pal sticks up for him: "The interview was rescheduled at least four times. Then the air conditioning wasn't working. Alec was a little annoyed, but not with Diane."

DAVID DUCHOVNY & GILLIAN ANDERSON talk to Dark Horizons about the X-Files movie opening Friday, with observations about Mlder, Scully, etc.

MADONNA was ordered by medical experts to take her foot off the pedal on the punishing dance routines because her body simply cannot cope.

ZACHARY QUINTO talks to Sci-Fi Wire about taking over the role of Spock from Leonard Nimoy in director J.J. Abrams' upcoming Star Trek reboot movie.

MILEY CYRUS denies she is interested in the lead role in "Undiscovered Gyrl," an R-rated movie with nude scenes.

EBERT & ROEPER are to be supplanted by E! Entertainment critic Ben Lyons and Turner Classic Movies host Ben Mankiewicz on a revamped "At the Movies" aimed at a younger demo.

ESTELLE GETTY of The Golden Girls died Tuesday morning at her Los Angeles home at 84.

OUR FRIENDS, THE SAUDIS have updated their textbooks; they still teach hatred for infidels.

IRAQ's parliament on Tuesday passed a law setting guidelines for provincial elections, despite a boycott by Kurdish lawmakers. Officials have targeted sometime in autumn for the polls, but the political dispute -- coupled with parliament's one-month break beginning July 31 -- makes it unclear when elections could be held. The measure now goes to the country's presidency council. Coalition forces discovered a massive cache of weapons during an operation targeting al-Qaeda in Iraq elements near Samarra that concluded July 19.

A SIX-LEGGED FAWN had one of its two tails removed after being attacked by dogs in Rome, GA.

GUINEA PIGS dress for dinner in Peru.

CANADIANS: Be on the lookout for a cat in a pink dress.

A DEAD HERON is hanging around a tennis tourney in Vancouver.

THE WORLD'S FASTEST SNAIL was crowned at the annual World Snail Racing Championships in Congham, Norfolk.