THE BROTHER KITE:  Frank Yang calls their sound "Beach Boys-meets-Ride power-gazey-pop" and that is pretty much exactly what "I'm Not The Only One" sounds like.  You can stream two more jolting and floating pop tunes at KiteSpace, with echoes of the Byrds and Matthew Sweet, too.

THE SEX PISTOLS have joined the growing list of bands hitting the comeback trail, after announcing a one-off gig in London later this year.  I saw their last reunion tour.  Musicianship had replaced their raw, anarchic power.... but it was still worth seeing, particularly at the historic Aragon Brawlroom.

STARS is streaming their new album, In Our Bedroom After the War, via MuchMusic.  You can buy it online now, but it doesn't reach stores until Sept. 25.  (Thx, Chromewaves.)  If you have never heard (of) the band, you can check their Wikipedia entry.

THE PHIL SPECTOR TRIAL:  The jury aid Tuesday that it believes it is split into almost equal camps and is unable to decide whether the famed music producer shot actress Lana Clarkson to death more than four years ago.  The defense immediately asked for a mistrial, but Judge Fidler rejected that move: "It is possible I may give you further instructions tomorrow," Fidler told the nine men and three women on the jury.  Most states have special jury instructions for cases of apparent deadlock.  The judge may also be researching whether he can instruct the jury on the lesser charge of involuntary manslaughter at this late juncture.

ALL SONGS CONSIDERED is currently streaming tracks from Jens Lekman, Nick Lowe, Kevin Drew, José González, Steve Earle, Vic Chesnutt and Rotary Downs.

KINDIE ROCK:  The Seattle Post-Intelligencer notes the growing number of indie rockers playing and recording tight pop songs for kids, with Sea-Tac staples like Mudhoney and The Presidents of the United States of America joining in.  Clips from pop trio Recess Monkey at the link.  BONUS:  Kiddies sing along with Pavement!

INDIE SELLS OUT:  Band of Horses' Ben Bridwell denies charges of selling out after their song, "Everything All The Time," was licensed for use in a Wal-Mart online ad:  "Because some people see Wal-Mart as a huge, evil corporation, they seem to be especially bummed about this license and see us as posers and/or corporate whores as a result.  I'd like to just state for the record that we let all kinds of folks use our songs in all kinds of mediums. My personal stance is that once that music is recorded and released to the world then I don't really care where it goes."  He added that it "beats the hell" out of his past experience of stealing batteries and then returning them for eight dollars.  BONUS:  The Magnetic Fields maestro Stephin Merritt sings "The Wheels On The Car" for Volvo -- is that better or worse than licensing an original song?  DOUBLE-BONUS:  The Magnetic Fields -- "Born On A Train."

THE SEA & CAKE make music for your moon lounge.  The band dropped by The Current for a mini-set you can stream via MPR. 

SYD BARRETT:  The NY Sun essays the deluxe reissue of Pink Floyd's The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, calling it "very much a record of the sacrifice Barrett made, probably unintentionally, for art."  Pitchfork reviews it and loves it, though less than impressed with the bonus tracks.  Spinner looks at the new DVD release of The Pink Floyd and Syd Barrett Story.

JOHN VANDERSLICE gets an audio feature from the World Cafe, streaming via NPR.

BRITNEY SPEARS:  The judge in the Spears/ Fed-Ex child custody battle finds "habitual, frequent, and continuous use of controlled substances" by the pop tart and ordered her to attend hours of parenting classes and counseling above and beyond those ordered for both parents.  Spears has changed lawyers -- again.  Nevertheless, as I suggested last Monday, the judge hearing the Spears-Fed-Ex child custody dispute was not very interested in Gloria Allred's "secret witness," i.e. the former bodyguard claiming to have testimony "on issues of nudity by Ms Spears, drug use, and safety issues involving the children post-rehab."

ROSIE O'DONNELL turned down Oprah Winfrey's offer to promote her book.  She has posted one of her crazed messages on her blog, claiming she does not feel ready to discuss the book, but Page Six quotes Rosie's rep as saying she will do an interview with Diane Sawyer.  I'm guessing Oprah won't like being snubbed and lied to.

LINDSAY LOHAN:  Not even the News of the World is buying her ex-con dad's claim that Li-Lo promised to quit films, leave Hollywood and dump bad boy lover Calum Best in a desperate bid to stay clean.

BRADGELINA:  Pitt, out promoting The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, says, "I understand being hunted, to some degree," especially after the premiere metastasized into a mob scene, but adds, "I understand the deal. It got chaotic last night, but there was genuine happiness, and it meant something to them. It only bothers me when they get in the kids' faces."  Meanwhile, Grazia claims that Jolie launched a scathing attack on Pitt's financial acumen, saying in part: "Brad knows there are times he should just be quiet and look pretty..."

OJ SIMPSON was charged on Tuesday with kidnapping, armed robbery and assault in a dispute over sports memorabilia at a Las Vegas hotel.  TMZ has posted censored and uncensored versions of the confrontation that led to Simpson's arrest.  One of the alleged victims has suffered a heart attack.  Meanwhile, Fred Goldman is out to get some of that sports memorabilia to satisfy the judgment entered against OJ in the wrongful death suit ten years ago; a judge already awarded Goldman a Rolex spotted on The Juice's wrist in photographs arising out of the alleged robbery.  BTW, it turns out the former killer and running back backs Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) for President; I'm sure she's thrilled.

MARY-LOUISE PARKER, the star of Showtime's Weed's, becomes the latest to adopt an African baby.

SIENNA MILLER, who piled on the pounds for her curvy role in new film "Hippie Hippie Shake," has been advised by actor Jared Leto she can lose weight on a diet of curry powder and "lots of sex."  Subtle.

HILARY DUFF, in her new role as spokesmodel, says she likes to put Vaseline all over her body.

THE FRENCH HOTEL reportedly has gotten her hands on her £60 million inheritance.  Any connection between that story and the one about her stumbling at an Emmys afterparty and climbing over an iron gate in her sequinnned yellow, white and silver shift dress (pics at the link) is purely coincidental.  She is, after all, a changed woman since doing jail time.

WES ANDERSON, director of films including Rushmore and The Royal Tenenbaums, has directed six television spots for AT&T, which are nicely collected at GoldenFiddle.

DARTH VADER was arrested for assault in the UK.  He should have learned long ago that choking off someone's air supply is not just some party trick.  Cue Darth.

ICYMI:  Here's that wacky student getting tasered and arrested after barging to the head of the line at a U of FL Gainsville townhall featuring Sen. John Kerry (D-MA).  It was a publicity stunt by a 9/11 conspiracy theorist.  BONUS:  He's a journalism major.

CARTOON JIHAD:  Authorities in Bangladesh ordered the arrest of a cartoonist and confiscated copies of a major newspaper's weekly supplement for publishing a "blasphemous" caricature of Guess Who.

IRAN & SYRIA:  Jane's Defence Weekly reports that dozens of Iranian engineers and 15 Syrian officers were killed on July 23 when a joint Syrian-Iranian team was attempting to mount a chemical warhead on a Scud missile.

IRAQ:  The CSM reports that departing British forces are leaving behind an emerging "Shiite Taliban state" in Basra.  The US military also reports that security has decreased in the south as rival Shiite militias jockey for power, though nationwide, the record-high "enemy initiated" attacks dropped from about 5,200 in May to about 4,800 in July and to 3,500 in August.  The ruling United Iraqi Alliance is forming of a special commission to negotiate with al-Sadr's supporters and try and persuade them to return to the government.  The US is also holding secret talks with the radical cleric, though they aren't very secret when you can hear about them on NPR.

IRAQ II:  Embedded bloggers are busy.  Michael Yon sees action along the Diyala River and asses the Iraqi Army units in the area as becoming a real army, but with room for improvement.  Michael J. Totten  and his unit get a warm welcome in Ramadi (and gets an assessment of the IA there, too).  Bill Roggio reports on a US Reconciliation and Engagement Cell in southern Baghdad province helping to stand up "Concerned Citizens" groups there -- a risky proposition, but one bringing results as the number of IED attacks plummet there.

A BLACK BEAR was ejected from Calgary's Rockyview General Hospital and chased into a tree.  So much for Canada's free healthcare.  VIDEO:  An Alaskan Black Bear searches for a pic-a-nic basket inside some family's SUV.

A FLAMINGO, A MONGOOSE and a SMALL LEOPARD are not suitable check-in luggage, as none fits in a one-quart Ziploc bag.  People trying this stunt will just be mocked by the airport monkey.

WOOLY MAMMOTH DUNG may be accelerating Global Warming.  I suggest we kill all wooly mammoths.

PET HOARDING:  This time, it's four cats, eleven birds and more than 60 dogs crammed inside a U-Haul truck with no ventilation, food, or water outside Arkadelphia, Arkansas.

A WOMAN threw herself into battle with a giant snake after it tried to strangle her pet dog to death, according to the South China Morning Post.