Topic: Karl

THE WEEKEND STARTS HERE:

...with THE LOVIN' SPOONFUL! The obligatory "Summer in the City" because of course.  But let's do the other big hits: "Daydream," "Do You Believe in Magic," and "You Didn't Have To Be So Nice."  Also, the band gets some orchestral backing on "Darlin' Be Home Soon," which is lesser-known today, but which reached No. 15 on the Billboard charts in 1967.

THE MYNABIRDS advance steam Lovers Know.

RED RIVER DIALECT advance streams Tender Gold and Gentle Blue.

BENJAMIN CLEMENTINE advance streams At Least For Now.

LIANNE LA HAVAS advance streams Blood.

LED ZEPPELIN drops an alternate (and decidedly lesser, imho) version of "When The Levee Breaks."

WILCO lists their 17 favorite recent albums, including the reissue of Game Theory's Real Nighttime.

FAITH NO MORE ceebrates their contrariness with The Guardian.

THE KINKS visit a hair salon, circa 1964.

NEGATIVLAND's Don Joyce died Wednesday at 71.

NOW SHOWING: This weekend's wide releases are: Pixels, which is currently scoring 19 percent on the ol' Tomatometer; Paper Towns, which is scoring 61 percent; and Southpaw, scoring 52 percent.

MIRANDA LAMBERT claims BLAKE SHELTON was way more into The Voice than her, and she felt like an abandoned wife.

DANIEL RADCLIFFE, a/k/a Harry Potter and the star of The Dogwalker, just turned 26. Here he is working magic on Eminem's "The Real Slim Shady."

KING ARTHUR: Entertainment Weekly looks at Guy Ritchie's upcoming reimagining of the legend.

KELLY RUTHERFORD lost her child custody bid.

JURASSIC WORLD 2: Director-writer Colin Trevorrow and co-writer Derek Connolly confirmed with ETonline that they will script the next installment.

THE REVENANT: Veteran crewmembers who have toiled on director Alejandro G. Inarritu's The Revenant say the director's follow-up to Birdman could turn out to be epic and Oscar-worthy. Some also say that making the film has been by far the worst experience of their careers — "a living hell," as one bluntly puts it.  Leonardo DiCaprio seems to have survived okay.

IRAQ has for the first time deployed soldiers trained by the U.S.-led coalition in their campaign to retake the city of Ramadi from Islamic State militants, the U.S. military said on Thursday.

IRAN:The UN's nuke watchdogs will be relying on Iran to take samples at Parchin and other sites for its "possible military dimensions" (PMD) investigation.  USA Today discusses four key questions about the nuke deal.

A DOG saved by CPR.

A FIVE-DAY-OLD SEAL became separated from its mother and stranded in a field of cows.

A CAT rescued from a fire now nurses other animals at the pet hospital.

ARMADILLOS rae spreading leprosy in Florida.

DUM DUM GIRLS released an alternate video for "Coming Down."

RICHARD THOMPSON performs in the WNYC Soundcheck studio.

GUSTER played Clearwater 2015.

ANTARCTIGO VESPUCCI advance streams the power-poppy Leavin’ La Vida Loca.

SAM PREKOP & ARCHER PREWITT (The Sea & Cake) stopped by Morning Becomes Eclectic for a session.

BLITZEN TRAPPER drops "Lonesome Angel" ahead of All Cross This Land. Very Laurel Canyon-y.

MARK LANEGAN: Brooklyn Vegan has his demo for "No Cross," as well as Lanegan and Beth Orton covering Marc Almond's 1988 UK hit "Your Kisses Burn."

FUZZ: Ty Segall's heavy power trio drops "Pollinate" and "Rat Race" ahead of II.

JASON ISBELL: Making the Ordinary Exceptional.

TITUS ANDRONICUS: Patrick Stickles delves into the emotions of The Most Lamentable Tragedy with Exclaim.

THE CLIENTELE: Alasdair MacLean is interviewed by Music is Love about influences, peers, and geography. (Thx, Frank Yang.)

WAYNE CARSON,  a Grammy-winning songwriter whose hits included “Always on My Mind” and “The Letter,” died on Monday in Nashville. He was 72.

BLAKE SHELTON & MIRANDA LAMBER: Now it's her turn to leak charges of infidelity.

NICKI MINAJ & TAYLOR SWIFT got into a Twitter squabble over the VMAs, and it has become the pretext for Deep Thoughts.

KOURTNEY KARDASHIAN has met with top Hollywood divorce attorney, “disso queen” Laura Wasse.

SPECTRE has a boss new trailer online.

ASHTON KUTCHER & MILA KUNIS married well before their July 4th ceremony.

CHRIS BROWN's departure from Manila was delayed on Wednesday because of fraud allegations against him and his promoter for a cancelled concert last New Year’s Eve.

CHARLIZE THERON once invited Pres Obama to a strip club.

RUSSIA would take military "countermeasures" if Sweden were to join Nato, according to the Russian ambassodor.

IRAN: National Security Adviser Susan Rice on Wednesday acknowledged the existence of so-called “side” agreements between Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency. Rice said the documents between Iran and the IAEA are not public, but the administration has been informed on their contents and will share details with members of Congress in a classified briefing on Capitol Hill. AFAIK, these types of agreements with the IAEA are common.However, the Obama administration’s claim that the Iran nuclear accord provides for airtight verification procedures is coming under challenge from nuclear experts with long experience in monitoring Tehran’s program.

FRANK, the Happiest Dog Ever. (Thx, Zoey.)

A BABY ELEPHANT busts a move.

A CAT awakens from his neutering, is not amused.

CROWS are massive jerks. And stare unamazed.

KURT VILE drops "Pretty Pimpin'" ahead of b'lieve i'm goin down.

UNKNOWN MORTAL ORCHESTRA visited WFUV's Studio A for a chat and mini-set.

BIG TALK advance streams Straight In, No Kissin'. 

SPILL advance streams their self-titled debut EP. 

ALL SONGS CONSIDERED features tracks from Wilco, Sports, Palehound,  Night Beds and more in the latest edition.

TITUS ANDRONICUS: Patrick Stickles talks about his psychological damas and his new rock opera with Esquire. (Thx, Frank Yang.)

THE ZOMBIES (including the original members) will be touring Odessey & Oracle in the US this Fall.

DEF LEPPARD dismissed reports that US Presidential candidate Donald Trump will introduce the band at an upcoming live show. 

LYDIA LUNCH, still raging, rages against the commercialization of pop at The Guardian.

BLAKE SHELTON & MIRANDA LAMBERT: Did they divorce due to infidelity? Or was it that she didn't want kids? 

MELANIE GRIFFITH & ANTONIO BANDERAS finally divorced.

KHLOE KARDASHIAN & LAMAR ODOM finally divorced. 

THE MTV VMA nominations went to these folks. 

BENICIO DEL TORO has the offer to play the villain in Star Wars: Episode VIII.

E.L. DOCTOROW, a leading figure in contemporary American letters whose popular, critically admired and award-winning novels — including “Ragtime,” “Billy Bathgate” and “The March” — situated fictional characters in recognizable historical contexts, among identifiable historical figures and often within unconventional narrative forms, died on Tuesday in Manhattan. He was 84 and had homes in Manhattan and Sag Harbor, N.Y.

THE 100 GREATEST AMERICAN FILMS, according to world film critics surveyed by the BBC. 

THE ISLAMIC STATE  is transforming into a functioning state that uses extreme violence — terror — as a tool.

IRAN: U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said a speech by Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on Saturday vowing to defy American policies in the region despite a deal with world powers over Tehran’s nuclear program was “very disturbing”. 

A CHAMELEON pops bubbles. 

THE SQUIRREL THREAT: A "drunk" squirrel caused hundreds of pounds of damage at a private members' club in Worcestershire.

SNAILS slug it out in world championship racing.

A GRIZZLY BEAR pushes a woman trapped in a glass cage of emotion for a Japanese game show. 

BON IVER unveiled two new, untitled songs at the Eaux Claires Music & Arts Festival.

DESAPARECIDOS, Live In Concert.

PHILADELPHIA COLLINS advance streams the Derp Swervin’ EP.

ON AN ON advance streams And the Wave Has Two Sides.

FOALS drop “Mountains At My Gates" ahead of What Went Down.

DRINKS is "Laying Down Rock" ahead of Hermits On Holiday.

QUESTION MARK & THE MYSTERIANS: "96 Tears" and " Girl (You Captivate Me)" for Twofer Tuesday.

PAUL WELLER: The Modfather is profiled by Magnet.

PAVEMENT: Scott Kannberg, the band's rhythm guitarist, talks to Salon about the clattery early days.

THE BEST OF 2015 (So Far), according to the Toronto Sun.

AC/DC's fmr drummer Phil Rudd was released on bail on Monday after being arrested in New Zealand on a charge of breaching the conditions of his home detention sentence for threatening to kill a former employee.

BLAKE SHELTON & MIRANDA LAMBERT have split after four years of marriage.

AMY SCHUMER is interviewed by GQ.

NICOLE KIDMAN is profiled by Vogue.

CHRIS BROWN's close friends were in on the home invasion robbery.

TRUE DETECTIVE: Was it ever good?

GEORGE COE, an actor with extensive credits and a longtime activist in the Screen Actors Guild, died Saturday in Santa Monica, Calif., after battling a long illness. He was 86.

CHINA is planning a city the size of Kansas.

SYRIA: Jihadist groups in Syria, including the Al Nusrah Front and Ahrar al Sham, have established "Al Muhajirun" as a new front for foreign fighters. The alliance is intended to unite foreign jihadists and serve as a counterbalance to the Islamic State.

IRAN: The United Nations Security Council has unanimously endorsed the nuclear deal struck between Iran, the United States and five other world powers. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) criticized the administration for backing the UN vote on the deal before Congress reviewed it. Iran's parliament also has concerns, if you believe state-run media.

SAUDI ARABIA: The nuclear deal that will lift tough sanctions on Iran is mobilizing Saudi Arabia to turn the tide against its regional rival in Yemen and Syria before it makes an economic recovery, military officials and analysts say.

SOCCER COCKATOO: Let's go to the video.

NUT-BASHING MONKEYS offer clues about human evolution.

SHEEP perform King Lear.

WOULD YOU LIKE FISH WITH THAT? Breakfast at the Graham Center at Florida International University’s main campus was interrupted when the aquarium in the center’s food court burst Thursday morning.

BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN stopped by the Wonder Bar to help out fmr Iron City Houserockers frontman Joe Grushecky with "Darkness on the Edge of Town."

PAUL WELLER talks to WFUV and shares some of his new music.

CHRISTOPER OWENS palyed a mini-set for KEXP's Midday Show.

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

CHRIS BAIO of Vampire Weekend stopped by Morning Becomes Eclectic for a session.

U2 played "October" for the first time in 26 years at MSG.

JIMMY PAGE talks to NME about future projects, and perhaps Led Zeppelin.

ALBERT HAMMOND, JR gets a lengthy profile at Stereogum, including his "Side Boob."

NOEL GALLAGER will be talking about Oasis, his brother, the 90s, Britpop, and New Labour on the BBC.

AC/DC's former drummer Phil Rudd is back behind bars just 10 days after being sentenced on drug and threatening to kill charges in New Zealand.

WEEKEND BOX OFFICE: Ant-Man tops the chart with 58MM, respectable, tho a couple million below projections. Against a 130MM budget, an "A" Cinemascore should keep it leggy enough that the overseas markets will bring it to breakeven in theaters, while setting up the next phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.  Minions places with 50MM, on a steeper-than-expected 57 percent drop; perhaps families went to Ant-Man. At 625MM worldwide against a 74MM budget, the animated film is doing just fine, thank you very much. The Trainwreck debut showed with 30MM, well above projections in the 20MM range. Against a 35MM budget, with good reviews and an "A-" Cinemascore, this should have no problem making money.  Inside Out takes the fourth slot with 11.7MM on a 34 percent drop, and it still has a chance to be Pixar's second-biigest movie behind Toy Story 3.  Jurassic World finally tumbled from second to round out the Top 5 with 11.4MM on a 37 percent drop; it becomes the fourth film to top 600MM domestic, and has surpasssed 15. Billion worldwide.

TRAINWRECK may be first and foremost a star vehicle for rising comedienne Amy Schumer, who also wrote the script.  But what you need to know is that it was directed by Judd Apatow, who is know best for movies like Knocked Up. Trainwrecked is largely the same type of story of a person with issues inspired to self-improvement by the prospect of love -- just with a gender reversal.  Think of Schumer as the female Seth Rogen here. Schumer's script is a worthy entry in this genre, with the requisite abount of sex and drug jokes one might expect in an Apatow movie, and Apatow directs it well, including the many cameos from non-actors like LeBron James (who does respectably here).  There's also a subplot involving Colin Quinn as Schumer's Dad (and the source of her psychological problems), the circumstances of which may be familiar to, say, people my age.

BILL COSBY talked about how fame and drugs helped him seduce young women in a 10-year-old deposition for a lawsuit filed by a young woman who accused him of drugging and molesting her.

DEMI MOORE ended up with a dead man in her swimming pool. Not her fault tho.

SIRS PATRICK STEWART & IAN McKELLEN deliver Taylor Swift's "Bad Blood" and "Blank Space".

WOODY ALLEN loves Emma Stone. If only she were younger.

GWYNETH PALTROW actually talked sense to her kids.

ALEX ROCCO, best-known for playing Moe Greene in The Godfather while you were going out with cheerleaders, died Saturday at 79.

IRANIAN Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Saturday the nuclear deal with world powers did not signal any wider shift in Iran's relationship with Washington or its policies in the Middle East. Kyle Orton (not from the NFL) outlines the strengths and weaknesses of the deal.

A DOG does a forward flip...of sorts.

THE LOCH NESS MONSTER is most likely a large catfish, according to an expert who has spent 24 years searching for Nessie.

SALAMANDERS join sperm-based flash mobs.

A BEAR broke into the Colorado Cherry Company and ate the pies...except one.