THE WEEKEND STARTS HERE:

...with the HOODOO GURUS! Live at a club in Italy, circa 1987.  Part 1 includes "In the Wild," "On My Street" and "Good Times."  Part 2 includes "Come See Me," "In the Middle of the Land," and "I Want You Back."  Part 3 includes "Mars Needs Guitars!" "I Was the One," and "What's My Scene." Part 4 includes "Bittersweet" and "Like Wow, Wipeout." Part 5 includes a cover of "Teenage Head" and "I Was a Kamikaze Pilot."

CHAIRLIFT stopped by The Current for a chat and mini-set streaming now via MPR.

GLASVEGAS did the four free songs thing for a Daytrotter SxSW session, one previously unreleased.

SHOEGAZE gets a week-long feature at Drowned In Sound.

SONIC YOUTH: The Quietus has a track-by-track rundown on the upcoming The Eternal album.

THEY MIGHT BE GIANTS: The literal version of "Birdhouse In Your Soul" for Twofer Friday.

YEAH YEAH YEAHS talk to Drowned In Sound about the science of fun.

FINDLAY BROWN: Hit By A Wall Of Sound? Beats being shot by Phil Spector! Actually, this session reminds me a bit of the Olson & Louris stuff, too, with dashes of the Everlys.

UH-OH: Matador Records has postponed reissuing albums by Mogwai, Yo La Tengo and Cat Power after losing the master tapes when a pressing plant went bust.

CUTOUT BIN: Form Katrina & the Waves to King Khan & the Shrines, from Billy Bragg to Booker T, from the White Stripes to the Chi-Lites, plus Bowie, T Rex and double helpings of the Replacements and Guided by Voices -- this Friday's fortuitous finds are streaming from the Pate page at the ol' HM.

NOW SHOWING:  This weekend's wide releases include Obsessed, which has plenty of TV ads, but no screenings for critics ; Fighting, currently scoring 36 percent on the ol' Tomatometer; and The Soloist, scoring 51 percent.  Earth, the documetary launched on Earth Day (Dang, that's some clever PR), is scoring 85 percent.

LINDSAY LOHAN may have been blindsided by her breakup with Samantha Ronson, but claims that she thought it would be much harder, and that she and Ronson are still talking.

JAY LENO is "doing just fine" in the hospital after falling ill yesterday, according to a network rep.

JACKO may have been involved in a bizarre hit-and-run collision with an ambulance in Beverly Hills.

HAYDEN PANETTIERE wuz robbed!  Save the jewelry, save the cheerleader.

MAD MEL UPDATE: A Russian pop star who allegedly had an affair with Mel Gibson has been silenced by the actor's lawyers.

HENSON'S 11: Audio from the "Ocean's 11" trailer, video from "The Great Muppet Caper."

MICHAEL PHELPS is denying rumors that he is dating Miss California. Shocka.

IRANIAN SNIPER, or WOOKIE? How to tell them apart.

NORTH KOREA has become a fully fledged nuclear power with the capacity to wipe out entire cities in Japan and South Korea.

PAKISTAN teeters on the brink of collapse as Taliban fighters threatened to overrun the volatile country. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the state, which has nuclear capability, now posed a 'mortal threat' to the world.  How mortal? The Taliban takeover of Haripur would put the Taliban on the doorstep of Islamabad and would also put two major nuclear facilities at risk.

IRAQ: Unconfirmed reports from the Iraqi Army said Islamic State of Iraq leader Abu Omar al Baghdadi was captured in eastern Baghdad.

FUZZY FUZZY CUTE CUTE: A montage of awww...some.

THE SMILEY-FACE SPIDER, which is harmless to humans, has evolved to confuse predators, and evoke nolstalgia for the 1970s, scientists think.

UNCONVENTIONAL WISDOM: What to do if you encounter a cougar, presumably not the sort you encounter in bars.

A SPARROW learns not to smoke in bed.

CROCS on a PLANE: Two bad-tempered crocodiles caused anxious moments for the crew of a Royal New Zealand Air Force Hercules.

THE BEAST of BODMIN: Caught on camera!

A WHALE PROTECTION BOAT crashed into and injured a whale off the Massachusetts coast.  US tax dollars at work!

A GROUP OF FOXES have been trained by a retiree to stand up on their hind legs like dogs and beg for food.  Awww...some pic at the link.