MERCURY REV asks: "Are You Ready?"

THUNDERB^TCH, led by Alabama Shakes frontwoman Brittany Howard, advance streams a self-titled debut LP.

THE TALLEST MAN ON EARTH stopped by The Current for a chat and mini-set.

UNKNOWN MORTAL ORCHESTRA stops by Morning Becomes Eclectic for a session.

JOAN SHELLEY advance streams Over and Even.

EARTH WIND & FIRE: The fish, the barrel, the smoking gun.

BRITT DANIEL, WILL BUTLER, MAC McCAUGHAN, MATTHEW CAWS, MARSHAL CRENSHAWand JODY STEPHENS talked songwriting and played a bit at SXSW.

BIKINI KILL: Kathleen Hanna talks Riot Grrrl with the New York Times magazine and drops the heretofore unreleased "Ocean Song."

MATT POND PA: The State of Doubt.

KERMIT THE FROG has already moved on from Miss Piggy?

JENNIGER GARNER & BEN AFFLECK are living down the street from each other.

BENEDICT CUMBERBATCH and wife Sophie Hunter named their son something fairly normal.

ANDREW GARFIELD: Playing Spider-Man was a no-win scenario.

IAN McKELLEN: Not really a Taylor Swift fan.

BOURNE AGAIN: Vincent Cassel is set to play the villain in the next installment of the Jason Bourne franchise starring Matt Damon. Alicia Vikander and Tommy Lee Jones are also on board for the project, and Julia Stiles is set to return as well.

STAR WARS: EPISODE VIII is already looking at a few good women.

IRANIAN nuclear chief Ali Akhbar Salehi announced Monday that the Islamic Republic is putting together a 15-year plan to enhance its nuclear capabilities following the signing of a landmark agreement with world powers last month.

A BABY GORILLA & A TODDLER play hide and seek.

ELITE SQUADS OF MONKEYS & FALCONS have been enlisted for China's WWII commemoration parade.

CHIMPS strike out in their nonhuman rights case. The revolution is coming.

FRANKENMOTHS may be deployed to protect cabbage patches in upstate New York.