THE WEEKEND STARTS HERE:

... with POWER POP (REDUX)! For whatever reason, I have considered Summer the ideal season for gems like Badfinger's "No Matter What" (which Pate covered on occasion) and "Baby Blue", and even Todd Rundgren's "I Saw the Light" and Cheap Trick's "I Want You to Want Me."  Ditto for more obscure tracks like The Rubinoos "I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend" (see also their vintage cover of "Please Please Me"), Off Broadway's "Stay In Time" and "Full Moon Turn My Head Around," and Pezband's "Baby It's Cold Outside" and "Close Your Eyes."

M WARD played a Tiny Desk Concert from home.

DIRTY PROJECTORS is streaming the Flight Tower EP.

RADIOHEAD, Live in St. Gallen (July 2016).

PRINCE: Hear "Witness 4 the Prosecution (Vesrion 1)," from the upcoming super-deluxe ressiue of Sign o' the Times.

BEN FOLDS shares "2020."

PHOEBE BRIDGERS talks fangirling Joni Mitchell, her new record ‘Punisher' and why teenage girls make the best tastemakers.

SAMMY HAGAR walks back comments about his willingness to die for a Sammy Hagar concert.

THE DIXIE CHICKS renamed themselves The Chicks. I'd guess reducing to "The" isn't far behind, tho The The might complain.

THE TOP 100 ALBUMS OF THE RICK RUBIN EXTENDED UNIVERSE, ranked by The Ringer.

THE ISLEY BROTHERS: "Shout." Shindig. Friday. A little bit louder now.

GONE WITH THE WIND is back on HBO Max, along with a 4:26 second introductory disclaimer explaining the film's context.

SOUTH PARK's episodes that depict Islam's Prophet Muhammad are not on HBO Max.

SCRUBS episodes which featured characters in blackface have been removed from Hulu.

DISNEYLAND is reimagining Splash Mountain, from Song of the South to The Princess and the Frog.

CAPTAIN AMERICA & ANT-MAN ASSEMBLE: Chris Evans and Paul Rudd on What You Didn't See From the Marvel Movies.

JURASSIC WORLD: DOMINION is bringing back another old character.

EMMA ROBERTS & AGRRETT HEDLUND are expecting a child.

WILL FARRELL & RACHEL McADAMS have teased that a Wedding Crashers sequel could be on the way.

LeBRON JAMES gets 100MM to build a media empire.

TWISTER is getting a reboot?

THE MAJESTIC BLUE WHALE, largest animal to have lived.

SKILLS. Wait For It.

A BLOOD-SUCKING VAMPIRE FISH is now spawning in Vermont's coastal rivers.

A LEECH swims up a man's penis and drinks pint of blood before docs pull it out.