QUILT drops a video for "Tie Up The Tides."

BROKEN BELLS performs a mini-set for WNYC Soundcheck.

SUZANNE VEGA plays "Luka", "Tom's Diner"and two new ones in a Tiny Desk Concert.

NEW BUMS advance stream Voices In A Rented Room.

SHOCKING PINKS advance stream their triple LP, Guilt Mirrors.

THE BLACK LIPS drop “Justice After All,” ahead of Underneath The Rainbow.

WOODS drop "Moving To The Left," ahead of With Light And With Love.

TEMPLE OF THE DOG: "Hunger Strike." Brrr.

PRINCE: Every hairstyle, 1978-2013.

THE HOLD STEADY: Noisey surveys the band's first decade.

RAY DAVIES, DONOVAN, Graham Gouldman, Mark James and Jim Weatherly are the latest group of inductees to the Songwriters Hall of Fame on June 12. Solid. From a Pate perspective, notable that Gouldman wrote "For Your Love."

THE TOP 10 BETA BAND SONGS, according to Stereogum.

SHIRLEY TEMPLE BLACK, ho as a dimpled, precocious and determined little girl in the 1930s sang and tap-danced her way to a height of Hollywood stardom and worldwide fame that no other child has reached, died on Monday night at her home in Woodside, Calif. She was 85. Her daughter Lori was a bassist for the Melvins.

TOM BROKAW revealed he has been diagnosed with cancer and said he and his physicians are very encouraged with the progress he is making.

JUSTIN BIEBER could be ordered to leave the US if he's charged and convicted of vandalism in the egging case... but it's unlikely.

KRISTEN STEWART: Director Rupert Sander's life is spiraling downward while he still holds a torch for her.

DAVID CASSIDY's wife files for divorce after his third DUI arrest. I think she doesn't love him. Get unhappy.

BILLY RAY CYRUS releases a hip-hop sequel to "Achy Breaky Heart," presumably to shame his daughter Miley.

ABRAHAM LINCOLN: Happy 205th birthday to the 16th President of the United States. Even if you saw the Spielberg biopic, here are two things you may not have known about Honest Abe: (1) he was an early adopter of the telegraph; and (2) he once sported a punky haircut.

SYRIA: The Obama administration is engaged in a debate about the extent of the president’s powers to use lethal force against terrorist organizations, and the deliberations have been accelerated by al-Qaeda’s recent decision to sever ties with a violent Islamist group in Syria.

PAKISTAN: The Obama administration is considering authorizing the CIA or the military to kill an American citizen hiding in Pakistan who allegedly has helped Al Qaeda militants plan attacks against U.S. troops in neighboring Afghanistan and is actively plotting future attacks, officials said Monday.

AFGHANISTAN: US Forces-Afghanistan condemned the Afghan government's order to free 65 "dangerous individuals" from custody.

MOHAWK CAT: Let's go to the video.

AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT: A dog with two noses.

NASAR THE HORSE came in from a snowstorm, decided he preferred the house.

CROCODILES can climb trees.

THE FLAMING LIPS & SEAN LENNON covered "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds," while Lauryn Hill covered "Something" at the Ed Sullivan Theater for a Twofer Tuesday after the big Beatleversary.

THE PIXIES play a Tiny Desk Concert at the offices of NPR.

WARPAINT stopped by World Cafe for a chat and mini-set. 

NILS LOFGREN stopped by World Cafe for a chat and mini-set, including my Nils fave, "No Mercy." 

ST LUCIA stopped by The Current for a chat and mini-set.

WALTER MARTIN (The Walkmen) guests Karen O on "Sing To Me."  There's... yodeling.

ETERNAL SUMMERS drop "Never Enough" ahead of The Drop Beneath.

BLEEDING RAINBOW "Tell Me" ahead of Interrupt.

KLAXONS drop "Children of the Sun" ahead of their third album.

CHAIRMEN OF THE BOARD: "(You've Got Me) Danglin' On a String."

ST VINCENT: Over eggs and spinach, Annie Clark sketches her bio for The Observer.

INXS: Lesser-known nuggets are compiled at SPIN. 

XIU XIU is profiled at PopMatters.

ANNA CALVI is profiled by the the Halesowen News.(Thx, LHB.)

JUSTIN BIEBER: The L.A. County District Attorney has surveillance video that should make it pretty easy to prosecute Justin Bieber for allegedly egging his neighbor's house.

PHILIP SEYMOUR HOFFMAN's alleged drug dealer claims he could have savd the actor.

AMY ADAMS was appalled that Valentino tried to use her and Philip Seymour Hoffman's funeral as a promo stunt.

JULIA ROBERTS grieves the overdose death of her half-sister.

CHRIS KATTAN: Busted for DUI.

LIAM HEMSWORTH & NINA DOBREV were caught canoodling in an Atlanta bar.

TEEN MOM Farrah Abraham authorized more than one sex tape, as everyone suspected.

THE UNITED STATES is said to be considering a drone strike on an American member of al Qaeda in an unnamed foreign country who is plotting attacks against US citizens overseas. President Obama and President Hollande of France jointly announced new strategic cooperation between their countries on combating terrorism as well as other endeavors.

IRAN: As part of seven promised "confidence-building" measures on its nuclear program due for completion by May 15, Iran agreed to provide information to the IAEA on its detonators. A top IAEA official said progress at the Feb. 8-9 talks was good but much work remains to be done to examine possible military aspects of Iran's nuclear program. Iran claimed to have successfully test-fired two new missiles, an advanced ballistic missile with a fragmentation warhead and a laser-guided surface-to-surface and air-to-surface missile.

A GIANT PANDA enjoyed the recent snowfall at the Toronto Zoo.

A GREAT DANE called Freddy is believed to be Britain's biggest dog - and he's still only a puppy.

PURR MINISTER vote-rigging scandal rocks Parliament. But not Funkadelic.

A GIANT JELLYFISH washed ashore Down Under.

THE ARCTIC MONKEYS covered the Beatles' "All My Loving" as a ballad at MSG in their own British Invasion.

THE NATIONAL played a full concert at the Sydney Opera House.

THE HOLD STEADY unveil "Spinners," "The Only Thing," and "Almost Everything" on WYEP.

ANGEL OLSEN advance streams Burn Your Fire for No Witness.

LOST IN THE TREES advance streams Past Life.

THE CIVIL WARS cover Elliott Smith's "Between the Bars."

THE BEATLES appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show 50 years ago yesterday, the first of three in February 1964.  NPR has the short version of how the Fabs got there, while Billboard has a delightful deep dive into their journey Stateside.

SAM COOKE and the song that almost scared him. 

SLOWDIVE founding members Neil Halstead and Rachel Goswell talk exclusively to The Quietus about re-learning the old songs, advances in guitar pedal technology, the possibility of a new Slowdive album and why this time it's all about having fun.

BAND OF HORSES frontman Ben Bridwell talks to Drowned In Sound about the new record, as well as plans for the next studio effort, the band’s relentless work ethic and the journey he’s taken from turbulent twenties to a more settled family life back home in Charleston.

NME's 500 GREATEST SONGS, wrong in so many ways, is discussed at Stereogum.

WEEKEND BOX OFFICE: The Lego Movie dominates the chart with 69.1 million -- better than projected and second only to The Passion of the Christ for a February opening. It opened like Disney's Frozen, or a Pixar pic, but on a relatively low 60 million budget on a less favorable debut date.  The Monuments Men places with 22.7 million against a 70 milion budget, despite lukewarm reviews, so maybe Sony has some regrets from delaying it from December.  Ride Along falls from first to show with 9.3 million as it crosses the 100 million mark against a 25 million budget.Frozen drops to the fourth slot with 6.9 million -- still pretty leggy in the face of the Lego competition.  That Awkward Moment hangs around the bottom of the Top 5 with 5.5 million and 16.8 million total against an 8 million production budget.  Below the fold, Vampire Academy opened in seventh with an anemic 4.1 million.

THE LEGO MOVIE: The near-universal acclaim leaves me with little to add, other than that such a score bespeaks the sort of apeal that should make you suspicious of theose trying to put a parochial spin on it.  The Lego Movie, ultimately, has little agenda beyond entertainment, which it delivers by the truckload.  It is a hero's journey movie for kids, and a pastiche of hero's journey movies for adults, and its third act delivers something more, which I won't spoil.  The folks at Lego wisely decided to let the screenwriter directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller tell a tale without worrying about it being an ad for the toys, thereby making an excellent ad for the toys.  The animation, voice work and music (mostly by Devo's Mark Mothersbaugh) are all charmingly effective; it was quite good in 3-D, but I suspect ti works about as well in 2-D.

WOODY ALLEN responded to Dylan Farrow's claim of molestation. Farrow replied. Maureen Orth compiled 10 undeniable facts about the case, as well as a link to the judicial decision in the custody case where the allegations first surfaced.

KRISTEN STEWART has realized she can't control who she loves.

JOHNNY DEPP is back on-baord to play mobster Whitey Bulger in Black Mass.

PAUL BETTANY, already the voice of Jarvis in the Iron Man franchise, will play The Vision in The Avengers: Age of Ultron.

TEEN MOM Farrah Abraham insists she did not consent to a second sex tape which is about to be marketed. Anyone wanna bet on that?

NYMPHOMANIAC: Director Lars Von Trier shipped the presser for the movie in Berlin; Shia LeBeouf walked out after 10 minutes.

UKRAINE's state security service on Sunday placed anti-terrorist units on alert in response to a sharp rise in unspecified threats against sensitive installations including atomic power stations, airports and gas and oil pipelines.

EGYPT: The Interior Ministry accused the Muslim Brotherhood of forming a military wing.

AFGHAN troops raise their voices against President Hamid Karzai, demanding that he sign a security pact with the United States.

THE SQUIRREL THREAT: A militant rodent tries to bury his nut in a dog.

AN "UNWANTED" GIRAFFE was put down by a Danish Zoo, which fed the carcass to its lions.

SHARKS are now being culled in Western Australia, following shark attacks. Farewell and adieu, you ladies of Spain.

FROG TORMENT: Crawley borough council's call center were given a shock after a man claimed he was being 'harassed' - by a frog.

THE WEEKEND STARTS HERE:

... with NEIL YOUNG! Live on the Beeb, circa '71. Your setlist includes: "Out on the Weekend," "Old Man," "Journey Thru the Past," "Heart of Gold," "Don't Let It Bring You Down," "A Man Needs A Maid," "Love in Mind," and "Dance, Dance, Dance."

REAL ESTATE stopped by WNYC Soundcheck for a chat and a pair of new songs.

LAURA CANTRELL stopped by WNYC Soundcheck for a chat and a pair of new songs.

LUCIUS plays a full set and does an interview for WFUV Live.

HURRAY FOR THE RIFF RAFF stopped by WFUV's Studio A for a chat and mini-set.

ST VINCENT drops "Prince Johnny" ahead ofher self-titled fourth LP.

THE OLD 97s drop “Longer Than You’ve Been Alive” ahead of Most Messed Up.

BECK drops "Waking Light" ahead of Morning Phase.

WE ARE SCIENTISTS; "After Hours." For the weekend.

PRINCE: The artist who hides in plain sight.

THE BEATLES: Be grateful they broke up. Rolling Stone compiles video from '64.

EFFIN MENUCK (Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra, Godspeed You! Black Emperor) talks to PopMatters about the spirit of Punk, Montreal and more.

INXS meant more to Australia than just sex, drugs and Kylie Minogue.

CUTOUT BIN: From the Sex Pistols to Joan Knight, from U2 to Pianosaurus, from Jeff Beck to the dB's, plus Warren Zevon, John Lee Hooker, POP Etc, Urge Overkill and more -- this Friday's fortuitous finds are streaming from the Pate page at the ol' HM.

NOW SHOWING:This weekend's wide releases are The Lego Movie, which is currently scoring 99 percent on the ol' Tomatometer; The Monuments Men, currently scoring 30 percent; and Vampire Academy, which  went unscreened by critics.

PHILIP SEYMOUR HOFFMAN will be CGIed into at least one unshot scene for The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2. Aaron Sorkin says PSH's death may save 10 lives.

DYLAN FARROW talks to People about her open letter claiming Woody Allen molested her as a child, as well as the backlash it created.

SELENA GOMEZ ignored the advice of medical professionals and waltzed out of rehab just 14 days into a 6-week program ... over the strenuous objections of the rehab staff.

ASHTON KUTCHER issued a “public plea” to Charlie Sheen to stop trashing him on Twitter. And Sheen suggested he will.

VANITY FAIR's 2014 Hollywood Portfolio.

IRAQ: US Assistant Deputy Secretary of State Brett McGurk said suicide bombings in Iraq have tripled over the past year, and that the Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham is using a "global network" of jihadists to supply the bombers, who are often foreigners; he also accused Iraq of not doing enough to stop Iran from sending military equipment to the Assad regime in Syria.

SYRIA: The Islamic Front, led by Ahrar al Sham, and the Al Nusrah Front, jointly assaulted Aleppo Central Prison, reportedly freeing hundreds of detainees. The Islamic Front and Al Nusrah had announced the operation called "Truthful Promise Approaches" in Aleppo. The battle of "Fak Al-A'ani" to liberate the prison started with an Al Nusrah suicide bombing that killed at least eight regime soldiers; some 16 Al Nusrah fighters have been killed, including Chechen commander Saifullah Shishani, head of the Al-Khilafa army and leader of the operation. Rebels are now said to control at least part of the prison.

LIBYA: A car bomb wounded a political activist in Benghazi, and the office of two TV stations in the city was bombed.

PAKISTAN: US officials said US drone strikes in Pakistan are being curtailed in deference to Pakistan's wishes and in view of logistical constraints as the US winds down its combat role in Afghanistan; the officials denied recent reports that the change was to allow Pakistan to negotiate with the Taliban.

MARU the BOX CAT battles Hana.

THE SQUIRREL THREAT: The Russians are always the first to break team.

THE SNOWY OWL that was hit by a bus in DC may have become anemic from eating the District's poison-laced rats.

DISCO CLAMS: I think I saw 'em at Pitchfest.

NEKO CASE & CALEXICO teamed up on her "Ragtime" for Conan.

MODERN BASEBALL streams You're Gonna Miss It.

TOTAL SLACKER is streaming Slip Away.

CHEATAHS stream their self-titled album.

DIANE BIRCH performs pared-down renditions of songs from her album, Speak A Little Louder, in the WNYC Soundcheck studio.

MARGOT & THE NUCLEAR SO & SOs drop "Hello, San Francisco," ahead of Sling Shot to Heaven.

BLEEDING RAINBOW drops "Images," ahead of Interrupt.

BILLY PRESTON: "Nothing From Nothing."

BROKEN BELLS: Danger Mouse and James Mercer talk to Drowned In Sound about After The Disco. 

SLINT: David Pajo and Brian McMahan talk to Pitchfork about the way history has distorted their small-town origins and slowly turned them into unwitting post-rock legends.

MOGWAI guitarist Stuart Brathwaite talks to PopMatters about the band's new album Rave Tapes.  

ROBERT POLLARD talks to MAGNET about throwing a no-hitter in college.

PHILIP SEYMOUR HOFFMAN: Cops raided a Manhattan drug den Tuesday night and arrested suspected dealers who may have been the ones who sold heroin to him. The autopsy was inconclusive; more tests are required. Screenwriter David Bar Katz denies accounts that he and the Oscar-winning actor were romantically involved.

JUSTIN BIEBER and his father were “extremely abusive” to a flight attendant as their private jet flew from Canada to New Jersey; the jet was so full of marijuana smoke that the pilots were forced to wear oxygen masks. Note that NBC News had four reporters on this story.

SELENA GOMEZ went to rehab last month, and blames it on Bieber.

WOODY ALLEN has asked for, and may get, a chance to respond to the revived child molestation story — in an Op-Ed piece in the NYT.

ELIZABETH HURLEY & BILL CLINTON? Tom Sizemore says yes; Hurley says nah.

KIM KARDASHIAN & KANYE WEST have decided to push up their wedding date.

CHARLIZE THERON & SEAN PENN are already talking about getting married? Too awful to check.

LADY GAGA became very depressed at the end of 2013.

EVANGELINE LILLY may co-star in Edgar Wright's Ant-Man.

ARTHUR RANKIN, the producer of the classic Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer and Frosty the Snowman animations, died of undisclosed causes Jan. 30 in Harrington Sound, Bermuda. He was 89.

LIBYA: The army said it has not been ordered to move against forces blockading the eastern oil ports.

SYRIA on Wednesday missed a deadline to hand over all the toxic materials it declared to the world's chemical weapons watchdog, putting the program several weeks behind schedule and jeopardizing a final June 30 deadline. Shocka. Failure in Syria may doom any nuclear deal with Iran. The Suqour al-Sham, an Islamist brigade in the Islamic Front, agreed to a truce with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham; the Free Syrian Army-linked Syrian Revolutionaries' Front, which has clashed with the Islamic Front, condemned the ceasefire as illegitimate.

IRAN: The Head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran told semi-official television the current nuclear negotiations only extend the moratorium on not injecting gas into their centrifuges for another six months. Iran’s Chief nuclear negotiator Abbas Araqchi says that Iran will not give up the Arak reactor.

IRAQ: The Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham killed 23 people in four bombings in Baghdad. Two of the attacks used suicide bombers, and both occurred near the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

LIL BUB & ANDREW W.K. rock out.

A POOCH chewed his way through his owner's £80,000 Aston Martin. And is now available for adoption!

VULTURES take up residence in South Daytona. It's a bit early for Spring Break.

A CAT missing for three years has been found fatter than when he vanished - after hiding out in a pasty factory.