SUPER FURRY ANIMALS:  The video for their new single, "Run-Away," subtly captures the essential cheesiness of videos from the early 80s.

THURSTON MOORE tells critics of Sonic Youth's Starbucks pact to switch to decaf: "There's no difference between working with Starbucks and working with record labels like Universal and Geffen. It's a knee-jerk reaction from PC watchdogs..."  RELATED:  Apple and Starbucks will be offering "Song of the Day" cards between October 2 and November 7.

RICHARD THOMPSON:  The preeminent Brit-folk-rock singer-songwriter-guitarist did an interview and mini-set for the World Cafe you can stream on demand via NPR.  (Thanks, Sylvia.)

NEW PORNOGRPAHERS frontman A.C. Newman is fine with being called "the west coast Broken Social Scene... as long as reciprocally they get called The New Pornographers of the east."  BONUS:  Don't miss the band's second challenge in its ongoing contest for fans.

THE NATIONAL:  Matt Berninger talks to USC's Daily Trojan about the band's higher profile, which was helped in part by reverse exposure when Clap Your Hands Say Yeah opened their last tour.  (Thanks, LHB.)

JACK WHITE joins BOB DYLAN for "One More Cup of Coffee" at Nashville's historic Ryman Auditorium.  So bootleg it ends abruptly when the videographer gets caught by security.  You can see the prior gig's setlist at Stereogum.

EMMYLOU HARRIS does a Q&A about Songbird, her upcoming four-CD retrospective, in the latest issue of Fader Magazine.  Oddly, you can download the whole mag for free.

THE GREENCARDS:  According to NPR, they may be "the best Americana artist with no native claim to North America."  You can stream an entire gig from Cleveland's Beachland Ballroom, or sample four tracks (including the Bluegrass-y "Lonesome Side of Town") at the link.

PRE-SCALPING:  Fan clubs are getting miffed over members selling presale passwords on specialized Web sites and even eBay and Craigslist.

THE POLARIS MUSIC PRIZE:  Chromewaves reports on Patrick Watson's surprise win, rounds up other reax and hooks you up with A/V links for Watson and his fellow nominees.

KEIFER SUTHERLAND was busted on suspicion of DUI in West Hollywood late Monday night, after allegedly blowing more than twice the legal limit of .08. He has been convicted of DUI in the past five years; a second conviction carries a mandatory minimum of five days in jail.  Of course, it's the L.A. County jail, so maybe more like 90 minutes.  And he's Jack Bauer, so he could escape in less time than that.

BRITNEY SPEARS:  Lawyers made an unscheduled appearance in the pop tart's child custody battle to "refine" the court order requiring Spears undergo semi-weekly random drug and alcohol testing and parenting classes.

LINDSAY LOHAN is reportedly set to leave rehab this weekend.  Lock your medicine cabinets.

DREW BARRYMORE danced and worked the counter for a "Drunk and Horny" party at a West Hollywood gay bar.  NTTAWWT.

HEATH LEDGER was recently caught canoodling Helena Christensen, but The Joker may still be on the prowl.

SIENNA MILLER is mighty miffed that pictures emerged of her in her birthday suit with a daisy chain crown on the set of her new movie.  That second link may be nsfw, natch.

BRADGELINA:  Jolie is meeting with British Foreign Secretary David Miliband in New York this week to discuss global diplomacy.

REESE WITHERSPOON & JAKE GYLLENHAAL:  Is their on-again, off-again relationship on-again?

KEIRA KNIGHTLEY:  If you sue the Daily Mail for libel, you can expect to be painted by the paper as a whining diva later.  US Weekly has a more benign spin on the same quotes.

INDIANA JONES IV:  An extra working on "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" has been fired for dishing major spoilers to his hometown paper.  And the story has disappeared from the paper's website and from Harry Knowles' influential Ain't It Cool News site.  Sounds like a job for Indiana Jones!

MYANMAR: It will always be Burma to J. Peterman... and to Pres. Bush, who announced new sanctions Tuesday against the military dictatorship there, accusing it of imposing "a 19-year reign of fear'' that denies basic freedoms of speech, assembly and worship.  Troops moved into the streets of Rangoon in apparent readiness for a confrontation with pro-democracy protesters.  Others concerned about the situation include Ensign Pavel Chekhov and Jim Carrey.  BONUS:  Boston Herald editor and columnist Jules Crittenden titles his roundup "Mission of Burma."

SAUDI ARABIA:  Girls used pepper spray on members of the religious police who were "politely" trying to advise and guide them regarding their inappropriate clothing.  One of the girls videoed the incident with her mobile phone.  Saudi women are petitioning King Abdullah in an unprecedented bid to push the government to lift a ban on females driving in the Kingdom.  Saudi women's rights activist Wajeha Al-Huweidar says the petition is only the beginning, which gave me an earworm.

IRAN:  Pres. Ahmadinejad continued his propaganda tour at a meeting of US Muslim leaders, claiming the Holocaust was a pretext for occupation of Palestine and the differences between Shia and Sunni Muslims have been created by enemies (as opposed to going as far back as 600 AD).  Iran's judiciary has sealed off the offices of a popular news Web site critical of Ahmadinejad's policies after journalists continued to update it, despite official filtering.  French Pres. Nicolas Sarkozy piled pressure on Iran at the UN, saying it would be unacceptable for the Islamic republic to get hold of nuclear weapons.

IRAQ:  Civil war has been averted and Iranian intervention has "ceased to exist," Iraqi Prime Minister al-Maliki said Monday.  I'm taking that with a grain of salt.  Iran is smuggling advanced weapons, including surface-to-air missiles, into Iraq to be used against US troops, and the Iraqi gov't remains a mess.  However, the Iraqi parliament's newly formed women's caucus will pressure the government to roll out concrete policies to help victims of the war.  Female MPs have also reached an accord on "general principles," such as the rejection of violence and the support for national reconciliation efforts.  Non-sectarian caucuses seem like an encouraging development.  Supporters of radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, otoh, have embarked on a tour of neighboring countries to explain his group's latest anti-US strategies.  MSNBC takes a look at how the US military defines a sectarian killing without the hyperventilation that surrounded the report from Gen. Petraeus in September. 

IRAQ II:  The AQ-affiliated "Islamic State of Iraq" accuses the 1920 Revolution Brigades of betraying Islam by joining US forces in their fight against AQ, while rolling out a new propaganda video featuring small children with AK-47 assault rifles.  The group is also likely behind a systematic campaign to assassinate police chiefs, police officers, Interior Ministry officials and tribal leaders throughout Iraq.

ICYMI:  A Swedish TV hostess vomits on camera, ostensibly due to female health issues.  Consider yourself warned.

A PAIR of PERUVIAN ALPACAS -- William and Harry -- have been hired to protect Cornish hens on a British farm.  Video at the link.

ANOTHER PURLOINED BUNNY in Washington State.  This time, a pet rabbit named Sugar Bunny was stolen from a preschool and fliers protesting circus animal acts were left in its empty cage.  PETA denies responsibility, though its name appeared on some of the fliers.

THE SQUIRREL THREAT:  Lumpy squirrels are hosts for botfly larvae.  But still good eatin'!

SNAKE HEAD found in a can of green beans in Iowa City, IA:  "It was ... yuck, it was really yuck."

AN ORANGUTAN attacks the paparazzi in Borneo.  And why not?  She's bound to be judgment-proof.

WOMAN tells police someone shaved her cat.  So many punchlines, only some of which involve Mr. Bigglesworth.