THE WEEKEND STARTS HERE:

...with the HOODOO GURUS! As Trouser Press reminds us: "Australia has produced few bands as crazily entertaining as Sydney's Hoodoo Gurus." In their prime, few could match Dave Faulkner and Co. in the marriage of pop hooks and garage rock riffs. Their debut album contained "I Want You Back," "Leilani," "Tojo" and "My Girl" -- and that leaves out some of my favorite tracks from the LP.  The gems kept coming on later albums, too: "Bittersweet," "What's My Scene" and "Good Times" (featuring backup vox from the Bangles), the incredible "Come Anytime," and "Axegrinder," the psychedelic "Miss Freelove '69" and the crunching rawk of "The Right Time" -- again, just to name a few.  The Hoodoos could (and can) also deliver the goods live as these vintage live clips of "Like Wow, Wipeout!", "In the Wild" and "Middle of the Land" prove.

THE FLAMING LIPS are advance streaming their Embryonic album via The Colbert Report. Yes, really.

ISLANDS are advance streaming their Vapours album via Exclaim!

DRIVIN ' N' CRYIN' is streaming their first album in 12 years via Entertainment Weekly.

THE BEASTIE BOYS are streaming their remastered Hello Nasty album.

ALL SONGS CONSIDERED: New tracks from A.A. Bondy, Noah and the Whale, The Field and more are featured in the latest installment of the long-running series.

MEYER HAWTHORNE gets a review from Soul-Sides' Oliver Wang (with video)  at NPR.

TIM EASTON stopped by the World Cafe for a chat and mini-set of "soft Americana," streaming via NPR.

GLASVEGAS have a video for "It's My Own Cheating Heart That Makes Me Cry" at Spinner. (Thx, Chromewaves.)

DIANE BIRCH talks to the L.A. Times about her past as a lounge singer, Betty Wright, soul music and whether she's a soul artist.

GRIZZLY BEAR: Ed Drozte talks to GQ UK about the band's latest album, cocktails, and more...

SMASHING PUMPKINS plan to release 11 four-song EPs digitally, and compile them on to a box set.

IDA MARIA talks to Jim DeRogatis about Lollapalooza, songwriting and more...

FRIGHTENED RABBIT drummer Grant Hutchison talks to the Salt Lake Tribune about William Wallace and the band's next album.

JOHNNY MARR and THE CRIBS talk to The Quietus about their new record, with an obligatory nod to The Smiths.

THE CUTOUT BIN: From Pres. Obama to Ace Frehley, from Television to Styx, from the Flamin' Groovies to Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings, plus Elvis Costello, Broken Social Scene, The Replacements, Otis Redding 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 animated Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, currenly scoring 91 percent on the ol' Tomatometer; the Diablo Cody-penned, Megan Fox-led Jennifer's Body, currently scoring 35 percent, the Soderberg-drected, Damon-led The Informant, which is scoring 66 percent; and the Aniston-Eckhart rom-com Love Happens, scoring 23x percent on a small number of reviews.

AVRIL LAVIGNE and Deryck Whibley have split, after three years of marriage.

JESSICA SIMPSON has called in experts  to find her missing dog -- last seen in the clutches of a wild coyote.  Martha Stewart faults the pneumatic blonde.

KERMIT THE FROG denies rumors that he is dating Lady Gaga, after accompanying her to the MTV VMAs.

BURT REYNOLDS has checked into a rehab clinic for treatment of addiction to prescription medication.

RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK (1951).

LINDSAY LOHAN took to Twitter early Thursday morning to quash rumors that she's been hospitalized in a psych ward.

KATHY IRELAND received seven stitches in her leg after a Dancing With the Stars-related injury.

BEYONCE is getting sued by Abercrombie & Fitch Co. over her "Fierce" fragrance.

SPIDER-MAN 4 is booked for IMAX screens in 2011.

AFGHANISTAN: America's top diplomat at the UN mission in Afghanistan has been ordered out of the country after a row with his boss over how to respond to last month's fraud-riddled presidential elections, it has been alleged.

IRAN: Experts at the world's top atomic watchdog are in agreement that Tehran has the ability to make a nuclear bomb and is on the way to developing a missile system able to carry an atomic warhead.

IRAQ's political parties are moving into high gear looking for partners to run with in the January 2010 parliamentary elections. Some old alliances are being reformed, and new ones are in the process of forming.

DOG and SQUIRREL, living together... mass hysteria!

THIRSTY BATS swooping to lick water from a pond, caught on camera.

A MILLION GEESE caught on camera at the Squaw Creek National Wildlife Refuge near Mound City, Missouri.

A GOLLUM-LIKE CREATURE emerges from a lake in Panama.

CATS secretly build their war machines.