Crowded House have announced that they will play an intimate club tour across the US this spring. - Source

With the announcement of the Coachella line-up comes the annual Intriguing Reunion Rumors. Yes, HAPPY MONDAYS, RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE and THE JESUS AND MARY CHAIN are reuniting to play the fest... but right now, there is nothing to indicate that those gigs will be anything other than one-off reunions (but what a reunion it'll be!)

On the OTHER hand, though, one of the bands that drew our attention on the Coachella line-up was CROWDED HOUSE, who split up several years ago, and, with the death of drummer Paul Hester, seemed unlikely to regroup. Well, we can confirm via official press release that the House is BACK. They're NOT just reuniting for Coachella. The band will embark on a year-long reunion world tour in 2007... and that's not all. Sources are now cofirming that the Neil Finn album that's being recorded now is, in fact, a full-on Crowded House reunion record. Auditions will be held for a replacement for Hester, but it's official that Neil Finn, Nick Seymour, and Mark Hart will all be participating in the reunion album AND tour. THAT's some good news.

PAUL HESTER, the Aussie drummer best known for his work with Crowded House, has died at 46. Hester was last seen leaving his home on Friday; his body was found hanged in a nearby Melbourne park the next day. He leaves a wife and two children. Hester first joined the seminal group Split Enz towards the end of their span, then migrated alongside Enz singer/songwriter Neil Finn to form Crowded House in the mid-1980's. Our condolences to the Hester and Finn families and the MANY fans of Crowded House across the globe.

FROM SHANE: On a personal note, I'm really gutted about this. Split Enz was the band that caused me to first utter the words, "These guys are my favorite band of all time ever" back in 1984. When the Enz twisted into Crowded House, I turned into Fanboy #1. Hester's love for old-school drumming combined with his almost slapstick sense of humor added to Crowded House being one of the most vital bands of their era. I remember reading that Hester's mood swings contributed to the end of Crowded House, but I -- alongside so many other grieving fans on the Net -- had no idea the problem was this serious. For a guy who seemed SO lovable, so full of life, and so funny on stage to take his life is all a bit unbelievable. Rest in peace, Paul, you were one of the greats.