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Autolux sent out an email announcing that their sophomore album, "Transit Transit", will finally see the light of day on TBD Records (Yes, that's actually the name of their new label!).  Their first album, "Future Perfect", was released in 2004 and after they finished up touring, they went into the studio to record.  But plagued by label issues they haven't been able to release their second album.  So they have been playing random shows around the LA area for the last couple of years and previewing the new material.

Speaking of random shows, Thom Yorke has asked Autolux to open up for him when he plays the Santa Barbara Bowl on April 17th.  They're going to play a few more shows in the LA area the week prior and we'll have the details when they're released. 

See below for the tracklisting of the upcoming album

Mark Linkous, the songwriter who performed under the name "Sparklehorse", has committed suicide on March 6th.  There isn't much to say that hasn't already been said by Stereogum, Rolling Stone, New York Times, and NPR.  Click on Read More for a fan-made video of "It's A Wonderful Life".

Details are scarce at the moment but a new Slowdive complication has shown up on Amazon.  It's going to be released by Cherry Red, which is the same label that release the Adorable 'Footnotes' complication a few years back.  Click on "Read More" to see the full tracklisting. (via creation-records.com)

The Flaming Lips will hit the road this summer mostly through the midwest.  Their tour includes two festivals, Bonnaroo and SunFest.  They're also going to "physically" release their version of Pink Floyd's "The Dark Side of the Moon".  The album features Henry Rollins and Peaches and the vinyl will be released on Record Store Day on April 17, and the CD comes out on May 4th. 

A French car maker, Citroen, has used a clip from a John Lennon interview in their commercial.  I shouldn't say a "clip" since it's really the bulk of the commercial, it has Lennon saying:

"Once a thing's been done it's been done, so while this nostalgia -- I mean for the '60s and '70s, you know, looking backwards for inspiration, copying the past -- how's that rock 'n' roll?  Do something of your own. Start something new, you know? Live your lives now. Know what I mean?"

Fans were obviously upset and Sean Lennon came to Yoko Ono's defense saying that, "...intention was not financial, was simply wanting to keep him out there in the world".

Check out the ad below:

The Village Voice interviewed a stripper and asked the important questions like which music works and what doesn't.  Apparently Weezer and Muse are popular.  I also learned a new acronym on page 2 of the article, "GAPDY"  which stands for Grizzly Bear, Animal Collective, Phoenix, Dirty Projectors, Yeah Yeah Yeahs.  Apparently those won't make for great strip club songs but the Yeah Yeah Yeahs do alright.  It's a pretty funny/interesting read.

The National set out to make a 'happy' record but fell short and now High Violet comes out on May 11th.   They will touring throughout the US this spring/summer and you can also checkout photo's of their recording session over at highviolet.com.

Jason Lytle and Aaron B. from Grandaddy and Aaron E. and Ariana M. from Earlimart are out searching for "Admiral Radley".  According to their site, "The music, the shows, and the press are all secondary.  Above all, we are looking for Admiral Radley."  Right now they don't have an album, but they do have two shows in March, one in Dallas and Los Angeles.  This is a new project for Jason Lytle who finished up touring in support of his first solo album, "Yours Truly, The Commuter", last year.  He's also uploading some songs that he recorded while touring, aptly called, "The Travelodge Sessions".  The first video is titled, "Wonder Why In LA".

NPR has a couple of albums that you can stream from their site.

First up is the new collaboration by Shins frontman, James Mercer, and Danger Mouse called Broken Bells.  While the Shins linup is changing, the band is going to a new label, and Gnarls Barkley is between albums, Broken Bells formed and put out a pretty fantastic record.

Second is the latest installment from Gorillaz who will headline Coachella later this year.

UPDATE:  fixed the Broken Bells link as it was broken.  Thanks Erik!

Jason writes in with the news that Alan Wilder joined Depeche Mode onstage last week for their benefit gig supporting the Teenage Cancer Trust.  As a kid I remember joking about Depeche Mode with my friends that Dave Gahan was the singer, Martin Gore was the song writer, Andrew Fletcher was the "hand clapping expert" and the only real musician was Alan Wilder.  So I was a little annoyed when he left after the 1994 "Devotional Tour" to persue his side project, Recoil. 

You can watch the video below or check out Slicing Up Eyeballs who has the video from four (!!) different angles.