Lindsay Lohan
Photo: Mark Mainz/Getty Images

Lindsay Lohan is getting sued again — this time for assault and negligence by one of the passengers who was traveling in the car the actress allegedly chased last month while driving under the influence. Tracie Rice, the woman who filed the suit and was in the car driven by Michelle Peck — the mother of one of Lohan's former assistants — claims that Lohan "put me through one of the most frightening experiences of my life," according to a statement obtained by The Associated Press. "What Miss Lohan did that night was extremely dangerous and reprehensible. Someone could easily have been killed or seriously hurt because of her irresponsible decisions that evening." The suit also alleges that Lohan intentionally inflicted emotional distress upon the woman, and it seeks unspecified damages as well as payment of medical and other emotional-distress-related expenses. ...

Britney Spears and Kevin Federline's divorce lawyers were supposed to help resolve their clients' child-custody dispute at a Los Angeles Superior Court hearing on Tuesday (August 14), but instead the attorneys used the court date to try to protect the former spouses' privacy. According to a court clerk, legal representatives from Los Angeles TV news channel KNBC, "Access Hollywood" and People magazine jointly filed papers Tuesday morning to prevent court records in the former couple's child-custody battle from being permanently sealed. The move came after news outlets got wind that Federline's attorney Mark Vincent Kaplan was planning to bring to court a folder of documents "about an inch and a half thick," according to a source close to the matter. Federline's team has already subpoenaed Spears' cousin and former assistant, Alli Sims, and Spears' bodyguard Daimon Shippen; more subpoenas to give depositions about the care of the children are due to come for those close to Spears, the source said. Superior Court Commissioner Scott M. Gordon will hear the opposition to seal the records in a separate hearing on September 14, while the custody dispute will continue in court on September 17. ...

Wu-Tang Clan covering the Beatles' "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" ... with George Harrison's son Dhani ... and Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist John Frusciante playing along? That's the news the RZA spilled to RollingStone.com late last week, saying the collabo for the ages will surface on the Clan's November 13 album, 8 Diagrams. The track will sample the original George Harrison-written song, with the group rapping over the track, Frusciante wailing on lead guitar and Dhani Harrison playing acoustic. ... Amy Winehouse's touring band, the Dap-Kings; Jamiroquai's Stu Zender and other to-be-announced singers will make guest appearances with Mark Ronson when he mans the decks at the VMAs on September 9. ...

Don Imus back on the airwaves? AP reports that the shock jock has reached a settlement with CBS Radio over his contract and is in negotiations with New York's WABC-AM radio — home to another inflammatory jock, Rush Limbaugh — to return to broadcasting. The settlement would preempt Imus' threatened $120 million breach-of-contract suit, a CBS spokesperson told AP, although the terms were not disclosed. ...

Arcade Fire and LCD Soundsystem must really be enjoying each other's company these days — the tour partners are planning to release a split 7-inch while on the road, RollingStone.com reports. The record will include the Fire's cover of Serge Gainsbourg's "Poupée de Cire, Poupée de Son" and LCD's take on Joy Division's "No Love Lost." ... Perry Farrell and his Satellite Party will descend on jam-band Moe.'s eighth annual Moe.Down fest, to be held August 31-September 2 in Turin, New York. The Party will be filling in for Ryan Adams & the Cardinals, who had to bail from the fest for personal reasons. ...

The tentative track list for the soundtrack to the upcoming film "Resident Evil: Extinction" has been announced. The set will include cuts from Shadows Fall, Flyleaf, Bayside, the Bled, Chimaira, Poison the Well and It Dies Today. Look for it to hit stores September 18 and the film to hit theaters three days later. ... Gwar have been added to the Viva la Bands Tour, which will also feature Cradle of Filth, CKY and Vains of Jenna. The trek kicks off September 24 in Baltimore and runs through November 3 in Worcester, Massachusetts. ... The lineup for the Radio Rebellion Tour has been released, and extreme-metallists Job for a Cowboy and Polish death-metal specialists Behemoth will be co-headlining. Gojira and Beneath the Massacre will be the opening acts on the trek, which will hit 28 North American cities, beginning October 18 in Baltimore and wrapping November 18 in New York. ...

Lana Clarkson's mother Donna took the stand Monday in the Phil Spector murder trial, testifying about shopping with the deceased actress shortly before she was shot on February 3, 2003, the Los Angeles Times reports. Refuting claims that Lana Clarkson was despondent over a failed acting career — the defense has argued that she was driven to suicide — the prosecution attempted to show instead that she was optimistic about the future. The defense asked Donna Clarkson to testify about apparently forged documents the actress used to try to get a loan, but prosecutor Alan Jackson said the documents would only provide "a look at what kind of person she is, not who pulled the trigger." Superior Court Judge Larry Paul Fidler has allowed the letters to be admitted. ...

Sixteen solo albums by John Lennon debuted on iTunes on Tuesday, and for the next 30 days, exclusive video content will accompany six of them — including John Lennon/ Plastic Ono Band and Milk and Honey. The albums are available in iTunes Plus, which offers DRM-free tracks, and each song costs $1.29. ...

Phil Rizzuto, the New York Yankees shortstop who later became a longtime announcer for the team and was best-known for catchphrases like "Holy cow!" and "Unbelievable!," died Tuesday. He was 89. Rizzuto, whose nickname was "Scooter," will also be remembered as the voice providing the play-by-play commentary in Meat Loaf's infamous 1977 song, "Paradise by the Dashboard Light."

08.13.07

Britney Spears' assistant was served with court papers Sunday morning to give a deposition in a legal matter between the singer and Kevin Federline. Mark Vincent Kaplan, Federline's attorney, told The Associated Press that Alli Sims will be asked to offer a statement "in connection with the Britney Spears/ Kevin Federline issue," although he didn't elaborate. He added that Sims is "believed to have relevant information" but didn't go into specifics about that either. On Wednesday, Kaplan filed documents in Los Angeles Superior Court for primary physical custody of Federline's two sons with Spears. ...

Diddy will executive produce the upcoming biopic of the Notorious B.I.G., Variety reports. "Soul Food" director George Tillman will be behind the lens for "Unbelievable: The Life, Death and Afterlife of the Notorious B.I.G.," for which an open casting call was launched nationally on Sunday. ...

Jennifer Lopez has pegged October 9 as the release date for her English-language album Brave, her second LP of the year and sixth studio disc overall. The set is highlighted by the just-released single, "Do It Well," and will be produced by J.R. Rotem (50 Cent, Christina Aguilera), among others. J. Lo's other album this year, Como Ama Una Mujer, is the best-selling Spanish-language debut LP ever. ... Amy Winehouse, who was hospitalized last week for severe exhaustion, has scrapped two planned shows in Germany opening for the Rolling Stones, RollingStone.com reports. The singer told Britain's News of the World, "I don't know how to explain what happened. ... I can't remember what I looked like. I couldn't recognize myself. It was terrifying." ...

Smashing Pumpkins, Foo Fighters, Kid Rock and Velvet Revolver will anchor Los Angeles radio station KROQ's Inland Invasion fest — which has been renamed the L.A. Invasion, since its relocation from a venue in Devore, California, to one in Carson. Against Me!, Chris Cornell, Hot Hot Heat, Satellite Party, Paramore and Cypress Hill round out the bill for the show, which will take place September 15. ...

The French publisher of the "Harry Potter" series will not seek damages against a 16-year-old who allegedly posted online an unauthorized French translation of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows," publishing house Gallimard Jeunesse said Monday (August 13), The Associated Press reports. The case is still being investigated by French authorities, who will decide whether to bring it to trial. ... Robert Smith of the Cure, Julian Casablancas of the Strokes, Frank Black and Tom Waits will judge this year's International Songwriting Competition, RollingStone.com reports. ...

Bloc Party, Múm, Of Montreal and more have been confirmed for the ninth annual Iceland Airwaves festival, set for October 17-21 in downtown Reykjavík. ... The Shins have beefed up their fall tour schedule with a smattering of new U.S. dates. After playing Seattle's Bumbershoot festival on September 1 and Chicago's Download Festival the following day, the band will take a month off, then hit the road again beginning October 5 in Berkeley, California. From there, the Shins will play more West Coast and Southwest dates before dipping down South and winding their way up the East Coast for a two-day stand at New York's Terminal Five on October 23-24. They'll cap the tour with a pair of gigs at Las Vegas' Joint in the Hard Rock Hotel on October 27-28. ...

Wilco are bumping a pair of concerts because guitarist Nels Cline has come down with the chicken pox, according to the band's site. The Tuesday night show in Duluth, Minnesota, will now be staged September 4, and a concert scheduled for Winnipeg, Manitoba, will be postponed or scrapped entirely. ... "You Hear It First" vets the Shout Out Louds will tour for a month after they drop their new album, Our Ill Wills, on September 11. The indie-pop quintet will embark at the LA Weekly Detour festival in Los Angeles on October 6 and stay on the road through a November 3 show in Dallas. ...

According to Killswitch Engage bassist Mike D'Antonio, the band will head out for a co-headlining run with Lamb of God this winter. Suicidal Tendencies and Every Time I Die are in talks to open the gigs. ... Alice in Chains have been working on its first new material in more than a decade, according to frontman William DuVall. He said working with the band has "been deeply rewarding" and the new material sounds "insane." No word yet on when the reunited grunge rockers will release their next LP. ...

"Big Lebowski" fans who incessantly re-enact scenes and dialogue from the cult flick are about to be able to make their interpretations even lifelike: action figures are on the way. Seven-inch scale figures devoted to the Dude and Walter will be available in October and can be preordered here. ... Barenaked Ladies will host another cruise in 2008 called Ships & Dip III and leaving Miami on January 27. Tickets go on sale March 22. Meanwhile, Lynyrd Skynyrd (with guests the Marshall Tucker Band) are also hosting another cruise, while Sister Hazel and Toad the Wet Sprocket are signed on for Rock Boat VIII. ...

According to the Asbury Park Press, police charged 33 people with underage drinking last week at the Family Values Tour's Wednesday stop at the PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel, New Jersey. Thirteen others were arrested on various other charges, including resisting arrest, disorderly conduct and assaulting a trooper. In all, 46 people, ranging in age from 16-47, were taken into custody during the gig, which was headlined by tour founders Korn. ... A James Brown trustee accused of misappropriating $350,000 of the late singer's money has resigned, the Chicago Tribune reports. David Cannon turned over a check for the sum at a hearing on Friday. A follow-up hearing has been slated for September 24 as wrangling continues over Brown's estate.

• Lindsay Lohan
• Britney Spears
• Wu-Tang Clan
• Mark Ronson
• Amy Winehouse

Perry Farrell and 50 Cent
Photo: Ben Ritter/ Jason Campbell

First Hank Williams Jr. asked NFL fans if they were ready for some football.

Then the Black Eyed Peas told basketball fans to get it started for the NBA playoffs.

Now 50 Cent, Kelly Rowland and Perry Farrell and his group, Satellite Party, are adding to the list of music/sports-world promos.

The trio recently remixed Satellite Party's "Only Love, Let's Celebrate" for the upcoming 2007 college football season on ESPN.

"[ESPN] had the idea to bring in someone who can rap and a female who can sing, and then put it together [as a remix]," Farrell told MTV News on Thursday. "Coming from the world of rock and roll — and as a DJ — I felt that a lot of rock and roll was being ignored by DJs," he said. "I wanted to bring rock and roll songs into the nightclubs because DJs are always looking for new material, and hip-hop has predominately been what club music has been about over the last 10 years. So when I heard that ESPN was interested in that and they also wanted to get a rapper, they made a wise choice. Their ears were tuning in to the things that I was hoping for. And when they told me they were thinking about 50 on it? Wow, that could be amazing."

Farrell and 50 recorded their vocals together earlier this month in New York. Farrell said he didn't have to do too much work since the track was already his own composition, but he did rearrange and add lyrics with the help of his band. They did a quick jam session and looped the music in a five-minute interval to catch a vibe, and according to Farrell, that's when 50 caught on and started writing his lyrics to the track.

"He started writing once we were down there to kind of feel things out," Farrell explained. "I had my band jamming. And from there, his producer was sitting there and they were taking all that in, my free flows, and they were listening and kind of taking notes. So he was kind of responding to my stuff at first, but then kind of coming up with his stuff. I think we had the same plan; he didn't want to say anything that didn't suit us and had as much to do with our character as anything else.

"It's pertinent to football, but it could very much be its own thing," he continued about the track. "The music really suits crossover. I think that it's really good and I'm happy I got to do it and partner in it with 50 and Kelly, and I just look forward to rocking people on Saturday nights for the whole football season."

(For a report on Farrell and Satellite Party's appearances at Lollapalooza, see "Against Me! Deliver A Smashing Set, Daft Punk Land The Saucer: Lollapalooza, Day One.")

50 Cent, Farrell and Rowland are scheduled to shoot a clip for the track in New York, to be used as part of the opening to ESPN's NCAA game-night coverage.

Seen a great show? MTV News wants your photos, videos and reports from all the latest concerts for our new You R Here community. Check out the site to read, rate and comment on reviews from around the globe. We'll put the best stuff on our You R Here blog, and even in on-air news!

• 50 Cent Vents Over 'Follow My Lead' Leak

• 50 Cent
• Kelly Rowland
• Perry Farrell
• Satellite Party
• Jane's Addiction

Lupe Fiasco
Photo: MTV News

• Lupe Fiasco
• Ben Harper
• Amy Winehouse
• Juliette & the Licks
• Kings Of Leon

Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony
Photo: Picturehouse

All eyes will be on Jennifer Lopez when she launches her first-ever concert tour September 29 in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Husband Marc Anthony will co-headline the trek, which will take them through the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico. Dates will be announced next week. Each set will include English- and Spanish-spoken songs, and $1 from every ticket sold will go toward financial-services company ING's school-fitness program for kids, Run for Something Better ... Kelly Clarkson told Reader's Digest for the magazine's August issue that she got her way with her new album after a public battle with RCA, but the singer says in a new post on her Web site that she regrets feuding with label head Clive Davis over My December. "Contrary to recent characterizations in the press, I'm well aware that Clive is one of the great record men of all time," reads the post. "He has been a key advisor and has been an important force in my success to date. I really regret how this has turned out and I apologize to those whom I have done disservice. I would never intentionally hurt anyone. I love music, and I love the people I am blessed to work with." ...

Who needs a clothing line when you can have an umbrella range — especially if you're Rihanna? The singer has done the inevitable by partnering with British company Totes for a collection perfectly suited for her "Umbrella" single. Take your pick right here. ... Pink couldn't stomach her planned gig at Athens' recent Fly BEEyond Festival — she came down with a bout with gastroenteritis and had to bail hours before going onstage, according to the show's promoter, Hot Beez. The show will not be made up, but ticket holders are being offered cash refunds. ...

"Hallows" be thy name: The final installment of the Harry Potter series racked up some big numbers over the weekend (surprised?). Scholastic says roughly 8.3 million copies of the book sold in the first 24 hours upon its release Saturday, with Borders, Amazon and Barnes & Noble all reporting more than 1 million copies sold each. The sales were impressive in the U.K., where the book sold 2.7 million copies in the first 24 hours, and in Canada, where it moved about 812,000 in its first 48 hours. Daniel Radcliffe had his own reason to celebrate Monday (July 23): The actor turned 18, gaining access to a fortune that is the U.S. equivalent of roughly $40 million. ...

Freestyle king Lil' Flip turned himself in on a felony charge of credit-card abuse on Saturday after authorities said he tried to buy a $671 Southwest Airlines ticket to Baltimore from Houston in June using an American Express card held by someone else. Flip, 26 (born Wesley Eric Weston Jr.), was booked and released on $2,000 bond, according to the Houston Chronicle. Lil' Flip's attorney and manager addressed the allegations on Monday. "Flip had absolutely no involvement with any sort of credit card fraud," Sandy Lal said in a statement. "He never personally handles any travel arrangements; that is left to promoters and travel agents." His attorney Stanley Schneider added: "A complete investigation will easily show that Lil' Flip is innocent of all charges and is actually a victim of a scam." ... Cops working the John Mayer concert at Hersheypark Stadium in Hershey, Pennsylvania, were busy on Saturday, arresting 63 fans, according to The Patriot-News. Among the arrests were 46 for underage drinking; 14 for disorderly conduct; and three each for public drunkenness, possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia. ...

It's all about "The Simpsons Movie" this week, as the much-anticipated flick opens Friday, but some people haven't forgotten about the show's upcoming 19th season — namely Jack Black, Lionel Richie, Topher Grace and MTV News' own Kurt Loder, all of whom will be paying guest appearances. Black will voice the character of Milo, who scares Comic Book Guy by opening up a competing store. In other "Simpsons" news, Matt Groening has finally 'fessed up to where he got the idea for Marge Simpson's blue beehive. He told The New York Times Magazine in an interview published Sunday that her 'do was inspired by "The Bride of Frankenstein" and his own mom's hairstyle in the '60s. ...

The Arcade Fire aren't burning out anytime soon — the indie-rockers have extended their tour with LCD Soundsystem with four additional dates: September 30 in St. Paul, Minnesota; October 3 in Louisville, Kentucky; October 5 in Columbus, Ohio; and October 6 at New York's Randall's Island. ... The Shins are tacking a cover of Pink Floyd's "Breathe" onto their "Turn Me On" U.K. single. ...

The Reverend Al Sharpton is supporting New York State Senator Antoine Thompson's idea to penalize record companies that don't crack down on denigrating lyrics by pulling the state's public investments from them, The Associated Press reports. According to Thompson, about $3 billion of the state's pension fund is invested in the entertainment industry. ... Iconic indie label Sympathy for the Record Industry — which has issued albums by the White Stripes, Hole, Rocket From the Crypt and a slew of others over the years — is up on the block, according to Idolator.com. Owner Long Gone John is pricing the label and its "questionable/nebulous rights to nearly 750 releases by over 550 bands" at "$625,000, or $700,000 if I don't like you." ...

There have been some lineup changes in Perry Farrell's Satellite Party project. Former Extreme guitarist Nuno Bettencourt jumped ship last week, saying, "I have always felt uncomfortable with the direction of the lineup and live show. I truly do believe in the songs and music on the album, and I wish Perry Farrell and any musician that remains on tour all the best." Drummer Kevin Figg also opted to leave, but no reason was offered for his departure. In their place, Farrell has recruited Silvertide guitarist Nick Perri and drummer Jordan Plosky, who has worked with Ryan Cabrera in the past. ...

Babyface, Queen Latifah, Garth Brooks and others will perform at a concert to raise funds for a Martin Luther King Jr. memorial at the National Mall in Washington, D.C., on September 18. The event, set to take place at New York's Radio City Music Hall, will also feature previously announced artists Stevie Wonder, Robin Thicke and more. ... Jeff Beck's manager tells Billboard.com that, contrary to a report the site published Friday, the guitarist is not planning to tour with Jimmy Page and others as the Yardbirds this fall.

07.20.07

Jessica Simpson is a big spender, she recently admitted to Harper's Bazaar — big surprise there. But the singer/actress also revealed that while sister Ashlee "goes to a thrift store and can buy something for 20 bucks ... I have to go buy a black button-down at Barneys. For $900. Because it's a collector's item," she said in the magazine's August issue, which features Jessica on the cover. When asked which career she would pick if she had to choose between music and movies, she replied, "In my music career, there have been moments of failure, and with acting I haven't had that yet. But music is opening up my heart and every emotion inside of me." ...

Speaking of Ashlee, you might not want to wait around for that supposed Robert Smith collabo she's been raving about. "I would be hugely surprised if I end up working with Ashlee this year, but I haven't ruled it out," he told Billboard.com. He added: "I went to see her in 'Chicago.' ... I was impressed. The fact is, when she got onstage and sang, she was really good." ...

50 Cent has beef again — but this time, it isn't with a rival rapper. On Friday (July 20), he filed a lawsuit seeking at least $1 million in damages from online-ad company Traffix Inc. for using his image without permission in a graphic advertisement, Reuters reports. Even further, 50 says that the ad — which features a cartoon version of him and the message "shoot the rapper and you will win $5,000 or five ringtones guaranteed," according to the suit — promotes violence and threatens his safety. The suit cites the "vile, tasteless and despicable" use of the rapper's image and says it "quite literally calls for violence against" him. A lawyer representing Traffix declined to comment to Reuters. ...

"I'll just say no until I get my way, and I did," Kelly Clarkson told Reader's Digest for the magazine's August issue, in regards to conflicts with RCA over her new album My December. The singer added that label execs "hated 'Miss Independent' on my first album. ... The song I wrote that they hated the most was 'Because of You.' I fought and fought for it, it became successful and they finally got behind it." Clarkson also talked "American Idol," saying she did her own hair and makeup for the first half of the inaugural season. ...

Want a side of Ne-Yo with your Big Mac? If so, you're getting your wish — the R&B artist, along with Twista, Kenna and others, are going to be performing 10 free gigs at McDonald's restaurants ... in the parking lot. Billboard.com reports that the happy meal on wheels will begin Thursday at the Venice Beach Recreation Center in California, then hit up eight other cities before wrapping September 25 in Austin, Texas. ...

Lindsay Lohan turned herself in to police on Thursday in connection with her Memorial Day car accident, The Associated Press reports. Lohan was fingerprinted, photographed and booked on charges of driving under the influence and suspicion of misdemeanor hit-and-run at around 4 p.m. and was released about an hour later on $30,000 bail. Shortly after the Memorial Day crash, Lohan, 21, was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving at a Los Angeles hospital, where she was taken for treatment. Police have still not revealed the results of tests on a substance they said at the time was believed to be cocaine found during the investigation. The singer/actress' blood-alcohol level at the time of the crash was above the California legal limit of .08, but police have not said how high it was. A court date was scheduled for August 24. ...

J.K. Rowling posted a long letter to fans on her Web site on Friday saying she felt "a heady mixture of excitement, nerves and relief." (To read the full missive, in which she doles out a long list of acknowledgements, you'll have to go to JKRowling.com, use a "port key" and do some digging.) ... Annie Lennox has pulled out the big guns for an AIDS-prevention fundraising song on her upcoming Songs of Mass Destruction album, due in October. The album will feature a self-described "powerful feminist anthem" titled "Sing," which has a chorus of 23 iconic female singers, among them Madonna, Sarah McLachlan, Celine Dion, Fergie, Faith Hill, Pink, Dido, Shakira, Joss Stone and KT Tunstall. ...

The track list for James Blunt's forthcoming LP, All the Lost Souls, has been revealed. The disc, scheduled for a September 18 release, will boast 10 tracks: "1973," "One of the Brightest Stars," "I'll Take Everything," "Same Mistake," "Carry You Home," "Give Me Some Love," "I Really Want You," "Shine On," "Annie" and "I Can't Hear the Music." ... Afraid Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke might come down on you "like a ton of bricks"? Hopefully your name isn't Gordon Brown. Yorke is speaking out about carbon emissions in a new video post on TheBigAsk.com — the Web site for a climate-change virtual-march effort backed by Friends of the Earth. "I'm reminding my [member of Parliament] to remind [new British Prime Minister] Gordon Brown that he's committed to a bill to reduce our CO2 emissions double-quick-time, and if he doesn't, we're going to come down on him like a ton of bricks." ...

Korn avatars will perform the band's new single, "Evolution," in MTV's Virtual Pimp My Ride program this Monday, July 23. Fans will also be able to listen to the band's entire new album, Untitled, before it hits the streets July 31. In related news, Korn are said to be mulling a covers album, on which they'd tackle tracks including Nine Inch Nails' "Head Like a Hole" and "Love My Way" by the Psychedelic Furs. ... The Asbury Park Press reports that New Jersey State Police made 20 arrests on Wednesday at the PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel, New Jersey, during a Tool concert. Police claim the arrests included charges of underage drinking and possession of marijuana but did not provide a more detailed breakdown of arrests. ...

Feist, My Morning Jacket's Jim James, the New Pornographers' A.C. Newman, author Sarah Vowell, Grizzly Bear and others are coming together to help "to try to settle the debate: words or music — which is better?" The one-night-only shindig will go down August 26 at the Beacon Theatre in New York, be hosted by comedian and "Daily Show" contributor Demetri Martin and benefit the free writing programs put on by literary hipster supreme Dave Eggers' nonprofit tutoring program, 826NYC. ...

New Order over? Uh, that's news to Bernard Sumner and Stephen Morris, who said they will carry on with the group even though departed bassist Peter Hook recently said on Xfm that the band was through. "We would have hoped he could have approached us personally first," they said in a statement to BBC News. "New Order have not split up, they continue to exist." ... The Cure are working on a three-hour documentary film to celebrate their 30th year as a band. The film, which would be released as a DVD, will chronicle the group's career. ...

A source tells RollingStone.com that Jimmy Page and Jeff Beck will tour as the Yardbirds with the band's original bassist and drummer starting in October. The source added that Eric Clapton, another former member, will not be participating. ... Testament inked a deal with Nuclear Blast onstage in front of 20,000 fans at a concert in Germany on Wednesday. A new album featuring original members Eric Peterson, Chuck Billy, Alex Skolnick, Greg Christian and new drummer Nick Barker (Dimmu Borgir, Cradle of Filth) is on the way. ...

Onetime Flavor Flav love interest Brigitte Nielsen has checked into rehab to treat an undisclosed condition, according to manager Steven Tempone. The AP reported that Tempone said the towering blond actress and 44-year-old co-star of the "Strange Love" reality show, "[checked in] on her own free will and we're proud of her and wish her very well." ... According to the San Jose Mercury News, many Ozzfest fans who scored free tickets to this summer's heavy-metal extravaganza are deciding to stay home. The paper claims only about 50 percent of the people who had tickets to recent shows actually showed for the concert. About 18,000 were expected at Thursday's Ozzfest date at the Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View, California, but the city took security precautions in the event that all 30,000 people who received free tickets made it out to the venue. ... Al Gore III, the 24-year-old son of former Vice President Al Gore, has been charged with possession of marijuana and prescription drugs, according to TMZ.com. He was arrested on July 4 in Laguna Niguel, California, after being stopped for speeding. ...

Fourteen years after three teens were sent to jail for the May 1993 murder of three 8-year-old boys in Arkansas, a lawyer for the so-called West Memphis Three has said new DNA evidence proves his clients' innocence. The Arkansas Times reported that police are conducting new interviews to determine how a hair from a stepfather of one of the boys ended up at the crime scene. Attorneys for the three convicted men — whose plight was highlighted on the 2000 Free the West Memphis 3 album on songs by Steve Earle, Tom Waits and late Clash leader Joe Strummer — said there was no DNA evidence at the scene that matches their clients'. The mother of one of the victims has stated recently that she now believes the three convicted men, Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jessie Misskelley, are not guilty. ... One of the co-owners of the Station nightclub in Rhode Island, where 100 people were killed in a fire during a Great White show in 2003, has created a charity fund to help pay for educational expenses for children who lost parents in the blaze. The Providence Journal reports that club co-owner Jeffrey Derderian has asked people to set aside their anger over the tragedy and contribute to the Station Education Fund to help the 76 children, ages 4 to 23, who lost parents in the blaze.

• MTV Rough Cut: Daniel Radcliffe
• 'Harry Potter' Stars Don't Even Know How It Will End
• Jessica Simpson Steps Into 'Major' Role

• Jennifer Lopez
• Marc Anthony
• Kelly Clarkson
• P!nk
• Lil' Flip

R. Kelly's <I>Double Up</I>
Photo: Jive Records

With new CDs drenching us last week and another dam about to break wide open June 5, this week's dry spell is more than welcome. There are so few new releases, in fact, that we can give some of the underdogs a little more lovin' than usual. Before we do that, though, there's some catching up to do with a little album called Double Up.

Pied in the Sky: R. Kelly has gotta be on cloud nine this week — with the competition nice and quiet, his two-CD release Double Up is bound for victory. On it you'll find a remix of "I'm a Flirt" — the song you might not have found before, since it appeared as a hidden cut on Bow Wow's LP from last year, The Price of Fame — that features T.I. and T-Pain (but not Bow Wow, natch). Those are hardly the only guests featured on Double Up: Swizz Beatz backs up Kells' claim that he's "Champ" on the first track; Snoop brings the title song to fruition by making a guest appearance on it; Nelly is "Trying to Get a Number"; Chamillionaire likes to "Get Dirty"; Usher goes after the "Same Girl"; Keyshia Cole and Polow Da Don vie to be the Pied Piper's "Best Friend"; and Kid Rock and Ludacris play the "Rock Star." Oh, and someone's "Havin' a Baby" too, apparently.

Party On, Perry: Ex-Jane's Addiction frontman Perry Farrell is throwing a shindig of his own with his new project Satellite Party, which finally drops this week. He's going to the Extreme with Nuno Bettencourt on their Ultra Payloaded debut, with Fergie, Flea, New Order's Peter Hook and — sure, while we're at it, why not? — the late Jim Morrison also on the guest list. The song titles are consummately Farrellian: "Wish Upon a Dog Star" (Keanu 4 eva!), "Only Love, Let's Celebrate" and "Milky Ave." If that roster doesn't rock you out of orbit, WTF? renditions of songs by the Bee Gees and Rare Earth surely will.

Digging for Danzig: While we're talking weirdo covers, let's toss Danzig's out-of-left-field versions of T. Rex's "Buick McKane," David Bowie's "Cat People" and the Germs' "Caught in My Eye," all of which appear on their two-disc The Lost Tracks of Danzig. The heavy set is loaded with 26 unreleased cuts — some of which were only in demo form until Glenn Danzig recently added his unholy touch — as well as his track-by-track commentary in the liner notes. Don't miss the acoustic version of "Come to Silver," which Glenn originally wrote for Johnny Cash but wound up recording with Alice in Chains' Jerry Cantrell.

Even More Weirdness: As if this week's releases couldn't get any more bizarre, we also have Sleepytime Gorilla Museum to deal with — if you're into Swans or Mr. Bungle, you've found your new favorite band. Listening to the avant-garde experimentalists alone doesn't do them justice — their live shows sometimes involve scientific presentations (ran-dom!) and the band employs a 7-foot bass with piano strings, found objects from restaurant kitchens and something called the "Electric Pancreas." AS ringleader John Kane said cryptically in a recent press statement, "Nothing should be left undone which might contribute to its demise." Pre-orders of the band's new LP In Glorious Times — which features "Helpless Corpses Enactment," "Greenless Wreath" and "Salt Crown" — came with a four-color silkscreen print.

If Sleepytime need another opening act for their current tour, they should give Destructo Swarmbots a call — those loons have a new disc out this week as well. The New York collective, which has remixed Isis and Dälek in the past, is hooked on white noise and loves decimating equipment onstage. The four-year-old 'Bots chalk up four songs on their new effort Clear Light: "Banta," "Phases," "Fireberry" and "Sipping on the Fog."

Up for more wacky stuff? Try Se Dice Bisonte, No Bufalo, the latest mind-bender from Mars Volta guitarist Omar Rodriguez-Lopez. This is one of four albums O-Rod wrote and recorded while living in Amsterdam two years ago — take that, Axl! — and a song from it, "Rapid Fire Tollbooth," has cropped up repeatedly in Volta concert sets. The disc features six instruments and three tracks with vocals, and the artwork was crafted by Damon Locks of the Eternals.

There's one more experimental crew, and it's taking a more balls-to-the-wall approach: Cephalic Carnage. This week the Denver extreme-metal grinders excrete Xenosapien, which includes "Let Them So Long as They Fear," "Megacosm of the Aquaphobics" and "G.lobal O.verhaul D.evice."

Song Title of the Week:

"Difference Between Medicine and Poison Is in the Dose" from Circa Survive's On Letting Go

Other Notables:

Cary Brothers' Who You Are
"Garden State" fans might recognize this fellow (yeah, it's just one guy) as the author of the song "Blue Eyes," which appeared on the film's soundtrack. (His songs have been featured in "Scrubs" and "Smallville" too.) Now the Los Angelino has an album all to himself, and it includes "Loneliest Girl in the World," "If You Were Here" and "The Glass Parade." Unfortunately there aren't any Zach Braff duets.

Magic Bullets' A Child but in Life Yet a Doctor in Love
Also making its debut is this San Francisco sextet, which is enamored with new wave and post-punk. The Bullets, who have toured with the Cold War Kids, are led by Philip Benson; he observes on "Heatstroke": "People refuse to make do when they lose/ Sometime they thought they'd never find again/ They refuse to remember way back when/ That something it did not belong to them." Deep stuff.

Retconned's Unhappenings
Jonathan Lukens has been around a while longer — since 1998, in fact — and he steps away from his previous synth, kraut and pop leanings with this bluesier release. Retconned's fifth album was recorded in Atlanta with Keith Vogelsong, who has his own alias (the Blue Hour), and it includes "Opposed Thumb," "Survival System Same" and "The Cars That Go Boom."

New Releases:

· Jason Aldean - Relentless (enhanced; Broken Bow)
· Cary Brothers - Who You Are (Procrastination/Bluhammock)
· Cephalic Carnage - Xenosapien (Relapse)
· Circa Survive - On Letting Go (Equal Vision)
· Destructo Swarmbots - Clear Light (Public Guilt)
· Juliana Hatfield & Frank Smith - Sittin' in a Tree ... (EP; Ye Olde) [Buy Now]
· The Len Price 3 - Rentacrowd (Wicked Cool)
· Gary Moore - Close as You Get (Eagle Rock)
· Magic Bullets - A Child but in Life Yet a Doctor in Love (Words on Music)
· Johnette Napolitano - Scarred (Hybrid)
· R. Kelly - Double Up (Jive) [Buy Now]
Read: "New R. Kelly LP Includes Akon, Jeezy, 'Flirt' — But No 'Closet' Till July"
· Holly Ramos - Racehorse (Drop Dead)
· Retconned - Unhappenings (Stickfigure)
· Omar Rodriguez-Lopez - Se Dice Bisonte, No Bufalo (GSL)
· Satellite Party - Ultra Payloaded (Columbia) [Buy Now]
Read: "Farrell Hopes To Launch Lollapalooza — And Satellite Party — Around The World"
· Sleepytime Gorilla Museum - In Glorious Times (The End)
· Jay Soto - Stay Awhile (Nu Groove)
· Richard Thompson - Sweet Warrior (Shout! Factory)
· Viarosa - Where the Killers Run (Tarnished)
· Various artists - Finest Worksongs: Athens Bands Play the Music of R.E.M. (Iron Horse)
· Various artists - "Transformers" soundtrack (Volcano/Legacy)

Notable Reissues and Archival Material:

· Herb Alpert - Rise (Shout! Factory)
· John Anderson - 2 (American Beat)
· Lou Ann Barton - Old Enough (American Beat)
· Black Oak Arkansas - Live! Mutha (American Beat)
· Danzig - The Lost Tracks of Danzig (two CDs; Megaforce)
Read: "Glenn Danzig Preps 'Final' Tour, Film, Box Set And, Uh, Dolls"
· Ray Price - The Essential Ray Price (two CDs; Columbia/Legacy)
· The Smithereens - Green Thoughts (American Beat)
· The Spinners - Love Trippin' (American Beat)
· Russell Watson - The Voice: The Ultimate Collection (Decca)
· Zebra - No Tellin' Lies/3.V (American Beat)

Music DVDs:

· Les Claypool - "Fancy" (Prawn Song)
· Dinosaur Jr. - "Live in the Middle East" (Image)
· Steve Reich - "City Life" (Kultur)
· Paul Rodgers - "Live in Glasgow" (Eagle Vision)
· UB40 - "Live at Montreux 2002" (Eagle Vision)
· Various artists - "The Vocal Group Hall of Fame Foundation - 2004 Induction Concerts" (SRO)

Coming Attractions:

June 5:
· Chris Cornell - Carry On (A&M) [Preorder]
Read: "Chris Cornell Ready To Carry On As Solo Artist: 'I'm Best In My Own World' "
· Marilyn Manson - Eat Me, Drink Me (Nothing) [Preorder]
Read: "Marilyn Manson Reveals He Came Close To Suicide; LP 'Was My Salvation' "
· O.A.R. - Live From Madison Square Garden (two-CD set and two-DVD set; Everfine/Lava/Atlantic) [Preorder]

June 12:
· Fabolous - From Nothin' to Somethin' (Def Jam) [Preorder]
Read: "Fabolous' 'All-Stars' Jay-Z, Jeezy, Rihanna Make LP Somethin' To Be Reckoned With"
· Queens of the Stone Age - Era Vulgaris [Preorder]
· Various artists - Instant Karma: The Campaign to Save Darfur

June 19:
· Mandy Moore - Wild Hope (Firm) [Preorder]
· Tomahawk - Anonymous (Ipecac) [Preorder]
Read: "Tomahawk Actually Starting To Sound Like An American-Indian Band"
· White Stripes - Icky Thump (Warner Bros.) [Preorder]
Read: "White Stripes Reveal Icky New Album Details"

• R. Kelly
• Satellite Party
• Circa Survive

Perry Farrell
Photo: Kevin Winter/ Getty Images

Here's the thing you have to understand about Perry Farrell: The dude's a dreamer. A genuine pie-in-the-sky, I-can-do-it-because-I-can-feel-it, people-have-the-power, life-is-for-the-living eternal optimist.

So when he tells you that, after successfully reviving his Lollapalooza festival three years ago as a once-a-year destination festival on the Chicago waterfront (see "Lollapalooza Bill Boasts Modest Mouse, Roots, Snow Patrol"), he's now working up a plan to take Lollapalooza around the world, who are you to tell him that's crazy talk?

"I'm about to put it into 3.0," said the perpetually enthusiastic leader of Satellite Party, whose dance-rock debut, Ultra Payloaded, is slated to drop May 29. "I'm going to look to take it global. I want to put together an event around the world in the next 10 years that will refashion, redress and transform."

Farrell, who co-founded the granddaddy of alternative-rock festivals in the early 1990s, said the current plan he's sketching would have Lolla "following summer" around the planet in an attempt to bring the show's fresh-air groove to other continents for the first time. "I like the idea of being outdoors," he said. "It's something I'm looking into now, and if it happens, it will happen quick. That's my ambition."

In the meantime, he's chatting up the launch of Satellite Party, the long-gestating project that began more than three years ago with the former Jane's Addiction/ Porno for Pyros leader fiddling with drum machines, keyboards and loops in his garage. After years of tinkering, the basement project ended up featuring a galaxy of cameos from the likes of the Black Eyed Peas' Fergie, Porno for Pyros guitarist Peter DiStefano, Joy Division/ New Order bassist Peter Hook, the Red Hot Chili Peppers' John Frusciante and Flea and the ghostly voice of late Doors frontman Jim Morrison reciting what are believed to be some of his final recorded words on the spooky album ender, "Women in the Window" (see "Perry Farrell Jams With Fergie, Jim Morrison On Satellite Party Debut" and "Flea, Frusciante Contributing To Farrell's Next Big Concept").

The sound is a combination of Pyros' Polynesian rock vibe, Farrell's eternally spacey come-join-the-fun exhortations and a whiff of New Order's throbbing new wave mixed with the techno-beat-driven dance-party groove from Farrell's under-appreciated 2001 solo debut, Song Yet to be Sung.

"When I was in Porno for Pyros, we began to experiment with electronics in a rock band, and in the original setup we had a DJ in the group, a cat who will remain nameless," Farrell said. "He was always junked out and he would nod off behind the deck, and every time it was his turn to scratch, we'd have to throw a drumstick at him to wake him up. Then, [when Jane's got back together], they weren't really set up as musicians to play that way, so when I had a chance to do a solo piece I wanted to learn as much as I could about electronic music."

One of the best parts about the project, he said, apart from working with his hero Hook and his unexpectedly fertile collaboration with former Extreme guitarist Nuno Bettencourt, is the chance to have his wife of five years, Etty Lau Farrell, step to the microphone.

Etty, who has been a backup dancer for Farrell since 1997, gets a chance to sing onstage and on the record, which Farrell said gives his new group a fresh vibe. "We've always used her voice for backing vocals, but she's never done it onstage because we didn't have female background voices [in Pyros or Jane's]," Farrell said. "But this time we had that big, clear palette, and I wanted a unisex chorus and women in the group to make a fun party and balance things out ... plus, it's not a bad thing waking up with a hot chick in your bed every morning!"

Satellite Party are slated for Lollapalooza in August and will also play New York's Highland Ballroom on June 4, according to a spokesperson for the group. The band will then head to Europe for festival dates and tour the U.S. in the fall.

• Satellite Party
• Perry Farrell

Amy Winehouse performs at Coachella on Friday
Photo: Lee Barth

INDIO, California — There's an old saying ringing through the Southern California desert air this weekend: All good things come in threes.

For the first time in the music festival's eight-year history, Coachella expanded to a three-day event, and the inaugural Friday went down like ... well, the same old wildly eclectic time as usual.

With the somewhat forgotten Björk as the headliner and the buzzing Amy Winehouse poorly scheduled at 6 p.m. on the smallest of the festival's five stages, Friday lacked the set that everyone was talking about, but at least that same everyone could find something perfectly suited for their tastes at pretty much all times.

(Check out photos of Arctic Monkeys, Amy Winehouse, Cameron Diaz and more at Coachella's kick off.)

Between Björk's horn-heavy, experimental pop orchestra (and yes, those new Timbaland-produced tracks are as weird as you would expect), Interpol's crisp dance rock and the Arctic Monkey's expertly-crafted Brit-punk, the main Coachella Stage alone offered a smorgasboard of trendy entertainment. (Jessica Alba, Drew Barrymore and, um, Danny DeVito — for the second year in a row — were among those catching the action.)

The surprise there was the Jesus and Mary Chain, whose reunion has been rightfully overshadowed by Rage Against the Machine (clearly the most anticipated band this go-around). Coachella organizers love nothing more than bringing influential late '80s/ early '90s bands back together, even if the results don't always live up to their good intentions. In this case, though, the show was mesmerizing from start to finish and clearly showcased the droning guitar sound (newcomers can reference "Just Like Honey" from "Lost in Translation") that countless acts have ripped off over the years.

Another unexpected mainstage moment straight out of "120 Minutes" circa 1992 came during Perry Farrell's Satellite Party set — Farrell is the only artist to play every Coachella, by the way — when the band launched into a pitch-perfect rendition of Jane's Addiction's "Stop."

Farrell and his latest band were followed on the Coachella Stage by Los Angeles upstarts the Silversun Pickups, who — despite self-deprecatingly joking about their prime slot — proved why their melodic rock is causing quite an underground stir.

Earlier in the afternoon, as temperatures soared into triple digits, styles ranged from the disco-fied rock of Of Montreal (who unfortunately struggled with sound issues throughout their set) to the banjo-tastic bluegrass of Nickel Creek ("All the other bands are louder than us," one of bandmember joked) to the straight stand-up of Comedians of Comedy (a Coachella first).

By the time Winehouse hit the Gobi Tent, the crowds were spilling so far out of the space it was nearly impossible to just get a look at the Motown revivalist, whose band dressed entirely in white for the occasion.

Stage fashion at Coachella is always amusing, and Of Montreal, in their angel wings, got things started on high note. The grand prize, however, had to go to Brazilian Girls singer Sabina Sciubba, who wore a giant circular mirror attached to the back of her white bodysuit.

Months ago, before the lineup was announced, rumors swirled of a Police reunion, but while that never happened (the band instead choose Bonnaroo), rising star DJ Benny Benassi paid a spectacular tribute to the trio midway through his set, turning "King of Pain" into a trance smash.

The Sahara Tent is always its own beast at Coachella, but the buzz on Benassi helped pack the area to the max by the time the British hip-hop/electronic hybrid Faithless took the stage. (Their reworked "Mass Destruction" is a must-bootleg.)

Although Friday was the only Coachella date not sold out, the Empire Polo Field was still packed from early afternoon on. And even if it felt a bit like a warm-up date for the big shows to come Saturday and Sunday (Rage shirts were spotted all around), the same music-appreciating energy lived in the air as usual. Only threefold.

Check back all weekend for continuing reports from Coachella.

For more sights and stories from concerts around the country, check out MTV News Tour Reports.

• Why Coachella Is All The Rage

• Rage Against The Machine, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Amy Winehouse, More At Coachella 2007

• Amy Winehouse
• Björk
• Satellite Party
• Jane's Addiction

Lollapalooza 2007

• Amy Winehouse
• Ben Harper
• Cold War Kids
• Motion City Soundtrack
• Muse

Pearl Jam, Amy Winehouse, Lupe Fiasco, M.I.A., More At Lollapalooza 2007

• Pearl Jam
• M.I.A.
• Daft Punk
• Perry Farrell
• Against Me!

Rage Against The Machine, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Amy Winehouse, More At Coachella 2007

• Arctic Monkeys
• The Jesus & Mary Chain
• Stephen Marley
• Satellite Party
• Jane's Addiction