The Meat Puppets today offered the first taste of their upcoming 13th studio album, ‘Lollipop,’ in the form of a free MP3 of the track ‘Damn Thing'” via RollingStone.com.

When The Godfathers hit Chicago last week on their first U.S. tour in 20 years, the band stopped by radio station KDHX to record an in-studio session. Hear the four-song set and a 15-minute interview here.

Much of R.E.M.’s new album has been intentionally leaked by the band over the past two months, but now — one week before ‘Collapse Into Now’ actually arrives in stores — you can hear the whole thing, streaming here.

This one made the rounds on a wide swath of music blogs this week, but in case you didn’t hear it, check out this cover of Depeche Mode’s 1987 single and ‘Music For The Masses’ favorite ‘Strangelove’ by Natasha Khan aka Bat For Lashes.

To promote the release of its new ‘Twist of Fate’ digital remix bundle, Bad Lieutenant — featuring New Order frontman Bernard Sumner — is offering up a free download of a bonus mix not included on the five-track EP: Mark Reeder’s No Fate Radio Remix

Next month, Los Angeles’ Dum Dum Girls — equal parts The Ronettes and The Jesus and Mary Chain — will follow up their 2010 Sub Pop debut with a four-track EP called He Gets Me High that includes a blissfully fuzzed-out cover of The Smiths high-water mark ‘There Is A Light That Never Goes’ Out.” T

The influence of R.E.M. on indie-folk outfit The Decemberists is no secret, so it’s no surprise to see that Colin Meloy and Co. trotted out a cover of ‘Cuyahoga’ off ‘Lifes Rich Pageant’ during the band’s visit to KCRW’s ‘Morning Becomes Eclectic’ on Thursday.

Reunited indie-pop combo The Primitives are back with their first new recordings in 20 years, and in case you didn’t catch ‘Never Kill a Secret’ — the title track off the band’s forthcoming EP — on this week’s Slicing Up Eyeballs radio show, you can now stream the track in its entirety here.

With J Mascis’ first-ever solo studio album due out in just over a month, Sub Pop Records has kicked free a second track from ‘Several Shades of Why’: ‘It Is Done,’ featuring Band of Horses’ Ben Bridwell on backing vocals.

The Feelies have recorded their first new album in 20 years, a 13-track collection called ‘Here Before’ that’s due out April 12 on Bar/None Records — and is preceded by the track ‘Should Be Gone,’ the band’s first new recording since 1991’s ‘Time for a Witness.’

Another week, another song emerges off R.E.M.’s upcoming ‘Collapse Into Now’: This time, it’s track 3 off the album, ‘Überlin,’ which is being pushed as a single in Europe.

With three tracks off R.E.M.’s forthcoming ‘Collapse Into Now’ — already having made it onto the web, the band today announced the first radio single off the album: the rocker ‘Mine Smell Like Honey.’ Hear it here.

Wire will embark on a short nine-date North American tour this April in support of their 12th studio album — the 11-track ‘Red Barked Tree’ — which is due out on Tuesday, although you can now stream the record in its entirety on NPR’s website.