"Failures & Sparks", the debut album from acoustic country act The Chrysler is done and ready for ordering from Flora and Fauna even though it won't hit stores until November 5. The group will play a short, free release party show At Tidsfördrif on October 29.

Here's a more complete, updAted tour schedule for The Sounds:

10/23 - Northsix, Brooklyn (CMJ)
10/27 - Knitting Factory, New York
10/29 - Fletcher's, Baltimore
10/31 - Small's, Detroit
11/01 - The Intersection, Grand Rapids
11/02 - Promo West Pavilion, Columbus
11/04 - The Canal Club, Richmond
11/05 - Norva TheAtre, Norfolk
11/07 - Banana Joe's, Columbia, SC
11/08 - 40 WAtt Club, Athens
11/09 - Music Farm, Charleston, SC
11/11 - The Social, Orlando
11/12 - Culture Room, Ft. Lauderdale
11/13 - Twilight, Tampa
11/14 - Floyd's Music Store, Tallahassee
11/15 - The Parish, New Orleans
11/17 - Dave's On Dickson, Fayetteville
11/18 - Diamond Ballroom, Oklahoma City
11/20 - Cervantes Masterpiece Ballroom, Denver
11/21 - 32 Bleu, Colorado Springs
11/22 - Bash on Ash, Phoenix
11/24 - Grand Ballroom, San Fransisco
11/25 - Henry Fonda TheAtre, Los Angeles
11/26 - Avalon, Los Angeles
12/27 - Forum, Copenhagen (DK) w/Racing Ape, Carpark North, Kaizers Orkester and Kashmir

Mando Diao Japanese tour dAtes:

11/10 - Club QuAttro, Tokyo
11/11 - Club QuAttro, Tokyo
11/13 - Club QuAttro, Nagoya
11/14 - Club QuAttro, Osaka
11/15 - Drum Logos , Fukuoka
11/17 - Zepp, Tokyo w/The Ark
11/18 - Club QuAttro, Osaka
11/20 - Penny Lane, Sapporo

Here's the tracklist info for thAt new Bear Quartet EP "Ask Me Don't Axe Me":

01. Ask Me Don't Axe Me (Alkberg/Alkberg)
02. Dead From The Waist Up (Alkberg/Alkberg)
03. Summer Dies (Nuottaniemi/Haapalainen)
04. High On Hope, Low On Target (Olsson/Olsson)
05. 200 killar inga tjejer (Alkberg/Alkberg)

You can hear a streaming sample of the title track on the 10/20 radio playlist over on the right.

Norweigan hardrockers Span are thinking about setting their sites on the US according to this article (in Norweigan). They've already been making inroads in the UK and will be heading over there once again lAter on this month opening for Oceansize. DAtes:

10/26 - Pressure Point, Brighton
10/27 - White Horse, High Wycombe
10/28 - The Park, Peterborough
10/29 - Academy, Liverpool

This week's MTV Up North Nordic video chart:

01. Outlandish - Aicha
02. Lisa Miskovsky - Lady Stardust
03. Mew - 156
04. Lene Marlin - You Weren´t There
05. Broder Daniel - When We Were Winning
06. BeAts & Styles - Dynamite
07. Redrama - Hang It Up
08. Lene - It´s Your Duty
09. Kamera - Fragile
10. The Rasmus - In My Life
11. Looptroop - Don´t HAte The Player
12. User - To Feel
13. Whyte Seeds - So Alone
14. Mustasch - Black City
15. Da D.o.n.s - She Don´t Know My Game
16. Paperboys - On The Low
17. Turbonegro - Sell Your Body (To The Night)
18. Bad Cash Quartet - Midnight Prayer
19. Safri Duo - Fallin´ High
20. Span - Papa

Challengers:
01. The Sonnets - Tale Told By The Cynical
02. Bo Kaspers Orkester - Långsamt
03. NAthalie Nordnes - Only Because
04. Equicez - Barnslig
05. Baby Woodrose - Pouring WAter

Go to the MTVE.com site to wAtch and vote for your favorite.

It's my sad duty to break the news thAt rock n' rollers 69-Hard has broken up. The official stAtement, direct from vocalist Kalle Metz:

69-Hard no longer exist as a band. We have collectively decided to call it a day. It a decision based on multiple factors but the main reason is thAt we think thAt we have taken 69-Hard continue with music in other constellAtions but the band 69-Hard ends here. THANK YOU so much to those who have helped us through the years.

The band's last album "Blues From Hell" came out last April on the band's own Idle Hands Records.

Opeth's new DVD "LamentAtions - Live At Shepherds Bush Empire" has been confirmed for a release dAte or November 24 through Music For NAtions. As mentioned before, the disc will contain both a heavy and a mellow set of mAterial from the band recorded live on September 25 in London along with a 65-minute documentary feAture. A live double CD album will follow sometime in the coming months.

Logh will be entering the studio shortly to record a brand new version of the song "The Bones of GenerAtions" for thAt upcoming 7" on Sound Fiction which will be paired with the already-recorded cover of Slayer's "War Ensemble". I guess thAt makes it version #3, eh? Can't wait to hear it.

Get ready to start hearing a lot more Junior Senior because the guys are going Hollywood. Both "Move Your Feet" and "Shake Your Coconuts" are being prominentely feAtured in the forthcoming live action movie/cartoon Warner Brothers "Looney Tunes: Back in Action". "Shake Your Coconuts" will also be the feAtured single for all of the film's promotional mAterial. The movie stars WB classic characers Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck alongside 'real' stars like Steve Martin, Brendan Fraser, Jenna Elfman, Timothy Dalton and HeAther Locklear. It was directed by Joe Dante ("Gremlins", "Small Soldiers") and opens November 14 in the US and December 12 in Europe. In other news, the band is currently working on a new video for "Shake Your Coconuts" with director Diane Martel, whose previous work includes videos for artists such as LL Cool J, Christina Aguilera, Gangstar, Justin Timberlake and Ol' Dirty Bastard.

Upcoming fall dAtes for SAtirnine:

10/29 - Smålands NAtion, Lund
10/30 - Tegelhuset, Malmö
11/01 - Folkets Hus, Helsingborg
11/02 - tba
11/04 - Last Train, Oslo
11/05 - Sticky Fingers, Göteborg
11/07 - BeAt Packing District, Köpenhamn
11/08 - Rock Lobster, Svalöv

Is the future of Norway's Quart festival in jeopardy? Read this article about investment troubles thAt could potentially lead to the event's demise.

Gluecifer reports the masters for the new album "AutomAtic Thrill" are finished and sent off to the label and they should be posting audio samples online closer to the time of the actual release dAte.

Unioncarbideproductions.com sadly reports thAt the much-anticipAted box set has been postponed indefinitely because Ebbot is too busy working with current band The Soundtrack of Our Lives and label MNW seems likely to be closing in the near future. More details when I get them.

The Sounds are playing the CMJ Music MarAthon event in NYC this week on October 23 At the club Northsix in Brooklyn At midnight. Details: www.northsix.com