Starting today, MySpace is streaming the entirety of Sigur Ros’ new album Takk, four days before its official release on Tuesday. I will confess to downloading and burning a copy of the record this week – it seems like the perfect soundtrack to a trip to Scandanavia, and I doubt I’d be able to pick up a copy abroad (at least not at anything resembling a reasonable price). I don’t have the greatest confidence that it’s an accurate tracklist, though – some of the song titles are different and it doesn’t flow especially well, so it’s likely it’s more of an attempt to cobble the album together rather than a proper album rip, but it’ll do. And before you jump all over me for hipocrisy, know that I’ve already pre-ordered it ($12.98 CDN/$10.98 USD at MyMusic.ca!) and it should be in my mailbox at home by this time next week. So there.

You can watch the first video from Takk for “glósóli” (so much for NME‘s purported exclusive premiere…), as well as read band interviews with Sirkus, The Telegraph and The Sunday Times. Oh how I envy those of you seeing them on this North American tour… and if you don’t have tickets, there’s contests to win some here and here.

There’s a flurry of Son Volt pieces circulating as the tour hits the west coast – check out interviews and articles from Offbeat, The Straight, The Santa Cruz Sentinel, NCTimes, San Diego CityBeat and MetroActive. And then there’s Pitchfork reporting that a new interview with Farrar in Relix magazine offers up some tabloid-worthy dirt on the breakup of Uncle Tupelo – it’s not online, but one of the good folks at Via Chicago has transcribed it to keep the curious from having to suffer the embaressment of buying a magazine with Carlos Santana on the cover.

Chicago Innerview has a mostly superfluous interview with Jeff Tweedy, but he does allow a little more info about the forthcoming live DVD/CD and reveals a new Loose Fur album is about 75% done and should be out early next year.

Arcade Fire confirms the rumours that have been swirling for some time when they tell NME that they are, indeed, recording a second album.

The BBC is having a big Bob Dylan lovefest – check out their Bob-o-rama minisite, inspired by the No Direction Home biopic.

Chart. Sufjan.

Veronica Mars season two previews!!! Thanks to Soaring With Eagles for the link. Ms Mars, aka Kristen Bell, will also be performing the theme from Fame on this year’s Emmy awards. She’s gonna live forever, she’s gonna be a star. The new season starts September 28.

np – The New Pornographers / Twin Cinema