Music Notes: Police investigate MJ's doctor, Leonard Cohen adds more US tour dates

- Police and federal agents searched the Houston clinic belonging to Michael Jackson's doctor today, looking for evidence of manslaughter. It looks like agents left with a forensic image of a hard drive along with 21 documents. [Associated Press via Yahoo! News]

- Leonard Cohen has announced more US tour dates for October and November. This year has marked the first proper Leonard Cohen US tour in 15 years. [SPIN]

- MGMT will appear on Jay-Z's The Blueprint 3. [Pitchfork]

- Modest Mouse will release an eight-song EP, No One's First, And You're Next, on Aug. 4. [NME]

- The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame will celebrate its 25th anniversary with a two-night celebration at New York's Madison Square Garden this October. Bruce Springsteen, U2 and Metallica are on the roster of performers. [SPIN]

- Guitar Hero 5's official track list can be seen here. Weezer, Gorillaz and Smashing Pumpkins are among the artists featured in this edition of the game. [IGN]

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Music Notes: Phil Spector sentenced, De La Soul talk new music/Gorillaz

Semi-early edition of Music Notes today! But there's plenty to read:

- "Wall of Sound" creator Phil Spector has been sentenced to 19 years to life in prison for the second-degree murder of actress Lana Clarkson. He's also been sentenced to four years for the personal use of a gun. Spector does have plans to appeal the decision. [MSNBC]

- De La Soul recently worked on a 10-track mix of new material, Are You In?, which was commissioned by Nike. The group has also started work on their next actual album, You're Welcome, which should come out next year. It seems they'd like to get a guest appearance from Damon Albarn (Gorillaz, Blur). De La Soul actually worked with Albarn while rapping on Gorillaz' "Feel Good Inc." De La Soul members have already contributed to two tracks on the next Gorillaz album (release date TBA), and De La Soul's Posdnuos told Entertainment Weekly, "From what we've heard, it sounds amazing. To me, quite honestly, it sounds better than the last album." Exciting times! [Entertainment Weekly]
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- Morrissey has canceled the rest of his UK tour dates, based on doctor's orders that tell him not to sing. Fans have been advised to hold on to tickets and wait for gigs that may get rescheduled. As someone who went through the cancellation fiasco the first time she saw Morrissey two years ago, I can say that holding on to the tickets isn't a bad idea (I was able to see him a couple of months later). But if you've seen Morrissey one or more times at this point, it might be better to spring for other concerts the next time he announces a tour. This is sadly not a new thing. [NME]

- Meanwhile, Mozzer's former bandmate Johnny Marr has revealed that The Cribs' new album is due out this September. [NME]

- The forthcoming DJ Hero, an offshoot of the Guitar Hero franchise, will feature music by Jay-Z and Eminem. A limited edition of the game will come with the artists' new greatest-hits CDs and could also feature unreleased tracks. A DJ stand and metal traveling case will also be included. The two rappers are going to serve as consultants. [USA TODAY]

- Nice little Q&A with Mark Hoppus of Blink 182 here. [SPIN]

- Singer-songwriter Kurt Vile has signed on with Matador Records, home to Jay Reatard, Cat Power and Yo La Tengo to name a few. His new album Childish Prodigy is due in the fall. [Pitchfork]

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Music Notes: Paul Banks releases solo track, Blink 182 play first reunion gig

- Paul Banks (going by the name Julian Plenti) has released a track that's probably going to appear on his upcoming solo album Skyscraper. The track, "Fun That We Have," can be found here. Thoughts? [Prefix Mag]

- Blink 182 played their first reunion gig last night at a private party unveiling the new T-Mobile Sidekick. Well, I guess this is growing up! [Rolling Stone]

- Broken Social Scene are working on recording a new album in Chicago. [Pitchfork]

- And don't expect to see a new Gorillaz album until 2010 — Damon Albarn's manager has said there's plenty of tracks to work with, but there's no need to rush the artist (also fronting a reunited Blur) at this time. [NME]

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Music Notes: Bananaz, Monkeys and More

- Gorillaz news: Watch a sneak peek from Bananaz: Taking Down the Virtual Walls of Gorillaz here. Bananaz follows Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett's cartoon band from 2000 to 2006. The documentary will premiere online over at Babelgum on April 20, and a DVD release is set for June. [NME]

- The UK's Arctic Monkeys will be releasing the live DVD, Arctic Monkeys at the Apollo, stateside on May 5. The DVD footage is from a December 17, 2007 gig the band played at the Manchester Apollo in Manchester, England. The US version of the DVD will include a bonus CD of live recordings from Austin, Texas. [NME]

- The world premiere of a new Tori Amos video, "Welcome to England," will take place this Friday, April 3, on Yahoo Music. Amos has also recently made announcements about a one-night only exclusive solo performance in London on April 27. Her next album, Abnormally Attracted to Sin, is set for a May 19 release. [ToriAmos.com]

- The childhood home of legendary guitarist, Jimi Hendrix, has been destroyed by demolition crews despite previous efforts to ensure its preservation. While many are in mourning, others are opting to look on the bright side. As developer Peter Sikov pointed out, "Can you imagine a guitar made out of wood from Jimi's house?" [Guardian]

- British Sea Power will be releasing a new album in the form of a score for the 1934 film, Man of Aran. You can catch a preview below. [NME]

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