In Brief: The Who Ready Summer Mini-Opera, Jessica Simpson, Lady Sovereign and More

Four months remain before the WHO release their first studio album in twenty-four years, but fans can get a glimpse of what's to come in early July, with the release of a six-part, eleven-minute "mini-opera" called Wire and Glass. Earlier this month, guitarist PETE TOWNSHEND also posted details of a "cunning" online launch for the forthcoming full-length that could "entirely change the way the music industry operates."

Beach Boys Together Again?

The three surviving members of the BEACH BOYS -- BRIAN WILSON, MIKE LOVE and AL JARDINE -- appeared in public together for the first time in a decade on June 13th to celebrate the double-platinum status of their Sounds of Summer hits collection. Wilson and his cousin Love have waged a war of words in recent years, but Love insisted "there's a chance" of a reunion sometime soon, right in time for a planned reissuing of the band's back catalog.

Jessica Simpson Just Wants to Have Fun!

The title may suggest a stab at the press for following JESSICA SIMPSON and NICK LACHEY's breakup, but Simpson claims that "A Public Affair" -- her new single, produced by LESTER MENDEZ (SHAKIRA, CARLOS SANTANA) -- is actually about going out with the girls. The song hits radio June 23rd, and the album is due August 29th. Director BRETT RATNER (X-Men: The Last Stand) will direct the video for the single later this month in Los Angeles.

The Rentals Return With New Lineup, Tour

Ex-WEEZER member MATT SHARP and his RENTALS co-conspirator RACHEL HADEN have readied a new lineup for a nationwide tour that begins in Solana Beach, California, on July 2nd and wraps in Anaheim, California, on August 15th. Studio sessions for a new Rentals record, their first since the power-pop shot of 1999's Seven More Minutes, are set to begin later this year, with a release planned for 2007.

Fan Wins $10,000 Date With Lady Sovereign

Lovesick music fan Zach Slow can attest: Wooing a lady takes serious cash. Slow scored a dream date with British rapper LADY SOVEREIGN last week after a month-long drive to raise $10,000 on his Web site helpmegetrandomwithladysovereign.com. The San Francisco resident -- who almost came up short on the day of Lady Sov's June 9th Fillmore show -- had agreed to donate the money to a charity of the MC's choice.

Thrice Frontman Embarks on Solo Tour

DUSTIN KENSRUE, frontman of SoCal hardcore outfit THRICE, will hit the coasts this summer on a ten-date club tour in support of his self-titled solo acoustic debut. The trek -- which comes on the heels of a two-year recording process for the upcoming album -- includes openers BEN NICHOLS of LUCERO and YELLOW RED SPARKS. It launches July 27th in Philadelphia and wraps August 6th in San Francisco.

The Alarm End Fifteen-Year Hiatus

Ending a fifteen-year hiatus, U.K. post-punks the ALARM drop their new album stateside on June 13th and perform a one-off gig on July 12th at New York's Bowery Ballroom. The band hopes to embark on a full U.S. tour in support of Under Attack -- which refers in part to frontman MIKE PETERS' decade-long battle with leukemia -- after his final chemo session this month.