First Bits First: The Boss, The Shins, & The Smiths

Thom Yorke probably thought he was the only rocker unveiling a supergroup today, but less than twelve hours after his announcement, Shins frontman James Mercer has seen Yorke’s Flea collaboration and raised him one Danger Mouse. Mercer and Danger Mouse, aka Brian Burton, have formed a (superduo?) group called Broken Bells, P4K reports. Their album is due out early next year, but that’s all we know for now.

Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band’s recent performance of their breakthrough record Born To Run went so well that they’re doing it again… and again. For the band’s 5-night run at New Jersey’s Giants Stadium, they will not only play Born To Run (tomorrow night), but also classic albums Darkness on the Edge of Town and Born In The USA. LA Times has the deets.

Now that James Mercer has trampled on Yorke’s supergroup news, who will take on his new superduo? Enter: The Smiths’ Johnny Marr and Stone Roses’ Ian Brown. The pair are planning to write a soundtrack for a friend’s television series, BBC News reports. “The idea is that Johnny writes the music and I write the words and the melodies,” Brown said, adding later, “We’d have to bring a drummer or a bass player in.” Well, Chad Smith and John Paul Jones are already taken, but there must be some rock stars not yet claimed by a supergroup. How about Adam and Larry?