Itís always a spectacle when a superstar athlete comes out of retirement...well, not always, but the announcement of such (see: Brett Favre) generates so much anticipation amongst fans that if anticipation could be measured and turned into an energy source, we would no longer need to rely on crude oil. Well, the same goes for the music industry. Fans become ecstatic when a great band reunites or just returns from a long hiatus (see: Dispatch). This year has been and continues to be a pretty good year for rockers returning to rock. Earlier this year, non-Seattle-based grunge-masters '''Stone Temple Pilots''' reunited after a five year break which spawned two supergroups: lead singer Scott Weiland fronted Velvet Revolver with the Slash and other G ní R members whilst the rest of the band teamed up with '''Filter''' frontman Richard Patrick to form Army of Anyone. [[image|url=http://img403.imageshack.us/img403/6011/anthemsoftheda mnedek9.jpg|width=200|align=left]] Well, with STP coming back together, Patrick returned from the ìside projectî and Filter just released their first album in six years this past May ñ ''Anthems For the Damned''. STP has yet to publicly announce a new release anytime soon, but rest assured, they are working on new music. Five years? Six years? How about '''''eight'''''? 2008 will see the return of legendary rockers '''AC/DC'''. Their last album ''Stiff Upper Lip'' was released back in 2000 but theyíre set to release a new one (most likely to be called ''Black Ice'') in October! Weíll have to wait to see if this one actually spawns any noteworthy singles. Eight years is the longest hiatus on this list, but itís not my highlight. One of my favorite bands is almost set to release their first album in five years sometime this fall. ''Ursa Major'' (with a B-side album to be released later and called Ursa Minor), will mark '''Third Eye Blind'''ís return to market since ''Out of the Vein'' came out í03. Iíve heard some crude, unfinished, live versions of some of the songs and it sounded pretty much like vintage 3EB. Iíve personally been waiting for this album for a good two years! And as much as I have been/am looking forward to the new 3EB album, they are not my main focus in this blog entry. No. The group that inspired me to write this whole thing up? Well, truth be told, it hasnít been much of a hiatus for them and theyíre not a very well known group. Actually, I only first heard of them about a year ago when I started out at the station ñ I believe it was from wVBRís own Andrew Loewer (maybe it was Mr. Powers, but Iím pretty sure it was Andrew). Okay so three years isnít much of a hiatus, but when you release album after album...four in two years?! (okay so one was a re-release and one was a B-sides, but still...) [[image|url=http://www.barcade.com/media/images/3877_CD_EarthToThe DandyWarhols.bmp|width=200|align=right]]Anyways, '''The Dandy Warhols''' are back at it with their new album ''...Earth to the Dandy Warhols...'' The real reason they are the focus is because this album is due out soonest ñ August 19. And because they donít get the attention they deserve. I personally like Welcome to the Monkey House best and I think songs such as ìI Am Over Itî and ìScientistî are songs you should all check out. This album is going out as my number one recommendation for the month of August. Speaking of August 19th - one final band thatís releasing a new CD in the upcoming months that hasnít in awhile is alternative metal/rock group '''Staind'''. First single ìBelieveî is beginning to hit the radio waves off of their upcoming effort ''The Illusion of Progress'' which will be released on the same day. This is the sixth original effort from Staind (excluding a greatest hits CD) and the first since 2005ís Chapter V. If you could think of one band that you wish would get back together, who would it be? And think realistically ñ Kurt Cobain is not coming back from the dead... although the guys from Alice in Chains have considered starting up again under a new name... If Chris Cornell wasn't as awesome while solo as in a group, I'd say Soundgarden. Maybe Fuel? Who would you like to see make a comeback?