The hotel the bassist died in, from wireimage.com

Former Weezer bassist, Mikey Welsh, was found dead on Saturday in his hotel room at the Raffaello in Chicago, according to a Chicago police spokeswoman.  He was 40.

The cause of death is as of yet unknown.

Hotel personnel found the musician after he failed to check out from the hotel at his scheduled time, according to CNN.

Welsh was a painter before joining Weezer at age 19.  He was with the band when they released “Green Album” in 2001, which featured the song “Hash Pipe,” one of their biggest hits.

The bassist left the band shortly after this album, citing a nervous breakdown as his downfall.

According to his Twitter, Welsh was “in weezer [sic], now I make art.”

Two weeks ago, Welsh sent an eerie tweet from his account saying that he had a dream he died in his sleep in Chicago.  The tweet said, ” dreamt i died in chicago next weekend (heart attack in my sleep). need to write my will today.”  He later said, “correction- the weekend after next.”

Police are currently conducting an autopsy investigation.

Earlier this week, co-ed duo The Rentals released “Resilience,” a record to benefit the ongoing tsunami relief efforts in Japan. The aptly-named album was inspired by Japanese author Haruki Murakami and features 18 instrumental tracks composed and performed by members Matt Sharp and Lauren Chipman. The pair’s gorgeous orchestral arrangements feature Thomas Newman-esque piano twinkles and strings that quietly shift from melancholy to hopeful. The record includes guest appearances by artists including Emilie Simon and The Strokes’ Nikolai Fraiture.

Check out the short film that accompanies the track “February Three” here.

The album was originally recorded as part of “Songs About Time,” an artistic endeavor that brought together artists from around the globe for 365 consecutive days to create a finished project that incorporated photography, film and music.

“Resilience” is available in digital form, as well as on CD and vinyl. All profits from album sales will go to the American Red Cross relief efforts in Japan.

For more information, visit www.therentals.com.

Tickets to this year’s Bonnaroo Festival, which will be in Manchester, TN on June 10-13, went on sale Monday, with a four-day pass costing $234.50. According to a spokesperson for the event, the full lineup will swell to some 125 acts and over 20 comedians, performing on 13 different stages. The official lineup has been announced and is listed below:

Jay-Z
Dave Matthews Band
Kings of Leon
Stevie Wonder
Phoenix
Weezer
Flaming Lips covering Dark Side of the Moon
The Dead Weather
Tenacious D
OK Go
Jeff Beck
John Fogerty
Zac Brown Band
Damian Marley & Nas
Norah Jones
The National
Medeski Martin & Wood
She & Him
Chromeo w/ guest Daryl Hall
The Avett Brothers
Regina Spektor
Blitzen Trapper
She & Him
Rise Against
Punch Brothers
Dropkick Murphys
Cross Canadian Ragweed
Isis
311
John Prine
Baroness
Blues Traveler
Bassnectar
The xx
Mayer Hawthorne and the County
Japandroids
The Gaslight Anthem
Tokyo Police Club
Manchester Orchestra
Kid Cudi
Neon Indian
Black Keys
Jimmy Cliff
Tori Amos
Thievery Corporation
The Constellations
Dr. Dog
Ingrid Michaelson
Wale
Jay Electronica
Steve Martin & The Steep Canyon Rangers
Monte Montgomery
Disco Biscuits
They Might Be Giants
Baaba Maal
The Melvins
GWAR
Dave Rawlings Machine
Local Natives
The Postelles
Carolina Chocolate Drops
Rebelution
NeedToBreathe
Michael Franti & Spearhead
Jamey Johnson
The Entrance Band
Clutch
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
Lotus
The Dodos
Deadmau5
Martin Sexton

Early this morning, Weezer front man Rivers Cuomo’s bus skidded on black ice and ended up in a ditch. The band was traveling from New York to Boston for their show at Agganis Arena Monday night. Cuomo was taken to St. Mary’s Hospital in Amsterdam, New York complaining of rib pain. His assistant was also taken to the hospital but his wife, daughter and a fifth unidentified passenger escaped unscathed. Cuomo was traveling in a five bus caravan for the Weezer tour.

The Boston, Washington D.C., and Philadelphia shows have all been canceled due to the accident.

On Raditude, Weezer’s seventh studio album, out tomorrow, frontman and geek icon/heartthrob Rivers Cuomo (who, on a side note, is perhaps the only lyricist who can work the phrase “ape a goombah” into a pop song and have it sound totally seamless) treads a fine line. He’s the outsider underdog who’s suddenly been invited to sit at the cool kids’ table. One minute, he’s rapping with Lil’ Wayne; on the next song, he laments, “My hairdo isn’t cool.”

Per usual, Raditude’s strong points come when Weezer sticks to the winning formula that dates back to their debut album 15 (!)  years ago — anthemic, catchy choruses and simple surf-rock song structure (see: “Put Me Back Together,” “Let It All Hang Out”). The record starts and ends on strong points, with bouncy leadoff track and first single, “(If You’re Wondering if I Want You To) I Want You To” and heartfelt album closer “I Don’t Want to Let You Go.” On the eight tracks in between, it’s clear that Weezer is trying to broaden its musical horizons, with mixed results.

On the positive side of the spectrum is the Cuomo-Jermaine Dupri-Lil’ Wayne collaboration “Can’t Stop Partying,” whose lyrics take on an ironic twist with nerd-rock pioneer Cuomo singing lines like, “Monday to Sunday I hit all the clubs / And everybody knows me when I pull up / I’ve got the real big posse with me, yeah I’m deep.” The song, which first appeared as a melancholy acoustic track on Cuomo’s solo demo record that was released a year ago, has been transformed into a synth-heavy earworm, with Dupri’s fingerprints all over it.

Less successful is the sitar-infused “Love is the Answer,” which sounds like it would fit in better over the PA of my Vietnamese-owned laundromat than on a Weezer record.

Even at 39, Cuomo isn’t afraid to let his inner awkward teenager emerge. He falls for a formerly dowdy classmate on the frankly-titled “The Girl Got Hot,” while hard-hitting “I’m Your Daddy” finds him trying to woo a girl on the dance floor. Apparently, even after hanging out with the cool kids, he’s still a nerd at heart.

Harmonix today announced that three-packs from Weezer, KISS, and Blink 182 are next week’s DLC additions to the already plentiful Rock Band Music Store.

Furthermore, the Wii continues to play catch-up this week and many a song will be added to that respective music store while PSP Rock Band’ers have a little more to enjoy with tunes from Alient Ant Farm and James Gang.

Full list below.

Xbox 360/PS3 additions for week of 7/28

Blink-182 “Down”
Blink-182 “Feeling This”
Blink-182 “The Rock Show”
Damone “Out Here All Night”
KISS “100,000 Years (Live)”
KISS “Deuce (Live)”
KISS “Parasite (Live)”
Weezer “My Name is Jonas”
Weezer “Pork and Beans”
Weezer “Undone “" The Sweater Song”

Wii Additions July 28

Kings of Leon “Crawl”
Kings of Leon “Molly’s Chambers”
Kings of Leon “Sex on Fire”
Rancid “Last One to Die”
Rancid “Ruby Soho”
Rancid “Time Bomb”
Rise Against “Prayer of the Refugee”
Rise Against “Re-Education (Through Labor)”
Rise Against “Savior”
Lush “Sweetness & Light”
Children of Bodom “Are You Dead Yet”
Finley “Tutto ƒ¨ Possibile
Mƒ¶tley Crƒ¼e “Don’t Go Away Mad (Just Go Away)”
Mƒ¶tley Crƒ¼e “Dr. Feelgood”
Mƒ¶tley Crƒ¼e “Kickstart My Heart”
Mƒ¶tley Crƒ¼e “Rattlesnake Shake”
Mƒ¶tley Crƒ¼e “Same Ol’ Situation (S.O.S)”
Mƒ¶tley Crƒ¼e “She Goes Down”
Mƒ¶tley Crƒ¼e “Slice Of Your Pie”
Mƒ¶tley Crƒ¼e “Sticky Sweet”
Mƒ¶tley Crƒ¼e “Time For Change”
Mƒ¶tley Crƒ¼e “Without You”
Platero y Tƒº “Hay Poco Rock & Roll”
Squeeze “Tempted”
Tokio Hotel “Ready, Set, Go!”

Rock Band Unplugged due out July 30

James Gang “Funk #49″
Alien Ant Farm “Smooth Criminal”

Millions of fans rejoiced earlier this year when the legendary pop-punk trio Blink 182 announced that they would be re-uniting after two years of hiatus. Mark Hoppus, Tom Delonge and Travis Barker have been in the studio for the past couple of weeks writing and recording new Blink songs but have just announced an epic amphitheatre summer tour. The support for the arena extravaganza will work like a game of musical artists rotating between Fall Out Boy, Weezer, Panic At The Disco, The All-American Rejects, Taking Back Sunday, Asher Roth and Chester French on different select dates of the tour. All the dates for the tour are listed below (including the Comcast Center in Mansfield, MA on August 6) but which support will be at which venues has not be announced yet. All lawn seats at any of the amphitheatres will be $20 with no extra fees. Tickets go on sale May 30 at www.livenation.com.

July 24: Las Vegas (the Joint)

July 28: Vancouver (GM Place)

July 30: Calgary, AB (Saddledome)

July 31: Edmonton, AB (Rexall Place)

Aug. 1: Saskatoon, SK (Credit Union Center)

Aug. 2: Winnipeg, MB (MTS Centre)

Aug. 4: Milwaukee (Marcus Amphitheater)

Aug. 6: Boston (Comcast Center)

Aug. 7 Quebec City, QC (Colisee Pepsi)

Aug. 8: Montreal (Bell Centre)

Aug. 9: Wantagh, N.Y. (Nikon Theater at Jones Beach)

Aug. 12: Hershey, Pa. (the Star Pavilion)

Aug. 13: Cincinnati (Riverbend Music Center)

Aug. 14: Pittsburgh (Post Gazette Pavilion)

Aug. 15: Chicago (First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre)

Aug. 16: Omaha, Neb. (Westfair Amphitheater)

Aug. 18: Minneapolis (Xcel Energy Center)

Aug. 20: Indianapolis (Verizon Wireless Amphitheater)

Aug. 21: Buffalo, N.Y. (Darien Lakes Performing Arts Center)

Aug. 22: Detroit (DTE Energy Music Theatre)

Aug. 23: Toronto (Molson Amphitheater)

Aug. 25: Holmdel, N.J. (PNC Bank Arts Center)

Aug. 27: Saratoga, N.Y. (Saratoga Performing Arts Center)

Aug. 28: Camden, Pa. (Susquehanna Bank Center)

Aug. 29: Hartford, Conn. (New England Dodge Music Center)

Aug. 30: Washington, D.C. (TBD)

Aug. 31: Wantagh, N.Y. (Nikon Theater at Jones Beach)

Sept. 2: Cleveland (Blossom Music Center)

Sept. 3: St. Louis (Verizon Wireless Amphitheater)

Sept. 4: Kansas City, Kan. (Capitol Federal Park at Sandstone)

Sept. 6: Denver (Fiddlers Green Amphitheater)

Sept. 7: Salt Lake City (David O. McKay Events Center)

Sept. 10: Seattle (White River Amphitheater)

Sept. 12: Sacramento, Calif. (Sleep Train Amphitheater)

Sept. 13: Mountain View, Calif. (Shoreline Amphitheater)

Sept. 14: Santa Barbara, Calif. (Santa Barbara Bowl)

Sept. 16: San Diego (Cricket Wireless Amphitheater)

Sept. 17: Irvine, Calif. (Verizon Wireless Amphitheater)

Sept. 19: Phoenix (Tempe Beach Park)

Sept. 21: Albuquerque, N.M. (Journal Pavilion)

Sept. 23: Dallas (Superpages.com Center)

Sept. 24: Houston (Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion)

Sept. 26: West Palm Beach, Fla. (Cruzan Amphitheater)

Sept. 27: Tampa, Fla. (Ford Amphitheater)

Sept. 29: Atlanta (Lakewood Amphitheater)

Oct. 1: Charlotte, N.C. (Verizon Wireless Amphitheater)

Oct. 2: Virginia Beach, Va. (Verizon Wireless Amphitheater)

Oct. 3: Atlantic City, N.J. (Borgata Events Center)