On the heels of shocking, paradigm-shifting rush record releases from Radiohead, Nine Inch Nails, and (to a much lesser extent) the Raconteurs, MTV gives us fair warning today that Beck's forthcoming Danger Mouse–produced new album could also get a surprise drop date, possibly sometime in the next four to six weeks. See, unlike Radiohead and NIN, Beck is saddled with a recording contract signed back in the dark ages when fans had to pay $14.99 (ha!) for albums whose releases (on CD, no less!) were announced months in advance, so it's understandable he might not be able to move as quickly as Trent Reznor (who will probably put out three more new records through his Website before Beck even makes an official announcement). Still, Danger Mouse rarely lets us down, so we're actually pretty excited about this. We just hope the real surprise is that this album is better than Beck's last two.

Beck Set to Release New Album, Stat! [MTV]