As announced late last week, Paul Weller is celebrating the 70th birthday of Paul McCartney with a one-day-only release of a new cover of The Beatles’ ‘Birthday.’ The song — which you can stream here — is available to buy for 24 hours via Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk, with all proceeds going to War Child.

The now Hooky-less incarnation of New Order performed at 12-song set at Barcelona’s Sónar 2012 music festival on Saturday, and if you missed the live webcast, here’s a capture — thanks to YouTuber i7yci7cyi — of the full 70-minute show. As you’ll see, the band is sticking to roughly the same setlist since first reuniting last fall.

This week’s installment of The Week in Rock features news about Pet Shop Boys, Elizabeth Fraser, They Might Be Giants, David Byrne, Peter Buck, The Birthday Party, Peter Murphy, Ministry, Morrissey, The Stone Roses, Dinsaur Jr, Robyn Hitchcock, The Jesus and Mary Chain and more.

Last night, Britain’s BBC Four aired the third and final installment of the new “Punk Britannia” documentary series, billed as a look at the ‘historic cosmology, meteoric impact and smouldering aftermath of the most genuinely transformative force in British popular music history.’ Watch the full, three-hour series right here.

Elizabeth Fraser this week announced she will precede her two sets at the Antony-curated Meltdown festival with an August concert in Bath, England, that will be her first full performance in 14 years and which will find the singer debuting new material and ‘performing re-interpretations of Cocteau Twins songs.’

Last November, They Might Be Giants stopped by Hollywood behemoth Amoeba Music to celebrate the release of their second album of 2011, the compilation ‘Album Raises New and Troubling Questions.’ The group jammed out an 8-song, 22-minute set that the record store recently posted on its website

In the works for nearly three years, ‘Love This Giant’ — the joint album by former Talking Heads frontman David Byrne and singer-songwriter/guitar ace Annie Clark, better known as St. Vincent — will be released in September, after which the two will embark on a 25-date fall North American tour.

R.E.M. fans got their very first taste of guitarist Peter Buck’s debut solo album today when former Dream Syndicate frontman — and frequent Buck collaborator — Steve Wynn world-premiered the song ’10 Million BC’ during a guest DJ stint on Diane’s Kamikaze Fun Machine on New Jersey’s WFMU.

4AD and reissue imprint Beggars Archive this week announced a new special-edition 30th anniversary reissue of ‘Junk Yard,’ the second album from Nick Cave’s pre-Bad Seeds outfit The Birthday Party. The set will feature the album on 12-inch, the ‘Release the Bats’ single on 7-inch and a CD combining both.

Paul Weller will celebrate the 70th birthday of Paul McCartney on Monday with a one-day-only release of a newly recorded cover of The Beatles’ ‘Birthday.’ Recorded in 24 hours at Weller’s Black Barn studios, the song will be available for purchase for 24 hours via iTunes, with all proceeds going to War Child.

Peter Murphy this week announced a late-summer concert at Hollywood’s famed Roxy Theatre, part of a 50-band Sunset Strip Music Festival that will be headlined by Marilyn Manson and celebrate the music of The Doors. Other acts on the bill include Bad Religion, The Offspring and De La Soul.

With Al Jourgensen’s reformed Ministry opening its very short U.S. tour this Sunday in Denver, the band this week released a second music video from its comeback album ‘Relapse.’ The clip for ‘GhoulDiggers’ features some fine ranting by Uncle Al, a bit of cartoonery and some animated, grave-digging ducks.

Morrissey today discounted rumors that he plans to retire in 2014, providing a statement to fansite True To You that says, ‘Morrissey would like to stress that reports of his ‘retirement,’ as excitably earmarked by several newspapers and websites, are ‘wishful thinking’ on behalf of the writers.’