This week’s new releases include the brand-new Christmas album from Erasure (‘Snow Globe’), plus reissues of The Lords of the New Church’s three albums from the ’80s, a Songs For Slim compilation 2CD set featuring The Replacements, and a set of ’80s covers from Matthew Sweet and Susannah Hoffs.

This week’s new releases include the new 2CD set from Echo & The Bunnymen’s Ian McCulloch, plus new albums from The Flaming Lips and Meat Puppets, plus a live Dead Can Dance album, a Simple Minds best-of, a reissue of David Bowie’s Aladdin Sane and the vinyl release of The Replacements’ ‘Songs For Slim.’

This week’s new releases include the ‘Songs For Slim’ reunion EP from The Replacements, new studio albums from Robyn Hitchcock, Sonic Youth’s Thurston Moore, They Might Be Giants, Nine Inch Nails’ Trent Reznor and Lloyd Cole and Cluster founder Hans-Joachim Roedelius.

The Songs for Slim benefit EP from The Replacements hits radio and digital outlets next week, but the first taste of the in-studio reunion hit the web today, thanks to Pitchfork’s premiere of the new ‘Mats cover of Gordon Lightfoot’s “I’m Not Sayin'” — one of four cover songs recorded by Paul Westerberg and Tommy Stinson.

Noting his contributions “to the music and cultural scene of Minneapolis for over four decades,” the mayor of Minnesota’s largest city has declared Thursday — Valentine’s Day to most — also will be Slim Dunlap Day, honoring the former Replacements guitarist who suffered a debilitating stroke a year ago.

After raising more than $100,000 through an auction of limited-edition, autographed 10-inches, The Replacements will release their Songs for Slim benefit/reunion EP to the masses beginning March 5, when the 5-song set will be sold digitally to be followed on April 16 by a commercial 12-inch pressing.

The Replacements — namely Paul Westerberg, Tommy Stinson and Chris Mars — raised more than $100,000 to help pay medical expenses for their ailing former bandmate Slim Dunlap through the just-completed 10-day auction of 250 limited-edition, 10-inch vinyl copies of the band’s 5-song reunion EP.

This week’s new releases include New Order’s collection of previously unreleased tracks from 2005 (‘Lost Sirens’), the reunion/charity EP from The Replacements (‘Songs for Slim’), two compilations from Talk Talk, an audiophile reissue from The Pretenders and a live DVD from Einstürzende Neubauten.

The auction of 250 autographed copies of The Replacements’ much-buzzed Songs for Slim benefit/reunion EP — billed as the first new release from the ‘Mats since 1990’s All Shook Down — kicks off Tuesday morning and will run for 10 days, after which the EP’s five tracks will be commercially released as digital downloads.

The final tracklist for the The Replacements’ upcoming ‘Songs for Slim’ EP — featuring four songs recorded by Paul Westerberg and Tommy Stinson, plus a fifth by Chris Mars — was unveiled tonight on the project’s Facebook page amid reports that an auction for the 250 limited-edition singles could start next week.

The Replacements — namely Paul Westerberg and Tommy Stinson — this evening teased Songs For Slim, their much-anticipated reunion project, announced last year as four-song, ultra-limited, vinyl-only covers EP that was to be auctioned off to raise money to help pay for the medical expenses of former bandmate Slim Dunlap.