The four-pack of songs, all of which can be purchased separately, includes:

• “Terrible Lie”
• “Head Like a Hole” (Pro upgrades available)
• “Sanctified”
• “The Only Time”

Next week, Harmonix is also releasing a slew of Pro Guitar/Bass upgrades for older songs for $0.99. You’ll have to have the original track to make the upgrade. Here’s a full list:

• Blink 182 – “Dammit”
• Boston – “More Than A Feeling”
• Creedence Clearwater Revival – “Bad Moon Rising”
• Creedence Clearwater Revival – “Fortunate Son”
• Eve 6 – “Inside Out”
• The James Gang – “Funk #49″
• The Knack – “My Sharona (Cover Version)”
• Lynyrd Skynyrd – “Simple Man”
• Metallica – “…And Justice for All”
• The Offspring – “Self Esteem”
• Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble – “Pride and Joy”

Pricing for whole songs:

$1.99 USD, £.99 UK, €1.49 EU (160 Microsoft Points) per song
$2.00USD (200 Wii Points™) per song
$0.99 USD (100 Wii Points/80 Microsoft Points), £0.59 UK, €0.79 EU per song for eligible Pro Guitar/Pro Bass upgrade
$6.99, £3.49 UK, €5.29 EU (560 Microsoft Points, 700 Wii Points) for Pretty Hate Pack 01

These songs will include the Pro Keyboard parts, but as usual, Pro Guitar upgrades (in this case, for “We Belong”) will be available for 99 cents. Here’s the full tracklisting, all of original master recordings:

• “Fire and Ice”
• “Love is a Battlefield”
• “Shadows of the Night”
• “We Belong”
• “Invincible”
• “Promises in the Dark”

The tracks will make their European PS3 debut on Feb. 23.

Harmonix has made a holiday announcement that a seven-pack of songs will be coming out with special release dates ahead of Valentine’s Day. February Heartache Duets Pack will be available beginning Friday, Feb. 11th cross platform for all consoles. Over at the Rock Band 3 Music Store as downloadable content for the Xbox 360, PS3 and the Wii. 
 
 

These tracks can be purchased as individual tracks and as “Stone Sour Pack 01” on Xbox 360, PlayStation®3 system and Wii. Some tracks will include Pro Guitar and Pro Bass expansions for $0.99 per song.

Prices: $1.99 USD, PSN, $2.00 USD (200 Wii Points™) per song, $0.99 USD (100 Wii Points/80 Microsoft Points), per song for eligible Pro Guitar/Pro Bass upgrade $5.49, (440 Microsoft Points, 550 Wii Points) for Stone Sour Pack 01. Dates for Rock Band game tracks are tentative and subject to change.

John Drake announced the sale on the Rock Band forums this morning, stating that, “We’re excited to be returning to our roots as an independent and privately owned studio. As for what it means for you, the DLC schedule marches on for Rock Band, we will continue our support of previously released titles and we’re hard at work on some unannounced projects that we think you’re going to be pumped about.”

So, if you were worried that the sale of the company would interrupt the excellent work that folks are doing over there – I think you can sleep well tonight knowing that the company is in good hands. (And if Harmonix’s fate was seriously interrupting your sleep patterns, see a doctor.)

The following songs will be available Dec. 7:

And if they’re marked with an X? Pay another buck and get access to the Pro guitar and bass part of the content (that you’ll really be able to shred when the real guitars come out). If you’re not interested in blowing everyone’s mind on those two instruments – that’s cool. Pro keyboard and drum parts are already included, so show off those piano lessons Mom made you take. They had to be good for something, right?

“There are a lot of gamers who want to play like Green Day, but not necessarily live like them,” says Jason Lemelson, President of LevelUp.  “This product grants players the ability to shred their guitars, not their living rooms.”

LevelUp constructed this ottoman out of solid wood and sleek leather-like exterior, durable enough to withstand the most destructive performer. Yes, you know that, one player who has no issue with jumping off the couch and pulling a guitar swing. That way it will be solid enough for preserve any unused equipment.

The Rock Band Ottoman features include:

• fitted drum stick loops
• fitted side accessory pockets
• a Velcro guitar loops to keep your gear secure.
• a safety hinge lid and side handles for easy lifting
• decorative lid stitching because every band needs a little flair.

Users can comfortably fit two guitars, one drum set, one microphone, and one drumstick set. Which, for anyone dealing with space issue would love! Currently the ottoman comes in two designs, Skull and Snakes which is available at JCPenny.com and Kohls.com which retails for 179.00 and Costco will be carrying the Back in Black version for 89.99.

However, one piece of furniture might be changing that. LevelUp’s Rock Band Ottoman, made of wood and faux leather, is a classy (and licensed, if that’s important to you) way to store your Rock Band peripherals. Each piece of your band gets a place to stay inside the ottoman, and it’s easy enough to lift if you’re taking the band on the road (roadies not included).

“There are a lot of gamers who want to play like Green Day, but not necessarily live like them,” says Jason Lemelson, President of LevelUp.  “This product grants players the ability to shred their guitars, not their living rooms.”

The ottomans are currently on sale at the websites for JCPenney and Kohls, while Costco is apparently carrying them in stores. However, it’s all available at LevelUp’s website (along with a lot of other things I’m seriously considering adding to our furniture collection just to keep the gaming part of our lives neater).

A Viacom Spokesperson has released the following statement:

As announced this morning, Viacom plans to sell Harmonix and have reclassified Harmonix to a discontinued operation. However, this announcement does not affect the ongoing work at the studio as they continue to support Rock Band and Dance Central. Viacom’s decision to exit this business reflects our strategy of focusing entirely on what they do best: make great branded entertainment content and deliver it through a variety of platforms. Harmonix has and will continue to create terrific video games. But for us, it is about focus. Viacom is in discussions with several potential buyers and will continue to fully support the business until a sale is completed.

A forum thread was also started for players to ask questions and Harmonix to respond to concerns that loyal fans may have.

Starting today, IGN and MTV Games are co-sponsoring a contest where you can win prizes valued at $10,000 just by taking a photo of your fully-costumed band.

Of course, there’s more than one category to split those prizes amongst – besides the Grand Prize, other categories include the Most Original and Scariest bands. There are more prize packages, which include game consoles, copies of Rock Band 3, instruments for use in the game and codes to download a crazy number of songs.

You’ve got until November 7 to get your pictures (with three to seven people in a file of less than 2MB in size in jpg, .gif or .png formats) submitted. Winners will be announced December 7.

For more information, visit http://microsites.ign.com/rb3_contest/.