METAL SHOPPING LIST: You’ve probably heard by...

METAL SHOPPING LIST: You’ve probably heard by now that Van Halen has a new album called “OU812,” due out May 24. (Don’t worry, the title isn’t a secret suicide message--it’s a vanity license-plate spoof. If you say it slowly it translates as ‘Oh, you ate one too?’). But the real news is that the band’s new single, “Black and Blue,” comes with a collectors-item B-side, “Apolitical Blues,” an old Little Feat favorite which will only be available on the single and CD-versions of the album. The album also features such new tunes as “A.F.U. (Naturally Wired),” “Cabo Wabo,” “Finish What Ya Started,” “Source of Infection,” and “Sucker in a 3 Piece.” . . . Guitarist John Sykes, who co-wrote most of the songs on the mega-platinum Whitesnake album, has a new band called Blue Murder that features bassist Tony Franklin (from the Firm) and veteran drummer Carmine Appice. The new group is in Vancouver working on a debut album with hot producer Bob (Kingdom Come) Rock. There’s only one problem--the band is still looking for a singer. Apparently no one who’s tried out so far has passed the test. One possible solution being discussed--the band would hold auditions through MTV’s Saturday night “Headbanger’s Ball.” . . . And don’t hold your breath waiting for that Cinderella album to hit the stores next week. Pop Eye hears the album’s been delayed while the group remixes some songs with a new producer.