Mario Speedwagon’s Under The Radar News Round Up: Jay Reatard Tours, Pete Yorn Tours, Temporary Residence Signs Black Heart Procession And Pinback, Arbouretum Tours, Yo Mama Tours
By Mario Speedwagon on 06-05-2009
Before I get into the news, I want to talk about this band photo that my friend Cody found:
Now, I see a lot of promotional photos -- some good, most terrible -- but this one really takes the cake. It’s the kind of band photo you’d see on Rock And Roll Confidential’ in the Hall Of Douche Bags section. One of the first things I noticed was that three of them have soul patches (if you don't know my thoughts on soul patches, my thoughts are "Ew.") Then I noticed that three of them have HIGHLIGHTS and two have the "Rachel" haircut. Finally, where the hell do you find jackets like that? (For your information, I didn’t really notice all this stuff in that order. My immediate reaction was “OH MY GOD” and then only after I cleaned up the brains that had leaked out of my ears after my brain exploded did I dissect the douche-baggery. Whoa.)
- Speaking of “Reatards,” Jay Reatard will release his new album Watch Me Fall in August 18, 2009 via Matador Records. He’ll be celebrating early by heading out on tour in June and July. The tour kicks off in San Diego, CA at the Casbah and ends in Oxford, MS at Proud Larry’s. Most of the dates are with TV Smith f the Adverts. You can check out a full list of dates at the Matador website.
- Yesterday I got this super sad letter from Performing Songwriter basically saying that its June 2009 issue was its last. RIP Print media. While flipping through its last issue, I found an article on Pete Yorn and felt bad, because I had no idea Pete Yorn still did stuff. That being said, today I thought I’d make myself feel better by writing about his tour and his new record that comes out June 23, 2009 via Columbia Records called Back and Forth. On July 9, he’ll kick off his tour in San Diego, CA at the House of Blues and continue on until August 28 in Los Angeles, CA at the Henry Fonda Theatre. Check out all the dates at his official site. I’m an elitist, snobby bitch. Sorry Pete.
- Temporary Residence Limited, home to Bellini, Explosions in the Sky, Maserati, Mono, and a few others, is now home to The Black Heart Procession (and thus, Three Mile Pilot) and Pinback. Black Heart Procession have tour plans in the fall and will release a new record in October. Pinback are working on a new record, slated for some time in 2010.
- Arbouretum kicked off their tour yesterday in their hometown of Baltimore in support of their latest release Songs of the Pearl (TMT Review). Today, they’ll play the Norva in Norfolk, VA and a few more dates in the U.S. before heading over to Europe for a few other shows and festivals. More details can be found on the Thrill Jockey website.
One more time.
PS: I’m pretty sure the “dude” second in from the left is a chick.
Wal-Mart to Shut Down DRM Download Servers While the Music from Terminator 2 Plays in the Background
By Nobodaddy on 06-05-2009
This is it. I can already hear the strains of our readership's Crystal Castles ringtones as our Toby Keith-listening step-daddies and Josh Groban-adoring mommas frantically call our new-fangled smart phones about this DRM (pronounced "derm," right mom?) Download changeover thing that their neighborhood Wal-Mart store just sent them an email about. I might as well get you up to speed now, so you can calm the old folks down and get them off the phone before they invite you and your girlfriend to another dreadful dinner at Outback Steakhouse.
So, basically Walmart.com's music download store went DRM free in February of 2008, and surprise, surprise, now they're telling customers that they can no longer support the DRM-laden downloads that they eagerly sold them prior to the inevitable transition. This is, of course, no surprise to us young folk. You may recall that iTunes offered a paid upgrade to MP3s after it made the DRM-free transition and still supports the tracks it sold with DRM. And other download services like Napster and Rhapsody were forced to extend their transitions after complaints from consumers. Wal-Mart's changeover is, if anything, a little overdue.
But still, consider the email that got sent to Wal-Mart's customers, which states that on October 9, the company will shut its servers "that support protected songs and albums purchased from our site." Unless you back up your files by burning them to CD, you will "no longer be able to transfer your songs to other computers or access your songs after changing or reinstalling your operating system or in the event of a system crash." Okay. Now, think about how your mom uses the term CD and DVD interchangeably all the time. See? This is gonna be a mess. Below is the full text of Wal-Mart's email. After you read it, you should probably look at your Google Calendar and free up a Saturday sometime soon, cuz you've got some DRM songs to burn and some grade-C steak to choke down. Oh, and don't pick up a 10 pack of CD-Rs... from Wal-Mart.
Full text of Walmart.com's email:
We hope you are enjoying the increased music quality/bitrate and the improved usability of Walmart's MP3 music downloads. We began offering MP3s in August 2007 and have offered only DRM (digital rights management) -free MP3s since February 2008. As the final stage of our transition to a full DRM-free MP3 download store, Walmart will be shutting down our digital rights management system that supports protected songs and albums purchased from our site. If you have purchased protected WMA music files from our site prior to Feb 2008, we strongly recommend that you back up your songs by burning them to a recordable audio CD. By backing up your songs, you will be able to access them from any personal computer. This change does not impact songs or albums purchased after Feb 2008, as those are DRM-free.
Beginning October 9, we will no longer be able to assist with digital rights management issues for protected WMA files purchased from Walmart.com. If you do not back up your files before this date, you will no longer be able to transfer your songs to other computers or access your songs after changing or reinstalling your operating system or in the event of a system crash. Your music and video collections will still play on the originally authorized computer.
Thank you for using Walmart.com for music downloads. We are working hard to make our store better than ever and easier to use.
Faith No More Tour Europe in the Summer, Mike Patton Finally Gets Steady Work
By Mike McHugh on 06-05-2009
It’s been 11 long years since Faith No More last took the stage, but in anticipation of their upcoming European tour, frontman Mike Patton is just happy to be playing music again after all those years of relative inactivity. “It’s been tough, man. Real tough,” Patton said in a recent interview with Rolling Stone. “11 years on the sidelines, doin’ bullshit material with bullshit people. It’s good to be back in the game. I’ve paid my fuckin’ dues, and now it’s time to fuck the Big Time in her fat ol’ backyard, baby.”
The post-Faith years have not been kind to Mr. Patton. Following the group’s 1998 breakup, the hammer-throated singer has become dejected and reclusive, popping up only every few hours to release a new album or score a Jason Statham movie. A string of go-nowhere bands like Fantômas, Mr. Bungle, and Peeping Tom kept him fed as he fought to break back onto the charts, but with each paycheck came its own humiliation. Soon the financial constraints became so great that Patton was forced to collaborate with anyone who crossed his path, from John Zorn and Merzbow to Björk and Neil Hamburger. “I’m not proud of things I did to keep myself alive, and I’d forget them forever if I only could,” Patton told RS, fighting back tears. “I just hope if I ever have kids someday that they don’t find out about all the disgraceful shit I had to do to get by. Fuck. Never fuckin’ again, man. I’m a goddamn star now.”
After years of indifference from the mainstream public, Patton was ready to quit the music industry all together until life mercifully gave him a second chance when Faith No More reunited earlier this year (TMT News ). “It’s a real relief, ya know. I mean, I figured I was gonna spend the rest my life sloggin’ out Whoppers at the BK or, even worse, puking up little pieces of my larynx everyday with that shrimpy saxophone blowin’ faggot Zorn,” Patton said, laughing and flexing. “Fuckin’ yes! Goddamn I feel like a fucking titan! You wanna see how many pushups I can do, dipshit journalist? I can do so many fucking pushups, motherfucker! WATCH THE LEAD SINGER OF FAITH NO MORE DO PUSHUPS, PRICK!” (The rest of the RS article is pretty much detailed descriptions about each of Patton’s pushups, except for one aside where Patton talks about how much he enjoyed the movie Up.)
06.10.09 – London, UK – Brixton Academy
06.12.09 – Donington Park, UK – Download Festival
06.13.09 – Interlaken, Switzerland - Greenfield Festival
06.14.09 – Milan, Italy – Rock in Idro
06.16.09 – Berlin, Germany - Kindl-Bühne Wuhlheide
06.19.09 – Nickelsdork, Austria – Nova Rock Festival
06.20.09 - Eichenring Scheeflel, Germany – Hurricane Festival
06.21.09 – Neuhausen ob Eck, Germany – Southside Festival
06.22.09 – Frankfurt, Germany – Jahrhunderthalle
06.24.09 – Helsinki, Finland - Kaisaniemi Park
06.25.09 – Arendal, Norway – Hove Festival
06.27.09 – Borlänge, Sweden – Peace and Love Festival
06.29.09 – Moscow, Russia – B1 Club
06.30.09 – St. Petersburg, Russia – Jubileeny
07.01.09 – Riga, Latvia – Dream Factory
07.03.09 – Roskilde, Denmark – Roskilde Festival
07.04.09 – Gydnia, Poland – Heineken Open'er Festival
07.05.09 – Turku, Finland – Ruisrock Festival
08.08.09 - Zambujeira do Mar, Portugal – Sudoeste Festival
08.14.09 – Burgas, Bulgaria – Spirit of Burgas
08.15.09 – Bucharest, Romania - Sala Polivalenta
08.16.09 – Budapest, Hungary – Sziget Festival
08.17.09 – Prague, Czech Republic – Tesla Arena
08.20.09 – Hasselt, Belgium – Pukkelpop Festival
08.21.09 - Biddinghuizen, Netherlands – Lowlands Festival
08.22.09 – Erfurt, Germany – Highfield Festival
08.23.09 – Oberhausen, Germany – Area 4 Festival
08.29.09 – Paris, France – Rock en Seine
09.01.09 – Tel Aviv, Israel – Fair, Trade and Convention Centre
Photo: [saba♫dija]
Franz Ferdinand Release Dub Remix LP, But They Also Announce North American Tour with Green Day. So, Wait. Does This News Make Them Hip and Credible or Money-Hungry and Disposable? You Decide.
By Nobodaddy on 06-05-2009
Okay. Pop quiz, hot shot. Franz Ferdinand. Are they (A) ultra-hip, forward-looking glam-rock elevators?
(Hint: In the wake of the release of their relatively well-received third record, Tonight: Franz Ferdinand (TMT Review), the esteemed Glasgow quartet completed a stellar North American Tour, which saw sold-out shows from coast to coast, as well as a poised and impressive appearance on David Letterman. Then, this week, they followed all of this success up with the release of Blood, a dub version of Tonight mixed by Tonight producer Dan Carey, which was filled to the brim with nine incredible versions of Franz originals and one additional song, “Be Afraid,” a version of “Dream Again.” Talk about badass. This might even earn them the Jonny Greenwood Stamp of Approval.)
But wait! Don’t answer so fast.
Because there is also another choice. Could they be (B), tepid torch-bearers of rock ’n’ roll’s, uh, 21st-century breakdown who are content to play to pierced and “opinionated” 15-year-olds, young parents who fill their Rhapsody playlists with songs they hear on local alternative radio, and outdoor-venue-patronizing hackie sack enthusiasts before turning the oversized stage over to the shmaltziest big-budget rock headliners on earth, who use some vague notion of pouty politics to sell three-chord throwaways before they’re too old to look “young”??
(Hint: I’m not talking about Wilco.)
That’s right. Franz Ferdinand is following up the release of their experimental dub record by touring the U.S. again later this summer as the opening act for Green Day. Confused? Me too. Bye bye, Greenwood stamp!
Blood tracklist:
1. Feel The Pressure
2. Die On The Floor
3. The Vaguest of Feeling
4. If I can’t Have You Then Nobody Can
5. Katherine Hit Me
6. Backwards Of My Face
7. Feeling Kind of Anxious
8. Feel The Envy
9. Be Afraid
Green Daytes:
08.08.09 - Houston, TX - Toyota Center
08.09.09 - San Antonio, TX - AT&T Center
08.11.09 - St. Louis, MO - Scottrade Center
08.12.09 - Kansas City, MO - Sprint Center
08.13.09 - Omaha, NE - Qwest
08.15.09 - Denver, CO - Pepsi Center
08.16.09 - Salt Lake City, UT - ESA (Energy Sol Arena)
08.18.09 - San Jose, CA - HP Pavilion
08.20.09 - San Diego, CA - Cox Arena
08.21.09 - Las Vegas, NV - Mandalay
08.22.09 - Phoenix, AZ - US Air Arena
08.24.09 - Sacramento, CA - Arco Arena
08.25.09 - Los Angeles, CA - Forum
08.26.09 - Los Angeles, CA – Forum
