Give the Gift of Music You Can All Agree On; Go See Meg Baird

By Kat Gardiner on

Don't know what to get your girlfriend for Valentine's Day? Have you been searching for that perfect musical gift that they would truly love and won't drive you insane like that new Sara Bareilles song? Good news for you; Meg Baird is going on tour. With her debut album Dear Companion released in 2007, Baird, dreamy and talented, seems to have proved old Ricky Nelson wrong -- you can please everyone. More famous for being a lead vocalist of psyche-shoegazing band Espers, Baird's solo music seems to almost channel John Fahey and Nick Drake, producing less pure psychedelia and more ethereal vocals than she does with her band. In fact, I have yet to find anyone who likes singer/songwriters and who hasn't been pleased with her (especially among the ladies). Listen to "The Waltz of the Tennis Players" and you'll know what I'm talking about. Oh, and did I mention she's not Norah Jones, yet?

Here are her tourdates (with James Blackshaw):
03.02.09 - Philadelphia, PA - Kung Fu Necktie
03.03.09 - Baltimore, MD - Metro Gallery
03.04.09 - New York City, NY - Le Poisson Rouge
03.05.09 - Boston, MA - Brattle Theatre
03.07.09 - Brooklyn, NY - Issue Project Room
03.08.09 - New Haven, CT - BAR

New Sonic Youth Album Details, We Haz Them; Producer Agnello Weighs in on the Album

By Heidi Vanderslice on 02-13-2009

Sonic Youth are back with their 384,204,489th album, and I am more than okay with that, and you should be too. Titled The Eternal, the album marks Sonic Youth's triumphant return to the indie world, as it's set for release on Matador. It also features the chops of veteran rock producer John Agnello, who worked on 2006's barn-burner, Rather Ripped.

Laid down during November and December of last year in Hoboken at Echo Canyon West Studios, The Eternal breaks more creative ground than your average bear, almost as if saying “sayonara” to Geffen made ’em let their hair down more than usual. Kim, Thurston, and Lee sing together for the first time in recorded SY history, and well, shit -- considering their gigantic stack o' records, I'd say that's pretty significant. We've also got the first tracks ever recorded in a studio by former Pavement/Dustdevils bassist Mark Ibold, who's only been a live component until now.

I spoke briefly with producer John Agnello, who seems in awe of his (and the band's) own handiwork, saying, "This is the record I wished I could have made with them throughout the nineties. Which proves all things come to he who waits. The magic they created in the studio together tracking was unparalleled to anything I've seen before. Some of these songs are already SY favorites to me." Which is a pretty bold statement, as Sonic Youth have created about a zillion masterpieces in their 28-year career. But hey, he's heard the record and I haven't, so I trust him.

The Eternal drops on June 9, but you can get it sooner with a special Buy Early Get Now deal, which Matador will be announcing down the pike.

In the meantime, SY fans in Germany and Brooklyn should be totally stoked about shows in their areas, but if that's not your jam, you can read about some of the many (many, many) projects they're working on here. Quantity AND quality, you betcha.

The Eternal tracklisting:

1. Sacred Trickster
2. Anti-Orgasm
3. Leaky Lifeboat (for Gregory Corso)
4. Antenna
5. What We Know
6. Calming The Snake
7. Poison Arrow
8. Malibu Gas Station
9. Thunderclap For Bobby Pyn
10. No Way
11. Walkin Blue
12. Massage The History

RIP: Estelle Bennett of The Ronettes

By Shane Mack on 02-13-2009

From the BBC:

Estelle Bennett, former singer with The Ronettes -- who are best known for their 1963 hit Be My Baby -- has died aged 67.

The singing trio helped epitomise the famed wall of sound technique that was created by producer Phil Spector.

Bennett was found dead at her home in New Jersey. It is not yet clear what the cause of death was.

- Estelle Bennett Wikipedia entry
- The Ronettes Wikipedia entry

Iron and Wine to Release Rarities, Let You Pick Setlists

By Kasia Galaxy on 02-13-2009

For their upcoming Major Cities and Tiny Venues Only tour, Sam Beam and co. will let fans decide what they play. That means 10 different setlists that you can vote for on their official site starting next month.

The tour will wrap up right before the release of their new double-CD, triple-LP album Around the Well May 19 on Sub Pop. Songs will hark back to their earliest, lo-fiest releases, all the way up to their latest, clappiest full-length The Shepherd's Dog (TMT Review).

You might also note a Garden State-free "Such Great Heights" on there.

Disc 1:

1. Dearest Forsaken
2. Morning
3. Loud as Hope
4. Peng! 33
5. Sacred Vision
6. Friends They Are Jewels
7. Hickory
8. Waitin' for a Superman
9. Swans and the Swimming
10. Call Your Boys
11. Such Great Heights

Disc 2:

1. Communion Cups & Someone's Coat
2. Belated Promise Ring
3. God Made the Automobile
4. Homeward, These Shoes
5. Love Vigilantes
6. Sinning Hands
7. No Moon
8. Serpent Charmer
9. Carried Home
10. Kingdom of the Animals
11. Arms of a Thief
12. The Trapeze Swinger
05.04.09 - Seattle, WA - Vera Project *
05.05.09 - Seattle, WA - Triple Door #
05.06.09 - San Francisco, CA - Swedish American Hall *
05.07.09 - San Francisco, CA - Swedish American Hall $
05.08.09 - Los Angeles, CA - Masonic Hall at Hollywood Forever Cemetery #!
05.09.09 - Los Angeles, CA - Troubadour *
05.12.09 - Chicago, IL - Lakeshore Theatre %
05.13.09 - Chicago, IL - Schuba's
05.17.09 - New York, NY - Abrons Arts Center ^
05.18.09 - New York, NY - Abrons Arts Center +

* Yogoman Burning Band

# Alela Diane

$ Magic Leaves

! DJ Small Town Talk

% Katie Stelmanis

^ Lia Ices

+ partyface

Calvin Johnson Starts New Band The Hive Dwellers; Goes on Tour with Chain and the Gang

By Jon Lorenz on 02-12-2009

Calvin Johnson, former Beat Happening front man and K Records head honcho, is going on tour with his brand new band, The Hive Dwellers. The tour will kick off on April 14 with K newbies Chain and the Gang, featuring Ian Svenious (Nation of Ulysses, the Make-Up, Weird War, etc.) Interestingly, aside from the front men, the two groups will consist of the same members -- Bret Lyman (Bad Thoughts), Brian Weber (Dub Narcotic Sound System), Sarah Pedal, and Fred Thomas (Saturday Looks Good to Me, City Center).

In addition to showcasing Johnson's new project, the tour will support Chain and the Gang's debut LP Down with Liberty... Up with Chains, which is due April 7 on K. Down With Liberty... Up With Chains will also feature Johnson, as well as an all-star cast of mostly K Records players, including the aforementioned Brett Lyman, Sarah Pedal, and Brian Weber, as well as Faustine Hudson (The Curious Mystery), Veronica Ortuño (Finally Punk), Nicolaas Zwart (Desolation Wilderness), Karl Blau, Chris Sutton (Hornet Leg), Sixx (The Vibrarians), Arrington de Dionyso, Aaron Hartman, and Benjamin Hartman (Old Time Relijun).

Before the tour kicks off, Johnson will also be doing a round of solo shows in Japan with fellow K alumni, Karl Blau.
03.19.09 Yamagata, Japan – Obihachi*!
03.20.09 - Sendai, Japan –Heaven*!
03.22.09 - Tokyo, Japan - O-Nest*!
03.24.09 - Matsumoto, Japan – Gunzyo*!
03.25.09 - Kyoto, Japan – Urbanguild*!
03.27.09 - Hiroshima, Japan – Babaji*!
03.28.09 - Fukuoka, Japan – Yojigen*!
03.29.09 - Kokura, Japan – Soap*!
03.31.09 - Matsuyama, Japan - More Music*!
04.02.09 - Nagoya, Japan – Tokuzo*!
04.03.09 - Tokyo, Japan - O-Nest*!
04.09.09 - Salem, Oregon - Cherry City Music Festival*#
04.14.09 - Springfield, Illinois - Black Sheep Café+#
04.15.09 - Bloomington, Indiana - The Cinemat+#
04.16.09 - Pittsburg, Pennsylvania - The Nerve+#
04.18.09 - Boston , Massachusetts - Outside the Lines Gallery+#
04.19.09 - Providence, Rhode Island - AS220+#
04.20.09 - Annandale on Hudson, New York - Bard College+#
04.21.09 - Danbury, Connecticut - Heirloom Arts+#
04.22.09 - Montreal, Quebec - Lab Synthese+#
04.23.09 - Hamilton, Ontario - The Casbah+#
04.24.09 - Toronto, Ontario -Whippersnapper Gallery+#
04.25.09 - Rochester, New York - The Bug Jar+#
04.26.09 - Brooklyn, New York - Market Hotel+#
04.27.09 - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania -The Barbary+#
04.28.09 - Baltimore, Maryland - Talking Head Club+#
04.30.09 - Akron, Ohio – Musica+#
05.01.09 - Detroit, Michigan - UFO Factory+#
05.02.09 - Chicago, Illinois - Co-Prosperity Sphere+#
05.03.09 - Grand Rapids, Michigan - The DAAC+#
05.05.09 - Minneapolis, Minnesota - The Eclipse Record Store+#
05.06.09 - Iowa City, Iowa - Public Space+#
05.07.09 - Indianapolis, Indiana - Public Space 1+#
05.08.09 - Louisville , Kentucky - Skull Alley+#
05.10.09 - Athens, Georgia - Secret Squirrel+#
05.11.09 - Atlanta, Georgia – Eyedrum+#
05.12.09 - Huntsville, Alabama - Vertical House Records+#
05.14.09 - New Orleans, Louisiana – Spellcaster+#
05.15.09 - Scott, Louisiana - Bourque's Social Club+#
05.16.09 - Austin, Texas - Emo's+#
05.19.09 - Santa Fe, New Mexico - Warehouse 21+#
05.20.09 - Tucson, Arizona - Solar Culture+#
05.22.09 - Los Angeles, California - The Smell+#
05.23.09 - San Francisco, California - Million Fishes+#
05.24.09 - Oakland, California - Ghost Town Gallery+#
05.25.09 - Santa Cruz, California - Crepe Place+#
05.27.09 - Eureka, California - Accident Gallery+#
05.28.09 - Portland, Oregon – Rotture+#
05.29.09 - Seattle, Washington - The Vera Project+#
05.30.09 - Vancouver, British Columbia - The Sweatshop+#
05.31.09 - Anacortes, Washington - The Department of Safety+#

* Solo Set

+ Hive Dwellers Set

! Karl Blau

# Chain and the Gang

Hip-hop may be dead, but reggae lives on: Nas recording album with Damian Marley

By Couscous on 02-12-2009

Firebrand rapper Nas announced last week to MTV News an as-yet-unnamed collaboration LP with the heir of one of the most harmonious, peaceful music legacies ever, Bob Marley's son, Damian "Junior Gong" Marley. The two first worked together on Marley's 2005 album Welcome to Jamrock on the track "Road to Zion."

Nas' manager Anthony Saleh says to expect the album to drop sometime this spring. In an intriguing preview of what the collaboration will contain for fans, Nas said "The record's ... all about really the ’hood and Africa also as well." Geez, really? You get these two guys in a studio and you'd expect something more along the lines of pastoral, Ray Davies-esque character portraits, am I wrong? But hey, let's give these guys a chance; we'll see what they do with the "hood and Africa" thing.

More

News
  • Recent
  • Popular

Music Reviews
  • Recent
  • Popular