By David Nadelle on

Normally our weekly office knee’s up has no problem getting into full swing, but last week’s was weird. We could have blamed it on the uneasy feelings surrounding the changing of the guard from Leno to Conan, but we really couldn’t care less about who hosts Late Night now that NBC didn’t choose our preferred replacement. Whatever the reason, whether known, unknown, or speculated, it sucked (someone mentioned something about their “monthlies” ruining early proceedings… I think it was Jon Lorenz). That is, it sucked until someone had the good grace to cue up Deastro’s upcoming Moondagger album (Ghostly International, out June 23). From that moment the night turned from Remains of the Day to Bachelor Party…

Here are Moondagger’s tracks and their corresponding mise-en-scènes during our bash:

1. Biophelia -- Kid Midnight drew a pistol and started firing shots into a vodka-infused watermelon, screaming, “That’s how the West was won, beotch!”
2. Parallelogram -- Annapocalypse and Kenny Bloggins, wearing a tiara and Boba Fett “Underoos”, respectively, shotgunned Sapporos and only talked gibberish.
3. Tone Adventure #3 -- Burke and Elzee competed for the title of “Best Skeet” with the staff’s fine ceramic phalli.
4. Toxic Crusaders -- Nobodaddy, to quote April Wine (and Hot Chocolate), “could have been alright, could have been here tonight, could have been sweet as wine, could have been a lady.” Sadly, he was none of these.
5. Greens, Grays, and Nordics -- Shelley Su yelled, “Who’s the piece-a-pooper who tied everyone’s shoes together!” before using the mess of shoes like a manriki to interrogate and whiplash our reviewing staff into confessing. Unfortunate for them, really, as the shoestring culprit was actually Mango Starr practicing his sailor's knots...
6. Day of Wonder -- Kasia Galaxy made white trash pad thai for everyone (Ramen noodles, peanut butter, Tabasco), then dished out block rockin’ beatings to anyone who wouldn’t eat it.
7. Pyramid Builders-- Hatchet had both asscheeks singed after maniacally performing blue angels out of the dumbwaiter.
8. Daniel Johnston Was Stabbed in the Heart with the Moondagger by the King of Darkness and His Ghost Is Writing this Song as a Warning to All of Us -- Did someone say they wanted to witness a circle jerk populated by Ze Pequeno, Liz Louche, and Couscous (a triangle jerk)? No one said it, but they saw it.
9. Rivers of Life -- Brom built a gazebo that was solid and dependable

10. Vermillion Plaza -- Heidi Vanderslice dropped $5.00 at the feet of “Bo-tae,” the blind, cockfighting rooster that we sponsor, and asked him to “bring the car around.”
11. Moondagger -- Kat Gardiner tongued this scary statue we bought on eBay (this happens at most TMT functions)

12. Kurgan Wave Number One -- Squeo, high on peanut skins, stopped everyone he walked past with a “nipple crippler” and his famous catchphrase, “Well, I don’t like golf, but I’m all for getting my balls washed!”
13. The Shaded Forests (Gift Giver’s Version) [bonus track] -- Everyone who I haven’t mentioned in this story sat in the corner and gave me stink-eye for not mentioning them

14. Tree Frog CD exclusive bonus track] -- [Mr. P streaked through the office giving random “drive-by shockers” (again, not an uncommon sight at one of our parties).

Such madcap scenes are bound to occur at any party that is soundtracked by the thoughtful electro-pop songs created by Randolph Chabot (Deastro to his parents). Try it yourself at home or, better yet, at one of the following live shows and see how things get swell and the venue suddenly fills with silly string dancers and billy goat gruffers. If that doesn’t sound cryptic enough, make sure to check out the cryptic 2010 dates taken from Deastro’s MySpace page. Click on each date at that page for important information on show details, ticket cost, and travel tips. Cheeky bastard!
06.10.09 - New York, NY - Mercury Lounge
06.12.09 - Brooklyn, NY - Studio B (Northside Festival) $
06.13.09 - Montréal, QC - Le Divan Orange
06.15.09 - Cleveland, OH - B-Side Lounge
06.16.09 - Toronto, ON - The Drake
06.17.09 - Chicago, IL - Double Door
06.18.09 - Minneapolis, MN - 7th Street Entry
06.21.09 - Vancouver, BC - Media Club
06.22.09 - Seattle, WA - The Vera Project
06.23.09 - Portland, OR - Holocene
06.24.09 - San Francisco, CA - Bottom of the Hill
06.25.09 - Los Angeles, CA - Spaceland
06.28.09 - Indianapolis, IN - The Vollrath
06.30.09 - Detroit, MI - The Magic Stick %
07.03.09 - Detroit, MI - City Fest
01.01.10 - Mercury, the Solar System Skyfest - Caloris Basin
01.02.10 - Venus, the Solar System Skyfest - Gula Mons
01.03.10 - Mars, the Solar System Skyfest - Valles Marineris
01.04.10 - Jupiter, the Solar System Skyfest - Genetropolis
01.05.10 - Saturn, the Solar System Skyfest - Titantica (on the moon Titan)
01.06.10 - Uranus, the Solar System Skyfest - The Outermost Epsilon Ring
01.07.10 - Neptune, the Solar System Skyfest - The Great Dark Spot
01.10.10 - Pluto and Charon, the Solar System Skyfest - Plutonia!
01.11.10 - Planet X - XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
12.25.10 - In Outer Space, Detroit, MI

$ Michna, Lusine, Mike Servito

% Black Moth Super Rainbow

First a Digital Download Shop for Radiohead and Now a Rare Solo Set from Thom at the Latitude Festival??? More Like GRATITUDE FESTIVAL!!!!

By Nobodaddy on Jun 9 2009

You’re in luck, good folk of Suffolk (and beyond)! Thom Yorke is either bored, flat broke, or worried that Radiohead is becoming less cool than Animal Collective or something, because he’s willed himself onto the bill at this year’s Latitude Festival, taking place July 16-19 in jolly old Henham Park... in cheery old Southwold... in merry old Sunrise Coast... in jovial old Suffolk... in ebullient old England.

Anyway, rejoice sinners, because the Radiohead frontman hasn’t played a giant public solo set like this one since the release of The Eraser (TMT Review), starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. He’ll most likely play that “Cymbal Rush” song that the kids are always talking about, and probably some Panda Bear covers.

Specifically, Yorke’s solo set is scheduled to be immaculately conceived on the... good-humored old Obelisk Arena stage at noon on Sunday, July 19, and is scheduled to be completed before the last petal falls off of some enchanted rose somewhere. Ticket information for the festival itself, including whoever the hell else is playing there, is available at the Latitude Festival website.

OH and the man's main band released a bunch of their stuff digitally through their own W.A.S.T.E. store!!!! So if you've been on the lookout for a non-solid copy of the "ehh..." second disc of In Rainbows, the "mmm..." aforementioned Eraser, or the "ohhh!!!" score to There Will Be Blood, it's officially time to go Radionuts.

Bowerbirds Announce New Tour with Megafaun; The Amount of Bird Puns that Just Came to Mind Is Alarming

By Kasia Galaxy on Jun 9 2009

Every campfire has its "no wait" guitar guy. You know, the dude who picks up the only acoustic guitar, strums a few chords of "Wonderwall," then interrupts himself with "no, wait" a dozen times while everyone silently itches to snatch it away from him. Or maybe I've just had bad bonfire experiences.

Anyway, I'm all in a tizzy because Bowerbirds remind me of s'more roasting. And they've got a boatload of tourdates in support of their upcoming album Upper Air, due July 7 from Dead Oceans.

All tourdates with Megafaun, whose new album Gather, Form & Fly drops July 21 via Hometapes:
07.06.09 - Washington, DC - Black Cat
07.07.09 - Philadelphia, PA - Johnny Brenda's
07.10.09 - Providence, RI - Club Hell
07.11.09 - Northampton, MA - Iron Horse Music Hall
07.12.09 - Cambridge, MA - TT the Bear's Place
07.13.09 - Montreal QC, Canada - La Sala Rossa
07.14.09 - Toronto ON, Canada - Sneaky Dees
07.15.09 - Cleveland, OH - Beachland Tavern
07.16.09 - Pontiac, MI - The Pike Room at The Crofoot
07.17.09 - Indianapolis, IN - Vollrath Tavern
07.20.09 - Iowa City, IA - The Mill
07.21.09 - Minneapolis, MN - 7th St. Entry
07.22.09 - Omaha, NE - Slowdown
07.26.09 - Denver, CO - Hi Dive
07.27.09 - Salt Lake City, UT - Kilby Court
07.29.09 - Vancouver BC, Canada - The Biltmore Cabaret
07.30.09 - Seattle, WA - Triple Door
07.31.09 - Anacortes, WA - Department of Safety
08.01.09 - Portland, OR - Mississippi Studios
08.03.09 - San Francisco, CA - Cafe du Nord
08.04.09 - Los Angeles, CA - The Echo
08.05.09 - San Diego, CA - Casbah
08.06.09 - Phoenix, AZ - Rhythm Room
08.10.09 - Tucson, AZ - Club Congress
08.12.09 - Denton, TX - Hailey's
08.13.09 - Austin, TX - The Mohawk
08.14.09 - Houston, TX - Walter's on Washington
08.15.09 - New Orleans, LA - One Eyed Jack's
08.16.09 - Birmingham, AL - The Bottletree
08.17.09 - Atlanta, GA - The Earl

By Ze Pequeno on Jun 9 2009

We here at Tiny Mix Tapes like to keep you abreast on all matters copyright-related without making pirate jokes. This is why our news feeds are set to Swedish newspapers, even though we don't speak Swedish. The past two days in Sweden have taken an interesting turn on all matters copyright on two fronts.

First, the political. Across Europe, elections for the European Parliament, the EU's legislative body, were taking place over the last few days. Much of the press spotlight has been on the UK, where Labour was crushed in elections by the Tories and the Liberal Democrats. But we don't care about Gordon Brown and his ratty YouTube smile. We care about copyright, and that's why we're in Sweden: The Piratpartien (The Pirate Party), a party dedicated to copyright reform, scored fifth in the overall election with over 7% of the vote, higher than more significant parties such as the Left and Christian Democrat parties. This means the party is guaranteed a seat in the European Parliament, to be taken by the activist Christian Engström in the fall.

Immediately, the effects are very limited. Even if the proposed Lisbon Treaty was implemented, the most the the Pirate Party could pick up is two seats out of over SEVEN HUNDRED. The influence it has on the parliament will be minimal, at best. However, the impact over the longterm is much more significant. If one were to translate its place and vote percentage into next year's Riksdag (Swedish parliament) election, it would gain about 20 seats. For reference, the last Riksdag election was determined by precisely that many seats. In politics, they call that being a "kingmaker," which means the party could significantly influence policy. And though many more votes are at stake, the Pirate Party has a lot of momentum: It is the second largest party for the 18-34 age bracket and has the largest youth wing in Sweden (which means a lot more in Europe).

It also helps that the Pirate Bay trial remains in the news constantly, which brings us to our next front: Legal. Yesterday, in the appeals case for the Pirate Bay 4, the Svea Court of Appeal heard arguments from the Stockholm District Court, whose judge, Tomas Norstrom, presided over the trial. One of the key issues with the appeal concerns the judge, who was a member of two known Swedish pro-copyright organizations. TPB attorneys presented a case a few weeks prior that the judge's membership allegedly made him biased against TPB.

So what is the Stockholm District Court's defense of his pro-copyright membership? In a statement to the court, "The memberships are simply a means to gain increased knowledge of copyright legislation issues and are not therefore grounds to establish bias," and that "it is imperative that judges remain abreast of the issues." With all due respect to the Who guitarist, this sounds like the "Pete Townshend" defense: Claiming you were involved in inappropriate/illegal activity for "research" purposes. It's also trying cheat your way out of the system.

We will keep you posted with updates on each as the trial continues, and stay tuned for our new feature column, "Michael Engström går till Bryssel." Or not.

Jay-Z’s Blueprint 3 Out on September 11 – Bashing Auto-Tune is Officially Cool

By Brom on Jun 9 2009

Thanks to dodgy leaks and forthcoming Atlantic Records employees, Jay-Z’s The Blueprint 3 will be out on September 11, released on Mr Z’s own Roc Nation imprint and distributed by Atlantic.

The anti-climactic official announcement is rumored to take place at NYC radio station Hot 97's annual Summer Jam concert (or maybe he’ll choose another date because, y’know, rappers hate twitterers).

The Kanye West-produced record will be featuring an anti-Auto-Tune single, endearing Jay-Z to millions of purists but alienating the billions of devotees who read Tiny Mix Tapes’ star column: All That Is Solid. This, of course, officially makes Auto-Tune uncool because Jay-Z fuckin’ said so and he ain’t gonna take no shit from labels, Chris Brown, or washed-up has-beens. Just wanted to get that out there, yo!

RIP: Kenny Rankin

By Shane Mack on Jun 9 2009

From Billboard:

Kenny Rankin, a brilliant pop vocalist and highly regarded musician-songwriter whose stylings ranged from jazz to pop to the world music influences he picked up as a child in New York, has died of complications related to lung cancer, his record company announced Monday. He was 69.

Rankin died Sunday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Mack Avenue Records spokesman Don Lucoff said.

The musician, who first gained acclaim as one of the guitarists on Bob Dylan's landmark 1965 album, "Bringing it all Back Home," had been preparing to record an album of new material when he became ill a few weeks ago. Recording sessions scheduled with producer Phil Ramone were canceled as his health began to deteriorate.

- Kenny Rankin official website
- Kenny Rankin Wikipedia entry

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