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.
In Most Disappointing News of the Day News, Warp Records’ Online Store, WarpMart, Merges with MP3 Si
By Tiffani Harcrow on 02-12-2009
Warp Records, home to such artists as Squarepusher, Aphex Twin, and Gang Gang Dance, recently merged their online store Warpmart with its MP3-peddlin’ sister site Bleep.com in celebration of Bleep.com’s fifth anniversary. Feeling somewhat obligated to actually look at the new website before writing this article, I was greatly disappointed when my browser pointed not to an online store for the Warped Tour, but to a regular ol’ respectable online music store. Now what will I do with all my lip-ring jokes and Scary Kids Scaring Kids quips?
I once went to Shabat at my local synagogue once and was surprised to discover a veritable gift store in the lobby, replete with Star of David beanie babies, Jordanic water bottles, and bedazzled yarmulkes. This is kind of what I was I was hoping for with Warpmart — you stop by to pick up your Less Than Jake tallit prayer shawl before entering the temple so that you’ll fit in.
The new mega-Bleep is regretfully absent of all Judeo-nu punk regalia, but check it out for yourself here.
In Most Disappointing News of the Day News, Warp Records’ Online Store, WarpMart, Merges with MP3 Si
By on 02-12-2009
Warp Records, home to such artists as Squarepusher, Aphex Twin, and Gang Gang Dance, recently merged their online store Warpmart with its MP3-peddlin’ sister site Bleep.com in celebration of Bleep.com’s fifth anniversary. Feeling somewhat obligated to actually look at the new website before writing this article, I was greatly disappointed when my browser pointed not to an online store for the Warped Tour, but to a regular ol’ respectable online music store. Now what will I do with all my lip-ring jokes and Scary Kids Scaring Kids quips?
I once went to Shabat at my local synagogue once and was surprised to discover a veritable gift store in the lobby, replete with Star of David beanie babies, Jordanic water bottles, and bedazzled yarmulkes. This is kind of what I was I was hoping for with Warpmart — you stop by to pick up your Less Than Jake tallit prayer shawl before entering the temple so that you’ll fit in.
The new mega-Bleep is regretfully absent of all Judeo-nu punk regalia, but check it out for yourself here.
Does Bill Callahan’s New Album Signal the End of the Depression? One Writer Thinks So.
By Kat Gardiner on 02-12-2009
In 2007, Bill Callahan, contemplative folkster, shifted away from his dark moniker of 10 years (Smog) to his given name (Bill), and with that shift resolved positivity. At nearly the same time, financial institutions around the world began to crumble. Callahan's new album, Sometimes I Wish We Were an Eagle is coming out April 14 on Drag City, and we are all fairly sure by then the world will be in complete financial collapse.
So why are otherwise sedate, thoughtful people so giddy? Did I not say that Bill Callahan is releasing a new album? I mean Shirley Temple was the biggest hit of The Depression, right? And those creepy songs about putting on a happy face? Remember, Bogart went from being a scary gangster in the ’20s to being a leading lover in the ’30s. Maybe Bill Callahan is our Bogart, and his continuation out of the land of sadness will in turn make all other things in our lives a little brighter. Maybe we're just looking for some more upbeat news from the former companion of our misery. Then again, maybe he's just happy cause he's really into that Joanna Newsom chick, and it has nothing to do with us. I mean, she is pretty hot. In either case, here's the tracklist.
1. Jim Cain
2. Eid Ma Clack Show
3. The Wind and The Dove
4. Rococo Zephyr
5. Too Many Birds
6. My Friend
7. All Thoughts Are Prey To Some Beast
8. Invocation of Ratiocination
9. Faith/Void
