Pumice Floats on Water, Tours U.S., Releases New Album
By The Friz on 05-29-2008
The last time I touched a piece of pumice was the fourth grade. We were holding a science fair in the gym, and my exhibit consisted solely of a pumice chunk floating blithely in an orange plastic drinking glass filled with water. Its entrancing buoyancy and rugged texture failed to impress the judges, but boy oh boy was I smitten. The rock ended up vanishing (I suspect the sticky-fingered Joshua), and so began my love affair with the the igneous rock called pumice. Since then, it's been a daily ritual to scan Wikipedia and Google News for signs of my beloved, before listening to Merriam-Webster's pronounce her sensuous adjectival form ‘pumiceous’ over and over and over...
This summer, the musical Pumice, lo-fi pop wiz Stefan Neville, is floating over to the USA toting forthcoming album Quo, out June 24 on Soft Abuse. Neville hails from New Zealand, a country best known stateside for providing the scenic backdrop for all those helicopter shots in LotR and exporting quirky acoustic-comedy duo FotC. For proof of Neville's Zealander cred, see his great MySpace blog about Scotland, rugby, and microwaved steak.
Tourdates:
* King Darves, Car Commercials
$ Enos Slaughter, Folk Spectre, Zaimph
% free in-store, 6 PM sharp
Look The Fuck Out: Mike Patton and The Melvins Are Curating ATP’s Nightmare Before Christmas 2008!
By Mango Starr on 05-29-2008
How terrifyingly appropriate! This year's Night Before Christmas celebration -- which, by the way, is presented proudly by All Tomorrow's Parties -- is being curated by Mike Patton and The Melvins. Taking place at Minehead Butlins Holiday Resort on December 5-7, the three-day fest will feature Melvins-curated artists like Isis, Neil Hamburger, Dälek, Big Business, and of course themselves, as well as Mike Patton-curated artists, such as Fantômas, The Locust, and Zu. Patton's Fantômas is scheduled to play their 2001 album, The Director's Cut, in its entirety!
LESS ABOUT PATTON, AND MORE ABOUT THE VENUE. According to ATP: "Butlins Minehead looks out across a superb sandy beach. The new site not only has a supermarket, newsagent and cash points, it also has Burger King, Pizza Hut, Finnigan's fish and chips, Sun and Moon, Skyline Cafe and Yacht Club Dining room. Onsite facilities include a cinema, Splash Water World - a sub-tropical environment that has a huge wave pool, a swimming pool, 3 flumes and also a flume based raft ride -- Ten-pin bowling and amusement arcade. Sports include Archery, Football, Basketball, Darts, Petanque, Fencing, Kwik Cricket, Netball, Rounders, Table Tennis, Outdoor Bowls and Crazy Golf (some of these subject to availability but most usually operate during the weekend)."
Who needs music when you have pentaque and kwik cricket!
The schedule for Nightmare Before Christmas 2008 is obviously in its early stages, but we at TMT have full confidence that this nightmare will be one to remember. AHHH!!! NO!!! YES!!! Mwahahahahah!! Blood dripping out of decapitated human head, etc.
Jello Biafra Turns 50, Plans Awesome Birthday Shows, Has New Band, Still Hangs Out With The Melvins, Pretty Much Forces Two Generations of Cynical Punks to Grudgingly Admit He’s Still Cool
By Joe B. on 05-29-2008
Jello Biafra, former lead vocalist of R&B mainstays The Dead Kennedys, is turning 50 soon. So is my father. However, announcements of Jello’s birthday celebrations have seemingly put my longstanding suspicious that the two men were one and the same to rest.
I am reasonably sure that my father will spend his birthday eating at a steak-based restaurant within ten miles of his home and, maybe, eventually getting drunk with me and one or two of his friends. Jello, on the other hand, has arranged a weekend of concerts at the Great American Music Hall in San Francisco, showcasing both a new, unnamed band and his work with longtime collaborators The Melvins. Both nights will feature the “Jelvins,” the new band and The Melvins playing Mangled Demos from 1983 in its entirety.
Reunited skate-rock legends Drunk Injuns/Los Olvidados (listed separately on the press release, even though they’re the same band?) round out the first date, while relative newcomers Triclops! and Akimbo finish up the second.
The concerts will be held June 16-17. Tickets can be purchased at the GAMH website, and more information can be found at Alternative Tentacles. Advanced tickets to my father’s birthday aren’t available at this time, but if you show up early, you should be able to get in.
The Mae Shi Are Definitely Touring The U.S. in July
By Mango Starr on 05-29-2008
Tonight, The Mae Shi will wrap up its European tour in Berlin, Germany. Tomorrow, who knows? Maybe travel back to the U.S.? Maybe listen to their fourth album, HLLLYH, on vinyl? Maybe clean the bathroom? Maybe do some landscaping? Maybe play online pictionary? Maybe stretch before running? Maybe come up with an excuse to not go to Saturday's party? Maybe kick a dog in the face? Maybe choose a salad this time? Maybe figure out the lyrics to "Who Could Win a Rabbit"? Maybe consider switching locations? Maybe give a friend a ride to the airport? Maybe look for fragrance-free hand lotion? Maybe imagine what it'd be like to live in a yellow house? Maybe try a nylon guitar? Maybe grab some organic coffee? Maybe go biking around the lake? Maybe masturbate before hitting the bars? Maybe make a music video? Maybe find a new hobby? Maybe watch a Godard movie? Maybe RSVP to Jon's wedding? Maybe try creating a board game from scratch? Maybe go to Best Buy to return that media box? Maybe relax more? Maybe join a knitting club? Maybe listen to the new Weezer? Maybe read Pitchfork? Maybe switch to paper-less bills?
Who knows. All I know is that in July, the band will embark on yet another U.S. tour.
Do You Like The Sonic Youth You’ve Heard, But Find Yourself Thurston For Moore? Quench That At Your Local Starbucks June 10
By Papaya on 05-29-2008
Get it?
Anyway, you didn’t misread that -- Sonic Youth’s music will soon be sold in Starbucks. Total legends and creators of the now-ironic “The Sprawl,” Sonic Youth have teamed up with the coffee monolith’s entertainment division to create Hits are For Squares, a compilation of tracks from throughout their career, along with the recently recorded “Slow Revolution” as a bonus. And it has a cover:
It’s difficult to overstate Sonic Youth’s importance to the history of independent music, but album collaborator Eddie Vedder made an attempt: "From my experience nothing gets you going like putting on ‘Teenage Riot’ at full volume... 0 to 60, standing still... Play it twice and you will have cleaned the house and shoveled the walk. In a car you'll find yourself doing 95 and getting pulled over before the first chorus." Also cheaper than snorting a 30 mg Adderall every morning.
But I digress. Once the initial shock has been absorbed, it doesn’t seem like the end of the world. Equal or worse transactions take place every day without a fuss, and Coco’s college ain’t payin’ for itself. Those of you in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Seattle, Boston, Philadelphia or Washington, D.C. can buy the album in stores; otherwise, check The Starbucks Entertainment Website.
P.S. The entire tracklist was chosen by celebrities, but when Barack Obama, Holden Caulfield, and the movie Garden State were unavailable, the group was forced to look elsewhere for input. Check it:
