RIP: Andy Parle, former drummer of Space
By Shane Mack on Aug 3 2009
From NME:
Former Space drummer Andy Parle has died unexpectedly after collapsing in Liverpool on Saturday night (August 1).Parle, 42, who co-founded the Liverpool band with vocalist Tommy Scott and guitarist Jamie Murphy in 1993, fell while crossing a road in Dingle, Liverpool at roughly 11:30pm (BST) on Saturday. [...]
The drummer played on a number of Space's biggest hits, including 'Female of the Species', 'Neighbourhood' and 'Me And You Versus the World'. He left the band in 1998.
Parle's former bandmate Dave 'Yorkie' Palmer said that the drummer had been "essential" to Space.
"It's the saddest, most tragic end you could have," he explained of Parle's death.
He added: "Space continued to have success after Andy left but the band changed and lost something which Andy had contributed. Even though we had another brilliant drummer there was something about Andy's style which was unique."
- Space official website
Mark Lanegan and Soulsavers Return with New Album, North American Tour, and an Opportunity for Really Bad Wild West Fanfiction
By Liz Louche on Aug 3 2009
Somewhere across the canyon, a lonely wind blows. The horses are drinking in deep, long gulps, and as you lift your eyes to the blazing sun, a vulture circles overhead. The carnival’s in town, Joe, they say, but you’re not listening. Because from somewhere in the distance a melody is playing, melancholic and tough. That voice: it sounds so familiar. Could it be… could it be… Mark Lanegan of The Screaming Trees and Queens of The Stone Age? Yessss, whisper the scattered trees. Yesssss, howls the coyote. He’s back with English band Soulsavers and some very, very special guests for the group’s third full-length, Broken.
“Special guests? In these here Godforsaken parts?” you ask. Why yessss. Friends like Mike Patton of Faith No More, Spiritualized’s Jason Pierce, Gibby Haynes of The Butthole Surfers, Richard Hawley, new Australian voice Red Ghost, and Martyn LeNoble, studio bassist for Porno for Pyros and Jane’s Addiction, all stop by for some sweet duet action. LeNoble will be helping Lanegran and Soulsavers take it to the streets, along with Spiritualized guitarist Rich Warren. The album drops August 18 on V2 Records and a North American tour winds its way through all the dusty, Harry Crews-influenced no-name towns of the United States. And you know, LA and DC and stuff.
Broken tracklisting:
1. The Seventh Proof
2. Death Bells
3. Unbalanced Pieces
4. You Will Miss Me When I Burn
5. Some Misunderstanding
6. All the Way Down
7. Shadows Fall
8. Can't Catch the Train
9. Pharaoh's Chariot
10. Praying Ground
11. Rolling Sky
12. Wise Blood
13. By My Side
Save the Date:
09.06.09 - Portland, OR - Wonder Ballroom
09.07.09 - Seattle, WA - Bumbershoot Festival
09.09.09 - San Francisco, CA - The Independent
09.10.09 - Los Angeles, CA - Troubadour
09.12.09 - San Diego, CA - Casbah
09.15.09 - Austin, TX - Stubb’s
09.16.09 - Dallas, TX - House of Blues
09.18.09 - New Orleans, LA - One Eyed Jacks
09.19.09 - Atlanta, GA - The Loft
09.21.09 - Washington, DC - Rock and Roll Hotel
09.22.09 - New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom
09.23.09 - Boston, MA - Paradise Rock Club
09.25.09 - Toronto, ON - Mod Club
09.26.09 - Cleveland, OH - Grog Shop
09.27.09 - Chicago, IL - Double Door
Congressmen Look to Investigate Ticketmaster/Live Nation Merger, All Sacco and Vanzetti-Style
By Brom on Aug 3 2009
The Simpsons got it spot on with Ticketmaster (from the Homerpalooza episode):
Mr. Burns: [chuckles] And to think, Smithers, you laughed when I bought Ticketmaster. "Nobody's going to pay a 100% service charge."}Smithers: Well, it's a policy that ensures a healthy mix of the rich and the ignorant, sir.
Unfortunately, if the Ticketmaster/Live Nation merger goes through, we’ll all be suckers! The proposed merger would see Ticketmaster, the nation’s dominant ticket seller, combine with Live Nation, which has its own ticketing business.
But one thing is for sure: this deal is not going through without a fight. Britain’s Office for Fair Trading, a consumer watchdog, has already referred the merger to the country’s competition regulator, the Competition Commission, which will report on November 24. And Senator Herb Kohl is most certainly not going to be taken for a goddamn fool either. As chair of the Judiciary Committee's antitrust subcommittee, Kohl wrote to Christine Varney, head of the Justice Department's antitrust division, to argue "It is clear that this merger raises serious competitive concerns warranting thorough scrutiny.” In addition, Rep. Bill Pascrell wrote a letter expressing concern about the deal, which was signed by 50 members of the House of Representatives.
Kohl also says the venture would create "an enormous, vertically integrated entertainment giant, which will control everything from artist management, concert promotion, concert venues, and merchandise sales to primary and secondary market ticket sales."
On a lighter note, I did particularly enjoy Billboard’s comment that “the deal has been criticized by superstar Bruce Springsteen, politicians like Senator Charles Schumer, and legions of music fans commenting in Internet chat rooms.” Yeah, lets not forget those highly intelligent, sophisticated, and well-reasoned visitors of internet chat rooms, all (and I mean all) of whom engage with each other in an intellectual and erudite manner. Teh interwebz iz srs bsns!
RIP: Titus “Baatin” Glover of Slum Village
By Shane Mack on Aug 1 2009
From the Detroit Free Pres (via SOHH):
Titus (Baatin) Glover, the Detroit rapper who co-founded the much-acclaimed Slum Village, has died.Many details remain unknown at this point, said Hex, the group's road manager.
Word of Baatin's passing circulated quickly this afternoon in music circles both locally and nationally, where Slum Village has long been an exalted name in underground hip-hop.
Fellow group founder James (J. Dilla) Yancey, Baatin's Pershing High School classmate, passed away in 2006.
Baatin, who turned 35 in March, had left Slum Village in 2002 amid health problems, but was reported to have returned for tracks on the group's upcoming album, "Villa Manifesto."
"He was a very spiritual brother," said Detroiter Khalid el-Hakim, founder of the Black History 101 Mobile Museum. "He brought a spirituality to Detroit hip-hop that you didn't see with other artists. That's what he was known for."
- Slum Village official website
- Slum Village Wikipedia entry
Mario Speedwagon’s Under The Radar News Round Up: Dischord Records Reissues Gray Matter and Jawbox, Atlas Sound and Broadcast Tour, The Walkmen Tour, Treasure Island Lineup Announced
By Mario Speedwagon on Jul 31 2009
- Dischord Records has posted about some future releases on their site. In September, they will reissue Gray Matter’s 1984 release Food For Thought and their 1985 release Take It Back on vinyl. Both records will come with a download code, and Take It Back will include an additional four songs from the "Alive and Kicking" 7-inch from 1991. Dischord will also be partnering up with Desoto Records to reissue Jawbox’s 1994 jam For our Own Special Sweetheart.
- Atlas Sound and Broadcast will together be hitting the road this fall. Their tour kicks off in Atlanta, GA on October 15 at the Earl (they have good burgers and boiled peanuts, y’all) and ends November 7 in Denton, TX at Hailey’s. Both acts also have releases slated for October: Atlas Sound will release their new LP Logos on October 20 via Kranky, and Broadcast will release their currently untitled EP on Warp.
- The Walkmen are heading out on a small East Coast-ish tour this September. The band has dates planned in Boston, Northampton, Washington DC, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Asheville, Nashville, Birmingham, and New Orleans, with a few off dates in Morrison, CO (Monolith Fest), Austin, TX (ACL), and San Francisco, CA (I got nothin’.) They’ll also be playing the Guggenheim Museum’s “It Came From Brooklyn” concert series on August 14 with High Places. That name “It Came From Brooklyn” makes me think I’m going to see a hipster zombie movie where all the zombies look like this. They probably won’t eat you because they’re all raw vegans, so it would probably have a hint of Troll 2 (swap out zombies for goblins).
- The lineup for San Francisco’s 3rd annual Treasure Island Festival has been announced. Bands scheduled to play include The Flaming Lips, MGMT, The Decemberists, MSTRKRFT, Beirut, Girl Talk, Grizzly Bear, Brazilian Girls, Yo La Tengo, The Walkmen, Passion Pit, and tons more. The festival takes place October 17 and 18 on Treasure Island (duh). More information can be found at the official website.
