Phoenix Announce More U.S. Shows, Still Refuse to Play Phoenix, Arizona
The other day, my boyfriend and I were having a discussion about how awesome Phoenix’s upcoming show in Chicago is going to be. During our conversation, he posed a question to me: have Phoenix ever actually played a show in Phoenix, Arizona? Determined to find out the answer, I consulted Google... to no avail. Next, I turned to Last.fm’s event page to much success. The answer is no, my friends, Phoenix (to my internet research knowledge) have never played a show in Arizona. And if my 10-minute long comprehensive search is somehow wrong, at the very least, they haven’t played Arizona in years. So what does this all mean? I think someone (*cough* Phoenix the band *cough*) is afraid of a little competition (cough Phoenix the city cough). Don’t worry guys, there’s enough room in The Grand Canyon state for you to play a show there every once in awhile.
Check out the Frenchmen on the road this fall in the following cities:
09.13.09 - Denver, CO - Red Rocks Amphitheatre (Monolith Festival)
09.16.09 - Los Angeles, CA - The Greek Theater &
09.17.09 - San Francisco, CA - The Warfield
09.21.09 - Omaha, NE - Slowdown
09.22.09 - Minneapolis, MN - First Ave
09.23.09 - Chicago, IL - The Riviera Theatre
09.24.09 - Madison, WI - UW Madison Memorial Terrace
09.25.09 - New York, NY - Central Park Summerstage $
09.26.09 - New York, NY - Central Park Summerstage $
09.27.09 - Washington, DC - 9:30 Club
09.28.09 - Philadelphia, PA - Electric Factory
09.30.09 - Atlanta, GA - Variety Playhouse
10.01.09 - New Orleans, LA - Tipitina’s
10.02.09 - Austin, TX - Zilker Park (Austin City Limits)
& Metric
$ Passion Pit
Jeffrey Lewis Tours with Akron/Family, Resists Adoption Attempts
A couple of months ago, I caught Jeffrey Lewis and the Junkyard opening for ultra-British talk-rockers Art Brut at the Mercury Lounge in New York, which struck me as unlikely, to say the least. This is a dude who sings in a nasal, simplistic, and subtly brilliant style to narrate his hand-drawn comic books, which he refers to as “low-budget Netflix.” It turns out Art Brut frontman Eddie Argos is quite the comic book enthusiast, so while this makes more sense, it also causes me to wonder what Jeffrey Lewis has in common with his other past tourmates. Do he and John Darnielle of The Mountain Goats both dig re-runs of Magnum, P.I.? Are he and Jarvis Cocker the only remaining fans of the Pet Rock? And now you’re telling me he’s touring with Akron/Family!? I need to know what brings these dudes together. It can’t just be mutual respect for each other’s music and record label agreements and booking companies... Oh, it can? Says you.
It’s a quick stint, but the bandana- and beard-wielding Akron/Family join Jeffrey Lewis and the Junkyard on the road in support of Lewis’ new album, Em Are I, his fifth full-length for Rough Trade. Perhaps he and Seth Olinsky will grow beards of solidarity together and solve my mystery.
Sorry, New York City:
09.10.09 - Baltimore, MD - Talking Head **
09.11.09 - Philadelphia, PA - Johnny Brenda's **
09.14.09 - Hudson, NY - Jason's Upstairs
09.15.09 - Williamsport, PA - Site: B
09.16.09 - Ithaca, NY - Castaways
09.17.09 - Buffalo, NY - Mohawk Place
09.19.09 - Detroit, MI - Magic Stick
09.20.09 - Louisville, KY - 21C Museum Atrium Gallery
** Jeffrey Lewis & The Junkyard only
Men at Work Flute Refrain in Copyright Dispute
This really is utterly ridiculous, but hilarious nonetheless!
Last year, Sydney-based Larrikin Music Publishing initiated compensation proceedings against the band Men at Work and their label EMI. Their claim is that the flute refrain from the Australian group’s 1980s hit "Down Under" was copied from the campfire anthem "Kookaburra." This particular song was originally written in the 1930s by Marion Sinclair, “a life-long supporter of the Girl Guide movement.” Larrikin argue that they represent "Kookaburra."
However, the defendants maintain that copyright resides with the Girl Guides Association of Victoria when Sinclair entered the song in a competition. Justice Peter Jacobson disagreed, nevertheless, when he told the court on July 30, "I do not consider that the words in the [contract Ms. Sinclair signed with the Girl Guides] are sufficient to disclose, on an objective consideration, an intention to effect an assignment of copyright." The outcome of the case will be decided at a later date in the Federal Court.
I guess the moral of the story is always keep a close tab on those silly piano lines, guitar riffs, and flute refrains you dreamt up at summer camp. You never know which illustrious bands are out there looking to plagiarize your work.
Radiohead Release New Song in Memory of Harry Patch, Entire Industry Reverts Back to Single Releases, Label Executives Scramble to Sign Harry Patch Tribute Bands
Can't pay what you want, but you can pay £1.00 for a brand new Radiohead song titled "Harry Patch (In Memory of)," a tribute to the former last living WWI veteran. Released today via the band's official website, the track was written by Thom E. Yorkshire after he heard a 2005 BBC Radio 4 interview with Patch. It was recorded coincidentally just a few weeks before Patch's death last month. Proceeds will go to the Royal British Legion. According to Yorke:
Recently the last remaining UK veteran of the 1st world war Harry Patch died at the age of 111.I had heard a very emotional interview with him a few years ago on the Today program on Radio4.
The way he talked about war had a profound effect on me.
It became the inspiration for a song that we happened to record a few weeks before his death.
It was done live in an abbey. The strings were arranged by Jonny.
I very much hope the song does justice to his memory as the last survivor.
It would be very easy for our generation to forget the true horror of war, without the likes of Harry to remind us.
I hope we do not forget.
As Harry himself said
"Irrespective of the uniforms we wore, we were all victims".
You can actually hear the entire track on BBC Today, including the original Patch interview that influenced Yorke to write the song. And check out the song's lyrics at Radiohead's official website.
[Photo: Jim Ross]
Circulatory System Change Release Date for Signal Morning to September, Book Tour
Writing deeply psychedelic musings that run 50 tracks deep, Will Cullen Hart's band Circulatory System is preparing to release its sophomore album. Long awaited, Signal Morning (TMT News) comes eight years after their self-titled debut and nine years after Hart's first band, Olivia Tremor Control, hung up their jacket. Working with many of the same members as OTC, Hart's Circulatory System has continued the tradition of weaving multiple layers of sound, noise, and harmony that take you in and out of chaos.
The record is promised to be a tight 45 minutes and will be released on Cloud Recordings September 8 (not today, as previously scheduled) on CD and digital download. The record version is coming out in October, though they've started taking pre-orders on their site. As of right this second, 150 out of the 300 limited deluxe editions have already sold! These limited packages include another side of music, full of demos and alternate takes and featuring home-spun album covers made by Hart himself.
Oh, and they're also touring.
Dates:
08.15.09 - Asheville, NC - Transfigurations 2009
09.07.09 - Chapel Hill, NC - Nightlight *
09.08.09 - Philadelphia, PA - Kung Fu Necktie *
09.09.09 - New York, NY - Le Poisson Rouge *
09.10.09 - Worcester, MA - The Grind at Clark University *
09.11.09 - Purchase, NY - The Student Center at SUNY Purchase *
09.12.09 - Monticello, NY - All Tomorrow's Parties
09.14.09 - Boston, MA - YMCA Theatre *
09.15.09 - Geneseo, NY - Union Plaza at SUNY Geneseo *
09.16.09 - Cleveland, OH - Grog Shop *
09.17.09 - Pontiac, MI - Pike Room *
09.18.09 - Chicago, IL - Chopin Theatre *
09.19.09 - Lexington, KY - Al's Bar *
09.20.09 - Knoxville, TN - The Pilot Light *
* Pipes You See, Pipes You Don’t and Nesey Gallons
The Mountain Goats and Final Fantasy Nerd Out Together on US Tour
John Darnielle, the man behind The Mountain Goats, is a huge nerd about boxing, grindcore, and the Bible. His band has a new album coming out that is inspired by lessons that Darnielle has learned from the Bible. Owen Pallett, the man behind Final Fantasy, is a huge video game nerd. His band is named after the Final Fantasy video game series, and his last album was inspired by that same game. Put them together and you have two of the nerdiest people in music.
Perhaps in an effort to increase nerdiness in the world, Owen Pallett arranged the strings for The Mountain Goats’ upcoming album, The Life Of the World to Come (TMT News). And now, The Mountain Goats have announced that Final Fantasy will open for them on a comprehensive US tour. As his opening act, Owen Pallett will play audience-selected RPGs for 45 minutes. For their set, Darnielle and bandmate Peter Hughes will act out the Bible stories referenced in Life of the World’s titles. No music will be played at any of the shows. Maybe. Find out for yourself at one of the shows!
This Is the Dream of John and Owen:
11.04.09 - Grand Rapids, MI - Ladies Literary Club (Calvin College)
11.05.09 - Chicago, IL - the Metro
11.06.09 - Madison, WI - High Noon Saloon
11.07.09 - Minneapolis, MN - Cedar Cultural Centre
11.10.09 - Seattle, WA - the Showbox
11.11.09 - Portland, OR - Wonder Ballroom
11.14.09 - San Francisco, CA - the Fillmore
11.15.09 - Los Angeles, CA - Henry Fonda Theater
11.18.09 - Austin, TX - Antones
11.19.09 - Dallas TX - Granada Theater
11.20.09 - Nashville TN - Mercy Lounge
11.21.09 - Atlanta, GA - the Variety Playhouse
11.23.09 - Orlando, FL - the Social
11.24.09 – St. Augustine, FL - Café 11
11.27.09 - Washington, DC - 9:30 Club
11.28.09 - Philadelphia, PA - Theater of Living Arts
11.29.09 - Boston MA - Wilbur Theatre
12.01.09 - New York, NY - Webster Hall
12.02.09 - Brooklyn, NY - Bell House
Apple and the Big Four Combine Revolutionary Ideas to Create a Revolution That Will Revolutionize the Concept of the Album, Name It After Shitty Tom Cruise Movie
Comrades, prepare to arms! The Revolution is finally coming! No, not a political revolution to overthrow the powers that be and redistribute the wealth amongst the people. Think bigger! Nope, not a cultural revolution to shock the status quo and replace xenophobia with new, abstract ideals. This is something important! Not even a revolution of the mind that will lift us from our bodies and take us to a state of post-human thought. Today, we speak of something much more important, a true revolution!
I am talking, brothers and sisters, about revolutionizing the album. The Financial Times reported last week that Apple (always leaders of the revolution -- didn’t you see their “Think Different” campaign?) has teamed up with the radicals at EMI, Sony Music, Warner Music, and Universal Music to create a new type of digital album, focused on “re-creating the heyday of the album when you would sit around with your friends looking at the artwork, while you listened to the music.” Remember how you used to do that? With your friends?
The album will be revolutionized by adding extra art, liner notes, lyrics, and... (cue the revolutionary anthem, probably a John Legend song) …interactive content. The project has been codenamed “Cocktail,”, so be sure to use that code word when you see others bearing the symbol of the revolution. There have also been revolutionary rumors of Apple releasing a Kindle-esque tablet-style e-book-reader that would also play music, so be sure to buy that too... if you want to stay on the forefront of the revolution!
Said Tom Cruise, communicating telepathically (he can do that, he’s OT7) from a Scientologist fortress at the center of the Earth, “The revolution will be thoroughly televised.”
Au Announces New EP, Goes on Tour, Celebrates the Magic of Vowels
Vowels... where would we be without them? In a world without vowels, this sentence would look like a text message a 14-year-old frantically wrote in the middle of history class. Similarly, Au’s name would be pure silence. And I thought Women was hard enough to Google.
Thankfully, we live in a world rich with vowels, and to celebrate, Portland’s avant-folksters Au are releasing a new EP called Versions on October 8. The six-song EP follows up last year’s grammatically focused Verbs (TMT Review). If you’ve heard that record, some of the song titles on Versions should be familiar: the EP contains reworkings of Au tracks from Verbs and their self-titled debut (TMT Review), along with the completely new track “Ida Walked Away.” An MP3 of the the new song is available here.
Simply releasing a new EP isn’t going to be quite enough to get all that vowels-based excitement out of their system, though. To spread the mighty word of the vowel across the world, Au is doing an impressive amount of touring this fall: first, a short Midwest tour, then a European jaunt, and finally a huge U.S. tour. On this final part of the tour, they will be joined by downbeat anticon. crew WHY? (and I thought Au and Women were hard enough to Google). Hopefully, those WHY? guys learn a thing or two from Au’s love of the English language. A question mark in a proper name? Sounds like someone was sleeping in class.
Vrsns trcklst:
1. Ida Walked Away
2. RR vs. D
3. Are Animals
4. All Myself
5. Death
6. Boute (digital only)
Au fall tour:
08.29.09 - Nampa, ID - Flying M Coffee Garage
08.31.09 - Denver, CO - House Show
09.01.09 - Kansas City, MO - Pistol Social Club
09.02.09 - Bloomington, IN - The Bishop
09.08.09 - Oslo, Norway - Klubbscenen / Chateau Neuf
09.09.09 - Bergen, Norway - Phonofestivalen / Hinsides
09.10.09 - Stavanger, Norway - Numusic Festival
09.11.09 - Ramsgate, UK - Belgian Cafe
09.12.09 - Brighton, UK - The Freebutt
09.13.09 - Wiltshire, UK - End of the Road Festival
09.14.09 - Leeds, UK - Brudenell
09.15.09 - Manchester, UK - Islington Mill
09.16.09 - London, UK - Cafe Oto
09.17.09 - Nancy, France - Le Clou
09.18.09 - Utrecht, Netherlands - Theater Nikker
09.19.09 - Tilburg, Netherlands - Incubate Festival
09.20.09 - Dunkerque, France - Mon Inouie Symphonie Festival
09.29.09 - Brooklyn, NY - Union Hall
10.01.09 - Cambridge, MA - Middle East %
10.02.09 - Philadelphia, PA - First Unitarian Church %
10.03.09 - Pittsburgh, PA - Assembly Room, William Pitt Union (free!) %
10.04.09 - Ann Arbor, MI - The Blind Pig %
10.05.09 - Chicago, IL - Bottom Lounge %
10.06.09 - Madison, WI - UW Madison Terrace %
10.07.09 - Minneapolis, MN - Triple Rock %
10.09.09 - Denver, CO - Bluebird %
10.10.09 - Salt Lake City, UT - In The Venue %
10.13.09 - Portland, OR - Mississippi Studios
10.15.09 - Seattle, WA - Jewelbox Theater
10.17.09 - San Francisco, CA - Great American Music Hall %#
10.20.09 - Los Angeles, CA - Echoplex %
10.23.09 - Phoenix, AZ - Modified Arts %
10.24.09 - Tucson, AZ - Club Congress %
10.26.09 - Denton, TX - Hailey’s %
10.28.09 - Birmingham, AL - Bottletree %
10.29.09 - Asheville, NC - Grey Eagle %
10.30.09 - Carrboro, NC - Cat’s Cradle %
10.31.09 - Atlanta, GA - Lenny’s %$*
11.02.09 - Orlando, FL - The Social %
11.03.09 - Gainesville, FL - Common Grounds %
11.04.09 - Tallahassee, FL - Club Downunder %
11.06.09 - Baton Rouge, LA - Spanish Moon %
11.07.09 - Houston, TX - Walter’s On Washington %
11.08.09 - Austin, TX - Venue TBA (Fun Fun Fun Fest After Party)
11.10.09 - Lawrence, KS - Jackpot Music Hall %
11.11.09 - St. Louis, MO - Freebird %
% Why?
# Mount Eerie
$ Islands
* Jemina Pearl
Wouldn't It Be Nice... If Brian Wilson Toured Again?
I had the privilege of seeing Brian Wilson speak. Yes, speak. He was the featured keynote speaker at the CMJ 2004 Music Marathon and Conference and discussed his decision to release the Smile sessions. Well, actually, Van Dyke Parks did almost all the talking and would then proceed to ask Brian "isn't that right?" There was something powerful and charming in his shyness, that this legendary savant still lived in his own sunshine-soaked world. I can only imagine that a full performance by the former Beach Boy is even more otherworldly.
Luckily for you, U.S. residents, Brian comes out of seclusion once more this fall to play some fuckin' rock shows. And they all happen to be at some random places, including Lake Tahoe, Kevin Smith's stomping ground of Red Bank, NJ, a ghoulish Halloween show in spooky Virginia Beach, and WVU in Morgantown, which is decidedly in the middle of nowhere
10.23.09 - Mount Pleasant, MI - Soaring Eagle Casino
10.24.09 - Milwaukee, WI - Pabst Theatre
10.26.09 - Red Bank, NJ - Count Basie Theatre
10.27.09 - Englewood, NJ - Bergen Performing Arts Center
10.29.09 - Glenside, PA - Keswick Theatre
10.31.09 - Virginia Beach, VA - Sandler Center for the Performing Arts
11.01.09 - Morgantown, WV - Creative Arts Center at WVU
11.03.09 - Concord, NH - The Capitol Center
11.04.09 - Providence, RI - Lupo's
11.06.09 - Pittsburgh, PA - Carnegie Music Hall
11.07.09 - Rochester, NY - Auditorium Theatre
11.08.09 - Westbury, NY - The Capitol One Bank Theatre
11.10.09 - Albany, NY - The Egg
11.11.09 - Wilkes-Barre, PA - Kirby Center
11.13.09 - Morristown, NJ - Community Theatre at Mayo
12.03.09 - Agoura Hills, CA - Canyon Club December
12.05.09 - Stateline, NV - Harrah's Lake Tahoe
Mos Def Almost Definitely Does Not Read Tiny Mix Tapes, So I Can Say Whatever I Want About Him and His Tourdates
I met Mos Def once, and he was a really nice guy, which doesn’t matter, because there is pretty much no way he is reading this. Here are some facts about Mos Def you might not know:
- Mos Def tells all his friends that he’s really good at snowboarding, but, really, he only knows how to ski.
- Mos Def’s favorite of his own albums is The New Danger.
- While Mos Def was studying experimental theatre at New York University, he worked in the school’s Bobst Library, where he would frequently check out erotic novellas in other students’ names and then read them under his desk.
- Mos Def’s real name is Wilbur Doogan.
- Once, while making a guest appearance on Chappelle’s Show, Mos Def stole all the toilet paper from the Comedy Central bathroom because he had run out of toilet paper at home.
- Mos Def was in the movie The Italian Job.
- Mos Def once misread the subject line of an email from Chad Hugo as “New Breasts,” while the subject actually said “New Beats," and became momentarily excited. After the feeling of elation quickly faded, Mos Def contemplated the elusive nature of nowness.
- Mos Def is going to enter and exit one of the following shows on a gilded elephant:
08.05.09 - Burlington, VT - Higher Ground
08.08.09 - Newport, Rhode Island - George Wein's Jazz Festival
08.09.09 - Washington, DC - 9:30 Club
08.12.09 - Charlotte, NC - Amos' Southend
08.13.09 - Charleston, SC - Music Farm
08.14.09 - Atlanta, GA - The Tabernacle
08.15.09 - Miami, FL - Adrienne Arsht Center for Performing Arts
08.17.09 - New Orleans, LA - House of Blues
08.18.09 - Dallas, TX - House of Blues
08.19.09 - Houston, TX - House of Blues
08.21.09 - Denver, CO - TBA
08.22.09 - Park City, UT - Harry O's
08.24.09 - Edmonton, Alberta - Edmonton Events Center
08.25.09 - Calgary, Alberta - Flames Central
08.27.09 - Vancouver, British Columbia - The Vogue Theatre
08.28.09 - Seattle, WA - TBA
08.29.09 - Portland, OR - Roseland Theatre
09.03.09 - San Francisco, CA - Davies Symphony Hall *
09.04.09 - Oakland, CA - The Paramount Theatre *
09.05.09 - Los Angeles, CA - Palladium *
09.09.09 - Philadelphia, PA - Electric Factory
09.11.09 - Providence, RI - Lupo's
09.12.09 - Governors Island, NY - Water Taxi Beach
09.16.09 - Boston, MA - House of Blues
10.03.09 - Austin, TX - Austin City Limits
* Erykah Badu
O Praise The Lord! October Shall Bless Us with a Brand New Mountain Goats LP Full of The Scripture
Anyone familiar with John Darnielle's project The Mountain Goats will know that he has gone through plenty of changes since his beginning, from the days of lowest-fi folk-pop songs to his most recent slick, big-band recordings. Well, on October 6, Darnielle will take yet another step in his own storied history when he releases a record full of Bible lessons, with each song named after a certain passage in The Bible.
So, the first thing that must be asked of this change is: Will Bible sales go up from all the rabid indie kids, simply to read the passages that Darnielle is referencing? Probably! Secondly: Has Darnielle had some sort of religous awakening? Well, Darnielle already saw that one coming and preempted the backlash through his website, writing that "lots of people might want to be coy about answering that, that's never really been my style, so: no. It's not like that. It's not some heavy-narrative-distance deal either, though, and it's not a screed. It's twelve new songs: twelve hard lessons the Bible taught me, kind of."
Darnielle's 18th (?) album, The Life of the World to Come, was recorded at Electrical Audio with Brandon Eggleston, at Sonic Ranch with John Congleton, and at Baucom Road with Scott Solter, between April and June of this year. The band is made up of Jon Wurster and Peter Hughes, as well as Owen Pallett doing string arrangements and playing on select tracks. Anyone looking to take a sneak peak should visit the Mountain Goats website where you can download "Genesis 3:23."
Tracklisting:
1. 1 Samuel 15:23
2. Psalms 40:2
3. Genesis 3:23
4. Philippians 3:20-21
5. Hebrews 11:40
6. Genesis 30:3
7. Romans 10:9
8. 1 John 4:16
9. Matthew 25:21
10. Deuteronomy 2:10
11. Isaiah 45:23
12. Ezekiel 7 and the Permanent Efficacy of Grace
