RIP: Jack Rose
From Three Lobed Recordings:
Sorry for the random update, but Three Lobed Recordings is extremely sad to pass along news that our dear friend Jack Rose passed away this morning in Philadelphia at the age of 38. This news is still fresh to us and we're still trying to process it. Jack was a warm, caring person and was always a pleasure to be around. His larger than life spirit will truly, truly be missed even moreso than his inspired musical ability. Our deepest sorrow goes out to his wife.
- Jack Rose MySpace
- Jack Rose website
- Jack Rose Wikipedia entry
Oh, Caroling They Will Go: Julian Koster Solidifies Dates for December Caroling Excursion
As previously reported, Julian Koster and his Singing Saw are once again accepting invitations from welcoming citizens who would like to receive the former Neutral Milk Hotel-er and his cadre of carolers into their homes for a magical December night of festivities, songs, stories, and good cheer. Well, now those tentative cities and dates are as solid and confirmed as religious icicles.
Koster and his Christmas revelers visited over 100 homes last December and offer up their thanks to all of the towns and neighborhoods that opened their doors to them. Koster expressed his hopes for this year, saying, “I’m so glad that we’re all still here, and that the Universe has arranged for this all to happen again. I can hardly wait.”
To recap: if you want Julian Koster and his Singing Saw to visit your house (and you happen to live in Nashville, Louisville, Indianapolis, Champaign, Cleveland, Providence, Baltimore, D.C., or Chapel Hill/Durham) then check the dates below and send an email over to musictapescaroling@gmail.com expressing your interest. If you just want to watch Julian Koster and his Traveling Christmas Express, then email musictapescaroling@gmail.com and you can receive the address of a home in your area that is hosting the carolers and the general time of performance!
Confirmed caroling path:
12.05.09 – Atlanta / Rome, GA
12.06.09 – Nashville, TN (early) / Louisville, KY
12.07.09 – Indianapolis, IN (early) / Champaign, IL
12.08.09 – Chicago, IL
12.09.09 – Kalamazoo, MI (early) / Detroit, MI (and area)
12.10.09 – Toledo, OH (early) / Cleveland, OH
12.11.09 – Buffalo, NY (early) / Geneseo, NY
12.12.09 – Ithaca, NY (early) / Monterrey, MA / Easthampton & Northampton, MA (late-night)
12.13.09 – Boston, MA (and area)
12.14.09 – Providence, RI (and area)
12.15.09 – Riverside, CT / Purchase, NY / Marlboro, NY
12.16.09 – New York City, NY
12.17.09 – New York City, NY (and area)
12.18.09 – Manalapan, NJ (early) / Philadelphia, PA
12.19.09 – Baltimore, MD (early) / Washington, DC
12.20.09 – Eagle Rock, VA (early) / Lynchburg, VA
12.21.09 – Chapel Hill, NC / Raleigh, NC
12.22.09 – Athens, GA
Shout Out Louds to Release New Album Next Year and Tour "The Real Europe"
According to Merge Records, Swedish indie rock outfit Shout Out Louds are planning to release their third full-length on February 23. The new album, entitled Work, is the follow up to 2007's Our Ill Wills (TMT Review). And in keeping with the "hole up in a room, grow a beard, and write a new album" craze that's sweeping the nation (i.e. The Antlers, Bon Iver), lead singer/songwriter Adam Olenius apparently stuck himself in a boxy room in Australia with naught but a synthesizer, guitar, and GarageBand to write Work. So, can we assume it'll sound woodsy?
Producer Phil Ek teamed up with Shout Out Louds on this album, which isn't bad considering his work with The Shins, Fleet Foxes, and Band of Horses. Again, woodsy. Or pastoral? Oh, guessing games. That said, the music on the record is said to sound a little more "stripped down" by forgoing percussion and a string section.
In addition to a new slew of 2010 European tourdates, Shout Out Louds will present their new material at an album-release show in Brooklyn's Music Hall of Williamsburg on March 1
03.01.10 - Brooklyn, NY - Music Hall of Williamsburg
03.23.10 - Rostock, Germany - MAU
03.24.10 - Hamburg, Germany - Uebel & Gefahrlich
03.25.10 - Berlin, Germany - Astra
03.26.10 - Dresden, Germany - Reithalle
03.27.10 - Munich, Germany - Backstage Werk
03.28.10 - Zurich, Switzerland - Mascotte
03.29.10 - Frankfurt, Germany - Mousonturm
03.30.10 - Cologne, Germany - Burgerhaus Stollwerck
03.31.10 - Stuttgart, Germany - Waagenhallen
04.01.10 - Salzburg, Austria - Rockhouse
04.02.10 - Vienna, Austria - FM4 @ RadioKulturhaus
04.03.10 - Copenhagen, Denmark - Lille Vega
04.14.10 - Oslo, Norway - Parkteatret
04.15.10 - Gothenburg, Sweden - Brew House
04.16.10 - Malmö, Sweden - KB
04.17.10 - Stockholm, Sweden - Kagelbanan
Family Vineyard Turns 10, Celebrates by Reissuing Darin Gray and Loren Connors' The Lost Mariner, Debuting Chris Corsano and Heather Leigh's New Project, Jailbreak
Ten years ago, a small little label, Family Vineyard, started up in Lafayette, Indiana by one Eric Weddle. Weddle started things out in a big way with the release of The Lost Mariner by Darin Gray and Loren Connors, which Connors proclaims to be one of his finest. Since then, Weddle has released records by Alan Licht, Dredd Foole, Paul Flaherty, and many other key players of the avant underground scene.
With Family Vineyard turning 10 years old, it's time to celebrate, and what better way to celebrate than with releases by two of Weddle's obvious favs: Loren Connors and Chris Corsano. Weddle has already released more than ten Loren Connors records and three records that have included Chris Corsano, so why stop there? First up will be a reissue of Darin Gray and Loren Connor's The Lost Mariner with a bonus 7-inch, "At the Old Factory." Second, the label will debut a new group Jailbreak, featuring avant percussion master Chris Corsano and pedal steel fuzz queen Heather Leigh. The group's debut, The Rocker, shows this duo reformulating "rock/roll instants by bringing free jazz fire power to amp-humping sex beats."
Both releases will be in vinyl-only editions of 700 and will show their faces in early 2010. As always, Family Vineyard has more on the horizon, including an Alan Licht/Loren Connors Duo record and the long awaited Human Skab reissue.
Badly Drawn Boy Sketches Goodly Drawn Soundtrack Album
While some acts inadvertently garner comparisons to soundtrack sound, others blatantly churn out the most derivative claptrap possible in order to snag a mega-lucrative inclusion on a hot original soundtrack. Some model their noise after non-existent, imagined films while still others are sought after for their ability to mirror the intent, feel, heart, and guts of a real movie with their accompanying music. It could be said that Damon Gough has faired a bit better with film tunes than commercial releases since his classic Badly Drawn Boy debut album, Year of the Bewilderbeast, in 2000. The wildly popular experience with About a Boy must have struck some the right way and have felt pretty good to the Badly Drawn Boy himself because he has offered his writing abilities to another album of "music taken from and inspired by" a motion picture. Is There Nothing We Could Do? features songs from/inspired by The Fattest Man in Britain, a television movie written by Caroline Aherne ("The Royle Family") and Jeff Pope that is due to air over the Christmas holidays in the U.K. due date for the album is December 14.
The fattest tracklist on Tiny Mix Tapes:
1. Opening Theme
2. Is There Nothing We Could Do?
3. A Gentle Touch
4. All the Trimmings
5. Welcome Me to Your World
6. Guitar Medley
7. Is There Nothing We Could Do? (Reprise)
8. Big Brian Arrives
9. Amy in the Garden
10. Been There, Verified
11. Just Look at Us Now
12. Wider Than a Smile
13. Piano Theme
14. The Letter
15. I'll Carry On
Don’t Say Aloha to Aloha, They Have a New Album Coming Out in 2010
Wistful lyrics? Check! Ethereal harmonies? Check! Poppy hooks? Check! Aloha definitely has what it takes to be a Polyvinyl band, and they’ll continue that trend with the release of their new album, Home Acres, due out on March 9, 2010. According to the press release, “Home Acres pushes the tempos and dials up the guitars, with the band's slow-burn intensity sometimes overflowing into huge moments. But even as the energy surges, Aloha casts an otherworldy glow, serving up ambience and attack with equal measure.” Who can resist a little “slow-burn intensity”?
Home Acres tracklisting:
1. Building a Fire
2. Moonless March
3. Microviolence
4. Searchlight
5. Everything Goes My Way
6. White Wind
7. Cold Storage
8. Blackout
9. Waterwheel
10. I'm in Trouble
11. Ruins
New Arcade Fire Album in May 2010?
According to Billboard, Arcade Fire will release their third, as-yet untitled album in May 2010. This will be preceded by a single, and the band are aiming to play some summer festivals. Reports Billboard:
While details of the new album are scarce, the BBC revealed yesterday that the band has spent the past six months ensconced in the studio with producer Markus Dravs, who has worked with the likes of Coldplay, Bjork and Brian Eno, and served as engineer on "Bible." According to British musician Marcus Mumford, Dravs has called the band's new songs "better."
The hype machine is in overdrive already, but was I the only one who thought Neon Bible (TMT Review) was a huge disappointment?
We Are Wolves Return from the Wild with New Album... Ça Va Être INTENSE!
There are plenty of things to do in Quebec during winter. You could attend an evening of high culture, stay at an ice hotel, beat this bonhomme to a bloody pulp, gorge on poutine, or smoke a carton of "green deaths". It is all good francophone fun, but those with their nose in the snow know that real sport lies with playing some home province shows and releasing your new album south of the border.
French Canadian noisettes We Are Wolves will undoubtedly do all of the above but will focus mainly on the music side of things for the next few months. Although already available in Canada, the spazz rock trio of Vincent Levesque, Antonin Marquis, and Alexander Ortiz will release its third album, Invisible Violence, in the U.S. on February 2 through Dare to Care.
Voici les chansons:
1. Paloma
2. Holding Hands
3. Walking Commotion
4. Dreams
5. Vague
6. Reaching for the Sky
7. Me As Enemy
8. Blue
9. Near Fear
10. La Rue Oblique
11. The Spectacle of Night
12. Bounty Waterfalls
We Are Wolves will play around Europe and on both coasts of North America in 2010, but for now they'll be sticking closer to home with some Quebec dates:
12.03.09 - Alma, QC - La boîte à bleuets
12.04.09 - Chicoutimi, QC - Le Bunker
12.05.09 - Dolbeau, QC - Vox Populi
12.10.09 - Victoriaville, QC - Vieux St-Pierre Resto-Bar
03.06.10 - Shawinigan, QC - Trou du diable
Study: Artist Income Grows While Labels “Suffer”
Amongst all the doom and gloom about falling revenues in the music industry, little attention has been paid to the monetary success, or otherwise, of artists themselves. According to a study, however, it turns out that they’ve actually been doing very well (how do you feel now, Lily Allen?).
The UK’s The Times has shown that “revenues accrued by artists themselves have in fact risen over the past 5 years, despite the fall in record sales.” The main reason for this is ticket sales from gigs, but a larger share is also coming from PRS revenues (“royalties collected on behalf of artists when their music is played in public”).
The Times also notes that industry revenues as a whole have grown in this period, although not by much.
What this clearly shows is that labels need to start sucking more from their artists’ labor. Personally it brings a tear to my eye to see label executives without their swimming pool extensions. The likes of Chris Martin, Lily Allen, and Beyoncé need to start donating more of their income to the greater good (of executives). Who would have thought the solution to the music industry “crisis” would be so easy!
You Can't Resist the Rural Pull: The Magnetic Fields Folk Around in 2010 with Winter Tour and New Album
Standard procedure dictates that once you conquer, you move on to unexplored territory. Stephen Merritt, along with his long-standing company who play as The Magnetic Fields, know this too well, and from this point forward will linger on one style no more! As we have previously reported, after successfully aping The Jesus and Mary Chain's sonic pop bliss with Distortion, the beloved band will release an altogether different side of their indie vision come the New Year. If anyone has the ability, the ingenuity, and the goddamned right to continually eff around with their effin' sounds it is The Magnetic Fields, who will take a sharp turn away from the distorted reality of Distortion and head into an entirely acoustic realm with Reality. Containing no electric instrumentation whatsoever, and using "untraditional percussion instruments, ranging from tabla to tree leaves," this may be the most rustic version of The Magnetic Fields you will ever hear, unless the band decide to dig up Francis Child himself for a winter solstice mummers play with a side of Morris dancers and Aran sweater giveaways. Available on January 26 through Nonesuch, The Magnetic Fields' eighth opus comes with the usual trimmings: complimentary mp3 downloads with purchase of LP or CD, free signed poster by Merritt for the first 250 orders through the Nonesuch store, and bedside renditions by the group to ailing fans (with legitimate doctor's notes only).
Procedure also states that when an album is released, it is customary to tour said album. Never one to stick a thorn in the consumer's paw, The Magnetic Fields will play North America this winter including one date in Montréal. The band's FIRST EVER SHOW in Montréal. What?!?! Apart from some ill-formed bias against "the Frencher sex," how is that even possible?
02.04.10 - Washington, DC - Lisner Auditorium, George Washington University
02.06.10 - Montreal, QC - Corona Theatre
02.08.10 - Toronto, ON - Queen Elizabeth Theatre
02.10.10 - Boston, MA - Wilbur Theatre
02.11.10 - Boston, MA - Wilbur Theatre
02.13.10 - Brooklyn, NY - Howard Gilman Opera House, BAM
02.21.10 - Portland, OR - Aladdin Theater
02.22.10 - Portland, OR - Aladdin Theater
02.23.10 - Seattle, WA - Town Hall
02.24.10 - Seattle, WA - Town Hall
02.27.10 - Oakland, CA - Fox Theater
03.01.10 - San Francisco, CA - Herbst Theatre
03.02.10 - Los Angeles, CA - Wilshire Ebell Theatre
03.04.10 - Milwaukee, WI - Pabst Theatre
03.05.10 - Bloomington, IN - Buskirk Chumley Theater
03.06.10 - St. Louis, MO - The Pageant
03.07.10 - Chicago, IL - Harris Theater, Millenium Park
03.10.10 - New York, NY - Town Hall
03.11.10 - New York, NY - Town Hall
03.22.10 - London, England - Barbican Hall
As I said, news of this tour comes mere weeks since we last wrote sweet somethings about Merritt's merits. In the spirit of repetition, here again is the tracklisting for Realism:
1. You Must Be Out of Your Mind
2. Interlude
3. We Are Having a Hootenanny
4. I Don’t Know What to Say
5. The Dolls’ Tea Party
6. Everything Is One Big Christmas Tree
7. Walk a Lonely Road
8. Always Already Gone
9. Seduced and Abandoned
10. Better Things
11. Painted Flower
12. The Dada Polka
13. From a Sinking Boat
RIP: Monty Stark of Stark Reality
From Stones Throw:
News comes today that Monty Stark of Stark Reality passed away in the early evening of Thanksgiving, November 26, 2009. Friend Dennis Sexton wrote, “Monty courageously battled Cancer on his own terms, seeking not to endure the pain of the usual therapy, but went his own way at Hospice of the Valley in Scottsdale, Arizona, where he lived out his last several weeks.”Monty's group Stark Reality - with John Abercrombie, Phil Morrison, and Vinnie Johnson - released the 1970 album The Stark Reality Discovers Hoagy Carmichael's Music Shop, a brilliant jazz/funk/psychedelic-rock fusion reinvention of 50's children music by songwriter Hoagy Carmichael.
Much could be said about the power of this rare record to inspire a diverse range of musicians, collectors, hip-hop producers and casual listeners over the years - but it might be summed up by Hoagy Carmichael's own reaction, from the album's original liner notes:
“This is children’s music!?…I say, ‘Stark mad,’” Carmichael wrote. “Monty’s voice?...somewhere between the filings on the edge of a pie pan, and the singing of a guru during one of his most exalted moments.”
