Saddle Creek Latest Geographic Takeover: Lawrence, Kansas’ Old Canes (project of Appleseed Cast's Chris Crisci)

By Annapocalypse on

Remember back before 2001 when Saddle Creek was all “Yo, is your band not from the epicenter of awesomeness, a.k.a. Omaha?! Well, don’t bother sending in a demo, because we don’t sign outsiders, man!” Apparently once the label woke up and realized great bands do indeed exist outside the confines of the Cornhusker State, it has been branching out quite a bit, even signing several bands from Canada. Here is their progress thus far:

- Georgia: Now It’s Overhead
- North Carolina: Sorry About Dresden, Eric Bachmann
- Kansas: Old Canes
- California: Rilo Kiley, Two Gallants
- Washington, D.C.: Georgie James
- Montreal: Land of Talk
- Toronto: Tokyo Police Club, The Rural Alberta Advantage, Sebastien Grainger

Meanwhile, Old Canes, Saddle Creek’s newest geographic acquisition, will release their sophomore album Feral Harmonic October 20. Old Canes may sound familiar to Appleseed Cast fans out there, as AC singer/guitarist Chris Crisci is the primary force behind the band. Their first album Early Morning Hymns was released on Second Nature Recordings in 2004 and is available for purchase in the Saddle Creek webstore right now.

Feral Harmonic tracklisting:

1. Intro
2. Little Bird Courage
3. The Last Collapse
4. Trust
5. Next Flood
6. Sweet
7. Under
8. I Will Be The Sun
9. Stuck
10. Flower Faces
11. Black Hill Chapel
12. Southern Radio

Minneapolis Proposes to Ban 18+ Shows Due to Binge Drinking Concerns

By Brom on 07-28-2009

At a time of economic recession, one would think politicians should be promoting business as much as possible. Minneapolis City Councilwoman Lisa Goodman, on the other hand, has decided now would be a good time to tackle the scourge of underage binge drinking by suggesting restrictions on 18+ events. According to City Pages, this would leave two options for venues around Minneapolis: “dry shows for the all-ages crowd or 21+ shows where the booze flows freely.”

Of course, this has left club owners and managers in outrage with John Barlow, managing partner at downtown Minneapolis’ newest event complex, Epic, claiming that they would "lose anywhere from $50,000 to $100,000 per month and would close if this law goes into effect." Nevertheless, there are significant public health concerns amongst lawmakers in the city where last February the Public Health Advisory Committee failed to get the City Council to ban reckless drink promotions within Minneapolis. Goodman says “I just don't know how I can in good faith look at these public-health people and tell them we don't propagate youth access to alcohol when we allow 18-year-olds into bars where 21-year-olds can pass them alcohol. If I don't do something to address this now, I'm going to face something far more onerous."

Indeed, while the city would undoubtedly lose revenue if the law passes, there is also the impact on health services with drunkenness fueling violent behaviour and excessive alcohol consumption causing liver diseases. However, according to a Washington University School of Medicine study published this month, binge drinking is in decline. A student at the University of Minnesota, Parker Jones, reckons that there isn’t much of a problem with drinking inside clubs and asks "Why penalize the many of us who like to go out and hear good music because of a few people who would drink too much in any situation?"

Here at Tiny Mix Tapes we are also concerned about the impact of binge drinking on Minneapolis’ youth. This is why, with our famous Minneapolis resident Mr P, we are launching a campaign to ban alcohol at all concert venues and to instead make weed available for purchase. Think about it: no drunken fights, no liver problems, no wasted morons spoiling shows with their drunken antics... just young people, like, totally flippin’ out to some awesome music.

Mount Eerie Sets Dates for Wind’s Poem Tour, No Date Yet Set for MISSOULA MONTANA!!! [CRASH]

By Jon Lorenz on 07-27-2009

As you've probably already heard about a million times, the new Mount Eerie record, Wind's Poem, is influenced by black metal and Twin Peaks (TMT News). That's old news, right? Well, here's an update then! Now that the new record has a firm release date of August 18 (which can be ordered now through P.W. Elverum & Sun), Mr. Phil Elverum -- a.k.a. The Microphones, a.k.a. Mount Eerie, a.k.a. Mr Black Metal Enthusiast -- is hitting the road with some "not so black metal" bands, playing select cities with variations of tour buddies, including WHY?, No Kids, Karl Blau, and Tara Jane O'Neil. No Kids will bring the evil and double as Phil's backing band for most of the dates. Expect gongs, walls of amps, and multiple drummers! They will also be doing a very special Halloween show at the Market Hotel in New York with brutal death metal band Liturgy and one more unannounced band.

Before the evil begins, Phil will do a few dates in Canada with pals Calvin Johnson and Julie Dorion, as well as playing a few festivals, including the Transfigurations Festival (TMT News) with Bonnie Prince Billy, Akron/Family, Kurt Vile, and more.

In case you haven't bought Wind's Poem, you might be lucky enough to find a a nice little advertisement on the left hand side of your screen. Click it!

Now let's see if Phil and his No Kids can pull off the evil corpse paint look:
07.31.09 - Sackville, New Brunswick - Sappy Fest
08.05.09 - Charlottetown, PE - TBA
08.06.09 - Halifax, NS - North Street Church!
08.08.09 - St. John's, Newfoundland - George Street United Church
08.13.09 - Asheville, NC - Transifugurations^
09.18.09 - Portland, OR - Backspace$
09.19.09 - Nevada City, CA - TBA
09.20.09 - Oakland, CA - Lobot$
09.24.09 - Eugene, OR - Agate Hall at U of O$
09.25.09 - Olympia, WA - Northern$
10.05.09 - Oak Harbor, WA - Oak Harbor Library
10.13.09 - Anacortes, WA - Department of Safety*
10.14.09 - Seattle, WA - Vera Project+
10.15.09 - Portland, OR - Wonder ballroom+
10.17.09 - San Francisco, CA - Great American Music Hall+
10.18.09 - Reno, NV - TBA
10.19.09 - Salt Lake City, UT - Kilby Court#
10.20.09 - Denver, CO - Rhinoceropolis#
10.21.09 - Springfield, MO - TBA
10.22.09 - Lexington, KY - Red Mile Round Barn~
10.23.09 - Charlottesville, VA - TBA
10.24.09 - Philadelphia, PA - Haverford College~
10.31.09 - Brooklyn, NY - Market Hotel@
11.02.09 - New York, NY - TBA
11.04.09 - Cincinnati, OH - Art Damage Lodge~
11.06.09 - Bloomington, IN - Banneker Community Center~
11.07.09 - Chicago, IL - TBA
11.08.09 - Madison, WI - TBA
11.09.09 - Iowa City, IA - Public Space One~

! Calvin Johnson, Julie Doiron, Rick White, and Calm Down It's Monday

~ No Kids and Tara Jane O'Neil

$ No Kids, Karl Blau, and Tara Jane O'Neil

+ WHY? and No Kids

* WHY?

# No Kids

@ Liturgy, No Kids, and Tara Jane O'Neil

^ Akron/Family, Bonnie Prince Billy, Espers, Kurt Vile, The Books, Brightblack Morning Light, etc

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart Unveil New EP, Single, Longevity Bid

By Nobodaddy on 07-27-2009

In an attempt to get it all over with as quickly as possible, those cutesy upstarts The Pains of Being Pure At Heart are cranking out new music even faster than those Freecreditreport.com guys do. I’m admittedly still a little hazy on how this whole “Being an Independent Band in the NU Music Industry 2.0” thing works, but I think that the general business model at work here is that, this way, fans will be able to document the exact moment when the songs start sounding too much like one another to retain their appeal? But hey! Let’s read on!

So first, on September 8, the band will release yet another new single, the album track "Come Saturday," with new song "Side Ponytail" serving as the B-side. And THEN, on September 22, they'll cluck their tongues, stroke their beards, and release four more new songs on the kitschily-dorkily-titled Higher Than the Stars EP. And THEN, they’ll keep a-touring through the fall to support these releases. And THEEEEEEN, they’ll reposition the transmitter dish in the remote truck to 17.32 degrees east, hit Westar 4 over the Atlantic, bounce the signal down into the Azores, up to Comsat 6, beam it baaaaaack to Satcom through transponder #137, and down to the dish of Mr Bigg's limo!!! Oh... wait. Er, but anyway, both the single and the EP will be on Slumberland.

Higher Than the Stars EP tracklist:

1. Falling Over
2. Twins
3. Higher Than the Stars
4. 103

The Pains of Being On The Road All The Time:
07.24.09 - Vancouver, BC - Biltmore Cabaret
07.25.09 - Seattle, WA - Capitol Hill Block Party
09.05.09 - Boston, MA - Middle East Downstairs
09.06.09 - Montreal, QC - La Sala Rossa
09.07.09 - Toronto, ON - Horeshoe Tavern
09.08.09 - Chicago, IL - Logan Square Auditorium
09.09.09 - Madison, WI - Stage Door at the Orpheum
09.10.09 - Omaha, NE - The Slowdown
09.12.09 - Morrison, CO - Monolith Festival
09.13.09 - Salt Lake City, UT - Kilby Court
09.14.09 - Boise, ID - Neurolux
09.17.09 - Portland, OR - MFNW / Doug Fir
09.21.09 - San Diego, CA - Casbah
09.22.09 - Tucson, AZ - Club Congress
09.24.09 - Fort Worth, TX - Lola's
09.25.09 - Austin, TX - The Mohawk
09.26.09 - New Orleans, LA - One Eyed Jacks
09.27.09 - Tallahassee, FL - Club Downunder
09.28.09 - Atlanta, GA - The Earl
09.29.09 - Chapel Hill, NC - Local 506
09.30.09 - Washington DC - Black Cat
10.01.09 - Baltimore, MD - Ottobar
10.03.09 - New York, NY - Webster Hal
10.05.09 - Philadelphia, PA - First Unitarian Church

RIP: Merce Cunningham, choreographer who worked with everyone from John Cage to Radiohead

By Shane Mack on 07-27-2009

From The New York Times' ArtsBeat:

Merce Cunningham, the American choreographer who was among a handful of 20th-century figures to make dance a major art and a major form of theater, died Sunday night. He was 90 and lived in Manhattan.

Mr. Cunningham ranks with Isadora Duncan, Serge Diaghilev, Martha Graham and George Balanchine in making people rethink the essence of dance and choreography, posing a series of “But” and “What if?” questions over a career of nearly seven decades.

- Merce Cunningham official website
- Merce Cunningham Wikipedia entry

Musicfest NW to be Rocked by Bad Brains, Beach House, Sunny Day Real Estate, OM, Mount Eerie and More

By Liz Louche on 07-27-2009

So, it’s September and you’ve been to Pitchfork. You’ve been to Bumbershoot. You’ve even been to Coachella earlier in the spring. And something seems to be missing. Something is perceptibly wrong. But what could it be? Simple: Indie Music Festival Withdrawal. As the summer festival season winds down, IMFW Syndrome has been known to strike thousands of music fans across the world without warning. There’s no longer a festival to look forward to. No more organic burritos to eat, no more crappy camp sites where drunk hippie dudes try to work out the tabs to a Violent Femmes song into the wee hours of the morning while you and 5,000 new friends try to sleep. UNTIL NOW.

Or rather since 2001. After the dissolution of Portland, Oregon’s North By Northwest Festival in 2000, the alternative paper Willamette Week teamed up with local music impresarios to create Musicfest NW. Occurring this year from September 16-19, the festival takes place in a number of Portland venues, and Seattle’s KEXP will broadcast performances over the weekend. The lineup is long and strong, with more to be added. So if you’re experiencing summer festival withdrawal, take a look at the roster for Musicfest NW. It’s one of the last chances you’ll get this year to get your Fest on.

Bad Brains, Sunny Day Real Estate, Girl Talk, Explosions In Sky, Will Sheff (of Okkervil River), The Get Up Kids, Dirty Three, Monotonix, Mudhoney, Frightened Rabbit, Dillinger Four, Twilight Sad, Swollen Members, Grand Duchy, Beach House, John Vanderslice, The Long Winters, The Pains of Being Pure At Heart, Pink Mountaintops, OM, Portugal The Man, Viva Voce, The Builders and The Butchers, Langhorne Slim, Bobby Bare Jr., Chairlift, Loch Lomond, Team Dresch, Erase Errata, J.D. Twitch (Optimo), Eluvium, Youth Group, Titus Andronicus, The Zeros, Mount Eerie, Trash Talk, Despise You, Crom, Japanther, Mayer Hawthorne & The County, Grouper, Richard Swift, Austin Lucas, Amazing Baby, Brother Reade, Love Language, Anders Parker, The Morning Benders, The Miniature Tigers, Common Market, Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey, We Were Promised Jetpacks, Say Hi, Rocky Votolato, Cymbals Eats Guitars, Copy, Red Fang, Saviours, Norfolk & Western, Nurses, Explode Into Colors, Portland Cello Project, Guidance Counselor, Fences
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