Rattled by the Rush

It's really happening!  The Pavement reunion that seemed an impossibility mere months ago is just about to kick into high gear with their first show in a decade.  Sadly it's happening down under and not here in the US but they'll be well-prepped by the time we all get our first glimpse later this year.  Spiral Stairs is kindly providing a peek into proceedings and grave architecture of the reunion over at his blog Spinalspirally.  In his own words, Sir Stairs says...

"it was the first time some of us had been in the same room together for close to 10 years. i think we all were a little nervous. it started off pretty rough, except for our drummer who probably practiced the most. but... by the time we had finished, most of the 40 plus songs we had rehearsed were sounding pretty good. we're really looking forward to the year ahead and seeing all the fans out there digging the music makes it all worthwhile. so thank you for buying tickets."

 

Not Too Soon At All

Rogue Wave's new slab of airy psychedelic folk rock is due any day now and we couldn't be any happier about it!  Another clear sign of spring emerging from this never ending winter.  For those who can't wait (count us among them) Permalight is currently streaming through a special Pandora station for your listening pleasure.

Starting today, the band heads out on a 29-city tour, making stops in New York, Boston, Toronto, Philadelphia, Seattle, Portland, Philadelphia, Minneapolis, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and everywhere in between. Check out the entire North American tour schedule.

The band has also created video clips teasers for each of the tracks and a making of vid that are all available for viewing at Rogue Wave's site.

Permalight Tracklist: / 01 Solitary Gun / 02 Good Morning / 03 Sleepwalker / 04 Stars and Stripes / 05 Permalight / 06 Fear Itself / 07 Right With You / 08 We Will Make A Song Destroy / 09 I'll Never Leave You / 10 Per Anger / 11 You Have Boarded / 12 All That Remains

Spinning Atoms

Thom Yorke will play a handful of dates here in the US leading up to an appearance at Coachella with the super duper group including Nigel Godrich and Flea among others he threw together to play out with his Eraser material. The news broke over at the w.a.s.t.e. site along with the announcement that the group, previously dubbed ??????, will now officially be known as Atoms for Peace. Thom says, "hope you like the name.. it seemed bleedin' obvious."

THOM YORKE / ATOMS FOR PEACE / APRIL 2010
Mon 5 Roseland Ballroom New York, NY
Tue 6 Roseland Ballroom New York, NY
Thu 8 Citi Wang Theatre Boston, MA
Sat 10 Aragon Ballroom Chicago, IL
Sun 11 Aragon Ballroom Chicago, IL
Wed 14 Fox Theater Oakland, CA
Thu 15 Fox Theater Oakland, CA
Sat 17 Santa Barbara Bowl Santa Barbara, CA
Sun 18 Coachella Festival Indio, CA

That Fresh Smell

Devo is back and for the next 24 hours you can get a free download of their new smash hit "Fresh" for the mere price of an email. While there, be sure to take advantage of the Devo Color Study which will help determine the proper color scheme to help move the band forward with confidence!

Broken Bells Ring True

James Mercer (he of the Shins) and Danger Mouse (yeah that Crazy guy) have made their live debut as Broken Bells at a gig last night in LA.  I, for one, and just happy to have Sir Mercer's plaintive and compelling poetry back in the collective consciousness for a time again.  That they tapped into the fringe cultural zeitgeist for Neutral Milk Hotel and Tommy James and the Shondells covers in their first outing is a good omen indeed.  Enjoy....








Visit Foundtrack's youtube channel for the whole shebang!

They're Back!

Broken Social Scene have a new album ready to drop on May 4 through long time label Arts & Crafts and for the price of an email you can get a download of lead track "World Sick" to tide you over until then.  The band has also announced a handful of dates with more sure to come.  The winter thaw begins here!

03-14 Elkton, FL - Harvest of Hope
03-18 Austin, TX - Stubb's BBQ
03-19 Austin, TX - The Parish
05-01 San Francisco, CA - The Fillmore
05-03 Los Angeles, CA - Henry Fonda Theatre
05-07 New York, NY - Webster Hall
05-13 London, England - Brixton Academy *
05-14 Minehead, England - All Tomorrow's Parties
05-17 London, England - Heaven
05-18 Amsterdam, Netherlands - Melkweg
05-19 Cologne, Germany - Burgerhaus Stollwerck
05-21 Paris, France - La Maroquinerie
05-23 Linz, Austria - LinzFest
05-24 Berlin, Germany - Kesselhaus
05-27 Barcelona, Spain - Primavera Festival
05-29 George, WA - Sasquatch
06-19 Toronto, Ontario - Toronto Island *#

* with Pavement
# with Band of Horses

Punch | Stroke

Old timey Strokes cover from the excellent Punch Brothers.  What's not to like?  Certainly a nice way to celebrate the fact that the lower east side boys are back in the studio working on a new record.

Rufus Returns

Rufus Wainwright returns with his first record of new material and his sixth full length offering entitled All Days Are Nights: Songs For Lulu out on April 20.  The record is a return to simpler times featuring Sir Rufus and his piano stripped of some of the grandiose production that he explored on the Want albums.

Full tracklisting:

1. Who Are You New York?
2. Sad With What I Have
3. Martha
4. Give Me What I Want and Give It To Me Now!
5. True Loves
6. Sonnet 43
7. Sonnet 20
8. Sonnet 10
9. The Dream
10. What Would I Ever Do With A Rose?
11. Les Feux d'artifice t'appellent
12. Zebulon

Prelude to Plastic Beach

New teaser vid for Gorillaz Plastic Beach out on March 8th in which our lead man 2D gets delivered unto the scene...

Jug Runneth Over

a little teaser clip from Saddle Creek for the new Neva Dinova & Bright Eyes rerelease....

Bright Eyes / Neva Dinova "One Jug of Wine, Two Vessels"  teaser from Saddle Creek on Vimeo.

This is Your Brain On...

Jazz and blues legend Mose Allison is one of the smartest fellas to ever tickle the ivories.  His storytelling through song is an American treasure and the fact that he's still churning out the tunes for our enjoyment is enough to keep one's head up and smiling sublimely through this long slog of a winter.  Sir Allison has a new track ("My Brain") available for free download over at AOL's Spinner blog (no relation to the excellent Matt Gouette tune).  Catch it now before it's gone.  The track is part of a new release out on March 23 on Anti- called The Way of the World.

 

Track List:
01. My Brain
02. I Know You Didn't Mean It
03. Everybody Thinks You're An Angel
04. Let It Come Down
05. Modest Proposal
06. Crush
07. Some Right, Some Wrong
08. The Way Of The World
09. Ask Me Nice
10. Once In A While
11. I'm Alright
12. The New Situation

Wilco cover Neil Young's Broken Arrow

The Mutual of Omaha

Jake Bellows and his excellent band Neva Dinova have always been big here at the Palaz of Hoon.  The band played a few well-received shows here in olde New London towne though we've missed them on the last couple of tours.  Twenty Four Bit has the scoop (don't they always!) on a Saddle Creek reissue of the excellent record that Bellows recorded with fellow Omaha native Conor Oberst titled One Jug of Wine, Two Vessels.  The record will be expanded with the includion four recently recorded tracks by the pair including “Rollerskating,” “Happy Accident,” “Someone’s Love,” and “I Know You.”

American Band Scam

Third Man Records, TheWhite Stripes and their management have issued a strong statement of condemnation for what they consider an illegal use of their song "Fell in Love with a Girl" by the United States Air Force Reserve as part of a commercial that aired during the Super Bowl this past Sunday. Judge for yourself over at the label's site where they have posted the pieces side-by-side for comparisons sake.

"We believe our song was re-recorded and used without permission of the White Stripes, our publishers, label or management. 

The White Stripes take strong insult and objection to the Air Force Reserves presenting this advertisemnet with the implication that we licensed one of our songs to encourage recruitment during a war that we do not support.

The White Stripes support this nation's military, at home and during times when our country needs and depends on them.  We simply don't want to be a cog in the wheel of the current conflict, and hope for a safe and speedy return home for our troops.

We have not licensed this song to the Air Force Reserve and we plan to take strong action to stop the ad containing this music."

Slow Jam the News

Cage, no Cage

Thanks to Spike Jonze's We Love You So for pointing the way to the charmingly experimental work of French artist Céleste Boursier-Mougenot.  Her work is whimsical and fun while creating a serious sonic drone that would surely make Thurston and Lee smile blissfully in its Cage-like simplicity. This work is from a commission for The Curve, Barbican, London.

She Don't Lie, She Don't Lie, She Don't Lie

From Memphis, Tennessee's The Commercial Appeal:

Medical examiner cites cocaine toxicity, alcohol in death of Memphis musician Jay Reatard 
Bob Mehr

Autopsy results released Wednesday in the death of Memphis musician Jay Reatard reveal that he died from "cocaine toxicity, and that alcohol was a contributing factor in his death," according to Shelby County Medical Examiner Dr. Karen E. Chancellor.

The 29-year-old musician, whose real name was Jimmy Lee Lindsey Jr., was found dead in bed at his Cooper-Young neighborhood home on Jan. 13.

After a decade of working in the garage and trash rock underground with various groups, including the Reatards and Lost Sounds, Lindsey began to achieve mainstream stardom in 2006 with the release of his solo debut, Blood Visions.

His most recent album, 2009's Watch Me Fall, was released by the New York City-based label Matador Records.

Lindsey's death sparked international press attention and mourning by fans and friends. A memorial was held for Lindsey on Jan. 16 at Memorial Park Funeral Home. He was buried the following day, in a grave near Stax legend Isaac Hayes.

With more than 100 releases, including 22 full-length albums, Lindsey left behind a massive legacy. His manager, Adam Shore, confirmed that Lindsey's early work with the punk rock band The Reatards will be reissued on the local Goner Records label, while Los Angeles-based In the Red Records will be putting out material from Lindsey's later no wave outfit The Lost Sounds.

Shore added that plans for other releases are still in the works. At the time of his death, Lindsey was reportedly at work at his home studio on a solo follow-up for Matador. Former bandmates have said at least six songs were completed.

http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2010/feb/03/medical-examiner-cites-cocaine-toxicity-alcohol-de/

The Double Life

Twenty Four Bit has the scoop on the new Amanda Palmer project titled Evelyn Evelyn.  The new act purportedly features the croonings of a pair of Siamese Twins. The duo (errr does that count here?) will release their debut this spring but you can check out a few tunes now over at their myspace.  It's some great vaudevillian stuff and is sure to make for a fine spectacle on tour (which they will be in Europe soon enough though I would expect US dates to come along sooner than later).

An Extraordinary Machine

My Dave Rawlings obsession continues unabated as more performances continue to pop up on the web featuring his luscious, virtuoso guitar stylings and haunting harmonies with his graceful and gorgeous partner in musical crime Gillian Welch.  The latest peek into their music is provided by NPR as part of their excellent and sweetly off-the-cuff Tiny Desk Concert series. 

Set List:
"I'm on My Way Back to the Old Home"
"Ruby"
"Method Acting/Cortez the Killer"
"Sweet Tooth"

Hallelujah!

The New London scene continues to prove itself as the most fertile musical turf in southern New England.  Other scenes may have bigger clubs or see stops from major acts on a more regular basis but when it comes to original music no small city can hold a candle to the amount of talent that olde New London town has presented over the last decade.  A brand new compilation POWERS (Cosmodemonic Telegraph) debuted this past weekend at the annual Rock Fix (part of Hygienic Art XXXI) that shows off some of those acts at their best.  It's a two-disc set featuring 28 new and unreleased tunes from the likes of Get Haunted, Fatal Film, Roadside Attractions, Straight to VHS, The Reducers, Matt Gouette, Above Below and many many more.  Check it out: