Friday, July 29th, 2005
Good news and bad news from Brooklyn’s Dirty On Purpose. The good news is that they’ve completed their video for “Mind Blindness” and have posted the final edit online for all to see. There’s more and more buzz building around the re-release of their Sleep Late For A Better Tomorrow EP, which will be in stores (again) September 6.
Now the bad news is that keyboardist Erika Forster has left the band to concentrate on her other project, Au Revoir Simone. The roster change became public when the band took the stage last week one girl short. The Modern Age and Manhattan Carnivore documented the ensuing audience drama. DoP will carry on as a four-piece, with the remaining boys drawing straws to see who gets to sing the high parts from here on out.
Also good news/bad news – good news, Sparklehorse have finally unveiled their new website. Bad news – still nothing concrete on the new album. Doesn’t look like 2005 is going to yield anything new from Mr Linkous.
Something like five years after splitting, The Boo Radleys finally have a proper website. It’s mainly to promote their Find The Way Out double-disc anthology, but there’s some actual honest-to-God content there too. Audio clips from their discography are accompanied by song notes from the band members and they’re also soliciting fan questions to be answered periodically by the Boos. The anthology was released at the start of July in the UK and is available over here as an import.
The Tears tell XFM about the inevitability of the Butler/Anderson reunion. Via The Rock Snob.
British Sea Power teach PopMatters how to make an album. Easy!
The Salt Lake City Weekly is next in line with a Sufjan Stevens interview. It never ends.
The Twin Cities run two-two-two Teenage Fanclub articles – one from Pulse Of The Twin Cities and one from Pioneer Press (Bugmenot).
The Boston Phoenix catches up with prodigal son, Joe Pernice. Too bad, Beantown – he’s ours now!
Exlaim! salutes Three Gut Records as the Toronto-based label prepares to close up shop. Speaking of which, yesterday morning on my bike ride into work, I rode past Jim Guthrie on Beverly St. Swear to God. True story.
Sigur Ros talks a bit to NME about what to expect from Takk, out September 13.
Spin interviews one of their own, Mr Chuck Klosterman, about his new book Killing Yourself To Live. I’ve got a copy of this on my bookshelf in my “to read” pile. It’s a modest-sized pile. Via BrooklynVegan.
np – Husker Du / Flip Your Wig
Thursday, July 28th, 2005
Well shit, you guys went to town in the comments section yesterday, didn’t you?
I was playing some blog-a-link follow-the-leader yesterday and it yielded some interesting reading. Starting from Brookylnvegan’s post about hipsterdom triggered by the Wikipedia entry for said term. From there, there was quick visit to Catbirdseat’s clasic Hipster Bingo (and it’s companion piece The Guide To Indie Hair) as well as pit stops at The Hipster Handbook and The Morning News’ Non-Expert: Hipster. Also fun were links in BV’s comments to Austinist’s His & Hers guides to bagging yourself some hipster action in Tejas’ capital.
But the most interesting link was the one to Pandas That Won’t Screw To Save Their Species, which expands the discussion on the hipster phenomenon to include auteur-of-his-generation Wes Anderson and irony in general. The Slate article that inspired the post is a particularly good read, and helps articulate some of the disappointment I felt with The Life Aquatic (though I think I was considerably more generous to the film than most). N+1 looks at the arrested development that links Anderson and the Hipster generation. CityPages also riffs a bit on the art and culture of what it terms the “LittleBlue SmurfBoy” generation. And, on the flipside of it all, The Orlando Sentinel has a piece on hipsterism burnout (I found this one myself!). And tangentially-related: Stylus continues to analyze what they call “the problem with indie”.
I found all of this reading quite fascinating – I think I’m just old enough to have escaped ground zero of the Hipster phenomenon (I like how one of the pieces, I forget which, calls the Hipster the younger sibling of the Slacker), instead lingering at the periphery of the blast radius and playing observer, watching with frequent confusion, occasional disgust but always complete fascination. I think one of the fundamental differences is that I’m not big on irony. I love it in my comedy, but not in my lifestyle. It’s too much goddamn work, life’s too short to waste on things you don’t genuinely enjoy and really, I’m too self-conscious to not realize that, ironically or not, I’d still look pretty stupid in most of those clothes. And I can’t grow a moustache, ironic or otherwise.
Everyone who missed out on The Go! Team at Lee’s Palace last week will get another shot to see the UK outfit October 30 when they play the Phoenix. Speaking of hipsters… I kid. Everyone I know who went to their last show said it was fantastic, unabashedly and unironically. Expect this one to sell out just as fast.
The week in shows at Torontoist, via me.
The Guardian talks to Colin Meloy of The Decemberists in hopes of determining what it is about them that inspires such fierce loyalty amongst their fanbase. Via Largehearted Boy.
The Toronto Star previews Aimee Mann’s show at the Phoenix tomorrow night.
Torr has the new Cardigans single, “I Need Some Fine Wine And You, You Need To Be Nicer”, available to download. It’s surprisingly rocking and upbeat, considering how melancholy Long Gone Before Daylight was. The new album, Super Extra Gravity, is out October 17.
Producer Rob Thomas spills the beans on what he’s got in store for season two of Veronica Mars, premiering on September 21. The season one DVD isn’t due out till mid-October. Thanks to Zoilus for the link.
np – British Sea Power / The Decline Of British Sea Power
Wednesday, July 27th, 2005
Pitchfork gets back in the ring with Ryan Adams for a rematch after their interview last year. I am linking this even though I’ve recently come to the realization that I no longer really care about DRA. I came to this epiphany when I saw the umpteenth copy of Cold Roses in the used bins and still couldn’t convince myself to drop $10 on it. That’s my subconcious trying to tell me something.
Yes, I was a big Whiskeytown fan and yes, I thought – and still think – Heartbreaker is an amazing record, but my patience for his mercurial behaviour and increasingly patchy albums has dropped below the Mendoza line. When you’re more interesting as a celebrity eccentric than you are as a musician, something’s wrong. I used to insist that the boy had great potential and that he’d get it together, but I’m not sure about either of those points anymore. Maybe if I read a review of an album that doesn’t bemoan his lack of quality control or say something along the lines of, “this would have been a great 40-minute record instead of a 130-minute double album”, I’ll reinvestigate. Until that day, however, I guess I’ll just wait for the best-of.
But I will still tell you that his next album, Jacksonville City Nights, is out on September 27 and the final volume of his 2005 trilogy, 29, is still slated for a November 1 release but considering how much time they allotted to work Cold Roses, unless they’re just going to rush the next two out, I would expect to see that get pushed back, especially since Jacksonville has already been pushed back two months since its initially announced release date. Finally, he’s also cover boy on the new issue of Harp this month.
But aside from all of that, I give the man props for being indirectly responsible for my closest celebrity encounter so far, standing about 3 metres away from Elton John at Adams’ October 2001 show at Lee’s Palace. Regardless of how I felt about Gold, that was a great show.
Here are the pics from Monday night’s Teenage Fanclub show – and to make up for making you wait a day, a piece from the New York Daily News.
Uh-oh, Fall conflict! After avoiding the Big Smoke for years and years, The Mountain Goats are back for a second go-around just five months after their debut with another show at Lee’s Palace on October 17. The May show back on my birthday was superb, but I have Son Volt locked in on my calendar for that evening. I hope the Goats don’t bring along any top-notch openers, though, because that could make things far more complicated.
Scotland’s Sons and Daughters are at Lee’s Palace September 5. Tickets $9, on sale today.
Billboard talks to Alex Chilton about reviving Big Star for their first album of new material since Third/Sister Lovers. The record in question, In Space, has been pushed back a couple of weeks and is now due out September 27 but when you’ve been waiting for 27 years, what’s another two weeks? Zoilus rubs his hands with anticipation and digs up a Big Star piece he wrote for The Globe & Mail a couple years ago.
Also in the “welcome back” department – Filter brings word that Mark Gardener will release his first solo album These Beautiful Ghosts on October 11. I wonder if the album title is a nod to the legacy of his old band? Gardener will be touring North America in support of Black Rebel Motorcycle Club this Fall, including a September 24 date at the Phoenix.
Pop (All Love) tries to quantitatively evaluate who exactly is the Best Band In The World, using an elaborate and fascinating baseball analogy, and finds that none other than Arcade Fire should be the odds-on favourite for world domination. Best line I’ve read this week? “Modest Mouse are a decent club, but they really only have one ace starting pitcher (a southpaw named Jesus de la Floaton)”.
Heavy.com has been putting out their Sumosonic compilation CDs for a while now, and they’re always interesting and eclectic collections with sharp packaging. Subscriptions are technically free, though you pay a nominal postage fee, but they’re currently offering a free copy, including gratis postage, to folks in Candada and the US. Check it out – subscribe or don’t, free is free is free.
np – Bob Mould / Workbook
Tuesday, July 26th, 2005
Teenage Fanclub are musical comfort food. More than 15 years into their career, they will never surprise you but you don’t want them to surprise you. As long as they continue to turn out beautiful pop music and glorious three-part harmonies, you will know that there is something still right with the world. Coming five years after Howdy!, this year’s Man-Made continued the Fannies’ streak of excellent albums of classically-styled power pop. Someone looking for a new angle might latch onto the somewhat fuzzier production courtesy of Tortoise’s John McIntire, but that’s trainspotting. All that matters is that it’s another fine record from the godfathers of Scottish pop.
But as much of a joy as a new record is, the fact that they chose to stage their first North American tour since 2001 was real cause for celebration. I’d seen them twice live before – once opening for Radiohead in the horribly unfriendly confines of Arrow Hall for a thoroughly unmemorable show (blame the venue, not the band) and four years ago to the week at the Opera House for a sublime show that made up for all past disappointments. It was hard to imagine they could top that performance but by God, they gave it their best. The vocal mix was the biggest and really, only flaw in the night – Gerry, Raymond and Norman tended to be mixed a little low and their harmonies weren’t reproduced as cleanly as one would have hoped. But this shortcoming aside, they put on a stellar show.
Drawing from almost their entire discography, they proved that they’ve been unbelievably consistent in the quality of their songcraft from almost day one. A naturally higher percentage of songs from Man-Made sat quite comfortably alongside tracks from Grand Prix and Thirteen – the older numbers were maybe a little less fuzzed up and the newer ones a little moreso, but they blended perfectly. Surprisingly, there was only “Star Sign” from Bandwagonesque (in the main set, anyway) – it garnered the most cheers but I certainly hope no one was there just to hear “Hang On” (not that I’d have judged – I love that song). This is another dividend of the aforementioned career consistency – it wouldn’t be unreasonable to say that every song in the set was someone’s favourite, one of the perks of never really having a big hit to skew the audience.
“Sparky’s Dream” concluded the main set and the encore closed with “The Concept”, a bit of a surprise considering that the usual finale on set lists I’ve seen from this tour was “Everything Flows”. I think they actually intended to come back out for a second encore and no doubt wrap up with the Catholic Education centrepiece, but the venue nixed that, making Mr Roadie stop tuning guitars. Fascists. It’s a shame, too, because the band looked to be having a marvelous time performing and soaking up the love and would have surely kept playing into the wee-er hours of the night (I think they did three encores at the Opera House show?). Curfew notwithstanding, it was great to see them in a small club this time around, and I only hope it’s not another four years before they return.
North Carolina’s Rosebuds opened things up and were a fine fit. Also trading in confectionary-grade pop music, they were touring behind their Unwind EP, released in April of this year, as well as previewing material from their second full-length album due out this Fall. Their set consisted of uptempo numbers and a couple of moodier ballads blending power pop, garage and surf for some all-around retro stylings. Hand claps, egg shakers and buoyant melodies all helped set the stage for a great night.
Pics tomorrow – it’s been a while since I’d been to the Mod Club. Oh the lights, the lights. The Fannies started a little late and played a solid hour and a half plus, so it was a late bedtime for me. And man, check out that concert calendar – next show? SEPTEMBER. Geez. Looks like I’ve got a little time off. Update: Pics are up.
Continuing with the pop-pop, Matador has posted a second track from The New Pornographers’ Twin Cinema for those six or seven of us who haven’t downloaded a leaked copy in advance of the August 23 release date. I’m not sure what the official first single from the album will be, but the video will star one Mr David Cross…
MP3: The New Pornographers – “Use It”
Look who’s coming back to town – Interpol are back at the Kool Haus on September 28. Tickets $30, on sale this Saturday.
Your daily Sufjan Stevens link – this one from Radar. Via Largehearted Boy
PopMatters has a great long interview with Bob Mould about his new album, Body Of Song which is in stores today. He’s also at the Mod Club on October 2 – tickets are a not-cheap $25, but I have to believe it will be worth it.
np – Okkervil River / Black Sheep Boy
Monday, July 25th, 2005
Sixeyes has been running with a John Vanderslice theme for the last little while, centred around a four-part interview with the producer/artist. Well, it was supposed to be – the first two parts ran on Sixeyes, but the whole thing is now available to grok at Better Propaganda.
Vanderslice releases his new album, the wonderfully-titled Pixel Revolt on August 23. You can see track notes from the recording sessions here, and I do believe have been corrected that “Farewell Transmission” is indeed NOT a Songs: Ohia cover – nice. The ‘Slice will be touring this Fall in support or the album – no Toronto dates as yet, though. I’ve seen him twice, opening for Spoon and Beulah (photos/review), and though I missed his last appearance in town last Summer opening for Pedro The Lion, I can testify that he’s always a good show.
Anyway, the good people at Barsuk have made a track from Pixel Revolt available for your downloading pleasure:
MP3: John Vanderslice – “Trance Manual”
Also courtesy of Barsuk – some clips from the Death Cab tour documentary, Drive Well, Sleep Carefully, out tomorrow. I got a copy of this last week but haven’t had a chance to get to it yet – I will report back when I do.
Instead, I’ve been watching season 3 of Sealab 2021. Man, what a mixed bag. The first half contains some stone-cold classics (“I Robot, Really”!!) but the episodes made after the unfortunate death of Harry Goz (AKA Captain Murphy), quite frankly, suck major ass. I was listening to the commentary track from Karl Olson of Toon Zone for the first post-Murphy episode, “Tornado Shanks”, and at first thought he was being ironic in his hate for the ep, but as it went on I realized that his vitriol was genuine and more disturbingly, justified. It was bad. Really bad. And didn’t get better as the season went on (Yes, I know there is a pop culture term for this very event, but I hate it and refuse to use it…) There were still occasional funny scenes but they were the exception, not the norm. Even more disturbing is that even though the producers HAD to have known that the heart and soul of the show was gutted, there was a season four. It won’t be out on DVD for a while, but I gotta know – is there ANYTHING redeeming about it?
Ahem.
Oh look, a Sufjan piece, this one from CMJ as they ask about the inspiration behind the cover art, but no mention of Supes. Hmm.
Word is the big bad in Spider-Man 3 will be Thomas Hayden Church as… The Chameleon? Well that’s a character who lends himself to a special effects extravaganza. Using him as a relative scale of menace, perhaps we can look forward to seeing Topher Grace as a guy who cuts ahead of Peter Parker in line. Update: Comic Book Resources has another theory on what Toper Grace’s role will be… and it’s even more terrifying than you could imagine.
Teenage Fanclub tonight!
np – The National / Sad Songs For Dirty Lovers
No Comments
facebook
![[Valid RSS]](http://www.chromewaves.net/images/interface/valid-rss.png "Validate my RSS feed"){kind=small}