Posts Tagged ‘Jarvis Cocker’

Friday, June 5th, 2009

I’m On My Way

Yo La Tengo make a bid for popularity

Photo By Michael LavineMichael LavineI had thought that their Condo Fucks excursion earlier this year would represent Yo La Tengo’s recorded output for 2009 – after all, crafting a recording of such depth and intricacy has to be exhausting for a band, mentally, emotionally and physically. But as it turns out, that was just a warm-up and Hoboken’s finest will release a proper new collection of tunes this Fall in the form of Popular Songs.

From the write-up in the official bio, it sounds like the band are continuing on with the “everything goes” aesthetic that made 2006’s I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass such a welcome return to form, after a couple of pretty but overly snoozy albums to open the century. Expect sharp pop songs, extended jammed-out excursions and tender balladry, expect them to make preorders worth your while, expect touring this Fall and expect the record to be out September 8.

And expect the first MP3 released to sound exactly like this.

MP3: Yo La Tengo – “Periodically Double Or Triple”

Yo La labelmates Sonic Youth will release their new album The Eternal next week, and are currently streaming it all on iLike. And be forewarned, PitchforkTV is marking the occasion by declaring next week to be Sonic Youth Week – there’ll be video content galore. Canada.com talks to Lee Ranaldo, The Guardian to the whole band and you can look for Sonic Youth at Massey Hall on June 30.

Stream: Sonic Youth / The Eternal

Currently on PitchforkTV is the entirety of Jarvis Cocker’s set at last year’s Pitchfork Festival, and there’s not much to say to that besides, “JARVIS COME TO TORONTO”. The Age has an interview.

Incidentally, the lineup to Virgin Festival BC was announced yesterday, and both Jarvis Cocker and Sonic Youth are part of it. But before you think that the festival’s good name has recovered from the Montreal fiasco, note that the BC headliners are Ben Harper and Our Lady Peace. So feel free to continue to despair, and no, I won’t be buying a plane ticket to Vancouver for that weekend. And they still have to announce Calgary before they get to Ontario, so it’ll probably be a couple weeks before we know what they’ve got in store for us come the end of August.

Dean Wareham talks to the Live Arts & Fringe Festival blog, Decider, QRO and Philadelphia Weekly about memoirs and Warhol, amongst other things. And via A Head Full Of Wishes, check out this video of Dean reading maybe the greatest Luna fan letter ever.

Dinosaur Jr and their stunt doubles unwind a bit (and fall down) while on tour in the new video from Farm, out June 23.

Video: Dinosaur Jr – “Over It”

NOW, The Times, Rolling Stone, The Montreal Mirror and hour.ca talk to Grizzly Bear, playing a sold-out show at the Phoenix tonight.

Interview interviews Bjork.

Maximo Park’s Paul Smith tells NME about needing strategically reinforced suits for live performance. See him not split his crotch while doing a jump at Lee’s Palace on September 18.

Austin’s Ume have plotted a tour up and down American en route to Toronto for NxNE in a couple weeks, where they’ll play Neutral on Thursday, June 18 at 10PM. They’ve also made available another MP3 from their Sunshower EP available to download.

MP3: Ume – “Pendulum”

Gemma Hayes recently released a new digital EP and made a video for the title track.

Video: Gemma Hayes – “Oliver”

Singing Lamb talks to Lucas Jensen of Venice Is Sinking.

The Rural Alberta Advantage is conducting an interesting project over at Kickstarter.com wherein they’re soliciting donations to record and press a super-limited edition 7″ single that their backers will be able to take home for their very own. There’s also various tiers of support – for example, chip in a measly $3K and the RAA will come to your home and play you your own show. They’re running this campaign for a couple months, almost exactly until their July 30 show at the Horseshoe to mark the release of Hometowns on Saddle Creek July 7.

Billboard talks to drummer Jody Stephens about the forthcoming Big Star box set Keep An Eye On The Sky, due out September 15.

Beatroute interviews Malajube, who’ll be playing a free show at Lee’s Palace on June 12.

Their June 16 show at Lee’s is already sold out, but if you’re ducat-less, fear not – Passion Pit have already scheduled another show at the Phoenix for August 11, tickets $15. I guess they were really serious about making up each of those canceled shows from earlier this year.

MP3: Passion Pit – “Sleepyhead”
Video: Passion Pit – “Sleepyhead”

Boston’s Drug Rug have a date at the Horseshoe on August 18.

MP3: Drug Rug – “Day I Die”

Words? Mono and Maserati don’t need no stinking words – just volume and grandeur, and they’ll prove it October 2 at Lee’s Palace.

MP3: Mono – “Follow The Map”
MP3: Mono – “Ashes In The Snow”
MP3: Maserati – “The World Outside”
Video: Mono – “Follow The Map”
Video: Maserati – “This Is A Sight We Had One Day From The High Mountain”

And congratulations to Scott Marchi, who won the contest for the National t-shirt.

Thursday, May 28th, 2009

Lisztomania

Review of Phoenix's Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix and giveaway

Photo via GlassnoteGlassnoteSo ever since my indie-pop clubbing days – and we’re talking almost a decade ago now – there was a song that I thought was “Too Young” by Phoenix, and it informed my entire opinion of the band – namely that they were far too slick and catchy and melodic to be trusted. And that’s largely been the impression I’ve had through most of this century until just recently, so when I actually found the video for “Too Young” and realized that I had never heard this song before, well my reality changed just a bit on two counts. One, that to the best of my knowledge, I’d never actually heard Phoenix before their latest record and two, that I have no idea whatsoever what that song that’s been embedded in my head all these years actually is.

And that’s really funny because even though I went into Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix with fresh ears, though not realizing it, my impression of the just-released record from the French quartet was that it was far too slick and catchy and melodic to be trusted. I am, however, much less suspicious these days and so rather than back away cautiously from the perfectly-assembled pop package, I have happily embraced it. Wolfgang is the sort of record that makes you glad you’ve invested in a decent sound system – the production is absolutely meticulous without crossing the line into antiseptic. There’s not a stray sound or squeak, each palm-muted guitar strum and cymbal crash has the perfect decay so as to not disturb the frequencies of the one that follows and Thomas Mars’ vocals are pitch-perfect without any tell-tale autotune artifacts. It sounds perfect.

And usually this sort of sonic perfection would, as mentioned, get my spider-sense tingling – don’t ask me for what, I’m not that rational – but when coupled with tunes as intensely melodic as these, it’s like chocolate and peanut butter, assuming you like chocolate and don’t have a fatal nut allergy. Similarly, the lyrics may be nonsensical but the syllables fit the melodies so flawlessly that criticizing them for not having any deeper meaning seems declasse. After all, this band has just delivered a pure pop record the likes of which may not be topped this calendar year – solid, infectious and utterly danceable from start to finish (well, maybe not the “Love Like A Sunset” interludes, but everyone needs a breather). With that much going for it, who needs profundity?

Phoenix are set to launch a North American tour in a couple weeks and have a date set for June 15 in Toronto at the Phoenix, which is I believe their first local performance since the inaugural Virgin Festival in 2006. Courtesy of REMG and Universal Music Canada, I’ve got a pretty sweet prize pack to give away consisting of a pair of passes to said show and a copy of Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix on vinyl. To enter, email me at contests AT chromewaves.net with “I want Phoenix and Phoenix at the Phoenix” in the subject line and your full name and mailing address in the body, and have that in to me by midnight, June 9.

There’s interviews with band members at Paper and CCTV. Also, via Gorilla Vs Bear, there’s a band minisite wherein you can listen to streams of demo versions of Wolfgang tracks – the password is “concorde”, mais certainment.

Video: Phoenix – “1901”
Video: Phoenix – “Lisztomania”
Stream: Phoenix / Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix
MySpace: Phoenix

Prefix reports that in conjunction with their now-underway North American tour, A Camp are releasing a digital EP of covers entitled Covers EP on June 9 via iTunes and June 16 via other digital outlets. If you’d ever wanted to hear Nina Persson sing Pink Floyd, your ship has come in. They’re at the Mod Club on June 1 and there’s interviews with the band at Windy City and amNY.

The lead track from The Radio Dept’s forthcoming “David” EP – out June 24 – is now available to download. It’s mellower than last year’s sample from Clinging To A Scheme, “Freddie & The Trojan Horse”, but offers a good counterpoint and perhaps stakes out the two ends of what album number might have to offer if and when it finally comes out, hopefully late Summer or early Fall.

MP3: The Radio Dept – “David”

Los Campesinos! drop hints about album number three, currently in progress, to Pitchfork.

Manic Street Preachers provide a track-by-track video annotation of their new record Journal For Plague Lovers to NMETV.

NOW and The Detroit Free Press speak to Doves, in town at the Kool Haus on June 1.

The first video from The Rumble Strips’ forthcoming Welcome To The Walk Alone, out July 13, is now out. Clash reports that the song was inspired by a mugging attempt on singer Charlie Waller.

Video: The Rumble Strips – “Not The Only Person”

Another “live session in an unusual setting” series has cropped up online, and Off The Beaten Tracks makes itself notable with an episode featuring Frightened Rabbit, complete with new song. Frightened Rabbit will be at the Horseshoe on July 22.

Tripwire asks five questions of Ladytron and take a set of the least flattering photos ever while they’re at it.

NME gets Jarvis Cocker to provide a song-by-song guide to Further Complications, while Billboard solicits a Q&A. A handful of North American tour dates have trickled out – don’t get excited, Toronto, we’re not amongst them – but what is interesting is that Jarv is slated to play the Virgin Festival in Vancouver on July 26, which confirms that a) the dates of Vancouver’s V edition are July 25 and 26 and b) their lineup is NOT being geared to the suck. Hopefully this augurs well for Toronto and if not, maybe a trip out west is in order. Also uncovered are the dates and venue of V Calgary, which will be August 8 and 9 at their Olympic Park. It’s all slowly coming together, people.

Ear Farm interviews The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart.

eye and Chart talk to Dog Day, who are playing a CD release show for Concentration at Lee’s Palace tonight.

Under The Radar talks to Andrew Kenny of The Wooden Birds.

Friday, May 22nd, 2009

Don't Worry About The Future

Review of Dog Day's Concentration and giveaway

Photo By Paul HammondPaul HammondHalifax’s Dog Day have got the goods to be a terrific pure pop band, capable of crafting sublime melodies and hooks, but their fondness for the noisier virtues of the indie rock canon of the ’90s ensures that they’ll never be quite so easy to pin down. As such, their 2006 effort Night Group was an incongruous yet perfectly natural bit of doom-pop, all spiky and sweet – heavy and foreboding in intent but eminently hummable in execution.

Their recently-released follow-up Concentration takes those same classic college rock ingredients and brews up something familiar, but still new. It’s less immediate than Night Group, yet somehow smoother and more melodic and textured with Seth Smith’s vocals still distinctively monotone but Nancy Urich’s vox much stronger and expressive on this outing. Some may bemoan the absence of Night Group‘s punchier elements but the dream-pop qualities of Concentration reveal themselves with deeper listens and are just as rewarding.

Touring Night Group to death was a successful strategy for the band last time out, so it’s only logical that they pile into the van yet again for Concentration. Their cross-Canada tour already covered the Maritimes earlier this month but they’re covering all points Quebec and west starting next week, including a date at Lee’s Palace in Toronto on the 28th of May. Courtesy of Against The Grain, I’ve got five pairs of passes to give away for this show which will also feature The Burning Hell, Wild Life and Pacific Trash Vortex and on top of that, courtesy of Pigeon Row, I’ve got two copies of Concentration on vinyl available to give away. I’ll run these contests separately, so to enter both, email me twice – contests AT chromewaves.net – either with “I want to see Dog Day” in the subject line and your full name in the body for the passes, or “I want to hear Dog Day” in the subject line and your full mailing address in the body for the vinyl. Contest closes at midnight, May 26th.

There’s an interview with Dog day at The Coast.

Update: Just announced – Dog Day are also doing an in-store at Soundscapes on May 27 at 6PM.

MP3: Dog Day – “Rome”
Video: Dog Day – “Happiness”
MySpace: Dog Day

I was fortunate enough to receive an advance copy of the new Royal City compilation Royal City, and can tell you it’s a beautiful package – hardcover and bookbound – and oh yeah, the music is pretty terrific too. The limited edition set collects an album’s worth of unreleased material from the departed Guelph outfit and is set for release June 23.

MP3: Royal City – “Can’t You Hear Me Calling”
MP3: Royal City – “A Belly Was Made For Wine”

Royal City guitarist Jim Guthrie’s new project Human Highway was just featured in a session on NPR.

NOW and The Cord talk to Joel Plaskett, who plays Massey Hall tomorrow night.

Metric have rolled out a new video from Fantasies.

Video: Metric – “Sick Muse”

eMusic and The Quietus have typically entertaining interviews with Jarvis Cocker. He also talks to The Guardian about his thespian ambitions in the new Wes Anderson adaptation of Roald Dahl’s The Fantastic Mr Fox.

It’s like a nostalgia trip back to SxSW 2009 at Bandstand Busking as they present a session with Fanfarlo and another with Theoretical Girl.

These days it’s rare that a record of interest is put out without my being bombarded with press releases about it well in advance, so it was a pleasant surprise to discover the existence of Hard To Find – a digital-only collection of American Analog Set rarities which quietly came out in April. Covering the band’s years with Tiger Style and Arts & Crafts, it acts as a companion volume to 2001’s Through The ’90s. Considering that Andrew Kenny is now dedicated to his new project The Wooden Birds, this set could act as the final whirr and click in the quietly lovely story of AmAnSet.

MP3: The American Analog Set – “Stoney Chariots”
MP3: The American Analog Set – “Make It Take It”

Exclaim reports on the copyright clusterfuck that will essentially prevent the Danger Mouse/Sparklehorse collaboration Dark Night Of The Soul from seeing any “legal” release.

Nick Zinner of Yeah Yeah Yeahs talks to Billlboard. They’re releasing a remix EP for “Zero” on June 9 on vinyl – it’s available digitally now.

Artrocker interviews School Of Seven Bells. They’ve also got a new video. A trippy new video.

Video: School Of Seven Bells – “My Cabal”

The Line Of Best Fit, The Sun, The Georgia Straight and The Village Voice have features on Grizzly Bear. They’ll release Veckatimest next Tuesday, May 26, and have a show at the Phoenix on June 5. There’s also an in-studio performance at WNYC streaming at NPR.

Decider and Rolling Stone interview St Vincent’s Annie Clark. She will be at Lee’s Palace on August 8, and has just made available another MP3 from Actor.

MP3: St. Vincent – “Actor Out Of Work”

Paste and Decider have interviews with John Vanderslice, while I Pick My Nose has an interview AND a tour of the ‘Slice’s garden. He will be at the Horseshoe on July 10.

Good Times, Metro Santa Cruz and Santa Cruz Sentinel talk to Jenny Lewis.

My contest to give away copies of Dean Wareham’s memoirs Black Postcards wraps up tomorrow night, but if you don’t win a copy – and let me just say that the response to the contest has been overwhelmingly good and I wish I could give you all books – take heart, the folks at Ear Farm are also giving copies away AND they’ve got an interview with Wareham to go with it. So head on over and hedge your bets.

Other commitments keep me from partaking in this year’s Over The Top Fest, which began last night, but if you’re around this weekend and are looking to partake in some music and/or film, it’s really your best bet for discovering something new. There’s previews of some of the acts at this week’s NOW and eye.

Ottawa’s I Heart Music has been a tireless promoter of independent Canadian music for some years now, introducing both myself and countless others to great up-and-coming domestic talent via the blog and many, many live showcases. And it appears that no good deed goes unpunished as SOCAN, the national agency tasked to collecting royalties for Canadian songwriters, has gone after Matthew for royalties owed on his live shows, to the tune of a couple thousand dollars. Now if you’re of the inclination to donate to music media types in financial distress, you’ve obviously got a few options these days but Matt is fighting the good fight and deserves some support.

Thursday, May 21st, 2009

Look Inside America

Blur reunion looks vaguely across the Atlantic

Photo via MySpaceMySpaceThough of no relevance whatsoever to the contents of the actual post, some discussion emerged in the comments one of last week’s posts wherein the ongoing V Fest-spotting games turned to the possibility of Blur possibly making an appearance at the Ontario edition, unofficially set to happen August 29 and 30 in Burl’s Creek near Orillia. As much as I’d like that to happen – they’re on a very short list of acts who could get me to venture up that way and endure all the logistical joys that go along with it – I didn’t think it likely on account of the fact that though they’d surely be greeted like gods here, their profile in the US isn’t terrific, probably not known as anything but the “woo-hoo!” band outside of your major markets. The point being that I questioned whether it’d make financial sense to extend their reunion tour to this side of the Atlantic, and on top of that none of the press I’d read about their Summer appearances in the UK had hinted they’d intended to bring things across the pond.

Well it appears I spoke a bit too soon. Billboard reports that the band are indeed considering options in America with a Live Nation UK representative is quoted as saying, “There are no plans beyond T in the Park [July 12] and Oxegen [July 10]. They are talking about some American shows still in the same time frame. There are possibilities of some European ones as well.” It’s hardly an official declaration of intent, and sounds a bit non-committal to imagine they’ll be participating in a festival that should be set to announce their lineup (hopefully) soon – never mind the question of whether the people who’d see Blur are the same audience the now top-40 radio skewed fest is targeting. But it certainly offers some hope that those of us who missed ever seeing the band live their first time around might get a second chance, at some point.

Also Blur-related, to coincide with their reunion shows the band is releasing a double-disc best of to supplant the circa-2000 Best Of Blur which, I’m not ashamed to admit, gets more rotation with me than any of their individual studio albums. Midlife: A Beginners Guide To Blur will be released on June 15 and while its 25 tracks is obviously more than Best‘s 18, but I cannot endorse any collection that excludes “End Of A Century”. Sorry. Details on the comp at NME.

Returned prodigal guitarist Graham Coxon appears to have been designated band spokesperson leading up to the reunion shows, which is curious since he’s always been the most recalcitrant of the four. But I suppose it gives him a chance to also talk up his new solo record, The Spinning Top. He tells News Of The World that Alex James’ memoirs encouraged him to return to the fold, talks to This Is Nottingham about what it’s like to be back together, talks mainly solo works with The Sun and Drowned In Sound and covers both bases with BBC.

And because it’s one of Graham’s and also one of the best Blur tunes to say nothing of one of my favourite videos ever – “Coffee & TV”.

Video: Blur – “Coffee & TV”

The Pop Cop scores an interview with Stuart Murdoch about God Help The Girl, which I’ve elected to not write in italics because it’s in reference to the project and not the possible accompanying film/musical/whatever. But if I reference God Help The Girl the album, out June 23, such as in the context of Drowned In Sound doing an extensive review and analysis of the record, it will be noted in italics what with it being a proper title. I know you care about these little OCD things as much as I do.

With the UK release of The Bachelor just over a week away, Patrick Wolf is streaming the whole thing on his MySpace and I’m not afraid to say this will likely be one of my favourite albums of the year. He gives a three-part interview to Drowned in Sound, a video interview to NYLON – his North American label – and talks about his London to This Is London. The Bachelor gets a North American release on August 11 but if you’re able to resist getting an import version before then, you’re stronger than I. He plays The Mod Club on June 15.

Stream: Patrick Wolf / The Bachelor

NPR has a World Cafe session with Bat For Lashes.

The first video from Florence & The Machine’s debut Lungs is now available. The record is out July 6.

Video: Florence & The Machine – “Rabbit Heart (Raise It Up)”

The Chester Chronicle talks to Little Boots’ Victoria Hesketh about Hands, out June 8.

Polly Scattergood discusses her debut self-titled album, out this week in North America, with The Yorkshire Evening Post.

Jimi Goodwin of Doves reviews his musical upbringing with Pitchfork. They play the Kool Haus on June 1.

The Times and Irish Times talk to Jarvis Cocker.

NME reports that Radiohead have begun work on their next album.

PitchforkTV is broadcasting a Tindersticks show recorded in New York – if you missed their last tour, this is worth your time. They’re magnificent.

Aversion interviews The Horrors.

Check out the new video from Robyn Hitchcock & The Venus 3.

Video: Robyn Hitchcock & The Venus 3 – “I’m Falling”

The Scotsman and The Line Of Best Fit profile My Latest Novel. Their second album Death & Entrances was released this week.

Pitchfork talks to The Twilight Sad’s James Graham about their forthcoming album Forget The Night Ahead, out September 22.

Former Boo Radleys songwriter Martin Carr asks ten questions of Mogwai. Carr will release his first solo album under his own name – previous efforts came out as Brave Captain – on July 13. NME has details on Ye Gods (And Little Fishes).

Under The Radar interviews Los Campesinos.

Thursday, May 14th, 2009

I Never Said I Was Deep

Review of Jarvis Cocker's Further Complications

Photo By RankinRankinI don’t know if the Sheffield home where Jarvis Cocker grew up actually had a garage, but even if it did I have trouble picturing young Jarv out there, bashing away with friends making loud rock music, what with Pulp being nearly the definition of the cerebral art school band and really, the polar opposite of that aesthetic. And yet Cocker’s second solo album Further Complications, out on Tuesday, finds Cocker trying out the whole rock band thing at the age of 45.

To that end, he teamed up with American producer – sorry, engineer – Steve Albini to record the record, again an aesthetic shift that’s pretty drastic compared to Richard Hawley’s rich and classic-sounding work on Jarvis. And while Complications is drier, rougher and more guitar-driven than most anything that Cocker has done before, Albini’s sonic approach is more in line with his work with The Wedding Present than, say, PJ Harvey.

And while the shock of it may take some getting used to for the longtime listener, Cocker sounds like he’s having a blast with it, shouting, whooping and generally living out some long-suppressed rock’n’roll dreams. But even so, he’s still Jarvis – he makes no attempts to try and BE a garage rocker. He’s not playing a part, decked out in torn jeans and flannel shirt. No, he’s still up there with the big specs and the skinny suit – okay, the beard is new – and most importantly, his wit. In keeping with the loose and direct vibe of the music, Complications boasts some of Cocker’s goofiest lyrics, eschewing the wry social observer perspective that usually informs his work for just straight-up fun and funny.

For those hoping for another grand, classically Cocker album in the style of Jarvis, Complications might seem like a bit of a disappointment, a curious stylistic detour, but the thing about Jarvis is that now that he’s back, he’s back. All accounts are that the extended post-Pulp hiatus was a necessity, but that he’s quite enjoying the writing and recording and performing again so even if this isn’t entirely your cup of tea, enjoy it regardless – maybe while reading the lyrics in the liner notes – and wait for the next one.

And speaking of waiting, I’ve been told that there’s plans for North American touring in the Fall, so fingers crossed that Jarvis will grace a Toronto stage again soon, for the first time in over a decade since Pulp’s final gig at Massey Hall.

Cocker took over as pop single reviewer for a day at The Guardian – bon mots abound. There’s also interviews with Cocker at The Mail On Sunday, Scotland On Sunday and The Independent. And XFM reports that those holding their breath waiting for a Pulp reunion will likely die of asphyxiation. Well, I’m paraphrasing.

Oh yeah, you can stream the whole of Further Complications at Spinner and over at ustream.tv, they’ve got footage of his five-day performance art installation in Paris last week.

MP3: Jarvis Cocker – “Angela”
Video: Jarvis Cocker – “Angela”
Stream: Jarvis Cocker – “Further Complications”
MySpace: Jarvis Cocker

Maximo Park takes Quicken The Heart out for a Black Cab Session. There’s also an excerpt of their cover feature over at Artrocker and another interview at The Independent. They’re at Lee’s Palace on September 18.

MP3: Maximo Park – “Wraithlike”

The Guardian has an interview with Manic Street Preachers, part of a rather extensive feature minisite on the band on the occasion of the release of new album Journal For Plague Lovers, out Monday.

The San Francisco Bay Guardian and Clash interview The Horrors.

It’s Pitchfork with the win, revealing not only the title and release date of the new Twilight Sad record – Forget The Night Ahead is out September 22 – but the first MP3 as well.

MP3: The Twilight Sad – “Reflection Of The Television”

The East Bay Express and San Diego City Beat talk to John Cummings and Stuart Braithwaite of Mogwai, respectively.

NOW talks to Eugene Kelly of The Vaselines, whose reunion tour brings them to Lee’s Palace tomorrow night.

Clash catches up with Sons & Daughters’ Adele Bethel at the Hinterland Festival.

Bat For Lashes’ Natasha Khan tells Spinner how touring affected the creation of album number two, Two Suns. CBC also has a feature.

Florence Welch of Florence & The Machine talks to Digital Spy about her new record Lungs, out July 6.

Clash talks to Patrick Wolf about the joys of being independent. His new album The Bachelor is out June 1 in the UK and August 11 in North America. He plays the Mod Club on June 17.

Drowned In Sound gets an update on The Arctic Monkeys. Their new album should be out before the end of August.

So in case you missed the Twitter/Facebook “WTF?!?” shitstorm yesterday afternoon, the Olympic Island festival scheduled for July 11 and featuring Broken Social Scene and Explosions In The Sky has been canceled – no official reason given. This is obviously a disappointment to many – I for one had really been looking forward to hearing EITS on the Island at sunset – but what can you do. Well if you’re Broken, then you can immediately announce a make-up show that same day, July 11, at Harbourfront Centre. And make it free. That’s a pretty good consolation prize, no? Of course, the crowd is going to be a circus dropped in the middle of a zoo, but that’s part of the fun. Also, eye talks to Stuart Berman, author of This Book Is Broken, the new book on Broken Social Scene.

Okay, Manhattan beckons. And to a lesser degree, Connecticut and Brooklyn.