Stream Four New Son Volt Songs

Head over to Son Volt's website to stream four songs from the band's new album, The Search. The four songs are:

"The Picture"
"Circadian Rhythm"
"The Search"
"Methamphetamine"

These are the same songs that the band's site was streaming only 30 second snippets of last week. They're pretty damn good, and "Methamphetamine" may be one of my favorite Son Volt songs in close to a decade.

Ryan Adams' Easy Tiger Out on June 1st

From Rolling Stone's Rock Daily blog:

Ryan Adams has announced a release date for his new album, Easy Tiger. We’ll be halfway into 2007 by the time this album comes out on June 1st. Could everyone’s favorite tormented troubadour be slowing down? Maybe he’s just taken the time to make Easy Tiger really awesome. Though the final sequence of tracks if not yet finalized, these songs will appear on the album: “Goodnight Rose”, “Everybody Knows”, “The Sun Also Sets”, “Halloween Head”, “Off Broadway”, “Two Hearts”, “Tears Of Gold”, “These Girls”, “Two”, “I Taught Myself How To Grow Old”, “Oh My God, Whatever, Etc.”, “Rip Off”, and “Pearls On A String”.

Excellent... hope he raps on it.

By the way, if you haven't heard it, "Off Broadway" is one of the songs from Ryan's "lost" Suicide Handbook album. It's one of my favorite Ryan songs, and I'm thrilled to see it on the tracklist. Guess this means Ryan won't be releasing Suicide Handbook like he said was going to, though. Oh well.

Frames Cancel SXSW Dates

Sadly, it appears that The Frames will not be appearing at South by Southwest next month. Although the band had been scheduled to play twice during the festival, the band's website posted a warning a day or two ago that those shows were "unlikely" due to an unspecified scheduling conflict. As of this morning, the website now confirms that those dates are being canceled because the band needs to go into the studio to record music for Glen's movie, Once. Crap. Hopefully this means that they've gotten some serious financing for the movie, and we'll be seeing it in the U.S.

The rest of the band's U.S. tour in April is unaffected, thankfully. Guess this just means I might have to try to catch them in Philly or D.C. in addition to New York.

Upcoming WOXY Lounge Acts

WOXY has some great live performances coming up this week from the Noise Pop Festival in San Francisco. In addition to streaming live Noise Pop performances from Midlake, Clinic, John Vanderslice and others, they're also going to be hosting several afternoon Lounge Acts, including a very special acoustic set from Ted Leo. Peep the schedule:

Thurs., 3/1, 2:30pm: Jolie Holland
Fri., 3/2, 2:30pm: Ted Leo
Mon., 3/5, 12:00pm: Georgie James
Mon., 3/5, 12:30pm: Love Like Fire

I believe all times are EST.

And check out last week's Lounge Act from David Vandervelde here. Worth checking out for the cover of "Cocksucker Blues" alone.

Filter's SXSW Day Shows

National Announce 4 NYC Shows

Pitchfork is reporting that The National has announced a series of four (!!) shows at New York's Bowery Ballroom in May. The shows -- Monday, May 28th through Thursday, May 31st -- are in conjunction with the release of the band's new album, Boxer, on May 22nd. (Go to Pitchfork to see the really cool cover.) No word as to when tickets go on sale, but I'd keep my eyes on Ticketweb this Wednesday morning if I were you.

Unfortunately, I'm 99.9% sure that these are the first big NYC shows I'll be missing due to my impending departure (temporary-ish, I hope) from New York. I'm sure they'll add a DC date to the tour, won't they?!?

New Golden Smog EP Due April 24th

You may recall that, around the time last summer that Golden Smog released Another Fine Day, its first album in eight years, the band announced that it also had an eight-song EP in the can which would come out in the fall of 2006. Well, that release date pretty much came and went (just as Another Fine Day did too, sadly), and I had started to wonder if we were ever going to hear this EP.

Well, sometime-reader Joel points out today that the EP finally has a release date -- April 24th. Entitled Blood on the Slacks, the disc will include six original songs, together with covers of David Bowie's "Starman" and Dinosaur Jr.'s "Tarpit". No word on pre-sale yet, or whether the song titles themselves will be clever plays on Dylan song titles. "Idiot (Breaks) Wind"? "You're a Really Big Girl"? The possibilities are endless.

Another Example of SNL Not Sucking

Lord knows there aren't many...





I doubt that my partners would go along with it, but I'm prepared to give the Arcade Fire a spot on my business' Board of Directors.

(Thanks to Stereogum for the heads up.)

Damien Rice Announces Spring North American Tour

This would have been a lot more exciting to me 3 years ago. Then again, given the size of the rooms he's playing, maybe it wouldn't have.

Presale tickets go on sale tomorrow, Monday, February 26th, at 10AM. I won't post the pre-sale password because, well, I still believe that mailing list folks should have the first shot at these tickets. It ain't a hard password to guess, though.

24 Apr USA Vancouver, BC - Center for the Arts
26 Apr USA Portland, OR - Roseland
28 Apr USA Oakland, CA - Paramount
1 May USA San Diego, CA - Spreckles
2 May USA Tucson, AZ - Music Hall
4 May USA Salt Lake City,UT - McKay Center
5 May USA Denver, CO - Paramount
7 May USA Dallas, TX - Majestic
8 May USA Houston, TX - Verizon
9 May USA Austin,TX - Bass Hall
11 May USA St.Louis, MO - Pageant
13 May USA Kansas City, MO - Uptown
14 May USA Chicago, IL - Opera House
15 May USA Minneapolis, MN - Northrop
17 May USA Detroit, MI - State Theatre
18 May Canada Toronto, ON - Massey Hall
20 May Canada Montreal, QUE - Olympia
21 May USA New York, NY - Radio City Music Hall
22 May USA Boston, MA - Opera House
24 May USA Philadelphia, PA - The Mann Center
25 May USA Washington, DC - Constitution Hall
26 May USA Louisville, KY - Palace
29 May USA Indianapolis, IN - Murat
30 May USA Atlanta, GA - Tabernacle
31 May USA Memphis, TN - Orpheum

No word on openers. I'm betting it ain't The Frames. Maybe Pedestrian?

Ted Leo Secret Show Canceled!

In the crappiest news I've had all week, this Sunday's "secret" Ted Leo show at the Mercury Lounge has been canceled due to illness. I just got an email from TicketWeb, and Brooklyn Vegan is confirming that the show has been canceled b/c Ted is sick. Crap.

Get well soon, Ted, and let's try this again sometime soon.

WOXY @ SXSW!

Some exciting news from the kids over at WOXY -- they'll be having a major presence at SXSW this year.

First, they'll be hosting several live Lounge Act sessions during the day from Monday through Saturday from a "secluded" location. Can we go? Pretty please? (Bands still TBA.)

Second, they're hosting a Day Party on Friday featuring Bob Mould, The Bird and the Bee, The Little Ones (yay!), The Broken West (yay more!), Aqueduct and Snowden. The party is hosted by comedian/homeless dude on the Sarah Silverman show Zach Galifinakis.

Not bad from a radio station that's died twice, eh? The only bad thing? Still no free pants.

Dennis Johnson, R.I.P.

Some sad non-music news out of Boston today. Former Boston Celtics great Dennis Johnson died at the age of 52. There are no details yet as to the cause of death. He had been coaching the Celtics' developmental team in Austin, TX, and he apparently collapsed at the end of the team's practice session today.

I was a huge fan of the Celtics while growing up, and have fond memories of watching DJ, Bird, Ainge et al smack around the Lakers in the 80's. DJ was one of the guys that made the NBA special back then -- he played his heart out, hustled for every ball, and seemed like a genuinely good guy. The NBA doesn't have enough of that anymore.

DJ, you'll be missed.

New "Better" Not The Final "Better", So Sayeth Not-Buckethead

Phew. It turns out that the new, most definitely not-better version of "Better" making the rounds the last few days is not the final version. Your source for all things heavy metal, Blabbermouth, quotes GNR guitarist Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal as stating:

"This is why leaks are a problem. It's like working on a painting, and someone displaying it when it's only half done. It hurts the artist because something's getting out there that people assume is the final version, the best version, etc. The other people that it hurts are the FANS — I mean, the *real* fans, the ones that care the most.

"The latest 'leak' is obviously some experimental mix of 'Better' — not any version I ever heard, but I don't claim to have heard everything that's out there... Whoever put it out there did a real mindfucking of the fans, especially to do it now, when the album's release is growing closer.

"I have faith in everyone involved in the mixing of the album that they won't disappoint, they'll stay true to what you love about GN'R."

Thank the Lord. And by Lord, I mean Axl.

[Photo source. Greatest guitar ever?]

Annuals on WOXY

If you missed it, Annuals played a fantastic Lounge Act session on WOXY.com yesterday. I'm not a huge fan of the band's Be He Me album, which just about put me to sleep the time I tried to listen to it, but I was really impressed by this session. I may need to add them to my SXSW lineup. You can download the band's WOXY Lounge Act here.

Oh, and be sure to listen to WOXY tomorrow (2/23) to catch Lounge Acts by Six Parts Seven at 11am and David Vandervelde at 3pm.

[Photo source.]

Is This The Official Version of "Better"?

Not sure how I missed this yesterday, but Idolator is reporting that the final version of the new Guns n' Roses song, "Better" -- from Chinese Democracy, of course -- has leaked. You can hear it here.

Gotta say, I liked the leaked version from last year more. This version is too polished -- Axl's vocals are a little too rounded out (not as raw as last year's leak), the first guitar solo doesn't kill like it used to (Axl had new guitarist Bumblefoot re-record Buckethead's parts), and Axl for some reason decided to add some atrocious keyboard bubble-like effects to last minute or so of the song.. And Axl's vocals are just a tad too high in the mix.

That said, the song is still damn good. I just hope Axl didn't diminish a great album by tinkering with it too much.

If I didn't think that my ass would get a cease and desist, I'd post the old version for you to compare and contrast. With 2 months (or so) left in my legal career, now ain't the time I want to get myself disbarred.

Edited to add: Looks like the track has been pulled, sorry. Also, the band announced today that the previously mentioned March 6th release date has, of course, been pushed. The good news? The band claims to still be mixing the album, so MAYBE that wasn't the final version of "Better" after all. Which would be a good thing.

New Asobi Seksu Video, "Goodbye"

Thanks to Pitchfork for the heads up:



Looking forward to catching these kids at SXSW. They just about destroyed my eardrums at their Apple Store appearance at CMJ in November.

Van Halen Tour Cancelled Already

Wow, these guys are more screwed up than Axl Rose. Less than a week after announcing a 40-date summer tour, the kinda-sorta reunited Van Halen have cancelled their tour. No word as to why yet, but I'm guessing Eddie was worried a tour would hurt his burgeoning porn music business. Or maybe Valerie Bertinelli realized that she didn't want her 15-year old son touring, drinking and whoring for two months.

Song of the Week

I've never been a huge fan of Modest Mouse. While the band has had a number of songs that I've liked -- and I even think The Moon and Antarctica was on whole a pretty damn good record -- I've simply never been able to really get into them. Maybe it's that the whole indie/cow-punk thing gets old to me after a couple of songs. Maybe it's that the Modest Mouse show at Irving Plaza in 2000 is still the only time I've ever seen a frat-boy fight at an indie rock show. Maybe I just think that Built to Spill does Built to Spill a lot better than Modest Mouse does.

Whatever the explanation, I'm not surprised to find that the band's new We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank doesn't do a whole lot for me. It's not awful, but nor is it going to make my year-end Best Of list. That said, much like their previous albums, the disc does include a few standout tracks. My favorite of the bunch, "Missed the Boat", is also the best song I've heard in the last couple of weeks. Check it out:

Modest Mouse, "Missed the Boat"

Unfortunately, the band chose to release the annoying "Dashboard" as its lead single. I won't subject you to it here.

Can It Please Be September Already?

While I'm still basking in the glow that was Ohio State's national chumpionship ass-whupping, I've already started looking forward to next season. And if I didn't already have enough to be excited about, given that my Wolverines' entire offense is coming back, and that this may be Llloyd's lllast year, today's news has me positively giddy.

Ladies and gentlemen, I'd like to introduce you to the Michigan Wolverines' opening day opponents:



I ain't kidding. Thanks as always to MGoBlog for the finest UM coverage known to man.

New National Album in May

Not sure how accurate this is, but a mini-review of the National's new album popped up on the band's Yahoo group over the weekend (and then All the Wine, and then WOXY, where I found it).

I've now heard the material that will make up the new record as, I'm guessing, have one or two friends of the band also on this list. They gave us early versions to help w/ sequencing. A listening party of the mastered record was held on Valentine's day -- though I was seeing Arcade Fire at Judson Church.

The music is great, perhaps a bit more of a mellow vibe than Alligator overall -- perhaps somewhere between the Cherry Tree mellow/ beautiful sound and the Alligator more up-beat/rocking sound. Most notable about the record is that it has the best arrangements they've done, by far, and there's some unexpected & wonderful new elements that you haven't heard before. Think trumpets, and other brass instruments; increased use of female backing vocals; excellent piano bits by Thomas Bartlett (aka Doveman & sideman to David Byrne, Bebel Gilberto, Laurie Anderson, The Frames, Yoko Ono); and possible even
some playing by band friend, Sufjan Stevens.

Thematically it intertwines songs about love, songs about war, and songs about office life. Or, more correctly, songs that are about all three topics at the same time.

As a bigger fan of the band's more upbeat side, and as a non-fan of Sufjan Stevens, I can't say I'm thrilled about this. Guess we'll just have to wait and see.

SXSW Planning

So I've put together a spreadsheet of SXSW shows over at Google Spreadsheets. Basically it's a day-by-day list of shows that interest me, including times and locations. I've only listed the evening showcases so far, and still need to add the day parties. I can tell you now -- there's gonna be some tough decisions ahead.

The toughest decision I can see right now -- whether to stay at Antone's for two hours between Margot & the Nuclear So and Sos and The Frames (and watch My Brightest Diamond and The Black Angels, neither of whom I love), or take the chance that I won't be able to get back in if I leave to go watch Robyn Hitchcock and You Am I in between. I'm guessing I'll probably stay at Antone's. The Frames trump just about any other band on Earth, except maybe these guys.

Ladies and Gentlemen... SXSW

Official schedules are out. Just figured out what I'm doing tomorrow.

A very quick run-thru of the Wednesday schedule makes me think I'll be seeing Emma Pollock at Emo's, then spending a couple hours at the Merge showcase @ Antone's (Broken West, Rosebuds), and then Birdmonster @ Habana Calle 6 Anex, and then maybe Patton Oswalt at Emo's IV Lounge.

Oh, and the Broken West have apparently been added to the Hot Freaks lineup. Not sure which day yet.

Upcoming Releases List Updated!

In what's become a twice-yearly event, I finally got around to updating the Upcoming Release list in the right-hand column. No longer will you need to be reminded that Glenn Danzig's Black Aria II album came out in October of last year. And even better, I discovered that Bad Religion's new album is due out in July! Hooray!

Post-Suck Wheat

So I mentioned a few months ago that Wheat was releasing a 5-song mini LP entitled That's Exactly What I Wanted... Exactly That. The mini LP -- can we just call it an EP? -- was to be released this past December. Well, there were a few delays with the disc's pressing or something or other, and I didn't end up getting my copy until just a few weeks ago.

Thankfully, it was worth the wait. While not as consistent as the band's first two albums, the EP shows the band returning to it's roots as a quirky, relaxed, slightly off-tune band making challenging yet pretty music. And not a single song on the EP would fit on the Win a Date With Tad Hamilton soundtrack, so it's got that going for it too.

Wheat, "Little White Dove" (from the EP)

Listening to the new EP, I think I feel comfortable saying that we've officially entered Wheat's Post-Suck period. Then again, maybe I should wait a couple more months before making any official pronouncements, given that the band's new full-length LP, Everyday I Said A Prayer for Kathy and Made a One Inch Square, comes out on May 7th on Empyrean Records. (That date's a push-back from the original March 6th date.) However, given the pretentiousness of the album title, I'm guessing this album ain't produced by the Neptunes. Guess we'll have to wait and see.

And speaking of seeing, the band has announced its first live dates in 3 years. Nothing in New York yet...

March 31: TT The Bears (Boston)
April 27: Northstar Bar (Philadelphia)

Oh, and check out this video of "Don't I Hold You" from Hope and Adams. I never saw it when it was released. I think that's a good thing -- it's pretty dumb. If I wanted to watch people make out, I'd stand next to Drew Barrymore at an indie rock show.

Introducing Other Ephemera

If you've read this blog with any regularity, and I know there's at least 3 of you (thanks Mom, Grandma and Chuck Wagner!), you've probably seen numerous shout-outs to my friend Matt, who is often the source of many of the news bits I put here on the site.

What you may not know -- and seriously, why the hell would you? -- is that Matt has a graduate degree from Columbia's School of Journalism, and is one of the finer writers I know. Unfortunately for the reading public, though, he also has an MBA from a damn fine B-school, and spends his days making the world a safer place for capitalism. (Don't we all?) So for the past few years, at least as far as I know, his music writing has been limited to his annual, gargantuan, amazingly witty and well-written "Annual Best Of" lists.

Well, that's all changing, because Matt went and got himself a blog. It's called Other Ephemera, and I strongly suggest you go check it out. And, wouldn't you know it, his inaugural post is his Annual Best Of list for 2006. While I can't agree that breath-voice put out the best album of the year, I think we can all agree that it's a damn fine list.

I'm looking forward to seeing what Matt has in store for us in the future. Best of luck, brother.

Smell That Reunion Money, Vol. 118 - The Cult

In a move sure to upset dozens of fans of The Doors of the Twenty-First Century Riders on the Storm, Ian Astbury has left the band to reunite The Cult with guitarist Billy Duffy. No word on whether Matt Sorum will fill the drummer position. Personally, I think the band should get their revenge on Axl Rose by hiring Steven Adler... or Brain... or Josh Freese... or Frank Ferrer. Hell, they can take Dizzy Reed too.

The Apples In Stereo @ Bowery Ballroom [2/15/07]

Don't ask me how it happened, but prior to last night's Apples in Stereo show at Bowery Ballroom, it had been exactly two months since I had last been to a live show. Between work, travel and other obligations, I was forced to skip a number of shows in December and January (Hold Steady, The Dears, Damien Rice/Glen Hansard, etc.). Before I knew it, two months went by without a show. I'm fairly sure that this is the longest stretch I've gone without a show in the nearly 11 years that I've lived in New York. I don't intend for it to happen again, regardless of where I live.

Maybe it was the fact that I hadn't seen live music in a while, but from the very first song, I fell in love with the opening band, Caspar and the Cookies. Unfortunately, as the second, third and fourth songs wore on, I very quickly fell out of love. And then love turned to active dislike. What started as a really good Byrds/Pernice Brothers/whatever-influence set -- well, one song at least -- devolved into a pretty bad wanna-be Elephant 6 set which simply didn't work. As I texted a friend during the show, I don't think I've ever liked the first song of an opener's set so much only to have the rest of the band's songs be awful. Guess there's a first for everything. Or, as I said, maybe my ears were just happy to hear that first song after a 2-month layoff.

As for the Apples in Stereo, they were pretty great. Nothing earth-shattering, but an energetic, fun set filled largely with songs off of the new album, New Magnetic Wonder, and a bunch of the usual suspects from their older catalog ("Go", "The Rainbow"). The crowd was at or near capacity despite that most of the city's hipster-ati were seeing (or trying to see) the Arcade Fire. And, amazingly, there was actually a patch of people dancing and bouncing around throughout the set, which is more and more rare at New York shows these days. While I'm not usually a fan of dancing at shows, if you can't dance to the Apples, who can you dance to?

A Couple Show Notes

Just a few quick interesting things...

You've probably already heard about the rumored Ted Leo and the Pharmacists show at Mercury next Sunday (2/26). If not, well, now you have.

David Vandervelde is playing two NYC shows at the end of the month. On Monday the 26th he's at Union Hall in Brooklyn, and on Tuesday the 27th he's at Pianos at 8pm (Sam Champion is headlining). There don't appear to be advance tickets for the Pianos show.

Louisville's The Scourge of the Sea, modern indie rock's answer to James Taylor, is playing Mercury Lounge on Wednesday, March 14th (Thx to Battering Room). While I'd like to see them, my ass will be in Austin.

And, if you're not seeing Sonic Youth tomorrow night -- and I'm not -- head over to Union Hall to catch The Battering Room's latest Knockout! show, with Johan, Sure Juror, the Muggabears and the Antlers. If I can bring myself to venture out Brooklyn-way, I just may be there.

More New Dinosaur Jr.

Just found another track from the new Dinosaur Jr. album over at Power Populist. This one's from the half of the CD I don't yet have. Melikes.

"Been There All The Time"

New Son Volt, "The Picture"

Via the French blog There's Always Someone Cooler Than You, check out the lead single from Son Volt's new album, The Search:

"The Picture"

In other Son Volt news, apparently Brad Rice is out of the band (again) because he's going to be on tour with, ahem, Keith Urban. Brad is being replaced by Chris Masterson, former guitar player for Jack Ingram.

Son Volt will be on Conan O'Brien on March 1. The Search is out on March 6th.

Sky Blue Sky Tracklist Announced

Matt points out that Wilco has announced the tracklisting for their forthcoming album, Sky Blue Sky. Check it:

Either Way
You Are My Face
Impossible Germany
Sky Blue Sky
Side with the Seeds
Shake it Off
Please Be Patient With Me
Hate it Here
Leave Me (Like You Found Me)
Walken
What Light
On and On and On

Noticeably absent is the band's "Is That The Thanks I Get". If the band's dropping a song that good, this album must be incredible. You can enjoy the band's future B-side here:

Bishop Allen's November and December

If you're like me, you kinda got overwhelmed by the number of EPs (12, to be exact) that Bishop Allen released last year. I tried keeping up, but somewhere around October completely lost track of them. Well, I should remedy that. Check out a couple songs from the band's November and December EPs, and go buy the whole damn set.

"Tea For Two" (from November)
"Calendar" (from December)

Can you tell I'm not as busy at work this week?

SXSW Official SESAC Day Stage Lineups

A lot of SXSW specifics are still, well, non-specific, but luckily they've now posted the listings for the festival's official day shows. The SESAC day stage is located at the Austin Convention Center, Upper Level, Ballroom G.

Wednesday, 3/14
12:30: The Gray Kid
1:00: Say Hi To Your Mom
1:30: Peter and the Wolf
2:00: Castanets
2:30: Bishop Allen (was this intentional?)
3:00: Scanners
3:30: Prototypes
4:00: Robin Hitchcock
5:30: The ettes

Thursday, 3/15
12:00: Marit Larsen
12:30: The Storys
1:00: Fionn Regan
1:30: St. Vincent
2:00: Oakley Hall
2:30: Busdriver
3:00: Kaki King
3:30: Holy Fuck
4:00: Stars of Track and Field
4:30: Art in Manila
5:00: Land of Talk

Friday, 3/16
1:00: The Winterkids
1:30: Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin
2:00: Thomas Dolby (wow!)
2:30: Ane Brun
3:00: The Cinematics
3:30: The Watson Twins
4:00: Brother Ali
4:30: Kid Koala
5:00: Daniel Johnston and the Nightmares
5:30: Sondre Lerche

Saturday, 3/17
12:00: Irina Bjorklund & Peter Fox
12:30: Balkan Beat Box
1:00: Spoon Robbers on High Street
1:30: Fujiya & Miyagi
2:00: Dengue Fever
2:30: Gruff Ryhs

Al Makes It Official

So, to the Minnesotans out there... do you guys take him seriously or not?

Afternoon Items

Some good stuff:

Earlimart are streaming two songs from their forthcoming streaming two new songs at their 2 new songs. (Thanks to The Battering Room for the heads up.)

Also via The Battering Room is news that The Rosebuds are playing a free acoustic show tonight in New York. The band's third album, Night of the Furies, comes out on April 10th 2007 via Merge Records.

NME has video of Bloc Party's entire concert at Carling Academy in Bristol from last week. The show runs an hour and 14 minutes. Not bad. Those Brits sure do jump around a lot at shows.

Kraig Jarrett Johnson, known as a member of Golden Smog, The Jayhawks and Run Westy Run, has several solo songs up at his MySpace page. Not sure why I'm just discovering this now. Pretty good.

Silversun Pickups recently did an in-studio set for, err, MTV. I still love 'em. Watch it here. They also did an acoustic set for Liquid Generation, which you can watch here.

More soon...

I Am Become The Frames Blog

Or so it seems, given my lack of free time lately, and the fact that many of my posts these days deal with the Frames. I promise, this will be changing soon. But until then, check out the Frames @ SXSW skinny from the band's newsletter:

15th/16th/17th march will see the frames in austin texas as part of the fabulous south by south west music festival. right this second we are still putting the finishing touches to a round of parties and shows that we've been asked to play at over the three days (tis tough fitting them all in!) - but - looks like we'll be on around 10pm in antones as part of the billions showcase on the 16th march. thatll be probably the only club date proper. the rest as i say will be a mix of parties. the friday day time looks like we'll be at the no depression and paste parties. the thursday could see us at the soundcheck party. any other bits that get confirmed for sure, ill get donal to put them up on the tour page.

So, to recap for those of you who can't read Irish email-ese, the band's schedule looks something like this:

Thurs., 3/15
Soundcheck Party (FREE, 709 E. 6th St., Noon-6pm, also playing: The Little Ones, Daniel Johnston, others)

Fri., 3/16
No Depression Party (no info yet)
Paste Party (no info yet)
Billions Showcase @ Antone's (10pm)

Oh, and thanks to Matt for pointing out this page, which is pretty much giving me a brain aneurism at the moment trying to decide what to see, and the whole schedule isn't even up yet. Arg.

Once

Check out the trailer for Once, the new movie starring Glen Hansard of The Frames and Marketa Irglova. The movie was an official selection at this year's Sundance Festival, and has been garnering excellent reviews. It better get a U.S. release.

Liveblogging the Grammys... Kinda

Never done the liveblogging thing before, and not planning to make a thing of it, but I'm compelled to go on record saying that this whole Police thing is, quite possibly, the most overblown, unnecessary reunion of all time. This rendition of "Roxanne" just took about 4 years off my life. Awful.

And while I'm here, three other thoughts:

(1) Half that arena got screwed (or did they?) because they couldn't even see the stage where the band was performing.
(2) Who exactly are these ridiculously uncomfortable-looking white people in the mosh pits?
(3) Mosh pits at the Grammys?

OK, that's it. Keep your fingers crossed that my uncle wins himself a Grammy.

Edited to add: He didn't. He was in a pre-broadcast award. Fucking Jersey Boys.

Woah

Ass-kickin'-est song I've heard so far this year.

News and Notes

A few interesting pieces of news floating around today. Check it:

De Novo Dahl have apparently left Nashville's Theory 8 Records to sign with... wait for it... Roadrunner Records. Awesome. Now we might finally get that De Novo Dahl / Cradle of Filth / DragonForce tour we've all been hoping for. Oh, and the band's new album is being produced by Dave Fridmann. (Thanks to Shivvy at WOXY for catching this as at CMJ.com).

Current indie-folk sensation M Ward will apparently be sacrificing a month of his life (and a lifetime of credibility) opening for Norah Jones.

Apparently Bob Mould doesn't like to back up his hard drive any more than I do, and a recent hard drive crash might have destroyed an entire new album of material. Could it be that world has lost the next truly great rock and roll album? Probably not.

Finally, if you're quick you can be one of the first kids on your block to own the new Eames Era album, entitled Heroes and Sheroes. The album comes out nationwide on April 17th, but the band is making 200 copies available for pre-sale on its website. I can guarantee you there are no more than 199 left.

Check out a couple of tunes from the new disc (and go here for a third):

"Both Hands Full"
"When You Were a Millionaire"

My SXSW Plans

... just got a little more complicated. Definitely need to hit these shows, if for no other reason than to try to meet some of the folks who run these blogs. If you look to my blogroll on the sidebar, you'll see, these folks are among the best of the best. Looks like a great lineup, even if that special guest isn't Voxtrot.

Hell, I'd be there for the Guided By Voices reference alone.

Broken West ARE Opening All 4 NY Long Winters Shows

At least one of you asked me if the Broken West were going to be opening for all 4 of the Long Winters' New York area shows. We already knew they were playing at Union Hall on April 2nd. Well, the band's Myspace page confirms that the answer is yes:

March 30: Maxwell's w/The Long Winters
March 31: Mercury Lounge w/The Long Winters
April 1: Mercury Lounge w/The Long Winters
April 2: Union Hall w/The Long Winters

Afternoon Videos

Uncle Tupelo, "Gun" (Bloomington, IN, 1992)


Uncle Tupelo, "Looking For A Way Out" (New Haven, CT, 1992)


Wilco, "Can't Stand It" (from Later, 1999)


Audio/video syncing isn't so hot on this one.

Son Volt, "Chickamauga" (Bonnaroo, 2006)

A Taste of The Search

Head over to Son Volt's website to check out snippets from the band's new album, The Search. The band is streaming 30-second snippets of "The Picture", "Circadian Rhythm", "The Search" and "Highways and Cigarettes" (the latter of which sounds like it should be fantastic). The Search is out on March 6th.

Son Volt Tour Dates

3/26: The Nightlight, Bellingham, WA
3/27: Showbox, Seattle, WA
3/28: Crystal Ballroom, Portland, OR
3/30: The Fillmore, San Francisco, CA
3/31: Mystic Theatre, Petaluma, CA
4/3: El Rey Theatre, Los Angeles, CA
4/4: Belly Up, Solana Beach, CA
4/5: Rialto Theatre, Tucson, AZ
4/7: Fox Theatre, Boulder, CO
4/9: First Avenue, Minneapolis, MN
4/10: Vic Theatre, Chicago, IL
4/12: Mod Club, Toronto, ONT
4/13: Higher Ground, Burlington, VT
4/14: Pearl St., Northampton, MA
4/15: Paradise, Boston, MA
4/18: Irving Plaza, New York, NY
4/19: Mr. Small’s, Pittsburgh, PA
4/20: Headliners, Louisville, KY
4/21: The Pageant, St. Louis, MO
5/1: George's Majestic Lounge, Fayetteville, AR
5/2: Rev Room, Little Rock, AR
5/3: Ridglea Theater, Ft. Worth, TX
5/4: Stubb's Austin, TX
5/6: Continental Club, Houston, TX
5/5: Floore's Country Store, Helotes, TX
5/8: House of Blues, New Orleans, LA
5/10: Workplay Birmingham, AL
5/11: Variety Playhouse, Atlanta, GA
5/12: Crawfish Boil – Riverfront Park, Nashville, TN
5/14: Rhythm & Brews, Chattanooga, TN
5/15: Orange Peel, Asheville, NC
5/16: Visulite, Charlotte, NC
5/17: 9:30 Club, Washington, DC
5/18: Trocadero, Philadelphia, PA
5/19: BandTogether, Raleigh, NC

More News From The Frames

Two quick notes from The Frames:

First, the band's April 26th show at the 9:30 Club in Washington D.C. will be recorded and broadcast as part of NPR's All Songs Considered concert series. ASC has previously featured bands such as The Decemberists, Wilco, Built to Spill, James Brown, and, Sleater-Kinney, meaning the Frames are in pretty damn good company.

Second, the band is confirmed for what appears to be at least TWO shows at South By Southwest next month. Although details are nonexistent at this point, the band's website lists three Austin dates on its Tour Page, two of which say "Details to follow..." So I interpret that to be at least two, maybe three shows. Expect me at all of them.

My Next, Most Anticipated Album of the Year

This isn't actually from the album, but from the teaser EP due out a month beforehand.

Seriously, this guy is one of the few highly-heralded "new Dylans" who has yet to go astray. Really looking forward to this disc.

What I Hate This Week

AOL Roundup (Week of February 7)

Good week over at AOL...

Peter Bjorn and John, Writer's Block

Bloc Party, A Weekend In the City

Forward, Russia!, Eighteen EP

Apples In Stereo, New Magnetic Wonder

Loney, Dear, Loney, Noir

Jesse Sykes, Like, Love, Lust and the Open Halls of the Soul

Lifetime, Lifetime

This Is Not A Terror Threat

CYHSY Announce Tour, No New York?

Hot on the heels of the release of their second album, Some Loud Thunder, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah have announced a month-long U.S. tour in April. No New York date announced yet, which is fine with me -- I pretty much swore off ever seeing them again after the Summerstage show last year. I'm sure one or more NYC shows will be announced before too long, though.

Pre-sale for the entire tour starts tomorrow (Monday):

4/10/2007 Lupos Heartbreak, Hotel Providence, RI
4/11/2007 Pearl Street Night Club, Northampton, MA
4/12/2007 Higher Ground, Burlington, VT
4/13/2007 Metropolis, Montreal, QB
4/14/2007 Kool Haus, Toronto, ON
4/15/2007 The Town Ballroom, Buffalo, NY
4/17/2007 Cannery Ballroom, Nashville, TN
4/18/2007 Variety Playhouse, Atlanta, GA
4/19/2007 40 Watt, Athens, GA
4/20/2007 Freebird, Jacksonville, FL
4/21/2007 The Club at Firestone, Orlando, FL
4/22/2007 Revolution, Fort Lauderdale, FL
4/24/2007 Republic, New Orleans, LA
4/26/2007 Warehouse Live, Houston, TX
4/27/2007 Granada Theatre, Dallas, TX
4/28/2007 Stubb's BBQ, Austin, TX

Greatest Anti-Smoking Ad Ever

I'm no fan of the constant barrage of anti-smoking ads we get on TV here in New York. Between the dude who can't swim with his kids anymore (due to the hole in his neck) and the little girl who lost her not-small mother to lung cancer, the commercials run constantly and depress the hell out of me.

That said, you may have seen the new ad they've been running lately. I gotta say -- they finally got one right. Who knew being anti-tobacco could be so danceable?

New Little Ones Video

Check out the new Little Ones video for "Oh MJ!"



(Thanks to Rock Insider for the heads up.)

According to their label, Astralwerks, the band will shortly be releasing a new digital single of "Lovers Who Uncover", including the never before heard "Crystal Castles vs. The Little Ones" remix, and bonus mixes of "Oh MJ!" by, ahem, Stereolab. I really, really don't like Stereolab.