For some reason, the organizers of this year s haven t been too forthcoming about the bounty of bands that will perform at their music festival in Austin, Texas come March 14-18. But today in an email newsletter, they leaked a few more artists. Also, the Beggars Group, Barsuk, and Hydra Head revealed their showcases, we announced our party, and we received a few more confirmations.
, SXSW announced Bloc Party, Interpol, Lily Allen, the Stooges, and many more performers, plus interviews and talks by David Byrne, Pete Townshend, Emmylou Harris, and others. Earlier this week, we unleashed the lineup for the , taking place at Emo s and Emo s Jr. on Friday, March 16 from noon-6 p.
m. [In case you forgot, we ve got Girl Talk, Menomena, Rjd2, the Ponys, the Pipettes, Do Make Say Think, Deerhunter, Simian Mobile Disco, Fujiya Miyagi, Beach House, Marnie Stern, and Crystal Castles.) In various news stories, we reported that Voxtrot, 120 Days, Magik Markers, a Nick Drake panel and film, Jesse Sykes, Frog Eyes, YACHT, Badly Drawn Boy, Datarock, Pattern Is Movement, and many, many more would be heading to Austin in a month.
Today, SXSW announced the additions of performances by the Good, the Bad and the Queen, Thurston Moore, Reigning Sound, the Automatic, Mastodon, and Steve Earle, as well as a few more speakers, including Iggy Pop, David Cross, and Patton Oswalt. There will also be a screening of the Jandek performance film Duality of Self, as well as a live show by the man himself, taking place Saturday, March 17 at the Central Presbyterian Church. The Beggars Group showcase will take over Emo s and Emo s Jr on Wednesday, March 14, with sets by Blonde Redhead, Mountain Goats, Beirut, Emma Pollock (formerly of the Delgados), Wolf Cub, Voxtrot, Calla, ILiKETRAiNS, Future of the Left, and the Early Years.
Barsuk will occupy Buffalo Billiards on Thursday, March 15, bringing Menomena, Jesse Sykes the Sweet Hereafter, Aqueduct, Viva Voce, and Rocky Votolato. That same night, Hydra Head will terrorize Emo s Annex, with sets by Pelican, Jesu, Big Business, Daughters, Oxbow, and Stephen Bordsky s Octave Museum. are leaving us, and chances are, you missed them.
The disco-noise spazztro trio were crazy and awesome and only a few people cared about them, but they kept at it for over ten years. In 2005, they released their last album, , which I loved and the rest of the site liked, um, slightly less than I did. Tonight at the Richmond Renaissance Center in Rah Bras hometown of Richmond, Virginia, the band will perform their last show.
It is part of local community radio station s anniversary party, and space suits [are] optional , according to the band. After the show, Rah Bras will go on sabbatical until 2037, when truth is revealed and your place on the new ark is secure. So I ll see you at the reunion!
I ll be the 55-year-old lady in the front row. will release their next single as a double A-side. Ageing Had Never Been His Friend (see: the video) will be on one side, and a cover of the Pastels Nothing to Be Done will be on the other.
will release the single in the UK on March 19.
The band have a couple of dates in England this month before heading off to Australia to play a few clubs and a few festivals. has kept pretty quiet recently.
That is, unless you count his MySpace blog, where he posted recent entries about the Gossip s Standing in the Way of Control and What it means to be gay. The is pretty detailed and includes the line, That one Top Gun dude is an example, not Goose but the other guy. He has, however, finally peeled himself away from the computer to kick off a tour of DJ dates that begins tonight in Washington, D.
C. Presumably, this means no more treatises on sexual orientation for a while, but we think his party-rocking will make up for it.
Sly Stone world tour to follow this summer, with special guests Thomas Pynchon and Jandek Contrary to the accepted wisdom regarding pot smokers, was productive as hell in his heyday, releasing seven albums in as many years with his band .
On March 20, Epic/Legacy will celebrate the 40-year anniversary of the release of the group s 1967 debut, A Whole New Thing, by reissuing it along with the rest of the band s seven pre-solo Sly or Family Stone comeback albums.
All seven albums (chronologically: A Whole New Thing, Dance to the Music, Life, Stand!, There s a Riot Goin On, Fresh, Small Talk) will come as limited edition digipaks with bonus tracks, plenty of which are previously unreleased.
According to a press release, they will also feature restored and expanded packaging, including rare photos, memorabilia, and new liner notes by a diverse group of writers and artists. The bonus tracks for each release are as follows.
Forecast for late March and early April: heavy synth-rock with a chance of hipster haircuts.
Yup, Brooklyn bangers and Norwegian kraut-dancers are hitting North America this spring. Both bands also have several U.S.
and European dates scheduled separately both before and after the trek. 120 Days will also hit up SXSW, though Ratatat have better things to do, like playing in Buffalo. Ratatat have a second remix album on the way, creatively titled Mixtape Vol.
2. It boasts 14 new remixes of people like Biggie Smalls, Jay-Z, Young Jeezy, T.I.
, Beanie Sigel, Ludacris, Juvenile, and Kanye West, as well as exclusive tracks picked up 120 Days that came out on / last fall...
well, the early bird doesn t always get the worm. Fans purchasing the record from release, it features new music and lyrics, which sort of makes it seem like it might be an entirely different song, but whatevs. Grammys) with two awards in hand-- one for Best Rock Album, and one for Best New Artist.
Jesse Sykes Confesses Like, Love, Lust, Kicks Off Tour will release her third album with her band the Sweet Hereafter via on February 6. Like, Love, Lust the Open Halls of the Soul features a guest appearance from Swedish songwriter Nicolai Dunger and production from Tucker Martine (the Decemberists, the Long Winters) and Martin Feveyear (Mark Lanegan, Kings of Leon). Remember, Sykes isn t your average folkie-girl-with-guitar.
The last time, we heard from her, she was singing on . And just look a that photo up there! She s such a badass!
Sykes and her band kick off their tour with Sparklehorse tonight in Austin.
Though the of s Ed Rec series of compilations was just released digitally, the French label is already moving forward with plans for a physical release of Ed Rec Vol. 2.
Unlike Vol. 1, which was retrospective, Vol. 2 will feature 14 new and exclusive tracks, except for and Mr.
Flash s Disco Dynamite . Ed Banger will release Vol. 2 with in Europe on March 12 in both CD and double LP formats.
will release it digitally on March 6 and physically on April 10 in the U.S., with a currently untitled bonus track by label boss Busy P tacked on.
The package also comes with a page of original stickers from the label.
Ed Banger artists Justice, DJ Mehdi, Sebastian, and Busy P will tour North America together in March, after which Justice have a couple dates of their own. Parties in Chicago, Brussels, and Paris will precede the tour.
The compilation isn t the only upcoming Ed Banger release. The label also plans to release 12 s from Mr. Oizo ( Patrick 122 ), Busy P ( Rainbow Man , February 26), DJ Mehdi ( Lucky Boy EP, March 19), and Justice ( D.
A.N.C.
E , also on CD single April 16). A Justice album is in the works for June. their LP landed on last summer.
After this tour ends in March, they re headed to Europe. Midlake will spend Valentine s Day playing two shows here in Chicago at Schubas. We hope their significant others don t mind.
are mining their 2005 album for yet another release, the EP, due this coming Tuesday, February 6 on CD and the Tuesday after that, February 13, digitally, both via . five versions of its title track, including remixes by Serge Santi a go, Ewan Pearson, and two from Francois K--solo and with Eric Kupper. It also features a cover of In addition, the enhanced disc boasts the Ride a White Horse video, as well as London concert footage of the song.
For a sneak peek, check out e-card. It comes complete with audio, video, and a carousel of bluish-white horses that look like they just left an ice sculpture exhibit.
Sufjan, My Brightest Diamond to Play Music Now Fest
Also Clogs, Amiina, plus mad collaborations As if he isn t busy enough playing in both the National and Clogs, has somehow found the time to curate the second annual festival in Cincinnati.
The event, which is scheduled to run from April 5-7 at Memorial Hall, features cellists/multi-instrumentalists Irena and Vojtech Havel, and the U.S. debut of Spanish flamenco here s where things get interesting (and, at times, incestuous): Both Sufjan string quartets.
Sufjan will also play with some as-of-yet unannounced special guests. My Brightest Diamond s Shara Worden will lend vocals to both Suf and Clogs. And finally, Clogs will, with the help of special guests Worden, Aaron Dessner (of the National), and percussionist David Cossin, premiere new material by their violinist/composer, Padma Newsome (also of the National).
Whew! According to the Chicago Police Department, last month alone several incidents of kidnapping, prostitution, and arson took place within walking distance of Pitchfork World Headquarters. If you haven t stopped reading by now, you re ballsy, one of the many desired qualities we look for in our internship candidates.
Business intern responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following: Assisting our sales team with client contact and research, working on things that we think are important, helping with accounts receivable and payable, managing promotional materials, executing promotions, and providing overall help to streamline our business operations. All candidates must be excellent at almost everything. We need to make sure you ll be able to handle an office as unbelievably intense as ours.
Candidates must reside in the Chicagoland area.
We prefer candidates who are able to obtain college credit for the internship, but this is not mandatory. If you re interested, please us a cover potential start date.
Deadline is Monday, February 5 at 5 p.m. CST.
Arcade Fire Involved in London Scuffle? Last night in London, at the end of their set at Porchester Hall, did what has become a tradition at their performances: they performed a brief acoustic set in the foyer of the venue. These sets are just one of the many reasons why this band is so loveable, offering fans who were stuck in the back for the entire main performance an opportunity to see the group up close and personal for a few songs.
But apparently, the Arcade Fire are not beloved by everybody. According to a reporter for the NME, as the band made their way to the back of Porchester Hall for the encore, they encountered a bit of trouble with a security guard. One of guards was literally manhandling Win, who was pretty pissed off and shouted Don t fucking touch me before shrugging off the attention and defiantly placing his mic stand at the bottom of the foyer stairs, the reporter said.
The rest of the band-- French horns, double bass and all-- then emerged from the startled crowd, most of whom hadn t realised exactly what was going on, to play a spine-tingling extended acoustic version of Wake Up . After about a minute, Win disappeared to the back of the throng, leaving the lead vocals to be sung en masse by the audience! Butler then led the band back into the hall to play a brief rendition of the Clash song The Guns of Brixton .
However, a Pitchfork reporter who also attended the performance, tells us that from his vantage point, things were a bit less dramatic than the NME may be letting on:
It was kind of chaotic after they played their first encore. You could see the band head off through a side door with their instruments, and I guess enough people had read accounts of them playing post-show acoustic sets on steps of the St. John s earlier in the week to expect they might be planning something similar.
The Porchester Hall isn t really a rock venue-- it s a rather ornate classical music venue, and isn t really designed for a huge surge of people all trying to leave at once. I d been at the front near the stage during the show, and by the time I headed towards the foyer to see what was going on, there was a big scrum of people all trying to get down the steps at the same time. People were pushing through the door, trying to get out onto the balcony, even sarcastically shouting FIRE!
to get people moving. I didn t see any of the alleged trouble between Win and the guard, but I can t believe it was a big deal because nothing filtered back to my part of the crowd, and the band eventually came back into the hall and played a version of Guns of Brixton . There was a good-humoured atmosphere-- certainly nothing rancorous as far as I could see.
NME posted amateur video of the event on YouTube, which can be seen below. Although Wake Up is indeed spine-tingling , nothing much appears to happen before it. It s been awhile since we ve heard new music from , the titanic post-math-rock supergroup consisting of multi-instrumentalist extraordinaire Tyondai Braxton, drummer John Stanier (Helmet, Tomahawk), guitarist/keyboardist Ian Williams (Don Caballero), and guitarist/bassist Dave Konopka (Lynx).
But now, the drought is over. On April 2, Battles will release the Atlas single digitally and on 12 vinyl, backed by a remix by DJ Koze. It s a teaser for the Mirrored LP, due May 15.
Both come out on , which re-released the band s together last year. The new music is the first time Battles have incorporated vocals into their sonic onslaught, and from what we ve heard so far, it kind of sounds like the Knife sent through a post-hardcore meat grinder. In a good way.
Battles will hone their road-warrior skills on their upcoming North American tour, which kicks off in Baltimore on March 20.
debut LP, , lands on February 20 via . Why does that name sound familiar (other than the fact that his first name is, um, Elvis)?
Well, he happens to be the son of the late actor Anthony Perkins. Yes, the Psycho guy. In support of the record, (Perkins + his touring band) have a boatload of dates on the agenda.
As , they ll spend the first half of February across the pond opening for Clap Your Hands Say Yeah. Once they return, Perkins and co. will embark on an extensive trek through North America, SXSW stop included.
hold its forth annual Double Barrel Benefit tonight, February 2, and Saturday, February 3, at Raleigh King s Barcade club. And unlike your college radio station s lame fundraiser featuring terrible student bands, this one is actually good.
Mountain Goats, Megafaun, the Old Ceremony, and the Prayers and Tears of Arthur Digby Sellers are lined up for Friday s sold-out performance, while Annuals, Future Islands, Tiger Bear Wolf, and the Pitchfork s been crushing on Austin, Texas indie pop quintet for well over a year now, so it s hard to believe they ve yet to actually release a full-length record.
Oh, they ve got EPs alright-- three thus far, including last fall s . And they ve got . So what s going on with that inaugural full-length foray?
Well, it won t be long now. With the band in New York City mixing their debut, Pitchfork caught up with Voxtrot frontman , who generously disclosed some of the album s dark secrets, shared his thoughts on the record-making process, considered the blogosphere, and First, the essentials: imprint will deliver the Voxtrot full-length worldwide on (or around, as the case may be) May 22. It was produced and mixed by (Nick Cave, PJ Harvey, Mojave 3) and recorded in December and January at Premier and Cacophony studios in Austin.
To tide over fans in the UK, Beggars/Playlouder will release Trouble backed by Your Biggest Fan as a limited edition 7 and download single on February 26. have a name yet, but Ramesh is leaning toward either a self-titled affair ( I guess it s the first time we re presenting ourselves to a lot of people, so Blogs? At least we think he s joking.
full-length, the record will contain 12 or 13 entirely new Voxtrot songs (i.e., nothing from the three EPs or the seven inches) drawn from a pool of 16 new jams.
Among them, Ramesh s present favorites: Kids Gloves , Blood Red In particular, Ramesh loves Firecracker because it sounds the least like his band s previous material. It s kind of like an odd marriage of styles, he said. Beats that we haven t used before.
I just like the bigness of it, The tune, as it turns out, is autobiographical. In a way first time with a record label, and what that s been like, and how it affects Srivastava and confidence, it seems, have an Fan EP late last year, Ramesh and self-confidence were on the outs. I like [the EP], and I like the songs on it, but I wasn t overjoyed with the way that it sounded, because it all had to be done in this very rushed environment.
I think when that came out I was overly terrified of critical response, because I Fortunately, they made up: In the end, it ended up not being that big of a deal. Now I like it, and I realize it s just songs. I like the songs, and it really doesn t matter that much, the sound of every instrument and every note.
Do you have a news tip for us? Anything crazy happen at a show you attended recently? Do you have inside info on the bands we cover?
Is one of your favorite artists (that's not somebody you know personally) releasing a new record you'd like to see covered? You will remain completely anonymous, unless we are given your express permission to reveal your identity. (Please note that publicists, managers, booking agents, and other artist representatives are generally exempt from this rule, but will also be granted anonymity if requested.
News RSS