Architecture in Helsinki announce tour dates

Architecture in Helsinki That big band of Aussies, Architecture in Helsinki will release their third album, Places Like This, in a couple weeks (on Aug. 21 via Polyvinyl Records) and, will mark the release with a tour of the states.

The tour dates:
10-10 Philadelphia, PA - Starlight Ballroom
10-11 New York, NY - The Gramercy Theatre
10-12 Brooklyn, NY - Studio B
10-13 Boston, MA - Paradise Rock Club
10-16 Chicago, IL - Metro
10-18 Toronto, Ontario - Lee's Palace
10-19 Montreal, Quebec - La Tulipe
10-24 Minneapolis, MN - 400 Bar
10-26 Denver, CO - Ogden Theatre
10-27 Salt Lake City, UT - In the Venue
10-29 Seattle, WA - The Showbox
10-30 Portland, OR - Crystal Ballroom
11-01 San Francisco, CA - Fillmore
11-02 San Diego, CA - House of Blues
11-05 Los Angeles, CA - Troubadour
11-10 Tucson, AZ - Solar Culture
11-13 Denton, TX - Hailey's
11-14 Austin, TX - Emo's
11-15 New Orleans, LA - The Republic
11-16 Tallahassee, FL - Club Downunder

Hook To New Order Bandmates: 'See You In Court'

The members of New Order continue to spar about whether the legendary U.K. rock combo is still an entity. In a statement earlier in this month, singer Bernard Sumner and drummer Stephen Morris rejected bassist Peter Hook's assumption that the band is no more by saying plans were afoot for New Order projects and that Hook speaks for himself and nobody else.

But Hook has once again addressed the issue on his MySpace site. In a July 27 posting entitled "Disappointment!," Hook says he will consider legal action against the other members should they continue using the New Order name.

"This group has SPLIT UP! You are no more New Order than I am!" Hook said in the post. "You may have two-thirds but don't assume you have the right to do anything New Order-y cos (sic) you don't. I've still got a third! But am open to negotiation."

Hook also stated that he hasn't had much of a personal relationship with the other members for some time. "Whenever you contact me it's through the management," he said. "You all knew what was happening re: the split! In February! Using Cannes and Mojo as some excuse to at last get your own back is wrong." The message concludes with the less-than-cryptic message, "See you in court!"

New Order last played live in November in Buenos Aires and released its latest studio album, "Waiting for the Sirens' Call," in 2005.

Lucky Soul – The Great Unwanted (album review):

Last years ‘We Are The Pipettes’ was an up-tempo, deliriously catchy Motown-esque album full of very summery tunes and lilting melodies. The debut album by 2007’s rising stars Luck Soul, ‘The Great Unwanted’, is as gloriously affecting as the Pipettes’ offering, and just as perfect in its ability to add a spring in the step of those with even the lowest of downbeat moods. The band, a 6-piece from South London, have released an album that immediately lifts the spirits, and never more so than with breezy opening track (and Diana Ross & The Supremes sound-a-like) ‘Add Your Light To Mine Baby’.

Its loping bass line - reminiscent of Dodgy’s 1996 hit ‘Good Enough’ – and kitchen sink et. al. approach in its whooping brass section sees the track hit the pinnacle of mid-60’s Detroit Tamla-town, with lead singer Ali Howard’s soaring vocals sounding, on numerous occasions throughout the album, like Sarah Cracknell from 90’s indie pop band St. Etienne. The song’s shimmering outro refrain of “Baby you’re so fine / Together we could shine / Add your light to mine” being of particularly exhilarating fare.

One of the many great things about this album is the obvious care in which the tracklisting has been put together. In today’s fickle music culture of cherry-picking tracks to bung onto an iPod, it’s refreshing to hear an album where genuine thought has been put into the ebb and flow of the alum, and the many differing moods and genres it encapsulates; ‘The Great Unwanted’ smoothly segues from positively zany into chilled-out melancholy without skipping a beat.

The momentum of the album begins with 4 upbeat tracks, punctuating with chunky Martha & the Vandellas stop/start dynamic and scorching chunky riffs and soothing ‘Ooooh’ refrains, as seen in second track ‘One Kiss Don’t Make A Summer’, with the last lines “But if it’s True-ooooh / Tell me what am I supposed to do-ooooh?” The wistful daze of tracks 3 and 4 (‘Struck Dumb’ and ‘Lips Are Unhappy’ respectively) are both positively pleasant ditties, with ‘Struck Dumb’ sounding reminiscent of the Frankie Valli & Four Seasons 1962 classic ‘Big Girls Don’t Cry’, especially the ‘Waaah-waaah’ bit. You know what I mean when you hear it.

The Austin Powers-esque ‘Get Outta Town’ (imagine a cast of random characters accompanying Austin “Danger” Powers in a full-form dance formation along to this track in the credit scenes…) and lovely ‘My Brittle Heart’, coupled with the humble modesty of ‘Ain’t Never Been Cool’ (with witty lines such as “Won’t get in your gang / Won’t fit in your clique / Won’t tap you on the shoulder / Or kiss you on the cheek”) show a refreshingly post-modern cool-without-wanting-to-be-cool attitude.

And that’s pretty much the whole album really – it’s cool without wanting to be cool.
By J M Ross

Dinosaur Jr. schedule more U.S. shows

If you haven’t caught the Dinosaur Jr. reunion tour yet, well, what exactly have you been waiting for? A sign from god? Did you forget that, in some circles, J. Mascis is god?

Well, lucky for you, oh ever-waiting one, Mascis, Lou Barlow, and Murph have been nice enough to plot another handful of U.S. shows. They’re coming in September, after the indie superheroes spend next month shredding in other parts of the globe.

9/3 New York, NY - Webster Hall
9/4 Philadelphia, PA - Trocadero
9/8 Los Angeles, CA - Wiltern
9/9 San Francisco, CA - Mezzanine
9/11 Seattle, WA - Neumo’s
9/12 Portland, OR - Crystal Ballroom

Yeah Yeah Yeahs Working Slowly On New Tunes

The Yeah Yeah Yeahs are working on material for their next Interscope album, but there's no timetable yet on its release. "[I'm] working here and there, without much pressure on myself," frontwoman Karen O says. "I think [guitarist] Nick [Zinner] and [drumme] Brian [Chase] could say the same. Working pretty much nonstop as an artist, the hardest thing is to know what to do with yourself when you have some time off. You struggle with yourself to take a vacation."

For now, the rock trio is promoting the release of a new EP, "Is Is," featuring older songs that has not made any of its prior albums. "We had some time off, and it was something we wanted to do for posterity's sake, kind of have a document of it," Karen O says. "These songs always felt like they belonged together. We recorded them in February this year, with Nick Launay, who produced PIL's' 'Flowers of Romance.' If we tried to record them any time before this, we wouldn't have had Nick for them, and he couldn't be a more perfect match for the music."

Accompanying the music is a DVD of a show held in May at a tiny venue in Brooklyn. "It shows the raw, sexual side of us that's been there since day one. It's something as natural to us as flying is to birds," Karen O says. "We were dealing with a time when we were in between managers. There was this feeling of, 'Yeah, we're a renegade band! We're gonna make the kind of recording that has the intensity and magnitude of what we're about.'"

The Yeah Yeah Yeahs are playing a few shows in support of the EP, and Karen O enthuses, I know my limitations more than I've ever known them before. It's taken several years to kind of figure that out, like how many shows to do in a row. It takes so much out of you."
(via billboard)

Tegan and Sara- The Con (Album Review)

In case you couldn't tell from the packaging – a charred letterpressed novel – The Con is sister act Tegan and Sara's "artsy" album. It's not that they've totally abandoned the retrofitted power pop of their last two discs. The twins' fifth full-length release still betrays their love affair with vintage Farfisas and Korgs; both halves still write urgent hook-based songs about love, anxiety and the mean reds that clock in at three minutes max.

But their choice to work with Death Cab's Chris Walla instead of regular producers John Collins and Dave Carswell is the smartest move Tegan and Sara have made in years.

Walla coaxes a new level of vocal prowess from both sisters, using the contrasting qualities of their voices to complement each other (note how Tegan's ghostly backups overlap Sara's rough lead on Relief Next To Me). And his affinity for experimenting with textures pushes the pair into new territory – the glitchy, percussive Are You Ten Years Ago, with its breathless narrative, recalls Elastica circa The Menace, while the mournful Knife Going In could be an epilogue to Mirah's 100 Knives, and Back In Your Head is intelligent bubble gum à la Cyndi Lauper. Better than anything they've done to date.
(Sarah Liss)

Sex Pistols Debut, Singles To Be Reissued

Virgin Records will on Oct. 29 release a special 30th anniversary edition of The Sex Pistols' classic debut album, "Never Mind The Bollocks ... Here's the Sex Pistols." The set will be available on heavyweight vinyl with a 7" insert of "Submission" and a poster -- just as it was when it was originally released on Oct. 29, 1977.

"Submission" was left off the original track listing when the album was mistakenly released a week earlier than planned, so at the band's insistence, the first 50,000 copies included a one-sided 7" featuring the song.

The Pistols will also reissue their four classic singles: "Anarchy in the U.K.," "God Save the Queen," "Pretty Vacant" and "Holidays in the Sun" throughout October on 7-inch vinyl. Jamie Reid's original artwork and heavyweight paper sleeves will be faithfully reproduced, according to Virgin.

Virgin signed the band after it was dropped by EMI in January 1977 and in the wake of an abortive six-day signing with A&M that March.

Kingblind Downloads

Von Südenfed - Fledermaus Can’t Get It

Imperial Teen:: Shim Sham

AA Bondy- There's a Reason

The Kinks- This time Tomorrow

Spoon- Idiot Driver

Spoon- I didn't come here to die

Tom Waits- Hold On

The Battles- Saturday Night No, Not Battles.. THE Battles

Liars “Plaster Casts of Everything” (Music Video)

Raveonettes return to North America in October

Guy/girl reverb rockers the Raveonettes will return to North American touring later this year. The band is still hashing out new material that will eventually form the follow-up to 2005’s Pretty in Black. These dates find the duo of Sune Rose Wagner and Sharin Foo mostly sticking to the eastern and central parts of the continent after the band spent much of June on the North American West Coast. After the Raveonettes make some European appearances in September, they return to these shores in October. Follow on after the jump for those dates…

10/10 New York, NY - Southpaw
10/11 Hoboken, NJ - Maxwell’s
10/12 New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom
10/13 Buffalo, NY - Mohawk
10/14 Toronto, ON - Lee’s Palace
10/16 Detroit, MI - Magic Stick
10/17 Columbus, OH - The Basement
10/18 Cleveland, OH - Beachland Ballroom
10/19 Chicago, IL - Empty Bottle
10/20 Milwaukee, WI - Mad Planet
10/21 Minneapolis, MN - 7th Street Entry
10/25 Edmonton, AB - New City Likwid Lounge
10/26-7 Calgary, AB - Broken City
10/29 Vancouver, BC - Venue TBA

Turbonegro tours North America

Turbonegro’s new album Retox once again shows the six-piece riffin’ machine firing on all cylinders. Retox is Turbonegro at its best; hard, heavy and hilarious. A record which, to borrow a lyric from its riotous lead-off single, ‘Do You Dig Destruction’, will hit you like “brass-knuckles and a 2 by 4”.

Here are the dates:

September
19th - Chicago, IL Metro
20th - Detroit, MI Smalls
21st - Cleveland, OH The Grog Shop
22nd - Toronto, ON Phoenix Concert Theater
24th - Boston, MA Paradise
25th - New York, NY Nokia Theatre
26th - Washington, DC The Black Cat
28th - Winston Salem, NC Ziggy’s
29th - Atlanta, GA Centre Stage
30th - New Orleans One Eyed Jacks

October
1st - Dallas, TX Granada Theatre
2nd - Austin, TX Emos
4th - Phoenix, AZ Brickhouse Theatre
5th - San Diego, CA House Of Blues
6th - Los Angeles, CA LA Weekly Festival
7th - Los Angeles, CA Henry Fonda Theatre
8th - San Francisco, CA Slims
10th - Seattle, WA Showbox
11th - Vancouver, BC Commodore Ballroom
12th - Portland, OR Roseland Ballroom

Kingblind Downloads

Shout Out Louds - Tonight I Have to Leave It

Bishop Allen- Rain

UNKLE- Crown Victoria

Prince- Planet Earth

Robbers on High Street- Crown Victoria

Kinetic Stereokids - Cold and Tired

Black Lips- Katrina (Music Video)

"Katrina" - Black Lips
Uploaded by vicemagazine

The Black Lips' "Katrina" single will be released by Vice UK on September 3.

Prince:: Planet Earth (Album Review)

Ever the shape-shifter, Prince Rogers Nelson makes his most outrageous move yet. Lots of fans grumble about the lengths to which the artist formerly known as the Artist will go to ensure listenability. No doubt about it: distributing an album with The Mail is a masterstroke.

A shame, then, we're not discussing another Parade or, hell, The Gold Experience, but lately Prince puts his talent into recording albums and his genius into marketing them. In 2004, for example, he included Musicology with the price of a concert ticket and forced the RIAA to like it. Although he's released plenty of indifferent albums since 1988's Lovesexy, this is the second time he's pulled a Steel Wheels: recording an album as an excuse to tour (like Steel Wheels' "Mixed Emotions," the mildly compelling nostalgia of Musicology's title track, the first single, embraced dubious notions of musical solidarity). 3121 was a little better: he was studying the Billboard Top Ten ("Black Sweat") as much as he was copying himself (the title track). Planet Earth marks a slight improvement on that one, which is progress of a sort, but incremental advances like this almost guarantee that the marketing hoo-hah will get more attention anyway.

However, since this is Prince and not another middle-aged white songwriter/guitarist he'll force us to listen to Planet Earth for three tracks so ebullient that you understand why he records albums as excuses to tour. "Chelsea Rodgers" might be the best use of a brass section in the Prince songbook since "Housequake," and the most compelling evidence that witnessing for Jehovah hasn't stunted his imagination; mitigating this story of a reformed libertine with a piano part swiped from Sylvester's "(You Make Me Feel) Mighty Real" is the kind of perversity we used to take for granted from him. He doesn't sound crabby; he's reminding himself that even God-fearing wretches like him need parables to explain himself to the rest of us; that Sylvester could hear gospel in disco. The irresistible bitchery of his guitar work on "Lion of Judah" redeems the Bible-adducing triumphalism of its chorus. Finally, the good will Prince has accumulated doesn't clarify the lyrical equivocations of "Resolution" (the musical ones though—like the concluding synth swoop—are a delight), but if you want anti-war slogans go listen to Neil Young.

If smugness erodes the empathy he extends to the putative love objects that populate Planet Earth's fair-to-good ballads, his skill compensates. Thanks to Jesus and a lifetime of teetotaling, his voice remains impossibly supple, and as elastic as he thinks his dick is. So is, of all things, humor. Unlike R. Kelly, Ne-Yo can tell the difference between smarm and charm—to be fair, it's Kells' confusion that makes him intermittently excellent—but he couldn't put over pillow-talk piffle like "Future Baby Mama" like Prince can (not enough to convince you that it won't join "Call My Name" and "Beautiful, Loved, Blessed" in second-single limbo, mind).

Speaking of smarm-vs-charm, "I love you, babe, but not like I love my guitar" is the asshole come-on he's been trying to write since Controversy, and more devastating for being apt. Just don't remind the little guy of his lifetime of broken promises. Listening to "Guitar" brings to mind the seven-minute entreaty in which he let his axemanship show what his heart couldn't, even when this entreaty was called, simply, "I Could Never Take The Place of Your Man." That song was a lifeline, while "Guitar" comforts itself with being a manifesto. Manifestos can incite passions, but the chance always exists that you're speaking in an empty room.

Planet Earth may, like 3121, top the charts. Credit those amazing live shows and what he signifies in pop culture; everybody likes the idea of Prince. Not exactly encouraging for an artist this fecund, who hasn't shaken off the millstones of his past achievements as thoroughly as he thinks. It may be enough that Prince transforms what's already a strong case for his own solipsism into a moral imperative.
(Alfredo Soto)

Kingblind.com contest:: Interpol- Our love to admire (Album Giveaway)

Kingblind.com and Capitol Records are giving away a copy of the new Interpol album- "Our love to admire".. But not just any copy.. This is the special edition packaging that includes: A bound, CD-sized hard covered book with 24-page booklet. CD in back and poster. This thing is beautiful!! Now you really want one don't you?!

How to win:
Please send your name and address in the body of the message with INTERPOL in the subject line. and we will randomly pick a winner this afternoon.

Remember.. No name and address and no INTERPOL in subject line= NO WINNER.

send your info to:
kingblind(at)gmail.com

Rage, Daft Punk, QOTSA, Shins Set For Vegoose Fest

Rage Against The Machine will co-headline this fall's Vegoose Festival at Las Vegas' Sam Boyd Stadium, alongside French electronica duo Daft Punk. The event is set for Oct. 27-28; two-day passes go on sale Saturday (July 28) through Vegoose.com. Other acts on the bill include Queens Of The Stone Age, the Shins, Muse and Iggy and the Stooges, performing their classic album "Fun House" in its entirety.

The Vegoose lineup will be rounded out by Cypress Hill, Public Enemy, Ghostface Killah, Michael Franti and Spearhead, Battles, Umphree's McGee, UNKLE, Gogol Bordello, Blonde Redhead, Thievery Corporation and Ghostland Observatory.

As in past years, the event will also encompass the Vegoose at Night concert series, comprising separately ticketed shows at venues throughout Las Vegas. Among the confirmed acts are the Shins, Thievery Corporation, moe. and STS9. Tickets for these performances will go on sale in mid-August.

Vegoose is produced by Superfly Presents and A.C. Entertainment, the same team that produces the Bonnaroo Music Festival in Manchester, Tenn.

Architecture in Helsinki- “Hold Music” (Music Video)


Architecture in Helsinki - Hold Music from helsinkids and Vimeo.

Architecture in Helsinki's new album: Places Like This is slated for an August 7 release on Polyvinyl.

New Releases for the week

A slew of new releases hit the shelves this week. Kingblind.com recommends the following releases: The Lonely H: Hair, Johnny Cash: The Great Lost Performances, Sebadoh: The Freed Man (remastered with bonus tracks), UNKLE: War Stories, Yeah Yeah Yeahs: Is Is EP

Against Me!: New Wave [cd]
Alamo Race Track: Black Cat John Brown [cd]
Billy Bob Thornton: Beautiful Door [cd]
Bishop Allen: The Broken String [cd]
Brian Setzer & The Nashvillains: Red Hot & Live! [cd]
Chet Atkins & Les Paul: Chester & Lester [cd]
Circus Devils: Sgt. Disco [cd]
Deadverse Massive, Vol. 1: Dalek Rarities 1999-2006 [cd]
Dilettantes: 101 Tambourines [cd]
Doors: Live In Boston [cd]
The Eat: It's Not the Eat, It's the Humidity [cd]
Emily Haines and the Soft Skeleton: What Is Free to a Good Home [cd]
Garbage: Absolute Garbage [cd]
Harvey Milk: My Love Is Higher Than Your Assessment of What My Love Could Be [cd]
Harvey MIlk: Pleaser [cd]
Jason Holstrom: The Thieves of Kailua [cd]
John Vanderslice: Emerald City [cd]
Johnny Cash: The Great Lost Performances [cd]
Juliette & the Licks: Four on the Floor [cd]
The Lonely H: Hair [cd]
Lovemakers: Misery Loves Company [cd]
Manic Street Preachers: Send Away the Tigers [cd]
MF Doom: MM..Food? (reissue with bonus DVD) [cd]
Mountain: Masters of War [cd]
Peter Himmelman: The Pigeons Couldn't Sleep [cd]
Portugal, the Man: Church Mouth [cd]
Prince: Planet Earth [cd]
Robbers On High Street: Grand Animals [cd]
Saturday Looks Good to Me: Cold Colors EP [cd]
Sebadoh: The Freed Man (remastered with bonus tracks) [cd]
Silverchair: Young Modern [cd]
Slayer: Christ Illusion (with bonus DVD) [cd]
Sum 41: Underclass Hero [cd]
Tegan & Sara: The Con [cd]
Talib Kweli: Ear Drum [cd]
The Thrills: Teenager (import) [cd]
Tiny Vipers: Hands Across The Void [cd]
Trey Anastasio: The Horseshoe Curve [cd]
UNKLE: War Stories [cd]
Various Artists: Babylon 5: The Lost Tales (soundtrack) [cd]
Various Arists: Friday Night Lights: Original Television Soundtrack [cd]
Various Artists: Monsters of Rock: Platinum Edition [cd]
Various Artists: The Simpsons Movie (soundtrack) [cd]
Waylon Jennings: The Essential Waylon Jennings [cd]
Waylon Jennings: Never Say Die: The Complete Final Concert [cd]
Yeah Yeah Yeahs: Is Is EP [cd]

Fest mania: rockin’ the block in the Windy City

Not to be confused with Seattle’s Capitol Hill Block Party, Chicago venue Hideout also throws an annual festival that goes by the name Block Party. This year’s 11th incarnation goes down September 7 and 8 in the venue’s parking lot. And guess who’s playing the fest this year? What band has a perfect name for this kind of thing? You guessed it: Bloc Party will be there. Also slated to play are Chi-Town native Andrew Bird, Dan Deacon, Art Brut, and the Frames. You can head to Hideout’s site for more info.

Kingblind Downloads

The Cave Singers- Seeds

Rose Hill Drive- Man on Fire

Bat for Lashes- Horse and I

AA Bondy- There's a Reason

Mirah and Spectratone International- Community

The Chemical Brothers:: We Are The Night (Album Review)

It's quickly evident on We Are The Night that the Chemical Brothers are making a serious go at being contemporary. They've almost completely dropped their big-beat past and re-emerged with all the electro, new-wave, disco and rock touchstones front and centre.

While it's usually a bit sad when established artists jump on the next train, they pull it off relatively well for the most part. The bafflingly bad novelty rap contribution from Fatlip on The Salmon Dance should have been dropped back at the demo stage, and closing ballad The Pills Won't Help You Now (featuring Midlake) isn't that strong either, but the rest actually works well.

The Brothers have always had kind of a rock quality and loved their distorted synths, so maybe this is what they've always wanted to do?
(Benjamin Boles- Toronto)

Jennifer Gentle invades North America

No, pervballs, Jennifer Gentle isn’t the name of some pornstar with a skilled feminine touch. It’s the moniker of an Italian psych-rock project based around the musical vision of Marco Fasolo. Jennifer Gentle recently released a creepy little masterpiece entitled The Midnight Room on Sub Pop. In August, Fasolo and whoever he gets to tour with him hit North America for a massive tour. The tour starts and ends in Sub Pop’s hometown of Seattle. Follow on after the jump for where to catch Jennifer Gentle…

8/3 Seattle, WA - Crocodile Cafe
8/4 San Juan Islands, WA - Egg Lake Music Faire
8/7 Portland, OR - Town Lounge
8/8 Oakland, CA - Uptown
8/9 Davis, CA - Delta of Venus
8/10 San Francisco, CA - 12 Galaxies
8/11 Visalia, CA - Cellar Door
8/12 Long Beach, CA - Alex’s Bar
8/13 Riverside, CA - Mad Platter Records
8/13 Upland, CA - Old Baldy
8/14 Los Angeles, CA - 6th St. Warehouse
8/17 Austin, TX - Emo’s
8/18 Houston, TX - Proletariat
8/19 New Orleans, LA - Circle Bar
8/21 Birmingham, AL - Bottletree
8/22 Atlanta, GA - The Earl
8/23 Asheville, NC - Harvest Records
8/24 Chapel Hill, NC - Local 506
8/25 Charlottesville, VA - Twisted Branch
8/26 Washington, DC - DC9
8/28 Philadelphia, PA - The Vacuum
8/29 New York, NY - Mercury Lounge
8/30 New York, NY - Sound Fix Records
8/30 New York, NY - Mercury Lounge
8/31 New Haven, CT - Cafe Nine
9/1 Portland, ME - Space Gallery
9/2 Cambridge, MA - Middle East
9/3 Providence, RI - AS 220
9/4 Cleveland, OH - Beachland Ballroom
9/5 Bloomington, IN - Bear’s Place
9/6 Detroit, MI - Lager House
9/7 Chicago, IL - Empty Bottle
9/10 Kansas City, KS - Record Bar
9/11 Denver, CO - Hi Dive
9/12 Salt Lake City, UT - Urban Lounge
9/13 Portland, OR - Venue TBA
9/14 Seattle, WA - Sunset Tavern

Eric’s Trip reuniting

Cult-beloved indie rockers Eric’s Trip are the latest group to jump on the reunion bandwagon. The re-forming of the Canadian ex-Sub Poppers, named after a classic Sonic Youth song, stemmed from guitarist and vocalist Rick White lending a hand to his former Eric’s Trip bandmate Julie Doiron’s recent album, Woke Myself Up. Keeping true to their Canuck roots, the only reunion shows the band has announced so far will all take place in Canada. White will serve as an opener for the shows. Read on after the jump for those dates. And keep checking in here or at the band’s MySpace to see if the reunion will find its way down to the States.

8/5 Sackwell, NB - George’s
9/13 Hamilton, ON - Venue TBA
9/15 Toronto, ON - Lee’s Palace
10/5 Ottawa, ON - Barrymore’s
10/7 Montreal, QC - Pop Montreal
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Ted Leo and the Pharmacists keep touring

Seems that Ted Leo and the Pharmacists’ recently-announced participation in this year’s Pop Montreal Festival isn’t the only upcoming appearance the band had planned. Since last we updated you on the group’s tour plans, Teddy and the Pharmers have added a couple of more August dates and additional appearances that run into October.

8/10 Carrboro, NC - Cat’s Cradle
8/12 New York, NY - McCarren Park Pool
9/1 Oakland, CA - Art and Soul Festival
9/3 Seattle, WA - Bumbershoot
10/5 Montreal, QC - Pop Montreal
10/6 Ottawa, ON - Barrymore’s
10/7 Toronto, ON - Mod Club
10/26 San Francisco, CA - Great American Music Hall
10/27 Claremont, CA - Pomona College
10/28 Anaheim, CA - House of Blues
10/30 Los Angeles, CA - El Rey
10/31 Los Angeles, CA - Wiltern

Barsuk Bands Tour Schedules:
NADA SURF, MENOMENA, DAVID BAZAN, ROCKY VOTOLATO, JOHN VANDERSLICE, SMOOSH & JESSE SYKES announce fall dates

For the first time since the spring of 2006 Nada Surf will bring their signature vocal harmonies and stunningly catchy melodies to venues across the US, in advance of the early 2008 Barsuk Records release of their fifth LP. They will be performing songs from the forthcoming record (currently untitled) live. Dangerbird Records’ Sea Wolf are set to open. "Sea Wolf is helping to make mid-'00s Silver Lake as grey-sky lovely as late-'90s Glasgow." - Magnet, Summer 2007

Nada Surf Fall 2007 tour dates:

All dates With Sea Wolf ( *except 10/19)

10/15 COLUMBUS, OH Basement
10/16 CINCINNATI, OH 20th Century
10/17 LOUISVILLE, KY Jim Porters
10/18 INDIANAPOLIS, IN Birdy's
*10/19 CHICAGO, IL Schubas Early show- Nada Surf only:
10/20 CHICAGO, IL Schubas
10/22 ST. LOUIS, MO Gargoyle Club
10/23 NASHVILLE, TN Exit In
10/24 BIRMINGHAM, AL Bottle Tree
10/26 TAMPA, FL State Theatre
10/27 ST. AUGUSTINE, FL Cafe Eleven
10/29 ATHENS, GA 40 Watt Club
10/30 ASHEVILLE, NC Orange Peel
10/31 CARRBORO, NC Cat’s Cradle
11/01 CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA Satellite Ballroom-UVA
11/02 BALTIMORE, MD 8 x 10


MENOMENA Fall Tour Dates

Back out for the one more time in support of Friend & Foe hands down one of 2007’s Top 10 albums, Menomena are hitting a lot of places they’ve missed thus far this year.

*Illinois supports 10/31 – 11/17

10/26 – Boise at Neurolux
10/27 – Salt Lake City at Kilby Court
10/28 – Boulder at the Fox Theater
10/30 – St. Louis at Billiken Club
10/31 – Nashville at the Exit/In
11/2 – Tallahassee at the Club Downunder
11/3 – Orlando at the Social
11/4 – Jacksonville at Jack Rabbit’s
11/6 – DC at the Black Cat
11/7 – Philadelphia at the First Unitarian Church
11/8 – Hanover, NH at Dartmouth
11/9 – Boston at the Paradise
11/10 – NYC at Webster Hall
11/12 – Montreal at La Sala Rossa
11/13 – Toronto at the Mod Club
11/14 – Ann Arbor at the Blind Pig
11/15 – Chicago at the Metro
11/16 – Grinell, IA at Grinnell College
11/17 – Minneapolis at the Varsity Theater



DAVID BAZAN Fall Tour Dates

Former Pedro the Lion front man David Bazan will be on the road prior to his new full-length which is going to drop in early 2008.

Casiotone for the Painfully Alone Support 9/4 – 9/21

All Smiles support 10/23 – 11/13

09/04/07 MINNEAPOLIS, MN 7th Street Entry
09/05/07 MADISON, WI High Noon Saloon
09/06/07 MILWAUKEE, WI Shank Hall
09/07/07 CHICAGO, IL Beat Kitchen
09/08/07 CHAMPAIGN, IL High Dive
09/10/07 BLOOMINGTON, IN Waldron Arts Center
09/11/07 ST. LOUIS, MO Billiken Club
09/12/07 SPRINGFIELD, MO Randy Bacon Gallery
09/13/07 MEMPHIS, TN Hi-Tone Cafe
09/14/07 LITTLE ROCK, AR Sticky Fingerz
09/15/07 DENTON, TX Dan's Silverleaf
09/16/07 HOUSTON, TX Walter's On Washington
09/17/07 AUSTIN, TX Emo's
09/19/07 LUBBOCK, TX Jake's
09/20/07 LAWRENCE, KS Jackpot Saloon
09/21/07 NORMAN, OK Opolis
09/22/07 IOWA CITY, IA Picador
09/23/07 OMAHA, NE Slowdown
10/23 - Detroit MI @ TBA
10/24 - Cleveland OH @ The Grog Shop
10/25 - Pittsburgh PA @ Garfield Artworks
10/26 - Buffalo NY @ TBA
10/27 Cambridge MA @ T.T. the Bear's w/ The Soft Drugs
10/29 - New York NY @ Mercury Lounge
10/30 - Brooklyn NY @ Southpaw
10/31 - Philadelphia PA @ TBA
11/01 - Washington DC @ TBA
11/02 - Charlottesville VA @ TBA
11/03 - Durham NC @ Duke Coffeehouse
11/05 - West Columbia SC @ New Brookland Tavern
11/06 - St. Augustine FL @ Cafe Eleven
11/07 - Orlando FL @ The Social
11/08 - Tallahassee FL @ Club Downunder @ FSU
11/09 - Birmingham AL @ BottleTree Café
11/10 - Atlanta GA @ TBA
11/12 - Nashville TN @ Exit In
11/13 - Newport KY @ Southgate House


ROCKY VOTOLATO Fall Tour Dates

JESSE SYKES & THE SWEET HEREAFTER supporting on select dates TBA

09/12/07 SPOKANE, WA Big Dipper
09/13/07 BOISE, ID Venue
09/14/07 PROVO, UT Velour
09/15/07 MORRISON, CO Red Rocks with The Flaming Lips, Spoon, etc... Monolith Festival
09/17/07 LAWRENCE, KS Jackpot Saloon
09/18/07 IOWA CITY, IA Picador
09/19/07 MINNEAPOLIS, MN Varsity Theatre
09/20/07 CHICAGO, IL Abbey Pub
09/21/07 MILWAUKEE, WI Stonefly Brewery
09/22/07 LANSING, MI Mac's Bar
09/23/07 ANN ARBOR, MI Blind Pig
09/25/07 S. BURLINGTON, VT Higher Ground
09/26/07 CAMBRIDGE, MA Middle East
09/27/07 BROOKLYN, NY Luna Lounge
09/28/07 MONTREAL, CANADA Club Lambi
09/29/07 TORONTO, CANADA El Mocambo
10/01/07 PHILADELPHIA, PA First Unitarian
10/02/07 WASHINGTON, DC Rock and Roll Hotel
10/03/07 HARRISONBURG, VA Pub
10/04/07 PITTSBURGH, PA Rex Theater
10/05/07 MORGANTOWN, WV 123 Pleasant Street
10/06/07 CARRBORO, NC Local 506
10/07/07 COLUMBIA, SC New Brookland
10/09/07 TAMPA, FL Orpheum
10/10/07 ORLANDO, FL Social
10/11/07 GAINESVILLE, FL Common Grounds
10/13/07 NASHVILLE, TN Rocketown
10/14/07 COVINGTON, KY Mad Hatter
10/15/07 SAINT LOUIS, MO Off Broadway Nightclub
10/17/07 OKLAHOMA, OK Conservatory
10/18/07 DALLAS, TX House of Blues
10/19/07 SAN ANTONIO, TX Rock Bottom Bar
10/20/07 AUSTIN, TX Stubbs
10/22/07 ALBUQUERQUE, NM Launchpad
10/23/07 TEMPE, AZ Clubhouse
10/24/07 SAN DIEGO, CA Casbah
10/26/07 ANAHEIM, CA Chain Reaction
10/27/07 ANAHEIM, CA Chain Reaction
10/28/07 SAN FRANCISCO, CA Bottom of the Hill
10/31/07 PORTLAND, OR Hawthorne Theater
11/01/07 SEATTLE, WA Showbox



JOHN VANDERSLICE AND BAND ON TOUR
9/6 Los Angeles CA @ Troubadour
9/7 San Diego CA @ The Casbah
9/8 Phoenix AZ @ Modified
9/9 Tucson AZ @ Plush
9/11 Austin TX @ The Parish
9/12 Norman OK @ The Opolis
9/14 Dallas TX @ The Loft
9/15 Baton Rouge LA @ Spanish Moon
9/17 Orlando FL @ The Social
9/18 St. Augustine FL @ Café Eleven
9/19 Tallahassee FL @ Club Downunder
9/20 Atlanta GA @ The Earl
9/21 Chapel Hill NC @ Duke Coffeehouse
9/24 Philadelphia PA @ Johnny Brenda's
9/26 New York NY @ Bowery Ballroom
9/27 Cambridge MA @ The Middle East
9/28 Cambridge MA @ The Middle East
10/1 Toronto ON @ Horseshoe Tavern
10/2 Ann Arbor MI @ The Blind Pig
10/3 Cleveland OH @ The Grog Shop
10/4 Athens OH @ Ohio U, Baker Theatre
10/5 Bloomington IN @ John Waldron Art's Ctr
10/6 Chicago IL @ The Empty Bottle
10/9 Omaha NE @ The Waiting Room
10/11 Denver CO @ The Hi-Dive
10/12 Provo UT @ Velour
10/13 Salt Lake City UT @ Kilby Court
10/15 Vancouver BC @ The Red Room
10/18 Portland OR @ The Doug Fir
10/20 San Francisco CA @ The Independent


SMOOSH supporting Bloc Party
11 Sep 2007 MILWAUKEE, WI Pabst Theater
12 Sep 2007 INDIANAPOLIS, IN Egyptian Room
13 Sep 2007 COLUMBUS, OH PromoWest Pavilion
14 Sep 2007 ST. LOUIS, MO Pageant
23 Sep 2007 TULSA, OK Cain's Ballroom
25 Sep 2007 NASHVILLE, TN City Hall
26 Sep 2007 COVINGTON, KY Madison Theatre
28 Sep 2007 TORONTO, CANADA Ricoh Coliseum
29 Sep 2007 LONDON, CANADA John Labatt Center
30 Sep 2007 OTTAWA, CANADA Capitol Music Hall

Fionn Regan:: Be good or be gone (Music Video)

Kingblind Downloads

New Young Pony Club- Ice Cream

The Strokes:: Trying your luck

I'm from Barcelona- Britney

Dan Deacon- When I was taller

Jarvis Cocker- Don't let him waste your time

Fionn Regan- Underwood Typewriter

Arctic Monkeys- This house is circus

Hall and Oats- Rich Girl Just because I love this song. So deal with it.

New Pornographers- My rights versus yours

The Cinematic Orchestra- Ma Fleur (Album Review)

The arts in Paris extend beyond the paintings and other visual art displays in the Louvre. Film noir, theater, and even the culinary arts have a distinct place in Parisian culture. Many a renaissance man finds himself at home in Paris, and Jason Swinscoe is no different. The bandleader and composer for The Cinematic Orchestra, Swinscoe reposed in Paris to finally make his band live up to its name. Yes, he and his bandmates composed a new soundtrack for the classic Man with a Movie Camera, but Ma Fleur is entirely a new creation. It takes the approach that so many other artists, especially in post-rock, are using to create albums. Ma Fleur is a soundtrack. What’s interesting, however, is that the soundtrack actually influenced the movie rather than vice versa. Swinscoe laid out base ideas for songs, and then took his ideas to a friend who came back with short stories based on the songs. He also commissioned artist and photographer Maya Hayuk to take pictures that represented each song. The themes of Ma Fleur are nothing new, dealing with loss and love in the journey from birth to death, but the musical accompaniment - or maybe it should be called the main attraction - is different from the downtempo, nu-jazz styles of their previous records. The Cinematic Orchestra’s latest effort is much more, well, orchestral. Epic. Yet still reserved and contemplative.

As always, the guest vocalists play an immense role on the album. On Ma Fleur, one quite nearly steals the show. Patrick Watson, a somber tenor with impeccable dynamic range, opens the album with “To Build a Home”. It serves as an organic opener to the album, much like many movies do. It grows from simple, slow piano chords to a full swell with a string section taking the instrumental forefront. Watson’s voice soars over the soundscape gracefully and beautifully, showing off his falsetto in the climaxes. Despite the personal, tangible style of “To Build a Home”, the rest of the album takes on a much more surreal style, relying on atmosphere rather than musical intricacy and virtuosity. Watson even returns to his same memorable lines from the opening track in the reprise “That Home”, singing “This is a place where I don't feel alone/This is a place where I feel at home,” but it all seems miles away, mystical. There is a musical smokescreen that covers the face of The Cinematic Orchestra, blurring the lines between jazz, classical, and many other kinds of music. For this reason, the instrumental tracks are most ethereal, creating the best hazy atmosphere. From the string section feature “Prelude” to “As the Stars Fall”, which sounds like the ensemble’s older, jazzy efforts.

Still, the instrumental songs are few and the album relies on its vocal-based songs for its success. Fontella Bass makes a return to the ensemble, a long-time guest with the band, for two songs- “Familiar Ground” and “Breathe”. Fontella’s voice fits right into the band’s new sound for Ma Fleur, especially on “Breathe”. It sounds like her voice is singing from an AM radio station, delicately sitting on top of the sparse musical arrangement. Her calm, unwavering confidence adds to her effect, one of prophetic, uplifting purpose. “Time and Space” closes the album with the other guest vocalist on the album, Lou Rhodes. She possesses a deep alto, much in the range of Fontella’s, but her voice has a more expressive quality to it. Rhodes drops out after singing the intro to the track, where the band builds into their distinctive jazzy style. It makes a subtle, surreal, but extremely effective finale to the album.

Ma Fleur is a triumphant return for The Cinematic Orchestra, a certain rise in artistic expression for Jason Swinscoe and his instrumentalists. The album’s flaws are more in its presentation than its performance. As a whole, the album feels disjointed and broad. Each song represents a scene, and with what the listener is given, it is hard to imagine these scenes fitting together into any sort of movie. Swinscoe portrays the settings and expects the listeners to imagine everything else - plotline, characters, etc. The vocalists give vague ideas in their lyrics, but it is impossibly hard to connect everything together. Style and instrumentation vary heavily throughout the album. Still, it is an enjoyable, trance-inducing listen that stands among their releases as one of the most artistic and musical statements of the band’s career.
(Tyler Fisher)

First South By Southwest DVD Coming Next Month

The South By Southwest Music Festival has become one of the biggest and most influential events of its kind since it was launched in Austin, Texas in 1987, but it's taken until now for its performances to make it to DVD.

Shout! Factory-affiliated Blaze TV custom-built two clubs, The Lone Star Lounge and The Bat Bar, at the Austin Convention Center this past March during the annual fest. The artists who played there were featured in a three-day, 24-hour DirecTV broadcast captured in multi-camera high definition with 5.1 surround sound. The best performances were chosen for inclusion on SXSW Live 2007, a Shout! Factory DVD scheduled for an Aug. 28 release. The disc also features artist interviews and backstage footage.

Here are the tracks on SXSW Live 2007:

* The Bravery — "Honest Mistake"
* Peter Bjorn & John — "Young Folks"
* Ozomatli — "City Of Angels"
* The Automatic Automatic — "Monster"
* Aqualung — "Pressure Suit"
* Rickie Lee Jones — "Nobody Knows My Name"
* Bowling For Soup — "1985"
* The Polyphonic Spree — "When The Fool Becomes A King"
* Marc Broussard — "Home"
* Rachel Fuller with Pete Townshend — "Sunrise"
* Rocco Deluca & The Burden — "Colorful"
* Annuals — "Complete Or Completing"
* Razorlight — "In The Morning"
* Mando Diao — "Long Before Rock N Roll"
* Lee "Scratch" Perry — "Kiss The Champion"
* Stars Of Track And Field — "Movies Of Antarctica"
* Kraak & Smaak — "Money In The Bag"
* Joe Purdy — "White Picket Fence"

Kingblind's Favorite Finds

Which classic rock albums still sell well? Back in Black sold 440,000 copies last year.

Chicago's Metromix interviews Colin Meloy of the Decemberists.

Lilly Allen has three nipples

White Stripes Play One-Note Concert. Fans Love It.

Prince's CD giveaway another nail in the album's coffin

DJ Spooky: How a Tiny Caribbean Island Birthed the Mashup

Stereogum Presents...OKX: A Tribute to OK Computer

100 Days That Changed Music Forever

Editors:: An End Has a Start (Album Review)

Having spent the last year fighting off comparisons to Joy Division and Interpol, Brummie band Editors have settled for being the next Coldplay. The claustrophobic post-punk of their debut, The Back Room, is now expansive and anthemic, their obsession with urban alienation eclipsed by an awakening to love and awareness of death. Singer Tom Smith tempers his constant anxiety with flashes of optimism, his brittle nihilism with gooey sentiment. "Keep a light on those you love," he swoons in Weight of the World, "they will be there when you die." The undulating sharpness of Bones and Escape the Nest shows that Editors aren't about to go gently into that good night, but the maturity of Smokers Outside the Hospital Door, with its cascading guitars and hesitant choir, and the unabashed tenderness of Push Your Head Towards the Air see the band growing up gracefully.
(Betty Clarke)

Rilo Kiley announce tour dates

Tour dates are beginning to trickle in for Rilo Kiley, whose new album Under the Blacklight is slated for release August 21 on Warner Bros. The band will spend August in Europe before coming back to the States in early September. More dates are expected to be announced soon.

9/6 San Francisco, CA - Warfield
9/8 Seattle, WA - Showbox
9/14 Minneapolis, MN - First Avenue
9/17 Royal Oak, MI - Royal Oak Music Hall
9/21 Boston, MA - Avalon
9/22-23 New York, NY - Webster Hall
9/29 Atlanta, GA - Variety Playhouse
10/2 Orlando, FL - House of Blues
10/5 Houston, TX - Warehouse Live
10/6 Dallas, TX - Palladium

Of Montreal, De La Soul, Mastodon Highlight Pitchfork Fest

Performances from Of Montreal, De La Soul and Girl Talk highlighted the final two days of the Pitchfork Music Festival, which drew 47,000 people over the weekend to Chicago's Union Park. The event kicked off Friday with ATP's Don't Look Back series, featuring Slint, GZA and Sonic Youth playing one of their albums in its entirety.

Saturday began with impressive sets from Battles, Fujiya & Miyagi, and Iron & Wine, with the latter Sam Beam-led act treating the crowd to a show-closing cover of Radiohead's "No Surprises." Metal outfit Mastodon was a big hit on the Connector stage, as the rowdy crowd kicked up dirt from Union Park's baseball fields in approval.

By now a seasoned festival veteran, Girl Talk's Gregg Gillis was a big hit mashing up Hot 100 hits like Avril Lavigne's "Girlfriend," T.I.'s "Big Things Poppin'" and Lil' Mama's "Lip Gloss" with sped-up classic rock tunes like The Band's "The Weight," Elton John's "Tiny Dancer" and Guns N' Roses' "Sweet Child O' Mine."

Dan Deacon's set, performed from a table set up in the front row of the Balance stage, was cut short due to crowd control problems. Deacon's sex raps and oddball Vocoder samples were interrupted by announcements for the crowd to take a couple steps back, but to no avail. Yoko Ono closed Saturday night with her trademark "war is over if you want it" chants.

"We're gonna do something sporty on the next album," Of Montreal frontman Kevin Barnes said while throwing a football around on stage during the band's Sunday set, highlighted by the catchy pop tunes "Suffer For Fashion" and "Party's Crashing Us Now." While guitarist Bryan Poole donned enormous angel wings and a metallic jacket that channeled Elvis, Barnes chose to strip down to a dominatrix leather corset and eventually only a G-string for an encore cover of the Kinks' "All Day and All of the Night."

The New Pornographers immediately followed on the Connector Stage, playing several songs from their upcoming Matador album, "Challenger." "We're not sure how this one is gonna end." frontman A.C. Newman admitted before the band went into the hand-clapper "The Spirit of Giving," which concluded with an improvised "We Will Rock You" finish.

De La Soul gave a shout out to the late James Brown and then A Tribe Called Quest by covering that group's "Award Tour." Mostly, the rap trio went back in time to 1989's "3 Feet High And Rising," playing staples like "Potholes in My Lawn" and "Me, Myself and I." In a nice surprise, longtime producer Prince Paul joined the group on stage throughout.

Arctics, Winehouse Make Mercury Prize Shortlist

The shortlist for the Nationwide Mercury Prize has been unveiled in London, featuring a typically broad range of musical tastes dominated this year by new, alternative artists.

The award, which highlights the best 12 British or Irish albums of the previous year, has previously been won by acts like Franz Ferdinand, Primal Scream and last year's victors, Arctic Monkeys.

Arctic Monkeys will defend their title, as their sophomore effort "Favourite Worst Nightmare" (Domino), is on the 2007 shortlist.

Another former winner, rapper Dizzee Rascal, also returns to the list with his "Maths + English" album (XL), alongside Amy Winehouse for her acclaimed "Back to Black" record (Island).

Arctic Monkeys and Winehouse have been installed by William Hill bookmakers as early joint favorites to take the prize, with odds of 4/1. Dizzee Rascal has odds of 8/1.

The other nominees, with William Hill odds, are: Bat for Lashes' "Fur and Gold" (Echo/EMI) (10/1); Fionn Regan's "The End of History" (Lost Highway) (10/1); New Young Pony Club's "Fantastic Playroom" (Modular) (12/1); Klaxons' "Myths of the Near Future" (Rinse/Polydor) (8/1); the Young Knives' "Voices of Animals and Men" (Transgressive) (10/1); Maps' "We Can Create" (Mute) (12/1); the View's "Hats Off to the Buskers" (1965) (8/1); Jamie T's "Panic Prevention" (Virgin) (8/1); and Basquiat Strings' "Basquiat Strings with Seb Rochford" (F-Ire) (12/1).

The winner, whittled down from a long list of more than 230 entries, will be announced Sept. 4 at a ceremony in London. The prize will be decided on the night by a panel chaired by academic Simon Firth.

Since its inception in 1992, the Mercury Prize has become an increasingly important event on the U.K. music calendar, generating sales boosts for nominated acts.

Zoe Rahman, a relatively unknown jazz pianist before her Mercury Prize nomination last year, says the positives of landing on the Mercury shortlist are long lasting.

"It's a amazing opportunity," Rahman, who is also on the panel of judges, tells Billboard.com. "There are a number of artists up there who I am really exited about, who are like I was last year. Now I have a manager and PR people. I've just come back from playing at one of the biggest jazz festivals in the world. And record sales [since Mercury Prize 2006] have been fantastic."

Kingblind Downloads

Queens of the Stone Age- White Wedding Billy Idol Cover

The Cure- The 13th

Pj Harvey- Dress

Buffalo Tom- Going Underground

Bad Brains- Give thanks and Praise

The Mohawk Lodge- Wear em' Out

Caribou- Melody Day

Justice tour North America in October

Buzz busting dance duo Justice will put in a proper run through this continent in October. So grab all your hipster friends, strap on appropriate footwear, and get ready to D.A.N.C.E. The group will be supporting their new album, Cross, which of course isn’t actually named Cross but goes, Prince-like, by the symbol of a cross. Tricky.

Follow on after the jump for Justice’s North American tour dates…

10/5 Mexico City, MEX - Abrigo Del Pedro
10/9 Los Angeles, CA - Henry Fonda Theater
10/10 San Francisco, CA - Mezzanine
10/12 Seattle, WA - Neumo’s
10/13 Vancouver, BC - Commodore Ballroom
10/16 Minneapolis, MN - Foundation
10/17 Chicago, IL - Metro
10/18 Toronto, ON - Republik
10/19 Montreal, QC - Metropolis
10/20 New York, NY - Webster Hall

The Smashing Pumpkins- Zeitgeist (Album Review)

Billy Corgan's old band has been out of the popular consciousness for long enough now that the title of the Smashing Pumpkins' new album seems like wishful thinking.

So does the music, for that matter - the songs on "Zeitgeist" are unlikely to help the revived, remodeled band recapture the hold its seminal incarnation had in the '90s on the hearts and minds of alternative-rock kids.

Then again, Corgan's moribund solo career hasn't catapulted him back to the heights his band reached around the time of 1993's "Siamese Dream" or 1995's "Melon Collie and the Infinite Sadness," so why not reanimate the band he broke up in 2000? Here's one good reason: Half the key players are missing.

Although drummer Jimmy Chamberlain has returned, this Smashing Pumpkins reunion doesn't include guitarist James Iha or bassist D'Arcy Wretzky, who helped define the band's sound. Here's what "Zeitgeist" does include: thrashing hard-rock guitars and Corgan's plaintive vocals on 12 mostly hook-free songs that never manage to rise above churning angst.

Some of the songs seem to nod at social commentary: Opener "Doomsday Clock" thunders through turgid changes as Corgan moans about an impending apocalypse, and "United States" builds from busy drum fills to a wall of fuzzed-out guitars while Corgan cries out, "Revolution/What will they do to me?"

One thing they probably won't do is spend much time mulling over the rather uninspiring return of the Smashing Pumpkins.

Jason Isbell- Sirens of the Ditch (Album Review)

Guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter Isbell was a driving force in the rousing postmodern Southern rock band Drive-By Truckers. Sirens of the Ditch is his solo debut. A resident of Muscle Shoals, Alabama, Isbell clearly has Catholic taste in his roots rock. His backing band throws together a pleasant mélange of pedal steel, organ, strummed acoustic guitar, and heartfelt Americana vocals. At first, it sounds like something you've heard before a thousand times, by Ryan Adams or was that Bryan Adams. However, on closer inspection, there's a lot more going on. After rhyming "bitch" with "ditch" in the song "Ditch," Isbell throws in a line about "dancing to 'Purple Rain'" and you're drawn in, to a clearly delineated but poetic storyline and gorgeous melodies. Isbell's best songs will remind you of Richard Buckner, Raymond Carver, and Neil Young. "Dress Blues" might be the most sympathetic and awesome song about the Iraq war yet written. Huzzah.
(Mike McGonigal)

Dozens Of 'Simpsons' Songs Bundled For 'Testify'

More than three-dozen original songs from the past nine seasons of "The Simpsons" have been bundled for the album "The Simpsons: Testify," due Sept. 18 via Shout! Factory.

Several veteran acts are represented here, including singer/songwriters Jackson Browne and Shawn Colvin, former Talking Heads frontman David Byrne, the B-52's and the Baha Men. Comedian Ricky Gervais and pop parodist "Weird" Al Yankovic also make appearances.

Among the highlights of the music voices by "Simpsons" characters are the "Yokel Chords" medley with Cletus the Slack-Jawed Yokel, "My Fair Laddy" with Groundskeeper Willie, "Welcome to Moe's" with the Simpsons and Moe the Bartender and "The Very Reason That I Live" with Sideshow Bob.

The release of "Testify" will coincide with the season 19 premiere of "The Simpsons" on Fox. As previously reported, there are also a host of music-related releases pegged to "The Simpsons Movie," which opens July 27.

Here is the track list for "The Simpsons: Testify":

"The Simpsons Main Title Theme"
"Testify"
"The Very Reason That I Live" (featuring Kelsey Grammer)
"He's the Man" (featuring Shawn Colvin)
"Stretch Dude and Clobber Girl"
"The Simpsons End Credits Theme" (performed By Los Lobos)
"Ode to Branson"
"Sold Separately"
"Island of Sirens"
"They'll Never Stop the Simpsons"
"You're a Bunch of Stuff"
"What Do I Think of the Pie?"
"Baby Stink Breath"
"Tastes Like Liberty"
"Jellyfish"
"Homer & Marge" (featuring "Weird" Al Yankovic)
"Everybody Hates Ned Flanders" (medley) (featuring David Byrne)
"I Love To Walk"
"Marjorie" (featuring Jackson Browne)
"The President Wore Pearls" medley
"Glove Slap" (featuring the B-52's)
"O Pruny Night"
"America (I Love This Country)"
"America Rules"
"Welcome to Moe's"
"We Are the Jockeys"
"Song of Shelbyville"
"A Star Is Torn" medley
"Who Wants A Haircut?" (featuring Baha Men)
"My Fair Laddy" medley
"Springfield Blows"
"King of Cats" (Itchy & Scratchy medley)
"Lady" (featuring Ricky Gervais)
"You Make Me Laugh"
"Lady Riff" (featuring Ricky Gervais)
"Poppa, Can You Hear Me?"
"Yokel Chords" medley

Previously unaired bonus tracks:
"Hullaba Lula (featuring Kelsey Grammer)
"Song of the Wild Beasts"
"Dancing Workers' Song"
"Oldies and Nudies"

Henry Rollins plans spoken word tour

Rollins is calling this outing “Provoked: An Evening of Quintessentially American Opinionated Editorializing and Storytelling.” Dude, This guy still tours like he's in Black Flag!

9/14 Flagstaff, AZ - Orpheum Theatre
9/15 Tempe, AZ - Marquee Theatre
9/16 Albuquerque, NM - Sunshine Theater
9/18 Dallas, TX - Lakewood Theater
9/19 Austin, TX - La Zona Rosa
9/20 Houston, TX - Meridian
9/21 New Orleans, LA - House of Blues
9/23 Orlando, FL - House of Blues
9/24 Tampa, FL - Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center
9/25-26 West Palm Beach, FL - The Theatre
9/27 Atlanta, GA - Coca Cola Roxy Theatre
9/28 Charlotte, NC - Amos’ Southend
9/29 Richmond, VA - Toad’s Place
9/30 Norfolk, VA - NorVa
10/1-2 Alexandria, VA - Birchmere
10/4 Sayreville, NJ - Starland Ballroom
10/5 Albany, NY - Hart Theatre @ the Egg
10/6 Glenside, PA - Keswick Theatre
10/7 Boston, MA - Berklee Performance Center
10/9 Buffalo, NY - Town Ballroom
10/10 Cincinnati, OH - Taft Theatre
10/11 Cleveland, OH - House of Blues
10/12 Toronto, ON - Convocation Hall
10/13 Ann Arbor, MI - Michigan Theater
10/15 Minneapolis, MN - First Avenue
10/16 Milwaukee, WI - Rave Eagles Club
10/17 Madison, WI - Barrymore Theatre
10/19 Chicago, IL - Vic Theatre
10/20 St. Louis, MO - The Pageant
10/21 Lawrence, KS - Liberty Hall
10/23 Denver, CO - Paramount Theater
10/24 Salt Lake City, UT - The Depot
10/26 Bellingham, WA - The Nightlight
10/27 Spokane, WA - Big Easy
10/28 Calgary, AB - Jack Singer Concert Hall
10/29 Edmonton, AB - Francis Winspear Centre
10/30 Vancouver, BC - Centre for Performing Arts
10/31 Seattle, WA - Moore Theatre
11/1 Portland, OR - Aladdin Theater
11/2 Reno, NV - Stoney’s Indoor Skate Park
11/3 Chico, CA - Senator Theater
11/4 Sacramento, CA - Crest Theatre
11/5 Santa Cruz, CA - Rio Theatre
11/6 San Francisco, CA - Herbst Theatre
11/7 Columbia, MO - Jesse Auditorium
11/8 San Diego, CA - House of Blues
11/9 Las Vegas, NV - House of Blues

Interpol “The Heinrich Maneuver” on Letterman (Music Video)

Write it on the board: it’s the new PJ Harvey album’s tracklist

I see a darkness, folks, and it’s the tracklist for PJ Harvey’s White Chalk. What, you would expect sunny, happy song titles from Ms. Harvey? Not likely. Tunes on White Chalk include prospective downers “Dear Darkness,” “Broken Harp,” and “Silence.”

1 The Devil
2 Dear Darkness
3 Grow Grow Grow
4 When Under Ether
5 White Chalk
6 Broken Harp
7 Silence
8 To Talk To You
9 The Piano
10 Before Departure
11 The Mountain
(da prefix blog)

Kingblind Downloads

Jay Z Vs. Justice- Show me how to D.A.N.C.E.

120 Days- Get Away

Bloc Party- Helecopter (Whitney Remix)

Bloc Party- Banquet

Chromeo- Needy Girl

DFA 1979- Romantic Rights

Favorite Sons- Pistols and Girls

Panters- We are louder

The Stills- Monsoon

Ask a music scene micro celebrity- AKA ask Steve Albini any and every question under the sun

CLICK TO READ and read and read
(via Fimoculous)

Nirvana:: Live at Reading Festival 1992

From Spencer at Golden Fiddle. He states- As good as it gets. Check Kurt’s “More Than A Feeling” intro to “Smells Like Teen Spirit.”
CLICK TO DOWNLOAD

Justice- † (Album Review)

Are Daft Punk the secret rulers of dance music? Following MSTRKRFT and Digitalism, here's another of-the-moment debut in hock to their disco-metal crunch and scuzzy, overdriven synthesisers. The difference is that Daft Punk are junkies for repetition, whereas Justice's Gaspard Augé and Xavier de Rosnay are thrilling fidgets - the candy-coated single DANCE has one addictive hook after another. Fundamentally, their approach is more rock than house. The grooves are gnarly and congested, the synth riffs are distorted howls and the samples are torn from Devo and horror-soundtracking prog-rockers Goblin. Waters of Nazareth has enough berserk twists to give listeners whiplash, while Stress's shrill, malfunctioning techno might be a backdrop for dancefloor-prowling serial killers. Crucifix is an electrifying ride, perpetually on the verge of breaking apart in a mess of charred circuitry and twisted metal.
(Dorian Lynskey)

Okkervil River Taking 'Names' On Fifth Album

On the heels of its melancholy 2004 breakout, "Black Sheep Boy," indie rock outfit Okkervil River explores a more pop/rock-oriented sound on its fifth album, "The Stage Names." Due Aug. 7 via Jagjaguwar, the nine-song set was penned while founder Will Sheff was living in Brooklyn last year, and recorded earlier this year in Austin, Texas.

"I felt that everything we were doing was going to be scrutinized a lot more this time, because of the success of 'Black Sheep Boy,'" Sheff said. "But when I was writing 'Black Sheep Boy,' I wanted to roll around with it, and make it very dark and unsettling. I felt like if I did that again, I'd fall into the trap of repeating myself, where I would end up being a cartoon of myself. I wanted to write an album that was light and friendly, but still serious [this time.]"

Indeed, "The Stage Names," is still characterized by Sheff's literary-leaning lyrics but several new approaches were taken on this time around. "With 'Black Sheep Boy,' we wanted a rough sound and did a lot of the recording unrehearsed," Sheff explains. "[This time], we rehearsed it every day in December. The overdubs we did were kept very minimal, and used only really to provide accents."

And even though the album has already leaked online, Sheff is still feeling jittery in the last few weeks prior to its release. "You've finally gotten recognized after nine years, and then follow it up with something different. It is a bit unnerving. But, I think I had to do that artistically," he says.

Okkervil River kick off a fall tour on Sept. 3 in San Diego and will cover the U.S. and Canada with Damien Jurado opening all dates.

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