Pitchfork

When we last chatted with Blonde Redhead's Simone Pace, the band was recording the follow-up to 2004's Misery Is a Butterfly, but still wholly undecided about all those silly logistical things we Pitchfork newsies love to report: an album name, song titles, a release date, and the like. Perhaps they resolved to make up their minds when the ball dropped, or perhaps they're just damned savvy marketers, but the art-rock trio has at last revealed all.

On April 10, 4AD will release Blonde Redhead's seventh album, 23, which we sure hope has nothing to do with that forthcoming Joel Schumacher-directed, Jim Carrey-starring numerology thriller. But hmm, wait a minute...23 times four (as in 4AD) times seven (seventh album) plus 23 minus one (um, just because) equals...666!!!!

Holy smokes, we've got ourselves a conspiracy. And we haven't even considered the numeric significance of folks like 23's co-mixers Rich Costey and Alan Moulder, nor that of Mr. Chris Coady, who recorded the Blonde Redhead-produced affair at New York's Magic Shop.

And it wouldn't be a Blonde Redhead marketing blitz/occult conspiracy without the North American tour, which kicks off in mid-March at SXSW. But wait: if Kazu and the Pace brothers rock precisely four SXSW showcases/parties (a reasonable number for a band of their stature), that means they'll play exactly 23 shows on this tour!!! Hot Jesus, somebody call Dan Brown already.

23:

01 23
02 Dr. Strangeluv
03 The Dress
04 SW
05 Spring and by Summer Fall
06 Silently
07 Publisher
08 Heroine
09 Top Ranking
10 My Impure Hair

Hot dates:

03-14 Austin, TX - SXSW
04-13 Detroit, MI - Magic Stick
04-14 Chicago, IL - Metro
04-15 Minneapolis, MN - First Avenue
04-19 Portland, OR - Wonder Ballroom
04-20 Vancouver, British Columbia - Commodore Ballroom
04-21 Seattle, WA - Showbox
04-23 San Francisco, CA - Bimbo's
04-24 San Francisco, CA - Bimbo's
04-25 Pomona, CA - Glasshouse
04-27 San Diego, CA - Belly Up Tavern
05-01 Dallas, TX - Gypsy Ballroom
05-02 Austin, TX - Stubb's Bar-B-Q
05-04 Atlanta, GA - Variety Playhouse
05-05 Chapel Hill, NC - Cat's Cradle
05-06 Washington, DC - 9:30 Club
05-08 New York, NY - Webster Hall
05-09 Boston, MA - Paradise
05-11 Toronto, Ontario - The Opera House
05-12 Montreal, Quebec - Club Soda