Pitchfork

If not for a few interruptions, the follow-up to Six Demon Bag, the maniacal 2006 LP from Philly-based gypsy-rockers Man Man (aka Pitchfork's #20 album of 2006), would be finished by now.

After parting ways with New York independent label Ace Fu, the group knuckled down in a cozy Chicago studio last February with engineer Griffin Rodriguez. Following that, band member Billy Dufala (aka Chang Wang) took two months off to work on a theater project, inspiring the band to hightail it across the States for a month-long tour. Then, a month on the road ballooned to nearly three when Modest Mouse asked the band to open nearly half of their spring tour.

Obviously, leaving their label hasn't slowed Man Man down: Tracking for the as-yet-untitled third LP is set to wrap Monday with producer Bill Moriarty, and they're even shooting for a January or February release. First, though, they have to narrow the song selection from more than 15 tracks. They say likely candidates include "Big Trouble", "Top Drawer", and "Mr. Jung Stuffed", although another song already seems to be gunning for standout status: The nine-minute suite "Poor Jackie" could serve as the album's cacophonous pop centerpiece. (Catch some of these tunes-- and more-- performed live on Man Man's summer tour. Dates below.)

Over the weekend, Pitchfork dispatched a film crew from the indie rock web series Juan's Basement to spend a day with Man Man in the studio. They followed the band as they recorded a series of deafening sound effects that required upending tables strewn with piles of glass and metal, shooting off bottle rockets in the street, and a dog in a bathtub. Plus, dudes have some pretty mind-blowing bike skills.

Here are some pics to tide you over until the video hits Forkcast next week.

Man Man tour dates:

06-24 Charlottesville, VA - Satellite Ballroom
06-25 Columbia, SC - Headliners
06-26 Orlando, FL - Back Booth *
06-27 Miami, FL - Studio A *
06-28 Tampa, FL - Orpheum *
06-29 Athens, GA - 40 Watt Club
07-01 Brooklyn, NY - McCarren Park Pool $
07-27 Akron, OH - The Lime Spider
07-10 Philadelphia, PA - Starlight Ballroom !
07-28 Chicago, IL - Wicker Park Summer Fest #
07-29 Bloomington, IN - Bluebird

* with Elf Power, Summerbirds in the Cellar (Camel cigarettes show)
$ with Illinois, Dengue Fever
! with Deerhunter, O'Death
# with Centro-matic, Maritime, the Thermals