Damon Che Books Don Caballero Reunion, Forgets To Invite Rest Of Band
Joe Flaherty WD-40's wheelchair; sends white suit, hat to the cleaners

[Updated Friday, September 26th, 2003 01:25:00 Pitchfork Central Time]

In a move that's unexpected but not so surprising (considering who we're dealing with here), Damon Che-- longtime drummer of the hilariously amazing Don Caballero-- will be re-forming the band for a number of shows starting in late October. Here's the catch: Damon's opted not to invite the rest of Don Cab to the reunion. But hey, weren't you bored with those same old geniuses that'd been an integral part of the band for the ten years of their existence anyway? It seems Che was. Members of Pittsburgh math-rock outfit Creta Bourzia will be filling out the roles instead, leaving many to wonder what happened to Ian Williams, Mike Banfield, and the bevy of faceless bassists that might have been expected to take part in this glorified reunion.

No word has been snatched up yet as to the original band member's reactions to the initiative (write us!), or if Che even approached any of them about participating. But you can be sure that while the new Don Cab won't be exactly the first thing you'd envision in a reunion, it will without a doubt be a spectacle of one stripe or another. So far the only official reunion dates are as follows:

10-23 Boston, MA - Middle East *
10-24 Philadelphia, PA - Khyber *
10-26 Baltimore, MD - Ottobar *
10-29 Atlanta, GA - Echo Lounge *
10-31 Charlottesville, VA - Tokyo Rose *
11-01 Pittsburgh, PA - Carnegie Mellon (w/ Modey Lemon, Creta Bourzia, We Safari)
11-02 Cleveland, OH - Grog Shop *
11-05 Detroit, MI - Lager House *
11-06 Chicago, IL - Empty Bottle

* with The Constantines

This kind of strange and perhaps questionable maneuvering has defined Damon Che for Don Caballero fans throughout his career, most recently in the drunken tantrum marking his departure from Bellini this time last year. In the meantime, those in need of witnessing the alien guitar work of Ian Williams can find him tapping and squelching out all sorts of melodic disorder in his new project, Battles.

Who knows, if this trend catches on, perhaps next month we'll get news that Lou Barlow is bringing back Dinosaur Jr. with some other guy we've never heard of in the driver's seat. Or, uh, The Doors could reform without Jim Morrison. How about John Mellencamp and the E Street Band?

Don Caballero: http://www.southern.com/southern/band/DONCA
Battles: http://www.bttls.com

Ted Leo Hooks Back Up With Pharmacists For Fall Dates
Drawn into eternal struggle between drugstore cowboy and rhinestone cowboy

[Posted Thursday, September 25th, 2003 04:00:00 Pitchfork Central Time]

Ted Leo's vocal cords seeming to be holding up fine, as he's been cruising through a set of solo dates. So while the Pharmacists have been sitting at home on Saturday nights, watching Law and Order reruns and flipping through their (very) little black books, ol' Teddy's been out having a ball. But now the situation's being rectified, and the Pharmacists will be joining Ted for a new set of dates around the U.S, starting a little under three weeks after he finishes up his own gigs in Cali.

The Pharmacists dates start off with a bang in New York, with Lookout! Records' big phat CMJ paaaaartay. You get Ted Leo and the Pharmacists, Small Brown Bike, The Washdown, Communique, The Reputation, and the Evening, all on one bill! All right! Sure, Ted Leo's the only one I've ever fucking heard of, but still, what a deal!

As previously reported, Leo is releasing the solo-centric EP Tell Balgeary, Balgury Is Dead on October 7th via Lookout! and should have plenty available on the tour. To the date-pole!

09-27 Victoria, British Columbia - Logan's (Ted Leo solo)
10-03 San Diego, CA (Ted Leo solo)
10-04 Los Angeles, CA (Ted Leo solo)
10-05 San Francisco, CA (Ted Leo solo)
10-24 New York, NY - CBGB (Lookout! CMJ showcase)
10-25 Brooklyn, NY - North Six
10-29 Boston, MA - Paradise Rock Club *
10-30 Northampton, MA - Smith College *
10-31 Villanova, PA - Late Nite *
11-01 Ithaca, NY - Appel Common *
11-02 Philadelphia, PA - North Star *
11-06 Princeton, NJ - Terrace Club
11-09 Detroit, MI - The Shelter (w/ Onieda)
11-11 Chicago, IL - Fireside Bowl (w/ Onieda)
11-12 Milwaukee, WI - Cactus Club
11-14 Ames, IA - Maintenance Shop
11-15 Urbana, IL - Courtyard Cafe
11-17 Saint Louis, MO - Creepy Crawl #
11-18 Fayetteville, AR - JR's Lightbulb Club #
11-21 Denver, CO - Climax Lounge #
11-22 Omaha, NE - Sokol Underground #
11-23 Lawrence, KS - The Bottleneck
12-06 Tallahassee, FL - Club Downunder +
12-08 Miami, FL - I/O +
12-09 Tampa, FL - The Orpheum +
12-10 Orlando, FL - The Social +
12-11 Atlanta, GA - Echo Lounge +

* with Weird War
# with El Guapo
+ with The Joggers

Ted Leo: http://tedleo.com
Lookout! Records: http://www.lookoutrecords.com

Califone Get Existential On New Album, Tour With Clem Snide
Tonight's special is fresh capers and olive oil tossed with a little Rutili

[Posted Thursday, September 25th, 2003 04:00:00 Pitchfork Central Time]

Califone, unplaceable and incomparable, are going out on a nationwide tour with Clem Snide starting at the end of September. You may get to hear some new tunes this time around, as the band is putting the finishing touches on a new album which is due early in 2004. The tour kicks off with the band playing Chicago's Empty Bottle this Saturday, September 27th, as part of Wire magazine's Adventures in Modern Music festival.

The new album, to be titled King Heron Blues, was recorded at bandleader Tim Rutili's studio with Michael Krassner (Boxhead Ensemble, Truckstop Audio Recording Company), and is currently being mixed down for release in January or February of next year. Rutili described the recent recording experience as "truly frightening," a process during which he began to "doubt [his] existence." He went on to provide a scary litany of weird scenes from the recording of the album, including, believe it or not, "a man on stilts wearing a beak and a crown." Yikes. But when you're keepin' it real in the heart of Americana, things can kind of go down that way sometimes.

You know what needs to happen here? Wim Wenders needs to get these guys together with Tom Waits and Sparklehorse and a limitless supply of bourbon, put them on a rickety old bus and follow them around the country for a while until somebody has a near-death experience. Then we'll be really cookin'. Wouldn't you go see that movie? The dates:

09-27 Chicago, IL - Empty Bottle
09-28 New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom
10-01 Washington, D.C. - Black Cat
10-02 Charlotte, NC - Visualite Theater
10-03 Atlanta, GA - Echo Lounge
10-04 Nashville, TN - Exit Inn
10-08 Memphis,TN - Hi Tone Cafe
10-10 Houston, TX - Fat Cats
10-11 Austin, TX - Emo's
10-12 Dallas, TX - Gypsy Tea Room
10-14 Tucson, AZ - Club Congress
10-15 Los Angeles, CA - Troubador
10-16 San Diego, CA - Casbah
10-18 San Francisco, CA - Cafe du Nord
10-19 Portland, OR - Dante's
10-20 Seattle, WA - Crocodile Cafe
10-23 Lincoln, NE - Knickerbockers
10-24 Minneapolis, MN - Ascot Room
10-25 Chicago, IL - Logan Square Auditorium
10-26 Madison, WI - Luther's Blues

Califone: http://www.pastrysharp.com
Perishable: http://www.perishablerecords.com
Thrill Jockey: http://www.thrilljockey.com

Ben Folds Continues Series Of EP's, Prepares New Album for 2004
Still hoping that career as pianist will eventually lead to liptime with Halle Berry

[Posted Thursday, September 25th, 2003 04:00:00 Pitchfork Central Time]

So we might be a bit slow on the uptake for this one, but we think you'll find it's surprisingly relevant. Everyone's favorite piano playin' maniac, Ben Folds, has been busy in the studio. Eschewing, for the moment, the traditional LP form we all know and love, Ben is in the midst of releasing three EP's of all new material before getting back to basics with a new album in 2004. The first five-song EP, Speed Graphic, featuring a cover of The Cure's "Inbetween Days," was released this summer, and is available via Apple's iTunes music store. In fact, during the week of August 9th, the recently introduced Billboard/Soundscan "Hot Digital Tracks" chart had Speed Graphic's components occupying five of its six top spots. Take that, Beyonce (really)! The EP's can also be purchased as a Sony Music Digital Download, or as an actual CD (remember those?) from Folds' own label, Attacked By Plastic.

Folds' official website reports that the second EP, Sunny 16, will be ready to ship come September 30th. Folds himself made with some thoughts on the site: "Part of me thinks I'm an idiot for 'wasting' this recording on a limited release EP, but I'm really into this method of recording and releasing quickly and making it all about music, so here it is... I'm feeling like it's one of my best records. And I'm just warming up because I'm headed back into the studio to make another EP, Super D, for release in November." Folds also imparted some details regarding the upcoming full-length, to be released early next year: "It will feature possibly re-recorded versions of three of the songs on these limited edition EP's, and the rest of the material will be new." The tracklist for Sunny 16:

01 There's Always Someone Cooler Than You
02 Learn to Live With What You Are
03 All You Can Eat
04 Rockstar
05 Songs of Love [Divine Comedy]

Folds will also be exercising his liberal guilt with those most well known of do-gooders, the Indigo Girls, at the sixth Honor the Earth benefit concert on October 10th. The Dixie Chicks will also be present, no doubt completely pulling for Bush's continued effort to spend all of our hard-earned tax dollars on social, health, and educational programs... for Iraq. The concert will be held at the Earth-friendly Verizon Wireless Ampitheater in Charlotte, NC, and in case you're thinking this kind of seems like an unholy union, keep in mind that all net proceeds will go to the Honor The Earth foundation and the tearful Indian who serves as its Honor-ary treasurer. Folds is also heading out on the college circuit in November, with a few dates to support the new EP:

11-01 Washington, D.C. - George Washington University
11-02 Oswego, NY - SUNY Oswego
11-07 Kirksville, MO - Truman State University

Finally, following in the noble footsteps of Queen, The Who, and Prince, the songs of Ben Folds Five have been adapted to the musical theater. The production, entitled Steven's Last Night in Town, ran during the month of August at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe to mixed reviews. Featuring older Folds tunes such as "Boxing" and "Song for the Dumped" as well as the titular "Last Night," the production is, according to the official Festival website, "A musical comedy cataloguing one man's life as a complete failure." Sounds like a lark.

Ben Folds: http://www.benfolds.com
Ben Folds Five: http://www.benfoldsfive.com
Attacked by Plastic: http://www.attackedbyplastic.com

Norfolk & Western Release New Album, Tour Germany A Lot
For those about to folk-rock, we (sig heil!) salute you

[Posted Thursday, September 25th, 2003 04:00:00 Pitchfork Central Time]

Alt-folk quartet Norfolk & Western are set to release their fourth album, Dusk in Cold Parlours, through Hush Records on November 4th (though it's currently available via mailorder). Hush describes the record as "intimate, close and warmed by fire, which makes it so satisfying, and in the end, addictive. Dusk in Cold Parlours is by far the most (indie)pop-leaning album [in the group's catalog], but it retains the band's unique mélange of Americana, folk and indie rock." More indie pop-leaning, eh? Following their hearts, or the heels of Wilco? We report; you decide. Tracklist:

01 A Marriage Proposal
02 Letters Opened in the Bar
03 Terrified
04 Kelly Bauman
05 Jealousy, It's True
06 Impossible
07 Oslo
08 Disappear
09 No Where Else He Can Go
10 A Hymnal
11 The Tired Words
12 At Dawn or Dusk

Norfolk & Western have also announced a fall extension to their current tour, which began in June with the Decemberists. Unfortunately, they'll be playing sans bassist David Welch (too busy writing documentaries for NPR) and guitarist/organist Tony Moreno. Currently, the group is in Europe giving a suspicious amount of attention to Germany; come October, they'll grace us once again with a West Coast tour. The dates:

09-26 Salzburg, Austria - Salzburger Rocknight
09-27 Zwickau, Germany - Festival
09-29 Ludwigsburg, Germany - Waldhaus Club
10-02 Nurtingen, Germany - Bloodculture Festival
10-03 Leonberg, Germany - Bloodculture Festival Part 2
10-04 Kanzach, Germany - Go In Club
10-07 Reutlingen, Germany - Irish Pub
10-08 Tubingen, Germany - Epplehaus
10-10 Heidelberg, Germany - Schwimmbad Club
10-11 Hof, Germany - TBA
10-12 Chemnitz, Germany - TBA
10-13 Dresden, Germany - TBA
10-14 Leipzig, Germany - TBA
10-15 Berlin, Germany - TBA
10-17 Wismar, Germany - TBA
10-18 Vechta, Germany - TBA
10-19 Oldenburg, Germany - TBA
10-20 Bremen, Germany - TBA
10-21 Hattingen, Germany - TBA
10-22 Brighton, England - TBA
10-23 London, England - TBA
10-24 London, England - TBA
10-25 Nottingham, England - TBA
10-26 Leeds, England - TBA
10-27 Manchester, England - TBA
10-28 Liverpool, England - TBA
10-30 Amsterdam, Netherlands - TBA
10-31 Norden, Germany - TBA
11-14 Seattle, WA - TBA
11-15 Anacortes, WA - Dept. of Safety
11-17 San Francisco, CA - Make Out Room
11-18 San Luis Obispo, CA - Z-Pie
11-19 San Francisco, CA - Hotel Utah
11-20 Los Angeles, CA - Sea Level Records
11-22 Portland, OR - Nocturnal

Norfolk & Western: http://www.norfolkandwestern.org
Hush: http://www.hushrecords.com

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.)