Antony, Will Oldham Guest on New Current 93 LP

We're pretty sure that's what went down when Tibet recruited crooners Antony and Will "Bonnie 'Prince' Billy" Oldham to sing on the forthcoming Current 93 disc, Black Ships Ate the Sky. The 76-minute opus arrives this May via Tibet's Durtro Jnana label and also features contributions from Soft Cell's Marc Almond, Colin Meloy-approved folk princess Shirley Collins, Mellow Candle's Clodagh Simonds, Cosey Fanni Tutti, and Durtro labelmates Baby Dee and Pantaleimon.

Quoth David: "[Black Ships is] the closest I have come to picturing what I hope, and feel, and love, and fear." These be the cuts:

01 Idumea [feat. Marc Almond]
02 Sunset (The Death of Thumbelina)
03 Black Ships in the Sky
04 Then Kill Cæsar
05 Idumea [feat. Bonnie 'Prince' Billy]
06 This Autistic Imperium Is Nihil Reich
07 The Dissolution of the Boat "Millions of Years"
08 Idumea [feat. Baby Dee]
09 Bind Your Tortoise Mouth
10 Idumea [feat. Antony]
11 Black Ships Seen Last Year South of Heaven
12 Abba Amma (Babylon Destroyer)
13 Idumea [feat. Clodagh Simonds]
14 Black Ships Were Sinking / Idumea [feat. Cosey Fanni Tutti]
15 The Beautiful Dancing Dust [feat. Antony]
16 Idumea [feat. Pantaleimon]
17 Vauvauvau (Black Ships in Their Harbour)
18 Idumea
19 Black Ships Ate the Sky
20 Why Cæsar Is Burning Part II
21 Idumea [feat. Shirley Collins]

The present incarnation of Current 93 includes mainstay Tibet, Michael Cashmore (Nature and Organisation), Ben Chasny (Six Organs of Admittance), Steve Stapleton (Nurse With Wound), and John Contreras, with contributions from William Basinski, William Breeze, and Seattle jewelry mistress Amy Phillips (no relation to our news editor).

This merry troupe has but one live date scheduled at the moment, although Tibet presumes C93 will tour the U.S. and Europe following the release of Black Ships. For now:

04-09 Nantes, France - Le Lieu Unique *

* with Six Organs of Admittance, OM

Finally, as previously reported, 2006 will be the year most Current 93 devotees file for bankruptcy. Jnana just issued the five-disc mega-comp Not Alone, a Doctors Without Borders benefit co-curated by Tibet and featuring contributions from Antony, Bonnie-P, Devendra Banhart, Vashti Bunyan, Six Organs, and numerous other notables. Arriving soon are reissues of a number of C93 classics, including 2000's Sleep Has His House in deluxe format, as well as a book of David Tibet's collected lyrics. And, as if that weren't enough, Neurot Recordings will drop a 10" Current 93/OM split this May. Kids, there has never been a better time to eBay your emo collection.

Durtro: http://www.durtro.com/

Maxïmo Park Get Remixed, Schedule Fall UK Tour

Moving on...Maxïmo Park will release "I Want You to Stay", the fourth single from their 2005 debut album A Certain Trigger, on February 20 via Warp in the UK. The single will be available on CD, as a download, and on two vinyl editions: turquoise and white.

Sprinkled throughout the releases are mixes of the cut by fellow Sunderland pals Field Music (with former Kenickie drummer Pete Gofton under his J Xaverre alias) and Jamie Lidell's Super_Collider partner Cristian Vogel. There's also a B-side that may or may not be about a b-list hotel chain.

You are going to be real sick of this song real soon.

CD:

01 I Want You to Stay (Radio Edit)
02 La Quinta
03 I Want You to Stay (Field Music/J Xaverre Mix)

Turquoise 7":

01 I Want You to Stay (Original Demo version)
02 I Want You to Stay (Field Music/J Xaverre Mix)

White 7":

01 I Want You to Stay (Cristian Vogel Mix)
02 La Quinta

Download:

01 I Want You to Stay (Live In Newcastle 29.01.06)

As previously reported, Maxïmo Park will release the rarities compilation Missing Songs on February 20 in the UK and February 21 here in the U.S. The band is also currently wrapping up their headlining gig on the ShockWaves NME Awards Tour in the UK, playing alongside We Are Scientists, Arctic Monkeys, and Mystery Jets. After that, they'll head to Thailand for the Bangkok 100 Rock Festival, where they'll share the stage with such tastefully named local acts as Big Ass. A fall UK tour was also announced today.

Dates:

02-13 Bristol, England - Academy #
02-15 Pyramid, England - Guildhall #
02-16 Brighton, England - Dome #
02-17 London, England - Carling Brixton Academy #
02-19 Bangkok, Thailand - Lakeside Muangthong Thani (Bangkok 100 Rock Festival) *
09-30 Glasgow, Scotland - Carling Academy
10-01 Manchester, England - Manchester Academy
10-02 Middlesborough, England - Town Hall
10-04 Sheffield, England - Octagon
10-05 Birmingham, England - Carling Academy
10-06 London, England - Brixton Academy

# ShockWaves NME Awards Tour with Arctic Monkeys, We Are Scientists, Mystery Jets
* with Stereophonics, Placebo, Snow Patrol, Futureheads, Bodyslam, Big Ass

Maxïmo Park: http://www.maximopark.com
Warp Records: http://www.warprecords.com

Pretenders Plan Box Set, Tour

That being said, the March 14 release of a career-spanning Pretenders box set might be just the inspiration the Strokes need. Titled Pirate Radio, the Rhino anthology will feature 81 tracks across four CDs, as well as a DVD. Most notable for fans are the 15 previously unreleased songs scattered throughout the discs, including demos, alternate takes, and live cuts from the Pretenders' quarter-century career. Covers of songs by Radiohead, Morrissey, Neil Young, and Jimi Hendrix, among others, also appear.

The DVD features 19 video clips shot between 1979 and 1995, with a number of never-before-released performances thrown in for good measure. A "specially commissioned" poster by S. Clay Wilson will round out the package, perfect for proudly displaying front and center in your James Honeyman-Scott shrine.

Tracklist:

>>Disc 1:

01 Precious (Regent Park Demo) *
02 Stop Your Sobbing
03 The Wait (Single Version)
04 Kid
05 Tattooed Love Boys
06 Mystery Achievement
07 Brass in Pocket
08 Porcelain
09 Talk of the Town (UK single version)
10 Message of Love
11 Cuban Slide
12 What You Gonna Do About It
13 The Adultress
14 Bad Boys Get Spanked
15 I Go to Sleep
16 Day After Day
17 Birds of Paradise
18 The English Roses
19 Time the Avenger
20 Watching the Clothes (Denmark Street Demo) *
21 Show Me

>>Disc 2:

01 Back on the Chain Gang
02 Thumbelina
03 Thin Line Between Love and Hate
04 My City Was Gone
05 Middle of the Road
06 Tequila *
07 2000 Miles
08 When I Change My Life (Alternate Version) *
09 My Baby
10 Worlds Within Worlds *
11 Don't Get Me Wrong
12 Hymn to Her
13 Tradition of Love
14 Room Full of Mirrors
15 Reconsider Me (Monitor mix)*
16 Hold a Candle to This (Alternate Version) *
17 Windows of the World (Original mix)
18 Never Do That
19 No Guarantee
20 Not a Second Time

>>Disc 3:

01 Sense of Purpose
02 Downtown (Akron)
03 How Do I Miss You
04 Bold As Love
05 When Will I See You
06 Hollywood Perfume
07 Night in My Veins
08 977
09 All My Dreams
10 Angel of the Morning (Original Version) *
11 Money Talk
12 Rebel Rock Me
13 I'll Stand by You
14 Every Mothers' Son (Demo) *
15 Love Colours
16 Private Life (Live)
17 Lovers of Today (Live)
18 Creep (Live)
19 Criminal (Live)
20 Revolution (Live)

>>Disc 4:

01 Everyday Is Like Sunday
02 Human (Class Mix)
06 The Needle and the Damage Done
07 From the Heart Down (Alternate Version) *
08 Who's Who
09 Biker
10 Nails in the Road
11 Legalize Me
12 The Homecoming (Live) *
13 Up the Neck (Live) *
14 Fools Must Die (Live) *
15 Nothing Breaks Like a Heart
16 Lie to Me
17 Complex Person
18 You Know Who Your Friends Are
19 I Should Of
20 The Losing

>>DVD:

01 Talk of the Town ("Top of the Pops")
02 The Adultress ("Fridays")
03 The Wait ("All Right Now")
04 Hollywood Perfume ("Later With Jools Holland")
05 Brass in Pocket ("Top of the Pops")
06 977 ("Later With Jools Holland")
07 Never Do That ("Terry Wogan Show")
08 Thumbelina ("The New Show", 1984)
09 2000 Miles ("Pebble Mill")
10 Night in My Veins ("Top of the Pops")
11 My City Was Gone (live in Phoenix, AZ, 1994)
12 Tattooed Love Boys ("All Right Now")
13 Middle of the Road (MTV)
14 Don't Get Me Wrong ("Top of the Pops")
15 Criminal ("Pebble Mill")
16 Room Full of Mirrors (live at the Montreaux Jazz Festival, 2003)
17 Louie Louie ("Fridays")
18 Stop Your Sobbing ("Top of the Pops")
19 Tattooed Love Boys/Up the Neck ("The Old Grey Whistle Test")

* Previously Unreleased

The band will set out on a small tour in support of Pirate Radio, kicking off with a pair of appearances at SXSW, including an interview. A string of U.S. dates, mostly at Houses of Blues, will follow, before the band ships off to England for a lone gig in London.

Dates:

03-17 Austin, TX - Convention Center (SXSW interview)
03-18 Austin, TX - Stubb's BBQ (SXSW)
03-21 West Hollywood, CA - House of Blues
03-22 West Hollywood, CA - House of Blues
03-23 Anaheim, CA - House of Blues
03-24 Anaheim, CA - House of Blues
03-25 Las Vegas, NV - House of Blues
03-27 San Diego, CA - House of Blues
03-28 San Diego, CA - House of Blues
03-30 San Francisco, CA - The Warfield
04-01 New York, NY - Irving Plaza *
04-02 Atlantic City, NJ - House of Blues *
04-07 London, England - Koko

* with the Blue Van

The Pretenders: http://www.pretendersband.com

Arab Strap's Last Romance Coming to America

That's what you get for stealing (or, um, buying imports):

01 Stink
02 (If There's) No Hope for Us
03 Chat in Amsterdam, Winter 2003
04 Don't Ask Me to Dance
05 Confessions of a Big Brother
06 Come Round and Love Me
07 Speed-Date
08 Dream Sequence
09 Fine Tuning
10 There Is No Ending
11 El Paso Song
12 Go Back to the Sea

According to the band's website, Arab Strap also plan to release a second 7" single from The Last Romance on February 20, a "slightly different version" of "Speed-Date". The B-sides will be the album's original opener, "Preface: Set the Scene", and a song with a quintessential AS title (if there ever was one), "The Girl I Loved Before I Fucked". The songs will also become available on iTunes for those without a turntable. Richard Jobson, former frontman for the Skids, is slated to direct a video for "Speed-Date", which, according to the band, will be released on a Chemikal Underground DVD in the near future.

Without all this activity on disc and wax, Arab Strap would still be plenty busy in 2006. Aidan Moffat and Malcolm Middleton now employ different players in the touring configuration of Arab Strap, which, they claim, "sounds like a proper rock band now, bring your earplugs..." They're currently touring Europe, and will visit America in March and April, surrounding a SXSW performance. They also have plans to visit the Japan and Australia in May, and Russia in June.

Listen for filthy laughs:

02-13 Berlin, Germany - Magnet
02-14 Cologne, Germany - Gebäude 9
02-15 Stuttgart, Germany - Schoken
02-16 Vienna, Austria - Flex
02-17 Milan, Italy - Rainbow
02-18 Bologna, Italy - Estragon
02-19 Rome, Italy - Circolo Degli Artisti
02-20 Turin, Italy - Hiroshima
02-21 Fribourg, Switzerland - Fri-Son
02-22 Zurich, Switzerland - Abart
02-23 Montpellier, France - Victoire 2
02-24 Madrid, Spain - Arena
02-25 Barcelona, Spain - Razz 3
02-26 Paris, France - Maroquinerie
03-23 Hollywood, CA - Knitting Factory *#
03-24 San Francisco, CA - Café du Nord *#
03-25 San Francisco, CA - Café du Nord *#
03-27 Portland, OR - Doug Fir Lounge *#
03-28 Seattle, WA - Neumos *$
03-29 Vancouver, British Columbia - The Media Club
03-31 Minneapolis, MN - 7th Street Entry #
04-01 Chicago, IL - Empty Bottle #
04-04 Toronto, Ontario - Lee's Palace
04-06 Allston, MA - Great Scott #
04-07 Brooklyn, NY - Southpaw

* with His Name Is Alive
# with A Whisper in the Noise
$ with Page France

Arab Strap: http://www.arabstrap.co.uk
Transdreamer: http://www.transdreamer.com

?uestlove Releases V-Day Mix, Roots Work on New LP

Tomorrow, February 14 (that's right, Valentine's Day), BBE Records will release the sequel to ?uestlove's 2002 mix CD Babies Makin' Babies, aptly titled Babies Makin' Babies 2: Misery Strikes Back...No More Babies. The compilation features 12 funk and soul rare grooves handpicked by ?uestlove himself, all dealing with love gone wrong.

Man, if a guy as cool as ?uestlove can't get it together with the ladies, is there any hope for the rest of us?.

Tracklist:

01 Ohio Players: "Our Love Has Died"
02 The Blackbyrds: "Mother/Son Bedroom Talk"
03 Betty Davis: "Anti Love Song"
04 D.J. Rogers: "If You Didn't Love Me (Don't Go Away)"
05 Al Green: "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart?"
06 Albert King: "I Almost Lost My Mind"
07 Stevie Wonder presents Syreeta: "Cause We've Ended as Lovers"
08 The Delfonics: "I'm Sorry"
09 Natalie Cole: "Good Morning Heartache"
10 Bobby Womack: "That's the Way I Feel About 'Cha"
11 Jermaine Jackson: "You're Supposed to Keep Your Love for Me"
12 Average White Band: "One Look Over My Shoulder (Is This Really Goodbye?)"

The Roots are currently working on their follow-up to 2004's mildly-received The Tipping Point. Titled Game Theory, and tentatively due in September, the disc will be their first offering for new label Def Jam. ?uestlove recently told Entertainment Weekly, "When we record, I see it as basketball quarters. We're in the third quarter-- the most experimental one." He also mentioned that Al Green will appear on the album.

?uestlove is currently working with Dave Chappelle on his new studio comedy record, and served as the musical director for Chappelle's forthcoming concert film, Dave Chapelle's Block Party, directed by Michel Gondry and due in theaters March 3. The Roots will also appear on the film's soundtrack, alongside Erykah Badu, Jill Scott, Common, Mos Def, and Talib Kweli, according to Billboard.com

And finally, ?uestlove's side project with fellow producer James Poyser, the Randy Watson Experience (named after a character from Coming to America), will contribute a song to Exit Music, a Radiohead tribute album that will be released on BBE. Bilal, Mark Ronson, and RJD2 are also slated to appear on the tribute. Who knew Radiohead had a neo-soul side?

The Roots: http://www.theroots.com/
BBE: http://www.bbemusic.com/

Yeah Yeah Yeahs/Ex Models Side Project Readies LP

The follow-up to the Seconds' slept-on 2001 debut, Y, comes our way on March 21 via 5 Rue Christine (or 5RC if yr into shorthand). Recorded and self-produced by the band in Chase's practice pad in Brooklyn, all recording was done on a good ol' four-track-- just like the one in your basement!

Appropriately inscrutable tracklist:

01 Moving
02 Sister
03 Scheisse
04 Sleeping
05 Say
06 Teeth
07 S+V
08 Dogsickle
09 Tintal
10 Dedicated to the One Eye
11 (gtr)

Being the busy people that they are, the Seconds don't have any tour dates scheduled at the moment. But you can catch Brian and Zach with their other bands when they hit your town in due time.

The Seconds: http://www.5rc.com/bands/seconds/
5RC: http://www.5rc.com

Aloha Share Some Echoes, Tour

On April 11, Polyvinyl will roll out the group's fourth offering, Some Echoes, which was recorded in sessions scattered across the country over the past year and a half. Their breeziest work yet, Some Echoes belies a strong prog influence, with swirling organ sounds and antique keyboard riffs replacing guitars at the forefront. And everybody knows that prog is the new post-rock.

Drummer Cale Parks tells us that Tony Cavallario's lyrics are at the forefront of Aloha's songs again, as they were on the band's 2004 release Here Comes Everyone. So you'll find none of that instrumental background music wimpiness here.

It won't be long:

01 Brace Your Face
02 Big Morning
03 Your Eyes
04 Ice Storming
05 Between the Walls
06 Come Home
07 Weekend
08 Summer Lawn
09 If I Lie Down
10 Mountain

Not ones to disappoint by making just one announcement, Aloha have revealed March dates for a tour that will see them playing various hotspots across America, including the hottest of them all: SXSW. They'll be sharing stages with a mind-boggling number of buzz bands.

We get down:

03-08 Buffalo, NY - Kitchen Distribution
03-09 Cleveland Heights, OH - Grog Shop *
03-10 Lansing, MI - Mac's Bar #
03-11 Chicago, IL - The Hideout
03-12 Columbia, MO - MOJO !
03-13 Oklahoma City, OK - The One Fourteen
03-14 Dallas, TX - Gypsy Tea Room ^@
03-15 Austin, TX - Emo's Jr. (SXSW) ?
03-16 Austin, TX - The Parish (SXSW) ^&
03-17 San Antonio, TX - Blacklion %
03-18 Austin, TX - Mother Eagan's Pub (early show) =
03-18 Houston, TX - Walter's on Washington %
03-19 Little Rock, AR - Vino's $
03-22 Columbus, OH - The High Five
03-23 Pittsburgh, PA - Garfield Artworks
04-10 New York, NY - Mercury Lounge +

* with Mazarin, The Double
# with Dirty on Purpose
! with the Ponys
^ with Teo Leo/Pharmacists
@ with the Duke Spirit, Les Aus
? with Owen, Saturday Looks Good to Me, Headlights, Octopus Project, ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead, Of Montreal
& with Rogue Wave, Thunderbirds are Now!, What Made Milwaukee Famous
% with The Velvet Teen
= with Oxford Collapse, +/-, Earlimart, Swearing at Motorists
$ with Maritime
+ with Voxtrot

Aloha: http://www.musicofaloha.com/
Polyvinyl: http://www.polyvinylrecords.com

Boyracer Back With Anthology, New LP

But who needs all that fame and beer when you can refuse to lose and win on your own terms? Stewart and perma-partner Jen Turrell are back in the driver's seat with a distribution deal for their 555 Recordings label through Darla, and two Boyracer new releases. The first, a brand-new album titled A Punch Up the Bracket, comes out tomorrow, February 14, and contains 21 songs in 45 minutes, which is positively epic for these guys. Guests on the LP include Ara Hacopian from Saturday People, Chuck Reutter from the Bright Lights and Martin Cannert from Javelins.

Are they trying to pick a fight with the Libertines?:

01 A Punch Up the Bracket
02 The Man The Myth
03 Second Hand Youth
04 Secret Jokes
05 The Toilets of Northern Europe
06 Insect Boy
07 A Happy Accident
08 No Tears
09 Geordie Lout
10 The Desperate Hours
11 Yr Love It Lies to You
12 Contradictions
13 Normal
14 Perennial Underdog
15 Louise (New Version)
16 Stand By Your Words
17 Yr Silent Years
18 Kids Don't follow
19 More Than Most
20 Pleasantries
21 Tactile

Tomorrow was also scheduled to bring the 555 release of the double-disc Boyracer compendium Punker Than You Since '92, but due to copyright issues, it has been pushed back to March 20. The two discs contain 75 tracks of fuzz-punk goodness, from the band's debut 7" through a 10" issued last year in a limited edition of 75 copies. (They sure like that number, don't they?)

Punker Than You is heavier on the rare stuff than the 2001 "greatest hits" collection Boyfuckingracer. And with this band, it's all about the rare stuff.

Disc One: 2001-2006:

01 A History of Snakes
02 They're Making Money Off You
03 Who Pissed on Yr Bonfire?
04 2nd Hand Youth
05 9 to 5 Style
06 Lou and Ged
07 90s Are Thru
08 On Bleached Grass
09 Sarah and Sarah
10 (It Just Fell Down the) Back of the Fridge
11 Absence Makes the Heart Grow Harder
12 Everyday Is Saturday Night
13 Pop Holiday
14 You've Squandered Yr Talents
15 Billy Three
16 Concede
17 Ghosts in Japan
18 Words Are Yr Currency
19 Warmest Hours
20 Tell Me Where My Hands Should Go
21 Good Things Come to Those Who Wait
22 Thought Even More of You When You Told Me You Wanted Me Dead
23 Louise
24 Where to Place Yr Trust
25 Yr Static Flame
26 It's a Long Way to Go to Loose More Than Loose Change
27 Fool Around
28 We Have Such Gifts
29 Temper
30 The Sadness in You
31 That Boy Yr With Is a Dick
32 Stars and Car Parks
33 Wholly Generic
34 A Chipped Tooth and Greasy Fingers
35 Secret Jokes
36 We Are Pure Chrome
37 The Man The Myth
38 Temp
39 Vinegar Evenings
40 How Many Cars Can You Fit in Yr Garage?
41 Toilets of Northen Europe
42 A Punch Up the Bracket
43 Carefull What You Wish For
44 When I Was a Blonde and You Were a Brunette
45 Now I Have Everything

Disc Two: 1991-1996:

01 Doorframe
02 Turquoise Mood
03 Yr Breaking His Heart
04 Black Fantastic Splitting
05 Yr Unspoken Desires
06 Beautiful Lines
07 I've Got It and It's Not Worth Having
08 West Riding House
09 Twisted Love
10 Tested
11 Re-Run
12 Buffalo
13 Boyracer
14 He Gets Me So Hard
15 Talk of Aching
16 Goblin
17 Meadowhall
18 Patric Walker
19 Untouched by Conversation
20 E.J.K
21 Passionflower
22 Denatured
23 Naked
24 Two
25 Blazing Fruit
26 Boxing Day
27 Wanting for All the Wrong Reasons
28 Snowly
29 Michael
30 Railway

* 555 Recordings: http://www.rawbw.com/~aelison/555/

Boyracer: http://www.indiepages.com/boyracer/
Darla: http://www.darla.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.)