Exclusive: Earlimart Talk New Album, Elliott Smith
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Some bands come raging out the gates with some landmark debut album, then break up or fizzle off into mediocrity. Some toil for years and years before hitting their stride. And a few just plug along the old fashioned way, learning from their mistakes, growing steadily as songwriters, and improving by degrees with each release. Like Los Angeles rockers Earlimart.

The Aaron Espinoza-fronted combo has four albums under its belt, each building upon the merits of the last. "I think [with] every album I'm getting better [as a producer], and the albums sound better and the songwriting gets better," Espinoza recently told Pitchfork. By that logic, the self-produced, as-yet-untitled latest offering from Earlimart should be the band's best yet. While he's "still tinkering" with the new disc, which has no label or set release date yet, Espinoza was happy to talk about its genesis. [MORE...]

Video: J Dilla: "Nothing Like This"

The weirdos at Adult Swim team up with the weirdos at Stones Throw and-- surprise, surprise-- come up with a thoroughly weird video for Dilla's solo contribution to Chrome Children, "Nothing Like This", directed by Daniel Garcia and Mixtape Club. It's fantastical and also kind of fantastic, especially when the jellyfish/squid/
globule/strawhead main character becomes an ice cream monster.

Yes, that just happened.

Stay tuned for new Chrome Children videos every day this week.

Ted Leo Talks New Album, Head Injury

Ted Leo is Mr. Punk Rock, right? He spends all his time in the van, he wears the same t-shirt to two festivals in the same city within five weeks of each other, he plays so hard he bashes his face in (more on that later).

So what's he doing recording his new album on a farm in rural Massachusetts? Isn't that something that, like, Devendra or Brightblack Morning Light would do?

Actually, Ted Leo is being as punk as ever. At Long View Farms, where Leo, bandmates Dave Lerner and Chris Wilson, and producer Brendan Canty (Fugazi) recently holed up to work on their fifth album, conditions were pretty hardcore. "They have a barn with a recording studio," Leo explained in an interview with Pitchfork over the weekend. "The only drawback to the whole thing is you're tracking in the area above where all the horses are. By like the tenth day, the constant flies were really starting to bug me."

Perhaps because of those flies (or perhaps because we live in George W. Bush's America in 2006), the as-yet-untitled album is "a little more aggressive" than what we're used to from Mr. Leo. "In terms of sound, the drum sound and guitars and everything, kind of sounds like a 77 punk record," Leo said. "We did a lot of work on actually getting things like we wanted them to sound on the front end, and then listening back it was like, 'Wow that's the sound of an older record."

Not surprisingly, many of the titles of the 14 songs that have been recorded are appropriately punk-sounding: "Sons of Ten", "La Costa Brava", "World Stops Turning", "Born on Christmas Day", "Who Do You Love" (not a cover), "Some Beginner's Mind", "A Bottle of Bucky", "Army Bound," "Bomb Repeat Bomb", "The Toro and the Toreador", "The Unwanted Things", "The Loft Brigade", and "CIA".

All of the music has been recorded, and the band is working on vocals and mixing this week, with a spring 2007 release in mind. "There's some piano on there, some more folky instruments. I played a lot of mandolin on it," Leo said. Aggressive mandolin! We like the sound of that. [MORE...]

Infinite Mixtape #47: I'm From Barcelona: "We're From Barcelona"

Who knew chilly Sweden-- home to deadly serious dudes like August Strindberg and Ingmar Bergman-- could prove such a font of jollity in this century? Yet in 2006, the Sweden-bred indie pop insurrection is in full force, and representing for the movement is 29-member-strong, Jönköping-based collective I'm From Barcelona (not so puzzling a moniker when you learn that it alludes to "Fawlty Towers" character Manuel, whose name resembles that of lead vocalist Emanuel Lundgren).

"We're From Barcelona" is an anthem for the new twee republic, a delightful sing-along festooned with big, buttery choruses and ebullient horns. And, like the best indie pop, it marries feel-good vibes and childlike glee with rich sentiment and honesty. "Love is a feeling that we don't understand/ But we're gonna give it to you," they proclaim-- in two lines encapsulating the m.o. of generations of songwriters. A couple months back, we awarded this track the coveted five-star rating, and now, we've got the go-ahead to share it with you. Behold, the power of twee.

------------------------------------------------------

#0047 > I'm From Barcelona: "We're From Barcelona"
[from Let Me Introduce My Friends; Dolores Recordings]
Info: [I'm From Barcelona] | [MySpace] | [Dolores]

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// Previously on The Infinite Mixtape:
#0046: Christopher Willits: "Colors Shifting"
#0045: Giddy Motors: "Panzrama"
#0044: Bound Stems: "Western Biographic"
#0043: Tim Hecker: "Chimeras"
#0042: Working for a Nuclear Free City: "Troubled Son"
#0041: Fujiya & Miyagi: "Collarbone"
#0000: All Previous Infinite Mixtape Entries

Photos: Pop Montreal [10/06-07/06]

And that's that for Pop Montreal 2006. As Canadians enjoy an extended holiday weekend today in observation of Thanksgiving Day, Pitchfork recaps just some of the highlights in pictures, all out of order, just because.

TAPES N' TAPES [Saturday, October 7; Ukrainian Federation]

BEACH HOUSE [Saturday, October 7; O Patro Vys]

KID SISTER [Friday, October 6; Academy Club]

[MORE...]

Classic Sebadoh Lineup Reunites
New Dinosaur Jr. album and DVD on the way

Sebadoh is back! And it's not the lame late-90s version either.

Lou Barlow, who has been touring with a reconstituted Dinosaur Jr. for over a year (and they have some news of their own, but more on that later), announced on his website recently that his other influential group has reformed in its classic lineup: Barlow, Eric Gaffney, and Jason Loewenstein.

Barlow writes, "Sebadoh Classic will be touring this spring 2/25/07 → 4/07. Sebadoh Classic = Gaffney-era... III → Bubble and Scrape. Eric, Jason, and I will be heading out together..." That's about all Barlow lets on, but those dates are just specific enough for us to buy it. However, he immediately goes on to say, "then the new Dinosaur album will be out... and then... and then... we'll see..."

That's right, there will also be a new Dinosaur Jr. album. It's "almost done", and the band are planning to release it in "Spring '07," though a label and specific release date have yet to be decided. According to a recent report from Billboard.com, the record is awaiting a title, and guitarist J. Mascis, whose Amherst, Massachusetts home studio served as the base of recording, is finishing guitar and vocal parts at the moment. [MORE...]

T.V. Eye: October 9-16, 2006

Pitchfork's T.V. Picks for This Week:

Monday, October 9:

ABC: "Jimmy Kimmel Live": the Killers (rerun)

Tuesday, October 10:

Comedy Central: "The Daily Show With Jon Stewart": David Cross

Thursday, October 12:

NBC: "Last Call With Carson Daly": the Duke Spirit
NBC: "Late Night With Conan O'Brien": Basement Jaxx

Friday, October 13:

Fuel TV: "The Daily Habit": Art Brut
IFC: "The Henry Rollins Show": Jurassic 5 (rerun)
NBC: "Last Call With Carson Daly": Busta Rhymes

Sunday, October 15:

Comedy Central: "Comedy Love Call": David Cross

Monday, October 16:

MTV2: "Subterranean": Silversun Pickups

R.I.P. Tower Records, 1960-2006
Pour out a little liquor

This article is in loving memory of Tower Records, the beloved child of Russ Solomon and a boatload of shareholders, which died at age 46 last weekend from severe bankruptcy complications.

Reuters reports that following a 29-hour auction on Friday, most of the bankrupt chain's assets were sold to liquidation firm Great American Group for $134.3 million (outbidding Trans World Entertainment by $500,000). Tower's website, 33rd Street label, and real estate holdings were sold separately.

Great American was on track to begin the liquidation process and kick off going-out-of-business sales last Saturday.

Tower, which operated 89 U.S. stores, will leave Virgin Megastores (with 20 shops) the most prominent "deep-catalog retailer" in the country, according to Reuters.

Tower's demise doesn't come as a shock-- the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in both February 2004 and August of this year (word is they owed close to $200 million)-- but the retailer's closing might mean bad news for its vendors. According to Reuters, the sell-off of its inventory, especially that contained in its merchandise-packed Sacramento warehouse, could harm businesses affiliated with Tower's indie distro company, Bayside Distribution, when their product is returned for wholesale cost.

Tower Records was founded in 1960 out of Solomon's father's Sacramento pharmacy. Solomon, a 15% shareholder, did not enter a bid for the company.

According to Reuters, on Friday, an e-mail Solomon sent to his staff read, "The fat lady has sung ... she was was off key. Thank You, Thank You, Thank You." That day, employees held a barbecue at the company's West Sacramento headquarters. ABC.go.com reports that some 3,000 workers are expected to lose their jobs as a result of its closing.

Patti Smith, Bad Brains, Play CBGB's Final Week
So do the Dictators, Debbie Harry, more

So for once, beating a dead horse paid off. After years of basically just plain sucking, CBGB has announced a decent lineup for its closing week, made up of many of the legendary club's notable alumni.

Instead of the usual less-than-mediocre punk bands, the club will deliver some old favorites. Staying true to their roots are Bad Brains (with three shows), Patti Smith, Debbie Harry and Chris Stein of Blondie, the Dictators, Avail, and more. [MORE...]

Dan Bejar, Sydney Vermont Talk Hello, Blue Roses
MP3: Hello, Blue Roses: "Hello Blue Roses"

Gee, ain't love grand? Were it not for love, the world would be a grayer, grimmer place, a place devoid of Mates of State, Sonny & Cher, and t.A.t.U. Thank love as well for bringing to life Hello, Blue Roses-- the new project from Destroyer/New Pornographer/Swan Laker Dan Bejar and girlfriend/visual artist/Bonaparte bandleader (more on that later) Sydney Vermont/Hermant. Thank love and, well, boredom.

"It's stress free and fun," said Vermont of the Hello, Blue Roses collaboration in a recent e-mail interview with Pitchfork. "The glory of a two person band: 'I'm bored, want to record an HBR song? OK!'"

Vermont and Bejar have become bored enough to write and/or record about seven or eight songs thus far, including a couple covers and "our anthem song," says Vermont, called "Hello Blue Roses" (sans comma). The Vermont-sung tune sounds kind of like a medieval minstrel song, except for the handclaps and Bejar's background mumbles. It appeared on a recent compilation of Vancouver artists and you can hear it right now on HBR's MySpace or download it below.

The pair, which took its name from a line in Tennessee Williams' The Glass Menagerie, has been seriously collaborating "for about a year now," says Vermont. She writes the lyrics and melodies, sings, and plays flute, while beau Dan "arrangers, adds instrumentation, and sings back-up," according to Vermont. Or, as Bejar put it: "I am a budding engineering star."

Hello, Blue Roses jet off to Spain soon to spend six months with Bejar's family. There they hope to continue writing and recording, and "maybe [play] a small show," with the goal of "having a finished record by the time we return [to Vancouver] in April." [MORE...]

Modest Mouse Push Back LP, Announce Shows

Modest Mouse have moved the previously reported release date of We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank from December 19 to a more vague "early 2007," according to a press release.

However, the band does have some tour dates scheduled, starting in November with their storming of L. A. and New York. So maybe it's best to think of We Were Dead like a movie: it premieres on the coasts, but the rest of us get to spend too much money on it eventually. [MORE...]

The Wrens Reissued, Rejuvenated
Silver, Secaucus due November 14; split singles, EP in the works

Last week, Wind-Up Records announced that they will reissue the Wrens' first two albums, 1994's Silver and 1996's Secaucus, on November 14. (Silver is currently available on iTunes, and Secaucus will be shortly.) If the news comes as a surprise to fans, it pales in comparison to the reaction of the band members themselves.

"Our eyes shot out of our heads," singer/guitarist Charles Bissell told Pitchfork in a phone interview Friday afternoon. "We were like 'WHAT?!'"

Let's start from the beginning.

Most Wrens followers are probably familiar with the complicated backstory: Silver and Secaucus were originally released on Grass Records, which would eventually become Wind-Up under the leadership of Alan Meltzer. As the band reached the end of their contract with Grass, Meltzer sought to polish the Wrens' sound into something more radio-friendly. The band refused, and did not renew their contract with the label.

The Wrens went on to release the Abbott 1135 EP on the Ten 23 label in 1997, and their triumphant third album, The Meadowlands, on Absolutely Kosher in 2003. Grass morphed into Wind-Up, signed Creed and Evanescence, and basically took over the world. For years, the Wrens have wrangled with Wind-Up for the rights to Silver and Secaucus; most recently, in the summer of 2005, Absolutely Kosher offered $100,000 to purchase the albums. Their offer was declined. Meanwhile, the records continued to run up expensive price tags on eBay. So a year later, in the summer of 2006, when the Wrens' publisher Rough Trade told the band about Wind-Up's plans to finally reissue the albums, the band was understandably floored. "We only found out about it through our publisher who was contacting them to get other information," Bissell explained. "[Wind-Up] were like, 'Oh it's funny that you mention this because we're going to be re-releasing the records.'" [MORE...]

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.)