The Ladybug Transistor Kick Off Fall Tour
Miniature version of band found in Philadelphia mayor's office; escorted out by tiny security

[Posted Tuesday, November 4th, 2003 04:00:00 Pitchfork Central Time]

Following last month's domestic release of their self-titled fifth album, psych-pop quintet The Ladybug Transistor kicked off their U.S. fall tour last week. Rather than touring with a single companion, The Ladybug Transistor's fall tour finds them paired with a variety of compelling acts including Mates of State, American Analog Set, and TV on the Radio. Heck, why stick with the same old partner when you can have variety? Dates:

11-04 Seattle, WA - Graceland (w/ American Analog Set, Ester Drang)
11-05 Portland, OR - Holocene (w/ Viva Voce, Eux Autres)
11-07 San Francisco, CA - Bottom of the Hill (w/ Call & Response, Bart Davenport)
11-08 Los Angeles, CA - Spaceland (w/ Call & Response)
11-09 Tucson, AZ - Solar Cultural Gallery (w/ Nick Luca Trio)
11-11 Denver, CO - Larimer Lounge (w/ TV on the Radio)
11-12 Lawrence, KS - Replay Lounge
11-13 Norman, OK - Opolis
11-14 Austin, TX - Emo's (w/ Mates of State)
11-15 Denton, TX - Good Records
11-15 Denton, TX - Rubber Gloves (w/ Mates of State)
11-16 Jackson, MI - Martin's Lounge
11-17 Nashville, TN - Springwater
11-18 Chattanooga, TN - Lamar's
11-19 Athens, GA - Caledonia (w/ The Instruments, Finishing School)
11-20 Baltimore, MD - Ottobar
11-22 Brooklyn, NY - Northsix (w/ Fontaine Toups, The Last Wave)

London's Track and Field label will handle the European release of the new album, although a release date has not yet been announced. For those pining for a vinyl version, Track and Field is also planning a limited-edition LP in a gatefold sleeve. Consult the label or official Ladybug Transistor website for further details.

In other Ladybug news, flautist, keyboardist, and vocalist Sasha Bell (also of the Essex Green) recently released a solo effort under the moniker of Finishing School (listed as support at the Athens date of the tour) on The Telegraph Company label. The album includes a bonus DVD.

Ladybug Transistor: http://www.theladybugtransistor.com
Merge: http://www.mergerecords.com
Track and Field: http://www.trackandfield.org.uk
Telegraph Company: http://www.thetelegraphcompany.com

Rivulets Split CD with Marc Gartman, Cover Big Star
So much cuter than full-sized rivules

[Posted Tuesday, November 4th, 2003 04:00:00 Pitchfork Central Time]

Brian Howe and Rob Mackey report:
Rivulets, the digital slow-core project revolving around singer/songwriter Nathan Amundson's childhood fetish and simple balladry, is preparing to release a split album with NY musician Marc Gartman (who has worked with Pale Horse and Rider, made a documentary about Low and played with them) on Tract Records. The Rivulets-Low connection is already pretty solid, as Alan Sparhawk and Mimi Parker played on Debridement, Rivulets' second and most recent album on Chairkickers Union, Low's label.

The split will be available in early November, though you can preview MP3's on Tract's website right now. The project will feature five songs from each artist, all either unreleased or alternate versions of previous material. The Rivulets' half includes a version of "Cutter" remixed by Aarktica, whose John DeRosa also guested on Debridement, and who has also played with Pale Horse and Rider-- a project to which Amundson has also contributed. Damn, this is getting confusing; can someone get me my abacus and a yellow tablet? The Gartman half includes a song called "Luf Kanh Brhak Ur Hrt," followed by "A Grave Mistake," from which any resultant jokes would be just too easy. We're putting you on notice, Gartman. Watch it with the funny stuff.

From the upcoming split, expect downcast, narcotic repetition and breathy vocals that unfold in geological time; expect coffee-shop style singer/songwriter fare adorned in sundry bells and whistles. Expect a tracklist:

01 Rivulets: "Cutter" [featuring Jarboe]
02 Rivulets: "Keep You From Harm"
03 Rivulets: "Happy New Year"
04 Rivulets: "Wind is Howling"
05 Rivulets: "Cutter" [Aarktica remix]
06 Marc Gartman: "Hats and Wools"
07 Marc Gartman: "The Error of My Ways"
08 Marc Gartman: "Roswell"
09 Marc Gartman: "Luf Kanh Brhak Ur Hrt"
10 Marc Gartman: "A Grave Mistake"

Rivulets is also contributing a track to Tract's Eye of the Beholder Vol. 3 compilation, the latest in a series of extremely limited-edition compilations. This third volume is currently available, but at a 500 copy print run, good luck finding it if you didn't preorder. Rivulets, stepping in at zero hour to fill a vacancy, contributed a home-recorded microcassette demo of the unreleased song "Your Light and How It Shined," which appears alongside new material from Devendra Banhart, Marc Gartman, Pale Horse and Rider (see also intricacies; Byzantine interconnections), and The Strugglers. When one considers that Rivulets have also signed on to participate in Tract's upcoming Will Oldham tribute album, the sharp eye detects an emergent pattern. A pattern involving Rivulets DOING EVERYTHING UNDER THE SUN WITH TRACT EXCEPT RELEASING THEIR ACTUAL ALBUMS! OK, I'm sorry. The track... or shall I say, Tract list:

01 Celestine: "Come On"
02 The Struggler: "Fine-Tuned"
03 Bianca: "Loosen Up"
04 Burd Early: "Woken"
05 Diana Darby: "Crazy"
06 Sodastream: "Bring Him Down"
07 Red Admiral: "Becoming a Sun"
08 Boy Omega: "Here the Sharks Swim"
09 Devendra Banhart: "Nature Walks"
10 Marc Gartman: "Las Vegas"
11 Racingpaperplanes: "PQ"
12 Ian Downey: "Now That My Life is Over"
13 The Virginia Reel: "New Song"
14 Pale Horse and Rider: "Annabelle"
15 Homeland: "The Evidence"
16 Rivulets: "Your Light and How It Shined"
17 Adrian Crowley: "Morning Frost"
18 Annika Bentley: "Gloria Wrist"

And finally, Rivulets is also appearing on Blue, the latest installment in a conceptual series curated by San Francisco label Dreams by Degrees, which brings together disparate artists to play songs thematically united according to color. Rivulets will contribute a cover of Big Star's "Blue Moon." Once more:

01 Corbi Wright: "What Can I Give to My Love"
02 Film School: "Sick of the Shame, Part Two"
03 Your Friend: "Love Ate the Wheelbarrow"
04 cobalt
05 Park Avenue Music: "Sun = So Bright"
06 Vela: "Less Panda"
07 powder
08 L'Altra: "Unperfect Storm"
09 cerulean
10 Sir: "It's Not True"
11 Lazarus: "106 Words on Wishes"
12 Vetiver: "You May Be Blue"
13 cornflower
14 Rivulets: "Blue Moon"
15 midnight
16 John Davis: "Unglückt Gebracht"
17 Stratford 4: "Blue Light"
18 winter - spring 03

Rivulets: http://www.rivulets.net
Tract: http://www.tractrecords.com
Dreams By Degrees: http://www.dreamsbydegrees.com

Racebannon Traverse The Nation This Fall
Jonny Quest talked into "experience building" roadie internship

[Posted Tuesday, November 4th, 2003 04:00:00 Pitchfork Central Time]

Racebannon is taking their genre-warping hardcore sound around the U.S. this winter for an extensive twenty-three date tour with a bevy of guests. Changing the minds of fans and harsh critics of the recent underground hardcore scene, Racebannon's lead vocalist and spastic mouthpiece introduces an unmistakable blend of ranting lyrics and unbridled anger that parallels the extreme sonic impact of the band. Check it out. The dates:

11-05 Bloomington, IN - Vertigo *
11-15 Bloomington, IN - Rhino's (w/ Majhas, Eve's Revenge)
11-21 Chicago, IL - Fireside Bowl (w/ Small Brown Bike, The Oranges Band)
11-22 St. Paul, MN - Big V's
11-23 Minneapolis, MN - The Babylon
11-26 Spokane, WA - The Detour
11-27 Vancouver, British Columbia - Brickyard
11-28 Portland, OR - Dante's *
11-29 Tacoma, WA - Hell's Kitchen *
11-30 Olympia, WA - The Go Club *
12-02 Los Angeles, CA - Silverlake Lounge (w/ The Mae Shi)
12-03 San Francisco, CA - The Pound
12-04 Sacramento, CA - Capital Garage *
12-05 Berkeley, CA - Starry Plough *
12-06 San Jose, CA -The Blank Club *
12-07 Long Beach, CA - Koo's (w/ Radio Berlin)
12-08 Phoenix, AZ - Modified
12-09 Albuquerque, NM - Launchpad
12-10 Denver, CO - Climax Lounge
12-11 Lawrence, KS - The Replay Lounge
12-12 Oklahoma City, OK - The Conservatory
12-13 St. Louis, MO - The Creepy Crawl

* with Jucifer

Racebannon: http://www.racebannon.net

Dizzee Rascal Signs To Matador
"Wot U On" [ft. Chan Marshall], "I Luv U" [Pizzicato Five horn dub] possible b-sides

[Posted Monday, November 3rd, 2003 04:00:00 Pitchfork Central Time]

American fans of British undaground hip-hop (all twelve of you), rejoice! Matador recently signed Dizzee Rascal, famed 18-year old British rapper and winner of the Mercury Music Prize. Matador is teaming up with Rascal's UK label XL Recordings to release Rascal's debut album, Boy In Da Corner, on American soil. The CD will drop some time in January, so in short: don't bother paying $30 for the import! What this all boils down to, basically, is that for all of you connoisseurs of indie hip-hop out there who are tiring of Definitive Jux and MF Doom, prepare to be fulfilled.

Matador seemed psyched about the possibility of signing the fresh young star. Let's hear it from them: "18 years of age and hailing from East London, Dizzee's unique hybrid of hip-hop, drum & bass and UK garage coupled with his explosive real-life tales of street crime, poverty, sex and guns, are a combination unlike any MC we've heard-- underground or over." Yeah, dog.

Rascal's debut album has met with near universal praise from critics, including New Musical Express and The Guardian (whose reviews, alongside Pitchfork's, are reprinted in total on Matador's news page)-- even breaking onto our own Best New Music page. The Guardian had this to say about Rascal and his British audience: "Whether anybody will listen [to Rascal] seems questionable. Both Dizzee Rascal's music and message are wildly unpalatable, and the British record-buying public is not currently renowned for wild risk-taking." Same here, brotha, but stranger things have been known to happen in America once the British hype machine has had its way with something. Let's hope the American audience is looking for something a little more hardcore.

Dizzee Rascal: http://www.dizzeerascal.co.uk
Matador: http://www.matadorrecords.com

Shins, Iron & Wine Hook Up For December Tour
Have been boning up on their Australian all month at Outback steakhouse

[Posted Monday, November 3rd, 2003 04:00:00 Pitchfork Central Time]

White-hot Sub Pop acts The Shins and Iron & Wine are teaming up for a handful of dates next month in Australia, according to the label's official website. Both artists are well-stocked with new material for the tour, the Shins having just dropped their sophomore album Chutes Too Narrow to both critical acclaim and the highest-ever one-week sales for an album on Sub Pop with a Soundscan figure of 15,600. That's also enough to land the Albuquerque lads on Billboard's Top 100 (number 86, to be exact). Will it go all the way to #1? Will it go platinum? Will you hear "Kissing The Lipless" right next to Beyonce's "Baby Boy" on the radio? Probably not, but it did land the group an appearance on The Late, Late Show with Craig Kilborn this Friday, November 7th.

As for Iron & Wine, Sub Pop's Chris Jacobs reports that Sam Beam has completed recording on the follow-up to last year's The Creek Drank the Cradle, and is now working on mixing and mastering. The album is still untitled and un-tracklisted, but it does have a tentative release date of March 23rd on Sub Pop. Anyhow, if you happen to be in the land down under come December for a south-of-the-equator Christmas in the summertime, the two bands will play four dates together in December. Here are the dates:

12-09 Sydney, Australia - Gaelic Club
12-10 Melbourne, Australia - Corner Hotel
12-11 Adelaide, Australia - Fowlers Live
12-14 Brisbane, Australia - Zoo

Iron & Wine: http://www.ironandwine.com
The Shins: http://www.darkcoupon.com
Sub Pop: http://www.subpop.com

Papa M Announces Tour, New Single, Singles Comp In 2004
Confused Pajo continues to receive anti-sermonizing pleas from baby-keeper Madonna

[Posted Monday, November 3rd, 2003 04:00:00 Pitchfork Central Time]

Now that Dave Pajo is no longer spending his time recording guitar licks for Zwan that kewpie Corgan will probably just overdub anyway, he apparently has time to focus on his own Papa M project, of which I bring you many a glad tiding.

Pajo is something of a musical shape-shifter. He practically invented post-rock with Slint. He spent some time in Tortoise, making music that was so uppity and smart that even though it got picked on in the schoolyard, you just know it's going to grow up to clock major loot and pull the hottest chicks. He explored abstruse instrumentals as M and Aerial M, burned his Indie Cred Membership Card to work out his radio-rock fetish with Zwan, and continues to record subtle, arid electro-folk as Papa M. As noted by Billboard, Pajo is currently on tour through Europe, accompanied by fellow ex-Zwanista Paz Lenchantin. Pajo and Lenchantin will be showcasing songs they've written together for an upcoming Papa M album, which Pajo told Billboard are "a weird mixture of Papa M's recent folksy, vocal recordings, and his former instrumental style." Batten down the hatches, here come the tour dates:

11-04 Copenhagen, Denmark - Loppen
11-05 Arhus, Denmark - Vox Hall
11-06 Malmo, Sweden - KB
11-07 Goteborg, Sweden - Playground
11-10 Stockholm, Sweden - Sodra Teatern
11-11 Helsinki, Finland - Tavastia
11-13 Oslo, Norway - Bla
11-14 Bergen, Norway - Sardinen
11-15 Stavanger, Norway - Checkpoint Charlie

Drag City reports that November 4th will see the release of the fourth single in Pajo's Audio Tour Diaries series. The series of singles will carry through at least six (and as many as ten!) installments; this, the fourth, is appropriately titled Four. Man, I haven't seen that many singles since (a) my fourth grade field trip to the U.S. Mint or (b) happy hour at a hotel bar (choose your own bad joke in our new interactive format). The tracklist:

01 Long May You Burn
02 Red Curtains
03 Local Boy Makes Good

According to Drag City, early 2004 will see the release of a compilation of Pajo singles that pre-date the Audio Tour Diaries series. Drag City cannot yet confirm the tracklist for the early 2004 comp, but promises that it will include all the Papa M and Aerial M singles. Of course, Pajo has a wealth of non-Audio Tour Diaries singles to draw from, including the Songs of Mac single, the Three Songs EP, "Mama You Been on My Mind" (from a split single with Unhome), "Blue Black Holler" (from an Aerial M split with Azusa Plane), and so much more. Watch this column for an official tracklist and release date when they become available.

Later, or "very much in the future" to quote directly, some material from the Audio Tour Diaries will be assembled in a separate anthology. Mercy, I need an Advil.

Papa M: http://www.papa-m.com
Drag City: http://www.dragcity.com

Kraftwerk To Play With Dido, Beyonce, Kylie Minogue on MTV, Tour Japan
Refuse to sex up crowd with titillating rendition of "Pocket Calculator"

[Posted Monday, November 3rd, 2003 04:00:00 Pitchfork Central Time]

Kraftwerk are set to make their live television debut this Thursday, November 6th as part of this year's MTV Europe Video Music Awards in Edinburgh, Scotland, according to MTV.com. The awardscast will also feature live performances by The White Stripes, The Chemical Brothers with the Flaming Lips, Beyonce, Dido, Kylie Minogue, Pink, The Darkness, Travis, and Sean Paul. Mistress of ceremonies duties will be deftly handled by the highly capable and completely lucid Christina "Hey, Madonna Kissed Me Too" Aguilera, who might have responded to news of Kraftwerk's TV debut by stating that "H.R. Pufnstuf was off the chain, but I was kinda wizzacked out by that goofy-ass sea monster."

The influential German electronic pioneers will play "Tour de France 03" to an outdoor audience in Edinburgh's Princes Street Gardens, which will be simulcast live as part of the award ceremony at the Western Harbour Ocean Terminal Arena. Will the performance be gilded by hundreds of black-clad paid extras vogueing shamelessly a la Dieter on Sprockets? Will there be a production number with dozens of choreographed bicyclists running circles around the aging Kraut-poppers on Soviet-era ten-speeds? One can only speculate.

As Pitchfork reported back in June, Tour de France Soundtracks is Kraftwerk's first album since 1986's Electric Cafe, and commemorates the centennial of the famous bike race now dominated by a single American testicle. Their performance on the MTV Europe VMAs will precede a full world tour next year, starting in Japan this winter and hopefully bringing them stateside for the first time since 1998. Here are the Japanese dates announced thus far:

02-24 Osaka, Japan - Namba Hatch
02-25 Osaka, Japan - Namba Hatch
02-26 Nagoya, Japan - Kinro Kaikan
02-28 Tokyo, Japan - Zepp Tokyo
02-29 Tokyo, Japan - Zepp Tokyo
03-02 Tokyo, Japan - Shibuya Ax
03-03 Tokyo, Japan - Shibuya Ax

Kraftwerk: http://www.kraftwerk.de
Astralwerks: http://www.astralwerks.com

Black Eyes To Tour Europe
No justice, no peas

[Posted Monday, November 3rd, 2003 04:00:00 Pitchfork Central Time]

D.C. rhythm punks Black Eyes are packing up both drum sets and hauling over to Europe in support of their self-titled Dischord debut. Produced by Ian MacKaye, the dense, polyrhythmic, hardcore Black Eyes asserts the band, along with Q and not U, as one of Dischord's (and punk rock's) most promising new artists. The Black Eyes' five members all share duty on percussion and vocals, and include those class guitars and keyboards. The band are known for their frantic live shows, swapping instruments and calling on audience members to expand their percussive sound. See them in Europe, or ride out the wait until their next U.S. tour. Dates:

11-05 Amsterdam, Netherlands - VPRO Radio Show
11-06 Mulheim, Germany - AZ
11-07 Bonn, Germany - KULT 41
11-08 Hannover, Germany - Korn
11-10 Gothemburg, Sweeden - Kungsgatan
11-11 Vasteras, Sweeden - Smalls
11-12 Olso, Norway - Elm Street
11-13 Sandes, Norway - Mill
11-14 Bergen, Norway - Garage
11-15 Vastervik, Sweden - Bryggaren
11-17 Hamburg, Germany - Hafenklang
11-18 Bermen, Germany - Schlachthoff
11-19 Berlin, Germany - Wild At Heart
11-20 Wolow, Poland - Wolowski Osrodek Kultury
11-21 Krakow, Poland - Re Club
11-22 Prague, Czech Republic - 007
11-23 Nuernberg, Germany - K4
11-24 Munich, Germany - Kafe Kult
11-25 Stuttgart, Germany - Hi Club
11-26 Vienna, Austria - Flex
11-27 Zagreb, Croatia - Kset
11-28 Trbovlje, Slovenia - Dom Svobode
11-29 Bologna, Italy - Il Covo
11-30 Rome, Italy - Init
12-01 Torino, Italy - El Paso
12-02 Geneva, Switzerland - Kab A Lunsine
12-03 Freiburg, Germany - KTS
12-04 Saarbrucken, Germany - Hellmut
12-05 London, England - Garage Upstairs
12-06 Oxford, England - Oxford
12-07 Exeter, England - Cavern
12-08 Manchester, England - Star and Garter
12-09 Newcastle, England - Head of Steam
12-10 Belfast, Northern Ireland - Front Page
12-11 Limerick, Ireland - High Stool
12-12 Dublin, Ireland - Whelans
12-13 Leeds, England - Josephs Well
12-14 Amsterdam, Netherlands - Occii

Black Eyes: http://www.blackeyesband.com
Dischord: http://www.dischord.com

Pinback Touring In December; Rob Crow Starts A Few More Bands
Goblin Cock, thy name is SLSK wishlist

[Posted Friday, October 31st, 2003 04:00:00 Pitchfork Central Time]

Seeing as how Rob Crow and Armistead Burwell Smith IV, together known as Pinback, are collectively responsible for roughly 352 different bands, there's pretty much a steady stream of news to impart about their respective projects-- it's all a matter of choosing when to report it. And now is one of those times, so let's get started.

First, and perhaps foremost, there is a new Pinback album on the horizon. It doesn't have a title, and we don't have a tracklist, but the pair is hard and work on completing it in time for an early 2004 on Touch & Go. In the meantime, Pinback is heading out for a brief tour in December, so let's make with the dates, shall we? Here ya go:

12-10 Tempe, AZ - Nita's Hideaway
12-11 Pomona, CA - Glass House
12-15 Portland, OR - Aladdin Theater
12-18 San Francisco, CA - Slim's
12-19 Los Angeles, CA - El Rey

2004 will also see the release of Pinback's long-awaited b-sides collection on Ace Fu, as well as a Zach Smith solo album. The label is also re-releasing Pinback's sophomore album, 2001's Blue Screen Life, in a limited pressing on colored vinyl just in time for Christmas.

In the extensive side-project news category, Absolutely Kosher have a few Crow-related projects in the pipeline for 2004. Label spokesman Cory Brown says the next Thingy album may or may not be finished this year, but Optiganally Yours-- Crow's collaboration with Pea Hicks-- will release their third full-length in 2004, entitled OY in Hi-Fi. Crow's freshly minted metal band, the mellifluously monikered Goblin Cock, will also make their triumphant debut on Absolutely Kosher in 2004.

Finally, after releasing his third-ish solo album, My Room is a Mess, this year, Crow apparently decided that using his own name for his solo material was far too straightforward, so he's gathered some notable cohorts and reformed under the circuitously named My Band Is A Mess. Joining him in this band is Brent Asbury (Thingy), Kenseth Thibideau (let's pick one, how about Howard Hello), and fellow former Heavy Vegetable Travis Nelson. According to Absolutely Kosher's Brown, "The group just played our CMJ showcase in NY and sounded fantastic." I, unfortunately, was not in attendance, but I believe him. And so should you.

Pinback: http://www.pinback.com
Absolutely Kosher: http://www.absolutelykosher.com
Ace Fu: http://www.acefu.com

White Stripes Cover Soledad Brothers, Administer Career CPR For Blanche
Von Bondies, Holly Golightly both gave good references

[Posted Friday, October 31st, 2003 04:00:00 Pitchfork Central Time]

Cory D. Byrom and John L. Ferrer report:
Your little brother's favorite band, The White Stripes, will drop a new single on November 17th, featuring one of the stand-out tracks from Elephant, "The Hardest Button to Button." Out on XL Recordings in the UK, the disc will also feature a previously unreleased live cover of Detroit blues-stompers Soledad Brothers' "St. Ides of March."

The CD version of the single will sweeten the deal in the form of a nice video bonus. The video for "The Hardest Button to Button," directed by Michel Gondry, features our heroes Meg and Jack performing in various locations around New York, surrounded by an animated legion of guitar amps and drum kits. It sounds rocking enough, but don't take my word for it. Jack White claims it's "the greatest video we've ever made." Tracklist:

01 The Hardest Button to Button
02 St. Ides of March
03 The Hardest Button to Button [video]

The Stripes are in Brazil this evening headlining the Tim Festival in Rio, but should be tanned and rested up (well, rested up anyway) for their weekend appearance at the Voodoo Music Festival in New Orleans and subsequent make-up tour of the U.S.and Canada. As previously reported, the Stripes are also hooking up with the Flaming Lips for a New Years' Eve gig in Chicago at the end of the year.

The Soledad Brothers aren't the only recent recipients of Jack White's career-starting lightning. The fledgling unknowns known as Blanche were lucky enough to have their song "Who's To Say..." covered by the Stripes on their last single, "I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself." Now Billboard reports that Blanche's own recording will also feature Jack White providing the licks.

Of course, "twang" is a better word than "licks" here, as Blanche's gimmick is almost sickeningly quirky, atmospheric alt-country. Lyle Lovett look-alike guitarist Dan John Miller shares vocals with Elvria-meets-Scarlett O'Hara bassist Tracee Mae Miller while friendly looking folks with names like Feeny and Patch soothingly pluck banjos, autoharps, and steel guitars. A lady named Jaybird also lightly taps the skins. The overall sound is roughly like an attraction at Disney's Adventureland, right next to Tom Sawyer's riverboat.

Looking at the band's official site, however, the collaboration isn't quite so odd. Apparently Dan John Miller and John Anthony Gillis (uh, that's Jack White) had their own little "country-garage" act called Two Star Tabernacle before there was ever a White Stripes. Fascinating.

Blanche's debut album, If You Can't Trust the Doctors..., is due next January on Cass Records. The album was produced by frequent White collaborator Brendan Benson along with ex-His Name Is Alive frontman Warn Defever and the aforementioned David Feeny, and the band promises that there will be some more Jack White appearances on the full album, because... well, because they want people to buy it!

White Stripes: http://www.whitestripes.com
XL: http://www.xlrecordings.com
Blanche: http://www.blanchemusic.com
Cass: http://www.cassrecords.com

Rebecca Gates Collaborates with Dirty Three Guitarist, Tours With The New Year's Chris Brokaw
The rain in Spokane falls mainly on the Spinane

[Posted Friday, October 31st, 2003 04:00:00 Pitchfork Central Time]

Two long years have passed since the release of Rebecca Gates' Ruby Series EP, and ever since we've been waiting anxiously to hear more smart, sultry music from the former Spinanes member (and one of indie rock's most talented women). While we can't exactly report on a release date, let alone brandish Pitchfork's signature you-read-it-here-first tracklist, we can tell you that Ms. Gates has been working on some new songs, and tells us she hopes to record "sooner rather than later."

But we can hardly call her a slacker: in fact, there's genuine Gates tracks on the horizon. She's been working with guitarist Mick Turner of Dirty Three on a double-billed album. Because they are working across continents, the process is slow, and thus, no firm release timeframe has been announced.

Furthermore, Rebecca Gates and New York artist/Bomb magazine editor Lucy Raven have teamed up for the development of an audiomagazine called The Relay Project. According to the website, this quarterly CD release will feature "work of varying duration and content, each track authored by a different contributor." The material ranges from found-sound to audio interviews; from music to virtual vacations. The Relay Project audiomagazine will be sold at record, book, and museum shops as well as through the website.

While that's more than enough to keep any musician busy for a while, Gates has also announced a fall tour beginning Wednesday in Montreal. She'll be touring the eastern U.S. and Midwest with Chris Brokaw, each of them performing solo, but promising to perform a few songs together.

Chris Brokaw is quite possibly the busiest man in indie rock, lending guitar and drum work to no less that six different musical outfits in addition to his solo career. You may remember him from such formidable rock bands as Come and Codeine. After releasing his second proper solo album, Wandering as Water this year, he got to work recording with his band The New Year (comprised of Brokaw, ex-Saturnine bassist Mike Donofrio and ex-Bedhead members Matt and Bubba Kadane). They plan to release their second album in February 2004 on Touch & Go. Brokaw and Gates appear together for all dates below:

11-02 Boston, MA - Middle East
11-03 New York, NY - Tonic
11-04 Washington, D.C. - Black Cat
11-05 Baltimore, MD - Talking Head
11-06 Pittsburgh, PA - Quiet Storm
11-07 Bloomington, IN - Vertigo Lounge
11-08 Chicago, IL - WNUR Live Radio Appearance
11-09 Chicago, IL - Bottom Club
11-10 Columbia, MO - Mojo's
11-11 Lawrence, KS - Tap Room
11-12 Fayetteville, AK - Jr's
11-13 Oklahoma City, OK - The Conservatory
11-14 Denton, TX - JJ's
11-15 Austin - Emo's<
11-17 Athens, GA - Tastyworld
11-18 Atlanta, GA - The Earl
11-19 Nashville, TN - Springwater
11-20 Winston-Salem, NC - Project Space 211
11-21 Brooklyn, NY - North 6

Rebecca Gates: http://www.parcematone.com
The Relay Project: http://www.therelayproject.com
Chris Brokaw: http://www.chrisbrokaw.com

XTC DVD Dissed By Virgin; Andy Partridge Reserves Jizz For Summer
Gives unfortunate new double-meaning to "Are You Receiving Me?"

[Posted Friday, October 31st, 2003 04:00:00 Pitchfork Central Time]

XTC lovers, prepare to weep your hippy tears: the projected Virgin-years DVD, For Vidiots Only, has been postponed yet again. The DVD was to have been a collection of classic videos, rare live footage, etc. and was slated for release by the end of the year. Unfortunately, Virgin didn't have the balls to cowboy up and get the thing out, or at least so says the official XTC website: "The projected XTC DVD and the reshuffle/repackage projects touted by Virgin are all on ice at the moment. Virgin legal dept seem unwilling to negotiate the terms of the old contract up into the 21st century. Hence stalemate. We'll keep you posted." Put on ice, huh? Faster than Jack White's finger, I bet! Hopefully the DVD can find its way out into the waiting arms of XTC fans everywhere, much like the slew of recently re-released classic albums. Gotta love Skylarking.

But wait, there's more! Andy Partridge, XTC frontman-to-the-max, has been working with singer Sophie Ellis Baxter. One of the songs to result from this classy collaboration, entitled "I Come All Over Summer" (did I say classy?) will appear as a b-side.

That's it. Oh, oh, wait... just kidding! Andy, being the busy guy that he is, has been working with Fox TV to pen the theme song to its new show, Wonderfalls. According to the official site, six songs were recorded, one of which is called "These Voices" and another one super-cleverly entitled "I Wonder Why The Wonderfalls." Did I make fun of these guys for being crazy-ass hippies yet? If one of these compositions doesn't make it to America's fourth-finest network soon, I'm sure there will be ample fuel to ignite several more volumes of Fuzzy Warbles.

XTC: http://www.xtcidearecords.co.uk

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