Pitchfork

If you're one of the thousands who happen to have a thing for PVC and bodysuits shaped like trees, then do we have news for you! Daniel Smith, aka Br. Danielson, aka leader of the Danielson Famile, is taking his God-loving fun-bringing self on the road in support of his recently released sixth album, Brother Is to Son-- and he's bringing the Nine-Fruit Tree along for the ride.

Just in case you haven't seen/heard, the Nine-Fruit tree is a huge bodysuit (that's right: in the shape of a tree) made of out (you got it) PVC. It features nine very large, very fake pieces of fruit dangling from its branches, and also sports the ability to support a guitar all on its own. It also holds within its wonderful, wooded heart a very special treat: Br. Danielson himself! Yes, Danielson wears the tree as a kind of hippie-armor, exposing only those elements necessary for jubilant song: a mouth for yelping and arms for twanging.

Danielson will be joined on stage by his sister Megan Smith, who will be playing marimba/glockenspiel and singing backup vocals, and David Gifford, who'll be hittin' the skins like a crazy person. In addition, labelmate and fellow folkwriter Sufjan Stevens will be joining him for one show at the Mercury Lounge. Dates:

07-23 Charlottesville, VA - Tokyo Rose
07-24 Wilmington, NC - Soapbox Lounge
07-25 Mt. Pleasant, SC - Village Tavern
07-26 Atlanta, GA - Echo Lounge
07-27 Athens, GA - 40 Watt
07-28 Lexington, KY - The Dame
07-29 North Manchester, IN - Firehouse
07-30 Chicago, IL - Empty Bottle
07-31 Bloomington, IN - Second Story
08-02 Cleveland, OH - Beachland Ballroom
08-19 New York, NY - Mercury Lounge (w/ Sufjan Stevens)
09-16 San Diego, CA - TBA
09-17 Los Angeles, CA - Spaceland
09-18 San Francisco, CA - TBA (w/ Deerhoof)
09-22 Eureka, CA - TBA
09-23 Portland, OR - TBA
09-24 Olympia, WA - TBA
09-25 Seattle, WA - TBA

Now, on to the REALLY good stuff. See that little San Francisco date there with Deerhoof, the loveably insane creators of this years delicious Milk Man? Well, something special is afoot with Deerhoof (no pun intended-- we think) and Danielson. Apparently, Danielson has asked Deerhoof to back him up on at least half of the tracks for his next album, which is scheduled to be released sometime next year on Secretly Canadian.

The two groups first met when Deerhoof invited Danielson to play a show with them at Lucks in Brooklyn. After that, they played shows together in Berkeley, L.A., and San Diego, and just plain got along. Now, they're planning a recording session in a recording studio/cabin in Yosemite National Park belonging to one of the Deerhoof players, and the combination of musical genius and natural wonder should prove to produce much beautiful music.

Of course, don't think for a moment that he's forgotten the Family! Pitchfork spoke to Danielson via the amazing invention of the telephone, and he informed us that he is also planning on recording a new Danielson Famile record during the same timeframe as the Br. Danielson record. He has no specifics concerning either album, but he is very excited to be exploring both the freedom of his new-found solo career and the comfortable support of the Family.

In other news, Br. Danielson made a July 2nd appearance on Spinning on Air, a radio show hosted by David Garland and broadcast on New York's NPR station, 93.9 FM WNYC. The show focused on so called "Evangelical Pop," ranging from the Left Behind series to P.O.D., to, of course, Danielson himself. (One of these things is not like the other...) If it tickles your fancy, have a listen at the link below.