Edwyn Collins Hospitalized, Seriously Ill

Collins is best-known in the U.S. and elsewhere for his mid-90s hit "A Girl Like You", but with his landmark group Orange Juice he was a central figure in the development of indie pop and indie rock. Collins formed Orange Juice (n�e the Nu-Sonics) in Glasgow in 1976, and the band's self-deprecating lyrics and acerbic wit made them one of the most endearing guitar pop bands of the early 1980s. Along with Josef K, the Fire Engines, and Aztec Camera, Orange Juice crafted what their first label, Postcard, called "The Sound of Young Scotland"-- which in their case was a mix of Velvets-y jangle, Chic-informed rhythm, and fey vocals.

Domino Records is compiling Orange Juice's early singles and radio sessions, and the "first draft" of their debut album-- recordings originally released on the long out-of-print Ostrich Churchyard and The Heather's on Fire-- into one package entitled The Glasgow School, which is slated for release in May.

Edwyn Collins: http://www.edwyncollins.com/

Replacements Twin/Tone LPs to Be Reissued, Expanded; Westerberg to Be Anthologized

While a reunion is not in the works, several Replacements albums are going to be reissued in the fall. The first four albums, originally released on Twin Tone, will be released by Rykodisc, complete with bonus tracks. The band's later albums, first put out by Warner Brothers, will come out on Rhino.

In the meantime, Paul and His Only Friends (Kevin Bowe, Michael Bland and Jim Bouquist) are in the middle of a tour. Before it's too late:

02-25 Tempe, AZ - Marquee Theatre
02-26 Anaheim, CA - House of Blues
02-27 Solana Beach, CA - Belly Up Tavern
03-03 Denver, CO - Ogden Theatre
03-04 Kansas City, MO - Grand Emporium
03-05 Columbia, MO - The Blue Note
03-07 Dallas, TX - Gypsy Tea Room
03-08 Austin, TX - La Zona Rosa
03-10 New Orleans, LA - House of Blues
03-11 Memphis, TN - New Daisy Theatre

Paul Westerberg: http://www.paulwesterberg.com/

Snow Patrol Announce U.S. Theater Tour

Snow Patrol's 2005 schedule also includes stops at two of the summer's most prominent festivals-- Coachella on April 30, and the Isle of Wight Festival on June 12. And we're not sure if this is newsworthy or whatever, but the band is scheduled to open a handful of European dates this summer for some Irish wankers called U2, who are out supporting their recent album, How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb. R-e-s-p-e-c-t:

04-23 Spring, TX - Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavillion
04-24 Austin, TX - Stubb's Bar-B-Q
04-25 Dallas, TX - Gypsy Ballroom
04-26 Tulsa, OK - Cain's Ballroom
04-30 Indio, CA - Coachella Music and Arts Festival
05-02 San Francisco, CA - Warfield Theatre
05-03 Portland, OR - Crystal Ballroom
05-04 Seattle, WA - Moore Theatre
05-06 Vancouver, BC - Vogue Theatre
05-08 Calgary, AL - MacEwan Hall Ballroom
05-10 Minneapolis, MN - The Quest
05-12 Chicago, IL - Vic Theatre
05-18 Toronto, Ontario - Kool Haus
05-19 Montreal, Quebec - Cabaret LaTullpe
05-20 New York, NY - Roseland Ballroom
05-23 Norfolk, VA - NORVA
05-24 Washington, DC - 9:30 Club
05-26 Atlanta, GA - Roxy Theatre
05-27 Orlando, FL - House of Blues
05-28 Fort Lauderdale, FL - Culture Room
05-29 St. Petersburg, FL - The State Theatre
05-31 New Orleans, LA - House of Blues
06-10 Brussels, Belgium - Koning Boudewijn Stadium *
06-12 Newport, England - Seaclose Park (Isle of Wight Festival)
06-14 Manchester, England - Manchester Stadium *
06-24 Dublin, Ireland - Croke Park *
07-07 Berlin, Germany - Olympiastadion *
07-09 Paris, France - Stade de France *
* with U2

Snow Patrol: http://www.snowpatrol.net/

The Hold Steady Prep Sophomore Album

And Jesus Christ, would you look at that: The Hold Steady just completed work on their sophomore release, Separation Sunday, due to street in the delicate hands of Frenchkiss Records on May 3. Recorded in NYC at Gigantic Studios during the back end of 2004, the album features the knob-work of Dave Gardner (Rocket From the Crypt, Drive Like Jehu, acerbic stuff like that) and Dean Botulonis, who lent his skillz to the Almost Killed Me sessions. >> Separation Sunday:
01 Hornets! Hornets!
02 Cattle and the Creeping Things
03 Your Little Hoodrat Friend
04 Banging Camp
05 Charlemagne in Sweatpants
06 Stevie Nix
07 Multitude of Casualties
08 Don't Let Me Explode
09 Chicago Seemed Tired Last Night
10 Crucifixion Cruise
11 How a Resurrection Really Feels

And, hey, what do bar bands do better than play music in bars? Yes, yes, drink in bars. But, we were going more for "nothing." In that vein, the Hold Steady have set up a nice list of watering holes and dive clubs 'cross the USofAlcohol to visit in the coming months. In addition, they'll be hitting up some festivals along the way, first Noise Pop in San Francisco, and later, this year's SXSW extravaganza in Austin. Now for a list of places to get drunk while listening to Craig Finn front a performance of Bat Out of Hell as interpreted by the E Street Band:

02-25 Los Angeles, CA - Knitting Factory
02-27 San Francisco, CA - Bottom of the Hill (Noise Pop Festival)
03-03 Lancaster, PA - The Lizard Lounge
03-06 Bowling Green, OH - Howard's
03-07 Lansing, MI - Mac's Bar
03-08 Chicago, IL - The Bottom Lounge
03-10 Minneapolis, MN - Triple Rock (w/Thunderbirds Are Now!)
03-11 Minneapolis, MN - Triple Rock
03-14 Omaha, NE - Sokol Underground
03-17 Austin, TX - The Whiskey Bar (Frenchkiss Records SXSW Showcase)
03-18 Austin, TX - SXSW CMJ/Rock Hall Party
03-19 Austin, TX - Take Action Party
03-21 Jackson, MS - Martins Lounge
03-22 Atlanta, GA - The Earl w/Bloodthirsty Lovers
03-24 Mt Pleasent, SC - Village Tavern w/Bloodthirsty Lovers
03-25 Raleigh, NC - Martin St. Music Hall w/Bloodthirty Lovers
03-26 Baltimore, MD - Otto Bar

The Hold Steady: http://www.theholdsteady.com/
Frenchkiss Records: http://www.frenchkissrecords.com/

Menomena Tour U.S. in March

03-02 Minneapolis, MN - 7th Street Entry #
03-03 Milwaukee, WI - Onopa Brewery #
03-04 Chicago, IL - Empty Bottle #
03-05 Champaign, IL - High Dive #
03-06 Cleveland, OH - Beachland Ballroom & Tavern #
03-07 Pittsburgh, PA - Modern Formations Gallery #
03-08 Rochester, NY - Bug Jar #
03-09 Boston, MA - T.T. the Bears #
03-10 Philadelphia, PA - First Unitarian Church #&
03-11 Brooklyn, NY - North Six #
03-12 New York, NY - Mercury Lounge #
03-13 Washington DC - Black Cat #
03-15 Chapel Hill, NC - Local 506 #
03-16 Atlanta, GA - The Earl #
03-18 Dallas, TX - Good Records
03-19 Austin, TX - Red Eyed Fly (SXSW)
03-21 Denver, CO - Larimer Lounge
03-23 Salt Lake City, UT - Kilby Court

# with Pit er Pat and Hood

* Pitchfork Review: Menomena: I Am the Fun Blame Monster
* Menomena: <a

Castanets Continue to Tour, Work on New Album

In speaking to Raposa, we also learned that the band is working on two separate projects: an upcoming full length album and a split EP with Create(!)(Parenthetical exclamation is part of the band's name, not my extreme excitement). The album, which is being produced by Nathan Delffs, will likely feature a number of guests, including Sufjan Stevens, Daniel Carter, the Viking Moses, and "a whole host of Californians familiar from the Cathedral record." He also says that the content of the album "may be about two characters going for a walk and maybe not finding what they set out for." Meanwhile, the split EP will be released either in 7- or 12-inch format and "will not be about anything in particular." No release date has been set for the full-length, but Asthmatic Kitty should put out the EP sometime in July.

If this news doesn't satisfy you, both Raposa and Sayard Egan will be keeping a tour journal which should be available on the Asthmatic Kitty website beginning in early March.

For now, go check this band out:

02-25 Montague, MA - The Bookmill
02-26 Brooklyn, NY - Glasshouse Gallery
02-27 New York, NY - Knitting Factory
02-28 Philadelphia, PA - Kensington South Forum
03-01 Baltimore, MD - Ottobar
03-02 Washington, DC - Ivory Tower Community Room (George Washington University)
03-03 Chatlottesville, VA - Twisted Branch Tea Bazaar
03-04 Chapel Hill, NC - The Nightlight
03-05 Athens, GA - Caledonia Lounge
03-06 Jacksonville, FL - TSI
03-07 St. Augustine, FL - Cafe 11
03-09 Tampa, FL - New World Brewery
03-10 New Orleans, LA - Circle Bar
03-11 Houston, TX - Walter' s
03-14 Austin, TX - Church of The Friendly Ghost
03-16 Austin, TX - Emo's (SXSW)
03-19 Austin, TX - Maggie Mae's (SXSW)
03-24 San Diego, CA - Scolari's Office

Asthmatic Kitty: http://www.asthmatickitty.com/

Panthers Hit the Road Next Month

03-12 Washington, DC - Warehouse Next Door #
03-13 Cincinnati, OH - Alchemize #
03-14 Atlanta, GA - Drunken Unicorn #
03-15 New Orleans, LA - One Eyed Jacks #
03-16 Houston, TX - The Proletariat #
03-17 Austin, TX - Blender Bar
03-19 Austin, TX - Flamingo Cantina #
03-20 Tulsa, OK - The Boulder
03-21 St. Louis, MO - Lemp Neighborhood Arts Center
03-22 Chicago, IL - Open End Gallery
03-23 Detroit, MI - Lager House
03-24 Pittsburgh, PA - Modern Formations

# with Turing Machine

* Pitchfork Review: Panthers: Things Are Strange
* Panthers: <a

J. Mascis to Produce Des_Ark Debut

01 Some Are Love
02 No More Fighting Cats, OK?
03 Queen of the Sketch Patrol
04 Yes Sir, Yes Way
05 It's a Hard World Sometimes for Little Things
06 Jesus Loves You (But Yr Still Comin Home With Me Tonight)
07 Send Jolly to Raleigh
08 For Bob Riecke

Coinciding with the release of Loose Lips, Des_Ark'll be packin' their bags for a lengthy tour with Lovitt Records' Del Cielo, starting March 4. Shows (all dates with Del Cielo):

03-04 Washington, DC - Warehouse Next Door
03-05 Pittsburgh, PA - Mr. Roboto Project
03-06 Bloomington, IN - Church of the Sun Ra House
03-07 Chicago, IL - TBA
03-08 Milwaukee, WI - 2427 N. Pierce
03-09 Omaha, NE - Fort House
03-10 Lawrence, KS - Jackpot
03-11 Wichita, KS - TBA
03-12 Dallas, TX - Bar of Soap
03-13 Austin, TX - Monkeywrench Books
03-14 Houston, TX - The Southmore House
03-15 New Orleans, LA - Nowe Miasto
03-16 Pensacola, FL - Sluggo's
03-17 Gainesville, FL - The Ark
03-18 Miami, FL - The Alley
03-19 St. Augustine, FL - Loose Screws
03-20 Savannah, GA - 314 Lamara Drive
03-21 Atlanta, GA - The Drunken Unicorn
03-22 Asheville, NC - Green Eggs and Jam
03-23 Somerset, KY - TBA
03-24 Louisville, KY - The Old Louisville Coffee Shop
03-25 Greensboro, NC - Guilford University Bryan Jr. Auditorium
03-26 Richmond, VA - Nanci Raygun

Des_Ark: http://www.des-ark.org
Bifocal Media: http://www.bifocalmedia.com

Bright Eyes Plan Extensive World Tour

In Europe, Bright Eyes will be performing with former labelmates Rilo Kiley, while R.E.M. will be dragging Oberst & friends into some pretty huge Australian venues. Meanwhile, other than an upcoming appearance on The Tonight Show, Oberst doesn't have any American dates scheduled yet, so you have at least a few months until he comes into town and steals your girlfriend. Yeah, he sounds pretty sad, but we've heard he gets more stink than New Jersey. Dates:

02-24 Hamburg, Germany - Fabrik #
02-25 Bielefeld, Germany - Ringlockschuppen #
02-26 Copenhagen, Denmark - Vega Jnr #
02-27 Oslo, Norway - Rockefeller #
02-28 Stockholm, Sweden - Cirkus #
03-02 Berlin, Germany - Postbanhof #
03-03 Munich, Germany - Elserhalle #
03-04 Vienna, Austria - Arena #
03-05 Zurich, Switzerland - Rote Frabik #
03-06 Milan, Italy - Transilavia #
03-08 Paris, France - La Maroquinerie #
03-09 Portsmouth, England - Wedgewood Rooms #
03-10 Leeds, England - Metropolitan Uni #
03-11 Glasgow, Scotland - QMU #
03-12 Manchester, England - Academy 2 #
03-13 Wolverhampton, England - Wulfrun Hall #
03-14 London, England - Astoria #
03-18 Tokyo, Japan - Liquid Room
03-20 Osaka, Japan - Club Quatro
03-24 Christchurch, New Zealand - Christchurch Westpac Centre %
03-26 New Plymouth, New Zealand - TSB Bowl of Brooklands %
03-27 Brisbane, Australia - The Tivoli
03-29 Brisbane, Australia - Brisbane Entertainment Centre %
03-31 Sydney, Australia - Sydney Entertainment Centre %
04-02 Sydney, Australia - Australia Metro Centre
04-03 Melbourne, Australia - Rod Laver Arena %
04-05 Melbourne, Australia - Prince of Wales
04-06 Adelaide, Australia - Adelaide Entertainment Centre %
04-07 Perth, Australia - Fremantle Arts Centre
04-08 Perth, Australia - Australia Burswood Dome %

# with Rilo Kiley
% with R.E.M.

In addition, Oberst will be releasing a new UK single for "First Day of My Life" on March 21, to coincide with, um, the end of his European tour. But the real shafting comes thus: according to NME, the CD will feature the B-sides "When The President Talks To God", which you can get free via iTunes in the U.S., and "True Blue", which is already available on the "Lua" EP. There will also be a 7" version with only "When The President Talks To God", not that that makes it alright. Just start saving up for those previously announced vinyl versions of the "Lua" and "Take it Easy" EPs, and be glad you live in the States. You know, if you do.

Bright Eyes: http://www.thestoryinthesoil.com/
Saddle Creek: http://www.saddle-creek.com/

De La Soul Announce Inexpensive March Shows

Get this: Not only will almost every date on their March tour be accompanied by a free hip-hop symposium at a local university, but the shows themselves carry a ticket price of $1.20 (not a typo). The venerable Posdnuos told Billboard that De La has "wanted to do something like this for awhile. We're fans of hip-hop and to have the opportunity to talk to young people about what's so powerful in hip-hop-- its history and what's going on right now-- is the coolest thing we could be doing." The jaunt is called "The Past, The Present, The Future Tour", and De La Soul promises "additional surprises," including but not limited to guest spots by A Tribe Called Quest's Phife Dawg, Scarface, Raphael Saadiq, and Dwele. The dates and the places:

03-02 Washington, DC - Blackburn Center (symposium)
03-02 Washington, DC - Lincoln Theatre (performance)
03-03 Baltimore, MD - Morgan St. University (symposium)
03-04 Philadelphia, PA - Lincoln University (symposium)
03-04 Philadelphia, PA - Kimmel Center (performance)
03-06 New York, NY - Spirit (performance)
03-07 Newark, NJ - Rutgers University (symposium)
03-08 St. Louis, MO - Washington University (symposium)
03-08 St. Louis, MO - Fox Theatre (performance)
03-09 Detroit, MI - African-American Museum of History (performance)
03-10 Detroit, MI - Wayne St. University (symposium)
03-11 Houston, TX - Texas Southern University (symposium)
03-11 Houston, TX - Jones Hall (performance)
03-21 Chicago, IL - Columbia College (symposium)
03-23 Atlanta, GA - Clark University (symposium)
03-23 Atlanta, GA - Woodruff Arts Center (performance)
03-28 Las Vegas, NV - UNLV (symposium)
03-28 Las Vegas, NV - Ra (performance)
03-30 Los Angeles, CA - USC (symposium)
03-30 Los Angeles, CA - Director's Guild of America (performance)

De La Soul: http://www.spitkickers.com/delasoul.htm

Every Motown Records Single to Be Reissued Digitally

The first volume of the collection,The Complete Motown Singles, Volume 1: 1959-1961, was released January 14 on a six-CD, 154-track set. But don't go heading to Best Buy to purchase this limited-edition collection, it will only be available on Hip-O Select.com and via iTunes. The exclusivity of each volume will vary from year to year, with volume one limited to a mere 5,000 copies.

The release is the first phase of the plan that extends through Motown's 50th Anniversary in 2009. Coincidence? Not at all. From now on, the volumes will feature every single from each year, with the second volume, featuring every single from 1962, set for release in May 2005. The third volume, which will consist of Motown's 1963 singles output, is also in the works and should be out in October.

The initial set includes Motown's first major hits, like Barrett Strong's "Money (That's What I Want)", the Miracles' "Shop Around", and the Marvelettes' "Please Mr. Postman", plus the raw Motown debuts of the Supremes, the Temptations, Marvin Gaye, and Mary Wells, among others.

Not only does this collection feature great music, but in fantastic packaging. It resembles a scaled-down 78 rpm-era album,�0�0and more than 100 pages of rare photos and notes. Also, for vinyl enthusiasts each box will feature an actual reproduction 45 rpm single from its respective era.

"It's an awesome undertaking for an awesome and worthy body of work," says Universal A&R VP Harry Weinger, who is overseeing the project. "This is a window to the beginnings of a musical institution, where you can hear the one-offs and experiments next to the big hits, and where you just might hear the revolution to come."

Hip-O Select: http://www.hip-oselect.com/

Handsome Boy Plan Road Trip

03-28 Hollywood, CA - House of Blues
03-29 Solana Beach, CA - Belly Up Tavern
03-31 Anaheim, CA - House of Blues
04-01 Santa Cruz, CA - The Catalyst*
04-02 San Francisco, CA - The Fillmore*
04-03 Portland, OR - Berbati's Pan*
04-04 Seattle, WA - Showbox*
04-06 Boulder, CO - Fox Theatre*
04-07 Omaha, NE - Sokol Auditorium*
04-08 Minneapolis, MN - Quest Club*
04-09 Chicago, IL - House of Blues#
04-10 Bloomington, IN - Bluebird Nightclub#
04-11 Ann Arbor, MI - Blind Pig#
04-12 Cleveland, OH - House of Blues#
04-15 South Burlington, VT - Higher Ground#
04-16 Philadelphia, PA - Theatre of Living Arts#
04-17 Washington, DC - 9:30 Club#
04-18 New Haven, CT - Toad's Place#
04-19 Boston, MA - Paradise Rock Club#
04-20 New York, NY - Irving Plaza#

* with Buck 65
# with K-OS

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