Art Brut Launch Tour
With We Are Scientists and the Spinto Band

Ready, Art Brut? Hope so, 'cause here we come. To your North American tour alongside We Are Scientists and the Spinto Band, that is.

Tonight, the trio of acts will make its way to Carrboro, North Carolina's Cat's Cradle club to kick off the festivities. In late-October, WAS will drop off, leaving Art Brut to make do with the Spinto Band, as well as a few shows with Annuals and Tokyo Police Club.

Come November, Eddie Argos 'n' friends will play a handful of scattered shows on their home continent.

As previously reported, Art Brut recently signed to Mute Records in the UK and are in the process of recording their sophomore LP, tentatively slated for an early 2007 release. According to NME.com, the band has finished up a 7" split with We Are Scientists, with the former group reworking "The Great Escape" and the latter on "Bang Bang Rock & Roll". Keep an eye out for the single swap disc at yr local merch table, because this baby's a tour exclusive. [MORE...]

Portastatic to Still Please Fans with Album, Tour

Mac McCaughan's career certainly isn't static. But it is increasingly more Portastatic (ba dum dun, ching). Last year saw the release of the band's sixth LP, Bright Ideas, followed earlier this year by the instrumental score to the Canadian indie film Who Loves the Sun. Now Portastatic, Mac's once side-project turned main musical venture, returns with yet another full-length, Be Still Please. The disc drops on October 10 through Merge Records (the label McCaughan co-founded with Superchunk bandmate Laura Ballance).

A whole slew of musicians lent their voices and fiddles to the new album, including Laura Cantrell (vocals), Annie Hayden (vocals), Laura Thomas (violin), Margaret White (violin), Peter Holsapple (piano), Matt Brandau (upright bass), Carrie Shull (oboe), Matthew McCaughan (drums/percussion), and Lee Waters (drums).

Portastatic embarks tonight on a chunk of dates opening for M. Ward, followed in October by a headlining tour. [MORE...]

Photos: I'm From Barcelona [Rough Trade Records, London, 09/16/06]

Pitchfork reader Michael Drohan was lucky enough to catch Swedish indie-pop juggernaut I'm From Barcelona's performance at the Rough Trade Shop's Covent Garden location last weekend, and he snapped a few photos for us. "If you've never been to the shop, it's tiny," Drohan says. "It's in the basement of a skate shop, and there's barely enough room to move around in there as it is, but they packed about 20-some members of the band in there (with a trombone, some saxophones, ukuleles, snare drum, high hat, and some of those keyboard things you blow into**), plus, I'd wager, 30-50 fans.

"The place became very hot and very sweaty very quick, but everyone was enjoying themselves. How could you not with these tunes? On the last song, the lead singer led the band up the spiral staircase outside to the small alley the shop sits in, and then played a few more songs outside, even putting the chorus of Madonna's "Like a Prayer" into one of the songs. It was a pretty cool time."

We are so, so jealous.

** We think he's referring to melodicas

Video: The White Stripes on “The Simpsons”

The White Stripes' previously reported appearance on "The Simpsons" yesterday did indeed include an homage to the Michel Gondry-directed video for their Elephant hit "The Hardest Button to Button"-- but instead of sticking to the original's low key, feel-good vibe of watching drums and amps multiply, the "Simpsons" writers turned it into a showdown between the band and Bart. We won't spoil it by telling you how, but we will tell you that Bart has the last laugh. You can't trick a trickster, Jack and Meg!

T.V. Eye: September 18-23, 2006

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

Tuesday, September 19:

CBS: "Late Show With David Letterman": Kasabian
NBC: "The Tonight Show With Jay Leno": Justin Timberlake
NBC: "Late Night With Conan O'Brien": Bonnie "Prince" Billy

Wednesday, September 20:

ABC: "Jimmy Kimmel Live": Lupe Fiasco
NBC: "The Tonight Show With Jay Leno": Joan Jett

Thursday, September 21:

NBC: "Last Call With Carson Daly": Fiona Apple

Friday, September 22:

CBS: "Late Show With David Letterman": Ludacris

Saturday, September 23:

IFC: "The Henry Rollins Show": Peaches

U.S. Takes on John Lennon in Documentary

The man may have been a walking, talking, songwriting peace sign-- and a huggable one at that-- but for some folks John Lennon was, in his day, a threat to national security. Sounds crazy and, hmmmm, seems to parallel certain recent events, which is probably why the Lionsgate flick The U.S. vs. John Lennon hits the big screen later this month.

Written, directed, and produced by the team of David Leaf and John Scheinfeld (responsible, in various configurations, for countless musician-oriented TV specials), the film explores the U.S. government's attempts to suppress the voice of peace-happy John Lennon during the Vietnam War-happy era of the late 1960s and early 1970s.

Unlike recent docs detailing the lives of Leonard Cohen and Daniel Johnston, this one focuses more on the socio-political climate of the times, so expect more hard-hitting truths and fewer baby photos.

The U.S. vs. John Lennon features seldom-seen footage from the Lennon vaults, courtesy of the man's widow, artist Yoko Ono. But that's not all. "Lennon's own music provid[es] subtly incisive narration," according to the press release. And while he's no Morgan Freeman, we can still dig it.

Plenty of special guests pop in to say a piece or two, including linguistics superstar and political activist Noam Chomsky, journalist and news icon Walter Cronkite, Watergate watchdog Carl Bernstein, Watergate mastermind G. Gordon Liddy, civil rights activist Angela Davis, writer Gore Vidal, former Senator and presidential candidate George McGovern, former NY governor Mario Cuomo, and...Geraldo Rivera!

The curious may check out the trailer below, as well as an exclusive teaser clip from the film itself-- featuring Geraldo, who seeks the buried treasure of John Lenno-- er, who talks about stuff.

While you're at it, check out the film's website, a too-cute Drudge Report knockoff.

Pelican Plan Assorted Releases, Launch Tour

The latest scoop: Pelican's status as a "fucking triumphant band" (as guitarist Laurent Lebec eloquently boasts on their website) will be put to the test this November when they attempt to simultaneously release a 2xLP, a 12", a 3" CD, and a live DVD. Go for the gold, dudes!

The DVD, which was mixed by Justin Broadrick (Jesu, Final, ex-Godflesh) and Michael Ward (not that M. Ward), features video from a Pelican headlining gig at London's Scala, photos, and footage of the band filmed over the past five years. The 2xLP, on Electric Human Project, will contain the full audio from that London gig. The 3" CD, meanwhile, holds a remix by Prefuse 73, as well as a "different" (quoth a press release) take on a demo track. Finally, the 12" will collect both of these 3" cuts on vinyl.

Wipe that sweat from your brow, sissies-- there's more. Pelican will once again step out on the road for a trek beginning tonight in support of last year's The Fire in Our Throats Will Beckon the Thaw. They plan to preview material from their new, as-of-yet untitled album live-- and record the thing shortly after the tour concludes. Oh, and just so you know, the Canadian portion of the jaunt is titled the "Exclaim! Aggressive Tendencies Tour", since it's sponsored by the Canadian music magazine Exclaim!. Show that you care and punch a fellow audience member in the face. Kidding, kidding. [MORE...]

Jay-Z Returns! (Definitely)
No more "probably"

Late last week, when Jay-Z decided to finally confirm the rampant rumors of the end of his "retirement", he went straight to the streets...by granting an exclusive interview to Entertainment Weekly. E-to-the-Dub got H-to-the-Izzo to admit that yes, a new album will be released this fall, yes, it's called Kingdom Come, and yes, Coldplay's Chris Martin produced one of its tracks.

Said Hova of the Martin collaboration, "We met at a charity dinner and just really kept in touch. He sent me these beautiful chords for this song called 'Beach Chair'. I had [Dr.] Dre put some drums on it. It's really, really incredible."

In the time it took to read that quote, Cam'ron wrote five new diss tracks, including one about how he used to pimp Gwyneth Paltrow.

Jigga also revealed to EW that Timbaland, Kanye West, and Dre have done production work for the album, and that he hopes to also work with Rick Rubin and Eminem. Lyrical inspirations include Superman ("Take off the blazer/ Loosen up the tie/ Step inside the booth/Superman is alive!"), a Basquiat painting (a track called "Most Kings"), and the death of his nephew. The album, he said, is "more in the vein of The Black Album than The Blueprint. I've been experimenting with things, different types of music."

He also continued his long-running denial of a relationship with Beyonce. C'mon, dude, it's getting really, really annoying.

Tour Diary: Mission of Burma's Roger Miller
Part Three

As the legendary Mission of Burma make their way down the West Coast on a week-long trek, guitarist Roger Miller shares his tour diary with Pitchfork. Stay tuned for daily entries ("Of course, it depends a bit on free WiFi," Miller says.)

Here's part three, in which Burma plays Portland, Oregon.

Read part two here.
Read part one here.

---

Saturday, September 16:

Another well-rested day. Is this really a rock tour?

Sunny, we all wandered our own way. Some got grilled salmon sandwiches at Pike's Market, others happy with coffee and some composite carbohydrates. Croc. Café had WiFi, so I sent off yesterday's blog blurb.

Van ride down the rain-forsted coast to Portland. All in good humor. Hey, look! The rain stopped and it's sunny again!

The glamorous life of a touring band. [MORE...]

Tour Diary: Mission of Burma's Roger Miller
Part Two

As the legendary Mission of Burma make their way down the West Coast on a week-long trek, guitarist Roger Miller shares his tour diary with Pitchfork. Stay tuned for daily entries ("Of course, it depends a bit on free WiFi," Miller says.)

Here's part two, in which Miller recounts the tour's first show.

Read part one here.

---

Friday, September 15: "Seattle"

Got plenty of sleep-- who cares about three hour time differences anyways? Sometimes I go to sleep at 11 pm, sometimes 2 am. Wake up where you are, etc.

Babbled w/Jimmy and Sharon in front of the hotel. Surprise surprise-- Clint's flight was cancelled. Looks like I'll be checking the bass and his monitors for soundcheck. As long as I don't have to play bass and guitar at the same time during the show... Jimmy will pick Bob up at the airport at noon and they'll get the shipped amps and drums to the club, the Crocodile Café.

On to Starbucks: I prefer indie coffee shops with blackhaired gals w/tattoos, but this is Seattle after all, home of SB.

Went to the Experience Music Project by the Space Needle. Don't really like the place much-- it's designed for people who need to be "educated". Everyone walks around with headphones on, being told via a tour guide what the meaning of everything is. There was an art show, though, that sounded fairly interesting, pairing various artists. Felt a bit sick to my stomach, but like anything, if you look deep enough, there's something of interest. Pieces by Max Ernst, Rothko, and Paul Signac (static pointillistic stuff) were really quite interesting. But it was a Jan Brueghel the Younger, 1625, that took the cake. Over-flow of ideas. Made me queasy just looking at it. This guy deserves some research on my part.

Wandered through some gardens and landed back at the Virginia Inn. Some pints and lunch. Started my "scrawl/frottage" of Bob-- part of a series of the band members of this group I'm in. They were playing the new David Byrne CD. It sounds like he is "a mature adult trying to make mature adult music." Something Mission of Burma clearly is not guilty of.


Scrawl/Frottage of Pete. Moral: NEVER drink and draw... [MORE...]

Barack Obama Unites Extra Golden for Tour

Grammy award winner or not, who would have guessed that U.S. Senate superstar Barack Obama was a Thrill Jockey fan? That's even cooler than a "Vote Obama" cupcake!

The U.S. Senator from Illinois (along with Windy City Department of Cultural Affairs man Michael Orlove) has pulled a few strings to unite benga band Extra Golden (Ian Eagleson and Alex Minoff from D.C.'s Golden + Kenyan members Opiyo Bilongo and Onyango Wuod Omari). Obama, whose family is from Kenya, voiced his support for the quartet's music and then went on to help bring its African half into the U.S. for an upcoming tour.

The stint, which kicks off Saturday with a slot at Chicago's World Music Festival, supports Extra Golden's June release, Ok-Oyot System ("It's Not Easy"). [MORE...]

Exclusive: RJD2 Signs to XL, Ditches Hip-Hop
"I'm a folk musician at the end of the day."

"I've gone rap free in 2006," claimed RJD2. The Columbus-by-way-of-Philadelphia producer spoke to Pitchfork earlier this week about his currently-untitled third album, which will be released on the indie- and electronic-centric label XL, rather than RJ's longtime home of Def Jux. And instead of the sampledelic hip-hop/electronica of previous albums Deadringer and Since We Last Spoke, the new album was recorded with live instrumentation played entirely by RJ himself.

"Rhythmically, I feel like there's a continuous thread that would run throughout everying that I've done, and I'd like to think the new stuff still has that kind of emphasis on the rhythm section and groove," RJ said. "[But] there are a lot more songs in major keys. There are a lot more vocal harmonizations. I think it's a lot prettier than anything I've ever done. And it's all live. There's, like, one or two samples on there.

He said that, since he began, he wanted "to make pop music. The same shit everybody listens to: the Beatles, your Led Zeppelins, your Tears for Fears. And there are new groups: Elliott Smith or Dungen or Queens of the Stone Age. These are all groups that I feel make-- at the end of the day-- pop music. They do it with their own flavor and their own thing." [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.)