Explosions in the Sky Tour With Smashing Pumpkins

No, they haven't rescheduled all those cancelled European dates yet, but the friendly Texans behind Explosions in the Sky have found cause to procrastinate on that a bit longer. It seems his holiness Billy Corgan appeared unto them in the guise of a burning bush, charging the quartet with the unenviable duty of killing their only sonopening for Smashing Pumpkins.

The crescendo-happy foursome joins Billy and His entourage for 11 dates, but not before a brief round of late summer festival stints. Between the explosions and the burning and the smashing, you're in for a delightfully violent tour. [MORE...]

Bright Eyes Add More Shows

For a guy practically synonymous with Americana, Conor Oberst is steering awfully clear of the land that he loves this summer. He and his Bright Eyes just announced a trio of English dates which, like a big sack of McDonalds, oughta bring the flavor of the U.S. to the UK. Although, unlike a big bag of McDonalds, you won't be full of regret 45 minutes later.

But we can't complain-- Bright Eyes already trekked across our continent twice this year. And Conor hasn't forgotten about us; he's still got two dates on the way here in September, including a stop at an American institution: the Hollywood Bowl.

In other Bright Eyes news, a bunch of videos for various Cassadaga songs recently made their way to the interweb. Check out Asako Masunouchi's clip for "I Must Belong Somewhere", Andreas Nilsson's vid for "Clairaudients", Alex Turvey's take on "Lime Tree", Lorenzo Fonda's video for "No One Would Riot for Less", and David Blanco Best's clip for "Soul Singer in a Session Band", along with director commentary, here.

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Art Brut Meets Harry Potter
I'm considering a move to Gryffindor

Daniel Radcliffe must know a little something about "meta"; he is, after all, Harry Potter (far moreso than those trippy drawings on the front of the books). So it's fitting that Art Brut-- the most meta of the bands-- count Mr. PotterRadcliffe as a fan. According to Art Brut publicist Karen Ruttner, who snapped the above photo, Dan hunted down Eddie Argos and the lads at a July 11 taping of the Conan O'Brien variety program.

Ruttner said, "Just as we were sitting in the green room talking about how much we wanted to meet Harry Potter, some guy comes in and goes, 'Hey, Daniel Radcliffe wants to come in and meet you guys.' He's a big fan. Even told Conan on the couch that they were the best thing hed seen at Reading two years ago. Made 'em sign a copy of their CD and after the photo was like, 'now I finally feel like I'm in a band!'"

How cute! I wonder, after shooting that lecherous take on Ricky Gervais' "Extras", he muttered "now I know what it's like to be a superfreak!"

Art Brut have some dates on the way after the jump. And, just as a reminder you probably don't need, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows drops Saturday. If you call us this weekend, don't expect a response. And if he dies, you better believe we're taking next week off. [MORE...]

Nellie McKay Reveals New Album Details
"I think that everyone secretly wants to be a zombie."

Photo by Amy T. Zielinski

No worse for wear following some major label finagling, era-defying songstress Nellie McKay returns September 25 with Obligatory Villagers, her third LP and second released via her own Hungry Mouse imprint.

The idiosyncratic vocalist, multi-instrumentalist, and songwriter-- fresh off a Broadway run in The Threepenny Opera-- has crafted (perhaps not coincidentally) an album filled to the brim with the flair of musical theater. From the cheeky ukulele-and-tap-shoes "dance break!" in the middle of album opener "Mother of Pearl" to the chorus of brain-hungry zombies on a finale titled, yes, "Zombie", Villagers finds Nellie and her collaborators at their most lively and rambunctious.

Those collaborators include Bob Dorough, of "Schoolhouse Rock" fame, who lends vocals to several tracks on the new record.

"I just wanted to do all these songs in the Poconos," Nellie told Pitchfork recently, referring to the Northeastern Pennsylvania mountain region where she recorded Villagers. "It's kind of a homecoming. I mean, if you want to find a good person in the world, the Poconos are a good place to start."

While the new songs seem tailor-made for some musical-in-the-making, Nellie says there are no immediate plans to translate her tunes for that sort of stage. Although anything is possible: "If someone gave me this money, you know, I could [even] turn it into a painting."

McKay (which the lady herself pronounces "mik-EYE", FYI) likes to evade when describing her own compositions. Of new track "Identity Theft", she says, "Today I think it's a rumination on cubism. I'm not exactly sure."

With "Zombie" she's more forthright, if only slightly. "I think that everyone secretly wants to be a zombie," Nellie offered. And what about those whose autopilot, consumption-based lifestyles are already halfway there? "They don't go far enough with it," according to Nellie. "[They should] have a little more fun with it, go with the flow." Well all right then.

At only nine tracks, Obligatory Villagers will be Nellie's shortest album by a long shot. Her previous long-players-- 2004's Get Away From Me and last year's much-delayed Pretty Little Head-- were both double-disc affairs clocking in at around 20 songs apiece.

This wasn't a conscious move toward brevity on Nellie's part, however. "It just kind of ended up that way," she said with a laugh. "We always aim for less than 30 [songs]."

For now, Nellie has only one live date lined up-- an appearance on "The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson" on July 30. While she admits she'll probably do more shows at some point, she's not terribly keen on life on the road.

"I really don't like [touring] very much," she said.

Nellie did, however, have an encouraging experience performing at last month's Hove Festival. "We were recently in Norway and, aside the fact that there was no music crew anywhere, they were very nice to us. You talk about Michael Moore and Sicko and you get cheers. That was huge. [And the crowd was] standing in the rain and their clothes were covered with mud and they were singing and clapping along."

Since she's not planning to tour, what's Nellie to do next? "I think we'll just start working on the next album, you know? Just try to put one foot in front of the other."

Nellie will also contribute a ukulele rendition of the old tune "P.S. I Love You" (not the Beatles song) to the forthcoming film titled, yes, P.S., I Love You. [MORE...]

Arcade Fire Enlist Clinic to Open UK Dates

The umpteen-member strong Arcade Fire have been known to cover Clinic classic "Distortions" in the live setting, but if they try pulling that one in the UK this fall, things are gonna get awwwk-ward.

And that, in case you somehow missed the headline, is because the real thing will have graced the stage just moments before. Indeed, Arcade Fire have tapped their masked cover boys to open a pack of dates in the latter's native UK. This Clinic-bolstered stretch kicks off October 26 in Glasgow and more or less ends on Halloween (appropriately) in Nottingham, with a lone London coda lined up for mid-November.

Clinic also have a trio of overseas engagements before the Fire. And all that is to say nothing of the AF's gradually building spate of U.S. dates with LCD Soundsystem and abundant fest action. [MORE...]

Arctics, Klaxons, Dizzee Make Mercury Shortlist

The Nationwide Mercury Prize, the annual artistic back-pat and big-time cashout bestowed upon the finest British or Irish album of the previous year (and sometimes, just for kicks, the top album by some guy who lived in the UK once), has announced its shortlist of nominees for the 2007 accolade. There's some good stuff, some great stuff, and-- perhaps inevitably-- some Winehouse. Here, in all their alphabetically-ordered glory, they are:

Arctic Monkeys - Favourite Worst Nightmare
Basquiat Strings (with Seb Rochford) - Basquiat Strings
Bat For Lashes - Fur and Gold
Dizzee Rascal - Maths + English
Jamie T - Panic Prevention
Klaxons - Myths of the Near Future
Maps - We Can Create
New Young Pony Club - Fantastic Playroom
Fionn Regan - The End of History
The View - Hats Off to the Buskers
Amy Winehouse - Back to Black
The Young Knives - Voices of Animals and Men

Poor Lily Allen!

Right, then. Eight of the twelve nominees enter the running with debut albums; an impressive feat considering the proclivity of our own Grammys towards age and experience (and, often, boredom). Even the oldest amongst the young folks may again have their day: the barely-legal Dizzee won in 2003 for Boy in Da Corner, and the Monkeys would be pulling a Tom Hanks should they win for Favourite, having taken the prize last year for their mouthful of a debut.

The winner will be presented with £20,000 (about 40 Gs American) in a ceremony September 4 at London's Grosvenor House Hotel.

The Mountain Goats Announce Fall Tour
Bowerbirds to open

Mountain Goat captain John Darnielle and first mate Peter Hughes will lead whomever else happens to be in the band (perhaps nobody?) on a tour of the East Coast of North America this fall. Along the way, they will play music, travel in vehicles, and, presumably, eat and drink for nourishment.

Joining them on this road odyssey will be fellow North Carolinians Bowerbirds, who count Darnielle as superfan #1.

The tour begins September 20 in D.C. and ends October 2 in Brooklyn. [MORE...]

Dizzee Rascal Readies "Pussyole (Old Skool)" Single

"Pussyole", "Old Skool"-- whatever you want to call the Maths + English track that reuses the "It Takes Two" sample-- is now a single. Dizzee Rascal and XL will release it in the UK on July 30.

The single also includes instrumentals, an acapella, and "My Life [ft. Newham Generals]" as B-sides. And though it seems like Dizzee wants to keep the name debate going by making the single's first two tracks "Pussyole (Old Skool)" followed by "Old Skool (Pussyole)", there's a fairly clear explanation for that: the former is the album version, and the latter is the clean version used for radio and in the track's video.

Also on July 30, BBC Four will air Dizzee Rascal: Bow Selector, a documentary about the London MC's career so far.

Otherwise, Dizzee has a fair amount of shows this summer to keep him busy, mostly at festivals. A UK tour is in the works for October. [MORE...]

Voxtrot Announce Fall Tour, New Single

With the release of their self-titled debut LP and their Pitchfork Music Festival set behind them, Austin indie poppers Voxtrot will keep the party going into the wee hours of the morning (aka the days of mid-October) with newly minted fall tours of the UK and North America.

After they play Coney Island's Siren Festival this weekend, they'll take a month-long break before heading to England in late August. Then it's back to our shores in mid-Semptember.

On August 27, Beggars/Playlouder will release the single for "Firecracker" in the UK. It will come out on CD, 7", and download, and features the B-sides "Honey Bee" and "Loan Shark". [MORE...]

Justice, Liars, Battles Play London's Field Day Fest
With Caribou, Electrelane, the Concretes, Matthew Dear, Four Tet, Fridge

Billed as "London's New Psychedelic Summer," the Field Day Festival-- tripping out at London's Victoria Park August 11-- will bring in top-tier dance and rock n roll from Justice, Liars, Caribou, Battles, Electrelane, Matthew Dear, Four Tet, White Rabbits, Gruff Rhys, the Concretes, Fridge, 1990s, Mystery Jets, the Aliens, Erol Alkan, Bat for Lashes, Vetiver, Adem, Cajun Dance Party, and a lot more than this already-overpacked sentence can handle.

And, hey, if music ain't your bag, organizers promise tug-of-war, "Morris Dancing," and a "largest marrow competition." Unsure as to exactly what that is, we'll just take this opportunity to encourage you to see Battles. And Justice. And so forth.

Bjork Comes Back to North America This Fall

Photo: Bernhard Kristin/ILC

Will that Björk ever quit? We sure hope not! Following tours and new albums and singles alike, you'd think she'd wanna take a nap or hang out with her kids or something. Not our Björk, though; when it comes to her public, she just gives and gives. And it's a good thing, too, 'cuz from her, we'll gladly just take and take.

She's added a few North American dates to her continuing trek in support of the colorful Volta. Atlanta, Detroit, Montreal, and New York, you're in luck. But don't you weep, continent: we have a feeling there are more dates on the way. [MORE...]

Laurie Anderson's Science Augmented by Reed, Antony

Laurie Anderson's art-rock classic Big Science is 25, and to celebrate, Nonesuch are saving the candles and reissuing the thing instead. But that's not all: according to Uncut, Laurie, along with her pals Lou Reed and Antony Hegarty (of "and the Johnsons" fame), recorded a new version of the record's title track for a Big Science 2 EP. The EP also features a remastered version of "O Superman" from the Big Science LP. Both are due in the UK July 16. UPDATE: THEY WILL BE OUT JULY 17 IN THE U.S.

Laurie also has a few tour dates on the way in Spain and Portugal, which we'll get to after the tracklists. [MORE...]

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