CMJ: Wednesday [Zach Baron]

Mika Miko, Marnie Stern, and Mary Timony photos by Kathryn Yu; No Age and White Williams photos by Jason Bergman; Above: No Age

Marnie Stern is a 31-year-old New Yorker with a fondness for exclamation points ("Put All Your Eggs in One Basket and Then Watch That Basket!!!") and finger-tapping guitar technique, the latter of which she reportedly learned from 1990s math-rockers Don Caballero. Early on Wednesday-- CMJ's unofficial start date, after Tuesday's official one-- she had the toughest spot: in a Gramercy Theatre more full of colored spotlights and idle waitresses than actual people. She took the stage with her new backing band (two guys from the Brooklyn-based Pterodactyl) like the entire festival depended on her starting things out right.

Marnie Stern [Blender Theatre at Gramercy; 7 p.m.]






A bad sound mix actually worked to her benefit, downplaying the shred-heavy, technical aspects of her chirping sound in favor of a more ecstatic, beatific roar; she'd incite the crowd with a head nod during a tough guitar run, or cut the instruments out, Deerhoof-style, to light up her microphone. Part spoken-word session, part confessional-- part mood music, dream therapy, guitar lesson, leadership seminar, and basement show-- Stern was all chorus.

Mika Miko [Blender Theatre at Gramercy; 8 p.m.]


Following her were the L.A. five-piece and all-female act Mika Miko, worth mentioning since this one-two punch-- with songstress Mary Timony waiting in the wings for round three-- was the rarest of occasions in the midst CMJ's reputed wealth-of-riches: three frontwomen in as many acts. Kill Rock Stars, who put together the evening's lineup, deserve credit here, and they own the precedent, too-- see last year's Erase Errata, Timony, and Deerhoof string at Hiro Ballroom.





"We need more guitar and more phone" is the way MM soundchecked, bumping the levels on their dual microphones, one of which was in fact a bright red plastic telephone receiver. Vocalist Jet Blanca showed off a trick, running from side-to-side until her Rushmore-like red beret slipped off the back of her head yet hung in the air miraculously, attached by rope to her pixie outfit. The LPs, 7"s, and CD-Rs that have leaked out of their camp since 2003 have contained various blasts of energy and chaos, but live it was all eyes on their virtuoso bass player, who channeled Erase Errata's Ellie Erickson in churning out sped-up Gang of Four rhythms and quick, unlikely turnarounds (Blanca's sax playing didn't hurt either comparison). Michelle Suarez's skittering, uptight Monorchid guitar parts anxiously played counterpoint-- there was a lot more going on than all the noise might suggest.



I was just out the door-- this is CMJ, you know-- when I heard familiar strains: Blanca shouting "Attitude, you got some fucking attitude," the band covering Misfits in what's become an unofficial marathon tradition-- the third year straight I've seen a band take that particular Danzig song on.

White Williams [Bowery Ballroom; 9 p.m.]

23-year-old local Joe Williams, who performs as White Williams, has already charmed New York some; as the icy, restrained heir to traditions in this city as diverse as Blondie and the Talking Heads, Williams is our city's antidote to the hyper, sweaty, out-of-town antics of Dan Deacon and Girl Talk-- not coincidentally, the two guys with whom he just went on the road.

An early show at the Mercury Lounge, the first with his three-piece backing band (though at the time, only two of them made it), saw Williams onstage but frozen, distant, specific-- perfect qualities for his laptop syncopation and cool-guy vocals. At Bowery Ballroom, after weeks on the road with his veteran buddies, the band was loose -- more of a wall-of-sound, bass-thump, stretch-it-out kind of a thing, less restrained-- and some in the crowd looked confused. Perfect, though, was the addition of a neon video narrative projected at the back of the stage: pulsing airplanes, palm trees (fitting for Williams' faux-reggae bounce), and dancing dollar signs; in just a month, this guy went from completely distant to full-on immersive, and his record's still not out yet.

No Age [Bowery Ballroom; 10 p.m.]


Next were the night's undisputed guests of honor, No Age, and they knew it: "How fucking stoked are you guys?!!!" Like sister band Mika Miko, the two-piece No Age are Los Angeles natives who came up in a creative scene that has roots in the art and punk worlds going back as far as Raymond Pettibon and SST. Weirdo Rippers, their first full-length, merges the various strains of creative Los Angeles-- noise bands, aging hardcore guys, skaters, visual artists, designers-- into raw charisma.

At Bowery, they dispensed some with the pretty shoegaze that pads out Rippers in favor of feedback, screaming, and frenetic drumming-- their builds were shorter, and the choruses bigger. Before long Randy Randall was teetering on top of an amplifier, the stage was stormed by an adoring crowd, and guitar duties were relegated to a particularly sweet and young-looking kid who sheepishly took the axe when Randall handed it to him; Randall then hoisted the kid up on his shoulders, like a father with his son, to finish the band's night.

Neko Case Reissues Debut
Pitchforks News fully endorses the taste of own foot

"(What, no love for Neko's 1997 debut The Virginian? It's good!)" Alas, we spoke too soon in our earlier story about Neko Case reissues, because Mint Records will complete the set of reissued Case studio records with the re-release of the aforementioned album on October 23. (Anti- delivers the others on November 6.)

The Virginian, credited to Neko Case and Her Boyfriends, was originally released on Bloodshot Records. This 10th anniversary, worldwide reissue comes free of extras, but it is packaged in one of those soft little digipaks.

The Case-friendly New Pornographers are on tour now; their next show is tonight, October 18, in Chicago. [MORE...]

School of Seven Bells Hop on Prefuse Tour
NOT Voice of the Seven Woods! Or the seven dwarfs! Or the cast of "7th Heaven"!

Photo by Amanda Merten

It appears Guillermo Scott Herren, aka Prefuse 73, is a little suspicious when it comes to numbers. Contrary to a previous report, Voice of the Seven Woods will not open up for Mr. Herren on his upcoming fall tour.

Instead, ex-Secret Machine Benjamin Curtis' School of Seven Bells will fill the role of "Prefuse 73 openers with the number seven in their name."

Just for clarity's sake:

Voice of the Seven Woods: not opening for Prefuse 73.

School of Seven Bells: opening for Prefuse 73.

"Class of 73 Bells": a Prefuse 73 track featuring School of Seven Bells.

Prefuse 73: Prefuse 73.

The School have a couple shows of their own before the tour begins. Their next date is in Brooklyn at CMJ tomorrow night (October 19). [MORE...]

Mike Patton to Voice Bionic Commando in Video Game
Get the heck out of here, you nerd!

Bionic Commando is a digitized game of war from the late 1980s. It is very good. Like many quality things in a world ever-devoid of new ideas, some nice folks are remaking the game for your modern leisure consoles. We imagine it will be not unlike the Halo franchise in virtually every way.

Well, every which way but this: according to kotaku.com, vocal acrobat/mental cosmonaut Mike Patton will provide the voice of Nathan "Bionic Commando" Spencer. The game's still in the planning stages, but knowing Mike, it'll be done in a week, with Rahzel and Kid Koala in prominent guest roles.

This isn't Mike's first foray into the pixilated world, of course: he provided the pipes for an all-knowing force in this year's The Darkness. And, though pointing out strange places Mike Patton has popped up is as mindlessly easy as writing the end of a phrase like this one, we'd be remiss if we didn't mention this thing again. I bet that lady's gonna buy two copies of BC: one for her, and one for her mama.

Will you help Mike Patton and the rest of the Federation battle the Badds and free Super Joe?

BONUS: Check this out. Dude is everywhere! 

Shugo Tokumaru to Make a Quick Exit

October 19, p-vine records will release Tokyo popster Shugo Tokumaru's Exit in his native Japan. No word on a worldwide release of Exit, but it's hoped that the album will come to the States sometime soon. I mean, look at that cover!

Hey, speaking of covers, feel free to reacquaint yourself with Tokumaru's reverent, recently Forkcasted take on "Young Folks" while you sit on your hands and wait for "sometime soon" to magically transform into "now."

In the meantime, you can pore over the tracklist and play pretend, or make it out to one of Tokumaru's forthcoming gigs. Thanks to reader Park Baker for the tip, and congrats for having a really awesome name. You too, Shugo! [MORE...]

Clientele, Martsch, Germano on Bigtop Soundtrack

Who doesn't love the circus? Dancing bears, trapeze derring-do, creepy circus people-- it doesn't get much better than that. And, in the grand tradition of, perhaps, Fellini's La Strada and Bergman's The Naked Night, Devon Reed's The Bigtop centers on life in the circus.

In Reed's film, a man played by the director "runs away with the circus, only to become consumed by his desire for power and the love of a woman." But wait! That's not all! Drumroll please, for the soundtrack to Reed's film is a feat unto itself.

Songs From the Bigtop, available now on iTunes and due in stores October 23 (self-released-style), collects 13 Reed-penned tunes performed by a number of names you may recognize. Among them: the Clientele, Built to Spill's Doug Martsch, Lisa Germano, Howe Gelb, Damien Jurado, Tullycraft, Eleventh Dream Day, and even Matthew Sweet.

Meanwhile, no clownin': the film for which this soundtrack came together is set to premiere in early 2008. [MORE...]

M.I.A. Stretches Out Tour

Photo by Kirstie Shanley

The comments section of M.I.A.'s MySpace page sports well-wishers and rabid fans alike pleading with the Sri Lankan sensation for a visit to far-flung spots like Finland, Brazil, and Missouri. But it's back to the UK for M.I.A., who'll follow the wrap of her North American tour in early December with a trek across the pond and a couple weeks worth of shows. Sorry, Branson; looks like it's gonna have to be next time.

In other M.I.A. news, she (and Switch, and some kids, and some others) just wrapped that Heaps Decent track, for which you should keep an eye perpetually peeled. [MORE...]

Company Flow to Reunite?

CMJ: it's happening. And, given the chaotic, scattered nature of the proceedings, it'd be easy for something big to get lost in the fray. (One shudders at the thought of something, somewhere going unblogged). But when we caught wind of this, well, we knew it'd be worth salvaging from the white noise.

Company Flow, the now-iconic hip-hop trio featuring El-P, Mr. Len, and Bigg Jus-- more or less dormant since the turn of the century-- will hope to reunite for Def Jux's big (and previously reported) showcase at Brooklyn's Music Hall of Williamsburg this Friday (October 19).

***UPDATE: While a Def Jux rep initially confirmed the reunion, the group's publicist has informed us that it is NOT YET CONFIRMED. The official word from El-P: "I don't want to make any official announcement on anything as nothing is confirmed yet, but if all goes right the fans will be getting more than is advertised on the bill. If all goes right we will be rocking songs we haven't done in years. It [may] mean all of us, it may mean two of us...and possibly it may not happen at all. I will know more later this week."

Provided it happens, this is big for reasons both musical-- OMG Funcrusher Plus (which turned 10 this year, by the way)-- and personal, as El-P and Bigg Jus will reportedly have to mend a bridge or two to pull this one off. There's even been some talk of reissuing some Co Flow material, though that, at the moment, is just talk.

Even without this news, that showcase is one to check out, with Junk Science, Hangar 18, the Mighty Quinn, Mr. Dibbs, Yak Ballz, Despot, Activator, Cool Calm Pete and other special guests all slated to appear. El-P, as you should know by now, also dropped the Recommended I'll Sleep When You're Dead LP this year.

Mobb Deep's Prodigy Given 3 1/2 Year Sentence

Albert Johnson, aka Prodigy of The Infamous Queens rap duo Mobb Deep, pleaded guilty to a 2006 charge of possession of a loaded gun on Tuesday, October 9, and will soon serve a three-and-a-half-year sentence, according to a New York Daily News report.

The 32-year-old rapper was arrested in October of last year after police stopped him for making an illegal U-turn on Ninth Avenue in New York City's Chelsea neighborhood, according to the report. The officers found an unlicensed .22-caliber pistol in a compartment between the driver's seat and front passenger seat of his Chevy Suburban. Sitting in that passenger seat was the Alchemist, the producer who helmed the boards on Prodigy's Return of the Mac, which Pitchfork tagged as Best New Music earlier this year.

Though he initially claimed to have no knowledge of the weapon, Johnson eventually fessed up and struck the three-and-a-half-year deal with prosecutors in the Manhattan Supreme Court case. Since Johnson is a convicted felon and this was his third weapons charge, he would normally face a sentence of 15 years.

Of Montreal Expand Tour, Launch Blog

Unplugged EP: out now. Rarities comp: not 'til next week. Fall U.S. tour: first leg just wrapped. Big foreign festival: just some plans for the weekend. Back to the States to kick off another few weeks of shows: slated for Halloween.

Of Montreal have so gosh darned much on their plates this October and November, you'll excuse them if they can't make it to Europe for a proper tour until the throes of shopping season kick in, won't you?

To cap off a tremendously successful 2007, the band has generously squeezed in a week-and-a-half of dates from London to Istanbul. After which they'll smile, shake hands all around, and collectively collapse. And deservedly so!

Someone will go over and wake 'em up before May, we hope, since Of Montreal are one of the bands chosen by us for that there Pitchfork vs. ATP thing. A tip: you could save yourself a lotta money on airfare if you'd only start swimming now.

And, like everyone and their adopted third cousin twice-removed, Of Montreal have taken to blogging. [MORE...]

Dinosaur Jr. Ready Fall Tour Plans

We've run so many "Dinosaur Jr. Resurrected!" stories at this point that the metaphorical tar pit of "no longer extinct" and "formerly fossilized"-style quips we use to set these things up has dried out.

It's for the best for everyone, really: Dinosaur Jr. are back, and it appears that pleases them just as much as it pleases us. So, to cap off what's been a startlingly successful year for the fuzzy veteran freaks, they've planned a month of U.S. dates in November and December.

In other news from the Dinosaur fold, "Yer Son" pops up on that Free Yr Radio comp (to say nothing of what yer mom pops up on, LOLz), and Lou's gotta relearn Bubble and Scrape before Sebadoh rip it a new one all the way in May. [MORE...]

Ghost Release Spooky Live Overture CD/DVD

A crowd of people gathers in a converted boat warehouse located on Japan's Yokohama Bay. Once inside, the doors are closed and locked behind them, and they are told that no one will enter or exit until a concert is performed in total darkness.

It sounds like the premise of a horror flick in the Saw/The Descent vein, but it's actually the way a Ghost concert on October 9, 2006 began. The band played an entirely improvised, 90-minute set at the Nippon Yusen Soko venue that night, and they will release a CD/DVD document of the event via Drag City on October 23.

Overture: Live in Nippon Yusen Soko 2006 is Ghost's first entirely improvised release. The DVD portion of the package features the whole concert, divided into three chapters for convenience, while the CD version of the show was edited down to a single, 56-minute track.

To celebrate the new release, Drag City will host a "Ghost Night" at Rodan in Chicago tomorrow evening (October 18), featuring DJs and a screening of the DVD.

In the tour department, Ghost's Michio Kurihara is currently on tour with Boris and Damon & Naomi. The tour's next stop is tomorrow night in San Antonio. [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.)