Elf Power Tour America This Spring

As Elephant 6-ers Elf Power prepare to unveil ninth studio album In a Cave outside their cave, they've announced a run of U.S. dates in celebration. In a Cave comes out March 25 via Rykodisc, and almost all of their tour dates follow it in April. However, they are playing a few shows in Austin this week, as well as in the vicinity before and after. Surprise, surprise.

For the eagerest of Elf Power fans, the band has also announced a partnership with Insound where anyone who pre-orders In a Cave on CD or vinyl through the retailer will receive a free digital copy of the record right now. Instant gratification! [MORE...]

Shining Touring America for the First Time
Like Clipse, they ride around Shining

For the first time EVAH, Norwegian jazz/metal mix-and-matchers Shining are in the States and doing their thing live and in person! Right this instant (well, starting in several hours)!

Sure, they're only playing a handful of times, but there's plenty of chances for you to get your Shining on, as the band will follow gigs in New York and Chicago with a trip on down to Austin for a few appearances at that South by Southwest thinger we keep typing so much about. They'll close things out in L.A. Sunday night. This tour is being presented by the folks at Norway's Oya Festival, as well as OhMyRockness.com.

After their brief time on our shores, it's back to Europe, where Shining have about a gig a month for the next three months, but not a whole lot else in terms of plans. (You could always come back here if you're bored, guys.) This is all in support of their latest album, Grindstone, which came out a year ago on Rune Grammofon.

In other Shining news, a few from their fold emerged on Hanne Hukkelberg's Rykestrasse 68, which was recently issued in North America on Nettwerk. [MORE...]

T.V. Eye: March 10-16, 2008

Live music on TV this week:

Monday, March 10:

NBC: Late Night With Conan O'Brien: Jaymay

Tuesday, March 11:

NBC: Late Night With Conan O'Brien: Drive-by Truckers

Wednesday, March 12:

CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: British Sea Power

Friday, March 14:

FUEL TV: The Daily Habit: British Sea Power
OVATION: From the Basement: Sonic Youth, José González, Laura Marling

Pitchfork Music Festival 2008!
Public Enemy performing It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back ! Animal Collective! Spiritualized! Vampire Weekend! M. Ward! Boris!

Gather 'round, lovers of live music, summertime, the great outdoors, the Windy City, and certain festive occasions where all these things come together. The time has come to announce that annual rite of indie passage, the Pitchfork Music Festival!

The 2008 edition of our yearly sonic bonanza returns to Chicago's Union Park on Friday, July 18, Saturday, July 19, and Sunday, July 20. We'll spare you our usual bombast and bad puns and take you straight to the initial lineup:

Friday, July 18:
Pitchfork Music Festival and All Tomorrow's Parties present Don't Look Back

Public Enemy performing It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back
+ more, to be announced

Saturday, July 19:

Animal Collective
!!!
Vampire Weekend
Dizzee Rascal
No Age
Atlas Sound
Fleet Foxes
+ many more!

Sunday, July 20:

Spiritualized
M. Ward
Boris
Extra Golden
El Guincho
+ many more!

Of course, that's just the beginning, so look for further lineup announcements in these pages in the near future.

And you read that correctly: Pitchfork is once again partnering with All Tomorrow's Parties to bring the Don't Look Back series-- in which artists play their classic albums in full-- to the Pitchfork Music Festival. The opening night of the fest will feature Public Enemy parading through hip-hop hallmark It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back.

Tickets for the 2008 Pitchfork Music Festival go on sale this Wednesday, March 12 at 12 p.m. CDT, and as always, they're quite inexpensive. Three-day passes will run you $65, two-day passes for Saturday and Sunday can be yours for $50, and individual day passes cost $30. So you can use all that extra money you're saving to buy something nice for Mom. I mean, why not?

Photos: Xiu Xiu / Thao With the Get Down Stay Down [Portland, OR; 03/07/08]

Photos by Nilina Mason-Campbell

Pandapple's #1 fans Xiu Xiu kicked off their latest continent-spanning quest at Portland's Someday Lounge over the weekend, treating Xiu-philes to a newish four-member lineup and selections off sixth full-length Women as Lovers.

Thao and her trusty if clumsily-named Get Down Stay Down opened, sharing the wisdom of We Brave Bee Stings and All with those in attendance. Xiu Xiu and Thao's tour travels together continue through mid-April, with the former shipping off to Europe come May.

XIU XIU






THAO WITH THE GET DOWN STAY DOWN



[MORE...]

Photos: Sally Shapiro and Johan Agebjorn [New York, NY; 03/07/08]

Photos by William Joines

Sally Shapiro and Johan Agebjörn (wo)manned the decks at New York City's Mercury Lounge this past Friday as part of their first-ever tour of this continent (and Sally's first live appearances ever). Alas, this wound up being the final tour stop after logistical tie-ups kept the elusive disco chanteuse and her producer from visiting Chicago over the weekend.

But as a going away party of sorts for one who's just arrived, this DJ set offered pretty much everything Sally could have hoped for: a gathering of enthusiastic, supportive fans, a bit of dancing, and even a bouquet of flowers from one thoughtful showgoer. The notoriously shy singer, meanwhile, repaid her devotees with the sort of smiles you can't fake. Here's hoping she returns to these shores in due time.

Look for Remix Romance Vol. 1 on April 15, and check out more photos below.

SALLY SHAPIRO AND JOHAN AGEBJÖRN







[MORE...]

British Sea Power Help Save the Polar Bears

"Following the release of their Do You Like Rock Music? album," the press release begins innocently enough, "British Sea Power now turn their gaze to the plight of the polar bear and a race to the North Pole."

Uh, right, naturally! Yes, British Sea Power are no longer quite so concerned about your preferred genre; they just wanna know if you can do you part to help save the polar bears. So they have designed a special t-shirt and sew-on badge, with proceeds going to exactly that cause. More specifically, the proceeds will go to Gareth Ellis, who will join a team of two other researchers/crazy people in the Polar Challenge in April and May. And what's the Polar Challenge? Why, it's a 350-mile race across the Magnetic North Pole.

Let me be the first to say: "BRRRRRRRRRR".

While trudging across the North Pole, Ellis and crew will be doing research into the plight of the polar bear for the Polar Bears International organization. It seems some mysterious unnamed force (...ahem) is melting the ice upon which the polar bears once cutely frolicked and, as is my understanding, once drank Coca-Cola products. Ellis and company are looking to collect data in the rarely-trodded-upon high Arctic, necessitating this long and arduous duty.

Ellis' fondness of the Ursus Maritimus is apparently rivaled only by his love for British Sea Power. And BSP were more than happy to lend a hand to Ellis, provided there was no risk of frostbite to said hand. In addition to turning over proceeds from the shirt and badge to Ellis' team, they'll also provide them with their very own brand of Kendal mint cake and a brand of hair pomade that can be eaten, if one finds him or herself under duress. Extreme duress.

BSP's dedication to bears runs deep: They travel around with a ten-foot bear named Ursine Ultra from time to time, and you'll recognize that bear silhouette up there from the cover of their 2005 LP Open Season. As singer/guitarist Yan inquires in a press release, "Who wouldn't want the big old bears to stick around?" Well put. He's also supporting the cause by hand-drawing 30 "polar themed" illustrations, which will be given to the first 30 people who order shirts.

When they're not out ensuring the success of the Zoobooks series for many years to come, British Sea Power are on the road. They'll do "Letterman" on Wednesday, hit South by Southwest throughout the long weekend, and keep on keepin' on with their huge North American tour from there. A new single for Do You Like Rock Music? track "No Lucifer" is out today (March 10) on Rough Trade in the UK either via download or on a limited edition of 1,000 10"s. [MORE...]

Drummer Lorin Coleman Leaves the Thermals
Band working on new album

Lorin Coleman (pictured above in red), drummer of Portland punk-pop pummelers the Thermals for the last two years, has left the band in a "totally amicable" split. In a kindly MySpace blog post titled "Thank You Lorin!", Thermals frontguy Hutch Harris gives many a prop to the departing Coleman, calling him a "fantastic drummer and a good friend." It seems that as a Thermal, Coleman had been neglecting his duties in the band Andy Combs and the Moth, to which he'll now return on a more consistent basis.

In the same post, Hutch explains that he and Kathy Foster are "just about" finished with their follow up to 2006's top-notch The Body, The Blood, The Machine, and "almost done" working up demos for the disc. The pair expect to split drum duties on the record, with the possibility of making that the regular recording setup from now 'til the future.

You might gather from this that finding a replacement for Coleman isn't a high priority, and you'd be right. Hutch says they're not exactly looking for a new drummer just yet, though "if you live in Portland and are just fucking amazing on the drums, feel free to drop us a line."

Free Kitten Return!
Supergroup features Kim Gordon, Yoshimi, Julie Cafritz

It's been quite a while since we've thought about Free Kitten, the only-badasses-need-apply supergroup featuring Sonic Youth's Kim Gordon, Pussy Galore's Julie Cafritz, Yoshimi P-We of Boredoms, and, at one point, Pavement bassist Mark Ibold. It's been more than a decade since their last record, Sentimental Education, and since then, all parties involved have made some pretty kickass music outside of the realm of feline gratis.

But we'll do a whole lot more thinking about Free Kitten between now and May 20, when Ecstatic Peace issues Inherit, the group's third proper LP. Though they're minus an Ibold this time out (he must be busy with that Pavement reunion PSYCH), the disc sports a little guest axe-work from Mr. J Mascis. Fair trade?

By the by, that photo up there ain't just two ladies dressed up like guitar-slingin' wizards. It's two ladies (Gordon and Cafritz) dressed up like guitar-slingin' wizards at the video shoot for the exceptionally titled "Free Kitten on the Mountain", which you'll want to keep an eye peeled for.

And, if you're in New York City between now and April 9, you'll want to stop into the K.S. Art gallery, where an exhibition of Kim Gordon's abstract watercolors is gracing the walls. The show will also include a sound work created by Gordon in collaboration with that Thurston guy she hangs out with from time to time. [MORE...]

Bjork's Tibet Boost Angers Chinese Authorities
Serbia's EXIT Festival extends "open invitation" to singer

Photo by Kathryn Yu

You have to hand it to Björk. At the moment, it feels like she's got the whole world in a tizzy, and all for uttering two words.

The first, of course, was "Kosovo!", shouted during a late February concert in Tokyo in the context of incendiary Volta tune "Declare Independence". That particular utterance led to the cancellation of a proposed appearance at the 2008 EXIT Festival in Novi Sad, Serbia, as confirmed last week.

The second, as previously mentioned, was "Tibet!", which the Icelandic iconoclast shouted during a March 2 performance of "Declare Independence" in Shanghai, China. Not surprisingly, China, which has exercised a controversial rule over Tibet for 58 years, took offense to Björk's remarks.

According to an Associated Press report, the Chinese Ministry of Culture released a statement late last week claiming Björk's Tibet shout-out "broke Chinese law and hurt Chinese people's feelings." The report suggests China-- where even a Dirty Three show can result in a riot-- intends to "be stricter on foreign performers" following the Björk incident.

Björk already commented on the matter in a statement she released last week. Here are those words again:

"I have been asked by many for a statement after dedicating my song 'Declare Independence' to both Kosovo and Tibet on different occasions. I would like to put importance on that I am not a politician, I am first and last a musician and as such I feel my duty to try to express the whole range of human emotions. The urge for declaring independence is just one of them but an important one we all feel at some times in our lives. This song was written more with the personal in mind but the fact that it has translated to its broadest meaning, the struggle of a suppressed nation, gives me much pleasure. I would like to wish all individuals and nations good luck in their battle for independence. Justice!"

Meanwhile, EXIT Festival's Bojan Boskovic released a statement to NME.com this past Friday in response to the controversy surrounding Björk's nixed EXIT appearance. Björk's management recently shared an email from Boskovic in which the EXIT Festival co-founder threatened to cancel Björk's performance if the Kosovo matter was not swept under the rug. NME reports that Boskovic claimed the email in question "was not an official EXIT statement," but was instead sent to show "my great concern about what is going on."

Boskovic continued, "Two weeks later I have a different opinion about it. We do want to see [Björk] at EXIT. We're trying to see with management now if this is the best time to have her. There is an open invitation as far as EXIT is concerned."

While you ponder all that, have another look at these Björk tour dates. [MORE...]

Four Tet Goes Techno on New Mini-Album

Four new tunes from the dude who calls himself Four Tet? Sign me up, Domino.

Yep, Kieran "Four Tet" Hebden will issue Ringer, a 32-minute, four song mini-LP due April 21 in the UK and May 6 in the U.S. on CD, digital download, and a pair of 12"s. The set is described as "techno with an Afrobeat/Krautrock sensibility." Timely!

As is often the case, Mr. Hebden's been keeping that datebook busy lately, as he recently joined jazz drummer (and frequent collaborator) Steve Reid on Daxaar, joined with Hot Chip's Alexis Taylor to produce the Letter G, remixed Thom Yorke's solo stuff, and is hooking up with upstarts Foals on a singles series. A Born Ruffians remix is also in the works.

He's got a few gigs lined up over the next few months, including a set at the Explosions in the Sky-curated ATP in May. [MORE...]

Lou Reed Blogs About Boxing, Tours the World
" 3rd row in - first round and a lot of dancing going on - no real damage! Sitting here beside Vince McMahon and WWE stars"

We knew Lou Reed was into Tai Chi, but didja know Lou is a big fan of boxing, too? Us either! Apparently, that cool cat snapping pictures and furiously poking at his Blackberry ringside at last month's Sultan Ibragimov/Wladimir Klitschko fight at Madison Square Garden didn't just look like Lou: it was Lou!

Turns out our hero was live-blogging the fight for MSG's Game On! Here's a little sample: "Klitschko needs to throw punches, giving Sultant [sic] too many chances and he's 1 foot shorter." He's also probably the first person in history to have hung out with John Zorn and Vince McMahon in the same night.

Good thing he's got that day job to fall back on.

Speaking of which, Lou's got a mess of stuff on the docket over the next several months, with a two-fer down there at South by Southwest and an intercontinental tour in the spring and summer. Let's discuss.

As you may have heard, there's a big to-do in Austin next week. Lou, as promised, will handle this year's SXSW keynote address March 13 at the Austin Convention Center, because, well, he's Lou Reed, and that just makes good sense.

The previous afternoon, March 12, the Paramount Theatre will host a screening of Julian Schnabel's documentary Lou Reed's Berlin, filmed at a series of December 2006 shows at Brooklyn's St. Ann's Warehouse. The flick explores Reed's live exploration of his 1973 solo LP Berlin, with special guests Antony, Sharon Jones, and others.

Not heading to Austin? Perhaps you'll find Lou heading your way this spring and summer as he embarks on a brief U.S. tour to be followed by a lengthier, Berlin-centric European jaunt in the summer. The European tour will include a 30-piece band, a children's choir, and a set designed by Julian Schnabel. More dates on either side of the pond are promised on Lou's very confusing website, so look out for that, Aspirin in hand. He'll also perform at the previously reported SPEAK UP!: A Benefit Concert for Peace in Iraq & Justice at Home, which takes place March 18 at St. Ann's Warehouse in Brooklyn, the same spot where those original Berlin shows took place.

Also, Lou Reed will induct Leonard Cohen into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame today. Then they will compete to see who can be sadder. [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.)