Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks Kick Off Tour

Photo by Nilina Mason-Campbell

Stephen Malkmus and his jammin' Jicks are all set to take out their Trash. The band kicks off the U.S. leg of its tour tonight (March 19) in Minneapolis. (That MySpace secret show in Portland a couple weeks ago doesn't count.) The first half of the North American tour features support from John Vanderslice, with the Joggers picking up the slack on the back end.

In May and June, the band heads to Europe. And smack dab in the middle of all of it, Matador will release the "Cold Son" 10" single in independent record stores on April 19, aka Record Store Day.

Normally, we'd be ecstatic that Malkatraz & co. are hitting the road again, but the timing of this tour raises some serious issues for a committed fantasy baseball owner^* such as SM. For instance, how will he update his lineup? Will the distractions of travel keep him from properly attending to the waiver wire? Will the fact that the band is playing Milwaukee before the Brewers' season starts throw him into a deep depression that causes him to stop making music forever? Inquiring minds want to know.

* Don't miss Matador owner/founder Gerard Cosloy's hilariously technical clarifying statements in the comments. [MORE...]

Photos: Speak Up! Benefit Concert [Brooklyn, NY; 03/18/08]

Photos by Kathryn Yu; Above: Lou Reed with Moby and Laurie Anderson

The stars turned out in spades for Speak Up!: A Benefit Concert for Peace in Iraq & Justice at Home, held last night at St. Ann's Warehouse in Brooklyn, as previously reported.

An opening number that brought together Lou Reed, Antony, Moby, and Laurie Anderson set the collaborative tone for the evening, which would also feature David Byrne rocking with Norah Jones, Damien Rice, and members of Scissor Sisters, plus a culminating, bill-spanning jam on Reed's "Voices of Freedom".

Blonde Redhead, Antony, Jones, Anderson, Rice (completely unplugged), and Scissor Sisters all performed individually as well, and quite a few non-musicians put in appearances too. Among them: American Civil Liberties Union executive director Anthony Romero and New York Civil Liberties Union rep Donna Lieberman, journalists Naomi Klein and Laura Flanders, Iraq Veterans Against the War spokesperson Jose Vasquez, dancer/choreographer Bill T. Jones, and Richard Belzer of "Homicide" and "Law & Order" fame, who threatened to kill a dog if the audience didn't take political action. He was joking, of course, and probably just looking for an excuse to carry a ridiculously cute little dog around with him. Aren't we all?

DAVID BYRNE with SCISSOR SISTERS members, NORAH JONES, and DAMIEN RICE


LOU REED and MOBY


LOU REED with ANTONY, MOBY, and LAURIE ANDERSON


ANTONY


BLONDE REDHEAD


RICHARD BELZER, LOU REED, and DOG

[MORE...]

Mates of State Announce New Album

Mates of State will get another album's worth of mileage out of the age-old tension between boys and girls with the Barsuk release of Re-Arrange Us. The follow-up to 2006's Bring It Back is Kori Gardner and Jason Hammel's fifth full-length, and it comes out on May 20 with "reversible and multi-layered" cover art that re-arranges (get it?) into a total of eight different combinations.

The Mates will announce a full-blown tour soon, but for now, we've got three shows to look forward to: two in May, and one in August. [MORE...]

Joy Division Classics Bundled on Best Of
Control biopic, Joy Division doc due on DVD in June

Hey, here's an idea for a Joy Division greatest hits collection. Two discs: first disc Unknown Pleasures front-to-back plus "Transmission", second disc Closer front-to-back plus "Love Will Tear Us Apart", "Atmosphere", and maybe "Dead Souls". Ba-da-bing!

Okay fine, so a two-disc best-of for a band with only two proper discs to its name might be a little unnecessary. Thus Rhino has compiled the best of the best on The Best of Joy Division, a 14-track, single-disc affair glooming up a North American dorm room near you on April 29.

"Love", "Atmosphere", and classic album tracks "She's Lost Control", "Shadowplay", and "New Dawn Fades" all make the cut, but dudes, where the eff is "Decades"?! Eh, we do get a John Peel session version of "Twenty Four Hours" as consolation.

UK residents, meanwhile, can look forward to a two-disc Best of after all. That one lands March 24 via Rhino, and the second disc collects a whole heap of John Peel session jams, a couple live numbers, and an interview with the band's Ian Curtis and Stephen Morris. Folks can scoop up the first disc (but not the second) digitally if they so choose.

Joy Division will soon be blowing up a digital video disc apparatus near you as well, as DVDs for Ian Curtis biopic Control and the documentary feature Joy Division arrive via The Miriam Collection/The Weinstein Company this spring. Look for the former June 3 and the latter June 17. [MORE...]

Les Savy Fav Drop First Live Album

Front page photo by Ryan Muir

Nothing will ever replace the gloriously perverse spectacle of a watching a live Les Savy Fav gig unfold in front of you, with frontman Tim Harrington threatening to show you parts of him you'd rather not see and/or spit chewed-up gumballs into your mouth just cuz, to say nothing of the free haircuts. But After the Balls Drop, the first-ever full-length document of the Les Savy Fav live experience, oughta remind you of that other thing LSF does on stage: kick some serious rock'n'roll ass.

On April 29, French Kiss will release the digital-only live disc, recorded at a 3:00 AM performance at New York's Bowery Ballroom on January 1, 2008. So, not only is it gonna be your standard LSF crazy, it's gonna be that kind of sleep-deprived, hallucinatory/drunken crazy. In other words, uh, Live at Leeds, watch your shit.

For After the Balls Drop, the guys jam out ten stone-cold LSF classics (including several from last year's excellent "comeback" album Let's Stay Friends) and one surely hilarious "Tim Speech". And once the hour went from awfully late to just stupidly late, they switched into cover band mode, tackling the Pixies, Nirvana, Love, the Misfits, and-- man oh man-- Creedence Clearwater Revival.

Les Savy Fav will be doing their thing live and in person a handful of times next month, from a few club dates with labelmates the Dodos and the Big Sleep to the big stage at Coachella. Check 'em out, then cop that play-at-home version.

They'll head across the water for a few festivals later in the late spring and early summer, including the ATP vs. Pitchfork Festival in Rye, England. [MORE...]

The Roots Reveal New Album Details

Front page photo by Natalie Kardos

The upcoming presidential election has everyone feeling political, and the Roots are no different. In a press release, group backbone/mouthpiece ?uestlove calls Rising Down, the Roots' forthcoming 10th (!) album, "probably our most political album to date, dealing with addiction, nihilism, hypocritical double standards in the prison system, and overall life in Philadelphia." But don't worry, rap fans, ?uest also says the record is "not a 'downer,' as most people expect us to do."

Nonetheless, the Game Theory follow-up's title comes from a William T. Vollmann treatise on violence, and its release date-- April 29 (via Def Jam)-- is also the 16th anniversary of the riots that consumed Los Angeles after the police officers accused of beating Rodney King were acquitted. That is to say, "downer" or not, Rising Down offers plenty of chances to get worked up.

As for the music, Rising Down features guest appearances from Common, Mos Def, Talib Kweli, Peedi Crakk, DJ Jazzy Jeff, Saigon, Styles P, Wale, and someone unfortunately named P.O.R.N. Perhaps most notable though is Fall Out Boy singer Patrick Stump's appearance on first single "Birthday Girl".

The Roots have North American tour dates to keep them busy until the album comes out. [MORE...]

Members of Tunng + Memory Band = The Accidental
Hot Chip's Goddard remixes band on forthcoming single

Extend a warm welcome to a newly christened group of out-there musicians, the Accidental. Comprised of members of Tunng, the Memory Band, and the Bicycle Thieves, along with solo songwriter Liam Bailey, the British collective will share its debut full-length offering, There Were Wolves, this spring. North Americans can look for it June 3 on Thrill Jockey, while folks across the Atlantic get the record on April 14 via Full Time Hobby.

Full Time Hobby will first release a UK single for album cut "Wolves" on March 31. The 7" comes backed with a remix of There Were Wolves opener "Knock Knock" by Hot Chip's Joe Goddard.

Before Wolves arrives anywhere, the Accidental have a handful of UK shows to occupy them, including a London gig tonight (March 18). Tunng have some touring plans too. [MORE...]

Feist, Constantines Do "Islands in the Stream"
Makin' songs with each other, uh-huh

You knew Feist and Constantines were, like, serious musical forces to be reckoned with, sure. But did you know that when their forces combine, they transform from fine, dedicated Canadian music-makers into the biggest cheeseballs on the planet?

It's true! Really! And here's your proof: On a new limited-edition 7", the somewhat steely Constantines and the lighthearted but not exactly musically goofy Leslie Feist will perform a collaborative cover of the Bee Gees' "Islands in the Stream", as made famous in duet form by Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers.

Though we are having a really hard time picturing Constantines lead singer Bryan Webb hamming it up Kenny style, Leslie Feist actually seems like a perfect Dolly (she loves the glitzy outfits, after all). However they pulled it off, we simply cannot wait until Arts & Crafts throws this thing out there on April 1.

The single will be backed by "Trans Canada", a tune from the Cons' Kensington Heights LP, which Arts & Crafts will issue April 15 in Canada and April 29 in the States. (You know, if you guys had really gone for it, you could've covered Gene Pitney's "Trans Canada Highway" while you were at it.)

Both Feist and the Cons have a few tour dates starting next month, though as of right now, the likelihood of an onstage take on "Islands" from these two is but a nice faraway dream. [MORE...]

Imaad Wasif Issues Strange Hexes With Two Part Beast

Imaad Wasif is one of these dudes who's just about as well known for the company he keeps as the records he makes on his own. A onetime member of both alaska! and Lou Barlow's (New) Folk Implosion, Wassif also lent his raggedy axework to Yeah Yeah Yeahs as their touring guitarist on the Show Your Bones jaunt.

But forget all them other folks for a minute and let Imaad-- and his new band, Two Part Beast-- beguile you with Strange Hexes, which Wasif self-released today. Get yourself a copy via Imaad's website or your usual sources, or on his upcoming West Coast tour, which kicks off later this month. More U.S. dates can be expected in the summer. The moral here is clear: Imaad Wasif, down to jam. [MORE...]

Friends Host Benefit for Injured Producer Scotty Hard

Photo by M.E. Smith

As early 1990s hip-hop goes, you name it, and Scotty Hard probably had a hand in it. Wu-Tang Clan, De La Soul, Black Sheep, Ultramagnetic MCs, P.M. Dawn, Jungle Brothers, Gravediggaz, and even Chris Rock have all received Hard's mixing/engineering touch, and the studio whiz also produced jazz records by the likes of Medeski Martin & Wood, Sex Mob, and others.

The knob-smith, born Scott Harding, has fallen on difficult times after a February 15 car accident left him in serious condition with multiple injuries, including a crushed spinal cord. Harding underwent surgery earlier this month and is in good spirits, but he is partially paralyzed and the road to recovery will be a long and uncertain one. And as Harding has no health insurance, the road to financial recovery may be even longer.

To help Harding's cause, a number of music-making friends have come together for a benefit concert tomorrow night, March 19, at the Highline Ballroom in New York City. The bill for "The Scotty Hard Concert" includes jazz guitar legend John Scofield, Antibalas, Bill Laswell, MMW's John Medeski and Billy Martin, Marco Benevento and Joe Russo of Benevento/Russo Duo, Eric Krasno, Neal Evans, Sex Mob, DJ Logic, John Ellis, Michael Black, Vijay Iyer, Tommy Hamilton, and Kevin Kendrick.

All proceeds from the event will go to the Scotty Hard Trust, established to help Harding through his ordeal. For information on how you can contribute directly, please consult the Trust's website.

Tokyo Police Club Cancel Shows, Add UK Dates

A death in the family has forced cherub-faced Canucks Tokyo Police Club to cancel a pair of dates this week, with their Indianapolis gig tomorrow night (March 19) and Lawrence, Kansas the next night (March 20) now off the docket. Tonight's performance in London, Ontario is still on, as are all the rest of the dates. In a MySpace blog post, the band promised to "work on making the shows up as soon as we can." Hope all is well, guys.

The bad news out of the way, let me remind ya'll once again of the good news: Elephant Shell, TPC's forthcoming debut LP, sees release in North America from Saddle Creek April 22 and Memphis Industries in Europe May 5. According to their website, they'll release a remix EP right along with the record.

A May-June UK tour has also been tacked on to the band's itinerary. [MORE...]

Gnarls Barkley Push up LP Release Date to...Right Now

So often these days, record release dates get pushed back and pushed back, whether it's to create more buzz, more marketing opportunities, or more chances for them to suck less. But Downtown/Atlantic artists Gnarls Barkley-- totally non-sucky, and buckers of trends both musical and, now, logistical-- are throwing caution to the wind and sticking their sophomore set, The Odd Couple, in digital (and some physical) stores today, March 18, and all brick-and-mortar ones next Tuesday, March 25. The album's original release date was April 8.

So why the, uh, opposite of holdup? "They felt the timing was right to just go for it," a press release claims. "With the shifting seasons, furtive romantic entanglements and fierce college basketball rivalries, the latter half of March can be confusing. People need to be soothed and inspired now."

Right, right, brackets. It couldn't possibly have anything to do with the fact that The Odd Couple has been flitting about the internet for the last couple weeks for the low low price of zero, would it? Eh, whatever: at least these labels are making some kinda effort. Buy music! It's worth it!

Gnarls' move follows similarly old-model-busting actions of late by Radiohead, Nine Inch Nails and the Raconteurs among others, and we're curious to see which ones end up looking the best with a little hindsight.

In other Gnarls news, their video for "Run" is a powerful weapon against the denizens of the United Kingdom, and Danger Mouse will work with yet another funky dude-- one Beck Hansen-- on the midnite vulture's next LP. Oh, and Gnarls proper will hit the stage at the Hollywood Bowl July 27 to show off their "Mork and Mindy" costumes and probably play some music.

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.)