Be Your Own Pet Announce North American Tour

They've already been to every place everywhere in the world, but Be Your Own Pet are doing it all over again. Their tour is currently ripping through the UK and Europe, and now it's scheduled to head to North America in May and June.

The NYLON Magazine sponsored tour also features L.A. fashion rockers She Wants Revenge. We have no idea what the two bands could learn from each other on the sizable tour, but hey, maybe seeing the fun BYOP have on stage will be a sort of "road to Damascus" moment for She Wants Revenge.

Either way, you really shouldn't miss a chance to see the most punk rock band in all the land, so watch them tear through a set sure to include some of the unreleasably violent songs from their new Get Awkward at the dates after the jump. [MORE...]

Photos: Boredoms [Chicago, IL; 03/26/08]

Boredoms gig posters ought to read like circus announcements:

MARVEL! as four intrepid noise-makers from across the Pacific conjure up a rapturous, clangorous, 360-degree shitstorm, at once piercingly primitive and gleefully forward-looking!

STAND IN AWE! as Eye wields pitch-bending, glowing globules like a human theremin!

WITNESS! the living spider-woman Yoshimi, whose dextrous appendages handle drums, hi-hats, bass pedals, and progged-out synth all at once! Barefoot, even!

BEHOLD! the ridiculous seven-neck guitar tower that Eye plays like a freaking gong!

CHUCKLE! at the poor guy who has to stand behind the thing the whole while and constantly retune it!

So it was at Chicago's Congress Theater last night as Boredoms touched down in the home of their new label Thrill Jockey, with Soft Circle and labelmates Human Bell in tow, for a rare performance "in the round". By the end of this 90-odd minute set, both band and audience looked positively exhausted. And who could blame them? Cosmic catharsis is taxing, after all.

And speaking of Thrill Jockey and live Boredoms, we'd be remiss not to remind you that the label will deliver the all-live Super Roots 9 in the States April 8.

BOREDOMS












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Axl Rose Responds to Dr. Pepper Proposition

Axl Rose photo by George Chin

As mentioned yesterday, should Axl Rose and whatever twisted form Guns N' Roses currently exist in somehow manage to squeeze out the oft-delayed Chinese Democracy by the end of 2008, we'll all be sippin' on the sweet nectar of rock'n'roll... as well as our very own complimentary can of Dr. Pepper. And it seems news of this prescription for productivity reached all the way to the hideyholestudio, as Mr. Rose himself posted a statement on the matter on the Guns N' Roses website. Observe:

We are surprised and very happy to have the support of Dr Pepper with our album "Chinese Democracy," as for us, this came totally out of the blue. If there is any involvement with this promotion by our record company or others, we are unaware of such at this time. And as some of Buckethead's performances are on our album, I'll share my Dr Pepper with him.

What a nice guy.

You'll note that there's no real indication of cooperation with Dr. Pepper's proposal, however. But the very fact that Axl is even thinking about it has gotta mean something, right? Right? Perhaps, but I wouldn't bet any more than a can of pop on it.

Pitchfork Seeks Web Developer

Pitchfork seeks an enthusiastic web developer with webmaster/content management experience to work full-time as a multi-faceted technologist in our Chicago or Manhattan office to maintain and develop multiple high-traffic, Drupal-based sites. Work environment is creative, fast-paced, and Mac-based with competitive pay and benefits. Most day-to-day tasks deal with the development and maintenance of a frequently updated e-zine. Job requires round-the-clock availability (when needed).

All candidates must possess:

* Expert level knowledge of PHP, MySQL, Apache and Unix/Linux
* Intermediate level experience with Drupal, JS, and jQuery
* Passion for standards-based XHTML/CSS layout

* Webmaster/Content Management experience
* Experience administering large-scale sites
* Strong non-technical communications skills
* Knowledge of video codecs and compressions a plus

Interested parties should send a resume to jobs@pitchforkmedia.com, along with a link to your portfolio, and references from previous clients/employers.

Photos: Jay-Z and Mary J. Blige [Baltimore, MD; 03/26/08]

Photos by Kyle Gustafson

From the top of the charts (and their game) to the "Heart of the City", Jay-Z and Mary J. Blige brought it to Baltimore's 1st Mariner Arena last night. The unimpeachable pairing will continue to look pretty and rock crowds on a Super Bowl scale through early May. Look for them next in Uniondale, New York tonight.

Also, fans in Montreal should note that a Z/J. gig scheduled for May 9 at Bell Centre has been cancelled. Bummer! As consolation, we encourage you to crank "Can't Knock the Hustle" and quickly scroll through these photos right here.

JAY-Z AND MARY J. BLIGE









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Shearwater's Meiburg Talks Rook, Birding, Okkervil
"One time in Florida I nearly whacked Bill Callahan in the face! I was like, 'Look! Look! There's a white ibis!'"

"It's funny, I keep trying to get away from the birds but they keep coming back to me," Shearwater's Jonathan Meiburg, a "semi-retired" ornithologist, admits. And indeed, birds abound in Shearwater's oeuvre, from the band's moniker to song titles like "Sing, Little Birdie" to album names like Winged Life and the latest, Rook.

Rook will alight on record shelves June 3 thanks to Matador. It's the Austin quartet's fifth full-length overall and first all-new release for the indie giant, although Matador did reissue an expanded edition of Shearwater's 2006 set, Palo Santo (originally released on Misra), in spring 2007.

"Rooks are very interesting birds," Meiburg muses. "They're very clever, very social, and when you see a group of them by the side of the road in Europe they always look like they're planning something [laughs]. They always look like you just interrupted a meeting."

Yet Rook isn't just for the birds. Meiburg chose the title for its sound ("it's got the nice 'k' at the end of it") and its multiple meanings, from the card game to the verb form of the word: "To rook also means to steal something, and-- maybe not so much as magpies-- but rooks will often take little items out of your garden, or shiny things. They have a reputation for mischief."

Theft of another, more dire sort plays into Rook's 10 tracks. "There's this theme of environmental destruction that runs through the record and of worlds being lost," Meiburg recounts. "Not purely literally but also metaphorically."

Environmental degradation makes for uncertain times, and this idea also manifests itself sonically on Rook. "I really wanted you to not know where the songs are going; some of them stop very abruptly, others go on and on. As you listen to it I just wanted you to have no real sense of security about what the next song was going to do."

Meiburg also invites us to consider Rook in naturalistic terms. "The record, I keep thinking of it this way: I thought of Palo Santo as a series of islands, like this weird archipelago leaning over the sea, and then [Rook] begins on the open sea and dives to explore sunken continents.

"Just to get ridiculously pretentious about it," he adds with a laugh.


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Bloc Party, BOH, CSS, Manu Chao Show Off...Shoes!

Talk about meta! The Shoes (Les Chaussures if you will) are an electro-pop duo from France. The Shoes have a new single out now on the UK's 50 Bones imprint called "Knock Out". Not just any single, the limited edition "Knock Out" 7" comes bundled with one-of-a-kind Polaroids depicting...wait for it...shoes! That's right people, shoes!

And not just any shoes: shoes worn by people in bands you might happen to like. Among the indie celebs showing off their sneaks: Bloc Party, Band of Horses' Ben Bridwell, CSS, and Manu Chao ("El Chapu" in the photo below).

Other featured footwear comes courtesy of former Darkness frontman Justin Hawkins, KavinSky, Busy P, the Cribs, Mystery Jets, Does It Offend You, Yeah?, MGMT, Jackson (of Jackson and His Computer Band fame), Inspiral Carpets, Metronomy, Blood Red Shoes (appropriate!), and a certain "Barry", apparently "Gwen Stefani's maintenance man." What, no Lee "Scratch" Perry?

And that's not all! Each of these unique Polaroids-- and there are some 300 in all-- is autographed. Who needs music anymore when you have gimmicks like this one?


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Hercules and Love Affair Announce Tour

Now that Brooklyn producer Andy Butler has unveiled Hercules and Love Affair to the world with the international release of his Best New Music garnering self-titled LP, it's time for the record's bongos and basslines to breathe amidst the open air of festivals and the dark stink of clubs. This spring and summer, Hercules and Love Affair will make that happen on the group's UK and European tour.

We say "group" because Herc's live configuration is a full eight-member band. Unfortunately, Antony isn't one of those members, but we trust Butler & co. to come up with a creative solution for the vocals. Maybe Antony can do them via satellite!

The first show of the tour is May 23 in Brighton, and soon, Hercules and Love Affair will announce even more dates across the world.

Still no word on an American release for Hercules and Love Affair, however. Fingers crossed! [MORE...]

A.A. Bondy Re-Releases Debut on Fat Possum, Tours

Fat Possum, a label heavy on rootsy songwriters, will give the debut album from rootsy songwriter A.A. Bondy a wider U.S. release than it got last year on Superphonic. The tracklist for this new edition of American Hearts remains the same as the original, and Fat Possum will issue the record on April 15.

Leading up to that release date is Bondy's U.S. tour with the Weakerthans and Christine Fellows, which kicks off tonight (March 26) in Ann Arbor. Near the end of the tour, on April 11, Bondy will also make an appearance on "Late Night With Conan O'Brien". [MORE...]

Hold Steady, Vampire Weekend Hit Great Escape
With Okkervil River, No Age, Black Lips, Iron & Wine, Black Mountain, Sunset Rubdown

It's not just gonna be just some passable journey, a solid holiday, or a merely adequate jaunt. No, if the lineup has any say in the matter, the Great Escape Festival really oughta live up to its name. Cramming a couple hundred bands into 25 venues around Brighton, England May 15-17, the music festival and industry convention gathers artists, industry types, and lucky bystanders for three days of shop-talk, gin-and-tonics, and tinnitus. (Hey, sounds familiar!)

Among those who have reserved a spot at the Great Escape are the Hold Steady, Vampire Weekend, Black Lips, No Age, Okkervil River, Iron & Wine, Black Mountain, Sunset Rubdown, Yeasayer, the Twilight Sad, Bon Iver, Times New Viking, Fujiya & Miyagi, Crystal Castles, Saul Williams, the Futureheads, Born Ruffians, the Black Angels, Frightened Rabbit, Vashti Bunyan, These New Puritans, Lightspeed Champion, the Teenagers, Future of the Left, the Mae Shi, Envelopes, We Are Wolves, the Ting Tings, Glasvegas, Tunng, School of Language, Cut Off Your Hands, Jennifer Gentle, the Wombats, Hot Club de Paris, Matt & Kim, Kelly Stoltz, Cadence Weapon, Pete and the Pirates, Silje Nes, the Subways, Ida Maria, Nina Nastasia, Samamidon, Late of the Pier, the Fratellis, Laura Marling, Vetiver, AIDS Wolf, the Rascals, Plants and Animals, Telepathe and Johnny Foreigner.

There will also be panels and lectures about various music business topics. Escape greatly, folks; just don't forget those business cards!

Zach Condon-Boosted Alaska in Winter Debut Hits U.S.

Native New Mexican Brandon Bethancourt's nom de musique is Alaska in Winter, and that would be just another inscrutable band name if it weren't for the fact that Bethancourt actually began recording his debut album, Dance Party in the Balkans, in an Alaskan cabin one winter.

However, he returned to New Mexico to finish the record, and once back home, he recruited some noteworthy friends to help him out. Among them are Beirut's Zach Condon and A Hawk and a Hacksaw's Heather Trost. The former contributed vocals, trumpet, and ukulele to various Dance Party tracks, while the latter added violin.

Dance Party in the Balkans came out last year in the UK on Regular Beat Recording Co., but it made its U.S. debut this week via Milan Records. The U.S. release is a digipack featuring alternate mixes and bonus tracks not available on the original.

What's more, Regular Beat will press Dance Party's Condon-assisted "Close Your Eyes - We Are Blind" onto a UK split 7" due April 7. The B-side, "Trop Exprés", comes courtesy of Regular Beat labelmate Marianne Dissard and features Joey Burns of Calexico.

Bethancourt will launch an Alaska in Winter tour in April. Once that's wrapped, he'll hole up in Berlin to record his sophomore album. [MORE...]

Numero Group Manufactures Trading Cards!

Do you like the specificity and thoroughness of the compilations Chicago's Numero Group assembles but feel lost when it comes to recognizing the names of the myriad contributors? Are you excited for the upcoming baseball season but unwilling to scour flea markets for a Jay Bruce/Evan Longoria/Clay Buchholz rookie card? Well, dear reader, if you answered "yes" to those questions, Numero Group has solved both of your problems with the creation of its Numero Group 2008 No-Hitters.

The No-Hitters is a collection of trading cards spotlighting various artists from the label's stable of soul, funk, gospel, and rock also-rans. There are a total of 90 cards in the set, and each one features a vintage color photo of a contributor to one of Numero Group's many reissues and compilations.

At random, one No-Hitter comes in the package of any new Numero Group CD or LP, and there are also a limited number of full sets available from the label's website. Cheap too!

A full list of the No-Hitters follows the jump. [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.)