New Pornographers, Lips, Roots Head to Summer Camp
As do Girl Talk and George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic. Hopefully together

Though you'll be faced with at least one truly tough decision-- do I opt for Family Groove Company or Groovatron?-- the rest of your scheduling during Summer Camp Festival 2008 oughta be a breeze. Cramming dozens of bands into the weekend of May 23-25 at Chillicothe, Illinois' Three Sisters Park, the jam-heavy lineup nevertheless sports some real scorchers.

The Flaming Lips, the Roots, the New Pornographers, George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic, Girl Talk, Headlights, and Dark Meat should help keep things focused amidst three-- yes, three-- sets from moe. Hey, just like real summer camp, you don't have to like all your bunkmates.

Cat Power Song Credit Mix-Up: Drama, Then Resolution

Bob Dylan, Hank Williams, James Brown, Billie Holiday, Janis Joplin, the Hot Boys...most of the folks Cat Power covers/interprets on Jukebox and its bonus disc are legendary, household names. Some, perhaps criminally, are not, and among those is late Mississippi blues musician Jessie Mae Hemphill.

Cat Power tackles Hemphill's "Lord, Help the Poor and Needy" on Jukebox, although some concern has arisen over the manner in which Matador Records credited Hemphill in Jukebox's liner notes.

A SF Weekly report published last week notes that those liner notes attribute the song to "Traditional, by Jessie Mae Hemphill, arranged by Chan Marshall, Public Domain." It turns out the song is in fact copyrighted by Hemphill, not public domain. According to SF Weekly, Hemphill's estate is seeking royalties from Chan Marshall.

"The money from that song should go to Jessie's estate and be divided up among her relatives, who, much like Jessie, are poor, elderly black people, many of whom are living off welfare," Jessie Mae Hemphill Foundation founder Olga Wilhelmine Mathus told SF Weekly.

At the time of the article's publication, SF Weekly reported that Hemphill publisher Dr. David Evans had yet to hear from Matador regarding the matter. According to the label, this was not the case.

Pitchfork contacted Matador, who shared the following statement:

We fixed the error within a week of being made aware of it, and before any royalties were due. The Matador production head compiled the songwriting and publishing credits on behalf of Chan, and she had absolutely nothing to do with the incorrect credit. We are longtime fans of Jessie Mae Hemphill-- hence her being mentioned in the credit for a song we believed was public domain-- and are in fact thrilled that her estate will receive royalties for Chan's interpretation of this song. The SF Weekly article, unfortunately, contains both misleading and inaccurate information that we hope will be retracted.

Andy Tennille, author of the SF Weekly article in question, told Pitchfork he stands by his story, and that no retraction is planned at this time. However, the online version of the story was updated to indicate a clearer timeline of events.

Dr. Evans told Pitchfork he's "in friendly contact with Matador Records, and things seem to be moving toward [the] licensing of the song," adding that "the [SF Weekly] story broke in the midst of negotiations to remedy the situation."

So, in summary, Matador Records made a mistake and they're correcting it. The estate of Jessie Mae Hemphill will get the royalties it is owed under copyright law. Hemphill's website will probably get a few extra hits this week too.

And they're grateful for the exposure: "I think it's good that someone of Cat Power's visibility covers a song like this, as it makes it more accessible for the more mainstream audience," Mathus told SF Weekly. "A lot of folks were turned on to R.L. Burnside after Jon Spencer came out with a record on him, so perhaps this will turn more people on to Jessie's music, the music of the North Mississippi hill country, and the life and struggles of many of these artists."

On that note, start getting turned on to Jessie Mae Hemphill's music by going here, and attend to all your Cat Power live needs below. [MORE...]

Les Savy Fav's Butler Blogs About Hockey

The Washington Capitals are an NHL team with one of the brightest young stars in hockey, Alex Ovechkin, playing for them. But to give them that extra push they need to go all the way this year? Enter Syd Butler, hockey blogger extraordinaire.

Butler-- member of Les Savy Fav, founder of Frenchkiss Records, and D.C. native-- has launched a fan blog about his beloved Capitals through NHL.com. Right now, the blog consists of almost press release-y updates about the team and a couple links to "Cribs"-style looks at players' apartments, but what else can we expect?

"Besides my wit and charm?," Butler joked in an email to Pitchfork. "I'm doing my best to keep up with the Caps and all the publicity events and creative marketing. This organization has one of the best sports websites and they keep it fresh every day. The better the Caps do the better the blog will be :)"

It turns out Butler's hockey obsession goes way back. "I caught the bug when [I was] eight years old-- my extended family all got it. Once you play it...nothing else compares. I think it's the perfect sport. I know some might disagree, but your first stride on a clean sheet of ice is one of the best feelings in the world. I would [tell] guys it's like flying in short bursts. I just wish I had started playing earlier."

Thanks to reader Tom Brandeau for the tip!

In his usual musical capacity, Butler will help Les Savy Fav release their first album, After the Balls Drop, via Frenchkiss on April 29. The band has a handful of (mostly festival) dates this spring, including one at the ATP vs. Pitchfork face-off. Until then, though...go Caps! [MORE...]

Stars of the Lid Embark on Tour

Tonight in the City of Angels, the stars will align. Nah, no celebutante hookups or Walk of Fame meet-and-greets; the stars in question here are ambient duo Stars of the Lid, who will take the first of many stages they'll grace as part of their first North American tour in some six years.

These Stars will hang over the continent with Christopher Willits in tow until mid-May, when they head to the UK for the Explosions in the Sky-curated ATP and a handful of dates beyond. Check out the full itinerary below, including at least one stop at a planetarium. Nice! [MORE...]

T.V. Eye: April 14-20, 2008

Live music on TV this week (damn, there's a lot of it):

Monday, April 14

NBC: Late Night With Conan O'Brien: Spoon (rerun)
CBS: Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson: Daniel Lanois
NBC: Last Call With Carson Daly: Morrissey (rerun)

Tuesday, April 15

Comedy Central: The Colbert Report: The Roots
NBC: Late Night With Conan O'Brien: Brother Ali (rerun)
CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: Rogue Wave

Wednesday, April 16

CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: The Gossip
NBC: The Tonight Show With Jay Leno: Young@Heart Chorus

Thursday, April 17:

CBS: Late Show With David Letterman: The Black Keys
PBS: Tavis Smiley: Jay-Z, Mary J. Blige
Syndicated: Ellen Degeneres Show: Young@Heart Chorus

Friday, April 18

CBS: Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson: Liam Finn
ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live: Lyrics Born
NBC: Late Night With Conan O'Brien: The Kooks

Saturday, April 19

NBC: Saturday Night Live: Vampire Weekend (rerun)
PBS: Austin City Limits: Ray Davies (rerun)
FOX: Fearless Music TV: Snowden, Young Knives

Photos: Colin Meloy [Washington, DC; 04/13/08]

Photos by Will Marsh

While two of his fellow PDXers tore it up for Buckman Elementary School boosters over the weekend, another of Portland's finest, Colin Meloy, rolled through the nation's capital in support of his just-released Sings Live!.

And sing live is just what Mr. Meloy did at this 9:30 Club gig, which saw support from yet another Rose City tunesmith, Laura Gibson. But just what did Meloy sing? Why, old Decemberists favorites, such as "Shiny", a couple new compositions, including one called "Valerie Plame", and even a cover of Sam Cooke's "Cupid", on which he dueted with Gibson.

Meloy and Gibson's tour travels continue through early May, and the former will retake the helm of the good ship Decemberists for a May 24 performance at Bend, Oregon's Les Schwab Amphitheatre with Death Cab for Cutie and Rogue Wave. Sensitive types unite!

COLIN MELOY






LAURA GIBSON



[MORE...]

MMJ Sign to Rough Trade for European Urges Release
Band lines up summer dates, plays "Saturday Night Live"

Summer's not generally optimal jacket weather, but for the sizzlin', sun-baked riffs of My Morning Jacket, exceptions can and should be made. So, then, we'll be lending out our beloved, well-worn Jacket to Canada, the UK, and mainland Europe this summer on a string of recently-revealed tour stops. The new gigs find the lads crisscrossing borders and jumping ponds in June and July, with a mess of club dates and festival sets in the mix.

Before all that goes down, there's Coachella, a May 10 appearance on "Saturday Night Live", the June 10 North American release of new LP Evil Urges from ATO, and a slot at Bonnaroo. And then, after a pair of Canadian gigs, there's "An Evening With My Morning Jacket" at Radio City Music Hall-- which, of course, begs the question: What in the hell do you call all them other gigs ya'll do?

Whatever the answer, My Morning Jacket have yet another special "Evening" plotted in Louisville way the heck off in August. Let's hope this guy isn't there.

Last but not least, MMJ fans in the UK and mainland Europe, you now have cause to rejoice. The band has signed to Rough Trade in your part of the world, and will send Evil Urges your way on June 9. [MORE...]

Report: Deerhunter Premiere Microcastle [Brooklyn, NY; 04/11/08]

Photos and text by Drew Katchen

Just last week, Deerhunter hit us with a double whammy: not only would the Atlanta psych quartet be playing a surprise show at a secret location, but they would also be performing, in full, their new album Microcastle.

That show happened Friday night at what turned out to be Brooklyn's Market Hotel. Pitchfork contributor Drew Katchen gives his impressions.

Four opening bands and hours (and hours and hours) after the doors first opened, Bradford Cox, guitarist Lockett Pundt, bassist Josh Fauver, and drummer Moses Archuleta took the stage before an anxious crowd with a cover of "Cool" by Cox faves Pylon. The driving, repetitive track served as a nice springboard for the material that would follow.

"Ok, sooooo...now...Microcastle," Cox announced casually following "Cool".

Given the font of demos and personal information the Deerhunter blog has become, it only seems natural that Cox and band would want to clue their listeners in to the new album's progress through a live gig-- warts and all.

"I'm more interested in the micro-structure. I want things to be a lot shorter, I don't want there to be as much long-windedness to it," Cox told Pitchfork in May 2007 when asked about the follow-up to Cryptograms. "I think maybe the next record will sound a little dirtier or more blown-out or something. Less droney, less mopey."

And the selections from Microcastle showcased on Friday seemed to fall in line with those comments. Songs came with titles like "Calvary Scars", "Activa", "Green Jacket", and "Twilight at Carbon Lake", and many of them seemed to hover around the three-minute mark. For his part, Cox often strummed out power chords, while his voice alternated between a boyish whine and a flat, Stephen Malkmus deadpan.

"Green Jacket" began with gentle piano sounds and Cox singing, "I take what I can/ I give what I have left." Another song had a huge and crashing repetitive build reminiscent of "Wash Off" from the Flourescent Grey EP, while yet another had a quiet intro with Cox seemingly saying, "Oh, I sing"; this one bore resemblance to "Spring Hall Convert" from Cryptograms. Clips of dialogue from movies or speeches and other atmospheric elements worked their way into some of the songs as well.

Another track began with Pundt playing a riff that may well have been lifted from the Crystals' "Then He Kissed Me". Later in the hour-long set, Pundt sang lead on one of the songs.

Understandably, some of the new offerings sounded a little rusty, and at times songs fell apart briefly before coming back together. Cox also seemed to generally lay off manipulating his voice with effects pedals, instead going for a more straightforward vocal sound. Hell, during one song he even finger-tapped for a good minute or so while the band worked a terse, heavy groove.

Will this be the only time the band plays the entire new record, start to finish, in front of a live audience? Who knows, but if Microcastle turns out to be anything like the way it was presented here, fans and newcomers will probably be damn pleased.

DEERHUNTER







[MORE...]

Autechre, Sea & Cake, Dntel, Boom Bip on Tribute Comp

Leading lights in electronic and indie pop music have contributed tracks to a compilation celebrating the legacy of the late Daniel Hansson, co-founder of synthesizer production company Elektron Music Machines. 45: A Tribute to Daniel Hansson collects 30 tracks from artists including Autechre, the Sea and Cake, Dntel, Boom Bip, Tiga, Venetian Snares, Daedelus, Kim Hiorthøy, and John Tejada.

45 is a digitally distributed affair, available right now straight from its own website. The cost is a mere $5 a pop, and all proceeds will go to the World Wildlife Fund. If you're more of a freeloading type, there are 25+ extra tracks available for download on the 45 site at zero cost. [MORE...]

The Field Tours Far and Wide

Photo by Jason Bergman

From Here We Go...on tour! Sweden's Axel Willner, aka loping bliss-builder the Field, has scheduled a smattering of live engagements over the next several months in the UK, mainland Europe, and North America.

Next up is a gig at upstate New York's Skidmore College with Ghostface (not collaborative as far as we know, unfortunately), with North American dates to follow through early May. Willner will do a little pond-hopping in the middle of the month to get to the Explosions in the Sky-curated ATP before heading back to Quebec for a gig. Then, it's back again, with European festival dates lining up nicely through the summer.

The present itinerary concludes, appropriately enough, at England's Field Day festival in August. [MORE...]

Photos: Stephen Malkmus / James Mercer at Buckman Bash Benefit [Portland, OR; 04/11/08]

Photos by Nilina Mason-Campbell

Good tunes and good causes collided Friday night at Portland's Jupiter Hotel as two of the Rose City's finest sons, Stephen Malkmus and Shins frontman James Mercer, politely rocked the Buckman Bash benefit for their hometown's arts-centric Buckman Elementary School.

Mr. Mercer has a pretty clean docket in the months to come, but Mr. Malkmus will keep things dirty, spreading Real Emotional Trash across both sides of the pond this spring.

STEPHEN MALKMUS






JAMES MERCER







[MORE...]

Rakim, De La Soul, GZA, Murs Play Paid Dues Series
Plus: Blackalicious, Sage Francis, Little Brother

Like last year, the Paid Dues Festival has broken beyond the confines of a mere one-day event. But instead of a tour, this year's Paid Dues will expand to a "festival series" of shows in Berkeley, Denver, New York City, and Fort Lauderdale this June. We know, it sounds like a tour to us too.

Hosted by the magnanimous Murs and presented by Guerilla Union, the series features sets by Rakim, De La Soul, GZA, Blackalicious, Murs & 9th Wonder, Hieroglyphics, Little Brother, Buckshot, Sage Francis, Yak Ballz, Kidz in the Hall, Supernatural & Scratch, Solillaquists of Sound, and Braille on various dates. To find out just who is playing where, head here. [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.)