Photos: The New Pornographers / Okkervil River [Washington, DC; 04/14/08]

Photos by Will Marsh

Washington, DC's 9:30 Club turned just a little bit seedy last night as some New Pornographers rolled through town to peddle their smut totally catchy tunes. No Dan Bejar or Neko Case sightings this time, but the crew did bust out a cover ELO's "Don't Bring Me Down".

Tourmates Okkervil River, meanwhile, served up another barnburner with recent live addition Charles Bissell (of the Wrens) on guitar.

Both bands remain on the road together for the next week or so, before breaking for some scattered festival fun.

THE NEW PORNOGRAPHERS








OKKERVIL RIVER







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Windy & Carl's Windy Weber Unleashes Hate on Solo LP

Windy & Carl's Windy Weber has gone without frequent partner Carl Hultgren for the release of a solo album, the delightfully titled I Hate People.

Consisting of two tracks with a combined running time of almost an hour, I Hate People "is not music to sleep to, but instead could make you tense and anxious," according to a press release. It is also "the story of how in one's life, your car, your dog, a dead bird on the ground is not going to be as upsetting or devastating to you as another human will be. Only people can make you feel so bad. Only people can hurt you, betray you, and make you feel like you want to die." Cheery!

Blueflea is handling the CD release of I Hate People, and Kenedik is releasing the LP. The latter comes in an edition of 1000: 500 splattered blue/green/purple and 500 splattered red [pictured]. The vinyl also features different, shorter track mixes than those that appear on the CD. Artist Christy Romanick, a friend of Weber's, took all of I Hate People's cover art photos except for the one from Weber's 1987 passport. His Name Is Alive's Warren Defever mixed and mastered the album, which arrived today (April 15).

Finally, Windy & Carl will release a full-length follow-up to 2005's The Dream House via Kranky in the fall. [MORE...]

Radiohead Best Of DVD Details Emerge

In an effort to combat the dearth in Radiohead-related wares in an otherwise underserved marketplace, here comes Radiohead: The Best Of DVD, a 21-track collection of some of the finest audiovisual excursions from Radiohead's storied career in the stuff. Sporting work from such noted video directors as Michel Gondry, Sophie Muller, Jonathan Glazer, and many others, the set also features a live take on Hail to the Thief opener "2+2=5" from 2003's Eurockéennes de Belfort Festival. And, heck, it has Jamie Thraves' clip for "Just", which, alone, is worth the price of admission.

Conveniently enough, the DVD emerges from Parlophone/EMI June 2 in the UK, the very day that the band's former label issues that audio Best Of they're not too keen on. No word yet on a North American release for the video set, but UPDATE: The Best Of DVD hits U.S. shores June 3 via Capitol/EMI. And there's always this thing to tide you over until all that happens. Me, I could watch ol' drum-face for days.

Your head, as you're well aware, is probably already full of chatter from this Head, so we'll keep this rundown brief: Radiohead had an unlikely hit with their "Nude" remix project, they wanna friend you so hard, and some cool folks are opening up for 'em on tour. Oh, and that tour? Dates-- including a brand new pair of confirmations in Osaka-- after the jump. [MORE...]

Austin City Limits Lineup Revealed
Includes Conor Oberst sans Bright Eyes, David Byrne, Gnarls Barkley, Beck, Raconteurs, Vampire Weekend, Iron & Wine, Hot Chip, Okkervil River, Jamie Lidell, Jenny Lewis, CSS

The Austin City Limits Music Festival will once again set up shop in Austin, Texas' Zilker Park for a carnival of musical delights spread across September 26-28.

There are over 125 artists playing this year's ACL Fest. Here's a relatively small sample of them:

Robert Plant and Alison Krauss, Spiritualized, Beck, Foo Fighters, Gnarls Barkley, N.E.R.D., David Byrne, Jamie Lidell, Man Man, Jenny Lewis, the Raconteurs, Band of Horses, Stars, M. Ward, Drive-By Truckers, CSS, Okkervil River, Iron & Wine, Hot Chip, Neko Case, John Fogerty, Roky Erickson, Vampire Weekend, the Black Keys, Del the Funky Homosapien, Silversun Pickups, Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings, the Swell Season, José González, Yeasayer, Octopus Project, Against Me!, Erykah Badu, MGMT, Manu Chao, Tegan and Sara, the Mars Volta, the Kills, Mates of State, Antibalas, Gogol Bordello, What Made Milwaukee Famous, and White Denim.

Also, Conor Oberst will be performing with a mysterious entity known as "the Mystic Valley Band", not Bright Eyes.

To hear a mashup created by Car Stereo (Wars), consisting of tunes from 29 of the 2008 ACL Festival artists, click the link below.

Photos: Dirty Projectors / No Kids [Los Angeles, CA; 04/12/08]

Photos by Sung Kim

Dave Longstreth and his Dirty Projectors continued to fly their Black Flags high at Los Angeles' Echo over the weekend, playing yet another gig on what feels like a never-ending tour in support of the still fantastic Rise Above.

Let's hope those pickin' fingers aren't tired yet, as the Projectors still have a good month's worth of shows ahead of them, including a couple more with tourmates No Kids (who also opened the Echo show). Find them at not one but two Pitchfork-affiliated events in the days to come as well: May's ATP vs. Pitchfork blowout and this summer's Pitchfork Music Festival. We must like this band or something!

DIRTY PROJECTORS










NO KIDS





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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



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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...]

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.)