Allen and Burnham Leave Gang of Four

Rhythm-heavy post-punk legends Gang of Four have lost their original rhythm section. Again. Bassist Dave Allen and drummer Hugo Burnham are choosing to focus their energies on pursuits other than the quartet, which reunited in its classic form in 2005. A post on Allen's blog, Pampelmoose (via an email from Allen), reveals the details of those other pursuits, and from its tone, there seems to be a healthy absence of hard feelings all around:

"The original and best-loved line-up of famed post-punk icons Gang of Four reunited in 2005 to great acclaim, but are no longer. Bassist Dave Allen and drummer Hugo Burnham are moving on, although singer Jon King and guitar player Andy Gill will continue, focusing on writing and recording new music as Gang of Four. Burnham last performed with the band at All Tomorrow's Parties in the UK in December 2006, while Allen played a few shows alongside a session drummer in 2007, and recently worked on new material with King and Gill.

"Allen says, 'At the beginning of April, I decided that I could no longer continue to be a member of Gang of Four. My ability to give 100% to the band is limited and I feel that if I can't do so, then I shouldn't continue. As I expand my research and thinking about contemporary music distribution on Pampelmoose.com, and as I focus on online technology and social networking at Nemo Design here in Portland [Oregon], I find myself conflicted about how the band's new music should be released. To retain any credibility for Pampelmoose.com about what the future of music distribution will look like, I have to move on and not hold back Jon and Andy's music plans. I have had a side project for a while now with John Askew of Tracker and Menomena's drummer Danny Stein [Seim--Ed.] called Faux Hoax (pronounced 'Folks'), and I look forward to fun times finding ways to get our music into peoples' hands in unique ways.'

"Burnham writes, 'It was a great couple of years of intermittently reminding people old and new, far and wide, just how powerful the original four of us were together. Age only increased our power and focus onstage, and it was a rare pleasure to work with the original band once again. Being in a band requires handling the business side of it too, and that became boring and the constant travel became debilitating. I am soon to start my doctorate, as well as broadening my teaching at more than one college here in Massachusetts, so my free time has become increasingly limited, making it difficult to be involved with them going forward. Musically, I am recording and writing with members of Boston noise-merchants the Bags and I have also been doing some recording lately with [former Minutemen/current Stooges bassist] Mike Watt. I wish Jon and Andy luck with their new musical endeavors; I am sure they will be interesting."

We wish the best to all parties involved, but it's hard to contain our surprise at the fact that Allen is quitting to focus on his blog. That is some serious dedication.

Gang of Four, minus Allen and Burnham, have a number of dates scheduled in the coming months, including an appearance at the Massive Attack-curated Meltdown festival in London on June 20. [MORE...]

Jose Gonzalez Tours Again, Releases "Teardrop" Single

Photo by Akmal Naim

With his "Green Tour" and the Earth Day release of the In Our Nature Remixes EP behind him, José González shows no signs of slowing down. He's already got a new single for us, and he's gearing up for another North American tour.

Mute released González's "Teardrop" digital single yesterday, May 6. The Massive Attack cover is taken from José's 2007 set In Our Nature and comes bundled with a B-side called "Four Forks Ache".

As for the tour, González's Bonnaroo appearance on June 13 serves as the start of a full-blown jaunt across North America, Mexico included. Following that tour, González has a bunch of scattered shows, mostly at European festivals. [MORE...]

New Pornos, Battles, Goldfrapp, Ice Cube Do Dour Fest
With Pinback, the Fall, the Raveonettes, Ellen Allien, the Notwist

Yes, the name's just a bit more off-putting to we English-speaking types than, say, the Fun Fun Fun Fest. Still, the 20th annual Dour Festival belies all connotations but one: it'll go down July 17-20 in Dour, Belgium.

And if this lineup doesn't sound like a blast, well, you're dour enough without it. Joining Dour for the the big 2-0 are the New Pornographers, Battles, Goldfrapp, Ice Cube, Pinback, the Fall, the Raveonettes, Ellen Allien, the Notwist, Why?, Enon, Foals, the Meat Puppets, Modeselektor, Bonde do Role, SebastiAn, Fujiya & Mijaygi, Miracle Fortress, Mystery Jets, Oxbow, Subtle, the Glimmers, Shout Out Louds, Boys Noize, Earth, Future of the Left, the Teenagers, Brian Jonestown Massacre, Do Make Say Think, Gogol Bordello, Men (the Le Tigre spin off) doing a DJ set, the Whitest Boy Alive, Tiga, Lady Saw, Heavy Trash, Alter Ego, the Enemy, the (International) Noise Conspiracy, and many many more.

See? Plenty of reasons to be Dour, grinning all the while.

Fennesz, the Field, Modeselektor, Tim Hecker Do Mutek
With Radio Slave, Quiet Village, Flying Lotus, Cristian Vogel, Kode9 & Spaceape

At five downtown Montreal venues over five stimulating days comes the ninth annual Mutek Festival, stretching innumerable extension cords betwixt the samplers, synths, laptops, and such of a wide spectrum of the electronic music community's brightest lights.

Joining this year's Mutek are Carl Craig, the Field, Radio Slave, Modeselektor vs. Pfadfinderei, Christian Fennesz, Cristian Vogel, Tim Hecker, Quiet Village, Kid Koala, Interstellar Fugitives, Nôze, Morgan Packard, Flying Lotus, Murcof, Kode9 & Spaceape, Sleeparchive, Chloé, Németh, Ben Frost, and Knifehandchop. And this, really, is just a blip; check out the full lineup of multimedia Mutek goodness over at the fest's website. Mutek 2008 runs from May 28 to June 1.

UPDATE: Unfortunately, Carl Craig's appearance at Mutek has been cancelled due to personal family reasons.

Joe Strummer Documentary Coming to DVD
Features interviews with Clash bandmates, Bono, Johnny Depp, Courtney Love

Plenty of documentaries have trained their cameras on the Clash and/or the band's magnanimous frontman Joe Strummer, and for good reason. Not only were the Clash inspiring like a lot of early punk bands, but musically, they outclassed pretty much all of their peers.

Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on your tolerance for documentaries about worthy yet well-worn subjects), it's time to make way on the shelves for another Joe Strummer documentary.

On June 24, Legacy Recordings will release The Future Is Unwritten on DVD. The movie takes on Strummer's life inside and outside of music as its subject, including coverage of his time in the Clash as well as the 101'ers, the Latino Rockabilly War, and the Mescaleros.

Director Julien Temple (The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle, The Filth and the Fury) rounded up tons of juicy interviews for the film, including Strummer's old Clash bandmates, Bono, Jim Jarmusch, Martin Scorsese, Johnny Depp, Steve Buscemi, Flea, Grandmaster Melle Mel, Courtney Love, Anthony Kiedis, Matt Dillon, Steve Jones, Don Letts, and plenty of others.

The soundtrack for The Future Is Unwritten came out last year, and you can check out our review of it right here.

Pitchfork.tv Seeks Director of Photography in NYC

With Pitchfork.tv now one month up and running, we're psyched to start expanding our content. And to help us make it happen, we're seeking out experienced New York-based DPs with experience overseeing crews of 2-4 camera operators in the field. (A producer is also present at all shoots.)

Responsibilities include (but are by no means limited to): prepping and setting up gear, coordinating crews, and capturing board feeds in live music settings around the city.

The ideal candidates will be creative, self-motivated, and possess extreme attention to detail as well as the ability to adapt stylistically from session to session. Applicants should be well-versed in various HD & SD cameras (especially DVX-100's). Experience with lighting and mics (directional and wireless lavs) are a definite plus.

If you have experience in these areas, please send a resume and cover letter to jobs@pitchforkmedia.com, along with links to previous work (no attachments please). Applications without links to previous work will not be considered.

Built to Spill Line Up Tour, Add Pre-ATP Perfect Show

Though they're currently in L.A. jamming out their follow-up to 2006's You in Reverse, Built to Spill have another album on their minds lately: 1997's Perfect From Now On, Pitchfork's 22nd favorite album of the 1990s.

As your next credit card statement will likely remind you, Doug Martsch and company will head to upstate New York way off in September to perform the noodly neo-classic at the inaugural ATP New York event. But never ones to let a Perfect opportunity pass them by, they'll hit the stage at Pappy & Harriet's in Pioneertown, California on September 12 for a warm-up run through Perfect From Now On. What's more, that gig also finds Camper Van Beethoven tackling the entirety of 1989's Key Lime Pie. I thought people didn't care about albums anymore?

Built to Spill have also scheduled a smattering of regular dates through the spring and early summer. [MORE...]

Parts & Labor Want Your Help for New Album
Dan Friel releases first solo album

As they record their full-length follow-up to last year's Mapmaker, jittery Brooklynites Parts & Labor are asking for help. The labor they seek comes in the form of a little recording work on the parts of their fans. As they explain in a press release:

Want to be on the next Parts & Labor album?

We're in the studio working on our next album. Send us some audio samples to use on the recording.

We're looking for snippets of noises, field recordings, found sounds, drones, speaking, etc.

Send audio that responds to any or all of these questions:

1. What's your favorite or least favorite sound?
2. What are you afraid of?
3. What do your parents sound like?
4. Where are you going, or where have you been?

The deadline for submissions is May 23.

Please keep the samples under 10 seconds. WAV or AIFF formats are preferred (but MP3s are okay too).

Email your submissions to partsandlaborsounds@gmail.com. Include your name for crediting purposes if you want.

Thanks,
Parts & Labor

PS: By sending us audio files, you're agreeing to let us use them on our audio recordings in any way we see fit, forever and ever. Don't send lawyers at us.

Between the work on the new album, a live date this month, and a trip to Europe in July, Parts & Labor have plenty on their plate for the moment.

That goes double for singer/knob-twiddler Dan Friel, who will release Ghost Town, his first solo album, via Important Records on May 13. The record's opening track is available for downloading over in Forkcast. [MORE...]

Photos: Shearwater / Michael Gira [New York, NY; 05/05/08]

Photos by Kathryn Yu

See, now this is how you do a record release show-- even if the release of the record in question is still nearly a month off. Shearwater pulled out all the stops for last night's gig at New York City's Florence Gould Hall at the French Institute, showing off their soon-to-alight Rook with a little help from the string quartet, trumpeters, woodwind players, and harpist featured on the album.

Even the folks behind Rook's rather eerie cover art, Kahn & Selesnick, turned out to provide projections. Rook arrives June 3 on Matador, and Shearwater will play one more lavish album showcase in their hometown of Austin on May 29, plus plenty more shows before and after that.

Last night also saw a rare appearance from a solo Michael Gira, who's calmed down just a wee bit since his days fronting Swans.

Shearwater








Michael Gira



[MORE...]

Abe Vigoda Prep New LP for Dean Spunt's PPM Label

California art punkers (and Smell regulars) Abe Vigoda are alive, well, and still making with the jams. Their latest, Skeleton, is due July 8 on CD and LP from Post Present Medium, the label owned and operated by No Age's Dean Spunt. What's more, PPM recently lined up a distribution deal with Chicago's Touch and Go Records, so no matter where you find yourself, Abe won't be too far off.

As previously mentioned, Abe Vigoda will contribute a forthcoming single to Aagoo Records' ongoing "David Horvitz 7" Picture Disc" series. They've also got a handful of shows on the bubble, all in L.A., and most of them at the Smell. Awfully nice scene ya'll have out there. Mind sharing? Oh, right, the record. [MORE...]

Vampire Weekend, Deacon, Johnston Play POPPED!
No more Roots, but they've got Slick Rick, Crystal Castles, Mates of State, Mr. Lif, and more

The second installment of POPPED!, Philadelphia's multi-venue, indie-centric music festival, will take place June 20-22...without the Roots. Yes, as previously reported, ?uestlove and co. were supposed to curate POPPED! as well as perform their album Things Fall Apart in its entirety at the festival. But something happened (organizers wouldn't comment on exactly what), and now the Roots are busy with their own jam, the Roots Picnic.

However, POPPED! is still on and poppin'. On Friday Jun 20, Slick Rick joins a full band for a little storytellin' session at the Trocadero. Saturday on the Drexel University campus, Vampire Weekend, Dan Deacon, Crystal Castles, Mates of State, Gogol Bordello, Mr. Lif, the Ting Tings, and Hoots & Hellmouth will keep POPPED! fizzin'. And Sunday finds Popped! at World Café Live, hosting performances from Daniel Johnston (backed by Philly locals the Capitol Years), O'Death, Takka Takka, Sam Champion, Tickley Feather, and more.

Sparks Perform Entire Catalog Over 21-Date Residency
New album, Exotic Creatures of the Deep, due later this month

No matter how dire things may get in this world, at least, it seems, we'll always have Sparks. The oddball avant-pop duo shows no signs of slowing down here in 2008, with a new album on the way and plans afoot to pay tribute to the 20 that came before it too.

Beginning May 16, Sparks will waltz into London's Islington Academy to perform their 1971 opus Halfnelson (aka Sparks) in its entirety-- and they won't leave the stage until June 11. Not even to pee. Well, okay, maybe to pee. And, fine, they'll probably go sleep now and then too.

But still, May 16 marks the beginning of "Sparks Spectacular", a mammoth 21-date London residency, over the course of which Sparks will roll through every last studio album they've blessed their adoring public with to date. That's 20 studio albums, each one given a single night in the spotlight. As for the 21st date? Sparks will relocate to London's Shepherds Bush Empire to premiere their brand new album, Exotic Creatures of the Deep, from start to finish.

Support at these gigs comes from the likes of the Rumble Strips, the Young Knives, the Electric Soft Parade, and Dan le Sac vs. Scroobius Pip. What's more, anyone crazy enough to purchase a so-called "Golden Ticket"-- which grants its user access to all 21 of the "Sparks Spectacular" shows-- will receive an exclusive new Sparks song on CD entitled "Islington N1" and written especially for the occasion.

You'd think all this hoopla would have the brothers Sparks pooped, but oh no. The very night after their residency wraps, the guys embark on a brief tour of the Baltic region. They'll also grace Japan with their antics in July.

Exotic Creatures of the Deep, meanwhile, features 13 tracks and arrives May 19 in the UK via Sparks' own Lil' Beethoven imprint. Buyers can opt for either the regular or the fancy-booklet-with-foldout-poster format. But since you made it this far into a Sparks story, we know you're buying both. [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.)