After Rajeev kicked off The Week of New Order yesterday, I've got to do my part to keep things going today. This may be a spoiler to some, but here's the setlist from New Order's performance in Oakland, California last night:

EDIT: I've moved the setlist off of the main page. For those of you who didn't want to see what was played last Friday, do not click the jump link.

She's Lost Control / Love Vigilantes / Regret / Hey Now What You Doing / Krafty / Transmission / True Faith / Run Wild / Jetstream / Waiting For The Sirens' Call / Bizarre Love Triangle / Love Will Tear Us Apart / Temptation / Crystal

ENCORE: Blue Monday

What I would really love to hear on Cinco De Mayo in New York: "Everything's Gone Green", "Thieves Like Us", "Perfect Kiss", "1963", and no Joy Division. I love Joy Division, almost more than New Order, but I just can't accept hearing those songs performed live now. Joy Division died with Ian Curtis.

Setlist courtesy of NewOrderOnline.com

Here Today...Tomorrow?

On Friday, the Guardian Unlimited (UK) published an interesting article on "firework" bands: those acts that rise quickly, flare brightly, and then descend into obscurity just as fast. Among those cited, most are still in the ascendancy period of their trajectory: the Killers, the Bravery, Magic Numbers, Franz Ferdinand, the Rapture, Kasabian, and Bloc Party. As for the bands that have already died out according to the article: the Music, the Vines, Hope of the States, and the Polyphonic Spree. In some cases these bands deserve to be forgotten, for others, fate is beyond their control.

"It takes one bad week and its like, they're all over," DJ Steve Lamacq, commenting in the article about the fickleness and impatience of the listening audience, media and music industry. "Give them a chance! A lot of people will only come good on their second album."

Read the rest of the article here.

So how many of these rising bands will survive beyond a second or third album? How many will have real career longevity? It won't be shocking if most do not last. For some, like Magic Numbers, it's too early to say. I think Bloc Party, Franz Ferdinand and the Rapture have what it takes, but the quality of their respective second albums will determine much. A breakthrough third album from Interpol or the Strokes will propel either band into Coldplay territory.

No matter what happens, it will be fun to watch and listen as history unfolds.

FRIDAY SHORTS

- Matador's latest news update has lots to report on, most notably details and tracklistings on new albums from The New Pornographers (Twin Cinema) and the Double (Loose in the Air). We also get a taste of the new NP's with the title track "Twin Cinema" (MP3) - great song! Other news - the signing of Brightblack, a new Stephen Malkmus e-card, and plenty more.

- I meant to mention this sooner - go to Fluxblog and download "Schrapnell" by Isolee, from his new record We Are Monster. Excellent tune from an excellent album. I'm a fool for not seeing him at APT a few months ago....

- In case you missed LCD Soundsystem on Letterman on Wednesday, PrefixMag has a video of their performance. Slightly surreal, still very cool.

- Staying with DFA, The Juan Maclean's official website has been launched. His debut full-length Less Than Human will be out on July 4, and the site has clips of all nine songs. I can't wait to hear them in full. If you're going to LCD's Webster Hall show on June 10, be sure to arrive early as Maclean is opening up - his first show in NYC since Volume's heyday, if I'm remembering correctly.

- Of course, that's nothing compared to New Order. Their show next week will be their first in New York City since August 1987. 1987! To be fair, they've actually played Jones Beach and the Meadowlands since then - but not since 1993. Stereogum linked to this video of the their recent performance of "Love Will Tear Us Apart" on the Jimmy Kimmel show. New Order plays a decent amount of Joy Division live, which makes sense but still feels a little weird to me.

- To keep the New Order hype machine chugging, read Philip Sherburne's wonderful SF Weekly cover story on the band, and here's a Chicago Sun-Times Q&A with Peter Hook (via Coolfer). Can you tell I'm psyched for this show?

- Check out the new issue of Earplug for three free MP3's from Kompakt. We get some Markus Guentner, Justus Kohncke (the stellar "Schwabylon"), and Michael Mayer's remix of Superpitcher's "Happiness." I think I prefer the original on Here Comes Love - without the soaring synths, it's not quite the same for me. I'm hearing really good things, though, about Superpitcher's new mix Today, part of the ever-growing list of new things I need to hear.

- And finally - I cheated and listened to "Entertain" (MP3) from the new Sleater-Kinney album. It's been made officially available and I was in the mood to hear it, having just bought my ticket to see them with Dead Meadow at Roseland. Man, The Woods is gonna rock.

Stream Spoon's Gimme Fiction



Is there anyone out there who hasn't downloaded and listened to the new Spoon record yet? Well if you haven't, here's your chance to listen to it legitimately: Merge Records is streaming Gimme Fiction. They're adding one song per day, so you'll only be able to check out "The Beast and the Dragon, Adored" today. You'll have to wait until May 10, the release date, to hear the entire album.

A few days ago I mentioned that this record didn't impress me much on first listen. Obviously I plan on listening to it more as the word-of-mouth has been so strong. MP3 Blog Sixeyes reviewed Gimme Fiction, declaring: "But this is Spoon's new watermark and it's called Gimme Fiction."

Bush to MP3 Bloggers: Drop Dead
Camcorder Law Also Includes Penalties For Leaking Unreleased Music

From Digital Music News:

President Bush recently signed a bill that would impose substantial penalties on those found illegally distributing content prior to official release. The Family Entertainment and Copyright Act of 2005 was passed earlier this month by the US House of Representatives, with the Bush signature largely expected.

The initiative has drawn praise from both the RIAA and the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), with the bill heavily focused on those that carry camcorders into theaters. But the scope of the bill also includes music, outlining "criminal penalties for willful copyright infringement" and subsequent online distribution of an unreleased song.

Will this make anyone think twice about hosting and distributing songs from leaked albums? While I must defer to those with legal backgrounds to fully parse and understand this act, a cursory review of the actual text turned this up:

IN GENERAL- Any person who willfully infringes a copyright shall be punished as provided under section 2319 of title 18, if the infringement was committed...by the distribution of a work being prepared for commercial distribution, by making it available on a computer network accessible to members of the public, if such person knew or should have known that the work was intended for commercial distribution.

OK, so we were all aware that distributing pre-release copyrighted material over the Internet is a no-no. But here are those "substantial penalties" this act will impose:

Any person who commits an offense under section 506(a):

(1) of title 17 --shall be imprisoned not more than 3 years, fined under this title, or both;

(2) shall be imprisoned not more than 5 years, fined under this title, or both, if the offense was committed for purposes of commercial advantage or private financial gain;

(3) shall be imprisoned not more than 6 years, fined under this title, or both, if the offense is a second or subsequent offense; and

(4) shall be imprisoned not more than 10 years, fined under this title, or both, if the offense is a second or subsequent offense under paragraph

I will be very curious to see if this law will be enforced. Most independent labels and self-distributed artists don't seem to care about the distribution of leaked music. The major labels, however, do not hesitate to protect their copyrights. I'd hate to see someone jailed over leaking a Coldplay or White Stripes track.

THURSDAY SHORTS

- Stereogum's crunk breakdown pointed me to this great Stephen Malkmus interview on MTV.com. SM talks about Face the Truth, Missy Elliott, the chances of a Pavement reunion (not any time soon), and more. I've actually been avoiding the Face the Truth leak, so May 24 will be an unusually exciting Tuesday in these parts - especially since the same day will also bring my first listen to the new Sleater-Kinney record. I missed that feeling of anticipating release dates, and I can't wait to hear them both.

- While we're talking about Mr. Malkmus and the Jicks, I must put out a plea - does anyone have an extra ticket to their upcoming show at Irving Plaza? I had tickets on my screen THREE times, and the $9 service fees scared me off each time. I figured it'd take a few weeks to sell out, enough time for me to save the cash at the box office, but I was wrong and now I'm ticketless. The past couple weeks have been fruitless on Craigslist, so I figured I'd try here. Let me know!

- Sleater-Kinney and Dead Meadow will be at Roseland on June 23 according to this MTV.com article. I'm told tickets are on sale tomorrow, but Ticketmaster's site seems down and I can't pull a link. The article also includes an interview with the band, where Carrie Brownstein mentions that their new sound was partly inspired by playing huge venues while opening for Pearl Jam. "You start to imagine your music in a different way," she said.

- Speaking of opening acts, does anyone know who's opening up for New Order next week?

- LCD Soundsystem and James Murphy have been getting tons of press, and Junkmedia adds to the pile with this interview. It's a great interview though, better than most that I've read with Murphy weighing in on the new Daft Punk ("Let us not forget 'Da Funk'"), LCD's upcoming tour with M.I.A. (they met at SXSW), and his top 5 dancefloor fillers ("I Feel Love" starts the list). LCD actually played "Daft Punk Is Playing At My House" on Letterman last night, when Paul Shaffer and his band reportedly contributed handclaps. Crazy! (Interview link via DJ Martian)

- I missed Letterman last night in favor of 9 Songs at the Tribeca Film Festival. My quick synopsis - couple sees bands, couple has sex, lather, rinse, repeat. Peephole's review has some more details/thoughts and pretty much nails it (no pun intended). Definitely an interesting film, and cool live performances from Franz Ferdinand, Super Furry Animals, Primal Scream, and more, but it could have been done better.

- The National will be at the Mercury Lounge on June 16 and 17.

- Stylus's Non-Definitive Guide to the Follow Up looks at how some artists followed up their first taste of success, and it's a great read. They cover a wide range - Elastica, Goldie, the Stone Roses, Air, Bush, and more. They also discuss Live's Secret Samadhi, quite possibly the single most disappointing album I've ever paid full price for.

- Finally - if any of you are interested in the Coachella set times, PSNYC's got 'em.

Last Thoughts For Wednesday

Liam Gallagher, lead singer of Oasis, on today's top rock bands (via BBC News):

- Scissor Sisters: "rubbish"
- Bloc Party: "a band off University Challenge"
- The Kaiser Chiefs: "just a bad Blur"
- The Libertines: "nasty"

The kids in America on Oasis: "who?"

Elsewhere:

- I'm not the most knowledgeable Super Furry Animals fan, but after enjoying SFA singer Gruff Rhys's solo album quite a bit, I'm excited about the news that SFA will release a new album soon. In an exclusive interview with NME.com, Gruff gives us the goods on Love Kraft, due in August: "It's the most orchestral record we've done," Gruff said in the article. "But it's still very much the sound of a band in a room together."

Read the rest of the article here.

- Upon its release in 1991, Primal Scream's Screamadelica was considered an instant classic by many. It's been called landmark, influential, seminal, a masterpiece. Realizing it could never be improved, but it could be re-interpreted, Spoilt Victorian Child took on the task of remixing Screamadelica. The end result is Screamixadelica, which you can download here, as a Bittorrent only.

SVC describes the project as such:

"There's no reason for this. How do you improve upon perfection? You don't. We don't pretend to think this comes close to the Scream's masterpiece, but then nothing else does. So what Screamixadelica offers is a different spin, moving from chill through dub via glitch to drum & bass."

- Finally, Coldplay are giving away tickets to their "buzz" gig in San Francisco. Enter here. You must be at least 18 and live in the U.S. to be eligible to win.

2005 Favorites: Three More!



Iron and Wine - Woman King EP. Iron and Wine's last album Our Endless Numbered Days was good, but I've always preferred the more textured lo-fi sound Sam Beam explored on The Creek Drank The Cradle. Woman King keeps the former's crisp production, but adds new layers of instrumentation that bring back the emphasis on texture. The end result is quite nice, and I'm surprised more people haven't been talking about this release. Maybe it's because it's an EP, or maybe I'm just looking in the wrong places. Try out "Woman King" (MP3).



Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings - Naturally. Jason was plugging the first Sharon Jones album in the Check It section for the last six weeks, so you may already know what to expect on Naturally - one heavy dose of funk after another, giving Jones ample room to show off her fantastic voice. The band is eight strong but they never lose sight of the hooks, which is why I keep coming back to this one. Few records have gotten as much attention on my iPod this year. Try out "How Do I Let A Good Man Down?" (MP3).



Pop Ambient 2005. I love my Kompakt, but this is actually the first edition of their annual Pop Ambient series that I've spent much time with. If the prior four are as good as this one, I have much to catch up on. There are no beats to be found but the songs are delightfully LUSH, packed with bubbling washes of sound that you can immerse yourself in. This has been my go-to late night album of the year, no question. Try out The Orb's "Falkenbrück" (MP3).

Thanks to Coolfer and Repellent's Under The Roundtable happy hour event last night, I went to the Shins show at Webster Hall completely off my face drunk. Usually I'm (mostly) sober at shows - I hate having to miss half the gig standing in line for the bathroom and I like to have some memories to go along with my ringing ears and blurry concert photos.

Memories from last night? Not many, except the Shins sounded great and Webster Hall is a bizarre place. I know, a pretty weak review of a show, so read Rajeev's comments about Sunday night's performance. No photos from me either. What? I couldn't hold my drink and my camera at the same time!

Elsewhere:

This ILM thread has got me thinking about which 2005 albums have disappointed me the most so far. I'm finding it hard to develop a lengthy list as most of the albums I had high expectation for have delivered. For example, I love the new Malkmus and Four Tet records.

Daft Punk's Human After All comes to mind as a disappointment, but I've never been a big DP fan, so it was more fun watching the hate flowing from the band's loyalists over on ILM. My other choices would be Doves' Some Cities and Prefuse 73's Surrounded By Silence. Neither album came close to matching the quality of their predecessors.

Here's my list of albums I've found surprisingly good in the last four months:

1. Man Man - The Man in the Blue Turban With A Face

2. Caribou - The Milk of Human Kindness

3. Gruff Rhys - Yr Atal Genhedlaeth

4. Half-Headed Cloud - Thy is a Word & Feet Needs Lamps

Albums that need further review but didn't impress me much on first listen:

1. Spoon - Gimme Fiction

2. Louis XIV - The Best Little Secrets Are Kept

3. M83 - Before the Dawn Heals Us

Albums I'm most wanting to hear:

1. Art Brut - Bang Bang Rock And Roll

2. Edan - Beauty and the Beat

3. Cranebuilders - Sometimes You Hear Through Someone Else

4. Fannypack - See You Next Tuesday

5. Sam Prekop - Who's Your New Professor?

TUESDAY SHORTS

- Peter Hook of New Order will be spinning at Hiro next Thursday, at the official afterparty for the band's Hammerstein Ballroom show. Alex English, Alex Malfunction, and Shawn Christiansen are also on the bill, and a limited number of $8 advance tickets will be available starting tomorrow at the GBH website. You can also get in for $12 at the door, but I have to think the line will be brutal.

- I've only been listening to it for a couple days, but I'm completely enamored with Art Brut's debut full-length Bang, Bang, Rock and Roll, out in the UK on May 23. It's wonderfully tossed off, raw and catchy with singalong choruses and laugh-out-loud lyrics throughout - a bit like what I was hoping to get (but didn't) with the Louis XIV full-length. (Jason pledged his love to Art Brut's first single "Formed A Band" back in December.)

- The follow-up to Optimo's fantastic How To Kill The DJ [Part 2] mix (which I gushed about here) is officially out overseas. It's called Psyche Out - read all about it and check out the tracklisting here. Rest assured, I'll be talking more about this one once I've heard it.

- Download "Come On, Feel the Illinoise" (brilliant title) from the upcoming Sufjan Stevens album Illinois over at TTIKTDA. If you prefer Sufjan's Greetings from Michigan sound to the stripped-down folk of Seven Swans, you'll dig this tune. (I thought both albums were great, and I have high hopes for Illinois as well.)

- ProductshopNYC reports that Coldplay will be recording a VH1 Storytellers show on May 16 at BAM (guestlist only) and then doing a proper show the next night at the Beacon Theatre. No details on tickets yet, but I'm sure they'll be impossible to come by. You'll get more chances to see them this summer, though, and PSNYC also reports they'll be joined by Franz Ferdinand on tour then.

- As far as I can tell, this is actually not a joke - though I can't see the RIAA letting this staying up for long. Buy an iPod preloaded with all the "cool" music at Hipsterpod.com.

EDIT - Looks like someone got to them - Hipsterpod.com is now down.

2005 Favorites: The Cars Are The Stars - Fragments

I hate the term "indietronic". It's too corny and vague for me. But for good or bad, it's the genre that perhaps best fits The Cars Are The Stars.

Fragments, the band's second album, is the sound of the warm thud of live drumming and the morose twang of plucked guitar strings. And yes, it's also the sound of electronic pulses and looped voices coursing through human veins. Call it blood, sweat and gears.

What makes this album really work is TCATS' masterly blending of its elements. The electronics never dominate or distract while the traditional never feels tired. They are woven together to near perfection.

This album is not a happy one. There are no pop tunes or catchy hooks to accompany a T.V. drama. The sound is often warm and present, but also forlorn and distant. Like an estranged lover lying next to you, Fragments brings you close to the source, but you still feel like a stranger. The ache you feel when it's over is the desire to try again, hoping this time the riddle will be solved.

Read Other Music's excellent summary of Fragments (scroll down).

Download The Cars Are The Stars: Helikopter (MP3)

Fragments is available in the U.S. from Chez Moi Records

The Shins - Webster Hall, 4.24.05

I think the Shins put on a fantastic live show, but I walked into Webster Hall last night with mixed expectations. I knew they weren't going to play much new material, but the setlist wasn't my concern. I saw a shuffled version of the same set three times last spring, yet each of those shows still felt equally essential. I was fine with hearing those songs again, I just had some concerns with the Garden State factor. Those three shows last year were at the Bowery Ballroom and Irving Plaza, far from this three night run at Webster Hall.

The show, then, basically lived up to my expectations - thumbs up on the band, thumbs down on the rest. They were definitely sharp as usual - "One By One All Day," "Pressed In A Book," "Kissing the Lipless," "Gone for Good," etc. were all solid, and some songs sounded better than usual (like "Saint Simon," which usually feels rushed live but not last night). The band was having a blast on stage, and Marty Crandall (keys/bass) was even quoting The Big Lebowski up there. (Considering he did the same with Spinal Tap last January, he clearly knows the quickest way to win me over.) But the sound was at best average and at times awful. You couldn't hear the keyboards on "Caring is Creepy" or "Girl on a Wing," ditto for the bass on "Turn A Square," and lots of little details were lost in the muddy mix. Maybe the Bowery shows just spoiled me, because it also felt weird to see the band so far apart from each other on stage. And as for the crowd, it wasn't overly packed around me but the screaming, the singing along (especially "Young Pilgrims" and "New Slang"), and the overheard debates on the cutest Shin (I'm not making that up) made it feel far, far away from the smaller gigs. It was a good show, I just know it could've been better.

I guess this is what happens when a band you love makes it big by just doing what they've always been doing, and it's hard to complain about it without seeming a little whiney. I actually do mind this less with the Shins than, say, Interpol because the Shins goof around enough on stage to still make it feel like a small(ish) show. But all in all, add my name to the chorus of folks hoping their next time through might find us back at the Bowery. And maybe, just maybe, we'll finally get "Fighting in a Sack" on the setlist.

My pictures were pretty uninspiring, but check out the Underrated for some good shots. And the Brunettes were fun! My friends didn't dig them but I thought they were creative and catchy, and I give them bonus points for all the instruments - keyboards, horns, cello, triangle, washboard, kazoo, and more. Show up early if you're going tonight and decide for yourself.

How Could I Forget?

Up until yesterday afternoon I had completely forgotten that I had tickets to the Shins tonight at Webster Hall. Yeah! The Shins! While I'm happy to see their popularity growing, I'll miss standing five feet back from the stage at the Bowery Ballroom, exchanging Spinal Tap jokes with the band. I'm not going to begrudge them their success, but I hope they'll throw in a few "small" (Bowery or Irving Plaza would be fine) shows in the mix in the future.

- View the new video for "Pink Bullets" from Chutes Too Narrow.

Previous Shins coverage on One Louder:

- The Shins - Bowery Ballroom 5.9.04

- Of Montreal cover "Know Your Onion"

- The Shins cover T-Rex's "Baby Boomerang"

Elsewhere:

- Download M83's remix of Bloc Party's "Pioneers" (MP3). [via The Big Ticket]

- Listen to Goldfrapp's musical score for the upcoming British film My Summer of Love.

- Download "It's You" by Animal Collective (MP3), featuring Vashti Bunyan, from the new Animal Collective EP. [via Cred Central]

- Check out this grrreat rundown of Joy Division covers by Spoilt Victorian Child. [via Ultragrrrl]

FRIDAY SHORTS

- For everyone seeing the Shins this weekend at Webster Hall - make sure you get there early to catch the Brunettes. Get a taste of their catchy 60's-inspired indie pop with the MP3 of "Holding Hands, Feeding Ducks" at Aeki Tuesday.

- I was just talking about Asobi Seksu heading into the studio, but it appears they are looking for a new drummer first. Hope all is OK and that they find someone soon. [via Coolfer]

- Tindersticks lead singer Stuart Staples has a solo album due out in June, called Lucky Dog Recordings 03-04. Though if you're itching for new Tindersticks material, I'd recommend starting with the National's new album Alligator in the meantime.

- Even with Sonic Youth also on the bill for the Pixies' June 14 show at Jones Beach, I'm not sure it's worth the schlep out there. (Or, even worse, the schlep back.) Especially since Mouse on Mars are playing the Knitting Factory that same night - everyone raves about MoM's live show but I've never seen them. EDIT - Sonic Youth actually had to pull out and will not be opening up the Pixies' Jones Beach and DC shows.

- Interscope will be re-releasing M.I.A.'s Arular on May 17 with the Piracy Funds Terrorism highlight "U.R.A.Q.T." as a bonus track. I'm normally all for bonus tracks, but adding one just two months after the original release is a little ridiculous.

- I dig the Pocket Remix of Joanna Newsom's "Bridges and Balloons," done by Richard of the Burnside Project and available here. [via Brooklyn Vegan]

- Coolfer - or, more specifically, his new contributor Alec Bemis - has an interesting new piece comparing the new rock revival (The Bravery, The Killers, etc.) to the early/mid-90's grunge explosion. I don't agree with it all, but it's thought-provoking and worth a read.

- I always enjoy good bucket drummers in subway stations and on the streets, and this guy has some serious skills. My favorite, though, of the subway musicians I've seen recently were two guys a couple months ago. One was playing bass (plugged in) and scat singing, the other was playing flute and tambourine (with his foot), and I was almost a little disappointed to see my train pull in.

A few quick notes for this morning:

I've been remiss in not heaping praise upon Caribou's excellent new album The Milk of Human Kindness. It's currently album of the week over at Stylus and Pitchfork scored it an 8.5 on Wednesday. I don't know why I keep forgetting to mention this album, but it certainly deserves a spot in my favorites of 2005.

Stream the new White Stripes single, "Blue Orchid". I still don't like it very much, but maybe I just have bad taste? [via indieworkshop]

NME has the goods on a new Kraftwerk live album, to be released in early June. Titled Minimum-Maximum, the double CD compiles performances from Kraftwerk's 2004 tour, including classics such as "Autobahn", "Neon Lights", "Computer World", "The Robots" and more. Check out the NME article for the full tracklisting. Kraftwerk will be touring in support of Minimum-Maximum, including that show at the Hammerstein Ballroom on June 1st.

Beardblog is holding a drawing for artwork from M.I.A. and The National.

Did anyone else hear 2manydjs, uh, I mean Soulwax and Bloc Party on the O.C. last night? Maybe you were too busy snorting coke and listening to Death Cab to notice.

A surprisingly hectic day today means I must be brief, but I'll have more tomorrow. Three quick things in the meantime:

- Oh My Rockness is reporting that M.I.A. will be at S.O.B.'s on June 7 and 8. Just to point out the obvious - these will sell out quickly.

- Two exciting additions to the APT docket - Carl Craig on May 10 and Andrew Weatherall on May 12.

- Go download "Canción De Todo Va Mal" by the Spanish band Le Mans over at She's Bitter. I'd never heard of them before, but it's an excellent tune with a delicately nuanced eight minute build-up that I've been listening to all day. Great stuff.

I purchased the new White Stripes single, "Blue Orchid" last night from iTunes and right now I'm pretty disappointed with it. After four or five plays it hasn't grabbed me in the same way "Seven Nation Army" did. Yeah, it rawks out, but something is missing. Jack's guitars are bluntly metal; Meg's drumming is typically thunderous, but there's not much of a hook and at 2:35 it's over before it begins. Oh well. I still have hope for the album.

I also grabbed Coldplay's "Speed of Sound" from iTunes. As a U2 fan, I suppose I should really like it as it borrows nearly all of its tricks from Bono and the boys. But where U2 often injects real emotion into its bombast, this song just sounds big and hollow.

If I can find some extra cash floating around, I'd certainly like to drop it on seeing Bob Dylan and Merle Haggard at the Beacon Theater next week. With shows on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday there has to be some tickets floating around. In fact, a quick search on Craig's List reviews a number of deals. Too bad I'm so poor...

Jon Pareles reviewed Dylan's April 20 show in Newark for today's New York Times and found the bard in a pungent mood:

"Mr. Dylan's set had war, mortality, lost love and fierce electric blues on its mind. He started with "Tombstone Blues," snapping out its lyrics in gruff staccato bursts, and continued with some of his most baleful songs, from the apocalyptic nursery rhyme "Under the Red Sky" to "This Wheel's on Fire." Kindly moments were outnumbered, perhaps 10 to 1, by bitter ones."

The warm weather has me thinking about the Siren Festival out on Coney Island. It's scheduled for July 16 this year. The lineup hasn't been announced yet, but you should bookmark this link and check back often. Any guesses on who will perform?

From More Cowbell, almost always first with tour dates, comes the good news that Apostle of Hustle will stop at the Mercury Lounge on June 30, 2005. They were great at Tonic last November and Folkloric Feel was among my favorite albums of 2004.

Now, here's some downloads:

- U2: "Bad" Glendale, AZ, 4.15.05 (MP3)

- Pas/Cal: "What Happened to the Sands" (MP3)

- Broken Social Scene: Live on KVRX, 2003 (MP3)

- The Cars Are The Stars: "Helikopter" (MP3)

Evening Downloads: Thom Yorke and NWA

As reported by NME.com on April 16, Thom Yorke performed a five-song acoustic set on April 15 at an event organized by trade justice organizations War on Want and the Trade Justice Movement. Included in this set was a new song, titled "House of Cards".

Now the track is available for download from At Ease. Also available is Thom's performance of the rare Radiohead track "Last Flowers" (not "Glass Flowers", as NME called it).

Next for your downloading pleasure, the opposite of the Wal-Mart edition of NWA's Straight Outta Compton! Check out Straight Outta Compton - the Explicit Content Only Version.

You probably already got the gist of this. Each track on this landmark gangsta rap album has been edited down to just the profanity. No more fast-forwarding or rewinding to the good parts! It's just one swear word after another. Perfect for mixtapes. As the site says: "Hurry before I get my 'Cease and Desist'!"

Jason's Favorite Songs of 2005 (So Far)

I can't really think of a good introduction to this collation of my favorite songs of 2005, so far. In comparison, I'm sure my choices are rather conservative, but I have to be honest about what I've enjoyed and played the most this year. Here it goes:

LCD Soundsystem - "Daft Punk is Playing at My House": Manages to drop sincere praise on the French tech-robots, while poking fun at hipster cred - a favorite LCD target.

Prefuse 73 - "Hideyaface": Does this song stand out so much for me because it's really good, or is it because the other songs on the album are so blah? Probably both.

Bloc Party - "Like Eating Glass": Or "Helicopter", or "Positive Tension", or "Pioneers". Hell, just put the whole album on here.

M.I.A. - "Bingo": I love how this one keeps throwing in new sounds - steel drums, arcade car engines - as it progresses. As good as "Galang" was at the Knitting Factory, leaving out "Bingo" from that live show really bummed me out.

Daft Punk - "Robot Rock": One sucker punch of funk after one, knocking you out and pummeling you when you're down.

Doves - "Snowden": Grandiose and soaring with a killer instrumental hook.

Stephen Malkmus - "It Kills": This album kills! There's a borrowed hook in this song, but I can't place the source. Frankly, it's driving me mad trying to figure it out.

Kaiser Chiefs - "I Predict A Riot": A undeniably infectious blast. The rest of the album really doesn't do much for me.

Louis XIV - "Finding Out True Love Is Blind": It looks smutty, it smells smutty, it tastes smutty - must be smut. Sure, the words are Neanderthalian, but who really thinks the band means it?

Andrew Bird - "Fake Palindromes": If you haven't listened to Bird's new album, The Mysterious Production of Eggs, I highly encourage you to do. It's a strong contender for my favorite album of 2005 so far.

New Order - "Krafty": The best New Order single since "Regret"? Yeah, I'd say so. That makes two remarkable songs written since, what 1989?

13 & God - "Men of Station": Reminds me of how much I loved the Notwist's Neon Golden. The rest of the 13 & God album never comes close this track.

File Under: Jealousy

It's sort of a geeky thing, but I've always thought it'd be cool to see a band play an album live in its entirety, from start to finish. I briefly hoped Of Montreal might be doing it last August (fat chance), and my favorite part of the recent Fiery Furnaces Northsix show was the quirky "mini-suite" setlist. That's the closest I've gotten, but I heard about Blur playing 13 from start to finish at Roseland once, and Pink Floyd has of course done this a bunch with Dark Side of the Moon. (FYI - I've repressed all memories of the Magnetic Fields doing 69 Love Songs at Lincoln Center since I skipped the show like a fool.)

Where am I going with this? The "Don't Look Back" concert series, in London this September, will feature bands playing classic albums from start to finish. So far, only two dates have been announced - Mudhoney playing Superfuzz Bigmuff on September 16 (on sale now) and Belle and Sebastian playing If You're Feeling Sinister (!) on September 25 (on sale today at the Barbican). This means some lucky Londoners will get to see "Stars of Track and Field" and "Seeing Other People" played back-to-back - I am jealous. (Both bands plan to fill out their sets with other material.) I'm really curious to see the rest of the schedule in the coming weeks - based on those two, I'm guessing they'll have some eclectic choices. And if any of them happen to be Daydream Nation or Lazer Guided Melodies, I'm making the trip. (Cue up the Loveless jokes...)

Sticking with the theme of overseas events I wish I could attend, I implore any Glaswegians out there to clear their Friday plans. Optimo and Michael Mayer will be playing the Arches on April 22 and, seeing as they're responsible for my two favorite parties of the last year, this should be an outstanding night. The fact that Justus Kohncke is also on the bill is pure bonus, and I could see his live set being a lot of fun if he sticks to his dancier stuff (vs. those German pop songs). The Optimo-Kompakt connection is not entirely random, as JG Wilkes (half of Optimo) is also half of the Kompakt act Naum (think techy schaffel). And they did a night like this in Glasgow last July, when Mayer actually played Underworld's "Born Slippy" according to this review. (Crazy!) The Optimo set will probably be very different from what they did here in March, but I'm sure it'll rule. I wish I could be there.

Stream Two M.I.A. Videos

From the One Louder inbox comes two M.I.A. streaming videos (via Real Media). Thanks Calvin for sending these along:

"Sunshowers" - 300k

"Sunshowers" - SS

"Galang" - 300k

"Galang" - SS

TUESDAY SHORTS

All the recent shows have been keeping me busy, so there's much to catch up on. Let's go:

- Rhythm and Sound play their second night at Cielo tonight, spinning dub/reggae 45's with live MC's doing their thing on top. By all accounts, it should be great ... but alas it's $26 and it's on a school night. So if I make it out, I'll be much more tempted by master theremin player Pamelia Kurstin's 8 PM performance at the Tonic ($10). I'm a sucker for theremins.

- Yo La Breakout! Yep, a Yo La Tengo-inspired game of Breakout. You get to save the Acetone, the Danelectro, WFMU, and more, but the best part is the MIDI soundtrack of YLT songs. We get "Autumn Sweater," "You Can Have It All," "I Heard You Looking," "Little Eyes," and more. I love it.

- It must be fate - the Fiery Furnaces will be playing NYC on my birthday (July 27). Location is still TBA but it's part of the 2005 River to River Festival. M. Ward will be playing the festival as well, on July 21, and more shows are still to be announced. [via Brooklyn Vegan]

- Paul Epworth AKA Phones, the man behind the Phones Disco Edit of Bloc Party's "Banquet" and the fun Phones Maximo Remix of Annie's "Heartbeat" (MP3), among others, will be at APT on April 28.

- Asobi Seksu are heading into the studio in June to record a new album. Word is it's going to be LOUD. We like that. Though their self-titled album didn't get much attention until last year, they actually recorded it a few years ago and focused on their newer material live.

- One Louder fave Erol Alkan - the DJ behind London's Trash party and an excellent mix named, erm, One Louder - has a new double CD entitled A Bugged Out Mix. As MMM pointed out, the impressive tracklisting includes Alkan's edit of the Rapture's "House of Jealous Lovers" atop Josh Wink's "Higher State of Consciousness" - a combo that worked fantastically when I saw him do it live once. I'm looking forward to hearing this.

- Dead Meadow will be opening up for Sleater-Kinney on their June tour - very cool. Both are live favorites of mine. No confirmed NYC dates yet, but I'd bet on late June.

- More Cowbell reports that Iron and Wine will be at Webster Hall on June 16 and 17 as part of an upcoming US tour.

- Congratulations to Menomena, who've been tapped to open up some of Gang of Four's west coast dates.

- And finally, Coolfer kicks off the '05 list-making with his top 3 of the year so far - Kings of Leon, Brazilian Girls, and Bloc Party. If I had to pick, I'd agree on Bloc Party and also go with PREfection by Cass McCombs and Naturally by Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings. (Yes, you read that right - no M.I.A. and no LCD Soundsystem, despite all the ink here.) It's early though, and there's a lot to be listened to. I've fallen really far behind on new stuff.

U2 - Glendale Arena, Glendale, AZ, 4.15.05



Bono calls Phoenix a miracle city. I don't know about that, but U2 seems to always put on a miracle show in this town and Friday night was no exception. Besides the "Miracle Drug" and the presence of "Yahweh", it was a song about heroin, "Bad", that put this show among the best I've ever seen.

Now you might wonder what insanity would draw me from the East Coast (and its 50-odd upcoming U2 dates) out to the edges of Phoenix sprawl land to see U2 in an arena with or without a team crisscrossed by multi-lane avenues with no names.

But there's a personal history here. I grew up in Arizona. In the spring of 1987 I saw my first U2 show in Tempe. I was there for the opening night of the Joshua Tree tour when Bono lost his voice and the crowd sang the words to every song. I was there, when they played Sun Devil Stadium, filming a movie. Outside that stadium I got Bono's autograph on the back of a PopMart poster in 1997. Since that show in April of '87, I've seen at least one U2 show in Arizona on every tour that's come through that state.

So, last Friday found me back in the desert for my first taste of the Vertigo experience. The scene: Glendale Arena, built for the Phoenix Coyotes, the NHL ice hockey team. It snows in Phoenix maybe once every five years. The whole city would dry up and fly away if it weren't for water channeled from the Colorado River. The arena was packed with mythical red staters, with parents and kids, with day trippers from Mexico and California and beyond.

I barely paid attention to Kings of Leon. Sorry Coolfer. This was not the place to appreciate them. My brother and I were on the floor, shut out from inside the elliptical ramp by the luck of the laptop draw. Standing next to the entrance of this Promised Land, we witnessed one Eva Longoria look-alike after another attempt to bargain her way past the security. Money was offered, as were sexual favors.

Knowing we couldn't compete with that, we managed to push our way to within 10 feet of the ramp, left side, The Edge's side. The Arcade Fire's "Wake Up" blared over the PA, lights go down, confetti falls and suddenly it's the "City of Blinding Lights". "Beautiful Day" followed, with "Vertigo" on its heels. There was no time for breathing. The opening drum beats of "Gloria" pushed us old-timers closer and closer to religious experience territory.

Later, the moment arrived. For the first time on this tour U2 played the tune for me: "Bad". Now I have probably 30 or 40 versions of this song on my computer. There's one or two that I come back to: the Live Aid rendition still stands as the definitive. Add Friday's performance to it. An amazing, goose-flesh version. I've got an MP3 of it now, but I don't know if I'll listen to it. Repetition may take steal the glory from the memory.

Frankly, the rest of the show was a blur. The next day I was tired, sore and hoarse. That's the real sign you've enjoyed yourself at a show.

Sonic Youth - Maxwell's 4.16.05



Sonic Youth started winning me over in high school with Dirty - I think it was the "Sugar Kane" video on 120 Minutes that did the trick - but it was seeing them live (Washing Machine tour, Roseland) that turned them into one of my favorite bands. I've seen them quite a few times since then, and even on the rare nights when they sound flat (like Sunday's Astoria show) I find them to be incredibly satisfying on stage. They were anything but flat at Saturday's early show at Maxwell's, and the result was an amazing show that I frankly feel very lucky to have seen. It was their first show there since 1988, and who knows when they will play a place that small again.

The band was clearly amped when they took the stage around 8:15, pointing out that "it was good to be back" (after 17 years) before starting with "I Love You Golden Blue." That song seems to start every Sonic Nurse show, and the setlist in general was pretty standard - but what a difference the venue makes. I called Sunday's setlist "predictable" and "uninspired" but in a place as tiny as Maxwell's it became almost exhilirating. The pristine sound and clear views had me noticing so many details that every song took on new life. For example, I'm not used to being so close to Steve Shelley - with his drums being unamplified, no less - but I finally realized that "New Hampshire," which usually bores me live, is all about his insistent groove. It ended up being one of my favorite songs of the show.

The show was all highlights though. It was the least noisy SY show I can remember but one of the tightest and most creative, and the band was in a great, chatty mood. "Pattern Recognition" and "Stones" both ruled as usual - the end of "Pattern" was relatively mellow (and segued into "Unmade Bed"), but the middle bridge had them extending their guitars out over the crowd (as you can see above!). Lee's songs were expectedly great, but the closest thing to a standout was the final trio of "Pacific Coast Highway" (when Kim went into the crowd) and an encore of "Catholic Block" and "Schizophrenia." I was so so happy to hear that encore, I couldn't have picked a better pair to end the show. I heard the late show ended with "Shadow of a Doubt" and "Expressway To Yr Skull" instead, and also swapped in "Skip Tracer" for "Eric's Trip." Very solid, but not "Schizophrenia."

I would have liked a longer set and a crazier crowd, but whatever - this was a fantastic show that was incredibly affirming for my love for this band. And the best part of an early show of Maxwell's? I could actually get on the PATH home at a reasonable hour!

SETLIST

I Love You Golden Blue / The Empty Page / Pattern Recognition / Unmade Bed / Eric's Trip / Stones / Paper Cup Exit / New Hampshire / Pacific Coast Highway

ENCORE: Catholic Block / Schizophrenia

(There are lots more pictures after the jump. Some are a bit samey, but they're all pretty good.)

Mini-Mutek NYC - May 7 at the Tonic

Events like this one are precisely why I'm thrilled the Tonic survived its winter eviction scare. On Saturday May 7, they'll be hosting Mini-Mutek NYC, a one-night version of Montreal's excellent Mutek Festival. It can't match Miami's Winter Music Conference for the big names (almost nothing can), but for electronic music that's a bit further off the mainstream (but often still quite accessible) Mutek is as good as it gets. This year's festival will be from June 1-5 in Montreal, with Sense Club (Ricardo Villalobos and Luciano), Monolake, Pan/Tone, Melchior Productions, and many others (over 100 in total) scheduled to appear. I have trouble recognizing many of the names, but I imagine Philip Sherburne's site will do a good job educating me in the coming months.

I won't be heading up to Montreal though. I'm tempted to do so at some point, but it can't be this year - but that's fine by me with Mini-Mutek NYC to look forward to. We get live performances from Akufen, Deadbeat, Vincent Lemieux, Crackhaus, and six others. I'm most psyched to hear Akufen live; he's one of my favorite microhouse producers, his singles and My Way LP being essential examples of the genre. ("Deck the House" (MP3) is the best point of entry to his sample-heavy style.) I really want to hear Akufen's new album, released under his own name (Marc Leclair) and called Musique Pour 3 Femmes Enceintes - Boomkat loves it.

I'm also excited to see Deadbeat and Crackhaus live at Mini-Mutek. Deadbeat's minimal, digital dub works quite well on record, and I enjoy the slightly dancier stuff (e.g. "40oz Funk" (MP3)) he does as half of Crackhaus. I'm sure all of these sets will go in some interesting directions live - it should be a great night. Tickets to Mini-Mutek NYC are $10 in advance ($15 day of) and available at Ticketweb now.

Annie - Tribeca Grand, 4.14.05

Since I'm a little late in chiming in on this one, I can tell you that my thoughts on Annie's Thursday show are somewhere between Central Village and Peephole (the bad) and Brooklyn Vegan and Fluxblog (the good). Which is not really a surprise - I went into the show with mixed expectations. I think Anniemal is a fantastic album, in fact I'm only liking it more with time, but I got the sense Annie would be a mixed bag live. The dynamics and details of her songs seem difficult to capture live. To be fair, Thursday's show with the Animals (or more likely, the Anniemals) as her backing band was just their fifth ever, and there were enough good moments that I can see them being a lot better in a year. "Come Together" sounded really nice, as the band finally came together (no pun intended), and the unreleased song "The Wedding" followed up well.

Early on though, they just didn't have it - they were not tight, not particularly confident, and the sound was off. Annie's vocals were low in the mix, and the band seemed to just plod along. Part of "Chewing Gum" vocals were sung by a band member through a vocoder, and he missed his cue once or twice. It also was way, way packed. I think the Tribeca Grand is a solid place to see a DJ (drink prices aside), but I'm mixed on it for live music.

Of course, the above aside, this show was all about the hype. Everyone in the crowd, whether they enjoyed it or not, left with a solid "Losing My Edge" moment. I'd be curious to know how Annie's live show develops with some practice, but for the time being I'll stick to my headphones. Though Anniemal deserves the attention, the live show has some catching up to do.

Oh and on the pictures I mentioned - mine came out just OK, nothing like Brooklyn Vegan's typically excellent shots. Head over there instead. (I'm really happy with my Sonic Youth Maxwell's photos though - those will be up soon.)

So last night's Annie show at the Tribeca Grand was PACKED beyond belief. I'll be away from a computer for most of today, but I'll have more thoughts and a couple pictures later. For now, here's the setlist:

Helpless Fool For Love / Always Too Late / Chewing Gum / Come Together / The Wedding // Heartbeat

More to come later...

Nouvelle Vague - Joe's Pub, 4.12.05



Nouvelle Vague's self-titled album last year was a remarkably satisfying listen considering the concept - acoustic bossanova covers of new wave and post-punk classics. By stripping each song down to its core and reimagining the context, they avoided being a novelty act - but my guess is they'll still be remembered more from mixtapes. On Tuesday, though, they showed they could also bring the goods live at a fun show at Joe's Pub.

Marc Collin and Olivier Libaux handle all of Nouvelle Vague's music, with a rotating cast of French singers handling the vocals. They brought only Camille and Melanie with them on tour, but both had great stage presence. They started the show with The Cure's "A Forest" and, by design, stuck to the hits from there. They played most of the album - "Just Can't Get Enough," "Love Will Tear Us Apart," "Making Plans for Nigel," "(This Is Not A) Love Song" (my favorite), "Teenage Kicks," and more. They also played some new ones, including "Bizarre Love Triangle" - which was good, but Frente did it first. "Guns of Brixton" was a standout, with Camille adding a nice scat trumpet solo at the end - closer to Michael Winslow than Sarah Vaughan. But "Too Drunk To F*ck" is the tune everyone will remember from this show. During the bridge, the singers said they weren't drunk enough - so they walked back to the bar. By the time I realized what was happening, they were standing on top of the bar and Camille was taking swigs (!) from a bottle of Courvoisier. They brought the bottle back on stage with them and picked the song up where they left off. Can't say I've seen that before.

All in all, a good time. This isn't the kind of show that'll blow your mind, but it was definitely entertaining. And it reminded me that Joe's Pub is one of the best venues for live music in NYC. I don't end up there often, but I always love it - great views, sound, and atmosphere. If only they could do something about those $9 vodka tonics.

(My pictures are a little blurry, BTW, but they were coming out much better without a flash. There are a couple more shots after the jump.)

Blues Explosion - CBGB's, 4.11.05




Though I'm a decidedly casual Blues Explosion fan, I have only the best memories of their live shows. I'd seen them twice before Monday - years ago, in New Haven on the Now I Got Worry tour and in Central Park on July 4 after Acme - and they blew me away both times. They absolutely ROCKED live, jumping around, thrashing away, barely letting up and always having a good time. They could get noisy, they could ride a groove, they'd mess around with a theremin, and Jon Spencer always made sure to shout "Blues Explosion!" every 90 seconds or so. They definitely have a shtick, and that's partly why I lost touch with them, but I was looking forward to seeing if they could still bring it live at CBGB's this week.

A friend of mine went to all 3 of the BX CBGB's shows and ranked Monday's as the weakest, but I still thought it was good. They came across as a very professional rock band, tight and experienced. Their live style hasn't changed much, for better or worse, and it makes for an easy show to get into. Monday's show was relatively sedate, but they played some of my favorite songs - "Wail," "2Kindsa Love," "Attack," and more. I also liked "Magical Colors" a lot, far more than on album. One thing I noticed is that Jon Spencer actually hangs his upper lip on the mic when he sings - probably how he gets that sneering sound. He had some good lines on Monday, and one topped them all - "the Blues Explosion is #1 at 625 Broadway!" (That's Matador's address.) Though the show didn't blow me away like in the past, I enjoyed it all and never got bored and that's all you can ask for.

This was my second visit to CBGB's, BTW, and the first that I can clearly remember. It's a very solid place to see a show - I wish they did a better job with their booking. There are plenty of horrible views in the back, but up close I had no complaints. You can definitely feel the history, and the (in)famous bathroom is indeed worth a visit. It'd be a shame to see it close.

The Sun, The Sand, Frank Black with a Tan!
The Pixies - Jones Beach, June 14

Just saw this one, on NME: The Pixies are returning to the U.S. for a summer tour, including a date at Jones Beach, June 14! I hate Jones Beach, but I will overlook that to see the Pixies one more time. But just one show? Look for multiple nights to follow an instant sell-out of the first date. No ticket information has been posted on Ticketmaster yet.

There's one other hitch: possible scheduling conflicts and budget depletion with Bloc Party's return to NYC, June 14-15 at Webster Hall. Those tickets go on sale today at noon.

Here's the rest of Pixies tour itinerary:

Portland - Roseland Theatre (May 26, 27)
George, WA - Sasquatch Festival (28)
San Francisco - Warfield (30)
Los Angeles - Wiltern Theatre (June 2)
Denver - Red Rocks (5)
Cleveland - Rock Hall Music Fest (8)
Cleveland - Scene Pavillion (8)
Atlanta - Midtown Festival (11)
Washington, D.C. - Merriweather (13)
Long Island - Jones Beach (14)

Sonic Youth - La Oveja Negra, 4.10.05





If you remember just one thing from this review, let it be this - La Oveja Negra is a venue to be avoided. I was excited to check it out at Sonic Youth's Sunday show, but my excitement didn't last long. It's bizarrely the top floor of a gym in Astoria, though not too difficult to get to. Getting inside is another story. Not only did security insist on full (and slow) patdowns for everyone, but they were also sending only 4-5 people up in the elevator at a time. Sonic Youth was scheduled to go on at 9:30, and at 9:15 I was half a block from the door with another half block of people behind me! The band got wind of the long lines and delayed their set, so it worked out in the end - but an hour wait to get into a venue is bad news. (I'll grant La Oveja Negra this - their huge $5 cups of sangria might be the best deal I've ever seen on booze at an NYC show.)

As for the show, I thought it was good but not as special as I'd hoped. The venue was partially at fault - the floor's odd layout made it a challenge to see anyone other than Thurston and Kim, and Thurston dominated the mix by me as well. The Sonic Youth shows I've seen with Jim O'Rourke in the band have been generally excellent, with the extra hands freeing everyone up (O'Rourke included) to go a little crazier, but it's way harder to appreciate that when you can't hear them all. Sound and vision aside, though, the band just didn't hit the sustained highs I've seen them get to before.

That said, they had their moments. Lee Ranaldo's songs - "Skip Tracer" and "Paper Cup Exit" - killed as usual and were my favorites of the night. Pound for pound, I think Lee's songs are SY's strongest. "Stones" and "Pattern Recognition" also rocked pretty hard. I'll always be partial to "Pattern" for the noise jam that ends it - this one had Thurston climbing the PA, guitar underneath him. But overall the setlist felt uninspired, a little too predictable. "Dude Ranch Nurse" and "New Hampshire" dragged a bit, and "Rain on Tin" (normally a highlight) felt rushed.

I've seen Sonic Youth a bunch, and I sense this show will fade into the pack despite being at the smallest club I've ever seen them play. Of course, it'll only hold that title for a few more days - they play Maxwell's this Saturday and I cannot wait. The venue alone will make it a standout. I just need to remember my earplugs.

SETLIST

I Love You Golden Blue / The Empty Page / Pattern Recognition / Unmade Bed / Skip Tracer / Plastic Sun / Stones / Dude Ranch Nurse / Mariah Carey and the Arthur Doyle Handcream / Paper Cup Exit / New Hampshire / Pacific Coast Highway

ENCORE: Rain on Tin / Expressway to Yr Skull

The Fiery Furnaces - Webster Hall, 4.09.05

I acknowledge the Fiery Furnaces aren't everyone's thing, but I find them to be an incredibly addictive band. Though Blueberry Boat locked up my '04 top slot early in the curve and Gallowsbird's Bark would've battled Echoes for the '03 crown had I heard it in time, my love for them still continues to grow - with EP, with Wednesday's KEXP session, with Thursday's Northsix show, and most recently with Saturday's Webster Hall show. Though they came out flat on Thursday, I liked the creative setlist and figured it was just an off night.

I expected another crack at the setlist on Saturday but instead the Furnaces went back to the non-stop medley that I'd seen a couple times last year, jumping between songs midstream and revamping the music throughout. Matt Friedberger actually apologized if it was boring to anyone who'd seen it before, but that was far from the case. Much like with the albums, I've picked up on new things with the medley each time I've heard it. It definitely caters to those that know the albums really well, as they sometimes sneak in the smallest of details while skipping over a song's more obvious bits. This brings its downsides - as SoF pointed out, the melodies can get lost and the songs can sound similar - but I think it captures the vibe of their albums much better than a straight set. The originals can be too dense to retain their dynamics live, and playing them in a medley keeps the cut-and-paste aesthetic that works so well on record.

Saturday's show ranks somewhere in the middle of my live Furnaces experiences. Though Eleanor's voice was hurting, the band was super tight. My favorite medley moments have been my favorites before - the way they scatter "Mason City" and "Chris Michaels" throughout the set, how "Asthma Attack" sounds different every time, Matt's first vocals of the set in "Chief Inspector Blancheflower" sliding into "Quay Cur" - but I liked their new, noisier take on "Don't Dance Her Down" and I loved the four new songs at the end of the show. In case you haven't figured it out by now, I'm really looking forward to their two upcoming albums. Those should be out by summer's end, and hopefully we'll get another show before then. I'll probably need my fix.

Fluxblog was also at the show and posted the setlist below, along with a medley MP3 from a September 2004 show. Central Village was also there.

Wolf Notes / Leaky Crystal / Worry Worry / Blueberry Boat / Worry Worry / Smelling Cigarettes / My Dog Was Lost But Now He's Found / Wolf Notes / Two Fat Feet / Straight Street / Two Fat Feet / Oregon (Mason City) / Name Game / Chief Inspector Blancheflower / Quay Cur / Tropical Iceland / Up In The North / Nabs (Mason City) / South Is Only A Home / Blueberry Boat / Bow Wow / Birdie Brain (heavy guitar version, no Matt vocals) / Asthma Attack / Don't Dance Her Down (new guitar line)/ Oregon (Mason City) / Chris Michaels (first line) / Evergreen / Mason City / Spaniolated / Chris Michaels (subcontinent section)/ Chris Michaels (Melinda section) / Wolf Notes / Quay Cur (Inuit section) / Quay Cur / Wolf Notes // (next three Matt & Eleanor only) Police Sweater Blood Vow / Teach Me, Sweetheart / I'm Waiting To Know You /// I'm Gonna Run / Rehearsing My Choir //// Here Comes The Summer / 1917

Normally, the only images we post on this site are related to music. Today, in tribute to Blogger's recent performance issues, I present my all-time favorite Blogger status message:



You know you're in trouble when you are having problems with the Problems page.


Now on to our usual stuff:

- Depeche Mode is working on a new album. Personally, I stopped caring about DM around 1993, but the name always brings back warm memories of my youth.

- From Data What comes this link to a gigantic resource of Radiohead artwork.

- NME isn't so into New Order's Waiting For The Sirens' Call either.

- Aphrodite-in-NYC went to last night's Kills show at the Bowery Ballroom and presents this Flickr photostream.

- Do I have to precede any mention of Robert Christgau with "dean of music critics"? Is that part of his official name? Anyhow, in the Village Voice, Mr. Christgau reviews some esoteric new releases from Blueprint, Atmosphere, and Bang on a Can. He awards "dud of the month" status to, among others, Beck, saying "Is that the world ending in his rearview mirror, or just his career?" I don't know, I kinda like Guero.

EDIT: I guess I read this article too quickly and thought Beck was in the duds category. He's actually in the honorable mentions for the albums of the week category, but you wouldn't know it from Christgau's comment. Thanks to Dave for pointing this out.

- Download Simple Minds - Changeling [20 Jazz Funk Greats]

- May I recommend:

Half-Headed Cloud - Thy is a Word & Feet Need a Lamp

Goldmund - Corduroy Road

Life Without Buildings - Any Other City

Two quick points of information:

- Tickets for Kraftwerk's gig at the Hammerstein on June 1 will be going on sale on Friday at 11 AM at Ticketmaster. Not to be missed! [via MMM]

- Tickets for Bloc Party's two Webster Hall shows on June 14 and June 15 will be going on sale tomorrow at noon according to PSNYC. I don't see them on Ticketweb yet, but they tend to add shows to their site at the last minute. I'm sure these will sell out quickly, so I recommend being prompt.

I'll be back later today with some show reviews, I promise...

Today's Sounds
Brought to You By Ulrich Schnauss

Live he may just be one man sitting behind a laptop, but the music Ulrich Schnauss creates from this simple setup is never dull. If you haven't heard either of his excellent albums, 2001's Far Away Trains Passing By or 2003's A Strangely Isolated Place, I highly encourage you to do so, immediately.

If you need convincing, Ulrich has posted some new* MP3s to download on his site. Here's three:

"Police in Cars With Headphones, "Live in Copenhagen", 1996"

"View to the Future "Pacific Stereo" 1997"

"Ethereal 77 "Somnambulism" 1999"

I'm going to miss out on his shows with M83 this week at the Bowery Ballroom, as I'm heading to Arizona for some family time (and to see U2 on Friday night). I was there the last time around and really enjoyed his set. Let's hope Ulrich doesn't break any bones this time.

Oh, I almost forgot to mention this: Ulrich is working on a new album which he plans to have finished this summer. I can't wait.

* I don't check his site that often so some of these tracks may not be new additions.

Annie at the Tribeca Grand on Thursday

Brooklyn Vegan has some details on this week's Annie shows. She's doing:

- A private session on Sirius satellite radio on Tuesday.
- A free show at the Tribeca Grand on Thursday.
- A DJ set at Misshapes on Saturday.

Thursday's the keeper here IMO - make sure you RSVP to sessions@tribecagrand.com to get in. I'm not sure how her live show will be, but I can't wait to find out.

Quite a weekend for shows for me - Bloc Party on Friday (which was totally awesome, as Jason said), round II with the Fiery Furnaces on Saturday (confirming that Thursday was just an off night), and Sonic Youth in Astoria last night (the first and last time I'll see a show at La Oveja Negra). More on those in a bit...

Bloc Party - Bowery Ballroom, 4.08.05

I recently did a search through our archives for mentions of Bloc Party and was surprised to find well over 30 instances, dating back to August, 2004. Since we've devoted plenty of space to them and there's no shortage of coverage around the blogosphere, I'll try to keep this review short.

It had been almost exactly six months since I first saw Bloc Party live. In the intervening months, much has changed for the band: they've released an acclaimed debut album, took Austin by Storm at SXSW, toured the U.S., and even played on the David Letterman show. Through it all Bloc Party's popularity and the surrounding volume of buzz has steadily climbed like mercury from Spring to Summer.

But after seeing them play their second U.S. show the Tribeca Grand Hotel last October, I wasn't so sure Bloc Party was worthy of its hype. They were good, not great, with only two remarkable songs, "Banquet" and "She's Hearing Voices". They would need to come up with the goods if they hoped to outlive flavor of the month status.

Unequivocally, the goods were delivered Friday night. Bloc Party were outstanding, playing a tight, energetic set that will be hard to top. I've never seen a Bowery crowd so into a band. Gone was the normal hipster chin stroking. It was replaced by actual movement - pogo-ing, even a little moshing at times.

The response even surprised the band, transforming them from shy and self-aware into rock stars. Rock stars. The between-song musical jokes were nowhere to be found. Bloc Party didn't need to put down their competition or play "name that tune" to get a rise out of the crowd. They just had to bash out their own songs, each a sing-along, and then be done with it, assuring that a June return for two at Webster Hall will be just the next logical step in the imminent ascendancy of this band. These rock stars.

Central Village was also at Friday's show and posted this review.

Pictures from Bloc Party - Bowery Ballroom, 4.08.05







More photos at Flickr

FRIDAY SHORTS

Because I don't have much of an attention span today...

- Fiery Furnaces overload! Check out this excellent interview with Matt Friedberger at Cokemachineglow, these great pictures of their KEXP session at Little Pants, and more KEXP shots (plus some of Dogs Die In Hot Cars) over at Daily Refill.

- Antena have reformed and will be playing the Tonic on May 19. AMG calls them "one of the lesser stars in the Factory Records universe" but I recently heard the reissue of Camino del Sol and I liked it quite a bit. This show is only $5. BTW, I neglected to mention it but the Tonic has officially (and thankfully) been saved from eviction! Word is they're planning a celebration party, but no details yet.

- Check out this old but great interview at iJamming with the Dewaele brothers AKA Soulwax AKA 2ManyDJ's. Fascinating stuff, especially the part where they talk about licensing tracks for all their mash-ups. [via MMM]

- Chemistry Class has a few interesting items of note - two Sleater-Kinney interviews and David Byrne's new 3 hour playlist streaming from his site. What's Mr. Byrne digging? The Arcade Fire (natch), Arthur Russell, The Notwist, Biz Markie, and plenty more including lots of - I hate the term - "world" music.

- Still no details on next week's Annie shows, but we hear she's been signed to Atlantic Records.

- We get a singles compilation in May and now a Belle and Sebastian biography from Paul Whitelaw in August. It's called Just A Modern Rock Story and the band is participating in the project with extended interviews and more. [via Peephole]

- Sufjan Stevens takes the lead for tracklisting of the year with Illinois, due out on July 5 according to Pitchfork. I'm excited to hear this.

- Does anyone know what you call a keyboard that gets held like a guitar? Because man, this woman is feeling it.

The Document Contains No Data

Brandon Flowers is at it again. Dude, just shut your mouth. In an interview with Rolling Stone the Killers lead singer made a few choice comments about the difference between American and English audiences. He also relates a rather precise bit of feedback he received from David Bowie.

"I think they [British audiences] appreciate music more in England," Flowers told RS. "Because they're not as spoiled as we are, you know, with the movies and cars and toys."

Yeah, no one England has a car. They're still using ye olde horse and buggy.

Here's his Bowie comment:

"He [David Bowie] came backstage afterward, and I shook his hand, and he said, 'I felt like I just saw the history of rock & roll'. I think he was basically saying we rip off from every genre."

There you have it folks. Brandon Flowers admits the Killers are rip-offs.

Elsewhere:

Röyksopp have a new album coming out! Yeah, it's about time. Titled The Understanding, it will be released June 27th in the U.K. (most likely June 28 in the U.S.). The album is described as being "more about melody". I'm a big fan of Röyksopp and their debut album Melody AM, so I can't wait till this one is leaked, err, released. Here's the tracklisting:

Triumphant / Only This Moment [the first single] / 49 Percent / Boys / Follow My Ruin / Beautiful Day / What Else Is There? / Circuit Breaker / Alpha Male / Someone Like You / Dead to the World

Autechre have a streaming radio station [via Mystery and Misery]

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer writes about the effects of instrument theft upon musicians. The article mentions recent thefts involving the Decemberists and Supersuckers.

(I borrowed the headline of today's post from Data What. It seems to perfectly sum up both Brandon Flowers's comments and the performance of Blogger recently.)

The Fiery Furnaces - Northsix, 4.07.05

Walking into Northsix last night, I was really curious to see how the Fiery Furnaces would kick off their new tour. It was my fourth Furnaces show (well, 4.5 if you count KEXP) and the first three were all about their cut-and-paste live style, jumping between songs midstream with rearranged music and no breaks. Like their albums, it was full of surprises and a wealth of details. I expected the same last night, just with different songs and a different order.

Instead, the Furnaces played the most straight-up set I've seen from them. Not only were they taking breaks every few songs, but they were also playing the songs straight through - no snippets. The music was still rearranged - often sped up, generally weirder - but they played most of each song. And most interestingly, each set of songs was a section of an album played in order. Though it took some of the surprise out of it, I liked looking for the transitions. "I'm Gonna Run" into "Leaky Tunnel" and "Crystal Clear" into "Two Fat Feet" worked especially well.

The Gallowsbird's Bark songs in general were the night's highlights, though the two new songs were great. Between "Rehearsing My Choir Group," which had lots of lyrics about football, and "Police Sweater Blood Vow," which they played on KEXP on Wednesday (download it at Fluxblog), I'm really looking forward to the new albums.

Overall though, this was the worst Fiery Furnaces show I've seen. I'm used to them roaring through their set and they were definitely rusty last night. (Eleanor even forgot lyrics a couple times.) The new arrangements are also very keyboard-heavy which, along with them playing the songs straight through, robbed their set of some variety. It honestly got a little boring at times. But I think those issues will disappear with practice. You could tell that they were just getting used to the new approach, and I'm sure they'll be back up to par soon. They actually said "Thanks for sitting through our first show" at the end. I'll be at Webster Hall on Saturday for round II, and I'm curious to see how it compares. I'm looking forward to it.

I like Northsix as a venue, BTW, but there's no reason for them to have the headliner start after 11:30 on a school night. I got home well after 1, which is ridiculous. Dios Malos were good and I liked what I heard from Blood on the Wall, but next time I could do with one fewer opener.

(The best part of the new Furnaces setlist - I actually remembered the whole thing without writing it down!)

SETLIST

Rehearsing My Choir Group (new) / Quay Cur -> Straight Street -> Blueberry Boat / Single Again -> Here Comes The Summer -> Evergreen -> Sing For Me (Eleanor vox) / I'm Gonna Run -> Leaky Tunnel -> Up In The North / Spaniolated -> 1917 -> Birdie Brain / Paw Paw Tree -> My Dog Was Lost But Now He's Found -> Mason City (Matt + Eleanor switched vox) / Asthma Attack -> Don't Dance Her Down -> Crystal Clear -> Two Fat Feet -> Bow Wow

Tropical Ice-Land -> Sullivan's Social Slub (few lines) / Police Sweater Blood Vow (new) / Chris Michaels (middle)

Leaders of the Free World - Coming to Brooklyn



It's not often, for me at least, to have a friend in a band and that band does not suck. Of course, it's not easy to tell your band-sucking friend how you feel, unless of course sucking is their goal. In which case you should remind your friend as often as possible that his or her band is complete and utter crap.

But I can't tell my friend and co-worker Jeff, aka "Teen Wolf", that his band Leaders of the Free World suck. Because they don't. High praise, right? "Hey man, your band doesn't suck" is not exactly a great compliment. So let me say this a different way: Leaders don't suck, they're actually really good. Sure, I'm a little biased, but you can decide for yourself. Here's how:

1. Check out these three MP3s:

EDIT: Leaders have updated the MP3s on The Holster and the song that was once "Drugs III" is now titled "Friends III". The Holster site also has new recordings of all of the previously offered tracks plus five new tunes.

Download them all here.

2. See them live at Tommy's Tavern, in Greenpoint, April 16.

3. Buy their CD, which will be released in the next couple months with help from their friends at Dogg and Pony Records.

Other Stuff:

EDIT: The Shins were on NPR's Morning Edition today. Click here to listen to an archive of the show.

Donewaiting reports that bit torrent site Easy Tree has decided to shut down rather than fight a possible law suit. Expectedly, Largehearted Boy has comments on this as well.

The first single from the upcoming White Stripes album will be titled "Blue Orchid". It will be released April 18 in the U.K. No word on a U.S. date.

Yeah Yeah Yeah's singer Karen O will release a solo track, "Squeak E Clean" on iTunes next week. According to Drowned in Sound, the song is "quiet and acoustic" and will be used in a shoe commercial.

Sound & Vision:

Four Tet has a video out for his new single "Smile Around the Face". Watch it here.

Bloc Party: Lamacq Session, January 3, 2005 [Dave McGurgan]

Annie in NYC Next Week?

We'd heard rumblings of Annie playing NYC next week, and now All The Young Mod Soldiers has some details:

Tuesday 12 April - Private show at Tribeca Grand
Thursday 14 April - DJ Set at Tribeca Grand
Saturday 16 April - DJ Set at MisShapes

I actually heard just yesterday that these shows were not happening, and that Annie had postponed her visit to wait for Anniemal's domestic release. So I'm not sure what's up here, but either way I'll post more details as I learn them. Stay tuned. Thanks to Darren for the tip on this.

The Fiery Furnaces - Live on KEXP, 4.06.05

There's nothing like watching the Fiery Furnaces play a few songs during your lunch hour. I checked out their live session on KEXP today at the Museum of Television and Radio and it was much more intimate than I expected, with only about 25 seats in the studio. This was the Furnaces' third KEXP session, but the first with just Matt and Eleanor (who was looking rather fetching, I must say). They played an acoustic set of four songs with a nice interview in the middle.

It's interesting to hear acoustic versions of Furnaces songs because they're so dense on album. With just the two of them, they strip away everything but the core - which means the three new songs we heard, by Matt's admission, will sound completely different on album. For what it's worth, they sounded great with just an acoustic guitar - and I was really happy that they also played "Here Comes The Summer," one of my favorites on EP. They said they won't be playing the new ones much on their upcoming tour (starting tomorrow at Northsix), but their new albums should be released by summer's end - one by the name of Bitter Teeth (or Tea?) , and the other with a long name I can't remember. (The title I can't remember is the one to feature their grandmother.) And they're already at work on a third new LP - the last song they played is from that "new new" album.

I'm a huge fan of both Furnaces albums, so needless to say I'm excited for the next two. And in the meantime, I have their shows tomorrow and Saturday to focus on - this afternoon was a nice warm-up. You should be able to hear an archive of the performance here starting tomorrow.

(I may be slightly off on the new album/song names, but I'm guessing Fluxblog will have something up tomorrow with the correct names.)

SETLIST

Teach Me Sweetheart (new) / Here Comes The Summer / I'm Waiting To Know You (new) / ? (new)

WEDNESDAY SHORTS

- Advance tickets are sold out for this weekend's Christopher Guest performance/conversation at MOMA, but 150 same-day tickets will be available at the museum starting at 10:30 AM on Saturday.

- Also, tickets are on sale now for LCD Soundsystem with the Juan Maclean at Webster Hall on June 10.

- The National are playing a record release party for Alligator next Tuesday at Supreme Trading in Williamsburg. Admission is free, some of the booze is free, and the National will be playing a "short set" at 9. I use quotes because Dead Meadow's set was anything but short when they did the same thing at Supreme Trading for Feathers.

- Minimal dub producers Rhythm and Sound (Mark Ernestus and Moritz von Oswald, who have also gone by Basic Channel) will be playing two nights at Cielo on April 18 and 19, apparently their first-ever US performances aside from a one-off in Detroit years ago. These gigs are to celebrate the two-year anniversary of Deep Space, the weekly dub party at Cielo that I'd go to far more often if it wasn't on Mondays.

- Thurston Moore on the power of the mix tape. [via Peephole]

- Morgan Geist will be spinning at AllDisco at Capone's next Saturday (4/16). After each party, the AllDisco site not only tells you what each DJ played but also lets you download the actual sets here. (March 19 is currently up, but more are archived at the bottom of the page.) More parties need to do this!

Wednesday Morning Reading

Yesterday I mentioned that I missed out on buying tickets for New Order's Cinco De Mayo show at Hammerstein. Now hope has returned to my heart: New Order Online is reporting that the band is considering adding a second NYC show, due to the demand for tickets. There's no other details to share at the moment, but hopefully this will happen.

Elsewhere:

Bloc Party has postponed its show in Philly tonight due to Kele Okereke losing his voice. BP are schedule to play tomorrow and Friday at the Bowery Ballroom. At this time there's no word on the status of these shows. Thanks to Music For Robots for this. Bloc Party is also scheduled to perform on David Letterman this evening. I wouldn't be surprised if they postpone this too. Stay tuned.

Xfm interviewed Franz Ferdinand's Alex Kapranos about the band's new album. Kapranos cites Highway 61-era Bob Dylan and David Bowie as the album's prime influences. "I don't think we'll end up sounding like Dylan and The Band." Kapranos said in the article. "But I just love the rhythm of his lyrics, they're fantastic. Not the same subject matter, or the same singing style, but definitely the rhythm of his lyrics and listening to people who are adventurous with the rhythm of their words."

The Village Voice offers up several streaming downloads (audio and video) from French artists Carla Bruni, Coralie Clement, Keren Ann, and Nouvelle Vague. Also on a French tip, Brooklyn Vegan posts on the rising quality of French music.

Some Sounds:

From the Prefixmag Forums, six Portishead remixes. [Via Totally Fuzzy]

A huge collection of live and rare Siouxsie, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Creatures and Steven Severin MP3s.

Tuesday Sounds and More

I have to be the biggest loser there is right now. After pimping New Order's upcoming NYC show at the Hammerstein Ballroom on May 5th, I forgot to buy tickets last Friday and got shut out. Idiot! New Order Online reports that the show sold out in 20 minutes - not a surprise. I'll have to troll the Craig's List waters or hope for a helping hand from a friend. I can't miss this show.

Having said that, I'm having a hard time getting into Waiting For The Sirens' Call. "Krafty" is an amazing song, deserving a place in the pantheon of great New Order pop songs. The rest just doesn't do much for me. Yet.

Elsewhere:

PopMatters reviews Stars and Apostle of Hustle in San Diego and M.I.A. in Philly.

The Guardian Unlimited pans the Four Tet/Steve Reid collaboration.

Glorious Noise interviews Alexandra Patsavas, the music supervisor for The O.C. Patsavas reveals the show receives over 400 CDs a week and will feature Bloc Party and new Spoon tracks in future episodes.

Now, onto the sounds (all MP3s today):

Boards of Canada remix Beck's "Broken Drum" [Radio Free Polygon]

The Go-Betweens - Live at the Barbican (2004) [Bryn and Lucy]

The Shins - "Baby Boomerang" (T-Rex cover) [Revolution in the Head]

LCD Soundsystem - Bowery Ballroom, 4.02.05

Hectic day today, and there's already been a flurry of action on Saturday's LCD Soundsystem show. Jason's pictures, Brooklyn Vegan's pictures, More in the Monitor, Fluxblog, Tale of Two Cities, The Modern Age, and more (I'm sure) have all covered the show pretty well. My two cents - it was great show, but start-to-finish I wasn't as wowed as on Halloween. As Amy mentioned in her MITM review, LCD on any night are better than most of the pack; unlike the first time, though, I didn't leave in complete awe of what I had just witnessed. I'm chalking that up to expectations, because there was a lot to like about this show and I think the band really clicked after the first few songs.

There was a subtlety missing early on. The band came out hard and the songs seemed a little fast, settling into similar grooves with key details (the chugging "Give It Up" guitar, the "Daft Punk" keyboards) getting lost. But right around "On Repeat" (incidentally my least favorite song on the album), I thought they clicked and from then on was gold. "Thrills" feels like a bit of a throwaway on record but came off far more dynamic on stage, as did the already explosive "Movement" - when the crowd (nuts all night) didn't even wait for the guitars before moshing.

"Losing My Edge" and "Yeah" were expected highlights, so I was most psyched to see them play their Harry Nilsson cover "Jump Into The Fire," the "Daft Punk" B-side that is fast becoming one of my favorite LCD songs and was Saturday's peak. All in all, a fun time and I'll certainly be back on June 10 when they play Webster Hall. The Juan Maclean will actually be making a rare live appearance to open up that show, so get there early. (Oh, and hopefully next time they'll play "Never As Tired As When I'm Waking Up" or "Great Release.")

SETLIST

Beat Connection / Too Much Love / Give It Up / Daft Punk Is Playing At My House / On Repeat / Thrills / Tribulations / Movement / Jump Into The Fire (Harry Nilsson) / Losing My Edge / Slowdive (Siouxsie and the Banshees) / Yeah

Monday Morning Sounds

Still coming down from that excellent LCD Soundsystem show on Saturday night. I share Matty Fluxblog's opinion that LCD's cover of Harry Nilsson's "Jump Into the Fire" was the high point of the show.

- Harry Nilsson: Jump Into the Fire [From Fluxblog]

EDIT: I just had to add this track:

- LCD vs. Janet Jackson: Janet Jackson is Playing At My House [From Between Thought And Expression]

Others:

- New Order: Krafty (Japanese language version) [From The Suburbs Are Killing Us]

- New Order: Thieves Like Us live, 7.20.83 (scroll down the page for this track) [From New-Order.net]

- Two Ian Brown shows: Manchester, 6.12.03 and Holborn, 11.11.99 [Via Kingblind]

- My Bloody Valentine: Paris, 3.17.92

- Beck: Morning Becomes Eclectic, 3.31.05 [Flac]

Photo Set From LCD Soundsystem @ Bowery Ballroom, April 2, 2005

Here are a few photos I took last night. Look for a review and more pictures tomorrow.

Brooklyn Vegan just made my rainy day. Kraftwerk will be at the Hammerstein Ballroom on June 1, one of six upcoming US shows:

5/30 - 9:30 Club, Washington DC
5/31 - 9:30 Club, Washington DC
6/1 - Hammerstein Ballroom, New York
6/3 - State Theatre, Detroit
6/4 - Riviera Theatre, Chicago
6/6 - Greek Theatre, LA

Nice!

Weekend Downloading

Just in case you're trying to complete your set of bootlegs from the U2 Vertigo tour, last night's show in Anaheim was just added to Easy Tree.

- U2: Anaheim, 4.1.05

Previously:
- U2: San Diego, 3.30.05 (Including "Gloria", played for the first time since 1990)

- U2: Opening Night, San Diego, 3.28.05

Because Largehearted Boy is the master of the Bittorrent downloads I won't include any others. Rather, go check out his picks for today, including Yo La Tengo at Tonic on 3.29.05, Hope Sandoval (!) in Portland from 2002 and much more.

FRIDAY SHORTS

- Stereogum reports on Insound's top ten records of 2005 so far. Black Mountain (which I guess I need to hear), Bloc Party, and LCD Soundsystem take the top 3 spots, respectively. M.I.A. is nowhere to be found, though a couple '04 releases somehow made the cut. Either way, it's nice to see Cass McCombs take #7 with the excellent PREfection.

- LCD Soundsystem, BTW, will be playing Webster Hall on June 10 - one of just a handful of their tour dates to not have M.I.A. opening up. I'm definitely excited to see LCD tomorrow at the Bowery, though it feels like a non-event next to their Halloween show. LCD just seems a bit more mortal now, more like a regular band now that their album is out, they've done lots of press, they're touring, etc. Still, I expect big things. After all my gushing over the last show, would you have guessed anything less?

- Pure Volume has three Decemberists MP3's available here, including a cover of Bjork's "Human Behavior" that works surprisingly well. Oh and speaking of Bjork, Oliver Stone is making a movie about her life. It's called Big Time Sensuality and apparently Kelly Osbourne is the favorite for the lead role. Yikes! (EDIT - I'm an idiot, this must be an April Fools joke. At least I hope so.)

- The BBC inexplicably requested an interview with Bob Marley. I love that they confirmed this wasn't an April Fools joke. [via MMM]

- I've wanted a proper copy of Gang of Four's Entertainment! for quite a while, but I haven't been able to stomach the import prices. My problem will be solved on May 17th, when Entertainment! will be back in print in the US. We get eight bonus tracks too - the four songs of the Yellow EP and four previously unreleased tracks, including a "Sweet Jane" cover. [via Coolfer]

- 10 years ago, I would have reported this news within seconds of hearing it. Now it takes me a few weeks. Pearl Jam are almost done with their follow-up to the excuse for a tour that was Riot Act. For the record - I enjoyed every PJ album up until Riot Act, though some have aged better than others. According to Rolling Stone, the new one could be out as soon as May.

- Kompakt is releasing a new mix by Superpitcher on May 17th. It's called Today and DJ Martian has the tracklisting. Looks tasty. Also, word is Dominik Eulberg will have a mix 2CD out on Kompakt this summer. If it's anything like his Flora Und Fauna album on Traum, I'm sure I'll dig it.

- I'm inclined to agree with Dip Dip Dive - the vocal tracks on Justus Kohncke's Doppelleben don't warrant the hype, but the four minutes and twenty seconds of "Schwabylon" make up for them and then some. My outdated iPod doesn't track play counts, but I doubt I've listened to any song more this year.

- Bass Wolf, RIP. I only saw Guitar Wolf once, at the Matador 10th Anniversary shows, but man did they rock.

Stephen Malkmus - Face The Truth, A Preview

I know I risk being branded a heretic or worse by some for admitting that I never quite "got" Pig Lib. I can't really explain convincingly why it never connected with me. I enjoyed Stephen's first solo album quite a bit more, but it seems the conventional wisdom of the collective may be against me. So if it's the case that true SM fans consider the solo debut too "pop" and Pig Lib is a far superior product, I suppose I'll forever wander the outskirts of true acceptance into the cult.

This leads me to Face the Truth and an admission I am confident to make: this may be my favorite SM album yet. It's early, but that's what I'm feeling.

Now I have to back that opinion up, don't I? I wish I could play "It Kills" for you and let you perhaps come to the same conclusion. Or how about "Kindling for the Master" where we find Malkmus throwing his nonsense at us quickly, while squishy synths that would make the Fiery Furnaces proud slide about making a fine mess of the place. "Freeze the Saints" is a lost classic from Automatic for the People, "No More Shoes" pleases the noise urge and "Mama" is a melodic overdose.

On Truth, Malkmus has distilled the best bits of his previous solo works: the ebullient pop of Stephen Malkmus, the elastic spirit of Pig Lib and produced from these perhaps his most diverse and imaginative collection of songs yet.

Face the Truth is released May 24, 2005 on Matador Records.

Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks play Irving Plaza, June 7, 2005. Tickets are on sale now.