Ed Droste of Grizzly Bear talks about the band's next album with Billboard.

The Schenectady Daily Gazette offers its summer reading suggestions.

see also: my list of summer reading lists

At the Penguin blog, author Nick Hornby weighs in on the current state of e-books.

Attempting to sell people something for four hundred pounds that merely enables them to read something that they won’t buy at one hundredth of the price seems to me a thankless task. (A member of staff at Borders told me that he attempted to persuade a young and famous comedian to buy an Iliad last week. He seemed interested, until he was told the price, at which point he swore loudly and walked away. So at the moment, they are priced too high for millionaire showbusiness entertainers.)

The Edmonton Sun lists comic book films currently in production o in the planning phase.

The Telegraph lists the ten greatest Doctor Who episodes ever.

KEXP features Firewater with an interview and in-studio performance.

Drowned in Sound interviews Ratatat's Evan Mast.

NPR recommends a summerreading list of superhero books.

Drowned in Sound interviews El Perro del Mar's Sarah Assbring.

Martin Atkins talks to NPR's All Things Considered about his new book, Tour: Smart.

In his recent book, Tour: Smart, and its companion DVD, Atkins has compiled his experiences to create a valuable resource for any aspiring touring musician or band. Atkins is now touring the country himself, telling bands all the things they don't tell themselves.

The Futurist recaps the Black Angels' recent WOXY Lounge Act session with a couple of the in-studio mp3s.

also at Largehearted Boy:

daily mp3 downloads
Try It Before You Buy It (mp3s and full album streams from this week's CD releases)
this week's CD releases

tags: music books popculture indie news

Today's free and legal mp3 downloads:

Acid Mothers Temple: 2008-06-18, San Francisco [mp3,ogg,flac]
other Acid Mothers Temple music blog posts at Largehearted Boy

Jonathan Segel: 2008-06-29, San Francisco [mp3,ogg,flac]
"Angels" [mp3]
other Jonathan Segel music blog posts at Largehearted Boy

Local H: 2008-06-21, Milwaukee [mp3,ogg,flac]
"BMW Man" [mp3]
Local H: 2008-05-08, Chicago [mp3,ogg,flac]
"Lovey Dovey" [mp3]
other Local H music blog posts at Largehearted Boy

Low: 1999-03-25, Radio K [mp3,ogg,flac]
"Starfire" [mp3]
Low: 1998-11-14, Duluth [mp3,ogg,flac]
"Landlord" [mp3]
other Low music blog posts at Largehearted Boy

Robyn Hitchcock: 1999-08-18, New York [mp3,ogg,flac]
"Listening to the Higsons" [mp3]
other Robyn Hitchcock music blog posts at Largehearted Boy

Rose Hill Drive: 2008-06-15, Iowa City [mp3,ogg,flac]
"Trans Am" [mp3]
other Rose Hill Drive music blog posts at Largehearted Boy

Victor Krummenacher: 2008-06-29, San Francisco [mp3,ogg,flac]
"The Southern Heights" [mp3]
other Victor Krummenacher music blog posts at Largehearted Boy

Bittorrent downloads will resume tomorrow

also at Largehearted Boy:

previous mp3 and bittorrent downloads

2008 Bonnaroo downloads
2008 Coachella music downloads
2008 SXSW music downloads and streams
2007 Austin City Limits Music Festival downloads
2007 Lollapalooza downloads
other music festival downloads

Try It Before You Buy It (mp3s and album streams from weekly CD releases)
weekly CD release lists

tags: music download indie mp3 bittorrent

"List your favorite record from every year you’ve been alive."


rumours (1977)

Well, this was fun. The following exercise was inspired by this post (which was inspired by this one), and it turned out to be much harder than I anticipated. No set guidelines, but I tried to base my list on some arbitrary combination of which record I liked best then, and which one is my favorite now. Kind of fun to do this with the advantage of hindsight, because this might be a pretty embarrassing exercise otherwise. I mean, not for me of course, but probably for some of yall. Certain years were harder than others, obviously -- see my cheating in '96, '98, and '06 -- but if there's anything definitive about my list, it's that my formative years were completely dominated by hip-hop:

1977 Fleetwood Mac - Rumours
1978 Blondie - Parallel Lines
1979 Michael Jackson - Off the Wall
1980 Young Marble Giants - Colossal Youth
1981 Lizzy Mercier Descloux - Mambo Nassau
1982 Michael Jackson - Thriller
1983 Madonna - Madonna (shut up)
1984 Run DMC - Run DMC
1985 L.L. Cool J - Radio
1986 Run DMC - Raising Hell
1987 Eric B. & Rakim - Paid in Full
1988 Public Enemy - It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back
1989 De La Soul - 3 Feet High and Rising
1990 Public Enemy - Fear of a Black Planet
1991 A Tribe Called Quest - The Low End Theory
1992 Dr. Dre - The Chronic
1993 A Tribe Called Quest - Midnight Marauders
1994 Digable Planets - Blowout Comb
1995 GZA - Liquid Swords
1996 Outkast - ATLiens | Stereolab - Emporer Tomato Ketchup
1997 Radiohead - OK Computer
1998 Tripping Daisy - Jesus Hits Like the Atom Bomb | Outkast - Aquemini
1999 Ol' Dirty Bastard - Nigga Please
2000 Ghostface Killah - Supreme Clientele
2001 The Strokes - Is This It
2002 The Streets - Original Pirate Material
2003 Sufjan Stevens - Michigan
2004 Arcade Fire - Funeral
2005 M.I.A. - Arular
2006 Grizzly Bear - Yellow House | J Dilla - Donuts | Clipse - Hell Hath No Fury | The Knife - Silent Shout
2007 Panda Bear - Person Pitch
2008 (so far) White Denim - 11 Songs

***********************************

I tried to assemble my list as quickly as possible, but if you decide to waste your 4th of July weekend doing this, you might use this or this as your guide. And, as always, let's see your lists (or links to your lists).

DOWNLOAD: Jane Vain & The Dark Matter - C'mon Baby Say Bang Bang (MP3)

Spin of you like Cat Power. More pics from Jane Vain & The Dark Matter's Saturday show (June 28, 2008) at Sled Island below...

Read more about them @ Chromewaves.

PREVIOUSLY: Of Montreal - Sled Island pics, new album info, tour dates

photos by Rae Holtsabum

I scurried over to the sold-out The Grand Theatre to catch most of RZA's set. The Wu-Tang Clan producer/MC performed as his Bobby Digital alter-ego and controlled the crowd with "Long Time Coming" and "Booby Trap" from the just-released Digi Snacks LP. The set was dominated by material from that album, and RZA turned the gig into a kick-ass block party.

Near the end, he broke out older classics "Wu Tang Clan Ain't Nuthing Ta F' Wit," "Reunited" and "Shame On A Nigga" near the end. They all made the crowd of mostly college kids go absolutely ape-shit, and it was a perfect way to close out my coverage of the fest. [Chart Attack]RZA's tour as Bobby Digital is almost over. He hits Webster Hall in NYC this Saturday July 5th. Tickets are still on sale.

Other artists Rae caught on day three (June 27, 2008) of the Sled Island Festival in Calgary included Broken Social Scene, Tegan and Sara, and Yo La Tengo. The rest of the pics from that day below....

Broken West...

Wet Secrets...

Portastatic...

Ramblin' Ambassadors...

Yo La Tengo...

Elliott Brood...

Tegan and Sara...

RZA...

PREVIOUSLY: Broken Social Scene @ Sled Island 2008, Calgary - pics

Eddie Vedder Embarks on Second Leg of Solo TourTour Kicks Off August 1st in Boston and Ends August 22nd in Chicago

TICKETS ON SALE FRIDAY, JULY 11th

Eddie Vedder will embark on a month-long solo tour beginning August 1st in Boston and ending August 22nd in Chicago with select dates in Canada (full list of tour dates below).

Tickets for the general public will go on sale on Friday, July 11, 2008 through www.ticketmaster.com or at Ticketmaster outlets.

The base ticket price for all shows is $75 plus additional venue, service and handling fees. There is a four-ticket limit for the public on sale.

A special, limited ticket pre-sale for current active members of Pearl Jam's Ten Club will begin at 9 am PDT on July, 7, 2008 and run through 5 pm PDT on July 9, 2008 at www.pearljam.com. There is a two-ticket limit for the Ten Club pre-sale.

Liam Finn will open these shows.


The second leg of Eddie Vedder's solo tour comes on the heels of his sold-out West Coast solo tour in April 2008.

Eddie Vedder Solo Tour Dates:

DATE CITY VENUE

8/1/08 Boston Opera House
8/2/08 Boston Opera House
8/4/08 New York United Palace Theater
8/5/08 New York United Palace Theater
8/7/08 Newark New Jersey Performing Arts Center
8/9/08 Montreal, QC Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier/Place
8/12/08 Toronto, ON Massey Hall
8/13/08 Toronto, ON Massey Hall
8/16/08 Washington, DC Warner Theatre
8/17/08 Washington, DC Warner Theatre
8/19/08 Milwaukee The Riverside Theater
8/21/08 Chicago Auditorium Theatre
8/22/08 Chicago Auditorium Theatre

Welcome once again to the Pitchfork Guide to Upcoming Releases, our seasonal guide to upcoming releases! This installment covers a wide swath of the crucial cuts you'll be jamming on through the summer and into the fall, from LPs and EPs to singles and music-related DVDs of note.

Compiling such a list isn't easy in this day and age, with different release dates for digital and physical versions of albums, as well as different release dates for different countries. So we tried to stick with North American physical release dates as much as possible, with exceptions as noted. When an album's North American release date differs from its overseas one, we also made a note of that. Keep in mind that release dates are as shifty as manual transmission, and any one of these is subject to change at any moment.

07-04:

Various Artists: Independents Day ‘08 Compilation

07-07:

Beck: Modern Guilt [XL] [UK release]
Black Kids: Partie Traumatic [Almost Gold] [UK release]
Hercules and Love Affair: "You Belong" single [DFA/EMI] [UK release]
Tricky: Knowle West Boy [Domino] [UK release]
UNKLE:  End Titles... Stories for Film [Surrender All] [UK/European release]

07-08:

Alison Moyet: The Turn [Decca]
Architecture in Helsinki: Like It or Not EP [Polyvinyl] [physical release]
A Storm of Light: And We Wept the Black Ocean Within [Neurot]
Abe Vigoda:  Skeleton [PPM]
The Baseball Project:  Volume 1: Frozen Ropes and Dying Quails [Yep Roc]
Basic Channel: Basic Channel 2 [Basic Channel]
Beck: Modern Guilt [DGC] [North American release]
Black Ghosts: Black Ghosts [IAMSOUND]
Cam'Ron: Harlem’s Greatest [reissue] [Amalgam Entertainment/Sony BMG]
Chicks on Speed: Art Rules [Chicks on Speed]
CocoRosie: "God Has a Voice, She Speaks Through Me" 7" [Touch and Go]
Daedelus: Love to Make Music To [Ninja Tune]
Damon and Naomi: More Sad Hits [reissue] [20/20/20]
Dark Captain Light Captain: Circles [Loaf]
David Bowie: Live in Santa Monica '72 [Virgin/EMI]
The Dutchess and the Duke:  She's the Dutchess, He's the Duke [Hardly Art]
Ellen Allien: Sprung/Its 12" [Bpitch Control]
Free Blood: "Royal Family" 12" [DFA]
Goldmund: The Malady of Elegance [Type]
Gun Outfit: On the Beach 7" [PPM]
Albert Hammond, Jr.: ¿Como te Llama? [RCA/RED] [North American release]
Heartthrob: Dear Painter, Paint Me [Minus]
Hero Destroyed: Hero Destroyed [Relapse]
Icy Demons: Miami Ice [Obey Your Brain]
Jean Grae: Jeanius [Blacksmith Music]
Joe Strummer: The Future Is Unwritten DVD [Sony Legacy]
Jucifer: L'autichienne [Alternative Tentacles] [vinyl release]
Leila: Blood, Looms & Blooms [Warp]
Liars: Freak Out EP [Mute] [U.S.digital release]
Lustmord: [Other] [Hydra Head]
Melvins: Nude With Boots [Ipecac]
Noisia: FABRICLIVE40 [Fabric]
Paramount Styles: Failure American Style [Konkurrent]
Party Fowl: Four-song 7" [PPM]
Ratatat: LP3 [XL]
Ron Sexsmith: Exit Strategy of the Soul [Yep Roc]
Saturday Looks Good to Me: Cold Colors EP  [Polyvinyl]
Saul Williams: The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of Niggy Tardust [FADERLABEL] [physical release]
Son, Ambulance: Someone Else's Deja Vu [Saddle Creek]
Sunny Day Sets Fire: Summer Palace [IAMSOUND]
Totimoshi: Milagrosa [Volcom Entertainment]
Tu Fawning: Succession EP [Polyvinyl]
U.S. Christmas: Eat the Low Dogs [Neurot]
Various Artists: Notwave 12" [Rong]
Various Artists: Life Beyond Mars – Bowie Covered [Rapster]
Venetian Snares: Detrimentalist [Planet Mu]
Wynton Marsalis and Willie Nelson: Two Men With the Blues [Blue Note]
Xiu Xiu: Fabulous Muscles [Absolutely Kosher] [vinyl reissue]
Xiu Xiu: La Forêt [Absolutely Kosher] [vinyl reissue]
Z'Ev vs. Pita: Colchester [Editions Mego]

07-11:

Patti Smith and Kevin Shields: The Coral Sea [PASK]

07-14:

Annie: "I Know UR Girlfriend Hates Me” single [Island] [UK release]
CSS - Donkey [Warner] [UK release]
The Hold Steady: Stay Positive [Rough Trade] [UK release]
Neon Neon: "I Told Her on Alderaan" / "Trick for Treat" single [Lex] [UK release]

07-15:

Black Devil Disco Club: Eight Oh Eight [Lo Recordings]
David Banner: The Greatest Story Ever Told [Universal Motown]
Free Blood: "Royal Family” single [Rong/DFA]
Hans Joachim Roedellus & Tim Story: Inlandish [North American release] [Gronland]
The Hold Steady: Stay Positive [Vagrant] [North American release]
Lloyd: Lesson in Love [The Inc./Universal Motown]
Nas: Untitled [Jones/Def Jam]
Sic Alps: US EZ [Siltbreeze]
UNKLE: End Titles... Stories for Film [Surrender All] [North American digital release]|
U.S. Girls: Introducing [Siltbreeze]

07-21:

Crystal Castles: "Vanished" 7" [Different Recordings] [UK release]

07-22:

Alva Noto: Unitxt [Raster Noton]
Azeda Booth: In Flesh Tones [Absolutely Kosher]
Bodies of Water: A Certain Feeling [Secretly Canadian]
Black Kids: Partie Traumatic [Columbia] [North American release]
Brendan Canning: Broken Social Scene Presents... Brendan Canning: Something for All of Us [Arts & Crafts, out now digitally]
Cryptacize / Why?: Unusual Animals Vol. 4 7" [Asthmatic Kitty]
CSS: Donkey [Sub Pop / Warner]
Daft Punk: Electroma DVD [Vice]
Dr. Dog: Fate [Park the Van]
¡Forward, Russia!: Life Processes [Cooking Vinyl]
Fuck the Facts: Disgorge Mexico [Relapse]
Fucked Up: Year of the Pig [reissue] [Matador]
Helena Espvall (of Espers) and Masaki Batoh (of Ghost): Helena Espvall and Masaki Batoh [Drag City]
High Places: 03/07-09/07 [Thrill Jockey; out now digitally]
Individuals: Fields/Aquamarine [Bar/None]
Jay Reatard/Deerhunter: "Fluorescent Grey"/"Oh It's Such a Shame" 7" [Matador]
Josephine Foster: This Coming Gladness [Bo'Weavil]
Julie Doiron: Loneliest in the Morning [reissue] [Jagjaguwar]
Lackthereof: Your Anchor [Barsuk]
Loved: Everything, Anything, Nothing [Temporary Residence Limited]
M83: "Kim and Jessie" single [Mute]
Menahan: Street Band [Daptone]
Nico Muhly: Mothertongue [Brassland]
Nine Inch Nails: The Slip [Null Corporation] [CD/DVD release]
One Day as a Lion: One Day as a Lion EP [Anti-]
Paavoharju: Laulu Laakson Kukista [Fonal]
Paul Weller: 22 Dreams [Yep Roc]
PAS/CAL:  I Was Raised on Matthew, Mark, Luke & Laura [Le Grand Magistery]
Poni Hoax: Images of Sigrid [Tigersushi]
Prurient: Arrowhead [Editions Mego]
Radio Slave: "Grindhouse" Remixes 12" [Rekids]
The Red Krayola: Fingerpointing [Drag City]
Sonic's Rendezvous Band: Live [Bomp/Alive]
Sunfold: Toy Tugboats [Terpsikhore]
White Savage: TBA 7" [Flameshovel]
Zozobra: Bird of Prey [Hydra Head]

07-28:

Atlas Sound: Let the Blind Lead Those Who Can See but Cannot Feel [vinyl release on Kranky, out now on CD]
Ellen Allien: "Out" Remixes 12" [Bpitch Control] [European release]
Simian Mobile Disco: Sample and Hold [Wichita] [UK release]
Sonic Youth: SYR8: Andre Sider Af Sonic Youth [SYR]

07-29:

Alice Cooper: Along Came a Spider [Steamhammer/SPV]
Arbouretum/Pontiak: Kale [Thrill Jockey] [split LP, vinyl only]
James Jackson Toth: Waiting in Vain [Rykodisc]
JEFF the Brotherhood: The Boys R Back in Torn EP [Infinity Cat; vinyl only]
The Rolling Stones: Shine a Light DVD [Paramount]
Takka Takka: Migration [Ernest Jenning Recording Co.]
Young Jeezy: The Recession [Def Jam/Corporate Thugz Entertainment]

July:

Bubblegum Lemonade: Susan's in the Sky EP [Matinée]

08-05:

Adam Franklin/Handsome Furs: "Shine a Light" 7" [White Whale]
Apollo Sunshine: Shall Noise Upon [Headless Heroes]
Atlas Sound: "Atlas Shrugged" 7" [K]
Brazilian Girls: New York City [Verve Forecast]
Clinic: Funf reissue [Domino]
Conor Oberst: Conor Oberst [Merge / Wichita]
Correcto: Correcto [Domino]
Darker My Love: 2 [Dangerbird]
David Vandervelde: Waiting for the Sunrise [Secretly Canadian]
The Faint: Fasciination [Blank.wav]
Gun Outfit: TBA 7" [PPM]
Helms Alee: Night Terror [Hydra Head]
Inara George: An Invitation [Everloving]
Ida: My Fair, My Dark EP [Polyvinyl]
Joseph Arthur: All You Need Is Nothing [Lonely Astronaut]
LL Cool J: Exit 13 [Def Jam]
The Lord Dog Bird: The Lord Dog Bird [Jagjaguwar]
Luciano: FABRIC41 [Fabric]
Mars Black: Stay Black [Team Love]
Music Go Music: Reach Out [Secretly Canadian]
Nine Inch Nails: The Slip [Null Corporation] [vinyl release]
Ne-Yo: Year of the Gentleman [Def Jam]
Oneida: Preteen Weaponry [Jagjaguwar]
Oxford Collapse: Bits [Sub Pop]
Prints: Just Thoughts [Temporary Residence Limited]
Racebannon: Acid or Blood [Southern]
Randy Newman: Harps and Angels [Nonesuch]
Re-Up Gang: Clipse Presents: Re-Up Gang [Koch]
Robyn Hitchcock and the Egyptians: Luminous Groove box set [Yep Roc]
The Rumble Strips: Girls and Weather [Gigantic] [North American release]
Shannon McArdle: Summer of the Whore [Bar/None]
Suicide Note: Empty Rooms [Hawthorne Street]
Talkdemonic: Eyes at Half Mast [Arena Rock]
Ulrich Schnauss: Stars EP [Domino]
Various Artists: No Band Is an Island [Knw-Yr-Own]
Weight: Are Men [Tee Pee/ Colonol Records]

08-12:

Dark Romantics: The Good Kind of Sad [Lujo]
The Gutter Twins: "God's Children"/"Spanish Doors" 7" [Sub Pop]
Original Silence: The Second Original Silence [Smalltown Superjazzz]
Pierre de Reeder: The Way That It Was [Little Record Company]
Willoughby: I Know What You're Up To [Sargeant]

08-18:

Stereolab: Chemical Chords [Duophonic UHF Disks/4AD] [worldwide release]

08-19:

31Knots: Worried Well [Polyvinyl]
The Dandy Warhols: Earth to the Dandy Warhols [Beat the World] [out now digitally]
Death Vessel: Nothing Is Precious Enough for Us [Sub Pop]
Don Caballero: Punkgasm [Relapse]
The Fiery Furnaces: Remember [Thrill Jockey]
Hotel Lights: Firecracker People [Bar/None]
Human Highway: Moody Motorcycle [Suicide Squeeze / Secret City]
Jaguar Love: Take Me to the Sea [Matador]
Jeff Hanson: Madam Owl [Kill Rock Stars]
Jennifer O'Connor: Here With Me [Matador]
Jesu: Why Are We Not Perfect? [Hydra Head]
Juliana Hatfield: How to Walk Away [Ye Olde Records]
Lee "Scratch" Perry: Repentance [Narnack]
Lesser Gonzalez Alvarez: Why Is Bear Billowing? [Carpark]
Lindstrøm: Where You Go I Go Too [Smalltown Supersound/Feedelity]
Lykke Li: Youth Novels [LL Records] [North American release]
The Moondoggies: Don't Be a Stranger [Hardly Art]
The Music Tapes: Music Tapes for Clouds & Tornadoes [Merge]
Nelly: Brass Knuckles [Derrty/Universal]
Perhapst: Perhaps [In Music We Trust]
Pram: The Moving Frontier [Domino]
Ra Ra Riot: The Rhumb Line [Barsuk]
The Royal We: The Royal We [Domino]
sBach: sBach [Suicide Squeeze]
Starling Electric: Clouded Staircase [Bar/None]
The Stills: Oceans Will Rise [Arts & Crafts]
Saurasama: Fajar Di Atas Awan [Drag City]
T.I.: Paper Trail [Grand Hustle/Atlantic]
The Uglysuit: The Uglysuit [Quarterstick]
Various Artists: Como Now: The Voices of Panola County, MS [Daptone]
The Verve: Forth [Parlophone] [North American release]
Vordul Mega: Megagraphitti [Backwoodz Studioz]
The Walkmen: You & Me [Gigantic Records]
Xavier Rudd: Dark Shades of Blue [Anti-]

08-26:

Alias: Resurgam [Anticon]
Dragonforce: Ultra Beatdown [Roadrunner]
The 88: Not Only…But Also [Island]
The Game: L.A.X. [Black Wall Street/DGC]
Matthew Sweet: Sunshine Lies [Shout! Factory]
The Silent Years: The Globe [self-released]
Solange Knowles: Sol-Angel and the Hadley Street Dreams [Geffen]
Tussle: Cream Cuts [Smalltown Supersound]
Zach Hill: Astrological Straights [Ipecac]

August:

Fabolous: TBA (tent. titled Working Hard, Playing Harder) [Desert Storm/Def Jam]

09-02:

Brian Wilson: That Lucky Old Sun [Capitol]
Duchess Says: Anthologie des 3 Perchoirs [Alien8]
Giant Sand: Provisions [Yep Roc]
Jazzanova & Mr. Scruff: Southport Weekender, Vol. 7 [suSU]
Shugo Tokumaru: Exit [Almost Gold] [North American release]
Syleena Johnson: Chapter 4: Labor Pains [Aneelys]
UNKLE: End Titles... Stories for Film [Surrender All] [North American physical release]

09-08:

Hauschka: Ferndorf [FatCat]
Mogwai: Batcat EP [PIAS/Wall of Sound] [UK release]
Yo Majesty: Futuristically Speaking...Never Be Afraid [Domino] [UK release]

09-09:

Angela Desveaux: The Mighty Ship [Thrill Jockey]
Boston Spaceships: Brown Submarine [Guided by Voices, Inc.]
Bound Stems: The Family Afloat [Flameshovel]
The Broken West: Now or Heaven [Merge]
Calexico: Carried to Dust [Quarterstick]
Chad VanGaalen: Soft Airplane [Sub Pop]
Don Chambers: Zebulon [Warm]
The Donkeys: Living on the Other Side [Dead Oceans]
Emiliana Torrini: Me and Armini [Rough Trade]
Horse Feathers: House With No Home [Kill Rock Stars]
Kimya Dawson: Alphabutt [K]
La Rocca: OK Okay [Dangerbird]
Missy Elliott: Block Party [Goldmind/Atlantic]
Mogwai: Batcat EP [Matador] [North American release]
The New Year: The New Year [Touch and Go]
Okkervil River: The Stand Ins [Jagjaguwar]
Parenthetical Girls: Entanglements [Tomlab]
Pontiak: Sun on Sun [Thrill Jockey] [reissue]
Rafter: Sweaty Magic EP [Asthmatic Kitty]
Rahim: Laughter [Pretty Activity]
The Shaky Hands: Lunglight [Kill Rock Stars]
Tricky: Knowle West Boy [Domino] [North American release]
Various Artists: Of Great and Mortal Men: 43 Songs About 43 U.S. Presidencies [Standard]

09-10

The Radio Dept.: Clinging to a Scheme [Labrador] [Swedish release]

09-13:

The Cure: TBA [I AM/DGC]

09-16:

Adventure: Adventure [Carpark]
Alexander Tucker: Portal [ATP]
Amanda Palmer: Who Killed Amanda Palmer? [Roadrunner]
Fujiya & Miyagi: Lightbulbs [Deaf Dumb & Blind] [North American release]
James: Hey Ma [Mercury; out now in the UK]
Radioactive Man: Growl [Control Tower]
Simian Mobile Disco: FABRICLIVE 41 [Fabric] [U.S. release]
Tindersticks: The Hungry Saw [Constellation] [North American release; out now in the UK]

09-22:

Serena-Maneesh: "Impregnated" 12" [Smalltown Supersound] [European release]
Serena-Maneesh: SM Backwards [Smalltown Supersound] [European release]

09-23:

All Girl Summer Fun Band: Looking Into It [AGSFB]
Brightblack Morning Light: Motion to Rejoin [Matador] [North American release]
Faun Fables: A Table Forgotten EP [Drag City]
Girl Talk: Feed the Animals [Illegal Art] [physical release, out now digitally]
High Places: High Places [Thrill Jockey]
The Howling Hex: Earth Junk [Drag City]
Jay Reatard: Singles Collection [Matador]
Karl Blau: Nature's Got Away [K]
Max Richter: 24 Postcards in Full Color [FatCat]
Mogwai: The Hawk Is Howling [Matador/ PIAS/Wall of Sound]
Nagisa Ni Te: Yosuga [Jagjaguwar]
Ten Kens: Ten Kens [FatCat]
The Week That Was: The Week That Was [Memphis Industries]

09-30:

Dressy Bessy: Holler and Stomp [Transdreamer]
Mercury Rev: Snowflake Midnight / Strange Attractor [Yep Roc]
The Nightwatchman (Tom Morello): The Fabled City [Epic]
T-Pain: Thr33 Ringz [Nappy Boy/Konvict/Jive/Zomba]
Trivium: Shogun [Roadrunner Records]

September:

Morrissey: Years of Refusal [Polydor]

10-06:  

Annie: Don’t Stop [Island] [UK release]

10-07:

Lambchop: OH (ohio) [Merge]
Margot & the Nuclear So and So's: Animal/Not Animal [Epic]
Marnie Stern: TBA [Kill Rock Stars]
Of Montreal: Skeletal Lamping [Polyvinyl]

10-14:

The Organ: Thieves EP [Mint/604]

10-21:

The Sea and Cake: Car Alarm [Thrill Jockey]

October:

Deerhunter: Microcastle [Kranky]

Summer:

Metallica: Death Magnetic [Warner Bros.]
R. Kelly: 12 Play: Fourth Quarter [Jive]

In one fortnight, we here at Pitchfork (and hopefully you, too, dear reader) will congregate in Chicago's Union Park for the annual Pitchfork Music Festival. To get your appetite whetted for what promises to be the most mind-blowingly awesome festival of the summer, we're taking a peek back at last year's event, when Pavement mastermind Stephen Malkmus wowed the crowd with the opening track from their classic album, Wowee Zowee.



We've also added a few more videos to our ever-expanding archive, and today Pitchfork.tv premiered the newest video from Portland art-rockers Xiu Xiu. This black and white clip for "Master of the Bump (Kurt Stumbaugh, I Can Feel the Soil Falling Over My Head)" features some gender-skewing roles, a little S&M, and a couple of uncomfortable scenes of violent lovemaking. A perfect way to start your holiday weekend.



Next up is the colorful video for Asobi Seksu's "Goodbye", which melds the irresistable strains of the Brooklyn trio's shoegaze with kaleidoscopic images of origami papers, and sends singer Yuki Chikudate on a bizarre voyage through a world built of paper flowers.



Finally we have the melodramatic clip for "Royal Family" from ex-!!! member John Pugh's Free Blood project. Some apocalyptic percussion-- heavy drums, clanging metal, sparse piano, and handclaps-- form the basis of this track, while the video marries surrealist images of a woman in a Victorian armory-cum-recording studio with shots of Pugh in the middle of a desert. But keep watching and you realize that maybe these two locations aren't so far apart after all.

You know, for a bunch of dead guys...well, anyway. Legendary psych-pop troupe the Zombies, having recently wrapped a good sized UK tour, will hit the road tonight (July 3) in North America.

Anchored by founding members Colin Blunstone and Rod Argent, the lineup for these tours varies slightly from the more reunion-y shows the boys did to fete the 40th anniversary of their still-striking Odessey and Oracle LP last year. The current touring roster is rounded out by Rod's former Argent bandmate Jim Rodford on bass, Jim's son Steve Rodford on drums, and guitarist Keith Airey. Also note that Argent and Blunstone have been "collaborating on new studio material" under the Zombies umbrella. Fingers crossed for another Odessey, or, at least, something a fair sight better than 2004's As Far I Can See...

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"From the rocks and waves of the west coast of Sweden Tiedye explores and develops the sounds of dreaming disco, windblowing pop and gruyèresmelling rock."

Sweden's mysterious Tiedye recently joined the likes of Glass Candy, Chromatics, Invisible Conga People, et al., as part of the mighty Italians Do It Better label's highly esteemed stable of cosmic disco phenoms. It's been tough to find any info on these guys, but at least now they have a website, on which they've posted free downloads of their version of Rubies' "I Feel Electric," and this new Balearic "cover" (to use the term loosely) of Metallica's "Nothing Else Matters," and frankly, it's sort of epic:

mp3:
Tiedye :: Nothing Else Matters
Rubies :: I Feel Electric (feat. Feist) Tiedye version

Photo by Sung Kim

The more things change, eh? Mastodon may be kicking it with the Boss and recording their Blood Mountain follow-up with nü-metal production king Brendan O'Brien, but they'll reach into the past to rekindle their touring partnership with Slayer this fall.

Slayer and Mastodon previously joined forces on the first two installments of the "Unholy Alliance Tour", so it's only appropriate that their new dates together are being billed as the "Unholy Alliance Tour, Chapter III". Trivium will also play all dates on the tour.

For now, the "Unholy Alliance Tour, Chapter III" is a European affair, but more dates are still to be announced.

Both Mastodon and Slayer have shows apart this summer.

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It's been some time since we learned Modern Guilt, Beck Hansen's eighth album, would be some sort of psych rock minimalist '60s trip with Danger Mouse. Since then, we've gotten a look at the old-school jazz/Blue Note-style cover art and a listen to the smeary, phased, chill-out Caribou-on-Brian Wilson sounds of "Chemtrails" along with both the more upbeat "Gamma Ray" (note the Lilys/Deerhunter/etc.-style background vocal echo behind the thwapping groove) and the spaced-out hazy folk of Chan Marshall-guesting "Orphans." There's even a Modern Guilt-teasing trailer. That said, listening to all 10 tracks in a sitting fleshes out Beck and DM's aesthetic, allowing you to spot echoes and overlaps.

Noel Sayre passed away early this morning after being in critcal condition after almost drowning in a community swimming pool. Very sad. RIP.

It's not so far-fetched, really: Lily Allen has worked with producer Mark Ronson in the past on a number of projects. Mark Ronson is the big brother of DJ Samantha Ronson. Samantha Ronson, by all accounts, has been spending an awful lot of time with that Lindsay Lohan character lately. And yet, one wonders just who could have seen this coming. According to a recent (and, it should be noted, totally unconfirmed) report on the OK! Magazine website, Lily and Lindsay have collaborated on a track entitled "Wherever You Go", which will appear on Lily's follow-up to 2006's fantastic Alright, Still.

Again, no word on whether or not this is true; OK! claims Lindsay's people aren't talking, and Lily hasn't blogged about it explicitly, though she does mention meeting someone named Samantha-- who "brought a rather famous friend with her", nudge nudge wink wink-- for a recent dinner. Ever heard Lindsay's song "Rumors", Lil? Sounds like you're soaking in it.
 
In other Lily news, a recent NME.com report suggests that the album-- tentatively (we hope) titled Stuck on the Naughty Step-- is coming along nicely. Allen recently posted a brief clip of a cheerfully profane tune called "Guess Who Batman" to her MySpace, though she claims label constraints have kept her from laying more than just a snippet on us at the moment.

Photo by Nilina Mason-Campbell

Not long after Lykke Li brings her fine debut LP, Youth Novels, to the States, the Swedish songstress herself will once again make the trek to North America for a brief tour of the continent. The new run of October and November dates comes on the heels of quite a few intercontinental gigs Ms. Li has planned through the rest of the summer.

As a reminder, Youth Novels hits this side of the pond August 19 via Lykke Li's own LL imprint.

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It would seem "scheduling conflicts" have forced the Gutter Twins to postpone seven North American dates on their forthcoming tour. Every show from their July 24 gig in Baltimore through to their August 1 date in Detroit is now off, though the band has plans to reschedule as many of the dates as possible on a soon-to-be-announced tour set to follow a Voodoo Experience appearance in late October. All other dates are on as planned, and the updated roster is available below.

In other Gutter Twins news, Sub Pop will issue a 7" single for Saturnalia's "God's Children" with a truly frightening cover August 11.

Gutter Twins:

07-10 Los Angeles, CA - The Roxy *
07-12 Seattle, WA - Showbox (SP20 event) !
07-24 Baltimore, MD - Ottobar
07-25 Asbury Park, NJ - Stone Pony
07-26 Philadelphia, PA - Theatre of Living Arts
07-29 Brooklyn, NY - Warsaw
07-30 Pittsburgh, PA - Mr. Small's Theatre
07-31 Columbus, OH - Newport Music Hall
08-01 Detroit, MI - Saint Andrews Hall
08-02 Chicago, IL - Grant Park (Lollapalooza)
08-06 Helsinki, Finland - Tavastia
08-07 Gothenburg, Sweden - Way Out West Festival
08-08 Aarhus, Denmark - Voxhall
08-09 Haldern, Germany - Haldern Festival
08-11 Oxford, England - Zodiac ^
08-12 Nottingham, England - Rescue Rooms ^
08-13 London, England - Shepherds Bush Empire ^
08-15 Hasselt, Belgium - Pukkelpop Festival
08-16 Biddinghuizen, Netherlands - Lowlands Festival
08-17 Hohenfelden, Germany - Highfield Festival
08-19 Dresden, Germany - Beatpol
08-20 Munich, Germany - Ampere
08-21 Prague, Czech Republic - Palac Akropolis
08-23 Warsaw, Poland - Proxima
08-25 Bielefeld, Germany - Forum
08-26 Brighton, England - Komedia ^
08-27 Sheffield, England - Leadmill ^
08-29 Stradbally, Ireland - Electric Picnic ^
08-30 Liverpool, England - Academy 2
08-31 Argyll, Scotland - Hydro Connect Festival
09-03 Tel Aviv, Israel - Barby Club
09-04 Tel Aviv, Israel - Barby Club
09-06 Vitoria, Spain - Azkena Rock Festival
09-08 Lisbon, Portugal - Santiago Alquimista
10-24-26 New Orleans, LA - Voodoo Experience

* with Ed Harcourt
! with Brothers of the Sonic Cloth [ft. Tad Doyle]
^ with Carina Round

Well, here's a handy little update from those Dandy little Warhols. Recall that Earth to the Dandy Warhols LP they recently issued to the 'net in an unorthodox fashion via their own new label Beat the World? The Portland popsters have settled on a date for the physical release of said opus in the States, and that date is August 19. That's just weeks before the Warhols hit the road in North America for a fresh new tour, and just weeks after they wrap the European jaunt they've got lined up in July. Oh, puns.

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From ashes beneath a workout bench, dreams of loss, "you leave me out on the steps you dress me up like a boy," and Celine references (Journey To The End Of The Night), Xiu Xiu have never shied from darkness, fragile thoughts, or gender issues in a scene where it takes little more than a fever for someone to verbally abuse you with "faggot" as their ammunition. In the self-directed video for Women As Lovers track "Master of the Bump (Kurt Stumbaugh, I Can Feel the Soil Falling Over My Head)," we see two guys ready to meet up in the park after some sort of Internet relationship. That's when things enter Dennis Cooper territory.

As we pass saturation point for press coverage of Montreal, Portland, Brooklyn and et cetera, it seems Lawrence, Kansas is poised for its coming turn in the music media trend piece carousel. At least from what we're hearing; this marks two straight BTWs from the burgeoning midwestern artistic oasis. We gave the treatment to Rooftop Vigilantes after they hit our inbox with some music, and that inspired another email, this time from one Jordan Geiger, offering a MySpace-linked primer to more of the city's rising talent. But it was Jordan's own project, Hospital Ships, that struck deepest. Jordan comes packing a sturdy CV -- singing and songwriting in Minus Story, playing trumpet and keyboard for Shearwater -- and the Hospital Ships material shows it.

DOWNLOAD: Dr. Dog - The Ark (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Dr. Dog - The Old Days (MP3)

Dr. Dog's new album The Fate is out July 22nd. You can download two tracks from it above. And as previously announced, you can catch them live on the 23rd at Bowery, and one day later at Music Hall of Williamsburg. They have a ton of new shows scheduled after that too. All of those below...

Dr. Dog - 2008 Tour Dates
07-18 - Club Café - Pittsburg, PA
07-19 - Chameleon Club - Lancaster, PA
07-23 - Bowery Ballroom - New York, NY
07-24 - Music Hall of Williamsburg - New York, NY
07-26 - Boulder Annual Music Festival - Rochester, NY
07-27 - Forcastle Festival - Louisville, KY
07-29 - Mojo's - Columbia, MO
07-30 - Bluebird - St. Louis, MO
07-31 - Radio Radio - Indianapolis, IN
08-01 - Lollapalooza (at Grant Park) - Chicago, IL
08-04 - Beachland Ballroom - Cleveland, OH
08-05 - The Basement - Columbus, OH
08-08 - The El Rey - Los Angeles, CA
08-13 - Rittenhouse Square - Philadelphia, PA FREE FREE FREE
09-05 - IOTA Club & Café - Arlington, VA
09-06 - The Earl - Atlanta, GA
09-07 - 3rd and Lindsley - Nashville, TN
09-08 - Bottletree - Birmingham, AL
09-09 - Thirsty Hippo - Hattiesburg, MS
09-11 - Walter's On Washington - Houston, TX
09-12 - Lola's Saloon - Ft. Worth, TX
09-13 - The Parish - Austin, TX
09-16 - Club Congress - Tucson, AZ
09-17 - The Casbah - San Diego, CA
09-19 - The Detroit Bar - Costa Mesa, CA
09-20 - Cellar Door - Visalia, CA
09-23 - Doug Fir's Lounge - Portland, OR
09-24 - Tractor Tavern - Seattle, WA
09-26 - Urban Lounge - Salt Lake City, UT
09-27 - Hi-Dive - Denver, CO
09-29 - The Waiting Room - Omaha, NB
09-30 - The Record Bar - Kansas City, MO
10-01 - High Noon Saloon - Madison, WI
10-02 - Blind Pig - Ann Arbor, MI
10-10 - Middle East (downstairs) - Cambridge, MA

Oct 30 - Night & Day Manchester
Oct 31 - King Tuts Glasgow
Nov 1 - Spring & Airbrake Belfast
Nov 2 - Whelans Dublin
Nov 3 - Glee Club Birmingham
Nov 4 - Borderline London
Nov 5 - Fleche D'or Paris
Nov 7 - Apolo 2 Barcelona
Nov 10 - 59 To 1 Munich
Nov 11 - La Casa Milan
Nov 12 - Luxor Cologne
Nov 14 - Voxhall Aarhus
Nov 15 - Debaser Stockholm
Nov 16 - KB Malmo
Nov 17 - Sticky Fingers Gothenburg
Nov 19 - Lido Berlin
Nov 20 - Knust Hamburg
Nov 21 - Merleyn Nijmegen
Nov 22 - Ekko Utrecht
Nov 23 - Paradiso Amsterdam