Skinny Ties and All

Thirty years ago every self respecting “Devoto-ee” knew every word to “The Light Pours Out of Me” and more than likely sported a Magazine button on their skinny tie...  Reunited Manchester post-punkers Magazine have released a new studio album this week so many years later via Wire-Sound. The band's fifth full-length, titled No Thyself, follows up 1981's Magic, Murder and the Weather, and was released in the UK October 24th.  (North American fans will have to wait until November 21^st.)

No Thyself reunites band leader Howard Devoto, who formed the group in 1977 after leaving the Buzzcocks, with early collaborators John Doyle (drums) and Dave Formula (keyboards), as well as John White on bass and Apollo 440's Noko on guitar. Noko replaces guitarist John McGeoch, who passed away in 2004.

The band will also be heading out on a brief UK tour to promote the disc this November.

No Thyself:

1. Do The Meaning
2. Other Thematic Material
3. The Worst Of Progress...
4. Hello Mister Curtis (with apologies)


5. Physics
6. Happening In English
7. Holy Dotage
8. Of Course Howard (1979)
9. Final Analysis Waltz
10. The Burden Of A Song
11. Blisterpack Blues *

* bonus track

When the party lulls, if we fall by the side.

Thanks for the music R.E.M.

The Club is Open (Again)

New Guided By Voices Early Next Year!

It’s been quite a year for the "classic lineup" of Guided by Voices as they just crossed the finishing line of a year-long reunion tour marathon. The mighty GBV played what was supposed to be their last show at this past weekend's Hopscotch Festival in Raleigh, North Carolina and now today news of brand new album in the new year.  

(Via Robert Pollard's website and Mojo) On January 1, 2012, the band will release a brand new album, Let's Go Eat the Factory. Robert Pollard, Tobin Sprout, Greg Demos, Mitch Mitchell, and Kevin Fennell are in the studio working on it right now. It'll be the first GBV album proper since 2004's Half Smiles of the Decomposed, and the first "classic lineup" LP since 1996's Under the, Under the Stars. Check out the track listing below:

Let's Go Eat the Factory:

01 Laundry and Lasers
02 The Head
03 Doughnut for a Snowman
04 Spiderfighter
05 Hang Mr. Kite
06 God Loves Us
07 The Unsinkable Fats Domino
08 Who Invented the Sun
09 The Big Hat and Toy Show
10 Imperial Racehorsing
11 How I Met My Mother
12 Waves
13 My Europa
14 Chocolate Boy
15 The Things That Never Need
16 Either Nelson
17 Cyclone Utilities (Remember Your Birthday)
18 Old Bones
19 Go Rolling Home
20 The Room Taking Shape
21 We Won't Apologize for the Human Race

Logic Prevails and Arcade Fire Win the Polaris Prize

Arcade Fire has won the sixth-annual Polaris Prize with its third album The Suburbs and you know what? Surprisingly I am good with that decision. The Montreal band's much-ballyhooed record has already claimed a Juno, a Grammy, a Brit award (and a Dundee as I recall) -- all for album of the year. Bottom line, the record very much embodies the awards intentions. Recall how it made sense that PJ Harvey took the award for the Barclaycard Mercury Prize recently? Same argument- So kudos to the Polaris jury for making the right decision.

That being said, I still think Olenka and the Autumn Lovers should have won.

The Polaris Prize, which includes $30,000, is handed out to the best Canadian album as chosen by an 11-person jury of music critics. The prizewinners have said the cash would go towards their Montreal studio.

The Suburbs was chosen from a short list of nine other albums. Including Ron Sexsmith's Late Bloomer and The Weeknd's House of Balloons and Austra’s latest-- all were selected by more than two hundred music journalists, bloggers and broadcasters.

Go Handsome Dan in 2012!

Radioheads Alert

Attention music aficionados and purveyors of ‘truthiness’; Do not forget to set your PVRs (or just stay up late) – ‘Oxford pop moppets’ - Radiohead will appear on a special hour-long rendition of The Colbert Report on Monday, September 26th. Says Stephen Colbert in a statement: “I look forward to meeting the Radioheads and leveraging their anti-corporate indie cred to raise brand awareness for my sponsors.”

Oh that Thom Yorke… What a comedian.

New Kate Bush in November

UPDATE: Kate Bush has announced she'll release a new album on November 21st.   Entitled  50 Words For Snow, the LP will be released through her own label Fish People, via EMI.

The disc runs to 65 minutes in length, but features only seven tracks:

Snowflake
Lake Tahoe
Misty
Wildman
Snowed in at Wheeler Street
50 Words For Snow
Among Angels

50 Words for Snow will be Bush's second album of 2011.  It follows May's Director's Cut release.


kate bush - babooshka from alexei glowakz on Vimeo.

More Vile Smoke Rings

Kurt Vile is set to release a new six song EP entitled So Outta Reach on November 8th via Matador Records. The EP is made up of five new tracks as well as a killer version of Bruce Springsteen's "Downbound Train". The five original songs were recorded during the sessions for his most recent album Smoke Ring For My Halo, but were not used on the final record. The songs were reworked with producer John Agnello over the summer for the EP. On the same day there will be a deluxe 2CD edition of Smoke Ring For My Halo with a new color cover. The deluxe package will include the So Outta Reach EP on a second disc, all at the same price as a regular CD.

Download new track “The Creature” here.

So Outta Reach EP track listing:

1. The Creature
2. It’s Alright
3. Life’s A Beach
4. Laughing Stock
5. Downbound Train
6. (so outta reach)

As well, Kurt will hit the road again with his full band starting at Austin City Limits on Friday, September, 16th and then continuing through to the West Coast with Bright Eyes. He then plays Northeast dates with the Flaming Lips in October.

Kurt Vile Tour Dates

9/16 – Austin TX – Austin City Limits
9/17 – Austin TX – Stubb’s – Bright Eyes (ACL aftershow)
9/18 – El Paso TX – Tricky Falls
9/19 – Albuquerque NM – Sunshine Theatre – Bright Eyes
9/21 – San Diego CA – SOMA – Bright Eyes
9/23 – Los Angeles CA – Hollywood Forever – Bright Eyes
9/24 – Las Vegas NV – Boulevard Pool at Cosmopolitan – Bright Eyes
9/25 – Santa Barbara CA – Santa Barbara Bowl – Bright Eyes
9/26 – Reno NV – Knitting Factory – Bright Eyes
9/28 – Seattle WA – Paramount Theatre – Bright Eyes
9/30 – San Francisco CA – Hardly Strictly Bluegrass
10/24 – Portland ME – State Theater – The Flaming Lips
10/25 – Rochester NY – Main Street Armory – The Flaming Lips
10/27 – Norfolk VA – The NorVa – The Flaming Lips
11/11 – New York NY – Webster Hall
11/12 – Philadelphia PA – Union Transfer

Creep On, Creepin’ On and On…

I was a little slow to jump on the Breaking Bad bandwagon but I was thrilled to hear Timber Timbre’s “Magic Arrow” soundtrack an episode from the third season. It meshed perfectly with the show’s forbidding nature and bible black soul. The band continue to earn new fans with their latest full length Creep On Creepin' On (currently shortlisted for the Polaris Music Prize) as the band continue to promote it. Along with releasing an imaginative new music video, the goth-blues-folk outfit have scheduled some new tour dates, (including this city) plus lined up a pair of exciting vinyl reissues.

The group's live schedule now stretches into December with a tour that includes stops in Ontario, Quebec and the Atlantic provinces. They also have a number of European dates. The full tour schedule is listed below. Lastly, fans of Timber Timbre should note they will soon be able to pick up the group's first two independent releases, Cedar Shakes (2005) and Medicinals (2007), on vinyl. These vinyl pressings will be available exclusively at the upcoming tour dates. Both releases dating from when the band was a pseudonym for Taylor Kirk solo. The band have also released a new, appropriately eerie animated video for “Too Old To Die Young” from Creep On Creepin’ On.



Timber Timbre - Too Old To Die Young from Arts & Crafts on Vimeo.

Timber Timbre Tour dates:

8/29 - Frankfurt, Germany - Brotfabrik
9/1 - Brighton, UK - Jam
9/3 - Dorset, UK - End of the Road Festival
10/5 - Joliette, QC - Salle Rolland-Brunelle
10/6 - Quebec, QC - Theatre Petit Champlain
10/7 - Terrebonne, QC - Moulin Neuf
10/8 - Sherbrooke, QC - Theatre Granada
10/9 - Victoriaville, QC - Cinéma Laurier
10/10 - Laval, QC - Maison des Arts De Laval
10/21 - Halifax, NS - Halifax Pop Explosion
10/22 - St. John's , NL - Cochrane United Church
11/1 - London , UK - Union Chapel
11/3 - Paris, France - La Cigale
11/4 - Strasbourg, France - La Laiterie
11/5 - Lyon, France - Le Transbordeur
11/6 - Marseille, France - Cabaret Aléatoire
11/9 - Munich, Germany - Feierwerk
11/10 - Cologne, Germany - Gebaeude 9
11/11 - Hamburg, Germany - Uebel and Gefaehrlich
11/12 - Hannover, Germany - Warenannahme
11/23 - London, ON – The Aeolian
11/25 - Guelph, ON - Dublin Street United Church
11/26 - Toronto, ON - Queen Elizabeth Theatre
11/29 - Buffalo, NY - The Town Ballroom
12/3 - Montreal, QC - St. Jean Baptiste Church

Get out and see this one folks.  The band puts on an unforgettable show.

Tom Waits for Everyone

Those low rumblings you felt earlier may in fact have been internet ruminations the world over that new Tom Waits music would be imminent.  Good news too considering it’s been far too long since we were treated to “new Tom”.

Anti Records and Tom himself confirmed today the October 25th release of  Bad As Me today.  It is Waits’ first studio album of all new music in seven years.  According to the press release:

“Waits, in possibly the finest voice of his career, worked with a veteran team of gifted musicians and longtime co-writer/producer Kathleen Brennan” on this one.  “Like a good boxer, these songs are lean and mean, with strong hooks and tight running times. A pervasive sense of players delighting in each other’s musical company brings a feeling of loose joy even to the album’s saddest songs.”

Bad As Me will be available October 25th.  A deluxe version of the new record will include a 40-page book of lyrics and photos taken by Waits himself, along with three bonus tracks. The album, which features the cover above, will also be available on 180-gram vinyl, which will include the LP and CD, plus a full-size 12-page book.

Bad As Me Tracklisting

01. Chicago
02. Raised Right Men
03. Talking At The Same Time
04. Get Lost
05. Face To The Highway
06. Pay Me
07. Back In The Crowd
08. Bad As Me
09. Kiss Me
10. Satisfied
11. Last Leaf
12. Hell Broke Luce
13. New Year's Eve
14. She Stole the Blush *
15. Tell Me *
16. After You Die *

* Bonus tracks

Check out the Tom Waits Listening Party too.

Crazy Clown Time This November

No, my career aspirations have not changed, and the aforementioned title is not a reference to the current state of American politics. Rather the title refers to premiere film director David Lynch’s next musical project. You may recall the last project, a single called “Good Day Today” and “I Know” that he released last December.  This one though will see release on November 8th, when his debut electro-pop tinged album, Crazy Clown Time, hits the shelves (and servers).

Along with the album’s title and release date, it was announced last week that the track "Pinky’s Dream" features the fantastic Karen O. (of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs). Otherwise, Lynch did all the work pretty much on his own: he wrote, produced, and performed each song, with some help from engineer Dean Hurley, who also steps in on guitar and drums on a few tracks.

Not a lot more information on this release for now.  I will update when appropriate. 

See the track listing for Crazy Clown Time below:

01. Pinky’s Dream
02. Good Day Today
03. So Glad
04. Noah’s Ark
05. Football Game
06. I Know
07. Strange and Unproductive Thinking
08. The Night Bell With Lightning
09. Stone’s Gone Up
10. Crazy Clown Time
11. These Are My Friends
12. Speed Roadster
13. Movin’ On
14. She Rise Up

New Music on the Way From Cass McCombs

Singer-songwriter Cass McCombs is a remarkable artist. Lyrically astute and capable of those heartbreaking melodies that always manage to worm their way into one’s psyche. He released one of my favourite records, Wit's End earlier this year and there is no doubt it will figure prominently in my best of the year wrap-up. If by chance, you haven’t heard this amazing work I urge you to seek it out. Needless to say, I was very pleasantly surprised to hear that he'll be following it up with another new release later this year. On November 8th, Domino will unveil Humor Risk. Definitely more upbeat than the last one, you can hear for yourself by downloading "The Same Thing” by heading to this site and for the expense of an email address.

McCombs recorded the album in different homes and studios around the U.S. McCombs produced it with Ariel Rechtshaid, who also worked on Wit's End and Catacombs. (See the new album's tracklist below.)

Humor Risk:
01 Love Thine Enemy
02 The Living Word
03 The Same Thing
04 To Every Man His Chimera
05 Robin Egg Blue
06 Mystery Mail
07 Meet Me At the Mannequin Gallery
08 Mariah (Sketch)

Cass McComb’s Humor Risk is out November 8th on Domino.

Cass McCombs "Dreams Come True Girl" from Foundation Content on Vimeo.http://www.dominorecordco.us/usa/two-pane/17-08-11/cass-mccombs-humor-risk

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year Just Got More Wonderful

Via Twitter, Zooey Deschanel announced her excitement of a She and Him holiday record.

"Exciting news! @sheandhim will be releasing our first holiday record later this year! Been working on it a while! I'm super pumped about it!"

At this point the record is non-specified to be original or traditional holiday tunes, though I suspect a combination of these will comprise the eventual release. I shall update when I can so for now enjoy this holiday news as the dog days of summer drag on. Watch for M Ward’s next solo endeavour later this year too.