Feist Announces New Album

Hey, remember Leslie Feist? The girl who used to do raunchy electro with Peaches and is now a contributor to Broken Social Scene and a folky, discoy solo artist in her own right? Yeah, she was all the rage in 2005, wasn't she?

Well, on April 23 worldwide, and May 1 in Canada and the U.S.A., Feist will release the follow-up to Let It Die (not counting the odds-n-ends collection Open Season) It's called The Reminder, and, if previous reports are correct, it features contributions from Jamie Lidell, Gonzales, Mocky, and Renaud LeTang.

Feist has announced a handful of spring European shows in support of The Reminder, with the promise of more to come.

Special thanks to reader Patrick Hurley for the tip. [MORE...]

Video: Feist: Mushaboom [from the Let It Die LP]

Patrick Wolf Reveals U.S. Release Details
Caution: Staring at album cover for too long may cause blindness

Yes, the new Patrick Wolf album has a cover. As previously reported, it has a name, The Magic Position, and a UK release date-- February 26 on Loog. And now, it has an American release date-- May 1 on Low Altitude/Universal.

Patrick is riding his horsey/bunny/deer thingy across the UK right now, and American tour dates should be announced shortly. [MORE...]

Video: Patrick Wolf: Accident and Emergency [from the forthcoming The Magic Position LP]

Joni Mitchell Tribute [ft. Sufjan, Bjork] Set for April 24
Mitchell readying new album, ballet

Video: Joni Mitchell: A Case of You (Live)

Bright Eyes Reveals Cassadaga Tracklist, Euro Dates

Bright Eyes (aka Conor Oberst) has revealed the tracklisting for his sixth full-length proper, Cassadaga, which is due April 10 via Saddle Creek. No word yet on Polydor's overseas release date for the album.

In support of the disc, Bright Eyes will embark on a short U.S. tour later this month. A handful of European dates have been added since we last ran a Bright Eyes tour update.

The Cassadaga preview EP, Four Winds, lands March 6, once again courtesy of Saddle Creek.

Oberst is, of course, joined by producer Mike Mogis and Nate Walcott on Cassadaga. The album also includes guest contributions from M. Ward, Gillian Welch, and Janet Weiss of Sleater-Kinney and the Jicks.

Speaking of guest contributions, keep in mind that Oberst co-wrote and lent vocals to "The Ballad of Sean Foley", a song from Maria Taylor's sophomore solo LP, Lynn Teeter Flower. The record arrives March 6 on-- well, we think you can guess which label. [MORE...]

MP3: Bright Eyes: Tourist Trap [from the forthcoming Four Winds EP]

Soft Circle (ex-Black Dice) in Full Bloom on Debut LP

Stream: Soft Circle: Various Tracks

Grizzly Bear, Band of Horses, Mogwai Join Fans' ATP
Also: Patti Smith, Battles, Edan, Explosions in the Sky, Current 93

ATP has been busy gathering requests for ATP Versus You (the Fans), and festival organizers' recent efforts have resulted in the addition of Mogwai, Grizzly Bear, Band of Horses, Battles, Patti Smith, MCs Edan & Dagha, Explosions in the Sky, Ghost, Current 93, Tall Firs, Alexander Tucker, and Capricorns to the lineup. A complete list of confirmed bands is below.

Offers are currently on the table for Wilco, the Postal Service, Yo La Tengo, Les Savy Fav, Wolf Parade, and...Chavez (!!). Dear ATP, since Fugazi is unavailable, we will settle for Shudder to Think and Wu-Tang (group and solo sets for everyone except maybe Masta Killa and U-God).

The top five artists on the fans' wishlist who are not on the confirmed, offered, or unavailable lists are ranked as follows: Lightning Bolt (1), Clap Your Hands Say Yeah (2), Blonde Redhead (3), Tortoise (4) and the Knife (5).

As previously reported, ATP Versus You (the Fans) will take place at Butlins Minehead in Somerset, England from May 18-20.

Don't forget about the Dirty Three-curated ATP, either. Its lineup includes Joanna Newsom, Cat Power, Low, Spiritualized, and Nick Cave and Grinderman, and it takes place at Butlins Minehead from April 27-29. [MORE...]

John Cale Travels With Circus

John Cale will release his new album, Circus Live, via EMI on February 19 in the UK. The record-- which was recorded on recent European tours-- will be available as both a triple gatefold vinyl edition and as a CD/DVD package with a 48-page booklet. The set includes a couple of Velvet Underground songs, Cale's cover of "Heartbreak Hotel", and "Hanky Panky Nohow" from his recently re-released Paris 1919.

Graphic novelist Dave McKean designed the sleeve of the vinyl record, which will also come with an exclusive poster and a bonus 7" of recent single "Jumbo in Tha Modernworld" with "GravelDrive (Blathamix)" as the B-side. The audio portion of the DVD will feature both of those tracks, along with the "2007 version" of "Big White Cloud". The video portion is footage of Cale and his band rehearsing five acoustic and five electric songs in Los Angeles. A new interview and the promo video for "Jumbo in Tha Modernworld" are also included as extras.

Cale is currently on a huge tour of Europe in support of the album. [MORE...]

Video: John Cale: Jumbo in Tha Modernworld [single]

Deerhunter Announce North American Tour

Atlanta noise-rockers Deerhunter have confirmed their previously mentioned tour in support of their recently Best New Music'd album Cryptograms. The boys will hit the road in March and April, accompanying the Ponys for several dates.

Deerhunter's trek includes a couple of SXSW stops, including one at our very own Pitchfork Music Festival Party on March 16 at Emo's and Emo's Jr. [MORE...]

MP3: Deerhunter: Heatherwood [from the Cryptograms LP]

Bjork Release Date Disappears! Album Title Revealed?

Remember yesterday, when we reported that Björk had set a tentative May 7 release date for her new album? Well, in the "Future Releases, Radio + TV section" of her website, where it used to say "07.05.07 - New Album (tbc)", it now says "XX.0X.07 - New Album (tbc)."

However, that listing comes between her April 27 Coachella appearance and her June 29 Open'er appearance. So we think that means the new album is coming out sometime in May or June.

MP3: Bjork: Cocoon [from the Vespertine LP]

Exclusive: Aesop Rock Writes Nike Workout Soundtrack
Fast cars, danger, fire & knives: all in a day's jog

Because nothing screams "let's go for a run!" like a guy who raps about the seedy underbelly of the human spirit, Aesop Rock is the latest artist to contribute to Nike's "Nike + Original Run" series. (You might recall that the last person to do this was some dude who calls himself LCD Soundsystem.)

The Def Jukie's piece, entitled All Day, is "a 45-minute continuous mix [that] was created specifically with runners in mind and reflects Aesop Rock's distinct and unique style." The snippet that we've heard has a retro space-funk feel, laidback with Aesop's typically gravelly voice flowing on top. Not exactly pump-you-up kind of stuff, but maybe this is just the warmup? Or the cool-down?

In a press release, the man known to his mother as Ian Bavitz had this to say: "I wanted to create something that evolved enough that the sound was constantly fresh and attractive, as if the runner were moving through a set of differing cities or landscapes."

All Day: Nike + Original Run will be available only at the iTunes store starting February 13. It will set you back $9.99.

We guess this is what Aesop Rock was talking about back in December, when he posted on his MySpace page about a mysterious project that's "not really an album but it kind of is." [MORE...]

Video: Aesop Rock: Freeze [from the Bazooka Tooth LP]

Photos: Camera Obscura/The Essex Green [Chicago, IL; 02/03/07]

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