Radiohead Working on Album Again
fancy that

Video: Radiohead: 15Step (Live)

Morrissey Seeks California Love on Tour

Video: Morrissey: You Have Killed Me [from the Ringleader of the Tormentors LP]

Postal Service Cheat on USPS-- With UPS!

MP3: The Postal Service: Such Great Heights [from the Give Up LP]

Video: Jelly Donut vs. Lady Sovereign

For those of you who missed this mess the first time around, MC Jelly Donut-- a name we can barely bring ourselves to type it's so awful-- has uploaded a video chronicle of his beef with Lady Sovereign to YouTube.

With the Notorious B.I.G.'s "What's Beef?" playing underneath, the video begins with footage of You Know Who walking around in the Mezzanine's parking lot. It goes on to cover Lady Sovereign's show, the audience's chanting of "Battle Jelly Donut!" and his subsequent expulsion from the club at her request. It ends with him freestyling back out in the parking lot before quickly recapping the entire event and flashing the words "Bring it."

Immediately after the video was uploaded, the Bay Area's "idiot white boy" quotient rose to dangerously high levels. For those still suffering from the side effects, long walks outside, deep breaths of fresh air, and repeat listenings to "Tell Me When to Go" are all valid cures for the specific form of depression caused by watching this video.

Sov Fights Donut, Parties With Playboy, Helps Islands
Most logic-defying headline ever?

What a week for Lady Sovereign! The ecstasy of victory, the agony of defeat. Playboy bunnies, jelly donuts. Late night television.

It all started Monday night, January 8, when Sov performed at San Francisco's Mezzanine club (a make-up show for when she was sick back in November). However, this wasn't an ordinary performance. It was a battleground.

Remember that guy in San Francisco who raised $10,000 to take Lady Sovereign on a date? And remember how she dissed him in the press after the date? Well, that guy brought a friend on the date. And that guy happens to be a rapper. A rapper who calls himself Jelly Donut. And who dresses up like a giant donut. Which he did at the Lady Sovereign show at the Mezzanine on Monday night. And challenged Sov to a rap battle.

Sov was not having it. Apparently, she spit on, poured Red Bull on, and eventually kicked out the man in the donut costume. However, the crowd was on Jelly Donut's side, bombarding her with chants of "BATTLE JELLY DONUT!" and pieces of paper with an image of a donut on them (provided by the man himself, of course).

You can read all about the melee here, and see photos from it here. And check out a video clip here.

We still don't really understand why she turned him down. It's a great publicity stunt! Look at the Decemberists: what would have happened if they said "no" to Stephen Colbert? [MORE...]

Video: Lady Sovereign: Love Me or Hate Me [from the Public Warning LP]

Bloc Party Announce North American Tour
Albert Hammond Jr., Final Fantasy, Sebastian of DFA1979 to open

Bloc Party have announced a North American tour, but that isn't the biggest piece of Bloc Party news today. It seems that frontman Kele Okereke kinda sorta came out of the closet in an interview published yesterday in The Guardian.

Apparently, some songs on Bloc Party's forthcoming second album A Weekend in the City (due February 6 on Vice), are about homosexual love, which leads writer Craig McLean to ask about Okereke's sexuality, a topic he usually dances around. And while Okereke seems to be on the verge of some sort of confession, he ultimately states, "It's not something that I'd be inclined to talk...It isn't black and white. It isn't clear-cut."

So maybe he's bisexual? Who knows? Who cares? (A lot of people, obviously. Not that there's anything wrong with that!)

Anyway, none of that has anything to do with the matter at hand: that Bloc Party are headed Stateside for the first time since their aborted tour with Panic! At the Disco. And this time, they're bringing along some much hipper friends: the Strokes' Albert Hammond Jr., Final Fantasy, Sebastien Grangier (formerly of Death From Above 1979), the Like, and Smoosh, are all slated to open various dates of the trek, which takes up much of March. British and Japanese tours precede the North American jaunt.

Tomorrow, January 9, "The Prayer" remix EP will become available exclusively on iTunes, featuring remixes by Paul "Phones" Epworth and Does It Offend You, Yeah?, among others. Also, "The Prayer" 7", including the b-side "England", will be given away for free with purchase of A Weekend in the City by certain independent music stores. So support yr local mom 'n' pop. [MORE...]

Stream: Bloc Party: The Prayer [from the forthcoming A Weekend in the City LP]

Smashing Pumpkins to Play "Some European Festivals"
Yeah, that's pretty much all we know

Since we last paid a visit to Pumpkinland (i.e. Smashing Pumpkins' MySpace), Pumpkins drummer Jimmy Chamberlin has continued enthusiastically babbling nonsense about the progress of the band's MACHINA follow-up/reunion record.

Though the exact constituency of the band is still unknown, Chamberlin assures us via the Pumpkins' MySpace blog that, "The drums are finished," and that, "We have been very busy carving up the sonic landscape with oceans of guitars and a sea of fuzz bass. We are four songs deep and about a hundred guitars in!" Those wondering what sonic touchstones the record might have would do well to take a look at the following Chamberlin shout-out: "We would like to thank the Grateful Dead, Rush, [and] Billy Thorpe for their guidance in this hour of need."

Honestly, though the promise of engaging Pumpkin prog seems pretty empty at this point, they could do much worse.

According to an entry from the Pumpkins' webmistress, fans hungry to set sail on the band's guitar oceans will get the chance to see them live this summer at "some European festivals." Vagueness from the Pumpkins' camp? You don't say! In her defense, however, she explained, "As for which ones, that's still being finalized, so hold tight!"

The Pumpkins' webmistress also responded to the recent "leak" of four demo tracks allegedly from the recent studio sessions by saying, "OH! And those 'Baker Demo' leaks... well, we read it was a Brit band who was behind that. Don't worry Simon, no one's gonna sue you. The band got a kick out of the story." The Simon she refers to is the lead singer of Amy Blue, the London band who leaked their own songs masquerading as Pumpkins demos via a torrent site as a prank. Pretty clever, actually.

Stream: Smashing Pumpkins: Various Tracks

M.I.A. Goes Crazy on MySpace
"NO ONE WANTED TO GIMMIE CREDIT FOR MY ALBUM THAT I PUT TOGETHER !!!!!"

Yesterday (December 12), M.I.A. wrote a MySpace blog entry, the title of which proclaimed, "BREAKING ROCKS!!!!!!! BREAKING NEWS!!!!!!!!!"

So did it contain info about her and Timbaland in the studio? Or her new album?

Nope.

Was it about her adventures in Liberia with child rights activist Kimmie Weeks (filming a documentary to "HUMBLE CELEBRITIES IN THE MAINSTREAM WHO SPEND ALL DAY SHAKING IT WITH PARIS HILTON AND SINGING ABOUT CLOUDS AND LIVING IT UP IN A GLASS HOSUE")? Um...sorta.

Was it about her breaking up with Diplo? Maybe.

Now, we love M.I.A., but we think she might be going a little bit nuts. Here are some highlights from the blog post, as well as a follow-up, posted two hours later, in which she refused to apologize for what she had just written:

"I DID ALL THE PRINCESS DIANA THINGS. WENT TO SCHOOLS ,HOMES THAT WERE EMPTY BOMBED OUT BUILDINGS , VILLAGES WITH NO WATER ELECTRICITY, SAW THE MOST RAWEST THINGS SINCE MY HEAD AND HEART GOT SHAT ON BY MY EX BOYFRIEND WHO WAS GONE TO SAVE STRIPPERS IN BRAZIL (COZ they ALWAYS NEED MUSIC TO DANCE TO)...

I LOVE LIBERIA , AND I DO IM GONNA ADOPT IT. I WILL GO THERE WITHOUT QUESTION. IF SRI LANKA....IS MY MOTHER COUNTRY THEN LIBERIA WILL BE MY MOTHERS BROTHER. AND THERE WERE T SHIRTS ON EX REBELS THAT SAID I LOVE LIBERIA.THAT WAS COOL.

I HAD A GUCCI SWEATER ON , AND THEY ASKED ME IF IT WAS REAL , I SAID NO AND THE MEN WERE LIKE OHHH SORRY IT WOULDA BEEN NICE IF U HAD THE REAL AUTHENTIC THING, AND I TOLD EM I WASNT SAD AT ALL. I JUS RATHER HAVE MY MONEY GO TO SOME POOR DUDE MAKIN EM IN CHINA OR AFRICA THEN THE POWER HOUSES IN THE WEST, THEN THEY GAVE ME THE LIBERIAN HIGH FIVE WHICH IS A FIGNER CLICKIN THING HARD TO DO ON A BLOG. AND I FELT LIKE I PLANTED A BUSINESS SEED IN THE MEN ON THE CORNER DOING NOTHING WHO HAVE THEIR LEFTOVER AMO HIDDEN UNDER THE BED AT HOME IN CASE THE WAR STARTS AGAIN...

I BOUGHT T SHIRTS OFF THE STREET BOYS BACK, WHICH DIDNT GO DOWN WELL WITH ANYONE I WAS WITH, EVERYONE LOOKED AT ME LIKE I WAS ROBBIN THE SHIRTS OFF THE BACKS OF THE POOR THAT WAS SOOOOOOO DISGUSTING HOW COULD I EVEN THINK OF THAT? , I DID OFFER LIKE WEEKLY PAY FOR SOMETHING THE BOYS GOT FREE FROM THE SACKS CHARITY CLOTHES DROPED ON THEIR HEADS. AND SOME OF THEM WANTED IT BACK LIKE "ACTUALLY I LIKE THAT T SHIRT I THINK ITS COOL TOOO" SO I GAVE IT BACK, NOW THEY FEEL THAT SHIRT IS LIKE THE BEST SHIT EVER, COZ HE HAD TO FIGHT ME TO GET IT BACK, AND ALL HIS FRIENDS THINK HES LIKE THE COOOLEST SHIT IN THE HOOD.

ITS ALL GOOD!..." [MORE...]

Video: M.I.A.: Galang [from the Arular LP]

TV on the Radio's Sitek Freaks Over Karen O Leaks
Later comes to his senses and apologizes

Video: Alex Kapranos With the Cribs and the Evaporators: "Take Me Out"

Franz Ferdinand's Alex Kapranos is one of the world's coolest dudes, beloved by rock and hip-hop stars alike, with an awesome girlfriend, a position on just about every Best Dressed list, and even a side career as a food critic.

So what does such a suave, cosmopolitan dude do on a Saturday night? He hangs out with a bunch of hairy shirtless guys in a Ukranian Hall in Vancouver.

That's right: this past Saturday, December 2, Kapranos was a surprise guest at Mint Records' "Ridiculously Early Xmas Party", belting Franz's "Take Me Out" backed by members of the Cribs and Mint band the Evaporators.

It was all captured on glorious video, and uploaded to YouTube. Click on the magic box below and watch Evaporators frontman (and notorious multi-media rabble-rouser) Nardwuar the Human Serviette pull off a keyboard solo while crowd-surfing, then pull Kapranos and his Cribs buddies up on stage. Bask in the glory that is Kapranos' scruffy beard and moustache, as he hams it up singing his band's hit while standing next to an enormous bare-chested guy playing the bass. And finally, feel the suspense as Nardwuar leaps off of a keyboard stand and onto the outstretched hands of Kapranos and his stage-mates.

BONUS: HEAR A CLIP OF ALEX TALKING ABOUT THE EXPERIENCE WITH CBC RADIO 3 HOST GRANT LAWRENCE BY CLICKING ON THE DOWNLOAD AT THE BOTTOM OF THE STORY! (THANKS, CBC RADIO 3)

[MORE...]

MP3: Alex Kapranos and Narduwar: Interview

Ted Leo Reveals Touch and Go Debut Album Details
Also breaks up fight

Ted Leo + Pharmacists will be Living With the Living on March 20, as the gang has revealed that phrase as the title of their new album.

The band's 15-track Touch and Go debut was produced by Fugazi's Brendan Canty and was recorded at Massachusetts' Long View Farm Studios, as previously reported. Song titles include "Bomb.Repeat.Bomb", "Fourth World War", and "Army Bound" (which can be heard, in demo form, by clicking the link below). So yeah, it's safe to say that the record is politically charged, though reportedly not openly so.

Leo currently has three dates scheduled-- two December gigs in Seattle (one with Death Cab for Cutie, and one as part of KEXP's Yule Benefit), and, as previously reported, one March slot at San Francisco's Noise Pop festival. He + Pharmacists will hit the road again closer to Living With the Living's release.

The crew recently wrapped up a North American tour, some of it with Leo's brother Chris' group, Vague Angels. On November 24, the siblings and their respective bands stopped by Asheville's Grey Eagle, and, according to text and video accounts from Pitchfork reader Jason Martinez, things got a little rowdy.

"There was a guy in the front row that was 'on something' or really, really wasted," Martinez writes. "He was dancing really weird-like. At the encore he got up on stage and took hold of the microphone and started yelling at the crowd, calling them boring because they weren't dancing and going as crazy as he was. So some guys took him off the stage and then Ted Leo comes out and the video I have starts at this point."

Martinez's footage captures Leo performing an a cappella (like the original) cover of Billy Bragg's "Tender Comrade", half of "Dirty Old Town", and "Treble in Trouble". During the middle track, the aforementioned 'guy in the front row' starts a scuffle. Fortunately, Leo manages to break it up with some a little tambourine lovin'.

"Ted Leo is so Punk Rock!!!" Martinez commented.

[MORE...]

MP3: Ted Leo + Pharmacists: Army Bound (demo version) [from the forthcoming Living with the Living LP]

John Darnielle, El-P Guest on Aesop Rock LP
Also, mystery project sort of maybe kinda announced

When we saw chief Mountain Goat John Darnielle rapping along to Aesop Rock's lyrics at the Def Jux MC's Pitchfork Music Festival set, we were rather pleased. However, we were still a little surprised to find out that Darnielle will appear on Aesop's new album, which the rapper described as having "a more diverse sound throughout the record than anything I've done" and lyrically is "all stories in one way or another," in a recent update on his MySpace blog. He has titled the album None Shall Pass and says it is scheduled for a release on Def Jux "sometime in the first half of 07."

None Shall Pass will feature production from Blockhead (seven tracks), Aesop himself (five tracks), El-P, and Rob Sonic (one track apiece). DJ Big Wiz adds "scratches and turntable trickery" to every song "(some a lot some a little, but every one)," and "other voices you will hear on the record in one form or another and some more than once (be it in verse, talking, singing, yodeling, ad-libbing, chorus-ing, etc.) include: El-P, Cage, Camutao, Breeze Brewin, Rob Sonic, John Darnielle."

One of these things is not like the other / One of these things just doesn't belong...

Aesop added, "Most of [the album] is recorded, though a few [tracks] are still a bit in 'demo' form and need some fine tuning and re-kicking. All of this is with the exception of this me-and-El joint, which I'm currently writing. I had to wait 'til he was done with his [album]. I ghost wrote all his shit for it. No I'm kidding. I didn't do that. Combine all that with whatever last minute song(s) I write that I deem a necessity for the record (which usually somehow happens starting the day after you should have stopped working)... Mixing in Jan. or Feb. probably." [MORE...]

Stream: Aesop Rock: Various Tracks

Robert Pollard Plans Seven Albums, New Label
Also, he's calling off touring for a while

When Robert Pollard tore his calf muscle earlier this month, he was forced to cancel three East Coast dates. Bummer, right? But holy overcompensation, now the Guided by Voices ex has announced, in an interview with Billboard.com, that he has not one, not two, not three, four, five, or six, but seven new albums on his plate.

Sheesh! Not that this guy has ever tended towards restraint, but this seems a bit excessive even for him.

He'll have a lot of time on his hands, as he's saying goodbye to the touring life, at least for now, Billboard reports. "It's too hard to psychologically re-energize yourself each night," he told the website, partially attributing the decision to a lack of audience turnout. "With Guided by Voices, it didn't matter what day it was. What I'm doing now, in my opinion, is not only the same thing, I think it's a step up, even. But you get tired of beating your head against the wall."

So instead of playing not-exactly-packed clubs, Pollard is devoting himself to the preparation of new material. He has wrapped up work on his latest Merge album, Silverfish Trivia, Billboard reports, and plans to release it in the fall of 2007. Tracks include the "string instrumentals" "Come Outside" and "Speak in Many Colors", as well as the "prog-like" "Circle Saw Boys Club" and the wtf?-inducing "Coast to Coast Carpet of Love".

Merge has not confirmed this release yet, however. 

Billboard says that Pollard has also teamed with Todd Tobias again under the Circus Devils moniker for a double-disc record titled Sgt. Disco, which is currently label-less. Another record from the Takeovers (Pollard with former GBV bassist Chris Slusarenko), called Bad Football, is due in the spring.

And speaking of spring, come March, Pollard's Fading Captain Series will have officially faded, as Billboard reports that he plans to shutter the label. He'll say goodbye with a 50(!)-track best-of collection titled Crickets, which will feature several previously unreleased numbers. Fading Captain will be replaced by a new label named-- I kid you not-- Record Company Records. [MORE...]

Stream: Robert Pollard: Supernatural Car Lover [from the Normal Happiness LP]

Video: Stephen Colbert Vs. The Decemberists
Nerd fight!!!

For the record, we are totally behind this idea and hope that November 29, 2006 is forever remembered as the day "When the War Came".

(By the way, this isn't the first time the Decemberists have caught the attention of a mainstream TV talking head. Apparently, there's a guy on SportsCenter who loves 'em.)

Video: Stephen Colbert vs. the Decemberists: Second Green Screen Challenge

New Order Tease About Breakup, Diss Curtis Biopic
Also: Peter Hooks talks new bassist supergroup Freebass (ugh)

Stream: New Order: Various Tracks

Trail of Dead Dudes Brawl Onstage, Guitarist Collapses
Breaking news: Trail of Dead smash their gear after gig!! Holy shit!!!

Guess it wouldn't be a Trail of Dead/Blood Brothers tour without a little bit o' the old violence. Details remain sketchy, but according to several eyewitness reports and a couple shoddy YouTube videos, ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead guitarist Kevin Allen collapsed several times during the band's November 18 show at St. Petersburg, Florida's Jannus Landing Courtyard.

The Austin-based combo eventually cut the gig short, but not before vocalist/guitarist Conrad Keely ceremonially smashed his instrument and shoved an ailing Allen into an amp.

As Pitchfork reader and show attendee Gabe wrote, after Allen reemerged following his initial collapse, "Conrad then walks to the mic, announces that this will be their last song, lifts his guitar over his head and smashes it. He then ran over to Kevin and pushes him backwards (it was one helluva running shove) into his amp. Kevin and the amp hit the ground, hard.

"Conrad keeps going right off stage and onto the bus (it was a courtyard venue, [and] the stage exits to the front gate, where the bus was parked). The rest of the band looked shocked and bewildered."

Another reader, Ana Baez, caught the mess on video and posted it to YouTube (although it's difficult to make out what the hell is happening). Reported Baez, "[Conrad] smashed his guitar into a speaker. The crowd cheered thinking it was a part of the show. He quickly walked away, stopping to say 'thank you' in a nearby mic, and as he passed Kevin he gave him a hard shove, sending his guitarist into his stack of amps. The amps toppled under his weight. The fall looked quite painful."

Several of his bandmates followed Keely's exit-- and most tragic of all, the remaining players subjected the audience to the "worst keyboard-drum jam I've ever heard," wrote Baez. [MORE...]

Video: ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead: Conrad Keely shoves Kevin Allen
Video: ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead: Kevin Allen collapses during Caterwaul and Homage

Casiotone for the Painfully Alone's Cat Returns!
Sun breaks through clouds, I'm From Barcelona plays in background, everybody gets free ice cream, scenester hearts melt

Sometimes, in between all the break-ups, gear theft, on-stage meltdowns, litigation, fan-punchings, and run-ins with the cops, something just plain happy happens in the indie rock world. Right now is one of those times.

Remember when Owen Ashworth's apartment caught on fire? Remember how he lost his cat? Well, she's back!

Ashworth posted on Casiotone for the Painfully Alone's MySpace and LiveJournal yesterday:

"Rufus came home today. She is skinnier and scruffier than we remember her, but she is home and happy, three weeks later. Everybody is totally excited. Thanks to the people who wrote nice notes. Your positive vibes did the trick."

Everybody: "AWWWW!!!"

Now watch this:

MP3: Casiotone for the Painfully Alone: Young Shields [from the Etiquette LP]

Lady Sovereign Breaks Down; L.A. Show Rescheduled
"I hated disappointing everybody. The pain and frustration hurt so much, it was scary".

Last night, Lady Sovereign was supposed to play a triumphant show at Los Angeles' El Rey Theatre. Her new album, Public Warning, debuted at number 48 on the Billboard Top 200 in its first week of release, she's conquered "TRL", and she's in the middle of a huge North American headlining tour.

However, as soon as she hit the stage, everything, it seems, went to shit. According to her publicist, Sov had been diagnosed with a chest infection, and performed despite doctor's orders to rest. She was clearly ill as she "spit, kicked, and cried her way through two songs," according to an email from a Pitchfork reader who attended the show. The reader continued, "She then left the stage abruptly a few times...she tried going through her songs '9 to 5' and 'Blah Blah' but stopped in the middle of both. She then completely broke down...bawling hysterically and falling to the ground...They practically dragged her off the stage as the crowd went insane. She never came back."

Today, Lady Sovereign released the following statement: "I hated disappointing everybody. The pain and frustration hurt so much, it was scary".

To make it up to her fans, Sov will schedule another Los Angeles performance in December, following the end of her tour. The date will be announced next week.

According to a press release, Lady Sovereign will not miss any of the rest of the shows on her tour, as she has two days to rest up before the next one, which will take place in Las Vegas on Saturday. [MORE...]

Video: Lady Sovereign: Love Me or Hate Me [from the Public Warning LP]

Favourite Sons Drop Off Drones/Devastations Tour
Drones/Devs carry on with shows, scramble to secure equipment

MP3: The Drones: I Don't Ever Want to Change [from the Gala Mill LP]
MP3: Devastations: Sex and Mayhem [from the Coal LP]
MP3: Favourite Sons: Hang On, Girl [from the Down Beside Your Beauty LP]

MP3: Tweedy Explains Punching Incident
"I'm quick like a knife, cat-like reflexes."

Move aside, grainy YouTube videos and official band statements. When Jeff Tweedy punches a dude in the face, he provides fans with the accurate (and juicy) details.

One such fan is Pitchfork reader Tyler Gould, who sent an MP3 account of the incident, straight from the horse's mouth. The recording was made on October 27 at the Foellinger Auditorium in Champaign, Illinois, where Tweedy was playing a solo show.

He begins his explanation by joking with fans, "The distance between where I'm standing and where you are is in no way, shape, or form a result of being attacked the other day."

The crowd goes wild, overpowering whatever Tweedy says next, but there's a definite "I know I punch like a girl" toward the end of its eruption.

He continues, "Actually, I was pretty surprised. I really let that dude have it...

"Somebody jumped on stage the other night at a Wilco show, did the 'Woooo!' you know, like to his friends or whatever, 'Look at me! I'm really drunk and on crystal meth or something!' It's Southern Missouri, you know, so..."

He then explained the lack of security at the gig, which took place October 16 at Springfield, MO's Shrine Mosque. Result? "During the show, lots of different things were happening; there were people getting pushed around in front, some girl came up on stage and sat down and started playing piano. While this was all being taken care of, we had a little break and we played our whole set and we came off, and there was this girl laying around, flopping around on the floor. Tried to get rid of her, she sat down and played the piano, so basically everybody was taking care of that...

"So we're standing there...we're starting a song 'Airline to Heaven', got the guitar, we're playing...I don't know if you know this, but when you're playing guitar, it's kind of like you're wearing handcuffs...so i see this nice little boy who looks like he's Devandra Burnhart [spelling representative of Tweedy's pronunciation] or whatever his name is...He actually stepped on a young woman's wheelchair to get onstage. I'm not kidding, that's the truth. That's how he got onstage! I'm not exaggerating; he just hopped up onstage, right up her wheelchair.

"And I'm playing, and the thoughts in my head are going, "Okay, okay, here he comes. Okay. He's just going to wave to his buddies and there he goes, okay...

"Any other night, I would have said he could probably have fondled me or something and I would've known within five or six seconds tops, a couple of guys in big yellow shirts would have been like pummeling him. Not that he needed to have that happen, but...So anyway the next thing I know, I feel this hand on my forehead. I'd just had it. I'd had it at that point...I'm quick like a knife, cat-like reflexes."

At this time, based on crowd reaction, we believe Tweedy demonstrated these special abilities before continuing, "The next day, 'Tweedy Attacks Fan," right?" referring to, um, various publications.

For Tweedy's full account, download the MP3 below. [MORE...]

MP3: Jeff Tweedy: Live in Champaign, Illinois, October 27, 2006

The Ark Change Their Minds and Cancel Tour

Despite the previous report that all was finally well in the Ark camp after a week of "diplomatic entanglements" following lead singer Ola Salo's mindless "joke" about planes flying into the White House during the band's set at the Swedish Embassy's recent location-christening celebration in Washington, D.C. (and now you're up-to-date), the glam rockers have indeed cancelled the rest of their U.S. tour dates.

Citing "exhaustion" as "the main reason" behind the cancellation in a letter on their website, the band promised to reschedule the dates "later this fall or early spring."

The one date they did not cancel is at New York's Bowery Ballroom on November 20. Read the full text of the letter below. [MORE...]

Stream: The Ark: Various Tracks

The Ark Continue Tour Despite Political Controversy

It looks like Sweden isn't all clean streets, amazing healthcare, and golden hovercrafts (okay, we're not really sure about that last one). At a performance at the Swedish Embassy in Washington, D.C. on Sunday, October 22, Ola Salo-- lead singer of Swedish glam rockers the Ark-- made a poorly chosen comment involving an airplane and the White House that almost forced the band to cancel their current tour.

As previously reported, the band's free set was part of an inauguration celebration of the Embassy's new location on the Potomac River "along a popular approach to Reagan National Airport," according to a press release. During the performance, Salo saw a low-flying airplane and joked, "In this country, you don't know where those planes are headed. Well, this one seems to be heading in the right direction anyway... the White House," before launching into "One of Us Is Gonna Die Young," though the band claim "the song [was not] in any way mocking President Bush, as [Brit] Hume reported on Fox News." Instead, they say the song "is an anthem... about the need to celebrate every moment of one's life to the fullest." Because you never know when you might have to explain yourself to a foreign government.

Salo later explained, "I meant [the plane] was heading in the right direction-- to the airport. But sometimes when I'm onstage, it's my mouth moving and not connected to my brain. I couldn't resist making a joke, and adding 'the White House.'" [MORE...]

Stream: The Ark: Various Tracks

Guns N' Roses Tour...in Support of Chinese Democracy?

So it looks like Axl Rose and co. maybe will maybe finally maybe heap the maybe steaming turd that Chinese Democracy is sure to be upon us. Maybe.

Though we are currently unable to find it on their website, Rolling Stone recently announced that the album would finally see release on November 21. Don't know where they got that information. Now everyone will have to refer to a long-delayed follow-up as the new Hell Hath No Fury.

My prediction: Chinese Democracy, whenever it's released, will sound how the cover of The Spaghetti Incident? looks.

Whether the album actually comes out or not, GNR fans can still get their fix of bloated bullshit rock on the band's upcoming North American tour, which kicks off October 22 in Nashville. Axl's war buddy Sebastian Bach opens all the shows. [MORE...]

Video: Guns N' Roses: Paradise City

M.I.A. Kicks the "Bird Flu"
Plays new material at secret club performance

M.I.A.'s latest MySpace blog entry has been M.I.A. since August 18-- at least to the Pitchfork staff. Sorry, guys. Better late than never though, amirite?

The Sri Lanka via London mash-up queen's once-cryptic "bird flu lab" (see: previous story) has lost it mystery, as we can now report that M.I.A. will soon upload a new number to her MySpace page, "Bird Flu".

Why the deadly title? In her words, "I CALLED THIS BIRD FLU BECAUSE THIS BEAT GON KILL EVERYONE!!" Of course.

M.I.A. filmed the track's video in a fishing village on the south coast of India (photos here). She explains, "THE VILLAGE WAS HIT BY A TSUNAMI, BUT THEY STILL WERE IN GOOD SHAPE!! WE PARCTICALLY MOVED THERE AND HAD THE CRAZIEST TIME GOING OUT FISHING EVERYDAY.

"AND I ALWAYZ USED TO SAY THAT ONE DAY IM GONNA RUN AWAY AND MARRY A FISHERMAN AND LIVE HAPPILY EVER AFTER AND I THOUGHT DAMN I WAS CLOSE TO SEEING THE REALITY OF MY FOREVER PLAN B."

Look out, Diplo!

"WE DISCOVERED AN AMAZING BOY WHO CAN OUT DANCE ANYTHING I VE ever SEEN. HE INVENTED ME THE BIRD FLU DANCE." [MORE...]

Video: M.I.A.: Galang [from the Arular LP]

Wayne Coyne Sez: "Vote or Be Taken Over by Robots"
Sure beats Diddy's "Vote or Die"

Andrew Rice wants to be your State Senator. The Democratic candidate has a wife named Apple and a brother who was killed on 9/11, and he's worked to solve health issues in developing countries. He's "running on a platform of social progressivism (constitutional & privacy rights, separation of church & state, and personal liberty free of government intrusion) and fiscal discipline (balancing the budget and working for a more efficient use of tax revenue)."

He's been endorsed by the Oklahoma AFL-CIO, the Oklahoma Chapter of the Sierra Club...and Wayne Coyne of the Flaming Lips. See, Wayne doesn't only care about Martians and animal costumes. He cares about politics too!

On Thursday, October 12, Coyne will appear at a Rice for Senate voter registration bash taking place from 8 to 10 p.m. at Raffine Interiors on Film Row, in downtown Oklahoma City. The event is free for those aged 18 to 21, and costs 10 bucks for everyone older than that.

It's not clear what, exactly, Wayne will be doing at the event, although "music, food, and drink" are promised. Perhaps he'll announce that Christmas on Mars will only be released if Rice is elected. [MORE...]

Video: The Flaming Lips: The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song [from the At War With the Mystics LP]

Clipse's Second LP Pushed Back
To label: "Why you wanna treat us so bad?"

Stream: Clipse: Various Tracks

Beck and Devendra Are Friends
The Matt and Lance of indie!

Well lookee here, it's one of Beck's new press photos in support of his forthcoming album, The Information, due out October 3. And who's that lurking right behind Mr. Hansen in Autumn de Wilde's shot? Why it's Devendra Banhart, of course.

Although D-Ban doesn't play on The Information, he does appear in the video for "Cell Phone's Dead", which was directed by Michel Gondry, and is probably awesome.

Minutes after this photo was taken, Beck and Dev stripped down to their shorts and took a jog along the Pacific Coast Highway, muscles rippling in the sunshine and hair blowing in the breeze.

Stream: Beck: Nausea

Chan Marshall Tells All to New York Times
"Saturday Night Live" audition?!

First, we were skeptical, then pleasantly surprised. But now it's evident that Chan Marshall is doing victory laps. In an interview published today in The New York Times, Marshall (aka Cat Power) talked about her battle with alcoholism and her past struggles with performing live, as well as her future plans.

"I never noticed they really liked me before. Man, these people stuck with me," Marshall said of her audiences, explaining that her erratic behavior at past shows had more to do with being uncomfortable with herself rather than the audience or the instruments onstage.

She also talked about the events leading up to her stay at the Mount Sinai Medical Center earlier this year, where she was hospitalized right before the release of her latest album, The Greatest. "I was looking at death. I wanted to die," she said, adding, "I lost my mind... I asked God, I said, 'I'm tired, I can't do this.' I was asking him to just take me."

For the full article and a video of Marshall answering some of the interview questions, click here. [MORE...]

MP3: Cat Power: The Greatest [from The Greatest LP]

Jay-Z Returns! (Definitely)
No more "probably"

Late last week, when Jay-Z decided to finally confirm the rampant rumors of the end of his "retirement", he went straight to the streets...by granting an exclusive interview to Entertainment Weekly. E-to-the-Dub got H-to-the-Izzo to admit that yes, a new album will be released this fall, yes, it's called Kingdom Come, and yes, Coldplay's Chris Martin produced one of its tracks.

Said Hova of the Martin collaboration, "We met at a charity dinner and just really kept in touch. He sent me these beautiful chords for this song called 'Beach Chair'. I had [Dr.] Dre put some drums on it. It's really, really incredible."

In the time it took to read that quote, Cam'ron wrote five new diss tracks, including one about how he used to pimp Gwyneth Paltrow.

Jigga also revealed to EW that Timbaland, Kanye West, and Dre have done production work for the album, and that he hopes to also work with Rick Rubin and Eminem. Lyrical inspirations include Superman ("Take off the blazer/ Loosen up the tie/ Step inside the booth/Superman is alive!"), a Basquiat painting (a track called "Most Kings"), and the death of his nephew. The album, he said, is "more in the vein of The Black Album than The Blueprint. I've been experimenting with things, different types of music."

He also continued his long-running denial of a relationship with Beyonce. C'mon, dude, it's getting really, really annoying.

Video: Jay-Z: 99 Problems

Jay-Z Returns! (Probably)
Possible new album to possibly feature songs, artwork, possibly rapping

Welcome to the new Idlewild, folks! While we here at the 'Fork believe that Jay-Z's rumored "comeback" album will be more forthcoming than the finally-released Outkast album and film, it comes with the same monumental mystery and anticipation attached. (Perhaps even more) With all the rumors coming from musicians, industry people, and bloggers everywhere, this is probably the best worst kept secret in music. Then again, maybe the confused and conflicting nature of those rumors make this "secret" the worst best kept (think about it). Without further ado, let's get straight to the "facts."

The album is called Presidential Gala. Or just Presidential. Or maybe Kingdom Come. It depends on whether you trust, respectively, Nah Right and SOHH.com, AllHipHop.com, or Billboard.com more, but it will have a title. Unless it doesn't. But it does come out on Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam in November, according to Billboard.com. Unless it doesn't.

Based on this picture of a message shown on a screen during Jay's recent performance in Bratislava, Slovakia as part of his previously reported water crisis awareness-raising world tour, Nah Right and AllHipHop.com speculate that the specific release date will be November 21 (though if that's the curve of a "2," why not the 28th?). On the other hand, reports on SOHH.com and NME.com (as well as unconfirmed rumors of one in Rolling Stone, which makes it a rumor of a rumor. Seriously, WTF people?) list the release date as November 14. Also, the MTV documentary about the tour is supposed to air November 24, so maybe that's the date to which the message refers. Did we mention this is all pretty much completely unconfirmed?
[MORE...]

Video: Jay-Z: 99 Problems

Ex-Tapes 'n Tapes Bassist Joins Planes for Spaces

Stream: Planes for Spaces: Various Tracks

Weezer Deny Breakup Rumors
Eat delicious cheese platter

Sigh. It's been confirmed-- we the media people just don't get Rivers Cuomo. "Really, for the moment, we are done," he told MTV.com of Weezer in an interview last month (previously reported here). "And I'm not certain we'll ever make a record again, unless it becomes really obvious to me that we need to do one."

Translation? Apparently, all is well in Weez World.

Over the weekend, the band posted the following statement online:

"...A Public Service Announcement from the weez: We right here!

(except for Pat who's on a family vacation right now)

this PSA has been brought to you by the fine guacamole dip at Scott Shriner's house, co-sponsored by a ring of fine cheese, and a dish of fresh figs from the back yard. Now please, take those 'weezer split?' headlines and place them firmly into the 'Don't believe the hype' bin. And have yourself a fine afternoon now."

This is like watching a fish flop around out of water. After getting shot and undergoing several weeks of starvation. Somebody, anybody, please put it out of its misery already.

Video: Weezer: Perfect Situation

Terrorism Takes Down Ariel Pink Tour

Airlines these days. No electronics, no liquids, and now, no Ariel Pink/Holy Shit tour.

Due to "all of this terrorist bullshit" (quoth a MySpace bulletin statement), all of the bands' necessary touring luggage was lost, leaving Ariel Pink and Holy Shit stranded in Europe without equipment to play shows.

According to Holy Shit's Matt Fishbeck who spoke with Pitchfork via e-mail, both Pink and Corey Lee Granet, the bands' most experienced European tour-goers, were forced to abandon the tour due to a lack of tapes and an abundance of stress.

The remaining members of Holy Shit are attempting to stick things out. The aforementioned MySpace bulletin asked readers for assistance with accommodations between Hyres and Paris, France (Fishbeck said the message worked beautifully for lodging there, and even clothes!), transportation, and recommendations as to what to do. Now, however, Holy Shit (sans Ariel) are trying to work things out for two London gigs tomorrow night (one for Resonance FM and one at Proud Gallery Camden), and could use help there with gear and crash space. A hot meal probably wouldn't be looked down upon, either.

Anybody with something to offer should e-mail Fishbeck here. He will respond with a gear list if necessary. Other contacts include Ariel Pink, Granet, Kate Stewart, and Emily Jane. The status of HS stints further along the European trek (Barcelona, Paris...all TBA) is still pending.

[MORE...]

MP3: Ariel Pink: Helen

Jeff Mangum Sings With the Instruments
The band as well as the music-playing things.

Jeff Mangum had a busy night out on the town in New York City on Friday. First, he and a few buddies, including Robert Schneider of the Apples in Stereo and Andrew Rieger and Laura Carter of Elf Power, took in the Os Mutantes show at Webster Hall. Then the crew made their way to the tiny Lower East Side club Cake Shop for performances by the New Sound of Numbers and the Instruments, both featuring Heather McIntosh of Circulatory System and Japancakes.

During the Instruments' set, Mangum joined the band for one song. According to my friend Mike Noble, who supplied the information about both the Os Mutantes and Cake Shop shows, "Mangum sat in with the Instruments on a song (er, stood in, sang in his loud I-don't-need-no-microphone way, wordlessly chanting." (He also joined the Instruments during their in-store performance at Sound Fix in Williamsburg the next day)

Mike was also nice enough to share some photos of the event with us. [MORE...]

Antony, Björk Collaboration up in the Air

Pitchfork just received the following message from Antony, regarding the rumor of his involvement with Björk's forthcoming album:

"I am not 'working with Björk on her new record'. However we have written some things together in the course of hanging out; the destination of this collaboration is not known at this time. A subtle distinction I know, but an important one."

Oh well. Hopefully something cool comes of this.

MP3: Antony and the Johnsons: "Hope There's Someone"

Update: Jeff Mangum Returns?

SEE UPDATE AT BOTTOM OF STORY

Late Sunday night, a mysterious post appeared on E6 Townhall, the Elephant 6 message board. Credited to a poster named "Nigh" and written under the subject heading "news and fish and meaningful messages." Here is what it said:

"hello again.

"for the past few months ive been putting together the pieces of everything ive written in the past three years and its been a revelation. whenever i had the time ive been writing melodies and keeping them in my head for later, and songs just accumulate, im not waiting as some have said. i still dont know how we're going to put it all together, the songs will have more noises and collages in them. because of that we dont know whether this will be korena pang or neutral milk hotel or michael bolton but that doesnt really matter. names are just a box we put things in to separate them, and we're figuring out what box these songs go in.

"we dont have a timetable for releasing the album yet, so dont get your hopes up for new songs now. if you want more "aeroplane" just ignore all of this, the songs are songs but they're longer and more free. when jeremy came down after his tour we just spent days playing noise while screaming and it was incredibly liberating.

"it has been so much fun that we will for sure be playing a show or two, probably more. freedom is a wonderful thing but at a certain point you need the routines of normal life. ive had that for a while but i realized last year at the show with the livys that the best sort of normal ive ever had was on the road with my friends. getting to gigs late with cars coughing and trombones smacking on doors, the giant egg leaks over the masses, the yolk sustains us, we eat whites for days. it can never be the same but i need to get as close as i can to that again.

"so thats all. everything is happening soon, this is the year.

thanks for listening. jeff."

Could it be? Jeff Mangum, arguably indie rock's most elusive character, announcing his return to the spotlight? Or just an elaborate hoax?

Well, according to Kelly Ruberto from Cloud Recordings, it is not a joke. Jeff Mangum really did write that.

John Fernandes of Olivia Tremor Control ("the livys"), Circulatory System, and Cloud Recordings, had only this to say:

"Sounds like him, but you never know, probably is."

Holy shit.

However, according to Robert Schneider, Apples in Stereo frontman and Mangum's close friend, Mangum confirmed via email that he did NOT author the post.

Schneider posted the following on E6 Townhall today:

"dear friends--

"i had not commented on this thread because i wanted to hear back from jeff mangum directly about it-- i sent jeff an email quoting the initial post on this thread yesterday, and he just replied:

'hello robert-i am sorry to inform you that this is not my post. could you please inform the good people on the e6 list that this is not my writing? thank you robert. much love-j'

"this came directly to my email from jeff's email account-- the post attributed to him is 100% FALSE, sorry to bear the disappointing news-- it was a very beautifully written fake post!

"you are all beautiful and brilliant kids, it would do the whole world a great deal of good if you took all this great energy and excitementyou have been passing around here, rolled it up with your anger and disappointment into a big wonderful pissed-off ball, and recorded a bunch of kickass songs!!! please go right now and make something special, do something great, retaliate against the mediocrity that engulfs us!!

"don't just do it for me, or jeff, or elephant 6 (although it would please us all immensely) do it because the world needs it!!

love,
robert schneider"

Pitchfork spoke to Schneider on the phone just a few minutes ago, and he confirmed that his post’s contents were all true. "It didn’t sound like his writing style because, for instance, it closed with the words 'thanks for listening,’ which is a phrase that I’ve always used on Elephant 6 literature, not Jeff. It was kind of my little catchphrase,” Schneider said.

He added, "I wish it were true!"

So do we, Robert. So do we.

While we had him on the horn, we asked Schneider about the new Apples in Stereo album. He said that he'd been working on the record for the past 10 months, and that he’s headed to Brooklyn soon to mix it.

Schneider had mentioned earlier that the infamous email exchange with Mangum had also included a discussion about "Apples stuff," so we asked if Mangum had any involvement in the creation of the new album. But all that Schneider would say is "I don't want to comment on the making of the record until it’s done."

Stream: Neutral Milk Hotel: "Holland 1945"

Portishead Drop Hints, Beef With Moby, Gorillaz
Tricky, Morcheeba, Lamb Feel Left Out

The last time Portishead released a new album was the 1998 live disc PNYC. The last time Portishead released an album of new material was 1997's Portishead. So after nearly a decade, we're pretty desperate for something, anything, resembling news of a forthcoming album.

Well, we got some tiny scraps last week, when the Bristol trio updated its MySpace page with some straight up good news: "weve had our meeting with the label it was really positive...which makes the whole thing so much easier to deal with nice people," the blog said. "the tracks are in a right mess but sounding like a album for the first time in years." The music is described as "fukin a bit weird" before the band takes some potshots at artists with whom they're often RIYL'd. "its nice to think us old gits have a few tunes in us without sounding like coffee table zero 7 - moby - chill out shit!!"

Ooh, diss. [MORE...]

Video: Portishead: "Only You"

Arctic Monkeys Lose Bassist

Arctic Monkeys bassist Andy Nicholson has left the riot van for good. In an announcement on their website, the remaining Monkeys explained that Nicholson-- who has not been touring with the band due to "fatigue"-- "is no longer with the band."

They have not yet named a permanent replacement for Nicholson, but the Monkeys do say, "Nick O'Malley, who stood in for Andy while he was absent from the recent tour of North America, shall carry on playing bass for the remaining shows this summer."

"We all wish Andy the very best," they say, and while it may not be quite the same as before, you can still catch Arctic Monkeys at any of their remaining dates this summer. [MORE...]

Video: Arctic Monkeys: "The View From the Afternoon"

Do you have a news tip for us? Anything crazy happen at a show you attended recently? Do you have inside info on the bands we cover? Is one of your favorite artists (that's not somebody you know personally) releasing a new record you'd like to see covered? You will remain completely anonymous, unless we are given your express permission to reveal your identity. (Please note that publicists, managers, booking agents, and other artist representatives are generally exempt from this rule, but will also be granted anonymity if requested.)