Thursday News Threads

Japandroids among CMJ bands announced for this year's Music Marathon
photo by Chona Kasinger

CMJ just announced the initial lineup of the 2009 Music Marathon. Hundreds more bands will be announced in the following weeks, but among those performing at various showcases and club around NYC on October 20th – 24th are many you’ll hear on KEXP: Broadcast, School of Seven Bells, Atlas Sound, Japandroids, The Budos Band, Suckers, The Temper Trap, Crystal Antlers, Cymbals Eat Guitars, Malajube, and Pissed Jeans.

Pitchfork thinks that the ever-prolific Ryan Adams might be behind the theme song (a “Hair Metal Version” no less) to Internet news source, The Awl, and if that’s true, then word is that he’ll become a regular columnist on the site. Upon listening to the track, it’s hard to tell if the country crooner is really singing this twisted falsetto, but it certainly wouldn’t be his first foray into metal.

Death Row Records, the groundbreaking West Coast rap label started by Suge Knight and Dr. Dre, and sold at auction this past January, is being resurrected by new owners WIDEawake Entertainment, who are re-issuing Dr. Dre‘s ’92 debut. The Chronic: Re Lit & From the Vault walks on September 1st. The label is also making a move on Hollywood. According to CEO Lara Lavi, the label’s new Death Row Films division is set to shoot Sons 2 the Grave in Toronto this fall.

If you get “five, ten, fifteen, twenty” stuck in your head every time you hear The Phenomenal Handclap Band‘s “15 to 20,” you might want to skip this new remix… or maybe not. UK DJ David E. Sugar sweetens the groove and chops up the mantra in a whole new way.

The Phenomenal Handclap Band – 15 to 20 (David E Sugar 5 10 Replay Remix) (MP3)

Some call it a fad and some call it the biggest thing we’ve done for kids since putting them to work in factories, but social networking as undoubtedly entered our everyday vernacular: “tweet” this, “friend” that… but “hit me up on MySpace”? Who says that anymore? Social networking is a fickle as it is pervasive. By MySpace won’t lie down, and is in fact hoping to bring back its initial magic by acquiring iLike, the Seattle-based social music discovery service that allows users to download and share their favorite tunes. What this means to their more successful rival, Facebook, which will continue to use the iLike service, remains to be seen, but it could be that in another few months you’ll be saying to your friends, “Space me that song.”

Say what you will about Twilight [for the record, not a fan], but author Stephenie Meyer has pretty darn good taste in music. While you wouldn’t know if from the first movie’s soundtrack, which was heavy on the Linkin Park, MuteMath, and Paramore tracks, Meyer tells Spin that she’s really into Animal Collective, Elbow, White Rabbits, The Weakerthans, Grizzly Bear, and a bunch of other hipster-approved indie artists, and talks have already been had about adding Kings of Leon and Thom Yorke to make the next movie much more tolerable.

In the midst of their European tour, Placebo has postponed dates after lead singer Brian Molko collapsed onstage at the Summer Sonic Festival in Osaka, after contracting a virus in Asia. Doctors have ordered Molko to take 6 weeks bed rest, so you won’t be seeing their previous scheduled date at the Showbox in September. According to band management, Placebo ” only ever cancelled 3 shows in Placebo’s 14 year history.” Here’s hoping for Molko’s speedy recovery.

The KEXP Blog