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Thursday News Threads

Zach, KEXP — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 14:22:00 +0000

Despite the indie cred we’re putting on the line by blogging about that damn Twilight sequel for a third straight week, it’s at least worth mentioning that the complete tracklist has been released. In addition to the lead single from the local boys in Death Cab For Cutie, it will feature completely new or remixed songs from Radiohead’s Thom Yorke, The Killers, Band of Skulls, Grizzly Bear, Bon Iver & St. Vincent, Lykke Li, Anya Marina, and Sea Wolf (who recently did a breathtaking in-studio here at KEXP.)

Relatedly! Ben Gibbard, frontman of Death Cab, reportedly tied the knot with actress/She&Him singer Zooey Deschanel on Saturday night here in Seattle. Now he knows the words were true in his sappiest songs.

Ben Gibbard and Zooey Deschanel: Indie Rock Man and Wife.

Swine flu has taken another celebrity victim: Marilyn Manson! He wrote on Facebook, “I know everyone will suggest that fucking a pig is how this disease was obtained. However, the doctor said, my past choices in women have, in ‘no way’ contributed to… me acquiring this mysterious sickness.”

Indie supergroup darlings, Monsters of Folk, appeared on The Tonight Show the other night in flashy formals performing their song “Say Please.” Following is their new video for the song “The Right Place.”

Seattle native and rock and roll legend Jimi Hendrix recorded enough material in the four years his life that overlapped with Electric Lady Studios that his sister recently said they’d be able to release a decade’s worth of new material.

Apparently Merge Records is planning on re-releasing both Neutral Milk Hotel LPs on vinyl November 3rd. This might very well be the most exciting NMH-related release we see ever again… there is seemingly no chance we’ll get anything more from reclusive songwriter Jeff Mangum.

A new movie from Portland writer/director Matt McCormick features The Shins’ James Mercer and Sleater-Kinney’s Carrie Brownstein. It’s very Portland-y. Did we mention it was made in Portland? Check out the trailer below!

Monday News Mash-Up

Justin Spicer — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 13:15:20 +0000

Jeff Mangum, the elusive leader of Neutral Milk Hotel, is helping out the charity, Children of the Blue Sky, with original art pieces ready for auction. Among his contributions is a t-shirt with an original drawing done by Mangum and an autographed copy of On Avery Island featuring Jeff’s thumbprint and stamp work. More items from Mangum, as well as The Apples in Stereo, Of Montreal, and Hollywood hotshot Rainn Wilson are available to the highest bidders.

Doron Gild

Bang Bang Eche are due to release their second EP, “Sonic Death Cuntttt,” on November 3rd (you heard it here first!). If the songs are even good as last year’s “4 to the Floor,” look out! Here’s the tracklist for the EP:

1. Fist Full Of Dollars
2. You’re A Jerk
3. Beat Up The Children
4. Dirt In The Water

Third Man Records, the brainchild of Jack White, continues its full pursuit of guerrilla music releases and sales. After setting up a temporary brick-and-mortar shop in the heart of New York City, White is taking his tent pegs and hitting up Los Angeles this week during August 26th-28th.

Those in the noise know are very familiar with the artful output of Ron Lessard’s RRRecords. Handmade releases covering statewide scenes, however, were just the tip as RRRecords has just released RRR-1000 Lock Groove LP, featuring 50 ‘grooves’ each from the warped minds of C. Spencer Yeh, Aaron Dilloway, Prurient, and The New Blockaders among others. For a sampling, check out contributor Keith Fullerton Whitman’s video sampling his grooves to a montage of RRR album covers:

Miles Davis called Columbia Records home for much of his career. During his decades-long stay with the label, he produced 52 albums, which will now be bunched together in the mammoth and not very expensive box set (less than $400), The Complete Columbia Album Collection. The set features 70 discs covering every album Davis released for Columbia, a myriad of extra tracks from the recent reissues, and a DVD chronicling the jazz legend’s 1970 Isle of Wight performance and the never-released Live in Europe ‘67.

The always entertaining, never deflating, Dan Deacon just released the video for “Paddling Ghost,” from this year’s Bromst.

The Books have kept fans waiting for a proper follow-up to Lost and Safe for four years, but the duo of Paul de Jong and Nick Zammuto have gone on record stating that they are currently hard at work sorting through a mountain of audio and video tapes with the goal of finishing an album and releasing it in early 2010.

Many would point at Norah Jones as an example of all that is wrong with music. Of course, they would be dead wrong. Who else can segway from duets with Willie Nelson into working with Mike Patton and Andre 3000? Now you can add Ryan Adams and Will Sheff to the list, as both lent their songwriting skills to Ms. Jones for her upcoming November release.

One final video: this fan-made animation for Grizzly Bear’s “Two Weeks” has been causing a stir on the interwebs and caught the attention of the band, who already had a video for the song… but as good?

Repeats continue on the daily talkshows, but you can catch new performances from Kings of Leon, Matt and Kim, Franz Ferdinand, and Friendly Fires, along with re-watchable repeats of Q-Tip, Raphael Saadiq, and Camera Obscura. Here are the highlights:

Monday, August 24

Conan O’Brien: Kings of Leon
Jimmy Fallon: Aimee Mann (R)
Last Call: Keane (R)

Tuesday, August 25

David Letterman: Jet
Last Call: The Airborne Toxic Event (R)
Jimmy Kimmel: Friendly Fires

Wednesday, August 26

Conan O’Brien: Franz Ferdinand
Late Late Show: Camera Obscura (R)
Jimmy Kimmel: Matt & Kim
Ellen DeGeneres: Q-Tip (R)
Bonnie Hunt: Common (R)

Thursday, August 27

Last Call: Glasvegas (R)
Ellen DeGeneres: Raphael Saadiq (R)

Friday, August 28

Last Call: Common, Doves (R)

Monday News Mash-Up

Justin Spicer — Mon, 04 May 2009 13:00:00 +0000

An already fruitful week in camp Wilco just got a lot more… fruity. The band is offering up “The Jolly Banker,” yet another Woody Guthrie interpretation from the Nora Guthrie and Billy Bragg tapped musicians. The download is free but the band is kindly asking for donations to benefit the Woody Guthrie Foundation and Archives. You can grab the track and/or make your contribution here. What a fine addition to our Wilco album, Wilco song, Wilco book, and Wilco toys.

How about more FREE music? Coldplay will be giving away the 9-track live album LeftRightLeftRightLeft on their upcoming tour, which begins May 15th in West Palm Beach, Florida. Not attending the Coldplay tour this go-round; not a problem. The band will be making the album available to download from their website on… say it with me… May 15th! Ain’t life grand?

How about MORE FREE music? Del the Funky Homosapien is offering up digital delight, Funk Man (The Stimulus Package), for free via his website.

My Morning Jacket are the subject of a new photographic display from the lens of Sam Erickson. 21 images from 2002-2008 will be on display via the Morrison Hotel Gallery, capturing the band hard at work recording It Still Moves, Z, and Evil Urges. The exhibit opens May 22nd and will run six weeks with limited edition hand prints available for purchase.

Not to be outdone, former Pulp frontman and current solo artist Jarvis Cocker will be taking over a Paris gallery this week (May 4-10). Cocker and his band will be entertaining yoga and pilates classes, creating improvised songs from crowd suggested titles, performing with any wanderer who brings an instrument, and holding classes for children (whatever that entails). The consolation for Cocker fans unable to participate in the flesh is the promise of a webcast via Cocker’s website.

Having just returned from a successful tour in Russia, Deerhoof are now unveiling their latest video, “Numina,” from their latest album, Offend Maggie. The video was shot by ex-Mika Miko drummer Kate Hall.

Omaha don’t got much, but they do have Saddle Creek. The label-that-can announced the signing of two bands this week: The Rural Alberta Advantage (ironically, from Alberta) and UUVVWWZ. Both bands will release their Saddle Creek debuts July 7th.

Wouldn’t you like to help out Neutral Milk Hotel? I’m sure you would but before you get your hopes up, it’s not about putting them back together for a reunion. However,Julian Koster, along with Jeff Mangum, have penned a letter to fans asking them to vote via Partners in Preservation to save the Paragon Carousel in Hull, Massachusetts.

It’s a slow week on the late night talk shows, but be sure to stay up or set your DVR for Franz Ferdinand on Letterman, Jenny Lewis on the Late Late Show, The National on Jimmy Fallon, and Animal Collective also on Letterman. Here are the rest of the highlights:
Monday, May 4

Last Call: Lykke Li (R 4/16/09)
Jimmy Kimmel: The Whip (R 4/22/09)

Tuesday, May 5

David Letterman: Franz Ferdinand
Late Late Show: Jenny Lewis
Last Call: Lily Allen

Wednesday, May 6

David Letterman: Ben Harper & Relentless7
Jay Leno: Van Morrison
Jimmy Fallon: The National

Thursday, May 7

David Letterman: Animal Collective
Jimmy Fallon: Ben Harper & Relentless7

Friday, May 8

David Letterman: Chris Cornell