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Nicole Atkins at The Drake Underground in Toronto

Frank Yang — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 13:25:47 +0000

Frank YangA little into her show at The Drake Underground on Saturday evening, Nicole Atkins mentioned that this was her first-ever solo show in Canada, and that performances of this format were usually reserved for more casual one-off performances back home in New Jersey during the holidays. Indeed, though Ms Atkins has been no stranger to Toronto stages since releasing her debut Neptune City back in 2007, she’s always been accompanied by some iteration of her band The (Black) Sea. I’d have to go back to SXSW 2007 to recall the last time I saw her in a stripped-down acoustic format (also the very first time overall), and even then she was backed by a hastily-recruited drummer and second guitarist because The Sea had gotten lost en route.

The call for backing players is a reasonable one as both her records – Neptune City and this year’s Mondo Amore – are pretty produced affairs, but it’s key to remember at her core Atkins is a folk/blues-rooted singer-songwriter and has had more than her share of experience performing with just her guitar, voice and songs. That’s all she brought with her on this evening and it was more than enough. Well, those and some hilarious anecdotes; for serious, the evening could have just been her sitting there – no guitar – and telling stories and it would have been worth the price of admission. But yes, she sang too.

Brassy set opener “Maybe Tonight” set the tone for the night, which is to say it wouldn’t be a quiet, navel-gazey affair. She promised that the set would mostly be country versions of her songs – and indeed, “Cry Cry Cry” was extra honky-tonky-ish – but most songs retained their basic stylistic personalities and there were a fair number of what she called the “sad bastard” songs, but even those were delivered with energy and conviction thanks to her room-filling voice. The set was all over the place as far as where it drew from, covering both albums, the rarely-heard title track of her debut Bleeding Diamonds EP, a new song entitled “Call Me The Witch”, and covers of Leadbelly, Benji Hughes and Cotton Mather (about whom she spilled the beans regarding an upcoming reunion at SXSW). After complimenting the audience on how quiet and attentive they were all night, she invited all to join in on “The Way It Is” and for the show closer and in what’s becoming a bit of a Drake tradition, came offstage to play “Neptune City” in the audience with everyone singing along.

Make no mistake, I loved both the widescreen, ornate presentation of Neptune City and the rawer, rockier Mondo Amore but if for her third record Nicole Atkins decides to peel things back to little more than what we saw on Saturday night, I’ve no doubt it’d be just as sublime.

Hater High was also in attendance and has the whole show recorded and available to download; it all sounds great but the banter prior to “Hotel Plaster” is especially worth hearing. The Free Lance-Star also has an interview.

Photos: Nicole Atkins @ The Drake Underground – December 3, 2011
MP3: Nicole Atkins – “Vultures”
MP3: Nicole Atkins – “Vitamin C”
Video: Nicole Atkins – “Vultures”
Video: Nicole Atkins – “Maybe Tonight”
Video: Nicole Atkins – “The Way It Is”
Video: Nicole Atkins – “Neptune City”

The Quietus talks to Janet Weiss of Wild Flag.

NPR has a Tiny Desk Concert with tUnE-yArDs.

The Quietus interviews both Erika Anderson of EMA and Nika Roza Danilova of Zola Jesus.

Kind of an odd bill, but together The Black Keys and Arctic Monkeys get to cross “go on an arena tour of North America” off their to-do lists. They’re at the Air Canada Centre on March 14 – presale goes December 6 at 10AM, public onsale on December 9. The Black Keys’ new album El Camino is out Tuesday.

Video: The Black Keys – “Tighten Up”
Video: Arctic Monkeys – “Suck It And See”

Austin 360 talks to Jeff Tweedy of Wilco.

The second Archers Of Loaf reissue – Vee Vee – has an official release date of February 21, and The AV Club has all the salient info. And they’ve also got Eric Bachmann doing a
One Track Mind performance and interview for “Web In Front”. Meanwhile, Bachmann puts his Crooked Fingers hat on to chat with Creative Loafing and The Phoenix New Times.

MP3: Archers Of Loaf – “Harnessed In Slums”

The first official single from Guided By Voices’ reunion record Let’s Go Eat The Factory is now available to download, all 1:44 of it. It will probably take you longer to read this interview with Bob Pollard at The AV Club than to listen to the song.

MP3: Guided By Voices – “Doughtnut For A Snowman”

Loud & Quiet interviews Ryan Adams, in town at the Winter Garden Theatre on December 10.

Blurt talks to Britta Phillips of Dean & Britta about being the voice of Jem (of Jem & The Holograms) back in the ’80s while Listgeeks chats with both her and Dean Wareham. And over at Captain’s Dead, they’ve got a downloadable recording of the “Plays Galaxie 500″ set they did at Primavera in Barcelona back in May.

The Daily Beast talks to Michael Stipe and Mike Mills about the end of R.E.M..

Charles Bradley has released a new MP3 from No Time For Dreaming. He and his Extraordinaires are at Lee’s Palace on February 11.

MP3: Charles Bradley – “Heartaches & Pain”

Wye Oak stops in by Berlin Sessions for a video session. They open up for The National at The Air Canada Centre on Thursday night.

NPR has a World Cafe session with Dum Dum Girls.

Spin points out that Sleigh Bells’ website has been highjacked by a trailer for what is presumed to be their new album. It’s called Reign of Terror and it’ll be out when it’s out.

Bon Iver’s deluxe home movies; let him show you them

Frank Yang — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 13:29:56 +0000

D.L. AndersonYear-end lists are kind of like Christmas displays in shopping malls. Every year, they seem to come out a little earlier and are a little less welcome but there’s little choice but to accept them as a fact of life. Paste kicked things off yesterday with a very Paste-y top 50 of the year, topped off by a record that’s probably going to be getting more than a few “album of the year” accolades (though not likely around here, though I like it more than the first record), Bon Iver’s Bon Iver.

And while the news that a deluxe edition of said record was coming could reasonably be met with eye rolls, the truth of it isn’t so cash-grabby. Rather than attach some b-sides and drop it in a shiny slipcase, they’ve released a video version of the album in digital form via iTunes (if I had any idea how to link an iTunes album I’d do so but I don’t so go and make with the search) and if you only want to watch the clips and not own them, all ten are also available to watch on the YouTubes. They tend towards the abstract – certainly no narratives and nothing to match the stark Icelandic beauty of the official “Holocene” clip – but they’re pretty and if you’re of the opinion that Bon Iver works better as soundtrack music, now you’ve got something to watch while it plays in the background. And for the downloading, there’s a solo piano version of “Beth/Rest” recorded for NPR earlier this Summer that should be exhibit A in any “Bon Iver = Bruce Hornsby” debates.

Bon Iver is at Massey Hall next week for two shows; December 6 and 7.

Just as the did back in 2007, Okkervil River have given their fans the gift of free music in the form of Golden Opportunities 2, a second EP of cover songs that they’re giving away for free. Unlike the first edition, I don’t know any of the artists covered this time out (okay I know who Bill Fay is but I don’t know the song) but hey – we’re here to learn, right? Look ‘em up.

ZIP: Okkervil River / Golden Opportunities 2

In what could be subtitled “a preview of shows you should see next week”, The AV Club sends Aaron Dessner of The National to interview Adam Granduciel of The War On Drugs. The former are at The ACC on December 8, the latter at The Horseshoe on December 9.

The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel talks to Zach Condon of Beirut.

Grizzly Bear offspring CANT has released a new video from Dreams Come True.

Video: CANT – “Too Late, Too Far”

The Fader sends a self-proclaimed superfan to interview Mac McCaughan of Superchunk.

The Quietus offers a beginner’s guide to the works of Guided By Voices, about to increase by one album come January 1 when Let’s Go Eat The Factory is released via mail order; regular retail won’t happen until January 17.

Rolling Stone talks to Michael Stipe, formerly of R.E.M., about the odds of a solo career (slim to none).

And on a similiar note, Rolling Stone asks Lee Ranaldo about his new solo record Between The Times & The Tides, out March 20 of next year, and the future of Sonic Youth now that half the band are getting a divorce.

The Antlers thankful for new EP, sessions a-plenty

Frank Yang — Fri, 25 Nov 2011 13:31:23 +0000

Shervin LainezYou know how the internet basically shuts down when the US goes on holiday? Well it does, and that’s why today’s post is a bit slight to say the least.

And we’ll kick it off with a couple of sessions to listen to, watch and download from The Antlers to mark the release this week of their (together) EP. It’s a companion to this year’s Burst Apart long-player, which contains the remixes and covers that are standard for these sorts of releases but also re-recordings of selections from the record with the assistance of artists such as Nicole Atkins and Neon Indian. It vacillates between interesting and meandering and if you’re trying to decide between hearing it or Burst Apart, by all means go with the full-length – it’s gorgeous – but if you’re needing an Antlers fix, this may do ya.

It also provides an occasion for Daytrotter and Paste to post up sessions with the band, the former downloadable and purchaseable and the latter watchable. And just because, here’s that xx cover that also appears on (together).

MP3: The Antlers – “VCR”

Pitchfork has premiered the first sample of Sharon Van Etten’s forthcoming Tramp, out February 7. She plays Lee’s Palace on February 21.

MP3: Sharon Van Etten – “Serpents”

Pennsylvanian punks Pissed Jeans have made a date at Sneaky Dee’s for January 20 of the new year, tickets $15 in advance.

MP3: Pissed Jeans – “Dream Smotherer”
MP3: Pissed Jeans – “False Jesii Part 2″

NPR has a World CafetUnE-yArDs.

Ivy have released a new video from this year’s All Hours.

Video: Ivy – “Fascinated”

Matthew Sweet talks about and performes his Girlfriend-era gem “I’ve Been Waiting” for The AV Club.

Paste has an extensive career-spanning retrospective piece on R.E.M..

The Jayhawks play a set for NPR’s World Cafe and give an interview to Country Standard Time.

For Folk’s Sake points to session at Abbey Road for Channel 4 (watchable only from the UK, unfortunately) wherein Laura Marling plays Emmylou to Ryan Adams on a performance of “Oh My Sweet Carolina”… and it’s very good. Marling is in town for two sold-out shows at Camera Bar on December 7 and Adams is at the Winter Garden Theatre on December 10.

NOW and The Victoria Times-Colonist talk to Kathryn Calder, in town for a free show at The Horseshoe on Tuesday night.

Uptown and The Winnipeg Free Press profile Austra, who is at The Phoenix on December 1.

Dreamland Apparel and The AV Club hang out with The Rural Alberta Advantage.

Clash enumerates ten things they think you didn’t know about Jarvis Cocker.

You know that fancy Elvis Costello The Return of the Spectacular Spinning Songbook!!! collector live set that was announced a little while back? Well Elvis doesn’t want you to buy it. Seriously.

Lambchop prepares another serving of Lambchop

Frank Yang — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 13:35:11 +0000

MergeIf you thought that it had been a while since we heard from Nashville’s Lambchop, well you were right. It had. After finishing up with 2008′s OH (ohio), bandleader Kurt Wagner was content to put the orchestral country-soul outfit in mothballs for an undetermined spell while he worked on KORT, a collaborative project with singer-songwriter Courtney Tidwell.

But with the passing of friend and collaborator Vic Chesnutt in 2009 and at the urging of guitarist Mark Nevers, Wagner got the band back together for at least one more go-around and the result is Mr. M, their eleventh studio album which will be out on February 21 of the new year.

Clash has details on the new record and some background from Wagner about its inception, and the leadoff track has been made available as a download – if you were hoping that Wagner had gotten in touch with his inner metalhead during the layoff, you may be disappointed. But if you want some lovely, languid string-laden soul, “If Not I’ll Just Die” is like manna.

MP3: Lambchop – “If Not I’ll Just Die”

Daytrotter has posted up a session with Crooked Fingers, and there’s some fresh and vintage Bachmann available to download via the just-released Merge Winter Sampler: a new MP3 from the exquisite new Crooked Fingers record Breaks In The Armor and one of Archers Of Loaf’s best tunes, from the forthcoming Vee Vee reissue due out sometime in the new year. Plus a pile of other stuff either recently out or coming soon from the label – so download already. And read this interview with Bachmann over at Denver Westword.

MP3: Crooked Fingers – “Bad Blood”
MP3: Archers Of Loaf – “Harnessed In Slums”
ZIP: Merge Winter Sampler 2011

Over at The AV Club, Mac McCaughan of Superchunk discusses and performs “Digging For Something” from their latest, Majesty Shredding.

Fleet Foxes have gotten around to releasing a new video from Helplessness Blues.

Video: Fleet Foxes – “The Shrine/An Argument”

Paste is streaming the new Calexico CD Selections From Road Atlas 1998-2011, which is not to be confused with their new vinyl box set Road Atlas 1998-2011. The former is a 16-track sampler of the latter, which is a compendium of all the band’s tour-only releases of the past 13 years – 12 LPs worth. The former is also out now, whereas the latter is out next week.

Stream: Calexico / Selections From Road Atlas 1998-2011

CNN talks to Jeff Tweedy and John Stirratt of Wilco.

Craig Finn discusses the Friday Night Lights connection in his debut solo album Clear Heart Full Eyes with Slate. It’s out January 24.

Having released his second album of the calendar year in Humour Risk at the start of the month, Cass McCombs will be back in town for a show at The Garrison on January 27, tickets $14.50 in advance. Pitchfork has an interview.

MP3: Cass McCombs – “The Same Thing”
Video: Cass McCombs – “The Same Thing”

The Fly interviews Girls.

PopMatters interviews The War On Drugs, in town for a show at the Horseshoe on December 9.

Of Montreal are streaming the first taste of their forthcoming Paralytic Stalks, due out next year.

Stream: Of Montreal – “Wintered Debts”

The Line Of Best Fit gets Okkervil River to play a video session from aboard a boat at End Of The Road in September while Spoonfed snags an interview with Will Sheff.

HearYa has a session with Mates Of State available to watch and/or download. On Milwaukee, Cleveland Scene and Minnesota Daily snag interviews as the duo tours through the midwest.

The Georgia Straight, Huffington Post, SF Weekly, The Weal, Victoria Times-Colonist and Calgary Herald talk to Merrell Garbus of tUnE-yArDs.

The Austin Chronicle profiles hometown heroes Ume.

The New Zealand Herald interviews Annie Clark of St. Vincent, who plays The Phoenix on December 15.

More R.E.M. exit interviews – there’s been a lot of them, yes, but once this round is done, that’s it. For always. Read the pieces at Spin, Spinner, The AV Club, NPR, Shortlist, and Pitchfork.

Charles Bradley has no time for dreaming; finally has time for Toronto

Frank Yang — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 13:28:08 +0000

Kisha BariIf you were to ask anyone at SXSW this past March what was the best thing they’d seen, odds are you’d have heard “Charles Bradley” in response; I certainly did. Like his Daptone labelmate Sharon Jones, the Florida-born, Brooklyn-based classic soul singer had travelled a long, hard road filled with false starts and personal tragedies, but with the release of his first full-length album No Town For Dreaming earlier this year and accompanying praise for both his recordings and performances, it seemed he was finally getting his due.

Or so I heard. I didn’t catch any of his sets in Austin and waiting for him to tour through Toronto – as I was certain he would considering he made appearances at Osheaga in Montreal and Sappyfest in Mount Allison in late July – proved fruitless. I had no doubt that the wide-eyed, breathless testimonials about the power of his shows was deserved, but I had yet to witness it for myself. Well as it turns out, I only had to wait the better part of a year – Charles Bradley & His Extraordinaires have just announced a date at Lee’s Palace on February 11 of next year, tickets $22.50 in advance and on sale this Friday. Which is not to complain – after all, Bradley had to wait decades for his shot. A year’s not so bad. If you’re a fan of old-school soul – and everyone should be – you ought to be there.

MP3: Charles Bradley – “The World (Is Going Up In Flames)”
MP3: Charles Bradley – “Now That I’m Gone”
Video: Charles Bradley – “Heartaches And Pain”
Video: Charles Bradley – “The World (Is Going Up In Flames)”

The Smith Westerns are rolling into The Horseshoe on January 27, tickets $15 in advance. It’s unlikely they’ve got a new album finished and ready for sneak release, so assume this is continuing to support this year’s Dye It Blonde.

MP3: The Smith Westerns – “Still New”

Oklahoma’s Other Lives got a bit of a profile boost when they were announced as the openers for the first leg of Radiohead’s US tour this Spring, but seeing as how there’s no local date for that bill as yet, fans and the curious will be pleased to know that they’ll be in town at The Drake Underground on February 14, tickets $12.50. That’s a bit less than Radiohead tickets would cost, I think.

MP3: Other Lives – “For 12″
MP3: Other Lives – “Tamer Animals”
MP3: Other Lives – “Song Song”

With the final – presumably – R.E.M. release in Part Lies Part Heart Part Truth Part Garbage 1982-2011 now out, it’s exit interview time. Michael Stipe explains the band’s decision to disband in conversation with Salon and CNN while Mike Mills chats with Billboard, Time, Spin, Consequence Of Sound, and Scotland On Sunday – he also talks to Spinner about Occupy Wall Street – and USA Today gets some quotes from all three members. Blurt, meanwhile, solicits testimonials from a range of artists and fans.

It’s not an official Neutral Milk Hotel video or anything, but this clip put together by Naomi Yang of Galaxie 500/Damon & Naomi is noteworthy if for no other reason than the song was, apparently, written about her.

Video: Neutral Milk Hotel – “Naomi”

The Stool Pigeon and Spinner talk to Dee Dee of Dum Dum Girls.

The Washington Post interviews Ted Leo.

Stereogum checks in with School Of Seven Bells to see how their first album as a duo is coming along. At least well enough to have a title – Ghostory – and ballpark release date of next Spring. Update: The record is out February 28.

Guitar Junkie, The Riverfront Times and Apes On Tape talk to Lauren Larsen of Ume.

The Decemberists cover R.E.M.

Frank Yang — Sun, 13 Nov 2011 14:52:23 +0000

Frank YangI opened the year with a Decemberists covering R.E.M. post, and oh what an 11 months it’s been for both bands since then. Back then, Colin Meloy and company were readying the release of their sixth album The King Is Dead, while R.E.M. were known to have finished their fifteenth album Collapse Into Now and would eventually put it out at the start of March.

And in February, while touring and promoting The King Is Dead, The Decemberists stopped in for a session with KCRW’s Morning Becomes Eclectic. In addition to playing some of the new record, they offered a cover of R.E.M.’s “Cuyahoga” – after all, Peter Buck guested on a few tracks on their new record and the band were an obvious influence. And coincidentally, Life’s Rich Pageant, the album from which said song was taken, was also set to re-released that Summer in double-disc, remastered and expanded format.

And now, The Decemberists are about to go on an extended hiatus – one on the span of years – to decompress and pursue other creative interests and R.E.M. have disbanded entirely, capping a 30-year career. But they don’t depart without leaving gifts in the form of new releases; The Decemberists put out an EP of King session outtakes in Long Live The King a couple weeks ago and R.E.M. will put out a career-spanning compilation – which includes their final recordings as a band – in Part Lies Part Heart Part Truth Part Garbage 1982-2011 this week.

R.E.M. is dead; long live R.E.M. The Decemberists will be back. No worries.

MP3: The Decemberists – “Cuyahoga”
Video: R.E.M. – “Cuyahoga” (live on MTV Unplugged)

Crooked Fingers and Strand Of Oaks at The Drake Underground in Toronto

Frank Yang — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 13:29:50 +0000

Frank YangSo, let’s see. Crooked Fingers were just here back in July – yeah, covered that. Oh, but in the interim, they also released a new album in Breaks In The Armor; covered that too. So was there really anything new to report out of Tuesday night’s show at the Drake Underground? Actually, yes.

To begin with there was opener Strand Of Oaks, who definitely merit discussion. I’d been familiar with the project of Pennsylvania singer-songwriter Tim Showalter for a little while – his 2010 album Pope Killdragon coming highly recommended from a number of directions – but hadn’t caught him live on any of his previous visits to Toronto. And I almost didn’t catch this one as he started his set at least 15 minutes earlier than had been scheduled, but walking into the Underground to the sounds of Showalter and his two bandmates weaving some mesmerizing space-folk, I was extra thankful that traffic had been light.

Pope Killdragon was an impressive work – lyrically rich and emotionally resonant – but despite pushing beyond the voice-and-guitar template, was a pretty stark-sounding affair. Live, with two guitars, a bass and a small army of technology at their respective toes and fingers for triggering and controlling a multitude of backing tracks, it was a much richer and haunting sonic experience with the songs being lifted up on a bed of echoes and swells. I’ve heard some comparisons made between Strand Of Oaks and Bon Iver; they’re fair, though with less falsetto and vocoder. If you dig what Justin Vernon does, do yourself a favour and investigate Strand Of Oaks. And if you don’t, well, check them out anyways.

July’s Crooked Fingers felt special in the way that performances that take place outside the regular touring cycle for an album often do; more experimenting, more deep cuts, more unpredictability. What with the band consisting solely of Eric Bachmann and Liz Durrett at that point, it was necessarily simpler in arrangement but still a stirring showcase for Bachmann’s career so far. This time out they were formally touring in support of Breaks and added a rhythm section for the occasion but rather than show off benefits of the extra hands right off, Bachmann stepped offstage as soon as he got there and into the audience to open with a gorgeous, unamplified “Man O’ War”. Plugging in, the band would showcase much of the new record alongside selections from the entirety of the Crooked Fingers catalog, all tweaked and subtly adjusted to sit perfectly alongside each other despite the broad stylistic shifts between the albums from whence they came.

As memorable as the last show was, it was great to have the muscle of the rhythm section overtop the skeleton presented in the Summer this time out. Besides the obvious extra infusion of energy, the songs were able to loosen up and breathe more and Bachmann given the freedom to rock out more on guitar where he saw fit. The additional personnel also allowed them to explore more complex arrangements of songs – sure, it would/could have been simpler to arrange everything for two guitars, bass and drums and it probably would have sounded great, but you have to appreciate the creative choices such as Durrett’s more felt than heard keyboard contributions or the way that Bachmann started “The Counterfeiter” instrumentless and then jumped onto keyboards for the last verse while the bass carried the chords. Sure, that’s how it goes down on Armor, arrangements-wise, but watching it done live gives you a new appreciation for it all.

Just as they did mid-set in July, Bachmann and Durrett led off the encore with an intimate, unamplified “Your Control” and proved that there was an upside to a band as great as this playing criminally undersized rooms. On the other hand, the unscheduled guest appearance of a mouse running across the floor during “Lonesome Warrior” reminded that there’s something to be said for playing nicer venues as well. To close, Bachmann acquiesced to an earlier request and made the requisite Archers Of Loaf song in the set a beautiful “Chumming The Ocean”, a song I’d not heard before but won’t soon forget. It’s been a recurring theme through this year, what with the return of Archers Of Loaf and the new Crooked Fingers record, but man. Eric Bachmann. He should be on postage stamps.

The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel has an interview with Eric Bachmann.

Tom Waits has released a video from his new record Bad As Me.

Video: Tom Waits – “Satisfied”

The Quietus has a final interview with Michael Stipe of R.E.M., whose career-capping/ending compilation Part Lies Part Heart Part Truth Part Garbage 1982-2011 is out next week. You can stream it in whole right now at NPR, including the two of three final new songs from the band. Over at Under The Radar, actress Kirsten Dunst explains how the screen test-like video for their last single, “We All Go Back To Where We Belong”, came about.

Stream: R.E.M. / Part Lies Part Heart Part Truth Part Garbage – 1982-2011

Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy tells The Sun that they have a sense of humour. Because putting a camel in a party hat on their last album cover didn’t make that clear.

NPR has a World Cafe session with Ryan Adams. He plays the Winter Garden Theatre on December 10.

The Mountain Goats have given away a free unreleased track, just because.

MP3: The Mountain Goats – “Thucydides II:58″

Colin Meloy of The Decemberists and sister Maile talk to Salon about the benefits of a creative childhood.

Hold Steady frontman Craig Finn will release his solo debut, Clear Heart Full Eyes on January 24. Details at Tiny Mix Tapes.

R.E.M. say goodbye with poet, actress proxies

Frank Yang — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 12:22:25 +0000

REMHQYou can’t really call it a long goodbye – the announcement last month about the dissolution of R.E.M. was about as abrupt as they come, with no farewell tour or even a final show attached – but shortly thereafter they did announce a final release in the form of the Part Lies Part Heart Part Truth Part Garbage 1982-2011 compilation which is set to come out November 15. And amongst its 40-song, career-spanning tracklist are the final three songs that R.E.M. will release, recorded after the Collapse Into Now sessions but before they knew that that album would end up being their last.

And from those three songs has come what is almost certainly R.E.M.’s last single – a gentle tune entitled “We All Go Back To Where We Belong” – but there’s no final video; there’s two. The clips, directed by Michael Stipe and Dominic DeJoseph, are about as simple as you get – single-take black-and-white screen test-style films of poet John Giorno and actress Kirsten Dunst as they listen to the song, presumably for the first time. It’s a nice, understated idea that Interview has a quick analysis of. Black Book also has some fun with the concept, trying to get in Dunst’s head during recording.

Also in the farewells and remembrances category, here’s a piece I’ve written for The Iceberg’s “A Song and A Memory” series about one of the most pivotal songs/albums/bands in my life. R.E.M. has also posted up some thoughts about it. Synchronicity!

Finally, JAM has recounted a chat Mojo had with Mike Mills in which he says to not expect a Michael Stipe solo project soon or ever.

Stream: R.E.M. – “We All Go Back To Where We Belong”
Video: R.E.M. – “We All Go Back To Where We Belong” (John Giorno version)
Video: R.E.M. – “We All Go Back To Where We Belong” (Kirsten Dunst version)

Spin gets Matthew Sweet to look back and reflect on the 20th anniversary of Girlfriend.

Exclaim has put Tom Waits on their cover this month.

The Decemberists appear to be ready to stream the whole of their new EP Long Live The King in piecemeal form before it comes out on November 1. Two more tracks from it have been made available to stream at Stereogum and Rolling Stone.

Stream: The Decemberists – “I 4 U & U 4 Me”
Stream: The Decemberists – “Burying Davy”

Memory Tapes have released a new video from Player Piano; The Daily Princetonian has a quick interview with Dayve Hawk.

Video: Memory Tapes – “Offers”

The National have released a new MP3 for their contribution to If a Lot of Bands Play in the Woods…, a covers/remix album of The Philistines Jr’s 2010 album If A Band Plays In The Woods. The connection between the two being the fact that Philistines Jr counts one Peter Katis among its number, and Katis has produced a crapload of great bands, many of whom also appear on the record. It’s out November 1 and there’s more details at Pitchfork. And yes it’s kind of a treat to hear Matt Berninger sing about cats. The National are at The Air Canada Centre on December 8.

MP3: The National – “Twenty Miles To NH (Part 2)”

Also on that bill are Wye Oak, whose Jenn Wasner offers a songwriting lesson and video performance to The AV Club’s “One Track Mind” feature.

Nola.com, The Dallas Observer, The Phoenix New Times, and Offbeat talk to Mary Timony and Rebecca Cole of Wild Flag.

Pitchfork has a video session with The Antlers, The Daily Tarheel and Daily Free Press have interviews.

GQ talks to Jim James of My Morning Jacket as part of their music issue.

Tom Waits and other things that have nothing to do with Iceland

Frank Yang — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 12:31:29 +0000

Jesse DylanI promised you I was done with Iceland updates, and really you don’t get more un-Icelandic than Tom Waits. Of course, the only thing Tom Waits is really like is, well, Tom Waits and even then one era of Waits can be wildly different from the next. I say this as someone who’s only very recently begun exploring his expansive catalog and still has a long ways to go – but at least now I find his work intriguing rather than off-putting, as I once did. That’s progress.

I’m definitely glad to be coming around in time for the release of Bad As Me next Tuesday, his first album of all-new material in seven years. It’s available to stream right now at badasme.com if you’ve got an invite code and at first listen it sounds like a pretty good balance of out-there stompers and barstool laments. It’ll take some time but I can see myself getting into this. And if Waits elects to tour for this record and come to Toronto for the first time in what, at least a decade? Double bonus. I hear his performances are incomparable.

There’s interviews with Waits about the new record at Pitchfork, The Los Angeles Times, The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times, and if you want to give Bad Like Me an advance listen, I’ve got five invite codes to hand out. They’re meant for friends but hey – you guys are my friends. Whoever you are. And if none of these codes work for you, I guess you’re too late… or you’re not my friend. Either way.

3vb-rhuym | 3cb-w6v03 | 6ob-gd8lz | l4b-6340m | ozb-p31m4

Stream: Tom Waits – “Back In The Crowd”
Stream: Tom Waits – “Bad As Me”
Stream: Tom Waits / Bad As Me

Rolling Stone is streaming the final R.E.M. single, taken from their forthcoming career-ending best-of Part Lies Part Heart Part Truth Part Garbage 1982-2011, out November 15. For their part, Spin has dug up some video footage of the band playing Neil Young’s Bridge School benefit in 1998.

Stream: R.E.M. – “We All Go Back To Where We Belong”

NPR and CMT talk reunions with The Jayhawks.

NPR solicits a Tiny Desk Concert from Wilco.

JC Brooks & The Uptown Sound, who caught some ears last year with a swinging soul cover of Wilco’s “I Am Trying To Break Your Heart”, will be in Toronto on November 29 for a free show at The Horseshoe – that’s the same night as Kathryn Calder, so that’s double the reason to not stay home that night. Their new album Want More is out Tuesday but available to stream now at Paste.

MP3: JC Brooks & The Uptown Sound – “Everything Will Be Fine”
Video: JC Brooks Uptown Sound – “I Am Trying To Break Your Heart”
Stream: JC Brooks & The Uptown Sound / Want More

Stuff talks Galaxie 500 with Dean Wareham.

The AV Club and Edmonton Journal interview Ryan Adams, in town at the Winter Garden Theatre on December 10.

Blurt talks to Eric Bachmann of Crooked Fingers while The AV Club has one more rooftop performance video to share. They play The Drake Underground on November 8.

Dead Meadow will warm up for their show at Lee’s Palace later that evening with an acoustic in-store at the Annex location of Sonic Boom on October 24 at 4PM. The Pitch has an interview.

MP3: Dead Meadow – “Good Moanin”

Spinner, North County Times and Willamette Week talk to Stephen Malkmus, who has released a new video from Mirror Traffic.

Video: Stephen Malkmus – “Senator”

Matt Berninger of The National puts together a playlist of sad songs for dirty lovers for Rolling Stone.

The Alternate Side has an interview and session with Beirut.

The Georgia Straight profiles The Head & The Heart.

Pitchfork reports that Mazzy Star, after many years of saying they were back together, finally have something to show for it in the form of two new songs entitled “Common Burn” and “Lay Myself Down”, due to be released digitally on October 31.

The Washingtonian and DCist talks to Mary Timony PopMatters to Carrie Brownstein of Wild Flag while NPR has got a stream of last night’s show in Washington DC.

Ume have released a new video from their recently-released album Phantoms.

Video: Ume – “Captive”

CBS gets to know Savoir Adore, who are releasing a new 7″ single. Details can be found at Neon Gold and the A-side can be downloaded below.

MP3: Savoir Adore – “Dreamers”

The Shins and Faces On Film at The Phoenix in Toronto

Frank Yang — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 12:30:36 +0000

Frank YangIf someone were to start one of those, “Who the eff are The Shins?” Tumblrs, there’d be no shortage of content to start with. They were once called Flake Music. They were the band who got a song with lyrics about having “dirt in your fries” to soundtrack a McDonalds commercial. They were the band that helped establish Sub Pop as the sensitive pop label for the new century rather than the sweaty grunge label for the last one. They were the band whose keyboardist was a hero to indie boys for dating one of the contestants on the first season of America’s Next Top Model and then a villain to all when he was arrested for assaulting her. They were the band that would change your life. And following the 2007 release of their third album Wincing The Night Away, which almost topped the charts worldwide (#2 in the US and Canada), they went into hiding and almost disbanded.

Or to be more precise, bandleader James Mercer opted to assert his bandleadership and essentially dismissed the rest of the band, then rather than release a new album went and worked with Danger Mouse on the largely unremarkable Broken Bells instead. Only this Summer did any concrete news about the status of The Shins emerge with a promise of a new record in 2012 and a run of tour dates through this Fall – including this past Thursday night in Toronto – with a new lineup of not-nobodies. Singer/songwriter Richard Swift, Modest Mouse drummer Joe Plummer, Crystal Skulls bassist Yuuki Matthews and singer/songwriter Jessica Dobson are clearly billed as the touring band for this jaunt and with no permanence implied. For the time being, these would be The Shins but for future reference, The Shins would essentially be a pseudonym for Mercer.

Boston-based openers Faces On Film knew a thing or two about one-man multi-member bands, being the project of one Mike Fiore. It took a few songs to pin down exactly what their slow-burning jangle-pop reminded me of but once I did, it was hard to hear anything else; if you imagined My Morning Jacket or Band Of Horses coming out of a northeastern college rather than the south, you’d have a pretty good sense of what they were about. Fiore has a big voice – far bigger than you’d expect to look at him – and perhaps more importantly, a penchant for interesting and structurally ambitious songwriting without being too obtuse about it. Cribbing a bit of either of those bands’ facilities for big moments wouldn’t hurt – some of the songs were heavy on build, light on payoff – but they were both interesting and entertaining and judging on audience response, left the stage with a few more fans than when they took it. And that’s really all an opener can ask for.

Reaching back in memory to the few times I’ve seen The Shins live – that’d be Summer 2002 at The Rivoli, April 2005 at The Kool Haus and Lollapalooza 2006 – the prevailing recollection was that James Mercer didn’t ever really seem to enjoy being onstage, and was perfectly happy to stand off to the side and let the more gregarious Crandall handle most banter and fan interaction. This jives with the sense that Mercer is a sort of cipher whose intensely catchy pop instincts help disguise the fact that his oblique lyrics, filled with odd and wonderful imagery actually offers little insight into the man himself. Which is not to say that songwriters owe their listeners a piece of themselves in their work, but success to the degree that The Shins achieved usually doesn’t come with the amount of privacy that Mercer has maintained.

None of which is really salient to this show, I suppose, and there’s plenty more relevant points of interest surrounding it to discuss. Like how, even though it’s only been four years since The Shins have been through town or toured to any great extent, that span is akin to a lifetime when your fanbase is on the cusp of adulthood as much of their post-Garden State demographic was when they broke out. Woud a Shins fan circa 2007 still identify as such in 2011? That was answered by the fact that there were enough interested to sell out the Phoenix and most were indeed still pretty young, though sadly most people look pretty young to me these days.

Whether they were diehards or nostalgists, they were all thrilled to hear The Shins live again (or finally, as the case may have been), no matter who was actually in the band. And why not? Whatever there might be to say about James Mercer as a boss, there’s little debate that he’s a gifted songwriter who has penned more than few tunes that are as catchy as they are quirky, and which have endured nicely – even the ones that hadn’t been heard in years and whose existence may even have been forgotten came instantly back within a few chords. Being veteran players all, there was no doubt the new lineup would be able to deliver exactly what was demanded of them and all were performed impeccably, if a bit louder and faster than on record, and with nice multi-part harmonies thrown in for good measure. Mercer was animated and affable in the frontman role, but you couldn’t argue he’d upped the charisma levels to fill Crandall’s absence; he and his crew were there to play the songs and that’s all.

The set included a couple of new songs which sounded identifiably Shins-y though didn’t jump out as instant classics and otherwise balanced equal contributions from Chutes Too Narrow and Wincing The Night Away – four apiece – with a lot of Oh Inverted World filling out the rest. And it was this earliest material that still had the most nuance, even when busied up some by the rhythm section, though it was hard to no remember that back in their salad days, the greatest charm of The Shins was their simplicity and sincerity. And a fixture of past Shins shows, the cover song, not only remained intact but was doubled upon with the encore closing with faithful covers of both Bowie’s “Ashes To Ashes” and Pink Floyd’ “Breathe” – and apparently the latter’s massive upcoming reissue/revival (but not reunion) is well-timed because the indie kids seem primed and ready to get their Floyd on.

If The Shins were using this tour to gauge how much of their audience remained, then based on the Toronto sample group it’s still pretty significant though it was a room half the size of the one they played their last couple times through. Still, it felt like more of a reminder that the band wrote some great songs and was still around rather than a forceful declaration of their continued relevance. Not that forcefulness has ever been The Shins’ forte – it’s been the songs. And if Mercer’s next batch of songs measure up to the work he’s done in the past, then it won’t matter who’s playing with him or even if he wants to be up there playing them at all. He’ll be able to point at the album and say, “this is what matters” and he’ll be right.

The National Post and Exclaim also have writeups of the show and Twentyfourbit has a nice piece on both The Shins’ performance at Outside Lands last month and their transformation from a band into a “James & Someone & Someone & Someone & Someone” t-shirt.

The Drums’ show at the Mod Club this Saturday night has apparently sold well enough that they’ve added an in-store engagement earlier in the evening to satisfy demand (or do some shopping). They’ll be at Sonic Boom in The Annex at 7PM on October 1. Admission free, canned good donation encouraged.

MP3: The Drums – “Down By The Water”

The band that people initially thought was a Michael Cera project but is really a Man Man/Islands/Modest Mouse (and Shins, if you count Joe Plummer’s hired hand gig) spin-off – Mister Heavenly – have put together a tour in support of their debut Out Of Love and will be at The Great Hall on November 16. Examiner.com talks to Nick Thorburn, the Islands half of the band.

MP3: Mister Heavenly – “Bronx Sniper”
MP3: Mister Heavenly – “Pineapple Girl”

The Baltimore Sun profiles Fleet Foxes.

The Des Moines Register talks to John Darnielle of The Mountain Goats.

NPR can’t get enough Beirut, roping the band in for both a Tiny Desk Concert and World Cafe session. Zach Condon is also chatted up by the likes of The Guardian, The Independent, and The New Zealand Herald.

Stephen Malkmus talks to Pitchfork about choosing the cover art for his latest Mirror Traffic, to The Hook, hour.ca, and Metro about the contents of said album and The Vancouver Sun about Nirvana and R.E.M.

130BPM talks to Dean Wareham about revisiting the Galaxie 500 oeuvre.

The Los Angeles Times marks the release of Wilco’s new record The Whole Love tomorrow with a feature piece in the paper and a couple of extra pieces in their Pop & Hiss blog. And if you’re more the watch and listen than read type, there’s a stream of the complete set they played on Letterman available to watch at The Line Of Best Fit, a recording of their show in Central Park to download at NYC Taper and NPR will have last night’s show in Washington DC up to stream later today.

The Guardian and Billboard talk to Ryan Adams about his new record Ashes & Fire, due out October 11 but now available to stream at NPR.

Stream: Ryan Adams / Ashes & Fire

The AV Club interviews Will Sheff of Okkevil River.

Eric Bachmann of Crooked Fingers selects some sound sculptures for a feature in Impose. The new Crooked Fingers record Breaks In The Armor is out October 11 and they play The Drake Underground on November 4.

Matthew Sweet is giving away an acoustic EP in exchange for an email address over at Noise Trade, but if you want to leave a little something in the tip jar provided, that’s cool too. His new studio album Modern Art is out tomorrow.

How do you let people listen to a six-hour song? By being The Flaming Lips and having fans willing to hack into two-hour blocks and post them on Soundcloud. The Line Of Best Fit has gathered them together in one place… if you dare.

Stream: The Flaming Lips – “I Found This Star On The Ground”

R.E.M.’s disbandment last week led to no shortage of tributes and testimonials to their greatness, the full depth of which will probably be fully appreciated now that their career has that final punctuation point on it. And I don’t refer to their final studio album Collapse Into Now but the just-announced best-of set Part Lies, Part Heart, Part Truth, Part Garbage: 1982-2011 which will be out on November 15 and be the first compilation to compile material from both their IRS and Warner Bros. years. Of course, the label-specific comps – And I Feel Fine for the indie and In Time are more thorough, but the new set will also cover their final three studio albums as well as some extra material from the post-Collapse sessions. And hopefully the double-disc reissue series of their catalog will continue, because those are gold through and through. And if you want to read some of the better R.E.M. tributes, check out pieces at The Atlantic, Rolling Stone and Spin. Update: Rolling Stone also has an exit interview with Mike Mills.