Panda Bear Designs Sweatshirts
But are they Nautica sweatshirts? We hear Nautica sweatshirts are pretty comfy

What's a crafty guy like Noah "Panda Bear" Lennox to do when he's all done weaving together our favorite record of 2007? Why, retrofit some toasty garments with alluring new textures! (Alluring textures being a Lennox specialty in both sound and fabric, it seems.) All the better to warm the very hearts he touched on the stupendous (albeit soooo last year) Person Pitch LP.

Lennox and his wife, Fernanda Pereira, have started 2nd Things, "a second project for both of us and... a second chance for forgotten clothing," with a line of artfully altered sweatshirts, presently available for purchase through their website. However, Mr. and Mrs. Bear have only crafted 50 of the things, so get crackin' ASAP if you want one of these soon-to-be ultra-rare collector's items.

No word on just what's next for 2nd Things, though fuzzy black-and-white mittens are our choice for a logical next step.

Of course, this is just another strand in that lengthy thread of Animal Collective doings in this new year, what with a new EP, a box set, some new sessions and a tour on the way. [MORE...]

Neko Case Schedules Winter Shows

Neko Case doesn't get around nearly as much as that band she's in sometimes, so when she does, it's worth taking note. Ms. Case has announced her first plans for the road in 2008, currently comprised of six dates up in the northeastern part of the U.S. It's not much at the moment, but we'll take it, especially since Neko's website promises new songs.

Eric Bachmann, of Crooked Fingers and ex-Archers of Loaf fame, will open all dates.

In other Neko news, she recently expressed a fondness for poetry in Poetry magazine, as appropriate a forum for such a thing as I can think of. And the entirety of her back catalog was recently reissued, which we hope cleared out all the cobwebs in anticipation of yet another fine solo disc. [MORE...]

Bjork Discusses "Independence", Videos, Grammys
"Music is being abused so much. There are so many things with no emotion, no feeling, and without craft-– it's a tool of power. I've always felt that it was my role to do the other thing. To keep it emotional."

What better way to start a new year than a talk with Björk? The Icelandic superstar has already set 2008 off with a bang, releasing "Declare Independence", the third single from her latest album, Volta, on January 1. (The accompanying video, which premiered in December, reunited Björk with director Michel Gondry, who helmed such classic clips as "Human Behaviour" and "Army of Me".)

Shortly before the holiday break, we chatted with Björk about "Declare Independence": the song, the video, and the remixes. We also got an update on the video for the Antony duet "Dull Flame of Desire", as well as Björk's thoughts about a certain music industry award.

Pitchfork: Congratulations on the Grammy nomination for Best Alternative Music Album for Volta. Do these kinds of awards mean anything to you?

Björk: I don't know. I'm not going to pretend I don't care about awards, but I don't think I will ever win a Grammy. I've been nominated before. But I think they find me...I think it's a really conservative, middle-of-the-road thing. I think they're probably a little scared of me.

Pitchfork: Let's talk about "Declare Independence". The song has a political element to it, but it's also very broad. I know you've talked about that before-- how it's about freedom and justice for everyone, that it's a personal as well as political message. But in the video, you and director Michel Gondry use a lot of military-industrial imagery. Were you nervous about how that might potentially narrow the scope of the song?

Björk: The military thing was Michel's idea. I was quite intrigued by using the costumes that we had been using live; they're very colorful, very happy. But for him, because of the whole thing with the string being the only part that's in color, the costumes couldn't scream for attention. So the military thing was something that we thought might help [the performers] blend into the background.

Pitchfork: Like camouflage.

Björk: Yeah, that was kind of the idea. When I spoke to Michel, it was important to me that it was a live performance. And it was important to me that there wasn't a hierarchy. That everyone be kind of equal. I never see myself in a position of controller, or as someone with authority, even though I happen to be on stage. So that was something I was quite sensitive about. That [the other performers] would be giving me as much energy as I was giving them, that it was an equal thing.

Pitchfork: Well, quite literally, with the string, there's an amazing exchange of energy.

Björk: That was one of the reasons we were all wearing the same thing. We're supposed to be on the same level. If I was wearing some crazy colored dress it wouldn't be balanced. But maybe-- I haven't really thought about this-- but maybe you're right, maybe it comes across as too military. It wasn't military, it was more just about trying to make everybody equal. Having the clothes be neutral. I think we were more excited about the flags on everybody's arms.

Pitchfork: What is the significance of the flags?

Björk: It's Greenland's flag and the Faroe Islands' flag. Iceland became independent from Denmark 60 years ago. We were a colony for 600 years, and we were treated really badly, as all colonies are. And Greenland and the Faroe Islands are still part of Denmark. The song was partly written to those countries. In Iceland's newspapers, there's always some talk about the Faroe Islands and Greenland wanting independence, and Greenland seemed close, but then they found a lot of oil, and Denmark doesn't want to let that go. If you were to go into a local bar and ask about Greenland and the Faroe Islands, people get very feisty. People are very supportive of Greenland and the Faroe Islands getting independence. I think that Greenland and the Faroe Islands have looked a lot to Iceland as an inspiration, the way we set up our bank systems, the way we became more and more independent.

And I thought it was hysterical to say to your friend who is having a lot of problems with his girlfriend, to just say 'Declare independence and raise your own flag.' Maybe it's just my silly sense of humor. But it's definitely written to Greenland and the Faroe Islands. [MORE...]

While We Were Out
Stuff that happened during the break

(Image from I Can Has Cheezburger?)

After toiling away for fifty weeks in a row to bring you to-the-minute updates on the Arcade Fire's exact coordinates and what Sufjan Stevens had for breakfast, the Pitchfork news team takes a well-deserved two-week break at the end of every year. The rest of the music world keeps on turning, though.

A few things caused us to get up from the massage table and hit the laptop, like the Rolling Stone/Camel lawsuit filed by Xiu Xiu and Fucked Up, Oscar Peterson's death, Jay-Z's departure from Def Jam, and Radiohead's New Year's Eve webcast. But a whole lot more happened between December 14, 2007 and January 2, 2008.

Here's a short round-up of newsy notes to tide you over until we get caught up and back in the swing of things.

Happy new year!

THOM YORKE GIVES THE FINGER TO EMI, TIMES OF LONDON

When he wasn't busy celebrating the physical release of In Rainbows with a New Year's Eve webcast, Thom Yorke spent his holidays feuding with EMI, Radiohead's former record label, and the Times of London newspaper. On December 28, the paper published a story reporting that Radiohead had demanded an exorbitant amount of advance money from EMI for In Rainbows, as well as a share of the rights to their back catalog. When EMI refused, the band left the label. On December 29, Yorke took to Radiohead's blog, Dead Air Space, refuting the Times' and EMI's claims. Here's what he wrote:

F Y I_____ if you care

for your information>>>

we did not ask for a load of cash from our old record label EMI to re- sign.
that is a L I E.
The Times in the UK should check its facts before it prints such dirt.

whAT we WANTED WAS some control over OUR WOrK and how it was used in the future by them-
that seemed REASONAblE to us,
as we cared about it a great deal.

Mr Hands was not interested.
So neither were we.

We made the sign of the cross and walked away. Sadly.

We are extremely upset that this crap is being spread about.

To bedigging up such bullshit, or more politely airing yer dirty laundry in public,
seems a very strange way for the head of an international record label to be proceeding.

On a happier note we took no 'BRead-HEAd' advances at all from both independent labels XL and TBD for our new record.

So judge for yourself.

AND we are really excited to be working with them. SHock!

AT least they do not behave like confused bulls in a china shop.

much love

thom
x

Thom also took some time out to joke around on British television. (Via At Ease)

NEW SUFJAN CHRISTMAS SONG NOT HITTING THE WEB ANYTIME SOON

Back in early November, we announced "The Great Sufjan Song Xmas Xchange!", a contest run by Sufjan Stevens' Asthmatic Kitty label. Fans were invited to submit an original Christmas song, Sufjan himself would pick his favorite, and the winner would get the rights to a brand new Sufjan original Christmas song.

On December 20, Asthmatic Kitty announced the winner: Alec Duffy's "Every Day Is Christmas". Sufjan wrote an amusing note about how and why he chose the song. "It feels, at once, like a classic show tune, the perfect parlor song, a bar ballad, and a church hymn. It is unencumbered with the pejoratives and prophetic exclamations of Christmas, the most complicated of holidays," he wrote.

You can hear "Every Day Is Christmas", as well as several finalist songs, on the Asthmatic Kitty website.

But the brand new Sufjan song, titled "The Lonely Man of Winter"? Don't hold your breath for it to show up in Forkcast. Duffy is saving the song for the 2008 holiday season, when it will premiere as part of a production by his theater company, the New York-based Hoi Polloi.

In a message on Hoi Polloi's website, musical director Dave Malloy explains that Duffy and his company have decided that "The Lonely Man of Winter" is "the song that will never be uploaded." They want to preserve the excitement and mystery of the rarity with a song that isn't easily accessible via a click of the mouse. (Malloy's message makes some excellent points, and is definitely worth a read.) Thanks to All Good Naysayers for the tip.

So we'll just have to wait until someone tapes the Hoi Polloi 2008 holiday show on their camera phone and puts it on YouTube.

LOU REED, THURSTON MOORE, STEVE REICH TO SPEAK AT SXSW 2008

It's January-- that means South by Southwest is only two months away! Helping us get psyched nice and early was the December 20 announcement of a few of the festival's speakers, including Lou Reed, Daryl Hall of Hall and Oates, Sire Records founder (and Belle and Sebastian song inspirer) Seymour Stein, and a conversation between Thurston Moore and legendary composer Steve Reich. Shit, Thurston Moore and Steve Reich talking to each other, and we get to listen? A hundred million cool points go to anyone who breathes the same air as those two dudes.

The music portion of SXSW goes down March 12-16 in Austin, Texas. A million billion bands will play, but for now, we only know a few: A Place to Bury Strangers will be there, and the Kills, Lightspeed Champion, Sons & Daughters, These New Puritans, and White Williams are scheduled for the Domino showcase.

Oh yeah, White Williams signed to Domino.

LIL WAYNE SNEAKS OUT DIGITAL EP

Lil Wayne is always one for surprises. Remember that Tha Carter III prequel The Leak that was supposed to come out on December 18? Well, it looks like it was replaced by a five-song, digital-only EP, also called The Leak, which came out on Christmas day. It includes "I'm Me", "Gossip", "Kush", "Love Me or Hate Me", and "Talkin' About It". Tha Carter III is still due in February, according to Billboard.com.

 

THE SHORTLIST MUSIC PRIZE KINDA FIZZLES OUT

The Shortlist Music Prize, seems to have fallen on hard times...again. Once heralded as the American answer to the UK's Mercury Music Prize, the Shortlist honors the best albums of the year that have yet to sell 500,000 copies in the U.S., as voted on by a variety of artists, journalists, and other tastemakers. Past winners include Sufjan Stevens, Cat Power, and TV on the Radio, and past nominators have included Stevens, Wayne Coyne, ?uestlove, Jack Black, Beck, Trent Reznor, Cameron Crowe, the Cure's Robert Smith, and other luminaries.

However, infighting among the award's founders lead to its cancellation in 2005, its resurrection as the New Pantheon Awards, and then its reversion back to the Shortlist. And even though competition sprang up from the likes of the MTVU Woodies, the Plug Awards, and Canada's Polaris Prize, it was always fun to see which artists nominated which records. (Hey, Norah Jones digs Devendra! John Mayer is a Nellie McKay fan!)

Until this year, that is.

On December 21, the Shortlist announced the 2007 listmakers, as well as their initial picks. And those listmakers are...a dude from Snow Patrol, a dude from the Killers, a dude from KCRW, some dudes from something called "Hunnypot Internet Radio", and a dude from CMJ who seems to have named himself "Rev. Moose".

Really, guys? Really?

The list of finalists (which will be whittled down to a, um, shortlist of 10, and then a winner, in the coming months) includes, like, everybody who was on any critic's best-of list this year. The Arcade Fire, Feist, M.I.A., Justice, LCD Soundsystem, Spoon... You get the picture.

Radiohead Celebrate New Year With Webcast
Al Gore brings the rock to your television set

Although there are already plenty of nice musical options to entertain you on New Year's Eve this year, here's a last-minute surprise: Today on Dead Air Space, after wishing us all a "peaceful Christmas", Thom Yorke announced that Radiohead will be "broadcasting a pre-recording of some songs and other bits on New Years Eve.." over at Radiohead.tv.

It starts at midnight GMT on December 31, which is in the early evening here in America, leaving plenty of time to go get ready to see Spoon or the Black Lips or R. Kelly or whoever.

"this is a wee celebration of the release of the physical manifestation of 'in rainbows'," Thom continues, referring to the fact that the new Radiohead album is finally due in stores. It's out today in Japan (via Hostess Entertainment), the UK December 31 (via XL), and the U.S. and Canada January 1 (via ATO/TBD and MapleMusic, respectively).

Apparently the webcast is going to consist of a performance of In Rainbows in full, taped at the band's Oxford studio, a place we are already intimately familiar with. In America, the live show will be aired commercial-free on Al Gore's television station, Current TV. It premieres at 12 a.m. EST/9 p.m. PST. Current's website will also archive the show, so you can watch it again New Year's Day while writing your resolutions. (Resolution #1: Watch less television.) [MORE...]

Jay-Z Leaves Def Jam Presidency

Photo by Kyle Gustafson

Though he'll always be President Carter in our hearts, as of December 31, Jay-Z will no longer hold the position of President of Def Jam Recordings, according to various sources. He made the announcement on Christmas Eve; Variety reports that he made the following statement: "Now it's time for me to take on new challenges. I am pleased to have had the opportunity to build upon the Def Jam legacy."

According to The New York Times, Jay-Z's Presidential exit was caused by money matters. His current contract expires at the end of 2007, and Universal (Def Jam's parent company) "declined to renew the contract under more lucrative terms he sought."

Although Jigga won't be Def Jam's head honcho anymore, he will still record for the label, and has plenty of other activities to keep him busy. He's one of the owners of the New Jersey Nets basketball team, he oversees the 40/40 nightclub empire, and, of course, he's Beyoncé's boyfriend.

But now that he's quit his main day job, Jay's doing what any good multi-millionaire would do in his first days of freedom: he's going to Vegas, bay-bee. He'll perform at the Pearl at the Palms on December 29.

R.I.P. Oscar Peterson, 1925-2007

Oscar Peterson, the legendary Canadian jazz pianist known for his breathtaking displays of speed and agility, died Sunday, December 23 at his home in Mississauga, Ontario, according to various news sources. He was 82 years old. According to the Associated Press, the cause of death was kidney failure.

Peterson was born in Montreal on August 15, 1925. He grew up in a musical family, and was influenced by Art Tatum and Nat "King" Cole at an early age. While only in high school, he played in a band with trumpeter Maynard Ferguson and performed regularly on Canadian national radio. In 1949, Peterson performed at Carnegie Hall in New York City, launching his international career. He signed to Verve in the early 1950s, and went on to play with such greats as Dizzy Gillespie, Billie Holiday, and Charlie Parker. His reputation for velocity and virtuosity grew and grew in the decades that followed, and he attracted a large international following. A 1993 stroke weakened his left hand, but Peterson continued to play for years to come.

Throughout his lifetime, Peterson was given countless honors and awards, including many Grammys. He was given his own stamp in Canada and Austria. He also started blogging in 2000.

Since the news of Peterson's death hit on Christmas Eve, tributes from the jazz world have been pouring in. The Associated Press quoted the following statement from Herbie Hancock: "Oscar Peterson redefined swing for modern jazz pianists for the latter half of the 20th century up until today. I consider him the major influence that formed my roots in jazz piano playing. He mastered the balance between technique, hard blues grooving, and tenderness ... No one will ever be able to take his place."

A message from Peterson's family on his website asks that those seeking to honor the pianist's memory can make donations to World Vision or Christian Children's Fund.

The Pitchfork Guide to New Year's Eve

Ahh, New Year's Eve. A night of celebration and merry-making, overflowing libations and regretful decisions. And if you don't have the ABSOLUTE BEST TIME EVER, what kind of loser are you?

Because we here at Pitchfork are experts at falling asleep at 11 p.m. at mom's house partying hard, we've assembled this handy guide to some of the best New Year's Eve shows in America (and a few other places around the world). From the Flaming Lips in Oklahoma City to the world's drunkest Guns N' Roses Tribute Band (that also happens to feature a member of Clap Your Hands Say Yeah) in Brooklyn, here's a city-by-city list of ways to spend the evening of Monday, December 31, 2007. [MORE...]

Indie Bands Sue Camel, Rolling Stone Over Ad

The messy saga we've lovingly dubbed Camelstonegate took a fairly expected turn this week as Xiu Xiu and Fucked Up filed a class action lawsuit against Camel cigarettes' parent company R.J. Reynolds Tobacco, Rolling Stone, and the magazine's parent company, Wenner Media, according to a Daily Swarm report.

The suit-- filed December 17 on behalf of 186 artists whose names appeared in Rolling Stone's "Indie Rock Universe" feature, tucked conspicuously within a fold-out advertisement for Camel's indie-friendly "The Farm" campaign in the magazine's November 15 issue-- accuses the defending parties of "unauthorized use of artists' names; unauthorized use of artist names for commercial advantage (right of publicity); and unfair business practices."

Xiu Xiu and Fucked Up essentially claim that Rolling Stone created and presented their feature with full knowledge that it would appear part and parcel with the Camel ad. The plaintiffs ask that the magazine print a follow-up feature equal in size to the original clarifying that artists' names were used without consent. They're also seeking financial recompense for damages: Rolling Stone alone, the Daily Swarm suggests, could be forced to pony up as much as $195.3 billion if found guilty.

While this marks the first time Rolling Stone has found itself the subject of legal action following the ad scandal, nine states' Attorneys General have already filed lawsuits against Camel for using cartoons to sell tobacco products.

As previously reported, a number of indie labels are seeking an apology from Rolling Stone as well.

Photos: Wu-Tang Clan [Chicago, IL; 12/15/07]

Words by Paul Thompson. Photos by Matt Taplinger

No RZA! Nothing from 8 Diagrams! As Ghostface and Raekwon took the stage Saturday night at Chicago's Metro to the strains of "Wu-Tang Clan Ain't Nuthin Ta F' Wit", the leaders of the potential secession from the ranks of their ramshackle crew made two things pretty clear: the Wu-Tang Clan we'd all been fucking with for a decade and a half were in the building, and that weird new "hip-hop hippie" shit had no place on that stage.

You'd think an 8 Diagrams nut like myself would balk, but nah. With the emphasis on back catalog bangers and temporarily sans their (arguably) weakest lyrical link, the Wu completely destroyed the crowd who'd battled a snowstorm and sorta ridiculous ticket prices for a night with rhyming heroes. Once the initial disappointment from the lack of RZA wore off, it became clear that the Wu, however fragmented, was ready to do this.

Following the undeniable opener, the Wu swung their swords deftly through several dozen tracks, mixing classic posse cuts with gems from solo albums. Of the solo tracks, Method Man's ("Bring the Pain", "What the Blood Clot") went over the best, due largely to the fact that Meth was at least twice as live as everyone else onstage. A cool and unassuming GZA held down the back of the stage most of the time, eyeing the proceedings cautiously and exuding the same sage wisdom when blazing through "Duel of the Iron Mic" as he did hanging back and occasionally whispering in U-God's ear.

It was clear that everyone-- not just you and I-- reserve their greatest respect for GZA, Ghost and Raekwon out of the entire Clan, and every time one of them took the spotlight, the dozen-plus folks onstage were well-versed in every word. Inspectah Deck stalked the stage, looking for any spot to interject some of his trademark gangly weirdness. "We like the Isley Brothers, ya heard?," he added at one point. Sure.

Every song you'd imagine to be a highlight was, even in their oft-truncated live forms. In fact, there was almost too much music going on. I'd wager nearly 50 tracks were touched on in one form or another, and when U-God reminded us that there were "too many fly-ass rappers onstage," well, he might've had a point. Watching those guys storm a stage, climb on the hands of fans, drink cheap white wine straight from the bottle (in Cappadonna's case) , inspire weeded-up white dudes to yell silly things like "Shaolin's finest!" at you, and, oh yeah, spit some nasty shit for the better part of two hours is a lot to take in. I went to the john just before "Triumph", and when I returned halfway through Ghost's still-fierce verse, the whole crowd felt like they could use a break, too. As it is with 8 Diagrams, the Wu offered perhaps a bit too much to absorb in a single sitting, and when they announced to the ladies where they'd be staying for the night (the show was 21 and over, in case you, uh, think that's a skeezy gesture) , folks seemed almost relieved to file out into the sloppy Chicago snow. That is, once Meth slapped the hands of every single person in the first five rows, grinning from ear to ear as he had all night.

Yeah, so this rumored intra-Wu rift has got to go. (Hey, Ghost and Rae, if you don't like RZA's new beats, maybe you should stop being so awesome over them?) The only real acknowledgement of 8 Diagrams' existence was them asking a dozen or so times whether we'd copped it-- a disservice to a truly beautiful and bizarre piece of work. And, sure, "Life Changes" from the new record still seems like it would be a better eulogy for their fallen brother Ol' Dirty Bastard than that song of his about liking it raw. But most of the Wu was there Saturday night with murdering game on their minds, and, squabbles aside, we in attendance were sufficiently slayed.

[MORE...]

Photos: Thrill Jockey 15th Anniversary [Chicago, IL; 12/14-12/15/07]

Photos by Sanchez and Kitahara
Pictured above: Trans Am

Some bands you fall in love with. You catch every single show, memorize the lyrics, decorate your personal items with their buttons, patches, and stickers, and-- more often than not-- break up with them as your tastes evolve or something new comes along.

Other bands are best kept as friends. Your heart may not skip a beat at the mention of their names, a missed show here and there won't make you cry, and perhaps you haven't quite gotten around to hearing that latest album, but that's okay, because you can commit to bands like this for life. They're consistent, reliable, and, as with any true friend, they have nothing to prove; the respect and admiration you and these bands share for one another is implicit. They've sorta always been there, too, and you get the feeling they always will be. These are the kind of bands, by and large, that populate the Thrill Jockey roster.

So you won't find many MySpace profiles gushing OMG I <3 SEA+CAKE x 1000000!!!!!11, but you can, it seems, always count on a sea of serene faces at any Sea and Cake show. It was just this vibe-- communal, comfortable, and decidedly low-key-- that marked the 15th anniversary celebration for Bettina Richards' Thrill Jockey Records, held this past weekend at the Logan Square Auditorium in Chicago, the city in which the label has operated for most of its decade-and-a-half.

The Sea and Cake were there, of course, as were label stalwarts Trans Am and Eleventh Dream Day, both of whom provided most of the reserved evenings' showiest moments. Tortoise served as the not-so-surprising surprise guest, kicking off Saturday's festivities. Califone went surround sound, briefly positioning their horn section up in the balcony behind the audience.

The Fred Anderson Trio and Frequency flew Thrill Jockey's jazz flag high, and ADULT. stood in for the label's strong electronic contingent, doing what they could to rattle us out of our state of comfort. Thalia Zedek covered Freakwater's "Flat Hand", while an un-billed Sue Garner appeared to help Eleventh Dream Day through a cover of her own "I Like the Name Alice". (Both covers appear on the recent Plum box set). The band returned the favor by backing Garner on a few tunes.

Recent Thrill Jockey signings were on display the first night: Arbouretum capped off a fine set with "Pale Rider Blues", one of the finest songs heard all weekend, while the Fiery Furnaces plowed through much of their latest album Widow City. Amid the Windy City-centric proceedings, School of Language's David Brewis came all the way from Sunderland, England to make his U.S. live debut. How appropriate that he was joined for the occasion by drummer Ryan Rapsys (Euphone, Ambulette) and Zincs bassist Nick Macri, two Chicago music scene regulars whom Brewis claimed to have met barely a day prior. This is a label community that embraces its own, in a city that has always embraced kindred spirits.

As with any gathering of friends, these nights were as much about the chummy moments between songs as they were about the music: Tortoise's Dan Bitney asking audience members how they traveled to the show and marveling at how many folks had walked; Sam Prekop and Doug McCombs playfully heckling Archer Prewitt from the balcony during his set ("Look! It's the two old men from the 'Muppet Show'!" cracked Prewitt's keyboardist); Califone's Tim Rutili ad libbing a silly conversation with his horn section, who responded the way the off-screen adults do in Charlie Brown cartoons.

Later, when Rutili noted the unceasing snow outside and suggested we all might have to have a sleepover, no one really laughed. Given this friendly, like-minded company, that wasn't such a ridiculous idea at all.

Here's to 15 more years and then some, guys. [MORE...]

Kim Deal Talks New Breeders Album, Pixies, German
"I would rather have one song that people actually like than 15 songs that they can barely stand. But that's just me."

Most of the attention focused on Kim Deal in the last few years has come from her participation in the über-successful Pixies reunion. But she recently turned the spotlight to her other well-regarded, super successful indie rock band, the Breeders. After a recording hiatus of over five years, the Breeders will return with Mountain Battles, the follow-up to 2002's Title TK, on April 7/8 (in the UK/U.S., respectively) via 4AD.

We caught up with Deal to talk about the album, and she was a blast: friendly, funny, and full of anecdotes and ideas. In our conversation, she discussed her recent appearance at the "The Second City That Never Sleeps: Letters to Santa" benefit, her adventures in speaking German for a Battles song, a technological explanation for the rarity of quality songwriting in the ProTools era, and why a new Pixies album just isn't going to happen.

Pitchfork: It's been five years since Title TK was released. What took Mountain Battles so long to come together?

KD: Well, sometimes we weren't at the studio, we were just at the house in Ohio working on stuff. It's weird, because ProTools has done this-- like, I'm a singer/songwriter, so I could do this in my bedroom by myself, and I would have to just get the...I don't know, web designer, to come over to put the measures up, to pull the ProTools up. It really doesn't matter if anyone else is involved, so that can be quite freeing, and things can be turned around quite quickly like that, if all I'm thinking about is, "What time do I want the spacebar-pusher to come over today?"

But if there's an actual band, and I own actual instruments, and actual tubes have to be replaced, and people actually have to fly in, and they have lives, and you have to go over the song-- because remember, this is tape. It's not like, "Uh...here's the idea of the chorus. We're going to use the Pretenders drums from the first record, 'cause they sound so good," you know? That's not how we do it. Jose [Medeles], the drummer, has to fly in, and we actually have to write a song from beginning to end that sounds cool. And if it doesn't sound cool at this part, it's not like we can just go, "Yeah, let's rearrange that in ProTools," you know? It's just a totally different way of thinking.

I'm not the quickest, most prolific writer either. I would never pretend to be. I don't think prolific-ness is equal to quality at all. I would rather have one song that people actually like than 15 songs that they can barely stand. But that's just me.

Another thing is, I think it's kind of ballsy to sit there and think that [people want to listen] if it wasn't special and we weren't trying to do something we would want to listen to. Why is this song actually here? Why is this song taking up two-and-a-half minutes of my life? Is it just because somebody doesn't have tape anymore and so the amount of recording space is unlimited? That's why I'm sitting here listening to this, because nothing stopped you from doing it, but there's not really a reason to do it? I don't know. If that was me, and I was listening to me, I would get mad, like, "Why are you fucking doing this?" It doesn't have to be great, but it seems like at least there should be kind of a reason. And it's hard to come up with a fucking good reason to write something, I think.

Pitchfork: You keep hinting at one of the issues that would be at the center of making a new Pixies record, namely whether or not it's necessary. In recent interviews, you say it's not, that touring is fun but that a new record might tarnish some of the old memories.

KD: [When] this whole thing started out, we were going to do a couple of shows. Joe [Santiago] said he had one kid and one was on the way, and he said, "Do you wanna do it?" And I said, "Oh God, no, Joe!" And I told everybody this, but nobody believes me. And he said, "Kim, this is really important to me. It will change my school district, where I can put my daughter into school." And I said, "Okay, of course. Of course, I will do this."

I thought it was going to be a couple of shows, and it turned out really good. I had a really good time doing it. People were just so happy we were doing it. It was just so nice, like [an] "it's over, thank you, bye," kind of thing. And so there was never any-- I don't know, I think it gets talked about whenever Charles [Thompson, aka Frank Black] has any release, which is often. I have a feeling that's when he talks about it more than anything. Because him and Joe haven't gotten together to write any songs, so I think it's kind of something to bring up whenever he needs press. That's the only time I hear about it. I have no idea, dude. [MORE...]

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