Tokyo Police Club Tour Some More

Ontario's own extended playas Tokyo Police Club might have the internet goin' nutz, but even the busiest blog-reader might not've yet had the pleasure of catching the jagged squeals of Police Club's siren songs in the flesh.

Lucky them, the Club kids-- whose previously-reported computer-only Smith EP could very well be gathering digital dust on your hard drive right now-- will dispatch the squad car for a summer-spanning donut run kicking off tonight in New York, with a scheduled shake down on "The Late Show With David Letterman" April 19. [MORE...]

Indies Launching Compilation Attack on Mainstream?

What was your introduction to indie rock? Think back. Was it seeing the Replacements on "Saturday Night Live"? An R.E.M. video? A band t-shirt Kurt Cobain wore? Garden State? Hearing "Float On" on the radio?

We've all had those turning points in our lives (you probably wouldn't be reading Pitchfork right now if you hadn't!), but what about the next generation? What about those kids out there right now who don't know who Sonic Youth are (gasp!) or don't care about the Arcade Fire (shock!)? Who or what is going to be the gatekeeper for them?

According to Entertainment Weekly and Billboard, a group of independent (and "independent") labels are teaming up to put out a series of compilations aimed at seducing the newbie listener over to our way of life.

EW.com says that the comps will feature the likes of Bloc Party, the Shins, Bright Eyes, Air, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, M. Ward, Ted Leo, Cat Power, Silversun Pickups (UPDATE: Silversun Pickups have said that they are NOT involved in these compilations), the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and Sonic Youth, and that labels such as Vice, Matador, and Sub Pop will take turns putting out each volume.

However, both Matador and Sub Pop would not confirm their involvement in the series. Vice's label manager Adam Shore was quoted in Entertainment Weekly's article, but told Pitchfork that "those comments went out prematurely and all the information in there is not 100% confirmed."

Said information included Shore saying, "We're partnering with MTV2, and the focus is going to be Wal-Marts, big box stores, red states, and TV advertising-- to really go beyond... We don't really expect indie rock stores to support this record. It's for the casual fan."

MTV acknowledged that they have discussed the possibility of becoming involved in the series, but that nothing had been confirmed yet.

Billboard.com reports that the entire project is being "spearheaded" by the Alternative Distribution Alliance (or ADA, if you're cool), the Warner Music Group-owned company that distributes Vice, Sub Pop, Matador, and countless others. ADA had not responded to questions at the time of this story's publication.

So. Are these compilations actually coming out? Probably. Will they be on Vice, Matador, and Sub Pop? Maybe. Will MTV be involved? Not so sure.

But the most uncertain thing of all? Whether anybody will actually buy the things.

Animal Collective's Weitz Seeks Parkinson's Donations

Believe it or not, the men of Animal Collective aren't always mucking about in masks or drumming and strumming their way to catharsis. Sometimes they are serious, quite serious, and that is the case with today's bit of Animal Collective news.

Simply put, Brian "Geologist" Weitz of Animal Collective has a grandfather who is suffering from the late stages of Parkinson's disease. The central nervous disorder, believed to afflict over one million people in the U.S. alone, results from a lack of dopamine in nerve cells and often leaves the afflicted unable to go about day-to-day activity.

Wrote Geologist in a personal message relayed via his publicist, "my grandfather...has been in the hospital hanging on for 2 months now. He had emergency surgery for something unrelated to the Parkinson's, however because of it, he has not been able to fully wake up or recover."

To help the cause of his grandfather and all those with Parkinson's, Weitz has decided to join his mother on the Parkinson Council's 2007 Walk for Parkinson's in Philadelphia. Geologist and Mom will tread ten miles to raise funds for Parkinson's research, but they need your help! Donate directly to Weitz's fundraising efforts via his personal Walk page. Act soon, however, as the walking shoes hit the pavement April 21.

Animal Collective's paws, meanwhile, hit the tour trail with Sir Richard Bishop this May. [MORE...]

Jeezy, USDA Talk Album, Slang, Street Team
"We gave away so much, and people never recognize the good things. They always try to bring the bad things up."

As our own Tom Breihan put it in his review of Young Jeezy's second and most recent album, The Inspiration, "There's wisdom in his ignorance and ignorance in his wisdom." That is, even though the Atlanta MC rehashes the same old drug talk and motivational speak in his lyrics and in interviews, he does it with a charisma that makes possible the occasional revelation.

When I talked to Young Jeezy and the other two members of his USDA crew-- Blood Raw and Slick Pulla-- about their new mixtape, Young Jeezy Presents USDA: Cold Summer, they were unsurprisingly repetitive and promotional. Nonetheless, there were moments of comedy and poignancy as we talked about Cold Summer (which comes out May 22 via Def Jam and their own Corporate Thugz Entertainment), their communities, the slang that permeates their lyrics, and the rumored street team comprised entirely of white girls to promote the single "White Girl".

Pitchfork: How is the Street Dream tour going?

Blood Raw: Aw, man, it's beautiful. It's real good exposure. It's real good politicking going on, and we're getting a lot of love from the fans.

Pitchfork: When you say "politicking," are you guys making connections backstage? Are you working on collaborations, like with Lil Wayne and Rich Boy?

BR: Well, we're also doing promo, as far as USDA. We're going to the radio stations, doing some marketing by passing out t-shirts, CDs, after-parties, and different things like that.

Pitchfork: There is an obvious pun going on with the name USDA. Why specifically did you choose that acronym?

BR: It's really just a coincidence. When we came up with "United Streets and D-Boys of America," we just spun it up to USDA. That's the acronym for that. That represents our movement. It's really not trying to make a spin-off.

Pitchfork: It's really just a coincidence that it also stands for the United States Department of Agriculture? There wasn't a little bit of name recognition going on there?

BR: No, no, not at all. It's just a coincidence. It just so happens that those letters stand for that. [MORE...]

Jason Isbell Leaves Drive-By Truckers

Drive-By Truckers guitarist Jason Isbell has parted ways with the veteran country-fried rockers under what bandmate Patterson Hood describes as "extremely amicable" circumstances in a statement on the band's website.

Since hopping on the Truckers' convoy mid-tour 2001, Isbell served as one of DBT's trio of axe-slingers, enjoying a place at the center of the Drive-By Truckers' well-regarded Decoration Day, The Dirty South and A Blessing and a Curse records and riding shotgun on their ceaseless roadshow. Isbell's wife Shonna Tucker, who joined the band on bass in late 2003, has expressed no plans to leave.

Isbell has a handful of solo dates in the works, and will issue his solo debut Sirens of the Ditch July 10 on New West Records. The Isbell-less Truckers will travel on through the late spring and summer. [MORE...]

Lily Allen, Kanye, Dilla Help Common Find Forever
Plus: D'Angelo, Nina Simone, will.i.am, Devo Springsteen

Chicago's dapper hip-hop smiley-guy Common returns to the fore July 10 with the release of his latest LP, Finding Forever (Geffen), according to Billboard.com. As the man whose mother named him Lonnie Rashid Lynn, Jr. told the industry website today, "I want to leave a mark on this earth...making music and saying what I have to say in my music is one of the ways I will exist forever."

To achieve his Achillean aims, Common has enlisted the talents of top-tier folk like Second City paisano Kanye West, revered late producer J Dilla, and clothes-shunning crooner D'Angelo, as well as a Nina Simone sample, and, yes, Lily Allen.

Allen turns up on a tune called "Driving Me Wild", which features the lyric "Driving herself crazy like the astronaut lady/ Love is not a mystery, it's everything." Um, no comment.

Black Eyed Pea will.i.am and Kanye/John Legend buddy Devo Springsteen take turns in the production chair as well.

Catch Common if you can-- the man woos girlfriends at Baltimore's Johns Hopkins University April 14 and New York's Central Park SummerStage on June 20.

QOTSA's Era Vulgaris Tracklist Revealed
This news post is rated R for adult themes and partial dude-ity

Bring on the rampaging riffage! As if its histrionically heavy title wasn't enough, the upcoming Era Vulgaris-- the fifth proper release from red-eyed riff-maker Josh Homme and motley crew Queens of the Stone Age-- now has a tracklist, rife with potential fist-pumpers like "Suture Up Your Future" and "Run Pig Run."

As we previously reported, Vulgaris is out June 12 on Interscope, and will offer up guest spots by a Stroke, a Nine Inch Nail, a Screaming Tree, and a sharp dressed man. QOTSA (alongside some, all, or none of those folk) will hit European soil in late June for a whole lotta festivals and, presumably, at least a daytrip to Amsterdam. Bros love them some Van Gogh Museum! Wink wink. [MORE...]

Constantines Line Up U.S. Dates

Photo by Davida Nemeroff

Undaunted by the actions of Keanu Reeves, Canada's spirited rockers Constantines are primed to return to the U.S. later this month, supporting maple leaf icons the Tragically Hip on a bunch of East Coast engagements. For a surefire cure for a tragic state of hipness, try the Cons' 2005 LP Tournament of Hearts on Sub Pop.

At present the troupe's wrapping up a string of previously reported dates up yonder with Ladyhawk. [MORE...]

T.V. Eye: April 9-15, 2007

Pitchfork's T.V. Picks for This Week:

Monday, April 09:

ABC: "Jimmy Kimmel Live": Ciara
CBS: "Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson": Paul Wall

Tuesday, April 10:

CBS: "Late Show With David Letterman": Andrew Bird
NBC: "Late Night With Conan O'Brien": Cold War Kids

Wednesday, April 11:

CBS: "Late Show With David Letterman": LCD Soundsystem

Thursday, April 12:

NBC: "Late Night With Conan O'Brien": Of Montreal

Friday, April 13:

NBC: "The Today Show": Lily Allen
IFC: "The Henry Rollins Show": Peaches
NBC: "The Tonight Show With Jay Leno": The Shins
NBC: "Late Night With Conan O'Brien": Joseph Arthur
CBS: "Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson": Cold War Kids

Photos: Patrick Wolf [Brooklyn, NY; 04/06/07]

Photos by Kathryn Yu

Patrick Wolf descended upon New York this weekend for his first U.S. shows in support of The Magic Position, Wolf's third LP and a recent Pitchfork Best New Music selection (out May 1 Stateside via Low Altitude/Universal). According to Pitchfork photographer Kathryn Yu, the kids at Studio B "went crazy" for Magic's title track and delighted at Wolf tossing quotes from "SexyBack" into "Bluebells". Dude also covered Kelly Marie's disco hit "Feels Like I'm in Love" while awash in strobe lights. Nice.

Apparently things didn't go quite so well at the following night's gig at Don Hill's, however. According to a reader, Wolf's drummer more or less passed out during a performance of Lycanthropy's "Bloodbeat", prompting the vocalist/multi-instrumentalist to toss a cymbal stand at the guy, slap him around a bit, and fire his ass before returning front and center to continue the show.

Best stay awake if you plan on catching Wolf's upcoming gigs in Europe!






[MORE...]

Spank Rock DJ/Producers Step Into the Spotlight
Armani XXXchange remixing Thom Yorke, Bjork, working with the Kills, Kid Sister

Spank Rock is pretty confusing. It's the name adopted by MC Naeem Juwan, but it's also the collective name for Juwan and the trio of DJs and producers who surround him. Increasingly, those three have been striking out on their own. Alex Epton (aka Armani XXXchange), Chris Devlin (aka Chris Rockswell), and Ronnie Darko have a slew of projects in the works, starting with FABRICLIVE.33, their previously reported entry in the Fabric mix series. It will be released on April 16 in the UK and April 24 in the U.S.

Chris Devlin spoke to Pitchfork recently about the mix as well as the other projects he and the other members of the Baltimore crew have brewing this year. Right now, their biggest priority is recording the follow-up to last year's YoYoYoYoYo.

Devlin was less forthcoming about specific details of the album, however, saying its release date is "really anytime between now and some time from now." Nonetheless, after their performances at Coachella and Primavera Sound, as well as a Devlin and Darko DJ tour, they plan to "hit the studio pretty hard and get the record finished."

In the meantime, Devlin will release his first collaborative 12" EP with Baltimore producer Chipset via Flaming Hots Records, and Armani XXXchange has fielded quite a few requests for production and remix work, which he does through his own Royal Castle Productions.

The only XXXchange remix Devlin mentioned was of Thom Yorke's "The Eraser", but Alex's brand spankin' new website lists his recent production work for Kid Sister, Amanda Blank, and the soundtrack to the EA Sports game Skate. XXXchange also has collaborations and remixes with the Kills, Yo Majesty, and... Björk (!) in the pipeline. Next up: Armani XXXchange Presents Shoxxx Value. [MORE...]

Björk, SY, JAMC, Modest Mouse Up For Electric Picnic
The Stooges, Beastie Boys, Jarvis, LCD Soundsystem, Clap Your Hands too!

Your picnics probably consist of Kentucky Fried, Frisbee golf, and fireants. Stradbally, Ireland's picnic consists of electricity, Soul II Soul, and a giant smiling sun. Which is better? That's a toughie, dude.

The fourth annual Electric Picnic festival lays out its blankets August 31 through September 2 and passes its potato salad between Björk, Sonic Youth, Modest Mouse, the Jesus and Mary Chain, and a couple dozen others. Full-weekend tickets can be yours presently, as can the whole of the confirmed lineup, but highlights are down here. [MORE...]

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.)