Exclusive: Art Brut Reveal Complicated Tracklist
Got themselves a brand new tracklist

You can hush all your nag-nag-nag-naggin': meta-punk-rockers Art Brut's It's a Bit Complicated finally has a full tracklist. Now you know definitively what eleven barked-out Eddie Argos nuggets'll be running through your head at inopportune moments for the next several months. It's got a cover, too, with-- for some reason-- instruments of geometry. So that's that, then; all you've got to do is sit on your hands 'til June 26 when Downtown Records and/or Mute actually give you the thing.

Of course, if you can't wait that long, you've got options; by now, you're all read up on the band's Talking to the Kids DVD, which you can scoop up Stateside May 22. And then, of course, there's the Infinite Livez Vs Stade album Art Brut Fe De Yoot, which has absolutely nothing to do with Art Brut the band, but could very well tide you over regardless. [MORE...]

Whitest Boy Alive Embark on Whitest Tour Ever

Erlend Øye and his polite band of white boys ("We play our music live. Sing along if you know the words," proclaims their website) will tour Europe with their Dreams in tow this spring and summer.

The Whitest Boy Alive will bring Norwegian trio Kommode along for some sun on several dates in late April/early May; they warm-up tonight at the Roskilde launch party in Copenhagen.

Øye reprises his day job in Kings of Convenience, meanwhile, for a set at the Slottsfjell Festival in Tonsberg, Norway on July 20. You may also hear the Kings guesting on "Omstart", a track off Cornelius' latest, Sensuous. As previously reported, that album lands Stateside at last via Everloving Records on April 24. [MORE...]

Modest Mouse, Shins, Decemberists Swag in Art Auction
Plus: Janet Weiss, Corin Tucker, Dandy Warhols, and...Bon Jovi \m/

Buckman Elementary School, an arts magnet school in Portland's public system, is rife with the cool, artsy kids. And these cool, artsy kids-- along with some high-profile, indie rock favorites-- have donated some items to be auctioned in benefit of the school; they're no mere pinch-pot ashtray castoffs, either.

In addition to a fly-fishing trip and jaunts to the Sonoma wine country, a series of hand-decorated mini-guitars and other swag from the likes of the Decemberists and Carson Ellis, Modest Mouse's Isaac Brock, the Shins, Stephen Malkmus and newest Jick Janet Weiss, Sam Coombs of Quasi, and the Dandy Warhols will go up for the good cause. UPDATE: STEPHEN MALKMUS DID NOT DESIGN THE GUITAR, JUST JANET WEISS. IT'S PRETTY SWEET! CHECK OUT THE PHOTO BELOW!

The Art Rocks auction takes place in two parts: the first-- organized by Sleater-Kinney pillar and Buckman parent Corin Tucker-- goes down web-ways April 22, when online bidders can stake their claim on those hand-decorated mini-guitars via eBay (keyword: Buckman). UPDATE: DUE TO AN EBAY GLITCH, THE ONLINE AUCTION START DATE HAS BEEN BUMPED TO MAY 13.

The second part, an actual live auction which we hope includes a motor-mouthed auctioneer, occurs April 27 at Portland's Melody Ballroom. There you can score vacation getaways, arts and crafts from kids and local artisans, a signed Bon Jovi guitar, and the prize to end all prizes: a set of maracas actually used by the Dandy Warhols. We kid you not. Alas, no portion of the proceedings is dedicated to a "date auction"; you'll just have to get Isaac drunk and try to make out with him on your own time. It can't be that hard, really.

Janet Weiss hand-decorated mini-guitar:

Islands, Final Fantasy Contribute to Tomlab 7" Series
So do YACHT, Tussle, Erase Errata

Tomlab's plot to issue a 7" single for each letter of the alphabet is smacking Sufjan's states thing around; while Suffy dreams up new flute charts for California or Delaware or whatever it is, Tomlab's made it all the way to T and plotted their way through the end of the alphabet.

Previous entries have in the series have included Grizzly Bear, Casiotone for the Painfully Alone, and the Blow, and the level of quality isn't letting up now.

For Q, Alig Fodder (of Family Fodder) spits up two sides of fizzy pop that would've sat well on Of Montreal's Hissing Fauna record. R goes to San Fran funky drummers Tussle, whose "Second Guessing" is treated to a remix from Blow-hard YACHT. Islands get S, which boasts, in "Flesh" the first Islands track ever recorded. And who can forget T, on which The World Court get windy and woozy. All four are available now.

As for the rest of the alphabet, well, Tomlab's all set for Erase Errata's U and the Dead Science's V in August, Scout Niblett's W, Numbers' (oh, the irony!) X, YACHT's Y, and Final Fantasy's Z in October, and David Shrigley sometime in the future. Starting with the Shrigley disc, Tomlab's switching to umlaut mode. Shrigley gets Ä, with several more dot-topped "special contributions" planned.

Please, God, let them be from Björk and Mötley Crüe. [MORE...]

Joanna Newsom to Open for Bjork!
Compete to see who can hit the highest note

Though it may seem that your pals at Pitchfork are too immersed in Volta fever to talk about anything else (tell yr friends: "Declare Independence" might just be the jam of the summer), we do have other records we're looking forward to; say, Joanna Newsom's Ys Street Band EP, out April 24 on Drag City.

So when we found out that these two creative juggernauts would be joining together for a couple of dates on Björk's previously-announced tour, well, we were beside ourselves for a minute. Then, we collected ourselves, and wrote a story about it.

Jo's only doing two dates on the Björk tour that we know of, although we'd like to strongly encourage whoever paired these two to keep up the good work. Seriously, who else but J-New is up for the challenge of warming up a crowd of Björk-aniacs? It's a toughie...though we'd also like to suggest Antony.

In other Björk news, there's more Volta slowly trickling out over the internet, including this frustratingly brief clip of the "Earth Intruders" video, set for proper release April 24. She'll also share another amazing double-bill this weekend as the musical guest on a soon-to-be-legendary "Saturday Night Live" episode with host Scarlett Johansson. And, of course, Volta drops May 7 in Europe and May 8 here. Wooo! [MORE...]

Marissa Nadler Signs to Kemado, Kicks Off Tour
U.S. edition of Songs III set for August release

Stevie Nicks is the first influence Marissa Nadler lists on her MySpace page, and it ain't hard to see why. Her long hair, flowing clothes, and music all fit the Nicks archetype pretty well, minus a little bit of the witchiness.

The unwitchy but still beguiling Nadler recently released her new album, Songs III: Bird on the Water, via Peacefrog Records in Europe. Now the Providence-based singer has signed to Kemado Records for an August 7 physical release of a slightly altered version of the album in the U.S. and Canada. Kemado also plans to set Bird aflight digitally this month.

Nadler will go her own way on tour starting tomorrow night in Helsinki. All of her current dates are in Europe for now, but Marissa plans to travel the U.S. West Coast in June. A full U.S. tour is in the works for August. [MORE...]

Bluesfest Gets Stripes, Kanye, Cat Power, Built to Spill
Plus: Bob Dylan, Metric, Final Fantasy, Tokyo Police Club, Manu Chao, Bird and the Bee

With their government-sanctioned health care and relative lack of pollution, what do Canadians know from blues? Not as much as they know about crowd-pleasing, indie-leaning rock'n'roll, as it turns out.

The Ottawa Bluesfest-- bending its notes over five stages from July 5-15 at Ottawa's LeBreton Flats Park-- packs quite a wallop in its non-blues lineup: Kanye West, Built to Spill, Metric, Tokyo Police Club, and Final Fantasy are amongst the none-too-downtrodden, which also sports the oft-bluesy strains of Bob Dylan, the White Stripes, and Cat Power. Still, though, they ain't exactly Muddy and the Wolf, but we doubt you'll mind.

So, okay, there's some fine blues, too-- Buddy Guy and Robert Cray top that particular list-- plus a couple folk legends and plenty of your typical-fest throwback fare like Steve Miller Band and the Village People. In fact, no matter the genre, these Ottawa folks have outdone themselves. A full schedule for your glancing pleasure is up on the festival website, but the highlight reel's after the jump.

Thanks to reader Andrew Ryall for the heads-up. [MORE...]

Bonde do Role Wield Lasers at More Shows

The good ship Bonde do Role will be docking shortly. The Brazilian trio's debut album, With Lasers, arrives in physical formats on June 5 in the U.S. and June 4 in the UK and Europe via Domino.

The catch is that the album is available for download right now on iTunes, which is a little strange. However, for those who like their BdR DRM-free, two months is no time at all.

Bonde have added a bunch of European shows to their previously reported tour; scope those, along with the tracklist for With Lasers, below [MORE...]

Young Marble Giants Reunite!
Domino Records eyeing Colossal Youth reissue

Before crumbling to dust/solo projects after just three brief years and one full-length album together, minimalist Welsh indie-poppers Young Marble Giants managed to leave an appropriately imposing legacy and an indelible mark in the annals of post-punk.

According to a BBC Wales report, the influential trio will reunite for a May 27 performance at the Hay Festival-- their first proper live appearance in some 27 years (numerologists, start your engines!). The literature/arts fest event takes place at Clyro Court in Hay-on-Wye, Wales, near the English border; although the festival lineup isn't confirmed yet, Young Marble Giants are listed on the festival's draft schedule.

This reunion gig apparently came about at the behest of Domino Records, who are believed to have a reissue of the Giants' lone LP, Colossal Youth, planned for the near future.

The Hay Festival itself runs from May 24 thru June 3 this year in the bookish border town. It features a flurry of readings, panels, discussions, and films with and/or involving men and women of letters, such that you can't help but leave afterwards feeling, well, really super duper smart and stuff.

Young Marble Giants, meanwhile, haven't exactly been strangers-- the original trio of Alison Statton, Stuart Moxham, and Philip Moxham, along with honorary fourth Giant Andrew Moxham, reconvened back in 2004 at Wales' BBC Radio studios for a documentary shoot. They've also contributed to one another's projects over the years.

Charlotte Gainsbourg's 5:55 Hits North America via Vice

Admit it: by the curtain's close of The Science of Sleep, Charlotte Gainsbourg's craft-making and hard-to-get-playing won you over in ways her pretty, deceitful blonde friend never could. Charlotte hopes Francophiles abroad will fall for her wistful, knotty music in much the same way April 24, when the North American issue of her sophomore effort 5:55 hits shelves via Vice.

With words penned by Jarvis Cocker and the Divine Comedy's Neil Hannon, music from Air, and behind-the-board work from Nigel Godrich, 5:55's got plenty in its corner; its New World incarnation adds two additional tracks-- "Set Yourself on Fire" and "Somewhere Between Waking and Sleeping"-- to further captivate. [MORE...]

Two Gallants Houston Case Finally Dismissed
"It's incredible to think that the city of Houston, in the state that it is now, you know, after Hurricane Katrina and the history they've had, that a seemingly easy case would take so long to be finished like that."

After seven months of frustration and legal hurdles, the aftermath of Two Gallants' confrontation with police at a show in Houston, Texas in October has finally come to an end, as all charges against drummer Tyson Vogel have been dropped. Whew.

The backstory: On October 13, 2006, Two Gallants and opening act Trainwreck Riders were performing at Walter's on Washington when police officer G.M. Rodriguez entered the club to investigate a noise complaint. Accounts vary of what, exactly, happened next, but Rodriguez ended up on stage, demanding that the band stop playing. A fight broke out, and Rodriguez shot several people with a Taser gun, including Two Gallants frontman Adam Stephens. In the melee, Vogel and Trainwreck Riders' Andrew Kerwin and bassist Sean Kohler were arrested. Vogel was charged with a misdemeanor for "interfering with a public servant."

Thanks to video footage of the event and a sensible District Attorney, the charges against Vogel were finally dropped just a couple weeks ago. The Gallants are ready to move on, and have already recorded a new EP, the acoustic The Scenery of Farewell, which will be released June 19 on Saddle Creek. A new full-length is in the works for September, and the duo will open for Primus bassist Les Claypool on tour this summer.

We chatted with Vogel about the circumstances of his charges being dropped, as well as Two Gallants' future plans. [MORE...]

Tussle Duke it Out on the Road

Bay Area blipmakers Tussle are, as their name suggests, always game for a bout; and, boy, have they lined up a formidable cadre of opponents for their upcoming late-spring tour.

The opening bell rings tomorrow night as Tussle mix it up in matches with heavyweights Hot Chip, YACHT, ADULT., Professor Murder, and Parts & Labor. Will their pulsating pugilism match the sweet science of their opponents? For the sake of their nose-bone, we sure hope so; Tussle may not be as big as their challengers, but they sure are scrappy. Place your bets now.

In less combative Tussle news, their latest release is "R", part of Tomlab's alphabet-themed 7" series. "R" packs a wallop, with "Meh-Teh" from Tussle's eventual third album and a remix of "Second Guessing" from rabble-rouser YACHT. [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.)