Pitchfork: Pumpkins Concert Death Not an Injury

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Photo by Shervin Lainez

After conducting an autopsy yesterday, September 27, Vancouver regional coroner Owen Court determined that the death of 20-year-old Richmond, British Columbia resident Kenny Leung at a Smashing Pumpkins show earlier this week was not the result of moshing or crowd-surfing, according to a report on The Globe and Mail's website.

The Globe and Mail quoted Court as saying, "There is absolutely no evidence of any injury and therefore I would say, what you would call moshing or crowd-surfing would have nothing to do with this whatsoever. There was no injury on this young man."

In the absence of a trauma injury, the coroner is looking to toxicology tests to provide an explanation for Leung's death.

The Pumpkins responded to the tragedy with a post on their website:

"The Smashing Pumpkins were deeply saddened to learn about the passing of a young man who attended their Vancouver show Monday night (September 24). As they and everyone else await news from the investigation into the nature of his passing, the band want to express their sincerest condolences to his family and friends."

The band's tour continues tonight, September 28, in Salt Lake City. [MORE...]

Video: Smashing Pumpkins: Tarantula [from the Zeitgeist LP]

Posted by Dave Maher in misc on Fri: 09-28-07: 12:45 PM CDT | Digg this article | Add to del.icio.us | Permalink

SY, Rapture, Klaxons, Grizzly, Man Man on Radio Comp
Plus: Voxtrot, Tapes 'n Tapes, Dinosaur Jr., El-P, Ponys, Annuals, Dntel

Forget that Mumia guy for a moment and turn your attention to another in need of emancipation: your radio dial. Presently incarcerated somewhere in the high-90s/low-100s frequency range, this unjustly neglected little machine has been crying out for freedom for years now. And a few kindly folks have stepped up and heeded that call.

Sonic Youth, the Rapture, Grizzly Bear, Man Man, Voxtrot, and Dinosaur Jr. are among those contributing rare and exclusive tracks to the forthcoming Free Yr Radio compilation, which shares its name with the Urban Outfitters in-store series of this past summer. Both were put together by said raiment retailer and the heads at Toyota.

As such, the comp-- which lands October 20 and also features Tapes 'n Tapes, El-P, the Ponys, and Annuals, among others-- will be available exclusively at Urban Outfitters stores. If the acts alone don't have you reaching for your wallet, consider this: all proceeds from sales of this compilation go to non-commercial radio.

The stations benefitting include WLUW (Chicago), KTRU (Houston), KEXP (Seattle), Y-Rock on XPN (Philadelphia), KZSC (Santa Cruz), 89.3 The Current (Minneapolis), WERS (Boston), WKNC (Raleigh/Durham), WBWC (Cleveland), KGNU (Boulder), WHNU (New Haven), and KXLU (Los Angeles). Well played, all. [MORE...]

Posted by Matthew Solarski in benefit, compilation on Fri: 09-28-07: 12:10 PM CDT | Digg this article | Add to del.icio.us | Permalink

Caribou Kicks Off North American Trek, Drops Tour EP

Dan Snaith is saying goodbye (again) to Melody Day and hello again to you, rumbling electro psych-pop fan, as he sets off on the North American leg of Caribou's massive fall tour.

The roadshow, which begins in earnest tonight (September 28) in Hamilton, Ontario, finds Dan and his Caribou assemblage taking the stages of this continent for nearly 45 consecutive melody days, performing all the while with Born Ruffians, and making nice with Battles, Miracle Fortress, and Dirty on Purpose along the way. Peer through the kaleidoscope/down the rabbit hole/through the looking glass of your choice, then head to the stops after the jump.

Might want to peer under the couch cushions too and scrounge up some change to buy the latest Caribou tour EP, which Dan has been selling on the road. Depicted above and tracklisted just after the jump, it includes one 30-minute Snaith DJ mix and six exclusive tracks. Score! [MORE...]

Video: Caribou: Melody Day (Live in Dan Snaith's home studio)

Posted by Paul Thompson in tour, EP on Fri: 09-28-07: 11:15 AM CDT | Digg this article | Add to del.icio.us | Permalink

Peter and the Wolf Get Into Youthful Mischief on Tour

Cue that lilting little flute riff: ahhh, yes, that's the stuff. Peter and the Wolf, the brainchild of young Red Hunter and whoever dares make his acquaintance, have embarked on yet another leg of their "perpetual tour" which finds them traversing the countryside ~~fleeing the ravenous canine~~performing music in a live setting.

Young Red's a friendly fellow, and as such, he'll supplement his tour itinerary regularly with house parties and the like. Updates can be found on his MySpace throughout the tour. Not quite comfortable splashing around in some stranger's bathroom between sets? Head to one of the slightly less homey spots after the jump. [MORE...]

MP3: Peter and the Wolf: The Fall [from the Peter and the Wolf LP]

Posted by Paul Thompson in tour on Fri: 09-28-07: 10:30 AM CDT | Digg this article | Add to del.icio.us | Permalink

Stones Throw Roster Tours Behind B-Ball Zombie War

They're spawning... and taking on other forms! As promised, the Stones Throw label's B-Ball Zombie War non-soundtrack album has spawned its very own tour, with Madlib, Peanut Butter Wolf, J. Rocc, Percee P, and other mic-wielding monsters trolling the countryside seeking hip-hop 'heads (and the delicious, nourishing brains contained within). The identities of the additional performers have not yet been revealed-- nor have those of any of the performers for the tour's last two stops-- but with this crew you know you can expect goodness.

In other Stones Throw news, the origin of all this zombification drops October 2. Meanwhile, MF Doom is alive and well in the Peach State. That is... until the zombies come and get him. [MORE...]

MP3: Guilty Simpson: Make It Fast [from the Peanut Butter Wolf's 2K8: B-Ball Zombie War LP]

Posted by Paul Thompson in tour on Fri: 09-28-07: 10:20 AM CDT | Digg this article | Add to del.icio.us | Permalink

Photos: The Brunettes / The Lucksmiths [Chicago, IL; 09/26/07]

This past Wednesday night Chicagoans experienced an indie pop invasion from the other side of the equator, as the Brunettes of New Zealand and the Lucksmiths of Australia crossed paths at Schubas.

The Lucksmiths, hopping oceans to support their just-released Spring a Leak double-disc rarities comp, played an all-too-brief opening set, inviting us to trick late-arriving friends into thinking the band had been onstage for a couple hours already. I wish they had gotten two hours to play; one hour of their sly, sweet, jangly tunes and one hour of their tack-sharp banter. Also: accents.

Luckily the Brunettes gave us much to love as well, bolstering tunes from their North American debut, Structure & Cosmetics-- packed with arrangements more complex and lyrics more knotty than most twee kids are probably used to-- with a dance contest, a "Born to Run" cover, and a "Name Game" ("Anna Anna bo-banna...") take on band introductions. With winter's chill well on its way, Chicago could use more of this sunny stuff.

Also, if someone could please tell me why these two aren't touring the continent together, that would be nice.

THE BRUNETTES

THE LUCKSMITHS

[MORE...]

Posted by Matthew Solarski in tour, photos on Fri: 09-28-07: 09:45 AM CDT | Digg this article | Add to del.icio.us | Permalink

Coming in 2008: Broken Social Scene, the Book
All BSS, no BS

Come fall 2008, Anne Geddes and her frumpy flower children will have to find a new home. That's because coffee tables across the land must be cleared for the arrival of This Book Is Broken, an oral history of Broken Social Scene penned by members of the band, with help from Toronto Eye Weekly editor/Pitchfork contributor Stuart Berman. A little like this, one suspects, only Joycean in scope.

Kevin Drew (he of the recent Spirit If...), Brendan Canning, and Jason Collett are among the Scenesters sharing their inside perspective, while bandmate Justin Peroff will help make this document as colorful as the band it dissects by compiling, according to Berman, "lots of photos, gig posters, flyers, scrapbook ephemera, etc." Publishing duties fall on Toronto's House of Anansi Press.

(Since Stuart was too modest to tip us off himself about the book at first, thanks to reader Le Skiv for the heads up.)

The Kevin Drew-centered incarnation of Broken Social Scene, as you may have read on these pages just yesterday, has expanded its tour of the land-- determined, no doubt, to procure material for This Book 2: Still Broken. [MORE...]

Video: Broken Social Scene: Various Tracks

Posted by Matthew Solarski in book on Fri: 09-28-07: 07:00 AM CDT | Digg this article | Add to del.icio.us | Permalink

Something Maybe Possibly Radiohead-Related Possibly Maybe Happening Saturday Morning, Maybe Possibly?
Maybe? Possibly?

Because I have nothing better to do at 10 p.m. on a Thursday night, I'm sitting here refreshing RadioheadLP7.com! And guess what? There's some sort of countdown going on. Something--I don't know what--is going to happen Saturday morning at 9 a.m. Chicago time (10 a.m. NYC time).

No clues in the page source either-- all it says there is:

!--WEAREWATCHING--
!--BEHA#PY--

Of course, as far as we know, this site doesn't have anything to do with the band. Radiohead's publicist says, "I know nothing of any official site by that name." So this could still all be a big hoax, and we could wake up Saturday morning to find a LOLcat there or something. But hey, I'm setting my alarm anyway.

Posted by Amy Phillips in gossip on Thu: 09-27-07: 10:52 PM CDT | Digg this article | Add to del.icio.us | Permalink

Malkmus LP Due in March, Two Jicks Dates Announced

Photo by Jen Reel

With all the difficult-to-decipher doodling going down in Camp Radiohead these days, it's nice to get a little information-- even if it is, in fact, very little information-- from one of indie rock's other pillars. Information that doesn't take a degree in leisure studies or a subscription to Games Magazine to decode, that is. So here goes.

Stephen Malkmus' fourth solo album, the follow-up to 2005's Face the Truth, will be released on Matador in March. I never knew cold, hard facts could be so comforting.

Stephen and his Jicks-- who just became majority shareholders in Quasi-- also have a pair of live dates planned for November. One is December 19 at Frisco's Great American Music Hall, and the next December 21 at Portland's Doug Fir, with support from Blitzen Trapper. Thanks to reader Eric Loeffler for the tip about the shows.

That's all for now, but at least it's something. [MORE...]

MP3: Stephen Malkmus: Various tracks

Posted by Paul Thompson in album, tour on Thu: 09-27-07: 04:38 PM CDT | Digg this article | Add to del.icio.us | Permalink

Jay Reatard Tears Across North America

Jay Reatard may seem just a little too punk for stuff like "tour schedules" and "blogs" and "doing things in a logical fashion," but when it comes down to it, I may very well have the guy all wrong. Jay-- and/or someone acting on his behalf-- has put quite a bit of planning into his fall tour, which finds the seer of Blood Visions taking the stage nearly every night for two months.

Sure, he's still a lifer, still no foe of chaos, so he's still playing fittingly decadent spots like Lager House and Beerland and Pink Elephant, but the fact that he's playing them one after the other in a directional fashion is pretty darn logical. It all starts tonight at Goner Fest in Memphis.

As for blogs, well, Jay's been pretty good about throwing new jams on his recently inaugurated spot. Get the Reatard-ation practically as it happens by clicking right here. Jay's itinerary, however, can be found by clicking yonder. [MORE...]

Stream: Jay Reatard: Night of Broken Glass [from the Night of Broken Glass LP]

Posted by Paul Thompson in tour on Thu: 09-27-07: 04:30 PM CDT | Digg this article | Add to del.icio.us | Permalink

New Young Pony Club Hit North America on Tour

With their Fantastic Playroom bopping around on store shelves, the body movers of New Young Pony Club aren't content to sit tight and let their post-disco jams emerge from your speakers alone. So they're packing an extra set of everything and heading out on tour, giving those jams their proper due through the stacks and stacks of your local club's soundsystem.

The horsey bunch is traipsing through the UK right now, a jaunt which will be followed by a brief run through North America after CMJ. You can settle your dues and check out all the accoutrements of club life from now 'til the end of October. [MORE...]

Video: New Young Pony Club: Ice Cream [from the Fantastic Playroom LP]

MP3: A-Trak: Get On My Pony [New Young Pony Club vs. Trillville]

Posted by Paul Thompson in tour on Thu: 09-27-07: 03:58 PM CDT | Digg this article | Add to del.icio.us | Permalink

DFA Drops Shit Robot, Still Going, Holy Ghost! Singles

Between emerging as a production powerhouse, helping catapult LCD Soundsystem, the Rapture, and Hot Chip into the indie elite, partnering with EMI, and sparring with that other DFA, the DFA label hasn't forgotten its bread and butter: twelve glorious inches of grooved, circular plastic.

Indeed, the dancefloor deities have three such 12" vinyl platters lined up for release this fall, the first of which dropped this week. Still Going-- a duo comprised of Rub-n-Tug's Eric Duncan and Manthraxx/Mr. Negative gent Olivier Spencer-- hit us with "Still Going Theme" on 45rpm. If the name sounds familiar, perhaps you noticed it among the party jams on James Murphy and Pat Mahoney's forthcoming FABRICLIVE36 mix?

Come October 30, the DFA factories will churn out two more footloose helpings. NYC expat Marcus Lambkin's Shit Robot, practically a veteran DFA act by now, delivers "Chasm" on 45rpm, while Knicks fans Holy Ghost!, born from the ashes of the DFA-produced combo Automato, serve up "Hold On" on 33rpm. Take care not to confuse them with fellow NYC-dwellers the Holy Ghost. Holy Ghost! will DJ at a single release part on October 30 at 205 Club in NYC.

Shit Robot has a few dates lined up too. And all that's to say nothing of the DFA's globe-trotting new subsidiary Death From Abroad. Quick, somebody phone John Donne! This Death has plenty to be proud about. [MORE...]

Stream: Still Going: Still Going Theme [12-inch]

Posted by Matthew Solarski in single, tour on Thu: 09-27-07: 03:55 PM CDT | Digg this article | Add to del.icio.us | Permalink

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Wed: 10-10-07: 12:30 PM CDT
Nirvana's Unplugged Gets DVD Release