Cover Art: Queens of the Stone Age - Era Vulgaris

looks like this is it...

The Mars Volta on The Henry Rollins Show

Watch higher quality versions of "Tetragrammaton" and the Interview at The Henry Rollins Show website under "Video". This stuff speaks for itself...

"Tetragrammaton" (Part I)

"Tetragrammaton" (Part II)

"Day of Baphomets"

Interview

Virgin Festival: Two Days, Lineup

Looks a little better than last year.

Ben Harper News

CLAREMONT FOLK FESTIVAL THIS WEEKEND

This Saturday, May 5th enjoy two stages of music, workshops, children's entertainment, food, crafts and more at the Sycamore Elementary School in Claremont, CA from 9am-5pm. Da Lion (led by Innocent Criminal Leon Mobley), Bill Tapia and many more will perform! Festival tickets on sale now at the Folk Music Center, (909) 624-1232.

PLEASE NOTE: BHIC's FRIDAY NIGHT SHOW IS SOLD OUT. THEY ARE NOT SCHEDULED TO PERFORM ON SATURDAY.

VIRGIN FESTIVAL CONFIRMED ON AUGUST 4TH

Watch as Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals join The Police, The Smashing Pumpkins, Beastie Boys, Wu Tang Clan and countless others at this year's Virgin Festival on Saturday, August 4th at Baltimore, MD's Pimlico Race Course!

Two-day passes go on sale May 5th at the Virgin Festival website. Single day tickets will be sold starting May 19th, if available.

LOLLAPALOOZA 2007

Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals will headline this year's Lollapalooza Festival on Friday, August 3rd in Chicago's Grant Park. The festival spans the entire weekend, and will feature performances from Pearl Jam, Daft Punk, Iggy and the Stooges, The Roots, Interpol and tons of others.

Tickets are on sale now thru the Lollapalooza website. Get 'em while they last!

JAZZ ASPEN SNOWMASS

Ben Harper and the Innocent Criminals will play the first night of Jazz Aspen Snowmass in Colorado this summer on Friday, August 31st. They'll kick off the Labor Day Weekend and lead the way for the Allman Brothers Band, Gov't Mule and many more!

Tickets are available through Ben Harper Ticketing. Lodging packages and tickets are also available at 800-SNOWMASS and Snowmass Village.

Rage Against the Machine @ Coachella

We weren't there.

01. "Testify"
02. "Bulls On Parade"
03. "People Of The Sun"
04. "Bombtrack"
05. "Bullet In The Head"
06. "Down Rodeo"
07. "Guerrilla Radio"
08. "Renegades Of Funk"
09. "Calm Like A Bomb"
10. "Sleep Now In The Fire"
11. "Wake Up"
12. "Freedom"
13. "Killing In The Name"

Snap.

The National: "Mistaken for Strangers" Single

"Mistaken for Strangers" will be released as a single in the UK on Monday, April 30th. The single contains two b-sides "Blank Slate" and "Santa Clara." I haven't seen any news of Beggars Banquet releasing this in the U.S. which is pretty disappointing. "Blank Slate" is my favorite of the two but both would have been worthy of inclusion on the album.

MP3: The National - "Blank Slate"

I'm currently on tap to see The National three times next month, twice with The Arcade Fire and once during their 5 night run at Bowery. It's lining up to be a good month.

Cover Art: Spoon - Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga

Pearl Jam - Live at Easy Street

[Photo Credit]

There was a time when Pearl Jam was the only band that mattered to me. Long before bands like Boris, QOTSA, TV On The Radio and the like invaded my ear canals, Pearl Jam was the end all, be all. I own well over 40 Pearl Jam CDs. Everything from singles to live shows, Christmas vinyls to studio albums.

The first fan club I ever joined was the Ten Club. The first song I learned how to play on the guitar was "Elderly Woman...". And the first concert I ever went to was a (umm) Dave Matthews Band concert at Foxboro. Anyway, PJ is in my blood. You know this. At least, if you stop by from time to time, you know this.

I've recently tried to curb my consumerism with music. It hasn't been easy. And when I came face to face with Live at Easy Street at Amoeba Music in LA, how could I resist? I knew about the album: it came out a little less than a year ago and has 7 tracks from a 16 song set that PJ performed at an impromptu in-store performance at Easy Street Records in West Seattle. Covers of X, Dead Kennedys, and The Avengers highlight the album along with an outrageously great version of "Porch". The album was distributed through the Ten Club website and independent music stores throughout the country.

While (the greedy) part of me wishes all 16 tracks were here, the other part is thankful that some 15 years ago I chose a great band - one that is cutting live EPs of in-store performances while they can still sell-out every arena in America - to be my favorite.

[Earlier: JK's Take]



MP3: Pearl Jam - "Bleed For Me"
MP3: Pearl Jam - "New World" (ft. John Doe)

TV On The Radio - Live @ Amoeba Music

[Photo Credit]

After "the interview". After the introduction to LA nightlife. After the time change had worn off. After completing The Road but while it still lingered, still dominated my thoughts. After all of that I wandered into Amoeba Music in Hollywood. I passed it unintentionally, cruising Sunset Boulevard, looking. Watching. Staring. Wondering. The radio was on 107.9. iPod FM.

Then the big sign. Mecca. Amoeba Music rising from the slowly deteriorating cityscape surrounding Sunset. I rolled in on a mission: The Mars Volta - singles; Pearl Jam - rarities; indie goodness of any form; Boris - Akuma No Uta and TV On The Radio's Live at Amoeba Music.

Four tracks. All of them delicious in their own TVotR way. You can grab this beast online...and I highly recommend it. I guess that goes without saying. Every post is a recommendation in its own little way. "From the depths...I...called...you, ma..."



MP3: TV On The Radio - "Blues From Down Here" (Live @ Amoeba Music)

Interpol: Title. Tracklist. Tight.

Coming July 10 via Capitol Records: Our Love to Admire. Here's the tracklisting:

"Pioneer to the Falls"
"No I in Threesome"
"The Scale"
"The Heinrich Maneuver"
"Mammoth"
"Pace Is the Trick"
"All Fired Up"
"Rest My Chemistry"
"Who Do You Think"
"Wrecking Ball"
"The Lighthouse"

The White Stripes: Tour Dates. For Real.

Seriously. When they come from The White Stripes' MySpace page, I think they mean business. I'm gonna see if I can scheme on that Portland, Maine date during my vacation in Vacationland. Get hot:

Jun 1 Rock Am Ring Festival Nurburgring, Germany
Jun 2 Rock Im Park Festival Nurnberg, Germany
Jun 4 Gasometer Vienna, Austria
Jun 6 Tenda Strisce Rome, Italy
Jun 7 Idroscalo Milan, Italy
Jun 9 Alive Festival Lisbon, Portugal
Jun 11 Zenith Paris, France
Jun 14 O2 Wireless Festival - Hyde Park London, UK
Jun 15 O2 Wireless Festival - Harewood House Leeds, UK
Jun 17 Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival Manchester, TN
Jun 24 Deer Lake Park Burnaby, BC
Jun 25 Yukon Arts Center Whitehorse, YU
Jun 26 Shorty Brown Multiplex Arena Yellowknife, NT
Jun 27 Arctic Winter Games Arena Iqaluit, NU
Jun 29 The Pengrowth Saddledome Calgary, AB
Jun 30 Shaw Conference Center Edmonton, AB
Jul 1 TCU Place Saskatoon, SK
Jul 2 MTS Centre Winnipeg, MB
Jul 3 Thunder Bay Community Auditorium Thunder Bay, ON
Jul 5 Molson Amphitheatre Toronto, ON
Jul 6 Bell Centre Montreal, QC
Jul 7 John Labatt Centre London, ON
Jul 8 Ottawa Bluesfest Ottawa, ON
Jul 10 Moncton Coliseum Arena Moncton, NB
Jul 11 Charlottetown Civic Centre Charlottetown, PE
Jul 13 Cunard Center Halifax, NS
Jul 14 Savoy Theatre Glace Bay, NS
Jul 16 Mile One Center St. John's, NF
Jul 22 Cumberland Civic Center Portland, ME
Jul 23 Agganis Arena Boston, MA
Jul 24 Madison Square Garden New York City, NY
Jul 25 Chevrolet Theater Wallingford, CT
Jul 27 Grand Opera House Wilmington, DE
Jul 28 Patriot Center Fairfax, VA
Jul 29 House of Blues North Myrtle Beach, SC
Jul 30 Sloss Furnaces Birmingham, AL
Jul 31 Snowden Grove Park Amphitheater Southaven, MS

Coachella Set Times

Friday

Saturday

Sunday

Mando Diao: Ode to Ochrasy & Tour

Ode to Ochrasy was my introduction, but these guys have been getting it done for a little while now. Terribly impressive stuff. To the point that as soon as I had it in my hands, I spent that whole first day with the album on incessant repeat. It dropped yesterday and is one of the first 2007 releases with universal Metro D approval (outside of the obvious like Arcade Fire and Cloud Cult).

Apr 29 Coachella Festival Indio, CA
May 1 Bottom Of The Hill San Francisco, CA
May 3 Dantes Portland, OR
May 4 Crocodile Seattle, WA
May 5 Plaza Club Vancouver, BC
May 8 400 Bar Minneapolis, MN
May 9 Double Door Chicago, IL
May 11 Blind Pig Ann Arbor, MI
May 12 Horseshoe Tavern Toronto, Ontario
May 13 Petite Campus Montreal, Quebec
May 14 Bowery Ballroom New York, NY
May 16 Maxwells Hoboken, NJ
May 17 Black Cat Washington DC
May 18 Johnny Brendas Philadelphia, PA
May 19 TT The Bears Cambridge, MA
May 21 The Casbah San Diego, CA
May 22 The Troubadour Los Angeles, CA
May 25 Late Night with Conan O'Brien New York, NY

MP3: Mando Diao - "Long Before Rock 'N Roll"
MP3: Mando Diao - "The New Boy"

Trackmarks: Yeah Yeah Yeahs - "Sealings"

For some reason I don't picture the webbed crusader here (the track is featured on the new Spider-Man 3 Soundtrack). The vision in my head is a bank robbery. Karen O at the wheel. Pulling away. Cops are finally getting off the floor. Sound the alarm. Zinner's in the backseat muting strings between careening off course with laser-like rips on the high notes. She checks the rearviewmirror, Brian Chase is next to Zinner pounding drumsticks on Karen's seat back. There's a baby riding shotgun. She's sleeping through the entire affair. What the song lacks lyrically from O we make up with Zinner's frenetic approach to melody. Anthemic, but at the same time unpredictable. Karen O blazes off with enough cash to lay low and plan the next heist, because settling down for the "normal life" just isn't in the cards for her and the little one.

MP3: Yeah Yeah Yeahs - "Sealings"

Editors New Album Details

Best news I heard today, from Editors official site:

Editors new album, 'An End Has a Start', will be released on 25 June 2007.

The album will be released following first single 'Smokers Outside the Hospital Doors' on 18 June (digital available 11 June).

The Album track listing is as follows:
1. Smokers Outside The Hospital Doors
2. An End Has A Start
3. The Weight Of The World
4. Bones
5. When Anger Shows
6. The Racing Rats
7. Push Your Head Towards The Air
8. Escape The Nest
9. Spiders
10. Well Worn hand

It's not clear when the U.S. release will happen. Release of The Back Room in the States was almost 7 months behind so let's hope they close the gap. If they've managed to capture even 3/4 of their live sound on this record, it could be huge.

Spoon @ Bowery Ballroom, 4/23/07

This was my first time seeing Spoon; a band that I have a tremendous amount of respect for but I wouldn't count myself as anything more than a casual fan. The show was only announced a week ago and sold out immediately. I wanted to take advantage of seeing them in what I'm assuming to be a smaller sized venue for this stage in their careers. I'm not sure that I've ever seen Bowery Ballroom so packed. Whether they had a larger guest list or just released more tickets, I don't know, but it was far more crowded than the the last sold out show I attended there (Klaxons).

Fluxblog has a copy of the setlist for those who are interested. I really liked a couple of the new songs; all of them appeared to fit in well with their back-catalog. Spoon plays an incredibly tight set which is credit to years of touring. Their live shows are masterful almost to a fault. It seemed to lack some energy or excitement (my only request for Britt: when you're rocking out on guitar, face the crowd - we want to see you). I never really got the sense that the crowd was very into the songs; appreciative, yes but not really into them. Seeing them live, its a bit more clear to me that this is a band with a lot of very good songs but not many great ones - those bangers that really get crowds pumped up. Maybe, in a different setting with a lively crowd, I would have felt differently but just one opinion from a casual fan.

Spider-Man 3 Soundtrack

Yes, that would be the same Record Collection label that puts out albums by John Frusciante, The Walkmen, Murs and Simon Dawes, among others. This is quite the blend: a mainstream juggernaut and some of indie music's finest, with, of course, the musical stylings of more mainstream acts like The Killers, Wolfmother and Snow Patrol sprinkled on top. All of the tracks (with the exception of Chubby Checker and the YYYs track that has been a floater of sorts) on the album are new. The album is produced by D Sardy of Wolfmother, Johnny Cash, and Rolling Stones fame.

In regards to the Yeah Yeah Yeahs track on the album, I found this morsel of information at Wiki: "A rare song not released on any albums, "Sealings," was released on the Driver: Parallel Lines, Vol. 1 Official Soundtrack and recently featured on the Spiderman 3 Official Soundtrack."

Snow Patrol — “Signal Fire”
The Killers — “Move Away”
Yeah Yeah Yeahs — “Sealings”
Wolfmother — “Pleased To Meet You”
The Walkmen — “Red River”
Black Mountain — “Stay Free”
The Flaming Lips — “The Supreme Being Teaches Spider-Man How To Be In Love”
Simon Dawes — “Scared Of Myself”
Chubby Checker — “The Twist”
Rogue Wave — “Sightlines”
Coconut Records — “Summer Day”
Jet — “Falling Star”
Sounds Under Radio — “Portrait of A Summer Thief”
Wyos — “A Letter To St. Jude”
The Oohlas — “Small Parts”

Snow Patrol - "Signal Fire"

Interpol Is Getting Closer

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that 07.10.07 is the release date for the new stuff. Put that vista on the big screen.

Radiohead Is Getting Closer

radiohead starts up again having finally caught up on some sleep next week
i have a cd of what we;'ve been up to...
and you haven't.
yet.
(sorry)

i must listen to it, after taking an ear break
that always makes me nervous
hope you're well

yours

Thom

[Photo Credit: Dead Air Space]

Cormac McCarthy Blew My Mind. Again.

I finished it in two sittings. If I didn't have to get off of the plane in LAX and if I didn't sleep through the first three hours of that plane ride, I would have consumed it whole in one shot. It may be the best book I have ever read. I am still trying to come to terms with it and it is still haunting me. It just recently won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and John Hillcoat (of The Proposition fame) is slated to direct the film. Fuck. Yes.

One of the highlights of my weekend was walking down Sunset Boulevard in the rain on Sunday and hearing from Frat. He was similarly affected. Both of us were (are) at a loss for words in regards to the book, the impact and relevance to our modern times.

The last two books I've read are McCarthy novels (the other being No Country for Old Men). I found myself not wanting to read anything else. How could I pick up a book after the journey I just went on? Frat told me that he was pushing through, had to score something else and keep on moving. I took the advice and decided to pick up another book by one of America's greats: The Human Stain by Philip Roth. So far, so good.

The Bravery: TV Shows & Promos

The Bravery's show at La Zona Rosa is available for viewage over at MSN. They're playing 9:30 Club on June 7th (Tickets). Their song "Public Service Announcement" is currently being used for the Rescue Me Season 4 promo. The Sun and the Moon drops on May 22. Rescue Me kicks off on June 12th.

Ataxia - AW II

Yet another possible release date came and went for this. Alas, an e-mail and information:

On May 29th, 2007 Record Collection will release the long awaited second half of John Frusciante, Joe Lally (Fugazi) and Josh Klinghoffer's (Bicycle Theif, PJ Harvey) ATAXIA sessions...

Pre-ordering for the album will be available starting April 18th on John Frusciante's official website. ATAXIA - AUTOMATIC WRITING II will be available on vinyl & CD through mail order only via the John Frusciante Online Store. A special pre-order bundle will include the album and ATAXIA II T-shirt for a limited time at a discounted price.

Visit the new John Frusciante Online store for details.

[Warner Bros.: T=Shirt, CD Pre-order]
[John Frusciante Official Site: T-Shirt, CD/Vinyl Pre-Order]
[John Frusciante MySpace]

TV On The Radio @ 9:30 Club, 4.19.07

I feel like there is a track (or three) missing in here. Perhaps after "Blues" or before "Dirty Whirl". I don't know. I thought I saved the whole thing in my phone and I didn't. Fantastic show. They continue to get better with every performance. This was far and away the best I have seen of them. An almost correct setlist:

"Tonight"
"The Wrong Way"
"Dreams"
"Province"
"Wolf Like Me"
"Young Liars"
"Dirty Whirl"
"Blues From Down Here"
"Snakes and Martyrs"
"Dry Drunk Emperor"
"Satellite"

Encore
"A Method"
"Let the Devil In"
"Staring at the Sun"

Nine Black Alps in the studio

I was wondering what happened to these guys? They were 2005's tribute to grunge. I actually liked their debut quite a bit, never saw them live, and then it seemed like they completely disappeared from British press. Anyway, the in-thing these days appears to be YouTube videos showing brief glimpses of a selection of songs from a new album. I'm already tired of this unless it's Queens of the Stone Age and then it's still pretty bad ass. If interested, check the video below. Sounds to me like they're going Jet on us. And that's definitely not a good thing.

TV On The Radio Last Night

TV On The Radio on Jimmy Kimmel Live

It started like this. I was texting JK with the setlist and then I lost my grip. Lost control. And couldn't stop dancing. The first eight tracks were...

"Young Liars"
"Wrong Way"
"Dreams"
"Province"
"Wolf Like Me"
"I Was a Lover"
"Dirty Whirl"
"Blues From Down Here"

Closed with "A Method". Encore was "Staring at the Sun". Anyone have a more complete setlist? "Let the Devil In" was in there somewhere, as was "King Eternal"...maybe? Someone help me out. "Wash the Day Away" was definitely in there.

Pics and a better recap to follow.

Branching Out

I think it's time we talk about some new names here at Metro Distortion. These bands aren't new to the blogosphere by any stretch but their respective debut albums have been fully digested and JK-approved so-to-speak.

The Twilight Sad's debut album Fourteen Autumns and Fifteen Winters has recently received rave reviews from both Pitchfork and Stylus. And while Pitchfork and I haven't necessarily seen eye to eye lately on reviews (see Maximo Park and Cloud Cult on one end; LCD Soundsystem and Panda Bear on the other), this one is right on. This is exactly the kind of anthemic rock that I crave and it absolutely does not disappoint. It's a ridiculously good album; one of the better one's I've heard this year.

MP3: The Twilight Sad - "Cold Days From the Birdhouse"

Handsome Furs, as many know, is the work of Wolf Parade's Dan Boeckner and his fiancee Alexei Perry. I have, and continue to be, a huge Wolf Parade fan, so it surprised me that I was never able to get into (and perhaps, appreciate) Sunset Rubdown's material. After listening to Handsome Furs' debut Plague Park, I realized why I was drawn to Wolf Parade in the first place. While Spencer Krug gets a lot of the credit (and he's brilliant on Apologies...), its the contribution of Dan Boeckner that creates so much of that appeal. The music won't be confused with anything from Wolf Parade or Sunset Rubdown. It's a minimalist sound of vocals, guitar, and a drum machine. Count me as a big fan.

MP3: Handsome Furs - "Handsome Furs Hate This City"

QOTSA Tour 2007

Sticking with today's theme of Cormac McCarthy and Queens of the Stone Age, I stumbled across the following tidbit:

QOTSA will spend the first portion of the summer touring in Europe, but Homme says an unconventional U.S. tour will follow. "We`re about to announce American dates that start in Bakersfield, Calif.," he says. "It`s actually not any major cities. I learned something really great from [ZZ Top guitarist Billy F.] Gibbons. He will play San Bernardino, Bakersfield, and Medford, Ore. That`s why it`s the people`s music. So, we`re going to places we`ve never been or rarely been. We want to play to people who hardly ever get shows and just burn the house down."
[Read More @ Monsters & Critics]

Trackmarks: Queens of the Stone Age - "God Is In The Radio"

"Do It Again" ends around 2:54 and we return to the channel surfing. The wind pushes against us, rips across the desert. On the horizon the sun sets. "Cannot be saved". "He's walking with me". Fuzz. Scratch. The perfect interlude builds towards the eleventh track on Songs for the Deaf. "Hallelujah".

A subtle key stroke repeats. Or is that percussion? Hallelujah. Classic QOTSA expands. Riff based, stoner rock grooves descend. The main riff in "God Is in the Radio" has an ominous bluesy feel, but the track really hits its stride when that opening riff vanishes at 2:49. The drums take the reins and then a vicious solo eases in over the original riff. The sun is disappearing. Fade out. Fade in. Another monster solo erupts.

While "You Think I Ain't Worth A Dollar..." is the heaviest entry and "Mosquito Song" could be the album's crowning achievement, "God Is In The Radio" is the necessary step facilitating travel from that blistering opener to the mournful end. We're far away from home. We're lost and this desert seems to stretch forever. But, we're headed west. Running. From the god in the radio.

 

MP3: Queens of the Stone Age - "God Is In The Radio"

Apocalypse Now

I know. I know. I've talked about two things in the past two days. Cormac McCarthy and Queens of the Stone Age. But I really can't handle the sticker. I almost didn't believe Win Butler. I didn't want to. First Faulkner. Now McCarthy.

If you see me reading it, stop me and ask to see the cover. There will be a hole cut into my cover. You know what? Fuck that. I'm getting the hardcover. Used. I feel so impure.

Further investigation puts my jaw on the floor. On the floor. Cormac McCarthy, a television appearance. On Oprah. The man rarely does interviews. (One? The NY Times article?) And the last I read of him was in a brief Vanity Fair article that focused on his reclusiveness.

Fuck. After the episode with Dave Chappelle, I thought I was in the clear for eternity. Just when you think you are out they pull you back in. And the only way to get up to the minute info on when C-Mac will grace the airwaves...is to sign up for the Book Club. It's 10:44 AM. And I need a fucking cocktail.

Further On Up The Road

KinoSport has been busy, or maybe I just caught up. Great stuff lately. Here is the latest: graffiti, Calvin Klein and Don DeLillo.

I'll never forget picking up Underworld at some point soon after 9/11 and being completely leveled by the image on the cover. The book, after all, came out in 1997. But, that's another discussion, for another place.

I'll be off to pick up the paperback edition of McCarthy's The Road today, pushed by the knowledge that it now exists in paperback and can therefore, can be rolled, folded, crammed, stored and devoured in a way that a hardbound book never could. Someone told me it was better than Blood Meridian. That's a strong statement. And I don't know how I feel about it.

Queens of the Stone Age Conjecture

[Photo Credit: Matthew Field]

One can only venture a guess that the track "I Wanna Make It Wit Chu" off of Over the Years and Through the Woods is an early form of the track "Make It Wit Chu" from the forthcoming Era Vulgaris. I have not heard the latter, but the former is the only track on Over the Years not on any QOTSA studio album.

UPDATE: According to The Omniscient Almighty Wikipedia: "'I Wanna Make It Wit Chu' is reported to be re-recorded for the Queens' fifth studio album, Era Vulgaris." They are referring to the version found on Volume 9 & 10 of the Desert Sessions. I need to track that CD down and compare the live version to what they recorded in 2003. Someone hop in here and fill our minds with knowledge. Thanks to Anonymous for getting this ball rolling and getting our heads right.

 

MP3: Queens of the Stone Age - "I Wanna Make It Wit Chu" (Live)

Here's another tasty Era Vulgaris teaser from their MySpace page. I almost died laughing when I saw the Buffalo Bill quote on their profile. The video has yet another sick little riff that I can't wait to blast on the drive to Bonnaroo.

Arcade Fire & The National Conduct Not-So-Secret Meetings In Select Cities Or How I Came To Discover Win Butler Was a Cormac McCarthy Fan

[The National: Official Site]

From Arcade Fire's Official Site:

Hi!

Just wanted to let you all know that the surjery (sic) was successful, and I am recovering nicely. Thank you for all of your thoughts and emails...

I will probably start singing again this week some time to try and get ready for the shows in North America.

It has been a blessing in disguise to be forced to stay home and read, and sleep (pick up Cormac Mcarthy's [sic] "The Road" if you are feeling like a little post apocalypse...don't let the Oprah Book Club Sticker scare you away)...Regine and I have even started working on some new songs...

anyway see you all soon

luv
Win

Let me get this straight. You throw down ridiculous live performances. Put out monster albums. Land a monster opening act (The National) for your NYC, DC and PA shows. Mock Oprah's Book Club. And dig on Cormac McCarthy? I'm with you, Arcade Fire. My ears will always be open.

I haven't cracked into The Road yet (I'm waiting for it to go paperback status), but No Country For Old Men was a damn good read.

MP3: The National - "Secret Meeting" (Remix)

Queens of the Stone Age - Era Vulgaris

Era Vulgaris Teaser
The riff at the tail end of this is killer. Fucking killer.

Era Vulgaris Leaked Track Not on Album

Josh Homme. The man. The myth. The legend. A smoking hot girlfriend. One of my top ten favorite albums of all time. And his band walks out to Neutral Milk Hotel's "The Fool". Cooler than cool. If you don't believe me, read this interview at Pitchfork, and remember these three things:

1. Don't toy with the volcano.
2. Trying to be as rounded as possible is rad, unless you're talking physically, and then it just looks a little weird.
3. Drink one beer, you're not an alcoholic. Play one cowbell and you're a cowbellaholic.

Era Vulgaris, the new album from Queens of the Stone Age, hits stores on June 12th and will contain the following songs:

01. "Turnin on the Screw"
02. "Sick, Sick, Sick"
03. "I'm Designer"
04. "Into the Hollows"
05. "Misfit Love"
06. "Battery Acid"
07. "Make It Wit Chu"
08. "3's & 7's"
09. "Suture Up Your Future"
10. "River in the Road"
11. "Run Pig Run"

Exit Clov @ Black Cat, 4.11.07

[More @ Flickr]

Without Cloud Cult, I don't know if I would have caught up to Exit Clov anytime soon. My days in DC are numbered and with that the thrift that often accompanies big moves and life changes is in full swing. I'm only catching shows that provoke the "without a doubt must go" attitude: Arcade Fire, Cloud Cult, The National, TV On The Radio, etc. Trying to save a quarter. Exit Clov kind of came out of left field. Initially they were headlining, then it changed and as it worked out we got there right when they were kicking it off. You can't attend one of their shows and not feel the talent oozing off of the stage. The instrumentation is beyond reproach and the songs are top-notch political pop. Violins, keyboards, and expert guitar work all play their part in a genre bending fusion that can stop and start on a dime or flow softly in between your ears.

[Official Site | MySpace]

 

MP3: Exit Clov - "MK Ultra"
MP3: Exit Clov - "Ritchie Valens" (Live)
MP3: Exit Clov - "Working Class Hero"

Cloud Cult @ Black Cat, 4.11.07: Part I

These are all from Top. I will be back later to put some of my own up, as well as a setlist, the rundown and some more thoughts on what was an amazing evening.

The Libertines Reunited Last Night

[Photo Credit: Guardian UK]

After you read the news (NME, Monsters & Critics, Rolling Stone, Uncut, Q, Guardian), there's a blow by blow account over at NME, complete with more videos than what I have posted. There's also some pretty heartwarming pictures of Carl and Pete embracing. Hopefully Pete is in a healthy, better place.

True to form, Kate Moss watched on from the sidelines (Pete dedicated "What Katie Did" to her the night prior, calling her his "fiancee" and she joined him on the Babyshambles song "La Belle Et La Bete").

This could be another beginning. At the very least, another chapter. Here's the set:

"What A Waster"
"Death on the Stairs"
"The Good Old Days"
"What Katie Did"
"Dilly Boys"
"Seven Deadly Sins"
"France"
"Tell The King"
"Don't Look Back Into the Sun"
"Dream a Little Dream of Me"
"Time for Heroes"
"Albion"
"The Delaney"

"Albion"


"The Good Old Days"


"Tell the King"/"Don't Look Back Into the Sun"


"What Katie Did"

Lollapalooza Line-Up Announced

I'm always on the fence about these big festivals but I have to say, this is the best line-up I've seen for this year's festivals. Aug. 3-5, more info at Billboard. Tickets are on sale now.

Pearl Jam
Daft Punk
Ben Harper & the Innocent Criminals
Muse
Iggy and the Stooges
Modest Mouse
Interpol
My Morning Jacket
Satellite Party
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
Snow Patrol
The Roots
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Chemicals Collided @ Woxy.com

And I didn't know about it. But I do now. Here's your primer for tonight's show. Scroll to the bottom here for an mp3 of the entire show. So far it is "Chain Reaction" > "Pretty Voice" > "Washed Your Car" > Interview > "Chemicals Collide". Fantastic, as usual.