3 Round Burst

1.
The new Yeah Yeah Yeahs EP Is Is is full of old songs that never made it to albums for whatever reason. And it's excellent. I still haven't tracked down their performance from Letterman, but I heard they played "Down Boy". Pitchfork has a great review of Is Is and a continuing onslaught of videos from the EP.

2.
Sebastien Grainger continues to work on his solo album which appears to be slated for 2008. Everything I am hearing from his MySpace page rocks. Life after Death From Above 1979 isn't perfect, but solo work is better than nothing.

3.
The new Ataxia album is suberb. John Frusciante continues to blow my mind. Another solo slbum of his (dubbed Solo X by fans) is slated for release towards the end of this year. Production quality is expected to lean towards the polished, synthed-out stylings of Shadows Collide With People. We can also expect a sequel to A Sphere In the Heart of Silence.

 
MP3: Yeah Yeah Yeahs - "Down Boy"

 
MP3: Ataxia - "Hands"

 
MP3: John Frusciante - "Penetrate Time (Lou Bergs)"

 
MP3: Sebastien Grainger & Les Montagnes - "Are There Ways to Come Home?"

Life From Below 2007

[Sebastien Grainger: MySpace]

Yeah, its not Death From Above 1979, but its the brainchild of a man that was 50% of that epic and sorely missed bass and drums noise-rock outfit. If this track is any indication of the things to follow from Sebastian then I am along for the ride. MSTRKRFT is great, but this is a little more my speed. No album date yet. Just a split 7". But, he's helping out Bloc Party on a couple of their dates, so I'm sure that more goodies will be explored at those shows. I won't be there. Salt on my fucking wounds. Oh, and uh, sweet shirts, guy.

Bloc Party Dates w. Sebastien Grainger support:
23.03.07 Chicago, IL - Congress Theatre
24.03.07 Detroit, MI - Royal Oak Theatre
25.03.07 Toronto, Ontario - Kool Haus
27.03.07 Montreal, Ontario - Metropolis
28.03.07 Boston, MA - Orpheum Theatre
30.03.07 New York, NY - United Palace Theatre
31.03.07 New York, NY - United Palace Theatre

MP3: Sebastien Grainger - "When You Go Out"

DFA 1979 - "Romantic Rights" on Conan

I fucking miss this band so much. Max Weinberg hops on the kit at the end enabling Sebastian Grainger to get after it. Conan at the end: "Good job, guys. Best name for a band ever."

DFA 1979 Re-issue: Head's Up

There isn't a band in the land I miss more than Death From Above 1979. They blew me away opening up for Nine Inch Nails and Queens of the Stone Age in January, and before that split my head ear to ear with You're A Woman, I'm A Machine. They continued to impress the more I explored their catalog. It all ended too soon, but the boys from Toronto left an indelible mark, set the bar on opening acts for big time arena bands, and made me thankful that I caught them at least once.

Insound kind of sums it all up with the re-issue of Head's Up:

ONE BASSIST AND ONE DRUMMER; LOUD ENOUGH TO MOVE THINGS IN YOUR PANTS. The first offering from Toronto's Death From Above has been captured on this overloaded CD. Featuring members of Femme Fatale, these six songs will pummel you with rock 'n' roll intensity while making you lick the dance floor at a Stooges show. Hear two instruments make sounds louder then any 4-piece band ever could. Hear tales of lost friends, sluts, and cocaine. Hear pop music get stripped naked, smashed to pieces, and reassembled into a distorted, abrasive mess. This is the death of everything you once knew about rock music.

MP3: Death From Above 1979 - "Do It" (Live)