another way the digital age is getting me down

So.

The new Charlotte Hatherley single "White" finally came out this week in the UK...

...as a digital download only. There's a 7" next week but it only has 1 of the 3 available remixes on it. That doesn't work. [Well I need that, but I also need a way to get the other two.]

Being in the US, I cannot purchase the digital download - and, hence, cannot support Charlotte with my hard earned for her work and have to track down a promo on eBay, from which she will not see a cent.

Fuckers. I thought the internet was supposed to make purchasing music easier, not harder. Shooting yourselves in the foot and all that.

In any case, here's the video:

actually, I'd rather not sell any singles, thank you

According to Recordstore.co.uk the CD single for "Remedy", the next Little Boots single, is once again a 1-tracker with the album version.

She's making it unnecessarily hard on herself, really.

FAIL.

[Truthfully though, it's almost better this way - the remixes from the promo are crappppppp. :(]

the Metalocalypse is upon us once again

Amazing news from the Dethklok myspace this week.

'Dethalbum II' is out September 8th. [According to wikipedia, there will once again be a limited edition, this time with a bonus DVD with almost an hours worth of unaired material. Order yours early - remember how the first one sold out in no time and was going for $100+ on eBay until a repressing weeks later. Also - vinyl release September 29th. Amazing.]

'Dethgame' for XBox360 and PS3. I have no idea what it will entail, but it's going to be awesome.

30 minute episodes for season 3. This has me a little worried as the 12 minute format seemed to fit them just fine. We'll see.

Fall tour. Bring it.



Amazing.

you can't mistake our anthology

So for the past five days or so, I've been listening to one of two things: the amazing, amazing, amazing La Roux album or [more often than not] that piece on the left - the 22-disc, damn near complete Girls Aloud singles box set.

I've always had a love/hate [see what I did there?] thing with the Aloud. On one hand, they've released some of the best pop singles of the decade - "Sound of the Underground", "Love Machine", "Biology", "No Good Advice", all brilliant. On the other hand, they've released some of the worst, most unnecessarily pointless cover versions of the decade: "Jump"? "I'll Stand By You"? "I Think We're Alone Now"? I really don't think anyone was crying out for updates of those. [I used to think "I'll Stand By You" was their worst recorded moment, but then I came across their cover of Wheatus' "Teenage Dirtbag" - hardly what you'd call listenable in the first place - on the b-side to the quite lovely "Whole Lotta History" and I very quickly changed my mind.]

Anyways, the box itself cost close to $100 and was a solid 8+ week wait between order and delivery. So was it worth it?

Er, yes and no. Yes, I'm a completion freak and having pretty much everything all in one place is amazing. This box also marks the CD debut of a solid chunk of tracks that were previously digital, promo or vinyl [usually picture disc] only, so that's nice as well. And who doesn't love a good megamix or four? On the flip side [see, I did it again], many of the whopping 151 tracks that make up the box don't exactly beg for a second listen. Especially on the singles for the second, third and fourth albums when pretty much all of the remixing duties were handled by some faction of the Xenomania team - who produced the singles in the first place - things tend to get a bit tedious. There is a bonus disc of previously unreleased tracks - plus - however it is only 8 tracks - minus - and a good chunk of those 8 are just alternate lyric versions. Bonus disc fail.

That said, there are some gems buried in here - many pretty readily available on a sub-$5 CD single eBay or the Amazon marketplace, but that's besides the point - and it is kind of a badge of honor to be able to say "I made it through the Girls Aloud box set and lived to tell the tale."

If anything, it's nice to finally have one of their top 3 moments - rare for such a group, a picture disc vinyl-only b-side, the early-90's dance-act-with-female-guest-vocalist-esque "Memory Of You" - in CD quality. [Even if the bass is a little less exciting in HQ.]

As an art object, A+. As something you'll want to pull out and listen to over and over....notsomuch. Oh well.

10 choice cuts:
"Androgynous Girls" [b-side to "Love Machine"]
"Memory Of You" [b-side to "The Loving Kind"]
"Nobody But You" [b-side to "Biology"]
"It's Your Dynamite" [b-side to "Untouchable"]
"Girls Allowed [Almighty Mix]" [b-side to "Jump" - total club cheese but it's tolerable that early on, plus it's one of their finest non-single tracks to begin with]
"Some Kind of Miracle [Illicit Mix]" [previously unreleased, on 'The Rarities Disc']
"Life Got Cold [29 Palms Mix]"
"Biology [Benitez Beats]"
"Girls Aloud Megamix" [b-side to "Something Kinda Ooooh"]
"Whole Lotta History [Acoustic Version]" [quite lovely version of an underrated single]
bonus: "I'll Stand By You [Gravitas Vocal Dub Mix]" and "See The Day [Soundhouse Masterblaster Mix]" [completely ridiclous clubbed to death overhauls of two snorefests]

Things to avoid:
Any cover version that isn't "Girls On Film"
Any Tony Lamezma remix after your first two - "The Show" and "Love Machine" pop up first and they're probably your best bet.
"Girls on 45 Volume 2" - it just doesn't work for some reason, though the other megamix and album medleys are good fun
The edit/dub versions of the remixes - especially during the 'Out of Control'-era when they're all stacked in a row. Nice to have, yes. Nice to listen to back-to-back-to-back, no.
The interviews on the "Sound of the Underground" and "The Show" discs - all they do is reinforce my idea that the girls only wanted to be famous and became pop stars because they happened upon the opportunity, not because they care anything about music.

you don't want me, you just like the attention

Effing amazing.

That is all.

Origin:Orphan

According to the Hidden Cameras myspace their fourth album, entitled 'Origin:Orphan', is scheduled for release on September 22nd. That's the artwork over there. The first taste we have of it is a song called "Walk On" which is available for free from the Amazon digital store. It is a different sound for them - quite heavy and dark - though is still unmistakably the Hidden Cameras.

Unsurprisingly, "No Gay Goth Scene" did not make the tracklist for the album, but these songs did according to the Arts & Crafts website:

Ratify The New
In the NA
He Falls To Me
Colour Of A Man
Do I Belong
Walk On
Kingdom Come
Origin:Orphan
Underage
The Little Bit
Silence Can Be A Headline

I am cautiously optimistic about this one.

the way you make me feel

If I'm going to be totally honest, I haven't had much use for Michael Jackson since at least the mid-90's. As far as I'm concerned, the last great piece of music that came out under his name was the AMAZING Brothers in Rhythm remix of "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" during the 'HIStory' campaign when remixers were given access to early masters to update them for the dance floor. [Though the Moby "Beat It"? No thanks.] And even then, that was an update of an at-that-point 10+ year old song. So let's just say anything past 'Dangerous' is kind of a waste of time.

Even more truthfully, we lost that Michael Jackson long ago. The past 20 years or so has seen a life fall apart in bizarre and often sad ways in a very public light, each event ruining a man more and more. Not that he did or didn't do alot of it to himself, but that's neither here nor there.

You really can't take away the brilliance of his early career. All that Jackson 5 stuff - amazing. A string of four of the biggest and best pop albums of all time - 'Off The Wall' and 'Thriller' are back to back brilliance, 'Bad' hasn't aged well [time has been particularly cruel to the title track] but ultimately is an amazing album, and while 'Dangerous' is one of the first examples of patchy pop albums created to take advantage of the longer running times of CDs it has some really bright shining moments: "Jam", "In The Closet", "Black or White", "Why You Wanna Trip On Me", "Heal The World", "She Drives Me Wild", "Remember The Time" - all incredible.

So at this time, I don't remember the man whose own nose literally fell off his face or who slowly became someone who bared no resemblance to the musical genius we grew up with. I remember the man who gave us this:



Best opening track to an album ever.

The world is certainly a different place without him.

I'm fifteen all over again

File under "too good to be true": the original line-up of Sunny Day Real Estate is reforming. For a tour.

I got to see the boys a couple of times back in "the day", but sadly only after the split/reformation without Nate. I also got to meet Dan & Jeremy on one of 'The Rising Tide' dates and have a picture of my 20-year old self with them smiling like an idiot next to my computer. It still makes me happy thinking about it. Then, in the Fire Theft days, I got to meet Will & Nate as well. So I've seen em all, just not all at once. [I always wished I asked them to sign my copy of LP2 that Jeremy and Will signed when I met them, but it didn't feel right. I did get to go grocery shopping with them, however, so I suppose that makes up for it.]

Until September, that is. I haven't figured out how yet, but I will be there. Oh yes, I will.

The dates from the new website:

September 17th - Vancouver, BC/Commodore Ballroom
September 18th - Portland/Crystal Ballroom (Musicfest NW)
September 20th - Salt Lake City/Murray Theater
September 21st - Denver/Ogden Theater
September 23rd - Minneapolis/First Avenue
September 24th - Chicago/Metro
September 25th - Detroit/St Andrews Hall
September 27th - New York/Terminal 5
September 28th - Boston/House of Blues
September 30th - Washington DC/930 Club
October 1st - Philadelphia/Trocadero
October 3rd - Atlanta/CW Center Stage
October 5th - Dallas/Granada Theater
October 6th - Houston/Warehouse Live
October 7th - Austin/La Zona Rosa
October 9th - Tempe/Marquee Theatre
October 10th - Anaheim/House of Blues
October 11th - Los Angeles/Henry Fonda Theater
October 13th - San Francisco/Fillmore
October 15th - Spokane/Knitting Factory
October 16th - Seattle/Paramount Theatre

Oh, and they're reissuing 'Diary' and 'LP2' as well - with bonus discs and liner notes and all that jazz. See you at the stores September 15th for those.

har har

The challengers on Jeopardy! tonight are Damon and Naomi.

Well, I got a kick out of it.

kind of awesome

Truth be told, I am not expecting great things from the latest Depeche Mode single. The a-side itself is pretty terrible and the list of remixers is hardly top notch. As these things go, though, you suck it up and buy them anyways. At least the vinyl will be on nice white marble.

HOWEVER

An auction for the CD single set has come and gone on Ebay. There are many, I'm sure, however this particular auction has an amazing item description. Check it out.

Having not heard them yet I'm not qualified to say if he's right or wrong. [Wrong...HA!] However, my gut tells me he's hitting the nail on the head.

Amazing.

suuuuuper Tuesday!

Today is the biggest release date we've had in quite some time...for me, anyways.

It is the day that Kasabian unleash their third album - the still awkwardly titled 'West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum' - on the US. [The UK got it yesterday...at least we're not waiting months and years this time.] Sonic Youth go indie with 'The Eternal' - hope you got yr buy early get now in for the live LP, there's a new download coming later this week and they've said they'll give us the iTunes bonus track once they have the rights to it back. Huzzah! Placebo return with the not-awful-despite-all-signs-pointing-in-that-direction 'Battle For The Sun'. After the shitfest of 'Meds', that's good enough for me.

In the digital realm, Little Boots gives us the 'Illuminations' EP while we wait for the album which was released yesterday overseas. [Bastards.] Pet Shop Boys have expanded the release of "Did you see me coming?" to include all b-sides and remixes for the US over two digital EPs which was very nice of them as there's a couple tracks not on the UK physical release we can now have.

It's only 7:42 am and my credit card is already tired.

how to contribute to the death of the physical single

The new Little Boots single "New In Town" is quite good. It is her first "proper" single, if you will, and is being released on a number of formats.

There are two vinyl formats - a 7" and a 12" - both with a remix or four, as well as a digital release with a different set of remixes. Finally, there is a CD format which contains the a-side and...well, that's it. A 1-track CD with the album version of the single. It's not like there's not material as clearly many remixes were commissioned for the release. It's not like the a-side itself is so long that by putting an additional track on the CD you'd make it ineligible for the charts by going over the time restraint for CD singles. I can't possibly fathom a reason why, with the physical single on its last legs to begin with, you'd put out a CD single with nothing on it to entice people to buy it. The artwork isn't even that good.

For such carelessness, I am boycotting all formats of the single. Which is a shame, because I'd love to support both her and the physical singles market. But I can't on principle.

*sigh*

keeping their word - the new Ash single[s]

During the campaign for 'Twilight of the Innocents', Ash went on and on about how they weren't going to release traditional albums anymore, that singles were the way to go and that the next time we heard from them it was going to be in a series of singles.

Nice thought, but I was sure they - as many other bands have in the past - go back on their word and sometime about now we'd have a new Ash full length in our hands.

Well, thanks for proving me wrong boys - no really, I love singles series' so I'm very excited about this. Today, or yesterday, or a few days ago I'm not really sure, Ash sure enough posted the first in a string of single-only tracks on their website. Called "Return of White Rabbit", it is immediately better than anything from the last album - I think it is what they were trying to do with "You Can't Have It All" but weren't really able to get across.

According to the release, a new series of singles collectively known as the A-Z singles will be released starting in September on digital download [paid or unpaid, it wasn't specified, but I'd imagine the freebie is a one time/launch only deal] and super limited 7". [Those are going to be fun to track down...] The word is "Return of White Rabbit" is separate from those releases, though it will also be getting a 7" release in June.

With the quality of this track, I cannot wait. Ash is back, oh yeah.

'V' in the US

One of my favorite albums of last year - Van She's 'V' - is getting a US release later in the year. [I read June somewhere, but I don't know if that's accurate or not.]

Hooray!

When it comes out, it will be paired with a second disc entitled 'Ze Vemixes', which is a Van She Tech overhaul of the album.

Double hooray!

Do we get a tour for a triple hooray? Time will tell...

"The Cat & The Eye" from said album:



Brilliant.

[PS - The new Dragonette single gets better with every listen. Hooray!]

oh, Anthonio!

My letter from Annie to Anthonio arrived yesterday - in an orange sleeve, score! I still haven't decided how I feel about the song itself - though the Fred Falke and Vaughn E remixes are quite good - but I love the packaging. The whole campaign, really, has been amazing.

A well spent $10, that's for sure. I wonder what they've got lined up for ItemCDX2.

for your Friday - new Dragonette!

Popjustice have the brand spankin' new Dragonette single "Fixin To Thrill" to download today. It is, of course, amazing. The single itself comes out at the end of May and the album of the same name in August...or so they say. We saw what happened LAST time.

Anyways, it's ridiculously amazing and you should download it now.

The end.

a thought for a Thursday

Collecting promo CDRs for exclusive remixes is nowhere near as fun - or satisfying - as promo 12"s. [That said, the whole idea of promo only remixes is quite obnoxious, but at least when you were tracking them down on 12" you had something nice to add to your collection. Not so much with stupid CDRs.]

And that's all I have to say about that.

fun with physical formats: Annie's "Anthonio"

So after Annie's 'Don't Stop' failed to even materialize - let alone take off - last year, you might have wondered what would happen next. Well, as you probably know she hooked up with the always amazing Richard X to launch his new Pleasure Masters label with her new single "Anthonio". It was initially announced to be a 12"/download type deal - however, on Monday it was announced through the Pleasure Masters Myspace [and probably other places, but that's where I read about it] that there was also going to be a super duper limited handmade CD format of the single. 100 copies to be exact - or 99, as according to their blog they ran over 1 copy with their chair. That's a picture in the corner - A-mazing. Apparently all copies are gone now, but I put an order in and was charged so hopefully that means it is on the way to my house as I type, because I kind of need it. [Especially after the whole Breeders "Fate to Fatal"/Record Store Day disaster, but that's another story.]

The song itself is sung from Annie to Anthonio, and the promo for this one has been ridiculous. Handwritten letters from one to the other sent out, even a rebuttal single from Anthonio himself called Annie showed up at one point.

In all honesty, I'm not even really a huge fan of Annie - more of her work with Richard X whom I absolutely adore - but such a cool physical product in a day and age where it is usually an afterthought totally hits me in all the right places. Huzzah!

'Murmur' is so amazing...

...it's kind of silly that anyone even bothered trying after it came out.

I mean, really.

the new Jarvis Cocker single...

...is fucking FANTASTIC. I mean really, really good. And it's produced by Steve Albini.

LOOK AT THAT SLEEVE! SO GOOD.

I didn't care much for his first solo album, but based on this 'Further Complications' can't come fast enough.

new Kasabian stuff

Kasabian's third LP is finally on its way to us, a bit later than expected. That's the album artwork - I'm not too keen on it. The nod to the first LP's masked man is nice, but I find it a bit busy and the choice of red for their logo buries it a bit. Sad - I was a big fan of the art for both previous campaigns.

"Vlad the Impaler" was available for download from the official site a while back but is gone now. [You can find it if you look not too hard.] It wasn't as immediate as previous lead singles, however with some time it has proven to be a grower.

The video for the first "proper" single "Fire" is available to view at their website. I like it, but it is not at all what I was expecting. Not a bad thing, and now I have no idea what to expect from the album. Exciting.

Single on June 1st - no tracklisting yet, but please give us a Jagz Kooner mix - and album in mid-June. Supposedly the US release will be the day following the UK release, but we'll see.

Personally, I can't wait. Hopefully it won't be a disappointment like most of the rest of 2009 has been so far.

box sets done right: Girls Aloud

Say what you will about Girls Aloud, but it appears that they know how to take care of their [admittedly insanely obsessed] fans.

Just announced through their website, a limited edition of 5000 copies box set of all of their singles. Each single comes backed with every b-side from every format - physical, digital, CD, vinyl, doesn't matter, it's there. On top of that, stray compilation remixes get partnered with their appropriate single and random tracks that were on the best of bonus disc are with their parent single. We're talking everything here - if there was an edit version, full length, and dub version of a given remix, it's in here. Amazing. It'll run ya about $100 US, but some of us are crazy enough to fork it over. Ahem. [It's an instant collectors item so I will have no problem unloading it should I suffer from buyers remorse and/or decide I don't need a zillion remixes of "The Promise".]

The only downside is it does contain their abysmal cover of "Walk This Way" with the Sugababes from a few years ago, so I do finally have to buy that. Boo! [Though completist points for including it. Well played, girls.]

All packaged in a nice metal box too. Much easier than trying to track down a gazillion out of print CD singles and poor bitrate mp3s. Huzzah!

update: So it turns out there are a few things missing - the Jeremy Wheatley "Can't Speak French" for one. However, overall they did a better job than most compiling it and in this day and age that's good enough. Not letting us know when we ordered it that it's not shipping until the end of June - that's 2 months away! - when they've already charged us for it was a bit nasty, but there you have it.

single formatting done right: "Did you see me coming?"

So.

The official Pet Shop Boys site says "Did you see me coming?" is being released on June 1st on the following formats:


2-track CD
1. Did you see me coming?
2. After the event
Maxi CD
1. Did you see me coming? (PSB 12" mix)
2. The former enfant terrible
3. Up and down
12” Vinyl
1A Did you see me coming? (PSB 12” mix)
1B Did you see me coming? (Unicorn Kid mix)
2 The way it used to be (Richard X mix)
Digital Bundle 1
1. Did you see me coming?
2. Pet Shop Boys Brits medley
Digital Bundle 2
1. Did you see me coming? (Unicorn Kid mix)
2. The way it used to be (Richard X mix)
Digital Bundle 3
1. Did you see me coming? (PSB 12” mix)
2. The former enfant terrible (Bring it on mix)

Nice tracklist there. A Richard X mix of something was on my wishlist when talking about potential remixers with "the boys" and I rarely get my wish, so that's nice. Three new b-sides is also a treat, and a 12" format this time makes me super happy. All of this almost makes up for the second single not being "All over the world".

However.

I'm over these digital exclusive tracks. And that had better not be the artwork on the official site because it is fucking ugly. Oh well. It's more right than "Love etc." was, so I'll give them that.

record poor day

Today was the second annual Record Store Day...and I did not enjoy it one bit.

Mostly because neither store I went to had any of the Breeders handscreened 'Fate to Fatal' EPs - the physical format only available on this day at stores participating, supposedly - and now I have to settle for a digital copy come Tuesday from stupid iTunes.

It also didn't help that everyone was very pushy today - I was actually pushed out of the way of a box of records. OK, not very hard, but still...really?

And to top all of that off, I'm not at Coachella dancing in the desert to Hercules & Love Affair.

:(

I love it when you take me in the white

Going into 2009, there were three albums above all others that I was most excited for. The Super Furry Animals album totally fucking tanked and broke my heart. The new Pet Shop Boys album is all kinds of amazing and is on constant play in my car. Of the third - and possibly my most anticipated - Charlotte Hatherley's 'Cinnabar City' we had heard very little.

Until now.

Skope Mag has hooked us up with a free download of the album's first single, "White". It's an indie-guitar-disco-glitterball covered masterpiece and generally makes 2009 a better place. Head on over to grab your copy and be prepared to have it on repeat for days.

We're also apparently getting a proper US release and tour for this one which has me all kinds of excited. Bring it.

a reissue I can get behind

FINALLY - the US remix of 'Rio' is getting an official CD release.

Posted on Duran Duran's myspace - and I'm sure other places:

Mining the DD catalogue, EMI will be releasing two gems on June 29th (UK)/June 30th (US): The DVD/CD DURAN DURAN – LIVE HAMMERSMITH ‘82! and DURAN DURAN: RIO (2 CD SPECIAL EDITION).


LIVE AT HAMMERSMITH 82! is a much anticipated release among followers of the band. Filmed and recorded in the latter part of 1982 as Duranmania was sweeping England, the performance at London’s Hammersmith Odeon includes “Rio,” “Hungry like the Wolf,” “Girls on Film,” fan favorite “Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me)” and more. The release also includes “Rio” era videos and two “Top of the Pops” performances.


The RIO 2 CD SPECIAL EDITION is made up of the UK release of the “Rio” album, the original US Harvest album remixes (enabling US listens to programme their CD to be able to listen to the original version), Manchester Square demos, B-Sides, remixes and other surprises.


Full track listing for both releases below.
Keep checking back to Duranduran.com for more information!

DVD/CD: Duran Duran – Live Hammersmith '82!
DVD:
Live at Hammersmith ’82:-
Rio
Hungry Like The Wolf
Night Boat
New Religion
Save A Prayer
Planet Earth
Friends Of Mine
Careless Memories
Make Me Smile (Come Up And See Me)
Girls On Film
Rio era videos:-
My Own Way
Hungry Like The Wolf
Save A Prayer
Lonely In Your Nightmare
Rio
The Chauffeur
Top Of The Pops Performances:-
Hungry Like The Wolf (May 13th, 1982)
Rio (November 18th, 1982)

Duran Duran: Rio (2 CD Special Edition)
CD 1:
Original UK album
1/ Rio
2/ My Own Way
3/ Lonely In Your Nightmare
4/ Hungry Like The Wolf
5/ Hold Back The Rain
6/ New Religion
7/ Last Chance On The Stairway
8/ Save A Prayer
9/ The Chauffeur
Original US album mixes released on Harvest/Capitol ST-12211 released November 1982
10/Rio (US album remix)
11/My Own Way (Carnival remix)
12/Lonely In Your Nightmare (US album remix)
13/Hungry Like The Wolf (US album remix)
14/Hold Back The Rain (US album remix)

This enables the US listener to programme their CD to play the original US version of the album.


CD 2:
The Manchester Square demos (recorded 28th August 1981):
1/ Last Chance On The Stairway
2/ My Own Way
3/ New Religion
4/ Like An Angel
Non album singles and B-Sides:
5/ My Own Way (original 7” version) (3.39)
6/ Like An Angel
UK single B side
7/ Careless Memories (live)
UK single B side
8/ The Chauffeur (Blue Silver) (early version)
UK single B side
Versions & Mixes:
9/ My Own Way (Night version)
UK 12" single
10/Hungry Like The Wolf (Night version)
UK 12" single
11/ Rio (Night version)
Dutch 12" Carnival E.P
12/New Religion (Carnival remix)
Japanese 12" Carnival E.P.

13/Hold Back The Rain (Carnival remix)
US 12" Carnival E.P.


Digital only extras:
14/My Own Way (Instrumental version) (6.32)
15/Hold Back The Rain (Alternate remix) (6.38)

--

Digital only extras? Boo! I'll wait for a price point to make a call on the live package but I need the 2-disc 'Rio' in my hands yesterday. Maybe they'll follow these up with sets for 'Seven and the Ragged Tiger' and 'Notorious'. Please?

wrong!

The physical CD formats of Depeche Mode's "Wrong" will also apparently be released in cardsleeves.

Fuckers.

yes?

So.

Official word of a vinyl format for 'Yes'...which costs a mere £300.00.

11 LPs - a track per side with the instrumental [exclusive, of course] on the b-side - in a ridiculously nice box. This isn't an album, it's a piece of art. Full info at the Vinyl Factory.

I was hoping for something a little more...affordable.

My birthday is May 6th, by the way - not long after this one is available - for those that might need a gift idea...

nostalgia

Remember how important Radiohead used to be? How much their music used to mean?

Not to be stuck in the past - though I probably am on this one - or to be "like that", but even 'Pablo Honey' [as good as it really is, the weakest of the first three LPs] blows anything they've done since 1998 out of the water.

*sigh* Such is the cost of 'OK Computer', I suppose.

boo etc.

The UK singles for "Love etc." come packaged in card sleeves.

:(

On top of that, there's still no news of a vinyl format for the single.

:( :(

There are rumors of an LP pressing of 'Yes' coming in July...perhaps concurrent with the second single release, a la the vinyl release of 'Fundamentalism Vol 2' / the "Minimal" single release? Hrm...

[The single is also available on US iTunes today.]

it's official

I think it's safe to say now that it's not going to get better with further listens.

I will go on record saying I hate 'Dark Days / Light Years' by Super Furry Animals. It makes me impossibly sad to say - well, type - that, but it's true. What a steaming pile of a record.

It is a sad day indeed.

On the other hand, I do not hate the new studio recordings of Jane's Addiction's "Whores" and "Chip Away". Ho-ly shit are things things fucking a-mazing. Get yourself over to the Jane's Addiction website to get yourself a free copy, because good lord they're fucking ridiculous. They're part of a sampler that also contains two Nine Inch Nails and two Street Sweeper tracks, but really who the fuck cares? Jane's Addiction rockin' 2009 like they never went anywhere - who saw that coming?

I'm so excited [and I just can't hide it]

I love nice surprises...and after a pretty crappy winter, I could use a few.

This one tops the list though. You'll probably remember me gushing about how amazing Lorraine - and specifically their single "When I Return To The World" - are/were/will always be/whatever. [Joe, I will always be in your debt for this one.] So then they up and disappeared, right? Or so you thought...

Apparently they reappeared last fall as Black Room with the never released Lorraine album 'Pop Noir' ready to go. It is out in Japan - because, you know, all the best pop is HUGE in Japan even when no one else loves them, see also Gloss - and on iTunes in other parts of the world. Including the US.

It's basically the "Heaven", "I Feel It", "Saved" and "When I Return To The World" singles with five or six new songs - "I Feel It" appears to have been re-recorded - but whatever. It's fucking ace and you should go buy it right now. There's also a Japanese only 7" - how elite - with "Confetti" as the b-side [that marks the third time it has been used as a b-side for those keeping track]. And "Italian Girlfriend" is apparently a Japan-only b-side, but you've already got it on the "I Feel It" single, right? It's on iTunes as well, so no worries.

Anyways. Go to their myspace for previews since there's pretty much nothing on Youtube. Potential album of the year material here.

crushed

As a general rule, very little gets me as excited as a new SFA album. So yesterday being the digital release date of album 9 'Dark Days/Light Years' was overall a pretty good day. I had troubles connecting to the site in the afternoon when it first became available, however by the evening things had calmed down and I was able to log in and grab it.

First thought: the artwork is less of a collaboration between Pete Fowler and Keiichi Tanaami and more the shoving together of the artwork for 'Phantom Power' and 'Hey Venus!'. Very lazy and disappointing.

Second thought: the album is not very good. At all. Teaser single "Inaugural Trams" was decent - not their strongest, but a step up lead single wise from "Show Your Hand" I'd say - but it is sadly the best thing on here. The rest is either SFA-ish but really underwhelming ["White Socks/Flip Flops", "Inconvenience"], a good idea executed poorly ["Cardiff In The Sun", "Mt.", "The Very Best of Neil Diamond"], or really just shit ["Crazy Naked Girls" is so fucking awful I'm shocked].

I suppose a bad SFA album was bound to happen eventually.

something awful

So, this is apparently the new Tori Amos album cover then.

Terrible. Horrible picture [she is WAY too made up], wretched font. The tracklist is out there, but all you need to know is it is made up of 17 songs and probably twice as long as it needs to be.

'American Doll Posse' was a step in the right direction after the mis-steps of, oh, everything else she's release this decade. Hopefully this continues in that direction, but I'm not exactly holding my breath.

Something better - the Pet Shop Boys have put up a 10-minute megamix preview of 'Yes' on their site and it's fab. Also, the new SFA single out there and it is also wonderful if not quite as impactful as previous lead singles have been. I realized the other day that both of those albums come out on the same day - in the UK and the wide world of the internets respectively, that is. In the US, they both join 'Sounds of the Universe' on April 21. It's a super synthpop Tuesday!

US marks destination

In an exciting turn of events, The Whip are doing an actual, honest to goodness US tour this spring in support of "X Marks Destination". [On a side note, apparently it comes out today in the US with 4-bonus tracks - including the previously digital only Shinichi Osawa remix of 'Blackout'. Huzzah!] According to their myspace, if you're in one of these cities on one of these dates, you'd better get your dancing shoes on and get ready to get down:

20/3- Austin

21/3 - Austin @ La Zona Rosa (official showcase) with Pendulum, The Crystal Method, Diesel Boy, Kaskade

24/3 - New Orleans @ House of Blues with Pendulum, The Crystal Method

27/3 - Miami Ultra Music Festival @ Bicentennial Park with Bloc Party, Santogold, Ting Tings, more!

30/3 - Atlanta @ The Earl with Deadmau5, Late of the Pier

01/4 - New York @ Bowery Ballroom with Late of the Pier

02/4 - New Haven @ Yale Afro-American Cultural Center with Late of the Pier

03/4 - Brooklyn @ Studio B with Deadmau5, Late of the Pier

04/4 - Philadelphia @ TLA with Deadmau5, Late of the Pier

07/4 - Washington DC @ 930 Club with Deadmau5, Late of the Pier

08/4 - Boston @ Paradise with Deadmau5, Late of the Pier

09/4 - Montreal @ Les Saintes with Late of the Pier

10/4 - Toronto @ Kool Haus with Deadmau5, Late of the Pier

11/4 - Chicago @ Congress with Deadmau5, Late of the Pier, Crookers

14/4 - Seattle @ Chop Suey with Late of the Pier

15/4 - Portland @ Dantes with Late of the Pier

16/4 - San Francisco @ Pop Scene with Late of the Pier

20/4 - Los Angeles @ Spaceland

21/4 - Los Angeles @ Cinespace

I shall see you in Toronto, boys and girl!

Blackout, blackout:



I fucking LOVE THIS RECORD.

right

We're only getting started and - unsurprisingly - the new Depeche Mode album is already a formatting nightmare. [Is anyone else more ridiculous with their formats? I mean really...]

But hark, what's this? They announced formats for the 'Wrong' single, and there's only three of them! And on top of that, their configured in a way that makes some sort of logical sense:

7" - BONG 40
A. Wrong
B. Oh Well

CD1 - CDBONG 40
1. Wrong
2. Oh Well (Black Light Odyssey Remix)

CD2 - Maxi - LCDBONG 40
1. Wrong
2. Wrong - Trentemøller Club Remix
3. Wrong - Thin White Duke Remix
4. Wrong - Magda's Scallop Funk Mix
5. Wrong - D.I.M. vs Boys Noise Remix

I fully expect two or three 12"s with extentions, dubs and repeat mixes to be announced in the next week or so - don't quote me on this one, but I'm pretty sure every Depeche Mode single since 'Just Can't Get Enough' has had a 12" release - but as of right now I'm perfectly content pretending that they're not being ridiculous this time around.

Please don't let the 7" be a picture disc like the last album.

I'm so obsessed with this record it's starting to scare even me

Lots more "Yes"-related stuff lately, let's see...

Most importantly, they've put up 30 second samples of each track at iTunes UK. You don't need to be in the UK to listen to em, just go to the iTunes shop home page and then switch countries at the bottom of the screen. You can't buy it, but you can listen. And it sounds yummy.

Two. You can download their remix of Lady Gaga's 'Eh Eh [Nothing I Can Say]' thanks to Aol.co.uk. Honestly, I've grabbed it but haven't bothered listening to it yet, so let me know how it is.

Three. The Boys performed a massive 9 1/2 minute medley of the hits last night at the Brits - including parts of 'Love etc' and now-all-but-confirmed-second-single 'All over the world'. With MASSIVE Nutcracker Suite sample. Fantastic. My favorite part is about a third of the way in where they put the vocals from 'Go West' over the backing track of 'Paninaro'. Amazing. It's all over youtube, or right here:



The Brandon Flowers and Lady Gaga cameos were a bit pointless, but it's still fantastic. I was kind of hoping an audio of it might end up on a future b-side, but apparently it's the bonus track for pre-ordering the album from iTunes UK. So phooey.

Four. Umm..there was something else. Oh yes. You can pre order the album officially now at Amazon.co.uk and Recordstore.co.uk - the latter also has a bundle deal for the 2 'Love etc' CDs for 3.50. A steal. Still no vinyl formats listed anywhere for the album OR single. Double phooey. Please don't disappoint me on this one.

Five. They've announced two shows in London this summer, but that's it so far. US tour, yes? [I suppose we should nail down a US release first...] I'm expecting to travel to see them, but London might be a bit far.

Six. I'm listening to each album and its Further Listening disc in chronological order ahead of the actual album, hopeing it might help me forget we still have over a month to wait. Which means two things: one, I need to compile my own Further Listening discs for "Nightlife", "Release" and "Funtamental"; and two, I can decide once and for all if "Release" is the least best Pet Shop Boys album. [Hint: it is.] At the very least, I can finally decide of "Actually" or "Behaviour" is the most best. [Hint: it's "Actually".] Done and done.

I always forget how good "Please" is - especially the second half.

hott

That is the cover of the new Yeah Yeah Yeahs album, entitled "It's Blitz". It is due for release on April 14th in the US.

But that's not important as I'm willing to bet the music will in no way do that fucking HOTT artwork justice. [The Yeah Yeah Yeahs are fine, don't get me wrong, but I never really understood why everyone made such a huge deal about them.]

The single is pretty decent - various places have it streaming, like their myspace - so maybe they'll prove me wrong. I kind of doubt it, but maybe. Stranger things have happened.

But seriously. Album art of the year so far - yes, even over "Yes"...ok, well maybe tied with "Yes". De-licious.

like you didn't see this coming

Surprise, surprise - Ms. Repackage and Resell herself has a new box set coming out. From Björk.com:

Voltaic

We are announcing Voltaic, the celebration of Volta and the Volta live show. The release will consist of various live recordings from Paris and Reykjavik. The live set was also recorded in a studio in London, which will undoubtedly give us some rare glimpse into the development of the live set.

The release will be availble as Standard, Deluxe and Deluxe Vinyl.

Björk did document the tour extensively and now we will be able to enjoy this work in a new light and new sound.

DISC ONE (AUDIO) Songs From The Volta Tour Performed Live At Olympic Studios
DISC TWO (DVD) The Volta Tour Live In Paris, Live in Reykjavik
DISC THREE (DVD) The Volta Videos and the video competition
DISC FOUR (CD) The Volta Mixes.

We will have more on this release very soon as we are building our special.
A pre order link is on its way! And here is Pre Order

Release date is yet to be confirmed. we predict March! :).

--

Action Records lists the release date as March 3 on their pre-order list, but who knows - it could be anything with her.

I'm actually quite excited for this - I never bought any of those fucking singles box sets as they were way too pricey and super excessive, even for her. Now, here they all are in one nice little package - with stuff not available in the original pressings - for the price of one of them. Come on...you knew it was going to happen!

The live DVD is exciting too - I skipped out on this tour so it'll be nice to have a document of it. As disappointing as "Volta" was, it had her strongest string of singles in ages - outside of the weak 'Declare Independence', of course - and had some great mixes backing them up. It's on the "to buy" list.

ahh yes...but mostly, no

So.

Pet Shop Boys finally released format information for 'Love etc.' via their website, and this is what we'll be getting come March 16th:

CD1
1. Love etc.
2. Gin and Jag

CD2
1. Love etc. (Album version)
2. Love etc. (Pet Shop Boys mix)
3. Love etc. (Gui Boratto remix)
4. Love etc. (Kurd Maverick remix)
5. Love etc. (Frankmusik Star & Garter dub)
6. Love etc. (Kurd Maverick dub)

Digital Bundle 1
1. Love etc.
2. We're all criminals now
3. Vulnerable
4. Did you see me coming?

Digital Bundle 2
1. Love etc. (Pet Shop Boys mix)
2. Love etc. (Gui Boratto remix)
3. Love etc. (Kurd Maverick remix)
4. Love etc. (Frankmusik Star & Garter dub)

Two things.

One - a digital only proper b-side? No.

Two - no vinyl format? I want - nay, need - a 12" format with the artwork in all its minimal glory to hang on the wall next to the LP of "Yes". They had so better be forgetting to have listed one - with 'We're all criminals now', please - or I'm gonna be a bit upset.

They learned from the mistake of not releasing a commercial remix format for 'I'm with Stupid', but they've replaced it with a new mistake.

:(

fantastic

I know I'm late to the game, but I'm all about La Roux at the moment. New single 'In For The Kill' is a bit OTT, she howls more than sings the lyrics and there's a lot going on all at once that makes it a but sensory overload - and it's all the more fantastic for it.

Anyways, according to recordstore.co.uk, it is going to be released on a 2-track CD [yawn..] and - wait for a it - a shaped picture disc 12".

It's 1985 all over again, and I fucking love it.

new Bishop Allen up for pre-order

I suppose the subject says it all...

Bishop Allen's third LP "Grr..." is up for pre-order from their website. If you order it from them - which you should - it will be shipped to you for it's March 10th release date AND you will get emailed a download link a week prior on March 3rd. They did that with their last album as well, which is always nice. Hooray!

They've also posted 2 mp3s on their website from the album to tide you over even until then - album opener 'Dimmer' as well as 'The Ancient Commonsense of Things'. Both are, of course, completely charming in that Bishop Allen way, and both bode well for the LP.

However, there's no LP pressing this time. Sad. :(

just not sure

So the new Saturdays single is going to be a cover of Depeche Mode's 'Just Can't Get Enough' - a song which, let's be honest, is the perfect candidate for a hi-NRG girl group make over. It's not exactly the most subtle thing in the Depeche Mode back catalogue, now is it?

Anyways, the video is out there now and it looks and sound something like this:



Hrm. I guess in theory that's the perfect cover version, but I just can't make up my mind about it. I don't think it'll be getting much play from me, but it could be a very very good thing for the girls. We'll see.

oh Christ

Good news - Elbow is coming to the US for a summer tour!

Super bad news - they're fucking opening for motherfucking Coldplay.

Dammit. I really don't want to have to fight to spend who knows how much money on Coldplay tickets to see Elbow, but I might just have to. It's been almost 8 years since I last saw them, and they are doing the Toronto date, so....

Is it worth it?





Probably.

*sigh* We'll have to see.

they don't make them like this any more

"In the future, all this will be yours - so do what you like.
You'll be dead and gone before you find out how it works."

Fucking. Brilliant. I'd say I miss them - which I do - but if they did anything more than they did, it would've ruined the whole impact.

*sigh*

it's nice

Hrm.

update : After a few listens, I quite like it. Not the stormer I was expecting from a PSB/Xenomania collab - then again, if I was really paying attention to 'The Loving Kind', it would've been exactly what I was expecting - but it's quite good. I think the PSB Maxi-mix is going to be a stunner and I can't wait to hear what other remixers do with it. It bodes well for the LP, that's for sure - my knee-jerk reaction is what this is what "Release" should've been. Pbbbt.

update 2: So - not surprisingly - 'Love, etc.' is gone from YouTube today. Hope you enjoyed it while you could. Above is the supposed artwork in it's place. LOVELY!

something I don't understand

Maybe someone can help me out here.

So Saint Etienne apparently "want a Top 40" hit with their new single 'Method of Modern Love' - which is fab and, with the right push, probably could do it. Maybe, I don't know...the last single was apparently somewhere around 167 according to Wikipedia, so maybe not.

Anyways.

To help further their cause, they limited each physical format to 1500 copies. OK, physical sales aren't really where it's at anymore as much as it pains me to admit that. However, they've then limited sales of the physical formats to UK residents only. That's where I'm lost.

It was never my understanding that records sold in the UK but shipping to non-UK addresses didn't count towards the charts. I know that vendors have to participate in order for their sales to count towards the charts - which by itself kind of makes the charts seem silly as it's not really capturing every sale, but that's neither here nor there - and that there are legalities that make downloads unavailable outside their country of origin. Fine, I get it. However, how does me living in the US not count if I bought it from a participating vendor?

It's frustrating as I'm still totally a format whore and want to support bands I like who continue to put out physical formats for us stuck in the '90s to collect. As I've said before, I'm not even a huge Saint Etienne fan - I own exactly one album, "Sound of Water" - but a pairing with Richard X for an incredible slice of electro pop makes me want to support them. And they're telling me I can't as they reach for the Top 40. Silly, silly Saint Etienne.

Yes, there will be an "export version at some point", but why are they putting themselves through extra costs to make a fourth [and possibly fifth] physical format when the first three should work just fine.

Can someone please explain this to me? No one else I've asked seems to know either.

yet another post about Elbow

Elbow are contributing a cover of *shudder* U2's 'Running To Stand Still' to the forthcoming War Child benefit album entitled "Heroes". It is out February 24th in the US [a week earlier in the UK, they always get the good stuff early] and you can pre-order it from Amazon for a very reasonable $13.99. The full tracklisting is:

1. Beck (Bob Dylan - "Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat")

2. The Kooks (The Kinks - "Victoria")

3. The Hold Steady (Bruce Springsteen - "Atlantic City")

4. Hot Chip (Joy Division - "Transmission")

5. Lily Allen feat. Mick Jones (The Clash - "Straight To Hell")

6. Yeah Yeah Yeahs (The Ramones - "Sheena Is A Punk Rocker")

7. Franz Ferdinand (Blondie - "Call Me")

8. Duffy (Paul McCartney - "Live And Let Die")

9. Estelle (Stevie Wonder - "Superstition")

10. Rufus Wainwright (Brian Wilson -" Wonderful & Song For Children")

11. Scissor Sisters (Roxy Music - "Do The Strand")

12. Peaches (Iggy Pop - "Search And Destroy")

13. Adam Cohen (Leonard Cohen - "Take This Waltz")

14. Elbow (U2 - "Running To Stand Still")

15. The Like (Elvis Costello - "You Belong To Me")

16. TV On The Radio (David Bowie - "Heroes")

An interesting mix, with Elbow being the biggest draw for me - but I'm also in for Hot Chip vs Joy Division and Lily Allen vs The Clash. The rest I could take or leave - and, really, I never got the big deal about 'Running To Stand Still' - but it's Elbow and it's for a good cause, so we're all buying it. Right?

A sneak peak:



Beautiful.



Also beautiful.

you could have it all

I have no idea how I missed this one.

Kaiser Chiefs and Girls Aloud performing a live medley of 'Never Miss A Beat' and 'Sound of the Underground'?



A-mazing.