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New Album for Holy Fuck
[Via Clash] Holy Fuck, the Canadian collective known around these parts for killer live shows, are set to release a new record in May. It’s been a nearly three-year wait since their last album release, LP, which effectively broke them out to the masses. On Latin, Holy Fuck, their core lineup solidified and down to four key members, were joined by a cast of prominent producers, including Graham Walsh, Dave Newfeld (Broken Social Scene), D. Sardy (Nine Inch Nails), Eli Janney (Wilco), and Paul Epworth (Bloc Party, Primal Scream).
Inevitable Appeal Filed in Phil Spector Case
It was only a matter of time before Spector’s team of attorneys filed an appeal. He’s currently serving a term of 19 years to life after being convicted of the second-degree murder of Lana Clarkson. The first jury, as we all remember, was deadlocked, so it took a second trial to get Spector behind bars.
This 148-page “extremely detailed” brief is being filed on “grounds of judicial error and prosecutorial misconduct.” One issue raised which the lawyers found “impermissible under the law” was testimony from other women who vouched for Spector’s violent tendencies. They also call into question Deputy District attorney Alan Jackson’s final argument, “in which he accused defense attorneys of soliciting untruthful testimony from expert witnesses by paying them huge fees.”
Live Show Review: The Big Pink at Great American Music Hall, SF
The Big Pink, A Place to Bury Strangers, and 10 Echo
March 10th at Great American Music Hall, San Francisco
Last night’s show at Great American Music Hall was a display of shoegaze, circa 2010. Opener, Los Angeles’ I0 Echo, brews thick, stormy, guitar-heavy music behind the vocals of the female singer (who goes by the name I0), which resulted in loud, atmospheric noise that aptly set the tone for even louder, more atmospheric noise as delivered by supporting act A Place to Bury Strangers. Once (still?) hailed as the “loudest band in New York,” ABTBS projects a deafening roar of apocalyptic sound, reliant on the effects from the thumping strobe lights on the crowd and the wall and themselves to induce that feeling of being caught, suspended, by the pull of a performance. This band grabbed my attention a few years back with their self-titled debut, on which they crafted industrialist noise rock in a way that is accessible and surprisingly always very listenable. For a band that relies on the abrasive, they don’t neglect melody in their songs, no matter how high the decibel may be set. The noisy chaos of their live show has never failed to catch me rapt among the audience, standing in the path of their volatile shoegaze, always reaching for my earplugs within the first few minutes, which, of course, I forgot to bring last night. Ouch.
Daniel Johnston to Play with 11-Piece Orchestra
Live in London? Well, here’s another reason why you’re lucky. You have the opportunity to see Daniel Johnston take the stage with an 11-piece orchestra for a one-off show on April 2nd at the Troxy Theater. As Clash points out, where I read this story, it’s difficult to foresee how Johnston’s “shambolic” nature will translate with such a sprawling ensemble behind him, but it’s intriguing nonetheless. Maybe he’ll cross the pond and play some shows over here… fingers crossed!
Jeffrey Lewis, also quirky and shambolic, will be playing alongside Johnston. Awesome.
Watch National Perform New Track on Late Night
Late Night with Jimmy Fallon is no stranger to some of our favorite bands performing great, new songs. Check out past clips we’ve recently posted with Ted Leo and Joanna Newsom. But we’re talking about the National here. The National! Last night, the band performed their new song, “Terrible Love” from their May release High Violet, and it’s every bit as beautiful and impeccably arranged as you’d expect. Watch below.
Listen to New Woods Track from Forthcoming Record
Woods put out one my favorite albums of 2009 with Songs of Shame, so I just got excited when I realized they have a new record coming out (in May, of course), with one track already available for listening here.
Said track, “I Was Gone“, retains the granular lo-fi noise of their previous efforts crossed by the polished pitch of Jeremy Earl’s voice, and the press release suggests great things in store with At Echo Lake:
At Echo Lake feels like a diamond-sharp distillation of the turbulent power of their live shows, in much the same way that the Grateful Dead’s “Dark Star” single amplified and engulfed the planetary aspect of their improvised takes… At Echo Lake is more Fifth Dimension than Notorious Byrd Brothers…
Sounds like my cup of tea. Check back in May for more coverage on the record when it’s released.
Watch Exclusive Video of the Thermals from SXSW 2009
Hey, did you know that SXSW is coming up? Just kidding. I’m certain by now, whether you’re heading down to the balmy state of Texas or not, you’ve gotten your fill of email blasts announcing lineups and RSVPs for day parties incessantly popping up on your facebook news feed. It’s crazy how much activity is brewing down there, isn’t it?
Either way, whether you’re Austin-bound or sharing in the excitement from afar, this little gem of the Thermals performing at the Hot Freaks day party last year is worth your attention. This is high-quality video, folks, from Portland’s pop-punk trio as they returned to the limelight last spring after a few years off. Good stuff.
Check back on Crawdaddy! daily for exclusive SXSW video footage leading up to the festival next week. Enjoy!
The Thermals, “St. Rosa and the Swallows” from 2006’s The Body, the Blood, the Machine.
Madonna to Develop Clothing Line
Whatever your opinion of Madonna, you gotta admit that woman’s an industrialist. Her latest venture is a partnership with Iconix, “an award winning industry leader in promoting and elevating brands in the marketplace through tradition and new media platforms,” to launch a juniors clothing line that will be distributed through 200 Macy’s stores.
Madonna and her daughter Lourdes Leon collaborated on the line, which will be called “Material Girl” and will launch right before the back to school season, so teenage girls can convince their moms that they need those studded jeans before going back to tenth grade!
From Reuters:
As part of the direct-to-retail license agreement, Macy’s will have the opportunity to launch additional brands in the future with the joint venture, MG Icon.
MG Icon, which will be 50 percent owned by Iconix and 50 percent by Madonna and Guy Oseary, her long-time manager, has an exclusive license and services agreement with the singer to use her name for apparel, footwear and other products.
Pink Floyd and EMI are Fighting Over Royalties
[Via Wired and Business Week]
Pink Floyd is suing EMI because the label is allowing the band’s songs to be sold as singles via iTunes. The band claims that their contract with EMI qualifies that their catalog be sold as whole albums, as is essential to the seamless nature of much of their music. Their lawyer, Robert Howe, says: “It’s a matter of fact that the defendant has been permitting individual tracks to be downloaded online and that therefore they have been allowing albums not to be sold in their original configuration.”
Many band contracts were signed before the dawn of the internet age, which today causes a disconnect between band and label, when digital music sales are such a prominent part of proceeds. Pink Floyd’s last contract was signed in 1999, before iTunes was operating, and now they want to clarify the terms. Let’s just wait and see what happens.
Will You Watch the Stooges, Genesis, ABBA, the Hollies Be Inducted in the Hall of Fame Tonight?
by: Angela Zimmerman
Tonight’s the night… if you care about such things. Either way you slice it, whether you think it’s a tired tradition and Johnny Rotten had it right when he snubbed the honor, or you believe in the integrity and importance of the institution, tonight’s inductees are likely going to have people tuning in to the program.
The 2010 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees include ABBA, Genesis, the Hollies, the Stooges, and Jimmy Cliff, as well as a selection of non-performers—label owner David Geffen, and songwriters Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil, husband and wife team of Jeff Barry and Ellie Greenwich, Jesse Stone, Mort Shuman, and Otis Blackwell.
The Waldorf Astoria in New York will play host to the famed event, and performances are expected from the Stooges, Jimmy Cliff, and the Hollies. The Examiner reports that preemptive no-shows include Peter Gabriel, half of the Abba team (Bjorn Ulvaeus and Agnetha Faltskog), and the Hollies’ original guitarist, Tony Hicks, and drummer Bobby Elliott. While you never know who could pop up last minute, the Stooges (sans, sadly, Ron Asheton) are for sure supposed to perform, which could be awesome, or maybe sorta weird and sterile, with such glossy, high-profile stage production. We shall see.
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by: Angela Zimmerman
published: March 15, 2010
in column: What Goes On
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