Pop Montreal 2009 Dates

Dates for the 2009 edition of Pop Montreal are in. The annual festival—which featured Beach House, Vetiver, The Bug, Dan Deacon, and hundreds of others last year—will unroll another five-day event that, this year, will bring more than 400 artists to Quebec’s largest city, from September 30 – October 4.

The submission deadline just closed for band applications, so expect an initial lineup to come through the pipeline soon. In the meantime, get involved with this year’s festivities by becoming a volunteer.

Jamtech Foundation vs. Barrington Levy “Under Mi Sensi”

Swedish electro team Jamtech Foundation will soon arrive on California soil, and to promote the upcoming gig (at Trust, in Los Angeles), the boys sent some mash-up mayhem into the blogwaves. Here, they one of their own tracks against vocals from Barrington Levy’s legendary “Under Mi Sensi” tune.

Jamtech Foundation vs Barrington Levy – Under Mi Sensi

Dubstep Photo Exhibition

Dubstep isn’t often associated with art galleries, but the genre will have its moment to shine this summer in London. Photographer/student James Measom will showcase photos taken from dubstep clubs as part of the Plymouth College of Art Graduate Show. Measom is currently offering a preview on his website. The rest can be seen on site from Friday, June 12 – Monday, June 15, with an exhibition launch party on June 11.

The exhibition will show at The Old Truman Brewery, 91 Brick Lane, London.

Rye Rye to Tour with A-Trak

No summer breaks for Rye Rye. The Baltimore rapper will see both the release of her debut album (originally slated for March release) and numerous tour dates that kick off in early July.

For the latter she’ll share the stage with Fool’s Gold boss A-Trak, on the 10,000LB Hamburger Tour. No clues as to how they came up with the name, but according to the Fool’s Gold website, “this will not be your average club gig.”

Meanwhile, look for Rye Rye’s debut to drop sometime this summer via M.I.A.’s label N.E.E.T.

10,000LB Hamburger:
07/05 Tampa, FL – Czar
07/08 Miami, FL – Liv
07/13 Phoenix, AZ – Club Red
07/14 San Diego, CA – Voyeur
07/16 San Francisco, CA – The Independent
07/17 Portland, OR – The Independent
07/18 Seattle, WA – Chop Suey
07/22 Vancouver, BC – Richards on Richards
07/23 Calgary, AB – Hi-Fi
07/24 Edmonton, AB – Star Lite Room
07/30 Ottawa, ON – Ritual Nightclub
08/01 Montreal, AC – Sat

Photo by Paul O’Valle

SA-RA Creative Partners “Bitch Baby”

L.A.-based hip-hop trio SA-RA Creative Partners will return with a new album, Nuclear Evolution: The Age of Love, which their longtime home Ubiquity is releasing. The group has leaked its first track off the album, the soulful, sultry “Bitch Baby.” Also look for Erykah Badu, The Gary Batz Quartet, Rozzi Dame, and others to appear on the new release.

Nuclear Evolution: The Age of Love is out June 23.

SA-RA Creative Partners – Bitch Baby

Prefuse 73 Everything She Touched Turned Ampexian

In the lightning-quick world of music, it’s easy to forget about an artist like Guillermo Scott Herren (a.k.a. Prefuse 73). Although the man has been firmly entrenched in hip-hop’s leftfield for more than a decade, nearly two years have passed since his latest release—quite an absence given Herren’s previously prolific release schedule and music heads’ increasingly shrinking attention spans. Perhaps sensing that the fitted New Era crowd had all taken to bumping Flying Lotus in the meantime, Herren has returned with a new Prefuse 73 album, Everything She Touched Turned Ampexian. Eschewing digital recording techniques for Ampex tape, Herren’s already emotive take on hip-hop production has been bathed in a warm analog hiss. Yet Everything is no major departure from his past Prefuse output, as listeners will quickly recognize Herren’s IDM-flavored beats, drone-y vocal samples, and ultra-precise editing. A few guests take part in the proceedings (Claudia Deheza from School of Seven Bells, The Gaslamp Killer, Zach Hill), but micro-editing renders their contributions virtually anonymous—it’s clear that Herren is front-and-center here, and this just might be his finest work since 2003’s classic One Word Extinguisher. Blowing through 29 tracks in 48 minutes, Everything certainly harkens back to One Word Extinguisher’s predilection for rapid-fire edits and audio snippets over drawn-out compositions. While Herren is a little manic, frantically jumping from one sonic idea to another (even within the course of a 60-second-or-less song), his expert construction weaves the litany of ideas into a coherent sonic tapestry. Ultimately, the individual tracks on Everything are meaningless—the album plays like a long-lost radio transmission and is best digested as a whole.

Das Bierbeben Das Bierbeben

This Hamburg/Berlin band often refreshingly intersects ’80s German new wave, Krautrock, and techno on their eponymous record. The album picks up its momentum once Das Bierbeben settles into the neon-lit, electro groove of “Wie Ein Vogel.” Other highs include the gliding synth riffs and light guitar shadings of “Delirium” and the Ladytron-meets-Stereolab pop of “Abschied.” However, Das Bierbeben sometimes falls into the common indie-rock trap of being too derivative of their influences, as “Wehr Dich Doch” resembles a vintage jaunt by U.K. post-punks Wire, if Colin Newman shüng in German. Also to be avoided is the irritatingly bratty dirge “Behind the Green Door.”

Bike for Three! “Way Back When (Greetings From Tuskan Remix)”

Canadian rapper Richard Terfry (a.k.a. Buck 65) and electronic musician Joelle Phuong Minh Le (a.k.a. Greetings From Tuskan) have never met in person, but they still managed to compile an album under their Bike for Three! guise. More Heart Than Brains was released on Tuesday, but here’s a glance at an even more distant past (2007), when Minh Le performed a remix on Terfry’s Buck 65 track “Way Back When.”

Bike for Three! – Way Back When (Greetings From Tuskan Remix)

New Mars Volta Music, Contest

If you’ve taken one too many Which Movie Star are You? Facebook quizzes and need a new way to pass the time, head over to The Mars Volta’s website. Omar Rodriquez-Lopez and Co. are gearing up for the release of their fifth album, Octahedron, and new music, along with pictures and other goodies, are hidden all over the interactive site. Just zoom in on the bright picture and look for the little gold plus signs dotted over the image.

Additionally, the band is looking for 10 to 15 of its biggest fans to host listening parties in their homes before the new album’s release date. Those interested should submit a message that details why they deserve to host said party. Submissions—due June 3—can come in the form of drawings, writings, YouTube videos, and the like.

New WHY? Album Announced

Bay Area-based art-hop trio WHY? just announced a follow-up to last year’s Alopecia. The new album, Eskimo Snow, will drop this fall via the label’s longtime home of anticon..

The band is currently working on the album art, while the 10 tracks slated to appear on the release are said to be finished. Interestingly, tracks on Eskimo Snow were recorded at the same time the band was making Alopecia, so expect some similar sounds to crop up on this latest offering.

The band will tour Europe in July, with one stopover in Israel:

07/01 Poznan, Poland – Stary Browar
07/02 Berlin, Germany – Festsaal Kreuzberg
07/03 Bremen, Germany – Breminale
07/04 Hamburg, Germany – Uebel Und Gefaehrlich
07/05 Utrecht, Netherlands – Tivoli
07/06 London, England – Garage
07/07 Brighton, England – Audio
07/08 Paris, France – Nouveau Casino
07/09 Liege, Belgium, Les Ardentes
07/10 Northeim, Germany – Waldbühne
07/11 Friedburg, Germany – ZMF Festival
01/12 Essen, Germany – Delta Park
07/15 Tel Aviv, Israel – Barry Club

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