Although the number of ’60s throwback bands has undoubtedly reached the thousands, few outfits pay homage to early electronic pioneers like Silver Apples and The United States of America. Enter Maus Haus, a San Francisco sextet whose offbeat brand of mod-pop eschews guitars in favor of whirring vintage synths and oddball orchestral flourishes. Birthed during a series of impromptu jam sessions, a few songs on Lark Marvels veer toward unfocused wonk, but overall, the band’s sound is refreshingly loose and unpolished. “We Used Technology (But Technology Let Us Down)” recalls the deadpan mope of Grandaddy, while the album standouts “Rigid Breakfast” and “Reaction” feature psychedelic freakouts worth remembering.
“I am a child of the ’70s whose sense of furturism is informed by Star Wars… a future with entropy, and drug use, and weeds growing in the cracks between the scratched Plexiglass windows of geodesic domes.”
So says Megan Whitmash, and the visual artist will bring her words to life on February 21 when she unveils a new exhibition, The Fucking Crap of Life, at the New Image Art Gallery in Los Angeles.
As can be surmised from the exhibition’s name, the theme here is junk—piles of it, to be displayed all over the gallery. “When I make a giant mountain of handmade trash, I am lost in the fun of making and feel like a kid building a fort,” she says.
Works by C.F. and Matt Furie will also show. An opening reception will take place on Saturday, February 21 from 7 to 10 p.m., and the exhibition runs through March 21.
Though it’s not completely shutting down shop, influential Chicago label Touch and Go has confirmed it will shut down its distribution arm.
Started in 1980 by Corey Rusk, the label has been home to countless acts, from Jesus Lizard and Slint to Blonde Redhead, !!!, and TV on the Radio. It has also become a known distributor of other independent labels like Drag City, Merge, Suicide Squeeze, and Jade Tree.
Citing the economic downturn as the reason for the decision, the label stated, in a press release this morning, “We can no longer afford to continue this lesser known, yet important part of Touch and Go’s operations. Over the years, these labels have become part of our family, and it pains us to see them go. We wish them all the very best and we will be doing everything we can to help make the transition as easy as possible.”
This won’t be the complete end of T&G, as the label itself will be “returning to its roots and focusing solely on being an independent record label.”
Omar-S has been on the radar of many lately, what with his new Fabric mix about to drop, but fans in California won’t have to twiddle their thumbs until the compilation’s March 16 release date to get a taste of the Detroit producer.
The man born Alex Omar Smith will make his West Coast performance debut on February 20 in Los Angeles, and if you enjoy both techno and the color purple, this event should satisfy. Planet Purple, which is part of a new event series put on by L.A.-based party Compression, will live up to its name by featuring bartenders and security staff clad in the aforementioned color, while Smith, along with Bodycode, bring the music.
Location is undisclosed as of yet, so check the party’s MySpace page for info on just which downtown L.A. warehouse you should head to this Friday evening.
Barcelona based indie-rockers Delorean have released three albums and currently run a club night, “Desperrame,” which has featured guests like Radioclit, The Requesters and Fluokids. Now, they’ve gotten their hands on this sentimental track from their new favorite band, The Big Pink. This remix of “Too Young to Love” boosts the British group’s sprawling shoegaze with sparkling, uptempo pop, complete with Peter Gabriel-worthy hand claps, bongo accents and maracas.
Ramona Gonzalez and Emily Jane, collectively known as minimalist dream-pop duo Nite Jewel, start our morning off with this track from their forthcoming debut full-length, Good Evening. Nothing like a few wobbly synths and some reverb-drenched vocals to get the day started.
Dance Mother is a record that might prompt snarky thoughts of “Wow, anyone can be in a band these days.” After all, Telepathe’s Melissa Livaudais and Busy Gangnes aren’t particularly gifted vocalists, and their music is often a sparse collection of synth bleeps and drum-machine beats. That’s not to say that Dance Mother is a bad album—on the contrary, the Brooklyn duo’s debut full-length is a rather charming affair. From the Gary Numan-esque electro-pop of “So Fine” to the swirling synth shoegaze of “Can’t Stand It,” Telepathe knows its strengths and doesn’t overreach. Producer David Sitek (and his collection of analog synths) helps ensure that Telepathe sounds great—somehow the spare arrangements, unpolished vocal harmonies, and odd lyrical choices (there are a lot of unexpected “fucks”) all work. Maybe anyone could have made this record, but Telepathe did make it, and it’s a good one.
South By Southwest, WMC, and other festivals are upon us, as evidenced by this week’s roundup of artist tours. When not in Austin or Miami, the likes of YACHT, Italoboyz, Nite Jewel, and others will be performing in Europe, North America, Australia, and El Paso.
Without further ado, this week’s dates:
Nite Jewel Relative newcomers to the scene, Ramona Gonzalez and partner-in-crime Emily Jane are catching ears with the minimalist dance-pop they make as Nite Jewel. See the lovely (and well-dressed) ladies on the road this spring as they support their debut album, Good Evening. Photo by Cap’n John.
02/28 Los Angeles, CA – Occidental College 03/05 Montreal, QC – Zoobizarre * 03/07 New York, NY – Le Poisson Rouge * 03/09 New York, NY – Other Music 03/11 Northampton, MA – Smith College 03/12 Annandale-on-Hudson, NY – Bard College 03/19 – 03/21 Austin, TX – SXSW 04/26 Los Angeles, CA – The Smell #
* = w/ Glass Candy ^ = w/ Grouper
Dub Trio Not many artists we cover play shows in Atlantic City, but Dub Trio tours so damn much, unlikely show destinations are bound to crop up once in a while. Here’s yet-another slew of dates. Photo by Dennis Kleiman.
02/18 London, ON – Call the Office 03/02 New Orleans, LA – House of Blues 03/04 Atlanta, GA – Tabernacle 03/05 Orlando, FL – House of Blues 03/07 Orlando, FL – House of Blues 03/09 Richmond, VA – The National 03/10 Boston, MA – House of Blues 03/11 Rochester, NY – Water Street Music Hall 03/12 Rochester, NY – Water Street Music Hall 03/13 Atlantic City, NJ – House of Blues 03/14 Washington, DC – Shamrock Festival 03/17 Chicago, IL – Congress Theater 04/13 Minneapolis, MN – Triple Rock Social Club 04/14 Milwaukee, WI – Shank Hall 04/16 Chicago, IL – Bottom Lounge 04/17 Cleveland, OH – Beachland Ballroom 04/19 Allston, MA – Harpers Ferry 04/20 Buffalo, NY – Nietzsche’s
Italoboyz From Milan to Miami (and El Paso), Marco Donato and Federico Marton are taking their Italoboyz blend of house, techno, and other danceable genres around the globe, including two shows at this year’s Winter Music Conference.
02/20 Brisbane, Australia – Bar Soma 02/27 Melbourne, Australia – La Di Da 02/28 Sydney, Australia – Kink 03/01 Sydney, Australia – Lady Lux 03/06 Berlin, Germany – Weekend 03/07 Milan, Italy – Limelight 03/27 Miami, FL – WMC 03/28 Miami, FL – WMC 04/04 El Paso, TX – D’Club
Alice Russell Ever the enthusiastic traveler, U.K. soulstress Alice Russell will be back on the road at the beginning of March, to grace the U.S. with tunes from her recently released Pot of Gold, a title that pretty much sums up her voice. Photo by Digby Oldridge.
3/05 Washington, DC – Bohemian Caverns 3/06 Philadelphia, PA – World Cafe 3/07 Cambridge, MA – Middle East 3/08 New York, NY – Le Poisson Rouge 3/11 Pittsburgh, PA – Club Café 3/12 Detroit, MI – Cliff Bells 3/13 Chicago, IL – Schubas Tavern 3/14 Minneapolis, MN – Cedar Cultural Center 3/15 Madison, WI – Café Montmarte 3/21 Los Angeles, CA – Troubadour 3/22 Costa Mesa, CA – Detroit Bar 3/24 San Francisco, CA – Yoshi’s 3/25 San Francisco, CA – Yoshi’s 3/26 Seattle, WA – Nectar Lounge 3/27 Portland, OR – Holocene
YACHT In certain circles, Jona Bechtolt needs no introduction, having packed every hipster club from Portland to Paris in the last few years. Alongside first mate Claire Evans, he’ll be circling the globe again, and this time around, he has invited Valet’s Adam Forkner to be the “third vertex of the YACHT triangle.” Photo by Sarah Meadows.
02/22 Los Angeles, CA – The Roxy 02/27 Melbourne, Australia – Prince Bandroom * 02/28 Sydney, Australia – Randwick Racecourse 03/01 Perth, Australia – Wellington Park 03/05 Sydney, Australia – The Metro * 03/07 Brisbane, Australia – Doomben Racecourse 03/08 Melbourne, Australia – Flemington Racecourse 03/09 Adelaide, Australia – Rundle Park 03/12 Las Vegas, NV – Beauty Bar 03/13 Cleveland, OH – Grog Shop ^ 03/14 Chicago, IL – Schubas Tavern ^ 03/16 St. Louis, MO – Gargoyle Club ^ 03/17 Lawrence, KS – The Jackpot Saloon ^ 03/18 Norman, OK – Opolis ^ 03/19 Austin, TX – SXSW 03/20 Austin, TX – SXSW 03/21 Austin, TX – SXSW 03/22 Dallas, TX – House of Blues ^ 03/23 Houston, TX – Warehouse Live ^ 03/24 Baton Rouge, LA – Spanish Moon ^ 03/25 New Orleans, LA – House of Blues ^ 03/26 Tallahassee, FL – Club Downunder ^ 03/27 Athens, GA – 40 Watt Club ^ 04/10 New York, NY – The New Museum 05/01 Copenhagen, Denmark – VEGA 05/02 Krems, Austria – Donaufestival 05/07 Marseille, France – L’Espace Sextius 05/08 Luxembourg, Luxembourg – Exit07
* = w/ CSS ^ w/ Chairlift # = w/ Antony and the Johnsons, CocoRosie, Stereolab, Aphex Twin
It’s a shame this collaboration will likely remain dwarfed by Fennesz’s masterful and justifiably ballyhooed solo record, Black Sea—this is no less impressive, and arguably bolder. Fennesz is, of course, the tremendous brain behind numerous ambient-plus guitar/electronics syntheses; Austrian drummer Martin Brandlmayr has worked with post-rock outfits Trapist and Radian, and double-bassist/electronics player Werner Dafeldecker is part of Autistic Daughters, among others. The record’s first half—the 35-minute title track—is a spliced tectonic drift, starting and ending in gnarled electronics and bridged by a glitchy ambient plateau of slipping and wobbling tonalities. The remainder of the record is largely devoted to a more post-rock sound, albeit abstract and improvised, with Brandlmayr’s restrained drumming bringing us back to solid ground.
In the second of our three-part series focusing on visual artists featured in XLR8R‘s Vis-Ed special edition, we talk to Joseph Ari Aloi, better known as JK5. A tattoo artist and obsessive illustrator, Aloi spins everyday iconography—logos, characters, political figures, etc.—into something much less mundane and much more psychedelic.
