When a poet/rapper as hardworking and praised as Sage Francis “discovers” an act, it’s a given that said act will prove an instant success with the fans. After an onslaught of shows with The Roots, and gigs as backing band for Sage during live performances, Sol.iLLaquists of Sound(SOS) has earned its artistic wings and is geared for its first-ever headlining tour. Beware: dreadlocked college girls and bearded, Birkenstocked graffiti writers are going nuts in anticipation.

The quartet–consisting of Swamburger (MC), Alexandra (vocals), DiVinCi (producer), and Tonya Combs (backing vocals)– attained a mass following with the release of its debut, As If We Existed, an amalgam of politically charged lyrics and soulful beats (complete with intricate, jazzy piano scales). Somewhere in between Lake Erykah Badu and Mount Common Sense is where these four Orlando-based musicians call home, and anyone looking to visit this promised land should check SOS at one of its live dates below.

As If We Existed is out now on Anti-.

A new force has collided with dance music. Its name: Fujiya & Miyagi. This British trio has gained a legion of followers (from James Murphy to Tiga) with its unexpected kraut-disco sound clash on its debut Transparent Things (yes, it’s a Nabakov reference). The album has bumrushed record crates galore and the trio is set to hit the road with Peter Bjorn and John this summer. The word “killer” now has a fragrance.

Download this song as an MP3, or preview a week’s worth of tracks at the XLR8R Podcast. Subscribe using iTunes or with an RSS reader of your choice.

You’ve seen Carl Craig exploring the outer orbits of S.F.’s Aquarius Records, Zion I in the studio, and the first installment of the XLR8R SXSW experience–where we shoved cameras in the faces of Cadence Weapon, Panthers, A-Trak, and others.

You thought that was wild? Wait until you see our Creative Director Brianna Pope in action on part two. For the second SXSW installment, XLR8R TV takes on the heart of the festivities, namely, the fans and party deviants. Microphone in hand, Brianna stalks music enthusiasts and finds out a thing or two about skin cream, chocolate salty balls, and why rock n’ roll is a dirty business.

Fred Miketa

Watch This Episode

Previous Episodes
Episode 1: DAT Politics, Zion I
Episode 2: Carl Craig
Episode 3: SXSW Part One

Multi-instrumentalists Paul de Jong and Nick Zammuto (a.k.a. The Books) kicked off another big Spring tour last week, which will keep them traveling from Austin, TX to Riga, Latvia for the next couple months. Known for incorporating an assortment of cellos, mandolins, acoustic guitars, bass, and a giant library of electronic samples into both recorded and live performances, de Jong and Zammuto will complement this new batch of tour dates with a DVD entitled Playall that illustrates their many musical talents. As its title suggests, the disc is yet-another chance to see the duo performing, only this time from the comfort of one’s sofa. Playall will be for sale at each stop on the tour.

Tour Dates
04/16 Philadelphia, PA: First Unitarian Church Sanctuary
04/17 Washington, DC: 9:30 Club
04/18 Asheville, NC: Orange Peel
04/19 Knoxville, TN: Bijou Theatre
04/20 Atlanta, GA: Variety Playhouse
04/21 Austin, TX: Antone’s
04/22 Malibu, CA: Malibu Performing Arts Center
04/23 San Francisco, CA: Great American Music Hall
04/24 Portland, OR: Aladdin Theater
04/25 Vancouver, British Columbia: Richard’s on Richards
04/26 Seattle, WA: Neumos
04/27 Minneapolis, MN: Walker Art Center
04/28 Chicago, IL: Old Town School of Folk Music
04/30 New York, NY: New York Society for Ethical Culture
05/02 Boulder, CO: Boulder Theatre
05/11 Copenhagen, Denmark: Komponent
05/12 Riga, Latvia: Soundforest Festival
05/15 Zagreb, Croatia: Teatar &TD
05/16 Rome, Italy: Teatro Palladium
05/17 Dublin, Ireland: Sugar Club
05/18 Belfast, Northern Ireland: The Black Box
05/19 Somerset, England: Butlins Minehead
06/02 New York, NY: World Financial Center

Those not in close proximity to Berlin must generally satiate their appetites for Ellen Allien’s DJ sets via her sporadic North American appearances (which generally pack venues room-to-room). Fortunately, the BPitch Control label boss is next in line to tackle London’s esteemed Fabric series, in which she’ll deliver a healthy dose of techno and dance music to fans worldwide.

The types of emotional, arpeggiated melodies and sounds Allien works with often seem to allude to and reminisce over rave (see Meinrad Jungblut’s “Sonnendeck,” on Flieg Mit Ellen Allien and Artificial Latvamäki’s “It is Not Now Either,” from this latest mix), not only in the context of the “new rave” movement, but also in the larger questions surrounding the genre: its place historically, what it meant 15 years ago, and what it means now. Allien continually shows, via her music choices, that the disconnect between dance music now and then isn’t as big as it may seem, and this ability to show the connecting threads between these eras is what makes her a fantastic DJ.

Fabric 34 is out June 26, 2007 on Fabric Records.

Tracklisting
1. Schubert “S1”
2. Larry Heard Presents Mr. White “The Sun Can’t Compare”
3. Estroe “Driven”
4. Damian Schwartz “Tu Y Yo (Peros Nos Volvemos A Levantar) (Pilas Remix)”
5. Don Williams “Orderly Kaos”
6. Melody Boy 2000 “Sound Stealer”
7. Artificial Latvamaki “It Is Not Now Either”
8. Cobblestone Jazz “India In Me 2”
9. Roman Flugel “Mutter”
10. Aste/Maan “Aaltovaihe”
11. Thom Yorke “Harrowdown Hill”
12. Ellen Allien “Just A Woman”
13. Ben Klock “Journey”
14. Heatthrob “Baby Kate (Plastikman Remix)”
15. Apparat “Arcadia”