Guided by Voices to Break Up After Next Album
Tobin Sprout shrugs, waits patiently for reunion tour

Inevitability: it's inevitable. Some institutions become so entrenched in our collective psyche that their disappearance seems an impossible fantasy. The Roman Empire waned, which must have seemed as absurd a proposition to its citizens as the fact that the United States will also one day pass seems to many of us. Venice and California will shear off and subside under the sea. Even the sun will eventually expend the last of its stored energy and blink out like a bulb. So it should come as no great shock when our most beloved long-running bands eventually throw in the towel; nevertheless, when it happens, it remains a jarring reminder of transience.

With the advent of Guided by Voices' recent box set and best-of compilation, Human Amusements at Hourly Rates, we should have seen that last nail poised above the coffin. After nearly 20 years and 15 full-length LPs (counting their upcoming swan song, but not any of the Fading Captain stuff because, frankly, oh my god); after numerous EPs, singles, side projects, box sets and compilations; after two decades of beer-swilling, mic-twirling, back injuries, line-up shifts, prolific four-tracking, and fully cementing their entry in the indie rock canon, Guided by Voices will call it quits at the end of 2004.

The official website of Dayton, Ohio's lo-fi laureates announced the decision late yesterday, with a quote from Pollard regarding the band's forthcoming final album, Half Smiles of the Decomposed, which is set for release via Matador on August 24th. "This feels like a last album for Guided by Voices," Pollard said. "I've always said that when I make a record that I'm totally satisfied with as befitting a final album, then that will be it. And this is it." Guided by Voices reportedly recorded 15 songs with Todd Tobias at Waterloo Studio in Kent, Ohio. While there is, as of now, no official tracklist, there is a purported one floating around the Net. I gleaned this one from gbvdb.com, a Guided by Voices database, but cannot in good faith vouch for its veracity. Nevertheless:

01 Asphyxiated Circle
02 Closets of Henry
03 Everybody Thinks I'm a Raincloud (When I'm Not Looking)
04 Gonna Never Have to Die
05 Huffman Prairie Flying Field
06 Sing for Your Meat Leon
07 Sleepover Jack
08 Sons of Apollo
09 The Girls of Wild Strawberries
10 Tour Guide for the Winston Churchill Memorial
11 The Window of My World

According to Billboard.com, Pollard also announced the break-up at a show on Saturday evening at New York's Bowery Ballroom. "That's it," Pollard reportedly said an hour into the set. "You can't be the Rolling Stones. You've gotta quit while your relatively handsome." He added: "We are the kings of indie rock. When we quit, indie rock will die." As message boards light up with threads weighing Pollard's relative winsomeness; The Death of Indie Rock becomes the most hotly debated topic since Roland Barthes' The Death of the Author.

The Guided by Voices website also maintains that the band will embark on a final tour this year, and that Pollard will continue to write, record and probably tour as a solo artist. "I love the guys in the band," Pollard explains, "but I'm getting too old to be a gang leader. There's a sense of maturity, and even integrity, I think, in continuing as one's own self." One's own self will have to wait a while for details of the full tour, but Matador's website has a few dates listed for GBV in June. Watch me jumpstart:

06-17 Champaign, IL - The High Dive (w/The Waxwings)
06-18 Iowa City, IA - Gabe's Oasis (w/The Waxwings)
06-19 Lawrence, KS - Wakarusa Festival (w/The Donnas)

Guided By Voices: http://www.gbv.com
Matador: http://www.matadorrecords.com

Wu-Tang Clan to Call It Quits
Wu-Wear's "Garment Renaissance" comes to a end; RZA now just sporting loincloth, Tec-9

NME.com reported last night that the legendary Staten Island hip-hop supergroup, Wu-Tang Clan, are planning one final ruckus-bringing before calling it quits after a 12-year run that will have produced five full-lengths, one unbridled classic, and perhaps more solo spinoffs than any group in hip-hop's storied history. Fresh off soundtrack work for Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill trilogy (Hollywood reports there will be a third) and production on fellow Clan member Ghostface Killah's new Pretty Toney Album, The RZA told NME, "I don't think the fans have closure on Wu-Tang and I think they deserve it." Although, if it's anything like Iron Flag, maybe it'd be better to just give it a rest already.

In case this new album is the bad retarded, too, RZA adds that yet another full-length-- hell, maybe even two-- could follow it: "If the group itself feels the vibe and wants to continue, then maybe two more albums, but at least one more album that will give closure to the Wu-Tang legacy." Okay. Well, the group is planning to enter the studio in late summer to lay down tracks for this "final" album. Otherwise, we can all rest assured that Raekwon will go back to cooking up some more marvelous shit-- The Lex Diamond Story, friends-- while the others continue copping oversized promotional Wu-Wear from the trunk of RZA's new whip.

The good news is, the Wu have lined up a handful of performances slated to hit the European festival circuit this summer: The group is expected to appear at the London Hammersmith Carling Apollo (show your love!) on July 8th, as well as Scotland's T in the Park Festival on July 10th and Ireland's Oxegen Festival on July 11th. RZA, GZA/Genius, Ghostface Killah, Raekwon, Method Man, Inspectah Deck, Ol' Dirty Bastard, U-God and Masta Killa will all unite on the same stage for these shows for the first time in-- no shit-- ten years. Sounds crazy, but remember GZA's prophecy: "When we really get to where we got to go... that's when you know it's on."

Wu-Tang: http://www.sonymusic.com/labels/loud/wutang

Orbital to Disband After Next LP
Aww, just when chillout was about to make a comeback...

In 15 years, techno mainstays Phil and Paul Hartnoll have covered a lot of ground. All Melvilles aside, hailing Orbital to be the most successful crossover group of the electronic persuasion would not be an inordinate boast. With six full-length releases under their belt, as well as an incalculable number of singles, soundtrack offerings, remixes and collaborations, the boys are finally ready to end it all.

"I think we feel that Orbital has run its course," said Paul Hartnoll via the official Orbital site. "We're both pursuing different avenues with our music. And we've been sat, as brothers, in the same room for 15 years now-- and studios are always confined spaces-- I think it's time for a change."

Before closing the curtain on their decade-and-a-half discography, the duo is set to release their final record, entitled The Blue Album (Weezer mash-up comment withheld for the sake of humanity) on June 21st. Says Paul of the swan song's sound: "It's closer in character to our first album than our later ones, if only because we made it in our own time and for ourselves." Confirmed titles so far include "You Lot", "Acid Pants", "Bath Time", "Easy Serve", and "One Perfect Sunrise", the latter featuring Dead Can Dance vocalist Lisa Gerrard. The album will be followed by two final British concerts, showcasing the duo's legendary finesse. As follows:

06-25 London, England - Brixton Academy
06-27 Glastonbury, England - Glastonbury

Orbital: http://www.loopz.co.uk

Denali: "We Cannot Continue in the Current State!!!"
This is why you don't form a band with your sister

Denali, the Richmond, VA band featuring Engine Down's Keeley Davis and his younger sister Maura, have issued an official press release announcing the group's breakup. According to the release, interpersonal strife may be to blame: "Due to differences in the band, Denali cannot continue in the current state." Although the announcement is a bit abrupt, it's not entirely unexpected, as Keeley and drummer Jonathan Fuller departed a couple of months ago. Unfortunately, this development means that the band will not be fulfilling their touring duties as a part of the Plea for Peace tour with Cursive, Darkest Hour, and Mike Park. They leave behind two full-lengths on Jade Tree, and a footnote in the annals of emo-rock. Later, dudes.

Denali: http://www.denalimusic.com

The Cure to Release 13th Album in June, Announce Street Date for First Set of Expanded Reissues
Chris Ott confides he "has to turn away to keep from bursting"

The Cure have revealed plans to release their forthcoming 13th full-length on June 22nd, according to a report from Billboard. Though details are still a bit sketchy, the album, which is yet to be titled, is apparently being produced by Korn and At the Drive-In producer Russ Robinson. The record will be issued on Robinson's fledgling I Am Recordings label, which, weirdly, will make The Cure official labelmates of The Blood Brothers, Glassjaw, and September.

Though fans are concerned that Robinson's harder-edged style could detract from or overdigitze the band's trademark atmospherics, The Cure's decision to hire Robinson marks a step up from their previous two albums, which were produced by longtime engineers Paul Corkett (Bloodflowers and Steve Lyon (Wild Mood Swings)-- neither of which had much experience under their belt as full-fledged producers: Corkett had previously only produced for Suede and Placebo, while Lyon had only one production credit, for The Creatures.

The Cure are scheduled to promote the new release a week from today on NBC's The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, and have also announced a handful of live dates-- including a headlining performance on the second night of the Coachella Festival on May 2nd. The group will then hit Washington, DC's RFK Stadium on May 22nd, alongside Jay-Z, Modest Mouse and Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and will also be making the rounds on the European festival circuit this summer. Additionally, an extensive North American tour is reportedly planned to kick off in late July, though dates have not yet been revealed. Dates, as they stand currently:

04-30 Los Angeles, CA - The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
05-02 Indio, CA - Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival
05-22 Washington, DC - RFK Stadium
06-26 Hamburg, Germany - Hurricane Festival
06-27 Stuttgart, Germany - Southside Festival
07-09 Manchester, England - Move Festival
07-10 Naas, Ireland - Oxegen Festival

In related Cure news, the band are apparently about the become the latest beneficiaries of Rhino Records' apparent campaign to offer expanded reissues of the complete discographies of every band that ever found a home in the Warner/Elektra/Atlantic stable. Four of The Cure's early albums are being eyed for an August 17th re-release-- including their 1979 debut, Three Imaginary Boys, 1980's Seventeen Seconds, 1981's Faith, and 1982's Pornography-- with the remaining albums to follow, Costello-style, over the next 18 months. Tracklists, however, have yet to be announced.

Those of you wondering if there'll be anything left over for the bonus discs of The Cure's forthcoming expanded reissues after the recent release of the four-disc rarities/b-sides box set, Join the Dots, can rest assured: The Cure vaults contain more than 4,000 tapes of scrapped recorded output spanning the band's entire 25-year history.

The Cure: http://www.thecure.com

Merge Celebrates 15th with 3xCD Comp, Concert
In stark contrast to Mac McCaughan's 40th, spent weeping in the dark over Blue Bunny ice cream, Home Improvement reruns

It's a forgivable offense to occasionally confuse Merge Records with Matador Records-- after all, they start with the same letter, they've worked with some of the same artists, they're both on the Eastern seaboard, and yes, they've both been around for 15 years. It's almost eerie, really. A scant two weeks on the heels of Matador's announcement of their 15-year bonanza (translation: a compilation, a concert), Merge have announced their own 15-year bonanza (comp, concert). However, Merge's strategic marketing divisions seems to have one up on Matador, as their details are already nailed down.

First up, on July 13th, will be a three-disc compilation of Merge artists past and present, entitled Old Enough to Know Better. Fans will note that Merge's ten-year celebration only rated one disc, so they're upping the ante this time, with two discs of previously released material, and one of rare and hard-to-find non-album tracks (a la Matador's ten-year Everything Is Nice comp).

It couldn't have been a simple task to weed through 15 years of records and pare it all down to just two discs, and for the most part Merge has done a fine job, but the all-inclusiveness does have a downside-- there's a fucking Music Tapes track. It's nearly at the end of disc two, though, so you can just shut that shit off after The Clean. All proceeds from Old Enough to Know Better-- which, incidentally, will run you a mere $14.98-- will go to the Future of Music Coalition, which is, for the record, a fine destination for your money. The goodies:

Disc 1:
01 Neutral Milk Hotel: "Song Against Sex"
02 Superchunk: "Cool"
03 Butterglory: "She's Got The Akshun!"
04 3D's: "Beautiful Things"
05 East River Pipe: "Shiny Shiny Pimpmobile"
06 The Clientele: "(I Want You) More Than Ever"
07 Guv'ner: "Break A Promise"
08 Lambchop: "Your Fucking Sunny Day"
09 Pram: "Track Of The Cat"
10 Polvo: "ragic Carpet Ride"
11 The Magnetic Fields: "Long Vermont Roads"
12 Portastatic: "Noisy Night"
13 Buzzcocks: "Jerk"
14 Spent: "Excuse Me While I Drink Myself To Death"
15 Rock*A*Teens: "Hwy R"
16 Ganger: "Cats Dogs & Babies Jaws"
17 Beatnik Filmstars: "Now I'm A Millionaire"
18 The Ashley Stove: "Dancing Music"
19 Breadwinner: "Exploder"
20 Pipe: "Chula"
21 And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead: "Mistakes & Regrets"

Disc 2:
01 Spoon: "Anything You Want"
02 The Ladybug Transistor: "Oceans In The Hall"
03 M. Ward: "Outta My Head"
04 Versus: "Eskimo"
05 Third Eye Foundation: "In Bristol With A Pistol"
06 Imperial Teen: "Ivanka"
07 Bricks: "A History of Lies"
08 Matt Suggs: "Where's Your Patience Dear?"
09 Annie Hayden: "Slip Is Showing"
10 David Kilgour: "Today Is Gonna Be Mine"
11 Seaweed: "Thru The Window"
12 Erectus Monotone: "Old New"
13 Destroyer: "Modern Painters"
14 Paul Burch: "Isolda"
15 Mad Scene: "Spilled Oranges"
16 The Essex Green: "Late Great Cassiopia"
17 The Karl Hendricks Trio: "Naked And High On Drugs"
18 The Rosebuds: "What Can I Do?"
19 The Clean: "E Motel"
20 The Music Tapes: "An Orchestration's Overture"
21 Spaceheads: "Angel Station"

Disc 3 (new/previously unreleased/hard to find):
01 M. Ward: "One More Goodbye"
02 Angels Of Epistemology: "Fiction Romance"
03 The Radar Brothers: "Painted Forest Fire"
04 Portastatic: "Some Small History"
05 The Ladybug Transistor: "Jersey Streets"
06 Camera Obscura: "San Francisco Song"
07 Shark Quest: "Monsters"
08 East River Pipe: "Chrystal Queen"
09 The Essex Green: "Mendicino"
10 The Clientele: "Where The Universes Are"
11 Richard Buckner: "Dogwood"
12 The Rosebuds: "Happily Ever After"
13 Crooked Fingers: "La Maleta Fea"
14 Spent: "Corvette Summer"
15 Spoon: "Decora"
16 Destroyer: "Streethawk II"
17 Lambchop: "The Gap In My Education (Berman)"
18 Superchunk: "Freaks In Charge"
19 David Kilgour: "On The Outside"

Oh yeah, we said a show, too, right? Well, it's a little more than that. The cream of Merge's crop will play over the course of four nights (historians will note: one more than at the ten-year shindig), three of which will take place at the Cat's Cradle in Carrboro. The fourth night of the festival will take place at the Carolina Theatre in Durham, presumably to make a little more room for the many, many musicians who take the stage when Lambchop plays (not to mention the additional string section that will be attending this performance).

We don't have any specific details, but Merge is reportedly also trying to "set up some other periphery events around the shows." Will there be face painting? Water balloon fights? Civil War reenactments? Or just heavy drinking? Only time will tell. Tickets for all shows will go on sale May 1st. Lineups:

07-29 Carrboro, NC - Cat's Cradle
Superchunk, M. Ward, The Essex Green, Richard Buckner, The Rosebuds

07-30 Carrboro, NC - Cat's Cradle
Crooked Fingers, Camera Obscura, Versus, Radar Bros., Portastatic, Double Dynamite

07-31 Carrboro, NC - Cat's Cradle
Spoon, Destroyer, Ladybug Transistor, Matt Suggs, Shark Quest

08-01 Durham, NC - Carolina Theatre
Lambchop, The Clientele, David Kilgour

Merge: http://www.mergerecords.com

Sloan Embark on North American Tour
But are stopped at border for impromptu John Entwistle impression

I'm as much of a sucker for a cheap joke about Canada as the next guy, but whenever I want to feel good about our frosty neighbors to the North, I remember that they've been kind enough to share some kick-ass music with us-- not to mention the fact that they actually play the good stuff on the radio instead of banishing it to the far corners of low-power college broadcasts. The contributions of Canada to the annals of popular music are quite extensive, but this time around, we're talking about Sloan. Yes, it's been nearly two years since the fab foursome have graced us with a major U.S. tour, but they're back, and look out, son, 'cause these shaggy cock-rockers came to smack your ass with an aggressive dose of sunshiny pop.

Sloan are touring in support of their seventh and latest album, Action Pact, which was released in Canada this past August, but until now had only been available as an import. That oversight, however, will be remedied on May 11th, as Koch Distribution (home to such prestigious acts as Chumbawamba, Ringo Starr and Jimmie's Chicken Shack) gives the album a Stateside release. Dates:

04-23 Peterborough, ON - Club Vibe
04-28 London, ON- The Drink
04-29 Kitchener, ON- Element
04-30 Ottawa, ON - Capitol Music Hall
05-01 Montreal, QB - Club Soda
05-05 Bowling Green, OH - Howard's Club
05-07 New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom
05-08 New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom
05-09 Philadelphia, PA - T.L.A.
05-11 Boston, MA - Paradise Rock Club
05-13 Washington, DC - Black Cat
05-14 Carrboro, NC - Cat's Cradle
05-15 Atlanta, GA - Cotton Club
05-16 Nashville, TN - Exit / In
05-18 Cincinnati, OH - 20th Century
05-19 Cleveland, OH - Grog Shop
05-20 Grand Rapids, MI - Intersection
05-21 Buffalo, NY - Infinity
05-22 Chicago, IL - Metro
05-23 Detroit, MI - St. Andrew's Hall

Sloan: http://www.sloanmusic.com
ViK: http://www.vikrecordings.com

An Apology to Jim Guthrie, Who Is Touring Canada
Fuck the rest of y'all pisspigs

To be honest, I didn't think Guthrie had it in him. Hobbling onto the "hey, I'm a solo-artist now" scene in 1999 as some guy from Royal City, his debut, A Thousand Songs, was a jarring combination of muddled eccentricity, experimentalism and, uh, pop-ism. The songs were alright, sure, but his caterwauling folk deconstructions just didn't do it for me. So, writing Guthrie off as one of those failed attempts at finding a stage, a stool and an audience for songs better left in the bedroom, I didn't bother with his 2002 follow-up, Morning Noon Night. But, last year, Jim re-entered my consciousness somethin' serious with Now, More Than Ever. Gone was the electronic parsley. Gone was the Playstation production. And in its place, Guthrie gloriously opted for STRING SECTIONSSSS! And remarkably improved songsmanship. So, I report the following tour dates as an apology to Jim-- manifest in the form of half-assed Pitchfork journalism, of course. But, Canada, you play a part in this apology, too. If you don't mind, on one of the dates below, could you do your old reporter-friend Rob a favor and stop in at your local club to see Jim's set? It'll be good. Maybe it'll have strings. Dates:

04-23 Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada - Pyramid Cabaret %
04-24 Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada - Louis U Of Sask.%
04-26 Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada - The State %
04-27 Calgary, Alberta, Canada - Carpenters Union Hall %
04-29 Calgary, Alberta, Canada - Liberty Lounge %
04-30 Edmonton, Alberta, Canada - Sidetrack %
05-01 Edmonton, Alberta, Canada - Seedy’s %
05-03 Victoria, British Columbia, Canada - Logan’s %
05-04 Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada - Brickyards %'
05-05 Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada - Railway Club *
05-07 Calgary, Alberta, Canada - Weeds *
05-08 Edmonton, Alberta, Canada - The Black Dog *

* with Nathan Lawr
% with The Constantines

Three Gut: http://www.threegutrecords.com

The Decemberists Gear Up to Record Next Album, Premiere Songs on Newly Announced Tour Dates
A tale of 26 cities

I tell you, it's getting so you can't swing a dead cat without hitting The Decemberists! Colin Meloy and his merry band are heading out on their umpteenth swing through these here United States, proving once and for all how much they really like their tour bus (and you!). However, this time around, they do have an ulterior motive-- one that should give you a reason to turn off the TV, hit the club, and see them again: They'll be previewing some of the songs to be featured on their upcoming album.

Pitchfork contacted Meloy and confirmed that The Decemberists are planning to head into the studio this summer to record their third full-length for Kill Rock Stars. If you're keeping count, that'll make three albums and two EPs in the same time that The Cure have released... well, basically nothing.

This latest round of dates is actually the second leg of the "Never Send to Know With Whom the Van Rolls, It Rolls With Thee" tour, and if you think we're kidding, you can head on over to The Decemberists' website and buy a t-shirt to that effect. And several other effects. They'll be supported by The Long Winters and The Places (but not The The) on all dates, except May 19th and June 18th, both of which are festival shows. Insert obligatory list of dates, cities and clubs here:

04-30 Seattle, WA - Crocodile Cafe
05-01 Seattle, WA - Crocodile Cafe
05-27 Portland, OR - Aladdin
05-28 Vancouver, British Columbia - Richards on Richard
05-29 George, WA - Sasquatch Festival
05-31 Salt Lake City, UT - Lo Fi Café <br> 06-01 Denver, CO - Gothic Theater
06-03 Minneapolis, MN - 400 Bar
06-04 Chicago, IL - Metro
06-05 Detroit, MI - Shelter
06-06 Toronto, Ontario - Lees Palace
06-07 Montreal, Quebec - El Salon
06-08 Hoboken, NJ - Maxwell's
06-10 New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom
06-11 New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom
06-12 Boston, MA - Paradise
06-14 Washington, D.C. - 9:30 Club
06-15 Philadelphia, PA - TLA
06-16 Carrboro, NC - Cat's Cradle
06-17 Atlanta, GA - Echo Lounge
06-18 Birmingham, AL - City Stages Festival
06-19 Nashville, TN - Exit/In
06-21 Dallas, TX - Trees
06-22 Austin, TX - The Parish
06-24 Tucson, AZ - Plush
06-25 San Diego, CA - Casbah
06-26 Los Angeles, CA - El Rey
06-27 San Francisco, CA - Great American Music Hall
06-28 San Francisco, CA - Great American Music Hall

The Decemberists: http://www.decemberists.com
Kill Rock Stars: http://www.killrockstars.com

More North American Tour Dates for the Pixies
David Lovering to set off baking soda volcano as encore

Operating like the naughty subject of a press secretary's wet dream, the Pixies haven't stopped popping up in music news outlets since launching their new reunion tour. As the tour progresses, the buzz only grows, and the recent leakage of the official bootleg from their recent Minneapolis performance has certainly done nothing to combat the excitement. At this point, the only real negativity heard regarding the tour has been some fans' worries that they won't be able to get tickets. And some fans certainly won't. Consider that most tickets sell out within mere minutes of going on sale, and even the first night of the gargantuan Coachella festival in Indio, California-- the night the Pixies will grace the stage-- have sold out as well. Many may point out that the ticket sales for that night could also be due to the fact that Radiohead, Kraftwerk, and Death Cab for Cutie are also playing, but since that really doesn't jibe with the flow of this story, we'd thank you not to bring it up again.

Luckily, some of those fears have been squashed as the band, keeping with the tradition of letting the news leak in a steady stream, have just announced even more dates for their reunion tour. As information begins to solidify about the massive amounts of people who are just dying to see the band, several cities are seeing second, third, and even fourth dates announced. Rock on, Chicago:

>> Remaining North American dates:
04-22 Vancouver, British Columbia - Commodore Ballroom
04-23 Vancouver, British Columbia - Commodore Ballroom
04-24 Spokane, WA - Big Easy
04-25 Boise, Idaho - Big Easy
04-27 Eugene, OR - MacDonald Theatre
04-28 Eugene, OR - MacDonald Theatre
04-29 Davis, CA - Freeborn Hall
05-01 Indio, CA - Coachella Festival
09-04 Bend, OR - Les Schwab Amphitheatre
09-06 Seattle, WA - Bumbershoot Festival
09-18 Austin, TX - Austin City Limits
09-24 Berkeley, CA- U.C. Berkeley Greek Theater
09-25 Berkeley, CA- U.C. Berkeley Greek Theater
10-13 Atlanta, GA - Fox Theatre
10-14 Atlanta, GA - Fox Theatre
11-11 Minneapolis, MN - Wilkins Auditorium
11-13 Chicago, IL Aragon Ballroom
11-14 Chicago, IL Aragon Ballroom
11-15 Chicago, IL Aragon Ballroom
11-16 Chicago, IL Aragon Ballroom
11-24 Toronto, Ontario - Arrow Hall

Pixies: http://www.pixiesmusic.com
4AD: http://www.4ad.com

Jay-Z Mashups Officially Out of Hand: Slack Album
Spiral Stairs, Beanie Sigel plan Pimpin' School of Jiggatry side project

Aww, not again! First came The Grey Album, DJ Danger Mouse's clever mashup of Jay-Z's Black Album rhymes and The Beatles' White Album. But since then, DJ Danger Mouse has inspired other Black Album related mashups, such as the ridiculous Metallicated Black on Black Album and the Weezer sendup, The Black and Blue Album. And it didn't end there...

Next in the series of unending Jay-Z mashups is The Slack Album, created by heretofore unknown (at least by me, and let's be honest, probably you) DJ N-Wee. Here, DJ N-Wee pits The Black Album against Pavement's canonical Slanted and Enchanted. It's darkest before the dawn, folks-- other propositions we've heard include: The Crack Album (Jay-Z vs Rick James), The Jack Album (Jay-Z vs White Stripes), and The Zach Album (Jay-Z vs Saved by the Bell).

The Slack Album is comprised of 14 tracks, about half of which are conventional hip-hop tracks. As N-Wee explains on his website, he's "going for a mix of bizarre lo-fi hip-hop, uneducated art noise, and humor..." Since both the original source albums have 14 songs, the mashups are made "track-for-track," meaning you get such deranged hybrids as "Change Clothes" and "Conduit for Sale!", "Dirt Off Your Shoulder" and "Zurich Is Stained", and of course, "99 Problems" and "Here".

As of today, the album has officially been completed, and is available via BitTorrent from the official Slack Album website. 28-year-old N-Wee tells Pitchfork that he created the tracks "on a lark... The a cappella vocals were available, I was bored, downloaded them, tried a few things out one afternoon, and figured I might as well finish it. Everybody has pointed out how brilliant Jay-Z was to make the a cappellas widely available, and I do wish that more of my favorite hip-hop artists would do the same thing."

N-Wee didn't pick Slanted and Enchanted for any particular reason: "The choice was really just another lark. Sure, [there are] 14 tracks on each disc... and there are other nice coincidences, like the fact that the last song on each album is the only song on either album in 6/8 time. But The Slack Album was really just one title on a silly list of unlikely hybrid possibilities that I made up after downloading the vocal tracks. Since most of my friends are bigger Pavement fans than they are of Waits or Beefheart [the other considerations for mashup], I made a few tracks to make them laugh. The tracks I banged out in an hour or whatever worked a little better than I thought they probably should. So I decided to take it on as a bigger project, a 'fun challenge.'"

N-Wee doesn't plan to release the album commercially, unlike The Grey Album, to hopefully avoid some of the related legal issues. However, The Slack Album will be available on various file-sharing networks, and from the album's webpage. Tracklist:

01 Interlude
02 Trigger 4th
03 What More Can I Singe
04 In The Mouth, An Encore
05 Change Conduits
06 Zurich Your Shoulder
07 Chesley's Little Threat
08 Loretta Clarity
09 99 Problems Here
10 Two States' Public Service Announcements
11 Perfume-V My Thug
12 Famed Lucifer
13 Jackals, Allure - The Lonesome Era
14 Our First Singer

The Slack Album: http://www.theslackalbum.com

Mogwai, Boards of Canada, Four Tet Remix Boom Bip
Lali Puna: "Willkommen zum Terrorkuppel!"

It's the boom, bip, the boom Boom Bip, and on May 5th, he's gearing up to release a remix compendium titled corymb, which is set to feature remixes of his songs by his pals in cLOUDDEAD-- who combine instrumental soundscaping, laptop glitchery, and post-rock drama-- as well as various bright lights of the outré electronica scene like Boards of Canada, Venetian Snares, Lali Puna, and Four Tet. Oh yeah, and Mogwai's in there somewhere. Call within the next five minutes and you'll also receive a handful of Peel Sessions and previously unreleased tracks. Zzrp:

01 From Left to Right
02 Last Walk Around Mirror Lake (Boards of Canada remix)
03 The Unthinkable featuring Buck 65 (Venetian Snares remix)
04 Closed Shoulders (cLOUDDEAD remix)
05 First Walk (Peel Session)
06 Morning and a Day
07 Awaiting an Accident (Lali Puna remix)
08 Third Stream (Four Tet remix)
09 The Use of Unacceptable Colors in Nature (Mogwai remix)
10 In the Tree Top
11 Pulse All Over (Peel Session)

Seized by the joyous remix frenzy of this increasingly incestuous scene, Boom Bip is returning the favor in spades. An embarrassing moment reportedly occurred when he was asked to remix a Boards of Canada remix of a cLOUDDEAD remix of a Lali Puna song, and, upon completing it, discovered that he had actually mixed it back to its original form! These things happen. Presently, you kids can catch his remixation on Amon Tobin's Verbal Remixes, Smyglyssna's We Can Fix It Remixes, Mountaineers' Belgique Limb, and Pet's Snooze. In progress are remixes of Mogwai, The Free Design, Her Space Holiday, Lali Puna, and a Harvest Records remix project including Sonic Youth, Jim O'Rourke, Sigur Rós, and others. He's also planning the release of a brand new album that should be in the can and ready to be remixed into oblivion by late spring or early summer.

Lex: http://www.lexrecords.com

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