Garage, noise rockers A Place To Bury Strangers have a new EP coming out Feb 7th on Dead Oceans titled Onwards To The Wall. A tour with Joy Formidable set for the Spring as well, and this little snapshot video for “So Far Away”

A Place to Bury Strangers “So Far Away” from Secretly Jag on Vimeo.

Being one of my top picks for bands to see at this past Fun Fun Fun Fest, I have to admit that I was a bit disappointed that M83‘s set took place during the daylight hours. Some things are just meant to be enjoyed in the cover of darkness with fancy lights.

Well, the chance to see M83 again here in Austin will present itself once again next May at Stubb’s. Pre-sale tickets are available now, believe it or not, and I’m willing to wager that this one will sell out.

Full updated tour dates and ticket info HERE.

And, if you haven’t check out the band’s 2011 release Hurry Up We’re Dreaming you are missing out on what is certainly going to be a frequenter on year end lists.

Not nearly as frightening as the name might suggest, UK’s The Horrors kicked of a U.S. tour early this month in support of their most recent release Skying, that will find them taking to the beloved Parish stage in Austin on 9/21. If you’ve had your fill of the electronic bleep blip, dj riddled, get so friggin happy scene, like myself, The Horrors inspire memories of Bauhaus, Peter Murphy, and even Echo and The Bunnymen at times. It’s okay to wallow in darkness every now and then. That’s why we have Prozac.

The Horrors w/The Stepkids opening things up at The Parish. Doors @ 8p.m. TICKETS

MP3> The Horrors ‘Moving Further Away’

The Horrors US tour:

9/21 – Austin, TX – The Parish
9/23 – St Louis, MO – The Firebird
9/24 – Minneapolis, MN – Triple Rock
9/25 – Chicago, IL – Lincoln Hall
9/27 – Toronto, ON – Lee’s Palace
9/28 – Montreal, QC – Cafe Campus
9/30 – Washington, DC – Black Cat
10/1 – Asbury Park, NJ – ATP
10/2 – Philadelphia, PA – World Cafe Live
10/3 – Allston, MA – Brighton Music Hall
10/4 – New York, NY – Webster Hall

Former Pavement (love ya!) frontman Stephen Malkmus and his Jicks band are set to release their 5th full length recording on August 23rd, titled Mirror Traffic, and the press surrounding the album suggests that this might be the bands best work to date. If you are interested in checking it out, you can find Mirror Traffic streaming in it’s entirety over at NPR. We’ve got the track “Senator” here for you as well. You know what a Senator wants? Just take a listen.

MP3> Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks ‘Senator’

Tour dates below as well, with no Austin date currently scheduled, but you would have to believe that Malkmus wouldn’t pass up the opportunity to play our fine city.

Stephen Malkmus and The Jicks – TOUR DATES

8/23 – Los Angeles, CA Amoeba Free All Ages Instore Performance – 6pm
8/25 – Brooklyn, NY Academy Free All Ages Instore Performance – 6pm
8/25 – Manhattan, NY Other MusicFree All Ages Instore Performance – 9pm
9/20 – Detroit, MI, Majestic Theater
9/21 – Toronto, ON, Phoenix Concert Theatre
9/22 – Ottowa, ON, Ritual
9/23 – Montreal, QC, Corona Theatre
9/24 – Boston, MA, Royale
9/26 – New York, NY, Terminal 5
9/28 – Philadelphia, PA , Theatre of Living Arts
9/29 – Baltimore, MD, Ram’s Head Live
9/30 – Charlottesville, VA, Jefferson Theater
10/1 — Saxapahaw, NC, The Haw River Ballroom
10/2 – Atlanta, GA, Variety Playhouse
10/4 – Nashville, TN, Mercy Lounge
10/5 – Indianapolis, IN, Earth House
10/6 – Chicago, IL, Vic Theatre
10/7 – Milwaukee WI, Turner Hall
10/8 – Minneapolis, MN, Pantages Theatre
10/11- Seattle, WA, Neptune Theatre – (with Ty Segall)
10/12 – Vancouver, BC, The Biltmore Cabaret – (with Ty Segall)
10/13 – Portland, OR, Crystal Ballroom – (with Ty Segall)
10/16 – San Francisco, CA, Treasure Island Music Festival
10/19 – Los Angeles, CA, The Music Box – (with Ty Segall)
10/20 – Solana Beach, CA, Belly Up Tavern – (with Ty Segall)

I’m not sure why I’ve neglected to spend any time with David Bazan‘s solo work much less his outfit Pedro the Lion, but hearing “Strange Negotiations” early today on KEXP has me scratching my head as to why. Upon some quick Internet investigation seeking some possible live dates, I found this interesting post on Bazan’s site. It seems that there is a very interesting approach to a tour in the works. A living room tour. And they are looking for people to offer up their living rooms for very intimate shows. Great idea, and I wish my living room was bigger.

The Wooden Birds, which you could might call an Austin band, but more like an all-star band consisting of frontman Andrew Kenny (American Analog Set, Broken Social Scene), Matt Pond (Matt Pond PA), Leslie Sisson, drummer Sean Haskins and Chris Hansen (Matt Pond PA) are coming to rest from a US tour playing Mohawk this Wednesday. The band recently released their second album Two Matchsticks this past June 7th on Barsuk and has received some favorable press.

“Patient, generous, and smart” – Pitchfork
“Perfect for summer days and lemonade.” – MTVHive

The Wooden Birds  @ Mohawk show @ 10 p.m.  ((sounder)) opens

Check out the video for the title track “Two Matchsticks”

Jeff the Brotherhood have album number 2 set for release later this month, June 21st to be specific, titled We Are The Champions. This is my first listen to this band, and right off the bat..I’m diggin it.

Check out the video for “Hey Friend” directed by Lina Plioplyte.

Check out Jeff The Brotherhood on tour: Read more

Call it a publicity stunt, or the work of a crazy man, but an unreleased video for Titus Andronicus’s “A More Perfect Union” is being held hostage and may possibly be destroyed if the band’s most recent video for “No Future Part Three: Escape From No Future” doesn’t get 100,000 views by June 7th. Whatever the case may be, a few minutes of your day spent watching the “No Future Part Three: Escape From No Future” video is a few minutes of your day well spent. Work sucks, your boss is a d***, and your co-workers are a bunch of lame idiots…watch a video and save music.

The band is also hitting the road with locals Okkervil River

Dates:

Transmission Entertainment has teamed up with the new (ish) ACL Live Moody Theater once again, to present a pretty choice show for locals and by locals. Austin’s instrumental rock band, with the name that sums up their sound quite perfectly, Explosions in the Sky will take to the Moody Theater on June 17th. The band will be fresh off their 6th studio album release Take Care, Take Care, Take Care which sees the street on April 26th. Reviews for the album have been quite favorable, and if you care, you can find the album streaming in it’s entirety on the band’s website.

Tickets for the show go on sale this Friday 4/22 @ 10 a.m.

The Antlers just released a track from their upcoming Burst Apart album which is set for release on 5/10 on the Frenchkiss label. “Every Night My Teeth Are Falling Out” is a curious title for a song, and one that I can say I can relate to, unfortunately. Hate those dreams. Despite the cringe title, the song has me incredibly curious about this band that I have yet to invest much time. That’s about to change, and with the upcoming tour dates, looks like the live session isn’t far away as well. Austin will see the band on 6/07 @ Emo’s.

You can pre-order Burst Apart now with a variety of options available.

MP3> The Antlers ‘Every Night My Teeth Are Falling Out’

The Antlers tour dates Read more

Take the darkness from Bauhaus, add the up tempo dance feel of New Order and throw in some Clan of Xymox and Wolfgang Press for spice and Cold Cave is what you get. A modern day version of some of the my favorites from the 80′s and they call this genre Darkwave. Whatever you want to call it, I kinda like it. Maybe because it sifts through memories that I thought were long gone by this point.

Cold Cave have a new album coming out next Tue 4.5 titled Cherish the Light Years, and they have just released the second single from the recording titled “Villians Of The Moon”.

The band his the road with a smattering of support dates for The Kills, finding themselves here in Austin on April 20th @ La Zona Rosa. Tickets still available HERE.

MP3> Cold Cave ‘Villains of the Moon’

Cold Cave Tour Read more

If you haven’t checked out EELS, then now is a great opportunity to do so. One of the few bands that arose in the 90′s with the hit “Novocaine For The Soul”, that has managed to slither and slide it’s way through an ever evolving landscape of modern music and always manages to stand tall amongst it all. 9 full-length recordings under his belt, EELS leader Mark Oliver Everett, aka E, takes the band on 2 1/2 month long 2011 world tour and offers up a free 3-song EP featuring tracks from the band’s latest trilogy of recordings, Hombre Lobo, End Times, and Tomorrow Morning to celebrate.

The North American leg of the tour kicks off here in Austin at Stubbs, and you can bet we’ll be there to watch this modern rock mainstay explore their comprehensive catalog of music that has stood the test of time and wears it well.

DOWNLOAD the EELS Trilogy EP

And for old times sake..

MP3> EELS ‘Novocaine For The Soul’

And the World Tour Read more

Luke Temple and company have managed to keep themselves busy with a constant touring schedule and recorded releases close enough together to hold our attention. The hard work pays off for fans with another opportunity to catch the Here We Go Magic’s live performance just around the corner, as well as with newly recorded material set for a May 10th release. Listen to the first track released from the The January EP, “Hands In The Sky” and one isn’t lead to believe that this will be much of a diversion from that familiar Here We Go Magic sound.

MP3> Here We Go Magic ‘Hands In The Sky’

North American Tour: Read more

The Philadelphia based 2 man chill-wave band Work Drugs have come a long way in a very short period of time. The band sent out their first track “Third Wave” in early Jan of this year. No plans to put out an album, tour, or any of the usual moves that a band makes when they unleash their music on the public’s ears. Just a curious experiment to see what the response would be, and the response was pretty good. Another single shows up a bit later, and then one more not long after that. And now where do we find the band, consisting of Benjamin Louisiana and Thomas Crystal? Prepping to self release a very limited edition recording titled Tropic of Cancer/Capricorn on April 1st. The sale of the recording is to help with the band’s expenses on their upcoming tour which includes several dates in support of Two Door Cinema Club. Not a bad few months for Work Drugs you might say.

You can purchase Tropic of Cancer/Capricorn HERE

Check out the “official” first single from Tropic of Cancer/Capricorn

MP3> Work Drugs ‘Curious Serge’

Work Drugs Tour:

APRIL 2011 TOUR

02APR2011 – Johnny Brenda’s, Philadelphia, PA

SUPPORTING TWO DOOR CINEMA CLUB

06APR2011 – First Avenue Varsity Theater, Minneapolis, MN*
07APR2011 – Park West, Chicago, IL*
08APR2011 – Beaumont Club, Kansas City, MO – Middle of the Map Festival!*
11APR2011- Venue, Vancouver, CA*
12APR2011- The Showbox at the Market, Seattle, WA*
14APR2011- The Fillmore, San Francisco, CA*

The Walkmen have always been one of those bands that I consider one of the more relevant and respectable bands in the current music scene, but don’t find myself spending a whole lot of time with their recorded material. Not that it isn’t great, it just has this feel of time and place that only feels right on occasion. They are a modern rock band that exists in textures and sounds that seem timeless. They are also one of my favorite live performance memories since I began this blog. A performance at The Parish that was flawless, executed in the minimal of conditions for most bands. An old piano, vintage guitars with no effects, a drum kit wearing a few miles graciously, and songs perfectly delivered bringing the past and present together in a way that it was impossible to stop listening.

The band makes a stop at Stubbs this Friday 3/4  in support of their latest recorded material Lisbon and on the heels of a recently released video for the track “While I Shovel The Snow”.

Get tickets to the show. Locals TV Torso open.

Check out the video..

And go HERE for more video and downloads from the band.

And they’ve got some tour dates ahead with The New Pornographers

March 3 Fitzgerald’s Houston, TX

March 4 Stubb’s Bar-B-Que Austin, TX

March 5 Granada Theater Dallas, TX

April 22 The Vogue Indianapolis, IN*

April 23 House of Blues Cleveland, OH*

April 25 Town Ballroom Buffalo, NY*

April 26 Bogarts Cincinnati, OH*

April 27 University of Iowa Iowa City, IA*

April 28 Canopy Club Champagne, IL*

April 29 Blue Note Columbia, MO*

April 30 Norman Music Festival Norman, OK

June 9-12 Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival Manchester, TN

* with The New Pornographers