Morrissey vs Russell Brand...Watch It Here

I've spent the better part of the week with the new Morrissey album, Years Of Refusal, in major rotation in my iTunes. I'll admit to being enough of a fanboy that Mozza would have to release an album full of Gregorian chant duets with MC Hammer for me to not like it, but I really think this one's a killer. It's definitely the most solid release since Your Arsenal, but not retro sounding in the least.

The Mozzer recently sat down with comedic nutjob/genius Russell Brand for a remarkably insightful chat...here's a segment (with more available here) :



Morrissey - Years Of Refusal


Catch Morrissey soon near you:
US Tour Dates:
March
6 Myrtle Beach. SC - House of Blues
7 Atlanta, GA - Variety Playhouse
9 Asheville, NC - Orange Peel
11 Durham, NC - Durham Performing Arts Center
13 Richmond, VA - The National
14 Washington, DC - Warner Theater
16 Montclair, NJ - Wellmont Theater
17 Pittsburgh, PA - Carnegie Music Hall
19 Buffalo, NY - University of Buffalo Center for the Arts
21 New York, NY - Bowery Ballroom
22 Philadelphia, PA - Acadmy of Music
25 New York, NY - Webster Hall
26 New York, NY - Carnegie Hall
28 Mashantucket, CT - Foxwoods
29 Boston, MA - House of Blues
31 Ann Arbor, MI - Michigan Theater
April
1 Columbus, OH - Palace Theater
3 Milwaukee, WI - Eagles Ballroom
4 Chicago, IL - Aragon Ballroom
6 Minneapolis, MN - State Theater
7 Kansas City, MO - Midland Theater
8 St. Louis, MO - Pageant Theater
10 Dallas, TX - Palladium Ballroom
11 Houston, TX - Jesse H. Jones Hall
12 Austin, TX - Bass Concert Hall
14 El Paso, TX - Chavez Theater
15 Albuquerque, NM - Sunshine Theater
17 Indio, CA - Coachella Festival

And as a bonus, here's the video for the album's "I'm Throwing My Arms Around Paris":

Chairlift Get Re-Release on Columbia, Announce Slew of Tour Dates

Dream-poppers and iPod ad legends Chairlift have their Does You Inspire You album, remastered and re-released with a couple bonus tracks through Columbia late next month. In the meantime, they've announced a ton of live dates, including a handful of SXSW gigs.

Here's the list:

SXSW DATES:
Thurs. 3/19 Other Music Showcase @ Red 7 - 12AM
Thurs. 3/19 Gigotron/Videothing Showcase @ Club 1808
Fri. 3/20 Urban Outfitters Party - 5PM
Fri. 3/20 Under the Radar Party @ Flamingo Cantina - 3:15PM
Sat. 3/21 Filter Magazine Party@ Cedar Street Cafe 1PM
Sat. 3/21 This Side Up Sounds Party @ Red Eyed Fly

Additional Dates with YACHT, Sebastian Tellier and Peter, Bjorn & John:

Chairlift Only
03/07/09 NEW YORK, NY- SANTO’S PARTY HOUSE

With Yacht
03/13/09 CLEVELAND, OH -GROG SHOP
03/14/09 CHICAGO, IL -SCHUBAS TAVERN
03/16/09 ST. LOUIS, MO-THE GARGOYLE
03/17/09 LAWRENCE, KS -JACKPOT
03/18/09 NORMAN, OK -OPOLIS PRODUCTION

With Yacht
03/22/09 DALLAS-FT. WORTH, TX -HOUSE OF BLUES-DALLAS
03/23/09 HOUSTON, TX -WAREHOUSE LIVE
03/24/09 BATON ROUGE, LA -SPANISH MOON
03/25/09 NEW ORLEANS, LA - HOUSE OF BLUES
03/26/09 TALLAHASSEE, FL- FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY, CLUB DOWNUNDER
03/27/09 ATHENS, GA -40 WATT CLUB

Chairlift Only
03/28/09 NASHVILLE, TN- EXIT/ IN

With Sebastien Tellier
04/13/09 SEATTLE, WA -CHOP SUEY
04/14/09 VANCOUVER, BC- RICHARD’S ON RICHARD’S
04/15/09 PORTLAND, OR -DOUG FIR LOUNGE
04/17/09 SAN FRANCISCO, CA -THE INDEPENDENT

Chairlift Only
04/19/09 DENVER, CO- BLUEBIRD THEATRE

Supporting Peter Bjorn and John
04/21/09 MINNEAPOLIS, MN -FINE LINE MUSIC CAFE
04/22/09 MILWAUKEE, WI -PABST THEATRE
04/23/09 CHICAGO, IL -METRO
04/24/09 NEWPORT, KY -SOUTHGATE HOUSE
04/25/09 TORONTO, ON- PHOENIX THEATRE
04/26/09 OTTAWA, ON- CAPITAL MUSIC HALL
04/27/09 MONTREAL, QC- LE NATIONAL
04/28/09 BOSTON, MA -PARADISE ROCK CLUB
04/29/09 NEW YORK, NY -WEBSTER HALL
04/30/09 WILLIAMSBURG, NY -MUSIC HALL OF WILLIAMSBURG
05/01/09 PHILADELPHIA, PA -WORLD CAFE
05/02/09 WASHINGTON, DC -9:30 CLUB

BONNAROO Festival
06/11/09 MANCHESTER, TN- BONNAROO

And here's the band's new video for "Evident Utensil":

Asobi Seksu Announce Full Tour, SXSW Dates

Asobi Seksu has announced a full set of tour dates in support of their new album, Hush, including an April 4th date at NYC's Bowery Ballroom.

Here's the whole shebang:

Asobi Seksu US Tour Dates

Mar 02 Montreal, QC @ La Sala Rossa
Mar 03 Toronto, ON @ El Mocambo
Mar 04 Pontiac, MI @ The Pike Room at Crofoot Ballroom
Mar 05 Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle
Mar 06 Bloomington, IL @ Illinois Wesleyan U.-Young
Mar 07 Minneapolis, MN @ 7th Street Entry
Mar 10 Seattle, WA @ Chop Suey
Mar 11 Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge
Mar 13 San Francisco, CA @ The Independent
Mar 14 Los Angeles, CA @ Troubador
Mar 15 San Diego, CA @ The Casbah
Mar 19 Austin, TX – SXSW @ Scoot Inn, 6pm
Mar 20 Austin, TX - SXSW: Polyvinyl showcase @ Habana Calle Patio 6, 1am
Mar 21 Austin, TX – SXSW: Filter Magazine party @ Cedar Street Courtyard, 2:30pm
Mar 22 Denton, TX @ Rubber Gloves
Mar 23 Baton Rouge, LA @ Spanish Moon
Mar 24 Memphis, TN @ Young Avenue Deli
Mar 25 Atlanta, GA @ Eyedrum
Mar 26 Chapel HIll, NC @ Local 506
Mar 27 Baltimore, MD @ The Ottobar
Mar 28 Washington, DC @ Rock and Roll Hotel
Mar 29 Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brenda’s
Mar 30 Cambridge, MA @ Middle East
Apr 02 New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom


Asobi Seksu - Me & Mary from Aaron Stewart-Ahn on Vimeo.

February's Bakers Dozen Downloads - The Proclaimers, Heartless Bastards, Gramercy Arms, Abe Vigoda, and more!

OK, so we've only got a week left in this short month, but better late than never! Here are thirteen sweet tracks for the takin', all extrawack! approved for your pleasure.

Heartless Bastards - "The Mountain" mp3

The Proclaimers - Life With You mp3

Gramercy Arms - Automatic mp3

Tortured Soul - "Did You Miss Me" mp3

Kelly Joe Phelps - "Western Bell" mp3

Abe Vigoda - "Don't Lie" mp3

Seth Walker - "Rewind" mp3

Heroes Of The Dancefloor - "Hooky" mp3

Jar-e - "An Idea" mp3

Laura Gibson - “Spirited” mp3

Buraka Som Sistema - “Kalemba (Wegue Wegue) Hot Chip Remix” mp3

Throw Me the Statue - "Ship" mp3

The Slate Pacific - "13 Kinds Of Chemicals" mp3

Video of the Week: "Count It Off" - The Saturday Knights

I was hipped to this video by The Saturday Knights by a friend of mine who happens to be a friend of the filmmaker, so I checked it out mostly as a favor to her. Turns out it is awesome, and now I can't get the song's hook out of my head. It's a perfect follow up for those who dug Kermit The Frog's appearance in LCD Soundsystem's "New York I Love You" video last year. It's also an official selection at this year's SXSW Film Festival.


"Count It Off" - The Saturday Knights from Lincoln Leopard Films on Vimeo.

The Saturday Knights - "Dog Park" mp3

The Black Keys' Dan Auerbach New Album, Unofficial Video, and Vinyl Giveaway

One of the best surprises of the new year so far has been the excellent new album from The Black Keys' Dan Auerbach, Keep It Hid.

Although it's chock full of that fuzzy blues (bluesy fuzz?) guitar he's best known for with The 'Keys, Keep It Hid also features some surprising departures from that signature sound.

To help you understand just how cool this album is, here's a video of Dan and his uncle, James Quine, playing "Trouble Weighs a Ton," the first track on Keep It Hid, in Dan’s Akron studio. It’s not an official video, just a little peek inside Dan’s studio, where he recently recorded Jessica Lea Mayfield’s record and the record for the band Hacienda, who will be Dan’s backing band on his upcoming tour:



To celebrate the release of Keep It Hid, extrawack! wants to give one lucky reader a copy of the album on vinyl, which is actually a single LP disk in a gatefold jacket with the complete album on CD included in the package. To win the swag, be the fifth correct answer to the question, "How many people are in The Black Keys?". Send your answer with "Dan Auerbach" in the subject line to extrawack@gmail.com. Contest open to U.S. residents only...sorry Greenland!

And speaking of the tour, here are the dates:

Feb 28 - 9:30 Club - Washington DC, Washington DC
Mar 1 - Paradise Club - Boston, Massachusetts
Mar 2 - Music Hall of Williamsburg - Brooklyn, New York
Mar 3 - Bowery Ballroom - New York, New York
Mar 5 - Beachland Ballroom - Cleveland, Ohio
Mar 6 - Metro - Chicago, Illinois
Mar 7 - First Avenue - Minneapolis, Minnesota
Mar 10 - The Showbox - Seattle, Washington
Mar 11 - Wonder Ballroom - Portland, Oregon
Mar 13 - Bimbo’s - San Francisco, California
Mar 14 - El Rey Theatre - Los Angeles, California

Sneak Preview of Depeche Mode's "Sounds of the Universe"

extrawack!'s Corey Vezina recently caught an advance listen of the new Depeche Mode album, Sounds of the Universe...here's his review:

Surely, you think, it must be some sort of trick. More mathematical cum financial sleight of hand bullsh*t from the pages of the paper you can’t bear to read anymore; Another of those things that reminds you of the precise reasons well all knew better than to do something as hopelessly square as pay attention in math class.

Depeche Mode, 30 years? Oh, f@ck off.

Yet, there they are. Just a year shy of the third decade -which almost no band ever sees- album 12, Sounds of the Universe, clangs loudly into the room, still confident and tight in black shades. Still dark. Still electric. Still here.

You may not remember their last two albums, Exciter and Playing the Angel. You’d be generally forgiven for that, dropping as they did in an almost hidden way, finding their pulsing way to the CD rack at Virgin to sit behind the re-pressings of Music for the Masses and Violator. Ultra, itself now a decade gone, was the last album to make anything like a wave, to bend your ear at times the way the songs always used to. The band spun into the inevitable solo projects and change of writers that always mark the sign of a good band falling finally and fully apart. Tracks began to spin more and more off of the tight electric axis they’d created. Surely, time had finally got the better of them.

But, they are not here to go quietly.

Following up on 2005’s Playing the Angel, Sounds... returns the dark, scratchy, bass-driven industrial electronic music that the band introduced on 1993’s Songs of Faith and Devotion. Long since gone are the synth-romance roots that popped and echoed through the dance clubs of the early 90s. Increasingly, the tunes are an edgy anti-pop, produced to a technically aggressive point intentionally beyond radio airplay. Music decidedly not for the masses. Understandably so at this point in their career...bitterness of experience aside, who has much left to say at 50 that they didn’t say at 20? Yet, it comes out at times as a brutish attempt to sonically remind of the steel toe in one’s boot. "We’re still loud, are you still with us?"

While surely the message of a given piece of music can be important and the statement it is making is can be impressive, at some point, songs become "good" or not when you sing them in the shower, or drum them into your steering wheel. This album seems orchestrated to not be consumed in so pedestrian a fashion.

The tight and wrought ballads are still there, Gahan’s crooning search for achieving a better version of himself continues, but expect a treatment quite similar to Playing the Angel, where Gore and Fletcher’s layering of the sounds takes you loudly the wrong way through the pipe organ. Where previous efforts would carry you away, it’s now on you to follow along.

Running about 57 minutes, the tracks include the single "Wrong", a strongly belted and thumpingly backed lament of running life’s chances quite off the rails, the slower tempo of "Peace" where Gahan takes a choral refrain right up the cliff into falsetto and "Fragile", another melodic bass track with a handful of the early background computer noises you got first on "New Life", if you’ve been around that long.

"Hole to Feed" is perhaps the best effort, again pulsating and upbeat about its darkness, though, it doesn’t quite reach the heights of Angel’s top single, "Precious". "Space Walker" is the "you get one every album" instrumental, Jezebel the "you get one every album" Martin Gore ballad, though, with a near Erasure vocal treatment.

All in, a solid album, though, with fewer songs you, a mere human, can sing along to. Like seeing that girl from high school at a 20 year reunion, you still feel the love, but you have to work harder now for the lust.

Full track list:

1. In Chains
2. Hole To Feed
3. Wrong
4. Fragile Tension
5. Little Soul
6. In Sympathy
7. Peace
8. Come Back
9. Spacewalker
10. Perfect
11. Miles Away / The Truth Is
12. Jezebel
13. Corrupt

Andrew WK & Cheeseburger @ Santos For Free This Friday Night

Adult Swim + Andrew WK + Cheeseburger +Jon Glaser + Free Admission = Awesomeness.

Friday night @ Santos Party House. What's not to like? See you there!



Cheeseburger - "Tiger" mp3