PlayOrDownload Music Blog

Of Montreal Unveil “Skeletal Lamping Collection”

ron — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 18:09:34 +0000

“A world without objects is a sensible emptiness,” the poet Richard Wilbur once wrote. Guess ol’ Wilbur won’t be preordering any of the awesomely ridiculous digital download packages for Of Montreal’s forthcoming Skeletal Lamping– you know, the tote bag, or the wall decals, or the freakin’ paper lantern. Hey man, his loss.

And besides, Kevin Barnes calls the sensibility of an object-free world into question in a manifesto released to Pitchfork today and entitled “We Will Only Propagate Exceptional Objects”, which explains the motivations behind the so-called “Skeletal Lamping Collection”.

As Barnes writes, “We’ve always felt that the packaging was just as important as the music inside of it. We’ve worked within the constraints of conventional album packaging, and have tried to create something fantastically uncommon every time.

“We find ourselves in the middle of an exciting epoch: A time when new technology has shattered the conventional business model and has set a paradigm shift in motion. For some people in the music biz, this is terrifying. For us, it is a fucking miracle! While the kings are in a stupor, we are going to take full advantage of the changing guard.”

That said, Barnes isn’t down with useless clutter, which is why he and the band decided to “produce [only] objects that have a function and that can be treasured for their singularness…objects that can transform a room, bend the mind, and inform your dreams.” Totally, dude.

Muses Barnes in conclusion, “We hope this idea catches on and, in the future, square CD packaging will be abandoned forever and only interesting art objects will fill record stores. We envision a time when you’ll be walking around your local record shop and be like, ‘What’s the new Radiohead album again? Oh yeah, a bonsai tree in the shape of a deformed goat, I see it over there.’”

To be fair, Kev, Radiohead have done pretty well already in the unconventionalpackagingdepartment.

Take a closer look at some of Of Montreal’s exceptional (and functional!) objects below, where you’ll also find the complete text of Mr. Barnes’ eye-opening and very-much-worth-reading essay.

As reported last week, Skeletal Lamping and all accompanying goodies are now due October 21 via Polyvinyl, while a white label “Id Engager” remix 12″ lands September 30 via Mad Decent.

Chat consumer theory with Barnes at the merch table (irony!) as he and Of Montreal take to the road beginning October 7 in Durham, North Carolina.

T-shirts

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Pitchfork.tv: One Week Only: High School Record [ft. Mike Watt and members of No Age and Mika Miko; music by Dan Deacon, No Age, and more]

ron — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 16:09:13 +0000

This quirky 2005 film from writer/director Ben Wolfinsohn follows the lives of fictional California high schoolers making their way through a tumultuous senior year. The movie features acting performances by two generations of the L.A. rock underground, including members of No Age, Lavender Diamond, Mika Miko, and the legendary Mike Watt. On the soundtrack are tunes by Dan Deacon, No Age, Jad Fair, the Chicago Underground Quartet, and more. Fun fun!

Check the High School Recordwebsite for more information, and you can buy it here from Amazon.

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Bob Dylan Pre-Release Stream

ron — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 13:09:38 +0000

NPR MUSIC TO STREAM ENTIRE BOB DYLAN ALBUM, TELL TALE SIGNS, WEEK AHEAD OF RELEASE
FULL ALBUM AVAILABLE AT NPR MUSIC BEGINNING SEPTEMBER 30

Bob Dylan

NPR Music will exclusively stream Tell Tale Signs, the highly-anticipated forthcoming album from Bob Dylan, beginning Tuesday, September 30 at midnight, one week ahead of the album’s release on October 7. The entire two-CD, 27-song set will be available to hear on-demand at NPR Music for the week leading up to its release.

Tell Tale Signs is the eighth installment in Dylan’s “Bootleg Series,” and features previously unreleased recordings, live performances and alternate versions of songs recorded during sessions for some of his most acclaimed albums, Oh Mercy and Time Out of Mind among them. Also included on the album are Dylan’s recordings for the soundtracks of the films “Lucky You,” “Gods & Generals” and “North Country,” as well as “32-20 Blues,” his first ever release of a Robert Johnson song.

The complete track listing for Tell Tale Signs and additional information about the album will be available at NPR Music starting tonight, where there is also an extensive archive of past interviews with, and music by, the legend: www.NPR.org/music.

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Guns N’ Roses’ Chinese Democracy Coming to a Best Buy Near You Sometime This Year, Apparently

ron — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 14:09:12 +0000

Photo by George Chin

Clear a little room in your fridgethe RAWK section of your record shelf: According to Billboard.com, Guns N’ Roses’Chinese Democracy will indeed be released before the year’s up. And it’s an exclusive deal with blue-and-yellow store Best Buy. Details on the release– okay okay, EVERY LITTLE THING ABOUT IT, including more on this lamewad Best Buy business– will presumably follow soon.

But Chinese Democracy, an album three Bush terms and a decent chunk of a bailout check in the making, will actually be a thing you can buy in your lifetime. I know, right? It feels weird just to type.

In other GN’R news, lead single “Shackler’s Revenge” is in the recently released Rock Band 2, and that Skwerl guy’s only gonna be shopping at Circuit City from now on.

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MSTRKRFT Kick Off “Fist of God” Tour

ron — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 12:09:27 +0000

What oh what have we done to call forth the “Fist of God” and let it descend upon us? Well, really, we were just looking to dance.

That’s right, the “Fist of God” tour is coming fast and hard, bringing with it the likes of hockey mask donning Toronto electro-funkers MSTRKRFT. The jaunt begins in L.A. tonight (September 26), and continues across North America for a month and then some.

All this comes in advance of MSTRKRFT’s previously discussed sophomore album, not coincidentally called Fist of God. Barring any intervention from on high, that one should hit shops January 6 thanks to Dim Mak/Downtown. Details on the disc are scant at this point– intentionally so, I’m told– but the first big reveal on the collabo-friendly set is a guest verse from N.O.R.E. Ain’t nothin’ wrong with that.

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Beck/Reatard Single to Hit U.S., Deluxe LP Box Out Now

ron — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 13:09:38 +0000

Just in time for lead vest season, Beck and Jay Reatard will beam that “Gamma Ray” single on over to the States in the coming weeks.

You know, “Gamma Ray”, the one that’s out now in Europe via XL and finds Beck’s original cut from Modern Guilt joined by Jay’s own take on the tune? The set, which emerges digitally Stateside September 30 and on vinyl October 7 from Interscope, also sports a non-album cut from Mr. Hansen entitled “Bonfire Blonde”.

Beck also has a rather elaborate vinyl box set of his 2006 LP The Information out this very instant from Artist in Residence. For the price of $175 American, you’ll receive the album on four 180 gram virgin vinyl 12″ LPs and one 140 gram virgin 10″. What’s more, those nifty sticker sets that came with the CD release have been resized to match the scale of the handcrafted, individually-numbered clamshell box a little better. This monster also comes with a 24-color fine art pen set for all your doodling needs, and it’s limited to 3,000 copies worldwide. I mean, jeez, just look at the thing.

Furthermore, Beck has added a few dates to his already-in-progress North American tour since our last report.

As for Jay, he’ll be back in Memphis this weekend for a show before he hits the road in earnest next month. That compilation of Jay’s recently wrapped Matador singles series, Matador Singles 08, is due October 6 in the UK and October 7 in the States from Matador.

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On Repeat: Hauschka : “Freibad” [MP3]

ron — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 12:09:05 +0000

Volker Bertelmann’s Hauschka project is on the verge of releasing a new album, Ferndorf, on Fat Cat, and it’s a good ‘un. While continuing with the German composer’s interest in prepared piano– the instrument is still at the center of the music, alternating percussive metallic plinks and plunks with the untreated notes– Ferndorf fleshes out the pieces with additional instrumentation including cello, violin, and trombone. “Freibad” is a nice illustration of how it works when it all comes together, as it begins with a mournful cello section sprinkled with some string-jingling keyboard treatment, and then launches into a strutting middle section where the various chunks of melody and counterpoint lock together tightly like pieces in a puzzle. Check out this live video while you’re at it.

MP3:>Hauschka: “Freibad”
[from Ferndorf; due 10/07/08 on Fat Cat]

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The Bird and the Bee Wield Ray Guns on New Album

ron — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 15:09:59 +0000

Photo by Autumn de Wilde

Now let me tell you ’bout the Bird and the Bee and their forthcoming LP. It’s called Ray Guns Are Not Just the Future, and it’s due January 27 from Blue Note. The disc is the jazzy L.A. pop duo’s follow-up to their 2007 self-titled debut, and because it comes out in 2009, it is indeed like an album from the future. Teach us more, magical fauna of tomorrow!

In the stark reality of today, however, the Bird and the Bee are touring through the next week or so. Though they do have a date off in March. Which is totally the future. A future where we will have ray guns. Etc.

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Jamie Lidell Kicks Off Tour

ron — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 12:09:04 +0000

Hyperkinetic loon (and we mean that in the best way possible) Jamie Lidell launches into the home stretch today (September 26) with dates that will carry him across the world until Christmas, save for a month off in the middle. Today he plays twice: at the Austin City Limits festival, and at the Parish in Austin.

Lidell’s been going non-stop this year in support of his new album, Jim, but for those who haven’t caught him and his new-ish backing band yet, below we have a video of them performing “Figured Me Out” live at this year’s Lowlands Festival in the Netherlands. The clip is vocoderiffic.

There are some slight changes to Lidell’s itinerary since our last report. Now, in addition to his jaunt with Elton John, he’s also got a handful of dates with Janelle Monáe.

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Video: Coldplay: “Lost” (Live)

ron — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 14:09:00 +0000

Curiosity killed the cat. Don’t count your chickens before they hatch. The early bird catches the worm. A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. “You might be a big fish in a little pond,” Coldplay sing on Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends anthem “Lost“, doing a good job of making little ideas fill a big venue in this soaring live performance. What can I say? It’s the straw that broke the camel’s back. What’s good for the goose is good for the gander. There’s plenty more fish in the sea.

[original version from Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends; out now on Parlophone / Capitol]

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