Music News 02/08/10

LCD Soundsystem is releasing a new album this spring despite rumors they were going on hiatus. James Murphy holed himself up in an LA mansion that doubles as a recording studio to record his third album under the moniker LCD Soundsystem. In order to hype the new album, Murphy has posted a video detailing the daily grind of recording an album in a mansion (http://www.vimeo.com/8939826). Murphy says recording in such an environment allowed him to better focus on his music. I am not sure how having a pool and a ping-pong table right next to the recording studio would help anyone focus on their art, but every artist has their methods. LCD Soundsystem has also just been added to the Pitchfork 2010 Music Festival lineup, and they will be playing the main stage at Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in April.

-Daniel Wipert

Speaking of Pitchfork Music Festival, they’ve pulled a hell of a coup with their initial lineup announcement. If they just put the three headlining acts on the stage with absolutely no supporting acts, they could charge what they wanted. But for one of the cheapest festivals in the country ($90 for a 3-day pass), you get three epic nights of music: Modest Mouse is the only band announced so far for night one, LCD Soundsystem and Raekwon will head up night two, and then, in possibly the best news festival fans could have asked for, Pavement(!) will headline night three along with St. Vincent, Lightning Bolt, Cass McCombs, Here We Go Magic (great live act, really friendly), and Sleigh Bells. I really hate promoting Pitchfork for any reason, but if you’re an indie rock fan, you’re pretty much required to at least try to get your hands on these tickets. I know I will. I mean, f***ing PAVEMENT!

http://www.pitchforkmusicfestival.com/

The festival runs Friday through Sunday, July 16-18. Tickets are on sale now (who knows how long they’ll last).

-Christian Hagen

Remember Men at Work? No, not that terrible/awesome movie starring Emilio & Sheen as garbage men that TNT would play approximately twice a week. The band! From the 80s! That played the killer saxophone-laden track “Who Can It Be Now?”! Well they also had a pretty big hit with the song “Down Under” (get it? because they’re Australian?) and now, twenty-some years after the peak of their success, they’re getting sued by Larrikin Music Publishing for including the refrain of a traditional Australian children’s song (“Kookaburra”) in the aforementioned worldwide hit. Why twenty-odd years later, you ask? Well, Larrikin managing director Norm Lurie just happened to one day recently be watching a TV game show in which the question asked of the contestant was “What children’s song is contained in the song ‘Down Under’?” and of course, the answer turned out to be a song that his company owned the publishing rights to. Now I have mixed feelings about copyright law when it comes to music, but sweet merciful crap, why are there statutes of limitation on things like rape but not copping melodies from songs you learned in Kindergarten?

-Chris Polley

The autopsy results were released last week for Jay Reatard, who died in January at the age of 29.  It was first reported that he died in his sleep, but the autopsy results showed that cocaine and alcohol were the main contributing factors in his death.  Born as Jimmy Lee Lindsey Jr., his career spanned over ten years and numerous full-length solo albums, EPs and albums with the band The Lost Sounds.  It may be old hat to hear of another musician dying from drugs and alcohol, but nonetheless it’s still tragic.

Jay Reatard – “It Ain’t Gonna Save Me”

-Felicia

And now, AudioSuede’s Weekly Playlist!

Chris - The title track from Toro y Moi’s debut album Causers of This is everything I can appreciate about this new outburst of “chillwave” music without any of the downfalls of the subgenre that experienced elitist indie backlash before it was even popularized. Groovy retro beats and crisp yet altered vocals are what it retains. Wandering psych abstractness is what it avoids.

Christian – I’ve been obsessing lately over two really fantastic European singer-songwriters in particular this week: Sweden’s The Tallest Man On Earth, who is simply incredbile in almost every way, and Iceland’s Emiliana Torrini, whose voice is gorgeous. How I never heard these artists before a few weeks ago is beyond me. I can only cite the failure of every blog on the planet to notify me instantly that such musicians existed. Well, I would like to rectify my previous lack of awareness by telling everyone I know: Listen to these two immediately!