CHRIS COHEN OF CRYPTACIZE MIXES A MIX

April 19th, 2009 , by

Chris Cohen of Cryptacize has put together quite a 19 song mix for The blog Porch of Mystics. He works Tom Zé with Meat Puppets. Of course, it’s great. So mosey on over to the Porch and download it here.
And don’t forget, Cryptacize’s new album, Mythomania, is due April 21st. You can preorder the CD and/or vinyl right here.

TODAY IS RECORD STORE DAY!

April 18th, 2009 , by

Today (Saturday, April 18th) is Record Store Day! That means that your local, independent record store is probably doing some pretty interesting stuff today, including in-store shows and giveaways and party hats (ie. DM Stith is at Bloomington, Indiana’s infamous Landlocked Music tonight at 6pm). So why are you sitting there reading this? Go already! And tell them "thanks a lot for existing guys!"

Details here, (or here to find a participating store near you).

GALA BENT ART SHOW IN SEATTLE

April 17th, 2009 , by

Gala Bent is a frequent contributor to Asthmatic Kitty in several ways. In addition to frequently reviewing for the Sidebar (see her posts here), Gala has also illustrated several of our artists’ covers (here and here). She is a dear friend to the label.
Her art is distinctive, kind, and penetrating. And if you live in Seattle, you can see it on paper. Gallery4culture in Seattle is currently showing Overgrown, a dozen or so of her drawings until May 1st. Details are here. You can also read an interview with Gala here, where she talks a bit about her art and its inspirations. If you live in the area, we recommend you make a visit.
Click more to see a few more glimpses of her work.

WHAT TO DO THIS WEEKEND (WTDTW)

April 17th, 2009 , by

Via our Twitter account, some stuff to do this weekend. Fri- The Welcome Wagon in Princeton, NY @ PT Seminary; DM Stith in Chicago @ EmptyBottle; Jookabox in Cessna, Italy. Sat- DM Stith in Bloomington @ Landlocked; Sun- Jookabox in Bois, France.

Details here.

THE WELCOME WAGON: NOT SOLD OUT ON YOUR COMPUTER SCREEN

April 14th, 2009 , by

Welcome Wagon performances are rare things. That’s probably why their next performance at Space 38-39, by the International Arts Movement, is now sold out.

But don’t worry: through the powers of the Internets, you can watch it live, as it happens! Tune in here 7:30PM EST, April 16th, and watch. It will almost be like being there, only in two dimensions (on a small screen).

And if you’re the planning sort, you should plan to go to Miller Chapel on Princeton Theological Seminary’s campus for their show on the 17th. Details here.

WHAT TO DO THIS WEEKEND

April 10th, 2009 , by

Via our Twitter account, some things to do this weekend: Fri- Rafter in Seattle @ Chop Suey. Jookabox in Rotterdam @ Lantaren Venster II. Sat-Rafter in Tacoma @ The Helm, Jookabox in Duisburg @ Steinbruch; Sun-Rafter in Portland @ Rontoms; Sun-Jookabox in Bremen @ Treue.

Details here.

LISTEN TO CRYPTACIZE ON MUXTAPE, PREORDER HERE

April 10th, 2009 , by

Mythomania, the second album from Cryptacize, is not out until April 21st. You can do three things about that. One: listen to the whole album, for free, on Muxtape.com (thanks Muxtape!) right here, or on our website right here. Two: you can preorder the CD ($10+S&H) here, or the vinyl LP ($12+S&H) here. Three: time travel. Pick your poison.

ROYAL CITY RETURNS [FREE MP3]

April 9th, 2009 , by

You either love Royal City, or you don’t know of them. We have good news either way. If the latter is true, we’re hoping a well-thought collection of rarities, b-sides, and special songs by the now-disbanded Canadian group changes that for you. Royal City is, dare we say, great. We are lucky to know them because they played their first show in NYC in Sufjan Stevens’ living room in 2003, after wrapping up a tour in Canada where a (then) little known band named Arcade Fire opened for them. Other collaborations included other Canadian heavyweights like Final Fantasy, Feist, and Bob Wiseman. See? They’re friends of your friends.

A good primer to Royal City is journalist Vish Khanna’s retrospective writeup, which serves as this album’s description on our site. Read it here. And we’ve released a free MP3 from the album, "A Belly Was Made For Wine." Graduate from those to an interview by Khanna with bass player Simon Osborne (read here), and then you should be ready for the self-titled album due on June 23rd.

"A Belly Was Made For Wine" (Download)

MBD AT RADIO CITY IN DARK WAS THE NIGHT

April 6th, 2009 , by

If you listen to music, then you – of course! – picked up the superb Dark Was The Night compilation, which included songs from My Brightest Diamond and Sufjan Stevens   (Sufjan covered a Castanets track). Turns out a cadre from the album has gathered to play from Dark Was The Night at NYC’s Radio City on May 3. Spearheaded by none other than the intrepid Dirty Projectors, the concert benefits the AIDS awareness organization, Red Hot. Details and tickets are here. You can still buy the compilation from the website here.

MY BRIGHTEST DIAMOND IS THE FOREST QUEEN

April 6th, 2009 , by

Photograph by Autumn De Wilde

Shara Worden, frontwoman for MBD, appears quite frequently on a new record from a band you might have heard of. They go by the name, "The Decemberists," and The Hazards of Love recounts the story of "a woman named Margaret who is ravaged by a shape-shifting animal; her lover, William; a forest queen; and a cold-blooded, lascivious rake." Shara not only plays the forest queen on the record, but will also be playing the role in The Decemberists’ "A Short Fazed Hovel tour 2009." Click more to see the dates of the rock opera.05.19 Los Angeles, CA: Hollywood Palladium
05.20 Oakland, CA: Fox Theatre
05.21 Eugene, OR: McDonald Theater
05.24 Missoula, MT: Wilma Theatre
05.25 Denver, CO: Fillmore Auditorium
05.27 Kansas City, MO:  Uptown Theater
05.29 Milwaukee, WI: Riverside Theater
05.31 St. Louis, MO: The Pageant
06.01 Columbus, OH: Lifestyle Communities Pavilion
06.03 Atlanta, GA: Tabernacle
06.04 Raleigh, NC: Memorial Auditorium
06.05 Richmond, VA: The National
06.06 Upper Darby, PA: Tower Theatre
06.09 Boston, MA: Radio City Music Hall
06.11-14 Manchester, TN: Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival

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