Ok, read over this list of cities carefully: Salt Lake, Denver, Minneapolis, Chicago, Pontiac, Buffalo. Read them again. Do you live in or within non-carbon-emitting-distance of any of those cities? Well, this just happens to your lucky week pal.

Between now and the 30th, Cryptacize is stopping by one of those cities. Their new album Mythomania becomes a reality in April, but we’ll bet our company farm they’ll be playing songs from it. That means you can tell your friends you heard them first. They’re touring with Ariel Pink’s HAUNTED GRAFFITI, which gives you another reason to go to the show. Extensive details here.

Not near or in one of those cities? Is ok. Read their blog for Cryptacize antics and hijinks to hold you over until the album appears.

Cryptacize, "Tail and Mane" (Download)

Unravel your brain, unwrap your anxiety, and shed those sorry work-worn socks for the soulful goodness that is part bubble-bath, part dance-party and part treasure loaded garage sale. Cryptacize is gearing up for their April 21st release of Mythomania and in celebration of that release, and all things Cryptacize, they have launched an online flagship: The Cryptacize BLOG. Download their mixtapes, read their dirty secrets, and decode their hot lava mystical HTML. It’s all right here. Enjoy!

If you are in the San Francisco area, and can’t wait until April 21st to hear what wonders await on the horizon of Mythomania, you can catch them this weekend at NoisePop Festival with St. Vincent and Rafter at the Great American Music Hall. You can also catch Nedelle of Cryptacize DJ-ing on KUSF this Friday 3-4PM, right here.

Of course you know that Cryptacize are releasing their second album, Mythomania, soon. But what you may not know is that Chris Cohen and Nedelle Torrisi (that’s 66.66666% of Cryptacize!) are performing in a rock’n’roll musical!

Photo by Denny Renshaw

Since the release of Dig That Treasure, Cryptacize have toured the US three times, as well as England and Scandinavia, opening for bands like Why?, Danielson, Shearwater, Ponytail, Magik Markers, Marnie Stern, The Blow, and Mirah. And admidst all of this touring they managed to take time to not only write but record an outstanding sophmore release. An unlikely synthesis of musical styles, Cryptacize’s new album, Mythomania, is an album not quite like any other. Recorded by Cryptacize in a cabin near Yosemite National Park over the summer of 2008, Mythomania will be released on April 21st on Asthmatic Kitty.

Mythomania is a revelation by anyone’s measure. The playing shows a new level of confidence and intent, as well as an artful sense of timing – it’s the sound of a band that’s found themselves and is growing by leaps and bounds. The music is thicker and more continuous; in addition to autoharp, guitars and drums there are now electric basses, keyboards, piano, even found or purely electronic sounds. And yet the same sense of space and suspense which guided 2008’s Dig That Treasure is instantly recognizable on Mythomania. Nedelle Torrisi’s surefooted and richly nuanced vocal arabesques, like a modern day Freddie Mercury or Ronnie Spector, strangely complement Chris Cohen’s guitar, maniacally sped-up a la Les Paul or staccato and funny like Roy Smeck or Adolph Jacobs of the Coasters. Michael Carreira’s syncopated drum corps rudiments and pit-orchestra rave-ups propel the songs with a refreshingly buoyant touch that never lapses into rock music cliches.

Read more here, or listen for yourself to a sneak peek of Mythomania, courtesy of C. Spencer Yeh (of Burning Star Core) who has collaged and distilled the album into a mini-Mythomania.

  "Mini-Mythomania (Remix by C Spencer Yeh)" (Download)

Not only do they play music, utilize robotics, and read books, but Cryptacize also deejays! Friday, November 14th, at 3pm, Cryptacize will be guest dj-ing at San Francisco’s KUSF 90.3 FM. (Now, what they’ll play is anyone’s guess.)

Illustrated by Johnnie Cluney

"It’s an easy thing to remain calm, cool and collected throughout the listening of these songs," writes Sean Moeller, "but there comes a time when the reflections start to happen and you see what Cryptacize has just done to you and you’ve being given an opportunity to cast off into some serpentine waters."

Not only does Daytrotter write and illustrate about Cryptacize, but somehow they coerced four unreleased songs out of Cryptacize’s goody bag. One’s about a witch! Go, listen, read, look here!

We all know though that MP3s do not convey the entirety of good music. That’s why Cryptacize is beginning a "tour," something like an MP3, but live, as in, in real life. And they’re performing this magic of de-digitiziation with the very Masters of The De-digital: Danielson. See tourdates here.

Danielson is part of our family. That’s why we celebrate with them in their release of Trying Hartz, a retrospective collection of not-so-distant classics, live numbers, and oddities. When Danielson invited Cryptacize to join them on tour in support of this 2-disc set, our hearty trio of course said yes. Cryptacize will join Danielson for an extensive US tour starting on Halloween, at the Knitting Factory in NYC, and looping out to California and back.  Rumor has it that certain Cryptacize members will also be assuming supporting roles as musical family members of Danielson.  Be sure to check out the tour dates section here.

The reliably and refreshingly content-heavy music website Daytrotter has posted a revealing look into Cryptacize’s reading habits. In the latest of Daytrotter’s Bookery series, Chris Cohen of Cryptacize reads through the foreward to Edwin Abbott’s 1884 Flatland, replete with Cohen-esque commentary. Listen here (and you can check My Brightest Diamond’s addition to Daytrotter’s ever-expanding Bookery library here).

Our Unusual Animals vinyl series of 7inch vinyls is now four deep. The latest installation, which came out a few weeks ago and sports a Jared Chapman drawn manatee on its cover, features our own Cryptacize on the A-side reframing a Steely Dan hit, sans super-studio million dollars. (Sometimes an autoharp is all you need.) And on the B-side of the record, Why? expertly manages to anthemize Bob Dylan’s "As I Went Out One Morning." Click here to read more about the 7inch, or here to buy it for $6.

Cryptacize recently sat down with HexEd Journal and found themselves defending Steely Dan, as much as anyone can: "The beauty of Steely Dan is that you can ‘get it’ or ‘not get it’ on so many different levels." Read the interview here.

PS. Cryptacize is playing in Atlanta, Athens (at Popfest), Nashville, and Charlotte over the next couple of weeks. Click here for details.

We have held contests before, but humans have always won. With our latest contest, in which Cryptacize offered up one of the songs from Dig That Treasure karaoke, it seems that a robot has finally proven worthy of an Asthmatic Kitty contest.

For the contest, Cryptacize released "Cosmic Sing-a-long" in karaoke form (you see the video here, or download the mp3 here). Entries came in from far and wide, but we had to choose someone. But it’s easy to see why Trusty Nick – aka Nick Yulman –  and his trusty Robot won. Click more to view the fabulous robo-aoke video, or you can also click here to go to YouTube, or here to visit Nick’s website.

While we send Trusty Nick his prize ($150, CD, and LP!), Cryptacize will wrap up a US tour and then prep for a UK tour by eating lots of curry. On Wednesday night they’re playing in LA at The Echo with Becky Stark of Lavender Diamond and Palms. You can view other tour dates here.

  "Cosmic Sing-a-long," Robo-aoked by Nick Yulman